This comes with a full council meeting set to take place at town hall on the evening on Wednesday February 18 with council tax set to rise by 4.99 per cent.

But the authority has already set out that there will be no new spending cuts announced as part of this year’s budget.

Speaking at an earlier briefing, council leader Cllr Nick Peel said:  “What we’re proposing has no cuts, but that’s dependent on that council tax rise.”

He added: “Everybody complains about taxes, but it’s a fact of life, over the years of austerity, any kind of inefficiencies in local government have been driven out.”

The meeting will be held at Bolton Town Hall (Image: Anthony Moss)

The rise of 4.99 per cent was included in the authority’s budget proposals announced and consulted on last December and January before being agreed the following February.

This tax rise had been agreed to cover to the end of the 2027 financial year, but the authority is legally required to set council tax charges and consult on its best value duty every year.

The rise of 4.99 per cent is the highest any local authority in England can set without holding a referendum.

This does not include the Mayoral Police and Crime Commissioner precept or the Mayoral General Precept, which covers the fire and rescue service.

Nigel Farage has been accused of “playing into short-sighted, divisive politics” after making unproven claims that middle-class, white men are losing jobs because of the Equality Act.

His claim came just a day after Suella Braverman, Reform UK’s new equality and education chief, promised to scrap the act on day one if her party won the next election, claiming that Britain is being “ripped apart by diversity, equality and inclusion” policies.

The Equality Act 2010 – which replaced previous anti-discrimination laws – legally protects people with protected characteristics, including: age, disability, gender reassignment, marital status, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation, from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society.

But the Reform leader claims those protections are to the detriment of white men.

Asked on Wednesday whether he could guarantee nobody would lose a job because of their sex, ethnicity or disability under his party’s plans to scrap the Equality Act, Mr Farage said: “Well, people are losing their jobs now, particularly if they are white, and male and middle-aged.

“And that’s the problem, that actually something that was designed to stop discrimination becomes in itself discriminatory. The protections you’re talking about were in law way before the 2010 Equalities Act.”

However, official figures from July to September 2025 appear to show that the opposite is true, with people from white ethnic backgrounds having lower rates of unemployment in the UK than those from minority ethnic backgrounds.

In this period, the UK unemployment rate for people from a white ethnic background was 4.3 per cent, an increase of 0.7 percentage points from the same period the previous year. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate for people from minority ethnic backgrounds was 8.8 per cent, an increase of 0.6 percentage points from the same period the previous year.

open image in gallery

And according to the 2021 census for England and Wales, people from White Irish and White British ethnic backgrounds had the lowest unemployment rates at 4.7 and 4.9 per cent respectively. People from Arab and Other Black ethnic backgrounds had the highest unemployment rates, at 14.3 per cent and 14.2 per cent, respectively.

Responding to Mr Farage’s remarks, Dr Shabna Begum, CEO of leading anti-racism charity the Runnymede Trust, hit out at Mr Farage’s comments, accusing him of “playing into short-sighted, divisive politics that does nothing to help anyone and instead breeds the politics of grievance and resentment”.

Dr Begum also took aim at Ms Braverman’s claim that the country is being “ripped apart by diversity, equality and inclusion” policies, dubbing it “inflammatory, divisive and quite frankly dishonest”.

She told The Independent: “At a time when racial and religiously motivated hate crimes and violence against women and girls are all steeply rising, it would be irresponsible to remove the few protections in place for those at risk.”

Meanwhile, Paul Nowak, the general secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), accused Mr Farage of “peddling made-up nonsense”.

“The Equality Act protects everyone at work – including white, middle-aged men – whether from age discrimination, religious discrimination or other unfair treatment”, he said.

“Let’s be clear about what’s really going on here. Reform wants to legalise discrimination and rip up hard-won workplace rights. That isn’t standing up for working people – it’s leaving people at the mercy of bad bosses. It’s a bully’s charter.”

James Douglas, legal director at the Good Law Project, accused Mr Farage of being “detached from both the law and reality”, telling The Independent: “Scrapping the Equality Act wouldn’t just take us back to 2010, it would reverse all the progress we’ve made since the 1970s.”

“Scare stories about white, middle-aged men losing their jobs don’t hide the fact that by opposing it, Reform have made clear that they don’t believe in equality”, he added.

And Christine Jardine, Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West, who sits on the Women and Equalities Committee, warned Mr Farage that “rights are not finite”.

She said: “Protecting people who might be vulnerable because of their sex, ethnicity, or disability does not undermine anyone else’s rights.

open image in gallery

“It simply creates a level playing field for all of us. Should we always be aware of how we can improve those protections in the act? Yes, but that’s very different from what Reform is suggesting.”

Mr Farage’s latest comments came after Ms Braverman, who was newly appointed as Reform’s head of education, skills and equalities, asked: “Why does no one in this government seem to care that it’s white working-class boys who have the worst educational outcomes in our country today?”

She added: “Do you know what a Reform government will do? Well, on day one, we will get rid of the equalities department, we will scrap the equalities minister.

“And we will repeal the Equality Act, because we are going to work to build a country defined by meritocracy not tokenism, personal responsibility not victimhood, excellence not mediocrity, and unity not division.”

The MP for Fareham and Waterlooville also attacked the rights of transgender young people, saying that “social and gender transitioning will be banned in all schools, no ifs, no buts” if Reform comes to power.

She promised to “bring an end to the transgender chaos in schools”, claiming that children are “taught more about gender ideology than biological fact”.

Reform UK has been contacted for comment.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said a 17-year-old and an 18-year-old were arrested within hours of the Harrogate householder reporting the crime yesterday (February 17).   They had also found the stolen car.

Four more suspects have been arrested, after another vehicle believed to be involved in the burglary was traced, pursued and stopped in a Bradford housing estate.  Inside were two men from the West Yorkshire city, both aged 19, who were both arrested.

Two more suspects both from Harrogate and aged 17, were arrested earlier today (February 18).

The burglary occurred in the early hours of yesterday morning, when raiders broke into the house and used keys found in the property to steal the owner’s car from outside the properly.

The same day, police traced the car and intercepted it in a Harrogate street. Two people ran away from it and after searching the area, officers found the 17-year-old and 18-year-old, who are from Bradford.

All six suspects were arrested on suspicion of burglary or theft or a combination of both and remain in police custody for questioning.

Police and fire crews were called shortly after 10.30pm on Tuesday

Advertisement

A vehicle came under gunfire in a residential street, with the driver subsequently crashing before all occupants abandoned the scene.

Emergency services rushed to Radnor Close in Rednal, Birmingham shortly after 10.30pm on Tuesday (February 17). Both police and fire crews responded to the incident, with firefighters alerted to the collision at 10.44pm, described as a vehicle striking a stationary van.

Officers confirmed the vehicle had been targeted by gunfire before colliding with the parked vehicle, with those inside fleeing on foot. Authorities stated no injuries have been reported to them – whilst a West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesperson confirmed they received no call-out, reports Birmingham Live.

The street was cordoned off, with a damaged black Volkswagen visible wedged against the driver’s side of a white van.

West Midlands Police has launched an investigation and is appealing for witnesses, particularly anyone with dashcam footage, to contact them.

A force spokesperson stated: “We are investigating after shots were fired at a car in Radnor Close, Birmingham, at just after 10.30pm yesterday (Tues). Officers understand that the car hit a stationary vehicle before the occupants fled the scene.

“No one has reported any injuries to us. Investigators are working to establish who was involved and trace those responsible.”

The statement added: “We will have extra patrols in the area in the coming days to offer reassurance to the community. Anyone with information including dashcam and mobile phone footage should contact us on 101 quoting l crime reference 20/151300/26”.

“Alternatively, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.”

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

West End performer and television star Mead, now 44, made his breakthrough when winning the BBC One reality show Any Dream Will Do in 2007, going on to star in the Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat tour that brought him to the Cumberland Street theatre in 2010.

Lee is no stranger to Barnum, first playing the show-hosting Ringmaster in a school production when he was 13 or 14 in his home town of Southend-on-Sea.

“I had such a brilliant time and I thought the story and the characters were wonderful. And it had all these fantastic songs, like Come Follow The Band, The Colours Of My Life and There Is A Sucker Born Every Minute.”

Recommended reads:

Lee’s friend Chris was cast in the lead role. “And he was a great Barnum, but I remember thinking, ‘It would be lovely to play that part one day’.”

Now, three decades later, his wish has come true at last as he headlines a lavish new UK tour of the 1980 musical by Cy Coleman (music), Michael Stewart (lyrics) and Mark Bramble (book).

Barnum: The Circus Musical tells the story of legendary American showman, marketing genius and master of spectacle P.T. Barnum, who revolutionised entertainment in the 1800s through the Barnum & Bailey Circus and the Greatest Show on Earth.

As he steps into the ring for the 2026 tour, Lee says: “It’s an absolute classic and I can’t quite believe I now get to play Barnum some 30 years after that school production. I think I must have somehow manifested it.”

Barnum’s tour show is directed by Jonathan O’Boyle, choreographed by Strictly Come Dancing alumna Oti Mabuse and features more than 20 actor-musicians, alongside acrobats and international circus acts.

Starring as Barnum is not only a dream come true for the Any Dream Will Do winner but also an homage to his grandfather Bert and grandmother Lil, who did not have much money, meaning that a trip to the theatre was very rare for them.

“But they saved up for a year and a half to see Barnum at the London Palladium and they loved it,” says Lee. “It stayed with them their whole lives. Sadly they’re no longer with us, but I know they would have been so proud to see me in it. Every performance is going to be for them.”

Since Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Lee has starred in Wicked, Legally Blonde, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Chicago and Sister Act and plenty besides. “But this is definitely my most challenging role,” he says.

“It’s one of those rare roles for a leading man. It’s an enormous part, with huge monologues and so many songs, and I don’t think I leave the stage for two hours, apart from the interval of course.”

Then add the tightrope walking, a discipline that has required several months of intense training for Lee. “It’s the kind of thing you learn at 24, not 44,” he says. “I’ve had to get myself fit and put in the work. The rope is about 7ft off the ground and, although I trained with a harness on, there’s no harness during the show itself.

“You have to use your whole body, your whole core and every ounce of your focus and energy to get across that wire, but I like a challenge.”

Does he play an instrument too in this actor-musician show? “I don’t, no. I already have enough to do with the acting, singing, dancing and tightrope walking!” he says.

As with Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of P.T. Barnum in The Greatest Showman, the musical looks at the real man behind the on-stage showman, not least how he had a wife named Charity but became infatuated with Swedish singer Jenny Lind.

“So he’s a flawed character, as most human beings are,” muses Lee. “As an actor, it’s interesting to explore that side of him alongside all the spectacle. It makes for great drama.”

When researching the role, “it was interesting to learn about Barnum’s tenacity and his drive, which I think you have to have to be as successful as he was,” says Lee. “At times he kind of put his wife to one side, even though she was so supportive and loving, so I guess you could say that he was very selfish.

“But he wanted the world to see all these amazing acts that he brought together, like the oldest woman in the world, Joice Heth and General Tom Thumb. It was his passion.”

Lee picks The Colours Of My Life as his favourite song in the show “because the melody is beautiful and it’s about him trying to explain to Charity why he is the way he is, with all the different colours to him as a person and why he wants to light people up, entertain them and make them happy,” he says.

Those sentiments now apply to Lee’s own performance too.

Lee Mead stars in Barnum: The Circus Musical at Grand Opera House, York, February 24 to 28, 7.30pm plus Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Sally Pattle, Lib Dem for Linlithgow, who runs a bookshop in the town, raised an amendment calling for consultation with traders across West Lothian before introducing the new rules.

West Lothian councillors have backed the introduction of service standards governing cleaner streets.

But one councillor fears the new standards will be used to generate income through fines on shopkeepers.

Tackling commercial waste bins sitting on pavements is a key element to the new plans but some shopkeepers believe they will face fines while they have no control over when commercial waste operators lift their bins.

Sally Pattle, Lib Dem for Linlithgow, who runs a bookshop in the town, raised an amendment calling for consultation with traders across West Lothian before introducing the new rules.

READ MORE: Lothians parliamentarian to seek automatic removal of MSPs convicted of serious crimes

“No official consultation with the business community has been carried out,” Councillor Pattle told a meeting of the council’s Executive.

She said traders feared that the council would start enforcement with traders facing fines over collection times they could not control with commercial operators.

Interim NETs Land and Countryside Manager Victoria Mungall stressed that the council saw enforcement as a last resort, adding the council wanted to work with traders and the commercial refuse operators to improve services.

Councillor Pattle told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that budget proposals to be decided next week indicated increasing the council’s income through enforcement fines.

Fellow Linlithgow Councillor Pauline Orr pointed out that many shops in Linlithgow had difficulty storing bins and asked how officers could “reasonably enforce new rules.”

READ MORE: Livingston Nursery take on books challenge as children’s reading hits 20 year low

Ms Mungall told the meeting: “It’s important to note that by bringing in the service standards there’s no change to the legislative powers that we currently hold so at the moment we do fine bins that cause obstruction under the Section 56 of the Roads Scotland Act.

“It’s important to note that our intentions of bringing standards forward doesn’t change. It is not intended that we’d penalise businesses for situations where a bin has been left out over collection time or there’s a storage issue that becomes apparent.

“What we intend to do is work with businesses to determine a better pace for them to have their waste collected and to offer support on how we can work to better have their waste collected.”

Linlithgow’s Labour councillor Tom Conn suggested adopting Councillor Pattle’s amendment would leave the council without any of its existing power of enforcement.

The amendment gained the support of only two Conservative councillors on the Executive. The SNP’s three members of the committee- including Councillor Orr- abstained.

READ MORE: Linlithgow Golf Club members throw every effort into changing design of course

Apart from the concerns about the potential enforcement for commercial waste collection problems there was broad welcome across the chamber for the pledge to improve services.

The wider policy agreed covers service delivery times for street cleaning in towns and villages and fly -tipping.

Ms Mungall told the meeting the plan “places particular emphasis on education behaviour change, enforcement and community ownership.”

She added: “This will be supported by improved monitoring so that we can better understand trends and target resources where they have the greatest impact.”

The introduction of the new service standards within its Cleaner Communities Team, as well as a new Litter Prevention Action Plan (LPAP) for 2026/27.

READ MORE: West Lothian RAAC campaigners to hold rearranged meeting with Scottish Government

The standards set out how the council will work to tackle environmental issues such as littering, fly tipping, graffiti, dog fouling and more, through a combination of education, enhanced infrastructure, community engagement and more stringent enforcement- including the use of more mobile CCTV to tackling hotspots for fly-tipping and streamlining of existing technologies.

The area has already seen an improvement in performance in the independent litter audits from Keep Scotland Beautiful, increasing to 90.2% in January 2026. However the council still lags behind a national figure of 91%

A council spokesperson told the LDRS: “The introduction of new service standards for both proactive and responsive work, appointment of an external contractor and modernisation of the Urban Clean Team is expected to lead to further progress in the future.”

Councillor Conn, the Executive councillor for the environment and sustainability said: “I welcome this new focus on West Lothian’s environment, which takes a holistic approach to try and tackle the challenges.

READ MORE: Labour councillor challenges colleagues on health board to demand more funding from Scottish Government

Don’t miss the latest news from the West Lothian Courier. Sign up to our free newsletter here.

Emergency services were called to the Masham area at around 12.20pm (February 18).

A man, believed to be the sole occupant of the aircraft, has been taken to hospital with serious injuries.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said: “At 12.21pm today (18 February) we received a report of a light aircraft crash in the Masham area.

“The Air Accident and Investigation Branch has been informed.

“A man, believed to be the sole occupant of the aircraft, has been taken to hospital with serious injuries.”

A spokesperson from North Yorkshire Ambulance Service said: “We received a call from police colleagues at 12.24pm on Wednesday afternoon to report a light aircraft crash in the Masham area. 

“A number of ambulance resources were dispatched to the scene, including an ambulance, a team leader and a Yorkshire Air Ambulance, and one patient was airlifted to hospital.”

The Air Accident and Investigation Branch have been contacted for more information.

The 20-year-old died after a crash on the A47 in July last year

A young father died of “traumatic” injuries after a crash on the A47 last year, an inquest has heard. Liam Knight, aged 20 and lived in Yaxley, died after a crash involving his motorbike and a van on the A47 near Eye on July 5, 2025.

The inquest was held into the father-of-one at Lawrence Court in Huntingdon today (Wednesday, February 18). A “large number” of Liam’s family attended the inquest, including Liam’s aunt Karrie Roper and his uncle. Coroner Caroline offered her condolences to the family before starting the inquest.

A post-mortem carried out after Liam’s death confirmed he died of “multiple traumatic injuries” as a result of a road traffic collision. The inquest heard that Liam had “multiple injuries to his spleen”, he suffered a “substantial haemorrhage” to his left lung, and “cuts and bruises” to his right lung.

Liam also suffered a “traumatic head injury”. The post-mortem ruled that these injuries would have led to “significant blood loss”, causing Liam to go into shock.

A statement read out on behalf of Cambridgeshire Police confirmed they were called to the crash at around 1.15pm on July 5. The court heard that Liam was riding a blue Yamaha motorbike, and the crash involved a white Mercedes Sprinter van.

Coroner Jones told the court the van was driving towards the Eye Green roundabout, with Liam travelling behind. The van “slowed down” towards the roundabout, as the traffic was also slowing down.

The inquest heard that for a “reason unknown”, Liam, who was wearing a helmet and protective gear, went into the back of the van. Liam then “came separate” from his bike and went into the opposite lane.

One witness said they saw Liam “fly off his bike” and his helmet came off. The court also heard that around four witnesses attended to Liam before calling the East of England Ambulance Service.

Liam was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital by the ambulance service. Before arriving, Liam went into cardiac arrest.

He was taken to the critical care unit, but he was sadly pronounced dead at 4.08pm in hospital. After concluding the inquest, Coroner Jones offered her condolences to Liam’s family and friends on their “very sad loss”.

Last year, Liam’s auntie Karrie shared a tribute to her nephew. She said he was “full of energy” and he “never stopped laughing”.

Karrie added: “He never stopped making jokes. He would always come in from work and tell me the gossip. He loved travelling and going out with his mates. His friends meant a lot to him and were friends for life. He also loved his food, he had a big appetite.”

At least 12 people have been killed after an explosion and fire at a fireworks shop in eastern China, the country’s state media has said.

Emergency services put out the blaze at the unnamed shop in the town of Xiangyang, in central Hubei province on Wednesday afternoon, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

Flames engulfed a 50sqm (538sqft) area of the premises, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Advertisement

Share

Three things you might have missed from China this month, with Helen-Ann Smith

Advertisement

Firework-related blasts are not uncommon in China, where they are used widely and often indiscriminately during celebrations such as the Lunar New Year holiday, which began on Tuesday.

On Sunday, eight people died and two others were injured after a similar incident at a fireworks shop in eastern Jiangsu province, also in eastern China.

Someone had set off fireworks too close to the shop, according to officials.

In June, a blast at a fireworks factory ⁠in neighbouring Hunan killed nine ​people and injured 26 ​others.

Read more on Sky News:
Is a Middle East conflict coming?
South Korean drone warning

Pyrotechnics have been banned in some Chinese cities for safety and air pollution reasons, but the measures are controversial ⁠as firecrackers are traditionally used ​to scare off evil spirits and remain ​central to the new year celebrations.

The latest incident comes a day after the Ministry of Emergency Management warned that “fireworks are still the biggest risks during the Spring Festival period”.

Investigators are now looking into the cause of the Xiangyang explosion, Xinhua said.

Iain McKenzie, chief execitove of The Guild of Property Professionals, said: “Encouragingly, the wider economic backdrop has become more supportive. Inflation easing to around 3 per cent and intensifying competition among lenders are already pushing mortgage rates down, improving affordability, particularly for buyers with larger deposits.