The UK's largest prison has been criticised after an inspection found a rise in levels of drug use and increased violence.

A report by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor said progress at HMP Berwyn in Wrexham was being hampered by an influx of prisoners from overcrowded jails in England.

But the report added a relatively-new prison governor had displayed "capable" leadership qualities and staff recruitment had improved.

A prison service spokesperson said a "comprehensive action plan" was underway at the prison to address issues around drug use and self-harm.

A hot air balloon has crashed into an electricity line and landed in a field.

Firefighters were called to Newhouse Road, Earls Colne, where the balloon had landed, at about 19:00 BST on Thursday, Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said.

A man was taken to Colchester General Hospital for treatment, and 10 others were assessed at the scene, but did not need any treatment, an East of England Ambulance Service (EEAS) spokesman said.

Fire crews gave first aid, cooled the balloon's cylinders and worked with UK Power Networks to make the scene safe.

The EEAS spokesman added: "An ambulance, two ambulance officer vehicles and the Hazardous Area Response Team were sent to the scene."

UK Power Networks said power had been restored to the area, at about 05:00, after the overhead electricity line had been fixed.

• Five takeaways from first leaked US military chat group
• Pentagon watchdog probing Hegseth's Signal app use
• Four lingering questions about 'Signalgate'
• What is messaging app Signal and how secure is it?

The second Signal chat surfaced as controversy swirls around the head of the Pentagon, who this year is controlling a budget of $892bn (£670bn).

Hegseth last week fired three top officials for an "unauthorised disclosure" – an accusation the officials said was "baseless".

In a testy exchange outside the White House ahead of an annual Easter event, Hegseth appeared to attribute the latest story to the officials he fired.

"What a big surprise that a few leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out," he said.

Hegseth criticised the media and denounced the reports. He also said he has spoken to the president and that they were "on the same page all the way".

In an op-ed for Politico magazine published on Sunday, John Ullyot, the top Pentagon spokesperson who resigned last week, wrote that the department was in "total chaos".

He added: "The dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president – who deserves better from his senior leadership."

Ullyot said it was not true that the three fired officials were leaking information and wrote: "Unfortunately, Hegseth's team has developed a habit of spreading flat-out, easily debunked falsehoods anonymously about their colleagues on their way out the door."

However, in a statement on X, Sean Parnell, current chief spokesman for the Pentagon, said the "Trump-hating media" was "destroying anyone committed to President Trump's agenda".

He echoed the White House by saying that "there was no classified information in any Signal chat".

Washington says its strikes in Yemen are punishment for Houthi attacks on cargo vessels transiting through the Red Sea, a critical waterway for international trade.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have targeted dozens of merchant vessels with missiles, drones and small boat attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, saying they are acting in support of the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza . They have sunk two vessels, seized a third, and killed four crew members.

US air strikes on an oil terminal in north-western Yemen this week killed at least 74 people and wounded 171 others, according to the Houthi-run health ministry.

Police have seized five vehicles and 14 drivers will be prosecuted after up to 400 cars were caught "setting up to race" in Nottingham.

Nottinghamshire Police said it became aware that a large number of car cruisers were set to descend on the city on Saturday 3 May.

A coordinated operation was then put in place at known hotspots for reckless driving, which the force said led to the seizure of cars and allowed officers to prevent issues at other locations.

The force has targeted car cruising since last year as part of Operation Wheelspin, which aims to put the brakes on "meets" organised on closed social media groups.

The force said the initiative, which has used number plate recognition technology to build up a database of potential problem cars, had led to a 20% reduction in related offences.

Sgt James Carrington previously told the BBC the force is "playing a game of cat and mouse" with car cruising organisers, who can often arrange multiple meets at several locations on one night.

Speaking about the operation on 3 May, he said: "We seized five cars that night alone, and 14 drivers will be prosecuted.

"We also populated our database with a huge number of vehicle registration marks for further monitoring and to develop our intelligence picture going forward, as well as dispersing them out of Nottinghamshire without issue."

Sgt Carrington added: "The operation was a real success and underlines how we will continue to work hard to keep people safe, prevent and disrupt anti-social behaviour being caused at these car cruise events, and do everything we can to bring offenders to justice."

A further two cars were stopped, leading to police enforcement action after a smaller scale pop-up meet on the A57 at Worksop on Bank Holiday Monday.

A new writing platform has been launched to promote working class writers and tackle the publishing industry's "class crisis".

The Bee will consist of a website, literary magazine, podcast and outreach programme to support the development of working class writers.

It has been produced by Newcastle-based charity New Writing North and is part of the A Writing Chance programme, which is co-founded by Northumbria University, Joseph Rowntree Foundation and actor Michael Sheen.

New Writing North CEO Claire Malcolm said: "Talent is classless. Opportunity, however, is class-bound. The Bee is an urgent response to that."

She said: "Our research shows that despite incredible success stories from these initiatives the class crisis continues to grow.

"There's never been so much debate about class in the creative industries but nothing has changed and things are actually getting worse and inequality more entrenched, hence the need to make our own reality."

'Ordinary working people'

Ms Malcolm said just 10% of authors and writers were from those backgrounds.

It is hoped the Bee – which has a podcast the Working Class Library – will give writers the chance to publish fiction and non-fiction work.

The magazine's editor, Richard Benson, said people from "less well-off sections of society" deserve the chance to tell their stories.

"Much of the important writing being done today and so many of the best-loved stories come from ordinary, working people," he said.

"So often, it's stories from the working classes that express what's really happening in the world."

A 40-year-old man has been arrested after a suspected burglary at an exotic zoo.

Cambridgeshire Police said it was called to Johnsons of Old Hurst in Church Street, near Huntingdon, at about 21:50 BST on Monday.

A blue Land Rover Defender and trailer were stolen by a group of men, the force added.

A spokesperson said a man followed and confronted the suspects, but when he did, they rammed his vehicle and drove off.

The confrontations happened in New Road, Humberdale Way and Ramsey Road in Warboys.

Det Con Emily South said the man "attempted to stop the suspects escaping".

The suspects were believed to have left in a Range Rover and Volkswagen Passat.

One of the vehicles thought to be involved was later found in Slacks Lane in Bury, near Ramsey.

The zoo is home to animals including lions, crocodiles and capybaras.

The suspect from Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, was held on suspicion of robbery and burglary and was released on bail.

Police appealed for anyone with more information to come forward.