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Government proposal aims to reduce number of children in custody in England and Wales and boost youth employmentChildren found guilty of robbery, dealing drugs to other children or violent disorder will no longer have to disclose their criminal records to prospective employers under sweeping government proposals to change the youth justice system.People in England and Wales will not have to share records of crimes committed when they were under 18 for the rest of their lives under the proposals, which ministers say will boost youth employment and make life fairer for people from disadvantaged backgrounds in particular. Continue reading...

Milburn's review is considering how to address the growing number of young people classified as not in education, employment or trainingOn the Today programme this morning, the Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy, a prominent leftwinger, indicated she might vote against legislation to implement the Alan Milburn proposals. She said she was concerned by the idea that the cuts would apply to people already getting sickness and disability benefits, and she said it appeared to be a breach of a promise given last year that people already getting Pip (the personal independence payment) would not lose it.She said:I just don't think that you get a disabled young person into work by taking away the money that helps them to get into work.The cuts seem to land on young disabled people, and many of them are in college already or already in work. So I don't see how you fix the first by punishing the second.Milburn said he concluded fundamental change was needed. He said:The whole system needs to be changed, because the system is geared to keeping people inactive when, for young people in particular, it's all about how can you make them active, get them earning, learning, so that they can rely on a wage rather than on a benefit. So, this is not about cutting one benefit, it's about rebuilding the system from scratch.He said that he decided existing claimants should be covered by the changes, not just new changes.It's a big rewriting of the welfare system. And obviously one of the conundrums was, Should this apply to only new claimants?'I came to the conclusion that wouldn't be right, not least because you've got hundreds of thousands of young people stuck in a benefit system that is trapping them in poverty, giving them no prospect of prosperity or a job.Milburn admitted this meant the plans would not be pain-free".I'm not saying that any of this will be easy or that it will be pain-free because it won't. You know, candidly, it could mean that some people will get less financial support at the beginning of their benefit claim than under the current system.He said he wanted the system to prioritise improving people's life chances in the long term over easing their financial hardship in the short term.Actually for young people there's a different debate that we've got to resolve, which is whether the priority is their longer-term life chances or just their immediate shorter-term finances.I think what the current system does, it prioritises the latter over the former. I believe that's the wrong choice and it needs to be the other way around.He said, alongside the cuts to benefits he is proposing (see 11.56am), he wanted to improve employment support for young people.We need to make sure people have the opportunities to get an apprenticeship, a job, a work placement, a pre-apprenticeship, a college place.The menu of opportunities has got to increase. They'll have a personal adviser, they'll be coached all the way through. The adviser will stick with them until they have found a job or an apprenticeship or college place.He also confirmed he wants to let young people do some work before they start losing benefits.They will get immediate access to support if that's what they need, if that's the thing that is holding them back from being in education or training.He admitted that offering better employment support and mental health support would mean his plans would initially cost money. According to the Times, he did not did not deny claims the whole package could cost 6bn. But, in the long run, there would be savings, he said.Obviously this costs money. And frankly it's a better use of money, both from the point of view of the young person and the taxpayer, to spend that money getting them into work rather than spending that money keeping them on benefits.This is the sort of fatuous thing about this debate. You've got to invest upfront in order to get savings out of the back end. Cost-free is fatuous. So we've got to be candid about that. It will need significant investment.To get a return on investment will take time ... the only way of cutting the benefits bill sustainably is by getting young people into work, paying their taxes and being less reliant on benefits. Unless you are prepared to put the investment upfront it will never be possible.He said he was confident" that Andy Burnham was full-square behind the changes that are needed." Continue reading...

Restrictions to Starshield directly affect our ability to intercept Russian jet powered drones', Ukraine's president saysLuxembourg's PM Luc Frieden looks to be absolutely chuffed to be representing all three Benelux countries at today's summit, as his Belgian and Dutch colleagues are too busy to attend as they face domestic crises.I have the privilege of representing 30 millions citizens today," he said on arrival to Dublin, with a massive smile on his face. Continue reading...

Nvidia shares fall in pre-market trading after report of Huang's second affair

Defeating Cindy Hyde-Smith makes the 43-year-old district attorney the first Black Mississippi senator elected since Reconstruction. Plus, the South Korean scarf vendor who has gone viral for telling people not to buyGood morning. In a stunning upset after more than a week of vote counting in one of the country's most reliably red states, the Democrat Scott Colom has defeated Cindy Hyde-Smith, the incumbent Republican senator, in Mississippi. He becomes the first Black senator elected in the state since Reconstruction.Colom's election capped a national wave of anger at Donald Trump's administration, sweeping away Republicans in places where Democrats had not been competitive in decades. With the addition of Colom, Democrats will hold at least 55 seats in the Senate, the party's largest midterm gain since 1986.What did Colom say about his victory? Colom, a 43-year-old district attorney, said there had been times when his long-shot campaign felt defeated but I had to have faith". He told supporters: My commitment to you, each and every one of you, is that first I'm going to treat your children like I want my children to be treated. I'm going to treat your parents the way I want my parents to be treated. I'm gonna treat your future the way I want my future to be."How have Democrats responded to a White House threat? Robert Garcia, the ranking member of the oversight committee in the House of Representatives said it appeared Donald Trump had something to hide" after the White House threatened criminal investigations over the party's planned scrutiny of the administration. Garcia said in a statement that Congress's authority came from article I of the constitution, not from the permission of the White House". Continue reading...

Colom adds to blue wave of Democrat victories across the US and becomes Mississippi's first black senator since 1875 after defeating Cindy Hyde-Smith

Authorities say the boy was in the care of Michael Comer's mother, but she left him with her son to run an errandAn 11-month-old South Carolina boy who authorities say was buried alive in a dog crate by his father was found by rescuers after about 24 hours, crying and covered in dirt, his grandfather said about the dramatic rescue.But soon after, little Koah Sharp stopped crying, John Comer told the Associated Press on Wednesday night as he recalled the events that played out the day before in the woods on his neighbor's property. The infant was put on the back of a truck and sat up, Comer said. Continue reading...

After a month-long investigation it was concluded that Kundizeza's story The Blue Fighter, which won the 10,000 Caine prize, was human-written'Zimbabwean author Simbarashe Kundizeza has been cleared of using AI to write a prize-winning short story, after the prestigious Caine prize for African writers concluded that his entry was human-written" after a month-long investigation.Kundizeza's story The Blue Fighter, which charts the declining fortunes of a family after the father invests in fish tanks, was announced as the winner of the 10,000 prize on 6 October. Continue reading...

Former Radio 1 DJ accused of new offences against women in London and now faces trial in January for 17 chargesThe former radio DJ Tim Westwood has denied two additional sex offences dating back to 1991 and 2004.His latest not guilty pleas mean he now denies 17 charges against nine women between 1983 and 2016. Continue reading...

Thomas changes plea over slashing boat with knife after watching occupants being helped by rescue servicesThe far-right agitator Daniel Thomas has admitted criminal damage after slashing a dinghy with a knife in the Channel.The 37-year-old, who is also known as Danny Tommo, changed his plea to the single charge when he appeared via video link from prison at Portsmouth crown court on Thursday. Continue reading...

Patients awaiting surgery die in attack on one of few remaining medical facilities in the strip, doctor saysAn Israeli airstrike on Nasser hospital in southern Gaza killed six people, including a surgeon and a disabled man, and wounded more than 20 others, the Palestinian news agency reported.The Israeli military carried out the attack on the hospital, in Khan Younis, early on Thursday saying in a statement it had struck a Hamas commander and other fighters there, without providing evidence. Continue reading...

Unprecedented view of cosmos provided by Euclid mission throws up many more cases of gravitational lensingA mission to create the largest ever 3D map of the universe has revealed more than 900m galaxies in its first major data release together with about 15,000 potential cases of a phenomenon that could help unlock the secrets of the dark universe".Launched in July 2023, the European Space Agency's Euclid mission promised to create the largest cosmic map ever made, encompassing a third of the sky and more than 10bn years of cosmic history. Continue reading...

William, 17, was reported missing after straying from his camp near Walhalla in Victoria's Gippsland region

GDP grew robustly' by 0.7% in third quarter and by 0.2% month on month in September despite high oil prices

Exclusive: Legal notice comes as Buenos Aires ramps up rhetoric over UK territory and seeks to halt Sea Lion projectThe Argentinian government threatened a British businessman involved in an offshore Falkland Islands oil project with jail, the Guardian can reveal.Sam Moody, the chief executive of Rockhopper Exploration, and his company's chief financial officer received the correspondence this autumn as Buenos Aires began ramping up its rhetoric over the British overseas territory. Continue reading...

Island state declares it is not really for tourists' - but is the marketing strategy just a cheeky piece of reverse psychology?

Regulator to hasten review over concerns that firms are undermining' rules to make large payments to bosses

In today's newsletter: US intelligence reportedly believes the former tech executive was recruited by Beijing, raising questions about the security of the AI industry and Trump's close ties to Nvidia chief Jensen HuangGood morning. Espionage is supposed to be a secretive business, and spies are supposed to be virtually invisible. That hasn't been the case for Alice Huang, the mysterious Shanghai executive who formed a romantic relationship with Jensen Huang, the founder of Nvidia, one of America's most powerful tech companies.Many questions have arisen since it emerged that US intelligence believes that Huang (no relation of Jensen's) is an asset recruited by the Chinese intelligence services to spy on behalf of Beijing. This morning's newsletter explains what we know about the story, and what it tells us about the effectiveness of Chinese espionage. That's after the headlines.UK | Ministers are considering changing the law to force the entertainment industry to better protect women and children in the wake of the revelations over David Walliams and the conviction of Russell Brand.Climate | The UK government has appointed the world's first special representative for climate security, in the strongest sign yet of fears that climate breakdown will bring chaos to the country.US midterms | Democrat Scott Colom has become the first Black senator in Mississippi to be elected since Reconstruction, in a stunning upset after more than a week of vote counting in one of the country's most reliably red states.Europe | Millions of people across Spain have joined the country's first general strike in 14 years, setting up picket lines to protest against soaring housing prices before an election in which the far right could be catapulted into power.Technology | Police officers risk arresting innocent people, especially from ethnic minorities, if they treat inaccurate facial recognition data as evidence, an official report has found. Continue reading...

You just don't mess or play with a 400-tonne train', Sydney Trains says as 17-year-old suffers multiple injuries to head, chest and pelvis

Since the US war on Iran began in February, there have been hundreds of oil spills, posing a generational' threat to wildlifeThe vast, dark slicks in the strait of Hormuz are visible from space. Throughout October, oil tankers were struck by missiles or sea mines in the waterway and spilled crude into the sea. The pollution has spread across the Gulf, contaminating coastlines and threatening to cause lasting damage to marine ecosystems that are home to dolphins, sea turtles and countless species of fish.Eight months into the war between the US and Iran, one of the world's busiest oil shipping routes has become a battlefield and the centre of a growing environmental disaster. Continue reading...

Police called to Lane Cove North on Wednesday after sofa found containing human torso believed to be that of adult man

Exclusive: Former barrister who helped legally establish that secondhand smoke causes lung cancer argues states could seek up to $50bn in compensation

Once thought to have been looted by Scottish tribes, the gilded limb is the centrepiece of a new exhibition on Roman Scotland in EdinburghA large bronze leg found in a bog in rural Scotland more than 200 years ago and then hidden away in a duke's storeroom is helping to rewrite the history of the Roman empire.Antiquarians argued that the so-called Mislington leg had been looted, perhaps from York, hacked off by marauding Scottish tribes and carried north over Hadrian's Wall. We cannot visualise the conditions which would have led to its erection anywhere north of the Great Wall," said one scholar, James Curle, in 1932. Continue reading...

With year 12 exams under way, VCAA says there is no evidence any have leaked and hacker is attempting to exploit anxious students'

Remains believed to have belonged to Africans or Afro-Brazilians repatriated after being flown back by diplomatsTwo skulls, including that of a man believed to have taken part in Brazil's greatest slave revolt but whose remains were taken to the United States and used in racist eugenics studies at Harvard University, were repatriated on Wednesday.The remains had been outside Brazil since the 19th century. One was taken about 190 years ago from Salvador, the capital of the state of Bahia; the other, about 160 years ago, from Rio de Janeiro - and were welcomed back in moving, subdued ceremonies in both cities. Continue reading...

Driver, 61, faces DUI and murder charges after Tuesday crash critically injuring two others in North HollywoodA driver who reportedly crashed into pedestrians on a Los Angeles corner during Tuesday rush hour, killing three people and critically injuring two more, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and three counts of murder, police said on Wednesday.The fatal crash took place near a North Hollywood metro station. Continue reading...

Death of Javits Frimpong, who moved to the US from Ghana a year ago, has affected close-knit Ghanaian communityA 17-year-old boy has been arrested and charged with murder in connection with the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Javits Frimpong in the Bronx.The teenager was taken from his Bronx home for questioning Wednesday morning and brought to the New York City police department (NYPD)'s 42nd precinct. The suspect, whose identity has not been released, faces several charges, including murder, manslaughter, criminal possession of a weapon and other firearm-related offenses. Continue reading...

Once a Dallas school teacher, Hall became a star in later life with roles in Soul Food and CollateralActor Irma P Hall, star of Soul Food and the Coen brothers' The Ladykillers, has died at the age of 91.Hall died on Tuesday, her family confirmed alongside a statement that described her as a beloved actress, author, poet, educator and public speaker whose contributions touched countless lives throughout her remarkable career". Continue reading...

Retailer's management to seek two-week extension of legal protection from creditors in high courtMPs have accused the owner of Poundland of extracting millions of pounds from the budget retailer when it was on a knife-edge" as it seeks extra time to secure a rescue deal.The management of Poundland, which employs 12,000 people and operates 600 stores in the UK and Ireland, will seek a two-week extension of legal protection from creditors from the high court on Thursday morning. Continue reading...

Paralympian Richard Whitehead gobsmacked' at Tory leader's speech over proposed 36bn welfare cutsThe double amputee marathon runner Richard Whitehead has criticised Kemi Badenoch for weaponising his sporting success" to justify her proposed 36bn welfare cuts.The Conservative leader used the example of double amputees running marathons" in a speech this week to explain the reasoning behind her proposed cuts to disability benefits, which she said were enabling people to live a life of dependency". Continue reading...

L/Cpl Nicholas Horne, from 4th Battalion of Royal Regiment of Scotland, charged with one count of rape on 23 OctoberA British soldier has been charged with the alleged rape of a UK army servicewoman in Cyprus.L/Cpl Nicholas Horne, who serves in the 4th Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, also known as The Highlanders, was charged with one count of rape on 23 October, the Defence Serious Crime Command (DSCC) said. Continue reading...

74-year-old Leonardo Bertulazzi, awaiting extradition to Italy, reportedly used harness to flee custodyA 74-year-old former member of Italy's radical Marxist group the Red Brigades has escaped from house arrest in Argentina, the country's security ministry confirmed on Wednesday, after he reportedly hid his ankle monitor inside a tube of pork and lowered himself from a fifth-floor balcony.Authorities placed Leonardo Bertulazzi under house arrest in Buenos Aires in 2024, prior to his extradition to Italy to serve a 27-year prison sentence. He had received the sentence in 1987 for joining a subversive association and belonging to an armed group. Continue reading...

Action on 25 and 26 November suspended to allow for formal negotations with the government

Man, 30, is in custody in Florida and awaiting extradition to New York for alleged rapes at park in 2021, 2023 and this yearAuthorities have arrested a man in Miami who is wanted in connection with three alleged rapes in New York's Central Park, including one reported last month.On Tuesday, authorities including the US Marshals took 30-year-old Dereck Rivera-Deleon into custody while he was working at a Burger King in Miami, New York City police said. Continue reading...

PM wrote to transport commissioner to oppose monster' warehouse in Astley shortly before he entered No 10Andy Burnham raised safety concerns about dozens of lorries leaving a monster" warehouse near a primary school because there was no safe crossing" for children, a public inquiry has heard.Concerns about the 18-metre-high megashed" in the village of Astley, Greater Manchester, are being examined by Britain's office of the transport commissioner. Continue reading...

Nearly 5m households relying on heating oil could see 70% increases, as advocates call on Congress to provide reliefAmericans are likely to face higher heating bills this winter amid a growing affordability crisis, with costs projected to climb more than 7% nationwide and some households facing increases of up to 70%, according to a new report.The National Energy Assistance Directors Association (Neada), which represents state officials seeking federal funding, warns that disruptions stemming from the war with Iran are pushing heating costs higher as millions of families already struggle to pay utility bills. Continue reading...

Bogus threats also made to thousands of schools in Italy as police assure parents and teachers there is no dangerHundreds of schools in Scotland and Northern Ireland were hit by a fresh wave of hoax bomb threats on Wednesday, with some sites evacuated as a precaution.Police in Scotland said that about 1,000 schools, from Dumfries in the south of Scotland to Aberdeenshire and Orkney in the north, had received the hoax warnings. At least 300 schools were affected in Northern Ireland. Similar claims were sent in a generic communication" to schools in the Republic of Ireland. Continue reading...

This blog is now closedHere are some more comments on the report for the Casey commission released today looking at how social care is run in England. (See 9.56am.)This is from Natasha Curry, deputy director of research at the Nuffield Trust and one of the report's authors.Compared to the other countries we looked at, the governance of England's social care system is confused and complex. Overlapping and unclear roles leave dangerous uncertainty around who is responsible for important decisions, contributing to the inertia around reform England has struggled with for decades. The serious consequences of this were laid bare during the Covid pandemic.The system for governing adult social care in England has evolved haphazardly and with little clear planning. That has been exacerbated by successive governments ducking politically unpalatable decisions for decades. That has scattered responsibility for the sector across and outside government in a way that few would design from scratch.This report makes for sober reading of how adult social care and those who rely on it have been systematically failed. The fragmentation we see today is what happens when there is a total absence of political leadership to ensure the sector is well-funded and provides equitable access to care.[Burnham] struggled to dampen splits among cabinet ministers, which were first revealed by The i Paper, who used the meeting to express differing views on the future relationship with Brussels.One source with knowledge of the cabinet discussion said there was a clear divide between those who want to go further and those who don't want to push the issue too far". Continue reading...

Alexander Darchiev, who previously served as ambassador to Canada, died suddenly', said Russian foreign ministryRussia's ambassador to the United States, Alexander Darchiev, has died suddenly" at the age of 66 after just one and a half years in the job, Moscow's foreign ministry announced on Wednesday.The ministry called Darchiev an outstanding diplomat, an experienced leader and a kind colleague". He was appointed to the position in March 2025. Continue reading...

Ethics watchdogs question necessity of the US secretary of state flying between DC and Gainesville so oftenMarco Rubio, the US secretary of state, has emerged as a superfan of the University of Florida's football team, spending more than $1.2m of taxpayers' money on frequent personal trips to watch them play, a report published Wednesday claims.Ethics watchdogs have questioned the necessity of the country's top diplomat shuttling so often between Washington DC and Gainesville, where his son Anthony has a walk-on role as a running back for the team known as the Gators. Continue reading...

Keir Starmer's former chief of staff also says the thicket of rules' about how PMs operate should be cleared awayKeir Starmer's former chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, has called for a rethink of quasi-judicial" powers given to cabinet ministers such as the energy secretary's ability to approve future oil and gas fields.McSweeney, who helped propel Starmer to power and served as his chief of staff until February this year, said he believed quasi-judicial processes" were stopping wider cabinet discussions and input from the prime minister on issues of national importance. Continue reading...

This blog is now closedSeparately, I am also keeping an eye on Italy, with reports that several schools are being evacuated after receiving bomb threats by emails.According to Rai and Sky TG24, the email was signed by Mikhail Andropov" - the same name used in several hoax bomb alarms against European flights last week. Continue reading...

Lawyer says Britain wrong to believe in historic doctrine that crown has sovereignty over parts of oceansBritain should not be permitted to act as a 17th-century colonial power treating the waters around the Falkland Islands as a Dominium maris Britannici, Argentina has told an international tribunal.Marcelo Kohen, representing Argentina at a hearing in Hamburg, mocked Britain for apparently believing in the historic doctrine that the British crown has sovereignty over expansive parts of the oceans. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Cutting 2030 goal would be a step backwards', say MPs, as ministers clash over proposed reductions

Broadcaster plans to make 30m in temporary' savings before inquiry into takeover by Sky

PM welcomes cross-party push to reject ethnic basis for Englishness promoted by Reform UK politicians

Prime minister tells Kemi Badenoch at PMQs that flagship strategy will be revealed before Commons Christmas recess

Manufacturer says shift to new energy vehicles is happening faster than expected' and market is harshThe Japanese carmaker Nissan has said it has been caught out by accelerating sales of electric and hybrid cars in China amid a brutal price war in the world's biggest automotive market.The manufacturer slashed its sales forecasts for China and said it would cut back on petrol car manufacturing while increasing production of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, which combine a smaller battery with a petrol engine. Continue reading...

Rights groups oppose law that will let police forcibly enter homes to remove refused asylum seekersBelgium could see ICE-style home raids that echo the US crackdown on immigration, rights campaigners have warned, after MPs approved a law that allows police to forcibly enter properties to remove undocumented people.For months, intense debate has swirled across Belgium over measures introduced by the ruling right-leaning coalition to ramp up expulsions of people who have been denied the right to stay in the country. Continue reading...