World

Digital driving licences stored in a government smartphone “wallet” that can be used to prove a person’s age are to be made available this year. Science and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said “nothing is off the table” in terms of what digital versions of Government-issued documents could be stored in the new Gov.uk app. The app for Government services will be launched by June and will include a digital wallet to store documents, beginning with a veteran card and then a pilot of driving licences by the end of the year. “You will be able to prove and verify your age digitally using the digital driving licence. And this is going to be absolutely liberating,” Mr Kyle said at a launch event at the Government Digital Service in Whitechapel. “In person, you can generate a code where you can hold up and prove you are who you say you are, and you are the age you say you are without having to reveal your name or your address,” he added. And online, he demonstrated how the digital ID could be used to buy age-restricted items such as fireworks online. The app also aims to join up services so people can pay their car tax and receive their child benefit in the same place. The wallet will make use of security features already built into modern smartphones, including facial recognition – similar to how people use such tools to pay for things using a digital bank card on their phone. Physical documents will remain available and there are no plans to make the digital versions compulsory, Mr Kyle said. DBS checks and marriage certificates are among the credentials the Government hopes to have available inside the wallet by the end of 2027. He said it was possible that it could be used for people to store and display their immigration status in future. He added: “In terms of the immigration system, we’re not hiding or reluctant to talk about any of these issues because the Prime Minister himself asked every Government department to write to him by Christmas with ideas of where digital transformation can happen with every Government department. “I’m looking very closely with the Home Office, we don’t have a current work plan to get the digital wallet specifically for asylum processes, because every asylum seeker currently has to give biometric data and thumbprints and so forth and carry a card when they’re here. But we’re just in the foothills of this.” He said every Government department is exploring how to use it and “So nothing is off the table when we have these conversations”, he said. Getting a fine through the post or waiting for a doctor’s appointment are “alien” concepts to young people – who have never known life without a smartphone, he said. Mr Kyle said earlier: “Along with CDs, the Walkman and flip phones, the overflowing drawer rammed with letters from the Government and hours spent on hold to get a basic appointment will soon be consigned to history. “Gov.UK Wallet will mean that every letter or identity document you receive from the government could be issued to you virtually. “For people who choose to use Gov.UK Wallet, they will find it easier to prove they’re entitled to benefits or check their age when buying alcohol or DIY equipment, with more security and trust than ever before. “Crucially, it also opens huge opportunities to make interacting with public services much easier by putting people in control of their own data. “We will be overhauling how the public sector uses technology which is essential to delivering our Plan for Change, and in combination with this new tech for people to use themselves, we are going to slash the time people waste dealing with annoying processes so they can focus on what matters to them.” Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said: “This is a game changer for the millions of people who use their driving licence as ID. “The innovation puts power back in the hands of the people, making everyday interactions faster, easier, and more secure. We are delivering on the Plan for Change by making public services work for everyone.” The digital update comes alongside plans announced to make £45 billion in efficiency savings by using digital tools and data to upgrade public services, including introducing AI tools to the Civil Service to speed up work in Whitehall. Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

The deaths of a 36-year-old man and a six-year-old girl whose bodies were found at a property in West Lothian are being treated as “unexplained” by police. Officers found the bodies at a property in Harburn Drive, West Calder, after they were called to a report of concern for a person at about 4pm on Monday January 20. Police said the deaths are being treated as unexplained and post-mortem examinations will take place in due course. Officers said their relatives are aware and are being supported by specialist officers. Police said extensive inquiries are underway to establish the full circumstances. Chief Inspector Elaine McArthur-Kerr, local area commander, said: “We understand this incident may be very upsetting and worrying for the people living in this community and would ask anyone with any concerns to speak to us. “A police presence will remain in the area while we carry out investigations and anyone with any concerns, or information, can approach these officers.” The fire service also went to the scene on Monday to support emergency service partners. A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: “Operations Control mobilised one appliance to the scene and crews gained entry to a dwelling house. “Crews left the scene at 5.03pm.” MP for the area Gregor Poynton said he was “sorry to learn about the tragic deaths in West Calder”. Adding that his “thoughts are with all those affected”, the Livingston MP added he had spoken to Police Scotland about the situation, and the force would have an “increased presence” in the area. Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

A storm named Eowyn could put lives at risk as strong winds batter the north of the UK on Friday and into Saturday, the Met Office said. Gusts of more than 80mph could cause power cuts, travel disruption and damage to buildings as Storm Eowyn threatens the country. There could also be a danger to life caused by flying debris. The UK can expect the arrival of unsettled conditions on Thursday, which will see strengthening winds and heavy rainfall in western parts of the country overnight, the forecaster said. It follows the “benign” grey, cloudy weather and outbreaks of rain seen by much of the country earlier in the week. The Met Office has issued a yellow wind warning from midnight on Friday across most of the UK, including the south-west of England, the Midlands, northern England, Northern Ireland and Scotland, as the storm sweeps through the country. The disruption is not expected to affect inland areas in the south-east of the country, including London, but will hit the coast, with the warning extending to Brighton and Dover. The forecaster issued an additional warning from midnight on Saturday to late afternoon that day across Scotland and the far north of England. Met Office spokeswoman Andrea Bishop said: “Storm Eowyn will bring a period of very unsettled, potentially disruptive, weather to the UK through Friday and into Saturday. “Pronounced ‘Ay-oh-win’, the system will begin to influence the UK’s weather on Friday, with strengthening winds initially in north-western parts of the UK with accompanying heavy rainfall.” Storm Eowyn will bring a spell of strong south-easterly to south-westerly winds, with gusts reaching 50-60 mph inland and 70-80 mph along coasts. The wind strength is expected to ease gradually through Saturday from the south. Met Office deputy chief meteorologist Mike Silverstone said: “The strongest gusts are likely to be felt across parts of Northern Ireland, northern England, north-western Wales and western Scotland, where exposed sites could get gusts in excess of 80mph, which has the potential to cause impacts for those in these areas. “There will also be some heavy rain, bringing some unpleasant conditions to end the week.” The change to conditions is being caused by a powerful jet stream pushing low pressure across the Atlantic and towards the UK, following a recent cold spell over North America, the Met Office said. The forecaster advised securing loose items outside homes, including bins, garden furniture, trampolines and sheds, and gathering torches and batteries in case of any power cut. Those travelling in this “disruptive spell of weather” are urged to be cautious, as road, rail, airports and ferries are likely to be affected. Another area of low pressure could bring further wet and very windy weather across the UK by Sunday. There is the potential for further weather warnings over the weekend and throughout next week, the Met Office added. Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

Tougher laws could be needed to regulate the “nightmares of the online world”, Sir Keir Starmer said after it emerged Axel Rudakubana trawled the internet for extreme violent content before the Southport atrocity. The Prime Minister said users can view a “tidal wave of violence” on the internet, and that there are tougher rules for films shown in cinemas unlike for the material freely available online. Rudakubana had a PDF file entitled Military Studies In The Jihad Against The Tyrants, The Al Qaeda Training Manual, which led to him being charged with possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism, which he admitted on Monday. When police searched Rudakubana’s home in Banks, Lancashire, after he carried out the Southport murders on July 29, they found knives and poison, as well as images and documents relating to violence, war and genocide on his devices. The Prime Minister said the teenager represented a new kind of threat, distinct from politically or ideologically motivated terrorism, with “acts of extreme violence perpetrated by loners, misfits, young men in their bedroom, accessing all manner of material online, desperate for notoriety”. At a Downing Street press conference, Sir Keir said: “To face up to this new threat there are also bigger questions. “Questions such as how we protect our children from the tidal wave of violence freely available online. “Because you can’t tell me that the material this individual viewed before committing these murders should be accessible on mainstream social media platforms. “That with just a few clicks, people can watch video after horrific video. Videos that in some cases are never taken down. “No – that cannot be right.” Sir Keir said the attack in Southport was not an “isolated, ghastly example”, pointing to evidence from mass school shootings in the US. He said: “This is a new threat, individualised, extreme violence, obsessive, often following online viewing of material from all sorts of different sources. “It is not a one-off. It is something that we all need to understand and have a shared undertaking to deal with within our society. “That is not just the laws on terrorism, the framework on terrorism. It’s also the laws of what we can access online. “We still have rules in place in this country about what we can see at a cinema, yet online you can access no end of materials. “We have to ensure that we can rise to this new challenge, and that is what I’m determined to do.” Andy Burrows, chief executive of the Molly Rose Foundation which campaigns on online safety, said the Prime Minister is right to signal a review of the law “to protect children and society from a growing melting pot of extreme and violent threats”. He said: “We are deeply concerned about the growing threat of violent motives and ideas fomenting online, including those which are fuelling a wave of sadistic grooming to coerce children into grooming and self-harm acts. “Regrettably, our calls for Ofcom to respond to this urgent threat have so far fallen on deaf ears. “The only credible response can be for Sir Keir Starmer to commit to a reworked and strengthened Online Safety Act that tackles this growing tsunami of increasingly interconnected and deeply disturbing harm.” The provisions of the Online Safety Act are being gradually implemented but Downing Street said further action could be taken. The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “From the spring, the Online Safety Act will bring in new rules for online platforms, which is the right thing to do to ensure illegal content, illegal mis- and disinformation, hateful content, is removed. “So those new requirements will be there.” He said the Government was “not going to take anything off the table as we do that work”. Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

The former chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) has criticised the recent “weaponisation” of child sexual abuse, as she told of her relief at news her report’s recommendations will finally be implemented. Professor Alexis Jay led the multimillion-pound long-running inquiry, which published its final report in October 2022. She said what followed was almost two years of inaction by the former Conservative government, describing their official response to her recommendations in May 2023 under then-home secretary Suella Braverman as “awful”. Appearing before the Home Affairs Committee, Prof Jay said the written response to the 20 recommendations – which followed the seven-year inquiry – had been “inconsequential, insubstantial, committed to nothing”. Frustrated at the lack of action, Prof Jay wrote a letter, published in the Times newspaper, describing the response to her inquiry as “weak” and “apparently disingenuous”. Prof Jay told MPs she had then been contacted while on holiday and had an “adversarial” conversation with a special adviser who “came on demanding to know why I had written to The Times and complaining”. Following this, she said there had been “quite a long silence” from the Home Office until James Cleverly took over as Home Secretary in November 2023. In her appearance before the committee on Tuesday, Prof Jay was asked about the previous years of inaction, followed by a commitment last week by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper to lay out a clear timetable by Easter for implementing the IICSA recommendations. There have been weeks of pressure on the current Government, including from the Conservative Opposition and billionaire X owner Elon Musk for a national inquiry into child grooming gangs. The public and political conversation has also brought into focus the lack of implementation of IICSA recommendations under the previous Tory government. Criticising what she branded the “weaponisation” of the issue, Prof Jay said she did not want to name those involved in the public argument so as not to give them “the oxygen of publicity”. She told MPs: “I really felt very concerned at the weaponisation, if you like, of child sexual abuse that has gone on. “I declined to make – and I won’t make – any comment about the various actors involved in that – I wouldn’t give them the oxygen of publicity. “But just, it was such a relief (the news of a plan to implement recommendations), by whatever means – we wouldn’t have chosen it necessarily to have come about in this way – but we just need to get on with it.” Prof Jay’s seven-year inquiry described child sexual abuse as an “epidemic” in England and Wales, finding institutional failings and tens of thousands of victims across the two nations. The recommendations from the final report included the implementation of laws compelling people in positions of trust to report child sexual abuse and a national compensation scheme for victims. Last week alongside the commitment on IICSA recommendations, Ms Cooper also announced an audit looking into the current scale and nature of “gang-based exploitation” across the country as well as local reviews into grooming in some areas. Ms Cooper said local reviews would provide more answers and change than a nationwide probe, and that the audit of the current national situation would be completed within three months. Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

The Prime Minister has said the failure of state institutions in the case of child-killer Axel Rudakubana “frankly leaps off the page”. The 18-year-old pleaded guilty on Monday to murdering three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in July. Despite contact with state agencies such as Prevent, authorities failed to stop the attack which claimed the lives of Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven. The Home Secretary announced an inquiry into the case on Monday evening, saying the country needed “independent answers” on Prevent and other agencies’ contact with the “extremely violent” Rudakubana and “how he came to be so dangerous”. Addressing the nation on Tuesday, Sir Keir Starmer said: “As part of the inquiry launched by the Home Secretary yesterday, I will not let any institution of the state deflect from their failure – failure which in this case, frankly, leaps off the page.” Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

Britain’s jobless rate has risen unexpectedly and the number of workers on payrolls has fallen by the most since the height of the pandemic, according to official figures. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the rate of unemployment increased to 4.4% in the three months to November, up from 4.3% in the three months to October. The number of payrolled employees was estimated to have tumbled by 47,000 during December to 30.3 million – the biggest drop since November 2020. It follows a revised 32,000 fall the previous month. But the statistics showed wage growth rose again, with average regular pay surging to 5.6% in the three months to November and outstripping Consumer Prices Index inflation by 3.4%. The figures come amid warnings over pressure on businesses and a pull back in hiring after Budget measures announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves will send wage costs higher. ONS director of economic statistics Liz McKeown said: “Pay growth picked up for a second consecutive period, again driven by strong increases in the private sector. “Real pay growth, which excludes the effects of inflation, increased slightly. “The number of employees on payroll, drawn from tax data, fell in the three months to November.” She added: “Alongside this, the number of vacancies fell again, for the 30th consecutive period, although the total number remains slightly above its pre-pandemic level.” In a further sign of a weakening jobs market, the ONS said vacancies dropped by 24,000 in the three months to December, to 812,000. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said “warning lights” on the jobs market were flashing. Jane Gratton, deputy director of public policy at the BCC, said: “The labour market continues to be challenging for many businesses, with wage growth continuing to rise as firms compete for skilled workers. “This is a concern as they face a significant rise in employment costs in April. “However, there are also signs of further loosening as unemployment ticks up, vacancies continue to fall and economic inactivity dips. “The full impact of the changes to national insurance and the minimum wage, announced at the Budget, won’t be fully seen until later in the year. However, the warning lights on recruitment, employment and training are already flashing.” Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

The UK is “long overdue a reckoning with Government spending”, a senior Treasury minister will say as Labour faces the prospect of making further cuts. Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, is expected to use a speech at the Institute for Government’s annual conference on Tuesday to argue that ministers need a different approach to ensure taxpayers’ money is spent effectively. He will say the Government “will not settle for doing things the same and hoping for different results” as he leads the spending review that will determine how much money departments will get over the coming years. It follows criticism of the previous government, with Labour accusing the Conservatives of wasting taxpayers’ money and leaving a £22 billion “black hole” in last year’s budget – something the opposition denies. As Chief Secretary, Mr Jones is responsible for assessing ministers’ requests for cash and has announced he will adopt a “zero-based” approach that requires every pound the Government spends to be fully justified. This could become a tough process. Ministers have already been told to find efficiency savings worth 5% of their departments’ budgets, but the rising cost of borrowing could mean even steeper cuts are required if the Government is to meet the fiscal rules it has set itself. The alternatives – greater borrowing or more tax increases – have been effectively ruled out by Chancellor Rachel Reeves. Mr Jones is expected to defend this approach on Tuesday, saying: “We are long overdue a reckoning with Government spending, and a realistic appraisal of how we are using taxpayers’ money.” A tech enthusiast, Mr Jones is expected to say he will put data at the heart of decisions in the spending review, saying it will help “properly link choices about what outcome we are buying with every pound”. It comes a week after Sir Keir Starmer wrote to ministers instructing them to make adopting AI a priority for their departments. Mr Jones will also confirm the creation of a National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority to “drive more effective delivery of infrastructure across the country” in a bid to increase growth. Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

The Chancellor will attend the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting Rachel Reeves will bid for more investment in Britain as she travels to the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos this week. The Chancellor is expected to meet the heads of major international banks during her two-day visit to the Swiss town on Wednesday and Thursday in an effort to tout the UK as an investment opportunity. In what the Treasury has described as the UK’s “most visible” presence “in years” at the annual meeting of business and political leaders, she will be joined by Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds who will meet with corporate chiefs and foreign trade ministers. Ms Reeves said: “Business leaders and investors need to know that the UK is where their businesses will flourish, so I’m meeting them face-to-face in Davos to make our case. “We are one of the most exciting places in the world for them to put their money, with a history of innovation, a skilled workforce and a stable Government that backs business.” The Government has made securing economic growth its primary goal, and sees bringing in more foreign investment as part of achieving that aim. The Chancellor’s trip follows her mission to Beijing at the start of the year, where she sought to rebuild trading and financial links with China as part of those efforts to boost economic growth. She received some good news on Monday as a survey of UK chief executives by consultancy PwC found Britain had leapfrogged Germany, China and India to become the second most attractive country for investment behind America. But recent weeks have also seen concern about the Chancellor’s course, with finance chiefs at major corporations expressing pessimism about their businesses in the face of rising costs, including higher taxes. Meanwhile, growth has flagged, with the economy expanding just 0.1% in November according to figures released last week, and the cost of government borrowing has risen. Ahead of her trip to Davos, Ms Reeves vowed that she “will not rest until the UK economy is growing” and the Government was delivering on its plans. Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub

It’s after ministers announce inquiry into Southport attack The Prime Minister will address the nation on Tuesday morning after the Government announced an inquiry into how the state failed to identify the risk posed by the Southport killer. Axel Rudakubana, who pleaded guilty on Monday to murdering three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in July, was referred three times to anti-extremism programme Prevent amid concerns over his fixation with violence. But despite this and contact with other state agencies, the authorities failed to stop the attack which claimed the lives of Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven. Announcing the inquiry on Monday evening, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the country needed “independent answers” on Prevent and other agencies’ contact with the “extremely violent” Rudakubana and “how he came to be so dangerous”. Following Rudakubana’s guilty pleas, Sir Keir Starmer described the 18-year-old as “vile and sick”, and said there were “grave questions to answer” on how the state “failed” to protect the three girls. The Prime Minister added: “Britain will rightly demand answers, and we will leave no stone unturned in that pursuit.” As well as the three murders, Rudakubana admitted 10 counts of attempted murder, possession of a knife, production of a biological toxin, ricin, and possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit acts of terrorism. The terrorism offence relates to a PDF file entitled Military Studies In The Jihad Against The Tyrants, The Al Qaeda Training Manual. He is also understood to have possessed numerous other documents on violent subjects, including A Concise History Of Nazi Germany, The Myth Of The Remote Controlled Car Bomb and Amerindian Torture And Cultural Violence. Sources said the material discovered showed an “obsession with extreme violence” but there was no evidence he ascribed to any political or religious ideology or was “fighting for a cause”. With some opposition figures alleging a “cover-up” of Rudakubana’s contact with the authorities, Sir Keir is likely to face questions about why this information had not been published earlier. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said on Monday he had been “right all along” when he claimed in the summer that information had been withheld from the public. But on Monday, the Home Secretary said the information about Rudakubana’s background could not be made public earlier “to avoid jeopardising the legal proceedings or prejudicing the possible jury trial, in line with the normal rules of the British justice system”. There are also likely to be questions about why the charges relating to the possession of ricin and the al Qaida training manual were not made public for three months after the teenager’s arrest. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said there were many questions that “remain unanswered about what went wrong”. Welcoming the announcement of a public inquiry, he said: “We also need to know who in Government knew what and when, as well as why the authorities may have withheld some information from the public.” The Prime Minister is expected to begin his address at 8.30am on Tuesday. Published: 20/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub