National News

The first test of this summer's series begins today at Edgbaston Ben Stokes has told his team a big Ashes summer will “never be forgotten” as he prepares to lead England’s battle to reclaim the urn for the first time since 2015. Stokes already owns a significant slice of Ashes history, with his match-winning century at Headingley four years ago inked into the folklore of cricket’s most storied series. He and his 10 team-mates

MPs will vote on Monday on whether to accept the recommendations of the Privileges Committee The fallout from a scathing report which found Boris Johnson lied to MPs over partygate has left Rishi Sunak with a battle to hold his warring Tory party together. The Commons will vote on Monday on the Privileges Committee’s report, which recommended that Mr Johnson should have faced a 90-day suspension had he not already resigned in

Boris Johnson committed “repeated contempts” of Parliament by deliberately misleading MPs with his partygate denials before being complicit in a campaign of abuse and intimidation, a cross-party investigation has found. The Privileges Committee recommended a 90-day suspension which would have paved the way for a by-election for the former prime minister if he had not quit the Commons in anticipation. Though his resignation means he will escape that punishment, the

Manchester City will begin their bid for a record fourth consecutive Premier League title away to Vincent Kompany’s Burnley. The Treble winners will visit Turf Moor to face their former captain’s newly-promoted side on the evening of Friday, August 11 to raise the curtain on the 2023-24 campaign. It will be the second time Kompany – who won the title on four occasions as City skipper – will have faced

University applicants’ personal statements are read for just two minutes on average, a report has suggested. The majority of higher education admissions professionals said decisions about which applicants should be offered a university or college place are primarily made on the basis of grades, a survey found. Nearly two in five (39%) said the personal statements written by university applicants were read for just one minute or less, according to

Better anti-racism policies could boost the NHS workforce, an independent body focused on tackling ethnic inequalities has said. The NHS Race and Health Observatory was formed in 2021 to examine disparities in health and social care based on race. The organisation is calling for “better care, training and anti-racist policies” to enhance staff numbers in the NHS, and said this would “improve patient experience and save millions of pounds spent

Leeds have been charged with misconduct over their fans’ behaviour during their Premier League home game against Brighton in March. The Football Association has alleged home fans in the Elland Road crowd used words that were “improper, offensive, abusive, indecent or insulting with reference to sexual orientation” during the first half. An FA spokesperson said: “Leeds have been charged with misconduct for a crowd-control incident that happened in their game with Brighton

The film wizard who was instrumental in bringing the Harry Potter movies to life turned down the chance to be at a new tour opening of the series in order to become an OBE. Dan Dark, 59, the Warner Bros executive vice president of worldwide studio operations, said deciding to make the trip from his home in Los Angeles for an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle rather than for a

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was honoured with a state funeral in Milan on Wednesday, a day of national mourning, as his legacy – positive or negative – was being hotly debated among the people. A crowd of tens of thousands of people erupted in applause as his flower-draped coffin was taken out of the hearse and carried into the city’s Duomo cathedral. His children and companion wept as