The Duchess of Cambridge has been shown around a training aircraft in which generations of RAF Air Cadets have had their first experience of flying.

Image source, PA

Image source, PA

During her visit to RAF Wittering she met with Cadet Sgt Jordan Bertolaso, a qualified aerospace instructor, who talked the Duchess through the controls of the Grob tutor - a light aircraft which cadets use for air experience. 

"It's incredible to have such a high-profile royal as our patron, especially as she has strong links to the Royal Air Force with her husband being a former pilot," he said.

Image source, PA

Sam Read
BBC Radio Northampton politics reporter

I took this picture of the scene on Gold Street:

Fire engines and police cars have descended on Gold Street after a suspected gas explosion.

Ben Gibson has tweeted, external to say he could see "a lot of smoke coming from St Peters Walk by the vape shop".

Gold Street in Northampton town centre is closed after a suspected gas explosion.

One person is believed to have been injured.

Nic Rigby
BBC News

The leader of the Labour group has called on the ruling Conservatives on Northamptonshire County Council to stand up to the government as it faces making £58m of cuts in its budget - reducing it to £416m.

John McGhee called on the council to "fight the national government for Northamptonshire" to prevent cuts in services.

Among the savings proposed is a £4.5m cut for children's centres for younger children.

The union Unison has told the BBC the cuts could see the loss of hundreds of jobs.

Mr McGhee said: "It is extremely sad there is not enough strong leadership in the council. We should be going back to the government and saying the settlement (which sees the main government grant funding reduced by 13.3% in 2017-18) is not fair.

"It will have a big impact on residents and services."

A council spokesman said: "With regard to us not lobbying, nothing could be further from the reality of the situation.

“As has been widely reported we are in continual discussion with the government, our MPs and civil servants about the settlement this county receives and how it falls so short of what is actually required. 

"Indeed just this last week leader Heather Smith publically called on our MPs to help us in this respect.”

BBC Radio Northamptonshire's political reporter Sam Read will be attending the county budget meeting and giving his analysis:

Nic Rigby
BBC News

Earlier we reported that a Northampton couple Rimandas Urvakis, 59, and Marija Urvakiene, 61, had been given suspended sentences at Northampton Crown Court (pictured) for tobacco smuggling-linked offences.

The fraud was uncovered when Northamptonshire Police spotted Urvakis meeting with a lorry driver in a car park off the M1 outside Northampton just before midnight in November 2011.

After placing two bags into the boot of his Volkswagen Passat, Urvakis drove away before being pulled over by the officers moments later. Inside the VW, police discovered 13kg of non-duty paid hand-rolling tobacco.

Urvakis was arrested and the case passed to HM Revenue and Customs, who searched his home and found £37,145 in import duty had been evaded.

Investigations revealed Urvakis and Urvakiene had secured a mortgage on a £170,000 house with a £30,000 deposit and made regular repayments, but had no legitimate source of income.

Nic Rigby
BBC News

A couple paid for their home by using it as a tobacco smuggling hub, a court has been hearing.

Rimandas Urvakis, 59, and Marija Urvakiene, 61, were caught with 179,000 cigarettes in the garage of their home in Howards Way, Moulton, Northampton.

Image source, HMRC

Both admitted money laundering and Urvakis admitted evading £37,145.30 in duty at Northampton Crown Court in January.

At the same court yesterday, Urvakis was sentenced to 20 months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work by Recorder Nicholas Syfret QC.

Urvakiene was sentenced to 16 months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered to carry out 120 hours of unpaid work.

Their home, cash and other assets will be the subject of a Proceeds of Crime confiscation hearing in March.

Sam Read
BBC Radio Northampton politics reporter

Another year, another set of difficult decisions for Northamptonshire County Council as it sets its budget.

Opposition councillors say the ruling Conservatives made a rod for their own back - for years boasting to be the lowest council tax authority in the country. 

But whatever you think about the past, the options now seem very limited. The authority is trying to deal will falling income and big increases in demand, particularly in adult social care. 

The cuts agreed over the next week will not be the end of the story. 

In this year's budget millions of pounds of cuts turned out to be unachievable and new savings had to be found. 

Dealing with these challenges is an on-going process - and none of the options are easy.

Nic Rigby
BBC News

We've been covering news of Northamptonshire County Council's £57m budget cuts, which go before its cabinet today.

When the budget was first announced, Heather Smith, Conservative leader of the council said: "Each year brings tougher challenges for us in delivering services for the people of Northamptonshire with less and less money. 

"The growing pressures in adult social care have been talked about widely with a growing population which is living longer and needs looking after.

"The government has given us some flexibility to raise money locally to go towards these increased costs and we have followed this lead.

"We too will do our bit to deliver services more efficiently and are looking at innovative ways to reduce costs, while protecting the most vulnerable." 

Nic Rigby
BBC News

Hundreds of jobs could go at Northamptonshire County Council, external if a budget is approved, a union has warned.

The Conservative-run council's cabinet is meeting today and is expected to back £57m in cuts.

The authority is being recommended to agree a £416m revenue budget and a 4.98% increase in its share of the council tax.

Kevin Standishday, the Unison union's branch secretary at the council, said more than 130 posts are already earmarked to go and it would be fair to say "hundreds" are at risk.

"Morale is rock bottom. People have been worn down by the council and are worried about the effect of budget cuts on their jobs," he said.

Mr Standishday said he was also concerned about how the cuts would hit children's services and adult services.

"Vulnerable people will be hit," he said.

If the cuts are passed by cabinet, the full council will give final approval to the budget next week.

Adam Jinkerson
BBC Local Live

The Duchess of Cambridge will visit RAF Wittering near Peterborough later today to meet local air cadets.

Image source, Getty Images

She became Royal Patron and Honorary Air Commandant of the Air Cadet Organisation in December 2015 and will be introduced to cadets from the Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire Wing Air Training Corps.

They'll be at a skills development camp which acts as an initial “camp experience” for cadets who are in their first six months of membership.

HRH will join the cadets as they view a Tutor aircraft and participate in a personal development training session.

The Duchess will also have the chance to have a go on a flight simulator.

Sam Read
BBC Radio Northampton politics reporter

A protest has been planned outside County Hall today against the decision to stop sending dementia patients for day care at the Drayton Centre in St David's.

Image source, Google

Northamptonshire County Council, external says the centre is underused and it can save £400,000 a year by offering people a place at the Turnfurlong Centre in Kingsthorpe instead.

Nova Keown's friend Brian uses the Drayton Centre. She says cutting access to services there will cost money in the long run.

"A lot of people have relatives who use the centre and [without the centre] the council will find they can no longer keep them at home, so it will cost the county council much more," she said.

Kate Kinsella
BBC Look East weather

A bright and chilly start to Valentine's Day.

There'll be sunny spells for much of the day, although it will become cloudy later.

Feeling less cold, with temperatures reaching 9C (48F).

Nic Rigby
BBC News

Plans to cut more than £57m from Northamptonshire County Council's, external annual budget will move a step forward today.

The Conservative-run authority's budget for the next financial year also includes a rise of almost 5% in the authority's share of council tax.

The cabinet is due to back the proposals at a meeting later - that will be finally approved next week. 

The cabinet will also discuss plans to save £4.5m from the children's centres budget and £30,000 from a £300,000 budget for a domestic abuse service.

Nic Rigby
BBC News

Good morning and welcome to Northamptonshire Live this Tuesday morning.

We'll be bringing you all the news, sport and travel from the county until 18:00.

But first, today's weather forecast is coming right up.

Get in touch with your stories, pictures, videos and comments today via email, Facebook, external or Twitter, external.  

Arthur Brumhill's body was found covered in straw in the basement of the Northampton pet shop.

That's it for our live coverage for today. Thanks for your company.

We'll be back from 08:00 tomorrow.

Stay tuned to this page overnight for any breaking news from around the county.

Have a great evening.

An ex-pet shop worker killed his colleague in a robbery and told a friend he did it, a court has heard. 

Arthur Brumhill (pictured left), 76, was brutally beaten to death on 21 January 1993 at the pet shop in Northampton where he worked.

The body of Mr Brumhill, whose 26 injuries included skull fractures, was found covered in straw the following morning by another shop worker.

Stuart Jenkins, who was 17 at the time, was arrested and questioned in connection with the murder investigation in 1993.

But jurors were told police took no further action as there was no forensic evidence connecting Mr Jenkins to the scene.

The former Army sergeant, now 41, of Ossett in west Yorkshire, was re-arrested in 2015 following a review of evidence in the case. Northampton Crown Court heard his fingerprints had been found on the bag which contained straw.

James House QC, who opened the case for the prosecution, said: "A large empty plastic bag was still present on the top of a rabbit hutch adjacent to Mr Brumhill's body.

"The defendant's fingerprints have since been discovered on the bag, on the point where the bag was ripped open."

Mr House told the jury Mr Jenkins admitted to a friend he was responsible for the death and also told his now ex-wife Donna Jenkins about his part in the killing after he was arrested in 2015.

Mr Jenkins denies murder and the trial is expected to last two weeks.

Julie Reinger
BBC Look East weather

A dry night, with mainly clear skies, and the chance of frost in sheltered places across the BBC East region.

Temperatures falling to 0C (32F).

Tuesday will be fine and dry with sunny spells, although cloud will increase from the south west through the day.

Temperatures reaching a high of 9C (48F), with light to moderate south easterly winds.

BBC Weather has more details for where you live.