County Derry's Portstewart Strand has been crowned UK’s and Northern Ireland beach of the year, according to The Times and The Sunday Times annual best UK beaches guide, published online today and in print on July 13. The 17th edition of the guide is the definitive and most comprehensive list of the UK's 50 best beaches. The guide showcases the unrivalled beauty of the UK seaside, evaluated through a rigorous 11-point inspection checklist. READ NEXT: County Derry seaside town named in Sunday Times best places to liveWith Portstewart Strand, Co Derry named as 'Beach of the Year', Cushendall, Ballycastle, Ballintoy and Runkerry (all Co Antrim) completed the top five best beaches in Northern Ireland. Chris Haslam said: “If beauty was all it took to win Beach of the Year then Ballycastle, Whitepark, Tyrella or almost any other Northern Irish beach could have taken the crown.

Hundreds of children across West Cumbria will soon be enjoying a summer holiday before making the step up to secondary school. To mark the occasion the Times & Star has reached out to schools across the patch to send in 'last class' pictures of year sixes ready to move on. We were inundated with responses and now, on Thursday, parents will be able to pick up a special eight-page supplement featuring all of the pictures. If you cannot pick up a copy of the Times & Star visit https://shorturl.at/tHd6I to order a copy.

Two Moray beaches have made the top 50 list of best UK beaches in a prestigious national guide. Taking pride of place in the 17th Times and Sunday Times Best UK Beaches guide are both Cullen and Spey Bay beaches. Cullen beach has been named as one of the top 50 beaches in the UK. He said: "We're absolutely delighted to see Cullen beach recognised as one of Scotland's best beaches. The sands of Spey Bay beach have been recognised as one of the best in the country.

London Metropolitan Police commissioner Mark Rowley (Image:@metpoliceuk)What did Mark Rowley say? UK police forces underfunded and understaffedOrganized crime, knife crime a major issueThe commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police Mark Rowley on Sunday called for major reforms to the United Kingdom's policing model, saying it "hasn't been fit for purpose for at least two decades. "The call comes amid falling public confidence in law enforcement in Britain and as police forces struggle to overcome years of austerity.Writing in The Sunday Times, Rowley called for the 43 police forces in England and Wales to be shrunk into 12-15 regional forces.The Met chief said some of the forces were "too small to operate," while governance, leadership and support functions had become "ever more expensive. "Rowley complained that investment in new technologies to aid law enforcement had been "politically deprioritized" in favour of maintaining a high number of police officers, which he said made it harder to keep up with modern criminals. "It [That policy] hinders the effective confrontation of today's threats and stops us fully reaping the benefits of technology," Rowley added.The Met chief said larger regional forces would make better use of limited funding, required due to the state of Britain's public finances.Rowley also called for the creation of a national policing body and better use of police staff, including more specialist support.Unlike Germany and France, the UK doesn't have a national police agency, although the national crime agency (NCA), which has responsibility for tackling serious and organized crime, does operate UK-wide.England and Wales have 43 police forces, including London's metropolitan police and greater manchester police, while Scotland and Northern Ireland each have their own national police forces.The UK's police forces remained weakened by a decade of austerity following the 2008/9 financial crisis.Police funding was cut by almost a fifth nationally and police officer numbers were cut by 20,000.Although this number has since been restored, several police forces remain financially strained due to years of underinvestment.The national police chief's council warned last year that police forces were facing a £3.2 billion (€3.7 billion, $4.4 billion) funding shortfall at a time of rising operational costs.Despite the UK government promising to hike police funding by 2.3 percent above inflation each year in a recent spending review, police insiders believe the extra cash will plug gaps rather than fund new initiatives.The police funding crisis comes as the UK faces an increased threat from organized crime, including drug and human trafficking, immigration offenses and cyberattacks.Outdated police intelligence infrastructure means that UK police forces often struggle with the scale and sophistication of these crime networks, according to police leaders and government reports.Other worsening public safety issues are: knife crime, particularly among young people, often fueled by drug dealing, as well as the exploitation of children and other vulnerable individuals by drug gangs to sell narcotics.The government of prime minister Keir Starmer has also made violence against women and girls, including domestic abuse, sexual offenses, and stalking, a major police priority.However, public trust in policing is at historic lows due to the underfunding, along with high-profile scandals, such as racism, misogyny, and misconduct within police forces.In the most fwell-known recent case, Sarah Everard, a 33-year-old London woman, was kidnapped, raped, and murdered in March 2021 by a serving Metropolitan Police officer, who abused his authority to deceive her.

The Times and The Sunday Times have revealed its best UK beaches list for 2025. It is described as the "definitive and most comprehensive list of the UK's 50 best beaches". Best UK Beaches for 2025 according to Tripadvisor RankingsEssex beach crowned among UK's best by The Sunday TimesThe Times and The Sunday Times Best UK Beaches list showcases the "unrivalled beauty of the UK seaside". Back at work after a week at the Essex seaside in lovely Frinton with lots of family. A third review described it as the "best beach in the South East".

'Astonishing' beach that glitters with seashells is named the best in WalesThe Sunday Times has revealed the UK's 50 Best Beaches - and eight are in WalesThe beach was personally inspected by a Sunday Times travel writerThe Times and The Sunday Times Best UK Beaches have revealed their Welsh beach of the year. Annually the national newspaper shares it's Best UK Beach guide and in their 17th edition eight of the beaches that feature are in Wales. ‌After a month-long campervan tour of the British and Northern Irish coast, he decided that the "astonishing" Shell Island in Gwynedd deserved the top spot in Wales. From superstar gigs to cosy pubs, find out What’s On in Wales by signing up to our newsletter here . ‌Chris said: "The beachcombing is astonishing: perfect scallops, fragile tusks and razors, unblemished turitellas and, most prized by conchologists, tiny cowries.

According to the annual Times and Sunday Times Best UK Beaches guide, Hive Beach at Burton Bradstock can be considered among the best in the country. The 17th edition of the guide is the definitive and most comprehensive list of the UK's 50 best beaches. The guide showcases the unrivalled beauty of the UK seaside, evaluated through a rigorous 11-point inspection checklist. As always, this guide covers only mainland beaches. The beach is also known for its Hive Beach Cafe which serves locally sourced seafood and provides panoramic ocean views.

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NEARLY four times as many small-boat migrants made it to Britain in one recent week than the French ­managed to stop, it emerged yesterday. A total of 703 crossed the Channel in the seven days to June 29 — while French cops stopped just 191. Last night Tory MPs and Reform UK demanded No10 halt further payments and suspend French fishing rights until crossings stop. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp told The Sun: “Over 2,500 illegal immigrants have crossed in the last week alone. “Barely any have been stopped by the French — despite being paid nearly half a billion pounds of our money.

SINGAPORE - Today’s graduates are not doomed if they study engineering, despite a poor job market. Mr Dyson is stubbornly optimistic that engineering, design and science students will hold up well, saying that artificial intelligence (AI) can never replace the human brain for creativity. In late 2024, Dyson cut an undisclosed number of jobs in Singapore following a global restructuring move that involved about 1,000 job cuts in Britain. The proportion of people in Singapore taking engineering and science at university is also higher than in the UK, he noted. “My chief engineer studied engineering and then studied design, and then came to me to practise as a designer engineer.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JULY 05: Harry Brook of England avoids a short ball from Akash Deep of India during day four of the 2nd Rothesay Test Match between England and India at Edgbaston on July 05, 2025 in Birmingham, England. Siraj & Akash Deep Rattle EnglandFormer England captain Michael Vaughan has pleaded with Ben Stokes and co to play for a draw on the final day as they can't win the Edgbaston Test from this position. "India have completely dominated the Test match with brilliant skill, great discipline. In a funny kind of way, this day has been coming where the Bazballers can't arrive on day five and even think about winning. The next best thing from winning a Test match is getting a draw.

Bhim Kohli (Source: Leicestershire Police, UK)TOI Correspondent from London:The solicitor general has referred the sentence handed down to a 15-year-old British boy for killing 80-year-old Indian-origin Punjab-born dog walker Bhim Kohli to the Court of Appeal for being unduly lenient.Several MPs and members of the public had requested for the sentence to be reviewed under the unduly lenient scheme.The boy and a girl (13) were convicted of manslaughter on April 8 after a trial at which they pleaded not guilty. The pair were sentenced on June 5 at Leicester Crown Court.Kohli was killed while walking his dog Rocky in a Leicestershire park on Sept 1 last year.The boy, who was 14 at the time, wearing a balaclava, racially abused Kohli before slapping him across the face with his slider shoe as Kohli was kneeling, and then kicked and punched him to the ground. He was sentenced to seven years in prison for attacking and injuring Kohli.The girl, who was 12 at the time, was sentenced to a three-year youth rehabilitation order and six-month curfew, for encouraging the boy to use violence, filming the attack and laughing.Kohli died in hospital the following day. Originally from Punjab, he had previously owned a factory that made jumpers.A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office told TOI: “The solicitor general, Lucy Rigby, was appalled by this violent, cowardly attack on an innocent man.After undertaking a detailed review of the case, the solicitor general concluded the sentence of the 15-year-old boy could be referred to the Court of Appeal. The court will determine if the sentence is increased or not.”The sentence of the 13-year-old girl will not be referred.Peter Bedford, one of the MPs who had requested the sentence get reviewed, said: “Whilst I welcome the referral of the male’s sentence as being ‘unduly lenient’, I am shocked that the female’s sentence, which is non-custodial in nature, has not been referred for reconsideration.”Outside court, following the sentencing, Kohli’s daughter, Susan, had said she felt angry and disappointed at the sentences.

The captain of England, Ben Stokes, admits that not being able to capitalise after having India at 211 for 5 in the first innings was a key moment in the game. He shares that things could have panned out very differently had they managed to break through quickly at that stage. Stokes believes that as the match progressed, the pitch began to suit India more than England and he did not expect the surface to play this way on the final day. Reflects on being 84 for 5 in the first innings, noting that it left his side playing catch-up from that point onward. Praises Jamie Smith for the way he batted and feels that his wicketkeeping often goes under the radar.

The Tories will look to lay amendments to the legislation – set to be renamed the Universal Credit Bill – and party leader Mrs Badenoch is due to deliver a speech on welfare on Thursday. Among the amendments the Conservatives will propose is a requirement for eligibility for Pip to be determined by a face-to-face meeting, rather than virtually. In her welfare speech, Mrs Badenoch is expected to say that the Conservatives are “the only party that is prepared to take the tough decisions to get spending under control”. On Friday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves admitted that the fallout over the Government’s welfare Bill had been “damaging” and did not rule out tax rises in the autumn budget. In an interview with The Guardian, Ms Reeves said it would be “irresponsible” to rule out the idea of tax rises and warned “there are costs to what happened” with the welfare Bill.

An initial team of Royal Navy engineers was unable to resolve the issue, prompting the deployment of a larger 40-member technical team from the UK, supported by specialists from the United States. The UK Royal Air Force technical team will attempt repairs there before preparing the jet for its return journey.A British High Commission spokesperson confirmed that discussions are ongoing to secure a protected location for the aircraft. “A UK engineering team has deployed to Thiruvananthapuram International Airport to assess and repair the UK F-35B aircraft, which landed following an emergency diversion. The fighter jet, part of the UK’s Carrier Strike Group, had been participating in joint naval exercises with India. A technical team from the UK Royal Air Force is now on-site and will attempt to carry out repairs in India.