Women on pensions as low as £1 a week could be owed 'lottery-winning' sums in back payments

Women receiving a pension of as little as £1 a week could be owed sums equivalent to lottery wins, according to a former pensions minister.

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  • COVID-19: Young people who have had coronavirus will get £5,000 for being deliberately re-exposed to the virus

    Young people who have previously had COVID-19 are going to be deliberately exposed to the virus for a second time - in a new study that aims to see how their immune systems react. The University of Oxford's "human challenge" trial also hopes to discover what dose of coronavirus is needed to cause a reinfection, and what this may mean for developing protective immunity against the disease. People aged 18 to 30 who have previously been naturally infected with COVID will be recruited and re-exposed to the virus in a safe, controlled environment.

  • Britain can’t slash emissions without clamping down on the ‘polluter elite’

    Britain can’t slash emissions without clamping down on the ‘polluter elite’. To move towards zero carbon, the government must focus on overconsumption by the wealthy and powerful

  • Alexei Navalny moved to prison hospital after huge outcry during hunger strike

    Alexei Navalny, the jailed Russian opposition leader, has been transferred to a prison hospital, Russian prison authorities said on Monday, amid growing fears for his life. Several doctors who were able to see his latest blood tests, including Mr Navalny’s personal physician, warned at the weekend that the politician was in critical condition because of “catastrophically high” potassium levels that might lead to heart failure. The doctors showed up at the prison in which Mr Navalny is being kept on Sunday but were not allowed in. Mr Navalny’s allies and family - including his mother, wife and teenage daughter - took to social media over the weekend to plead the Kremlin to let a civilian doctor examine him. Local prison authorities said in a statement on Monday that Mr Navalny’s condition was “satisfactory” and that he had been taken to a hospital ward in another prison. Mr Navalny’s family and team raised the alarm about his health last month when the Kremlin’s most outspoken critic went on hunger strike to protest the prison administration’s refusal to let him see a civilian doctor following pains in his back and legs.

  • Matthew McConaughey is a viable candidate for Texas governor, poll reveals

    Hollywood actor has support of 45 per cent of Texans against incumbent governor’s 33 per cent

  • Queen’s birthday to pass without gun salute for second time

    There will be no gun salute to mark the Queen’s 95th birthday on Wednesday as she continues to mourn the loss of her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh. For the second consecutive year, the traditional 41-gun and 21-gun salutes in Hyde Park and the Tower of London on April 21 have been cancelled, the Ministry of Defence said. Her Majesty will continue to observe a period of mourning until Friday and as such, is understood to be reluctant to mark this year’s anniversary. She is expected to enjoy a quiet lunch with close family members at Windsor Castle, the details of which will remain private. Plans to mark her birthday with a new portrait have also been abandoned, the Daily Mail reports. The Royal family’s social media channels will likely be the only commemoration of the Queen turning 95. Royal sources suggested that even before the Duke’s death on April 9, the Queen had not wanted her forthcoming birthday to be marked in any meaningful way. She was keen for the focus to be on his 100th birthday celebrations, which would have taken place on June 10, one said. Last year, the salute was cancelled in line with the Queen’s wishes that no "special measures" were taken while the pandemic continued. The monarch will no doubt spend time on Wednesday in quiet reflection, remembering last year’s birthday, spent with her husband at Windsor during the first lockdown, as they isolated together. The Queen’s birthday parade, Trooping the Colour, which was due to have taken place on June 12, was cancelled in March for the second consecutive year due to the pandemic. Before the Duke’s death, Buckingham Palace had been considering a smaller event within the quadrangle at Windsor Castle, in line with last year's ceremony. Last summer, an event described as a "mini Trooping" was held at Windsor, led by the Welsh Guards and massed Bands of the Household Division, to the clear delight of Her Majesty. The annual Garter service, also usually held in June, has also been cancelled. While the Queen is determined to continue carrying out some solo engagements, she is thought unlikely to undertake anything in public in the coming weeks. However, Buckingham Palace has confirmed that she will attend the state opening of parliament at the Palace of Westminster on May 11, one of the key events in her diary, when she is due to be accompanied by the Prince of Wales.

  • Alex Salmond: An independent Scotland should not immediately pursue full EU membership

    Alex Salmond has said that an independent Scotland should not immediately pursue full EU membership and must establish its own currency “immediately”, in a fresh attack on Nicola Sturgeon’s constitutional strategy. The former First Minister claimed the SNP case for separation was “frozen in aspic” and had not taken account of drastic changes since he led the Yes campaign to defeat in 2014. He suggested that an independent Scotland should initially have a Norway-style relationship with Europe, as a member of European Free Trade Association (EFTA), saying this would allow Scotland to maintain access to the UK internal market and British common travel area. Ms Sturgeon remains determined to rejoin the EU, even though this would likely mean a land border with England and trade barriers with the UK, with which Scottish firms do the majority of their business. The Alba leader, who wants his new party to establish a Holyrood “supermajority” for independence after May’s election, also criticised the SNP’s currency stance.

  • Boris Johnson news – live: ‘Shocking’ race report condemned by UN as Tory donor linked to lobbying scandal

    Latest developments from Westminster

  • Australia opens quarantine-free travel bubble with New Zealand

    Emotions ran high Monday as excited passengers set off on the first flights to take advantage of a quarantine-free travel bubble between Australia and New Zealand, allowing families split by the pandemic to finally reunite. "(I'll) yell, scream, cry, hug, kiss, (feel) happy -- all of these emotions at once," Denise O'Donoghue, 63, told AFP at Sydney airport as she prepared to board her flight.The arrangement means that for the first time in almost 400 days passengers can fly across the Tasman Sea without undergoing mandatory Covid-19 quarantine when they arrive."It's a very big day and exciting for families and friends," said New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who hailed the success of both countries in containing the virus as a key factor in allowing the travel corridor.Australia was New Zealand's largest source of international tourists before the pandemic, accounting for about 1.5 million arrivals or 40 percent of total visitors in 2019.The bubble's opening received saturation coverage from media in both countries, with live television reporting from airports providing regular updates on the progress of flights.On a grass embankment at the foot of Wellington Airport's runway, the words 'WELCOME WHANAU' (family) were spelled out in giant letters.Lorraine Wratt, a New Zealander stranded by the pandemic while visiting family in Australia, told AFP it was "wonderful" to be able to travel again."We're very excited to be heading back home but we're gonna miss our family (in Australia) big time," she said."We came to Australia on December 11 to spend Christmas with our children... planning to go back in February, it's been a bit of a nightmare."'Day one of our revival'Australia is home to hundreds of thousands of expatriate New Zealanders and before coronavirus many regularly shuttled back and forth across the Tasman on three-hour flights.O'Donoghue said the travel bubble's opening made her feel the world was returning to some sort of normality."I'll be going back, they'll be coming over, we'll just be back to normal," she said."What normal's going to be from now on I don't know, but I'm just really, really excited today."Air New Zealand executive Craig Suckling said the atmosphere at Sydney airport before departure was electric."It was quite the emotional rollercoaster here in Sydney," he said."The check-in area was a hive of activity and at the boarding gate, customers were eager to get on."The airline's chief executive Greg Foran said it was also a "monumental" day for those involved in the hard-hit tourism industry."(It's) a real turning point for the airline. It's day one of our revival," he said.(AFP)

  • Royal summit to decide future of monarchy to be led by Prince Charles and Prince William

    The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge will hold a summit to decide the future of the monarchy over the next two generations following the death of the Duke of Edinburgh. In consultation with the Queen, Britain’s next two kings will decide how many full-time working members the Royal family should have, who they should be, and what they should do. The death of Prince Philip has left the Royal family with the immediate question of how and whether to redistribute the hundreds of patronages he retained. Meanwhile the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s decision to step back from royal duties, confirmed only last month after a one-year “review period”, has necessitated a rethink of who should support the sovereign in the most high-profile roles. Royal insiders say that the two matters cannot be decided in isolation, as the issues of patronage and personnel are inextricably linked. Because any decisions made now will have repercussions for decades to come, the Prince of Wales will take a leading role in the talks. He has made it clear that the Duke of Cambridge, his own heir, should be involved at every stage because any major decisions taken by 72-year-old Prince Charles will last into Prince William’s reign. The Earl and Countess of Wessex, who were more prominent than almost any other member of the Royal family in the days leading up to the Duke’s funeral, are expected to plug the gap left by the departure of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex by taking on more high-profile engagements. However, they already carry out a significant number of royal duties – 544 between them in the last full year before Covid struck – meaning they will not be able to absorb the full workload left by the absences of the Sussexes and the Duke of York, who remains in effective retirement as a result of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. In 2019 the Sussexes and the Duke completed 558 engagements between them. It leaves the Royal family needing to carry out a full-scale review of how their public duties are fulfilled. Not only do they have three fewer people to call on, they must also decide what to do with several hundred patronages and military titles held by the Duke of Edinburgh, the Sussexes and possibly the Duke of York, if his retirement is permanent. Royal sources said the Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge would discuss over the coming weeks and months how the monarchy should evolve. The issue has been at the top of the Queen and the Prince of Wales’s respective in-trays since the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s one-year review period of their royal future came to an end last month, but the ill health and subsequent death of Prince Philip forced them to put the matter on hold.

  • Moscow lashes out after Prague accuses Skripal suspects over deadly blast

    In Prague, angry protesters waved a red flag made of underwear and smeared the Russian embassy wall with blood-like ketchup

  • Lizzo drunkenly slid into Chris Evans’ DMs – and got a reply: ‘Damn papa, he a rare breed’

    Lizzo has revealed that she sent Chris Evans a drunk DM – and he responded in the best possible way.

  • Factbox-Who are the Skripal poisoning suspects allegedly behind deadly Czech blast?

    The Czech Republic has identified the same alleged Russian military intelligence officers wanted by Britain for the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal as suspects in a deadly 2014 blast at an ammunition depot. The men, known under the aliases Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov, are reportedly part of the elite Unit 29155 of Russia's GRU military intelligence service. The unit, according to a 2019 report by The New York Times, is focused on subversion, sabotage and assassination outside Russia.

  • Britons with first dose of Covid vaccine ‘have become infected with variants’

    Dr Susan Hopkins has urged people to ‘take caution’ as India variant emerges in the UK

  • Alex Salmond says an independent Scotland should not immediately pursue full EU membership

    Alex Salmond has said that an independent Scotland should not immediately pursue full EU membership and must establish its own currency “immediately”, in a fresh attack on Nicola Sturgeon’s constitutional strategy. The former First Minister claimed the SNP case for separation was “frozen in aspic” and had not taken account of drastic changes since he led the Yes campaign to defeat in 2014. He suggested that an independent Scotland should initially have a Norway-style relationship with Europe, as a member of European Free Trade Association (EFTA), saying this would allow Scotland to maintain access to the UK internal market and British common travel area. Ms Sturgeon remains determined to rejoin the EU, even though this would likely mean a land border with England and trade barriers with the UK, with which Scottish firms do the majority of their business. The Alba leader, who wants his new party to establish a Holyrood “supermajority” for independence after May’s election, also criticised the SNP’s currency stance.

  • Reunited in grief: How Prince Harry spent a golden hour talking with his family

    They gamely presented a united front in the aftermath of the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral, strolling side by side and chatting amiably as they emerged from St George’s Chapel into the sunshine. But the Duke of Sussex, 36, was afforded a rare opportunity to have a proper heart to heart with his brother, the Duke of Cambridge, his father and his grandmother on Saturday, as they returned to the confines of Windsor Castle. There, a couple of hours after the ceremony, when most other guests had melted away, senior members of the Royal family spent around an hour together, face to face for the first time in more than a year. There, reunited in grief and in their support for the Queen, Prince Harry is understood to have spent valuable time with Her Majesty, Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. It was the first time they had been together under one roof since the Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey last March, when the frostiness and the tension was palpable.

  • Cutting the cost of Covid tests for travellers

    Cutting the cost of Covid tests for travellersMike Whittaker has a suggestion to reduce test costs for those wishing to travel abroad, while Catherine Dunn says that if the government invested in public health infrastructure, we would have a more effective testing system ‘In principle, the samples from all persons in a travel group could be combined into one single sample tube, which is then tested with a single test.’ Photograph: Kirsty O’Connor/PA

  • 'Line Of Duty' series 6 episode 5 recap: Jo Davidson's past revealed and a nerve-shredding Mexican standoff

    The endless speculation about DCI Joanne Davidson's family history is over.

  • Stanley Johnson in bitter war of words with neighbour over fences and outdoor pigs

    From his study in the sleepy, rolling hills of Exmoor, Stanley Johnson looks on to a small piece of fenced off farmland. But what should be a pleasant view has become a source of anger for the Prime Minister's father, because he believes the fences were originally put up without the correct permission – a claim denied by the current owner of the land. The row is now so furious that the Exmoor National Park is investigating and Mr Johnson has been accused of “never having farmed a day in his life” and even “disliking outdoor pigs”. The 127 acre plot at the centre of the dispute used to be common land. When erecting fences on land which is, or used to be, a common, the Secretary of State for the Environment must be asked for permission. Solicitors from the Exmoor National Park are currently ascertaining whether this permission was either sought or granted. Mr Johnson told The Telegraph how the view from the window is simply a hill, bare of trees, and covered in grass and livestock, and it should instead be opened up to the public. The 80-year-old believes the land, which is now up for sale, should be rewilded with trees and not used for farming. But Mark Andrews, who is selling the land, pictured below, fears the row may "make it difficult" to attract potential buyers if they are forced to remove the fences.

  • Robert De Niro unable to turn down acting roles because of his ‘estranged wife's expensive lifestyle’

    Hollywood legend Robert De Niro is unable to turn down acting roles because he must pay for his estranged wife's expensive tastes, the actor's lawyer has claimed. Caroline Krauss told a Manhattan court that he is struggling financially because of the pandemic, a massive tax bill and the demands of Grace Hightower, who filed for divorce in 2018 after 21 years of marriage. The court has been asked to settle how much De Niro should pay Ms Hightower, 66, until the terms of the prenuptial agreement the couple negotiated in 2004 takes effect. “Mr De Niro is 77 years old, and while he loves his craft, he should not be forced to work at this prodigious pace because he has to,” Ms Krauss told the court. “When does that stop? When does he get the opportunity to not take every project that comes along and not work six-day weeks, 12-hour days so he can keep pace with Ms Hightower’s thirst for Stella McCartney?”

  • Prince Harry ‘wants to stay in Britain for Queen’s 95th birthday and has not booked flight’

    Prince Harry has not booked his return flight to the United States but will return as soon as his pregnant wife Meghan needs him, a source close to the couple said today. The Duke of Sussex is believed to want to remain in Britain to mark the Queen’s 95th birthday this week if possible. Prince Philip’s funeral was the first time Prince Harry had met his relatives since the couple’s explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey, which was broadcast last month.