Australia's oldest department store collapsed into voluntary administration last week after years of steep lossesDavid Jones is set to shutter half its department store network, triggering mass job losses under a sweeping restructure, receivers FTI Consulting said on Wednesday.David Jones employs more than 6,000 staff across 38 stores. Continue reading...
Three others critically injured and taken to hospitals as reports say car crashed into food stand in North HollywoodAt least three people are dead and three critically injured, after a car struck pedestrians on a Los Angeles corner during Tuesday rush hour, authorities said.The fatal crash took place near a North Hollywood metro station. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Jillian Segal suggested transferring' powers in updated report released a fortnight ago but government sources note media regulator already exists
Women are reportedly upstairs neighbors of three Black students, including one who uploaded video to TikTokTwo white students at the University of Mississippi were captured making offensive monkey gestures in a widely panned Ring video that has prompted a school investigation.On Saturday, freshman Jakiyra Metcalf uploaded the surveillance clip from her apartment door to TikTok, showing one woman thumping her chest and babbling like a monkey. Another woman jumped into the camera's view and mimicked the primate noises. Continue reading...
The US actor died in Poland on Tuesday, after a long and difficult battle with a serious heart condition and heart failure', his wife saidStacy Keach, one of America's finest stage actors who became best known for playing scruffy private eye Mike Hammer on TV and whose career was nearly derailed after he was imprisoned in 1984 for trying to smuggle cocaine into Britain, has died aged 85.Keach died at home in Magdalenka, Poland on Tuesday, after a long and difficult battle with a serious heart condition and heart failure," his wife, Malgosia Tomassi Keach, said in a statement. Keach had previously suffered a heart attack onstage in Chicago in 2017. Continue reading...
Asic says customers should not have to check every transaction to ensure they receive the correct interestMacquarie Bank is set to pay a $14m court-imposed penalty after it admitted to breaking the Corporations Act with its welcome rate" promotions.The penalty comes amid a crackdown by Australian Securities and Investments Commission over complex savings conditions that risk short-changing consumers grappling with the cost of living. Continue reading...
Thinktank Niesr says timid rate rise last week likely to make inflation more persistent feature of UK economyThe Bank of England is risking higher interest rates for longer after a hesitant response to rising inflation, according to leading thinktank.In a searing critique of the central bank's tactics, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (Niesr) said a timid increase in interest rates last week was likely to mean inflation staying above the Bank's 2% target until at least 2030. Continue reading...
by Denis Campbell Health policy editor on (#79NX7)
Ombudsman's report says delays have profound consequences and limit users' ability to lead independent livesDisabled people are having to wait up to two years to get a wheelchair because of delays involving NHS bodies and private firms that make them.The situation is revealed in a report by the parliamentary and health service ombudsman for England, Paula Sussex, who said hold-ups were having profound consequences and limiting wheelchair users' ability to lead independent lives. Continue reading...
by Patrick Butler Social policy editor on (#79NX6)
Head of major review into adult social care will say that governments have been asleep at the wheel' of vital systemSuccessive governments in England have been asleep at the wheel" on social care, leaving the system to grow as a chaotic patchwork of local services with no clear vision, Louise Casey, the head of the social care commission, is to warn.Lady Casey, who is preparing proposals for a big review of adult social care, will say the result is that in effect no one is in charge" of a system that provides vital services for millions of vulnerable people. Continue reading...
Progressive senator says I like Chuck ... but the time is now for change' as calls grow for new Democratic leadershipBernie Sanders, a progressive senator from Vermont, said on Tuesday he would not support Chuck Schumer's bid to serve as the Democratic leader in the US Senate, joining a growing cohort of Democrats calling for a change in leadership.I personally have known Chuck Schumer for over 30 years, and I like Chuck. Nobody who works harder than Chuck Schumer. But in my view, the time is now for change, and I will not be supporting Chuck to be re-elected as the Democratic leader," Sanders told reporters on Capitol Hill. Continue reading...
New indictment claims Mohammad Dawood al-Saadi, a dual Iranian and Iraqi national, plotted while in US custodyUS federal prosecutors have said that an Iranian operative jailed in New York was responsible for the foiled attack on a UK air force base where American B-1 bombers were stationed.A new indictment alleged that Mohammad Dawood al-Saadi, a dual Iranian and Iraqi national, plotted while in custody and then transmitted plans - using coded messages in calls to his family - to two co-conspirators to buy large quantities of chemicals that could be used as explosives in an attack on the RAF Fairford base in September. Continue reading...
Legal battle escalates as far-right US podcaster continues to spread false claims that France's first lady was born a manEmmanuel and Brigitte Macron have brought a fresh defamation lawsuit against Candace Owens in her home state of Tennessee, in an escalation of a transatlantic legal battle as the far-right US podcaster continues to spread false claims that France's first lady was born a man.The Macrons first sued Owens and her media companies in July 2025 in Delaware in response to what the French first couple called verifiably false and devastating lies" being repeated by Owens on her podcast and on X. According to that lawsuit, those lies included that Brigitte Macron, 73, was born a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux - who is actually her older brother - and committed identity theft to hide a gender transition; that Emmanuel Macron was elected as French president as part of a CIA mind-control program; and that the couple are blood-related relatives committing incest. Continue reading...
The federal agency is requiring all GLP-1s to include information about the potential risk on warning labelsThe US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a new warning on GLP-1 medications - which can facilitate weight loss - over a rare eye condition that could lead to sudden and permanent blindness.On Monday, the FDA announced that it is requiring all GLP-1 medications - including Novo Nordisk's Ozempic and Wegovy, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro and Zepbound, as well as Sanofi's Soliqua - to include information about the potential risk of nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, also known as NAION, on warning labels. Continue reading...
Man, 41, arrested near Gloucester by police working with US authorities in investigation involving allegations of espionage', according to FBI directorA US soldier with alleged links to Russia has been arrested by British counter-terrorism police.The man, 41, was arrested as part of an investigation by counter-terrorism police, working closely with US authorities, the US military and the FBI, London counter-terrorism police said. Continue reading...
Arrests made after three properties were searched in relation to inquiry into late businessmanFrench police have made arrests after raiding three properties, including the Ritz hotel in Paris, in relation to an investigation into sexual abuse and trafficking by Mohamed Al Fayed.Several individuals were taken into custody for questioning last month and later released, according to the Paris public prosecutor's office. Another property in Paris and one in Saint-Tropez, both with links to Fayed, were also searched in mid-October. Continue reading...
Former military chief Gadi Eisenkot has mandate to try to form a government - with Netanyahu waiting if he failsOpposition lawmakers have wasted no time after Israel's new Knesset was sworn in, deploying their majority to seize control of the legislature from Benjamin Netanyhau and his allies.Although they are still too divided to form a government, the opposition requested a vote for a new speaker, who sets the Knesset's agenda. Once Netanyahu loyalist Amir Ohana has been replaced, the six opposition parties will be able to work on key legislation even if they broker a coalition. Continue reading...
Voters adopted extreme policy requiring medical sex verification for all girls who want to play team sportsParents of student athletes in Washington state have sued to block a ballot initiative banning transgender girls from women's sports teams, calling the measure discriminatory and warning it would lead to invasive" genital examinations for female athletes.Last week, voters in the solidly Democratic state passed Initiative 638, a major setback for LGBTQ+ rights amid the blue wave" of the US midterm elections. Nebraska, Colorado and Arizona adopted similar anti-trans sports bans, though advocates say Washington state's policy is particularly extreme due to its medical sex verification requirement for all girls who want to play team sports. Continue reading...
Senators pressured Danielle Thumann, senior counsel to FCC chair Brendan Carr, to speak about agency's actions toward ABC and Jimmy KimmelDuring a contentious Tuesday hearing on her nomination by Donald Trump to serve as a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) commissioner, Senate Democrats hammered Danielle Thumann about recent actions taken by the Brendan Carr-led regulator that have been criticized as hostile to press freedom.Thumann, who serves as senior counsel to Carr, is expected to be approved as commissioner, with Republicans in charge of the US Senate and House. But Ben Ray Lujan, a senator of New Mexico, assured her that the commission's actions will be under close scrutiny when Democrats take charge of the chamber in January. Continue reading...
Countries clash over Sea Lion project as Hamburg tribunal risks deepening sovereignty disputeThe people of the Falkland Islands face devastating consequences" if Argentina is successful in blocking development of its offshore oilfield, the attorney general for England and Wales has told an international tribunal.Ellie Reeves, representing the British government at a hearing of the international tribunal for the law of the sea (Itlos), said billions of pounds vital to the future of the British overseas territory would be lost. Continue reading...
Republicans on House panel criticize US government's investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine MaxwellRepublicans on the House oversight committee released a report on Tuesday criticizing the federal government's handling of the investigations into Jeffrey Epstein and his associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, and called on the Department of Justice to interview key witnesses, investigate Epstein associates accused of criminal activity, and ensure survivors have access to their records".The federal government has failed the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell's horrific crimes for decades," James Comer, the Republican congressman who chairs the committee, said in a statement. Continue reading...
by Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent on (#79NMA)
Criminal Bar Association and campaigners hail Mr Justice Bennathan for delivering remarks with piercing clarity'The judge who sentenced Russell Brand has been praised for dispelling rape myths with piercing clarity".Mr Justice Bennathan's sentencing remarks were particularly welcomed given that rape myths had played a part in the trial. He was also lauded for calling out enablers" who witnessed sexual assaults by the comedian. Continue reading...
Jury finds Blade Silvano, who presented herself as a male army veteran, guilty of six counts of sexual assaultA woman serving a prison sentence for sexual assault after pretending to be a man and duping a woman into a physical relationship has been found guilty of tricking another woman into a similar abusive partnership.In both cases, Blade Silvano, 44, met the women on an online dating site and falsely claimed she was a man who had served in the armed forces before meeting them in person and sexually assaulting them.Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html Continue reading...
by Natricia Duncan, Joshua Surtees and Kejan Haynes on (#79NMC)
Jason Jones welcomes decision by privy council in London to overturn 2025 ruling that outlawed anal sexA gay man has won a historic 10-year battle against Trinidad and Tobago's homophobic laws with a landmark UK appeals court ruling that could help overturn similar anti-gay laws in other Caribbean countries.The privy council, based in London, overturned a 2025 decision by Trinidad and Tobago's court of appeal that recriminalised consensual anal sex, seven years after the Trinidadian activist Jason Jones secured a high court judgment declaring the country's colonial-era buggery" laws unconstitutional. Continue reading...
Hamish Falconer says UK has not accepted principle' of linking electricity trade to cohesion fund' but two sides will discuss issueBritain is willing to discuss paying towards infrastructure schemes in poorer parts of the EU in return for access to the European electricity market, according to the minister in charge of renegotiating the bilateral relationship.Hamish Falconer, the cabinet minister in charge of EU talks, told the Guardian he was sure the two sides would discuss the issue after this month's summit, as ministers look to deepen ties with the union over the next few years. Continue reading...
New alliance with the Netherlands and Baltic and Nordic countries comes in response to 41% increase in Russian naval activity around UKRussian naval activity around the UK has increased by 41% in the first nine months of the year, a British defence minister has said, as the Royal Navy announced plans to step up a 10-country maritime defensive effort in response.Luke Pollard, the minister for defence readiness, described the figure as a huge increase", justifying a new drone and warship initiative from the alliance of beer-drinking nations" - the UK, the Netherlands and the Baltic and Nordic countries. Continue reading...
Conservative leader launches Welfare That Works policy document outlining benefit reductions of 36bnBadenoch and Whately are now taking questions.Q: [From Rob Powell from Sky News] We are running a report on the Netherlands, where youth unemployment is much lower than in the UK, but the amount they spend on getting people into work is much higher. Do you want to spend more on job training and support? Continue reading...
German chancellor has signalled he will block budget with no aid deal, complaining that burden is carried mostly by only a few member states'Friedrich Merz has signalled he will block the EU's seven-year budget unless there is a deal on financial aid for Ukraine, triggering accusations of typical blackmail" from some other European leaders and setting the stage for stormy talks later this month.The German chancellor's intervention has angered leaders in central Europe who are net beneficiaries of EU funds but do not want to take part in an upcoming funding round to support Ukraine's war effort. Continue reading...
by Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent on (#79NHM)
Premature death risk also varies according to employment and qualifications, shows analysis laying bare the scale of inequalities'People living in the most deprived areas of England are more than twice as likely to die prematurely than their more affluent counterparts, according to analysis.The research, conducted by the Health Foundation, took demographic data from the 2021 census to look at differences in premature mortality rates - defined as any adult who died before their 75th birthday - alongside further data on deaths from March 2021 to December 2023. Continue reading...
by Presented by Nosheen Iqbal with Maeve McClenaghan; on (#79NE5)
Multiple women allege David Walliams abused his power and position as a celebrity to prey on them for sexual purposes when they were young women, an investigation by the Guardian and ITV News has found. He denies the allegations. Maeve McClenaghan reportsDavid Walliams, the comedian and former Britain's Got Talent judge, is alleged to have groomed fans he met when they were as young as 15. Walliams denies any wrongdoing.In this episode, investigations correspondent Maeve McClenaghan tells Nosheen Iqbal about the investigation by the Guardian and ITV News.You can watch this podcast on YouTube.The ITV News documentary David Walliams: Power and Silence is available to watch on YouTube and ITVX. Continue reading...
Earlier doses for children, a focus on unvaccinated adults, a risk strategy based on geography - here's how a functioning ACIP would address the measles outbreakThe US has announced three deaths associated with measles last week, among them a seven-month-old baby in New York and a postpartum woman in Pennsylvania, underscoring the need for a more aggressive vaccination approach - but US recommendations haven't changed.Dismantling the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) made it harder for the US to respond to the measles outbreak, with vaccine recommendations staying the same during a historic rise in cases and deaths, four former advisers say. Continue reading...
Host Turkey celebrates new oilfields as UN climate summit prepares to host world leaders from more than 90 countriesWe've just heard from Patricia Espinosa, the former UN climate boss (succeeded by Simon Stiell) and now we are hearing from former US secretary of state and climate ambassador, John Kerry.Kerry has congratulated Brazil for keeping the fossil fuel transition issue alive, and the room has erupted in cheers. Continue reading...
California saw the most expensive opposition campaign in its history as funding of political campaigns broke records in the US midtermsIn the hours after polls closed on election day, tech industry players began praising Sergey Brin, the co-founder of Google, on social media.Huge thanks to Sergey Brin here," wrote Garry Tan, the CEO of Y Combinator. Venture capitalist Ilya Sukhar posted: God bless Sergey Brin." And David Marcus, a crypto entrepreneur, simply wrote: Hero." Continue reading...
If data from device is recovered, it could give crucial details about what pilots said as they lost control of aircraftInvestigators said Monday they have recovered the cockpit voice recorder from a business jet that plummeted from the sky amid severe weather in Florida eight days earlier, killing all nine people on board.The recorder was found at the site where the Bahamas-bound Learjet slammed into the ground in Palm Beach county, Florida, and erupted in a fireball 1 November, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a statement posted to social media. Continue reading...
Computer records reveal College Republican Patriot Coalition's web domain in account registered to Fuentes-managed companyA college Republican coalition claiming 31 affiliated student groups in 14 states that attacked the Trump administration from the right routed its email through the same Microsoft 365 account as a company controlled by white nationalist Nick Fuentes.Until Monday morning, Microsoft's public sign-in records put the College Republican Patriot Coalition (CRPC)'s web domain in an account registered to NJF LLC, a Fuentes-managed company that also runs his personal website and online store. Continue reading...
GLP-1 products such as Ozempic and Mounjaro spread but many in poorer countries struggle to get basic diabetes treatmentThe gold rush into GLP-1 weight-loss drugs risks diverting pharmaceutical firms' attention away from diabetes treatments such as insulin, the head of the Access to Medicine Foundation has warned.GLP-1 blockbuster medications such as Novo Nordisk's Ozempic and Eli Lilly's Mounjaro have revolutionised obesity and diabetes treatment but there has been a greater focus by companies on weight loss, according to a report from the Netherlands-based non-profit group. Continue reading...
Speaking in the White House, the president said the US remained locked and loaded' but escalation was not needed. Plus how Grand Theft Auto became a cultural colossusGood morning. Oil prices have dropped after Donald Trump unilaterally declared that the US war on Iran was effectively over". During a White House press conference, Trump said Israel and Gulf allies in the region were well protected from Iran and that an escalation was not needed.He said, however, that the US remained locked and loaded, ready to go for any reason", adding: We're seeing momentum toward the end of this conflict. I think it's going to be ending fairly soon." Brent crude has dropped below $90, its lowest level since August.What is the latest development with Pete Hegseth? A Republican lawmaker has moved to force a vote to impeach the US defense secretary. Thomas Massie, of Kentucky, introduced eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth, accusing him of illegally waging war without congressional authorization and abusing his powers.What has happened at a US airbase in England? The US military has reportedly evacuated aircraft from a second airbase in Britain after a threat from Iran. Two US refuelling tankers that were using the RAF Mildenhall military base diverted to Germany on Monday morning, while several other tankers at the base were moved to Germany and other locations later in the day. Continue reading...
by Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Aakash Hassan in Delhi on (#79N7S)
Former prime minister faces death penalty upon return after being sentenced in absentia over deaths in 2024 uprisingSheikh Hasina is confident" she will return to Bangladesh in December, according to exiled members of her party, after the disgraced former prime minister of Bangladesh applied for a new passport this week.Hasina has been living in self-imposed exile since August 2024 when she was toppled from power by a mass uprising against her authoritarian rule. She crossed the border to India, where she has since been allowed to live freely in Delhi. Continue reading...
Evacuation comes weeks after US withdrew bombers from RAF Fairford over suspected Iran-linked security incidentThe US military has reportedly evacuated aircraft from a second airbase in Britain after a threat from Iran.Two US refuelling tankers that were using the RAF Mildenhall military base diverted to Germany on Monday morning, while several other tankers at the base were moved to Germany and other locations later in the day, according to the Wall Street Journal. Continue reading...
Arrest made by anti-corruption body set up to investigate alleged graft during former PM's 16-year ruleHungarian authorities have detained the brother of Viktor Orban as part of a people-smuggling investigation, the prime minister, Peter Magyar, has said.The Hungarian anti-graft body, the national asset protection and recovery office (NVVH), said in a statement it and police had detained four people and searched homes in Budapest and Pest county. Continue reading...
From the assassinations of her husband and mother-in-law to press stonewalling under Modi, Belonging offers an insider's account of India's political evolutionFew love stories have been as closely entwined with a nation's history as that of Sonia and Rajiv Gandhi. The former's much-awaited political memoir, Belonging, offers a strikingly candid account of her journey from a small town in Italy to the highest echelons of power in India - all for love, she says.The veteran Congress party leader has been fiercely protective of her personal world. In Belonging, she opens up for the first time about the extraordinary twists and turns of a life that has largely unfolded in full public view. (The Guardian's Hannah Ellis-Petersen has a rare in-person interview with Gandhi, and you can read an excerpt from the book here.) Continue reading...
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