Author: Fatimah Idera

Fraudsters in Ghana are deliberately targeting British women in online romance scams, claiming their crimes are a form of retribution for colonial exploitation, new research has revealed. Accra, the capital of Ghana, has become a hub for cybercrime networks known as Sakawa Boys. These gangs impersonate white men on Facebook often posing as soldiers, bankers or government officials to lure affluent Western women into relationships. Over months, victims are persuaded to hand over large sums of money, sometimes amounting to hundreds of thousands of pounds, after being manipulated with fabricated tales of medical emergencies or personal crises. Read Read: Ghana’s president…

The head of the UK’s elections watchdog has said schools must begin teaching democracy from the age of 11 to prepare children for voting at 16, while stressing the importance of keeping classrooms free from political bias. Vijay Rangarajan, chief executive of the Electoral Commission, said teaching will initially target pupils aged 14 and above but should eventually start earlier so that young people are ready to use the vote by their mid-teens. The change comes ahead of the next general election, when 16- and 17-year-olds are expected to gain the right to vote. The commission is developing teaching materials…

Rising grocery costs are piling further pressure on UK households, with eggs, butter and chocolate leading a fresh surge in food inflation. According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), food prices rose by 4.2% in August, up from 4% in July and the sharpest increase in 18 months. Overall shop price inflation also edged up to 0.9%, despite non-food prices falling by 0.8%. BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said the cost of everyday staples had jumped because of strong demand, tighter supply chains and higher labour costs. Cocoa shortages have also kept chocolate prices elevated. The BRC warned that retailers…

People using the weight-loss injection Mounjaro are being urged not to bulk buy or turn to unlicensed sellers after its manufacturer, Eli Lilly, confirmed prices in the UK will rise sharply this autumn. From September, the cost of Mounjaro is set to increase by up to 170%, although the NHS will be protected from the rise. Since only a small number of patients are eligible for NHS prescriptions, most people buy the drug privately at around £200 a month — a figure expected to soar. Henry Gregg, chief executive of the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), said the rising costs had…

Families in one of England’s most deprived areas are being asked to pay as much as £12,000 to dedicate a memorial bench to a loved one, the highest charge in the country. Torbay Council has been criticised for introducing the steep new fees without public consultation or a council vote. Under the scheme, families can sponsor a bench for either five or 25 years, with the most expensive prices reserved for premium locations such as Torquay seafront. A 25-year dedication in one of these areas costs £12,000, while the same period in a less prominent location is priced at £8,000.…

Migrants will enter Britain more quickly despite Labour’s new asylum reforms, the Conservatives have claimed. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has announced plans for a fast-track appeals system to reduce long delays in asylum cases, arguing that it will speed up deportations and ease pressure on the asylum system. For Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, said the reforms would have the opposite effect, with judges still using human rights laws to block removals. He warned the new tribunals would simply deliver faster rulings that allow migrants to stay. “These tweaks go nowhere near far enough,” he said. “The Government is…

Members of the parliament (MPs) have warned of a sharp rise in online harassment and threats linked to debates over immigration, with some saying the level of abuse is now worse than during the Brexit years. The concerns follow a weekend of protests at hotels housing asylum seekers, where 15 arrests were made. Demonstrations continued on Sunday, including at the Castle Bromwich Holiday Inn in Birmingham and outside the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf. One female MP said she had reported an online rape threat to police after speaking up for asylum seekers. Labour’s Anna Dixon, MP for Shipley, revealed…

Labour will abolish most prison sentences of under 12 months and bring in tougher community punishments under plans to ease the overcrowding crisis in England and Wales. A sentencing bill due next month will mark the biggest shake-up in three decades, with Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood warning prisons could run out of space again by summer. Thousands of inmates were released early after Labour took office last year to free up capacity. The reforms will end almost all short jail terms, which ministers say drive reoffending. Recent figures show 62% of offenders released from sentences of less than a year…

Protests over the use of hotels to house asylum seekers have continued, as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced reforms aimed at clearing a huge backlog of appeals. Demonstrations took place on Sunday in Birmingham and London, a day after nationwide protests led to at least 15 arrests. Read also: Anti-migrant protests erupt across UK over asylum hotels Outside the Castle Bromwich Holiday Inn in Birmingham, protesters draped in St George’s flags gathered at the entrance, with one person climbing a ladder to hang a flag on a lamp post. At the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf, police officers and security…

Dame Annette Brooke, who has died aged 78, was the Liberal Democrat MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole from 2001 to 2015, becoming the party’s longest-serving female parliamentarian. A quietly effective figure at Westminster, she built her reputation on persistence rather than showmanship. In 2003, she helped secure recognition for veterans of the Suez campaign, leading a delegation that persuaded the Ministry of Defence to award them a medal. Her determined lobbying also ensured the final Harry Potter book was published in Braille on the same day as its print release – a landmark for disabled children’s access to…