
Iain Anderson and Tom Watson discuss lobbying and the establishment
Labour MP Tom Watson says "there's too much wealth and power in too few hands in this country", but Iain Anderson says lobbyists never pay MPs for influence. .
Latest news as Duke of Edinburgh's legacy is remembered - live updates Prince Philip's death on Friday, at the age on 99, has dominated news coverage in Britain and overseas. The world's press have paid tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh and his life of service, while expressing support for the Queen and the Royal family. How the British press reacted The British newspapers were covered with tributes to Prince Philip and his extraordinary life. The Telegraph front page features a simple photograph of the Duke in his military livery.
Bag a bargain across skincare, make-up, fashion, electricals and kitchen appliances while you still can
The Scottish Government’s flagship First Home Fund has run out of money in just eight days, in what opposition parties have branded a “spectacular misjudgement”. The £60m fund, which lends people up to £25,000 towards their deposit, was launched on April 1 but was closed on Thursday afternoon after being inundated with applications. The initiative is now “fully committed” for 2021/22. The news has been described as “devastating” for thousands of Scots hoping to get onto the property ladder, with the lack of availability of 95 per cent LTV mortgages making it “incredibly difficult” for first time buyers to access mortgage finance - despite “strong evidence” showing that owning a home is cheaper than renting. Funding for the scheme was slashed by 66.5 per cent from £200m last year, with SNP ministers blaming the UK Treasury for the cuts. “We anticipated that there would be huge demand given the success of the pilot scheme run last year,” said Nicola Barclay, chief executive of industry body Homes for Scotland. “Despite this, the Scottish Government allocated just 30 per cent of the levels spent in 2020, citing budget cuts from Westminster for the reduction.”
The scandal that wasn’t: Republicans deflated as nation shrugs at Hunter Biden revelationsTrump and his allies foresaw a ticking timebomb centred on the president’s son – but it has not turned out that way Hunter Biden, middle, with his half-sister Ashley at Joe Biden’s inauguration in January. Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/AP
Prince Philip’s coordination of landmark global interfaith summits made him “the inspiration for the largest civil society movement in the world”, friends have said. The Duke of Edinburgh, who nurtured a strong Christian faith, was a passionate advocate for interfaith dialogue. He used his personal faith, connections with other royal families, and his platform to encourage global religious leaders to work together and protect “the created world”, organising summits which paved the way for contemporary policy and action on conservation. Following his death, religious leaders, charities and organisations have paid tribute to his interfaith work. The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby, paid tribute to the prince, saying: “The legacy he leaves is enormous… his work with countless charities and organisations reflected his wide-ranging, global interests in topics including wildlife, sport, design, engineering and interfaith dialogue.” Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis also offered his condolences to the Royal family following the loss of the “selfless and loyal public figure”, adding: “We remember the Duke’s interaction with, and affection for, the Jewish community in the UK and his connection with Israel, where his mother is buried and which he visited in 1994.”
At Buckingham Palace a steady stream of people arrived to lay bouquets at the front gates.
There is more to the escalating conflict than the failings of the DUP – unionists determined to keep Northern Ireland part of the UK are facing a more general crisis
The victim died at the scene after suffering serious head injuries.
Drinkers told they must wear masks in pub beer gardens 'Light at end of tunnel' for summer holidays Prince Philip's funeral will be 'family affair' due to Covid restrictions Ben Marlow: Monday's grand reopening is a moment of truth Subscribe to The Telegraph for a month-long free trial Blood clots associated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are "extraordinarily rare", a scientist advising the Government on its coronavirus response has said. The UK has ordered 30 million doses of the vaccine, which is also known as Janssen, although it is yet to be approved for use by regulators. "We still don't know whether they are directly related and caused by the vaccine but it seems possible that they could be," Professor Peter Openshaw, a member of the Covid-19 clinical information network, told the Today programme. "It wouldn't be surprising to find the Janssen vaccine also causes rare blood clots because it's based on an adenovirus technology which is not that far away from the technology being used in the AstraZeneca vaccine." Prof Openshaw said any blood clots were "extraordinarily rare events" and likened the risk level to "if you [were to] get into a car and drive 250 miles". It comes a day after the European Medicines Agency said that it has started a review to assess blood clots in people who have been given the Johnson & Johnson jab. Follow the latest updates below.
Quick thinking and no small measure of bravery by Prince Philip saved dozens of lives during the Second World War, earning him a lifelong debt of gratitude from his comrades at arms. During the 1943 Allied invasion of Sicily, the 22-year-old, then a first lieutenant in the Royal Navy, foiled a Luftwaffe bomber that looked almost certain to destroy his ship. But the story of how the Duke of Edinburgh saved the ship only emerged in recent years when veterans began to talk publicly about the incident. He was second-in-command of the destroyer HMS Wallace during the Allied landings in Sicily in July 1943 when the ship came under repeated attack. Undaunted, he quickly devised a plan to throw a smoking wooden raft overboard to create the illusion of debris on fire in the water as a decoy, successfully distracting the enemy. Harry Hargreaves, a yeoman on board the ship, revealed the story in 2003 during an online BBC event capturing people's stories of the war. The veteran recalled how the crew had only 20 minutes before the next bombing run to come up with an idea.
A police officer resigned amid an internal use-of-force investigation, after he was shown to have repeatedly shoved snow in the face of a man during a domestic violence arrest in Akron, Ohio, on February 7.In video footage released by the City of Akron, an officer can be seen repeatedly placing snow on a man’s face as other officers handcuff him. The man can be heard saying that he “can’t breathe.”The incident happened after a woman called 911 to report that a man, named as Charles Hicks, had “threatened her with a knife and that she was scared for the safety of her children”, according to local reports.During a news conference on Thursday, Acting Chief Mike Caprez said the “tactic” used by the officer was “not supported by the circumstances” or trained by the department. Officer John Turnure voluntarily resigned effective March 31, local media reported. Credit: City of Akron via Storyful
The White House on Friday said it was keeping a close watch on increased Chinese military activities in the Taiwan Strait, and called Beijing's recent actions potentially destabilizing. "We have ... clearly - publicly, privately - expressed our concerns, our growing concerns, about China's aggression toward Taiwan," White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters. "We've seen a concerning increase in PRC military activity in the Taiwan Strait, which we believe is potentially destabilizing," she said, when asked if Washington was concerned about a possible Chinese invasion.
Nothing good can come from throwing petrol bombs. Our families and children want to live peacefully, without the terror our relatives experienced
Both 13-year-olds had been last seen in Twickenham on Saturday, police say
The police's restraint of George Floyd was more than he "could take" given the condition of his heart, the medical examiner who performed the autopsy of the 46-year-old said on Friday. Dr Andrew Baker was testifying in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin, the former police officer who knelt on Mr Floyd for more than nine minutes during an arrest in Minneapolis last May. Dr Baker, who has served as the chief medical examiner of Hennepin County, Minnesota, since 2004, said the police officers' compression of Mr Floyd's neck and the restraint of his body were the primary causes of his death. Dr Baker was one of the most heavily anticipated witnesses to take to the stand in the closely-watched trial. His testimony added significant heft to the prosecution's case that Mr Chauvin killed Mr Floyd when he pinned the unarmed and handcuffed black man to the ground until he could no longer beg for air.
Over the coming days and weeks, a watching nation will find there has been a truly immeasurable amount of time set aside for saying things about which there is very little to say
The presenter has been documenting his struggle with pain on social media.
The Italian prime minister Mario Draghi called Mr Erdogan a ‘dictator’
A&E ‘swamped’ with patients seeking help for mild Covid jab side-effects. Emergency departments report surge in cases of headaches linked to AstraZeneca jab amid concerns of blood clots
One in 20 local areas have recorded a week-on-week rise in rates.