World news | The Guardian

Transparency International warns of UK’s ‘woeful inadequacies’ as Qatar, Russia and Brazil slide down listThe UK has fallen sharply down the global corruption league table after a report warned of “woeful inadequacies” in upholding political integrity.Britain fell seven places to 18th on Transparency International’s corruption perceptions index, representing the biggest fall among the G7 countries. Continue reading...

Tribunal finds former Surrey vicar Rev Stephen Sizer’s conduct was ‘unbecoming to the office’A vicar who shared an article suggesting Israel was responsible for the 9/11 terror attacks has been barred from the ministry for 12 years for antisemitism.The Board of Deputies of British Jews made 11 allegations against the Rev Dr Stephen Sizer, which claimed his conduct in incidents between 2005-18 amounted to antisemitic activity. Continue reading...

Removal of exemption from discrimination laws would not allow them to effectively operate and teach to their ethos, schools say

Other major items sold by liquidators include a Canturi necklace for $130,000, artworks, and designer and luxury goods

Lawyers will argue the then trade secretary ignored Saudi air force’s bombing of civilians in YemenAnti-arms trade campaigners will seek to overturn a decision made by Liz Truss to resume UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia, arguing she ignored a pattern of bombing civilians by the country’s air force in Yemen.A judicial review brought by the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) starts in the high court on Tuesday, the latest step in a long-running battle over the legality of a lucrative trade worth more than £23bn since the war in Yemen began. Continue reading...

In federal court application seeking to keep her job, Sally Rugg claims commonwealth engaged in ‘hostile conduct’

Ukraine official reports ‘positive signals’ from Warsaw – but Poland stresses it will only act in consultation with Nato alliesVolodymyr Zelenskiy’s most senior adviser has suggested Poland is willing to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighters as Ukraine’s lobbying for the combat jets steps up only a few days after Germany and the US agreed to send over their tanks.Andriy Yermak said Ukraine had had “positive signals” from Warsaw in a Telegram posting, although Poland’s prime minister was careful to stress his own country would only act in consultation with Nato allies. Continue reading...

Doctors at several hospitals cited a conscience clause to avoid treating the teenager who has a mental disabilityPoland’s health minister has weighed in on a high-profile rape case, saying it was “unacceptable” that a mentally disabled 14-year-old girl struggled to get a legal abortion.The case, in which doctors at several hospitals used a conscience clause to avoid carrying out the procedure, has sparked renewed calls to ease the Catholic country’s abortion laws, which are among Europe’s most stringent. Continue reading...

National Union of Journalists ballots members in response to BBC plan for programme sharing and loss of 48 staff postsBBC Local staff are likely to strike next month over changes to radio schedules as a journalists’ union announced industrial action would be put to members in a formal ballot.Last year the corporation announced plans to introduce greater programme sharing on local radio at times of the day when it says listening is typically lower. Continue reading...

Firefighter say government and employers have ten days to avert strike as teaching union says talks produced no breakthroughQ: There are 1.5m people with learning disabilities, but only 17,000 learning disability nurses. What can you do improve that?Sunak says the government is going to legislate to change the way people with learning disabilities and autism are treated. He says the prevalence has gone up. He says he wants to ensure young people get the help they need. That will come out later this year, he says.A lot of pharmacists have said to us, whether it’s for UTIs or minor ailments, will it be possible for pharmacies to do more – and that’s why we’re actively looking at things like regulation, and antibiotics.And also if we have more pharmacies doing blood pressure checks, for example, that will get people the treatment they need earlier and stop ambulance callouts. Continue reading...

Social workers did not carry out adequate checks on woman later found dead after three years, coroner hearsSocial workers’ failure to carry out adequate checks weeks before a vulnerable woman with a severe mental illness died alone in her home was a sign of “systemic” deficiencies, a coroner’s court has heard.The body of Laura Winham, who is believed to have died in November 2017 at 38, lay undisturbed in her flat in Woking, Surrey, for three and a half years before the discovery of her “skeletal and mummified” remains by police and family members. Winham’s family has argued she was “abandoned” by local agencies. Continue reading...

Officers are reviewing a dossier accusing Sayed Ataollah Mohajerani, who lives in London, of encouraging terrorismThe Metropolitan police is being urged to crack down on Iranian terrorism in the UK by prosecuting a former senior Iranian government official accused of advocating the fatwa against Sir Salman Rushdie.The Metropolitan police has been studying a legal dossier accusing Sayed Ataollah Mohajerani, who lives in Britain, of encouraging terrorism contrary to the 2006 Terror Act. He denies the claims. Continue reading...

Twenty years ago, Alice was raped by the Met police officer. In an exclusive interview she relives the attack, the aftermath, and why giving evidence has helped her ‘move forward’For 20 years, Alice has been haunted by flashbacks of the night the Metropolitan police officer David Carrick imprisoned her in his flat and raped her at gunpoint.She can picture his receding hairline; his hairy chest; his hands gripping her throat. She can feel the cold metal of a gun barrel at her cheek. She can hear him saying: “If you behave yourself, I’ll let you go.” She can remember going to the hospital after the nine-hour attack and a nurse telling her that she wasn’t the first woman to say she’d been raped by a police officer. Continue reading...

Charlie Millers, 17, was found dead in his room at Prestwich mental health hospital in December 2020Police are investigating claims that hospital records may have been altered at an NHS trust where three mental health patients died within nine months.The investigation was launched after a coroner raised concerns that safeguarding logs “may have been edited” after the death of a 17-year-old boy at Prestwich hospital in Greater Manchester. Continue reading...

LVMH, L’Oréal and Japan’s Shiseido Co said to be weighing up bids for Australian luxury beauty brandAesop, an Australian luxury cosmetics, shampoo and bodycare brand, is said to be at the centre of a $2bn (£1.6bn) bidding war between French multinationals LVMH and L’Oréal.LVMH, the luxury goods empire controlled the world’s richest person, Bernard Arnault; L’Oréal, the world’s largest cosmetics company; and the Japanese makeup and fragrance brand Shiseido Co are weighing up bids to buy a stake in Aesop, according to Bloomberg. Continue reading...

Turkish president’s comments threaten to derail military alliance’s hopes of expanding to 32 countriesFinland still hopes to join Nato together with Sweden, Finland’s foreign minister has said, after the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, remarked that Ankara could accept Helsinki’s bid without its Nordic neighbour.“Our strong desire in Finland has been and still is to join Nato together with Sweden,” Pekka Haavisto told reporters in Helsinki, adding: “Our position remains the same.” Continue reading...

Measures aim to encourage more people to have children after population fell for first time in 60 yearsA Chinese province of more than 80 million people will lift restrictions on unmarried people having children and remove caps on the number of babies, amid a national government push to increase the country’s birth rate.Sichuan’s health commission announced on Monday it would allow all people to register births with the provincial government from 15 February. It will also remove limits on the number of birth registrations for any parent. Continue reading...

David Shoebridge says employment-related complaints should also be protected as whistleblowers ‘too often lose their careers from speaking out’

Xiao Qian implies resumption of dialogue conditional on Australia taking a ‘constructive attitude’ and not ‘trying to smear China’

PC Ravi Canhye, 46, is accused of committing eight sexual offences while off-dutyA serving Dorset police officer has been charged with two counts of rape.PC Ravi Canhye is alleged to have committed the offences while off-duty. The 46-year-old, who has been suspended from his role, is due to appear at Poole magistrates court on Friday. Continue reading...

Former prime minister’s comments about call to Russian president just before invasion come in new BBC documentary

Sunday’s attack in Eastern Cape province highlights country’s problems with violent crime

Exclusive: Sighting of ex-PM looking at schools fuels speculation he may run for former seat of Henley at next electionBoris Johnson has been spotted looking at schools and is house-hunting in Oxfordshire, prompting speculation he is considering running for his former seat of Henley at the next election, the Guardian has been told.The former prime minister had been planning to contest his existing seat of Uxbridge, a marginal in west London with a majority of 7,200. However, Labour believes it could win the seat and if Johnson loses it could end his hopes of another run at the Conservative leadership. Continue reading...

Internal review finds best practices not followed in some areas, including anti-money laundering processesThe online gambling company 888 has suspended its VIP customer accounts in the Middle East after an internal review found best practices had not been followed in some areas, including anti-money laundering processes.888 announced separately that its chief executive, Itai Pazner, was leaving immediately after four years in the top job and more than 20 at the company. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Leak shows oligarch was a major client of Barclays in Monaco and UBS in Zurich, with at least $940m in assets held at the banksBarclays and UBS are facing questions about their ties to Roman Abramovich after his secretive offshore trusts were reorganised shortly before Europe and the UK imposed sanctions on the Russian oligarch.The Oligarch files, a cache of leaked documents seen by the Guardian, suggest that before Russia invaded Ukraine the two banks held at least $940m (£760m) of assets on behalf of Abramovich’s trusts and companies he ultimately owned. Continue reading...

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Rush to return for beginning of first semester of university presents challenges for visa approvals, flights and accommodation

Imminent deadline to sign up to Companies House register aimed at flushing out secretive owners will be missed by many firmsThousands of offshore companies with UK properties are still not publicly declaring their ultimate owners because they are controlled by secretive trusts, new data shows.About 18,000 companies have so far registered with the government’s new register of overseas entities, which was brought in to improve transparency about offshore property ownership. The deadline to sign up is this Tuesday. Continue reading...

Bill allows officers in certain locations to search people for weapons without having reasonable suspicion

Loring was just five when she starred in the 1964 TV adaptation of Charles Addams’ macabre cartoons – a performance that has set the character’s tone for decadesLisa Loring, the actor who played Wednesday Addams in the first screen adaptation of The Addams Family, has died at the age of 64 from a stroke.Loring died on Saturday night in hospital surrounded by family, her daughter told Variety. Continue reading...

Chair of body representing culturally diverse communities says Warren Mundine’s push for ‘symbolic’ recognition is a ‘red herring’

Small recovery at end of 2022 likely to be short-lived, with Netflix’s new ads package failing to reignite growthBritish households cut more than 2m subscriptions to services such as Netflix, Prime Video and Disney+ last year, as the cost of living crisis fuelled the first annual decline since the UK streaming revolution began a decade ago.Despite a boost from the royal family, with viewers flocking to the Harry & Meghan documentary and enduring demand for episodes of The Crown, almost 900,000 UK households gave up on the streaming services last year, as the total number having at least one paid-for subscription fell from 17.12m in 2021 to 16.24m. Continue reading...

Exclusive: charities say energy costs and underfunded contracts threaten government promise to end rough sleeping by 2024Homeless people living in hostels and supported homes in England are at risk of being forced back on to the streets as providers prepare to close beds and services in the face of soaring costs, charities have said.They say catastrophic rises in energy bills coupled with underfunded council contracts threaten the viability of hundreds of homelessness charities and could derail the government’s promise to end rough sleeping by 2024. Continue reading...

Tim Costello says clubs lobby’s gambling code, which includes three-hour welfare checks, is ‘too little too late’

Coroner refers prison health contractor to Director of Public Prosecutions over death in custody

Campaign charity Rest Less says figures illustrate not only a national health issue but an economic oneMore than 1.6 million adults aged 50 and over are unable to work because of long-term sickness amid ballooning NHS waiting lists and an exodus from the British workforce since the pandemic, according to the most detailed analysis yet of official data for this age group.The number has increased 20%, or 270,000 in three years, according to an analysis of Office for National Statistics figures by Rest Less, a digital community and advocate for over fifties. Continue reading...

Passengers taken to Calais after two vessels got into difficulty near Gravelines on north coast of FranceThe French coastguard has rescued 83 people from two small boats in the Channel after they got into difficulty.The two boats were crossing the Channel on their way to England on Sunday when they encountered problems near Gravelines, on the north coast of France between Dunkirk and Calais. Continue reading...

Actor appeared in two series of the thriller as well as Star Trek: Picard, and was reportedly diagnosed with cancer in 2020The actor Annie Wersching, best known for playing FBI agent Renee Walker in the TV series 24, has died at the age of 45.Wersching died on Sunday morning in Los Angeles following a battle with cancer, her publicist told the Associated Press. The type of cancer was not specified. Continue reading...

Exclusive: from physical and mental health to education and careers, two studies detail ways in which young still suffer

Former prime minister’s comments about call to Russian president just before invasion come in new BBC documentary

Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces moves after deadliest terrorist attack in Jerusalem in yearsThe Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has announced a series of punitive steps against Palestinians in the wake of the deadliest terrorist attack in Jerusalem in years in which a gunman killed seven people outside a synagogue.In a statement issued after the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu’s office said that Israel’s security agency would explore “additional deterrent measures regarding the families of terrorists that express support for terrorism”, including the revocation of Jerusalem residency rights and Israeli citizenship, and legislation allowing employers to dismiss workers who have “supported terrorism” without the need for a hearing. Continue reading...

At vigil in Neve Yaakov there are calls for reprisals after worst attack by a Palestinian against Israelis since 2008Sifting through construction debris on the traffic intersection in occupied East Jerusalem where seven Israelis were killed by a Palestinian gunman on Friday night, three emergency response volunteers wearing plastic gloves and hi-vis vests scraped up handfuls of blood-stained earth, placing it in a bag.After sunset on Saturday, the end of Shabbat, they had arrived equipped with torches, trowels and putty knives. Their task was to ensure every drop of spilled blood was collected for proper Jewish burial. Continue reading...

Streaming service’s purchase of heist series Dal y Mellt shows Wales ‘can stand on world stage’There is a pleasingly twisty plot, a ragtag mob of great characters and some wonderful landscapes, but the star of a heist series nabbed by Netflix is arguably Cymraeg – the Welsh language.In a landmark moment for the creative industry in Wales, the thriller Dal y Mellt (Catch the Lightning) has become the first Welsh language-only show to be bought by the streaming service. Continue reading...

What was in the letters sent between the prime minister, the former chancellor and Sir Laurie MagnusRishi Sunak has sacked the Conservative party chair, Nadhim Zahawi, after he was found to have breached the ministerial code by failing to declare the HMRC investigation into his tax affairs.An investigation by the prime minister’s ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, concluded that Zahawi had committed a “serious breach” of the code by not telling officials he was under investigation by the tax body when he was appointed chancellor by Boris Johnson. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Report suggests four in 10 doctors and dental professionals may quit health service by 2028

Exclusive: Group were unable to work, access Medicare or travel internationally since historic high court ruling

A government agreement with developers was meant to solve the fire safety crisis in affected buildings – but the wrangling goes onIn June 2021, Charlotte Meehan received a safety inspection report for her block of flats as part of the nationwide checks after the Grenfell Tower fire. It made for grim reading, warning that the block had been built with combustible cladding and insulation.Last April, the government announced a “wide-ranging” agreement with developers to fix the crisis of unsafe tall buildings, but Meehan, 34, and her fellow residents in the four-storey block in east London, are among tens of thousands still waiting for their homes to be made safe. Continue reading...

Multiple fatalities after bus plunges into ravine in Balochistan province and boating accident in north-westAt least 51 people have been killed in two separate transport crashes in western Pakistan, when a bus plunged off a bridge and a boat carrying a class of children capsized.Forty-one people are so far confirmed dead after their bus crashed into a ravine in south-western Balochistan province on Sunday, while at least 10 students died in the boating accident in north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, officials said. Continue reading...

Two hundred years on, Austen’s take on the pressures of friendship and love is winning over young readers“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of anything than of a book!” wrote Jane Austen in Pride and Prejudice.This weekend, 210 years after the publication of the second of her six novels, Austen’s work is providing as much enjoyment as ever – and to a younger audience than the author probably ever dreamed of. Continue reading...

He may yearn for a period of calm, but the prime minister faces some daunting challenges in the stormy months aheadHaving taken on the party leadership after months of economic turmoil, Rishi Sunak always faced a tough task in turning around his party’s fortunes. With the future of cabinet ministers already in doubt and Boris Johnson courting MPs, a series of new hurdles in the months ahead will make life even harder for the prime minister. Continue reading...