The news today has been taken up with the announcement that a Durham University PhD student has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of spying in the United Arab Emirates.

Matthew Hedges, 31, always denied the charge saying he had been conducting research.

The main points were:

• The court in Abu Dhabi declared him guilty of "spying for or on behalf of" the UK government.
• His family say it happened in a five-minute hearing with no lawyer present.
• They say he signed a "false" confession which was all in Arabic.
• His wife Daniela Tejada said he was "shaking" when he heard the verdict.
• He faces up to 25 years in jail but has 30 days to lodge an appeal.
• Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt says it's a "devastating" verdict and there will be "repercussions".
• Theresa May called the verdict "difficult and distressing".
• But the Abu Dhabi Attorney General said he faced "compelling evidence".

Image source, AFP PHOTO / DETAINED IN DUBAI

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We'll be back with more live updates from 08:00 tomorrow as Jeremy Hunt says he will meet Mrs Tejada to discuss her husband's case.

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Matthew Hedges' other university, Exeter, has released this statement:

Journalists and politicians have been having their say after Matthew Hedges was jailed for life for spying in the UAE:

Matthew Hedges pleaded guilty after he faced "compelling legal evidence concluded after thorough judicial investigations", The Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeals has said.

The Durham University academic was jailed for life for spying earlier today.

Attorney General Dr Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said: ''The defendant confessed in detail to his crimes during investigations whereby he was accorded his full rights and assurances as per the UAE constitution and state laws to fair and transparent trial."

Al Shamsi added Hedges appeared before the court with representatives from the British embassy and he "exhausted all methods of defence by his lawyer during the trial".

Hedges has the right to appeal before the Federal Supreme Court where the evidence will be reviewed and the court will hear from him and his lawyer again.

Lucy Moody
Journalist

It's been the breaking news story of the day and we've been bringing you the latest reaction, but here's what the papers have to say on Matthew Hedges' life sentence:

• The Guardian have gone with Matthew Hedges: British academic accused of spying jailed for life in UAE, external
• The Daily Mail- 'Our nightmare has gotten even worse, external'.
• The Express has been talking about Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt's reaction to the news. Their headline is UAE news: British academic given LIFE SENTENCE - Hunt 'deeply shocked, external'
• The Sun however have been talking about what Matthew's wife- Daniela has said about claims her husband was a spy, external.

Matthew Hedges' MP Ben Bradshaw has been speaking to Sky News:

Matthew Hedges PhD supervisor, Professor Clive Jones, says:

Image source, Durham University

Hiba Zaydin from Human Rights Watch has said that Matthew Hedges had " a deeply unfair trial and an unfair verdict".

The assistant researcher on Gulf countries says this case will deal a huge blow to the UAE's global brand and reputation with academic institutions that it's been building over several years.

She added: "Matthew's wife is obviously inconsolable and she did not expect such a harsh verdict given that he was released on bail which was quite surprising at the time given other cases that we’ve documented involving state security issues."

She added that there was "a general optimism that he would be acquitted".

The Foreign Secretary is to meet the family of Matthew Hedges tomorrow:

The UK is warning the United Arab Emirates that there could be "repercussions" if a British academic jailed for spying isn't released from prison.

Matthew Hedges, a PhD student at Durham University, has been jailed for life despite claiming he was simply doing academic research.

The Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt says he's "deeply shocked" and is to raise his concerns with the authorities.

The Conservative MP Bob Seeley sits on the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee:

The Prime Minister says the case of Matthew Hedges has been raised "at the highest level".

A human rights group has condemned the UAE's "disturbing record" on treating prisoners after Matthew Hedges was jailed for life.

Ben Ward, acting UK director at Human Rights Watch, said: "Human Rights Watch is deeply alarmed by the verdict against Matthew Hedges given the inhumane conditions he was held in prior to his release on bail, the serious due process violations that marred his trial, and the UAE's disturbing record of mistreating state security detainees.

"British authorities should closely monitor Hedges's appeal and insist upon his humane treatment in prison, proper access to a lawyer, and that coerced statements not be used as evidence against him."

Durham University academics have been giving their reaction to the life sentence for their colleague Matthew Hedges:

A British academic accused of spying in the United Arab Emirates, has been sentenced to life in prison.

Matthew Hedges - who's a PhD student at Durham University - has been in custody for more than six months - but has always insisted he's innocent.

The former chair of the foreign affairs select committee, the MP Crispin Blunt, raised the case at PMQs, saying: "This is wholly inconsistent with the behaviour of a nation with whom we have a mutual defence accord. And will the prime minister please give this her urgent attention and if he's not released I don't see why we should be committed to their defence?"

The PM replied: "Can I say to my honourable friend we are, of course, as he is, deeply disappointed and concerned at today's verdict and I realise how difficult and distressing this is both for Matthew Hedges but also for his family. We are raising it with the Emirati authorities at the highest level, my right honourable friend, the Foreign Secretary, is urgently seeking a call with the Foreign Minister, Abdullah bin Zayed."

The National newspaper in the UAE has published what it says, external is full statement from the court, translated from Arabic:

"The Federal Appeals Court of Abu Dhabi sentenced Matthew Hedges, 31, to life imprisonment after being convicted of spying on the UAE and providing sensitive security and intelligence information to third parties.

"The court also ruled that he would be deported from the country after the execution of the sentence and would be charged the costs of the legal case.

"The court ordered the confiscation of all his equipment, devices, research and studies. The convicted person has the right to challenge the ruling with the State Security Department of the Federal Supreme Court within a maximum period of 30 days."

The Evening Standard has splashed on the story of Matthew Hedges as condemnation of his life sentence pours in.

Fiona Trott
BBC News

Vice-chancellor of Durham University, Professor Stuart Corbridge says:

The wife of Matthew Hedges, Daniela Tejada, was present at the court room during today's sentencing.

She said: “I am in complete shock and I don’t know what to do. Matthew is innocent. The Foreign Office know this and have made it clear to the UAE authorities that Matthew is not a spy for them.

"This whole case has been handled appallingly from the very beginning with no one taking Matthew’s case seriously. The British Government must take a stand now for Matthew, one of their citizens.

Image source, Daniela Tejada

"They say that the UAE is an ally, but the overwhelmingly arbitrary handling of Matt’s case indicates a scarily different reality, for which Matt and I are being made to pay a devastatingly high price.

"This has been the worst 6 months of my life, let alone for Matt who was shaking when he heard the verdict.

"The UAE authorities should feel ashamed for such an obvious injustice. am very scared for Matt. I don’t know where they are taking him or what will happen now. Our nightmare has gotten even worse.”

Image source, Daniela Tejada

• Matthew Hedges was arrested at Dubai Airport on 5 May after being in the country for two weeks.
• The final-year student says he was carrying out research to compete his PhD thesis.
• He was then held for more than five-and-a-half months in solitary confinement.
• It was during his third court hearing on 10 October that he was charged with spying for the British Government
• His court-appointed lawyer requested that the so-called evidence brought forward against Matt – his notes from his PhD research – alleging he is a spy for the British Government, did not contain anything confidential and therefore the court should review it all before passing judgement.
• It was then that the court agreed and postponed the hearing until today.
• He was jailed for life this morning.

The Prime Minister has expressed concern for the Durham University PhD student Matthew Hedges - who's just been jailed for life in the United Arab Emirates.

Image source, Press Association