The clinching argument for a long weekend to Baku, Azerbaijan’s ancient capital on the Silk Road, was that for one weekend only almost all the streets in the medieval Old Town would be covered by hand-woven carpets. There would be hundreds of them, laid head-to-head in a magical mosaic of colour and artful designs.
I also fancifully conjectured that Shakespeare might have been considering the festival when, in The Tempest, he poetically extemporised how “the earth’s a carpet laid before the sun”. Well, Baku certainly took his word literally. The capital was transformed into a giant installation of colourful knots, threads and weaves covering its cobbled streets. Dealers, weavers, stitchers, collectors and historians gathered from 19 nations to debate and celebrate this ancient artistry, as some carpets, we learnt, were first woven more than 2,000 years ago.
The capital was transformed into a giant installation of colourful knots, threads and weaves (International Carpet Festival)
It was an academic forum alongside a place for thousands of visitors to enjoy the festival’s dramatic street theatre, surreally coinciding with the Baku marathon, the country’s first international race with the full 26-mile course. One artist painted serene faces onto rugs on an easel, next to a pop-up children’s football pitch entirely composed of rugs. Earlier in the day, experts from Japan and Nepal pitched arguments about the carpet’s role in aiding the GDP of their countries as well as defining their national identity.
This carpet fest was imaginative and startling, mirroring how Baku has redefined itself via its architecture: putting medieval and modernist masterpieces side by side. This is a country that has deliberately placed art and culture at the centre of its development, latterly funded by its oil fortune. It has given Azerbaijan a standout national identity, distinct from its grey, Soviet-controlled existence before 1991, when Perestroika loosened Russian hegemony. But it is only in the last 25 years that its economy has taken off, combining taste, style and fiscal growth, aided by a formative partnership with BP.
Azerbaijan is certainly more present on the world stage. It straddled the world of petroeconomics and environmental policies when it hosted Cop 29 in 2024. It is now a fixture in the Formula One calendar and hosted the European winter sports championships this year.
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Not exactly a magic carpet, but the overnight jet leaving Heathrow at 10pm allows you to arrive in Baku at 6am. Three nights is a perfect amount of time for a taster of the capital. Not only is the carpet museum in Baku the largest in the world, but it is even shaped like a folding rug. It shares the skyline with one of the great masterpieces of modernist architecture: Zaha Hadid’s Heydar Aliyev Centre, also designed to look like a surface that has been lifted, folded, and frozen in motion – very similar to the ripples of a carpet, a comparison that is made often. While a carpet is flexible and soft, the building imitates its folds with rigid concrete and steel. It is impossible to overestimate how in Azerbaijan, carpets are a major traditional art form.
The Heydar Aliyev Centre is often compared to a carpet (Getty Images / iStockPhoto)
A weekend is the ideal length of time for walking around the safe and easy city. In Baku, you can go from exploring medieval stone walls straight to futuristic parametric design in under 20 minutes. This walled city is a dense mix of Islamic, Persian and local Shirvan styles, with caravanserais, mosques and narrow lanes. Among the key monuments is the 12th-century Maiden Tower, which is well worth the climb for a panoramic view of the Palace of the Shirvanshahs, a Unesco-listed masterpiece.
Reflecting the oil boom of the early 20th century are landmarks such as the Ismailiyya Palace, a Venetian Gothic revival building, the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Hall with its Italian Renaissance influence and Baku City Hall, with its Beaux-Arts design. They are demonstrative of a time of optimism, when European architects reshaped the city into a kind of Paris of the East.
Back to the carpet festival, though, where Emin Mammadov was presiding over the affair. He is a dashing entrepreneur and chair of the carpet board, whose turbocharged ambition is to grow the festival, which is now in its third year. Surprise and quality are his watchwords, as modern and ancient swirl together like patterns on a traditional carpet, all contrasting and combining.
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A woman weaves at the International Carpet Festival (International Carpet Festival)
“We are inviting the world to see that carpets are the key to understanding art and economies through symbolism and natural displays. We all connect through a vision of creativity and fellowship as we invite the world to join this beautiful celebration of art and artisans and prove the art of the possible,” he explained.
There is talk of expansion and more partnerships for next year’s festival. It might include carpets’ role in Hollywood films, in poetry (Shakespeare has no monopoly) and live debates about the role women play as skilled craft practitioners. There is also discussion of how artists from Holbein to Velasquez were transfixed by the woven wonder of wool and silk. Carpets – red, magic or even flying – have always transfixed the imagination.
In Disney’s Aladdin, the magic carpet is a central character, not just a prop. It becomes a symbol of freedom, imagination and movement beyond physical space. In The Grand Budapest Hotel, director Wes Anderson builds a world saturated with patterned interiors – especially carpets, wallpapers, and textiles – which reinforce the film’s obsession with design, memory and artificial perfection. There is even an entry into the horror film genre. In The Shining, the Overlook Hotel’s geometric carpets are iconic in their own right. Their impossible, maze-like patterns echo the film’s psychological disorientation and hidden spatial logic.
Aida Mahmudova, an acclaimed artist in Baku as well as an alumna of London’s Central St Martin’s (Geordie Greig / International Carpet Festival)
This year, the link between painting and carpets was a key theme. One of the most dramatic revelations was the work of Aida Mahmudova, an acclaimed artist in Baku as well as an alumna of London’s Central St Martin’s, whose eclectic works combine powerful abstraction and something similar to Frank Auerbach’s encrusted, tactile, painted masterpieces.
Her paintings have a softer palette of colours than Auerbach’s, which ripple and engage with a passionate intensity. Her pictures have been made into carpets, cross-fertilising the art forms and spinning a modern twist to this ancient craft. Another highlight is the work of Assel Sabircangizi, or Assol, a Kazakh artist creating stunning portraits by brushing and spraying oil paint onto existing carpets. They make for epic pictures, which reinvent Mughal portraiture for the modern age.
The festival sets out to surprise and steers away from the stereotypical image of endless negotiations with sellers in the souk. This is the moment to see carpets as art and investment, but, most importantly, to alter cliched preconceptions by revealing national and regional identities in carpets.
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The work of Asol, who reinvents traditional portraiture (International Carpet Festival)
In the Old City, with its echoes of Prague, it is delightful just to sit back and let the world go by in its maze of labyrinthine streets. Drinking the local wines and vodka in its tiny bars, or trying baklava in a tea room, is heavenly. Spinach and lamb pancakes and glassfuls of tea make enticing fare. Luxury shopping in the new town offers more brands than Bond Street, only cheaper. Value for money is a definite plus.
The advantage of a short visit is that the city is easy, and colourful, and the cultural diet offered ranges from high to low. The only frustration is that there is much more to do – locals will tell you to visit the snow-capped mountains for skiing, to chill on the sandy beaches, to try the jazz, and lemon, and pomegranate festivals, and also take a road trip. The country boasts nine climate zones, from subtropical to desert to freezing mountain tops.
A modern transformation is still taking place in Baku (Getty Images/iStockphoto)
A modern cultural transformation is still taking place in Baku. One of the key figures is Anar Alakbarov, assistant to the president and executive director of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.
“Art creates a space for us all to value the past, but to also re-evaluate and enhance the present, which invests in the future. Beauty and a celebration of art has been a way of life here with carpets and ceramics. We learn from that and continue that tradition,” he said, before heading for the coast to take part in the marathon.
Leaving Baku early in the morning, I gazed out from my taxi at the two 21st-century Flame Towers. Nearby are the stone palaces, more than 500 years old. Few would argue with Shakespeare when he celebrated the intrinsic combination of power and passion seen through a carpet – and the impressiveness of a trip to Baku is similarly irrefutable. Is there a more magnificent ice breaker when someone asks me what I got up to at the weekend?
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How to do it
Flights to Baku from London Gatwick with Azerbaijan Airlines take around five-and-a-half hours, starting from £375.
More than five years after receiving final court approval, a massive $2.67 billion antitrust class-action settlement involving Blue Cross Blue Shield is finally entering its payout phase.
Eligible claimants could begin seeing money deposited into their bank accounts within days, as the distribution process is scheduled to begin in May, according to the settlement website.
The settlement comes from a long-running lawsuit that accused Blue Cross Blue Shield and its affiliated insurers of violating antitrust laws by limiting competition in the health insurance market. Plaintiffs argued that the Blue Cross Blue Shield system was structured to reduce overlap among its regional plans, thereby restricting competition in certain parts of the U.S. As a result, the lawsuit claimed it was harder for rival insurance companies to enter those markets. This lack of competition may have reduced consumer choice and contributed to higher healthcare costs for customers in some regions, according to the allegations.
Blue Cross Blue Shield has denied any wrongdoing in the case but agreed to settle the lawsuit, with the final agreement approved in October 2020. To receive payment, claimants were required to file before the deadline, which closed in November 2021.
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Eligible participants are expected to receive payments that vary widely based on individual circumstances. Earlier estimates suggested the average payout will fall between $300 and $333 per valid claim, though final amounts will vary.
Blue Cross Blue Shield customers who filed claims in the $2.67 billion antitrust settlement are set to receive a payment (Getty/iStock)
The total settlement fund is reduced to roughly $1.9 billion after legal fees and administrative costs are deducted. From that remaining pool, payments will be calculated based on factors such as how long a claimant was enrolled in a Blue Cross Blue Shield plan and the amount of insurance premiums they paid between 2008 and 2020.
By the end of the filing period, approximately 6 million claims had been submitted nationwide. Those claims will determine how the settlement funds are distributed, with payout amounts expected to vary depending on factors such as the type of coverage, how long someone was enrolled and the amount of premiums paid during the eligible period.
“This settlement ends a long-running legal challenge to the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association license agreements and related rules,” a company spokesperson said in a 2024 statement upon reaching the agreement. “We deny the allegations made in the lawsuit. However, to reach a settlement and put years of litigation behind us, we have agreed to make some operational changes and a monetary payment to the provider class involved in the case.”
“Our members and health care provider partners can rest assured that Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies continue to be strong and ready to deliver exceptional services. We remain committed to providing access to affordable, high-quality care and improving the health of the communities we serve, just as we have for 90 years,” the statement concluded.
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The Independent has contacted Blue Cross Blue Shield for comment.
Aurelien Tchouameni is on Manchester United’s radar ahead of the summer, and the French midfielder has reportedly been embroiled in a spat at his current club Real Madrid
Manchester United transfer target Aurelien Tchouameni has reportedly had a training ground ‘fight’ with Real Madrid team-mate Ernesto Valverde. Tchouameni was previously linked with a move to United before he opted to sign for Real in 2022.
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Ahead of this summer, United’s interest is still there and the Reds are understood to view him as one of nine midfield targets they are considering. While United consider their options in the transfer market, reports from Spain have claimed Tchouameni and Valverde came to blows in a training ground incident.
Spanish outlet Marca has claimed Ernesto Valverde and Tchouameni had a physical exchange during a heated training session. It claims they pushed each other on the pitch and carried on their intense dispute in the changing room.
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It was reportedly triggered by a foul during a training session, which led to both players coming together in an explosive row. Both players are said to have raged at each other in front of stunned team-mates.
With Real out of the Champions League and the Copa del Rey, and seemingly out of the La Liga title race, tensions in the Spanish capital are as high as they can be.
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Carreras, who left United in 2024, responded this week to claims he was slapped by Rudiger during a training session. He did go on to insist the drama was over, with other reports stating Rudiger apologised.
Mbappe has also been at the heart of drama, having allegedly raged at one of Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa’s staff members. The World Cup winner was then snapped on a luxury yacht with his girlfriend, in the week leading up to Real Madrid’s El Classico clash with Barcelona.
These incidents emphasises the high pressured, tense environment currently absorbing the club. In and amongst the chaos, Tchouameni has been linked with a summer move to Old Trafford.
With United looking to sign a replacement for the outgoing Casemiro, the ex-Monaco midfielder could yet head for the red side of Manchester. United are also understood to be willing to part with Manuel Ugarte as they look to raise funds.
While Kobbie Mainoo has signed a new deal at the club, as many as three midfielders have been tipped to arrive this summer. Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson, Adam Wharton of Crystal Palace and Newcastle United ace Sandro Tonali are three others who are admired.
United booked their place in next season’s Champions League by overcoming Liverpool 3-2 at Old Trafford. One more victory for Michael Carrick’s side will also see the club finish third in the Premier League.
Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package
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Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.
Sky broadcasts more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more with at least 215 live from the top flight alongside Formula 1, darts and golf.
A rat was filmed inside the Greggs on Ferguslie Walk in Paisley earlier this week.
A Greggs store was forced to close temporarily this week after a rat was caught on video inside the bakery. A passing member of the public spotted the rodent inside Greggs on Ferguslie Walk in Paisley after it had closed earlier this week.
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The woman filmed the rat during its escapades as it rummaged through a bin cage and was spotted combing through the bakery‘s supplies. She captured the pest as it scurried along the shop floor from the street outside the store, filming through the window.
In the video, which was shared to Facebook, a person behind the camera can be heard retching, reports Glasgow Live. Another person is heard to say: “Oh my god, look at that, they must be in that shop.”
Greggs closed the Paisley branch after the “disgusting” video circulated online but it has since reopened.
A spokesperson for Greggs said: “We take all matters of food hygiene extremely seriously and have strict procedures in place across all of our shops.
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“Our shop on Ferguslie Walk in Paisley was temporarily closed for a short period earlier this week, but has now reopened.”
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President Donald Trump got the first major political scalps of his second term on Tuesday when five state legislators in Indiana who resisted his push to redraw the state’s congressional map lost their primaries.
It’s the latest example of Trump exacting revenge on Republicans whom he sees as crossing him. He’s already pushed Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) out of Washington and into retirement. Many of the Republicans who voted to impeach or convict him either lost their primaries or preemptively retired to save the embarrassment.
And May represents the perfect opportunity to make two Republicans who criticized Trump in the past pay.
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President Donald Trump has endorsed a primary challenger against Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) after Cassidy voted to convict Trump in 2021. (Getty)
The first comes in Louisiana. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) always faced an uphill battle after he voted to convict Trump for the president’s actions on January 6. But Cassidy had just been re-elected in 2020, meaning he was on borrowed time.
Now the bill comes due. Trump made Cassidy, a gastroentrologist, bend the knee when he nominated Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist who had spent years promoting lies about public health, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Cassidy relented and voted to confirm Kennedy, spending much of his time since trying to avoid questions about Kennedy.
That did not work. Instead, Trump endorsed Rep. Julia Letlow (R-La.) in the Louisiana primary. In addition, Cassidy faces former Rep. John Fleming in the primary.
To boot, Louisiana also changed its law. Previously, Louisiana had an open “jungle primary,” wherein the top two vote-getters advanced into a runoff regardless of party affiliation.
President Donald Trump has endorsed Rep. Julia Letlow (R-LA) in the U.S. Senate primary against Cassidy. (Getty)
On May 16, each party has a primary and then the top two vote earners advance to a June 27 runoff if neither candidate wins a majority.
This puts Cassidy at a structural disadvantage. A former Democrat, he can no longer rely on crossover voters who might admire him for standing up to Trump or his work with Joe Biden on the bipartisan infrastructure bill. Even then, he probably lost plenty of goodwill by saddling up to Trump as much as he has.
The second state where Trump seems more than get his pound of flesh comes in Louisiana’s neighbor Texas. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) is not as Trump-critical as Cassidy.
A University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs poll showed that Paxton narrowly beats Cornyn 48 percent to 45 percent with only seven percent of respondents saying they are unsure. That’s a stunning number for a four-term incumbent senator, former attorney general and former Texas Supreme Court justice like Cornyn. But it’s a sign of where the party has moved in Texas.
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Moreover, Trump has withheld his endorsement of Cornyn, despite the fact Trump knows that Paxton opens the door for James Talarico, the telegenic baby-faced Bible-quoting seminarian Democrats chose as their nominee, winning the seat in the Lone Star State. Trump’s brain might know Cornyn is the right choice. But his heart is with Paxton.
Lastly, there’s Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky. Massie has been the biggest thorn in Trump’s side in the lower chamber. He led the charge to release files related to Jeffrey Epstein, voted against the One Big, Beautiful Bill last summer and opposed making Mike Johnson speaker. Trump has endorsed former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein in the race.
Despite the baggage of his primary opponent, Trump has refused to endorse Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). (Getty)
But so far, it looks like Massie pull it off. Plenty of voters in the district like the fact he is idiosyncratic like his fellow Kentuckian Sen. Rand Paul.
And cutting loose Republicans and cleavng them could have unintended consequences.
Trump excommunicating Tillis to be an own-goal since former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper leads Trump-endorsed former Republican National Committee chairman Michael Whatley. And Tillis helped push out Kristi Noem as Homeland Security Secretary and forced the Department of Justice to–at least temporarily–back off of its probe into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
Trump has shown a stunning level of party discipline. And he’s a transformational figure in the Republican Party. But doing so will have consequences that will reverberate long after he leaves.
Cambridgeshire Police were first called to a crash along the AA139 Fletton Parkway in Peterborough just before midday today (Wednesday, May 6). The crash involved a car and lorry.
A police spokesperson said: “We were called at 11:54am today with reports of a collision between a car and a lorry on the Frank Perkins parkway.” Motorists are advised to avoid the area.”
Emergency services, including police, Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue and the East of England Ambulance Service, remain at the scene as of 1.55pm.
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The inbound part of the road remains closed. Traffic monitoring site Inrix says: “A1139 Fletton Parkway inbound closed, queueing traffic due to accident from A1(M) J17 Peterborough / Oundle to Newcombe Way. Congestion to the A605 back past the Services, queues northbound coming off the A1 to the roundabout, and queueing outbound from Nene Parkway.”
Immigration is receiving much attention in the run-up to the Welsh election. This might seem odd at first because the Welsh parliament (the Senedd) has no power over immigration. It can’t make laws on who enters the country, how asylum claims are handled or who gets citizenship. All of that is controlled by the UK government in Westminster.
But since 2019, Wales has considered itself a “nation of sanctuary”. This means the Welsh government can support refugees and asylum seekers through the services it controls, such as health, education and housing.
A YouGov poll from April 2026 shows that immigration is a priority for 25% of Welsh voters, tied with the economy. Health (46%) and the cost of living (51%) are ranked higher. Among intended Reform UK voters, immigration is ranked as the highest priority (55%).
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In December 2025, there were 3,353 asylum seekers in Wales, most of whom were in Cardiff. Of the £64 million spent on the nation of sanctuary since 2019, 91% has been to support refugees from Ukraine.
Data from the Welsh Election Study shows that 53.8% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement “people from different backgrounds get on together” in their local area, compared with 14.4% who disagree or strongly disagree. Only a small minority feel that there are tensions in their areas.
It is, therefore, unsurprising that some political parties have highlighted this as an electoral issue. Reform UK and the Welsh Conservatives have pledged in their manifestos to scrap the nation of sanctuary policies.
The nation of sanctuary policy is a vision that connects the Welsh government with global issues. Academics have described it as an example of “moral” or “progressive” nationalism.
It was introduced largely in response to the UK government’s “hostile environment” approach on immigration. The hostile environment was a series of policies put in place by Theresa May during her time as home secretary to make life harder for people who overstayed their visa to continue working and accessing public services, such as the NHS. For example, it required employers, landlords and service workers to check immigration status.
Alongside putting clear water between Cardiff and Whitehall, the nation of sanctuary also took inspiration from Holyrood’s New Scots strategy in creating a more welcoming environment for immigrants in Scotland.
The UK government is responsible for who is granted asylum and the housing of asylum seekers. The Welsh government can – and does – make policy in devolved fields such as health and education, for all residents in Wales, including people seeking sanctuary.
The nation of sanctuary built on existing Welsh policies. For example, giving rejected asylum seekers access to specialised medical care, and creating routes for refugees to work as doctors and dentists in the UK.
However, Wales is not exempt from UK-wide immigration policies. Welsh employers and landlords must continue to verify their employees’ and tenants’ immigration status, and Cardiff airport can be used for deportation flights. Nor does it mean that people seeking sanctuary are diverted to Wales from elsewhere in the UK. In this sense, Wales is less of a sanctuary than many north American cities, which can pass ordinances prohibiting deportations or inquiries about immigration status.
Nation without sanctuary
What could happen should the next Welsh government decide to revoke its nation of sanctuary vision?
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Election polls have constantly shown Plaid Cymru and Reform UK in the lead. Plaid Cymru have committed to protecting the nation of sanctuary, and called for the devolution of some immigration powers to Wales. Reform UK has committed to scrapping it, and changing planning regulations to limit hotels being used to house asylum seekers. However, given Wales’ new electoral system, any party would probably need support from another to govern.
Should a future Welsh government decide to abandon the nation of sanctuary, this alone is unlikely to lead to significant changes in practice. The activism and networks that support it would continue, as would the housing of asylum seekers in Wales. These are matters for the UK government. Other policies around health and education that existed before the Nation of Sanctuary was declared would also continue.
Other specific issues relating to refugee status are subject to international agreements, such as the 1951 refugee convention. So, while immigration is a priority for some voters, no election result is likely to see immediate radical policy changes in Wales.
However, it could have a radical impact on the lives of migrants and others already affected by harsh immigration policies and rhetoric. It should be remembered that hate crimes increased during the 2016 Brexit referendum campaign and its aftermath, leading to many people feeling that they no longer belonged in the UK.
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The current heated political discourse dehumanises migrants, whose experiences of fleeing conflict and persecution are largely missing from discussions. Election coverage and campaigns would benefit from bringing calm, nuance and sensitivity into its approach on immigration.
College for vulnerable teens is a ‘lifeline’ but their council has now put the brakes on funding transport for young people who would not be able to keep themselves safe if they travel alone
19:56, 06 May 2026Updated 20:03, 06 May 2026
Mum discusses impact of Reform’s Kent County Council cutting services for her daughter with special educational needs
Mums say their Reform-controlled council has started “targeting the most vulnerable” including their children.
Tina Andrews, 59, from Borough Green in Kent, says she is appalled after finding out her daughter has become a victim of the latest savage cost-saving at Kent County Council.
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Kimberly, 20, is autistic and has complex needs and is currently taken to and from her college by taxi, alongside five other vulnerable students.
But now they’ve been told their safe transport is being taken away, leaving parents “feeling very anxious and stressed”.
“It’s appalling they are targeting the most vulnerable people in society. To me, Reform has a culture of ignorance and marginalisation,” Tina told the Mirror.
Kimberly added: “I just think it’s absolutely appalling because I have autism and I like a routine. When that routine is destroyed I get really upset and distressed and for me that’s just discrimination for people with disabilities.”
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Mum of two Karen Whitehead, 55, a charity worker from Meopham, is also worried, after being given a ‘no’ for the next term for her son Aaron, 20.
He has autism and severe delay in speech, language and communication. He also has osteoporosis and curvature of the spine.
“It’s absolutely shocking. He is the most loving, caring individual you’d ever meet. He’s adorable. His college is his lifeline, it would affect his mental health severely if he couldn’t get there.”
Kent County Council has now completely changed their policy and many families who are currently receiving transport are being told ‘no’ for the new college year.
“These people are talking like people with no lived experience of disability,” Tina told The Mirror, pointing out comments previously made by the Reform leadership.
The party’s Deputy Leader Richard Tice described children wearing ear defenders in classrooms as “insane” and called for the practice to stop, arguing it reflects an “over-diagnosis” of special educational needs (SEN).
While Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has admitted they would cut support for many claimants of disability benefits if it won power at the next general election, with the cuts focusing on those he claims do not “genuinely deserve help”.
Tina said these comments showed “real ignorance” adding: “These types of comments are really, really damaging.”
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“My daughter uses ear defenders, that’s not for fun, she has a sensory processing disorder and they help her to focus on her learning. They are a necessary tool – not a toy.”
She says to her it seems vulnerable young people like her daughter “don’t matter as much” to the party. “that’s what I see from Reform.”
Referring to their rejected transport application, she said the Reform-led council are not trying to assist exhausted families, “they are just trying to find ways of actively not helping us.”
She explained how Kimberly has been assessed as needing transport since she was eight years old. “Her needs haven’t changed at all but I’m being told now that at the moment, the answer is ‘no’ for this September. This is cost saving exercise. They are taking money from the most disadvantaged.
“It’s a 20 minute drive away which doesn’t seem far but for a young person who can’t access public transport, it might as well be three hours away!”
“She simply cannot travel by herself, she would not know how to manage if a train was cancelled or a bus was late. She also can’t manage loud noises such as sirens…She has no real concept of stranger danger and is an extremely vulnerable young person.
“They are putting pressure on families who already have to fight for everything, it is one more thing to worry about.”
About the policy change, Tina said: “The college has told us the situation is looking very bleak and even their most challenged students are being told ‘no’. They are supposed to consider applications on a case by case basis but it seems they are just saying no to everyone.
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“Everybody in Kimberly’s taxi has been told no. So it seems to be happening across the board. ”
About the joy her daughter gets from college, she adds: “She does love it and she’s got friends there, it’s a lifeline for her.
“She is worried, she said to me ‘all my friends are talking about the transport mum, talking about their taxis’.
“Kimberly has generalised anxiety disorder as a lot of them do. So any slight change in routine, or anything uncertain, can be highly anxiety provoking.”
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Aaron’s mum, Karen said she was told she had not sent supportive evidence – despite providing the council with two risk assessments.
“I don’t think they are reading them. He can’t go anywhere on his own. We have a little park two minutes away and he cannot even go there on his own, he has very little danger awareness. Anybody who appeared friendly he would possibly go with them.”
She explained how he holds her arm when they are out as he is extremely anxious. So college provides him with vital independence where he feels safe getting there in a minibus with his friends.
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“She says to him college is ‘his job’ where he goes four days a week. It would have a severe impact on his life. It’s incredibly sad and I don’t know what they are thinking. I now need to appeal.
“It’s like you have to fight for everything. I feel really appalled and disgusted about it. These are individuals who want to go to college. Some of these young adults. That’s their job for them, without it Aaron would sit at home and rot away. There’s nothing else for him. It’s really distressing
“It’s always a battle for him. We shouldn’t have to fight for these young adults.
“When I die, It’s literally him and I’m trying to prepare him for the future. Without things like college what he is going to do. It’s an emotional roller coaster.”
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Kent County Council has been approached for comment.
The letter states: “I understand from media reports that Mr Jackson has now been suspended by the Conservative Party. Yet, in a neighbouring ward, Conservative candidate Nathan Smith has reportedly also made deeply concerning statements, including calls for mass deportations, opposing the flying of the Indian flag and expressing support for Tommy Robinson, including in contexts associated with violence.”
The court heard Matthew Samuel put on a balaclava and turned up at the school attended by his ex’s children
19:06, 06 May 2026Updated 19:10, 06 May 2026
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An obsessed stalker bombarded an ex partner with messages, calls and social media posts and told her: “You are mine. You will always be mine.”
Matthew Samuel also turned up at the school the woman’s children attend wearing a balaclava and pretended to be his victim’s cousin in order to call the police about her.
The offending began shortly after the 35-year-old was released from prison having served a sentence for stalking the same woman and making her life a “misery”.
Swansea Crown Court heard Samuel has a history of stalking and harassing former partners. In sending him back to prison, a judge called the defendant “an extremely jealous, very immature man who simply needs to grow up” and who poses a risk to women. Don’t miss a court report by signing upto our crime newsletter here
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Sian Cutter, prosecuting, told the court that Samuel and the complainant had been in a relationship for around six months before it ended due to the defendant’s jealousy, and said in October 2024 the defendant was sentenced to 18 months in prison for stalking the woman and was also made subject to a restraining order.
The court heard Samuel was released in March 2025 and “almost immediately” made contact with the woman again – despite the terms of the order – although his ex accepted that she initially did not object to the contact and that on occasions she was the one who contacted the defendant.
The prosecutor said the woman later made it clear to Samuel that she wanted nothing more to do with him, and the defendant responded by bombarding her with messages and calls from withheld numbers, ringing his ex as many as 75 times in a single day.
The court heard Samuel also started messaging his victim on Facebook, created a number of TikTok accounts in different names in order to follow her and message her, called the police pretending to be the woman’s cousin in order to report concerns for her welfare, and turned up at the school her children attended wearing a balaclava.
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The prosecutor said during the course of the stalking Samuel made a number of threats towards the woman including telling her he was going to throw a brick through her window and was going to murder her. In one message he told his ex: “You are mine. You will always be mine”.
The court heard that matters were reported to the police in October and the defendant was arrested and questioned, answering “no comment” to all questions asked in interview. Samuel was released on bail on condition that he not contact his ex, but he continued his unwanted communications regardless.
The prosecutor said when the woman changed her phone, the defendant found out what the new number was and continued to call and text from withheld numbers. She said in one of the calls the defendant made to his ex, he told her “there was nothing she could say or do to make him leave her alone”.
The contact continued until Samuel was arrested again in January this year. He again answered “no comment” to all questions asked in interview.
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In an impact statement which was read to the court by the prosecution barrister, the victim said she now struggles to sleep, feels she is always being “watched” when she leaves the house but does not feel safe at home, and is on antidepressant medication. She said she had been left feeling “frightened and powerless”.
Matthew Samuel, formerly of Vicarage Road, Morriston, Swansea, but now of no fixed abode, had previously pleaded guilty to stalking involving serious alarm or distress, and to breach of a restraining order when he appeared in the dock for sentencing.
He has 31 previous convictions for 52 offences including stalking, harassment, and breach of restraining orders in relation to two different previous partners. Samuel threatened to pour petrol through the letterbox of one of his ex-partners and to “chop her up and burn her alive”, and he poured petrol over the driveway of a second former-partner and set it alight.
He bombarded his victim with up to 93 calls a day, threatened to turn up at her children’s play centre and stab himself in front of everyone there, and told her he would “make sure she loses everything” by spreading rumours that she was ill-treating her kids.
David Singh, for Samuel, said pre-sentence and psychiatric reports before the court detailed the defendant’s “difficult background” and the impact that had on his ability to form appropriate relationships.
He said while those matters in no way justified his client’s “inexcusable behaviour” they did provide a context for what happened, though he added it had to be accepted that Samuel had exacerbated the situation through his use of drink and drugs.
The barrister said his client has two young children and realises that he has to grow up otherwise he is going to miss out on meaningful contact with them.
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Judge Paul Thomas KC said after being released from prison – and in the face of a restraining order – the defendant bombarded his victim with calls, texts, and social media postings, made a series of threats against her, and had turned up at her children’s school.
The judge told Samuel: “You are an extremely jealous, very immature man who simply needs to grow up. Above that, I think you are potentially a risk to any woman who you are in a relationship with. The court has a duty to protect women. The only way it can do that is to keep you out of the way.”
With a one-quarter discount for his guilty pleas Samuel was sentenced to three years in prison comprising three years for stalking and two years and three months for breach of restraining order to run concurrently. The defendant will serve up to half the sentence in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.
The court heard the existing restraining order the defendant is subject to will remain in place to 2029.
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