Thursday’s elections, while limited in number, are the first test of Reform’s ability to convert that polling into power. It’s also favored to win a closely fought special election for a parliamentary seat the same night. Jeremy Corbyn, the hard-left former leader of the Labour Party, was a notable exception in 2017 when he spoke at the Glastonbury music festival and was serenaded enthusiastically by concertgoers. “Rallies have gone out of political fashion,” said Neil Kinnock, who led Labour from 1983 to 1992, and was one of the most accomplished orators of his era. He was famed for his platform speeches, including his 1983 warning against voting Conservative and his passionate denunciation of the hard left in 1985.

Aston Martin Lagonda has cut back on exports to the United States as it monitors the impact of President Trump’s tariffs on demand for its luxury sports cars. Shipping its Vantage, Vanquish, DB12 and DBX models across the Atlantic from its factories in Warwickshire and south Wales is big business for the company. Sales in the Americas account for about a third of group volumes, with the vast majority of that in the US. In a statement accompanying its first-quarter results, the only carmaker quoted in London, said: “We are carefully monitoring the evolving US tariff situation and are currently limiting imports to the US while leveraging the stock held by our US dealers. “We remain vigilant in monitoring events and will respond to changes

"They see the value that we bring to the area and they understand why we need to have more non-rugby events when you compare it to Tottenham, Wembley, the O2. They can see why we need those non-rugby events to make the thing viable.

A man accused of wounding two women with a crossbow in the British city of Leeds on Saturday has died of a self-inflicted injury, the police said on Tuesday. The suspect, Owen Lawrence, 38, died in the hospital where he was taken after his arrest at the scene of the attack, the counterterrorism police said in a statement. The two women, ages 19 and 31, were seriously injured, the authorities said. One was released from the hospital a day after the attack, but the other remained hospitalized on Tuesday after undergoing surgery for life-threatening wounds, they said. The police said they were still investigating the motivation for the rampage, during which witnesses saw the suspect walking along a three-mile stretch of pubs and bars, known locally as the “Otley Run,” armed with a crossbow and several air rifles.

No YesIsrael and Gaza once again in focusSudan: A humanitarian disasterCriticism of GermanyCall to reflect on human rightsAccording to the UK-based human rights organization Amnesty International , we are at a "critical juncture" when it comes to universal human rights worldwide. Its report underlines religious, patriarchal and racist assaults on the system of human rights conventions, universal human rights, international humanitarian law , and international courts agreed upon by states after the crimes of the Nazis and World War II. Amnesty International assesses the human rights situation in a total of 150 countries every year.Amnesty's annual report identifies three main ongoing trends. This was particularly true of states that once were committed to universal human rights, such as the US. That is why we are calling on governments to put human rights at the heart of their policies.

Similarly lovely landscapes across Dedham Vale, which straddles the River Stour, are captured in many a Constable painting, which gave rise to its nickname Constable Country. Details B&B doubles from £209 (milsomhotels.com)• Revealed: 100 Best Places to Stay in the UK for 2025Advertisement2. Conwy Castle, ConwyWilliam Turner’s Conway Castle. Conwy Castle — looming above the River Conwy — became a favourite subject that Turner re-created in numerous paintings and sketches such as Conwy Castle. AdvertisementDetails B&B doubles from £150 (crerarhotels.com)• 12 of the best places to visit in the UK5.

""So something I took from Margot on 'Doctor Who' was to get the crew good food vans. Once a month, bring in a pizza van or an ice cream van. That's the lesson I learned from Margot. "The 'Masters of the Air' actor felt "revived" after he returned to London's National Theatre in ' The Importance of Being Earnest ' at the end of last year and into January in what was his first theatre role since 2018.He said: "It was so invigorating. I like a cup of tea and sitting in my house now."

They're the same as the Tories. But Starmer acknowledged on Monday the Runcorn by-election was "going to be tough". "They've still got time to turn things around," the 61-year-old said. Turnout for by-elections is notoriously low.Nevertheless, a Reform win would give the party "momentum", said David Jeffery, a British politics lecturer at the University of Liverpool. "The flip side is that they can sometimes cause party leaders embarrassment," said Tim Bale, politics protessor at Queen Mary University of London.Reform has had to drop candidates for making offensive comments.

Read our Privacy noticeDoctors at the British Medical Association (BMA) have condemned the Supreme Court’s ruling on biological sex, dubbing it “biologically nonsensical” and “scientifically illiterate”. The union branch representing resident doctors – made up of around 50,000 medics previously known as junior doctors - passed a motion on Saturday criticising the judgement, which ruled that trans women are not legally women under the Equalities Act. But it also says that “in some circumstances the law also allows trans women (biological men) not to be permitted to use the men’s facilities, and trans men (biological women) not to be permitted to use the women’s facilities”. A BMA spokesperson said: "Attendees at the BMA's resident doctors conference voted to show their opposition to the Supreme Court ruling on Saturday. “The BMA respects trans patients' dignity, autonomy, and human rights and continues to believe that trans doctors, NHS workers and patients deserve dignity, safety, and equitable access to healthcare and healthcare facilities."

The UK is set to experience the warmest start to May on record with temperatures reaching up to 30C on Thursday. Parts of southern and central England will be hit by the highest temperatures over the next few days, before cooling off slightly by the weekend. So far, Monday was the warmest day of the year with a high of 24.5C recorded in St James’s Park in London. The previous temperature record for the beginning of May was 27.4C in 1990. Nicola Maxey of the Met Office said: “As high pressure continues

Pope Francis is alleged to have interfered with a key witness before he changed his evidence in the Vatican’s controversial “trial of the century” over an ill-fated £300 million London property deal. Leaked documents, messages and voicemails have been passed to the London financier Raffaele Mincione, who was convicted under canon law of embezzlement by a Vatican court in 2023. The conviction related to a loss-making investment in 60 Sloane Avenue, Chelsea, a landmark building that was once a car showroom for Harrods. Mincione, 60, has always protested his innocence and argued that the Vatican case — which was investigated, prosecuted and tried by officials appointed by the Pope — was conducted unfairly. • High Court ruling raises questions about Vatican’s ‘trial of the century’

The Times has listed Sauna in the Woods in Rackheath as one of the UK's best wild saunas. The traditional wood-fired sauna ranked alongside the Wildwood Spa in Mawgan Porth, Cornwall and the Secret Sauna in Bungay, Suffolk. There is a plunge pool for guests to cool down in (Image: Sauna in the Woods) Author Emma O'Kelley said: "Whether it’s down to the freshwater swimming pond, the forest of silver birch trees or the chunky, hand-hewn cabin doors and frames, Sauna in the Woods feels about as Nordic as it gets in the UK." The wild sauna is situated within 40 acres of private woodland "and the silence and privacy of the setting are magical". READ MORE: Hunstanton named one of the UK's prettiest seaside townsThere is a converted 1960s bus changing room on site (Image: Sauna in the Woods) The site also includes a converted 1960s bus changing room, a natural swimming pool and a wooden plunge pool to cool off in.

Two men used a chain saw to cut down the celebrated Sycamore Gap tree in the north of England in a “moronic mission” in 2023, and the felling was filmed on a cellphone, a prosecutor in northeastern England said on Tuesday. The tree, a beloved landmark that stood by Hadrian’s Wall, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was found illegally cut down in September 2023. The trial for the two defendants in the case — Daniel Graham, 39, and Adam Carruthers, 32, both from Cumbria, England — opened on Tuesday in Newcastle Crown Court, in England’s northeast, less than an hour’s drive from where the tree stump stands. The men have pleaded not guilty to two charges of criminal damage. Presenting the case against the defendants on Tuesday morning, the prosecutor, Richard Wright, called the felling a “moronic mission” and an “act of deliberate and mindless criminal damage.”

, externalThe i Paper says, external Spain and Portugal were "thrown into chaos". The Financial Times, external talks of people flowing on to the streets when metro stations were taken offline. A different focus is taken by the Sun,, external which focuses on the impact on British tourists with its headline, "no beer in Benidorm". The Daily Telegraph reports, external on the proposed new law blocking sex offenders from gaining asylum in the UK. And the Daily Express leads, external with a quote from the Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, who has criticised the government's inheritance tax on farmers.

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