She was among three York and North Yorkshire motorists who did not reply to the court warning that they were facing prosecution for traffic offences.

All three cases went ahead in their absence. A fourth motorist who did respond to the court summons was banned from driving.

Ryan Bartholomew, 32, of Northfield Terrace, Church Fenton, was convicted in his absence by Bradford magistrates of breaking a 30 mph speed limit near Wakefield. He was fined £92, ordered to pay £130 prosecution costs and given three penalty points.

Harrogate magistrates dealt with three cases.

Callum Buck, 37, of Cornwood Way, Haxby, was convicted in his absence of careless driving and driving without insurance in York. He was given six penalty points, fined £660 and ordered to pay £130 prosecution costs and a £264 statutory surcharge.

Jay Clarke, 29, of Hillam Road, Gateforth near Selby, pleaded guilty to driving without insurance.  He was banned from driving for six months, fined £646 and ordered to pay £120 prosecution costs and a £258 statutory surcharge.

Maria Sotelino, 41, of Admiral Way, Sherburn-in-Elmet, was convicted in her absence of failure to tell police who was driving her car when it allegedly committed a traffic offence. She was banned from driving for six months, fined £660 and ordered to pay £120 prosecution costs and a £264 statutory surcharge.

A new law being brought to parliament today aims to close a loophole which has meant domestic abuse victims living in social housing feel forced to stay in harm’s way – or risk homelessness.

Currently, there is no way for landlords to evict abusers before their victim has already left the home.

And in joint tenancies, victims who wish to leave the home they share with the perpetrator can only get out by ending the tenancy entirely.

According to government statistics, almost 40,000 households in the UK were forced to find a new home after losing their previous one due to domestic abuse in 2024/25.

Part of the new Social Housing Bill, which returns to Parliament for its second reading today, will aim to give greater security to social renters at risk.

It will mean landlords and court can force perpetrators to leave without simultaneously threatening their victims with the same fate.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: ‘No victim of domestic abuse should face the awful choice between staying in danger or losing their home.

‘This government is putting that right, so perpetrators are forced out and survivors and their children can stay safely in the homes and communities they know and love.’

The Bill will also close a loophole which allows domestic abusers to exploit the Notice to Quit.

These notices are used by tenants to inform landlords when they intend to end a rolling contract – but in the hands of perpetrators, they can be wielded to threaten their victim with homelessness.

Under the Social Housing Bill, any Notice to Quit served by a perpetrator will not end the joint tenancy while the court proceedings are still going on.

Courts will also require landlords to provide suitable alternative accommodation if it is not appropriate for victims to stay.

Veronica Oakeshott, the Head of External Affairs at Women’s Aid, said the new measures had long been a focus of campaigning by the organisation.

She added: ‘While ultimately we hope the measures will go further to enable more survivors to qualify, this is an important start.’

Housing Secretary Steve Reed said the current situation is a ‘moral failure’ which allowed abusers to use homes as a ‘weapon of control’.

He said: ‘Victims of domestic abuse have faced an impossible choice – stay in danger or make themselves homeless.

‘This is a moral failure this government is determined to end and these changes are deeds not words that put victims first, give landlords the powers they need, and make sure perpetrators can no longer use housing as a weapon of control.’

The Social Housing Bill will also introduce reforms to the Right to Buy system in an effort to stem the flow of social homes into private hands while not stopping it entirely.

Renters will become eligible for the scheme after 10 years, rather than the current three, while newly built social homes will be protected for 35 years.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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Back in March the 89-year-old actress Shirley Bassey underwent an operation on her hand after ebing in so much pain that she was struggling to reply to fan mail.

Dame Shirley Bassey has shared a health update after undergoing surgery.

Back in March the 89-year-old underwent an operation on her hand after ebing in so much pain that she was struggling to reply to fan mail.

In a photo shared to her Instagram, she grinned and revealed her bandaged hand as she sat in a restaurant. The Love Story singer wrote: “Hello Everybody! I’m currently visiting Spain and am in one of Madrid’s famous restaurants, where they have given me a chair with my name on it! So very cool.

“Thank you so much for asking how my hand is after the operation – it’s coming along slowly. I still find it difficult to write, and eating with my left hand, which is not easy, but helps with my diet!m’m now off to spend time with my son and his family. Sending you lots of love and Best Wishes. Dame Shirley.”

Fans flocked to her comment section and wrote: “Ah I’m so glad to see you safe and well. Looking spectacular as always.” Another wrote: “There should be a THRONE in every major city in the world just for YOU Dame Shirley,”

She recently celebrated 70 years in the business. In an Instagram post she wrote: “It has been an honour to sing and entertain my fans for over 70 years. Across seven decades (wow!), I have had the privilege to meet many of you, and receive fan mail from all around the world!”

But then she apologised to her loyal following: “I always loved seeing the different stamps and used to collect them in a book.Through letters shared, I have read of your celebrations, your losses, your achievements, memories, dreams and even how my music has brought 1978 generations of families together. I am truly humbled.

Continuing, the star said: “At this point in time, I’m sorry to say, that due to up-and-coming hand surgery, I will no longer be able to reply to fan mail. We kindly request for you to avoid sending vinyls, personal items and photographs, as we will be unable to post them back to you. Your support has been incredible.”

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TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli forces are making their deepest incursion inside Lebanon since they withdrew from the country over a quarter-century ago, despite a nominal U.S.-brokered ceasefire and the first direct talks between the countries in decades.

The Israeli advance presents a challenge in the emerging deal to extend the Iran war ceasefire as Tehran wants any agreement to end fighting in Lebanon, too. Qatar called it a “dangerous escalation.” Germany’s foreign minister said it was cause for serious concern, according to German press agency dpa. There was no comment by the United States.

On Sunday, Israeli forces seized a symbolic fort in southern Lebanon that offers commanding views across Lebanon and into northern Israel. The last time they seized it, they held it for 18 years.

Israel says it is targeting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, which has a strong political presence in southern Lebanon and has launched thousands of missiles and drones at Israeli soldiers there and in northern Israel.

Israel has warned Lebanese civilians across the south to evacuate or risk being in the line of fire. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Saturday accused Israel of “implementing a policy of total destruction of cities and towns.”

Over 3,300 people, including dozens of children, have been killed in Lebanon since the fighting began March 2, two days after the Iran war started. About 1 million people have been displaced. At least 25 Israeli soldiers and a defense contractor have been killed in Lebanon or northern Israel, along with two civilians in northern Israel.

Here’s what to know:

Fort has been a military asset for nearly 1,000 years

Israeli forces seized Beaufort, also called Al-Shaqif, which was built as a Crusader castle around the 12th century and later used by Saladin’s Jerusalem army, Mamluks, Ottomans, the French mandate and the Palestinian Liberation Organization.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who last week vowed to “increase the blows,” noted that Beaufort is “a symbol of a heroic battle for our fighters” but also “a symbol of deep division between us.”

The fort summons a sense of victory over the Israeli military’s seizure of it in 1982, but it also symbolizes the high price of defending it before it was handed over in 2000, said Orna Mizrahi, a former deputy director in the government’s National Security Council.

The military’s return feels like Israel is going in circles, said Mizrahi, now a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies. “There’s a feeling of, ‘For what?’”

Israel likely will relinquish control eventually, she said, even as Defense Minister Israel Katz vows to make Beaufort part of Israel’s permanent security zone in southern Lebanon.

The military’s presence will not solve the issue with Hezbollah, Mizrahi said: “Yes, we are damaging them in the operations, but in parallel we need to pursue a political and diplomatic solution.”

Israel sees a threat to its northern communities

Israel has long considered Hezbollah a threat. The Shiite Muslim armed group emerged in 1982 in response to an Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon. Hezbollah has targeted communities in northern Israel and joined the war in Gaza in 2023 in solidarity with the Palestinians.

Israel badly weakened Hezbollah during months of war. Fighting ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in late 2024 after indirect talks, and Israeli forces withdrew except from five strategic hilltops along the border.

The new Lebanese government came to power with promises to disarm groups such as Hezbollah, but the militants resisted. Israel, meanwhile, claimed that Hezbollah was rearming and rebuilding.

On March 2, Hezbollah again fired at Israel, prompting Israel to invade southern Lebanon. Lately, Israel has said it is trying to keep Hezbollah from using a new kind of fiber-optic drone against its forces and civilians. The drone has been widely used in the war in Ukraine.

Lebanon says Israel has gone too far

Hundreds of thousands of people have fled southern Lebanon as Israeli forces carried out airstrikes and ground troops pushed into the country. Many people now shelter in the capital, Beirut, where hundreds have been killed, including in an intense bombardment in April.

The United States brokered a ceasefire that began in mid-April. Unlike the one in the Iran war, it has not held.

Israeli forces now control large areas in southern Lebanon and have demolished homes and historical sites. Israel is trying to “uproot Lebanon’s memory and erase the people’s history,” Lebanon’s prime minister, Salam, said Saturday.

Hezbollah has refused to accept results of talks

Talks between senior officials from Israel and Lebanon began in April in Washington, the first in more than three decades between the countries that have no formal diplomatic relations.

On Friday, the first direct military talks in decades occurred.

Issues to work out include an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, deployment of Lebanese forces there and the disarming of Hezbollah, which has refused to give up weapons while Israeli forces remain in the country.

Talks will continue this week. Hezbollah is not taking part and has said it would not accept any results. The group prefers that negotiations benefit from Iran’s leverage and sees the Lebanese government as weak, a position shared by some others in the country.

Lebanon’s people have been divided over the talks, whose announcement was met with protests. Many Lebanese are angry with Hezbollah for the destruction it has caused in the country but also wary of Israel.

Lebanon’s prime minister has called the direct negotiations “currently the least costly option,” adding that they don’t mean a surrender and acknowledging they are not guaranteed to produce results.

___ Chehayeb reported from Beirut, and Anna reported from Lowville, New York.

She suffered a severe life-threatening and life-changing stroke 18 months ago.

A Northern Ireland woman has opened up about how she wasn’t expected to survive after a stroke but now she’s helping other survivors recover from theirs.

Every Tuesday Gail Agar gives up her time to help others, volunteering at health charity Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke’s (NICHS) local Post Rehab Exercise Programme group.

Gail, 65 and from Comber, Co Down knows all too well how much the charity can help people post stroke as she needed their support after having a severe life-threatening and life-changing stroke 18 months ago.

Speaking ahead of Volunteers’ Week (June 1-7) Gail shared how her story has led her on a path of helping others.

Gail recalled: “I had my stroke in November 2024. I had no symptoms, no warning signs and when the stroke hit, every part of my body was affected. I was at home and I just collapsed out of nowhere. My husband found me lying on my back with blood coming out of my head.

“He phoned 999 and within eight minutes a paramedic in a Rapid Response Vehicle arrived. Two minutes later the ambulance arrived with three paramedics. The Air Ambulance had also been called by the Rapid Response Paramedic, and it arrived a few minutes later.

“The Air Ambulance doctor advised my husband that he thought I had suffered a brain related incident. I was placed into an induced coma and airlifted to the Royal Victoria Hospital.”

At the hospital it was discovered Gail had a ruptured brain aneurysm. She was transferred to Critical Care where she was ventilated, had a feeding tube and catheter put in, and needed nursing care 24/7.

She explained: “The next morning I had surgery to put a stent and coiling in to stop the bleed on my brain. The day after that the sedation started to be withdrawn and a few days later, I was transferred to Neurology. I can’t remember any of that time.

“By the beginning of December the nurses started to feed me with thickened water on a spoon, but I couldn’t talk because my vocal cords had been damaged by the ventilator. I was trying desperately to talk but no words would come out.”

A few weeks later, Gail was transferred to the Ulster Hospital where she began her rehab journey: “I started physio as my left hand was completely paralysed and was in a fist. I also had to start to relearn how to walk. I started by standing for a while, then I moved on to shuffling and pulling myself along on a walking frame.

“Winning the lottery wouldn’t give you the same feeling I got when I started to be able to move again. It was unbelievable that I had actually done it as it took such enormous effort, and I had been told there was a possibility I might not walk again.”

At the start of January 2025 Gail was transferred to the Regional Acquired Brain Injury Unit (RABIU) at Musgrave Park Hospital in Belfast to continue with intensive rehabilitation: “It was daunting as by that stage I was more aware of everything, but I didn’t know what I was going to and I really just wanted to go home.

“From the moment I arrived at RABIU I was tested and assessed to see what the damage to my brain had been. I asked the doctor when I would get home and was told hopefully within five weeks. I was glad to hear that because then I had something to work towards. Up until then I was thinking, ‘will I ever got home. What is the end result here?’

“It was very intense, hard work every day but the staff at RABIU saved my life, there’s no doubt. They knew how far to push me and when to slow down but it was tough. I had to learn everything again, even things like going to the toilet after the catheter was removed as that had all been wiped from my brain. I had to have pureed food, nothing I could choke on.

“After about two or three nights I said to myself, ‘it’s only you who can do this, nobody else can’. I had to make the effort, and I had to do what they were telling me because they knew what they were talking about. But it was hard.”

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It was at RABIU that Gail realised how severe her stroke had been as she explained: “A student doctor from Queen’s University chose my case for his PhD topic.

“I asked him one day why he had picked me and he said ‘because there are very few people who have gone through what you have that we can talk to or watch and assess their recovery journey. It helps us with research and to better understand the brain’. It hit me then that I was lucky to be alive and to be working on my recovery.”

Gail worked hard and on February 5 2025, after months in hospital, she walked out of RABIU with no stick, walking frame or wheelchair.

“I had come a long way from nearly not making it in the Air Ambulance. I couldn’t wait to get home but that is also when you realise how ill you have been and that the recovery journey isn’t over yet. In my mind, once I got home, I was going to be ok but there was still a long way to go,” she added.

“You realise when you come home how scary it is because you are starting to live a completely different life. Your confidence has gone, people don’t really understand what it’s like, you always have to be aware of your surroundings in case there are trip hazards, you are always on the alert.

“You have to relearn to do things that you never gave a second thought, like going to the supermarket. The first time I tried to go to Tesco I just stayed in the doorway. It was too busy, there was trolleys coming at me, it was too much. But you have to go away, take a deep breath, set a date and go back and do these sorts of things because if you don’t, you never will.

“Over the first few weeks I had to set goals each week, like make a hair appointment, get my nails done, go to the dentist. Setting a goal helped me start to build my confidence up again and I started to feel like I was belonging to normal life again.”

Gail’s physical recovery continued after she was discharged from RABIU and that’s how she came into contact with NICHS: “The Community Stroke Team did therapy at home with me for ten weeks, sometimes twice a day. They told me about NICHS and their services and support, but I wasn’t sure about going to anything at that point because I had got to a stage where I just wanted to live a ‘normal’ life.

“It had all been so intense for months with so many people treating me, appointments at Musgrave and so on. The more I thought about it however the more I thought, ‘no. I swore to myself that whatever help was offered I would take it’. I didn’t want to look back in 10 years’ time and think I might have been in a better place if I’d done everything that was offered to me.”

Gail started going to the charity’s Post Rehab Exercise Programme (PREP), a 6-week physiotherapy led, community-based course which helps rebuild people’s lives after stroke through exercise and education. It is designed for stroke survivors who have completed the statutory rehabilitation provided by the NHS to meet their longer-term care needs.

She said: “I really enjoyed PREP as soon as I started going because everybody was in a similar situation to me. Everybody was friendly and got along. The group was glad if you achieved something and were doing well. There is real camaraderie at PREP.

“We were also able to share hints and tips with each other about living with a stroke and find new ways to do things like getting dressed more easily. You are part of a group that understand what you were feeling whereas family and friends, as great as they are, can’t. That really helped me with the mental impact of my stroke.

“I completed two rounds of PREP. I liked that all the exercises were counted and monitored, and you could see your progress. That helped keep me motivated with my recovery as I could see my efforts were being rewarded and I was moving forward. I also found the NICHS staff very approachable and helpful and they made the time to listen.”

Gail added: “I was sad at the thought of my time at PREP ending after 12 weeks, so I asked the group’s Care Services Coordinator, Kyle, about coming back to help and volunteer. I thought I might be able to help others due to my experiences. I found PREP so beneficial I wanted to help others experience that too, to show people there is hope for a recovery, things can get better, and not to give up.

“That’s why I’m also happy to share my story. If it helps show people you can get through having a stroke, if it gives some small flicker of hope, I feel going through this and telling my story will have been worth it.

“In the early days, when I was being told it wasn’t clear if I would walk or talk again, when I had a catheter in and so on, I did think, ‘what is the point of this?’ Why have I survived this, when it looked like I might not, because there is no hope here.’

“I didn’t know enough about stroke and if I had seen a story like mine out there then I would have known things could get better.”

Talking about what she gets out of volunteering Gail says: “PREP is the focus of my week. Tuesday is PREP day and everything else just has to work around that. I really enjoy it and I like seeing all the clients and other volunteers.

“When people first come to PREP, they might be scared, feel lost and that they don’t know what is ahead of them. I understand what that’s like and I’m glad if I can help. It also reminds me how lucky I have been with my recovery; things could be a lot worse.

“It is unbelievable to see how far people come in the six weeks at PREP, the hard work they put in and the effort, it is really noticeable. You can see the clients are really working hard, making improvements, and how they are happier because of that. It’s great to be a part of that. I would really encourage people to think about volunteering if they are able. You will get so much out of it.”

Gail concluded: “In a strange way I’m glad that my stroke happened. I’ve learnt an awful lot about myself. I think things sometimes happen for a reason and I’ve learnt I’m stronger than I thought I was. I appreciate things now that I didn’t before. I wouldn’t have met all the people at PREP that I have.

“There are positives that have come from this, and I hold on to the fact things could be a lot worse. I was dealt a bad hand, but I’ve played it the best way I could, I’ve come through it and I’m thankful for that.”

If you have been inspired by Gail’s story you can view NICHS’s current volunteer opportunities at www.nichs.org.uk/volunteering.

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Derry’s Lachlan Murray and Armagh’s Andrew Murnin were both taken off in the second half of Saturday’s round one clash in the Box-It Athletic Grounds

Armagh and Derry could be left counting the cost of Saturday night’s round one game in the Box-It Athletic Grounds after both lost key attackers to injury in the second half.

Derry’s Lachlan Murray, who scored 1-2 for the Oak Leafers in their five-point defeat , left the pitch midway through the second half with a dead leg while Armagh’s Andrew Murnin pulled up late with a hamstring issue.

Both teams will be in action on the weekend of June 13/14 with the Orchard County to learn their round 2A fate on Tuesday morning while Derry are in round 2B.

Speaking after Saturday’s defeat in Armagh, Ciaran Meenagh rued the loss of Murray at a vital stage of the game.

“Lachlan (Murray) had a dead leg in the first half – we tried to keep him moving, but he was getting slower, ” said Meenagh.

“He wasn’t moving well. He was signalling towards the sideline, so, at that stage, we had to take him out.

“He’s an exceptionally powerful player, but he wasn’t moving well. We couldn’t keep him on the pitch any longer.

“The way that Armagh defend, the way that they’re able to get players around you if you’re not moving well, we just couldn’t keep him on any longer.

“We had good forward subs there that we wanted to bring into the game in this game. Lachlann was the one that we had to make way because of injury. Only for that, obviously, I wouldn’t have been taking him off.”

Murnin, meanwhile, missed the second half of the League campaign with a hamstring injury, but Kieran McGeeney is hoping he was suffering more from cramp rather than anything more sinister.

“Andrew came off there, it just seemed to cramp and hoping that is all it is,” said McGeeney.

“We are always cautious with Andrew’s hamstrings, but we’ll not know until Monday or Tuesday.

“In this game, you get some back and some go.

“It’s a manic game and that tends to lead to more injuries, there’s no doubt about it. And because of that pace, even innocuous challenges can be quite serious, the size of them and the pace of movement.”

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These arrests took place in areas across Greater Manchester and involved a wide range of incidents and community concerns.

In Rochdale, neighbourhood officers arrested a 26-year-old man following a stop and search, which revealed 140 snap bags of Class B drugs and 40 of Class A in a vehicle on Perth Road.

On Great Ducie Street near Manchester city centre last night, officers responded to a stabbing and arrested the 20-year-old suspect with 10 minutes of arriving at the scene.

An arrest was also made in Tameside after reports of disorder in Ashton Moss.

During this incident, the officers faced racist and homophobic abuse, which resulted in further arrests for aggravated offences.

Assistant Chief Constable Matt Boyle said: “As we move into the warmer months, our officers remain focused on working hard and being proactive to keep our communities safe.

“Yesterday was a particularly demanding day, with teams responding to a wide range of incidents while continuing to take positive action across the force.

“The high number of arrests reflects not only our commitment to tackling crime, but also the professionalism, teamwork, and resilience shown by officers and staff throughout the day.

“I am extremely proud of the dedication they continue to demonstrate in protecting the public and making our neighbourhoods safer places to live.”