United Kingdom

    Theresa May will put herself on a collision course with Dublin this week by insisting on a post-Brexit trading border between Northern Ireland and the Republic. A crucial position paper is expected to stick to Britain’s current plan to use smart technology and spot checks to police the flow of goods between the two countries after 2019. The stance will anger the Irish Government, which fears the impact on the peace process in the North and has pushed for the Irish Sea to become the post-Brexit border with the UK instead. Alternatively, said the Irish prime minister, Leo Varadkar, Ms May should abandon her hard Brexit policy of leaving the EU customs union, which will make a border necessary. In recent weeks, the Taoiseach has made plain his growing frustration with Britain...

    A drama teacher, Sarah Barton admitted to being in a sexually-motivated relationship with the girl. She has been banned from the classroom after having sex with a pupil in her car and taking her to see a West End musical. Sarah Barton admitted being in a sexually-motivated relationship with the unnamed girl pupil at the school in Essex, and consistently and persistently failed to maintain appropriate boundaries, a National College for Teaching and Leadership panel said. Ms Barton, who worked at the school from September 2007 to July 2016 and was head of department fo r drama and dance when she resigned, took the student to see Matilda in London during a half-term holiday, despite being advised not to go. The NCTL panel heard Ms Barton taught the pupil - who is referred to ...

    Former police officer jailed for using helicopter to film naked sunbathers and people having sex. The former police officer who used a helicopter to film people having sex and sunbathing naked has been jailed for a year. A judge at Sheffield Crown Court sentenced Adrian Pogmore after he used a South Yorkshire Police helicopter to spy on people in their gardens. Footage shot by the "sex-obessed" former officer included graphic scenes of a couple having sex in a range of positions on their suburban patio.

    Downing Street has dismissed the idea of paying a Brexit divorce bill of up to €40bn (£36bn), as leading supporters of leaving the EU said they would not accept handing over such a large sum. Theresa May was reported on Sunday to be willing to pay that amount as the price for getting on with trade talks and an exit deal. The sum would be a compromise, because Brussels has demanded about €60bn. The €40bn figure would still be the equivalent of several years of contributions to the EU budget, which would continue to be paid after Britain leaves the EU in March 2019. A Downing Street source, however, said the figure, which was mentioned by Brussels sources quoted in the Sunday Telegraph, was inaccurate speculation, playing down the idea that such a high bill would be acceptab...

    The Queen does not drink four cocktails a day, contrary to recent reports. Her Majesty's former chef Darren McGrady has spoken out to clarify his comments about the 91 year old's favourite drinks, after he said his quotes were misreported. She'd be pickled if she drank that much, the former royal chef told CNN. All I said was she likes a gin and Dubonnet. That's her favourite drink. And the chef clarified that Her Majesty doesn't drink every day. She doesn't wake up in the morning and have a large gin and tonic. UK Hello! Magazine The Queen's favourite drink is a gin and Dubonnet Darren added that when the Queen does have a drink with dinner it is typically a glass of her favourite German sweet wine. Just in the evening. She certainly doesn't drink four glasses a day. The ...

    The best day ever that was three-year-old Romaysa's reaction after getting off her speedboat ride in West Sussex. Her sister Tasnim, brother Elias and mother Nabila have not been allowed back in to their home near Grenfell Tower since the fire. The area is still too dangerous. So it was a welcome break when charity Play Association and Felpham Sailing Club offered them, and other Grenfell families, a day out sailing and playing on the beach. Nabila told Sky News it's made a real difference. It's amazing. From the moment I saw the sea. Breathing the air…it's something different. We're really grateful, we're so honoured to have this moment of a day and to see them smiling and say it was the best day! Mum Nabila takes a picture of her children on the beach She explained how f...

    In just over three weeks time we will see the first cohort of GCSE students decipher a mix of letters and numbers in their results. Here’s our guide to the new numerical grading system and what it means for pupils. What will change? This summer marks the beginning of the end for the familiar A* to G grades. Over the next three years, they will be replaced entirely with a scale numbered nine to one - with nine the highest result, and one the lowest. But for this year, just a handful of subjects will be switched over, meaning some students will forever boast a CV with an 8 in maths and an A* in geography. What’s the time scale? Students in this year 11 sitting English language, English literature and maths will be the first to notice the changes. For most other subjects, inc...

    Nick Timothy Theresa May’s former right hand man has revealed for the first time what went wrong in the general election campaign and what he believes the Conservatives must do to avoid defeat in five years time. Nick Timothy, who resigned as the Prime Minister’s joint chief of staff in June, told The Daily Telegraph that the Tories lost their majority at the election because they abandoned Mrs May’s promise of change in favour of a continuity message. He also admitted Downing Street was guilty of a breakdown in communications both with the public and with other Whitehall departments, leaving key policies vulnerable to attack. In his first interview since leaving Number 10, the man dubbed Theresa May’s brain said she must find new ways to reform social care and forge ahead...

    A man has died after being shot in the chest as he stood outside a petrol station in Chelmsford, Essex. The victim, who was in his 20s, was standing with another man outside a BP garage on Baddow Road near the Army and Navy roundabout. He was shot dead by a man who pulled up in a blue Ford Fiesta at about 2.10am on Saturday. The suspect then drove off. The victim was taken to hospital but died a short time later. The road was closed for forensic examination. Police are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information to call 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.