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Rishi Sunak says he will take personal responsibility if inflation in the UK has not halved by the end of the year.

The prime minister was speaking to Sky News political editor Beth Rigby during a visit to Washington DC, where he will meet President Biden.

Mr Sunak has made a significant amount of noise about his five priorities, which he says are also the “people’s priorities”.

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Sunak has staked his premiership on five pledges but there are no easy answers

They include: Halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce debt, cut waiting lists, and stop the boats.

He promised in January – when inflation was 10.1% – to tackle price growth to help with the cost of living crisis.

Rishi Sunak
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Rishi Sunak arriving in Washington

The most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics had inflation easing to 8.7% – but food inflation remained at nearly 20% and core price inflation is at a 30-year-high.

“First, we will halve inflation this year to ease the cost of living and give people financial security,” Mr Sunak said in his January speech.

Beth Rigby asked him: “Two of your five pledges – inflation down by the end of the year, the UK out of recession by the end of the year.

“If you fail on either of them, do you take personal responsibility, you don’t blame the Bank of England, you don’t blame consumers, you don’t blame business. It’s on you personally because it’s your personal pledges?”

The prime minister said: “Of course it’s on me personally. I’m the prime minister. I’m the person who set out those five pledges to halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce debt, cut waiting lists, and to stop the boats, and I intend to deliver on those.”

Mr Sunak added: “When it comes to growing the economy, as you mentioned, we’ve already avoided the recession that many predicted. People are upgrading our growth forecasts as we speak.

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Prime Minister Rishi Sunak onboard Border Agency cutter HMC Seeker during a visit to Dover, ahead of a press conference to update the nation on the progress made in the six months since he introduced the Illegal Migration Bill under his plans to "stop the boats". Picture date: Monday June 5, 2023.
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Rishi Sunak during a visit to Dover this week

“I’m announcing £14bn of investment into the UK, which is going to support thousands of jobs. And just this week I managed to explain to the country how we’re progressing our boats plan, which means that this year, crossings into the UK down by almost a fifth over the first five months of this year.

“So look, the plans are working, but I’m not complacent. There’s work to do and I intend to deliver.”

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Sunak warns against AI ‘scaremongering’

Asked if it was a “dealbreaker” if he did not deliver for the British public, Mr Sunak said: “It’s absolutely my responsibility. I’ve told the public to hold me accountable.

“They should be able to have politicians who deliver what they say, and that’s what I intend to do.”

Mr Sunak was also asked if – like Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said last week – he was prepared to risk a recession to bring inflation down.

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The prime minister did not deny this might need to happen, saying: “I think what the Chancellor was saying is that inflation is the challenge that we must confront.

“Obviously, monetary policy interest rates are a decision for the Bank of England, so it wouldn’t be right for me to comment on that.”

As well as discussing trade with the US president, Mr Sunak will bring up artificial intelligence.

No 10 said the UK would host the first global summit on AI safety, with Mr Sunak and Mr Biden taking “a coordinated approach to the opportunities and challenges of emerging tech”.

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Second body found in search for missing sisters, Police Scotland say

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Second body found in search for missing sisters, Police Scotland say

A second body has been found in the search for two missing sisters in Aberdeen.

Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both aged 32, were last spotted on CCTV in the city’s Market Street at Victoria Bridge at about 2.12am on Tuesday 7 January.

Around 9.05pm last night, the body of a woman was recovered from the River Dee in Aberdeen. The woman is yet to be formally identified but the sisters’ family has been told, say police.

Earlier yesterday, a body, believed to be that of Henrietta, was also recovered from the water.

On Tuesday 7 January the women were seen crossing the bridge and turning right on to a footpath next to the River Dee in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club.

The siblings’ disappearance sparked a major Police Scotland operation, with the force’s extensive searches of the River Dee coming to an end three weeks later.

A Police dive boat on the River Dee at Aberdeen harbour during the ongoing search for missing sisters, Eliza and Henrietta Huszti. The pair were last seen on CCTV on Market Street at Victoria Bridge, Aberdeen, at about 2.12am on Tuesday January 7. Picture date: Tuesday January 14, 2025.
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A search team scouring the River Dee. Pic: PA

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Police previously said there were “no apparent suspicious circumstances” as the search was continuing.

The police revealed that the sisters – who are part of a set of triplets and originally from Hungary – visited the bridge where they were last seen about 12 hours before they disappeared.

They also sent a text message to their landlady on the morning they vanished, indicating they would not be returning to the flat.

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More British people than ever trapped in modern slavery – as Sky News joins police on abattoir raid

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More British people than ever trapped in modern slavery - as Sky News joins police on abattoir raid

More British people than ever before are being trapped in modern slavery, according to the latest available Home Office figures.  

A quarter of all referrals to the UK’s national modern slavery safeguarding scheme were related to British nationals.

Albanian and Vietnamese nationals were the second and third most referred, respectively.

But despite some police forces seeing a rise in charges for human trafficking, conviction rates remain proportionately low.

Sky News joined Greater Manchester Police on a raid at an abattoir, following intelligence claims that its owners were suspected of exploiting labour.

One alleged victim of modern slavery in the abattoir was living in conditions deemed “unsuitable for human habitation”, police said, just metres from where live animals were being slaughtered.

Pic: Greater Manchester Police
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Pic: Greater Manchester Police

Police spoke to abattoir workers
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Police spoke to abattoir workers. Pic: Greater Manchester Police

The man, who was brought to the UK on a legitimate skilled worker visa, told police he was then forced to work long hours for little or no pay.

“The area where our survivor was required to sleep was essentially a converted office space… next to the main slaughter hall,” DS Lee Attenborough, of Greater Manchester Police, says.

“It’s a noisy mechanised site, with a pungent smell from the activity that goes on here and is really not suitable for human habitation as far as we’re concerned.”

Sheep at the abattoir searched by Greater Manchester Police as part of an operation to combat modern slavery
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Sheep at the abattoir searched by Greater Manchester Police as part of an operation to combat modern slavery

Police at the scene of the abattoir raid
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Police at the scene of the abattoir raid

On this raid, police did not identify any additional suspected victims of modern slavery.

But authorities warn that these types of environments are typically where they find the most people who need their help.

Following the abattoir raid, a man and a woman, both in their 30s, were arrested on suspicion of human trafficking and an offence of slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour on Friday evening.

An Albanian national, also in his thirties, was arrested at the same abattoir after he tried to evade police, fleeing from the site and hiding on a nearby roof, DS Attenborough said.

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Police detained people during the abattoir search
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Police detained people during the abattoir search

A Greater Manchester Police officer during the abattoir search
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A Greater Manchester Police officer during the abattoir search

Darren Wright from the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority said: “Abattoirs, farms, takeaways – anywhere there’s money to be made you usually find exploitation.

“It’s all about telling these potential victims what support we can offer and what support we can offer to gain their trust.

“But by the very nature of the job, they are very distrustful.”

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Mum of baby with rare blood disorder HLH urges people to sign stem cell register in bid to save daughter’s life

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Mum of baby with rare blood disorder HLH urges people to sign stem cell register in bid to save daughter's life

The mother of a baby girl who was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder has urged people to sign the stem cell register in a bid to save her daughter’s life.

Doctors initially suspected a viral infection when three-month-old Dolcie-Mae Edwards-Raymond, from Newport in South Wales, fell ill and failed to gain weight shortly after she was born.

However, when she was just a month old, her parents Courtney-Jade Edwards, 22, and Ashley David Raymond, 28, were told she has hemophagocytic lymphohistiocystosis (HLH).

The immune deficiency disorder occurs when certain types of white blood cells, known as histiocytes and lymphocytes, become overactive and attack the body.

It can be life-threatening if left untreated or not diagnosed promptly.

Following her diagnosis, Dolcie-Mae was airlifted to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle from her home where she is receiving specialist treatment.

She will remain in hospital until a matching stem cell donor can be found.

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Courtney-Jade Edwards and Ashley Raymond with their daughter Dolcie-Mae. Pic: PA
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Courtney-Jade Edwards and Ashley Raymond with their daughter Dolcie-Mae. Pic: PA

Ms Edwards said: “No family should have to go through such an awful journey, watching their child fight a battle bigger than themselves.

“You could help give families like ours a chance to make memories by signing up to the register today.

“When Dolcie-Mae’s dad, Ashley, and I found out our daughter had HLH we were devastated. We had no idea about this rare blood disorder until she was diagnosed.

“To hear that our daughter’s body was attacking itself was just so heartbreaking. Knowing there was absolutely nothing we could do but sit beside her and pray for better days was awful, leaving us feeling so helpless.”

The family are now appealing for people between the ages of 16 and 30 to join the Anthony Nolan stem cell register to find a donor for Dolcie-Mae.

“Help give patients like my baby girl a second chance at life,” Ms Edwards said.

“A stem cell transplant from a stranger, someone like you, can be their only hope. Please join the stem cell register.”

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Pic: PA
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Pic: PA

Charlotte Cunliffe, director of register development at Anthony Nolan, said: “It’s heartbreaking to think about what little Dolcie-Mae and her family are going through and we are supporting them through this uncertain time.

“At Anthony Nolan we give hope to families affected by blood cancers and disorders, but we can’t do it without the lifesavers that sign up to our register.

“If you are aged 16-30, please sign up to the Anthony Nolan register online and send back your swabs. You could be the match that someone like baby Dolcie-Mae needs to survive.”

According to a study published in 2022, there were 1,674 people with HLH diagnosed in England between 2003 and 2018

There are two types of HLH.

One is inherited and usually affects babies under the age of one, while secondary HLH is caused by infections and usually happens after age six.

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