Andy Burnham has only been Prime Minister for a few months but eyes are already on a potential next general election.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch claimed that the Labour leader is a ‘gambler’ and suggested that he might ‘fancy his chances’ in an election.

When on LBC radio, she said: ‘I’ve said that if he cannot fund defence, which he needs to fund by cutting welfare, then he should call an election.

‘That’s why John Healey resigned. He said the money that was going into defence was not enough.’

She quipped that the Tories ‘fancy [their chances] as well’, having been in power for 14 years until Labour’s 2024 victory.

While Burnham hasn’t said he’s about to call an election, a major YouGov survey has suggested Labour would still be the largest party, followed by the Tories.

However, polls point to a hung parliament with Labour losing 170 seats, with Reform in third place.

Nigel Farage’s party is neck and neck with the Tories – respectively on 123 and 130 seats in the projection – which is far below the projection from last year.

YouGov suggested they would take 188 fewer seats than in the September 2025 version but also up from their actual number of five seats in 2024.

There are now eight Reform MPs, all of whom are Tory defectors, with Farage holding onto Clacton after the by-election against Count Binface.

However, even a projected Tory-Reform coalition would fail to pass the 326-seat bar for a majority in the House of Commons.

Badenoch did rule out a Tory coalition with Reform or the Lib Dems, saying: ‘It’s been done before, 1974. We had two elections. We had two elections in one year. 

‘But what I saw with the coalition 2010 to 2015 was actually us not being able to deliver many of the things that we promised people because we made concessions to the Lib Dems and nobody thanked us for it later.’

The survey suggested that unless Burnham could pull together a ‘rainbow coalition’ of left-wing parties, he would be unable to get a majority.

The projection also points to gains for the left, with Greens up from a projected seven to nine (they currently have five MPs).

Welsh national party Plaid Cymru also saw projected gains of nine seats, while the SNP could gain around 10 seats.

In more than a third of the seats, the winning margin was less than five points, showing just how conflicted the country is.

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

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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Sabrina Washington found herself embroiled in a ‘frosty’ interview with Good Morning Britain‘s Susanna Reid on Thursday as she fiercely denied blindsiding her Mis-Teeq bandmates with split news and solo tour announcement. 

In the wake of Mis-Teeq’s epic reunion show at OVO Arena Wembley this month, the singer, 47, quashed fans’ hopes of a more permanent comeback when she instead  announced she was embarking on her very own headline tour.

Following this news, her bandmate Su-Elise publicly hit out at Sabrina’s actions in an Instagram post in which she said Mis-Teeq’s split was ‘news to her’, while Alesha Dixon, 47, shared a cryptic post alluding to ‘hurting privately’. 

But joining Thursday’s GMB, Sabrina flat-out denied that she’d issued a press release informing everyone of Mis-Teeq’s split and insisted that there were no plans in the pipeline for further Mis-Teeq shows. 

As she was grilled by host Susanna, 55, about her band mates being blindsided by the news, Sabrina shut down any suggestion that she instigated a split, telling the host: ‘No! I have not said split in any way, shape or form- it’s not come from me.’

With the Why hitmaker becoming increasingly irritated by Susanna’s direction of questioning, GMB viewers watching at home were quick to comment about the ‘frosty’ atmosphere between the pair.

As she was grilled by host Susanna [pictured last year] , 55, about her band mates being blindsided by the news, Sabrina shut down any suggestion that she instigated a split

They penned: ‘Oosh! Sabrina is frosty on @GMB’

‘I just caught that Sabrina Washington interview on GMB and ohhhh my goodness…’

‘What an awful energy from this human being.. @GMB presenters sitting listening to that, I feel for them. ‘

‘Sabrina Washington #MisTeeq just now on breakfast TV. Boy is that woman in a bad mood or what!!!’

However, leaping to her defence, another person claimed that Susanna addressed her like a child. 

They penned: ‘Wow, does she always speak to adults like she’s talking to a naughty child’ 

Confirming that she didn’t reveal a split and that she has nothing but love for Alesha and Su-Elise, Sabrina told Susanna and co-host Tom Swarbrick: ‘I have not said split in any way, shape or form. That has not come from me. 

‘What’s happened is this: We had an amazing show for our anniversary, which was filled with love, filled with good energy and there was nothing planned. There has been nothing else planned after that.

Sabrina flat-out denied that she’d issued a press release informing everyone of Mis-Teeq’s split and insisted that there were no plans in the pipeline for further Mis-Teeq shows

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With the Why hitmaker becoming increasingly irritated by Susanna’s direction of questioning, GMB viewers watching at home were quick to comment about the ‘frosty’ atmosphere 

However, leaping to her defence, another person claimed that Susanna addressed her like a child

‘I would never say no to another Mis-Teeq show ever, because I have never ever said no to a Mis-Teeq show. I love the girls. So it may still be something that could happen because I’ve never said no and I’ve never said split.’

On Alesha and Su-Elise’s ‘shock’ at her doing her own thing, Sabrina continued: ‘Remember, we got together for a One Night Stand for our 25th anniversary. It was only ever one night.’

Tom then went on to read a statement from Mis-Teeq’s representative stating that Sabrina’s team issued a press release about their split without consulting Alesha, Su-Elise or any of the Mis-Teeq team.

Reiterating her point, Sabrina remarked: ‘Wrong!’ before adding: ‘That’s what I’m saying. I didn’t do a press release at all. I’ve not said anything about the girls and the group, I don’t do that.’

Breaking into third person, she went on: ‘Sabrina doesn’t talk. She’s a person that doesn’t really talk. Sabrina, this Sabrina sitting down here, the one in Mis-Teeq. I don’t talk like that!’

Sabrina went on to claim that Alesha did in fact know about her tour and even congratulated her, before saying she hadn’t yet spoken to Su-Elise as she was currently in Australia.

Rounding off her points, Sabrina said: ‘It definitely is scandalous because I’ve said nothing on top of more nothing on top of more nothing. I love the girls.’

She then went on to try and discuss her tour but was abruptly cut-off by Susanna as the programme had come to an end. 

The Daily Mail has contacted Mis-Teeq and Sabrina’s representatives for comment.  

A Mis-Teeq representative told the Daily Mail: ‘Alesha knew nothing about her solo tour or the split announcement until we heard about it from the media on Monday morning.’

While Sabrina’s representative confirmed lines from her press release, which included: ‘The reaction to the Mis-Teeq reunion has honestly been overwhelming. We knew there was still so much love for the music, but seeing just how much these songs continue to mean to people 25 years later has been incredibly emotional.

From the moment Wembley was announced, I was receiving messages from people saying, ‘What about Manchester? Where’s Birmingham? Are you coming to Scotland? What about the rest of the world?’ and I kept seeing people saying that one night simply wasn’t enough. So there really could only be one name for this tour!’

Sabrina, Alesha and Su-Elise delighted fans when they took to the stage at the OVO Arena Wembley last month, to celebrate 25 years since the release of Mis-Teeq’s debut album

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Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Alesha Dixon alluded to how she was feeling as she reposted a post about Libras and hinted she was ‘hurting’ in private

While Sabrina may well be excited to take to stages across the UK for a personal celebration of Mis-Teeq’s music, it appears that she forgot to inform the rest of the group 

Su-Elise informed her fans that on the very day of Sabrina’s announcement, Mis-Teeq had a deadline to confirm plans of more shows, including performing at a major UK festival

Furthermore, the star went on to ‘like’ comments from fans slamming Sabrina’s decision to organise a tour behind the backs of her fellow group members

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Meanwhile, Su-Elise ‘liked’ a response by former Mis-Teeq member Zena McNally – who joined the girls on stage during their gig – with many fans calling for her to rejoin the group 

While Su-Elise publicly hit out at Sabrina’s actions in an Instagram post in which she said Mis-Teeq’s split was ‘news to her’, Alesha has remained tight-lipped on the matter, only sharing fan clips of their recent gig. 

But taking to Instagram on Wednesday, the Britain’s Got Talent judge alluded to how she was feeling as she reposted a post about Libras and hinted she was ‘hurting’ in private.

The post read: ‘She is Libra. Hurts privately. Heals privately. Figures it out privately. Then shows up like it never happened.’

It comes as just hours after Sabrina’s big announcement, Su-Elise took to Instagram sharing a screenshot of an article stating Mis-Teeq have split amid Sabrina’s solo plans, with the singer expressing her shock at the news.

Sharing her thoughts, Su-Elise informed her fans that on the very day of Sabrina’s announcement, Mis-Teeq had a deadline to confirm plans of more shows, including performing at a major UK festival.

Su-Elise penned: ‘As far as I was aware, today was our deadline to make a decision on some incredible Mis-Teeq offers for 2027… including headlining a major UK festival, performing at another huge UK festival and potentially taking the show regional for everyone who couldn’t make Wembley.

‘After the incredible response to our sold-out Wembley Arena show, I genuinely believed these were opportunities we were all excited about and hopefully saying YES to today as Mis-Teeq!

‘So to find out that a press release went out to media today saying ‘Mis-Teeq have split’ has taken me by surprise.

‘That’s news to me…’

Signing off on her post, the Scandalous hitmaker added: ‘Either way, I’m incredibly proud of what we achieved at Wembley and so grateful to everyone who came out and supported us.’

Furthermore, the star went on to ‘like’ comments from fans slamming Sabrina’s decision to organise a tour behind the backs of her fellow group members, with one criticising her for her ‘complete lack of integrity’ and ‘disrespect’. 

Meanwhile, Su-Elise ‘liked’ a response by former Mis-Teeq member Zena McNally – who joined the girls on stage during their gig – with many fans calling for her to join forces with Su-Elise and Alesha.

Amid Su-Elise’s anger, it appeared that Alesha too was unaware of the major update as around the same time, she was still sharing clips of the band’s nostalgic show at Wembley. 

The Daily Mail has contacted Mis-Teeq’s representatives, who shared: ‘Sabrina and her team issued a press release to media saying ‘Mis-Teeq Split’ and announcing her solo tour, without telling Alesha, Su-Elise or anyone on the Mis-Teeq team’.

Mercedes driver George Russell headed both practice sessions at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The Briton led team-mate Kimi Antonelli by 0.552 seconds in the second session. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was Russell’s closest rival in the first session, when Antonelli suffered a hydraulic failure.

Antonelli’s reliability problems also meant he missed the first half of the second session, and overall the Italian had half the amount of running of Russell.

Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad had his second crash in consecutive race weekends in practice, clipping the wall on the exit of the tight chicane leading into the section around the castle.

In the context of the day, the margin between the two Mercedes drivers is to be expected but Antonelli is likely to close in on Friday in the run up to qualifying.

Mercedes spent the first half-hour of the second session finishing off the repair to Antonelli’s car, which involved an engine change.

That meant he had to go straight into his performance runs on the soft tyre, having missed set-up and development time at the end of the first hour and the beginning of the second.

Emergency services, including the air ambulance, were called to the crash on Crane Lane Row, between Hamsterley and Bishop Auckland, just before 6.15pm on Wednesday (September 23).

Despite the best efforts of medics, a 60-year-old passenger in the van was declared dead at the scene.

His family have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers, Durham Police said.

Another second casualty was taken to the RVI in Newcastle for further treatment, the ambulance service confirmed.

The road was closed for several hours while crash investigators examined the scene.

It has since been reopened.

A spokesperson for Durham Police said: “Officers would like to speak to any witnesses, or those who may have dashcam footage of the vehicles leading up to the collision.

“If you can help, please contact Durham Constabulary’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit by email at SCIU@durham.police.uk quoting incident number 413 of September 23.”

A North East Ambulance Service spokesperson added: “We were called to a road traffic incident on Crane Row Lane at 6.40pm. We dispatched two ambulance crews and were supported by Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS). One patient was taken to RVI hospital by road for further treatment.”

A spokesperson for Great North Air Ambulance said: “Our critical care team was activated at 6.51pm to an incident near Hamsterley.

“We had a paramedic and doctor on board our aircraft and they arrived on scene at 7.02pm.”

Mark Phillips, Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) chief executive, said: “The rail industry continues to take action to better protect staff, but these figures underline the need for a change in public behaviour and greater respect for the people who keep the railway running safely every day.”

Rumours of a rift between Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale followed the pair during their time as Real Madrid superstars

Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo have repeatedly dismissed rumours of a rivalry between them during their time as Real Madrid team-mates.

Ronaldo, 41, is set to start in Portugal’s opening fixture of the 2026/27 Nations League campaign against Wales on Thursday night at the Estadio Jose Alvalade. Bale, meanwhile, retired from professional football in January 2023 as Wales’ most-capped player and top goal-scorer of all time.

The pair played together at the Bernabeu for five seasons prior to Ronaldo’s departure to Juventus in 2018, tormenting opposition full-backs while at the peak of respective their powers.

Despite forming a highly successful forward trident along with Karim Benzema, which won four Champions League titles, there were plenty of suggestions in the media and online that they did not have the best relationship on or off the pitch – unlike Barcelona’s trio of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

The rumoured tension boiled down to Ronaldo sometimes appearing unimpressed when Bale scored, while the Portuguese also fuelled the notion of their fractious relationship by admitting he did not spend a lot of time with his team-mates away from training, specifically name-checking Bale.

But Ronaldo had already shown his true colours by defending Bale in his first season following his big-money move to Madrid. Bale, who arrived in 2013 from Tottenham Hotspur for £85million, was immediately under intense pressure to perform after injuries disrupted his start in Spain.

“I think Gareth Bale is doing well since he arrived,” Ronaldo said in a 2013 press conference. “He has had a difficult time because [of a lack of] pre-season, and injury. It’s better to leave him alone, don’t put pressure on him, because I’m sure 100% he’s going to do well for the club because he is a fantastic player, a fantastic boy and he always wants to learn.”

The current Al-Nassr forward’s words hardly painted a picture of animosity with Bale. In March 2019, Bale returned the favour by telling MailOnline: “Cristiano is an incredible player, I thoroughly enjoyed playing with him. Obviously the media try and hype up these problems which were never there. We got on really well.”

In a July 2023 interview with The Times, the winger addressed the speculation about his uneasy dynamic with the Manchester United legend.

Bale insisted: “I never had one single problem with anybody. I don’t think I ever had an argument with anyone. Even through the hard times, it was good in the changing room. I honestly really enjoyed my time there apart from the few moments where it was difficult on the pitch.” The Welshman added: “I have no regrets. I made the right decision.”

The former Tottenham talisman left the Spanish giants in 2022 and hung up his boots less than a year later, aged 35, following a brief stint with Los Angeles FC and representing Wales at the 2022 World Cup.

He appeared on the Stick To Football podcast earlier this year, where he once more shed light on the fact his relationship with Ronaldo was always professional, dismissing any animosity. However, Bale explained that the five-time Ballon d’Or winner was obsessed with scoring goals to the point where his body language sometimes suggested he was angry with his team-mates – which he also defended.

Bale said: “We got on very well in the dressing room. We never had a problem. Karim was very calm. Cristiano and I were on the wing with more spark, but he was holding it all together. I came in as the last piece of the puzzle.”

“Whether in training or matches, all he wanted to do was score goals. If you didn’t pass him the ball, you noticed it,” Bale said regarding Ronaldo with a laugh while recalling the Portuguese star’s mentality.

“I’ve had a few arm flails when I’ve missed a one-on-one and I maybe could have passed to him. You also have to take that that is his drive and motivation. He just wants to score, not just one but he wants to score three, four, five, six a game, if he can.

“You know, he’s chasing records and wants to beat Lionel Messi doing that. You get it, and also you can’t argue because he’s scoring the goals.

“He was just so driven. Going into a game you knew pretty much that you had a 1-0 headstart because he was going to score at some point. He was a confidence booster for the team.”

By DAVID BARRETT, HOME AFFAIRS EDITOR

Published: 12:37 BST, 24 September 2026 | Updated: 13:38 BST, 24 September 2026

It’s also surrounded by stunning countryside

There are many pretty villages in England, but Cambridgeshire is home to one with a number of claims to fame. Elsworth is not only a picturesque old village full of thatched cottages, but it has not one but two historic facts.

The South Cambridgeshire village was once home to a very famous resident, who you might not know by name but you will definitely know his work. Rev W Awdry, was the vicar of Elsworth’s Holy Trinity church between 1946 and 1950 – and you probably know him best as the writer of the very well known Thomas the Tank Engine.

He was rector of the parish of Elsworth in 1946 when he was writing his books. He wrote five books while working in Elsworth before moving to be the vicar in Emneth – another Cambridgeshire village.

The village’s other claim to fame is that it helped create what is known as ‘the Cambridgeshire dialect’. Many people might say there isn’t an accent in Cambridgeshire – it’s certainly not as strong as the likes of Liverpool, Newcastle or Essex – but there is still an accent.

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The Cambridgeshire dialect varies depending on whether you’re in the north of the county, where the Fenland accent rules, or further south where it’s difficult to tell where people are from, but this small village is the first place where any of the dialects were first recorded.

In 1950, it was one of only two sites in Cambridgeshire to be covered by the Survey of English Dialects. The village was chosen to be a part of the survey because it was a rural area with a history of a stable population.

Residents were talked to and recorded so that their dialect would not be completely lost to history. Extracts from these recordings are now all freely available online through the British Library. The other village to have its dialect recorded in Cambridgeshire was Little Downham.

The village is just nine miles away from Cambridge and seven miles from Huntingdon. You will find two pubs there – George & Dragon on Boxworth Road and The Poacher on Brockley Road. It also has a community shop, a primary school and a Church.

Despite its small size today, Elsworth has always been a well-populated village and was also a very successful and bustling Medieval village, dwarfing those around it. It’s name has also changed a little over time. It was listed as Eleswurth in 974, and Elesuuorde in the Domesday Book of 1086.

Taylor Swift is lifting the lid on what fans should expect from her latest musical offering.

Earlier this week, it was announced that the Grammy winner was releasing a new version of her Life Of A Showgirl album dubbed The Encore, led by the new single Patient Zero, this Friday.

In addition to her new song, Taylor has revealed that she’s already shot a music video for it, which features a couple of familiar faces.

A 13-second teaser shared on the I Knew You Were Trouble singer’s social media channels on Thursday revealed that the clip will feature appearances from Dakota Johnson and Colin Farrell.

Of course, Swifties know that this is far from the first time Taylor has recruited some A-list talent to star in her music videos.

Announcing new music on Wednesday, Taylor told her fans: “About a year ago, you guys did a truly unfathomable thing. Something that completely blew my mind… You gave The Life of a Showgirl the biggest first week for an album in history.

“I took a trip to Sweden to celebrate with Max [Martin] and Shellback, my two collaborators on this album. Really we just wanted to reflect and take in how grateful we were for the moment we were in, but there was a studio there and we did what we do when we feel anything at all: We wrote more songs.

“I hope you love them, because they were born out of pure gratitude for your exuberance for and celebration of the album we made.”