OSLO, Norway (AP) — Norwegian King Harald was in “very serious condition” as his health deteriorated, palace officials said Thursday, prompting the queen and Crown Prince Haakon to cancel their engagements.
The 89-year-old monarch, who has hemolytic anemia and has been on sick leave for several weeks, was admitted to the National Hospital in Oslo earlier this month. His condition had previously stabilized following a bacterial blood infection but the royal palace on Thursday said it had worsened.
Haakon, his son, has been serving as regent during the king’s time in the hospital.
Harald, who has been monarch since 1991, has been in and out of the hospital several times in recent years.
Jamestown is a district of secrets. Accra‘s oldest neighbourhood always seems to have something happening just out of sight. A burst of laughter behind a closed door. Music drifting from a narrow alleyway. A figure disappearing down a shaded alley just before you can properly register them.
The history of this district is on display everywhere you turn. Fishing boats sit beneath colonial-era warehouses and boxing gyms occupy fading merchant buildings. It is intense, intoxicating and oddly magnetic all at once.
Collins, my guide, is about to reveal another secret. Promising a beer, he stops outside a large garage door and knocks twice. A metal latch clanks open from below and we’re beckoned inside. It’s unlike any pub I’ve visited before. Mainly because, until recently, the pub was a a working car wash.
Tourist itineraries often divide cities neatly into attractions, restaurants and nightlife. Accra cannot be defined in this way.
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In response to a tourism boom, Accra has a growing number of micro-tours that focus less on major landmarks and more on helping visitors experience everyday life (Phil Thomas)
As an increasing number of UK tourists discover Accra, the city has enjoyed a boom in micro-tours that focus less on major landmarks and more on helping visitors experience everyday life, while bringing revenue back into communities that don’t always reap the benefits of increased tourism. Jamestown Walking Tours was among the first to realise the potential in helping visitors experience less-visited neighbourhoods and community traditions.
It’s a warm and breezy April afternoon when I join three others on this walking-cum-pub tour, all of us intrigued by the prospect of exploring a district four centuries old in the company of an expert local guide.
“Most visitors are a bit embarrassed to admit they wouldn’t know where to start a visit here,” says Collins, the co-founder of Jamestown Walking Tours, before we set off. “That, and they’d just get lost”.
Within minutes, we’re threading through a maze of courtyards and alleyways, stepping around tailors stitching sofas, women pounding cassava to make fufu, the ubiquitous starchy dish of West Africa, and coffin makers putting the finishing touches to elaborate wooden caskets. Death is a public matter here.
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Obituary posters cover walls and doorways announcing that somebody has “gone on to glory”, or received a “home call”.
Scattered throughout Jamestown is a vast network of chop bars, Ghana’s shorthand for informal pubs. Some operate from front rooms, others from crumbling warehouses or improvised roadside shelters. Outside, men nurse bottles of Club beer while concentrating fiercely on games of chequers. Spectators gather behind them offering a stream of advice and the occasional taunt.
Murals are becoming increasingly common in Jamestown (Phil Thomas)
Collins hopes bringing visitors here doesn’t just bring economic benefit but also encourages them to seek out more authentic experiences with local residents. He explains this outside a boxing gym called House of Pain, which I hope represents the limit of the participatory element.
After our evening in Jamestown, we’re ready to see another side of the city the following morning.
“Anyone who wants to understand Ghana – I tell them to ride a tro-tro,” says my next guide, Ibrahim.
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These minibuses are the circulatory system of the capital, named after the original threepence fare charged during the colonial era. We squeeze aboard alongside women balancing baskets of coconuts on their laps, and giggling schoolchildren in immaculate uniforms.
Most tro-tros are adorned with names and decor reflecting their owners’ interests, which makes for a colourful rush-hour scene. “The Blood of Jesus” and “Inshallah” jostle for space at a junction, until “Pikachu” and “Minnie Mouse” steal ahead of them.
Directly in front of us, we see the slogan “God Is Good”, somewhat undermined by a prominent middle-finger decal. During rush hour, roadside sellers balancing vegetables, drinks and household goods on their heads often move faster than the traffic itself.
Getting off the tro-tro and crossing the street is an equal adventure. The road resembles a torrent of vehicles, weaving into whatever space they can find. Ibrahim explains the trick is to step into the road and just walk steadily in one direction, trusting the traffic will manoeuvre around you. “It’s the closest you’ll get to being Moses,” he laughs.
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As the journey progresses, Ibrahim points out murals that have become increasingly common across the city. One transforms a wall into a collage of fishermen, traders and musicians. Another declares “Justice for Africa” with a series of raised fists. The artwork grounds modern Accra in its history while tackling corruption, inequality and the irritations of urban life.
We disembark at Osu Castle which embodies much of Ghana’s complex history. Built as a trading fort and later used in the transatlantic slave trade, it eventually became the seat of government after independence.
The contrast is stark: above former slave dungeons sit the state rooms that later hosted visiting heads of state, including Queen Elizabeth II on a visit in 1961. She brought her own bed.
Schoolchildren at the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park (Phil Thomas)
The influence of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first post-independence president and leader of the fight to free the country from colonial rule, remains visible throughout Accra, nowhere more so than at the memorial park that bears his name. Beneath a 30-foot bronze statue, Ibrahim recalls his most famous maxim: “Forward ever, backward never.”
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“Many visitors come looking for the history of slavery,” he says. “But it’s not the only story – we also want people to understand the history of our independence.”
As Ghana approaches its 70th anniversary of independence in 2027, the first sub-Saharan African country to reach this milestone, it’s a distinction that feels increasingly significant.
Back in Jamestown with Collins, we have one final stop on our tour. He leads us into what appears to be somebody’s front room, where cases of beer fight family photos and the TV for wall space. Our drink is akpeteshie, a potent spirit distilled from palm sap. Collins explains that in Ga tradition newborn children are presented to the rising sun before a day of celebration begins with those gathered taking a shot of this stuff.
I’m about to say this sounds familiar but he already knows my response. “Yes, it’s like The Lion King,” Collins grins. “But Disney missed the akpeteshie – it’s not a celebration without it.”
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Before glasses are raised, a small amount is poured onto the stone floor as an offering to ever-watchful ancestors.
“Keshi!” Cheers!
Everyone empties their glass in one movement. The sweetness lasts only a moment before the inevitable burn arrives, which is all too visible on my face.
As laughter ripples around the room, it’s increasingly clear why micro-tours are proving so popular. Visitors increasingly want memorable experiences and, in Accra, such stories aren’t hidden. They’re ever-present across front rooms, tro-tros and the occasional car wash. You simply need somebody willing to share the secret.
Bays Lodge is located close to the beach and a great budget option, with friendly and attentive staff and breakfast included. Transfers and tours around Accra can be arranged on request. Rooms cost from £25 per night.
Olma Hotel & Suitesis extremely popular with couples and offers a pool, lush garden courtyard and thoughtfully decorated rooms. Rooms cost from £65 per night.
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The Diamond In City provides large studio apartments, and has a great on-site restaurant serving local dishes, as well as a pool and supermarket. It’s close to the airport with transfers offered. Rooms cost from £95 per night.
How to get there
British Airways flies direct to Accra daily from London Heathrow, with flights starting at £650 one way and lasting around six hours 40 minutes.
How To Do It
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UK visitors require a visa to enter Ghana, starting at £60 for a single-entry visa. A yellow fever vaccination certificate is also required.
To get around Jamestown, Jamestown Walking Tours offers different excursions to discover the city, including the Saturday afternoon pub crawl. Tro-Tro tours and Here is Ghana both offer customised city tours of Accra and beyond.
Tro-tros no longer cost threepence but are still by far the cheapest way to get around Accra, with fares between five and 10 cedi (30-60p). Confirm your destination before boarding and pass cash forwards to the driver’s mate. You can read more tro-tro etiquette tips here. For the less adventurous, Uber also operates in Accra, including to and from Jamestown.
Accra – and especially Jamestown – remain largely cash-based. Stock up on cedi early from FX vendors or ATMs. An eSim from Holafly is a sensible way to keep phone roaming costs down.
Children in London whose lungs were damaged by air pollution have seen a significant improvement in lung function since the city’s ultra-low emissions zone (Ulez) came into effect, a new study has found.
Thestudy monitored 3,400 schoolchildren before and after the introduction of the Ulez, which charges motorists of more polluting cars to drive in the capital.
Researchers found that, pre-Ulez, children in the capital had significantly smaller lungs compared to children living in nearby Luton. However, five years after the Ulez, their lungs were comparable in both size and function with the those of Luton’s children.
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The study, led by Queen Mary University of London, noted that the proportion of children with impaired lung function fell from 14% to 9% in London following the introduction of the Ulez, compared with a fall from 9% to 7% in Luton.
“We already knew that the Ulez reduced air pollution but now we know that children’s lung health has improved at the same time, which is a really important finding,” said lead author Dr Helen Wood, research fellow at the university.
However, she warned that air pollution in both London and Luton, plus other UK cities, remains above guideline levels. “There is still work to be done,” she said.
Former oil executive Samantha Cooper once helped power the industry. Now she’s fighting to end its hold on our future
If it’s tough for a society to transition away from oil, it’s tougher still for those whose entire livelihood is tied up with the stuff. Yet as the costs of our addiction to it begin to bite – on our pockets and our planet – an increasing number are doing just that. And giving up a lucrative career as they do so.
Samantha Cooper’s one of them. Back at university in the ’90s, her career aims were simple: get a job in London where she could continue a studenty social life – and get paid for it. Out of the so-called ‘milk round’ of companies who came calling for bright young graduates, she picked oil giant Mobil, and soon found herself just where she wanted to be.
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The pay was good, there was a chance to travel, “it was hard work, but it was also fun.” Early on, she was in charge of scheduling barges delivering fuel oil for the Tube network – nice, practical stuff. “Occasionally I’d be sitting with my friends in a pub by the river, and one of my barges would go by – it was rather exciting!”
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The appeal more or less held, too, as she won promotion – more responsibility, but a lot more rewards. After BP entered into a joint venture with Mobil’s European fuels business, Cooper went on to become a senior executive, running global trading strategies: a vital cog in a machine that, in her “bubble of ignorance”, as she now describes it, was wrecking the climate
So what changed? No sudden Damascene conversion, but rather the combination of personal pressure and dawning awareness. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, oil traders in America going to prison for price fixing, hearing that the crew on a ship whose cargo she was trying to sell had run out of water – “I thought, ‘Oh, there’s people on the boat.’ Which sounds ridiculous. Of course there’d be people…” But her surprise was a measure of just how disconnected she’d become from the real, physical world.
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Meanwhile, “I felt I was on a treadmill, and I couldn’t get off.” Metaphorically and literally: she’d be up at six, on the treadmill in the gym, before a pressure-packed day. Work bled into all areas of life. Even over Christmas, every news headline triggered one thought in her head: “What’s that going to do to the oil price?”
After 20 years in the oil industry, Cooper is now the director of Business Declares, which aims to inspire corporates to address the “polycrisis” brought about by the climate, ecological and social emergency
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“However much money you made, your [sales] targets were always going up, year after year.” One year, she recalls, she hit her target, and thought,“‘I should be on top of the world. Why don’t I feel that?’ I just felt empty.”
Shocked into reviewing her life, she explored mindfulness, finding solace in Buddhist meditation. She was able to take some time out to volunteer with women’s and environmental groups. Ostensibly mentoring them on building partnerships with business, and on raising funds, she quickly found that “they were mentoring me! I had such an education from some amazing people, on social issues, equality, ecology and climate.”
The things she learnt, combined with the personal toll the job was taking on her, made it impossible to go back. So in 2015, after 20 years in the oil industry, she left and, with the same energy and drive that had made her such a successful oil trader, threw herself into a new career tackling the challenges which, inadvertently, she’d helped to exacerbate through her work.
I took a risk in leaving but I found such freedom by doing so. And I’m an awful lot happier with a lot less
She’s now the director of Business Declares, which aims to inspire corporates to address the “polycrisis” brought about by the climate, ecological and social emergency. And she’s lent her weight to Life After Oil – a new network of former oil executives who are determined to prove to colleagues still in the industry that, like Cooper, they can leave too.
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It commissioned research by the University of Bath, which showed that a wave of oil and gas workers are either leaving the industry, or considering doing so, in part because of concerns over climate change and their company’s glacial speed of response to the threat. According to the research lead, associate professor Grace Augustine, many of those who’ve left feel “a lightness, a sense of relief” at not having to perform the “mental gymnastics” required to square their growing awareness of the threat with the requirements of their day job.
It’s a sentiment echoed by Cooper. “People ask if I took a risk in leaving but I found such freedom by doing so. And I’m an awful lot happier with a lot less. The biggest risk is to stay put.”
On Wednesday, The Pacifier star, 59, shared a clip on Instagram of himself singing a soft and slow rendition of Parton’s 1974 romantic classic, “I Will Always Love You,” which became a global phenomenon in 1992 with Whitney Houston’s cover she recorded for The Bodyguard.
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Played over a black and white photo of Parton’s face, fans were left speechless by Diesel’s soulful, emotional performance.
Vin Diesel has paid homage to Dolly Parton with an emotional rendition of ‘I Will Always Love You’ (Getty)
The post was quickly reshared on X, where it received some light mockery mixed with genuine awe.
“That’s what Groot been saying all this time,” one person joked, referring to the actor’s Guardians of the Galaxy character.
“Dolly Parton got Vin Diesel singing and it its a damn serious tribute i don’t think i quite understood her impact,” added another.
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“This the most honest and vulnerable thing I’ve heard in my entire life,” wrote a third.
“Please release the full version on streaming,” another person begged.
“Didn’t have ‘Crying to Vin Disel singing’ on my list today but here we are,” wrote a fifth.
Parton’s influence spanned all musical genres. After her death, rapper Eminem shared a heartfelt note he received from Parton in 2022 after he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
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“Even though I don’t know a lot about rap music, I’ve come to know that you are the very best at it,” the country star wrote in the note. “Aside from that I hope what I have to say will not seem weird or strange to you but I have always felt some unexplained connection to you like I know you somehow.
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“I had hoped to meet you at the show but you know how nuts those things are, personally I hate ‘em and I missed my chance but maybe someday we’ll meet,” she continued. “In the meantime, keep doing what you’re doing because you do it so well and no matter how complex your world may be just know you are very special and touch people in ways you don’t even know. With love & respect, Dolly Parton.”
However, not everyone’s homages to the late “9 to 5” singer have been well received.
“I didnt agree with her advocating for Transgender & Covid Vaccine support…but Loved her anyway. Thank you for choosing me Dolly to be your Movie Daddy,” Schroder wrote on Instagram.
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A number of celebrities were quick to call out the actor for sharing transphobic and anti-vaccine rhetoric in his supposed tribute to Parton.
“Ick,” Katie Couric wrote on Threads.
“Oh shut up,” Boy George responded on Instagram.
Lioness actor Jay Huguley added: “‘I loved her anyway’ what a strange tribute. Good Lord.”
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Parton’s family have said she will have a small private funeral with no confirmed plans for a public memorial.
A pop-up tent can be pitched in seconds and, theoretically, taken down in less, making them perfect for music festivals, casual camping or even waiting in the queue at Wimbledon overnight.
Their problem is that they’re not actually as easy to put away as they should be. Angle it right, and the tent folds away as easily as it popped up. Approach without a plan, and you’ll find yourself wrangling with a seemingly live tent that refuses to fold back into its circular bag.
Here’s my step-by-step guide on how to put away a pop-up tent in less than 60 seconds, to help you avoid that problem. Watch the video to see exactly how I do it.
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1. Unzip the doors
This is to let any air escape. Otherwise, you’ll find it balloons out as you try to fold it.
2. Gather the poles
Find the highest arch on both sides, then pull them together into the middle.
The site of the crash (Picture: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire)
A vehicle has smashed into a wall outside a property minutes away from the site of the A66 crash and subsequent deadly house fire near Middlesbrough.
The incident took place in the early hours of Thursday morning at a house on Steele Crescent, South Bank.
It is located near the site of a crash on the A66 which killed seven people on Saturday, and a house fire in Grangetown on Wednesday, where a seven-year-old girl and her aunt died.
Officers from Cleveland Police were called to the house – which was empty at the time – after 12.30am on Thursday.
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An investigation has been launched and police have not confirmed whether there is any link between the previous two incidents and today’s crash.
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Police have launched an investigation into the crash (Picture: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire)
Valentina Foster, seven, and her aunt Natalie McDonald, 34, died in a fire on Wednesday morning
Local policing Superintendent Emily Harrison said: ‘The property was empty at the time and we have not currently received any reports of any injuries.
‘Officers are conducting inquiries to establish the circumstances surrounding this incident.
‘Our investigation is in its early stages and it has not yet been confirmed whether this incident is linked to wider organised crime.’
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The crash occurred the same morning that inquests were opened into the deaths of two police officers who were among those killed when their vehicle was hit by a car driving the wrong way down the A66.
PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, died in the resulting head-on collision with a Volkswagen Passat on Saturday.
PC Tom Clough (left) and PC Matthew Blades (right) were pronounced dead at the scene (Picture: Cleveland Police/PA Wire)
Teesside Coroners’ Court heard that ‘all occupants of both vehicles were sadly pronounced dead at the scene’.
In short, consecutive hearings, coroner Paul Appleton said Pc Blades was identified by his wife, and Pc Clough by his partner.
The provisional cause of death was said to be head and neck injuries for Pc Blades, and neck injuries for Pc Clough.
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Mr Appleton said: ‘At this stage it is understood that there had been a police pursuit of the Volkswagen Passat.
‘It entered the A66 carriageway against the flow of traffic, at which stage the pursuit was aborted.
‘A short time after… the Volkswagen Passat collided with a police vehicle, which had not been directly involved in the prior pursuit.’
Inquests will open into the deaths of five young men killed in the collision
Inquests will open this afternoon into the deaths of the young men who were in the Passat during the collision – Cole Worthy, 17, Theo Rae, 17, Makai Saddington, 18, and 23-year-olds Michael Robert Cahill and Jacob Matusiak.
On Wednesday, seven-year-old Valentina Foster and her aunt Natalie McDonald, 34, died following a fire at a house in Grangetown.
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Tributes have been left outside the property, including flowers and toys, plus a photo of the pair and the words: ‘RIP Natalie and Valentina you will be missed.’
A teddy bear was left with a note which said: ‘Now she dances with butterflies Valentina.’
The site of the house fire in Grangetown (Picture: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire)
Prime minister Andy Burnham has said the government is offering ‘all of the support that the authorities need’ following the house fire.
‘The important thing, it’s a terribly tragic event that’s happened with the loss of a young woman and her seven-year-old niece,’ he said.
He continued: ‘Utterly devastating, and I’m sure there’s a whole community that is grieving, not just what happened at the weekend, and particularly we should stress our deepest respect for the police officers lost in the line of duty and sending our sympathies to their families.
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‘And we will obviously make sure that the support is there for them going forward.
‘The only thing I can say this morning is there is an investigation under way. It will be the fullest possible investigation. The authorities will have all of the support that they need.
‘We do need to understand the extent to which they may be connected, but they may not be. So I think it’s too early to jump to conclusions.
‘But what we can say at this point in time is that all of the support will be provided to get to the heart of what has happened here.’
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Police have arrested 17 people following the crash as part of investigations into alleged organised crime. Two have been charged and the others have been bailed.
Police have previously said the five young men in the Passat may have had links to ‘serious and organised criminal activity’, with four having previous convictions.
The presenters of the new series have not been named by producers.
The former cricketer was taken to hospital with facial and rib injuries following the accident at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, when he was driving a Morgan Super 3.
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The car, which did not have a roof, flipped upside down and skidded on the tarmac before coming to a stop.
After the crash, the BBC said TopGear would be “rested” for the foreseeable future, after reaching a financial settlement with Flintoff, an agreement reportedly worth around £9 million.
However, the BBC’s director of entertainment Ed Havard confirmed the news of the return at the Edinburgh TV Festival on Thursday.
(Image: John Walton / PA Wire)
Speaking at a panel event, he was asked whether the show would be returning to the national broadcaster.
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He said: “There has been a lot of speculation about this and we can confirm that TopGear is coming back.
“I’m not going to talk about talent today.”
Havard had been asked whether Jimmy Carr would be hosting. He replied: “Jimmy would be a great host but I won’t be discussing that today.
“We will have more information on TopGear shortly.”
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Paddy also suffered a crash during the filming the show.
Talking on the Restless Natives podcast about Top Gear, The Sun reported, McGuinness said: “I was in this race in America.
“I hit a wall at about 70 or 80 miles an hour.
“You could feel your brains rattling.
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“Thank the Lord I walked away from it.
“But I remember that night being in my bed at the hotel and literally having a bit of a panic attack.”
Find out when the popular retailer is planning to close this year.
It might still be August, but some retailers on the high street are already beginning to think about the Christmas period. One of them is Home Bargains.
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The discount chain has officially confirmed to the Daily Record that it will be closing all 76 stores across Scotland on three specific days. It will come in handy for those who are planning a trip later in the year.
All shops will be remaining closed on Christmas Day (December 25), Boxing Day (December 26) and New Year’s Day (January 1). It follows similar moves made by the retailer over the years to ensure staff are giving plenty of time with their loved ones over the holidays.
Like many major brands on the UK high street, the bargain firm often switches up its hours in the build-up to Christmas. While it was always common to remain closed on December 25, the decision to remain so on the two following days has become a more recent tradition.
In the past, many would reopen for the all important Boxing Day and New Year sale events. However, this was changed as a direct result of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading quite a few to keep their doors closed.
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While Home Bargains has not provided an official comment, a spokesperson has told the Daily Record in previous years: “We know how hard all our colleagues have worked throughout the year.
“Being a family-run business, we recognise the importance of spending quality time with our loved ones. Therefore, we feel it is only right to support our valued store teams by giving them extended time off around Christmas and New Year.”
Alongside remaining closed on these three days, the discounter has also been known to close a little bit earlier on Christmas Eve. In the past, it has operated at reduced hours, with many tending to close at around 5pm, although this may potentially differ this December.
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The decision hasn’t just affected all Scottish stores, as all 617 stores across the UK will be closed on Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year this year. Shoppers can find their local store by using the store locator tool.
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While it might seem very early to be considering Christmas just now, Home Bargains is usually popular during the holiday period since it offers affordable prices across seasonal must-haves, such as decorations, gift wrapping and décor items including candles and wreaths.
To gear up for the inevitably busy time of year, the bargain retail chain has already begun to stock its Christmas range ahead of schedule. In fact, the firm teased its loyal 1.2 million Instagram followers with a ‘sneak peek’ of its upcoming festive range.
On the retailer’s website, shoppers will already find everything from trees and gift sets to adorable seasonal ornaments, such as ceramic LED houses and pastel gingerbread houses. The popular Polar Express collection has also made a return for 2026.
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Based on the iconic 2004 animated Christmas film, the seasonal range comes with a selection of themed velour pyjamas for the whole family, making them perfect for cosy Christmas movie marathons, lazy mornings and for Christmas morning itself.
Despite the early announcement, some shoppers already seem to be delighted, as many have responded to Home Bargains’ Christmas range under its Instagram reel. One such comment read: “Oh wow I can’t wait. It all looks fabulous.”
Another eager customer wrote: “Stop I’m so excited!!!!”
And someone else added: “Died and gone to Christmas heaven.”
There has been a significant fall in the use of hotels to house asylum seekers waiting for a Home Office decision, data shows.
In June 2025 there were more than 32,000 people in hotel rooms, but by June this year it had halved to more than 16,000.
There has also been a drop in legal migration arrivals, asylum claims and small boat arrivals to the UK compared to a year ago.
The Home Office said the figures showed that policies to control migration are having an effect – but said there was still more to do on the issue of small boat crossings.
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There was also a similar fall in the number of family members coming to the UK to join someone already legally in the country, while asylum claims were also down by a fifth.
Some 38,000 illegal arrivals were detected in the year to June – 33,000 of them on small boats across the sea from France.
More up to date figures show the trend in small boat arrivals has continued to be lower than last year. Correspondingly, claims for asylum have also fallen.
Some 86,000 people sought asylum – down a fifth on the previous year. About half of those applications for help came from people who were already legally in the UK, rather than having arrived on a small boat.
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The rise in the use of hotels coincided with an increase in arrivals across the English Channel from 2019 and a slowing down of Home Office decisions as to how many of these claimants had a genuine right to stay in the UK or should be told to leave.
One of the first decisions of the new Starmer government in July 2024 was to order officials to work faster in deciding these claims, with a target of ending the use of hotels within five years.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: “A little over two years into office and the asylum backlog is down, the number of asylum seekers in hotels is falling, illegal working arrests are at record levels, and deportations and returns are up markedly.
“Small boats numbers are also now falling, but we are not complacent and there is more we must do.”
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The number of people in houses around the country paid for by the Home Office has gone up from 65,000 at the end of 2024 to 69,000 in June this year – arrangements that are part of a decade-long standing contract with private providers.
The number of asylum claimants waiting for an initial ruling on their case – meaning they are told whether they have a genuine case for protection or should leave the UK – was 40,000. That is down from the peak of 175,000 in June 2023.
In turn, some 40,000 found not to have a reason to be in the UK (either foreign offenders, visa overstayers or failed asylum applicants) were removed from the country in the year to June 2026 – an 8% increase on the year before.
Officials say about a third were failed asylum seekers – the highest number for 16 years and double the rate of removals that occurred in 2021.
What a month it’s been for stargazers. Earlier in August, we had an impressive partial solar eclipse, followed by one of the most active nights of the days-long Perseid meteor shower.
And in the wee hours of Friday, 28 August, we’re set to see yet another partial eclipse in parts of the UK – only this time, it’s a lunar kind.
The “sturgeon moon” will appear to have a pinkish glow before the lunar event, too.
What is a “sturgeon moon”?
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That’s just the nickname given to August’s full moon. It’s so called because the fish’s populations thrive around this time of year in North America, where the moniker began.
It’s also nicknamed the grain moon, the red moon, and the green corn moon.
Right. So… why will it be pink?
Sometimes, a full moon appears pinkish or even red. That’s called a “blood moon” (I guess that makes this one a “blood sturgeon moon”).
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“Blood moons” occur when the Earth’s “umbra”, or the shadow of its centre, gets in the way of our view of the celestial body.
When that happens, the light on the moon gets filtered through the Earth’s atmosphere.
Shorter wavelengths, which we perceive as deeper colours like blue, scatter more quickly than longer ones, like red and orange.
That means redder hues show up on the moon’s surface during the eclipse.
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In this case, the shadow that’ll appear from our view of the moon during the eclipse will lead to this tint.
What about the lunar eclipse?
A partial lunar eclipse happens when the Earth passes between the sun and the moon. That casts the shadow we mentioned earlier and makes it look like the moon has had a “bite” taken out of it.
When will the partial lunar eclipse happen in the UK?
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The exact time depends on your location. The most visible part of Friday’s eclipse will begin at 03:33 BST and end at 06:51 BST, though the moon will no longer be visible in the UK by that point.
How and where can I watch August’s partial lunar eclipse in the UK?
Weather matters, with the most helpful conditions expected in eastern and south-eastern parts of England (Northern Ireland and western Scotland might have suitably clear skies, too).
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Still, BBC Sky At Night points out that the UK is in a relatively good spot overall here. The phenomenon will only be visible from North and South America, the UK, Europe and West Africa.
If you want to boost your odds of seeing the partial eclipse, go to a high spot with uninterrupted views of the south-western horizon.
Don’t fancy a 5am wake-up call on a weeknight? There are plenty of livestreams to choose from, which thankfully will be available for rewatches during the more humane hours of the day.
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