Police investigate the scene of the fire in Kentish Town
A 21-year-old man has been charged after fires at two properties and a car linked to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, the Metropolitan Police has said.
Roman Lavrynovch, a Ukrainian national, was charged with three counts of arson with intent to endanger life on Thursday.
He was arrested at an address in Sydenham, south-east London, in the early hours of Tuesday. He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Friday.
The charges relate to three incidents over a four-day period - a vehicle fire in Kentish Town, north London, a fire at the prime minister's private home on the same street and a fire at an address that he previously lived at in north-west London.
The investigation has been led by the Met's Counter Terrorism Command due to its links to a high-profile figure.
In the early hours of Monday 12 May, emergency services responded to a fire at the Kentish Town home where Sir Keir Starmer lived before becoming prime minister and moving into 10 Downing Street.
Police were alerted by the London Fire Brigade (LFB) to reports of a fire at the residential address at 1.35am.
Damage was caused to the property's entrance but nobody was hurt.
It is understood the property has been rented out.
A car linked to Sir Keir was set alight four days earlier on Thursday May 8 on the same street.
In the early hours of Sunday 11 May, firefighters dealt with a small fire at the front door of a house converted into flats in nearby Islington.
The BBC understands that the prime minister lived there in the 1990s.
Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed Ukraine will send a delegation led by the defence minister to meet Russian officials in Istanbul for peace talks, but accused Russia of not treating them seriously.
Speaking to reporters in Ankara, he criticised the "low-level" Moscow delegation. Its head, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, insisted the Kremlin team had "all the necessary competencies".
Later on Thursday the top US top diplomat Marco Rubio asserted that Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin needed to meet.
"It's my assessment that I don't think we're going to have a breakthrough here until President Trump and President Putin interact directly on this topic," he said.
Rubio is also in Turkey after attending a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in the south of the country.
Earlier in the day Trump - who is visiting the Middle East - also suggested that significant progress in peace talks was unlikely until he and Putin met in person.
Asked by the BBC on board Air Force One if he was disappointed by the level of the Russian delegation, he said: "Look, nothing's going to happen until Putin and I get together".
"He wasn't going if I wasn't there and I don't believe anything's going to happen, whether you like it or not, until he and I get together, but we're going to have to get it solved because too many people are dying," he added.
Trump said he would attend talks in Turkey on Friday if it was "appropriate" and later said he would probably return to Washington on Friday but his destination was unknown as of yet.
The talks had initially been due to take place on Thursday but as of the evening no time for them to take place had been set. Some reports suggest they may now happen on Friday.
Reuters
Trump, who is in the UAE, said his destination on Friday was not yet known
Delegations from Turkey, the US, Ukraine and Russia had been due to meet in Istanbul on Thursday for the first face-to-face Ukraine-Russia talks since 2022.
Zelensky then challenged Putin to meet him in person, but on Thursday the Kremlin said that the Russian president was not among officials due to travel.
In Ankara, Zelensky accused Moscow of "disrespect" towards Trump and Erdogan because of the Russian delegation's lack of seniority and reiterated his challenge to the Russian leader to meet him personally.
"No time of the meeting, no agenda, no high-level of delegation - this is personal disrespect to Erdogan, to Trump," he said.
Meanwhile Medinsky told reporters in Istanbul that Russia saw the talks as a "continuation" of failed negotiations in 2022 shortly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of its neighbour.
"The task of direct negotiations with the Ukrainian side is to sooner or later reach the establishment of long-term peace by eliminating the basic root causes of the conflict," Medinsky said.
The head of Moscow's delegation, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, insisted the Kremlin team had "all the necessary competencies"
The Istanbul talks mark the first direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine since the unsuccessful effort in 2022.
Members of Moscow's Turkey delegation were involved in those talks and Russia has indicated it wants to pick up where they left off.
The terms under discussion included demands for Ukraine to become a neutral country, cut the size of its military and abandon Nato membership ambitions - conditions that Ukraine has repeatedly rejected as tantamount to capitulation.
Fighting in Ukraine rages on, with Russia saying its forces had captured two more villages in the eastern Dontesk region on Thursday.
Moscow now controls approximately 20% of Ukraine's territory, including the southern Crimea peninsula it illegally annexed in 2014.
Meanwhile UK Defence Minister John Healey called on Ukraine's allies to "put pressure on Putin". Speaking after a meeting with German counterpart Boris Pistorius in Berlin on Thursday, Healey urged further sanctions on Russia "to bring him to the negotiating table".
A few days on from seeking to sound muscular about his desire to squeeze legal migration, the prime minister is in Albania focusing on illegal arrivals.
The Balkan country has provided a rare British success story in the incredibly difficult politics and diplomacy of attempting to cut illegal migration.
In 2022, around 12,500 Albanians crossed the English Channel by small boat, but the number has since shrunk massively.
The last government, and latterly this one, set up campaigns to put people off attempting the journey and far more migrants have been returned.
Sir Keir Starmer wanted to lean into this inherited success from the Conservatives, and sought to make a virtue of being the first British prime minister to make an official visit to the country.
But he also wanted to talk up negotiations with a handful of unnamed European countries that might temporarily take failed asylum seekers who have exhausted all avenues to remain in the UK.
Downing Street told reporters the move could stop failed asylum seekers stalling deportation "using various tactics, whether it's losing their paperwork or using other tactics to frustrate their removal".
The PM's spokesman added it would ensure they also cannot make their removal harder "by using tactics such as starting a family".
Rwanda comparison
It is an interesting idea, which draws initial parallels with the last government's plan to send some migrants to Rwanda, but is different.
The Conservatives wanted to send people to the African country immediately after their arrival in the UK, to lodge an asylum claim there or another "safe" country.
They argued, given the numbers arriving on small boats, a radical policy shift was needed to put people off.
Labour argued it was a vastly expensive waste of money, and scrapped the idea.
Now they are talking up their own, narrower plan.
But the curiosity is they chose to do just that while on a visit to a country that is not interested in hosting what are being called "return hubs".
Awkward timing
And we were to find that out rather bluntly, when no sooner than Sir Keir Starmer had made the case for the idea, the man stood next to him, his Albanian counterpart Edi Rama, said they wouldn't be doing any more deals than the one they already have with Italy, their neighbour over the Adriatic Sea.
Downing Street insisted its own deal with Albania was "never planned as part of the discussions."
In short, though, they had failed to ensure the most eye-catching idea they were talking about matched the pictures, the backdrop, the stage they were on.
Cue the Conservatives, whose own record on small boat crossings was poor, but who can point to that specific success with Albania, seizing on Sir Keir's awkward juxtaposition and branding it an "embarrassment".
It is another episode that serves as a reminder of just how hard it is finding workable, practical, deliverable solutions to a massive and complex issue, which plenty in government acknowledge they simply have to get a grip of.
Somehow.
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Police are hoping to identify two teenagers caught on CCTV near West Ruislip Tube station
CCTV footage has been released by police trying to track down two teenagers after the "mutilated" remains of two kittens were found in a field in west London.
Sgt Babs Rock of the Met Police said that the kittens - discovered in Ickenham at about midday on Saturday 3 May - had been "tortured and dismembered".
"This is an incredibly distressing incident which I know has caused concern in the local community," she said, adding that the force was taking the "horrific incident" extremely seriously.
Police hope that by releasing the CCTV footage of the teens fleeing the scene, and an image of a duffel bag thought to have been used to carry the kittens, they will be able to identify those involved.
Met Police
This black duffel bag is thought to have been used to transport the kittens
A dog walker, who posted online anonymously, said they had been in the field when they interrupted two teenagers "stooping over something on the floor", who quickly ran off when disturbed.
"To my horror, I saw two dead mutilated kittens, along with an array of weaponry," the witness recounted. They added: "The poor cats had clearly suffered."
Sgt Rock told BBC News that the dead kittens were found not far from West Ruislip Tube station, near Ruislip Golf Course, in Hillingdon.
She said: "We are working to help try and identify who the pair are so that we can firstly ensure that justice is brought to them, but also to safeguard them and make sure that it doesn't lead to any future offences."
Met Police
Police hope a letter sent to parents via local schools informing them of recent animal cruelty incidents will help to prevent further incidents
Police say there have been other recent attacks on animals in the area - including on ducks and swans targeted with catapults - although they believe these are isolated and not connected to what happened to the kittens.
The Met says it has taken the "rare" step of writing to parents, via local schools, to raise awareness of animal cruelty issues and to ask parents to speak to their children about what has happened.
Sgt Rock said: "We've put out an appeal to schools and parents in order to educate their children into making sure that they understand how important it is to look after wildlife and pets."
The sergeant explained that causing unnecessary suffering to animals could result in fines, disqualification from keeping animals and up to five years' imprisonment.
"If you do see any animals being harmed, or any children acting in a suspicious way, it's really important to feed that information through to us," she said.
"Even if there isn't necessarily a crime taking place, it's not a wasted phone call."
The force urged anyone with information, or footage from house or car cameras, to come forward, or report what they know anonymously via CrimeStoppers.
Liz says she was "astonished" to learn of her criminal record
A woman who unknowingly had a criminal record for 56 years for being a lesbian in the military is encouraging more women to apply to a government pardons scheme.
Liz Stead, 78, was thrown out of the RAF in 1969 when bosses discovered a love letter from her then-girlfriend.
More than 50 years later Liz discovered she was also given a criminal conviction for "perceived same-sex sexual activity" and had unknowingly lived with a criminal record for most of her adult life.
She is one of 40 people in England and Wales who have had convictions of this nature overturned since 2023, when the government's Disregards and Pardons Scheme was expanded to include women for the first time.
Liz, from Chichester, West Sussex, first learned of her criminal record in December last year, when applying for a different scheme, which awards financial redress to veterans who were sacked during a ban on homosexuality in the armed forces which was lifted in the year 2000.
In emails seen by the BBC, her application for the payment was initially denied because of the conviction, and she was advised to apply for it to be pardoned by the Home Office.
She applied to have the application fast-tracked due to ill health - and says she was "astonished" to learn of the charges.
She now wonders what unknown impact it has had on her life.
"I can think of one job where it might have been the reason I didn't get it. I've worked in local government most of my life and I have to wonder, had they known about this, would I have still had that job?," she said.
In 2012, the government's Disregards and Pardons scheme was launched to allow people historically convicted for consensual same-sex activities to have those convictions deleted from official records.
Since the expansion, there have been 40 people given pardons, with the majority granted to former military personnel.
Liz is now encouraging other women who may have been in contact with police, or those who were thrown out of the military for their sexuality to apply for pardons in order to find out if they have an unknown conviction.
She said: "I can't think how it is on my records and I've never known about it, but I can't be the only one, they can't have just pinpointed me.
"I didn't know anything about it, so I had no idea what the pardon would even be for but I was told it was related to same-sex activity."
Liz Stead
Liz (middle) attended a "restorative action ceremony" earlier this year alongside her wife Stevie (left) to welcome her back into the military family.
Liz served for three and a half years in the RAF and had an exemplary record, but was thrown out when bosses investigated her then-girlfriend and found love letters between the two.
She was interrogated by the Special Investigation Branch - the detective arm of the military police which at the time often focussed investigations on same-sex sexual activity - and dismissed.
The partial decriminalisation of homosexuality began in the UK in 1967 with the passing of the Sexual Offences Act, which decriminalised homosexual acts between men over the age of 21 in England and Wales.
In Scotland, the law was changed in 1980 and in Northern Ireland, 1982.
However, homosexuality remained illegal in Britain's armed forces until the year 2000, when the European Court of Human Rights ruled the ban illegal.
As part of reparations made to LGBT Veterans, Liz was invited to a ceremony to return her medals and re-welcome her into the military family.
Although the day was once a fond memory for her, she said it was now "tainted" because of the criminal record and she might have considered not attending had she known about that at the time.
Peter Gibson, CEO of LGBT+ military charity Fighting With Pride, which helped Liz apply for the pardon, said: "Liz's experience shows how important it is that justice is properly done to all LGBT+ veterans who suffered under the cruel ban. Lives and careers were ruined under that 'gay ban'.
"It's shocking that some people who served for their country and were kicked out for simply being their true selves might also have had a criminal record without even knowing."
Safeguarding minister Jess Phillips said that criminal records for same-sex relationships "should never have existed in the first place."
She added: "Each pardon represents real changes to real lives. Some could now have their military medals returned while others can finally walk taller knowing a painful injustice has been finally righted.
"I urge anyone with convictions under these cruel and prejudiced laws to apply to our scheme. You deserve justice and we remain committed to righting these historical wrongs."
Police investigate the scene of the fire in Kentish Town
A 21-year-old man has been charged after fires at two properties and a car linked to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, the Metropolitan Police has said.
Roman Lavrynovch, a Ukrainian national, was charged with three counts of arson with intent to endanger life on Thursday.
He was arrested at an address in Sydenham, south-east London, in the early hours of Tuesday. He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Friday.
The charges relate to three incidents over a four-day period - a vehicle fire in Kentish Town, north London, a fire at the prime minister's private home on the same street and a fire at an address that he previously lived at in north-west London.
The investigation has been led by the Met's Counter Terrorism Command due to its links to a high-profile figure.
In the early hours of Monday 12 May, emergency services responded to a fire at the Kentish Town home where Sir Keir Starmer lived before becoming prime minister and moving into 10 Downing Street.
Police were alerted by the London Fire Brigade (LFB) to reports of a fire at the residential address at 1.35am.
Damage was caused to the property's entrance but nobody was hurt.
It is understood the property has been rented out.
A car linked to Sir Keir was set alight four days earlier on Thursday May 8 on the same street.
In the early hours of Sunday 11 May, firefighters dealt with a small fire at the front door of a house converted into flats in nearby Islington.
The BBC understands that the prime minister lived there in the 1990s.
Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed Ukraine will send a delegation led by the defence minister to meet Russian officials in Istanbul for peace talks, but accused Russia of not treating them seriously.
Speaking to reporters in Ankara, he criticised the "low-level" Moscow delegation. Its head, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, insisted the Kremlin team had "all the necessary competencies".
Later on Thursday the top US top diplomat Marco Rubio asserted that Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin needed to meet.
"It's my assessment that I don't think we're going to have a breakthrough here until President Trump and President Putin interact directly on this topic," he said.
Rubio is also in Turkey after attending a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in the south of the country.
Earlier in the day Trump - who is visiting the Middle East - also suggested that significant progress in peace talks was unlikely until he and Putin met in person.
Asked by the BBC on board Air Force One if he was disappointed by the level of the Russian delegation, he said: "Look, nothing's going to happen until Putin and I get together".
"He wasn't going if I wasn't there and I don't believe anything's going to happen, whether you like it or not, until he and I get together, but we're going to have to get it solved because too many people are dying," he added.
Trump said he would attend talks in Turkey on Friday if it was "appropriate" and later said he would probably return to Washington on Friday but his destination was unknown as of yet.
The talks had initially been due to take place on Thursday but as of the evening no time for them to take place had been set. Some reports suggest they may now happen on Friday.
Reuters
Trump, who is in the UAE, said his destination on Friday was not yet known
Delegations from Turkey, the US, Ukraine and Russia had been due to meet in Istanbul on Thursday for the first face-to-face Ukraine-Russia talks since 2022.
Zelensky then challenged Putin to meet him in person, but on Thursday the Kremlin said that the Russian president was not among officials due to travel.
In Ankara, Zelensky accused Moscow of "disrespect" towards Trump and Erdogan because of the Russian delegation's lack of seniority and reiterated his challenge to the Russian leader to meet him personally.
"No time of the meeting, no agenda, no high-level of delegation - this is personal disrespect to Erdogan, to Trump," he said.
Meanwhile Medinsky told reporters in Istanbul that Russia saw the talks as a "continuation" of failed negotiations in 2022 shortly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of its neighbour.
"The task of direct negotiations with the Ukrainian side is to sooner or later reach the establishment of long-term peace by eliminating the basic root causes of the conflict," Medinsky said.
The head of Moscow's delegation, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, insisted the Kremlin team had "all the necessary competencies"
The Istanbul talks mark the first direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine since the unsuccessful effort in 2022.
Members of Moscow's Turkey delegation were involved in those talks and Russia has indicated it wants to pick up where they left off.
The terms under discussion included demands for Ukraine to become a neutral country, cut the size of its military and abandon Nato membership ambitions - conditions that Ukraine has repeatedly rejected as tantamount to capitulation.
Fighting in Ukraine rages on, with Russia saying its forces had captured two more villages in the eastern Dontesk region on Thursday.
Moscow now controls approximately 20% of Ukraine's territory, including the southern Crimea peninsula it illegally annexed in 2014.
Meanwhile UK Defence Minister John Healey called on Ukraine's allies to "put pressure on Putin". Speaking after a meeting with German counterpart Boris Pistorius in Berlin on Thursday, Healey urged further sanctions on Russia "to bring him to the negotiating table".
Supporters held up a banner outside the Appeal Court
The wife of a Conservative councillor who was jailed after an online rant on the day of last year's Southport attacks "never" intended to incite violence, the Court of Appeal has heard.
Lucy Connolly, from Northampton, used a social media post on 29 July to call for "mass deportation now" and urged followers to "set fire" to hotels housing asylum seekers.
She is appealing against the sentence of two years and seven months she was given after she admitted inciting racial hatred.
Supporters staged a demonstration outside the Appeal Court in London.
Giving evidence from HMP Drake Hall in Eccleshall in Staffordshire, Connolly told the Appeal Court when she initially wrote the post on X that she was "really angry, really upset" and "distressed that those children had died" and that she knew how the parents felt.
The court heard that Connolly's son died tragically about 14 years ago, and that news of the murders in Southport had caused a resurgence of the anxiety caused by her son's death.
Adam King, representing Connolly, asked if she had intended for anyone to set fire to asylum hotels, or "murder any politicians".
She replied: "Absolutely not."
X
Lucy Connolly is appealing against her prison sentence
When asked why she had deleted the post three and a half hours after publishing it, Connolly added: "I calmed myself down, and I know that wasn't an acceptable thing to say.
"It wasn't the right thing to say; it wasn't what I wanted to happen."
Connolly told the court that during discussions with her barrister at the crown court, she did not understand that by pleading guilty she was accepting that she intended to incite violence.
She said: "When I wrote that tweet there had been no violence and it was never my intention to cause any."
PA Media
Former Conservative councillor Ray Connolly was at hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice in central London and said he was "disappointed" there was no ruling
Following Thursday's hearing, the Appeal Court judges said they would issue a written judgment "as soon as possible"
Connolly's husband, Ray, had been a Conservative member of West Northamptonshire Council but lost his seat on 1 May.
He remains on Northampton Town Council.
Speaking outside the Royal Courts of Justice after the hearing, Mr Connolly said: "Obviously I'm disappointed today. It didn't come to a conclusion and get a result.
"It's 279 days now my daughter's been without her mother. I'm hoping that within a week she'll be home and this will come to a positive conclusion."
Inside the arena, the international Eurovision coverage will be hosted by presenters Hazel Brugger, Sandra Studer and Michelle Hunziker.
Which countries take part in Eurovision?
EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Czech Republic's Adonxs performs as part of preparations for Eurovision 2025
A total of 37 countries are taking part in Eurovision 2025 - all but one took part in last year's contest in Malmö, Sweden.
Montenegro returns to the competition this year for the first time since 2022, replacing Moldova - which withdrew because of financial and logistical challenges.
Most Eurovision countries are European, but Australia takes part every year, after being invited to join Eurovision's 60th anniversary celebrations in 2015. Australia, however, cannot host if it ever wins.
Other non-European countries including Israel participate because they are members of the EBU.
The "big five" nations who provide extra financial support to Eurovision get an automatic qualification for the final. These are the UK, Italy, Spain, France and Germany.
Switzerland also gets a golden ticket to honour last year's victory.
In the first semi-final on 13 May, Céline Dion, who won the contest for Switzerland in 1988, delivered a pre-recorded message celebrating the "beautiful" return of the contest to Basel.
The band formed at school in Farnborough, Hampshire, and appeared on TV talent show The Voice, in 2019. Lauren and Holly-Anne have also appeared in West End shows like Phantom of the Opera and Six: The Musical.
They'll be hoping to turn around the UK's fortunes, after the last two contestants Olly Alexander and Mae Muller both finished at the bottom end of the table in 2024 and 2023 respectively.
More than 70 former Eurovision contestants, including Britain's Mae Muller, have signed an open letter demanding that Israel's public broadcaster KAN be banned from the contest, alleging that it was "complicit in Israel's genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza".
Eurovision, which has always billed itself as non-political, has resisted calls for Israel to be excluded.
The inclusion of Israel sparked controversy last year, when its contestant Eden Golan also faced boos during a rehearsal and thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered outside the venue.
Golan was also forced to change the lyrics of her entry, titled Hurricane, to remove references to the deadly attacks by Hamas on Israel, on 7 October 2023.
EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Israel's entry Yuval Raphael performs during rehearsals
The last major music event Raphael attended was the Nova festival, in Israel, when it came under attack by Hamas gunmen during the 7 October attacks and more than 360 people were killed.
Around 1,200 people were killed in Israel by gunmen led by Hamas that day, and 251 were taken hostage. During Israel's ensuing military campaign in Gaza more than 53,000 people have been killed, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
In the final, every participating country is awarded two sets of scores - one from a jury of music experts and one from fans around Europe.
Fans get a maximum of 20 votes, cast via phone call, SMS or via the official Eurovision app. They can vote for as many different acts as they like, but votes for your home country are banned.
Once the lines close, each country will have chosen a "Top 10" of their favourite songs. The most popular song gets 12 points, the second choice gets 10, and the rest are scored from eight to one.
Viewers from countries that don't participate in Eurovision also get a say. Their choices are bundled into a single bloc known as the "rest of the world vote".
The UK economy grew by 0.7% at the start of this year.
This was better than expected, but this level of growth is not predicted to last.
It's better than forecast
The numbers matter because a higher growth rate usually means people are getting paid a little bit more, can spend more and more jobs are created.
Before the announcement, experts expected the economy to grow by 0.6% between January and March, compared with the last three months of 2024.
The fact the actual number is a tiny bit higher at 0.7% suggests people were willing to spend more than was expected.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which works out the figure, said spending on services such as retail, hospitality and finance in particular was strong.
The growth figure for March 2025 also beat expectations.
Analysts predicted no growth at all in March, but the economy ended up expanding by 0.2% that month.
Though the UK's growth rate of under 1% might seem small, it's higher than that seen by other large economies around the world.
It was the highest in the G7, which is a group of countries that includes the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
All of these countries have had to deal with a big shock to global trade - the tariffs brought in by the US at the start of the year.
They make goods going into the US more expensive, which means the US may be likely to buy less from other countries.
That could reduce the amount the UK sells to US customers.
The fact that the UK was still able to beat expectations in this time is a promising sign.
Trump's tariffs hadn't come in yet
The US is the UK's biggest foreign market after the European Union, which means what happens across the Atlantic matters.
Donald Trump's so-called "Liberation Day", when he announced most of the tariffs on foreign goods, came on 2 April, and the tariffs themselves came into force shortly after.
That is after the period measured in the latest economy figures, so we won't see the full effects of the tariffs for a while.
Many businesses expected the tariffs to come, so made sure they exported their goods to the US before they kicked in.
That extra increase in production and sales is part of the reason the economy grew from January until March.
Economist Paul Dales from Capital Economics said this growth "might be as good as it gets for the year".
That's because UK exports to the US may fall now that the tariffs are being applied, and economists expect that to slow growth.
The UK did a deal with the US last week which cut some tariffs, but it is unclear when this will take effect as the details are ironed out.
Energy, water, phone and broadband bills all rose.
Council tax also increased, alongside car tax and TV licences.
Some businesses have complained that a rise in the amount of National Insurance they have to pay, as well as an increase in the minimum wage, mean they cannot hire as many workers.
Bella Culley's family is being supported by the Foreign Office
A British teenager could spend up to nine months in a Georgian prison while she is investigated on suspicion of drug offences.
Bella Culley, 18, from Billingham on Teesside, appeared at a pre-trial hearing on Tuesday and, at the end of proceedings, told the court she was pregnant.
The prosecutor asked for 55 days to find evidence before the case is brought to trial and the BBC understands this could be extended by a further seven months.
Miss Culley's lawyer, Ia Todua, said police wanted to establish where the 12kg (26lbs) of marijuana and 2kg (4.4lbs) of hashish had come from and whether she was "planning to hand it over to someone".
Miss Culley was arrested at Tbilisi, Georgia, and charged with illegally buying, possessing and importing large quantities of narcotics.
Ms Todua, who has been appointed by the state to represent the teenager, said the prosecution estimated they would need two months to gather information.
"They said that they had to conduct a lot of investigative activities, so that they can collect evidence, establish where it was from [the narcotics] and was she planning to hand it over to someone," she said.
"That's what they said they want to establish, and they also confiscated her phone."
The lawyer added that, at the end of the hearing, Miss Culley "told the court that she was pregnant".
Rayhan Demytrie
Bella Culley has been sent to prison number 5 in Rustavi
The BBC understands other lawyers had been in touch to represent Miss Culley and the British consular service has planned a meeting.
The Foreign Office has confirmed that it is "supporting the family of a British woman who is detained in Georgia".
Georgian Police said officers had seized marijuana and the narcotic drug hashish in a travel bag at Tbilisi International Airport.
A spokesperson said the arrest was the result of a joint operation between multiple departments and, if found guilty, Miss Culley could face up to 20 years in jail or life imprisonment.
Cleveland Police has confirmed an 18-year-old woman from Billingham has been arrested in Georgia "on suspicion of drugs offences" and remains in custody.
Garfield, Puss in Boots, Aristocats' Toulouse – cultural icons maybe, ginger most certainly.
And now scientists across two continents have uncovered the DNA mystery that has given our furry friends, particularly males, their notable colour.
They discovered that ginger cats are missing a section of their genetic code, which means the cells responsible for their skin, eye and fur tone produce lighter colours.
The breakthrough has brought delight to the scientists but also the thousands of cat lovers that originally crowdfunded the research.
The scientists hope solving the puzzle could also help shed light on whether orange coloured cats are at increased risk of certain health conditions.
It has been known for decades that it is genetics that gives orange tabby cats their distinctive colouring, but exactly where in the genetic code has evaded scientists till now.
Two teams of scientists at Kyushu University in Japan and Stanford University in the US have now revealed the mystery in simultaneous papers published on Thursday.
What the teams found was that in the cells responsible for giving a cat its skin, hair follicles and eyes their colour - melanocytes - one gene, ARHGAP36, was much more active.
Genes are made up of pieces of DNA which give instructions to a cat's cells, like other living creatures, on how to function.
By comparing the DNA from dozens of cats with and without orange fur they found that those with ginger colouring had a section of DNA code missing within this ARHGAP36 gene.
Without this DNA the activity of the ARHGAP36 is not suppressed i.e. it is more active. The scientists believe that the gene instructs those melanocytes to produce lighter pigment.
Ginger cats mostly male
For decades scientists have observed that cats with completely ginger colouring are far more likely to be male. This tallies with the fact that the gene is carried on the X chromosome.
Chromosomes are larger sections of DNA, and male cats like other mammals have an X and a Y chromosome, which carry different amounts of genes.
As it a gene only on the X chromosome in this case controlling the pigment production then one missing piece of DNA is enough to turn a cat fully ginger.
In comparison female cats have two X chromosomes so the DNA needs to be missing in both chromosomes to increase lighter pigment production to the same extent - it means a mixed colouring is more likely.
"These ginger and black patches form because, early in development, one X chromosome in each cell is randomly switched off," explains Prof Hiroyuki Sasaki, geneticist at Kyushu University.
"As cells divide, this creates areas with different active coat colour genes, resulting in distinct patches."
Getty Images
Calico and tortoiseshell cats with mixed colourings are more likely to be female
Although couched in science, the study originally started off as a passion project for Professor Sasaki.
He had retired from his university post, but as a cat lover said he wanted to continue working to uncover the orange cat gene in the hope it could "contribute to the overcoming of cat diseases".
He and his team raised 10.6m yen (£55,109) via crowdfunding for the research from thousands of fellow cat lovers across Japan and the world.
One contributor wrote: "We are siblings in the first and third grades of elementary school. We donated with our pocket money. Use it for research on calico cats."
Hiroyuki Sasaki/Kyushu University
Professor Sasaki compared the genes of calico cats to those without, using local cats and an international genome database
The ARHGAP36 gene is also active in many other areas of the body including the brain and hormonal glands, and is considered important for development.
The researchers think it is possible that the DNA mutation in the gene could cause other changes in these parts of the body linked to health conditions or temperament.
The ARHGAP36 gene is found in humans and has been linked to skin cancer and hair loss.
"Many cat owners swear by the idea that different coat colours and patterns are linked with different personalities," said Prof Sasaki.
"There's no scientific evidence for this yet, but it's an intriguing idea and one I'd love to explore further."
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps special forces (file photo)
US and Israeli intelligence have accused Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards of planning attacks abroad
There has been a sharp rise in plots by the Iranian regime to kidnap or assassinate dissidents, journalists and political foes living abroad, according to reports by Western intelligence agencies.
And court documents from Turkey and the US - seen by BBC Eye Investigations and BBC Persian - contain evidence that Iran has been hiring criminal gangs to carry out killings on foreign soil, allegations the Iranian regime has previously denied. Iranian officials did not respond to a fresh request for a comment.
One name repeatedly surfaced in these documents: Naji Sharifi Zindashti, an Iranian criminal boss, known for international drug smuggling.
His name appeared in a Turkish indictment in connection with the 2017 killing in Istanbul of Saeed Karimian, the head of a Persian TV network that broadcast Western films and programmes to Iran.
Instagram
Naji Sharifi Zindashti fled to Iran after being controversially released from custody in Turkey
Iranian authorities considered Karimian a threat to Islamic values, and three months before his assassination an Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran sentenced him in absentia to six years in prison.
US and Turkish officials believed his death was related to a mafia feud.
But when in 2019, Massoud Molavi, a defector from Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), was gunned down in Istanbul, it shed light on Zindashti's alleged role in Karimian's assassination.
Molavi had been exposing corruption at the highest levels of Iran's leadership. The Turkish police discovered Zindashti's gardener had been present at the scene of Molavi's assassination, and that his driver had been at Karimian's murder.
The police suspected the gardener and the driver had been sent by Zindashti.
Zindashti was arrested in connection with Karimian's death but was controversially released after just six months, causing a legal scandal in Turkey. A Higher Court judge ordered his rearrest but by then he had left the country.
He then fled to Iran, raising suspicions that he might have been working for Iranian intelligence all along.
Cengiz Erdinc, a Turkish investigative journalist, claims that when those out of favour with the Iranian regime are killed, Zindashti's men are at the scene. "It is not the first time, but there has always been a connection between organised crime and the intelligence agencies," he says.
Turkish investigative journalist Cengiz Erdinc
Over three decades ago, he was convicted of drug smuggling in Iran and sentenced to death. But rumours suggested his escape from prison, which led him to Turkey, may have been orchestrated by Iranian intelligence.
"If someone sentenced to death in Iran escapes after killing a guard, they're unlikely to make it out alive - unless there's more to the story," says someone who knew Zindashti closely. The BBC is withholding their identity for their own safety.
"The only plausible way for him to return and live freely would be if he had been working for Iran's intelligence services, making his escape appear to be part of a planned cover story for intelligence work with Iran's security agencies and IRGC," they told BBC World Service.
In 2020, Zindashti's name appeared again in a Turkish indictment in connection with the kidnapping of Habib Chaab, an Iranian dissident who was lured to Istanbul, abducted, and later paraded on Iranian state TV.
Chaab was sentenced to death and executed. Zindashti's nephew was arrested in Turkey in connection with Chaab's disappearance. Zindashti has denied having any role.
Then, in 2021, Zindashti was implicated in a plot in the United States. According to Minnesota court documents, communications between Zindashti and a member of the Hells Angels, a Canadian biker gang, were logged in the indictment.
Zindashti allegedly offered $370,000 to have two Iranian defectors assassinated in Maryland. The FBI intervened and arrested two men before the attack could be carried out.
Our investigation into court documents also uncovered that the IRGC and its overseas operations arm, the Quds Force, have been working with criminal organisations like the Thieves-in-Law, a notorious international criminal gang from the former Soviet Union, to carry out kidnappings and assassinations.
US and Israeli intelligence sources say Unit 840 of the IRGC's Quds Force's main responsibility is to plan and establish terror infrastructure abroad.
In March, a New York jury convicted two men associated with the Thieves-in-Law for plotting to assassinate Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American activist. Iranian agents allegedly offered $500,000 for her killing. Just two years earlier, a man with a loaded gun had been arrested near her home in Brooklyn.
Following the 2020 assassination by the US of top IRGC commander General Qasem Soleimani, Iran vowed revenge. Since then, the US says Iran has been plotting to kill former members of the Trump administration involved in Soleimani's death, including former national security adviser John Bolton, and Mike Pompeo, former head of the CIA and secretary of state.
During last year's US presidential election, prosecutors accused Iran of plotting to assassinate Donald Trump, which Iran strongly denied.
In response to these growing threats, the US and UK have imposed sanctions on individuals linked to Iran's intelligence operations, including Zindashti, Iranian diplomats, and members of the IRGC.
Zindashti denies ever working for the Iranian intelligence service.
In one case in West London, a Chechen man was arrested near Iran International, a Persian-language TV station in London. He was convicted of gathering information for Iranian agents.
Last year, Pouria Zerati, a London-based presenter for Iran International, was attacked with a knife. Soon after, two men were arrested in Romania at the request of UK counter-terrorism police.
Sources in the UK security services told the BBC these men were part of the Thieves-in-Law, allegedly hired by Iranian agents.
Sima Sabet, a presenter for Iran International, was one of the targets, but an attempt to blow up her car failed.
"When they realised they couldn't attach a bomb to my car, the agents told the man to finish the job quietly," says Sima, who has seen the police file, says. "He asked how quietly, and they replied, 'As quiet as a kitchen knife.'"
Sima Sabet, from Iran International, was the target of an assassination plot
After the assassination of four Iranian Kurdish leaders by masked gunmen in a restaurant in Berlin in 1992, German prosecutors blamed the entire Iranian leadership for the killings. The attack was carried out by Iranian agents and members of the Iran-backed Lebanese Shia Hezbollah movement.
An international arrest warrant was issued for Iran's intelligence minister, and a court declared that the assassination had been ordered with the knowledge of Iran's Supreme Leader and president.
Since then, it seems the Iranian regime has been hiring criminal organisations to carry out kidnappings and killings in an attempt to avoid linking the attacks back to the regime.
But Matt Jukes, the UK's Head of Counter Terrorism Policing, says it is relatively easy for police to infiltrate criminal groups because they are not ideologically aligned with the Iranian regime.
It is what he calls a "creeping penetration" by Iran, which the police are trying to disrupt.
Chris Brown rose to fame two decades ago and is known for hits such as Ayo, Beautiful People and No Air
US singer Chris Brown has been arrested in the UK in connection with a bottle attack at a London nightclub in 2023.
Brown was arrested at a hotel in Manchester in the early hours of Thursday, and held on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm to music producer Abe Diaw at the Tape nightclub in Mayfair.
The Sun said it became aware of Brown's presence in the UK on Wednesday, at which point it alerted the Met Police.
The Met said a 36-year-old man remains in custody. Representatives for Brown have been approached for comment.
A Met spokesman told BBC News: ''A 36-year-old man was arrested at a hotel in Manchester shortly after 02:00hrs on Thursday, 15 May on suspicion of grievous bodily harm."
''He has been taken into custody where he remains.
"The arrest relates to an incident at a venue in Hanover Square on 19 February 2023.
"The investigation is being led by detectives from the Central West Area Basic Command Unit."
The Sun said Met Police officers travelled to Manchester after the newspaper learned the singer had flown to the UK via private jet, and asked officers whether Brown was under arrest.
Speaking to the Sun in 2023, Mr Diaw claimed Brown hit him over the head with a bottle before punching and kicking him as he lay on the floor.
He said his knee collapsed and he was taken to hospital, and needed crutches to walk when he was discharged.
R&B singer Brown rose to fame two decades ago and is known for hits such as Beautiful People, No Air, Under The Influence, Run It and Turn Up The Music.
He is currently on tour and scheduled to play several UK shows in June and July.
Yostin Mosquera (left) with Albert Alfonso (centre) and Paul Longworth on a boat in Colombia
The jury in the trial of a man accused of murdering two men in London before dumping some of their remains in suitcases in Bristol has been discharged.
Yostin Andres Mosquera, 35, denies murdering Albert Afonso, 62, and Paul Longworth, 71, on or before 11 July 2024 and was on trial at the Old Bailey in London.
Parts of their bodies were found in Shepherd's Bush, while some were discovered in a suitcase and trunk left near Clifton Suspension Bridge.
The prosecution opened its case on 30 April but trial judge Mr Justice Bennathan discharged the jury earlier.
Julia Quenzler
Yostin Andres Mosquera is due to face a retrial
Justice Bennathan said there had been problems identifying the accurate times of searches made by Mosquera on his laptop, which had been used as evidence in the trial.
He told jurors the trial "simply cannot continue".
"We simply have to resolve this before we have a fair trial," he added.
The judge thanked jurors for their service and said he was sorry for where the trial had "ended up".
Mosquera has admitted the manslaughter of Mr Alfonso by way of loss of self-control, but denies both charges of murder.
There is due to be a pre-trial review hearing for Mr Mosquera at the Old Bailey on 13 June and provisional retrial date has been set for 30 June at Woolwich Crown Court.
Air strikes reportedly hit homes and tents sheltering displaced families
At least 103 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli air strikes across the Gaza Strip since dawn, according to the Hamas-run Civil Defence agency.
Fifty-six people, including women and children, were killed when homes and tents sheltering displaced families were bombed overnight in the southern city of Khan Younis, the local Nasser hospital said. Local journalists said its corridors were crowded with casualties and that its mortuary was full.
A spokesman for the Civil Defence later reported deadly strikes in the northern town of Jabalia, including an attack on a health clinic and prayer hall in Jabalia refugee camp that he said killed 13 people.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
But it has been intensifying its bombing of what it has said are Hamas fighters and infrastructure ahead of a planned expansion of its ground offensive in Gaza.
It comes as US President Donald Trump visits the region and indirect negotiations on a new ceasefire and hostage release deal between Hamas and Israel continue.
The streets of Khan Younis were filled with funeral processions and grieving families on Thursday morning, following what residents said were the deadliest set of air strikes in the city since Israel resumed its offensive almost two months ago.
One video shared by a local activist showed medics laying dozens of bodies on the ground at a local cemetery. An imam stood nearby leading prayers for hundreds of mourners gathered behind him in orderly rows.
Other footage showed men carrying the bodies of two small children wrapped in blood-stained shrouds outside Nasser hospital, which published a list of the names of the 56 people who medics said were killed.
Safaa al-Bayouk, a 42-year-old mother of six, said the children were her sons Muath, who was only six weeks old, and Moataz, who was one year and four months.
"I gave them dinner and they went to sleep. It was a normal day... [then] the world turned upside down," she told Reuters news agency.
Reem al-Zanaty, 13, said her uncle's family, including her 12-year-old cousin Menna, were killed when their two homes were bombed.
"We didn't feel or hear anything until we woke up with rubble on us," she said. "The Civil Defence did not come. I will tell you honestly we pulled ourselves [out]. My father helped us."
Medics also said local journalist Hassan Samour, who worked for Hamas-run al-Aqsa Radio, was killed along with 11 members of his family when their home in the eastern Bani Suheila neighbourhood was struck.
Reuters
Reem al-Zanaty said she woke up covered in rubble after an overnight strike on her home and had to be rescued by her father
The Civil Defence agency also said on Thursday morning that its first responders had recovered the bodies of four people following Israeli strikes in the northern town of Beit Lahia and two others in the central town of Deir al-Balah.
Later, spokesman Mahmoud Bassal reported that an Israeli strike on a home in Jabalia town had killed all five members of the Shihab family.
Another 13 people were killed when the al-Tawbah health clinic and prayer hall in the al-Fakhouri area of Jabalia refugee camp was bombed, he said.
Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that 15 people were killed, including 11 children.
A graphic video posted online purportedly from the scene showed two bodies covered in debris on a street next to a badly damaged building.
Amir Selha, a 43-year-old resident of northern Gaza, told AFP news agency: "Tank shells are striking around the clock, and the area is packed with people and tents."
On Wednesday, Israeli strikes killed at least 80 people across the territory, including 59 in Jabalia town and refugee camp, according to hospitals and the Civil Defence.
The Israeli military said it struck Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters in the north of the territory on Tuesday night. It had warned residents of Jabalia and neighbouring areas to evacuate on Tuesday after rockets were launched into Israel.
Israeli evacuation orders issued on Wednesday afternoon also caused panic among residents of a crowded area of Gaza City, in the north.
The Israeli military said a hospital, a university and several schools sheltering displaced people in the Rimal neighbourhood had become "terrorist strongholds" and that it would soon attack them with "intense force".
Separately, a US-backed organisation said it would start work in Gaza within two weeks as part of a new heavily criticised US-Israeli aid distribution plan.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it had asked Israel to let the UN and others resume deliveries until it was set up.
Israel has not allowed any aid or other supplies into Gaza for 10 weeks, and aid agencies have warned of mass starvation among the 2.1 million population.
Israel imposed the blockade on 2 March and resumed its offensive against Hamas two weeks later, ending a two-month ceasefire. It said it wanted to put pressure on Hamas to release its remaining 58 hostages, up to 23 of whom are believed to be alive.
Israel launched a military campaign to destroy Hamas in response to the group's cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 53,010 people have been killed in Gaza since then, including 2,876 since the Israeli offensive resumed, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
Co-op narrowly averted being locked out of its computer systems during the cyber attack that saw customer data stolen and store shelves left bare, the hackers who claim responsibility have told the BBC.
The revelation could help explain why Co-op has started to recover more quickly than fellow retailer M&S, which had its systems more comprehensively compromised, and is still unable to carry out online orders.
Hackers who have claimed responsibility for both attacks told the BBC they tried to infect Co-op with malicious software known as ransomware - but failed when the firm discovered the attack in action.
Both Co-op and M&S declined to comment.
The gang, using the cyber crime service DragonForce, sent the BBC a long, offensive rant about their attack.
"Co-op's network never ever suffered ransomware. They yanked their own plug - tanking sales, burning logistics, and torching shareholder value," the criminals said.
But cyber experts like Jen Ellis from the Ransomware Task Force said the response from Co-op was sensible.
"Co-op seems to have opted for self-imposed immediate-term disruption as a means of avoiding criminal-imposed, longer-term disruption. It seems to have been a good call for them in this instance," she said.
Ms Ellis said these kinds of crisis decisions are often taken quickly when hackers have breached a network and can be extremely difficult.
Speaking exclusively to the BBC, the criminals claimed to have breached Co-op's computer systems long before they were discovered.
"We spent a while seated in their network," they boasted.
They stole a large amount of private customer data and were planning to infect the company with ransomware, but were detected.
Ransomware is a kind of attack where hackers scramble computer systems and demand payment from victims in exchange for handing back control.
It would also have made the restoration of Co-op's systems more complex, time-consuming and expensive - exactly the problems M&S appears to be wrestling with.
The criminals claim they were also behind the attack on M&S which struck over Easter.
Although M&S has yet to confirm it is dealing with ransomware, cyber experts have long said that is the situation and M&S has not issued any advice or corrections to the contrary.
Nearly three weeks on, the retailer is still struggling to get back to normal, as online orders are still suspended and some shops have had continued issues with contactless payments and empty shelves this week.
An analysis from Bank of America estimates the fallout from the hack is costing M&S £43m per week.
On Tuesday, M&S admitted personal customer data was stolen in the hack, which could include telephone numbers, home addresses and dates of birth.
It added the data theft did not include useable payment or card details, or any account passwords - but nonetheless urged customers to reset their account details and be wary of potential scammers using the information to make contact.
Co-op seems to be recovering more quickly, saying its shelves will start to return to normal from this weekend.
Nonetheless it is expected to feel the effects of the cyber attack for some time.
"Co-op have acted quickly and their work on the recovery helps to soften things slightly, but rebuilding trust is a bit harder," Prof Oli Buckley, a cyber security expert at Loughborough University, told the BBC.
"It will be a process of showing that lessons have been learned and there are stronger defences in place," he added.
The same cyber-crime group has also claimed responsibility for an attempted hack of the London department store Harrods.
The hackers who contacted the BBC say they are from DragonForce which operates an affiliate cyber crime service so anyone can use their malicious software and website to carry out attacks and extortions.
It's not known who is ultimately using the service to attack the retailers, but some security experts say the tactics seen are similar to that of a loosely coordinated group of hackers who have been called Scattered Spider or Octo Tempest.
The gang operates on Telegram and Discord channels and is English-speaking and young – in some cases only teenagers.
Conversations with Co-op hackers were carried out in text form - but it is clear the hacker, who called himself a spokesperson, was a fluent English speaker.
They say two of the hackers want to be known as "Raymond Reddington" and "Dembe Zuma" after characters from US crime thriller Blacklist which involves a wanted criminal helping police take down other criminals on a 'blacklist'.
The hackers say "we're putting UK retailers on the Blacklist".
Chancellor Rachel Reeves at the Rolls-Royce factory in Derby after growth figures were announced
It's not a boom, but it is something to be roundly welcomed.
Today's economic figures may reflect erratic trade war factors, and bounceback from stagnation at the end of last year.
The growth may prove short lived if the gravitational pull of US tariffs and tax rises do hit hard.
The valid caveats, should not, however, get in the way of the main story here.
The UK economy did far better than doom-laden predictions for the first three months of this year.
It was nowhere near a recession.
A growth rate of 0.7% beat expectations.
It is a return to normal, healthy levels of growth, at least in that quarter.
On successive governments' favourite metric - the growth of the rest of the G7 advanced economies - the UK will now be the fastest growing. This is subject to confirmation of Japan and Canada's numbers in the coming days, but they will be lower.
While almost everybody expects growth to slow in the current quarter, after months of tariff uncertainty and April's tax rises, this figure should alter the frame of thinking about the British economy.
Are millions of families still suffering from the cost of living squeeze? Yes.
Are small businesses especially in retail and hospitality under suffocating pressure from rises in employer National Insurance and the National Living Wage? Also yes.
But away from those important sectors, there is definitely resilience, and it seems even more than that.
The impact of interest rate cuts, and relative political and economic stability, may have been more much more important.
Real incomes are up, and for many businesses outside retail and hospitality, the rise in National Insurance contributions has been accommodated by a squeeze to profit margins and wage rises.
The flipside of the National Living Wage rise, is, of course, a more robust consumer amid a demographic that does spend in the shops.
The UK is a world away from the predictions of early January when widespread doom-mongering equated a rise in government borrowing rates - mainly driven by global factors - with the risk of a UK-specific mini Budget style crisis.
There are obvious challenges.
The shadow chancellor is right to say there should no champagne corks, but no bubbles were in evidence when Rachel Reeves spoke at the Rolls-Royce factory after the numbers were published.
But this number provides an opportunity for the chancellor after a growth stutter, partly self-inflicted, under this government.
A robustly growing economy, stable economic policy, falling interest rates, and a graspable positioning in the current global trade tumult as an oasis of tariff stability, are decent selling points in an uncertain world.
It is why Reeves resisted my suggestion that her welfare cuts might be negotiable after an apparent backbench revolt: "We will take forward those reforms," she said.
The chancellor may have more work, however, in convincing businesses that growth is this government's number one priority, given the prime minister's focus on an immigration crackdown.
Some interesting conversations will soon occur with businesses, for example the construction companies meant to deliver 1.5m homes, and the new infrastructure which has been planned, or merely even to staff care homes.
For now it is a relief that the British economy appears resilient and robust.
It may be temporary, but we should not assume that. These figures provide an opportune moment for some optimism and a hard sell of the UK to the rest of the world.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves at the Rolls-Royce factory in Derby after growth figures were announced
It's not a boom, but it is something to be roundly welcomed.
Today's economic figures may reflect erratic trade war factors, and bounceback from stagnation at the end of last year.
The growth may prove short lived if the gravitational pull of US tariffs and tax rises do hit hard.
The valid caveats, should not, however, get in the way of the main story here.
The UK economy did far better than doom-laden predictions for the first three months of this year.
It was nowhere near a recession.
A growth rate of 0.7% beat expectations.
It is a return to normal, healthy levels of growth, at least in that quarter.
On successive governments' favourite metric - the growth of the rest of the G7 advanced economies - the UK will now be the fastest growing. This is subject to confirmation of Japan and Canada's numbers in the coming days, but they will be lower.
While almost everybody expects growth to slow in the current quarter, after months of tariff uncertainty and April's tax rises, this figure should alter the frame of thinking about the British economy.
Are millions of families still suffering from the cost of living squeeze? Yes.
Are small businesses especially in retail and hospitality under suffocating pressure from rises in employer National Insurance and the National Living Wage? Also yes.
But away from those important sectors, there is definitely resilience, and it seems even more than that.
The impact of interest rate cuts, and relative political and economic stability, may have been more much more important.
Real incomes are up, and for many businesses outside retail and hospitality, the rise in National Insurance contributions has been accommodated by a squeeze to profit margins and wage rises.
The flipside of the National Living Wage rise, is, of course, a more robust consumer amid a demographic that does spend in the shops.
The UK is a world away from the predictions of early January when widespread doom-mongering equated a rise in government borrowing rates - mainly driven by global factors - with the risk of a UK-specific mini Budget style crisis.
There are obvious challenges.
The shadow chancellor is right to say there should no champagne corks, but no bubbles were in evidence when Rachel Reeves spoke at the Rolls-Royce factory after the numbers were published.
But this number provides an opportunity for the chancellor after a growth stutter, partly self-inflicted, under this government.
A robustly growing economy, stable economic policy, falling interest rates, and a graspable positioning in the current global trade tumult as an oasis of tariff stability, are decent selling points in an uncertain world.
It is why Reeves resisted my suggestion that her welfare cuts might be negotiable after an apparent backbench revolt: "We will take forward those reforms," she said.
The chancellor may have more work, however, in convincing businesses that growth is this government's number one priority, given the prime minister's focus on an immigration crackdown.
Some interesting conversations will soon occur with businesses, for example the construction companies meant to deliver 1.5m homes, and the new infrastructure which has been planned, or merely even to staff care homes.
For now it is a relief that the British economy appears resilient and robust.
It may be temporary, but we should not assume that. These figures provide an opportune moment for some optimism and a hard sell of the UK to the rest of the world.
Sir Keir Starmer has said that he is "determined that we will retake control of the borders," as he begins a visit to Albania.
In his first official visit to the country, the prime minister is expected to announce further measures to crack down on organised crime and illegal immigration.
The UK is to step up intelligence sharing with Albanian law enforcement and provide funding for forensics, as part of the plans announced.
The number of people crossing the Channel has passed 12,000 since January, putting 2025 on course to be a record year.
Speaking in Albania, Sir Keir said: "The last government lost control of the borders. I am determined that we will retake control of the borders.
"That means that we have got to have a concerted effort to smash the gangs that are running this vile trade."
He said greater co-operation with Albania had "driven down those numbers" and that he wanted to "see more of that".
Immigration has been a strong focus of the government this week - on Monday it set out plans to reduce the level of legal migration in a White Paper.
The government said there has been a 95% reduction in Albanian small boat arrivals in the last three years, and that the number of Albanians returned has doubled in the past two years.
The prime minister is expected to announce the expansion of the Joint Migration Task Force - which shares intelligence and carries out operations against people smugglers in the Western Balkans - to include North Macedonia.
The enhanced co-operation with Albania set to be announced will include measures to tackle a "revolving door effect", of migrants returning home, evading law enforcement and leaving the country again, the government said.
The plans will also include:
A new programme to help young Albanians reintegrate into society and find employment
Funding a new forensic evidence programme to share and track DNA of criminals in Albania to solve crimes in the UK
A further £1m investment to upgrade Albania's forensics, biometrics and digital capability
Greater intelligence sharing to allow local law, using UK-funded drones, to "snare gangsters" transporting migrants through the Western Balkans corridor
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp described Sir Keir's visit as "pure theatre".
He said: "The returns deal with Albania was decisive action taken by the previous Conservative government."
"So why is Starmer now flying out for a handshake in Tirana to claim credit? If the scheme is already working, what exactly is this trip for?" he added.
Bella Culley's family is being supported by the Foreign Office
A British teenager could spend up to nine months in a Georgian prison while she is investigated on suspicion of drug offences.
Bella Culley, 18, from Billingham on Teesside, appeared at a pre-trial hearing on Tuesday and, at the end of proceedings, told the court she was pregnant.
The prosecutor asked for 55 days to find evidence before the case is brought to trial and the BBC understands this could be extended by a further seven months.
Miss Culley's lawyer, Ia Todua, said police wanted to establish where the 12kg (26lbs) of marijuana and 2kg (4.4lbs) of hashish had come from and whether she was "planning to hand it over to someone".
Miss Culley was arrested at Tbilisi, Georgia, and charged with illegally buying, possessing and importing large quantities of narcotics.
Ms Todua, who has been appointed by the state to represent the teenager, said the prosecution estimated they would need two months to gather information.
"They said that they had to conduct a lot of investigative activities, so that they can collect evidence, establish where it was from [the narcotics] and was she planning to hand it over to someone," she said.
"That's what they said they want to establish, and they also confiscated her phone."
The lawyer added that, at the end of the hearing, Miss Culley "told the court that she was pregnant".
Rayhan Demytrie
Bella Culley has been sent to prison number 5 in Rustavi
The BBC understands other lawyers had been in touch to represent Miss Culley and the British consular service has planned a meeting.
The Foreign Office has confirmed that it is "supporting the family of a British woman who is detained in Georgia".
Georgian Police said officers had seized marijuana and the narcotic drug hashish in a travel bag at Tbilisi International Airport.
A spokesperson said the arrest was the result of a joint operation between multiple departments and, if found guilty, Miss Culley could face up to 20 years in jail or life imprisonment.
Cleveland Police has confirmed an 18-year-old woman from Billingham has been arrested in Georgia "on suspicion of drugs offences" and remains in custody.
Watch: Rupert Lowe tells BBC Newsnight that Nigel Farage is "running a cult"
Former Reform UK MP Rupert Lowe has accused Nigel Farage's party of being "the cult of Nigel" and says he was the victim of a "political assassination attempt".
Speaking to Victoria Derbyshire on BBC Newsnight, Lowe suggested his relationship with Reform UK changed when "Elon Musk came out and was complimentary about me and less complimentary about Nigel"
The Great Yarmouth MP made the comments in his first broadcast interview since the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to press charges over threats he was alleged to have made.
Reform UK declined to comment on Lowe's latest attack on Farage, who has previously dismissed the row as irrelevant to the continued advance of the party.
Sarah Pochin, who earlier this month won the Runcorn and Helsby by-election for Reform, described herself as Lowe's "replacement" on the party's benches in Parliament and also played down the Lowe spat.
"I really think it is white noise around what is a huge, energetic movement now, Reform, coming across the country and coming for the other two parties," she told the BBC.
Lowe was elected as a Reform MP in last year's general election but was suspended by the party in March, amid claims of threats towards its chairman Zia Yusuf.
In his Newsnight interview, Lowe said of Farage's "brutal" leadership style "If people become, if you like, too tall a poppy, he tends to lop off the head of the poppy".
On Reform UK's leadership, Lowe said Farage has "a team of what I call, very long-term lightweight sort of servants, which is what you tend to find in a cult."
The independent MP added that he didn't think Farage is "fit to be leader".
"I think he's ultimately a very good, what I would call, ballroom entertainer. And he stands up and he entertains, and he's extremely good at that."
On Wednesday, Malcolm McHaffie, head of the CPS, said it made the decision not to press charges on Mr Lowe "following a thorough and detailed review of the evidence".
Although the CPS statement does not name Lowe, the case relates to an incident at the Palace of Westminster in December 2024.
Lowe maintains that the claims made against him are untrue. "Why did they do it? I think it was a political assassination attempt."
"I think Nigel is running a cult. That's what I concluded, and I think it's the cult of Nigel. And anyone who basically has a different opinion, is effectively expunged from, being a threat to, to the cult."
Lowe also revealed that his firearms were confiscated from his home by police, following his row with Reform.
"We had an unannounced visitation from four armed police officers in three cars", he said.
"They came and they took all my guns away."
Lowe declined to say if he would launch a new political party, suggesting instead that "the most powerful instrument for change probably would be reformed Tory party".
"I could join the Tories tomorrow if I wanted to. I don't have an issue with the Tories," he added.
However, Lowe also suggested he would "make sure there's an alternative" to the existing political offerings, adding "if people think I'm going to pack up my tent to leave the field, they're very wrong."
When asked about what support this "alternative" might gain, Lowe suggested Elon Musk "broadly, would consider supporting us" in a future political venture.
"I can't speak for him, but would I be grateful and would I feel good about his verbal support? Yes. Financial support? Yes. If he chose to do that, it would be fantastic."
Watch Rupert Lowe's interview on Newsnight on BBC Two at 22:30 BST.
Reddit founder Ohanian buys stake in Chelsea women
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Alexis Ohanian and Serena Williams married in 2017
Published
Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian has bought a stake in Women's Super League champions Chelsea, the club have confirmed.
Ohanian, who is married to tennis great Serena Williams, will have a seat on Chelsea Women's board after purchasing a 8-10% share, believed to be worth around £20m.
"This is a landmark day in the history of Chelsea Women and for women's football in Europe and beyond," said Aki Mandhar, chief executive Chelsea Women.
"This investment is validation of the club's past success but more importantly it is yet another proof point in the market of the persistent growth and potential of women's football.
"There is no greater champion of investing in the future of girls and women's sports than Alexis, and we are incredibly proud to welcome him to the club."
Ohanian, 42, has invested in women's football previously, as the largest shareholder in American club side Angel City FC until it was sold in 2024 for £192.3m - the highest price for a women's sports team until this deal.
"As Founding Control Owner of Angel City FC, I've seen the opportunity to create and grow a worldwide brand within women's football, and I'm confident Chelsea FC Women is the next global women's sports brand," said Ohanian.
Ohanian had announced news of his investment on Wednesday and posted images of Chelsea kits with the names of his children, Olympia and Adira, on the backs.
His investment of roughly £20m puts the value of Chelsea Women at more than £200m, which was the worth placed on the club when Chelsea FC Holdings sold the team to a sister company earlier this year to help the club adhere to profit and sustainability rules.
The Blues have put a post-investment valuation on the club at £245m.
It marks the latest boardroom change for Chelsea, who recently appointed Mandhar as their first dedicated chief executive officer for the women's team.
Earlier this month, Chelsea won their sixth consecutive WSL title. They became the first side to finish a 22-game campaign unbeaten and set a new league record of 60 points.
They also won the Women's League Cup in March and are going for a domestic treble when they meet Manchester United in the Women's FA Cup final at Wembley on Sunday - a game Ohanian and Williams are expected to attend.
The UK economy grew by 0.7% at the start of this year.
This was better than expected, but this level of growth is not predicted to last.
It's better than forecast
The numbers matter because a higher growth rate usually means people are getting paid a little bit more, can spend more and more jobs are created.
Before the announcement, experts expected the economy to grow by 0.6% between January and March, compared with the last three months of 2024.
The fact the actual number is a tiny bit higher at 0.7% suggests people were willing to spend more than was expected.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which works out the figure, said spending on services such as retail, hospitality and finance in particular was strong.
The growth figure for March 2025 also beat expectations.
Analysts predicted no growth at all in March, but the economy ended up expanding by 0.2% that month.
Though the UK's growth rate of under 1% might seem small, it's higher than that seen by other large economies around the world.
It was the highest in the G7, which is a group of countries that includes the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
All of these countries have had to deal with a big shock to global trade - the tariffs brought in by the US at the start of the year.
They make goods going into the US more expensive, which means the US may be likely to buy less from other countries.
That could reduce the amount the UK sells to US customers.
The fact that the UK was still able to beat expectations in this time is a promising sign.
Trump's tariffs hadn't come in yet
The US is the UK's biggest foreign market after the European Union, which means what happens across the Atlantic matters.
Donald Trump's so-called "Liberation Day", when he announced most of the tariffs on foreign goods, came on 2 April, and the tariffs themselves came into force shortly after.
That is after the period measured in the latest economy figures, so we won't see the full effects of the tariffs for a while.
Many businesses expected the tariffs to come, so made sure they exported their goods to the US before they kicked in.
That extra increase in production and sales is part of the reason the economy grew from January until March.
Economist Paul Dales from Capital Economics said this growth "might be as good as it gets for the year".
That's because UK exports to the US may fall now that the tariffs are being applied, and economists expect that to slow growth.
The UK did a deal with the US last week which cut some tariffs, but it is unclear when this will take effect as the details are ironed out.
Energy, water, phone and broadband bills all rose.
Council tax also increased, alongside car tax and TV licences.
Some businesses have complained that a rise in the amount of National Insurance they have to pay, as well as an increase in the minimum wage, mean they cannot hire as many workers.
Liz says she was "astonished" to learn of her criminal record
A woman who unknowingly had a criminal record for 56 years for being a lesbian in the military is encouraging more women to apply to a government pardons scheme.
Liz Stead, 78, was thrown out of the RAF in 1969 when bosses discovered a love letter from her then-girlfriend.
More than 50 years later Liz discovered she was also given a criminal conviction for "perceived same-sex sexual activity" and had unknowingly lived with a criminal record for most of her adult life.
She is one of 40 people in England and Wales who have had convictions of this nature overturned since 2023, when the government's Disregards and Pardons Scheme was expanded to include women for the first time.
Liz, from Chichester, West Sussex, first learned of her criminal record in December last year, when applying for a different scheme, which awards financial redress to veterans who were sacked during a ban on homosexuality in the armed forces which was lifted in the year 2000.
In emails seen by the BBC, her application for the payment was initially denied because of the conviction, and she was advised to apply for it to be pardoned by the Home Office.
She applied to have the application fast-tracked due to ill health - and says she was "astonished" to learn of the charges.
She now wonders what unknown impact it has had on her life.
"I can think of one job where it might have been the reason I didn't get it. I've worked in local government most of my life and I have to wonder, had they known about this, would I have still had that job?," she said.
In 2012, the government's Disregards and Pardons scheme was launched to allow people historically convicted for consensual same-sex activities to have those convictions deleted from official records.
Since the expansion, there have been 40 people given pardons, with the majority granted to former military personnel.
Liz is now encouraging other women who may have been in contact with police, or those who were thrown out of the military for their sexuality to apply for pardons in order to find out if they have an unknown conviction.
She said: "I can't think how it is on my records and I've never known about it, but I can't be the only one, they can't have just pinpointed me.
"I didn't know anything about it, so I had no idea what the pardon would even be for but I was told it was related to same-sex activity."
Liz Stead
Liz (middle) attended a "restorative action ceremony" earlier this year alongside her wife Stevie (left) to welcome her back into the military family.
Liz served for three and a half years in the RAF and had an exemplary record, but was thrown out when bosses investigated her then-girlfriend and found love letters between the two.
She was interrogated by the Special Investigation Branch - the detective arm of the military police which at the time often focussed investigations on same-sex sexual activity - and dismissed.
The partial decriminalisation of homosexuality began in the UK in 1967 with the passing of the Sexual Offences Act, which decriminalised homosexual acts between men over the age of 21 in England and Wales.
In Scotland, the law was changed in 1980 and in Northern Ireland, 1982.
However, homosexuality remained illegal in Britain's armed forces until the year 2000, when the European Court of Human Rights ruled the ban illegal.
As part of reparations made to LGBT Veterans, Liz was invited to a ceremony to return her medals and re-welcome her into the military family.
Although the day was once a fond memory for her, she said it was now "tainted" because of the criminal record and she might have considered not attending had she known about that at the time.
Peter Gibson, CEO of LGBT+ military charity Fighting With Pride, which helped Liz apply for the pardon, said: "Liz's experience shows how important it is that justice is properly done to all LGBT+ veterans who suffered under the cruel ban. Lives and careers were ruined under that 'gay ban'.
"It's shocking that some people who served for their country and were kicked out for simply being their true selves might also have had a criminal record without even knowing."
Safeguarding minister Jess Phillips said that criminal records for same-sex relationships "should never have existed in the first place."
She added: "Each pardon represents real changes to real lives. Some could now have their military medals returned while others can finally walk taller knowing a painful injustice has been finally righted.
"I urge anyone with convictions under these cruel and prejudiced laws to apply to our scheme. You deserve justice and we remain committed to righting these historical wrongs."
Sir Keir Starmer has said that he is "determined that we will retake control of the borders," as he begins a visit to Albania.
In his first official visit to the country, the prime minister is expected to announce further measures to crack down on organised crime and illegal immigration.
The UK is to step up intelligence sharing with Albanian law enforcement and provide funding for forensics, as part of the plans announced.
The number of people crossing the Channel has passed 12,000 since January, putting 2025 on course to be a record year.
Speaking in Albania, Sir Keir said: "The last government lost control of the borders. I am determined that we will retake control of the borders.
"That means that we have got to have a concerted effort to smash the gangs that are running this vile trade."
He said greater co-operation with Albania had "driven down those numbers" and that he wanted to "see more of that".
Immigration has been a strong focus of the government this week - on Monday it set out plans to reduce the level of legal migration in a White Paper.
The government said there has been a 95% reduction in Albanian small boat arrivals in the last three years, and that the number of Albanians returned has doubled in the past two years.
The prime minister is expected to announce the expansion of the Joint Migration Task Force - which shares intelligence and carries out operations against people smugglers in the Western Balkans - to include North Macedonia.
The enhanced co-operation with Albania set to be announced will include measures to tackle a "revolving door effect", of migrants returning home, evading law enforcement and leaving the country again, the government said.
The plans will also include:
A new programme to help young Albanians reintegrate into society and find employment
Funding a new forensic evidence programme to share and track DNA of criminals in Albania to solve crimes in the UK
A further £1m investment to upgrade Albania's forensics, biometrics and digital capability
Greater intelligence sharing to allow local law, using UK-funded drones, to "snare gangsters" transporting migrants through the Western Balkans corridor
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp described Sir Keir's visit as "pure theatre".
He said: "The returns deal with Albania was decisive action taken by the previous Conservative government."
"So why is Starmer now flying out for a handshake in Tirana to claim credit? If the scheme is already working, what exactly is this trip for?" he added.
Yostin Mosquera (left) with Albert Alfonso (centre) and Paul Longworth on a boat in Colombia
The jury in the trial of a man accused of murdering two men in London before dumping some of their remains in suitcases in Bristol has been discharged.
Yostin Andres Mosquera, 35, denies murdering Albert Afonso, 62, and Paul Longworth, 71, on or before 11 July 2024 and was on trial at the Old Bailey in London.
Parts of their bodies were found in Shepherd's Bush, while some were discovered in a suitcase and trunk left near Clifton Suspension Bridge.
The prosecution opened its case on 30 April but trial judge Mr Justice Bennathan discharged the jury earlier.
Julia Quenzler
Yostin Andres Mosquera is due to face a retrial
Justice Bennathan said there had been problems identifying the accurate times of searches made by Mosquera on his laptop, which had been used as evidence in the trial.
He told jurors the trial "simply cannot continue".
"We simply have to resolve this before we have a fair trial," he added.
The judge thanked jurors for their service and said he was sorry for where the trial had "ended up".
Mosquera has admitted the manslaughter of Mr Alfonso by way of loss of self-control, but denies both charges of murder.
There is due to be a pre-trial review hearing for Mr Mosquera at the Old Bailey on 13 June and provisional retrial date has been set for 30 June at Woolwich Crown Court.
The UK economy grew by 0.7% at the start of this year.
This was better than expected, but this level of growth is not predicted to last.
It's better than forecast
The numbers matter because a higher growth rate usually means people are getting paid a little bit more, can spend more and more jobs are created.
Before the announcement, experts expected the economy to grow by 0.6% between January and March, compared with the last three months of 2024.
The fact the actual number is a tiny bit higher at 0.7% suggests people were willing to spend more than was expected.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which works out the figure, said spending on services such as retail, hospitality and finance in particular was strong.
The growth figure for March 2025 also beat expectations.
Analysts predicted no growth at all in March, but the economy ended up expanding by 0.2% that month.
Though the UK's growth rate of under 1% might seem small, it's higher than that seen by other large economies around the world.
It was the highest in the G7, which is a group of countries that includes the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
All of these countries have had to deal with a big shock to global trade - the tariffs brought in by the US at the start of the year.
They make goods going into the US more expensive, which means the US may be likely to buy less from other countries.
That could reduce the amount the UK sells to US customers.
The fact that the UK was still able to beat expectations in this time is a promising sign.
Trump's tariffs hadn't come in yet
The US is the UK's biggest foreign market after the European Union, which means what happens across the Atlantic matters.
Donald Trump's so-called "Liberation Day", when he announced most of the tariffs on foreign goods, came on 2 April, and the tariffs themselves came into force shortly after.
That is after the period measured in the latest economy figures, so we won't see the full effects of the tariffs for a while.
Many businesses expected the tariffs to come, so made sure they exported their goods to the US before they kicked in.
That extra increase in production and sales is part of the reason the economy grew from January until March.
Economist Paul Dales from Capital Economics said this growth "might be as good as it gets for the year".
That's because UK exports to the US may fall now that the tariffs are being applied, and economists expect that to slow growth.
The UK did a deal with the US last week which cut some tariffs, but it is unclear when this will take effect as the details are ironed out.
Energy, water, phone and broadband bills all rose.
Council tax also increased, alongside car tax and TV licences.
Some businesses have complained that a rise in the amount of National Insurance they have to pay, as well as an increase in the minimum wage, mean they cannot hire as many workers.
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