Alex Salmond Inquiry orders key evidence including WhatsApp messages from SNP officials are released in unprecedented move Linda Fabiani wrote to former first minister after he refused to come to Holyrood He was needed to speak on February 2 but citing health concerns over Covid-19 It comes as MSPs issued notice to Crown Office calling … Read more
Army unit faces gender row as officials consider changing ‘craftsman’ rank to ‘private’ to avoid it being too gender-specific Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers considering changing craftsman rank A memo headed REME gender-free nomenculture says to ‘refresh terminology’ Consultation now being held could mean other ranks are renamed in the future By David Wilkes for … Read more
For four tempestuous days and nights the trawler Sam of Ladram had been scooping up cuttlefish, 20 miles off our South-West coast. By Thursday morning the storm had abated, and I watched its five crew offload the inky catch — known as ‘black gold’ in these parts — in their home port of Brixham, Devon. … Read more
Two rail lines shut in 1960s will reopen as transport officials put £800million towards Bicester-Bletchley and Newcastle-Ashington projects Department for Transport said £760m will support next phase of East West Rail Reinstates services between Bicester, Oxfordshire and Bletchley shut in 1968 £34m boost is also going to old line between Newcastle and Ashington By Daily Mail … Read more
This is the historic moment the first lorry crossed the Channel to France after Britain began its new post-Brexit deal with the EU late on New Year’s Eve. Truck drivers with the correct paperwork – and a negative Covid test – were waved on to Eurotunnel trains with hardly any delay after 11pm GMT as … Read more
President Donald Trump’s campaign is spending more than $5 million on television and radio ads asking supporters to pressure Republican Party members and state government officials to overturn the election results. Some of the new ads, which are running nationally on Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, Newsmax and One America News Network, with more … Read more
President Donald Trump engaged in some saber-rattling from 30,000 feet, issuing ‘health advice’ to Iran and tweeting out images of unexploded ordinance following an attack on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. Trump blasted out the tweet after taking off from Washington for Mar-a-Lago, where he plans to spend the holidays with family including First Lady … Read more
Spain became the latest EU country to ban flights from the EU today, with every member of the bloc now having slammed their doors shut to British travellers apart from Greece and Cyprus. Urgent talks are underway in Brussels this morning to agree a EU-wide response to contain the new mutant strain of the virus … Read more
Britain’s daily coronavirus case count today surged by 35,383 after Wales added a further 11,000 infections that had previously been missed off due to an IT ‘cock-up’. Today’s figures, which would normally be used to measure how much the UK’s outbreak has grown in the last week, are unreliable as a point of reference because … Read more
EU can base staff in Northern Ireland: Michael Gove backs down and allows Brussels to have officials permanently based on island to oversee checks on goods Michael Gove agreed to concession last night as two sides finalised the plan It came as part of a deal with EU on how province’s borders will work next … Read more