United Kingdom

    Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will invite 2,640 members of the public to Windsor Castle on their wedding day, it has been announced. The couple want their special day to be shaped so as to allow members of the public to feel part of the celebrations too, Kensington Palace said. Nearly 180 Years of British Royal Engagement Photos The occasion will be a moment of fun and joy that will reflect the characters and values of the pair, a spokesperson added today. The selected members of the public will be invited to watch the arrivals of the 33-year-old prince, his US actress fiancée, 36, and their guests. They will also see the carriage procession as it departs from the castle. This wedding, like all weddings, will be a moment of fun and joy that will reflect the char...

    Protests outside Downing Street have been planned after the Prime Minister confirmed she will welcome Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Britain. Human rights campaigners will hold a demonstration next Wednesday as the designated successor to the Saudi throne jets into the UK. They are calling on Theresa May to tackle the Crown Prince over his country's human rights record, as well as to suspend UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia amid the kingdom's military action in Yemen. Groups such as Stop the War Coalition, which counts shadow home secretary Diane Abbott among their patrons, will join anti-arms trade campaigners in Westminster. It has been calculated Britain has licensed £4.6bn worth of arms to Saudi Arabia since it began its intervention in neighbouring Ye...

    Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are looking closely at issues around youth violence as they decide what charitable interests they will focus on as a married couple. Representatives from The Royal Foundation confirmed they are now researching the work that's taking place in the UK to combat youth violence. It comes after Harry and Meghan visited Reprezent, a radio station in Brixton that was set up in 2008 following a rise in knife crime, and met with young people and mentors from the Full Effect project in Nottingham which helps to keep young people out of gangs. Later today Meghan will carry out her first official working engagement alongside her future in-laws. She will join Prince Harry, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at the first annual event to celebrat...

    The MET Office have issued an amber weather, but that may soon be updated to red as the heavy snow continues. Police have advised people not to travel unless it is absolutely neccessary. So what are your rights if you can't make it into work? Will I be in trouble if I can't make it in? Your boss might be able to make you take unpaid leave, holiday days or work flexible hours to make up time – even if you legitimately can't make it in. But if you show you've made an effort and speak to them early, a reasonable boss shouldn't penalise you. Slide 1 of 29: 29th December 1962: A skier being pulled along behind a car in Earl's Court, London. (Photo by Terry Fincher & Michael Stroud/Express/Getty Images) A skier being pulled along behind a car in Earl's Court, Lon...

    Concerned that time is fast running out, the European Union moved Wednesday to force Britain's hand in Brexit negotiations by publishing a draft text that provocatively distils into legal language what they have and even what they have not agreed so far about Britain's departure. Britain officially leaves the EU on March 29 next year but Brexit talks must conclude this fall so that parliaments have time to ratify the final withdrawal agreement. The new text summarizes all aspects of the talks so far, but takes a tough line on issues where British input is lacking. While rumors about the document's content has already angered some on the other side of the English Channel, Barnier told reporters that this draft text contains no surprises for our British friends. EU ...

    The Queen’s attempt to improve the green credentials of Balmoral, her Scottish estate, has been stopped over concerns the plans are too noisy for red squirrels. The Cairngorms National Park Authority, which is responsible for planning in the area, has called in a plan by the estate to create a new hydroelectric scheme. It wants to build a turbine to generate power worth up to £650,000 a year from the River Muick, which runs through the property . But objectors claim the project would be too noisy for wildlife in the area, including badgers, red squirrels and otters. The decision is a setback for the estate, where the Queen spends her summer holidays . Construction work would last two years and involve the installation of a 30ft salmon ladder to enable the fish to...

    Labour has urged the Scottish Government to bring forward plans for a tourist tax in Scotland after councils backed the move. The party said the levy on hotel stays would enable local authorities to raise tens of millions of pounds in extra revenue. Council leaders unanimously agreed last week that local government umbrella body Cosla should start lobbying ministers for the introduction of a transient visitor tax. Scottish Labour MSP Monica Lennon has written to Communities Secretary Angela Constance on the issue. Cuts to local authorities in this year’s budget mean extremely difficult choices ahead. Those hit hardest by cuts are the poorest groups who are more reliant on a range of public services. We urgently need to look at new ways for local authorities to ra...

    Council tax is likely to increase by the maximum amount in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) as it continues to face significant financial pressures in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire. Proposals to increase it by the maximum amount of 2.99 per cent for the majority of residents from April due to rising costs and inflation, will be voted on. There are also plans to top up charges with money ring-fenced for social care by the maximum three per cent, in order to meet significant additional expenditure for Grenfell related adult social care. The proposals, set out in a financial report, have already been approved by the leadership team and will go before the full council for a vote on 7 March. If accepted, it will be the second increase in co...

    Jeremy Corbyn has called for Britain to form a new comprehensive UK-EU customs union after Brexit, as he set out his party's new policy on leaving the European Union. The Labour leader said that it was necessary for Britain to retain close ties to Europe in order to prevent a hard border between Ireland and the UK. We have long argued that a customs union is a viable option for the final deal. So Labour would seek to negotiate a new comprehensive UK-EU customs union to ensure that there are no tariffs with Europe and to help avoid any need for a hard border in Northern Ireland, he said. However he insisted that any new customs union would "need to ensure the UK has a say in future trade deals" conducted between the EU and other countries. Leaving the European Unio...

    A man is desperately seeking information about members of his extended family after the explosion that flattened a building in Leicester on Sunday evening, killing at least five people. Firefighters using search and rescue dogs are continuing to search the collapsed property amid fears there are people who remain unaccounted for. A Leicestershire fire and rescue spokesman said emergency services were searching for gaps in the building in which people could have survived. The search is expected to continue throughout Monday. He [my brother-in-law] doesn’t know what’s happened to his other children, he said. His two older sons are missing, his wife is missing and one of his son’s girlfriends is believed to be missing. We’ve been waiting [for news] since 7pm last nigh...