Mirror Daily Digest: Our top stories from Starmer suspends MPs to boy, 6, 'kills newborn in hospital'
Welcome to the Mirror's Daily Digest, where we pull together all the best stories of the day from our News, Showbiz, Sport teams and more. This Wednesday, we're featuring everything from a newborn being 'killed by a boy left to roam a hospital maternity ward' to the PM's suspension of four MPs and Emma Watson's driving ban.
A criminal enquiry has been launched in France after a boy, 6,'left to roam around a maternity unit' allegedly killed a newborn baby. Elsewhere, Harry Potter star Emma Watson was banned from driving after her fourth offence in two years and Keir Starmer suspended four Labour MPs over discipline breaches.
Boy, 6, 'kills newborn baby girl while roaming hospital's maternity ward'
A baby identified as Zayneb-Cassandra, who was born premature to a 23-year-old woman earlier this month, suffered a traumatic brain injury last Friday after the boy "treated her like a doll" and dropped her on the floor of the Jeanne-de-Flandre Children's Hospital in Lille.
The boy had already been reported as a 'disruptive presence' in the hospital when he was found alone with the unconscious baby in a neonatal unit. The baby was her mother's first child, and she was delivered by caesarean section, said the investigating source.
Zayneb-Cassandra's grandmother told the Voix du Nord newspaper: 'The boy would arrive at 7am and spend all day running up and down the hallways.' She added: "All the mothers were complaining, and a nurse even warned the child's mother that there was a problem. He was entering the other rooms."
Harry Potter's Emma Watson banned from driving after fourth offence in two years
Our Showbiz team's eyes were drawn to court again today as Emma Watson was handed a six month driving ban after pleading guilty to speeding. The Harry Potter star did not appear at High Wycombe Magistrates' Court for sentencing.
The 35-year-old actress earlier this year admitted to driving at 38mph in a 30mph zone. She was driving her Audi S3, which was towed away last year after being illegally parked, when her car was caught by a camera on Banbury Road, Oxford.
Emma was later charged by post and pleaded guilty to the driving offence on March 3. Today she was sentenced over the driving offence.
Keir Starmer suspends four Labour MPs over discipline breaches
This afternoon, our Politics team broke the news that Keir Starmer has suspended four Labour MPs over persistent breaches of party discipline and stripped three others of trade envoy roles after a series of rebellions. Brian Leishman, Chris Hinchliff and Neil Duncan-Jordan - all elected just last year - and Rachael Maskell will now sit as Independents in the House of Commons.
It is understood the four MPs met with the Chief Whip today, where they were told they would be suspended for repeated breaches of party discipline, pending a future review. They were among dozens of Labour backbenchers to vote against the government earlier this month on disability benefit cuts.
Mr Duncan-Jordan, the MP for Poole, was among 42 Labour MPs to sign a letter earlier this year warning the PM cuts to disability benefits were "impossible to support". He told The Mirror: "To my constituents: it's business as usual. I remain your hardworking local MP, I will continue to take up your concerns and speak up for Poole."
Prince Harry 'won't let Meghan go to England' as he 'bans' her from latest trip
After Prince Harry landed in Angola on Tuesday, our Royal team reported that the Duke of Sussex has "banned" his wife, Meghan Markle, from joining him on his recent trip to the African state of Angola due to safety concerns. Insiders likened the move to him not letting her visit the UK.
Meghan Markle has not returned to Britain since the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, where she was pictured on a walkabout with Prince William, Prince Harry and Princess Kate outside Windsor Castle. The once dubbed "Fab Four" haven't been pictured together since then.
Now, an insider claims Harry refuses to let Meghan return to the UK along with join him on his latest trip. "The duke won't let his wife go to England over security concerns, so there was no chance he'd allow her to go to Angola to walk across landmines," a source told the Daily Mail.
Bizarre story of Sycamore Gap duo and moment that 'tipped them over the edge'
Following their sentencing yesterday, the two men who cut down the famous tree at Sycamore Gap out of "sheer bravado" have now been put behind bars. This Wednesday, our news team have been looking further into the bizarre story of the duo.
The two were once pals with locals saying the plot saw "the man with no friends" - Daniel Graham, 39 - team up with "the man with no brains", Adam Carruthers, 32. Their three-minute "moronic" destruction of the much-loved tree, which had stood for more than 100 years in a fold in the Northumberland landscape, will never be forgotten.
Graham turned on Carruthers, tipping police off that he had cut down the iconic landmark in September 2023. The pair, who were each jailed for four years and three months, were convicted of criminal damage to the tree along with criminal damage to Hadrian's Wall, caused when the sycamore fell on the ancient monument.
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Spectator
9 minutes ago
- Spectator
Starmer to recognise a Palestinian state
Following a lengthy cabinet meeting this afternoon, No. 10 announced that the UK is prepared to follow France in recognising a Palestinian state in September. Keir Starmer intends to press ahead with this plan unless three conditions are met: that Israel takes substantive steps and reaches a ceasefire, makes clear that there will be no annexation of the West Bank and commits to a long-term peace process to deliver a two-state solution. Given that Israel is currently unlikely to commit to any, let alone all three, of these conditions, British recognition of Palestine now looks inevitable. The official Downing Street read-out of today's session stretches to 664 words. That is a testament to the anger and anguish which this issue is causing in both the Labour party and in government. Today's announcement has looked likely since Friday, when more than 130 of Starmer's own MPs signed a letter demanding recognition. That rising political pressure reflects domestic opinion hardening on Gaza. The Prime Minister told the cabinet today that 'the recent images of starvation had deeply affected the British public and underscored the increasingly intolerable situation.' Starmer stressed both the importance of aid getting into the region and the extent to which British action was being undertaken in a multilateral spirit. David Lammy, the foreign secretary, updated his colleagues on work being done on this aspect with both Jordan and the UAE. An assessment will be carried out ahead of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) meeting in September; given Israel's current posture, this looks likely to be a mere rubber-stamping of British recognition. Out of the 193 UN member states, 147 already recognise Palestine as a state – including Russia, China, India, Spain, Ireland and Norway. In six weeks' time, the UK and France are set to become the first G7 countries to do the same. Israel's historic relationship with both Germany and the United States mean that neither of those countries will likely ever follow suit. But in Canada, Mark Carney is under some pressure to do so; Italy's Giorgia Meloni has thus far dismissed such calls. Benjamin Netanyahu has remained defiant, gambling that as long as he enjoys American support, he need not pay too much heed to the international community. But Starmer's announcement today follows some striking criticism of Israel yesterday by Donald Trump, in which the US President said there was 'real starvation' in Gaza – despite the claims of Netanyahu's administration. In Whitehall, Trump's remarks at that press conference were interpreted as a cautious amber-light to Starmer, enabling him to proceed with UK recognition of Palestine. Britain's role in impacting the outcome of the war in Gaza has been grossly overestimated by some on the Labour benches. But today's decision could be important in offering a useful reminder to the Israeli government on how opinion is changing both in London and in Washington too.
ITV News
9 minutes ago
- ITV News
UK will recognise state of Palestine unless Israel ends 'appalling situation' in Gaza
The Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said the UK will recognise Palestine as a state by September's UN general assembly meeting, unless Israel takes significant steps to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and end the drawn out conflict. Speaking on Tuesday afternoon, Starmer set out the work that needs to be done between now and then, to prevent the UK from taking this step, including a huge increase in the supply of aid. In an ultimatum to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, Starmer said the UK will join France in recognising the state of Palestine "unless the Israeli government takes substantive steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza, agree to a ceasefire, and commit to a long-term sustainable peace, reviving the prospect of a two-state solution". In recent days, the PM has faced pressure from political opponents, as well as those in his own party, after 255 MPs from nine seperate parties wrote a letter calling on the UK to act faster in recognising Palestine's statehood. Last week, Starmer issued his strongest words yet on the worsening situation in the Middle-East and Tuesday's announcement calls with UK allies France and Germany and talks with the US President Donald Trump in Scotland this week. The plan announced on Tuesday follows an emergency Cabinet meeting in Downing street, which ministers dialled into from their recess breaks. After the meeting, No 10 briefed Labour MPs on what was discussed. In recent days ministers have maintained the position that Labour will recognise Palestine as a state, as promised in their election manifesto - it was just a question of when. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, the prime minister said: "The suffering must end. "I've always said that we will recognise a Palestinian state as a contribution to a proper peace process at the moment of maximum impact for the two state solution. "With that solution now under threat, this is the moment to act." Experts have warned the amount of aid reaching the people of Gaza is a miniscule amount compared to what is needed to alleviate the humanitarian crisis. Starmer said he discussed this with President Trump, adding the UK was "mounting a major effort to get humanitarian supplies back in. "We need to see at least 500 trucks entering Gaza every day," he added. The prime minister's announcement stops somewhat short of immediate recognition and is contingent on Israel failing to take the steps outlined by Starmer. These include: Allowing the UN to restart the supply of aid, committing to no annexations in the West Bank, agreeing to a ceasefire, committing to a long term sustainable peace. Should Israel meet these commitments, the progress of which will be assessed in September, Starmer appeared to suggest the UK would not immediately recognise the state of Palestine, with the prospect of a more mutual two state solution now revived. Speaking on the UK's expectations of Hamas, Starmer reiterated: "They must immediately release all of the hostages, sign up to a ceasefire, disarm, and accept that they will play no part in the government of Gaza." The prime minister's announcement comes the same day as Gaza's Health Authority brought the death toll up to over 60,000 Palestinians in the 21-month conflict. Adding to this number, over night Israeli strikes killed more than two dozen people, mostly women and children, according to health officials. About 1,000 of these people have been killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid since May, according to witnesses, health officials and the UN human rights office. Israel, which controls large areas of Gaza where aid is distributed, says it has only fired warning shots at those who approach its forces. Last week, experts warned the remaining population of Gaza is dangerously close to starvation, something Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied before being rebuffed by both Starmer and Trump. Speaking from his golf resort, Donald Trump said his first priority was getting food to the people of Gaza, with Starmer saying the British public were revolted by the scenes they were seeing, calling them a humanitarian crisis. Whilst the US President stopped short of stating his own postition on Palestinian statehood he did say he "didn't mind if he takes one," on Starmer's own stance.
Metro
9 minutes ago
- Metro
UK to recognise state of Palestine in September 'unless Israel ends suffering'
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The UK will recognise the state of Palestine in September, Keir Starmer has announced – but only if Israel fails to satisfy a number of conditions. His decision came after a meeting with the cabinet this afternoon, and ahead of a speech by Foreign Secretary David Lammy at the UN in New York. Starmer said official recognition from the UK would come before the United Nations General Assembly in two months time if 'substantive steps' were not taken by the Israeli government. They include moving to end the 'appalling situation in Gaza', agreeing to a ceasefire, and committing to a 'long-term sustainable peace' which would lead to a two-state solution. It would also involve allowing UN workers into Gaza to distribute aid and 'making clear that there will be no annexations in the West Bank'. The Prime MInister said: 'Meanwhile, our message to the terrorists of Hamas is unchanged but unequivocal: they must immediately release all of the hostages, sign up to a ceasefire, disarm and accept that they will play no part in the government of Gaza. 'And we'll make an assessment in September on how far the parties have met these steps, but no one should have a veto over our decision. More Trending 'So this is the way forward.' To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The move comes after Starmer came under intense pressure to recognise Palestinian statehood from top Labour figures including Sadiq Khan and some top figures in his cabinet. They reportedly included Deputy PM Angela Rayner, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Health Secretary Wes Streeting. More than a third of MPs in the House of Commons have also signed a letter to the Prime Minister calling for recognition. In 1949, a year after it declared independence, the UN admitted Israel as a member. It was not until 1988 that Palestinian statehood was recognised by any UN member states, after the Palestinian National Council formally declared independence. Today, 147 of the UN's 193 member states recognise Palestine, including the vast majority of the countries in Asia, Africa and South America. The UK, US, Canada, Germany, Japan, Australia and New Zealand are among the nations that do not. For several British governments, both Labour and Conservative, the position has remained the same: recognition would wait until it was deemed most appropriate for the peace process. Israel has argued that making the move at the moment would mean rewarding Hamas for the deadly terror attack on October 7 2023. But countries in support of recognition say it is a clear step towards the two-state solution that would consider Israel and Palestine as sovereign countries on equal terms. Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ Or you can submit your videos and pictures here. For more stories like this, check our news page. Follow on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here. MORE: My family are starving – so I made a desperate offer via Facebook MORE: Tech secretary suggests Nigel Farage is on side of Jimmy Savile over online law MORE: You can buy a Maga hat for £55 and a £30 teddy at Trump's Turnberry golf course
