Pramod Thomas is a senior correspondent with Asian Media Group since 2020, bringing 19 years of journalism experience across business, politics, sports, communities, and international relations. His career spans both traditional and digital media platforms, with eight years specifically focused on digital journalism. This blend of experience positions him well to navigate the evolving media landscape and deliver content across various formats. He has worked with national and international media organisations, giving him a broad perspective on global news trends and reporting standards.
Parts of London with a large Asian population have more adult children living with their parents in 2021 compared to a decade ago, latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed.
Published on Wednesday (10), the survey showed more than one in four (26.8 per cent) London families had at least one adult child in the home, the largest proportion of any English region.
Adult children refers to a person aged over 18 years who is living with their parent(s) and does not have a spouse, partner or child living with them. It also includes anyone aged 16 to 18 years who is not in full-time education and does not have a spouse, child or partner living with them.
Six of the 10 local authorities with the highest proportion of families with adult children were in London. The highest was in Brent, where almost one in three (32.4 per cent) families had adult children living with them.
Other areas where families with adult children were most common include Leicester (30.4 per cent), Knowsley (30.2 per cent) and Birmingham (29.9 per cent).
Adults were more likely to live with their parents in areas where housing is less affordable and they were also more likely to be unemployed, or providing unpaid care.
The proportion was smaller in the south west, at around one in five (19.3 per cent) families. In Wales, 23.2 per cent of families had at least one adult child.
In local areas, the lowest proportions were in Rutland (16.4 per cent), followed by Cotswold (16.9 per cent) and Rushcliffe (16.9 per cent).
Cities in England and Wales with some of the lowest proportions of families with adult children include Cambridge (17.2 per cent) and Winchester (17.3 per cent).
According to the ONS data, the fastest increase in the number of families with adult children between 2011 and 2021 was in London at 24.5 per cent.
Among all local authorities, Tower Hamlets (46.1 per cent), Barking and Dagenham (38.5 per cent) and Newham (38.1 per cent) saw the highest growth rates of families with adult children. These neighbouring areas together form a strip along the Thames in East London.
These areas were among the 276 (83.6 per cent) of local authorities in England and Wales where the number of families with adult children grew faster than the overall number of families, the ONS said. This led to an increase in the proportion of families with adult children.
There were 16 (4.8 per cent) local authorities where the number of families with adult children fell between 2011 and 2021. Of these, four were in each of the north west and north east, and three were in Wales.
In general, the number of families in England and Wales with adult children living with their parents rose 13.6 per cent between the 2011 census and census 2021 to nearly 3.8 million.
In 2021, around one in every 4.5 families (22.4 per cent) had an adult child, up from around one in five (21.2 per cent) in 2011.
The total number of adult children living with their parents increased 14.7 per cent in the same period from around 4.2 million in the 2011 Census to around 4.9 million in Census 2021.
Male adult children outnumbered females in 2021 at a ratio of about 3 to 2 (60.8 per cent and 39.2 per cent, respectively).
The average age of adult children living with their parents in England and Wales in 2021 was 24 years, one year older than in 2011. Adult children were oldest in London, where the average age was 25 years.
In five London boroughs, the adult children’s average age had risen to 26 years. These include the boroughs of Harrow (up from 24 years), Ealing, Hammersmith and Fulham and Brent (all up from 25 years).
Haringey also saw the average age of adult children rise to 26 years from 24 years. Selby, in Yorkshire and The Humber, had the lowest average age of all local authorities at 23 years (unchanged from 2011).
Across England and Wales, the share of 20- to 24-year-olds living with their parents rose from 44.5 per cent to just over half (51.2 per cent). Similarly, the share of 25- to 29-year-olds living with their parents rose from around one in five (20.1 per cent) in 2011 to more than one in four (26.7 per cent).
The data also revealed that more than one in 10 (11.6 per cent) of those aged 30 to 34 years were living with their parents in Census 2021, up from 8.6 per cent a decade earlier.
In 2021, 11.3 per cent of families with adult children were in overcrowded households compared with 5.1 per cent of families without adult children.
Overcrowding was more common among lone-parent (13.5 per cent) and cohabiting (11.1 per cent) families with adult children compared with married or civil-partnership families with children (9.7 per cent).
A SIKH religious leader, Gurpal Singh, has been elected unopposed to the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa assembly on a seat reserved for minorities and allocated to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F), the provincial election commission announced on Thursday.
Singh, the JUI-F nominee, hails from the Malik Deen Khel tribe in Bara, Khyber district.
The reserved seat was awarded to JUI-F after the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) formally withdrew its candidate, Gorsaran Lal, in favour of Singh. This gave JUI-F an additional seat in the provincial assembly.
Shahida Waheed of the Awami National Party was elected to a reserved seat for women through a draw. The draw was conducted on the Election Commission of Pakistan’s directive to allocate one reserved minority seat between PML-N and JUI-F, and one reserved women's seat between ANP and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawmakers.
Following the draw, Shahida was declared successful.
The Election Commission of Pakistan on Tuesday had announced its decision regarding the allocation of reserved seats in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly. These seats for women and minorities are distributed proportionally among political parties based on their numerical strength in the assembly.
Former prime minister Imran Khan’s party had formed the provincial government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa following last year’s elections.
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Yellow warnings remain across England and Scotland throughout the weekend
An amber thunderstorm warning is in place for parts of south-east and eastern England from 04:00 to 11:00 on Saturday
Rainfall could reach up to 100mm in a few hours, risking flash flooding and widespread disruption
Frequent lightning, large hail, and gusty winds are expected, affecting travel and infrastructure
Yellow warnings remain across England and Scotland throughout the weekend
Soil dryness from recent heatwaves increases risk of surface runoff and flooding
Hosepipe bans remain unaffected due to limited groundwater recharge
Met Office issues amber warning ahead of torrential rain and storms
The Met Office has issued an amber weather warning for thunderstorms on Saturday morning, covering parts of south-east and eastern England. The warning is in effect from 04:00 to 11:00, with accompanying yellow alerts stretching across much of England and Scotland.
The warning highlights the potential for torrential rainfall, with 20–40mm expected in just an hour and isolated areas seeing up to 100mm within a few hours—more than a month’s worth of rain. This is likely to result in flash flooding, transport delays, and other significant disruption.
Where will be worst affected?
The most intense rainfall is forecast to move into central southern England, south-east England, and parts of the Midlands overnight on Friday. The system is expected to push into northern England and Scotland by Saturday.
Rainfall in northern Scotland could become slow-moving by Sunday, increasing the risk of localised flooding. Further downpours and thunderstorms are likely into Sunday and Monday as a low-pressure system establishes itself over the UK.
What other risks are expected?
In addition to heavy rainfall, affected areas may experience:
Frequent lightning
Large hailstones
Gusty winds
These hazards could bring delays or cancellations to road, rail, and air transport, and increase the risk of power outages.
Why dry ground could make flooding worse
The recent spate of summer heatwaves has left soils particularly dry across England and east Wales. According to meteorologists, baked ground struggles to absorb rain, especially when it falls quickly.
This causes water to run off the surface, dramatically increasing the likelihood of flash flooding, even from short bursts of rain.
Will the rain ease the drought or lift hosepipe bans?
Despite the severity of the rainfall, experts say it will not significantly impact current drought conditions. The Environment Agency reports that 2025 has seen the driest start to the year since 1976.
Much of the heavy rain will run off into rivers or out to sea, without effectively replenishing groundwater or reservoir levels. Additionally, water that does soak into the ground may be quickly taken up by plants and trees during this growing season.
As a result, hosepipe bans are expected to remain in place for the rest of the summer, potentially extending into early autumn. Only a sustained period of wet weather, typically seen in the autumn or winter months, would be enough to reverse the current water shortages.
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The Prithvi-II missile has a range of around 350 kms and can carry a payload of up to 500 kgs.
INDIA on Thursday successfully test-fired nuclear-capable short-range ballistic missiles Prithvi-II and Agni-I from the Integrated Test Range in Chandipur, off the Odisha coast.
The launches were carried out by the Strategic Forces Command and demonstrated India's strategic deterrence capability, the defence ministry said.
"The short-range ballistic missiles -- Prithvi-II and Agni-I -- were successfully test-fired from the Integrated Test Range in Chandipur, Odisha on July 17," the ministry said. "These tests were conducted under the aegis of the Strategic Forces Command." The launches validated all operational and technical parameters, it added.
On Wednesday, India had successfully test-fired the Akash Prime missile in Ladakh. The missile, developed indigenously, has been customised to operate at an altitude above 4,500 metres.
The Prithvi-II missile has a range of around 350 kms and can carry a payload of up to 500 kgs. It is capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads. The Agni-I missile has a range of 700–900 kms and can carry a payload of 1,000 kgs. Both missiles have been key components of India's nuclear deterrence.
The defence ministry said the test of the Akash Prime missile followed the "exceptional performance" of India’s indigenously developed air defence systems during Operation Sindoor. Akash Prime is an upgraded version of the Akash weapon system developed for the Indian Army.
The test in Ladakh, near the Line of Actual Control (LAC), involved successfully destroying two high-speed unmanned aerial targets at high altitude.
"India on July 16 achieved a significant milestone by successfully destroying two aerial high speed unmanned targets at high-altitude in Ladakh by Akash Prime, the upgraded variant of Akash weapon system for the Indian Army," the ministry said in a separate statement.
The ministry said Akash Prime is customised to operate at altitudes above 4,500 metres and includes upgrades such as an indigenously developed radio frequency seeker.
"Based on the operational feedbacks from users, various upgrades are made to improve the operational effectiveness, demonstrating the advantage of the ecosystem created for the indigenous weapon system," it said.
India's defence minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the Indian Army, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and the industry on the achievement, the ministry said.
(With inputs from agencies)
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US secretary of state Marco Rubio said TRF is a 'front and proxy' of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a UN-designated terrorist group based in Pakistan. (Photo: Getty Images)
THE UNITED STATES on Thursday designated The Resistance Front (TRF), the group blamed for the April attack in Kashmir, as a terrorist organisation. The attack had triggered the worst conflict between India and Pakistan in decades.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio said TRF is a "front and proxy" of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a UN-designated terrorist group based in Pakistan.
The designation "demonstrates the Trump administration's commitment to protecting our national security interests, countering terrorism, and enforcing President (Donald) Trump's call for justice for the Pahalgam attack," Rubio said in a statement.
In April, gunmen shot dead 26 people, most of them Hindus, in Pahalgam, a tourist area in the Indian-administered region of Kashmir.
Survivors told reporters that the gunmen had separated women and children and ordered some of the men to recite the Muslim declaration of faith.
India's foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Friday that the US decision was a "strong affirmation of India-US counter-terrorism cooperation", writing on X (formerly Twitter).
A strong affirmation of India-US counter-terrorism cooperation.
Appreciate @SecRubio and @StateDept for designating TRF—a Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) proxy—as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). It claimed responsibility for the… — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) July 18, 2025
Little was previously known about TRF, which initially claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam killings.
As criticism grew over the attack, the group later retracted its claim.
India has listed TRF as a terrorist group, and the India-based Observer Research Foundation think tank has described it as "a smokescreen and an offshoot of LeT".
New Delhi has accused Pakistan of being involved in the attack, a claim denied by Islamabad.
The violence in Pahalgam led to four days of fighting between India and Pakistan, leaving more than 70 people dead on both sides. It was the worst military standoff between the two countries since 1999.
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Diane Abbott has been suspended again by Labour after repeating comments about different forms of racism in a radio interview.
THE LABOUR PARTY has suspended Diane Abbott, the UK’s longest-serving female MP, after she repeated remarks on racism that had previously led to her suspension.
Abbott, a prominent figure in British left-wing politics and the first Black woman elected to parliament, was initially suspended by Labour in 2023 after she said the prejudice faced by Jewish people was similar to, but not the same as, racism.
She later apologised and withdrew the comments. Just weeks before the national election in July 2024, Abbott, 71, was readmitted into the Labour Party following internal criticism over her suspension.
Asked in an interview with BBC Radio on Thursday if she regretted the episode, she said: "No, not at all."
"Clearly, there must be a difference between racism which is about colour and other types of racism because you can see a Traveller or a Jewish person walking down the street, you don't know.
"But if you see a black person walking down the street, you see straight away that they're black. They are different types of racism," Abbott said.
A Labour spokesperson said Abbott had been administratively suspended while an investigation takes place.
Prime minister Keir Starmer has pledged to tackle antisemitism within the party after allegations of discrimination and harassment against Jewish people under former leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Starmer has also taken disciplinary action against other Labour MPs during his time as leader, including four lawmakers suspended on Wednesday for organising opposition to the government's welfare reforms.