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The Environment Agency has warned that repeated vandalism of locks, sluices and other water control structures is putting lives at risk and making the effects of drought more difficult to manage.

The warning follows a series of incidents on waterways during the summer, with damage and interference causing water levels to fall, disrupting navigation and affecting wildlife and habitats. Drought has been declared in Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, increasing concerns about unnecessary losses of water.

Ashton Lock near Oundle has been among the locations affected. Its winding wheel was damaged and removed for repair before a temporary replacement was stolen. The lock’s guillotine gate was subsequently tampered with, allowing water needed for navigation and wildlife to drain away.

In a separate incident at Ashton Lock, a life buoy and its rope were removed from a safety station. The rope was then used to hold open the lock doors while the guillotine gate was raised, causing water upstream to drain. The Environment Agency said similar incidents had happened repeatedly and had been reported to the police.

Problems have also been reported on the River Nene, where lock paddles have been manually raised, draining stretches of the river above them. The section between Upper and Lower Barnwell locks has been particularly affected, with water levels able to fall quickly and taking longer to recover during drought conditions.

Other reported incidents have included attempts to break into control panels, people climbing onto guillotine gates and individuals entering locks despite hidden hazards. People have also climbed onto or broken into weed-cutting boats left on riverbanks during maintenance work.

The Environment Agency is using volunteers at sites on the Great Ouse to discourage vandalism, while CCTV is operating at some locations. Additional safety inspections are also being carried out.

Environment Agency Area Manager Ben Thornely said the vandalism was putting lives in danger and having significant consequences for wildlife and navigation. The public has been asked to report vandalism and antisocial behaviour at Environment Agency infrastructure to the police and the agency.

STORY

The Government has criticised Thames Water after the financially troubled company paid its chief financial officer Steve Buck a £1 million signing-on payment. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs described the payment as “unacceptable” and said water companies should follow both the letter and spirit of rules restricting executive bonuses.

Buck joined Thames Water in April 2025 and received the delayed £1 million payment at the end of July 2026. The payment formed part of the package agreed to persuade him to join the company and was made after Thames Water took legal advice about its contractual obligations.

The money was drawn from emergency financing provided by Thames Water’s creditors rather than directly from customer bills. The funding is being used to keep the company operating while creditors negotiate a longer term rescue of the business.

A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said it was unacceptable for one of the country’s worst performing water companies to make large payments to executives when it should be concentrating on improving its performance and rebuilding public confidence. The Department said it expected companies to comply with both the wording and intention of restrictions introduced on executive bonuses.

Thames Water is among the water companies prevented from paying performance related bonuses to senior executives because of environmental and financial performance. The £1 million paid to Buck was a signing-on payment and therefore falls outside the performance related bonus arrangements. Ofwat has said it will examine the use of retention and other non performance related payments as part of a review.

Buck received total remuneration of £591,000 for the financial year ending in March 2026, including a base salary of £491,000. His basic salary was subsequently increased to £630,000 from April. Thames Water chief executive Chris Weston received total remuneration of approximately £1.2 million during the year.

The company remains in negotiations over its financial future. A group of creditors has proposed a restructuring involving new investment, new borrowing and the writing off of billions of pounds of existing debt, while the Government retains the option of placing Thames Water into a special administration regime if an acceptable private sector rescue cannot be agreed.

STORY

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he is “increasingly confident” that two of the men convicted over the killing of PC Andrew Harper can be prevented from being released early from prison. Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole are serving 13 year sentences for manslaughter following the death of the Thames Valley Police officer in 2019.

PC Harper, 28, died while responding to the theft of a quad bike in Sulhamstead, Berkshire. He became caught in a tow rope attached to the thieves’ vehicle and was dragged for around a mile. Bowers and Cole were passengers in the vehicle, while Henry Long was driving. All three were convicted of manslaughter, with Long receiving an extended sentence with a 16 year custodial term.

Under the Government’s early release arrangements, Bowers and Cole could become eligible for release after serving half of their sentences rather than the two thirds originally ordered when they were sentenced in 2020. Long’s extended sentence means he is not in the same position. The inclusion of Bowers and Cole in the scheme has led to protests from PC Harper’s family, police representatives and politicians.

Downing Street had said on Monday that it was not possible simply to exempt one or two individual prisoners convicted of manslaughter from the scheme. Burnham has now instructed Justice Secretary Alex Norris to develop further proposals which could allow more serious offenders to remain in custody by creating additional capacity elsewhere in the prison system.

The options being considered include increasing the removal of foreign national offenders, addressing the number of prisoners still being held under indeterminate sentences for public protection and potentially using parts of the female prison estate to accommodate male prisoners. Burnham has asked for a plan to be brought before Parliament in early September and said the Government would consult other political parties before presenting its proposals.

The Prime Minister said the additional measures could allow the Government to reduce the number of prisoners released early and, in cases involving the most serious offenders, prevent early release altogether. He specifically cited those convicted over PC Harper’s killing. Burnham also said his office remained in contact with Harper’s family.

Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Barber has separately proposed changing the Sentencing Act so that anyone convicted of manslaughter where an emergency worker dies while carrying out their duties would be excluded from the early release scheme. More than 879,000 people have signed a Thames Valley Police Federation petition calling for Bowers and Cole to remain in prison.

STORY

Tower Hamlets Council is facing renewed scrutiny over the pace at which money collected from property developers is being spent on local infrastructure. Financial Times analysis found that developers have contributed about £269.3 million through Section 106 agreements, with 54% of that money spent, while the borough has collected £179.8 million through the Community Infrastructure Levy since 2015 and spent £65.1 million.

The figures have prompted criticism as the east London borough continues to experience rapid development around areas including Canary Wharf. One focus is the proposed South Dock Bridge, intended to improve pedestrian access in the area, which remains unbuilt after years of planning. The project has incurred about £2.3 million in planning costs and its expected cost has risen by around a quarter to £25 million, according to the report.

Tower Hamlets said much of the money that has not yet been spent is already allocated to projects and that infrastructure expenditure depends on construction programmes and delivery schedules. Section 106 agreements and the Community Infrastructure Levy are intended to ensure that development contributes towards facilities and infrastructure needed by growing communities. The council publishes annual statements setting out receipts and expenditure from both funding mechanisms.

Nigel Farage will attempt to return to Parliament in the Clacton by-election on Thursday against a record field of 34 candidates, including satirical candidate Count Binface. Farage resigned as MP for the Essex constituency in July before standing again for Reform UK, creating an unusual contest in which Labour, the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Greens have all chosen not to field candidates.

Tendring District Council says the 34 names on the ballot are believed to represent a record for a UK parliamentary election, exceeding the 26 candidates who stood in the 2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election. Alongside Farage and Count Binface, the ballot includes candidates from smaller parties and a large number of independents. Polling stations will be open from 7am until 10pm on 13 August, with the result expected after counting begins that night.

The campaign has attracted national attention because Farage is seeking to regain the same seat only weeks after vacating it, while the absence of the main Westminster parties has given greater prominence to the smaller candidates. Count Binface, the political character created by comedian Jon Harvey, has used the contest to promote a satirical manifesto. Farage remains the best-known candidate in a constituency he won at the 2024 general election.

STORY

Prime Minister Andy Burnham could need tax rises worth up to £25 billion to fund Government spending commitments while continuing to meet the fiscal rules, according to an assessment by Capital Economics. The consultancy’s deputy chief UK economist Ruth Gregory said additional spending could reach £30 billion to £40 billion, creating pressure for substantial new revenue measures at the autumn Budget.

The calculation reflects commitments including higher defence spending, a large programme of council housebuilding and measures intended to reduce household costs. Burnham has said the Government will continue to follow its fiscal rules, limiting the extent to which additional day-to-day spending can simply be funded through borrowing. Capital Economics said households were likely to bear a significant share of any tax increases required to close the gap.

No package of tax rises of this size has been announced by the Government and the £25 billion figure is an independent forecast rather than Treasury policy. Burnham has committed not to increase the main rates of VAT, national insurance or income tax, which would restrict the Chancellor’s options if further revenue is required. The Government is due to set out its tax and spending decisions at the Budget on 28 October.

STORY

Labour has moved ahead of Reform UK in the latest YouGov voting intention poll for The Times, with the governing party on 24%, Reform on 22% and the Conservatives on 21%. The result leaves the three largest parties separated by only three percentage points and marks a further improvement for Labour since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister in July.

The poll suggests Labour is recovering support among people who backed the party at the 2024 general election. The proportion of Labour’s 2024 voters saying they would now vote for the party again has risen from 49% in June to 60%, while Labour support among 18 to 24-year-olds has increased from 14% to 25%. Reform has meanwhile fallen to its lowest level in YouGov’s tracker since March 2025.

The Conservatives remain close behind both parties, underlining how fragmented voting intention remains. YouGov’s figures put all three leading parties within the normal margin of error of one another, meaning the poll does not establish a decisive national lead. The Greens and Liberal Democrats each fell by one point in the latest survey, while the broader trend shows Labour regaining ground after the leadership change.