The Foreign Office said it was supporting the family of Orla Wates after her “tragic death” in the country.

According to local media, she was involved in an accident on the Ha Giang Loop, a popular route for road trips in northern Vietnam, winding through the mountains near the border with China.

Viet Nam News reported she died at the Viet Duc Friendship Hospital in the capital, Hanoi, on 2 April.

Her parents, Andrew and Henrietta Wates, told the outlet she “lived life to the full”.

“Orla was beautiful, independent and very funny, with a sharp wit,” they said.

Her mother thanked the hospital’s Dr Trịnh Van Dong and its emergency care team for caring for Ms Wates – and said her organs had been donated to save others.

She told Viet Nam News it’s “what Orla would have wanted”.

“Knowing that she is living on through them brings us great comfort,” she said.

In an interview shared on the hospital’s social media, she added: “It is our way of thanking you.”

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The Foreign Office confirmed its consular staff are supporting Ms Wates’ family.

“Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Orla Wates, following her tragic death in Vietnam,” said a statement.

“We are in touch with the local authorities, and our consular staff are doing all they can to support Orla’s family at this hugely difficult time.”

A murder investigation has been launched by the Metropolitan Police after officers were called to the park, which boasts panoramic views of the capital.

Police added that a second man, believed to be in his 20s, was found on nearby Regent’s Park Road with stab wounds.

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The Type 45 destroyer is capable of shooting down the types of drones and ballistic missiles being launched by Iran.

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However, the vessel has a “minor technical issue” with its water systems, and the ship has docked in the eastern Mediterranean for what the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has described as a “routine logistics stop and a short maintenance period”.

The MoD added in a statement: “HMS Dragon will remain at a very high level of readiness during this period, able to sail at short notice if required.”

HMS Dragon is one of a number of British military assets in the region which are defending UK bases and allied nations from Iranian-made drones and other weapons.

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A Shahed-136 drone hit RAF Akrotiri – one of two major British bases in Cyprus – on 2 March, prompting the prime minister to deploy the ship.

But it took another week to leave Portsmouth, and then around another two weeks to arrive in the eastern Mediterranean.

It has raised concerns among some military analysts about the UK’s military preparedness and ability to respond to threats.

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Former Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe told Sky’s This Is Why podcast that one reason is down to a “30-year decline” in defence spending.

But at the time, Defence Secretary John Healey pointed out that the crew completed the necessary work to prepare for deployment in six days, compared with the usual six weeks.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has been critical of the UK’s decision to provide only defensive support.

He compared Royal Navy ships to “toys”, adding they are “too old” and “broken-down”.

Military sources said the technical issue has not affected the ship’s operation, and the crew have access to water for washing and catering as normal.

In an update about the ship, the MoD confirmed in a statement: “HMS Dragon is undertaking a routine logistics stop and a short maintenance period in the Eastern Mediterranean, allowing the ship to take onboard provisions, optimise systems, and conduct maintenance.”

Egyptian national Karin Al-Danasurt, 20, is accused of spitting on a woman, calling her a “dirty bitch” and encouraging co-defendants Ibrahim Alshafe, 25, and Abdulla Ahmadi, 26, to rape her on 4 October last year.

Prosecutors described the alleged attack as “cynical, predatory and callous”.

The woman had been separated from her friends on a night out when the trio found her “staggering in the street” alone, jurors were told.

Hove Crown Court heard that footage showed the woman falling down twice.

Iranian national Ahmadi and Egyptian national Alshafe have each denied two counts of raping the woman.

Al-Danasurt is jointly charged on all four rape counts as a secondary party “encouraging the rape by his actions at the scene, including filming it”, and has pleaded not guilty to all four charges.

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He denies a fifth count of “sharing intimate films” without the complainant’s consent after allegedly sending footage of the alleged attack to Ahmadi on Snapchat.

He told jurors that by filming three videos he was trying to get Alshafe and Ahmadi to stop and also so he could show somebody what had happened.

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Before he filmed the alleged incident, he said he tried to “grab them away” from the woman, the court heard.

But his defence was branded a “pack of lies” by prosecutor Hanna Llewellyn-Waters KC.

“I suggest what you’ve done in your evidence is put on a performance with a string of lies to hide your true involvement,” she added.

The defendant replied: “What I said is totally the truth, I’m not lying, I’m telling the truth.”

The court heard how Al-Danasurt also yelled “God will expose you” to the two men during the alleged rape.

“You found it entertaining, didn’t you?”, Ms Llewellyn-Waters asked him.

“No, there was no entertainment at all,” he replied.

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At the time of the alleged offences all three defendants lived in a Home Office-approved migrant hotel in Lower Beeding, near Horsham.

On Tuesday, Alshafe also began giving his evidence of the events and said the complainant approached him and Ahmadi, and asked how they were before kissing and touching them both.

Asked if she appeared drunk, Alshafe said no and that from her touching them and laughing their understanding was she wanted to have sex.

He added: “That is everything that came to my mind because of that and she also said something like ‘come to sex’.”

The trial continues.

Barton, 43, appeared via videolink from HMP Liverpool for the plea hearing at Liverpool Crown Court.

The former Manchester City, Newcastle United and Rangers midfielder denied causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Kevin Lynch, 51, on 8 March.

His co-defendant, Gary O’Grady, 50, was not asked to enter a plea to the charge.

An earlier court hearing was told the defendants had been drinking with Mr Lynch at Huyton and Prescot Golf Club, Liverpool, before the alleged attack.

Mr Lynch, a former non-league football manager and founder of NexGen Academy, a special education school, was said to have suffered serious injuries to his eye.

Honorary recorder of Liverpool, Judge Andrew Menary KC, set a trial date for 1 September.

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The trial is expected to last seven days.

Barton, who won one England cap, was remanded in custody and the judge renewed conditional bail for O’Grady.

Thomas Tosh, 39, was found guilty of attacking the 23-year-old woman at his home in Drumchapel, Glasgow, while she was intoxicated and incapable of giving consent.

Prosecutors at Scotland’s Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), said Tosh collected the victim and her friends from a pub in nearby Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, in the early hours of 30 September 2023.

After dropping off all of the passengers apart from the woman, Tosh marked the fare as complete and logged out of the taxi’s GPS tracking system.

He then drove in the opposite direction to where he was supposed to take her and instead brought her to his home, where he raped her.

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Two hours later, Tosh logged back in to the tracking system after dropping the woman off at her home.

Tosh was later identified after a friend of the victim showed her a picture of the attacker from social media.

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Prosecutors also used DNA evidence, text messages and witness accounts to secure the conviction.

Tosh was found guilty in February following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

He was sentenced at the same court on Tuesday, where he was jailed for seven years and had his name added to the sex offenders’ register indefinitely.

Tosh was also banned from contacting his victim for 10 years.

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Faye Cook, procurator fiscal for high court sexual offences, said: “This was a despicable betrayal of trust by a man who was responsible for getting a woman home safely after a night out.

“Thomas Tosh deliberately concealed his location as he drove the victim to his home, where he raped her while it was clear she was unable to consent.

“I want to recognise the courage shown by this young woman throughout the prosecution process. Her strength has helped bring a predatory offender to justice.”

The engineer is believed to have designed a programme to access the personal pictures while avoiding internal security checks, court documents show.

The alleged invasion of Facebook users’ privacy is being investigated by a specialist detective from the Metropolitan Police’s cybercrime unit.

Meta has confirmed that the suspected breach was discovered more than a year ago and the company itself referred the matter to police in the UK.

It added that affected Facebook users have been notified, the worker was sacked and it says it has upgraded its security systems.

The engineer under suspicion, who lives in London, is currently on police bail while the criminal investigation continues.

A Meta spokesperson confirmed the investigation, saying: “Protecting user data is our top priority.

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“After discovering improper access by an employee over a year ago, we immediately terminated the individual, notified users, referred the matter to law enforcement and enhanced our security measures.

“We are co-operating with the ongoing investigation.”

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Temperatures could climb as high as 24C (75F) today and will be well above the average for this time of year in most parts of the country.

Western parts of Wales are forecast to get the best of the weather, eclipsing the peak of 20.9C (70F) recorded in Worcestershire last week.

Tomorrow is expected to be even warmer, but temperatures are expected to plunge to 10C to 13C (50F to 55F) as we head into Thursday.

Check the weather forecast where you are

All of this is a stark contrast to the Easter weekend, when Storm Dave’s 70mph winds caused widespread damage and disruption.

Met Office meteorologist Greg Dewhurst said the weather is “unusually warm” as average temperatures should normally be about 15C (59F) in early April.

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He added: “The wind is coming in from a southerly direction, and with not many clouds around, it should be well above the early April average.

“The last time we saw similar temperatures this time of year was in 2020, when we reached 26C (78.8F) in Cornwall.”

Hayfever sufferers might not welcome the warmer weather with open arms, as a “very high” red pollen warning is in place across England and Wales.

A particularly high tree pollen count is expected nationwide, exacerbated by light winds.

Looking ahead to the rest of the week, a Met Office spokesperson explained: “It’s all purely down to the wind direction at this time of year.

“For the next couple of days we’re dragging in that warm, southerly wind, which will allow us to see temperatures reach the mid-20s.

“As we go into Thursday, we’ll see temperatures return to normal for the time of year as we see the weather turn more changeable with advances of rain and showers.”

Over the weekend, temperatures are set to hover at about 10C (50F) in the North, and 14C (57F) in the South.

There were 432 blazes involving e-bikes during 2025 – a 38% jump compared with a year earlier.

Meanwhile, 147 e-scooter fires were reported, up 20% from the 123 seen in 2024.

These incidents are often caused by failing batteries, conversion kits and chargers.

Products bought from online marketplaces are at a greater risk of malfunctioning, because they aren’t subject to the same regulation as established retailers.

Nick Bailey from BatteryIQ said the e-scooters and e-bikes involved in fires are “always cut-price products” manufactured with lax quality control.

He added: “There’s also a growing black market in DIY and counterfeit batteries, particularly for delivery riders, built using battery cells reclaimed from disposable vapes.

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“I wouldn’t keep a battery in my home without continuous monitoring – regardless of what the manufacturer’s sticker says.”

The PA news agency sent Freedom of Information requests to all 49 fire brigades in the UK and asked for the number of incidents recorded between 2021 and 2025.

London Fire Brigade recorded the greatest number of fires by far, with Greater Manchester and Nottinghamshire identified as hotspots outside of the capital.

Fires involving lithium batteries used for e-bikes and e-scooters can spread rapidly and produce a toxic vapour.

Electrical Safety First has warned this issue is “swiftly becoming a runaway train that needs to be stopped” – with incidents surging over the past five years.

The charity’s chief executive, Lesley Rudd, warned: “Poorly made batteries and accessories are of huge concern, and are a major route through which dangerous devices are entering people’s homes.

“Without strong and enforceable changes, lives are at serious risk and further loss of life is, sadly, inevitable.”

The London Fire Brigade’s deputy commissioner, Spencer Sutcliff, has said he is “extremely concerned” about the “worrying amount” of cases in the capital.

E-scooters and e-bikes have now been banned from the Tube because of the fire risk they pose.

Although private e-scooters have been banned from being used in public areas nationwide, they are often ridden illegally in many urban areas.

Which? has warned unsafe products are “increasingly saturating” online marketplaces, which undercut responsible businesses that comply with the law.

The government launched a consultation last week that is designed to boost product safety in the UK.

Under the plans, online marketplaces would be legally required to “prevent, identify and remove dangerous products being sold via their platforms”.

Parts of the UK could enjoy highs of 22C on Tuesday, forecasters said.

They could keep rising to as high as 24C on Wednesday in South East England, before the weather cools off towards the end of the week.

It is just one degree shy of the hottest ever recorded temperature in early April, when the mercury rose to 25C in 2011 and 2020.

The spike could see the warmest temperature of the year so far set three times this week.

It comes in the wake of Storm Dave, which caused widespread damage and disruption over the Easter weekend as 70mph winds battered parts of northern England, Scotland and Wales.

A Met Office spokesperson said: “As Storm Dave has now moved away, and this high pressure is building behind it, we’re now dragging up warmer air from the continent.

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“It’s one of the seasons where it can change really quickly, day on day.”

The warm weather is not set to last for long – with a big drop to as low as 10C by Thursday.

“It’s all purely down to wind direction at this time of year,” the spokesperson said.

“For the next couple of days, we’re dragging in that warm, southerly wind, which will allow us to see temperatures reach the mid-20s.

“As we go into Thursday, we’ll see temperatures return to normal for the time of year as we see the weather turn more changeable with advances of rain and showers.”

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Temperatures will stay around 10C in the north and 14C in the south over the weekend.

This week’s warmer conditions have arrived earlier than expected, the Met Office said.