Author: UK News

Manchester Arena bombing victim’s mother ‘feels misled’ after Sunak meeting There is no bias in the title provided. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsThe mother of a Manchester Arena bombing victim who walked 200 miles to Downing Street has said she feels “misled” by Rishi Sunak after he promised to pass a law in her son’s name.Figen Murray, the mother of Martyn Hett, had talks with the PM on Wednesday in which he promised to introduce Martyn’s Law to parliament…

Today’s biggest trending story is on the general election, announced yesterday, the snap election will take place in just six weeks.

Starmer warns of ‘difficult choices’ over NHS, tuition fees and two-child benefit cap – UK politics live Labour leader quizzed on Today show says damage to economy means he cannot implement ‘ideal world’ policies Good morning. Keir Starmer has been giving interviews this morning, including on the Today programme. Labour is promising “change” but today Starmer seemed determined to temper expectations, repeatedly stressing that that there were things he would like to do in “an ideal world” which voters should not be expecting after 4 July. When Starmer was running for the Labour leadership in 2020, he said he supported…

One of the lead trending stories in the UK today reports that a 10-year-old schoolgirl, on a school trip, was killed in a mudslide.

Leah Harrison, 10, was caught up in the disaster near Carlton-in-Cleveland, North Yorkshire, while on the trip to Carlton Adventure after a morning of persistent rain.

In a statement released on Thursday, her family described her as a “happy” girl who dreamed of playing for the Lionesses.

Year Six pupil Leah Harrison, from Darlington, died following an incident at Carlton Bank on the edge of the North York Moors on Wednesday 22 May.

Almost all of Friday’s front pages report on the first day of the general election campaigning. Rishi Sunak is pictured in most papers after his disastrous election announcement. 

Regardless of political leanings, many of yesterday’s newspapers agreed that the prime minister’s snap July election was a ‘gamble’. The papers, the experts, and inside sources all concluded choosing an election just 6 weeks away didn’t seem like a great course of action for a party that’s 20 points behind in the opinion polls. Many also slammed the prime minister’s decision to give the announcement outside in the rain with protesters blasting music over the prime minister – not great optics for the government. 

However, the date is now set and the papers have firmly put their foot in their camps. Yesterday marked day one of the election campaigning – here’s how the papers cover it. 

Diane Abbott investigation to be completed by 4 June as Starmer sets D-Day for Labour veteran There is no bias in the title provided. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailLabour’s investigation into Diane Abbott will be completed by 4 June, Sir Keir Starmer has said, in what will be a make or break moment for the veteran MP.More than a year after Ms Abbott was suspended, Labour will decide whether she can be reinstated in time for the 4 July general election.The Labour leader said…

General election 2024 live: Tories hit new poll low 26 points behind Labour as Sunak’s party loses support fast There is no bias in the title provided Key takeaways from Rishi Sunak’s general election announcement Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email The Conservatives have hit their lowest vote share yet in a weekly tracker poll after voters apparently turned away from the party when Rishi Sunak called a snap election. According to Techne UK, the Tories now have the support of just 19 per…

Court backlog target in England and Wales no longer achievable, says NAO Watchdog says outstanding caseload has increased from 60,000 to 67,573 since MoJ set target of 53,000 in 2021 The Ministry of Justice’s ambition to reduce the backlog in crown courts in England and Wales to 53,000 by March next year is no longer achievable, a parliamentary watchdog has said. The MoJ set the target in October 2021 when the outstanding caseload was 60,000, but by the end of last year it had reached 67,573 – its highest level ever – according to a National Audit Office (NAO) report.…

Traffic Scotland is reporting heavy traffic on approach, with delays of approximately 30 minute delays

Martin Lewis issues bill ‘fix’ update ahead of Ofgem price cap announcement The MoneySavingExpert founder has spoken out ahead of the expected energy price cap reductionThe article discusses the impact of climate change on global food security. Researchers warn that rising temperatures and extreme weather events are threatening crop yields and food production worldwide. The changing climate is also exacerbating food insecurity in vulnerable regions, leading to increased hunger and malnutrition. Urgent action is needed to address these challenges and ensure a sustainable food supply for future generations. https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/martin-lewis-issues-bill-fix-29228117 Martin Lewis money saving hack

Driving a car gives us freedom to get out and about whenever we want to but it doesn’t have to break the bank. To help you out, Which? has listed the cheapest and most expensive cars to insure for all ages plus for under 25s, using research from GoCompare. On average per year, the most expensive car to insure will cost £1,200 with the cheapest costing a much more affordable £241. Which cars are the cheapest to insure? According to Which? and GoCompare’s research, these are the 10 cheapest cars to insure, all of which cost less than £300: Peugeot 206…

Urgent measles warning to people on board Ryanair flight from London | UK News People on a Ryanair flight from London to Dublin may have been exposed to measles. Fears are rising that passengers and crew on Flight FR123 could have contracted the contagious disease. This is the latest warning from the Health Service Executive (HSE) after more than 74 cases were detected in London alone in April. But infections have been on the rise across all of Great Britain and Ireland. HSE is advising those on board the plane travelling between Gatwick and Dublin at 8.10pm last Thursday that…

Woman winched to safety after falling off Isle of Wight pleasure cruise A woman who fell overboard from a pleasure cruise was stuck in the water for more than two hours before being rescued by helicopter off the coast of the Isle of Wight. A huge search using helicopters and rescue boats was launched when the woman vanished into the English Channel, south of Ventnor at around 1.45pm. The woman was finally located around 6 miles South of St Catherine’s Point and she was winched to safety by a HM Coastguard helicopter at around 4pm. The Island Echo reported that…

Tech titan Mike Lynch testifies at fraud trial that Autonomy was ‘not perfect’ UK founder, accused of inflating sales and misleading regulators, takes stand and says he wasn’t fully responsible for firm’s decisions British entrepreneur Mike Lynch took the stand on Thursday in a San Francisco federal courthouse as a key witness in his own criminal fraud trial, defending his role at Autonomy, the tech firm he co-founded and then sold. While the government has painted the matter as a clear case of fraud, Lynch in his testimony attempted to highlight more complexity, stating that like any business, Autonomy was…

General election 2024: Ten top Tories at risk of losing seats at the general election There is no bias in the title provided. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak has finally fired the starting gun on the general election campaign, stunning Westminster by calling a snap poll for 4 July, ending months of speculation.In a speech in the pouring rain outside 10 Downing Street, the prime minister defended his record on the economy, national security and immigration as he set out the key battleground…

Michael Matheson suspended from Holyrood over iPad roaming bill row | News There is no bias in the original title Former health secretary Michael Matheson has been suspended from the Scottish Parliament for 27 days and will lose his salary for 54 days after racking up a near-£11,000 data roaming bill.Mr Matheson was found to have breached the MSP code of conduct by attempting to use expenses and office costs to cover the bill for a parliamentary iPad.Later announcing he would cover the costs himself, Mr Matheson revealed the bill had been the result of his children using the device…

Labour says early general election leaves many government commitments ‘in the bin’ – UK politics live Bills, including smoking ban for people born after 2009, unlikely to become law before 4 July vote Sign up for our general election newsletter Rishi Sunak is now speaking at an event in Ilkeston in Derbyshire. It is in the Erewash constituency, where the Tory MP Maggie Throup had a majority of 10,606 at the last election. He repeats the claim that a Labour government would cost every family £2,000. Labour’s spending promises cost £16 billion per year in 2028-29, or £58.9 billion over…

What laws can the Conservative government pass before the general election? There is no bias in the title provided. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe Conservatives and Labour have held talks to work out what outstanding legislation can be rushed through parliament to become law before the Commons closes for the general election. Compensations for victims of the subpostmaster scandal This is due to become law after the House of Lords finished scrutinising it on Thursday. But an 11th hour attempt by peers to exonerate…

Thursday’s front pages all lead on the announcement of a July 4 general election. Regardless of political leanings, all the papers note the snap election is a “gamble” on PM Rishi Sunak’s part. 

The media, public and even Tory MPs were shocked by the announcement of a July 4 election. Many Tory MPs were hoping for a November election so the benefits of the improving economy could be felt in the pockets of the public. 

The opinion polls still put the Conservatives far behind Labour and many struggle to see what the government’s plan is now. 

It feels reckless, and like a government who’s already thrown in the towel and has accepted defeat. With the hopes the summer’s Euros might act as a distraction, perhaps if the Tories do lose power, it’ll be against a backdrop of a public enjoying themselves and not looking too hard at No 10.

Hostages’ families and interstellar dust: photos of the day – Thursday New York, US Members of the US Navy walk through Times Square on the first day of Fleet Week, which brings thousands of active naval personnel to the city for seven days of ship tours, concerts, demonstrations, and other events. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/gallery/2024/may/23/a-star-former-and-angela-merkel-photos-of-the-day-thursday

Election headache for Rishi Sunak as UK population grows by 685,000 in past year UK’s population grew by 685,000 people in 2023, a drop from record high net migration in 2022, official estimates show. The latest figures, published a day after Rishi Sunak called a surprise general election on July 4th, will feed the debate about immigration – a key campaign battleground. The Office for National Statistics said that it was too early to tell if the 10 per cent drop in net migration year-on-year was the start of a permanent trend, but pointed to signs that fewer people are…

The Met Office has warned that further heavy rain could pose a danger to life and cause travel disruption, following a fatal mudslide in North Yorkshire. Flood warnings have been issued across England, with one in Scotland.