News

A civil service union is going to ballot its members on industrial action, increasing the threat of strikes continuing into the new year. Prospect said Paymaster General Jeremy Quin had written to the union confirming that the Government had decided to make no more money available to address the cost-of-living crisis facing civil servants. The letter was in response to Prospect’s demands following an indicative ballot showing widespread support for […]

Lionel Messi will have the chance to crown his glittering career with a World Cup winner’s medal after opening the scoring in a magical display that helped Argentina comprehensively beat Croatia and reach Sunday’s final. The 35-year-old is one of the greatest to ever grace the field and will get his shot at glory against France or Morocco back at Lusail Stadium in what looks set to be his last […]

Mark Wood praised Ben Stokes’ mature captaincy style on his return to the Test arena after briefly contemplating a switch to white-ball only cricket a few months ago. The fast bowler was England’s highest wicket taker in a dismal Ashes series last winter, but missed the start of the national side’s red-ball revolution under Stokes and Brendon McCullum after having elbow surgery. The 32-year-old returned for England’s T20 World Cup […]

World Rugby bosses were set to convene for an emergency session on Tuesday after the governing body’s vice-chairman Bernard Laporte was handed a two-year suspended prison sentence on corruption charges. Laporte, who was also the president of French rugby, has also been banned from holding any post in rugby union for two years, although that is currently suspended, pending an appeal. “World Rugby notes the decision of the French court […]

England star Anthony Watson has described Steve Borthwick as “a ridiculously good coach” ahead of his likely ascension to English rugby’s top job. And Watson also reserved considerable praise for ex-England head coach Eddie Jones, whose seven-year reign ended last week when he was sacked following a poor Autumn Nations Series campaign. Leicester boss Borthwick, a former England forwards coach and England captain, is the clear favourite to succeed Jones. […]

A baby girl allegedly attacked by nurse Lucy Letby was force-fed “massive additional amounts of milk”, a court has heard. Letby, 32, is accused of overfeeding the infant just hours after she helped put up a banner at the Countess of Chester Hospital to mark the youngster’s 100th day of life. The infant was born months earlier on the “margins of survival” as she weighed just more than one pound, […]

Next week’s Carabao Cup ties at Newcastle and Southampton will be played a day earlier than scheduled due to planned strike action by medical services. The Magpies’ fourth-round clash with Premier League rivals Bournemouth at St James’ Park has been moved forward to Tuesday, December 20, while Saints will host League One Lincoln at St Mary’s on the same evening. Both fixtures, which kick-off at 7.45pm, had originally been arranged […]

Several people, who appeared to have been playing on the ice on a lake in Solihull before falling through, are believed to be in a critical condition after being pulled from the water by emergency services. West Midlands Fire and Rescue Service (WMFS) said it was called to Babbs Mill Park in Kingshurst at 2.36pm along with West Midlands Ambulance Service and West Midlands Police. The fire service said reports […]

Five people are confirmed to have died following an explosion at a block of flats in the Jersey capital. States of Jersey Police gave an updated death toll on Sunday evening as specialist teams continued the recovery operation on Pier Road, St Helier. The force estimated that four more people are also likely to be recovered from the wreckage of the three-storey Haut du Mont residential block, which was destroyed […]