A man charged with the murder of two women within five months of each other, and the rape of a third, has appeared in court.

Appearing at the Old Bailey via videolink on Wednesday, Simon Levy only spoke to confirm his name and was not asked to enter a plea to any of the charges.

Levy, 40, of Beaufoy Road, Tottenham, was charged in September with the murder of 39-year-old Sheryl Wilkins in Tottenham, north London, on 24 August.

While in custody, he was also charged with the murder of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, from Colombia, who died on the Aylesbury Estate, southeast London, in March.

Prosecutor Tom Little KC told the court that Ms Valencia-Trujillo was found in a block of flats that is “very largely disused” with few residents or passers-by except security guards.

He said: “The body of the deceased was found in the early evening of 17 March 2025 in a block of flats very largely disused, so it does not contain many residents nor many people passing by apart from the odd security officer who patrol the area for safety.”

It is alleged that he travelled to the area the day before and that he killed her during the course of a sexual encounter.

Levy was also accused of grievous bodily harm with intent, non-fatal strangulation and two counts of rape against a third woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, in Haringey, north London, on 21 January, police said.

The Met Police said on Monday that all three cases are now being treated as part of a single, joined investigation and a trial date has been set for June 2026 at the Old Bailey.

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Judge Mark Lucraft KC remanded him in custody to appear at the Old Bailey for a plea and case management hearing on 23 February.

The British Army has paused the use of its new Ajax armoured fighting vehicles after “around 30” soldiers suffered vibration and hearing problems following a training exercise at the weekend.

A Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesperson said on Tuesday the two-week pause comes after “a small number of soldiers reported symptoms of noise and vibration” in the exercise, which was “immediately stopped”.

The spokesperson said “around 30 personnel presented noise and vibration symptoms” after tests were carried out, but the “vast majority of these have now been medically cleared and are continuing on duty”.

A small number “continue to receive expert medical care”, they said.

“Out of an abundance of caution, the minister for defence readiness and industry [Luke Pollard] has asked the army to pause all use of Ajax for training and exercising for two weeks, while a safety investigation is carried out into the events this weekend.

“A small amount of testing of the vehicle will continue, in order to ensure that any issues can to identified and resolved.”

The MoD said the decision “underlines our absolute commitment to the safety of our personnel. As with any major equipment programme, we continue to test and refine the vehicle to ensure safety and performance”.

“The safety of our personnel is our top priority,” the spokesperson said.

The Ajax, which costs nearly £10m and weighs more than 40 tonnes, is being billed by the ministry as a “next generation” fighting machine.

As heavy as a Russian tank, the vehicle is equipped with cameras, protective armour and a 40mm gun, with bullets that can rip through concrete.

Soldiers were taken to hospital this summer after suffering hearing and other injuries because of loud noise and vibrations coming from the vehicles.

Earlier this month, the MoD confirmed that a “small number” of troops had reported noise and vibration concerns following trials on three variants of the tracked vehicle.

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A spokesperson said an investigation was carried out and “no systemic issues were found”.

An internal review published in 2021 found that senior soldiers and MoD officials had known for up to two years that earlier faults with the Ajax vehicle had been putting troops at risk of harm.

The health and safety report revealed that issues such as potential hearing damage had first been raised in December 2018, but trials were not suspended until November 2020.

At that time, more than 300 soldiers were offered hearing tests, with 17 still under specialist care as of December 2021.

A total of 589 of the various Ajax models have been ordered by the army, which it expects to receive by 2030.

The Ajax could be deployed to Ukraine to support any possible peace deal, the MoD has indicated.

A raft of tax rises is expected in the budget this lunchtime – with the chancellor acknowledging that voters are “angry at the unfairness in our economy”.

In a newly released video, Rachel Reeves said the public is “frustrated at the pace of change” – but vowed to “take the fair and necessary choices” to tackle the cost of living crisis.

And in a dig at the Conservatives – especially former prime minister Liz Truss – she pledged not to impose austerity, lose control of public spending, or engage in more reckless borrowing.

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Tax rises: What we know so far

Taxation will be a dominant part of the budget as Ms Reeves tries to plug an estimated £30bn black hole in the public finances.

A headline measure is expected to be an extension of the freeze on income tax thresholds for another two years beyond 2028, which should raise about £8bn.

But given the chancellor had ruled out such a measure last year – because it would “hurt working people” and “take more money out of their payslips” – this will attract criticism from opposition parties.

The chancellor has backed away from raising income tax rates outright, a move that would have breached Labour’s manifesto, but she still needs to find the cash to pay for her public spending plans.

Some measures already confirmed by the government include:

• Allowing local authorities to impose a levy on tourists staying in their areas

• Expanding the sugar tax levy to packaged milkshakes and lattes

• Imposing extra taxes on higher-value properties

It is being reported that the chancellor will also put a cap on the tax-free allowance for salary sacrifice schemes, raise taxes on gambling firms, and bring in a pay-per-mile scheme for electric vehicles.

Setting the scene ahead of the budget at 12.30pm, Ms Reeves said she will “push ahead with the biggest drive for growth in a generation”, promising investment in infrastructure, housing, security, defence, education, and skills.

Although she has vowed not to “duck challenges” nor “accept that our past must define our future”, she admitted that “the damage done from austerity, a chaotic Brexit, and the pandemic were worse than we thought”.

The fiscal black hole is down to several factors – including a downgrade in the productivity growth forecast, U-turns on cuts to benefits and the winter fuel allowance, as well as “heightened global uncertainty”.

Nonetheless, the chancellor has promised more investment to cut NHS waiting lists, deal with “waste in the public sector”, and reduce the national debt.

“This budget is for you, the British people. So that together we can build a fairer, stronger, and more secure Britain,” she said.

Conservative shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride has said Ms Reeves is “trying to pull the wool over your eyes” – having promised last year that she would not need to raise taxes again.

Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper has accused her and the prime minister of “yet more betrayals”.

What could her key spending announcements be?

As well as filling the black hole in the public finances, these measures could allow the chancellor to spend money on a key demand of Labour MPs – partially or fully lifting the two-child benefits cap, which they say will have an immediate impact on reducing child poverty.

Benefits more broadly will be uprated in line with inflation, at a cost of £6bn, The Times reports.

In an attempt to help households with the cost of the living, the paper also reports that the chancellor will seek to cut energy bills by removing some green levies, which could see funding for some energy efficiency measures reduced.

Other measures The Times says she will announce include retaining the 5p cut in fuel duty, and extending the Electric Car Grant by an extra year, which gives consumers a £3,750 discount at purchase.

The government has already confirmed several key announcements, including:

• An above-inflation £550 a year increase in the state pension for 13 million eligible pensioners

• A freeze in prescription prices and rail fares

• £5m to refresh libraries in secondary schools

Extra funding for the NHS will also be announced in a bid to slash waiting lists, including the expansion of the “Neighbourhood Health Service” across the country to bring together GP, nursing, dentistry and pharmacy services – as well as £300m of investment into upgrading technology in the health service.

And although the cost of this is borne by businesses, the chancellor will confirm a 4.1% rise to the national living wage – taking it to £12.71 an hour for eligible workers aged 21 and over.

For a full-time worker over the age of 21, that means a pay increase of £900 a year.

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Britons facing ‘cost of living permacrisis’

However, the Tories have hit out at the chancellor for the impending tax rises, with shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride saying in a statement: “Having already raised taxes by £40bn, Reeves said she had wiped the slate clean, she wouldn’t be coming back for more, and it was now on her. A year later and she is set to break that promise.”

He described her choices as “political weakness” – choosing “higher welfare and higher taxes”, and “hardworking families are being handed the bill”.

The Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper is also not impressed, and warned last night: “The economy is at a standstill. Despite years of promises from the Conservatives and now Labour to kickstart growth and clamp down on crushing household bills, the British people are facing a cost-of-living permacrisis and yet more betrayals from those in charge.”

She called on the government to negotiate a new customs union with the EU, which she argues would “grow our economy and bring in tens of billions for the Exchequer”.

Green Party leader Zack Polanski has demanded “bold policies and bold choices that make a real difference to ordinary people”.

The SNP is calling on the chancellor to “help families” rather than “hammer them with billions of pounds of cuts and damaging tax hikes that destroy jobs and hurt economic growth”.