UK

Tens of millions of phones will receive an emergency alert today as the government tests the system nationwide for the first time. At 3pm, a distinct sound and vibration will be accompanied by a message telling people a new service has launched that will “warn you if there’s a life-threatening emergency nearby”. You will be

Dogs and their owners lined the streets for the funeral procession of Paul O’Grady – TV star, LGBTQ campaigner and animal lover.   A private funeral for O’Grady, who died on 28 March, will follow the procession through the village of Aldington in Kent. Dogs from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home will form a guard of

Just Stop Oil activists have refused to rule out targeting Sunday’s London Marathon, following their disruption of the World Snooker Championships earlier this week. Some 50,000 demonstrators are expected to gather around Westminster from today until Monday to demand an end to fossil fuels, according to Extinction Rebellion, which is organising the event. It is

A Russian “spy” ship stopped at sites around wind farms off the Scottish coast in order to gather intelligence, an investigation has claimed. The Admiral Vladimirsky was part of an operation to map undersea infrastructure in the North Sea, according to a joint report by broadcasters in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. It is officially

SNP treasurer Colin Beattie is stepping down from his role after he was arrested on Tuesday. He said he will also step down from Holyrood’s Public Audit Committee while the police investigation into the party’s funding and finances takes place. Mr Beattie, who has been SNP treasurer for most of the past 19 years, was

The rate of inflation has eased slightly but still remains above 10%, according to official figures showing record costs for some essential foods. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the consumer prices index (CPI) measure slowed to 10.1% in March from 10.4% the previous month. Economists had largely expected a figure of 9.8%. The

SNP treasurer Colin Beattie has been arrested by police investigating the party’s funding and finances. In a statement, Police Scotland said: “A 71-year-old man has today, Tuesday, 18 April 2023, been arrested as a suspect in connection with the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party. “The man is in

The UK’s unemployment rate ticked up to 3.8% in the three months to February, according to official figures that also highlighted a faster than expected spike in wage rises. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the jobless rate rose from 3.7% due to a surge in the number of people unemployed for more than

At least 195,000 procedures and hospital appointments in England had to be rescheduled due to the junior doctors strike last week – but the true figure is likely to be higher. Some 20,470 inpatient procedures were rescheduled, along with 175,755 outpatient appointments, making a total of 196,225. An average of 26,145 staff per day were

A disability campaigner has told police forces they should “do more” to combat a rise in hate crimes targeting people with disfigurements. It comes after “sobering” research shows 33% of people with visible differences or disfigurements said they had experienced a hate crime – compared with 28% in 2019. The Changing Faces survey also suggests

Escalating nurse strike action by withdrawing protection for emergency hospital care will endanger patient safety, a NHS leader has warned as the government said a “full and final” pay offer had been made to staff. Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents health trusts, also raised concerns over the possibility of nursing

The mother of Ava White, a 12-year-old girl who was stabbed to death, says new police powers to tackle adult knife crime should also be applied to younger offenders. When Ava was murdered in Liverpool city centre in 2021, it was a crime that stunned and appalled the nation. Her mother Leeann, now a knife

The Grand National got under way following a 12-minute delay after protesters were removed from the racecourse at Aintree. The race started at 5.27pm after around 15 demonstrators were reported to have been on the track, clinging to some of the 30 fences. Horses were taken away from the parade ring while racegoers were informed

An animal rights group says it will attempt to stop the Grand National from going ahead this afternoon. Animal Rising activists are planning to scale fences and storm the track – and it’s claimed up to 300 protesters will attend. Others will block traffic by performing a slow march along the main access route outside

Doctors who treated a British woman after she caught “break-bone fever” in the south of France have warned climate change could cause outbreaks as far north as the UK. The 44-year-old woman was infected with dengue, a mosquito-borne disease, while visiting family near Nice last September and developed a fever, muscle pain, headache and rash.

A teenager from Essex has been sentenced to at least six years in prison after admitting he was planning a terror attack on the police and military. Matthew King, 19, from Wickford, was arrested by the Metropolitan Police on 18 May last year, and charged with the preparation of terrorist acts. King had told an

A mother and father have been found guilty of murdering their baby son on Christmas Day in a “savage and brutal” killing. Cannabis-smoking Stephen Boden, 30, and Shannon Marsden, 22, burnt and beat their baby “in repeated acts of severe violence” in the days before his death. Both were convicted on Friday after a five-week

A man has been extradited from Pakistan and charged with the murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has said. PC Beshenivsky was gunned down while responding to a robbery at a travel agent in Bradford in November 2005. The 38-year-old, a mother to three children and two stepchildren, had only served

Prince Harry will attend the King’s coronation – but Meghan will remain in California with their children, Buckingham Palace has announced. In a statement, it said: “Buckingham Palace is pleased to confirm that The Duke of Sussex will attend the Coronation Service at Westminster Abbey on 6th May. “The Duchess of Sussex will remain in

The fashion designer Mary Quant has died, her family have said. She was 93 and well-known as a pioneer of the mini-skirt and hot pants. The V&A Museum website says there is “no conclusive evidence” to say who first adopted a mini-skirt look. But for Dame Mary, it became a trademark of her style. She

Four suspected pipe bombs have been found in a cemetery in Northern Ireland, police have said. Officers sealed off the City Cemetery in Creggan, Londonderry, on Tuesday following the discovery of a suspicious device. It comes just hours ahead of President Joe Biden’s visit to Belfast. Assistant Chief Constable Bobby Singleton said the discovery of

Joe Biden will hold a bilateral meeting with Rishi Sunak today after arriving in Northern Ireland last night to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. Mr Sunak greeted Mr Biden after Air Force One landed at Belfast International Airport for the US president’s four-day visit to the island of Ireland. The two

Junior doctors will begin a four-day strike today as an NHS leader warns up to 350,000 appointments, including operations, could be cancelled. The walkout by up to 47,600 junior doctors is part of a worsening pay dispute which threatens huge disruption to the NHS. The strikes centre around a pay row between the British Medical

The mother of two British-Israeli sisters who were killed last week in a shooting attack in the West Bank has died of her wounds, hospital officials said on Monday. Maia and Rina Dee, 20 and 15 respectively, were killed when their car was attacked on Friday in a shooting by suspected Palestinian assailants close to

Emergency and urgent care will be prioritised over routine appointments and treatment during this week’s junior doctors’ strike, NHS England says. The strike will begin early on Tuesday and run through until the early hours of Saturday, bringing “immense pressures” to staff and services, according to national medical director of NHS England Professor Sir Stephen

Up to 250,000 appointments and operations are at risk in England’s hospitals when junior doctors walk off the job for four days next week. The strikes, which are part of a long-running pay dispute, begin at 6.59am on Tuesday and last until 6.59am on Saturday 15 April. NHS national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis

The UK is expected to enjoy 18C sunshine on Easter Sunday, which forecasters say could be the warmest day of the year so far. The temperature is likely to surpass that of some Greek islands including Santorini, Mykonos and Crete, where many people have travelled for the Easter holidays. High pressure moving across the nation

A 12-year-old boy is due to appear in court today, charged with murder following the death of a 60-year-old grandmother who was hit by a car. Marcia Grant suffered fatal injuries in the incident, which happened in the Greenhill area of Sheffield on Wednesday evening. Emergency services were called to reports of a collision between

The “boy in the tent” – who raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for a hospice – is among more than 850 community and charity representatives invited to the King’s coronation. Max Woosey, 13, raised more than £750,000 for North Devon Hospice by camping in his garden for three years. The feat has earned him

S Club 7’s Paul Cattermole has died at the age of 46. Cattermole’s death comes just weeks after the group announced it was going on a major reunion tour. The band’s management said: “We are truly devastated by the passing of our brother Paul. There are no words to describe the deep sadness and loss

Police in Northern Ireland have said they have “strong” intelligence terror attacks are being planned against their officers on Easter Monday. Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Simon Byrne said that officers would be moved to frontline duties to counter any potential threats, in a policing strategy he said hadn’t been used for

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