Storm Isha to wreak havoc across Scotland as 80mph winds expected to hit - Daily Record

Scotland will be battered by 80-mile-per-hour winds as Storm Isha wreaks havoc across the country. The recent cold snap will be replaced by monsoon conditions, with high winds and torrential rain.

The storm will pose a risk to life and damage to buildings. The Met Office has issued amber weather warnings for parts of the country from tomorrow into Monday.

A band of cloud and rain sweeping across the same areas will mean only south-east England is guaranteed prolonged dry spells on Saturday and, as well as Scotland, there is also a wind warning for northern and western England, Wales, Northern Ireland.

Very strong winds could pose a danger to life, the Met Office has warned (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Forecasters then said there was a risk to life in coastal areas from large waves and debris being blown inland, and yellow warnings for wind and rain coming into force on Sunday, covering much of the rest of the UK - mean flooding is likely.

The amber wind warnings also mean potential power cuts and loss of mobile phone signal in affected areas, while roads and bridges are likely to be shut and rail and bus services could face delays and cancellations.

But warmer temperatures will replace the recent snow and sub-zero chills at the weekend, with highs of 12C possible on Sunday. The forecaster says there could be travel disruption, damage to buildings and flying debris.

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The carnage could be caused by southwesterly winds of up to 80mph hitting exposed coasts and there could be gusts of up to 60mph inland. East Midlands Railway said it expected "significant disruption" on Sunday and Monday.

They expect delays and alterations to services, while Police Scotland advised people to avoid unnecessary travel. During a wet and windy weekend across northern England, the heaviest downpours are expected during Sunday.

Between 30 and 50mm could fall in many places and there is potential for peaks of 80-100mm over hills. Heavy rain could also lead to flooding and transport disruption on Sunday in Scotland, Wales and north-west England.

The whole of the UK faces wind or rain warnings due to Storm Isha this weekend (Image: Met Office)

Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill said this weekend "temperatures are going to be much higher than they have been". He said: "Quite widely we could see places reaching highs of 12C-13C.

"But we need to factor in the strong winds, the rain, the cloud, and so it is not going to feel quite so warm as this might suggest. Temperatures will be on the mild side, lifting as we go through this weekend and staying mild through much of next week.

"There may be some chillier spells but I think that any frost is likely to be isolated if we see any at all. There could be some overnight fog, particularly where we see drier calmer weather towards the South East."

As of Friday, The Environment Agency had issued eight warnings of where flooding was expected, and 52 flood alerts of where flooding was possible. An amber cold health alert, issued by the UK Health Security Agency, is in place until Saturday at noon.

It warns of a possible impact on health and social care services. Met Office deputy chief meteorologist David Hayter said: "Conditions will stay cold on Friday but a change in weather type is on the way, bringing milder air for the UK during the course of the weekend.

"This change will initially be relatively benign in terms of weather impacts, with a dry Friday and start to Saturday for many in the south of the UK.

"The Atlantic influence will then introduce some wet and windy weather, with a deep area of low pressure approaching from the west on Sunday." Storm Isha is the ninth named storm to hit the UK since the season began in September.

Storms are named if they pose a risk to people, starting with consecutive letters. The record number of named storms in one year is when the Met Office began the practice in 2015/16, with Storm Katie being the eleventh and final storm of the season.

And 2024 could prove to be a record breaking year for weather, if there are three more named storms between next week and August.

Top news stories today

Cold Arctic air pushing south into North America is making the jet stream more active, the Met Office said, and because it flows from west to east, it is bringing stormier weather to the UK.

While there is evidence that climate change will make the UK wetter with more intense downpours happening more frequently because warmer air holds more moisture, there is no scientific basis to suggest that there will be more named storms as a result.

The Met Office said it names storms based on their impact to people, rather than describing particular meteorological conditions, and therefore it is not a reliable method of tracking long term trends.

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2024-01-20 09:13:00Z
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Fujitsu government contracts under scrutiny in light of Horizon scandal - The Guardian

Fujitsu’s receipt of lucrative government contracts despite its role in the Post Office Horizon scandal has come under greater scrutiny after the Treasury committee wrote to organisations including the Bank of England and HM Revenue and Customs to demand details of their contracts with the tech company.

The influential group of MPs told 21 public bodies, including the Treasury itself, to provide information on work given to the Japanese-owned company since 2019, when the high court ruled there had been dozens of bugs and errors in its Horizon IT system.

The committee said it wanted to know whether Fujitsu’s role in Horizon was considered during the tendering process and whether departments had given any thought to terminating the deals in the light of the scandal.

The firm, which makes more than £100m a year from government work, publicly apologised for its part in the affair this week, admitting it had a “moral obligation” to contribute towards redress for victims. It also wrote to the government to say it would not bid for further Whitehall contracts while the inquiry, led by the retired high court judge Sir Wyn Williams, continued.

Thousands of post office branch owner-operators, known as sub-postmasters, were accused, prosecuted or convicted of crimes such as fraud and theft, partly due to faulty data produced by the Horizon system that Fujitsu built.

The Treasury committee’s chair, Harriett Baldwin, said: “The public outcry regarding the Post Office sub-postmaster scandal is entirely justified, and I know I speak for the whole committee when I express my horror at the injustices the victims faced.

“It’s clear that Fujitsu has questions to answer over its conduct. I think it’s important we can see the extent to which taxpayer money has been spent with Fujitsu since the high court ruling, as they are simultaneously assessed on their fitness to remain a government supplier.”

Analysis of data provided by the procurement specialists Tussell indicated that Horizon had won £4.4bn of government work since December 2019, when the high court verdict was issued.

Deals include a £1bn contract with HMRC and £3m of work from the Financial Conduct Authority. Both are among the organisations that will receive letters from the Treasury committee asking for details of any contracts awarded to Fujitsu since 2019.

This week, about 300 staff, most of whom work in IT support for HMRC at sites in Telford and Stratford, east London, went on strike in protest at a pay offer that the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) said was 10 times less than what Fujitsu was offering staff in Japan.

On Friday, Fujitsu’s European boss, Paul Patterson, told the judge-led inquiry into the Horizon scandal that it was “shameful” that courts prosecuting the branch owner-operators were not told of the bugs.

Fujitsu declined to comment.

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2024-01-19 22:32:00Z
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Ipswich's Orwell Bridge to close due to forecasted high winds - BBC

By Shannon Eustace

BBC News, Suffolk

The A14 Orwell Bridge is planned to close for 24 hours on Sunday due to expected high winds from Storm Isha.

The Met Office issued a Yellow warning for Suffolk and forecasted wind gusts of 55mph (88km/h).

National Highways said "safety preparations" had begun and advised drivers to plan alternative routes.

The bridge is expected to close at midday on Sunday to allow National Highways to "safely install the closure and diversions".

During the closure, the A14 will be shut between junction 55 at Copdock Mill and junction 58 at Levington, with diversions taking motorists along the A1214, A1189 and A1156 through Ipswich town centre.

"National Highways will constantly monitor wind speeds throughout this period and the bridge could be reopened sooner if it is safe to do so," National Highways said.

Martin Fellows, National Highways regional director for the East of England, added: "We understand the inconvenience the closure of Orwell Bridge causes across the region, but our priority will always be public safety.

"The high winds we are expecting mean it would be unsafe to try and operate the bridge under those conditions."

Follow East of England news on Facebook, Instagram and X. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp 0800 169 1830

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2024-01-20 06:26:04Z
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Four family members, including two children, found dead in house near Norwich - The Telegraph

Four members of a family have been found dead at a house near Norwich, police have said.

Officers from Norfolk Constabulary forced their way into an address in Allan Bedford Crescent, Costessey, shortly before 7am on Friday following a call from a member of the public.

Detectives have confirmed that the four dead are family members. Detective Chief Inspector Chris Burgess said a 45-year-old man, a 36-year-old woman and two young girls were found at the property.

He said: “We do believe they were all family members at this time. Three of the people are believed to have resided at the address, and another non-permanently.”

The father is thought to have been an engineer who worked in the property trade, and the family were believed to be active members of their community. Formal identification has not yet taken place.

A blade was found in nearby woodland hours after the incident, according to local reports. 

Officers have set up a cordon outside the property, with detectives from Norfolk and Suffolk police forces leading the investigation into the “distressing and tragic” incident.

Residents told the Eastern Daily Press newspaper that police have not yet said whether the blade is linked to the incident and are conducting a forensic analysis to see whether it is connected.

Gary Blundell, the Liberal Democrat councillor for the area, confirmed that a family had been living at the address prior to the deaths but declined to provide their names.

He said: “I live on the estate with my wife. It hasn’t been verified who it is yet, so they haven’t released names, but if it is the family involved that I think it possibly could be then yes, we did know them.

“To be honest, it’s a totally shocking experience. I don’t know how this has happened. We don’t know the full extent of what happened. We are only going on what we have been told but, from what I understand, this is an isolated incident with no risk to the public.

“I don’t want to speculate, the family who lived there did [have kids]. I wouldn’t want to speculate if any children were involved – at the moment it’s just four bodies.”

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2024-01-19 18:02:00Z
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Prince Harry withdraws libel claim against publisher of Mail on Sunday - The Independent

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The Duke of Sussex has withdrawn his libel claim against Associated Newspapers, the publisher of The Mail on Sunday.

Prince Harry sued Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) over a February 2022 article about his legal challenge to the Home Office following a decision to change his publicly funded security arrangements when visiting the UK.

The story claimed Harry, 39, “tried to keep details of his legal battle to reinstate his police protection secret from the public”.

The duke’s lawyers claimed it “purported to reveal, in sensational terms” that information from court documents “contradicted public statements he had previously made about his willingness to pay for police protection for himself and his family whilst in the UK”.

ANL contested the claim, arguing that the article expressed an honest opinion and did not cause serious harm to his reputation.

The duke now reportedly faces having to pay the newspaper’s costs of £250,000 along with £500,000 of his own legal fees

The civil claim had been heading towards an estimated three-day trial scheduled to be held between 17 May and 31 July this year. But Harry has admitted defeat, abandoning his case just hours before a deadline for his lawyers to pass over a list of relevant documents.

The duke now faces having to pay the newspaper’s costs of £250,000 along with £500,000 of his own legal fees, meaning a total bill of more than £750,000, the Mail said.

In a ruling last month, Harry lost a bid to have ANL’s “honest opinion” defence thrown out by a judge and was ordered to pay £48,447 towards the publisher’s legal bills.

High Court judge Mr Justice Nicklin ruled that ANL could proceed with the honest opinion defence. He said if the case went to trial, the newspaper “may well submit that this was a masterclass in the art of spinning” which was “successful in misleading and/or confusing the public”.

A spokesperson for the publisher confirmed that Harry had withdrawn his case.

Harry is still awaiting a ruling from a different judge in his separate claim against the Home Office over a decision to change the degree of his personal protection.

He is challenging the decision by the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec) not to grant him automatic police protection in the UK since stepping down as a senior member of the British royal family and moving to California with his family.

In written submissions, Harry’s lawyer Justin Rushbrooke KC had argued that the newspaper’s defence should be thrown out because it rested on “two provably false premises” relating to a press statement released by Harry when he made the legal challenge.

His statement read: “The duke first offered to pay personally for UK police protection for himself and his family in January of 2020 at Sandringham.

“That offer was dismissed. He remains willing to cover the cost of security, as not to impose on the British taxpayer.”

However, Ravec said his offer of private funding “notably was not advanced” to the department.

The Mail described this as “a crushing rebuttal to Harry’s initial public statement that implied he had always been willing to foot the bill” while adding that the press statement issued on behalf of the duke confused the media and misinformed the public.

A spokesperson for the Sussexes said the duke was focusing on the safety of his family and his legal case against the Home Office.

“As is the nature with legal proceedings, years have lapsed since this complaint was first filed,” the spokesperson said. “In the time since, the main hearing relating to the duke’s judicial review has taken place and we are awaiting the final decision as to whether Ravec acted lawfully with regard to his security.

“His focus remains there, and on the safety of his family, rather than these legal proceedings that give a continued platform to the Mail’s false claims all those years ago.”

The news came on the day it was reported Harry may not have learnt of King Charles’s health condition before it went public. Buckingham Palace revealed earlier this week that the King would be admitted to hospital next week for treatment for an enlarged prostate.

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2024-01-19 18:44:42Z
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Prince Harry drops libel claim against Mail on Sunday publisher - BBC

EPA

By Doug Faulkner

BBC News

Prince Harry has withdrawn his libel claim against the Mail on Sunday publisher, Associated Newspapers says.

The Duke of Sussex, 39, had sued over an article about his publicly-funded security arrangements when visiting the UK after stepping back as a senior royal.

In an article on the Daily Mail website the paper said he had "abandoned his case" hours before a court deadline.

It said the prince would be liable for the publisher's £250,000 legal costs.

The Mail on Sunday article, published in February 2022, had reported on the prince's legal challenge against the Home Office over changes to his publicly-funded security that had happened after he had stopped being a working royal and moved to the United States.

After the claim was dropped, a spokesperson for the Sussexes said the duke was instead focusing on the safety of his family and his legal case against the Home Office.

• Prince Harry to pay legal costs to Mail on Sunday
• Harry loses bid to get libel defence thrown out

In this long-running libel case against Associated Newspapers, the prince had claimed the story falsely suggested he had "lied" and "cynically" tried to manipulate public opinion.

The headline said the duke had "tried to keep his legal fight with the government over police bodyguards a secret" and his lawyers argued the article was "an attack on his honesty and integrity".

The publisher contested this claim, arguing the article expressed an "honest opinion" and did not cause "serious harm" to his reputation.

Prior to the case being dropped, a three-day trial had been scheduled to be held between 17 May and 31 July this year.

Last month, Prince Harry lost part of the legal battle after his lawyers failed to persuade a judge to throw out a strand of Associated Newspapers' defence.

Mr Justice Nicklin said the newspaper group's argument that the article was "honest opinion" had a "real prospect" of success.

The prince is still awaiting a ruling from a different judge on his claim against the Home Office that changing his level of personal protection when in the UK was "unlawful and unfair".

It is one of a number of legal battles Prince Harry has been involved in.

In November a court ruled a group of high-profile figures, including the duke, could go ahead with claims of unlawfully obtaining information against Associated Newspapers - paving the way for a trial.

The publisher faces multiple claims of "gross breaches of privacy" from Sir Elton John, David Furnish, Elizabeth Hurley, Sadie Frost, Sir Simon Hughes and Baroness Doreen Lawrence as well as the prince.

Separately, last year Harry gave evidence from the witness box in a trial into a damages claim against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), publisher of the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and Sunday People, over alleged phone-hacking.

A judge ruled in his favour and he was awarded £140,600 in damages in December, and a legal team for victims has since called for a criminal investigation.

The prince is also bringing claims against The Sun's publisher News Group Newspapers over alleged unlawful information gathering.

Related Topics

• Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex

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2024-01-19 15:56:05Z
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Bodies of four people found at a property near Norwich - Sky News

Four people have been found dead at a property near Norwich, according to police.

The Norfolk force said officers forced their way into an address in Allan Bedford Crescent, Costessey, shortly before 7am following a call from a member of the public.

The bodies of four people were found inside and police believe they were all known to each other.

Enquiries are under way to formally identify them.

A cordon is in place and forensics teams are at the scene.

The major investigation is being led by detectives from Norfolk and Suffolk forces.

Detective Chief Inspector Chris Burgess said: "Our investigation is in the very early stages and this is clearly a very distressing and tragic incident.

"While we're following a number of lines of enquiry, at this time we believe this is an isolated incident."

He added: "I understand that news of this incident will be shocking to the local community and as soon as we can we will release more information."

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2024-01-19 13:23:18Z
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