Foreign News
Rishi Sunak sees off Tory rebellion in Rwanda bill vote
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has seen off a Tory rebellion over his flagship Rwanda bill but still faces a battle to get it through Parliament.
The legislation comfortably passed its first Commons hurdle with a majority of 44, but there will be further votes in the new year. No Tory MPs voted against but some critics on the right of the party rebelled by abstaining.
Rebels said they had been told the PM would consider “tightening” the bill. But this could risk losing the support of more centrist Tory MPs, who have warned they would oppose any future changes which would breach international law.
The emergency legislation was drawn up to revive the government’s plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda. The government say the scheme is designed to deter migrants from crossing the Channel in small boats – something Mr Sunak has made one of his key priorities.
In a sign of nerves in Downing Street over the potential for a tight result, Climate Minister Graham Stuart flew back from the COP28 climate conference in Dubai to vote.
But despite some Tories on the right threatening to vote against the bill, in the end only opposition MPs did, and the bill passed by 313 votes to 269. Some 37 Tory MPs – including former Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick, who resigned over the legislation last week, and former Home Secretary Suella Braverman – did not record a vote.
The majority of these come from factions who earlier said they could not support the bill and are likely to have deliberately abstained. However, others may have been unable to attend to vote.
Shortly before the vote, five factions of backbench MPs – the European Research Group (ERG), the New Conservatives, the Common Sense Group, the Conservative Growth Group and Northern Research Group – announced they could not support the bill in its current form.
They plan to propose amendments and said they could vote the bill down when it returns to the Commons in the new year if the changes they wanted were not accepted.
ERG chairman Mark Francois, who was among those who abstained, told BBC News: “Our objection was that we don’t believe, as it’s currently drafted, the bill is firm enough to ensure that flights will take off to Rwanda. The prime minister had said that he would entertain tightening up the bill. We’re taking him at his word,” he said. “A number of MPs voted with the government tonight because they were told in private that there would be amendments later on.” However, agreeing to their demands would create new problems for the government.
The centrist One Nation group, which includes more than 100 Tory MPs, had recommended that its members vote for the bill, but warned it would oppose any future amendments “that would mean the UK government breaching the rule of law and its international obligations”.
Tougher legislation may also be more difficult to get through the House of Lords.
One Nation chairman Damian Green told BBC News the vote had seen far fewer abstentions than expected and that “if the government sticks to its guns then it can probably get this legislation through intact”.
Home Office Minister Chris Philp said the government would listen to ideas from MPs on how to improve the bill. “Like with any bill, government ministers will be talking to members of Parliament to see if there are ways of tightening this even further, to improve the drafting to make sure there are absolutely no loopholes at all,” he added.
The bill seeks to declare in UK law that Rwanda is a safe country to send asylum seekers to, after the Supreme Court ruled the policy was unlawful last month.
However, critics on the right of the party have argued it is not currently strong enough to prevent legal challenges to deportations.
A No 10 spokesperson said the bill was “the toughest legislation ever introduced to Parliament” and “makes clear that this Parliament, not any foreign court is sovereign”.
“We will now work to ensure that this bill gets on to the statute book so that we can get flights off to Rwanda and stop the boats,” the spokesperson added.
Labour voted against the bill, along with other opposition parties, and the party has said it would scrap the Rwanda plan if it wins the next election.
It says the millions of pounds given to Rwanda as part of the deal would be better spent tackling people-smuggling gangs.
Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “The Conservatives’ civil war is continuing, and the country is paying the price for this chaos.
“Today’s debate shows how weak Rishi Sunak is with this Tory psychodrama now dragging on into the new year.”
(BBC)
Foreign News
USA midfielder sues doctors after on-pitch cardiac arrest
United States women’s national team player Savannah DeMelo is suing a hospital and two doctors after she suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch last year.
Midfielder DeMelo, who has seven senior caps for the USA, has filed a lawsuit against University of Louisville Health (UofL Health) for negligence.
The 28-year-old, who plays for Racing Louisville, collapsed in the first half of a National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) match on 14 September 2025.
According to documents seen by BBC Sport, the case was filed on Tuesday morning with Jefferson Circuit Court in Kentucky, where her club is based – a year and a day after her on-field collapse.
DeMelo’s filing claims UofL Health and two doctors, Dr Sarabjeet Suri and Dr Jennifer Daily, “failed to act as a reasonably prudent and competent medical practice, and such negligence was a substantial factor in causing DeMelo to suffer severe physical injuries, including, but not limited to, her cardiac arrest”.
Dr Daily, according to her online UofL biography, is Racing Louisville’s chief medical officer. The lawsuit states DeMelo was under the care of Dr Daily from January 2024 to July 2026.
It states that in March 2025, Dr Daily referred DeMelo to Dr Suri for “evaluation and treatment” after she had been complaining of chest pain, dizziness and shortness of air; Dr Suri obtained a history, performed a physical examination and ordered diagnostic tests.
Nearly six months later, DeMelo suffered the cardiac arrest.
“She was subsequently diagnosed and treated for ventricular tachycardia [an abnormal heart rhythm],” the suit states.
DeMelo, who has spent her entire professional career with Racing Louisville, has not played since her collapse.
In a post to her instagram page on Tuesday, De Melo – who was picked in the USA squad for the 2023 Women’s World Cup and started their first two games – marked the anniversary of the incident.
“A year ago today, while playing soccer, I collapsed due to an undiagnosed cardiac arrhythmia, that caused me to go into cardiac arrest,” she wrote.
“I respect and appreciate the privacy everyone has met me with while going through everything I have this year. I’ll never be able to fully put into words how emotionally hard this year has been. There has been a lot of uncertainty and emotions intertwined with it all.”
[BBC]
Foreign News
Death toll from Philippines ferry fire rises to 76, with more still missing
The Philippine Coast Guard says it has recovered 41 bodies from the wreckage of a ferry that caught fire this week, bringing the total death toll to 76.
More than 130 people were on board the MV June Aster when the blaze erupted on Wednesday as it neared its destination at the tourist hotspot of Coron, after departing from Manila.
The coast guard said on Saturday the number of survivors remained 43, with many receiving treatment in hospital, but 13 people remain unaccounted for.
Recovery of bodies had been hampered due to toxic fumes and lingering heat, which meant authorities were unable to board until Friday.
Geronimo Tuvilla, an official for the Philippine Coast Guard, said the priority was identifying victims and determining the cause of the blaze.
Kristine Ablana, a tourism official in Coron, said relatives were being asked to help identify family members through personal items and DNA testing.
“Once someone is able to verify that this photo or these belongings are indeed those of their relative, they will be asked to provide a DNA sample,” she said.
Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Noemie Cayabyab said the fire began in a cargo hold before spreading.
She said survivors had described hearing a loud explosion, “the appearance of smoke and then fire. It spread very quickly”. She added that those who had made it off the ship did not have time to put on lifejackets.
A survivor who was hauled to safety on a rescue boat told the BBC he had heard frantic cries onboard when the fire erupted, and was trampled by panicked people as he tried to escape.
The ferry, built in 2002, held valid safety certificates and passed an enforcement inspection in March, but investigators are looking into potential manifest discrepancies, cargo loading integrity, and crew emergency response protocols, the Palawan Daily reported.
The vessel was carrying 117 passengers and 17 crew members.
Atienza Interisland Ferries, the vessel’s operator, has pledged full co-operation with the inquiry.
[BBC]
Foreign News
Princess Diana’s ‘revenge dress’ goes up for auction on 9th December
A dress worn by Princess Diana to a party in London hours after a documentary was televised in which the then-Prince Charles admitted to committing adultery during their marriage is going up for auction.
Her dramatic arrival at the Serpentine Gallery in 1994 in a custom-made black silk evening dress by designer Christina Stambolian became an iconic pop-culture moment.
The media dubbed her outfit the “revenge dress”.
Auction house Sotheby’s expects the dress to sell for up to £220,000 ($300,000) when it goes under the hammer on 9 December.
A press release from Sotheby’s said it is the first time the dress has been offered at auction since 1997, when the late princess sold 79 of her dresses to raise money for charities.
Morgane Halimi, Sotheby’s Global Head of Handbags and Fashion, said in a statement that Princess Diana “understood instinctively” that fashion can be a language in its own right.
“On her own terms, Princess Diana turned the dress into one of the most powerful messages she ever made, during one of the most scrutinised and emotionally charged episodes of her life,” Halimi said.
“She walked into a moment in which so much of her story was being told for her and, through what she chose to wear, reclaimed the narrative for herself.”

According to Sotheby’s, Anna Harvey, her stylist at the time, said Diana “wanted to look a million dollars”.
The princess made a last-minute wardrobe change for the fundraising dinner and chose the strapless evening dress by the Greek designer Christina Stambolian – which she accessorised with a royal jewel, a black clutch and black heels.
The vintage Jaguar XJ40 car that Diana arrived in at the event was sold at auction earlier this year for £66,250.
The revenge dress is expected to fetch a considerably higher price.
If it does, it will not be the first time an item from the princess’s wardrobe has sold for a significant sum.
Princess Diana’s sweater featuring a black sheep among rows of white ones was sold for £920,000 at an auction by Sotheby’s in New York in 2023.
[BBC]
-
News7 days agoUS embassy won’t comment on IGP’s probe into joint drug raid
-
News5 days agoShanakiyan urges urgent action over reported death sentence for Lankan in Saudi Arabia
-
News6 days agoBid for Basil’s extradition nears final stage: Police
-
News4 days agoNamal Rajapaksa Buddhist gambit fails, bail denied
-
Business7 days agoAll-new Bolero MaXX unveiled in Sri Lanka
-
Opinion7 days agoA journalist who wrote across the divide
-
Features4 days agoWhy the spelling Sri Lankan names in English vary
-
Features4 days agoThree bands, a new identity: Sri Lankan wolf snake recognised as distinct species
