Tag: News Story

STORY

A Serco employee has been charged with misconduct in a public office in connection with the release of information relating to addresses in Thetford which were subsequently targeted during several nights of violent disorder. James Jobson, 62, of Highlow Road in Costessey, appeared at Ipswich Magistrates’ Court on Monday 17 August.

The addresses were linked to accommodation for asylum seekers in the Norfolk town. Properties were vandalised during three nights of unrest earlier this month, while police officers responding to the disorder were subjected to violence. Norfolk Police said officers were hit with a rock, bitten and spat at during incidents on 5 August, and the force subsequently confirmed that 21 arrests had been made in connection with the disorder.

Jobson works for Serco, which provides asylum accommodation under contracts with the Government. Serco said it was cooperating fully with the police and would not comment further while legal proceedings were continuing. Jobson was remanded in custody following his appearance at Ipswich Magistrates’ Court and is due to appear at Norwich Crown Court on 14 September.

STORY

An unauthorised crypto investment company has been wound up after an Insolvency Service investigation found no evidence that genuine trading took place. Key Coin Assets Ltd promoted returns of between 40% and 100%, including online claims of no fees and no risk. Nine investors who complained to Action Fraud paid more than £300,000 to the company between them.

Investigators said money received from new investors appeared to have been used to make payments to earlier investors, while funds were also transferred rapidly into the personal account of the company’s director. The company posted customer testimonials without permission and told investors not to use words such as crypto or investment in bank payment references. Its Companies House filings also claimed assets of up to £42 million, a figure the Insolvency Service said was far above the level suggested by its banking activity.

Key Coin Assets Ltd was wound up by the High Court in London on 11 August and the Official Receiver has been appointed as liquidator. The Insolvency Service and Financial Conduct Authority are warning people considering crypto investments to check a firm’s regulatory status and to be cautious about promises of guaranteed high returns or no risk. Most cryptoasset activities are not currently regulated in the UK, although wider regulation is due to take effect from October 2027.

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Average UK house prices increased by 2% in the year to June 2026, taking the average property value to £272,000, according to the latest UK House Price Index. Prices rose by 0.1% between May and June on a non seasonally adjusted basis. The annual rate of growth was lower than the revised 3% increase recorded in the 12 months to May.

In England, the average house price reached £293,000 after an annual increase of 1.8%. The North West recorded the strongest annual growth among English regions at 4.7%, followed by the North East at 4.3%. London was the only English region to record an annual fall, with average prices down 2.5% to £554,000, although prices in the capital rose by 1% between May and June.

The average price paid by a first time buyer in England was £245,000, up 1.8% over the year, while the average for former owner occupiers was £357,000. Official property transaction figures show an estimated 99,000 UK residential transactions worth at least £40,000 took place in June on a seasonally adjusted basis. That was 2.5% higher than in June 2025 but 0.2% lower than in May 2026.

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The Competition and Markets Authority has opened consumer protection investigations into Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School over concerns about whether customers were shown the total price upfront. The regulator is examining the presentation of mandatory charges when people buy train and coach tickets, package holidays and driving lessons. It has stressed that the investigations are at an early stage and no conclusion has been reached that any of the companies has broken consumer law.

The CMA said it observed Trainline fees ranging from 59p to £2.79 on advance train bookings and a £1.50 fee on coach bookings. Its Virgin Atlantic investigation will consider whether resort fees and local taxes, which can add hundreds of pounds to some package holidays, were included in the price first shown to customers. RED Driving School is being investigated over mandatory booking and digital fees of more than £7 per booking and how those charges were displayed during the booking process.

All three businesses had previously received advisory letters from the CMA about their obligations under consumer law. The regulator now has stronger direct enforcement powers and can impose fines of up to 10% of a company’s global turnover where it finds an infringement, as well as requiring compensation for affected customers. The CMA said the next steps will depend on the evidence gathered during each investigation.

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Calls for a public inquiry into the treatment of former Cambridge professor Jason Arday have intensified following his death, with more than 98,000 people signing a petition seeking an investigation into the role of the media. Downing Street has not ruled out an inquiry but has said that decisions should not be made while the usual processes following an unexpected death, including any inquest, are still to take place. Arday, 41, was found dead at an address in Battersea on Friday, with police saying his death was unexpected but was not being treated as suspicious.

The growing calls followed a large vigil in Trafalgar Square on Monday evening, which organisers estimated was attended by more than 30,000 people. MPs, friends, academics and campaigners paid tribute to Arday and raised concerns about the intensity of the scrutiny he faced before his death. His family said he had experienced public cruelty and asked that he be remembered for his life and achievements. Cambridge Chancellor Chris Smith has separately defended the importance of investigating allegations concerning academic integrity while criticising what he described as a racially charged media reaction to Arday.

Arday resigned earlier this month as Professor of Sociology of Education at the University of Cambridge following allegations concerning plagiarism in his PhD thesis and questions about statements relating to other achievements. He rejected allegations of deliberate dishonesty while acknowledging mistakes in his academic work. Cambridge had announced an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding his appointment and tenure, although it is understood that the university has not yet decided whether that work should continue while his family is grieving. The controversy following his death has widened into a debate about press standards, academic accountability, race and the duty of care owed by institutions to people subjected to intense public scrutiny.

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Concerns about charitable status being abused for private benefit rose by 29% in 2025 to 2026, according to the Charity Commission. The regulator recorded 374 such cases, following a 38% increase in the previous year. Its latest sector risk assessment says charities are facing increasingly complex activity by people seeking to exploit organisations and regulatory gaps.

The Commission said it formally passed information to other agencies including HM Revenue and Customs, police forces and local authorities 500 times during the last year, an increase of 8%. It also highlighted concerns about charities providing sensitive services in areas without specialist service regulation, including some out of school settings and certain housing services, where users may have limited routes for redress over service quality.

The assessment also points to continued financial pressure across parts of the sector and new risks associated with technology. Two in five charities spent more than their income and one in four charities with income below £10,000 reported only breaking even in 2024. The regulator said artificial intelligence can also facilitate fraudulent applications to register charities or obtain grants. Forty five per cent of charity registration applications are now approved, compared with 72% in 2016 to 2017.

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Liverpool businessman Lawrence Kenwright has been banned from acting as a company director for five years after an Insolvency Service investigation into Signature Works Gold Limited. The company distributed false and misleading marketing material to investors, who suffered losses of more than £4.8 million. The Insolvency Service said Kenwright is not accused of direct fraud.

Signature Works Gold sold desk space to investors in three Liverpool city centre properties, with rental income intended to fund investor returns. Marketing material stated or implied that investors would acquire a legal interest in the properties which would be registered at HM Land Registry. Investigators found that Signature Works Gold did not own a registered freehold or leasehold interest in any of the three buildings and investor returns stopped after September 2019.

The company was wound up in the public interest in December 2022. At the time of its winding up it had assets of less than £100,000 and liabilities of £4,848,654. Kenwright signed a disqualification undertaking before a planned trial and the ban took effect on 18 August. It prevents him from being involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company without permission from the court.

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Petrol and diesel prices at the pump fell in June as wholesale costs declined, but they remained significantly above levels seen before the conflict in the Middle East, according to the Competition and Markets Authority. The regulator said it had found no evidence that fuel retailers actively changed their pricing strategies to take advantage of the crisis.

The CMA said it remains concerned that passive pricing strategies used by many retailers are contributing to sustained high margins. Its analysis found that some retailers did not immediately pass reductions in wholesale diesel prices on to motorists. A more detailed review is planned for the autumn, including further analysis of how quickly wholesale price changes are reflected at the pump and why prices vary between local areas.

The regulator also reported that around 97% of UK petrol stations are now registered with Fuel Finder and that those sites account for an estimated 99% of road fuel sold in the UK. Since the registration grace period ended in April, the CMA has sent 1,166 letters to retailers and issued compliance notices covering 53 sites. No financial penalties have yet been required.

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A Leeds freight company has been shut down after an Insolvency Service investigation found it had left businesses in the United States, Europe and the UK with substantial unpaid debts. Malcolm Wright Associates Limited was wound up in the public interest following a hearing at the High Court in Manchester on 11 August 2026. The Official Receiver has been appointed as liquidator.

The investigation found that between August and October 2024 the company incurred freight costs with at least 16 members of the international JCTrans freight network but failed to make the required payments. The outstanding debts included more than US $508,000, €334,000 and £25,000. The Insolvency Service said the company had presented information which appeared to give it credibility with international freight businesses before running up the debts.

Investigators also found that the company failed to cooperate with their enquiries, had no current director or person with significant control and had failed to file its latest accounts and confirmation statement. David Hope, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said the winding up action was intended to protect the public and prevent further harm to businesses after suppliers were left with significant unpaid bills.

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A warehouse belonging to Russian online retailer Wildberries has been hit during a major Ukrainian drone attack on the Moscow region. A large fire broke out at the company’s facility in Koledino, near Podolsk, around 45 kilometres south of central Moscow, with footage showing a substantial plume of smoke rising from the site. Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobyov described the wider assault as one of the largest drone attacks on the region in recent memory.

Vorobyov said an 83 year old man was killed and several other people were injured in Podolsk during the attacks. Damage was also reported elsewhere in the Moscow region, including at a warehouse in Domodedovo. Russia’s Defence Ministry said hundreds of Ukrainian drones had been intercepted across the country, although independent verification of Russian interception figures is not available.

Wildberries, Russia’s largest online retailer, has been repeatedly targeted by Ukrainian forces in recent weeks. Ukraine accuses the company of supporting Russian military logistics and says seven of its ten largest warehouses have now been disabled. Wildberries and the Russian authorities reject claims that the company supplies the Russian military. Around 20 Wildberries facilities have been targeted since the campaign began in July, disrupting a distribution network used by hundreds of thousands of businesses and sellers across Russia.