Reform’s £50bn welfare cut plan, Tupac trial opens, Hayden Panettiere dies at 36

Reform UK has proposed cutting more than £50 billion a year from welfare spending, principally by reshaping working-age disability and sickness support. Its plans include abolishing personal independence payment and the health element of Universal Credit for working-age adults, replacing some cash support with locally administered disability support accounts, tightening eligibility and reassessing existing claimants over several years. Robert Jenrick said the party would retain support for people with severe needs and encourage more people into work. The Institute for Fiscal Studies said the proposal represented a markedly different model of welfare, but noted limited detail on the new assessment system and warned that removing benefits from many non-UK citizens would cause substantial hardship.

In Las Vegas, the murder trial of Duane “Keffe D” Davis opened over the 1996 killing of Tupac Shakur. Prosecutors allege Davis organised the drive-by shooting in retaliation after his nephew was beaten; Davis, 63, has pleaded not guilty, and his lawyer told jurors the case lacked corroborating evidence. Separately, actor Hayden Panettiere, known for Heroes and Nashville, died aged 36 after being found unresponsive at a residence in Greenville, South Carolina. Officials said an autopsy found no trauma and no foul play was apparent, while the cause and manner of death remained under investigation.