UK news

UK news

The provisional total fertility rate, which measures the average number of live children women are expected to have during their childbearing years, was estimated at 1.39 for 2025. This marks a further decline from the 1.41 children per woman recorded in 2024. For a nation's population to maintain stability over time excluding any impact from migration a total fertility rate of approximately 2.1 is typically required. The latest provisional figures are based on the 2025 projected population, and final rates are expected to be released later this year.

Members of Killaloe Coast Guard responded to a vessel in difficulty on Tuesday evening, May 26 after reports of engine failure south of Killaloe Bridge, at the border with Co. Tipperary.

Higher prices could persist over the summer even if ceasefire talks between the US and Iran bear fruit, consumers have been warned, with economic shock waves likely to be felt for many months to come. Disruption to global shipping, coupled with soaring prices for energy and raw materials, have driven up costs for UK companies, with the impact already filtering through to prices paid at the tills, according to fresh inflation figures.

Officers arrested the 49-year-old man at an address in Salford on Tuesday evening, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said in a statement. He is the eighth person to be arrested in connection with the attack, and remains in custody for questioning. The arrest relates directly to the attack at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue on 2 October last year, which killed 53-year-old Adrian Daulby and 66-year-old Melvin Cravitz and left three others with serious injuries.

Foreign investors, the lifeblood of the country's commercial property market for much of the last decade, deployed just £3.6 billion into UK bricks and mortar between January and March, according to figures from industry body Real Estate:UK and analytics group CoStar - a 30 per cent slump on the £5.2 billion booked in the same period a year earlier.

It is believed the teenagerswas approached by two young men on a moped, just before 2pm on Saturday, when he was walking in the area of Duncan Edwards Close, Dudley, West Midlands Police said. The men attacked the boy before fleeing, leaving him with serious injuries to his chest and face, according to the force. He was taken to hospital, has undergone surgery and is in a serious but stable condition, police said on Sunday.

After I was sent back to France by the Home Office, the smugglers caught me and wanted to force me to work with them. I don't want to work with the smugglers and I refused to do so. They beat me so badly that my face is still full of bruises and injuries. I managed to escape from them and felt that my only option was to come back to the UK, which is a safer place for me.

Eoghan O'Connell (36), with an address at Dargle Heights, Bray, Co Wicklow, appeared before a sitting of Bray District Court. He pleaded guilty to one count of failing to comply with ongoing notification requirements, including a failure to notify gardaí every three days of the specific location where he intended to reside between March and May 2026.

The FTSE 100 looked set to open higher on Friday as investors cautiously welcomed signs of possible progress in Middle East peace negotiations, despite mounting concerns over Britain's weakening consumer economy and renewed rises in oil prices.

The UK's £38.2 billion (c $51 billion) Sizewell C (SZC) nuclear reactor is set to offer investors high rewards for little exposure to risk, while the consumer will see a £19 ($25.50) annual hike to their bills, according to a public sector spending watchdog.

U.K. police investigating Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the royal formerly known as Prince Andrew, over his links to Jeffrey Epstein are reportedly expanding the scope of their probe to examine potential sex crimes and urging alleged Epstein survivors to come forward. Detectives in London are looking to speak with a woman who claims she was taken to the former prince's Windsor residence for sexual purposes as part of what officials reportedly believe could become a lengthy and widening inquiry, according to Sky News.

In the year to April 2026 there were 106 reported deaths of care leavers, with 91 deaths reported in the 12 months before. The majority of those who died were aged 16 to 21. Although a requirement to report these deaths was introduced in 2023, ministers believe the true figure is probably higher. Labour launched an urgent review into the deaths in April to try to identify where support systems may have failed.

A sentencing hearing on Thursday was told McCullagh made "self-contradictory" and "incredible" statements to his probation officer, first insisting he "was convinced that he was not guilty of the murder". The probation officer further noted McCullagh described the murder as "evil" and "vicious", and referred to himself as "a monster", the court heard. He also said: "I'm sorry for what I did to that poor family, what I did to Natalie," and "I would take it back if I could."

“I walked in thinking this person was on my side,” he says. “I walked out understanding that nobody in that room was on my side except me. And I didn't even know what questions to ask.”

A 64-year-old TfL bus driver was given emergency first aid before being taken to hospital by London's air ambulance. He remains in a critical condition, the Metropolitan Police said.

Garda Conor McDonagh told the court that the defendant was detected travelling at a speed of 147km/h. The weather conditions were dry and there was moderate traffic on the road. Garda McDonagh handed in proof of postage of the FCPN to the court. Judge Cunningham found the facts proven. She fined Sherlock €320.