A father and daughter who died off the coast of Britain’s top surfing beach were among seven to drown in open water over the weekend.  

The man, in his 60s, and the woman, in her 30s, who died at a surfing spot off Newquay, were among those who lost their lives in separate incidents at West Wittering, Pwllheli and Loch Fyne.

Two in Cornwall, one in West Sussex, two in north Wales and another two died in Scotland on Saturday and Sunday. 

That brings the total number of deaths in open water to seven this past weekend. 

The latest deaths mean that more than 40 people have drowned in open water across the UK since May –  during which the country has seen successive periods of hot weather.

In Cornwall last night, emergency services, including the coastguard, rushed to the scene at around 9.30pm after reports that two people had fallen into the water near a rocky area of the beach.

The two were pronounced dead at the scene. He was pulled from the water and she was recovered on the sand. 

The sea was said to be very rough last night, with strong winds causing large waves to crash against the rocks at the beach, famed for its powerful Atlantic swells. 

Coastguards and paramedics were pictured on the beach at West Wittering on Sunday afternoon where two more people died

Connor Parfitt’s body was also found on a beach in Aberystwyth on Sunday afternoon

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In West Wittering in West Sussex a man died after he got into trouble in the sea. 

Emergency services rushed to West Wittering Beach in West Sussex at 2.30pm on Sunday following concerns for the safety of two adults in the water. 

The two men were pulled out of the sea and treated by paramedics – but one was pronounced dead at the scene. 

The other man was taken to hospital as a precautionary measure. The pair are not believed to have known each other. 

In a statement, Sussex Police said: ‘Emergency services were called to the beach near the Beach Café, Pound Road, West Wittering, around 2.30pm on Sunday, 26 July, after two adults got into difficulty in the water.

‘Both were pulled from the sea and received treatment from emergency services at the scene.

‘Sadly, one of the men was pronounced dead at the scene.’

The deaths come after another sunny weekend in Britain. 

The temperature in West Wittering reached highs of 26.5C in the afternoon. In Newquay, a maximum temperature of 20.2C was recorded by the Met Office. 

A helicopter swoops in to help with the rescue in Cornwall at around 9.30pm

Coastguard and locals in the sea as they try to save the man and woman in the water at Fistral last night but both died. It is claimed they may have been a father and daughter who fell from rocks into the sea while on holiday

In Wales, one of two friends was found dead after the pair took inflatable kayaks to the beach. The second person is still missing. 

Connor Parfitt, 24, and friend Simon Wilson were last seen Tuesday evening close to a Haven Holiday Park where they had started working the summer season.

A massive search was launched but Mr Parfitt’s body was found on a beach in Aberystwyth on Sunday afternoon. 

Coastguards have called off their search off the coast of Pwllheli, North Wales. 

Mr Parfitt travelled to the popular Welsh park from his home in Blackpool three weeks ago to work over the summer. 

He took an inflatable kayak to the beach with his friend – but neither had been seen since despite a massive search. 

The pair were believed to be heading towards the coast with inflatable kayaks at the beach near Hafan-y-Mor, Pwllheli, North Wales. 

Mr Parfitt’s brother, Aaron, said the family last heard from him at around 6.30pm on Tuesday and have had no contact since. 

He said his family were facing ‘so many questions and no answers’.   

Connor Parfitt, 24, and friend Simon Wilson were last seen Tuesday evening in Pwllheli, North Wales

Simon Wilson is still missing after he and Connor Parfitt took out inflatable kayaks to the beach 

Meanwhile, two women in Scotland died this weekend after they entered Loch Fyne.

There were reports of divers in difficulty at the loch in Argyll and Bute.

A 26-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene on Sunday afternoon while the body of a 24-year-old was also recovered. 

The alarm was raised at about 3.30pm, with the Coastguard and lifeboat crews involved in the rescue operation. 

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: ‘Emergency services attended and a 26-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

‘Further searches were carried out in the water and the body of a 24-year-old woman was recovered.

‘The deaths are being treated as unexplained and a post-mortem examination will take place in due course.’

Another heatwave is set to hit parts of southern England this week as temperatures could hit as high as 33C. 

In Cornwall, onlookers told of the moment emergency services were called after the father and daughter got into difficulty swimming. 

Meanwhile, two women in Scotland died this weekend after they entered Loch Fyne

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A man and woman have died after being pulled from the sea at Fistral beach, Newquay, the Uk’s best known surfing beach

Sand Phoenix said he was sleeping on Fistral Beach at 9.30pm on Sunday when the coastguard and ambulance service were called. He sprinted to help with the search. 

Sand claimed the male victim was fully clothed and had ‘gone in to try and rescue his daughter’, adding: ‘He had been pulled from the water but had been submerged for about seven minutes.

‘I had an adrenaline pen, which I used on him, and tried to give him oxygen, but his lungs were full of water and there was no response,’ he said.

‘The paramedics arrived and carried on performing CPR. He was still wearing his trousers, so I don’t think he had been swimming. It looks like they had been walking near the rocks and fallen in.’ 

Another witness said: ‘Another man came up soaking wet and wrapped in a foil blanket. He knew them and had been trying to help. I’m just in shock. It was awful to watch.

‘A man came running up the cliff saying there were people drowning in the water. A woman was desperately trying to ring someone but couldn’t get through and was in tears.

‘They recovered one body on the beach, while the other was brought up the cliff.’

Nine emergency vehicles and a helicopter rushed to the long and sandy Cornish beach, known as the ‘home of British surfing’. 

Holidaymaker Glyn Thomas, 68, who witnessed the rescue efforts said: ‘I could hear the helicopter flying low overhead and there were three or four ambulances parked up along the road.

‘We saw a couple of surfers being led into the back of an ambulance in silver foil blankets and paramedics doing CPR on somebody.

‘It was still light when it happened and there had been a few surfers around and people walking over the rocks.’

Locals said the beach was battered by high winds and choppy conditions yesterday evening with visitors often caught out by rip tides and unpredictable currents on the beach.

Barrie Phillips who runs the Pink Flamingo Ice Cream van said: ‘I was told one went in after another, people often fish on those rocks and you also get people jumping into the water.

‘But the surf last night was so volatile with high winds and rough seas.

‘Fistral is infamous for its rip tides and people do get into trouble.’

A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: ‘Police were called by the South Western Ambulance Service at around 9.45pm on Sunday following reports that two people had been recovered from the water at Fistral Beach, Newquay.

‘Emergency services attended and a cordon was put in place, which has since been removed.

‘Sadly, a man and a woman were pronounced deceased at the scene. Their families have been informed, and our thoughts are with them at this extremely difficult time. A file will be prepared for HM Coroner.’

Fistral Beach is famed for its world-class surfing and hosts competitions including the Boardmasters Open Surf Championship. The beach is also a major tourist attraction, drawing an estimated 750,000 to over one million visitors each year.

“The price drivers pay at the forecourt depends heavily on the global oil price, which has been rising following the end of the ceasefire,” RAC head of policy Simon Williams said

Road users are being warned that fuel prices are set to hit levels not seen since the height of the US-Iran conflict.

Unleaded rose by 0.6p over the weekend to an average of 157.81p per litre, while diesel rose by a 1p to 175.71p.

Petrol has increased by more than 6.5p a litre and diesel by 9p since the start of the month. This has added £3.50 and £5 respectively to the cost of filling up a family car.

RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “Pump prices continued their inevitable rise over the weekend, with unleaded up another 0.6p to an average of 157.81p and diesel a penny to 175.71p.

“The outlook for drivers is pretty grim.

“It looks highly likely now that petrol will hit 160p a litre – its highest level since the United States/Iran conflict began – and diesel 180p by the end of this week, off the back of an elevated oil price.”

The US has and Iran have been in conflict since late February when joint American-Israeli strikes were carried out on key Iranian sites.

Iran retaliated by striking sites across the Middle East and closing the Strait of Hormuz waterway, through which 20% of global oil traded passes.

Despite a brief reprieve after the US and Iran’s Memorandum of Understanding was signed last month, the re-closure of the strait and the restart of the conflict this month has once again shaken markets.

Mr Williams said: “The price drivers pay at the forecourt depends heavily on the global oil price, which has been rising following the end of the ceasefire.”

“A short-term pause in hostilities between the countries is unlikely to be enough to quell the oil price.

“What’s needed is a sustained drop over several weeks and, unless that happens, elevated prices at the pump look like they’re here to stay.”

Motorists have been urged to seek the best deals.

“We continue to encourage drivers to use free apps like myRAC to find the cheapest fuel wherever they are,” Mr Williams said.

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Fuel price comparison platform FuelRadar has also urged motorists to think carefully about when they fill up.

In advice published on its website, the company says drivers should “avoid the Friday rush”.

It augured that demand generally increases as people finish work and head away for weekend trips.

Emmerdale’s Charity Dingle actress Emma Atkins has confirmed a showdown with Dr Todd for the character, while she also discussed Sadie King’s comeback, and Charity and Mack’s future

Emmerdale‘s Charity Dingle regains control next week, after her horrific sexual assault at the hands of villain Dr. Todd.

Finding the courage to return to a support group, Charity opens up about blaming herself for Dr. Todd’s attack on her. Emma Atkins, who plays Charity, tells us: “I think Charity just felt so lost in it all.

“She feels braver now. It was a lovely, natural progression for my character’s journey to go on, to finally say it out loud, because she’d just kept it bottled up for so long.” Charity’s guilt stems from her baby lie that she’s still keeping from her family. Charity had agreed to be a surrogate for her granddaughter Sarah Sugden, welcoming a baby girl named Leyla earlier this year.

Of course what Sarah doesn’t know is that Leyla is actually Charity’s child. Charity fell pregnant after a fling with Ross Barton, but both characters have agreed to hide the fact that they are Leyla’s real parents.

Charity’s husband Mackenzie Boyd knows the truth, but he’s stuck by Charity after finding out that Dr. Todd had blackmailed her, before raping her. Emma says Charity is shocked by Mack’s choice to be there for her.

She shares: “She never expected him to stick around. She was always waiting for the moment where he’s packing his bags, and he did quite a few times, and then he would come back. Lawrence Robb [who plays Mack] has blown me away with his performance. He was so good.”

Emma says a split could still be on the cards for Mack and Charity. She explains: “He’s not suggesting the support is going to be forever, because he is saying, ‘I don’t know how long I can continue to be with you, but for now I’ll do my best to support you’, so we’ll see.”

There could be more heartbreak on the way for Charity, as next week she finds out her son Noah Dingle [Jack Downham] is planning to leave the village. “She’s devastated really,” Emma shares. Noah will decide to stay to support his mum, but can she convince her son to pursue his dreams in Dusseldorf?

As Charity continues to move forward, Emma reveals Charity will come face-to-face with her attacker Dr. Todd. She says: “She definitely gets to have her moment with her. The audience is owed that, because they’ve followed this journey. I don’t want to give too much away, but it’s absolutely brilliant.

“It was written so well, and Caroline Harker [who plays Dr. Todd] played it so fantastically. I think the audience will be blown away with the outcome, and shocked. There’s some kind of retribution and justice in its own way, and you’ll see that moving forward.”

After Charity’s debut on the soap 26 years ago, Emma’s character has featured in some huge storylines. Memorable moments include Charity’s four weddings, her being set-up for killing her husband Chris Tate, and her childhood sexual abuse ordeal, which saw her expose her rapist DI Mark Bails.

Emma says her latest plot is her toughest yet. She tells us: “I would say hands down it’s probably been the most challenging one, although I have to say the historical abuse with Bails is kind of on a par.

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“I will always cherish this storyline. As difficult as it’s been, it’s a storyline that’s needed to be told. At first I was like, ‘Oh, my goodness, how am I going to do this?’ I’m looking forward to a bit more lightness in the future, but we’ll see.” Things are set to take an even darker turn, with the death of Dr Todd.

Earlier this month, fans were shown a glimpse of a bloody crime scene, with the victim, Dr.Todd, dead on the floor. The soap is yet to confirm how Dr. Todd dies and who is to blame.

While some viewers have complained about the twist, wanting Charity to get justice, Emma hints Todd will get the right comeuppance. She says: “I think Charity is very much at the point where she can walk away, regardless of the outcome with Todd, down the legal route. I think she’s found peace.

“I think she would be okay with Todd dying without justice.” Emma’s hopeful for Charity’s future, while she confirms the baby secret will be exposed. She tells us: “I think people are stronger when they let themselves crash and burn, and then build themselves up independently without having to rely on others.

“Charity’s been through all sorts, and I don’t imagine that will change anytime soon, but maybe rebuilding herself from the inside out on her own for a bit would be quite good.” Emma’s thrilled to welcome back her co-star Patsy Kensit, who is reprising her role as Charity’s nemesis Sadie King after 20 years.

Teasing new drama ahead for the foes, Emma says: “I’m really excited. I’ve seen her a few times on set now, but haven’t worked with her yet. They’re going to kind of re-enact a few moments that were there in the past. There’s always a good dynamic with Charity and Sadie. I don’t know whether I’ll be working with her much, but I welcome her back with open arms, she’s awesome.”

Emmerdale airs weeknights at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok, Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.

Shares in major chip firms have fallen sharply in the US and Asia as a sell-off in artificial intelligence-related stocks deepened.

Trading on South Korea’s benchmark Kospi index was paused temporarily on Tuesday morning after sliding by 8%. It fell further after the 20-minute halt was lifted to trade around 10% lower.

The slump was led by technology firms, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both falling by about 12%.

It comes after AI chip giant Nvidia fell by 5% in New York on Monday, meaning it lost its position as the world’s most valuable listed company to Apple.

The tech-heavy Kospi has been halted eight times so far this year under a stock market mechanism known as a circuit breaker, which is designed to calm panic selling.

The index had more than doubled from the start of the year to mid-June but has since lost around a third of its value.

In recent months, stock market trading has been particularly volatile in South Korea as it has attracted large numbers of retail investors.

On Monday, US-listed shares in SK Hynix fell by 7.5% to well below the $149 (£112.11) offer price when it made a record-breaking debut on the Nasdaq on 9 July.

Japan’s Nikkei 225, which is also dominated by tech companies, was almost 3.8% lower on Tuesday morning.

Nvidia shares fell on Monday after the Wall Street Journal reported that it is in talks to provide around $250bn for OpenAI as part of a massive data-centre project.

The BBC has contacted Nvidia and OpenAI for comment.

The decline allowed Apple to overtake Nvidia as the world’s most valuable company after the iPhone maker rose by about 25% this year.

As governments and companies spend hundreds of billions of dollars on developing AI capabilities, some analysts have questioned whether the technology can become profitable enough to recoup such huge investments.

There are also concerns about growing competition from Chinese chip makers.

Shares in the country’s biggest memory chip maker soared by nearly 470% as they made their debut in Shanghai on Monday.

ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) said said it plans to use most of the proceeds from the initial public offering (IPO) to boost production and carry out more research and development.

CXMT manufactures dynamic random-access memory (Dram) chips that power AI data centres, mobile phones, PCs, tablets and other devices.

Hare coursers are openly selling dogs and organising illegal meets on Facebook groups where they share photos showing piles of corpses and boast of racking up ‘hundreds of kills’, the Daily Mail can reveal.

The bloodsport, in which dogs earn points both for a kill and for how often they make their prey twist and turn during the chase, was banned in the UK under the 2005 Hunting Act.

But police say the number of illegal events has surged tenfold in recent years – driven by the involvement of organised crime gangs who invade farms and intimidate their owners before unleashing lurchers or greyhounds on wild hares.

The mobs are often armed with weapons and clad in military clothing and balaclavas. They compete for prizes of up to £50,000, while the gangland organisers earn vast sums from facilitating black market bets.

The lucrative prizes on offer to owners of the deadliest dogs have produced a thriving market for puppies and adult canines, which can sell for more than £10,000. 

One group specifically dedicated to the illegal bloodsport – ‘East Midlands Hare Coursing’ – was hosted by Facebook for more than a decade before it was finally removed yesterday after the Mail got in touch.

Users regularly shared adverts offering dogs for sale, with the posts frequently accompanied by macabre photos showing the animals next to piles of dead hares or chasing live ones.

Another advert for a dog on the group, which Facebook has removed after the Daily Mail got in touch 

Posts on the group were frequently accompanied by macabre photos showing dogs next to piles of dead hares or chasing live ones.

While many users used pseudonyms or hid their faces in photos, others openly paraded their identities. 

One user described how they had enjoyed a ‘cracking day out’ in a post accompanied by a photo of a man holding a dog standing over a dead hare in a farmer’s field.

No attempt was made to hide the illegal nature of the activity.

After one user asked whether anyone knew of any people who were willing to give permission to hare coursing on their land, an account called ‘Yorkshire Landscapetrees’ replied by saying ‘can’t get permission nowadays it’s illegal’.

A second person responded by telling the user he could ‘go anywhere ya [sic] want’ while a third recommended targeting unwitting farmers because it offers ‘more excitement’.

A second hare coursing group on Facebook claims to be based in Ireland – where hare coursing is legal – but included an advert for a dog owned by someone in Worcestershire.

The post describes a dog called Bruce that has ‘killed 100s [of] rabbits, hares [and] deer’. It added that the animal ‘runs day and night… he f*****g loves it’. The group was also removed after the Mail contacted Facebook.

Some posts refer to ‘lamping’ – another form of hunting that uses high-powered lights to disorientate animals before they are killed by dogs. Lamping itself is not inherently illegal, but it becomes illegal if live dogs are set on prey or it takes place on land without a landowner’s permission. 

Freedom of Information requests to police show there have been 9,000 reports of hare coursing over the past three years.

Two years ago, children in Awbridge, Hampshire, were left traumatised after arriving at school to find 20 hare and rabbit carcasses, as well as the beheaded body of a deer, dumped outside the building.

One user described how they had enjoyed a ‘cracking day out’ in a post accompanied by a photo of a man holding a dog standing over a dead hare in a field of crops

An advert for a dog costing £650. Some of the deadliest dogs can sell for upwards of £10,000 

One user asked whether anyone knew of any people who were willing to give permission to hare coursing on their land 

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In response, an account called ‘Yorkshire Landscapetrees’ replied by saying ‘can’t get permission nowadays it’s illegal’

Seven miles north, 50 dead hares were strewn near the entrance of Broughton’s village shop alongside a dead barn owl and kestrel tied to the door handle.

The grim scenes are believed to be an intimidation tactic by gangs or a way of taunting the local communities they menace.

Hare coursers often carry weapons including knives, firearms and machetes, while one landowner told how he was confronted by a masked man carrying a catapult loaded with ball bearings.

And in one of the largest events held last year, Cambridgeshire farmer Mathew Latta watched on as a dozen 4x4s raced across his field after passengers cut open iron gates with an angle-grinder.

More than 70 people then brought out dogs, began hunting hares and started gambling on their kills, all while blasting loud party music.

Cambridgeshire Police believe participants travelled from across England and Wales and completed a 20-mile distraction route to reduce their chances of being caught – forcing other cars off the road and robbing a petrol station on the way.

Mr Latta told the BBC that he saw gang members in their cars watching kills through binoculars.

‘This was 100 per cent a properly organised coursing event, with competitors and competitive dogs,’ he said. ‘It was quite terrifying.’

His frightened seven-year-old daughter kept asking: ‘Are these men going to come inside, Daddy?’

Dozens of dead animals were left outside a village shop in Broughton, Hampshire 

A man was captured on CCTV dumping the animals 

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The Super 8 Cup, which was given out to winning owners at hare coursing events but is now in a police storeroom 

The event lasted for around three hours and the criminals left behind four cars – one a burnt-out wreck. Cambridgeshire Police have since arrested more than 40 people and charged 25, several of whom have now been convicted.

In a search of one address, they discovered the 2ft-tall Super 8 Cup engraved with images of dogs and hares along with the names of previous winning owners.

A video obtained by the BBC showed a group of eight men drinking in a pub as they haggled over the price of the 2025 Super 8 Cup champion. The lurcher was eventually sold for £55,000.

Chief Inspector Kevin Lacks-Kelly, head of the UK National Wildlife Crime Unit, said: ‘Some of these lads are making a fortune. You’ve got some of the country’s best-organised criminals. They’re like a small army.’

Mr Lacks-Kelly said his team has identified 27 of the country’s worst offenders for hare coursing and all but five of them have links to organised crime.

‘These are violent criminals that abuse people, animals, women. Carry weapons, firearms, and make threats. These are not the people that you want in your community,’ he said.

A Meta spokesman said: ‘We have removed the groups brought to our attention for violating our policies.’

Boys as young as 14 were subject to a “daily brutality” behind the bars of the Yarm institution – dubbed “Guantanamo Bay for kids” – between the 1960s and 1990s. 

Almost 1,000 complaints of historic abuse have been made to Cleveland Police – but despite 21 suspects being interviewed, not one former officer has been brought to justice. 

“Forgotten” victims have waited decades for someone to be held to account but fear justice is slipping away, with seven former officers under investigation now dead. 

This week, The Northern Echo called on new Prime Minister Andy Burnham to compensate victims of the “torture camp” as part of our six-point ‘manifesto for the North’. 

It follows the Echo’s calls earlier this year for a settlement scheme, where victims can claim compensation and receive a formal apology, while avoiding complex legal proceedings. 

HMP Kirklevington in Yarm (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)

Mark Armstrong, who was sent to Kirklevington at 14-years-old in 1980, believes that many victims would choose convictions over compensation. 

But he said for those who were attacked by officers who have already died, compensation remains very important as the 12-year police probe continues. 

Mark Armstrong (Image: CONTRIBUTOR)

“I believe that compensation for victims is still important, especially for the victims whose suspects are dead,” the dad-of-six explained. 

“This would be the only form of justice that they would receive.  

“After speaking with victims for more than five years, I do know that, given the choice of convictions or compensation, convictions would win in most instances. 

“I do support The Northern Echo’s call for victims to be compensated, especially in cases where the offender is dead. 

“For example, one officer had more than 300 victims make allegations against him. 

“[Those victims] will never see justice through the courts so compensation may be the only form of justice they will ever receive.” 

The now-62-year-old, who also has six grandchildren and one great-grandchild, said that the death of seven suspects meant many victims will “never see justice done”. 

Nigel Smith, who was 16 during his time at Kirklevington in 1984, also backed a compensation scheme for victims – but said it wasn’t just about money.

Nigel Smith, who was 16 during his time at Kirklevington in 1984 (Image: CONTRIBUTOR)

“I lost three years of my life because of Kirklevington,” the 58-year-old said. “Eight months after I left, I had a nervous breakdown. I spent eight weeks in a psychiatric ward.

“It is not about the money – but if someone said here is £40k, I would put my hands up and walk away. [Some of] the screws were evil, but you aren’t going to get anywhere convicting old men. 

“Compensation is the way forward. We have got to wake up.”

‘Forgotten’ victims’ fight for justice

Last month, it was revealed that seven suspects under investigation for abuse at the site, now called HMP Kirklevington, were dead. 

Seven prison officers under investigation for abuse at Kirklevington Detention Centre are dead (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)

One of these officers was the “sadistic” Douglas Harrison, who the Echo exposed in May as one of the officers believed to have abused hundreds of children behind bars.

Cleveland Police said it understands that the length of the probe “prolongs the trauma, frustration, and upset for victims” – saying support “remains at the heart of everything we do”. 

Senior Investigating Officer DCI Steve Chatterton said: “I wholeheartedly understand the length of time this investigation has taken prolongs the trauma, frustration and upset for victims and survivors. 

HMP Kirklevington in Yarm (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)

“We also recognise the acute impacts on victims resulting from the death of suspects identified as part of enquiries, which means many victims will never see justice.

“Victim and survivor care and support remain at the heart of everything we do.

“We encourage anyone affected to continue engaging with their appointed support services, and we are committed to keeping victims and survivors informed as the investigation progresses.”

“Cleveland Police continues to pursue all reasonable lines of enquiry and continues to work closely with the CPS”. 

Kirklevington Detention Centre was operated by the Home Office – now the Ministry of Justice – and housed boys aged 14-17 sentenced to between three weeks and four months’ detention. 

It changed to an adult male resettlement prison, as it is known today, in 1992.

Anyone who suffered abuse at Kirklevington Detention Centre can report this to Cleveland Police. Victims can also contact Oakwood Solicitors for advice on legal claims.

Campaigners have warned Scottish Labour faces becoming “extinct” at Holyrood by 2040 unless it severs ties with the UK party.

Just For Scotland (JFS) is calling on all prospective candidates bidding to replace Anas Sarwar to commit to having “a conversation with members about where our future lies”.

JFS wants the party in Scotland to breakaway from UK Labour to form a distinctive organisation capable of winning back power at the Scottish Parliament.

Scottish Labour has not won a Holyrood election since 2003 and suffered its worst ever result at the poll in May, which saw just 17 MSPs returned.

Sarwar, who has led the party in Scotland since 2021, announced his resignation last week after he was offered a UK ministerial post by Andy Burnham.

Leadership hopeful Monica Lennnon yesterday ruled out Scottish Labour breaking away if she succeeds in landing the top job.

She told the Record: “I’m not proposing we tear up our ties with UK Labour. I want a modern, mature relationship built on genuine mutual respect – one where Scottish Labour members trust and believe they have a voice in shaping our future direction.”

But JFS insists such a move is required if the party is to stand any chance of rebuilding and taking the fight to the SNP.

Elizabeth Carr-Ellis, a Scottish Labour candidate at the 2024 general election, said: “Our party has only ever lost seats and vote share in the Parliament we created. If our average losses are projected forward, we will be extinct in Holyrood by the end of next decade.

“If we continue to be seen as part of UK Labour, we will continue to be judged in relation to the success or otherwise of that party. If we do not show voters that we are entirely for Scotland, we will continue to lose when the electorate asks themselves who best stands up for our nation.

“It is no surprise, then, that a recent poll commissioned by JFS suggested three in five historic Labour voters now backing the SNP could come back to us if we become a separate party. Such a move is disproportionately popular among younger voters, in all age groups under 55, by a margin of around two to one.

“Voters do not notice or care about the minutiae of party structures, like where selections or party discipline take place, or how much autonomy we have from UK Labour.

“People want to feel instinctively that our party is unambiguously for Scotland. Doing that is not in itself a winning formula. But it is a prerequisite.

“In this leadership contest, candidates will rightly debate fundamental questions about who and what we are for, the style of leadership, and policy positioning. But those issues mean little to voters while we are seen as not for Scotland and judged in relation to UK Labour.

“Just For Scotland is therefore calling on any leadership candidate to back a conversation with members about where our future lies. This would investigate comparable structures internationally, such as the PLQ in Quebec and the CDU in Bavaria, and work through whipping implications in Westminster.

“It would also open Scottish Labour’s books on the practical implications of such a move. This would not merely be a structural tweak, but a strong political statement of intent – we are a party that is for Scotland. Anything less, and it’s another two decades until we’re back in government.”

A poll conducted by Find Out Now for JFS suggested that up to 60 per cent of voters who had left Labour for the SNP or the Greens would return if the party was fully independent. An even greater number would switch back if the Scottish Labour Party changed its name, though it is not clear what that might be.

Previously, the downward-sloping greens of Westhoughton Golf Club flowed rainwater into the drainage channel around the circumference of the course.

According to Westhoughton Golf Club manager is Steve Holmes, this water would then trickle into the next-door farmer’s field before seeping away back into the Earth.

But for the last few years, things haven’t been flowing quite as freely.

The area to the right with the dense reeds is where the cut through should be, but the water and thick plantlife has made it essentially impassable (Image: Dan Dougherty)

“All the water that used to drain away into the fields now pools at the bottom of the course,” said Steve.

The issue is affecting two areas – the public footpath next to the practice green, and next to hole 11 of the main course.

“There used to a cut through that people could use next to the practice area,” Steve continued.

The green after rain in December 2022 (Image: George Casson)

“It was a public right of way, but now whenever it rains it’s completely under water, so people have to walk onto the green itself – it’s dangerous.”

Rather than a cut-through, whenever it rains, it now operates more like a moat.

This was something Bellway had previously promised to fix, Steve told me, but despite the issue dragging on for years, and he says as of July 2026, nothing has been done.

Overgrown section of the practice green originally marked out as a public footpath (Image: Dan Dougherty)

 “We’ve had another firm, Yates, doing working on the A6 development on the other side of the course, and they couldn’t have been more helpful,” said Steve.

“You ask them to do anything and they’ll do it straight away – it’s a totally different story to Bellway.”

And even when things do get done, there’s little communication. A small team of people from Bellway came a couple of months ago to do some work but Steve asked them to leave – they’d given no prior warning they were going to be there. Steve said he didn’t even know who they were when they turned up.

“There were people on the course when they arrived, so I asked them to leave,” Steve said.

“They hadn’t given me any warning they were coming down.”

Steve Holmes, manager at Westhoughton Golf Club (Image: Dan Dougherty)

There have been meetings between representatives of Westhoughton Golf Club, Bellway Homes, and Bolton Council.

The council said: “Bolton Council has been in discussions with Bellway Homes and its planning consultants, Lichfields, regarding drainage and flooding issues affecting parts of Westhoughton Golf Club, as well as planning conditions and hedge removal.

“Several meetings have taken place this year, and the council has recently invited Bellway and Lichfields to a further meeting, provisionally planned for the week commencing 3 August.

“At previous meetings, Bellway and the golf club agreed that flood mitigation works on the affected practice ground could proceed under approved planning permission. Bellway was asked to provide detailed plans, including levels information, to the golf club.

“The council remains engaged with all parties and will review the information once submitted.”

Picture from earlier in the year when the rain was more heavy – the water was flowing freely between the golf course and still-being-built estate (Image: Steve Holmes)

The ‘hedge removal’ related in the council comment refers to several hedges that were removed from the front boundary of the gold course, Steve says without permission.

As well as the issue at the practice green, there is said also to be significant flooding next to hole 11 of the main course.

“When it rains the water is probably about six-foot deep at that end,” Steve said pointing to what looked like a pond next to the course, “and it comes all the way up here,” indicating near the treeline which demarcates the green.

“It’s absolutely abysmal.

Steve Holmes with former MP Chris Green (Image: Chris Green)

“Our land used to slope into the fields, but the land of the development is two or three feet above our land now, so the water won’t drain.

“And that’s happened because they’ve not done what they said they were going to do. They said they were going to drain it, but they never did, and they said they’d check all the waterways so we never have a problem.

“But I just don’t believe them.

“And the thing is it’s a reoccurring issue – every time it rains the practice area turns into a pond.

Collected water near the estate – this was during the July heatwave (Image: Dan Dougherty)

Former MP Chris Green became involved in the matter in December 2022, visiting the site and stating he would write to Bellway about the flooding.

In a comment issued around the same time, Bellway said they were planning to install a ‘land drain,’ as well as ‘undertake works to lift the ground levels in the areas affected’.

Bellway have been contacted for comment on the matter.

Flanked on both sides by burned-out cars, the smouldering ruins of once-happy family homes and the charred trunks which are remains of a verdant pine forest, the D106 is a real-life highway to hell.

The 41-mile route, which links the Cap Ferret peninsula with the city of Bordeaux in South-western France, has been the epicentre of the unprecedented wildfire which has ravaged an area four times the size of Paris and forced more than 260,000 people to be evacuated from their houses.

In what represents one of the most devastating events in the country since the Second World War, more than 240 properties have been completely destroyed – many thought to be holiday homes owned by millionaire Parisiennes.

The Daily Mail – one of the first media outlets to be allowed access to the frontline of the rampaging fire – saw first hand the enormous destruction it has wrought.

The inferno, which started on July 12 in forests on Cap Ferret, has been steadily approaching Bordeaux ever since, because of the strong winds which have been fanning the flames westwards.

And the return of searing temperatures this week threatens to complicate firefighting efforts. Emmanuel Macron said on a visit to the winemaking capital: ‘The coming weeks will be tough and we have to hold out.’

On both carriageways of the D106, between the towns of Saint-Jean-D’Illac and Lége-Cap-Ferret, house after house is now nothing more than blackened rubble.

One villa near the town of Blagon had collapsed in on itself from the sheer heat of the inferno.

Many of the homes belong to wealthy French families who have put down roots in this rich wine growing region

French firefighters battle a wildfire spreading in Marcheprime, south-western France, July 26 2026

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Masonry and burnt metal and wood littered the garden flanked by the remains of a charred Toyota pick-up on the driveway.

The flames had torn through the surrounding woodland on Saturday evening before quickly spreading to the one-floor property itself.

In the inferno’s aftermath, it is eerily calm but the evidence of the scale of what unfolded on Saturday night is all around.

The water in the uncovered swimming pool is filthy, its surface thick with floating soot, while smashed roof tiles lie scattered on the ground to either side of the remains of the house. A downed power cable, meanwhile, continued to spark menacingly by the front gate.

Inside, in what was once a kitchen, a free-standing oven, the skeletal remains of three chairs and two radiators are the only items now identifiable in the debris that covers the room.

A little further along the D106, towards the Atlantic coast, past another burned-out bungalow, was what remained of the Good Dogs canine training centre.

The remains of plastic dog agility tunnels, ramps, and a smoke-scarred boat lay abandoned outside.

Nearby, in a small woodland, was the carcass of a roe deer. The animal had apparently become caught up in a wire fence as it tried to flee and was burned alive as the flames took hold.

Across from the dog training centre and on the other side of a roundabout, a gated family home and compound was now a smouldering ruin filled with wrecked cars and farming machinery.

Photographs from Google Streetview, taken just four months ago, show the property to have then been an attractive white villa with terracotta roof tiles. Now only the exterior walls of the house and two brick chimney stacks remain standing.

French firefighters battle a wildfire spreading in Marcheprime, south-western France, July 26 2026

Local residents evacuated to Bordeaux Expo Centre to spend the night due to the nearby forest fires

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France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez says firefighters are facing an ‘unprecedented’ situation in Gironde

A general view of vegetation burned by wildfires in Marcheprime, southwestern France, July 27, 2026

Fire continuing to burn in the forest between Cestas and Marcheprime, southwest France, July 26, 2026

On a small side road just off the D106, a blackened telegraph pole lay felled on the floor, partially blocking traffic.

Up ahead a farmer was using his tractor to dig a fire trench to help stymie the flames. Huge agricultural machinery used to rip out tree trunks were also being deployed to prevent the spread of the fire.

The D106 is a dual-lane carriageway in both east and west directions and has a speed limit of 110km/h (68mph).

At least 12 houses – and thousands of acres of forest – were destroyed along the route, which is still mostly cordoned off by police.

Many of the homes belong to wealthy French families who have put down roots in this rich wine-growing region.

Three miles outside the town of Lége-Cap-Ferret, in a small clearing just off the D106, we saw a large soot-blackened family home that appeared to be on the verge of collapse.

The ferocity of the flames had completely burnt away a high hedge that once screened the house from the road. It is now just a shell cluttered with fallen timber beams and masonry.

A child’s Wendy house and plastic slide just feet away in the garden somehow avoided the blaze that destroyed the actual house next door.

On the route to Bordeaux, some 20 miles to the east, three houses located just off the carriageway, stood vacant and in a similarly dilapidated state. Outside one of the homes a sheet metal building had collapsed onto a car while children’s bikes, a swing and a slide were among the detritus outside the others.

France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez says firefighters are facing an ‘unprecedented’ situation in Gironde, the wider region around Bordeaux, battling a fire that ‘has a life of its own’ and which has already burned through 40,000 hectares of land already.

In what represents one of the most devastating events in the country since the Second World War, more than 240-homes have been completely destroyed

At least 12 houses – and thousands of acres of forest – were destroyed along the route

In the inferno’s aftermath, it is eerily calm but the evidence of the scale of what unfolded on Saturday night is all around

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Firefighters attempt to suppress a blaze in a forest as wildfires rage near Le Las, outside Bordeaux, France, Monday, July 27, 2026

A firefighting crew being deployed to battle a wildfire spreading in Ares, south-western France, July 25 2026

Speaking after a government crisis meeting, Mr Nuñez said weather conditions and the composition of the forests are causing the wildfire to behave ‘in a completely erratic manner’.

He went on: ‘It is autonomous, self-sustaining, and spreads in all directions. So it is a fire that’s difficult to control.’

Fire crews were this afternoon busy battling the frontline of the fire as it reached forested land on the outskirts of the town of Marcheprime, just 10 miles from the outer suburbs of Bordeaux.

A giant A400M military cargo aircraft -converted for firefighting – was spotted several times swooping low over the arid, fire-threatened woodlands, dropping a long plume of flame retardant.

Meanwhile, farmers, wine growers and other local tradesmen have joined in the battle to try to stop the fire from spreading any further. 

The European Union on Monday announced more water-bombing planes were being sent to France, in addition to those already deployed to Spain.

But EU commissioner Hadja Lahbib said that its fleet was increasingly stretched due to fears they may soon be needed elsewhere.

‘Extreme conditions are looming for Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, in addition to France, the Iberian Peninsula… where the situation is expected to worsen, including in Portugal,’ Lahbib said.

Florent Debroucker, 52, usually runs a landscaping business in the town of Eysines, but for the last 48-hours he has been heading a crew of five volunteers helping to extinguish small fires.

He and his colleagues were dousing smouldering scrubland just off the D106 with hoses supplied by tanks of water hitched on top of pick-up trucks.

Mr Debroucker told the Daily Mail: ‘We’re just doing our part to help the firefighters who are busy tackling the bigger, more serious fires.

‘The one we are tackling at the moment is the remains of a more serious fire last night. The forest behind us caught alight and some of the burning embers have set fire to the dry grassland this morning.

Destruction to property along the 106 road caused by the Gironde forest fires

The European Union on Monday announced more water-bombing planes were being sent to France

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‘We were driving around earlier and noticed smoke coming from the field. We’ve alerted the fire crews and are trying to stop any bigger fire from reaching the forest on the other side of the field that has so far remained untouched.

‘I can’t do any landscaping work at the moment because the town where my office is based has been evacuated. This is hard work and long hours – we can be out until as late as 3am – but if it means we can stop the fire from spreading then it’s worth it.’

The Prince and Princess of Wales said on Monday night: ‘Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the devastating wildfires across France, Spain and the UK. We are deeply grateful to the firefighters, emergency services and volunteers working tirelessly in extraordinarily difficult conditions. 

‘These events are a stark reminder of the challenges posed by an increasingly extreme climate and the importance of protecting both people and nature.’