News 14/08/26

Nigel Farage has announced he will not attend the Clacton by-election declaration, where he is a candidate.

The Reform UK leader said Essex Police had advised him of an organised campaign to disrupt and degrade the result. Farage said he was not scared, but would not attend the count.

UK energy firms have made £6bn in profits in 2026, according to the End Fuel Poverty Coalition.

Campaigners say the oil and gas war windfall amounts to £200 for every household. The claims come as Ofgem prepares its energy price cap announcement later this month, with costs set to rise. Uplift’s deputy director Robert Palmer said the profit was a war bonus.

A child and three firefighters have been taken to hospital as fires raged on Thursday across the West Midlands.

Fire services reported extreme demand as the UK recorded its hottest day. Around 100 firefighters tackled a blaze near Stourbridge Golf Course, which spread through dry grass and woodland and set six homes alight. Four homes were destroyed in Stoke-on-Trent, a woman was seriously injured in Castle Vale, Birmingham, and a major incident was declared.

Broken engine fragments smashed a cabin window on a Ryanair plane last month, causing a man’s head and right shoulder to be sucked into the opening, US investigators say.

An engine fan blade broke shortly after takeoff on 10 July, during a flight from Greece to Germany. Serbian national Ljubisa Karović was seriously injured. The NTSB was delegated the investigation.

Twenty people have been injured, two seriously, after a train derailed in East Sussex and a major incident was declared.

Network Rail said the 14:24 Southern service from London Victoria to Eastbourne came off the tracks close to Lewes station shortly before 16:00. Three carriages derailed, leaving several people trapped. British Transport Police said all 150 people on board have now been evacuated.