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No Writer
Jul 14
Girl, 8, among three found dead in suspected double murder and 'sudden death' in Ballymena

A 41-year-old man, a woman aged 39 and an eight-year-old girl were found in a house in the Old Cullybackey Road area. Superintendent William Calderwood, from the Police Service of Northern Ireland, said they were from the same family and called it a "shocking scene". The adults are believed to have originally been from Poland. Superintendent Calderwood said they were waiting for the results of a post-mortem but "a strong hypothesis is that this was a double murder followed by a sudden death". Police are not looking for anyone else and specialist officers are supporting relatives and liaising with the Polish consulate. Flowers were left outside the property this morning and a pair of child's sandals were still hanging on the washing line. Anyone with CCTV or dash-cam footage that might be relevant is asked to contact police on 101. Read more from Sky News:Johnson's government wasted 'vast' sums on PPEScott Mills was BBC's highest earner before his sacking "My heart goes out to the relatives in the Ballymena area and to those in Poland," said North Antrim MP and TUV leader Jim Allister. "I am also mindful of the school friends of the child and the distress they will suffer," he added. "The gruesome scene with which the first responders and forensic officers had to deal is a reminder of how hard their job can be. We are grateful for all they do. "Even as the shock subsides over coming days there will be a lasting effect in the neighbourhood of this awful event."

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Bethany Minelle and Gemma Peplow, arts and entertainment reporters
Jul 14
Scott Mills was BBC's highest earner before his sacking, new figures reveal

Mills, 53, earned between £745,000 and £749,999 for the year ending in March 2026, according to the corporation's latest annual report (see the list of the BBC's highest-paid stars below). He had presented the BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show for just over a year, after taking over from Zoe Ball in January 2025. Mills was sacked by the BBC shortly before it emerged that the Metropolitan Police had launched an investigation into him in 2016 over allegations of serious sexual offences involving a boy aged under 16 between 1997 and 2000. The police investigation was closed in 2019 after prosecutors decided there was insufficient evidence to bring charges. Mills' rise to the top of the list came as another departing BBC employee - former England footballer Gary Lineker - left the top 10. Lineker had been the corporation's top-paid star for the last eight years. Mark Chapman, one of the three presenters to replace Lineker on Match Of The Day, alongside Kelly Cates and Gabby Logan, made it into 11th place on the list. Another celebrity out of the top 10 was Zoe Ball, last year's second-highest earner. She previously hosted the Radio 2 breakfast show, before briefly moving to a Saturday afternoon show last year. She has since left the BBC, and will present on Greatest Hits Radio from September. BBC political journalist Laura Kuenssberg was the highest-paid female staff member in the latest report. She was one of four women on the list alongside Naga Munchetty, Fiona Bruce and Sophie Rawoth. That is a slight increase on last year's list, which featured three women. Sara Cox, who moved from the Radio 2 drivetime slot to replace Mills earlier this month, didn't quite make it into the top 15 earners, with a salary band capped at £324,999. Vernon Kay - who hosts Radio 2's most listened-to show according to RAJAR (Radio Joint Audience Research) figures - was joint fourth on the list alongside Kuenssberg. BBC Radio 1 DJ Greg James, who is particularly popular with younger audiences, rose two places from last year and is this year's second highest earner. The third-highest paid was Northern Irish Radio 5 Live presenter Stephen Nolan. Top talent pay slashed by half in seven years, BBC says Responding to a question from Sky News on how the BBC can justify paying talent a premium when hundreds of millions of pounds of savings need to be made, deputy director-general Rhodri Talfan Davies said there had been "remarkable progress" over presenter pay in recent years. He said talent above the £500,000 threshold had been reduced by 50% across the past seven years, going on: "If you look at all our on-air presenter costs over the last seven years, they've come down by about £20m, so we have been focused on it, there is always a balancing act. "We want to be a broadcaster that can attract the best talent, but we're also very mindful of the financial pressures that we're facing. I think we're striking that balance very, very carefully, and I think you'll see that downward trend continuing in the months to come." The BBC is required to declare a list of salaries paid to people both on air and off air who receive more than £178,000 from licence fee revenue in the year. However, the list does not include people who are paid through independent production companies or the BBC's commercial arm, BBC Studios. A string of 'errors' affecting public confidence BBC Chair Samir Shah addressed recent "broadcasting errors" at the corporation, including at Glastonbury Festival and the BAFTA film awards, saying they "affect confidence in our journalism, trust in the BBC as a public institution, and perceptions about how effectively we are held to account". In February, a racial slur was broadcast after Tourette's campaigner John Davidson shouted at Sinners stars Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo as they presented the BAFTA award for special visual effects. An involuntary verbal tic, the slur was not cut from the live broadcast, which was on a two-hour delay, and remained on iPlayer for over 12 hours. It came after a previous incident, which saw the BBC face criticism for continuing to livestream the performance of punk duo Bob Vylan as they led chants of "death, death to the IDF (Israel Defence Forces)" at last year's Glastonbury Festival. There was also a breach of BBC editorial guidelines after the documentary Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone failed to disclose information about the child narrator's father's position within the Hamas-run government. The BBC is also currently embroiled in a multi-billion-pound lawsuit with US President Donald Trump over the editing of an episode of BBC documentary series Panorama, broadcast in 2024. Referencing the various errors, Mr Shah said: "I am confident that the changes we have now introduced will ensure that swift, appropriate and transparent action is taken to address editorial issues as effectively as possible, whenever they occur." Read more: Who is Matt Brittin? BBC boss: 'This is a moment of real jeopardy' The report also showed that BBC TV licences have dropped by more than half a million in a single year. While 94% of adults use BBC services per month, fewer than 80% of households pay the licence fee. Highlighting the challenges this presents to the corporation, it said the BBC would need to reform its funding model in order to sustain its public service mission going forward. Speaking to journalists as the report was released, the BBC's new director-general Matt Brittin said it was "a moment of real jeopardy" both for the BBC and the UK as a whole," going on to say it was also "an opportunity". The former Google executive, who stepped into the role in May, concluded: "Reinventing the BBC to adapt to this fast-changing world is our duty and our challenge". The BBC is facing huge cutbacks, with hundreds of jobs to be axed and many TV and radio programmes under review, as part of a major downsizing. The month after he stepped into the role, Mr Brittin told employees that £160m of staff and non-staff cost savings would be made from across BBC News and TV and radio teams by the end of the financial year. The huge savings plan was first announced in April, with up to 2,000 jobs to go in total - the corporation's biggest downsizing in almost 15 years.

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No Writer
Jul 14
Nicola Sturgeon's statement to police on SNP finances will not be released, says lawyer

Ms Sturgeon, who is no longer under investigation by police, has repeatedly stated she is innocent of any wrongdoing and was "deceived, misled and betrayed" by her former partner. After her arrest in 2023, she exercised her right to give a "no comment" police interview, later sending a written statement to officers. The interview was part of Operation Branchform, which ultimately led to Ms Sturgeon's former husband Peter Murrell being convicted of embezzling more than £400,000 from the SNP during his time as the party's chief executive. Murrell was jailed for five years and three months in June. Ms Sturgeon, who is no longer under investigation by police, has repeatedly stated she is innocent of any wrongdoing and was "deceived, misled and betrayed" by her former partner. Her solicitor Aamer Anwar said: "Ms Sturgeon's detailed statement produced for Police Scotland was to assist them with their inquiries; not for those who think they could now do a better job than the robust 'gold-plated' financial crime investigation. "Ms Sturgeon is innocent, as evidenced by the fact that she was not charged, prosecuted nor convicted of any crime. "Having been exonerated through the proper process, there is no onus on her to now prove her innocence in the court of media opinion. "Neither Ms Sturgeon's written statement or her police interview will be released." Read more:Operation Branchform: The downfall of Peter Murrell Opponents of the ex-Glasgow Southside MSP highlighted how the former SNP leader earlier said in a media interview that she would not be opposed to releasing her written statement. Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: "Yet now her lawyer has insisted that neither her written statement or her police interview will be released. "The question is - why not? If Nicola Sturgeon has nothing to hide, then why is she so opposed to her statement being published?" Mr Anwar, has also said Murrell "never had access" to pro-idependence Yes Scotland campaign cash. The lawyer was speaking on behalf of former Yes Scotland chief executive Blair Jenkins, and issued the statement following newspaper reports which claimed the SNP "tightly controlled" the campaign group. Mr Anwar said: "All of the income received by Yes Scotland is fully accounted for and it is grossly defamatory to say otherwise. "There appears to have been a desperate attempt to link Peter Murrell's criminal conduct in the SNP to the financial affairs of Yes Scotland. "To make it perfectly clear, Mr Murrell never at any time had access to Yes Scotland's accounts." According to Mr Anwar, Yes Scotland received donations totalling £2,403,976 in 2013, with these identified in the accounts as "other income". The group had a year-end surplus of £878,978, after operating costs of £1,535,855. These operating costs included the salaries of Yes Scotland staff, the cost of the group's Glasgow headquarters, and campaign events and publications. Mr Anwar said: "A balance sheet surplus of £878,978 and income of £2,403,976 doesn't mean that over £1.5m had gone missing or been stolen, rather that Yes Scotland's operating costs were about £1.5m in 2012-13. "To be clear, there is no 'missing' £1.5m, but what is missing is any explanation as to why it did not occur to those making the allegations that the £1.5m represents spending by the campaign."

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No Writer
Jul 14
England vs Argentina: Declan Rice fit for World Cup semi-final as Thomas Tuchel's squad issues begin to ease

Thomas Tuchel's injury, illness and fatigue problems across the squad have eased considerably since the gruelling win over Norway three days ago. Rice had a stomach problem in the aftermath of the last 16 game in Mexico City 10 days ago, which Tuchel said meant he was confined to his bed for three days in the lead-up to the quarter-final against Norway. Why has Kobbie Mainoo become England's forgotten man?Merson: Teams win leagues, X-factor wins World Cups - and Bellingham has itWorld Cup semi-finals schedule | Follow it all on the Sky Sports App | Golden Boot raceJude Bellingham and Thomas Tuchel's 'battle of wills' is healthy for England As a result, the FA doctors decided he was only able to play 45 minutes in Miami, where the heat and humidity had the same effect as if temperatures were 44C. The Arsenal midfielder looked drained and drawn as he walked past journalists after the extra-time victory over Norway, although Tuchel suggested in his post-match press conference that Rice wanted to continue beyond half-time. Tuchel said: "We knew that Declan was struggling. He gave a green light to continue maybe until the next water break, but then I thought if we go 120 and I don't have Elliot [Anderson] on the field, we will get into trouble with substitutions later. "So we took a hard decision and took Declan off then, which paid off because Elliot could play the full 120, otherwise we would have been in trouble." But it's thought Rice has now fully recovered, and he was able to train fully on Monday in Kansas City - the first full session after the Norway win, which was behind closed doors. There are now no remaining doubts that he will be able to start against the reigning world champions. Elsewhere, while a number of England's players suffered cramp and extreme fatigue following Sunday's game, the FA medics and physios have carried out an exhaustive programme of rehabilitation in the two days since. And it is thought Tuchel will have close to a full squad to select from - with the exception of the suspended Jarrel Quansah and Jordan Henderson, who has a broken wrist. It is great news for England, who are just one win away from their first World Cup final in 60 years. Tuchel has just one training session left in Kansas City later today, to get the tactics and team selection right to face Lionel Messi and Argentina. Why has Mainoo become England's forgotten man? Sky Sports News' Rob Dorsett: Kobbie Mainoo has cut a pretty forlorn-looking figure at this World Cup. He is one of only three outfield players who has not featured at all in the tournament. Ivan Toney and Trevoh Chalobah are the others, and they probably better understand their lot. Chalobah was a late replacement for the injured Tino Livramento and so always knew he was the back-up defender. For most matches, he has had John Stones in waiting on the bench ahead of him. Toney was told by Tuchel that he is a 'finisher' - a player unlikely to start unless there is an injury to Harry Kane. Kane has been fully fit and fired six goals in the tournament. And we have not yet gone to a penalty shoot-out, so no need for a last-minute Toney appearance. But for Mainoo there is an air of disappointment and, it seems, some disillusionment. For every one of England's six matches, he has been the first to leave the dressing room after a game, and always the first onto the team bus. On every occasion I have seen him, he has been walking on his own, not with a team-mate. Let us be clear, he has not been sulking. But he has looked a little lost. Read Rob Dorsett's analysis of Kobbie Mainoo's frustrating World Cup campaign O'Reilly also fit despite hamstring strain Nico O'Reilly is expected to be available for selection for England against Argentina despite a hamstring problem he picked up against Norway. O'Reilly gestured to the bench asking to be substituted in the second half. He was replaced by Djed Spence just before the start of extra-time. But Sky Sports News understands he hasn't suffered any major strain. O'Reilly spoke to reporters on Monday ahead of the game, saying: "It's crazy, an unbelievable feeling. I can't wait for the game. "Not a lot of people get to that position [of a semi-final] - I'm gonna relish it and take it all in. I've always dreamt of this. "I did an interview three years ago, and I said I wanted to be in the World Cup squad, and the Manchester City team and I've achieved those two things." A number of other players will continue to be monitored to see how they are recovering from the extreme heat and humidity in Miami. Harry Kane, Elliot Anderson, Marc Guehi and John Stones all played the full 120 minutes. Guehi had missed several training sessions in the build-up to the Norway match with a hamstring tweak, and Stones had only played a total of 35 minutes in the tournament before that point.

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Bethany Minelle and Gemma Peplow, arts and entertainment reporters
Jul 14
Scott Mills was BBC's highest earner before his sacking, new figures reveal

Mills, 53, earned between £745,000 and £749,999 for the year ending in March 2026, according to the corporation's latest annual report (see the list of the BBC's highest-paid stars below). He had presented the BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show for just over a year, after taking over from Zoe Ball in January 2025. Mills was sacked by the BBC shortly before it emerged that the Metropolitan Police had launched an investigation into him in 2016 over allegations of serious sexual offences involving a boy aged under 16 between 1997 and 2000. The police investigation was closed in 2019 after prosecutors decided there was insufficient evidence to bring charges. Mills' rise to the top of the list came as another departing BBC employee - former England footballer Gary Lineker - left the top 10. Lineker had been the corporation's top-paid star for the last eight years. Mark Chapman, one of the three presenters to replace Lineker on Match Of The Day, alongside Kelly Cates and Gabby Logan, made it into 11th place on the list. Another celebrity out of the top 10 was Zoe Ball, last year's second-highest earner. She previously hosted the Radio 2 breakfast show, before briefly moving to a Saturday afternoon show last year. She has since left the BBC, and will present on Greatest Hits Radio from September. BBC political journalist Laura Kuenssberg was the highest-paid female staff member in the latest report. She was one of four women on the list alongside Naga Munchetty, Fiona Bruce and Sophie Rawoth. That is a slight increase on last year's list, which featured three women. Sara Cox, who moved from the Radio 2 drivetime slot to replace Mills earlier this month, didn't quite make it into the top 15 earners, with a salary band capped at £324,999. Vernon Kay - who hosts Radio 2's most listened-to show according to RAJAR (Radio Joint Audience Research) figures - was joint fourth on the list alongside Kuenssberg. BBC Radio 1 DJ Greg James, who is particularly popular with younger audiences, rose two places from last year and is this year's second highest earner. The third-highest paid was Northern Irish Radio 5 Live presenter Stephen Nolan. Top talent pay slashed by half in seven years, BBC says Responding to a question from Sky News on how the BBC can justify paying talent a premium when hundreds of millions of pounds of savings need to be made, deputy director-general Rhodri Talfan Davies said there had been "remarkable progress" over presenter pay in recent years. He said talent above the £500,000 threshold had been reduced by 50% across the past seven years, going on: "If you look at all our on-air presenter costs over the last seven years, they've come down by about £20m, so we have been focused on it, there is always a balancing act. "We want to be a broadcaster that can attract the best talent, but we're also very mindful of the financial pressures that we're facing. I think we're striking that balance very, very carefully, and I think you'll see that downward trend continuing in the months to come." The BBC is required to declare a list of salaries paid to people both on air and off air who receive more than £178,000 from licence fee revenue in the year. However, the list does not include people who are paid through independent production companies or the BBC's commercial arm, BBC Studios. A string of 'errors' affecting public confidence BBC Chair Samir Shah addressed recent "broadcasting errors" at the corporation, including at Glastonbury Festival and the BAFTA film awards, saying they "affect confidence in our journalism, trust in the BBC as a public institution, and perceptions about how effectively we are held to account". In February, a racial slur was broadcast after Tourette's campaigner John Davidson shouted at Sinners stars Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo as they presented the BAFTA award for special visual effects. An involuntary verbal tic, the slur was not cut from the live broadcast, which was on a two-hour delay, and remained on iPlayer for over 12 hours. It came after a previous incident, which saw the BBC face criticism for continuing to livestream the performance of punk duo Bob Vylan as they led chants of "death, death to the IDF (Israel Defence Forces)" at last year's Glastonbury Festival. There was also a breach of BBC editorial guidelines after the documentary Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone failed to disclose information about the child narrator's father's position within the Hamas-run government. The BBC is also currently embroiled in a multi-billion-pound lawsuit with US President Donald Trump over the editing of an episode of BBC documentary series Panorama, broadcast in 2024. Referencing the various errors, Mr Shah said: "I am confident that the changes we have now introduced will ensure that swift, appropriate and transparent action is taken to address editorial issues as effectively as possible, whenever they occur." Read more: Who is Matt Brittin? BBC boss: 'This is a moment of real jeopardy' The report also showed that BBC TV licences have dropped by more than half a million in a single year. While 94% of adults use BBC services per month, fewer than 80% of households pay the licence fee. Highlighting the challenges this presents to the corporation, it said the BBC would need to reform its funding model in order to sustain its public service mission going forward. Speaking to journalists as the report was released, the BBC's new director-general Matt Brittin said it was "a moment of real jeopardy" both for the BBC and the UK as a whole," going on to say it was also "an opportunity". The former Google executive, who stepped into the role in May, concluded: "Reinventing the BBC to adapt to this fast-changing world is our duty and our challenge". The BBC is facing huge cutbacks, with hundreds of jobs to be axed and many TV and radio programmes under review, as part of a major downsizing. The month after he stepped into the role, Mr Brittin told employees that £160m of staff and non-staff cost savings would be made from across BBC News and TV and radio teams by the end of the financial year. The huge savings plan was first announced in April, with up to 2,000 jobs to go in total - the corporation's biggest downsizing in almost 15 years.

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No Writer
Jul 13
'One of the greats': Jurassic Park star Sam Neill has died

The Northern Ireland-born New Zealand actor was best known for his leading roles in the blockbuster dinosaur franchise and The Piano, and appeared in more than 50 films over his career. The family of the screen star, who was one of New Zealand's most successful Hollywood exports, said his death had been "sudden and unexpected" in a statement on Monday. Neill was diagnosed with stage three angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, in 2022. After his cancer diagnosis, Neill said he would take a short break from acting and had announced he was cancer-free earlier this year. His family said he died on Monday in Sydney, Australia, but did not specify the cause of death. "Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life," they said. "The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer-free." Neill was regarded as a versatile actor, who had traversed blockbuster and arthouse films throughout his career. His range saw him dodge velociraptors in Jurassic Park, chop off actress Holly Hunter's finger in The Piano, and gouge out his eyes in the sci-fi film Event Horizon in his on-screen roles. 'One of the greats' Tributes flooded in for Neill from around the world, from Hollywood directors to prime ministers. Colin Trevorrow, who directed Neill in Jurassic World Dominion, remembered the actor as a "deeply soulful and beautiful man". "He was a friend and collaborator at a challenging time, and his strength gave us all strength," he said. He added: "It's not every lifetime you get to befriend a legend." New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon described Neill as "one of the greats". "He started out when there was barely a film industry in this country to speak of," he said. "For more than fifty years he took New Zealand stories to the world and his talents helped make our film industry into what it is today - one of our greatest cultural exports. "His work will be watched and loved long after all of us." In a post on X, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said: "Sam Neill starred in so many beloved Australian stories and he earned a special place in Australian hearts. "Wry and dry, thoughtful and laconic, Sam fought illness with the same dignity, humour and conviction that gave strength to his every performance. He will be much mourned and long remembered." Australian actor David Wenham said: "Aside from being an international all-round legend. Sam was the kindest, cheekiest, most generous and supportive friend going around." Author Kathy Lette remembered Neill as a "wonderful actor but also the most charming, kind, intelligent and deliciously self-deprecating friend". Australian comedian Magda Szubanski said: "An exceptional man - talented, kind, classy, wryly hilarious and loving. Proud cancer survivor. My heart goes out to all Sam's family and friends." From Omagh to Hollywood Neill was born Nigel John Dermot Neill in Omagh, but moved to New Zealand aged seven when his father retired from the army. At the age of 11, he changed his name to Sam. In his 2023 memoir, he said "to land in a primary school with a plum in the voice and Nigel for a name was asking for trouble". He described himself as a nerdy, unsporty and stuttering boy, but took his first steps into acting through school plays. His big break came with the low-budget 1977 New Zealand film Sleeping Dogs, which led to bigger roles in neighbouring Australia. Neill was one of a host of actors and directors who achieved international fame after an explosion of Australian films that began in the late 1970s. These included Paul Hogan, Mel Gibson, Geoffrey Rush, Russell Crowe, Jane Campion, Peter Weir and Gillian Armstrong. He first came to the attention of international audiences in Armstrong's 1979 film My Brilliant Career. Neill later appeared in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm, also starring a then-relatively unknown Nicole Kidman. He twice co-starred with Meryl Streep in Australian director Fred Schepisi films Plenty and A Cry in the Dark, based on the true story of a dingo killing a baby in the Australian Outback. He missed out on a chance at mega-stardom in the mid-1980s when he did a screen test for the role of James Bond but did not land the role. He would later achieve blockbuster fame in Steven Spielberg's 1993 hit Jurassic Park, as palaeontologist Dr Alan Grant. Younger audiences will remember Neill for his portrayal of ruthless chief inspector Chester Campbell in Peaky Blinders. Read more from Sky News:'Nothing to suggest' Ann Widdecombe murder politicalAntiques Roadshow star Theo Burrell dies aged 39 In 2022, Neill accepted ​a knighthood for outstanding contribution to film. Neill, who was married twice, divided his later years between Australia and his vineyard in New Zealand's Central Otago, which produced Pinot Noir under the label Two Paddocks. He is survived by his two sons and two daughters.

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Jenness Mitchell, Scotland reporter
Jul 14
Police Scotland carrying out 'additional enquiries' into University of Aberdeen employee who hoped Ann Widdecombe had 'extremely painful death'

Trans activist Heather Herbert made the comment before police announced the politician's death was being treated as a suspected murder. In the post on Bluesky, Herbert shared Sky News' initial story on Ms Widdecombe's death and wrote: "And some good news for once. I hope it was an extremely painful death." A further post added: "And I hope she was handcuffed to the bed as she screamed in agony." Police Scotland received complaints about the post but initially said the information had been assessed and "no criminality" had been established. However, in an update on Tuesday afternoon, a spokesperson for the force said: "We received reports on Saturday 11 July 2026 relating to a post made online. "Following further assessment, additional enquiries are being carried out." Herbert, a web developer at the University of Aberdeen, is also being investigated by the institution. A university spokesperson said: "The university is aware of social media posts made by a member of staff regarding the death of Ann Widdecombe and is reviewing this as a matter of priority. "The comments that have been shared are entirely the individual's own and do not represent the views of the University of Aberdeen. "Complaints into any member of staff are handled confidentially through our established processes." Professor Peter Edwards, principal and vice chancellor, added: "Ann Widdecombe was a highly respected figure in both the Westminster and European parliaments. "The University of Aberdeen does not tolerate violence or hateful behaviour in any form. "We are aware of the incident and the concerns that have been raised and are looking into the matter as a priority." Ms Widdecombe, 78, was found dead at her home in Devon on Thursday morning. Police believe the former Conservative minister turned Reform UK spokeswoman was attacked at around 12.30pm on Wednesday - nearly 24 hours before her body was discovered with "serious injuries". A 28-year-old white British male is in custody after being arrested on Saturday. Read more from Sky News:Man admits raping 'drugged' partner with other menMan raped and murdered estranged wife and staged it as suicide Herbert's Bluesky account currently shows as being "suspended". Herbert, a transgender woman, stood for Scottish Labour to contest the Aberdeen Donside constituency in the 2021 Scottish parliament election, and for the Scottish Greens for Aberdeen City Council's Kincorth/Nigg/Cove ward in the 2022 local government election. Sky News has tried to contact Herbert for comment.

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No Writer
Jul 14
Leandro Trossard: Arsenal confirm winger joining Besiktas in £17m deal

The Belgium winger has been granted permission to travel to Istanbul to undergo a medical. Besiktas, meanwhile, have announced the Trossard is arriving at Ataturk Airport at 7.30pm local time (5.30pm UK time) to complete his move. Trossard departs the Premier League champions in a deal worth £17m, broken up into an initial £15.3m plus £1.7m in add-ons. Arsenal news & transfers🔴⚪ | Arsenal fixturesTransfer Centre LIVE! | Key dates for summer window 2026Premier League ins and outs | Papers - latest headlinesDownload the Sky Sports app and follow your club Trossard became a crucial player in Mikel Arteta's Arsenal - playing 174 times in three and a half years, scoring 36 goals. During Arsenal's title-winning campaign last term, Trossard scored eight goals and registered 11 assists in 50 matches in all competitions, as the Gunners also finished as Champions League runners-up. Analysis: Trossard leaves as a cult hero - but what is happening at left wing? Sky Sports' Sam Blitz: Scoring one of the biggest goals in Arsenal's Premier League history, Leandro Trossard will go down as one of Arsenal's biggest cult heroes. That goal against West Ham on May 10 all but got Arsenal over the line. From then, the Gunners lifting the title was a formality. Not bad for someone who cost just £27m back in January 2023. That moment summed up Trossard's time at Arsenal - the Belgian came up 'clutch' on so many occasions for Arsenal. Seventeen out of his 27 Premier League goals for the club either put Arsenal level or in front in matches - only Bukayo Saka scored more goals of that kind since Trossard joined the club. In selling the Belgian, Arsenal will be losing a lot of 'clutch moments' but this is a good time to recoup a lot of the £27m spent on him - with Trossard now 31 and having one year left on his contract. It is also part of a potential overhaul at left wing, as Gabriel Martinelli's contract also expires in the summer of 2027. Arsenal could be entering next season with completely different options on that flank. Their priority target is Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers but PSG's Bradley Barcola has also been touted as a potential first-choice option. Club Brugge winger Christos Tzolis is also a player Arsenal have been looking into bring on the left. It is understood Tzolis would cost in the region of £34m - a Belgian Pro League record. Now the World Cup is coming to its end, Arsenal are starting to show their hand in the window. Trossard is the first serious piece of business, so which domino will fall next?

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