UK

The parents of 14-year-old Charlene Downes, who disappeared 20 years ago today, have appealed for anyone who knows what happened to her to “end their nightmare” and help bring them justice. Police have issued a fresh appeal for information about what happened to Charlene on the anniversary of her disappearance in Blackpool. In the years

Boris Johnson suggested he saw COVID as “nature’s way of dealing with old people” and was “obsessed” with them accepting their fate, the inquiry into the pandemic has heard. During a hearing on Tuesday, notes were shared from the government’s former chief scientist describing a “bonkers set of exchanges”. Sir Patrick Vallance wrote in one

Police in West Yorkshire say they are investigating a serving officer over allegations he shared racist and misogynistic content in a WhatsApp group with colleagues. Sky News has seen evidence of the content and messages on a device that was handed to the force 18 months ago. The officer’s ex-wife said she understood that West

A Metropolitan Police firearms officer charged with the murder of Chris Kaba will be named publicly, a judge has ruled. The marksman, who had previously been known only as NX121, is facing trial at the Old Bailey over the shooting of 24-year-old Mr Kaba in Streatham Hill, south London. In a ruling at the Old

Nicole Collarbone never thought she would be a single mother, but as she neared her 40th birthday, she knew she no longer wanted to wait to meet a partner to have a baby. She decided to have IVF with a sperm donor, but with the steep price of fertility treatment, and no one to share

Yellow weather warnings for rain and wind are in force every day until Thursday as a newly named storm approaches the UK. Storm Ciaran is set to bring strong winds and heavy downpours to southern parts of England and Wales – with “unsettled” conditions forecast for much of the UK. Met Office deputy chief meteorologist

Thousands of people have joined a pro-Palestine protest in London calling for an end to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza. Police estimated around 100,000 demonstrators gathered in the capital, as other rallies have been organised elsewhere in the UK including Manchester and Glasgow. A suspect was arrested on Whitehall after an officer was assaulted and the

Heavy rain over the weekend risks flooding areas that have already been hard hit by Storm Babet, according to forecasters. The Met Office has yellow weather warnings in place for the eastern coast of Scotland, Northern Ireland and South East England on Saturday and Sunday. Conditions are likely to bring between 50mm and 80mm of

Dressed in what appears to be a very expensive designer track top, from the neck down the man in front of me certainly looks the part of professional footballer on a day off. Box-fresh white Nikes, baggy shorts over sports tights and gloves complete the look – along with the studded black rose mask concealing

A man who terrified female drivers heading home late at night while wearing a gimp suit has been found guilty of public order offences. Joshua Hunt, 32, was seen by one woman writhing around on the ground, while another was left shaking and crying. The incidents took place in the evening of May 7 and

A 15-year-old girl is being treated in hospital for septic shock caused by a bite from a tropical ant infestation in her home. Rayanne Turay had to seek urgent medical treatment after an ant bite on her leg became infected. Her mum, Jordann Griffiths, said she first complained to the council months ago. Although work

Georgia Harrison is smartly dressed in a pink boucle jacket and a white blouse buttoned up at the collar, hair swept off her face in a slick, smart ponytail. But as soon as she gets off the Zoom call, she’ll change into a Tinkerbell costume for early Halloween celebrations – as seen in photographs now

Widespread exploitation of carers recruited from abroad is the “the number one priority” for the agency that investigates criminality affecting workers in England and Wales. The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) told Sky News that the Health and Care Worker visa system is being abused by criminals, leading to “a constant stream of allegations”

Former police officer Lewis Edwards, who admitted more than 100 sexual offences against children, has been handed a life sentence. He will serve a minimum of 12 years behind bars. He was granted a reduction of one third to his sentence due to his entering a guilty plea. Sentences for other counts for which he

Thousands of AI-generated images depicting child abuse have been shared on a dark web forum, new research has found. Around 3,000 AI images of child abuse were shared on the forum in September, with 564 depicting the most serious kind of imagery including rape, sexual torture, and bestiality. Of the images, 1,372 depicted children aged

The British-based families of people killed or taken hostage in Hamas’s 7 October attack on Israel have spoken of their grief. Speaking at a press conference in London, Ayelet Svatitzky, whose brother was killed in a raid on his kibbutz in southern Israel, said her “life stopped” on 7 October. Her other brother and mother