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The mother of murdered Helen McCourt said she is “elated” laws are to finally change so killers are denied parole if they refuse to reveal where they hid their victim’s body. Marie McCourt has begged murderer Ian Simms to tell her the whereabouts of her daughter’s remains ever since the insurance clerk vanished on her way home from work in 1988. But the pub landlord, who was convicted by a jury on overwhelming DNA evidence of the 22-year-old’s abduction and...

One of the UK’s most senior female Asian police officers has accused the Metropolitan Police of discrimination. Temporary Chief Superintendent Parm Sandhu has reportedly brought an employment tribunal claim against the force alleging she was denied promotion and work opportunities on the basis of her race and gender. Scotland Yard said a claim had been made and that it would be “inappropriate” to comment further. The move comes after Ms Sandhu faced an investigation into allegations that she breached rules...

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s baby son will be christened with all the trappings of a royal baptism, as speculation grows about who the couple have chosen as godparents. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will christen Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor in front of family and close friends of Harry and Meghan, in the private chapel at Windsor Castle on Saturday. But the event has been criticised for being held without the press or public seeing any elements of the...

“The cages they are kept in are metal cells. They are kept cold, there is not enough food or water, and they are crowded. There are open toilets and the lights are kept on 24/7”

A far-right extremist who was engulfed in a ball of flames when he set fire to an historic synagogue on a day commemorating the Holocaust has been locked up in hospital indefinitely.

Tommy Robinson faces jail after being found in contempt of court by High Court judges for filming defendants in a criminal trial and broadcasting the footage on social media. Two senior judges found the former English Defence League (EDL) leader was in contempt when he filmed defendants accused of the sexual exploitation of young girls and live-streaming the footage, in breach of a reporting ban, outside Leeds Crown Court in May 2018. Robinson denied any wrongdoing, saying he did not...

More than a thousand sharks and rays are known to have become entangled in plastic debris with “significantly greater number of species” likely to be affected, a study found. Scientists at the University of Exeter found reports of 1,116 of the creatures caught up in plastic in the world’s oceans after scouring existing studies and social media. The true number is likely to be far higher, the researchers said, calling debris from land-based pollution and discarded fishing gear a “severely...

The Church of England has said it will accept a marriage involving a transgender person, but only if the spouses were of opposite sexes at the time of their wedding. The significant shift in direction was revealed ahead of Friday’s General Synod of bishops in York. Prudence Dailey, churchwarden of St Michael at the North Gate in central Oxford, submitted one of the more than 100 questions to be addressed by Church leaders. “Given that the Church of England’s teaching...

PinkNews has published an opinion piece from Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Opposition, at 12noon today Friday, July 5 ahead of tomorrow’s Pride in London march. Here is the full text. “This Pride, we’re celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising. It’s a moment to remember that those “riots” were direct action by an oppressed community, led by black trans activists struggling against a bigoted state. I myself remember the bold action taken by campaigners against Section 28, organised...