The letter states: “While you no longer serve as British Ambassador to the United States and have stepped down from the House of Lords, it is clear that you possessed extensive social and business ties to Jeffrey Epstein and hold critical information pertaining to our investigation of Epstein’s operations.

Going into the men’s singles skeleton final, Team GB’s Matt Weston is in prime position to win the UK’s first medal at this year’s games.  

The 29-year-old ended the first day of competition with a 0.3-second advantage at the top of the leaderboard, while his teammate Marcus Wyatt is in seventh.

Team GB have been within touching distance of medal positions so far at the Milano Cortina games, so could the current skeleton world and European champion be the one to finally get the UK on the medal table?

Who is Matt Weston?

Born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, Weston started out his sporting career in a completely different discipline.

He practised taekwondo up until the age of 17, winning medals at UK-based events and international honours whilst representing England abroad.

At the taekwondo European Cup in 2012 he won both gold and silver, adding a silver and bronze to his collection at the International Taekwondo Federation World Cup in 2014 before retiring from the sport aged 17 due to a fracture in his back.

Right until he started the selection process for British Skeleton, he also played rugby, previously representing Kent as well as his local team Sevenoaks RFC and a Saracens Academy College.

His introduction to skeleton came via the British Skeleton Discover Your Gold talent identification scheme following a suggestion from his weightlifting coach, Chris Dear.

Speaking to Sky News sports presenter Jacquie Beltrao, Weston said it takes a “certain type of person” to take part in Skeleton.

“To get over that fear when you first start and you go down and you have no brakes,” he said.

“Whether you have a good run, a bad run, you crash or don’t crash, you are going to the bottom because it’s just sheet ice. Once you get over the fear and apprehension about that, it’s so much fun.”

From beginner to Olympian

Weston made his debut in skeleton in 2019. Before then he completed a tense training period with the Royal Marines, which was designed to test his physical and mental fitness.

He finished 15th in his debut race on the Europa Cup in Winterberg, Germany, closely followed by a silver medal in Igls, Austria, and bronze in Altenberg, Germany, just a month later.

By 2020 Weston was competing on the World Cup circuit and in November 2021 he won gold for Great Britain, the first men’s World Cup win in skeleton for almost 14 years.

Just over two years after he made his debut, he competed as an Olympian at the Beijing winter games in 2022.

In 2023, and paired with six-time world champion Martins Dukurs as a coach, Weston made major gains on both European and world stages.

He won the European title in January 2023 and a week later became world champion, taking the crown by a staggering 1.49 seconds.

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Weston started the 2025/26 season recovering from a thigh injury, but this didn’t hold him back.

In March 2025 he took his second world champion crown and in January of this year – only a month before the start of the Olympics – he clinched his third successive overall World Cup title.

He remains the UK’s most decorated slider at the world championship level.

Planning permission is being sought for the installation of six artwork totems by contemporary artist Katayoun Dowlatshahi and a piece by steel sculptor Steve Anwar.

Officers from North Yorkshire Council will recommended councillors approve the plans for the town’s Coronation Park when they meet next week.

Inspired by Catterick’s history and natural surroundings, the six totems would be over two metres high and made from corten steel with a ribbon design print waterjet cut into each.

Each totem includes a ceramic collar. The artist would aim to create
an impression into the clay of the totem using leaves in order to achieve an “engaging, tactile element to the work and reflect the hidden flora that can be found in the park”.

The sculpture would be located in the mini plaza at the base of a ramp from Shute Road.

The concept for the structure is to embody the values of Catterick Garrison and its “evolving identity: diverse, dynamic, and deeply rooted”.

The artwork would feature a poem which has been inspired by the artist’s engagement with the local community.

Planning Caroline Walton said in her report to members: “Whilst a subjective issue, officers consider that the proposed artwork would be of a high-quality design and material finish which would contribute in a positive way to the cultural and aesthetic amenity of the area, having involved local community groups as part of the design process.

“The installations would be sited so as to not interfere with the appropriate visibility required by users of the public highway or create any other highway safety or amenity issues for local residents.”

The public art programme is being developed by BEAM, a cultural development organisation working across the North of England.

Planning Permission was granted in March 2024 for the original redevelopment, which includes a new community building, multi-use space, covered external canopy and creation of public square and mini-plaza.

Work is underway on the scheme with the project is expected to be completed by winter 2026.

The application will be debated by the Richmond area planning committee on Thursday next week.

People will have three extra opportunities to cast their vote ahead of the city council elections

Voters in Cambridge will be among the first to trial a more flexible way of voting in person at local elections. The next local elections will take place on Thursday May 7, 2026.

Cambridge City Council has been selected for a new government-backed pilot as one of only five local authorities to test “early voting”. This will give voters an opportunity to cast their vote in person before polling day, not just on May 7.

For the 2026 city council elections, early voting will be available on Thursday, April 30, Friday, May 1, and Saturday, May 2.

Voters will also be able to choose where they vote during the early voting trial. Three voting hubs in the city will be located at The Guildhall, the Meadows Community Centre, and the Clay Farm Centre.

Early voting hubs will be open between 9am and 6pm on each of the three early voting days. Any elector can vote in any hub.

The early voting pilot will use approved and secure digital technology to make sure that no one is able to vote more than once. A city council spokesperson said: “The pilots are part of the Government’s commitment to encourage greater participation in democracy by modernising the voting experience, while keeping elections secure, transparent and trusted.”

Eligible voters in Cambridge will still be able to vote in the usual way at their allocated polling station on polling day. Postal and proxy voting will also be available as usual.

Robert Pollock, Returning Officer for Cambridge, said: “We would like to give our residents more choice in how they vote, while keeping all the safeguards that make our elections secure and trustworthy. We all have busy lives that can make it harder for some people to get to a polling station on one specific day.

“I hope the early voting pilot, will give more people, more opportunities to participate in our local democracy.”

Vicky Jenner, Electoral Services Manager, said: “We are working closely with the Government and our suppliers to plan, deliver and evaluate this pilot, with a clear focus on maintaining the security and integrity of the poll. We’re excited for Cambridge to be at the forefront of these changes to the way we vote, and for our residents to be among the first in the country to take part.”

Murrell, 61, has been charged with embezzlement.

A preliminary court hearing in the case against Nicola Sturgeon’s estranged husband has been postponed until after the Scottish Parliament election.

Peter Murrell had been scheduled to appear at the High Court in Glasgow on February 20 to answer to one count of embezzlement.

The Crown Office tonight announced the hearing will now take place on May 25 in Edinburgh – three weeks after the Holyrood election.

Murrell, 61, was the chief executive of the SNP for more than two decades.

He was charged in April 2024 following a long-running Police Scotland investigation – Operation Branchform – into the party’s finances

Murrell is charged with one count of embezzlement and made no plea or declaration after making an initial appearance at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in March last year.

The estranged husband of Nicola Sturgeon now faces a preliminary hearing in May.

Murrell dramatically resigned from his SNP role in 2023 following a row over the party’s declining membership numbers.

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A spokesperson for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said: “Scotland’s prosecutors act independently and in the public interest in all cases. COPFS understand there is significant interest in this matter which is active under the Contempt of Court Act 1981.

“The provisions of this Act protect the integrity of proceedings, preserve access to justice for victims and secure the rights of people accused of crime.

“Anyone publishing items about active cases is advised to exercise caution as material must not be commentary or analysis of evidence, witnesses or accused. Contempt of Court carries penalties of up to two years in prison and/or an unlimited fine.

“The Lord Advocate and Solicitor General were not involved in decisions on this case.”

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The US military has completed the transfer of thousands of Islamic State (IS) detainees from Syria to Iraq, the US Central Command has said.

CENTCOM said more than 5,700 adult male IS suspects were transported by US forces from detention facilities in Syria to Iraqi custody, in an operation that began on 21 January.

The prisoners were transferred to Iraq at the request of Baghdad.

“We appreciate Iraq’s leadership and recognition that transferring the detainees is essential to regional security,” said Admiral Brad Cooper, a CENTCOM commander.

Over the last three weeks, the US military escorted detainees from 60 different nationalities from prisons run by the US-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeastern Syria to Baghdad.

The transfer began after a rapid offensive by Syrian government forces against the SDF, which has guarded the IS detainees and the facilities where they were incarcerated for years.

On 29 January, the US brokered a ceasefire deal which set out a phased integration of Kurdish fighters into the central state.

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Iraq hopes to put on trial some of the thousands of detainees, who were held for years in Syria without charges or access to the judicial system.

On the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, Iraq’s foreign minister Fuad Hussein told Reuters discussion with “some Arab and Muslim countries” to take back their citizens had begun.

“The successful execution of this orderly and secure transfer operation will help prevent an ISIS resurgence in Syria,” said US Army Major General Kevin Lambert, commander of the Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, the US military’s operational name for the international war against IS.

The centre-right Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has won an overwhelming victory in the first election since the student uprising in 2024, which ousted the former prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

BBC South Asia correspondent Azadeh Moshiri, is in Dhaka outside Hasina’s former residence, which is now a memorial for the student protesters killed in the uprising.

As many as 1,400 people were killed during 2024’s weeks-long anti-government protests, most at the hands of security forces, according to the UN.

It’s tremendous knockabout stuff, but it rather overestimates the scale of the challenge Scotland have faced when playing against England in the Townsend era. Frankly, England haven’t been all that good. They’ve been far from the acid test of Scotland’s true worth.

All of these Scotland victories – were they because the Scots raised their game or because England were disorganised defensively, weak mentally and relatively easy prey to some brilliance in Townsend’s backline?

Scotland haven’t won anything, Lawes is correct. England are not exactly dripping with silverware themselves. They have won one Six Nations in that time. They have finished fifth in the table more often than they’ve finished first.

France, Ireland and Wales have all won Grand Slams during that period from 2017 since Townsend stepped up. England, for all their resources, haven’t won a Slam in a decade and have won only two in the history of the Six Nations.

In the past eight Six Nations they’ve finished first once, second twice, third twice, fourth once and fifth twice. Beating England has not been akin to climbing Everest.

Maybe it’s not about Scotland supposedly playing above themselves, as Lawes and others would argue. Maybe it’s been more about England not being good enough.

The fear for Scotland is that head coach Steve Borthwick has now cracked it. Twelve wins in a row, a well drilled team in all departments, excellent leaders, a mighty bench – all the impressions are that the foundations are solid, that the team is less susceptible to the kind of chaos that Scotland will want to inflict on them on Saturday.

Murrayfield should be a huge examination of their new found mettle, though. Tuipulotu shone a bright spotlight on what he calls Scotland’s “desperation” ahead of the Calcutta Cup.

Cross-party members at Durham County Council scrutinised the usage of solar energy and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) during a special committee meeting this week. 

Councillors were told of the Government’s target to generate ‘clean power’ and the regional need for new solar schemes by 2030. 

But a group of Reform councillors are not convinced. 

In July 2025, the Reform-led local authority voted to scrap the council’s climate emergency pledge, which aimed to achieve Net Zero emissions by 2045 and ran alongside the current Climate Emergency Response Plan.

David Walton, Reform member for Stanley, told the committee: “I reject the pseudoscience behind climate change. The current drive to the unachievable goal of Net Zero is pointless.”

A previous plan to install solar panels on council-owned buildings was also removed.  Reform UK argued the local authority was spending too much money on Net Zero projects, and also pledged to stop buying electric vehicles for council workers.

Mark Rowney, Reform member for Murton, warned that his ward is being “corralled” by solar proposals. 

“I’m by no means a Luddite; I know how this is done, but I represent a ward wholly against BESS. The explosive power of these is enormous. People’s insurance is going to go through the roof. I worry about my residents.”

Council officials reassured members that fires inside BESS are highly unlikely. 

Developers are continuously identifying land throughout County Durham for the development of new solar farms, but have faced opposition from Durham County Council’s planning committee, which has refused several proposals in recent years. 

To date, six solar farm planning applications, including two with BESS, have been refused; two were subsequently allowed on appeal, with inspectors determining that national climate change objectives outweighed localised landscape harm. 

Developments in Murton, Sheraton, and Hett have all been accepted despite initial council refusals. A public inquiry is planned for the proposed Burnhope/ Maiden Law development in March. Appeals are also anticipated for the Harehill and Newacres solar farm applications. 

Other councillors also suggested installing solar panels on rooftops and car parks instead of farmland. 

“The propensity of putting [solar panels] on greenfield land is absolute madness,” added Cllr Ian Catchpole, Reform member for Sedgefield. 

Alongside commercial solar developments, local groups are progressing renewable energy projects to generate funding for the community or cheaper energy. Weardale Renewables are looking to develop community-owned renewable energy with profits managed and distributed through a community benefit society. The group is seeking to develop a 600kWp solar array at Heights Quarry/Rose Hill Farm.

Mike Allum, the council’s strategy and delivery manager, said: “Solar is still the cheapest form of energy regeneration. Even in Northern England, they still produce a significant amount of energy. Developers look for sites where there is good access to connect to the grid.”

A 33-year-old passed away in hospital following an incident in the Cromwell Road area

A murder investigation has been launched after a man died following an incident in South Belfast.

Officer were called to the Cromwell Road area on Wednesday, February 11, following reports of a concern for safety, with a 33-year-old man later being taken to hospital. Sadly the man later passed away.

A 32-year-old man was arrested in connection with the incident and remains in police custody. On Friday, February 13, police announced that the 33-year-old’s death was now being treated as a murder with an investigation being launched.

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Detective Inspector Jack Kelly said: “The man, who is aged 33, was taken to hospital by colleagues from the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service on Wednesday afternoon, but sadly later passed away. “A 32-year-old man, who was arrested in connection with the investigation, remains in custody at this time. “Our enquiries are continuing, and I am appealing to anyone with information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, to contact our officers on 101 quoting reference 707 of 11/02/26.” Information can also be provided, with total anonymity, to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org

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