Taylor’s Croke Park dream was firs floated following her first victory over Serrano in April 2022.

However, after a win over Karen Carabajal in London, her homecoming would take place at Dublin’s 3 Arena with Croke Park’s stadium chief executive Peter McKenna saying Taylor’s promoter Matchroom would not cover security costs.

Matchroom chairman Eddie Hearn claimed “the cost of hire, the cost of everything involved with the event is three times nearly more than staging it at Wembley Stadium”.

Taylor suffered her sole career loss in 26 fights against Chantelle Cameron in Dublin in May 2023 before avenging the defeat later that year.

“I’m under no illusions that Flora will present a very tough challenge, she’s undefeated as a professional and has a good amateur pedigree so I have the utmost respect for her,” added Taylor.

“I’ve been blessed to achieve more than I could ever have dreamed in this sport but fighting at Croke Park really is the icing on the cake.

“I hope it’s the kind of event that will inspire a whole new generation to take up sport and follow their passions – that for me would be the greatest legacy I could leave.”

PC Mark Roberts, from Darlington, was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving and seriously injuring another man in a crash that killed 74-year-old Muriel Pinkney, a passenger on a motorbike, near the Metrocentre in Gateshead in July 2022.

He had been responding to an emergency call about a choking baby in a marked Northumbria Police vehicle.

Teesside Crown Court heard that PC Roberts ran a red light that had been on “stop” for six seconds before colliding with Mr and Mrs Pinkney on a 30mph stretch of road.

Mrs Pinkney suffered fatal head and neck injuries but her family said they “did not want him to go to prison for doing his job”.

He was sentenced to 27 months in prison in April, but the Court of Appeal has now reduced and suspended his sentence.

Lady Justice Andrews, delivering the judgment alongside Mr Justice Jay and Mrs Justice Thornton, said: “This was not a case of prolonged dangerous driving.”

She described it as an “exceptional case” and acknowledged PC Roberts’ long career of public service and the harm his imprisonment was having on his family, including his disabled daughter.

PC Roberts appeared emotional and was seen wiping his eyes as judges quashed his 27-month sentence and replaced it with a two-year sentence suspended for 18 months.

During sentencing, the family of Mrs Pinkney said they did not blame the officer and did not want him to go to prison.

Dawn Hunter-Pinkney, the couple’s daughter, said in a victim impact statement: “For a long time we were angry but the more we hear about why the officer was driving the way he was, the more we understand.

“We don’t want him to go to prison for doing his job.

“We do accept this is a very tragic accident with a very tragic outcome, but sending the officer to prison won’t bring mam back.”

PC Roberts was suspended from Northumbria Police.

His barrister, Luke Ponte KC, argued that the original sentence was “manifestly excessive” and did not fully consider the “exceptional mitigation” in the case, including PC Roberts’ professional record and the circumstances of the emergency call.

The court heard that PC Roberts had a lifetime of public service and had responded to numerous emergency incidents throughout his career.

At the end of the hearing, three appeal judges ruled the sentence should be reduced and suspended, meaning Roberts can be released from custody.

Assistant Chief Constable Andy Hill issued a statement after the sentencing, saying: “I reiterate my previous comments in recognising that no words will make the pain of Mr Pinkney, his family and anyone impacted by this tragic incident, any easier.

“On behalf of Northumbria Police, I wish to express my sincere condolences for your loss and our thoughts very much continue to be with you at this time.”

Details of previous owners and crashes were wiped from the records, and stolen or cloned vehicles were given new identities

A trusted DVLA employer abused his position with the agency to alter or delete vehicle records to boost their value and to issue new identities for stolen or crashed cars, a court has heard.

Matthew Holloway accessed computer and paper-based systems to manipulate records for two car dealers in Swansea as well as for other individuals and organisations around the UK. Holloway’s actions served to increase the value of the vehicles with the dodgy documents by almost £1.3m.

A judge at Swansea Crown Court described what happened as “an example of organised crime” which had undermined the function of the DVLA and had invalidated the integrity of vehicle records which are relied upon by drivers, traders, and law enforcement. Don’t miss a court report by signing up to our crime newsletter here

Holloway and the two car dealers he was working with – Ashley Harris and Joshua Sawyer – have all been sent down.

Craig Jones, prosecuting, told the court that at the time of the offending Holloway worked in the special registration team at the DVLA, a position of trust and responsibility.

He told the court the defendant abused that trust by engaging in a “systematic campaign of vehicle document tampering” including removing registered keepers from log books and inserting new names, altering vehicle identification numbers, removing markers from the records which showed vehicles had previously been written off, removing certificates of destruction from records, and issuing new false identities for cloned, reconstructed, or stolen vehicles.

The court heard some of the manipulation of DVLA data was done at the request of two Swansea car dealers who operated a number of different companies between them – the co-defendants Harris and Sawyer. However, other changes to vehicle records were done at the request of people and organisations around the court and not in the dock.

The prosecutor said as examples of the changes made on behalf of Sawyer, the defendant removed the details of seven previous keepers from the record of an Audi RS5 and inserted the name of a new keeper, and also doctored the history of an imported Ferrari 458 Italia to hide the fact it had been written off in Australia.

The barrister said as examples of the manipulation carried out for Harris, the defendant changed the records of a BMW M4 Competition and a Mercedes-AMG to hide the fact they had both been involved in crashes in the past. He said in the case of the Merc, the identity of the car was changed no fewer than three times “which may be indicative – and I put it no higher than that – of use in criminal activity”.

The court heard Holloway carried out similar changes to other vehicles not linked to Harris or Sawyer, including issuing false identity documents for stolen Range Rover Sport worth £65,000 which was then sold to an innocent third party.

The prosecutor said the results of the prolonged investigation into the activities of Holloway showed the manipulation of the records he carried out meant an increase in the value of vehicles to the tune of some £1,290,000. He said the Harris benefited from the increase in the value of vehicles linked to him by £90,000 while Sawyer benefited to the tune of £75,000. Holloway himself was paid a total of £23,400 by the co-defendants for carrying out the changes.

The court heard that DVLA has also lost out to the tune of £27,000 on fees which were not paid.

Matthew David Holloway, aged 32, of Ffordd y Mynydd, Birchgrove, Swansea; Joshua John Sawyer, aged 31, of Treharne Road, Morriston, Swansea; and Ashley Keith Harris – also known as Keith Wayne Lewis – aged 44, of Tawe Road, Llansamlet, Swansea, had all previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud between January 2021 and July 2022 when they appeared in the dock for sentencing.

Neither Holloway nor Sawyer have any previous convictions while Harris has previous convictions for motoring offences, Class A drug trafficking in 2008 and 2012, and fraud from 2017. The fraud involved the defendant lying to finance firms about having been in a steady job for five years and earning around £30,000 a year in order to obtain high-value cars including BMW M4s, an Audi Q7, and an Audi R8.

In fact, the defendant had spent much of that time in prison serving a 2012 drug dealing sentence, and the income he declared to the taxman was less than half the amount claimed. On that occasion his barrister told Swansea Crown Court that his client ran a car sales business and the motivation for the fraud “may well have been to drive around in expensive cars to portray a certain image”.

Harris was sentenced to two years in prison for those offences with a judge describing him as a “thoroughly greedy and dishonest man” who “enjoys the trappings of money”.

Jon Tarrant, for Holloway, said his client’s personal gain from what he did at the DVLA had been limited compared to some of the sums of money the court had heard about, something which the defendant may be reflecting upon in the dock and questioning whether it was worth it. He said his client was “disgusted and ashamed” at his actions, and he described the fraud as “a spectacular fall from grace for which he will have to pay a high price”.

Andrew Evans, for Sawyer, said his defendant was a family man who had always worked hard since leaving school. He said when his client lost his job as a mechanic in the Covid pandemic he started his own car sales business and realised he could make “swift money” by getting his friend Holloway to make changes to vehicle documentation. The advocate said Sawyer now realises he made “a significant error of judgement” in trying to help his fledgling business.

David Singh, for Harris, said in the normal course of events given his client’s antecedent history his mitigation would go only to length of sentence, but he asked the court to find there were “exceptional and unusual” circumstances in the serious health issues being suffered by the defendant’s young daughter.

Judge Huw Rees said in his view what the court was dealing with was “an example of organised crime” which had the effect of undermining the function of the DVLA and invalidating the integrity of vehicle records which are relied upon by drivers, motor traders, and law enforcement. He said “greed was at the heart” of the offending for all three defendants.

With one-quarter discounts for their guilty pleas Holloway was sentenced to five years and three months in prison, Harris to two years and eight months, and Sawyer to two years and four months. The defendants will each serve up to half their sentences in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.

Speaking after the sentencing Lisa McCarthy, District Crown Prosecutor for CPS Cymru-Wales’ complex casework unit, said: “The evidence revealed an organised effort to alter vehicle documentation, including changing records to conceal the true status and history of vehicles.

“Holloway held a trusted position within the DVLA and exploited that role, as did Harris and Sawyer, for financial benefit. Their offending risked corrupting the UK’s vehicle registration system, which the public, motor trade and law enforcement depend on for accurate information.”

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Liverpool made a quickfire decision to replace Arne Slot with Andani Iraola over the past week and former Reds wideman John Barnes has offered his take on the situation at Anfield

John Barnes believes Liverpool fans contributed to the decision to sack Arne Slot. The Dutchman was let go by the Reds just 12 months after he led the club to just their second Premier League crown.

His second season at Anfield was far less inspiring. Liverpool eventually finished fifth and 25 points behind eventual champions Arsenal. Fans had also become frustrated with Slot’s style of play, with the trademark ‘heavy metal’ style of football deployed by Jurgen Klopp having been replaced by a more considered game.

And Barnes believes criticism from the stands was decisive in Liverpool chiefs deciding to move Slot on. Speaking to Betfred, he said: “That’s modern football. The owners, the Chief Exec and the rest of the hierarchy don’t sack managers, the fans do.

“If the fans lose faith in you, then unfortunately for all managers, this decision has to be taken. I’m sure they wouldn’t have wanted to do it but it’s the fans that decided and that’s unfair in my opinion.

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“If [Andoni] Iraola comes in now and loses a few games, are they going to sack him? And then sack the next manager. I support the club and the decisions they make, but I’m hoping the fans will have a lot more patience with the next manager.

“We don’t want to go down the route that Manchester United have been down. Mikel Arteta finished 8th, 8th and then 5th and his club didn’t sack him and look where they are now? Liverpool fans need to be careful what they wish for.”

Liverpool have already appointed Slot’s replacement, having made a move for former Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola.

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Asked if he is the right man for the job, Barnes added: “Well the previous manager was the right man for the job and it turned out the way it did. Iraola will only be the right man for the job if he’s supported when times get tough. I’m sure Iraola can do a good job, absolutely.”

Iraola, 43, has signed a two-year deal at Anfield and moves to Merseyside following a hugely successful stint on the South Coast. He led the Cherries to 12th in his first season before ninth and sixth-placed finishes. The Spanish coach departed the club having led them to a place in Europe for the first time in their history.

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All traffic has been stopped in both directions on the M6 in Cheshire following a crash.

The incident has taken place near to junction 20 at the M56 Lymm Interchange.

Traffic was initially stopped on the northbound carriageway, before vehicles were also held southbound.

Long queues are building up on the motorway in both directions.

Further details about the crash are yet to be confirmed.

Updates will be posted in this blog.

Last night’s Question Time from Makerfield, scene of a by-election later this month that could upend British politics, was touted as a blockbuster event, a chance to see where we stood ahead of voters going to the polls on June 18. 

In many ways, it delivered – with Andy Burnham breaking cover to confirm that he would challenge Keir Starmer for the Labour Party leadership, and the keys to Number 10, if he triumphs in the constituency. 

But in all honesty, the by-election has been a foregone conclusion for a while now, and Burnham knows it. 

That, alongside Starmer’s apparent willingness to cling on in Number 10 until he’s forcibly removed by bailiffs, meant that the Manchester Mayor threw caution to the wind on Question Time. 

Taking the by-election first – Burnham has always been the favourite, but frankly his opponents on the right and the left have gifted him an easy route back to parliament. 

Reform selected local tradesman Robert Kenyon for this most crucial of contests, and it wasn’t long before he showed just how singularly unsuited he was for the spotlight. 

Visibly terrified under the studio lights on Thursday, he was pressed on his previous sexist comments about Carol Vorderman, not by Burnham, but by Green candidate Sarah Wakefield. 

Robert Kenyon referred to his female-centric upbringing in a bid to ‘address the issue’, a hardly novel spin on the Chris Finch defence, when the infamously sleazy villain of the British Office asked ‘how can I hate women? My mum’s one.’ 

For a man who railed against career politicians, Kenyon spent much of the hour-long show sticking rigidly to clearly rehearsed lines, and as a consequence looking about as down-to-earth as Keir Starmer in a Wetherspoons. 

It is not just Reform who have unwillingly assisted Burnham back to Westminster – Restore UK, the brainchild of Rupert Lowe (formerly a Reform MP), are consistently outflanking Farage’s party from the right.

Endorsed by Elon Musk, and armed with questionable polling about their own success, Lowe’s upstart movement has clearly caused a stir in the by-election. Nationally, many people think that threat on their right flank is what drove Reform’s ‘White Lives Matter’ response to the killing of Henry Nowak. 

Apart from Kenyon being made to sweat, Question Time was fairly low key, and even Burnham’s declaration that he would take part in a leadership contest was more ‘oh, go on then’ then tubthumping. 

But declare he did. 

Burnham knows, despite his modesty yesterday in ‘taking nothing for granted’ that only an unprecedented disaster will stop him winning in a few weeks. 

A poll on Thursday (albeit with a normal sample size than usual) had the Mayor 10 points ahead of the hapless Kenyon. 

His personality in Greater Manchester is well known, and the prospect of removing Starmer and getting their own man is clearly tempting for voters in the North West. 

Which brings us to the Prime Minister. 

A few weeks ago, the well connected Dan Hodges revealed that Starmer, despite surviving the immediate danger of over 100 MPs calling for him to go and Wes Streeting’s resignation, had accepted that the writing was on the wall. 

The PM, Hodges revealed, would soon ‘set out a timetable’, with allies saying that it could even come in advance of the by-election to avoid the indignity of being effectively bullied out of office by Burnham. 

Now, however, the mood music appears to be changing, and that is why Burnham could no longer afford to hedge his bets on Question Time. 

Starmer is stepping up his policy announcements, and laying the groundwork for his promised ‘decade’ in office, despite scepticism from all sides that he’ll even last the summer. 

Far from resigning in advance of the by-election, Starmer revealed that on June 11 he’ll unveil the details of an £18 billion defence plan. 

The government as a whole (and particularly individual ministers like Pat McFadden and Darren Jones) might have been embarrassed by Monday’s new batch of Mandelson files, but Starmer himself emerged relatively unscathed. 

A cynic might suggest that’s because the Prime Minister is something of a bystander in his own administration, but the fact remains that Starmer seems strangely buoyed recently. Spoiling for a fight, not demob happy. 

Today, he told LBC that he won’t walk away, and that a leadership campaign isn’t good for the country.

Soon, he won’t have the luxury of choice.

The hour-long film is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer

An intimate documentary showcasing previously unseen photographs of one of the globe’s most celebrated performers is available to stream now.

Britney Spears is well-accustomed to public attention, having achieved fame during the noughties and securing her place amongst the most iconic pop artists in history.

Given her level of celebrity, discovering unseen photographs of the American vocalist from any stage of her career proves challenging.

Yet the BBC has managed precisely that with its latest production, Britney: In Ten Pictures. The hour-long documentary forms part of the broadcaster’s ‘ten pictures’ collection that has profiled icons including Freddie Mercury.

Currently available on iPlayer, the film notably includes a photograph of Britney, now 44, taken the week prior to her debut album’s release in 1999, reports the Mirror.

Captured by photographer Lisa Means, it depicts a young Britney enjoying herself with friends and relatives during an outing for ice cream.

Lisa, who features in an interview within the documentary, had been engaged by People magazine to photograph the emerging talent in her native Kentwood, Louisiana.

Remarkably, Lisa remembers Britney and her companions singing along to a Madonna track. She explains in the film: “Britney was like, ‘I hope I get to meet her one day!’ and we were like, ‘oh that would be really cool.’”

Merely four years afterwards, Britney appeared alongside Madonna at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, with the pair sharing their now-legendary kiss onstage. A photograph from that evening also appears in the film.

The BBC’s synopsis teases: “Britney Spears was one of the biggest pop stars of her generation. She grew up in the limelight, and like so many music stars, she was defined by imagery. But she was also the subject of extraordinary exploitation and control.

“Years of personal and professional turmoil would play out in the frenzied glare of the media spotlight: breakups, breakdowns and familial fall outs.

“From the over-sexualisation of a child performer to the very public struggles with her mental health, this is the story of a manufactured child star fighting for control over her music, her life and her image.”

Britney: In Ten Pictures is streaming now on BBC iPlayer

Bret Parker and Victoria Pickup will run 26.2 miles on Saturday, June 6, to raise money for Scallywags Preschool in Edgworth, which organisers say is facing financial pressure after losing two years of major fundraising income.

The pair will set off from Edgworth Cricket and Recreation Club at 9am before heading through Bolton and Horwich and returning to the village.

Marcus Milton, who helped organise the event, said the fundraiser is aimed at supporting a preschool that has been part of village life for many years.

More than £4,000 has already been raised towards a £4,500 target through a GoFundMe appeal.

The runners will finish at Turton Edgworth Primary School, where supporters are being invited to a community picnic from noon.

(Image: Scallywags Preschool)

Previously, Scallywags manager Susan Hodgkiss, said: “It is usually an annual village day in Edgworth.

“It raises money for the nursery and helps us raise money for nursery enhancements over the following months.

“We only have 20 children, we’re only tiny, so when you only get a small amount of money from the government, it makes everything tight.

“This extra money that we get from fundraising helps.”

The school opened in 2023 in collaboration with the University of Cambridge

A maths school has been rated as ‘exceptional’ by Ofsted – a rating given to schools that are among the best nationally. The Cambridge Maths School, a specialist sixth form college in Mill Road, has had its first ever Ofsted inspection.

The school underwent an Ofsted inspection in April and has been rated ‘exceptional’ across all five areas. These areas are: inclusion, leadership and governance, achievement, curriculum and teaching, and participation and development.

An ‘exceptional’ grade from Ofsted is considered rare. It is only awarded for “practice that is among the very best nationally, which should be shared with other schools or providers to help them improve”.

Clare Hargraves, head at Cambridge Maths School said: “We are absolutely delighted that the Ofsted report recognises the unique ethos of Cambridge Maths School. Our vision has always been to create a place where a love of mathematics can truly flourish, while opening doors for young people from all backgrounds to access and excel in the mathematical sciences.

“What makes this community so special is not only the depth of academic challenge, but the warmth, inclusivity and shared sense of purpose that students and staff bring every day. It is inspiring to see our students immerse themselves so fully in their learning, while also embracing the rich range of opportunities beyond the classroom that help them grow in confidence, curiosity and ambition.”

Inspectors praised the school for nurturing a “deeply inclusive culture” and that students who attend the school “enjoy the constant debate and discussion in lessons”. Inspectors added that the students “make excellent progress and achieve very highly in examinations”.

Cambridge Maths School opened in 2023 as part of a collaboration with the University of Cambridge. Sixth formers who attend study maths and further maths, and then choose physics, chemistry, biology, or computer science A-levels.

Rajen Shah, Professor of Statistics at the University of Cambridge, and a governor at Cambridge Maths School, said: “The dedication and enthusiasm of students and staff at Cambridge Maths School, and the success of the School’s association with the University, is recognised in this truly exceptional report.

“We look forward to building on this excellent work and providing even more opportunities for the School and the University to learn from each other and inspire a passion for maths in more young people, regardless of background.”