UK

A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murdering a woman who was shot dead in east London. Lianne Gordon, 42, died at the scene after the shooting in Hackney earlier this week. The Metropolitan Police said the arrested teenager was detained in the early hours of Friday and remains in custody. An investigation

The UK and US governments have imposed sanctions on two Russian hackers after the private conversations of high-profile politicians and civil servants were compromised. The Foreign Office said the “Star Blizzard” group, a subordinate of an FSB cyber unit, had targeted MPs, Lords, civil servants, journalists and others in attempts to “meddle in British politics”

Benjamin Zephaniah, the British poet and writer, has died aged 65. He was diagnosed with a brain tumour eight weeks ago, a post on his Instagram page said, describing him as a “true pioneer and innovator” who “gave the world so much”. “Benjamin’s wife was by his side throughout and was with him when he

Homes have been evacuated as a bomb disposal squad investigates a “suspicious item” found in a house in north-west England. Cumbria Police declared a “major incident” after they discovered the item on Wednesday afternoon following concerns for the welfare of an individual in Steel Street, Ulverston. A 46-year-old man was arrested and is being held

Boris Johnson was interrupted as he apologised for the “suffering” caused by the COVID pandemic. Four people were subsequently removed from the hearing, where they had been in the public gallery holding up pictures. Mr Johnson had told the inquiry: “I am deeply sorry for the pain and loss and suffering.” One protester held up

A man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a heavily pregnant woman was stabbed in Aberfan, South Wales. The 29-year-old woman has been taken to hospital. Her injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. Local schools and childcare facilities were placed into lockdown as a precaution. Aberfan stabbing – follow live In

Prince Harry “has, unjustifiably, been treated less favourably than others” over his security arrangements when he is in the UK, a court has been told. The Duke of Sussex is taking legal action against the Home Office over a decision in February 2020 that meant he would no longer be given the “same degree” of

A new five-point plan to reduce immigration has been announced by the government, which includes banning care workers from bringing over their families and increasing the minimum salary for a skilled worker visa. Home Secretary James Cleverly has come under pressure since taking office three weeks ago to show he is taking a hardline on

Around 1,500 homes and businesses are still without power after heavy snow caused major power cuts in Cumbria. It came as much of the country was hit by cold and wet conditions over the weekend, including a low of -12.5C recorded in northern Scotland overnight. Freezing conditions are forecast to continue on Monday and the

A British soldier shot dead on a motorcycle trip in Kenya was killed just three days before he was due to finish his deployment. Major Kevin McCool, 32, was off-duty when he was attacked on 29 November. His father Joseph said he was on a bike trip away from base, preparing for the end of

A fresh amber snow warning is in place for parts of the North West region of England as the UK’s frosty start to December continues. The warning covers the coastal area of west Cumbria, and central and western parts of the Lake District and falls within a wider area already covered by a yellow warning

Weather warnings for snow and ice are in place across swathes of the UK as temperatures plummeted below freezing overnight. Forecasters have warned the wintry conditions could affect some road and rail journeys with icy surfaces posing the risk of injury from slips and falls. Glasgow Airport has suspended flights due to heavy snow, with

Charlotte, not her real name, wanders back and forth with her empty coffee cup held out towards the tide of commuters coming through the barriers. Rush hour at Whitechapel underground station is the best time of day for the small, frail, 23-year-old to earn enough change to pay for her next hit. She’s agitated, but

Sarah* was a “smug married” woman with a “middle-class, middle-everything life”, before a knock on the door brought her world crashing down. Early one morning, the day before her son’s birthday, she awoke to find police officers in her bedroom. Her husband was standing there with the police – their “really average” life would never

Parts of the UK could see up to 5cm of snow today, with temperatures set to fall as low as -10C (14F) in some areas. Three yellow weather warnings are currently in place, with Met Office forecasters warning that colder conditions will persist into the weekend. The whole eastern coast of the UK, stretching from

Buckingham Palace is considering whether it should take action after the King and Princess of Wales were named in the Dutch version of a new book as senior royals who questioned what skin colour Prince Archie would have. When the unsubstantiated allegation first surfaced two years ago, the palace described it as fiction. And there

Author Omid Scobie has insisted he never submitted a book with the names of two members of the royal family alleged to have raised “concerns” about the skin colour of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s son. Dutch copies of his latest book, Endgame, have been pulled after they were reportedly named in the translation. But

A 13-year-old boy has been sentenced to two years in custody at a young offenders’ institution for causing the death of a grandmother by dangerous driving. Marcia Grant was run over with her own car in Greenhill, Sheffield, on 5 April. The offender, who was 12 at the time and cannot be named for legal

The sale of a new book about the Royal Family has been halted in the Netherlands. Xander, the publishers of the Dutch translation of Omid Scobie’s Endgame, have put sales of the book on hold “temporarily” over what it calls an “error”. They said in a statement: “[We are] temporarily withdrawing the book by Omid

Yellow weather warnings have been issued, with parts of the UK told to prepare for “hazardous conditions” as snow and ice is forecasted. The Met Office has said roads and railways are likely to be affected, with the warnings issued from tonight until Thursday morning. Warnings cover parts of Scotland and northeast England. Forecasters warned

Government officials have discussed legal ways they could block any export of the Elgin marbles, Sky News understands, as Downing Street cancelled a meeting between the prime minister and his Greek counterpart. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was due to meet Rishi Sunak in London on Tuesday morning, but Number 10 cancelled on Monday evening

A new strain of swine flu has been detected in a person for the first time in the UK. It is understood a person in North Yorkshire was diagnosed with the illness as part of routine national flu surveillance after visiting their GP with breathing problems. The person involved is not known to have worked

More wintry weather – including snow in places – is forecast for the UK later this week after temperatures dropped below freezing two nights in a row. Thermometers plunged as low as -7.7C in Shap, Cumbria, on Friday night and -5C in parts of Scotland on Saturday night. Many other parts of northern England and

Former England manager Terry Venables has died at the age of 80.  A statement issued on behalf of his family said: “We are totally devastated by the loss of a wonderful husband and father who passed away peacefully yesterday after a long illness. “We would ask that privacy be given at this incredibly sad time

Tens of thousands of people have taken part in a mass protest in central London to call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. An estimated 45,000 protesters marched from Park Lane to Whitehall on Saturday carrying banners and placards, as police handed out leaflets that provided them with “absolute clarity” over what would land them

A man who strangled his disabled girlfriend to death with a dog lead has been jailed for life. Matthew Hyde, 41, launched a vicious attack on Sara Bateman at her home in Willenhall Road, Willenhall in the West Midlands, on 28 March this year. Hyde moved in with Ms Bateman shortly after meeting the 50-year-old

The mother of one of the boys who died in a car crash in North Wales has told other parents to “hold your loved ones tight” in a tribute to her son. Harvey Owen, 17, was found in a silver Ford Fiesta in Snowdonia (Eryri) on Tuesday with friends Wilf Fitchett, Jevon Hirst and Hugo

At least 246 XL bully dogs will be euthanised when a ban on the breed comes into force at the end of the year, Sky News can reveal. The dogs currently live in rescue centres run by the RSPCA, Blue Cross, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, Dogs Trust and Mayhew, among others. Under the ban,

A man has died during a stand-off with armed police in east London. Officers were called to an address in Weston Green, Dagenham, on Thursday evening by a man who said he planned to take his own life. The man, believed to be aged 40, also told police he had loaded firearms. Armed police attended

A large fire has broken out a high-rise building in Reading, with dramatic footage showing a worker being winched to safety by a crane surrounded by flames and thick black smoke in the centre of the town. Video posted on social media shows the blaze at what appears to be a construction site – with

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has insisted his tax cuts are about “long-term growth” for the economy, calling it “silly” to think they were instead about the timing of the next election. The Conservative Party has been told to be ready for a general election from 1 January, a senior government source told Sky News’s political editor

Four men have been handed life sentences for murdering council worker Ashley Dale who was shot in her garden in Liverpool. The 28-year-old’s boyfriend Lee Harrison, a drug dealer who was in a feud with a rival gang, was the intended target, Liverpool Crown Court heard. He was not at her home in Old Swan

The mother of one of the four teenagers found dead after a car crash in North Wales has said she wishes she could wake from her “nightmare”. Jevon Hirst, Harvey Owen, Wilf Henderson and Hugo Morris – all aged 16, 17 and 18 – were found in a silver Ford Fiesta in Snowdonia (Eryri) on