Celtic have paid tribute to former player Landry N’Guemo, who has died at the age of 38.

The Cameroonian midfielder played one season on loan at the Glasgow club, making more than 43 appearances and finishing in second place in 2010 to Rangers in the Scottish Premier League – now known as the Scottish Premiership.

Celtic released a statement saying they are “shocked and saddened” after he died in a road accident in his native country.

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“Everyone at Celtic Football Club is shocked and saddened at the news of Landry N’Guemo’s passing at the young age of 38,” the statement read.

“The thoughts and prayers of everyone at the club are with Landry’s family and friends at this sad time.”

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N’Guemo returned to French club Nancy to coach the under-16s team following the end of his playing career.

He made more than 40 appearances for Cameroon.

Eight nurses are suing their employer for sexual harassment and sex discrimination because of a policy which allows trans women to use their women’s changing rooms.

The legal action began after 26 nurses wrote to County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust raising their concerns in March.

The nurses, who work at Darlington Memorial Hospital, must change in and out of their scrubs twice a day with no private cubicles.

They claim some international nurses wanted to sign the letter but were too worried about having their visas revoked and losing their jobs.

Bethany Hutchison, one of the claimants, says they have felt unsafe as a result of a male staff member who identifies as a woman and has not transitioned.

She said: “There’s been occasions where I’ve been in the changing room alone with this colleague who looks very masculine and that was a real shock because you feel you want to challenge them, you think, ‘Oh there’s a man in the changing room’ but you can’t because of the trust’s policy.”

Read more: Transgender people may be treated in own room if patients request single-space wards

Nurses ‘need to be re-educated’

One of the nurses who has objected to the hospital’s policy is a woman who was the victim of sexual abuse and says the presence of this trans colleague in an enclosed space triggers her PTSD.

Another of the women, Lisa Lockey, told Sky News: “We’re just ordinary nurses. Is it too much to ask for a private changing room where you feel comfortable?”

Lisa says their ward manager was called into a meeting with HR and senior hospital bosses and told that the nurses needed to be “re-educated”.

The situation has escalated, with Harry Potter author JK Rowling, who has been highly vocal on trans issues, and shadow health secretary Wes Streeting, posting in support of the nurses.

The Labour spokesperson said on X: “I support the nurses and I’m horrified that they’ve had to resort to legal action. We’ve got to find a better way through this and I’d be happy to meet them. We’ve got to find a way through that treats people with respect and respects women’s safe spaces”.

The nurses are being supported in their litigation by the Christian Legal Centre.

Ambiguity in the Equality Act 2010

Its chief executive Andrea Williams says: “This case and the Cass Review demonstrate how transgender ideology has led to a public health crisis, not only for vulnerable children and for patients on wards, but now also for NHS staff who are just trying to do their job.”

Under the Equality Act 2010 it is illegal to discriminate against anyone because of their sex. Some interpret sex as referring strictly to biological sex, while others believe it also applies to transgender people who have a gender recognition certificate.

The Conservatives have said they would amend the Equality Act so that it is clear, in this context, that it only applies to biological sex.

They hope this would prevent trans women from accessing single-sex spaces such as changing rooms. Keir Starmer says the Equality Act doesn’t need to change but says he’s committed to protecting single sex spaces.

Fear is hurting everyone

Balancing the rights of transgender people and women has been a heated topic throughout this election campaign but Cleo Madeline, head of public engagement at transgender charity Gendered Intelligence, says people need to be more accepting of trans people.

“Including transgender people isn’t hurting anyone, what’s hurting everyone is this fear that has been stirred up and that’s not just hurting transgender people it’s hurting everybody,” Cleo said.

A spokesperson for County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust said: “The trust would like to emphasise that at this stage the claims being made are allegations which need to be fully investigated and reviewed.

“The trust has initiated this through its internal processes and this work continues. However, as the allegations are now also subject to active legal action, it would not be appropriate for the trust to comment further at this stage.”

There is an “alarmingly high” level of the E.coli bacteria in the section of the River Thames used for next week’s Henley Royal Regatta, making it unsafe for swimming, an anti-pollution campaign group has warned. 

Around 4,000 rowers will try to qualify for the regatta, which has taken place along the waterway since 1839, with the first of around 400 races taking place on Tuesday.

Henley and Marlow River Action Group tested the water 27 times between 23 May and 25 June, finding an average of 1,213 E.coli colony forming units (CFUs) per 100ml of water.

Anything higher than 900 CFUs per 100ml fails the Environment Agency’s inland bathing water quality standards, meaning it is unsafe for swimming.

River Action Group said the highest figure, recorded on 19 June, was 25,000 CFU, more than 27 times the acceptable limit and it was not included in their report.

The second highest reading reached 8,001 on 16 June.

River Action said that almost half (47%) of its measurements taken in Fawley Meadows, where effluent from the Henley sewage treatment works enters the river and where racegoers can hire hospitality chalets to watch the races, were above 900 CFU/100 ml.

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Thames Water, the water company responsible for sewage along the Henley stretch of the Thames, says its monitoring has found E.coli levels in the Henley area at a level the Environment Agency would deem as “good” when the conditions are dry and said spikes only occurred on four days in May and June after rainfall.

A Thames Water spokesperson said: “What these laboratory tested results show so far is that E.coli levels in the Henley stretch of the Thames are consistently achieving levels the Environment Agency would deem as ‘Good’ for bathing waters, during dry conditions.

“There have been two days in May and two days in June where there were spikes in the readings following rainfall. Notably, our Sewage Treatment Works in the area have not released untreated effluent since 14 May, demonstrating that multiple sources are likely to have contributed to these elevated readings, which could include farming, industry, road runoff and wildlife.”

It accused River Action of taking “an alarmist approach that tries to apportion blame”.

The warning comes three months after rowers on the Oxford University crew complained of feeling sick and seeing “poo in the water” as they lost the Boat Race, further along the Thames, in London after warnings about pollution levels in the river before the event.

Regatta organisers have advised rowers to cover cuts, grazes, and blisters with waterproof dressings, try not to swallow river water, wear suitable footwear when launching or recovering a boat, and clean all equipment thoroughly.

E.coli, which is found in faeces and can survive in the environment, can cause a range of infections including urinary tract infection, cystitis, intestinal infection, stomach cramps, bloody diarrhoea, and vomiting.

Some strains can lead to life-threatening sepsis requiring urgent medical attention.

Water pollution has been a major talking point during the election campaign, with the Lib Dems promising to protect chalk streams and bathing areas from sewage dumping, while Labour have pledged to block bonuses to water company bosses “until they have cleaned up their filth”.

The Conservatives have said they have introduced legal requirements for water companies to reduce discharges and increased levels of investment.