Officers say the tent appeared to have been lived in for around nine days.

Police are hunting the occupants of a campsite found in a wooded area in Dumfries and Galloway as temperatures plummet.

A tent was discovered in an area in Castle Kennedy and New Luce that appeared to have been lived in between Monday, March 2 and Wednesday, March 11.

Officers want to ensure the occupant is safe and urge anyone who can indentify the person or who have have seen any vehicle in the area to come forward.

The camp appears to have been abandoned as the mild weather was replaced with heavy rain and wind in the middle of this week.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Officers have located a tent that appears to have been lived in between Monday 2nd of March and Wednesday 11th of March in a wooded area between Castle Kennedy and New Luce, approximately 3 miles from Castle Kennedy.

“Our primary goal is to ensure the occupant is safe and well. We are appealing to anyone who can assist in the identification of the person living in the tent or may have seen anyone or any vehicles acting suspiciously to get in touch via 101.”

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He’s now been jailed

A banned driver who sped away from police 80mph in a bid to escape the police and who later did the same again with kids in his car has been jailed. ‘Incredibly reckless’ Christopher Marshall, 40, twice made off from officers as they tried to stop him in Gorton.

In December 2023, a local neighbourhood officer recognised Marshall, who was disqualified, and pulled up behind him. He then drove off and hit speeds of 80mph whilst ‘overtaking traffic, mounting a pavement, and running red lights’, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.

Officers who were pursuing him discontinued the chase due to the circumstances. However they later tracked him down, arrested and charged him.

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However after being granted court bail, Marshall offended again. In January of last year he was again spotted by a patrol and once again drove off. This time he had two young children in the car, GMP said.

“He mounted a kerb and clipped a member of the public’s car, while also causing an officer to slam their brakes on to avoid being hit” the force said.

Due to the presence of the children they decided not to pursue him, however he was again arrested two days later, and charged.

Marshall, of Lunn Avenue in Abbey Hey, Gorton, pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous driving, two counts of driving whilst disqualified, and one count of handling stolen goods.

He was this week sentenced to two years and four months in prison at Manchester Crown Court.

In a statement issued after the case, PC Mohammed Ditta, from GMP’s City of Manchester neighbourhood policing team, said: “We see the consequences of dangerous driving every day across the force – from minor scrapes to serious injuries and deaths.

“Marshall’s decision to drive so dangerously while young children were on board was incredibly reckless, and we are fortunate that there were not more serious consequences.

“The local neighbourhood team regularly proactively patrols the areas of Gorton and the surrounding areas, and we are constantly looking to tackle criminality wherever we can find it.”

Ryan Reynolds made the demand while providing alternative commentary with Rob Mac for Sky Sports on Wrexham against Swansea City in the Championship on Friday night

Ryan Reynolds told Wrexham player Ollie Palmer to leave the STōK Cae Ras midway through their match against Swansea City after Palmer confessed to not having watched Deadpool & Wolverine.

Palmer, 34, joined Reynolds and Rob Mac on Sky Sports for their alternative commentary on the team’s Championship match against Swansea City on Friday night. The centre-forward joined Swindon Town, who host Milton Keynes Dons tomorrow (Saturday), late last summer after leaving Wrexham by mutual consent.

Their former striker, Steven Fletcher, also featured in the coverage. They released the player at the end of last season, and he then retired.

Fletcher spent two seasons with Wrexham, while Palmer was there for three-and-a-half years and became a fans’ favourite. Reynolds even had him make a cameo in the 2024 film Deadpool & Wolverine, which he also helped write and produce, starring himself.

The actor who plays Deadpool fondly recalls the role his then-striker played. Reynolds said: “Ollie Palmer stole the show there in Deadpool & Wolverine.” Palmer, however, replied: “I’ve got a confession to make, I’ve not seen it [Deadpool & Wolverine] yet.”

The film’s co-star then responded: “You know what, you can just put the microphone down, and you can head out of the exit, in fact, walk through the away section and leave.” Palmer replied by telling Reynolds: “I am going to watch it, I will watch it, I promise.”

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Wrexham went on to win the match 2-0, with big-money summer signings Callum Doyle and Nathan Broadhead scoring for the hosts. That win moves them six points clear of Derby County and Southampton in sixth place, the Championship’s final play-off spot.

The Saints, though, do have a game in hand, which they will play away against league leaders Coventry City on Saturday. Reynolds, however, is not getting carried away with talk of Premier League promotion.

“You have to check yourself, too. We’re in the Championship; the mere fact that we’re here is worth taking stock of.

“Do we want to win it all? Of course, we do, we’re all competitors, but we have to take stock and see that this is part of the reward.”

He also spoke about the bigger picture. Reynolds said: “For me, my favourite thing about this experience is: I don’t care what your ideologies are and where you are and identity, there’s such a feeling of togetherness.

“In every arena, a community gets to come together for something we share in common. I love looking around here, being in the fresh air, being outside in the wonderful country of Wales, and being on the pitch; I don’t ever take that for granted.”

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Locals have said they are “happy” in their hometown, praising it for its “friendly community” and “gorgeous” walks. Conveniently located between Ely, Cambridge, and Newmarket is the town of Soham.

Home to over 12,000 people, Soham is the second largest town in East Cambridgeshire, after Ely. The town has a significant history, dating back to the Bronze Age. It also had a significant Roman and Saxon occupation.

As part of our Exploring Cambridgeshire series, we visited the town and spoke to people about what it is like to live in Soham. After the death of Ian Huntley, who killed 10-year-olds Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells in 2002, locals hope the town will no longer be known for only its darkest days.

Jean Alljood has lived in Soham since 2006, and she said she is “happy” living in the town. She added: “It’s a friendly community. It has what you need for everyday stuff. I like it where I live.” Jean’s two sisters also live in Soham, and she looks after them.

She added: “I have a few friends but I don’t socialise much, I just like to walk my dog. This time of year isn’t as good, but in the summer we can go places like by the river.

“For people who like socialising, you can go to cafes – there are plenty of them! There are also some nice Portuguese places. There are also some good children’s play parks.”

One man, who asked to remain anonymous, also said Soham has “everything you need”. He added: “People are nice and helpful. There are some lovely walks.”

Emily Mills said it is a “lovely town” with a “good character to it”. She said: “I only moved here three years ago, but I am definitely not moving away now. It’s got everything so close like the Co-op and also a big Asda.

“We have some lovely buildings like the church. Most people will say hello to you, and it has some cute walks by the river.”

One woman, who wished to not be named, said it’s a “good town to be close to other places”. She praised its location, saying: “You are not far away from places like Cambridge for tourist spots, or even Ely for the cathedral. We’re even close to Newmarket for racing.”

She ecohed other residents who said that locals are friendly, creating a strong sense of community. The woman added that a “lot of people greet you, even when you don’t know them”.

Before each general election in the late 1990s and early 2000s, campaign group Operation Black Vote used to publish a list of the most ethnically diverse constituencies in the UK. These were the areas in which the size of the non-white population exceeded the size of the incumbent party’s majority. The idea was to persuade political parties to campaign in these places and to think about what they were offering to ethnic minority voters.

Operation Black Vote, which was founded in 1996 to empower voters from ethnic minority backgrounds, had good reason to worry. Both anecdotal and academic research shows that ethnic minority voters had been largely taken for granted by the Labour party.

As an example, the prominent Labour politician Roy Hattersley wrote candidly about the minority vote contributing to his 1974 re-election as an MP for Birmingham Sparkbrook: “I won with an increased majority, the well-organised and invariably loyal Kashmiris had cast their disciplined vote early in the day.”

Unsurprisingly, this “invariably loyal” vote led to minority voters reporting less contact from parties during election campaigns.

With support for Labour almost always in the region of 70% to 80% across most Asian and Black voter groups, the fact that David Weaver, the chairman of Operation Black Vote, has now said that Labour is in “deep trouble” with Black voters is therefore remarkable.

Indian and Muslim voters are already leaving

Historically, different ethnic groups had differing levels of support for Labour but even in the fragmented 2024 general election, it remained the most popular choice for British Black and Asian voters. However, this is a far cry from Labour being able to take this vote for granted. Two recent developments should give the party particular pause.

First, Indian-origin Britons have already started drifting away from Labour. Their movement towards the Conservatives has been slow but steady since 2010. The continuous nature of this defection suggests that there is little Labour could do to reverse it. While in 2024 a plurality of British Indians still chose Labour, this is the lowest vote share the party has received from this group in any recorded general election.

Second, and perhaps more alarming, is a break in the traditional loyalty among British Muslims that characterised the 2024 general election. Labour voting among this group collapsed by almost 30% and delivered a handful of independent MPs to parliament. Some took Labour’s historically safe seats, mostly on pro-Gaza tickets.

More recently, these voters moved towards the Green party in the 2026 byelection in Gorton and Denton. It is this choice that represents a new and particularly threatening issue for Labour. As a result of the general fragmentation of the party system, ethnic minority voters now seem to have alternative choices, and feel freer to opt for them.

Muslim voters defected from Labour in 2005 over the Iraq war but the resulting protest vote for the Liberal Democrats was short-lived. By 2010 the Muslim vote for Labour had recovered.

The contrast with today’s vote switching and record support for small parties is stark. With more viable options on the ballot, it is not inconceivable that many Muslim voters may not return to Labour.

Could Black voters follow?

While Black voters remained the most loyal group in 2024, they too might feel a little freer to go. Even the historically no-go option for Black voters, the Conservative party, might seem like a possibility. In a significant departure from their traditional approach, the Tories have been making an effort to tackle race and inequality. They commissioned a major review of racial disparities, increased their ethnic diversity in Parliament and delivered the historically most ethnically diverse cabinet to date. It is worth noting that the current leader Kemi Badenoch and her predecessor Rishi Sunak are both of ethnic minority origin.

Labour is yet to appoint a non-white leader. And its record in government is certainly doing very little to dissuade minority voters from looking elsewhere.

Among the failures that could count against them with Black voters are a continuation of the unpopular “hostile environment” immigration policy and an aggressive curtailment of settlement policies. These are unlikely to play well with a group that had already fallen victim to the previous government’s similar policies via the Windrush scandal. Labour’s ineffective implementation of the compensation scheme for the victims of this scandal, who were most likely to identify as British Black Caribbean, only compounds this issue.

More recently, the issue of justice has emerged as a major divide between Labour and its Black supporters. The history of racial inequalities in the justice system is long and trust in judicial institutions among Black Britons is deservedly low. Given this, the current proposals to abolish jury trials could be seen as a betrayal of trust. The proposal is intended to deal with the backlog in the courts but the evidence shows juries reduce discrimination in trials. Black voters report law and order as the most important issue – far more than the other ethnic minority voters – so this is clearly not going to go unnoticed.

Given the lack of action and progress on other important issues for the Black community, such as child poverty and the cost-of-living crisis, Labour should really worry about losing not just their Muslim voters, and the Indian origin minority, but also its most loyal Black voters too. They truly cannot and should not take any of these groups for granted.

Bower’s forthcoming book – Betrayal: Power, Deceit And The Fight For The Future Of The Royal Family – continues his investigation into the strained relationship between the Houses of Sussex and Windsor, four years after the publication of his bestseller Revenge: Meghan, Harry, And The War Between The Windsors.

With Iran choking off one of the world’s most crucial shipping lanes, heads of government and industry now face a tough question: what can be done to stop them?

What is happening?

The Strait of Hormuz, which separates the Gulf States from Iran, is a waterway of huge economic significance, with a fifth of the world’s oil and gas trade passing through.

It’s also a big part of the global supply of various oil and gas-derived products, including fertiliser, plastics, and composite materials, according to Sky’s economic editor, Ed Conway.

So, facing sustained joint attacks from the US and Israel, Iran is retaliating by making global markets feel the pain, attacking shipping traffic in to narrow channel, which is just 24 miles wide at its narrowest point.

Iran war latest: New supreme leader ‘likely disfigured’

Among the weapons in Iran’s arsenal are sea and air drones, anti-ship mines and missiles, submarines, and GPS jamming to undermine navigation systems.

What can America do?

Donald Trump has suggested US warships will escort commercial shipping through the strait “if necessary”.

During his weekly Q&A session Sky’s military expert Michael Clarke cast doubt on the idea.

“There are never enough warships to escort enough tankers through a difficult sea passage,” he said.

He was also sceptical of the suggestion that oil tankers could be equipped with the means to defend themselves against drones.

“You need all the stuff that goes with it, so you need all of the radars and the target acquisition, as it’s called, the Istar – intelligence surveillance target acquisition and reconnaissance.”

Mr Trump has further suggested that the US would provide insurance and guarantees for shipping “at a very reasonable price”.

But Professor Clarke said the $20bn (£15bn) the American government has allocated to insurance “doesn’t touch the sides” given the possible costs.

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Air defence destroyers

One possible method he suggested was “a gun line of air defence destroyers all the way along the Gulf facing the Iranian coast”.

“Then you’re almost certainly going to have to use air power to attack anything on the Iranian side of the coast, anything that moves,” he added.

But he warned that the Iranians might even welcome such an outcome.

He said: “It’s very intensive. I’m pretty sure the Iranians would quite welcome that, because it brings the Americans into fighting low down and dirty on [their] territory.

“And the chance of getting lucky, and the chance of being able to disrupt it would still be high.”

General Dan Caine, the highest-ranking military officer of the US armed forces, told a press conference on Friday that they were focused on degrading Iran’s capability to disrupt shipping, without giving specifics.

“This means going after Iran’s minelaying capability and destroying their ability to attack commercial vessels,” he said.

Read more:
Why the Strait of Hormuz is so important in the war with Iran
UK weighs options to defend shipping in Strait of Hormuz

He added: “We’ve made it a priority to target Iran’s minelaying enterprise, their minelayers, the naval bases and depots, in addition to the missiles that could influence the Straits.”

He also said the Iranian navy had been rendered combat ineffective, but acknowledged that Iran still possessed attack capabilities at sea.

“Work on this effort continues,” he added.

Jamming

Others have suggested that jamming GPS navigation systems may be as good a defence as it is an attack.

Dr Ramsey Faragher, director of the Royal Institute of Navigation, told Sky News that multiple countries may be using the technology in the Gulf.

“It’s probably a combination of Iran possibly turning up and turning on more of its own interference sources,” he said.

“But also I suspect neighbouring countries have now turned on some of their own in order to try to defend against the drone strikes.”

Disrupting navigation signals is one of the “cheapest and effective first lines of defence” against drone attacks, he added.

Can these efforts ultimately protect shipping in the Strait of Hormuz? With maritime traffic in the waterway almost at a standstill, it’s yet to be proven.

Patrick Trueman’s (Rudolph Walker) life in EastEnders has been hellish since the Christmas Day murder of his son, Anthony (Nicholas Bailey).

Prior to his violent death, Patrick and Anthony spit venom at each other over Christmas dinner after Patrick discovered that Anthony had lied to Kat Moon (Jessie Wallace) that his and Zoe Slater’s (Michelle Ryan) twins had both died at birth, in a bid to find them himself without Zoe discovering.

As things continued to intensify, an enraged Patrick declared that the wrong son had died prior, and he wished Anthony had perished in the place of his brother, Paul (Gary Beadle). With things at their absolute worst, Anthony headed to the Vic for what proved to be his final showdown with Zoe and his daughter, Jasmine Fisher (Indeyarna Donaldson-Holness).

Zoe and Kat were convinced that the culprit was Chrissie Watts (Tracy-Ann Oberman), and that she’d struck the killing blow to frame Zoe, who kept her mouth shut in order to protect Jasmine from the wrath of the wicked witch of Walford.

While Zoe languished in prison, Anthony struck up a relationship with Jasmine upon discovering that she was his granddaughter, seemingly finding a light amid all of the darkness he’d endured, though he was broken all over again when he discovered that she had killed Anthony.

Struggling to grieve, his beloved wife Yolande (Angela Wynter) and surrogate daughters Kim and Denise Fox (Tameka Empson and Diane Parish) worried further when a well-meaning Denzel Danes (Jaden Ladega) introduced Patrick to an AI recreation of Anthony.

Patrick became completely absorbed by the app, and was reluctant to disengage.

He did mange to pour his all into attempting to reunite a recently returned Howie Danes (Delroy Atkinson) with Kim, though, facilitating a lavish drag performance and reconciliation between the two.

Next week sees the arrival of Sandra Goodwin (Dawn Steele), piquing Kim and Denise’s interest when they learn that she’s been asking questions about Jasmine. Confronting her, they learn that she’s the adoptive mum of Josh Goodwin (Joshua Vaughan), though as they learn more about Jasmine and Josh’s backstory, all three are shaken to learn that Josh has arrived in Walford.

Josh, Sandra, Denise and Kim share a drink in the Albert, though the mention of Zoe causes Josh to flee, unwilling to have anything to do with her. When Denise relays this to Patrick, he’s wounded all over again that he’s lost the opportunity to connect with his grandson.

Denise and Kim encourage Patrick to write Josh a letter, detailing his life story, and later deliver it to Sandra. The Trueman’s are buoyed when Josh returns to Albert Square to arrange a meeting the following week.

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Will forging a bond with Josh set Patrick on the road to finding peace after Anthony’s death?

MORE: Stressed Ravi takes desperate action in EastEnders as Nugget reels

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City of York Council have announced Museum Street will be closed to vehicles overnight for three days in March so that essential resurfacing work can take place.

The closure, which will take place on Monday, March 23, Tuesday, March 24, and Wednesday, March 25, will require the road to be closed from St Leonard’s Place to Station Road.

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This will be effective from 8pm to 5am on three consecutive nights and will also mean Lendal Bridge is closed to all road traffic, including buses.

Pedestrians and those using mobility aids will be able to use the pavements whilst the works are going on.

During the day (from 5am to 8pm) the buses will operate as normal and the roads will reopen by 5am daily if deemed safe.

Alternate routes will be marked during the repairs, guiding traffic via Station Road, Queen Street, Blossom Street, the A59 Holgate Road, Poppleton Road, the Water End bridge, the A19 Clifton, and Bootham to the Gillygate junction.

Bus services will operate as usual outside of the closure hours and on-street parking will be temporarily suspended near the working areas.

Information on the planned works and advice for people choosing to travel in the area during the road closures is available here: https://www.york.gov.uk/MuseumStRoadworks 

People on six different benefits may qualify for the payments

Benefit recipients have been alerted to a looming deadline concerning a DWP payment scheme. You may be eligible for these payments if you receive one of various benefits, including Universal Credit and Pension Credit.

The Cold Weather Payment scheme is still running, providing £25 payments when temperatures in your area are, or are predicted to be, below zero degrees Celsius for seven consecutive days. You could receive multiple £25 payments through the scheme should the payments be activated in your locality more than once during a five-month window.

People claiming these six benefits may be entitled to the payment into their bank account:

• Pension Credit
• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Universal Credit
• Support for Mortgage Interest.

The scheme concludes very soon, as it operates from November 1 to March 31. Matthew Sheeran, external relations manager at financial support organisation Money Wellness, discussed whether the payments might be activated during the remainder of the month.

He said: “We might see a bit of a cold snap this week with frost and some wintry showers, especially up north and in rural areas, but the forecasters aren’t pointing to temperatures staying below freezing for seven days straight – and that’s what you need to actually trigger a Cold Weather Payment before the end of March.

“So while it’ll feel cold, it’s not likely we’ll see a big wave of new £25 payments being triggered right now.” You can check if a Cold Weather Payment has been activated in your region on the Government website.

When do Cold Weather Payments land in bank accounts?

As for when payments land in accounts, Government advice clarifies: “After each period of very cold weather in your area, you should get a payment within 14 working days. It’s paid into the same bank or building society account as your benefit payments.”

However, the regulations differ if you reside in Scotland. Here, the scheme has been superseded by the Winter Heating Payment, with largely the same eligibility criteria regarding which benefits you need to claim.

This is a one-time payment that is issued regardless of the weather and is valued at £59.75. These payments go out between December and the end of February.

If you were entitled to receive a payment, Social Security Scotland would have sent you a letter or email notifying you of the impending amount.