Scorching 28C heat to return after Storm Antoni downpours in dramatic weather change - The Independent

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The UK will finally enjoy summer heat this week with temperatures reaching 28C in parts if the country.

It marks a dramatic turnaround to this weekend, when Storm Antoni brought heavy downpours, flooding and 78mph winds to much of Britain.

The Met Office forecast is that by Wednesday, temperatures may reach highs of 25C and then rise again to 28C by Thursday.

(Getty Images)

This would be the first time the UK will have seen highs of 25C or above since July 8, with August getting off to a miserable start for many.

But meteorologist Simon Partridge warns the warm weather will be short-lived as rain is expected to return by Friday.

"By Thursday, we will probably reach 27C-28C in southeast England,” he told the Independent. “Wednesday to Thursday will be when we get an area of high pressure for a change and winds coming in from the south.

"It won't be all sunshine as there will be sunny spells but a fair bit of cloud, particularly towards the north and the west.

"But by Friday a band of rain will move in across the UK and we will be back to where we are today.

"By Saturday we will be back to showers and temperatures to around if not a little bit below average."

The temperatures could rise up to 28C in parts of the UK b y Thursday, the Met Office said

(Met Office)

However, Mr Partridge added that this month may be more settled for the rest of August with calmer winds.

The forecast comes in the aftermath of Storm Antoni, which saw a month’s worth of rain fall in less than a day on Saturday.

Huge areas of the country were issued yellow storm warnings with torrential rain flooding parts of Whitby, North Yorkshire.

A number of events including the annual Dorset jazz festival and the two-day festival LooseFest in Newcastle's Town Moor were cancelled as a result.

Coastal areas were battered by high winds across much of the UK

(AFP via Getty Images)

Overnight the conditions settled and they will continue to ease throughout the rest of the week.

Looking to Monday, it will be largely dry on Monday with sunny spells. Tuesday is expected to be cloudy with some patches of rain.

But for those in the west and southwestern areas of the country, conditions are expected to be cloudier and wet later this week.

A Met Office spokesperson said: "Similar conditions are likely to persist throughout the rest of the period, with high pressure to the east of the UK bringing dry weather to the southeast.

"However, a low-pressure system in the northwest is likely to bring wet and rainy conditions to the northwest areas.

"Perhaps periods of low clouds and misty conditions at times for the south.

"Winds are likely to be light for most, stronger in the north. Temperatures will mostly be warmer than average."

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2023-08-07 05:31:26Z
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New vaccine research centre in UK to help scientists prepare for ‘disease X’ - The Guardian

Ministers have opened a new vaccine research centre in the UK where scientists will work on preparing for “disease X”, the next potential pandemic pathogen.

The state-of-the-art Vaccine Development and Evaluation Centre is based at the UK Health and Security Agency’s (UKHSA) Porton Down campus in Wiltshire.

Live viruses will be kept onsite in specialist containment facilities where scientists can assess pathogens that do not yet have a vaccine or ones where immunisation could be improved, for example, the flu or mpox.

Prof Dame Jenny Harries said: “What we’re trying to do now is capture that really excellent work from Covid and make sure we’re using that as we go forward for any new pandemic threats.”

She added: “What we try to do here is keep an eye on the ones that we do know. For example, with Covid, we are still here testing all the new variants with the vaccines that have been provided to check they are still effective.

“But we are also looking at how quickly we can develop a new test that would be used if a brand new virus popped up somewhere.”

The opening of the facility is announced after the Covid inquiry heard evidence that previous governments were ill prepared for a pandemic, with its plans focusing too much on the possibility of an influenza pandemic rather than other viruses. The former prime minister David Cameron had admitted this was a “mistake”.

Prof Isabel Oliver, UKHSA’s chief scientific officer, said: “We know that through scientific advancement, we could detect and control these spreads before they have the impact that Covid-19 had on our lives.

“It’s not easy, but we know that if we strengthen surveillance and if we accelerate the development of diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics, we could do so much better.

“We need to be prepared for all threats, including those that have not been detected yet.” The government said the centre also underlined the UK’s commitment to the 100 Days Mission, a global goal set by the G7 in 2021 with the aim of deploying a vaccine against any new pandemic threat within 100 days of identification.

The health secretary, Steve Barclay, said: “This new centre cements the UK’s global position spearheading pandemic preparedness, vaccine development, and scientific discovery.

“This state-of-the-art complex will also help us deliver on our commitment to produce new vaccines within 100 days of a new threat being identified.”

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2023-08-07 01:30:00Z
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Bibby Stockholm: First asylum seekers to board barge - BBC

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By Malu Cursino & Dan Johnson

BBC News

The first 50 asylum seekers will be moved to the Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland later, the BBC has been told.

Up to 500 men aged 18-65 will be housed on the barge while they await the outcome of their asylum application.

The floating accommodation block was docked off the Dorset coast nearly three weeks ago, and has been empty since due to health and safety worries.

But ministers have said the vessel is safe and functional.

Home Office sources have said the barge is ready to host its first group of asylum seekers, and the BBC understands that some people were told to expect to be moved on Monday.

The government has said the vessel offers basic and functional accommodation and it previously housed oil and gas workers - as well as asylum seekers in other countries.

However, the key difference is that its capacity - which used to be 222 - has been doubled to 500 by putting bunk beds in its cabins, and converting some communal rooms into dormitories for four to six men.

Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick said the government still planned to increase capacity to 500 despite concerns from the Fire Brigades Union that the vessel had originally been designed to house around 200 people.

The government has repeatedly said the barge will be better value for British taxpayers and more manageable for local communities.

But there has been considerable local opposition to the plan, due to concerns about the asylum seekers' welfare, as well as the potential impact on local services.

More than 40 organisations and campaigners have called the plans "cruel and inhumane" in an open letter to barge owner Bibby Marine.

The Bibby Stockholm is the first vessel secured under Home Secretary Suella Braverman's plans to reduce the cost of asylum accommodation.

Ministers have said it would help cut the £6m-a-day cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels while their claims are processed.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast on Sunday, shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said barges would continue to be used by a Labour government if his party won the next general election.

Mr Kinnock said that due to "the complete and utter chaos and shambles of the Tory asylum crisis", Labour would use barges and hotels to house asylum seekers during "a very short-term period".

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper had previously indicated she would not be able to immediately shut down the sites but declined to be explicit about the policy.

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• Portland

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2023-08-07 04:27:25Z
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Asylum seeker who escaped from Iran says Dorset barge will be another ‘jail’ - The Guardian

An asylum seeker who was jailed in Iran for his human rights campaigning says he has not been able to sleep since receiving a notice that he is being moved to the Bibby Stockholm barge and said it would be another “jail” for him.

The man, who cannot be named for security reasons, worked as a human rights lawyer and campaigner in Iran and was imprisoned for his anti-government activities. He managed to escape from Iran and claimed asylum on arrival in the UK several months ago, citing political persecution in his home country.

The Home Office initially accommodated him in a hotel on the south coast but then issued him with a letter saying he was going to be moved to the controversial Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland, Dorset.

Concerns have been raised about use of the barge for asylum seekers, including over fire safety, overcrowding and threats from the far right. It is understood that the first group of asylum seekers are due to be moved on to the barge on Monday.

The man said: “While I’m living in the hotel, I can go outside and have a walk in the fresh air. I also have support from the community. I was shocked when I received a letter about a week ago from the Home Office telling me I was being sent to the Bibby Stockholm barge. We have seen the news about this barge. It is a kind of jail.”

He said he had been very stressed since receiving the letter and had been unable to sleep because of his fear of what would happen to him and other asylum seekers if they were taken to the barge.

“I know of at least nine people in my hotel who got this letter. Everyone who received it is really upset and sad,” he said.

The Home Office letter, signed by the alternative accommodation team, states that accommodation is changing to the Bibby Stockholm barge and while people will not be detained on the barge, they will need to sign in and out when they leave and return to the barge “so we can assure your safety”.

The asylum seeker said he and others who had received the letter were most concerned about safety on the vessel.

Steve Smith, the chief executive of the refugee charity Care4Calais, which is supporting some of the asylum seekers who have received letters saying they are going to be moved to Bibby Stockholm, said: “Amongst those we are supporting are the survivors of torture, people with disabilities and people who have experienced trauma at sea. Housing any human on a ‘floating prison’ like the Bibby Stockholm is unacceptable. Doing so to people like this is completely inhumane. It is causing a huge amount of anxiety.”

The asylum seeker said: “I know when other asylum seekers get letters from the Home Office saying they are being sent to Napier barracks in Folkestone, they are told how long they will stay there for. This letter gives us no information. We have no idea how long we will be kept on the barge for. We have read things about how the boat will not be safe for us. On the boat we will be out of the community.

“I worked as a human rights lawyer in Iran and I believe this plan by the Home Office is against human rights. Normal people would not go and live there. When I was in jail in Iran, I had a really hard time. All I want to do here is live a normal life, do positive things and be part of society.”

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2023-08-06 15:44:00Z
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Fire engulfs The Crooked House pub - flames and smoke seen pouring out of iconic building - Shropshire Star

The Crooked House on fire. Photo: Ash Smith

A photo posted on Facebook showed the famous venue ablaze late on Saturday, with flames and smoke pouring out of the 18th century building.

Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service said the call came in at 10pm. Six crews from both Staffordshire and West Midlands Fire Service were at the scene.

Ash Smith witnessed the blaze and called the fire service. He told the Express & Star: "I went up to my yard to check on my horses and could see a lot of smoke coming from the area of The Crooked House so we drove closer to have a look and could see that it was on fire."

He added that the lane up to the pub off Himley Road between Dudley and Himley had been blocked, leaving firefighters unable to get their vehicles up close to the blaze.

Speaking shortly after midnight, he added: "It is still on fire now. Six fire engines are there and they are pumping water all the way down the lane with hoses and pumping water from the local stream."

The Crooked House on fire shortly after midnight on Sunday. Photo: Ash Smith

Fire crews and police near the bottom of the lane up to the pub

A spokeswoman for Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service said crews from Kinver, Dudley, Brierley Hill, Tipton, Chase Terrace and Cannock were at the scene.

Part of Himley Road, between the junction with High Arcal Road and towards the junction with Brookbank Road and Summit Place, has been closed to traffic.

The Crooked House has been a Grade II listed building since 1960.

Fire crews were called out at 10pm

Once dubbed 'Britain's wonkiest pub', the quirky building was sold by Marston's in late July, after being one of 61 pubs put up for sale by the group four months earlier. It had a guide price of £67,000.

The sale reportedly left it unlikely that it would welcome drinkers again with The Crooked House set to be used for an alternative - albeit unspecified - use.

The Crooked House was famed for being the place where coins and marbles seemingly rolled uphill along the bar.

The Crooked House

Last month bosses were forced to close its doors when tens of thousands of pounds of damage was caused during a break-in.

Days after the sale was announced, a petition was started to save the building. As of Saturday night it had attracted more than 3,500 signatures.

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2023-08-06 00:13:31Z
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Blackpool: Two men arrested after death of baby boy - BBC

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Two men have been arrested after the death of a baby boy, police have said.

Officers were called after the child was taken unresponsive to a Blackpool hospital on 27 July, where he later died, Lancashire Police said.

A 34-year-old man was held on suspicion of murder while another man, aged 30, was held on suspicion of causing the death of a child and child neglect.

Both men, from Blackpool, have since been released on conditional bail pending further enquiries.

A spokeswoman from Lancashire Police said post-mortem tests had been carried out and further investigations were being undertaken into the cause of the baby's death.

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2023-08-05 12:13:58Z
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Home Counties should have own Ulez schemes says Sadiq Khan - BBC

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By Noah Vickers

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Sadiq Khan has said the Home Counties should create their own schemes to help people cope with the expanded ultra low emission zone (Ulez).

The Labour mayor of London has now opened up Transport for London's (TfL) scrappage scheme to Londoners with a non-compliant vehicle.

There is no support for those who live outside London but regularly come into the capital for work or appointments.

Kent and Surrey county councils said the scheme should be extended to all.

On Thursday, Mr Khan extended the scrappage scheme so that vehicles could be exchanged for grants to the value of £2,000 for cars being destroyed, and £1000 for motorbikes.

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In a message to the county councils bordering London, Mr Khan said: "You should be supporting your residents like Merton Council and others have been doing."

Merton - a Labour-run borough in south-west London - announced this week that it was launching its own £1m scrappage scheme, with residents soon able to apply for £1,000 grants, regardless of whether they had also applied to TfL's scheme.

Of the counties surrounding London, only one has granted City Hall permission to erect Ulez signs warning motorists they are about to enter the zone.

The six councils refusing to erect the signage are all Conservative-run.

Surrey County Council, along with the Tory-run London boroughs of Bromley, Bexley, Harrow and Hillingdon, failed in getting the High Court to declare the Ulez expansion unlawful.

• London mayor hails 'landmark' Ulez expansion ruling
• Surrey council warns Ulez officials on signage

Speaking on Friday, Mr Khan said he was disappointed that more than a million pounds had been "wasted on court fees and lawyers" and that the money should have been used to support residents.

"What I'd say to those county councils outside London is two things - one is, you should be supporting your residents like Merton Council and others have been doing.

"But secondly - the government is your government, they're from your party. Why don't you join me on a cross-party basis to lobby this government [for more scrappage funding]?"

In response, Surrey's cabinet member for transport, infrastructure and growth, Matt Furniss, said the mayor had never addressed its concerns.

"We continue to urge the mayor and TfL to do what is right and extend the scrappage scheme outside of London for those that are impacted, provide exemption for key workers, and provide more and better bus routes between Surrey and London," he said.

Getty Images

Roger Gough, leader of Kent County Council, said the scrappage scheme extension reinforced its concern that mitigations were only available to London residents so TfL would be "funded by charges on our residents".

Martin Tett, leader of Buckinghamshire Council, said: "If the mayor of London sees fit to compensate his own residents through extending the scrappage scheme he should do the same to the equally impacted residents of Buckinghamshire who are obliged to travel into London for work, health and other necessary reasons."

The Ulez requires drivers of non-compliant vehicles to pay a £12.50 daily charge, in order to drive within the zone.

It currently covers the area within the North and South Circular Roads, but is expanding on 29 August to cover the whole of Greater London.

The Department of Transport has been approached for comment.

In May, it said it had provided TfL with £102m for projects specifically targeted at helping to tackle pollution and that it was for the mayor to "justify the consequences of his decision to expand the Ulez!.

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• Surrey County Council
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• UK air pollution
• London
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• Sadiq Khan

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