This evening, an Emergency Alert has been sent to people across England and Wales as the wildfire risk remains very high. The request came directly from Fire and Rescue Services.
I was in Stourbridge today and saw first-hand the devastating impact these fires have had on people’s homes and lives.
Our priority now is to keep everyone safe and prevent more fires from starting.
During this period of extreme heat, I’m asking everyone to take extra care. Please do not light any fires in gardens, the countryside or other open spaces, including parks, moorland and wooded areas.
Our firefighters and emergency responders are working around the clock in incredibly difficult conditions.
We can all help them. Please take the Emergency Alert seriously and follow the guidance in place.
“You better remember where you were watching this tonight - because in 30 years time someone will probably ask you”.
The great Des Lynam - 30 years ago today - as England’s Euro 96 dream comes to an end and the BBC shows one of their best montages of all time… 😭🏴
A ranking isn't the same as a score, Michael. It doesn't mean you're any good just because others are worse.
A bit like you coming top in the rankings of Tory Education Secretaries.
@Jackie_Buddie So sorry for your loss, Jackie. What an amazing woman Cathy must have been, and what a truly serendipitous and iconic legacy to have left us all to enjoy after her passing. Very best wishes to you & the rest of Cathy’s family. x.
@JohnSlinger I am soooo pleased for you, John! Will be looking out for you in the chamber. And remember: if at first you don’t succeed - try, try & try again. #Rugby
26-year-old Kyle Clifford is being hunted by police.
It’s a fast moving situation and there’s a lot we don’t know.
But there is one thing that we DO know. And it’s depressingly, devastatingly familiar.
Three woman are dead.
They were killed in their home.
A mum, she was 61, and her two girls, 25 and 28, both in their twenties - that decade when you’re working out who you want to be and where you want to go with your life.
But for them, that’s now over.
A woman is killed by a man every three days in the United Kingdom.
That number has been remarkably consistent for the last twenty years.
Women are also much more likely to be killed by someone they know - two thirds of them are killed by a current or former partner.
“Domestic” – that word that somehow doesn’t feel adequate – because terror can also happen in the home.
Remember the three women killed at home in Bushey were still alive when the emergency services got there.
Yvette Cooper – the new Home Secretary – has said the killings are “truly shocking” – and she’s being kept fully updated on the case.
During the campaign, she said that violence against women and girls will be treated as a national emergency under Labour.
And less than a week into the job… three women killed at home. It certainly feels like an emergency.