World news | The Guardian

Home affairs minister Tony Burke says listing will stop group from organising and meeting, and may prevent more horrific bigoted rallies'

News will come as a shock to staff, especially at Cranfield, but the institutions' bosses say intention is growthThe announcement that King's College London is to absorb Cranfield University came as a surprise but not a shock to England's higher education leaders, who have been braced for sudden announcements about job cuts and course closures.But for staff and students at both institutions the news will have come as a shock, particularly at Cranfield, the smaller, highly focused postgraduate technology and management college that has its own airport. Continue reading...

Federal court affirms an August 2024 finding that Tickle was discriminated against on the basis of her gender identity and awards her $20,000

Butterfly Conservation poll is open until 7 June with choice of 60 species from small tortoiseshells to purple emperorsWill it be the rapidly disappearing former garden favourite, the small tortoiseshell? Or the poet John Masefield's oakwood haunting thing", the charismatic purple emperor? Or perhaps the brimstone, the ultimate harbinger of spring?The question of which is Britain's favourite butterfly is being put to a popular vote for the first time. The charity Butterfly Conservation is running the poll, which runs until 7 June, giving people the chance to choose their favourite from the 60 species that fly around Britain every summer. Continue reading...

Redevelopment of the former Department of Lands building on Sydney's Bridge Street wins National Trust heritage awardIt was once a grand old sandstone masterpiece, where returned soldiers would cram into marble corridors to anxiously await lottery draws that could change their lives.Then the 20th century happened. Continue reading...

Pressure grows on Alcoa over strip-mining of Western Australian jarrah forest, which also threatens Perth's water supply

One Nation leader and Barnaby Joyce flew on Gina Rinehart's plane from the Sunshine Coast to Mount Isa before taking charter to tour flood-affected communitiesPauline Hanson billed taxpayers almost $16,000 in private charter flights to travel around flood-affected Queensland on the suggestion of billionaire Gina Rinehart, despite previously claiming the trip was at no cost to the taxpayer".In January, Hanson and Barnaby Joyce flew on Rinehart's luxury Gulfstream G700 from the Sunshine Coast to Mount Isa, after which they travelled on charter flights to flood-affected communities around Julia Creek to meet local mayors. Continue reading...

Refugee advocacy group warns migrants should not be used as scapegoats' as prime minister claims Coalition imitating One Nation policies

Guardian columnist Rafael Behr talks through a tumultuous day for Labour and Keir Starmer - following the resignation of health secretary Wes Streeting, and the renewed possibility of a Westminster comeback for Andy BurnhamAfter a week of speculation and gossip, Thursday seemed to be the day the Labour leadership contest really took off. Officially though, Keir Starmer is still in place ... and not going anywhere.Guardian columnist Rafael Behr talks through a frantic day that started with Wes Streeting's resignation as health secretary and ended with the very real possibility of his rival - Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham - returning to parliament. Continue reading...

Visit comes after US-Cuba relations deteriorated significantly, and as the island nation declared it had absolutely no fuel' because of US blockadeCIA director John Ratcliffe met Cuban officials in Havana on Thursday as a way to improve dialogue between the US and the communist-run island, the Cuban government said.The meeting took place in a context marked by the complexity of bilateral relations, with the aim of contributing to the political dialogue between both nations", a statement said. Continue reading...

We know that Mark Carney wants to sort of embrace Europe,' says competition director Martin GreenCanada is welcome to join Eurovision if it wishes, its director has said, months after the country revealed it wanted to explore" joining the song contest in its federal budget.Eurovision director Martin Green told the BBC on Wednesday that Canada hadn't yet applied, but would be welcome to. Continue reading...

Charity says calls to its Childline service about online sexual abuse and exploitation have risen 36% in a yearChildren reported a rise in online blackmail attempts involving sexual images in the UK last year, according to a leading charity.The NSPCC said contacts with its Childline service relating to online sexual abuse and exploitation rose by 36% last year, driven by an increase in cases related to online blackmail. Continue reading...

Export's performances scandalised Austria in the 1960s, but are now recognised for exposing the objectification of the female bodyValie Export, the Austrian performance artist and film-maker who inverted the male gaze in ways that were provocative, shocking and often outrageously fun, has died aged 85.The artist's own foundation announced on Thursday evening that Export died in Vienna earlier the same day, three days before her 86th birthday. Continue reading...

Health officials say close contacts being offered antibiotics as a precaution after cases discovered in ReadingA young person has died and two others are being treated after an outbreak of meningitis in Berkshire, health officials have said.It follows a major outbreak in Kent, linked to a Canterbury nightclub, that killed two people and left more than a dozen needing hospital treatment in March. Continue reading...

Media law experts cast doubt on viability of a defamation lawsuit promised by Netanyahu over Nicholas Kristof essayIsrael's prime minister, Benjamin Nethanyahu, and foreign minister, Gideon Sa'ar, have threatened to sue the New York Times for defamation over the publication of an essay by Nicholas Kristof detailing allegations that Palestinian women, men and children have been raped and sexually abused in Israeli military detention.Following the publication by Nicholas Kristof in The New York Times of one of the most hideous and distorted lies ever published against the State of Israel in the modern press, which also received the backing of the newspaper, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar have instructed the initiation of a defamation lawsuit against The New York Times," Israel's ministry of foreign affairs wrote in a social media post on Thursday. Continue reading...

Revelation seen as serious blow to candidacy of Flavio Bolsonaro, Brazil's leading rightwing presidential hopefulFlavio Bolsonaro, Brazil's leading rightwing presidential hopeful, has been caught on tape asking a banker accused of corruption for $26.8m (20m) to fund a film about his father, the former president Jair Bolsonaro.The leaked voice memos and text messages were published on Wednesday by the Intercept Brasil, and later acknowledged by Flavio Bolsonaro, a far-right senator who is tied in polls with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva ahead of October's election. Continue reading...

There was wind, there was fire, there was Goodrem's remarkable upper-range - resulting in a refreshingly self-assured offering from Australia

Council of Europe members plan to change interpretation of rights laws to make it easier to deport peopleKeir Starmer's government has been accused of trying to water down legal protections for torture victims as ministers from 46 countries including the UK prepare to make it easier to deport refused asylum seekers and foreign criminals.Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, is expected to agree a political declaration" on Friday with other members of the Council of Europe, which oversees the European convention on human rights (ECHR). Continue reading...

Greater Manchester mayor would need to win Makerfield seat before launching campaign for Labour leadershipAndy Burnham now has a potential route back to parliament and a chance to become Labour's next leader after an MP said he would trigger a byelection by standing down from his seat.The move ended days of speculation about whether Burnham could secure a possible path back into Westminster and underlined the increasingly precarious nature of Keir Starmer's premiership. Continue reading...

Andy Burnham has announced he will attempt to return to Westminster after the Labour MP Josh Simons said he will vacate his Makerfield seat in order for Burnham to run in a byelection. It follows a day of breaking news in which the health secretary, Wes Streeting, resigned, saying he has lost confidence in the prime minister, and Angela Rayner announced she had been cleared by the HMRC. Where does this leave Keir Starmer, the leadership of the Labour party, and the country? Continue reading...

This liveblog is now closed

NHS experts and MPs say he told a good story' as health secretary while kicking the difficult cans down the road

Now former health secretary and Manchester mayor could be about to make an unlikely deal to oust Keir StarmerWho said the Labour party needs a battle of ideas, not of personalities or petty factionalism ... It needs to be broad, and it needs the best possible field of candidates"?Until Thursday morning, almost everyone would have attributed those words to Andy Burnham, the mayor or Greater Manchester. But those were the closing paragraphs of the former health secretary Wes Streeting's resignation letter, a cadence so similar to Burnham's own that it cannot be accidental. Continue reading...

Standards watchdog investigating money from crypto billionaire which Reform UK leader now says was reward' for Brexit

Singer-songwriter, and former husband of Candi Staton, was blind from birth and had further hits including Slip Away and Back Door SantaClarence Carter, the US soul singer who had numerous hits including the transatlantic 1970 smash Patches, has died aged 90.His management company confirmed his death to the Guardian, saying he died on Wednesday following complications with pneumonia. Continue reading...

Island breathes sigh of relief as fears recede that US could jettison longstanding support

Veteran broadcaster accuses channel of clear violations' of Ofcom's due impartiality rules

Exhibition of Melsonby hoard in York challenges ideas about life in northern Britain 2,000 years agoIron age objects that tell a dramatic story of female power and which dispel the myth that northern Britain was a left-behind backwater have gone on display for the first time.The objects exhibited in York are from the Melsonby hoard, the largest trove of iron age metalwork ever found in the UK, which experts say could alter our understanding of life in Britain 2,000 years ago. Continue reading...

William Majcher was accused of helping Chinese police coerce a Vancouver-area real estate investor, accused of fraud, to return to ChinaA retired police officer Canada accused of being an agent for China has been acquitted of national security charges after prosecutors failed to prove he acted illegally.William Majcher, who served in the RCMP's financial crime unit, was charged in 2023 over allegations he had breached Canada's Security of Information Act by helping Chinese police coerce a Vancouver-area real estate investor, accused of fraud, to return to China. Continue reading...

Prof Abbas Rajabifard of the University of Melbourne says he was listed as a co-author of research with Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran's chief negotiator in recent peace talks, without his knowledge

Jim Chalmers' budget tips the scales in favour of younger and less well-off households - but it's middle-class gen X that are turning to the rightwing party

Outgoing health secretary declares Labour's plan for the NHS is working' as hospitals hit key targetHospitals in England have hit a key target for improving the time it takes patients to get treatment, which prompted Wes Streeting to declare that Labour's plan for the NHS is working" before departing as health secretary.Streeting had told the NHS to ensure that hospitals treated at least 65% of patients within 18 weeks by the end of March. New NHS England figures published on Thursday showed that hospitals did so, treating 65.3% of people on the NHS waiting list within that timeframe in March. Continue reading...

Streeting, who is on the party's right, had long been rumoured to be gathering support for tilt at leadership

Doctor in Brandenburg state allegedly committed the crimes, including child rape, between 2013 and 2025German prosecutors have charged a paediatrician with 130 counts of sexual abuse, including the rape of children, most of them in his care, in a case that has caused shock and prompted clinics to step up safeguards.The 46-year-old doctor, whose name has not been released, has been in custody since November after a mother suspected her child had been assaulted and notified authorities. The doctor worked in clinics in Brandenburg state, surrounding Berlin. Continue reading...

King Charles unveils government agenda for the next year as PM faces leadership threat from within LabourKeir Starmer attempted to reassert his authority over his restive party on Wednesday, announcing his plans for the next parliamentary session even as speculation grew that he would be challenged for his job as soon as Thursday.Starmer announced his second king's speech as prime minister, promising a package of measures with bills to abolish NHS England, overhaul the provision of special educational needs teaching, limit trials by jury, introduce digital ID and end the leasehold system in England and Wales. Continue reading...

With Mexico under pressure from Trump to tackle drug trafficking groups, analysts say it's the most tense situation since the 1980s'Relations between Mexico and the United States are being pushed to breaking point amid accusations by Washington that Mexican officials have been in bed for years" with drug traffickers, and reports of CIA agents freely operating south of the border.There are many who are betting on the defeat and failure of the Mexican government," said Claudia Sheinbaum tersely on Wednesday, when asked about the allegations at a news conference. "We want a good relationship with the United States government. What are our limits? The defence of sovereignty and respect for the Mexican people and their dignity." Continue reading...

Medicare has already paused hospice and home healthcare agency signups as potential fraud is investigated

In interview with Stateside with Kai and Carter, Abrams says Republicans have raised the stakes beyond party linesFormer Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams has slammed Republican-led states' efforts to redraw their congressional maps to favor their party as evil incarnate".In an interview with the Guardian's new podcast, Stateside with Kai and Carter, Abrams argued that what she said amounted to intentional cheating" to suppress racial minority voting power must be fought in the courts and on the ballot. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story here:

Wes Streeting is expected to launch a leadership challenge against Keir Starmer as soon as Thursday. News of the health secretary's plans came during the king's speech, derailing what was supposed to be another chance for the prime minister to reset the political agenda. Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian's head of national news, Archie Bland Continue reading...

Watchdog to examine whether Reform UK leader should have declared sum he received before entering parliamentNigel Farage is facing a formal investigation by the parliamentary standards watchdog over a 5m gift from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne.The Reform UK leader received the money weeks before announcing he would stand as a candidate in the 2024 general election. Continue reading...

After drawing delighted crowds since first sighted in Orkney the young male has swum 400 miles across the North SeaA peripatetic walrus who became a local celebrity as he toured the north-east coast of Scotland has now been spotted in Norway, bringing to an end his Celtic sojourn.The young male was christened Magnus after he after first hauled his estimated 2.5-metre frame out of the sea on to Stronsay pier in Orkney on 16 April. Continue reading...

Strikes killed at least six people as Moscow and Kyiv trade long-range attacks after brief ceasefire

Captain of French football team expressed concerns about far-right National Rally party gaining powerThe French football captain, Kylian Mbappe, has angered Marine Le Pen's far-right party after expressing concerns about it winning next year's presidential election.Mbappe, 27, who grew up in Paris's northern suburbs in a family with Algerian and Cameroonian heritage, told Vanity Fair this week: I know what it means and what consequences it can have for my country when people like them come to power." Continue reading...

Queenslander under pressure after YouTube interview where he said he was not ruling it out' but I don't have the facts yet'

Opposition leader Angus Taylor and shadow treasurer Tim Wilson say future Coalition government would reinstate generous rules for property investors

From supermarkets to corner shops, live facial recognition could be coming to retailers near you. Jessica Murray on the AI systems increasingly used by the police and storesLive facial recognition is being hailed as a powerful new frontier in the fight against crime, not only by police but by private companies too. Retailers from supermarkets to corner shops hope it will help them fight back against shoplifting.But the Guardian's social affairs correspondent, Jessica Murray, points out that it will also expand surveillance into more and more public spaces. And the technology doesn't always get it right. Continue reading...

Pete Hegseth and other officials appear before House to face grilling on Iran war expenditure and military operationsIran has expanded its definition of the strait of Hormuz into a vast operational area" far wider than before the war, according to a senior officer in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy in comments likely to anger the US.The strait is no longer viewed as a narrow stretch around a handful of islands but instead has been greatly enlarged in scope and military significance, according to Mohammad Akbarzadeh, deputy political director of the IRGC Navy, the state-affiliated Fars news agency reported this morning. Continue reading...

Party held out prospect of act while in opposition but plan did not make it into election manifestoMinisters should bring forward a new clean air act that would ban wood burning, clear diesel vehicles from the roads and force councils to cut pollution, a group of more than 60 charities have urged before the king's speech on Wednesday.Labour held out the prospect of a clean air act while in opposition in 2023, but this was dropped from the final election manifesto, and the government has made no move to reinstate it. Continue reading...

Research on weight limits of elevators made in UK and Europe 1972-2004 raises concerns over safety and equityLifts are no longer big enough to fit the UK's larger citizens, according to researchers.A study of maximum capacity in elevators in the UK and mainland Europe found lifts have not kept up with increasing obesity levels, raising concerns about safety and equity. Continue reading...