Suffolk MP Patrick Spencer pleads not guilty to sexual assault
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X to get the latest alerts.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
13 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Urgent hunt for men with a pushchair after £1,000 worth of goods is stolen from Curry's
Police are urgently hunting for two men who have been pictured with a pushchair after £1,000 worth of goods was stolen from a Curry's shop. A locked cupboard was apparently forced open at the store in Hereford Retail Park at around midday on Friday. A white van was later seen being driven away from a Pizza Hut car park at speed. Now officers are looking for two men who they believe might have information about the theft. A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: 'Officers would like to speak with these two men as they believe they can help with their enquiries into a robbery in Hereford on Friday 8 August. 'Around midday two men went into Currys on Hereford retail park, forced entry into a locked cupboard, and stole items worth over £1000. 'One of the men was seen leaving the area in a small white van which was driven at speed out of the Pizza Hut car park. 'It is believed the men pictured had been in the area at the time of the robbery.'
Daily Mail
14 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
UK's first trans judge to challenge Supreme Court's landmark gender ruling using European human rights laws
Britain's first transgender judge has lodged an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) against the landmark Supreme Court ruling on the definition of a woman. Victoria McCloud is seeking a rehearing of the case as she claims the UK's highest court undermined her Article 6 rights to a fair trial when it declined to hear evidence from her. In April the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that 'woman' and 'man' refer to biological women and men in the context of the Equality act and that 'the concept of sex is binary'. Ms McCloud - who left her role as a judge last year - is seeking a review as she claims the Supreme Court refused permission for her to provide evidence on how its clarification of the law would affect trans people. But women's rights campaigners have dismissed the case as a 'fantasy' and say Ms McCloud should exhaust 'all domestic legal remedies' before appealing to the court in Strasbourg. The former judge will be represented by Oscar Davies, the UK's first openly non-binary barrister, and Olivia Campbell-Cavendish, the founder of the Trans Legal Clinic and the UK's first black trans lawyer. 'There is no space for decision-making about us, without us,' Ms McCloud said in a statement yesterday. 'I intend to ensure that there will be no peace for the gender-critical ideological movement, the Labour Government appeasing it, or space in our schools, homes and workplaces for an ideology which causes harm, misery and oppression of a small and law-abiding minority in our formerly tolerant country.' A spokesman for the Trans Legal Clinic said: 'For the trans community, it embodies a simple truth: there must be no more conversations about us, without us. 'At its heart lies the principle in Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights; the right to a fair and impartial hearing by an independent tribunal. 'This cornerstone of democratic societies exists to guarantee that those whose rights are affected can take part in proceedings that determine their future.' However Maya Forstater, chief executive of human rights charity Sex Matters, said Ms McCloud's appeal is legally 'incomprehensible' and a 'fantasy'. She said: 'What we are being told about this proposed case is incomprehensible. The ECHR only hears cases that have exhausted all domestic legal remedies, and since McCloud wasn't a party to For Women Scotland in the Supreme Court, that's not the case here. 'It's a fantasy that someone can go straight to Strasbourg to complain that the Supreme Court in their own country didn't listen to them.' Ms Forstater added: 'This looks more like a deceptive and expensive PR campaign than a serious legal strategy.' The Supreme Court can consider outside arguments from 'interveners' at its discretion but rarely allows individuals to intervene and often rejects them if it will hear the same arguments from others. In the biological sex case, the UK's highest court did consider arguments on trans issues from the human rights campaign group Amnesty International. Susan Smith - from For Women Scotland, which brought the Supreme Court case - said that it is the Supreme Court's 'prerogative whether to accept interventions or not' and that it 'rarely takes interventions from individuals' 'We will watch with interest whether McCloud's application is accepted by the ECHR or even if it comes within the deadline to proceed,' she added. Ms McCloud transitioned in the 1990s and became the first transgender barrister and judge in the UK. She stood down last year, saying she could not continue her work amid the increasingly fraught public debate. In her resignation letter, Ms McCloud likened herself to civil rights activist Rosa Parks. It comes as Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy was criticised for wearing a trans rights T-shirt with the slogan 'protect the dolls' while attending a Pride march in her Wigan constituency. Critics have said a government minister should not be promoting the slogan and described it as a 'middle finger from the Labour Government'. The term 'doll' is a slang term from the 1980s for biological men who 'pass' as women but has seen a revival after celebrities including Pedro Pascal, Madonna and Tilda Swinton were photographed in a £75 T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan. James Esses, a gender critical campaigner and therapist, said it was a 'middle finger from the Labour Government to everyone who believes in biological reality'. Fiona McAnena, from Sex Matters, said: 'No elected representative of the public - let alone a government minister - should be promoting the slogan of campaigners who are calling for men to be able to identify into any space for women'. The Culture Secretary was contacted for comment.
The Guardian
33 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Ofwat – what are they thinking of?
Following major sewage breaches by Thames Water, Ofwat imposed a massive fine on it, the only effect being to make it still further unable to perform its legal responsibilities, instead of obtaining authority to prosecute the responsible executives of the company. Then the powers that be announced the imminence of a drought, yet the public has not been urged to cut water use. Can any of your readers enlighten me as to the thought process of our water regulators?Prof Roy GoodeOxford I have not enjoyed a double-yolk egg for more than 30 years until last week, when all six in a box of free-range eggs had double yolks. Rachel Reeves would have no worries if we could all raise our productivity by the same JohnsonBedford I was delighted by the excellent review of Beaumaris's launderette (Letters, 17 August). However, the Blue Bay Launderette in Llangollen is even more marvellous. Just in case anyone camping in north Wales needs one, the Welsh word for launderette is CollinsCarrog, Denbighshire To an atheist like me, this dispute over Good Friday (Letters, 14 August) is like two bald men fighting over a Joss BuckleyLondon On reflection, I find the planting of a potato tuber or seed into the ground on Good Friday deeply symbolic. I commend Christians and non-Christians to do so next spring, on 3 April Canon John Longuet-HigginsHartpury, Gloucestershire Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
