Record numbers of cash-strapped local authorities could be forced to hike council tax over the 5 per cent increase limit next year, raising bills by hundreds of pounds, experts have warned.
Residents in affected areas would see band D bills soar beyond the £120 rise faced by the typical council taxpayers next year.
Some London councils are thought to be discussing mammoth increases of 100 to 160 per cent, which would add an extra £500 to £800 onto average annual bills.
Thieves steal 11 sheep from Jeremy Clarkson’s farm
Jeremy Clarkson has said that 11 sheep have been stolen from his Diddly Squat farm in Oxfordshire.
Clarkson appeals to thieves
Clarkson, 66, said the Easycare sheep were worth more than £2,000 at market, and has urged the thieves to “put them back”.
He told : “The police have been very good, actually… I said, ‘I know it’s going to sound like I’m from 1856, but I’ve had some sheep stolen’.”
- Clarkson claimed the theft had occurred at night – or during the day when the farm was not being filmed for its Prime Video TV show.
- He said of recording days that there is “a film crew here all the time” and ”a drone in the air”, which may have deterred or even caught the thieves.
- Asked whether he believed the show had made his farm a target, Clarkson said: “It’s more likely to make you a target than less, but I still don’t think they’ve been stolen because they’re on Diddly Squat.”
- He added: “This is 1,000 acres, it’s a big farm. Anyone could be anywhere and you wouldn’t know.”
No arrests made as livestock theft costs farms £4.5 million
The theft was reportedly raised with Thames Valley Police by Cooper and land manager Charlie Ireland. No arrests have been made and the force has appealed for anyone with information to contact them.
The National Farmers Union (NFU) reported in May that livestock theft had increased by nearly a third in 2025 – costing British farmers £4.5 million.
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Why yellow fever mosquitoes are now breeding in the UK
An invasive mosquito species known to spread yellow fever, dengue, Zika and chikungunya viruses has been found breeding in some east London homes.
While it is the fourth time the Aedes aegypti insects have been detected in the UK – it is the first time they have been discovered reproducing.
Accidental hitchikers
These insects are usually found in countries with tropical and subtropical climates and are believed to have been transported into the country accidentally in baggage, on vehicles, or in nursery plants.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said the risk to the public was low and there was no evidence of humans being infected.
Measures are now in place to destroy the larvae, and surveillance and trapping have been stepped up as part of the UKHSA’s Mosquito Watch scheme.
Too cold to survive in UK
Despite recent heatwaves, the overall UK climate is too cold for this species to survive long-term, the UKHSA said.
However, some expects warn that the UK would continue to see cases of invasive mosquitoes. As the climate warms, there may also be increased reports of them being able to survive.
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There is no evidence that these mosquitoes have caused human infections and importantly, to date, there is no evidence of the mosquitoes or larvae being detected in nearby public areas.
UKHSA’s head of medical entomology, Dr Jolyon Medlock
Hidden stowaways
Insects and other hidden stowaways such as lizards, geckos, and snakes can accidentally enter the UK inside shipments.
The massive volume of global plant trade means shipments move too fast for customers to catch every small creature or minuscule larvae.
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How AI is surging fraud cases to £10m a year
AI has enabled fraud losses to swell to nearly £10m this year, up from £1.2m the year before, the City of London Police Report Fraud study has found.
It comes amid a general increase in fraud, as the force reported that more than £3.2bn was lost to fraudsters in that period, up 26 per cent on the previous year.
How is AI making fraud worse?
AI is making common investment and romance scams much more sophisticated, meaning they appear more legitimate and real than they did in the past.
- Romance fraudsters can use AI to create fake but realistic dating and social media profiles, build relationships using real-time translation tools, and create fraud scripts for “automated relationship management”, the study said.
- Cases of “facetiming” make it “almost certain” that real-time AI generation is being used to dupe victims, it added.
- AI can also be used to create imitations of trusted public figures endorsing investment opportunities, while AI-cloned voices are being used to bypass banking security measures.
AI fraud on the rise
Breaking down the numbers
20%
The rise in investment fraud
The amount lost to romance fraud
Romance fraud rose by 15 per cent in the last year
Criminals are using -generated adverts, celebrity deep fakes, synthetic identities, voice technologies to make their approach to victims more and more compelling and believable on an ongoing basis, and I think is clearly a leader in that space.
City of London Police’s service delivery director Chris Bell
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Taking a trip abroad? Beware the EU change coming in next week
A journey into the European Union may soon take travellers significantly longer as the bloc prepares to reintroduce Entry/Exit System (EES) checks.
The fingerprint scans led to reports of six-hour-long airport queues earlier this year and threaten to disrupt journeys during the October half-term.
- The EU allowed member states to delay the full rollout over the summer in the event of sizeable disruption.
- However, this flexibility will be removed from Monday, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) trade group.
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Missed flights and connections
Delays caused by EES, which was launched in April, have resulted in people missing flights, being offloaded from aircraft and missing connections.
Border checks criticism
The new checks have received widespread criticism from travel industry figureheads.
Kenton Jarvis, the boss of easyJet, warned that the EU risked putting Britons off visiting altogether if they were forced to queue for hours or risk being stranded after missing their return flight.
Thomas Reynaert, head of external affairs at the IATA, said the scheme would only work once the technology is reliable and all installed booths are operational.
Even then, staff numbers must be sufficient to take over the manual processing of passengers should the system break down.
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EES gives Europe ‘bad rep’
These are real impacts being felt by passengers. That’s bad if you’re travelling alone and even worse if you’re travelling with family and small children. It gives Europe a bad reputation. When systems fail, passengers lose trust in the system and when people are late, airlines pay a high cost.
Thomas Reynaert, head of external affairs at the International Air Transport Association
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What to know as Argentina threatens Falkland Islands oil fields
Argentina’s President has said he will impose sanctions on oil drilling off the Falkland Islands amid heightened tensions between the UK and Argentina.
In a national address, Javier Milei said the “winds of change” favoured Argentina’s claim to control over the British territory, as the US reviews its position on the dispute.
Milei seeks oil firm sanctions
- The Argentine President said he would boost efforts to levy penalties against the companies, as well as their shareholders, directors and suppliers.
- Milei pledged to increase defence resources to build a naval base in the nearby Tierra del Fuego province.
- He has also promised to send Congress an urgent “national sovereignty defence” bill aimed at strengthening Argentina’s response to what he called unauthorised operations around the islands.
Urgent threat to Argentine interests
“If we do not act swiftly, in a few months they will have the material capacity to access the oil that lies underneath our sea – something that has never happened before.
Milei said Argentina had determined that the Sea Lion offshore project, operated by Navitas Petroleum and Rockhopper Exploration, could begin oil development in the coming months.
Long-running soveriegnty dispute
The Falkland Islands have been a self-governing British Overseas Territory subject to a long-running sovereignty dispute with Argentina since the 19th century.
Argentina invaded the islands in 1982. The conflict lasted 74 days and ended in Argentine surrender after claiming the lives of 649 Argentine military personnel, 255 British military personnel, and three Falkland Islanders.
In a 2013 referendum, Falkland Islanders voted overwhelmingly to remain a British overseas territory, with 99.8 per cent voting in favour – and just three votes against.
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‘Falkland Islanders choose to be British’
In a statement on X, Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said: “The Falklands are British because Falkland Islanders choose to be British.
“Our commitment to the Falklands is absolute and unshakeable.”
Trump suggests he would not help UK in Argentina invades Falklands
Milei’s comments follow a suggestion by Donald Trump that he would not back the UK if Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands.
Trump, who has strongly criticised the UK’s stance on the US-Israeli war on Iran, told GB News: “Your country was not there to help me.”
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Inside the BBC meltdown over licence fee’s future
Scrambling to find £500m
The BBC is scrambling to cut £500m from its budget after executives discovered a gap in finances which shocked even new director-general Matt Brittin.
It comes as the number of households paying the £180-a-year licence fee fell by half a million last year to 23 million, the latest BBC accounts show.
The previous year, accounts showed a 300,000 drop in licence fee payers.
The BBC’s chief financial officer, Bérangère Michel, said earlier this year that the drop in TV licences had “resulted in an unsustainable financial position”.
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More job cuts to come
The BBC must cut £500m from its budget by 2028 – with £160m to be delivered immediately. The corporation has already announced 550 job cuts in news, nations and TV and radio content as part of the first stage in its savings plan.
Other cost-cutting options include cutting BBC Four arts and its archive channel and moving its content to BBC Two. The BBC Three youth channel could also be under threat.
‘Every part of BBC affected’
- More shows are set to be axed, following this week’s decision to scrap , insiders said.
- In a staff memo, seen by The i Paper, interim BBC head of news Jonathan Munro, said the 200 job closures announced in June would be followed by “further post closures (in news)” in the coming months.
- “Every part of BBC News will be affected, including senior leaders, and we’re reviewing some on-air roles,” said Munro.
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Familiar faces set to depart
There will be familiar faces leaving, presenters, on-screen correspondents. They will be looking for a small number of expensive on-air people who they might try to persuade to leave sooner than they expected. It’s all up in the air.
A leading news figure told the i paper
Apprentice jobs also hit
- Apprentices were also told they could no longer expect jobs, as a result of the cuts.
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Two rescued a week after Nepal floods
Two people have been rescued alive from a hydropower tunnel in Nepal, nine days after
a catastrophic flash flood killed more than 1,200 people.
Some 39 workers are still believed to be trapped inside the Trishuli 3A Hydropower Project, according to Suresh Raut, a senior official of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA).
Rescued workers named
Authorities have named Sanjaya Shah, a mechanical foreman with the NEA, as the first person to be rescued from tunnels.
The second person rescued is Kabir Maharjan, the BBC reported.
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Injuries to hands and feet
- Both workers have injuries on their hands and legs, thought to be from crawling through the tunnel.
- They are also suffering from lack of oxygen, authorities said.
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Huge rescue mission
Hundreds of the more than 5,000 still missing are labourers working in a vast network of tunnels at hydropower sites along the river.
Engineers have been pumping air into the hydropower tunnels as part of the huge rescue operation. Aside from the tunnel, it is estimated that over 5,000 people remain missing in Nepal and Tibet.
The rescues inject hope into an otherwise gruelling mission through thick mud.
A tunnelling expert told the news agency that teams had already dug through debris blocking the tunnel for 50-60 metres (164-196 feet) before finding survivors.
They were hoping for a breakthrough, said Arnold Dix, president of the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association.
“After a week of 24/7 heartache, we might, just, be back in miracle country.”
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Four things to know as Reform reported to the police over ‘funding breach’
Reform UK has been reported to the police over allegedly breaching political donation rules.
The allegations
In the Channel 4 report, Reform’s Dan Jukes, discusses with a donor ways to allegedly get around electoral rules by securing a £500,000 donation via a foreign source.
The report, carried out by Verbatim Investigations, appears to show head of policy James Orr, suggesting the donor’s father could pay for polling. The report claims Reform commissioned three polls £32,500 in total and that the public was not told who commissioned or funded them.
The law
Under UK law, foreign companies are not a permissible source of funding for political parties, including payments for studies and research. Accepting donations from them could constitute a criminal offence.
Reform claimed it was the victim of a hoax and denied any wrongdoing.
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Reform’s response:
Reform UK has been the target of a hoax perpetuated by foreign-funded, climate change activists posing as would-be party donors. The party denies any wrongdoing.
A Reform Spokesperson
Reform UK has a robust vetting process for prospective donors approved by the Electoral Commission.
Who reported Reform?
- The Lib Dems have written to the Met Police and Electoral Commission saying that James Orr, a senior adviser to Farage, facilitating the donation from an impermissible donor would breach the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act.
- Labour also intends to report the matter to the police, it is understood, while the Greens have called for an investigation.
- The Met said it is assessing the reports.
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‘No money reached Reform UK at all,’ says Orr
Orr, Reform’s policy head who is at the centre of the allegations, said that “no money reached Reform UK at all”.
“It was a public poll arranged by an independent person paying an independent pollster, and those polls were published immediately for the general public,” he said in a video posted to X.
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Aides step down
Both Orr and Jukes have stepped down from their roles. Farage said Reform UK has “broken no laws” and has not “taken any dodgy money” amid allegations the party breached political donation rules.
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Billpayers in Tory councils with traditionally low charges have been warned they are among the most likely to face large tax rises in April.
“I think the Government is likely to be more comfortable with council tax going up when it comes to Conservative-run councils,” a local Government source told The i Paper.
“Because they can say, ‘Well okay – you shouldn’t have kept it so low for so long’.”
Record number of councils in financial crisis
Councils need special permission from the Government to raise council tax over 5 per cent cap with a local referendum.
Seven local authorities were allowed to push beyond the limit in 2026-27, including Worcestershire County, Shropshire and North Somerset councils, which all hiked bills by 9 per cent.
Another six local authorities – Wandsworth, Westminster, Hammersmith and Fulham, City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, and Windsor and Maidenhead – have already been granted permission to go above the cap in 2027-28.
No decisions have been made yet, but more council bosses could join the group of six and ask to make tax hikes over the limit in the run up to April 2027.
A record number of local authorities are receiving “exceptional financial support” (EFS) agreed by the Government to help plug huge funding gaps.
A group of 36 councils have been allowed to collectively borrow £1.5bn in 2026-27 in a bid to avoid bankruptcy. They have agreed to clear repayment plans that include spending cuts.
The EFS list includes several crisis-hit London boroughs, including Croydon, which is receiving £119m in special loans support this year. Haringey is receiving £84m, Barnet is getting £80m, Havering £77m, Redbridge £70m, Hillingdon £62m and Lambeth £20m.
Worcestershire, Shropshire, Trafford, Warrington, Windsor and Maidenhead – which all raised council tax above 5 per cent in 2026-27 – are also on the EFS list.
‘Good indicator’ of big council tax hikes ahead
Andy Pike, professor of regional development studies at Newcastle University, said the areas receiving EFS are “the ones having the most trouble”. They are also among the most likely to hike council tax above 5 per cent in April 2027, he said.
“Some may find they can’t meet the legal requirement balance their annual budget without the need for a big temporary council tax increase [above the 5 per cent cap],” he said.
“I’d be amazed if they weren’t having those conversations with MHCLG [Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government].”
Dr Kevin Muldoon-Smith, associate professor in public sector finance at Northumbria University, said: “Some of those with EFS may also have to ask for a temporary increase over 5 per cent.
“It’s a good indicator,” he added. “But it’s not a perfect indicator, because other councils may also want to go for large increases.”
Some London councils warn of huge increases
Dr Jonathan Carr-West, chief executive of the Local Government Information Unit (LGiU) think-tank, said he also expected more councils to “make the case” to go above 5 per cent next year.
“In theory, where you see that big financial pressure, you could see the need to increase council tax over 5 cent,” he said. “Although some of those councils [with EFS] may feel they have a plan to bridge the gap.”
Dr Carr-West expects the “huge majority” of councils across England to increase council tax by the 5 per cent maximum again next year.
A 5 per cent increase on the current average band D council bill of £2,392 would add an extra £120 onto typical bills next year.
But the bill hikes could be far more painful if councils go beyond 5 per cent.
‘My council tax went up – and food bins went uncollected’
Simon Wraw, 63, saw his council tax for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole rise by 6.74 per cent for 2026/27. For Mr Wraw, who lives in a band F bungalow, this put his bill at £2,860.66 excluding town council, police and crime, and fire and rescue precepts.
Asked if he feels he is getting value for money when it comes to council tax, Mr Wraw said: “Absolutely not”.
He added that while bins are generally collected on time, the introduction of a separate food waste collection earlier this year was “beset by problems” and “very poorly done”.
“There were lots of problems with the food waste and they were exacerbated by the very hot weather because really we don’t want rotting food sitting outside people’s houses.”
He is “concerned” residents will see another council tax hike, especially given the council is facing a £27 million budget overspend. He feels the council is wasting money on “vanity projects” such as the BCP Life card, a discount scheme for residents which gives them an extra hour of free parking, but this is on top of paid for parking and terms and conditions apply.
The council budgeted £193,000 for to cover the scheme for year one alone.
“There’s a number of people that are suggesting that they should give people an hour’s free car parking in some of the town centres and some of the car parks to encourage people back into those towns and promote and help local businesses. I would have thought time and effort would have been much better spent around that.”
Conservative-run Wandsworth Council is reportedly discussing whether to raise council tax by as much as 160 per cent – adding an extra £814 to a typical band D bill.
Fellow Tory council in Westminster has raised the prospect of an increase of up to 100 per cent, adding £537 a year to typical band D bills.
These areas are facing huge funding shortfalls after Housing Secretary Angela Rayner changed the formula that divided up how much Whitehall money goes to each council.
The fair funding review aims to get more cash to areas with higher needs, with councils in London and south east of England losing most from the changes.
But experts are sceptical about council tax bill rises of anything close to 100 per cent. Raising the possibility of such huge hikes could be a way of blaming the Labour Government for funding woes, they said.
“It seems extreme sabre rattling – I think there will be quite a bit of politics to it,” said Pike. “I can’t see how Government would allow it.
“You could see that sort of fairly large increase of 10 per cent as a way to allow them to catch up. But much more than that seems unlikely.”
Tory councils could see biggest rises
Local authorities across London – not just the ones already given permission to raise councils tax above the cap – are among the most likely town halls to go beyond 5 per cent in April, experts warned.
Max Caller, who led the crisis team that helped Birmingham City Council recover from bankruptcy, said: “All of the London boroughs are going to be interesting to watch, because of the transfer of funding away from them.
“They may be the most keen to go above the cap,” Caller added.
The Conservative-run councils which have traditionally kept their council tax rates low may be the most likely to seek permission to raise bills over the cap, said finance experts.
“It may be that those who need it do it [increase over 5 per cent] are those mostly Conservative councils that froze council tax for many years since 2010,” said Pike.
“They have a large tax revenue gap to fill compared to other councils that have increased their council tax annually to keep up with rising costs.”
Gareth Bacon, the Tories’ shadow minister for London, said Labour’s fair funding changes meant some councils in the capital could be forced to raise council tax “significantly”.
He added: “And that is exactly what they [Labour] want, because tax hikes are at the heart of Labour’s agenda.”
An MHCLG spokesperson said the Government was “fixing an outdated funding system so funding goes where need is greatest”.
Town halls’ internal discussions to decide on council tax rises for April don’t typically start until the winter, usually between November and February, The i Paper understands.
Among the councils receiving EFS money, Barnet, Havering, Thurrock, Wirral, West Berkshire, Woking and Worthing said no decision on tax increases had been made yet. Isles of Scilly and Slough councils said current planning assumed a council tax increase of 5 per cent next year.
Adam Kent, deputy leader of Worcestershire County Council, said the administration was “committed to keeping any council tax increase for 2027/28 below the 5 per cent threshold”.
The MHCLG added: “Local authorities decide the level of council tax they wish to set, but we are clear that in doing so they should put taxpayers first.”