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Health Secretary Steve Barclay has hinted at changing the status of the inquiry looking into the crimes of Lucy Letby, saying he wanted to ensure the families affected had “full confidence” in the probe.

The government ordered an inquiry last week after Letby was found guilty of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder six others while working as a neonatal nurse.

She was sentenced to 14 whole-life orders and will never leave prison.

Ministers said that “after careful consideration”, a non-statutory inquiry into the circumstances at the Countess of Chester Hospital “was found to be the most appropriate option”.

But lawyers for the bereaved families called for a full statutory public inquiry to take place so there was “nowhere to hide”.

Speaking to broadcasters on Wednesday, Mr Barclay appeared to show a change of heart, telling reporters: “We will ensure that the legal framework for that has the full confidence of the families affected.

“And I’ll be engaging with them on that – whether that’s on a statutory or non-statutory basis – to ensure that inquiry, looking at issues such as whistleblowers and other actions related to this case are fully investigated.”

Lucy Letby
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Lucy Letby was sentenced to 14 whole-life orders.

Calls began to grow for a full statutory inquiry after the guilty verdicts were delivered last Friday.

One of the families’ lawyers, Yvonne Agnew of Slater and Gordon, told Sky News anything else would be “inadequate” and “there has to be teeth” to the probe.

“To take these families through everything again, they have to be clear the right questions will be asked to the right people and there will be nowhere to hide,” she said.

“There has to be the ability to make people answer these questions.”

Her calls were echoed from politicians on all sides of the House.

Tory former justice secretary Sir Robert Buckland told Sky News while the killings themselves needed to be “understood”, so too did the response of authorities like the NHS.

And the Labour MP for the City of Chester, Samantha Dixon, wrote to the health secretary demanding the full inquiry took place.

Read more:
Who is Lucy Letby?
How the police caught serial baby killer
Will she ever be released?

Letby, 33, refused to attend court for the announcement of a number of guilty verdicts on Friday or for her sentencing on Monday.

Sky News understands the government is now looking at changing the law to force criminals to appear.

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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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