General news

• Theresa May to visit Wales this week as she tours devolved nations ahead of Article 50 trigger

  19-03-2017 23:56
  
  Theresa May is expected to visit Wales this week as she commences a tour of the devolved nations ahead of triggering Article 50 within the next fortnight.As part of a series of visits around the UK – including to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland – the Prime Minister, according to Downing Street, “will be engaging and listening to people from right across the nation as we prepare to leave the EU as one United Kingdom”.It comes as Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s First
  
  Read more

• Theresa May to start Brexit tour in Wales as she battles to keep UK together

  19-03-2017 23:33
  
  The Prime Minister is carrying out talks in the devolved nations ahead of her promise to trigger Article 50 and formally start the process of withdrawing from the European Union by the end of the month.It comes as Mrs May dismissed calls for a potential second independence referendum for Scotland before the Brexit deal is finalised.It will also coincide with the signing of a £1.3 billion Swansea City Deal between the UK Government, local authorities and the Welsh Government, which aims to
  
  Read more

• Theresa May warned of looming battle over devolution

  19-03-2017 23:30
  
  Theresa May will begin her tour by visiting Jones in Swansea.Theresa May will face demands from the leaders of the UK’s devolved governments to radically rethink her approach to the union as she begins a four-nation tour before beginning Britain’s exit from the EU.Downing Street said the visits, which will begin on Monday in Swansea with the Welsh first minister, Carwyn Jones, would ensure the government was “engaging and listening to people from right across the nation”
  
  Read more

• Hendon crash: Man found with stab injuries after three-car crash on busy road

  19-03-2017 23:14
  
  A man was found with stab injuries after he was involved in a three-crash on a busy road in north-west London.Emergency services raced to the scene of the crash in Hendon Way at about 8.20pm on Sunday, and the man was rushed to hospital by paramedics.It is believed that the motorist may have been the victim of an attempted robbery on nearby Graham Road moments before, police said.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Thandie Newton: British TV does not have enough roles for black actors because there are so many period dramas 

  19-03-2017 23:13
  
  Thandie Newton has said that she cannot get parts in Britain because there are no roles for black actors in period dramas like Downton Abbey and Call the Midwife.Newton, 44, has recently been seen on screen in HBO's gritty science fiction thriller, Westworld, and has landed a film role in the as-yet untitled spin-off about Star Wars character Han Solo.The London-born actress will make her debut in BBC One crime drama Line Of Duty when it returns next Sunday.
  
  Read more

• Tax burden on the wealthy has trebled since the 1970s, Telegraph analysis shows

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  The tax burden shouldered by Britain's wealthiest has almost trebled since the 1970s, analysis of historic data reveals - further undermining the Conservative's reputation as a "low tax" party.Daily Telegraph analysis of nearly four decades of tax and income records shows high earners are now responsible for paying a higher proportion of Britain's total income tax bill than they have done under any Labour government.Today the top 1pc of income taxpayers, who earn in excess of £162,000
  
  Read more

• Ratty and co threatened by polo centre plan near Wind in the Willows river, campaigners say

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  It is one of the most evocative scenes in children’s literature, Ratty and his friends in The Wind in the Willows messing about in boats as they explore the banks and waters of the River Thames.Locals who love walking along the riverbank where Mole, Rat, Toad and Badger enjoyed their adventures fear the plans by two Anglo-Jordanian tycoons who own the land near Pangbourne could also ruin treasured views of the Chiltern Hills.Trees planted to screen the private equestrian centre and polo gr
  
  Read more

• Military row over Marine A acquittal as commanding officer hits out

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  The defence used to free Marine A has tarnished the reputation of his fellow troops, the former commanding officer of his unit has said.Sergeant Alexander Blackman had his murder conviction quashed after the Court Martial appeal heard that he shot a wounded Taliban insurgent when his regiment went "feral".Major McCulley says he has waited until Blackman's murder acquittal before speaking out, but now wants to defend his men.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Marine A's defence team criticised for tarnishing reputation of regiment as commanding officer hits out at 'feral' troops claim

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  The defence used to free Marine A has tarnished the reputation of his fellow troops, the former commanding officer of his unit has said.Sergeant Alexander Blackman had his murder conviction quashed after the Court Martial appeal heard that he shot a wounded Taliban insurgent when his regiment went "feral".Major McCulley says he has waited until Blackman's murder acquittal before speaking out, but now wants to defend his men.
  
  Read more

• Government accused of 'kicking NHS when it's down' with high interest loans

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  NHS trusts with the deepest levels of debt are being charged high interest rates on Government loans, an investigation has found.Financial experts last night likened the Department of Health policy to “kicking someone when they’re down” and said it would make it even harder for cash-strapped trusts to recover.Around three quarters of NHS trusts are forecasting a year end deficit, and dozens have received loans in order to ensure they can keep treating patients and paying staff.
  
  Read more

• George Osborne faces grilling from grassroots Tories after becoming Evening Standard editor

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  George Osborne will this week be questioned by grassroots Conservatives in his constituency amid anger over his decision to accept a job at the London Evening Standard.The former Chancellor is on Friday expected to attend the Tatton Conservative Association's annual general meeting, where he is likely to face a hostile reception from some Conservative members.Mr Osborne's decision to take a job at the Evening Standard has divided activists, with some backing the move but others co
  
  Read more

• Britain's most prestigious military school 'bribed teacher's daughter to provide information that led to the arrest of whistleblower'

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  Britain's most prestigious military boarding school is facing damaging new claims that it covered up allegations of abuse against students.On Saturday The Telegraph exposed how the Ministry of Defence appeared to collude The Duke of York's Royal Military School to stifle claims of bullying and abuse.Kent Police launched a review into their alleged failure to investigate dozens of criminal allegations at the school, and at least one detective inspector
  
  Read more

• BBC demands new laws to give its shows top billing over rivals in television guides 

  19-03-2017 23:00
  
  James Purnell, director of radio and education, says that the shows the BBC makes must be given more prominence in television guides than those of commercial services Sky, Amazon and Netflix.Writing for the Telegraph, Mr Purnell warns that the BBC and other public service broadcasters face a “real threat” of losing out in a “golden age” for television.The issue will be debated in the House of Lords on Monday and Mr Purnell says peers must back a an amendment to force
  
  Read more

• American diplomat expelled from New Zealand amid police inquiry

  19-03-2017 22:41
  
  An American diplomat has been expelled from New Zealand over allegations that he was involved in a serious criminal incident that saw him sustain a black eye and broken nose.The man - who has not been named - was asked to leave the country after the US embassy refused to waive his diplomatic immunity so that he could be questioned by police.The following day New Zealand's ministry of foreign affairs sought, on behalf of law enforcement, a waiver of his diplomatic immunity.
  
  Read more

• Man arrested on suspicion of murder after mother heard screaming for help as one-year-old boy is killed and 'twin sister' is left fighting for life

  19-03-2017 22:39
  
  Scotland Yard said Bidhya Sagar Das, 33, was arrested on suspicion of the murder of a one-year-old boy and the attempted murder of a girl of the same age at a flat near Finsbury Park, north London.Das was at the property where the children were injured but left before police and ambulance crews arrived.Both toddlers were discovered with critical injuries at the address on Saturday night and were taken to an east London hospital, where the boy died in the early hours of Sunday morning.
  
  Read more

• Lord Lucan's widow set to make first TV documentary appearance

  19-03-2017 22:34
  
  The reclusive widow of Lord Lucan is set to break her silence in front of TV cameras for the first time since her husband's disappearance 43 years ago.The Countess of Lucan is set to speak about how her husband tried to bludgeon her to death and murdered the family's nanny, in a documentary exploring the mysterious peer.Lady Lucan has been seen in front of cameras at various London locations, including the church in Knightsbridge, where she first married the 7th Earl.
  
  Read more

• Government keeps asylum seekers ‘below subsistence levels’ on £5 a day

  19-03-2017 21:59
  
  The Government will maintain financial support to asylum seekers at a rate of five pounds a day, despite evidence from charities that asylum destitution is “on the rise”.Asylum seekers are barred from working or claiming benefits including job seekers' allowance while the Home Office processes their claim.Instead, they are supported under Section 95 of the immigration Act, receiving £36.95 per adult or child per week.
  
  Read more

• Police arrest man, 33, on suspicion of murder after baby dies at London flat

  19-03-2017 21:44
  
  Police have arrested a 33-year-old man on suspicion of murder after the death of a baby at a flat in north London on Saturday night.Murder squad detectives had been hunting for Bidhya Sagar Das in the aftermath of the incident.Emergency services were called to the scene in Finsbury Park in London just after 11pm on Saturday night.
  
  Read more

• Watch live: Las Fallas, Valencia's fire festival

  19-03-2017 21:32
  
  Las Fallas, Valencia's spectacular festival of fire - an annual event featuring processions, fireworks and the burning of hundreds of large puppets known as ‘ninots’ held in honour of Saint Joseph (the city’s patron saint) and the arrival of spring - concludes tonight.Every year, each of the city's districts makes its own ninots which are scattered around the city in the lead up to the festival and burnt on ‘Nit de La Crema’ on Saint Joseph’s Day (March 19) -
  
  Read more

• Finsbury Park: Man arrested on suspicion of murder as first picture emerges of one-year-old killed in attack in flat

  19-03-2017 21:22
  
  The picture emerged as police revealed they had arrested 33-year-old Bidhya Sagar Das, who is understood to be their father.The children, named locally as Gabriel and Maria, were rushed to hospital after the incident but the boy died just before 1am on Sunday.A hammer reportedly found dumped in a bag of sand near the apartment is being examined by forensics officers, although the Met would not comment on its relevance in the investigation.
  
  Read more

• Jon Lansman hits back at MPs over criticism of Unite-Momentum pact

  19-03-2017 21:09
  
  Momentum’s Jon Lansman has come under attack from some Labour MPs.Momentum’s Jon Lansman has hit back after fierce criticism by Labour MPs of his intention to affiliate his grassroots group to trade union Unite, as a way to consolidate its power in the party.The plans for Momentum to affiliate to the UK’s biggest union and take full control of Labour’s structures by electing new representatives were described as “entryism” by deputy leader Tom Watson and were
  
  Read more

• Labour demands answers over George Osborne's Evening Standard job

  19-03-2017 21:00
  
  George Osborne’s appointment at the London Evening Standard while remaining a Conservative MP could be a potential conflict of interest with government advertising budgets, Labour has said.The row came as former prime minister Tony Blair praised the appointment, saying he hoped it would be a good move for the MP.“I don’t know if having both of those jobs is doable, but it’s a great thing for the Evening Standard,” Blair told the BBC’s Andrew Marr show.
  
  Read more

• Tim Farron calls on Tory MPs opposed to hard Brexit to defect or resign

  19-03-2017 20:53
  
  The Lib Dem leader, Tim Farron, delivers his speech to his party’s spring conference in York.Tory MPs who oppose a hard Brexit should defect or resign rather than vote against their conscience, the Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron, has said in a direct appeal to Conservatives to join his party.Farron said the Lib Dems had the momentum to defeat Tories who decide to remain loyal to Theresa May’s Brexit agenda, citing his party’s victory over the former Tory MP Zac Goldsmith i
  
  Read more

• Downing Street dismisses early election speculation as ‘nonsense’

  19-03-2017 20:30
  
  Speculation over an early election has been dismissed by Downing Street as “nonsense” as reports emerged of May 4 being floated as a date for Theresa May to seek a mandate for Brexit and her domestic policies.In order to increase her working majority of 17 in the Commons, Tory MPs have been privately voicing the urgency for a snap election.Despite a torrid week for the Government – after the Chancellor was forced into an embarrassing U-turn over a key policy in his Budget and t
  
  Read more

• Donald Trump aide Sebastian Gorka denies claims he was sworn member of Hungarian group with Nazi past

  19-03-2017 20:00
  
  A British aide to Donald Trump has denied accusations that his ties to a Hungarian group linked to the Nazis are evidence of anti-Semitic views, as calls mount for his resignation.Sebastian Gorka, who serves as deputy assistant to the president, is under increasing pressure after he was pictured wearing a medal presented by the Vitezi Rend.The US government designated the order as an organisation “under Nazi control” during the Second World War, when Hungary’s nationalist leade
  
  Read more

•  Donald Trump aide Sebastian Gorka denies claims he has links to Hungarian neo-Nazi group

  19-03-2017 20:00
  
  A British aide to Donald Trump has denied accusations that his ties to a Hungarian group linked to the Nazis are evidence of anti-Semitic views, as calls mount for his resignation.Sebastian Gorka, who serves as deputy assistant to the president, is under increasing pressure after he was pictured wearing a medal presented by the Vitezi Rend.The US government designated the order as an organisation “under Nazi control” during the Second World War, when Hungary’s nationalist leade
  
  Read more

• Man charged over attack on Gainsborough painting at National Gallery

  19-03-2017 19:36
  
  A wing of the National Gallery was evacuated on Saturday afternoon after a man attacked a Thomas Gainsborough painting with a screwdriver.At about 2.15pm in the east wing of the gallery, a visitor attacked the 1785 painting Mr and Mrs William Hallett, better known as The Morning Walk.On Sunday afternoon police announced they had charged Keith Gregory, 63, of no fixed abode, with causing criminal damage.
  
  Read more

• Many questions raised over George Osborne appointment

  19-03-2017 19:35
  
  Reader Jane Edwards suggests EU working time regulations might protect the overworked former chancellor from himself.George Osborne’s appointment (Report, 18 March) merely confirms what Londoners have always known – that the Standard is a rightwing rag.Fortunately its influence seems to be minimal, evidenced by Sadiq Khan’s triumph in the mayoral elections despite the campaign the Standard ran in favour of Zac Goldsmith, of which some aspects were racist in tone.
  
  Read more

• Tory spending scandal should prompt byelections | Letters

  19-03-2017 19:33
  
  David Cameron being greeted by Chippenham Conservative candidate, Michelle Donelan.The Electoral Commission has confirmed that the law was broken by the Conservative Party in the 2015 general election (Conservatives fined record £70,000 for campaign spending failures, 16 March).Permitted expenses were exceeded in a significant number of marginal constituencies.
  
  Read more

• Police let market town brothel stay open for 10 years, councillors say

  19-03-2017 19:33
  
  Officers finally raided the "massage parlour" in Trowbridge, Wilts, as part of an operation led by the National Crime Agency into human trafficking.Meyer-Smith, who lives in Chepstow, Gwent, was spared jail earlier this month with a 12-month term suspended for two years at Swindon Crown Court.
  
  Read more

• London police simulate Thames boat hijacking in counter-terror exercise

  19-03-2017 19:33
  London police simulated a hijacking of a tourist boat on the River Thames on Sunday as part of training for a possible terror attack.The Metropolitan Police said more than 200 police officers and staff took part in the exercise on Sunday and also involved other organisations including the fire brigade, ambulance service and coastguard."The scenario involved a group of terrorists hijacking a passenger pleasure boat on the Thames and taking a number of hostages, to travel up the Thames to central
  
  Read more

• Killing of King George V was secret until 1986 | Letters

  19-03-2017 19:32
  
  In answer to Dr Simon Gibbs (Letters, 18 March), Lord Dawson was not charged with regicide in respect of the death of King George V because no one knew about it.It was only in 1986, when Dawson’s diaries were published, that the involuntary euthanasia came to light.In 1936, the royal family and the general public believed that the king had died of natural causes in his sleep.
  
  Read more

• Inverdale in new sexism row after suggesting Kate Middleton doesn't understand laws of rugby

  19-03-2017 19:30
  
  Presenter John Inverdale has sparked fresh accusations of sexism over comments he made about Kate Middleton’s knowledge of rugby union.The commentator appeared to suggest the sports-loving Duchess of Cambridge might not understand the laws of the game as she and her husband watched the tense Six Nations match between Wales and England.
  
  Read more

• Germany's Social Democrats confirm Martin Schulz as Angela Merkel's election opponent 

  19-03-2017 19:29
  
  Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) on Sunday formally endorsed former European Parliament President Martin Schulz as their leader and challenger to Chancellor Angela Merkel in what is set to be a tightly contested national election in September.The SPD has undergone a revival since nominating Schulz in late January, gaining around 10 points in opinion polls and signing up thousands of new members as the 61-year-old focuses his campaign on social justice."The SPD is back! We're
  
  Read more

• Siberian man skydives into tiny ice-hole

  19-03-2017 19:23
  
  Skydiver Alexey Royev takes his life in his hands as he jumps 1300 metres from a plane into an ice-hole in the world's deepest freshwater lake. Video block text
  
  Read more

• Senior MI5 veteran to become the new head of the British intelligence agency GCHQ

  19-03-2017 19:08
  
  US officials were forced to make a formal apology for repeating the claim – initially made by an analyst on Fox News – that GCHQ was used by Mr Obama to spy on Trump Tower in the lead-up to last November's election.The comments prompted a furious response from GCHQ, which in a break from normal practice issued a public statement: "Recent allegations made by media commentator Judge Andrew Napolitano about GCHQ being asked to conduct 'wiretapping' against the then president-elect are n
  
  Read more

• Tony Blair admits he did not realise how many migrants would come to the UK after EU expanded 

  19-03-2017 19:03
  
  Tony Blair has admitted he did not realise how many migrants would come to the UK when he opened Britain's borders to millions of European workers. 
  
  Read more

• Alex Salmond: Independent Scotland to join EFTA to get into single market more quickly

  19-03-2017 19:03
  
  Scotland would try and join the European Free Trade Association rather than the EU immediately after independence under the SNP’s latest plans, Alex Salmond has confirmed.The former First Minister said that Scotland would try and join EFTA as a “transition” for an undefined period, before applying to join the EU in the longer term.By following this route, known as the Norway model, he argued an independent Scotland could have “continuous” membership of the EU’
  
  Read more

• Netanyahu’s former defence minister Moshe Ya'alon is now on a mission to defeat him   

  19-03-2017 19:00
  
  It was 1.30pm and Moshe Ya'alon was in his office in the heart of the Israeli defence ministry when his aides brought him the shaky mobile phone video.
  
  Read more

• Two Russians from north London charged over £2m malware attack on UK banks

  19-03-2017 18:28
  
  Two Russian nationals from north London have been charged with money laundering by detectives investigating a £2 million computer malware attack on UK banks.
  
  Read more

• Police dismiss social media claims that serial killer is on the loose in Bristol

  19-03-2017 18:22
  
  Police have dismissed claims on social media that a serial killer is pushing people to their deaths in a city's docks.The bodies of three men have been recovered from the water in Bristol in the past six weeks.A body believed to be a missing 29-year-old Abdulkadir Mahamoud was pulled from the River Avon on Friday.
  
  Read more

• Chuck Berry tribute: The Roots perform Johnny B. Goode

  19-03-2017 18:11
  
  Hip hop group The Roots celebrated Chuck Berry's memory as they performed his hit Johnny B. Goode at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas.
  
  Read more

• Asda pulls diet ready meals from shelves after Slimming World dispute

  19-03-2017 18:07
  
  Supermarket giant Asda has pulled a range of diet ready meals from its shelves after facing legal action from Slimming World.The supermarket chain launched their own-brand Slimzone meals in January, stating on packaging the meals were "free to enjoy following the Slimming World Extra Easy plan".At £2.50 each, the meals were 50p cheaper than Slimming World’s own brand meals in Iceland.
  
  Read more

• Syrian rebels launch surprise attack on Damascus 

  19-03-2017 18:01
  
  Syrian forces were scrambling to defend frontlines near the heart of Damascus on Sunday after a surprise offensive by opposition groups.Control of Jobar has been split between regime forces and opposition fighters for more than two years, making it one of the few areas in Damascus not under firm regime control.
  
  Read more

• European rocket scientists pledge to make first private Moon landing in 2018

  19-03-2017 17:57
  
  The first private Moon landing could be made by a group of European scientists next year.A group of rocket engineers called PTScientists (Part-time Scientists), has built a landing module and two rovers, which are expected to launch in 2018 on board Elon Musk’s Space X Falcon 9 rocket.The landing module will be programmed to touch down in the Taurus-Littrow valley, around two miles from the site of the final Apollo 17 mission.
  
  Read more

• Kellyanne Conway's husband 'Trump's pick for key justice department post'

  19-03-2017 17:55
  
  In an interview with New York  Magazine, an exuberant Mrs Conway told of how her code name in the secret service is "Blueberry", because she once earned the distinction of World Champion Blueberry Packer in New Jersey for her talent in packing the fruit into crates.
  
  Read more

• Police dismiss fears serial killer on the loose in Bristol after spate of drownings

  19-03-2017 17:17
  
  Police have rejected social media speculation that a serial killer is on the loose in Bristol, saying the deaths of three men in the harbour were “tragic accidents”.The body of Abdulkadir Mahamoud, 29, was found floating in Bristol Harbour on Friday nearly a month after he was reported missing.Mr Mahamoud’s body is one of several which have been recovered from the river over the past few weeks leading to speculation on social media that someone is deliberately pushing them in.
  
  Read more

• Alex Salmond accused of rewriting history after he denies 'once in a lifetime' referendum pledge

  19-03-2017 17:17
  
  Alex Salmond has been accused of attempting to rewrite history after he dismissed as a “collective myth” his promise before the 2014 independence referendum that there would not be a rerun for a generation or even a lifetime.
  
  Read more

• Bear Grylls says Eton failed to prepare him for life and only celebrates sporty, clever or good-looking students

  19-03-2017 17:13
  
  Grylls, a survival expert who was appointed as the youngest ever Chief Scout, said that  parents and teachers must stop being lazy and limit the time that children spend on technical devices."First of all we all want to keep young people safe, priority number one," he said.
  
  Read more

• Bear Grylls: Eton celebrates only sporty, clever or good-looking students – it didn't give me the skills for real life

  19-03-2017 17:13
  
  Grylls, a survival expert who was appointed as the youngest ever Chief Scout, said that parents and teachers must limit the time that children spend on technical devices."First of all we all want to keep young people safe, priority number one," he said.
  
  Read more

Follow @GeneralnewsUK on Twitter!