Raducanu last played a match in Indian Wells on 8 March, and has since missed the Miami Open and clay-court events in Linz and Madrid because of her post-viral symptoms.

However, the 23-year-old has been practising in recent weeks at the National Tennis Centre in London and at the Ferrer Academy near Benidorm.

She had been accompanied in Rome by Jane O’Donoghue, a friend and former LTA national coach, and physio Emma Stewart, who perhaps tellingly was with Raducanu during her interviews.

“Coming on to the clay courts is much more physically demanding than potentially other surfaces but I want to come back 100% ready,” Raducanu said.

“I have been building my way up slowly and looking forward to when I get out there.”

We now know she will not be getting out there in Rome this week.

Raducanu has one last chance to play a WTA event before the French Open in either Strasbourg or Rabat in two weeks’ time.

But if she misses the entire clay swing, then Raducanu will have been absent for three months by the time the grass-court season begins.

Even if Raducanu is fit to compete at Roland Garros, which begins on 24 May, she will do so as an unseeded player.

The 2021 US Open champion is currently 30 in the world rankings but only 32 players are seeded – and she will drop several places now she is no longer able to defend the points she earned from a fourth-round run in Rome last year.

Janice Nix, 66, denied killing her stepdaughter Andrea Bernard who died after she suffered 50 per cent burns to her body when she was allegedly forced into the hot bath

A stepmother accused of killing a five-year-old girl with a scalding hot bath allegedly told the child’s young brother that she would not hit him again if he claimed it was an accident, a court has heard.

Janice Nix, 67, has denied manslaughter against Andrea Bernard by punishing her with a hot bath in Thornton Heath, south London, on June 6 1978.

The defendant, of Clapham, south London, has also denied cruelty to Andrea’s brother Desmond Bernard between October 1 1975 and June 6 1978, when he was seven to nine years old.

Andrea’s death was treated as an accident for nearly half a century until her brother contacted police with new information in September 2022, Isleworth Crown Court heard at the trial opening on Tuesday.

During voluntary police interview, Nix gave a “completely different” version of events to the one she provided the coroner in 1978, prosecutor Kerry Broome said. Mr Bernard had approached the force after his sister’s death “had become a burden he could no longer carry”, she added.

The defendant had been in a relationship with the children’s father, also named Desmond Bernard, and was in effect their stepmother, the court heard.

Nix, then called Janice Thomas and in her late teenage years, had the main responsibility for their care as their father was often away working as a chauffeur, jurors were told.

Mr Bernard told police that Andrea “had been blamed for something” on the evening before the bath, but he could not recall what. Consequently, Nix said the girl could not go to school and must stay behind and clean, he claimed.

“Desmond knew this meant Andrea would be beaten, but recalls being relieved it would not be him”, Ms Broome summarised. The boy discovered his sister was at school and assumed she “was no longer in trouble”, the court heard.

“Given what happened later, it may have been… that Andrea had escaped the house and went to school without the defendant’s knowledge, which made her very angry indeed”, the prosecutor said.

Nix was “fuming” when they returned home together – hitting Andrea and shouting that she had told her to remain at home, Mr Bernard told police.

He claimed he went straight to his bedroom and could hear Nix beating Andrea through his bedroom door. He said he then heard her walk into the bathroom next door and water starting to run, around 15 to 30 minutes after the children had arrived.

He allegedly heard Nix call for Andrea to get in the bath, and Ms Broome told jurors: “Desmond could not see what was happening in the bathroom, but he heard Andrea screaming, and saying `it’s hot, it’s hot.

“Janice kept shouting at her to get in. He says `Andrea would not stop screaming and I can’t remember how long it went on for, but then it just stopped’.”

Nix told his sister to wake up before asking him to come into the room, Mr Bernard told police. He claimed she was cradling a “limp” Andrea in a towel and she was not awake.

The prosecution summarised: “Janice seemed scared and asked him to say it was an accident and that Andrea fell into the bath. She promised never to hit him again if he said that, so that is what he did: he told everyone it was an accident, and Janice never hit him again.”

During the inquest, Nix had claimed that Andrea and her brother had looked dirty when they returned from school at about 4pm.

She said she told the children to have a bath upstairs, put on clean clothes and come back to the garden – the boy went first, the court heard.

Andrea was upstairs for about 15 to 20 minutes which “did not really seem a long time to me, she is a bit slow”, Nix said. The girl returned to the garden wearing a dress and complaining of itchy legs, the defendant had claimed.

She added that she “did not hear her call out at all” and it would have been possible to pick that up. Andrea’s skin on her leg was reddish and peeling off as she scratched it, she said.

Nix also told the inquest that Andrea had fainted and an ambulance took her to the Mayday Hospital, Croydon, south London. “She did not say anything on the way to hospital about what had happened to her”, she told the coroner.

Decades later, Nix told police that she had immediately run to the bathroom after hearing Andrea screaming. The girl was scrambling to get out of the bath and Nix lifted her out, she said.

Her neighbour James Henry followed Nix into the house and gave her something to wrap Andrea in, she said. The child had “water blisters” on her skin and Mr Henry drove her to Mayday Hospital, she said.

The defendant also claimed that Mr Bernard made false allegations against her because he felt short-changed by his father’s inheritance.

In addition, she told officers: “Andrea died as a result of a tragic accident caused by a malfunctioning boiler which overheated the water used for the bath.”

It is not disputed that Andrea died in hospital on July 13 1978 as a result of complications from the burn injuries. Silver-haired Nix appeared in court wearing a blue jacket and trousers, a beige blouse, and glasses. For a large portion of proceedings she stared directly at Ms Broome who was speaking.

The trial continues.

Drinking cranberry juice could help boost the antibiotics used to treat urinary tract infections (UTIs) against drug resistant bacteria, a new study has found.

Approximately half of all women in the UK will experience at least one UTI in their lifetime, causing pain or burning when urinating, a frequent need to wee and a high temperature.

Most UTIs are caused by pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli bacteria, and the antibiotic fosfomycin is often prescribed as the first line of treatment. But the rise of antibiotic resistance makes the infection more difficult to treat.

There is no evidence that cranberry juice alone can treat a UTI. However, new research has suggested it may lend a helping hand to antibiotics.

Researchers exposed lab-grown strains of the bacteria that causes UTIs to cranberry juice and findings suggest that compounds in the juice makes resistant strains more sensitive to antibiotic treatment.

Microbiologist behind the study, Dr Eric Déziel at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique in Montreal, Canada, cautioned the results are preliminary, and whether cranberry juice offers an antibiotic boost in people requires further study.

He explained the study doesn’t show, for example, if drinking cranberry juice gives the same results. “We don’t know if the metabolites will reach the infection,” he said. But if they could, then juice may increase the efficacy of antibiotic treatment, he added.

The study published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology found that in 72 per cent of uropathogenic E. coli strains tested, cranberry juice both boosted the antibiotic activity of fosfomycin and suppressed the emergence of mutations related to resistance.

Dr Déziel acknowledged that cranberry juice has long been regarded as a folk remedy for preventing and treating urinary tract infections, but scientists originally attributed the benefit to the high acidity of the juice.

However, researchers have recently linked its effect to compounds in the juice that can block bacteria from attaching to cells lining the urethra. Now, experts have studied how the juice interacts with antibiotics.

Researchers explained that fosfomycin enters bacterial cells through the same entry channels used by the microbes to acquire some sugars. It’s not yet known what, but something in the cranberry juice induces the bacteria to increase its uptake of sugars within one of those channels, which means it also absorbs more fosfomycin.

Dr Déziel noted that the new study doesn’t establish a connection between drinking juice and antibiotic potency, but it is promising enough to warrant more research into new ways to treat dangerous infections.

“With the challenge of multi-drug resistance,” Dr Déziel said, “we need to work from many different directions.”

North Yorkshire Police were called to 86 reports of romance fraud in the region in 2025, with total financial losses reaching £1,509,853.

It comes as national figures showed that people aged 55 to 74 suffered the greatest monetary losses, accounting for nearly a half of the total amount stolen.

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A force spokesperson said: “Nationally, the scale is stark: 10,784 reports and losses of more than £102 million over the same period.

“Although men submitted a higher number of reports overall, women typically experienced greater financial losses.”

‘The criminals target trust and emotional connection’

Romance fraud is closely linked to social media and dating website, where offenders can easily create “convincing” fake profiles.

Police say investigators are also seeing increased use of AI-generated images and messages from fraudsters.

A spokesperson said: “In many cases, romance fraud is linked with fake investment, opportunities, cryptocurrency, in hybrid frauds which further increase the financial risk to victims.

“All this is particularly harmful because the criminals target trust and emotional connection.

“They’ll often spend significant time building what appears to be a genuine relationship before attempting to exploit their victim financially.

“While the monetary losses can be substantial, the emotional impact is often just as damaging.

“This crime can affect anyone, and by reporting it, victims help us build intelligence, disrupt offenders and protect others from harm.”

More information about this can be found here.

Both the Mowbray scheme, proposed for land near East Rounton, between Northallerton and Yarm, and the Bellmoor project, planned on farmland at South Kilvington, near Thirsk, have been given ‘gate one’ status by the National Energy System Operator (NESO).

The listing means the projects no longer have a firm date for connection to the national grid.

Campaigners say the change in status is further reason why the schemes should be rejected.

NESO has reformed its register of planned energy projects to prioritise schemes which are ready for connection.

Schemes which are ready to proceed have been given ‘gate two’ status.

Experts say there are too many BESS projects in the pipeline with more than 200GW of storage planned, which is far more than the UK will need in the coming decades.

Hundreds of people have submitted objections to the planning applications for the BESS schemes, which are currently being assessed by North Yorkshire Council.

Andrew Sheldon-Thomson, from online group Stop Battery Storage – Northallerton & Yarm, which was formed to oppose the Mowbray development, described the scheme as a “zombie project”, adding: “It’s alive on paper but not actually going anywhere in reality.”

Mt Sheldon-Thomson said the gate one listing meant the project was “not demonstrably deliverable”.

He added: “Under the NESO connections reform process, the project has been classified as gate one and removed from the active connections queue.

“As a result, all connection parameters—including the connection date, point of connection, and required network works—are indicative only, and no deliverable connection solution has been identified.”

He said the classification meant the scheme would not fulfil the requirement of being sustainable development and therefore should be refused.

South Kilvington resident Philip Martin is one of the founders of the Thirsk Against Battery Storage (TABS) group.

He said the update from NESO was “good news”, but the group would continue to maintain its opposition.

“We’re really delighted that this project is now undeliverable in this location, but until NatPower withdraws the application we’re going to continue to fight.”

Mr Martin said the developer had been told by the council to prepare an environmental impact assessment and members were waiting for further consultation exercises which would take place if the report was published.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service has contacted NatPower for comment.

BESS plants store electricity from the grid at times of lower demand and release it back to the grid when it is needed most.

NatPower says the facilities make an essential contribution to ensuring reliable, secure and affordable electricity for the country.

A spokesperson said previously that the company was committed to engaging with the local community in the evolution of plans for its Bellmoor and Mowbray energy storage schemes.

A team of detectives believe they can build a strong enough case for the Crown Prosecution Service to authorise charges before the 20th anniversary of Maddie’s disappearance next year

A team of Scotland Yard detectives have been working on the Madeleine McCann case for six months in an attempt to charge Christian Brueckner in the UK, a source has said.

It is understood they have officially requested evidence from the German police after Brueckner, who has always denied any involvement in Madeleine’s disappearance, was released from prison last September.

They are said to believe they can build a strong enough case for the Crown Prosecution Service to authorise charges before the 20th anniversary of Madeleine’s disappearance next year.

But the German constitution prevents the extradition of its citizens to non-EU countries, meaning that unless he goes abroad, Brueckner will not be sent to the UK for trial.

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A source said: “The team needs to get to the level of charging him, this is not about requesting he be sent for an interview, so it is a high threshold.

“The work has been on-going for six months and it appears they are trying to corroborate what has already been discovered by the German police.

“It’s understood they have formally requested material from the German authorities and are working their way through it.” The case is being led by a Deputy Assistant Commissioner, the source said.

If Brueckner can’t be brought to the UK, the Met is reportedly committed to ensuring that he still faces charges in Germany or in Portugal, where the alleged crime took place. Brueckner was living a mile away from the Praia da Luz complex where Madeleine, three, went missing in 2007.

He was named as the prime suspect in her disappearance six years ago, but charges were not brought before he was released from a German prison last year. Brueckner was jailed for seven years for raping a US pensioner in the same Algarve resort where the youngster went missing.

A small team of specialist Met detectives has been working on building a file of evidence on suspected abduction and murder though the probe is still classified as a missing persons case.

Lawyer Bernhard Schmeilzl, of Graf & Partners LLP, a firm specialising in Anglo-German legal matters, told the Daily Mirror: “Theoretically the Met can charge him but they can’t get hold of him as long as he’s in Germany.

“It’s in the German constitution so it’s simply impossible. But they could extradite him to Portugal as an EU country so I am sure the police and prosecutors from all three countries are having discussions amongst themselves.”

Circumstantial evidence linking Brueckner to the crime include the fact his mobile phone was recorded close to the apartment where Madeleine disappeared from. He has previous convictions for child abuse, and his name was given to both the German and British police by a witness in 2008.

They told detectives that Brueckner had told them a year after Madeleine vanished that she “didn’t scream” when she was taken. But it is understood police have so far been unable to find any forensic evidence to support the case. Brueckner has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley confirmed last year that his force was looking into whether it would be possible to extradite Brueckner to the UK.

At the time, he said: “One of the reasons we are involved is that murder is in many situations extraterritorial and potentially a murder of a British subject can in certain circumstances be charged in the UK. There’s lots of maybes, so at the moment we are taking stock with the Germans and Portuguese.”

Last year, Brueckner was tried in Braunschweig on three further rape charges and two counts of child abuse. During that trial, a psychological expert described him as belonging to the “absolute top league of dangerous offenders but he was acquitted of all charges.”

Madeleine, from Rothley, Leicestershire, was on holiday with her family at the Ocean Club in Praia da Luz, in Portugal’s Algarve when she disappeared on 3 May 2007.

Her whereabouts remain unknown. Brueckner has never been charged over her disappearance. Madeleine’s parents Kate and Gerry joined a prayer vigil in Leicestershire on the 19th anniversary of her disappearance on Sunday.

It was the first time that the couple had been pictured with their twins – Sean and Amelie – in public as well-wishers gathered in their home town. Kate and Gerry said in a statement posted online: “The search goes on to find her, to achieve some justice, to make the world that bit safer.”

A Met spokesperson said: “The Met’s investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has been active since 2011. A dedicated team continues to examine the events of the evening of 3 May 2007 in Praia da Luz, while supporting and updating Madeleine’s family.

“As part of ongoing enquiries, we remain in close working discussion with policing colleagues in Germany and Portugal. We will continue to pursue any viable lines of enquiry.”

Reform UK is expected to expand its foothold in local government in England this week. More than 5,000 seats across 136 councils are being contested, making this one of the largest electoral tests in recent years. It builds on Reform’s breakthrough in 2025, when the party took control of ten local authorities – its first real experience of power.

For scholars of populism, this moment could be revealing. Years of research have focused heavily on the rhetoric of populism, its voter base, and the interaction between the two.

But far less attention has been paid to what populists actually do once in office. Where such research exists, it tends to focus on national governments, with only a small body examining local politics. Local government, however, is where political promises get a quick reality check.

The gap between Reform’s “pro-workers” rhetoric and its party elite’s relatively privileged and pro-business backgrounds has been noted. But the party’s first year in local government provides an opportunity to see whether the social groups it claims to represent also tend to benefit from its exercise of power.

While systematic data on the Reform-led councils is yet to be collected, their track record so far has revealed signs of where this party’s interests might lie – and of what a UK government led by Reform might look like.

Energy: big donors or local interests?

According to a recent report, climate commitments have been scaled back across Reform-run councils. Net-zero targets have been scrapped and climate language removed from policy documents. These decisions align with the party’s broader critique of climate policy as economically burdensome.

It also aligns with the party’s fossil fuel donors, who account for more than two-thirds of Reform’s financial backing. However, it does not necessarily align with the interests of the communities in the councils that it runs.

A good case in point is fracking. Despite its well-known risks to water and air quality, as well as concerns over earthquakes and warming effects, Reform’s leadership has endorsed fracking. The party has pledged to legalise it if it comes into government.

The country, however, is not as keen. According to the most recent polling, only 28% of people in Britain support fracking, compared to 46% opposing it. A survey last year found that nothing puts off Reform supporters more than the party’s ties to the fossil fuel industry. Farmers – 40% of whom now support Reform – have a longstanding scepticism about fracking due to its potential impact on their crops.

In fact, in two other Reform council areas – Lancashire and Scarborough, local representatives have broken from the national party line on fracking. This reflects a broader tension between the interests of its elite backers and those of its popular base.

Social care: when ‘populism’ meets the welfare state

Those contradictions also become visible in the field of social care. In Derbyshire, the Reform-led council’s plan to shut eight care homes was called a “betrayal of local people”. Similar plans in Lancashire entailed the closure of five public care homes as well as five day centres, with residents moved to the private sector.

What is striking is not just the direction of policy, but also the political reaction to it. The privatisation plans in Lancashire were eventually abandoned due to strong local opposition, which came not only from rival parties, but also from Reform grassroots members.

This underlines an insight often missing from populism research: the category of “ordinary people” is not a unified social group. It also indicates the unpopularity of an economic agenda that, with its emphasis on further deregulation, privatisation and tax cuts, might seem to be Thatcherism’s unfinished business.

Taxation: from promises to practice

Reform’s neoliberal outlook on the economy is reflected in the range of tax cuts pledged in its 2024 manifesto. Ahead of the local elections last year, several Reform candidates reiterated these pledges, vowing either to freeze or cut council tax.

The opposite has happened, though. As reported recently, nine Reform councils raised Band D council tax for 2026-27 by an average of 3.94%. And while that was lower than the overall average increase of 4.86%, it shows that – when confronted with budgetary constraints – Reform is willing to follow the same fiscal patterns as other mainstream parties. In other words, by increasing what is ultimately a regressive tax that disproportionately affects poorer households.

This dynamic echoes once again the discrepancy between the party’s “populist” image and its neoliberal, austerity-prone policy agenda.

Reform’s track record in these areas of policymaking points to a broader conclusion. Much of the existing literature treats populism primarily as a discursive phenomenon – a way of framing politics in terms of “the people” versus “the elite”.

But Reform’s experience in local government shows that its actual politics might in fact tilt towards the interest of the latter. This is precisely where current research remains scant.

On the eve of a new round of local elections, Reform is likely to extend its presence across councils in England. But its first year in power already suggests that “the people” it claims to represent are not necessarily the same people who benefit from its rise to power.