The Dragons get their season underway on Friday evening with a trip to Italy.

Filo Tiatia’s side take on Benetton at Stadio Monigo, with the Men of Gwent coming up against a familiar face. Former Wales fly-half Rhys Patchell is the new attack coach at the Italian side, having been part of the Dragons’ coaching team last season.

Having shown signs of improvement last season, the Dragons have set a target of reaching the play-offs this season.

The match kicks off at 7.45pm, with Premier Sport broadcasting the curtain-raiser.

Or you can follow the match in the live blog below.

Benetton: Matt Gallagher; Ignacio Mendy, Francois Carlo Mey, Paolo Odogwu, Onisi Ratave; Jacob Umaga, Andy Uren; Matias Medrano, Bautista Bernasconi, Simone Ferrari, Mattia Midena, Federico Ruzza, Giulio Marini, Manuel Zuliani, Sebastian Negri (c).

Replacements: Nicholas Gasperini, Ivan Nemer, Marcos Gallorini, Piero Gritti, Antony-Italo Miranda, Siua Maile, Louis Werchon, Jean Smith.

Dragons RFC: Huw Anderson; Rio Dyer, Fine Inisi, Aneurin Owen (cc), Anzelo Tuitavuki; Tinus de Beer, Rhodri Williams; Rodrigo Martinez, Oli Burrows, Chris Coleman, Barny Langton-Cryer, Seb Davies, Ryan Woodman, Thomas Young (cc), Evan Minto

Replacements: Elliot Dee, Wyn Jones, Robert Hunt, Shane Lewis-Hughes, Harry Beddall, Che Hope, Jac Lloyd, Fetuli Paea

Live updates below:

Johannes Radebe has revealed he ‘has a few notes’ about his Strictly Come Dancing co-hosts Emma Willis and Josh Widdicombe’s dancing skills, after they made their debut as presenters on Saturday.

The revamped line-up failed to deliver the ratings boost BBC bosses had hoped for, while fans questioned the ‘awkward’ three-presenter format.

Ahead of the first live show on Saturday, Johannes offered his advice for the new professional dancers, and joked he had some thoughts on Emma and Josh’s dancing.

He said: ‘Dancing was the easy bit! That’s my natural habitat. Give me choreography, a pair of heels and some sequins and I know exactly what to do.

‘Emma and Josh, on the other hand… I may have had a few notes! Although I tried very hard not to become that professional dancer who is giving everybody corrections when nobody has asked.

‘I think my main advice was just to enjoy it and commit. On Strictly, you cannot do anything by halves. 

The revamped line-up failed to deliver the ratings boost BBC bosses had hoped for, while fans questioned the ‘awkward’ three-presenter format

‘If you’re going to dance, DANCE. And if you’re going to wear the sequins, wear all of them!’

He added: ‘Emma is such a formidable broadcaster. She has this incredible ability to make everything look effortless, while being incredibly precise and prepared. 

‘And Joshy is just brilliantly funny, he has this wonderful ability to find the joke without forcing it.

‘For me, it’s been about finding our rhythm as a trio. I’m learning so much from both of them, and I think we bring very different energies to the show. That’s what makes it exciting.’

Johannes then shared his advice for the new professional dancers that have joined the show, adding: ‘Enjoy every second of it. Seriously.

‘It’s easy when you’re new to think you have to prove yourself immediately, but you don’t. Be curious, work hard, listen, ask questions and find your own identity.

‘And remember that being a Strictly Professional is about so much more than being a brilliant dancer. You’re a teacher, a performer, a storyteller, and a partner.

‘Most importantly, protect the joy. This is a very special place to work.’

Ahead of the first live show on Saturday, Johannes offered his advice for the new professional dancers, and joked he had some thoughts on Emma and Josh’s dancing 

On Saturday the celebrity couples will take to the Strictly dancefloor for the first time in a live show, with each receiving a score out of 40 from the judges

The professional dancers will also perform a spell-binding group routine, which was pre-recorded earlier this summer

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This year’s Strictly pairings were revealed last week in a hilarious new format, and they will make their dancefloor debut this weekend

On Saturday the celebrity couples will take to the Strictly dancefloor for the first time in a live show, with each receiving a score out of 40 from the judges.

This year has been a new era for the ballroom show, with the introduction of its new hosts and a pivot to TikTok content in a bid to draw in younger viewers.

The BBC have already announced a new show, Strictly: Lights Up, which will air on BBC iPlayer every Sunday night after the results show has finished.

It will be hosted by TikTok comedian Abi Clarke, 30, and presenter Tyler West, 30, who competed on the show back in 2022. 

Abi is thought to appeal to a younger audience after she achieved fame through her viral comedy sketches on TikTok.

The spin-off will see the pair get the immediate reactions from the night’s eliminated couple, their dance off opponents and interview the judges, new hosts, other Strictly stars and studio guests. 

The new spin-offs are part of a huge shake-up for the series. After a massive bloodbath of seasoned pros, five new professional dancers have been introduced. 

Bosses have also pivoted to sign stars that will help bring the show into the social media age.

On Saturday, the pre-recorded launch show peaked at 5.8million viewers, according to overnight figures, up slightly on last year’s peak of 5.6million. 

However, the episode averaged at 5.3million viewers, down from 5.4million a year ago. 

While the peak figure represents a small rise on last year, it remains well below the figures recorded before the programme was hit by a series of controversies.

This includes allegations about the treatment of celebrity contestants and the culture behind the scenes, leading to the departure of professional dancers Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima and prompting the BBC to introduce tougher welfare measures.

Prior to the string of scandals, the Strictly launch peaked at 6.7 million viewers and averaged 6.3 million in 2023.

Bosses will have hoped that a fresh format and new hosting line-up could tempt lapsed viewers back to the BBC One favourite. However, the overnight figures suggest the changes have yet to produce a significant ratings resurgence.

Pre-recorded last week, the episode opened with a dance number from the professionals, including the five new dancers, as well as the judges and the new hosts.

The 15 nervous celebrities also found out who they will be dancing with for, potentially, 13 weeks as they vie for the Glitterball trophy.

The trio have taken over from Tess Daly and Claudia, who left the BBC show at the end of the 2025 series.

Crews were called to a house in Leigh

A man and two dogs were pulled out of a burning house by firefighters.

Crews were called out to a house on Rossall Crescent in Leigh earlier today (September 25). Images from the scene show a huge blaze, with smoke billowing out of the property.

Firefighters used a ladder to gain access to the first floor to drag out the man and the two dogs. The man was taken to hospital for further treatment.

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Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said that crews were on the scene for about three hours, after initially arriving at 3pm.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said: “At around 3pm this afternoon (Friday, 25th September), firefighters were called to reports of a fire at a domestic property on Rossall Crescent in Leigh.

“Four fire engines from Hindley, Leigh, Atherton and Farnworth fire stations, along with the Technical Rescue Unit from Leigh fire station quickly arrived at the scene, where the first floor of the property was well alight.

“Firefighters rescued one man and two dogs from a first-floor window using a ladder. The casualty was assessed by firefighters before being handed into the care of North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) and taken to hospital.

“Crews wearing breathing apparatus used two hose reels, positive pressure ventilation and other specialist equipment to extinguish the fire, and carried out safety checks to the neighbouring houses.

“Firefighters were at the scene for around three hours.”

One team will lose their undefeated record in Páirc Esler this evening and one team’s aspirations of lifting the Frank O’Hare Cup in a fortnight will remain alive as Carryduff take on Clonduff for a place in the Down SFC final.

The south Belfast men have never won a senior crown having lost out to perennial champions Kilcoo in the 2020 and 2025 deciders.

On both occasions, Carryduff will feel like they didn’t do themselves justice.

Yet, they recorded a statement win over the Magpies in Round Two before defeating Saul in the quarter-finals.

Clonduff won the last of their nine county title back in 2000 and were last in the Down SFC final 10 years when they too lost to Kilcoo.

The Yellas claimed a facile 12-point win over Burren in round two and had 15 points to spare over Mayobridge last time out.

Clonduff bowed out at this stage in the competition last season, suffering a one-point loss to Kilcoo, but Gearoid Adams’s side have been the in-form team in this year’s renewal so far.

The holders will take on Burren in the second semi-final on Sunday evening in Newry.

We’ll have all the latest team news ahead of throw-in at 7.30pm.

Family and friends of one of Britain’s greatest living explorers, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, have called for an investigation into his care arrangements after allegations he has been illegally placed in a series of care homes under a fake name by his wife.

Those close to the 82-year-old want the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) to establish whether his wife Louise Millington-Cotes, 59, is correctly discharging her duties as his legal guardian.

John Simpson, the veteran BBC foreign correspondent and friend of Sir Ranulph, has joined the calls for transparency. In a post on X he wrote: “Horrified to hear what’s happened to my good friend Ran Fiennes.

“I’d like to tell the relevant authorities everything I know about the way he’s been treated. He’s the world’s bravest man, and he’s vulnerable. We must know what’s happening to him.”

Alexander Millington-Cotes, Sir Ranulph’s stepson and Mrs Millington-Cotes’s estranged son, told The Telegraph he called the OPG and spoke to their safeguarding team, but had “heard nothing back so far”.

It comes after a watchdog concluded the retired explorer, who has not been seen in public in two years, has been “unlawfully deprived of his liberty”, according to The Telegraph.

It has been claimed that his wife put extreme conditions on how he is looked after, and not allowed him to see friends or family.

A care home owner in Wales, where Sir Ranulph had been placed for seven weeks this year, spoke to the newspaper, saying they had reported several concerns about Sir Ranulph’s wellbeing to the authorities, including the police.

They reportedly approached the OPG to raise concerns about his wife’s medical arrangements for him, as well as a “do not resuscitate” document that she had provided.

The care home owner also raised concerns with the Care Inspectorate of Wales, which declared Sir Ranulph was being unlawfully kept in care homes and unable to consent to his care or treatment.

In an email seen by the newspaper, the care inspectorate wrote: “Currently [Sir Ranulph] is being deprived of his liberty unlawfully as there is no authorised deprivation in place which reflects the current residence and restrictions in place.

“[Sir Ranulph] is under continuous supervision and control, is not free to leave and is not able to consent to care, treatment and accommodation.

“As such, the provider is required to make an urgent and standard application under the deprivation of liberty safeguards as soon as practicable.”

The care home owner said Mrs Millington-Cotes provided a private carer, gave staff at the home strict instructions on his day-to-day activities and provided all of his medication, rather than registering him with a local GP.

Mrs Millington-Cotes was told by the owner that she must ensure that a deprivation of liberty safeguards (DoLS) order was in place as his legal guardian, but failed to ever provide one.

The owner emailed her to express the urgency of the situation, which led to “a falling out with her because she didn’t want us to apply for a DoLS”.

Sir Ranulph had reportedly spent time in a care home in London, before being moved to a facility in Wales, and then to one in Cheshire.

The Telegraph reported last week that Sir Ranulph’s visitors were made to sign non-disclosure agreements by his wife if they wanted to visit him at the care home in London.

Sir Ranulph’s stepson Alexander Millington-Cotes visited the care home in Cheshire last week and was told by staff his stepfather was not there. He is now crowdfunding a legal challenge to his mother’s lasting power of attorney.

An OPG spokesperson said: “A Lasting Power of Attorney is an important way to ensure that certain decisions about care and finances are made by someone you trust if you lack the capacity to make them yourself. We cannot comment on individual cases.”

The Care Inspectorate have been approached for comment. The Independent was unable to contact Mrs Millington-Cotes.

Hurricane Polo has exploded into an exceptionally powerful Category 5 storm, packing sustained winds of 180mph as it churns across the eastern Pacific.

The monster has reached Category 5 strength, the highest official rating, reserved for storms with winds of at least 157mph, three times this week, prompting one meteorologist to suggest it may belong in a category that does not officially exist.

Meteorologist Ryan Maue posted on X: ‘If there will ever be Category 6, then you’re looking at it now. Hurricane Polo had an interesting Thursday with explosive convection in all directions. Today’s operation: shattering the record book.’

Maue was referring to satellite estimates suggesting winds near 196mph, above the unofficial 192mph threshold proposed for a Category 6 storm- a proposed, hypothetical classification for extreme tropical cyclones.

As of Friday morning, Polo was centered about 290 miles southwest of Cabo Corrientes, Mexico. 

The official forecast shows it approaching Baja California Sur early next week, although its exact landfall timing remains uncertain.

Long-range spaghetti models show several possible paths carrying Polo’s remnants, the weakened remains of the hurricane, into Arizona, New Mexico and Texas next week, unleashing heavy rain, flooding and high winds.

Other projections take the system farther north through Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska, while one distant outlier arcs toward Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan, although those paths remain highly uncertain.

Long-range spaghetti models show several possible paths carrying Polo’s remnants, the weakened remains of the hurricane, into Arizona, New Mexico and Texas next week

AccuWeather meteorologists stated: ‘Moisture from Polo could interact with the non-tropical storm over the south-central US later next week, increasing the risk of heavy rain, flash flooding and severe thunderstorms. 

‘Depending on Polo’s track and how much of the storm remains intact, heavy rain could extend from Texas’ Big Bend region northeastward into central and eastern Oklahoma.’

The news outlet added that the risk of flooding could be significant.

Meteorologist Max Velocity said on X: ‘Polo is the first hurricane on record to reach Category 5 strength three separate times, with all three peaks occurring in the Eastern Pacific. 

‘And at 180 mph, Polo has once again reached the third-highest wind speed ever recorded in the Eastern Pacific. Polo is certainly one for the history books.’

The National Hurricane Center said Polo gained significant force overnight into Friday morning as it brought storm conditions to parts of the western Mexico coast.

No major damage or flooding was reported along the coast overnight into Friday.

Residents stacked sandbags to fortify beachfront shops and evacuated their homes in some coastal areas on Thursday. 

Meteorologist Ryan Maue said Hurricane Polo could qualify as an unofficial Category 6 storm after satellite estimates suggested winds near 196mph, above the proposed 192mph threshold

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Mexican authorities opened shelters and cleared people from beaches, and 15,000 security personnel were deployed across the coast. Schools were closed.

Polo formed as a tropical storm on September 20 and exploded into a Category 5 hurricane two days later. It weakened and exploded back into a Category 5 on Thursday and again Friday morning.

This is the first recorded hurricane in the Eastern Pacific to reach Category 5 strength three separate times.

Despite its strength, Polo is a smaller storm, with hurricane-force winds extending only 40 miles from its center and tropical-storm-force winds reaching just 125 miles away from the storm’s center, according to the NHC. 

Amid an unending heatwave in contemporary Wales – and increasingly violent weather around the world – a psychological thriller unfolds.

Two years after an accident that killed her husband and paralysed her from the waist down, Gabrielle Fox returns to work as a psychologist at an adolescent internment unit. One patient, 16-year-old Bethany, is accused of murdering her mother by stabbing her several times with a screwdriver.

This is the premise of the BBC TV adaptation of Liz Jensen’s 2009 novel, The Rapture. While slightly predictable, its narrative highlights the motivations that drive people towards climate action, including a sense of responsibility and desire for justice.

Bethany (played by India Amarteifio) denies any involvement in the murder, although she was found at the crime scene covered in blood. A week before the death, she had drawn a gruesome vision of her mother’s face with a screwdriver stabbing her eye. Fox (Ruth Madeley) is given the task of helping her patient accept responsibility for allegedly murdering her mother.

Bethany’s parents are the founders of a successful spiritual movement, the Faith Way. Its “Choose Hope” slogan is widely used on social media to undermine the denunciation of climate catastrophe by activists from the Climate Front – an eco-activist organisation that protests about the extraction of fossil fuel extraction, both on the streets and in the courts.

Views of former industrial sites, long beaches at low tide, giant electricity pylons next to neat, detached houses, solar panels over rooftops and scattered wind turbines are integral to the story. Regular temperature stamps show conditions exceeding 40°C as a direct threat to life.

When it comes to climate change, we are not wired to deal with overwhelming complexity – but we can tune into relatable stories that emphasise common experiences and values. Parts of The Rapture might seem crazy and far-fetched, but some aspects are entirely plausible.

For example, the climate activists tarnished by the Faith Way claim that the local windfarm project is greenwash, because the energy company behind it is seeking permission to open new oil drills in the North Sea.

Local MP Caroline Wren (Lisa Palfrey) justifies prolonging the life of fossil economies based on energy security, and approves building a data centre close to a protected natural area. The MP, whose family suffered the consequences of deindustrialisation with the loss of coal mines, argues that her aim is job creation and regeneration.

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North Sea drilling is a distraction: low-carbon transition hinges on prioritising people and jobs

Furthermore, there is to be a parliamentary ballot on proscribing the Climate Front as a terrorist organisation – but the activists deny any violent means, and suspect they have been infiltrated so as to be delegitimised in the eyes of the public.

The power play between organised religion, social media influencers, energy corporations and politicians is woven into the narrative from the start. Fox does a few internet searches that return news headlines and people’s profiles. She attends the MP’s public speech and, shortly after, sees the activists’ response in a video post.

Even if some of this interconnected information feels a little forced, it’s easier to relate to it because it feels more like current affairs than science fiction.

When Fox finds evidence that Bethany might have some visionary power, some viewers could be sceptical of a supernatural ingredient being thrown into the eco-thriller mix. But they may still stay tuned to unravel the exact motivations of characters representing the government, media, corporates and eco-activist players – because “the personal is always political”, as Fox says.

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It is Fox’s weaknesses that make the story more nuanced and intriguing. I empathised with her rising vulnerabilities in adapting to her new, paraplegic life. She is a woman of science, alert to evidence and cunning, but her actions can be impulsive and wrongly calculated.

While searching for the missing links in Bethany’s story, she crosses various professional boundaries. Fox admits her guilt over the accident that took her husband’s life may be playing out in her involvement with Bethany. In revealing her self-doubt, she makes it easier for others to manipulate her good intentions.

Tension and truth

The series’ tension thrives on the uncertainty of knowledge and a gradual revelation of motivations. The narrative also draws attention to the manipulation of beliefs and erosion of truth.

The Faith Way is a post-Christian enterprise, devised to unite people based on their anxieties and need for connection – while demonising climate activists and channelling people’s energies towards de-political action. The series makes clear how conformity can be orchestrated by flooding social media feeds with clickbait headlines and manufactured evidence.

If Bethany must take any form of responsibility, it is measured through a fair assessment of her knowledge and motivations. She represents the future, as a member of the younger generation and victim of injustice. Not only is she accused of matricide, she will suffer the consequences of a climate catastrophe she has not provoked.

Just as Fox has to accept the grief and loss provoked by the accident, Bethany is forced to accept the anguish of the assassination of her mother, whom we can metaphorically identify with mother Earth.

Towards the end of the five-part series, I felt I could partly accept that climate anxiety and parental repression have led to Bethany’s visions and hallucinations. When the truth is revealed, she emerges not as a cynic or doomsayer, but as someone who stands for a desire for truth and justice, and can take responsibility.

In this sense, the series moves past the predictable and the cartoonish to speak about common values and the responsibility of human actions. And this may inspire worried viewers to strengthen their sense of agency and personal power when it comes to climate action.

Actress Florence Pugh and her family were advised to move abroad when she was younger to help with a heath condition which impacts her breathing

Florence Pugh has previously opened up on her medical condition which impacts her breathing.

The Oscar-nominated actress, 30, is one of the guests on The Graham Norton Show tonight (Friday, September 25) as the hit BBC talk show returns for a new series.

She chats to host Graham about starring in the new adaptation of the Steinbeck classic East of Eden and says that taking part in the series “was a dream” and a role she’ll be talking about for the rest of her career.

She made her acting debut in The Falling back in 2014 before going on to star in Black Widow, Oppenheimer and Don’t Worry Darling alongside pop star Harry Styles.

Before becoming a Hollywood star, Florence suffered from Tracheomalacia as a child, which led to frequent hospitalisations. Her family relocated to Manilva in Spain when she was just three years old, hoping the warmer weather would improve her health. They lived there until she was six, when they moved back to Oxford.

Tracheomalacia is a condition where the cartilage in the windpipe is weak or floppy, causing the walls to collapse or narrow when breathing out or coughing.

Common symptoms are noisy, rattling, or high-pitched breathing, a barking or high-pitched cough, breathing problems that get worse during crying, feeding, or cold.s and frequent lung infections, such as bronchitis or pneumonia.

She previously opened up on how her health impacted her childhood on Running Wild With Bear Grylls where she revealed that doctors had advised the move from her home to somewhere with a “hotter climate”.

Florence said at the time: “We were in Spain because I have a breathing issue and when I was younger they kind of just advised that a hotter climate would be better. “I have asthma and I have this thing called tracheomalacia as well, and so from a young age, I’ve just had a different breathing system.”

According to the actress, the condition, which she claims is the reason for her raspy voice, typically only affects her now if she is sick, explaining: “Now as an adult, unless I get ill, it doesn’t really affect me as intensely as it did when I was younger.”

However, she still takes precautions and previously told Harper’s Bazaar that her health condition is the reason why he spent the first part of the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020 in the warm climate of Los Angeles.

Florence has two older siblings, Game of Thrones actor and musican Toby Sebastian and actress and vocal coach Arabella Gibbins, and one younger sister Rafaela “Raffie” Pugh, who is an aspiring actress and musician.

Toby, real name Sebastian Toby M. Pugh, first appeared on TV as a contestant on Orange unsignedAct in 2008 and appeared in his first acting role in the film, After the Dark, four years later.

In 2015, Sebastian was cast in the fifth season of Game of Thrones as Trystane Martell and more recently he played Andre Agassi in Amazon Prime series Perfect Match.

The Graham Norton Show airs tonight on BBC One at 10.40pm

Ethel Walsh, 85, passed away in hospital

The family of a ‘dearly loved’ grandmother have paid tribute after she died in a car crash.

Ethel Walsh, 85, was seriously injured following a collision on Atherleigh Way after 4pm on Monday, September 14. She died five days later.

Another occupant of the same car she was in remains in hospital in a serious condition. Greater Manchester Police previously said a man and a woman, both in their 80s, suffered serious injuries.

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They were inside a white Kia Soul, which is believed to have veered across the carriageway and into a silver Hyundai Tucson.

The force said in a statement released today (September 25): “Ethel Walsh, 85, died in hospital on Saturday 19 September 2026 following a collision on Atherleigh Way shortly after 4pm on Monday 14 September. Another occupant of the car who was injured remains in hospital in a serious condition.

“An investigation into the full circumstances remains ongoing by our Serious Collision Investigation Unit.”

Her family said: “We are heartbroken to announce the passing of our beloved mother, Ethel Walsh, aged 85, following a road traffic collision on 14 September.

“Ethel was a dearly loved mother, nana, sister and friend, who brought immense warmth, joy, and kindness to everyone who knew her. “She was a gentle, strong, and independent woman who lived a full and contented life, and her sudden loss has left an immeasurable void in our family.

“We would like to express our deepest gratitude to the emergency services, the medical team at the Greater Manchester Major Trauma Hospital, and the police family liaison officer for their care and support during this devastating time.

“As the police investigation into the circumstances of the collision remains ongoing, we kindly ask for privacy as we grieve and remember the wonderful woman she was.”

He was later asked by BBC East Midlands political editor Peter Saull if there would be a general election next May, alongside council elections in the area.

The PM replied “no” before adding: “Not having a general election.”

Burnham also said he wants to use the conference to say more about “the direction I want to take the country in”, adding: “The focus is on that, helping people with the cost of living, helping businesses with the cost of running a business.

“These have got to be the priorities right now, rather than throwing the country into a backward-looking process where we’re arguing again amongst ourselves.”

Burnham said he wanted to ensure people are “feeling a bit of hope in their lives again”, adding: “That’s what I’m trying to do, and I hope to take it further in the coming period, rather than putting people back into an election cycle.”

The prime minister was also asked about the number of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats.

It comes after 781 people were recorded arriving in 10 boats on Wednesday, the highest total for a single day so far this year.

Burnham said his goal was that he didn’t “want to see any crossings at all”.

He declined to put a timescale on the ambition, but said his government would “not stop” working until crossings went “right down”.

He argued that Brexit had hampered the UK’s ability to stop the arrivals, saying it had led to a “loss of collaboration with neighbours”.

Elsewhere in the series of interviews, he said: