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Rozina Sabur National Security Editor |
Terrorists, hostile states and gangsters have been handed more than £28bn by the taxpayer, according to a secret government report.
The Telegraph can reveal the dossier shows that millions of pounds in public money went to Russia, the Islamic State and organised crime gangs.
It sets out how Britain’s enemies appropriated foreign aid and Covid-19 relief loans on a vast scale, with the money now thought to be beyond reach and those who took it unpunished.
Sources said the report, which examined government grants and loans from 2015 to 2021, was not made public to avoid political embarrassment.
It is a figure so large it is hard to comprehend. When you speak to the people who study how terrorists and organised crime groups manipulate government systems to fund their nefarious ends, you begin to get a clearer picture.
One concern raised repeatedly by those working in national security was that it remained unclear whose responsibility it was within the Government to consider security concerns around grants.
Systems have been strengthened since this dossier was compiled in 2023, but concerns remain that due diligence around public grants is inadequate.
In response to The Telegraph’s reporting, a spokesman for the Cabinet Office said: “This Government is taking unprecedented action to tackle public sector fraud, having saved over £7.5bn of taxpayer money in the past year through aggressive fraud prevention and recovery.
“By using better data and hiring more expert investigators, we are now finding and stopping this fraud faster than ever before.”
This reporting is available only to subscribers
Continue reading ➤ |
Stokes is understood to be considering his position as captain after the incident |
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Nick Hoult Chief Cricket Correspondent |
Last week, Brendon McCullum, the England head coach, issued some advice to his players after the furore over their off-field behaviour during the Ashes.
“Nothing good ever happens after midnight,” he said, “and don’t do anything that lands you on the front page of the paper.”
Well, the message did not land with everyone. Last night’s revelations regarding the captain, Ben Stokes, and bowler Gus Atkinson are a nightmare for the England team and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
The pair were celebrating England’s 115-run victory over New Zealand |
Stokes and Atkinson were not the aggressors in what the ECB euphemistically termed “a nightclub incident”, with The Telegraph revealing a Saracens academy player on their end-of-season social had swung a punch at them, accidentally hitting the players’ security guard.
However, they were in the wrong place at very much the wrong time, breaking a team curfew by going out until after midnight having won the First Test against New Zealand.
Stokes’s position is now hanging by a thread as the incident undoes all the talk of a cultural and behavioural reset. The authority of McCullum and Rob Key, England’s Director of Cricket, are also in question, and all that can be said for certain is that Stokes and Atkinson will likely miss next week’s Second Test.
The bigger question is whether we have seen the last of Stokes as captain or – potentially – as an England player.
Read the full story here ➤
Nick Hoult: Ben Stokes surely cannot survive this ➤
Plus, sign up for our Cricket with Michael Vaughan newsletter for exclusive commentary from one of the sport’s most recognisable names ➤ |
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Camilla Tominey Starmer is tackling the sharing of nude images by the young. It’s well-meaning but pitifully out of kilter with the size of the challenge Continue reading ➤
Tim Stanley As a white man, I would love to know exactly how I should react to Henry’s murder Continue reading ➤
Celia Walden I bet the Oxford trans brigade haven’t read their cancelled professor’s book Continue reading ➤ |
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The AI-generated ads show fabricated confrontations between Andrew Bailey and Nigel Farage |
Judges will use AI to help them prepare and administer criminal cases in the Crown Court, writes Charles Hymas, our Home Affairs Editor. The Ministry of Justice is to pilot the use of AI assistants to research and analyse cases for judges and lawyers, and identify those that are ready for trial.
Officials said they would act like paralegals, whose duties typically involve preparing legal documents, summarising large files of documents, conducting research on legal precedents and administering cases. It is an initiative by David Lammy, the Justice Secretary, but has raised concerns that AI-generated errors could creep into judgments and legal submissions.
In December, a judge made headlines after being forced to reissue his controversial judgment twice to correct 12 mistakes in a tribunal involving Sandie Peggie, a veteran nurse challenging trans guidelines. He was eventually cleared of making up quotes using AI. For subscribers only ➤ |
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Accusations, denied by West Ham co-owner David Sullivan, claiming abuses of power against vulnerable people in ‘casting couch’ situation could be reviewed |
Police investigations going back 18 years into sexual misconduct claims against West Ham co-owner David Sullivan have been dropped without charge. Separate claims raised with detectives in 2008, 2021 and 2023 failed to yield any prosecutions after investigations primarily involving Essex Police. It had been alleged that Sullivan pressured women into having sex or oral sex by promising it would help their careers. He has categorically denied claims against him and vowed to sue over them. Continue reading ➤ |
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A Leopard 2 tank’s turret fitted with a laser system to track simulated firing |
Nato has a problem: tanks, writes Tom Cotterill, our Defence Editor. With warfare now dominated by cheap drones, the armoured juggernauts of old have found themselves being picked off in Ukraine in vast numbers. In Finland, seven nations from the alliance, including Britain, have been working out how they can adapt to this, while refining their tactics to resist a Russian invasion. I joined them on a training exercise to find out more. Continue reading ➤ |
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From Lily Allen’s diaristic divorce album West End Girl to songs from Gen Z superstars such as Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo and Sienna Spiro, sadness is the hottest commodity in songwriting. Eleanor Halls explores why pop stars have abandoned joyous anthems – and what it means for “me, me, me” modern sensibilities. Continue reading ➤ |
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Richard Abel is an associate professor in musculoskeletal sciences at Imperial College London |
Protect your bone health and save your life. It sounds dramatic, but one in four people will die within a year of suffering a hip fracture, and a third will lose their ability to walk if they take no action. Richard Abel, an expert in musculoskeletal science, guides you through the simple measures: from the right food to the exercises that are truly worthwhile, and the steps to avoid. Some of them might surprise you.
Continue reading ➤
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From her early incarnation as the model Jordan (left, in 2001) to her life today as a one-woman soap opera, Katie Price has constantly reinvented herself in an effort to stay in the public eye |
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Guy Kelly Features writer |
This September marks 30 years since Katie Price first came to national media attention, via Page 3. There began a residency in the tabloids that grew into complete media domination, resulting in her occupying a unique position in British popular culture.
Her triumphs, her tragedies, her trysts – we’ve seen it all, whether we wanted to or not, and the recent, perplexing saga over her disappearing husband shows she is still more than adept at turning a bad situation into headlines.
Price has had at least 17 breast enhancements, six facelifts and four ‘Brazilian butt-lifts’ |
As dark and shameful as it is bawdy or inspiring, Price’s story is not one that’s easy to make sense of. However, by speaking to friends, colleagues and some of the journalists she’s toyed with for a quarter of a century, I tried to piece it together.
“Never underestimate the Pricey,” runs her catchphrase, so perhaps I’ll be proven wrong. Yet the more I learnt about her, the more I came to wonder if that story will ever have a happy ending.
Continue reading ➤ |
Notes on griefEvery weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal reader correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories. Orlando writes...
There have been lots of thoughtful and moving responses to Ben Lawrence’s column in Sunday’s newsletter. Ben made the case against “performative grief” (and performative responses to it). I tend to share his view – but this is, of course, a deeply personal subject, and some of you felt differently.
Philip Goggin, while largely agreeing, offered several caveats: “Bereavement/funeral rituals can help with getting through the trauma or numbness. Letting authentic emotion be displayed may be helpful and therapeutic (bottling it up can cause emotional distress later). Finally, bereavement/funeral rituals will be regarded by many as marks of their cultural identity, not to be cast aside lightly.”
Steve Matrazzo, meanwhile, writing from the US, brought his professional experience to bear: “After two decades of blue-collar work, I began my late-life journalistic career with a good few years as a newspaper copywriter, creating all of the non-bylined material – including obituaries, which were handled as news items for all deceased locals, regardless of ‘prominence’. As such, I met regularly with family members providing information, often in the days immediately following their loss.
“What conclusions did I draw after writing more than 1,500 obits? First and foremost, there is no ‘right’ way to grieve. Some need – or at least benefit from – the seemingly performative acts. Others prefer to face loss in quieter, simpler ways. Some weep openly; others show a bittersweet joviality, seemingly focused upon the love more than the loss. Many would clearly rather be alone with their thoughts. A few, it must be said, are relieved. As we know, death is often the end of suffering. I wouldn’t dare presume to say that any of them ‘handled it better’ than any other.
“Secondly, past initial acknowledgement of the loss, the best approach with a bereaved person is to pay attention. People do have a tendency to tell you what they really need, even if not overtly. Be what they need, not what you think they should need.”
For Patricia Morris, however, there is one phrase that nobody needs: “My husband died suddenly aged 48. The very worst thing said to me was, ‘I know how you feel’, followed by a story about someone else who had died before their time. Please never say that. You can’t possibly know how someone else feels.” Thanks to everyone who replied. Send your responses here and the best of the bunch will feature in a future edition of this newsletter.
Please confirm in your reply that you are happy to be featured and that we have your permission to use your name. |
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68 | Nero kills himself to avoid death by flogging
1958 | Gatwick is opened by Elizabeth II
1983 | Margaret Thatcher leads the Conservative Party to an election landslide (you can see our front page from that day below)
2023 | Boris Johnson resigns as prime minister over partygate
Birthdays: Natalie Portman (45), Johnny Depp (63), Michael J Fox (65)
In a highly unusual encounter, a diver came face-to-face with a great white shark in the Mediterranean. Between which two locations was the shark spotted?
The great white shark was seen by three divers in the Mediterranean |
1. Greece and Turkey
2. Spain and Morocco
3. Sicily and Tunisia
4. Spain and Algeria |
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Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
Yesterday’s Panagram was ELEMENTAL. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle. |
Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. I’d love to hear what you think of this newsletter. You can email me your feedback here. |
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