Author: News Desk

UK should take back Isis members in Syria, Trump’s terror chief says The UK should take back British members of Isis being held in Syrian prison camps, Donald Trump’s incoming counter-terrorism chief has said, indicating that a failure to do so could damage the special relationship. Sebastian Gorka said any nation which wishes to be seen as a “serious ally” of the US should commit to the international fight against the extremist group by repatriating citizens currently languishing in the north east of the country. They include Shamima Begum, who left for Syria from Bethnal Green, east London, as a…

Truss sends cease and desist to Starmer demanding he stop saying she crashed the economy Liz Truss has sent Sir Keir Starmer a cease and desist letter, warning him to stop saying she “crashed the economy”. The former prime minister’s lawyers have said the remarks – made since the lead-up to the general election – are likely to “cause serious harm to her reputation”, claiming they are “false and defamatory”. They also suggest that assertions made by the Labour leader before the July general election contributed to Ms Truss losing her South West Norfolk seat. Sir Keir has repeatedly claimed…

Tories lose vote on grooming gangs inquiry as Starmer hints at U-turn A Conservative Party amendment calling for a national inquiry on grooming gangs has been rejected in the Commons. The amendment to Labour’s flagship Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill received 111 Ayes and 364 Noes, majority 253. Mrs Badenoch’s amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill called for ministers “to develop new legislative proposals for children’s wellbeing including establishing a national statutory inquiry into historical child sexual exploitation, focused on grooming gangs”. Prime minister Keir Starmer hit out at the Tory leader earlier on Wednesday over “lies and…

Weather UK live: Snow and ice warnings across country as cold snap could see temperatures hit -20C Three fresh weather warnings for ice have been issued by the Met Office as an icy blast continues to sweep the UK. Two of the ice warnings will cover most of England’s east coast, Wales, the Midlands northwest England, and Northern Ireland until 10am on Friday. “Scattered wintry showers on Thursday evening will slowly fade overnight, leading to the risk of icy patches on untreated surfaces as temperatures fall below freezing,” the Met Office says. A snow and ice warning for northern Scotland…

Price hikes are coming as firms battle Reeves tax raid, Bank of England survey suggests Inflationary pressures are likely to persist this year as firms prepare to hike prices to combat the effects of Rachel Reeves’ tax-raiding Budget, a survey from the Bank of England suggests. The Bank’s latest decision maker panel, which surveys finance chiefs around the country, showed that firms’ inflation expectations picked up in December. Expected price growth in the year ahead increased to four per cent, up from 3.8 per cent the month before. This was the highest level since April last year. The survey also…

Pound sterling continues to sink as UK economy ‘clearly on very shaky ground’ Pound sterling has continued to sell off this morning, and UK government bond yields have ticked higher as UK risk assets remain under pressure. The pound fell below $1.23 against the dollar in early trade and is currently down 0.7 per cent against the dollar and 0.6 per cent against the euro. Meanwhile, the domestically focused FTSE 250 index opened lower 0.6 per cent. The day after 30-year government bond yields reached their highest this century, yesterday 10-year government yields jumped to 4.82 per cent, the highest…

UK fintech funding races ahead of Europe According to new figures, the UK’s fintech sector was beaten by only the US on total investment last year despite a sharp fall in funding on 2023 levels. As global fintech investment fell 20 per cent globally to $43.5bn (£35.2bn), the UK attracted $3.6bn (£2.9bn) of total funding, more than the next five European countries combined, according to data from Innovate Finance. Despite the sharp fall in new capital coming into the sector, industry figures are hoping for a resurgence in 2025. “When we’ve been speaking with investors, they’re positive about 2025,” Janine…

The chancellor is under pressure as the pound has dropped to its lowest level for more than a year and UK government borrowing costs have continued to rise as concerns about public finances and the economy grow.

The ongoing spat between European leaders and American tech companies continues as well as pushback from Europe on Elon Musk’s continued meddling in European politics.

Wildfires are rapidly spreading across Los Angeles, destroying homes and businesses, in the worst fires the county has ever seen. At least 5 people have been killed.

UK weather today 09 January 2025 Thursday will be another cold day with icy stretches to start and a few freezing fog patches may be slow to clear. There will be plenty of sunny spells with further wintry showers possible in the north and west. Another cold night to come with a widespread severe frost and ice forming in places. Wintry showers continue in the north and west, but generally dry elsewhere with clear skies. Source – Met Office

ICE BERG! Bergvall keeps his cool to put Spurs on brink of Wembley final The back page of the Daily Mail leads with an image of the Swedish player Lucas Bergvall who scored a late winner against Liverpool in the first leg of the semis. Spurs will face Liverpool again next month for the second leg.