6:35 am, May 26, 2024
Mandatory national service for 18-year-olds if Tories win, Sunak vows
Eighteen year olds would be forced to carry out a form of national service if the Tories are voted back in at the July 4 General Election, Rishi Sunak has announced.
Young people would be given a choice between a full-time placement in the armed forces for 12 months or spending one weekend a month for a year ‘volunteering’, in their community, the Tories said.
The prime minister said the policy would help unite society in an ‘increasingly uncertain world’ and give young people a ‘shared sense of purpose’.
Lib Dems to launch battlebus with ‘save the NHS’ message in blue-wall seat
Sir Ed Davey will launch the Liberal Democrats’ battlebus campaign with a ‘save the NHS’ message in a marginal blue-wall seat on Sunday.
The UK’s fourth biggest party has put health at the heart of its agenda in the run-up to the July 4 General Election as it targets traditionally Conservative heartlands in southern England.
Sir Ed will say the Tories have left hospitals ‘with dangerous crumbling roofs’ and ‘sewage pouring into’ wards as he makes a manifesto pledge to introduce a 10-year rolling repair programme for the NHS estate.
16 and 17-year-olds should get the vote, Starmer says
Sir Keir Starmer has said people old enough to work should be allowed to vote as he confirmed a Labour government would seek to extend the franchise to 16 and 17-year-olds.
The party leader said anyone paying tax should ‘have a say’ in how their money is spent as he was questioned about the commitment on Saturday.
Asked by reporters on the campaign trail in Staffordshire whether Labour would lower the voting age, Sir Keir said: ‘Yes, I want to see both 16 and 17-year-olds. If you can work, if you can pay tax, if you can serve in your armed forces, then you ought to be able to vote.’
Boy, 17, held on suspicion of murder after 16-year-old stabbed
A 17-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder after another teenage boy, 16, was stabbed to death in west London.
Officers were called to reports of a stabbing in Bourne Avenue, Hayes, around 1.30pm on Friday, the Metropolitan Police said.
The force confirmed the identity of the victim on Saturday as Kamari Johnson.
Pilot dies in Spitfire crash near RAF Coningsby
A Royal Air Force pilot has died after a Spitfire crashed into a field near RAF Coningsby, in Lincolnshire.
Police and emergency services rushed to the scene on Langrick Road at just before 1.20pm on Saturday.
The Spitfire of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF) was flying near the air station when the crash took place. The male pilot, who has not yet been named, was declared dead at the scene.
Listen to the latest Car Dealer Podcast
Rebecca Chaplin is in the host’s chair this week and is joined by James Batchelor. The pair chat to AutoSportiva’s Will Lee-Kemp about the week’s biggest stories including Peter Waddell’s High Court case and Cazoo’s administration. You can listen on your favourite streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
G7 moves towards agreement on money for Ukraine from frozen Russian assets
Finance officials from the Group of Seven rich democracies said they had moved towards agreement on a US proposal to squeeze more money for Ukraine from Russian assets frozen in their countries.
But the ministers left a final deal to be worked out ahead of a June summit of national leaders.
‘We are making progress in our discussions on potential avenues to bring forward the extraordinary profits stemming from immobilised Russian sovereign assets to the benefit of Ukraine,’ the draft statement said, without providing details. Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, represented the UK.
Weather
Heavy downpours will move their way northwards during the course of the day, having started in the south overnight, reports BBC Weather. In its wake will be sunshine but this will set off thundery showers. Warm with highs of 19 degrees but not as pleasant as yesterday’s early-20s.
Those showers will continue to fall in the north tonight, but other areas should be clear.
For Monday, the thicker bands of rain will remain in Scotland, but the rest of the UK will see the odd heavy and thundery downpour. Temperatures will be between 15 and 17 degrees.
