A rare red “danger to life” weather warning has been issued by the Met Office for Storm Arwen – with winds so strong they could destroy homes and buildings, disrupt travel and bring down power lines and trees, it says. The Met Office issued its highest alert, warning that gusts in excess of 80mph are
UK
Britain is bringing in travel restrictions for six African countries due to a new COVID variant that UK experts have called the “worst one we’ve seen so far”. Health Secretary Sajid Javid tweeted: “UKHSA (UK Health Security Agency) is investigating a new variant. More data is needed but we’re taking precautions now. “Six African countries
The number of COVID cases the UK has seen since the start of the pandemic has passed 10 million, official figures show. According to government data, the number of people to have tested positive in the latest round of daily figures is 47,240. This takes the total number of coronavirus infections to 10,021,497. Please use
An alleged victim of a Hull grooming gang has told how she was bitten, beaten and burned during a violent rape – and that police and her school had concerns she was being abused but failed to stop it. Warning: This article includes graphic content The teenage girl’s mother was so worried after her daughter
A new and more infectious version of the Delta variant now accounts for 15% of coronavirus cases in the UK, according to the latest government data. AY.4.2 is an evolutionary spin-off of the original Delta variant first found in India. The UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA) designated it a ‘variant under investigation’ on 20
Those who kill emergency service members will face mandatory life sentences after the government decided to back a law change prompted by the death of PC Andrew Harper. The government will introduce “Harper’s law” as soon as possible, to bring in mandatory life sentences for those who kill an emergency worker in the line of
Scotland will not be expanding vaccine passports to pubs, cinemas and theatres, Nicola Sturgeon has announced. There had been speculation that the scheme would be extended but today the first minister told MSPs “we have decided not to extend the scope of the scheme”. She said the Scottish government had taken into account the situation
A man is facing life in jail for murdering a vulnerable woman after following her off a bus in east London. Maria Rawlings, 45, suffered multiple injuries in the attack by 21-year-old Valentin Lazar who then left her in undergrowth in Romford. Ms Rawlings was killed after she visited accident and emergency following a fall.
The UK could be hit by a wetter-than-normal winter with households urged to be prepared for the risk of flooding. A Met Office outlook predicts plenty of rain over the next three months, with the wetter conditions most likely in January and February next year. The Environment Agency is urging people to check their flood
Shamima Begum, the Bethnal Green schoolgirl who fled to Syria and joined IS, has told Sky News she was groomed by friends and older men she met online before joining the terror group. Speaking from a prison camp in Syria, Begum said she wanted to go on trial in the UK and invited British officials
The taxi driver who survived the Liverpool terror attack has said it is a “miracle that I’m alive” in his first statement since the explosion on Remembrance Sunday. David Perry and his wife Rachel have thanked the public for their “amazing generosity” in the wake of the attack outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital one week ago.
People aged above 40 are being urged to get a booster jab to help keep their family and friends safe during the Christmas period, amid a rise in cases in Europe. The National Booking service will now be open to people who are aged 40-49 for their booster jab, as well as young people aged
Spiking coronavirus infections across Europe show the “critical” need for people in the UK get vaccinated, a government scientific adviser has told Sky News. Soaring cases on the continent underlined “how quickly things can go wrong”, said Professor John Edmunds, who pointed out there were still “many millions” across Britain, who were still not fully
Double child killer Colin Pitchfork has been arrested and recalled to prison, the Ministry of Justice has said. It comes two months after he was released from jail. Pitchfork was returned to custody on Friday over a breach of his licence conditions, and his re-release will be a matter for the Parole Board, it is
London is on track for the worst year of teenage murders on record. “The people who are in the gangs don’t seem to have any care for life in the way the general public do. They just don’t care,” says PC Jim Hare. He is part of a Metropolitan Police unit specifically tasked with targeting
The government was not “fully prepared” for the “wide-ranging impacts” of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report, which found that Brexit both helped and hindered preparations for future crises. There was a lack of detailed plans for shielding, job support schemes and school disruption, the National Audit Office found. According to the watchdog,