Politics

Scotland's Catholic Bishops have written to the First Minister urging support for Ash Regan's bill, which would criminalise buying sex and decriminalise selling it; the bill has split the Criminal Justice Committee and faces a key vote at Holyrood.

President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned a Russian drone attack on a crowded passenger train in Ukraine's Kharkiv region that officials say killed at least five people and injured several. Russia has not commented, and officials reported explosions near the train.

West Yorkshire Combined Authority approved £6.5m to buy 33 ultra-low emission access buses to replace an ageing dial-a-ride fleet used by older, disabled and other passengers; only a small number of the new vehicles will be fully electric, with most described as low-emission diesel.

Polling shows many young people favour tougher social media regulation, and UK ministers are debating age limits as part of wider measures for children’s wellbeing; a government consultation is under way and Parliament will discuss the idea this week.

Ukrainian officials and residents report repeated missile and drone strikes on Odesa in recent months, with attacks hitting energy infrastructure and causing widespread power and water outages; authorities link the pattern to renewed fighting over the Black Sea and maritime routes.

Former prime minister Scott Morrison urged a national register and accreditation for imams after a speech in Jerusalem, and his proposals prompted strong condemnation from Muslim community groups who called the ideas deeply ill‑informed and an attack on religious freedom.

The EU signed a large trade agreement with India in New Delhi, where EU leaders were given a red-carpet welcome; the visit followed recent tensions involving the Greenland dispute.

President Trump said the government will "de-escalate a little bit" in Minnesota after the shooting of Pretti; DHS has reassigned its mission leader and sent Tom Homan, and a federal judge blocked DHS from destroying or altering evidence.

President Trump signed an executive order directing FEMA and the SBA to seek rules that could preempt local permitting and allow builders to self-certify as part of efforts to speed reconstruction after the January 2025 Los Angeles-area wildfires.

Local residents in Fareham gave mixed responses after Suella Braverman announced she had left the Conservative Party to join Reform UK; some said they would still support her while others expressed disappointment and concern.

First Lady Melania Trump issued a rare public comment calling for unity and peaceful protests after recent shootings in Minnesota, and she praised a phone call between President Trump and local officials.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood published a white paper proposing major changes to policing in England and Wales, and Thames Valley Chief Constable Jason Hogg said he is cautiously optimistic and offered his force as a template.

A heavy drone attack on Odesa injured 23 people, including two children and a pregnant woman, officials said; Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a new round of talks with the United States and Russia is penciled in for Feb. 1.

The government has published a draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill to cap annual ground rents at £250 and ban new leasehold flats, with the measures expected to reach effect subject to parliamentary timings, possibly in late 2028.

The European Union and India concluded long-running talks and signed a broad trade agreement together with separate mobility, security and defence pacts. The accord aims to cut tariffs on cars and other EU goods and still needs ratification by member states and the European Parliament.

Ninety-year-old survivor Liesel Carter spoke at a Leeds event for Holocaust Memorial Day about fleeing Nazi Germany in 1939 and the loss of more than 200 family members; the day's national theme is 'bridging the generations'.

Katy Perry and other U.S. celebrities urged citizens to contact lawmakers after two people were killed in Minnesota during a federal immigration enforcement operation; administration officials described the incidents as self‑defense while video evidence was reported to contradict that account.

Sajid Javid’s new memoir, The Colour of Home, recounts being arrested as a teenager for cheating slot machines and describes a strict family upbringing that included physical punishment; it also traces his later career from banking into senior government roles and charity work.

Russian strikes injured at least 15 people in Kyiv and Kharkhiv, and Ukraine reported emergency power outages as damage to energy infrastructure increased.

The U.S. military confirmed the death toll from strikes on vessels described as alleged drug boats is 126, including 10 people presumed lost at sea; the strikes occurred in at least 36 attacks since early September.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood unveiled a white paper proposing wide-ranging policing reforms, including greater use of AI and live facial recognition and a proposal to give the home secretary power to remove senior officers.

Israel says its military has begun a large-scale operation to locate the last remaining Israeli hostage, Ran Gvili, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the Rafah crossing with Egypt will be opened once the search is exhausted under an agreement with the United States.

The Israeli military said it identified the remains of the last hostage held in Gaza as police officer Ran Gvili and will return them for burial; Israel said it will reopen the Rafah crossing once the remains are returned or the search concludes.

A Peterborough secondary school will host a Ramadan awareness development session on 5 February, organised with the Muslim Council of Peterborough and Gladstone Community District Association. Speaker Maqsood Ahmed OBE will lead the workshop to explain how fasting and changes to routines can affect pupils and to explore classroom scenarios.

A proposal to build 15,000 homes at Thamesmead Waterfront on a roughly 100-hectare brownfield site has been shortlisted as one of 12 new towns and is awaiting formal government approval after transport backing for a DLR extension.

A travel ban that included Myanmar left University of Michigan student Patrick Thaw unable to return to campus after a summer internship in Singapore; he has since applied to universities in Australia and Canada while his U.S. options remain uncertain.

Gunmen opened fire at a soccer field in Salamanca, central Mexico, killing 11 people and wounding 12, and the Guanajuato prosecutor's office said it has opened an investigation and is coordinating with federal authorities.

The UK will sign a declaration to join a joint North Sea offshore wind scheme with eight other countries, committing to complete the plan by 2050. For the first time, some new wind farms would be linked to multiple countries by undersea interconnectors.

Medics said Israeli fire killed three Palestinians in two incidents and an Israeli drone wounded four in Gaza City, while U.S. envoys met Israeli leaders to discuss a Gaza plan.

The Department of Homeland Security said Border Patrol officers shot a man who approached them with a 9 mm handgun; his family identified him as Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse and disputed the administration's characterization. A vigil was held in Minneapolis and the family said they had not heard from federal authorities as of Saturday evening.