Friday briefing: ​What does the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor mean?

In today’s newsletter: As investigators dig deeper into newly ​​released documents, the arrest of a once‑untouchable ​public figure​ puts us in uncharted territory Good morning. Some days there isn’t an immediately obvious theme for what tomorrow’s newsletter should be about. Yesterday was not one of those days. As Thames Valley Police confirmed early on Thursday that a “man in his 60s from Norfolk” had been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, it quickly became clear who the 1,000th First Edition would feature. The man taken into custody was Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor – formerly Prince Andrew, Duke of York – arrested at Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate, on his 66th birthday. He is the first senior royal in modern history to be arrested . By the evening, Andrew was seen leaving Aylsham Police Station, slouched in the back of a vehicle, having been released under investigation. Civil service | Keir Starmer has appointed Antonia Romeo as cabinet secretary, the UK’s most senior civil servant, the first woman to hold the post in its 110-year history. Iran | Donald Trump changed his mind on supporting the Chagos Islands deal because the UK will not permit its airbases to be used for a pre-emptive US strike on Iran, the Guardian has been told . Palestine | Almost 60 Palestinian journalists detained in Israeli prisons since the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack have been beaten, starved and subjected to sexual violence, including rape , a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) alleges. Iran | A British couple have been sentenced to 10 years in jail by an Iranian court on charges of espionage – an outcome foreign secretary Yvette Cooper called “completely appalling and totally unjustifiable”. Education | Children in England with special needs will receive individual support and therapy directly from their schools as part of the government’s overhaul of England’s special education provision. Continue reading...