There is a higher-than-usual risk of flash flooding ahead, experts have warned, as thunderstorms are set to hit the hard, dry areas left parched by recent summer heatwaves.
The heavy rain currently seen in Scotland and Northern Ireland is expected to become widespread in parts of England and Wales on Thursday.
There is a chance of thunder, lightning and localised, surface-water flooding in some places, according to forecasters.
The best and worst supermarkets for shelf life – ranked
New secret shopper market research by consumer champion Which? found “a striking difference” in how each shop delivery performed.
The official ranking
Each supermarket home delivery was tested by 12 different shoppers across 29 standard items.
Here is every supermarket delivery ranked according to average perishable shelf life from best to worst:
- – 10.4 days
- – 10.4 days
- – 10.2 days
- – 8.8 days
- – 7.7 days
How do they compare?
Asda performed the best, with an average 11-day period to use up perishables. This was more than three days better than the worst average time.
Which? noted Ocado, which came in joint second, also delivered on longevity, with two packs of honey roast ham arriving with more than 20 days left on the packet.
How did Waitrose respond?
Waitrose had the shortest average shelf life across all six supermarkets tested. Some of the shoppers even had packs of meat arrive with just one day before the use-by date.
The shop said this was partly due to removing preservatives from certain items “in response to increasing customer demand”. Its pickers are “trained to choose the longest dated products they can”.
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How top album releases are linked to rise in fatal crashes
A Harvard study has found new releases by the most popular artists are linked to a notable rise in car crash deaths in the US, thought to be linked to distracted driving.
What did the study find?
- Researchers looked at the release of 10 of the most streamed new albums between 2017 and 2022.
- They found new release days had a 15 per cent higher number of fatal crashes compared to the days either side of it.
- This is equivalent to 182 excess deaths in the US between those 10 albums.
- Albums included Taylor Swift’s Drake’s and Harry Styles’ .
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What does this mean?
Vishal Patel, lead author of the study, said searching for the new music likely distracts drivers. “You unlock the phone, open the app, find the release, read down a tracklist, tap the right song. That’s several seconds of looking at a screen,” he said.
Researchers also found the rise in deaths was more prominent among younger drivers, male drivers and those driving alone.
Areas in England have been ranked by friendliness, according to government data from the community life survey.
The survey takes into account sense of loneliness, local pride, participation in the local community and friendliness with neighbours.
The friendliest places
- 1The Isles of Scilly, a tiny archipelago off the coast of Cornwall.
- 2, Devon. On the coast just south of Dartmoor National Park.
- 3. Bordering South Hams to the north, encompassing much of wild Dartmoor.
- 4, including Bakewell, Ashbourne and parts of the Peak District.
- 5Richmond upon Thames in southwest London.
The bottom of the pile
Barking and Dagenham in east London placed as the least friendly part of England. The other lowest-ranking areas were Stoke-on-Trent, Ashfield, Mansfield and Ipswich.
The index was collated by National Conversation, a commission to better understand British cohesion and tackle division. It has launched its own survey people can take to give their view on their own area.
British couple on honeymoon killed in helicopter crash in Greece
Greek police believe a mechanical fault may have caused a helicopter to crash before it was due to land on the island of Sifnos.
The crash on Monday evening killed a British couple on honeymoon and the pilot.
What we know so far
- London-based couple Marie Ebert, 30, and Alexander Cromie, 31, died in the incident. They were celebrating their honeymoon.
- The pilot, Giorgos Raikos, 53, was a former air force officer and was “extremely experienced”. He also died in the crash.
- “The focus of the inquiry is now on the helicopter and possible engine failure. What has happened is nothing short of a tragedy,” a source told The Guardian.
How the crash unfolded
The private helicopter crashed just metres from a landing pad. CCTV footage showed the aircraft spinning out of control before plummeting to the ground and igniting a fireball. A thick plume of dark smoke was seen billowing into the sky from the site of the crash.
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A closer look at what may have gone wrong
People in the area have testified hearing the helicopter making a noise, a strange noise, probably a mechanical fault in the air and because the propeller was doing something strange.
Manolis Fountolakis, deputy mayor of Sifnos
Tribute paid to couple
- Asset management firm Blackstone, where Cromie worked, said it was “shocked” by the couple’s death.
- “We are shocked by the tragic passing of three people including our colleague Alex Cromie and his wife Marie Ebert, who were celebrating their honeymoon,” the firm said.
- “Alex was beloved by everyone who knew and worked with him at Blackstone, and our thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones.”
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Meta goes on federal trial for social media addiction
Dozens of states are seeking damages worth as much as $1.4trn in the federal trial kicking off in the US.
It is the biggest case of its kind to reach the courts.
What do we know so far
- Meta is accused of designing features which it knew would make children addicted to its social media platforms.
- The lawsuit alleges the tech giant illegally collects data on child users under 13 without parental consent.
- The trial will take place in front of a jury in Oakland, California
- CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to testify in the unprecedented trial.
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What does each side say?
Rob Bonta, California’s attorney general said: “Meta designed a dangerous product for young users, knew it to be dangerous, and then lied to children, families and the community about how dangerous it was.”
Meta denies any wrongdoing. It said it was “proud of our record in protecting teens on our platforms and the amount of effort that we’ve put into developing protections over the years”.
Russia and Ukraine trade more deadly strikes – the latest
Mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobyanin, said Ukraine sent 620 drones towards the city overnight, with 180 downed by Russian defence systems.
Ukraine faces drone attacks
Ukraine was also hit as the warring countries traded blows overnight. The state emergency service said a 59-year-old woman was injured in the Russian attacks.
Pictures posted on Telegram show firefighters battling blazes in two outbuildings hit by a drone in the northern Chernihiv Oblast.
Major e-commerce giant hit
- Yet another Wildberries warehouse was struck near Moscow.
- It is the latest in Kyiv’s campaign to take out Russia’s equivalent of Amazon, which it accuses of supplying Vladimir Putin’s war machine.
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go deeper on this topic
Putin’s fury at the UK could escalate his sabotage campaign
The news that Ukraine is using British-made drones in its deep strike campaign has prompted scornful words from Russia and talk of potential retaliation.
Less than half know how to stop someone from choking
St John Ambulance has warned too many people are choking to death because bystanders “do not have the knowledge or confidence to intervene”.
What the survey tells us
- Around 300 people die in England every year due to choking.
- A poll has revealed only 42 per cent know how to stop someone choking, by giving back blows and abdominal thrusts.
- 32 per cent did not know choking can become life-threatening in minutes without first aid.
- Jordan Davison from St John Ambulance said: “Choking is often dismissed as a minor incident.”
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‘Everyone should have first aid training’
Marine engineer Calum Glen was enjoying dinner when he noticed a woman at a neighbouring table choking. Following first aid training at work, he gave the woman five back blows before moving on to abdominal thrusts, when her airway was cleared.
“I hope I never have to use those skills again, but you never know when someone’s life could depend on you knowing what to do,” Calum said.
What to do if someone is choking
- 1Cough it out. Encourage them to cough and remove any obvious obstruction from their mouth.
- 2Hit it out. If coughing fails, you need to give five sharp back blows between their shoulder blades.
- 3Squeeze it out. If back blows fail, give five abdominal thrusts. Stand behind them with your hands just above their waist.
- 4If the blockage has not cleared, for emergency help straight away. Repeat steps until help arrives.
The flaws in Reform’s plan to scrap PIP and slash £50bn from benefits bill
Reform Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick said it would stop some claimants “taking everyone else for mugs” by slashing personal independence payments, banning foreign nationals from receiving benefits and forcing long-term claimants to do community work.
What is in the plan?
- Under the plans, foreign nationals would be excluded from most benefits – including EU nationals with settled status in the UK.
- It would also shake up disability benefits through a new system of “Return to Work Cover”.
- Lastly, people on universal credit for more than 12 months who are fit to work would be required to provide 20 hours a week of community work.
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Renegotiating with the EU
Reform’s ban on foreign nationals receiving benefits would require a renegotiation of the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
However, it is not clear that Brussels would want to rewrite the agreement, and the bloc would probably respond with countermeasures such as stripping British expats of benefits.
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Making employers pay
Making employers liable for sick employees for two years could have unintended consequences. It is not clear whether Jenrick’s promise that cutting 0.2 per cent to employer national insurance contributions would be enough to make up for the extra costs employers would be incurring.
It could also create a perverse incentive for employers to not hire people with disabilities or previous experiences of ill-health.
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Voter backlash
- The Institute for Fiscal Studies said the new disability needs assessment plans are vague and savings could fall significantly short of expectations.
- This policy may not be very popular in many of Reform’s top target seats which have large PIP caseloads. It could also open up a vulnerable new flank for Andy Burnham’s resurgent Labour Party.
These kind of flash floods can be particularly dangerous because they can occur very suddenly in urban streets not usually prone to flooding.
Philip and Elaine Marco, aged 77 and 76, drowned in their car when severe flash flooding hit a section of Mossley Hill in Liverpool in August 2023.
With climate change making heavy rain more common, experts have warned drainage systems could be “overwhelmed”.
They urged the Government to introduce more “sponge city” features such as urban wetlands.
Drought-hit areas at risk of flash floods
Beyond this week’s weather, Jim Dale, founder of British Weather Services, told The i Paper that he “wouldn’t be at all surprised” if flash flooding occurs as summer turns into autumn.
“The tarmacked and concreted areas are always more likely to feel the effects of flash flooding,” said Dale, who explained urban parks and green spaces may be unlikely to help absorb torrential rain.
“The ground has been so hard in the heat, even former green areas might not be able to absorb water to the same extent, especially in these drought areas in the south of England, Midlands and Wales.
“So towns and cities in these regions in the south, Midlands and Wales – like London, Birmingham, Cardiff – are perhaps the most likely to be affected [by flash floods],” he added.
“But it doesn’t mean flash flooding can’t happen in the north of England or further north in the UK. Flash floods can be very irregular events.”
The north east, Yorkshire, Cumbria and Lancashire, and Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire had “prolonged dry weather” status last week. But the rest of England and Wales have been officially in drought.
London and other urban areas most at risk
About 4.6 million properties in England alone are at risk from surface water flooding, an updated National Flood Risk Assessment found in 2024.
The risk of flash flooding is more acute in dense urban areas, research shows. A 2025 study by Aviva found that 14 areas in London were in the top 20 constituencies at risk of surface-water floods.
The Essex constituencies of Thurrock, Castle Point, South Basildon and East Thurrock, Basildon and Billericay – along with Bootle and Sefton Central in the north-west – were the other high-risk areas identified by the insurance company.
Eight in 10 (80 per cent) homes deemed to be at high-risk of flooding are in England’s towns and cities, according to the National Housing Federation (NHF) analysis of Environment Agency data.
Lizzi Hearn, the NHF’s external affairs manager, said the drought this summer “will likely heighten this risk” of flash flooding – calling it a “growing risk” in urban areas which have the most social housing.
The NHF wants the Government to adopt clear flood-resilience targets and standards to help housing associations take a proactive approach to managing the risk for tenants.
Why ‘sponge city’ design is needed
Experts say the Government and councils should demand more “sponge city” design features such as smarter draining systems with roadside gardens when it comes to housing development.
More “permeable pavements” – built with materials that let rain drain right through it and into the ground below – could also help reduce the risk of flash flooding. And creating urban wetlands would allow more rain to be absorbed in Britain’s cities.
Dr Carola Koenig, from the Centre for Flood Risk and Resilience at Brunel University, said the Government could “do more to encourage such solutions”.
“In our cities we still have drainage systems that were built for Victorian times,” said Dr Koenig, warning that some were at risk of getting “overwhelmed” in flash floods.
“We could do more to encourage urban solutions, like more green areas, and permeable pavements and driveways.”
Lord Toby Harris, chair of the National Preparedness Commission, said urban flash flooding was “something we’re going to have to take more seriously when it comes to managing flood risk”.
He said that in the short-term, councils should be vigilant to clear leaves that may be blocking drains. In the longer-term, planners and builders will have to think about smarter drainage systems and more green spaces.
“Lots of people in cities don’t think it [flooding] can affect them, but it can,” said Lord Harris.
Friends of the Earth campaigner Paul de Zylva said ministers must do “far more” to protect people from the impacts of severe weather. “That means strengthening the government’s woefully inadequate climate adaptation plans.”
Thunderstorms ahead this week
BBC Weather has warned of possible thunderstorms and even some “localised flooding” on Thursday, as heavy rain moves down from the north of England into the Midlands and east Anglia.
“There could be one or two areas that have some localised surface water flooding… particularly given that the ground is rock hard after all of that dry, hot and sunny weather we’ve seen this week,” said forecaster Chris Fawkes.
Met Office spokesperson Stephen Dixon said north Wales and north-west England would see the heaviest of the “thundery downpours” on Thursday – but warned that heavy rain will move down into the Midlands as the day goes on.
“Much of that rain will be falling on hard, dry land that is unlikely to be easily absorbed. So there is some potential for surface water impact.”
A Defra spokesperson said the Government was investing £10.5bn in flood defences over the next decade.
Flash flooding defence projects, which are typically smaller in scope than river and coastal schemes, will benefit from being eligible for full Government funding for the first £3m of their costs.
“We have simplified our funding rules, making it quicker and easier to deliver the right flood defences in the right places and have set aside,” they said.