Amber heat health alerts have been issued for every part of England, except the North East which has a yellow alert, from 9am on Tuesday until 9am on Friday.

The amber alerts - issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) - say "significant impacts are likely across health and social care services due to the high temperatures".

They warn this could include "a rise in deaths, particularly among those aged 65 or over," and "likely increased demand on all health and social care services".

It comes after the UK saw a record number of days with temperatures above 30C across the country this year - with more to come by Wednesday.

Temperatures of at least 30.6C were recorded on Sunday, bringing the total number of 30C-plus days in 2026 to 35 - a new UK record.

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While Monday starts the week comparatively cooler, temperatures will rise again by Tuesday before peaking midweek.

Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan said that "we'll probably see highs reaching the mid-30s quite widely on Wednesday, and indeed on Thursday too" in England and Wales.

He added: "Thursday, at this stage, looks the most likely hottest day of the week. There's a small chance it could get even higher than [36C]."

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Mr Morgan also said that the Met Office "sometimes issue extreme heat warnings, amber and red warnings, which we did back in June, so that's under consideration at the moment".

It came amid predictions of food shortages and price rises, as UK farmers warn this year's dry weather has been a "disaster" for crops.

Ahead of this week's heatwave, the Met Office has warned of the impact on infrastructure, such as railway lines and power networks.

On Sunday, Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service declared a major incident while 14 crews tackled two separate fires near Mansfield.

In Hampshire, 26 fire engines attended a blaze near the A31 after a vehicle fire spread to nearby heathland, the fire service said.

While half of England and all of Wales struggle under drought conditions, more than half a month's rainfall fell in north west Scotland in the last 48 hours, the Met Office said.

"They've seen over 100mm of rain on Friday and Saturday, so the rain isn't far away and there is a little bit of rain in northern England and Northern Ireland today too," Mr Morgan said.

This summer's extreme weather has included two record-breaking heatwaves in May and June that led to more than 2,700 excess deaths.

The highest temperature of the year was 38C, recorded at Lingwood in Norfolk on 28 June.

Two more heatwaves last month, the driest July in England and Wales since records began, have fuelled drought and wildfires.

Nineteen counties across England recorded 1mm or less rainfall across the month, with half of England and all of Wales plunged into drought.

In recent weeks, large blazes broke out at Dunwich Heath in Suffolk, Headon Warren on the Isle of Wight, Llanwonno in the Rhondda Valleys, South Wales, and the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland.

The dry conditions come after last year's drought summer, with the UK facing more extreme weather fuelled by human-caused climate change, mostly as a result of burning fossil fuels.

A large search operation was launched on Sunday evening after reports that three people were in trouble in the water at Camber Sands beach in East Sussex.

Emergency services were called just before 7pm and two of the three people, a 16-year-old boy and a 24-year-old man, safely got out of the water.

A third person - the 18-year-old man - was pulled from the water at around 7.30pm.

A Sussex Police spokesperson said: "Sadly, despite lifesaving attempts by paramedics at the scene, he was pronounced deceased a short while later.

"His next of kin have been informed, and our thoughts are with them.

"Inquiries in the area remain ongoing and an increased emergency presence is visible at this time."

The force added that the three people were known to each other and had travelled to the beach together from London.

"There are no suspicious circumstances, and this will now be a coronial matter," a spokesperson said.

The UK has seen a series of deaths from people getting into difficulty in water this year, as the country experiences record temperatures, at least four heatwaves and consistently high temperatures.

In May - which saw the hottest ever May temperature and the hottest ever Bank Holiday recorded - at least 15 people, mostly children, drowned swimming in open water.

Temperatures are set to climb to highs of 36C this week in what would make for the fifth heatwave this summer for many, with a Met Office meteorologist saying red weather warnings could be issued.

Tom Morgan said that "we'll probably see highs reaching the mid-30s quite widely on Wednesday, and indeed on Thursday too" in England and Wales.

It's the latest in a spree of dry weather, which comes after last year's drought summer, and comes as the UK faces more extreme weather fuelled by human-caused climate change, mostly as a result of burning fossil fuels.

The RNLI also issued a water safety warning in May, saying "while the air temperature is warm, the seas are still cold and cold water shock remains a very real risk".

It added that the effects of entering waters of 15C or below are "often underestimated", and "this shock can be the precursor to drowning".

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Entering such water increases the heart rate, leading to blood pressure also going up, meaning cold shocks can cause heart attacks even in relatively young and healthy people.

Breathing rates can change uncontrollably and increase as much as tenfold, the charity says.

This can all contribute to a feeling of panic, which in turn increases the risk of inhaling water into the lungs.

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Sky News has learnt that Fenway Sports Group (FSG), the Anfield club's controlling shareholder since 2010, is preparing to make an announcement about a transaction as soon as this week.

The deal will see Mr Bezos participate in an investor group alongside Eduardo Saverin, one of the co-founders of the social network Facebook.

The syndicate is led by Amit Bhatia, the son-in-law of steel billionaire Lakshmi Mittal and until recently a shareholder in Championship club Queens Park Rangers

One source indicated that an announcement was expected in the coming days, although they cautioned that it could slip into next week.

If completed, the deal would install a trio of the world's wealthiest individuals as co-owners of the Reds, one of the most successful teams in the history of English football.

Mr Bezos alone has a fortune estimated by Forbes at over $280bn, while Mr Saverin is said to be worth over $32bn.

Their investment in Liverpool will reportedly value the club at $6bn, making it one of the sport's richest-ever deals.

It will come as the world of football reels from the fallout from FIFA president Gianni Infantino's proposed sale of a stake in the commercial rights to tournaments, including the men's World Cup.

The emergence of his plans has raised searching questions about the game's commercial structure as well as that of its most powerful global figure.

Mr Infantino's plot came as money continues to pour into the world's biggest sports teams, particularly in football and in the largest US-based leagues.

While Mr Bezos has not previously been linked to deals in football, his prospective involvement in the Liverpool FC consortium underlines the extent to which sport is now viewed by wealthy investors as an asset class in its own right.

Mr Saverin, who is 44 years old, was part of a consortium which assembled an unsuccessful takeover bid for Chelsea FC during the 2022 auction triggered by Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

One insider said the deal was now expected to be slightly larger than previously thought, potentially involving a stake of over 30%.

Liverpool last won the Premier League title in 2024-25, but faces a season of transition following the sacking of head coach Arne Slot and the loss of veteran forward Mo Salah.

Nevertheless, if its valuation hits $6bn, the deal will reinforce the huge financial success that FSG has enjoyed during its 16 years as the club's owner.

The Boston Red Sox owner acquired Liverpool for just £300m with the club in a troubled state financially.

The arrival of such a powerful consortium will fuel expectations that its members will ultimately seek outright control of the Reds.

A spokesperson for FSG said last month: "An investment consortium led, managed, and represented by Amit Bhatia has expressed interest in making a strategic minority investment in Liverpool Football Club."

FSG declined to comment further on the potential timing of a deal.

A spokesman for the consortium led by Mr Bhatia also declined to comment.

The last time a stake in Liverpool changed hands was in 2023, when Dynasty Equity bought a small interest valuing it at more than $4.5bn.

Since taking over, FSG has largely been praised by Liverpool fans for its stewardship of the club, although last season's fifth-place finish and the decision to replace Mr Slot in May caused disquiet among many.

Sky News has learnt that Britain's biggest water company made the delayed seven-figure payment to Steve Buck, who joined the company in April 2025, at the end of last month.

The money to pay Mr Buck is understood to have been drawn from an emergency borrowing facility made available to Thames Water by a syndicate of lenders which are trying to persuade the government to back a solvent rescue plan for the company.

The £1m signing-on payment came 15 months after Mr Buck joined the struggling utility, and followed legal advice taken by Thames Water over its obligations.

A Whitehall source said the payment was disclosed in a letter sent last week by Sir Adrian Montague, Thames Water's chairman, to MPs on the environment, food and rural affairs select committee.

It can also be revealed that Thames Water has reached settlements over retention payments to 14 other executives, including two who have now left the company.

Many of these are understood to involve Thames Water paying smaller sums than those originally envisaged under the retention scheme, and over a longer period.

The payment to Mr Buck, a former finance chief at Pennon Group and Anglian Water, was part of a signing-on package constructed to persuade him to join Thames Water as it fought to avoid being taken over by the Labour government.

One source said the £1m payment had been deferred with Mr Buck's agreement when he arrived, but that Thames Water's board had ultimately decided it could not avoid handing it to him accordance with his contractual rights.

A wider retention payments scheme set up last year to avert the mass defection of Thames Water executives did not make agreed payments at the end of last year or on June 30 after directors decided to "pause" the programme amid a political outcry.

Whitehall insiders who have seen Sir Adrian's letter said it acknowledged that customers would regard it as unfair that senior managers were being paid significant sums while service standards had yet to improve.

The letter, which was copied to Ofwat and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), is likely to spark fresh demands from campaigners for Thames Water's immediate nationalisation.

In its annual results last month, the company disclosed that chief executive Chris Weston's total pay package had risen above £1m last year - although he does not participate in any bonus schemes provided by Thames Water.

Sir Adrian is said to have made it clear to MPs that it had taken legal advice on the retention programme's participants' rights under employment law.

According to one source, he told them that Thames Water had been struggling to recruit and retain senior staff during the ongoing crisis, which has left its future shrouded in uncertainty for the last three years.

Sir Adrian's letter comes amid a wider row over executive pay in the water industry, with several companies offering 'allowances' to bosses in order to circumvent bonus restrictions imposed by Ofwat.

The regulator has said it would pay close attention to retention payments which are not linked to performance, with a review of the practice expected to take place next year.

"Retention payments are not an uncommon practice but are often for limited exceptional periods which justify the need for retaining leadership, such as during mergers and acquisitions or leadership transitions," Ofwat said last year.

The likelihood of a further pay row at the industry's biggest company will pose a headache for Angela Eagle, who was appointed as environment secretary by Andy Burnham last month.

Thames Water's fate, and whether it can be resolved silently, is among the most pressing challenges facing her, with a revised rescue proposal from creditors expected to be submitted within weeks.

Ms Eagle's predecessor, Emma Reynolds, appeared to increase the prospects of Thames Water being placed into a special administration regime (SAR) when she told Ofwat in June that a proposed rescue deal was inadequate.

"I am not yet convinced that the Proposal demonstrates sufficient protection for consumers' interests," she told the watchdog.

A new proposal, which will include a golden share for the government to satisfy Mr Burnham's desire for greater "public control" of the water industry, is widely regarded as a last chance to avoid a SAR, which would wipe out billions of pounds of value for Thames Water's owners.

Sky News revealed last month that the group of investors engaged in a rescue bid for Thames Water have hired litigation specialists to prepare for a legal battle with the government if it forcibly nationalises the company.

The London & Valley Water consortium has been formed by a syndicate of fund managers including Apollo Global Management, Elliott Management, Farallon Capital Management and Silver Point Capital, which collectively hold £17bn of Thames Water's £21bn debt pile.

They have so far proposed a £10bn deal to take control of Thames Water, which includes injecting £3.35bn of fresh equity into the company.

The funds would also provide a total of £6.25bn of new debt, while writing off £9.6bn of Thames Water's existing borrowings.

Under their plans, the creditors would not pay any dividends to shareholders until the 2030s, with a plan to return the company to the public markets in about five years' time.

Ofwat is required to hold a three-month public consultation on a private sector deal, meaning that time is running out for such a process to be launched.

Thames Water repeated a warning this week that it would run out of money by the end of the year, although creditors have stated their intention to continue financing the company into 2027.

On Monday morning, Thames Water declined to comment on Sir Adrian's letter.

Craig and Lindsay Foreman were handed a 10-year prison sentence in February after being convicted of espionage, which they both deny.

Their family previously claimed they were not allowed to attend their appeal hearing, and were left with no other options except for "starving themselves in protest".

Ms Foreman's son Joe Bennett said the pair had ended their strike in Iran on Sunday. Mr Foreman had protested for 93 days, while Ms Foreman had gone without food for 84 days.

The couple were jailed following their arrest in January 2025 while travelling through Iran during a round-the-world trip by motorcycle.

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Bennett said the couple's hunger strike was an "act of defiance" and their "only agency to rebel" in a bid to highlight the "injustice" they themselves feel they are facing, along with what they've reportedly "seen happening to other people" in Iran and in prison.

The family joined the pair in a five-day fast towards the end of their hunger strike, with Ms Foreman giving them a word to reflect on each day - truth, justice, kindness, peace and unity.

Mr Bennett said the couple ate on Sunday, adding: "I know that they were struggling.

"The five-day water fast at the end of their 90 days was a real hardship on their bodies. I know that my mum had very, very low blood sugar. She was in hospital.

"They met yesterday for about three hours. They ate together, and we heard after eating both of them sort of bounced back.

"But it's going to be a bit of an adjustment period, putting your body through so much, such an intense period of time, to now recover from that is, you know, it's going to be difficult."

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According to the family, Mr Foreman first refused food in Tehran's notorious Evin Prison on 9 May, while Ms Foreman joined her husband on 18 May.

They have pleaded with the Iranian authorities for the couple to be "shown mercy and allowed to come home", and urged the British ambassador to Tehran, Hugo Shorter, to intervene.

They also previously called on the UK government to facilitate a prisoner swap with Iranian Richard Jan - dubbed the UK's "worst stalker".

The family previously said that both Mr and Ms Foreman have lost a significant amount of weight, while all communication has been cut off by Iranian authorities.

It comes after reports emerged in July that Mr Foreman was handed an extended sentence - two further years "because he had spoken to the press", according to Mr Bennett.

The family's legal team said at the time that the two-year sentence will be added to the formal complaint submitted to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on the Foremans' behalf.

It is hoped that phone calls between the family and the couple will be reinstated following the end of the hunger strike.

Mr Bennett said he last spoke to his mother about three months ago and a "little bit less" with Mr Foreman.

He said the lack of communication had been a real "worry", adding: "Especially with the no contact, you don't know truly how they are, what's going on, what they're experiencing, what they're being put through.

"And it wreaks havoc on your mind, it really does."

Mr Bennett said family and friends "felt this sense of relief" now that the couple have eaten.

He added: "These small wins that we have along the way, we have to celebrate."

Mr Bennett said the fight goes on and the family will not rest until the Foremans are home.

He continued: "I feel like we have had the reset we need. The news that come out has given us a new burst of energy, because we know that they're looking after themselves properly."