A woman who was attacked on a Tube train in central London has said she was then left standing on a platform for a “harrowing” 30 minutes because no one answered the emergency calls she made from a help point. Sally Wynter said she had been left traumatised after being punched by a stranger on a busy Victoria line train on 27 March, but her attacker was able to get away because she could not raise the alarm. Ms Wynter has written to Sir Sadiq Khan – who has overall responsibility for the Tube network – describing the intercom system…
Author: Ivan Petrov
Prices in the UK rose by 2.8% in the 12 months to February, less than in the previous month but still above the Bank of England’s target. The Bank moves interest rates up and down to try to keep inflation at 2%, and has cut three times since August 2024. When it announced the last cut in February, the Bank warned that it expected inflation to rise again in 2025. What is inflation? Inflation is the increase in the price of something over time. For example, if a bottle of milk costs £1 but is £1.05 a year later, then…
Employers will have to prioritise hiring foreign carers already living in England before recruiting from overseas, under the measures laid in Parliament on Wednesday. From April 9, care providers who wish to recruit staff from abroad will have to first prove that they have attempted to employ someone already in the country who needs new visa sponsorship, the Home Office said. The Government hopes the measures will help “end the reliance on overseas recruitment” and bring down record levels of immigration to Britain. The minimum salary required for Skilled Worker visas is also being increased. From April it will rise from £23,200 per year to £25,000 (or £12.82 per…
Telford and Wrekin Council has welcomed news of a £1.6bn government investment in UK defence that is expected to include safeguarding 400 jobs in the town. The five-year contract extension with national defence firm Babcock will cover the maintenance and repair of Challenger 2 tanks, artillery guns and armoured vehicles. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) revealed the deal hours before Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlined an increase in defence spending as well as cuts to the welfare bill, in her Spring Statement. Telford is a key hub for defence engineering and supply firms and council leader Lee Carter is looking to build…
We deep dive into the state of nurseries in the UK – why are fees rising? And what does it take to own a nursery? Joined by nursery owners Karl Lewis and Liz Pemberton. We meet Archie Maddocks, writer behind new BBC TV show Crongton – a new series released today that is centred around the life of council flat kids. Singer-songwriter Mahalia shares a strong message about women’s rights and misogynoir in her latest partnership with Amnesty International. And we jump into the world of creativity to hear what it is like to create your own film from scratch,…
The UK announces an extra $2.8 billion to be spent on defence. The announcement was made as part of the UK Chancellors, Rachel Reeve’s, Spring Budget. At least twenty-four people have been killed in the deadliest forest fires in South Korea’s history. Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes. And, In the US judges have blocked Universal Music Group’s request to stop the AI company ‘Anthropic’ from using their song lyrics to train its AI mode
UK Athletics (UKA) and its former head of sport have pleaded not guilty to charges of manslaughter following the death of Paralympian Abdullah Hayayei. Hayayei, 36, died on 11 July 2017 after a metal cage fell on him while he was training at Newham Leisure Centre in east London ahead of the World Para Athletics Championships. At a pre-trial hearing at the Old Bailey, the UKA denied a further charge of failing to ensure the safety of non-employees, while Keith Davies, 77, from east London, denied failing to take reasonable care for health and safety. According to the charges, the…
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has welcomed 29 councillors who have defected to his party in recent weeks from parties including the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. It takes the party’s total number of council seats to more than 100. Speaking at a press conference in Westminster, Farage said the defections demonstrated how his party was “broadening and deepening”. However, it comes as some Reform members are expressing concern about the party’s leadership and the suspension of MP Rupert Lowe from the party. On Sunday, Maria Bowtell, a councillor on East Riding of Yorkshire Council, quit the party. She accused the leadership…
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has visited the crew of HMS Vanguard after the submarine returned to UK waters after months of undersea service. The nuclear-armed submarine had been patrolling for more than 200 days, marking one of the longest deployments in British Royal Navy history. Sir Keir, who was accompanied by Defence Secretary John Healey, was the first prime minister to visit the boat’s “Day Zero” off the coast of Scotland in more than a decade. The prime minister told reporters the Kremlin respected the UK’s nuclear arsenal because “we’ve got our own independent deterrent and we’re committed…
The UK economy shrank unexpectedly in January, in a blow to the government ahead of its Spring Statement later this month. The economy contracted by 0.1%, which was weaker than forecast, driven mainly by a decline in the manufacturing sector. The government has made boosting growth its key priority, but the weakness of the economy is expected to affect Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s decisions as she seeks to meet her self-imposed rules on tax and spending. Reeves said the government needed to go “further and faster” on the economy, but the Conservatives accused it of being a “growth killer”. Economists had…