UK

A tenth person has been confirmed dead following an explosion at a block of flats in Jersey earlier in December. Kathleen ‘Kathy’ McGinness, 73, who lived in an adjacent building and was injured in the explosion, died in hospital on Christmas Day, Jersey police said. The blast ripped through the three-storey Haut du Mont block

The King has used his first Christmas Day broadcast to pay tribute to those trying to “pay their bills and keep their families fed and warm” amid the cost of living crisis. It is a historic first address – both for King Charles personally, and the UK, as it marks the first time a male

A murder investigation is under way after a woman was fatally shot at a Merseyside pub on Christmas Eve. She and three men were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds after the incident at the Lighthouse Inn in Wallasey Village on the Wirral shortly after 11.50pm. The woman was later pronounced dead, and her family

A four-year-old boy has died after an incident at a Center Parcs resort. The emergency services were called to the resort at Longleat in Wiltshire after a “serious medical incident” at a swimming pool at around 11am this morning. Wiltshire Police said: “Our thoughts are with the boy’s family at this difficult time.” The death

The Scottish Highlands can expect to see a white Christmas this year, while flood warnings are in place for several parts of England. The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for snow and ice across the Scottish region, as well as some lowland areas, from 9pm on Christmas Day to 6pm on Boxing Day.

Families driving home for the festive period face travel misery, with further rail strikes set to take place from 6pm on Christmas Eve. Thousands of members of the Rail, Maritime, and Transport (RMT) union at National Rail walk out on Saturday evening, causing train services to finish at 3pm. An overtime ban is also causing

Thousands of nurses in England will go on strike again next month in a dispute over pay. The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) announced that nurses would strike on 18 and 19 January and said further dates would be confirmed in the new year. Pat Cullen, head of the union, said: “The government had the

Ambulance workers will stage two further strikes in January amid a dispute over pay and staffing. The Unison union says the industrial action will take place in England on 11 and 23 January. The strike action will involve staff employed by London, Yorkshire, North West, North East and South West ambulance services. It comes after

Two days of strikes by nurses and paramedics will have a knock-on effect on appointments with a return to “very high numbers” of emergency calls in the coming days, NHS Providers has warned. Historic strike action saw thousands of nurses picket on Tuesday and ambulance staff stage their biggest strike in 30 years yesterday. Saffron

The number of people phoning 999 appears to have dropped in parts of England as thousands of ambulance staff and paramedics strike until midnight. The West Midlands Ambulance Trust thanked people for heeding their advice to only call in an emergency as ambulance trusts reported receiving fewer calls. The drop in calls comes as health

A man has pleaded guilty to the murders of a “defenceless” pregnant woman and three young children who were found dead at a house in Derbyshire. Damien Bendall had previously denied murdering his then partner Terri Harris, her 11-year-old daughter Lacey Bennett, her 13-year-old son John Paul Bennett, and Lacey’s 11-year-old friend Connie Gent, but

Jeremy Clarkson’s column about the Duchess of Sussex has become the Independent Press Standards Organisation’s most complained about article ever. The regulator said the piece, which has since been removed from The Sun’s website at Clarkson‘s request, had received more than 17,500 complaints as of 9am on Tuesday. “We will follow our usual processes to

Ambulance and hospital trusts across the country have declared critical incidents as a result of “sustained” and “unprecedented” pressure on services. Declaring a critical incident allows trusts to prioritise the patients most in need and to instigate additional measures to protect patient safety, trusts said. It comes as nurses were striking for a second day

Thirty new patients have contacted Sky News following our investigation into the treatment of teenagers in mental health units run by a single provider. They include a 16-year-old boy whose mother told us her son’s self-harming increased. Rachel Vickers said of her son Tyson: “He looked like he’d been in a car crash”, and Tyson

A government plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda is lawful, the High Court has ruled. Lord Justice Lewis said the controversial policy, introduced under Boris Johnson, was “consistent with the refugee convention”. However, he said the home secretary should look at people’s “particular circumstances” before deporting them to the central African country. Politics live:

New legislation in memory of Manchester Arena bombing victim Martyn Hett will be introduced to ensure stronger protections against terrorism in public places, the government has said. Mr Hett, 29, was one of 22 people killed during the attack at the end of an Ariana Grande concert on 22 May, 2017. The new rules, which

Gareth Southgate will stay on as England manager and lead the Three Lions at the 2024 Euros, the FA has confirmed. The 52-year-old had been mulling his future following England’s 2-1 quarter-final defeat to France at the World Cup. Southgate had a contract until the 2024 European Championships, but admitted to feeling “conflicted” about staying

A 52-year-old man has been charged with the murders of a mother and her two young children in Kettering, Northamptonshire, police have said. Officers arrested Saju Chelavalel after they were called to his address in Petherton Court on Thursday and found Anju Asok, 35, Jeeva Saju, six, and Janvi Saju, four, with serious injuries. Ms

Hospitals should free up beds by safely discharging patients in advance of “extensive disruption” caused by industrial action by ambulance crews, health chiefs have said. They warned of “a very challenging period” when ambulance crews in England and Wales are due to walk out for two days on 21 and 28 December in a dispute

An investigation has been launched into the deaths of two children after their bodies were found at a residential address in Dagenham, in east London. Emergency services were called at around 2pm on Friday to the property in Cornwallis Road, where the bodies of a two-year-old boy and a five-year-old boy were discovered. Metropolitan Police

Labour has comfortably held on to its seat in Stretford and Urmston, in its second by-election victory in two weeks.  Andrew Western, who is the leader of Trafford Council, retained the Greater Manchester constituency with a majority of nearly 10,000. He secured 69.65% of the votes, up 9.34% on the snap general election three years

Four boys who died after falling into a frozen lake in Solihull have been named by police. Brothers Samuel Butler, six, and Finlay Butler, eight; their cousin Thomas Stewart, 11, and Jack Johnson, 10, were identified by West Midlands Police. Three of the boys, Jack, Thomas and Finlay, died on Sunday after falling into Babbs

Thousands of people in Shetland are facing a fourth day without power as engineers battle to restore supplies amid the threat of further snowfall and freezing temperatures. Some 2,400 homes remain without power in Voe, Brae, Yell and the West Mainland – with engineers warning power may not be restored to some properties until the

NHS nurses are striking today in a dispute with the government over pay and patient safety. Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will take industrial action on 15 December and 20 December across England, Wales and Northern Ireland for the first time in the union’s 106-year history. Strikes by ambulance staff and some

At least three people have died after a small migrant boat with up to 50 on board capsized in the English Channel off the coast of Kent, near Dungeness. A major search and rescue operation involving helicopters and lifeboats was launched at 3.07am and is ongoing, with 43 people rescued alive – some from the

Rishi Sunak has promised to bring in new laws to tackle illegal immigration, saying anyone who comes to the UK illegally will not be allowed to stay. Making a raft of announcements in the Commons, the prime minister said the legislation would be introduced early next year and mean people who do not come to

The “tide is turning” in rail unions when it comes to pay offers on the table, Transport Secretary Mark Harper has claimed. Members of the RMT rejected the latest offer from Network Rail yesterday by 64%, with general secretary Mick Lynch calling it “substandard”. The deal would have included a 5% and 4% pay rise

Talks to avert the nursing strike on Thursday have failed after the union leader behind the action accused the health secretary of refusing to discuss pay. Pat Cullen, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said on Monday night: “I needed to come out of this meeting with something serious to show nurses why

Three boys aged eight, 10 and 11 have died after falling into an icy lake in Solihull, police have confirmed. A fourth boy, aged six, remains in a critical condition after the incident at Babbs Mill Park on Sunday afternoon. A search of the lake is continuing after reports up to six children fell in,

Four children are in critical condition after falling through the ice at a Solihull lake, police have said. A search and rescue operation is under way at Babbs Mill Park after the children fell into the water and suffered cardiac arrest. Police did not confirm how many children were involved in the incident – or

Rescuers searching for survivors of an explosion at a tower block in Jersey no longer expect to find anyone alive. Robin Smith, chief of police, said: “It is with sadness that I am confirming that the search and rescue operation had been moved to a recovery operation. Three people are confirmed to have died in

England’s World Cup dream lies in tatters after being knocked out by holders France in their quarter-final clash. Having reached the semi-finals in 2018 and then finishing runners-up at last year’s European Championship, Gareth Southgate’s men were confident of a ticket to the semi-final. Despite going behind to an early first-half goal, England pulled level

One person has died and “around a dozen” are missing after a large explosion at a block of flats in Jersey. Two “walking wounded” have been taken to hospital as police on the Channel island search the site following the blast at Haut du Mont on Pier Road, St Helier. Officers have said relatives are