Labour's deputy leadership contest has four MPs in the running after Lucy Powell became the latest to declare. Powell, the Manchester Central MP who was dismissed by Sir Keir Starmer as leader of the Commons last week, said she had decided to stand 'after much encouragement' from colleagues. She added that her politics are rooted in the everyday hopes and fears of people and that, as deputy leader, she would […]

Pret A Manger will test a meal‑deal format in the final three months of this year as it seeks to boost its lunchtime trade and offer better value for customers. The sandwich and coffee chain said trials will start next week and will include deals such as a croissant with a drink, and a sandwich, drink and crisps, with prices tested to gauge consumer response. The move follows long‑running meal […]

England's Department of Health and Social Care has published the first quarterly league tables ranking NHS trusts by performance. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the rankings will highlight where urgent support is needed and help end the postcode lottery in care. The measures cover finances, patient access, waiting times for operations and A&E, and ambulance response times, with trusts organised into four performance bands. Top performers include Moorfields Eye Hospital […]

Thames Valley Police has outlined a 24/7 policing operation using drones over Windsor during the US president’s state visit. Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are due to be hosted at Windsor Castle from 17 to 19 September, with a ceremonial welcome and state banquet. A temporary airspace restriction will be in place from 16 September, when the visit rehearsal takes place, until 18 September, preventing non-police drones and […]

Ofsted will roll out a new-look set of report cards for England’s schools from November. The cards will use a colour-coded five-point scale to rate areas such as attendance, behaviour and inclusion, and the grades will be urgent improvement, needs attention, expected standard, strong standard and exceptional. The aim is to give parents more detail and a clearer picture of how a school performs. Inspectors will assess multiple areas, with […]

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee have released a sexually suggestive letter to Jeffrey Epstein that appears to bear President Donald Trump’s name and signature. The item was included in a 2003 birthday album for Epstein, a financier once connected to Mr Trump. Epstein died by suicide in 2019 in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges involving underage girls. Trump has denied writing the letter or drawing […]

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood hosted ministers from the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance in London for talks on joint efforts to disrupt people smuggling. In her first major engagement in the role, she welcomed counterparts from the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand as the number of small-boat crossings in 2025 topped 30,000.\n\nOn Saturday, 1,097 people arrived in 17 boats, taking the 2025 total to 30,100 and marking a record […]

The RAC and the Road Surface Treatments Association have urged the government to require mandatory training in preventative pothole maintenance for councils that carry out little such work. In a letter to Future of Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood, they argued that sealing road surfaces to prevent water entering cracks can help stop potholes forming. The cost of bringing pothole-plagued local roads in England and Wales up to standard is estimated […]

Tube services in London were suspended on Monday as members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union began a series of strikes over pay and conditions. The action involves drivers, signallers and maintenance staff and began on Sunday, with the largest disruption anticipated between Monday and Friday. Transport for London warned there would be few or no Tube services between Monday and Thursday, and picket lines were seen outside […]