World news | The Guardian

Jungle-based competition in which celebrities try to evade Bear Grylls part of a wide-ranging new Netflix slateHolly Willoughby has made her first major move since leaving This Morning, signing up to host a new Netflix show, Bear Hunt with Bear Grylls.In October she announced she was quitting the ITV show after 14 years for me and my family" after it emerged she was the target of an alleged kidnap and murder plot. Continue reading...

RAF jet was taking defence secretary back to UK from Poland, and flying near Russian exclave of KaliningradRussia is believed to have jammed the satellite signal on an RAF aircraft carrying Grant Shapps back from Poland, according to government sources.Defence sources said there was no danger to Shapps, who was travelling back to the UK, though they called it a wildly irresponsible" act of electronic warfare. Continue reading...

Deputy Labour leader says party must follow procedures but says she would personally like MP to have Labour whip restored. This live blog is closedIn his speech Keir Starmer has just confirmed that Labour would stop ticket touts buying up tickets for events and re-selling them at rip-off prices.This is what Labour said about the plan in a news release this morning.Reselling tickets for profit has already been banned in many countries, but under the Tories, fans have been let down.Too often, genuine fans are missing out on getting tickets only to see those same tickets on secondary ticketing websites at far higher prices, making them unaffordable and putting them out of reach.My first ever trip abroad was to Malta with the Croydon youth Philharmonic Orchestra. You will know that excitement you feel when you have an encounter with the arts that changes your life. Everyone in the room will know that the sense, I suppose, of being drawn into something that seems bigger than ourselves, of being truly moved by a piece of music, or painting, or a play ...Even now even now, listening to Beethoven or Brahms as I read the Sunday papers, takes the edge off some of the more uncomfortable stories. Continue reading...

Members of the Siberia, Freedom of Russia Legion and RDK battalions work closely with the Ukrainian armyThree pro-Ukrainian battalions made up of recruits from Russia have launched a fresh incursion into southern Russia in a cross-border raid meant to sow chaos before Vladimir Putin's widely expected re-election this weekend.The three armed groups of Russian exiled fighters, who operate in close coordination with Ukraine's military, said they had crossed the border into the southern Kursk and Belgorod regions. In a statement, the Russian National Guard acknowledged the raid, saying that together with the armed forces, they were repelling the Ukrainian-backed armed groups' attack near the village of Tyotkino in Russia's western Kursk region. Continue reading...

CBC aired an investigation into the death of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, whose killing the Canadian government suspects India was behindIndia has ordered prominent video sharing platforms to block access to a new Canadian documentary probing the assassination of a prominent Sikh activist in Vancouver, in a move that highlights India's mounting frustration with the allegations its government was behind the high-profile killing.The request marks the second time in just over a year that India has sought to block a documentary critical of the Indian government or its leader, Narendra Modi. In 2023, India used emergency laws to block the distortion of the BBC documentary India: The Modi Question. Continue reading...

Source tells Reuters incident occurred as Grant Shapps travelled back from Poland. This live blog is closedNato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg will shortly be presenting the annual Nato report. You can view it at the video below.Earlier today, Stoltenberg and Polish president Andrzej Duda met at the Nato headquarters in Brussels. Continue reading...

Bill proposes dividing large estates into smaller lots to spread land ownership and boost rural populationsScottish lairds will be ordered to break up their estates into smaller parcels during sales under plans to reverse the country's heavily concentrated patterns of land ownership.A land reform bill proposes introducing rules that could force someone selling an estate larger than 1,000 hectares (2,740 acres) to divide it into smaller lots, if it is was needed to increase the number of people owning land or living in the area. Continue reading...

Passing of bill will come as relief for PM, Pedro Sanchez, who has gambled his political future on the concessionSpain's congress has approved the controversial and divisive Catalan amnesty bill that regional separatists demanded in return for helping the country's Socialist-led coalition government back into office following last year's inconclusive general election.The passing of the bill, which was approved by 178 votes to 172 in Spain's 350-seat parliament, will come as a relief for the prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, who has gambled his political future on the concession. Continue reading...

Four parties likely to be involved in pursuing extra-parliamentary' cabinet, say Dutch media outletsTalks on forming a new Dutch government are likely to progress from exploratory discussions to more substantive negotiations, according to media reports, after the far-right leader, Geert Wilders, accepted he could not be prime minister.Nearly four months after Wilders' anti-Islam, anti-immigration Freedom party (PVV) became the largest in parliament, Kim Putters, the former socialist senator overseeing the discussions, was due on Thursday to present a report on their progress. Continue reading...

One worker says she feels disrespected' by proposed agreement, which includes in-store gift cards if staff vote to accept

In swap with Musee d'Orsay in Paris which has borrowed a Renoir, visitors to Cardiff museum will be urged to take selfies with Van Gogh portraitIt is possible the artist may not have wholly approved of one of his searching, intense self-portraits being likened to an image grabbed on a mobile phone.But a Van Gogh oil painting has been unveiled as the centrepiece of an exhibition in Cardiff that poses the question: Is a self-portrait the original selfie?" Continue reading...

Engineers took 90 minutes to arrive after IT meltdown led to widespread grounding of flights last AugustEngineers working from home took 90 minutes to arrive and restart a crucial part of UK air traffic control's IT system during the August bank holiday meltdown, according to an independent report.The flights of more than 700,000 passengers were disrupted after planes were grounded across UK airports on 28 August, when the computerised flight planning system at National Air Traffic Services (Nats) shut down because of a glitch. Continue reading...

Prime minister says government wants full equality between sexes' as it plans to call up 5,000 conscripts a year from 2026Women in Denmark are to be conscripted for military service for the first time under a proposed armed forces overhaul that comes amid Europe's worsening relations with Russia and the war in Ukraine.We do not rearm because we want war. We are rearming because we want to avoid it," said the prime minister, Mette Frederiksen. Continue reading...

Martin Naumann is one of first former East German officials to be charged with murder instead of manslaughterA former Stasi officer has denied the murder 50 years ago of a Polish man trying to flee to West Berlin, at the opening of a trial that could affect how communist-era killings are prosecuted in Germany.Martin Naumann, 80, spoke only to confirm his identity as a court in Berlin began hearing the case on Thursday. His lawyer said Naumann, an ex-member of the East German secret police, denied the charges against him. Continue reading...

Senior Tory says donor's horrific' comment that Diane Abbott should be shot unlikely to be investigated by new taskforce

Three Aldi products, which cost a quarter of the price of other high-scoring brands, take top three places

Report adds a new piece to the puzzle for schools trying to combat chronic absenteeismChildren in low income households are more likely to be chronically absent from school for health reasons, according to a new report from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).The finding adds a new piece to the puzzle for schools trying to combat chronic absenteeism - a post-pandemic phenomenon that has become a major concern. Continue reading...

Chain says plan is working' after 2% rise in sales helps transforms 234m loss in 2023 into 56m profitThe owner of John Lewis and Waitrose has returned to annual profit but will not pay its workers a bonus for the second year in a row.The John Lewis Partnership (JLP) said it made a 56m pre-tax profit in the year to 27 January, compared with a 234m loss in the previous year. Continue reading...

Coldplay become act to headline most times with their fifth top slot, while Shania Twain is booked for the Sunday teatime legend' set as the lineup is announcedDua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA will headline Glastonbury 2024, a diverse spread of A-list artists matched by a strong supporting lineup across the 26-30 June festival including Little Simz, LCD Soundsystem and Burna Boy, plus Shania Twain in the always-jubliant legend" slot.Much loved by Glastonbury founder Michael Eavis who once said they can call in and do the milking any time" on his Worthy Farm site, Coldplay continue their longstanding relationship with the festival, becoming the first act to headline the Pyramid stage five times. They launched themselves into pop-rock's big leagues with their first headline performance in 2002 when they had only released one album, and have since headlined in 2005, 2011 and 2016, as well as doing a livestreamed performance to an empty Pyramid stage field in lieu of a 2021 festival cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Continue reading...

High street retailer unveils padded shorts designed to give wearer a curvy, contoured' derriereDoes my bum look big in this?" When it comes to M&S's bottom-shaping shorts, the desired answer is a definite yes.At a preview of its summer collection on Thursday, the high street retailer unveiled a pair of 15 shorts featuring padding designed to enhance the wearer's buttocks. Continue reading...

Opposition leader's comments signal the Coalition may support new laws to safeguard elections

Sandra Mathison charged along with husband William Kamm after raids at Order of St Charbel's compound in BangaleeA day before raids on a cult compound after a probe into a decade of child grooming, the sect leader's devoted wife was making international phone calls to recruit a new member, police have alleged in court.Sandra Mathison was on Monday charged with grooming a child under 14 years for unlawful sexual activity and grooming a child for unlawful sexual activity.In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800, or Bravehearts on 1800 272 831, and adult survivors can contact Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. In the UK, the NSPCC offers support to children on 0800 1111, and adults concerned about a child on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adult survivors on 0808 801 0331. In the US, call or text the Childhelp abuse hotline on 800-422-4453. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International Continue reading...

Treasurer says falling iron ore prices and a weaker labour market mean the large upgrades to revenue seen in the last two budgets will not be repeated

Private members' club chooses unlikely location of Wakefield for inaugural branch outside capitalThe Groucho Club, the private members' club known for its hell-raising 39-year history in the heart of London's Soho is expanding for the first time to an unlikely location: the heart of the West Yorkshire countryside.The club's first outpost will be located at Bretton Hall in Wakefield, the former arts education facility that sits within the grounds of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, which will be converted into a club and hotel with about 60 rooms. Continue reading...

Ten years on from Russia's annexation, with all-out war making its dominance vulnerable, authorities are increasing a crackdown on pro-Ukrainian voices - while others simply want to live their livesTen years of the Crimean spring," say billboards around the Crimean peninsula. It all started with us."The Russian presidential election, to be held over three days at the end of this week, coincides with the 10-year anniversary of Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. The swift seizure of the peninsula in March that year, Vladimir Putin's response to the Maidan Revolution in Kyiv, was indeed the beginning of 10 years of military action against Ukraine. Continue reading...

Amnesty coordinator says move sends mixed messages' to refugees and government should clarify what has happened

European Commission will open office in the territory, made strategically important by rare resources and melting iceThe president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, is heading to Greenland as melting Arctic ice, demand for green-technology raw materials and competition from China increase the territory's strategic importance.While not in the EU, the autonomous Danish territory is of strong interest to Brussels, especially for highly sought after raw materials - it believes it has 25 of the 34 that it needs. Continue reading...

Man, believed to be in India, is being sought over discovery of remains in a bin in Buckley

Two miners were pinned under a rockfall at the Mount Clear mine in Ballarat, Victoria, with one later rescued

Victim tells court she thought she was going to die when she realised Francesco De Luise was not her Uber driver

Leader of far-right Freedom party, which came first in election last year, was unable to get all partners in a potential coalition onboardGeert Wilders, whose far-right Freedom party (PVV) shocked the Netherlands by finishing first in elections late last year, has conceded that he will not be the next prime minister because his potential coalition partners do not back him.I can only become the prime minister if all the parties in the coalition support it. That was not the case," Wilders said on X late on Wednesday. Love for my country and voters is bigger and more important than my own position." Continue reading...

One witness says John Brownlee would bounce boys' heads off walls or desks, and tells of PTSD diagnosisA sadistic" former teacher at an elite Scottish private school has been accused in court of physically assaulting and throttling young boys in his care, some of whom were allegedly left unconscious.Former pupils at Edinburgh Academy, one of Scotland's most prestigious fee-paying schools, allege that John Brownlee, now 89, abused and terrorised boys as young as eight while teaching there and running a school boarding house between 1967 and 1987. Continue reading...

West Midlands mayor and Scottish Conservatives openly question PM's position that donor's apology to Diane Abbott closed matterRishi Sunak is facing pressure from senior Conservatives to return the 10m given to the party by Frank Hester, amid increasing disquiet over the donor's comments about Diane Abbott, which have been widely condemned as racist and misogynistic.As a series of Tories broke ranks to call for the donation to be returned, Sunak said in the House of Commons that Hester had apologised for his remarks and that remorse should be accepted". Continue reading...

Members of justice committee say 150m in EU funding went straight to country's president, Kais SaiedThe European Commission has been accused of bankrolling dictators" by senior MEPs who have claimed that the 150m it gave to Tunisia last year in a migration and development deal has ended up directly in the president's hands.A group of MEPs on the human rights, justice and foreign affairs committees at the European parliament launched a scathing attack on the executive in Brussels, expressing anxiety over reports that the commission's president, Ursula von der Leyen, was about to seal a similar deal with Egypt. Continue reading...

An incoherent response to the donor's remarks has raised questions about Rishi Sunak's political nousAs the first minister sent to defend Frank Hester after the Guardian revealed his comments about Diane Abbott, Graham Stuart could not hide his unease.Clearly it's uncomfortable, I'm uncomfortable talking about this now, because he was clearly wrong," the energy minister told BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Tuesday morning. But we need to show understanding - and the important thing was he did apologise." Continue reading...

Hackney MP was not given chance to ask a question despite comments about her from Tory donor. This live blog is closed

Mark Drakeford criticises UK ministers and says there is plausible case' that Welsh government should have acted soonerThe Welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford, has launched a scathing attack on the UK government's handling of the Covid crisis, but admitted his own administration should have taken more stringent action" sooner as the pandemic swept the world.Appearing at the Welsh leg of the Covid inquiry, Drakeford likened Boris Johnson to an absent football manager at the start of the pandemic. He also claimed it was Johnson's chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, who at one point blocked the banning of mass gatherings such as sporting events and concerts. Continue reading...

New legislation could thwart planned 600m purchase of media group by UAE-backed consortiumThe UK government plans to introduce legislation that would prevent foreign governments owning UK newspapers and magazines in a move that could scupper the planned 600m sale of the Telegraph to a UAE-backed consortium.RedBird IMI - a partnership between IMI, a fund backed by the UAE's vice-president, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and the US investment firm RedBird Capital Partners - is seeking to acquire one of the UK's most influential newspaper groups. Continue reading...

Lindsay Hoyle faces fresh controversy after anger over his decision-making in Gaza debate last month

The double Oscar winner's film A Hero won the grand prix at Cannes in 2021 but was the subject of an alleged copyright infringement brought by a former studentIranian director Asghar Farhadi has been cleared of charges of plagiarism over his film A Hero brought by one of his students, the agency representing him said on Wednesday.The film, about a prisoner in the Iranian city of Shiraz, won the grand prix at the Cannes film festival in 2021. Continue reading...

Broadcaster shares energy provider's alleged incorrect billing on X, saying nothing but legal action will do'The writer and broadcaster Victoria Coren Mitchell has indicated she may take legal action after claiming that her energy provider, Ovo Energy, wrongly pocketed thousands of pounds that they were not owed".She is the most high-profile Ovo customer yet to apparently be on the receiving end of incorrect bills. Her case prompted the consumer group Which? to call for the worst performers" in the energy sector, which it said included Ovo, to take urgent action to improve their customer service. Continue reading...

Canberra expected to push for removal of remaining trade impediments after Wang Yi arrives next week

Report also found bias in illnesses where women present differently to men, such as heart disease and neurodiverse conditions

Apparent sacking of Adm Nikolai Yevmenov highlights fallout over Kyiv's ability to sink Russian warships

Billionaire says it's a lot more fun to do the Titanic than it is to sit at home and count my money'

Group including four children and two elderly drivers had set off from Kalgoorlie to Tjuntjuntjara on Sunday

Graffiti at medieval church and removal of York stone from bridge among incidents citedFrom York stone gouged from a 200-year-old bridge to graffiti sprayed on a medieval chapel, there has been a rise in theft and vandalism at the nation's most cherished historic sites, with the cost of living crisis expected to only worsen the problem.A major new report on the scale and extent of heritage and cultural property crime" is to be published on Wednesday by Historic England and the National Police Chiefs' Council. Continue reading...

Teachers and school leaders in England call government proposals vague, leaving them vulnerable to losing court casesTeaching unions and school leaders in England are calling for an overhaul of ministers' proposed guidance on the treatment of transgender pupils, saying the current version is incomplete and vulnerable to legal challenges.The unions and other organisations, including the campaigning group Sex Matters, are also critical of the guidance proposals for how schools should respond to children wanting to socially transition to a different gender by changing their names or uniform. Continue reading...

Grosvenor says it is prevented from making 3,000 visits a week as it pays migrant workers to sit at home because permits not renewedOne of the UK's biggest home care providers says it is paying dozens of migrant workers to sit at home and do nothing because the Home Office has not renewed key immigration permits.Thousands of workers, mostly from Africa, were welcomed into the UK to help fill the one in 10 care worker jobs vacant after the Covid crisis. But after scammers abused the system, leading to allegations of modern slavery, the government appears to have tightened the application of the rules. Continue reading...

We will not give up,' Volkov says in video after being discharged from hospital following attack in Lithuania that left him covered in bloodLeonid Volkov, a longtime aide to the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, has vowed to continue the struggle against Russian President Vladimir Putin after being attacked with a hammer outside his home in Lithuania.We will work and we will not give up," he said in a video clip posted on Telegram early on Wednesday, claiming that the attack that left him with a broken arm was a characteristic bandit hello" from Putin's henchmen. Continue reading...