The leaders are in prison, hundreds face trial, and they’re about as disliked as Prince Harry, Keir Starmer and Nigel Farage – but Just Stop Oil is claiming victory.

After three years of blocked roads, a souped Van Gogh and Stonehenge sprayed with orange powder, the bogeyman of British motorists is calling it quits on direct action.

They do so as ‘one of the most successful civil resistance campaigns in recent history’, they claim.

But just how true is that? Why are they really ‘hanging up the hi vis’? And is this actually the end of Just Stop Oil – or is there something more extreme on the horizon?

Born from frustration

‘Three years ago today, we were blocking oil terminals’, charity worker Stephanie, 37, told Metro.

‘That’s how we started, and then we moved into sabotaging petrol stations. That made sense to me.

‘I felt like going to the source, doing that kind of direct action and trying to shut down the oil industry in the UK, making it very difficult for people to buy petrol products – that made sense.’

Covid-19 had taken the steam from Extinction Rebellion’s step. By the time they returned to the streets of London after lockdowns, it seemed the world had stopped paying attention.

Their demands were too scattered, and even thousands of protesters could barely make a dent on newspaper headlines, evening bulletins and the ecosystem of politics chat shows. It left a sense of frustration ripe for recruitment in existing activist circles.

‘Extinction Rebellion seemed a bit lost at the time’, said a mum-of-two in London who joined Just Stop Oil in the summer of 2022. She wants to stay anonymous, so we’ll call her Olivia.

‘Someone from Just Stop Oil walked into a local Extinction Rebellion meeting and I thought, “These guys sound like they’ve got a plan”.’

Three months later, Olivia was sat on a road wearing a hi-vis jacket and holding banners with other JSO activists, facing down angry drivers.

‘It was scary’, she told Metro. ‘But I also felt like this is what I need to be doing.’

They’re not here to be liked

Although JSO founder Roger Hallam once told a room full of left-wing activists that the reason they’re losing is ‘You’re all a bunch of f***ing c***s’, his plan was never to be liked.

He wanted attention on climate change, on Just Stop Oil, and on its key demands – an end to the extraction and burning of oil, gas and coal by 2030.

And he got it, the first part at least – a government ban on new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea, a victory shared by several campaign groups, is tainted by the government’s support for airport expansions.

Within months of their first stunt, more than 90% of Brits at least knew they existed – making them more famous than Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, and Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves.

‘Some mainstream campaigns could never dream of getting that level of awareness that quickly’, Sam Nadel, interim director of the Social Change Lab, which tracks the impact of protest movements on public opinion, told Metro.

With a does-what-it-says-on-the-tin name, JSO struck gold on the airwaves, despite the coverage focusing on angry drivers, blocked ambulances, arrests, charges and jail sentences.

‘Even when you’re getting media coverage that’s incredibly negative, when the media is writing about your group, they also have no choice but to include your demand – I think that’s quite a savvy strategy’, Sam said.

The problem is, keeping the spotlight means changing tactics every time the public gets bored.

‘Often the most illogical protests get the most media coverage’, Sam said. ‘Things like shutting down a sporting event or throwing soup on a Van Gogh painting.’

But increasingly that drew the ire of both the British public – 64% hold an unfavourable view of JSO – and the government, which passed new laws to criminalise protests.

A crackdown on democracy

The Conservative government increased the penalty for willful obstruction of a highway from a £200 fine to a maximum of 51 weeks in prison, with a potential 10-year sentence for causing ‘public nuisance’.

It then handed the police sweeping powers to define and restrict ‘seriously disruptive’ protests, banning tactics like attaching yourself to another person or object, obstructing major transport works and key national infrastructure, and causing ‘serious annoyance’.

Under this law, police arrested dozens of people planning to disrupt airports like Manchester and Gatwick last summer.

Then Hallam and four other JSO activists were handed four-year prison sentences after blocking the M25 motorway for four days in 2022.

Two months later, two activists were jailed for throwing tin of Heinz tomato soup on the glass cover of Vincent Van Gogh’s 1888 Sunflower painting at the National Gallery.

Convicted of criminal damage, Phoebe Plummer, 22, was handed a two-year sentence while Anna Holland, also 22, was jailed for 20 months.

They are among the 173 climate activists sent to prison for non-violent offences in the UK since 2021, according to Rebels In Prison Support.

Prisons are running out of space, Just Stop Oil is running out of people

It has chilled the movement. Tim Crosland, a former government lawyer turned climate activist, told Metro: ‘There are only so many people who are going to be in a position to go, you know, yes, I’m okay with a four-year prison sentence.

‘And once those people are in prison, there are not so many left.’

Olivia had already been arrested four times, resulting in two convictions, two acquittals and luckily no prison time. She sat out the airport campaign.

So did Stephanie, who had been arrested eight times, with a suspended sentence and 200 hours of community service for smashing petrol pumps in 2022.

‘It’d been different years before when we were blocking oil terminals’, Stephanie said.

‘You knew that you’d get arrested, and you’d get in trouble, but you wouldn’t necessarily go to prison for that. There wasn’t that fear at all. I didn’t think about that.

‘Whereas with the airports, it was very likely, and I think that put a stop to more people signing up. Yeah, I think they really did struggle with recruitment for that.’

That may be ‘the real reason’ JSO has announced an end to its campaign, according to Dr Oscar Berglund, an expert on climate change activism at the University of Bristol.

He told Metro: ‘They just don’t have enough people to do the kind of actions that they have been doing.

‘People are put off, people are in prison, we’ve seen the criminalisation of protest – with a combination of repression and unpopularity, it’s difficult to renew as a movement.’

Is the future more moderate or extreme?

Many may have found Just Stop Oil’s activism aggravating, but it actually increased support for more mainstream groups like Extinction Rebellion, Friends of the Earth, and Greenpeace. That more moderate direction is where a large chunk of JSO activists may go.

Olivia has turned to ‘much lower risk demonstrations’, like disrupting Shell’s annual general meeting and protesting outside the Department for Transport to oppose airport expansions.

Stephanie says her activism will be more local from now on, focusing on ‘extortionate housing costs’, rising bills and inequality.

‘I personally don’t think we have gained any wins’, she said. ‘As much as JSO will say that there has been a big win with Labour stopping new oil and gas licenses, I don’t actually think that’s true at all. I think they finally realized that what they’ve done isn’t working.’

But there are those who – when faced with the question of ‘go hard or go home’ in the face of police crackdowns, like JSO was – choose to go hard, picking sabotage over disruption.

Already groups like Shut The System have cut fibre-optic cables to try and force insurance companies to stop funding fossil fuel companies by cutting off their internet access.

Tim said: ‘The real danger when you treat peaceful protest as being equivalent to serious crime is, it doesn’t go away – it takes other potentially more extreme forms.’

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Paddy’s Day drinking landed a New Jersey mayor in handcuffs after she was allegedly caught driving her toddler home while drunk.

‘Oh I’m sorry’, Gina LaPlaca, 45, told officers outside her home when they told they’d had multiple calls claiming she ran a red light and was swerving.

Bodycam footage showed a smashed-up wing mirror and a scrape the length of her blue BMW parked behind her on the drive around 5.40pm on March 17.

‘What happened to your mirror here,’ an officer asked. LaPlaca replied ‘that’s not good’ while stumbling over to try and bend it back into shape.

Asked what she hit on the way there, the Mayor of Lumberton told police: ‘I don’t know.’

Crying, LaPlaca said ‘I’m sorry’ while police placed her handcuffed in the back their car.

She had allegedly been filmed on a mobile phone driving erratically and nearly colliding with a utility pole, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

LaPlaca has been charged with driving under the influence, child endangerment and neglect, and driving with an expired license. She is due to appear in court next month.

She has been mayor of Lumberton, a township home to 13,000 people 25 miles east of Philadelphia, since 2023.

Her husband, firefighter Jason Carty, said: ‘Millions of Americans struggle with addiction and never get help.

‘Gina is someone who has struggled, and is now getting the help she needs.

‘I ask that everyone keep her in their thoughts as she moves forward on her road to recovery.

‘Please ignore the exaggerated political hyperbole and keep in mind her passion for helping others. This should not erase all the things she has accomplished for our community.

‘Gina is a loving and caring mother and stepmom to our son and her stepson.

‘Our oldest is a teenager and can see the unkind things being said online. I ask simply that you respect our privacy, be better humans and please show some compassion, thank you.’

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The largest ever EuroMillions jackpot has been scooped by one lucky man in Austria.

He won £209,000,000 on Friday night after spending just €10 on online tickets, according to Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung.

The man’s identity hasn’t been revealed and it’s not yet clear if he’s chosen to remain anonymous.

Many jackpot winners do, although UK couple Joe and Jess Thwaite, who won the fifth largest amount, €215 million (around £184 million at the time) in May 2022, did go public.

They said they didn’t want to burden friends and family with such a big secret.

More about the Thwaites and others who have gone public

Joe was 49 at the time of the win and working as communications sales engineer and Jess, was 44 and a business manager of a hairdressing salon.

The parents-of-two, from Gloucestershire, said the phenomenal win ‘gives us time to dream which we haven’t had before’.

Their first purchase was a chest of drawers and a wardrobe for their bedroom – but they said their number one priority was supporting family members after a ‘hard few years, just like many people and families across the country’.

Joe said he normally bought a EuroMillions Lucky Dip ticket ‘because it’s easier’ and purchased the winning ticket on The National Lottery App.

They had no idea of the result until Joe woke up at 5.15am the next morning to tend to their dogs – and received an email saying ‘Good news, you’ve won a prize’.

Showing extreme self control, Joe didn’t wake up his wife to share the news after seeing the nine-figure prize.

‘I saw how much and I didn’t know what to do’, he said. ‘I couldn’t go back to sleep, I didn’t want to wake Jess up so I just laid there for what seemed like forever.

‘I spent some time searching for property with no budget limit, which was a novelty!’

When the alarm finally rang, Joe turned to Jess and said: ‘I’ve got a secret, I’ve got something to tell you.’

Hearing the news in disbelief, his wife thought he was joking, concluded that it wasn’t worth getting too excited about as it probably wasn’t true and got up to make a coffee.

But, after going about their normal morning routine, the pair called dedicated phone number when the lines opened at 8am and were told they had just become the UK’s then biggest-ever winners.

While many of us would call our managers to say we weren’t coming in and crack out the champagne, Jess and Joe went about their normal day, doing the school run and settling down to work from home.

Unable to keep the news in, Jess met her mum in a car park before work – with her screaming reaction bringing it home how life-changing the money would be and both breaking down in tears.

The couple have acknowledged their previous financial situation was ‘not horrendous’ but say the cost of living crisis had ‘affected our lives’.

Jess said: ‘Just like many people and families across the country, the last few years have been hard. My sister and I have tried to look after the business and the 20 staff, but times are difficult in hairdressing. 

‘Joe has been working hard and we have always tried to put everything into doing the best we can for the children.

‘We’ve had one week to think about this and we now have time to share lots of experiences and go on adventures with our family and friends.’

One couple who scored a £115 million EuroMillions jackpot had given away more than half of their winnings to loved ones, charities and those in need during the coronavirus crisis within two years of wining.

Frances Connolly wrote a list of 50 close friends and family to help as she was too excited to sleep on the night she and husband Patrick, 56, secured their fortune on New Year’s Day 2019.

Almost two years on, the pair had given away £60 million – extending their generosity to health workers on the Covid-19 frontline, care home residents, hospital patients and hundreds of other people.

The husband and wife, from Moira, County Down, vowed to not become part of the ‘jet set’ when they celebrated their win with a hug and a cup of tea.

They stayed true to their promise, laughing off the opportunity to live in a 15-bed stately home and deciding against flying first class to New Zealand to visit their daughter. They say they could have helped a young couple pay off a mortgage with the ticket price.

Another couple who went public with a EuroMillions win was Richard and Debbie Nuttall, from Colne, Lancashire.

They scooped £61.7 million share of a £123 million jackpot in January 2024.

They were in Fuerteventura celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary in January when an email from the National Lottery told them they had exciting news.

Mr Nuttall, a self-employed accountant, said when he checked his account online he saw a win of £2.60.

He said: ‘So I went through to Debs and I said we’ve won £2.60 on the lottery and she was like: “Woohoo, we’ll go and have a bacon butty or something with that.”‘

But he later realised the £2.60 was from a win in November and when he logged in again later that day, after another email, he saw a figure of £61,708,231.

He tried to call the National Lottery from Fuerteventura but a bad signal in the Canary Island meant four calls kept cutting out.

‘I’m thinking, “this is a scam, someone’s trying to extract information out of me inch by inch,”‘ he said.

He said: ‘Obviously we were stunned but also very excited at the time, it was almost like Del Boy and Rodney when they come out of Sotheby’s and they start cheering and punching the air, the car was rocking.’

And in 2016 Sonia Davies, then 53, and her family won £61 million on the EuroMillions after she asked her daughter to buy tickets because she was ‘on a roll’ days after having a potentially deadly tumour removed.

The mum was in the US for the pioneering surgery when she called her eldest daughter, Stephanie, 23, back home in Wales, and asked her to pick up some tickets for the family syndicate and said ‘we’re on a winning streak’.

Stephanie bought six lucky dips with 40 minutes to spare before the deadline, and one of those turned out to be very lucky.

Admin assistant Sonia said: ‘I felt cured by the Friday and was a multi-millionaire by the evening, it was just unreal.’

What have EuroMillions winners bought in the past?

In the past, people who have gone public with lottery wins have chosen to spend their cash on new houses, cars, holidays and on their family and friends.

‘The people who spend the money too quickly are a very, very small percentage,’ Andy Carter, who was a Senior Winner’s Advisor at former Lottery owners Camelot, previously told the Metro.

‘The vast majority of winners are very conservative – they have been blessed with a huge amount of money and they want to protect it.’

Can winning the lottery bring more misery than joy?

Although many winners, like Andy said, are careful with their money history has a fair few examples of winners who haven’t been so cautious and their lives have taken a turn for the worse as a result.

Some studies suggest lottery winners in the US are more likely to declare bankruptcy within three to five years compared to the average citizen.

Around one-third find themselves in financial trouble – and it does not end there.

The pressure may force someone to spiral into depression, and lead to alcohol and drug abuse and problems with family and friends.

One such example in the UK is Michael Carroll, a bin man who won £9,700,000 on the National Lottery in 2002 – but declared bankruptcy nine years later.

Dubbed the ‘Lotto lout’, he gave £4 million to friends and family, including £1,400,000 to his wife Sandra Aiken.

But shortly after the couple wed in 2003, she decided she had had enough.

Over the next few years, Carroll appeared in court more than 30 times while a mansion he bought in Norfolk fell into a state of disrepair.

He has admitted he wasted millions on cocaine, gambling, prostitutes and drinking two bottles of vodka a day.

By 2013, Carroll was broke and homeless, so he returned to Scotland and worked in a biscuit factory and then a slaughterhouse before landing a job as a coal man.

Then there’s Adrian and Gillian Bayford, who won  £148,656,000 in August 2012, but are no longer married.

Gillian now has a conviction for threatening her ex-boyfriend, domestic abuse charity worker Gavin Innes, who she pushed and shouted at in 2017.

She then married convicted fraudster Brian Deans, before ditching him because he begged for more and more money after blowing the monthly allowance she gave him on cars, watches and trips with friends.

Adrian, meanwhile, turned to eating 50 Cornish pasties a day to cope with loneliness after being dumped by younger women, one of whom he dated while sending saucy messages to an ex.

Another jackpot winning couple to divorce after scooping big was Colin and Chris Weir, who won £161.6 million in 2011.

They split up some months before Colin died of sepsis and an acute kidney injury in December 2019, at the age of 71.

By then he had spent half his £80million share of the fortune on cars, property and a controlling stake in his favourite football club, Partick Thistle.

The former TV cameraman also donated millions to the Scottish National Party and the pro-independence Yes campaign ahead of the 2014 referendum.

What actually happens when you win the EuroMillions?

If you find yourself in the almost impossible-to-imagine situation of having a winning lottery ticket, the first thing to do (once you’ve finished screaming into a pillow or jumping up and down) is to turn the ticket over and find the phone number to ring.

Andy explained: ‘If you were to win the EuroMillions tomorrow night, you would check the ticket, ring the number on the back of the ticket and that would put you through to a lottery line. They would then get a member of my team to call you back.’

This first phone call to the National Lottery call centre is important, because it sets in motion the crucial steps that all lottery winners must follow to claim their prize.

How does the National Lottery contact winners?

From the moment you realise you’ve won to actually getting the money, winners are looked after every step of the way by a dedicated team of National Lottery ‘Winner’s Advisors’ like Andy.

It is their job to support winners through the entire process so they can begin to enjoy their life-changing win.

Andy, or one of his advisor team members, will call lottery winners back as quickly as possible once they receive news that a EuroMillions prize has been claimed.

After the initial phone call with the winners’ advisor team, Andy or one of his colleagues will visit the winner, in person.

Ideally, you’ll get a visit the next day, or failing that as soon as the winner can allow.

How long after winning the lottery do you get your money?

During the home visit by the Winners Advisory team, a number of checks will be carried out to verify the winner.

‘Within half an hour I can tell if someone has won the money,’ Andy revealed.

As well as checking the winning ticket is legit,the advisory team are there to answer any questions that the winners may have and, as you can imagine for someone who has just become a (sometimes multi) millionaire, they have more than a few.

‘Sometimes we get to people’s houses and we don’t even open the computer for an hour because we just sit there and answer people’s questions,’ Andy said. ‘This could sometimes last all day.’

As soon as the winning ticket is verified and the ID of the winner confirmed, the Lottery can pay the winner their money on that very day.

However, once the money is paid into an elected bank account, it takes two days for the money to process before it can be withdrawn.

This means that the longest you have to wait before getting the money is around three days between discovering you’ve won the lottery and actually being able to spend the cash.

Where do lottery winners put their money?

Winners have no choice but to have their winning sum deposited in one, single bank account by the Lottery – so there’s no stuffing it under your bedroom mattress or locking it in your personal safe.

The winner can choose the bank they would like to hold the money with, but a brand new account with that bank is set up – usually with a private arm of that bank who specialise with dealing with large sums of money of this kind.

This bank account can be open for as long as the winner needs it to be, or they can move the money to other accounts once it has cleared after a couple of days.

Can EuroMillions winners remain anonymous?

Yes and as we mentioned earlier, many people choose not to go public.

‘All winners are anonymous,’ Andy confirmed, ‘This is the default position for all lottery winners.’

Andy also impresses that any publicity surrounding a winner is a personal choice and there is no set media schedule – every winner is different.

‘It’s entirely the winner’s decision if they want to share news of their win. We have an aftercare programme in place to ensure that all winners have access to legal and financial advice.

‘Sometimes we go to a winner’s home and we’ve already had media enquiries before we even get there because the winner wants to celebrate their win and mark it publicly,’ Andy explained.

‘Often the rule of thumb tends to be the higher the amount of money the more likely the winner will be to take publicity.’

However, if a winner does choose to keep their newfound wealth a secret, then Andy and his team are the only ones to know about the win.

He says: ‘It’s often the case that when a winner decides to remain anonymous, we are the only people that know about their win so we keep in touch with them for as long as they want to. Often they like to talk to someone or just let us know what they have been up to.’

Is your spouse entitled to your lottery winnings?

When it comes to the decision to keep a lottery win a secret or tell the whole world, you’d think that either way, one of the people to definitely be in the loop would be the winner’s partner or spouse.

But, should you want to keep your newfound wealth entirely to yourself, the National Lottery certainly isn’t going to tell you otherwise.

‘A National Lottery win belongs to the signatories of the relevant validation paperwork. How a winner(s) chooses to share (or not) winnings is their personal decision,’ Elanor Corbett, PR Executive at The National Lottery confirmed to Metro.

Are EuroMillions winnings taxable?

‘There is no tax on the win itself, but if the win produces an income through interest, then that will be taxed as part of your normal income tax,’ Andy explained.

Does EuroMillions money go to charity?

‘The only way the EuroMillions jackpot would go to National Lottery Good Causes is if the jackpot is won in a draw but, for whatever reason, the ticket-holder does not then subsequently come forward to claim,’ Elanor told us.

‘Unclaimed prizes have a maximum of 180 days to be claimed from the date of the winning draw. After that, the money plus the interest it has generated whilst it is held in trust, is passed over to National Lottery Good Causes.

‘Each week, The National Lottery raises around £30 million for Good Causes because every time a National Lottery ticket is bought a proportion of the ticket sale automatically goes to National Lottery Good Causes.’

Which countries have had the most EuroMillions winners?

Perhaps unsurprisingly, out of the nine countries that take part in the lottery, those with the highest populations have the largest number of jackpot winners over the years.

The UK, with a population of almost 67 million, tops the table with 132 jackpot winners since the contest started in 2004, while France, which has a population of around 66.6 million, follows closely behind with 130 winners.

Spain, with a population of 49 million, comes third with 122 winners.

Portugal, meanwhile has had 86 winners, Belgium 45, Switzerland 26, Ireland 19 and the tiny country of Luxembourg, 4.

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A GCHQ intern put the UK’s national security at risk when he downloaded top secret data onto his phone and took it home.

Hasaan Arshad, a 25-year-old from Rochdale, pleaded guilty to an offence under the Computer Misuse Act at the Old Bailey today.

While doing a year-long placement at the intelligence agency, Arshad connected his work mobile to a supposedly secure, top secret computer on August 24, 2022.

He then downloaded data onto the phone and took it home, where he transferred it to a hard drive connected to his personal home computer.

This ‘unauthorised act’ had the potential to cause ‘serious damage’ to national security.

Sensitive information, where compromise might cause widespread loss of life or threaten the security or economic wellbeing of the country or friendly nations, is given the classification ‘top secret’, according to Ministry of Justice security guidance.

A month later, on September 22, Arshad was arrested and his home was charged.

His sheet said: ‘Between August 23, 2022 and September 23, 2022 [he] did an unauthorised act in relation to a computer and at the time of doing the act knew that it was unauthorised; and the act caused, or created a significant risk of a material kind, this being damage to the national security of a country; and he intended by doing the act to cause serious damage of a material kind or was reckless as to whether such damage was caused.’

Arshad admitted the charge on the ‘basis of recklessness’, his lawyer Nina Grahame KC said.

The 25-year-old had previously admitted two charges of making an indecent photograph of a child in relation to a number of images found between September 7 and 23, 2022, the court heard.

He has been granted conditional bail ahead of his sentencing for all charges on June 13. The conditions include not accessing the dark web.

Mrs Justice McGowan said: ‘I want you to understand because of your age I am making the request for the pre-sentence report in this case but that does not mean there will not be a custodial sentence.’

Previously, the senior judge had ruled that some parts of Arshad’s case would be heard behind closed doors, in the absence of the press and public.

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Microsoft has helped revolutionise computing in the last 50 years, and not just by always finding new ways to do our heads in with Teams.

As well as making Bill Gates one of the world’s top billionaires and bogeymen, the company developed software that helped make personal computers a reality.

While Microsoft’s repertoire has evolved since then – it released Xbox, bought Nokia, and slicked-up its screen displays – some things have stayed remarkably the same since the first iteration of Microsoft Windows.

Five desktop apps have survived the chopping block from the release of Windows 1.0 in 1985 to the present day.

What better time to look back on them than the 50th anniversary of Microsoft, officially celebrated on April 4.

1. Calculator

The calculator’s functions have expanded from the basic additions, subtractions, divisions and multiplications of the OG version.

But its endurance is testament to the appeal applications that are both useful and adaptable.

Now it has four modes – standard, scientific, programmer, and graphing, along with tools to convert units of measurement and currencies.

Microsoft says: ‘It’s the perfect tool to help you complete your math homework, manage your finances, plot and analyze equations on a graph, and evaluate algebra, trigonometry, and complex math expressions!

2. Paint

Generations have spent hours – even days – drawing, colouring, designing logos, editing images and creating elaborate art.

You don’t need to be a Da Vinci or a Picasso to get going, but there is little limit to what you can do on there.

It’s proven so popular, Microsoft caved to consumer demand and continues to include it in all its Windows updates.

Microsoft says: ‘Its simplicity and ease of use make Paint a valuable tool for quick and easy image editing.’

3. Notepad

Microsoft Notepad actually pre-dates the first iteration of Windows.

Introduced as a stripped-down version of Microsoft Word, it has none of the fancy functions of the mother app – just some fonts, sizes and a blank page, giving you room to make notes free of distractions.

‘This fast and simple editor has been a staple of Windows for years’, Microsoft says.

4. Clock

Just like the hands moving across its face, Microsoft’s Clock app has come full circle.

Starting life as simply ‘Clock’ in 1985, it was renamed ‘Alarms’ and then ‘Alarms & Clock’ as more features were added.

It shows the date and time, both where you are and across the world. It can track your speed with a stopwatch, stop your pizza from burning with a timer (if you’re paying attention), and wake you up in the morning with 20 or more alarms.

With the latest operating system – Windows 11, released in 2021 – app has returned to being called just ‘Clock’.

5. Control Panel

In a classic case of ‘doing what it says on the tin’, the Control Panel is exactly that – the panel where you can control your computer..

On there, you can add and remove software, add hardware, change user accounts and tweak accessibility options.

Various applets have been added to the app over the decade.

While many of the Control Panel’s functions have been re-allocated to the Settings app, the Control Panel has found a way to survive.

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Primark boss Paul Marchant has resigned over his behaviour towards a woman.

The nature of the incident is unclear, but it has resulted in Marchant apologising to both the woman and the board of Primark’s parent company.

Understood to have taken place in a social setting, it has been described by parent company Associated British Foods (ABF) as an ‘error of judgment’.

The company said: ‘His actions fell below the standards expected by ABF.’

George Weston, chief executive of ABF, said: ‘I am immensely disappointed. At ABF, we believe that high standards of integrity are essential.

‘Acting responsibly is the only way to build and manage a business over the long-term.

‘Colleagues and others must be treated with respect and dignity. Our culture has to be, and is, bigger than any one individual.’

Mr Marchant had led the fashion retail chain since 2009, when he took over from the company’s founder Arthur Ryan.

He had joined Primark from fast fashion rival New Look. Before that, he was with Debenhams, Topman and River Island.

Primark’s profits plunged 60% in the first year of the covid-19 pandemic.

By last year, however, they had increased 51% to £1.1billion, giving the company an operating profit of 11%.

Primark and its 450 stores account for roughly half of sales at ABF, which also owns Twinings tea and the Ryvita crispbread brand.

But a slowdown in sales early this year led the company to cut its forecasted profits for the year by 2%.

‘If Primark is struggling, you know the UK retail sector is in trouble’, Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said.

Dublin-based Primark was originally founded as Penneys, a name it still trades under in Ireland.

It changed its name to Primark when it expanded to the UK in 1973, because the American retailer JCPenney already owned the rights to the ‘Penneys’ brand there.

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Your phone might hold the secret of eternal youth, and not because you can spend eternity scrolling through ever life hack and skincare routine you could think of.

If anything, all that time spent staring at a screen could be rapidly aging your brain.

While it won’t iron out your blemishes and wrinkles, turning off your phone’s internet could give you the attention span of someone 10 years younger.

That’s according to a study of 400 adults who downloaded an app blocking internet access on their smartphones, while still allowing calls and texts.

It forced them to spend time doing something other than doom scrolling – like going outside, touching grass, exercising, even socialising in person.

Screen time nearly halved – dropping from five hours and 14 minutes, to two hours and 14 minutes in one group. The results were remarkable.

Not only could people pay attention to a single subject for longer, their mental improved to – more than would be expected on two weeks of antidepressants.

‘Even those who did not fully comply with the intervention experienced significant, though more modest, improvements’, the team from Canada’s University of British Columbia said.

‘These findings suggest that constant connection to the online world comes at a cost, since psychological functioning improves when this connection is reduced.’

Published in the PNAS Nexus journal, the participants were split into two groups.

One downloaded the ‘Freedom App’ for the first two weeks and removed it for the second two. The other group did it in reverse.

Both saw their screen time plummet – even more so in the first group, although their usage did rebound to 15% below the pre-study level once the app was removed.

Could this mean those scheming to ban phones from schools, or whack legal age limits on social media, have a point? We might not like it, but it’s possible they do.

The Canadian researchers said: ‘Despite the many benefits mobile internet offers, reducing the constant connection to the digital world can have large positive effects.’ 

More than 100,000 people in the UK have signed a so-called ‘Parent Pact’ started by the Smartphone Free Childhood campaign.

As the name suggested, it was launched six months ago as a rallying cry for parents to delay giving their kids smartphones until they turn 14.

It says: ‘Every child deserves the chance to learn and grow free from toxic and addictive algorithms.’

With the backing of ex-footballer Jamie Redknapp, actor Benedict Cumberbatch and singer Paloma Faith, it also suggests holding off on social media until kids are 16.

That age would be in line with Ireland, Spain and Australia, which have all banned under-16s from social media.

‘We want our kids to have a childhood’, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said after lawmakers approved the ban last year.

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Staff were confronting alleged dine and dashers when the family of four sped away with their car door open.

They left without paying after a meal at Pangs, a Chinese restaurant on Long Lane in Uxbridge, London, on March 23.

Footage from inside the restaurant showed two woman, one of them carrying a child in her arms, the other holding another child’s hand, as they walked out the door.

When staff realised what was happening, they chased them outside in an attempt to have them settle their bill.

But just as one man was stood holding the car door open for a chat, the driver hit the acceleration and sped off, leaving the staff members holding on for a brief chase.

‘Dine and dash… this is crazy’, the restaurant wrote on Facebook, describing the car as a white Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

‘Can’t believe they had two kids with them. Incident has been reported to the local authorities and they are looking out for the pair.

‘This is why we need to take payment up front for their sitdown meals, from now on. Fed up chasing the people out the door.’

A police spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of an incident at a restaurant in Uxbridge where a family left without paying their bill.

‘Enquiries are ongoing, and we urge anyone who may have seen something or has information to come forward.’

Dine-and-dashers can be a major headache for restaurant owners, who can lose hundreds of pounds each time.

An Italian restaurant West Sussex was down £390 after a group refused to pay food they described as ‘awful’. They left £60 for the alcohol they drank.

One couple racked up bills of £1,000 across five restaurants before using their children to walk out without paying between August 2023 and April last year.

Bernard McDonagh, 41, and his wife Ann, from Sandfields, Port Talbot, were jailed for eight and 12 months respectively for their stunts.

Ann had also pleaded guilty to thefts from two supermarkets and obstructing or resisting a police officer.

While some brazenly walk out without paying, some people go to great lengths to avoid settling up.

CCTV footage appeared to show one woman pluck a strand of hair from her head and place it on her plate at the Oriental Garden in Northampton.

She then allegedly left with her companion, without paying the £77 bill.

Like Pangs in Uxbridge, that Chinese restaurant said it would ask unfamiliar customers to pay when they order to avoid further losses.

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Someone won £209,300,000 in the EuroMillions on Friday after the jackpot rolled over seven times in a row.

If it had been won in the UK – not Austria, where a lucky individual bought a ticket for £10 – it would have smashed a national record held since 2022.

That year, the record was set and broken – and nearly broken again – in the space of just four months.

Jess and Joe Thwaites only wore the crown for two months that year before some secret someone usurped them.

Fortunately for the winner of a £195.7 million jackpot that July, they get to keep the ‘biggest ever UK lottery win’ title, at least for now.

But as some lottery winners have found, the change brought by so much money isn’t always good.

So who are the reigning EuroMillions champions who’ve won the biggest ever UK lottery jackpots?

11. Frances and Patrick Connolly – £114,969,775

Originally from Northern Ireland, Patrick and Frances Connolly were the fourth biggest winners when they it the jackpot on New Year’s Day, 2019.

They splashed their cash on a lot of things – Jaguar, Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo cars, and a County Durham Mansion with seven acres of land, and gifts worth £60million for their family and friends.

A grant-giving charity – PFC Trust – they founded funds community groups in Hartlepool, where they moved for work in 1990.

It’s become such a backbone of the charity sector, scammers masqueraded as the Connolly couple to offer cash to 50 people if they hit 10,000 subscribers on a bogus YouTube channel.

But the very first thing they bought with their winnings was a pair of M&S underwear

10. Anonymous – £121,328,187

The identity of the person who won this April 24, 2018 Superdraw jackpot has never been revealed after their chose to stay anonymous.

9. Anonymous – £122,555,350

This jackpot started as just £14million before rolling over all the way to the all-time spot of the UK’s ninth biggest lottery prize on April 2, 2021.

The winner, however, has kept their identity a secret.

8. Anonymous – £123,458,008

Another anonymous winner bagged this Superdraw jackpot on June 11, 2019, after it rolled over from a previous draw.

7. Adrian and Gillian Bayford – £148,656,000

The life of a lottery winner isn’t all glitz and glam. Sometimes it’s a catastrophe – and Adrian and Gillian Bayford can attest to that.

Since winning in August 2012, the married couple are no longer married.

Gillian now has a conviction for threatening her ex-boyfriend, domestic abuse charity worker Gavin Innes, who she pushed and shouted at in 2017.

She then married convicted fraudster Brian Deans, before ditching him because he begged for more and more money after blowing the monthly allowance she gave him on cars, watches and trips with friends.

Adrian, meanwhile, turned to eating 50 Cornish pasties a day to cope with loneliness after being dumped by younger women, one of whom he dated while sending saucy messages to an ex.

The 53-year-old since partnered up with fiancée, 46-year-old Tracey Biles, 46.

With her inspiration, Andrian has planted a vineyard the size of six football pitches at his estate on the border of Cambridgeshire and Suffolk.

He had also planned to turn 20 acres of his Horseheath Lodge estate in to a children’s theme park with a train ride and maze.

But he scrapped those designs after concerns the development would be far too ‘urban’, bring too much traffic, and threaten archaeological remains.

6. Colin and Chris Weir – £161,653,000

Within a decade of winning the EuroMillions draw, Colin and Chris Weir, from Largs in North Ayrshire, had divorced after 38 years of marriage.

Colin died of sepsis and an acute kidney injury a few months later in December 2019, at the age of 71.

By then he had spent half his £80million share of the fortune on cars, property and a controlling stake in his favourite football club, Partick Thistle.

The former TV cameraman also donated millions to the Scottish National Party and the pro-independence Yes campaign ahead of the 2014 referendum.

He left behind £212,000 worth of furniture, jewellery and artworks, a £10,000 Bentley Arnage, a Jaguar F-Pace SUV, a Mercedes Benz E Class Estate, a Mercedes Benz V Class people carrier, and a pot of petty cash containing £263.90.

After the split, Chris, previously a psychiatric nurse, kept their Frognal House mansion, which they bought for £3.5million after a 10-minute viewing.

She sold the property in Troon, Ayrshire, for £2.3million in 2019.

They had also set up the Weir Charitable Trust, which funded projects across Scotland.

5. Anonymous – £170,221,000

This EuroMillions jackpot had to go somewhere when it reached the stag of a Must Be Won draw.

It had already sat at the €190million cap for the maximum five draws by the time one UK ticketholder bagged it.

They chose to stay anonymous.

4. Anonymous – £171,815,297

An anonymous ticketholder claimed their EuroMillions jackpot within 48 hours of the numbers being drawn on September 23, 2022.

It was the third big win in the UK that year.

3. Anonymous – £177,033,699

The fourth EuroMillions jackpot winner of 2024 pipped the third spot on the all-time list in November, when they wont more than £177million.

Previous winner’s last year only secured £24million, £33million and £61million each – no small prize, but not enough to get into this EuroMillions Hall of Fame.

2. Joe and Jess Thwaite – £184,262,899

A new wardrobe and drawers for their bedroom were the first buys for Gloucestershire couple Joe and Jess Thwaite.

They had bought a EuroMillions Lucky Dip ticket on The National Lottery app, ‘because it’s easier’, on the very day of the May 10, 2022, draw.

A communications sales engineer, and the business manager of a hairdressing salon, they were the first of three big winners that year.

Joe saw they’d won when he woke early the next morning. He said: ‘I saw how much and I didn’t know what to do.

‘I couldn’t go back to sleep, I didn’t want to wake Jess up so I just laid there for what seemed like forever.

‘I spent some time searching for property with no budget limit, which was a novelty!’

When the alarm finally rang, Joe turned to Jess and said: ‘I’ve got a secret, I’ve got something to tell you.’

1. Anonymous – £195,707,000

Just two months after Joe and Jess Thwaite set the record for all-time biggest jackpot, their crown was taken by a winner who chose to keep their identity private.

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Fake MDMA appears to be doing the rounds in Manchester, where a batch has been found to contain a potentially deadly designer drug.

It’s prompted an urgent warning from Manchester Drug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (Mandrake), a harm reduction group at Manchester Metropolitan University.

A warning on social media said: ‘Multiple samples of beige powder, potentially mis-sold as MDMA, confirmed by Mandrake, to contain synthetic cathinone, 4F-α-PVP, in Manchester.

‘Not much known about this substance but has been implicated fatalities. If unwell seek medical attention.’

Dubbed a ‘designer drug’, 4F-α-PVP is a type of synthetic created to chemically resemble the mind-altering properties of khat, a plant chewed for stimulant effects in parts of Africa.

Although synthetic cathinones have been linked to some deaths, they mostly ‘also involved other psychoactive substances’, according to the government’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.

Usually cathinone-related deaths are caused by overheating, high blood pressure and heart attacks.

Research in Finland found most deaths were among men aged 25 to 44, who had a history of abusing multiple drugs.

Around 29% of those deaths were blamed on the detected synthetic cathinones.

Fake drugs can be a major hazard however, because people make misinformed choices about dosing.

This is particularly the case with synthetic opioids that may be many times the strength of the heroin they’re replacing.

Up to 33 people fell ill after taking an unknown substance they thought was heroin in London earlier this month.

One of those received emergency first air after suffering a cardiac arrest in Camden.

Police believe the drugs were actually synthetic opioids, which can be incredibly dangerous – the UK issued a ban on them last year.

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Prince Harry’s charity lost a fundraising venue after the Duke of Sussex insisted on bringing a Netflix film crew, its chair claimed amid accusations of ‘harassment and bullying’ against the royal.

This claim has been described as ‘completely baseless’ by a source close to the former trustees of the charity.

Sentebale had bagged a discount for using a ‘very generous’ family’s property for its charity polo tournament in Miami in April last year, the chair, Dr Sophie Chandauka, told Sky News.

But a month before, Prince Harry allegedly announced he wanted to bring a Netflix crew, turning it into a commercial venture and costing them the discount.

‘We couldn’t afford it, so now we lost the venue’, Dr Chandauka said. ‘We went to another venue, and we were lucky enough that, through Prince Harry’s connections actually and a friend of his, there was another family that was prepared to host.

‘The show went on, but there was a lot of disruption.’

After some clumsy choreography onstage, involving Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry allegedly asked Dr Chandauka to release a statement defending his wife.

Dr Chandauka said she refused, believing it would make the situation worse for Meghan Markle.

She made the claims on Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips amid accusations of bullying by Prince Harry at the charity he founded.

Dr Chandauka claimed Prince Harry, who resigned as patron earlier this week, had ‘unleashed the Sussex machine on me’.

Harry quit with his co-founder and the board of trustees from Sentebale, launched in 2006 to support young people in southern Africa living with HIV and Aids.

Citing ‘untenable’ infighting, the duke and Prince Seeiso of Lesotho said ‘the relationship between the charity’s trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair’.

In an extraordinary interview, Dr Chandauka criticised Harry for going to the press.

She told Sky News: ‘The only reason I’m here… is because at some point on Tuesday, Prince Harry authorised the release of a damaging piece of news to the outside world without informing me or my country directors, or my executive director.

‘And can you imagine what that attack has done for me, on me and the 540 individuals in the Sentebale organisations and their family?

‘That is an example of harassment and bullying at scale.’

Dr Chandauka had earlier claimed she was asked by Harry’s team to defend his wife Meghan from negative media coverage.

‘I said no, we’re not setting a precedent by which we become an extension of the Sussex PR machine,’ she told the Financial Times.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex declined to offer a response, according to Sky News. Metro has also contacted them for comment. 

A source close to the former trustees has said claims of bullying and harassment and of Prince Harry briefing against Dr Chandauka are ‘completely baseless’.

Several Sentebale trustees have left the organisation in a dispute with Dr Chandauka, having requested her resignation.

According to the Times, the dispute arose around a decision to focus fundraising in Africa.

In a joint statement, Harry and Prince Seeiso backed the departing trustees and said they had resigned as patrons until further notice.

They said: ‘Nearly 20 years ago, we founded Sentebale in honour of our mothers. Sentebale means “forget-me-not” in Sesotho, the local language of Lesotho, and it’s what we’ve always promised for the young people we’ve served through this charity.

‘Today is no different. With heavy hearts, we have resigned from our roles as Patrons of the organisation until further notice, in support of and solidarity with the board of trustees who have had to do the same.

‘It is devastating that the relationship between the charity’s trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair, creating an untenable situation.’

In response, Dr Chandauka appeared to criticise the duke for ‘playing the victim card’.

She said in a statement: ‘Everything I do at Sentebale is in pursuit of the integrity of the organisation, its mission, and the young people we serve.

‘My actions are guided by the principles of fairness and equitable treatment for all, regardless of social status or financial means.

‘There are people in this world who behave as though they are above the law and mistreat people, and then play the victim card and use the very press they disdain to harm people who have the courage to challenge their conduct.’

She added: ‘Beneath all the victim narrative and fiction that has been syndicated to press is the story of a woman who dared to blow the whistle about issues of poor governance, weak executive management, abuse of power, bullying, harassment, misogyny, misogynoir – and the coverup that ensued.

‘I could be anyone. I just happen to be an educated woman who understands that the law will guide and protect me. I will say nothing further on this matter at this time.’

Former trustee, Dr Kelello Lerotholi, told Sky News he did not recognise the allegations, saying the ‘tone and conduct of the board has been one of respect’.

Harry spent two months in the kingdom of Lesotho during his gap year when he was 19 in 2004, which inspired him to establish the charity two years later, which now also works in Botswana.

He came face-to-face with Aids orphans, met other traumatised young people and visited herd boys living a harsh existence looking after cattle in remote mountain areas.

The duke visited Lesotho and the prince as recently as last October, where he talked to a group of young people around a campfire about the ‘massive difference’ Sentebale was making.

He was also pictured with Dr Chandauka at a charity polo event in Florida in April 2024 to benefit Sentebale.

Sentebale said it had not received resignations from either of the royal patrons and said the ‘recalibration of the board is part of Sentebale’s ambitious transformation agenda’.

Harry’s role at Sentebale was one of a small number of private patronages he retained after he was stripped of his royal patronages and honorary military positions by the late Queen in 2021 after his departure from the working monarchy was confirmed for good a year after Megxit.

The Charity Commission said it was ‘aware of concerns about the governance’ of Sentebale.

‘We are assessing the issues to determine the appropriate regulatory steps,’ the commission said in a statement.

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It has been one year since King Charles‘s cancer diagnosis on 5 February, 2024.

Doctors said they were ‘very encouraged’ by his progress after finding that Charles had cancer and remained ‘positive about the King’s continued recovery’.

The Queen also informed well-wishers just a month later that he was ‘doing very well’.

Here’s everything we know more than one year on from the news of his diagnosis.

Do we know what type of cancer King Charles has?

No. The palace has only confirmed the King does not have prostate cancer, and has not revealed any further details.

In a statement, it said: ‘No further details are being shared at this stage, except to confirm that His Majesty does not have prostate cancer.’

Is it linked to King Charles’ prostate treatment?

Charles’s illness was discovered while he was being treated for benign prostate enlargement at the London Clinic.

It was the same day Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, had abdominal surgery that sparked her own cancer diagnosis.

The palace would later say Charles is ‘so proud of Catherine for her courage in speaking as she did’ after she announced it in March.

He spent three nights at the London clinic private hospital, where doctor’s discovered a ‘separate issue of concern’.

Buckingham Palace has confirmed the King does not have prostate cancer.

How is King Charles being treated for cancer?

When the diagnosis was publicly announced, Charles returned from Sandringham to London to start his treatment as an outpatient.

This meant he could stay at home instead of in hospital for the duration of hi treatment.

Where Charles is being treated, whether it is an NHS or private hospital, and what treatment he has been receiving has not been confirmed.

It was reported that Charles paused his treatment while on an 11-day visit to Australia and Samoa in October, according to the Daily Mail.

The palace confirmed his treatment would continue into 2025.

During a visit to Walthamstow in December, Sikh faith representative Harvinder Rattan asked ‘how are you’, to which Charles replied: ‘I’m still alive.’

What has King Charles said about his cancer?

An initial statement said Charles was ‘wholly positive’ and would continue to undertake State business and official paperwork, despite taking a break from public engagements.

Five days later, he released a statement saying: ‘I would like to express my most heartfelt thanks for the many messages of support and good wishes I have received in recent days.

‘As all those who have been affected by cancer will know, such kind thoughts are the greatest comfort and encouragement.’

His first visit after the break was to a specialist cancer centre in London at the end of April.

‘It’s always a bit of a shock isn’t it, when they tell you’, he said of his diagnosis during the trip.

Asked how he felt undergoing treatment, the King replied: ‘I’m alright, thanks. Not too bad.’

In his Christmas message, Charles said: ‘From a personal point of view, I offer special, heartfelt thanks to the selfless doctors and nurses who, this year, have supported me and other members of my family through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness, and have helped provide the strength, care and comfort we have needed.

‘I am deeply grateful, too, to all those who have offered us their own kind words of sympathy and encouragement.’

On World Cancer Day on Tuesday February 4, the Royal Family released a video featuring speakers from various charities and celebrities, including Macmillan Cancer, Maggies Centres, Cancer Research UK, Tom Daly, Victoria Derbyshire, and more shared inspirational messages.

They added he is grateful for the medical teams ‘swift intervention’.

However they have confirmed there will be no further updates today, and they will not be providing a ‘running commentary’ of his condition.

Could King Charles abdicate?

It was expected that the King’s son Prince William, would take up more public duties in his father’s absence.

But William’s wife Kate’s own diagnosis diverted his attention. Announcing an end to her chemotherapy in September, the couple said they wished to spend more time with their family, ‘which so many of us often take for granted’.

Kate announced in January that she is now in remission.

However, the King’s health concerns did raise the question of whether Charles might abdicate in favour of William, Prince of Wales.

Dr. Bob Morris, an honorary senior research associate at UCL’s Constitution Unit, previously explained that the Regency Act could also come into play amid any monarch’s ill health.

While the prospect remains unlikely, it could be triggered if the King became physically incapacitated due to illness, meaning he could no longer speak or move.

In such an event, his duties would be carried out by various members of the Royal Family.

After the Prince of Wales, Prince George would take the next place in the line of succession.

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Imagine seeing off a loved one at the airport for a holiday, only to find out they’ve secretly ended their life at a Swiss clinic for assisted dying.

After Judith Hamilton, 82, travelled to Basel to confront Pegasos owner Ruedi Habegger over the secret death of her 47-year-old son Alastair – who had no diagnosed illness – the non-profit promised to call families to let them know in advance in future.

But it seems another British family has learnt of their loved one’s death, not from Pegasos itself, but through piecing together their relative’s last moments.

‘She was one of the healthiest people we know’, Delia told ITV News while packing up her sister Anne’s belongings in Wales. She had no known terminal illness.

The family thought Anne, 51, had gone to Switzerland on holiday in January, until they started receiving goodbye letters posted from there.

‘If you’re reading this, I am no longer here’, Anne wrote to Delia, who believes the depression Anne suffered after the death of her only son was a factor in her decision.

‘I have thought about this long and hard and need to find [my son] and ask him some questions.

‘There is nothing you could have done, because this was my decision to go to Switzerland and be in peace… I can’t keep going and get older and older without my son.’

It took several days of emails, after tracking Anne back to Pegasos, for the family to get confirmation that Anne had in fact visited that particular clinic and gone through with her plans.

‘Anne has chosen to die’, Pegasos informed them.

Before refusing to reply any further to Delia, who insisted ‘this was NOT the right decision for her’, Pegasos said: ‘Anne no longer wanted to live, she felt alone and superfluous. She also did not want to grow old. This is a free decision of a free person.’

Last year, Pegasos promised to always phone a person’s family before going through with an assisted death, after Judith Hamilton, 82, confronted its owner Ruedi Habegger over the secret death of her son.

Like Anne, chemistry teacher Alastair did not have a diagnosed illness, and his family believed he was going on holiday.

In reality, Pegasos had accepted his online application form claiming a condition was causing him devastating ‘pain, fatigue and comfort’.

His mother only found out after reporting Alastair missing when he failed to return home and stopped answering calls. Bank records revealed an £11,000 payment to Pegasos.

Judith, who waved him off at the airport, said: ‘He put his arms around me, looked me straight in the eyes and he was smiling. And he said “love you, mum, love you lots, always have, always will no matter what”.’

Although Pegasos claims it tried to phone Anne’s brother John before the 51-year-old died, John insists he never heard from them.

John told ITV: ‘Why do they possibly think they have the right to do these things without contacting her family? It just seems evil to me… not to give us a chance to speak to her.’

Judith is ‘extremely angry’ at the apparently broken promise from Pegasos. She said: ‘I cannot believe that despite what we were told, Pegasos have acted in the same heartless, cruel manner as they did when Alistair died. I think they are despicable and should no longer be allowed to operate.’

A Pegasos spokesperson said: ‘According to our protocols we do the best of our abilities that persons we assist have informed their loved ones of their plans to die.

‘Should we have reason to assume that no information has been provided to close family, we will refrain from proceeding without credible proof that they are aware. This hasn’t been the case lately.

‘We understand that the assisted death of a loved person is a distressing time for the family. We are very sorry if Pegasos’ actions or communications have caused further distress to any affected family member at any time and thoroughly consider all concerns.

‘Finally, we’d like to emphasize that – since our foundation in 2019 – all our actions have been in accordance with Swiss law.’

As one of just seven countries where assisted dying is legal, Switzerland has become a major hub for ‘suicide tourism’.

The Isle of Man will become the eighth place to do so – but with far stricter requirements – when a bill passed this week gets Royal Assent.

Only people who have lived on the island for five years or more, have a terminal illness with a prognosis of 12 months or less, and who have a ‘settled intention’ to die will be eligible.

The UK appears on track to legalise assisted dying too, after MPs voted by a majority of 330 voted in favour of a bill that would give people with fewer than six months to live the right to request and be offered help to die.

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For nine months there was no trace of Émile Soleil, a two-year-old boy who vanished from his grandparents’ house in a village in the French Alps.

Dogs, drones and dozens of volunteers – even a helicopter – scoured the slopes and woods around Haut-Vernet, where ‘Little Émile’ was last seen in July 2023.

It took a hiker accidentally stumbling across Émile’s bones in a nearby ravine last March for the question of where he was to be answered.

‘Now that we have found little Émile, the police will be able to speed up their investigation’, local resident Gilles Thézan said at the time, determined to ‘find the culprit’.

But although Émile’s grandparents were this week arrested on suspicion of murder – later to be released without charge – what happened to two-year-old Émile remains a mystery a year after he was found.

Wondering how such an extensive search could have missed him, some locals are convinced the killer returned to dump Émile’s remains when the world’s attention was turned elsewhere.

That became the view of public prosecutor Jean-Luc Blachon. In only the second press conference of the investigation, on March 27, 2025, he said: ‘The clothes and bones discovered were transported and deposited shortly before their discovery.’

Others believe he fell victim to an animal attack, or died of hunger, thirst or exhaustion.

François Balique, the Mayor of Haut-Vernet, said it was ‘absolutely incomprehensible’ that Émile got into trouble by himself.

‘I can’t help but believe that an adult is involved in this matter. Émile would never have gone alone to where he was found,’ Mr Balique said.

How the search unfolded

July 8, 2023Émile goes missing

The toddler is dropped off at his grandparents’ house near Le Vernet, a small village in the French Alps, where a family reunion is being held. Émile is last seen playing in the garden and is reported missing at 5.15pm.

July 9, 2023Search and rescue scour the area

A massive search is underway in the mountains, including a helicopter, drones and sniffer dogs. They take in a 1,200 acre area but there is no trace of Émile.

July 10, 2023Search is made wider

After a public appeal has still yielded no results, the area being examined is made wider. Police search Émile’s parents’ home near Marseille, 200 miles away, where they are staying for the summer holidays. 

July 11, 2023Mum’s voice played from speakers

A recording of Émile’s mother’s voice is given to pilots to play ‘as loud as possible’ from speakers on the aircraft to try and reach the toddler and find where he is. Local houses are also examined.

July 13, 2023Search officially ends

A potential lead comes to nothing after blood found on a car the previous day is analysed as coming from an animal. The search is wound down with still no answers about what happened.

July 19Outsiders still banned from village

A restriction on those who are not local entering Le Vernet is renewed, to stop ‘malicious tourism’ after the case generated a lot of media interest.

Local prosecutor Remy Avon says authorities are still looking at all possibilities, including murder, kidnap or an accident such as being run over by a tractor or combine harvester.

September 19, 2023Search resumes for a time

Divers search a lake near Grenoble again in a bid to find Émile, shortly after detectives used a jackhammer to break apart a slab at a home close to where Émile’s family lived.

Le Vernet mayor François Balique says it seems the boy must have been moved from the area by ‘a madman, or someone Machiavellian’, as no trace has been found.

March 28, 2024family re-enacts Émile’s last moments

Police summoned 17 family members, neighbours and witnesses to Haut-Vernet to re-enact the last moments before Émile disappeared.

March 30, 2024Child’s remains found in France

A hiker discovers a skull and other remains while walking in the Alps, just over a mile from where Émile was last seen. They are passed to police

March 31, 2024Émile confirmed dead

Genetic analysis confirms that the bones found are those of Émile. The discovery sparks renewed press interest, and also questions about why they were not found before given the large search in the area.

Mayor Balique said: ‘The gendarmes couldn’t have missed him with the dogs. There was even logging there in autumn. The wood cutters didn’t see anything either. It’s incomprehensible.’

His parents speak of their grief via their lawyer, who said: ‘This heartbreaking news was feared… (They) know on this Resurrection Sunday that Émile watches over them in the light and tenderness of God.’

February 8, 2025Émile’s funeral

Hundreds of people attended Émile’s funeral on February 8.

Among them were his entire family, including little sister Alaïs, nearly three years old, and his brother Vincent, who was born in October.

March 22, 2025Priest who baptised Émile kills himself

Father Claude Gilliot, the 85-year-old Catholic priest who baptised Émile and later fell out with the toddler’s grandfather, killed himself.

His sister said: ‘Claudine Vandenbroucke, said: ‘I’m very angry with Émile’s family, because I think it all started with them.’

March 25, 2025grandparents arrested on suspicion of murder

Philippe and Anne Vedovini, the grandparents who were minding Émile when he disappeared, were arrested in dawn raids near Marseilles.

They, along with two of their children – Émile’s aunts or uncles – were held on suspicion of murder and concealing a body.

March 27, 2025grandparents released without charge

After two days of questioning, police released Émile’s relatives without charge.

March 27, 2025prosecutor says Émle was ‘transported and deposited’

In only the second press conference since the investigation began in July 2023, public prosecutor Jean-Luc Blachon said: ‘The clothes and bones discovered were transported and deposited shortly before their discovery.’

Evidence on Émile’s skull suggested a ‘violent facial trauma’.

Blachon said: ‘The expert reports introduce the probability of the intervention of a third party in the disappearance and death of Emile Soleil.’

When did Émile Soleil go missing?

Neighbours last saw Émile walking Haut-Vernet’s only street around 5.15pm on Saturday, July 8, in 2023. He was wearing a yellow t-shirt and white shorts.

His grandmother, Anne Vedovini, now 59, said there were ‘fifteen minutes of inattention’ when Émile disapeared while under her care.

A witness claims to have seen grandfather Philippe Vedovini, also 59, cutting wood outside the house around this time.

Where was Émile found?

The remains were found in the Auches Ravine, just over a mile from where Émile was last seen playing.

This area had been part of the massive search for Émile, although the prosecutor said he could not confirm that exact area had been scoured.

Gilles Thézan, a resident of Haut-Vernet, told Le Parisien: ‘There’s a trick going on.Everything was raked from top to bottom.

‘I say that the little one died and that someone went to hide him there much later.

‘We’re going to have to find the culprit. Now that we have found little Émile, the police will be able to speed up their investigation, even with what remains of the body.’

Marie-Laure Pezant, a spokeswoman for the local gendarmerie (police) told French TV that it was possible the bones had been placed there by a person, but it could also have been by an animal. Or they could even have ended up there due to changing weather conditions.

It is also possible that they were simply missed during the search last year, when undergrowth during the summer was thicker.

Jean-Luc Blachon, the Aix-en-Provence prosecutor, said he could confirm that area was searched ‘but not using drones or specialised dogs.’

He added: ‘At this time, we cannot say whether Émile’s body was already in the searched area. I cannot say that every square meter was searched.

‘The topography there is difficult with steep slopes making observation and excavation difficult.

‘It was also very hot in July 2023, with temperatures of more than 30°C in the shade. which could have affected the effectiveness of the tracking dogs and infrared cameras’.

Police commander Pierre-Yves Bardy told reporters yesterday: ‘We’re looking for any trace and any clue.’

However, their investigation may be hampered by the fact that the woman who found the remains picked up the skull and took it away in a plastic bag to alert police, thus disturbing a potential crime scene.

‘It would have been better if she hadn’t touched anything,’ a source told Le Figaro.

Why were the grandparents been arrested?

Philippe and Anne Vedovini were arrested, along with two of their children, Émile’s aunts or uncles – during dawn raids of their home in Marseilles on Tuesday, March 25.

Held on suspicion of murder and concealing a body, their arrests reportedly followed months of wiretaps that allowed police to listen into the family’s conversations.

They were released without charge two days later.

Investigators have conducted 287 witness interviews, carried out 50 searches, followed up 3,141 reports and combed around 285 hectares, the public prosecutor said on Thursday, March 27.

It was only the second press conference they have given since the search for Émile began in July 2023. The first was when his body was found last year.

Police could take the Vedovinis back into custody at any point in the investigation.

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Émile Soleil’s bones and clothes were dumped ‘shortly before their discovery’, French investigators revealed after releasing his grandparents without charge following their arrest on suspicion of murder this week.

Philippe and Anne Vedovini, both 59, were taken into custody on suspicion of murder and concealing a body during an early morning raid of their home near Marseilles on Tuesday.

Two of their 10 children were also arrested. Émile’s parents were not among them.

Émile had been staying with his grandparents at their holiday home in the hamlet of Haut-Vernet, south of Grenoble, when he went missing in July 2023.

He was found dead with a fractured skull, which bore a bite mark, roughly a mile away nine months later in March last year.

‘The clothes and bones discovered were transported and deposited shortly before their discovery’, public prosecutor Jean-Luc Blachon said after the grandparents’ release on Thursday.

‘The child’s body did not decompose in the clothes found in the forest. These elements allow us to consider that the body did not remain in the same place and in the same biotope during the decomposition process.’

His skull showed signs of a ‘violent facial trauma’, Blachon said in what was only the second press conference since the investigation began in July 2023.

Although investigators are not ruling out manslaughter, they do believe someone was involved in Soleil’s death.

Blachon said: ‘The expert reports introduce the probability of the intervention of a third party in the disappearance and death of Emile Soleil.’

Speaking after the grandparents’ release without charge, Mr Vedovini’s lawyer, Isabelle Colombani, said: ‘It’s a relief for them, and for their lawyers too. I have never been too worried.

‘I thought we could explaine everything. There were maybe some grey areas to clear up, but that’s it.’

Julien Pinelli, Ms Vedovini’s defence barrister, described the release as ‘naturally a huge relief’, saying: ‘She is walking away free.’

Although the initial 72-hour detention period has expired, police could renew the couple’s custody at any time during the investigation.

Ms Vedovini has previously admitted there were ‘fifteen minutes of inattention’ while Émile was in their care on the day he disappeared.

A witness claims to have seen Mr Vedovini, a physiotherapist-osteopath,cutting wood outside the house around the time Émile is thought to have gone missing.

The discovery of Émile’s body, with his clothes scattered over several metres nearby, sparked speculation that he may have been attacked by wolves.

Others suspect he may have died from hunger, thirst or exhaustion after wandering off and getting lost in the wilderness, French newspaper Le Parisien reported.

A Catholic priest who baptised Émile before his death, and later fell out with Mr Vedovini, killed himself on Saturday.

Father Claude Gilliot, 85, had frequently expressed his upset over the murder.

His sister, Claudine Vandenbroucke, said: ‘I’m very angry with Émile’s family, because I think it all started with them.’

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‘War plans’ shared by top Trump officials on an infiltrated Signal group chat have been published for the first time.

Ever since Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg revealed he’d accidentally been included in a group chat where plans for air strikes against Houthi militias were discussed, Trump’s team has denied the information was ‘classified’.

‘Nobody was texting war plans’, Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday.

President Donald Trump himself weighed in to say: ‘It wasn’t classified information.’

But the messages, published today by The Atlantic, tell a different story.

Opening the chat, national security adviser Mike Waltz said he was ‘establishing a principles group for coordination on Houthis’.

The Houthis are an Iran-backed militia in Yemen, from where they have been launching missiles against US ally Israel and western shipping through the Red Sea.

In the chat, Hegseth, Waltz, Vice President JD Vance, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, discussed whether to move ahead with air strikes against the Houthis in order reopen shipping lanes. They agreed.

Then came almost minute-by-minute detail of US military operations on March 15.

‘Weather is favourable’, Hegseth said at 11.44am. ‘Just CONFIRMED w/ CENTCOM we are a GO for mission launch.’

In half an hour, he said, F-18 fighter jets would set off to launch a strike on a ‘target terrorist’ two hours after his message was sent.

By 2.15pm, more F-18s would have been dispatched, and drones would be ‘definitely’ dropping bombs, he told the group.

‘I will say a prayer for victory’, Vance replied.

Later, Waltz revealed the ‘first target’ – the Houthis’ ‘top missile guy’ – had walked into a building before it collapsed from the US military’s first strike.

But it may not have gone to plan had Goldberg been ‘someone hostile to American interests—or someone merely indiscreet, and with access to social media’, the journalist wrote in The Atlantic today.

Maybe, as Trump’s team says, the information revealed to Goldberg wasn’t classified’, but this could have meant ‘the Houthis would have had time to prepare for what was meant to be a surprise attack on their strongholds’.

Goldberg said: ‘The consequences for American pilots could have been catastrophic.’

Dr Steve Hewitt, an expert in American security and intelligence at the University of Birmingham, was stunned when he first read the Signal messages.

He told Metro: ‘There was a mention of one target having entered a building where his girlfriend lived.

‘That speaks to maybe even human intelligence on the ground, which then potentially could put people at risk – US agents or wherever that information came from.

‘I imagine there’s a fair bit of anger in the intelligence community in the US, because obviously secrecy is of paramount importance.

‘I’m sure if these were junior officials who had done this, they would likely be facing disciplinary action or being fired, or even potentially being prosecuted, so to see senior people do this so casually, it’s really stunning.’

Waltz has sought to downplay the significance.

Responding to the publication of the messages, he wrote on social media: ‘No locations. No sources & methods. NO WAR PLANS. Foreign partners had already been notified that strikes were imminent. BOTTOM LINE: President Trump is protecting America and our interests.’

The US National Security Council has confirmed the text chain ‘appears to be authentic’.

Senator Gary Peters, the most senior Democrat on the Senate security committee, said: ‘This is a flagrant failure and a huge breach of national security.

‘Our servicemembers deserve more from those in command. The carelessness of this level is simply unacceptable.’

Members of the group chat appear to be shifting the blame to Hegseth.

‘The Secretary of Defense is the original classification authority for determining whether something is classified’, CIA Director John Ratcliffe testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee.

‘As I’ve understood from media reports, the Secretary of Defense has said the information was not classified.’

Classified or not, it was only last month that the National Security Agencywarned employees about the ‘vulnerability’ of using Signal.

An internal bulletin said: ‘The use of Signal by common targets of surveillance and espionage activity has made the application a high value target to intercept sensitive information.’

While the messages sent on the platform are encrypted, the phones individuals use it on are susceptible to hacking.

Government-grade software like Pegasus can track keys, while phishing scams can give hackers access to devices.

Even a simple phone snatching could give access to the platform if the device is unlocked.

‘It’s just carelessness’, Hewitt told Metro. ‘I don’t know if you can call it a rookie mistake.’

Testifying before the Senate today, Gabbard said: ‘It was a mistake that a reporter was inadvertently added to a Signal chat with high-level national security principles having a policy discussion about imminent strikes against the Houthis and the effects of the strike.

‘National security adviser has taken full responsibility for this, and the National Security Council is conducting an in depth review, along with tech, technical experts working to determine how this reporter was inadvertently added to this chat.

‘The conversation was candid and sensitive, but as the president, national security adviser stated, no classified information was shared.

‘There were no sources, methods, locations or war plans that were shared. This was a standard update to the national security cabinet that was provided alongside updates that were given to foreign partners in the region.’

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US Vice President JD Vance is visiting Greenland with his wife this week in the latest show of power since Donald Trump said he wants to buy the Arctic island.

Second lady Usha Vance was due to pop over with US officials to ‘celebrate Greenlandic culture and unity’ by seeing historical sites and a dogsled race.

That already drew the ire of politicians from this territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Outgoing Prime Minister Múte Egede called it ‘highly aggressive’, while his like successor called it ‘a lack of respect’.

But now Trump’s team are turning up the heat after JD Vance decided to tag along.

In a video posted to social media, he said: ‘I didn’t want [Usha] to have all that fun by herself, and so I’m going to join her.

‘I’m going to visit some of our guardians in the space force on the northwest coast of Greenland, and also just check out what’s going on with the security there of Greenland.’

Why does Donald Trump want Greenland?

Although the world’s largest island is home to just 57,000 – mostly indigenous Inuit – people, its natural resources and geographic position make it increasingly alluring for global powers.

‘I think Greenland is going to be something that maybe is in our future’, Trump recently said. He has refused to rule out using military force.

Trump has been eyeing up the island since 2019, but he’s not the first US President to want it.

The United States tried buying it in 1846, and again for the modern equivalent of £970million in 1946 when the Cold War was gathering pace.

Both times they were knocked back, but Greenland was seen has having such strategic importance in countering the Soviet Union, the US maintained a military presence there anyway.

With Denmark’s agreement, the US operate Thule Air Base, capable of sending American bombers across the Artic to strike the Soviet Union, and to detect missiles coming the other way.

There was also another base, a secret one, buried in a glacier 150 miles away.

Supposedly a research facility, Camp Century was actually supposed to house nuclear weapons able to launch through the ice sheet.

They were never put there in the end, and this outpost has since been abandoned.

While Thule still exists – albeit now called Pituffik Space Base – the fact Camp Century was lost 100 feet below the surface, until a team of Nasa scientists found it again last year, says something about changing international relations.

Even as the Cold War ebbed and flowed, maintaining nuclear weapons this far north wasn’t seen as vital.

But now the ice sheets are melting, making the surrounding waterways more navigable, and easing access to resources – uranium, iron, fossil fuels – hidden beneath.

Meanwhile tensions with Russia are higher than any time since the Cold War, and China – the USA’s new main rival – is seeking to invest in Greenland.

That might explain why Vance, ahead of his visit, said: ‘A lot of other countries have threatened Greenland, have threatened to use its territories and waterways to threaten the United States, to threaten Canada and of course to threaten the people of Greenland, so we’re going to check out how things are going there.

‘And I say that, speaking for President Trump, we want to reinvigorate the security of the people of Greenland because we think it’s important to protecting the security of the entire world.

‘Unfortunately, leaders in both American and in Denmark I think ignored Greenland for far too long.

‘That’s been bad for Greenland, it’s also been bad for the security of the entire world. We think we can take things in a different direction, so I’m going to go check it out.’

Who owns Greenland?

Trump might be insistent about buying Greenland for ‘national security’, saying in January: ‘I think Greenland will be worked out with us. I think we’re going to have it. And I think the people want to be with us.’

But the people of Greenland aren’t so keen. Roughly 85% oppose joining the USA, with nearly half seeing Trump’s interest as a threat.

‘What is the national security adviser doing in Greenland’, Prime Minister Múte Egede said in relation to US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz joining the Vance visit this week.

‘The only purpose is to demonstrate power over us. His mere presence in Greenland will no doubt fuel American belief in Trump’s mission – and the pressure will increase’

His party may have lost this month’s election, but his likely successor Jens-Frederik Nielsen agrees.

Nielsen said: ‘The fact that the Americans know very well that we are still in a negotiating situation and that the municipal elections have not yet concluded, they still capitalize on the moment to come to Greenland, once again, which shows a lack of respect for the Greenlandic population.’

Although Greenlanders are largely united in their opposition to US interference, they aren’t the only ones with a say.

Greenland has been ruled by Denmark – nearly 3,000km away – since several waves of colonisation in the 1700s.

Now a largely automous self-governing territory with representation in Denmark’s national parliament, Greenland has controlled its own internal affairs for decades.

But foreign relations are still overseen by Denmark, despite recent pushes for Greenlandic independence,

Denmark then, is likely to have some say in Greenland’s future. According to Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, that future appears not to be with the US.

‘Greenland is not for sale’, she said in a TV interview. ‘I want to make it very clear, that seen with the eyes of the Danish government, Greenland is for the Greenlandic people.

‘It is a very proud people, a language and culture, it is a people that is their own.’

Is Greenland part of NATO?

Yes. Greenland is a part of NATO, because it is a part of Denmark – which is a NATO member.

This means if Trump were to ‘not rule out military action’, as he’s previously said, and take Greenland by force, it could spark a war.

Article Five of the NATO treaty says if a member state is attacked, it’s considered an attack on all members – who will then assist the attacked member in the fight.

Is there a US base in Greenland?

Yes. Previously known as Thule Air Base, the US-operated Pituffik Space Base is one of the most remote US military bases and the only one in Greenland.

With 150 Air Force and Space Force personnel permanently stationed here, it has radar capable of detecting ballistic missiles almost as soon as they have taken off.

Sat on the northwest of Greenland, where temperatures drop below -34°C in winter, the closest settlement is 70 miles away in Qaanaaq, home to no more than 650 people.

What is ‘Red White and Blueland’?

A Republican Congressman introduced legislation that would authorize Trump to enter into negotiations to acquire the autonomous territory of Denmark and rename it based on the US flag.

‘America is back and will soon be bigger than ever with the addition of Red, White, and Blueland,’ stated Rep Buddy Carter, 67, of Georgia.

‘President Trump has correctly identified the purchase of what is now Greenland as a national security priority, and we will proudly welcome its people to join the freest nation to ever exist when our Negotiator-in-Chief inks this monumental deal.’

The Red, White, and Blueland Act of 2025 directs the Secretary of the Interior to oversee that Greenland is renamed in federal documents and maps within 180 days.

‘Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, or other record of the United States to Greenland shall be deemed to be a reference to
13 ‘‘Red, White, and Blueland’’.

The bill must first be studied by a committee before it can go for a vote in the House. It would then go to the Senate.

It is being considered by lawmakers even as Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has repeatedly said that the Arctic island is ‘not for sale’.

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European countries are lining up to warn their transgender citizens about travel to the USA amid fears of ‘indefinite detention’ at the border.

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump declared the US would only recognise two genders, the firing shot in an assault on LGBT+ rights in the US, which has included scrapping a directive preventing discrimination, and a ban on transgender people serving in the military.

This may create a stumbling block for transgender and non-binary travellers, whose visas, passports and other documents are now expected to list their ‘sex at birth’.

People whose legal gender differs from that, or who have an ‘X’ mark instead of ‘M’ or ‘F’, there is a fear they could be difficulty if they try to enter the US.

‘Confiscation of your passport and indefinite detention in an ICE facility is a real possibility’,TransActual director jane fae told Metro.

Among a series of people detained at the US border this month is a French scientist denied entry after immigration officials found messages critical of Trump’s policies on his phone.

It’s prompted numerous countries in Europe, including France, Ireland and Germany, to warn their transgender citizens about travel to the US.

A spokesperson for LGBT+ rights charity Stonewall Spokesperson told Metro: ‘LGBTQ+ people across the world are facing uncertain and turbulent times.

‘It is deeply troubling that one of the US President’s first actions upon taking office was to deny the existence of trans, non-binary and intersex people – a stance with alarming historical parallels.

‘As the US and other countries adopt regressive and harmful policies that threaten to roll back rights, it is important that governments adapt advice for their LGBTQ+ citizens so they can make informed decisions about travel and keep as safe as possible when they choose to do so.’

An update to the website of Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs on Monday said: ‘ESTA and visa application forms to the US require travellers to declare their sex.

‘The US authorities have indicated that this should reflect the traveller’s biological sex at birth.

‘Travellers who have an “X” marker on their passport or whose sex on their passport differs from sex assigned at birth should contact the Embassy of the United States of America in Dublin for further details on specific entry requirements.’

Full list of European countries warning transgender people about travel to the USA:

• Austria
• Denmark
• France
• Germany
• Ireland
• Norway
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• The Netherlands

Some countries like the UK, and the USA’s Nato partner Canada, haven’t issued US-specific guidance for transgender citizens, which a transgender rights charity has called a ‘dereliction of duty’.

However, they do offer general guidance warning transgender people they could face issues with travel documents in countries where transgender people are not recognised.

This is a marked contrast with the specific advice issued by the UK in 2016 when North Carolina passed a bill banning transgender people from using bathrooms aligned with their gender identity, and Mississippi introduced a law allowing anti-LGBT+ discrimination.

TransActual director jane fae said: ‘Back in 2016, when the risks to travellers were less than today, the government, through its regular Foreign & Commonwealth Office briefs, issued a warning to LGBTQ+ travellers to North Carolina and Mississipi that was considerably more direct than anything government is doing today.

‘This advice stayed up until some point in 2017, when we were looking to appease an incoming Trump administration, and it was taken down.

‘Today, the risks to LGBTQ+ travellers are significantly greater. Confiscation of your passport and indefinite detention in an ICE facility is a real possibility.

‘Yet government is content to issue an anaemic warning that does not touch the seriousness of the situation.

‘They are putting lives at risk. In addition, by not issuing an official warning, those who are aware of the dangers and now wish to cancel their holiday bookings cannot obtain refunds.

‘This is dereliction of duty. It demonstrates yet again that government’s much touted ‘reset’ of relations with the LGBTQ+ community is just so much hollow rhetoric. If they truly want a reset, they need to do much better.’

British woman Rebecca Burke, 28, spent 19 days in detention for falling foul of border security while trying to leave the USA after working in return for accommodation, a violation of her visa.

This crackdown appears not to be limited to those breaking immigration rules, however.

Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian student at New York’s Columbia University, was detained by immigration enforcement agents who took him from his home on campus to a detention facility in Louisiana.

He has not been charged with any crime, but President Trump is pushing to have him deported, indicting it would be the first of many deportations of pro-Palestinian protesters 

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A 14-year-old boy has died after a crash involving a car and his bike near Bristol.

Leyton Coombs was seriously injured in the collision on Great Stoke Way, in Stoke Gifford, just north of the city, around 7.40pm on Tuesday last week.

He died in hospital on Sunday, police today revealed.

More than £5,000 have been raised through a GoFundMe set up for Leyton’s family by his mother’s friend Jade Hall.

Jade said: ‘I’m setting this up for my best friend who tragically lost her eldest child at just 14 years old after being hit off his pushbike by a car on March 18.

‘I just want to take a massive load off hers & her partner and family’s shoulders by raising as much money as possible to fund the funeral and other expenses.. just want them to be able to grieve.’

Yate Town Football Club said it was ‘saddened to hear of the passing’ of Leyton, in a Facebook post sharing the fundraiser.

In a statement, police said: ‘Our thoughts are with Leyton’s family at this devastating time.

‘They are being supported by a specially trained officer and will be kept updated as our investigation progresses.’

Police are appealing for witnesses of the crash, or anyone with footage of it, to come forward.

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The grandparents of a two-year-old boy found dead in the French Alps have been arrested on suspicion of murder.

Émile Soleil was staying at Philippe and Anne Vedovini’s isolated holiday home in the hamlet of Haut-Vernet, south of Grenboble, when he went missing in July 2023.

He was found dead with a fractured skull, which bore a bite mark, roughly a mile away nine months later in March last year.

Early this morning, police raided the grandparents’ home near Marseille where they arrested them on suspicion of murder and concealing the body.

Two of their nine children were arrested nearby.

In a statement, prosecutors said: ‘This morning, Philippe Vedovini and his wife, grandparents of Émile Soleil, along with two of their adult children, were taken into custody.

‘These police custody placements are part of a phase of verification and comparison of the evidence and information gathered during the investigations carried out in recent months.

The statement adds: ‘Investigators are also conducting forensic operations in various locations across the country.’

Mr Vedovini, a physiotherapist-osteopath, was seen by a witness cutting wood outside the Haut-Vernet house around the time Émile is thought to have disappeared.

The two-year-old went missing while under the supervision of his grandmother, who admitted there were ‘fifteen minutes of inattention’.

It had been considered possible Émile had wandered off and got lost in the wilderness.

The discovery of his clothes scattered over several metres near his body led to speculation among locals that he had been attacked by wolves.

Others suggested he had died from hunger, thirst or exhaustion, French newspaper Le Parisien reported.

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A motorcyclist died in mix of sewage and sand after being swallowed by a sinkhole spanning four lanes of a road in South Korea.

The 33-year-old man fell into the 65.62ft-deep hole when it opened above a subway tunnel, currently under construction in the capital Seoul.

He was found buried beneath dirt, debris and construction equipment 50 metres from where he fell in on Monday.

It took 18 hours to recover his body from a mix of sewage water and sand with the help of diving teams and rescue dogs.

A second person, the driver of a car, narrowly escaped with minor injuries.

Dash cam footage showed the car plunge into sinkhole as it opened beneath it in the Gangdong-gu area of the city.

But it bounced against the tarmac and back onto the solid road

It was followed closely by the motorcyclist who, despite thrusting their feet against the road to slow their speed, couldn’t avoid the chasm.

Car driver Heo Mo, 48, told the Dong-A Ilbo newspaper: ‘I heard thunder from somewhere while I was driving and then I lost consciousness for about 10 seconds.

‘When I came to, I couldn’t see a single car in front of me, and when I looked back, I saw a large hole.

‘I tried to move forward again because I was afraid the car would fall into the hole again, but the car wouldn’t move and the door wouldn’t open, so I barely managed to get out through the window.

‘The accident happened before I had time to step on the brakes. I think I was able to avoid falling into the sinkhole because the car didn’t stop and kept going forward.’

What caused the sinkhole to open beside a flower shop and petrol station is unclear. The incident is under investigation.

Around 2,000 tons of sand and water had mixed together inside the hole, hampering search and rescue efforts. Firefighters pumped roughly 1,800 tons of water from the hole.

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The journalist who was added to a group chat which divulged US war plans in Yemen said he is considering whether or not to release the full messages.

Editor in Chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, told the Bulwark Podcast today: ‘My colleagues and I and the people who are giving us advice on this have some interesting conversations to have about this.

‘But just because they’re irresponsible with material, doesn’t mean that I’m going to be irresponsible,’ he added.

Earlier today, President Donald Trump defended a key member of his cabinet after texts about military strikes in Yemen were leaked in a group chat which included the editor-in-chief of a major magazine.

Speaking to NBC, Trump said: ‘Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man,’ before adding, ‘It’s the only glitch in two months, and it turned out not to be a serious one.’

Mr Trump initially told reporters he was not aware that the highly sensitive information had been shared, more than two hours after it was reported. He later appeared to joke about the breach.

It’s a ‘need-to-know’ type conversation, limited to Vice President JD Vance, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

Encrypted messaging platform Signal should be a relatively secure place for the top ranks of Donald Trump’s administration to share details of the targets and weapons in a planned bombing campaign against the Houthis.

And, it turns out, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine, Jeffrey Goldberg – or, as Hegseth calls him, a deceitful and highly discredited so-called journalist who has made a profession of peddling hoaxes’.

But this leaking of potentially classified ‘war plans’ is no hoax. According to the National Security Council, the text chain ‘appears to be authentic’.

Senator Gary Peters, the most senior Democrat on the Senate security committee, said: ‘This is a flagrant failure and a huge breach of national security.

‘Our servicemembers deserve more from those in command. The carelessness of this level is simply unacceptable.’

President Trump appears not to care, branding The Atlantic ‘not much of a magazine’ and telling reporters: ‘I know nothing about it.’

On his Truth Social platform, he shared an X post by his ally, tech billionaire Elon Musk, saying: ‘Best place to hide a dead body is page 2 of The Atlantic Magazine, because no one ever goes there.’

Messages had detailed plans for military strikes against the Iran-backed Houthi militias who have launched missile attacks from Yemen against Israel and Red Sea shipping, in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza.

The US has conducted air strikes against the Houthis since the militant group began targeting commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea in November 2023.

Hegseth insists: ‘Nobody was texting war plans.’

Even Goldberg was sceptical, saying he ‘could not believe that the national-security leadership of the United States would communicate on Signal about imminent war plans’.

But just two hours after Goldberg received the details of the attack on March 15, the US began launching a series of air strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

It was not immediately clear if the specifics of the military operation were classified, but they often are and at the least are kept secure to protect service members and operational security.

The National Security Council said in a statement that it was looking into how a journalist’s number was added to the chain in the Signal group chat, which included Tulsi Gabbard, Mr Trump’s director of national intelligence, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Goldberg said he received the Signal invitation from Mike Waltz, Trump’s national security adviser, who was also in the group chat.

In a statement late on Monday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said the president still has the ‘utmost confidence’ in Waltz and the national security team.

Trump told reporters he was not aware of the apparent breach in protocol: ‘I know nothing about it,’ he said, adding that The Atlantic was ‘not much of a magazine’.

Government officials have used Signal for organisational correspondence, but it is not classified and can be hacked.

Privacy and tech experts say the popular end-to-end encrypted messaging and voice call app is more secure than conventional texting.

The sharing of sensitive information comes as Defence Secretary Hegseth’s office has just announced a crackdown on leaks of sensitive information.

The breach in protocol was swiftly condemned by Democratic legislators.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for a full investigation, saying: ‘This is one of the most stunning breaches of military intelligence I have read about in a very, very long time.’

The handling of national defence information is strictly governed by law under the century-old Espionage Act.

The act includes provisions that make it a crime to remove such information from its ‘proper place of custody’ even through an act of gross negligence.

The Justice Department in 2015 and 2016 investigated whether former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton broke the law by communicating classified information with her aides on a private email server she set up.

The FBI ultimately recommended against charges, but none were brought.

In the Biden administration, some officials were given permission to download Signal on their White House-issued phones but were instructed to use the app sparingly, according to a former national security official who served in the Democratic administration.

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A man was charged with escaping police custody after he decided to head home when nobody turned up to take him to prison.

Shaun Molland, 38, was given a 16-week prison sentence at Newton Abbott Magistrates’ Court in Devon.

He was told to wait outside for a prison van to take him to jail, but after an hour and a half nobody turned up.

So instead he walked home.

It seems Serco, a private company with the prison contract, doesn’t attend that particular court on Tuesdays, Molland’s lawyer William Parkhill said.

That meant Molland was left waiting, even after watching the judge go home and staff lock up.

At that point, around 5.30pm on January 28, he decided he too would go home.

‘He did contact the police a few days later and he was picked up by arrangement’, Parkhill said.

That allowed him to start his sentence, but it also landed him with a charge for escaping custody.

Molland, Westhill Avenue, Torquay, reluctantly admitted that charge and was handed a one-day concurrent sentence.

Although the court had no cells to keep him overnight, and prison staff had no powers to detain him, his lawyer accepted Molland should have waited.

Judge Stephen Climie described it as an unusual set of circumstances, telling Exeter Crown Court: Molland it seems was left wondering what to do next. The sentence won’t impact upon his release.’

Molland is due for release from prison today.

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The UK will be hotter than major Mediterranean tourist destinations this week, according to Met Office weather forecasts.

Brits love bemoaning the UK’s gloomy weather, with wind, rain and overcast skies keeping us wrapping up warm and hiding inside for months on end.

Even in summer, the weather is so unreliable, we lose our cool – and our t-shirts – to bask in the sun on our day-long heatwaves.

Otherwise we just hop on a budget airline flight and flee to the Mediterranean to catch a depression-beating tan.

But tough luck if you’ve booked an escape for this week, because the roles are set to be reversed.

Parts of the south and northeast of England are predicted to have temperatures up to 18°C.

That’s hotter than places like Nice on France’s south coast, Palermo in Sicily, the island of Malta, and even Algiers on the north coast of Africa.

‘We will see increasing sunny spells across the south, central and northern parts of England and Wales’, Met Office forecaster Oli Claydon said.

‘There will be highs of 16C and 17C in the early part of this week anywhere the sun shines.

‘There’s a chance of maybe scratching into 18C in the southeast and London. Wednesday will be largely settled.

‘There will be a good deal of cloud around to start the day but that will break up and lift and we will see some sunny spells developing up through the afternoon.’

But be warned – this sunny weather won’t last long.

Just like last week’s 21°C – the hottest day of the year, and warmest spring equinox since 1972 – quickly gave way to grey days and chilly nights, temperatures will drop again by Thursday.

Clayton said: ‘The real sort of change in weather really starts on Friday where we see more in the way of unsettled weather, with rain moving across all parts of the UK and also some quite breezy conditions with low pressure.

‘The weekend is looking to remain with rain in the forecast.

‘There could be sunny spells at times through the weekend but there will be large amounts of cloud around and outbreaks of rain as well.’

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EuroMillions winner Adrian Bayford has scrapped plans to build a children’s theme park on his country estate.

The 54-year-old former postman won a £148 million jackpot with his then-wife Gillian in 2012, before their relationship fell apart.

After building a vineyard the size of six football pitched, Bayford wanted to go even bigger with his Horseheath Lodge estate in Cambridgeshire.

Plans included the demolition of six farm buildings so a train ride, renewable energy-themed play barn, maze and car park could be built.

But the latest plans appeared too ambitious, even for an estate that once hosted Elizabeth I and her entourage.

It would just be far too ‘urban’ for a country house 19km southeast of Cambridge, according to responses to a public consultation.

‘The proposal lacks integration into what remains a site of rural character’, said a submission from BNE Urban Design.

‘Long views towards the development is of particular importance as well as the total composition needing to retain a high percentage of softness in the landscape between the various built-form elements.

‘Through car dependency and increased footfall associated with new retail uses the character shifts substantially away from a rural character.’

A 90-vehicle carpark on the site would drive ‘excess traffic’ that ‘would increase the risk to safety’, the parish council said.

Its location on a floodplain would also bring ‘a risk of surface water flooding’ due to no apparent connection for ‘foul water or surface water drainage’.

Development of the site could also potentially have harmed historic artefacts buried underground.

Cambridgeshire Council’s archaeological officer said: ‘The development
area has potential to contain prehistoric remains with a cropmarks indicating the presence of ring ditch to the adjacent north.’

Just two weeks after these responses were submitted, Bayford withdrew his application.

He hasn’t refiled since, suggesting an end to his dreams of having his very own themepark.

Bayford moved into the the £6.5million Grade II listed Georgian house, with 189 acres of land, 13 years ago.

At one point, he was so lonely, he would spend his days locked up inside, eating 50 Cornish pasties a week.

He reportedly moved out in 2019 to be closer to his kids and ex-wife Gillian.

The couple had been full of smiles when spraying champagne to celebrate their EuroMillions win in 2012. Their jackpot is the sixth largest lottery prize in UK history.

After splitting up, Adrian launched a relationship with ex-horse groom Samantha Burbidge, who is 16 years younger than him.

He also dated waitress Lisa Kemp, but she dumped him after discovering saucy messages sent to his ex Marta Jarosz.

Now he is with Tracey Biles, a 46-year-old said to be the mastermind behind the vineyard and theme park plans.

Gillian herself has been rather unlucky with love.

Convicted of threatening her ex-boyfriend Gavin Innes during a trial in 2020, she pushed, shouted at and struggled with the domestic abuse charity worker on two separate occasions in October 2017.

Last year she ditched her new husband Brian Deans after the convicted fraudster ‘threw money left, right and centre’ on expensive cars, watches, and trips with friends.

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Donald Trump has demanded the removal of a ‘purposefully distorted’ presidential portrait hung in the Colorado State Capitol.

The 78-year-old is seething at his predecessor Barack Obama looking better than him on a wall of portraits of US presidents.

‘He looks wonderful’, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform last night. ‘But the one on me is truly the worst.’

For the first two-and-a-half years of Trump’s last term in office, his face was noticeably absent from the gallery.

Portraits are funded by private donations, not public funds, and none had been forthcoming.

That was until a portrait of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin appeared in front of Trump’s spot in July 2018, courtesy of an activist from ProgressNow Colorado, who snuck in.

Suddenly, fuelled by anger, the money flowed. Within 32 hours, the $10,000 target had been reached.

‘It’s only fitting that a populist, such as the president, would have the first crowd-funded campaign for a presidential portrait’, former state senate president Kevin Grantham, who led the fundraising, said.

Commissioned to paint it was Sarah A. Boardman, a British-born artist , now based in Colorado Springs, who painted the Obama portrait during his time in office.

She had stepped up to the job after Lawrence Williams, who painted the previous 43, died in 2003.

At the time, her portrait of Trump seemed to go down well when it was unveiled in August 2019.

Boardman said: ‘My portrait of President Trump has been called thoughtful, non-confrontational, not angry, not happy, not tweeting,

‘In five, 10, 15, 20 years, he will be another President on the wall who is only historical background, and he needs to look neutral.’

For his allies, like state representative Kevin Van Winkle, it was ‘a great day to be an American’.

Almost six years on, Trump appears to have decided he doesn’t agree, accusing the portrait of being ‘purposefully distorted to a level that even I, perhaps, have never seen before’.

‘Nobody likes a bad picture or painting of themselves’, he wrote on social media.

‘The artist also did President Obama, and he looks wonderful, but the one on me is truly the worst. She must have lost her talent as she got older.

‘In any event, I would much prefer not having a picture than having this one, but many people from Colorado have called and written to complain.

‘In fact, they are actually angry about it! I am speaking on their behalf to the Radical Left Governor, Jared Polis, who is extremely weak on Crime, in particular with respect to Tren de Aragua, which practically took over Aurora (Don’t worry, we saved it!), to take it down.

‘Jared should be ashamed of himself!’

Trump last week revived the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to speed up mass deportations to tackle what he claims is an ‘invasion’ by Tren De Aragua, an international criminal organisation from Venezuela.

It was last used to intern 120,000 Americans of Japanese heritage during World War Two.

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Could there be a ‘vast underground city’ beneath the Pyramids of Giza?

Egypt’s desert holds many secrets, even after centuries of excavation and graverobbing.

The last undiscovered tomb of the Tutankhamun dynasty was only confirmed to belong to pharaoh Thutmose II earlier this year.

Around half of the known pharaoh’s burial sites are yet to be found.

Even the river that allowed the pyramids to be built along its banks has vanished into the sand.

That made the way two-and-a-half million 2.5 ton blocks of granite were moved to build the Great Pyramid of Giza seem mysterious, until the older course of the River Nile was mapped last year much further to the west than it runs today.

Lingering questions of where, how and why have fuelled speculation that the pyramids could point towards alien intervention or lost civilisation, and advanced technologies of which we can only imagine.

Now researchers claim they have discovered ‘the legendary halls of Amenti’ – in other words, the underworld of Egyptian mythology – right beneath the pyramids of Giza.

Describing it as ‘a vast underground city’, they say the ‘unprecedented discoveries’ using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) include structures, rooms and corridors.

Listing their claimed discoveries, they said: ‘The discovery of an extensive network of vertical shafts estimated to extend at least 1km deep beneath each Great Pyramid, which appear to serve as access points to this underground system.

‘The existence of vast chambers beneath the earth’s surface, comparable in size to the pyramids themselves.

‘A remarkably strong correlation between the layout and characteristics of these underground chambers and the legendary Halls of Amenti, as described in ancient myths, including those associated with the god Thoth.’

New, unpublished research from Corrado Malanga from Italy’s University of Pisa, Filippo Biondi with the University of Strathclyde in Scotland and Egyptologist Armando Mei was shared with the MailOnline.

They said they have a confidence level ‘well above 85%’ that the ‘structures identified beneath the Pyramid of Khafre, as well as those beneath other pyramids on the Giza Plateau’ exist.

But not everyone sees what they do. Monica Hanna, a top Egyptologist and dean at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology & Maritime Transport, told Metro: ‘It is totally unfounded. A total scam.’

Professor Lawrence Conyers, a radar expert at the University of Denver,told MailOnline that the technology used doesn’t penetrate 1km into the ground.

‘My take is that as long as authors are not making things up and that their basic methods are correct, their interpretations should be given a look by all who care about the site,’ he said.

‘We can quibble about interpretations, and that is called science. But the basic methods need to be solid.’

The only way to prove the theory is to do targeted digs of the site, something that fact-checkers have long stressed.

Professor Lawrence Conyers, a radar expert at the University of Denver, said no claims can be made anytime soon that the structures exist.

But underground structures may exist beneath the pyramids as the site was once ‘special to ancient people’ such as the Mayans.

But these bold claims have captured the imagination of social media users who believe a range of conspiracy theories, including that aliens built the pyramids.

Another, that followers claim is proven by these researchers, is a highly advanced civilisation known as the Tatarian Empire developed infinite energy, world peace and elaborate buildings before being wiped out by mud floods and war, and then deliberately erased from history.

Devotees of this theory point to buildings as varied as the Pyramids of Giza, the White House and random churches all over the world as entry points to this supposedly lost civilisation buried beneath our feet.

Others have claimed the pyramids were ancient power plants, which one of the researchers – Corrado Malanga – appears sympathetic to.

Part of what has made this claimed discovery go viral is the proliferation of AI imagery, offering various interpretations of what hypothetical underground structures could look like.

While these latest claims lack credibility, there is some evidence of underground structures yet to be explored.

A 2024 study from Japanese and Egyptian researchers, published in Smithsonian Magazine, found what could be ‘a shallow structure connected to a deeper structure’ beneath the pyramids.

Whether it is empty or filled with sand and gravel, they do not know, but the evidence they found pointed to nothing ‘comparable in size to the pyramids themselves’, like the latest claims suggest.

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Black smoke is billowing above a Boots store in Greater Manchester due to a fire raging nearby.

The pharmacy retail chain and other stores at Altrincham Retail Park appear unscathed by the flames.

But behind it, what is understood to be a scrap yard is on fire has been on fire since midday.

Firefighters re using truck-mounted ladders to spray water from outside the perimeter.

The fire has created a thick, black plume of smoke rising into the air.

From the car park, it looks as though it’s rising from the very stores shoppers are trying to visit.

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said: ‘Around midday today, firefighters were called to reports of a fire at a commercial property on Craven Road in Altrincham.

‘Four fire engines from Stretford, Altrincham, Sale and Wythenshawe fire stations, along with the aerial appliance from Manchester Central fire station quickly arrived at the scene, where a number of vehicles had caught fire at a scrap yard.

‘Firefighters remain at the scene as they work to extinguish the fire, and ask residents to keep doors and windows closed.’

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A man arrested after explosive chemicals sparked the evacuation of seafront properties in East Sussex has been sectioned amid mental health concerns.

More than 70 people have been unable to return home to the Marina in St Leonards since the discovery on Thursday.

Chemicals found in the property were ‘desensitised’ so they could be put into a skip for a controlled burn beside the sea wall.

Another 500 cannisters contained unknown chemicals, which are not thought to be explosive.

Police do not believe this to be terror-related, despite speculation on social media that it could be linked to the Hastings Half Marathon, which is due to pass through the area currently cordoned off on Sunday.

Investigators also do not believe this is linked to the mass-production of drugs.

Instead, a 28-year-old man – arrested on suspicion of producing illegal substances and making an explosive substance for an unlawful purpose – has been detained under the mental health act.

Also known as being ‘sectioned’, this means he will have to stay in hospital until he is deemed medically suitable for release.

On Saturday afternoon, Chief Inspector James Scott said: ‘From evidence gathered so far, there is no indication that the 28-year-old man arrested intended to cause harm either to himself of anybody else.

‘We cannot put an exact timeframe of when the cordon will be reduced and residents can return to their homes but we should know more late afternoon.

‘We believe a decision on the half marathon will be made around this time.’

The half marathon organisers said: ‘We do not want to cancel the race until the latest possible moment, so we can allow it to go ahead if possible.

‘Your safety, along with that of our supporters and volunteers is our top priority.

‘We appreciate your patience and support as we work to ensure a safe and enjoyable event for all.

‘In agreement with the authorities, we are continuing with course setup while we assess the situation further.’

Bomb disposal robots and teams clad in protective gear have been spotted on the scene near where the chemicals were found.

In a statement on Saturday morning, police said: ‘On Friday afternoon, the explosive ordnance disposal team desensitised the chemicals found in the property on the A259 Marina and they are conducting a thorough search of the property for any further hazardous material.

‘The scene is not safe until this search has been completed in full and this will continue into tomorrow.

‘Public safety is our priority and the 100-metre cordon remains in place.

‘We will allow residents to return to their homes as soon as it is safe for them to do so.

‘We understand how unsettling it is for the 73 people displaced, but thank the public for their patience and understanding. We continue to liaise with Hastings borough council at the rest centre at Royal Victoria hotel.’

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We might have less than two years to prepare for war with Russia, a retired British Army general warned.

Donald Trump is withdrawing US military support for Ukraine, and he is threatening to invade his NATO allies, effectively redrawing the alliances that many feel have helped preserve peace in Europe for decades.

The less reliable the USA becomes as an ally under Trump’s presidency, the more vulnerable Europe is to an all-out Russian invasion, General Sir Richard Shirreff argues.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is prepared to exploit that, Shirreff believes, meaning the ceasefire Trump is strongarming Ukraine into will never lead to peace.

Within two years, the former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe for NATO thinks Russian tanks will ‘roll across the border into Estonia and Latvia’.

Writing for MailOnline, he said: ‘Within four hours they are approaching the Estonian capital of Tallinn.

‘The British-led Enhanced Forward Battle Group in Estonia puts up brief resistance but takes heavy losses before being overwhelmed and forced to withdraw.’

Ultimately this would lead to the UK announcing it is formally at war with Russia, with Britain’s allies in Germany, France and Italy following suit.

But years of political polarisation – often fuelled by Russian money, bot accounts and astro-turfing – may have succeeded in dividing Nato.

‘As well as Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, the US refuses to offer support’, Shirreff said.

He predicts this war won’t be contained to just countries on the peripheries of Europe.

Russia could fire its missiles at RAF bases in England and other targets in Western European countries, which launch retaliatory strikes on Russian energy and military infrastructure, while sending reinforcements to the Baltic states.

Shirreff has a rather elaborate fantasy for the next two years – from Russian troops executed in the Donbas, to another Putin landgrab in Ukraine, welcomed this time by Trump under the guise of peace.

The retired general sees a future where former boxer and mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko replaces Volodymyr Zelensky as President of Ukraine.

Klitschko, Shirreff thinks, will then use the return of all-out war to fire nuclear missiles – developed in the next two years – at Russia, destroying a city, sparking an ultranationalist coup in Moscow and the secession of various ‘vassal republics in the far east and the Caucasus’.

This, he thinks, will lead to Putin’s regime collapsing and, with it, Russia’s warmongering – never mind the fact these ultranationalists are even more hawkish and many of these vassal states are dominated by ethnic Russians.

‘Fiction this might be’, Shirreff wrote. ‘But if we duck the opportunity to become masters of our fate, it will be Putin, not us, who is in control.

‘Again, whether the West can survive depends on how well prepared we are.’

There is plenty of evidence of Russia’s desire for expansion.

At least 150,000 people – mostly civilians – were killed when Russia suppressed a war of independence in Chechnya, a region of Russia, in the 1990s.

Hundreds died and nearly 200,000 were displaced in its invasion of neighbouring Georgia in 2008. Regions of the country remain occupied.

Russia is believed to have killed more civilians in Syria than ISIS did. Roughly 25,000 died in airstrikes carried out to prop up the allied Assad dictatorship.

Fantasising about the outbreak of war by 2027, Shirreff said: ‘The hundreds of billions of euros poured into strengthening our armed forces in the past two years means we can defend ourselves – and hit back hard.’

On that, European leaders appear to already be acting by hiking spending while weighing up plans to send peacekeepers to Ukraine, with or without US support.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced an extra £13.4 billion in defence spending each year from 2027, in a statement to the House of Commons last month.

He told MPs: ‘One of the great lessons of our history is that instability in Europe will always wash up on our shores, and that tyrants like Putin will only respond to strength.’

European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen announced up to £674 billion for rearming Europe and Ukraine earlier this month.

Poland leads the way with a plan to spend 4.7% of its GDP on defence – higher than the 3.4% spent by the US last year.

France’s defence budget is expected to reach £57 billion per year by 2030, up from £42.5 billion this year.

Belgium aims to increase its defence budget from 1.3% of GDP to 2% by 2029.

Denmark has announced a £5.6 billion defence fund, and Germany – usually reluctant to confront Russia or boost military spending – is contemplating easing its debt brake to finance defence.

Much of this is coming at the cost of welfare benefits – Finland bought new fighter jets but cut out-of-work payments and housing allowances last year.

But, Shirreff warned, ‘we might have left it too late’.

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