The widow of Alexander Litvinenko has said that Ukraine’s allies must stand firm to prevent his prophecy about Vladimir Putin unleashing war on the world from becoming reality.

Marina Litvinenko, speaking on the 17th anniversary of the former spy’s death, warned that Putin’s ‘mafia state’ must not be allowed to set an example for other authoritarian powers.   

She has adopted Ukraine’s plight in the face of the full-scale Russian invasion and is in the process of setting up a charity to help children in the country impacted by the war.   

Mr Litvinenko, who is known as Sasha by his wife, died on November 23, 2006 after being fatally poisoned at a London hotel by Russian agents Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun.  

In prescient words spoken almost two decades before the full-blown invasion, the former FSB and KGB officer predicted that Ukraine would suffer at the hands of ‘hooligan’ Putin, and other former Soviet countries would never be safe while he was in power.

Mrs Litvinenko told Metro.co.uk that the country’s Western allies must continue to stay the course in backing Kyiv’s grinding and resource-intensive fight against the Kremlin’s forces, before the war spills over the borders into NATO territories.   

‘Over 17 years, what Sasha said and tried to do has become very important.’ she said. ‘And now, after almost two years of the war in Ukraine, we can see his words coming true; that if Putin is not stopped there will be a war that will affect the whole world.  

‘To start a nuclear war would not be as simple as pushing the button, as the decision involves people and technology, and not everybody is as crazy as Putin. But a wider war that spreads into the Baltic countries would in Putin’s eyes reverse the “catastrophe” of the Soviet Union’s collapse and would be, for him, the best way to be remembered.’

Mr Litvinenko, an intelligence officer turned Kremlin opponent, died in a London hospital after being poisoned with radioactive isotope polonium-210. In 2016, a public inquiry concluded that the hit was probably carried out on Putin’s orders.  

As Ukraine slides out of the world’s glare amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, Kyiv’s fight remains a cause that Mrs Litvinenko, who lives in west London, continues to support.

She told Metro.co.uk that she is setting up a charity entitled Ukrainian Children in Need to support the victims of war who have been injured, displaced or deported since February 24 last year.  

‘If we give up on Ukraine, we give up on a place where people live freely and have the right to take part in democratic elections,’ Mrs Litvinenko said.

‘If we give up on Ukraine, it will be more difficult to defend democracy in other places.’  

While the war in Ukraine grinds on at huge cost to Russian life and economy, the conflict has exposed cracks in Putin’s grip on power, including through the Wagner group rebellion in June 2023.

In the meantime, Mr Litvinenko’s story continues to reach new ground as a powerful example of the Kremlin’s alleged murderous reach, including through the ITVX dramatisation starring David Tennant.  

The former intelligence officer’s wife remains unequivocal that Russia can have a better alternative to the current president.

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‘We have to remember that Putin represents a concentration of the power in Russia,’ she said. ‘A corrupt system has been built over the last 23 years, which is like a mafia state.

‘But the full-scale invasion of Ukraine was Putin’s greatest mistake, it made people realise that he was not as strong as he appeared to be.   

‘It might collapse very quickly but people have to understand Russia won’t be better immediately after Putin’s death.

‘It might be worse, but it will get better.

‘There is the argument that it’s better to have Putin in place than risk something worse but without the system being destroyed there will never be anything different in Russia.’

Mrs Litvinenko, 61, has taken part in demonstrations against the Russian aggression and visited Ukraine, where she gave blood for soldiers wounded while resisting Moscow’s all-out attack. 

With Kyiv’s forces mired in exhausting conflict to the east and south of the country, the war continues to take a heavy toll on civilians. 

‘Setting up the charity is one of the most important things I feel I have to do,’ Mrs Litvinenko said. ‘War is not only about fighting on the frontline, it is damaging for all of humanity.

‘The children are the future of Ukraine and we need to think about them now; how they will survive, how they will be helped and how they will be educated. We are also talking about the stolen children in Russia as well as the children living in Europe.

‘We need to think about whether they are happy to come back to Ukraine and how we can keep the link between the children and their home country. This is something I will do a lot for in future.’

Mrs Litvinenko and son Anatoly plan to visit Alexander’s grave in Highgate Cemetery, north London, as they mark today’s anniversary in a low-key way.

‘This period takes me back to what happened and while some dates are difficult to recollect, I can still remember the day Sasha was poisoned and the day of his funeral,’ she said.

‘It is a very personal time, but I want people to remember Sasha and what he tried to say. Even when he was so ill in hospital, he told me to speak to the media, which I didn’t want to do, because he wanted people to know about what had happened to us.

‘He said it could even prevent war in the future. Even as he lay there in his hospital bed, he wanted to prevent worse things happening in the world.

‘He believed communication was a strong power and he was right. I’m not a politician or an activist, but through our story I am able to talk to people and spread the messages about what is happening in Russia and Ukraine.’  

Lugovoi has developed advanced prostate cancer, according to reports, following the death of Kovtun from Covid-19 last year.

Russia has always denied any involvement in Mr Litvinenko’s death.

Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact josh.layton@metro.co.uk

MORE : Alexander Litvinenko’s wife fears his warning Putin will kill millions is becoming prophecy

Police carried out the largest seizure of synthtic opioids in a series of raids which lead to 11 arrests.

Around 150,000 tablets of a drug called Nitazene were found in Waltham Forest, east London, in a factory set up to make the pills, police said.

Detectives believe the drug was being sold on the dark web.

They also found various other class A and B drugs, a gun, a pill pressing machine, more than £60,000 in cash and £8,000 in cryptocurrency stored on hard drives.

A series of raids were carried out in Enfield, north London, on October 24.

Some 11 people were arrested between August 21 and November 21 and all charged with conspiracy to supply class A and B drugs.

Detective Superintendent Helen Rance, leading the investigation, said: ‘Synthetic opioids have been detected in batches of heroin found in London and across the UK.

‘They substantially raise the risk of incredibly serious harm to the user and are believed to be linked to a number of deaths.

‘We are working closely with partners to monitor and proactively tackle this issue, provide advice and remove the availability of these dangerous drugs from our streets.’

Police say anyone who has taken synthetic opioids should get medical treatment urgently.

They have taken the unusual step of highlighting signs of someone who may have taken one of these drug.

These include having small, narrowed pupils; reduced or loss of consciousness; dizziness or drowsiness; difficulty breathing; nausea or vomiting; cold or clammy skin; blue or grey lips and fingernails; low blood pressure or decreased heart rate.

Ms Rance added: ‘The public health advice remains that illegal drugs should not be consumed.

‘There are support services available for people who need help. Anyone who has consumed synthetic opioids and experiences the symptoms described should seek urgent medical treatment.’

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Martin Lewis has said 20 million households will pay more for their energy bills this January than any winter before.

The energy price cap will increase by 5% in January which means energy bills will be more expensive for households in England, Scotland and Wales, according to Mr Lewis.

It will come as a worry for Brits up and down the UK who are still struggling with the cost of living crisis.

He tweeted: ‘Energy price cap is UP 5% ON 1 Jan (so every £100 you pay now will be £105 then) making energy more expensive for 20m+ homes in Eng, scot and wales.’

Mr Lewis went on to say that households will pay more this year because last winter every home got a £66 monthly government reduction.

While inflation dropped this October, this ignores the missing government support which means in reality people will pay more for their energy bills, according to Mr Lewis.

He continued: ‘In other words a typical home pays £28/mth more this winter, or factor in seasonal adjustments due to high winter use and as a back of envelope calculation it is more like £45more.’

The average household energy bill will rise by £94 a year from January after Ofgem increased its price cap in response to rising wholesale prices.

Ofgem announced its latest price cap this morning alongside energy consultancy Cornwall Insight.

They have predicted it will increase from the current £1,834 for a typical dual fuel household to £1,931, a 5% jump to take effect from January 1.

It suggests the typical bill will then fall to £1,853 from the start of April, but will not drop below today’s level until July next year.

But in better news Cornwall Insight said recent mild weather was helping to bring down gas prices which could help reduce bills next year.

Dr Craig Lowrey, principal consultant at Cornwall Insight, said: ‘An unstable wholesale energy market, coupled with the UK’s reliance on energy imports, makes it inevitable that energy bills will rise from current levels.

‘This leaves households facing yet another winter with bills hundreds of pounds higher than pre-pandemic levels, and affordable fixed deals few and far between.’

During yesterday’s autumn statement there was no mention of any further help to offset household energy bills.

Adam Scorer, chief executive of fuel poverty charity National Energy Action, said: ‘The gaps in this autumn statement are devastating, especially for the poorest households.

‘An ‘average household’ is now paying £800 more per year to heat and power their homes since the start of the energy crisis.

‘With a VAT windfall from higher energy bills and underspent money that was allocated to help vulnerable people keep warm last year, it is clear that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt had the headroom in the finances to act, but he has done nothing to help the most vulnerable people keep warm and safe at home.’

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Nigel Farage refused to rule out making a bid for the top job in government when asked by I’m A Celebrity campmates.

The former leader of the Ukip Party, 59, was quizzed on whether he would ever consider becoming prime minister.

He also called Boris Johnson ‘the most chaotic person he has ever met’.

Radio presenter and Made in Chelsea star Sam Thompson asked Nigel: ‘Who’s your favourite prime minister, ever, in your lifetime?’

Nigel replied: ‘Really, in my lifetime, two prime ministers who’ve been really strong, who have changed the country – one’s Thatcher and one’s Blair.

‘I didn’t like the way Blair changed the country at all, but I have to admit he was a strong leader. And Margaret was a very strong leader – they were tough times. But she changed the country completely. Completely.’

EastEnders actor Danielle Harold then asked: ‘Would you ever want to run?’

Nigel said: ‘I dunno – we’ll see. Depends how much mess the country gets in. I honestly don’t know, I mean it’s not an easy job.’

‘As for little me, there’s a lot of speculation. After they lose the next election, oh, maybe Nigel becomes leader of the Tory Party one day.

Speaking to the camera afterwards, Nigel said: ‘So, there’s a lot of chatter about it, whether it’s going to happen I have no idea.

‘The important thing though is to say this: never say never.’

His appearance on the reality television programme as a ‘GB News host and ex-politician’ has led viewers to question whether Nigel is attempting to relaunch his political career.

It comes after he claimed he could be Conservative Party leader ‘by 2026’ after attending this year’s Tory conference.

The Kent resident has already been involved in a few clashes in Australia after YouTuber Nella Rose challenged his views over immigration.

First Dates star Fred Sirieix also lost his cool with Nigel this week. The French dad-of-two called him ‘shameful’ following a discussion about Brexit.

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A vehicle crashed through a brick bridge in south London today, upending morning commutes for countless travellers.

Railway lines running through between Sutton (Surrey) and West Croydon are cancelled while engineers remove fallen debris, Network Rail Kent and Sussex said on X.

Photographs uploaded by the operator show chunks of brick lying on the tracks.

‘Please continue checking before you travel,’ Network Rail added.

Southern said no trains are able to run between the two stations ‘until further notice’ and called on riders to give themselves an extra hour to get to their destiation.

Rail replacement bus services are in place between Epson Downs and Sutton calling at Banstead and Belmont.

The Transport for London (TfL) status update website says: ‘No service between Sydenham and West Croydon due to a vehicle striking a bridge in West Croydon area.

‘Good service on the rest of the route. Good service on all other London Overground routes.’

TfL, Southern, the British Transport Police and London Ambulance Service have been contacted for comment.

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A 10-year old boy with severe asthma faced neglect and multiple failings in his medical care, an inquest has concluded.

Essex area coroner Sonia Hayes said the death of William Gray, from Southend, was avoidable, the law firm that represented his family said.

William survived a near-fatal asthma attack on October 27, 2020, but he was discharged just four hours later without the severity being properly recorded.

He died seven months later, on May 29, 2021, after going into cardiac arrest caused by a respiratory arrest resulting from his asthma.

A 10-day inquest in Chelmsford, which concluded on Wednesday, identified a string of failings in his care that amounted to neglect.

In addition to his swift discharge, concerns were also raised about his GP surgery’s failure to conduct annual asthma reviews and carry out medication reviews.

The coroner also found there was a lack of sufficiently trained asthma nurses, and that they did not follow British Thoracic Guidelines.

Phone calls with nurses ‘lasted a matter of minutes, were not meaningful and did not ask the most rudimentary questions’, the law firm said.

On the night of William’s death, his mother Christine Hui made two 999 calls.

Law firm Leigh Day said the coroner found that at the time of the first call, it was likely that William was having a severe asthma attack, and a category one ambulance should have been dispatched.

The law firm said that the coroner found that when paramedics arrived on scene adrenaline was not administered and, ‘on the balance of probabilities, this would have affected the outcome in this case.’

Ms Hui described her son as a ‘funny, caring little boy who liked to make jokes and had a heart of gold’.

She said: ‘He was adored by his friends. He had dreams of working in medicine as a doctor or a paramedic because he saw the care he was given, and he wanted to do that for others.

‘Today is bittersweet because, while the coroner’s conclusion gives us some closure, this is the final stage in saying goodbye to our son, brother, grandson, great-grandson, nephew and friend.

‘We believed that William’s asthma was controlled but now we know that wasn’t the case. Parents know their children best and should trust their instincts.

‘If you feel something isn’t right, question it.

‘There is nothing that can take away the grief our family feels but it is our hope that another family will hear our story and it could prevent a further tragedy.’

Julie Struthers, who represented William’s family, said there were a ‘substantial number of failures by multiple healthcare professionals in his care’, and the case showed the ‘importance of improving asthma treatment for children nationwide’.

Diane Sarkar, chief nursing and quality officer for Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust which runs Southend Hospital, said that ‘our heartfelt condolences go out to William’s family’.

She said: ‘We’d like to assure them that we are committed to learning from this terrible loss and that since his death in 2021 we have brought in numerous changes to improve patient care as a direct result of learning from William’s case.’

Melissa Dowdeswell, chief of clinical operations at the East of England Ambulance Service, said: ‘Our heartfelt condolences go out to William’s family and our thoughts remain with them at this difficult time.

‘We accept the coroner’s findings and will assess what further actions need to be taken once we have reviewed them.

‘Since this tragic case we have significantly increased the numbers of staff able to perform intubation and these numbers continue to rise with an expansion of advanced paramedics within the trust.’

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The average household energy bill will rise by £94 a year from January after Ofgem increased its price cap in response to rising wholesale prices.

The regulator announced it is raising its price cap from the current £1,834 for a typical dual fuel household to £1,928 from January 1, driven almost entirely by rising costs in the international wholesale energy market due to market instability and global events, particularly the conflict in Ukraine.

Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley said: ‘This is a difficult time for many people, and any increase in bills will be worrying.

‘But this rise – around the levels we saw in August – is a result of the wholesale cost of gas and electricity rising, which needs to be reflected in the price that we all pay.

‘It is important that customers are supported and we have made clear to suppliers that we expect them to identify and offer help to those who are struggling with bills.

‘We are also seeing the return of choice to the market, which is a positive sign and customers could benefit from shopping around, with a range of tariffs now available offering the security of a fixed rate or a more flexible deal that tracks below the price cap.

‘People should weigh up all the information, seek independent advice from trusted sources and consider what is most important for them, whether that’s the lowest price or the security of a fixed deal.’

Meanwhile, the public has placed the blame for the rising prices firmly at the door of the Government.

Polling conducted prior to the Autumn Statement for the Warm This Winter campaign found that well over a third of the public (37%) already attributed significant responsibility for the energy bills crisis to Government policy. 

Hardly any respondents (3%) said that Government policy bore no responsibility for high energy bills.

Fi Waters, spokesperson for the Warm This Winter campaign, commented: ‘We’re devastated that the emergency energy tariff that would give hard-pressed families money off their monthly bills has not been adopted by the Chancellor in the Autumn Statement, but we’ve not given up. 

‘The Government should be putting the vulnerable, disabled people, the elderly, those with medical conditions and the pregnant first rather than condemning them to living in cold damp homes.’

Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, commented: ‘These price hikes come at the worst possible time for households. Bills will go up just as winter bites hard and household finances are hit further by Christmas credit cards, the long January pay period and the ongoing wider cost of living crisis.

‘We warned Ofgem that a January price cap rise was a bad idea when the regulator consulted on this in 2022. Now the chilling effect of the change is being realised, the inhumanity of this policy is clear to see.

‘It will be anything but a happy new year for people trapped in Britain’s broken energy system.’

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Those of us who have been resisting the call of central heating will soon be facing another challenge as temperatures are set to drop below freezing.

The UK is set to be hit with its first set of wintry showers, including sleet and snow, with temperatures expected to drop below freezing.

The Met Office says an Arctic air blast is set to sweep the country, with temperatures dropping significantly on Friday.

Meteorologist Aidan McGivern told LBC: ‘By the end of the week we are going to see cold winds arrive from the north.

‘It’s going to feel colder this week and there will be some snow showers over, mainly, hills of northern Scotland.

‘But elsewhere, with high pressure in place, it is going to be mostly dry on Friday and into the start of the weekend.

‘Although those showers will be falling as sleet and snow over the hills of northern Scotland, perhaps to lower levels in the far north, for the vast majority despite the chill in the air, it’s a dry, it’s a bright day.

‘As we head into the weekend it is a continuation of that theme.

‘Those showers falling as snow mostly over northern hills, but widespread snow very unlikely, and for the vast majority it’s just dry, crisp, bright autumn weather.

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Professor Sir Jonathan Van-Tam has revealed he received ‘extremely hateful messages’ he received during the pandemic, including a threat to his family about ‘having their throats cut’.

He said the hate mail, which led to the police getting involved, made him consider stepping down from his role as England’s deputy chief medical officer during the height of Coronavirus.

Sir Jonathan, who left his post at the end of March last year, told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry on Wednesday that while his job involved huge workloads and stress, he did not expect his family to be threatened.

Sir Jonathan said: ‘I did not expect the police to have to say: “Will you move out in the middle of the night or in the middle of the evening, whether you might move out for a few days, while we look at this and potentially make some arrests?”‘

He said his family did not make the move in the end because ‘we didn’t want to leave the cat’ but described the situation as stressful.

He added: ‘I make this point because I’m so worried that if there’s a future crisis, people will not want to sign up for these roles and these jobs, because of the implications that come with them.’

Sir Jonathan also spoke about this workload during the early days of the pandemic, saying: ‘At the beginning it certainly was in the kind of 16 hours a day mark and it certainly was seven days a week. It was very, very intense.’

Earlier this year, Sir Chris Whitty also spoke about the abuse experienced by scientists who were involved in the response to the Covid-19 outbreak, describing it as ‘extremely concerning’.

England’s chief medical officer told the inquiry back in June: ‘I do think that what occurred during Covid where the level of abuse and, in some cases, threat to people who volunteer their time, is an extremely concerning one.

‘We should be very firm in saying that society very much appreciates the work of these people, who put in considerable amounts of time, usually for no recompense.’

Last year a man was jailed for eight weeks after he admitted intending to cause Sir Chris distress when he approached him in June last year.

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Eerie ‘ghost marks’ have appeared on the walls of Elizabeth Line tube stations – left by previous commuters.

Photos at Tottenham Court Road on London’s newest line show grey outlines of people left by travellers sitting on benches.

The marks also appear at Liverpool Street, with the station’s white walls appearing to be stained by commuters’ coats and heads.

While eerie, they seem have formed from passengers leaning back on the freshly painted walls – not by spirits.

Transport for London, who operates the line, say that they maintain a ‘rigorous’ cleaning programme at all stations to ensure they are safe for commuters.

A spokesperson for the TfL said: ‘We are exploring new ways to clean the walls behind seating at some of our Elizabeth line stations to try to remove any marks and protect the walls in future.’

The Elizabeth Line, named after the late Queen Elizabeth II, opened on May 24, 2022 – 13 years after construction on the line began in 2009.

The 41-stop route now hosts 204 million passenger journeys per year, costing the Government around £18.9 billion.

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An insurance fraudster who pretended he was so disabled he couldn’t even pull up his underpants has been jailed and faces a £150,000 court bill.

Mark Hilton, 49, was filmed doing his Christmas shopping – despite having claimed he couldn’t dress himself, lift a cup of tea, and needed a frame to walk.

Hilton, of Dartford, Kent, suffered soft tissue injuries when a heavy fuel hose fell onto him as he filled a tanker while working as a driver for Elliott Thomas Group Ltd in 2015.

Suing for over £600,000 in compensation, the grandad-of-six claimed the injury had left him so disabled he could barely function.

But his claim unravelled when private investigators caught him on film walking his dog, Christmas shopping in Ikea, fixing his car and visiting the West Ham store at Stratford.

Hilton’s claim was kicked out of court by a judge and now, after admitting contempt of court, he is facing a £150,000 bill and a ten month prison sentence.

Mr Justice Constable said: ‘This was a most calculated – if ineptly executed – attempt at defrauding insurers.’

In statements filed for his insurance claim, Hilton said he needed help getting dressed, could not drive, had to use a Zimmer frame to get about and claimed he could only walk about 20 yards due to his disability.

He said: ‘For all intents and purposes I am housebound.’

Footage from 2016, however, showed him driving to a shop, walking in without a stick, and later footage in 2018 proved he was not as severely disabled as he claimed.

Mr Hilton admitted the contempt, apologised for what he had done and appeared before Mr Justice Constable for sentencing in London last week.

Outlining the case for the insurer, QBE barrister Paul Higgins described Mr Hilton’s £600,000 compensation bid as a ‘very serious fundamental dishonesty case.’

MORE : Man who appeared on Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? jailed over £4,500,000 scam

In claiming he was so disabled he was effectively housebound and couldn’t even pull up his pants or walk very far, Mr Hilton had ‘grossly exaggerated’ his injuries.

Jailing him for ten months, Justice Constable said Mr Hilton was guilty of a ‘very serious’ contempt of court.

He added: ‘There was an extremely marked disparity between his real ability to carry out daily activities – which included working on his car, shopping, walking – and a very serious curtailment of his lifestyle and abilities, as described repeatedly in his witness statements and acted out in his attempts to mislead the medicolegal experts.

‘The most aggravating aspect of the contempt is the quantum of the claim – in excess of £600,000.

‘This was a most calculated, if ineptly executed, attempt at defrauding insurers.’

The judge also ordered that Hilton be liable for QBE’s costs of the case, which lawyers estimated at about £150,000.

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Shocking footage has emerged of two shoppers throwing Christmas wrapping paper at each other in a packed Aldi.

The fight, filmed in a supermarket branch in Hounslow, west London, saw two women yelling at each other before beginning to throw the paper.

Aldi staff tried to separate the two brawling women, but they then began beating each other over the head with it.

The pair then decided to throw the paper at each other from a distance after being separated.

Many began joking about the viral tweet, saying it signifies that the holiday season has truly arrived.

One said: ‘Yep, it’s time to start your Christmas shopping now!’

Another added: ‘Folks in London putting on their best impressions of Black Friday in Florida.’ 

Last Christmas, shoppers in Aldi got into a riot after Prime was released in stores.

Customers of all ages were seen fighting for a bottle of the elusive energy drink shortly after it was released.

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For anyone who isn’t finance-inclined, days like the Autumn Statement and the Budget can feel like having dozens of meaningless numbers shoved into your face.

Today, Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt revealed more than 100 measures which are hoped to boost growth – including tax cuts, tighter welfare rules, and telling people to ‘find a job’ or see their benefits stopped.

But thankfully, Metro.co.uk’s Consumer Champion Sarah Davidson is here to answer some of your most pressing questions.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

Branded as a budget for a spring election, today’s Autumn Statement was packed full of ‘giveaways’ designed to appeal to voters.

Delivering his statement to the House of Commons, Mr Hunt called it ‘a package which leaves government borrowing lower, debt lower, and keeps inflation falling’.

This is the 2023 Autumn Statement and what it means for you.

National Insurance cuts – how much will I save?

This was the biggie in today’s announcement. Employees will see the amount of national insurance they pay drop by 2% from January 6, 2024.

It will mean you keep more of your income than you do at the moment, so your take home pay will go up.

If you’re on £20,000 you’ll keep almost £150 more of your salary next year while anyone earning £60,000 or more will keep £754 extra.

Big numbers, but remember that’s over the year.

But what Hunt failed to say was that income tax thresholds are still in the deep freeze until April 2028.

That’s a major stealth tax and the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) estimates it will mean that four million more of us will start to pay income tax at 20% by 2028. Three million workers will see their income tax rate tip over into 40%.

What does that mean in money? It means £43 billion.

UK taxpayers will pay £43 billion more income tax over the next four years than we would have if the thresholds had been put up in line with inflation.

Like the state pension, universal credit and other benefits have been.

Mr Hunt claimed the central part of the Conservatives’ plan for growth is to ‘make work pay’. But pay who?

The OBR also calculates that the national insurance cuts will cost the Treasury £180 million.

That means income taxpayers will pay £43 billion more income tax over the next four years because the thresholds remain frozen and won’t rise in line with inflation.

Cutting national insurance will give us £180 million back. That’s a 0.4% rebate on the extra we’ve paid in income tax since 2020.

And Laura Suter, head of personal finance at AJ Bell, makes a very good point: ‘Once again the government has changed the rates of National Insurance partway through the tax year.

‘It’s the fifth change to National Insurance rates or thresholds in less than two years – meaning it would be very easy for workers to lose track of what rate they are paying.’

I’m self-employed – how much will I save?

Self-employed class 4 national insurance will be cut from 9% to 8% from 6 April 2024 and self-employed people with profits above £12,570 won’t have to pay class 2 national insurance.

It’s estimated that these changes could boost two million self-employed people’s pay packets from April next year.

Taken together, the Chancellor said the average self-employed person earning £28,200 a year would pay £350 less a year.

Again, this sounds good but remember that inflation is eating away at our real incomes and crucially, government left income tax thresholds on hold.

Another thing to watch out for. If you choose not to pay class 2 contributions, you won’t get the credit towards your state pension.

You could argue it’s a pretty small short-term gain which, unless you choose to keep paying these contributions, means you’re giving up a very valuable income when you retire.

I’m a pensioner – what’s changing for me?

Government honoured its triple lock pledge, meaning the full flat rate state pension will rise by 8.5% in April 2024 to £221.20 a week, worth up to £900 more a year.

Many older pensioners who retired before 2016 get less than the new state pension.

Their full weekly basic state pension will rise from £156.20 to £169.50 from April next year.

National insurance cuts won’t benefit pensioners.

Alice Guy, head of pensions and savings at Interactive Investor, said: ‘People over state pension age don’t pay national insurance on their income. Instead, they will still pay more income tax in 2024, as the personal allowance remains frozen at £12,570.’

I’m on benefits – what’s changing for me?

The government has decided to increase Universal Credit and other benefits from next April by 6.7% in line with September’s inflation figure.

This means an average increase of £470 for 5.5 million households next year.

If you rent from the council, there was finally a bit of positive news.

Local housing allowance (LHA) rates, which govern the maximum amount of support for their rent that low-income private renters can get, have been frozen in cash terms since April 2020.

Rents for new lets have increased by more than a fifth on average over the same timeframe.

‘The result is that the proportion of new private rental properties on Zoopla affordable to housing benefit or universal credit recipients has plummeted from 23% to 5% since the freeze,’ the Institute for Fiscal Studies noted in June.

‘A tiny proportion compared with the 38% of private renters who receive housing benefit.’

After years of campaigning by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, Resolution Foundation, Citizens Advice UK and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, government has relented.

Local Housing Allowance will rise from April next year, giving around 1.6 million households an average of £800 of support next year.

What about inflation and interest rates?

Inflation fell to 4.6% in October, a big drop from a year ago when it was 11.1%.

Much was made of this, with suggestions it would mean the Bank of England could start cutting interest rates next year.

The OBR poured cold water on that hope. In its economic and fiscal outlook published alongside the Autumn Statement, it said: “Inflation is expected to be more persistent and domestically fuelled than we previously thought, falling below 5% by the end of this year but not returning to its 2% target until the first half of 2025.’

That’s more than a year later than the OBR thought at its last forecast made in March.

‘Markets now expect interest rates will need to remain higher for longer to bring inflation under control,’ it said in today’s outlook.

Worryingly, food inflation is still stubbornly high. Figures from the Office of National Statistics showed food and non-alcoholic prices rose 10.1% over the year to October – more than double the headline rate.

Given that food costs make up a much larger proportion of household spending for lower income families and individuals the cost of living isn’t going to ease any for many across the UK.

The energy regulator is also due to announce the energy price cap on November 23.

Analysts at Cornwall Insight forecast the average household energy bill will rise from £1,923 a year today to £1,996 in January 2024.

Energy price rises will feed into inflation, and push up food and clothing prices further.

Then there is the cost of rent and mortgages. The average monthly rent outside of London is now £1,278 according to Rightmove – 10% higher than a year ago.

Mortgage rates have come down a little over the past few months after the Bank of England put rate hikes on hold at 5.25% in August following 14 consecutive rises since December 2021.

However, there are still over a million homeowners set to remortgage or slip onto their lender’s standard variable rate over the coming year.

Going from a fixed rate of around 2% onto a fix over 5% will add hundreds of pounds to monthly mortgage repayments overnight – and that’s an issue that remains regardless of today’s tax cuts.

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Jeremy Hunt has used his autumn statement for 2023 to announce key points including tax cuts and tighter welfare rules – and tell people to ‘find a job’ or see their benefits stopped.

The speech, which was delivered to the House of Commons earlier this morning, is the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s main opportunity outside the budget to make tax and spending announcements.

The Tories will hope the statement can revive the UK’s struggling economy – as well as the party’s waning election chances.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

The announcement comes at a time of political and economic flux, with the Conservatives flagging in the polls while Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claims victory for inflation halving in recent months.

The full autumn statement includes 110 measures which it’s hoped will boost growth – but these are the seven key announcements.

National Insurance Cut

Employee national insurance will be cut by two percentage points, from 12% to 10%, from January 6.

Two million self-employed will benefit from the axing of class two national insurance and a cut to class four national insurance to 8%, Mr Hunt said, which he said will save them about £350 a year.

Booze duty frozen and tobacco duty hiked

Alcohol duty will be frozen until August 1 2024, meaning no increase in duty on beer, cider, wine or spirits, while tobacco duty will rise.

Smokers will pay more for hand rolling tobacco from this evening.

£450 extra in Universal Credit

The government chose to raise universal credit by September’s 6.7% rate of inflation, despite speculation it could have based the increase on October’s lower rate of 4.6% to save money.

State pension rises to £220 per week

Pensions will be increased by 8.5% in line with average earnings to £221 a week from April, maintaining the so-called ‘triple-lock’ policy where the amount paid is whichever is highest out of average earnings growth, CPI inflation or 2.5%.

Savers could be given the right to pick the pension scheme their employer pays into, similar to the approach taken by countries like Australia, under proposals being put out to consultation.

A £320 million plan to help unlock pension fund investment for technology and science schemes was also announced.

Local housing allowance

The freeze on the local housing allowance will be ended, Mr Hunt said. The Chancellor will increase the rate to the 30th percentile of local market rents, which he says will give 1.6 million households an average of £800 of support next year.

Tighter welfare rules

Welfare recipients who do not get a job within 18 months will be forced to take on work experience under plans to get more people into employment, the Government had already announced.

Those who do not comply will have their benefits, including access to free prescriptions and legal aid, cut off.

Minimum wage increase

The national living wage will rise by £1.02 to £11.44 from April, with the policy extended to cover workers aged 21 and over for the first time rather than 23 and over.

It means the lowest paid will receive a boost of £1,800 a year.

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Home Secretary James Cleverly has been accused of calling a Labour MP’s constituency a ‘s***hole’.

Speaking in the Commons, Alex Cunningham alleged the incident happened at Prime Minister’s Questions when he challenged Rishi Sunak over why there is child poverty in his Stockton North constituency.

Making a point of order in the Commons, he said: ‘Before the Prime Minister answered, the Home Secretary chose to add in his pennyworth. Yes, I have contacted his office advising him I planned to name him, but sadly he has chosen not to be in the chamber.

‘He was seen, and heard to say ‘because it’s a s***hole’. I know he is denying being the culprit, but the audio is clear and has been checked, and checked, and checked again.

‘There is no doubt that these comments shame the Home Secretary, this rotten Government, and the Tory Party. He is clearly unfit for his high office.’

He asked how he would secure an apology from the Home Secretary for ‘his appalling insult and foul language’.

Mr Cleverly has denied making the comments.

His spokesman said: ‘He did not say that, and would not. He’s disappointed people would accuse him of doing so.’

Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing said it was her understanding that Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle ‘didn’t hear any remark of the kind from the chair at the time when the honourable gentleman was asking his question’.

She said: ‘I understand that the alleged words were not actually used, though I appreciate what Mr Cunningham says.

‘But I think we all know that it’s very difficult in the noisy atmosphere of Prime Minister’s Questions to discern exactly what someone says. So I can make no judgment here from the chair as to what was or wasn’t said.’

She said she understood Mr Cunningham’s concern, and added: ‘I would remind all honourable members of the need for good temper and moderation in the language they use in this chamber.’

Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, Mr Cunningham had asked: ‘Why are 34% of children in my constituency living in poverty?’

Responding at the despatch box, Rishi Sunak said: ‘It’s this Government that has ensured that across our country 1.7 million fewer people are living in… poverty as a result of the actions of this Government.’

Mr Cunningham could then be heard calling out ‘it’s not true’ to the Prime Minister.

Mr Sunak went on: ‘Yes that is true. Not only that, hundreds of thousands fewer children are living in poverty, and income inequality is at a lower level than we inherited from the party opposite.

‘But we don’t want any child to grow up in poverty, and the best way to make sure that happens is to ensure they do not grow up in a workless household.

‘And that is why the right strategy is to ensure that we provide as many children with the opportunity to grow up with parents in work.

‘And because of the actions of previous governments, several hundred thousand more families are in that position.’

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Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement is likely to have little impact on the Tories’ near-flatlining chances at the next General Election, according to seasoned political commentators. 

The chancellor outlined his fiscal plans at the House of Commons today, announcing measures to stimulate economic growth, increase pay packets and alleviate the cost of living.

Mr Hunt also announced moves to freeze alcohol duty and increase universal credit and state pensions, along with 110 measures aimed at growing the British economy.

Cuts to National Insurance, freeing up money for rent and new housing and increasing the National Living Wage to £11.44 an hour also gave the statement broad appeal.  

The speech is likely to be one of the Tories’ final big parliamentary set-pieces before the election is called by the prime minister next year ahead of the December 17 cut-off.  

Hunt’s package appeared to contain across-the-board incentives to a wide range of British society, underpinned by the Tory ethos of using low taxes and business growth to reinvigorate the country.  

But will it be enough to raise the Tories’ moribund showing in the polls? 

MORE : Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

‘Tories want to recover from Brexit and Truss’

Westminster watcher Dr Darren Lilleker told Metro.co.uk: ‘Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement is designed to appeal to electoral groups the Conservatives fear they are losing as they languish in the opinion polls.

‘Larger than expected increases in pensions may shore up support among older generations, especially those most vulnerable to economic volatility.  

‘Meanwhile the drop in the rate of National Insurance, increases in benefits and support for apprenticeships could appeal to voters in the so-called “red wall” seats where many exist in financially precarious conditions.

‘So largely we need to look at this budget as an attempt to shift public opinion for the government.’ 

Turbulence encountered by the Tories in recent years includes the Boris Johnson ‘partygate’ scandal, the economic crisis precipitated by Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng and a merry-go-round of firings and hirings.

In coming months, Mr Hunt’s measures will play out against the ongoing cost of living crisis felt by millions of voters, which includes the energy price cap expected to rise to around £2,000 for the whole of next year. 

Dr Lilleker, professor of political communications at Bournemouth University, said: ‘The question is whether the statement can reverse the perception of the Conservatives on the economy.

‘The value of the pound took hits from Brexit and the Kwarteng budget, meaning import costs have increased. Economic problems resulting from the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and turbulence in the Middle East have exacerbated existing problems, as indicated by the higher inflation in the UK compared to the EU average.  

‘While some factors are beyond the control of the government, it is perception that matters: the question is who does the public blame for any reduction in their standards of living. 

‘The measures Jeremy Hunt has taken could help many financially, especially those most vulnerable to fluctuations in prices. But food prices remain stubbornly high, affecting the budgets of many families. The measures will only be vote winners if people feel they are better off.  

‘We may see an opinion poll bounce on the back of announcements, but if the narrative remains that many are still on or below the poverty line the bounce could be short-lived.  

‘This will especially be the case within the communities, such as those red wall seats, if they still feel they are struggling to make ends meet. 

‘Ideological Conservatives who believe in low tax will find much to like in the budget, perhaps with a question around the substantial benefit increases.’ 

Despite the pay packet boons, voters may approach today’s announcement with a dose of scepticism, the academic warned.

‘It is only weeks ago that Hunt was saying a responsible government could not reduce taxes and spending needed to be tightly controlled,’ he said.  

‘Will this budget lead to cynicism and be seen widely as an attempt to win votes at a time of continuing bad news for the government?’

A small Labour majority is the most likely outcome at the next election, according to YouGov, with 23% of people choosing this as the most likely result. The figures, which cover the period up to Monday, show a large majority for Sir Keir Starmer’s party as the second most popular prediction, with 15% of those feeling this scenario was most likely.  

A hung parliament resulting in a Conservative-led government or a small Tory majority were both around the 8% mark in the monthly tracking data. 

The Labour leader is 13th in a separate YouGov list of the most popular political figures, with Rishi Sunak residing at 29th.

‘Stimulus may only reduce size of Labour win’

Professor Wyn Grant, emeritus professor of politics, University of Warwick, said: ‘The Autumn Statement might potentially have some impact but one has to remember that in 1997 the economy was recovering and still the Conservatives lost by a large margin because people were worried about public services as well as the state of the economy.

‘Clearly, the tax reductions will put some more money in people’s pockets and inflation will continue to moderate, so people may be feeling better off by this time next year after suffering quite big increases in the shops.  

‘It may reduce the Labour lead, but the question is whether it will be enough to secure a Conservative majority, or even the Conservatives as the largest party, and at present I’m quite doubtful about this. I’m always sceptical about the notion of a Labour landslide but it may make this less likely.’  

The Tories may have to wait until after the election to see rosier growth, with the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) saying today that the economy will grow by 0.7% in 2024 and 1.4% in 2025. The spending watchdog released the outlook alongside the Autumn Statement. 

‘I haven’t seen any year in which growth is shown to be above 2%, so the growth problem in the economy has not been solved,’ Prof Grant said.

‘You have to solve the growth and productivity problem to give people a higher standard of living. If you look at the OBR forecast which takes account of the Autumn Statement, there’s no dramatic increase in growth.

‘But whatever the government does, it might be that after 13 years of the same government in office, even if they claim the governments are different, people decide it is time for a change.’  

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MORE : How Rishi ‘looked beyond the subs bench’ before sacking Braverman

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The King hosted a star-studded state banquet last night, making K-pop references as he hosted the Korean President at Buckingham Palace.

The banquet was held to mark the 140th anniversary of Korea’s diplomatic ties to the UK, and King Charles even joked that he hadn’t managed to develop ‘Gangnam Style’.

Charles said: ‘Sadly, when I was in Seoul all those years ago, I am not sure I developed much of what might be called the Gangnam Style!

‘Even at the time of my last visit, that journey was clearly just beginning. The Republic of Korea’s drive and energy continued apace, and with it, the impact on British lives.

‘From fridges and flatscreens to smartphones and semiconductors, it is clear that the model of industrial efficiency I glimpsed in Seoul thirty years ago has become the epitome of technological creativity today.’

The star-studded banquet hosted the President of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol, and his wife Kim Keon, along with singers BLACKPINK, the Prime Minister, Lord David Cameron, and other members of the royal family.

Kate opted to wear the Queen Mother’s Strathmore Rose Tiara and diamonds, and Queen Camilla opted to wear the rarely-seen ruby and diamond Burmese tiara, belonging to the late Queen Elizabeth II.

King Charles toasted the ‘artistic creativity’ of the country, which has taken the world by storm in the form of K-Pop and a number of hugely popular TV shows.

He added: ‘Korea has matched Danny Boyle with Bong Joon-ho, James Bond with Squid Game, and the Beatles’ Let It Be with BTS’s Dynamite.

‘Our cultures share a remarkable ability to captivate imaginations across the world, transforming a so-called soft power into a shared superpower.’

The environmentally savvy King Charles also praised Korea’s commitment to going green and applauded the members of BLACKPINK for spreading the message as Ambassadors for the U.K.’s Presidency of COP 26.

Charles also mentioned how his mother, who visited Korea in 1999, was amazed by the warmth and beauty of the country.

The Royal Family’s official social media accounts also shared a glimpse behind the scenes of the luxurious banquet.

A stunning video showed the creation of Hibiscus Syriacus flowers made of sugar, which were placed on top of petit fours for the guests on golden plates.

The menu, written in French, included poached eggs, pheasant, and a mango ice cream bombe.

Prior to the event, the Korean delegation was given a ceremonial welcome at the Horse Guard’s Parade and were given a carriage procession along the mall.

More than 1,000 soldiers were on parade, with gun salutes in the autumn leaves in Green Park.

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Martin Lewis has issued a warning to savers with ISA accounts following Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement.

The Money Saving Expert founder wrote on X, formerly Twitter, savers will still be fined by the government if they use their Lifetime Isa’s to buy a house worth more than £450,000.

This is despite placing pressure on the chancellor to raise the house price limit on a Lifetime Isa to keep up with house prices.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

He said he hoped this would change in Mr Hunt’s autumn statement today.

‘Damn. Our lifetime ISA campaign has failed,’ he wrote online.

‘No change to the fact people using it to buy house over £450,000 due to the house price rise, will still be fined by the government and have less money than they started with.’

Average house prices in some parts of the UK now exceed the £450,000 limit.

This has lead to some savers being penalised when they withdraw this money to buy a home.

Although it was rumoured this rule could be scrapped in today’s autumn budget, Mr Hunt made no mention of the saving scheme.

But the chancellor did introduce some measures which are set to come into force in April 2024.

This includes scrapping the single Isa limit, allowing savers to open and pay into multiple accounts in a single year without losing their £20,000 allowance.

Partial transfers have also been allowed, meaning parts of one account can be transferred into anoter.

Savers no longer need to reapply for an Isa each year if it is lying dormant, and the minimum opening age for an account will be 18 across the board.

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Jeremy Hunt has once again used his Autumn Statement to clobber benefit claimants in proposals that will ‘punish’ the sick and disabled.

The Chancellor outlined plans in today’s budget to boost social welfare support while rolling out tougher benefits sanctions to get 200,000 people into the workforce.

Around 2,600,000 working-age people are unable to clock in or out altogether due to a serious sickness, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

Hundreds of thousands of others living with a long-term illness can work but their condition makes what jobs they can do ‘limited’.

To many of them, the chancellor has given them two options: find a job or face a benefit cut.

Hunt said the government will provide a further £1,300,000,000 in funding over the next five years to help 300,000 people who have been unemployed for more than a year and 700,000 people not working due to physical or mental ill health, such as counselling or coaching.

But in Hunt’s bid to reward ‘effort and work’ and ‘improve incentives to work’, the government will ‘ask for something in return’.

Job seekers will have 18 months to find employment before they have to take part in a mandatory work placement ‘to increase their skills and improve their employability’.

People receiving disability benefits will be made to work from home, he said.

‘If they choose not to engage with the work such process for six months. We will close their case and stop their benefits,’ Hunt said. Legal aid and free prescriptions will also be stopped.

‘We will reform the fit note process so that treatment rather than time off work becomes the default,’ he added.

‘We will reform the work capability assessment to reflect greater flexibility and availability of home working after the pandemic.’

Hunt says the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), a spending watchdog, thinks this will get another 200,000 people into the workforce.

‘Conservatives say we should unlock the potential we have right here at home, which we do with the biggest set of welfare reforms in a decade in today’s autumn statement for growth,’ Hunt said.

Scope’s James Taylor said: ‘Threatening disabled people with more sanctions will not lead to more disabled people getting into and staying in work.

‘Forcing disabled people into unsuitable jobs and cutting financial support in a cost of living crisis will be disastrous.’

Joe Ryle, Director of the 4 Day Week Campaign, said that Britain’s work culture isn’t exactly helping with worries about people living with illnesses not working.

‘Our very British culture of long working hours and low pay is pushing people to the brink,’ he said.

‘We work some of the longest hours in Europe which is causing burnout for millions and not producing good results for the economy.’

Changes to the Work Capability Assessment also raised alarms for a coalition of over 100 disability organisations.

Anastasia Berry, policy co-chair of the Disability Benefits Consortium and Policy Manager at the MS Society, said: ‘The government’s decision to push ahead with this cynical attack on disability benefits will have a devastating impact on those on the lowest incomes.

‘It will deprive people with severe health problems of £390 a month and push more disabled people into poverty in the middle of a cost of living crisis.’

Since the pandemic put tens of thousands of Britons out of work, ministers have spent years trying to bring a flood of workers back to the job market.

So far, it’s been more like a trickle. While the rate of unemployment has decreased, the level of ‘economic inactivity’ has remained high.

The unemployment rate – people able to and are actively looking for work – was 4.2% in the three months to August this year, with no real change since July.

But there aren’t too many jobs to apply for right now. The estimated number of vacancies from August to October 2023 was 957,000 (it appeared Hunt rounded up to 1,000,000 in his address), according to the ONS.

Statisticians call people who aren’t actively looking for work or able to start a job ‘economically inactive’, a figure which has been high since the pandemic.

Some experts refer to this group as Britain’s ‘invisible workforce’, an untapped ‘army of unemployed people’ that need to be pushed back into the labour market.

In September, the rate was 20.9% (just shy of 8,800,000 Britons) and includes people living with long-term and temporary sickness, retirees, students, caregivers and those wealthy enough not to need to work.

‘The increase in economic inactivity since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic had been largely driven by those who were students and the long-term sick,’ the ONS says.

The 2,604,000 unable to be on payrolls because of long-term sickness – think depression, problems with hands or feet and musculoskeletal conditions – are at a ‘record high’.

Those of ‘working age’ are defined as people aged between 16 and 64, but that doesn’t mean they can get a job, especially if they are full-time students or carers.

‘Discouraged workers’ – or, as the ONS puts it, people who believe there’s no work available – are only a small fraction of the economically inactive, consisting of 21,000.

Studies in Britain, Switzerland and Sweden have found that social security sanctions push people into worse jobs.

Just the threat alone of these sanctions brought lasting ill effects, with physical and mental ill health, hunger, homelessness and ‘survival crime’ among them.

Sanctions don’t always work either, researchers say. A University of Glasgow team found they tend to lead to increases in unemployment and economic inactivity as people are shoved into low-wage gigs.

Meanwhile, an American study found letting people hunt for jobs in their own time pays off – literally – as they can find a job more suited to them, boosting economic efficiency and productivity.

As Thomas Lawson, CEO of national anti-poverty charity Turn2u, said: ‘By pushing people into any job rather than the right job, emphasising the punishments they could receive and axing some people’s benefits completely, the government will further damage people’s trust and worsen their health.

‘We need a truly compassionate approach that centres understanding, dignity, and respect.’

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Smokers will have to pay more for rolling tobacco after Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced tax hike.

In his autumn statement, Mr Hunt said the government would increase the duty on hand-rolling tobacco by 10% starting tonight.

He said: ‘I am going to increase duty on hand-rolling tobacco by an additional 10% above the tobacco duty escalator.’

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

Tobacco duty is a tax charged to businesses making or importing cigarettes into the UK.

But the cost is then passed onto consumers.

In October, Rishi Sunak announced the legal smoking age a year every year, and new tougher rules on vaping are to be introduced.

The tougher tobacco sale laws would mean a 14-year-old today will ‘never legally be sold a cigarette’ as the smoking age limit is gradually increased from 18.

In the incremental New Zealand-style ban, the prime minister told Tory conference-goers doing so would help ease the pressure on the NHS.

It will be a ‘free’ vote in Parliament, meaning MPs can vote with their own preference rather than be whipped into a certain position by party leaders.

If passed, this would make Britain the first country in Europe to ban cigarette sales to young people.

He has also announced a new crackdown on vaping, vowing to scrutinise ‘flavours, packaging, displays and disposable vapes’.

Adding that data suggests one in five children now use e-cigarettes, Sunak said: ‘That is shocking and wrong. And we must act before it becomes endemic.’

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MORE : Jeremy Hunt tells people to ‘find a job’ or see their benefits stopped

MORE : Jeremy Hunt confirms minimum wage to rise to £11.44

MORE : What is the ‘triple lock’ for State Pensions?

The minimum wage is set to increase by more than a pound to £11.44 per hour from April next year, chancellor Jeremy Hunt has announced.

National Living wage in the UK is currently £10.42 an hour for workers over 23.

Meanwhile, minimum wage for those aged 21- and 22-year-olds is £10.18

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

But during the Autumn statement, the Chancellor announced that everyone aged 21 and over will receive the new Living Wage of £11.44.

Rates for apprentices will also rise, from £5.28 to £6.40 per hour – a big rise as the Conservative party aims to ‘tackle low pay’ by lifting the living wage to two-thirds a measure of average earnings.

Mr Hunt said the changes will see a full-time worker aged 21 receive an annual pay rise of almost £2,300, an increase of around 30%.

The Chancellor called the changes ‘the largest ever cash increase in the national living wage, worth up to £1,800 for a full-time worker.

‘Since the national living wage has been introduced, the proportion of people on low pay, defined as earning less than two thirds of national median hourly income, has halved.

‘But at the new rate of £11.44 an hour it delivers our manifesto commitment to eliminate low pay altogether.

‘That means by next year someone working full-time on the national living wage will see their real take-home after-tax pay go up not by 25% but by 30% compared to 2010.’

Elsewhere in the statement, Mr Hunt announced he would cut the main rate of national insurance for workers from 12% to 10% as of January, telling MPs this change would ‘help 27 million’ by putting extra money in their payslips.

Jeremy Hunt told the Commons he would bring forward urgent legislation to Parliament to introduce the cut in national insurance for employees ‘from January 6, so that people can see the benefit in their payslips at the start of the new year’.

He added: ‘It means someone on the average salary of £35,000 will save over £450. For the average nurse, it is a saving of over £520 and for the typical police officer it is a saving of over £630 every single year.’

Ben Harrison, Director at the Work Foundation at Lancaster University, said: ‘It was positive that the Chancellor chose to prioritise boosting the incomes of 1.6 million workers on the minimum wage via a 9.8% increase to the minimum wage to £11.44 per hour and confirmation that benefits will be uprated by 6.7%  – in line with September’s inflation rate.

‘But let’s be clear – the cost of living crisis continues to hit the most vulnerable in society – especially the 6.2 million people in insecure work. Food inflation remains above 10%, and energy prices are likely to rise. And the UK still has one of the lowest levels of unemployment benefits in the OECD, at just 17% of the recipient’s previous income levels.

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Jeremy Hunt has announced national insurance will be cut for 27 million people, and businesses will receive permanent tax cuts.

In his autumn statement, the chancellor announced the headline rates of national insurance for both employees and self-employed will be reduced.

He declared the economy was ‘back on track’ after inflation fell to its lowest rate of 4.6% in two years.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

‘Urgent’ legislation will be used to introduce the national insurance cut
from January 6, Jeremy Hunt said.

Some two million self-employed people will benefit from the axing of class 2
national insurance and a cut to class 4 national insurance to 8%, saving them
around £350 a year, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said.

Class 4 national insurance will also be cut from 9% to 8% for the self-employed.

Mr Hunt said he decided to place cutting national insurance at the forefront of his autumn budget because it affects working people.

Prior to today’s statement, employees earning more than £12,750 annually pay 12% national insurance, while self-employed pay 9%.

A cut of 2% costs around £10 billion, and will be worth roughly £760 a year to workers earning more than £50,000.

Sarah Singleton, from Lincolnshire, is a direct seller for Usborne Books and also does ad-hoc marking for exam boards.

The 44-year-old, who is married with two children aged seven and 10, says the decision to cut national insurance from 12% to 10% is a step in the right direction.

She will save around £140 to £200 a year. But she says it isn’t enough for her family to keep on top of rising prices.

‘Our fixed rate mortgage is due to end in a few months, and I am preparing for that to significantly impact our finances. Cuts to national insurance just won’t alleviate the pressure I am going to face when I come to remortgage, and to combat the rising prices I face across the board,’ she said.

‘I suspect the changes announced today will go unnoticed in the grand scheme of things, which is one of the reasons that I have taken financial matters into my own hands and created multiple streams of income.

‘On average I make about £1,600 a month through Usborne and also do some ad hoc work with exam boards to earn extra money to help with the cost of living. It’s this type of additional income I need, not small changes such as those announced today.’

Plans to reduce income tax were considered, but these are now more likely to be unveiled in the spring budget, The Times reports.

The ‘full expensing’ scheme for businesses introduced in March will become
permanent, the Chancellor confirmed, calling it the ‘largest business tax cut
in modern British history’.

This allows companies to deduct spending on investment from profits, meaning paying less in corporation tax.

Mr Hunt called it one of the largest tax cuts for businesses in modern British history.

But think tank Resolution Foundation said people will pay more national insurance overall because the threshold at which they pay it has been frozen.

This has been described as a ‘stealth tax’ because choosing not to raise thresholds in line with inflation means the government takes more of people’s income.

But the governor of the Bank of England told MPs ‘too much weight’ is being put on the recent fall in inflation, saying he remained ‘concerned about the potential persistence of inflation’.

Mr Sunak signalled on Monday the fall in inflation meant the government felt able to reduce taxes.

But he stressed the need to cut taxes in a ‘serious, responsible way, based on fiscal rules to deliver sound money’.

Jeremy Hunt said he hoped the autumn statement’s measures would make a ‘really big difference’ to entrepreneurs.

In a social media video, the Chancellor said the statement had ‘110 different measures to help grow the British economy’.

‘I’m thinking of my own business, that I set up over 30 years ago,’ the Chancellor said.

‘I want to help thousands of other people do what I did, and I hope today will make a really big difference.’

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MORE : What is the ‘triple lock’ for State Pensions?

MORE : State pension to rise 8.5% to £221.20 a week from April, Chancellor reveals

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has today announced the government’s tax and spending plans for the next 12 months.

Mr Hunt, said the government’s economic plans are working ‘but the work is not done’ in his speech in the House of Commons.

He said: ‘After a global pandemic and energy crisis, we have taken difficult decisions to put our economy back on track.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

‘We have supported families with rising bills, cut borrowing and halved inflation.

‘Rather than a recession, the economy has grown. Rather than falling as predicted, real incomes have risen.

‘Our plan for the British economy is working. But the work is not done.’

Among the announcements by the Chancellor, he said the state pension will increase by 8.5% from April 2024 to £221.20 a week. This will mean the government will honour the triple lock ‘in full.’

But just what is the triple lock pension, and what will happen to it?

Here is everything you need to know.

What is the triple lock pension?

The triple lock is a commitment that state pensions would rise by whichever was the largest of three figures – annual inflation, average earnings rises, or by 2.5%.

With this in mind, pension recipients could have expected a rise of more than 10% in their weekly payments next year as inflation reaches new highs – especially useful in times of post-pandemic uncertainty.

What has previously happened the Triple Lock?

In September 2021, the former Department of Work and Pensions minister, Therese Coffey, announced a temporary suspension of the triple lock and that the government would decide on pensions based on annual inflation or by 2.5%.

Although the concept of a triple lock pension was a part of the Conservatives’ manifesto, the choice not to consider annual earnings was made to prevent those who were expecting to receive a pension ‘unfairly benefitting from a statistical anomaly’.

However, the triple lock returned last year.

What will happen to the Triple Lock?

Amongst the economic chaos that followed the mini-budget, there was much speculation on the pension triple lock, with much former Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s economic plans ripped up by new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.

However, it was confirmed by the Chancellor that the triple lock will remain in place.

The Autumn statement itself states: ‘The State Pension will be uprated by inflation, in line with the commitment to the Triple Lock.’

‘The standard minimum income guarantee in Pension Credit will also increase in line with inflation from April 2023 (rather than in line with average earnings growth).’

‘This will ensure pensioners on the lowest incomes are protected from inflation and do not lose some of their State Pension increase in the Pension Credit means test.’

What is the current state pension worth?

The full, ‘new’ current flat-rate state pension (for those who reached state pension age after April 2016) is £185.15 a week.

The full, ‘old’ basic state pension (for those who reached state pension age before April 2016) is £141.85 per week.

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The government will honor the triple lock formula and raise the state pension by 8.5% in line with average earnings.

In his autumn statement chancellor Jeremy Hunt confirmed the triple lock will be honoured ‘in full’ by raising it to £221.20 a week from April 2024.

This is worth up to £900 a year.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

But someone on the old state pension – having reached the required age before 2016 – will see their state pension increase around £156 to about £169.

Carole Hulatt, 74, from Bedfordshire lives alone and relies solely on the state pension for her income, as she does not have private pension savings.

She said the government’s decision to honour the triple lock and increase the state pension by 8.5% next April to £221.20 a week – or £11,502 a year – is welcome news.

‘It’s good news. But this increase was promised through the triple lock so it’s right they’ve seen it through. I’m a bit cynical, as with the next general election coming up the Government might have been afraid of not increasing it by what they promised,’ she said.

‘Prices are still rising everywhere, particularly energy and food, but the £900 annual increase will make a positive difference. Any increase that can help us keep abreast of rising prices will help.

Mr Hunt said: ‘After a global pandemic and energy crisis, we have taken difficult decisions to put our economy back on track.

‘We have supported families with rising bills, cut borrowing and halved inflation.

‘Rather than a recession, the economy has grown. Rather than falling as predicted, real incomes have risen.

‘Our plan for the British economy is working. But the work is not done.’

Pension savers will have the right to have ‘one pension pot for life’, Jeremy Hunt said.

The Chancellor told MPs: ‘I will also consult on giving savers a legal right to require a new employer to pay pension contributions into their existing pension pot if they choose, meaning people can move to having one pension pot for life.

‘These reforms could help unlock an extra £75 billion of financing for high-growth companies by 2030 and provide an extra £1,000 a year in retirement for an average earner saving from 18.’

Mr Hunt said he would also take forward ‘further capital market reforms, to boost the attractiveness of our markets, and the UK one of the most attractive places to start, grow and list a company’.

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Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered his 2023 Autumn statement in the House of Commons today (Wednesday, November 22).

A freeze on alcohol duty and a rise in the National Living Wage are among 110 measures the Chancellor boasted would ‘make work pay’ and drive growth for business.

But who is Jeremy Hunt married to, and how many children do they have?

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

Here’s everything you need to know about the Hunts.

Who is Jeremy Hunt’s Wife?

Jeremy Hunt met his wife, Lucia, at a 2008 Hotcourses event in Warwick.

Born Lucia Guo, the Xi’an native was working for Warwick University at the time, helping them to recruit Chinese students.

Under a year later, Jeremy proposed during a Christmas Eve walk and the pair tied the knot in Lucia’s home city in China.

Together they run a real estate business called Mare Pond Properties ltd.

There’s a large age-gap between the two and Jeremy, 56, has described Lucia, 44, as a ‘sparkler’, brightening up the lives of him and his family.

She’s a fervent supporter of his political aspirations and is often seen by his side at Conservative party events.

In 2019, Lucia was dubbed the ‘secret weapon’ in Jeremy’s failed party leadership campaign.

Do they have any children?

Jeremy and Lucia Hunt have three children together, each two years apart.

Their 13-year-old son Jack was born in 2010 followed by daughters Anna, 11, and Eleanor, 8.

As Health Secretary in 2014, Hunt argued for ‘controlled immigration’, citing his half-Chinese children as a reason he feared ‘social divisions and tensions’ exacerbated by ‘health tourism’.

The couple tend to keep their children out of the spotlight.

Where do the Hunt family live?

The family live in Jeremy Hunt’s constituency of Hambledon, in South West Surrey.

Hunt also has a flat in Pimlico, South London, which, according to the The Evening Standard, he bought for just under £1.7million.

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Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the Government would continue to meet its Nato commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defence

During the Autumn statement, Mr Hunt said: ‘I will extend national insurance relief for employers of eligible veterans for a further year and provide £10 million to support the Veterans’ Places, Pathways and People programme.’

The Chancellor also said the Government would be investing £3 million more in tackling paramilitarism in Northern Ireland.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

He told the Commons: ‘Because we are proudly the Conservative and Unionist Party, I’m announcing £80 million for new Levelling Up Partnerships in Scotland, £500,000 to support the Hay Festival in Wales and £3 million of additional funding to support the successful Tackling Paramilitarism programme in Northern Ireland.’

Elsewhere in the statement, Mr Hunt expressed his ‘horror’ at the attack on Israeli citizens on October and the subsequent loss of life on both sides.

He said: ‘I am deeply concerned about the rise of antisemitism in our country, so I am announcing up to £7 million over the next three years for organisations like the Holocaust Educational Trust to tackle antisemitism in schools and universities.

‘I will also repeat the £3 million uplift to the Community Security Trust.

‘When it comes to antisemitism and all forms of racism, we must never allow the clock to be turned back.’

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Jeremy Hunt has said the government will increase Universal Credit, which bundles most benefits into one, slightly above inflation.

Hunt, who even after Rishi Sunak’s cabinet reshuffle stayed on as Britain’s bearer of bad news, unveiled his new budget to the House of Commons this afternoon.

‘Rather than a recession, the economy has grown,’ the chancellor told MPs to cheers, ‘but the work is not done.’

Follow the latest news from the Autumn Statement in our liveblog

The chancellor increased (or as it’s often called, uprate) benefits by the September inflation rate of 6.7%.

This applies to working-age, means-tested benefits, such as Universal Credit and disability benefits.

That’s an ‘average increase of £470 a year for five and a half million households’,’ the chancellor said.

It was assumed that as he tightens the government’s purse strings, Hunt would only do this by 4.6%, last month’s slightly slowed down inflation rate.

‘I will therefore increase the local housing allowance rate to the 30th percentile of local market rents,’ he told the Commons.

‘This will give 1,600,000 households an average of £800 of support next year.’

But this still means welfare cheques won’t catch up to what they were before the pandemic until at least 2026, amounting to a real-term cut.

Sam Ray-Chaudhuri, of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think-tank, said yesterday: ‘They would never get back to where they were without subsequent changes in policy.

Opposition politicians and campaigners have spent months calling on the government to thaw out unemployment and disability benefits as costs of food and other necessities continue to climb.

As much as inflation is in no way near the nauseating double-digit highs it was last October – now standing at 4.6% – experts stress this means prices are rising, just not as fast as before.

Food inflation, among the biggest driving forces of higher prices, has slowed in recent months but is still at 10.1%.

The Treasury said in a statement on X: ‘This will support families during these challenging economic times.

‘This will support families during these challenging economic times.’

Ben Harrison, director of the Work Foundation at Lancaster University, a think tank, wasn’t as impressed, though.

‘It was positive that the chancellor chose to prioritise boosting the incomes of 1,600,000 million workers on the minimum wage via a 9.8% increase to the minimum wage to £11.44 per hour and confirmation that benefits will be uprated by 6.7%  – in line with September’s inflation rate,’ he said.

‘But let’s be clear – the cost of living crisis continues to hit the most vulnerable in society – especially the 6,200,000 people in insecure work.

‘Food inflation remains above 10%, and energy prices are likely to rise. And the UK still has one of the lowest levels of unemployment benefits in the OECD, at just 17% of the recipient’s previous income levels.’

Who is eligible for Universal Credit?

You could be eligible for Universal Credit, potentially due to one of the following reasons:

• Out of work
• Working (including self-employed or part time)
• Unable to work, for example because of a health condition

To be able to claim you must:

• Live in the UK
• Be aged 18 or over (there are some exceptions if you’re 16 to 17)
• Be under State Pension age
• Have £16,000 or less in money, savings and investments

When will Universal Credit go up?

The benefit rates should go up from April 2024 at the beginning of the new tax year, which falls on April 6, 2024.

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Jeremy Hunt has announced a freeze to alcohol duty to help pubs and businesses in the run-up to the busy Christmas season.

The news from the Chancellor’s autumn statement means there will be no increase in duty on beer, cider, wine or spirits.

It will come as welcome news to cash-strapped Brits still struggling with the cost of living crisis.

Follow our live blog for latest updates on the Autumn Statement – and what it means for you

Mr Hunt said better-than-expected borrowing numbers meant the government could ease the pain on drinker’s wallets.

But after three years of the festive trade being blighted by Covid and strikes, the move is seen by critics as a Tory attempt to turn around their dire poll ratings.

Addressing the House of Commons, Mr Hunt said: ‘As well as confirming our Brexit Pubs Guarantee, which means duty on a pint is always lower than in the shops, I have decided to freeze all alcohol duty until August 1 next year.

‘That means no increase in duty on beer, cider, wine or spirits.’

Mr Hunt also announced the 75% business rates discount for hospitality, retail and leisure is being extended for another year, at a cost of £4.3billion which will benefit pubs.

The wine and spirits industry has welcomed the freeze to alcohol duty, saying it comes as ‘a huge relief’ to a sector that has ‘taken a battering’.

WSTA chief executive Miles Beale said: ‘The alcohol duty freeze comes as a huge relief to wine and spirit businesses and the hospitality sector who have taken a battering over the last few years.

‘Following the introduction of an entirely new alcohol tax regime and huge hike in August, the latest data shows a worrying decline in sales, which concerns businesses of all sizes and which would result in less revenue for the Exchequer.

‘A second duty rise would have been disastrous.

‘We are pleased that the frustrations of consumers, who are fed up with never ending price rises, and of businesses struggling with the cost and complexities of the new system have been heeded.’

The government hit its target of annual borrowing not exceeding 3% of GDP in five years.

But public sector borrowing figures show they were at £98 billion between April and October – £22 billion more than the same time last year.

The news also comes as Mr Hunt announced a cut to National Insurance for 28 million employed and self-employed workers and a boost of the living wage to £11.44 per hour.

This is a pay rise of more than a pound for three million of the lowest-paid workers.

A 1% cut would be worth £380 a year to someone earning more than £50,000 but would cost the government in the region of £5 billion.

Mr Hunt said ahead of the statement today: ‘Next April all full-time workers on the National Living Wage will get a pay rise of over £1,800 a year.

‘That will end low pay in this country, delivering on our manifesto promise. The National Living Wage has helped halve the number of people on low pay since 2010, making sure work always pays.

‘I will be setting out a plan for the economy packed with ideas for our long-term growth.’

The Treasury has vowed to ‘turbo-charge economic growth in the UK, while cutting taxes and continuing to bring down inflation’.

Benefit payments have also been cut for hundreds of thousands of people with mobility and health issues up and down the UK unless they can do their work from home.

Leading disability charity Sense warned the plans risk punishing disabled people who would be put under ‘more pressure to find work’ without the support to do so.

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By the age of just four, Teddy Lichten had undergone 20 sessions of radiotherapy.

It was just after his third birthday in July 2022 that the toddler was diagnosed with high-risk neuroblastoma – a rare and aggressive childhood cancer, which had invaded nearly most of his body and taken over more than half of his bone marrow. 

Teddy’s family were told he had a 40-50% chance of long-term survival and the next 12 months brought a whirlwind of urgent hospital visits.

Parents Kat and Alistair were left ‘shattered’ by the news, and admitted they didn’t realise the reality of childhood cancer until it happened to them.

For weeks at a time Teddy would be admitted to the world famous cancer hospital, the Royal Marsden, in South London for his treatment – a 40 minute drive from his home in Hassocks, West Sussex. 

‘He spent up to 10 days there every three weeks for four months,’ Teddy’s mum Kat, 34, tells Metro.co.uk. 

‘He had induction chemotherapy then had two stem cell transplants, as well as countless sessions of radiotherapy. We stayed at one of the family flats nearby as we had to be there at 8.30am every day.’

Ahead of his surgery at Royal Marsden, Kat recalls how Teddy had felt ‘frightened’ and ‘very low’ during his treatment.

But once at the hospital, things soon changed.

‘The staff all got to know us and Teddy, and they knew what was normal for him and what was a sign he was poorly,’ explains Kat.

Today Teddy still routinely goes for appointments at The Royal Marsden as he undergoes immunotherapy. But his home away from home – described as ‘outstanding’ by his parents – now faces an uncertain future, as the children’s cancer services at the hospital could shut. 

Instead, kids on the ward could end up being relocated to either St George’s Hospital in Tooting nearly nine miles away or the Evelina Children’s Hospital in Lambeth, which is an hour drive away. The move could cost in the region of £40 million.

Petrol costs, central London traffic and congestion charges – plus the dramatic change in scene for the children who have come to love Marsden – are key fears for Kat and other parents.

‘Teddy overheard me talking about it to his grandma, and was quite worried, asking me lots of questions about when it would happen and why,’ adds Kat.

‘At the beginning of his journey we were sometimes at Marsden as outpatients four days in a week.

‘At three hours each way, this would mean 24 hours spent in hospital transport in just one week.’

The lack of a Level 3 children’s intensive care unit (PICU) at the Royal Marsden is the reason behind the potential move. The NHS has said such a ward – usually found at bigger hospitals – is necessary to minimise any danger caused by transfers of children with cancer between hospitals.

Due to the very low numbers of children who would require the space at the Royal Marsden, the hospital couldn’t house an ICU on site. 

In a bid to overturn the decision, Kat has joined forces with a small army of outraged parents who have demanded that NHS London reconsider the move of services. Together, they’ve created the #HearTheMarsdenKids campaign. 

Families who use the Marsden fear new wards simply won’t match the care and attention they already receive.

Rebecca Gilligan, who lives in Worcester Park, says her daughter, Eva, wouldn’t be alive without the Royal Marsden Hospital. Her daughter was just 18 months old when she was diagnosed with a Wilms’ Tumour, a rare kidney cancer.

She’s had over 400 different procedures, 40 rounds of chemotherapy, two major surgeries – including the loss of a kidney – three minor surgeries, and two rounds of radiotherapy at the site.

Now 11, Eva has spent months at the Royal Marsden whilst having stem cell harvesting, high-dose chemo, and a stem cell transplant.

‘The care at this facility is second to none, without the dedicated treatment and alternative off-plan protocols that the hospital used my daughter would not be here today,’ Rebecca tells Metro.co.uk. 

‘We spent months living at the hospital, even spending Christmas day there. The staff made this day so magical and special for all of the in-patients, with lots of gifts for the children. A lunch was provided in the canteen for our family to attend with us. It was so needed for all the children too ill to be at home during the festive period.’

Today, Eva is doing ‘really well’ following treatment and attending follow-up appointments at the Marsden.

But she’s worried about the potential loss of her hospital family.

‘Eva is unhappy about the proposed plans and very sad. She wants her care to stay at the Royal Marsden,’ adds Rebecca.

‘Staff know her history and she has grown up with all of the staff. It feels familiar and safe for my daughter, and is a short car journey away.’

The decision to move the hospital has ‘devastated’ families, admits Annie Martin, 48, a language tutor.

Her daughter Issy was first diagnosed aged 11 with a rare form of leukaemia called Philadelphia Chromosome Positive Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. She received two years of chemotherapy treatment at The Royal Marsden. 

Following eight months of remission Issy, then 14, was diagnosed with a second leukaemia, also rare in children, Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia.

‘The journey that children battling cancer will have to face to get to their appointments [if services move] is daunting to say the least,’ Annie tells Metro.co.uk.

‘The practicalities of getting a child with cancer into London are nigh on impossible. Tackling those roads after a day in hospital, tired, emotional and with a very sick child in the car would be a nightmare.

‘Issy tells me the Marsden is different. The night before her admission for her general anaesthetic and bone marrow harvest, she asked me if it was weird that she felt excited for her hospital sleepover. 

‘The scale of the hospital, the environment, the proximity to home and the warmth of the reception and care are what got us all through.’

Issy’s younger sister, Tilly, used to be terrified of hospitals, Annie adds. However, at the age of just 11, she was given the chance to save her sister’s life – although it would involve a major operation and a stay on ward.

Issy urgently required a stem cell transplant and her little sister was selected as a potentially life-saving bone marrow donor. 

Tilly, like many children, feared the suffocating white walls of hospitals, characterless corridors and intimidating equipment. But her mum says the Marsden made her feel at ease straight away.

‘One of the doctors perched on the arm of Tilly’s chair and gave her all the time she needed, talking through all her questions and allaying her fears about the second procedure,’ Annie explains. 

‘He put absolutely no pressure on her despite the fact that we really really needed her cells that day and there were teams standing by in theatre. 

‘The care and the time given, and the respect shown to her that day will never leave me and they gave a little girl of 11 the confidence to provide her big sister’s cure.’

The Marsden families have until the end of the month to make their voices heard. A petition has been launched which has already garnered more than 8,000 signatures.

In a bid to persuade NHS London to find a way to keep services at the Marsden, they have also suggested a ‘risk-adapted’ model whereby any patients who, upon diagnosis, are likely to need PICU services throughout the course of their treatment, would simply receive their specialist care at St George’s Hospital.

For the remaining 93% of children cancer patients who would likely never need these services, they could remain at The Royal Marsden for both in and outpatient appointments, on-site access to research specialists and drug trials and radiotherapy treatment.

While services are not expected to move before 2026 and a consultation is ongoing into the situation, Chris Streather, medical director for NHS London, insists that the ‘strength of feeling’ in response to the proposals has been taken into account.

‘Our proposals are designed to create a future children’s cancer centre which has the experience and expertise of the existing service but is on the same site as a children’s intensive care unit, surgical teams and other children’s specialists,’ he tells Metro.co.uk. 

‘Both options for the future location – Evelina London and St George’s – deliver children’s services which are rated outstanding by the Care Quality Commission, and both could deliver a future Principal Treatment Centre that meets the national requirements.’ 

However, Professor Nicholas van As, medical director for The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust argues: ‘The current service at The Royal Marsden is assessed as high-quality and safe, and a third of children treated in the hospital are able to access clinical trials through our world leading Oak Paediatric and Adolescent Oncology Drug Development Unit. 

‘It’s important that the benefits currently available to children at The Royal Marsden are retained in the future.’

Annie and Issy have also joined the campaign to keep the services at Royal Marsden in a bid to help future generations, rather than themselves.

‘As a 16-year-old Issy’s care will remain at the Royal Marsden if the proposed relocation goes ahead as she will have completed her transition to teenage and young adult (TYA services). Our involvement in the campaign is not for us,’ explains Annie.

‘We have four and a half years of lived experience and want to share it not only for the good of the children and families using this service, but also for the benefit of the NHS which we support wholeheartedly. 

‘Now they just need to listen.’

If you would like to sign the #HearTheMarsdenKids petition, click here 

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Kirsten.Robertson@metro.co.uk 

Share your views in the comments below.

READ MORE: Families of children with cancer ‘can’t make memories’ due to hospital travel costs

READ MORE: I’ve survived leukaemia five times – I won’t let the fear of cancer returning rule my life

READ MORE: ‘Travelling to my cancer treatment cost me £300 a month – I struggled to afford it’

The mother of a 28-year-old woman shot with a machine gun in her home faced her daughter’s killers in court and called them ‘monsters’ as they were jailed for life for the murder.

Environmental health worker Ashley Dale was killed when gunman James Witham, 41, forced his way into her home in Old Swan, Liverpool, in the early hours of August 21 last year and opened fire with a Skorpion submachine gun.

At Liverpool Crown Court on Wednesday, he and three other men convicted of the murder – Niall Barry, 26, Sean Zeisz, 28 and Joseph Peers, 29, were all told they would serve minimum terms of more than 40 years.

Reading a statement from the witness box, Ms Dale’s mother Julie, 46, looked at the four men in the dock and said: ‘I hope you all understand that I will never ever forgive you, for the life sentence you have gave to me and my family.

‘People speak about justice for Ashley but in my eyes there will never be justice, the only justice is that this would never have happened.

‘Although I can now rest knowing that you monsters are going to pay for what you have done to me and my family and that you too have ruined your own lives and your family’s lives.

‘I hope my words haunt you all forever and you, James Witham, I hope when you go to sleep at night you too see my baby girl’s face as I do every single night.’

Witham, who had his head in his hand as she spoke, left the dock for a short period after she finished reading the statement.

He was jailed for a minimum of 43 years.

Barry, who was described by the prosecution as the ‘malign presence’ behind Ms Dale’s killing, was sentenced to a minimum term of 47 years.

Sentencing, Mr Justice Goose said Witham and Barry were equally the most culpable for the murder, as Witham carried out the shooting and Barry provided the gun and was the protagonist.

Joseph Peers, 29, said to be a ‘foot soldier’ who drove Witham to the scene, was sentenced to at least 41 years and Sean Zeisz, 28, was told to serve a minimum of 42 years for actively encouraging the shooting.

In a statement read to the court ahead of sentencing, Ashley’s grandmother SusanSteinhilber spoke of her heartbreak at losing her first grandchild.

She said: ‘I spent as much time as I could with Ashley as she grew as a baby, toddler, young child and teenager. At times she was my constant, delightful companion on visits to family and friends in Liverpool, who all adored her. My visions of her as a very pretty, happy, popular, clever and funny child will never leave me.

‘When Ashley graduated from John Moores University in environmental health at Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral I could not have been prouder. My heart was bursting with love for her and I enjoyed her happiness on that special day so much.

‘I wake every morning hoping that this is just a bad dream, but it isn’t, I miss Ashley terribly, who is no longer with us in body but she will always be with us in spirit.’

Mr Justice Goose said the crime had ‘shocked both the local community and many in this country’ and was ‘beyond any understanding’.

He told the court just after 12.30am on August 21, Witham, wearing a balaclava and carrying a Skorpion sub-machine gun loaded with 15 bullets, broke through the front door of Ms Dale’s home.

Ms Dale was standing by the back door in the kitchen when she was hit in the abdomen, the court heard.

Mr Justice Goose said: ‘Witham wickedly fired 10 bullets towards her as she was vulnerable and defenceless.

‘Her screams were heard by neighbours.’

The jury heard a ‘drug feud’ between Barry and Mr Harrison was ‘re-ignited’ at the Glastonbury festival in June 2022.

During the festival, Barry was heard threatening to stab Mr Harrison and Zeisz was assaulted by a group said to include Jordan Thompson – a friend of Mr Harrison’s and member of the Hillside organised crime group with which he was associated.

Voicenotes and messages sent to friends by Ms Dale in the two months before her death were played during the trial describing the fall-out, which intensified when mutual friend Rikki Warnick took his own life in July last year.

Barry and Zeisz were also given concurrent sentences for drugs supply offences and Barry was sentenced for possession of prohibited firearms and conspiracy to sell or transfer firearms.

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