UK

Two days of strikes by nurses and paramedics will have a knock-on effect on appointments with a return to “very high numbers” of emergency calls in the coming days, NHS Providers has warned. Historic strike action saw thousands of nurses picket on Tuesday and ambulance staff stage their biggest strike in 30 years yesterday. The

The number of people phoning 999 appears to have dropped in parts of England as thousands of ambulance staff and paramedics strike until midnight. The West Midlands Ambulance Trust thanked people for heeding their advice to only call in an emergency as ambulance trusts reported receiving fewer calls. The drop in calls comes as health

Thousands of ambulance workers in England and Wales are going on strike today – with NHS leaders warning that they cannot guarantee the safety of patients. Health Secretary Steve Barclay has urged the public to “take extra care” and “plan your activity accordingly” due to the strain the walkout will put on the health service,

Ambulance and hospital trusts across the country have declared critical incidents as a result of “sustained” and “unprecedented” pressure on services. Declaring a critical incident allows trusts to prioritise the patients most in need and to instigate additional measures to protect patient safety, trusts said. It comes as nurses were striking for a second day

Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will stage their second walkout across England, Wales and Northern Ireland today – as Health Secretary Steve Barclay is set to hold crisis talks with ambulance worker unions on emergency strike cover. Tens of thousands of nurses took part in the first day of strike action last

Thirty new patients have contacted Sky News following our investigation into the treatment of teenagers in mental health units run by a single provider. They include a 16-year-old boy whose mother told us her son’s self-harming increased. Rachel Vickers said of her son Tyson: “He looked like he’d been in a car crash”, and Tyson

Strikes will continue across a number of industries this week in an escalating campaign of industrial action, with Border Force workers among those expected to walk out. The strike by more than 1,000 Border Force employees will affect passport control desks at Heathrow, Gatwick, Birmingham, Cardiff and Glasgow airports from Friday until Boxing Day, and

A teenager has been charged with a people-smuggling offence after four people died while attempting to cross the Channel. Ibrahima Bah, 19, of no fixed address, was arrested by police after the incident on Wednesday. Four people died and 39 were rescued when a migrant boat capsized in the Channel. Bah was charged with “knowingly

Union bosses have criticised plans to deploy 1,200 troops to cover strikes, but the prime minister has hit back by calling them “Grinches” who “want to steal Christmas”. Union chiefs claim the military are not “sufficiently trained” to guard the country’s borders or drive ambulances, and that they should not be put in such an

Police have released the first picture of a woman who died after being injured in a crush at a concert at Brixton Academy. Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, from Newham, east London, died on Saturday morning, while two other women – aged 21 and 23 – remain in a critical condition in hospital. Eight people were taken

Hospitals should free up beds by safely discharging patients in advance of “extensive disruption” caused by industrial action by ambulance crews, health chiefs have said. They warned of “a very challenging period” when ambulance crews in England and Wales are due to walk out for two days on 21 and 28 December in a dispute

A meeting “filled with warmth and understanding” has taken place between Prince William’s godmother and the charity founder she repeatedly asked where she really came from. Lady Susan Hussey offered her “sincere apologies” to Ngozi Fulani for her comments and “the distress” they caused her, and pledged to deepen her awareness of the sensitivities involved.

Four people are in critical condition after crowd trouble at an Asake concert in Brixton, south London. People at the O2 Academy were said to have been locked outside the venue in freezing temperatures, prompting some to try to force their way inside, according to the Daily Mirror. The concert was eventually cancelled part-way through,

Four boys who died after falling into a frozen lake in Solihull have been named by police. Brothers Samuel Butler, six, and Finlay Butler, eight; their cousin Thomas Stewart, 11, and Jack Johnson, 10, were identified by West Midlands Police. Three of the boys, Jack, Thomas and Finlay, died on Sunday after falling into Babbs

Tens of thousands of nurses are going on strike today for their first mass walkout in a century across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The action, a bid to secure above-inflation pay rises, is going ahead after talks to avert it ended in a deadlock. Picket lines are being set up at dozens of hospitals

A fisherman whose crew saved 31 people stranded in the English Channel said he was woken in the early hours of the morning when migrants surrounded his boat “screaming for help”. Skipper Raymond told Sky News he had been sleeping when he was awoken by a member of his crew, who told him, “There are

A group of 90 Ukrainian judges will undergo training, provided by the UK, to carry out war crimes trials for Russian soldiers. The first group of judges attended sessions at a secret location in the region last week, and more will follow in the coming months, as part of a £2.5m investment. In her first broadcast

Rishi Sunak has promised to bring in new laws to tackle illegal immigration, saying anyone who comes to the UK illegally will not be allowed to stay. Making a raft of announcements in the Commons, the prime minister said the legislation would be introduced early next year and mean people who do not come to

A six-year-old boy who fell through ice into a lake in Solihull is still fighting for his life, as one of the three children who died was named locally. Mourners left flowers, balloons, soft toys and lighted candles at a vigil held on Monday night following the deaths of three boys aged eight, 10 and

Three boys aged eight, 10 and 11 have died after falling through an icy lake in Solihull, police have confirmed. A fourth boy, aged six, remains in a critical condition after the incident at Babbs Mill Park on Sunday afternoon. A search is continuing after unconfirmed reports up to six children may have fallen in,