Category: News Story

STORY

The Government has confirmed that it will introduce amendments to the Social Housing Bill intended to improve access to housing for homeless households. Councils would receive new powers to refer homeless households to private registered providers of social housing, with the aim of strengthening cooperation between councils and housing associations and reducing reliance on temporary accommodation.

The Bill will also require private social housing providers to notify councils and other potential purchasers before selling homes outside the social housing sector. The Government intends to extend the notification period to eight weeks, giving councils and housing providers more time to consider purchasing the properties and retaining them for social housing.

A new Duty to Collaborate would require public services to work more closely together to identify people at risk of becoming homeless and consider what action they can take within their existing responsibilities. The Government said that the measures would support local authorities facing homelessness pressures and complement the £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme, which is intended to increase the supply of social and affordable housing over ten years.

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St Martins Preparatory School Limited in Grimsby has had its restricted public service vehicle operator’s licence suspended for 14 days after a public inquiry identified serious maintenance and compliance failings. The suspension runs from 25 September until 9 October 2026, while the number of vehicles permitted under the licence has been reduced from two to one until further notice.

Deputy Traffic Commissioner Gerallt Evans found that the operator had failed to inspect its vehicles at the declared intervals, maintain proper records and meet undertakings concerning drivers’ hours. The inquiry also considered a March 2025 MoT failure involving a school minibus with a tyre cut through to the cord. Evans concluded that the directors had delegated responsibility for compliance to members of staff who lacked the necessary qualifications and resources.

The commissioner acknowledged that vehicles had been withdrawn from service, staff had received some training and the operator had cooperated with the latest investigation. However, he concluded that the negative features significantly outweighed those improvements and said the licence had avoided revocation by the narrowest margin. The operator must now appoint a clearly identified person responsible for the licence and arrange an independent audit of its transport safety and compliance systems in March 2027.

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Around 2,000 protesters blocked an Orange Order parade from passing along the predominantly nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown on Sunday, despite the procession having received legal approval. Members of Portadown District Loyal Orange Lodge No 1 assembled at Drumcree Church but were unable to complete the disputed section of the route. Orange Order members remained at Drumcree on Monday morning as political and community representatives sought a resolution.

The Parades Commission had permitted the procession to use Garvaghy Road for the first time since 1998. A judge temporarily suspended that decision on Saturday, but the restriction was overturned during an early morning court hearing which concluded shortly after 2am on Sunday. The Drumcree parade became one of Northern Ireland’s most contentious disputes during the 1990s, with nationalist residents opposing an Orange Order procession through their area.

First Minister Michelle O’Neill and Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald joined protesters on Garvaghy Road, while DUP leader Gavin Robinson expressed support for the Orange Order and said that the legal decision should be respected. Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant appealed for calm and compromise. The PSNI said that its operation had prevented violence and disorder, although evidence was being gathered to identify any offences. Protesters dispersed after midnight after being told that a process would begin to address the dispute, with further talks expected on Monday.

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Darren Anderson, who falsely presented himself as a doctor and aristocrat while operating under several aliases, has been jailed for four years following a series of fraud and theft offences. Anderson, of Gamston in Nottinghamshire, was sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court after businesses and individuals suffered estimated losses of £205,455 through his activities across 13 companies during 2022 and 2023. He was also disqualified from acting as a company director for a further 15 years.

The court heard that Anderson made 106 unauthorised direct debit payments worth £79,488 using the bank details of a debt recovery company. His other activities included leaving more than £46,000 in unpaid rent on a hairdressing salon, failing to pay for £15,000 of equipment and leaving a manager with £600 in unpaid wages. He also provided false evidence of payments, submitted inaccurate company accounts and left debts of more than £27,000 after renting a cottage in Derbyshire, from which he later stole furnishings.

Anderson had previously been disqualified as a company director under the names Miles Prestland-Windsor and Timothy Ahlbeck, but continued controlling companies while banned. The Insolvency Service said he had seven previous convictions covering 41 dishonesty offences since 2002 and had used fictitious employees and senior managers to make his businesses appear more credible. The agency is now seeking to recover fraudulently obtained funds under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

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Councils in England will be able to intervene after a home has stood empty for six months under reforms to Empty Dwelling Management Orders. The present qualifying period is two years, meaning local authorities will be permitted to act eighteen months sooner when a property has been left unused.

An order allows a council to take over the management of a privately owned empty home and return it to occupation for up to seven years, while the owner retains ownership. The application process will also be simplified by removing requirements to provide evidence about matters including antisocial behaviour and community support for intervention.

The Government says the changes will help prevent vacant properties falling into serious disrepair and make better use of existing housing. Ministers are considering additional reforms after figures cited by the Government showed that around 300,000 homes have been empty for the long term, although the effectiveness of the policy will depend on councils making greater use of the orders.

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The Government has announced a new equity loan scheme intended to help first time buyers in England purchase newly built homes with deposits of 2.5 per cent. Your First Home is expected to provide a Government backed equity loan worth 20 per cent of the property value, reducing the size of the conventional mortgage required.

The equity loan will include an initial interest free period and will be available only on homes sold by participating developers. Ministers say the scheme will be targeted through household income limits and local property price caps, while developers will be expected to contribute towards its costs.

Chancellor John Healey will confirm the full terms, cost and implementation timetable in the Budget on 28 October. The Government says registration will open by the end of 2026 and argues that the scheme will address the deposit barrier while supporting demand for new homes during a difficult period for housebuilders.

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Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to put a plan for a universal social care service before voters at the next general election. He said care should operate on principles similar to the NHS, with services free at the point of use and the cost spread across the population.

Burnham said the detailed proposal would include a precise explanation of how the system would be funded. He acknowledged that the plan could require difficult or unpopular choices, but said the present system was unfair and placed unsustainable pressure on families and the health service.

The Prime Minister does not intend to introduce the new system during the current Parliament, with the next general election due by mid 2029. His commitment leaves the final design and tax implications unresolved while placing social care reform at the centre of Labour’s programme for a possible second term.

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The Government has announced that British shipyards will build three new floating docks for the Royal Navy submarine service and a new marine research vessel. Chancellor John Healey said the projects formed part of a new age of industrialisation intended to support skilled employment, strengthen national security and create work for smaller British businesses.

The floating docks will be procured through a competition restricted to the United Kingdom and installed at HM Naval Base Clyde. The facilities, known collectively as Programme Euston, will be used for inspections, upgrades and repairs across the current and future nuclear submarine fleet, preserving a capability that ministers regard as strategically important.

The separate research vessel will replace the ageing RV Cefas Endeavour and is expected to enter service in the early 2030s. It will monitor fish stocks and pollution, map the seabed and use technologies including automation, robotics and artificial intelligence. The Government has not yet named the shipyards that will receive the work.

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The previously unidentified grave of Private George Pert, a soldier from Ferryden in Angus, has been formally rededicated in his name more than a century after his death. The service was organised by the Ministry of Defence’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s Harlebeke New British Cemetery in Belgium.

Private Pert grew up in the fishing village of Ferryden before joining the Seaforth Highlanders. He was killed on 20 October 1918 during fighting around Harlebeke as Allied forces advanced across the Western Front during the final weeks of the First World War. His body was not recovered at the time and he was officially recorded as missing.

Research submitted by a member of the public established that Private Pert had been buried east of Harlebeke before his remains were moved to the new cemetery after the war. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission has replaced the previously unnamed headstone with one bearing his name and the inscription selected by his family, “Gone too soon, but not forgotten.” Serving soldiers from the Royal Regiment of Scotland attended the rededication service.

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Five men have been arrested after three suspicious vehicles were reported travelling towards RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire. Police received the report at around 12.45am on Sunday and armed officers detained the men in the nearby Whelford area on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act. They were subsequently further arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act under the Terrorism Act.

Counter Terrorism Policing is leading the investigation, with all five men remaining in custody. A 400 metre cordon has been established around the vehicles while an Army explosive ordnance disposal team carries out examinations. Around 85 households were evacuated as a precaution, with a nearby leisure centre opened for residents unable to stay with relatives or friends. Police said they believed the incident was contained.

RAF Fairford is used by the United States Air Force and security has also been increased at other bases used by American forces in Britain. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the incident would be deeply concerning to local residents and urged the public not to speculate while investigators established the facts. The Government said the Prime Minister was being kept informed and thanked the emergency services for acting quickly to detain the suspects and protect the community.