National News

Concorde 50p coin takes off as Royal Mint celebrates supersonic aircraft

A new 50p coin celebrating the speed and elegance of Concorde has been launched by the Royal Mint, marking 50 years since the aircraft’s first commercial flight.

Aldi to lift pay for store workers from March

Aldi has unveiled plans to give its staff a pay rise in less than two months, ahead of an increase to the national minimum wage in April.

Macclesfield rewarded with home tie against Brentford in FA Cup fourth round

Macclesfield must upstage another Premier League side if they are to continue their fairytale FA Cup run after drawing Brentford in the fourth round.

Jessie Buckley and stars of Adolescence enjoy sparkling night at Golden Globes

Irish star Jessie Buckley was named best actress in a drama and Stephen Graham, Owen Cooper and Erin Doherty continued Adolescence’s winning streak through awards season as they all secured gongs at the Golden Globes.

Heathrows annual passenger numbers surpass 84m for first time

Heathrow airport’s annual passenger numbers exceeded 84 million for the first time last year.

Kate invites Red Roses to Windsor Castle for Rugby World Cup win celebration

The Princess of Wales is hosting a special reception for the Red Roses at Windsor Castle this week to celebrate their Rugby World Cup win.

Ofcom launches formal investigation into X over AI chatbot concerns

A formal investigation has been launched into whether Elon Musk’s social media platform X has complied with UK laws after reports its AI chatbot Grok created and shared sexualised images of children, the regulator Ofcom has said.

Major incident declared as 30000 properties hit by water outages

A major incident has been declared as 30,000 properties in Kent and Sussex are without a proper water supply.

Ex Tory chancellor Nadhim Zahawi defects to Reform UK

Former Conservative chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has joined Reform UK, the party has announced.

Charity shop staff thrilled as rare edition of The Hobbit fetches 3000

Staff at a Stirling charity shop have said they are “thrilled” after an extremely rare edition of JRR Tolkien’s The Hobbit fetched a record £3,000.

Keir Starmer says parental leave reforms put dignity back at heart of work

The Prime Minister has hailed upcoming changes to parental leave as putting “dignity back at the heart of work”.

Bird butterfly and dragonfly numbers soar at flagship rewilding project

A flagship rewilding project has seen an explosion in wildlife since it began, with bird numbers increasing tenfold in the past two decades, monitoring shows.