Sharon Graham of Unite has spoken out in the wake of news sanctions on Russian jet fuel are being relaxed over fears of global shortages

The head of Britain’s biggest trade union has launched a furious attack on government ministers over the closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery and lack of support for Scotland’s energy industry.

Sharon Graham has spoken out in the wake of news sanctions on Russian jet fuel are being relaxed over fears of global shortages due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz in the Middle East.

Before its controversial closure in April 2025 Grangemouth supplied 97per cent of Scotland’s aviation fuel as well as major airports in the north of England including Newcastle.

Proposals were presented to the UK Government to transition the site to produce Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) which would have helped hit environmental targets but the refinery – owned by INEOS and Chinese state-owned PetroChina – is instead being turned into an import depot.

Advertisement

Speaking exclusively to the Sunday Mail the Unite General Secretary said: “This was an act of industrial vandalism, pure and simple.

“The Government’s own SAF mandate means 10per cent of our aviation fuel has to be SAF by 2030 – that is a 35-fold jump in demand, and we are not making any.

“Not only have we ignored a golden opportunity to make our own green air fuel but we lost the production of ordinary air fuel that was being made by Grangemouth and by Lyndsey in England.

“Now we have shortages and the government is making it easier to import air fuel made from Russian oil – you could not make it up.

“Unite showed the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero and the Scottish Government exactly how Grangemouth could be reconfigured to produce the green jet fuel that the government says we need.

“We even brought in experts who had done it in other countries to explain it to them. It would have cost around £600million.

“But the Government just listened to Petroineos and Jim Ratcliffe, the chief of INEOS. Petroineos is half-owned by the Chinese government, who, of course, want to turn Grangemouth into an import terminal – no doubt to store green jet fuel being produced in China.”

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has been under huge pressure over his government’s policy not to grant any new North Sea oil and gas exploration licenses despite concerns over energy security.

Miliband has talked up the production of renewables but Graham warned there was no sign of a plan to create the thousands that will be lost in the North Sea. It comes amid pressure to exploit the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields off the Scottish coast given the uncertainty over supplies from Russia and the Middle East.

Graham added: “It is really clear that, like the man trying to get into the lifeboat, we cannot let go of one rope before we have hold of another.

“We face a loss of around 30,000 North Sea oil and gas jobs by 2030. So where are the jobs for oil and gas workers in Britain to transition to?

“Last year the government released a “clean energy jobs plan”. This document had nice words about creating 420,000 jobs. But not a single detail about where those jobs would come from.

“This was a jobs plan without any jobs. The only investment commitment was for £22.5 million on a few training schemes – some change. Empty words are not a plan.

“Until we have a plan we should not be making decisions that confine working class communities to wastelands and leave us vulnerable on energy security.

“These well paid jobs are being lost at the alter of net zero and the replacement seems to be offshoring our carbon responsibilities to Russia or other countries with bad records on the environment and workers’ rights. This is putting the cart before the horse. It makes no sense.”

Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) the North Sea energy trade body, has called for a new co-ordinated response to the escalating global energy crisis.

The organisation is urging the immediate prioritisation of domestic production, claiming Iran and Ukraine show that countries that produce their own energy are more resilient.

Graham added: “Given the time elapsed and the dismantling of Grangemouth now, it is hard to see how that can be turned around but on the North Sea there is still a chance to back workers.

“We shouldn’t be stopping North Sea oil and gas extraction until we have alternatives in place – for jobs and for energy security.

“Ed Miliband says to me look at all the new wind farms we are putting up and I say – OK but the turbines are all built in Denmark and Germany – often with Chinese steel. How is that a sensible strategy? Where are the jobs. It matters where things are made.

“It is really clear that Britain at the moment does not have a vision for jobs in the way that I would expect from a Labour Government.

“We have allowed two refineries now to shut in Britain on Labour’s watch which could have been repurposed as green fuel sites. Instead of these jobs being in Britain we are now importing green fuel.

“It is clear that Ed Miliband does not have the vision needed for Britain’s energy futures We could be a key producer of renewables.”

Get more Daily Record exclusives by signing up for free to Google’s preferred sources. Click HERE

Jakirovic said before Saturday’s game that his side had become “collateral damage” from Southampton’s expulsion from the play-offs, which left Hull having to pivot from preparing for a game against Saints to plotting for Middlesbrough four days before the final.

Despite the pre-match difficulties and being the underdogs, as they had been in the semi-final against third-placed Millwall, Hull got the job done on a boiling hot day at Wembley.

Promotion capped off a tremendous first season in English football for Hull’s boss, a former Bosnia international.

Jakirovic had won titles in Bosnia and Croatia before a brief spell in Turkey at the end of last season, but he was perhaps only really known in the UK for being the Dinamo Zagreb boss when they were hammered 9-2 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League in 2024-25. He was sacked days later.

If he came to England to prove a point, then it is very much a case of mission accomplished.

“When Oli scored the goal I was thinking ‘I am dreaming and this is a movie’,” Jakirovic said.

“I’m very emotional. A lot of players were crying from happiness.

“It’s an unbelievable journey. I think we are not aware of everything we have achieved today. We had so many problems.

“I’m very proud of everyone, especially the players; they are the main actors.”

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Kyle Busch died after severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, resulting in rapid and overwhelming complications, according to a statement released by his family.

Dakota Hunter, vice president of Kyle Busch Companies, said in a news release the family received the medical evaluation on Saturday.

Busch, a two-time NASCAR champion, died at 41 on Thursday, a day after passing out in a Chevrolet simulator.

Sepsis is considered a life-threatening medical emergency that occurs when the body has an extreme, overactive response to an infection, causing the immune system to damage its own tissues and organs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Typically the immune system releases chemicals to fight off pathogens like bacteria, viruses or fungi, but with sepsis the response goes into overdrive. The results can cause widespread inflammation, form microscopic blood clots and make blood vessels leak.

Busch was thought to have had a sinus cold while racing at Watkins Glen on May 10 and radioed in to his team saying that he needed a “shot” from a doctor after the race. However, he bounced back to win the Trucks Series race at Dover last weekend, and then he finished 17th in the All-Star race on Sunday.

Busch, who was preparing to race Sunday at the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, was testing in the Chevrolet racing simulator in Concord on Wednesday when he became unresponsive and was transported to a hospital in Charlotte, several people familiar with the situation told The Associated Press.

During the emergency call placed late that afternoon, an unidentified caller calmly told the dispatch: “I’ve got an individual that’s (got) shortness of breath, very hot, thinks he’s going to pass out, and is producing a little bit of blood, coughing up some blood.”

The caller said Busch was lying on the bathroom floor inside the complex and told dispatch “he is awake,” according to audio provided by the Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office. The man then gave directions on where emergency responders should go and asked that they turn off any sirens upon arrival.

NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski said he knew Busch wasn’t feeling well recently.

“Yes, but I won’t go into any specifics,” Keselowski said. “But then when he ran the Trucks race last week, those (thoughts) were honestly kind of erased in my mind.”

Keselowski said running multiple races on the same weekend can be difficult on a driver’s health — but most don’t want to miss a race for fear of being replaced.

“There’s no shortage of drivers that would love to take my seat or anybody else’s seat if we weren’t feeling well, and I think every driver feels that pressure,” Keselowski said. “All athletes do. It’s not unique to NASCAR in that sense. We’re all thinking to ourselves, ‘I don’t wanna be replaced.’ … So you try to power through it the best you can.”

Keselowski said Busch’s unexpected death has forced him to pay attention to his own health moving forward.

Chase Briscoe said Busch’s health issues served as a “wake-up call” for him and other drivers, who often put aside dealing with potential issues because they are so busy traveling around the country and competing on a weekly basis.

He said if something feels off, “you need to get checked out.”

Busch’s Richard Childress Racing teammate Austin Dillon was not made available for comment.

Austin Hill will replace Busch on Sunday and drive the No. 33 car. RCR is temporarily retiring Busch’s No. 8 until his 11-year-old son Brexton is old enough to race.

All 39 cars in the field for Sunday’s race will include a small black No. 8 decal to honor Busch.

Busch won 234 races across NASCAR’s top three series over his two-decade career, more than any driver in history.

Drivers spoke at length on Saturday about his accomplishments, praising his toughness, competitive spirit and penchant for speaking his mind — all of which led to him earning a reputation as NASCAR’s villain.

“He was a polarizing figure that no matter if you like him or disliked him as a racer, he was always talked about,” Ryan Blaney said. “Just this guy that was always there and won too much, which is why people didn’t like him. And he always spoke his mind. I think people came to respect that about him, that he was true to who he was and that never changed.”

Blaney added that Busch’s personality outside of the car and his competitiveness behind the wheel made him “a larger-than-life person in racing.”

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

We meet the British tourists travelling to Istanbul for everything from ‘Turkey teeth’ to breast uplifts as part of holiday packages, despite the well-known risks

Brits have told why they flock to Turkey for cosmetic procedures for everything from boob jobs to new teeth.

The Mirror spoke to a group of eight friends from Bournemouth who had all travelled to Istanbul after saving up to get new “Turkey teeth”.

Lidz Jolly, 52, said: “I only had two molars left for chewing and they didn’t meet properly. I’ve had them out and I’ll be coming back in three or four months to have it finished, depending on when I’ve saved the money.”

We met holidaymakers after the initial removal of teeth while they awaited the second part of the operation to fix new veneers or full artificial teeth on to the ‘pegs’.

READ MORE: Skin cancers hit record high as Brits warned to be safe in the sun this bank holidayREAD MORE: Woman mistaken for pensioner after Turkey teeth left her with stumps

Paul Moss, 53, had come over five veneers and implants for £4,500. He said: “I had the implants put in last night but I wouldn’t be able to afford to have this kind of thing done in England.”

Jody Hall, 45, arrived having paid £4,500 to finish off a full mouth of implants. He had travelled out to Turkey 18 months ago before having to save up to have the surgery completed. He told the Mirror: “I had my teeth taken out in a different part of Turkey and I was supposed to come back sooner but I just didn’t have the money.”

Shazza Gibbons, 47, said: “I thought I’d jump on the bandwagon and get them done. It’s terrible trying to get an NHS dentist at home.”

Patients have reported being unable to find an NHS dentist willing to treat them after they get home after having extensive dental surgery in Turkey. Dentists can be unwilling to take on new patients which require complex aftercare because NHS funding means they sometimes make a financial loss treating them.

Brits still travel to Turkey in their thousands for cut-price cosmetic surgery despite the known risks.

A 2022 study identified that the most common complication after cosmetic surgery was wounds coming apart and infection. Most patients presenting to the NHS with complications from cosmetic surgery had been treated abroad, with 72% in Turkey.

Laura Flemming, 29, from Dundee, told the Mirror she had just undergone a breast uplift and implant as part of an Istanbul holiday package costing £3,600. She said: “I’d lost weight and my boobs had gone smaller so I wanted to have them uplifted.

“It’s obviously a thought that you worry it won’t go well. You’re doing something to your body so that’s quite scary. But when you want it so much it’s a risk that you take.”

The Mirror is campaigning to Ban the Cosmetic Cowboys after a number of Brits contracted sepsis and some died from complications.

We reported in 2024 that mother-of-five Alice Webb, 33, from Bristol, had become the first person to die after having a liquid Brazilian butt lift (BBL) in a UK clinic. And Sasha Dean, 54, told last year how she came close to death during a botched BBL at her home. Her feet turned black, she developed sepsis and was placed in a coma, given just a 5% chance of survival.

Kaydell Brown, 38, died on an operating table in Istanbul in 2024 after travelling there for a tummy tuck, liposuction and a BBL.

Cosmetic surgery clinics in Istanbul partner with major hotel chains to offer tourism packages. At numerous hotels we witnessed patients bandaged after undergoing nose jobs and hair transplants being ushered from clinic-branded minibuses back to their hotel to recover. At one hotel we saw a woman in a headscarf and sunglasses being helped to walk very slowly through the lobby in obvious pain, back to her room.

Laura told us she had been subjected to pressure sales tactics online from other Turkish clinics while researching her operation. She said: “If you enquire they keep calling you. They would say things like ‘if you book today it’s at this discounted price’.”

Her friend Kaitlin Jackson, 31, from Preston, said she was saving up for a tummy tuck operation. She said: “When I was younger I always wanted my boobs done but it wasn’t achievable, it was something celebrities did. It was something you would do if you won the lottery but now in Turkey it is more affordable. And you’re not judged as much for it these days.”

Laura added: “Young people these days think ‘life’s too short – get it fixed’. People want to be body positive and enjoy their bodies.”

‘It saves a lot of time and effort. I no longer have to think about mowing every week which is a big win’

Advertisement

With the UK basking in a spring heatwave, shoppers have been singing the praises of an ‘idiot-proof’ robot lawnmower that ‘saves so much effort’ in the garden. This particular model is on sale at Yimbly, where there’s more than £50 off the Mova Viax 300 Robotic Lawnmower.

The gadget is already reduced from £519 to £479 at Yimbly, owned by this site’s parent company Reach PLC, but shoppers can reduce this even further to £431.10 when they use the discount code SPRING10. This equates to a total saving of £87.90 compared to the usual price.

It also undercuts Amazon, where the same model still costs £479. Designed for gardens up to 300m2, the Mova Viax 300 uses AI to map a garden and mow independently with a u‑shape cutting pattern ensuring efficient and full‑coverage.

This is said to leave grass evenly trimmed with ‘minimal’ effort while on‑boundary edge cutting can deliver precise results along borders and fences. The wireless mower uses AI technology to detect and avoid obstacles around the garden such as plants and pets and has the power to climb slopes up to 40% incline.

It can also move over obstacles up to 4cm high and navigate narrow spaces thanks to its compact design. The Mova Viax 300 can be controlled through a smartphone app that allows users to set mowing schedules and zones from anywhere.

Mova Viax 300 Robotic Lawnmower

Advertisement

£519

£431.10

Yimbly

Buy Now on Yimbly

Yimbly customers can knock £87.90 off the Mova Viax 300 when they use the discount code SPRING10.

It’s also said to be ‘whisper quiet’ and boasts several safety measures including live video enabling users to monitor their garden in real time. Elsewhere, shoppers can get £50 off the Flymo Easilife Go 250 Cordless Robotic Lawnmower at B&Q.

Reduced from £499 to £449, this model is more suited to smaller gardens up to 250m2, but holds a mixed review score of 3.6-stars. As for the Mova Viax 300 Robotic Lawnmower, this model has yet to receive any reviews at Yimbly, but Amazon customers have awarded it a 4.2-star rating.

One says: “Amazing robot mower. It’s whisper quiet you honestly can’t hear it over the birds. Obviously it takes way longer than me but I really don’t care. The lines are perfect and it doesn’t miss a spot.”

Another says: “Sit back and chill. The Mova Viax 300 is an absolute little legend. It was so easy to set up that even I managed it without swearing, sweating, or phoning a mate. It gets on with the job like a tiny, silent gardener who never asks for tea breaks. The scheduling works perfectly, the app is idiot‑proof and the lawn looks great. I always thought robot lawnmowers were a total gimmick. Turns out I was spectacularly wrong.”

However, the same buyer noted a potential downside, adding: “My only complaint? I wish it cut a bit closer to the edge – but honestly, that’s nitpicking. I’m not expecting it to trim the hedges and make me a sandwich.

Nevertheless, another Mova Viax 300 said: “This is a gift for my mother-in-law. She’s never used a lawnmower before and she’s really happy with what this machine can do. It saves her so much effort when cleaning her garden.”

While this buyer said: “The biggest advantage is that there’s no boundary wire needed – setup was much easier than I expected. The mapping works well in a simple garden layout and it keeps the lawn looking tidy with regular runs. It’s not perfect though. It can occasionally miss small areas or struggle a bit around tighter corners, so I still need to do some quick touch-ups manually. Also, it works best if the grass isn’t too long to begin with. That said, for day-to-day maintenance it saves a lot of time and effort. I no longer have to think about mowing every week, which is a big win.”

Tottenham finished 17th 12 months ago, but were never really in danger of relegation as then-boss Ange Postecoglou juggled an injury-hit squad with a focus on Europe.

However, they have endured a truly disastrous campaign this time around, once again not helped by a lengthy injury list.

Their season has encompassed three head coaches and multiple unwanted records, including losing six games in a row for the first time in their history and going on a 15-game winless run in the league.

Thomas Frank, who succeeded Postecoglou last June, was dismissed in February.

His replacement Igor Tudor’s reign was a new nadir, with the club collecting just one Premier League point from a possible 15 before his 44-day tenure was brought to an end.

De Zerbi then took on the unenviable task of ending their tailspin.

Draws against Brighton and Leeds that bookended wins over Wolves and Aston Villa provided light at the end of the tunnel, and they are now on course to escape – unless there is a dramatic plot twist.

Speaking to BBC Match of the Day, former Tottenham midfielder Danny Murpy said: “The mentality at Tottenham has to be, four or five weeks ago we were written off.

“If you’d said to Tottenham fans and players it’s going to go down to the last day and you’ve got to get a draw or a win at home to Everton, they would have bitten your hand off.

“The dilemma you have when you know a draw will suffice is that plays on your mind, and you really can’t let it.

“They’re at home against an Everton side who have petered out a little bit at the end of the season, they’ve got to be on the front foot and try to win the game, rather than be cautious and protective of that 0-0.”

The possible consequences of relegation do not bear thinking about for supporters, but will surely include a mass exodus of big-name players.

Dejan Kulusevski, Guglielmo Vicario, Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Xavi Simons and James Maddison would all likely consider their options, while youngsters Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall are also attracting admiring glances from elsewhere.

The planning application for a care home said Brexit saw the hotel’s business slump as migrant workers who had previously stayed at the hotel returned to their country of origin

Advertisement

Plans to turn a hotel that once housed asylum seekers in Peterborough into a residential care home have been withdrawn.

Zenia Care submitted plans to Peterborough City Council requesting permission to turn the Hub at Fengate into a care home for the elderly on March 13, 2026. That application has now been withdrawn.

The initial planning submission, which was submitted on Zenia Care’s behalf by AM Planning Consultants, outlined the background of the hotel. It said: “The owner purchased the hotel site in 2013 and had many successful years.

“However, since Brexit in January 2019, when the majority of the hotel’s regular migrant worker clients returned to their country of origin the business has slumped by 70 per cent as they were the hotel’s core business.”

It continued: “In 2021 planning permission was granted for the change of use of the hotel to a residential care home… however, this was not implemented due to unforeseen circumstances, and the hotel has been used to provide accommodation for asylum seekers.”

The hotel – which was once known as The Verve – hit headlines in 2022 when it was requisitioned by Serco, the organisation responsible for finding accommodation in the region for asylum seekers on behalf of the Home Office.

The move sparked protests and demands for local consultation from residents and politicians when 40-80 asylum seekers arrived in November 2022 as part of a plan to relieve severe overcrowding at the Manston processing centre in Kent.

Led to vast, elegant adjoining suites, they have their own paradise to explore – as do the adults. I adored the understated style, the enormous bed, the textures of heavy silk bedcover, pale purple marble bathroom walls, Japanese loos, remote control for the curtains. The hand-painted de Gournay silk wallpaper is luxurious, in an understated way. The children loved the golden rubber ducks in the en-suite along with a toiletry pack with gorgeous all-natural cleanser and shampoo from The Botanist and The Chemist, panda bear towel and slippers, a big, soft teddy in a Mandarin Oriental jumper on the bed, and a little pile of presents, which for them included a ‘Little People, Big Dreams’ book, ‘Draw your own cartoon’ graphic book and dressing up pieces from party planner Meri Meri – who styled Prince George’s first birthday – to take home (the silver and blue superhero cape with matching leatherette red wrist bands and eye mask remain a source of absolute delight to my son).