Author: Darren Smith

National Savings and Investments has apologised to customers and promised compensation after errors affecting tens of thousands of Premium Bond holders came to light, with bereaved families among those who say they were wrongly denied funds belonging to deceased relatives. Pensions Minister Torsten Bell updated the House of Commons on the matter, confirming that NS&I was prioritising reuniting affected customers with their money “as soon as possible” and that compensation where appropriate would be paid. He was clear that the burden of resolving the situation rested with NS&I rather than customers themselves. The scale of the problem emerged after the…

Donald Trump has issued a stark warning to Iran’s leadership, telling them there will be “no turning back” if they fail to engage meaningfully in peace negotiations, as the Pentagon is reported to be preparing a range of military escalation options including a potential ground operation. Writing on Truth Social, Trump said Iranian leaders were “begging” to reach a deal despite Tehran’s public rejection of a 15-point US peace proposal that was passed to Iranian officials via Pakistan. “They better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t…

A 25-year-old woman left paraplegic following a suicide attempt has died by euthanasia in Barcelona on Thursday, after Spanish courts rejected a series of legal challenges brought by her father in an attempt to prevent the procedure going ahead. Noelia Castillo, from Barcelona, underwent the procedure at the Sant Pere de Ribes assisted living facility where she had been residing. Her request for euthanasia had been approved by the Catalan government in July 2024, but was delayed for more than a year and a half as her father, backed by the ultraconservative Catholic group Christian Lawyers, pursued appeals through multiple…

A transgender woman sentenced to 14 months in prison for stalking the surgeon who carried out her gender reassignment procedure is being held at a women’s jail in Surrey, prompting scrutiny from a Conservative MP who says she is urgently looking into the placement. Vivienne Taylor, 28, pleaded guilty to causing serious alarm or distress and stalking at Isleworth Crown Court last March, following a four-year campaign of harassment against consultant urological surgeon Dr Tina Rashid. The offending began shortly after Taylor underwent reassignment surgery in Putney in 2021, initially sending the surgeon a cake as a gesture of thanks…

Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered Israeli commanders to destroy as many high-value Iranian targets as possible within 48 hours, amid deepening alarm within the Israeli government that Donald Trump could reach a ceasefire deal with Tehran before Israel’s core war objectives are achieved. The deadline was issued from Netanyahu’s Tel Aviv bunker after he reviewed Trump’s proposed 15-point peace framework, which Israeli officials present at the meeting described as insufficiently robust in curbing Iran’s military capabilities despite its restrictions on missiles and nuclear development. Sources described the atmosphere in the underground meeting as “tense.” Israel’s war aims centre on three objectives:…

A 27-year-old trainee veterinarian has died after being attacked by a pregnant hippopotamus during a late-night inspection at a zoo in Karnataka, India, prompting an official inquiry into why she was in the enclosure alone. Sameeksha Reddy was conducting checks on animals at the Tavarekoppa Lion and Safari Zoo in the Shivamogga district shortly before midnight on Thursday when the incident occurred. Armed with a thermal camera to assess the animal’s temperature, she entered the enclosure of a hippo named Hamsini — which was days away from giving birth and had been under close observation. The animal charged without warning…

A teenager who spent weeks meticulously planning his mother’s killing — researching methods of murder, researching how to avoid detection and purchasing an array of potential weapons — has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 22 years and six months. Tristan Roberts was 18 years old when he killed Angela Shellis, 45, a teaching assistant, in the early hours of 24 October 2025. In the weeks before the killing, he had posted a still from the film American Psycho on the messaging platform Discord, alongside messages suggesting he was experiencing violent urges. On the day of…

Dame Sarah Mullally has been enthroned as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury at a historic ceremony in Canterbury Cathedral, becoming the first woman to lead the Church of England in its nearly five centuries of existence and the first female spiritual leader of Christianity in England in over 1,400 years. Around 2,000 people attended the service, including the Prince and Princess of Wales, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch and representatives from other faiths, charities, healthcare and schools. The King, who congratulated Dame Sarah on her appointment last October, was not present, though as head of the…

A Moroccan asylum seeker already serving a life sentence for murder has been charged with the attempted murder of prison officers following two separate incidents at high-security jails, counter terrorism policing has confirmed. Ahmed Ali Alid, 47, faces charges of attempted murder, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon in connection with incidents at HMP Full Sutton on 8 August last year and HMP Wakefield approximately two months later. Alid was convicted in October 2024 of murdering Terence Carney, a 70-year-old man from Hartlepool, in a street attack. He is currently serving a life sentence for…

A judge at Liverpool Crown Court called for a minute’s silence to honour the memory of a thirteen-week-old baby boy after his parents were sentenced to life imprisonment for his murder. Miguel Pirjani died having suffered injuries that medical examination revealed were not isolated to a single incident — fractures at various stages of healing across his body pointed to a sustained pattern of harm during his short life. The severe and irreversible brain injury that ultimately killed him came to light on 24 November 2024, when his father Klevi Pirjani called 999 saying the baby had “just stopped breathing.”…