News – World and UK

Ferries and trains have been disrupted as snow, rain and wind warnings are in force and are expected to cause further travel issues on New Year’s Eve. Almost every part of the country is covered by at least one of the multiple weather warnings that have been issued by the Met Office between Monday and Wednesday. Scotland is being hit first by “fairly persistent rain” and snow, with 50-70mm of rainfall […]

Gatwick Airport has said operations are “returning to normal” after four days of fog-related flight restrictions. More than 20 flights planned for the West Sussex airport on Monday were cancelled in advance. Flights at the UK’s second busiest airport were disrupted between Friday and early on Monday morning because of fog. Later on Monday, a Gatwick spokesperson said: “Temporary air traffic restrictions in place over the weekend due to fog have been […]

An 18-year-old man sentenced to one year in a Dubai jail for having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl has handed himself in to begin his sentence, a campaign group has said. Marcus Fakana, of Tottenham, north London, “now hopes for a pardon” from Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Detained in Dubai said. In a message from Mr Fakana shared by the group, he thanked those […]

The King and the Prime Minister have paid tribute to Jimmy Carter following the former US president’s death on Sunday aged 100. In a message to the American people, the King expressed “great sadness” at the news of Mr Carter’s death, describing him as “a committed public servant” who “devoted his life to promoting peace and human rights”. He added: “His dedication and humility served as an inspiration to many, and I […]

Smokers have been urged to kick the habit in the new year after new analysis shows how much of their lives are lost by each cigarette smoked. Men lose 17 minutes of life with every cigarette they smoke while a woman’s life is cut short by 22 minutes with each cigarette, experts have estimated. This is more than previous estimates, which suggest that each cigarette shortens a smoker’s life by […]

Reported incidents of wrong-way driving on England’s motorways have increased by 15% in the past year, an investigation has found. A motoring organisation described the increase as “frightening” and called for a “full review of signage and road layout”. National Highways figures obtained by the PA news agency show 988 incidents involving “oncoming vehicles” were reported on England’s motorways in the year to November 17. That is up from 858 during the […]

A priceless piece of Moon rock donated to Ireland following a Nasa mission was destroyed in a fire, newly released records show. Documents from the National Archives in Dublin detail the embarrassing affair, which saw the rock travel 380,000km (236,121 miles) to Earth before spending three years in a government basement and ultimately being lost in an accidental fire at Dunsink Observatory. The lunar rock, which originated from the Apollo […]

He served one term in the White House between 1977 and 1981 Former US president Jimmy Carter has died aged 100. Mr Carter, a former peanut farmer, served one term in the White House between 1977 and 1981, taking over in the wake of the Watergate scandal and the end of the Vietnam War. After his defeat by Ronald Reagan, he spent his post-presidency years as a global humanitarian, winning […]

At least 151 people were killed when a passenger plane skidded off a runway at a South Korean airport, slammed into a concrete fence and burst into flames after its front landing gear apparently failed to deploy, officials said. The National Fire Agency said rescuers raced to pull people from the Jeju Air passenger plane carrying 181 people at the airport in the town of Muan, about 180 miles (290km) […]