Two men have been rearrested on suspicion of assisting Iran’s intelligence service as part of an investigation into a suspected terror plot at RAF Fairford.
Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) have now said it is “highly likely that there is Iranian state involvement” in the incident on 27 September.
A 24-year-old UK national, and a 25-year-old dual UK-Iranian national, both from Westminster, London, were re-arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service under Section 3 of the National Security Act 2023.
Police said this relates to Iran.
The 24-year-old was initially arrested near the air base. The 25-year-old was first arrested on 1 October in Westminster.
The new UK flight routes announced by EasyJet and Ryanair
Budget airlines easyJet and Ryanair have announced 29 new routes from UK airports to the rest of Europe to launch next year.
Where will new flights go?
- From Leeds Bradford – Budapest, Bari (Italy), Corfu, Tirana (Albania).
- From Newcastle – Reua (Spain), Rhodes, Larnaca (Cyprus).
- From Birmingham – Wroclaw (Poland), Milan, Tivat (Montenegro).
- From Bournemouth and Exeter –Porto (Portugal).
- From East Midlands – Gdansk, (Poland).
- From Norwich – Malaga (Spain).
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- From Liverpool – Girona and Murcia, (Spain).
- From Edinburgh – Hamburg, (Germany), Tivat, Bilbao, Rome.
- From Aberdeen – Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca (Spain).
- From London Southend – Rhodes.
- From Luton – Thessaloniki (Greece).
- From Bristol – Burgas (Bulgaria), Montpellier (France).
- From Gatwick – Girona, Ajaccio (Corsica).
- From Manchester – Bastia (Corsica).
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When do the new flights start?
Flights will begin on the new routes on 28 March for both airlines, with some available to book now. The routes will form part of their summer 2027 offering, connecting different parts of the UK with sunny holiday destinations.
Overall, Ryanair has confirmed 29 new routes so far for Europe next summer, while easyJet has released 18 new UK routes.
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The one big tax hike tipped for the Budget
With the Budget just over a week away, Chancellor John Healey has made his biggest call yet by ruling out a hike to capital gains tax (CGT) over fears it could result in the Treasury losing money. An alternative tax rise on banks is now expected to be Healey’s biggest revenue raiser.
What you need to know
CGT is relatively easy to avoid paying as a tax because people can simply choose not to sell their assets. It can also be avoided if people relocate abroad, and there were concerns in No 11 that hiking it would lead to an exodus of wealthy individuals and deter investment in the UK. Treasury officials believe the current tax rates are at the optimum levels for generating revenue.
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Tax hike on banks now in view
Healey’s biggest revenue raiser on 28 October will be increasing tax on banks – a decision which is now understood to be locked in for the Budget.
This could be achieved by increasing the surcharge which banks pay on corporation tax or the tax itself, or increasing a tax called the bank levy – a small percentage charged on loans.
How would this affect you?
- Banks could pass on the cost by increasing mortgage rates or reducing savings payouts.
- High interest rates mean banks may be able to shoulder the cost on their own, according to economists.
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Australian MP loses leg in car ‘attack’ – what we know
An independent Australian politician is fighting for her life in hospital and has lost one leg, after an allegedly deliberate attack in broad daylight.
Hit and run ‘deliberate’, says PM
Helen Haines, 65, an independent member of Australia’s lower house of parliament, was hit by a car on Monday afternoon, in what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called “a deliberate act”.
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What is her condition?
- Haines remains in a critical condition in hospital and has lost a leg.
- The former nurse, mother of three and grandmother has suffered “severe” lower-body injuries.
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Hero challenged attacker
Ricky Jefferies, a barber working next door, rushed to Haines’s aid and pulled the driver from the car. Jefferies said he had “no choice” but to take action “because it was the right and safest thing to do”.
Police confirmed that at this stage it appeared to be an isolated incident “and there are no known threats connected to this matter”.
Who has been charged?
Brendan Nugent, 43, has been charged with driving causing serious injury, intentionally cause serious injury and causing harm to a commonwealth public official.
- He will be held overnight to appear at Wangaratta magistrates court on Wednesday, Victoria police confirmed in a statement
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Where first named storm of the season could hit UK
As heavy rainfall hits most of the UK over the course of the day, the Met Office has named the first storm of the autumn.
Storm Austen is due to batter southern parts of the country on Friday.
Where will the storm hit?
A yellow severe weather warning has been issued from midnight to noon on Friday, with Storm Austen set to hit the south-west of Wales and England, up to west Sussex. Eastern coastal counties could also be affected by the storm.
There is also a chance that the storm could change its course and hit Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern parts of England. Severe gales and disruption are expected wherever the weather front hits, with winds of up to 70mph.
Why is this the first named storm?
The unusually warm and dry weather means the UK has not yet had a named storm this autumn. The jet stream bringing wind and rain has mostly avoided the UK so far this season, but the weather front moving in this week is set to change that.
Although the storm is expected to move away later on Friday, Saturday will still be wet and windy for much of the UK.
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When is a storm named?
- In the UK, a storm is named when it is expected to cause disruption or damage significant enough to warrant an amber or red warning.
- This decision is based on the National Severe Weather Warnings service.
Naming storms is a vital part of how the Met Office communicates severe weather risks.
What could happen to mortgage rates in 2027
Homeowners are being told to brace for continued high mortgage rates next year – with the Bank of England set to raise interest rates. Most economists expect the Bank to hike rates twice in the next few months, while financial markets are forecasting even more rises – as many as four in the next year.
Why are rate rises expected?
The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has driven the cost of oil up, which has fed through into a higher rate of inflation. Economists expect inflation to continue rising and peak at above 4 per cent, which will drive up swap rates – contracts between banks which are linked to fixed mortgage rates. Banks are pricing their mortgages above swap rates to make some profit.
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Elevated rates in 2027
Although experts have said the outlook for mortgage rates remains uncertain for next year, experts expect them to remain elevated. How much will depend on whether inflation and the BoE’s base rate go higher or lower than markets currently expect.
Alper Kara, professor of banking and finance at Brunel University, said he expected rates to “remain around these levels next year”, while Nick Mendes from John Charcol brokers said they will go “higher”.
Is there any hope?
The reverse pattern is very possible.
Peter Stimson, director of mortgages at lender MPowered, is hopeful that the Bank of England may cut interest rates next Spring in response to easing inflation, causing mortgage rates to fall.
A ceasefire in the Middle East would make this more likely as energy prices and government borrowing costs would fall.
All the channels the BBC will shut down as of spring 2027
The BBC has announced it will stop broadcasting three of its channels on linear TV and radio, as part of cost-cutting measures which will also see it cut jobs across BBC News.
Which channels are being axed?
Content from this channel will still be available on iPlayer and on other platforms, including YouTube.
The Scottish channel will still be an option online but not on television.
Programmes from the station will still be on the BBC Sounds app and the Daily Service will be broadcast on local radio.
What is behind the cuts?
100
jobs from next spring in a bid to make savings to secure the broadcaster’s future.
The BBC needs to save…
by 2028 to respond to the pressures of rising costs.
“We need to make every pound work harder for audiences as we respond to the immediate cost pressures and reinvent the BBC for a changing world. We all know that means tough choices… I recognise the confirmation of this news will be hard for audiences and colleagues”
bBC Director-General Matt Brittin
Another five men arrested remain on police bail.
What have police said?
Head of National Counter Terrorism Policing in the UK, assistant commissioner Laurence Taylor, said it was “highly likely that there is Iranian state involvement” in the incident.
“Our investigators are continuing to examine what that level of involvement was and the ambition behind it,” he added.
He said specialist teams have been “working tirelessly to interrogate the many lines of inquiry involved in this hugely complex investigation”.
“Due to their sensitive nature, national security investigations can take time to progress, and I’m grateful to everyone who has given my teams the time and space needed to pursue this work thoroughly and effectively.
“From the outset our priority has been to uphold the integrity of this investigation and hold those who wish to do our country harm accountable.
“We know the public have unanswered questions. I want to be as transparent as possible and when we are in the position to share more, we will.”
What happened?
In the early hours of 27 September, a local farmer spotted men wearing balaclavas and three vans blocking a road in the vicinity of the airbase.
She called the Ministry of Defence Police but they did not answer the phone, so at 1.36am dialled 999 and armed police arrived 10 minutes later.
Later a major incident was declared. Dozens of homes were evacuated.
Around 30 emergency service vehicles, including the Army’s bomb squad, rushed to the area outside the base.
Aerial footage showed a bomb disposal robot inspecting three white vans, two of which had open rear doors.
A 400m cordon was put in place around the vans while the Army’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit conducted examinations, said CTP.
Police initially arrested seven men on suspicion of explosives offences and terrorism in relation to the incident – and all were later released on bail without being charged.
The police operation was not intelligence-led, suggesting they did not know in advance that any plot was taking place.
What has been the political reaction?
The US Air Force has used RAF Fairford to carry out bombing missions against Iran in recent months in a bid to protect ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
A day after the incident, assistant commissioner Taylor said police are considering “every possible angle” in their investigation and “keeping an open mind”.
Speaking at New Scotland Yard, he said this included whether it was “actively committed by proxies or individuals, either knowingly or unknowingly, working on behalf of a foreign state”.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham told the Commons last week it was “highly likely” Tehran was behind the incident.
There is evidence Iran has used proxies on British soil, although nothing on the scale seen at Fairford.
British intelligence concluded Iran and its proxies had a role in the Hatzola ambulance attack and other attacks against Jewish communities this year.
Other hostile states including Russia, have been known to use criminal proxies to carry out crimes on its behalf on UK soil.
US removes bombers from base
Earlier this month, the US withdrew all of its bombers from RAF Fairford and they returned to their home stations in America.
Some of the bombers left so hurriedly that aerial refuelling aircraft were still being scrambled to support their flights across the Atlantic, The New York Times reported.
The BBC reported that the decision was military and operational, not political, adding that the British Armed Forces were informed.
British authorities have made no suggestion further attacks against RAF Fairford are probable in the immediate future.
But the release on bail of the suspects has irked Donald Trump who told US media that “we know everything about them, we would not have released them.”