Care minister Helen Whately said she could not believe the Education Secretary was racist.

A man has been charged after a 41-year-old was stabbed in a supermarket car park.

A car driver has died after a crash involving a coach in Staffordshire.

Paramedics were faced with a backlog of more than 500 emergency calls on just one day as the region's health services struggle to keep up with surging demand.

The six-week consultation process will take views on whether vaccine requirements should apply for health and wider social care workers.

Priti Patel has ordered officials to rewrite laws to allow Border Force to redirect boats to be dealt with by French authorities, reports say.

British Chambers of Commerce has slashed its forecast for third-quarter growth.

The sounds of one of the great tenors will be brought to life at a tribute performance in the heart of the Black Country.

Two in five 16- to 17-year-olds in the Black Country have received a first dose of the coronavirus vaccine - much lower than the national average.

Patients attending a doctor's surgery have been told not to "save up" problems for a single appointment because they will take up too much time.

Gavin Williamson has handed over a petition urging council chiefs to scrap plans for a new housing development on green belt land.

Firefighters from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service are preparing to take part in a major charity car wash.

The sky is the limit for the children at The Haven Wolverhampton as they enjoy hours of role play on handmade miniature ride-on aircraft.

A Black Country highways chief is supporting a road safety campaign to urge drivers to take caution when passing horses.

Former Great British Bake Off contestant Terry Hartill just loves recreating the world of Harry Potter – in cake.

Pubs ran out of booze after thousands of revellers flocked to watch the return of the historic Abbots Bromley Horn Dance.

An MP has hit out at NHS trusts for "wasting" taxpayers' money on highly paid 'directors of equality'.

A new national walking trail through the West Midlands has been proposed as part of the first ever plan to protect the region’s natural environment.

Firefighters were set to work through the night battling a huge fire at an industrial unit in Kidderminster town centre.

Ten jobs have been created by the opening of a new store in Minworth.

Staff at West Midland Safari Park are celebrating the first birthday of their Indian rhino calf Inesh.

A drug gang will spend more than a decade in prison each after a sting led by a West Midlands crime unit.

Two alleged murderers carried out a prolonged and brutal attack on a defenceless man in a Black Country park after wrongly accusing him of being a paedophile, a court was told.

A elderly woman found dead at her home in the Black Country was unlawfully killed, jurors have decided.

The error has sparked criticism from MPs who have accused Gavin Williamson of being ‘clueless’ and ‘not up to the job’.

The thousands of people who work in Staffordshire’s care homes have been thanked for the “phenomenal” way they have cared for some of the most vulnerable people in the county during the pandemic.

A dairy farmer was told to dump his milk after a shortage of lorry drivers meant it could not be collected.

He’s the fastest unicorn to ever take part in the Great North Run and he’s also competed dressed as Mr Blobby, now James Dixon is also set to take part in the famous event once again.

A solar farm the size of 21 football pitches is set to be built in Wolverhampton to produce power for the city's main hospital.

Julie Hambleton and three co-defendants stood trial after attending a motor rally through Birmingham on the anniversary of the IRA attacks.

A convoy of trucks hit the road in tribute after the death of an organ donation charity campaigner.

The England footballer and free school meals campaigner laughed off the gaffe by the Education Secretary.

A further eight coronavirus deaths have been confirmed in the region's hospitals – in the latest figures released by NHS England.

A man was taken to hospital after being hit by a police car on blue lights in the Black Country.

A fostering service in the Black Country has been judged to have made improvements following an inspection.

Lichfield District Council is to invest more than £1million in improving its planning service following complaints from residents and developers.

A front garden has been dug up as work continues to repair a sinkhole in the Black Country.

Residents had to be evacuated after a three-metre deep sinkhole opened up in a front garden in the Black Country.

An electric car ended up wedged on a wall after a driver inadvertently reversed onto it near a row of shops in the Black Country.

The mother of a disabled girl, who says the Government "abandoned" them during the pandemic, is backing calls for a full investigation of the impact of lockdown on the disabled and their carers in next year's Covid inquiry.

A derelict pub which has been shut for seven years and become a magnet for anti-social behaviour could fetch almost £300,000 at auction.

A new McDonald’s inside an Asda store could be set to remain open until midnight through most of the week.

An arson-hit former care home site is set to be transformed into an apartment block.

Urgent repairs need to be carried out to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery – with water reported to be leaking into the building and threatening works of art.

A new mini-transport hub designed to bring together eco-friendly travel options such as e-scooters, pedal bikes and electric vehicle charging points has been unveiled.

West Midlands Mayor Andy Street has had a closer look at Royal Mail’s electric vans and to see first-hand the hard work of the local postmen and women delivering during the pandemic.

A stretch of the M6 will be closed again for a whole weekend as a second four-lane bridge is constructed as part of a £78 million scheme to cut congestion.

Ryanair is adding six new routes from Birmingham Airport to its winter schedule.

Birmingham City Council has been urged to talk extensively to disabled groups over plans to remove three parking bays in Sutton Coldfield town centre.

MPs will vote later on the £12 billion a year package funded by a major hike in national insurance.

Police are appealing for help identifying a teenager suspected of threatening to stab a schoolboy at the Bullring Shopping Centre.

Aaron O’Halloran drove the vehicle through a gate at Duddeston station and travelled half a mile down the railway tracks towards Aston in Birmingham.

Work has started to demolish an eyesore former pub and neighbouring derelict garages to transform the site.

A struggling Black Country garage could be shut down to make way for more than 15 apartments.

One in five claimants of Universal Credit in the West Midlands say they are "very likely" to need to skip meals if the benefit is cut next month according to a new survey.

Shoppers and business owners have spoken of their shock after a man was stabbed to death in a supermarket car park.

Drivers have been warned to expect delays when two slip roads on a main route are closed for HS2 works.

A primary school has been forced to close for two days after more than 20 staff refused to turn up for work over a bullying row.

Thunderstorms are set strike in the West Midlands this week as the Met Office issues a yellow warning for large swathes of the UK.

A report by the Northern Health Science Alliance measured the effect of the first year of the Covid-19 outbreak on the different English regions.

The online retail giant said it made £20.63 billion in total revenues in the UK during 2020, up from £13.73 billion in 2019.

An announcement on the Government’s booster programme is expected soon.

A dangerous driver who reached speeds of 100mph during a police chase across the West Midlands has been locked up.

Badger culling will take place in 40 zones across England this year and see between 33,045 and a maximum of 75,930 badgers killed to tackle Bovine TB

An e-scooter rider travelled nearly the length of a marathon in one trip after hiring one of the devices during a year-long trial in Staffordshire, it has been revealed.

The county's police force is investigating the "unacceptable" failure of its 999 call system – the third in a matter of weeks.

At least 500 people have been fined for flouting Covid rules across Staffordshire since the pandemic began, health bosses have said.

Former carpenter and sheet metal worker Leslie Beeston has celebrated his 100th birthday in style with a family trip to the Black Country Living Museum.

A pair of climbing enthusiasts have so far raised almost £600 after taking on a sponsored trek up Ben Nevis.

The former teacher heading up a major review of children's social care hailed the "huge opportunity" of overhauling the sector during a visit to the Black Country.

Brownhills Canal Festival will take place again later this month after Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust decided to revive the event.

A dedicated charity campaigner is getting on his marks to raise money in aid of a trust which encourages good mental health.

They were "Vikings with wings" who had escaped their enemy-occupied homeland and were determined to continue the fight against Hitler's Germany.

The PM said the £12 billion National Insurance hike is needed to deal with Covid backlog in the NHS and to overhaul adult social care.

Parents of students set to lose their school bus seats for good are considering quitting their jobs so they can get their children to class safely, a campaign group has said.

A drop in air pollution levels in Bath is a possible indicator of “greater benefits” for Birmingham’s Clean Air Zone, legal advisers have said.

Plans to open a children’s home in a Stafford street have been withdrawn.

Up to £150 will be awarded to 8,000 families across Sandwell as £500,000 worth of government support remains unspent.

Police are appealing for help tracing a missing Black Country woman.

Police are appealing for help identifying two suspects after a knifepoint robbery in Wolverhampton.

Nadhim Zahawi said coronavirus will be ‘with us for many years’ but he hopes ‘severe measures’ will not be needed in future.

Teenagers can consent to receiving the jab themselves in some rare circumstances, the schools minister suggested.

Big acquisitions of G4S and RSA led a takeover boom in the second quarter of this year.

Dash-cam footage has been released showing police chasing a white van which went on the wrong side of the road, drove over the central reservation and reached double the speed limit.

Declan Jones has yet to be sentenced for the assaults, both carried out in Birmingham.

A further 17 coronavirus deaths have been confirmed in the region's hospitals – in the latest figures released by NHS England.

Julie Hambleton was charged after attending a motor rally through Birmingham on the anniversary of the attacks.

The team at a Sutton business which is backing a charity run from Lichfield Cathedral to Tamworth Castle has praised the ‘incredible effort’ that has gone into making the event happen despite the pandemic.

Community heroes from across the Black Country and Staffordshire are set to receive the British Empire Medal at a special presentation next week.

Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said he hoped the virus can be dealt with in future without having to take the ‘severe measures’ seen previously.

Student Rattan Bhorjee has organised a successful donation drive for Afghan refugees in the Black Country, all while finishing his masters dissertation at the University of Warwick.

The increase in National Insurance contributions will go towards the Government's health and social care reforms, but costs millions of people hundreds of pounds per year

Self storage company Safestore, which has three sites in the Black Country, has seen revenue rise, driven by a higher closing occupancy rate.

The increasing levels of home improvement are continuing to help Kidderminster-based floor coverings group Victoria.

The Prime Minister announced a new UK-wide 1.25% health and social care levy based on National Insurance contributions.

Two Lichfield enterprises are being featured in a special celebration of small businesses across the country.

A man has died after being stabbed multiple times in the stomach during a fight in a supermarket car park.

Retail chain Screwfix is taking on 600 more staff in Staffordshire as a result of growing online and in-store sales.

Stourbridge MP Suzanne Webb has been backed by the Education Secretary in recommending the new T-Levels to Black Country employers.

David Venables was charged with murder earlier this year, after his wife’s body was found in a septic tank in 2019.