A British medical doctor who was working on the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo has returned to the UK for specialist treatment after testing positive for the disease.
The UK government worked with the DR Congo government and international health partners to bring the patient home safely on a medical evacuation flight. The journey followed established infection prevention and control procedures, which also apply to everyone involved in the individual’s care.
He is now being cared for in a high-level isolation unit at the Royal Free Hospital, London. This unit is highly specialised and specifically designed for this purpose, staffed by expert clinical teams.
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The left-wing firebrands about to make trouble for Trump (and the Democrats)
At a bar in New York City’s Harlem neighbourhood on Tuesday night, Democrats celebrated what some called not just a victory, but a revolution.
A growing force
The DSA was founded more than four decades ago and opposes both the Republican Party and moderate Democrats.
On Tuesday, several members celebrated victory, including the LA mayor elect and another eight elected into Congress.
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Why is the DSA becoming popular?
The election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City in 2025 brought more attention to the DSA. Now, it claims to have more than 120,000 members.
Many of the candidates share views on the war in Gaza, healthcare and immigration.
The Democratic Party must undergo fundamental and immediate reform. With a return to power, it can no longer continue to ignore the major economic and political crises facing the majority of our people or that return to power will be shortlived.
Bernie sanders, us senator for vermont
DSA politicians to look out for
- : Elected into New York’s 13th congressional district. She is also the first Afro-Latina woman to represent the region.
- : Elected into Colorado’s 1st congressional district.
- : Elected into New York’s 10th congressional district.
- : Elected into New York’s 7th congressional district.
- : Elected into Pennsylvania’s 3rd congressional district.
Will Trump be impeached?
Many on the Democratic Party’s left want to aggressively go after Trump and it will be a hot topic when the Democratic caucus convenes next week.
From January, the Democrats will have a majority in the House to impeach, but not the two-thirds strength in the Senate needed for conviction and removal from office. However, Republicans may waver if the process gains momentum.
Italian chef sacked after refusing to put pineapple on pizza
Davide Tamburella was fired from the now-closed restaurant La Costa in Queensland, Australia, in May as he believed pineapple topping was an “insult to his culture”.
This occurred a fortnight after a meeting with his management, who voiced a string of complaints about the chef’s behaviour, reports claim.
What you need to know
La Costa stood as an Italian hub in the heart of Brisbane before it closed.
On Tuesday, a Fair Work Commission ruling heard that Tamburella was sacked on 20 May after he was called upon to “address performance concerns”.
One of the chief concerns was his refusal to put pineapple on pizza.
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The Italian was more than three years into a 186 visa process – an employer sponsored pathway to permanent residency in Australia.
However, his application had not been approved before he was sacked, and he now must start the process again.
Elliot Ingram, his boss, admitted that while pineapple on pizza was neither his own preference, 17 years in hospitality has taught him to “pick your battles”.
A frustrated boss
Do I go and buy a ham and pineapple pizza? It’s not my favourite but I’m not going to turn my nose up at it – that’s for sure.
The commission heard that Tamburella acknowledged this was the third time he refused Ingram’s direction. He had requested his boss to “check how important it is for Italians not to put pineapple on pizza”.
La Costa closed in July when its lease expired, with Ingram citing the high costs of running a business as a contributor.
How worried should you be about Ebola in the UK?
A British man is being flown back to the UK for treatment after testing positive for Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The patient, who is thought to be a healthcare worker, is expected to be brought back later on Thursday.
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First confirmed case of a UK national
There have only ever been four confirmed cases of the virus in the UK.
The first was in 1976, resulting from a laboratory incident. The latter three involved health workers responding to an outbreak in West Africa between 2014 and 2015.
The current outbreak centred in the DRC is fueled by the Bundibugyo variant of the virus.
A closer look at the detail
25-90%
Ebola has a high fatality rate, with past outbreaks causing death in 25-90 per cent of infected people.
People with the disease tend to fall ill two to 21 days after contact with an orthoebolavirus.
- Early symptoms include fever, aches, pains, and fatigue, but they can then progress to diarrhoea, vomiting and unexplained bleeding.
What this means for the UK
The UK has well-established procedures for dealing with cases like this, and those processes have been activated. Further information will be shared in due course. The risk to the UK public from Ebola remains low
Government official
Channel 4 axes Married At First Sight UK after review following misconduct claims
Channel 4 has cancelled Married At First Sight UK following an external review triggered by “serious allegations of wrongdoing”.
What led to this?
Earlier this year, two women who participated in the show made allegations of rape and a third of sexual misconduct by their on-screen husbands, speaking in a BBC documentary which aired in May.
- In June, a cast member was arrested on suspicion of rape. All three men deny the claims.
- Channel 4 has now confirmed the series will not be returning.
What will happen to season six?
Channel 4 chief executive Priya Dogra confirmed season six of the show, filmed this year, will not be broadcast.
Second Married at First Sight, a spin-off set to bring contestants from the UK and Australian versions of the show for a second chance at love, was in pre-production with CPL before being paused during the review. It will not resume.
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What the production company said:
“CPL has always put contributor welfare at the heart of its programme making and will continue to do so,” CPL said.
“CPL have worked closely with Channel 4 for many years and throughout the review process, and we look forward to working with them again in the future.”
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The man, who has not been identified, landed at RAF Northolt before being transported by ambulance to the hospital, which has successfully treated three previous cases of Ebola in the past.
No one in the UK has ever died of the virus, which is currently spreading in the DR Congo and has led to more than 10,000 cases and 5,000 deaths since it began in May.
This man is the first British citizen to contract the virus during this outbreak, though three health workers from the UK were infected during the 2014-2015 outbreak in West Africa.
Since the beginning of this outbreak, Ebola cases have also been confirmed in Kenya, Nigeria and Uganda.
Ebola has a high fatality rate, with this outbreak resulting in death in 48.6 per cent of those who contract the virus and previous outbreaks having a rate of up to 90 per cent.
Dr Renu Bindra, Deputy Director All Hazards Public Health Response at UKHSA, said: “UKHSA and the NHS have well-established and robust infection prevention and control protocols to limit the risk of onward transmission, and the risk to the wider public remains low.”
Ebola does not spread through the air, it is passed on through direct contact with the bodily fluids of a person who has symptoms.
The Royal Free Hospital isolation unit has strict isolation protocols in place to prevent the patient coming into contact with any members of the public, and all staff treating the patient are equipped with personal protective equipment alongside other measures to prevent transmission.
Professor Emma Thomson, director of the MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, said: “The UK is extremely well prepared to care for patients with Ebola.
“Although Bundibugyo virus, the cause of the current outbreak, can cause severe disease and is highly infectious through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, the Royal Free has state-of-the-art isolation facilities and highly experienced clinical teams.”