Angela Rayner has been frozen out of Andy Burnham’s inner circle despite securing a prominent role in his new Cabinet, it has been claimed.
Several senior Whitehall sources said Rayner tried to slow Burnham’s return to Parliament as she still harboured leadership ambitions of her own, The i Paper has been told.
Supporters of Rayner, who returned to frontline politics as Burnham’s Housing Secretary on Monday, strongly deny the claims, pointing to her support for him when he was blocked from running in the Gorton and Denton by-election in January.
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Friend of Manchester synagogue attacker jailed for life over MoD terror plan
A man who planned a terror attack with his friend who went on a fatal knife rampage at a Manchester synagogue less than two months later has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 17 years.
Caption: Undated handout photo issued by Greater Manchester Police of Mohammad Bashir, 31, of Shaftesbury Road, Cheetham. Last month, Bashir, pleaded guilty to the preparation of terrorist acts. The “long-standing, committed jihadist” planned a terror attack on a defence base with the man who went on to commit a fatal knife rampage at a Manchester synagogue, Manchester Crown Court court has heard. Bashir, 31, drove Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, on a 10-hour round trip to conduct hostile reconnaissance at the UK Defence Academy in Shrivenham, Swindon, on August 14 last year before they deliberately disposed of their mobile phones. Less than two months later, Al-Shamie was shot dead by police on October 2 while he carried out his terrorist attack at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in which two worshippers were killed. Issue date: Wednesday July 22, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Greater Manchester Police/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: Greater Manchester Police
Provider: Greater Manchester Police/PA Wire
Source: PA
What you need to know
Mohammad Bashir, 31, drove Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, on a 10-hour round trip to conduct hostile reconnaissance at the UK’s Defence Academy in Shrivenham, Swindon, last year, Manchester Crown Court heard.
Caption: Undated family handout photo issued by Greater Manchester Police of Melvin Cravitz, 66, who died along with Adrian Daulby, 53, during the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue attack in Crumpsall, Manchester. Issue date: Friday October 3, 2025. PA Photo. Three people have been arrested on suspicion of planning the terror attack carried out by Jihad Al-Shamie, who was shot dead by police seven minutes after officers were alerted to the attack on Thursday morning. Photo credit should read: Family Handout/PA Wire
NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: Family Handout
Provider: Family Handout/PA Wire
Source: PA
Copyright: PA
Caption: Undated family handout photo issued by Greater Manchester Police of Adrian Daulby, 53, who along with Melvin Cravitz, 66, died during the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue attack in Crumpsall, Manchester. Issue date: Friday October 3, 2025. PA Photo. Three people have been arrested on suspicion of planning the terror attack carried out by Jihad Al-Shamie, who was shot dead by police seven minutes after officers were alerted to the attack on Thursday morning. Photo credit should read: Family Handout/PA Wire
NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: Family Handout
Provider: Family Handout/PA Wire
Source: PA
Copyright: PA
On 2 October, Adrian Daulby (left) and Melvin Cravitz (right), were killed in a separate incident at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue. Syrian-born UK citizen Al-Shamie was shot dead by police outside the building.
‘Firmly committed jihadist’
Last month, Bashir pleaded guilty to the preparation of terrorist acts.
Prosecutors said there was no evidence to suggest the defendant was involved in the Heaton Park incident, but the planned attack on the defence facility was similar.
Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told Bashir that by August last year he had become a “firmly committed jihadist” and together with Al-Shamie was “equally engaged” in planning an attack on a British military target.
NEWS
2 min read
‘A missed opportunity’
Following the synagogue attack, WhatsApps between the pair were uncovered when police analysed two phones seized from Al-Shamie.
Sir Stephen Watson, Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police, issued an apology over the “missed opportunity” to gather intelligence on Al-Shamie.
Caption: Handout grab dated 09/08/25 taken from CCTV issued by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) of Mohammad Bashir and Jihad Al-Shamie at the Al Sunnah Mosque in Manchester, where they mistakenly believed they had hidden from the cameras and that their conversations would not be overheard. Mohammad Bashir, 31, who planned a terror attack with his friend – who went on a fatal knife rampage at a Manchester synagogue less than two months later – has been sentenced to life with a minimum term of 17 years at Manchester Crown Court. Issue date: Thursday July 23, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: GMP/PA Wire
NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Photographer: GMP
Provider: GMP/PA Wire
Source: PA
HEALTH
How 75 people cured themselves of chronic fatigue and long Covid
People with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)/ myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) or long Covid are usually told there is no cure but a new study has suggested there may be mental techniques which reduce or cure the the physical conditions of the illnesses.
What the study found
The analysis of 75 people who recovered from one of the conditions -by Goldsmiths, University of London – found most of who got better did so through “mind-body”.
Nearly 80 per cent of participants had completely recovered, while the rest had significantly improved.
And 95 per cent had followed brain retraining or mind-body approaches, based on seeing the cause of the illness as stress and anxiety.
But as these techniques aren’t recommended, most discovered them online.
The expert view
New mind-body treatments manipulate our symptom experience, especially symptoms that are not caused by tissue damage, so we don’t feel those symptoms anymore.
Dr Maria Pedersen, researcher and senior physician at Oslo University HospitaL
Tired man just woke up. Concept of low energy and sleeplessness. – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
The most common symptoms of ME/CFS
Extreme fatigue
Sleep issues including insomnia
Brain fog
Symptoms getting worse after physical or mental activity
LIFESTYLE
5 min read
Symptoms of long Covid
Feeling extremely tired (fatigue)
Shortness of breath
Joint pain and aching muscles
Brain fog
MONEY
3 min read
Gatwick is another airport which charges people to be dropped off outside
(Photo: Geography Photos/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
TRANSPORT
Airport drop-off fees rise by a third
Fees for drop-offs at the UK’s major airports have risen by a third on average since last summer.
Out of the 20 busiest airports, 16 have increased their prices for pulling up to the closest point to terminals, according to the RAC motoring group.
The most and least expensive airports
£10
London City airport, which only started making people pay this year, is the most expensive on a per-minute basis – at £8 for five minutes. But Gatwick and Stansted had the highest minimum fees of £10.
Belfast City has the cheapest minimum at £4, while East Midlands charges the least per hour at 33p with a minimum fee of £5. Birmingham, Luton and Heathrow have minimums of £7.
Edinburgh and Bristol charge minimums of £8.50, while Leeds, Bradford and Bournemouth have £8 fees.
The expert view
The growing number of airports that operate barrierless ‘park now, pay later’ drop-off zones is also something drivers need to be extremely careful of. Those that drop off but miss the signage, or forget to go online or phone the airport to pay soon afterwards, can face a parking charge notice as high as £100.
Rod Dennis, RAC senior policy officer
Caption: Skavsta Airport, Nykoping, Sweden – September 12, 2019: Father and daughter looking out through the window of the airport concourse at the Ryanair airplane waiting for the boarding
Photographer: Iryna Chubarova
Provider: Getty Images
Source: iStock Editorial
Caption: Emergency services on scene after an incident was declared on Mersea Island seafront. // A teenage girl and a woman in her 40s have died after three people got into difficulty in the sea. Emergency services raced to the scene at West Mersea, Essex, at around 5.35pm on Wednesday (July 22) after the alarm was raised by the ambulance service. Despite the efforts by rescuers, the teenage girl and the woman died at the scene. A third person remains in hospital in a serious condition.
Photo released 23/07/2026
Photographer: / SWNS
Provider: Daniel Rees / Newsquest / SWNS
Source: Daniel Rees / Newsquest / SWNS
uk news
Teenage girl and woman in her 40s dead after getting into difficulty off coast
A teenage girl and a woman in her forties have died after getting into difficulty in the water off the coast of Essex, police said.
Emergency services were called to the scene in West Mersea, Colchester at 5.35pm on Wednesday following reports of several people being in difficulty in the water.
Public told to avoid the area
Essex Police confirmed that despite the best efforts of paramedics, a teenage girl and a woman in her forties have died. A third person remains in hospital in a serious condition.
In a statement on Wednesday, the force asked people to avoid the area.
Caption: Emergency services on scene after an incident was declared on Mersea Island seafront. // A teenage girl and a woman in her 40s have died after three people got into difficulty in the sea. Emergency services raced to the scene at West Mersea, Essex, at around 5.35pm on Wednesday (July 22) after the alarm was raised by the ambulance service. Despite the efforts by rescuers, the teenage girl and the woman died at the scene. A third person remains in hospital in a serious condition.
Photo released 23/07/2026
Photographer: / SWNS
Provider: Daniel Rees / Newsquest / SWNS
Source: Daniel Rees / Newsquest / SWNS
NEWS
2 min read
What did the police say?
While we remain on scene, we would ask the public to avoid the Seaview Avenue and beach area. We appreciate that this will cause some local issues, but would ask for your patience and understanding as we may be there for some time yet.
Five police officers have been suspended after a member of public found the bag of guns (Photo: Lawrey Anstis/Getty Images/iStock Editorial)
Caption: Female therapist examines african senior woman patient for osteoarthritis inside studio room – Wellness, healthcare and chriopractice treatment concept
Photographer: Sabrina Bracher
Provider: Getty Images
Source: iStockphoto
health
NHS rollout for ‘life-changing’ pill which helps MS patients walk more easily
A twice-daily pill which helps people with multiple sclerosis (MS) to walk more easily is to be rolled out on the NHS.
Thousands of patients in England will be eligible for fampridine, which has been hailed as “life-changing”.
Everything you need to know
It is the first drug designed to improve walking ability in people with MS, an incurable autoimmune disease which affects the brain and spinal cord.
Caption: MRI Brain Scan. Doctor shows MRI Brain Scan of head and skull.
Photographer: Makhbubakhon Ismatova
Provider: Getty Images
Source: iStockphoto
Caption: Illustration of the human brain with highlighted cerebellum. This responsible for coordination, balance, and fine motor control. It is damaged in ataxia and neurodegenerative disorders
Photographer: KATERYNA KON/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRA
Provider: Getty Images/Science Photo Libra
Source: Science Photo Library RF
Copyright: Science Photo Library
Symptoms can include tiredness, dizziness, tingling in different parts of the body, muscle cramps, vision problems and memory problems.
Why is this drug so important?
Until now, MS patients with walking difficulties have been offered physiotherapy, walking aids or devices to support their feet.
Fampridine, also known as Fampyra, works by acting as a signal booster, helping to restore electrical signals running along damaged nerves and allowing muscles to function better.
LIFESTYLE
2 min read
The expert view
Walking difficulties can have a huge impact on the freedom and independence of people with MS, so this signal-boosting pill could be life-changing for thousands of patients.
Professor Frankie Swords, NHS national medical director
Caption: Mature man with multiple sclerosis and cane in his hand sits on a plastic chair in nature
Photographer: Constantinis
Provider: Getty Images
Source: iStockphoto
A closer look at the detail
Officials estimate that around 5,000 people with MS will be eligible for the drug in the first year.
It is recommended for MS patients with certain Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores.
(Photo: Peter Carruthers/Getty).
The EDSS is a tool used by medics to monitor disability caused by MS. Those with a score of between four – able to walk without an aid or rest for around 500 metres – and seven, which include patients who use wheelchairs, will be offered fampridine.
Weight-loss drugs such as Mounjaro and Wegovy ‘linked to hair loss’
Weight-loss drugs such as Mounjaro, Ozempic and Wegovy are linked to an increased risk of hair loss, researchers say.
Two blue insulin pens wrapped with a yellow measuring tape on a pink background, symbolizing diabetes management, weight loss, medical treatment, and healthcare concepts. drugs injection ozempic – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
What you need to know
People on GLP-1 agonist drugs have been reporting hair loss to regulators, but a new study on around 50,000 people appears to firm up the link.
Experts used electronic patient data from the University of Pennsylvania Health System to compare rates of alopecia hair loss in adults using GLP-1s to manage diabetes with those on other drugs.
Caption: Hair loss it cause from family history, hormonal changes, unhealthy of aging.
Photographer: Boy_Anupong
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Moment RF
Copyright: BOY_ANUPONG
Analysis
3 min read
A closer look at the detail
The team noted that regulators in the US have been informed of the link between the drugs and hair loss, particularly for semaglutide (Wegovy and Ozempic) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro).
So far in 2026, the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has received 399 reports of hair loss relating to tirzepatide.
It has also received 148 reports of hair loss linked to semaglutide.
LIFESTYLE
3 min read
How was the study carried out?
For the new study, the team looked at people with type 2 diabetes on GLP-1 receptor agonists or other types of diabetes drugs known as SGLT-2 inhibitors, or DPP-4 inhibitors.
Caption: Eli Lilly & Co. Mounjaro brand tirzepatide medication arranged in Austin, Texas, US, on Sunday, March 3, 2024. Weight-loss shot users are looking to influencers for guidance absent proper follow-up care. Photographer: Montinique Monroe/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Photographer: Bloomberg
Provider: Bloomberg via Getty Images
Source: Bloomberg
Copyright: ? 2024 Bloomberg Finance LP
It can be normal to shed up to 100-150 hairs a day (Photo: Predrag Popovski via Getty Images)
In total, 12,004 patients using GLP-1s were compared with 15,221 using SGLT-2 inhibitors and a further 11,964 GLP-1 users were compared with 11,233 DPP-4 inhibitor users.
37% higher risk of alopecia
After adjusting for factors that could influence the results, such as age and weight, researchers found using GLP-1 drugs were associated with a 37 per cent higher risk of alopecia than use of SGLT-2 inhibitors.
GLP-1s were also linked to a 68% higher risk of hair loss than use of DPP-4 inhibitors.
LIFESTYLE
5 min read
LIFESTYLE
3 min read
money
Inflation drops more than expected
Inflation slowed by more than expected in the latest reading on Wednesday – but experts don’t think that interest rates will follow this year.
The consumer prices index (CPI) measure of inflation hit 2.6 per cent in the year to June, down from 2.8 per cent a month earlier. Most economists had expected a fall to around 2.7 per cent.
What will happen next?
But experts expect the figure to pick up from next month – once July’s energy price rises are factored in to the equation.
And as a result they say cuts to the Bank of England base rate in 2026 are likely off the table.
Caption: Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, during the Bank of England financial stability report press conference, at the Bank of England, London. Picture date: Tuesday July 7, 2026. Doug Peters/Pool via REUTERS
Photographer: Doug Peters
Provider: via REUTERS
Source: Pool
SAVING AND BANKING
3 min read
What happened to inflation?
In June’s figures, CPI dropped to 2.6 per cent – the lowest rate since March last year. A spike is expected in July though, because the price cap on energy prices rose by 13 per cent at the start of the month.
Energy prices have soared due to the US-Israel war with Iran (Photo: Getty)
They want to understand how big of a portion they can take from their pot
“The UK will see inflation push higher from here – potentially pushing closer to 3.3 per cent to 3.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of the year as base effects, food price rises and energy price rises catch up with households,” said Sanjay Raja, chief UK economist at Deutsche Bank Research.
What about interest rates?
The Bank of England base rate, colloquially called interest rates, sits at 3.75 per cent.
The rate tends to come down as inflation looks like it’s heading towards the Bank’s 2 per cent target.
Experts think the spike in inflation expected later this year will stop the Bank cutting rates this month, or indeed throughout 2026.
But they don’t expect any hikes either.
LIFESTYLE
4 min read
Mortgage rates are set to rise (Image: sorbetto/Getty Images/Digital Vision Vectors)
What does this mean for mortgages?
The Bank of England interest rate affects mortgage rates in numerous ways. No cuts or rises means those with variable or tracker mortgages will see their home loan price stay the same throughout this year – if predictions are correct.
Fixed rate mortgages, however, are heavily priced on swap rates, which follow predictions of where the Bank of England base rate will go next.
No 10 declined to comment. Rayner’s allies dismissed any suggestions of a rift as “silly rumours”, and stressed that she has been given a Cabinet role to deliver on the Prime Minister’s key priorities.
But they do not deny that she is not part of Burnham’s inner circle – which is said to revolve around Louise Haigh, his First Secretary of State, and Anneliese Midgley, his Chief Whip – and admit she was not as intrinsically involved in his Makerfield by-election campaign.
Rayner has never been far from the limelight and has often been a lightning conductor for dissent within the party – something Burnham will have likely considered when appointing her to his Cabinet.
The i Paper first revealed in May that Rayner had made a secret visit to Haigh – then the backroom power broker after reviving the soft-left Tribune group, which represents more than 100 MPs, to canvas support for her own exploratory leadership bid. However, she left empty-handed – leaving many MPs in the caucus to correctly conclude that support from the left flank of the party was instead flowing towards Burnham.
Haigh’s refusal to back Rayner came as little surprise – one source suggested there had long been tensions between the two and lingering resentment that Rayner remained a potential leadership contender despite her tax controversy, while Haigh’s own ambitions had been curtailed by scrutiny of a historic spent conviction.
Rayner believed she still had a chance to become the emerging favourite among the party’s soft left if the National Executive Committee blocked Burnham from running a second time, one MP said, adding: “She was frustrated that the [Parliamentary Labour Party] were hanging their hopes on Burnham.”
Her critics also claimed she hinted to Cabinet colleagues that she could still return to frontline politics as their boss, and word of that got back to Burnham.
Rayner supported Burnham by campaigning for him in Makerfield and praising his devolution strategy, although she was absent from some events – including his first major speech as prime minister-in-waiting, which was held in Manchester, a few miles from her seat. Other senior Greater Manchester MPs attended, including Labour’s deputy leader Lucy Powell and Keir Starmer’s chief whip Jonathan Reynolds.
Rayner did not know if she had a job in Burnham’s first Cabinet before she was appointed, her allies said.
They previously claimed she had her heart set on becoming education secretary – a role rumoured to have been first offered to former chancellor Rachel Reeves before Powell’s appointment. A source close to Rayner has denied this is the case.
Others close to the minister say she is delighted to be back in her old department overseeing the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
The new No 10 North unit will lead strategy on devolution and local economic growth, while Rayner’s department will be responsible for the core policy areas of housing, planning, local government and the delivery of devolution.
The changes reflect a long-standing argument made by both Rayner and Burnham that the greatest barriers to meaningful devolution often lie within Whitehall itself. Although successive governments have backed devolving power to mayors and local leaders, departments have frequently been reluctant to give up control of funding, policy, and decision-making.
Rayner said in a speech earlier this month that the next phase of devolution required not only new powers for local leaders but also a fundamental change in how central government operates.
Despite being kept at arm’s length from the new Prime Minister’s inner circle, her supporters note that one of Rayner’s longest-running political crusades now sits at the very centre of the Burnham project – and at the heart of government itself.