James Heale

What, if anything, can stop Nigel Farage? That’s the question many in Westminster are asking as they try to reconcile themselves to the rise of Reform UK. The party has soared to 30 per cent in the polls – and is now seeking further gains. Farage’s speech this morning was his attempt to make hay from Labour’s woes on welfare. Reform, he pledged, would scrap both the winter fuel cut and the two-child benefit cap, while introducing a new tax allowance to reward married couples. It was all part of Farage’s pitch to frame himself as the defender of the welfare state, besieged by cuts at home and invaders from abroad. He argues that, currently, social services are a perverse inversion, offering little to British voters while generously subsidising foreign citizens.

A 53-year-old man was arrested on Monday after a car ploughed into a crowd of Liverpool supporters during their Premier League trophy parade. Thousands were out on the streets to celebrate when the car drove through the crowds and collided with pedestrians, shortly after 6 p.m. The incident occurred in the heart of Liverpool city centre, with emergency services quick to arrive on the scene. Witnesses described a scene of panic as fans left the parade area, telling local media that the driver went past a police van before mounting the kerb. At a press conference at 11 p.m on Monday night, Merseyside emergency services provided an update on the victims affected by the crash. There were 27 patients taken to hospitals across Liverpool, including four children.

After months of negotiation, the UK has today signed a deal to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. Under the terms of the agreement, Britain will lease back the military base there for an annual rate of £101 million. The net value of the payments from the UK under the treaty will reach £3.4 billion. Keir Starmer insisted that the Chagos deal is in Britain's best interests The Prime Minister insists that the deal – which involves a lease on the base for 99 years ‘and beyond’ – is in the country’s national interest. It comes after an ‘advisory opinion’ by the UN’s International Court of Justice (ICJ), that the Chagos Islands belonged to Mauritius.

Keir Starmer has just wrapped up his press conference with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen. The Prime Minister sought to bang the drum for his EU reset, citing his three 'driving principles': more jobs, lower costs and enhanced border control. Starmer boasted that his deal ensures 'unprecedented access to the EU market, the best of any country outside of the EU or Efta', while ensuring Britain remains outside the single market and customs union, with no return to freedom of movement. The text of today's agreement is still being scrutinised – yet the risk is it ends up pleasing neither Remainers nor Brexiteers. Both the UK and EU have agreed to 'work towards' a youth mobility scheme, but there is no detail on a cap or timeframe.

Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an 'aggressive form' of prostate cancer, according to a statement released by his office on Sunday. Biden, 82, was diagnosed on Friday, after he saw a doctor last week for urinary symptoms. The former US president and his family are now reviewing treatment options, with the cancer cells now having spread to the bone. Prostate cancers are ranked on a 'Gleason score' that measures, on a scale of one to 10, how the cancerous cells look compared with normal cells. Biden’s office said his score was nine, suggesting his cancer is among the most aggressive. Metastasised cancer is much harder to treat than localised cancer because it can be hard for drugs to reach all the tumours and completely root out the disease.