World news | The Guardian

Diary and wine industries urge Canberra to hold the line in resisting restrictions on using terms feta and prosecco

Businessman’s Altice UK reiterates that it does not intend to make a bid for the British telecoms groupThe French billionaire Patrick Drahi has increased his stake in BT to more than 24%, but reiterated that he does not intend to make a bid to take over the £15bn British telecoms group.Drahi, who had control of an 18% stake through his subsidiary Altice UK, raised that position to 24.5% on Tuesday. Drahi’s purchase of 650m shares cost about £960m, at BT’s share price of 147.85p at the close of trading on Monday. Continue reading...

Former CBI president and outgoing Tesco chair denies all but one of the claims as housebuilder says it has received no complaintsThe housebuilder Barratt Developments has said its chair will stand down to prevent the impact of the allegations against him “from becoming disruptive to the company”.The news came after it was announced on Friday that John Allan would step down as chair of Tesco at the supermarket’s annual meeting on 16 June. Continue reading...

Action Fraud notes surge in number of people paying for fake flights and accommodationHoliday fraudsters conned UK consumers out of more than £15m last year – twice as much as the year before – according to the UK’s scam reporting centre.Action Fraud said there had been a surge in the number of people being conned into paying for fake flights and accommodation bookings as more people sought cheaper holidays, partly as a result of the cost-of-living crisis. Continue reading...

Iosco recommendation runs counter to MPs’ stance that cryptocurrency trading should be treated as form of gamblingThe global markets watchdog has urged the UK to regulate cryptocurrencies in the same way as traditional assets such as stocks and bonds, countering MPs’ calls last week for the risky investments to be treated as a form of gambling.The International Organization of Securities Commissions (Iosco) – an umbrella group of regulators from 130 jurisdictions – made the recommendation as part of the first set of international guidelines for crypto regulation. Continue reading...

Maurizio Fugatti is awaiting a court decision on his latest request to kill a bear accused of fatally attacking a manFor several weeks, Italians have been following with bated breath the escalation of Maurizio Fugatti’s battle against the bears that populate the mountains of the northern Trentino region of which he is governor.Captures, imprisonments, deportations and death sentences have followed one another to the chagrin of national public opinion and government inertia. In Trentino, there have been demonstrations for and against the bears. Continue reading...

Taipei criticises ‘unfair and unjust’ decision to deny observer status despite support from US, UK, France and other countriesThe World Health Assembly has again rejected Taiwan’s request to join its annual gathering amid routine objections from China and despite strong support from a coalition of countries including the US, UK, France and Australia.The assembly – the forum through which the World Health Organization is governed - on Monday decided not to extend an invitation for Taiwan to attend the 21-30 May event in Geneva as an observer. China and Pakistan spoke against the bid, while the Marshall Islands, Belize, Nauru and eSwatini – four of Taiwan’s 13 formal diplomatic allies – spoke in support. Continue reading...

Duke denied permission to challenge Home Office over decision on private payment for security servicesPrince Harry has lost his bid to bring a legal challenge against the Home Office over its refusal to allow him to pay for police protection while in the UK.The Duke of Sussex was seeking permission to bring what would have been a second challenge relating to his security arrangements. Continue reading...

Operation at site about 30 miles from where three-year-old went missing in 2007 is expected to last two daysA search by German and Portuguese police for Madeleine McCann has started 16 years after the three-year-old went missing in the Algarve, with German and Portuguese police focusing on a peninsula jutting into a reservoir, 30 miles from where she disappeared.Officers with pickaxes, chainsaws and rakes started to search the barren spot and surrounding woods by the Barragem do Arade reservoir on Tuesday morning, fanning out across a piece of land roughly 500 sq metres in size. Continue reading...

Live life to the full and relish the simple things, says Máirín HughesIreland’s oldest woman has marked her 109th birthday by sharing two tips on how to enjoy a long life: don’t waste time, and live it to the full.Máirín Hughes follows her own advice by bird-watching, reading newspapers and novels, doing crosswords, listening to music, playing Scrabble – and enjoying the fuss every time she reaches another birthday. “I just like living,” she told reporters on Monday. Continue reading...

Australian PM announces cricketer Adam Gilchrist as board member of new centre for Australia-India relations in Parramatta

New tax measures and job cuts to help repay state’s Covid debt spark criticism from multiple groups

Murdoch’s Australian media chief calls on ABC to ‘correct the record’ after accusations that excessive coverage encouraged racist social media trolls

A UN anti-torture subcommittee suspended its inspections last year after being refused access to some facilities

Ministers seeking to deploy Henry VIII powers against protests that have ‘cumulative’ impact on people’s daily livesThe anti-Brexit campaigner Steve Bray has said he will not be deterred from his longstanding protest outside parliament as ministers were accused of an unprecedented attempt to restrict repetitive demonstrations.The government is seeking to use so-called Henry VIII powers to allow police to quash protests where a “cumulative” effect can be shown to be having a “more than minor” impact on people’s daily lives. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Up to 30 families face removal from Enfield Travelodge as their rooms have been booked on dates of Tottenham concertsHomeless families being housed in a north London Travelodge are due to be moved out when Beyoncé concerts begin at the end of the month after the local council failed to extend their bookings.The Guardian understands that up to 30 families face removal from a Travelodge in Enfield and being placed in alternative temporary accommodation as their rooms have been booked by other people during Beyoncé’s Renaissance world tour in London. Beyoncé is scheduled to play five nights at the nearby Tottenham Hotspur stadium between 29 May to 4 June. Continue reading...

Victoria treasurer Tim Pallas unveils plan to cut up to 4,000 public service jobs and raise taxes on ‘those with an ability to pay’

Exclusive: Extensive deployments ‘raise serious concerns about transparency’, says research group Action on Armed ViolenceSAS and other British special forces have been involved in covert operations in 19 countries in the past dozen years, including in Nigeria, the Philippines and Russia, as well as in Syria, Ukraine and most recently Sudan, a study reveals.The elite military units operate in secret, without ministers publicly confirming their activities. But a research group, Action on Armed Violence, has compiled a list of their activities since 2011 based on media leaks. Continue reading...

Unlikely alliance wants a $7bn cap for the event and for Gabba rebuild to be scrapped

Charity says stronger protections are needed or people will be left vulnerable to ‘hair-trigger evictions’Private renters are almost twice as likely to be struggling with problem levels of debt than the general population, with a sharp rise in the numbers in serious financial difficulty since January, research shows.The figures come against a backdrop of private rents in the UK hitting record highs, and days after the government announced a shake-up of the sector to tackle the “injustices” that many tenants are facing. Continue reading...

British Dental Association warns of exodus of dentists, with millions of patients struggling to get checkupsRishi Sunak is under pressure over his claims about the state of dentistry as figures reveal that the number of active NHS dentists in England is at its lowest level in a decade, leaving millions of people struggling to get checkups or have toothaches fixed.The British Dental Association (BDA) has warned of an exodus of dentists from the NHS as it published figures showing that the workforce has been reduced to a level not seen since 2012-13. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Guardian/BMJ investigation finds 35,600 incidents of violence and harassment, but researchers say 100,000 more are missingMore than 100,000 incidents of sexual violence and misconduct in NHS hospitals in England are not being recorded and investigated every year, experts have warned.An investigation by the Guardian and the British Medical Journal found more than 35,606 “sexual safety incidents” were recorded by NHS hospitals in England over the past five years. The term covers a spectrum of allegations, from abusive remarks to rape, allegedly perpetrated by staff, patients and visitors. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Allegations across 212 hospital trusts in England include claims of rape, sexual assault and stalkingThousands of hospital staff are reporting claims of sexual assaults and harassment by patients, an investigation has found, prompting calls for ministers to address the “daily threat of abuse” faced by doctors and nurses.More than 20,000 alleged incidents of sexual violence and sexual misconduct by patients on hospital staff were recorded in the five years to 2022 by 212 NHS trusts in England, freedom of information (FoI) requests by the Guardian and the British Medical Journal (BMJ) found. Continue reading...

Top tea firms investigate as plantation workers say they have to pick 18kg a day but still skip meals and make their children workSome of the world’s leading tea manufacturers, including Tetley and Lipton, are examining working conditions on the plantations of its Sri Lankan suppliers, following a Guardian investigation.Two global trade-certification schemes, Fairtrade and the Rainforest Alliance, are also conducting inquiries after it was revealed that some workers on 10 certified estates could not afford to eat and were living in squalid conditions. Continue reading...

James Marape says agreement has clause saying Pacific country is not to be ‘used as a place for launching offensive military operations’Papua New Guinea will not be used as a base for “war to be launched”, prime minister James Marape has said, as the Pacific country signed a defence agreement with the US amid a race against China for influence in the region.Marape said on Tuesday the agreement – which he said he would release in full for public scrutiny on Thursday – prohibited “offensive military operations”. Continue reading...

Source claims Giorgia Meloni’s coalition seeking to ‘cancel Italy’s antifascism footprints’ amid series of high-profile Rai departuresSources at the Italian state broadcaster, Rai, have accused Giorgia Meloni’s rightwing government of wanting to bend the organisation to its will and “cancel Italy’s antifascism footprints” after a series of high-profile departures.In recent weeks Carlo Fuortes resigned as chief executive, citing pressure from the government, while Fabio Fazio, a left-leaning talkshow host, and his co-presenter, Luciana Littizzetto, a comedian known for her monologues targeting conservatives, left after failing to get their contracts for the popular Che Tempo Che Fa programme renewed. More departures are expected over the coming months. Continue reading...

Claire Nowland continues to receive end-of-life care at Cooma district hospital, as calls for a broader independent investigation grow

Det Supt Scott Moller says he did not understand why Higgins wanted to ‘involve the media’ before giving formal statement to police

Home affairs department officials dispute suggestions this year’s cost amounts to $22m a person

Prime minister James Marape was at pains to say he did not want to be forced to make a choice between the US and ChinaHe may have just signed a new defence cooperation agreement with the United States, but the prime minister of Papua New Guinea was determined to make it clear that he did not want to be forced into making a binary choice between Washington and Beijing.Speaking after the deal was struck, James Marape reflected the view of Pacific leaders that they should not simply be seen as chess pieces in a broader geopolitical struggle,as China and the US step up their efforts to expand their influence among Pacific island countries. For Pacific countries, their priorities lie in their development needs and action on the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Health declaration to last 180 days, as world’s biggest exporter of chicken meat detects virus for first time everBrazil has declared a state of animal health emergency for 180 days in response to its first ever detection of the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus in wild birds.Brazil – the world’s biggest chicken meat exporter with US$9.7bn in sales in 2022 – has so far confirmed eight cases of the H5N1 in wild birds, including seven in Espirito Santo state and one in Rio de Janeiro state. Continue reading...

Simon Fleming was armed with a fake bomb and fired his rifle at cars and in the air in Windang in 2021

Forecast full-year result is underpinned by a flying schedule that is more profitable than before the pandemic, airline says

Met apprehends 18-year-old after clip of man entering home in Hackney and briefly sitting on sofa was shared on social mediaPolice have arrested a man, 18, after a video posted on social media showed people entering a private home in Hackney, east London, Scotland Yard said.The Met said on Monday night: “An 18-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and is currently in police custody. Continue reading...

Self-described partisans the Freedom of Russia Legion say they launched cross-border raid from Ukraine

Kathryn Campbell appointment made before royal commission evidence went ‘beyond what was envisaged’

CoreLogic says if increase is maintained, prices will be 4% higher at the end of 2023, defying forecasts of falls of 10% or more

Northern Irish actor, who often played warriors in productions including Rome and Vikings, was hospitalised suddenly while filming in ItalyRay Stevenson, the Northern Irish actor who played the villainous British governor in RRR, Volstagg in the Thor films and a main antagonist in the upcoming Star Wars series Ahsoka, has died aged 58.Representatives for Stevenson said he had died on Sunday, four days before his birthday. The Italian newspaper La Repubblica reported he had been hospitalised with a sudden illness on the island of Ischia, while in production on the film Cassino in Ischia. Continue reading...

Deal to stop violence comes as journalists’ syndicate accuses paramilitary group of targeting reportersA weeklong ceasefire in Sudan intended to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid got off to a shaky start on Monday evening as witnesses in the capital, Khartoum, reported fighter jets over the city and continued fighting in some areas.The US and Saudi Arabia announced the deal to stop six weeks of fighting, saying it would come into force at 9.45pm (7.45pm BST). World powers had put pressure on the army and the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces to sign a deal. Previous attempts have fallen apart. Continue reading...

Police clash with young people throwing fireworks after being called to serious car crash in ElyPolice officers are facing “large-scale disorder” at the scene of a serious road traffic collision in Cardiff.Officers were called to the scene of the crash on Snowden Road in Ely shortly after 6pm on Monday. Scenes being livestreamed on YouTube showed young people throwing fireworks and other missiles at a line of police officers with riot shields who were blocking one end of the street. Continue reading...

Review recommends legislative changes in England and Wales to counteract ‘pernicious’ myths contaminating court casesGreater restrictions should be introduced on the use of rape complainants’ personal records and evidence relating to their sexual behaviour to avoid rape myths contaminating trials in England and Wales, a government-commissioned review has said.The Law Commission suggested that legislative change was necessary to address the decline in rape prosecution and conviction rates since 2016, warning that “pernicious” myths and misconceptions about rape and sexual assaults “filter through the breadth and depth of the criminal justice system”. Continue reading...

Treasurer Tim Pallas to hand down ninth budget on Tuesday with all eyes on debt recovery plans

Former deputy PM not planning to contest Esher and Walton seat, after quitting cabinet over bullying claimsDominic Raab will stand down as an MP at the next general election, weeks after he quit Rishi Sunak’s cabinet over bullying claims.The former deputy prime minister, who had once been regarded as a potential leader of the Conservative party, resigned last month after a report on allegations of bullying found he had been “unreasonably aggressive”. Continue reading...

BND intelligence service is finding expectations of flexible working and taking a mobile to the office are affecting recruitmentJames Bond was famously given the licence to kill by MI6, as part of his role as a British secret agent.Today’s wannabe spies are more likely to ask for something else: permission to work from home – a cultural shift that has hit recruitment figures for Germany’s intelligence service. Continue reading...

PM has asked for further information before decided whether ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus will be asked to investigate Braverman. This blog is now closed

Move comes after inquiry found children had faced ‘limitless’ cruelty with complicity of institutionsThe government is to launch a compensation scheme for survivors of child sexual abuse in England, the home secretary has said.The scheme is in response to the findings of a seven-year inquiry that revealed failings by schools, local authorities and other institutions to protect and safeguard the children in their care. Continue reading...

Permanent secretary told about alleged request in autumn, say sources, as home secretary fails to calm Tory nerves in CommonsThe most senior civil servant in the Home Office was made aware of allegations that Suella Braverman wanted civil service help in dealing with a speeding fine, the Guardian understands.The development raises questions about how many other senior officials and ministers across Whitehall were then informed about the claims, and puts pressure on the prime minister to order an investigation into the allegations. Continue reading...

Paul Hawkes says claims that he hacked Hugh Grant’s emails on behalf of Daily Mirror are ‘fantastical'Press reform campaigners threatened to “destroy” a private investigator because he refused to help their campaign against newspaper groups, it has been alleged at the high court.Paul Hawkes, a veteran private investigator, said claims that he hacked Hugh Grant’s emails on behalf of the Daily Mirror were “fantastical” and “made-up”. After being presented with a supposed invoice for the work, Hawkes mocked the idea he would have carried out such a serious act for such a small sum, telling the court: “You’re saying I got it hacked by a third party for £150? Come on!” Continue reading...

Country unveils new banknote as currency plummets with inflation on course to 130%Argentina’s new 2,000-peso bill, the country’s largest-denomination note, went into circulation on Monday, though due to fast depreciation of the currency it is worth only $8.50 at the official exchange rate and just over $4 in commonly used parallel markets.The peso has shed about a quarter of its value against the dollar this year despite strict capital controls that slow its fall. Most Argentinians buy dollars in unofficial markets where they trade at over 480 pesos versus the official rate of 235. Continue reading...

Family of Rachel Rose Gibson believe she had heart attack at home five minutes from hospital in WrexhamA 58-year-old woman died alone curled up in a blanket on the floor of her bedroom as she waited more than five hours for an ambulance.Relatives of Rachel Rose Gibson believe she had a heart attack at her home in Wrexham, north Wales, only a short drive away from a hospital, but died before an ambulance reached her. Continue reading...