HS2: Investigation launched into firms supplying construction workers
An investigation has been launched into allegations surrounding the practices of some “labour suppliers” for the HS2 rail line between London and Birmingham, a spokesman has said.
HS2 Ltd said tighter controls have been introduced after claims from a whistleblower, which are being taken “seriously”, threw a spotlight on two firms working on the the West Midlands section of the high-speed line.
A Department for Transport spokesman said: “The Government and HS2 Ltd take all whistleblower allegations extremely seriously and have a zero-tolerance attitude towards fraud, bribery, and corruption.
“We will therefore ensure any claims of wrongdoing in HS2’s supply chain are thoroughly investigated.”
The allegations are that an HS2 sub-contractor has been falsely declaring self-employed workers as PAYE (pay as you earn) salaried staff and charging an inflated rate for them, then submitting “fake” payslips, according to the i newspaper on Monday.
The HS2 spokesman said: “HS2 Ltd treats all whistleblower allegations seriously and we are aware of the claims made in relation to labour suppliers on part of the route.
“An investigation was launched earlier this year into a number of different allegations and our contractor Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV) has implemented additional monitoring and controls.”
It is believed that one company remains suspended from new contracts while an investigation continues.
It is believed that a second company was suspended and investigated.
This suspension was later lifted by BBV, after a period of remediation, but the company remains under enhanced monitoring.
The police and HMRC are not believed to be involved.
About 31,000 people are now employed on the programme across the 140-mile route.
Earlier this month, a giant HS2 boring machine broke through to complete the first section of a 3.5-mile tunnel on the route’s approach into Birmingham.
The tunnel is the first of two bores of the Bromford Tunnel, running from the village of Water Orton in North Warwickshire to the Birmingham suburb of Washwood Heath, and passing under the area’s motorway network and the River Tame.
The tunnel breakthrough, HS2’s first in Birmingham, was described as a significant milestone for the line, which will almost halve journey times between Birmingham and London, while freeing up track space on the West Coast Main Line for local, regional and freight services.
About 31,000 people are now employed on the programme across the 140-mile route.
Liverpool title parade LIVE: Latest updates as Reds party continues
Multiple pedestrians have been struck by a vehicle which ploughed into a crowd in Liverpool city centre during the club’s Premier League victory parade.
Merseyside police have arrested a 53-year-old man, who they described as white British and from the Merseyside area, after a car collided with a number of pedestrians on Water Street in Liverpool city centre at 6pm on Monday.
It is not known whether anyone is injured, but eyewitness Natasha Rinaldi said she could hear “screams and screams”. She told Sky News: “It was a horrible scene, nobody was expecting it.”
One eyewitness, Harry Rashid, said the crowd started trying to smash the car’s windows when the driver “put his foot down again and just ploughed through the rest of them, he just kept going.”
Prime minister Keir Starmer said: “The scenes in Liverpool are appalling — my thoughts are with all those injured or affected.
“I’m being kept updated on developments and ask that we give the police the space they need to investigate.”
Over one million people are estimated to have lined the 10-mile route during victory parade following Liverpool FC’s premier league victory.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
Liverpool FC breaks silence following car collision during victory parade
Liverpool FC have released a statement as dozens of pedestrians were ploughed into by a car as the city celebrated the club’s Premier League victory with an open-top bus parade on a 10-mile route through the city centre.
The club said: “We are in direct contact with Merseyside Police regarding the incident on Water Street which happened towards the end of the trophy parade earlier this evening.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been affected by this serious incident.
“We will continue to offer our full support to the emergency services and local authorities who are dealing with this incident.”
WATCH: Police at scene after car crashes into pedestrians at Liverpool FC parade
Paramedic warns Royal Hospital ‘may be overwhelmed’ following crash
A paramedic for St John’s ambulance has told police he believed the Royal Hospital may be overwhelmed following a major traffic collision in Liverpool city centre.
A huge police cordon is in place on Water Street and emergency vehicles are lining the road.
Police officers could be seen lining the junction of Castle Street and Water Street and firefighters were also on scene.
Emergency vehicles including ambulances were allowed out of the cordon to leave the area.
Police ask public not to speculate circumstances surrounding parade incident
A Merseyside Police spokesperson said: “We would ask people not to speculate on the circumstances surrounding tonight’s incident on Water Street in Liverpool city centre.
“We can confirm the man arrested is a 53-year-old white British man from the Liverpool area.
“Extensive enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances leading up to the collision.
“We would ask people not to share distressing content online but to send the footage or information directly to us @MerPolCC or pass on information by calling 101 quoting log 784.
“Information can also be passed on anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”
Shadow home secretary: ‘The public deserve to know the full facts as quickly as possible’
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp has spoken out following a car collision in Liverpool:
‘Initially, we just heard the pop, pop, pop of people just being knocked off the bonnet of a car’
Harry Rashid, 48, from Solihull, was at the parade with his wife and two young daughters when he witnessed the collision.
“It was extremely fast. Initially, we just heard the pop, pop, pop of people just being knocked off the bonnet of a car.
Mr Rashid described how crowds began trying to smash the car windows: “Then he stalled for a few seconds, probably about 10 seconds. Then the crowd that was a bit further back started rushing at him trying to smash his windows.
“But then he put his foot down again and just ploughed through the rest of them, he just kept going.“It was horrible. And you could hear the bumps as he was going over the people.
In pictures: Police attend the car crash in Liverpool city centre
A 53-year-old white British man has been arrested after car collision
A 53-year-old white British man has been arrested after a car ploughed into a crowd of people during Liverpool FC’s Premier League victory parade, Merseyside Police said.
‘We could just hear screams and screams. We were very confused’
Witness Natasha Rinaldi, who was watching the parade from her friend’s living room, told Sky News: “It was so loud. People sounded desperate.
“And then we looked out the window and we saw the car (had) run over people.
“Then people started rushing to go after the driver and they tried to break the car. The police did everything to block and to push people away.
“We could just hear screams and screams. We were very confused.
“Some of my friends were down there and the car was so near them. It was a horrible scene, nobody was expecting it.”
She said “people had stopped the car” and were knocking on the window “and trying to speak to the driver”.
“People were very angry and shocked, and then the police intervened. And then we heard the ambulances coming.”
Live: Emergency services at scene after car crashes into pedestrians at Liverpool Premier League parade
Who Wants to be a Millionaire contestant loses £1m question
A Who Wants to be a Millionaire contestant has been left with one of the biggest losses in the show’s history after getting the £1m question wrong despite using two lifelines.
Nicholas Bennett, a data analyst from West Hampstead in London, raced through the money tree securing a £125,000 safety net before arriving at the final question.
The UK show, presented by former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson, provides contestants with four lifelines including: Phone a Friend, Ask the Audience, Ask Jeremy, and 50:50.
Clarkson read out the £1m question: “Which of these words, each coined by a famous writer, was derived from the tale of of a fairytale about three princes?”
Bennett, a University Challenge alum, was tasked with choosing between: A) Pandemonium, B) Serendipity, C) Utopia and D) Yahoo.
He was unsure about the answer and used a lifeline to ask Clarkson who did not know it. He then rang his friend and roommate to use his final lifeline, however she was also unsure.
Sticking with the answer that stood out to him at first, Bennett locked in “Yahoo”. But Clarkson revealed that it was wrong as the audience gasped loudly at the loss.
Bennett would have had the option to walk away with £500,000 had he decided to throw the towel in. But his decision to continue playing cost him £375,000. If he had got the answer correct, he would have won an additional £875,000 to his safety net of £125,000.
He responded with optimism but visible disappointment as he said: “Still get £125,000.”
Clarkson said: “What a reaction”, adding he would be on the floor “sobbing” had it been his own loss. “I am so sorry Nicholas, the answer is serendipity.”
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The contestant had ruled out the right answer very early on, saying that it sounded like it was derived from another word such as “serene” and did not feel like it originated in a fairytale. The process of elimination led him to pick “Yahoo”, which was revealed as incorrect.
“Oh my giddy aunt. Is that the biggest loss in Millionaire history?” asked Clarkson.
“Serendipity was coined by Horace Walpole of The Three Princes of Serendip,” revealed the host.
Clarkson consoled Bennett by adding: “I don’t think I’ve ever had a contestant I’ve enjoyed more than you.”
Only seven people have won the £1m jackpot on the popular show, which has been running since 1998. Originally presented by Chris Tarrant, ITV axed the programme in 2014 after he announced his departure. It was then revived in 2018 and has been presented by Clarkson ever since.
Crew member charged after container ship ploughed into man’s garden
Norwegian prosecutors have charged a cargo ship’s second officer with negligent navigation after he allegedly fell asleep on duty and the vessel ran aground, narrowly missing crashing into a home.
The ship, the NCL Salten, ran aground shortly before 6am on Thursday. No oil spills were reported, and none of the 16 people aboard was injured.
Johan Helberg told Norwegian broadcaster NRK that he’d slept through the whole thing and only woke up when a neighbor started ringing his doorbell.
Images show the ship’s red and green bow just meters (yards) from Helberg’s house along the Trondheim Fjord’s coast.
“I didn’t hear anything. I was sleeping seven metres from the bow,” he told Norwegian media NRK.
“It was lucky that it went ashore there. Five metres further south, and it would have entered the bedroom. And that wouldn’t have been particularly pleasant.”
Mr Helberg’s neighbour Jostein Jorgensen said he woke up to the sound of a ship on the fjord.
“I looked out the window and saw a boat heading straight for shore,” he told NRK. “I went out and cawed and shouted and whistled without anything happening.”
Mr Jorgensen said he then rushed over to Mr Helberg’s house to try to wake him up.
“We woke up to the neighbour loudly ringing the doorbell. ‘Haven’t you seen the ship?’” Mr Helberg said.
The second officer, whose name was not made public, was the navigator on duty at the time of the grounding, prosecutor Kjetil Bruland Sørensen said in a statement.
The cargo ship had 16 people on board when it ran aground, NRK reports, and no injuries were reported.
Crews on Monday continued to take containers off the ship so it could be more easily removed from the area.
NCL, the shipping company, said it was cooperating with investigators.