It comes after more than 50 homes and businesses were evacuated after the explosion – the cause of which is yet to be confirmed – in Cambridge Street, Scarborough at 5.45am on Friday (May 8).

North Yorkshire Police placed a cordon on the residential road, along with Victoria Road, as emergency services worked to make the scene safe.

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The incident was described as “absolute chaos” by owner of Lillys Reptile Rescue, in Victoria Road, Dave Bigsby.

In a post on social media, he said: “I received a notification that some services were down early this morning.

“When I got there, it was absolute chaos, but I was able to go inside the cordon to check that my animals were safe and well.”

The police joined North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, multiple ambulance crews and the gas board in investigating the scene.

Their efforts were commended by Scarborough and Whitby MP, Alison Hume, who urged members of the public to stay away from the area.

She also thanked staff at The Street, a community centre in Lower Clark, for opening up their space to help evacuees.

Speaking to The Press, Benita, a representative for The Street, said: “We wanted to help those left without their homes at the minute.

“We have a hall that can fit up to 200 people, so we have plenty of space, along with lots of tea, coffee and refreshments.”

She added: “It’s been quite chaotic for everyone, with road closures and building traffic.

“We hope everyone is ok.”

Businesses within the cordon, including Aldi in Northway, were closed as a result of the explosion, with many more homes evacuated from around 6am.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service left the scene shortly after 12.45pm.

At the time of publication, the cordon was still in place while an investigation was ongoing to determine the cause of the explosion.

The project, which will see the final single-carriageway stretches of the A66 dualled between Scotch Corner and Penrith, was given the green light in July last year.

Despite being approved in summer 2025, campaigners, MPs, councillors, and members of the public have questioned when a full timetable for the dualling scheme will be revealed.

A66 near Scotch Corner (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

But, providing an update this week, the DfT said it has “confirmed our commitment to this scheme, and we expect work to begin in the period of five years from 2026/27 to 2030/31 inclusive”.

It added that “National Highways is working to commence construction by the end of 2026”.

A spokesperson from the DfT said: “More detail will be provided in due course, including later this year when National Highways publishes its Delivery Plan, expected this summer.

The A66 near Scotch Corner (Image: a66)

“These improvements will strengthen road safety, cut journey times and support businesses and freight across the North.

“A business case for the scheme will need to be approved by the Government before main works can start, as with any major Government project.

“The scheme will support the Government’s mission to kickstart economic growth, by supporting businesses and freight across the North.”

The A66 stretch near Scotch Corner (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

Campaigners and local MPs hailed the approval as a “pivotal moment” for communities across North Yorkshire, County Durham and Cumbria, where residents and businesses have long called for safety improvements and better connectivity.

When complete, the 50-mile corridor will provide a continuous dual-carriageway between the M6 and A1(M), reducing journey times by up to 12 minutes and offering greater reliability.

Previously, local MPs, including Rishi Sunak, Tim Farron and Sam Rushworth, welcomed the investment, citing safety benefits, reduced congestion and economic opportunities for their constituencies.

With at least 12 fatalities reported on the A66 since 2023 and a heavy reliance on the route by freight hauliers, campaigners say delays to the start of work could have real consequences, as 25 per cent of vehicles are HGVs.

The scheme is expected to support thousands of jobs during and after construction, and act as a catalyst for wider investment across the North.

The updates are part of a national timetable change that will take effect from Sunday, May 17, affecting routes across the North East, Yorkshire, and Lincolnshire.

Northern said changes are being made to improve punctuality and respond to passenger feedback, though most services will remain the same.

Sam MacDougall, operations director at Northern, said: “We’re tweaking and fine tuning a few services this month to improve reliability, after listening to feedback from passengers.

“We’re also introducing new Sunday services, which will run between Whitby and Newcastle and call at a range of destinations along the Durham Coast.”

He advised passengers to check before travelling, even if their usual service is not listed for major changes.

Mr MacDougall said: “There won’t be widespread changes, but the timings of some services will be altered by a few minutes so we’re advising passengers to check before they travel.”

In the North East, two new Sunday services will connect Whitby, Middlesbrough, and Newcastle without requiring passengers to change trains.

Elsewhere, smaller timetable adjustments will be made to improve reliability.

In Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, all Sunday trains between Sheffield and Lincoln will now stop at every station along the route.

Most services between Sheffield and Huddersfield will see minor timing changes.

In the North West and Cumbria, most services will remain unchanged, though some will see small adjustments designed to improve reliability.

Northern has encouraged passengers to use its mobile app and website for real-time updates.

The National Rail Enquiries journey planner is also available for checking timetable changes and disruption.

This latest update follows changes made in December, which included the launch of the Yorkshire Flyer service between Leeds and Sheffield.

Full details of all timetable changes are available on Northern’s website.

Northern currently operates 2,650 services a day and serves more than 500 stations across the North of England.

Passengers are advised to check their journey before travelling on or after May 17 to avoid disruption.

“I will work, in good faith, with whoever comes out the other side of the elections and work with them and where we have common ground and I think that the common ground that we certainly have with, I certainly have, with the SNP and Plaid (Cymru) is in the area of national self-determination.”

Seven years after claiming that the “future is private”, Meta is ending support for end-to-end encryption on direct messages in Instagram.

The ultra-private form of messaging, which only allows the sender and recipient to view messages, was an optional feature on the hugely popular social media app.

By removing it, internet service providers and Meta will be able to access private messages.

Meta said the update, which came into force on Friday, was because too few people used end-to-end encryption for it to be worthwhile.

“Anyone who wants to keep messaging with end-to-end encryption can easily do that on WhatsApp,” a Meta spokesperson said.

The app’s updated terms and conditions state: “End-to-end encrypted messaging on Instagram will no longer be supported after 8 May.

“If you have chats affected by this change, you will see instructions on how to download any media or messages you may wish to keep.”

The move has been praised by child protection groups like the NSPCC, claiming it will prevent grooming and child abuse from going unseen. However, privacy campaigners say the decision is a step backwards and could actually harm children by exposing their data.

“Pulling the plug on Instagram encryption is a white flag to surveillance, and a gift to their own AI training sets,” Matthew Hodgson, chief executive of the communications platform Element, told The Independent.

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“By switching off end-to-end encryption, Meta is claiming the keys to your private life. It has decided that the data harvested from your voice notes and DMs is more valuable than your fundamental right to a private conversation.”

Mr Hodgson described Meta’s excuse of low opt-in rates as a “classic Big Tech distraction”, adding that “if the future were actually private, privacy would be the default, not a hidden setting Meta can delete when it suits its bottom line”.

Labour lost hundreds of councillors in England while Reform UK made stunning gains at the local elections.

City of York Council does not have local elections in May 2026, with the local authority’s next scheduled elections for May 2027

York and North Yorkshire mayor David Skaith said “leaders need a clear plan” and “dogged determinism to follow it” to get out of a “mess that dates back to the financial crash of 2008”.

“When all the votes are counted we can expect to have lost over a thousand hard working local councillors,” the Labour mayor said.

“I’m worried that they’ll be replaced by parties who put division and opportunism before the needs of the public, by parties who care more about furthering their own ambition than building their communities up.

“I am incredibly worried for towns and cities across Yorkshire and the country who, through frustration, have just elected a dysfunctional, divisive, and dangerous party in Reform UK.”

He added: “We need to do far more to address the cost of living crisis, restore pride and purpose in our communities, and give people optimism about the future of our amazing country again.”

The prime minister insisted he would not quit and plunge the country into chaos after Reform UK piled on councillors across the country, as Nigel Farage claimed there had been a “truly historic shift in British politics”.

Sir Keir Starmer, whose position was already under pressure over Labour’s plummeting poll ratings, said: “The results are tough, they are very tough, and there’s no sugar-coating it.

“We have lost brilliant Labour representatives across the country, these are people who put so much into their communities, so much into our party.

“And that hurts, and it should hurt, and I take responsibility.”

Mr Skaith said: “I do not think it is the right thing to do to default to the chopping and changing of governments that we saw four years ago.

“It’s unstable. But, communities in York and North Yorkshire and across the country need, now more than ever, to clearly see and feel that this is a government that is on their side and is taking steps to prove that.

“I will certainly be continuing to do everything I can to deliver a positive difference to the communities of York and North Yorkshire.”

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Based on results so far, Bookmakers William Hill has Nigel Farage’s party odds-on at 10/11 to win the most seats at the next general election.

The party has so far gained 645 councillors, compared to losses of 468 for Labour and 283 for the Conservatives.

Mr Farage said: “It’s a big, big day, not just for our party, but for a complete reshaping of British politics in every way.”

Numbers for the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party are in the positive but at a low level compared to Reform, with gains of 33 and 86 respectively.

But beyond the headline numbers, it matters where losses and gains are made, with both Labour and the Conservatives now vulnerable in traditional heartlands that previously shored up an entrenched two-party dominance.

Reform has already made significant gains at the expense of both parties.

A crash on the M4 is causing “long delays” in Neath Port Talbot as all traffic is held.

Traffic monitoring service Inrix stated at 3.26pm today (Friday, May 8) that lane two (of two) on the M4 westbound was closed due to an accident between J42 A483 (Swansea East / Briton Ferry) and J43 A465 (Llandarcy).

Four minutes later Inrix confirmed all traffic is being “temporarily held, with stationary traffic”, from J42 Swansea East to J43 Llandarcy.

Traffic Wales warned there are “long delays in the area” and advised drivers to “take care when passing”.

The M4 is also partially blocked westbound by an obstruction on the road near junction 23 Magor.

We will have the latest in the live blog below.

He was ordered not to enter the county of Norfolk, not to contact directly or indirectly Mountbatten-Windsor, not to approach or attempt to approach him, and not to go to or be within 500m of the following royal estates: Sandringham Estate, Buckingham Palace, Balmoral Castle, Windsor Castle and Highgrove.

David Beckham has called David Attenborough a ‘national treasure’ as he joined a host of other famous names in wishing the broadcaster a happy 100th birthday.

The environmentalist has said he is ‘completely overwhelmed’ by messages he had received ahead of his big day, which will include a concert on Friday evening at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Leading the tributes, King Charles III, Queen Camilla and David Beckham shared photographs of Sir David.

Posting on Instagram, David captioned three images showing the BBC star with gorillas and an iguana by saying: ‘Happy 100th Birthday to our National Treasure.’

Meanwhile, the King and Queen wished him a very happy birthday, adding: ‘Enjoy your special celebration this evening!’

In a video, Prince William, who previously worked with Sir David on the environmental award the Earthshot Prize, said: ‘Everything you do continues to inspire me. Have a very happy day.’

The clip, posted on Earthshot prize’s account, also featured conservationist Robert Irwin, 22, the son of the late wildlife educator Steve, who said: ‘Happy 100th birthday Sir David Attenborough.

‘Thank you so much for inspiring me and generations to have a deeper understanding and connection to what’s more important: our beautiful natural world.’

The Duke of Sussex also wished the natural historian well, as he wrote: ‘His most significant contribution has been the systematic dismantling of the notion that climate issues are happening ‘somewhere else.

‘Young people continue to listen to him not just for the spectacle of nature, but for a sense of continuity in an unstable world.’

Actor Sir Ian McKellen added that Sir David ‘sums up what was best about the BBC’ with ‘serious programmes made for a popular audience’.

‘His ability to communicate his own enthusiasms are very precious and he’s brought such joy to so many people,’ he said.

‘And I think, along with a lot of people, my favourite television programmes are probably natural history.’

Responding to his birthday messages, Sir David said: ‘I simply can’t reply to each of you separately, but I’d like to thank you all most sincerely for your kind messages, and wish those of you who have planned your own local events: have a very happy day.’

Beginning his TV career presenting Zoo Quest in 1954, Sir David went on to host a series of phenomenal nature documentaries such as Planet Earth to The Blue Planet.

Earlier this week, the beloved naturalist said he had hoped to celebrate his centenary ‘quietly’, but conceded that the Great British public had had ‘other ideas’.

The Royal Albert Hall celebration, which will be broadcast tonight on BBC One, is just one of many events to mark his birthday.

The Natural History Museum’s exhibition presented by Sir David will also be transformed into a free five-minute show in central London.

On top of this, Our Story With David Attenborough will be adapted to be shown at Outernet London on Tottenham Court Road from Sir David’s birthday on May 8.

People will be able to see the veteran BBC nature presenter take viewers through the history of people and the Earth, before presenting a vision of London’s future.

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