Police are appealing for information

A cyclist has died several weeks after a crash. Emergency services were called to the crash on Rhubarb Bridge, near Lincoln Road in Peterborough, at around 6.45pm on February 21.

The crash involved a cyclist and no other vehicles. The cyclist, a 49-year-old man from Peterborough, was taken to hospital in a critical condition.

He sadly died on March 9. A police spokesperson said: “Officers and paramedics were called to Rhubarb Bridge, near Lincoln Road, at about 6.45pm on February 21.

“A 49-year-old man from Peterborough was taken to hospital in a critical condition and later died on 9 March. No other vehicles were involved.”

Cambridgeshire Police is appealing for information. Anyone with information should call police on 101 or report it online and quote incident 444 of February 21.

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Stephen Libby, the breakout fashion star and recent winner of the BBC‘s hit show The Traitors, is offering fans a chance to own a piece of his distinctive wardrobe, with all proceeds going to charity.

The cyber security consultant, who hails from the Isle of Lewis, is auctioning off items on eBay to benefit The Leanne Fund, a Scottish charity dedicated to supporting individuals affected by cystic fibrosis. Among the pieces set to go live on Thursday are Vagabond loafers, Cos trousers, and Second Skin shorts, with bidding starting at just 99 pence.

Libby became renowned on the programme for his slick, vintage-inspired aesthetic, often favouring a 1970s look characterised by cropped jackets, geometric patterns, wide-legged trousers, and a vibrant use of colour.

The move comes amidst a surge in pre-loved fashion, a trend highlighted by Amy Bannerman, eBay’s pre-loved style director. She noted: “Pre‑loved fashion has exploded in the last few years, and I think that’s down to a mix of cultural shift, celebrity influence and a growing desire for pieces that feel more individual and considered.”

Bannerman added that items with “real character, whether that’s a beautifully cut 70s jacket like the one Stephen is auctioning, or a rare vintage handbag,” hold significant appeal. She also emphasised the growing trend of selling pre-loved items: “More people are realising there’s incredible value sitting in their wardrobes and love the idea of giving great pieces a second life rather than letting them gather dust.”

Libby secured victory in the fourth series of the popular reality game show alongside fellow traitor Rachel Duffy, marking the first time a pair of Traitors won as a team. Reflecting on his style in an interview with Esquire magazine in January, Libby stated he likes to “wear what I feel like I look good in,” having developed his love for vintage clothing during his university days in Glasgow.

The charity auction is scheduled to run until March 17.

Mark Rhodes, 40, was less than three years into a 10-year jail sentence when in a move a senior judge said left him “almost lost for words” he was moved to an open prison at HMP Kirkham.

Bolton Crown Court heard how after walking out of prison Rhodes went in to burgle people across the town, including retired people and families with young children.

Gwen Henshaw, prosecuting, said: “On August 13, 2025 Mr Rhodes was transferred to Kirkham, which is described as an open prison.”

Ms Henshaw said Rhodes, who’s criminal record includes burglaries, fraud, causing serious injury by dangerous driving and a previous escape, walked out of prison on December 16.

The case was heard at Bolton Crown Court (Image: Anthony Moss)

He then returned to Bolton where he burgled a house where a man and his seven-year-old son had been staying on Torrington Avenue, Halliwell on December 19.

Ms Henshaw told the court Rhodes, who watched on via video-link from prison, told the man “Sorry mate, wrong house” before fleeing.

On December 18, also on Torrington Avenue, a woman noticed that a spare tyre, Ugg gloves and a mobile charger had been taken from the glove compartment of her Audi.

Rhodes then went on to burgle a house on Bride Street, Halliwell on December 19 while the same night he was seen by a man trying his neighbour’s door on nearby Lomax Street.

That same night a retired woman, again on Lomax Street, was told that a man dressed in black had been seen trying her door.

Finally, Ms Henshaw said that Rhodes then tried to burglar another retired woman at assisted living accommodation on Hobart Road, Halliwell, still on December 19.

Ms Henshaw said the woman “looked up and saw a tall male come through the door” who she at first thought was her grandson but who then fled when she shouted out for her son.

A victim impact statement read out by the prosecutor set out the effect this had had on the retired woman and how “I believe I have the right to feel safe in my own home”.

Brought before the courts Rhodes, formerly of Romer Street, Tonge Fold, confessed to escape from lawful custody, theft, three counts of burglary and two counts of attempted burglary.

Andrew Costello, defending, said he had been representing Rhodes, who has 34 previous convictions for 103 offences, since 2002 when he had been a youth.

He said the 40-year-old had earned credit for his guilty plea and that he had struggled throughout his life with no positive role models or family to support him.

Mr Costello said Rhodes was “relatively institutionalised” but had completed course during his time in custody.

But the Honorary Recorder for Bolton Judge Nicholas Clarke KC said he was troubled by the decision to have put Rhodes in an open prison to begin with.

He said it was “astonishing that someone with such a prolific record” had been dealt with this way less than three years into a ten-year sentence.

Judge Clarke said: “Somebody decided it as a good idea to put him in an open prison.

“Unfortunately for those good people you’ve told me about who’s homes, cars and properties were invaded, they are the ones who have had to suffer for that decision.

“I am almost lost for words.”

Judge Clarke noted that Rhodes had a “sorry history” bit also that he had been involved in a previous attempt to escape from lawful custody in 2023.

He jailed Rhodes for 51 months, which will be added to the 10-year sentence he is already serving.

Judge Clarke told Rhodes he would “serve such a proportion depending on agreement between the government and the Home Office”.

It has been less than two weeks since US and Israeli missile strikes on Iran thrust the Middle East into a new era of chaos and uncertainty.

As death and devastation continue to spread across the region, the rest of the world is starting to feel a different kind of pain as a direct result.

The price of wholesale gas has increased by 67% since those initial strikes at the end of February, while oil prices have gone up by 35%.

That is immediately bad news for people who drive cars powered by a petrol or diesel engine, and fears are also growing for an increase in household energy bills further down the line if the crisis continues.

But those higher energy costs have a broader impact that will soon sting for regular people across the UK.

‘Energy is a very important ingredient,’ said Dr Muhammad Ali Nasir, Professor of Economics at Leeds University.

‘It’s like the blood of the economy, really, and the blood of the industry and services sector. Without energy, our economy can’t function.’

You might have read in recent days about Ofgem’s energy price cap, which will ensure household gas and electricity bills will not go up before July.

However, there is no such cap in place for businesses, meaning your local shop, pub and cafe could start feeling the pinch a lot sooner and be forced to pass that burden on to their customers.

Professor Nasir said: ‘If you take a supermarket, without naming one, they use energy in a big quantity.

‘And if now they are paying more on filling up at the pump, in just a matter of, I would say, a few days, they will have to take that into account to be sustainable as a business.

‘So as soon as their cost of business has gone up, that would be translated into prices very soon. So I won’t be surprised if, in the very, very near future, we’ll see that the impact has been felt.’

Higher energy costs also impact every aspect of a product’s journey to supermarket shelves, from manufacture to transportation to storage – particularly if it needs refrigeration.

That can lead to little choice other than hiking up the price.

And there’s more bad news from Professor Nasir. Even if the war in Iran somehow came to an abrupt end tomorrow, it’s unlikely to mean we escape the energy hit.

He said: ‘I think two weeks is a significant amount of time, and this is an energy shock, and it will have an impact.

‘Whatever it has caused, I think some uncertainty would remain, and that would affect the energy market.’

Professor Nasir added: ‘I don’t expect the prices of energy to go down to before this war level very soon. I hope I might be wrong, but I feel that they would remain elevated even there’s a cease fire.’

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Wales won’t discount Faletau

Steve Tandy has refused to rule out an international comeback for Taulupe Faletau but insists Wales must also look to the future.

The 35-year-old is one of Wales’ greatest ever back-rowers but has become very injury prone in recent years and is currently sidelined with a calf injury.

In his absence, Aaron Wainwright has been outstanding while Olly Cracknell has also shown up well – and Tandy believes Wales need to look to the future.

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“I don’t think you can ever write anyone off, especially with someone of his quality,” the Wales head coach said.

“But ultimately we’ve got a lot of young men that are starting to perform, starting to get consistency, so for me it’ll always be based on performance.

“There’s also, for me as a coach, it’d be a balance of where we are going and whether people can get to World Cups,” Tandy added.

“But for me, everyone that’s playing regionally, or is available to us, then I wouldn’t write anyone off.

Maro Itoje: No rift in England squad after on-field row

By Duncan Bech, Press Association Rugby Union Correspondent, Paris

Maro Itoje insists there is “no crack” in England’s leadership group following the on-field disagreement that took place against Italy at the Stadio Olimpico last Saturday.

Itoje was involved in a discussion with fly-half Fin Smith and vice captains Ellis Genge and Jamie George early in the second half of the 23-18 Guinness Six Nations defeat that has plunged England into crisis.

It centred around a debate over whether to use a penalty to go for goal or set up an attacking line-out and ended with Itoje shouting at Smith, “Don’t argue with me. Take the three”.

England are aiming to end their three-Test losing run when they face France in Paris on Saturday and Itoje says they enter the climax to the Championship without any tension between senior players.

“There’s no crack. There’s no crack between us. Fin’s a good guy and I get on with him very well,” the team’s captain said.

“When you have good relationships with people you’re able to have those sorts of conversations and are able to move on from it pretty quickly.

“There was no residue from that. Naturally, I guess because of the loss, it was made into a bigger thing than it actually was.”

Itoje’s forceful delivery of his instruction to Smith was the first time the British and Irish Lions skipper has raised his voice on the field in that way.

“I didn’t really lose it!” the Saracens second row laughed. “You don’t often see me with a mic, I’m not always mic’d up but maybe I’m portraying a false image!

“Fin is my guy. As always, the way I try to do things is I like to hear what my key decision makers think of what is going on, and whoever plays 10 they will obviously have an important role in that.

“I initially asked what we thought we should do and I guess he expressed a view, I expressed a view, and I just wanted to quickly move on to the next thing.

“I actually think it’s a good thing that people in the team feel they can express a view and in sport, if anything, that’s the most kosher of fallouts that the world has ever seen. We have had far more blunt conversations between ourselves and other teammates!

“There’s no really biggie. After that interaction, we even laughed about it a little bit on the pitch as well.”

Farrell responds to star’s bullish comments

By Edward Elliot, Press Association, Dublin

Andy Farrell says Scotland wing Darcy Graham is entitled to think Ireland are “there for the taking” ahead of Saturday’s crunch clash in Dublin.

The Scots travel to Aviva Stadium chasing a first Triple Crown in 36 years to remain in contention for a maiden Guinness Six Nations title on the back of a thumping 50-40 round-four victory over France.

Ireland, who have won the last 11 meetings between the sides dating back to 2017, also go into the final-day shootout with aspirations of the Triple Crown and potential championship glory.

Edinburgh player Graham made headlines earlier this week by claiming the hosts are “there for the taking” and have “probably not been firing as well as they have in previous campaigns”.

Ireland head coach Farrell, who selected the 28-year-old for last year’s British and Irish Lions tour, offered a diplomatic response, saying: “He’s entitled to his opinion first and foremost.

“He’s a great lad, Darcy, actually. Obviously, I got to know him in the Lions, so it’s how he feels and obviously how the squad feels, and rightly so, in my opinion.

“They were outstanding last week against France and we’ve been preparing for another Scottish performance like that. We know that we’ll have to be at our best to beat them as they’re a side that we’ve always respected.”

Ireland must extend their nine-year dominance over Scotland to remain in the title hunt before table-topping France host England in the final match of ‘Super Saturday’.

The Irish have claimed eight Triple Crowns during the Six Nations era, including three in the past four years, but endured an 18-year drought between 1985 and 2004.

“Of course, you would love to dream like that (of championship glory),” said Farrell, who guided Ireland to back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024. “Obviously, the rest of it is out of our hands, but there’s something that’s in our hands.

“We concentrate on our performance first and foremost of trying to win something that’s pretty special to us, that’s the Triple Crown. Over the years, it’s been hard to come by when you’re playing for Ireland, so we’re desperate to make sure that we get across that.”

Townsend: Title bid is out of our hands

By Anthony Brown, Press Association

Gregor Townsend flatly refused to indulge in talk of a first Guinness Six Nations title for Scotland as he outlined the scale of the task still facing his side in their quest to make history.

The Scots go into Super Saturday as one of three teams in the mix for the championship, alongside table-topping France and opponents Ireland.

In short, Scotland must collect more match points in Dublin in the first game of the day than Les Bleus manage against England in the late kick-off in Paris.

Asked if he had allowed himself to ponder leading the Scots to a first title of the Six Nations era, head coach Townsend said: “No. It’s out of our hands, really. We can only do a certain amount. It’s a game for us to play against an opponent that’s had the upper hand on us for years.

“We’re playing them away from home. They’ve got a brilliant record at home. It’s a challenge but a real opportunity for us to go and deliver an even better performance than we did last week.

“It would be great to finish the championship with a win and finish on a high. That will obviously carry on the momentum and if that means we win the game, we obviously know there’s something at stake.

“Those that have been selected know that it is a big opportunity. It’s not a cup final, there’s not just two teams in this championship, but there is an element of that. It’s the last game of the tournament, so we’ll leave everything out there.”

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Gordon will train on a treadmill at altitude during a series of sessions which will help him begin to acclimatise and prepare for the charity hike.

A man with type 1 diabetes is using a cutting-edge environmental chamber in Lanarkshire to help him prepare for a charity hike to the summit of Kilimanjaro.

Gordon Hill, from Waterfoot in the south side of Glasgow, will use the facility at the University of the West of Scotland’s Lanarkshire campus ahead of climbing the mountain in Tanzania, raising funds for Diabetes UK.

The chamber replicates environmental extremes – from walking in the desert to climbing the highest mountain in the world – and will allow the personal trainer to train at an altitude of up to 5895m, which is the equivalent of the summit of Kilimanjaro.

Type 1 diabetes is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the body produces little to no insulin, requiring lifelong insulin therapy to manage blood sugar levels.

Climbing at altitude can present extra challenges for those with the condition, as intense exertion and physical stress can cause blood sugar levels to drop or rise, making monitoring and planning important.

Gordon will train on a treadmill at altitude during a series of sessions which will help him begin to acclimatise and prepare for the hike, scheduled to take place in September.

Meanwhile, it is hoped the training will help UWS researchers in learning more about the specific needs of people with type 1 diabetes when they are challenged at altitude.

Gordon said: “Living with diabetes is a daily challenge which requires constant monitoring – from what you can eat to what exercise you do and how it all affects blood sugar levels. But it doesn’t have to hold you back.

“I’ve always been into sports, which really helps with managing my diabetes, as regular exercise is important in helping with blood sugar control. As a PT, staying active is also part of my job, however, I’ve never set myself a goal like climbing Kilimanjaro. I wanted to challenge myself.

“Doing this climb is important to me not only to raise funds for Diabetes UK, but also to hopefully inspire others with the condition that they can do what they put their mind to.”

Professor James Miller, principal and vice-chancellor of the University of the West of Scotland, said: “Gordon is an inspiration to us all, and we are honoured to be able to support him in preparing for this climb in aid of Diabetes UK.

“Our state-of-the-art environmental chamber has helped many athletes prepare for major sporting events, while allowing our researchers to study the impact of physical activity in extreme environments.

“By collaborating with Diabetes UK in supporting Gordon, we aim to learn more about the needs of those with type 1 diabetes in this kind of setting, something which we hope will have real world impact in deepening understanding and management of the condition.”

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Jenn Hall, national director of Diabetes Scotland said: “We are so grateful to Gordon for taking on this immense challenge in aid of Diabetes UK and for leading the charge in showing what people living with diabetes can achieve. Every pound raised will help us fund more research for new treatments, campaign for better care, and provide vital support to people who need us through our helpline.”

The work directly addresses the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 3, Good Health and Wellbeing and Goal 17, Partnership for the Goals.

You can donate to Gordon’s Kilimanjaro fundraiser in aid of Diabetes UK via his Just Giving page at www.justgiving.com/page/gordon-hill-4

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Now well into its second week, the US-Israeli war against Iran has gone beyond the “combat operation” the US president, Donald Trump, announced when it began on February 28. Civilians and infrastructure have been struck across the region from Lebanon, to the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The conflict has spread rapidly across the Middle East. Now, with the strait of Hormuz effectively closed, oil prices have risen sharply threatening global economic chaos.

This is not an abstract strategic contest. It is unfolding in a region shaped by decades of conflict driven both by external intervention and by regional actors themselves. Israel’s overwhelming use of military force in recent years in Gaza, Lebanon and now against Iran has been a central factor in the current escalation, while Iran and allied armed movements such as Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis have pursued their own strategies of deterrence and retaliation.

The latest US-Israeli strikes and Tehran’s response therefore add another layer to an already volatile landscape in which multiple actors pursue security, influence or survival through force. The human cost is mounting. Meanwhile, the legal principles meant to constrain the use of force under the UN Charter have increasingly been overshadowed by power politics.

In this context, the meaning of the “America first” slogan on which Donald Trump campaigned in 2024 demands urgent reassessment. So does the manner in which American power operates.

US involvement in and response to the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East show a pattern of Washington enlisting regional partners to help realise its foreign policy aims. It is letting Europe bear the main burden in economic terms in the Ukraine conflict while in the Middle East, it has partnered with Israel. Meanwhile, it is happy to directly manage affairs in the Americas – in the Venezuela raid in January, for example, or the Cuba blockade.

When Barack Obama called it “leading from behind”, there was a furore on the American right. But now, this approach is central to maintaining America’s dominant global position.

One of this article’s authors, Inderjeet Parmar, has highlighted elsewhere how US policy seeks to combine realist power projection with liberal ideological framing, using the language of universal values such as human rights. This enables it to legitimise interventions, alliances and proxy arrangements that distribute burdens to partners and sustain America’s global position while helping avoid overextension. Washington’s approach masks self-interested expansionism as consensual leadership rather than the naked unilateralism it actually represents.

This approach reduces the risk of domestic backlash from costly direct engagements. It avoids the pitfalls of imperial overstretch that were seen in cases such as Iraq, while retaining ultimate control and benefits.

In his analysis of US actions, this article’s other author, Bamo Nouri, suggests that US foreign policy often serves corporate and elite interests under such guises as the promotion of democracy. Nouri portrays how Washington’s use of partners in foreign policy arenas in recent years has been a calculated tactic that sustains empire efficiently. But it risks partner fatigue, escalation, or blow-back when partners falter, fail to achieve their goals or where it leads to wider regional escalation.

But ultimately it underscores a consistent US strategy: using its networked power to get its way. In other words, leading from behind.

‘America first’ interrogated

The “America first” slogan that Trump has adopted (a 19th-century phrase used by nativists. It gained prominence in the US after the first world war when it became associated with the Ku Klux Klan and other far-right organisations) was framed by the president as a decisive break from the post-cold war bipartisan foreign policy consensus. Trump denounced regime change, criticised the Iraq war’s architects, and promised to end “forever wars”. That resonated with a weary American public lamenting costly interventions that destabilised the Middle East while achieving little.

America first was presented as a strategic correction: abandoning liberal interventionism, rejecting ideological crusades and restoring prudence to US statecraft. Intellectually, it appeared to prioritise realist recognition of limits, restraint and national interests over moral grandstanding.

Yet Trump 2.0 actions – with the raid on Venezuela, threats against Greenland and Canada and now the full-scale war against Iran – have cast serious doubts on that claim. Evidence suggests continuity in the pursuit of American primacy, but expressed now in more nationalist and unapologetic language. The rhetoric has shifted, but the structure of power and the willingness to employ force remain strikingly familiar.

To Trump’s base, the appeal of America first was partly due to its critique of liberal internationalism. For decades, both Republican and Democratic administrations justified US primacy through the language of promoting democracy, humanitarian intervention and multilateral order-building. Trump argued that these ventures drained American resources while delivering little tangible benefit. Indeed, both parties’ presidential candidates in 2020 stood on a platform of ending “forever wars”. But ultimately, America first was largely a branding exercise led by influential thinktanks.

The Washington-based conservative thinktank, the Heritage Foundation, played an important role in developing policy frameworks and identifying personnel for Trump’s second administration.

Heritage had historically championed a robust national defence and assertive US leadership. Under Trump, newer networks explicitly branded under the banner of America First Policy Institute emerged to provide intellectual support for the movement. These institutions promoted the idea that Trumpism represented a decisive shift toward state-centred realism, as opposed to liberal nation-building.

But realism, properly understood, is not simply a rhetoric of strength, but a doctrine of prudence. Classical realists, from the German-born scholar Hans Morgenthau onwards, have always stressed the dangers of ideological crusading, the unpredictability of military escalation and the limits of power. War was to be a last resort, not a way to demonstrate power and resolve.

But America first has not dismantled the core architecture of US global primacy. The US continues to rely on military superiority, sanctions regimes and alliance systems to maintain its position of global primacy. The difference lies in presentation. Liberal internationalists justified primacy through universalist ideals. America first recasts it in nationalist terms: sovereignty, strength, deterrence. But the underlying strategic objective remains constant – preventing the emergence of challengers and preserving US dominance.

The escalation with Iran underscores this continuity. It signals that when confronted with perceived threats to its authority or credibility, Washington will often consider the use of coercion, whether economic or other means, including force. In this sense, America first may represent not a rejection of primacy but its simplification, stripped of multilateral vocabulary and reframed as unapologetic power politics.

The costs of abandoning restraint

The consequences are profound. Domestically, America first promised a renewed focus on national reconstruction. But the gap between promise and practice risks deepening public cynicism about foreign policy and political leadership alike.

If Trump’s foreign policy “art of the deal” culminates in airstrikes, region-wide escalation and blowback, the claim that it represents a realist recalibration of US foreign policy becomes difficult to sustain. Rather than ending liberal interventionism, America first appears to have refashioned American primacy in starker, less apologetic terms, without the veneer of restraint.

The recent strikes are therefore more than tactical decisions for the Trump administration. They reveal how deeply embedded primacy politics remains in Washington, regardless of who is doing it. The rhetoric has shifted. The structural impulse to defend US dominance through force has not.