American XL bully dogs are a danger to communities and will banned, Rishi Sunak has said, after a man was mauled to death.

Announcing the move, the prime minister stressed the need to end such violent attacks “and keep people safe”.

Mr Sunak was responding to the latest incident in which a man died after being savaged by two dogs outside a property in Stonnall, Staffordshire, on Thursday afternoon.

In a video statement posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, The Tory leader said: “The American XL bully dog is a danger to our communities, particularly our children.

“I share the nation’s horror at the recent videos we’ve all seen. Yesterday we saw a another suspected XL bully dog attack, which has tragically led to a fatality.

“It is clear this is not about a handful of badly trained dogs, it’s a pattern of behaviour and it cannot go on.

“While owners already have a responsibility to keep their dogs under control, I want to reassure people that we are urgently working on ways to stop these attacks and protect the public.

“Today I have tasked ministers to bring together police and experts, to firstly define the breed of dog behind these attacks, with the view to then outlawing it.

“It is not currently a breed defined in law, so this vital first step must happen fast.

“We will then ban the breed under the Dangerous Dogs Act and new laws will be in place by the end of the year.

“These dogs are dangerous, I want to reassure the public that we will take all necessary steps to keep people safe.”

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Three Metropolitan Police officers are facing allegations of gross misconduct after the strip-search of a 15-year-old schoolgirl in 2020.

Child Q was wrongly accused of possessing cannabis and was searched while on her period and with no appropriate adult present at a school in Hackney, east London.

No drugs were found on her clothing or in her bag before two female officers searched her as two male officers waited outside – again, no drugs were found.

On Thursday, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said three officers would face a misconduct hearing, with a fourth officer facing a lesser misconduct meeting.

The allegations include that they discriminated against Child Q because of her race and gender.

“The strip-search of Child Q, a 15-year-old girl, at her school in Hackney caused widespread concern,” IOPC director Steve Noonan said.

“We’ve found that four officers involved in the incident should face disciplinary proceedings for the parts they played.

“Ultimately it will be for that disciplinary panel to decide whether the allegations against them are proven.

“We will now be liaising with the Met Police around disciplinary proceedings. We’ve kept Child Q’s representatives and the officers involved updated throughout our investigation.”

The Met’s bosses have also been told by the IOPC they should consider apologising to Child Q and her mother with formal letters.

The three officers accused of gross misconduct face allegations that:

• The decision to carry out the search was inappropriate

• Child Q was discriminated against because of her race and sex

• There was no appropriate adult present

• And the officers did not get authorisation from a supervisor

If gross misconduct is proved, the officers could be sacked.

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The fourth officer will have a disciplinary meeting over there not being an appropriate adult present at the time.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway, who leads policing in Hackney and Tower Hamlets, said: “We have been clear in saying that the experience of Child Q should never have happened and was truly regrettable.

“While we have publicly apologised, I am also writing formally to Child Q and her family to say sorry for the trauma that we caused her.

“It will now be for the hearing panel to determine whether the matters against the three officers are proven and it is important we don’t pre-judge the outcome.”

More senior levels of authorisation are now needed for strip searches, he added, and the number of such searches being carried out has been reduced because the force “had been overusing this power”.

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The six dogs were rounded up near Moffat back in July after four others were shot dead by a farmer following a fatal sheep attack.

The animals – four boys and two girls – were taken into the care of Dumfries and Galloway Canine Rescue Centre (DGCRC).

DGCRC’s Emma Scott said the team are “delighted” with the progress the strays are making.

She said: “The two girls are by far the most confident. They have become happy, relaxed, friendly dogs.

“It’s so nice to see them actively seek us out and come to us for affection when only two months ago they were terrified of all human contact.”

The girls will most likely go up for adoption first – hopefully soon.

Ms Scott added: “All four of the boys have proven to be slightly more of a challenge when it comes to handling.

“Three of them now walk well on the lead – which is a huge improvement in itself – but are still slightly wary of us and need more time to build confidence.

“One boy in particular still can’t be walked on the lead but we are working hard on helping him relax and are hopeful we can get through to him.”

The dogs have been given names with a Moffat connection. The girls are called Charlotte and Toffee, while the boys have been christened Brodie, Glen, Meadow and Rae.

The girls are said to be very “cheeky and playful”.

Ms Scott said: “They love a fuss made and have been walking alongside some of our other dogs.

“They really enjoy off-lead play together and it is becoming clear just how incredibly intelligent they are.”

Rae and Meadow are the most confident out of the boys and love going on walks together, while Brodie and Glen will need more time to come out of their shells.

Ms Scott added: “Glen is still very shy, especially when going on solo walks with a member of staff.

“He appears to be a gentle, quiet soul, but when he is with Brodie he gains a little more confidence.”

The team have so far been unable to get Brodie on a lead for walks.

Ms Scott said: “He really enjoys playing on the grass and using our mental stimulation toys. He too is incredibly intelligent and needs to be kept busy.

“As he is still quite scared of handling, it could take some time to get through to him.”

The staff have been spending quiet time with the dogs in their kennels and have been getting them into a routine to help them to relax as they know what to expect each day.

Ms Scott added: “We also are making sure that every human experience from now on is a positive one.

“They had clearly absolutely no happy experience with humans on arrival so it’s our job to help show them we can be trusted.”

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The dogs are believed to have been abandoned in the area, possibly by illegal breeders.

Police Scotland said enquiries “remain ongoing”.

Following the incident, members of the public rallied to raise thousands of pounds to help with the care of the animals.

Ms Scott said the team were “overwhelmed” by their generosity, especially given the cost of living crisis.

She added: “As a charity with no government funding we depend entirely on donations from the public, so they are always gratefully received.”

Ms Scott highlighted that there are many other animals in the centre’s care who are also “desperately seeking fresh starts”.

She added: “If you are considering a new family member, please look into rescue.

“There are so many wonderful little dogs needing help.”

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The personal details of Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officers have been hacked after the force was targeted in a cyber attack.

Assistant chief constable Colin McFarlane confirmed a “third-party supplier” of various organisations – including GMP – has been targeted.

That firm holds “some information” on the force’s employees.

“At this stage, it’s not believed this data includes financial information,” he added.

“We understand how concerning this is for our employees so, as we work to understand any impact on GMP, we have contacted the Information Commissioners Office and are doing everything we can to ensure employees are kept informed, their questions are answered, and they feel supported.

“This is being treated extremely seriously, with a nationally-led criminal investigation into the attack.”

It comes little more than a month after officers from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) were left “incredibly vulnerable” by a massive data breach compromising details of serving officers and staff.

The breach involved the surname, initials, rank or grade, work location and departments of all PSNI staff, but did not involve the officers’ and civilians’ private addresses.

The leak came as a result of information published in response to a Freedom of Information request.

PSNI’s then-chief constable Simon Byrne resigned earlier this month following a series of controversies including the data breach.

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A police officer has been jailed for 26 years for raping and sexually assaulting a child.

DC Stephen Hardy of Greater Manchester Police (GMP) used his teenage victim as a “puppet or sex object”, Judge Robert Trevor-Jones said during his sentencing on Wednesday.

The 46-year-old was found guilty of 20 offences, including six of rape, following a trial at Liverpool Crown Court.

Judge Trevor-Jones said: “You have never shown one iota of remorse for your behaviour.

“The indictment reflects a highly calculated and cynical course of grooming behaviour.”

He described the detective constable as having a “devious” personality with a “sinister streak”.

He added: “You have been a long-serving police officer. That is a career which will now inevitably end.

“You would have been well aware of the widespread and lasting trauma that victims of sexual abuse suffer and yet you gave no thought to that and that is an aggravating factor.”

The judge said he considered the defendant to be dangerous and sentenced him to an extended licence period of six years.

Vanessa Thomson, prosecuting, said the victim, who was in court with members of her family during the hearing, reported the abuse to police in 2020.

She described the defendant as “a controlling and manipulative man”.

In a statement which was read to the court, the victim said she was not sure she would ever be able to fully trust members of law enforcement.

She said: “I maintain a deep fear of authority figures, despite overcoming that fear to report these crimes. His position in the Greater Manchester Police force has deeply affected me.”

She said the abuse had permanently affected her mental health and left her scared for her future.

Laura Nash, defending, said Hardy continued to deny all the offences and that he would “inevitably” find his prison sentence “harder than most” because he was a police officer.

A woman said “love you” as Hardy, wearing a grey suit, was taken down from the dock.

Following Hardy’s conviction in July, GMP said he was suspended from duty and would face disciplinary proceedings.

Head of the force’s Professional Standards Branch Detective Chief Superintendent Mike Allen said: “Given Hardy contested the indictment he faced at the crown court, we were unable to proceed with hearing such matters within the regulated police disciplinary system. He was nevertheless suspended from GMP.

“Now that Hardy has been convicted, he will face disciplinary proceedings, and as the public would rightly expect, he will not be paid a wage by GMP during the time it takes for his case to be heard.”

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The King, who is on his summer break at the nearby Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire, visited Tomintoul in the Cairngorms National Park and was welcomed by primary school children and community stalwarts.

He wore a kilt made from the King Charles III tartan, which was first seen in public a couple of weeks ago.

Villagers flocked to greet the King and the Dufftown Pipe Band performed in anticipation of his arrival.

Tomintoul, which dates from the 1750s, has a history of whisky production but faced economic downturn in the 2000s.

As a result, the community pulled together to access grant funding and to promote tourism in the region.

It now has 750 villagers – nearly twice the population in 2012 – after the community worked to address socio-economic problems including lack of development, an ageing population, and unaffordable housing.

The Glenlivet Development Trust was formed to address the economic problems and instigated a £3.3m energy-efficient housing development, the Auld School Close, on the site of a derelict school.

The King visited the site, which now has 12 affordable homes built on it, and met residents, conversing in French with some of them.

He was welcomed by local school and nursery pupils, who greeted him wearing homemade crowns and waving Scottish and British flags.

The King said to one of the children: “You have been busy making things.”

During a walkabout at the village green, an elderly man asked the King to wish his wife a happy birthday.

A woman shouted: “We love you King Charles”, and another woman showed him a blue manicure and asked: “Do you like my nails?”

Alasdair Sharp, 79, a member of the Glenlivet Development Trust board, wore a kilt for the visit of the King, whom he described as a neighbour.

Mr Sharp said: “It’s very good for the community that the King is visiting.

“He was at Braemar Games recently. To come to our little community is pretty important, we are neighbours.

“My family have lived here since 1910.

“There was a time after the war when there was two petrol stations, four pubs, six shops, but it’s all been taken over.

“It’s worked very well, we’ve pulled together, the affordable housing was a great success.

“We are now a Dark Sky Area, we are hoping to develop a camping and caravan site.

“It’s amazing how, if you know who to ask for grants, you can get them for worthwhile projects.”

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In 2017, the trust bought a former museum and turned it into the Tomintoul and Glenlivet Discovery Centre, and last year a Post Office was saved from closure.

The King was shown a coat believed to have belonged to an exciseman in the 1820s during the era of whisky smuggling and violent confrontations between customs officers and the illicit distilleries.

The coat, which has a high collar, deep cuffs and mother-of-pearl buttons, was found in the rafters of an old house in the village in 2003 and was thought to have been handed down to a servant.

The King was told about the history of the Tomintoul Coat, and heard how the Northern Lights had lit up the region on Tuesday night.

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BBC Scotland has removed satirical cartoons of politicians from social media following a backlash online.

In one of the now-deleted clips promoting Radio Scotland’s Noising Up show, Scottish Greens co-leader Lorna Slater was depicted as “Limo Lorna”.

Speaking in a Canadian accent, the caricature said she was the “minister for green skills, circular economy, biodiversity, short-haul flights and maple syrup”.

The character added: “Join me for my new streaming series, Lorna Slater’s Great Green Limousine Journeys, where I’ll be changing my climate from Holyrood to stretched limo on a 3,000-mile taxpayer-funded journey around Scotland.”

Scottish minister Ms Slater, the MSP for Lothian, has previously been criticised for her heavy use of cars and for chartering a private boat for a visit to the Isle of Rum earlier this year at a cost of £1,200.

The animation sparked outrage after being shared online.

Scotland’s culture minister Christina McKelvie branded it “dreadful”, while equalities minister Emma Roddick labelled it “unnecessarily nasty”.

Green MSP Mark Ruskell added: “What’s funny about needing a car to do your job?”

Cartoons of other political leaders were also removed amid criticism.

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The Noising Up show is described as a “riotous mix of sketches, gags, spoofs, quickies and take-offs”.

BBC Scotland defended the role of political satire but accepted that the posts had not worked “as intended”.

Although the clips have been pulled from social media, the sketch show will still be broadcast in full on Radio Scotland and is available via BBC Sounds.

Click to subscribe to Backstage wherever you get your podcasts

A BBC Scotland spokesperson said: “Noising Up is a satire-led programme on Radio Scotland, and radio sketch satire has been missing for over a decade in Scotland.

“We believe satire has a role to play within public discourse and it is important that it has its place within Scotland’s political and cultural landscape.

“Animations of four of Scotland’s party leaders were created to support the programme with the intent of helping it reach a new and wider audience.

“It became clear over the weekend that the animations were not working as intended and having reflected on the reaction we have made the decision to remove them from social media while we review their use and assess the programme’s social media presence.”

Noising Up, which returned this month for a second series, first aired on Radio Scotland in September 2022.

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In an increasingly grim housing market, the chance to own a once-in-a-lifetime home for the price of a £5 ticket seems too good to be true.

And that’s because it usually is.

But amid a cost of living crisis, it is the chance to “escape from reality” that drives people to continue gambling on a win, one psychology expert has told Sky News.

This week, a woman who thought she had won a £2m villa in Nottingham was left “heartbroken” after the small print meant she had won £5,000 instead.

Loretta, a teacher, was over the moon when a representative from Win My Home visited her to say she had won the grand prize – but this turned out to be just 0.25% of what was advertised.

Competition organisers said they had actually made a loss, and the prize was a gesture of goodwill.

Where did housing raffles come from?

Housing raffles first cropped up in 2008, as a way to beat the economic slump, when a couple from Devon raffled off their £1 million estate at £25 a ticket.

Then in 2018, Win a Country House sparked a revival of the trend, and more recently Omaze has been combining it with fundraising, promising entrants both the chance of winning a luxury property and a warm fuzzy feeling for donating to charity at the same time.

But although they still seem popular in the last three years, the number of competitions involving winning a house has declined, according to Loquax, the UK’s competition portal.

In 2020 there were 93, followed by 108 in 202.

In 2022 this dropped to 34 and this year there have been 29.

Win My Home declined to comment for this story – and Omaze has been contacted by Sky News for a response.

The charity house raffle

The most recent iteration of the housing raffle is Omaze’s million-pound house draw, which promises to raise at least £100,000 for each charity partner and give away a stunning home at the same time.

In 2020, their first home raised £250,000 for the Teenager Cancer Trust.

But a slick advertising campaign has boosted popularity, and their most recent draw – a Norfolk home – raised £1.4 million for the RNLI, while the one prior raised £1.9 million for Blood Cancer UK.

However, Omaze is still a business. Once each campaign is over, it takes the total amount raised and reimburses itself for the cost of the prize and the cost of marketing – it does not publicly disclose what this is.

Then it divides what is left, with 80% going to the charity and 20% to the company.

How likely are you to win?

Of the 264 competitions run since 2020, just 89 have resulted in a house being awarded, says Loquax.

Some 143 house raffles awarded a cash prize instead, and 18 issued refunds. Loquax wasn’t able to say what had happened in the case of 14 raffles.

The most expensive house awarded since 2017 was the £4.5m Omaze Cornwall River Rowey House property, won by June Smith.

But cash prizes are often lower. The first Raffle House competition dolled out £173,012, while the Dream Home Prize awarded £365,366 in place of the £1.2m home that was promised.

So, you probably won’t going to win – why do you keep entering?

Annika Lindberg is a chartered psychologist who specialises in gambling addiction. She says these lotteries – and gambling of any kind – run on “intermittent reinforcement schedules”, which is the idea that we are motivated by the anticipation of a potential win, rather than any certainty.

“The unpredictability of the reward actually has a positive effect,” she says.

And it is actually people who are poorer that are more likely to enter – particularly during times of recession.

“When you look at why people who have less financial means, and why they would be more motivated to gamble, it is because the meaning of a potential win is much greater,” she says.

“It gives people more motivation to escape from reality.”

While these lotteries aren’t nearly as addictive as betting shops, they can still be problematic, in part due to their “enormous mass appeal”.

“We should be concerned if a larger portion of the population starts taking the view that we have a reality of living that is so difficult that we want to escape,” she says.

“I think there is something very problematic about our population in any way at all being prompted to turn to escapism or ‘hope’ through any form of gambling during tough financial times.

“It will remain innocent for many but could prime others for more intense forms of gambling later.”

Ms Lindberg says, while “hope is a human trait that saves our lives” when “something like gambling taps into that, it’s not all that positive”.

When housing lotteries fall foul of the law

The Gambling Commission has investigated a number of different housing lotteries and found many of these competitions were being run illegally.

In 2017 and 2018 – the most recent data available – it received 88 reports regarding 55 different raffles. Just 13 of these resulted in no further action being taken – meaning 77% of those investigated were breaking the rules.

And one of the key rules is who is going to benefit.

“You cannot create a lottery to raffle a house where the beneficiary (that is, the recipient of all lottery profits after expenses and prize costs are deducted) is not a good cause and the organiser/promoter of the lottery is not a non-commercial society,” the GC says.

“The only competition style that might be appropriate would be a free draw or prize competition.”

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Police investigating a report of historical sexual assault have released a photo of a man they want to identify and speak to.

A victim came forward to police earlier this year alleging they were sexually assaulted at student accommodation at a hospital in Ealing, west London, in late 1977 or early 1978.

Officers have been unable to fully identify the man in the photograph, although his first name is thought to be Gary.

“Despite extensive inquiries being undertaken, the man, who officers believe may be called Gary, remains unidentified,” a statement from the Metropolitan Police said.

“The image released is from the late 1970s, but we are hoping that someone who recognises the man can tell us who and where he is.

“If the man in the image is you, please contact police immediately.”

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Doctors can lawfully stop treating a 20-year-old man who suffered a brain injury after a fight in a pub garden, a High Court judge has ruled.

Specialists say roofer Andy Casey’s brain stem function has died and he is therefore dead.

Mr Justice MacDonald, who oversaw a private trial in the Family Division of the High Court in London on Friday, said on Tuesday he agrees.

Hospital trust bosses responsible for Mr Casey’s care had asked the judge to rule treatment can lawfully end, but his relatives want it to continue and say they have seen movement and signs of life.

Mr Casey’s sister, Christine, 27, told the judge she does not believe he is brian-stem dead.

After the ruling, she said she is “so angry” and relatives aim to appeal.

Ms Casey said the judge had looked at video footage showing Mr Casey moving.

“He reacts to pain,” she said. “I showed the judge so many videos. How can someone who reacts to pain be dead?

“We are looking at an appeal.”

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Brain stem testing shows man is dead

A lawyer representing the hospital trust, which has responsibility for Mr Casey’s treatment, asked the judge to rule it would be lawful to cease artificial ventilation and care.

Barrister Abid Mahmood said brain stem testing by two specialists showed Mr Casey is dead.

He told the judge in a written case outline that Mr Casey had been involved in a fight in a pub garden on 9 July and was “punched to the head” and “fell to the ground”. He said specialists had diagnosed death on 16 July.

The judge heard Mr Casey had remained on a ventilator since being injured.

In a written ruling, Mr Justice MacDonald said: “Whilst I understand fully the conclusions that the family and friends of Mr Casey have, in their sorrow, drawn from his movements and apparent responses to the ventilator, having regard to the totality of evidence before the court, I am also satisfied that what the family are seeing are in fact well-recognised base reflexes that can survive brain stem death.

“Cruelly, the flattering voice of hope convinces those that love Mr Casey that these are signs that Mr Casey is not dead.

“With regret, I am satisfied that the brain stem testing undertaken… demonstrate(s) that he is.”

‘A tragedy’ for family and friends

Mr Justice MacDonald said he had concluded, with “very great sadness”, Mr Casey “died on 16 July 2023 at 11.51pm”.

He added: “I understand that this will come as a bitter disappointment to Mr Casey’s family and friends.

“The now blurred boundary between life and death can be delineated by reference to philosophy, to ethics or to the cardinal tenets of the world’s great religions.

“But the task of this court is to consider whether Mr Casey has crossed over that boundary for the purposes of the law.”

He said he is satisfied, having regard to brain stem testing undertaken in accordance with a code of practice, Mr Casey had died.

The judge added: “I recognise that this is a tragedy for his family and friends and whilst I am certain that it will offer little comfort, they have my profound sympathy.”

Well-wishers have pledged nearly £11,000 to a GoFundMe appeal organised by Ms Casey, which says the money raised will “help to cover legal costs” and “rehabilitation” if Mr Casey “pulls through”.

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