Chaos on Bonfire Night as youths throw petrol bombs at police - The Telegraph

Fireworks and petrol bombs have been thrown at police in Edinburgh.

Around 100 youths gathered in Niddrie just before 5pm on Sunday in a repeat of disorder seen last year in the neighbourhood.

Petrol bombs were thrown at police officers, who were subjected to repeated attacks during the stand-off in Hay Avenue. Perpetrators were branded “thugs” and the leader of City of Edinburgh Council warned they would face prosecution.

Drone footage showed a line of police officers with riot shields standing in front of vans with blue lights flashing. A mob of black-clad youths gathered on grass in front of them and began throwing pyrotechnics.

The police made a retreat as a petrol bomb hit the ground in front of them and fireworks exploded. The assault continued, with petrol bombs and fireworks forcing police to shuffle backwards.

The officers then ran at the assailants, in footage filmed from a nearby sports centre.

Last year in Niddrie, motorbike gangs terrorised the neighbourhood on Bonfire Night while fireworks were thrown on the ground.

In 2018, Police Scotland set up Operation Moonbeam to tackle Bonfire Night chaos, and on Tuesday, riot police attended Kirkton, Dundee, after children reportedly as young as 10 set off fireworks.

Russell Findlay, the Scottish Conservative justice spokesman, branded the youths in Edinburgh “thugs”, and council leader Cammy Day warned they would be prosecuted.

Niddrie some place man 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/dt4bEGlyVY

— jason (@_jason_91) November 5, 2023

A spokesperson for Police Scotland said: “Police in attendance are currently being subjected to attacks involving fireworks, petrol bombs and other projectiles - and the public is asked to avoid the area while the response is ongoing.

“Specialist public order resources, deployed as part of Operation Moonbeam, are currently supporting local officers in the Hay Avenue area of Edinburgh, following reports of a large group of youths involved in the antisocial use of fireworks within the area.

“The police response is ongoing at present to keep the public and emergency service workers safe and local road closures are currently in place.

Petrol bombs were thrown at police officers in Edinburgh Credit: @beardyy__/Twitter

Mr Day said: “I’m appalled to see the scenes in Niddrie this evening. We’ve been clear that this sort of conduct is unacceptable.

“We’ve been working throughout the year in our communities to mitigate Bonfire Night-related disruption so it is extremely disappointing to see a minority of people behaving in this way.

“This reckless behaviour endangers lives and, like the majority, I share in their dismay and upset at this disgraceful behaviour.

Police Scotland officers stood in a line and held up riot shields Credit: PA Wire

“We are working closely to ensure the community are safe and appeal to anyone who can help identify those responsible to contact police so they can be dealt with appropriately by the justice system.

“Our emergency services have our full support and do a fantastic job of keeping us all safe.”

Mr Findlay said: “Such attacks on police officers are cowardly, reckless and dangerous. Police Scotland need sufficient resources to tackle these thugs.”

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2023-11-06 11:24:00Z
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'Major incident' in Surrey as thousands lose water supply and supermarkets sell out - The Independent

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A major incident has been declared as thousands of people have been left without water due to “ongoing problems” at a Thames Water treatment works.

The water company says engineers are working to restore supplies to those living in Surrey after Storm Ciaran caused issues at Shalford water treatment works.

The firm has apologised to customers, who lost their water supply on Saturday afternoon.

During the shortage, the company is providing bottled water at several locations. Pictures shared on social media show long queues at the sites, which include Godalming Crown Court car park and Artington Park & Ride.

Meanwhile, nearby supermarkets have said people were panic buying bottled water. Waitrose in Godalming said it had sold out of bottled water, according to the BBC.

Chancellor and local MP Jeremy Hunt said the CEO of Thames Water had told him around 13,500 customers were without supply, and a further 6,500 were set to lose supply shortly in a post on X at 3.18pm.

He added: “The site controls at Shalford Water Treatment Works have been reset and they’re testing turbidity at low water production volumes. If this is successful, they can increase production to a level that will restore supply.

“Thames Water are tankering water to ensure that they can support hospitals and bottled water stations remain open.”

A statement from Thames Water on X read: “We’re really sorry about the ongoing problems. Our engineers are still working to restore supplies to the area. In the meantime we’ll continue running our bottled water stations. We’re also using tankers to pump water into the pipe system.

“Storm Ciaran has caused issues at Shalford Water Treatment Works, affecting local supplies. There’s bottled water at Crown Court Car Park, The Burys, Godalming, and at Artington Park & Ride, Old Portsmouth Road, Guildford.”

Surrey County Council has confirmed a major incident had been declared in the area. Leader Tim Oliver said: “Surrey County Council is continuing to work with partners across the Local Resilience Forum (LRF), following notification from Thames Water of a water shortage in the Guildford/Waverley areas.

“This has been declared a major incident by the LRF. All partners will continue to work closely with Thames Water, who are the lead agency in this incident, to inform and support residents in these areas, particularly those most vulnerable.”

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2023-11-06 04:58:24Z
2596104063

Cabinet minister refuses to back Suella Braverman’s claim homelessness is ‘lifestyle choice’ – UK politics live - The Guardian

Good morning. Legislating is at the heart of what government is all about, and tomorrow, in the king’s speech, Rishi Sunak and his team will set out their programme for what is almost certainly the final full session of parliament before the general election. But already there are signs that some of what’s in it is motivated not so much by governing priorities, but party politics. Sunak is looking for “wedge issues” where he can force Keir Starmer to oppose measures that might be popular with potential Labour voters. All governments do this a bit, although getting the monarch to participate might be considered bad form.

The best example is the announcement overnight that the king’s speech will require the North Sea Transition Authority to issue licences for oil and gas exploration every year. The NSTA can and does already hold regular licensing rounds anyway, but Sunak wants to set a trap for Labour, which says it will not issue new licences if it wins the election. Pippa Crerar has the story here. And these are from Ed Miliband, the shadow secretary for climate change and net zero.

This proposed Bill does nothing to lower energy bills, does nothing to deliver energy security and is a sign of a government that is bankrupt of any ideas.

We already have regular North Sea oil and gas licensing in Britain and it is precisely our dependence on fossil fuels that has led to the worst cost of living crisis in generations.

All this embarrassing stunt tells you is that Rishi Sunak is continuing with his retreat from net zero.

No wonder we see consternation from so many leading businesses, and even figures in his own party, who know he is undermining our energy security and damaging our economy.

At the weekend the Financial Times reported on another king’s speech proposal that would be overtly partisan when it said that Suella Braverman, the home secretary, wanted to include a proposal to stop charities distributing tents to homeless people in cities. Braverman then confirmed the story on X, and added to the provocation by describing homelessness as a “lifestyle choice”.

This time she may taken “wedge politics” a bit too far. Wedge issues work by opening up a split (‘driving a wedge’) between your opponents’ leadership and their supporter base. But Braverman may have put the wedge in the wrong place, because she has horrified some Tories.

At the weekend Bob Blackman, the Conservative MP who heads the all-party parliamentary group for ending homelessness, said Braverman should use “wiser words”. Last night Steve Brine, the Conservative MP who chairs the Commons health committee, went further, telling Radio 4’s Westminster Hour:

I utterly resist the line that sleeping rough is a lifestyle choice. I just think it was clumsy and it was crass.

And this morning Claire Coutinho, the energy security and net zero secretary, who was doing a media round to talk about oil and gas licensing, refused to back Braverman’s language. Asked if she agreed homelessness was a lifestyle choice, Coutinho replied:

I wouldn’t have used necessarily those words, but in my experience what you have is people often with very complex needs and sometimes they might refuse accommodation, and that’s often because they’ve got complicated problems in their lives – like I said, it might be addiction, it might be mental health issues.

Here is the agenda for the day.

10.30am: Clare Lombardelli, the former chief economic adviser to the Treasury, gives evidence to the Covid inquiry. Later in the morning Stuart Glassborow, deputy principal private secretary to Boris Johnson when he was PM, gives evidence.

Morning: Rishi Sunak is on a visit in Norfolk. He is due to record a clip for the media.

11.30am: Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.

2pm: Ben Warner, a data specialist who worked closely with Dominic Cummings and who worked as a No 10 adviser during the pandemic, gives evidence to the Covid inquiry.

If you want to contact me, do try the “send us a message” feature. You’ll see it just below the byline – on the left of the screen, if you are reading on a laptop or a desktop. This is for people who want to message me directly. I find it very useful when people message to point out errors (even typos – no mistake is too small to correct). Often I find your questions very interesting, too. I can’t promise to reply to them all, but I will try to reply to as many as I can, either in the comments below the line; privately (if you leave an email address and that seems more appropriate); or in the main blog, if I think it is a topic of wide interest.

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Claire Coutinho has admitted that the government’s plan to require annual oil and gas licensing in the North Sea would not necessarily keep bills down for British consumers.

The energy security and net zero secretary told BBC Breakfast:

It wouldn’t necessarily bring energy bills down, that’s not what we’re saying, but it would raise a signifcant amount of money that would help us for example fund public services, also fund transition into different forms of energy, for example, things like offshore wind and solar energy which more broadly and indirectly could help bring bills down.

In its news release announcing the proposed legislation the government does not claim that annual licensing on its own would bring down energy prices. But it does imply that, combined with other policies, it would. It says:

We are reducing our vulnerability to imports from hostile states, leaving us less exposed to unpredictable international forces. This will ensure we have a more secure and diverse energy system and as we make progress on renewables and new nuclear, our more robust energy mix will help to lower household bills in the long-term.

During her morning interview round, Claire Coutinho, the energy security and net zero secretary, seemed to spend quite a lot of time not agreeing with Suella Braverman’s choice of words. As well as refusing to say the home secretary was right to call homelessness a lifestyle choice (see 9.25am), Coutinho indicated that she did not agree with her cabinet colleague about the pro-Palestinian marches in London and elsewhere being “hate marches”. Asked about that term, Coutinho told ITV’s Good Morning Britain:

I wouldn’t necessarily use that language, but let me say this – what we’ve seen on those marches, in instances, is incredibly hateful behaviour.

Good morning. Legislating is at the heart of what government is all about, and tomorrow, in the king’s speech, Rishi Sunak and his team will set out their programme for what is almost certainly the final full session of parliament before the general election. But already there are signs that some of what’s in it is motivated not so much by governing priorities, but party politics. Sunak is looking for “wedge issues” where he can force Keir Starmer to oppose measures that might be popular with potential Labour voters. All governments do this a bit, although getting the monarch to participate might be considered bad form.

The best example is the announcement overnight that the king’s speech will require the North Sea Transition Authority to issue licences for oil and gas exploration every year. The NSTA can and does already hold regular licensing rounds anyway, but Sunak wants to set a trap for Labour, which says it will not issue new licences if it wins the election. Pippa Crerar has the story here. And these are from Ed Miliband, the shadow secretary for climate change and net zero.

This proposed Bill does nothing to lower energy bills, does nothing to deliver energy security and is a sign of a government that is bankrupt of any ideas.

We already have regular North Sea oil and gas licensing in Britain and it is precisely our dependence on fossil fuels that has led to the worst cost of living crisis in generations.

All this embarrassing stunt tells you is that Rishi Sunak is continuing with his retreat from net zero.

No wonder we see consternation from so many leading businesses, and even figures in his own party, who know he is undermining our energy security and damaging our economy.

At the weekend the Financial Times reported on another king’s speech proposal that would be overtly partisan when it said that Suella Braverman, the home secretary, wanted to include a proposal to stop charities distributing tents to homeless people in cities. Braverman then confirmed the story on X, and added to the provocation by describing homelessness as a “lifestyle choice”.

This time she may taken “wedge politics” a bit too far. Wedge issues work by opening up a split (‘driving a wedge’) between your opponents’ leadership and their supporter base. But Braverman may have put the wedge in the wrong place, because she has horrified some Tories.

At the weekend Bob Blackman, the Conservative MP who heads the all-party parliamentary group for ending homelessness, said Braverman should use “wiser words”. Last night Steve Brine, the Conservative MP who chairs the Commons health committee, went further, telling Radio 4’s Westminster Hour:

I utterly resist the line that sleeping rough is a lifestyle choice. I just think it was clumsy and it was crass.

And this morning Claire Coutinho, the energy security and net zero secretary, who was doing a media round to talk about oil and gas licensing, refused to back Braverman’s language. Asked if she agreed homelessness was a lifestyle choice, Coutinho replied:

I wouldn’t have used necessarily those words, but in my experience what you have is people often with very complex needs and sometimes they might refuse accommodation, and that’s often because they’ve got complicated problems in their lives – like I said, it might be addiction, it might be mental health issues.

Here is the agenda for the day.

10.30am: Clare Lombardelli, the former chief economic adviser to the Treasury, gives evidence to the Covid inquiry. Later in the morning Stuart Glassborow, deputy principal private secretary to Boris Johnson when he was PM, gives evidence.

Morning: Rishi Sunak is on a visit in Norfolk. He is due to record a clip for the media.

11.30am: Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.

2pm: Ben Warner, a data specialist who worked closely with Dominic Cummings and who worked as a No 10 adviser during the pandemic, gives evidence to the Covid inquiry.

If you want to contact me, do try the “send us a message” feature. You’ll see it just below the byline – on the left of the screen, if you are reading on a laptop or a desktop. This is for people who want to message me directly. I find it very useful when people message to point out errors (even typos – no mistake is too small to correct). Often I find your questions very interesting, too. I can’t promise to reply to them all, but I will try to reply to as many as I can, either in the comments below the line; privately (if you leave an email address and that seems more appropriate); or in the main blog, if I think it is a topic of wide interest.

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2023-11-06 09:55:28Z
2593638889

Edinburgh: Young 'thugs' throw petrol bombs and fireworks at police in 'unprecedented levels of violence' - Sky News

First Minister Humza Yousaf has condemned the "disgraceful scenes of fireworks misuse" across parts of Scotland on Bonfire Night and says all those who attacked police and fire crews "should feel the full force of the law".

Firefighters were attacked and eight police officers were injured during disorder on Sunday in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee.

Around 100 youths gathered on Hay Avenue in the capital's Niddrie area just before 5pm in a repeat of disorder seen last year in the neighbourhood.

Officers in riot gear attended the scene.

Police say around 50 people were responsible for launching fireworks, petrol bombs and other projectiles at buildings, vehicles and officers.

Perpetrators were branded "thugs" - and Police Scotland said its staff were subject to "unprecedented levels of violence".

On Monday morning, Scotland's first minister hit out at the disorder.

Posting on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Yousaf said: "Disgraceful scenes of fireworks misuse across some areas of Scotland last night, particularly in Niddrie.

"I pay tribute to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and Police Scotland officers who should not be targeted and attacked for doing their job.

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"Those responsible should feel the full force of the law."

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Drone footage in Edinburgh showed a line of police officers with riot shields standing in front of vans with blue lights flashing.

A mob of young people clad in black gathered on grass in front of them, and began throwing pyrotechnics.

The police retreated as a petrol bomb hit the ground in front of them and fireworks exploded.

The assault continued, with missiles forcing police to shuffle backwards.

The officers then ran at the assailants, in footage filmed from a nearby sports centre.

Last year, motorbike gangs terrorised Niddrie on Bonfire Night while fireworks were thrown.

In 2018, Police Scotland set up Operation Moonbeam to tackle Bonfire Night chaos - and on Halloween, riot police were on the ground in Dundee after children as young as 10 set off fireworks.

Assistant Chief Constable Tim Mairs said: "The overwhelming majority of Scotland enjoyed Bonfire Night safely and responsibly, but once again, a minority of individuals have been responsible for an unacceptable and frankly, disgusting level of disorder that left communities alarmed and police officers injured."

He added: "The violent nature of the situation witnessed in the Niddrie area of Edinburgh is extremely concerning, not least because it is believed young people were being actively encouraged and coordinated by adults to target officers while they carried out their duties."

Read more from Sky News:
Boy, 13, stabbed in one of UK's most dangerous areas
Katie Hopkins and Tommy Robinson return to X
Mayor dies in apparent suicide

On Sunday, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) received more than 892 calls from the public and operations control mobilised firefighters to around 355 bonfires across the country between 3.30pm and midnight.

No firefighters were injured, but a fire appliance in West Lothian had a windscreen smashed by a brick and had to be removed from operational service.

Andy Watt, SFRS assistant chief officer, said: "Attacks on our firefighters are completely unacceptable.

"Our staff should be able to carry out their role without being attacked. It is disappointing that people have tried to hurt firefighters and have damaged our appliances.

"This type of behaviour not only prevents our crews from bringing any emergency to a safe and swift conclusion, but it can impact on our emergency service colleagues - including the police - when they are supporting us on scene to ensure the safety of our personnel."

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2023-11-06 07:34:38Z
2596564997

Youths throw fireworks and eggs at passing cars on city estate - Telegraph and Argus

The disorder, which happened on Broadstone Way in Holme Wood last night, led to a foot chase by officers and a male being arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply class B drugs.

Police said they also found an air rifle when they searched the bedroom of his home.

A spokesperson for West Yorkshire Police said the group of youths "thought it would be a good idea" to throw fireworks and eggs at vehicles going past them.

The spokesperson added: "Using our vehicles we were able to surround the group at the top of Broadstone Way and, after a foot chase, one of the males was tackled to the floor and detained for his part in the disorder.

"During a search the male dropped the egg he was carrying but failed to get rid of the drugs, cash and mobile phones in his pockets.

"The male was arrested for possession with intent to supply class B drugs and an urgent search of his home address nearby was conducted.

"This search proved very fruitful with large amounts of drugs and cash as well as dealer bags, weighing scales, further mobile phones and an air rifle all being recovered from his bedroom, much to the amazement of his family.

"The family's housing association has been notified of his offending and they will be getting a visit in due course to assess their future tenancy.

"This male doesn't have any money left to buy any fireworks or eggs - he's just got a criminal investigation to face."

On a positive note, police said is was "nice" to see people "enjoying some well-attended family-run, safe bonfires without any issues" in the area.

More people are expected to head out across the district to mark Bonfire Night this evening. 

West Yorkshire Police's Assistant Chief Constable Osman Khan said: "We want everyone in West Yorkshire to enjoy their bonfire celebrations safely and responsibly, and will have an increased visible presence to provide reassurance to our communities over the bonfire weekend.  

"Bonfire Night is historically one of the busiest nights of the year for the emergency services and people are urged to consider this when calling us.

"Please use our online options where possible and only use 999 to report emergencies or where a crime is in progress."

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2023-11-05 07:56:54Z
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Arrests made following pro-Palestine protest in central London - Evening Standard

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Arrests made following pro-Palestine protest in central London  Evening StandardView Full coverage on Google News
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2023-11-05 05:52:57Z
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Does Suella Braverman relish her position as the most controversial minister in the cabinet? - Sky News

For Suella Braverman, there is no such thing as a quiet trip abroad. 

Once again her language is attracting attention, her words heard well beyond the shores of Samos in Greece.

On a trip to talk about immigration, the questions following her are about pro-Palestinian protests and her claim homeless people pitching tents are making a "lifestyle choice".

Speaking exclusively to Sky News, she said she has a "thick skin" when it comes to criticism.

Braverman will be interviewed on Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips - follow live in the Politics Hub

Her language is characteristically provocative. She warned anyone vandalising the Cenotaph on Armistice Day "must be put into a jail cell faster than their feet can touch the ground" - and says cities can't be "ruined and blighted" by homeless people's tents.

Criticism will follow - Labour say she is "overseas to distract" - but Ms Braverman is appealing to a specific chunk of the electorate and of her party.

More on Conservatives

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She knows the next Conservative leadership race is likely to be fought on the right.

But as home secretary, Ms Braverman will be judged above all by the government's pledge to "Stop the Boats".

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The number of small boat crossings in the UK - 27,000 so far this year - is lower than it was in 2022, but a long way from the few hundred recorded five years ago when the government declared the number of crossings a "major incident". She certainly cannot claim to have stopped the boats.

Ms Braverman said she is "not claiming success yet" but refused to set a target for where the number of crossings should be by the next election. "It will be obvious" if the government has succeeded, she added.

She believes the UK can "learn" from Greek deterrence methods on immigration.

The Greeks have gone from nearly a million small boat crossings in 2015 to 12,700 last year - a lower number than in the UK.

But Greece has also been accused of controversial "pushback" tactics at sea - and charities say they have evidence of strip searches and beatings at the Greek border.

Ms Braverman insists pushbacks are not the UK approach, but "tough" deterrents must be looked at.

Numbers in Greece have also fallen because of a returns deal with Turkey - and so far, the UK has had little success in securing an effective returns deal with France.

Over the last few days, we have seen Ms Braverman as she would like to be portrayed: out on a border patrol with Hellenic coastguard, walking along a 75-mile (120km) steel fence at the land border between Greece and Turkey.

A home secretary talking tough on immigration on the world stage.

Read more:
Home secretary calls pro-Palestine demos 'hate marches'
Braverman faces backlash after saying rough sleeping is 'lifestyle choice'
Johnson tells COVID inquiry he has reflected on whether lockdowns 'did more harm than good'

The images of Ms Braverman sitting in the captain's chair aboard a patrol cutter felt reminiscent of Margaret Thatcher's famous appearance on the Challenger Tank (or Liz Truss's later re-enactment).

I asked her if she relishes her position as the most controversial cabinet minister. She said: "Personal attacks will always come with the territory."

But Brand Braverman is provocative to say the least.

The home secretary may be here to talk about immigration, but her ambition stretches well beyond stopping the boats.

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2023-11-05 06:20:36Z
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