National news

Here are the latest stories from the team at Radio News Hub. The links will open in a new page and take you to the Radio News Hub website. You can hear the latest national news every hour on the radio station.

• Driving licences and veteran cards to be first digital IDs in Government app

  Digital driving licences stored in a government smartphone “wallet” that can be used to prove a person’s age are to be made available this year.

• Deaths of man 36 and young girl unexplained say police

  The deaths of a 36-year-old man and a six-year-old girl whose bodies were found at a property in West Lothian are being treated as “unexplained” by police.

• Risk to life warning as Storm Eowyn to sweep strong winds and rain across UK

  A storm named Eowyn could put lives at risk as strong winds batter the north of the UK on Friday and into Saturday, the Met Office said.

• Starmer hints at tougher laws to block tidal wave of violence online

  Tougher laws could be needed to regulate the “nightmares of the online world”, Sir Keir Starmer said after it emerged Axel Rudakubana trawled the internet for extreme violent content before the Southport atrocity.

• Former IICSA chair criticises weaponisation of child sex abuse

  The former chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) has criticised the recent “weaponisation” of child sexual abuse, as she told of her relief at news her report’s recommendations will finally be implemented.

• State failures in Southport child killer case frankly leaps off page Starmer

  The Prime Minister has said the failure of state institutions in the case of child-killer Axel Rudakubana “frankly leaps off the page”.

• Unemployment rate rises but pay growth picks up again ONS

  Britain’s jobless rate has risen unexpectedly and the number of workers on payrolls has fallen by the most since the height of the pandemic, according to official figures.

• UK needs reckoning with Government spending Treasury minister will say

  The UK is “long overdue a reckoning with Government spending”, a senior Treasury minister will say as Labour faces the prospect of making further cuts.

• Reeves heads to Davos in bid for more investment

  The Chancellor will attend the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting

• PM to deliver Downing Street press conference

  It's after ministers announce inquiry into Southport attack