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The former head of the British Army, General Sir Mike Jackson has died aged 80.

Sir Mike, known as ‘Jacko’, died on Tuesday surrounded by his family, the Army said.

The father-of-three led the Army during the allied invasion of Iraq in 2003 after serving in Northern Ireland and Bosnia.

Chief of staff of the British armed forces General Sir Mike Jackson (C) smiles during his visit to the 1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment in the Kuwaiti desert near Iraq's border on March 7, 2003. [Unidentified people have cut down part of a fence marking the demilitarized Iraq Kuwait border zone (DMZ), U.N. observers said on Friday, in a move analysts described as a preparation for possible hostilities with Iraq.]
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General Sir Mike Jackson with the 1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment in Kuwait in 2003. Pic: Reuters

The British Army said in a tribute: “It is with great sadness that we have learnt of the death of General Sir Mike Jackson GCB, CBE, DSO, on October 15 surrounded by his family.

“General ‘Jacko’ served with distinction for over 40 years, finishing his career as chief of the general staff.

“He will be greatly missed, and long remembered.”

The announcement ended with the phrase “Utrinque Paratus”, the Latin motto of the Parachute Regiment, which translates to “ready for anything”.

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The Parachute Regimental Association said he was a “great leader of men” who will be “missed by many”.

Jackson was seen as a tough and uncompromising soldier, with Darth Vader and The Prince of Darkness reportedly among the nicknames his men gave him, referring to his cool manner and gravel voice.

British Army General Sir Mike Jackson (R) and Defence minister Geoff Hoon speak to reporters as operations continue to slaughter thousands of sheep at the disused airfield at Great Orton near Carlisle, northern England March 28, 2001. The army are helping in the disposal of thousands of sheep which are being slaughtered in an attempt to prevent the continued spread of Foot and Mouth disease.
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General Sir Mike Jackson (R) and the then Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon in 2001. Pic: Reuters

He became head of the British Army just a month before the Iraq war, also known as the Second Gulf War, replacing General Sir Michael Walker.

During his time as the country’s top soldier, the general had to deal with claims of Iraqi prisoner abuse at the hands of UK troops and growing discontent about the role of coalition troops.

In 1999, while commanding 40,000 NATO KFOR troops in the Balkans, he refused an order from his American superior officer.

NATO supreme commander General Wesley Clark directed him to send forces into Kosovo to pre-empt a surprise Russian advance heading for the airport at Pristina.

But Jackson told him: “I’m not going to start the Third World War for you.”

Earlier in his career, he was present at two significant incidents in Northern Ireland.

He was a captain with the 1st Battalion of the Parachute Regiment at the time of the Ballymurphy shootings in Northern Ireland in August 1971.

In 2019 he told an inquest into the deaths of 10 people in the incident that there had not been a cover-up.

He was also at Bloody Sunday in 1972, when British soldiers opened fire on unarmed protesters in Derry, killing 14.

In March 2006, he created a storm by criticising kidnap victim Norman Kember, who, he said, had not thanked the SAS soldiers who rescued him and his Canadian colleagues from their captors in Iraq.

Sir Mike retired in August of that year having held the post for three-and-a-half years.

Born in March 1944, Sir Mike was educated at Stamford School and Sandhurst before being commissioned into the army as an officer in 1963.

He later earned a degree in Russian studies from Birmingham University while serving in the Intelligence Corps.

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Race against time to keep Scunthorpe steel furnaces alive as raw materials to be delivered today

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Race against time to keep Scunthorpe steel furnaces alive as raw materials to be delivered today

The raw materials needed to keep the blast furnaces running at British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant will be delivered to the site today, the government has confirmed.

Ministers have been racing against time to secure the coking coal and iron ore needed to keep the furnaces at the UK’s last virgin steel-producing plant operating.

If they cool down too much, the molten iron solidifies and blocks the furnaces, making it extremely difficult and expensive to restart them.

Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, will visit the port in nearby Immingham as the supplies from two ships are unloaded and transported to the plant.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) said the materials had been provided by the US and would be enough to keep the furnaces running for weeks, while a third ship with coking coal and iron ore is on its way from Australia after a legal dispute between British Steel and the site’s Chinese owner Jingye was resolved.

The future of the British Steel plant at Scunthorpe had been hanging in the balance after Jingye decided to cancel future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running at the beginning of April.

After talks with the owner broke down, the government summoned MPs who had been away from Westminster for the Easter recess back to parliament to pass an emergency bill on Saturday to take over the facility.

The bill has brought the steelworks into effective government control, with the next step expected to be nationalisation.

Mr Reynolds said: “Thanks to the work of those at British Steel, and in my department, we have moved decisively to secure the raw materials we need to help save British Steel.

“Our industries depend on UK steel and – thanks to our plan for change – demand is set to shoot up: helping build the 1.5 million homes, railways, schools and hospitals we need to usher in a decade of national renewal.”

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Future of Scunthorpe furnaces?

Jingye’s decision to cancel future orders of the raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running has led some to question whether the company might have purposefully attempted to shut the blast furnaces down.

While Downing Street said it was not aware of “sabotage” at the plant, it did acknowledge that it had become “clear” the Chinese owners “wanted to shut the blast furnaces” during talks.

Mr Reynolds said “it might not be sabotage, it might be neglect”, while Ms Rayner said there was “no evidence” of corporate sabotage.

However, the episode has sparked a debate about Chinese involvement in UK industries, with Mr Reynolds saying on Sunday that he “wouldn’t personally bring a Chinese company into our steel sector”.

The Chinese company stepped in with a deal to buy British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant out of insolvency five years ago.

Commenting on the situation for the first time on Monday, a Chinese embassy spokesperson urged the British government not to “politicise” the row by “linking it to security issues”, and to act with “fairness, impartiality and non-discrimination… to make sure the legitimate rights and interests of the Chinese company be protected”.

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“It is an objective fact that British steel companies have generally encountered difficulties in recent years,” it added.

UK ministers have faced questions themselves over why they have only just acted on British Steel, given the fact that unions warned earlier this month that Jingye had decided to cancel future orders for the vital raw materials.

The Conservatives accused the government of acting “too late” and implementing a “botched nationalisation” after ignoring warnings about the risk to the steelworks.

Under the new legislation passed at the weekend, ministers now have the power to instruct British Steel to keep the plant in Scunthorpe open, order materials for steelmaking and instruct that workers be paid.

It also authorises a jail sentence of up to two years for anyone who breaches this law.

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Birmingham bin strike to continue after refuse workers reject council’s offer

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Birmingham bin strike to continue after refuse workers reject council's offer

A long-running strike by bin workers, that has left rubbish piling up on Birmingham’s streets, will continue after union members “overwhelmingly rejected” the city council’s offer in a fresh ballot.

The action by members of Unite, which began on 11 March as part of a dispute over pay, has seen thousands of tonnes of rubbish go uncollected and warnings of a public health emergency.

Hundreds of workers have been on all-out strike for a month, and residents have complained about “rats as big as cats”.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner visited Birmingham last week and called on the union to accept a “significantly improved” deal for workers.

Rubbish bags lie on the street, as the strike action by Birmingham bin workers represented by the Unite union enters its fifth week in Birmingham, Britain, April 11, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
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Pic: Reuters

However, the union said hundreds of its members had rejected the “totally inadequate” offer.

The offer, if it had been accepted, would have included “substantial pay cuts for workers” and “did not address potential pay cuts for 200 drivers”, according to Unite.

The latest ballot comes after previous talks failed.

Unite has been campaigning against plans to cut the post of waste recycling and collection officer (WRCO) from the city’s refuse and recycling service.

The union claims it will lead to around 150 of its members having their pay cut by up to £8,000 a year.

But the council has disputed the figures, saying only 17 workers will be affected, losing far less than Unite is claiming.

Local government minister Jim McMahon said the union’s rejection of the pay offer will be “deeply disappointing for Birmingham residents who have already endured weeks of disruption”.

“There is a fair and reasonable offer on the table and I would urge Unite to end the strikes and return to talks to reach the resolution that is fair to the workers and residents of the city,” he added.

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‘The bin strike has been good for us’

‘Rejection of the offer is no surprise’

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “The rejection of the offer is no surprise as these workers simply cannot afford to take pay cuts of this magnitude to pay the price for bad decision after bad decision.”

Unite national lead Onay Kasab told Sky News: “The proposal from the employers was completely and utterly inadequate. It still included a pay cut. It included a sharp cliff-edge drop in pay for our members.

“Unfortunately, the biggest thing about the proposal was what it didn’t include. It didn’t include the details of how and when the drivers are going to have their pay cut and what’s going to be done to mitigate that. It didn’t include issues around what happens if people finish their training and there are no vacancies for them.

“But what it did show up was this so-called figure of only 17 people being impacted is complete and utter nonsense. The proposal itself, that we’ve got in paper, impacts more than 17 people.”

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Wendy Morton, a Conservative MP whose Aldridge-Brownhills constituency is in the Walsall borough, said rats in Birmingham – labelled Squeaky Blinders – “must be dancing in the streets”.

She said: “This really shows yet again Labour-led Birmingham Council and this Labour government are failing residents and our region.

“They need to get a grip, stop blaming others, and face the unions – their paymasters. The Squeaky Blinders must be dancing in the streets.”

Rats have been seen scurrying around mounting piles of rubbish, food waste and bin bags outside homes, shops and restaurants in the city since the strike began.

‘It has been really bad’

A Birmingham resident whose car was wrecked by rats in a street where piles of rubbish were “as tall as” him is “disappointed” bin workers have rejected the council’s offer.

Adam Yasin, 33, from the Balsall Heath area of the city, said: “It’s more to do with hygiene on the streets. I take my son to the nursery and I use a specific street and honestly it was blocked. It’s just annoying, and when the kids are there they like to touch things as well.”

He said his Mercedes was “completely written off” just weeks ago because rats had chewed through wires in the engine.

He said: “It has been really bad, especially where I live, there are a lot of restaurants there. I swear there was a pile (of rubbish) as tall as me, I kid you not.

“Today they collected the rubbish that was on the floor, so the bags that were on the floor, but the bins are still left.”

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Rayner urges Unite to suspend bin strikes

What has the council said?

Birmingham City Council said: “It is incredibly disappointing, that despite several weeks of extensive negotiations, Unite have rejected a second offer of settlement. However, our door remains open.

“The council must deliver improved waste services for our citizens – who simply deserve better.

“We must also guard against future equal pay claims, and while we have sought throughout the negotiations to protect pay for individuals, Unite’s proposals focus solely on retaining a role that does not exist in other councils and represents an equal pay risk for Birmingham.

“We have made a fair and reasonable offer and every employee affected by the removal of the WRCO role could take an equivalent graded role in the council, LGV Driver training or voluntary redundancy packages.”

It comes as the government called in military planners to help tackle the mounting piles of rubbish in Birmingham.

Amid an “ongoing public health risk” posed by the mounds of waste, the planners have been assigned to provide logistical support for a short period. The move has not involved soldiers being deployed to collect rubbish.

‘Army logistics deployed’

Ms Rayner insisted there were “no boots on the ground”.

She said “we’ve deployed a couple of army logistics to help with the logistical operation of clearing up the rubbish”.

“We’ve got over two-thirds of the rubbish cleared off the streets now, this week we’ll start to see cleaning up the pavements and streets as well as the clearance of all of that rubbish, I’m very pleased about that. The kids are off school, obviously it’s Easter holidays, we want that rubbish cleared.”

Waste collections have been disrupted since January, before the all-out strike started last month.

Birmingham City Council declared a major incident on 31 March in response to public health concerns.

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Warwick Davis’s wife Samantha died hours before she was due to be discharged from hospital, inquest hears

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Warwick Davis's wife Samantha died hours before she was due to be discharged from hospital, inquest hears

Actress Samantha Davis, the wife of Warwick Davis, died after suffering a cardiac arrest hours before she was due to be discharged from hospital, an inquest has found.

Mrs Davis, 53, died at London’s University College Hospital on 24 March last year.

She had been admitted six and a half weeks earlier, after a disc prolapse caused a sudden loss of mobility in her lower limbs.

She then underwent a thoracotomy operation – a surgical procedure where the chest wall is opened – on 20 February.

Following a second thoracotomy on 14 March, Mrs Davis’s condition improved and the hospital was planning to discharge her, the inquest at Inner West London Coroner’s Court heard.

However, she went into cardiac arrest at 11.25pm on 23 March, and was pronounced dead at 0.28am on 24 March, after a failed attempt to resuscitate her.

Harrison Davis, Samantha Davis, Warwick Davis and Annabelle Davis attending the premiere of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker held at the Vue Leicester Square in London. PA Photo. Picture date: Wednesday December 18, 2019. See PA story SHOWBIZ Skywalker. Photo credit should read: Isabel Infantes/PA Wire.
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Warwick and Samantha with their children Harrison and Annabelle in 2019. Pic: PA

Senior coroner Professor Fiona Wilcox said she was satisfied the cause of death “should be arrhythmic cardiac arrest and complications following left thoracotomies”.

Mrs Davis had achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder which results in dwarfism, “complicated by very severe spinal problems” requiring multiple surgeries from 2016, the coroner added.

The hospital delivered “nothing but excellent care” and all of Mrs Davis’s “complications were appropriately managed”, Prof Wilcox said.

“It is frankly heartbreaking that the surgery itself was successful only for complications to arise and to cause her death,” she added.

David Lawrence, a cardiothoracic surgeon at University College London Hospitals, said Mrs Davis’s condition had been “progressing well”.

During her hospital stay, she had two surgical chest drains removed – the second on the day she suffered the cardiac arrest, he said.

“Very sadly, on the night this happened, the original plan had been that she would be discharged home the following day,” he told the inquest.

“We had good evidence that this patient had a chest x-ray that was acceptable, very stable observations and this patient did not bleed during the day.”

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Mr Davis, known for his film roles in the Star Wars and Harry Potter series, dedicated his BAFTA film fellowship award to Mrs Davis during an emotional tribute at the ceremony in February.

The couple met on the set of 1988 film Willow. They married three years later and have two children.

They founded the charity Little People UK in 2012 to help individuals with dwarfism and their families.

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