6:46 am, March 10, 2024

Cars can be donated to Ukraine under Ulez scrappage scheme from next week

Vehicles that fall foul of London’s ultra low emission zone rules can be donated to Ukraine rather than being scrapped from next week.

Applicants will be able to donate vehicles in return for the same grant payment available to drivers who scrap their vehicles – up to £2,000 – Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has announced. The donated vehicles will be permanently transferred to Ukrainian authorities for humanitarian and medical needs.

‘There is still plenty of money left in the scrappage fund and I encourage anyone applying to consider donating their vehicle to this cause,’ said Khan.

Radioactive gas detected at prison leads to closure of 180 cells

A UK prison has had to close down more than 180 cells after radioactive gas was detected.

HMP Dartmoor has been forced to close the cells and carry out prisoner removals due to the presence of radon.

The capacity of the Devon prison has been reduced by 184 places between November and February, with official figures suggesting its total safe capacity is 640. The PA news agency understands the vast majority have been moved due to radon, an odourless and colourless gas, that is responsible for around 1,000 lung cancer deaths a year.

Duke of Edinburgh appointed to Order of the Thistle

The King has appointed the Duke of Edinburgh to the Order of the Thistle on his 60th birthday.

Appointments to the order – the highest honour in Scotland – are entirely in the personal gift of the King and do not require prime ministerial advice.

The three other new recipients of the order are anthropologist Professor Dame Sue Black, distinguished lawyer Baroness Helena Kennedy and Scotland’s first black professor Sir Geoff Palmer.

Bodies moved from funeral director by police amid ‘concern for care of deceased’

A number of bodies have been removed from a funeral director by police after reports of ‘concern for care of the deceased’.

Cordons remain in place at three Legacy Independent Funeral Directors after Humberside Police received a report on Wednesday over concerns about the ‘storage and management processes relating to care of the deceased’.

There is a police presence at the company’s three branches in Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire.As part of Humberside Police’s inquiries, a number of bodies have been moved from the premises on Hessle Road in Hull to the local authority mortuary in Hull, the force said.

Criminal probe opened into Alaska Airlines 737 plane blowout

The US department of justice has launched a criminal investigation into the Boeing jetliner blowout that left a gaping hole on an Alaska Airlines plane in January, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The newspaper said investigators have contacted some passengers and crew – including pilots and flight attendants – who were on the January 5 flight. The Boeing plane used by Alaska Airlines suffered the blowout seven minutes after take-off from Portland, Oregon.

Alaska Airlines said: ‘We are fully co-operating and do not believe we are a target of the investigation.’

Sunak hints at welfare squeeze to fund plan to scrap national insurance

Scrapping national insurance is set to be a key part of the Tory election offer to voters as Rishi Sunak suggested a squeeze on benefits could help pay for the plan.

The Prime Minister said ‘significant progress’ could be made towards the goal of eliminating the tax during the next parliament if his party remains in power.

‘All that money ultimately goes into the same pot to fund public services. So … our long-term ambition is to end that unfairness, to keep cutting NICs until it’s gone,’ he told The Sunday Times.

Biden says he regrets using term ‘illegal’ during State of Union address

US President Joe Biden has said he regrets using the term ‘illegal’ during his State of the Union address to describe the suspected killer of Laken Riley.

Biden spoke after Donald Trump, who is all-but-certain to be his rival in the autumn presidential election, blamed the President for her death at a rally attended by the Georgia nursing student’s family.

The President expressed remorse in an interview yesterday after facing frustration from some in his party for the use of the term to describe people who arrived or are living in the US illegally.

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Seeds collected from Sycamore Gap ‘spring into life’

Seeds and buds rescued from the Sycamore Gap are ‘springing into life’ at a specialist conservation centre, giving hope the famous tree will live on.

Staff at the National Trust’s Plant Conservation Centre have been carefully looking after the recovered seeds and twigs for the past five months.

The 300-year-old sycamore tree was felled in an act of vandalism in September which prompted national outcry. It stood in a dip in Hadrian’s Wall, in Northumberland National Park, on land owned by the trust.

Royal Navy warship shoots down Houthi drones in Red Sea

Royal Navy frigate HMS Richmond has downed two drones launched by the Iranian-backed Houthi group in the latest incident in the Red Sea.

Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said the incident overnight saw the warship use its Sea Ceptor missiles to repel the attack.

The US Central Command said a total of 15 drones were shot down by coalition vessels and aircraft during attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Deadly Russian artillery strikes hit Ukraine

Ukrainian authorities have said two people, including a teenage boy, have been killed in Russian artillery attacks.

Meanwhile, Russia reported it had shot down a Ukrainian fighter jet and destroyed a wave of drones over several regions. The attacks came as Russia is gaining momentum on battlefield and Ukraine forces are running low on ammunition.

Ukraine’s allies in the West are delicately raising the prospect of sending troops. Polish foreign minister Radek Sikorski said deploying Nato troops to Ukraine “is not unthinkable”. French President Emmanuel Macron said last month that the idea should not be ruled out.

Raising the woof as thousands of dogs descend on Crufts

Thousands of dogs big and small from 220 breeds, along with their hopeful owners, have spent the week in Birmingham in a bid to take home coveted trophies at Crufts 2024.

This year’s show, at the city’s National Exhibition Centre, runs from March 7-10 and has seen furry competitors take part in a wide variety of challenges and presentations.

The event will culminate with the award of the ‘best in show’ trophy on Sunday night, where the top dog in each of the seven breed groups competes.

Weather

The BBC says today will be cloudy for most with showers or spells of rain moving northwards and westwards, and bringing some snow over the northern Scottish hills. There will be sunny spells and heavy showers in the south-west

Tonight will stay largely cloudy, with just the odd clear break along some in the far west. Rain will ease for most but a few light spells or showers may persist for the east, and some western coasts.

It will be another cloudy day tomorrow, with a few showers or spells of rain possible under the thick cloud, mainly in the east and in Northern Ireland. The odd brighter spell is possible near some western coasts.