Labour hopes to put winter fuel misstep behind them

44 minutes ago Share Save Chris Mason • @ChrisMasonBBC Political editor Share Save

Reuters

The final act in this slow motion U-turn has played out. The arc of this row runs to almost a year. It was late July last year when I was among a bunch of reporters called into the Treasury to question the then new chancellor about her out-of-the-blue policy to take the Winter Fuel Payment from millions of pensioners. Rachel Reeves limited the payment to only those pensioners in receipt of pension credit or other means-tested benefits – around 1.5 million – saving up to £1.5bn a year.

Ever since Labour MPs have grumbled they've been taking heat for it. Two-and-a-half weeks ago, the prime minister said the threshold would be moving. Last week, the chancellor said the new recipients would get it this coming winter. We now know who will qualify and who will have to pay it back. A couple of thoughts: could the government have done this in the first place? Some privately say: absolutely. Others say there was genuinely real concern in the Treasury about the state of the books and they felt compelled to do something to reduce so-called in year costs.

Secondly: once they decided to move, they have moved pretty quickly, albeit announcing the U-turn in iterative steps, one week after another. We are not being kept waiting until the Budget in the autumn, or even the Spending Review on Wednesday - here we have it, the new threshold. So, how will the government pay for it? It is projected to cost £1.25bn. Ministers say there won't be a "permanent" increase in borrowing. So how much borrowing will there be, and for how long? And which other budgets may be squeezed as a result? For many within Labour this whole debacle was the single biggest misstep of the party's first year in office. They will now hope to put it behind them. But it's one of those things forever likely to remain in the biography of this government - with questions asked of Rachel Reeves about it.

How LA erupted over rumours of immigration raid at a hardware store

10 hours ago Share Save Christal Hayes BBC News Reporting from Paramount, California Share Save

The National Guard clashed with people protesting against immigration raids in Los Angeles.

Juan and several friends huddled in the car park of a hardware store near Los Angeles, where protests have erupted against US President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. Typically, their gatherings include dozens of day labourers, many of whom are undocumented immigrants, seeking work from shoppers or contractors. But on Sunday, only two small pickups advertised that they could help with roofing, repairs or paint jobs outside this branch of Home Depot in the suburb of Paramount, whose population is more than 82% Hispanic. It was one day after the store became the centre of immigration protests, sparked by rumours that day labourers here had been rounded up and arrested. Many who live in the community told the BBC they saw immigration enforcement vehicles in the area. It caused instant fear and panic. Then came reports about raids and arrests of day labourers at Home Depot, a place where many undocumented migrants across the US go to find work. Protests erupted in this Hispanic-majority city, turning violent as rocks and Molotov cocktails were thrown. Authorities used pepper spray, rubber bullets and smoke bombs to subdue the crowd. But the demonstrations in Paramount appear to have spawned out of misinformation.

Watch: "We stand with all Angelinos no matter where you were born," says LA Mayor

While dozens of migrants have been detained by authorities elsewhere in the area, the rumours of raids at the store were misinformation, according to the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS). "Despite false reports, there was no ICE 'raid' at a Home Depot in LA," the DHS told the BBC. Follow live updates

Full story: Unlawful assembly declared in downtown LA

Everything we know about the protests

Analayis: A political fight Trump is eager to have As he leaned on the bed of a small Toyota pickup with his two friends, Juan said: "No-one really knows what happened. Everyone is afraid." The unrest in Paramount, which also saw a car set ablaze and businesses looted, became a catalyst for what federal authorities have described as riots throughout the Los Angeles area. On Saturday, President Donald Trump used his authority to call in the California National Guard, something typically decided by a state's governor, as a second day of protests convulsed the city. As the protests flared up for a third day on Sunday, armed National Guard troops guarded a gated business park across the street from the hardware store. They parked Humvees blocking the area and squared off with protesters hurling insults and waving Mexican flags and banners.

Getty Images President Trump deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles

"You're not welcome here!" one man with a Los Angeles Angels ball cap shouted to the soldiers as another protester uncapped spray paint and wrote an obscenity directed at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. DHS told the BBC that the guarded area is home to one of their offices and authorities were using it "as a staging area and rioters found it". The agency told the BBC they have arrested 118 illegal immigrants in the Los Angeles area this week, including five they say are gang members. The agency said some of these migrants had previous criminal histories that included drug trafficking, assault and robbery. As he prepared to board Air Force One in Morristown, New Jersey, on Sunday, Trump told reporters there were "violent people" in Los Angeles "and they're not gonna get away with it". Dora Sanchez was still in disbelief from the shocking images that transformed her city the night before. She gathered on Sunday with others in the community at the Chapel of Change church, less than a block from the centre of protests the day before. She and others at the church talked about how this Hispanic community was revitalised over the years and became a close-knit community where neighbours know and watch out for one another. The protests felt like a "breaking point" for the immigrant community, she noted. Los Angeles is one of the biggest minority-majority cities in the US.

Watch: 'We'll be very, very strong in terms of law and order' - Trump

Hispanics not only make up a larger share of the population than any other ethnic background, but immigrants, specifically those from just south in Mexico, are a core part of the history and culture here. The city boasts its status as a sanctuary city, which means it does not co-operate with federal immigration enforcement. Some here said they felt a bubbling tension that seemed to erupt when the Republican president's administration targeted LA's undocumented immigrants. "It was time to stand up," said Maria Gutierrez, who protested in Paramount. "These are my people." She said she was born in Mexico, but has lived here since she was a girl. She - like many here - say they have family members who are in the US illegally. "This is LA," she said. "It touches us all. "Everyone has family or knows someone who doesn't have papers."

British photographer injured by 'plastic bullet' in LA protests

4 hours ago Share Save James Gregory BBC News Share Save

Associated Press

A British news photographer has undergone emergency surgery after being hit by a non-lethal bullet while documenting the stand-off between police and protesters in the US city of Los Angeles. Nick Stern was covering the protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Sunday when he said a three-inch "plastic bullet" tore into his thigh. "There was something hard sticking out of the back of my leg and my leg was getting wet from blood," he told the BBC. Demonstrations against immigration raids have been raging in LA for three days, with protests on Sunday erupting outside a Home Depot store in Paramount, south of LA.

Stern, originally from Hertfordshire before relocating to the US in 2007, said he had been standing in the middle of the road all day taking photos when at 21:00 local time he was struck by a bullet. "I suddenly got this terrific pain on my leg," he told the BBC's Three Counties Radio. "I tried hobbling away [but] I couldn't put any weight on my leg." He said that up to eight protesters rushed up to him to carry him away from the "danger area" before a medic cut his trousers off, put a pressure pad on the wound and tied a tourniquet. "From the moment I was hit I felt incredibly faint."

He is now recovering at Long Beach Memorial Medical Centre following emergency surgery to remove the bullet from his leg. Stern has a long history of covering protests and riots around the world and said he typically makes a point of being "very deliberate and very obvious". "I was out there wearing a press card around my neck, a big camera around my neck as well," he told the BBC. Despite his injury, Stern said he was eager to return to work. "I intend, as soon as I am well enough, to get back out there," he said. "This is too important and it needs documenting." An Australian journalist, Lauren Tomasi, was also struck by a non-lethal round, shot by a police officer, while filming a piece to camera in LA for 9 News.

Channel Nine's Lauren Tomasi hit by non-lethal round while reporting from LA

Since his return to the White House, US President Donald Trump has promised mass deportations of undocumented immigrants. Arrests made by ICE officers have increased during Trump's second term. Trump said he had deployed 2,000 National Guard troops to California to deal with the unrest over the immigration raids, saying the federal government would "step in and solve the problem". But the Democratic governor of California has appealed to Trump to pull National Guard units out of the city, accusing the White House of inflaming tensions. Stern said: "The communities in LA are very tight and very close-knit. "So an outside organisation like ICE coming in and removing - whatever you want to call it, removing, kidnapping, abducting people from the community - is not going to go down well at all."

Getty Images Demonstrations against immigration raids have been taking place in LA since Friday

Spending Review: When is it and what might Rachel Reeves announce?

52 minutes ago Share Save Dearbail Jordan Business reporter, BBC News Share Save

Reuters Chancellor Rachel Reeves

Chancellor Rachel Reeves faces difficult choices in this week's Spending Review, which sets the budgets for all government departments over the next few years. The review will confirm how much taxpayers' money will be spent on the NHS and other public services used by millions. It will also set out how much money the government plans to invest in projects like new public transport schemes.

What is the Spending Review and when is it?

The Spending Review will be delivered by Reeves on Wednesday, 11 June. In October she set department budgets for 2025-26, and will now confirm how much they have to spend over the following three to four years. Reeves has already set out what how much total government spending will rise by over the period. On Wednesday this will be broken down by department. The review covers two categories of spending: Day-to-day spending, which includes things like salaries, supplies and other administration costs. This is known as "resource" spending

spending, which includes things like salaries, supplies and other administration costs. This is known as "resource" spending Investment, which includes funding for infrastructure as well as building things like new schools, hospitals and roads. This called "capital" spending Wednesday's Spending Review will set out day-to-day expenditure for three years and investment spending for four years.

Which departments will get a boost to spending?

The government has already set out how much total spending on day-to-day running costs and on investment will increase by. The "relatively modest" rise could mean that "sharp trade-offs are unavoidable" when setting the budget for each department, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think tank. The government has said it wants to increase investment. Reeves has changed the way that debt is measured to free up more than £100bn to fund building, research and development as well as other major projects. As Wednesday approaches, here is what we know so far: Winter fuel payments will be made to three quarters of pensioners this year. Reeves confirmed a U-turn on the government's controversial decision to limit the payments to those receiving means-tested benefits. The government said the change will cost around £1.25bn in England and Wales

will be made to three quarters of pensioners this year. Reeves confirmed a U-turn on the government's controversial decision to limit the payments to those receiving means-tested benefits. The government said the change will cost around £1.25bn in England and Wales Defence spending will rise from 2.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) to 2.5% by 2027 - an increase of around an extra £5bn a year. This will be paid by cutting the overseas aid budget. Ministers want to increase defence spending to 3% by 2034

spending will rise from 2.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) to 2.5% by 2027 - an increase of around an extra £5bn a year. This will be paid by cutting the overseas aid budget. Ministers want to increase defence spending to 3% by 2034 There are suggestions that the NHS will get an extra £30bn over three years

the will get an extra £30bn over three years Free school meals will be expanded to 500,000 children whose parents are receiving Universal Credit, regardless of their income. Across education, day-to-day spending will rise by £4.5bn a year by 2028-29, according to The Observer

Investment worth £15.6bn will fund extensions to trams, trains and buses in Greater Manchester, the Midlands and Tyne-and-Wear, after criticism that too much infrastructure spending targeted London and the South East

The government will spend £86bn on the science and technology sector by the end of the parliament, including funding research into areas such as drug treatments and longer-lasting batteries There have also been reports that Reeves could announce a new nuclear power station in Suffolk. Sizewell C, a project that is jointly owned by the UK government and the French state-owned energy giant EDF, wants to begin construction of a power station that will be funded by taxpayers and private investors. The government may also set out detailed plans to build small modular reactors (SMRs) - mini nuclear power stations - in England and Wales.

How is the UK economy doing and how much room for manoeuvre does Reeves have?

'I was angry Southport killer did not face me in court'

7 hours ago Share Save Kevin Duala & Lauren Hirst BBC News, Merseyside Share Save

Reuters Sarah said facing Rudakubana in court would have been "a bit of closure for me"

A girl who survived the Southport attack that claimed the lives of three girls has said she was angry she did not get the chance to face the "coward" who injured her in court. The 14-year-old, who the BBC has called Sarah to protect her identity, was left with life-threatening injuries when Axel Rudakubana attacked children and adults at a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga workshop on 29 July 2024. Ahead of the first anniversary of the attack, she said she had wanted to give evidence at his trial, but his guilty plea had denied her the chance. "I was really angered by the fact he just turned round and said 'I plead guilty' [because] he didn't have to face us," she said.

Seven year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice Aguiar, aged nine, and six-year-old Bebe King died in the attack, while eight other children and two adults were injured. Sarah has previously spoken to the BBC's Judith Moritz about what happened on the day of the attack, which left her with injuries to her back and arm.

Family handouts Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice Aguiar, and Bebe King were killed in the attack

She told BBC Radio Merseyside the attack and the aftermath had shown her "the worst and the best of humanity". "I was in hospital for exactly a week," she said. "All through [that time], it was obviously quite tough, but I was moved on to a ward with a few of the other girls and it was just lovely to see them all. "We were all just geeing each other on - when one of us would start walking, then another one would say 'I'm going to get up and do that'."

A list of organisations offering support and information with some of the issues in this story is available at BBC Action Line.

Rudakubana was arrested on the day of the attack, but initially denied responsibility for them, before changing his plea to guilty on the first day of his trial in January. He then refused to leave his cell to face the court when he was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 52 years three days later. Sarah had prepared a victim impact statement, which she had hoped to read directly to her attacker. "I wanted to get my story out there... and I felt like it would be a bit of closure for me as well," she said. "It didn't end up happening in the end, which was tough and angering, because we'd had all that build-up, stress and anxiety. "Everyone [told me] 'we don't know how you're going to be afterwards', and I said 'will you just let me do it and then I'll see?' "I was really angered by the fact he just turned round and said 'I plead guilty' [because] he didn't have to face us. "He's just a coward at the end of the day, targeting kids in the first place."

PA Media Rudakubana was taken to the court for sentencing, but refused to leave his cell

Sarah said she wanted move forward in a positive way and hoped to make a difference by setting up a charitable clothing brand with her sister, who also survived the attack, with support from their parents and family friends. She said it would be called GABA, which stands for "Go Anywhere Be Anything", and a percentage of sales would help charities that focus on mental health, fund bleed packs and help to tackle knife crime. "I want everyone who leaves high school to be first aid-trained," she said. "Everyone that is carrying knives or hurting each other is getting younger and younger. "It's annoying that it's people who are my age. "Hopefully, if they went through these courses, they might take a second thought about what they're doing." Sarah's efforts echo those of yoga instructor Leanne Lucas, who also survived the attack and recently said she wanted to drive a cultural shift in which people swapped their traditional pointed-tip blades with blunt-ended knives, which presented a much lower risk of causing serious injury.

Prosecution case like a movie script, Mark Gordon says

A court sketch of Mark Gordon giving evidence during his retrial last month

Gordon, 51, and Marten, 38, both deny manslaughter by gross negligence and causing or allowing the death of a child.

He rejected the prosecution's central allegation that their baby, Victoria, had died of hypothermia after they had negligently taken her camping in January 2023, telling the jury: "We are experienced campers".

Mark Gordon said in his closing speech that the prosecution had "just made things up" during his retrial with Constance Marten at the Old Bailey in London.

A man on trial with his partner over the death of their newborn baby has described the prosecution case against him as "like a script from a movie".

Victoria's decomposed body was found in a shopping bag in an allotment shed in Brighton in March 2023. She had died in a tent in the South Downs in January 2023.

Gordon made his own closing speech because his lawyers had withdrawn.

During their evidence in the retrial, the couple both said their baby died on the second day of camping, with Marten having woken up to find she had slumped over Victoria, who was no longer breathing.

"We didn't move from the body for three whole days," he told the jury.

He said they had both considered suicide afterwards.

He said the prosecution's case that Victoria had died of hypothermia was a "hypothesis".

He reminded the jury Marten had told them the couple had erected their tent in a "sheltered area with a fallen tree".

They wore several layers of clothing and the tent was well ventilated so there was no condensation, he added.

"The whole prosecution in this case is like a script from a movie, indeed a fictional novel," he told jurors.

"The prosecution has just made things up and filled in the blanks in support of the plot, the narrative, the theme of the story.

"Despite all the barking, all the theatrics, it is just a show, an act."

The trial continues.

Additional reporting by James Gregory.

'We were friends of the US': Fearful Afghans face Trump travel ban

40 minutes ago Share Save Mallory Moench and Flora Drury BBC News Share Save

Getty Images

Ahmad has been hiding in Afghanistan for years. The former Afghan military employee is living in fear of being found by the Taliban, which seized power in 2021 as US forces withdrew from the Central Asian nation. As a result, Ahmad is unable to get a job or access medical care, relying on donations from friends outside the country to survive. His son, 12, is unable to go to school. If they are found, Ahmad says, the Taliban "will remove" him. His hope had been refugee resettlement in the US, but - with just a medical check to complete - the process was put on pause by the Trump administration. Still, he hoped. Then, on Thursday he woke to the news that US President Donald Trump had issued a new order banning the entry of Afghan passport holders to the US, citing national security threats. "I am not a threat to the United States," Ahmad told the BBC. The BBC is not using his real name because of concerns about his safety. "We were friends of the United States," he added.

Trump's sweeping travel ban came into force on Monday, blocking people from Afghanistan and 11 other countries, including seven from Africa, as well as countries like Haiti and Yemen, from entering the US. There are partial bans on seven other countries. According to the ban, Afghanistan was included because the Taliban are considered by the US government to be a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) group, and the country does not have "a competent or co-operative central authority for issuing passports or civil documents", or "appropriate screening and vetting measures". It also notes a relatively high rate of people overstaying their visas. The Trump administration has, however, recently dropped temporary protected status for more than 9,000 Afghans living in the US, arguing its assessments showed the security and economic situation in Afghanistan had improved. But those living in Afghanistan are faced with a series of restrictions brought in by the Taliban government in line with its strict interpretation of Sharia law. The ones affecting women - including the enforcement of head coverings, restrictions on travel and education over the age of 12 - amount to a "gender apartheid", according to the United Nations. The Taliban says it respects the rights of women in line with Sharia and Afghan culture. A different UN report from 2023 found there were credible reports that hundreds of former government officials and armed forces members had been killed since the group returned to power in 2021, despite a general amnesty. The Taliban has previously said all Afghans could "live in the country without any fear" - and those abroad should come back and help rebuild the country. "There is a general amnesty," Mohammad Suhail Shaheen, Taliban ambassador to Qatar, told the BBC earlier this year. "Countrywide security is prevalent in Afghanistan. Every citizen and traveller can travel to any corner of the country without any obstacles or any difficulties." There are exceptions to Trump's ban - including for Afghans who worked directly with the US military before the Taliban back took control of the country in 2021. But Ahmad, whose application for resettlement was backed by a former US service member, does not qualify for a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) because he did not work directly for the US. And he is far from the only one.

Some 200,000 Afghans have been resettled since the US military's chaotic withdrawal, but there are still tens of thousands more waiting for a decision. Many have fled across the border to neighbouring Pakistan to wait for a decision to be made on their application. Samira, who spoke to the BBC's Afghan Service, is currently in Pakistan - which has been expelling tens of thousands of Afghans in recent months. If the path to the US is closed to her, she is not sure what to do next. "Returning to Afghanistan is not an option for us - it would be incredibly challenging," she said. "Our children have already lost years of education, and we have no hope of safely going back."

Watch: President Trump announces travel ban from "high-risk regions"

More than 8,300 family members of US citizens are ready for an interview in Afghanistan, with more than 11,400 others awaiting family reunification, according to US Department of State data shared by AfghanEvac. Mojo, who asked to be identified by his nickname, is one of the 200,000 Afghans who have already reached the US, because he worked directly for the US military. He is now a US citizen. His sister, however, remains in Afghanistan where she and her husband are "living in a hide and seek game", he says. They change their address and city every couple months in order to stay safe. They passed the background and medical checks for refugee resettlement, but like the others who spoke to the BBC, they became trapped when the process was paused in January. This latest order has made Mojo, who lives in Houston, Texas, and the rest of his family lose "all our hope completely" . "I wish that he would change his mind, make some exception, change the rules or take his order back and let people have a peaceful life," he said.

Glastonbury capacity cut to avoid overcrowding

20 minutes ago Share Save Emma Saunders Culture reporter Share Save

Getty Images Charli XCX is expected to draw a huge crowd when she headlines the Other Stage this year

Glastonbury Festival has sold "a few thousand less tickets" this year in an attempt to ease the build-up of heavy crowds, organiser Emily Eavis has said. This year's event, which will take place in Somerset later this month, is sold out but will not use its full 210,000 capacity. "It'll be interesting just to see how that affects the dynamics on site," Eavis told the BBC's Sidetracked podcast, adding that she wants to see if the reduction "can make an impact on some of the busier times". She revealed they have also created more room for the audience at the Other Stage, the festival's second-biggest arena, where Charli XCX is expected to attract a huge crowd when she headlines on the Saturday night.

The Shangri-La nightlife area will also have more room after the festival bought extra land, she said. Eavis said she had asked a meeting of 250 Glastonbury staff whether anyone thought the festival was overcrowded last year, and no-one put their hand up. "And I was like, [that's] interesting, because there's a lot of talk, some people think that it was."

Getty Images Emily Eavis has taken over the day-to-day running of the event from her dad Michael

Festival-goers will be urged to use different routes and make use of the whole site to ease congestion. "Interestingly, people have moved slightly differently since Covid. So they tend to move more in a herd," Eavis said. "So my main thing really this year is just to communicate that there are like 10 routes to anywhere." Organisers can predict which areas are likely to be busiest by tracking the most popular artists among fans who use the festival app's schedule planner. "The app was really accurate last year. People plan what they're going to see. We can see what they're going to see, which is really useful for us from a crowd perspective," she said. This year's festival runs from Wednesday 25 June to Monday 30 June and will be headlined by Olivia Rodrigo, The 1975 and Neil Young. Its current licence allows up to 210,000 people on site including fans, staff and performers.

£1m price of rain

In a wide-ranging interview with presenters Annie Macmanus and Nick Grimshaw, Eavis said they donated £5.9m to charity last year, "the largest sum we've managed to do". They usually "actively try not to make a profit", but have had to do so in the last couple of years having lost £10m due to Covid. She also revealed that they have to pay an extra £1m for extra expenses if there is wet weather, including tonnes of woodchip on the ground to stop people from slipping in the mud. The festival pays its stars "a lot less" than they could earn from their own major commercial gigs - but it has increased its fees in recent years, she said. "We are paying people a lot more than we ever have but it's not as much as you would get doing Hyde Park. "It's such a corporate world, especially in the music industry. We are offered a lot of things that we turn down." She told the podcast: "The whole thing is based on goodwill. "Imagine if we tried to sell it out [to commercial brands]. It would be awful, it would be the end. I'd rather literally die before that happened. It just can't happen."

Murder accused called child beaters by son - court

39 minutes ago Share Save Matthew Richards BBC News Brendon Williams BBC News Share Save

Family photo Ethan Ives Griffiths died from a fatal brain injury in 2021

A couple accused of murdering their grandson were called "child beaters" by their son, a court has heard. Two-year-old Ethan Ives-Griffiths was living with his grandparents before he died on 16 August 2021 from a catastrophic head injury. Michael Ives, 47, and Kerry Ives, 46, both of Garden City, Flintshire, deny murder, causing or allowing the death of a child and child cruelty. Ethan's mother, Shannon Ives, 28, of Mold, has denied causing or allowing the death of a child and child cruelty.

On Monday, Mold Crown Court heard details of text messages sent by members of the Ives family to each other. In one message, Kerry Ives and her adult son discussed him moving out of her home because she lied about her tenancy.

Kerry Ives, 46, and Michael Ives, 47, are charged with the murder of their grandson Ethan

In one message, Kerry Ives said: "The reason dad told you to get out was because you called us 'child beaters'." Her son replied that by the time "you realise what you put all us kids through, it'll be too late". His mother responded by saying: "What's he put you through? Nothing." She said he too would have issues if "you had parents like he did: Kicked out at a young age, going into a children's home, being hit every day". Kerry Ives said she too was "hit every day by my mum and dad". The court was told Mr Ives sent a text to another of his adult children after Ethan moved in to live with the couple. It said when Ethan was being "naughty" he "needs to learn the hard way".

Ethan was discovered "severely underweight, covered in bruises at his grandparents' house

Tottenham are moving towards appointing Brentford boss Thomas Frank as their new head coach following the sacking of Ange Postecoglou.

Brentford are expecting a formal approach from Tottenham in the coming days but there has been no confirmation so far of dialogue between the two clubs.

The Dane, 51, has emerged as a leading contender to replace Postecoglou.

Brentford would be entitled to compensation for Frank, with sources indicating it would cost Tottenham more than £10m to extract him from his contract.

That figure could rise depending on how many members of staff Frank decides to bring with him if he is named Spurs boss.

More to follow.