UK

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,

A variant of the Delta virus that is more infectious, but is less likely to cause symptoms, now accounts for more than one in 10 COVID cases in England, new research shows. The latest results from the long-running REACT-1 study shows the prevalence of the AY.4.2 variant has been growing at a rate of 2.8%

A man accused of murdering his girlfriend was recorded on a mobile phone as he repeatedly stabbed, strangled, and ran over her during a psychotic episode after eating a cannabis brownie, a court has been told. University student Lauren Bloomer, who was stabbed more than 30 times, “recorded her own murder” after seeking advice on

People with mental health issues are being “failed” across the entire criminal justice system as their needs are being missed, according to a major inspection. The report, which has been conducted by six regulatory bodies, says that “thousands of people” with mental health issues are having their needs missed by police forces, prosecutors, prisons and

Former England coach David “Bumble” Lloyd has apologised to Azeem Rafiq and the “Asian cricket community” over comments he made. It comes after Rafiq gave evidence to MPs on his experience of institutional racism at Yorkshire County Cricket Club and within the sport as a whole. He said the Sky Sports commentator tried to smear

A man who stabbed people at random, killing one and seriously injuring seven others, has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 21 years. Zephaniah McLeod carried out the series of attacks in the early hours of 6 September last year, as people were enjoying a night out in Birmingham City

The UK’s terror threat level has been raised from “substantial” to “severe”, meaning an attack is now judged to be “highly likely”. The move, confirmed by Home Secretary Priti Patel, follows an explosion outside a hospital in Liverpool on Sunday which police have declared a terror incident. Detectives have arrested four people over the blast,

The NHS is facing the “most difficult winter in its history”, with almost 90% of hospital trust leaders feeling “extremely concerned”, research has found. NHS Providers, which carried out the survey, said that while cases of COVID-19 are “well below” their peak in January, some trusts are “beyond full stretch”. It is urging the government

One person has died and another has been injured after a car exploded outside a hospital in Liverpool. Merseyside Police confirmed it was called to reports of a car explosion outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital at 10.59am on Sunday. Images from the scene showed a car on fire and then burnt out, with smoke billowing over

Three people have been arrested by counter-terror police following a fatal car explosion outside a Liverpool hospital. The men are aged 29, 26, and 21 according to police and were detained in the Kensington area of Liverpool before being arrested under the Terrorism Act, in connection with the explosion. “Detectives from Counter Terrorism Police North

The Queen will be attending the Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph in central London, leading the nation in commemorating those who lost their lives in conflicts. It will be her Majesty’s first public outing after being advised to rest by doctors for almost a month, following medical checks in hospital. The remembrance service will

Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe’s husband has ended his three-week hunger strike after making a promise to his imprisoned wife. Richard Ratcliffe has been camped outside the Foreign Office in London for the past 21 days as part of his long-standing campaign for his wife’s release from Iranian prison. But on Saturday he tweeted: “Day 21 #FreeNazanin