Post Office scandal: Kemi Badenoch hits back at Henry Staunton - BBC.com

By Nick Edser

PA Media

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch has hit back at claims made by former Post Office chairman Henry Staunton about the reasons for his departure.

Mr Staunton told the Sunday Times that when he was sacked Ms Badenoch had told him: "Someone's got to take the rap."

But Ms Badenoch said the comments were a "disgraceful misrepresentation" of their conversation.

Mr Staunton also said he was told to delay payouts to Post Office scandal victims, which the government denies.

Hundreds of subpostmasters were prosecuted because of glitches in the Horizon IT system between 1999 and 2015 in what has been called the biggest miscarriage of justice in UK history.

Mr Staunton was appointed Post Office chairman in December 2022, but left the post last month after Ms Badenoch said "new leadership" was needed to tackle the scandal.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, Mr Staunton said he first heard about his sacking when he was called by Sky News. He then spoke to Ms Badenoch on the phone.

Mr Staunton also told the paper that shortly after joining the Post Office he was told by a senior civil servant to slow down the rate of compensation payments, apparently to help the government's finances.

"Early on, I was told by a fairly senior person to stall on spend on compensation and on the replacement of Horizon, and to limp, in quotation marks - I did a file note on it - limp into the election," he told the paper.

"It was not an anti-postmaster thing, it was just straight financials. I didn't ask, because I said: 'I'm having no part of it - I'm not here to limp into the election, it's not the right thing to do by postmasters'."

UK Parliament

Henry Staunton stood down as Port Office chairman last month

In a lengthy post on X, formerly Twitter, Ms Badenoch said Mr Staunton's comments were a "disgraceful misrepresentation of my conversation with him and the reasons for his dismissal".

"Far from 'taking the rap', I dismissed Staunton due to very serious allegations about his conduct while chair of the Post Office, including blocking an investigation into that conduct.

"Henry Staunton had a lack of grip getting justice for postmasters. The serious concerns over his conduct were the reasons I asked him to step down," she added.

She said that her conversation with him was carried out with officials and they took a "complete record". A statement will be made tomorrow "telling the truth", she added.

Earlier a spokesman for the government had said it "utterly" refuted the claims made by Mr Staunton over stalling compensation payments.

"The government has sped up compensation to victims, and consistently encouraged postmasters to come forward with their claims," the spokesman said.

"To suggest any actions or conversations happened to the contrary is incorrect. In fact, upon appointment, Mr Staunton was set concrete objectives, in writing, to focus on reaching settlements with claimants - clear evidence of the government's intent."

A spokesperson for Mr Staunton told the BBC his client would be making no further comment but that he stood by the accusations made in the Sunday Times.

They also said there was no investigation into Mr Staunton.

Shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: "The Horizon scandal is widely accepted to be one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British history.

"Under no circumstances should compensation to victims be delayed and to do so for party political purposes would be a further insult to subpostmasters.

"The Labour Party has called for all subpostmasters to be exonerated and compensation paid swiftly so that victims can begin to draw this awful chapter to a close."

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said Mr Staunton's claims were "deeply disturbing" and called for ministers to explain to Parliament "exactly what has happened at the earliest opportunity".

The slow pace of overturning convictions and making compensation payments has led some to call for a mass exoneration of those affected.

Mr Staunton told the Sunday Times that Post Office chief executive Nick Read had written to the Justice Secretary Alex Chalk with legal opinion from the Post Office's solicitors, Peters & Peters, that in more than 300 cases convictions were supported by evidence not related to the Horizon software.

"Basically it was trying to undermine the exoneration argument," Mr Staunton said. "It was 'most people haven't come forward because they are guilty as charged' - i.e. think very carefully about exoneration."

A spokesperson for the Post Office said it was "very aware of the terrible impact from this appalling scandal and miscarriage of justice".

"We refute both the assertions put to us and the words and phrases allegedly used, and are focused on supporting the government's plans for faster justice and redress for victims, as well as helping the Inquiry get to the truth of what happened," they said.

The spokesperson added: "In no sense did the Post Office seek to persuade government against mass exoneration. We remain firmly committed to supporting faster justice and redress for victims".

• LISTEN: The extraordinary story of a decade-long battle with the Post Office, fought by their own sub-postmasters, on BBC Sounds.

Are you affected by the issues raised in this story? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

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Boy, 2, missing after falling into river in Leicester - Sky News

A search operation is under way after a two-year-old boy fell into the River Soar in Leicester on Sunday evening.

Emergency services attended the scene in Aylestone Meadows, close to Marsden Lane, just after 5pm.

The child was with his family when the incident occurred but was not located "despite the best efforts of those at the scene", Leicestershire Police said.

Image: Pic: Leicester Media

A man was taken to hospital "as a precautionary measure".

Additional specialist teams will join the search operation on Monday morning.

Police said they have received several offers of help with the search but warned the public not to attend the scene due to rising water levels and safety risks.

In a statement, Leicestershire Police said: "The child's family are being supported by specialist officers and our thoughts are with them at this extremely difficult time.

"If anyone has any information or comes across anything that may assist officers, they are asked to contact us immediately."

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Sir John Curtice: In some ways, Reform is as big a problem as Labour for Sunak now - The Telegraph

Last year should have been one of personal milestones for Prof Sir John Curtice. In December, he turned 70. Eight months earlier, his wife, Lisa, hit the same age. For that, they and their daughter, plus her husband and two young children, celebrated by renting some rooms in a castle in Stirlingshire. When Curtice’s turn rolled around, though, he just decided to ignore it entirely.

“Ye-ess,” he says, waving the air impatiently, “work was just far too busy. But I am 70 and I’m still in employment. So thank God for the government that brought in age discrimination legislation…”

Officially, Sir John is professor of politics at the University of Strathclyde, president of the British Polling Council and senior research fellow at both the National Centre for Social Research and UK in a Changing Europe.

Unofficially, he is simply the nation’s foremost political polling guru; a boffin of such unerring accuracy and phlegmatic delivery that his input to the BBC’s election nights – interpreting exit polls, explaining voting trends, sitting on high like the umpire of democracy – have given him a cult following. “Is Sir John Curtice On TV?” asks a Twitter/X account with 12,000 followers. Invariably, he is.

“I don’t pay attention to that stuff or follow parody accounts. But people come up to me in the street, and they’re usually very nice, asking for a selfie. I suppose the people who think I’m a load of bloody nonsense don’t bother.”

‘The Tories are having an existential crisis’

Sir John has studied politics for over 45 years, but the last dozen have been the wildest. “Ever since the SNP got the overall majority in 2011 and Cameron decided to hold the independence referendum, British politics has faced some pretty remarkable challenges,” he says.

“First there was the Scotland question, then the 2015 election, paving the way for the EU referendum; Theresa May and parliament getting stuck on Brexit while the Conservatives and Labour look in deep, deep trouble; then along comes Boris with a majority, then some quiet but oh – a pandemic. Then straight into partygate and Tory leadership elections; then Elizabeth II dies, Liz Truss arrives and is a complete disaster… And so now we have this situation where the opposition party, even though everyone thought it faced this insurmountable hurdle, are now odds-on favourites to win the general election.”

‘Sunak loves a spreadsheet, he’s a details person’

Given it is now election year, he’s about to get even busier. He arrives at a hotel just off Whitehall looking like a man in a hurry: tweed flat cap, grey suit, sensible raincoat, practical black trainer-shoe hybrids.

Affable and eccentric, with wild tufts of white candyfloss hair, he looks like Doc Brown in Back to the Future or a phenomenally cerebral Roman senator.

“So this is one of those personality things, is it?” he says. “Why do you want to talk to me?” Well, I say, it’s the election soon, and you’re Professor Sir John Curtice. A sigh. “I see. All right.”

Sir John is down in London for a few days for meetings, interviews and events. It’s a trip he makes from his home in Glasgow so often he’s worked out how to get precisely six hours of sleep on the Caledonian sleeper. “But my ideal exciting day is one where I get up in the morning at home, I’m in front of my laptop at 9am, I do not get disturbed by journalists, and at the end of the day I have something to show for it.”

I suspect he secretly enjoys being so in demand – not that anyone sees the next election as on a knife-edge. Sir John certainly doesn’t as last week’s by-election results confirmed. Speaking briefly on the phone, on Friday afternoon, after not having slept for over 30 hours, things had gone more or less as expected.

“I didn’t necessarily expect the Conservatives to do quite as badly in Wellingborough, but certainly Reform doing better and the Conservatives coming a cropper was the central expectation.” It is clear that Reform is now a major thorn in the Tories’ side.

“Richard Tice is determined to stand everywhere, they feel the Conservatives have failed to deliver on Brexit, failed to deliver on immigration and failed to deliver on tax, so basically the Conservatives are being attacked on their Right by people who think they’ve not upheld the true faith. And that’s always difficult,” Sir John says.

“The problem they’ve got is that we’re already looking at serious fracturing of the Leave coalition that got the Conservatives into power in 2019. Virtually everybody who votes for Reform is a Brexiteer, so there’s a risk of making the fracturing of that crucial Leave coalition even worse.”

Is Reform almost a bigger problem than Labour for Sunak now? “Not really, because if you lose a vote to Labour they’re in the position to turn that into seats, whereas Reform aren’t. But in terms of the flow of the vote, yes. Basically, the by-elections mirror the message of the opinion polls: that roughly speaking, for every one person switching from Conservative to Labour, there’s another one switching to Reform.”

As it stands, then, Labour’s lead is strong and stable at around 20 points. “Aside from Reform UK showing a bit of life, nothing of great note has happened in 16 months. The Conservatives were recovering a bit, but they then made the fatal mistake of not falling in behind the Privileges Committee’s report on Boris Johnson, and such progresses they made disappeared,” Sir John says.

“It looks increasingly like the Conservative Party doesn’t understand the pickle it’s in, the source of its difficulties, or certainly hasn’t identified an effective way out. Time’s running out and history’s also against it.” It is a party “having an existential crisis”, he adds, and “it may be the case that in deciding to focus on immigration, the Tories just handed votes to Reform. All they’ve done is a) Advertise their failure and b) Advertise their division.”

In a way, he thinks, Labour have it easy. “Basically, the Conservative Party said to itself: ‘We’re in deep trouble, we’ve increased the role of the state, we’ve increased taxation substantially and we haven’t delivered on immigration – that’s why we’re down in the polls.’ This is almost certainly a non sequitur. The reason they’re down in the polls is simple. One, the state of the economy; two, the state of the health service; and three, Boris Johnson. So on the economy, Labour can just pin the tail on the donkey and say: ‘It’s the Tories wot did it!’”

But Sir Keir Starmer shouldn’t jump for joy just yet. “Keir Starmer hasn’t won the hearts and minds of the country. He has convinced people [Labour] are reasonably moderate and that they can conceive of him as prime minister – that he won’t upset the applecart. But there’s no enthusiasm and that’s potentially a problem.”

‘Starmer’s skillset is that he’s a brilliant prosecution lawyer’

Not least because the issues that did for the Tories will linger, and require cash. “As one economist said to me recently, ‘What’s the point of a socially democratic government when there isn’t any money to spend?’ It becomes very difficult to satisfy your constituency. You can see the Tories are in trouble now, but you can also see how after 18 months of a Labour government, assuming the Tories don’t engage in fratricidal warfare, the Labour Party could find itself in a pretty difficult position as well.”

A one-term government, then? Sir John inhales sharply, then gives a firm nod. “Potentially, yes. If lots of Tories manage to avoid imploding…” So despite appearances, it’s actually a more interesting election than it seems? “Yes, it is.”

‘Intellectuals tend not to be very good at politics’

An only child, Sir John was born and raised in St Austell, Cornwall. His father was a joiner; his mother a part-time market researcher. “Lower middle stroke skilled working class. My grandfather refused to pay for my mother to go to grammar school, and that’s something she long held against him. So she was very keen to promote my education.”

Both grandfathers were miners, but the maternal side was also politically active. Sir John’s mother became a councillor for the Liberals, while her brother was a Labour supporter.

“I certainly remember the occasional political argument around the kitchen table.” A bookish child, Sir John found it fascinating how people under the same roof could have very different views about the world. “Though my first political memory is the death of Hugh Gaitskell [in 1963, when he was 10], and the subsequent Labour leadership election. I just found it interesting – don’t ask me why.”

Sir John enjoys identifying “key moments” in narrative trends, and he cites two in his early life. “One was when I started doing A-levels and we were told that it’s not about learning things, it’s about arguing and debating. I went: ‘Oh, this is much more interesting.’ One of my traits is that I’m pretty willing to challenge conventional wisdom, which started at 16. And the second was getting to university and deciding the academic life looks quite good.”

He read politics, philosophy and economics (PPE) at Magdalen College, Oxford, before transferring to Nuffield College as a postgraduate. Sir Tony Blair was a contemporary, “but he wasn’t involved in politics.” More into pretending to be Mick Jagger? “Yes, indeed. John Hutton and Chris Huhne were also around, though in those days Huhne was definitely a member of the Labour Party.”

‘People come up to me in the street, and they’re usually very nice, asking for a selfie’ Credit: Geoff Pugh

Sir John “hung around” Oxford teaching for a few years, and ended up tutoring William Hague, “so that’s my principal achievement.” Lord Hague was an MP at 27 and a minister at 31, of course.

“Hague was just your classic intelligent layperson, born for PPE. He spent most of his time in the union. Didn’t do a lot of work, but obviously just knuckled down six weeks before finals and got a first. He was one of those people who could mug it up, write the essay quickly, and talk the talk… You’ve probably had plenty of those in your office, haven’t you?” Well, I think one of them became prime minister. Curtice giggles. “Indeed.”

Incidentally, Boris Johnson is one of the three “titans of post-war politics” that Sir John sets apart from all other politicians he’s witnessed. The others are Sir Tony and Margaret Thatcher. He never considered becoming a politician himself: “I’m too cussed, too individualistic.”

Besides, “to some degree I’m a jester, a licensed fool; under the guise of impartiality or academic dottiness, you’re given a licence to say what other people won’t say. I take the view that intellectuals tend not to be very good at politics. You need to be articulate, you need to be good at communication, you need to be able to construct a narrative and set out a vision; but you also need not to have self-doubt – and that’s a crucial feature of academic life.”

It is a strange, rare combination of skills in a person. The best he’s seen is Sir Tony Blair, “who could just command the attention of the British public and construct a narrative, and apart from eventually becoming undone, he was pretty good at government.

Johnson, Thatcher and Blair are, according tot Curtice, the ‘titans of post-war politics’ Credit: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images | Jamie Hodgson/Getty Images | Medhi Fedouach/AFP/Getty Images

“It’s on that last point that puts him ahead of Boris, a consummate campaigner who ended up being lousy in government. Wrong skillset. He was a prime minister for good times, not a pandemic. And Thatcher was a good communicator, but again came undone and out of touch. Until the latter end of her premiership, though, she was probably the most skillful. These are the three titans.”

At Oxford, Sir John’s mentor was the political scientist David Butler, a psephologist who was a commentator on the BBC’s election night coverage from 1950 to 1979 and co-invented the swingometer. Under Butler, Sir John came to understand just how important quantitative analysis could be, especially in the burgeoning computer age. When most academics were still using slide rules, he gained computer skills; he soon succeeded Butler as the BBC’s go-to election night interpreter.

He has now worked on every general election since 1979, making the next one his 11th, and the 18th of his lifetime. So I wonder how he rates the current crop of leaders.

“One of the problems we have at the moment is that I don’t think either Sunak, or Starmer, or Davey, or frankly Yusuf, really have the skillset to be a political leader. Starmer and Sunak are professionally highly competent, but Sunak’s skillset is he loves a spreadsheet, he’s a details person, like Gordon Brown,” Sir John says.

“Starmer’s skillset is that he’s a brilliant prosecution lawyer. These are not unuseful skillsets in government, but they’re not the things that enable you to communicate with the wider public.”

And those are the best we have. Is this the weakest group of leaders he’s ever seen fight a general election? He thinks for a moment. “Yes, probably.” 

‘The 1975 EU referendum didn’t settle the issue and it’s pretty clear 2016’s didn’t either’

Sir John won’t be telling me who wins his own vote, but he will admit he’s not always voted the same way. There are no MPs he would consider friends, and he has clear rules: to never take money from a political party or organisation close to parties; and he’ll tell nobody anything in private he wouldn’t be willing to say in public.

It helps that he doesn’t live in Westminster – or even England. Meaning you won’t find him ensconced in the Carlton Club of an evening. If he does stay in the capital, it’s often with his daughter, a senior civil servant, and her family in south London. “I spend most of my time reading computer tables, not running around SW1.”

His wife, Lisa, decided in recent years to become a full-time Anglican priest in the Scottish Episcopal Church. Sir John too is a regular churchgoer. “One of the reasons I’m still in employment is, shall we say, that she’s not at home waiting for me to take her to Amsterdam every weekend.” They relax by tending to their allotment.

“My great salvation. I try to get to it most weekends – winter veg, summer fruit. It’s two or three hours of physical exercise, which helps keep the weight down, and it means I’ve got something else to worry about for a bit. But it’s been a lousy winter.” Nature isn’t as predictable as the voting public.

He’s come to learn that he needs some sleep, but “you have to be able to do all night” every few months. His BBC election coverage tends to be fuelled by just coffee. He’ll be back this year, though with David Dimbleby retiring and Huw Edwards unwell, nobody knows who’ll be sitting beside him. “And I don’t either.” 

He cites 1992 as his greatest failure, when polls suggested a hung parliament or narrow Labour majority. In the end, it was a fourth consecutive victory for the Tories. “The polling wrongfooted us quite badly.”

His greatest triumph, on the other hand, was surely 2017, when his remarkable exit poll revealed Theresa May could lose her parliamentary majority, then the real results matched it almost identically. He was heralded as “the man who won the election” and knighted the following year.

Sir John receiving his Knighthood in 2018 Credit: Jane Barlow/PA Wire

Not that he let fame go to his head – his wife and daughter put paid to that. “They are aware of my cult status. Or supposed cult status. I think they are both sufficiently strong personalities with their own interests and careers that they wear it lightly, and treat me with the due level of disrespect that all daughters and wives should have for their fathers and husbands.” 

We’re in for another unpredictable decade. He can say with certainty that the debate over the EU “isn’t over”, and given the age profile of the Leave vote, the issue will resurface in the long run, “because the 1975 referendum didn’t settle the issue, and it’s pretty clear 2016’s didn’t either”. The same is true of the situation north of the border.

But soon there is a general election that will require an almighty shift to generate surprise. “The Tories have to do more than deny Labour an overall majority, they’ve got to get to about 320 seats otherwise they are stuffed. Beyond the DUP, they have no friends in the House of Commons. So even if they get fewer seats, Labour will form a government. You’re talking about the Tories having to get back to at least even-stevens, probably a bit better.”

And at 70-years-old and after 45 years dancing on the polls, it might, just might, end up Sir John’s last. He clinks down his cappuccino. “Inevitably,” he says, “I may well ask myself after the next general election, ‘Well, maybe it’s time to wind down?’” 

As ever, though, it’s a matter of reading the trends. “I’m not sending out any signals. I’m just aware that’s something you should constantly evaluate, then reevaluate.”

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Shoreditch: Boy, 17, dies after being stabbed in east London - Sky News

A 17-year-old boy has died after being stabbed in east London.

Emergency services were called to Hackney Road, Shoreditch, at around 10.50pm on Saturday.

The victim was found with stab injuries and died at the scene.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway said: "My thoughts are with the family of the young person who has tragically lost his life.

"I can assure them that we will be relentless in seeking to identify whoever was responsible for this murder.

"Cordons are in place in Hackney Road for forensic examination of the scene and we have launched what will be an extremely thorough investigation, supported by specialists from across the Met.

Read more:
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Four officers 'involved in fight while off-duty' placed on restricted duties

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"Local people will also see additional patrols in Shoreditch. If you have any concerns or information, please speak with those officers. They are there to support you."

A post-mortem and formal identification are yet to take place. No one has been arrested.

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It's one of Greater Manchester's most sought after places to live... but disquiet is brewing - Manchester Evening News

It's a series of quaint towns and villages nestled between Stockport town centre and the Peak District.

The Hazel Grove constituency, made up of the town of Marple as well as Romiley, Hazel Grove, Offerton and other areas, is one of the most sought after places in Greater Manchester to live and visit.

Average houses prices in the SK7 area are more than £400,000, and streams of people can found on any given day walking along the Peak Forest Canal or through the many countryside routes.

READ MORE: Stockport residents face council tax hike

But Hazel Grove is shaping up to be one of the fiercest contests when the general election rolls around later this year.

New data from the Climate Coalition's Local Intelligence Hub has revealed that Hazel Grove is one of a handful of 'battleground' seats which could be decided on green issues.

According to the research, 75 percent of voters in the area think that losing natural spaces is a top concern, and want to see their new MP focus on this vital issue.

So where does this leave the future of Marple and Hazel Grove?

Voters in the town told the M.E.N that green issues will be at the front of their mind when they're standing at the ballot box.

Patricia Buckley, 73, has lived in the town for 43 years but says it has seen better days.

Hazel Grove will get a new MP after William Wragg steps down

She said: "People are very worried about building too many houses on the green belt, this is important here. I want to keep these spaces.

"Public transport is another issue, it takes too long to get anywhere and the trains don't always run so it's difficult to plan a day out because you might not be able to get back."

Ms Buckley added that she hasn't yet made her mind up about which way she'll vote when the election comes, but "it will probably be Lib Dem."

'It looks really old and tired - like a town from the 1960s'

Edward Pritchard, 82, lives in nearby Marple Bridge and is another voter who is yet to be swayed.

He said: "To be honest I'm not very happy with the Lib Dems or the Conservatives.

"Green issues are very important to me, we are in a green area. I think traffic is an issue but it can't be avoided. But I would like to see it back to how it used to be, with less cars around."

Caroline Clark, 68, said the town has seen better days and is desperate for some investment, not least in transport and shops.

She said: "Marple looks really old and tired, it's like a town from the 1960s. I don't like the lack of investment here and there are too many charity shops around.

"The train services have become infrequent too, but what I really want to see is my swimming baths back, I used to go there three times a week."

A resident said there are too many charity shops in Marple

There are plans in place to reopen a new community leisure hub in Marple, to replace the former baths which closed in 2018.

Her companion Elanor Coyne, 69, agrees that the environment should be a top priority for Hazel Grove's next MP.

She said the traffic can be "very bad at times" and that the lack of bins along the canal means people have to travel a long way to get rid of their rubbish.

Paul Athans, 34, is the Conservative choice to become Hazel Grove's next MP.

The Liverpool-born candidate lives in Marple and summarised the constituency as a place where people will pro-actively take action to protect the environment.

A CGI of what the planned Marple Leisure and Community Hub could look like (Image: Copyright Unknown)

He said green issues and energy security are some of his top priorities.

He told the M.E.N: "I come from a defence background, I was an army officer, so I look at everything from a defence and security perspective.

"For me energy security is the most important thing. If we've seen anything in the past two years, when Russia has a stranglehold on oil and gas supplies for Europe, energy prices go up.

"If you can produce your own energy and use renewable, or nuclear, using that mix is far better and reduces the impact of hostile states."

'A clean air zone is going to punish people'

One of the key issues he wants to tackle is traffic congestion in the area.

He added: "Where we are here, there isn't the transport infrastructure in place for people to be able to use it. Half the time you're stuck in traffic around Hazel Grove, especially through Marple, it's a massive problem.

"One of the things we're campaigning for is the A6-M60 bypass, my view is that if you reduce congestion you can reduce pollution. A clean air zone is just going to punish people."

Caroline Clark (right) and Elanor Coyne (left) say Marple could do with more funding

On housing, Mr Athans has campaigned for "more affordable" homes in Hazel Grove - built on brownfield land and empty commercial spaces - including in Compstall Mill which he said has "fallen into wreck and ruin."

He has also praised the work of the government for introducing new laws banning bosses at water companies from getting a bonus if the firm is found to have committed serious criminal breaches.

Councillor Lisa Smart is the Lib Dem candidate for the constituency.

Her name has been on the ballot paper three times previously, and each time her number of votes has grown, chipping away at the Conservative majority.

'We are incredibly lucky'

Ms Smart, who lives in Romiley, said one the things she is most proud about is having helped to stop housebuilding on the green belt.

She said: "We are incredibly lucky to live in a part of the world which has so many beautiful green spaces. We have to protect them so that people can share their benefits both today and tomorrow.

"I am proud of the work that we have managed to achieve as Lib Dems on the council to stop housebuilding on the greenbelt. We are able to preserve our green belt by creating housing on existing sites and previously developed land – not in the fields and meadows that surround our towns and villages."

Brabyns Park, Marple Locks (Image: Manchester Evening News)

Ms Smart has called for stronger measures to stop sewage being dumped into rivers, and worries whether the government really understands the danger of the problem.

She added: “Pollution from water companies is such a threat to our environment and it beggars belief that more has not been done at a national government level.

"I created the first ever investigation by a local council in the UK into the impacts of sewage dumping, as huge volumes of sewage are dumped into the River Goyt and plans to create a new woodland on the Chadkirk Country Estate were destroyed by sewage leaks.

“The council has now come up with plans to create a new wildflower meadow on the site in Romiley – delivering environmental and biodiversity benefits despite the problems being ignored by the current Conservative government."

With the Conservatives facing recent by-election defeats to Labour in Wellingborough and Kingswood, the party may face their greatest challenge yet in the marginal seat of Hazel Grove, especially with Reform UK set to be on the ballot.

Whichever way the result goes, Hazel Grove voters have made clear that they want to see their towns and villages given a new lease of life, and have their green spaces protected for the future.

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David Carrick: Rapist PC stripped of full state-funded pension - bbc.co.uk

Hertfordshire Police

By Thomas Mackintosh

BBC News

Rapist police officer David Carrick has been stripped of his full state-funded pension, the mayor of London has confirmed.

Carrick, 49, was jailed last February after he admitted dozens of rapes and sexual offences against 12 women.

He was ordered to serve a sentence of at least 30 years and was also sacked from the Metropolitan Police.

Sadiq Khan said Carrick, of Stevenage, would lose 65% of his pension, the maximum reduction legally allowed.

"David Carrick blatantly abused his position of trust as a police officer to carry out his appalling crimes," Mr Khan said.

"I have been very clear that steps should be taken to remove the employer contributions of his Met Police pension."

• David Carrick: How a monster finally lost control

Under case law and in line with Home Office guidance, only the police contributions to an officer's pension can be forfeited, not the officer's own contributions.

The guidance states pension forfeiture can only be applied for when an officer has a conviction "committed in connection with their service as a member of a police force".

The offence also has to have been certified by the Home Secretary as "liable to lead to a serious loss of confidence in the publics service" or "gravely injurious to the interests of the state".

Mr Khan's deputy mayor for policing and crime, Sophie Linden, said: "It is absolutely right we have taken every step we can as quickly as we can.

"He didn't deserve to wear the uniform of an officer, he doesn't deserve the pension of an officer."

Julia Quenzler / BBC

In 2001, Carrick joined the Met before becoming an armed officer in the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection unit in 2009.

He pleaded guilty at Southwark Crown Court to a total of 49 offences, including 24 counts of rape, between 2003 and 2020.

Carrick had been repeatedly reported to the Met and Hertfordshire Police before his eventual arrest.

The Met's deputy assistant commissioner, Stuart Cundy, reiterated an apology to Carrick's victims: "Offending of such an appalling nature must have wide reaching consequences and it is right that the decision has been taken to subject Carrick to the maximum pension forfeiture allowed in law."

Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hellobbclondon@bbc.co.uk

Related Topics

• Metropolitan Police Service
• London
• Sadiq Khan

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Prince Harry 'willing to take temporary royal role while King is ill' - The Independent

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The Duke of Sussex is willing to step into a temporary royal role while his father undergoes cancer treatment, it has been reported.

Reports say Harry has told friends he would step into such a role while Charles is unwell.

The duke and his father are said to have had several “warm exchanges” since the King’s illness was diagnosed, it was claimed.

Harry, who stepped down as a working royal alongside his wife the Duchess of Sussex in 2020, is a counsellor of state but is not expected to take up any of the King’s duties while he recovers.

A royal source has also told the newspaper that Charles, 75, is keen to reconcile and see more of his son, and believes doing so would benefit the monarchy.

The source told The Times: “On all practical levels it makes perfect sense for the family to come together to support the King while he’s sick.

“Much has been said on both sides in recent years, but that has never diminished the fundamental bond of blood, and there are now pragmatic aspects to consider, with the King and Kate’s wellbeing ­paramount in this.

“The details of the Clarence House meeting and subsequent conversations are private, but the feeling is that this arrangement could work.”

Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, talks with skeleton athletes during an Invictus Games training camp

A written plan would need to be drawn up by the King and his aides before Harry could return to any official duties and would not receive public funds, the newspaper said.

It comes after Harry suggested the King’s illness could lead to a reconciliation with his father in an interview with a US breakfast show.

Harry also said I “love my family” and that he was “grateful” to be able to spend time with his father when he flew back to the UK last week.

The duke’s whirlwind visit to see Charles for around 45 minutes prompted speculation the two men, estranged since the duke stepped down as a working royal, may be on the point of rebuilding their relationship.

In the interview, aired on Good Morning America, it was suggested a family illness could have a “re-unifying effect”, and when Harry was asked “is that possible in this case?” he replied: “Yeah, I’m sure.”

The duke and his wife Meghan are in Canada staging a number of events with Invictus competitors to mark a year to go until Harry’s Invictus Games, for wounded and sick veterans and military, is staged in the country.

They are being followed by a film crew led by Will Reeve, the son of the late Superman star Christopher Reeve, who interviewed Harry in the winter sports town of Whistler, which is hosting the 2025 Invictus Games alongside Vancouver.

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visit the Whistler Sliding Centre

Gesturing towards Invictus competitors, Harry added: “Throughout all these families I see it on a day-to-day basis, the strength of the family unit coming together.

“I think any illness, any sickness brings families together.”

Buckingham Palace has not given details about Charles’s cancer and Harry declined to divulge any information when asked about his “outlook” on the King’s health, replying “that stays between me and him”.

But he said he would be visiting his father in the future: “I’ve got other trips planned that would take me through the UK or back to the UK, so I’ll stop in and see my family as much as I can.”

There was no meeting between the duke and his brother, the Prince of Wales, last Tuesday after Harry spent time with Charles at Clarence House.

The breakdown in the bond between the royal brothers can be traced back to the early period of Harry’s relationship with wife Meghan when his then fiancee had a falling out with the Princess of Wales in the run-up to their wedding.

Britain Royals Camilla

(Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Since stepping down as working royals in 2020 and moving to California, the Sussexes have aired allegations and grievances against the monarchy and members of the royal family which have also soured relations.

Speaking to Reeve, Harry said: “Look, I love my family.

“The fact that I was able to get on a plane and go and see him and spend any time with him, I’m grateful for that.”

The duke was asked about his life in America, something he described as “amazing”, and whether he had contemplated becoming a US citizen, with the royal saying he had “considered” it.

Harry added: “The American citizenship is a thought that has crossed my mind but certainly not something that’s a high priority for me right now.”

Asked how he “processed” what was going on with his family in the UK, the royal replied: “I have my own family, as we all do. My family, and my life in California is as it is.”

Meghan and Harry are bringing up their two children Prince Archie, aged four, and two-year-old Princess Lilibet in the celebrity enclave of Montecito in California.

The duke said: “The kids are doing great, the kids are growing like all kids do very, very fast. They’ve both got an incredible sense of humour – make us laugh and keep us grounded every single day, as most kids do.

“I’m just very grateful to be a dad.”

During the interview, footage was shown of Harry trying the skeleton bobsleigh, one of the winter sports being introduced at the Invictus Games next year for the first time.

Harry said hosting the biennial Games, or the one year to go events, were his “…annual fix, to be amongst this community and have a laugh, have fun – no matter which nation they’re from the banter’s the same.

“I get a lot of energy just from being around these guys.”

Buckingham Palace declined to comment.

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