National News

It's being reported the former cricketer is “quitting the show” after being involved in an accident at the end of last year Filming on the latest series of Top Gear will not resume amid reports that “daredevil” presenter Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff is “quitting the show” after being involved in an accident at the end of last year. BBC studios said on Thursday night that “under the circumstances” they feel “it

There've been calls for them to be paused following the death of headteacher Ruth Perry Stopping inspections would not be in the best interests of children, the head of the schools watchdog has said after calls for them to be paused following the death of headteacher Ruth Perry. Ofsted chief inspector Amanda Spielman acknowledged the debate about reforming inspections to remove grades “is a legitimate one” but insisted school checks aim

Demonstrators are angry about plans to raise the pension age from 62 to 64 More than 1 million people demonstrated across France on Thursday against unpopular pension reforms, with violence erupting in some places. Unions have called for new nationwide strikes and protests next week, coinciding with King Charles’ planned visit to France. The Interior Ministry said the march in Paris — marred by violence, as were numerous marches elsewhere — drew 119,000

Consumer confidence climbed slightly in March despite the cost-of-living crisis remaining a “stark reality” for most, according to a survey. GfK’s long-running Consumer Confidence Index increased two points in March, masking ongoing concerns about personal finances and rising to an overall score of minus 36. Confidence in personal finances over the next 12 months remains weak, falling three points to minus 21 – three points lower than this time last

The value of households’ spending on subscription services, home improvements and dating fell annually in February, according to analysis by Britain’s biggest building society of its members’ outgoings. The volume of dating transactions fell by a third (33%) in February 2023 compared with the same month in 2022, also falling by 7% by value, Nationwide Building Society found. Spending on subscriptions fell by 6% annually by volume and by 3%

England record-breaker Harry Kane reflected on a “magical moment” after he put his World Cup pain behind him to stand alone as the country’s all-time leading goalscorer on Thursday night. Kane’s 44th-minute penalty in Naples helped England to an impressive 2-1 win away to Euros champions Italy and earned him a slice of history. It moved Kane top of the national team scoring charts with 54 goals and ahead of

He'll now have to await the verdict of the Privileges Committee Boris Johnson is fighting for his political future after MPs investigating his partygate denials denounced the “flimsy” assurances they were based on. In at times short-tempered testimony lasting more than three hours, the former prime minister insisted there was not a “shred of evidence” to show he lied to MPs. It would have been “utterly insane” for him to have

Rishi Sunak has hailed the “incredibly strong support” for his new deal with Brussels on post-Brexit trading arrangements for Northern Ireland after seeing off a backbench revolt by Tory hardliners. A total of 22 Conservative rebels, including former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, defied a three-line whip to vote against regulations to implement a key plank of the Windsor Framework agreement. The so-called Stormont brake, designed to give

Rishi Sunak has hailed the “incredibly strong support” for his new deal with Brussels on post-Brexit trading arrangements for Northern Ireland after seeing off a backbench revolt by Tory hardliners. A total of 22 Conservative rebels, including former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, defied a three-line whip to vote against regulations to implement a key plank of the Windsor Framework agreement. The so-called Stormont brake, designed to give