Frost and fog clearing, then a bright start for many. A band of wet and windy weather sweeping eastwards across most areas, followed by brighter skies with some blustery showers in the west but the late afternoon and evening.Tonight: Rain moves off to the east, leaving a mostly dry and clear evening across much of the UK. Storm Éowyn moves into the west by the early hours.
The prime minister delivered a speech yesterday, following the guilty plea of the Southport killer, saying he will introduce tougher measures for people trying to buy knives online. It was revealed Axel Rudakubana bought the knife he used to murder three young girls on online retail giant Amazon, despite being only 17.
Kyle Clifford has admitted to murdering his ex-girlfriend and her sister with a crossbow and their mother with a knife in an attack at the family home. Carol Hunt, 61, was stabbed to death and Hannah Hunt, 28, and Louise Hunt, 25, suffered fatal crossbow bolt injuries in Bushey, near Watford, on 9 July. Clifford, 26, from north London, changed his plea to the murders during an appearance via video link at Cambridge Crown Court.
The owner of the Sun newspaper has offered a “full and unequivocal apology” to Prince Harry for “serious intrusion” into his private life and agrees to pay him substantial damages. It settles a long-running legal battle between the prince and the newspaper group, moments before it was due to reach the High Court.
January 23, 2025
10:25 am
Bank of England: Goldman Sachs expects deep interest rate cuts
Markets are significantly underestimating the chance that the Bank of England will have to step up the pace of cutting interest rates, Goldman Sachs has argued.
Traders anticipate just two interest rate cuts this year with one more cut priced in for 2026, which would leave the benchmark Bank Rate at 4.0 per cent. It currently stands at 4.75 per cent.
Investors are concerned by signs of stubborn inflationary pressures in the UK economy, with many economists predicting that the headline rate will increase to over three per cent in the spring.
Figures out yesterday also showed that private sector pay growth hit 6.0 per cent in the three months to November, well ahead of expectations.
The prime minister addressed the public yesterday, following the guilty plea from the Southport killer, in which he warns that Britain is facing a new threat from what he called “loners, misfits [and] young men in their bedroom” accessing violent content online.
There are several stories on the new US president including reports on the Capitol rioters who were pardoned, his renewed threats to introduce tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China and as well as reports the 47th president will impose steep tax rises on foreign companies and overseas nationals working in the USA.
The back pages asses the English clubs’ performance in the Champions League, with Liverpool’s win seeing them sit at the top of the league and Aston Villa’s 1-0 loss. Manchester City and Arsenal are in action in the Champions League tonight.
The Sun leads with reports Axel Rudakubana bought a knife from the online retail giant Amazon despite being only 17 at the time. The paper says the law prohibits the sale of knives to under-18s.
Inside the paper, the prime minister promises change saying the lessons to be learnt from the case “could not be clearer.”
The Times says Rudakubana admitted to carrying a knife more than 10 times before he bought one on Amazon to carry out the triple murder in Southport last year. The paper says a Home Office review is underway to try to understand how the government’s counter-extremism programme Prevent failed to stop Rudakubana despite him being recommended three times and having an obsession with “extreme violence.”
The Daily Telegraph reports there are concerns security services could be inundated if the law is expanded to include what the paper calls “lone wolf attackers.”
The Metro also quotes PM Sir Keir saying that in the past the predominant threat was highly organised political groups with clear political intent” like al-Qaeda and that, while that threat remains, a new one is posed by people “desperate for notoriety, sometimes inspired by traditional terrorist groups, but fixated on that extreme violence, seemingly for its own sake”.
The Guardian quotes the PM saying: “You can’t tell me that the material this individual viewed before committing these murders should be accessible on mainstream social media platforms”. The paper says Sir Keir also pledged changes that would allow perpetrators of terror attacks to be charged under terrorism laws even if they lack a coherent ideology.
The Daily Express quotes the prime minister’s statement yesterday, saying the UK is now facing a new threat from “loners, misfits, [and] young men in their bedrooms” viewing violent material online and that “fundamental change” is needed to protect children.
The Daily Express reports “sweeping change at the stroke of a Sharpie.” The paper picks up on the many executive orders Donald Trump signed within hours of being sworn in as the new US president.
The Times says the president took aim at everyone in his inaugural speech, including migrants. Within hours of taking office, he pardoned 1,500 of his supporters who stormed the US capitol in 2021. The move sparked “joy” for his supporters and “anger and fear” for those who are not.
The Telegraph features an article from Philip Johnston who says that it’s hard not to envy the positivity of what Trump is promising to do for Americans. He calls on the prime minister to learn some lessons from Trump saying “boosterism sure beats gloomsterism”.
‘Flurry of announcements was exhilarating,’ says Mail.
‘Flurry of announcements was exhilarating,’ says Mail.
Daniel Hannan writes in the Mail that the flurry of announcements was “exhilarating”.
Donald Trump first acts as the new US president, reactions to the Southport killer’s guilty plea and the prime minister’s announcment of an inquiry into the state’s failings as well as Prince Harry settling his court case with The Sun newspaper lead the UK’s trending stories.
When I started talking about Oligarchy, many people didn't understand what I meant.
Well, that's changed.
When the 3 wealthiest men in America sit behind Trump at his inauguration, everyone understands that the billionaire class now controls our government.
We must fight back.
A rapidly growing wildfire, named the Hughes Fire, has erupted in Los Angeles County, forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents. The fire ignited Wednesday morning near Castaic
President Donald Trump has directed US agencies to ramp up efforts to “repel, repatriate, and remove” undocumented immigrants, framing it as part of a broader effort to combat what he
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, who was set to be nominated, accused Sinn Féin and other opposition TDs (MPs) of orchestrating the disruption. He called the delay ‘premeditated, coordinated, and
Fico’s claims, based on what he described as a classified intelligence report, came ahead of a no-confidence motion against his government. The motion was abandoned after the parliamentary session was
A two-year-old boy and a 41-year-old man were killed in a stabbing at Schöntal Park in Aschaffenburg, Germany. Two others, including a child, were seriously injured.
On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump claimed his efforts to resolve the conflict would be a “very big favor” to Russia and its president. He previously vowed to
US News
Europe’s Stoxx 600 index hits record high
Trainline shares dipped this morning after ministers unveiled plans to introduce a national rail ticket website as part of wide-reaching reforms
UK economy: Consumers catch ‘January blues’ as confidence slumps
Consumer confidence in the health of the UK economy slumped in January, pointing to further headwinds in the coming months.
A net -34 of respondents to the British Retail Consortium’s (BRC) latest sentiment monitor said that the economy would get worse over the next three months, down from -27 in December.
This put confidence in the health of the economy at its lowest level since the BRC started collecting data on the topic in March 2024.
The survey comes after a succession of disappointing data releases, which indicate that the economy slowed significantly in the second half of last year.
Rachel Reeves’ tax hikes pose ‘major threat’ to UK labour market resilience
The government’s tax hikes pose a “major threat” to the health of the labour market, a leading economist has warned, as markets prepare for the latest jobs market figures.
The labour market has been a key source of strength for the UK economy, with continued high employment helping to sustain strong levels of wage growth over the past couple of years.
Many forecasts for 2025 assume that the continued resilience of the labour market will ensure that economic growth accelerates compared to last year.
But economists are worried that measures announced in the government’s maiden Budget will threaten the health of the labour market.
Very sad to hear that Wendy Williams has been diagnosed with Frontotemporal dementia, the same condition Bruce Willis suffers from. Appeared on her show many times over the years and she’s a fabulous character & superb broadcaster. Wish her and her family all the best.
Palestinians are human beings who deserve to live in freedom and joy.
That is why hundreds of thousands of us have exercised our right to protest.
We will be here as long as it takes until there is an immediate ceasefire, an end to the occupation, and a just & lasting peace.
Keir Starmer and his allies, clutching a can of petrol in one hand and a box of matches in the other, tutting loudly at the flames. Starmer has no effin clue
