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I was badly injured after falling off a ladder but worse news was yet to come

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Wales Online

John Parry decided he didn’t want to sit around and do nothing and has now become a social media sensation

When John Parry fell off a ladder in 2024 and was taken to hospital for treatment for a variety of serious injuries that included a skull fracture, brain bleeds, a broken back and a painful list of other injuries it was a pivotal point in his life.

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Most people would be traumatised by the accident and the injuries but worse was to come for this 78-year-old grandad from Pontypool because, while being treated in hospital, it was found he had bladder cancer that has also spread to his right kidney.

But John’s reaction to this horrendous period in his life is surprising – he didn’t want to sit around and feel distraught, he decided to walk 450 miles across the country, joined by stars and strangers, to raise money for four charities and this decision has led to John becoming a viral social media sensation.

On TikTok, Instagram and Facebook John’s got an impressive number of followers that his grandchildren would be proud of, on his account called Welsh Grandad. John, originally from Pontypool but now living near Clacton-on-Sea, says: “I’ve got nine grandchildren, six great grandchildren, and all their friends, everybody calls me Welsh Grandad, they don’t know me as anything else.”

Now lots of people across the social media world also know him as Welsh Grandad. John explains: “One day I was taking one of them to football practice and had two hours in the car waiting.

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“I’ve been trying to talk to people about cancer for a while, how you react, when you hear those three words, ‘you’ve got cancer’. Until you’re told that, you don’t know how you’re going to react. You don’t know how you feel.

“So I put the phone on the steering wheel, said ‘Hi, I’m Welsh grandad and I’ve got cancer’, chatted a bit and didn’t think about it much. Then boom, the response was so good and so I did another one and it’s built from there really.”

But talking about it online wasn’t enough for John, he felt compelled to try and do something more. He says: “I wondered what I could do, I can’t cure cancer or help like that, I’m not a doctor, but I can walk, I can put one foot in front of the other.”

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So a seed of an idea was planted and quickly grew into ‘Grandad’s Great Walk’ – a fundraising walk for four charities, Cancer Research UK, Macmillan Cancer Support, and Farleigh Hospice, Essex, and St David’s Hospice, Newport, aiming to raise £75,000. Currently, at the time of writing the total is £54,318,03 – see what it is now here.

The 460 mile walk began on June 1, 2026 in Lowestoft and is due to end on Tuesday, August 11 at St David’s Head, Pembrokeshire, and John chose to walk along the Via Beata route, a pilgrimage pathway from east to west as he thought it would be “a bit different from the normal routes”.

Website British Pilgrimage Trust says: “The name ‘Via Beata’ means ‘way of blessing’ and this fully mapped route goes through some of the most beautiful places in the country. One of the reasons this walk is special is because every 10 miles of the route there is a hand carved artwork with a story from the Bible.”

It also seemed the perfect route because John wanted a journey that not only hasn’t been travelled that often and wanted to finish in his native Wales.

John started his training in January, just a short walk that grew every day, and where his mantra was born, ‘one day at a time, one step at a time’ and that is how he treats every day of this gruelling and epic walk.

John says he has been inspired by the beautiful countryside he is walking through, that being surrounded by nature feels special but, of course, there have been challenges on the journey too.

John says: “I did get a large blister on the ball of one of my feet but it only hurt 50% of the time! And I don’t really go to bed, more like collapse into it!”

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But John says the biggest challenge has been farmers and landowners in England not maintaining public rights of way along the route, so some are blocked and impassable and some are in too rough a state to continue.

He says: “It has been hard at times because you can’t train for walking through the fields where you’ve got long grass, three foot high, and you’ve got ploughed fields and ditches, and you don’t know where you’re stepping, and you’ve got hedges where you can’t get through, and you’ve got to turn around and walk back to find a different route.

“When the route ahead is full of brambles and nettles, you know, eight feet, 10 feet high, you can’t get through it. You’ve got to go all the way back and try the next field along and that adds mileage and time.”

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The weather, although a bonus not getting soaked by rain, has been an aspect of the project to navigate with thought, with John’s rucksack packed daily with food, snacks and a sizeable amount of water and electrolytes.

But this Welsh grandad is not on his own. He says: “My family are supporting me, all of them, from my grandchildren, to my daughter, to my son-in-law; all of them. We find a campsite that is fairly central to each week of walking and they pick me up at the end of that day’s journey, take me to the tent and then drop me off at the same point the next day.” John says he sleeps on a comfortable blow-up bed in a wooden pod.

Although it has gone smoothly so far using his planned route, map and compass, John said one day he did get totally lost. He explains: “I wasn’t concentrating and literally took the wrong road and I was rescued by a lovely lady on a bike.

“She asked me if I was lost, I was, and then asked if she could walk with me and push her bike along when she found out what I was doing. I said, ‘of course you can!’. She asked if she could walk with me another day and has even driven for an hour and a half just to walk with me.”

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John says that this is the one aspect of the walk that has surprised him and makes him rather emotional too – the level of support he has received online after every end of the day social media post, the amount of donations made, but also the number of people who have wanted to join him for a section of the walk – the vast majority of which have been strangers.

He says: “I’ve walked on my own and I’ve walked with some amazing people. I got a message from Lauren Oakley from Strictly Come Dancing asking if she could walk with me on the Worcester Cathedral section, and she did, she joined me for nine and a half miles.

“But she said if I walk with you then at the end you have to dance with me, so we found a pub with a public garden and had a waltz. She was delightful, absolutely delightful.” On Lauren’s TikTok account she is also keen to praise John, telling her followers it was ‘My favourite day this summer!’.

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John has been joined by families with children who are on holiday or live on the route and one supporter who travelled up from Brighton to join him for part of the walk. He says, rather in awe of it all, “The support I’ve been getting is phenomenal!”

But through the most challenging moments John has kept going thinking about people living with cancer and has kept them close to his heart, in every video saying he is thinking about everyone touched by the disease and carrying them with him.

He says: “I keep thinking about those people and they’re walking with me, all those are walking with me. I never stop thinking about them and I just keep going, just put one foot in front of the other. I have never, ever, not once thought about giving up or wishing I hadn’t started it. And what keeps me going is all those people who’ve got cancer, who are worse off than me.”

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John’s family, friends and supporters are obviously proud of him, but if you tell John the whole of Wales is proud of him too, it brings a tear to his eye. He might have lived in England for many years but the love of the homeland has never left him and he is now looking forward to finishing the walk in Wales.

The night before a walk so epic is about to begin most people might feel nervous, not be able to sleep or celebrate the landmark day with a ‘last meal’ but John just treated it as any other day.

He says: “I’m not one to get over-excited, I was happy we had all the planning in place and then I just got up and got going. When I cross the finish line I’ll probably just go, ‘oh hello, can I have a drink please?!’, I’ll have a cup of coffee and a sit down!”

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But John says as the final days of the epic walk appear on the horizon he has two main, over-arching thoughts about what comes next. He says: “I’ll walk back along the whole route if some kind, rich person will donate £100,000 to each of the four charities, do you think there is a millionaire out there who could do that?”

If no rich donors come forward the Welsh grandad is not going to stop looking for ways to raise more money, even though he says he knows there’ll be a list of gardening chores from his wife to do when he comes home.

He says: “I don’t know why I got this feeling deep inside me that this is not the end. Maybe I’m being silly now, but I think I might have been given this so I do more to help people.”

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See John’s progress via his TikTok or Instagram accounts called Welsh Grandad and see his donation page here.

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Upset Wisconsin Democrats mull whether to back mainstream choice for governor

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Upset Wisconsin Democrats mull whether to back mainstream choice for governor

NEW GLARUS, Wis. (AP) — Sarah Miller, a software engineer from the liberal stronghold of Madison, has heard all of the chatter about a civil war in the Democratic Party between progressives and moderates. But all she cares about is winning.

That’s why Miller said she is voting in Tuesday’s gubernatorial primary for David Crowley, the Milwaukee County executive endorsed by two-term Gov. Tony Evers. He faces democratic socialist Francesca Hong in a contest that will be the latest test nationally of how far Democrats are willing to swing to the political left.

Wisconsin’s primary comes a week after progressive Abdul El-Sayed narrowly defeated Rep. Haley Stevens in Michigan’s U.S. Senate primary, setting up a crucial test for progressives in November in a key battleground state. Also on Tuesday, voters in Minnesota will decide another U.S. Senate contest featuring a centrist and a progressive.

In a year where voters upset with the Democratic Party mainstream have propelled outsider candidates to victory across the country, Crowley is hoping to buck the trend in Wisconsin. He’s banking on the support of Evers, one of the state’s most popular elected officials, to make up ground in the waning days of the chaotic primary.

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Crowley said that El-Sayed’s slim margin of victory “does give me a little bit of hope.”

“We’re going to focus on those undecided voters,” Crowley said.

Wisconsin Democratic voters grapple with electability, chaotic primary

“The divide is real,” Miller, 49, said of the struggle between progressives and more mainstream Democrats. But her focus remains on November, when the winner of the primary will face Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump and one of the most conservative members of Congress.

Miller, who described herself as a progressive, called Hong a “very, very weak candidate” and described her popularity as “a little bit of a mirage.”

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“I don’t think she can win,” Miller said at a Crowley campaign stop a week before election day at a winery in the rolling hills of New Glarus.

Crowley is banking on more voters feeling that way. A Marquette University Law School poll of Wisconsin Democratic primary voters conducted in late July, before former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes dropped out, showed Hong with a significant lead over the other candidates. More than 112,000 absentee ballots had already been returned by the day the poll was released.

Complicating the path for Crowley is the fact that he withdrew from the race on July 8 and only got back in 10 days later, with the backing of Evers, after Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez ended her candidacy. Then, 12 days later, Barnes also ended his campaign amid allegations of inappropriate behavior.

Barnes and Rodriguez, who were both seen as potential front-runners, remain on the ballot and votes already cast for them can’t be undone.

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“We’ve created a mess,” said Michael Gebben, a 64-year-old Democrat who voted absentee for Rodriguez before she dropped out. “Hopefully we can get out of it.”

Hong bats down controversies as Crowley makes a final sprint

As Crowley sprinted across the state to capture undecided voters, Hong was batting down controversies.

Hong, a single mom and former restaurant cook, faced questions about past social media posts where she called for canceling Thanksgiving because “we should stop celebrating colonialism,” disparaged Valentine’s Day as “another day capitalism tells you how to show love” and repeatedly called for defunding the police.

She has backtracked or clarified many of those past statements in recent days, now saying that she does not support abolishing the police.

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Tiffany pointed to Hong’s comments on Thanksgiving and said she wants “to destroy the traditions and culture that unite us.” Tiffany, who had 10-times more cash on hand than either Hong or Crowley did entering August, has portrayed the race as a contest between chaos and common sense.

“Wisconsinites can’t afford for November to come down to the most extreme things Tom Tiffany and Francesca Hong have said online,” Evers’ spokesperson Britt Cudaback said this week in a social media post explaining why the governor endorsed Crowley.

Crowley’s mention of the Evers endorsement drew a round of applause at both of his campaign stops in New Glarus and Madison this week, but similar votes of confidence haven’t always been decisive in other primaries. In Michigan, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer endorsed the moderate Stevens who came up short.

Even with Evers’ backing, Crowley insists he is not an establishment Democrat despite having served more than three years in the Legislature and as the top elected official in Milwaukee County, the state’s largest, since 2020.

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“When people try to call me the establishment, I look at that as a slur, particularly as an African American candidate,” said Crowley, who is looking to become Wisconsin’s first Black governor. “I have never run for office to protect the establishment. I’ve always been here to protect people.”

Voters say message from progressive candidates resonates

Hong supporter Chris Vestin has heard the concerns about electability before.

To him, the fears about Hong’s chances against Tiffany in November sound like a repeat of those who pushed Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders in the 2016 presidential race. Sanders defeated Clinton in the Wisconsin primary by 13 points that year, before losing the presidency to Trump. Trump carried Wisconsin in 2016, lost it in 2020 and then won it again in 2024.

“It frustrates me when they say that person is unelectable,” Vestin said of Hong, who is vying to become Wisconsin’s first woman governor and first Asian American governor. “A lot of times it’s racist, it’s sexist.”

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Vestin, 54, called Evers’ endorsement of Crowley “counterproductive.”

“Establishment Democrats want to take the choice away,” Vestin said.

On Tuesday in Minnesota, voters will choose between moderate U.S. Rep. Angie Craig and progressive Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate that’s playing out in the aftermath of Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement surge in the state.

But the stakes are even higher in Wisconsin.

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Democrats are trying to hold onto the governor’s office and flip both chambers of the Legislature to have full control for the first time since 2010.

Republicans transformed Wisconsin by enacting a wide array of conservative priorities, including effectively doing away with public worker collective bargaining, when they had full control from 2011 to 2018.

“We need a trifecta,” Crowley told his supporters at the New Glarus rally. “And who is at the top of the ticket matters.”

Crowley supporter Lindsey Lee, 61, of Madison said before the rally there that he believed previously undecided Democrats were coalescing around Crowley.

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“It’s like the last 50 yards of a horse race,” Lee said. “Hong is obviously in the lead but Crowley is coming up on a side lane. I think it will be a photo finish.”

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Westhoughton secures mobile CCTV unit to deter crime

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Westhoughton secures mobile CCTV unit to deter crime

The mobile camera will be dispatched to various locations around Westhoughton in an attempt to prevent anti-social behaviour and, if necessary, track down potential criminals.

Westhoughton has been without CCTV for several years due to a number of issues, most recently the collapse of National Car Parks, which ended recent efforts to have Westhoughton’s CCTV system merged with Bolton’s.

The NCP car park at the Octagon Theatre (Image: Newsquest)

Cllr John McHugh said: “We have funds now for mobile CCTV in Westhoughton, which we’ll be using on Market Street.

“The camera will be used to target known hot spots that are affecting residents, local businesses and property.

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“Monitoring will be controlled by the anti-social behaviour team in the council and local police. The camera will be moved to different locations where incidents have been reported.”

Westhoughton has been without CCTV for several years due to a series of issues.

The town has been seeking to upgrade its systems since 2023, planning to merge them with Bolton’s systems, meaning they would both be monitored together.

Ditchfield Gardens Car Park, Westhoughton, would have been the site of new CCTV cameras if NCP had not gone bust in March (Image: Google Maps)

A recent report called Westhoughton’s system ‘out of date’, with some cameras no longer working.

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The necessity for more cameras was also raised in 2025 after a series of incidents of car vandalism in Westhoughton car parks.

Earlier this year, Bolton Council finally agreed to the proposal to join Westhoughton’s CCTV system up with Bolton’s, where both systems would be managed centrally from Topp Way, Bolton.

The scheme was agreed at a Cabinet Leader Portfolio meeting on March 4.

However, almost as soon as this scheme was agreed, National Car Parks (NCP), who operate and monitor Bolton’s CCTV cameras, went bust.

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The back of Library Street Car Park, Westhoughton (Image: Google Maps)

This put several years of work by Westhoughton Town Council in jeopardy as they struggled to get updates from either Bolton Council or NCP themselves.

This latest move will be the first update to Westhoughton’s CCTV system in several years, allowing problem hotspots to be targeted.

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The names and faces of Bolton’s most wanted – August 5, 2026

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The names and faces of Bolton's most wanted - August 5, 2026

Cameron Wroe (Image: GMP)

CAMERON WROE, 31, is wanted on recall to prison.

Tony Meek (Image: GMP)

TONY MEEK, 36, is wanted on recall to prison.

Gareth Bentley (Image: GMP)

GARETH BENTLEY, 38, is wanted on recall to prison.

Craig Manuel (Image: GMP)

CRAIG MANUEL, 40, is wanted for twice failing to appear at court.

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A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: “Anybody found harbouring any wanted person or helping them to evade justice will be arrested themselves and face possible court action and a criminal record.”

These wanted people are not to be approached.

In the event of any sightings, please ring 999, while anyone with any information can leave a message on the police social media pages, or call independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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Man arrested after boy attacked by man in York street

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Woman charged with possession of knife and Class B drug

North Yorkshire Police on Wednesday evening (July 5) said a man has been arrested in connection with the reported incident in Moss Street on Sunday.

The force said the man was released on police bail.

It comes after police issued an appeal for information about the alleged attack which reportedly happened near Moss Street’s junction with Caesar Court at about 12pm on Sunday.

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A police spokesperson said the boy was “strangled, pushed and kicked” during the reported assault.

They said the boy was taken to hospital for treatment for injuries to his throat and neck after the alleged incident.

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Village pub told it can’t build eight homes they said were ‘critical’ to keep afloat

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Cambridgeshire Live

The British Queen pub in Meldreth applied to build the homes last year but South Cambridgeshire District Council rejected them

A Cambridgeshire village pub’s plan to build new homes they said were “critical” to keep them afloat has been struck down on appeal.

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The proposal for eight homes behind the British Queen pub in Meldreth was put to South Cambridgeshire District Council last year and, after first delaying a decision, councillors refused the scheme.

A representative of the pub owners said funds raised from the development would be invested into expanding the facilities at the pub, adding that it would be a “disaster for the village” if the pub had to close. An appeal was launched after the plans were refused with a final decision made last month.

Inspector Zoe Raygen said the Grade-II listed pub is an “early example of architecture in the village” with “historic and social significance as a public house”.

Although she found the proposed homes to be “of an acceptable design and not overly large” they would still “diminish the verdant character and appearance of the area”.

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The proposed access road would also be close to a tree which was protected by a Tree Preservation Order put in place when the council was considering this application.

Inspector Raygen said it was “a splendid, large sycamore tree with a large, low canopy which contributes substantially to the character and appearance of the area.”

She said: “It is not surprising therefore that the tree has been categorised as A1 in the appellant’s most up to date Tree Survey, a tree of the highest quality.”

The inspector raised concerns that two gardens extend to the edge of the river Mel, which could harm the habitat of bats that use the area for feeding.

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Two bedrooms in one house and one bedroom in another would also “have only rooflights providing light and outlook” which she said “could lead to gloomy, oppressive conditions, particularly in the winter or poor weather conditions”.

Inspector Raygen said the pub owners’ claim that the development could secure their future was an “admirable proposal” but she could only give it “very limited weight”.

She said this was due to the lack of detailed information surrounding past trading, projected income from the project and how this would be spent.

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Scots drivers hit out as images from AI ‘spy’ cameras could be passed to police

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Daily Record

The Record revealed earlier this year how the national transport agency was spending £350,000 on a scheme testing technology which snares drivers using smartphones or failing to wear seatbelts.

Drivers have hit out after AI ‘spy’ cameras appeared on busy routes in Scotland’s capital as it emerged images from the cameras could be passed to police.

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The Record revealed earlier this year how the national transport agency was spending £350,000 on a scheme testing technology which snares “distracted drivers” using smartphones or failing to wear seatbelts behind the wheel.

Previous roll outs elsewhere in the UK have seen thousands of motorists caught out in a matter of days and privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch has branded the Scots pilot “creepy and intrusive”.

But transport chiefs said the trial was part of a plan to make the country’s roads safer.

At the time of its launch in March, Transport Scotland said it could not confirm whether data would be passed to Police Scotland.

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But after the cameras appeared on Calder Road and Silverknowes Parkway in Edinburgh in recent days, it confirmed the force could be alerted to serious offences picked up by the technology.

Reacting to the new Edinburgh cameras, one member of the public wrote on Facebook: “1984 is coming true….”

Another said: “Another control system for the working man keep us in check and monitored.”

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A third added: “Given the state of AI in its current condition, I wonder how many instances it will alert to where the person(s) isn’t actually doing anything wrong. Who fixes that?”

But others were supportive of the scheme. One said: “Wear your seatbelt. Stay off your mobile phone. No problems!”

Another said: “Good, the amount of people still using phones and obviously looking down to use them when driving is unreal, cars have tech now to still use a phone but without actually touching it.”

Drivers can be fined up to £500 for not wearing a seatbelt, in addition to penalty points, and up to £1,000 and six penalty points for using a mobile phone.

Transport chiefs said the Scots pilot, being carried out by Edinburgh-based firm AECOM, was focused on helping “determine the scale and extent of specific driver behaviours”.

Labour MP Dr Scott Arthur has assured the public, saying the camera systems will use AI software to identify potential offences before human verification.

He said: “Images will be anonymised. However, if there are any serious issues detected these may be shared with Police Scotland.”

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The cameras were earmarked for 12 Scottish locations at the start of the pilot and have so far appeared at nine across the country.

The six-month pilot is expected to draw to a close in the coming weeks.

Jake Hurfurt, Head of Research and Investigations at Big Brother Watch said: “Drivers should not be monitored and potentially criminalised by AI-powered video analysis. This kind of surveillance is creepy and intrusive, and treats every driver it captures as a potential suspect.

“We should all be able to go about our lives without being analysed by faceless and unaccountable AI. The Information Commissioner has expressed concern about how the adoption of immature biometric surveillance tools could lead to discrimination. Public bodies need to be careful to ensure they are not using privacy-threatening algorithms in place of human decision making.”

IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy and Standards Nicholas Lyes previously said the pilot was a “positive step” for road safety in Scotland.

The Department for Transport ran a trial of the kit across the UK in 2023, which featured some sites in Scotland, but the pilot is the first of its kind.

Transport Scotland confirmed information may be passed to Police Scotland for further investigation in the most serious cases but said the main purpose of the survey is to collect data to “inform enforcement strategies in the future”.

Scottish sites where AI cameras have been set up under the pilot

  • Calder Road, Edinburgh
  • Silverknowes Road, Edinburgh
  • A96 Colpy
  • Skene Road, Aberdeen City
  • A84 Blair Drummond
  • M80 J7
  • M8 J25-27
  • Kingsway, Dundee
  • A1 Haddington

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

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Gianni Infantino REFUSES to resign as FIFA president: Under-fire chief apologises and vows to fight on as he breaks cover after being forced to abandon World Cup sale plans

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FIFA president Gianni Infantino (right) and FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafström (left) appeared in high spirits while watching a women's AFCON game on Wednesday night

Shameless Gianni Infantino has been given the ‘full support’ of FIFA’s top brass – and is set to remain as president – after summoning execs to crisis talks in Morocco. 

At the end of another extraordinary day in the World Cup sell-off scandal, which saw Luis Figo become the latest high-profile name to call for Infantino’s head in a blistering attack in Daily Mail Sport, a FIFA statement suggested its under-fire supremo survives, for now. 

In a searing 601-word assault Figo had described Infantino’s now-aborted plan to flog a stake in the World Cup to private investors as the ‘lowest, most deceitful and cravenly self-interested behaviour I have ever witnessed’ and a ‘grubby, underhand plot’. 

His explosive words ramped up the pressure on Infantino, who had called a crisis meeting in Rabat as he attempted to cling to power. 

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It would now appear, however, that he has managed to do so. A lengthy statement from FIFA late on Wednesday night admitted mistakes were made, but said they have now apologised in a letter to the various football associations and that a ‘review’ will be carried out. 

The statement said that, following the meeting, FIFA’s secretary general Mattias Grafstrom, who had criticised Infantino, and other management board members in attendance ‘reaffirmed their full support for the president’. 

FIFA president Gianni Infantino (right) and FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafström (left) appeared in high spirits while watching a women’s AFCON game on Wednesday night 

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For good measure, it added: ‘FIFA will no longer tolerate any attacks on its integrity, good governance and due process and will take all necessary measures to protect and safeguard its name and reputation. 

‘There are always lessons to be learned, and FIFA will continue to improve its processes in light of this experience. In this instance, however, it is important to stress that, although mistakes were made, everything that was done was done in full compliance with the FIFA regulatory framework.’ 

Figo, the former Barcelona and Real Madrid star, who initially backed Infantino in 2015, branded the Swiss a ‘relic who should have no part in football’s future’ and accused him of ‘a litany of abuses’. 

Aside from the World Cup sell-off, he referenced the decision to suspend the ban for USA striker Folarin Balogun after his red card at the World Cup and the half-time show during the final which ‘broke the laws of the game’. 

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‘Infantino has debased the office of FIFA president he promised to elevate,’ he wrote. 

‘He has lied, deceived and tried to feather his own nest at the expense of the game he is supposed to serve.’ 

Figo’s comments came after an attack by UEFA, which said it had lost confidence in Infantino, calling his proposal to flog commercial and event operations a ‘shabby, back room, opaque deal’. 

Amid heavy criticism and calls for Infantino to go, Grafstrom sent an all-staff memo describing the situation as ‘sad and reproachable’ and adding ‘individuals, unstable moments and unfortunate episodes come and go.’ 

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However, second-in-command Grafstrom was pictured laughing and joking with Infantino at a women’s Africa Cup of Nations game following the meeting, ahead of the release of the statement. 

Should he survive, Infantino would face re-election in March, and would need 106 votes from Fifa’s 211 members to win another term in charge of the global game.

Infantino arrived at the crunch meeting in Morocco earlier on Wednesday amid mounting pressure.

He had summoned senior FIFA officials to the Moroccan city of Sale for crisis talks after plans to sell £3.1billion in World Cup stakes leaked last week

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The Swiss football administrator has since scrapped the proposals after widespread opposition – including an internal rebellion at FIFA.

UEFA and CONCACAF – the body for North and Central America and the Caribbean – are both calling for Infantino to step down, with Europe declaring a lack of confidence in the FIFA president.

Pressure grew further after Jordan FA president Prince Ali bin Hussein accused him of blackmail, becoming the first Asian nation to rebel against the FIFA president.

Jordan became the 91st member association to move against Infantino, assuming all UEFA and CONCACAF nations follow the stance set by their continental bodies. 106 nations are needed to depose Infantino as president.

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FIFA President Infantino arrived at an emergency meeting in Sale, Morocco on Wednesday

FIFA President Infantino arrived at an emergency meeting in Sale, Morocco on Wednesday

Infantino is facing mounting pressure over his failed plan to sell off stakes in the FIFA World Cup

Infantino is facing mounting pressure over his failed plan to sell off stakes in the FIFA World Cup

Football legend Luis Figo became the latest high-profile individual to call for him to resign, while Arsene Wenger distanced himself from Infantino's plans

Football legend Luis Figo became the latest high-profile individual to call for him to resign, while Arsene Wenger distanced himself from Infantino’s plans

A car carrying Infantino was seen arriving at FIFA’s Africa regional office in Sale on Wednesday.

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The meeting comes hours after Figo became the latest major name in football to demand his resignation.

In an explosive piece for Daily Mail Sport, which further ramped up the pressure on the under-fire FIFA chief, the Portuguese legend described his now aborted World Cup sell-off as the ‘lowest, most deceitful and cravenly self-interested behaviour I have ever witnessed’ and a ‘grubby, underhand plot’.

Across 600 no-holds-barred words Figo, who had initially backed Infantino in 2015, brands the disgraced exec a ‘relic who should have no part in football’s future’ and accuses him of ‘a litany of abuses’, also referencing the now-infamous suspension of the ban behind Folarin Balogun’s red card and the half-time show at the World Cup final which ‘broke the laws of the game’.

‘Infantino has debased the office of FIFA President that he promised to elevate,’ the former Real Madrid, Barcelona and Inter Milan star writes. ‘He has lied, deceived and tried to feather his own nest at the expense of the game he is supposed to serve.’

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Figo, now 53, is viewed by many as a potential successor to Aleksandr Ceferin, head of UEFA which is leading the war against Infantino.

Figo and Jordan’s Prince Ali had both previously stood against former FIFA president Sepp Blatter in the 2015 elections. 

Figo ultimately withdrew from the process, while Prince Ali pulled out after the second round of voting. Blatter announced his resignation four days after re-election amid a vast backlash.

Infantino is facing his own backlash following his World Cup plans, with FIFA’s chief operating officer Kevin Lamour saying he was ‘deceived’ by the project and others, including chief of global football development Arsene Wenger, have distanced themselves from the hastily dropped plan.

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Figo branded Infantino as a ¿relic who should have no part in football¿s future¿ in an explosive article for Daily Mail Sport

Figo branded Infantino as a ‘relic who should have no part in football’s future’ in an explosive article for Daily Mail Sport

Figo, who had initially backed Infantino in 2015, claimed the Swiss official has 'debased the office of FIFA President'

Figo, who had initially backed Infantino in 2015, claimed the Swiss official has ‘debased the office of FIFA President’

With morale among staff said to be ‘rock bottom’ according to insiders, secretary general Grafstrom sent an internal email to staff citing ‘a sad and reproachable series of events’ and perhaps tellingly pointing out that ‘individuals, unstable moments and unfortunate episodes come and go’.

Figo, a former FIFA presidential candidate, starts: ‘I could write 10,000 words on the problems at FIFA. But the solution needs only three: Infantino must go.’

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He adds: ‘I have loved football all my life. I was a professional player for 20 years. And believe me, I have met some rogues in my time in the game. But what I have seen exposed in the last ten days is the lowest, most deceitful and cravenly self-interested behaviour I have ever witnessed. The man who would do that – the man who would try to force through such major changes just to enrich himself and his friends – is a relic of the game’s past and should have no part in its future.’

The Portuguese, who won 127 caps for his country, then rounds on Infantino for a lack of transparency. ’If it was such a good idea, why not tell your members when you had them all in a room before the World Cup Final?’ he asks.

‘If it was such a robust plan, why not tell your members the risks as well as what you describe as the benefits?

‘If the scheme was a no-brainer, why not be honest about the fact that it was going to give you a $30m a year job at the end of it?’

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Figo adds: ‘None of this was done. Because it’s not a good idea. It’s not robust when you fail to be transparent about the crippling returns that private equity always seek.

‘It’s not bold when you fail to explain that once you have sold your share it is gone forever and you have disinherited your successors from ownership of the World Cup.

FIFA legends have reportedly declined to publicly support Infantino amid the backlash to his plans

FIFA legends have reportedly declined to publicly support Infantino amid the backlash to his plans

‘And it’s not honest when you fail to mention that, after you have delivered the head of the World Cup on a platter to your mates in DC, they are going to give you a job worth five times your current salary.’

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Figo then highlights FIFA’s staggering level of wealth, asking how many shares the $5billion in its reserves ‘could buy in this grubby, underhand plot’.

‘Infantino has debased the office of FIFA President that he promised to elevate,’ he writes. ‘He has lied, deceived and tried to feather his own nest at the expense of the game he is supposed to serve…he should go. Now.’

According to The Times, allies of Infantino had been trying to persuade ‘FIFA legends’ to publicly support Infantino, but have been unsuccessful.

The FIFA legends are among former international players who have been paid to appear at the governing body’s events.

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Swap mayonnaise for better ingredient to make egg salad lighter and creamier

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Wales Online

A food creator shared how swapping out mayonnaise for a light alternative in egg salad makes it just as creamy, with the added benefits of more protein

Salads and sandwiches remain lunchtime staples, and while the choice of ingredients and fillings is virtually limitless, eggs have long been a popular addition. Egg salad traditionally relies on mayonnaise to provide creaminess and boost flavour, yet this often results in an overly greasy texture.

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However, cook and recipe creator Claire from Eat With Clarity has discovered a superior alternative to pair with eggs — Greek yoghurt. Following some experimentation, she opted to try Greek yoghurt, and this healthier take on egg salad was the result.

She said: “I was kind of sceptical at first, but honestly, it’s so good, and with the other ingredients in here, you can’t tell the difference between this version and the classic.”

Any variety of plain, unsweetened Greek yoghurt will suffice — whether dairy-free or regular — provided it contains no added sugar or flavourings.

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Greek yoghurt not only serves as an excellent protein source, but is also typically lower in fat and calories than mayonnaise, making it a more nutritious choice without compromising on flavour, reports the Express.

Egg salad

Ingredients

  • Six large eggs
  • 50g of plain Greek yoghurt
  • 25g of diced green onion
  • One to two teaspoons of Dijon mustard
  • Half a teaspoon of salt
  • Quarter teaspoon of black pepper
  • One to two stalks of celery, diced (optional)

Method

Begin by placing your eggs in a large pot of water and bringing to the boil. Should you encounter difficulty removing the shell, Claire recommends adding approximately one teaspoon of baking soda to facilitate easier peeling.

Once boiling, remove from the heat and leave to rest for approximately 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water until cool enough to handle.

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Carefully remove the shells and discard. Set the eggs aside to cool for around 10 minutes.

Once cooled, chop each egg into chunky pieces. The size is entirely down to personal preference; Claire favours a combination of larger and smaller pieces.

Some prefer to separate the yolks, mashing them to lend the salad a creamier consistency, before chopping up the whites separately.

Claire’s preferred method is to chop everything together — slicing the egg in half lengthwise, then in half again lengthwise, before cutting each quarter into two to four further chunks. There is no definitive right or wrong approach.

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Once everything is combined, the yolks tend to break down and mash naturally anyway.

Transfer to a bowl with all the remaining ingredients and stir thoroughly until well combined. This is also the stage at which to fold in your diced celery, should you be using it.

Taste and adjust the seasoning as required, adding more salt, pepper, or perhaps a pinch of dill or red pepper flakes to suit your palate.

This wholesome egg salad will keep in the refrigerator for up to five days. Give it a thorough stir prior to serving to restore its satisfyingly creamy texture.

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Utah allowed to enforce anti-gambling laws on prediction market Kalshi

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Utah allowed to enforce anti-gambling laws on prediction market Kalshi

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah can enforce its strict anti-gambling laws on prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket, a federal judge ruled in a win for states seeking to rein in the popular betting platforms.

Utah has been on the front lines of a battle between states and the federal government over who regulates the markets and whether they should be considered finance or gambling. The legal landscape is fragmented, with state and federal courts blocking restrictions in several states and allowing them in others.

Kalshi sued Utah in February, asking a federal judge to prevent the state from enforcing its gambling restrictions on the platform. The lawsuit came as Utah was on the verge of enacting legislation intended to undercut prediction markets from doing business in the state.

State law now bans proposition betting in sports — wagers on certain events happening in a game, rather than the game’s outcome — which is a significant source of revenue for the leading prediction markets.

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U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby rejected Kalshi’s request to block the Utah restrictions Tuesday, saying the federal law that Kalshi cited in its argument does not prevent the state from enforcing its laws.

For now, Utah residents can still place bets on the platforms. The state’s attorney general, Derek Brown, said he will enforce state laws on Kalshi, but he was still exploring options.

“Gambling is gambling, no matter what any company calls it,” Brown said.

Kalshi said in a statement that it disagrees with the ruling and plans to appeal.

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The company maintains that prediction markets fall exclusively under federal jurisdiction and are not governed by a patchwork of state gambling laws. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the federal agency responsible for regulating financial markets, agrees and has defended prediction markets in court.

Courts in Maryland, Nevada, Ohio, New York and Wisconsin have ruled against Kalshi in similar lawsuits, while judges in New Jersey, Tennessee, Arizona and Minnesota have sided with the company. Other states have been allowed to restrict certain aspects of Kalshi’s operations without banning them entirely.

The Trump Administration has been supportive of prediction markets, which allow anyone with a smartphone to wager on just about anything. The president’s eldest son is an adviser for both Kalshi and Polymarket, and an investor in the latter through his venture capital firm. Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, is also launching its own cryptocurrency-based prediction market called Truth Predict.

Utah leaders such as Gov. Spencer Cox have treated their fight to keep out anything they deem gambling as a moral crusade. The culture is rooted in the locally headquartered Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, known widely as the Mormon church, which views gambling as a vice that leads to selfishness and addiction.

Prediction markets are “causing tremendous harm to countless American families,” Cox said in celebrating the ruling.

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Car firebomb horror as cops probe attack in Dumbarton

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Daily Record

Police and fire crews were called to the scene on Glencairn Road in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Car torched in Dumbarton as cops probe firebomb attack

Police have launched a probe after a car firebomb attack in Dumbarton.

Emergency services were alerted to the incident on Glencairn Road in the town at around 1:25am on Tuesday morning.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service quickly extinguished the blaze and there were no reports of any injuries.

Shocking footage shows he Mazda CX-30 completely engulfed in flames outside a row of houses.

As a fire engine arrives on the scene, another huge explosion rocks the residential street.

Firefighters immediately scramble out the appliance and egin to douse the blaze.

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The clip ends as the flames begin to fade and smoke billows into the sky.

Police Scotland confirmed the fire is being treated as deliberate and urged anyone with information to come forward.

Constable Emma Gibb said: “Thankfully no-one was injured as a result of this reckless act.

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“Our enquires are ongoing and I am appealing for anyone who witnessed the incident and hasn’t already spoken to police to get in touch.

“I would also ask anyone who was in the area and who may have dash cam or private CCTV footage which could assist to contact us.

“Anyone with any information is asked to contact 101 quoting reference 0202 of 4 August, 2026. Alternatively, information can be passed to Crimestoppers anonymously by calling 0800 555 111.”

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