Displaying items by tag: British Isles

In Birmingham, the city council and the Unite union remain locked in a bitter deadlock as the city’s bin strike enters its twelfth month, including nine months of full walkouts. Despite the ongoing dispute, Councillor Majid Mahmood has announced the council will press ahead with major reforms to its waste service, including fortnightly collections, expanded recycling, and a new weekly food waste scheme (which all local councils have to introduce in 2026). He said that all individual employment issues had been resolved, with workers either accepting new roles, choosing voluntary redundancy, or (rarely) being made compulsorily redundant. He could not understand why Unite members remained on strike. Unite, however, has accused the council of failing to consult it properly, and insists affected workers deserve compensation for lost pay and status. While new equipment and systems are ready for rollout, neither side appears willing to compromise, leaving the city without a resolution.

The Government is preparing a major expansion of facial recognition technology across the UK, giving police access to passport and driving-licence photos to speed up the identification of offenders. The Met Police, which has already made 1,300 arrests and tracked more than 100 sex offenders using the technology over two years, says live facial recognition is a key tool for public safety. The Home Office has launched a ten-week consultation to shape new legislation after concerns about 'Big Brother Britain' and the erosion of civil liberties. Critics argue that safeguards remain inadequate, noting previous findings by the Equality and Human Rights Commission that the Met’s policies were 'unlawful'. Civil liberties groups warn of potential misuse, disproportionate surveillance, and a chilling effect at protests. Supporters insist that the technology is becoming more accurate, with strict oversight needed rather than abandonment. Police chiefs say it will help find dangerous offenders and missing people more quickly. The consultation will determine what safeguards are necessary and whether expanded use is proportionate to the harms being targeted.

The classic worship song Shine, Jesus, Shine has been newly reimagined for the UK-wide ‘Shine Your Light’ Christmas campaign, which seeks to unite thousands of believers in a shared moment of worship and national prayer. First written by Graham Kendrick in 1987, the song is one of the most recognisable modern hymns in Britain. The initiative was sparked by Christian teacher and musician Nicole Hobday, who first dreamed as a teenager of churches singing the song simultaneously. The vision resurfaced after witnessing Kendrick lead believers to sing the song as a prayer over the nation. Feeling a sense of urgency following last August’s unrest, Hobday approached Kendrick, who encouraged her to take the idea forward. The new arrangement features children’s voices, multilingual lines in Punjabi and Mandarin, a rap element, prayers, and a choral arrangement by Ken Burton. Hobday described the recording session at COM Church as deeply moving. Running from 12 to 14 December, the campaign involves around 2,000 churches and aims to mobilise 200,000 Christians to share the Gospel with two million people.

Across the UK and Europe, cars are steadily growing longer, wider, and heavier - a trend critics have nicknamed ‘carspreading’. SUVs in particular have surged in popularity, with their market share rising from 13% in 2011 to nearly 60% by 2025. Buyers praise them for visibility, practicality, comfort, and a sense of safety, and carmakers favour them for higher profit margins. But cities like Paris and Cardiff are pushing back, arguing that larger vehicles worsen pollution, increase road wear, and heighten risks in collisions. In Paris, after parking fees for heavy vehicles were tripled, the authorities have reported a two-thirds reduction in their numbers. Cardiff plans similar measures, gradually lowering weight thresholds for higher permit costs. Supporters say cities are too constrained to accommodate ever-bigger cars, while critics argue families rely on them for space, mobility, and accessibility. With many European roads narrower than modern vehicles, the debate highlights a growing tension between personal convenience, environmental responsibility, and urban safety.

A Christian street preacher in Swindon has been acquitted of charges related to comments he made in a public space, a case which sparked wider debate about free speech and the policing of perceived hate incidents. Shaun O’Sullivan, 36, was accused of religiously aggravated intentional harassment after a Muslim family claimed his remarks about Jews and Palestine were directed personally at them because they wore hijabs. However, the prosecution case rested largely on their testimony, and CCTV footage showed only a very brief encounter with no sustained confrontation. In court, one complainant acknowledged she had not heard the full message and that her perceptions were influenced by distress over the Gaza conflict. The defence argued O’Sullivan was preaching a general Christian message - not using abusive language - and warned that criminalising public evangelism threatens long-standing freedoms. Supporters described the verdict as a vital affirmation of the right to share Christian beliefs openly in the public square.

The twentieth Mitzvah Day in the UK demonstrated the power of shared service to strengthen interfaith relationships at a time when tensions have risen nationwide. Volunteers from Jewish, Christian and Muslim communities joined together in more than 200 projects, including preparing food for night shelters and refugee support at Alyth Synagogue in Golders Green. Organisers emphasised that practical cooperation builds trust where dialogue alone can struggle, particularly following strained relations linked to conflict in the Middle East. Founder Laura Marks, who also co-created the Nisa-Nashim network for Jewish and Muslim women, celebrated ongoing friendships and urged continued collaboration beyond the annual event. Leaders, including Rabbi Josh Levy and Bishop Anderson Jeremiah, noted that initiatives like Mitzvah Day help to deepen community bonds and provide resilient foundations for future peacebuilding. Participants said that acts of kindness reflect religious responsibility to seek the good of others, even amid political or social division.

Rachel Reeves has delivered her second Budget against a backdrop of weak economic growth, high inflation and tightening household finances. Seeking to raise revenue without triggering an inflation spike, she avoided the previously signalled rise in income tax rates and instead relied on a wide mix of indirect tax changes and frozen thresholds. Measures include new or higher taxes on wealth, property, tourism, gambling and high-sugar drinks, along with a future per-mile charge for electric vehicles. A major welfare change will see the two-child benefit cap scrapped in April 2026, while benefits rise in line with inflation. Business incentives are also adjusted, including changes to capital allowances and dividend taxation. She has also raised the basic living wage significantly: see Critics warn the strategy adds complexity and prolongs record-high tax levels, raising concerns that further tax rises may still be needed. Reeves positioned the Budget as a necessary step to stabilise public finances while supporting workers and the most vulnerable during economic uncertainty.

The Government has announced a shift in its North Sea energy policy, allowing limited new oil and gas licences - but only where developments connect to existing fields and infrastructure without further exploration. The move marks a softening of Labour's previous pledge to halt new licensing entirely as part of efforts to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. Britain’s oil and gas production has sharply declined since the early 2000s, and further reductions are expected over coming decades. At the same time, the Government confirmed it will keep in place the windfall tax introduced during the energy price surge until 2030, despite strong lobbying from industry leaders who argue it deters investment and threatens jobs. Ministers maintain the tax remains essential to raise funds for the transition to clean energy, and a replacement price-linked mechanism is planned once the levy expires. The debate highlights the complex balance between economic security, climate responsibility and workforce stability.

Major changes to the justice system in England and Wales are being considered as justice secretary David Lammy proposes restricting the right to a jury trial for many criminal cases. Only those accused of the most serious offences - such as rape, murder, and manslaughter - would be guaranteed a jury; all other defendants facing serious charges would be tried by a judge alone. The proposals aim to address record delays and a backlog of more than 78,000 Crown Court cases, which could rise to more than 100,000 by 2030 without intervention. Supporters say urgent reform is needed to ensure timely justice for victims, but the chair of the Criminal Bar Association, which represents criminal barristers, has said: ‘Their actions will destroy a criminal justice system that has been the pride of this country for centuries, and destroy justice as we know it. Juries are not the cause of the backlog. The cause is the systematic underfunding and neglect that has been perpetrated by this government and its predecessors for years.’

Authorities in Oxfordshire are working to tackle one of the most serious fly-tipping incidents the region has seen, after a massive illegal waste pile - around 150 metres long and up to six metres high - was discovered on farmland near Kidlington. The Environment Agency has declared the situation a critical incident due to public safety and environmental risks, particularly with the site’s proximity to the River Cherwell. Following months of overnight dumping by organised criminals, a court order secured in late October halted further tipping, and the location remains sealed off as a live crime scene. A 39-year-old man from the Guildford area has now been arrested as part of a major investigation. Officials are monitoring potential contamination, though no signs of hazardous waste breakdown have been detected so far. Keir Starmer said that ‘all available powers’ would be used to make those responsible pay for the clean-up: a similarly huge amount of illegally dumped waste, in Kent, will probably take up to a year to remove.