Broadcast timeline
Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow
Monday 31 August 2026 · 10:00 BST · 30m · 5 stories · 15 annotated moments · 26 of 30 min on news stories (86%)
Broadcast overview
An AI-generated overview based on this broadcast's transcript.
The government defended its early release scheme, insisting that domestic abusers freed under it will face strict conditions, including GPS monitoring tags and restriction zones, while victims can feed into licensing conditions. The Prime Minister announced that people convicted of unlawful killing would be excluded, keeping two men jailed for the killing of PC Andrew Harper in prison. Separately, Andy Burnham said some offenders serving indefinite imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentences would be among those released to ease overcrowding, and a former IPP prisoner described spending over 20 years in prison despite a minimum term of under three years. A cross-party oversight group will examine ending IPP sentences by the end of parliament.
In the United States, one person died and at least 15 were missing after flash flooding at the Grand Canyon, with over 60 people airlifted to safety and the main water pipeline knocked out. US forces attacked Iranian rocket launchers in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting Iran to launch strikes at two US bases in Jordan, which were intercepted; the conflict has been stuck for a month, with shipping through the strait sharply reduced. In Nepal, rescuers faced the threat of more flooding while trying to save nearly a thousand workers trapped in tunnels at a hydropower site, with more than 3,000 people missing and at least 900 dead, including 48 British nationals. China has censored some dramatic videos of the flood and pushed back against accusations of understating casualties. A passenger ferry capsized off the coast of northern Cyprus and sank, leaving at least eight dead and 17 missing, with the captain and crew taken into custody.
- 1:03
- 1:13
Claim Government scraps early release for convicted killers after backlash
Domestic abusers remain eligible for early release, according to the Domestic Abuse Commissioner.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 1:13-1:22
- 3:28
Charged quote Government scraps early release for convicted killers after backlash
I'm not particularly taking my own life, but there was a lot of times when I went to bed thinking, you know what, I don't want to wake up in the morning. I just want my heart to stop and have it done with. It's almost like carrying a dead man in a sack on your back. It's exercising futility. That's what it is. That's what my life had
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 3:28-3:40
- 5:07
Claim Government scraps early release for convicted killers after backlash
More than 800 inmates remain in prison under the abolished IPP scheme.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 5:07-5:24
- 6:34
Charged quote Government scraps early release for convicted killers after backlash
is possible to do. Clearly, a month down the line, that has clearly shown not to be the case, and only now we've got this decision over the bank holiday weekend to keep these vile criminals in custody. I'm afraid that unfortunately, you know, the reality is that political leaders have not been well served by the Ministry of Justice and the
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 6:34-6:45
- 7:09
- 9:12
- 9:12
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
Iran's Revolutionary Guard attacked US military targets in Jordan with ballistic missiles.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 9:12-9:27
- 9:12
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
US forces carried out airstrikes on Iran for the first time in a month.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 9:12-9:22
- 9:12
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
US forces carried out airstrikes on Iran for the first time in a month.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 9:12-9:22
- 9:12
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
US forces carried out airstrikes on Iran for the first time in a month.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 9:12-9:22
- 9:17
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
Iran's Revolutionary Guard attacked US military targets in Jordan with ballistic missiles.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 9:17-9:27
- 9:17
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
Iran's Revolutionary Guard attacked US military targets in Jordan with ballistic missiles.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 9:17-9:27
- 9:54
Contested quote US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
of Hormuz, and it is to do with the fact that just a few days ago, the Americans declared that they had freed the Strait of Mines. I think they are trying to give the impression that shipping is moving through the Strait again. It isn't, by the way, but that they have taken away all these mines. Well, the Iranians responded by setting up these rockets with the capacity to drop more
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 9:54-10:09
- 10:33
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
Iran's Revolutionary Guard attacked US military targets in Jordan with ballistic missiles.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 10:33-10:46
- 13:13
Claim US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
Iran's Revolutionary Guard attacked US military targets in Jordan with ballistic missiles.
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 13:13-13:30
- 15:18
Contested quote US strikes Iranian oil tankers, Iran threatens retaliation
I think from a military, I'm always thinking what the military commander will be saying now between the two. So if I was now Iran, you know, you've got Mustafa Khamenei there, almost certainly he would want to negotiate. Because actually he's got a particularly strong hand. If you look back to where they were at the start, some of the hardliners in his government were saying,
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 15:18-15:20
- 18:14 Story begins Aid reaches survivors a week after Nepal floods
- 24:33
Contested quote Aid reaches survivors a week after Nepal floods
Can I ask what China's response is to those accusations, please? Thank you. At present, the personnel rescue and relief works are being carried out intensively. Our release of information is public, transparent and timely. Malicious speculation and high-pop will win no support. As you heard there, the answer didn't necessarily address either question directly,
Sky News, Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow, 31 August 2026, 24:33-24:37
- 27:50 Story begins Ferry fire in Philippines kills at least five
Source: Sky News, "Sky News Today with Gareth Barlow", Monday 31 August 2026. Transcript excerpts and stills are shown only to support the analysis annotated alongside them. Search-result excerpts are distinct from the editorial annotations — see our copyright basis. The full broadcast is not reproduced.