UK

The head of the Royal Air Force signalled he was ready to “bend” his service out of shape and test “the limit of the law” to improve diversity, according to an informed source and the leaked transcript of an internal meeting. Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston has always maintained that efforts under his leadership

Nearly 200 Metropolitan Police officers and staff members who have been accused of domestic violence or sexual offences within the past 10 years may face dismissal. Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, who began the job in September, believes there are hundreds of corrupt officers serving in the force who should not be there. Updating Home Secretary

Nicola Sturgeon has said she had “no prior knowledge” of police plans to arrest her husband Peter Murrell. A spokesperson for the former Scottish first minister said: “It would not be appropriate to comment on a live police investigation. “Nicola Sturgeon had no prior knowledge of Police Scotland’s action or intentions. “Ms Sturgeon will fully

Aldi has been found to be the UK’s cheapest supermarket when buying a basket of shopping – but Asda came out on top when using a trolley to stock up on a larger amount of supplies. A basket of 41 grocery items at Aldi cost £72.54 on average across the month of March, compared with

A mother and her “monster” partner have been found guilty over the death of a two-year-old. Kyle Bevan, 31, was found guilty of murdering his partner’s daughter, Lola James, in Haverfordwest. Sinead James, Lola’s mother, was found guilty of causing or allowing the toddler’s death after a trial at Swansea Crown Court. The attack took

Politicians have paid tribute to former Conservative chancellor Nigel Lawson after his death aged 91. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the party grandee “was a transformational chancellor and an inspiration to me and many others” as he paid tribute on Twitter. Lord Lawson was a Conservative MP representing the constituency of Blaby from 1974 to

The man who shot and killed Liverpool schoolgirl Olivia Pratt-Korbel has been sentenced to life with a minimum of 42 years for her murder. Gunman Thomas Cashman, 34, fired shots into the nine-year-old’s family home in Dovecot, Liverpool, on 22 August 2022, during what prosecutors described as a “ruthless pursuit” to execute another man. He

British men being held by the Taliban in Afghanistan have been in contact with their relatives, a family spokesman has said. Charity medic Kevin Cornwell, 53, and an unnamed UK national who manages a hotel in Kabul are believed to have been detained by secret police since January. A third Briton – so-called “danger tourist”

A new grooming gangs taskforce will be launched to stop the exploitation of children and young women, the government has announced. Specialist officers will help police forces with child sexual exploitation and abuse investigations “to bring more of these despicable criminals to justice”, Downing Street said. The new taskforce will be made up of officers

Extra sailings will run through the night at the Port of Dover to help clear the backlog that left passengers stranded for up to 14 hours.  A spokesperson for the port said they hoped to clear the backlog by Sunday lunchtime, blaming increased Easter traffic, earlier bad weather and delays in French border processing for

A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a woman’s body was found in a marina in Reading, Thames Valley Police have said. Police were called just after 10.30am on Saturday to reports of a body in the water at the Thames & Kennet Marina in Caversham. Officers recovered it from the water

The government has delayed a key announcement on a pay rise for the military despite the soaring cost of living, leaving troops feeling “undervalued”, Sky News can reveal. Military sources said the move was particularly galling because soldiers, sailors and aviators are not allowed to strike over pay but are expected to backfill for other

Ukraine’s foreign minister has branded Wimbledon’s decision to allow Russian and Belarusian players to compete as “immoral”. Dmytro Kuleba urged the UK to deny the athletes visas to enter the country. “Has Russia ceased its aggression or atrocities? No, it’s just that Wimbledon decided to accommodate two accomplices in crime,” said Mr Kuleba in a

The UK economy grew slightly in the last financial quarter, confirming the country avoided recession in the second half of last year. Office for National Statistics (ONS) revisions to economic data covering the fourth quarter of 2022 showed growth of 0.1%. The original estimate for gross domestic product (GDP) between October and November, released in

A self-confessed drug dealer has been convicted of the murder of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel at her home in Liverpool last August. Thomas Cashman, 34, was found guilty of murder, attempted murder, wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm and two charges of possession of firearms by a jury at Manchester Crown Court. Olivia died

Environmental campaigners have warned they could once again take the government to court over its “lacklustre” climate policy. Friends of the Earth said it was “poised to act” if the revised net-zero strategy, published today, failed to meet legal obligations to cut carbon emissions. The campaign group – along with ClientEarth and the Good Law Project – took the government to the High Court last year