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Parents have been urged to vaccinate their children against the flu following a surge in serious cases among under-fives.

Flu hospitalisations in young children are nearly 20 times as high as last year, figures suggest.

This week, 230 under-fives were hospitalised, compared to just 12 at the same time last year.

Estimates show hundreds more under-fives have been admitted to hospital with flu over the last six weeks.

Pregnant women have also been advised to vaccinate themselves.

The NHS is writing to over 800,000 parents to encourage them to take their children to get the vaccine at a GP practice ahead of Christmas. Children under five are given a nasal spray, unless it is not medically appropriate.

Uptake in children aged two to three is behind last year’s figures, with just under 35% of children having received their flu jab so far, down 9% on last year.

Read more:
Why Australia’s worst flu season in five years could be a warning of what’s to come in UK
Number of patients in hospital with flu jumps 40% in a week

Nearly 18 million jabs already administered

NHS National Director of Vaccinations and Screening Steve Russell said: “With almost 18 million jabs already administered, our flu vaccination programme continues to make great strides in protecting the public, but it is vital we make sure no group falls behind.

“Young children, whose health can of course be affected by illness, can also pass on flu to other vulnerable family members, so we encourage parents to think about getting their flu vaccination at thousands of available sites ahead of the Christmas period.”

Who can receive a free vaccine?

Children born between 1 September 2018 and 31 August 2020 can receive a free NHS flu vaccine, along with all pregnant women.

Pregnant women also have lower uptake of the vaccine, with 29.6% having had the vaccine this year and 34.4% last year.

Flu

Respiratory diseases more common in winter

Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS National Medical Director, said: “It is very encouraging to see good flu vaccination uptake already but as we go through winter and we spend more time indoors, respiratory diseases become more prevalent so it is vital we do whatever we can to protect ourselves and others.”

“Flu when you are pregnant can cause complications and evidence suggests it could cause your baby to be born prematurely. Young children can also be at risk, especially if they have long-term health conditions, and we have seen an increase in hospitalisations in recent weeks.

“So our message to pregnant women and parents of young children alike is it’s not too late to come forward for this vital protection.”

It comes as the number of people in hospital with the flu jumped by 40% in the past week.

Official figures showed an average of 482 patients a day were in hospital with the flu last week, compared to 344 the week before.

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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”.

More on Donald Trump

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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