We have put together a round-up of all the latest news, weather, and travel information for Wednesday, April 20, that will get you caught up and ready for the day as Boris Johnson used a call with US President Joe Biden and other world leaders to stress the "critical need" for further military support for Ukraine as it faces a Russian offensive in the east.
The Prime Minister told European and north American leaders that sanctions and arms are needed as Russian president Vladimir Putin launches a "major Russian offensive" in the Donbas region. France's Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Olaf Scholz, Canada's Justin Trudeau, Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg and the European Commission leader Ursula von der Leyen were among other leaders on the call.
Downing Street said Mr Johnson updated them on his visit to Kyiv earlier this month, and added: "He underscored the critical need for further military support to Ukraine in the face of a major Russian offensive in the Donbas and ongoing attacks elsewhere.
"The leaders agreed to work together to find a long-term security solution so that Ukraine could never be attacked in this way again. They discussed the need to increase the pressure on Russia with more sanctions against Putin's war machine, as well as further diplomatic isolation. The Prime Minister welcomed President Biden's leadership, and the allies agreed to work closely together in the weeks and months to come."
Earlier in the day, Mr Johnson told the weekly meeting of the cabinet that President Putin had been angered by the defeats inflicted on his troops but remained "determined to claim some sort of victory regardless of the human cost". Ministers were briefed by a senior national security official who said the next phase of the war - focusing on the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine - was likely to be "an attritional conflict" which could last "several" months.
Wales news headlines
'Happy go lucky' rugby player drowned after a night out with friends, inquest hears
A 22-year-old rugby player with "a lot to live for" drowned after a night out, an inquest has heard. Brooke Morris was reported missing in 2019 following a night out with mates - with family and friends saying her disappearance was totally out of character.
Her body was found in the River Taff near Abercynon five days later. Her death was not treated as suspicious, but police began an investigation on behalf of the coroner - who tried to establish what happened in the run up to the tragic incident.
Ms Morris' inquest, which took place at Pontypridd Coroner's Court on Tuesday, heard a statement from her mother Karen - which said about her daughter: "We've never had any cause to have concern about her mental health." You can read the full report here.
Woman found dead at Pendine Sands after large emergency services operation
The body of a woman has been discovered on a beach in Carmarthenshire. A large emergency services presence could be seen at Pendine Sands this afternoon, including the police, ambulance service and coastguard.
Dyfed-Powys Police has stated that the incident is not being treated as suspicious, but that it is continuing its inquiries.
A statement from the police read: “Dyfed-Powys Police received a call just before 12.25pm this afternoon, Tuesday, April 19, 2022, reporting an incident at Pendine Beach, Pendine, Carmarthenshire. Sadly, the body of a woman has been found. Next of kin have been advised and are being supported by officers. The death is not being treated as suspicious and enquiries continue.”
A Welsh Ambulance Service spokeswoman added: “We were called at approximately 12.20pm today, Tuesday 19 April, to the Pendine Sands area of Carmarthenshire. “We sent an advanced paramedic practitioner and an emergency ambulance to the scene, where crews were also supported by two duty operational managers.”
Today's forecast
The Met Office predicts today mostly dry today with warm sunny spells.
"A chilly start with some sunny spells. There could be the odd shower in the west this afternoon, otherwise it will stay dry with hazy sunshine through the day. Feeling warm in the light winds. Maximum temperature 18 °C. Turning a little chilly tonight under partly cloudy skies. Staying dry with light winds, and temperatures should stay above freezing. Minimum temperature 2 °C."
Here is how the roads and rail are affected at 7am
A40 Llandovery - Reports of traffic problem on A40 around the Ystrad Agricultural Supplies and Cafe.
National news headlines
Duke Of Sussex says Queen was "on great form" during their meeting
The Duke Of Sussex says the Queen was "on great form" during their recent meeting but added he wanted to make sure that she was "protected" and had "the right people around her". He and his wife Meghan visited the monarch and met with the Prince of Wales in Windsor on Thursday, having flown in from their home in the US before travelling on to The Hague in the Netherlands for the Invictus games.
It is the first time the couple had been seen together publicly on this side of the Atlantic for two years. Speaking to NBC's Today show about his meeting with the Queen, he said "Being with her it was great, it was just so nice to see her, she's on great form.
"She's always got a great sense of humour with me and I'm just making sure that she's protected and got the right people around her. Both Meghan and I had tea with her, so it was really nice to catch up with her."
It comes days ahead of the monarch's 96th birthday on Thursday and just over a year after the funeral of her husband the Duke of Edinburgh. Harry said: "Home for me now, for the time being, is in the States and it feels that way. We've been welcomed with open arms and have such a great community up in Santa Barbara."
Boris Johnson off to India despite MPs voting on Covid law breach investigation
Boris Johnson is scheduled to jet to India despite the trip clashing with a Commons vote on whether to investigate him for misleading Parliament over breaches of coronavirus laws. The Prime Minister is preparing to depart for the official trip on Wednesday, April 20 ahead of Thursday's vote calling for a committee to determine whether he lied with his denials.
Mr Johnson is under renewed pressure after he was told to resign by Conservative former chief whip Mark Harper, who said he was no longer "worthy" of being Prime Minister. That came despite Mr Johnson apologising dozens of times in the Commons and insisting he did not know he was breaching his own Covid rules after being fined by police.
But he denied intentionally misleading MPs in the past with his denials, including when he assured "all guidance was followed completely" in Downing Street. Instead, Mr Johnson apologised repeatedly for the "mistake" of his 56th birthday gathering in No 10 in June 2020, as the police investigation into further alleged parties continues.
Government sources insisted the trip for talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi was "definitely happening" despite pressure to cancel it so he can attend the debate. He is set to depart after Prime Minister's Questions.
Sport headlines
Football fans fight on busy Cardiff street as major violent incident leaves 'blood everywhere'
Shocking footage has emerged of football fans embroiled in a violent incident on a busy road ahead of Cardiff City's match against Luton Town on Easter Monday.
More than a dozen people were filmed involved in the brawl, with punches being thrown while one man appears to be on all fours on the ground injured with children in the vicinity. Cars using the busy Leckwith Road route can be seen reversing as drivers try to avoid the incident, which happened outside Ninian Park railway station ahead of a 3pm kick-off.
Bluebirds podcast 'A Bit of Swazz: A Cardiff City FC podcast' tweeted: "Shoutout to the Luton bus that stopped outside Ninian Park station before the game. Piled off. Punch ups. Bloody heads. And one fella swinging his belt over his head. Thrilled to walk down the steps carrying my three-year-old daughter as it kicked off."
Cardiff City are aware of the incident and a "significant" amount of footage has been passed to South Wales Police. A Cardiff City fan, who did not wish to be named, was walking to the game when the incident unfolded and said it was the worst incident he had seen in more than 30 years of attending Bluebirds matches.
He said the bus pulled up at traffic lights before youngsters tried to get in front of the vehicle. "One guy ran off the bus to shout at the Cardiff fans," he explained. "Another guy did run off towards Cardiff fans, a Cardiff fan must have punched him, he was quite badly injured. A Cardiff fan had their head sliced open - I thought it was a bottle but it looked like it was a belt. There was blood everywhere.
"It was disgusting. This was unfolding about three metres away from us. More and more fans from Luton started piling off the bus. It just kicked off from there. You're talking a good five minutes of chaos."
The fan questioned why an opposition fans' bus was taking such a route toward the ground, saying: "95% of the fans were in the stadium. Someone could have got killed - it was lucky there was only a few straggling fans left. I've been going for 30-odd years and I've seen little skirmishes but this was full on. It was as bad as I've ever seen." South Wales Police has been contacted for a comment.
Dan Biggar clashes with fan inside stadium
Details have emerged of an altercation between Dan Biggar and a supporter during Northampton Saints' defeat to Gloucester over the weekend have emerged. Biggar was shown a red card for a high tackle on Lions team-mate Chris Harris during the match at Kingsholm, that Saints went on to lose 31-21, crashing out of the Challenge Cup in the process.
In the 54th minute of the match, Biggar got things wrong as he arrived as the second tackler and caught Harris flush on the chin with his shoulder. There were few arguments about the card.
But then it seems the Wales skipper was subjected to abuse from a member of the crowd as he headed towards the sidelines and took up a position for the rest of the match. Biggar, allegedly, was unable to brush it off and exchanged verbals before stewards intervened.
These details have been posted to a blog run by Ashley Tuala, the wife of Biggar's Northampton team-mate Ahsee. The post is entitled 'Would you say it to their face?' and uses the Biggar incident as an example of the stick professional rugby players take on a weekly basis.
Mrs Tuala wrote: "A player from Northampton Saints had been red carded for a tackle he had made during the game. As he was walking off the field a particular person from the crowd was literally just hailing a whole lot of abusive words to him directly.
"The player bit back and returned some words. Now here is the funny, yet sticky, part. The person in the crowd yelled back because the player was saying things back to him. that he was being unprofessional and that he shouldn’t be saying things back because he is who he is.
"The stewards were then seen trying to calm the situation down. The player was then heard saying: 'I’m not going to sit here and allow someone to verbally abuse me'.
"I must mention people from the crowd had also been heard throughout the game verbally abusing and saying some pretty disgusting things towards not only players but also members of the staff like: 'You're fat' and also using the disgusting word: 'You’re a f****t'. In no way shape or form am I only pinning this verbal abuse on one particular team's home crowd whatsoever this is only a mere example of the type of abuse that can be heard during a match."
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