Exclusive: NHS trusts increasing fuel stocks and putting staff on standby to postpone operations, FoI revealsEnglish hospitals have increased emergency fuel supplies and put staff on standby to postpone operations and switch off X-ray scanners amid heightened concerns over energy provision this winter.NHS hospital trusts across England have put their power plans under the microscope as they look to protect patients from potential outages for lifesaving equipment. Continue reading...
by Dan Sabbagh Defence and security editor on (#66RE8)
Ioane Koroiveibau’s case gives hopes to hundreds of other Commonwealth nationals who served in UK forcesA Fijian British army veteran who suffered from deafness after serving in Afghanistan has been allowed to return to the UK, in a case that gives hope to hundreds of other Commonwealth former soldiers living abroad.Ioane Koroiveibau, 36, gave up on Britain in 2015 when his immigration paperwork was lost after his discharge on medical grounds, his hearing loss caused by repeated exposure to gunfire on a dangerous tour in Helmand. Continue reading...
The former Britpop star has denied sending ‘abusive and sexually orientated’ messages to Davies, who performs as the Anchoress and worked on Draper’s debut solo albumPaul Draper, former frontman of the Britpop band Mansun, has been accused of stalking the musician Catherine Anne Davies, AKA the Anchoress, including sending “abusive and sexually orientated” messages to the musician and her partner.After Draper’s musical career had effectively ended following the demise of Mansun in 2003, Davies invited him to sing on her debut album, 2016’s Confessions of a Romance Novelist, and then helped him launch a solo career, co-writing songs for his 2017 album, Spooky Action, which charted at No 19. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#66RAJ)
Johan Lundgren gets rise of about 273% from 2021, when he received no bonus because of Covid pandemicThe boss of easyJet was paid almost £3m in 2022, in the year when the airline made a £208m loss and cancelled thousands of flights because of staffing and other problems.The easyJet chief executive, Johan Lundgren, received a £1.2m annual bonus and £925,000 in shares on top of his £833,000 fixed salary and benefits. Continue reading...
Majidreza Rahnavard accused of fatally stabbing security force members early in protests sparked by Mahsa Amini’s death in custodyIran has publicly hanged a man accused of killing two members of the security forces in its second use of capital punishment against anti-government protesters.Majidreza Rahnavard’s family were woken early on Monday morning to be informed that he had been executed and that his body had been buried in a lot in the local cemetery. Continue reading...
Duke of Sussex makes the claims in new trailer for Harry and Meghan Netflix docuseriesAn intriguing claim involving the Prince of Wales by his brother features in the latest trailer for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Netflix documentary.In a 90-second teaser released on Monday, Harry says: “They were happy to lie to protect my brother,” before adding: “They were never willing to tell the truth to protect us.” Continue reading...
Moon Jae-in gave up hunting dogs claiming government refused to cover food and veterinary billsA pair of dogs gifted four years ago by the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, have ended up at a zoo in South Korea after a dispute over who should pay for the animals’ care.Kim had given the two white Pungsan hunting dogs – a breed indigenous to North Korea – to the then South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, as a gift after their summit talks in Pyongyang in 2018. Continue reading...
Freezing temperatures linked to weak polar vortex in the stratosphere, with cold weather expected to remain through the weekThe current cold spell in Europe will persist this week as high pressure continues to stagnate over western Russia. The cold weather is linked to a weak, split polar vortex in the stratosphere, which allowed high pressure to build across Greenland last week. This in turn led to Arctic air flooding south across the UK on northerly winds. The polar vortex is due to strengthen, eventually helping to end the cold spell with low pressure to the west of the UK becoming dominant.Much of western and central Europe, including the UK, will stay consistently around 5C below typical values for this time of year, with many places struggling to rise above freezing even during the daytime. Change is on the horizon, however, as low pressure systems begin to encroach into Europe towards the weekend. Latest forecasts show temperatures in western Europe returning to average by the start of next week, though in central and northern Europe extreme cold will persist a little longer. In contrast, Spain, which has experienced a record-breaking warm and dry autumn, will finally have some recognisably wintry temperatures. Continue reading...
This is an extract from our First Edition newsletter. To sign up, click hereAfter ministers rebuffed an offer by nursing unions to suspend strikes in return for new pay negotiations, and with Cobra meetings due on Monday to work through controversial contingency plans involving the military, there is little reason to expect a reprieve from planned strikes.Industrial action already under way in December among bus, rail and postal workers will intensify and broaden this week to others in the public sector including ambulance drivers, baggage handlers, and driving examiners. The result will be some of the most significant disruption to the British economy in recent memory. Continue reading...
Biden faces a renewed push, domestically and internationally, to drop charges against Assange, who is languishing in a UK jailThe Biden administration has been saying all the right things lately about respecting a free and vigorous press, after four years of relentless media-bashing and legal assaults under Donald Trump.The attorney general, Merrick Garland, has even put in place expanded protections for journalists this fall, saying that “a free and independent press is vital to the functioning of our democracy”. Continue reading...
Sole remnant of 19th-century hospital building in Stratford renovated as part of grassroots heritage programmeStonemasons have been giving young people the chance to work with them in restoring a historical art deco arch in east London, instilling local pride in one of the capital’s most deprived boroughs.The arch in Stratford is all that survives of Queen Mary’s hospital for the East End, opened in the 19th century for the local population who worked in factories and workshops, where accidents were common. It was described by one contemporary as “a lighthouse in a neighbourhood without illumination” until it was badly damaged during the second world war and, ultimately, demolished in 1983. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Political correspondent on (#66R27)
Plan would mean new developments must have sufficient provision of free or subsidised childcare up to age 11A cross-party group of MPs is seeking to change the law so childcare is treated as an infrastructure issue like schools, GPs and public transport, placing a duty on major housebuilders to ensure new developments have sufficient provision to match an expanding population.The plan, led by the Labour MP Stella Creasy, comes as an amendment to the levelling up and regeneration bill, which returns to the Commons on Tuesday for the final part of its committee stage. Continue reading...
League promises a week-long ‘festival of football’ after three-year deal with NSW governmentThe A-Leagues have sparked anger among fans after selling the rights to host its grand finals to the New South Wales government, with Sydney to host the men’s and women’s showpiece events for the next three years in a reported eight-figure deal.In a departure from tradition for Australian football, the title deciders could potentially be played away from the highest-placed team’s home ground. Continue reading...
Complex reportedly struck by Himars rockets may have been a stronghold of Wagner mercenary group that fights for KremlinUkraine has attacked a barracks in the Russian-occupied city of Melitopol with some Ukrainian sources claiming scores of Russian casualties.According to witnesses 10 explosions were heard, although some of those may have been from Russian anti-aircraft systems. Ukrainian officials claimed scores of Russian dead and injured while Russia conceded a handful of casualties. Continue reading...
Yellow weather warnings in place with snow and ice across country as residents of Cornwall advised not to travelFurther travel disruption is expected this week with temperatures forecast to stay well below freezing overnight, and up to 10cm of snow forecast in the south-east of England.Met Office yellow warnings were in place from Sunday until Monday morning for northern and south-western Scotland, Northern Ireland, north-eastern England, the Midlands and south-west as well as London and the south-east. Continue reading...
Army’s role risks being politicised as personnel called on to cover for Border Force and ambulance workersA winter of discontent is upon us and it falls to the military to bail the government out. Six hundred soldiers are getting a week’s training to be ready to cover for striking Border Force staff at ports and airports over the Christmas period. A few hundred more are expected to be called on to help cover during the 21 December ambulance workers strike.Of course, the military exists to act in last resort: their help was necessary and vital during the Covid crisis or where there is flooding or another civil emergency. Sometimes it is only the armed forces that have the personnel and knowhow to assist in a crisis. However, this winter, it is hard to escape the feeling that soldiers are at risk of being politicised for little gain to themselves. Continue reading...
Labour and former army head warn repeated use of armed forces may lead to burnout and soldiers quittingPlans for military staff to cover for striking workers are to be discussed at a Cobra meeting, amid warnings that over-stretched troops are being used repeatedly to bail out ministers unable to solve disputes.With about 1,000 personnel due to miss Christmas breaks as they fill in for ambulance crews and border staff, military sources and retired senior officers warned about the potential impact on morale for troops whose real-terms pay has also declined. Continue reading...
Nine people feared killed after blast destroys block of flats in the capital, St HelierNine people are feared to have been killed and a criminal investigation could be launched after a suspected gas explosion destroyed a block of flats in the centre of Jersey’s capital, St Helier.After a desperate day of searching among the debris, the island’s chief of police, Robin Smith, confirmed that five people had died but said a further four remained missing, with the mission no longer in rescue mode. Continue reading...
Foreign secretary to announce ‘pragmatic’ partnerships with countries likely to be more influential over next 30 yearsThe UK will target a group of about two dozen middle-level countries for long-term diplomatic partnerships in what marks a downgrade of a commitment to human rights as a prerequisite for close relations with the UK.The new policy being outlined in a speech by the foreign secretary, James Cleverly, is an attempt to set realistic ambitions and criteria for Britain’s future relations post-Brexit. It is an implicit admission that the phrase “global Britain”, coined by Boris Johnson, may have set expectations that British diplomatic resources and status cannot match. Continue reading...
by Nadeem Badshah (now) Jane Clinton and Mark Gerts ( on (#66QCX)
Russian barracks hit in strategically important city and German chancellor Olaf Scholz says Vladimir Putin is determined to conquer parts of UkraineA neo-Nazi paramilitary group linked to the Kremlin has asked its members to submit intelligence on border and military activity in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, raising concerns over whether far-right Russian groups are planning an attack on Nato countries.The official Telegram channel for “Task Force Rusich” – currently fighting in Ukraine on behalf of the Kremlin and linked to the notorious Wagner Group – last week requested members to forward details relating to border posts and military movements in the three Baltic states, which were formerly part of the Soviet Union.I’m not really seeing anything coming from the Russian side that gives me confidence that Vladimir Putin is entering these talks in good faith. The wider rhetoric is still very confrontational.Any negotiations need to be real, they need to be meaningful, they can’t just be a fig leaf for Russian rearmament and further recruitment of soldiers.” Continue reading...
Chair of the museum, George Osborne, says it no longer wants to be a ‘destination for climate protest’The future for the British Museum could be very different indeed. That was the message from the organisation’s chair George Osborne in his annual speech to Trustees last month, in which he announced a “complete reimagination” of the museum, under a billion-pound masterplan that will be revealed next year.Among the hints of potential loans of its exhibits, leading to further speculation over the Parthenon marbles, was one explicit promise on energy. “Our goal is to be a net zero carbon museum,” said Osborne, “no longer a destination for climate protest but instead an example of climate solution”. Continue reading...
Hughes toured the US with Gloria Steinem and founded the first shelter for battered women in New York CityThe pioneering Black feminist Dorothy Pitman Hughes, a community activist who co-founded Ms magazine with Gloria Steinem and appeared with her in one of the most iconic photos of the second-wave feminist movement, has died. She was 84.Hughes died on 1 December in Tampa, Florida, at the home of her daughter and son-in-law, according to funeral director Maurice Sconiers. Her daughter, Delethia Ridley Malmsten, said the cause was old age. Continue reading...
by Dan Sabbagh Defence and security editor on (#66QMR)
Mohammed Abouagela Masud accused of setting timer for bomb that destroyed Boeing 747, killing 270 peopleA Libyan accused of preparing the bomb that killed 270 people when an explosion ripped through Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988 is now in US custody, officials have confirmed.Scottish prosecutors, who have been closely involved in the investigation, said the families of those who were killed “have been told” that Mohammed Abouagela Masud had been extradited to the United States. Continue reading...
Severely cold weather has come with low wind speeds, creating perfect storm to drive wholesale costs upUK power prices have hit record levels as an icy cold snap and a fall in supplies of electricity generated by wind power have combined to push up wholesale costs.The day-ahead price for power for delivery on Monday reached a record £675 a megawatt-hour on the Epex Spot SE exchange. The price for power at 5-6pm, typically around the time of peak power demand each day, passed an all-time high of £2,586 a megawatt-hour. Continue reading...
by Sam Jones, Helena Smith in Athens and Jennifer Ran on (#66QKT)
Charges come after Belgian police made six arrests and seized phones, computers and €600,000 in cashBelgian prosecutors investigating allegations that Qatar has sought to influence EU policy by bribing European parliament officials have charged four people with money laundering, corruption and participating in a criminal organisation.The charges, which were announced on Sunday, came two days after police arrested four people and seized computers, mobile phones and €600,000 (£515,000) in cash during searches at 16 properties across Brussels. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#66QKM)
Sacking of nearly 800 crew in favour of low-paid agency workers in March led to calls for loopholes to be closed in seafarers’ wages billThe Trades Union Congress has urged the government to make crucial changes to legislation planned to help seafarers after the P&O Ferries scandal, warning that loopholes otherwise remain that unscrupulous employers could exploit.P&O Ferries admitted deliberately flouting the law when it sacked 786 seafarers and replaced them with low-paid agency crew last March. Despite public outrage and condemnation, and pledges of action from government ministers, the Dubai-owned operator received no fine or sanction – even though its chief executive, Peter Hebblethwaite, told MPs the firm had knowingly decided to break labour law. Continue reading...
Heavy snow delays restoration efforts as local MP says she is ‘desperately worried’ for vulnerable constituentsHundreds of people in Sheffield entered their 10th day without gas on Sunday after more than 1.5m litres of water flooded into gas pipes and created a nightmarish scenario “like something out of a disaster movie”.Heavy snow overnight delayed restoration efforts in Stannington, the worst-affected area, which sits at the top of a hill in the north-west of Sheffield. Malin Bridge, at the bottom of the hill, has also been badly affected. Continue reading...
Orwa Skafe, who fled Syria seven years ago, is among those given jobs and a home in attempt to revive rural areasIt’s been a long journey since Orwa Skafe fled the war in Syria seven years ago but thanks to an innovative resettlement scheme he’s found peace in a tiny village 900 metres (3,000ft) up in the Pyrenees. He is one of the first to benefit from a Catalan government programme to relocate refugees in depopulated villages.The programme, called Operation 500 because it involves villages with fewer than 500 inhabitants, is being run jointly by the regional employment agency, the equality commission and the Association of Micro-villages. Continue reading...
Managers say anxiety is causing distraction, affecting productivity and increasing absenteeismWorkers in the UK are becoming so anxious about the cost of living crisis that it is affecting their performance at work, with two-thirds of managers reporting issues such as rising absenteeism and lack of engagement among stressed-out staff.In a Chartered Management Institute (CMI) survey of more than 1,000 managers and team leaders, 71% said they had seen evidence of the crisis increasing stress and anxiety for their teams. Continue reading...
In the health, rail and the postal services, low pay, safety concerns and fear of losing rights have pushed staff to industrial actionCarmel O’Boyle has worked in the NHS for more than a quarter of a century, first as a healthcare assistant and then as a nurse at a walk-in centre in Liverpool. Continue reading...
The PCS union has told the home secretary that the £63m France deal was ‘doomed to fail’, and that a safe passage visa was neededHome Office staff are rebelling against the government’s attempts to tackle small boats crossing the Channel, demanding its recent deal with the French be scrapped because it is “doomed to fail”.A day after France announced it was increasing the number of rescue vessels in the Channel, the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) has written to the home secretary, Suella Braverman, saying the only solution to the crisis is creating a safe passage visa that allows refugees a secure route to the UK. Continue reading...
Poll ratings in Ireland dip for Mary Lou McDonald despite her distancing herself from former protege and councillor, Jonathan DowdallIt has been called Ireland’s gangland trial of the century but weeks of testimony in courtroom 11 of the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin have morphed into something else: a political test for Sinn Féin and its hopes of leading the next government.Gerry “the Monk” Hutch, 59, a prominent crime boss, is on trial for a 2016 murder that fuelled a feud between rival gangs that dotted Dublin with corpses. Continue reading...
Strikes mean the company cannot guarantee deliveries before 25 December, forcing businesses to meet deadline of this FridaySmall businesses that rely on Royal Mail to deliver their products to customers before Christmas are being forced to take their last orders for gifts as early as this weekend because of the postal backlog already building up as a series of postal worker strikes looms over the next fortnight.Others are working around the clock to ensure orders already placed arrive before 25 December. Continue reading...
Fishing gear used by Maine lobstermen is killing right whales. Will boosting a $1bn industry trump protecting an endangered species?President Macron of France may not have realised it, but he walked into another fishing war earlier this month when he and 200 other guests were treated at the White House to butter-poached Maine lobster accented with American Osetra caviar and garnished with celery crisp.At issue was the lobster, currently subject to a court ruling designed to prevent Maine’s lobstermen from trapping the crustacea in baited pots marked by lines that can fatally entangle feeding North Atlantic right whales. There are now just 340 such whales, with only about 100 breeding females, making the species one of the most endangered on the planet. Continue reading...
Dina Boluarte, Peru’s first female head of state, seeks to steady nation after turbulent 17-month rule of ousted Pedro CastilloPeru’s newest president, Dina Boluarte, swore in her cabinet on Saturday just three days after becoming the country’s first female head of state, and asked each minister to pledge not to be corrupt while in office.The 17 ministers picked by Boluarte, who on Wednesday was elevated from vice-president to replace the ousted Pedro Castillo as the country’s leader, will be key to further inflaming or calming a South American country experiencing a seemingly endemic political crisis. Continue reading...
Dahaba Ali Hussen, who has lived in London for 19 years, stopped while trying to board Eurostar in ParisA black EU citizen with settled status was temporarily denied entry to the UK when she attempted to board a Eurostar train in Paris on Saturday.Dahaba Ali Hussen, a Dutch citizen of Somali origin who has lived in London for 19 years, was on a solo holiday in France when she arrived at the Gare du Nord railway station two hours before her train was set to depart to London St Pancras. Continue reading...
Campaigners point to culture of impunity as five questioned over bribery allegationsThe arrest of a European Parliament vice-president and four others linked to a corruption investigation implicating World Cup hosts Qatar sparked calls Saturday for “root and branch reform” in the EU institution.“This is not an isolated incident,” said anti-corruption campaigning group Transparency International. Continue reading...
63-year-old Joerg Lange’s employer, humanitarian organisation Help, did not say how release securedA 63-year-old German aid worker, Joerg Lange, has been freed more than four years after he was kidnapped in western Niger near the Malian border, his employer, humanitarian organisation Help, said in a statement on Saturday.Armed men on motorcycles kidnapped Lange in April 2018 near the Nigerien town of Inates in borderlands where militant groups, some with links to al-Qaida and Islamic State, have carried out frequent attacks for years. Continue reading...
Police say there could be more fatalities after 4am collapse of three-storey building on Channel IslandAt least three people have died and about 12 people are believed to be missing after an explosion in a block of flats in St Helier, Jersey police have said.The blast at Haut du Mont, Pier Road, in the capital, occurred at about 4am on Saturday, less than eight hours after firefighters had been called to the site after concerns from residents, it was confirmed. Continue reading...
Royal College of Nursing and Unison call on health secretary to negotiate with them to avoid action at Christmas and new yearHealth unions made a dramatic offer on Saturday night to suspend a wave of planned strikes that threatens to cripple the NHS over Christmas and the new year if ministers agree to open serious discussions over pay.The moves by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and the country’s biggest union, Unison, are the first signs of flexibility by either side in a dispute that has been deadlocked for weeks. Continue reading...
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