Violent crimes against parents by children up 60% since 2015, shows London data 31. December 2025 (13:00) Exclusive: Met figures thought to reflect national picture with Covid, poverty and more people seeking help possible factorsThe number of violent offences involving an adolescent attacking their parents or step-parents has increased by more than 60% in the past decade, according to figures recorded by the UK’s biggest police force.Data released by Scotland Yard reveals that there were 1,886 such offences recorded in 2015 but this increased to 3,091 in the first 10 months of 2025 alone. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US executions surged in 2025 to highest level in 16 years 31. December 2025 (13:00) Forty-seven men killed by states operating death penalty – almost double last year’s numberUS executions have surged in 2025 to the highest level in 16 years, as Donald Trump’s campaign to reinvigorate judicial killings, combined with the US supreme court’s increasing refusal to engage in last-minute pleas for reprieve, have taken a heavy toll.A total of 47 men – they were all male – have been killed by states operating the death penalty in the course of the year. That was almost double the number in 2024, amounting to the greatest frenzy of capital punishment bloodletting in America since 2009. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
One pub a day closed permanently in England and Wales in 2025 31. December 2025 (12:39) Data shows 366 pubs have been demolished or converted for other uses this year as cost pressures take toll on sectorOne pub a day disappeared for good in England and Wales during 2025 as sustained cost pressures continued to weigh heavily on the sector.Analysis of government statistics shows that 366 pubs were demolished or converted for other uses over the year to December. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘It’s not a hen party hellscape’: Dublin’s Temple Bar strives to shake off its bad reputation 31. December 2025 (12:00) Despite reviews of the district as a raucous tourist trap, improved policing has restored safety and an eclectic vibeWhen Ireland redeveloped a swathe of central Dublin in the 1990s, the idea was to create a version of Paris’s Left Bank, a cultural quarter of cobbled lanes, art and urban renewal.Planners and architects transformed the run-down Temple Bar site by the River Liffey into an ambitious experiment that drew throngs of visitors and won awards. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Queen Camilla says she was ‘so angry’ after assault on train when a teenager 31. December 2025 (11:49) ‘I was reading my book and this boy, man, attacked me, and I did fight back,’ queen tells BBC’s Today programmeQueen Camilla has spoken for the first time about how she was “so angry” when she was physically assaulted on a train as a teenager.Camilla described the incident in an interview with BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, during which she also praised the courage of the racing commentator John Hunt and his daughter Amy, whose family were murdered at their home. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Rage bait, goblin mode … do words of the year have any real value? 31. December 2025 (11:39) Analysis shows obscure and barely-used choices, drawn from online slang, do not stand the test of timeIf you have seen a news story declaring 2025’s chosen “word of the year” in recent weeks, you might be forgiven for asking yourself: what, another one?Depending on which dictionary you turn to, the chosen term this year was either Collins’ “vibe coding”, “parasocial” from Cambridge Dictionaries or their Oxford University Press rival’s “rage bait” – with many other selections besides. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Cyprus pledges ‘different mindset’ as it assumes EU presidency 31. December 2025 (11:29) Country’s six-month stint at helm begins with defence, migration and Ukraine still at top of agendaCyprus says it will bring “a new approach to the table” when it assumes the EU presidency on Thursday, as defence, migration and Ukraine continue to top the agenda at a time of acute geopolitical uncertainty.As one of the 27-member bloc’s smaller member states, Cyprus will tackle its six-month stint at the EU’s helm with discipline and dedication but also “a different mindset”, the Cypriot foreign minister, Constantinos Kombos, said. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Police officers in England and Wales fear reporting colleagues for wrongdoing, survey finds 31. December 2025 (11:00) Exclusive: Officers described a culture of silence and lack of support during police-on-police complaintsPolice officers fear reporting colleagues for wrongdoing because they do not believe they will be supported for breaking a culture of silence, a new survey has found.Almost half of officers think their complaints against fellow officers are mishandled, the survey seen by the Guardian found. It was carried out by the Police Federation (PFEW), which represents 140,000 rank and file officers across England and Wales. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
China forecast to have sold one in every 10 new cars in UK in 2025 31. December 2025 (10:42) Carmakers such as MG, BYD and Chery are set to pass 200,000 mark in sales, analysis suggests, double 2024’s totalChinese brands are on course to account for one in every 10 new cars sold in Britain during 2025, a marked increase on last year as sales increase across Europe.Manufacturers led by MG, BYD, and Chery are on track to break the 200,000 mark in UK new car sales in 2025, meaning they are very likely to account for 10% of the market, according to Matthias Schmidt, an analyst tracking electric cars across Europe. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump family business delays launch of $499 gold smartphone 31. December 2025 (10:10) US-made device planned by end of year hit by recent government shutdown affecting shipmentsTrump Mobile, the phone company launched by Donald Trump’s family business, has pushed back plans to deliver a $499 (£371) gold-coloured smartphone by the end of the year.The Trump Organization licensed its name to launch a mobile service and the device in June, in the latest monetisation of his presidency by a family business empire now run by Trump’s sons. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
