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Rishi Sunak surprised commuters during the morning rush hour by selling poppies at Westminster Tube station in central London.

The prime minister was seen holding a tray full of poppies and talking to members of the public, some who asked for selfies, during a brief appearance to which no media were invited.

The Royal British Legion said they were “grateful to the PM for generously giving up his time to collect with us”.

Others were also quick to share their surprise on spotting Mr Sunak.

Lewis, an operations and data analyst who did not want to give his last name, said he bought a poppy from Mr Sunak for £5.

“I didn’t expect to meet the chap,” he said. “I went to buy my ticket at Westminster Station and he was there selling poppies with the military men and women.”

He said that having been critical of Mr Sunak’s role in Boris Johnson‘s departure as prime minister earlier in the year, he “turns out to be okay”, adding that he is “down to earth” and “approachable”.

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“I was surprised he was there,” he said.

Mr Sunak joined several army personnel and civil servant Stephen le Roux.

Pic: @SonOfTheWinds/pa
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Pic: @SonOfTheWinds/pa

Some were critical of his appearance, with one commuter tweeting: “Funny how Sunak has time to ‘sell’ a few poppies but not so much for major international conferences.”

It appeared to be a reference to the prime minister’s U-turn on his decision to skip the COP27 climate summit in Egypt.

Mr Sunak initially said he was not going, but later said he would attend the event in Sharm el Sheikh after facing a raft of criticism from environmental campaigners and MPs.

It was announced the morning after former prime minister Boris Johnson told Sky News he would be attending.

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Johnson says: ‘I am going to COP27’

Another social media user wrote on Twitter: “Good to see the prime minister helping sell poppies at Westminster tube this morning. We need more of this and less celebrity chasing nonsense from likes [of] Boris Johnson & Matt Hancock.”

Earlier this week it was announced former health secretary Matt Hancock will be jetting off to the jungle in Australia to go on the reality TV show I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!.

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Jaguar Land Rover to ‘pause’ US shipments over Donald Trump tariffs

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Jaguar Land Rover to 'pause' US shipments over Donald Trump tariffs

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has said it will “pause” shipments to the US as the British car firm works to “address the new trading terms” of Donald Trump’s tariffs.

The US president has introduced a 25% levy on all foreign cars imported into the country, which came into force on Thursday.

JLR, one of the country’s biggest carmakers, exported about 38,000 cars to the US in the third quarter of 2024 – almost equal to the amount sold to the UK and the EU combined.

Follow live updates: Trump’s baseline 10% tariff kicks in

In a statement on Saturday, a spokesperson for the company behind the Jaguar, Land Rover and Range Rover brands said: “The USA is an important market for JLR’s luxury brands.

“As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are taking some short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid- to longer-term plans.”

The company released a statement last week before Mr Trump announced a “baseline” 10% tariff on goods from around the world, which kicked in on Saturday morning, on what he called “liberation day”.

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JLR reassured customers its business was “resilient” and “accustomed to changing market conditions”.

“Our priorities now are delivering for our clients around the world and addressing these new US trading terms,” the firm said.

Trading across the world has been hit by Mr Trump’s tariff announcement at the White House on Wednesday.

All but one stock on the FTSE 100 fell on Friday – with Rolls-Royce, banks and miners among those to suffer the sharpest losses.

Read more: A red wall on Wall Street – but Trump seems to believe it will work out

Cars are the top product exported from the UK to the US, with exports worth £8.3bn in the year to the end of September 2024, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.

For UK carmakers, the US is the second largest export market behind the European Union.

Industry groups have previously warned the tariffs will force firms to rethink where they trade, while a report by thinktank the Institute for Public Policy Research said more than 25,000 car manufacturing jobs in the UK could be at risk.

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Two people die after caravan fire at holiday park in Lincolnshire

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Two people die after caravan fire at holiday park in Lincolnshire

Two people have died following a fire at a caravan site near Skegness, Lincolnshire Police have said.

In a statement, officers said they were called at 3.53am on Saturday to a report of a blaze at Golden Beach Holiday Park in the village of Ingoldmells.

Fire and rescue crews attended the scene, and two people were found to have died.

They were reported to be a 10-year-old girl and a 48-year-old man.

The force said the victims’ next of kin have been informed and will be supported by specially trained officers.

Officers are trying to establish the exact cause of the blaze.

“We are at the very early stages of our investigation and as such we are keeping an open mind,” the force said.

Two fire crews remain at the scene.

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Boy dies after ‘getting into difficulty’ in lake in southeast London

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Boy dies after 'getting into difficulty' in lake in southeast London

A 15-year-old boy has died after “getting into difficulty” in a lake in southeast London, police say.

Officers and paramedics were called shortly after 3pm on Friday to Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham.

The Metropolitan Police said a boy “was recovered from the lake” at around 10.42pm the same day.

“He was taken to hospital where he was sadly pronounced dead. His death is being treated as unexpected but not believed to be suspicious,” according to the force.

The boy’s family has been told and are being supported by specialist officers.

The force originally said the child was 16 years old, but has since confirmed his age as 15.

In the earlier statement, officers said emergency services carried out a search and the park was evacuated.

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google street view inside Beckenham Place park, Lewisham where a 16 y/o boy is missing after getting into difficulty in a lake
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Emergency teams were called to Beckenham Place Park on Friday afternoon

Beckenham Place Park, which borders the London borough of Bromley, covers around 240 acres, according to the park’s website.

The lake is described as 285 metres long, reaching depths of up to 3.5 metres.

It is designed as a swimming lake for open-water swimming and paddle boarding.

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said on Friday: “We were called at 3.02pm this afternoon to reports of a person in the water.

“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team.”

Emergency teams have not explained how the boy entered the water, or whether he was accompanied by others.

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