UK

Sir Keir Starmer has ordered Britain’s key watchdogs to remove barriers to growth in a bid to kickstart Britain’s sluggish economy. Sky News has learnt that the prime minister wrote to more than ten regulators – including Ofgem, Ofwat, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority – on Christmas Eve to demand

Never wrestle with a pig. You get dirty. And besides, the pig likes it. Looking at the festive ding-dong that’s broken out between Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage, you do wonder if the Tory leader should take on board this famous quote – because there was only ever going to be one winner from this

British voters are in for a relatively untroubled 2025, after the “Year of Elections” which saw a new government in the UK and major upheavals around the world, including the victory of Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated as US president for the second time on 20 January. In all likelihood, Sir Keir Starmer needs

Nigel Farage has threatened to take legal action against Tory leader Kemi Badenoch if she does not apologise for accusing him of publishing a “fake” ticker showing Reform UK’s membership increasing to overtake the Conservatives. The Reform UK leader has reacted furiously to Ms Badenoch’s assertion that he was “manipulating [his] own supporters” with a

Two women have died following a stabbing in Milton Keynes on Christmas Day, police said. A dog injured in the incident in Bletchley also died after being taken to the vets. A man and a teenage boy suffered serious injuries. A 49-year-old man from Milton Keynes has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted

The King has praised the community response to the “anger and lawlessness” of this summer’s riots in towns and cities around the UK in his annual Christmas message. Charles, 76, also used the message, filmed by Sky News at the chapel of the former Middlesex Hospital in central London, to thank doctors and nurses who

The Church of England needs to “kneel in penitence” and “be changed”, the Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell is expected to say in his Christmas Day sermon. It comes at a challenging time for the Church which has faced criticism over how it handled a number of abuse scandals. Mr Cottrell will next month effectively

Police have released images of two men after a 19-year-old man was allegedly raped in Brighton. The victim said he was approached by two men in the city centre around 3.30am on Saturday who went on to rape him. He was able to get help from a passer-by who called police. “This is a deeply

The King has poignantly chosen a former hospital chapel to deliver his annual Christmas broadcast. The message was recorded earlier this month by Sky News inside the Fitzrovia Chapel in central London. It is a tiny building, originally for staff and patients of the now-demolished Middlesex Hospital. At the end of a year of change

A plane’s nose wheel collapsed during a hard landing in Belfast due to bad weather. There were four crew members but no passengers on board when the Aer Lingus regional flight, operated by Emerald Airlines, landed at around 4pm on Sunday. Belfast City Airport closed its runway for the rest of the day following the

Labour are on track for their worst end to the year in opinion polls since the Second World War. Sir Keir Starmer‘s party is now averaging just 26.6%, despite winning one of the largest-ever majorities five months ago. Analysis of nearly 1,000 polls across 75 years found Labour are now 1% behind their previous end-of-year

TV presenter Chris Packham and former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas have stepped down from their roles as president and vice-president of the RSPCA following allegations of animal cruelty at the charity’s approved abattoirs. Mr Packham said on social media it was with “enormous sadness” he resigned from his position at the animal rights charity.

Pensioners have until the end of Saturday to apply for benefits which could unlock access to the winter fuel payment, or risk missing out on up to £300. It has been switched to a means-tested benefit including for those on pension credit, but official estimates suggest there are 760,000 households who do not claim pension

The Prince and Princess of Wales are set to work with a local charity to launch a mental health programme to support those living on the Sandringham Estate and in the surrounding areas. The royals are partly funding the new pilot programme with Norfolk and Waveney Mind. It will provide additional mental health support for

Children with special educational needs are being “segregated” and left to struggle in the wrong schools because councils are trying to “save on costs”, parents have told Sky News.  Maire Leigh Wilson, whose four-year-old son has Down’s syndrome, says she “shudders to think” where he would be now had she not been in a “constant

Sir Keir Starmer is to make his most controversial senior appointment yet by naming Peter Mandelson as UK ambassador to the US. Lord Mandelson, 71, known as the “Prince of Darkness” from his days as a New Labour‘s spin doctor, will be the prime minister‘s link to Donald Trump. ‘Brutal’ figure ‘an inspired choice’ –

Social media companies must face tough sanctions if they fail to keep children safe from harmful content, the technology secretary has said. Speaking exclusively to Sky News, Peter Kyle said age verification for adult material would have to be “watertight”, and that apps which do not protect children will face heavy fines and even jail

There’s been a huge increase in animal neglect and abandonment in England and Wales and the RSPCA’s rescue centres are “absolutely full”, according to the charity. New figures show there were 38,977 incidents of neglect reported to the RSPCA’s emergency cruelty line between January and September 2023. But for the same period in 2024, there

Four teenagers who murdered two boys in Bristol in a case of mistaken identity have been detained for life. Riley Tolliver, 18, a 16-year-old boy, a 17-year-old boy, and getaway driver Antony Snook, 45, were convicted of the murders of Mason Rist, 15, and 16-year-old Max Dixon in November. A 15-year-old boy was also found

Almost 60,000 homes across Hampshire are without water because of a “technical issue” at a Southern Water supply works, the company has said. Homes in Southampton, Romsey, Eastleigh, Totton, and parts of the New Forest have been affected by problems at the Testwood water supply works preventing water from leaving the site. Southern Water apologised