England spinner Shoaib Bashir has been forced to fly home to resolve Indian visa complications – an issue Ben Stokes has described as “frustrating”.
Bashir, a 20-year-old British Muslim of Pakistani heritage, was the only member of the touring party to have a significant delay over his application and was forced to stay in Abu Dhabi after a training camp.
The England and Wales Cricket Board had hoped the matter could be resolved in the United Arab Emirates – where its managing director of operations Stuart Hooper remained with Bashir.
The ECB asked for help from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and it is understood Bashir was told to return to London to receive the correct approval at the Indian embassy.
Although Bashir had been unlikely to feature in Thursday’s first Test, he has formally been taken out of contention for a debut due to the setback.
Captain Stokes said: “I didn’t want this type of situation to be his first experience of what it’s like to be in the England Test team.
Image: England’s captain Ben Stokes (Pic: AP)
“Especially for a young lad, I’m devastated for him.
“As captain I find it particularly frustrating. We announced the squad in mid-December and now Bash finds himself without a visa to get here.
“He’s not the first cricketer to go through this. I have played with a lot of people who have had the same issues.
“I find it frustrating that we have picked a player and he’s not with us because of visa issues.”
The Somerset prospect is the latest cricketer of Pakistani descent to face difficulty getting into India, with Usman Khawaja belatedly joining Australia’s tour of the country last year and Lancashire’s Saqib Mahmood withdrawn from an England Lions trip after similar problems back in 2019.
The Pakistan Cricket Board, meanwhile, wrote to the International Cricket Council ahead of the recent World Cup to complain about hold-ups in its squad’s visas for the tournament in India.
Some of the country’s media representatives also had trouble.
Grace Dent has told her fellow campmates that her “heart is broken” after leaving the set of I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here early.
The restaurant critic, 50, was spotted at Brisbane Airport on Monday after exiting the ITV reality show early “on medical grounds“.
She had been due to face the bushtucker trial, Down The Tubes, in Monday night’s instalment.
Instead, Hollyoaks actor Nick Pickard read out a statement to the camp in which Dent announced that she was leaving early.
“My dear campmates, I’m so sorry to let you down. I have left the camp for medical reasons,” she said in her statement.
“My heart is broken, I have loved and enjoyed getting to know you all. You’ve held me up and it’s been a pleasure being your friend through this experience.
“Leaving you all at this stage will be one of the saddest things in my life. I love you all. Your friend, Miss Grace Dent.”
In a statement, a spokesperson said: “She has been a great campmate and will be missed by her fellow celebrities and viewers alike.”
Dent had said, before facing the Touchdown Of Terror trial, that she was struggling in the jungle.
The MasterChef star told campmate Josie Gibson last week: “I’ve had enough. I’ve completely had enough. I just want to go home.”
Dent, who has written restaurant reviews for The Guardian and Evening Standard, had been due to face the next trial, named Down The Tubes, with This Morning announcer Gibson.
EastEnders star Danielle Harold took her place in the trial as she had the next highest amount of votes from the public.
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Also in the episode, it was revealed that TV star Sam Thompson had been voted camp leader. He chose JLS star Marvin Humes as his deputy.
Among this year’s I’m A Celebrity campmates are the controversial politician Nigel Farage, First Dates star Fred Sirieix and Britney Spears’ sister Jamie Lynn.
The show has so far attracted a lower audience than last year’s series, which featured former health secretary Matt Hancock.
This year’s launch was watched by seven million people in its first week – down from a consolidated audience of nearly 12 million last year.
Ahead of entering the jungle this year, Dent said: “Everything is filling me with a real sense of dread. But I am especially dreading being really hungry because I tend to eat four or five posh meals out a week because I am a restaurant critic.”
She said she signed up for the show after “a really difficult time over the last four or five years”.
Carol Vorderman has said she is “overwhelmed” by the support shown by her “bloody marvellous” fans after leaving her BBC radio show over the corporation’s new social media guidelines.
The former Countdown co-host announced she was leaving on Wednesday because she was “not prepared to lose [her] voice on social media”.
In a post on Instagram on Thursday, she said: “I want to say from my heart thank you.
“I am overwhelmed by all of your support, it’s just extraordinary.
“You know, we’re all in this together and we absolutely will make it right, ’cause you are bloody marvellous. You are.”
She said she recorded the clip when she got home on Wednesday night.
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It comes as celebrities including Alan Carr and Dame Kelly Holmes expressed their “respect” for Vorderman.
In the comments section of her original Instagram post announcing her departure, comedian Carr wrote “big respect Carol” while Olympian Dame Kelly wrote: “You do you Carol! Much respect for sticking up for who you are and not allowing corporations to silence you!”
Elsewhere, presenter Cat Deeley told Vorderman “you are bloody brilliant” while comedian Joe Lycett joked: “I have informed the BBC I am available to replace you.”
In her statement, Vorderman explained she had decided to continue with her criticisms of the UK government following the implementation of the new guidelines.
Read more: Gary Lineker backs BBC social media rules Match of the Day host stands by ‘factually accurate’ post Why lines are blurring between news and politics
She said: “Since those non-negotiable changes to my radio contract were made, I’ve ultimately found that I’m not prepared to lose my voice on social media, change who I am, or lose the ability to express the strong beliefs I hold about the political turmoil this country finds itself in.”
She added: “I’m sad to have to leave the wonderful friends I’ve made at Radio Wales.
“I wish them, and all of our listeners, all the love in the world. We laughed a lot, and we will miss each other dearly.”
Vorderman has presented the Saturday morning show on BBC Wales for the last five years.
She has been vocal in her criticism of the government and engaged in arguments on X, formerly Twitter, with Tory MPs.
Under the BBC’s social media guidelines, presenters on flagship programmes have been banned from making attacks on political parties.
The guidelines were introduced following a row after Match Of The Day host Gary Lineker was taken off the air by the BBC after criticising the government’s asylum policy on social media.
Ms Vorderman previously told the Sky News Daily podcast she would “wait and see” what the guidelines were and “make a decision based on that”.
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“I’ve had all sorts of experiences in broadcasting, some of them not so good,” she said.
“The vast majority of them are wonderful. So I’m a very lucky woman. Life is what life is.”
A BBC spokesperson said: “Carol has been a presenter on BBC Radio Wales since 2018. We’d like to thank her for her work and contribution to the station over the past five years.”
British star James Corden has told how he felt “compelled” to come back to the UK after eight years hosting his hit US chat show – but says it was “very difficult” to walk away.
In his first interview since returning home, the actor and presenter also spoke about the phone call he received from Tom Cruise to calm his nerves ahead of a Top Gun stunt, and gave his thoughts on whether Gavin & Stacey should come back to TV screens after a “perfect” cliffhanger.
Corden was speaking at a Royal Television Society event, looking back at how he went from being a relatively unknown British star in the US, to a world-famous presenter who has now interviewed everyone from Paul McCartney and Justin Bieber to Michelle Obama and Prince Harry.
He said he would always be “immensely proud” of presenting The Late Late Show.
Corden said: “What a thing to have done. It is a source of overwhelming feeling and just thinking, I genuinely don’t know what I’ve done to deserve such memories, to deserve such things, and it’s really hard to walk away from, it’s a very difficult thing to leave, but I felt compelled to come home.”
In the weeks since he has been back, Corden said people have questioned why he would choose to be here rather than LA.
“Sometimes you want to shake people and go, I wish you could see it from a distance,” he said.
He added: “I wish you could see this island from a distance. It’s unbelievable. It’s amazing, the architecture and the people and the creativity and the things that we make, the size of the country versus its output is extraordinary.
“And I just felt compelled to come home and, you know, to just try and see if there might be one more thing that I can do, safe in the knowledge that there might not be.”
Read more from Sky News: Sophie Turner sues Joe Jonas Emma Thompson on Hollywood strikes Strictly star shaves head after cancer diagnosis
Corden told the audience that despite being “terrified” when he started on The Late Late Show, his aim was always to create a series that embraced the internet – something he did with segments such as Carpool Karaoke and Spill Your Guts, which often went viral.
Over the years, the show featured the likes of Kim Kardashian, Adele, One Direction, Stevie Wonder and Sir Elton John.
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Asked by session host Boyd Hilton, the entertainment director of Heat magazine, about his time flying with Cruise, who is famous for doing his own stunts, ahead of the release of the Top Gun sequel, Corden said: “A few days before I had a genuine… I just ended up going like, look, he’s an actor, he’s not a pilot.
“Respectfully. It’s just the two of us in an aeroplane, if something happens… then we die. And worse than that, worse than my own death, is my children growing up and people going, you know who they are? Their dad killed Tom Cruise.
“And then Tom calls and goes, you know, ‘James. Your life is more valuable than mine.’
“He actually did make some salient points. What he said to me was, ‘I would never do this if I wasn’t flying every day. I am flying every single day… You don’t have to worry, you have to just trust me. And I wouldn’t do this going in cold.’
“And then you’re like, I guess we’re going to do it.”
Finally, Corden was also asked the question everyone wants an answer to: will we ever see more of Gavin & Stacey?
Image: Nessa proposed to Smithy in the 2019 Christmas special of Gavin and Stacey
The 2019 Christmas special left viewers on a cliffhanger as Nessa, played by Ruth Jones, proposed to Corden’s Smithy – just before the credits rolled.
“I genuinely don’t know if we’ll ever do another one,” Corden said. “I think Ruth and I would love to make something together again… I really don’t know with Gavin & Stacey. I think we feel so proud of that last special…
“I think, in a way, those characters, they live on, they carry on, they’re still out there somewhere living and breathing.
“Their lives carry on and we just sort of get together and open this portal and find out.
“Some people say to me, ‘I want to know what happens’. And I go, so do I!
“I don’t know… Maybe there’s something really perfect about it ending there.
“Can we truly fulfil people’s ambitions for it? I know it’s such an annoying answer, I’m aware of that, but I don’t know.”
Domestic abusers will be forced to wear electronic tags on leaving prison or risk being sent back to detention under a pilot scheme launched by the government to protect victims.
Up to 500 people will be made to wear the devices, which can monitor their whereabouts, enforce a curfew and ban them from going within a certain distance of a victim’s home.
The pilot will launch in the East and West Midlands before it is rolled out across England and Wales next year, the Ministry of Justice said.
Nicole Jacobs, the domestic abuse commissioner for England and Wales, welcomed the pilot as a “positive step forwards in protecting victims”.
“By blocking perpetrators from contacting victims, the Unwanted Prisoner Contact scheme sets an important standard that the criminal justice system will not be used to further domestic abuse, making a difference for survivors’ safety, recovery, and freedom from abuse,” she said.
“For too long, the onus has been on victims of domestic abuse to protect themselves from harm.”
Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said: “Survivors of domestic abuse show great strength and bravery in coming forward, and it is right that every tool is used to protect them from further harm.
“The tagging of prison leavers at risk of committing further domestic abuse is a further protection we are introducing to help victims rebuild their lives and feel safe in their communities.”
But Labour’s shadow justice secretary Steve Reed said the government had a “shameful record of ignoring domestic abuse”.
“This pilot is a pathetic effort to stem the rising tide of violence against women and girls that has skyrocketed on their watch,” he said.
“They’ve stood idly by as domestic violence has more than doubled since 2015 yet the number of prosecutions has plummeted by half.”
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3:31
Officer ‘took advantage’ of woman
The development coincides with a special report by Sky News that revealed a police officer was able to take advantage of a domestic abuse survivor by having sex with her in a women’s refuge while on duty.
Shannon Mulhall was distressed and vulnerable when she called the police and was taken to the refuge – but when she arrived, one of the officers sent to protect her stripped naked and made sexual advances towards her.
Disgraced Humberside Police officer PC Simon Miller now faces years in jail after admitting the improper exercise of policing powers.
He becomes the latest in a line of police officers who have eroded public trust in the police through their actions.
Read more: ‘Chilling’ surge in use of tech to control abuse victims Failures leave ‘potential victims at risk’
In a move that seeks to address the public’s concerns, the government announced on Thursday that it would give police more powers to sack rogue officers.
Police officers who are found guilty of gross misconduct will face automatic dismissal while those who fail vetting checks can also be fired.
The move comes following a series of scandals engulfing the police, including the murder of Sarah Everard by serving Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens and the unmasking of former police constable David Carrick as a serial abuser and rapist.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley, who had been pushing for changes to police regulations to make it easier to sack rogue officers, welcomed the development.
“I’m grateful to the government for recognising the need for substantial change that will empower chief officers in our fight to uphold the highest standards and restore confidence in policing,” he said.
Rishi Sunak has repeatedly refused to say whether the UK would have to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to deliver his government’s plan for removing asylum seekers who arrive illegally.
Making his debut appearance at the Commons Liaison Committee, the prime minister was asked by the SNP’s Joanna Cheery whether the UK would have to derogate from the ECHR to fulfil his proposals to curb immigration.
“You will see the legislation next year and no doubt we will have the opportunity to debate it then but I wouldn’t want to speculate on that now,” he said.
Mr Sunak said he welcomes the High Court’s ruling on Monday that the government’s policy of removing asylum seekers to Rwanda is lawful.
He told MPs he believes the plans will help tackle the problem of small boats crossing the Channel.
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But the PM refused to be drawn on whether the government’s Rwanda policy would require changes to the Human Rights Act or the UK’s commitment to the ECHR.
Both Home Secretary Suella Braverman and Justice Secretary Dominic Raab have said the government may have to consider withdrawing from the ECHR to press ahead successfully with the government’s plans.
“We expect further legal challenge. We will continue to pursue that as necessary,” he said.
“I believe the Rwanda scheme represents an important part of our plan to tackle illegal migration and stop small boats. It is not the only part of it but it is an important part of it. That is why I welcome the court decision yesterday.
“We will introduce legislation in the new year that will achieve the aim I set out. I am confident that we can deliver on that plan and it will make a difference and reduce the number of boats arriving.”
On Monday, Lord Justice Lewis said in his ruling that the controversial policy, introduced under Boris Johnson, was “consistent with the refugee convention”.
However, he said the home secretary should look at people’s “particular circumstances” before deporting them to the central African country.
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2:36
Braverman defends Rwanda plan
Making a statement in the Commons after the judgment, the home secretary said the Rwanda policy is a “humane” and “practical alternative” for those who come to the UK through “dangerous, illegal and unnecessary routes”.
“Being relocated to Rwanda is not a punishment, but an innovative way of addressing a major problem to redress the imbalance between illegal and legal migration routes,” she told MPs.
The government announced its Rwanda policy back in April, which would see some asylum seekers who had reached the UK via small boat Channel crossings deported to the country to have their cases processed.
Ms Patel said it would help deter people from making the dangerous journey, but human rights campaigners, charities and opposition parties condemned the plan as inhumane.
PM evasive as he faces questions on immigration
The PM avoided directly answering questions about immigration.
Diana Johnson asked how many small boat crossings he expects next year, whether anyone will be waiting more than 6 months for an asylum claims and how many will be sent to Rwanda, but the PM wouldn’t set specific targets, saying the issues “can’t be solved overnight”.
While the court decision yesterday that the Rwanda plan is legal was a win for the government, the plan being workable relies on swift action.
The home office being potentially dragged to court over every Rwanda deportation case makes it very hard for the policy hard to work as a deterrent.
Rishi Sunak knows it’s an issue that chimes with many voters and Tory MPs, something he said is a personal priority.
He pledged last week to “abolish” the immigration backlog, to achieve something his predecessors tried and failed to.
The PM may not be setting himself any targets today, but images of small boats arriving on the Kent coast will speak for themselves.
The first flight was set to take off in June with four people on board, but was halted after a number of legal challenges and the European Court of Human Rights ruling the plan carried “a real risk of irreversible harm”.
However, both Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss insisted they would push ahead with the policy when they took the keys to Number 10.
Meanwhile, the PM also told the Commons Liaison Committee that he was committed to abolishing the backlog of 92,000 asylum claims – as it stood at the end of June 2022 – by the end of the year.
However, the current backlog stands at 117,00.
“I think it would represent one of the most significant reductions in the backlog we have seen. If we can go further I would absolutely love to,” he said.
A housing group said it is “devastated” and “sorry for our part” in failing to realise one of its tenants had been left dead in her flat for two and a half years.
Sheila Seleoane, 58, was last heard from in August 2019, the last month she made a rent payment.
When police forced their way into her flat in Peckham in February 2022 – after neighbours noticed a balcony door swinging open following Storm Eunice – her body had to be identified by dental records.
Residents had reported the presence of maggots and flies to Peabody Group “within weeks” of the August date she had last been confirmed alive, but the housing association closed the case the month after.
“We didn’t ask the most fundamental question – is Sheila ok?” said Peabody’s chief executive, Ian McDermott.
“I am so sorry this happened,” he said. “We’ve apologised to the family. We’re deeply sorry for what happened.
“The biggest apology though I think does go to the residents of Lord’s Court. They did tell us that something was wrong.”
Six months after Ms Seleoane made her last rent payment, Peabody made an application for direct payment of Universal Credit.
The housing association has not repaid this money but has pledged to do so.
According to an independent investigation commissioned by Peabody, the COVID-19 lockdown “exacerbated the length of time the body remained undiscovered, but was not the cause of the delay”.
Peabody said that it had recorded 89 attempts to contact Ms Seleoane, but recognised these were not substantive and none were successful.
By October 2020 the housing association had contacted the Metropolitan Police to perform a welfare check on Ms Seleoane and an officer incorrectly told them she was safe and well.
The force said that the staff member had since left the force but would have faced a professional standards enquiry if they had still been employed.
A coroner’s inquest this week found that the police and Peabody had missed numerous opportunities to discover her body.
Dr Julian Morris delivered an open verdict and said: “To lie undetected for in all likelihood over two years is difficult to fathom in 2022.”
