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AFP’s Scott Moller says he charged Lehrmann on advice of DPP despite investigators not thinking Brittany Higgins’s allegations reached threshold for prosecution

Which? magazine also lists fake missing person appeals among most widely used deceptionsDating cons known as “pig butchering”, fake missing person appeals and dodgy apps are among the most widely used and convincing scams in circulation this year, according to Britain’s leading consumer watchdog.Pig butchering – so-called by fraudsters because they “fatten up” the victim by forming a romantic connection before executing the investment part of the scam – has been flagged by Which? magazine as one of the most pernicious scams. Continue reading...

Co-author says UK’s oldest form of social housing could be part of solution to care crisisPoor, older people living in almshouses enjoy longer lives than far wealthier people living elsewhere, a study has found.The secret to longer life has been intensely sought after for centuries. But research using data from almshouses going back 100 years has found that the solution devised in early medieval times to help poverty-stricken knights returning from the Crusades is still relevant today. Continue reading...

Forty-year-old, who was raising money for Spinal Cord Injuries Australia, spent years recovering from a spinal injury after being told he might never walk again

Intellectual Property Office rules that New Zealand beekeepers’ attempt to stop Australian producers using the name did not meet necessary requirementsNew Zealand honey producers have lost their latest battle to trademark mānuka honey, the latest blow in a years-long fight to stop Australian beekeepers using the lucrative name.The Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand ruled on Monday that New Zealand mānuka beekeepers’ attempt for a trademark did not meet necessary requirements, and the term mānuka was descriptive. Continue reading...

Woman, 95, is surrounded by family and still in critical condition as calls grow for broader investigation of police treatment of dementia sufferers

Freese, who previously played at tribute concerts for Hawkins, was announced as the new drummer in a starry, tongue-in-cheek livestreamFoo Fighters have unveiled their new drummer after the death of their former percussionist Taylor Hawkins: the veteran session musician Josh Freese.Freese has accrued a long and star-studded list of credits over his three-decade career. The 50-year-old drummer has been a member of Devo since 1996 and the Vandals since 1989. He has also toured with the Offspring, Guns N’ Roses, Danny Elfman, Weezer, Sting, Paramore, Nine Inch Nails and 100 Gecs. Continue reading...

Ukraine’s leader knows he needs to win over nonaligned countries such as Brazil and India to increase the pressure on RussiaNormally G7 summits are about battling for the free world comma by comma, as diplomats parse lengthy communiques of ephemeral significance long into the night. Words, after all, constitute much of a diplomat’s work.At the Hiroshima G7 some of the communiques emerging from the summit do matter, notably the toolbox on de-risking trade with China, but the true significance of the summit lay in Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s scene-stealing visit courtesy of a ride in Emmanuel Macron’s French aircraft. Continue reading...

Scathing review finds the only time the network ran in line with its targets was during periods of lockdown or other Covid restrictions

Move to power Glenbrook steel plant with electricity from renewables rather than coal will reduce emissions by 1% – or the equivalent of taking 300,000 cars off the roadNew Zealand has announced its largest emissions reduction project in history, transitioning from coal to renewable electricity at the country’s major steel plant in a move that the government says is equivalent to taking 300,000 cars off the road.The government will spend $140m on halving the coal used at Glenbrook steel plant to recycle scrap steel, replacing that generating power with an electric-powered furnace. The plant will contribute $160m to the project’s cost. Continue reading...

Officers were responding to a domestic violence-related incident in Grange on Sunday afternoon

Under government reforms, schemes to be regulated as credit products in Australia

Survey of 236 young people caught up in 2017 blast shows 29% have not received any mental health support

Bread and Roses, co-produced by Lawrence, documents lives of three women after Taliban’s return to powerA documentary about the lives of three women living under the Taliban, co-produced by Jennifer Lawrence, has premiered at the Cannes film festival.Bread and Roses, shown at a special screening on Sunday, follows three Afghan women in the weeks after the Taliban’s return to power in 2021 after the withdrawal of US troops. Continue reading...

Labour leader to say plan for reforming NHS will focus on ‘biggest killer of young lives in this country’A Labour government would reverse the rise in the number of deaths from suicide as part of a health plan to replace pain and anxiety with a “hope of a renewed NHS”, Keir Starmer will pledge.In a speech on Monday, the Labour leader will say his plan for reforming the NHS will focus on the biggest causes of death in the UK including suicide.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org. Continue reading...

Hari Budha Magar reached the peak despite being a double amputee since an explosion in AfghanistanA Gurkha soldier veteran who lost both legs in Afghanistan has achieved mountaineering history after reaching the top of Mount Everest.Hari Budha Magar, who lives in Canterbury, Kent, reached the summit of the world’s tallest mountain at 3pm on Friday, having started the climb on 17 April – exactly 13 years since he lost his legs after an IED explosion. Continue reading...

Prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s party on 40% share against Syriza on 20%, with more than 90% of votes countedGreece’s general election has failed to produce a winner despite the centre-right party of the incumbent prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, clinching 40% of the vote with more than 90% of ballots counted.New Democracy was leading with a 20-point margin – 40.8% – over the leftist main opposition Syriza party which was trailing at just over 20.1% – a difference rarely seen since the collapse in 1974 of military rule. Even in Crete, a socialist bastion, the rightwing party had fared unexpectedly well. Continue reading...

Home secretary has won little good will from colleagues since she was last – briefly – forced from officeWhen Suella Braverman’s career as home secretary was last on the ropes – for sending an official document from her personal email in a serious breach of the rules – she received little support from cabinet minsters. “She’s a joke,” one said at the time. “She shouldn’t be anywhere near high office.”Yet within six days she was back in the job, after Rishi Sunak calculated that it was worth reinstating the leading rightwinger to the Home Office to win her support for the Tory leadership bid which brought him to No 10. Continue reading...

Kat Watkins, who requires a ventilator at night, said she is suffering from severe back pain after night at Travelodge in HounslowA disabled wheelchair user who requires a ventilator at night had to sleep on a sofa in a hotel dining room because the accessible room she booked was not available.Kat Watkins, 36, a UN convention on the rights of disabled people development officer at Disability Wales, who has brittle bone disease and sleep apnoea, said she is suffering from severe back pain as a result of not being able to sleep in the bed she had booked and paid for at a Travelodge hotel in Hounslow. Continue reading...

No 10 appears to distance itself from home secretary amid growing political storm about possible breach of ministerial codeRishi Sunak is under intense pressure to launch an investigation into whether Suella Braverman broke the ministerial code by requesting a private speed awareness course, as Downing Street appeared to distance itself from the beleaguered home secretary.The prime minister arrives back from the G7 summit in Japan to a growing political storm over whether Braverman breached strict rules by asking Home Office civil servants for special treatment after she was caught breaking the speed limit. Continue reading...

Volodymyr Zelenskiy says during Japan visit that Ukrainian troops are still in eastern city at centre of bloody battle; Moscow calls summit a ‘politicised’ eventA Russian-installed official in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region said that Kyiv had struck the Russian-held port city of Berdyansk with British-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles, Reuters reports.

Temporary hosts will take on presenting duties as Phillip Schofield tries to keep hold of his broadcasting careerAlison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary have been announced as temporary presenters of ITV’s This Morning, as former host Phillip Schofield battles to save his television career.Schofield announced on Saturday he would step down from presenting the daytime talkshow with immediate effect, after ITV bosses told him “the current situation can’t go on” following weeks of damaging news stories. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Home secretary’s aides repeatedly requested she be allowed to miss vote on major legislation despite three-line whipSuella Braverman tried to get out of the final Commons vote on the government’s small boats bill despite Conservative MPs being instructed to attend, the Guardian has learned.The home secretary’s aides sent multiple emails over the course of several days to the Tory whips’ office requesting that she be “slipped”, or permitted to miss, the third reading of her department’s flagship legislation. Continue reading...

‘Bakhmut is only in our hearts. There is nothing ... just ruins and dead Russians,’ says Ukraine’s president

The pair attended a conference organised by the Russian Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky in AprilBerlin police have opened an investigation into the suspected poisoning of two Russian journalists visiting the city for a conference last month organised by the Russian Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky.The city’s office of criminal investigation confirmed to German media that it had opened the case after reports in the Russian investigative media group Agentsvo were picked up by the Sunday newspaper Welt am Sonntag. Continue reading...

The director and actor talked about learning from the Native American nation at the heart of their latest filmMartin Scorsese and Robert De Niro have reunited at the Cannes film festival to present a feature together for the first time in almost half a century, discussing their acclaimed new movie, Killers of the Flower Moon, on Sunday.“We haven’t been here together since 76,” said De Niro, recalling the premiere of Taxi Driver, the second of their 10 collaborations, which won the festival’s top prize, the Palme d’Or. Continue reading...

Deceased, who was in her 70s, died in hospital after reported attack and police say they are not looking for anyone elseA 77-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a woman was found unconscious and later died.Thames Valley police found the woman, who was also in her 70s, unconscious just after 8am on Saturday, after reports a woman had been attacked in Bradwell Road, Loughton, Milton Keynes. The woman was taken to hospital, where she died. Continue reading...

More than half of weapons exports were for repressive regimes such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, as sales doubled last yearBritish arms exports doubled during 2022 to a record £8.5bn according to the only publicly available official figures, reflecting escalating geopolitical uncertainties and fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.The largest destination for UK-made weaponry was Qatar, which bought £2.7bn-worth, and 54% went to countries designated as “not free” by the human rights group Freedom House. These include Saudi Arabia and Turkey, as well as Qatar. Continue reading...

Susan Hart, 74, from Bath, was on holiday in Telendos when she disappeared on 30 AprilA woman who went missing on holiday on a Greek island three weeks ago has been found dead in a remote area.Susan Hart, 74, from Bath, was in Telendos with her husband, Ed, when she disappeared on 30 April. Continue reading...

Minns government says changes will mean more than 80% of first time buyers will pay no stamp duty or a reduced rate

Treaty Authority will oversee disputes while being ‘completely respectful of the principles of self-determination’

Analysis shows more than 330,000 jobs gained in past year, but treasurer concedes inflation needs to cool

Labor MPs say Tuesday’s budget will be tough amid rising debt but election pledges will be honoured

Coles and Woolworths have defended the increased margins, but data shows shoppers are being charged more than enough to cover additional costs and other rising expenses

Anna Ermakova wants to establish identity for herself in her own right beyond parents’ infamous brief encounter, say reportsThe daughter of the tennis star Boris Becker has won the final of Germany’s equivalent of Strictly Come Dancing with a record number of votes.Anna Ermakova, the 23-year-old offspring of the Wimbledon champion and the Russian model Angela Ermakova, triumphed on Let’s Dance on Friday evening with what critics described as a “breathtaking performance” over the course of a series during which she scored the full 30 points on 11 occasions, breaking a previous record. Continue reading...

Motion to adopt Better Chicken Commitment carried by 96%, but directors cited need for low pricesFeathers are flying at the Co-operative Group after thousands of its members voted to improve welfare for chickens reared for meat at the annual meeting on Saturday – but were partly overruled by the company’s directors, who said they wanted to keep prices down.A motion led by the Humane League UK campaign group asked the mutual to adopt the Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) – a set of standards adopted by the likes of Waitrose, Marks & Spencer and the Greggs bakery chain – and report on welfare improvements in a year’s time. It was supported by 96% of the 32,000 Co-op members who voted at the AGM. Continue reading...

Comments by Itamar Ben-Gvir draw condemnation from Palestinians amid escalating tensionsIsrael’s far-right security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, visited a site in Jerusalem holy to both Muslims and Jews and declared Israel was “in charge”, drawing condemnation from Palestinians after months of escalating tension and violence.The early morning visit to the site, revered by Jews as the Temple Mount and by Muslims as the compound housing al-Aqsa mosque, also drew denunciations from two of Israel’s Arab peace partners, Jordan and Egypt. Continue reading...

Choose Love garden uses materials found in refugee camps and plants that grow on migration routesA centrepiece garden at this year’s Chelsea flower show has been built with the help of a team of asylum seekers with a design that recreates Europe’s migration routes and uses materials found in refugee camps.The Choose Love garden, named after a charity working with displaced people, uses the sustainable “superadobe” building technique found in camp architecture. Continue reading...

Cost of period products has risen and campaigners say saving is not being passed on by retailersThe Treasury is analysing whether the removal of the “tampon tax” – trumpeted last week by Rishi Sunak as one of the benefits of Brexit – has helped lower prices at all, amid concerns the saving is not being passed on by retailers to women.Responding to a written question from the Labour MP Ruth Cadbury, the government said a tax reduction was able to “contribute to the conditions for price reductions” and it was “looking into whether this important zero-rating is being passed on by retailers to women as intended”. Continue reading...

Supermarket shortages mean community food projects will have a prominent place in this year’s showSupermarkets have rationed fresh fruit and vegetables in recent months as a combination of Brexit, bad weather and labour shortages has hit supply and driven prices up.Those shortages have led to a surge in people growing their own, according to the Royal Horticultural Society, and that trend will be reflected at the Chelsea flower show from 22 May. Continue reading...

Campaign funded by Entain urging people to write to MP was shameful, says chair of parliamentary groupThe owner of Ladbrokes, Entain, has been accused of “dishonest” lobbying after it funded an operation mobilising people to complain to their MP about proposals to reform gambling laws.The government last month unveiled plans for tighter regulation, including measures it said would make gambling safer but would also reduce revenue for brands such as Coral and PartyCasino, owned by Entain. Continue reading...

Concerns attempts to block local deals with Lib Dems or Greens risk allowing Tories to regain control of councilsLabour faces accusations of overcentralised meddling after the party’s national executive vetoed planned coalitions with the Liberal Democrats or Greens in a series of formerly Conservative-held local authorities.While it is longstanding Labour policy that local parties need a green light from the national executive committee (NEC) before forming coalitions, some activists say attempts to block deals risk allowing Conservatives to regain control instead. Continue reading...

Decision by Ireland’s privacy regulator will set record for breach of EU’s data protection rulesFacebook is to be fined more than €746m (£648m) and ordered to suspend data transfers to the US as an Irish regulator prepares to punish the social media network for its handling of user information.The fine, first reported by Bloomberg and expected to be confirmed as soon as Monday, will set a record for a breach of the EU’s general data protection regulation, beating the €746m levied on Amazon by Luxembourg in 2021. Continue reading...

The home secretary allegedly asked civil servants for help after being caught speeding. Did she breach the ministerial code?What is Suella Braverman alleged to have done wrong?The home secretary was caught speeding in a 50mph zone last summer, and given the option of accepting a fine and points on her licence or attending a speed awareness course. Continue reading...

Kevin Milner was riding on trail north of Vancouver when black bear charged forward and sent him flipping over the handlebarsA Canadian man is suffering from a fractured scapula, cardiac contusion and bruised ribs after colliding with a bear while riding his bike north of Vancouver.Kevin Milner was riding the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve near Vancouver when he spotted the black bear in the grass. Wildlife, including deer, is common along the thickly forested double-track. Continue reading...

Busy Bees branch within hospital complex fined £225,000 plus costs for food safety and hygiene offencesA branch of Britain’s largest private childcare provider has been hit with a record fine after inspectors found fresh mouse droppings in the kitchen and the children’s play areas of a nursery within an NHS hospital complex in east London.Busy Bees – which operates 375 nurseries in England, Scotland and Wales – was fined £225,000 and £15,000 in costs by a court in London last week, after pleading guilty to food safety and hygiene offences uncovered at its nursery on the grounds of Whipps Cross university hospital in Leytonstone. Continue reading...

Former DUP leader calls Sinn Féin electoral gains a ‘wake up and smell the coffee moment’ for unionismThe Democratic Unionist party (DUP) is facing renewed calls to restore power-sharing in Northern Ireland after a Sinn Féin electoral “tsunami” reshaped local government.Chris Heaton-Harris, the secretary of state for Northern Ireland, on Sunday joined a chorus urging the DUP to end a boycott that has paralysed the executive and assembly at Stormont. “Alongside the new councils, it remains my hope to see the assembly and executive return to work,” he said. Continue reading...

Exclusive: three years after Truss boasted of securing status in trade deal, products such as Cornish pasties can still be copiedA host of famous British food types, including Cornish pasties, Welsh lamb and Melton Mowbray pork pies, have not been given formal protection from imitation in Japan nearly three years after Liz Truss boasted that they could be secured thanks to her “historic” trade deal.As trade secretary, Truss described the post-Brexit trade agreement signed with Japan in September 2020 as the UK’s first landmark deal as an independent trading nation, ensuring the same tariff arrangements as the country had enjoyed when in the EU. Continue reading...

Call comes as independent review body to recommend 6.5% pay rise for teachers in EnglandEducation union leaders have urged ministers to return to the negotiating table for formal talks on pay and funding as an independent review body is to recommend a 6.5% pay rise for teachers in England.The School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) has told the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, that a 6.5% increase is needed to retain teachers in the profession. Keegan was given the report last week but has yet to publish its findings. Continue reading...