National News

The Platinum Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot has been renamed in honour of the late Queen and will now be known as The Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes. The late Queen’s love of racing and passion for breeding was rewarded with Classic success in all of the major British races except the Derby, but it is the Royal meeting in June which she became synonymous with. She entered with winner’s

There were “no concerns” about Richard Sharp’s integrity while he was BBC chairman, a BBC conflicts of interest review commissioned after he was embroiled in a cronyism row involving Boris Johnson has found. The former Goldman Sachs banker and Conservative party donor resigned from his role at the corporation last month over helping the former prime minister secure an £800,000 loan facility. He will stand down at the end of

British musician Stormzy will make his Soccer Aid debut when he steps on to the pitch as the manager of the England side, it has been announced. The Vossi Bop singer, 29, and Manchester United fan will be assisted by former Spurs boss Harry Redknapp, Chelsea women boss Emma Hayes and Line Of Duty star Vicky McClure, who are all part of the England management team for the charity event.

Multi-platinum hit-makers Duran Duran have added a top civic award from home city Birmingham to their vast collection of accolades, calling it “quite an honour”. The synth pop pioneers, who have just completed a UK tour, were handed a Lord Mayor’s Award ahead of their May 5 homecoming show at the city’s Utilita Arena. Councillor Maureen Cornish, Lord Mayor of Birmingham, was pictured back stage with current line-up, Simon Le

The boss of the John Lewis Partnership is set to face a confidence vote on her future after criticism of the leadership of the retail giant. It comes after Dame Sharon White, chairwoman of the business which runs the department store chain and supermarket arm Waitrose, said the group is considering options for its future after reports that it could bring in outside investment. However, industry leaders such as Mary

The Archbishop of Canterbury has made a rare intervention in the House of Lords, to criticise the Government’s Illegal Migration Bill as it faces its first test in the upper chamber. Justin Welby argued against the flagship legislation aimed at ensuring people who arrive in the UK in small boats would be detained and promptly removed, either to their home country or a third country such as Rwanda. The intervention marked his second major rebuke of the Government’s

First Minister Humza Yousaf has rejected calls from a prominent university principal for “calm consideration” of charging graduates for their education. Edinburgh University head Professor Sir Peter Mathieson said such a move – which would end the policy of free university tuition – is a matter for politicians and is “beyond my control”, but it could allow for Government funding to be spent on improving institutions. But within hours, the

A tabloid publisher has “unreservedly” apologised to the Duke of Sussex for an instance of unlawful information gathering, the High Court has been told. Several high-profile figures, including Harry, are bringing damages claims against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) over alleged unlawful information gathering at its titles. Claims brought by four individuals, one of whom is the duke, are being heard in a trial as “representative” cases of the types of

Catherine Tate has been announced as the UK’s spokeswoman for the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest. The actress and comedian, 53, will deliver the results of the country’s national jury – including the coveted “douze points” – live from the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool on Saturday. It will be the first time a UK spokesperson has announced the scores from the same location as the contest itself.