The Daily Telegraph - 07.10.2026 — 2026-10-07

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Badenoch to get the youth working

Berlin spy chiefleaked UK secrets, MI6 fears

Germany's ex-head of foreign intelligence arrested on suspicion of treason

By Rozina Sabur, James Rothwell and Joe Barnes

BRITISH intelligence agencies are investigating whether their classified information or spies were compromised in the biggest espionage scandal in modern European history.

August Hanning, the former head of Germany's foreign intelligence service, and a current senior official at the agency, named only as Manfred D, were arrested yesterday on suspicion of espionage and treason. Mr Hanning is accused of illegally collecting documents for 16 years through Manfred D and selling some of the secrets to a foreign power.

German security sources said some of the high-level information the pair handled came from partner intelligence agencies abroad, raising the prospect that British and US secrets had been compromised. It has also raised fears that US and British human sources, either agents or informants operating in the field, could be identified through the information that has been shared.

The news has shocked the Western intelligence community, with sources describing the alleged breach as a major coup for a foreign power and potentially deeply damaging to the Western intelligence-sharing alliance.

MI6 and GCHQ, as well as several US agencies, are now believed to be undergoing a systematic internal review of all sensitive information shared with European allies during the relevant period. The Telegraph understands their primary focus is safeguarding sources who may have been put at risk by the alleged leak.

Similar audits are likely to be undertaken by all Germany's intelligence-sharing partners and allies. It is unclear when German officials notified their counterparts of the breach, although it is understood to have been prior to yesterday's arrests.

Once the president of the Federal Intelligence Service, or BND, Germany's equivalent to MI6, Mr Hanning left the post in November 2005 after six years. Manfred D served as chief of staff for several BND presidents between March 2012 and March 2026. In that role he was instrumental in shaping the flow of information to the president's office.

While every intelligence agency safeguards against potential leaks by compartmentalising information sharing, as a very senior official, Manfred D would have enjoyed widespread access to all the intelligence the BND received. The German federal prosecutor's office said that Manfred D was suspected of providing Mr Hanning "with approximately 2,000 documents" in total.

Martin Jäger, the BND's president, said the agency had "initiated comprehensive internal investigations at an early stage and without delay". He added: "For the BND and for me, there can be no compromises when it comes to internal security. None of my goals or priorities are being called into question by this incident."

Matthew Dunn, a former MI6 intelligence officer, said British intelligence services would be combing through everything shared with the BND and assessing the risks. However, the former spy said that he would be “very surprised” if this affected the agency’s relationship with BND and imagined they would be “collaborating”.

He clarified that it was standard practice for “automatic checks and balances” to be embedded when intelligence was shared, including sanitising information about sources.

Report: Page 6

Kemi Badenoch has pledged to halve the 'jobs tax' on young people to save businesses thousands of pounds a year. The Conservative leader, who was seen partying at the Tory conference this week, has said that a future Tory government would lower employers' National Insurance to 7.5 per cent for staff aged between 21 and 24. Pages 4-5

Labour spares child rapists harsher sentences

By Charles Hymas

HOME AFFAIRS EDITOR

CHILD rapists are avoiding tougher sentences because of delays caused by prison overcrowding.

In April, Labour passed a new law requiring adults who have sex with children to face mandatory rape charges – a key recommendation in Baroness Casey's review of the grooming gang scandal. However, the law change, which will increase the maximum sentences for offenders from 14 years in jail to life imprisonment, has yet to be implemented.

A Ministry of Justice impact assessment calculated that the increase would require up to 350 extra prison places at a time when jails are close to running out of space.

Last Thursday, 700 prisoners - including violent offenders, domestic abusers and thieves - were freed early to tackle the overcrowding crisis. Some 4,500 are to be released early over the next 10 months to free up space. The MoJ said it remained committed to enacting the new child rape laws, but did not give a date for their introduction.

Officials said it had to be "carefully staged" to ensure that the criminal justice system had the "processes, capacity and resources" to implement them "safely and consistently".

The Tories, however, said it risked betraying grooming gang victims. Nick Timothy, the shadow justice secretary, said: "Delaying laws to toughen punishment for rape would be a disgraceful betrayal of the victims of the vile rape gangs. As we saw with their reckless early release scheme, Labour are ideologically anti-prison and would rather let people out than do the hard work required to keep them in."

Baroness Casey proposed mandatory rape charges for child sex as her review's number one recommendation. She said there were "too many" cases in which rape charges were downgraded or dropped as the 13 to 15-year-olds were claimed to have been "in love with" or "consented" to sex with the perpetrators. She proposed a law change so that Continued on Page 2

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Andrew claims police took personal items

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor launched legal action against the police after accusing officers of seizing personal items during raids on his home. The former Duke of York instructed lawyers after discovering Thames Valley Police detectives had allegedly removed private and confidential material unconnected to the investigation. If Mr Mountbatten-Windsor wins, Thames Valley Police could be forced to return all the material seized in the raids.

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NEWS

Flydubai hijack suspect learnt to fly at Gatwick

The suspected Flydubai hijacker trained to become a professional pilot in Britain, The Telegraph can reveal. Hamam al-Hammami, 29, the Omani pilot accused of attempting to hijack a passenger jet bound for Israel, is understood to have attended one of the UK's biggest flight schools between 2018 and 2019. The Telegraph understands that he trained with L3 Airline Academy, a pilot-training company that has since become part of Acron Aviation.

Page 8

'The French are happy to burn a wheelie bin, but try asking them for a well-done steak...'

WORLD

French riot police clash with students

Up to 100,000 young people marched on Paris yesterday during violent student protests across France. The demonstrations have left 715 police, 215 pupils and 85 teaching staff injured, including 34 head teachers. Edson, 21, who was on the streets in Paris yesterday, told The Telegraph: "We started protesting because there was no head teacher to take care of us. Last year, we didn't have French or maths teachers yet these are compulsory subjects." Page II

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Andrew: Police took my personal items

Judge's ruling in former duke's case against officers who raided his home could be blow to investigation

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By Martin Evans and Victoria Ward

ANDREW MOUNTBATTEN-WINDSOR launched legal action against the police after accusing officers of seizing personal items during raids on his home, The Telegraph can reveal.

The former Duke of York instructed lawyers after discovering detectives from Thames Valley Police (TVP) had allegedly removed private and confidential material unconnected to its criminal investigation.

He launched a judicial review of the search warrants that granted police permission to raid his home in Norfolk and his former residence in Windsor in

February. As well as challenging the police over its conduct, his lawyers are asking the High Court to rule whether the granting of the warrant itself by an Old Bailey judge was lawful.

A ruling in the legal case is expected imminently, and if Mr Mountbatten-Windsor wins, TVP could be forced to return all the material seized in the raids. Such a move would deal a potentially fatal blow to the misconduct in public office investigation that was launched following the publication of the Epstein Files earlier this year.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on the morning of his 66th birthday, after being accused of passing market-sensitive information to his friend, the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, when he was UK trade envoy between 2001 and 2011.

The way police execute search warrants in high-profile investigations became the subject of intense scrutiny during Scotland Yard's disastrous Operation Midland investigation.

Detectives investigating a non-existent VIP child abuse ring raided the homes of senior public figures, including Lord Brittan, the former home secretary, who had died just weeks earlier.

In a scathing review of the Met Police's conduct, Sir Richard Henriques, a retired High Court judge, said officers searching Lady Brittan's North Yorkshire home "acted as if they were looking for bodies or body parts". The Met Police later paid out large sums in damages to those whose homes had been raided.

Jonathan Caplan KC, who represented Lady Brittan in the aftermath of the case, suggested TVP may have gone too far. He told The Telegraph: "A prominent individual's reputation can incur substantial damage over a substantial period of time because of an erroneous decision at the outset of the investigative process.

"I expect we might hear that TVP has to return exhibits and other personal belongings that they have taken from Mr Mountbatten-Windsor as a result of these warrants but it will be for the High Court to decide if Thames Valley Police has acted unlawfully.

"You would have expected them to be ultra cautious in this case, so the fact that there is a legal challenge at all is surprising."

Overcrowded jails delay life sentences for child rapists

any adult who had intentional penetrative sex with a child should be charged with mandatory rape, irrespective of whether it was said to be consensual.

Continued from Page 1

Rape carries a maximum sentence of life, with a typical range of six to 19 years in jail. It will replace offences of sexual activity with a child which only carry a maximum of 14 years in prison and typically range from non-custodial community orders to 10 years in jail.

The change was included in the Crime and Policing Act 2026, which gained royal assent in April – but an impact assessment, first revealed by Inside Time, said it would lead to an estimated 5,000 extra crimes reported to the police each year, 400 more prosecutions and an extra 300 convictions. It added: "We estimate that this measure may lead to 200-350 additional prison places, at an average annual cost of £11.7m."

Other measures in the act, including taking intimate images of people without their consent, and encouraging others to self-harm, were forecast to require an additional 25 places, taking the total to between 225 and 375. They have yet to be implemented.

The delay in implementation comes as prison insiders warned that capacity would remain tight despite the planned early release of 4,500 offenders by June. Spare places in men's jails rose from 1,134 to 1,761 after Thursday's early release, but that is still 98 per cent of capacity.

A Government spokesman said: "We want to see the perpetrators who commit child sex offences locked up for longer, and we are changing the law to give judges the power to hand out tougher sentences. This is on top of our unprecedented action to bring more abusers and grooming gang offenders to justice, backing police with record funding to reopen closed cases and introducing mandatory reporting of abuse.

"We are also pulling every lever possible to fix the prisons crisis, building 14,000 new places to keep the worst offenders behind bars."

Officials said that even without the new offences, which it was committed to commencing, criminals who sexually abused children still face long sentences, preventative orders and being placed on the sex offenders' register.

AND NEW PARISORS / KLENSON ON PALACE

Faithfuls The Prince of Wales and Celebrity Traitors star Ross Kemp joined disaster-relief volunteers in Ilminster, Somerset, yesterday. The Prince joked to a group of young people that he was going to make Kemp tell him who wins the TV series.

Burnham set to delay decision on defence spending

By Dominic Penna and Nick Gutteridge

ANDY BURNHAM is poised to delay a decision on whether to spend 3 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030.

The Prime Minister and John Healey, the Chancellor, were expected to set out details of how Britain would hit the target at the spending review in early 2027.

But Mr Burnham will now delay the spending review until late next year to coincide with the Budget, The Times reported.

Mr Healey resigned as defence secretary in June over Sir Keir Starmer's refusal to spend 3 per cent by 2030, a target he said was needed to protect Britain from Russian attacks on Nato by the end of the decade. But both the Chancellor and Mr Burnham have failed to commit to a pathway to that target during their time in power.

They were also expected to set out details of how Britain would hit its Nato target of 3.5 per cent of GDP on defence spending by 2035 at the spending review next year, but this also looks set to be delayed.

More than £2.8bn was wiped off the value of defence stocks on the London Stock Exchange yesterday after it emerged Mr Burnham is considering delaying the military spending review.

much as 2.5 per cent, while Rolls-Royce fell 1.1 per cent.

Yesterday, the Conservatives unveiled plans for an Israeli-style Iron Dome to defend Britain as Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, said the nation must be ready for war.

Announcing her Iron Dome policy, Mrs Badenoch told BBC Breakfast: "I want our Government to be doing something like this. But they're not talking about defence at all, they're not talking about what they're going to do, where they're going to get the money from. I've just heard that they've delayed the spending review yet again. We need to start getting ready now."

A Treasury spokesman said: "The date of the spending review has not been set. This is pure rumour and speculation."

Mr Burnham is pressure to set out how he will fund an increase in defence spending before this month's Budget.

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NEWS BULLETIN

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Statins could stop people going blind

Statins could help stop people going blind from glaucoma, research suggests.

Researchers examined a database of 165 million people to see whether statins could protect against the condition. After five years, 4,771 statin users developed glaucoma (2.3 per cent). This compared with 5,491 people (2.6 per cent) among those not taking the drugs. Overall, statin use was associated with a 15 per cent lower risk of developing open-angle glaucoma, according to the British Journal of Ophthalmology study.

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Gay couple demanded refund 'if baby was girl'

A gay couple demanded a partial refund from a surrogate if she gave birth to a girl.

The two men paid a Chinese woman £93,000 under a contract that offered them compensation if the baby was not healthy and allowed genetic testing during IVF to prioritise male embryos.

Despite the agreement being illegal, a judge in Britain's family courts has granted the couple legal parentage of the baby boy.

British law prohibits commercial surrogacy, strictly limiting payments to reasonable expenses.

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Second village to vote on referendum to leave UK

A second village is to hold a vote on whether to have a referendum to leave the UK in protest over plans to create an asylum camp nearby.

Barnham parish council in Suffolk is to invite villagers to decide on Oct 24 whether they should follow the lead of Piddington in Oxfordshire and stage a referendum on seceding from the UK.

Residents are up in arms over plans to convert its former RAF base into a camp to house 1,250 asylum seekers. It follows Piddington residents' vote last month by 285 to 26 to "secede from the UK and pursue self-determination".

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Ex-Post Office lawyer 'snubs Horizon inquiry'

A former top Post Office lawyer has been accused of “putting her own convenience” before the interests of wronged subpostmasters after applying to attend a tribunal remotely from Australia.

Jane Macleod, who was general counsel at the Post Office during its High Court civil case against Sir Alan Bates and others, is alleged to have shown a "complete disregard" for the Horizon IT inquiry after failing to give oral evidence to the probe. The substantive hearing for the tribunal is scheduled to begin on Jan 25 next year.

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Corrections and Clarifications

An article “One Albanian being jailed every two days” (Apr. 8) inaccurately stated it would cost taxpayers nearly £800m if Albanians imprisoned in the first three months of 2026 served all of their sentences. The correct figure is approximately £12.4m. We are happy to correct the record.

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Lord Archer had spoken at the Queen's Reading Room festival at Chatsworth House only two weeks ago

Grapes of wrath: Farmer's fury as thieves target family vineyard

By Telegraph Reporter

THE owner of an award-winning British vineyard has been left "disheartened" after thieves stole about 500kg (1,100lb) of grapes "to make wine in their garage".

Lee Dyer, from Winbirri Vineyard in Surlingham, Norfolk, said the theft from the family-run business would amount to about 400 bottles of wine.

The theft was discovered on Sept 28 when workers harvesting discovered two 120m-long rows had been targeted.

Award-winning Winbirri Vineyard produces Bacchus wine, which is often referred to as "England's Sauvignon Blanc" with an elderflower flavour.

It sells at £114 for six bottles or £135 for half a dozen of the sparkling wine.

Mr Dyer, who took over the business from his father in 2010, said: "The only use of the crop in this way would be for a group or an individual to make wine in a garage.

"You can't rock up to a vineyard and say I've got grapes to sell – a paper trail has to be achieved and negotiations have to be arranged in advance.

"Alarm bells would be ringing. Wine grapes, especially with Bacchus, don't have enough flesh to be an eating grape."

"This year, every bottle of wine we produce is from grapes we have grown.

produce is from grapes we have grown. "If we don't have that 500kg of grapes, it's 400 bottles or so of wine we can't produce.

"We can only harvest this crop twice per year so we can't get that back."

Mr Dyer has reported the incident to Norfolk Constabulary but said this was not the first time they have been victims of theft, albeit smaller.

The 33-acre site is covered by CCTV except for some areas of crop, but Mr Dyer said he would now be installing tighter security.

He added: "Before, it's been on a microscale. Last year we had one customer who caught a group with electric bikes and trailers to put the grapes in.

"You wouldn't necessarily see if a few bunches had been taken out of the whole crop, so this was definitely more than one person.

"Before the theft, we had people visiting the vineyard asking strange questions which people usually wouldn't ask with wandering eyes. Then the crop was gone and no more strange visits."

Winbirri Vineyard was founded in 2007 by farmer Stephen Dyer, Lee's father, and became the first significant wine-making estate in Norfolk.

Mr Dyer said: "We work seven days a week and it's a whole family involvement. It's the fruits of your labour. You go to all that effort but at the last minute, someone feels its fine to nick it all."

Norfolk Police confirmed they had received a report of theft.

News

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Bluey Vuitton Actresses Zendaya, Sophie Turner and, top right, Emma Stone join the rest of the fashion world at Louis Vuitton's spring/summer 2027 show at the Louvre yesterday on the final day of Paris Fashion Week.

More than a million vapers have never smoked

By Michael Searles

DEPUTY HEALTH EDITOR

MORE than a million people in the UK who regularly vape have never tried a cigarette.

The milestone of 1.1 million was reached in 2025 – up from 940,000 the year before – according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It is also the second year in a row that more people are vaping than smoking.

Those aged 25 to 34 are now the age group most likely to vape, with 16.4 per cent using e-cigarettes daily or occasionally. In the four years since the pandemic, those aged 16 to 24 had been most likely to vape.

The ONS figures show that 5.4 million people (9.9 per cent) use e-cigarettes while 4.8 million (8.7 per cent) smoke. The popularity of cigarettes has fallen as awareness of the harmful effects of tobacco and restrictions on smoking have grown. Public health officials say

5.4m

Number of people in Britain who use vapes, which is half-a-million higher than those smoking cigarettes

vaping is less harmful but should still be used only as a tool to quit smoking. The long-term effects of e-cigarettes remain unclear.

New legislation, which will come into force in the new year, will permanently ban the legal sale of tobacco to anyone born on or after Jan 1 2009 to create a "smoke-free" generation.

The Government is also introducing stricter rules on vapes, including the way they are packaged and sold and where they can be used.

One in five ex-smokers are now e-cigarette users, similar to figures for 2024, while one third of current smokers also use e-cigarettes daily or occasionally. David Mais, from the ONS, said the amount of smokers was now "the lowest proportion on record".

He said the average age of e-cigarette users was rising, which could “reflect existing users getting older, growing popularity among this age group, or a combination of both”.

Hazel Cheeseman, from the charity Action on Smoking and Health, said progress on cutting smoking rates was "encouraging" but feared the Government would miss its target for it to fall below 5 per cent by 2030.

She added: "Smoking has fallen enormously over recent decades, but it remains the biggest driver of preventable death in the UK. Now is the time to finish the job."

Not so FAB? Jaguar reverses ‘woke pink’ EV

Garish paint job attacked by Trump and Farage is absent as Type 01 is launched in New York

By Matt Oliver

JAGUAR has finally launched the electric car that thrust the marque into a storm of controversy – but this time a pink version was nowhere in sight.

The Type 01, based on a concept car first revealed nearly two years ago, is designed to move the brand upmarket and will sell for £130,000.

A four-door grand tourer that is described as "Jaguar's most powerful road car", it can go from nought to 62 miles per hour in just 3.2 seconds and has a range of up to 400 miles.

The car also features a long bonnet, minimalist interior, 23-inch wheels and a retractable wing.

It appears to have taken most of its design cues from the sleek, low-slung Type 00 concept car unveiled in December 2024, which controversially dropped the marque's famous growling cat logo. The concept vehicle was compared to the FAB 1 car driven by Lady Penelope in Thunderbirds because of its hot-pink colour.

However, that more garish paint job was absent as the car was launched in New York late last night, following a major backlash that saw critics including Nigel Farage and Donald Trump attack the brand overhaul for being too "woke."

While bosses at parent company Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), which is owned by Indian conglomerate Tata, defended the rebrand, the company parted ways with the designer behind the rebrand late last year.

An official product description of the new Type 01 conspicuously left out pink when listing what colours the vehicle comes in. Customers are instead told that the new EV comes in "visionary silver, dramatic white, iconic black, compelling blue and refined grey".

Satin finishes in "modernist blue and mesmerising copper" are also available.

The company said the car had been designed in Britain and would be made in Solihull. It will go on sale next year.

PB Balaji, chief executive of JLR, said:

The 2026 Type 01 has pink conspicuously left out in Jaguar's colour listings

"The unveiling of Type 01 marks the beginning of an exciting new era for Jaguar.

“Combining British heritage, bold creativity, advanced technology and ground-breaking engineering, it reflects our ambition to create objects of desire that will help us invite a new generation of clients into Jaguar’s loyal and passionate customer base.

"Designed, engineered and built in the UK, Jaguar is a copy of nothing and is a vital part of JLR's growth story."

The car's launch was also welcomed by Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary. He said: "Jaguar's new EV is a crucial step in JLR's plans to invest over £15bn in the UK, and another big vote of confidence in our world-class automotive industry.

"This cutting-edge new model being designed, engineered and built in Britain will support thousands of jobs across the West Midlands and North West, and builds on over £1bn of UK automotive investment secured just last month - marking another step forward in our mission to reindustrialise Britain."

The backlash against the pink Jaguar came after images of the car were leaked online in December 2024. The colours were branded "Miami Pink and London Blue".

At the time, the company has described its rebrand as a "powerful celebration of modernism" that "seamlessly blends upper and lower-case characters in visual harmony".

But Jaguar fans feared the brand was jettisoning its traditional male customers - encapsulated by the "Jag man" stereotype - in favour of a more progressive image. Jaguar was also quick to respond to its critics on social media with cryptic messages, such as: "The best stories start with intrigue" and "Just wait until you see inside".

The British carmaker revealed earlier this year that its profits dropped to £14m in 2025 from £2.5bn a year as it grappled with a hack that shut down its factory lines for more than a month.

The company, which makes the Defender, said profits for the three months ending in March came in at £458m, down from £875m the previous year. However, this marked an improvement on the £310m loss in the previous quarter.

Hairy Biker created food show after failing to earn a crust on Potter film | Queen pays personal tribute to ‘irrepressible’ Lord Archer

By Telegraph Reporter

SI KING has revealed he came up with The Hairy Bikers because he was not being paid enough on the set of a Harry Potter film.

The TV presenter, 59, said he realised he had not “had a raise in about 15 years” while working as location manager for the second film in the franchise, 2002’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

He had previously met Dave Myers, his co-presenter and the other half of The Hairy Bikers, while working on the set of a Catherine Cookson drama called The Gambling Man.

King told Big Issue: "He was a make-up artist, and I was the second assistant director at the time. Then I went on to be location manager.

"We got on like a house on fire. He was into motorcycles and food, I was into motorcycles and food, and we were both as curious as each other."

King added: "I was working on a film called Harry Potter and the Chamber of

Secrets and I just thought, I haven't had a raise in about 15 years and the hours are getting longer, and I'm not entirely sure what I need to do.

"Dave was working in Canada at the time. So I wrote a treatment, a Hairy Bikers template, and I sent an email over to Dave with this proposal and said, 'What do you think?' And he said,

Friends Si King and Dave Myers spent three years creating the Hairy Bikers

'It's great.' So we then developed it together, and it took us three years to get it off the ground."

Myers died in 2024 aged 66, having shared his cancer diagnosis in 2022. King previously told how he felt guilty for performing without his co-star. He said it was an "odd experience" returning to TV without Myers.

By Victoria Ward

DEPUTY ROYAL EDITOR

THE QUEEN has paid tribute to Lord Archer, who she acknowledged was "not without flaw" but said was an "irrepressible life force".

Camilla had known the author for many years and enjoyed reading his final novel over the summer.

She said Archer lived a “rich, varied and colourful life”, not unlike that of his characters, and had brought joy to millions through his bestselling books.

The former Conservative MP turned writer, who was jailed for perjury and perverting the course of justice in 2001, died on Monday at the age of 86.

He had supported the Queen's Reading Room charity for many years, appearing at its festival as a speaker at Chatsworth House, Derbyshire, just two weeks before his death.

While he and the Queen were not close friends, Archer would send her pre-publication copies of his novels, including a special, signed edition of his final work, Adam & Eve, which was published yesterday.

The Queen said in a message released by Buckingham Palace: "Seldom does an author get to live a life as rich, varied and colourful as any of the characters in their books, or with as

many surprising plot twists. Jeffrey Archer was an exception to the end. It was therefore with sadness that I learned of his death yesterday, on the eve of publication of his final work and so soon after appearing at my Queen's Reading Room Festival.

"My sympathies go to [his wife] Mary and the family at this time of sorrow. I hope it may be some consolation for them to know what pleasure Jeffrey brought to me and to so many millions of readers through the pages of his works.

“While he was not without flaw, his friends will recall him as an irrepressible life force through all the many differing chapters of his life.

"Wherever the next page turns to, I trust there will be champagne and shepherd's pie in abundance."

The message was signed "Camilla R". The Queen's tribute to Archer, who was made a life peer in 1992 as Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare, followed those of senior Conservative Party figures, including leader Kemi Badenoch.

She told BBC Breakfast: "I can't believe I'm not going to get any more text messages from Jeffrey Archer. I will treasure the ones that I have."

Despite being sentenced to four years in prison for perjury and perverting the course of justice in 2001, Archer remained in the House of Lords until he retired in 2024.

Features, pages 4-5

News

Election will be battle for soul of country, says Badenoch

Vote will be a fight ‘we have not seen for more than half a century’, Tory leader to say in conference speech

By Tony Diver and Daniel Martin

KEMI BADENOCH will declare that the next election will be a "battle for the soul of this nation".

The Conservative leader will today use her party conference speech to set out a plan to lower taxes and stop increasing the national debt, warning that “our country is running out of money”.

Mrs Badenoch will say that the next election – which some believe could come as soon as next spring – will be a “fight that we have not seen in this country for more than half a century”.

She will say: "It will be a battle for the soul of this nation. A battle of ideas. A battle that goes to the very core of who we are and what kind of country we want to be."

Former Scottish Conservative Party leader Ruth Davidson with 7ft 2in delegate James McAlpine in Birmingham yesterday

Her speech at the conference in Bir- mingham will make the case for a "renewed Conservative Party" focused on fiscal responsibility, lowering taxes and the view that "spend ing money we don't have on things we can't afford is not kind, it is reckless".

Mrs Badenoch will make her speech days after Andy Burnham used his own conference address to pitch a 1970s-style vision for the future of Britain with an expansion of state control and a return to the EU.

The Tory leader will call for a reduction in welfare to pay for defence and stricter spending controls to bring down the deficit, claiming that 80 per cent of money that Labour borrowed last year was spent on interest payments.

“That’s like taking out a second mortgage just to pay the interest on your first mortgage,” she will say. “This is crazy.”

Yesterday, the Conservatives pledged to cut employers' National Insurance from 15 per cent to 7.5 per cent for staff aged between 21 and 24.

The policy would mean bosses would save an average of £1,500 in "jobs tax" for each young adult they employ, which the Tories say will encourage them to take on more staff.

Give us the truth Badenoch urges Burnham to come clean on Man City links

Mrs Badenoch was also likely to use her speech to call

Kemi Badenoch has demanded that Andy Burnham publish details of all his meetings with Manchester City's owners.

Prime Minister was facing questions about a Manchester land deal for the UAE that led a senior city council official to quit in protest.

transparency is essential. If he's got nothing to hide, then he should open the box. He has made a big deal about what he did for Manchester, and if it turns out that the story he's told is quite different, and actually it was Abu Dhabi that was doing these things, not him, let's hear the truth.

The Tory leader said that she was surprised the Prime Minister had not already done so and said that "if he's got nothing to hide, then he should open the box".

Mr Burnham has come under scrutiny for his links to the club's Abu Dhabi owners since City was found guilty of breaching the Premier League's financial rules.

She intervened after The Telegraph revealed that the

At the Tory party conference, Mrs Badenoch told the BBC: "I think "Andy Burnham is someone who says that he wants to be straight with people. I was very

for reforms to inheritance tax, but would stop short of pledging to abolish it entirely, party sources told The Telegraph.

For days, Tory figures have criticised Mr Burnham's plans to open a national debate on Britain's relationship with the EU, the triple lock on pensions and electoral reform.

Privately, senior Tories are delighted that the Prime Minister has created a dividing line between the traditional parties that will form the basis of the next election campaign.

Mrs Badenoch will warn today: "Unless we start creating more value, unless we start growing our economy, something is going to break.

“That is why growing the economy will be the central organising principle of the next Conservative government.

"We know that a stronger country is built on a stronger economy."

The latest polls suggest Mr Burnham has received a three-point bounce since Labour's party conference last week, rising to 27 per cent of the vote, with Reform UK trailing behind at 22 points.

A YouGov survey found support for Labour was at its highest since January last year, while the Conservatives remained mostly static on around 20 per cent of the vote since July.

The pollster also found that a majority of Conservative voters believed the party had changed since Mrs Badenoch became leader in November 2024, although at least half of voters for all other parties believed it had not.

In interviews with the broadcasters, Mrs Badenoch said the Tories would keep the triple lock if they won the next election, but refused to commit to spending money to reinstate it if Mr

Burnham had already reallocated the savings.

"As circumstances change, we may have to adapt to things," she told the BBC. "I don't know what that situation will be, but if people want to keep the triple lock, vote Conservative."

She also refused to back a deal with Reform UK to help the Right at the next election, telling the BBC that if the next election resulted in a hung parliament, she would prefer a second election to a coalition with Nigel Farage's party.

She also told GB News that there was no way back for former Tory MPs such as Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman who defected to Reform. Asked if she wanted to see Reform MPs come back, she said: "They're the ones who caused the problems in the first place, and now they want to pretend they had nothing to do with it. So no."

surprised at the way he waded in on this subject."

Mr Burnham initially responded to the verdict by saying he would be "concerned to lose" Manchester City's Emirati owners, adding that "they've been such a huge partner in the building of modern Manchester".

between Mr Burnham and the Abu Dhabi United Group during his time as the mayor of Greater Manchester.

Downing Street later tried to backtrack on the remarks, but they drew attention to the relationship

Mr Burnham has repeatedly referred to his economic record in the city, which was burnished by a building boom.

The UAE has warned that it could pull billions of pounds of investment out of the UK in retaliation for the verdict.

Tories: We will halve

Lower National Insurance for under-24s will boost workforce and give hope to lost generation, says party

By Daniel Martin

DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR

THE Conservatives have pledged to halve the "jobs tax" on young people to save businesses thousands of pounds a year.

Kemi Badenoch has announced that a future Tory government would lower employers' National Insurance from 15 per cent to 7.5 per cent for staff aged between 21 and 24. It would mean bosses would save an average of £1,500 a year for each young adult they employed, encouraging businesses to hire more young people.

The Conservatives said the announcement was part of "a rescue plan for young people", designed to address rising youth unemployment rates. The National Insurance cut would cost £2.3bn, and the party will announce today how it will be funded.

Official figures show that nearly one million young people are not in employment, education, or training – more than the population of Leeds, Glasgow or Cardiff. “This is the first time since the year 2000 that youth unemployment is higher in the UK than the EU average," Mrs Badenoch told GB News.

"Since Labour came into office we've seen youth unemployment increased by 174,000 to about 750,000. That is astronomical.

"People aren't hiring young people anymore. So we're going to reverse Labour's jobs tax on young people – and we're going to go even further, bringing next payments to about 7.5 per cent if you're aged between 21 and 24."

The “jobs tax” was imposed by Rachel Reeves in her first Budget, when she raised employers’ National Insurance from 13.8 per cent to 15 per cent. The Tories said they would cut it for workers aged from 21 to 24 unless they

'Young aren't being hired anymore. So, we will reverse Labour's jobs tax on the young'

How IHT became a penalty on the middle class (not the super-rich)

By Rob White SENIOR MONEY WRITER

KEMI BADENOCH has vowed to cut Britain's most hated tax under a Conservative government in an interview at the party's annual conference.

While inheritance tax (IHT) has existed in Britain since the 17th century, for most of its history, it was a burden shouldered almost exclusively by the ultra-wealthy. After centuries of reform, the rate was fixed at 40 per cent in 1988, where it largely remains today.

However, a combination of frozen thresholds, surging property values and the inclusion of pensions in death tax calculations has quietly shifted its focus from the super-rich to ordinary middle-class families.

In 2023-24 - the most recent year with government figures available - just under one in 20 estates were liable. According to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), that figure is expected to almost double to 9.3 per cent by 2031.

Meanwhile, IHT receipts hit £8.5bn in 2025-26, a fifth consecutive record year, and are already at £3.8bn this financial year. This is expected to hit £14.5bn by 2030, OBR analysis shows.

When Rachel Reeves, the former chancellor, delivered her first Budget in 2024, she shocked savers and industry professionals alike by announcing that retirement savings

Pension changes could add billions to bills would be assessed for IHT purposes from April 2027.

Experts criticised the policy as “unfair”, “unworkable” and a “bureaucratic nightmare” for families already mired in their hour of need, but ministers pressed ahead with putting the changes into law.

The policy is expected to drag 10,500 more estates into paying IHT and hand higher bills to another 38,500.

Angeline Ong. of investment platform IG, said that many of those caught in the net would be middle-income families.

She said: "This decision was a real shocker for many people. Those that have planned responsibly and been ambitious and aspirational, which is what governments around the world want, are going to be hit with significantly higher tax bills.

“Middle-income families who are struggling to make ends meet are now suddenly going to be pushed past the inheritance tax threshold and they're having to set aside financial planning time, way before when they'll retire.”

dissuading people from saving for retirement after years of being told to put money away from the day we start working.

"The Government needs to incentivise people to save and invest, not kill aspiration."

Mrs Badenoch said the Conservatives would reduce the levy, which she has previously described as "morally wrong", but said the Government would need to "find the money" first.

Every estate is entitled to inheritance relief of £325,000, thanks to the nil rate band (NRB). An extra £175,000 is available when a property is passed on to direct descendants – known as the residence nil rate band (RNRB) – and married or civil-partnered couples can combine their allowances, generating £1m of relief.

However, the NRB has been frozen since 2009 and the RNRB has not increased since 2020. If both had risen with inflation, they would be £538,000 and £230,000 respectively.

Left: Kemi

Badenoch finishes writing her conference speech yesterday. Above: A delegate takes a selfie in the main hall. Right: St Mary's Ukrainian School choir perform at the International Convention Centre, in Birmingham

It's more like a picnic for the have and have-yachts

Sketch

By Tim Stanley

"CONFERENCE, the world is watching," says Tom Tugendhat to an audience of dozens -and he's having trouble with the autocue. It's a good speech, but the shadow foreign secretary squints left and right, almost suspiciously, as if scanning the hall for snipers.

"I've spent the best part of my life keeping us safe" – both as a soldier and a designated driver at constituency dinners – and though "the threats are bigger, the leaders have shrunk".

Yet another Tory crack at Rob Jenrick's height? It's becoming unpleasant. Comedians call this "punching down," which in Rob's case is the only way you'll hit him.

Now purged of Reform traitors, Kemi's conference is small and middle-class. We could lay down a blanket and have a picnic.

In a morning session titled "Great British Fashion", we hear from three female designers called, I think, Libby, Tikki and Plum. How does one get a business to grow in this communist economy, asks the host? "If you look at Ralph Lauren, who have an outlet on Boulevard Saint-Germain," says Laa-laa or Po, they also "have a really chic little

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'The Tory strategy to win the next election appears to hinge on winning back Chelsea'

cafe" to lure in the shoppers. Are you listening to this, Poundland in Dudley? This could be you...

All we lack is a speech from Patsy Stone to say "you can never have enough hats, gloves and shoes" – for the Tory strategy to win the next election appears to hinge on winning back Chelsea. There are policies to end stamp duty, help high earners with child care and slash the costs for a young couple looking to purchase their first yacht.

Otherwise, "We Heart Bombs". Above the central stage they've hung an Iranian drone, to symbolise the foreign threat, plus a Union Flag, which is all we've left to defend ourselves. The celebrity guest speaker is announced as "one of the leading historians of our age" and - thinking "Ooo! David Starkey!" - the delegates put aside their knitting. Instead we get Niall Ferguson who has "never, ever been to a party conference," but has broken this wise rule because "we need a strong woman."

Mummy will protect us. Mummy knows what's what. But while she's writing her conference speech, dictated to a CCHQ eunuch as she swims in a marble bath filled with milk, Kemi has to delegate to weaker men.

As Helen Whately outlines a plan to get people out of the dole queue and into the trenches, TT smiles and dreams of a lavish reception in Araby.

“Which number wife is this, Your Royal Munificence?

"She with the lips of a camel and the eyes of Ferrero Rocher?"

'jobs tax' on hiring young people

earned more than £50,270, when the standard rate would still be paid.

Halving the rate for 21 to 24-year-olds would let a business keep an average of £1,545 a year in tax for every young worker, according to estimates.

It would save an employer £1,125 a year on a young person earning £20,000, and £1,484 on one working full time on the national living wage. The saving would increase to £1,875 for those earning £30,000.

Andrew Griffith, the shadow chancellor, said: "Labour are destroying the future of our young people. Their jobs tax, employment red tape and minimum wage hikes have seen an explosion in the cost of employing a young

£652,000 in London and £564,000 in the South East. As a result, many people who are asset-rich in those areas will leave behind high IHT bills - even if they might be considered "cash-poor".

Olly Cheng, of Rathbones, said rising property prices had combined with Ms Reeves's pension changes to create a "perfect storm".

He said: "Property prices in London, or in the South East if you live anywhere near London, are going to put you close to, if not past, that £1m mark.

“Suddenly you’ve also got the value of the pension also included, and it will mean a large number of people get caught with inheritance tax bills.

“That’s going to be an extra layer of complexity and admin at a time when they really don’t need it and that could have more of a detrimental effect than the tax itself.”

The number of estates estimated to be liable for IHT is already expected to hit 63,100 in 2029-30, up from 32,200 forecast to pay this year - many of whom will be among the middle classes. Posting on X, Mrs

worker. We will fix that. We will slash the tax on youth jobs in half to give young people the opportunities they deserve. Only the Conservatives have a plan to cut taxes, cut red tape and give young people their future back."

In her interviews with broadcasters, Mrs Badenoch refused to back a deal with Reform UK at the next election.

She told the BBC that if the election resulted in a hung Parliament, she would prefer a second poll to a coalition with Nigel Farage's party.

Asked what she would do if the Tories were the largest party in a hung Parliament and Reform had a significant number of MPs, she said: "I have said that we would have another election if

'People know I want to cut IHT. I've given speeches about how it is a bad tax' 'Only the Tories have a plan to cut taxes, cut red tape and give young people their future back'

On the penultimate day of the Tory conference in Birmingham yesterday, the party leader told BBC Breakfast: "People know I want to cut inheritance tax. I've given speeches about how it is a bad tax.

"I've been particularly influenced by what we've seen in the last couple of years, farmers taking their lives... But we have to find the money to pay for it. We can't cut taxes willy-nilly."

Badenoch previously said "home-owning middle-class families" were increasingly being dragged into paying IHT, adding: "I want ordinary families to be able to build generational wealth, not just the super-rich who can do so now."

Party insiders have previously said that she intends to either slash the 40 per cent rate of IHT or increase the thresholds at which it kicks in. The direction she eventually will take remains unclear, but either way, it would offer a substantial saving to thousands of unsuspecting families who sit atop a financial cliff edge.

there was no overall majority. What I want is Reform voters to come back."

But the Conservative leader told GB News there was no way back for former Tory MPs, such as Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman, who have defected to Reform. Asked whether she wanted to see Reform MPs rejoin the Tories, she said: "They're the ones who caused the problems in the first place, and now they want to pretend they had nothing to do with it. So no."

On Monday, Mr Griffiths vowed to cut one tax every Budget under a Tory government. He said he was charting a different course to previous Tory governments, whom he accused of failing to govern as free-market conservatives, and Andy Burnham, who he said wanted to take Britain back to a "socialist fever dream of the 1970s".

During the address, he outlined plans to scrap Labour's mansion tax and a net-zero tax on plastic, as well as promising to cut the cost of a new-build home by £50,000. He called the mansion tax, which will come into force in 2028, a "vindictive levy" that would hit people living in "ordinary homes".

He said: "They pretend it's a mansion tax, but it will hit people here in Birmingham, in Manchester and those living in ordinary homes making long commutes to our capital city. For many, it will be simply unaffordable."

In a swipe at his Conservative predecessors, he said the grocery tax, which Michael Gove announced but Labour implemented, was an example of the "sort of thing the old Conservative Party went along with".

‘We would have another election if no overall majority. I want Reform voters back’

He added: "Like Nigel Lawson, it's my ambition to scrap at least one tax every Budget. What would we prioritise? There's a lot. Tax cuts that help growth, tax cuts that improve incentives to work, tax cuts that make life simpler and fairer.

He also said it was his “ambition” to reduce marginal tax rates for high earners, who face effective tax rates of 60 per cent because of how the personal allowance is withdrawn as a person earns more.

Proportion of estates paying IHT to double by end of decade

News

Green behind Zionism vote is ‘close friend’ of al-Qaeda terrorist

Minh Quang Pham, above, was jailed for a plot to detonate a backpack. Lubna Speitan, right, joined the Greens after leaving Jeremy Corbyn's Your Party

Party member offered to testify in defence of Heathrow bomb plotter who was jailed in US

By Memphis Barker

SENIOR FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT

THE Green Party member behind the "Zionism is racism" motion is close friends with an al-Qaeda terrorist who plotted to bomb passengers landing at Heathrow from Israel.

Lubna Speitan, a British-Palestinian artist, proposed the controversial motion at the Green Party conference in Brighton, where it was adopted after a vote.

The Left-wing party now formally backs the creation of a single Palestinian state across Israel and deems it "racist" to support the idea of a Jewish homeland in the territory.

It can now be revealed that Ms Speitan offered to testify in the defence of Minh Quang Pham, who was jailed in the US for a plot to detonate a backpack filled with shrapnel dipped in rat poison in the airport arrivals lounge.

Court documents from 2015 described them as "close friends". Asked by The Telegraph whether they remained friends, Ms Speitan said: "Yes,

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III. DISCUSSION

The Defendant requests depositions of five witness: (1) Ms. Huyen Pham, the Defendant's sister; (2) Ms. Eema Nawaz, the Defendant's wife; (3) Ms. Lubna Speitan, a close friend of the Defendant's; (4) Ms. Bola Sobowale, the Defendant's former employer; and (5) Dr. Rachel Thomas, a mental health professional who evaluated the Defendant in London in connection with his extradition proceedings.

it's still the case." She added: "What was, hasn't changed," stating that she believed he had been "targeted" by "the system".

Ms Speitan, who joined the Green Party within the past year from Jeremy Corbyn's Your Party, said: "The system has a lot to answer for: systemic racism, anti-Muslim hate and demonising everyone who's there to resist their colonial oppressors."

The “Zionism is racism” vote threatens to derail the Green Party’s chances of winning the by-election in Sir Keir Starmer’s constituency of Holborn and St Pancras. More than a dozen Labour MPs have reported the Greens to the equality watchdog, saying the vote raised “serious questions”.

Zack Polanski, the Greens' leader, was criticised for abstaining from the vote and failing to speak out on the matter. He then liked a social-media post relating to criticism of the vote that said: "Get over yourselves and move on."

The Telegraph approached the Greens with the latest allegations, but was told the party needed time to investigate the matter.

The court documents reviewed by

'People are demonised for all sorts of things and

wrongfully accused of all sorts of things'

The Telegraph showed Ms Speitan's offer to testify in defence of Pham.

The Vietnam-born terrorist, whose family were granted asylum in the UK in 1989, planned to target travellers returning from Israel or the US in his Heathrow backpack bomb plot.

The attack could have killed “hundreds of people”, according to US prosecutors. It was thwarted after an armour-piercing bullet was found in Pham's luggage upon his return, in July 2011, to the UK from Yemen, where he had joined al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).

When asked about her relationship with Pham, Ms Speitan first described the question as "insulting" and said it had "no relation to the work that I'm doing".

She described The Telegraph's approach as part of "mainstream media" attacks that aimed to "demonise" Palestinians, before suggesting Pham had been wrongfully accused.

On the subject of Pham's 44-year sentence, Ms Speitan replied: "People are demonised for all sorts of things and wrongfully accused of all sorts of things." She said the questions surrounding her relationship with Pham were a "character assassination".

After admitting the pair remained friends, Ms Speitan asked if that would lead to “another attack on me”. She then added that “my friend [Pham] has been targeted as well.”

Pham was jailed last year after admitting that he had planned to kill hundreds of people in a suicide attack on Heathrow, dropping his earlier claim that he had never intended to follow through with the plot.

British police released Pham in 2011 after the discovery of the bullet in his luggage, but MI5 kept him under watch. Subsequent police raids on his home discovered that he was watching videos of Anwar al-Awlaki, the AQAP leader credited with radicalising a generation of Westerners.

In 2015, Pham was extradited to the US to face charges of terrorism.

Ms Speitan, who argued that Hamas should not be deemed a terrorist group and called for Zionists to be “hunted down”, agreed to testify Pham was a peaceful man with cognitive limitations, according to court documents filed by the terrorist’s defence lawyer in 2015. Her testimony was expected to boost an insanity defence and claims Pham suffered from bipolar disorder.

In their court submission, the defence claimed Ms Speitan was a "close friend" of Pham's and said they had contacted her to confirm she was willing to testify.

Prosecutors urged the judge to reject the request, as Ms Speitan's proposed testimony had little relevance to establishing the facts of whether or not he had joined AQAP in Yemen and taken part in terrorism training.

They also noted that all five witnesses proposed by the defence had refused to travel to New York, meaning that they would not be subject to the same “pressure” to tell the truth.

Ms Speitan said she had a medical condition that left her unable to fly.

The judge in the southern district of New York court rejected the defence's request to call any of the five witnesses, casting doubt on their reasons for not travelling and the relevance of the proposed testimony.

In January 2016, Pham pleaded guilty. He admitted membership of AQAP and helping the terrorist group produce Inspire, its English-language propaganda magazine.

However, he claimed that the Heathrow plot was only a "ruse" to escape Yemen. FBI interrogations in which he discussed the plot were not recorded, hurting the prosecution's case.

In 2016, he was sentenced to 40 years' imprisonment.

Soon afterwards, US investigators found a laptop containing videos of him testing bombs, proclaiming his desire for martyrdom, and pressing a detonator linked to his backpack while smiling at the camera.

Also on the laptop was a six-page doc-

'What I did was a massive betrayal to my country and a massive disservice to Islam'

ument titled Your Instructions, written to Pham by Awlaki in 2011, months before the latter was killed in a US drone strike in Yemen. The document advised Pham to wait until Christmas or the New Year before carrying out his Heathrow attack.

"Imagine this IED [improvised explosive device] as a shotgun that is firing in all directions," Awlaki wrote, before offering instructions on how to poison the shrapnel.

After the discovery of the new evidence, Pham admitted he had planned to kill hundreds of people at Heathrow. He was resentenced to 44 years in 2025.

In a handwritten letter to the US judge before his sentencing, Pham wrote last year: "What I did was a massive betrayal to my country of Britain and a massive disservice to Islam, my family and the British people."

He added: "I can never thank the British people enough for accepting my family and I into the UK... and providing us with full welfare and housing."

The family had lived in a refugee camp in Vietnam before fleeing to the UK via Hong Kong. They were granted asylum and a home in south London.

Earlier this week, Ms Speitan hailed the passage of her Green Party motion as a victory in the face of those that aim to “dehumanise and demonise those who dare to resist their oppressors”.

Ms Speitan said she joined the Green Party from Mr Corbyn's Your Party to push for the rejection of common standards of anti-Semitism.

Ms Speitan told The Telegraph that 56 members of her family had been killed in Gaza. She urged the press to focus on "the [Israel Defense Forces], who could be our neighbours, and walk the streets with impunity while destroying our families".

Europe's worst post-war spy scandal uncovered by accident

By James Rothwell and Joe Barnes

THE former head of Germany's BND intelligence service has been arrested on suspicion of espionage and treason, in what could amount to Europe's gravest post Cold War spy scandal.

August Hanning, 80, is suspected of spending 16 years illegally collecting classified documents and selling some of the information to an undisclosed foreign power.

Mr Hanning was arrested at his home yesterday morning in Steinfurt county, near the Dutch border, and taken into custody under orders from Germany's federal prosecutor.

During a separate raid, a senior BND official, named only as Manfred D under German privacy laws, was arrested at his home in Bavaria on suspicion of aiding in treason.

“Both suspects are believed to have agreed in the spring of 2010 to have Manfred D continuously transmit valuable intelligence from the Federal Intelligence Service to Hanning in exchange for remuneration,” German prosecutors said.

They also alleged that Mr Hanning drafted an analysis for an officer of a "foreign intelligence service," without identifying them, and said it was unclear if the material reached its recipient.

Der Spiegel reported last night the analysis was prepared for the intelligence services of Azerbaijan, one of Turkey's closest allies. Mr Hanning is reportedly a member of the board of the "German-Azerbaijani Forum."

The explosive allegations against Mr Hanning are the latest embarrassment for the BND, which is still reeling from the 2023 arrest of BND desk chief Carsten Linke for passing material to Moscow. Mr Linke was charged with treason and his trial is ongoing.

According to German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, the data obtained by Mr Hanning includes “highly sensitive situation assessments, classified material from foreign partner agencies, and reportedly also papers on the Iranian nuclear programme and the Russian military”.

Nicknamed "Mr Security," Mr Hanning led the BND from 1998-2005, steering German intelligence agents through 9/11, the Second Gulf War and the invasion of Afghanistan.

During his term he led some 6,000 agents on foreign intelligence work, worked closely with the CIA and MI6, and took part in a key weekly security meeting in the German Chancellery.

Across all three roles he would have been privy to highly sensitive intelligence gathered by allied agencies, as well as state secrets involving German security weaknesses.

The investigation into Mr Hanning began virtually by accident in 2025, when police raided the ex-BND chief's home in connection with an unrelated abduction case.

Police had been investigating Mr Hanning's links to Christina Block, the heiress of a German steakhouse restaurant chain who was suspected of abducting her children amid a custody battle. But during the raid on Mr Hanning's home, police found 2,000 highly sensitive security documents which at that time he had no right to possess, having left the agency two

'On one occasion, he used classified intelligence to draft an analysis for a foreign officer'

decades prior. Among the cache of documents were reports on the BND's senior leadership and briefing materials for the weekly intelligence meeting at the German Chancellery.

Germany's ARD broadcaster said some of the information that Manfred D passed on to Mr Hanning included material on the Russian army and from partner intelligence agencies abroad.

A key focus of the investigation is likely to be Mr Hanning's links to Russia and whether any of the material he handled has fallen into the hands of Moscow.

Mr Hanning made at least seven trips to Russia after leaving the BND, according to a report by The Insider. The former spy chief made all of the trips, often spending just a single day in Moscow, between 2015 and 2019. Manfred D was Mr Hanning's chief of staff at the BND and would later follow him to work at the German interior ministry.

After Mr Hanning's departure, Manfred D served as chief of staff for several BND presidents between March 2012 and March 2026.

Mr Hanning used the information he received from Manfred D in his private consulting work, German prosecutors have said.

"On one occasion, Hanning used classified intelligence provided by Manfred D to draft an analysis for an officer of a foreign intelligence service," their statement said. "It has yet to be determined if the material reached the intended recipient."

Marc Henrichmann, chairman of the German parliament's intelligence oversight committee, said yesterday that Germany would "not tolerate the betrayal of secrets".

“Whoever allies themselves with the enemies of our liberal democracy will be found out,” he told AFP.

He said Mr Hanning's alleged behaviour would represent "trampling his official duties underfoot".

Martin Jäger, president of the BND, said the agency had "initiated comprehensive internal investigations at an early stage and without delay. These have confirmed the suspicion".

"The federal public prosecutor general has taken over the

August Hanning (below) was arrested during a dawn raid on his house in Berlin yesterday (left)

investigation," he added. "For the BND and for me, there can be no compromises when it comes to internal security. None of my goals or priorities are being called into question by this incident."

Mr Hanning has been a hawkish voice on Moscow in Germany's national security debate. In a 2024 interview with The Telegraph, he warned his country was "naive" and needed to "wake up" to the reality of a potential war.

"Many haven't realised that we are in a conflict with Russia – that's been underestimated," he said. Mr Hanning is known to have kept close relations with various Russian businessmen and organisations since his time as a diplomat in East Berlin in the late eighties.

The former BND chief appeared as a witness in a London courtroom in support of Oleg Deripaska, a Russian oligarch, who was known to be closely associated with Vladimir Putin at the time.

He also worked as a consultant on Russia issues for G3, a London-based consultancy firm.

According to German magazine Der Spiegel, one of Mr Hanning's favourite perks as BND president was being ferried between

meetings on a private jet.

But when police closed in on him on yesterday, a much less glamorous car was waiting outside his home to transport him to custody: a Polizei wagon.

5

Toddler shown window view before fatal fall

Boy's father believed the glass was closed as he put toddler on fourth-floor windowsill at Greek hotel

By Neil Johnston

SENIOR NEWS REPORTER in Paphos

A BRITISH toddler fell to his death from a hotel window in Cyprus after his father put him on the windowsill to see the view of a water park, a court heard.

Joshua Foster, 37, was arrested after his two-year-old son fell from a fourth-floor window of the King Evelthon Beach Hotel near Paphos on the first day of the family holiday on July 12.

Foster, an AI director at the accountancy firm KPMG, pleaded guilty last month to causing the death of his son through a reckless, rash or dangerous act, which can be punished with a maximum sentence of four years' in jail.

During a mitigation hearing at Paphos District Court yesterday, Alexandros Alexandrou, defending, said that the child had fallen after his father showed him the view of the resort's water park from the window ledge, believing the glass was closed.

Appearing in court, Essex-based Foster sobbed and wiped away tears as Mr Alexandrou said the “tragedy” would “haunt him for the rest of his life”. Describing the incident as a “momentary oversight”, Mr Alexandrou told the court: “We know that the large window was open. We know there was a gap. We know the child fell, we know the tragic result. The defendant in that moment did not have that knowledge and this is extremely important.”

He told the hearing that Foster had been on a family holiday and had arrived in Cyprus in the early hours. After waking up, they went to the pool and cafe, and in the afternoon they went to their rooms to get ready for dinner. Foster, his son and the boy's maternal grandfather then left and headed to the elevator.

"The father was in a good mood," Mr Alexandrou said. "He held his child

Joshua Foster has only been allowed to leave Cyprus to go to his son's funeral

in his arms, walked, played, just as any father would in a pleasant, joyous moment of their life while on vacation. The child noticed from the large window the area where they had been before, the water park of the pool.

"Going to the elevator and waiting for the lift, and as they walked by the window, the defendant places the child down, and the child looks at the window. He pushes the elevator, places the child on the windowsill and the inconceivable unfolds without a chance to react. From that moment, the defendant's life changes for ever."

Mr Alexandrou said he would not argue that Foster placing his son at that height "was right", that there "was no danger or that he did not make a mistake".

“That’s why he pled guilty,” he said. “But the court must evaluate what kind of mistake it was in that moment. He thought there was protective glass. He was focused on entertaining his child while they were on holiday.”

The court heard that tests showed Foster had consumed alcohol earlier in the day, but neither prosecutors nor defence said he was drunk. He ran down and tried to bring the child back to consciousness and interacted with hospital staff and police, none of whom concluded he was drunk, Mr Alexandrou said. He said that Foster fully co-oper-

'He pushes the elevator and places the child on the windowsill. From that moment his life changes for ever'

ated with authorities "despite his mental condition" and was held for eight days in custody while "grieving his child". Foster also had to call his daughter to explain what had happened.

The "momentary oversight", Mr Alexandrou said, "will haunt him for the rest of his life".

Foster accepted the charge against him during a three-minute court hearing last month. He has been supported by his parents, who have attended previous hearings. Apart from being given permission to fly home for his son's funeral, he has not been allowed to leave Cyprus.

Friends of the family described the toddler as "a truly special, easy-going little boy who brought so much joy to everyone around him".

Foster has worked for KPMG since 2015, and led its AI transition. He studied business, economics and finance at Loughborough University, where he met his wife. The couple recently celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary.

He will be sentenced on Oct 16.

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Sung for the road: Nation names favourite songs for a trip

By Ed Power

FORGET moshpits or expensive headphones. The best way to experience music is cruising down a highway with the stereo cranked all the way up.

Hotel California, the Eagles' enduring classic, has claimed pole position in a nationwide survey of the songs motorists most wanted to play during a road trip, chosen by 27 per cent of drivers.

The song was just ahead of Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen (24 per cent), with Flowers by Miley Cyrus seizing third place on the podium (22 per cent), followed by The Boys of Summer by Don Henley (21 per cent).

But Henley can't be too upset, since he is in the Eagles, and has first prize anyway.

What all these tunes have in common is a sense of yearning and the power to evoke a limitless horizon stretched ahead of you. The driving aspect is, moreover, crucial to their appeal.

Encountered under normal circumstances, you might argue that Hotel California has been played to death and that its slick, Seventies simmer has lost its lustre through

'What all these tunes have in common is a sense of yearning and the power to evoke a limitless horizon'

sheer over-familiarity. Stick anyone with a functioning musical palate in a car, however, and the song is reborn as a timeless anthem. It has the purring power of a tooled-up Pontiac eating tarmac – and remarkably that quality comes through loud and clear even when you're behind the wheel of a second-hand Yaris anxious about missing the slip for the ring road.

The 1977 song was written by Henley, Don Felder and Glenn Frey in 1976 during sessions in Miami and Los Angeles. Felder came up with the distinctive guitar chords while Henley and Frey wrote the lyrics, which comment on the glamour, excess and darker side of life in 1970s California.

The survey of 2,000 UK drivers, commissioned by Isuzu UK pick-up trucks, has confirmed motorists remain wild at heart when it comes to their music choices.

Four in 10 drivers admit they love nothing more than belting out their favourite tunes at the top of their lungs behind the wheel, singing an average of seven times a week in the car.

But there are some worrying trends too. While obvious picks such as Phil Collins's In the Air Tonight (at number seven) and AC/DC's Highway to Hell (number eight) are joined by modern classics such as Harry Styles's Watermelon Sugar (nine), there's going to be a lot of soul-searching over the prominence of Ed Sheeran's Castle on the Hill at 11 - hands down the weediest tune of all time.

1 | Hotel California The Eagles

2 | Born in the USA

Bruce Springsteen

4 | Boys of Summer

Don Henley

Livin' on a Prayer

Bon Jovi

3 | Flowers

Miley Cyrus

6| Go Your Own Way

Fleetwood Mac

7 | In the Air Tonight

Phil Collins

8 | Highway to Hell AC/DC

9 | Watermelon Sugar

Harry Styles

Shut up and Drive

Rihanna

End of the road for school coaches over diesel surge

By Christopher Jasper

TRANSPORT INDUSTRY EDITOR

THOUSANDS of school coach services are facing the axe as soaring diesel prices make it impossible for operators to turn a profit.

Almost half the coach firms that take 600,000 children to school each week-day plan to quit if fuel prices do not fall soon, according to the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT).

It would leave pupils in rural locations struggling to get to lessons and heap costs on local authorities, who have a duty to provide them with free transport if the nearest school is too far to walk.

Graham Vidler, the CPT's chief executive, said school contracts were negotiated for the full academic year at fixed rates, leaving coach operators haemorrhaging cash after a jump of more than 40 per cent in diesel prices since the start of the Iran war.

Mr Vidler called on John Healey, the Chancellor, to grant school coaches a fuel duty rebate of 20p per litre of diesel in the Budget. He said: "This industry operates on narrow margins and school work is generally done on a fixed-price basis - so if your costs go up, you have to

600,000

Number of children that are taken to school by coach every weekday – many of them from rural locations

take a loss or hand the contract back. Our members are on a knife edge. A quarter have already reduced operations, two thirds say they're concerned about their viability and some operators have gone out of business."

Coach operators that once relied on school contracts for steady income have come to regard them as a burden, the CPT said. A survey last week of more than 500 members, which operate around 10,000 coaches, found that 45 per cent were planning to pull out of school services next year.

Mr Vidler warned this would have a "huge impact on local authorities, independent schools and people trying to get their children to school".

He added that a 20p rebate from the Chancellor would reduce the cost of diesel for coach businesses by about 13 per cent. Coach operators can claim back the VAT on their diesel, paying about 160p a litre.

If coach companies pull out of school contracts, Mr Vidler said commitments under the Education Act could compel authorities to ferry children to school in taxis or fleets of minibuses.

Pupils under eight must be provided with free transport for journeys of more than two miles, rising to three miles for older children.

While the Government has provided a one-off payment of £30m to help mitigate soaring diesel prices, Mr Vidler said that had gone overwhelmingly to urban bus operators.

Asos hackers: Pay or we leak details of thousands of shoppers

Get the message Hackers telegraph their intentions to our journalist

By Chris Price and James Titcomb

THOUSANDS of Asos customers have been sent a phone alert warning that their personal information has been hacked.

Customers of the online retailer reported being sent an app push alert that said: "Dear ASOS DPO and IT, we have full compromised the Snowflake instance. Engage with us, or we will leak it."

The alert was titled: "Asos hacked". The message, which directed them to a Telegram account, appeared to be addressed to the company's technical staff.

The apparent hackers, who identified themselves as Xuanye group, said in a post on Telegram that Asos payment information was not affected. When contacted by The Telegraph, the group claimed it was seeking a ransom payment from Asos in exchange for deleting client information. It has given the company a two-week deadline to meet its demands.

The group said: "Our message is clear, and simple. The organisation must contact us or we will leak it.

"The two-week period is intended for them to make contact, they know what happened."

The group would not say what data had been accessed or how much money it was demanding.

An earlier post read: "Hello dears. We are glad to welcome you to this broadcast channel. Please consider this broadcast channel is the legitimate channel, please be wary of impersonation and deception."

It added: "Regarding Asos, payment information is not affected. That is all for now."

Shares in Asos tumbled by more than 14 per cent yesterday, in the wake of the reports, the sharpest decline in three years. The company has not responded to requests for comment and has not

Telegraph reporter

Can you tell me what data you have, or if it includes customers' data?

---

And how long they have?

What will you do if they do not engage or pay? Publish it or sell it to others?

confirmed that it has been hacked. A customer service representative said it would "investigate the matter".

Asos, which also owns brands including Topshop and Miss Selfridge, has about 17 million customers across more

---

Xuanyewen

Our message is clear, and simple to recognise.

The organisation must contact us or we will leak it, that is what we said. The 2 week period is intended for them to make contact, they know what happened.

than 150 countries, selling fashion brands to young customers online. The London-headquartered company employs about 2,800 people. Just under half of its sales come from the UK.

The Asos website and app were still functioning yesterday. The app notification is not mentioned on either site.

Dray Agha, of Huntress, a cyber security company, said: "The push notification suggests attackers have breached the systems controlling the Asos mobile app also. This is clear public extortion.

"I strongly advise shoppers to watch out for targeted phishing attempts while we wait for official confirmation of a data breach."

Snowflake, which was referenced in the push message, is a US computing company that provides data hosting and processing services. An "instance" refers to a company's individual system.

It may handle customer data such as sizes, browsing and purchase history, home addresses and phone numbers. The extent of the data available is not clear.

Compromising the IT system may have allowed hackers to send a push notification if that database was connected to company marketing systems.

Marijus Briedis, the chief technology officer at NordVPN, a cyber security company, said Asos customers should not assume their payment and personal information has been stolen.

However, he advised customers to change their passwords and not to click on any links in unexpected messages, even if they look convincing.

He added: "What customers should be particularly alert to now is what happens next. High-profile cyber incidents create ideal conditions for phishing attacks.

"Criminals may exploit the publicity by sending emails and texts claiming to be from Asos, perhaps asking customers to reset a password, confirm payment details, check an order or claim a refund."

Asos customers also began reporting issues accessing the retailer's website yesterdayorning, according to the tracker Downdetector. Snowflake was contacted for comment.

Childminder admits leaving 27 children at home alone

By Jacob Freedland

A CHILDMINDER who left 27 children alone in her home has admitted neglect.

Amanda Mathewson, 55, was licensed to look after eight children but was found to have more than two dozen in her care.

Parents became suspicious when their children would return home thirsty and with clothes in "pristine condition", suggesting they had not eaten. Some parents also reported their children returned home in dirty nappies or with dry faeces in their underwear. Mathewson, who had been a self-employed childminder for 30 years, was arrested after allegations of cruelty.

Questions over her conduct started when two parents were told their children had not been present while the childminder went on the school run, Kirkcaldy sheriff court heard. They went to the school and confirmed that their children were not with Mathewson, despite being in her care. They then went to her home, where they heard a "child screaming" and found five unattended children in the garden.

They heard another child "screaming hysterically" inside the house as well as a further child crying under the kitchen table. Nine more children, all under five, were found in an upstairs bedroom in Dunfermline, Fife. The children were said to be distressed but uninjured.

A police investigation found it had been "commonplace" for children to be left alone at Mathewson's home.

Mathewson admitted wilfully neglecting, abandoning and exposing children in a manner likely to cause them unnecessary suffering or injury to their health. She had been registered to provide care for up to eight children, a Care Inspectorate report published in August 2023 said. In an unannounced inspection a year before her arrest, the inspectorate rated areas including care, learning and the setting as “very good”.

A spokesman for the Care Inspectorate said this was a “distressing case” and it had “implemented changes as a result of learning from this case”.

Sentencing will take place on Nov 6.

PHOT HUTOKING/MA WIRE

Hitching a ride Members of the 148 Commando Battery board a German submarine off the north coast of Scotland as part of Exercise Strike Warrior. The UK-led Nato training exercise brought together more than 2,000 personnel from six countries and used eight warships and 19 aircraft.

Flydubai hijacker learnt to fly at Gatwick

Hamam al-Hammami, who planned to crash jet in Tel Aviv, spent time at one of UK's biggest flight schools

By Janet Eastham and Patrick Sawer

THE suspected Flydubai hijacker trained to become a professional pilot in Britain, The Telegraph can reveal.

Hamam al-Hammami, 29, the Omani pilot accused of attempting to hijack a passenger jet bound for Israel, is understood to have attended one of the UK's biggest flight schools between 2018 and 2019.

The Telegraph understands that he trained with L3 Airline Academy, a pilot-training company with training centres in England that has since become part of Acron Aviation.

Hammami is believed to have trained at one or more of the company's centres in England, which include major training facilities in Southampton and Bournemouth, as well as a simulator centre near Gatwick.

The pilot is being held in Abu Dhabi after the Flydubai incident last Wednesday, which authorities have described as an attempted jihadist terror attack. Hammami is accused of attacking the aircraft's pilot with an axe before the crew and passengers fought back.

Israeli reports have suggested Hammami planned to seize the aircraft and crash it into a target in Tel Aviv in a plan modelled on the Sept 11 attacks.

There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by L3 Airline Academy or its successor companies, including Acron Aviation. The firm has said it will assist the authorities in any inquiry.

The pilot training of the suspected hijacker also took him to New Zealand.

Yesterday, New Zealand police confirmed that Hammami had been granted a six-month student visa to undertake flight training there between November 2018 and May 2019 "for a UK-based company no longer operating in New Zealand".

At the time, L3 Airline Academy provided a training programme linking its centres in Britain with a flying school in Hamilton, New Zealand.

It comes after The Telegraph revealed on Saturday that Hammami advocated violence against women and called for severe religious punishments on a now-deleted social media account, while completing a distance-learning

Pilot Hamam al-Hammami had advocated violence against women in social media posts

aviation management degree at Buckinghamshire New University between 2020 and 2023.

The Telegraph can also reveal that the deleted Twitter account @PilotHamam, which used the name "Hamam Al Hammami" and contained posts about women being "stomped on" and given a "pre-emptive slap", appears to detail his training and life in Britain.

Writing in 2022, Hammami said he had "studied in Australia, Britain and New Zealand for five years". He studied engineering at RMIT University in Melbourne from 2015 to 2017 but left without completing the qualification, before going on to undertake professional pilot training.

In that same post from 2022, Hammami described his years studying overseas as “the golden years of my religious commitment”, and claimed he became less observant when he returned to Oman.

In other posts he recalled encounters with women in Britain in which he advocated strict Islamic expectations about marriage and dress.

The account also appeared to show that he spent around five months living in London.

In one post, he recalled how "one of my colleagues, during the training in Britain" had met a Spanish woman and told her: "I want my wife to wear the niqab and not work after marriage."

In another exchange, Hammami claimed that he stipulated a woman would have to "convert to Islam and wear a hijab" if they were to marry.

At the time Hammami was training, cadets on the company's programmes could undertake theoretical ground school in Southampton before travelling to New Zealand for their core flying

'I want my wife to wear the niqab and not work after marriage'

training and then returning to Britain for more advanced stages.

One account from a cadet who trained with the company between 2016 and 2018 described spending six months at ground school near Southampton, followed by eight months of flight training in Hamilton. The cadet then returned to Britain for more advanced training at Bournemouth and Southampton.

L3 also had a relationship with Oman Air, where Hammami worked until February 2025.

The airline had previously named the aviation school as one of five internationally recognised institutions whose graduates it would consider for its pilot recruitment programme.

It has since been reported that Oman Air removed Hammami from flight training due to concerns over his radical views.

Acron Aviation declined to say whether Hammami had trained with the company.

A spokesman said: "We were saddened to hear of this incident, and our thoughts are with everyone affected. We will, of course, assist the relevant authorities, if necessary, in any way we can."

Iranians ‘used ChatGPT while spying on journalists ahead of possible violent attack’ | Special forces troops face prison after fresh evidence of ‘crimes’ committed in Afghanistan

By Telegraph Reporter

THREE alleged Iranian spies used ChatGPT to research journalists they were monitoring, a court heard.

Mostafa Sepahvand, 41, Farhad Javadi Manesh, 46, and Shapoor Qalehali Khani Noori, 57, face trial at Woolwich Crown Court charged with offences under the National Security Act.

Their "subjects" included journalists for Iran International, a London-based Persian broadcaster, as well as Jonathan Turner, a founder member of UK Lawyers for Israel, the court was told.

The defendants are said to have visited addresses linked to their “targets”, taken photos and videos, and used platforms such as ChatGPT to research them online between August 2024 and March last year, the court heard. The prosecution alleges Sepahvand intended to physically carry out a "violent attack" against at least one of the "targets", while Manesh and Noori assisted in planning.

Opening the trial yesterday, prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones KC said people who criticise the Iranian regime “do so at their peril”, with Iran International having “come under particular attack” over its anti-regime stance.

Mr Emlyn Jones also referred to an Iranian leader's 1989 call for Sir Salman Rushdie's death because of his novel The Satanic Verses, and the stabbing of the author in New York in 2022.

"In this trial, we are concerned with steps being taken, here in London, on behalf of the Iranian regime, to "target" journalists and others considered to be hostile to, or even just critical of, the Iranian regime," the prosecutor said. "The defendants were engaged in what is very obviously a form of spying. It is the prosecution case that their objective was that one or more than one of these targets would be subjected to serious violence - no doubt as retribution for their criticism of the Iranian regime and to try to silence and deter others."

There is no dispute the three defendants conducted the surveillance and reconnaissance, the jury was told.

Sepahvand accepts he was doing so for the benefit of the Iranian regime but claims he was threatened or bullied into doing it, and that he “deliberately did a bad job of it”, the prosecution said. The Crown added that Manesh and Noori claim they did not know they were carrying out the surveillance to assist the Iranian intelligence service.

The three men, who deny all the charges, were assisted by interpreters in the dock. The trial continues.

By Tom Cotterill

ACTING DEFENCE EDITOR

SOLDIERS from Britain's elite special forces could face jail over alleged crimes committed in Afghanistan, it has emerged.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) identified material earlier this year that suggested troops may have committed "serious offences". This has now been referred to the military police, the High Court heard.

UK special forces passed on information about the newly alleged offences to the Defence Serious Crime Command, with an investigation believed to have been paused pending the outcome of the long-running Afghanistan inquiry.

It is examining claims that members of the Special Air Service (SAS) executed 80 or more unarmed Afghans, including children and detainees, from 2010 to 2013, and destroyed evidence of wrongdoing.

Members of the SAS deny the claims, The Telegraph understands.

Jonathan Glasson KC, the counsel for the judge chairing the independent inquiry, made the disclosure about the new allegations in a written statement to the London court on Monday.

It is the first confirmation that personnel from units such as the SAS could be prosecuted over allegations of unlawful activity in Afghanistan.

"In early 2026, as a result of enquiries set in train by the inquiry, the Ministry of Defence identified material that indicated that service personnel deployed on operations may have committed serious offences under the Armed Forces Act 2006," Mr Glasson wrote.

"In accordance with section 113 of that act, the matter was referred by UK special forces to the Defence Serious Crime Command. It is understood that following a scoping exercise, the service police have paused any criminal investigation into the matter pending the conclusion of the inquiry."

Serious offences under schedule 2 of the act include crimes such as murder and manslaughter.

About 150 SAS soldiers who served in Afghanistan have been warned they face questioning or a demand for written evidence as part of the inquiry.

Brig Ed Butler, a retired former commanding officer of 22 SAS, claimed recruitment into the elite unit was suffering owing to repeated legal action against its members. He said: "Has the Government got the special forces and SAS communities' backs? I think it's very questionable."

British man in his 20s arrested over RAF Fairfield 'terror plot'

By Martin Evans and Tim Sigsworth

A 22-YEAR-OLD British man has been arrested in relation to the RAF Fairfield terror plot.

The suspect was arrested in Westminster, London, on suspicion of preparation of terrorist acts. It is the seventh arrest in relation to the alleged targeting of the Gloucestershire base last month.

Vicki Evans, the senior national coordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing, said: "This remains a live investigation and our specialist teams continue to pursue multiple lines of enquiry into the circumstances surrounding events near RAF Fairford.

"Once again, I'd like to thank the public for their continued support and patience whilst we work through this highly complex investigation."

Five British nationals, all in their mid-20s, were previously arrested on suspicion of explosives offences and terrorism after three suspicious vans were seen near the military site on Sept 27. They were later released on bail. A

British-Iranian national was also bailed on Saturday after being arrested on suspicion of terror offences in connection with the incident.

RAF Fairford has been used in recent months by US bombers after Sir Keir Starmer granted the United States permission to use British bases for "defensive" strikes against Tehran.

Yesterday, it emerged that the US had received reports of a planned Iranian drone attack on the Gloucestershire base. The attempted attack was ordered by Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) with the aim of targeting the B-1 bombers and killing American pilots, according to US officials, who were also briefed about the potential use of car bombs.

Intelligence suggested that a branch of the IRGC had recruited British nationals to carry out the attack, which included a diversion in a nearby village, in what would have been a multi-pronged attack.

The plot was likened to Ukraine's audacious Operation Spider's Web in June 2025, which involved smuggling more than 100 drones in the back of lorries deep into Russian territory before remotely launching them to attack enemy planes.

Donald Trump hinted on Monday that the decision to reposition the aircraft on Sunday was made after a series of threats against the facility.

"There were some threats. Rather than tempt the enemy, we'll capture the enemy and beat the enemy. Why should we leave them there?" the US president told reporters on the South Lawn.

Asked whether Iran had smuggled combat drones into the UK, Mr Trump said: "I can't tell you that. But if they did, they'll suffer greatly."

Two American officials told the New York Times on Sunday that the sudden departure came after the US military received new intelligence regarding an Iran-backed plot to target the facility.

The British government has insisted that RAF Fairford is secure.

The revelations raise questions about the base's safety and its ability to defend against drone attacks, which have become a signature of modern warfare.

The Daily Telegraph Wednesday 7 October 2026

Have you had your 10-a-day? Vegetables get less nutritious

Peas, carrots and onions in bit of a pickle as soil quality of crops falls into sharp decline since 1960s

By Matthew Field

THE nutritional value of fruit and vegetables has fallen by up to 50 per cent as soil quality goes into decline, according to a new study.

The report, from researchers at Deep Science Ventures, found that humans need to consume twice the number of vegetables to get the same level of minerals such as potassium, magnesium or copper as would have been present in their food in the 1960s.

The study found that many crops had lost 20 per cent to 50 per cent of several key nutrients.

Will Summers, a senior associate at the firm, said: "For sixty years we've measured food security in calories and tonnes per hectare. On those measures we've done remarkably well. But we've been quietly hollowing out what's inside our food."

The decrease in nutrient and vitamin value is thought to be down to declining soil quality and crops being selectively bred for their ability to grow quickly, rather than any focus on their health benefits.

The impact will be particularly acute for the 14 per cent of Britons who identify as vegetarian or vegan.

Mr Summers told The Telegraph that peas, carrots, and onions are among the vegetables impacted.

The concept of "five a day" was first introduced in 1988 by the California Department of Health Services as part of a public health initiative. In the 1990s it was rolled out across Europe, but it may now need to be updated.

The report added that people on weight-loss drugs could be most at risk from the lack of nutrients, as the treatments can cause them to consume less food. Mr Summers said: "As weight-loss drugs mean people eat less, the nutritional quality of every bite starts to matter much more."

Deep Science Ventures estimated that as many as 5 million UK adults on weight-loss treatments could be left consuming too little essential vitamins and minerals as a result.

A shortage of minerals such as zinc can weaken the immune system, while low potassium can raise the risk of stroke by up to 21 per cent.

Nature-friendly farming techniques, such as planting crops that restore nutrients to the soil, could help improve the health benefits of vegetables, according to the researchers.

Sian Ferguson, of the Mark Leonard Trust, which co-authored the report,

---

50pc

Reduction of key vitamins and minerals in vegetables including carrots and onions since the 1960s

said: "Healthy soil is the foundation of healthy food. This report shows that rebuilding soil health is one of the few measures that can improve nutrient density and yields."

The Mark Leonard Trust was founded by the Sainsbury's family, in part to fund projects connected to farming. A record number of mushrooms are expected to appear in British gardens this autumn after a series of drought and heatwaves over the summer.

The Royal Horticultural Society has said the number of mushrooms found in gardens and green spaces could exceed last year's record, in which the team observed a 43 per cent increase in inquiries about garden fungi compared to 2024.

Prolonged hot weather and drought followed by a wet autumn provides conditions that allow fungi to flourish.

News

Golden Goose Emma Corrin, who played Diana, Princess of Wales in The Crown, is the cover star for November's issue of Harper's Bazaar (below). Corrin will also be starring in the new Netflix series of Pride and Prejudice due to be released in December.

Invasion of the fruit flies caused by Indian summer

By Cameron Henderson

BRITISH homes are being inundated with fruit flies this autumn because of unusually warm weather late in the year, experts have claimed.

The insects, which usually start to disappear by October, have hung around because of temperatures as high as 28C over the past week.

"It's much warmer than it should be in October, so flies are still bothering us in our kitchens," said Seirian Sumner, professor of behavioural ecology at University College London.

Commonly known as fruit flies, the tiny insects that float around bins, kitchen sinks and decaying fruit are actually vinegar flies, according to Dr Andrew Whittington, a consultant entomologist at Fly Evidence.

"If the summer drags on into the autumn months, they will hang around, and as the evening temperatures go down, people close their windows, and they can't escape," he said. "The breeding season is slightly prolonged because of the warmer weather, whereas if we'd had a cold snap in late September the populations might have died off."

Warmer-than-average conditions have brought the flies' reproduction time down from 15-20 days to 10. This summer was the hottest on record, according to the Met Office, with the average daily maximum temperature of 21.3C beating the previous record of 21C in 1976.

Adam Juson, the chief executive of Merlin Environmental, a pest control firm, said the conditions were allowing fruit flies to develop from egg to adult in under a week. He added: "Once the adults emerge, they lay eggs on any fresh or ripening fruit brought into the home, so the cycle keeps repeating."

Francisca Sconce, a fellow at the Royal Entomological Society, said the warmer temperatures also meant fruit and food decayed faster, which gave flies more to feed and lay eggs on.

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Prisoners trade stolen sugar at £35 a bag to brew 'hooch'

By Charles Hymas

HOME AFFAIRS EDITOR

BAGS of sugar are being traded for more than 30 times their face value to brew "hooch" at Britain's most violent, gang-infested jail.

Inmates in HMP Swaleside, on the Isle of Sheppey, in Kent, are stealing the sugar to order from the jail's delivery stores to illegally brew potent alcoholic drinks, according to prison watchdogs.

The sugar is trading for £35 per pack to be mixed with water and yeast to provide a homemade source of illicit intoxicants in addition to the “large amounts” of conventional drugs like cannabis, cocaine and spice flown into the jail by drones.

Inspectors who earlier this year placed HMP Swaleside in emergency measures estimated 50 per cent of the prisoners were taking drugs, one of the highest rates of any jail and fuelling “some of the highest levels of violence of any prison in England and Wales”.

Many prisoners were said to be “routinely” making and carrying weapons, with staff and inmates living in “constant fear of violence” in a jail wracked by “gang rivalry.”

Many inmates chose not to go to the gym or attend medical appointments "because they were frightened". Some 43 per cent of prisoners told inspectors they "currently feel unsafe".

Last month Charlie Taylor, chief inspector of prisons, told The Telegraph that it was the first time in his six years in post when he had felt “uneasy” walking around a jail because of the “prime-val” sense of underlying violence.

The production of “hooch” at HMP Swaleside was highlighted by its independent monitoring board (IMB), which expressed concern at the “considerable amount of time and effort” spent by prison medics assessing inmates under the influence of “hooch” or drugs.

The watchdogs identified the jail's DHL delivery facility as the apparent source of the sugar where it was being "stolen to order".

“Shrinkage remains an issue at DHL. It continues to be accepted by prison management, (in common with other prison DHL facilities), even though the security governor is concerned about the knock-on effects,” they said.

HMP Swaleside was made the subject of an urgent notification by Mr Taylor, which means the Justice Secretary must draw up an emergency action plan to redress its problems.

News

Mark Cain, above, has been charged with murder. Dr Hannah Terry, right, was described as a 'lovely woman and a wonderful mother'. Police outside the family home in Dersingham, Norfolk, left

Husband charged with murder of 'royal GP' wife

By Daisy Graham-Brown

SENIOR NEWS REPORTER

THE husband of a GP found dead at her house near the Sandringham Estate during a sleepover for her children has been charged with her murder.

Mark Cain, 45, is accused of the murder of his wife Hannah, also 45, who was pronounced dead at their family home in the village of Dersingham, Norfolk, on Sunday morning.

Norfolk Constabulary detectives announced yesterday that Mr Cain, a director at an energy consultancy company, had been charged with murder.

He will appear at Norwich magistrates' court from custody this morning.

Known professionally under her maiden name, Dr Hannah Terry, who was reportedly a GP to the Royal family, had been hosting a sleepover for her children's friends when she died at her detached home in Fern Hill.

Neighbours said the couple had three sons under the age of 14 and described Dr Terry as "a lovely woman and a wonderful mother".

Mr Cain was also the chairman of the parents' committee at Glebe House in nearby Hunstanton, a private day and boarding school, and was arrested after police were called to his house on Fern Hill shortly after 2.20am on Sunday.

Yesterday morning, police vans could be seen outside the large detached house, which sits on a quiet hill leading out of the village, with officers going in and out of the property.

A police cordon remained in place and flowers had been left at the scene, with one card calling Dr Terry a "devoted mum", and adding: "God bless you Hannah and your precious boys."

Dr Terry was working as a GP at the nearby Grimston Medical Centre, which was closed on Monday and yesterday owing to what it described as "extremely difficult circumstances".

A notice on the surgery's website said: "We apologise for the disruption and appreciate your patience and understanding at what is a very difficult time for our colleagues."

A spokesman for the Norfolk and Waveney Local Medical Committee, which represents NHS GPs, said: "We are deeply saddened by the news of Dr Terry's death. She was a wonderful GP who was dedicated to providing excellent care for her patients."

The King and Queen have been informed of Dr Terry's death, according to The Sun.

How modern life is giving young people cancer

Sarah Knapton

SCIENCE EDITOR

---

With less exercise and the rise of ultra-processed food, the disease is hitting us harder than ever before

CANCER was once largely a disease of older age, as a lifetime of genetic damage took its toll on cells.

But modern life seems to have speeded up the clock, with rates of the disease in the prostate, bowel, kidney and womb doubling in under-50s in the last 25 years, while liver, pancreatic and breast cancer are not far behind.

The trend of rising cancer in younger people is alarming, particularly at a time when cancer rates overall are falling because of improved treatments, early diagnosis and screening programmes.

Undoubtedly, charity awareness campaigns in the last few decades have fuelled some of this increase, with more people aware of symptoms, leading to them visiting their doctor, so their disease is picked up earlier.

But if this were the only reason for the increase in diagnoses, then death rates should remain stable or even fall, but they are not, they are rising, particularly bowel cancer.

It is likely that our modern lifestyles are to blame, with poor diets, lack of exercise, shift work, artificial light, obesity, chemical exposure,

antibiotics, air pollution, and even the decision not to have children, all creating a toxic breeding ground for disease.

What we eat - or don't eat - could be the chief culprit. Cancer Research UK estimates that around 54 per cent of bowel cancer cases are preventable, with more than a quarter of cases driven by eating too little fibre.

Not eating sufficient fibre slows digestion, keeping harmful waste in contact within the bowel wall for longer, exposing cells to toxins and possible carcinogens.

Ultra-processed food is also damaging for the microbiome, the zoo of microbes that lives in our guts which plays a huge role in overall health.

In the UK, around 60 per cent of our calorie intake comes from highly processed foods, but the preservatives, chemicals, fats, salt and sugar damage the microbes of the microbiome, while fast food also lacks the nutrients that help these bugs to thrive.

It matters because around 70-80 per cent of immune cells live in the gut, so if they do not have a healthy environment it can stop the body being able to repair DNA damage that can lead to cancer.

In a healthy body, cells grow and divide into new cells when the body needs them, and self-destruct when they get old or defective. But if DNA gets damaged, faulty cells can keep multiplying, eventually forming into tumours.

Usually the immune system keeps on top of this, but weakened defences caused by poor lifestyles can lower the

'The trend of rising cancer in younger people is alarming, particularly at a time when rates are falling overall'

drawbridge. A waning immune system also leaves people struggling to fight off infections, which are estimated to account for one in eight cancers worldwide. Last year e-coli in particular was linked to bowel cancer.

Medications like antibiotics can also wipe out helpful bacteria. While the drugs have saved countless lives, for decades, GPs heavily prescribed antibiotics for common viral infections like coughs and colds, unaware of the internal harm.

The University of Aberdeen has found that antibiotic use increases the risk of colon cancer for the under-50s by 50 per cent and scientists have estimated that microbiome problems may account for around 20 per cent of cancers.

Artificial light is also harmful to the immune system. Darkness triggers the body to produce melatonin with antioxidant properties allowing the

body to heal at night, and suppress tumour development. But night time light can stop this.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies night-shift work as probably carcinogenic to humans with strong links to bowel, prostate, and breast cancer.

It is also unnatural and unhealthy for us to be able to eat through the night. The Barcelona Institute for Global Health, showed that finishing meals early or leaving a two-hour gap before sleep lowers the combined risk of breast and prostate cancers by roughly 20 per cent compared to eating late or right before bedtime.

Air pollution, toxic chemicals, and chronic stress also damage the immune system triggering inflammation, weakening cell responses, and disrupting protective internal barriers.

Even the change in climate may be having an impact, with heatwaves and high humidity causing oxidative stress and suppressing immune function, while microplastics may carry toxic chemicals into the body.

Likewise, being overweight or obese also drives womb cancer because fat cells actively produce and store oestrogen.

Obesity is also estimated to account for one quarter of cases of kidney cancer, another condition on the rise in young people.

Carrying too much weight triggers chronic inflammation, hormonal imbalances and excessive insulin that causes cells to divide more rapidly, speeding up the chance of DNA

damage. In the mid-1970s, adult obesity rates in the UK were roughly three per cent for men and six per cent for women but around 30 per cent of adults are now clinically obese, as manual labour was replaced with office-based sedentary jobs.

It is a sad fact that many of the conveniences of modern life may be harming us, from our dependence on overly-calorific fast food, wrapped in plastic, and available 24 hours a day, to the light from our phones disrupting our circadian rhythms.

And one final tragic factor that may be causing an increase in cancer in women is childlessness.

Pregnancy interrupts menstrual cycles, lowering exposure to the hormone estrogen, which can trigger womb cancer. Risk decreases with each live birth, with three or more children can reduce the risk by up to half. Childless women also have about a 90 per cent higher relative risk of contracting breast cancer than women who have had their first child before the age of 20.

According to the Office for National Statistics, around 50 per cent of women aged 30 have not had children, and 18 per cent still have not by the age of 45.

'Usually the immune system keeps on top of things but poor defences due to our lifestyles can lower the drawbridge'

The good news is that many of these cases are preventable with lifestyle changes. Young people are already ditching alcohol - a major driver of cancer - while just 1 per cent now smoke and healthy living is trending.

Perhaps these cancer increases in the under-50s will turn out to be a blip driven by less clean-living parents.

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'We had no head teacher, so we began protests'

Henry Samuel

PARIS CORRESPONDENT

---

France's biggest school revolt in decades descends into violent clashes with police in central Paris

A DETERMINED teenager takes aim at a phalanx of riot police in central Paris and opens fire with a rocket that explodes in multicoloured flashes.

Seconds later, a volley of powerful tear gas canisters comes flying back.

Police charge and youths scatter in all directions as the stinging smoke bites but they have nowhere to run: officers have blocked off all the exits.

Like hundreds of others in attendance at Paris's Place de la Nation, The Telegraph's reporter struggled to breathe and see clearly amid the thick clouds of gas.

Similar scenes played out across France yesterday as the country's biggest school revolt in decades descended into violent clashes.

The movement began in mid-September at Lycée Saint-Exupéry in the low-income Parisian suburb of Créteil before spreading around the country, rocking Emmanuel Macron's government as it struggles to pass an austerity budget seven months ahead of presidential elections.

The protests have left 715 police, 215 pupils and 85 teaching staff injured, including 34 head teachers. Some 6,059 arrests have been made since Sept 28 and more than 5,000 people, mainly minors, have been taken into police custody, according to the interior ministry.

Yesterday began calmly enough at Saint-Exupéry as pupils staged a peaceful blockade with support from teachers as police stood by.

One placard read: "Too young to vote, but not too young to be gassed (by police)."

"We started protesting because there was no head teacher to take care of us," Edson, 21, said. "Last year, we didn't have French or maths teachers yet these are compulsory subjects."

Malia, 18, said the school was in disrepair. "For a year there was a big hole in the roof with water pouring in. We were missing a lot of things.

"Some teachers started staging a strike, but no one took notice. So the next day we students took up the call. We had no idea it would spark national protests. Now it's the whole of France and even beyond: I heard pupils in Italy will stage a protest on Oct 17."

As pupils prepared to go to Paris for the march, their English teacher Nabila Belaid, 38, praised her pupils for working "together brilliantly and without violence".

But before she could finish speaking, a deafening volley of firecrackers lit up the street as police came under attack from a group of black-clad youths from a nearby estate. Officers hit back with a flurry of tear gas canisters as the pupils ran for cover. This journalist and the Telegraph photographer were hit by canisters and had to take cover behind a van.

A group of pupils angrily shouted at the troublemakers. "This is exactly what we don't need; they are casting discredit on all our efforts," said Anis, 18. "Now the government can say we're just looking for trouble whereas we have real concerns."

As the smoke subsided, pupils made their way to the metro and towards central Paris for the march.

More than 250,000 people - 450,000 according to unions - took to the streets yesterday to demand more resources and express a long list of grievances, from staff shortages to squalid and overcrowded classrooms.

Pupils barricaded schools from Lille and Rennes to Marseille and Toulouse. Around 2,000 institutions were blockaded or were closed, according to a French students' union.

Again, the Paris protest began peacefully enough at 2pm where rallying chants of: "Siamo tutti antifascisti" – the Italian slogan taken up internationally by anti-fascist and Left-wing movements – rang out.

But most were directed against the security forces, including "we all

Sami Barthe, 18, described the planned abolition of 1,588 permanent teaching posts as "absolutely scandalous". The government insists that education spending will actually rise by €1.2bn to €64bn and points to additional trainee teachers and support staff.

Part of these protests is about existential angst, he said.

"Our generation has been through a lot. We've seen Covid-19 and the extremely tenuous government situation for the past two years. On an international scale, the genocide in Gaza has politicised a large number of our youngsters."

Halfway through the march, the ambiance turned much uglier.

Teenagers pointed fireworks at police who responded with tear gas and charged.

A bin was set on fire and several banks

and bus shelters smashed. As the cortege approached Place de la

Young protesters stand in front of burning school desks in central Paris, above. Riot police move into action, right. A protester clenches her fist and shouts out a slogan, below

Nation, young protesters picked up slabs of stone they had broken off a bank facade and hurled them at police, who fired stun grenades.

The prime minister said that around "300 vandals" bent on violence had mixed with protesters.

Despite the chaotic running battles at Place de la Nation that left this correspondent barely able to breathe, Lea and Jeanne, both students, said: "It's all going well."

"The police are a bit stressed but I'm pleased overall. It's not that violent. That's not the focal point," said Lea.

Jeanne dismissed the clashes as simply “the mirror of the violence of this government and society”.

"It's chaotic but it's not gratuitous; it's systemic. We have come together and said what we wanted to say and we hope it will keep going. We're not manipulated by the

“We're not manipulated by the far-Left. They have helped us gain more visibility but that's not a bad thing.”

Leftist politicians from Jean-Luc Mélenchon's France Unbowed party, LFI, were present in the cortege and condemned what they called police brutality.

pointing out that a pointing out that a teenager had lost a hand and another an eye in earlier protests in Lens and Tours.

A one-year-old was hit by a firework in

their pram on the outskirts of the capital. The infant was taken to hospital for tinnitus and a high school student was arrested near a blockaded school in Saint-Cyr-l'École.

A police officer who fired a grenade launcher at a student protester was charged with assault on Monday.

The officer injured a 14-year-old student during protests in the Parisian suburb of Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône. According to his lawyer, the teenager has suffered a serious head injury "from a tear gas grenade launcher", a "double fracture of the jaw" and missing teeth.

"We're here to protect pupils as we have witnessed violence in another lycée and are here to avoid the police

'Now it's the whole of France and even beyond. I heard pupils in Italy will stage a protest'

escalating things," said Sophie de la Rochefoucault, LFI Paris councillor in the 20th arrondissement. "You get the feeling that they are waiting for the slightest opportunity to lash out whereas these kids have real demands for education."

Mr Mélenchon has described the protests as the “most powerful high school and university student youth movement” since 1968, when millions of workers went on strike.

The government has accused him of stoking tensions and using school pupils as "electoral cannon fodder".

Marine Le Pen, the leader of the hard-Right National Rally, called for a new anti-rioting law to be passed and blamed the Left for fuelling the protests.

"This is no longer about high school student protests. It is about riots organised by professionals and overseen by deputies from LFI," she said.

But Céline Verzeletti, an LFI councillor, brushed aside such claims.

"We think that this movement will continue and grow. Anger is the same for everyone. Fuel prices are up as are living costs. The Yellow Vests started with fuel prices. Today we are in a far worse situation. This shows if people unite, they can change things. Pupils have told us they will keep blockading and we think that on Oct 17, we could be heading for a new Yellow Vest movement. It may well spread."

The next test comes today, when student organisations are due to meet Philippe Baptiste, the higher education minister.

France sends just 43 gendarmes to stop migrant route to Gosport

By Charles Hymas

HOME AFFAIRS EDITOR

FRANCE has deployed 43 extra officers to its north-western beaches to stop people smugglers launching megadinghies from Normandy.

The unit of gendarmes, reinforced by national police, is mounting patrols up to 200 miles to the west of Calais to stop the boats heading for areas such as Gosport in Hampshire.

Crossing attempts have moved west as gangs seek to evade the 1,050 officers now deployed at the traditional launching points around Calais.

The gangs have launched three separate dinghies in the past month from beaches around Cherbourg, which is 170 miles from Calais but just 80 miles from the Isle of Wight and the Solent.

Migrants from two of the boats, one carrying 114 people on Sept 6 and one on Sunday with 149 on board, have been brought into Portsmouth and Gosport where hundreds of angry protesters have massed. On Sept 23, 51 migrants who had sailed from Normandy were transferred at sea to a Border Force vessel and taken to the Home Office's Manston processing centre near Dover.

Police and community leaders in Gosport have demanded that boats

---

'The Government has established plans to deal with small-boat arrivals further along the coastline'

intercepted at sea be taken directly to Manston via Dover. Residents have accused the Home Office of "ignoring" their concerns that the town is not a suitable location for landing migrants.

They fear that the route could become established as an alternative to the heavily policed beaches around Calais and Dunkirk. On Sunday, more than 200 officers from seven forces were deployed to deal with 350 anti-migrant protesters in Gosport with a Hampshire police chief accusing them of “violent disorder”. Twelve people were arrested for offences including assaulting emergency workers and racially aggravated affray and disorder.

Jamie Lee Bennett, 38, of Whiteley near Fareham, was the first to be charged in connection with the protest. He was charged with "failing to comply with a prohibited assembly direction" and bailed to appear at Portsmouth magistrates' court on Nov 26.

The new deployment in north-western France comprises 34 gendarmerie reservists and nine police reservists, funded by a deal Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, signed earlier this year.

A Home Office spokesman said: "The Government has established contingency plans to deal with small-boat arrivals further along the coastline."

EU graduates dodge £360m in repayments for UK student loans

By Alex Marsh MONEY WRITER

THE Student Loans Company (SLC) has failed to recover £360m in repayments from graduates from EU countries.

Almost 44,000 EU graduates who studied in England but live overseas dodged student loan repayments in the past year.

The value of student loans in arrears that were held by EU borrowers totalled £360m at the end of August, according to government figures.

In total, 103,400 EU nationals with a student loan were earning above the repayment threshold and living abroad. But 42 per cent of these graduates - 43,700 individuals - failed to make a loan repayment in the last 12 months.

Graduates are obliged to inform SLC if they plan to reside outside Britain for three months or more.

Chris McGovern, of pressure group Campaign for Real Education, said: "Loans to foreign nationals are an invitation, even an incentive, to commit fraud. Our gullible Government is aiding and abetting a gigantic rip-off of British taxpayers."

British graduates' loans are automatically repaid through deductions from their salary, but EU students or Britons

Number of EU nationals who have failed to make a student loan repayment in the past 12 months

working abroad have to declare their earnings on an online form in order to arrange repayments.

They are required to make monthly payments if they earn more than the earnings threshold for their country of residence, which is calculated by the SLC according to the local cost of living.

Access to student loans for new EU students without settled or pre-settled status ended in 2021 after Brexit, but those who previously took out loans must still pay them back.

Josh MacAlister, a junior minister in the Department for Education, said: "The public expects these debts to be paid and so do we. That is why we are investing in the SLC's ability to collect debt and working with them to go further on getting back what is owed."

An SLC spokesman said: “Students must complete a declaration signing up to the terms and conditions of their loan, which require them to keep in touch with SLC. If they fail to do this, a default repayment rate is applied to their account, which can be pursued through our recovery processes.

"As part of our three-year transformation programme, we are working closely with the Government to further strengthen our debt recovery capability."

World news

The harrowing messages from Oct 7 victims watching hell unfold from inside a dumpster

EYAL WARSHAVSKI FOR THE TELEGRAPH

Sabrina Miller

in Israel

Dozens of young festival-goers huddled for safety in the big yellow rubbish bins littered around the site near Kibbutz Re'im

---

Nova festivalgoers crowded into smelly bins as Hamas massacred their friends, then the terrorists found them

NAAMA GAL was in the festival car park when the first gunmen arrived.

The 25-year-old was trying to escape the site, rockets streaking overhead, when people started screaming: "Run! Run! They are coming."

She did not understand what was happening, but began to flee back towards the main festival site.

"I didn't know where my friends were," she says. "I heard the shots, and I saw the people around me falling on the floor."

Naama spent the next 20 minutes running from gunmen before being pushed by a fellow party-goer into a large yellow dumpster, which was already crowded with a dozen or so others.

In their hiding place she saw someone she had met while travelling in Guatemala.

She says: "He asked me, 'What are you doing here?' and I responded that I was escaping from terrorists. He sort of laughed and said, 'Yeah, me too'."

The acquaintance pointed to his girlfriend.

"He told me they were going to move in with each other in two days," she says. "He didn't survive the day."

Huddled in the corner were newly engaged Maya Bitton, 22, and her fiancé Eliran Mizrahi, 23. They had been told to take cover in the bin by a security guard earlier that morning.

Yiftach Dan Twig, 27, was the last person to clamber into the container.

From within their refuge, they could do little except listen to the violence around them as dozens of people, including two of Yiftach's friends, were executed.

"I heard a lot of bombs, a lot of gunshots, a lot of rocket propelled grenades exploding," Naama recalls.

"I heard a lot of women shouting. Screaming. I heard it all."

Naama and those around her began messaging friends and family in what became a running record of how the day unfolded.

Those in the container bided their time, stealing moments to quietly get to know one another.

Maya and Eliran whispered that if everyone survived the day, they would be invited to their wedding in September.

As each hour passed, though, they became more and more desperate, listening to the terrified shrieks of pain from festivalgoers and repeated cries of "Allahu Akbar".

Some of those in the bin urinated on themselves with fear as bullets continued to fly over their heads.

"It was very hot," recalls Naama. "Very stinky. Very sweaty. I was lying there with people piled on top of me."

As time drifted by, they remained covered beneath the rubbish, waiting for the attacks to end. They had no way of knowing if they would be discovered first by Israel Defense Force personnel, or the terrorists.

---

Unknown sender

Everyone is running by foot

Peek out and see if you can run away

---

Inbar Shem Tov Now it is quiet outside

We are afraid

I am not going out. They shot at the trash container and it protected us I am staying in the trash container Until they come to get all of us

Inbar Shem, 22, was one of eight who died inside the dumpster on October 7

Unknown sender

Get under all the trash, as close to the ground as you can get

Inbar Shem Tov

Yes

Videos taken on smartphones from inside the container show that some of those hiding began to peep over the edge to try to assess the situation. Meanwhile, gunmen still stalked the site's bloodstained scrubland, hunting for new victims between the burning cars and bodies.

It is not clear what exactly alerted one of the men to the dumpster.

Some say it was the rustling of bin bags. It was almost impossible to keep entirely still, and people had begun to rummage for drops of water in discarded bottles.

Others say their position was given away by those who poked their heads above the parapet.

The gunman who would find them was not a hardened terrorist in combat gear but a young person, like them, wearing flip-flops, says Naama.

In the second before he opened the door of the container, Yiftach jumped forwards and used his body to shield a girl named Amit Levy.

Amit, drowning in rubbish, shoved his body on to that of her twin sister Shani.

The terrorist swung open the door holding a Kalashnikov. Everyone was silent

Everyone was silent.

"[He was] maybe 17 or 18 years old, and was very happy he had found us," says Naama. "He was smiling. Like a party vibe."

"No one shouted. We knew what we were going to get. We had heard for three hours what these terrorists had been doing to our friends."

She stared directly at him, frozen, waiting.

He shouted "Allahu Akbar", she says, and then shot her friend from Guatemala dead.

Bullets were sprayed around the container, sinking into bodies and bursting through bin liners. Yiftach 'I only understood the scale of the situation once I was out of the bin. I saw all the bodies. It was like a computer game'

was killed instantly, but he managed to save Shani. The bullet that went through him penetrated her chest, but stopped a millimetre from her lungs.

His body also protected Lior Solimani, 23, another survivor, slowing the bullet that hit her in the face.

Eight people died alongside Yiftach:

David – the man Naama recognised from Guatemala – is survived by his partner, Noam Ben David, who was shot through her hip and foot.

Naama was hit with four bullets: two in her left thigh, one in her right thigh and one on her shoulder.

She recalls: "Everything went quiet. Everything went white. All I could smell was my own blood.

"I felt dizzy and I felt like my essence was draining out of me. I felt like I was being emptied of my personality. Of my everything."

When the gunman left, she reached for her phone to call her mother.

Naama says: "I told her on the phone: I've been shot. I love you. I am not coming back home. And my mum kept telling me that everything was going to be OK and that she was driving with my dad from Haifa (about a two-and-a-half hour journey) to come and pick me up. I was laughing inside because it sounded so ridiculous. I knew I was going to die in this bin."

She lay silent for just under 30 minutes surrounded by the bodies. Then, realising she had a chance to survive, she began to dig through the rubbish bags and managed to find a half-empty bottle of water.

"Then I pulled a rubbish bag over my head and played dead," she says.

As she lay still, the gunshots continued to ring out. Security forces were fighting to push the terrorists back towards Gaza.

At around midday, Yagil Rimoni - one of the festival organisers - and Rom Braslavski (who was later kidnapped by Hamas and held for more than two years) managed to reach the container.

Naama says: "When they first arrived I thought it was another terrorist coming to finish the job. And then I saw Yagil's face and I screamed to him: 'I'm alive, help.'"

She crawled over the body of her fallen friend and bags of rubbish toward the container's door.

As she exited, Naama saw the scenes of carnage outside the container: the bodies of her friends strewn on the floor, the bodies of terrorists, burnt cars.

"I only understood the scale of the situation once I was out of the bin. I saw all the bodies. It was like a computer game."

In a makeshift medical centre, away from the terrorists and gunfights, Yagil and Rom applied tourniquets to Naama's legs and wrote the time - 12 - on her forehead. If the tourniquets were not removed within four hours, her legs would need to be amputated.

"The tourniquet was more painful than the shot," she says. "I couldn't move my legs. I started to shout at them. Nobody is going to cut off my legs."

Under more gunfire, she was driven to a hospital, where she collapsed unconscious at 3.30pm. She woke up two days later.

somebody is trying to kill her with a knife. "I dream people are trying to rape me," she adds. "When I hear Arabic, my body takes me back to October 7. It happens naturally. I can't control it."

She has switched psychologists five times because they all keep crying when she tells her story.

The Yellow

Dumpster

memorial at the

Nova Festival

Memorial Site near

Kibbutz Re'im

"Sometimes I think October 7 was my lucky day," she reflects. "I'm alive. I can stand. I can dance."

It took several days for Michal Bitton to find out what had happened to her daughter Maya and her fiancé Eliran.

Maya's sister, Noa, put her number on Facebook and urged anyone with information to call.

She was bombarded with calls from Arabic-speaking men laughing at her and celebrating her sister's death. So when officials arrived at her house two days after the massacre, the family was already broken.

"The policeman didn't say anything, he just looked at me with tears in his eyes," says Michal. "And I was so angry because all my daughter had done was go to a party. It wasn't possible for her to be dead.

"So I started to beat him and tell him it was a mistake. I told him my daughter wasn't the Maya he was looking for. I screamed at him to go away. I didn't want him to say it. I couldn't hear it. It wasn't true. I took a

chair and smashed it next to him. I wanted him to be afraid of me and leave my house."

Two years later Michal, stricken by grief, had a heart attack.

"I went to the cemetery and saw Maya's friends who had survived the Nova festival standing by my daughter's grave with their parents, and I felt so jealous of the other parents, so I smoked and smoked and couldn't stop and I felt like elephants were sitting on my chest."

She still recalls the moment she realised her daughter was trapped in a terror attack.

"I was certain that she would survive," says Michal.

"I told her she'll be back in her bedroom and in her pyjamas in just a few hours. I just wanted to keep her positive. I told her, Maya, don't listen to what is happening outside.

"Try to imagine that you are at the beach and that you see the blue sea and sing a calming song in your heart.

'Mom, I don't want to be here'

Texts from inside the dumpster

Maya Bitton

I am hiding

Michal (Maya's mother)

Put your hands on your

head and block your ears,

think about a blue sea

Is Eliran with you?

Maya

I am scared

Don't be afraid, my love, gather all your strength, cover your ears, and sing a nice song to yourself, a relaxing one All will be ok. We have the most powerful army.

Maya Bitton was murdered by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023

Maya

I love all of you

Michal

Stop it

Michal

Mayush, be brave! You are one of the strong ones. Be strong for me.

Michal

Just tell me that you are smiling

Maya

I am afraid

Maya

It is the terrorists Not the

armyyyy

Maya

Mommyyyyy, pleasee

Maya I don't want to be here

Michal Don't listen, sing a song to yourself

Maya

I love you

Close your ears, close your eyes. Don't listen. I told her to bury herself deep in the bin. I was worried that she would be scared because she is afraid of cockroaches. But she had to do it."

Michal says she grew frantic when the texts and calls stopped.

With nowhere to turn, the mother, who is secular, ran across the street into the synagogue and begged people to pray for her daughter.

"What else could I do?" she asks.

For Yiftach's sister Keren and their parents, dealing with his death is no easier. "Since Yiftach died, my world is darkness," she says.

Keren says she is comforted by the knowledge that her brother was able to offer one last selfless act.

"When my mother met Shani and Lior – the girls Yiftach saved – she told them: 'Yiftach's blood is on your body. So you are like my girls. You are like my daughters.'"

'Sometimes I think October 7 was my lucky day... "I'm alive. I can stand. I can dance'

After the massacre at Nova, the yellow container was taken away to be reused as a bin.

Keren fought hard to bring it back.

"My brother was murdered inside," she huffs in disbelief. "His blood was still inside it."

The container now forms part of a memorial site in Re'im, the kibbutz in southern Israel where the massacre happened.

Death-row survivor is 'conscious and speaking'

Christa Pike's lawyers renew calls for her sentence to be commuted to life after botched execution

By Ben Stockton

CHRISTA PIKE, the death-row inmate who survived a botched execution in Tennessee, is "conscious and speaking".

Pike, 50, had been in a critical condition and was likely brain-damaged after being given two doses of pentobarbital on Sept 30.

In a statement, Pike's lawyer said: "Against all odds, Christa Pike is conscious, speaking, and continues to receive critical medical care.

“Despite the severe damage she endured to her arms, she is still handcuffed and shackled to the bed. Her recovery is medically unprecedented. Her prognosis remains unclear but, at a minimum, we expect a long recovery.”

Witnesses described hearing her "snoring" and "moaning" more than two hours after the injection.

Pike apparently said: "My arm feels like it's about to burst open," according to Tori Gessner, a local TV news anchor who attended the botched execution.

As is standard practice, a curtain was drawn across the window where the witnesses watched to protect the identity of the medical professionals who administer the lethal injection. But a live microphone meant the witnesses could hear Pike "crying and whimpering".

In a court filing following the incident, Pike's legal team claimed that "at no point did any member of the execution team realise that the IV lines were not correctly placed".

"One needle was bent in a 90-degree angle when it was removed," the filing stated.

Pike's lawyers had raised concerns about a blood-clotting disorder and small veins that could cause her unnecessary pain during the execution.

Bill Lee, the governor of Tennessee, has been asked by Pike's legal team to commute her death penalty sentence to life in prison. They renewed that call yesterday.

Pike was convicted of killing her classmate Colleen Slemmer in 1995. She was accused of using a box cutter to carve a pentagram into Ms Slemmer's chest while she was still alive. The then 18-year-old Pike repeatedly beat Ms Slemmer, eventually using the box cutter to cut her throat, according to court filings. She also removed part of Ms Slemmer's skull from the scene.

Ms Slemmer's mother, May Martinez, who was in the witness room for last Wednesday's execution, told People magazine: "If I could have gotten in that room, I would have taken the box cutter and cut her up like she did Colleen."

The botched execution has renewed focus on capital punishment in the US, where roughly two-thirds of people support the death penalty for people convicted of murder, according to recent polling by Pew Research Centre.

Pike would have been the first woman in 200 years to be executed in Tennessee.

Frank Strada, the head of Tennessee's prison system, resigned after the botched execution. Mr Strada said his department had carried out its respon-

Witnesses describe hearing Christa Pike 'snoring' and 'moaning' more than two hours after the attempted lethal injection

sibilities "in accordance with established protocol" but added that "stepping aside is in the best interest of Tennesseeans".

He said an independent investigation, announced by authorities last Thursday, "is entirely appropriate and necessary, and I look forward to doing everything I can to help determine exactly what occurred".

Steven Hale, a criminal justice reporter who witnessed the attempted execution, described it as a "disaster".

“She didn’t seem to be dying,” he told the Today programme. “She just seemed to be in this in-between state and stayed that way for quite a long time.”

Under Tennessee's execution protocol, a physician is responsible for establishing a central line for the drug through the neck, chest, arm or groin, so it reaches a large vein near the heart.

Dr Mark Fowler, the physician who oversaw Pike's failed execution, was also reportedly involved in the failed execution of Tony Carruthers, a triple murderer convicted in 1994.

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Marco's gone to Iceland Thorgerour Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, Iceland's foreign minister, welcomes Marco Rubio to Keflavik as part of the US Secretary of State's European tour.

'Biohacker' millionaire: People really want me to die

By Benedict Smith

By Benedict Smith

WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT

A MULTI-MILLIONAIRE who is attempting to defy death has claimed that "people really want me to die".

Self-declared "biohacker" Bryan Johnson, who hopes to live until at least 150 years old, claimed there was widespread delight in July when he revealed his diagnosis of an incurable autoimmune disease.

"I think people really want me to die. Now I get it. It's funny. It's ironic. I push a lot of buttons that people don't like," the 49-year-old Silicon Valley entrepreneur told Axios on Monday.

Mr Johnson, who employs a team of medical professionals at a cost of around \$2m (£1.5m) a year to try and defy the ageing process, suffers from a chronic condition known as autoimmune gastritis (AIG).

He is attempting to "solve" the disease, which causes the immune system to attack healthy cells in the stomach lining. Its symptoms include

Bryan Johnson spends about £1.5m a year on a team of medical professionals in a bid to defy the ageing process

an increased risk of cancer and anaemia, the result of a shortage of vitamin B12.

"My stomach is eating itself," he wrote on social media in July.

Mr Johnson, who has previously used blood transfusions from his teenage son to try and reverse cell damage, claimed "there was joy all around the world" after he announced his diagnosis.

He denied that becoming a human guinea pig for his longevity treatments, which include consuming dozens of supplements, rinsing his teeth with tea tree oil and undergoing shock treatments on his genitals, had caused his conditions.

"I probably have had this thing for about 30 years," he said.

"I got diagnosed with hypothyroidism when I was 21 years old. The thyroid and the stomach are very closely linked in immunology."

Mr Johnson, who admits to only beginning his anti-ageing crusade around 2019, has previously claimed the condition developed sometime between an unhealthy childhood and when he gained weight in his early twenties.

He claimed managing the disease would not set him back and instead spur on his mission to defy ageing.

"I like the challenge. I'm up for it, I think it's good timing," he said. "I'm going to get diagnosed with something at some point. Why not this?"

Vietnam police arrest cat burglars who stole pets for consumption

By Allegra Mendelson

ASIA CORRESPONDENT

TWELVE Vietnamese men have been arrested on suspicion of stealing 2,700 cats and selling them for meat.

The men are accused of being part of a feline trafficking ring, which operated at night in Ho Chi Minh City.

Police allege the men would split into groups and ride through the streets after sunset, stealing between four and 10 cats each. They would reportedly use fish to entice them and leave traps.

Police first broke up the network during a raid in July, seizing 50 cats along with 55 traps and machines used to remove fur. When questioned, the men admitted to stealing and selling an estimated 2,700 cats.

Luu Thanh Binh, the alleged ring-leader, also admitted to buying some of the cats from independent vendors, according to police. Of the 50 cats that were rescued, 13 have been returned to their owners. The rest were sent to HavePaws, a local animal shelter.

The shelter wrote on Facebook on Monday that the remaining cats were "in the process of being returned with their owners". The consumption of cat and dog meat is legal in Vietnam, but vendors must have certificates to show the animals' origins.

Ho Chi Minh City police reunite one of the rescued cats with its owners

Dogs and cats are considered private property in the country, which means anyone caught stealing them can be charged with "theft of property", which can carry a prison sentence of six to 36 months. In June, Vietnamese police raid in Ho Chi Minh City saved more than 400 cats from being killed and eaten.

Vietnam is one of only 12 countries where cat meat can still be consumed legally, though in most of them it is uncommon and heavily restricted, according to the World Population Review. Cat, or "little tiger", is typically enjoyed at the start of each lunar month, while dog is eaten at the end.

The custom of eating cats and dogs in Vietnam came about largely because of the country's prolonged war and extreme poverty. Far fewer people are breeding cats and dogs for slaughter, so pet theft is one way to obtain the meat. About five million dogs and one million cats are stolen, trafficked and killed for meat each year in Vietnam, according to Humane World for Animals (HWA).

Most traders use poisoned bait, tasers and iron pincers to capture dogs, and spring-loaded snares to trap cats.

Nearly 40 per cent of Vietnam's population consume dog meat, while 21 per cent eat cat meat, as of 2023, HWA said. However, some 71 per cent now oppose eating cats.

Plague a big problem for Russia after suspected leak, says Trump

those microbes have got stronger and smarter, they're like an army.

By Lily Shanagher and Alexandra Snow

THE US has demanded that Russia release information about the death of a plague institute laboratory worker from a suspected leak of the infectious disease.

Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, called on Moscow to be "transparent" after Russian authorities denied imposing anti-plague measures to stem a suspected outbreak.

"We're watching it very closely, hour by hour," Mr Rubio said. "I think it's incumbent upon Russia to obviously share more information with the world."

Darya Shipilova, who worked for the anti-plague institute in Siberia's Irkutsk region, died overnight between Oct 1 and Oct 2 after accidentally breaking a test tube containing the pathogen that causes pneumonic plague on Sept 25, local reports said.

She was diagnosed with pneumonia of "unknown" origin, according to Rospotrebnadzor, the Russian agency that handles infectious diseases. Nearly 200 people known to have

EXCLUSIVE CUSTOMER OFFER been in contact with the 28-year-old were later put in a three-week quarantine.

Accusations of a cover-up emerged after pro-Putin news websites deleted posts about the plague and the Kremlin downplayed local media reports.

Russian authorities have yet to officially respond to requests for information, after president Donald Trump offered assistance. On Monday,

---

'We used to be able to control that disease but somehow those microbes have got stronger'

Mr Rubio had said that the death of Shipilova was not a "cause for alarm".

Mr Trump later told reporters at the White House: "Well, we're looking at it very strongly. We just heard about it. I am [concerned]. I hate to see them having it. It's a big problem for Russia."

The US president added: "It's a rough disease. You know, that's a disease we used to be able to control, but somehow

"So we'll help. Anybody that has that kind of a problem, we're always willing to help."

Instead of accepting Mr Trump's offer, Moscow responded that it could help with the US's "significantly worsened" measles situation.

"The Russian Federation is ready to assist the US in combating infectious disease outbreaks," Rospotrebnadzor said in a statement, pointing among other things to a "significantly worsened" measles situation in three US states and a "fatal case of plague" recorded in New Mexico in June.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) said yesterday that Russian authorities had identified all the people in contact with Shipilova.

"All of the patient's contacts have reportedly been identified and are being monitored for illness, and none to date have shown symptoms of illness," said Christian Lindmeier, a WHO spokesman.

However, he said Russian authorities had yet to officially respond to a WHO request for information.

Comment

Take it from a Scot: there's only one crime in whisky drinking

ALAN COCHRANE

It's a common ailment in humankind that we're forever seeking to achieve perfection in the world around us. Just as the ancient alchemists sought to turn base metals into gold, so it seems that scientists are trying to improve on Scotch whisky, to my mind an impossible task.

It's true that the Irish and Americans have their own "waters of life" as alternatives to the "craitur". But in truth the poor dears don't even know how to spell the stuff – shoving in an unwanted "e".

However, we are now confronted by the tale of Scottish and Japanese engineers who plan to send samples of whisky into space to see whether the extreme levels of heat and cold speed up the maturation process.

In this way space-age whisky could be in our glass in the foreseeable future. Dr

---

The bottle I was given as a present was polished off in its entirety by a guest in my home

Gilles Bailet, lecturer in space-age technology at Glasgow University and the brains behind this plan, believes that his samples will develop into “really bold whiskies” with “extremely complex flavour profiles”, as a result of their unusual journey by satellite.

I bet they will; but coming from the opposite side of Scotland, I'm perhaps conditioned to be suspicious about anything emanating from Glasgow.

And anyway, what's wrong with the stuff we're drinking now? There's a great deal of nonsense talked about which is the best whisky when the invariable answer is that the best is the dram you're currently drinking.

My father always told my mother that whisky went off in the bottle and had to be polished off without too

much delay, a lie which conned nobody.

Two of my uncles who served with the Black Watch in Korea were never too fussy but insisted that the only thing to serve with any kind of whisky was “more whisky”.

And in the age-old argument about which is superior - single malt or blended - my firm view is that the latter can't be beaten. Mind you, when the late Lord McAlpine was ordered off red wine from his own vineyard by his GP, he made sure there was a bottle of Macallan, his favourite, in every bar near his home in Venice.

In other quarters it has become de rigueur to have one's own whisky. Both Lords and Commons have their own blends and malts, and I discovered only recently that Sir Lindsay Hoyle's Speaker's Select single malt is said to be first rate. I cannot say, as the bottle I was given as a present was polished off in its entirety by a guest in my home (he was a Liberal Democrat, of course).

That's the trouble with whisky – it really doesn't keep. I learnt that the hard way, from a mixture of poets, sheep farmers and generals, when over the years I encountered the tradition of throwing away the cork after it had been pulled, to signify that the bottle had to be emptied.

Nothing needs adding to Scotch, certainly not ice. One of the first French phrases I learned when covering EU summits in Brussels was “sans glace” to tell the bar staff not to put ice in my whisky.

That is easily the worst crime when talking of proper whisky; indeed I can put up with Coke or even Irn-Bru, just as long as they lay off the ice cubes.

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The Tories think they will win the next election. It all depends on Kemi

The leader has revived the confidence of the party faithful who just 12 months ago felt they were doomed

PHILIP JOHNSTON

When we win the next election," Kemi Badenoch told her party conference on Sunday, adding after a pause: "And we will win the next election."

The Conservative leader's confidence drew relieved applause from activists in Birmingham who just 12 months ago feared they were doomed. But it was a pretty bold assertion given the party's perilous position in Parliament and the polls.

The Conservatives have just 118 seats in the House of Commons, fewer than they won in 2024 because of defections to Reform UK. Their showing in the opinion polls - around 20 per cent - is worse than it was at the last election, which was their poorest showing in a national contest since 1834. Even in 1997, at the height of Tony Blair's popularity, they managed to win 165 seats and it still took 18 years before they won another majority outright.

This is pretty grim electoral territory by any measure; so what accounts for the evident buoyancy among Tories here in Birmingham? The answer is Kemi Badenoch. This time last year she was being written off as yet another leader the party needed to dispose of, while Robert Jenrick waited in the wings to take over.

Tory MPs seemed ready to dump her, as they had Liz Truss, and install the man she had defeated in a leadership contest. But it didn't work out that way. Learning that Mr Jenrick was planning to defect to Reform UK, Mrs Badenoch pushed him before he could jump.

It was a strong and decisive move that impressed her colleagues, many of whom had voted for Jenrick but who can now hardly utter his name without some unprintable imprecation attached. The same goes for Suella Braverman. Both are despised. Asked whether the party would ever accept back those former MPs who left for Reform, the chairman, Kevin Hollinrake, was unequivocal. "No, no, no, no," he said. With such bad blood, a pre-election pact is out of the question.

You might also ask why Reform would want to rejoin a party that is still stuck on the rocks and taking on water. One reason is that Reform is sliding in the polls. A year ago the Conservatives were 12 points behind their rivals; now the gap is just two. A recent MRP (Multilevel Regression and Post-stratification) poll had Labour on 25 per cent, Reform 22, the Conservatives 20 and the Lib Dems 10.

The Tory leadership thinks Nigel Farage has peaked and the publicity around his financial connections to Bitcoin billionaires will continue to damage Reform, whose vote has been partly eaten away not by the Tories but by Restore Britain.

Farage is still facing a parliamentary standards inquiry into a failure to declare a gift of £5m which could lead to his suspension from the Commons and, conceivably, another by-election in Clacton.

There is a lot of wishful thinking going on in Tory ranks about what might or might not happen to Reform. It is a testament to their predicament that they need others to falter in order to advance, but these are unique circumstances for the world's oldest political party.

They have been in deep trouble before - in 1846, 1906, 1945 and 1997 - but have always bounced back, eventually. However, on those occasions they did not have a party to their Right. In the past, disgruntled Tories had nowhere else to go and could be relied upon, by and large, to return to the fold at an election. Not this time.

There are few obvious solutions to dealing with the threat from Reform other than to hope it implodes, even though there is no prospect now of its winning an outright majority, if there ever was.

The big prize for the Tories - and we are clutching at straws here - will be to overtake Reform in the polls and establish themselves once again as the principal party of the Right.

But they have one big problem: Mrs Badenoch is far more popular than her party. She seems to have struck a chord among voters who vowed never to vote Tory again. She has strong principles, set out in a pamphlet The Right Way – a deliberate echo of Margaret Thatcher's 1976 credo The Right Approach, published not long after she took over as leader.

It is a parallel Mrs Badenoch's allies are happy to emphasise, even if it is not exact. In 1976, the Labour government had a majority of three compared to Andy Burnham's 166. The Conservatives had lost only marginally in 1974, still had big beasts and were considered a viable alternative administration with 277 seats.

But what Mrs Thatcher did, which does have resonance today, was to ditch much of the policy baggage of the Edward Heath era and prepare the ground to take over as and when

READ MORE at telegraph.co.uk/opinion

Pollsters say that Mrs Badenoch enjoys growing popularity, but that the party itself remains toxic to most voters

Labour made a mess of running the economy and the country, as it will again.

Mrs Badenoch is also disposing of many of the policies on which the Tories fought the 2024 election, which is a tacit admission of how badly the Tories mishandled the governance of the nation.

Indeed, the selection process of candidates for the next election is winnowing out those who are felt unlikely to toe the leadership line – even if they espouse support for what was once party policy, such as net zero or the European Convention on Human Rights.

Can they really recover from this position to have a realistic chance of winning? It seems highly improbable, but the party faithful are desperate for reassurance. Two of the best-attended fringe meetings in Birmingham involved briefings from pollsters Sir John Curtice of Strathclyde University and Luke Tryl of More in Common.

They had a modicum of good news, notably the growing popularity of Mrs Badenoch, but pointed out that the party itself remains toxic to most voters. Despite the travails of the Labour Party, the removal of a prime minister and a flatlining economy, the Tories are hardly picking up at all. Moreover, while they fixate on the threat from the Right they seem to have forgotten they need to win dozens of seats in the South occupied by the Lib Dems.

The country still blames them for many of today's ills, especially for immigration. They remain ahead on economic competence, which is something to build on, but they are becoming heavily reliant on Mrs Badenoch to draw them back into the fight. It is a huge responsibility. Is she up to it?

Labour doesn't get how much inheritance tax is hated

ANNABEL DENHAM

It would be a mistake to oppose inheritance tax simply because you think it's immoral. All taxation can be seen as immoral in some lights; it takes people's property without their voluntary consent. Theft, in other words. Sometimes, it's necessary; police officers do not pay for themselves. Much of the time, it's not.

What's remarkable about IHT isn't that it's uniquely immoral but that it's uniquely hated. Barely one estate in 20 currently pays it, yet recent YouGov polling found 56 per cent support scrapping the levy altogether. Voters seem to grasp something many on the Left fail to: you don't have to expect to pay inheritance tax to recoil from it.

Kemi Badenoch is poised this week to put a substantial cut to IHT at the heart of her conference speech and, although the precise promise is likely to stop short of outright abolition, Labour's response will be predictable. There will be the familiar wails about another Tory "bung" to "the rich".

insists on viewing taxation exclusively through the prism of "fairness". But most people don't think about IHT in the same way they might VAT or fuel duty. They think instead about how others work and save partly because they want to leave something behind.

It's one of the ways humans reconcile themselves to mortality. Reducing all this to a student-union argument about unearned wealth misunderstands both why people accumulate property and why they care intensely about what happens to it when they die.

Nor will it remain quite as easy for Labour figures such as Chancellor John Healey to dismiss IHT as a tax paid by some tiny, plutocratic elite. From April 2027, most unused pension wealth will be brought within the inheritance-tax net, with HMRC estimating that 10,500 estates will become liable which otherwise would not have been, while around 38,500 will pay more. Add frozen thresholds, family homes, farms and businesses, and the old reassurance that IHT is something that happens to somebody much richer begins to unravel. But perhaps nowhere is the Left's position more deliciously hypocritical than in its attitude towards Europe. Andy Burnham wants Britain to reconsider Brexit and has suggested "we could go all the way" back in, whilst much of the modern Left

continues to regard continental Europe as a bountiful source of enlightened public policy, forever invoked to demonstrate that Britain is benighted, backward and insular. So let's look at what they do.

In 2004 the Swedish Social Democrats announced it would be repealed. They somehow managed to ditch it whilst maintaining the high levels of state spending to which British progressives endlessly direct their longing glances. So did Norway, Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Estonia and Latvia don't levy one, whilst outside Europe Australia, Canada or New Zealand have also dispensed with explicit death duties.

We are one of only four countries in the OECD which tax the total wealth of our citizens when they die. But Germany taxes the individual inheritance rather than simply taking a slice of the deceased's estate, with allowances depending on the beneficiary's relationship to them. The Left can hardly discuss regulation, employment law or public services without discovering another superior European model, yet remains oddly incurious about IHT.

Our current approach may have consequences beyond individual families. Family-business ownership is far more prevalent in continental

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Europe than here: among listed family companies, control is retained by 71 per cent in Italy and 53 per cent in Germany, compared with 30 per cent in Britain. Tax won't be the only reason, but if you want businesses built for generations rather than absorbed into larger corporates, making succession harder is a strange way to go about it.

When he stood for candidate selection in Arundel and South Downs in 2019, Andrew Griffith was asked which tax he would most like to abolish; his answer was inheritance tax. Now shadow chancellor, he should persuade Badenoch to go the whole way and make the unapologetic case for allowing people to keep more of what they and their families have earned, however wealthy they might be.

That would fit the journey on which Badenoch is trying to take her party: away from accepting the Left's premise that politics is a permanent squabble over redistribution, in which allowing one group to prosper must somehow come at the expense of another. Keeping wealth in private hands means more investment, enterprise, jobs, tax and spending in the economy.

A richer person is not, merely by virtue of being richer, making the rest of us poorer. If the Tory leader really wants to break with zero-sum politics, this would show she means it.

---

Missile defence is an urgent priority

The Conservatives have set out promising plans for what they call a Britannia Shield, a £10bn missile defence system. It is a timely idea that takes seriously the threat that Labour seems determined to ignore.

We only need to see what is happening in Ukraine, where Russian drones and missiles have been raining down on Kyiv, to understand the nature of that threat. Bringing together advanced radar systems and interceptor missiles, the Shield is precisely the sort of initiative the Government should be taking up now.

But while the strategic defence review acknowledged the need to fill the gaps in Britain's missile and drone defences, only limited funding was set aside to do so.

Worse still, it has been reported that the Prime Minister could delay further a decision on when and how to increase defence spending to 3pc of GDP by 2030. The details were expected to be set out in a spending review next spring, but may now be postponed until the Budget a year from now.

This is extraordinary. The Chancellor John Healey resigned from Sir Keir Starmer's Cabinet precisely because the then prime minister would not commit to extra defence spending. He said the target had to be set out to protect Britain from a possible Russian attack on Nato.

Having made such a stand, is Mr Healey seriously preparing to deliver a Budget in a few weeks' time that will put off a decision on defence expenditure for another 12 months? If so his credibility will be wrecked, and he has hardly got his feet under the Treasury desk.

This is a government whose leader said he would not sacrifice social security for the security of the nation and is making potentially expensive public spending pledges that will limit his fiscal options further.

The uncertainty has serious consequences. It will embolden the nation's enemies, who will be all too eager to exploit the vulnerabilities in Britain's defences. It is also making it impossible for military manufacturers and contractors to plan ahead.

These warped priorities and continued dithering are worrying not just military chiefs but even members of Andy Burnham's own party. Lord Hutton, the former Labour defence secretary, feared the country was "sleepwalking" into a crisis and urgent action was required.

We are not seeing it.

France on the streets

The appearance of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of France's far Left, on a march in Paris against conditions in schools, exemplified the political nature of the sometimes violent protests that have spread across France.

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Ostensibly they are a response to perceived failings in the French educational system, including poor infrastructure and unfair selection procedures. But they also coincide with the start of campaigning for next year's presidential election in which M Mélenchon, leader of La France Insoumise (France Unbowed), will be a candidate.

He has denied encouraging supporters to infiltrate the rallies and cause trouble. But he has invoked the folk memory of the 1968 uprisings when student sit-ins against university conditions and street clashes with riot police left France on the brink of revolution. The children taking part in these protests are younger and many have been politicised by Left-wing anti-Israeli propaganda.

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In a social media post, M Mélenchon made no bones about making a pitch for young voters by using the protests to seize the political narrative. He has done the same recently with the economy, calling on the European Central Bank to effectively cancel much of France's enormous government debt.

Such a move would turn France into a basket case, untrusted by any lenders. But for the 75-year-old veteran agitator, it plays to an audience that is lapping up his anti-capitalist rhetoric.

Meanwhile, millions of French voters are flocking to the hard-Right leader Marine Le Pen. It is not inconceivable these two will be in the run-off for the presidency next year, with far-reaching consequences for France and Europe.

Fruit flies and fungi

Like an apocalyptic plague from a novel by John Wyndham, two waves of life form are poised to inundate our homes after this hot summer. One is a surge in the numbers of the fruit fly Drosophila. The other is a sudden sprouting of fungi, benign or deadly. Fruit flies are not deadly, and do not even cause plums in fruit bowls to rot. It is the other way around: fermenting fruit juice attracts the little creatures. The natural kingdom of fungi seems more alien – some people find them as repellent as snakes. In reality, we can't survive without fungi. Some are so prized that ancient woodlands such as Epping Forest are warning off foragers intent on gathering them. At home the dreaded honey fungus threatens trees and shrubs. The best protection – keeping plants robust – is precisely what the long drought has prevented.

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The PM is endangering the country by delaying decisions on defence

SIR – Last month, the Prime Minister declared in Parliament that national security “can’t come at the expense of social security”, and in his conference speech he expressed his intention to fund a new national care service.

Now it looks as though funding of the already overdue Defence Investment Plan, promised for next spring, will slip further to autumn 2027 (telegraph.co.uk, October 6). Meanwhile, our Armed Forces remain hollowed out, and we and our allies are the target of ever more hybrid warfare attacks.

The folly of this dereliction of duty is expressed in the well-worn but still pertinent maxims of Trotsky, "You may not be interested in war, but war is very interested in you", and the Romans, "If you want peace, prepare for war". The choice is stark, simple and urgent: find 5 per cent of GDP now to prevent war, or 50 per cent of GDP soon to fight one. Ian Tritton

Minety, Wiltshire

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Horror of October 7

SIR – If we refuse to build a proper missile defence system, then we won't need to spend money on a national care service either (“Tories pledge to build Iron Dome for Britain”, report, October 6).

Stuart Geddes

sin - I hope that today is marked with respectful contemplation and remembrance of the Jewish men, women and children who were murdered, raped, mutilated and taken hostage by Hamas terrorists three years ago.

sIR – With the Americans withdrawing bombers from RAF Fairfield, it would seem that the terrorists have achieved exactly what they wanted (report, October 6).

SIR – The threats to RAF Fairfield are hardly surprising given that our military airfields appear to be protected by little more than timber fences.

David Rumsey

Pinner, Middlesex

SIR - There can be no clearer signal that the UK is on the front line of global conflict than the withdrawal of

That day was a stain on all humanity, regardless of race, religion or political persuasion.

bombers from RAF Fairfield. Evidently, we lack the resources to protect our key infrastructure. The Government should admit this and fund defence and security accordingly.

Ron Powell

Barry, Glamorgan

SIR - The US withdrawal from RAF

Fairford amid state-sponsored threats

highlights a glaring reality: mainland

bases are increasingly vulnerable.

This development decisively reinforces the case for retaining full British sovereignty over the Chagos Islands. The base on Diego Garcia is an irreplaceable asset that no mainland facility can replicate: it offers absolute geographical isolation paired with uncompromised operational security.

sir – It is welcome news that Kemi Badenoch plans to do something about the pernicious inheritance tax (report, October 6).

In an era of escalating global instability, surrendering this crucial sovereign outpost is a strategic risk we cannot afford – it is fundamental to Western security.

Mike Denman

Bildeston, Suffolk

I recently produced an inheritance tax submission on behalf of a family member and therefore know first-hand what confronts a bereaved person when they are at their lowest ebb. The bureaucracy is extraordinary and the cost of having a professional prepare the forms is exorbitant. This is a cruel imposition at such a time.

sir - The Green Party says that Zionism, a form of Jewish national self-determination, is racism. Where does that leave Plaid Cymru and the Scottish National Party? Andrew Siddons Walsall, Staffordshire

Dr David Slawson

Haddenham, Buckinghamshire

---

Cruel inheritance tax

Form IHT400 is the primary document to complete and it runs to 19 pages, which is bad enough, but that is just the start of it. Many of the figures to be inserted in IHT400 need to be calculated on subsidiary IHT forms, each of which can be several pages long. In my case the whole exercise totalled 142 pages of forms, supporting information and calculations.

---

Archer's kindness

SIR – As someone who is eternally grateful to the late Jeffrey Archer, I would like to illustrate why.

Crowded out: several office buildings have recently arrived in the centre of Cambridge

---

How Cambridge lost sight of residents' needs

I arrived at Wellington School in 1956, having missed school for three years after contracting polio in 1953, which left me walking with full-length callipers and two sticks.

Currently everyone receives a minimum tax-free allowance of £325,000 before inheritance tax bites. In 1986 this allowance was £71,000 and it rose every year until 2009 when it reached the present figure of £325,000. Since then this figure has been frozen. According to the Bank of England's inflation calculator tool, £325,000 in 2009 would be over £538,000 now.

In the early evenings, we were offered extramural activities. I chose the gym. Jeffrey was a superb gymnast; he helped me get stronger, fitter, and gave me the confidence needed to pursue a life fulfilled. He was generous with his time (particularly as someone much more senior to me), very caring and thoughtful. I am in his debt.

John Howden-Richards

Abingdon, Oxfordshire

SIR - The picture accompanying your article about the Flying Pig pub in Cambridge, which is now dwarfed by a large office building, sums up development in the city these days ("Another brick in the walls behind it, but Pink Floyd pub lives on", report, October 5).

---

Plenty of peas

The public keeps being told that more houses are needed, but in Cambridge we mostly get office blocks or science and research labs. Many, if not all, of these would be more appropriate on the outskirts of

SIR - I can assure pea growers that our household is doing its bit for the industry ("We're not mushy about peas, says Britain", report, October 5). Not many meals are served without peas.

David Richmond

Peterborough

sIR – I seem to recall that every time we ate out in the 1960s and 1970s we were served peas.

Consequently since then they have been largely missing from my table. This was made easier by growing our own vegetables - never peas.

Jean Hotchkiss

Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex

the city, rather than well within its boundaries, but no one listens to residents these days.

sir - Wanting our small sons to eat more vegetables, I foolishly showed them how sweet peas are when picked and eaten straight out of the garden. I never found a further pea to pick.

Susan Martin

Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire

To add insult to injury, what housing is built is too expensive for those of us born and bred here. There are many, like me, who would be willing to consider downsizing but cannot afford to do so - unless we move some distance away from family and friends, which is unwise in old age. Ann Wright Cambridge

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A different approach to the TV licence

The sooner this horrible tax is consigned to the fiscal dustbin the better.

SIR - While the BBC does still broadcast good things, it is no longer possible to justify the licence fee. This would be the case even if the BBC's output had not been "demeaned and diluted", as Simon Heffer argues (Hinterland, October 3).

My occasional visits to Africa remind me that, whether one is a fee payer or not, it is impossible to use iPlayer overseas (except by "cheating" with a VPN). How can this be justified?

Two changes - making the licence fee voluntary, and making BBC content available to a global audience - would surely not result in a diminished income. Indeed, an increase in revenue seems far more likely, given the BBC's unique back-catalogue and the fact that its reputation overseas is less tarnished than it is in Britain.

Emeritus Professor Neil Scolding Bristol

sIR – I have become exasperated by demands to remove BBC funding or break the BBC up altogether. In 20-odd years overseas – initially in the Army and subsequently in some of the less well-known corners of Africa – I found that the World Service maintained my sanity, and its relatively objective, balanced output placed it way ahead of the competition. I have been largely restricted to home for the past 15 years, and Radio 4 has been welcome during the day. Meanwhile, iPlayer is a totally acceptable, advertisement-free and cost-effective alternative to its commercial rivals.

Our friends and neighbours across the pond, in the Commonwealth and on the continent look upon the BBC with respect and envy, as well as being bewildered by the various attempts to change it. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Keith Gubbin

London SWI

Alan Currans

Dartford, Kent

SIR - Both Reform UK and the Conservatives have mentioned the possibility of at least amending IHT.

However, neither party acknowledges just how bad a piece of legislation it is.

If, on behalf of the Government, bailiffs turned up at your door one day and took away 40 per cent of all your possessions over the value of £325,000 in spite of your not owing a penny in tax, there would be an outcry. However, because this effectively happens after you die it is somehow entirely acceptable behaviour. In fact, it is a form of theft.

Ian Bisset

Westerfield, Suffolk

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Industrial revival

SIR – Matt Oliver's excellent article ("Speeches, slogans and strategies won't deliver reindustrialisation", News Focus, October 4) explains the decline of the British manufacturing industry, which I witnessed while working for many companies in that sector for 25 years.

Government policies have varied from neglect and indifference to hostility, particularly towards oil and gas majors and petrochemical sites. The best hope seems to be establishing clusters of high-tech niche manufacturers together, as the University of Sheffield has done. As highly skilled employees leave, they often set up innovative new companies that establish symbiotic relationships.

This happened in Malvern, where I grew up, with the radar establishment being a world leader in many fields and the patents generating £100 m for our government.

Graham Ashen

Horsham, West Sussex

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Call of the stage

SIR - In the summer we rescued an extremely large black dog called, we thought inappropriately, Ghost (Letters, October 6).

We changed his name to McDuff (Mac to his friends), because for years I have wanted to be able to misquote Shakespeare when taking the dogs for a walk. Now I can confidently say each day: "Lead on, McDuff".

Marilyn Scholfield

Llanfallteg, Carmarthenshire

How to fund the BBC – but John Simpson won't like it

The once-trusted national broadcaster clearly needs to come up with a new model, not the current levy

DAVID ELSTEIN

John Simpson, the veteran BBC foreign correspondent, is the latest from that venerable institution to pronounce its historic funding mechanism, the TV licence, as a busted flush and no longer fit for purpose.

The BBC chairman and its new director-general also did so in July in evidence given to the Commons' culture committee, which was examining the BBC's future funding.

In due course, last week, the committee adopted the same form of words - but was rather more vague (in a somewhat flimsy report) on how to fix the problem.

Conscious of the Government's stated objection (in a Green Paper earlier this year) to the ludicrous idea of a household levy to replace the licence fee (Mr Simpson's preference), the committee urged ministers to keep the idea in reserve and suggest instead a levy on broadband subscriptions, or utility bills.

This similar idea isn't any better. A surcharge on council tax would

inevitably drive up the level of council tax arrears (already more than £7bn), and leave the BBC's cash flow - so crucial to its operations - in the hands of hundreds of councils, not all of which would cheerfully and promptly hand over the receipts from the surcharge, even if they were able to collect it. Being left at the mercy of such an unreliable source of actual funding would be devastating for the BBC.

Other ideas, along the same path, include extending the obligation to pay for a licence from TVs to laptops and even tablets. Good luck to whoever has to actually collect the fee from every student with a laptop tapping away at his essay in their university digs. As for 10-year-olds with an iPad, the mind boggles.

Another idea is a surcharge on telephone bills or broadband charges. Millions of households have abandoned landlines, in favour of mobiles, so broadband would become the likeliest target. But 40 per cent of households take their broadband from Sky and Virgin Media, who typically wrap it up in a package with video services. Which bit of the package would face a surcharge? And even if that problem could be solved, what do you do about people who thereupon abandon broadband and rely on their phones for video content instead?

For an economy that is committed to full broadband rollout in preparation for the planned switching off of terrestrial TV, that would be a disaster. And again, good luck in collecting

surcharges from every child with a mobile phone if that route is chosen.

With all this debate, the BBC is simply trying to shunt off to anybody but itself the task of raising its revenue. Yet it has a simple solution to hand: encrypt its main TV services, and charge, say, £15 a month to receive them. At a stroke, there could be no more evasion (Simpson is not alone at the BBC in believing that millions of households that have stopped paying the licence fee are still watching BBC TV).

All it requires is that the homes that have a TV licence (which costs the same £15 a month) continue to pay. Meanwhile, anyone who does not want to pay for the BBC can decline to do so. But the BBC would have more than sufficient revenue to continue its current operations.

It could carry on providing radio and online content at no charge, if it so chose. It could even offer certain TV content free-to-air, such as news, current affairs, children's and even sports covered by listed events legislation (such as the Olympics, World Cup and Wimbledon finals). It could offer genre options (say, arts or documentaries) for people who do not want the whole package. Subscription technology is flexible and fully established in this country: 80 per cent of homes already use it, without any problem.

Bizarrely, the commons committee cited a so-called expert who claimed subscription would not be able to replace the BBC's annual income of nearly £6bn. But £2bn of that comes from sales of content by BBC commercial, which could continue as before. The subscription revenue, even net of collection costs, would easily replace the licence fee income.

The committee – dominated by Labour MPs, more Catholic than the Pope when it comes to the BBC – argued that the BBC would “save” £190m a year in collection costs, if a council tax levy or broadband levy were to replace the licence fee. Indeed, the BBC would “save” the money, but somebody else would have to spend it, and it would probably end up costing more.

Most likely, whoever incurs the cost would simply deduct it from any proceeds payable to the BBC. This is not a serious committee and its proposals do not deserve serious consideration.

The BBC can secure its future, at a stroke, by opting for subscription. Its reluctance to do so - amounting almost to phobia - betrays a dismaying lack of confidence in the innate appeal of its TV offering. Fortunately, our people-pleasing Prime Minister is unlikely to endorse compulsory surcharges on council tax bills, or broadband, or utilities such as electricity (bills he is desperately trying to reduce).

By default, the licence fee may be left to survive, or fade away.

The BBC needs to take responsibility then for its own future.

David Elstein is a former head of programming at BSkyB and chief executive of Channel 5 | 1T | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6L | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | Sudoku Regular and Tough No 7465

MODERATE NO 5896

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KAKURO

To solve kakuro you must enter a number between 1 and 9 in the empty squares without repeating a digit. The clues are the numbers on the black squares and are the sum of the solution numbers. The clue pointers indicate the direction of the answers. A block of two squares with a clue of 3 will solve as 2,1 and a 5 will produce 4,1 or 2,3. A 4 can only be 1,3, never 2,2. Solution tomorrow.

Numbers are substituted for letters in this crossword grid. In the smaller key grid some letters are solved, Use these as clues to complete your first word. This will solve more letters that you can then enter in the grids. Solutions tomorrow.

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CODEWORDS

For today's right-hand codewords solutions call 0905 757 0131, For up to five extra letter clues call 0905 757 0130 or text BTCODE (leaving no spaces) to 6434. Call cost £1 per minute, plus network access charge; texts cost £1, plus network access charge. You must be 18 or over and have the bill payer's permission.

Services open Man - Fri, SP: Spoke 116 - Helpline 0333 202 3390.

Your clues are the caged numbers that represent the sum of the numbers within the cage. As in standard sudoku, each 3 x 3 box, each row and each column must contain all the numbers 1 to 9. Solution tomorrow.

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KILLER SUDOKU

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ANAGRAMS

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SUDOKU

MODERATE

RABID OWL

TOWEL RAVE

LEWD LOAFER

Each of the anagrams below spells out the name of a British mammal. Solution tomorrow.

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MIND GYM | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 7 | To solve this puzzle each 3 x 3 box, each row and also each column must contain all the numbers from 1 to 9. There are numerous strategies to help you solve sudoku. Solutions tomorrow.

Sudoku Solution For today's tough sudoku solution call 0905 757 0136, Calls cost £1 per minute, plus network access charge. You must be 10 or ever and have the bill payer's permission. Services open Mon – Fri, SP: Spoke – 0333 202 3390.

NO 4946

Start on the left with the given number and work your way across following the instructions in each cell Target time: 30 seconds. Solution below.

NO 3770

SILVANUS

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TOUGH NO 7466 | 7 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 9 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | DECUMBER | TRIPLE IT | x1.5 | -33 | HALVE IT | ÷3 | X BY ITSELF | -68 | ÷12 | ANSWER | 21 | 6/7 OF THIS | INTERMEDIATE | TRIPLE IT | -124 | 7/S OF THIS | x3.25 | -52 | 75% OF THIS | HALVE IT | ÷13 | ANSWER | 14 | x6 | ADVANCED | X BY ITSELF | -148 | +11 | x9.25 | TRIPLE IT | -262 | HALVE IT | 12/13 OF THIS | ANSWER | 216 | ÷12 | ---

Down

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Across

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PANAGRAM

Create words of four letters or more, always using the centre letter. Proper nouns and plurals are not allowed, and you can only use each letter once per word. Can you find the nine-letter Panagram? Answers must be in the Oxford Dictionary of English. Solution tomorrow.

Up to 7 words - Word Finder, 8 - Wordsmith, 17 - Word Wizard, 25 - Word Master, 34 - Word Genius, 43 - Word Perfect

1 Keen wrestling Oscar and I spice up (13)

9 Prominent classical feature of flower inspiring country name (5,4)

10 Goes off to return drug cache (5)

11 Craft using clay wingless animal (5)

12 Weakens regiment guarding palace primarily (4)

13 Not quite building coalition of parties (4)

15 Parody shriek by La bohème character (7)

17 Remarks on book reviews (7)

18 Buff colour of bread and nuts (7)

20 Way to welcome leading trendy dressmaker (7)

21 About to divide excellent nutritious fruit (4)

22 Members of Parliament left broadcast, cycling (4)

23 Comes across flipping enthralling black and white creatures (5)

26 Dropping racket, sorry to get beaten (5)

27 Trees surrounding yard Alice put at random (9)

28 When everybody is out of military commander's vehicle (7,6)

Toughie No 3769

1 Field of expertise of star, conceivably? (10,4)

2 Maybe switch round terms of reference (5)

3 Rotten, perhaps, virtually weak chair king occupies (4,6)

4 Release pressure from tyre in an angry manner (7)

5 Belittle revolutionary writer defending article (7)

6 Replace old hat son wears (4)

7 They're tied up with criminal cases involving B&B, losing time (9)

8 Reportedly what a small sheep means to farmer in county (14)

14 One stopping boss recently almost finding one-room property (6,4)

16 Giving authority to fellow on Tinder? (9)

19 Travelling anywhere without husband's a time to celebrate! (3,4)

20 Rent, typically large amount, nurses watch it regularly rising (7)

24 Charlie promises to pay to flee unstable island (5)

25 Dictator's narcissistic streak (4)

Help with clues

Single clues 0905 757 0126.

All Across/Down clues 0905 757 0127.

Calls cost £1/minute, plus network access charge. You must be 18 or over and have the bill payer's permission, Service open Mon-Fri.

SP: Spoke Ltd - Helpline 0333 2023390.

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TRAIN TRACKS

Lay down tracks to allow a train to travel from A to B. Only use straight and curved rails and the track cannot cross itself. The numbers indicate how many sections of rail go in each column and row. Solution tomorrow.

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PLUSWORD

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8 6 4 5 4 4 5 4

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MINI SUDOKU

Fill in the grid in such a way that every row and column and every 2 x 3 box contains the numbers 1-6. Solution tomorrow.

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MODERATE NO 4715

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NO 1599

Solve the crossword, then use letters in the shaded squares to complete the additional PlusWord. A letter in a green square appears in the same column in the PlusWord as it does in the crossword; a letter in a yellow square appears in the PlusWord, but in a different column than it does in the crossword.

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Across

1 Pre-euro currency in Belgium

6 Pertaining to the law

7 Higher than

8 Less corrupted

9 Stem; follow

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Down

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Yesterday's solutions

1 Becomes panicky or agitated

2 Brute (anag.)

3 Ancient Greek place of

Panagram: Fancywork, cranky, crayon, oraky, acorn, camy, corky, cowy, cowry, crank, crusk, crink, crony, crown, fancy, fancy, frack, franc, frock, nance, oracy, racen, rocky, wacke, wacky, wrack, arco, cork, coik, cony, cora, corf, cork, corn, cran, craw, cray, cron, crow, cyan, narc, neck, orca, rack, racy, rock, wack, yack, yock.

5 Office worker

Anagrams: 1. Ancestry 2. Family name 3. Burial record.

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WORD LADDER

Change just one letter to go from the top word to the bottom word. Each step must be a valid word and you cannot change the order of the letters. There are clues below for each rung, but they are not necessarily in order. Solution tomorrow.

PRICE, FILM, ACHE, MOULD, OVER, HUFF AND PUFF,

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THE SOLUTIONS

Plus/Word No 1598 | W | R | A | T | H | H | A | L | V | E | A | R | I | S | E | R | E | V | E | L | F | R | E | T | S |

Killer Sudoku

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Train Tracks

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Mini Sudoku No 4714

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The Telegraph PUZZLES

Enjoy 1 year of puzzles for just £1. Visit telegraph.co.uk/puzzles today.

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Codewords 1 and 2

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Food for thought Uber-style surge pricing is starting to come to restaurants but will customers accept it?

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France is on the verge of a full-blown debt crisis and things will get far worse before they get better Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

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Page 21

City warns Healey bank tax will hurt economy

Higher levies risk driving investment abroad and limiting lending, City chiefs tell Chancellor

By Emma Taggart and Tom Saunders

JOHN HEALEY has been warned that unleashing a tax raid on banks in the Budget would hurt the entire economy.

Chris Hayward, the policy chairman at the City of London Corporation, said that he was “hugely concerned” that the Chancellor would unveil higher levies on Britain’s banking sector later this month.

Andy Burnham has refused to rule out a tax raid on banks to fund his wave of spending announcements since arriving in No10. Unions have lobbied Labour to increase the bank levy, a tax on bank profits, to help fund cost of living measures.

Mr Hayward said higher taxes would mean banks "will not be able to afford to lend as much" and risked driving investment abroad.

He said: "We want them [banks] to lend to small businesses; we want them to help drive the economy. Governments don't drive growth; businesses drive growth. It's very important that the financial services sector is respected across the country."

Mr Healey and Lucy Rigby, the City minister, met chief executives of major

British banks in Downing Street yesterday morning. It was the bank chiefs' first in-person meeting with the Chancellor since he took up the role in July.

The chief executives of Lloyds, HSBC, NatWest and Barclays attended the gathering, where Mr Healey was warned that a bank tax risked driving away international investors who tend to own shares in UK lenders.

Some executives are reportedly concerned that the Treasury is planning to hit only UK banks with a higher windfall tax, exempting international lenders. Jamie Dimon, the boss of JP Morgan, warned that any plan to exempt international lenders would be unfair.

"I'm not in favour of things that lack principle," Dimon said Tuesday in an interview with Bloomberg TV. "It's easy to say charge my friends over here, I think that's wrong."

The Chancellor told bank chiefs that Britain faced a tough fiscal position, but no decisions had yet been made on bank taxes, Bloomberg reported. Growing fears about higher taxes have caused shares in Lloyds to drop 7.3pc in the last month, while shares in Barclays have fallen 9.8pc in the same period.

Mr Hayward said that the Burnham Government needed to see banks as "drivers of growth", rather than businesses that could be squeezed for more government revenue.

He added: "We've seen minimal growth in the economy for the past 30 years, so this is the biggest challenge." Mr Hayward warned that higher taxes would make British banks less competitive internationally: "Our banks are already substantially higher taxed than our European counterparts, so they're already under pressure. Banks need to be competitive."

British banks already pay one of the highest tax rates in the world at nearly 47pc, according to UK Finance.

Fears of tax rises in the Budget have prompted UK investors to sell out of stock funds for the fifth month in a row.

According to Calastone, a data provider, UK investors withdrew a net £858m from stock funds this month, with £708m coming out of British stocks alone in the month. It was the

15th month of outflows in the last 16. Edward Glyn, head of global markets at Calastone, said: "Speculation about higher taxes means some investors will be taking profits now."

The Treasury was asked to comment.

Elsewhere, one of the Prime Minister's former advisers has said he must "take the knife to public spending" in this month's Budget.

Andy Haldane, the former chief economist at the Bank of England, said that the UK was “skating on pretty thin ice” with its public finances and needed to demonstrate discipline on spending to calm bond markets. Mr Haldane told CNBC: “Nothing would be worse both economically and politically than if the ice were to crack beneath our feet.”

Oil giant says UK investment at risk unless fields approved

By Eir Nolsøe

A NORWEGIAN energy giant has threatened to pull UK investment if Andy Burnham blocks two of the North Sea's largest untapped oil and gas fields.

Anders Opedal, the chief executive of Equinor, told the Energy Intelligence Forum in London it would be a "major setback" if officials refused permission to drill at the Rosebank and Jackdaw sites.

Mr Opedal said: "We would then ask: is the UK investable?"

His remarks came after the Government delayed a decision on the Jackdaw gas field until after a key by-election this week, where Zack Polanski, the Green Party leader, is seeking to win former prime minister Sir Keir Starmer's old seat.

The oil industry is also awaiting a decision on Rosebank, the UK's largest untapped oil reserve.

Rosebank and Jackdaw are both being developed by Adura, a joint venture controlled by oil giant Shell and Equinor.

Mr Opedal said: "Not approving Rosebank would be contradictory to energy security, to job creation."

A decision had been expected last month, but The Telegraph revealed it had been pushed back until after the by-election in Holborn and St Pancras tomorrow.

The previous Conservative government originally approved Rosebank in 2023 and Jackdaw in 2022. However, the projects have been beset by delays and legal challenges, with environmental campaigners managing to overturn the original approvals, forcing fresh applications in 2025.

Mr Opedal said: "The Keir Starmer government said the UK was open for business. We've applied for consent twice. Adura has done everything it has been asked to do. The UK has one of the most rigorous approval processes in the world."

Mr Opedal said he anticipated the project would be approved.

ject would be approved. Demonstrators from Fossil Free London, with a mascot depicting Andy Burnham, the Prime Minister, protest outside the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero in Whitehall against the planned Rosebank oil field

Culture Secretary under fire after forcing through BT's TalkTalk deal

By James Warrington

LISA NANDY is under fire for backing BT's controversial rescue deal for stricken broadband business TalkTalk.

Lutz Schüler, the chief executive of rival Virgin Media O2 (VMO2), has written to the Culture Secretary asking her to explain why the Government intervened to clear the way for BT's £400m takeover. In the letter, seen by The Telegraph, Mr Schüler wrote: "Protecting customers does not, in our view, require Government to predetermine who should ultimately own TalkTalk's consumer and wholesale businesses; credible alternative arrangements should be fully explored.

"Given the exceptional intervention, we would welcome clarity on the evidence relied upon by the Secretary of State."

On Monday, BT swooped to buy TalkTalk out of administration in a move that saved the debt-laden broadband provider from imminent collapse.

In normal circumstances, the former state monopoly would be blocked from buying up its rival, the UK's fourth largest broadband company, over concerns about its market power. TalkTalk serves about 1.5 million households, as well as a further one million customers through its wholesale division.

But Ms Nandy intervened, using pandemic-era legal powers to override competition concerns in mergers and acquisitions to maintain public health.

The Government stepped in over fears TalkTalk's collapse would have put tens of thousands of vulnerable customers at risk, as well as some critical national infrastructure.

TalkTalk had been in discussions with several other potential suitors, but negotiations fell through.

Ms Nandy has ordered the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to report back on the BT deal by Oct 19 before she makes a final decision.

Allison Kirkby, BT's chief executive, described the crisis at TalkTalk as a "genuinely unprecedented situation" and warned of "catastrophic" consequences if it had been allowed to go under. But VMO2, BT's largest rival, has called the process a "stitch-up" and demanded further scrutiny.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport did not comment.

Beijing's 'serious concern' about UK EV tariffs

By Matt Oliver

and Christopher Jasper

BEIJING has expressed "serious concern" about potential British tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) as Andy Burnham weighs imposing levies.

The Chinese embassy said in a statement that it was against the “discriminatory” trade measures and threatened to “respond accordingly” if they were imposed. The European Union has threatened to exclude British manufacturers from its “made in

Europe" support package unless Westminster imposes the tariffs.

Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, is said to have authorised Whitehall officials to begin drafting options to match EU tariffs of up to 45pc on Chinese EVs. The UK's current tariff rate is 10pc.

A spokesman for the Chinese embassy in London told The Telegraph: "China is firmly opposed to any discriminatory practice involving tariff hikes or restrictive measures on Chinese products. We have expressed serious concern to the UK side regarding the reports in question."

He added: "It will only disrupt the normal order of trade and harm the interests of consumers. We will continue to follow developments and respond accordingly."

A spokesman for the Government said: "We have always kept the issue of tariffs on Chinese EVs under close review, and we continuously engage closely with the automotive industry so that our approach reflects the sector's and UK's national interests."

Rogue AI bots 'took down Wikipedia service'

By James Titcomb

THE operator of Wikipedia has blamed rogue OpenAI bots for knocking one of its systems offline through “excessive data downloading”.

The Wikimedia Foundation, which runs the online encyclopaedia, said it suspected a swarm of AI agents may have been responsible for crashing its Wikidata service earlier this year.

The incident is the latest involving AI bots, which have caused havoc on the internet in recent months, hacking companies and multiple government websites. The foundation operates Wikipedia and a number of related tools, including Wikidata, which allows people to run large-scale data queries.

It said that in May, OpenAI bots carried out hundreds of thousands of data queries, which it said may have contributed to a system blackout.

The Telegraph revealed on Monday that the Government had launched a security review after OpenAI bots made an “unsanctioned” attempt to access official UK data. Wikimedia said its investigation had found bots making "unauthorised" edits to citations on Wikipedia pages.

OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, said it was taking steps to crack down on the behaviour after more than 100 incidents. OpenAI said: "We appreciate the detailed findings Wikimedia shared with us. We're working with them as we review and analyse the activity they identified along with our overall investigation."

It added that it had not been able to verify that its agents were responsible.

Grid operator puts power plants on alert amid low wind

By Chris Price

BRITAIN'S grid operator put power stations on alert yesterday to cover a potential energy shortfall as low winds weaken output from turbines.

The National Energy System Operator (Neso) issued an electricity margin notice (EMN) yesterday morning to ensure it met demand later in the day. An EMN sends a message to the electricity market that the operator would like a greater safety cushion, or margin, between power demand and supply for a limited period.

It does not signal that power cuts are imminent nor that there is not enough generation to meet demand.

Neso said it was expecting a system margin shortfall of 1,880 megawatts (MW) from 3pm to 11pm. Kathryn Porter, an energy analyst, said: "This is an unusually wide timeframe covering far more than just the evening peak."

The notice came after forecasters predicted that winds would be low yesterday, meaning output was expected to be around 40pc what was previously forecast.

The forecast for wind generation was 2,200MW at 6pm, according to market operator Elexon, which was a quarter of the average for this year.

Neso confirmed the margin notice was later cancelled.

A spokesman said: "Neso cancelled the electricity margin notice issued for yesterday's evening peak.

"The routine, precautionary notice was used to increase the margin between expected demand and available supply. Demand was expected to be met throughout, with customer supplies not at risk."

He added that EMNs were not a warning of power cuts and said that Britain's electricity system was secure.

Mane attraction British outdoor and performance brand Musto has announced Zara Tindall as ambassador for the return of its Country collection. The 45-year-old daughter of Princess Anne and wife of Mike Tindall is a renowned equestrian and won a silver medal at the London 2012 Olympic games.

Cut stamp duty to give Treasury £4bn boost

Housebuilder estimates move could deliver £4.2bn for the Exchequer by unlocking 30pc growth

By Pui-Guan Man

JOHN HEALEY has been urged to cut stamp duty on newly built homes in a move that one of Britain's biggest housebuilders estimates could hand the Treasury a £4.2bn windfall.

In its Budget submission, seen by

The Telegraph, Berkeley Group told the Chancellor that cutting the levy could revive a market that it warned was "sliding over an economic cliff edge".

The listed property developer called for stamp duty to be capped at 1pc for first-time buyers and downsizers. Berkeley also urged Mr Healey to scrap a 5pc surcharge levied on investors in new-build rental homes.

The housebuilder estimated that the package could deliver an extra 60,000 homes per year. Rob Perrins, executive chairman of Berkeley, said: "Our position has always been that a stamp duty reduction on new-builds - especially around the investor surcharge, first-time buyers and downsizers - is the best and quickest lever.

"This is still needed alongside Your First Home to restart homebuilding in urban areas."

The intervention came after Andy Burnham unveiled Your First Home, an equity loan scheme aimed at helping more young people on to the housing ladder. Designed as a scaled-back version of the previous Help to Buy initiative, the policy will be open to first-time buyers with a 2.5pc deposit, with backing from a 20pc equity loan from the Government.

Mr Healey is expected to formally launch the new policy in this month's Budget. However, in its submission, Berkeley suggested the scheme would not be enough to solve an "acute crisis, particularly in London". The Treasury also reportedly rejected calls for a stamp duty break for downsizing homebuyers earlier this month.

Berkeley argued that higher interest rates, geopolitical uncertainty and rising taxes had led to a "significant slowdown in the rate of new housing sales". Only 8,840 private homes were sold in the capital last year, according to the document, down 56pc since 2022.

The housebuilder acknowledged that a cap for first-time buyers could cost the Treasury money, but argued this would be more than offset by extra revenue for the public purse from investors and buyers downsizing.

Berkeley calculated that removing the 5pc investor surcharge would save the typical investor about £13,000, meaning sales would need to rise by just 7pc for the Treasury to break even.

Using figures from the Office for

Budget Responsibility, Berkeley estimated that scrapping the charge would unlock sales growth of at least 30pc, providing £4.2bn to the Exchequer.

The housebuilder added that a cap for those moving to a smaller home would probably be even “more lucrative for the Treasury”.

While older homeowners would pay less stamp duty on their own purchase, each move would trigger a chain of moves involving transactions that attract the full amount. The Government was contacted for comment.

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Do you want AI with that? Tech that's hard to stomach

New dynamic pricing software lets restaurants calculate the optimal price for their business. By Tom Haynes

A £20 steak has traditionally cost £20 whether you order it at 1pm on a rainy Tuesday or 8pm on a packed Saturday – but artificial intelligence (AI) is about to change that.

Now restaurants are being encouraged to embrace a more sophisticated form of dynamic pricing, using AI to work out how much customers are prepared to pay for dinner. Piemetrics, a technology business whose clients include The Restaurant Group as well as London restaurants SOOM and Barge East, has a stark message for restaurants: "Your menu is underpriced. Let's fix that."

With Piemetrics, a restaurateur uploads their menu and location. Its technology identifies competitors nearby, compares prices for similar dishes and calculates what it believes they could charge.

The resulting dashboard puts a figure on the restaurant's "potential missed revenue". It then works through the menu item by item, displaying a recommended range of different prices and the percentage change available.

Piemetrics says its technology can uncover "instant margin growth".

Peter Backman, a veteran restaurant industry analyst, is sceptical about how much appetite there really is for such technology. He says: "I think in reality, restaurants don't buy it."

Nevertheless, it is an early glimpse of what could be a fundamental change in how restaurants, under pressure from rising costs and taxes, decide what customers should pay.

In the US, McDonald's is already using AI to recommend prices to franchisees, crunching millions of transactions to calculate an "optimal price" for individual menu items.

Reuters found two company-owned restaurants just two miles apart in California charging \$5.69 and \$6.89 respectively for a Big Mac, although it could not establish whether the difference resulted from the technology. McDonald's insists AI does not set its prices and says franchisees can reject its recommendations. There is no evidence that the same system is currently being used in Britain. However, similar technology is already being marketed to British restaurant operators.

Revenue Management Solutions (RMS), whose clients include Panera, Pizza Patrón and Wingstop, offers software that combines till transactions, loyalty information, wages and competitors' prices to recommend prices for individual restaurants. Its technology scores menu items for their profit potential and lets managers model what different prices could do to sales before pushing an approved change directly to tills. RMS says its services are used across more than 150,000 restaurant locations.

Writing about the technology in April, Dora Furman, RMS's head of client strategy, acknowledged the risks. She wrote: "Raising prices is one of the hardest calls a restaurant operator has to make. Go too far and guests notice. Don't go far enough and your margins take the hit."

Yet major British operators are wary of suggestions that computers are taking control of their prices.

Burger King UK, which uses menu software supplied by Openr, told The Telegraph: "There is no AI involved in pricing recommendations or decisions at Burger King UK, the people in our teams make these decisions."

Openr instead allows those decisions to be implemented rapidly across tills, apps and digital menus.

It says Burger King once pushed through 57,000 menu changes in less than three minutes.

Meanwhile, Stonegate, Britain's biggest pub company, went from making three or four pricing changes a year to more than 30 after adopting its technology. Stonegate does not use AI to decide when prices should change.

Individual pub managers can charge more during busy periods, such as major football matches, if they choose to. That relatively crude approach caused uproar in 2023, when about 800 Stonegate pubs introduced increases of roughly 20p a pint during busy periods. Backman says genuine surge pricing faces an obvious problem in restaurants that does not exist to the same extent with airlines or hotels.

"If you're buying an airline ticket, you don't know that the guy next door paid £200 and you're now paying £250," he says. "Whereas in a restaurant, if somebody walks through the door and pays £10, and the next people who walk through the door pay £12. That's unfair."

Happy hours and other clearly advertised discounts work, he argues, because customers understand why

Surge pricing is more likely to affect home deliveries, such as this McDonald's take-away to Donald Trump at the White House

the price is different. Clare Lombardelli, the Bank of England's Deputy Governor for Monetary Policy, and Rupal Patel, a senior economic adviser at the Bank, earlier this year said that these forms of peak and off-peak pricing were becoming outdated. Businesses are increasingly moving towards "market-responsive pricing", where algorithms react to demand, capacity and competitors rather than following rules such as charging more at weekends.

The reluctance to hand over menus to machines may reflect how diners feel about the technology. The Bank of England noted that research suggests Britons in particular view such AI-driven pricing is unfair. Backman, the analyst, also believes restaurants

Algorithm pricing more widespread than you think will struggle to replicate the airline model without angering diners.

Companies may use either, both or none of these practices. SOURCE: BANK OF ENGLAND

However, there is little to stop restaurants adding extra fees to takeaways when orders flood in on a Friday night. In fact, customers increasingly expect it. "Delivery is probably more open to dynamic pricing," he says.

The spread of dynamic pricing elsewhere also suggests that any technical barriers have disappeared.

About 15pc of hotel room prices changed at least monthly in 2005, compared with roughly 80pc today. With time, restaurants could see a similar shift.

AI bots look set to take over menus before too long, even if it risks leaving diners with a bitter aftertaste.

‘Massive’ diesel release could knock 6p a litre off pump prices

By Joe Sledge and Melissa Lawford

EUROPE'S decision to release a flood of fuel reserves could knock 6p off the price of a litre of diesel in Britain, according to economists.

Members of the G7 agreed last week to unlock 100 million barrels of oil and fuel after the US threatened to ban diesel exports, with the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine piling pressure on supplies. The release triggered a drop in wholesale diesel prices.

Analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics calculated that if the lower costs were fully passed on to British drivers, it would cut prices at the pump by 5p to

6p a litre, or 2.5pc. This would knock up to £3.30 off the cost of filling up a typical 55-litre family car, though a tank would still cost about £107.

Diesel prices climbed to more than £2 per litre in the UK for the first time last week, according to data from RAC, after Donald Trump's ban threats prompted fears of shortages.

The US president has since ruled out a ban on diesel exports after the G7 agreed to release a “massive amount” of their stockpiles. He claimed on Friday: “We’re not going to be doing the export ban. We were never going to do it.”

In a note to clients, Pantheon said that European "crack spreads" – the price difference between a barrel of crude oil and refined products such as diesel - fell by 12pc between Sept 30 and Friday evening. When this spread narrows, wholesale costs for diesel tend to fall, putting downward pressure on prices at the pump.

The economists at Pantheon said that the drop, "if fully reflected in UK costs and passed through, would lower UK diesel pump prices by five to 6p a litre".

Pantheon added that the oil release could “cut two to three basis points off our near-term inflation forecast”, but its economists were sceptical of Mr Trump’s promise not to ban diesel exports. The US president “has shown

£2

Price per litre that diesel climbed to in the UK for the first time last week, according to data from RAC

little hesitancy in ripping up deals before", they said.

Despite most industry experts citing the Strait of Hormuz disruption for continued high prices, Mr Trump has blamed Ukraine for soaring diesel costs after Russia banned its own exports until the end of October. In a post on

Truth Social on Monday, Mr Trump insisted the war in the Middle East was "no longer" driving up fuel costs, but rather Russian refineries that are "being blown up by Ukraine".

On Monday, he signed an executive order allowing drivers to use tax-exempt red-dyed diesel on public roads.

The fuel is normally reserved for farm machinery and other off-road equipment but Mr Trump has expanded access as prices at the pump surge weeks before the midterm elections.

Speaking at a rally in Nebraska, he told supporters the order would "officially waive the off-road requirement and allow anyone to purchase tax-free red-dyed diesel for any reason". The president admitted he was unfamiliar with the fuel, joking to the crowd: "I don't know what the hell it is, but whatever it is, it's supposed to be very good."

Red-dyed diesel is essentially the same fuel as standard diesel, but it is exempt from highway fuel taxes.

Industry leaders have raised concerns about the sustainability of the world's current oil stockpiles after a series of crises that have drained reserves. Meg O'Neill, the chief executive of BP, told an industry conference on Monday that some nations were being "complacent" in their response to the energy crisis.

Higher taxes on hairdressers but not pubs and clubs are sexist, say salon owners

By Tim Wallace

PINT-LOVING Oasis fan Andy Burnham was quick to offer pubs, clubs and music venues a better deal on business rates when he came to power this summer.

But the Prime Minister has neglected to make high street hairdressers a similar offer to the 20pc discount, despite them also suffering from high taxes.

Now, salon owners are starting to suspect the female focus of their businesses could be behind the lack of support from Labour.

Collette Osborne, the owner of the Hairven salon in Nottingham, said: "Over 80pc of the people working in our industry are female, yet the only sector apparently being lined up for tax reform is hospitality.

“That’s left the majority of female salon owners and employees wondering, ‘why are women not being taken seriously in business by the Labour Party – just how sexist are they?’, as it really feels like that. Would their lack of interest be different if it was run by men – and employed mainly men?”

Ms Osborne is among business owners and industry groups who have signed an open letter calling for VAT to

Salon owners suspect the female focus of their businesses could be behind the lack of support from Labour

be cut to 10pc for the hairdressers, barbers, spas and beauty salons in this month's Budget.

The industry lost nearly one quarter of its employees last year, according to the British Hair Consortium, while apprenticeships are down 70pc.

It argues this is because of the tax burden. Companies become eligible for VAT at 20pc once their turnover crosses £90,000, while 2025's sharp increase in employers' National Insurance contributions (NICs) pushed up the cost of hiring staff.

A Treasury spokesman said: "Hair and beauty businesses play an important role in supporting jobs, apprenticeships and thriving high streets across the UK, which is why we're backing them through business rates reform, including a £4.3bn support package to limit bill rises."

Ofcom launches safety probe into Meta's Instagram ahead of High Court showdown

By James Titcomb

REGULATORS have launched an online safety investigation into Meta in the same week the social media giant is conducting a High Court challenge against "burdensome" new laws.

Ofcom said yesterday that it was assessing whether the US tech company carried out sufficient due diligence before launching a disappearing messaging feature on Instagram, which it owns.

The investigation is the first into Meta since the Online Safety Act came fully into force last year and comes as lawyers for the company seek to curb the scope of the legislation.

Meta, X and TikTok are challenging Ofcom's information-gathering powers, arguing that the amount of data the regulator is seeking is excessive and burdensome and that Ofcom is "fishing" for information.

It is the first in a series of legal challenges being brought by Meta against the act's enforcement.

Donald Trump, who has become increasingly close to Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Meta, has been a vocal critic of UK online safety rules, which the White House believes amount to censorship. Ofcom said it was investigating Instagram Instants, a separate app which allows users to share photo messages that disappear after they are sent.

Meta said the feature is a low-pressure way to share photos, but Ofcom said the company had not carried out a "suitable and sufficient illegal content risk assessment".

Risk assessments are required before

'You wouldn't launch a new car without testing it properly, and it's the same for online services'

the launch of a new product under the act. George Lusty, Ofcom's director of enforcement, said: "Our online safety laws are clear - significant changes to platforms must be risk assessed before they're launched.

"This is a vital step that tech firms must take to protect their users. You wouldn't launch a new car without testing it properly, and it's the same for online services."

Meta said: "Meta takes its regulatory obligations under the Online Safety

Act seriously. We conducted a risk analysis and briefed Ofcom about this feature on a number of occasions before launching it.

Instants has in-built protections, including blocking screenshots, reshares and forwarding, no public feed and Teen Account protections [turned] on automatically. We will of course co-operate with Ofcom during this investigation."

In its High Court challenge, Meta is seeking to quash three information requests brought by Ofcom concerning Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. It said the regulator had asked for more than 10,000 extra pieces of information and wanted to build a “bank of data”.

A witness statement submitted by Elon Musk's X, formerly Twitter, said Ofcom's was "the most burdensome information request X has received from any regulator in any jurisdiction".

Ofcom has said the information is needed to regulate social media. “Parliament has charged us with the job of regulating an industry that has been unregulated and unaccountable for more than 20 years,” a spokesman said.

Meta is separately challenging Ofcom over the fees that social media companies are charged to enforce the regime.

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ECB can't rescue France until debt crisis is dire

AMBROSE

EVANS-PRITCHARD

---

Divergence of public debt ratios of the EU's two core economies is the structural crack in the euro edifice

THE MOOD in France is approaching pre-insurrectional fever. It has erupted in schools but it could equally be among farmers regulated to the point of suicide.

It could be drivers in despair at the cost of diesel, le carburant des pauvres. France is a tinderbox from seething banlieues to the dissident countryside. We are watching the agonies of the French Fifth Republic.

I do not wish to kick a great nation while she is down. As Winston Churchill wrote to his wife in 1943: "When a country undergoes so frightful a catastrophe as France, every other evil swarms down upon her like carrion crows."

Britain is not so far from social insurrection either. We are in many respects twins with equally lamentable afflictions. But we are different in one key respect and that is going to matter enormously. When France joined the euro - or more accurately snookered Germany into giving up the Deutsche mark, thinking it could subjugate the almighty Bundesbank by that means - it gave up its sovereign economic defences. It no longer has a central bank at its command, acting as lender of last resort in the national interest.

Its debt is denominated in a currency that it does not control. It cannot print its own money, bail itself out or inflate away its debt burden unilaterally. Nor can France devalue to boost exports and cushion the contractionary shock of the coming fiscal reckoning.

The euro acts like a drug. It jams the warning barometer. It allows countries to live beyond their means and sleepwalk into trouble. Until suddenly it does not.

France now finds itself in a debt compound trap that is less immediately acute than the Truss episode but fundamentally more serious. Credit default swaps (CDS) measuring the UK bankruptcy risk peaked at 44 points in 2022. French CDS contracts have soared this week to 80.

The raging debate among insiders is over how long the European Central Bank (ECB) will wait before stepping in to rescue Paris and suppressing another festering eurozone crisis.

"There can be absolutely no suspense on how this ends," says Robin Brooks, at the Brookings Institution.

"The ECB will intervene to cap yields. It'll do so because it thinks sovereign debt defaults are an existential threat to the euro and therefore its own survival. It's done so ever since Mario Draghi said 'whatever it takes' in 2012."

Brooks says that was the moment when the ECB smuggled in a debt union by the backdoor, transferred power from creditors to debtors and let loose moral hazard, all in violation of the Maastricht Treaty. The ECB's

"The Banque de France warns that the country risks being "strangled by interest rates"

anti-spread shield – the Transmission Protection Instrument – lets it buy distressed bonds on its own authority but only for countries that pursue “sound fiscal and macroeconomic policies”, are not “subject to an excessive deficit procedure”, where the “trajectory of public debt is sustainable” and where stress is “not warranted by country-specific fundamentals”.

France fails on every count. Any ECB bailout must entail compliance with the EU's machinery of budget discipline. It implies a sort of shadow "troika" imposing austerity and chipping away at the French welfare model. It is a fantastical notion.

It collides with the salient political fact of today's Europe: that Marine Le Pen would beat all opponents in the next election by a wide margin on current polls. She is running on a platform - some call far Right, I call Gallic nationalist - that aims to smash the EU system from within.

"While no longer arguing for an outright 'Frexit', animosity towards the EU, its institutions and policies is still part and parcel of the party's DNA," says Arnaud Marès, Citigroup's chief Europe economist. He puts a 70pc likelihood that Le Pen will win the presidency and 50pc that she will win the lower house as well.

A French debt crisis has long been latent. The trigger that has suddenly pushed the risk spread on French 30-year bonds to stress levels - 1.55 percentage points over German bunds on Monday - is hard to pin down but the backdrop is an economy slipping into structural perma-slump. It is toxic for French debt dynamics.

Fears are growing that the budget deficit could blow through 7pc of GDP next year, along with the near certainty that nothing much will be done about this chronic dérapage over the next eight months as we all watch the soap opera in the French parliament.

The Banque de France warns that the country risks being “strangled by interest rates”. To little avail. The so-called retrenchment plan actually increases the number of public employees.

In my view, the ECB cannot take the legal and political risk of bailing out such a France until the spread is far above 200 and the European project itself is in danger, and even then it invites a backlash in Germany.

France is in trouble because its pension system gobbles up 14pc of GDP, six points higher than Western peers. It is the only country where the over-65s take home more than the toiling workers taxed to support them.

'France is in trouble because its pension system gobbles up 14pc of GDP'

"France has signalled to the bond markets that its pensioners are the most senior claimants on the French Treasury's revenue stream," says Hanno Lustig, the Stanford economist.

Everything is arranged “for the comfort of the baby boomers” in the lapidary words of François Bayrou, the last premier to try and fail to confront this demographic cartel. “The chief victims are the young people of France. They will have to pay this off for the rest of their lives.”

The pension reform has been suspended, freezing the retirement age at 62 years and nine months. Germany is on the way to 67. The Bundestag is talking of 70 in the future.

To the extent that any ECB rescue of France is a fiscal bailout, it is a transfer of money by German, Dutch or Finnish taxpayers still working in their late 60s to more affluent French pensioners in their early 60s. This is preposterous.

France and Germany both had public debt ratios near 60pc of GDP in 2007. It is what made monetary union viable. Today, Germany is still near 60pc while France has doubled to 120pc and is on its way to 140pc. That divergence of the EU's two core economies is the widening structural crack in the euro edifice. The euro is not about to blow up. Such Anglo-Saxon talk misses the point. But the likely course of events is hardly better. The bloc will limp on from one debt spasm to another, stuck in a bad equilibrium. The markets will keep testing French bonds, German politics and the character of the ECB until something gives. Will Britain's Labour Party still be talking so fervently about Europe a year from now?

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Britain's habit of muddling through exposes our dangerous complacency

JEREMY

WARNER

---

The Chancellor is being progressively strangled by higher interest rates ahead of the Budget

AS EVERYONE knows, John Healey has virtually no room for manoeuvre in his forthcoming Budget at the end of this month.

If the tyranny of the bond markets were not limiting enough, he is also tightly bound by the Government's self-imposed fiscal rules, where external events have eaten deep into the Chancellor's so-called "fiscal headroom".

As it is, we don't yet appear to be at the point where rising interest rates force Labour into more drastic fiscal consolidation than already planned.

But that denouement may come soon enough. Hardly anyone believes we have yet seen the worst of the bond market sell-off; Healey is being progressively strangled by higher interest rates, and may yet have his hand forced.

The Government still hopes for a reprieve from an improving economy and a better inflation outlook. Unwise to bank on it, though.

The reality is that fiscal headroom has already been reduced to wafer-thin levels by mounting debt servicing costs, and that's before Healey does anything at all. Even so, I'm somewhat sceptical of reports that this will be a "do-nothing" holding Budget.

Chancellors can never resist the temptation to meddle and I'd be amazed if Healey proves the exception. He could do things to redistribute the tax burden – rearranging the deckchairs, if you like – without necessarily changing the overall fiscal envelope.

Besides, it would be quite a letdown after Andy Burnham's grandiose promises of a policy reset if all Healey can manage is a "can't do much for the time being" type statement. This would only confirm the new Government as no more than "continuity Starmer".

But there are limits. We know, for instance, that Burnham would dearly like to unfreeze personal income tax allowances, and match promises by both Reform and the Liberal Democrats to raise tax-free income to £15,000 a year. Sadly, the Government's entire fiscal consolidation plan rests on the slender foundations of this particular tax squeeze. Remove this cumulative £55bn-a-year tax grab and the fiscal rules would be breached.

Manifesto pledges prevent the Government from raising tax rates across more than two thirds of the total tax base, which in turn limits the Chancellor's revenue-raising options to wealth-based taxes, pensions, capital gains and sector-specific levies such as the banking levy. All these options would invite significant behavioural change and would therefore probably be growth destructive. As for fuel duties, they have not been raised in more than 15 years. Healey is unlikely to break the pattern given current cost of living pressures.

On the other side of the ledger, spending pressures keep mounting. And don't say: "What about cuts to welfare?" Meaningful voluntary cuts in welfare spending under a Labour government are about as likely as a month of Sundays.

'Hardly anyone believes we have yet seen the worst of the bond market sell-off'

In other words, it's going to take all Healey's powers of imagination to produce the proverbial "rabbit out of the hat". There has to be something to throw to Labour's rank and file, but it's hard to know what.

So Burnham has bought himself a degree of credibility with bond markets by gripping the issue of the pensions triple lock. Having once said he wouldn't be in hock to bond markets, he's now a Prime Minister willing to do unpopular things to placate them.

Unfortunately, meaningful savings from the new policy won't materialise for some time, and though they might be considerable in the long term, the triple lock costs were never funded in the first place.

All Burnham has done is somewhat reduce the Government's long-run contingent liabilities. The "savings" are therefore more of an accounting illusion than anything substantive and, in any case, have already been earmarked for social care spending.

All the same, it's something, and it is notable that UK gilt yields have not risen as much as those of other G7

countries in the most recent bond market sell-off.

Of course, the UK still pays a substantial premium on its debt compared with the major economies of the eurozone, the US, Canada and Japan. With vast amounts to borrow in markets, this is proving severely disabling for Healey.

Fears of imminent default are nevertheless wide of the mark.

'Meaningful voluntary cuts in welfare spending under a Labour government are about as likely as a month of Sundays'

Five-year credit default swaps price a much lower risk of UK sovereign default than any other G7 member except Germany. By this measure, the implied probability of default is less than half that of France and Italy, and also lower than the US.

The premium in UK bond yields is instead likely to represent somewhat higher inflationary expectations.

Countries that borrow in their own currencies can, in extremis, simply print money to pay creditors, which is inflationary. But from a macro-economic standpoint, this is a better place to be than sliding into outright insolvency. Elevated inflation is default by another name, just not as painful as the full-fat, overt version.

All things are relative, and against debt-saddled France, the UK would appear relatively well placed.

Only the euro backstop and the implied insurance of the German chequebook keep France from abject fiscal ruin. Patience in Berlin is wearing thin. You would rather be in Healey's shoes than those of his French counterpart, Roland Lescure.

If he cannot bring himself to cut welfare, Healey should instead focus on other aspects of supply side reform likely to improve the nation's long-term growth trajectory.

Andrew Griffith, the shadow chancellor, made some good suggestions this week that Healey could usefully take on board. It is a pity the Tories had so little enthusiasm for them when in Government. We would be in an entirely different place today if they had.

Measures to make the economy more resilient are also urgent.

Over the years, Britain has had numerous warnings about the dangers of undue reliance on “just in time” international supply chains.

These have left the UK more exposed to shocks and interruptions than any comparable country, with diesel shortages only the latest example. The House of Commons public accounts committee began an assessment of whether the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is taking effective action to ensure the UK food supply chain is resilient to shocks and disruptions. Spoiler alert: it is not.

Warnings long predate Covid, when Britain's serious lack of preparedness was exposed in glorious technicolour, but even after this wake-up call, little has been done to correct matters. Muddling through remains the order of the day. We are paying a heavy price for our complacency. | Index Linked Securities | 348.25 | 238.55 | Trmm 4% | 14.30 | 341.28 | -0.88 | 1.21 | 248.27 | 237.14 | Trmm 2% | 11.26 | 240.55 | -0.47 | 0.83 | Yealand Fund Services Limited

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Americans -0.85%

Banks • 0,93%

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Tradeweb | Government securities | 52 week | Flat RateYield Yield | High | Low (E) | Stock | Price (E) $\rightarrow$ (-) | 107.07 | 102.38 | Treas 6% 28 | 103.78 | +0.83 5.84 4.64 | 102.33 | 0.01 | Treas 4% 32 | 96.55 | +0.88 4.40 4.35 | 96.39 | 91.30 | Treas 4% 36 | 92.14 | +0.34 4.51 5.32 | 102.00 | 0.01 | Treas 4% 38 | 93.17 | +0.45 5.10 5.15 | 10-year Government Bonds | Yield% | Spread Vs. Bonds | Spread Vs. 1-Domis | France | 4.64 | -1.38 | -0.63 | Germany | 3.48 | - | -1.79 | Japan | 3.05 | -0.42 | -2.22 | Great Britain | 5.32 | -1.84 | -0.05 | United States | 5.27 | -1.79 | - | The share price, price-earnings ratios and dividend yields below are supplied by Interactive Data (Europe) Ltd. The yields are calculated using kinetic dividend payments divided by the closing share price multiplied by 100. | 52 week | Price (p) +/- Yld NAV | High | Low (p) | Stock | 1076 | 828 | BlackRock Wild V • | 946* | - | 2.5 | 562 | 1002 | 1306 | Brunner • | 1539 | +6 | 1.7 | 1735 | 402 | 312 | Caledonia • | 388% | +2% | 2.6 | 585 | 598 | 408 | City of Love • | 570 | +0 | 3.0 | 107 | 467 | 258 | City Nat Res G&I | 404 | +0 | 7.0 | 399 | 338 | 386% | CT Glbl/Mglt G | 328 | - | - | 340 | 135 | 110 | CT Glbl/Mglt I | 130* | - | 6.1 | 130 | 502 | 436% | CT Pte Eq Ord | 409 | +0 | 6.0 | 696 | 373 | 320 | CT UK Cap & Inc | 340 | +5 | 4.0 | 354 | 126 | 97 | CT UK High/Inc/Tot | 1081* | - | 5.4 | 114 | 480% | 460 | Davonix Est A | 475 | - | 4.8 | - | 867 | 737% | Edinburgh Inv Yr • | 823 | +7 | 3.9 | 886 | 254% | 194% | Edin Worldwide • | 268 | +0 | - | 314 | 1320 | 325% | F&C Inv Trust | 348%* | +5% | 1.2 | 384 | 672 | 546 | Fidelity Asian V | 612 | +0 | 3.3 | 651 | 338 | 236% | Fidelity China Sp Sits • | 347 | -0 | 3.6 | 269 | 447% | 367% | Fidelity Euro Tot • | 425* | +5% | 2.4 | 443 | 479% | 384% | Fidelity Sp V • | 482% | +2 | 2.2 | 481 | 675 | 706% | Finsbury Growth • | 776 | +0 | 2.7 | 823 | 106% | 162% | Glbl Small Co Trust • | 100* | +5 | 1.6 | 202 | 234 | 173% | Hend High Inc | 200* | +0 | 5.5 | 208 | 998 | 768 | Hend Smaller Co • | 950* | +0 | 3.1 | 1050 | 3290% | 2265 | Herald Inv • | 3010 | +0 | - | 3488 | 512 | 318% | HgCapital • | 380%* | +7% | 1.3 | 530 | 341 | 107% | HCI Infrastructure • 131% | - | +5 | 6.4 | 160 | 801% | 1286% | ICG Enterprise Tot • | 1372 | +6 | 3.1 | 2032 | 966 | 800 | JPM Claver/ir • | 926 | +0 | 3.9 | 957 | 153 | 124% | JPM Eur G&I • | 140 | +5 | 3.9 | 145 | 867 | 668 | JPM Japanese • | 848 | +0 | 1.0 | 929 | 726 | 525 | Land Secs | 817% | +0 | 6.7 | - | 105% | 148 | Lombard Inv | 183* | +5 | 3.7 | 202 | 293% | 254% | Mercantile Inv/T • | 273%* | +0% | 3.0 | 302 | 891 | 538% | Merchants Tot • | 840 | +0 | 4.5 | 587 | 1687% | 1366 | Marks • | 1682 | +0 | 0.1 | 1778 | 1036 | 854% | Murray Income • | 958 | +0 | 4.3 | 1030 | 376 | 296% | Murray Intl • | 207%* | +2% | 3.6 | 353 | 58% | 47 | Northern 2 VCT | 53 | - | 5.7 | 15 | 86% | 78% | Northern 2 VCT | 82 | - | 5.5 | 88 | 18% | 53 | Mthe Venture | 56 | - | 5.5 | 59 | 408 | 339 | Pantheon • | 386 | +0 | - | 535 | 3545 | 1985% | WT Cap Ptnrs • | 3430* | +0 | 1.8 | 3199 | 319 | 283% | Ruffer Inv Pref • | 250%* | +5 | 2.1 | 305 | 740 | 530 | Schneider Asia TR • | 756 | +0 | 1.8 | 762 | 572 | 480% | Scat American • | 556 | +0 | 2.9 | 598 | 1033% | 1035% | Scat Mortgage | 1037% | +0 | 0.3 | 1857 | 547 | 215 | STS Global Income • | 217% | +0% | 3.8 | 293 | 352 | 218% | Templeta Eur Mt • | 339 | +0 | 1.3 | 367 | 364% | 268% | TR Property • | 275 | +0 | 5.9 | 302 | 151 | 136% | UL Fin ZOP 2026 • | 150%* | - | - | 151 | 343 | 343 | UKkex Energ • | 216 | +0 | 3.3 | 321 | 402% | 322% | Wolfe Health/Tr • | 368 | +2% | 0.7 | 389 | Aerospace & defence -3.12% | 52 week | High | Low (p) | Stock | Price (p) +/- Yld | P/E | 1527 | 898% | Babcock Intl | 906% | -89% | 0.8 | 21.5 | 2360 | 1529 | BAE Systems | 1856 | -79 | 2.0 | 27.0 | 576% | 100% | (NonUS) • | 440% | -89% | 2.4 | 22.4 | 1506 | 990 | Halls-Royce | 1438% | -89% | 0.8 | 20.7 | 318% | 102 | Senior • | 297% | -4 | 0.7 | 258.7 | 554% | 352% | Barclays | 447% | -6% | 2.6 | 10.2 | 596% | 318% | Close Bros. • | 398% | -6% | — | -0.8 | 1810 | 398% | HSBC | 1472% | -12% | 2.8 | 10.2 | 117% | 81% | Lloyds Bk Gp | 105% | -6% | 3.8 | 11.1 | 726 | 504% | NatWest Group | 608% | -6 | 5.2 | 12.5 | 1122 | 709 | Santander | 1058 | -64 | 1.6 | 13.7 | 2384 | 1381% | Standard Ch | 2250 | -7 | 2.3 | 15.3 | 100.0% | 125.0% | Diage | 164.0% | -3.3 | 21.3 | Chemicals -1.34% | 3120% | 3488 | Creda Inti | 3347* | -54 | 1.1 | 71.4 | 3345% | 2182 | Johnson Mat . | 3436 | -38 | 4.2 | -01.9 | 1024 | 505 | Vetrex . | 500 | — | 1.2 | 29.1 | 973 | 6206% | Balfour Realty | 900 | 48 | 1.6 | 17.1 | Electricals +1.19% | 52-week | High | Low (p) | Stock | Price (p) | +/- | Yld | P/E | 403% | 138% | Barratt Redrow | 308% | -4% | 1.9 | 22.7 | 4442 | 2796 | Berkeley Grp • | 2044 | -82 | — | 0.8 | 330 | 133% | Bead H | 347 | — | 2.1 | 8.4 | 265 | 136% | Cantax • | 2535* | -5% | 2.1 | 18.2 | 3063 | 788% | Grafton Grp • | 9451* | -8% | 4.8 | 12.4 | 5730 | 3038 | Morgan Sindall • | 4350* | -28 | 3.9 | 11.3 | 1502 | 947% | Perimeter • | 1240 | -27% | 4.8 | 12.9 | 185% | 74% | Taylor Wimpay • | 76% | -1% | 5.2 | 28.5 | Healthcare +0.91% | 12 week | Price (p) -/- | Yld | P/E | High | Low (p) | Stock | 630 | 490% | Investec | 618 | -6.4 | 6.7 | 76% | 4% | JP Group • | 72% | -6% | — | 358 | 22% | Liontrust | 258 | -2 | 6.4 | 10340 | 6684 | Lon Stock Ex | 8386 | -448 | 1.9 | 367% | 250% | M&G | 3121% | -6% | 6.6 | 346% | 183% | Man Group • | 335% | -42% | 3.8 | 259 | 165% | Quilter • | 175% | -5% | 3.6 | 2458% | 1620 | S & U | 1890 | -88 | 6.1 | 132 | 83% | Varonis Banking Gp | 88% | -5% | — | 620 | 2314 | Straight | 576 | +8 | - | - | 900 | 505 | discoverl Gzy • | 865 | +7 | 1.5 | 28.6 | 4902 | 3268 | Mallena | 3558 | +30 | 0.7 | 36.1 | 6030 | 3280 | Remishow • | 5900 | +126 | 1.4 | 36.6 | 2360 | 84914 | KP Power • | 2045 | +25 | - | -48.7 | 681% | 317% | Haleon | 204 | <5% | 2.2 | 10.0 | 1426% | 100% | Smith & Nap | 10001%* | <1 | 3.6 | 10.6 | Household goods +1.88%

Electricity -0.11% | 937% | 985% | Dana Group * | 700* | -29 | 3.9 | 37.7 | 1428% | 1000% | Nat Grid | 1156 | -12% | 4.2 | 17.6 | 2767% | 1745% | SSE | 2672 | -4 | 2.8 | 23.4 | 129% | 95% | Barberry | 100% | -19 | - | - | 214% | 87% | Melville | 175% | -1 | 1.8 | 9.9 | 134 | 85% | PZ Cansara | 96%* | -1% | 3.8 | 29.5 | 652% | 3664 | Rockitt Benck | 4877 | -88 | 4.3 | 10.6 | Information technology +0.22%

Engineering / Industrial +1.00%

Winners and losers (pc) | 90% | 72% | Couta Group | 81% | +5 | 3.1 | 33.2 | 710 | 250 | Cropper J | 805 | -6 | — | 22.6 | 20500 | 10820 | Goodwin | 13840* | -60 | 2.4 | 18.7 | 3102 | 2244 | WMI | 3168 | -2 | 1.1 | 25.3 | 901% | 600 | Worst | 785% | -13 | 1.8 | 25.1 | 40 | 25% | Severfield | 38 | -15% | — | -0.2 | 206% | 2068 | Smiths Gp | 2847 | -8 | 1.7 | 4.5 | 8050 | 1650 | Sylvan Gp | 7360 | -85 | 2.3 | 32.2 | 3100 | 2254 | Weir | 2682* | -80 | 1.8 | 27.8 | 307 | 185 | Aptitude Universe | 256* | -0 | 2.1 | 35.1 | 1181 | 77% | The Sage Grp | 1005 | -0 | 2.2 | 26.8 | Food producers •1.24%

Gas & Water +0.33% | 2009 | 1729% | Aus Brill Fds | 1834 | -10% | 3.4 | 13.0 | 5185 | 3070 | Coca-Cola HBC | 4236 | -08 | 2.4 | 19.3 | 5800 | 4775 | Cronovark | 4900 | -25 | 2.3 | 16.8 | 738 | 447% | Hilton Food | 712% | -10% | 4.8 | 8.1 | 138 | 92 | REA Hedges | 108% | — | — | -205.8 | 5542% | 3644 | Unilever | 4568 | -40% | 2.6 | 12.4 | General financial $\cdot 1.42\%$ | 200% | 144 | Centrica | 147% | -6 | 3.8 | -98.5 | 606 | 435% | Pennon Cp • | 452 | -17% | 6.3 | -23.3 | 3335 | 2380 | Severe Trust | 3154 | +12 | 4.8 | 35.2 | 1457 | 1119 | Util Utilities | 1408 | +8 | 3.8 | 30.5 | 265 | 179% | Aberrack Group | 215% | -8% | 6.1 | 11.0 | 4120 | 352% | Admiral | 3030 | +9% | 3.0 | 14.8 | 740% | 580% | Arbus | 6881% | -41% | 5.0 | 25.6 | 1012 | 1290 | Hiscox | 1850 | -8 | 2.1 | 13.6 | 700 | 540 | Lancashire Hldg • | 626% | -8 | 2.6 | 7.0 | 318% | 217% | Legal & General | 296% | -4% | 1.5 | 28.3 | 1220 | 905% | Prudential | 924% | -4% | 2.3 | 8.0 | 940 | 633% | Standard Life | 876% | -41% | 6.4 | 686.7 | 1575% | 1036% | St James's Place | 1038% | -6% | 1.7 | 10.4 | 276% | 151 | Autorems | 216% | <7% | 7.8 | 13.8 | 356% | 212 | Bridgepoint Corp | 3461* | +12% | 2.7 | 69.4 | 1000 | 1240 | Breakdownschild | 1470* | -60 | 5.4 | 94.8 | 1956 | 1001% | NG Group | 582 | -24 | 4.4 | 6.6 | 2100 | 1426% | NCEI | 1767 | -3 | 4.9 | 10.6 |

Results Roundup Previously Published \* (6) | Company | Turnover(£) | Pre-tax(£) | EPS(p) | DIV(p) | Pay Day | XD | Cyker AI | Int 4k (4k) | -1.2m (-1.2m) | -24.000 (-25.000) | n/a (n/a) | Dunedin Income Growth Invest Trust* | Int - (-) | 7.6m (10.7m) | 6.180 (7.820) | 4.250 (4.250) | Nov 27 | Nov 05 | Fidelity Emerging Markets $ | Fin - (-) | 18.5m (24.2m) | 32.000 (31.000) | 33.000 (26.000) | Dec 08 | Nov 12 | Fidelity Emerging Markets $* | Fin - (-) | 18.5m (24.2m) | 32.000 (31.000) | 33.000 (26.000) | Dec 08 | Nov 12 | PKN Growth | Int - (-) | -115k (-110k) | -1.200 (-1.710) | n/a (n/a) | Schroder Japan Trust | Fin - (-) | 8.7m (8.9m) | 6.790 (6.910) | 4.070 (2.850) | Oct 30 | Oct 01 | Schroder Japan Trust* | Fin - (-) | 8.7m (8.9m) | 6.790 (6.910) | 4.070 (2.850) | Oct 30 | Oct 01 | Spire Healthcare Group* | Int 792.7m (796.7m) | -14.8m (10.8m) | -2.900 (1.600) | 0.000 (0.000) | The European Smaller Co's TST* | Fin - (-) | 17.6m (17.4m) | 5.300 (4.240) | 3.160 (3.450) | Nov 27 | Oct 29 | Thorpe (F.W.)* | Fin 172.9m (175.2m) | 32.4m (31.6m) | 23.720 (21.690) | 5.530 (5.360) | Dec 04 | Nov 05 | Pharmaceuticals $\cdot 3.15\%$

Oil & Gas +0.24% | Media -1.52% | 12 week | High | Low (p) | Stock | Price (p) | +/- | Yld | P/E | 826% | 408% | Auto Trader | 464% | -3% | 2.5 | 13.6 | 930 | 435 | Bloomsbury • | 634 | 6 | 2.6 | 19.1 | 1000 | 713 | Informa | 887% | -25% | 2.5 | - | 87% | 85% | ITV • | 87 | -6% | 7.5 | 11.4 | 1337 | 874% | Pearson | 1233 | -8% | 2.1 | 26.0 | 73% | 38 | Rouch | 47% | -4% | 12.4 | 1.1 | 3539 | 1000 | RELX | 2575 | -38 | 2.7 | 22.8 | 706% | 280% | Rightmove • | 4525* | -68 | 2.4 | 18.1 | 412% | 258% | WPP | 380% | -47% | 3.8 | 7.6 | 4348 | 2639 | Anglo Amer | 4102 | -28 | 0.7 | 66.7 | 4475 | 2496 | Arotafagusta | 3829 | -8 | 1.5 | 37.7 | 3902 | 1871 | BHP Group | 3268 | +7 | 2.9 | 22.4 | 81 | 81 | Ezar # | 81 | — | — | 0.5 | 4472 | 2000 | Fresnillo | 2703 | -29 | 4.1 | 18.1 | 3074 | 3324 | Glencore | 5734 | +14 | 2.2 | — | 858 | 3004 | Hochschilded Mng • | 5225 | -62 | 1.3 | 57.8 | 3254 | 5714 | Alemara Res | 220 | +384 | — | -0.8 | 3317 | 4899 | Rio Tinto | 7164 | -28 | 4.9 | 15.5 | Property -0.95% | 52 Week | Price (pl) | +/- | Yld | P/E | High | Low (pl) | Stock | 3060 | 1407% | Greggs • | 2004* | -34 | 3.4 | 17.1 | 376% | 123% | Halfords • | 256% | -4 | 3.5 | 17.8 | 881 | 713 | Howden Joinery | 706% | -6% | 2.9 | 15.4 | 306% | 64 | JD Sports Fash | 80% | +% | 1.6 | 9.3 | 372% | 266% | Kingfisher | 329% | -3% | 3.8 | 23.5 | 438% | 301% | Marks & Speen | 385% | -9% | 1.1 | 30.4 | 5% | 0 | Mothercare | % | -% | — | -0.3 | 15000 | 1000% | Next | 14500 | -41% | 1.8 | 19.2 | 298% | 140% | Goals • | 282% | -6% | — | 5.5 | 405 | 200 | Prinswood Tech • | 447 | — | — | 30.1 | 590 | 234% | Saga • | 750 | -8% | — | — | 380% | 293% | Sainsbury J | 321% | -1% | 4.3 | 18.8 | 732 | 545% | Smith MH • | 369 | — | — | -3.3 | 540% | 412% | Trace | 470 | -% | 3.1 | 17.1 | 600% | 200% BP | 500% | -2% | 4.5 | - | 28 | 9% Enquest | 27% | + | 2.9 | - | 550 | 300 Hunting • | 300%* | - | 2.7 | 19.8 | 3750% | 2553% Shell | 3001 | +10% | 3.1 | 16.0 | 15702 | 9882 | AstraZeneca | 13958 | -164 | 2.0 | 24.1 | 3230 | 1943 | Genus • | 2194 | -82 | 1.7 | 4.8 | 3292 | 1582 | GSK | 17661* | -61 | 4.0 | 12.5 | 3803 | 1387 | Mikawa • | 1829 | -41 | 4.0 | 11.8 | 18 | 6% | Alex Hldgs | 0 | - | - | 10 | 12508 | 750% | Big Yellow Go • | 850 | +20% | 5.0 | - | 451% | 335% | Britt Land | 394% | -1 | 5.0 | - | 2106 | 1400% | Dowrent Ldn • | 1700* | +12 | 4.6 | - | 317 | 230 | Gt Portland Est • | 308% | +2% | 2.7 | - | 202% | 140% | Graspar • | 864% | +3% | 5.1 | - | 301% | 290% | Hammerware • | 3341% | +1% | 5.5 | - | 997% | 632% | Segro | 925% | +4% | 3.4 | - | 355% | 324% | Shrachsbury Capital • | 137% | +2% | 3.1 | 3.4 | 130 | 104 | Tower Centre | 110 | - | 4.2 | - | 175 | 130% | Tritsar Big Box | 142% | +1% | 5.0 | 104 | 2008 | 1981 | Bund | 2648 | -48 | 2.8 | 18.9 | 436 | 100% | Capita | 200 | -43 | - | -1.4 | 6740 | 408 | DCC Energy | 6440 | - | 3.4 | - | 155% | 78% | Essentra | 104.7* | -2% | 1.8 | - | 3767 | 2263 | Experian | 2560 | -30 | 2.1 | 20.2 | 5000 | 31.0% | Interlink Group | 5000 | - | 2.8 | 27.0 | 250% | 103% | Int'l Workplace | 177.7* | -4 | 0.6 | - | 172% | 123% | Johnson Serv | 136% | -4% | 3.7 | 14.7 | 254 | 134% | MITE Gp | 210 | - | 2.1 | 31.8 | 507 | 253% | Russell | 299 | -6% | 3.1 | 21.3 | 325% | 218% | Serco Group | 340% | -2% | 1.9 | 17.4 | 11 | 6% | SRE | 8% | -6% | - | -1.6 | 725% | 483% | Trane P | 572.7* | -8% | 2.0 | -6.9 | Telecommunications -1.70% | 192% | 173 | BT Group | 105% | -3% | 4.3 | 17.8 | 109% | 838 | Tobacco Plus • | 843 | -18 | 5.9 | 8.3 | 132% | 83% | Vodafone | 125% | -2% | 3.2 | -88.4 | 80% | 100% | Curys● | 144% | -5% | 2.1 | 9.3 | 1574 | 707 | Durate● | 780% | +6 | 9.0 | 10.1 | 845 | 5588 | Frees Group● | 820 | +11 | - | 9.5 | 5325 | 3677 | Brit Am Tbk | 3999* | <18 | 6.1 | 11.4 | 3632 | 3406 | Imp Brands | 2467 | <17 | 6.8 | 9.8 | Transport -0.11% | 400 | 20% | 2010P • | 438% | -6 | 6.1 | 12.8 | Travel & Leisure • 1.02% | 683% | 100% | Comp Art | 676% | -6% | 1.9 | 10.3 | 878% | 405% | Entire * | 425% | -4% | 4.7 | -4.1 | 222% | 102% | FirstGroup * | 107% | -4% | 3.8 | 8.8 | 784 | 570 | Fulius X | 704 | -6 | 3.0 | 17.9 | 492% | 102% | M&G Intl Cons Air | 436% | -6% | 1.5 | 7.3 | 13300 | 6762 | Intertrust Metals | 12125% | +7% | 1.2 | 32.8 | 302 | 223% | MitchellsBldt * | 207% | -7 | — | 9.7 | 32% | 17 | Mexico Group | 23% | — | — | 1.0 | 458 | 210 | Playtech * | 302% | -4 | — | 0.9 | AIM -0.64% | 52 week | High | Low (p) | Stock | Price (p) | +/- | Yld | P/E | 139% | 71% | Rank Group * | 73%* | <1 | 4.8 | 11.4 | 81 | 530% | Wetherspan * | 862% | <10 | 1.7 | 16.2 | 3290 | 2000 | Whitbread | 1550 | <120 | 3.8 | 20.7 | World market indices | 85% | 36% | Alentra | 70% | -8% | - | -66.8 | 960 | 755 | Arabfreed | 760 | 62% | 1.0 | 7.2 | 244 | 125% | Central Asia Met | 1300% | -9% | 10.3 | 4.7 | 627% | 100% | Canae Power • | 411% | -9% | - | -66.8 | 480 | 275 | Churchill China | 350° | - | 5.8 | 8.9 | 380 | 194 | CMR Micro | 335 | - | 3.4 | -604.8 | 1538 | 880% | Cohort | 1250 | 60 | 1.5 | 33.2 | 230 | 100 | Elicor | 250 | - | - | - | 3% | % | Futura Medical | % | - | - | -0.1 | 154 | 112 | James Healthnet | 123% | - | 7.2 | 12.8 | 435 | 200 | Mpac Group | 335 | - | - | -60.5 | 1800 | 1120 | MS Indi | 1540 | +10 | 1.7 | 22.8 | 64% | 34% | Premier Miton | 35 | -6% | 8.6 | 44.9 | 194 | 46 | Trinidad Gp | 300 | - | - | 24.0 | 5% | % | Vitrac Resources | 1 | - | - | -4.2 | Commodities summary

The Alternative Investment Market is for young and growing companies. Shares may carry higher risks than those with a full quotation, and may be difficult to sell. | High | Low | Stock | Price | +/- | Grwtd/Dev | 84% | 33% | Alcoa $ | 43% | -6% | 0.8 | 0.8 | 387% | 29% | Amer Express $ | 300% | -4% | 1.2 | 4.1 | 65% | 46% | BankAmerica $ | 54% | -1% | 2.4 | 2.4 | 254% | 176% | Boeing $ | 190% | -2 | — | — | 1075% | 483% | Carpbellar $ | 865% | -47% | 0.8 | 3.6 | 217% | 340% | Chevron $ | 208% | -2% | 3.4 | 1.5 | 113% | 84% | Coca-Cola Euro $ | 182% | -5% | 2.3 | 0.8 | 99% | 74% | Colgate-Palm $ | 87% | -4% | 2.4 | 1.2 | 109% | 136 | ExxonMobil Hldgs $ | 165% | -4% | 2.5 | 1.9 | 368% | 268% | Gen Electric $ | 300% | -3% | 0.6 | 4.5 | 397% | 277% | Home Depot $ | 296% | -6% | 3.3 | 1.5 | 398 | 100 | Honeywell $ | 211% | -2% | 1.3 | 5.0 | 36% | 17% | HP $ | 32% | +1% | 3.7 | 2.2 | 222% | 399% | IBM $ | 223% | -4% | 1.0 | 1.7 | 142% | 32% | Intel $ | 133% | -2% | — | — | 56% | 29% | Intel Paper $ | 32% | +1% | 5.7 | 2.9 | 366% | 278% | JP Morgan Ch $ | 332% | -5% | 2.0 | 3.5 | 281% | 183 | Johnson&Jahn $ | 254% | -4% | 2.1 | 1.6 | 33% | 24% | Kuusing Dr Prg $ | 31% | +1% | 2.9 | 1.7 | 63% | 25% | Morgan Power $ | 52% | -5% | 2.7 | 1.5 | 343% | 229% | McDonalds $ | 233% | +1% | 3.3 | 1.6 | 356% | 82 | Merck $ | 145% | -2% | 2.4 | 0.4 | 553% | 349% | Microsoft $ | 532% | -47% | 0.7 | 4.6 | 35% | 23% | Pfizer $ | 27% | +1% | 6.3 | 0.4 | 167% | 137% | Procter & Gamble $ | 149% | -3% | 2.9 | 1.6 | 226% | 105% | Raytheon Tech $ | 184 | -5% | 1.6 | 2.8 | 497% | 332% | Rockwell $ | 458 | -2% | 1.2 | 1.9 | 52 week | High | Low | Stock | Price | +/- | Grwtd/Cor | 505% | 348 | Stone Tech ($) | 476% | -4% | 0.9 | 3.1 | 125% | 98% | Wal-Mart Stro ($) | 106% | -1% | 0.9 | 2.8 | 127% | 92% | Wal Disney ($) | 103% | -4% | 1.4 | 3.2 | 5% | 1% | Honey Hldgs ($) | 3 | -5% | 2.4 | 74.0 | Europeans +0.91%

Exchange rates | | Index | Change | Australia | All Ordinaries | 8903.50 | +44.00 | +0.50pc | Brazil | Bovespa | 205835.29 | -1076.60 | -0.52pc | China | Shanghai Composite | 3842.19 | closed | closed | France | CAC General | 7865.07 | +38.97 | +0.48pc | Germany | DAX | 25449.19 | +194.98 | +0.77pc | Hong Kong | Hang Seng | 24280.56 | +240.22 | +1.00pc | India | BSE S&P SENSEX | 73067.81 | +683.34 | +0.95pc | Japan | Nikkai | 70683.98 | +737.12 | +1.03pc | Singapore | Straits Times | 5701.54 | +37.21 | +0.66pc | Spain | Madrid SE | 1940.20 | +14.80 | +0.77pc | Switzerland | SMI Index | 13788.93 | -85.40 | +0.82pc | USA | Dow Jones | 51521.28 | +253.38 | +0.49pc | USA | Nandaq | 27599.79 | +122.48 | +0.45pc | 87% | 40% | Akzelhalal € | 58% | +2 | 3.4 | 2.3 | 91% | 52% | BMW € | 54% | +2% | 8.1 | 2.7 | 17% | 12% | Carmelior € | 15% | +2% | 3.5 | 1.8 | 77% | 63% | Continental AG € | 71 | +2 | 3.8 | 0.3 | 62% | 26% | Daimler € | 40% | +2% | 8.6 | 2.9 | 80% | 57% | Etemme € | 58% | +2 | 3.8 | 1.7 | 58% | 38% | Deutsche Post € | 56% | +2% | 2.4 | 1.6 | 34% | 23% | Deutsche Tele € | 26% | +2% | 3.8 | 2.0 | 80% | 63% | Hämolsen € | 73% | +2% | 2.7 | 2.4 | 654% | 37% | LVMH € | 385% | +4% | 3.4 | 1.7 | 82% | 60% | LufargeHolstein SP | 65% | +2% | 2.8 | 1.9 | 10% | 6% | Lufthansa € | 7% | +2% | 4.3 | 9.0 | 15 | 4% | Nokia CPI € | 9% | +2% | 1.5 | 0.9 | 25% | 25% | Michelin € | 33% | +2% | 4.1 | 1.7 | 90% | 57% | Pennard Ricard € | 59% | +2% | 2.9 | 1.4 | 27% | 20% | Philips (Akt) € | 21% | +2% | 3.9 | 0.6 | 290% | 10% | Siemens € | 27% | +2% | 1.9 | 2.0 | 84% | 52 | Società Gen € | 67% | +2% | 2.6 | 3.9 | 10% | 3% | Stellantis € | 4% | +2% | 18.7 | 1.1 | 234% | 212% | Flutex € | 225% | +2% | 1.8 | 2.0 | 81% | 49% | Total € | 25% | +2% | 4.6 | 2.0 | 45 | 28% | UBS AG SP | 40% | +2% | 2.1 | 2.3 | 37% | 27% | Voleka Evienne € | 31% | +2% | 4.8 | 0.3 | 110% | 67% | Volkswagen € | 68 | +2% | 7.5 | 2.6 | Recent issues | Sold FTSE 300 Stocks | FTSE 250 Stocks | * Ex-dividend | † Ex-comp | ‡ Ex-all | § Ex-rights | # Suspended | Cover relates to the previous year's dividend. | Yields are not of basis rate law. | Data is provided for information purposes only and is not intended for trading purposes. Speak with a financial adviser before using any data to make transactions. | 52 week | High | Low (p) | Stock | Price (p) | +/- | Yld | P/E | 10% | 9 | 1947 Oil & Gas | 9% | -4% | — | — | 137% | 133% | Aleria | 137% | — | — | -182.7 | 190 | 140 | Brown Solutions | 164% | -2 | 8.1 | 12.5 | | Tourist E1 - | Sterling E1 - | 1 Euro - | 1 Dollar - | Australia | Aus $ | 1.8441 | 1.9028 | 1.6132 | 1.4331 | Canada | Can $ | 1.8242 | 1.8880 | 1.6015 | 1.4227 | Denmark | Kross | 8.3684 | 8.8365 | 7.4745 | 6.6402 | Euro | € | 1.1502 | 1.1796 | ... | 0.8884 | Hong Kong | HK $ | 9.8237 | 10.4199 | 8.8338 | 7.8477 | India | Rupee | 97.41 | 128.0300 | 108.5422 | 96.4262 | Israel | Shekelo | 3.7764 | 4.0440 | 3.4285 | 3.0457 | Japan | Yen | 201.3093 | 209.8775 | 177.9315 | 158.0700 | Kuwait | Dinar | ... | 0.4111 | 0.3485 | 0.3096 | New Zealand | NZ $ | 2.2596 | 2.3619 | 2.0024 | 1.7789 | Norway | Kross | 12.1554 | 12.6996 | 10.7665 | 9.5647 | Pakistan | Rupee | 340.39 | 367.7536 | 311.7769 | 276.9750 | Saudi Arabia | Ryal | 4.7032 | 4.9840 | 4.2253 | 3.7537 | Singapore | $ | 1.6034 | 1.6963 | 1.4381 | 1.2775 | South Africa | Rand | 21.0387 | 21.9444 | 18.6042 | 16.5275 | Sweden | Korea | 12.6482 | 13.2569 | 11.2390 | 9.9845 | Switzerland | Franc | 1.0565 | 1.1036 | 0.9356 | 0.8312 | Thailand | Balt | 42.7111 | 44.6456 | 37.8499 | 33.6250 | UAE | Dirham | 4.6756 | 4.8785 | 4.1342 | 3.6728 | UK | £ | ... | ... | 0.8478 | 0.7532 | USA | $ | 1.2890 | 1.3277 | 1.1257 | ... | Money & Rates | Name | Last close | Sell | Mid Buy | Change on day | ---

AIA Investment Managers | | Price | Change | Gold | per troy oz | $402.87 | +22.65 | +0.55pc | Silver | per troy oz | £46.18 | -0.09 | -0.18pc | Krugerrand | £3086.36 | -1.12 | -0.04pc | New Sovereign | £721.55 | -11.14 | -1.52pc | Maples | £3115.13 | -1.29 | -0.04pc | Platinum | per oz | £1286.81 | -17.78 | -1.36pc | Palladium | per oz | £385.98 | -8.32 | -0.93pc | Copper† | grade A | £10852.60 | -58.90 | -0.54pc | Tin† | high grade | £40773.52 | -437.37 | -1.06pc | Lead† | £1409.58 | -6.92 | -0.49pc | Zinc† | special high grade | £2941.38 | +7.24 | +0.29pc | Aluminium† | high grade | £2367.63 | +2.68 | +0.12pc | Nickel† | £11802.36 | -51.70 | -0.44pc | Baltic Dry Index* | 3002.00 | -68.00 | -2.23pc | Wheat | per tonne | £209.25 | +0.25 | +0.12pc | Brent Crude | Dec settlement | $100.58 | +0.25 | +0.26pc | ---

Fundsmith LLP

22 Bishopsgate, London, EC2N 48Q

www.axa-im.co.uk Cast Svs: 0345 777 5511 | AXA P&L & Planet Equity R GBP | - | 318.1 | -0.00 | Ameri Tech Acc | - | 1841 | -12.69 | Biotech Acc | - | 210.4 | 6.50 | Global Sust Mergold R Acc | - | 821.4 | -0.10 | Global Tech | - | 416.7 | -0.20 | Global Therapeutics R GBP Acc | - | 2807 | -19.90 | Health Acc | - | 2422 | -41.30 | Japan R GBP Acc | - | 3034 | -6.80 | Managed Income R Gross Acc | - | 221.2 | -6.60 | Managed Income R Gross Div | - | 82.38 | -8.25 | UK Select Opps R Acc | - | 4046 | -23.50 | UK Select Opps R Inv | - | 2682 | -41.00 | UK Smirr Cos Acc | - | 356.9 | -2.20 | UK Sust Equity R Acc | - | 570.0 | -0.10 | RPI (1987-100) | Aug 421.60 | +0.6pc | +3.4pc | RPIX (Target 2.5pc) | Aug 414.60 | -2.4 | +3.3pc | CPI (2015-100 target 2pc) | Aug 143.60 | +0.5pc | +3.3pc | Lloyds house price index | Aug 514.70 | -0.2pc | -0.4pc | Bank Rate | 3.75pc | Nationwide Base Mortgage Rate | 5.75pc | US Fed Funds | 3.75-4.00pc | US Long Bonds Yld | 5.63pc | European base rate | 2.85pc | ---

BLUE WHALE GROWTH FUND | Name | init chge | Sell | Mid Buy | Change no day | \*Copyright Battle Exchange Information Services Ltd. \*Data provided by the London Metal Exchange.

Blue Whale Capital

0345 307 3439

www.bluewhale.co.uk

---

BNY MELLON

---

BNY Mellon Fund Managers

Fundsmith LLP

PO Box 10646, Chalmford, Essex, CM99 2BW.

0330 123 1815

www.fundsmith.co.uk/ensue/sensifundsmith.co.uk

BNY Mellon Fund Managers

Investors: 0800 614330 Brokers: 08085 660000

www.bnymellsonit.co.uk,

clientservice@bnymellon.com

BNY Mellon Investment Funds (ICVC)

Sterling Income Shares | Global Income | 0% | 338.27 | -0.36 | Corporate Bond | 0% | 89.12 | -0.24 | Equity Inc | 0% | 342.69 | - | Equity Inc Broker | 0% | 98.37 | - | Glob Asia Net‡ | 0% | 308.35 | - | Glob Multi Strat | 0% | 129.77 | -0.8 | Inflation-Limited Corp Bld | 0% | 136.78 | -0.89 | Long-Term Global Equity | 0% | 532.85 | -1.05 | Asian Income | 0% | 209.83 | -0.3 | European Opps | 0% | 473.39 | -1.07 | Global Dynamic Bld | 0% | 83.46 | -0.84 | Global High Yield Bld | 0% | 45.94 | -0.22 | International Bld | 0% | 388.79 | -0.23 | Multi-Asset Bld | 0% | 330.28 | -0.36 | Multi Asset Six Return | 0% | 399.82 | -0.81 | Multi Asset Growth | 0% | 1666.2 | -0.4 | Oriental | 0% | 1271.84 | - | Real Return A | 0% | 137.93 | -0.53 | UK Equity Fund | 0% | 1302.27 | -0.49 | UK Income | 0% | 800.43 | -0.38 | UK Opportunities | 0% | 402.84 | -0.73 | B Shares | Global Income | 0% | 264.67 | -0.38 | Corporate Bond | 0% | 97.03 | -0.24 | Equity Inc | 0% | 557.1 | - | Equity Inc Broker | 0% | 71.39 | - | Glob Asia Net | 0% | 138.6 | -0.42 | Name | Unit change | Sell | Mkt Buy | Change on day | Gilex Math Strat | 0% | 140.48 | -0.51 | Inflation Linked Corp Bd | 0% | 136.96 | -0.09 | Long-Term Global Equity | 0% | 284.78 | -1.05 | Asian Income | 0% | 202.24 | -0.3 | Continental Company | 0% | 211.56 | -1.67 | Global Dynamics Bd | 0% | 81.75 | -0.89 | Global High Yield Bd | 0% | 73.88 | -0.22 | International Bd | 0% | 88.64 | -0.23 | Multi-Asset Bd | 0% | 209.64 | -0.39 | Multi-Asset Div Return | 0% | 154.89 | -0.81 | Multi Asset Growth | 0% | 234.24 | -0.4 | Oriental | 0% | 260.01 | ... | Real Return A | 0% | 129.82 | -0.53 | UK Equity Fund | 0% | 201.52 | -0.5 | UK Income | 0% | 204.79 | -0.38 | UK Opportunities | 0% | 225.86 | -0.72 | Emerging Income | 0% | 141.86 | -0.54 | Global Emerging Mkts | 0% | 298.74 | -0.47 | Global Equity Fund | 0% | 401.33 | -0.19 | Multi Asset Inc | 0% | 142.32 | -0.46 | Discretionary Unit Fund | No 1, Poultry, London EC29 BJR. 020 7415 4130 | Mouthland Discretionary Inc. | 100 | 258.7 | ---

Fundsmith | Fundsmith Equity T Acc | - | 713.64 | <12.83 | Fundsmith Equity T Inc | - | 644.1 | <10.84 | Name | Istt chge | Sell | Mid Buy | Change on day | ---

GUINNESS GLOBAL INVESTORS

Janus Henderson Investors

PO Box 9023 Cholmsford, CM99 2W6

Enquiries: 0800 832 832

Website: www.januzhenderson.com

Guinness Global Investors

18 Smith Square, London, SWSP 3H2

www.guinnessgl.com

+44(0)20 7222 5703 | Sustainable Energy Acc | - | 25,835 | - | Global Investors Acc | - | 48,731 | - | Global Equity Income Inc | - | 24,655 | - | Available as an USA | ---

Janus Henderson | Cautious Managed A Acc | 5.00 | 348.4 | ... | Cautious Managed A Inc | 5.00 | 149.9 | ... | China Opps A Acc | 5.00 | 127.5 | ... | Emerging Wits Opps A Acc | 5.00 | 321.3 | ... | European Set Opps A Acc | 5.00 | 302.9 | ... | Fixed Inst Mlty Inc A Inc | 4.25 | 16.55 | ... | Global Care Growth A Inc | 4.50 | 738.9 | ... | Global Equity Inc A Inc | 5.25 | 86.88 | ... | Global Select Acc | 4.25 | 864.7 | ... | Global Strategic Cap Acc | 5.00 | 458.7 | ... | Global Technology A Acc | 5.00 | 708.7 | ... | Inst UK 600 Opp Tr | - | 1712204 | ... | James Asian Dividend to UIt | 5.00 | 354.2 | ... | James Emeri Wits Asia A Acc | 5.00 | 1879 | ... | James Multi-Wgt Inst Growth A | 5.25 | 390.8 | ... | Multi-Wgt Auto Rvt A Acc | 5.00 | 198.1 | ... | Multi-Wgt Active A Acc | 5.00 | 338.3 | <0.8 | Multi-Wgt Stratton A Inc | 5.25 | 136.4 | ... | Multi-Wgt Dividil A Acc | - | 335.3 | ... | Name | Inert change | Sell | Mid Buy | Change on day | Multi-Myr Inc&Earth A Acc | 5.00 | 231.7 | ... | Multi-Myr Mungti A Acc | 5.00 | 407.2 | <1.8 | Multi-Myr Mungti A Inc | 5.00 | 375.6 | <1.7 | Sterling Bond Acc | 4.25 | 226.9 | ... | Sterling Bond Inc | 4.25 | 54.7 | ... | Strategic Bond A Inc | 4.00 | 92.1 | ... | UK Absolute Return A Acc | 5.00 | 207 | ... | UK Alpha A Acc | 5.25 | 106.3 | ... | UK Smaller Cos A ACC | 5.00 | 942.1 | ... | UK Equity Income A Inc | 5.00 | 684.1 | ... | UK Index Opps Tst A Acc | - | 174,8300 | ... | US Growth A Acc | 5.00 | 2041 | ... | ---

J.P.Morgan | Name | lnt chge | Sell | Mid Buy | Change on day | Asset Management

J.P. Morgan Asset Management

60 Victoria Embankment, London, EC4Y GJP

Clients: 0800 204020. Brokerline 0800 727770 | JPW Series C Net Dis | - | 284,700.00 | -3,200.00 | JPW Jappon C Net Acc | - | 564,000.00 | -5,200.00 | JPW Natural Res C Net ACC | - | 1780,000.00 | -12,000.00 | JPW UK Equity Core E Acc | - | 894,700.00 | -3,200.00 | JPW UK Equity Core E Inc | - | 90,000.00 | -5,200.00 | JPW US Eq Inc C Net | - | 583,300.00 | -1,000.00 | JPW US Eq Inc C Net Dis | - | 583,000.00 | -1,000.00 | JPW US Select C Net Acc | - | 1288,000.00 | -6,000.00 | JPW US Sdn Cos Growth C Net Ac | - | 1288 | -5 | # JUPITER

Jupiter Unit Trust Managers Ltd

The Zig Zag Building, 70 Victoria Street, London,

SW1E 65Q

020 3817 1000 | Jupiter Asian Inc. L Acc | - | 371.2 | - | Jupiter Asian Inc. L Inc | - | 248.93 | - | Jupiter China L Acc | - | 115.69 | - | Jupiter China L Inc | - | 105.45 | - | Jupiter Corp Bond L Inc | - | 49.01 | - | Jupiter Sdn L Inc | - | 884.12 | - | Jupiter European L Inc | - | 3885.52 | - | Jupiter Euro Inc L Acc | - | 85.00829 | - | Jupiter Euro Inc L Acc | - | 45.78838 | - | Jupiter Euro Special Sits L Acc | - | 585.42 | - | Jupiter Fire Opp L Inc | - | 1203.8 | - | Jupiter Fund Of the Tota L Inc | - | 402.33 | - | Jupiter Global Eng Mlth L Acc | - | 234.37 | - | Jupiter Global Fin Invest L Acc | - | 228.68 | - | Jupiter Income Trust L Inc | - | 684.21 | - | Jupiter India L Acc | - | 204.19 | - | Jupiter Japan Inc L Acc | - | 224.2 | - | Jupiter Japan Inc L Inc | - | 150.96 | - | Jupiter Merke Ball Prothe L Acc | - | 348.12 | - | Jupiter Merke Ball Prothe L Inc | - | 193.5 | - | Jupiter Merke Grth Prothe L Acc | - | 838.36 | - | Jupiter Merke Grth Prothe L Inc | - | 808.66 | - | Jupiter Merke Inc Prothe L Acc | - | 472.3 | - | Jupiter Merke Inc Prothe L Inc | - | 166.3 | - | Jupiter Merke WW Prothe L Inc | - | 608.29 | - | Jupiter Merke WW Prothe L Acc | - | 839.03 | - | Jupiter Monthly All Inc L Acc | - | 138.19 | - | Jupiter Monthly All Inc L Inc | - | 22.64 | - | Name | Unit, cloger | Sell | Mkt Buy | Change on day | Jupiter Merlot Select 1, Acc | - | - | 138.23 | ... | Jupiter Merlot Select 1, Dis | - | - | 56.37 | ... | Jupiter Responsible Inc 1, Acc | - | - | 304.01 | ... | Jupiter Responsible Inc 1, Inc | - | - | 75.52 | ... | Jupiter Global Street Bond 1, Acc | - | - | 108.41 | ... | Jupiter Global Street Bond 1, Inc | - | - | 52.06 | ... | Jupiter UK Growth 1, Inc | - | - | 273.65 | ... | Jupiter UK Dynamic Eq.1, DIS | - | - | 201.86 | ... | Jupiter Unrated Var F | 3.50 | - | 426.29 | ... | Jupiter US Term Cns Inst 1 Acc | - | - | 80.00 | ... | Jupiter US Term Cns Ret Acc | - | - | 74.46 | ... | Marks & Spencer Unit Trust Management Ltd | Name | Inlt chge | Sell | Mid Buy | Change on day | Eqty-Inv Charles GBP Acc | - | 45078.2 | +163.96 | Eqty-Inv Charles GBP Dis | - | 3882.76 | -4.82 | CAR - Net Income reinvested. | Kings Meadow, Chester, CH909 9UT | 06/30 3:33 18:35 | High Income Inc. | - | 85.69 | 85.69 | High Income Acc. | - | 262.4 | 262.4 | UK Select Fund Inc. | - | 472.8 | 472.8 | UK Selection Fund | - | 1083.5 | 1083.5 | UK 100 Ctr's Fund Inc. | - | 314.4 | 314.4 | UK 100 Ctr's Fund Acc. | - | 711.8 | 711.8 | M wide Main Inc. | - | 702.58 | +6.28 | M wide Main Acc. | - | 1254.01 | +6.34 | Global Bond Fund Inc. | - | 82.35 | - | Morgan Equity Growth Fund Acc | - | 194.80 | - | Morgan Growth Fund Inc | - | 168.87 | - | Morgan Growth Fund Acc | - | 176.33 | - | UK Equity Fund Acc | - | 175.14 | - | UK Equity Fund Inc | - | 136.58 | - | ---

M&G

PO Box 9039, Chalmford, CN99 2KG

Eng: 0800 300 300. UT Deal: 0800 328-3396 | Conversion-FY | 5.00 | 1239.89 | ... | FV600 Balanced Fund Dis | 5.00 | 220.76 | ... | ---

initial charge: | Charity Wall Asset Acc | - | 1032.58 | +41.28 | Charity Wall Asset Dis | - | 108.08 | +4.26 | # How to haggle for cheaper private school fees

Despite the advertised cost, you may receive a discount and 'it never hurts to ask'. By Charlotte Duck

PAYING for your children to receive a top-notch education has never been more difficult.

After the Labour Government's triple whammy of VAT, the end of business rates relief and increased National Insurance contributions, school fees in the UK increased by 17pc in 2025 and a further 4.5pc in September 2026, according to analysis by The Telegraph. Average fees now sit at about £22,000 including VAT for a day school and £53,928 for boarding - a stretch, even for high-earning households.

For those seeking ways to reduce the costs, there are few options. Many schools are being forced to cut back on bursaries, while the wealthiest families secure a third of available grants.

But what if you simply asked for a discount instead? We've enlisted the help of private education professionals to find out whether haggling could help you save on school fees and how to go about it. While all schools publish their fees publicly, there may still be scope to ask for a discount – in fact, about a third of privately educated students receive some sort of help with fees, according to the Independent Schools Council (ISC), so you certainly wouldn't be the only one.

“Negotiating discounts on school fees has become far more common since the introduction of VAT, which has seen a reduction of around 30,000 students attending private school, according to the ISC,” said Leanne Gunns, the founder of accountancy firm The Profit Hero. “It is definitely allowed and – from conversations with other parents – has been successful.”

Clare Jupp, the managing director of The School Fees Company, added: "Schools have become much more commercially aware and are offering all kinds of opportunities.

"[These include] a 5pc reduction if you pay your fees up in full, tapered discounts for the second and third

sibling, and flexible payment plans." If these commonplace discounts aren't published on a school's website, a quick message to the school to find out what is available might prove extremely fruitful.

"It is always reasonable to ask whether a school offers any fee discounts, sibling discounts, reductions for advance payment or other forms of assistance," said Vicky Collins, the founder and chief executive of Total Tutoring.

"Some of these may be published policies while others may be discretionary. The amount of flexibility will depend on the individual school and its financial position."

It's difficult to predict which institutions will be receptive to your discount request.

While a school with places available may have more of a financial incentive than one which is oversubscribed, they may also be less likely to be able to afford to subsidise a place.

"Charitable status, bursary funds, governing arrangements and the school's admissions and finance policies may all affect what is possible," said Ms Collins. It's impossible to know a school's individual position until the question has been asked.

The ideal time to approach the school about this – and when you have the most negotiating power – is before your child starts, or during the admissions process.

"There is a lot of financial assistance available but parents do need to do their research well in advance of their child starting school and speak directly with the schools they are considering to understand what financial support may be available," said Claudia Dudman, the editor of Independent School Parent. If your child is already at the school and you later find yourself struggling to pay the fees, it's best to time a haggling discussion before a new academic year or new term – and, most importantly, before you go into arrears. While you may find this kind of discussion awkward, it's not something to put off until you are really struggling.

Whom to approach will depend on the school but it is likely to be the

admissions office in the first instance and then the bursar, finance director or headteacher.

If you're making an individual request, it's a good idea to email or meet the relevant person and explain the situation.

"It is best to approach the conversation politely, explain the circumstances clearly and ask what support or flexibility may be available," said Ms Collins. "Families should avoid presenting the discussion as an ultimatum or implying that the school is obliged to reduce its fees."

If you know of several like-minded parents, there are examples where four or five families have banded together into consortiums and gone to a school with a proposition. This has given them more negotiating power and helped them to secure discounts for 10 to 12 children in one go.

Instead of going into discussions with a particular figure in mind – for

MAIN RECEPTION

Average private school fees now sit at about £22,000 including VAT for a day school and £53,928 for boarding

example, 10pc or 20pc - find out what assistance is available. The amount a school can offer, if anything, will depend on several factors and the school may ask for evidence of hardship before confirming the amount they are willing to offer.

"Any reduction would need to be justifiable in the minds of the head, finance team and/or governors.

For example, there might be a clear reason relating to family circumstances, the number of siblings attending, the timing of the application or the school's need to fill places," added Ms Collins.

The amount you could save will depend on a number of factors, including the financial position of the school, the child in question and the family's circumstances. In most cases, it's likely that a school would offer a small discount of about 5-10pc, particularly if you pay in advance or have more than one child attending. It has been suggested that schools are more likely to discount fees if parents can offer some sort of sweetener.

For example, organising a school event or working for the school in some capacity.

Ms Collins strongly advised against this type of approach. "That could feel uncomfortable and would not necessarily fit with the school's normal financial or governance processes," she says. "It may be appropriate to explain relevant skills, experience or ways in which your child and family could contribute to school life but I would see that as part of the wider relationship with the school, rather than something to use as leverage."

While many schools offer discounted fee schemes for teachers and staff, which can be extremely generous – and sometimes up to 50pc – any discount would need to be negotiated as a bonus and only offered as part of a formal recruitment process.

BUSINESS BULLETIN

---

Construction industry shows signs of recovery

The UK's construction sector declined at its slowest pace since January last month as it edged closer to recovery, according to new figures.

The S&P Global UK construction PMI showed a reading of 46.1 in September, improving from 44.3 in August.

It marked the strongest industry performance for eight months.

The latest figures show the industry remained firmly in the contraction territory (below 50) having been declining since January 2025, but at a slower pace than in recent months.

---

Paramount completes takeover of Warner Bros

Paramount Skydance has completed its blockbuster \$110bn (£82.8bn) takeover of Warner Bros Discovery.

The deal creates a Hollywood heavyweight called Skydance and hands David Ellison, chief executive, control of one of the world's largest entertainment companies.

It brings together the studios behind Mission: Impossible, Harry Potter and DC Studios alongside major television and streaming networks such as CBS, CNN, Paramount+ and HBO Max, forming an entertainment group spanning film, TV and news.

---

Ikea takes on eBay with second-hand online site

Ikea has launched a second-hand marketplace for its own furniture and homewares as it takes on the likes of eBay and Vinted.

The Swedish retail giant said the platform would provide greater access to affordable Ikea products, with prices on average 60 per cent lower than new items.

Members of Ikea Family, the firm's loyalty scheme, will be able to list home furnishing products, with the exception of mattresses, appliances and food, Sellers scan an eligible item to create a listing.

---

Informa buys Clarion Events for £2.24bn

Digital services giant Informa is buying the company behind some of the world's biggest trade shows for £2.24bn, as it builds an events empire spanning defence, gaming and technology.

Clarion Events runs more than 125 global exhibitions and events around the world.

Informa's shows include DSEI, the international defence and security exhibition held at London's ExCeL, as well as events covering gaming, consumer electronics, energy and technology.

Keep us forever without borders

HENRY GRAY HAS WORKED FOR MSF IN NUMEROUS CRISES AROUND THE WORLD.

"I've worked for MSF on and off for twenty years, but I still remember the first project I worked on. We were setting up a hospital in the middle of a forest in the Democratic Republic of Congo. There had been a lot of fighting in this area, and although the conflict had died down, the legacy of war was still very visible. About 125,000 people lived in the immediate area, but there were no services, and not even basic medical care was available. Women couldn't get caesareans if they needed them; there were no medicines, no vaccinations, and no treatment for diseases. It was a desperate situation, and that's when MSF sent us to get an emergency hospital up and running.

From the start, our goal was to provide medical care and save lives. But we knew that for this work to continue and to have lasting impact, we couldn't just provide medical care. We needed to bring the community on board; we needed to hire local staff and train local people to do the jobs that we were doing. So that's what we did.

It was fantastic to see the immediate impact of that lifesaving work. But what really surprised me was seeing how the hospital transformed the entire area. I still remember the day we switched on the generators that would power the lights in and around the hospital. Suddenly, schoolchildren started turning up to sit under the lights and do their homework. Over the weeks, businesses sprang up, and the local economy grew.

Over the years I've worked in war zones, in Ebola outbreaks and in natural disasters, and I've seen over and over again how the simple actions we take as MSF can have massive and positive knock-on effects for people, for their families and their communities.

But none of those simple acts happens without your support. MSF doesn't take money from governments. We're privately funded by people just like you. By leaving a gift in your will to MSF, you can know that your gift will not only save lives, but will change lives now and into the future. Thank you."

Above 4-year-old Franyeli receives medical care at MSF's mobile clinic in Puerto Alegre, Colombia. Photo: ©Natalia Romero Peñuela/MSF

REQUEST OUR LEGACY GUIDE

Search MSF Wills call 020 7404 6600 or scan the QR code "We will always be committed to providing care to those who need it. But that legacy is not ours alone."

You can also contact us by post: Legacy Team, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF UK), Unit 12–13, 9 Prescot Street, London E1 8PR

---

Forever without borders – thanks to your support

Dr Rachael Craven,

Anaesthetist and President

For more than 50 years, we've brought medical care to people who urgently need it, no matter where they are. We've performed surgery on floors, in corridors and by the light of head torches. We've helped mothers deliver babies in warzones and resuscitated people caught up in explosions.

Because we don't take any government funding, it is only the generosity of people like you that helps keep us going. This means we remain independent, impartial and neutral, and can deliver care to anyone who needs it.

By leaving a gift in your will, you'll help to make sure our teams will always be able to respond, without hesitation and without borders.

1 in 5 of our projects are funded by gifts in wills

Email: announcements.ads@telegraph.co.uk Book online: announcements.telegraph.co.uk

---

Court Circular

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BUCKINGHAM PALACE October 6th

The King, Patron, the Cobbe Collection Trust, was present at the Service of Remembrance and Thanksgiving for Mr Alec Cobbe (Founder) which was held at St James's Church, 197 Piccadilly, London WI, this afternoon.

Later, the Rt Hon Edward Miliband MP (Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs) was received in audience by His Majesty.

The Rt Hon Andrew Burnham MP (Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury) had an audience of The King.

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KENSINGTON PALACE October 6th

The Prince of Wales, Patron, National Emergencies Trust, this morning launched the "Ready Together" Disaster Preparedness Toolkit at Archie Gooch Pavilion, Canal Way, Iminster, Somerset.

His Royal Highness this afternoon met representatives from the Ilminster Area Resilience Group on Silver Street, Ilminster. The Prince of Wales

The Prince of Wales subsequently held a discussion on disaster preparedness at Sweet Surprise, 23 Silver Street.

His Royal Highness later visited Devon and Somerset Fire Service at Ilminster Fire Station, Butts,

Ilminster, and was received by His

Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant of

Somerset (Mr Mohammed Saddiq).

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ST JAMES'S PALACE October 6th

The Duke of Edinburgh, Trustee, The Duke of Edinburgh's Award, this morning attended a Business Breakfast at Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark Street, London SE1.

His Royal Highness, Past Master, this afternoon attended a Worshipful Company of Gardeners Senior Past Masters' Diamond Jubilee Luncheon at the Garrick Club, 15 Garrick Street, London WC2.

The Duke of Edinburgh, Chairman of the Board of Trustees. The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award Foundation, later held a Meeting.

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ST JAMES PALACE

ST JAMES'S PALACE

October 6th

The Princess Royal, accompanied by Vice Admiral Sir Tim

Laurence, today carried out the following engagements in Oslo,

Norway:

Her Royal Highness, Patron, Anglo-Norwegian Resistance Commemoration Project, this afternoon attended a Reception at Oslo Militare Samfund, Myntgata.

The Princess Royal, Patron, Anglo-Norwegian Resistance Commemoration Project, later unveiled a Statue of 'Coastwatchers - Norwegian agents working for SIS and SOE 1940-1945', Normandieplassen, Port of Oslo.

Her Royal Highness, Patron, Anglo-Norwegian Resistance Commemoration Project, this evening attended a Reception followed by a Dinner at Norwegian Shipowners' Association, Rådhusgata.

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KENSINGTON PALACE October 6th

The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, accompanied by the British High Commissioner to the Republic of Botswana (His Excellency Mr Giles Enticknap) today carried out the following engagements in Gaborone, Botswana.

Their Royal Highnesses this morning called upon The President of the Republic of Botswana at Government Enclave, State House Drive.

The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester afterwards laid a wreath at the Gaborone War Memorial.

Their Royal Highnesses later viewed the 'Botswana at 60: A Journey Through the Lens' Exhibition followed by a Lunch at Botswana National Museum.

The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester this afternoon visited the Youth Impact School Project at Phillip Moshotle Primary School.

Their Royal Highnesses subsequently participated in a conservation tour at Mokolodi Nature Reserve.

The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester this evening attended a Dinner at Mokolodi Nature Reserve, in support of Botswana's leadership in conservation and sustainable wildlife management.

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Today's birthdays

Prof Maj Gen Julian

Thompson, Commander,

3 Commando Brigade, 1981-83 (including Falklands Campaign), 92; Mr Thomas Keneally, author, 91; Lord Glenarthur, former Conservative

---

government minister, 82; Mr Mike Casebourne, Chief Executive

and Secretary, Institution of Civil Engineers, 1999-2001, 81; Mr Kevin Godley, singer, songwriter, drummer and video director, 81; Sir David Wallace, physicist; Master of Churchill College, University of Cambridge, 2006-14, 81; Dame Jenny Abramsky, Chair, Royal Academy of Music, 80; Mr Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, 74; Mr Yo-Yo Ma, cellist, 71; Dame Jayne Torvill, professional ice skater and broadcaster; Olympic ice dance gold medallist, Sarajevo 1984, 69; Mr Simon Cowell, music executive and broadcaster, 67; Mr Micky Flanagan, comedian, 64; Lord Mackinlay of Richborough, Conservative MP for South Thanet, 2015-24, 60; Ms Pippa Funnell, event rider, 58; Mr Thom Yorke, singer, songwriter and guitarist (Radiohead), 58; Mr Tim Minchin, musical comedian, actor, 51; Ms Felicity Aston, who was the first woman to ski solo across Antarctica, 49; Ms Alison Balsom (Lady Mendes), classical trumpeter, 48, and Mr Trent Alexander-Arnold, England footballer, 28.

Today is the anniversary of the birth of Archbishop Desmond Tutu in 1931. It is also the anniversary of the death, in 1918, of Sir Hubert Parry, composer of the music for Jerusalem.

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Deaths

BURGESS.—David Arthur Townley died peacefully at home on 27th September 2026, aged 78. He leaves behind his long-term companion Gay, his niece Emma and his nephews Freddie, Archie and Harvey. A Funeral Service will be held at St Petros Church, Dartmouth on Tuesday 27th October 2026 at 12:30 p.m. Online Ref: W0053282

DONOVAN.—Ann (formerly Charkham), died on 30th September 2026, aged 88. Service to be held at Easthampstead Park Cemetery on 16th October 2026 at 10 a.m.

Online Ref: W0053307

PRICE.—Edward Llewellyn. Passed away peacefully on 27th September 2026, aged 88 years. Beloved husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather.

Online Ref: W0053329

PURSLOW.—Michael John, Died peacefully on 22nd September 2026, aged 93 years. Much loved husband of the late Jill, dearly loved father to Amanda and grandfather to Jack and Oliver. He will be very sadly missed by all who knew and loved him. Funeral Service to be held at Clandon Wood on Thursday 5th November at 11 a.m. Online Ref: W0053265

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Forthcoming marriages

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Mr J.A. Bantoft and Miss A.K. Edmundson

The engagement is announced between James, son of Lucinda Bantoft, of Fulham, London, and the late Stephen Bantoft, and Annabel, daughter of Guy and Paula Edmundson, of Earl Soham, Suffolk.

Online ref: W0053244

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Mr P.C.R. Groom and Miss H.M. Ryan

The engagement is announced between Pelham, son of Mr and Mrs Jeremy Groom, of Calne, Wiltshire, and Hunter, daughter of Mr Frank Ryan, of Greenwich, Connecticut, USA, and Ms Elizabeth Ryan, of Branford, Connecticut, USA. Online ref: W0053154

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Clergy news

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Appointments

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO

Vanessa Hamlett, c., Hampton Wick (London), to be v, Nork with Burgh Heather (Guildford); Vusi Mabuza, pto, Willesden Episcopal Area (London), to be assist p, Harlington St Peter and Paul and Harmondsworth St Mary the Virgin (same dio); Kris Kramer to be pto (London); Kris Kramer to be pto (London); Claire Dowding to be pto (London); Alan Boddy to be pto (London); Vernon Fray to be pto (London); Gary Eaborn, c (SSM), St John's Wood Church (London), to be assoc v, St John's Wood Church.

Resignations and retirements

Rev Bill Merrington, chapl,

Pocklington School (York), to retire

on Aug 31 2026; Susan Seed, r,

Slyne with Hest St Luke and

Halton St Wilfrid with Aughton St

Saviour (Blackburn), to retire on

Aug 31 2026. Can Fiona Brampton,

p-in-c, North Leightonstone, and

special adv, World Mission (Ely), to

retire on August 31 2026.

---

Conference lunch

United and Cecil Club

Boba Blackman, MP, was the speaker at a conference lunch held yesterday by the United and Cecil Club at Hotel du Vin. Mrs Wendy Morton, MP, was in the chair and Mr David Gray also spoke.

---

Bridge news

Last week the highest score in the EBU morning Relaxed Games was 74.40%, writes Julian Pottage, Bridge Correspondent.

One pair achieved this score: Ulla Adilz partnering Denver Gorman on Friday.

The highest score in the EBU evening Relaxed Games was 73.75%, achieved by Sarah Duncan partnering Michael Martin also on Friday.

The Daily Telegraph.

---

Bridge Hand

LONDON, THURSDAY OCTOBER 7, 1926

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LESS DRUNKENNESS. FALL IN CONVICTIONS. EFFECT OF TRADE DEPRESSION.

A considerable decrease in the number of convictions for drunkenness is reported in last year's licensing statistics for England and Wales. The total of 75,077 was less than that for 1924 by 4,005, or 5.1 per cent., and was lower than in any year since 1919. The decline, however, occurred wholly during the last seven months of the year, and is attributed mainly to trade depression and the increase of unemployment.

In England, as distinct from Wales, convictions fell, as compared, with 1924, by 3,371, due to decreases in the figures for the northern counties of 3,106, or 7.6 per cent., and for Greater London of 462, or 1.5 per cent., and a slight increase in the southern counties. In Wales there was a decrease of 634, of 16.1 per cent. Taking the country as a whole, the total of 75,077 convictions is (by about 2,400) little more, than two and a half times the lowest figures, recorded in 1918, and about two-fifths of the highest figure, recorded in 1913.

Of the total convictions 62,843, or nearly 84 per cent., related to males and 12,234, or 16 per cent., to females - about the same proportions as in the previous year. For men the convictions numbered slightly less than three times the low record in 1918, and for women they were somewhat less than double that record. It is noted that the occurrence of the drunkenness which leads to conviction is unevenly distributed over the days of the week. Saturday is the most fruitful day for arrests, and contributes about 33 per cent. of the total; Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday give some 9 or 10 per cent. each; Monday and Friday show 12 and 16 per cent. respectively.

Cases of methylated spirit drinking fell from 693 in 1924 to 444 in the year under review, 241 men and 208 women being convicted. Measures recently taken to make methylated spirits more unpalatable may have contributed to the decline.

The reduction in the number of licensed premises, and still more in the proportion of such premises to population, continues steadily. At the beginning of last year there were in England and Wales 80,420 on-licenses and 22,131 off-licenses, giving proportions of 20.68 of the former and 5.69 of the latter (or together 26,37 premises) per 10,000 of the population. In the ten years 1895 to 1904 the average annual decrease in on-licenses was 386. In 1924 the reduction was 667, and for the twenty years 1905-24 the average was 953.

---

GROWTH OF CLUBS.

The decrease for 1925 will probably prove to have been about 560, leaving a total of about 79,860 on-licenses at the beginning of 1926.

In the period since 1907 the decrease year by year has almost continuously grown less, but, on the other hand, the population has increased, so that whereas the figure of 95,517 on-licenses on Jan. 1, 1908, represented 27.24 licenses per 10,000 of the population, or one on-license for every 367 persons, the figure of 80,420 on-licenses on Jan. 1, 1925, represents no more than 20.68 licenses per 10,000 of the population, or one on-license for every 484 persons. Last year there was a net reduction of four in the number of off-licenses.

Clubs, on the other hand, continue to increase. On Jan. 1, 1925, there were 11,780 registered clubs, showing a rise of 309 during the preceding twelve months - a smaller increase than occurred in any year since 1919. Clubs increased by 282, or some 3 per cent., of the previous total in England and by 27, or over 4 per cent., in Wales. Over the whole period since 1904 clubs have increased by 5,409 as compared with a decrease in on-licenses of 19,509. It is estimated that during 1925 the number of registered clubs increased further by upwards of 354.

---

MAN OF MANY SECRETARIES.

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. PARIS, Wednesday.

The fact of having 178 secretaries might be supposed to be a mark of distinction in the world of business, but it has led to Grimaud, a civil engineer and inventor, being arrested on a charge of fraud. Grimaud established office in Paris. He then advertised for a confidential secretary at a salary of 2,000 francs a month, plus a certain percentage of profits, a condition of the engagement being, however, that the secretary must deposit 20 or 30 thousand francs as security. The trouble appears to be that Grimaud eventually engaged 178 secretaries on these terms, and thus had about 4,000,000 francs placed at his disposal.

When (their salaries) was not forthcoming the secretaries organised an association for the protection of their interests. It was decided that the best plan was to give their employer time to realise some of his schemes, so that they would not only safeguard their own capital, but share in the profits, but one secretary objected and reported the affair to the police.

HIGHLY PAID INCOMPETENTS.

A protest against “highly-paid incompetents,” a handicap under which, he said, British trade has long struggled, was made this afternoon at a conference of manufacturers, held under the auspices of the Manchester Publicity Club, by Sir William Veno. He declared flatly that “we have too many highly-paid incompetents in business, and they should be cleared out.” We were the best manufacturers in the world, but the worst salesmen.

SMITH.—Alan John Smith, born on 22nd November 1909. Passed away at home on Wednesday 23rd September 2026. Son of A.W. Smith OBE (Wray Optics, Bromley). Husband of Gillian (nee Cross), Father of Penny and Mandy, grandfather of Oliver. Donations, if desired, are being received in memory of Alan for either St Elizabeth Hospice or East Anglian Air Ambulance c/o www.FarthingFuneralService.co.uk or alternatively https://alan-smith-808-2026.muchloved.com/Online Ref: W005332)

Chess

---

By Tom Townsend Dealer South Vulnerability None

Birthdays

Reverter of Sites Act - Extinguishment of Rights Notice

The squeeze is on

---

Text for the day

lity None

♠ KQ987

♥ K96

♦ K87

♣ 97

♠A43

♥J7

♦109643

♣K102

♠6

♥Q10543

♠QJ

♣Q8543

W E S

(1) Medium no-trump, 14-16

(2) Five-plus spades (transfer)

(3) Four-card fit, minimum

STAFFORD.—Timothy Edmund (Thornton Moor, Hartburn). On 2/39 September, aged 82 years. Beloved husband of Pooh, father of Nick and James, adored grandpa. Funeral Service and Cremation at Northumberland Crematorium, Felton on Wednesday 14th October at 1:45 p.m. Family flowers only, donations may be given for RDA and Children North East. Enquiries c/o William Purven Funeral Directors, Morpeith. Tel: 03670 515521. Online Ref: WOO53200

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Personal | West | North | East | South1NT(1) | pass | 2♥(2) | pass | 3♣(3) | pass | 4♣ | pass | pass | pass | Espen Erichsen (South) was one of 12 (out of 15) successful declarers in 4♠. He won the ♦Q lead in hand, and played a spade to the ♦K. East held off for a round, and took the ♣A on a low spade off dummy. Erichsen won the diamond return in dummy, drew trump, and got out with a diamond.

FROM the final of Crockfords Cup, at the West Midlands BC. This is a well-regarded and convenient venue, comfortably accommodating eight tables upstairs. The trouble that weekend was that the room was shared with the consolation Plate. With both events playing the same boards, the tables were too close together for high-level play.

Contract 4♦

Declarer South

Opening Lead ♦Q ♠J1052

♥A82

♦A52

♣AJ6

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAX GIRSON!

We hope you have a great day.

From all your friends and colleagues at

The Telegraph xx

Online Ref: W0053277

SO THEN, have your minds ready for action. Keep alert and set your hope completely on the blessing which will be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

1 Peter LEI (GNB)

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Legal Notices

---

REVERTER OF SITES ACT EXTINGUISHMENT OF RIGHTS.

This was the position, with East on lead to trick seven:

none

Q1054

none

Q85

---

♠Q9 ♥K96 ♦none ♣97

W E S none J7 64 K102

♠10

♥A82

♦none

♣AJ6

East got out with the ♣10, surrounding the ♣9. The Tunbridge Wells man put in the ♣J, forcing West's ♣Q. The ♣5 return fetched the ♣9, ♣K and ♣A, leaving West with the highest spot (the ♣8).

Erichsen cashed his two spare trumps in dummy, discarding a heart. This squeezed West in hearts and clubs. West rightly shed his ♠8, hoping East had the missing ♣6. Unfortunately, South had that card, and promptly cashed it for his contract.

The ♣K (rather than the ♣10) is a better shot by East, forcing declarer to guess well. He must take the ♣A, cross to the ♣Q, and cash the ♣R.

To stop all squeezes by force, and defeat the contract, East or West must switch to hearts. On the normal heart lead to 3NT, incidentally, South has nine easy tricks.

China in control

West must throw the ♣8 to keep hearts, allowing South to duck out his ♣Q. In this variation, West is squeezed “without the count” (for all the tricks but one).

Final Result 4♣ made, N/S -420

Par Result same

The Former Christ Church Church of England Primary School, Batten Street, Battersea, London, SWII 2TH

---

By Malcolm Pein

CHINA rather dominated the Women's Olympiad, winning with 20/22 in Samarkand. Kazakhstan took clear second on 18/22, led by an unbeaten Bibisara Assaubayeva on top board. They were also indebted to 16-year-old WIM Elnaz Kaliakhmet, who amassed 7.5/9 to take individual gold on the fourth board. Her win over Chinese WIM Yan Tianqi is below. Top seeds India had to settle for the bronze medals, edging out the USA, Poland, Armenia and Mongolia on tichbroke.

Afrika and Mongolia on the break. England were seeded 20th and finished 15th on 15/22. Eleven-year-old sensation Bodhana Sivanandan continued to generate headlines and break records. She scored 8/11 on board one, while both earning her second IM norm and becoming the youngest-ever woman grandmaster. Bodhana gained 27 rating points, as did Lan Yao, who scored 6.5/9 on board two for England. The rest of the team, Jovanja Houska, Harriet Hunt and Elmira Mirzoeva, also finished with plus scores.

---

E Kaliakhmet - Yan Tianqi

Scotland, Ireland and Wales all performed roughly to seeding, with Alice Lampard the star of the Scottish team, scoring 6/9 on board four to gain 36 rating points.

Queen's Gambit, Vienna Variation 1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Bg5 dxc4 6.e4 h6 7.Bxf6 Qxf0 8.Bxc4 c5 9.0-0 cxd4 10.e5? Qd8 1L.Ne4 0-12.Qe2 2e7 13.Rfd1 Qa5 14.Ng3 Rd8 15.Nh5! (A new try, 15.Qe4 Nd7 having been shown to defend for Black) See board left. 15...Nd7? (15...g0! 16.Qe4! gxh5 17.Bd3 was the critical line, when the computer considers White to have full compensation for the piece after 17...Rfs 18.Qh7 Ke8 19.Rac1 or 17...E5 18.exf6 Bxf6 19.Qg6+Bg7 20.Rel! 16.Rxd4 g6 (16...Nfs now fails to 17.Rg4 Ng6 18.Bd3! 17.Rg4! Kh7 18.Qe4 (Pinning and heading for f4) 18...Qc7 19.Rf4! Rfs 20.Bd3 Kg8 21.Rxf7!! Rxf7 22.Qxg6- Kfs 23.Qxbh6- Kg8 24.Bg6 (The attack is overwhelming) 24...Nfs 25.Bxf7-Kxf7 26.Qg7- Kes7 27.Nf6- Kd8 28.Rdl- Bd7 29.h3! (Good prophylaxis, giving the king a bolthole) 29...Qc2 30.Rd4 Qc5 31.b4! Qc1- 32.Kh2

Whereon: 1. By a Conveyance dated 23 October 1865 between (2) William Evill the younger and (2) the Minister and Chapel Wardens of the District Chapery of Christchurch Battersea ("the Vicar and Churchwardens") the site (and buildings) of what became known as the Christ Church Church of England Primary School Battersea ("the School") was granted to the Vicar and Churchwardens as trustee pursuant to section 2 of the Schools Sites Act 1841. The trusteeship of the School was transferred to the Southwark Diocesan Board of Education (incorporated) on 28 October 2024.

THE STORY OF THE 2025-26 PREMIER LEAGUE WINNERS

32...Qe3 (For today's puzzle, what would be White's response to the seemingly natural 32...Rc8?)

33.Nxd7 Nxd7 34.Qg8·Kc7

35.Qxe6 I-0

Answer:

2. The said school premises ceased to be used for the purposes of a voluntary school in August 2024 and pursuant to section 1 of the Reverter of Sites Act 1987 a trust for sale has arisen in respect of the said premises.

---

Now take notice:

1. The Southwark Diocesan Board of Education (Incorporated) has made an application to the Secretary of State for Education for the inclusion of the above named school in an Order under section 554 of the Education Act 1996; the purpose of the Order is to allow the assets of the foundation to be used for the benefit of new and continuing schools of the same denomination within the diocese. The same Order will extinguish the rights of any beneficiary under the trust for sale.

2. Any beneficiary who wishes to oppose the extinguishment of his rights should notify his claim in writing to Winckworth Sherwood LLP (Solicitors), Arbor, 255 Blackfriars Rd, London SE1 BAX no later than 8th January 2027.

Reverter of Sites Act - Extinguishment of Rights Notice

---

REVERTER OF SITES ACT - EXTINGUISMENT OF RIGHTS.

The Former St Anne's Church of England Primary School, 208 St Ann's Hill, Wandsworth, London, SW18 2III!

Whereac-1. By a Conveyance dated 30 September 1858 between (1) William Frederick Harrison and Robert Wilson and (2) the Minister and Churchwardens of the Ecclesiastical Parish of St Anne Wandsworth (“the Vicar and Churchwardens”) the site (and buildings) of what became known as the St Anne’s Church of England Primary School (“the School”) was granted to the Vicar and Churchwardens as trustee pursuant to section 2 of the Schools Sites Act 1841. The School site was expanded by a subsequent gift of adjacent land referred to in the 1906 Parliamentary Return as being under a Trust Deed dated 8 November 1861 made under section 6 of the School Sites Act 1841 and between persons unknown.

2. The said school premises ceased to be used for the purposes of a voluntary school in August 2025 and pursuant to section 1 of the Reverter of Sites Act 1987 a trust for sale has arisen in respect of the said premises.

---

Now take notice:

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General personal

1. The Southwark Diocesan Board of Education (Incorporated) has made an application to the Secretary of State for Education for the inclusion of the above named school in an Order under section 554 of the Education Act 1996; the purpose of the Order is to allow the assets of the foundation to be used for the benefit of new and continuing schools of the same denomination within the diocese. The same Order will extinguish the rights of any beneficiary under the trust for sale.

READER SOLUTIONS BY TELEGRAPH MEDIA GROUP

Equity Release provided by Royal London Equity Release Advisers

---

The truth about equity release

2. Any beneficiary who wishes to oppose the extinguishment of his rights should notify his claim in writing to Winckworth Sherwood LLP (Solicitors), Arbor, 255 Blackfriars Rd, London SE19AX no later than 8th January 2027.

If you are thinking about taking advantage of your property wealth later in life, it's important to get information from a source you can trust. Request your free guide to equity release from The Telegraph Media Group Equity Release Service, provided by Royal London Equity Release Advisers.

Equity release may involve a lifetime mortgage, which is secured against your property. It reduces the value of your estate and can impact access to means-tested benefits. To understand the features and risks, ask for a personalised illustration.

0333 414 6867

telegraph.co.uk/er1

Please refer to the Data Privacy Notice in today's personal column, The Telegraph Media Group Equity Release Service is provided by Royal London Equity Release Advisers, a trading style of Responsible Life Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under reference 610205, Registered Office: Princess Court, 23 Princess Street, Plymouth, PL1 2EX, Only if your case completes will Responsible Life Ltd charge an advice fee, currently not exceeding \$1,890, Equity release is only available to homeowners that own a property within the UK.

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Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare

Best-selling writer and darling of the Tory party who led a colourful life marred by what his wife called 'a gift for inaccurate précis'

Archer pictured in his penthouse apartment overlooking the Thames, where celebrities and sports stars mingled with politicians at his Krug and shepherd's pie parties

LORD ARCHER OF WESTON-SUPER-MARE, who has died aged 86, was one of the most extraordinary and colourful figures ever to strut across the political stage; no other character in modern public life provided so much entertainment or fuelled so many headlines.

Archer's life story was a tale of ambition, power, money and sexual intrigue, overflowing with unexpected twists and turns, a tale infinitely more fantastic and implausible even than the plots of his best-selling novels.

The bare bones of his career are easily described - self-made millionaire from a lower-middle-class background hauls himself out of adversity by enterprise and effort, becomes one of the world's best-selling authors, a friend and confidant to the great and powerful, but is repeatedly brought down by serious flaws in his own character, culminating in imprisonment for perjury and perverting the course of justice.

There was never any doubt that Archer had great abilities and did a tremendous amount of good. Bumptious, irrepressible and utterly insensitive, the “extrovert’s extrovert”, as Margaret Thatcher called him, raised millions of pounds for charity, became the champion fundraiser and darling of Conservative constituency associations and proved a loyal and generous friend to many.

Celebrities and sports stars mingled with politicians at the Krug and shepherd's pie parties he gave at his penthouse apartment overlooking the Thames. Even Princess Diana apparently found him indispensable. On the day she was divorced, she asked him to stay with her.

As a novelist, although the critics sneered at his clunky prose and cardboard characterisations, the sales statistics spoke for themselves. His 1979 novel Kane and Abel sold more than a million copies within a week of publication, and he continued to rattle off bestsellers until the end of his life, with total sales of more than 320 million books.

The fatal flaw that undermined Archer's achievements, as his wife Mary once explained, was his "gift for inaccurate précis". The less charitable might have called it his propensity to tell whopping lies to dig his way out of trouble. He was, as Willie Whitelaw remarked, "an accident waiting to happen".

Archer's first brush with disaster came in 1974 when, as Conservative MP for Louth, he resigned his seat after losing most of his money gambling on an inside tip on the stock market that later proved to be fraudulent.

Created deputy chairman of the Conservative Party by Mrs Thatcher in 1985, he resigned the post the following year after allegations of a relationship with a prostitute. Following the libel trial that followed, Archer won a total of £500,000 in damages from the Daily Star.

In 1994 the DTI launched an enquiry after Archer, by then a Conservative peer, bought a large number of shares in a company on which his wife served as a director two days before a merger boosted the share price.

In October 1999 he won the Conservative nomination to stand for election as Mayor of London. The following month he resigned following allegations that he had asked a friend to lie for him during the Daily Star libel trial 12 years previously.

The saga of the libel trial had begun in October 1986, when an article appeared in the News of the World alleging that Archer had paid £2,000 to a prostitute called Monica Coghlan to enable her to go abroad. Archer denied that he had ever met Monica Coghlan.

A few days later the Daily Star followed up the story with an article alleging that Archer had lied. He had had sex with Monica Coghlan in a hotel in Pimlico, the paper alleged. Moreover, after she had telephoned him, Archer had (through an intermediary) given her an envelope stuffed with a wad of £2,000 in £50 notes.

Archer decided to take the Star to court first. During the trial in 1987, alibi evidence played an important part. To begin with, the Star had been uncertain about the precise date on which Archer was supposed to have visited Monica Coghlan, but Archer had two different witnesses prepared to vouch for him on both nights.

His wife Mary also played an important part in the trial. She and her husband, she said, had a happy marriage and lived a "full" life. "The thought of my husband consorting with a prostitute," she said, "is preposterous."

For the judge in the trial, Sir Bernard Caulfield, Mary Archer's testimony was decisive: "Remember Mrs Archer in the witness box," he exhorted the jury. "Your vision of her will never disappear. Has she elegance? Has she fragrance?" The judge had no doubts. Living with such a paragon, how could Archer "possibly be in need of cold, unloving rubber-insulated sex in a seedy hotel?"

Twelve years later, Jeffrey Archer's carefully constructed defence began to unravel. In November 1999, the News of the World revealed that Archer had persuaded a friend, the television executive Ted Francis, to provide him with a false alibi for the evening of September 9, one of the two nights in question.

him from Monica Coghlan but to protect his real dinner date from publicity. She was Andrina Colquhoun, a 46-year-old blonde. In fact, Ted Francis's affidavit was never read out in court, as by that time the Star had decided to plump for September 8 as the night in question.

A few days later, Michael Stacpoole, a former confidant of Archer's and the man who had handed Monica Coghlan £2,000, accused Archer of misleading the High Court about the state of his marriage. Archer, Stacpoole said, had had several affairs with other women, including Andrina Colquhoun and prostitutes. Stacpoole had allegedly been paid £40,000 by Archer to go abroad to avoid giving evidence.

Then in December, Nick Elliott, a television executive, revealed that the theatrical agent Terence Baker, a key witness in the trial, had told him before he died in 1991 that he too had been persuaded to lie in the witness box. Baker had given evidence that on September 8 he had met Archer in Le Caprice restaurant, had had a drink with him, then had driven with Archer back to his home in Camberwell. This meant he had been with Archer at Iam, the time when he was accused of being with Monica Coghlan.

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'Boys died for Archer,' one former pupil said of his time as a PE teacher. 'He had that kind of charisma'

As Scotland Yard announced that they had begun an investigation into allegations that Archer had attempted to pervert the course of justice, the Conservative Party was finally galvanised into action and he was stripped of the Conservative whip in the House of Lords. In July 2001 Archer was found guilty and sentenced to four years' imprisonment. As there was no means of stripping a convicted felon of a peerage – and Archer declined to resign it – he remained a member of the House of Lords until he chose to retire 23 years later.

Jeffrey Howard Archer was born in London on April 15 1940. His father, William, was a small-time confidence trickster who had been charged with fraud in Britain, America and Canada. By the time he married Archer's mother in 1939, he was over 60 and had been married twice before, bigamously, to an Englishwoman and an American. He had three daughters.

In her divorce petition, his American wife accused William Archer of being "not only an adventurer but a fraud of the worst type". He owned "absolutely nothing but lives on such money as he can dishonestly obtain from other people". William Archer would die in 1956, when Jeffrey was 15.

Jeffrey Archer would claim that his father had been in the Suffolk Light Infantry and had been awarded a DCM. Neither claim was true, but he was invited to join the DCM League, whose membership is confined to medal winners and their offspring. When the truth was revealed in 1992, Archer was politely asked to resign. Archer's mother, Lola, was barely 20 when she married William Archer. She too had had children, a girl and a boy (the latter by William Archer), but both children had been put up for adoption.

In 1942 the Archers moved to the village of Mark in Somerset and two years later to Weston-super-Mare. Times were hard and, although they were not completely destitute, most of their income appears to have come from Lola, who had begun to try her hand at journalism, becoming the first woman journalist on the Weston Mercury.

In her column entitled Over the Teacups, Lola Archer would dispense advice on domestic management to Weston women and keep them abreast of the lastest escapades of her beloved but scampish only son, "Tuppence".

On one occasion, she recorded, Tuppence arrived on the doorstep asking for a shilling so that he could go to the barber: "Taking off his cap to see if it were such an urgent matter, I realised there wasn't much left for the barber to do. Tuppence looked like a Trappist monk on one side and a shaggy dog on the other. He and his pals had spent an exhilarating playtime cutting each other's hair. Seeing I was taking the whole thing very calmly, Tuppence smiled broadly and said virtuously, 'If I've saved you a shilling, can I have sixpence of it to spend?' It was the first of many such youthful money-making wheezes.

In 1951 Archer won a county scholarship to Wellington, a direct grant boarding school in Somerset. He was a loner, was bullied and had few friends. Around 1955 he suddenly set himself on becoming the best gymnast in the school. He spent long hours frantically exercising and building up his body, and went on not only to win Wellington's individual gymnastics competition (twice) but also county championships in the 100 yards sprint and the 120 yards hurdles.

Although Archer remained at Wellington until he was well over 18, he only achieved three O-levels and was never made a prefect.

For many years the story circulated that after leaving school, Archer spent time in North America and took a two-year course in anatomy at the University of California.

In fact the university had no record of the fact and, besides, it would have been physically impossible for Archer to have completed a serious university degree in America since he was otherwise occupied in England. After leaving school, he went on to the school's combined cadet force camp at Catterick and in 1958 began basic military training with the Duke of Wellington's Regiment.

In 1959 he went on to Sandhurst, but only lasted a few months. In May 1960 he joined the Metropolitan Police, but after a few months abandoned that too.

Archer next became a PE instructor, first at Vicar's Hill School, Hampshire, then at Dover College, a minor public school. He was by all accounts a brilliant coach. "Boys died for Archer," said one former pupil. "He had that

kind of charisma." In 1961 the school magazine congratulated him on "qualifying to become a Fellow of the International Federation of Physical Culture". The IFPC, it later transpired, was a body-building club which helped members develop their muscles by home exercises.

Archer began moonlighting from Dover College and set up his first business from his digs in Dover, offering advice to men on how to improve their bodies: "Direct from America" ran the advertisement in Reveille, "the Pal Malviro Bodybuilding Course." Archer's landlady was not best pleased when punters arrived on her doorstep wanting to know why they had not had a reply to their applications.

In 1963 Archer arrived in Oxford. His later claim to have been "at" Oxford was technically true, though his claim (in Who's Who) to have been at Brasenose College was not. He was accepted for a one-year course at a teacher training college loosely affiliated with the university, but on the basis of a recommendation from Dover College which claimed he had three A-levels and had completed a two-year course in anatomy at an American university.

Archer somehow managed to stay in Oxford for three years despite no longer being a student and succeeded in getting himself elected to the Union committee, winning two blues, in athletics and gymnastics, becoming chairman of the University Athletics Club and running for Great Britain in Stockholm in 1966.

He also met an attractive young chemistry student, Mary Weeden, pursued her relentlessly and in 1966 married her. On their marriage certificate, Mary Weeden described herself as a research graduate, which she was. So did Jeffrey, but he wasn't.

By the time he “came down” from Oxford, Archer had already made a name for himself as a charity fundraiser. In 1966 he talked his way backstage at a Beatles concert and persuaded the group to back a fundraising campaign for Oxfam. He raised £400,000.

After a year working for a charity called the National Birthday Trust (from which he was sacked, having made a loss of £6,000), Archer was elected to the Greater London Council in the Tory landslide of 1967. He claimed to be the youngest ever GLC councillor, which was untrue.

At once he approached his colleagues on the GLC offering to fill out their expense claim forms in return for 10 per cent of the "take". Many agreed.

While on the GLC, Archer got taken on as a fund-raiser by Humphry Berkeley, chairman of the UN association, who took him on as flag day organiser then promoted him director of special projects. In 1969 Archer set up his own fund raising company, Arrow enterprises.

At the UN association, though, Archer systematically fiddled his expenses. His speciality was to claim for meals taken by others and for journeys in other people's cars.

Berkeley detected Archer's fraud when he discovered claims for lunches for which he himself had paid. When the claims were challenged, Archer had to repay about £150.

When, in 1969, Archer was selected as Tory candidate at a by-election for the safe Tory seat of Louth, Lincolnshire, Berkeley was outraged and circulated the facts about Archer's fiddles to the press. When the story appeared in print, Archer was instructed by the Tory party hierarchy to sue or stand down. He sued. Years later in an out-of-court settlement, Archer agreed to pay all the costs and Berkeley did not have to retract a word. Nevertheless, the writ saw him safely elected MP for Louth in 1969.

As an MP, Archer made 12 speeches in all, and in all but two criticised Conservative government policy. He voted against admission charges for museums and abolition of free school milk, lobbied for the withdrawal of VAT on theatre tickets and condemned French nuclear tests in the Pacific. He was delighted when at one time his voting record was almost as bad as that of Enoch Powell's, though in Archer's case he was generally veering to the Left of his party. The Daily Telegraph at one point was so upset by an Archer

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It hardly mattered what the critics said about his novels; the important verdict was in the shops

speech, it suggested he should "be prosecuted under the Trades Descriptions Act for calling himself a Conservative".

In April 1972 Archer met Michael Altmann, an executive at the First National Bank of Boston, who told him about a likely new share on the Toronto stock market. The enterprise was called Aquablast. Archer immediately bought 55,000 shares, then borrowed £170,000 to buy a further 50,000. The business turned out to be a fraud, and in November 1975 most of the Aquablast directors ended up in a Toronto courtroom with Archer as the main prosecution witness.

But in the middle of the court case, Archer was arrested in a Toronto store on suspicion of shoplifting. Nothing could have been more damaging for the prosecution, and the charges were quickly withdrawn at the request of the police.

Archer nearly went bankrupt and in 1974 resigned as MP for Louth. For the time being Mary became the breadwinner.

But within a few years he had reinvented himself as a millionaire novelist with an huge art collection, a penthouse in London overlooking the Houses of Parliament and a country house, the Old Vicarage in Granchester, near Cambridge, where Rupert Brooke had been brought up.

Archer's first novel, Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (1976), was clearly written with Hollywood in mind. The tale involved four men who between them are swindled out of \$1 million when they each invest in an oil company on the basis of what they think is hot inside information.

"The writing, especially the dialogue, is bad beyond belief," said the Daily Telegraph critic, who castigated its trashy, plodding style and shallow characterisation. But it hardly mattered what the critics said; the important verdict was in the shops, where it sold 20,000 copies in a month. Warner Brothers bought the film rights for £125,000. Archer especially relished the hard sell that others found distasteful. Many more such novels followed.

Meanwhile, he started to rebuild his political career, addressing Conservative Associations and encouraging them to write to the party leader, Margaret Thatcher, saying what a marvellous time they had had. In the early 1980s, the Archers became occasional guests at Chequers and rumours circulated that he might be given a peerage. Instead, in 1985, he was made Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party.

The misgivings of some members of the party were borne out almost at once with a series of embarrassing gaffes. Among other things, Archer asserted that the Tories could not go into the next election with the same unemployment figures and expect to win, and described the government's handling of its own PR as "pathetic", adding "you wouldn't buy a used car from this government, would you?"

His media appearances were rapidly curtailed and he concentrated instead on constituency tours, always giving the same speech - about how he rose from rags to riches.

Weeks before the Tory Party Conference of 1987, Archer had two telephone calls from a woman calling herself Debbie and rumours started to circulate in Fleet Street that he had had an assignation with a prostitute.

Following his successful libel action, Archer resumed his constituency tours, supported John Major for the Party leadership and in 1992 was rewarded by Major with a life peerage.

Archer's experience with Aquablast did not deter him from dealing on the stock exchange. In 1994 Anglia Television (on whose board Mary Archer was a non-executive director) negotiated a secret merger deal with Clive Hollick of MAI. The next day, Archer bought 25,000 Anglia shares for a "Kurdish friend". When news of the merger broke a few days later, Anglia shares soared and Archer sold the 25,000 shares for a profit of £80,000.

Archer subsequently claimed that the take-over tip had been given to him at a dinner party by Sir Nicholas Lloyd. In fact the dinner party had taken place days after the merger had been announced. A subsequent DTI enquiry decided that there was no action to be taken, though in November 1999 the DTI reopened their inquiry.

After the Labour landslide of 1997, the following year Archer announced his intention to seek adoption as the Party's candidate to fight the inaugural election for Mayor of London, to be held in 2000. William Hague's obvious reluctance to endorse him and demands by the Conservative MP Sir Timothy Kitson that the Party's new ethics and integrity committee investigate Archer made no difference to the party faithful and in October 1999, he was formally adopted.

In the few weeks before his downfall, Archer poured all his energies into the campaign, touring the world and being photographed with mayors from New York to St Petersburg, and getting out and pressing the flesh in the streets of London. "There's an immediate rapport between me and real people," he said. "They put their arms around me in the street and say 'Aw Gawd, Jeff, I lost everything but no need to tell yew cos yew know only too well.'"

In September 2000, on the very day that police announced he was being charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice, Archer made his professional acting debut as a doctor accused of murdering his wife in his own new play The Accused. The play's audience, he had decided, would be the jury for the courtroom drama: "I want the audience to be in a right bloody quandary, arguing with each other: 'Well, did he do it?'... I want a different decision every night."

After his conviction Archer served time in a number of prisons, including HMP Belmarsh, before being released halfway through his four-year sentence. He displayed little sense of repentance in his three bestselling volumes of Prison Diaries (2002-04).

His popularity as a novelist seemed hardly dented, though, and the books continued to flow: in his 80th year he utilised his passion for collecting art when he embarked on an eight-book series about William Warwick, a police detective specialising in art theft. Having brought that project to a successful conclusion, he announced that his final novel would be an ambitious wartime saga called Adam and Eve, which is published this week.

"I always say to people if you fall on your backside, get up and try again", Archer said. "You'll fall on it again but you'll get up again. Get on with it."

Jeffrey Archer is survived by his wife Mary and their two sons.

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Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare, born April 15 1940, died October 5 2026

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What to watch

CARRIE

Amazon Prime Video

Summer H Howell is Carrie in this eight-part adaptation of Stephen King's classic

Following two ropey feature-length remakes, Mike Flanagan's eight-part series is the first adaptation of Stephen King's source novel to stand comparison with Brian de Palma's still potent 1976 shocker, while capitalising on its longer runtime and modernised setting to tell a slightly different story.

Weaving in the aftermath of a conflagration that has consumed an entire town, it follows young teenager

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Who is Martin Mull? Netflix

Steve Martin, Penn Gillette and Tom Waits are among the luminaries paying tribute to the painter, musician and oddball comedian Martin Mull in this charming documentary. Mull, who died in 2024, had a gloriously eccentric career that skirted the mainstream without ever quite crossing over.

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Echoes from Below: Exploring Britain's Caves BBC Four, 8pm

An intriguing concept with knockout visual potential, Joseph Cunningham's film burrows deep beneath the surface of Britain to scan the vast and largely unmapped

Carrie White (Summer H Howell), kept hidden since birth by her controlling mother (Samantha Sloyan). When she is discovered after her father's death, she is made to attend high school with all its cliques and instant online judgment.

As before, this earnest, well-meaning girl is drawn into the circle of mean girls led by Chris (Alison Thornton) and Sue (Siena Agudong), each of whom has their own concerns.

Richard Armitage as forensic pathologist Ethan Winter

Titan shaft, also venturing into Cheddar Gorge, Creswell Crags, Wookey Hole and Kinver Edge.

Portrait Artist of the Year 2026

Sky Arts, 8pm

Stephen Mangan returns with this enduringly

Although 21st-century hurdles prompt Carrie to demonstrate extraordinary abilities, they also draw the attention of others who, it is implied, may share them.

King aficionados will be relieved to learn the jump scares are efficient and the "plug it up" shower scene retains its power, albeit thankfully now shorn of de Palma's unpleasant prurience.

Gabriel Tate

enjoyable series. The judging panel is all new, yet just as exacting: contemporary portraitist Jonathan Yeo, broadcaster Katy Hessel and Eva Langret, director of Frieze London. Tonight's celebrity sitters are Sheridan Smith, Vanessa Williams and Lennie James.

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Winter

ITVI, 9pm

This off-the-shelf thriller continues to go through its mildly interesting motions, with Ethan Winter's case this week involving a construction worker, seemingly crushed to death in an accident yet horrifying facial injuries suggest a more complicated fate.

Play for Today:

Schmoedipus

BBC Four, 10pm

The late Tim Curry stars in this seldom shown,

genuinely unsettling Dennis Potter play from 1974. Curry is Glen, a mysterious stranger landing in the life of the Elizabeth (Anna Cropper), claiming to be the son she gave away at birth, much to the consternation of her husband Blake (Bob Hoskins). GT

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FILM

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Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (2022)

BBC Three, 10.30pm

\*\*\*

This glitzy biopic, starring Naomi Ackie, is a Bohemian Rhapsody-like sanitisation of Whitney Houston's life. Her estate gave access to all of her hits, and so the film stands as a ride to stardom

Naomi Ackie as Whitney on a ride to stardom

for Ackie, whose performance has spirit and flair. She doesn't actually sing the songs - a near-impossible demand - but Ackie proves to be a queen in the lip-sync department.

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Lifeboat (1944, b/w) Film4, 2.55pm ★★★

Alfred Hitchcock doles out the suspense in this war thriller, adapted from a John Steinbeck novella.

When a Second World War Allied ship and German U-boat sink each other, the Allied survivors gather on a lifeboat.

But then they pull a survivor from the water, who turns out to be from that very same U-boat. Taut and claustrophobic, it's a tense ride. Walter Slezak and Tallulah Bankhead star.

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Main channels

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BBC One

6.00 am Breakfast (S) 9.30 Morning Live (S) 10.45 Crimewatch Live (S) 11.30 Homes Under the Hammer (R) (S)

12.15 pm Bargain Hunt (AD) (R) (S)

1.00 BBC News at One; Weather (S)

1.35 Regional News; Weather (S)

1.45 BBC News at One; Weather (S)

2.00 Clean It, Fix It (R) (S)

2.30 Shift the Thrift (AD) (R) (S)

3.00 Escape to the Country (R) (S)

3.45 Garden Rescue (S)

4.30 Bridge of Lies (S)

5.15 Pointless (S)

6.00 BBC News at Six; Weather (S)

6.30 Regional News; Weather (S)

The Repair Shop: Beyond the Bar

7.00 The One Show Presented by Alex Jones and Vernon Kay (S)

7.30 EastEnders Ian returns to Walford, but it is clear he has been shaken by his time in prison (AD) (S)

8.00 The Repair Shop: Beyond the Barn

A miniature fairground and a rugby wheelchair are refurbished (AD) (S)

9.00 Who Do You Think You Are? Joe Lycett researches his family history (AD) (R) (S)

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10.00 BBC News at Ten (S)

10.30 Regional News; Weather (S)

10.40 FILM: Borderlands (2024)

Premiere. Sci-fi comedy starring Cate

Blanchett (S)

12.10 am The Celebrity Inner Circle 1.00 · 6.00am News

---

BBC Two

6.15 am Homes Under the Hammer (R) (S)

7.15 Escape to the Country (R) (S)

8.00 Sign Zone: The Reluctant

Vampire (R) (S) (SL) 8.30 Sign Zone:

The Best of Weatherman Walking (S)

(SL) 9.00 News (S) 10.45 Politics

Live (S)

12.30 pm News (S)

1.00 Impossible (R) (S)

1.45 Unheatable (R) (S)

2.30 The Boss (R) (S)

3.15 Beechgrove Repotted (R) (S)

3.30 The Great British Sewing Bee (AD) (R) (S)

4.30 Vintage Antiques Roadshow (R) (S)

5.05 Flog It! (R) (S)

6.00 House of Games (S)

6.30 Strictly: It Takes Two (S)

Saving Lives at Sea

7.00 Celebrity Antiques Road Trip

Alexei Sayle and Nigel Planer face off

in the world of antiquities (R) (S)

8.00 Saving Lives at Sea A 999 call comes in from a woman whose husband is drifting out to sea (AD) (S)

9.00 Secrets and Spies: A Nuclear Game A look at the events and causes of the Cold War (AD) (R) (S).

10.00 Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing Paul teaches Bob how to fly fish for rainbow trout in Derbyshire (AD) (R) (S)

10.30 Newsnight (S)

11.00 Unspun World with John Simpson

11.30 Damilola: The Untold Story

12.45am Sign Zone: The Split Up

1.45 Sign Zone: Emergency 24/7

2.45 - 6.30am This Is BBC Two

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ITVI

6.00 am Good Morning Britain (S) 9.30 Lorraine (S) 10.00 This Morning (S)

12.30 pm Loose Women (S)

1.30 News (S)

1.55 ITV News London; Weather (S)

2.00 Dickinson's Real Deal (AD) (R) (S)

3.00 Lingo (R) (S)

4.00 Deal or No Deal (AD) (R) (S)

5.00 The Chase (R) (S)

6.00 ITV News London; Weather (S)

6.30 News (S)

Coronation Street

7.30 Tipping Point: Best Ever Finals

Stuart Pearce hopes to win £20,000 for his chosen charity (S)

8.00 Emmerdale Charity is shocked to be going home (AD) (S)

8.30 Coronation Street Shona accuses Lily of conspiring to make her lose her mind (AD) (S)

9.00 Winter The sleuth investigates a faceless body, and uncovers a devastating betrayal (AD) (S)

10.00 News(S)

10.30 ITV News London; Weather (S)

10.45 Nine Perfect Strangers Drama

starring Nicole Kidman (R) (S)

11.35 Gallagher PREM Unleashed 12.00 Shop on TV 3.00am Driving: How Old Is Too Old? Tonight 3.25 Bradley & Barney Walsh: Breaking Dad 3.50 Unwind with ITV 5.05 - 6.00am Deal or No Deal

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Telegraph · TO BUSINESS

Radio choice

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Woman's Hour at 80 Radio 4, 10am

The much-loved cornerstone of Radio 4's morning schedule marks 80 years on air with a broadcast

---

RADIO 1

FM 97.6-98.8MHz

6.58am Newsbeat 7.00 Radio 1

Breakfast with Greg James 10.30

Newsbeat 10.33 Charlie and Jerry

12.00 Radio 1 Live Lounge 12.45pm

Newsbeat 1.00 Matt and Mollie 3.30

Newsbeat 3.33 Going Home with Vick,

Katie and Jamie on Radio 1.5.45

Newsbeat 6.00 Radio 1's New Music

Show with Jack Saunders 8.00 Radio

1's Future Pop with Mollie King 10.00

Radio 1's Power Down Playlist with Sian

Eleri 11.00 Benji B 1.00am Danny

Howard's Club Mix 2.00 Radio 1

Antheims 4.00 - 6.58am Radio 1 Early

Breakfast with Mylo and Rosie

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RADIO 2 fM 88-90.2MHz

6.30am The Sara Cox Breakfast Show 9.30 Vernon Kay 12.00 Jeremy Vine. Current affairs chat 2.00pm Trevor Nelson. Trevor presents some of the best music from across the decades 4.00 Drivetime. Gary Davies presents news, views and music 7.00 Jo Whiley's Shiny Happy Playlist. Jo plays her favourite album tracks and musical gems rarely heard on Radio 2 7.30 Jo Whiley. Chloe Slater performs a live sofa session 9.00 The Folk Show with Mark Radcliffe. Singer Jon Boden talks to Mark about his new book 10.00 The Good Groove with DJ Spoony. A mix of joyful floor fillers, soulful house and lyrical garage tunes 12.00 OJ Borg 3.00am Dance Sounds of the 90s with Vernon Kay 4.00 - 6.30am Owain Wyn Evans

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RADIO 3 FM 90.2-92.4MHz

6.30am Breakfast 9.30 Essential Classics 1.00pm Classical Live 3.00 Choral Evensong 4.00 Composer of the Week: The Venetian School 5.00 In Tune 7.00 Classical Mixtape. A sequence of music 7.30 Radio 3 in

from Glasgow Women's Library. Nuala McGovern delves into the Woman's Hour archive to celebrate eight decades of conversations with women who have challenged

Concert. Symphonies by Haydn and Shostakovich, recorded at Cardiff's BBC Hoddinott Hall 9.45 The Essay: Towards Evensong. With composer Roxanna Panufnik 10.00 Night Tracks. Hannah Peel presents a soundtrack for late-night listening 11.30 'Round Midnight 12.30 - 6.30am Through the Night

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RADIO 4 FM 92.4-94.5MHz; LW 198KHZ

6.00am Today 9.00 More or Less

9.30 Where Is Austin Tice? 10.00

Woman's Hour 11.00 File on 4

Investigates 11.40 This Week in

History 11.45 To Go or Not to Go

12.00 News 12.04pm You and Yours.

With Winifred Robinson 12.57

Weather 1.00 The World at One. News,

analysis and comment, presented by

Sarah Montague 1.45 The Turning

Point 2.00 The Archers. There is a

complication at the vet's 2.15 Drama:

A Place Called Home. The Slide, by

Testament 3.00 Money Box. The latest

from the world of personal finance

3.30 The Artificial Human 4.00 When

It Hits the Fan 4.15 The Media Show.

The latest news from the fast-

changing media world 5.00 PM. News

and current affairs 5.57 Weather 6.00

Six O'Clock News 6.30 Glenn Moore's

Almanac. A royal wedding is the

backdrop to a crisis in Glenn's own love

life 7.00 The Archers. Clarrie's

concerns bubble to the surface 7.15

Front Row. Arts programme 8.00 Here

for the History 8.30 Top Comment

9.00 The Life Scientific 9.30 All in

the Mind 9.59 Weather 10.00 The

World Tonight 10.45 Book at Bedtime:

Stations 11.00 Kiri's Farm 11.15 Big

Little Questions 11.30 Great Lives

12.00 News and Weather 12.30am To

Go or Not to Go 12.48 Shipping

Forecast 1.00 As World Service 5.00

News Summary 5.04 More or Less

5.32 Weather 5.34 Shipping Forecast

5.43 Prayer for the Day 5.45 -

6.00am Farming Today

conformity, driven change and transformed lives, along the way recalling great presenters past.

Later, there's another even more venerable radio milestone as Choral

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RADIO 5 LIVE MW 683 & 909KHZ

6.00am 5 Live Breakfast 9.00 Rima Ahmed 11.00 Naga Munchetty 2.00pm Matt Chorley 4.00 5 Live Drive 7.00 5 Live Sport: John Bennett presents the day's sports news 7.30 5 Live Sport 9.00 5 Live Sport: The Euro Leagues Podcast 10.00 5 Live Sport: 72+ 10.30 Laura McGhie 1.00am Dotun Adebayo 5.00 - 6.00am Wake Up to Money

6.30am Classic FM Breakfast with Dan Walker 9.00 The Classic FM Hall of Fame Hour with Dan Walker 10.00 Tim Lihoreau 1.00pm Hannah Scott-Joynt 4.00 Margherita Taylor 7.00 Relaxing Evenings with Zeb Soanes. Zeb hosts an evening of the most relaxing music 10.00 Calm Classics 1.00am Bill Overton 4.00 - 6.30am Early Breakfast

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CLASSIC FM FM 99.9-101.9MHz

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WORLD SERVICE DIGITAL ONLY

Evensong (Radio 3, 3pm), the world's longest running outside broadcast programme, airs live from Westminster Abbey to mark its 100th anniversary.

8.00am News 8.06 The Interview

8.30 Business Daily 8.50 Witness

History 9.00 The Newsroom 9.30 The

Climate Question 10.00 News 10.06

World Book Club 11.00 The Newsroom

11.30 The Global Story 12.00 News

12.06pm Outlook 12.50 Witness

History 1.00 The Newsroom 1.30 The

Documentary: Where is Austin Tice?

2.00 Newshour 3.00 News 3.06 The

Interview 3.30 Business Daily 3.50

World Business Express 4.00 BBC OS

6.00 News 6.06 Outlook 6.50

Witness History 7.00 The Newsroom

7.30 Sport Today 8.00 News 8.06

The Climate Question 8.30 Health

Check 9.00 Newshour 10.00 News

10.06 The Interview 10.30 The

Documentary: Where is Austin Tice?

11.00 The Newsroom 11.30 World

Business Report 12.00 News

Gerard O'Donovan

12.06am World Book Club 1.00 The Newsroom 1.30 The Global Story 2.00 The Newsroom 2.30 The Documentary 3.00 News 3.06 Outlook 3.50 Witness History 4.00 The Newsroom 4.30 The Food Chain 5.00 - 8.00am Newsday

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RADIO 4 EXTRA DIGITAL ONLY

6.00am Adam Dalgliesh: Cover Her Face 6.30 Paul Temple and the Jonathan Mystery 7.00 After Henry 7.30 The Missing Hancocks 8.00 Conversations from a Long Marriage 8.30 Alive, Alive Oh! and Other Things That Matter 8.45 Tristram Shandy 9.00 Jessica Fostekew: Sturdy Girl Club 9.30 Bone Stories 9.45 Daily Service 10.00 Jan Morris: Writing a Life 11.00 Adam Dalgliesh: Cover Her Face 11.30 Paul Temple and the Jonathan Mystery 12.00 After Henry 12.30pm The Missing Hancocks 1.00 Conversations from a Long Marriage 1.30 Alive, Alive Oh! and Other Things That Matter 1.45 Tristram Shandy 2.00 The Write Stuff 2.30 The Blue Lamp 4.00 Jan Morris: Writing a Life 5.00 Adam Dalgliesh: Cover Her Face 5.30 Paul Temple and the Jonathan Mystery 6.00 After Henry 6.30 The Missing Hancocks 7.00 Conversations from a Long Marriage 7.30 Alive, Alive Oh! and Other Things That Matter 7.45 Tristram Shandy 8.00 The Write Stuff 8.30 The Blue Lamp 10.00 Jessica Fostekew: Sturdy Girl Club 10.30 Mitch Benn's Crimes Against Music 11.00 Everyone Quite Likes Justin 11.30 The Skewer 11.45 The Goldfish Bowl 12.00 Jan Morris: Writing a Life 1.00am Adam Dalgliesh: Cover Her Face 1.30 Paul Temple and the Jonathan Mystery 2.00 After Henry 2.30 The Missing Hancocks 3.00 Conversations from a Long Marriage 3.30 Alive, Alive Oh! and Other Things That Matter 3.45 Tristram Shandy 4.00 The Write Stuff 4.30 - 6.00am The Blue Lamp

FV Freeview FS Freesat (AD) Audio description (R) Repeat (S) Subtitles (SL) In-vision signing

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Channel 4

6.30 am The King of Queens (AD) (R) (S)

6.55 The King of Queens (AD) (R) (S)

7.20 The King of Queens (AD) (R) (S)

7.45 Everybody Loves Raymond (AD)

(R) (S) 8.10 Everybody Loves

Raymond (AD) (R) (S) 8.40

Everybody Loves Raymond (AD) (R)

(S) 9.10 Frasier (AD) (R) (S) 9.40

Frasier (AD) (R) (S) 10.10 Frasier (AD)

(R) (S) 10.40 Frasier (AD) (R) (S)

11.10 American Pickers (AD) (R) (S)

12.05 pm Channel 4 News (S)

12.10 Renovation Nation (AD) (R) (S)

1.10 The Great House Giveaway (R) (S)

2.10 Countdown (S)

3.00 A Place in the Sun (R) (S)

4.00 Help! We Bought a Village (S)

5.00 Four in a Bed (S)

5.30 Come Dine with Me (R) (S)

6.00 A New Life in the Sun: Where Are

They Now? (R) (S)

Martin Compston: Living Las Vegas

7.00 Channel 4 News (S)

8.00 Location, Location, Location

Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer

search Warwickshire (S)

9.00 Grand Designs A couple replace a former driving test centre in Edinburgh with a sleek new home (AD) (S)

10.00 Martin Compston: Living Las Vegas The actor explores the Las Vegas entertainment scene (AD) (S)

11.05 Gogglebox 12.05am The Great British Bake Off 1.30 Taskmaster 2.25 FILM: Mikka Bannada Hakki (2024) Premiere. Comedy drama starring Jayashri. In Kannada 3.50 Sunday Brunch 4.00 Kirstie and Phil's Love It or List It 4.55 Couples Come Dine with Me 5.50 - 6.30am Countdown

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Channel 5

6.00 am Milkshake! 9.15 Jeremy Vine (S)

11.30 Storm & Alexis (S)

12.45 pm 5 News at Lunchtime (S)

12.50 Matt Allwright (S)

2.20 FILM: A Baby at Any Cost (2022, TVM) Thriller starring Christy Tate (S)

4.00 Bargain-Loving Brits in the Sun (R) (S)

5.00 5 News with Dan Walker (S)

6.00 Cornwall: A Year by the Sea (R) (S)

6.55 5 News Update (S)

Murder Scene: The Incident Room

7.00 Will You Get Dementia? Dr Claire Taylor investigates the UK's fastest growing health condition (R) (S)

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7.55 5 News Update (S)

8.00 Murder Scene: The Incident Room

The case of unidentified human remains discovered inside a bag in the woods (S)

9.00 Cause of Death Examining the death of 16-year-old Danny Nicholls (S)

10.00 Jeremy Bamber: Proof of Innocence - The Missing Phone Call (R) (S)

11.35 Ambulance: Code Red 12.35am

Cops 1.00 Cruise TV with

LoveitBookit 2.00 Cornwall: A Year

by the Sea 2.50 Bargain-Loving Brits

in the Sun 3.40 Sandringham: A

Royal Residence with Nigel Havers

4.25 The Wonderful World of

Chocolate 4.50 The Wonderful

World of Chocolate 5.15

Entertainment News on 5 5.25 Ben

and Holly's Little Kingdom 5.35 Ben

and Holly's Little Kingdom 5.45 -

6.00am Ben and Holly's Little

Kingdom

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Sky Arts

6.00 am Opera North's Resonance (S)

6.15 André Rieu: Live in Dublin (S)

8.00 Artist of the Year: Masterclass (AD) (S) 8.30 Artist of the Year: Masterclass (AD) (S) 9.00 Tales of the Unexpected (AD) (S) 9.30 Tales of the Unexpected (AD) (S) 10.00 Alfred Hitchcock Presents (S) 10.30 Alfred Hitchcock Presents (S) 11.00 Discovering: Julia Roberts (AD) (S)

12.00 Classic Albums (S)

1.00 pm Tales of the Unexpected (AD) (S)

1.30 Tales of the Unexpected (AD) (S)

2.00 Alfred Hitchcock Presents (S)

2.30 Alfred Hitchcock Presents (S)

3.00 Bill Bailey's Master Crafters: The Next Generation (AD) (S)

4.00 Discovering: Richard Gere (AD) (S)

5.00 Landscape Artist of the Year 2015

6.00 Tales of the Unexpected (AD) (S)

6.30 Tales of the Unexpected (AD) (S)

Discovering Romance on Film

7.00 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

A blackmailer threatens to reveal information to an adopted teenager (S)

8.00 Portrait Artist of the Year 2026

Return of the competition to find the UK's most talented portrait artist (AD) (S)

9.00 Discovering Romance on Film

Critics discuss their favourite

romantic movies (AD) (S)

10.30 The Nineties A look at terrorism during the decade (S)

11.30 Art's Most Satanic 12.30am Ai Weiwei: The Artivist 1.45 The Ghost of Richard Harris 4.00 Art Traffickers: Treasures Stolen from the Tombs 5.00 - 6.00am Bill Bailey's Master Crafters: The Next Generation

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U&Drama

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FV 20 FS 158 SKY 143 VIRGIN 116

6.00 am Teleshopping 7.35 The Bill (S)

8.35 Doctors (S) 9.15 Doctors (S)

9.55 Classic Holby City (S) 10.55 Casualty (AD) (S) 11.55 The Bill (S)

12.55 pm Classic EastEnders (S)

1.35 Classic EastEnders (S)

2.15 Classic Neighbours (S)

2.50 Classic Neighbours (S)

3.20 Sister Boniface Mysteries (AD) (S)

4.20 Father Brown (AD) (S)

5.20 As Time Goes By (S)

6.00 Last of the Summer Wine (AD) (S)

6.40 Last of the Summer Wine (AD) (S)

The Chelsea Detective

7.20 Last of the Summer Wine Wesley creates a bed on wheels (AD) (S)

8.00 The Chelsea Detective A celebrated architect is thrown to his death from a hotel balcony (AD) (S)

9.00 Father Brown The holiest house in Kembleford is linked to the death of a wanton woman (AD) (S)

10.00 New Tricks UCOS looks into the murder of a private investigator (AD) (S)

11.20 Father Brown 12.20am Lovejoy 1.30 The Chelsea Detective 2.35 Sister Boniface Mysteries 3.20 As Time Goes By 4.00 - 6.00am Teleshopping

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Talking Pictures TV

FY 82 FS 306 SKY 324 VIRGIN 445

6.00 am Sherlock Holmes (S) 6.30 FILM: Mutiny (1952) Nautical adventure starring Mark Stevens (S) 8.05 FILM: Phantom Ship (1935, b/w) Murder mystery starring Bela Lugosi (S) 9.20 FILM: Murder in Reverse (1945, b/w) Thriller starring William Hartnell (S) 10.55 FILM: Thunder Rock (1942, b/w) Drama starring Michael Redgrave (S)

1.00 pm The Buccaneers (S)

1.30 Mobilise Your Scrap

1.35 FILM: Tiger by the Tail (1955, b/w)

Crime drama starring Larry Parks (S)

3.15 Look at Life

3.30 Dial 999 (S)

4.00 FILM: The Card (1952, b/w) Period comedy starring Alec Guinness (S)

5.50 It's All Over Town: Scopitone

Van der Valk

Gran Turismo

7.00 Out of Town Jack Hargreaves encounters a water vole while trout fishing (S)

7.30 Dick Turpin A poacher has cut in on Dick Turpin's territory (S)

8.05 Van der Valk The detective tries to prove that a drowned woman was murdered (S)

9.05 Sherlock Holmes: The Eligible Bachelor Feature-length episode. A bride disappears on her wedding day (S)

11.10 A Game of Murder 12.15am FILM: Suddenly (1954, b/w) Thriller starring Frank Sinatra 1.50 FILM: Murder in Eden (1961, b/w) Crime drama starring Ray McAnally 3.10 The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club 4.00 Stagecoach West 5.00 - 6.00am The Man from UNCLE

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Film4

FV 14 FS 200 SKY 855 VIRGIN 428

11.00 am FILM: Anastasia (1956) Historical drama starring Ingrid Bergman and Yul Brynner (AD) (S)

1.10 pm FILM: Santa Fe (1951) Western starring Randolph Scott (S)

2.55 FILM: Lifeboat (1944, b/w) Alfred Hitchcock's Second World War drama starring Tallulah Bankhead (AD) (S)

4.50 FILM: D-Day: The Sixth of June (1956) Second World War drama starring Robert Taylor and Richard Todd (S)

7.00 FILM: Next Goal Wins (2023)

Premiere. A Dutch coach takes on the challenge of transforming American Samoa's soccer team from serial underdogs into winners. Comedy starring Michael Fassbender (S)

9.00 FILM: Gran Turismo (2023)

A teenager beats thousands of other gamers in a competition to become a racing car driver in real life. Fact-based drama starring David Harbour and Orlando Bloom (AD) (S)

11.40 FILM: Underwater (2020) Sci-fi thriller starring Kristen Stewart 1.30 - 3.55am FILM: Skin (2018) Crime drama starring Jamie Bell

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