There’s a famous line in The Big Short when a baffled Mark Baum, after hearing some finance bros casually admit to issuing fraudulent, high-risk loans to unqualified borrowers, asks his colleagues: “I don’t get it. Why are they confessing?”

“They’re not confessing. They’re bragging,” comes the response.

Naturally, people thought of this when ex-Premier League referee Mike Dean made his latest attempt to shove himself into the spotlight. On Jamie Vardy’s Having a Party podcast, he “admitted” to playing secret mini-games while officiating top-flight matches.

He claimed: “We used to say, ‘Right, we’ll kick off now, right? See how long we can go without blowing a whistle.’ Done that a few times in the Premier [League], before VAR obviously. Went 20-25 minutes without blowing a whistle a few times. Let it go, let it go, let it go.” He also said he would try and stay within the confines of the centre circle for as long as possible, once reaching the 15-minute mark on that particular side-quest.

It was for “a laugh”, he said. Harmless fun, apparently. Except of course it’s not; if these claims were true, it would indicate a very real breach of integrity at the top level and add fuel to the already-existing fire of fan distrust of referees and their practices. The virality of the clip in question means the latter has already happened.

There are accusations of match-fixing floating around on social media from those who are taking Dean’s word as fact. But let’s just remember who’s speaking for a second.

Refereeing body Pro Ref, formerly known as PGMOL, is understood to be baffled by Dean’s comments. Sources inside the organisation have no idea in which games he would have performed these claims, other than his suggestion that they took place in a pre-VAR era (so before 2019), which would have been under previous leadership. Furthermore, they have no evidence that his mystifying side-quests ever happened. His infamous and self-admitted “arrogance” means there’s a feeling he over-embellished at the very least, or even made it up completely.

Pro Ref also seems powerless to the situation given that Dean has not been a referee since retiring in 2023; he hasn’t been under the body’s employment for three years.

Any official complaint would go through the FA.

Fact or fiction, Dean’s insatiable appetite for attention has hurt his colleagues. He was notorious for his unique manner of refereeing football matches, forging a legacy that will be preserved by the compilation that does the rounds every year of him being wacky. Remember when he hid the match ball from Sergio Aguero? (Insert laughing emoji…)

But as one of his more esteemed colleagues – and his former PGMOL boss – would attest to, the best referees don’t draw attention to themselves. “As a referee, you want to go unnoticed, that things go smoothly,” said Howard Webb. That was ironically said in disappointment after the 2010 World Cup final, when he issued 14 yellow cards and a red to John Heitinga – not Nigel de Jong, somehow.

The point still stands. You don’t want a highlight reel; that’s not your job.

Dean has been the subject of actual refereeing controversies before, other than just being a character. He failed to intervene while on VAR duty when Tottenham’s Cristian Romero pulled the hair of Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella late in their 2-2 draw in August 2022 because he didn’t want to give his “mate” Anthony Taylor any grief.

He candidly admitted this was “pathetic” on his part. It still didn’t help the perception that referees’ loyalty to one another can impact games and even lead to a prevention of justice.

Upon his own retirement this summer, Taylor opted against taking a role in the media, telling BBC Sport in an interview that he felt his attributes were better suited elsewhere. Part of this was down to his dismay at referees-turned-pundits criticising their former colleagues, which adds to scrutiny that is already “off the scale”. He instead became the director of elite refereeing with the Turkish Football Federation, looking to help the Turkish game through its ever-developing referee betting scandal.

Dean, meanwhile, leads the way for referees in broadcasting. His role on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday explicitly scrutinises officials. There is a demand for this job and he is far from the only one to do it, so this is by no means a criticism of him.

But the spotlight can be addictive. To stay in it, you need to stand out – he now has to do this with his words rather than his on-pitch mannerisms. On this occasion, a funny anecdote has proved a damaging admission, true or not, both for him and all referees.

Times like this take me back to that famous Garth Crooks clip on BBC One’s Final Score, the rival to the show Dean is now a regular on, from 11 years ago.

“I think Mike Dean is a good referee, but he’s got one fault: he wants to be the star too often. It’s really getting on my nerves because he’s spoiling great games. It’s not about you, Mike, it’s about the games – people come here and pay good money to see football, not for you to get over-officious like a petulant school teacher.”

It’s aged pretty well.

Little Britain and Great British Bake Off star Matt Lucas has publicly shared for the first time that he has been diagnosed with a lifelong condition.

Little Britain star Matt Lucas has quietly navigated a neurodevelopmental condition throughout his entire life.

During a conversation with BBC Radio 2’s Romesh Ranganathan, Matt disclosed that he struggles with needing “periods of solitude” as a result of the condition.

The comedian revealed: “I’ve never ever spoken about this publicly, but I’m autistic – so I enjoy periods of being very sociable, like you are in the theatre, and then I also enjoy those periods of solitude where I can just write on my own.”

Romesh then asked Matt: “Do you find that you need to recharge each battery, like you’re kind of flitting between those two things?”.

To which he replied: “Yeah, and so on my days off, you know you do theatre six days a week, and on my day off, apart from resting and resting my voice and all of that, on my day off I like not to see people and give them a break from me, but just to have that recharge time is quite important to me.”

Autistic people can differ greatly from one another, each with their own unique strengths and challenges. Social situations can frequently prove confusing or draining, and many may feel overwhelmed in loud or busy environments.

Further characteristics include having intensely focused interests, as well as a requirement for routine and predictability. Many people find that repetitive behaviours offer reassurance and help them cope with the pressures of social interaction.

While Matt Lucas remains most widely recognised for his collaborative work with David Walliams on sketch programmes including Little Britain and Come Fly With Me, he has also graced the stage in theatrical productions such as Les Misérables, Me and My Girl and – coming later this year – Matthew Bourne’s staging of Oliver! at London’s Gielgud Theatre. By chance, the production also features Romesh’s son in a minor part.

Matt, who appears this evening in the latest series of Taskmaster alongside Richard Ayoade and Nina Conti, has additionally authored two novels and is presently crafting a third: “It’s for adults”, he told Romesh. “The first two had been for kids, and it’s quite a long haul. I know what I want my fourth novel to be.”

Regarding his theatrical work, Matt describes how he invests substantial energy into keeping performances fresh and continuously strives to reveal new facets of his characters: “I’ve played Thénardier in Les Misérables, on and off, for over 16 years. But every time, I try to find something new.

“I’m always finding new things in it,” he continued, “And even 16 years on …I found things and thought, ‘Ah! Why have I never seen that before? That’s crazy. I’m going to play it like this…’”.

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Matt credits his ability to unearth fresh interpretations to the calibre of the material: “If you’re in something that’s brilliant, and rich, and textured, that inspired other people in the show to keep their performances alive, and moveable, and evolving.”

“Then,” Matt continues, “your performance can evolve as well.”

Matt admitted there are numerous fresh roles he would love to take on. He mentions that “one day” he would be keen to play Tevye, the protagonist in Fiddler on the Roof.

He’s also voiced an interest in taking on the role of Mrs. Lovett, the murderous pie maker in Sweeney Todd: “I’ve never seen it played by a man before,” he told Romesh, “I don’t know if the Sondheim estate would permit it.”

That said, he hasn’t entirely severed ties with his former Little Britain partner. In 2025, Matt teamed up with David Walliams again to create a twice-weekly podcast called Making a Scene, which features discussions with entertainment industry pals including Stephen Merchant, Jack Whitehall, Rob Brydon, Alan Carr and Richard E. Grant.

When announcing the podcast via a social media video, the pair poked fun at past controversies, including the use of racially stereotyped characters in Little Britain, and Walliams’s allegedly difficult conduct while serving as a judge on Britain’s Got Talent.

Every day on Criminal Record we will be bringing you a round-up of the biggest crime stories of the day.

If you love to read about crime in Scotland – this is the place to be every day.

Here’s what has been making the news across the country on Thursday.

Plush Ayrshire home badly damaged in suspected firebomb attack

Cops are probing a suspected firebomb attack after a plush detached home in Irvine was deliberately set alight in the early hours of Thursday, September 3. Firefighters battled the blaze for almost seven hours, leaving the scene at around 11.15am.

Images show the soot-covered property badly damaged, with the garage roof close to collapse and the front door destroyed. Burnt-out items, including a mattress and Rangers flag, were left among the debris.

No-one is understood to have been injured. Police remain at the property while officers carry out door-to-door enquiries in the surrounding estate.

Police Scotland is treating the blaze as wilful and has launched an investigation. A spokesperson said: “Enquiries are ongoing and the fire is being treated as wilful.” Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said two appliances attended and there were no reported casualties.

READ MORE: House firebombed in plush Ayrshire estate as police probe early morning attack

Former lecturer admits killing couple in drink-drive crash

Former college lecturer Sophie Hynd has admitted causing the deaths of a husband and wife in a head-on crash after a boozy Christmas lunch. The 33-year-old pleaded guilty to causing the deaths of Jatinder Kaur, 48, and her husband Satwant Singh, 64, on the B981 in Cluny, Fife, last December.

The couple’s 10-year-old son was seriously injured in the collision. The court heard Hynd had been drinking cider, spritz, Prosecco and possibly a Guinness shot before deciding to drive home, with one colleague describing her as “pretty merry” and another as “pretty drunk”.

Other motorists had called 999 after seeing her Nissan Qashqai driving erratically and swerving onto the opposite carriageway before it smashed head-on into the couple’s Volkswagen Polo.

Jatinder was pronounced dead at the scene, while Satwant died in hospital two days later after doctors determined his injuries were not survivable.

READ MORE: Ex-college lecturer killed ‘loving’ parents in horror crash after boozy Christmas lunch

Helicopter search after two men seen ‘acting suspiciously’ at Low Moss

Two men sparked a police helicopter search after being spotted “acting suspiciously” near HMP Low Moss in East Dunbartonshire. Officers were called to the prison in Bishopbriggs around 1.55pm on Tuesday, September 1, after reports of the pair in the area.

The men fled as police arrived, prompting an extensive search involving a helicopter and officers on the ground. Despite the efforts, they could not be traced and police confirmed neither man was a prisoner.

Low Moss, on Crosshill Road, houses male prisoners including those on remand, short and long-term inmates and life prisoners. Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the suspicious activity.

READ MORE: Police helicopter search for two men ‘acting suspiciously’ near Low Moss prison

Armed cops swoop on Fife flats after firearm report

Armed officers swooped on a Fife home after reports of a man brandishing what was believed to be a firearm. Police were called to Caithness Place in Kirkcaldy shortly before 6pm on Wednesday, September 2.

Photos from the scene showed officers in tactical gear outside a block of flats, with several marked police vehicles parked nearby. The operation followed a report of a man in possession of a suspected firearm.

A 22-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with the incident.

READ MORE: Armed cops swoop on Fife flats after ‘man seen with gun’

Woman threw ammonia over friend in row over ‘scabby fiver’

A woman threw liquid ammonia over her friend during a row over a “scabby fiver” while the pair were shopping in Glasgow city centre. Gwen Dempster, 52, doused next-door neighbour Lee McCluskey after they became embroiled in a heated argument on Buchanan Street last November.

Glasgow Sheriff Court heard McCluskey asked Dempster to go away after becoming upset by her comments. Prosecutor Lauren Aitchison said Dempster told her: “I don’t want a scabby fiver, I want £20 off you now.” McCluskey swung her shopping bag before a struggle broke out.

During the grapple, Dempster pulled a bottle of ammonia from her bag and threw it at McCluskey, hitting her head and body. The victim screamed that her skin was burning and was later found removing her clothes on the floor outside Sainsbury’s, with red marks on her face.

READ MORE: Woman threw liquid ammonia over friend after dispute over ‘scabby fiver’ on Glasgow shopping trip

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LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Lisbon inaugurated a memorial Thursday to the 16 people killed in a funicular derailment a year ago, as questions persist about the safety of the city’s iconic hillside streetcars, which remain at a standstill.

Near the crash site, a 150-year-old olive tree stood at the center of a ring of limestone blocks laid into the ground featuring the names of the victims. Foreign ambassadors laid wreaths and the Patriarch of Lisbon, a senior Catholic church official, offered a blessing.

The accident was one of the Portuguese capital’s worst tragedies in recent memory and cast a shadow over the city’s ongoing tourism boom.

The picturesque yellow streetcar, called a funicular because it travels up and down a steep hill in tandem with a second car, is a popular tourist attraction. Authorities said that 11 of those killed were foreigners, likely tourists who stand in long lines to board it.

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Lisbon attracted about 10 million tourists last year, and they are one of the city’s economic mainstays. Portugal receives around 30 million visitors each year.

Service on the Gloria funicular remains halted while the official investigation proceeds. Two other city funiculars also remain out of service during inspections. The regular streetcars that rumble through the city’s streets are running as usual.

The anniversary brought renewed attention to delays in identifying the causes of the crash, which also injured 24 people, and attributing any blame.

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Carris, the Portuguese company that runs the city’s road transport, said Wednesday it plans to open an international tender in the first quarter of next year for the affected funicular to be modernized, with the goal of it returning to service by 2029.

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Portugal’s public prosecutor’s office said it hoped to publish a final report by March regarding the accident’s causes and whether there is any criminal liability.

Families of the victims complained in a letter obtained by public broadcaster RTP about “a year of silence” from authorities. They had been kept in the dark about the investigation, receiving no contact from officials, they said, according to RTP.

A preliminary report into the accident published last year said that the failure of a steel safety cable and maintenance flaws contributed to the crash. The streetcar hurtled down the hill before coming off the rails on a bend and smashing into a building, leaving the wooden cabin a crumpled wreck.

By JAMES TAPSFIELD, UK POLITICAL EDITOR and DAVID WILCOCK, DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR

Published: 11:30 BST, 3 September 2026 | Updated: 17:18 BST, 3 September 2026

Anglo-French work to stop migrant boats from crossing the Channel is ‘clearly working’ Andy Burnham told Emmanuel Macron today as they held talks in London.

The Prime Minister said that ‘headway’ was being made on cutting both the number of people making the perilous journey and the number of overall crossings as he met the president in No10.

While the combined total number of crossings over the summer months has dropped to its lowest since 2019, smugglers appear to have started loading more people on to fewer, larger vessels.

The two leaders announced plans for a new ‘surge team’ of French police, funded by Britain, to tackle the growing use of ‘mega-dinghies’, carrying up to 230 migrants. 

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But government sources have admitted that it will involve just 45 extra officers and the Conservatives branded the plans a ‘joke’, arguing that rough weather was the main reason for the reduction.

Mr Burnham also used the meeting to press Labour’s case for a Brexit ‘reset’ that would draw the UK closer to EU rules and regulations than at any time since it left the bloc.

During Wednesday’s Prime Minister’s Questions, Mr Burnham reiterated that Britain’s decade of low growth ‘has been partly a result of Brexit’.

‘I do want a closer relationship – I will build on the work of my predecessor,’ he told MPs, ahead of a UK-EU summit later in the year.

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Andy Burnham and his wife Marie-France (left) embraced Emmanuel Macron and wife Brigitte (right) outside the famous black door

The red carpet had been rolled out for the visit of the president, matching Mrs Macron’s striking outfit

The Prime Minister said that ‘headway’ was being made on cutting both the number of people making the perilous journey (file pic)

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The PM and his wife Marie-France embraced Mr Macron and wife Brigitte outside the famous black door this morning.

The red carpet had been rolled out for the visit of the president, matching Mrs Macron’s striking outfit.

Mr Burnham hailed his fellow leader as a ‘strong friend of Britain’, after they spent yesterday evening viewing the Bayeux Tapestry together with the King.

A No10 spokesman said: ‘The Prime Minister began by thanking President Macron for France’s loan of the Bayeux Tapestry, which he said symbolised common bonds between the UK and France, and was a statement of unity in an increasingly divided world.

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‘Turning to small boats, the Prime Minister said the cooperation between both countries was clearly working and operational teams were making headway on driving down numbers and reducing crossings.

‘It was now vital to ensure that success was scaled up across Europe to deter illegal migration, the leaders agreed.

‘The leaders also discussed the UK’s drive to get closer to Europe, and the Prime Minister set out how the Made in Europe agenda could pose significant challenges for UK industry. 

‘The leaders agreed it was vital to work together to find a way forward to protect shared interests.’

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Ryan Thomas‘s brother Adam has revealed a terrifying ordeal when a gun was pointed at his head when he was on a bus.

The Waterloo Road actor, 38, was a teenager when the incident happened as he told how at first he thought the weapon being brandished was fake.

Speaking on his At Home With The Thomas Bros podcast with Scott and Ryan, the trio were sharing stories about travel when Adam gave the shock news. 

He said: ‘I got a gun pulled to my head on a bus. It was when I was like, how old was I? About 15, 14. And I was sat at the back of the bus on a double decker.

‘And this group of lads got on and they basically pulled out a gun and put it to my head and I thought it was like a pretend gun.

‘Then they took the like revolver out and showed me all the bullets and I just s**t myself.’

Ryan, 42, then quipped: ‘What! Were you in like Grand Theft Auto or something?’ 

The Waterloo Road actor, 38, was a teenager when the incident happened as he told how at first he thought the weapon being brandished was fake

The latest podcast episode comes just after Ryan’s fiancée Lucy Mecklenburgh revealed why the pair sleep in separate beds.

The former The Only Way Is Essex star, 35, has been with Ryan since 2017 and they got engaged two years later.

In a new interview Lucy opened up about their sleeping arrangements after actor Ryan, 42, recently confessed they don’t share a bed.

Now she has explained why, telling The Mirror: ‘Ryan snores and sleep talks, and I need my sleep.

‘I have to sleep, especially with two young kids. It’s full-on, so I’d just turf him out to the spare room because I’d be like, ‘Shut up!’, and that kind of evolved.’

She also discussed why their nuptials aren’t something that they are focusing on right now, saying: ‘I think it’s become harder because we had kids before we got married.’

The pair share son Roman, six, and daughter Lilah, four, and Lucy told how when you have a family your ‘priorities change’. 

Along with raising two children and moving to Manchester in recent years, Lucy said things have been ‘really full-on’. 

‘We would love to one day,’ she said of getting married however.

Last month Ryan first revealed their sleeping arrangements and also said that they spend their evenings in different living rooms.

On his podcast, At Home With The Thomas Bros, Ryan explained that the couple have their main residence in Manchester and a second home in London.

The latest podcast episode comes just after Ryan’s fiancée Lucy Mecklenburgh revealed why the pair sleep in separate beds 

The star, who hosts the show with his brothers Adam and Scott, explained: ‘In Manchester, we stay in separate beds and we have separate living rooms’. 

He further detailed that due to their London home, where they were currently staying, being smaller, they have to share a bed when in the capital: ‘Well we do now, because we haven’t got enough rooms in London.’

Adam was outraged by the prospect and told his brother: ‘I think it’s f***ed up personally as well. You need to stay in the same bed as her.’

Last year Lucy laid down the explanation for the arrangement, saying: ‘Basically Ryan snores, he sleep talks, he whacks me in his sleep.’

Ryan is also father to daughter Scarlett, 17, with former co-star Tina O’Brien.

In April, Ryan’s brothers poked fun at him after he said his fiancée Lucy seemed ‘in love’ with him on their recent trip to Copenhagen.

The couple shared some loved-up snaps from the holiday where they stayed in the luxurious Hotel Bella Grande.

Ryan shared photos of them smooching in a photobooth which his brother and Love Island star Scott thought was surprising as Lucy is not a fan of PDA.

Speaking on the podcast, Scott said: ‘I saw some pictures of you two kissing in a photobooth. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. This is a bit PDA for Lucy.’

Ryan replied: ‘I just validated my love for Lucy. I was so in love this trip. I felt like she was.’

Scott and Adam both started laughing, with Adam adding: ‘Let’s ask Lucy, get her on.’

Ryan then professed his love for Lucy, who he has been in a relationship with since 2017, saying he is ‘besotted’ with her.

He said: ‘I just love her so much. I know she was in love and she had the best time and I’ve come back and I love that woman you know.

‘I’m the luckiest man in the world, I fancy her so much and I’m besotted with her.’

After getting engaged in June 2019, a year later Covid-19 hit forcing Ryan and Lucy as well as several other couples to put their nuptials on hold.

“In eight out of those 10, we made arrests, but in none of those instances did the police vehicle start to pursue in the same direction, ie the wrong way as the offending vehicle.”

A review by the PSNI has uncovered 10 incidents where police were involved in pursuits of vehicles which travelled in the wrong direction on carriageways.

However, a senior officer told the Policing Board that in none of those cases did the police vehicle drive in the wrong direction.

The issue was raised by the board following concern over recent incidents.

In August, two police officers were among seven people killed when a car travelling the wrong way down a dual carriageway crashed into a force vehicle near Middlesbrough.

The previous week, five teenagers were killed in Co Kildare after the car they were travelling in crashed into another while driving in the wrong direction on the M9 motorway.

Following that incident, concerns were raised by police and politicians in Ireland about cars being driven in the wrong direction on roads for social media likes.

Board chair Brendan Mullan asked the PSNI leadership team if there had been a review of the current pursuit policy following the crashes.

Assistant Chief Constable Melanie Jones said: “What we have done is developed a strategy to look specifically at the issue of whether or not we have issues with wrong-way driving.

“So the pursuit policy is sound.

“I have undertaken a review to see whether or not we have evidence of pursuits where the offending vehicles are driving the wrong way on carriageways.

“I’ve identified 10 such instances.

“In eight out of those 10, we made arrests, but in none of those instances did the police vehicle start to pursue in the same direction, ie the wrong way as the offending vehicle.”

Ms Jones said the key considerations around pursuits related to safety of the public, the people in the vehicles and officers.

She said: “If they make a decision that that pursue is to be disengaged because of the level of risk that’s involved, and wrong-way driving would be a high level of risk, they will make that decision.

“And it may be that the direct that the officers continue in the pursuit on the right side of the road to then keep up with it and put an intervention in, but without carrying on the wrong side of the road.”

The senior officer said the force was looking at a strategy that would use intelligence and enforcement.

She said: “If we get the social media type trends of the filming, that we won’t sit passively because we weren’t there.

“We’ll identify the offenders. We’ll commence an investigation, and we’ll look to bring you know criminal justice outcomes to those that are doing that.

“We’ll link that into a media strategy to make sure that we’re informing the public of the action we take and we’ll use it as a preventative tool to discourage people from doing it.”

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A public inquiry into the tragedy could now be established over ‘sensitive’ MI5 evidence

The Home Secretary wants to block a ‘discreet body of MI5 material’ relating to the Manchester synagogue attack from being publicly disclosed at an inquest into the deaths of two men killed by terrorist Jihad Al-Shamie.

If Chief Coroner, Judge Alexia Durran, upholds the application by Shabana Mahmood, a public inquiry into the attack in Crumpsall on Yom Kippur could ultimately be established. A ‘closed session’ of a pre-inquest review to assess further details will be held at a later date, with the media not being able to attend.

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Questions over whether or not Al-Shamie was known to the security services before the attack on October 2 last year also emerged during a pre-inquest review hearing held on Thursday.

Security guard Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, were killed at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue.

Mr Cravitz’s legal team said there were ‘previous denials’ by the Home Secretary, in the House of Commons on October 13, that Al-Shamie was known to the security services or counter-terror policing beforehand.

Victoria Ailes, for the family, said counter-terror policing also released a statement saying he was not known to them.

Ms Mahmood said Al-Shamie was ‘never referred to the Prevent programme, nor was he known to counter-terrorism policing or the security services’ in her statement.

But Anna Morris KC, representing the family of Adrian Daulby, said they question whether the material which forms the subject of the application by the Home Office might ‘contradict’ those statements.

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Mr Daulby’s family, she said, were ‘concerned’ the material ‘may contradict statements made public that the terrorist was not known to counter-terror policing or the security services’. The family, Ms Morris said, wanted ‘rigorous scrutiny’. She also pointed to what she called a ‘demonstrable lack of candour’ on the part of the security services relating to other atrocities, referencing the Manchester Arena terror attack.

Ms Ailes, for the Cravitz family, urged the chief coroner to consider ‘open justice’. Referring to the statements made about Al-Shamie, she asked the coroner in determining the application to consider whether ‘open justice is more relevant’ where ‘a public position has been taken’.

The situation mirrors that of the initial inquest process into the deaths of the 22 people killed in the Manchester Arena bombing terror attack of 2017. A public inquiry – which gives a chair greater powers to examine and assess sensitive security information – was ultimately established and ran for almost two years.

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The media and families were prevented from attending a series of ‘closed hearings’ relating to MI5 evidence and information.

Judge Durran, the Chief Coroner, will give a written ruling on the synagogue application at a later date. The Home Secretary, in the application, says any disclosure of the material could ‘give rise to a risk to national security’, the hearing was told.

Neil Sheldon KC, for the Home Secretary, said there has ‘never been any question’ of material being ‘withheld’. He said the application involved a ‘discreet body of material’ within overall disclosures.

“The basis of the claim is national security,” he said. “The Secretary of State’s assessment that disclosure would harm national security is cogent, compelling and supported by detailed analysis.”

Barrister Edward Pleeth, counsel to the inquest, said there was ‘no adequate alternative’ to non-disclosure and supported the application. A Public Interest Immunity (PII) application is a legal request used in court to withhold sensitive evidence from disclosure when revealing it would harm the public interest.

Families of the deceased attended the pre-inquest review hearing on Thursday together with other so-called interested persons, organisations and groups.

Al-Shamie was shot dead by Greater Manchester firearms officers at the scene.

Tragically, one bullet fired at him hit Mr Daulby, who was standing with others inside the synagogue barricading the doors. It also emerged at the hearing that police fired 10 shots in total.

The firearms officers were referred to only by the cyphers F42, S19 and C25. The officer F42 fired four shots with a Glock pistol, S19 fired five shots with a carbine rifle and C25 fired a single shot with the same weapon, it was said.

The same projectile that hit and killed Mr Daulby went on to hit congregant Yoni Findlay, Mr Pleeth said, saying a ballistics report had been obtained. It was either the first or second shot fired by officer F42.

Congregant Andrew Franks was stabbed by Al-Shamie in the incident and it emerged at the hearing that Mr Franks opened the gate which allowed the terrorist into the grounds of the synagogue compound.

His status as an ‘Interested Person’ at the inquest was granted, with the Chief Coroner saying that in granting the order, ‘no criticism or cuplability’ of him was attached to it. The same status was also granted to the three GMP officers. A decision over the status for Mr Findlay will be made at a later date.

Anthony Metzer KC, for Mr Findlay, said he was ‘both a victim and a survivor’ and ‘the victim of lethal force by an arm of the state’.

Mr Findlay, he said, was on the ‘front row’ behind the door, and Mr Daulby was standing behind him at the time.

The status allows people to ask questions of witnesses giving evidence at inquests and obtain access to disclosed evidence.

The hearing was also told of ‘delays’ to investigations by police watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct. No further dates were set.

The Juniper Street property in Irvine was deliberately set alight in the early hours of Thursday.

A house has been nearly destroyed and left covered in black soot after being torched in the early hours of the morning. Ash and discarded items cover the driveway of the Juniper Street property in Irvine, North Ayrshire, which was deliberately set alight at around 4.30am on Thursday, September 3.

Emergency services rushed to the Annick Gardens estate with firefighters on the scene for around seven hours. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) crews battled to get the blaze under control until around 11.15am.

Photos from the scene show the house all but destroyed after the shocking fire, which looks to have taken hold of the garage and upstairs rooms. The garage roof looks ready to collapse while the windows are charred from the black smoke and soot.