Category: News Story

STORY

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has won a High Court challenge over search warrants obtained by Thames Valley Police as part of an investigation into alleged misconduct in public office. Mr Justice Hilliard ruled that the warrants were unlawful after the force accepted that they had been obtained under the wrong provision of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.

The warrants were issued by the Recorder of London on 18 February 2026 and used during searches of Mountbatten-Windsor’s residence on the Sandringham estate and his former home at Royal Lodge. Police seized documents and electronic devices after arresting him the following day on suspicion of misconduct in public office. The investigation concerns allegations that he shared sensitive information with Jeffrey Epstein while serving as the United Kingdom’s trade envoy. No charges have been announced and the investigation remains ongoing.

The court heard that the applications anticipated finding legally privileged and special procedure material, meaning that the warrants could not lawfully have been issued under section 8 of the Act and should instead have followed the procedure under section 9. The warrants have now been quashed, but the judge stressed that this did not invalidate the wider investigation. Thames Valley Police has applied to retain the seized property on the basis that it could have been lawfully obtained under a different provision, with that application expected to be heard next year. Mountbatten-Windsor is opposing it.

STORY

A previously unidentified British soldier buried in the Netherlands has been named as Sheffield-born Lance Corporal Ronald Smirthwaite. His grave at Jonkerbos War Cemetery has been rededicated in his name, 81 years after he was killed during the final months of the Second World War.

Smirthwaite joined the Army in May 1944 and initially served in the General Service Corps as a blacksmith’s striker. Military records show that he was reported missing and presumed killed following fierce fighting on 22 February 1945. Investigators later established that he had been captured alive but seriously wounded and did not survive an attempted escape. His body was recovered and buried before later being reinterred as an unknown soldier.

The identification followed research examined by the Ministry of Defence and the National Army Museum after evidence was submitted by an officer in the Royal Netherlands Army and a member of the public. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission has replaced the unidentified headstone with one bearing Smirthwaite’s name, while his previous commemoration had been on the Groesbeek Memorial for service personnel with no known grave.

STORY

Kemi Badenoch has used her closing speech to the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham to promise that a future Conservative Government would exempt family homes from inheritance tax. Couples would also be able to leave an additional £1 million tax free, with Badenoch claiming that the changes would more than halve the number of families paying the tax.

The Conservative leader stopped short of promising the immediate abolition of inheritance tax, arguing that resources were also needed for the proposed Britannia Shield air defence system, 50,000 additional prison places and reducing the deficit. She said the Conservatives had identified more than £70 billion of Government savings and would use half of any savings to improve the public finances.

Badenoch also reiterated plans to reduce employer National Insurance for younger workers, reform welfare, lower student loan interest and expand drilling in the North Sea. She attacked Labour’s economic record, ruled out an electoral agreement with Reform UK and said reopening the Brexit debate would be a “terrible idea”, presenting the Conservatives as a distinct alternative to both parties.

STORY

Royal Mail has announced proposals to remove up to 2,500 head office and support roles by the end of 2027 as part of a wider restructuring programme. The reductions would represent less than two per cent of its workforce of more than 131,000 people, while frontline delivery and processing roles, including posties and drivers, would not be affected.

The company said it expects to achieve the reductions through voluntary redundancies and natural staff turnover rather than compulsory job losses. Formal consultations are taking place with the Communication Workers Union and Unite CMA. Royal Mail said the changes would remove duplicated work, accelerate decision making and allow further investment in services for customers.

Royal Mail is restructuring its operations as letter volumes continue to decline and demand grows for faster and more convenient parcel deliveries. The number of letters being handled has fallen by more than 70 per cent from its peak, while the company has also faced regulatory pressure over missed delivery targets. The changes are being proposed as Royal Mail implements reforms to the Universal Service, which governs the postal service it is legally required to provide across the UK.

STORY

A Guardian investigation has revealed that Reform UK MP Sarah Pochin jointly purchased an £800,000 property on Anglesey with her husband two days after submitting a parliamentary question about the effect of second homes on rural and coastal communities. The Grade II listed property is situated on the southern coast of the island, while the couple have retained ownership of another home in Cheshire.

Pochin submitted the written question to Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook on 15 June 2026, asking what assessment had been made of the effect of second home ownership on housing availability. Pennycook responded that high concentrations of second homes and short term lets could reduce the availability and affordability of properties for local residents. Land Registry records reportedly show that Pochin and her husband completed their Anglesey purchase two days later and have since submitted plans for alterations to the property.

Anglesey County Council recorded 2,635 furnished properties that were not somebody’s sole or main residence in March 2026 and currently charges a council tax premium of 100 per cent on second homes. The Guardian did not allege that Pochin’s purchase breached any law or parliamentary rule, but highlighted the timing in relation to her parliamentary question. Reform UK did not respond to the newspaper’s request for comment.

STORY

The Conservative Party has announced plans to invest up to £10 billion over ten years in a new missile and drone defence system called Britannia Shield. The proposed network would combine advanced radar, upgraded command and control systems, interceptor missiles and larger missile stockpiles to protect critical national infrastructure, military bases, British overseas territories and bases abroad.

The Conservatives said a minimum deployable capability would be established during their first term in Government, with the system then expanded and strengthened over the remainder of the ten year programme. Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge described the proposal as the most significant upgrade to British air defence for generations, arguing that developments in Ukraine and the Middle East demonstrated the growing threat posed by missiles and relatively inexpensive drones.

The proposed funding forms part of Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch’s commitment to increase defence spending to three per cent of GDP by 2030. The party said this would be funded through welfare reform and the reprioritisation of existing expenditure, while accusing the Labour Government of failing to invest sufficiently in missile defence. Detailed information about the locations, procurement arrangements and timetable for the individual components has not yet been published.

STORY

ASOS is investigating a possible cyber attack after customers received a push notification through the fashion retailer’s mobile app claiming that its systems had been compromised. The alert, headed “ASOS HACKED”, was sent to users on Tuesday morning and included a link to the Telegram messaging service.

The message claimed that attackers had gained access to the company’s Snowflake instance, a cloud based platform which can be used to store and analyse customer and transaction information. Those responsible threatened to release material unless ASOS contacted them, although the company has not confirmed that its systems were breached or that any customer data was accessed.

ASOS said it was aware of the reports and was investigating the incident. Its website and app remained operational, but shares in the company fell by around 11 per cent during morning trading. Cybersecurity specialists have warned customers to remain alert to fraudulent messages seeking passwords, payment information or other personal details while the extent of the incident is established.

STORY

The Government has accepted all 44 recommendations made by the National Commission into the Regulation of AI in Healthcare as part of plans to introduce a new regulatory framework for the technology. Ministers said the changes would allow patients to benefit from AI enabled medical devices more quickly while maintaining safeguards, transparency and public confidence.

The recommendations include moving away from relying principally on assessments conducted at a single point in time and towards monitoring AI medical devices throughout their working lives. The Government will also explore staged authorisation arrangements under which promising technology could be introduced into the NHS under close supervision while further evidence about its performance is collected. Patients would be given clearer information about when AI is being used as part of their care.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has opened applications for the third phase of its AI Airlock regulatory programme, which will test how devices can be monitored after they enter use. Draft guidance on managing changes made to adaptive AI devices is expected by December 2026, followed by a consultation on their classification next year. The Government plans to publish a complete implementation timetable covering all 44 recommendations by spring 2027.

STORY

His Majesty The King has approved the appointment of Mrs Justice Morgan DBE as a Judicial Commissioner of the Judicial Appointments Commission. The three year term began on 1 October 2026 following a recommendation from the Lord Chancellor.

The Judicial Appointments Commission is the independent body responsible for selecting candidates for judicial positions in the courts and tribunals of England and Wales, as well as some tribunals operating across the UK. Commissioners are appointed by the King on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005.

Mrs Justice Morgan was called to the Bar at Gray’s Inn in 1988 and became King’s Counsel in 2011. She was appointed as a Recorder in 2009, a Deputy High Court Judge in 2019 and a High Court judge in the Family Division in 2022. She has also served as the Family Presiding Judge for Wales since 2023.

STORY

The author and former Conservative politician Jeffrey Archer has died at the age of 86, his publisher HarperCollins has announced. Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare died suddenly and peacefully at home between writing sessions on Monday 5 October. His death came one day before the publication of Adam and Eve, which he had said would be his final novel, and just a day after he met readers at a sold out event in London.

Born in London in 1940 and raised in Weston-super-Mare, Archer studied at Brasenose College, Oxford, where he gained a Blue in athletics. He entered politics through the Greater London Council before being elected as the Conservative MP for Louth in a 1969 by-election at the age of 29. He left the House of Commons in 1974 after a failed investment brought him close to bankruptcy.

Archer rebuilt his finances through writing, beginning with Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less, which was published in 1976. He went on to write novels including Kane and Abel, First Among Equals and the seven volume Clifton Chronicles, alongside short stories, plays and his later William Warwick series. His books sold more than 300 million copies around the world and were published in dozens of languages.

He returned to senior Conservative politics during the 1980s and served as the party’s deputy chairman between 1985 and 1986. Archer was made a life peer in 1992 and was subsequently selected as the Conservative candidate for the first election for Mayor of London, but withdrew in 1999 after allegations emerged concerning evidence given during an earlier libel case.

In 2001, Archer was convicted of perjury and perverting the course of justice and sentenced to four years in prison, of which he served two. He later published three volumes of prison diaries and resumed his writing career, while remaining a member of the House of Lords until his retirement in 2024. He is survived by his wife, Dame Mary Archer, their two sons and five grandchildren.