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Boycotts, divestment and sanctions bill, designed to stop public bodies boycotting Israel, will be tabled soonPlans to stop UK public bodies boycotting foreign countries and British companies that trade with them represent a further attack on the right to freedom of expression, civil society groups have said.Officials from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) have said the boycotts, divestment and sanctions bill, announced in last year’s Queen’s speech and designed to stop actions against Israel, will be tabled soon. Continue reading...

Yang Maodong called it a ‘score-settling’ punishment for his two decades of rights advocacyA Chinese court has sentenced a prominent rights activist to eight years in jail on subversion charges in what he said was a “score-settling” punishment for his two decades of rights advocacy.Yang Maodong, who goes by the pen name Guo Feixiong, was sentenced on Thursday by the Guangzhou intermediate people’s court for “inciting subversion of state power,” his brother Yang Maoquan wrote on social media. Repeated phone calls to the court went unanswered on Friday. Continue reading...

Spokesperson blames admin errors for case reaching court after archbishop caught doing 25mph in 20mph zoneThe archbishop of Canterbury has claimed he repeatedly tried to resolve a speeding ticket with the Metropolitan police but was denied three times before being handed three points on his licence and ordered to pay £510.Justin Welby was prosecuted at a private hearing on Wednesday after being caught in his Volkswagen Golf doing 25mph in a 20mph zone along the Albert Embankment in London on 2 October last year. Continue reading...

Tattoo artists will offer original designs inspired by the master painter at his former home in AmsterdamArtists may suffer for their art but now audiences can feel the pain too, thanks to a pop-up tattoo studio at the Rembrandt House Museum in Amsterdam where Rembrandt van Rijn lived, painted and taught.In one of the more extreme attempts to attract a younger audience post-Covid, the newly renovated museum in Amsterdam is launching a “poor man’s Rembrandt project” for a week in June. Celebrated tattoo artists from the studio Schiffmacher and Veldhoen will be “artists in residence”, offering original tattoos costing from €100 to €250, inspired by the 17th century Dutch master’s etchings, self-portraits and signature. Continue reading...

Draft legislation also proposes restriction on sales with aim to be tobacco-free by 2040The Portuguese government has announced draft legislation that would restrict tobacco sales and ban smoking in covered outdoor terraces and near schools, hospitals and sports venues in an attempt to create a smoke-free generation by 2040.The health minister, Manuel Pizarro, said the proposals were intended to tackle tobacco use and not to punish smokers or business owners. “This is a bill that takes firm steps towards promoting health and protecting people from exposure to tobacco smoke,” he said on Thursday. Continue reading...

Simon Thompson to leave after just two years as postal firm seeks fourth boss in four yearsThe chief executive of Royal Mail is stepping down after just two years in the wake of an acrimonious tussle with unions.Simon Thompson, who took the top job in early 2021, will stay on until the end of October as the postal company seeks for its fourth boss in four years. Continue reading...

Two officers face criminal and disciplinary inquiries after London man fell five floors from balconyTwo Metropolitan police officers have been placed under criminal investigation after a man was shot with a Taser and then fell five floors to his death.The Independent Office for Police Conduct made the announcement on Friday, following the incident last month in Peckham, south London. Continue reading...

Judges’ decision comes amid rising tensions as former Pakistan PM faces claims over illegal land transfersPakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan has been granted bail for two weeks by the Islamabad high court in a corruption case, but said he feared being immediately re-arrested after his release.Security was tight as Khan appeared at a hearing at Islamabad high court on Friday. He had been in police custody since Tuesday after he was dramatically arrested on the premises of the court by almost 100 paramilitary officers. Continue reading...

Francesca Albanese says Israel is maintaining occupation to get as much land as possible for Jewish peopleIsrael treats the Palestinian territories as its colonies, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied territories has said on her first visit to London since her appointment last year.Francesca Albanese, an Italian lawyer and human rights academic, has faced calls to resign by Israeli government ministers, such as Amichai Chikli, who accused her of “spewing hatred and antisemitism”, and Zionist groups have described her as biased. Continue reading...

Questions also linger over what the network offered the ex-president in exchange for what some called a Trump infomercialDonald Trump and his circle believe he got everything that he wanted from the controversial town hall hosted by CNN, even as it prompted a wave of outrage and embarrassed the network, including many of its own staff who were upset that it gave Trump a platform to lie to a large audience.The former US president was interested in doing the town hall with CNN for two main reasons, people close to Trump said. There was an understanding that CNN would book Trump surrogates – which a CNN spokesperson denied – and because it would give the campaign vast amounts of material to clip for social media. Continue reading...

Lizzie Blandthorn says giving parents two years to reform their lives before losing children is a ‘blunt instrument’

Alice Chambers was handcuffed by officers when she was standing on the Mall near Just Stop Oil protestersPolice have been forced to apologise to a royal fan after arresting and detaining her for 13 hours for standing near a group of Just Stop Oil protesters at King Charles’s coronation.Alice Chambers, an Australian architect based in London, was waiting on the Mall in central London to see the king pass by on his way to Westminster Abbey when she was handcuffed by police officers. Continue reading...

Aslef and RMT unions deny targeting Eurovision final in Liverpool with stoppages in long-running pay disputeRail services across Britain will be severely disrupted on Friday as train drivers stage the first of the latest wave of planned strikes in a long-running pay dispute.Members of the drivers’ union Aslef will strike for 24 hours across virtually all the big passenger operators in England, stopping some major intercity and commuter services entirely. Continue reading...

To hear death of Jarrad Antonovich described as ‘beautiful’ was ‘particularly galling’, brother tells court

Kemi Badenoch’s ‘irresponsible’ proposals risk undermining rights relating to discrimination, the environment and consumers, according to top barristersThe Conservatives’ decision to water down proposed legislation to remove 4,000 EU laws from the statute books is still a “reckless” and “irresponsible” project, leading barristers have said.While the business secretary, Kemi Badenoch, was accused of “a massive climbdown”, barristers say the retention of sweeping “undemocratic” ministerial powers and the removal of the “interpretive effect” of EU law will blow up decades of legal precedent set by courts in Britain and makes for legislation like that found in authoritarian states. Continue reading...

With makeshift coolbags and an endless quest for ice, refugees are desperately struggling to protect their precious medication – if they can access any at allBags of ice and wet towels have become the emergency lifelines for Sudanese diabetics struggling to keep their insulin cool while waiting in extreme heat as they try to escape the recent violence.A vital medication for many diabetics, insulin must be kept cool to remain effective, But since fighting broke out between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces last month, hospitals and pharmacies have forced to close and there has been damage to cold-storage facilities. Continue reading...

Coroner Jayne Basheer makes no adverse findings against officers but attributes 29-year-old Indigenous man’s death in custody to a lack of training

The former governor general was last month reprimanded over his failure to remove paedophiles from the church’s ranks while Brisbane archbishop

Michael Gove to introduce bill strengthening lessors’ rights in England as charities warn of impact for domestic abuse victimsLandlords in England will be able to evict tenants for antisocial behaviour more easily as part of a wider package of reforms to the rental market, after heavy lobbying by industry organisations and Conservative backbenchers.Michael Gove will use the renters’ reform bill, which could be introduced to the Commons as soon as next week, to strengthen landlords’ rights when it comes to dealing with alleged antisocial behaviour. Continue reading...

Previously suspended for nine months, Deeming has been accused by colleagues of ‘bringing discredit’ to the party

Dmytro Pletenchuk, a press officer, took photos in the aftermath of last week’s devastating shelling in Kherson

Tech development comes after mishandled baggage rates soared last year as airlines returned to pre-Covid levels of operation

Shane Drumgold admits he should have clarified that he no longer held those views

Two Liberal MPs have resigned from the party after flagging concerns about the planned $715m Macquarie Point Stadium

Albanese government will spend $28bn on schools in 2023-24, but unions demand more to improve retention rates

Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS will be out on 9 July, ending feverish speculation that the previously untitled book was a Taylor Swift memoirThe guessing game began this week when a mysteriously untitled book, scheduled for publication in July and known only as “4C Untitled Flatiron Nonfiction Summer 2023”, appeared. It quickly became a bestseller when Taylor Swift fans began feverishly speculating that it was her surprise memoir.But the mystery has been solved, with publishing house Flatiron Books bringing forward their announcement by a month to reveal the book is actually by another musical powerhouse: the K-pop boyband BTS. Continue reading...

Wong Kei-kwan, known as Zunzi, says it was a ‘mutual decision’ after the Ming Pao newspaper ended his columnA decades-old political cartoon column has been scrapped by a respected Hong Kong newspaper after it faced a barrage of criticism from officials, in a move widely seen as a further blow to the city’s freedoms since the implementation of the controversial national security law.On Thursday, the Ming Pao newspaper announced it would stop publishing cartoons by Wong Kei-kwan, better known under his nom de plume “Zunzi”, from Sunday. Continue reading...

Independent report into Vera-2R, released through FoI, found it was ‘extremely poor’ at predicting risk of offending

Health policy analysts say payment boost will not reverse the trend of practices already charging patients gap fees

European Broadcasting Union, which oversees song contest, says appearance by Ukrainian president could politicise the eventThe owners of the Eurovision song contest have turned down a request from Volodymyr Zelenskiy to make a video appearance during the final on Saturday in Liverpool.The Ukrainian president had hoped to appeal to the global audience of about 160 million people to continue their support for his country in the war with Russia. Continue reading...

Amended legislation gives chief executive power to veto any foreign lawyer working on cases brought under national security lawHong Kong has passed a law that allows authorities to ban foreign lawyers from working on national security cases, completing a months-long effort to block a UK practitioner from defending the media mogul and activist Jimmy Lai.The amendment, which was passed unanimously by the Legislative Council on Thursday, gives the chief executive the power to veto any foreign lawyer from working on cases brought under the 2020 National Security Law (NSL). Continue reading...

Perth synth-metal band voted among 10 winners of their semi-final in LiverpoolThe Perth band Voyager has won through to this weekend’s Eurovision final after storming through the semi-final in Liverpool.The Australian synth-metal musicians faced off against Albania, Armenia, Cyprus, Romania, Austria, Denmark, Lithuania, San Marino, Belgium, Slovenia, Iceland, Georgia, Greece, Poland and Estonia in the competition on Thursday evening in the UK. Continue reading...

Homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warns people against crossing border illegally in White House briefingWe’re a few minutes away from the daily White House press briefing, where homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will appear ahead of the midnight expiration of Title 42, the rule put in place under Donald Trump that has allowed US authorities to turn away most asylum seekers over the past three years.Immigration authorities and some communities at the border are bracing for a potential surge of new migrants once the measure expires, and Mayorkas is likely to use his appearance to warn people against trying to cross into the US illegally, and outline steps Washington will take to stem the flow. He may also be asked about the possibility Republicans will follow through on their threats to impeach him over the situation at the border. Continue reading...

Father had criticised force for failing to reinvestigate killing of 8-year-old son who disappeared in 1981Sussex police are to re-examine the case of a murdered schoolboy who disappeared on his way home more than 40 years ago.Vishal Mehrotra, eight, vanished from west London in July 1981 and part of his remains were found in Rogate, West Sussex, seven months later. No one has been convicted for his murder. Continue reading...

Samuel Fosso scoops £30,000 award for performative self-portraits of historical figures including Angela Davis and Mao ZedongOne of Africa’s most important living photographers and contemporary artists, who photographs himself in the style of leading historical figures including Martin Luther King and Angela Davis, has won the Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation prize 2023.The Cameroonian-born Nigerian photographer Samuel Fosso was awarded the £30,000 prize – one of the most prestigious in the industry – at the Photographers’ Gallery in London on Thursday. Continue reading...

FDA union votes to use ‘all means available’, including ‘targeted legal action’ in wake of Dominic Raab scandalSenior civil servants have voted to take a stand against inflammatory language from politicians and in favour of legal action to combat bullying, as former cabinet ministers Jacob Rees-Mogg and Dominic Raab renewed their attacks on officials.Members of the FDA union passed a motion in favour of using “all means available” to challenge bullying and harassment of officials, including “use of targeted legal action”, in the wake of the scandal that forced Raab to resign. Continue reading...

Robert Alton, 70, is believed to have died in 2017 with his death going unnoticed by his landlord and local councilThe body of a retired bookkeeper lay undiscovered in his flat for six years with his “skeletal” remains found only after housing officials forced entry to carry out a gas safety check, an inquest heard.Robert Alton is believed to have died in 2017 aged 70, but his death went unnoticed by both his landlord, which continued to receive his rent automatically through housing benefit, and his local council, which seemingly failed to act on Alton’s mounting council tax arrears. Continue reading...

Mirror hired investigators to pose as Prince Michael of Kent’s accountant, phone-hacking trial hearsPiers Morgan authorised the illegal blagging of a prince’s private bank details when he was editor of the Daily Mirror, it has been alleged at the high court.Prince Michael of Kent’s personal financial records were published by the Mirror in 1999, allegedly revealing that Queen Elizabeth II’s cousin was millions of pounds in debt and had an unauthorised £220,000 overdraft at Coutts bank.Morgan “lies at the heart” of allegations of unlawful information-gathering, including phone hacking, under the Mirror’s parent company and was “directly” involved in illegal behaviour.The journalist who helped obtain Prince Michael of Kent’s financial records was Gary Jones, now the editor of the Daily Express.The Mirror regularly used the services of Southern Investigations, a private investigations agency heavily implicated in police corruption and the murder of a former employee, Daniel Morgan.Phone hacking was so widespread at the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and People that even those newspapers’ editors were illegally accessing voicemails. Continue reading...

Business secretary questioned by Brexiter MPs, speaker and Labour after government scraps ‘sunset clause’Kemi Badenoch has come under fire from furious Conservative backbenchers, the opposition and the Commons speaker after defending the government’s U-turn on retained EU laws.The business secretary was challenged by leading Brexiters including Bill Cash and Mark Francois, chair of the Tory Brexiter European Research Group (ERG), who asked why the government had performed “a massive climbdown on its own bill despite having such strong support from its backbenchers”. Continue reading...

The former president is accused of seeking millions of euros from Gaddafi to finance his 2007 campaignFrench prosecutors have demanded that the former president Nicolas Sarkozy face a new trial over alleged Libyan financing of his 2007 election campaign.France’s financial crimes prosecutors (PNF) said on Thursday that Sarkozy and 12 others should face trial over accusations they sought millions of euros in financing from the regime of then Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi for his ultimately victorious campaign. Continue reading...

Sergei Georgievich Naumenko, who is not on sanctions list, is also seeking damages in high court claimA Russian tycoon is suing the UK government over the seizure of his £38m superyacht in London shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.Sergei Georgievich Naumenko, a property developer who is not on the UK’s Russia sanctions list, has filed a high court claim against the Department for Transport (DfT) demanding it free his 58.5-metre (192ft) long superyacht Phi and pay damages. Continue reading...

Clashes between Israel and militants leave 29 dead so far, with airstrikes targeting homes of Palestinian Islamic Jihad leadersFighting between Israel and militant groups in the blockaded Gaza Strip has intensified for the third day despite ceasefire efforts brokered by Egypt, in the worst bout of violence in the region in months, which has killed 28 people in Gaza, including at least 10 civilians, and one civilian in Israel.The latest conflagration began in the early hours of Tuesday, when Israel launched surprise airstrikes targeting the homes of three senior commanders in Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the second most powerful group in the strip after Hamas, despite a fragile ceasefire in place since a day of cross-frontier fire last week. Continue reading...

The artist, who has been given the all clear, describes her works as a testament ‘to the healing power of art’British artist Tracey Emin spoke about her recovery from cancer as she opened a new exhibition in Rome, recalling her last visit to the Italian capital “when I was dying, but didn’t know it”.Fifteen artworks completed by Emin, 59, since she was given the all-clear from bladder cancer in 2021 are being displayed at the Galleria Lorcan O’Neill in central Rome. Called You Should Have Saved Me, the works are described as a testament “to the healing power of art”. Continue reading...

Measures include ability to spread cost over small instalments and free debt adviceThe BBC has set out plans to reduce the high proportion of women being prosecuted for licence fee evasion, after suggestions that the charge is sexist.The measures including free debt advice and allowing all unlicensed households to spread payments, underlining the BBC’s determination to save the licence fee, which was frozen by the government at £159 until 2024. Continue reading...

Package of measures will help farmers maintain production and avoid food shortages after hottest April everThe Spanish government has approved a €2.2bn (£1.9bn) plan to help the country’s farmers and consumers cope with an enduring drought that has been exacerbated by the hottest and driest April on record.The “unprecedented package” of measures, which was signed off by the cabinet on Thursday morning, includes €1.4bn of funds from the environment ministry to tackle the drought and increase the availability of water, and €784m from the agriculture ministry to help farmers maintain production and avoid food shortages. Continue reading...

Barrister for alleged victims including Prince Harry presents documents in court he says show illegal activities commissioned by newspaper group. This live blog is closed

Austrian, who was jailed in 2009 for murder, enslavement, rape and incest, co-authors book with his lawyerAn Austrian man who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children after raping her has written a book from prison, saying he hopes one day to be reconciled with his family.Josef Fritzl, 88 – who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2009 for murder, enslavement, rape and incest – co-authored the book with his lawyer, Astrid Wagner. Continue reading...

Imran Mahmood found not guilty of unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm on Jordan Walker-BrownA police officer has been cleared of unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm on a man who was left paralysed after he Tasered him.PC Imran Mahmood, 36, Tasered Jordan Walker-Brown during a patrol in the early months of the first coronavirus lockdown on 4 May 2020 in Haringey, north London. Continue reading...

Accuser concerned about ‘wider pattern of behaviour’ of Labour MP and reports 2021 incident to policeA female Labour MP has reported a shadow frontbench MP to the Metropolitan police, claiming he sexually assaulted her.The alleged incident is said to have taken place after a summer party in London in July 2021. But the MP decided to approach the Met in recent weeks, according to Tortoise. Continue reading...

Yannick Morez, the mayor of Saint-Brevin-les-Pins, resigned following death threats and attack on his homeFrench politicians have warned about the risk posed by the country’s increasingly violent and toxic rows over immigration after the mayor of a seaside town resigned following death threats and an arson attack on his home, and far-right groups protested over an asylum-seeker centre in his town.Yannick Morez announced he was stepping down as mayor of Saint-Brevin-les-Pins in western France, and would have to stop his work as a local doctor, weeks after his home was targeted in an arson attack that burned two cars and the front of his family house. The arson attack is still under investigation, but Morez complained of a “lack of support from the state”. Continue reading...