‘The violence is off the scale’: staff and passengers at risk as assaults on trains in Great Britain soar to record high
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Cases of abuse, spitting, head-butting and sexual harassment, have spiked as transport police numbers have dwindled

When a train was halted outside Exeter St Davids station on Monday, rail staff leapt to one conclusion: there had been a violent incident on board.

“Someone will have kicked off,” one staff member said. “It happens all the time. My boss got head-butted recently.”

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Nigel Farage questioned by standards commissioner over £5m gift
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Reform UK leader was interviewed for half an hour last month over money from crypto billionaire

Nigel Farage has been interviewed by the standards commissioner for an investigation into whether he should have declared a £5m gift from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne.

The Reform UK leader spent about half an hour being questioned over the money, the Sunday Times reported. Farage maintains the gift was for his personal security.

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UK car industry faces ‘difficult trade-off’ between Chinese and EU markets
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Britain under pressure to put tariffs on cheap Chinese vehicle imports ahead of protectionist trade measures

Britain’s car industry is grappling with a “difficult trade-off” between China and Europe, as manufacturers struggle to balance the benefits of both markets ahead of looming trade measures that could restrict UK exports to the EU.

The UK is an outlier in choosing not to put import taxes on Chinese vehicles, even as the US has shut them out almost entirely, and the EU imposes duties of up to 45%.

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Costa’s coffee shops return to profit with iced drinks and matcha on the menu
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Costa Ltd reports operating profit of £20m in year to 31 December 2025 after losses of £13.5m in 2024

Costa’s main coffee shop arm has returned to an operating profit after revamping its high street outlets and broadening its menu with iced drinks, matcha and fresher pastries.

The chain, which has 2,700 outlets in the UK and Ireland out of 4,000 globally, and employs about 20,000 people, also opened a net 50 new outlets in the UK last year – its first net increase in several years.

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‘We are in a kind of war’: row over viral Amsterdam chip shop lands in court
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Neighbours say crowds drawn by TikTok to Fabel Friet are clogging the picturesque canal street and attracting litter, gulls and rats

People living in one of Amsterdam’s most exclusive neighbourhoods have taken the city to court for licensing a chip shop that has gone viral on TikTok.

On busy days, the queue for Fabel Friet on Runstraat stretches across a bridge on the Keizersgracht – one of Amsterdam’s most famous canals – a court was told last week. The narrow street itself is crowded by tourists waiting for their orders seven days a week. And loitering with intent – on parked cars, on the street itself, and on steps and porches – gulls wait to swoop.

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OpenAI safety leader quits, warning AI company’s culture is ‘broken’
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

David Robinson joins other insiders in urging industry to take more care over rapidly developing technology

A safety leader at OpenAI has quit the company, warning that its culture was broken and that AI firms were not “being nearly careful enough” about developing the technology.

David Robinson, who led the writing of safety reports that accompanied the ChatGPT developer’s product releases, explained his resignation in an essay headlined: “I quit OpenAI because its culture is broken.”

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Let’s stop doubting Thomas Tuchel: England are impressive and Euro 2028 is the target
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

Coming third in the World Cup was really not a disaster, and Saturday’s rout of Croatia and building the team around Jude Bellingham are good signs

Move fast and fix things. It has been a fine week so far for Thomas Tuchel as he attempts the cyclical task of soldering together not just an England team, but a way of looking like one, all the while being battered by the to-and-fro conflicting winds of England managerdom.

There is nothing new here. This is a job that involves not just picking the right players and making high-stakes calculations over your second-half substitutions, but carrying out these basic duties while wrestling with aggrieved members of the Thuggee cult on a collapsing rope bridge outside the Temple of Doom, and simultaneously having your heart ripped out.

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Chiefs v Raiders, Broncos v 49ers and more: NFL – live
Posted on Sunday October 04, 2026

• Updates on the action kicking off after 9pm UK time

• Taylor lifts Colts to victory in London

• Share your thoughts with Graham via email

TOUCHDOWN! Chargers 3-7 Seahawks 9:55, 1st quarter

S Darnold to E Wilson for 23 yards

K Cousins to I Thomas for 27 yards

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