The Birmingham force turned off access to the software after admitting, following initial denials, that a Copilot "hallucination" was responsible for a match that never happened being included in an intelligence document justifying excluding Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from Aston Villa in November. And, at the weekend, MPs on the Home Affairs Select Committee highlighted fresh concerns about Copilot after saying it produced inaccurate key claims about past disorder around a contentious Maccabi match in Amsterdam in 2024. Microsoft told Sky News it "continuously evaluates" Copilot and urges companies to review how they are using it. Only eight of the forces across the UK who responded to our questions on their AI policy told us Copilot could not be used in investigations - including police in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Our discovery that so many forces still allow officers to use Copilot reinforces a disjointed approach across the country and lack of coordinated policing. That is despite the Maccabi ban escalating into one of the biggest policing controversies last year, eventually leading to the WMP's chief constable, Craig Guildford, being forced out under government pressure. The National Police Chief's Council told Sky News it "is confident that the potential benefits of using AI outweigh the risks posed, provided we remain committed and vigilant in using it correctly, responsibly and securely". Their AI experts advise forces to use Copilot "in the most appropriate way" - leaving it open to local decisions to be taken. Greater Manchester Police, which is England's second-largest police force, defended the use of AI, telling Sky News: "We have a robust AI policy in place to help promote the use of such technology to speed up processes and ensure officers have more time to be on the streets rather than behind their desks." West Yorkshire Police said staff are provided with "education and guidance on how to use it responsibly, which should avoid any issues". But it has taken the Maccabi controversy to highlight concerns about how AI is being used and whether the technology has been robustly tested enough before being approved. 'Significant shortcomings' West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster told Sky News: "I am concerned about the way in which WMP was utilising AI, not only in connection with this particular policing operation. "Because plainly there were some significant concerns, shortcomings, and failures around ensuring there was a proper regulatory management of the use of AI in connection to this particular police operation." It emerged senior West Midlands officers were not clear about how AI generated erroneous evidence - highlighting wider concerns about how the technology has been used as a time-saving tool despite the risks. The Home Affairs Select Committee found "proper due diligence was not applied". Mr Foster said: "We need to make sure that it is lawful, it is reasonable, it is ethically used and there's a proper regulatory regime in place to ensure that it's not misused, and it doesn't throw up rogue results." Read more from Sky News:Police investigating racist abuse of footballersTeam GB return home after record-breaking Winter Olympics The police forces covering Northern Ireland and Scotland do not allow Copilot, while there are also blocks in place for North Wales and Dyfed-Powys forces. But Chris Todd, chair of the National Police Data and Analytics Board and Humberside Police chief constable, insisted AI is "providing benefits to our communities" to join up data and reduce delays to stop criminals. He said: "In Humberside Police we comply with the position of the National Police Chief's Council Artificial Intelligence Portfolio, which has outlined their confidence in that the potential benefits of using AI outweigh the risks posed, provided we remain committed and vigilant in using it correctly, responsibly and securely. "We echo that it should be used to support human decisions, not make them for us." Among those with a more cautious approach is the Cleveland force which doesn't block Copilot but insists "the force doesn't use AI to form intelligence or to assist with investigations". Police Scotland has been running a trial with Copilot since October involving a "limited number of police officers and staff" as they balance "ethical and human rights considerations" with duties to keep people safe. The force said: "The trial does not involve any operational policing processes, and instead focuses on efficiencies in corporate processes, such as improving the retrieval of information across existing HR policies." Microsoft defended its software and pointed to differences between the 365 Copilot service for workplaces and the free Copilot consumer chat service for general use online. Some police using Copilot admitted they use the chat product. A Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement: "Microsoft 365 Copilot is grounded in an organisation's own data, security, and access controls, works only with information a user already has permission to access, and provides citations, so sources can be reviewed and verified. "We continuously evaluate and improve our services and encourage organisations to use Copilot within their own governance and review practices."

8579 LLC, a pornography provider with a clutch of popular sites, was fined a record £1.35m for not having age checks in place, plus £50,000 for failing to respond to an information request. Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator that issued the fines, said if the firm does not immediately implement highly effective age assurance, it will also face a daily penalty of £1,000. It will also be fined £250 a day until it responds to the regulator's requests for information, including a full list of all of its sites. After 60 days, if it still has not responded, the fines will be capped. From July, all pornography providers with UK audiences had to start properly checking the ages of their users. A tick-box asking users if they were over 18 was no longer considered a proper age check, and major providers introduced technology to properly verify their users' ages. Ofcom says it was tracking those that did not, and investigations were soon launched into some of the biggest non-compliant sites. 8579 LLC was one of the companies being investigated. Up until at least 19 November 2025, 8579 LLC failed to implement highly effective age assurance on three of its major sites, according to the regulator, with one other site continuing to break age verification rules. Read more from Sky News:Will the 'tobacco trials' come back to haunt tech giants?Universal vaccine for cold, flu, COVID and allergies 'a step closer' George Lusty, director of enforcement at Ofcom, said: "We've been clear that adult sites must deploy robust age checks to protect children in the UK from seeing porn. "Those that fail to do this - or ignore legally binding requests from us - should expect to face fines." Ofcom's investigation into 8579 LLC initially included two more sites run by the company, but they were transferred to another business registered in the Seychelles before Ofcom could announce its preliminary findings. Sky News has attempted to contact 8579 LLC for comment through its websites.

Researchers in Southampton are to carry out a trial of the new device, which identifies biological signals in vaginal fluid. There are around 7,600 new cases of ovarian cancer in the UK each year. Many of them are diagnosed at an advanced stage. Around 250 women are being recruited for the study, named Violet. It will include patients who have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and are having their ovaries removed, as well as women with the BRCA gene mutation who are choosing to have risk-reducing surgery. According to Cancer Research UK, people with this gene mutation have a higher risk of developing several cancers, including breast, ovarian, pancreatic and prostate. Dr Jemma Longley, consultant medical oncologist at University Hospital Southampton and chief investigator for the trial, said: "There is currently no screening programme available for ovarian cancer, and women with recognised genetic mutations, such as BRCA, may opt to have surgery to remove their ovaries and fallopian tubes to reduce their risk of developing the disease. "However, this can have significant long-term health effects by putting younger women into a surgical menopause." Read more from Sky News:Will the 'tobacco trials' come back to haunt tech giants?Universal vaccine for cold, flu, COVID and allergies 'a step closer' Consultant gynaecological oncology surgeon David Constable-Phelps, a co-investigator for the study, said that if the tampon worked, it "would be a complete game-changer for women with ovarian cancer". "Ovarian cancer commonly has non-specific symptoms in its early and late stages, so the tumour can spread to other organs silently," he said. Mr Constable-Phelps added: "We are really optimistic that we will find interesting biological signals in the vaginal fluid of women with early-stage tumours, meaning more women can expect to be cured. "This study will pave the way towards further translational work to allow us to understand more about the biology of these cancers." The diagnostic tampon has been developed by the biotechnology company Daye. If successful, researchers are hopeful of conducting another, larger trial.

Hugo Powell was delivered by caesarean section in December, weighing 6lb 13oz (3.1kg), at the Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital, part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, in London. Only two other such cases have been reported elsewhere in Europe, while a baby was born from a womb transplanted from a living donor for the first time in the UK last year. Hugo's mother, Grace Bell, an IT programme manager, was born with Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser (MRKH), a rare condition characterised by an underdeveloped or missing womb. "It's simply a miracle. I never, ever thought that this would be possible," Ms Bell said. "I'm the happiest I've ever been in my life." Hugo's father, Steve Powell, works in finance, and the couple, aged in their 30s, live in southern England. Ms Bell said she remembered holding Mr Powell's hand during the birth, and trying to peep over the curtain before Hugo was placed in her arms. "It just felt quite unreal at the time, because this has been a long journey for us both," she said. Reflecting on the birth, Mr Powell said: "When he came over the curtain, it was just sort of overwhelming emotions. I felt like I wanted to cry, but couldn't. "From where we started - first meeting - to where we are today, with Hugo, is nothing short of a miracle after everything we've been through." 'The biggest gift' Ms Bell, who broke down in tears when she recalled discovering she was pregnant, said she thinks of her womb donor every day and hopes her family "find some peace in knowing their daughter gave me the biggest gift, the gift of life". "There are no words to say thank you enough to my donor and her family," she said. "Their kindness and selflessness to a complete stranger is the reason I have been able to fulfil my lifelong dream of being a mum. "I hope they know that my child will always know of their incredible gift, and the miracle that brought him into this world." Read more science and technology news:Houston, NASA's next moon mission has a problemHow tampon could detect early signs of cancer Five other organs from the donor were transplanted into four people, saving the lives of others. The donor's parents said: "Losing our daughter has shattered our world in ways we can barely put into words. "Yet even in this unimaginable pain, we've found a small measure of solace in knowing that her final act, her choice, was one of pure generosity." After being told as a teenager that she had no womb, Ms Bell said she remembers "going into the hospital toilets and uncontrollably crying". She told Mr Powell about her diagnosis "straight away" when they met. The couple had decided to pursue surrogacy before they became involved in the womb transplant programme. Hugo's name honours charity chief The couple decided to give Hugo the middle name Richard, after Professor Richard Smith, clinical lead of the charity Womb Transplant UK. Hugo was also given the middle name Norman, after Ms Bell's grandfather. Professor Smith, who was present at the birth, said holding baby Hugo and hearing he would be given his name "brought a tear to my eye". "That did make me cry, straight up. It's been quite emotional, very emotional," he said. Ms Bell underwent the seven-hour womb transplant in 2024, before beginning fertility treatment several months later. The couple may decide to have a second baby, after which surgeons will remove the transplanted womb. If the transplanted organ is not removed, Ms Bell would have to stay on immunosuppressant drugs. With deceased donors, the womb is not covered by the normal consent for organ donation, nor by joining the organ donor register. Their families must instead give specific permission - after they have agreed to donate other organs. It is estimated that about 25 to 30 babies have been born from deceased womb donations globally.

Artemis II has been due to blast off from Florida's Kennedy Space Center from as early as March. On Friday night, however, NASA discovered that the flow of helium - which is required for launch - to the rocket had been interrupted during a key part of the preparation process. A NASA spokesperson said: "This will almost assuredly ​impact the March launch window." Before the setback, the agency had announced that it was targeting 6 March to launch four astronauts around the moon and back. The crew includes three ⁠US astronauts - Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch - and Canadian ​Jeremy Hansen. They would become the first astronauts to fly to the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972 and make the farthest human flight into space ⁠ever. Read more:Everything to know about Artemis II There are no plans for the mission to land on its surface, however. Artemis II is ​a precursor to NASA's planned astronaut moon landing ​with Artemis III, which is scheduled for 2028. The Artemis missions are part of NASA's long-term plans to build a space station - called Lunar Gateway - where astronauts will be able to live and work and prepare for missions to Mars. A first rehearsal for the launch earlier this month was disrupted after a hydrogen leak was discovered. But a second test was completed on Thursday without any leaks identified after technicians replaced two seals, which launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson described as "a big step in us earning our right to fly". When the 10-day mission is able to go ahead, it will see the crew testing life support, navigation, and communication systems to confirm everything operates as it should in deep space. The capsule will then enter Earth's high orbit where the crew will manually pilot Orion before control is handed back to controllers at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. The astronauts will then spend four days circling the moon, travelling approximately 4,600 miles beyond its far side before returning to Earth and splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.