In her Daily Record column, Scottish Labour acting leader Jackie Baillie says the SNP Government must urgently get to grips with the problems faced by voters.

After the summer months which saw Scotland take part in a World Cup and a new Labour Prime Minister appointed, it is back to the Scottish Parliament this week for MSPs.

It has been almost four months since the Scottish election – but with the new parliamentary term starting, the hard work must now begin. The SNP were re-elected to power, which will take them to more than 20 years in government in Scotland.

I regret to say that in that time, Scotland has become worse off under their stewardship, with growing NHS waiting lists, shameful numbers of drug and alcohol deaths, too many people sleeping rough on our streets, and public trust eroded by SNP scandal after SNP scandal.

While I am naturally disappointed with the result of the election, we must now hope the SNP learn from past mistakes and chart a better path for the future.

Unfortunately, the early signs are not promising. Just last week, John Swinney signalled his intention to bring forward draft legislation to push for another independence referendum.

It is straight out of the Nicola Sturgeon playbook. A failed strategy that ultimately hit Scottish taxpayers in the pocket in legal bills when the issue was brought before the Supreme Court.

While I disagree with independence, I respect everyone’s view. I believe supporters, like many across the country, are desperate for a change from the status quo.

I understand that frustration. However, John Swinney dusting off a tired and failed strategy from a decade ago will do nothing to improve the lives of people across Scotland in the here and now.

The reality is that people are struggling with the cost of living, struggling to get an NHS appointment, and struggling to see how things get better.

This new parliamentary term needs to see an end to the gimmicks and grandstanding. People are tired of being promised jam tomorrow, while living standards and our public services struggle.

The SNP do not want to admit this, but the Scottish Parliament has the power to tangibly improve people’s lives right now.

Take bus fares, as just one example. The SNP promised that within 100 days of a government led by John Swinney, a £2 cap on bus fares would be expanded across the country.

Well, that 100 days is tomorrow, and yet there is no sign of the SNP delivering on that pledge. Time and again, the SNP talk the talk but fail to deliver.

In this new parliamentary term, we must see NHS waiting times reduced, the attainment gap narrowed, social care given the funding it needs, and the housing emergency properly addressed.

While those issues remain outstanding, John Swinney and the SNP must quit the grandstanding and gesture politics.

The people of Scotland can’t keep waiting for the SNP to deliver. They need ministers to take action to improve their lives now – not years down the line.

Homelessness mission

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I was very encouraged to hear our new Prime Minister Andy Burnham speak about his drive to eradicate rough sleeping. It is a disgrace that in 2026, we still have thousands of people every night sleeping rough across the UK.

In Scotland, 34,067 households were classified as homeless by local authorities in 2024-25, including 38,674 adults and 15,046 children. That is a national shame.

It was May 2024 that the Scottish Government declared a national housing emergency and yet it is clear the dial has hardly moved in terms of tackling this problem.

A core belief of the Labour Party is in eradicating poverty and representing working people. That is why we must be clear in championing efforts to wipe out rough sleeping.

So, Andy Burnham is right to make this aim a driving mission of his government, But, this must be a UK-wide effort, and with housing devolved to the Scottish Parliament, that means it is imperative that SNP ministers step up to match that ambition.

We ended the need to sleep rough in Scotland before when it was a Scottish Labour Government, we must do it again.vJohn Swinney has repeatedly stated that eradicating child poverty is his single most important objective.

This week, he has the chance to prove that when setting out his Programme for Government. I would urge him to take that chance.

Murrell and Sturgeon

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Last week, it was announced that a TV drama based on the scandalous embezzlement of SNP finances has been commissioned by Channel 5.

Frankly, I wish it were fictitious. However, we really do live in a reality where those at the top of the party of government stole hundreds of thousands of pounds from members of the public.

As they say, sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction.

By REBECCA CAMBER, CRIME AND SECURITY EDITOR

Published: 00:50 BST, 31 August 2026 | Updated: 02:46 BST, 31 August 2026

The criminal justice system is in crisis, a senior police chief warned yesterday.

Thames Valley Police head Jason Hogg said PC Andrew Harper’s family had been ‘re-traumatised’ by having to fight his killers’ release.

He welcomed the Prime Minister’s announcement that his officer’s killers, Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, will remain behind bars after weeks of campaigning from PC Harper’s family and colleagues to block their release.

The chief constable described changes to the prison early-release scheme to exclude anyone convicted of unlawful killing as part of PC Harper’s enduring legacy. 

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But he acknowledged that many other victims’ families would be disappointed that the exemptions did not go further.

Police leaders remain concerned about Government plans to release offenders early and jail fewer criminals by ditching shorter prison sentences, Mr Hogg said.

‘I’m delighted and genuinely grateful for the intervention by the Government in looking at this again,’ he told the Daily Mail.

Praising PC Harper’s wife Lissie and mother Debbie Adlam for their campaign, he said: ‘It’s difficult to underestimate the impact the past four weeks have had on them as individuals and other members of Andrew’s family.

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Thames Valley Police officer, PC Andrew Harper, was killed in the line of duty on August 15, 2019

Thames Valley Police mugshots of Jessie Cole (left) and Albert Bowers who are no longer eligible for early release

‘I’ve met some of the extended family who are clearly being re-traumatised by having to go through, simply having to fight for, in their words, justice being done. So I’m sure they’ll be incredibly relieved and grateful, too.

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‘His legacy extends further now, because of what’s happened, because Lissie and Andrew’s mum have had the courage speaking out in such a dignified and powerful way.

‘His legacy is now many, many hundreds of families of victims who’ve lost their lives, will now [see the culprit] stay in prison for longer. I’m quite proud that his legacy does live on, some good has been done in this situation.’

Mr Hogg, who is a former national police lead on prisons, added: ‘I think some families will be relieved by the announcement but of course there will be others who will be disappointed… There will be people who are released early, who do continue to pose a risk to the public.

‘We are in this situation still where the Sentencing Act is based on the person sentenced, not the risk they pose to the public.

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‘There will be people who are released from custody, for example people convicted of domestic abuse, who still may pose a risk to victims or the wider public.’

He warned that forces would have to shift resources from other policing priorities to deal with offenders released into the community. 

‘I think we have a criminal justice system in crisis. That’s the word I used with the Lord Chancellor when I met him earlier in the week. This is not going to be solved in a short space of time. This will take a number of years to work through.

‘When – and it’s not if because the reoffending rate in our country is about 30 per cent for released adults in the first year – some of those individuals released early breach their conditions, those individuals should be back in custody very quickly.’

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Mr Hogg added: ‘Already the whole Sentencing Act hasn’t properly kicked in and I’m receiving reports that it’s more difficult to remand people to custody.’

Yesterday Ms Adlam told BBC Breakfast that the past few weeks had been traumatic.

She added: ‘It’s a really mixed bag of emotions, though, because on the one hand we are glad, but we’ve been brought through the mill, and we are only back at where we were to start with.’

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Closing statements are scheduled Monday in one of hip-hop’s most anticipated trials for the man accused of orchestrating the death of Tupac Shakur.

Duane ”Keffe D” Davis, 63, faces a single count of murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang in the killing of Shakur in Las Vegas nearly 30 years ago.

A panel of 16 jurors, four of whom will be alternates, heard 24 witnesses prosecutors called and three witnesses defense called over nine days. The trial was expected to take longer, with prosecutors originally planning to call 35 to 45 witnesses.

The prosecution was expected to hammer home their arguments that Davis called the shots for the attack on Shakur that night based on Davis’ own statements, while Davis’ defense attorney will likely reiterate his claim that prosecution’s narrative is fiction, and that they failed to back up Davis’ claims with evidence.

The trial brings to a head a decades-long case that for years has drawn the eyes of hip-hop fans and true crime experts alike. Shakur, who was considered one of the most influential rappers of all time, was in Las Vegas on Sept. 7, 1996, and stopped at a red light when a white Cadillac pulled up beside him, and shots were fired. Shakur died six days later from his wounds. Death Row Records co-founder Marion “Suge” Knight was also wounded, but survived.

For years, nobody had been charged in the rapper’s death until Davis began making public statements, saying he was in the Cadillac and gave the gun to others in the backseat. Davis, a self-proclaimed leader of the South Side Compton Crips at the time, described the shooting as an act of retaliation after Knight and Shakur’s entourage beat up Davis’ nephew in the MGM Grand hours before the shooting.

Prosecutors don’t claim Davis was the one who pulled trigger, but rather that he orchestrated the killing. Under Nevada law, someone who helps another person commit murder can be convicted of the crime. Davis is the only person still alive who was in the Cadillac.

Davis’ own words are front and center

The state has relied on Davis’ own statements he gave to police, documentarians and interviewers, in which he admitted to playing a role in the shooting. Davis also co-authored a book called “Compton Street Legend,” which Davis described as the “real truth” in an interview played for jurors.

In multiple interviews, Davis said he handed the gun to the back seat, with some details vary slightly on different occasions. Sometimes Davis said Deandre “Freaky” Smith had the gun but didn’t want it, so Anderson took it and pulled the trigger. In other interviews as well as his own book, Davis either wouldn’t say who pulled the trigger, or that he didn’t know.

Prosecution’s witnesses included a gang expert who described Davis as the shot caller that younger gang members had to obey. Witnesses also testified regarding the heated gang rivalry between South Side Compton Crips and Mob Piru, which were associated with dueling record companies Bad Boy Records and Death Row Records.

Lack of physical evidence, defense says

Davis’ defense attorney Michael Sanft has told jurors that his client’s words were braggadocio and were meant to make Davis money, not to tell the truth.

Sanft, who took on the case without pay, argues there is a lack of physical evidence tying Davis to the crime, such as phone records or bills.

During the trial investigators said a Las Vegas hotel bill was found at Davis’ residence during a police search, but it wasn’t clear when it was dated — or where that evidence is currently located.

The case is nearly 30 years old, and its age has affected the kind of evidence presented in court. Prosecutors warned jurors that material collected in the ’90s is different from what law enforcement collects today.

Still, prosecutors played for jurors surveillance footage collected from the MGM Grand that showed Shakur, wearing a gold dress shirt, walking briskly on the casino floor with his entourage struggling to keep up with him. Footage showed the fight between Shakur’s entourage with Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson.

We all love our dogs. But do we love them enough to take them on a fortnight’s family summer holiday to Brittany?

This is the question I ask myself every August. I have, several times, succumbed to the ridiculous bureaucracy of the post-Brexit animal health certificate, the multi-page legal document without which my labradoodles, Otto and Goose, cannot leave the country.

This is a double whammy of time and effort, never mind the eye-watering cost and the rabies jabs they need before you can even apply.

Besides, pet-friendly cabins on the ever-popular Portsmouth to Caen route get sold out by April. I’ve missed the boat, excuse the pun, on several occasions and then agonised over whether the dogs would be OK in the boot of the Land Rover for the six-hour crossing. We tried this once. They weren’t.

So this year, with a pang of guilt, I thought: ‘Let’s just leave them at home.’ Of course, this only works if you can find a reliable dogsitter but I’ve always been lucky in the past. There’s a fantastic Facebook group called House and Pet Sitters UK, as well as the website Trusted Housesitter, where you can advertise. Often there’s a kind of unspoken agreement that if you are fortunate enough to live in a desirable location – we’re in central Chichester with West Wittering and Goodwood on our doorstep – then people will be happy to look after your dogs in exchange for free accommodation.

This summer I started my search early and was immediately inundated. Quite quickly I settled on Peter*, a recent divorcee who had sold his family home and was waiting to buy his own place.

Zoe* seemed lovely over WhatsApp, tolerating my numerous voice notes in which I frantically tried to cram every detail about Goose and Otto’s routine and quirks, says Shona

We had mutual friends on Facebook, which is always reassuring, and we met up for a couple of hours so I could show him the dogs’ favourite walks and go through their, admittedly lengthy, list of requirements. I headed off to America on a business trip the week before our family holiday, relaxed in the knowledge everything was sorted.

But while I was away Peter messaged me to say he’d been offered a paid job he couldn’t turn down. With less than seven days to go before our holiday, I had no one to look after Otto and Goose. I couldn’t even make a last-minute decision to take them with us to France because their rabies jabs weren’t up to date.

In a panic, I readvertised and almost immediately got a friendly response from a woman in her mid-30s called Zoe*. She seemed lovely over WhatsApp, tolerating my numerous voice notes in which I frantically tried to cram every detail about Goose and Otto’s routine and quirks. ‘Please say as much as you like about them!’ she said. ‘Dogs are like family.’

This comforted me enormously. Zoe also agreed to fly in the night before we were due to leave so she could spend the evening with us and the dogs and I could meet her in person.

Stupidly, because I was furiously busy with travel and work, I didn’t check her references. My rationale was that all her messages to me were reassuring. Then, the day before she was due to arrive, she said she’d changed her flight to the Saturday morning and might not be able to get to our house until after we’d left.

‘But don’t worry!’ she wrote. ‘You can just leave the key.’

Er, no. There was no way I was going to head abroad, leaving the dogs – and my house – with someone I hadn’t met in person. At this point I was seriously considering staying at home with Goose and Otto, but then Zoe switched gear again and said she could, as it turned out, arrive in Chichester just an hour before we had to leave for the ferry.

I wasn’t happy with this either, but it was better than nothing. First impressions were OK. She seemed a bit of a hippy, but then I figured that any woman in her mid-thirties bumming around the world living in other people’s houses was probably a tad anti-establishment.

As we drove away for the ferry, my eldest daughter, Flo, 27, told me she’d got ‘a bad vibe’ from Zoe. ‘She’s fine,’ I snapped, not wanting to entertain the alternative.

But over the next few hours my uneasiness grew. I know I’m the kind of pet parent (and human one) who needs more information rather than less. I’d rather be bombarded with photos of the dogs and detailed info on what they’ve eaten, when they’ve pooed and so on, especially in the first few days.

I do eventually relax and step back, but surely anyone leaving something precious in the care of a stranger would be the same? Zoe did answer my messages but in a frustratingly vague way. ‘Yes I’ve walked them. You need to trust me.’

I was sensing bolshiness. When I expressed this concern to my husband Keith, he said: ‘She clearly doesn’t like authority. Stop being a control freak.’

But on day two things got worse. I left it until the afternoon to send a friendly message to Zoe asking where she’d walked and if the dogs were OK. She replied only to say: ‘I’m just following your orders.’ By now I was getting increasingly anxious. I decided to send a friend over just to check everything was OK. Mike, a neighbour who knows Goose and Otto, was happy to oblige.

Yes, this might sound excessive to people who don’t have dogs. But for us, they’re vulnerable members of the family. I know owners who hunch over their Ring doorbell footage while on holiday, timing to the minute the comings and goings to ensure their dogs are getting enough exercise. We’re intense about it. And in this case, I honestly think I was right to be.

When Mike arrived, Zoe opened the door but didn’t let him in. He gently suggested it might be good if she could send me daily updates on the dogs so I could relax on holiday. ‘Well, I’m not doing that,’ she told him, before shutting the door. Now there was no question that I was dealing with someone who was openly hostile. In my worst-case-scenario mindset, Zoe had veered from quirky free spirit to psychopath.

In a last, desperate, attempt to get her to see things my way I sent a friendly but firm message pleading with her to communicate more. She turned off her phone. For 48 hours. I tried calling, but it switched to voicemail. I messaged. Nothing.

I couldn’t sleep. All I could think was that there was a nutter in my house neglecting my dogs – or worse.

I called Mike, begging him to go over to our house and throw Zoe out. One of Flo’s friends had kindly said she could step in and so I booked Zoe a room for one night at a local hotel and promised Mike a crate of wine if he could evict her.

Unsurprisingly, she reacted terribly. ‘This is really inconvenient for me,’ she ranted. She then told Mike to leave and come back once she had packed her bags.

‘Do NOT leave the house,’ I begged him. By now Zoe was sobbing and calling me every name under the sun. The dogs were, thankfully, absolutely fine. Over the next two hours, Mike managed to extract Zoe from our home and deliver her to the hotel. Did I just pick a dodgy dogsitter? Or was she actually a dog lover – albeit one who just wanted everything on her terms?

Either way, I’ll be securing that pet-friendly ferry cabin months in advance next year.

KOROR, Palau (AP) — Far from New York or Davos, leaders of some of the world’s least populous states are meeting in a placid tropical archipelago with no traffic lights. The population of the summit host, Palau, was due to swell from 18,000 people to 20,000 as delegates from dozens of countries arrived at the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting.

Ahead of the summit officially opening Monday, the country’s president and other senior officials walked the main road around the island picking up trash. Barbers and tattoo artists prepared to become drivers for delegates and student volunteers to usher dignitaries.

But beneath the distinctively Pacific character of the event, where matters unfold in their own unhurried time and decisions are made by consensus rather than by a vote, simmered a fraught and escalating geopolitical debate about who gets to shape the future of the vast ocean region.

Powerful nations interested in the Pacific have raced in recent years to shore up alliances among its leaders, intensifying a contest for influence between China and the United States, Taiwan, and forum members Australia and New Zealand. The sometimes-conflicting bids to win sway have also drawn dividing lines among the forum’s members, threatening to derail annual summits.

“The Pacific is our home, not a theater for geopolitical competition,” Palau’s President Surangel Whipps Jr. told reporters Sunday, as he urged the bigger countries closely observing this week’s event not to interfere in talks that he hoped would center on problems desperately imperiling small Pacific island nations, such as climate change and struggling economies.

“Let’s not use this as a place that we should be threatening or making people feel uncomfortable,” he added. The reality, however, was unlikely to be simple.

Small island nations have become important allies

Some of the 18 member countries and territories that make up the Pacific Islands Forum have populations in the low thousands or tens of thousands and were once known mostly as picture-perfect holiday destinations. But many also have sprawling and lucrative exclusive economic zones, rich with fisheries and seabed minerals, and their locations across the wide Pacific Ocean have become strategically important points on the map as global tensions rise.

While Forum countries often reference a “Pacific family,” members come from diverse cultures and political systems and their remote locations mean few opportunities for leaders to speak in person. The annual leaders’ summit was once a relaxed and casual affair, where officials from countries with little power in the global order sought to amplify their voices by reaching unified positions, particularly in urging bigger countries to curb greenhouse gas emissions as rising seas began to threaten low-lying atoll nations.

As major powers over the past decade have escalated their efforts to secure access to Pacific waters and ports by inking security deals and offering funding, immigration access to their countries and other sweeteners, the leaders’ ability to speak with one voice at their annual summit has come under pressure.

“We see examples of this where that consensus-based model, which is referred to as the Pacific Way, can sometimes lead to a bit of paralysis in taking action,” said Oliver Nobetau, Pacific Islands program director at the Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank.

Pacific nations face worsening climate and fuel shocks

In a recent episode, the Forum’s foreign ministers failed to reach consensus on a statement criticizing Beijing’s launch of a ballistic missile into the South Pacific Ocean in July. While most member states strongly opposed China’s actions, the refusal of two to endorse a statement saying so meant none was issued.

Among the issues vexing Pacific island nations are the effects of the latest El Nino weather chaos, which has brought droughts and floods across the region. The volatile weather threatens food security and access to clean water, already vulnerable in island nations dependent on imported goods and funded largely by foreign aid.

Fuel volatility from the Iran war has also prompted some Pacific countries experiencing severe economic shocks to declare national emergencies in a region overwhelmingly reliant on imported diesel and gasoline, arriving via a fragile supply chain.

Whipps this week suggested that the wealthy countries seeking involvement in the region could open their wallets to finance the widespread establishment of solar power capabilities across the region.

“What are they doing together with us to partner to get a 100% renewable Pacific?” Whipps said.

Conflict over members’ alliances is expected

However, some of the powers at loggerheads over the region were always going to see this year’s summit as a showdown. Palau is one of just 12 countries worldwide to recognize Taiwan, incurring the ire of Beijing, which sees Taiwan as part of its territory.

It also sits at the nexus of other great power struggles. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, next to the Philippines, Palau draws from the Asian tourism market and has closer ties to the United States than much of the Forum’s members. A Compact of Free Association allows defense and security access for the U.S. in Palau’s territory in exchange for tens of millions of dollars in U.S. funding each year.

Palau’s turn as host also comes as the summit’s leaders try once more to draw up a structure governing how other countries are permitted involvement in its meetings. Countries approved to engage in the Pacific Islands Forum, including the United States and China, are known as dialogue partners, while Taiwan holds separate status as a development partner.

Beijing has ramped up pressure on forum hosts to exclude Taipei’s envoys from the annual summit, a dispute that grew so fractious ahead of the 2025 event in Solomon Islands that all countries except member nations were entirely barred from attending. Palau’s warm diplomatic relations with Taipei have this year drawn the attendance of Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung and provoked a warning from Beijing that China would oppose Taiwanese officials’ participation.

That in turn has prompted exasperation from some officials and Pacific-watchers at the prospect of another summit overshadowed by rivalry between non-member countries. Early arrivals over the weekend were roiled by the news that one leader, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale — a newly elected leader more friendly to Australia than the more Beijing-aligned leader before him — had returned home just hours after arriving because an opponent had mounted a leadership challenge.

It wasn’t immediately clear how much his forced departure, and the absence of others such as Kiribati’s President Taneti Maamau, whose country’s China ties have warmed during his tenure, could be attributed to unease about the summit’s geopolitics.

“You’d be defying gravity and logic if you said it wasn’t a big problem,” New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters told reporters in Koror on Sunday, referring to bids for foreign interference in the event.

The leaders’ non-attendances were “seriously disappointing” and did not help, Peters added.

“But in the main the delegations are of the highest standard,” he said. “So let’s see how we go.”

Dame Priti added: “With Labour axing key transport schemes, cancelling plans for a new school, threatening to destroy our countryside, councils and communities and cutting policing, I will be a vocal champion for my constituents in the House of Commons defending their interests and demanding action.”

Marcus Rashford made his first start for Man Utd since December 2024 and was impressive as Michael Carrick’s side beat Ipswich 5-2 at Old Trafford.

Michael Carrick praised Marcus Rashford’s return to the Manchester United starting XI and said the forward had been “fantastic” on and off the pitch since returning to the club three weeks ago.

Rashford’s United career looked over when he was cut adrift by Ruben Amorim in December 2024 and he has spent the last 18 months on loan at Aston Villa and Barcelona. The La Liga side had the option to make the move permanent for £26million this summer, but decided against doing so and Rashford is now back in the fold at his boyhood club.

He looks certain to stay beyond the end of the transfer window and Carrick believes the 28-year-old feels like a new signing this summer, given how long he has been away from the club.

After coming off the bench at Hull last weekend, Rashford started the 5-2 win against Ipswich and delivered an impressive display from the left.

“He’s adding to the group for us, for sure,” said Carrick. “I’ve known him for a while, and then he wasn’t here when I’ve come back, and now he is.

“I think he’s making the most of that for us and for him as well, to have the opportunity to be here. He’s one of our own. He’s living his dream, playing here now and trying to be successful and win.

“Whatever’s gone on, I think part of this club, there’s players that have come back sometimes, or players that maybe were going to leave, didn’t leave. It’s always about what you do next, and what your intentions are. He’s been fantastic since he came back, I have to say, and it was great to see him on the pitch today for us.”

The presence of Carrick, a former teammate of Rashford and someone who coached him when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge, has helped to ease the 28-year-old back into the fold and he looked bright against the Tractor Boys.

“I thought he dealt with the whole day as normal, really,” said Carrick. “I’m sure it was nice for him to be back and starting games here and enjoying being involved in a good performance.

“I thought he did particularly well in not easy circumstances, particularly as the game was going through the cycle. And then second half, it all clicked. I thought he did all-around very good, and he’ll only get better. I was really pleased with him.”

By CAITLIN LENG

Published: 01:39 BST, 31 August 2026 | Updated: 03:02 BST, 31 August 2026

A London-based mother who is thought to have died while trying to save her husband after he became trapped in a hot tub in Spain has been pictured. 

Spanish police believe mother-of-two Thomasina Tobin, 51, passed away when attempting to save her husband, 48-year-old Patrick Tobin, after he became stuck underwater at a spa in a luxury villa the couple were holidaying at in Colina del Sol, Valencia. 

The couple, who had lived and worked in London for several years, were staying at the gated complex – which forms part of the Cap Blanc residential estate in Cullera – when their bodies were discovered by their two teenage sons on Tuesday at approximately 5pm. 

The two boys, aged 14 and 16 and understood to have special needs, searched the luxury villa for their parents before finding them close to the hot tub on the lowest floor and raised the alarm with a neighbour.

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Investigators on the case now believe the pair were victims of suction entrapment, which occurs when a powerful vacuum pull from a hot tub drain or swimming pool traps a person’s body, hair, or clothing underwater. 

Post-mortem exams conducted on Ms Tobin, from Co Monaghan, Ireland, and Mr Tobin ruled out foul play, and no signs of forced entry or suspicious activity on nearby CCTV cameras were detected.

Marks and scratches found on both bodies as well as blood in the cloudy water of the jacuzzi, and a strong chemical smell were noted by police.

Valencian newspaper Levante-EMV said suction marks were found on the couple by authorities; however, were more pronounced on Mr Tobin –  leading investigators to believe he was pulled under the water first and his wife passed away attempting to recover him. 

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Spanish police believe Thomasina Tobin passed away when attempting to save her husband after he became stuck underwater at a spa in a luxury villa in Spain

The couple who were found dead in the seaside resort town of Cullera on Spain’s east coast (File image)  

It is understood both bodies were found partially outside the hot tub, adding to the theory Ms Tobin was able to free her husband at some point during the incident.  

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Police had also been examining if either Mr or Ms Tobin had been electrocuted in the small pool, but this has since been ruled out.   

At this stage, the results of a post-mortem examination will not be released officially, in keeping with Spanish practice.  

Ms Tobin was working at the London consultancy firm Turner and Townsend as a quantity surveyor in the high-end hotels industry for the past five and a half years.

She had worked in the UK for the past 30 years since graduating from Trinity College Dublin and had run her own quantity surveying firm as well as serving as partner in another before becoming head of hotels at her current company where she had worked on famous luxury sites including the Ritz.

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Her father, Tommy McArdle, had been a director for RTÉ and goalkeeper for the Monaghan senior county football team in the 1950s and 60s.

Mr Tobin is understood to have worked in the tech industry in London.

Relatives of Ms Tobin arrived in Spain on Wednesday to comfort the couple’s children who are believed to be traumatised after discovering the bodies.

The pair had alerted the property owner who lived nearby and called the police, who then went through contacts in one of the boys’ phones and got in touch with family members in Monaghan.

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It’s understood that three relatives, including an uncle of the teenagers, flew out to comfort and care for them after the harrowing event and landed at 3am on Wednesday morning, less than 12 hours after the bodies were found.

The Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed that it was providing consular assistance in this case, while New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated it was aware of Mr Tobin’s death and was assisting his relatives at home and in the UK.

Sydney Sweeney sent temperatures soaring as she stripped down to lingerie in a new SYRN social media post.

This week, the 28-year-old bombshell, who has been gearing up for her September 12 birthday, captivated in behind-the-scenes content from her brand’s latest campaign.

Sweeney put on a busty display in one photo that featured her in a racy blue lace bra that left little to the imagination.

‘Birthday suits look a little different around here,’ she captioned the post, adding a cake emoji and revealing that the collection, which drops on September 1, was named ‘Birthday Boobs.’

Another stunning photo showed the blonde beauty in a semi-sheer baby-blue bra, garter belt and thong as she posed in a kitchen, and she added a polaroid-style photo snapped during the photoshoot in a follow-up post on Sunday.

A brief video snippet showed Sweeney in another three-piece set, but black, as she looked over her shoulder and coyly smiled for the camera. 

Sweeney put on a busty display in one photo that featured her in a racy blue lace bra that left little to the imagination, while another snap highlighted her matching garter belt and thong

‘Birthday suits look a little different around here,’ she captioned the post, adding a cake emoji and revealing that the collection, which drops on September 1, was named ‘Birthday Boobs.’

‘Step into the world of Birthday Boobs,’ SYRN’s Instagram caption teased to its 482,000 followers.

She tantalized her fans while suggestively making a mess with flour as she baked cakes scantily clad.

Throughout the clip, a gritty, slowed, vintage-inspired iteration of Happy Birthday played to set a sexy tone.

The actress subsequently set multiple cakes on a long table before mounting the surface and seductively crawling across it.

The wild advert drew a mixed reception in the comments, with one fan asking if Sweeney was teasing a potential OnlyFans launch.

‘I’ve seen more of Sydney than some women I’ve dated,’ added another. 

A third commented, ‘Where can I buy the cake? Asking for a friend.’ 

The Housemaid star has consistently rolled out sexually-charged promotional material since launching SYRN in late January.

On Sunday, the 28-year-old bombshell captivated in behind-the-scenes content from her brand’s latest campaign

Sweeney has been gearing up for her September 12 birthday

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The actress will turn 29 in just a couple of weeks

A previously shared photo showed the blonde beauty in a semi-sheer baby blue bra, garter belt, and thong as she posed in a kitchen

In April, she took her products to Stagecoach music festival for a pop-up activation, in which she nearly spilled out of a $269 ‘Date Night’ corset from her brand. 

The Euphoria star opened up about her mission for SYRN earlier this year, insisting she wants to ensure every piece fits well and works on a ‘beautiful range of body types.’

She told Cosmopolitan magazine in January: ‘My designers are all women, and I have an amazing diverse team.

‘My models are a beautiful range of body types. I’m always like: “I want to see it on every body.” I can’t be the only model. I need to make sure everyone feels really good in it.’

Sweeney emphasized, ‘If I wouldn’t wear it, I wouldn’t want to make it.’

The lingerie range is just one of the entrepreneur’s latest business pursuits.

She also recently launched a production company called Honey Trap.

Its first project is Hollow, a reframing of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, seen through the eyes of Katrina Van Tassel, played by Sweeney.