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At a Saturday morning training session, the Alpha United Juniors can enjoy just playing football.

These pitches, in the heart of Bradford’s Asian community surrounded by rows of houses and shops, seem a haven from abuse that is an enduring trauma.

When it comes to playing matches across Yorkshire, the fear of being tormented by racists on the pitch is constant – borne from the sense of inaction against perpetrators over the years.

Teenage player Mohammad Zayn-Ull-Din Hasaan told Sky News: “You know when we are playing away at a predominantly white area then sometimes it can get a bit nasty.

“And if we’re winning good, like comfortably, then I get it – they take their anger out, but sometimes it can be a bit racist.”

It is a debilitating experience for someone still dreaming of trying to make a career in the game, with experiences that resonate across grassroots football.

“It can make you drop your head sometimes but you have to keep strong, and it can really hurt you,” Mohammad said.

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“I’m just playing football, doing what I love. But some people just take their anger out on you and you just have to keep your head up.”

A stain on English football

The abuse remains a stain on English football in a season when Premier League players have opted to no longer take a knee before every game.

However visible the “No room for racism” campaign remains at the top of the game, Alpha United Juniors don’t see necessary changes at their grassroots levels with greater protection for victims.

Data from Kick It Out shows the experiences at this West Yorkshire club, which won a Queen’s award for voluntary service, are a snapshot of a wider problem.

The discrimination monitors have seen a 41% rise in reports of discrimination in the grassroots game from 2019-20 to last season.

Mohammad Zayn-Ull-Din Hasaan plays for Alpha United Juniors.
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Mohammad Zayn-Ull-Din Hasaan

Losing faith in the system

Alpha United Juniors are losing faith in the system – reports of racism rarely lead to perpetrators being punished by local football officials.

Cases can be challenging to prove – when it’s the word of their player against an abusive opponent, even audio and video evidence suddenly becomes unavailable.

The fear, too, is being cast as “bad eggs”.

‘Nothing gets done’

Humair Shahid took a break from coaching the Alpha kids to express his frustration.

He said: “It is a lack of confidence after doing it for many years over the last 10 years and nothing gets done.

“You don’t have trust in the system.

“You just think: What is the point of reporting anything anymore to the league or the FA?”

But Kick It Out needs racism to be reported so it can document the scale of the problem and find solutions.

There is a need for changes.

‘We have to fix the problem’

Kick It Out chief executive Tony Burnett wants quality metrics to rate how responsive county FAs are to complaints of discrimination.

He said: “We have to fix the problem – and the problem in grassroots is about representation on county, FA boards.

“It’s about having people in place who understand the nature of discrimination and can deal with it appropriately and properly and the FA doing a huge amount to try and work with this as well.

“But it needs all parties to come to the table and take this issue seriously and deal with it and deal with the perpetrators.”

‘A game free of discrimination’

The West Riding FA was unable to provide a specific response to the concerns of Alpha United Juniors.

The Yorkshire organisation said: “At West Riding FA we treat all allegations of discrimination with the utmost importance as we strive to have a game free from discrimination.

“We would urge that anyone that is the victim of discrimination to contact us so that we can investigate fully.”

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League table of foreign criminals awaiting deportation and their offences set to be published

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League table of foreign criminals awaiting deportation and their offences set to be published

A league table of foreign criminals and their offences is set to be published for the first time.

The plans, due to be announced on Tuesday, will reportedly focus on those offenders awaiting deportation from the UK.

The latest data shows there were 19,244 foreign offenders awaiting deportation at the end of 2024, a rise from 17,907 when the Conservatives left office in July and 14,640 at the end of 2022.

Despite more offenders being deported since Labour came to power, the number waiting to be removed from the UK has been growing.

Factors are understood to include the early release of inmates due to prison overcrowding, instability and diplomatic problems in some countries and a backlog of legal cases appealing deportation.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said the decision to publish the nationalities of foreign criminals showed Labour had “buckled” under pressure from the Conservatives to disclose the data.

The latest government statistics show there were 10,355 foreign nationals held in custody in England and Wales at the end of 2024, representing 12% of the prison population.

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The most common nationalities after British nationals were Albanian (11%), Polish (8%), Romanian (7%), which also represented the top three nationalities who were deported from the UK in 2024, according to Home Office figures.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is understood to have ordered officials to release the details by the end of the year, according to The Daily Telegraph.

The newspaper reported Ms Cooper overruled Home Office officials, who previously claimed it was too difficult to provide quality data on foreign criminals.

A Home Office source said: “Not only are we deporting foreign criminals at a rate never seen when Chris Philp and Robert Jenrick were in charge at the Home Office, but we will also be publishing far more information about that cohort of offenders than the Tories ever did.”

The source added that ministers wanted “to ensure the public is kept better informed about the number of foreign criminals awaiting deportation, where they are from and the crimes they have committed”.

In March, the government announced £5m in funding to deploy staff to 80 jails in England and Wales to speed up the deportation of foreign offenders.

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Foreign nationals sentenced to 12 months or more in prison are subject to automatic deportation, but the home secretary can also remove criminals if their presence in the UK is not considered desirable.

Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick welcomed the news, saying: “We will finally see the hard reality that mass migration is fuelling crime across our country… Frankly, the public deserved to know this [detail on foreign criminals] long ago.”

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Rachel Reeves to head to Washington amid hopes of US trade deal

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Rachel Reeves to head to Washington amid hopes of US trade deal

Rachel Reeves will pledge to “stand up for Britain’s national interest” as she heads to Washington DC amid hopes of a UK/US trade deal.

The chancellor will fly to the US capital for her spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the first of which began on Sunday.

During her three-day visit, Ms Reeves is set to hold meetings with G7, G20 and IMF counterparts about the changing global economy and is expected to make the case for open trade.

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Her visit comes after Donald Trump imposed blanket 10% tariffs on all imports into the US, including from the UK, and as talks about reaching a trade deal intensified.

The chancellor will also hold her first in-person meeting with her US counterpart, treasury secretary Scott Bessent, about striking a new trade agreement, which the UK hopes will take the sting out of Mr Trump’s tariffs.

In addition to the 10% levy on all goods imported to America from the UK, Mr Trump enacted a 25% levy on car imports.

Ms Reeves will also be hoping to encourage fellow European finance ministers to increase their defence spending and discuss the best ways to support Ukraine in its war against Russia.

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Mission: Impossible? Chancellor heads to the IMF

Starmer and the King pay tribute to Pope Francis

Speaking ahead of her visit, Ms Reeves said: “The world has changed, and we are in a new era of global trade. I am in no doubt that the imposition of tariffs will have a profound impact on the global economy and the economy at home.

“This changing world is unsettling for families who are worried about the cost of living and businesses concerned about what tariffs will mean for them. But our task as a government is not to be knocked off course or to take rash action which risks undermining people’s security.

“Instead, we must rise to meet the moment and I will always act to defend British interests as part of our plan for change.

“We need a world economy that provides stability and fairness for businesses wanting to invest and trade, more trade and global partnerships between nations with shared interests, and security for working people who want to get on with their lives.”

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Murder arrest after woman stabbed to death in Enfield – as victim named

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Murder arrest after woman stabbed to death in Enfield - as victim named

A woman who was stabbed to death in north London has been named by police – as a man was arrested on suspicion of murder.

Pamela Munro, 45, was found with a stab wound and died at the scene in Ayley Croft, Enfield, on Saturday evening, the Metropolitan Police said.

A 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder on Monday and is in custody, the force added.

Detective Chief Inspector Neil John said: “Investigating officers have worked relentlessly across the weekend to investigate the circumstances around Pamela’s death.

“We continue to support her family who are understandably devastated.”

GVs from SN footage on 20/04/2025 at scene of murder on 19/04/2025 of woman at Gainsborough House, Ayley Croft, Enfield in north London.
Ingest 25 NM25 SKY SAF ENFIELD MURDER GVS ENFIELD 2045
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Police at the scene at Ayley Croft in Enfield

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The Met Police has asked anyone with information or who was driving through Ayley Court between 6.30pm and 7.30pm on Saturday and may have dashcam footage to contact the force.

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