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STORY

The Department for Education has warned that avoidable absences, including so-called “birthday bunk-offs”, are contributing to persistent attendance problems in schools. The Government said it wanted to help schools and families reduce unnecessary absence while making school a place children want to attend.

Ministers said practical attendance tools would sit alongside broader education reforms, including expanded access to music, sport and the arts, improved teaching and a more stretching curriculum. The Department said the Attendance and Behaviour Hubs programme was helping schools share proven approaches to improving attendance.

The announcement comes as school attendance remains a politically sensitive issue following the disruption of recent years. The Government is seeking to frame attendance not only as a matter of enforcement, but as part of a wider effort to improve school culture, expectations and pupil experience.

STORY

The UK has announced co-ordinated sanctions with international partners against individuals and entities accused of financing or enabling settler violence in the occupied West Bank. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said the measures targeted networks involved in supporting violence, intimidation and forced displacement of Palestinians.

Yvette Cooper, the Foreign Secretary, said settler expansion and violence were illegal and represented a fundamental threat to the viability of a two-state solution. The Government said the latest action came amid continued settlement expansion, including the E1 project, and record levels of settler violence.

The UK has urged the Government of Israel to end settlement expansion, act against settler violence, prosecute those responsible and lift restrictions affecting the Palestinian economy. Ministers said further action could follow if the situation did not improve.

STORY

Armed Forces personnel will receive a 3.6% pay rise after the Government accepted the recommendations of the Armed Forces Pay Review Body in full. John Healey, the Defence Secretary, said the award would be backdated to 1 April 2026 and funded from existing departmental budgets.

The Government said this would be the third consecutive above-inflation pay rise for service personnel, following awards of 6% in 2024 and 4.5% in 2025. Ministers said the latest settlement meant most personnel had received a cumulative pay award of 14.1% since April 2024.

Healey said the decision formed part of efforts to address recruitment, retention and morale problems in the Armed Forces. The announcement comes alongside wider defence spending commitments, with the Government saying it is moving towards defence spending of 2.6% of GDP from 2027.

STORY

Political leaders have appealed for calm after a serious knife attack in north Belfast left a man in his 40s in hospital with severe injuries. Police arrested a 30-year-old Sudanese man on suspicion of attempted murder after the incident on the evening of 8 June, which was partly filmed and then circulated widely on social media. The Police Service of Northern Ireland said a knife had been recovered and that the attack was not being treated as terrorism-related at this stage.

Sir Keir Starmer condemned the attack as “sickening”, while political leaders in Northern Ireland urged the public not to allow anger over the incident to spill into disorder. PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said people should not share footage of the attack, both because of the distress caused to the victim’s family and because of the ongoing investigation. He also warned against people outside Northern Ireland using social media to stir up tensions.

The case has prompted wider political debate because of the suspect’s immigration status, with some politicians calling for deportation if he is convicted. Naomi Long, Northern Ireland’s Justice Minister, said the incident should not be used to stigmatise communities, while Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little-Pengelly both condemned the violence and appealed for a measured response. Police said members of the public who intervened helped save the victim’s life, and officers have increased their presence in the area amid concerns about possible protests and online misinformation.

STORY

The Government has opened the grant application window for the national rollout of its Jobs Guarantee scheme. Pat McFadden, the Work and Pensions Secretary, told Parliament that phase one of the scheme had already started in six areas, with the first young people beginning work in May.

Applications are now open to organisations able to deliver job opportunities for young people, with the window running from 9 June to 13 July 2026. The Government said it wanted delivery partners with the capability and local expertise to help expand the programme across the country.

McFadden described the national rollout as a significant step in delivering the Government’s commitment that every young person should have the opportunity to succeed. The announcement links the welfare agenda with the Government’s wider labour market reforms, especially its efforts to reduce youth worklessness.