Sadiq Khan hits back at Trump ‘misinformation’ after crime falls

The mayor of London has hit back at politicians “spreading misinformation” about safety in the capital as new data showed the number of violent crimes leading to injury has fallen in every borough over the past year.

Figures from the mayor’s office for policing and crime, which compare the 12 months ending in August with the previous 12 months, showed there were 8,749 fewer crimes which resulted in someone being hurt – a drop of nearly 12% – across the capital over that time.

While all 32 boroughs have seen a reduction, Havering in east London recorded the largest drop, with such crimes down by 16.3%, followed by Enfield in north London where they fell by 16.1%.

Greenwich saw the smallest decrease with 4.3%, followed by Kensington and Chelsea with a drop of 4.6%.

Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan said: “We’ve seen a number of politicians here and across the globe talking down London and spreading misinformation about crime and safety in the capital.

“The evidence is clear, our approach to tackling crime and its complex causes works. It’s driving down violence right across the capital.”

Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump accused Sir Sadiq of doing a “terrible job”, adding that “crime in London is through the roof”, in their long-running war of words.

Sir Sadiq continued: “Violent crime with injury is down in every single London borough and that is testament to the incredible work of our brave police officers – who are arresting more than 1,000 additional suspects each month and solving crimes that involve victims at double the rate they were a year ago.

“This is alongside the prevention work in our communities led by London’s violence reduction unit which has delivered over 450,000 positive opportunities and activities to divert young people away from violence and exploitation.

“One death and one crime will always be one too many and that’s why I’m working with partners and the Government, to build on this progress and enhance our collective efforts to drive down every single crime wherever it happens in our great capital city to deliver a safer London for everyone.”

According to the mayor’s office, overall homicides in London are at a 10-year low, with the capital’s rate lower than in Paris, Brussels, Berlin, Madrid and all major US cities.

The rate of homicide was down by 17% in the 12-month period to June this year compared with the 12-month period to May 2016.

Analysis of Office for National Statistics data, recorded in the 12 months to March this year, showed Londoners are less likely to be a victim of violent crime (26.4 offences per 1,000 population) than across the rest of England and Wales (31.9 offences per 1,000 population).

Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Rachel Williams said: “Violence with injury is down in every single borough – a clear sign that our approach is making a difference. Homicide is now at its lowest level in a decade, violent crime resulting in injury has fallen and firearms discharges are less than half what they were seven years ago.

“We’re targeting the most dangerous individuals, disrupting criminal networks, and investing in prevention to protect those most at risk.

“That’s why fewer people are being hurt, fewer lives are being lost, and London is becoming a safer city.

“We won’t stop until every Londoner feels safe, wherever they live, work, or go to school. We’re committed to listening, learning, and improving, so that our progress is not just sustained, but accelerated.”

The Tories rejected the suggestion that London is safer.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: “Sadiq Khan seems to be the only person who thinks there is no crime problem in London.

“He cherry-picks his numbers and hopes Londoners will forget the reality that knife crime is up 86% on his watch, stop and search collapsed by more than half, and London now accounts for nearly half of all knife-point robberies in England.

“Under this Labour mayor, criminals know the odds are stacked in their favour.

“Only one in 20 robberies is solved, fewer offenders are being jailed, and more than a thousand police officers have been cut from the Metropolitan Police, with Sir Mark Rowley warning of further losses this year.

“Londoners don’t feel safer because London isn’t safer.

“Labour are weak on crime, soft on criminals, and too scared to confront the reality on our streets. It’s time for the Labour Government and Labour mayor to wake up and get a grip, or get out of the way.”

Tui flight makes emergency landing at UK airport after bird strike

A Tui flight from Cardiff Airport to Cyprus declared an emergency and was forced to divert to Birmingham following a bird strike shortly after take-off.

The Boeing 737, flight number TOM 6754 , was bound for Paphos when the incident occurred at 4.30pm on Sunday.

Birmingham Airport was forced to suspend its operations while emergency services met the aircraft upon its arrival.

The jet’s pilots circled Swansea Bay at approximately 3,000 feet (900m) before climbing up to 12,000 feet (3600m) and travelling towards the West Midlands to land.

Passengers and crew were safely disembarked after the aircraft burned fuel in a series of orbits before landing at 5.30pm.

The cause is reported to be engine failure, according to the BBC.

A spokesperson for Cardiff Airport told The Independent: “We are aware of an incident involving flight TOM6754 from Cardiff to Paphos.

“The safety of our passengers is our number one priority. The aircraft diverted to Birmingham Airport (BHX) and landed safely at approximately 5.30pm.”

A Birmingham Airport spokesperson said: “Birmingham Airport temporarily suspended operations at 5.12pm for approximately 30 minutes to accept a TUI inbound divert.

“In line with normal procedures the airport’s Fire Service met the aircraft on arrival. The aircraft landed safely and taxied to the apron.”

The Independent has contacted Tui for comment.

Last month, Birmingham Airport was forced to close for 41 minutes causing delays and travel disruption with all flights suspended after an “aircraft incident”.

The incident is believed to have been caused by a light aircraft whose landing gear would not deploy as it tried to travel to Belfast around 1pm on Wednesday.

The Midlands airport is the UK’s seventh busiest and registered a 12 per cent increase in passenger numbers in 2024 to reach 12.85 million. Experts expected a busy summer for the West Midlands hub, as easyJet joins the growing number of airlines to set up base at Birmingham.

One person suffered minor injuries after the small aircraft made an emergency landing at Birmingham Airport, according to West Midlands Police.

Oasis summon a euphoric and almost sad last hurrah at Wembley Stadium

“The great wait is over!” declares one of dozens of newspaper headlines flashing up on the screen at Oasis’s final UK reunion show. Out come the brothers arm-in-arm: Liam and Noel Gallagher in the flesh. Could it be, thinks the 90,000-strong full-house at Wembley Stadium, that they are really embracing together on that stage? That they have held out on feuding for the 39 dates thus far to get here, immediately opening, appropriately, with the chaotic static of “Hello”?

The world went nostalgia mad for the Oasis reunion when it was announced just over a year ago. In their Nineties heyday, they were almost certainly the most culturally important British band. In retrospect, it’s increasingly charming to think how the Britpop heroes managed to be both sneery and sentimental, arrogant and sincere. But in the years since their 2009 split, the brother-on-brother soap opera – you either knew they would inevitably get back together or believed what they bitterly swore (that the hate ran too deep) – left a Gallagher reconciliation in doubt. After all, only a sibling would understand the truth of Noel’s infamous quote: “I liked my mum until she gave birth to Liam.”

In the way that Charli XCX’s Brat Summer dominated 2024’s sweaty season, Oasis have fundamentally owned it this year. Male fashion took an immediate hard swerve towards vintage Adidas jackets, Fred Perry, bucket hats, and football shirts. You couldn’t go a week without your friends and family announcing a trip overseas to see the band, having failed to get their hands on those coveted UK tickets. Though at Sunday night’s Wembley show, Liam seemed to tease another tour (“see you all next year”, he said during the encore), there is a sense that all that joy ends tonight. The biggest band in the UK plays its biggest stadium and ends their home run: fun for fun’s sake is over in just two hours.

But not before “Morning Glory” – the third song in – when the stadium really roars into action. “Need a little time to wake up”, Liam calls out, pointing at an imaginary watch on his wrist. He looks as cool as ever, exuding a “f*** off” attitude in aviators and that classic parka. “I need all ya in the posh seats as well to turn around and give each other a cuddle,” he orders the crowd before a round of “Cigarettes & Alcohol”. It’s wonderful to see men taking so many grinning selfies together; heartwarming to see the full families of different generations screaming along to the chorus of “Roll With It”.

For a good while it looks as though Noel is at risk of fading into the background, until it becomes clear that he’s given space to shine slap-bang in the middle of the set. On the unassuming balladic tracks “Talk Tonight” (inspired, actually, by the near-break-up of the band in the mid-Nineties) and “Half the World Away”, as well as on the huge-sounding “Little By Little”, the guitarist leads it all, nonchalant and unreadable in that everyman Noel Gallagher manner, while Liam mooches about. It’s worth mentioning that the legacy band is as tight as ever, the sound crystalline and the songs entirely well-aged: classic rock but culturally relevant somehow, still so British.

Any last vestiges of energy are reserved for the encore, as “The Masterplan” sends the beer flying before the three big guns, some of the best-known songs in British music history: “Don’t Look Back In Anger”, ”Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova”. It’s what everyone’s been waiting for and it is as cathartic, as emotive as we expected.

Most of Liam’s chatter tonight is reserved to the occasional “nice one” – the verbal equivalent of a fist-bump – or a brief song dedication. The show is not only commentary free but it’s completely apolitical: there are no comments about politicians, or Palestine, not even a classic insult thrown out from Liam. It’s just Oasis doing the hits. And yet throughout the jubilation of a brilliant show promised and delivered, there is a distinct “summer is over” energy, a sad last hurrah vibe.

As this Oasis Summer comes to a close, the cultural mood in the UK has deteriorated into something sour. A couple of Sundays ago, enough people to fill this stadium almost twice over travelled down the road for the biggest far-right protest in decades. Prime minister Keir Starmer has announced a huge step towards mass surveillance with his digital ID cards policy. Reform UK is surging in the polls. “What’s so great about Britain?” a new special socio-political edition of British GQ asked its writers and celebrity interviewees to ponder, seizing on this uncomfortable moment. Who knows, but thankfully we have Oasis. “See you next year”, Liam teases again, before the fireworks erupt.

George Galloway ‘held for nine hours’ at airport by counter terror police

George Galloway has said he was held by counter terror police for nine hours at Gatwick Airport and had his phone and laptop confiscated before being released without charge.

The former MP, 71, said officers stopped him for “no reason at all” other than to “gain access to our communications”.

Mr Galloway and his wife, Putri Gayatri Pertiwi, were allowed on their way after being stopped on Saturday under the terrorism Act, the Metropolitan Police said.

Reports said the couple had returned to the UK from Moscow via Abu Dhabi.

In a ranting introduction to his Mother Of All Talk Shows broadcast, Mr Galloway said officers had questioned him about his views on Russia and China.

Speaking on Sunday’s edition of his internet show, he said: “Not a single effort was made to show cause for having detained me and her with armed officers in public in an English airport.”

Addressing his viewers, he said: “If they can arrest me under the terrorism Act at an English airport, what hope have you got?”

Police questions ranged “far and wide, right down to Gayatri’s famous fingernail painted in the Palestinian colours”, he said.

“They’re too stupid to be anti-terrorism police, they’re too stupid to be in MI5 if they think they can intimidate me, not even death will intimidate me.

“There is only one reason why they detained us there, under that legislation – it was to gain access to our communications, to confiscate phones, to confiscate laptops, and to enter and burgle and see what they can do with our private communications.

“It’s come to something when a man like me, a man with the profile that I have, can be stopped by armed policemen at an English airport.”

Mr Galloway said he had travelled to the UK to give a speech in London at an event due to be attended by the Chinese ambassador.

“Held together with my wife for nine hours,” he said.

“Missing the engagement that I had come to London to perform, and having to make that weary journey back on the train with no phones, with no laptop, incommunicado, unable to speak with any of our family, any of our comrades, any of our friends, or any of our legal representatives.”

The Met said in a statement on Saturday: “We can confirm that on Saturday September 27, counter terrorism officers at Gatwick Airport stopped a man in his 70s and a woman in her 40s under Schedule 3 of the Counter Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019.

“Neither of them were arrested and they were allowed on their way.”

The Act gives police, immigration and customs officers the power to stop people to find out if they are “engaged in hostile activities that threaten national security or the economic well-being of the UK”.

The Workers Party of Britain leader lost his Rochdale seat at last year’s general election just months after winning the constituency in a shock by-election.

He has criticised British and US foreign policies during his career, including their support for Ukraine.

Moving Jay Slater documentary fails to hold conspiracists to account

The Disappearance of Jay Slater, a documentary very much made in the classic true-crime format, is the moving story of what turned out to be a terrible, tragic death – but one that leaves us with one unresolved question, regarding the programme itself. Namely, why did Channel 4 ever make it, when, as the show demonstrates, the disappearance of Slater has nothing to do with any crime, was so recent as to be still fresh in the mind, and is not a mystery anyway?

The plain facts about Slater are just that, but the producers take their time, build the tension and raise doubts even as they are recounting them, despite knowing now that this is, really, a bit bogus. The 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer from Lancashire was on holiday in Tenerife, his first holiday on his own, albeit he had some friends with him. From old home videos and interviews with his mum, dad, brother and friends, we see just what a sweet boy he was – “inquisitive”, “maybe a little too trusting”, but never seriously involved in crime. The hardest scenes to watch are those of Slater’s funeral, where the emotions are raw and unfiltered. His mother, Debbie, and father, Warren, who help guide us through Slater’s life and last fatal misadventure, are exceptionally brave human beings.

Slater visited some nightclubs, and, being a sociable type, took the offer from two strangers in the early hours of 17 June 2024 to drive with them to their B&B some 30 miles away in Masca, a hamlet up in the high mountains of the national park. He had consumed alcohol, plus some cocaine and MDMA before his death. In the documentary, phone messages, calls, snatches of CCTV footage, social media posts, and witness evidence – all examined by the Spanish and British authorities – detail his whereabouts and his condition with precision. His movements in and out of various nightclubs are timed, and it is obvious that he was intoxicated.

Eventually his body was found, after 29 days missing, at the bottom of a remote ravine in this harsh, rugged environment. The pathologist demonstrates, with the detachment essential to his craft, how Slater’s injuries – deep abrasions and scratches down own side of his body, and a “massive” head wound – are consistent with a steep fall of some 20 to 25 metres. By the time he tumbled to his death he was exhausted, dehydrated and disoriented. There was no third-party involvement and it was instant. His death was an accident. No room for doubt; but plenty of space online for conjecture, surmise and speculation.

Thus, as the documentary reminds us, during the search for Slater and for long afterwards, the armchair sleuths and the conspiracy theorists fastened onto various seeming inconsistencies or uncertainties. Singularly and in concert, they built the most offensive and distressing versions of events that their lurid imaginings and lack of forensic expertise could create. For Debbie, a grieving mother, it was hellish: “I will never ever understand why social media detectives are totally destroying people’s lives,” she says. “It’s been torture, absolute torture – the YouTubers and the TikTokers have made the situation a million times worse.” Some key witnesses refused to take part in the coroner’s court hearing because they were afraid of how they’d be treated, ie bullied and harassed online, a lasting injustice.

Why do the ghouls think they have a right to persecute people? Why is everything approached as if it were a crime, indeed a conspiracy? When the conspiracists started researching Slater and found that he’d been once at the scene of a machete attack, and was found guilty under our “joint enterprise” laws, why did they assume he’d be waving a knife around in Tenerife – when there is zero evidence he had?

What is missing from the documentary is much sense of making the conspiracists accountable. None are confronted. The same goes for the social media companies who allow them free rein to publish nonsense, and worse. Even after the disgrace of the far-right broadcaster Alex Jones, people who refuse to accept the world as it is are still making the lives of others a misery, and endangering their own mental health. It infects politics, like a fever, as we witness with the mass online hysteria prompted by Nigel Farage claiming migrants eat swans.

Why have we ended up here? That is a question this documentary begs but never tries to answer. It’s much more of a challenge than the disappearance of Jay Slater, a nice lad who should be left to rest in eternal peace, but never will be.

E.ON Next/Independent EV Index: Prices down 7.7 per cent

Electric car prices are dropping fast, according to the first publication of the E.ON Next/The Independent EV Price Index.

The energy giant and media company have combined to produce the UK’s first-ever electric car price index that measures real-world prices (including available discounts) on every EV on sale in the UK.

The first E.ON Next/The Independent EV Price Index has revealed that over the past twelve months the median price of an EV has fallen by 7.7 per cent, a figure of £3,750.

Month-on-month, there’s been a sizeable drop of £1,228 or 2.7 per cent, thanks to the introduction of the government’s electric car grant and the additional discounts car makers introduced while waiting for the grant to be implemented.

The biggest year-on-year drop has been in the competitive small electric SUV segment – including cars like the Citroen e-C4, Mercedes EQA, Peugeot 2008 and BMW iX1 – where a drop of £5,827 or 13 per cent has been seen. Larger medium-sized electric SUVs – like the Audi Q4 e-Tron, Ford Explorer, Nissan Ariya and Skoda Enyaq – show a similarly-large year-on-year drop of £4,666 or 9.8 per cent.

The data for the E.ON Next/The Independent EV Price Index has been compiled by auto industry market insight and pricing data specialists Insider Car Deals. The prices quoted are median prices sourced from Insider Car Deal’s mystery shopping and market research analysis and are based on real-world discounts offered, including any incentives given as part of finance packages.

As well as analysing prices, the E.ON Next/The Independent EV Price Index has also revealed an increase of 25 per cent in the number of electric cars available in the UK over the past year. At the time of research there were 111 electric vehicle models available in the UK, with that number increasing all the time.

When various trim levels and different battery options are taken into account across all available models, there is a choice of 1,029 different electric car choices for UK car buyers – up 32 per cent year-on-year.

The research has also shown that median PCP (Personal Contract Purchase) monthly payments for electric cars have dropped by £55 a month, or 10.8 per cent compared with a year ago. Again, the biggest drop is in the small electric SUV segment, were median monthly payments are down £76 or 16.6 per cent per month.

The quoted PCP terms are based on discounted transaction prices, manufacturer’s APR and GFV and standardised at four years, 8,000-10,000 miles per year and a 15 per cent customer deposit (plus any manufacturer deposit contribution). Where a manufacturer imposes a maximum term of 42 or 36 months, that shorter term is used instead.

One standout deal uncovered by the E.ON Next/The Independent EV Price Index research was for a Vauxhall Mokka 115kW Ultimate 54kWh, with total discount and finance savings of 36.4 per cent (£13,524). That brings the price down to just £24,580, or a possible £292 a month on Vauxhall’s PCP finance plan.

The research also highlighted the difference in average PCP APR finance rates available on electric cars versus hybrid and internal combustion engine (ICE) models. Buyers of EVs will, on average, benefit from PCP APRs that are 3.1 per cent lower than they are for ICE models and 2.2 per cent for hybrids. The average PCP APR for an electric car currently sits at 3.5 per cent.

At the time of research, nine car makers were offering zero per cent finance – the same number as this time last year, although the brands have changed. The scale of finance deposit contributions on electric vehicles has also been revealed with the highest seen being £7,750.

Tom Holland’s Spider-Man filming resumes in UK town

Residents of Basingstoke were surprised to see the real Spider-Man performing a series of dramatic stunts in their Hampshire town on Sunday.

Bafta-winning actor Tom Holland, 29, suffered a head injury on 19 September, completely suspending filming for the long-awaited superhero sequel, Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

This new footage appears to confirm Holland has returned to work after time off recuperating.

The area between Fanum House, a former Alcoholics Anonymous headquarters and Mountbatten House in Basingstoke, were transformed into 1970s New York for the shooting, according to the Daily Mail.

The scene featured a Spider-Man (unclear whether Holland or a stunt double) calling on armed police while sliding across a mat and being pulled by an army truck.

Another behind-the-scenes shot showed the camouflaged truck smashing through a set of gates while the web-slinger was surrounded by prop gun-wielding soldiers.

Filming for the fourth instalment was stalled after Holland was reported to have suffered a concussion after his stunt line snapped and he felt dizzy, according to reports.

Paramedics were called to the scene at Leavesden Studios in Watford.

The Hollywood actor, who is set to star in the film alongside his fiancee Zendaya, gave fans a health update on Saturday after his parent’s charity, The Brothers Trust, held a gala to raise awareness and funds for its cause.

“I’m sorry I had to leave early but I’m feeling better and on the mend,” he wrote in the post on Instagram, after thanking his parents.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day was unveiled by director Destin Daniel Cretton at CinemaCon in March earlier this year, with Holland describing the film as “a fresh start”.

“I know we left you with a massive cliffhanger at the end of No Way Home, so Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a fresh start. It is exactly that. That’s all I can say,” Holland said in a video. message broadcast at the event.

Insiders told Deadline that the actor, who is set to star in Christopher Nolan’s forthcoming epic The Odyssey, would be taking a break from filming for a few days “out of precaution” and would be returning.

British pop star Lola Young confirms safety after collapsing on stage

Lola Young has said she is “okay” after collapsing on stage during a festival performance.

The 24-year-old singer-songwriter, whose track “Messy” reached Number One in the UK charts last year, was performing at New York’s All Things Go festival on Saturday (27 September) when the incident occurred.

In video footage taken by a fan in the crowd, Young appears to stop singing her track “Conceited” and motion to members of her team off-stage. She then falls backwards, with members of Young’s band immediately leaping to their feet to help her. After a period of time in which Young remains on the ground, she is carried off stage.

Musician Remi Wolf appeared on stage shortly after Young’s departure, and told the crowd that the incident “was really f***ing scary”, but that “my friend Lola is backstage, and she is OK.”

Several hours later, Young herself posted a message to her Instagram Story in which she confirmed her safety.

“Hi, for anyone who saw my set at All Things Go today, I am doing okay now,” Young wrote. “Thank you for all of your support Lola xxx.”

The incident follows a tumultuous week for Young. On Friday (26 September), her manager Nick Shymansky announced that Young was pulling out of a scheduled festival appearance in New Jersey, citing a need to “keep her safe”.

“Lola is very open about her mental health and there are very occasionally days where myself and my team have to take protective measures to keep her safe,” Shymansky wrote via Young’s Instagram Story. “She is an incredible person and always takes her fans, career and performances seriously. I can only send huge apologies for the inconvenience caused.”

Before she collapsed on stage at All Things Go, Young referenced the cancellation of her New Jersey date, telling the crowd that she’d had “a tricky couple of days”. She added: “Sometimes life can really make you feel like you can’t continue. But you know what? Today I woke up and I made the decision to come here, and I wanted to be cool. Sometimes life can throw you lemons, and you just gotta make lemonade.”

Young has spoken in interviews about having schizoaffective disorder, which can lead to prolonged manic episodes and hospitalisation. She was diagnosed at the age of 17, and told The Telegraph in 2022 that she can sometimes see manic episodes coming, and other times she is surprised by them.

“Imagine a bottle overflowing,” she said. “At a certain point, it becomes imposs­ible to put the lid back on, because it’s simply been shaken up far too much.”

She continued: “It’s difficult for me because sometimes it can make me feel very ostracised. There can be a lot of shame and guilt after I get unwell in front of people. But I want to be open about it. It makes me who I am. I am proud of it.”

Young’s second album I’m Only F***ing Myself was released earlier this month, with The Independent critic Helen Brown praising its “proper melting pot of genres”, with Young “vocally hopscotching from a ragged Cerys Matthews-style howl … to sweet, vulnerable crooning.”

Young is next due to perform at Manchester’s O2 Victoria Warehouse on 6 October, with her current tour scheduled to run through to the end of the year.