Exclusive: Dutch minister says tussle with Chinese-owned Nexperia was like an economic thriller' and is sobering lesson to world over its dependency on ChinaA bitter battle over the future of a Chinese-owned chipmaker in the Netherlands that threatened to cripple the global car industry is a wake-up call to Europe and the west", the minister at the heart of the row has warned.The six-week standoff between the EU and Beijing over Nexperia and its vital supplies of automotive semiconductors has served up a sobering lesson to world leaders over their dependency on China, says Vincent Karremans. Continue reading...
Reading undershoots forecasts, with crippling Jaguar Land Rover hack helping pull September GDP down by 0.1%The UK economy expanded by just 0.1% in the quarter from July to September as the crippling cyber-attack on Jaguar Land Rover hit manufacturing.The latest official figures, issued as Rachel Reeves prepares for a crunch budget on 26 November, show gross domestic product fell by 0.1% in September as car production was dragged down to a 73-year low by the fallout from the hack. Continue reading...
by Dan Jervis-Bardy, Krishani Dhanji and Josh Butler on (#71E75)
Future Coalition government would not withdraw from Paris climate agreement altogether, Liberal frontbench decides a day after five-hour party room debate
Restrictions for entry to Schengen zone announced last Friday because of sabotage attacks linked to RussiaRussian opposition figures have reacted with anger and dismay to a decision by the European Union to introduce a ban on multi-entry visas to the Schengen zone for Russian citizens, announced in recent days.Starting a war and expecting to move freely in Europe is hard to justify," said the EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, when announcing the decision last Friday. She added that the tightened rules were a response to Russian drone incursions into European airspace and sabotage attacks linked to Russia. Continue reading...
The truce broke down this week after a Thai soldier lost a leg to a landmine blast, prompting Thailand's PM to say the peace deal was now over'One person has been killed by gunfire along the Thai-Cambodia border as conflict heats up between the two nations days after a Trump-backed ceasefire agreement collapsed.Fighting erupted between Thai and Cambodian troops over five days in July, with 43 people killed and 300,000 displaced in the worst fighting along the border in a decade. Donald Trump oversaw the signing of a ceasefire agreement between the two nations in Malaysia this October, after the US president previously threatened to withhold trade privileges from the two countries unless they stopped fighting. Continue reading...
by Kat Lay, Global health correspondent on (#71E82)
British American Tobacco pushed Zambian ministers to drop or delay ad bans, health warnings and restrictions on flavoured products, letter showsBritish American Tobacco has been accused of utter hypocrisy" for lobbying against tobacco control measures in Africa that are already in place in the UK.A letter seen by the Guardian, sent from the company's subsidiary in Zambia to the country's government ministers, asks for plans to ban tobacco advertising and sponsorship to be abandoned or delayed. Continue reading...
Amendment would have watered down law to allow abortion only where it would save life of mother or another foetus, or for significant risk of abnormalities
Actor, 48, who revealed colorectal cancer diagnosis last year, to also auction memorabilia from Varsity BluesActor James Van Der Beek will once again be selling collector's items from some of his beloved films and TV shows, including Dawson's Creek, to help pay for his treatment for colorectal cancer.
Former Liberal staffer accused a reporter of stalking him in Tasmania, with her story's headline describing him as a despised party boy hiding at the end of the Earth'
She Zhijiang's empire includes gambling complex Shwe Kokko that US has tied to regional scam and trafficking networksShe Zhijiang, an alleged transnational crime kingpin accused by Beijing of having run more than 200 illegal online gambling operations, is being extradited to China from Bangkok on Wednesday, Thai police have said.The Chinese national is perhaps the most prominent figure among Asia's alleged cybercrime operators to be arrested, and has been linked to regional scam networks by the US. Continue reading...
As Keir Starmer announces SMRs to be built in Wales, US ambassador says Britain should choose a different path'Keir Starmer has announced that the UK's first small modular nuclear reactors will be built in north Wales - but immediately faced a backlash from Donald Trump's administration after it pushed for a US manufacturer to be chosen.Wylfa on the island of Anglesey, or Ynys Mon, will be home to three small modular reactors (SMRs) to be built by British manufacturer Rolls-Royce SMR. The government said it will invest 2.5bn. Continue reading...
Lords committee says government should consider including remote working in back-to-work initiativesMinisters could encourage employers to allow more hybrid and remote working to help get greater numbers of disabled people and carers into the workplace, according to a House of Lords committee.A report by a cross-party committee says the government should set out whether it has considered including remote and hybrid working in back-to-work initiatives to offer more working flexibility to people with disabilities and long-term health conditions. Continue reading...
Chancellor advised to replace levy with an annual property tax as Treasury considers overhaul of systemRachel Reeves has been urged to abolish the sin tax" of stamp duty in the budget by property experts including TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp, as the chancellor faced calls to replace it with an annual property tax.Allsopp, presenter of Channel 4 property shows including Location, Location, Location, said people are in a panic" about potential stamp duty changes, and sitting tight" ahead of the 26 November budget. Continue reading...
Growing calls for Morgan McSweeney to go after extraordinary briefing operation against Wes StreetingKeir Starmer is coming under intense pressure from a wide range of ministers and MPs to sack his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, after No 10 was accused of an extraordinary briefing operation against the health secretary, Wes Streeting.Starmer is understood to have told MPs he will not sack his chief of staff and would not respond to several demands to ensure there were consequences" for the briefers. Continue reading...
The newly unearthed correspondence shows how Trump's narrative about Epstein has evolvedTheir content is cryptic and raises more questions than answers.Yet the tranche of emails on the Jeffrey Epstein affair released by Democrats in the House of Representatives show enough contradictions between their references to Donald Trump and the US president's own previous utterances on the subject to fan a fresh wave of speculation and guesswork. Continue reading...
UK ambassador was sacked in September after other tranche of emails showed he told disgraced financier to fight for early release'Peter Mandelson, who was sacked as the UK's ambassador to Washington over his association with Jeffrey Epstein, was in contact with the pedophile financier as late as 2016, new emails have revealed.Mandelson was sacked in September over leaked emails in which he expressed his support for Epstein and urged him to fight for early release" in 2008 while the disgraced financier was facing charges of soliciting sex from minors. The tranche of emails revealed the pair had maintained contact until 2010. Continue reading...
Isaac Herzog makes rare statement on often-ignored violence as settlers injure Palestinians and attack soldiersDozens of masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, injuring four Palestinians and attacking Israeli soldiers in the latest incident of rising settler violence.The settlers attacked the Palestinian villages of Beit Lid and Deir Sharaf, setting vehicles on fire and damaging property belonging to a Bedouin community, with charred remains of cars left behind the next day. Continue reading...
by Eleni Courea, Jessica Elgot and Pippa Crerar on (#71DXQ)
Rift said to be driven between Keir Starmer and Morgan McSweeney even before attacks on Wes StreetingOne way to flush out a leadership challenger, according to Gordon Brown's one-time enforcer, is to push them over the edge.In his chronicle of his time at the centre of power, Damian McBride wrote that the New Labour darling David Miliband had a tendency to treat rebellion like a reluctant bather inching his way into the sea at Skegness". Continue reading...
It was hoped manifesto-breaking tax rises might bring down borrowing costs - but party turbulence is likely to spook investorsThere is one narrow, perilous route by which Rachel Reeves can successfully deliver her 26 November budget, and it runs right through government bond markets.But the current outbreak of Labour infighting - driven by a flurry of pugilistic briefings from inside No 10 - risks cutting that route off with two weeks still to go before budget day. Continue reading...
Following Zelenskyy's request Svitlana Hrynchuk has now also resigned from her post. This live blog is closedAngela Giuffrida in Rome and Kim Willsher in ParisProsecutors in Milan have opened an investigation into Italians who allegedly paid members of the Bosnian Serb army for trips to Sarajevo so that they could kill citizens during the four-year siege of the city in the 1990s. Continue reading...
Men appear in court accused of more than 40 offences against teenage girls between 2022 and 2025Seven men have been charged with alleged offences against 11 teenage girls as part of an investigation into what police have called group-based child sexual exploitation" in Bristol.The men are accused of more than 40 offences between 2022 and this year. The investigation began in November 2023 after concerns were raised about the sexual exploitation of a teenage girl.Mohamed Arafe, 19, of Speedwell in Bristol. He has been charged with five counts of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child, one of causing or inciting the sexual exploitation of a child, one of sexual assault, one of being concerned in the supply of cocaine and a further count of being concerned in the supply of ecstasy.Sina Omari, 20, of Eastville in Bristol. He has been charged with two counts of rape, four counts of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child, one of causing or inciting the sexual exploitation of a child, two counts of making an indecent photograph of a child, one of being concerned in the supply of cocaine and a further count of being concerned in the supply of ecstasy.Wadie Sharaf, 21, of Westbury Park in Bristol. He has been charged with one count of rape, one of attempted rape, three counts of sexual assault and a further count of sexual activity with a child.Hussain Bashar, 19, of Southmead in Bristol. He has been charged with one count of rape.Mohammed Kurdi, 21, of Henbury in Bristol. He has been charged with two counts of rape, two counts of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child, one count of supplying ecstasy and a further count of supplying cannabis.Sardam Ahmed, 19, of no fixed address. He has been charged with four counts of rape, one of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child, one of distributing an indecent photograph of a child, one of being concerned in the supply of cocaine and a further count of being concerned in the supply of ecstasy.Ihab al-Eisawi, 22, of Fishponds, Bristol. He has been charged with two counts of rape and one of sexual assault. Continue reading...
Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway reunite in the first look at the follow-up to hit comedy set to be released in May 2026Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway have reunited in the first teaser trailer for the much-anticipated follow-up to The Devil Wears Prada.The Oscar-winning actors are reprising their antagonistic roles for The Devil Wears Prada 2 which is set for release next summer. Continue reading...
Cabinet says explosion near Red Fort that killed 12 is suspected to have been perpetrated by anti-national forces'India has confirmed it is treating the explosion that killed 12 people outside Delhi's Red Fort on Monday as a terror incident" perpetrated by anti-national forces".The statement by the cabinet, led by the prime minister, Narendra Modi, confirmed mounting speculation that a terrorist attack was behind the blast that took place during peak time in one of the capital's busiest areas and outside one of India's major landmarks. Continue reading...
PM's spokesperson says he has confidence in his chief of staff after Starmer challenged over toxic culture' at Downing Street. This live blog is closedThe No 10 briefing row is not the only story around this morning. Amy Sedghi is writing a live blog about the ongoing turmoil at the BBC and she has details of Donald Trump saying he has an obligation" to sue the BBC.In a related development, Reform UK has pulled out of a BBC documentary about the party amid a row over the broadcaster's editing of the Trump speech. Robyn Vintner has the story. Continue reading...
Saikat Chakrabarti wants to turn Trump's gilded ballroom into a museum on authoritarianismRooting out corruption in government is at the center of Saikat Chakrabarti's campaign for Congress. And if elected next year, the 39-year-old former Silicon Valley engineer - now running to succeed Nancy Pelosi in her long-held San Francisco seat, says he would put it on display for every American to see.As part of his anti-corruption agenda, Chakrabarti says he would introduce legislation to turn Donald Trump's gilded White House ballroom into the Smithsonian Museum on Corruption and Authoritarianism".Looking ahead to a post-Trump Washington, Chakrabarti envisions filling the 90,000-square-foot structure, to be built in place of the now-demolished East Wing, with exhibits dedicated to the modern dangers posed by the current wannabe dictator, the ongoing threat of authoritarianism, assaults on the rule of law, and the pervasive corruption of the billionaire class". Continue reading...
Lib Dem leader, Ed Davey, says US president is trying to destroy' broadcaster. This live blog is closedResponding to UK culture secretary Lisa Nandy's refusal to review the BBC board membership of Robbie Gibb, Liberal Democrat culture, media and sports spokesperson Anna Sabine said on Tuesday evening:This is the wrong choice by Lisa Nandy. Robbie Gibb isn't fit to serve on the BBC board, and the BBC charter gives the government the power to sack him.
Country explores taking part in the glitzy song contest as it distances from the US and seeks to deepen ties with EuropeWhen Canada released its federal budget this month, much of it was standard fare, from the plans to downsize the public service to the boost in defence spending.But one line tucked in the nearly 500-page document has captured imaginations on both sides of the Atlantic: a mention that the government is working with Canada's national broadcaster to explore participation in the Eurovision song contest. Continue reading...
by Katherine Butler, associate editor, Europe on (#71DS5)
Zelenskyy wants admission before 2030, but with a growing far-right, anti-enlargement contingent and budgetary fears mounting, some countries are hiding behind a Hungarian veto Don't get This Is Europe delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereVolodymyr Zelenskyy may be a wartime leader, but he is fighting to deliver peacetime ambitions, too: he wants Ukraine to become an EU country - soon.Ukraine's tireless president is ramping up pressure on EU governments to accelerate the slow process of joining: he sees the collective sacrifice of his people as a struggle for the Ukrainian future, the future of Ukraine in the European Union". Continue reading...
Lady Newlove, a campaigner for victims of crime, was a committed and passionate advocate', her office has saidHelen Newlove, the victims' commissioner for England and Wales, has died after a short illness, her office has said.Lady Newlove, a Conservative life peer, was reappointed commissioner in October 2023 after two earlier terms in the role, and was due to serve until the end of this year. Continue reading...
Fears rise for displaced civilians as UN reports deteriorating situation and MSF warns of staggering' malnutritionThere are grave fears for civilians who survived the capture of El Fasher by a Sudanese paramilitary group last month, as the UN warned relief operations were on the brink of collapse and an aid group said malnutrition in displacement camps had reached staggering" levels.The Rapid Support Forces captured El Fasher - the capital of North Darfur state and the last urban centre outside of its grasp in the wider Darfur region - on 26 October. Survivor accounts and video and satellite evidence suggest more than 1,500 people were killed in ethnically-targeted massacres in the immediate aftermath. Continue reading...
No casualties reported after section of 758-metre structure helping to link Sichuan province to Tibet falls to piecesA newly opened bridge in south-west China collapsed on Tuesday, sending slabs of concrete and plumes of dust into the mountainside and water below. No casualties were reported.Videos of the collapse of part of Hongqi Bridge, in the mountainous Sichuan province, were shared widely on Chinese social media. Authorities had closed the 758-metre-long bridge on Monday after cracks appeared on nearby roads. A landslide on Tuesday caused part of the bridge to collapse completely. Continue reading...
by Hannah Ellis-Petersen South Asia correspondent on (#71DMA)
Pakistani ministers attribute deadly suicide attack to Indian state terrorism but India denies claimPakistan has opened an investigation into the suicide attack that killed 12 people outside district court buildings in Islamabad, after the prime minister made unsubstantiated claims that Indian state terrorism" was behind the blast.The attack took place in the middle of the day on Tuesday as the area was thrumming with people. The bomber made several attempts to get inside the buildings before detonating a device next to a police car, killing 12 people and injuring 27. Continue reading...
by Richard Partington Senior economics correspondent on (#71DK6)
UK's statistics agency announces recovery' plan after concerns raised over reliability of its dataThe UK's statistics agency has announced plans to scrap some of its publications on health, crime and the regions of Britain as part of its recovery" plan to boost the reliability of its core data.Under pressure over the quality of its data, the Office for National Statistics, said it would reduce the number of reports it produces each year by about 10% in 2026 to help it prioritise resources. Continue reading...
In effort to tackle severe backlog and end resale market, only learner drivers will be able to make bookingsBots and third parties will be banned from booking driving tests as part of a government shake-up to tackle a severe backlog of almost 670,000 learners booked in for a practical assessment.The Department for Transport (DfT), which recently consulted on how to crack down on touts reselling test slots at inflated prices, said that only learner drivers themselves and not their instructors would be able to make bookings. Continue reading...
by Australian Associated Press, Adeshola Ore and Andr on (#71DDC)
In a move akin to Queensland's youth crime laws, Jacinta Allan's proposal could see children as young as 14 face 20-year jail terms in alarming race to the bottom', human rights expert says
European Sleeper will operate the new service from March 2026, replacing the Nightjet train that is being axed next monthThe resurgence of sleeper trains on the continent hit a kink in the tracks in September, when the Austrian state operator OBB announced that it would be axing its two Nightjet services - Paris to Vienna and Paris to Berlin - from 14 December. OBB cited the French government's ending of subsidies, dealing a blow to the night-train renaissance.However, there is light at the end of the tunnel. European Sleeper has told the Guardian that it will be taking over the route from Paris to Berlin, with the first train to run on 26 March 2026. The train will operate three times a week with departures likely to be from Paris Gare du Nord on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings and the return service from Berlin Hauptbahnhof and Ostbahnhof on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The current Nightjet service departs Paris Gare de l'Est just after 7pm and winds east via Strasbourg, Frankfurt, Erfurt and Halle before arriving in Berlin around 8.30am. European Sleeper intends to make the journey via Brussels, with precise route details and timings currently being confirmed with infrastructure managers in France, Belgium and Germany. Continue reading...
World news | The Guardian