Reading view

There are new articles available, click to refresh the page.

Diddy's reputation is tarnished, but could he find a way back?

Reuters Diddy on stage smiling and with one hand cupped to his earReuters
Sean "Diddy" Combs was one of the most influential figures in hop-hop

After the verdicts were delivered in Sean "Diddy" Combs' trial in New York on Wednesday, emotions boiled over outside court in heated confrontations between fans and protesters who voiced opposing views about the outcome.

Some thought the rap star should have been found guilty on the more serious counts, not just the two lesser charges on which he was convicted.

But they were outnumbered by pro-Diddy influencers and fans who were chanting "free Diddy" and "let him go" and spraying each other in baby oil in celebration.

The jury's mixed verdicts did not present a clear-cut result - but it was seen as a better-than-expected outcome for the star.

He still faces significant jail time and dozens of civil legal cases, though. His reputation will forever be tarnished by months of ugly allegations and revelations - and the two convictions.

But some observers believe that's unlikely to stop him trying to mount a comeback.

Driving force of hip-hop

Getty Images Combs on stage wearing a bright red shirt and jacket and a large gold medallion with both of his arms gesturing in the air during the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards.Getty Images
He performed and was named a Global Icon at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards

As a songwriter, rapper, producer and record label impresario, Combs - formerly known as Puff Daddy - was one of the driving forces in hip-hop and R&B in the 1990s.

He launched the careers of Notorious BIG and Mary J Blige, signed acts such as Faith Evans, 112, Mase and Janelle Monae to his Bad Boy Records label, and worked with stars including Mariah Carey, Usher and Busta Rhymes.

He won three Grammy Awards as an artist and scored his biggest pop hit with I'll Be Missing You, sampling The Police's Every Breath You Take, in 1997 - his tribute after BIG's murder.

Combs "was one of the most famous people in hip-hop", says Los Angeles Times music writer August Brown.

"He was an incredibly important figure in evolving both that genre and the music industry as a whole into a commercial juggernaut."

Dark side of Diddy's parties

Getty Images Sean Combs wearing denim dungarees, a white vest and a gold watch, sitting at a mixing desk in a recording studio in 1997Getty Images

Like many at the peak of the music industry, he also threw lavish parties. But sordid details emerged during the legal cases, revealing a darker side.

These so-called "freak offs" were hotel sex encounters which could last for days, involving multiple male escorts, routine violence and copious amounts of drugs and baby oil.

The question for the jury was whether this was a criminal enterprise designed to force two alleged victims into sex against their will or whether, as Combs claimed, the women willingly took part.

The defence argued that these orgies were "kinky" but consensual - and that organising them was not criminal.

In the end, the jury agreed and he was found not guilty of the most serious charge of racketeering conspiracy, as well as two charges of sex trafficking.

"The jury was just unpersuaded that what amounted to an extremely baroque and violent and drug-stoked sex life on Diddy's behalf amounted to a criminal organisation on the racketeering charge, or trafficking in the way that we understand it now," Mr Brown told the BBC World Service.

"This isn't to say that it wasn't possible, but they just didn't think it rose to 'beyond a shadow of a doubt'."

Jail then comeback?

Getty Images Cassie Ventura and Sean Combs posing for photographers at the 2018 Met Gala. She's wearing a black suit and he's wering an all-white suit with one white glove and a large jewelled cross on a chain around his neckGetty Images
Cassie Ventura gave evidence against former partner, and a video of him assaulting her was a key piece of evidence

Combs was, however, convicted on two counts of transporting two former girlfriends, including singer Cassie, to participate in sex acts and prostitution.

He will face up to 10 years in jail for each charge when he's sentenced in October. But the sentences are likely to be lower than the maximum and to run simultaneously, with the year he will have already spent in jail to be deducted. So it's quite possible he could be free in several years.

His supporters will be waiting - but most people will be unwilling to accept a comeback, Mr Brown says.

"I cannot imagine any kind of redemption arc as far as him [remaining] as an artist or a music mogul in light of this.

"I think the public will remember him as an important figure whose name is now permanently associated with this very-difficult-to-process range of charges, even if he's not been convicted on the worst of it."

Alvin Blanco, content director of Hiphopwired.com, agrees that Combs is too tarnished to make a successful comeback. "He's definitely going to try, but I think the damage is just too irreparable at this point."

Watch: The BBC's Nomia Iqbal looks at what comes next after Diddy verdict

Mark Anthony Neal, professor of African American Studies at Duke University in North Carolina, also believes there's "no doubt" the revelations have tarnished Combs' legacy as the man who helped take hip-hop "from the ghettos to the mainstream of America to the global mainstream".

However, his influence on music had diminished even before the allegations, says Jem Aswad, executive editor of music at Variety.

"He doesn't really have much of a music career any more, and he hasn't for about 15 years," Mr Aswad told BBC News.

"It's not that he was unpopular, although he wasn't enormously popular recently - he just moved on to other businesses. He got into beverages, he got into apparel, he got into lots of other businesses.

"Anything he did in music over the last 15 years was almost just for fun. I think he's released two, maybe three albums in that time period, and they just did OK, and frankly they just were OK."

Awards success

His stock was still pretty high, though. His last LP, The Love Album: Off The Grid, was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2024. The previous year, he was named a Global Icon at the MTV Awards.

And he wouldn't be the first star to retain support despite facing allegations.

Michael Jackson was cleared of child abuse in court in 2005 but persuasive claims about him have persisted, and many people still wrestle with how to reconcile those with the brilliance of the King of Pop's catalogue.

R&B star R. Kelly was jailed for 30 years in 2022 for racketeering and sex trafficking. He still has five million monthly listeners on Spotify at the last count.

Some in hip-hop may be willing to work with Combs. Kanye West last week released a song called Diddy Free - although Kanye himself is ostracised by large parts of the industry for making antisemitic and Nazi statements.

Supporters' delight

EPA Two supporters with their arms around each other and arms in the airEPA
Combs' fans celebrated outside the court

Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty, host of the BBC's Diddy on Trial podcast, has seen the support outside court and suggests there may be a way back.

"We'll see what happens with his career after this," she told the BBC's Newscast.

"I feel like he will be able to reclaim a top spot in hip-hop just because of the sheer amount of support we've seen online and here at the courthouse from his fans, and from people who feel he was being unjustly targeted by the federal government.

"He won't be the first musician to be a convicted criminal who carries on having a music career, especially in hip-hop."

For many, the details of the case will be hard to shake from the memory, though.

Angela Star, one of the content creators outside court on Wednesday, told BBC News that "his image is tainted, and when you think of Diddy now, you think of..." before finishing her point by holding up a bottle of baby oil.

No end in sight for bin strike after six months

BBC Picture shows a terraced street with dark grey wheelie bins outside homes. In the foreground is a large pile of rubbish including black bags and strips of old carpetBBC
Unslightly rubbish piles have become a normal sight on some Birmingham streets

Student Theo Charlton just cannot believe the "apocalyptic" piles of rubbish that he has seen outside his student housing in the UK's second largest city.

With the stench of rotting waste thick in the air, the 21-year-old is concerned whether the rubbish from students moving out will get collected.

Six months since bin strike action began in Birmingham, there is no getting away from it for people living in the city.

Pamela Pritchard, from Great Barr, told the BBC she had not been transporting her recycling to the local tip "out of principle", with the 68-year-old storing it inside her home.

In further strike action, kerbside green waste and recycling collections have been suspended.

Birmingham City Council said it remained committed to resolving the dispute despite its recycling rate of 22.9 % being the lowest of any unitary authority in the country, with the exception of Liverpool.

Members of the Unite union walked out in January over plans to downgrade some roles as part of the city council's attempts to sort out its equal pay liabilities.

An all-out indefinite strike was announced in March and a deal to end industrial action has not yet been reached.

Ms Pritchard told the BBC she had been collecting her recycling rubbish and storing it indoors since the strike began.

Among the growing piles of neatly stored cardboard, papers and blister packs, she said if the strike went on any longer, she would "learn to live with it".

A woman in an orange T-shirt and beige trousers looking down and pointing towards a pile of folded cardboard and boxes of papers and tablet blister packs in a corner of her home.
Pamela Pritchard, 68, has been storing her recycling inside her home since the bin strikes began

She said: "I don't drive. On principle I refuse to allow my friends to use their time to take my rubbish to the tip, so I've left it in the house.

"I've always been a keen recycler and I hate wasted resources.

"[If the strike continues] I'll find somewhere else, I'll store it in the shed I'll ask a friend - I'll find a home for it."

Image shows about 20 black bin bags on a grey pavement piled up against a black metal fence. Behind it are green plants with purple and white flowers.
There has been no recycling collections since the start of the all-out strike in March

At his hub for student housing, Mr Charlton told the BBC that when students moved out for the summer, mountains of rubbish were left behind.

He said: "The other day I was looking at everyone moving out and it was apocalyptic the amount of rubbish [they left behind].

"People don't prepare for leaving, they just dump so much stuff. I thought to myself that's going to be there for ages, its not going to get collected."

The 21-year-old said that, as he did not drive, he was unable to get to a recycling point.

Two men stood infront of a brick house, with a black doorway. The man on the left has long wavy brown hair, a moustache and is wearing a blue checked shirt. The man on the right has short brown hair and is wearing a blue T-shirt. Both are smiling at the camera.
Theo Charlton (left), and Dan Savill (right) told the BBC students moving out in Selly Oak have left 'apocalyptic' rubbish piles

Fellow student Dan Savill echoed the concerns. The 20-year-old, who is moving to university for his final year, said he was still making an effort to separate his recycling, even though the collections had been "selective".

He also said that as recycling was not being collected, people were putting that rubbish in with the black bin collections.

"There's rubbish in both bins not being taken. The priority at this point should be taking everything somewhere. Ideally recycling - but all of the general waste should be gone first."

Image shows a large pile of full black bin liners piled up outside a house
After six months, residents are no clearer as to when the strike will end

Councillor Izzy Knowles said people living in flats in Moseley had little to no recycling facilities.

"The recycling is totally full up. It's getting contaminated. [Some] don't have cars, even if they go to the tip they're not allowed in as pedestrians."

The Liberal Democrat councillor said the council should be organising recycling trucks and garden waste trucks at mobile household waste centres.

A woman with short grey hair wearing a blue T-shirt that says 'binfluencer' on it. She is stood next to an overflowing green recycling bin on a residential street.
Councillor Izzy Knowles said people living in flats in Moseley have limited recycling facilities already - and have nowhere left to put their rubbish

Birmingham City Council said it was focused on delivering a "transformation" of waste collection services which would boost their recycling rates.

If it does not meet the government's target rate of 65% by 2035, it could face a reduction in grant funding.

Councillor Majid Mahmood said: "This is a service that needs to be transformed to one that citizens of Birmingham deserve.

"The council remains committed to resolving the industrial action in the best interest of all parties involved."

Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.

Related internet links

Your new banknote ideas - from British Bulldogs to Fawlty Towers

Julie Dudley the Bulldog on Cawsand Beach in Cornwall with the sea in the backgroundJulie
Dudley the dog is unlikely to feature, but animals are a popular suggestion

While cash might not be as popular as it once was, the opportunity to fashion the next series of banknotes has got brains whirring and tails wagging.

Within a day of reporting on the Bank of England's public invitation to influence a major redesign of banknotes, there were more than 2,000 responses to Your Voice, Your BBC on the issue.

Dudley the British Bulldog, pictured on Cawsand Beach in Cornwall, will be one of the least likely contenders, despite being described as a "national treasure" by his owner Julie, from Plymouth.

But animals and nature, as well as railways and TV nostalgia have featured strongly among the ideas.

Images of historical characters, starting with William Shakespeare, have featured on Bank of England notes since 1970.

Now, the Bank's chief cashier Victoria Cleland has suggested images on the next set of £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes could stick with notable figures of the past or move on to a new theme, as is seen on banknotes issued in Scotland, Nothern Ireland and around the world.

The Bank is giving people a month to select from certain themes, such as architecture, innovation or the arts, or suggest their own topics.

The Bank has not commented on the number of entries so far, but - if responses to the BBC are anything to go by - they are likely to be inundated.

Great ships

Getty Images The SS Great Britain in dry dock in Bristol.Getty Images
The SS Great Britain in Bristol is among the maritime suggestions

Among the themes to be suggested was a celebration of the UK's maritime heritage.

The Mary Rose, HMS Belfast, HMS Trincomalee, HMS Victory, Cutty Sark, and the SS Great Britain are all worthy of a place on a banknote, according to Hilary in London.

Charles from Bristol goes further. "I don't just mean the spectacularly beautiful clipper ships, and instantly recognisable liners, but perhaps some of the lesser known vessels trading with Commonwealth countries, or oil rig support vessels working hard in the North Sea," he wrote.

Famous landmarks

Stonehenge under a blue sky with grass in front.
Stonehenge is always a popular suggestion for something that represents Britain

There are appeals for the themes and choices to represent the whole of the country.

The Angel of the North is a regular suggestion, and areas of natural beauty such as the Yorkshire Dales.

Mike in Salisbury thinks using tourist sites on banknotes could bring benefits.

"Tourists come to England to see the main sites such as Stonehenge, Buckingham Palace, the Queen Elizabeth Tower etc," he says.

"If the banknotes showed these pictures then they would be more likely to visit the site, hold one up when taking a photo, and maybe even taking the note home as a souvenir."

Classic TV characters

John Cleese as Basil Fawlty with Basil Henson as Doctor Abbott and Elspet Gray as Mrs Abbott in a still from Fawlty Towers.
Classic sitcoms like Fawlty Towers might be a popular choice

Nostalgia features heavily, bringing a more recent historical outlook to notes that have carried images of people from the past for more than 50 years.

"Some classic British children's TV characters like Willow The Wisp, Bagpuss, or even a collection of them would make me smile," says Steve in Cardiff.

"Likewise I think some classic British TV could be represented, like The Bill - no pun intended - or Casualty, soap operas or even comedies like Fawlty Towers. Television has been a large part of life for many people growing up and I'm sure, people would appreciate a bit of nostalgia on the notes."

Vintage trains

SSPL/Getty Images Pullman train, hauled by a H2 class 4-4-2 locomotive number 32424 at Brighton station, West Sussex, by E D Bruton, 5 October 1952SSPL/Getty Images
Many people would like to see British railways and vintage trains like the British Pullman celebrated

Nostalgia for the railways and "local and meaningful" stations also features in responses.

"With the 200 years of the railway in Britain being celebrated, it seems a shame not to celebrate that considering we gave railways to the world," says Ian in Derby.

A mobile phone?

Getty Images Smiling young man in a cafe pays using a phone with a coffee in front of him.Getty Images

Despite the wide range of options, some people are keen to stick to the way key figures in history are honoured on banknotes.

"Having looked at all the options I really do think that historical figures should still be number one choice. Might it be possible to include Diana Princess of Wales somewhere?" asks Elizabeth, from Oxford.

But with cash used in only 12% of transactions, some say the time and effort involved in a huge overhaul of notes is unnecessary.

"We are sadly faced with the prospect of a cashless society, with so many places refusing to accept my cash, so I have to wonder, why bother changing the design?" says Dawn in Redditch.

Ian in Leighton Buzzard is much more blunt. "I would suggest that the new banknotes look like a mobile phone because that is how people are used to paying," he says.

People can submit their views via an online form on the Bank's website, or by post, by the end of July.

The final decision on what exactly features on a banknote lies with the Bank's governor.

Additional reporting by Bernadette McCague

What have tariffs really done to the US economy?

Getty Images US President Donald Trump in a blue suit, looking off at an angleGetty Images

Soon after Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, he began raising tariffs, brushing off warnings from economists and businesses about the risks of economic damage.

He started with Mexico, Canada and China, then targeted steel, aluminium and cars, and finally in April, on what he called "Liberation Day", unleashed a blitz of new taxes on goods from countries around the world.

The plans hit trade and roiled financial markets. But as worries mounted, Trump quickly suspended his most aggressive plans to allow for 90 days of talks.

As that 9 July deadline approaches and the president crafts his approach, he will have one eye on the US economy.

So what has the impact really been?

The stock market - a wash

Trump's plans included tariffs of 20% on goods from the European Union, punishing tariffs on items from China of 145%, and a 46% levy on imports from Vietnam, though on Wednesday he announced a deal that will see the US charge tariffs of 20% on Vietnam.

The US stock market suffered the most immediate hit, starting to slide in February and finally tanking in April after Trump unveiled the full scope of his plans, on so-called "Liberation Day".

The S&P 500, which tracks 500 of the biggest companies in the US, dropped about 12% over the course of a week.

But shares bounced back after Trump rolled back his plans, abandoning steep tariffs in favour of a more easily swallowed 10% rate instead.

Now, the S&P 500 index is up about 6% for the year. In the UK and Europe, shares have also rebounded.

A line chart showing the performance of the S&P 500 index over the period of US President Donald Trump's imposition of global trade tariffs. At the start of January 2025, the index was 5,882, and rose gradually to a peak of 6,144 on 19 February. It then fell to 5,522 by 13 March 2025 – a period that coincided with the imposition of tariffs on several countries, and retaliatory tariffs on US goods. From there, the index rose slightly before dropping sharply to a low of 4,983 on 8 April, shortly after Trump’s announcement of a broad range of global tariffs. It rebounded to 5,457 the next day, after the president paused many of the tariffs, and broadly has been on an upward path since, reaching 6,275 by 3 July.

But shares of tariff-vulnerable firms, such as retailers and car companies are still hurting - and there is more risk ahead, as the talks deadline approaches.

The White House has left its options open, saying both that the deadline is "not critical" and that the president may simply present other countries "with a deal" on that date.

Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab, said the rebound suggested "a lot of complacency" among investors, who risk being spooked again should Trump revive higher tariffs than they expect.

Trade - at a crossroads

NurPhoto/Getty Images A cargo ship fully loaded with foreign trade containers leaves the port of Qingdao in Qingdao City, Shandong Province, China, on June 23, 2025NurPhoto/Getty Images

Trump's tariffs precipitated a rush of goods to the US in the early part of the year, followed by a sharp drop in April and May.

But zoom out a bit, and US goods imports in the first five months of the year were up 17% compared with the same period last year.

What happens in the months ahead will depend on whether Trump extends his pause - or revives his more aggressive plans, said Ben Hackett of Hackett Associates, which tracks port traffic for the National Retail Federation.

"At this point it's anybody's guess," Mr Hackett said, noting that for now the situation was "in a holding pattern".

"If the tariff freeze disappears and the high tariffs are reimposed then almost certainly we're going to have a short recession," he added.

Prices - too soon to say

Bloomberg/Getty A shopper looks at magnets at a gift store in the Chinatown neighborhood of San Francisco, California, US, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025.Bloomberg/Getty

In the US, imported goods are estimated to account for only about 11% of consumer spending.

Trump and his allies have argued that fears that tariffs - which, on average, are now roughly six times higher than they were at the start of the year - will drive up the cost of living for Americans are overblown.

They have pointed in part to recent inflation data, which showed consumer prices stepping up just 0.1% from April to May.

But certain items, such as toys, saw far bigger jumps and many goods facing higher duties have not yet made it to shelves.

Firms, especially those cushioned by strong profits, could opt to pass the increases on gradually, rather than alienate customers with an abrupt jump.

Despite pressure from the president to "eat the tariffs", economists still widely expect customers to pay for them eventually.

"If you're not digging more into the data you would think, 'nothing to see here' from an inflation standpoint," says Ms Sonders. "But it's premature at this point to hang the victory banner."

Consumer spending - slowing

Economic sentiment in the US started falling earlier this year, as Trump began to set out his tariff plans.

But political views play a big role in shaping opinions on the economy, so whether the worries would actually lead households to clamp down on spending over the long term remained a matter of debate.

We are now starting to see signs of pullback: retail sales dropped 0.9% from April to May, the second month in a row of decline. It was the first back-to-back fall since the end of 2023.

Overall consumer spending grew at the slowest rate since 2020 in the first three months of the year, and slipped unexpectedly in May, the most recent month for which data is available.

But while growth is still expected to slow significantly compared with last year, most analysts say the economy should be able to escape a recession - so long as the job market continues to hold up.

Though layoff notices have been pacing higher, for now, unemployment remains low, at 4.2%. Job creation last month continued at a pace similar to the average over the last 12 months.

"We're sort of in this stall mode right now in the economy, a kind of wait-and-see mode, that is driven by pretty grave uncertainty and the instability in policy," Ms Sonders said, noting that many firms were responding with a self-imposed "time-out" on hiring and investment.

The economy is unlikely to escape unscathed, she warned.

"It's hard to lay out a scenario of a pickup in growth from here," she said. "The question is more, will it just be a softening of the economy or a bigger slide."

A year in power - BBC correspondents assess how Labour are doing

BBC A designed image of the door to Number 10 Downing Street with a report card note alongside it in a montage.BBC

Sir Keir Starmer's Labour government stepped into power on 5 July 2024 with a thumping majority and tall ambitions.

That vision to "change" Britain - the word that has adorned many a red lectern - has on occasion come up against the harsh reality of politics in the year since.

So how is the government doing? Here, BBC News correspondents assess six key areas of Labour's policy plan.

A designed red and white banner image with the title 'economy'.

A question of growth

Dharshini David
Deputy economics editor

Key pledges: The government says its number one mission is to put more money in pockets, which means growth. And for good reason: over the last 15 years, the UK has expanded at a fraction of its previous rate and some people failed to see living standards improve.

Status: It was a rocky start for the government as the economy flatlined in the second half of the year and ministers watered down their aim to have the fastest growth in the G7 major economies. Perhaps this was reality hitting over the challenges at hand. A pick up at the start of 2025 meant that GDP per person was about half of 1% higher by April than it had been last summer. So we're better off – but not by much.

Analysis: Rachel Reeves says the world has changed, while President Donald Trump's trade wars and greater geopolitical uncertainty make those growth ambitions tougher.

But the government's own policies risk weighing down the outlook for the next year or two. The rise in minimum wage has helped millions of workers but that and other policies - such as the increase in employers' National Insurance contributions - are weighing on businesses profits and jobs.

There are more than a quarter of a million fewer employees than a year ago; the biggest losses are in hospitality and retail, among the sectors most likely to have seen their wage bills increase. Analysis of job postings by the Institute of Employment Studies suggests the increased hesitancy among employers dates back to the Autumn Budget as they braced for these policies to be implemented.

A designed red and white banner image with the title 'immigration'.

Net migration levels and small boats

Mark Easton
Home editor@BBCMarkEaston

Key pledges: To "reduce net migration" and "smash the criminal boat gangs".

Status: Net migration, the difference between people arriving and leaving the UK, has fallen sharply since the election. But the reduction has been driven largely by visa restrictions introduced by the previous government. Even tougher controls, including the closure of a visa scheme to fill vacancies in social care, are contained in new laws yet to be implemented.

Analysis: The government wants to reduce the UK's reliance on overseas workers by linking policies on immigration with employment training. However, Home Office advisers caution that increasing the skilled workforce does not guarantee a reduction in migration. Ministers believe tighter rules on worker and student visas, together with increased enforcement on illegal working, will mean significant falls in foreign arrivals - but net migration remains substantially higher than a decade ago.

Alongside policies to cut overall numbers, the government promised to restore order to the asylum system, end the use of hotels and "smash" the criminal boat gangs. However, small boat Channel crossings have increased significantly in Labour's first year and statistics suggest more migrants are receiving asylum support than at the election. The backlog of people awaiting an initial decision has decreased but this has been offset by a sharp rise in appeals. Hotel use is also slightly up, according to the latest figures.

While irregular migration accounts for only a small proportion of total arrivals, this aspect of immigration has a huge impact on the government politically and economically. The Treasury's spending plans are partly reliant on the promise to save billions by ending the use of asylum hotels by 2029, and the rise of Reform UK in the polls is seen by some as a sign of public frustration at small boat crossings.

The government has established a Border Security Command coordinating efforts to reduce illegal migration. Meanwhile, new legislation will treat people smuggling as a crime equivalent to terrorism. Deals with international partners and reports of an imminent returns agreement with France are seen as key to fulfilling the promise to "smash the gangs" too. Much depends, however, on factors beyond the UK's control.

A designed red and white banner image with the title 'Diplomacy'.

Trump, Ukraine and the EU

James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent@BBCJLandale

Key pledges: Labour promised to "reconnect with allies and forge new partnerships to deliver security and prosperity at home and abroad". That included staying close to the US and resetting the UK's relationship with the European Union. It also promised "steadfast support for Ukraine".

Status: Allies say Keir Starmer has managed his relationship with Donald Trump well, securing a tariff deal - and US backing for a politically controversial plan to cede sovereignty of a joint military base in the Chagos Islands. He has also protected the AUKUS security pact with Australia and the US.

The UK has sustained support for Ukraine, working with European allies to keep pressure on Russia and help heal the rift between presidents Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky after their Oval Office bust-up. Starmer also led European discussions about plans for a post-war "reassurance force" in Ukraine. The UK has agreed a trade deal with India. It has also reset diplomatic relations with the EU, easing some trade regulations and agreeing a UK-EU defence pact.

Analysis: Starmer has discovered that governments can become consumed by foreign affairs and his first year is no exception. The chief criticism levelled at the government is that it is too cautious. Has it put enough pressure on Russia - targeting the $300bn (£220bn) of assets frozen in European jurisdictions, or sanctioning Russian wealth in London?

On the Middle East, the government has cut some arms sales to Israel. But it is under growing pressure from MPs to oppose more firmly Israel's deadly operations in Gaza and give formal recognition to a Palestinian state.

Critics say changes to UK-EU relations are too modest to boost the economy significantly and should go further. The China audit has been completed but the government is refusing to publish the document, citing security concerns. Critics say ministers are fearful of losing Chinese investment by being too explicit about security concerns.

On climate change, some MPs struggle to see the leadership that was promised. In opposition, Labour promised to "rebuild Britain's reputation on international development". Instead, it has slashed foreign aid to pay for defence spending, something some say has damaged relations with developing countries.

A designed red and white banner image with the title 'education'.

Teacher targets and VAT on fees

Hazel Shearing
Education correspondent@hazelshearing

Key pledges: A drive to recruit 6,500 new teachers in England, and to start charging VAT on private school fees to pay for it, among other things.

Status: The government hasn't met its teacher target, according to the latest official headcount - though that dates from November. VAT has been introduced on private school fees across the UK - and there are concerns about private school pupils leaving the sector as a result.

Analysis: Training teachers takes time. The number of new trainees rose by 6% this academic year, but remained below target.

The latest figures from November show the number of secondary school teachers rose 1,400 in a year, while teachers in special schools and pupil referral units were up by 900. However, primary school and nursery teachers fell by 2,900.

In May, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson specified that the aim was to recruit 6,500 expert teachers "across secondary and special schools". That prompted fury from Conservative shadow education minister Neil O'Brien, who accused the government of "moving the goalposts" by excluding primary school numbers.

Labour said it planned to fund the recruitment drive by adding 20% VAT to private school fees. The Independent Schools Council said private school fees were 22.6% higher on average in January compared with a year ago - £7,382 per term for a day school, up from £6,021.

Figures out last month suggested the number of private school pupils fell by 11,000 in a year. The government said that was "within historical patterns", but private schools say more pupils are leaving than normal. There have been concerns that smaller private schools are being pushed towards closure and about the impact on students with scholarships, for example.

Given the controversy, there will be close scrutiny of whether the money raised will have the desired impact.

For many parents in the state sector, the need for more school staff is pressing. Government proposals to reform the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (Send) system - which has 1.7 million pupils, up 5.6% since last year - are due this autumn and parents will want to know whether staffing will match demand.

A designed red and white banner image with the title 'welfare'.

Reforms and U-turns

Alison Holt
Social affairs editor

Key pledges: Welfare reform to support more people into work and to champion the rights of disabled people, plus a National Care Service that delivers consistent, high-quality support across the country.

Status: There have been significant U-turns on welfare reform and efforts to restrict the number of pensioners receiving the Winter Fuel Payment. An independent commission into reforming adult social care started work in April 2025.

Analysis: When Labour came to power, many of those who work with the most vulnerable in society were hopeful. In conversations, they would tell me that even with the nation's finances tight, surely neglected services and support for older and disabled people would be prioritised?

The government would argue that is exactly what it is doing, but 12 months on, the more printable judgments of the same people would be "disappointment" and "confusion." That disillusionment is rooted in three policies – all in part shaped by saving money.

First, the surprise decision to limit the £300-a-year Winter Fuel Allowance to only pensioners in the greatest need, meant the universal payment was taken away from ten million older people. After pressure from Labour MP's, the government reinstated the allowance for three quarters of pensioners, but the U-turn raised questions about its authority and priorities.

Second came the welfare bill. The aim was to save nearly £5bn a year by 2030 on spiralling benefits costs. It tightened the criteria for Personal Independence Payments (PIP) and Universal Credit - the latter is paid to both working and non-working people on low incomes. Again, pressure from MPs led to another government U-turn and plans were watered down. It has potentially wiped-out long-term Treasury savings, according to some economists, and the whole saga has left many disabled people worried.

Finally, there is disappointment over what the government has not done. Reform of the overstretched, understaffed and financially squeezed adult social care system has effectively been pushed into the long grass. The Casey Commission, the latest review to look at how to fund social care in the long-term, will produce recommendations next year, but its final report is not due until 2028.

There is a financial and human cost to every policy and in the last year the government has discovered how difficult it is to find the right balance.

A designed red and white banner image with the title 'health'.

Waiting lists and structural change

Hugh Pym, Jim Reed
Health editor & health reporter

Key pledges: Cut hospital waiting lists, end 8am scramble for GP appointments, scrap NHS England.

Status: Some modest progress on waiting lists but more work to be done.

Analysis: Health Secretary Wes Streeting shocked many in the health world by saying on day one that the NHS was broken. His aim was to acknowledge what many patients felt - and now he is trying to demonstrate that he can fix it.

Near the top of that list is hospital waiting lists. The government says it has delivered a pledge for two million extra NHS appointments in England in its first year. But as of April, the waiting list for an operation or another planned appointment stood at 7.39 million - which has fallen since the election.

As things stand just under 60% of those patients are seen and treated within 18 weeks, well under the NHS's 92% target. That number has improved by less than a percentage point since Labour took office.

The government has promised to hit that target by March 2029, something doctors and patient groups have warned will be an uphill battle.

Elsewhere, a new contract has been agreed with GPs, with more money for surgeries, a promise to cut red tape and a 5.4% pay rise for resident - formerly known as junior - doctors. Staff are now again balloting for strike action, spelling possible trouble ahead.

Ministers have been eager to show a Labour administration is not afraid to reduce duplication and cut what they claim to be bureaucracy. In the process, NHS England, the administrative body responsible for managing the health service, has been scrapped along with hundreds of other agencies. But there is a risk that NHS managers will be distracted by the reorganisation above improving performance for patients, while reallocating savings to frontline services may not be simple.

And the publication this week of a long-awaited ten-year plan for the NHS may promise a new network of neighbourhood health centres, but how long will it take for them to make a difference?

Health is a devolved power so the Labour government only has responsibility for England, not other parts of the UK.

Congress passes Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' cutting taxes and spending

Watch: First comments from Trump since his megabill passed

The US Congress has passed Donald Trump's sprawling tax and spending bill in a significant and hard-fought victory for the president and his domestic agenda.

After a gruelling session on Capitol Hill, the House of Representatives passed the bill by a vote of 218 to 214 on Thursday afternoon. It was approved in the Senate on Tuesday by one vote.

Trump had given the Republican-controlled Congress a deadline of 4 July to send him a final version of the bill to sign into law.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill could add $3.3tn (£2.4tn) to federal deficits over the next 10 years and leave millions without health coverage - a forecast that the White House disputes.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday evening, Trump said the bill would "turn this country into a rocket ship".

"This is going to be a great bill for the country," he said.

He is expected to sign it into law at a ceremony on the 4 July national holiday at 17:00 EDT (22:00 BST).

A triumphant Republican Speaker Mike Johnson emerged from the House after the vote and told reporters "belief" was key to rallying support within his party.

"I believed in the people that are standing here behind me... Some of them are more fun to deal with," he said. "I mean that with the greatest level of respect."

Among those he had to convince was Representative Chip Roy, a Texas Republican who was a firm "no" just days ago when the Senate passed its version of the bill. He called the Senate version a "travesty", but changed his mind by the time voting had begun.

Watch: Moment Trump's megabill passes final vote in the US House

"I feel like we got to a good result on key things," Roy said, although the House did not make any changes to the Senate bill.

While some Republicans, like Roy, had resisted the Senate version, only two lawmakers from Trump's own party voted "nay" on Thursday: Thomas Massie and Brian Fitzpatrick.

After Johnson announced that the legislation had passed the chamber by four votes, dozens of Republican lawmakers gathered on the House floor chanting "USA! USA!"

The bill's passage on Thursday was delayed by Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who delivered the longest speech in the chamber's history.

His "magic minute" address, which is a custom that allows party leaders to speak for as long as they like, ran for eight hours and 45 minutes.

Jeffries pledged to take his "sweet time on behalf of the American people", decrying the bill's impact on poor Americans.

Watch: The moment Hakeem Jeffries ends record-breaking speech

The legislation makes savings through making cuts to food benefits and health care and rolling back tax breaks for clean energy projects.

It also delivers on two of Trump's major campaign promises - making his 2017 tax cuts permanent and lifting taxes on tips, overtime and Social Security recipients - at a cost of $4.5tn over 10 years.

About $150bn (£110bn) will be spent on border security, detention centres and immigration enforcement officers. Another $150bn is allocated for military expenditures, including the president's "gold dome" missile defence programme.

Democrats, who had used procedural manoeuvres to stall the House vote, were roundly critical of the final bill.

They portrayed it as taking health care and food subsidies away from millions of Americans while giving tax cuts to the rich.

A pair of bar charts compare the estimated increases and savings in US federal spending from Trump's budget bill. The first bar chart shows the cumulative cost increases over 10 years. It highlights tax-cut extensions (worth $4.5tn), defence (worth $150bn) and borders (worth $129bn). The bar representing tax-cut extensions is much longer than any of the bars on the bar chart that shows total savings. This second bar chart highlights Medicaid (worth $930bn in savings), green energy (worth $488bn) and food benefits (worth $287bn)

California's Nancy Pelosi, the former speaker, said "today ushers in a dark and harrowing time", and called the bill a "dangerous checklist of extreme Republican priorities".

North Carolina's Deborah Ross said: "Shame on those who voted to hurt so many in the service of so few."

While Arizona's Yassamin Ansari said she was "feeling really sad right now", while Marc Veasey of Texas labelled the Republican Party the party of "cowards, chaos and corruption".

The fate of the so-called 'big, beautiful bill' hung in the balance for much of Wednesday as Republican rebels with concerns about the impact on national debt held firm - prompting a furious missive from Trump.

"What are the Republicans waiting for??? What are you trying to prove??? MAGA IS NOT HAPPY, AND IT'S COSTING YOU VOTES!!!," he wrote on Truth Social just after midnight local time on Thursday.

Both chambers of Congress are controlled by Trump's Republican Party, but within the party several factions were at odds over key policies in the lengthy legislation.

In the early hours of Thursday, Republican leadership grew more confident, and a procedural vote on the bill passed just after 03:00 EDT (07:00 GMT).

The final vote on the bill would come almost 12 hours later, at 14:30 EDT (19:30 GMT).

Oasis 'sounding huge' as comeback tour launches

Getty Images Oasis pictured in 1994Getty Images
Oasis's second album (What's the Story) Morning Glory? has sold over 22 million copies worldwide, making it one of the most successful records of all time

It's the gig that fans have been waiting 5,795 days for, as Oasis kick off their reunion tour at Cardiff's Principality Stadium on Friday night.

The venue has been hosting soundchecks and rehearsals all week, with passersby treated to snatches of songs such as Cigarettes & Alcohol, Wonderwall and Champagne Supernnova.

"It's sounding huge," Noel Gallagher told talkSPORT radio. "This is it, there's no going back now."

The Oasis Live '25 tour was the biggest concert launch ever seen in the UK and Ireland, with more than 10 million fans from 158 countries queuing to buy tickets last summer.

An info graphic showing Oasis plan to play 41 shows, and have sold 1.38 million tickets

Around 900,000 tickets were sold, but many fans complained when standard standing tickets advertised at £135 plus fees were re-labelled "in demand" and changed on Ticketmaster to £355 plus fees.

The sale prompted an investigation from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which said Ticketmaster may have breached consumer protection law by selling "platinum" tickets for almost 2.5 times the standard price, without explaining they came with no additional benefits.

The CMA ordered Ticketmaster to change the way it labels tickets and reveals prices to fans in the future. Ticketmaster said it "welcomed" the advice.

Still, the debacle has done nothing to dampen the excitement in Cardiff, where fans have arrived from Spain, Peru, Japan, America and elsewhere for the opening night.

"For me, Oasis represents an overwhelming optimism about being young and loving music," says Jeff Gachini, a fan from Kenya who's making his first visit to the UK for the show.

"To write simple music that relays the simple truth of life is very difficult. For me, they do that better than anyone."

Kenyan Oasis fans Jeff Gachini
Kenyan fan Jeff Gachini is among the lucky 74,000 fans who got tickets for the opening night
PA Media Fans pose with a mural of Liam and Noel Gallagher in Cardiff city centrePA Media
A mural of Liam and Noel, made entirely of bucket hats, has been unveiled in Cardiff's city centre

Brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher will be joined on stage by Gem Archer, Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs and Andy Bell, all former members of Oasis, alongside drummer Joey Waronker, who has previously recorded with Beck and REM; and toured with Liam.

The band will also be augmented by a brass section, and backing singer Jess Greenfield, who is part of Noel's side project the High Flying Birds.

Meanwhile, rumours about the setlist have been swirling all week, as Oasis songs echoed around the Principality Stadium.

One purported running order that was leaked to Reddit suggested the band would open with Hello and finish with Champagne Supernova, with other highlights including Acquiesece, Roll With It, Live Forever and Supersonic.

Noel is also expected to take lead vocals twice during the show, on short sets including songs such as Half The World Away and The Masterplan.

Britain's biggest band

Oasis were the biggest band in Britain from 1994 to 1997, selling tens of millions of copies of their first three albums Definitely Maybe, (What's The Story) Morning Glory and Be Here Now.

Liam's sneering vocals and Noel's distorted guitars brought a rock and roll swagger back to the charts, revitalising British guitar music after an influx of self-serious Seattle grunge.

Born and raised in Manchester, they formed the band to escape the dead-end mundanity of their working class backgrounds.

"In Manchester you either became a musician, a footballer, a drugs dealer or work in a factory. And there aren't a lot of factories left, you know?" Noel Gallagher once said.

"We didn't start in university or anything like this. We're not a collection of friends that kind of come together and discuss things musically.

"We started the group... because we were all on the dole and we were unemployed and we rehearsed and we thought we were pretty good."

Reuters Oasis' line-up in 1999Reuters
The 2025 line-up includes Gem Archer (far left) and Andy Bell (third from left), who originally joined the band in 1999 after founder members Guigsy and Bonehead left

Oasis was originally Liam's band, performing under the name The Rain. But after watching them live, Noel offered to join – on the condition that he became chief songwriter and de facto leader.

That fait accompli brought them worldwide fame, culminating in two open-air gigs at Knebworth House in summer 1996.

Nearly five per cent of the UK population applied for tickets, with a then-record 125,000 people watching the band top a line-up that also included The Prodigy, Manic Street Preachers, Ocean Colour Scene, The Chemical Brothers, The Charlatans and a Beatles tribute.

But festering tension between the Gallagher brothers often spilled over into verbal and physical violence.

Backstage at a gig in Barcelona in 2000, for example, Noel attacked Liam after he questioned the legitimacy of his eldest daughter. The guitarist walked out for the rest of the European tour, leaving the band to continue with a stand-in.

Although they repaired the relationship, the insults and in-fighting continued until 28 August, 2009, when Oasis split up minutes before they took the stage at the Rock en Seine festival in Paris.

"People will write and say what they like, but I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer," Noel wrote in a statement at the time.

He would later recount a backstage argument in which his younger brother grabbed his guitar and started "wielding it like an axe", adding, "he nearly took my face off with it".

PA Media OasisPA Media
The band's biggest hits include Wonderwall, Don't Look Back In Anger and Live Forever

Since then, they've pursued successful solo careers, while constantly fielding questions about an Oasis reunion.

Liam called the idea "inevitable" in 2020, and said the band should reform to support NHS workers during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, he said his brother had spurned the idea, despite a lucrative offer from promoters.

"There was a lot of money knocking about," he told ITV's Jonathan Ross Show. "It was £100 million to do a tour.

"But [Noel] isn't into it. He's after a knighthood, isn't he?"

The reconciliation took another five years and, with neither of the Gallaghers consenting to an interview, it's hard to know what informed their decision to get back together.

Tabloid newspapers suggested that Noel's divorce from Sara McDonald in 2022 led to a thaw in relations. Others have suggested the brothers simply wanted the Oasis story to have a more satisfactory conclusion than a dressing room bust-up.

"I've heard everything is honky dory and they're getting on great," says Tim Abbott, former managing director of Oasis's record label, Creation.

"I've worked with bands in the past that had separate limos, separate walkways onto the stage. I don't think they'll get to that. They're grown men."

Getty Images Liam Gallagher sticks his tongue out during an Oasis show in San Francisco, 1997Getty Images
According to analysis by Birmingham City University, the Oasis tour could bring in £400 million in tickets sales and merchandise.

Whatever sparked the reunion, the sold-out tour will see the band play 41 shows between July and November, spanning the UK & Ireland, North America, Oceania and South America.

"Probably the biggest and most pleasing surprise of the reunion announcement is how huge it was internationally," said Oasis's co-manager Alec McKinlay in an interview with Music Week.

"Honestly, we knew it would be big here, and that doesn't take much intuition. But looking outside the UK, we knew they had a strong fanbase, we did all the stats.

"We were quite cautious about what that would mean when it came to people actually buying tickets but we were just bowled over by how huge it was."

McKinlay added that the band had no plans for new music, and described the tour as their "last time around".

They take to the stage for the first time in 16 years at 20:15 UK time on Friday night.

Shunning the usual rock and roll trappings, Noel Gallagher was spotted arriving for the show by train.

Home Office unaware if foreign workers leave after visas end, MPs say

Getty Images UK Border signGetty Images

The Home Office does not know whether foreign workers are leaving the UK or staying to work illegally after their visas expire, a cross-party committee of MPs has said.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which scrutinises government spending, said the Home Office had failed to analyse exit checks since the skilled worker visa route was introduced in 2020 under the Conservatives.

Some 1.18 million people have applied to come to the UK via this route between its launch in December 2020 and the end of 2024.

The Home Office said earlier this year that it was working to modernise border security and boost digital checks. The BBC has approached the Home Office for comment on the report.

The skilled worker visa route replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa after the UK left the European Union.

The route was expanded in 2022 by the previous Conservative government to address skill shortages and job vacancies in health and social care in the wake of the Covid pandemic, driving net migration to record levels.

But the PAC has accused the Home Office of failing to gather "basic information" on whether people leave the UK after their visas expire and showing "little curiosity about how the route was operating".

Its report said the department still relied on airline passenger records to check if someone had left the country and that there had been no analysis of those records since 2020.

It added that the Home Office needed to set out what measures would be put in place to record when people had left the country.

The report also said there was "widespread evidence of workers suffering debt bondage, working excessive hours and exploitative conditions" and accused the department of being "slow and ineffective" to tackle exploitation.

In May, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the government would end overseas recruitment for care workers as part of the plans to curb near record net migration.

Home Office Permanent Secretary Dame Antonia Romeo has also said overstaying is a "problem" the department was "fixing".

Gaza aid contractor tells BBC he saw colleagues fire on hungry Palestinians

SUPPLIED View from inside a GHF aid distribution centreSUPPLIED
The contractor shared footage from inside a GHF site with the BBC

A former security contractor for Gaza's controversial new Israel- and US-backed aid distribution sites has told the BBC that he witnessed colleagues opening fire several times on hungry Palestinians who had posed no threat, including with machine guns.

On one occasion, he said, a guard had opened fire from a watchtower with a machine gun because a group of women, children and elderly people was moving too slowly away from the site.

When asked to respond the GHF said the allegations were categorically false.

They referred us to a statement saying that no civilians ever came under fire at the GHF distribution sites.

The GHF began its operations in Gaza at the end of May, distributing limited aid from several sites in southern and central Gaza. That followed an 11-week total blockade of Gaza by Israel during which no food entered the territory.

The system has been widely criticised for forcing vast numbers of people to walk through active combat zones to a handful of sites. Since the GHF started up, Israeli forces have killed more than 400 Palestinians trying to retrieve food aid from its sites, the UN and local doctors say. Israel says the new distribution system stops aid going to Hamas.

Continuing his description of the incident at one of the GHF sites - in which he said guards fired on a group of Palestinians - the former contractor said: "As that happened, another contractor on location, standing on the berm overlooking the exit, opened up with 15 to 20 shots of repetitive weapons fire at the crowd.

"A Palestinian man dropped to the ground motionless. And then the other contractor who was standing there was like, 'damn, I think you got one'. And then they laughed about it."

The contractor, who spoke to us on condition of anonymity, said GHF managers had brushed off his report as a coincidence, suggesting that the Palestinian man could have "tripped" or been "tired and passed out".

The GHF claimed the former contractor who made these allegations is a "disgruntled former contractor" who they had terminated for misconduct, which he denies. He showed us payslips suggesting that he continued to be paid for two weeks after leaving the post.

SUPPLIED a congested queue of people in a fenced in corridor near a GHF site in GazaSUPPLIED
Supplied footage showed long queues of aid seekers in a fenced corridor

The man we spoke to, who said he had worked at all four of the GHF distribution sites, described a culture of impunity with few rules or controls.

He said contractors were given no clear rules of engagement or standard operating procedures, and were told by one team leader: "if you feel threatened, shoot – shoot to kill and ask questions later".

The culture in the company, he said, felt like "we're going into Gaza so it's no rules. Do what you want."

"If a Palestinian is walking away from the site and not demonstrating any hostile intent, and we're shooting warning shots at them regardless, we are wrong, we are criminally negligent," he told me.

He told us that each site had site CCTV monitoring activity there, and GHF insistence that no one there had been hurt or shot at was "an absolute bare-faced lie".

GHF said that gunfire heard in footage shared with the BBC was coming from Israeli forces.

Team leaders referred to Gazans as "zombie hordes", the contractor told me, "insinuating that these people have no value."

The former contractor also said Palestinians were coming to harm in other ways at GHF sites, for example by being hit by debris from stun grenades, being sprayed with mace or being pushed by the crowds into razor wire.

He said he himself had witnessed several occasions in which Palestinians appeared to have been seriously hurt, including one man who had a full can of pepper spray in his face, and a woman who he says was hit with the metal part of a stun grenade, improperly fired into a crowd.

"This metal piece hit her directly in the head and she dropped to the ground, not moving," he said. "I don't know if she was dead. I know for a fact she was unconscious and completely limp."

Reuters  Palestinians gather to collect what remains of relief supplies from the distribution center of the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. Empty cardboard boxes litter the arid ground. Reuters
The GHF operation has been criticised for forcing people to walk through active combat zones

Earlier this week more than 170 charities and other NGOs called for the GHF to be shut down. The organisations, including Oxfam and Save the Children, say Israeli forces and armed groups "routinely" open fire on Palestinians seeking aid.

Israel denies its soldiers deliberately shoot at aid recipients and says the GHF's system provides direct assistance to people who need it, bypassing Hamas interference.

The GHF says it had delivered more than 52 million meals in five weeks and that other organisations "stand by helplessly as their aid is looted".

The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 57,130 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

Additional reporting by Gidi Kleiman and Samantha Granville

The sale of illegal cigarettes signals a deeper problem with UK high streets

BBC A treated image of a collection of red, opened cigarette boxesBBC

It's pitch black and we're crawling along a secret underground tunnel beneath a high street in Hull. We pass rotting beams propped up precariously by stacked breeze blocks. A rusty car jack is helping prevent the shop floor above from falling in.

Through the rubble, we follow a Trading Standards Officer, his torch swinging back and forth in the darkness until it rests on a hidden stash of thousands of illegal cigarettes.

This is just one such surreal experience while investigating the sale of illegal cigarettes in Hull. In one week we repeatedly witnessed counterfeit and smuggled tobacco being sold in high street mini marts - and were threatened by shop workers who grabbed our cameras when we tried to film them.

This is now a familiar story being repeated across Britain. In April, the National Crime Agency (NCA) raided hundreds of high street businesses, many suspected of being supplied by international crime gangs. Trading Standards teams have also found a thriving trade in illicit tobacco.

BBC/Phillip Edwards An officer bring out illegal packets of cigarettes from a hole in the floor following a raid on a corner shopBBC/Phillip Edwards
Beneath the floor of a shop in Hull, a secret tunnel hides illegal cigarettes

One leading criminology expert called the networks behind the supply of illegal cigarettes the "golden thread for understanding serious organised crime", because of its links to people trafficking and, in some cases, illegal immigration.

So, in some ways, these high street shop fronts connect the various domestic problems facing Britain today.

Political researchers claim it's also damaging trust in police and the government - and turning our high streets into symbols of national decline.

'We're losing the war'

Alan, a former detective and now a Trading Standards officer, searches for counterfeit and smuggled cigarettes sold under the counter in mini marts, barber shops and takeaways around Hull, which he says have spread across the city at an alarming rate.

Under the floorboards of a mini mart called Ezee Shop, a network of these secret tunnels hide contraband stock. As battered suitcases and black sacks stuffed full of cigarettes are heaved up through the makeshift trap door, a man who we're told helps out in the shop watches on laughing.

"It's not something dangerous, it's only cigarettes," he says. "Everywhere has it; barber shops, takeaways." Some shops, he adds, are selling drugs including crack cocaine.

Alan estimates that there are about £20,000 worth of illegal cigarettes in this haul, a tiny proportion of a crime that HMRC says costs the country at least £2.2 billion in lost revenue.

Today's raid won't change what's happening on Hull's high streets, he says. He has been to some shops at least 20 times and he estimates that there are some 80 shops selling illegal cigarettes in the city.

"We're losing the war," he says.

BBC/Phillip Edwards Ed Thomas speaks to a corner shop assistant BBC/Phillip Edwards
The BBC visited 12 shops in Hull. Here, correspondent Ed Thomas speaks to a shop assistant

He has been with Trading Standards for many years but didn't want to be fully identified because he's worried about the organised crime gangs often supplying these shops.

It's not long before someone claiming to be Ezee Shop's owner turns up. Alan says he is a Kurd from Iran. He is furious with us filming his illicit stock being taken away.

Dead flies and asbestos in cigarettes

Some of the illegal cigarettes sold across Britain are made in this country. Others are produced cheaply in countries like Poland or Belgium. Some are designed to imitate established brands. Illegal cigarettes are sold without the necessary taxes and duties, and many do not conform to safety standards.

Previously the Local Government Association warned that some black market cigarettes contained "human excrement, dead flies and asbestos".

We went undercover, visiting 12 shops in Hull, some multiple times, to try and buy these cheap cigarettes, and secretly filmed the responses.

The windows of many of these shops are covered with large pictures of fizzy drinks, sweets and vapes, obscuring what's going on inside.

Nine sold us illegal cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco. Two told us where we could buy cheap packs. We were openly offered a selection of brands with packets costing between £3 and £7 - instead of the average UK price of about £16.

BBC/Phillip Edwards illegal packs of cigarettesBBC/Phillip Edwards
The cigarettes packets often look real - some of them imitate real brands

None of the businesses we bought illegal cigarettes from in Hull responded to our request for a comment. But this is not only a Hull problem.

Data shared with the BBC from investigators working for an international tobacco company say that last year they identified more than 600 shops selling illegal packets, with several cities including Bradford, Coventry and Nottingham flagged as hotspots. The BBC is unable to verify these figures.

In Bradford alone, they say they found 49 stores selling fake products in just two days. In the end, they had to stop the test purchases because they didn't have enough test bags to put the items in.

Are fines and penalties too low?

All of this is a growing problem - but it is also one with specific causes: profits, a lack of resources to enforce the law, a complex criminal supply network and in some cases organised immigration crime.

Professor Georgios Antonopoulos, criminologist at Northumbria University Newcastle, believes money is at the heart of it. "Legal tobacco products in the UK are subject to some of the highest excise taxes in the world," he says.

Illegal cigarettes are sometimes sold for as little as £3 to £5 per pack - compelling for some customers during a cost of living crisis.

PA Media A man smoking a cigarettePA Media
Illegal cigarettes are sometimes sold for as little as £3 to £5 per pack

In some cases, the financial penalties issued to criminals may be much lower than the profits they can make.

In the case of Ezee Shop in Hull, the shop owner had been convicted for selling illegal cigarettes in the past and was fined £80, plus costs and a £34 victim surcharge.

Tougher rules introduced in 2023 mean those convicted now can face higher fines of up to £10,000 - but this may still be lower than the value of the stash.

After the raid, we went back to the shop, covertly. Within a few hours it had reopened, restocked - and was selling illegal cigarettes once again.

Struggles with law enforcement

Leading criminologists tell the BBC that UK authorities are struggling to deal with the problem.

Prof Antonopoulos says teams are "chronically underfunded". He claims that police prioritise violent crimes and drug trafficking - "which is understandable," he adds.

Some Trading Standards officers are frustrated with the powers available to them. "The general public don't understand why they can't be closed down," Alan says.

They can use anti-social behaviour legislation to close shops for up to three months - but it can require statements from other businesses and members of the public.

We were told that after some shops shut down, the criminals simply reopen nearby. Alan wants a 'three strikes and you're out' policy to permanently close law-breaking businesses.

EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock A packet of cigarettesEPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
Last year, the government pledged £100 million over five years to help HMRC and Border Force crack down on the illegal trade

Last year, the previous government provided £100 million across five years to support HMRC and Border Force to tackle the illicit tobacco trade. But since then, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute warned that some broader forms of organised crime - including scammers and rogue traders - could effectively become decriminalised, due to a lack of funding.

As for the suppliers, HMRC says there are so many organised crime groups operating across borders that it is hard to limit the flow of goods into the UK.

In May, Hungarian authorities raided a factory where they found warehouses full of fake cigarettes. And there's even production in Ukraine, according to legitimate tobacco firms, with authorities there stretched because of the war.

Chinese triads have a 'vast business'

There is also a "significant production" of illicit tobacco here in the UK, says Prof Antonopoulos.

A Trading Standards team in south Wales told us that counterfeit hand-rolling tobacco is often sold cheaply. They claimed that some of it was made using forced labour, controlled by Chinese gangs.

Dave McKelvey, managing director of TM Eye private investigators, which works with tobacco firms to gather evidence on the illicit trade, claims that Fujian-based Chinese triads operate a "vast business" here in the UK.

And trying to track down the people in charge of these criminal enterprises is a challenge.

Trading Standards told the BBC that those named as the company director often have no real involvement in the company. Instead, they may be paid a small sum each month to be listed as the director on official documents.

Later this year, Companies House will receive new powers to better identify business owners.

Employing illegal workers

Authorities are trying to clean up British high streets. Just this year, we joined dozens of raids led by the NCA in barber shops and mini marts, in a month-long operation.

But the former senior detectives who worked with the BBC's undercover team said they need more time to fully expose the organised crime supplying some of the shop fronts.

Throughout our time with Trading Standards in Hull and in the dozens of raids we've been on with police in Shrewsbury and across Greater Manchester, officers claimed that tobacco operations are often staffed by Kurds from Iran and Iraq. Some may not have had the right to work.

PA Media Shoppers on Oxford Street, LondonPA Media
People care deeply about the quality of their local high street, political scientists say

In Hull, Alan believes that some people working in the shops he visits may be recruited from asylum seeker hotels. "They're expendable, if they get caught they just replace them with another.

Rochdale Trading Standards has made similar observations.

Criminology professor Emmeline Taylor argues that these criminal supply chains behind the supply of illegal tobacco are linked to other forms of crime - and the damage can't be underestimated.

"They're not just dealing in tobacco," she says. "It's firearms, it's drugs, it's people trafficking, it's illegal immigration."

The Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, told us it is a "total disgrace" that "criminal gangs are trying to abuse our high streets by using shops as a front for organised crime".

She also accused gangs of "undermining our border and immigration systems by employing illegal workers".

Pockets of criminality on high streets

Of course, there have long been pockets of criminality on the UK high street. But now experts tell us that this illicit trade is harming people's trust in authority - and, at a basic level, their sense of fairness.

"If you're a law abiding business following the rules, you're jeopardising your own livelihood and the viability of your own business," argues Prof Taylor. "And to me that's not fair that someone can succeed by not playing by the rules."

Josh Nicholson, a researcher at the Centre for Social Justice, believes that perceptions of crime are worse than ever. "From research we have done there is a feeling of powerlessness, a lack of respect for authority like the police," he says.

"Are the police... seen to be tackling low level offences? When they don't see it tackled, people's perception is that things are getting a lot worse."

And people tend to trust the government less when they think access to good shops has declined in their area, says Will Jennings, a political science professor at the University of Southampton, based on studies he has done.

Nick Plumb, a director at the Power to Change charity, says his research shows that declining high streets boosts support for parties that were once considered outside of the political mainstream.

"Reform UK, for example, is doing better in places with declining high streets when compared to the rest of England," he says. "There's a sense that … mainstream politics, local authorities have all tried to tackle this issue, and [residents] haven't seen any change. It's that sense of 'the status quo hasn't solved these things, and therefore we want to try something new'."

Ultimately, what people see in the places they call home matters.

"People find a sense of local identity in the quality of the streets where they've grown up," adds Mr Nicholson.

"When the quality ... dramatically declines, and they feel they can't even go there - what that does to a sense of community is unquantifiable."

Additional reporting by Phillip Edwards.

Top Image credit: Javier Zayas Photography/ Getty Images

BBC InDepth is the home on the website and app for the best analysis, with fresh perspectives that challenge assumptions and deep reporting on the biggest issues of the day. And we showcase thought-provoking content from across BBC Sounds and iPlayer too. You can send us your feedback on the InDepth section by clicking on the button below.

Zarah Sultana says she is quitting Labour to start party with Corbyn

BBC BreakingBBC

Suspended Labour MP Zarah Sultana has announced she is starting a new party with former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Sultana, stripped of the Labour whip last year for backing a move to scrap the two-child benefit cap, said she was also resigning from the party after 14 years of membership.

The MP for Coventry South said the new party would be formed with other independent MPs, campaigners and activists, aiming to challenge a "broken" Westminster system.

Corbyn has been contacted but has not confirmed his involvement to the BBC.

However last night, he had hinted he may form a new party, telling ITV's Peston "there is a thirst for an alternative" and that a "grouping will come together".

In a social media post, Sultana said the government is "an active participant in genocide" in Gaza - and highlighted growing poverty, the government's position on welfare, and the cost of living as reasons for establishing her new party.

"Labour has completely failed to improve people's lives. And across the political establishment, from Farage to Starmer, they smear people of conscience trying to stop a genocide in Gaza as terrorists.

"But the truth is clear: this government is an active participant in genocide. And the British people oppose it."

Israel has strenuously denied accusations it is committing genocide or genocidal acts in Gaza.

Sultana added: "The government wants to make disabled people suffer; they just can't decide how much".

"We're not an island of strangers," she says, referencing a speech given by the prime minister in May about immigration, which he has since said he regrets. And she says at the next election, "the choice will be stark: socialism or barbarism".

The Labour Party has been approached for comment.

Thin, red banner promoting the Politics Essential newsletter with text saying, “Top political analysis in your inbox every day”. There is also an image of the Houses of Parliament.

Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to keep up with the inner workings of Westminster and beyond.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X to get the latest alerts.

Death of Liverpool forward Jota leaves football world in shock

Death of Liverpool forward Jota leaves football world in shock

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

This video can not be played

Media caption,

Watch Diogo Jota's best career moments

  • Published

The death of Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota in a car crash aged 28 has left the football world in shock.

Jota and his brother, Andre Silva, both died after the Lamborghini they were travelling in crashed in the Spanish province of Zamora.

BBC Sport has been told the 28-year-old was on his way to return to Liverpool for pre-season training by ferry because he had undergone minor surgery so doctors advised him against flying.

Jota married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso, with whom he had three children, just 11 days ago.

Liverpool said his death is a "tragedy that transcends" the club, while fans gathered outside Anfield to lay tributes.

Reds manager Arne Slot said Jota was "the essence of what a Liverpool player should be".

BBC Sport understands a wake for Jota and his brother will take place on Friday afternoon before their funeral on Saturday in Porto, Portugal.

What happened?

Map showing the province of Zamora, in Spain, the highway A-52 and the town of Cernadilla, where Diogo Jota’s car crashed
Image caption,

Map showing the province of Zamora, in Spain, the highway A-52 and the town of Cernadilla, where Diogo Jota's car crashed

Jota and 25-year-old Silva, also a professional footballer for Portuguese second-tier club Penafiel, were killed after their car left the road because of a tyre blowout that occurred while overtaking another vehicle.

The Guardia Civil told BBC Sport both men died at about 00:30 local time on Thursday.

With Jota intending to return to Liverpool by boat, this is understood to mean he was travelling by car from Porto to take a ferry from Santander in northern Spain.

There are ferry routes from Santander to Plymouth and Portsmouth in the south of England.

Zamora, close to the Portuguese border, is about 190 miles from Porto and a similar distance from the port.

It is understood Jota had also travelled by road and sea to get to Porto for his wedding.

Liverpool and Ronaldo lead tributes

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

This video can not be played

Media caption,

Some Diogo Jota's best Premier League goals

Liverpool led the tributes to Jota, saying the club was "devastated" by such an "unimaginable loss".

He scored 65 goals in 182 appearances for Liverpool, helping them win the FA Cup and League Cup in 2022 and the Premier League title last season.

The club put out further statements later on Thursday, with boss Slot paying tribute to a player who had become "a loved one to all" at the club.

The Dutchman added: "Someone who made others feel good about themselves just by being with them. A person who cared deeply for his family."

Slot said he last spoke to Jota to congratulate him on Portugal winning the Nations League and wish him luck for his wedding.

"In many ways, it was a dream summer for Diogo and his family, which makes it all the more heartbreaking that it should end like this," he added.

Slot said Liverpool and their supporters are "all with" Jota's family and the "the same can be said of the wider family of football".

A statement from the the club's owners and leadership group, Billy Hogan, John Henry, Tom Werner and Mike Gordon, said they have been left "numb with grief" as they offered condolences to Jota's family.

They added: "Beyond the player that we all knew was a wonderfully humble human being, he was sincere, intelligent, funny, tough and created connections with people everywhere he went. He had a zest for life that was utterly contagious."

Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes and Fenway Sports Group chief executive of football Michael Edwards said in statement: "This is a tragedy that transcends Liverpool football club."

They added the club will look to honour Jota with the "respect and affection" he deserves in the coming days, but for now "express a love that is filled with deep sorrow and pain" after losing someone "truly irreplaceable".

Jota had previously played for Pacos de Ferreira, Atletico Madrid, Porto and Wolves - for whom he netted 44 goals in 131 games - before joining Liverpool in 2020.

His final match was for Portugal in their Uefa Nations League final win against Spain. He scored 14 goals in 49 internationals.

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo wrote on social media: "It doesn't make sense. Just now we were together in the national team, you had just got married."

Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldo sent his condolences to Jota's family, wife and children, and added: "I know you will always be with them. Rest in Peace, Diogo e Andre. We will miss you."

Jurgen Klopp, the former Liverpool manager who signed Jota for the Reds, said he was "heartbroken".

"Diogo was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father," the German coach posted on Instagram.

"We will miss you so much."

Fans gather at Anfield

Tributes left by fans at AnfieldImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Tributes left by fans at Anfield

Thousands of football fans gathered at Liverpool's home ground Anfield on Thursday to pay their respects.

They laid tributes at the club's Hillsborough disaster memorial, with a sea of flowers, football shirts, scarves, balloons and flags outside the stadium.

Lifelong fan John Barlow from Leyland in Lancashire, a survivor of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, said he was "absolutely devastated" when the news broke and had to stop what he was doing at work to travel to Anfield.

Jota was a fan favourite, respected as a tenacious player on the pitch but also known to supporters as a laid-back and outgoing character off the pitch.

"The success that he has helped bring to this city will never be forgotten", said Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region.

Liverpool have opened physical and digital books of condolence and supporters and members of the public can sign the physical book at Anfield , externalfrom Thursday until Sunday.

MI5 false evidence was a serious failing, Cooper says

Reuters Home Secretary Yvette Cooper delivers a speech in the House of CommonsReuters

The home secretary has said MI5 giving false evidence to multiple courts was a "serious failing", as she accepted a further investigation should take place.

Yvette Cooper, who is responsible for the security service, made a written statement to Parliament a day after the High Court ruled MI5's explanations for its false evidence were deficient and unreliable.

She said the government accepted the High Court's conclusion that a "further, robust and independent investigation" should take place.

A panel of three senior judges, including the Lady Chief Justice Baroness Sue Carr, on Wednesday rejected two official inquiries into the false evidence.

One inquiry was commissioned by Cooper and the other was carried out internally by MI5.

The two reviews took place after the BBC revealed MI5 had lied to three courts in a case concerning a neo-Nazi state agent who abused women. The flawed reviews cleared MI5 of deliberate wrongdoing.

Wednesday's High Court judgement said the new investigation should be carried out under the auspices of the Investigatory Powers Commissioner, Sir Brian Leveson, who has oversight of MI5's surveillance activities. His office, IPCO, was also provided with false evidence by MI5 in the case.

The Home Office has refused to answer questions about the position of MI5's third-in-command, the director general strategy, whose witness evidence was found by the High Court to have been neither fair or accurate and to have omitted critical information, which had to be forced out of MI5 by the court.

Cooper did not mention the senior spy in her statement.

She said she remained "deeply concerned" about what happened, and that "internal processes at MI5 must improve, starting with the implementation of all recommendations made so far in relation to this case".

She added that she has asked the Attorney General, Lord Hermer, to conduct an internal review of how "evidence from MI5 should be prepared and presented in future".

"I have asked my officials to review the wider issues raised by this case," she added.

PA Media Ken McCallum, Director General of MI5, stands against a blue backdrop with the MI5 logo onPA Media

The case began in 2022 with an attempt to block the BBC from publishing a story about a neo-Nazi agent known as Agent X. He used his role to coerce and terrify his former girlfriend - known publicly as "Beth" - and had attacked her with a machete.

MI5 gave evidence to three courts, saying that it had never breached its core secrecy policy of neither confirming nor denying (NCND) that X was a state agent.

But in February, the BBC was able to prove with notes and recordings of phone calls with MI5 that this was false.

When we first exposed the abuse by Agent X in 2022, Cooper – then shadow home secretary – said in a BBC interview that the report "showed very disturbing images of abuse, and domestic abuse is a horrible crime".

"I think, given the seriousness of this, the home secretary needs to make sure there is an independent assessment of the handling of this case," she added.

In a statement to Parliament on Thursday, she said she was "unable to comment" on a case against MI5 brought by Beth, involving "accusations that Agent X committed acts of domestic abuse against their partner".

But she added that the government was "clear that all organisations must have robust safeguarding policies under continuous review and must take any allegation of domestic abuse extremely seriously".

'One of toughest losses' - Draper exits Wimbledon early again

'One of toughest losses' - Draper exits Wimbledon early again

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

This video can not be played

Media caption,

Cilic 'took all of Draper's weapons away' - Woodbridge analysis

British number one Jack Draper's wait for a breakout Wimbledon run continues after a shock second-round defeat by 36-year-old Marin Cilic.

Fourth seed Draper lost 6-4 6-3 1-6 6-4 to Croatia's Cilic, who reached the SW19 final in 2017 but is now ranked 83rd in the world.

It means the 23-year-old Englishman has still not reached the third round in any of his four appearances at the All England Club.

Draper was widely considered as the fourth favourite for the men's title - behind Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.

But, in the first Championships of the post-Andy Murray era, Draper has suffered another frustrating early exit.

"Obviously, [I feel] really upset. Probably one of the toughest losses I feel," an emotional Draper told a news conference.

"I thought Cilic played an incredible match from start to finish. [He] didn't let up. He deserved the win."

The US Open semi-finalist was pushed back behind the baseline from the start against Cilic, who dominated the opening two sets with his huge serve and deep returns.

Draper was now in a position which he had never been in before - needing to win a professional match from two sets down.

A drop in Cilic's pace enabled the home favourite to take control of the third set, but Draper still did not look completely comfortable in the fourth as his wily opponent recovered to edge a tense contest.

Heavily puffing his cheeks out as he left Court One was a sign of the difficulties he had endured on a testing evening from which he will hope to learn.

How Draper was stunned by clinical Cilic

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

This video can not be played

Media caption,

'The older man making new memories' - Draper falls to veteran Cilic

Coming into his home Grand Slam tournament, Draper insisted he could handle the increased scrutiny of being the nation's greatest hope.

When Draper regained his place as the world number four following a run to the Queen's semi-finals, it was a significant moment.

As fourth seed at Wimbledon, it meant he was guaranteed to avoid world number one Sinner or two-time defending champion Alcaraz – the heavy favourites for the title - until at least the semi-finals.

Draper, however, was quick to urge caution about placing too much importance on the seeding until the draw was made - and he was right.

The Briton encountered few problems in his opening match on Tuesday, dominating clay-court specialist Sebastian Baez in a two-set lead before the Argentine retired injured.

But the looming figure of Cilic was always likely to be more problematic.

Draper had the racquet taken out of his hand in the opening two sets as Cilic executed his gameplan perfectly.

Marin Cilic points to his team during his Wimbledon win over Jack DraperImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Cilic's heavy-hitting game led to 53 winners against Draper

Playing with depth from the baseline to push Draper back, particularly putting scrutiny on his opponent's backhand, worked a treat.

Draper was unable to get into position to execute his forehand and, although finding his first serve helped survive three break points at 4-3 down, he finally lost serve at the end of the opening set.

With the clouds gathering overhead, and the atmosphere becoming gloomier, Draper lost serve again early and it proved to be the decisive break in the second set.

Draper is still waiting for his Murray moment at Wimbledon – the one where he achieves the impossible at the All England Club and causes waves across the nation during a primetime summer slot.

Murray-mania exploded when the Scot fought back from two sets down against Richard Gasquet in 2008.

If Draper had turned things around against Cilic, it could have been a similar type of moment for him.

There was a brief glimmer of hope as Draper was able to use his forehand to greater effect in the third set, but any hopes of a memorable comeback were extinguished when he was broken again while serving to stay in the match.

'Incredible' emotions for Cilic after injury ordeal

When Cilic's name appeared in Draper's section in the Wimbledon draw, it felt like a potential problem for the Briton.

The 6ft 6in Croat claimed his sole Grand Slam title at the 2014 US Open, but has dropped down the rankings after a serious knee injury two years ago.

A second operation in May last year could have spelt the end of Cilic's career.

But he has showed great perseverance to return to the sport and, while many veteran players would have perhaps been ready to quit, he dropped down to the second-tier ATP Challenger to rebuild.

Winning the Nottingham title last month was a sign that the former world number three could still perform well on the grass.

Few people, however, would have expected him to beat Draper.

"My emotions are just incredible. Where I was two years ago, I can't even describe. It has been a long journey," Cilic said.

"It was a long and testing period, plus a huge challenge for me in this part of my career to come back and play at this level."

Related topics

Reservoir Dogs actor Michael Madsen dies aged 67

Getty Images Michael MadsenGetty Images

Hollywood actor Michael Madsen died in his California home on Thursday morning, US media reported. He was 67.

He was found unresponsive by authorities responding to a 911 call at his Malibu home and pronounced dead at 08:25 local time (BST), according to The Hollywood Reporter.

He is believed to have died of cardiac arrest, according to a representative.

Madsen was a prolific actor, best known for his roles in Quentin Tarantino movies Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill: Vol. 2, The Hateful Eight and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

In one of the seminal movies of the 1990s, Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs, Madsen played psychotic thief Mr Blonde, who shocked audiences in a scene where he cut off a policeman's ear.

During a career spanning four decades, Madsen also took on a number of tv roles.

In both tv and film, he often portrayed the law enforcers like sheriffs and detectives, as well as the law breakers, such as a washed-out hitman in the Kill Bill franchise.

In recent years, he lent his voices to video games, including Grand Theft Auto III and the Dishonored series.

I had a tough day, says Rachel Reeves after Commons tears

BBC Keir Starmer hugs Rachel Reeves, as NHS staff look on and applaudBBC

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has made a surprise appearance alongside Sir Keir Starmer, one day after she was seen crying at Prime Minister's Questions.

Helping to unveil the government's 10-year plan for the NHS, she was smiling and embraced the prime minister as they jointly set out the government's 10-year plan for the NHS.

The pound plummeted and government borrowing costs rose after the incident in Parliament on Wednesday, when Sir Keir initially failed to guarantee that Reeves would keep her job.

The fall was partially reversed after Sir Keir insisted he was "in lockstep" with his chancellor, who he said would be in her job "for a very long time to come".

In a bid to put on a united front, the chancellor joined Sir Keir and Health Secretary Wes Streeting at a hospital in East London to launch plans for new neighbourhood health centres.

She gave a short speech but made no reference to her tears in Parliament and did not take questions from journalists.

Sir Keir praised his chancellor, telling the audience that decisions made by Reeves had allowed the government to "invest record amounts in the NHS".

Asked if he had been aware that his chancellor had been crying next to him in the House of Commons, Sir Keir said he "hadn't appreciated what was happening" as he was "literally up and down" answering questions.

"No prime minister ever has had side conversations in PMQs. It does happen in other debates when there is a bit more time, but in PMQs it is bang, bang, bang, bang."

He said the incident was due to "a personal issue and I am certainly not going to say anything more about that".

Speculation about Reeves' future had been growing after Labour rebels forced the government to give up some of its welfare reforms and in so doing put a £5bn hole in the chancellor's spending plans.

In order to meet her self-imposed borrowing rules, she is now likely to have to consider cutting public spending or raising taxes at the Budget in autumn.

Asked if taxes would be going up, he replied: "No prime minister or chancellor is going to write a Budget in advance."

Thin, red banner promoting the Politics Essential newsletter with text saying, “Top political analysis in your inbox every day”. There is also an image of the Houses of Parliament.

Zeffman: Has Reeves done enough to draw a line under this episode?

PA Media Rachel Reeves smiling at the launch of NHS 10-year strategyPA Media

It might be uncomfortable territory, but it's worth reflecting on just how unprecedented Wednesday's events in the House of Commons were.

The images blared across the media of Rachel Reeves in tears as Sir Keir Starmer answered questions from the dispatch box were devastating for a chancellor who has made having an iron core central to her public image.

Some believe it is unfair for the media to note that the chancellor was visibly distraught on live television for half an hour.

Yet the markets, which quickly responded unfavourably, did not wait for media coverage to decide to trade against Britain.

Perhaps counter-intuitively, those market movements point the way through this for Reeves.

At least in the interpretation of many, the markets were responding to the possibility that Reeves might soon be replaced as chancellor, and that her replacement would be less committed than her to limiting government borrowing for day-to-day spending.

That may be why the markets then bounced back when Sir Keir Starmer told the BBC's Nick Robinson that Reeves would remain chancellor for many years to come.

Reeves's brief interview this afternoon was also geared at reassurance, attributing her tears to a "personal issue" and a "tough day".

She insisted she was "totally" up for the job of chancellor - and that she and the prime minister would continue to work in "lockstep together".

It came after she made an unscheduled appearance at an East London hospital for the launch of the government's 10-year NHS plan.

She made no mention of her tearful episode in the short speech she made about the health service and the economy.

But there were smiles all around and a hug from the prime minister, who said it was "just fantastic that she is here".

That's probably enough to draw a line under this excruciating episode.

But the challenge for Reeves remains the same as it was just before PMQs began.

There is a straightforward difference of opinion between the chancellor (plus the prime minister and perhaps the bond markets), and a large group of Labour MPs.

The gutting of the government's welfare policy - in a series of panicky U-turns - displayed this in vivid detail.

The rebel MPs who forced the U-turns believe strongly that a Labour government should not be, as many put it, "balancing the books on the backs of the poor".

But it's broader than just that.

"If the chancellor comes to us in the autumn with a cuts Budget," one member of the government said, "Labour MPs will say no."

Yet the chancellor, in turn, is firm in her belief that the markets will not wear further borrowing for day-to-day spending, and that therefore the choice is either spending restraint or tax rises.

On tax, she is hemmed in by the promises she and the prime minister made during the general election campaign.

Those fundamental tensions between what Reeves, Starmer and - it seems - the markets want on the one hand, and what the Parliamentary Labour Party wants on the other will have to be resolved before long.

Thin, red banner promoting the Politics Essential newsletter with text saying, “Top political analysis in your inbox every day”. There is also an image of the Houses of Parliament.

Seven ways Starmer's plan could change the NHS

PA Media Close up Sir Kier Starmer and Rachel Reeves posing for a selfie taken by an NHS staff member. They are smiling and surrounded by a group of NHS staff all smiling at the cameraPA Media

Sir Kier Starmer has set out his 10-year-plan to reform the NHS in England, based on a shift from hospitals to neighbourhood health hubs, a new focus on prevention and better use of technology.

He said the government's 162-page blueprint might be the last chance to put the health service "back on its feet".

Here is what the plan could mean in practice.

Care on the doorstep

The government is promising to set up around 50 new neighbourhood health centres by the end of this parliament and up to 300 by 2035.

The idea is to shift work out of overcrowded hospitals and into local hubs staffed by a mix of GPs, nurses, pharmacists, mental health specialists and other medics.

After an operation, for example, you might be sent to a local health centre for a check-up rather than back to hospital for an outpatient's appointment.

This is not a new idea. It's been talked about for years as a way of relieving pressure on the NHS and cutting waiting lists.

There are still questions about the funding of the new service, where the new staff will come from, and how long it will take to roll out.

Obesity 'moonshot'

Getty Images Close up cartons of chips and fizzy drinks and a hand holding a chip and dunking it in ketchup Getty Images

The plans include what the government is calling an "ambitious moonshot", aiming to "end the obesity epidemic".

There will be "digital NHS points" for people who improve their diet or meet exercise goals.

It's modelled on a Singapore scheme where citizens who walk more, buy healthier foods or go to health screenings can earn points to exchange for e-vouchers to use in supermarkets and restaurants.

Athletics elder statesman, Sir Brendan Foster, will spearhead a campaign to get millions walking or running regularly.

Access to NHS weight loss services and treatments, including medications such as Wegovy and Mounjaro, will be expanded.

But planned legislation to ban some supermarket promotions of unhealthy food, including buy-one-get-one-free offers, might be dropped in favour of "smarter regulation, focused on outcomes".

New alcohol warnings

Expect to see new mandatory warning labels on cans and bottles of alcohol before the next election.

The government says this has worked in countries like South Korea to "help consumers make more informed, healthier choices".

There will also be a consultation on rule changes to allow very low alcohol drinks, up to 0.5% ABV, to be sold as "alcohol free".

At the same time it will "explore options" to ban the sale of zero alcohol products to children.

This hasn't impressed the Institute of Alcohol Studies which describes the plan as "frankly embarrassing".

It is calling for a minimum price for alcohol to be imposed in England, as is already the case in Scotland and Wales.

Getty Images Close up of hands raising drinks, includes beer and short drinks with ice and lemonGetty Images

Dental deserts

There's a fresh push to increase access to dental care, a subject always near the top of public concern about the NHS.

Dental therapists, who tend to carry out some of the more straightforward work of dentists, will be asked to perform more check-ups, treatments and referrals.

And newly-qualified dentists may soon have to work in the health service for three years before they can move into private practice.

That has angered the British Dental Association which said the "overwhelming majority" of young dentists do this anyway, and the policy "won't stop a single experienced dentist walking out from the NHS in despair".

Longer term, the government promises the NHS dentists' contract, blamed for an acute shortage of staff in many areas, will be reformed.

Getty Images Young child at dentist's with mouth wide open, close up dentist's hands using implements to examine the child's teeth.  Getty Images

Mental health A&E

An extra £120m over five years is promised to develop dedicated mental health A&E departments.

In total, 85 will be set up across England providing walk-in access or help for people bought in by ambulance or the police.

People with mild or moderate needs may be able to access online virtual therapists.

There will also be more money for mental health support in schools and a drive to recruit another 8,500 mental health staff over the next decade to reduce long waits for care.

The plan was described as "bold" by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health although it warned success will depend on sustained investment in the workforce.

A 'doctor in your pocket'

More use will be made of the NHS app to book appointments, order prescriptions and refer patients to local charities and businesses that can offer health support.

Starmer said it would be like having a "doctor in your pocket providing advice 24 hours a day, 7 days a week".

Your full health record should be available on the app, along with the "red book", which contains a child's health data, including any vaccines they have been given.

It will mean doctors can quickly look up a patient's history online rather than having to start from scratch with a new consultation, or ask for records to be emailed to them.

There are concerns people who might not have access to the app or a smartphone, such as the elderly, could be excluded.

Getty Images Close up phone screen, with Welcome to the NHS App in white on a blue background.  Getty Images

What about social care?

The 10-year plan is squarely focused on the NHS and public health and does not directly address the future of the social care sector.

The Care Workers' Charity called that "deeply concerning" and opposition MPs warned: "You can't fix the NHS without fixing social care".

The government has asked Baroness Louise Casey to chair an independent commission on adult social care reform, but that will not start to report back until 2026.

Speaking in the Commons this afternoon, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the government had committed to an extra £4bn on social care funding in the spending review, and would shortly be setting out how it would deliver a fair pay agreement for the care workforce.

Labour plans further Right to Buy restrictions

Getty Images A man building a wall at a housing construction siteGetty Images

Newly-built social housing in England will be exempt from Right to Buy for 35 years, under government plans to further scale back the policy.

Social tenants will also have to live in their properties for much longer before qualifying for the scheme, which allows them to buy at a discount.

Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook said it would help local authorities "protect much-needed social housing stock" and build new homes at scale.

But the Conservatives branded the latest plans an "attack on aspiration".

Introduced in 1980, Right to Buy became a signature policy of the Thatcher government and was initially credited with increasing rates of home ownership.

But in recent years the policy has been blamed for depleting council housing stock, after successive governments failed to replace properties sold under the scheme, often at a significant discount.

It was abolished in Scotland in 2014, with Wales following in 2018.

Since coming to power last year, Labour has stopped short of doing the same in England, but has significantly pared back the policy as part of broader plans to boost affordable housing.

In November's Budget, it slashed the maximum discounts available to tenants to between £16,000-£38,000, down from £102,400 to £136,400.

Discount rates

Now it has confirmed new social homes will be exempt from the scheme for 35 years - longer than the 10 to 30 years suggested in a policy paper ahead of a two-month consultation earlier this year.

The government said the longer period would ensure councils do not lose homes before they can recover costs from building them - noting the "payback period" on most new developments is at least 30 years.

It has also announced new discount rates to sit alongside the cash caps announced at the Budget.

Under the plans, discounts will start at 5% of a property's value, down from 35% for houses and 50% for flats currently.

As now, social tenants will still be able to increase this discount by 1% for every year they live in their property, but only up to a new maximum of 15% of the home's value or the new cash cap, whichever is lower.

Tenants will also have to have lived in their properties for at least ten years before qualifying, up from three years currently.

The government says the changes will require changes to legislation, to be delivered "when parliamentary time allows".

'Unsustainable'

The government has also confirmed it will not be extending Right to Buy to housing association tenants - an idea previously suggested by Boris Johnson shortly before he was ousted by his own MPs in 2022.

The move was welcomed by the National Housing Federation, which represents housing associations, which added that losses in local authority stock had been "unsustainable".

The moves to further restrict Right to Buy are likely to be welcomed by the Local Government Association, which has previously warned that replacing sold-off homes was becoming "increasingly impossible" for councils it represents.

It had been pushing for a longer 15-year qualifying period, and more flexibility for councils to set their own minimum discounts, including the option of not offering any initial discount to new tenants.

However, Conservative shadow housing secretary Kevin Hollinrake accused Labour of "turning its back on the very families who work hard and want a stake in their future".

"For decades, Right to Buy has helped millions take their first step onto the housing ladder. Now, this government is making it harder than ever to own a home," he added.

Thin, red banner promoting the Politics Essential newsletter with text saying, “Top political analysis in your inbox every day”. There is also an image of the Houses of Parliament.

Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to keep up with the inner workings of Westminster and beyond.

Ryanair increases size limits for free cabin bags

Getty Images Two unidentified passengers, a man and a woman wearing black, attempt to put a large black bag into a Ryanair bag measurement box. It doesn't look like it fits. The box is in Ryanair's blue and yellow colours, with the words "priority" and "non-priority" with arrows. Getty Images
One of the current Ryanair bag measurers at Rome's Ciampino airport

Budget airline Ryanair is planning to increase its "personal bag" size by 20% as the EU brings in a new standard.

Passengers will be allowed to take an item such as a handbag or laptop bag measuring up to 40cm x 30cm x 20cm in the cabin without paying an extra fee. It should weigh less than 10kg, and fit "under the seat in front you."

The new size represents a 20% increase in volume from the current maximum dimensions.

This will mean that Ryanair accepts free bags one third bigger than the new EU minimum size limit.

A graphic illustrating comparing Ryanair's current small bag limits, the EU minimum bag size and the future Ryanair small bag policy

Ryanair said the new free bag size would come into effect in the coming weeks as its bag size measuring devices were adjusted to the new standard.

It's current maximum bag size is 40cm x 25cm x 20cm, which already has a greater volume than the new European standard of 40cm x 30cm x 15cm.

Ryanair declined to say why it was giving passengers a larger carry-on bag allowance.

The size is still less generous than rival budget airline Easyjet, which allows a free underseat bag of 45cm x 36cm x 20cm (including wheels and handles) weighing up to 10kg.

Wizz Air allows one cabin bag as big as Ryanair's new limits – 40cm x 30cm x 20cm, with the same weight limit of 10kg.

BA has a slightly smaller limit for an under-seat laptop bag or handbag of 40cm x 30cm x 15cm, but passengers are allowed to take a larger cabin bag as well free of charge, subject to a maximum weight of 23kg.

The EU has been working with airlines to agree a minimum free bag size, so that frequent travellers can purchase one piece of luggage and be confident it would be accepted by multiple airlines.

The rule applies to airlines based in the EU – which includes Easyjet, Ryanair and Wizz Air – but airlines are of course free to accept larger bags if they choose.

Confusion about the different minimum sizes has caused problems for passengers, who have sometimes been faced with unexpected extra fees when airlines said their bags didn't match the specified dimensions.

Last month the transport committee of the European parliament voted to give passengers the right to an extra piece of free hand luggage weighing up to 7kg. The proposed rule would still have to be passed by the wider European parliament.

Passengers should confirm baggage rules with their airlines directly.

$88m pollution-tracking satellite backed by Jeff Bezos missing in space

Karol Serewis/Getty Images An orange tower on the left of the picture, a orange flame is being emitted with black smoke trailing left to right. The tower stands against a blue sky. The flame is produced by flaring from oil productionKarol Serewis/Getty Images
Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas produced from oil and gas production, farming and landfill

An $88m satellite designed to detect releases of the planet-warming gas methane from oil and gas production, has been lost in space in a major setback for climate efforts.

The MethaneSat satellite which had backing from Google and billionaire Jeff Bezos, was launched only last year aboard an Elon Musk SpaceX rocket.

It was meant to collect data for five years on sources of the powerful greenhouse gas, which is responsible for nearly a third of human-induced warming, to help curtail the worst offenders.

The Environment Defense Fund, the NGO which oversees the satellite, said that communication was lost ten days ago and is currently undertaking an investigation to understand what happened.

Methane is the most potent of the greenhouse gases, and although it does not hang around in the atmosphere as long as carbon dioxide, it is 28 times stronger over a 100-year period.

Despite an international commitment to reduce methane levels by 30% by 2030, year-on-year it continues to rise with the target unlikely to be met, according to the European Space Agency.

The main sources of methane are from oil and gas production, farming and food decomposition in landfill.

But many of the current satellites that monitor it are operated privately, reducing reducing transparency of who the worst offenders for methane release are.

MethaneSat came after years of development by the NGO Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and once launched made much of its data publicly available, allowing scrutiny by governments and scientists.

It was backed by a consortium of tech giants including Google and billionaire Jeff Bezos, which together contributed $88m to the project.

The instruments used by the satellite are some of the most sensitive in the world, able to pick up much smaller sources of methane as well as "super-emitters".

Improving the sensitivity is important for detecting releases from agriculture which are often much more diffuse than from oil and gas production.

'Likely not recoverable'

Google said when it was launched it hoped its project would "fill gaps between existing tools".

The company was using its artificial intelligence tools to process the data and generate a global methane map.

But after just a year in orbit, in what was meant to be a five-year programme, communication was lost with MethaneSat.

The team at EDF suspect that the satellite has lost power and said in a statement "that it is likely not recoverable."

It went on to say that some of the software could be re-used but said it was too early to comment on whether a new satellite would be launched.

"To solve the climate challenge requires bold action and risk-taking and this satellite was at the leading edge of science, technology and advocacy," it added.

One of the other major publicly-available sources of methane data is hosted by CarbonMapper. One of its sources of data is the TROPOMI instrument aboard the European Space Agency's Sentinel-5P satellite. Although it continues to send back data its seven-year programme was meant to finish in October.

It is unclear how much longer it can continue to collect information, further limiting global efforts to track the greenhouse gas.

Thin, green banner promoting the Future Earth newsletter with text saying, “The world’s biggest climate news in your inbox every week”. There is also a graphic of an iceberg overlaid with a green circular pattern.

Sign up for our Future Earth newsletter to keep up with the latest climate and environment stories with the BBC's Justin Rowlatt. Outside the UK? Sign up to our international newsletter here.

'A symbol of hope & inspiration - Jota was a Portuguese hero'

'A symbol of hope & inspiration - Jota was a Portuguese hero'

Diogo Jota in action for PortugalImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Diogo Jota scored 14 goals in 49 appearances for Portugal

  • Published

"It's not about where we come from, but where we're going to."

The sentence can be found at the entrance of the Gondomar SC academy followed by a picture of its illustrious son Diogo Jota wearing the colours of the club he played for between the ages of nine and 17.

Right next to it, there's another one of him with the Portugal national team shirt too.

That's how far Jota went.

Since 2022, it has been renamed as the Diogo Jota academy.

Those words, said by the forward himself after scoring twice in a 3-0 win against Sweden in the Nations League in 2020, illustrate exactly who he was.

The 28-year-old, who died along with his brother Andre Silva on Thursday following a car accident in Spain, spent almost all his formative years in his hometown with a third-tier team, paying around 20 euros each month to play for them while being overlooked by the big sides because of his size.

Despite the odds, he never gave up.

He kept believing and went from Gondomar to Pacos de Ferreira, then to Porto, Wolverhampton and finally Liverpool.

Jota became a symbol of hope and inspiration back home. He proved to an entire country that it's possible to reach the top even if the path isn't a straight line.

The talent had always been there.

So much so that in his early days, when he was starting to draw some attention with Pacos, one of his former coaches, Jorge Simao, made a big claim by saying Jota would be Cristiano Ronaldo's successor.

The player was obviously surprised to hear that, but immediately thought to himself, 'If he believes in that, why can't I do that?'

Jota was a rare case of an elite Portuguese footballer who never spent time at any of the big three academies - Benfica, Sporting and Porto.

"What set him apart from everyone else was really the mental aspect, the way he overcame any situation - and he realised that very quickly," former Pacos' youth football coordinator Gilberto Andrade told BBC Sport.

"I think there are moments when, whether you're a coach, a coordinator, or a director, there are words, things said, that have a great impact on players. At the time, perhaps they don't fully understand it, but later it reflects in their behaviour, in how they train, in how they live day to day.

"And Jota, I think, to some extent with us, understood what it meant to be a professional player, what it meant to be a good athlete, a good person. He was an example in that regard. An example, because often success leads many players to have a somewhat winding path due to the money they make.

"But that wasn't the case with him. He was always very disciplined, very intelligent, very humble. He invested wisely, knew what he was doing, helped those he could. So I think this is the image that must remain of him."

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

This video can not be played

Media caption,

Archive: How Jota overcame challenges to play football

Jota took the long road, but always had it clear where he was going.

That became obvious to Andrade the day he came to him with an unusual request. "I want to learn a foreign language. Someday, I might play abroad and I've got to be ready," said Jota.

The Gondomar boy was still young but had spent long enough outside the radar of the Portuguese powerhouses to realise his future could be far away from his home country.

"He knew very well where he was going," recalled Andrade, who has also worked in Italy, Belgium and Saudi Arabia.

"Back then, I had those audio language courses, so I handed some of them to him. Soon, however, he realised they weren't enough - he actually needed a teacher. For him, it was evident that he was going to need it later in his career. He was this different."

For a brief moment, Jota feared his career would be at risk following a heart problem diagnosed during medical tests ahead of the 2014-15 season.

He was not allowed to train for almost a month.

"Do not put the cart before the horse," he used to reply to anyone who came to him worried about the situation at the time.

That was how he lived his life – taking it day by day.

Jota quickly established himself as one of the rising talents of the Portuguese league after that, but didn't change a bit.

The number of teams interested in his services kept rising and yet he chose to remain living in the club's dormitory with other academy graduates and trialists that came and went until his very last day at Pacos. He was the only first-team player living there.

"He wouldn't leave his room. He was solely focused on his work, there was no time for distractions when it came to him," added Andrade.

Jota always knew where he was heading and, throughout his life, he proved time and again the journey mattered more than the starting point.

His voyage to becoming a Portuguese hero was a beautiful one.

In pictures: Jota's best moments for club and country

In pictures: Jota's best moments for club and country

Diogo Jota celebrates with the FA Cup trophy following Liverpool's win over Chelsea in 2022Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Diogo Jota made 395 senior club appearances and was capped 49 times by Portugal

  • Published

Diogo Jota, who died at the age of 28 on Thursday, will be remembered as a clinical finisher who scored goals in important moments for Liverpool and Wolves.

In five seasons at Anfield, the Portuguese forward delivered 65 goals in 182 appearances, collecting each of English football's major trophies, including one FA Cup and two League Cups, as well as Liverpool's 20th league title last season.

He signed for Liverpool for £41m from Wolves in 2020, having scored 44 goals in 131 appearances across three seasons after moving from Atletico Madrid.

At international level, he was a member of Portugal squads that won the Nations League twice - in 2019 and 2025.

We have chosen a selection of his finest moments on the pitch, including an 11-minute hat-trick against Besiktas in 2019, the goal that sent Wolves to Wembley in that same year, a stunning solo effort against Arsenal in 2021, and an important final derby winner.

First Champions League goal for Porto

Diogo Jota celebrates scoring Porto's fifth goal against Leicester with team-mate Yacine BrahimiImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

In December 2016, while on loan from Atletico Madrid and just days after his 20th birthday, Jota scored his first goal in the Champions League for Porto. He slotted home the team's fifth goal to round off a 5-0 win against the previous season's surprise Premier League champions Leicester.

Wolves hat-trick in seven-goal Leicester thriller

Diogo Jota celebrates scoring the first goal in his hat-trick against Leicester CityImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Having joined Wolves on loan initially, Jota agreed a permanent move in January 2018 and helped the team earn promotion to the Premier League. He scored a brilliant hat-trick in January 2019 to earn a thrilling 4-3 win over Leicester, with his third goal coming in stoppage time.

Jota sends Wolves to Wembley

Diogo Jota celebrates after scoring against Manchester United in the FA Cup quarter-final at MolineuxImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

In March 2019, Wolves reached their first FA Cup semi-final for 21 years as a second-half strike from Jota saw off Manchester United and sent Nuno Espirito Santo's side to Wembley.

Hat-trick heroics against Besiktas

Diogo Jota celebrates scoring against Besiktas in the Europa LeagueImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

With Wolves having qualified for the Europa League, Jota came on as a substitute and claimed a hat-trick within just 11 minutes in a December 2019 4-0 win over Besiktas.

Replacing Ronaldo for Portugal debut

Diogo Jota replaces Cristiano Ronaldo for Portugal in November 2019Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota made his international debut aged 22 when he replaced Cristiano Ronaldo as a late substitute in a 6-0 Euro 2020 qualifier win over Lithuania. He had been part of the squad that won the 2019 Nations League, but did not make an appearance. Jota was capped 49 times by his country.

Goal joy on Liverpool league debut

Jota celebrates with Liverpool team-mates after scoring against Arsenal on his Premier League debut for the club in September 2020Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Liverpool paid Wolves £41m to sign the Portuguese and he opened his account for the Reds in September 2020 when he came on as a substitute to score with a low strike and wrap up a 3-1 win against Arsenal.

Italian job as hat-trick sinks Atalanta

Diogo Jota places a finish past Atalanta goalkeeper Marco SportielloImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota claimed another hat-trick in European competition as Liverpool thrashed Atalanta 5-0 in November 2020.

Stunning goal rocks Arsenal

Diogo Jota celebrates after scoring against Arsenal in November 2021Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota left Arsenal's defence on the floor as he scored Liverpool's second in a 4-0 win at Anfield that ended a 10-game unbeaten run for the Gunners in November 2021. The striker called this dribble and finish his favourite goal for Liverpool.

Sealing an emphatic derby win at Everton

Diogo Jota sends a finish over Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford in December 2021.Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota fired past Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to round off a statement 4-1 derby win at Goodison in December 2021.

Priceless penalty against Leicester

Jota scores a penalty against Leicester in Liverpool's 2021-22 Carabao Cup quarter-finalImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota drilled home the decisive spot-kick as Liverpool came back from two goals down against Leicester to progress to the Carabao Cup semi-finals via a penalty shootout in December 2021.

Double sends Liverpool to Wembley final

Diogo Jota celebrates scoring against Arsenal in the 2021-22 Carabao Cup semi-finalImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

A double from 'Jota the slotter' then downed Arsenal in the Carabao Cup semi-final in January 2022 and sent Liverpool to their first Wembley final for six years.

First silverware with Liverpool

Ibrahima Konate, Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino of Liverpool celebrate after victory against Chelsea in the 2022 FA Cup finalImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota converted his penalty as the Reds beat Chelsea on penalties in the 2022 FA Cup final to wrap up a domestic cup double for the Reds.

Cool winner against Tottenham

Diogo Jota of Liverpool celebrates with team-mates Darwin Nunez and Jordan Henderson after scoring the team's fourth goal against Tottenham in April 2023Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota was the coolest man in the stadium as he pounced on a defensive mix-up in injury time to help Liverpool edge a 4-3 thriller in April 2023 in which the Reds had initially led 3-0 after 15 minutes.

Derby winner moves Reds closer to title

Diogo Jota celebrates with Liverpool team-mate Curtis Jones on his back after scoring the winner against Everton in April 2025Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Jota's final goal for Liverpool was an important one - earning a derby win in April 2025. The moment of class from the striker sank an Everton side who had frustrated Liverpool, securing a valuable three points en route to the Premier League title, to the evident delight of Reds supporters.

Lifting number 20

Diogo Jota of Liverpool celebrates with the Premier League trophy as Liverpool are crowned champions for the 2024-25 seasonImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Liverpool's number 20 hoisted the trophy after the club's 20th league title triumph in May. The Kop serenaded him, singing their "He will take us to victory" song. Jota missed a chunk of of the 2024-25 season through injury, scoring six goals and adding three assists in 26 Premier League appearances.

Second Nations League trophy

Diogo Jota of Portugal poses with the Uefa Nations League trophy after his team's victory in the final against SpainImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

The 28-year-old lifted the Nations League trophy with Portugal in June 2025 as they beat neighbours Spain on penalties in the final.

Tears as fans mourn Liverpool's Jota at Anfield

PA Media A man in a black t-shirt, black shorts and sunglasses stands amid a sea of tributes including flowers, football shirts, balloons and flowers with a bouquet in his handPA Media
Fans have been paying their respects to the Portuguese forward at Anfield stadium

Thousands of football fans have made their way to Anfield stadium to pay their respects to the Liverpool forward Diogo Jota after his death in a car crash in Spain.

Jota, 28, was killed when a Lamborghini he was travelling in with his younger brother, Andre Silva, suffered a tyre blow-out, crashed and caught fire in Cernadilla in the Zamora province.

Both men died in the crash, which happened at about 00:30 local time, Spanish police told the BBC.

A sea of flowers, football shirts, scarves, balloons and flags have been laid outside Liverpool's ground by fans since news of his death broke.

Lifelong fan John Barlow from Leyland in Lancashire, a survivor of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, said he was "absolutely devastated" when the news broke.

Marc Gaier/BBC John Barlow, who has light grey hair and is wearing glasses and a dark blue Adidas branded hoodie, looks into the camera with a solemn expression while in the backdrop a man lays flowers by a tree surrounded with tributes. Marc Gaier/BBC
Hillsborough survivor John Barlow said he was "just heartbroken"

Mr Barrow said: "I had to stop what I'm doing at work and drive in.

"I come to every match and he was like one of us. He had a bit of something about him, like a proper old Liverpool player, like the players we were brought up with.

"He had a fight in him and he came back from things and he was tough."

He said he was "just heartbroken, absolutely heartbroken".

PA Media Jurgen Klopp, wearing a black Liverpool FC branded bubble coat and a black cap, smiles as he fist bumps Diogo Jota, who is wearing his red Liverpool kit, during a matchPA Media
Jurgen Klopp, who was Liverpool manager when Diogo Jota signed for the club in 2020, said he was "heartbroken"

Andrea Molyneux, who went to the stadium with her daughters Isabella and Lily Costello, described their "utter devastation".

"I can't even comprehend the grief that the family are going through," Ms Molyneux said.

"He was just such a young man and life can be taken away from you in such a short time.

"He had everything. Everything."

The Portugal international had recently married his partner, Rute Cardoso, with whom he had three young children.

Marc Gaier/BBC Andrea Molyneux, who is wearing large sunglasses, stands with her arms around the shoulders of her daughters either side of her. All three women are wearing Liverpool kits and have sombre expressions.Marc Gaier/BBC
Andrea Molyneux and her daughters said the news left them feeling "utter devastation"

Another fan told the BBC he would remember Jota with "a smile on his face, scoring goals for Liverpool".

"But in a time like this, football pales into insignificance," he added.

"He's left a wife and three children behind, his brother has passed away with him and his poor parents have lost two children.

"I mean, he'll forever be remembered as a great Red for us. But when something like this happens, football doesn't matter anymore."

PA Media A man in a grey baseball cap and blue coat looks towards the tributes left for Diogo Jota with his hands pressed agains his face. Another man with an orange high-visibility t-shirt and a brown and white cap stands close behind him with a solemn look on his facePA Media
Some fans were visibly emotional at Anfield stadium on Thursday

Writing on social media, former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who was in charge at Anfield when Jota was signed from Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2020, said he was heartbroken.

"This is a moment where I struggle!" he wrote.

"There must be a bigger purpose, but I can't see it."

Earlier Liverpool FC said it was "devastated" by the loss of the player and his brother.

The club described the player's death as "an unimaginable loss".

Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on BBC Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram, and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.

Senior BBC staff told to step back from duties following Glastonbury row

PA Media Bob Vylan performing on the West Holts Stage, during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset. Glastonbury Festival has said it is "appalled" by the statements made by Bobby Vylan, of punk duo Bob Vylan, during their set on SaturdayPA Media
A live stream of Bob Vylan's set was available to watch on BBC iPlayer for more than four hours

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has said she is "not satisfied" with the response she's had from the BBC about the live streaming of Bob Vylan's controversial Glastonbury set.

She also told the House of Commons on Thursday that she "would expect there to be accountability at the highest levels" of the corporation.

Punk duo Bob Vylan led a chant of "death, death to the IDF [Israel Defence Forces]" during their set, which was available to watch via a live stream on iPlayer. The BBC has said the comments were "utterly unacceptable" and it should have pulled the feed sooner.

Bob Vylan said on Tuesday they had been "targeted for speaking up", reiterating that they were advocating "for the dismantling of a violent military machine".

The group have since had several bookings cancelled, including festival appearances in Manchester and France and a slot in Germany.

Avon and Somerset Police have launched a criminal investigation into their Glastonbury comments. On Wednesday, London's Metropolitan Police said the band are also under investigation for comments they allegedly made during a concert at Alexandra Palace a month earlier.

Following the Glastonbury live stream, which was available to watch on iPlayer for more than four hours after the comments were made, the BBC was criticised by the UK's chief rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, while broadcast regulator Ofcom said the BBC had "questions to answer".

In an email to the BBC's Jewish staff network on Tuesday, the corporation's director general Tim Davie said: "I was, and remain, appalled by Bob Vylan's deeply offensive and totally unacceptable behaviour during his Glastonbury set."

He added that the performance had "no place on the BBC" and "there is absolutely no place for antisemitism at the BBC".

EPA British Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy departs a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, 01 July 2025.EPA
Lisa Nandy previously said "editorial failures" at the BBC amounted to a "failure of leadership"

On Thursday, Nandy told the House of Commons: "I have received a reply to the very many questions that were raised by colleagues on all sides [of the House]. I'm not satisfied with that and I've gone back to the BBC leadership for ask for further information."

She said she was particularly concerned "about the failure to pull the live feed, the due diligence that was done prior to deciding to screen this act, and also the level of senior oversight that took place in the BBC during the Glastonbury weekend".

She added: "I think the BBC leadership will hear and have heard the strength of feeling in this House about this and I expect further answers to be forthcoming imminently."

Nandy also acknowledged the response from Jewish people.

"Given the seriousness of what happened, and particularly we heard in the House the absolute shocking stories of the impact this has had on the Jewish community in this country - given the seriousness of this, I would expect there to be accountability at the highest levels."

The culture secretary's comments came days after she spoke about what she said were several recent editorial failures at the BBC.

The corporation is also due to publish a review into the documentary Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone, which was pulled from iPlayer in February after it emerged it was narrated by the child of a Hamas minister.

"When you have one editorial failure, it's something that must be gripped," Nandy said on Monday. "When you have several, it becomes a problem of leadership."

In a statement on Monday, the BBC said the "antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves".

"The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen," the BBC said.

In their statement, posted on Instagram on Tuesday, Bob Vylan said: "We are not for the death of Jews, Arabs or any other race or group of people. We are for the dismantling of a violent military machine".

They added that "we, like those in the spotlight before us, are not the story. We are a distraction from the story, and whatever sanctions we receive will be a distraction".

Universal's UK theme park could feature Europe's tallest rides

Universal Destinations& Experences/Comcast A map of the universal site shows a big lake and lots of rides surrounding it.Universal Destinations& Experences/Comcast
The new park is aiming to open in 2031

The new Universal Studios theme park that will be built in the UK could include the tallest rides in Europe, the company said.

Universal has sought planning permission for a new destination in Bedford through a special development order (SDO), which would allow the government to approve the project directly and bypass standard local planning procedures.

In new planning documents, the firm said it could build structures in the park reaching up to 377ft (115m), which includes rides.

"The reason for proposing structures up to this maximum height is to allow the proposed theme park to compete with other attractions in Europe," the documents said.

It continued: "Although the Universal Orlando Resort does not currently have attractions up to this height, taller attractions are more common in Europe, where rides need to be taller to create the experience, as space is more constrained.

"Building attractions that are higher, rather than over greater areas, also makes the best use of land which is in line with planning policy."

The current tallest ride in the UK is Hyperia at Thorpe Park which measures 236ft (72m), the tallest in Europe is Red Force, a 367ft (112m) rollercoaster at PortAventura World in Spain.

The plans explain that most structures at the park will range between 20m and 30m, with some taller structures creating a skyline with "visual interest".

A map shows Bedford's location compared to Birmingham, to the north, Oxford, to the south-west, Cambridge, to the east and London to the south
Bedford's central location and transport links were important factors for Universal

The park expects to receive 8.5 million visitors a year, with 55,000 visitors on peak days.

Guests arriving to the park by car will drive through a tree-lined boulevard, while those using public transport will access the resort via a transport hub.

From there visitors will arrive at the site's entry plaza, which has restaurants, shops and entertainment venues.

These can be accessed and used by both those with and without tickets.

Paying guests then enter the attraction by passing under a large archway.

The documents describe how once inside the resort guests will experience "adrenaline-pumping coasters", "mind-blowing spectaculars" and will "come face-to-face with incredible creatures, heroes, and villains".

"They'll discover great food, new laughs, new ways to play, and step into immersive worlds they've only ever dreamed of," the document said.

The plans also include parking for more than 7,000 cars and additional spaces for people to arrive by coach and bicycle.

It also includes a proposal to build a new junction on the A421 and an expanded four-platform station at Wixams station on the Thameslink line.

There will also be a new footbridge over the tracks at the station, to allow people to walk or cycle to the site from Wixams.

Further active travel routes will allow visitors to reach the site at Kempston Hardwick from Interchange West Retail Park in Bedford.

The park is hoping to secure planning permission to open in time for 2031, when it aims to hire 8,500 staff mostly from the local area.

By 2051 it expects the amount of employees to increase to 10,000.

PA Media Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaking to a gathered crowd of young student during a visit to Bedford. A blue Universal banner is on the balcony behind him.PA Media
Sir Keir Starmer visited Bedford to announce Universal Studios would build its first European theme park in the UK

These planning documents submitted to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) have been made public as part of the consultation process.

Consultation ends on 31 August, at which point the MHCLG will review comments and make a decision.

If granted the SDO could still impose specific conditions on the construction and operation phases, requiring ongoing monitoring.

Universal declined to comment on the specifics of the planning documents, but encouraged people to submit feedback to MHCLG.

Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.

Related internet links

Four remanded in custody over break-in at RAF base

BBC Breaking NewsBBC

Four people have been charged over a break-in at RAF Brize Norton last month, when military planes were damaged, Counter Terrorism Policing South East say.

Amy Gardiner-Gibson, 29, and Jony Cink, 24, both of no fixed abode, and Daniel Jeronymides-Norie, 35, and Lewie Chiaramello, 22, both from London, will appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court later on Thursday.

They have been charged with conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK and conspiracy to commit criminal damage.

Damage worth £7m was caused to two Voyager aircraft, when planes were sprayed with paint during the break-in on 20 June.

A woman, 41, arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender was released on bail until 19 September and a man, 23, was freed without charge.

Deputy Russian Navy chief killed in strike near Ukraine border

Reuters Flowers placed in front of a board with a photograph of Major General Mikhail Gudkov, the deputy head of the Russian NavyReuters
Footage from Vladivostok showed mourners laying flowers at a makeshift memorial to Major General Mikhail Gudkov

The deputy head of the Russian Navy has been killed near the Ukrainian border, the Russian military has confirmed.

Major General Mikhail Gudkov, appointed by President Vladimir Putin to the senior naval post in March, was killed during what Russia's defence ministry described as "combat work" in the western Kursk region, which borders Ukraine's Sumy region. The ministry gave no further details about the operation.

Last summer Ukraine launched a surprise offensive in Kursk. While its troops have mostly been driven out, in June Kyiv said it was still holding onto small areas of the region.

Gudkov's death is one of the most high-profile losses for Moscow since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

According to Oleg Kozhemyako, governor of the Primorsky region in Russia's Far East, ten others were also killed in the incident.

Kozhemyako made the announcement on Telegram, where he described Gudkov as a loyal officer who died "carrying out his duty".

Unconfirmed reports from Russian and Ukrainian military-linked Telegram channels suggest the deaths were the result of a Ukrainian missile strike on a Russian command post near the town of Korenevo, around 30km (19 miles) from the border.

Ukraine has not officially commented on the attack - consistent with its usual policy of not confirming targeted strikes on Russian territory.

Gudkov had previously commanded the 155th Naval Infantry Brigade of the Pacific Fleet, a unit involved in heavy fighting across eastern Ukraine and later in the Kursk region itself.

Footage from the far eastern city of Vladivostok, home to Russia's Pacific Fleet, showed mourners laying flowers at a makeshift memorial to Gudkov, who received the Gold Star medal of Hero of Russia in late 2023. He was seen receiving the honour from President Putin at a Kremlin ceremony in February.

Ukraine has not acknowledged involvement in Gudkov's death.

However sources within Ukrainian security services have previously told the media, including the BBC, that they were behind similar targeted strikes, such as the killing of Gen Igor Kirillov in December 2024.

Earlier this year, General Yaroslav Moskalik was killed in a car bomb attack in Moscow - an incident the Kremlin also blamed on Kyiv. At the time Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Ukraine of "continuing its involvement in terrorist activities inside our country".

Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, there have been several high-level assassination plots on both sides.

Last year the Ukrainian security service (SBU) said it foiled a Russian plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky and other high-ranking Ukrainian officials.

At the start of the war, the Ukrainian leader said he was Russia's "number one target".

Meanwhile, officials in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa said two people were killed and six injured in a missile strike on the port on Thursday.

Earlier, strikes on the central city of Poltava targeting an army recruitment centre killed two people and wounded nearly 50 others, authorities said.

❌