by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#68FT4)
Members of Aslef union to stage second 24-hour strike this week in long-running pay disputeNo trains will run across most of England on Friday as drivers in the Aslef union stage their second 24-hour strike this week.Drivers will strike as part of the long-running pay dispute at 14 train operating companies, leaving passengers facing disruption around Britain. Continue reading...
Alfredo Cospito has lost 45kg during protest over solitary confinement and says he ‘just wants to live’An Italian anarchist on hunger strike over a harsh prison regime usually reserved for mafia bosses has said he “just wants to live”, as his supporters reportedly threatened a serious attack in connection to his case.Alfredo Cospito has lost about 45kg (7st) since beginning his hunger strike in October, and this week he was transferred from a maximum security prison in Sardinia to Milan’s Opera prison owing to his deteriorating health. Continue reading...
by Nadeem Badshah (now) and Andrew Sparrow (earlier) on (#68ES0)
As it happened: Prime minister speaks in interview on TalkTV to mark his 100th day in officeOn the subject of Rishi Sunak reaching his 100th day in office, my colleague Jessica Elgot has a great assessment of how it’s going. Here is an extract.After Liz Truss left office, polls suggested that voters wanted to keep an open mind about Sunak and rated him significantly higher than his party.That is now beginning to turn. According to senior Labour figures, their most recent focus groups, with swing voters in Southampton, Dewsbury and Bury last week, were described as being “utterly brutal for Sunak”, with participants engaging in “open mockery” of the prime minister. Even the most pessimistic members of Keir Starmer’s team say they have seen a decisive shift.In the coming weeks, our new stop the boats bill will change the law to send a message loud and clear.If you come here illegally, you will be detained and removed. Continue reading...
Status of spring undetermined in northern Quebec after rodent prognosticator discovered dead in burrow during festivitiesA Canadian woodchuck has cast a different type of shadow over Groundhog Day: just hours before he was due to predict spring’s arrival, Fred la Marmotte was found dead.The groundhog showed “no vital signs” when the organizer of the annual 2 February tradition in Val-d’Espoir, Quebec, tried to wake him from hibernation, local media reported. Continue reading...
Forty families brought to UK after fleeing Taliban given only weeks to move to West YorkshireHundreds of Afghan refugees who settled in London after fleeing the Taliban 18 months ago have been told they have only weeks to uproot and move 200 miles away, the Guardian can reveal.The Home Office has told 40 families with 150 children who have lived for more than a year in Kensington, west London, that they must leave the capital for another hotel in Wetherby, on the outskirts of Leeds. Continue reading...
Israel’s attorney general said to PM it would amount to a conflict of interest over his corruption trial, according to letterIsrael’s attorney general has told Benjamin Netanyahu that he must not be involved in an overhaul to the country’s judicial system proposed by his government because it would amount to a conflict of interest over the prime minister’s corruption trial, according to a letter made public Thursday.Netanyahu’s new far-right government has made changing the legal system a centrepiece of its legislative agenda and despite mounting public criticism, has charged ahead with steps to weaken the supreme court and grant politicians less judicial oversight in their policymaking. Continue reading...
by Constance Malleret in Rio de Janeiro on (#68FBW)
Senator says he was asked to get justice to make compromising comments on tape as Bolsonaro ‘sat in silence’A close ally of Jair Bolsonaro has turned against Brazil’s former president, claiming that an aide to the far-right leader tried to “coerce” him into joining a conspiracy to annul the October elections and keep Bolsonaro in power.Senator Marcos do Val claimed at a news conference on Thursday that he was invited to a meeting on 9 December with the then president by a fellow member of congress, Daniel Silveira, to discuss a plan to “save Brazil” . Continue reading...
PM says he wants new law barring people arriving without valid documents from claiming asylumRishi Sunak has said new laws will mean people arriving in the UK without valid documents will be deported “within days”, with asylum claims rejected and migrants returned.The prime minister also said he was committed to the Rwanda deportation policy, despite legal challenges, replying “yes” when asked if it would ever go ahead. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#68F9X)
Former Labour MP came up with ‘a series of scams’ to fund ‘galloping’ cocaine habit, court toldA former Labour MP accused of expenses fraud has been described as “thoroughly inadequate”, “thoroughly rotten” and “stuffing the parliamentary payroll with mates and cronies” who did no relevant work.Jared O’Mara came up with “a series of scams” to help fund his “galloping” cocaine habit, prosecutor Richard Wright KC told a jury on Thursday. Continue reading...
Insiders say departure of popular BBC News presenters – with Martine Croxall also going – could prompt ageism rowSome of the BBC News channel’s most famous faces, including Jane Hill, Ben Brown and Martine Croxall, have been axed before the launch this spring of a channel that combines international and domestic news.The trio have become familiar to UK viewers during times of political and economic turmoil and their departure could prompt a row about ageism, according to BBC insiders. Continue reading...
MP for Erdington, one of UK’s most deprived areas, says ‘heart and soul has been taken out of our community’Residents in a Birmingham suburb are fighting to stop an eighth betting shop opening on their high street, saying the shops are “changing the fabric of the local area”.There are already seven betting shops in Erdington, which is among the 10% of the most deprived areas in the country, and a consultation over the opening of an eighth ends on Thursday. Continue reading...
Former UK PM’s brother quits board of Elara Capital days after it was accused of using funds to manipulate share pricesJo Johnson, the younger brother of the former prime minister Boris Johnson, has resigned as a director of a London-based investment bank allegedly linked to the Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s crisis-ridden business empire.Lord Johnson, a former Conservative minister who was given a peerage by his brother in 2020, resigned from the board of Elara Capital on Wednesday just days after Elara was accused of using Mauritius-based funds to manipulate the share price of Adani-linked companies and obscure their ultimate ownership. Continue reading...
Dr Mathew Beattie and Sarah Rushbrooke had both been working out six-month notice periodsTwo directors have resigned from an ambulance service judged this week to be providing “inadequate” patient care.Dr Mathew Beattie, the medical director of North East ambulance service, left on Tuesday, a day before a damning report was published into the organisation’s failings. Continue reading...
Moves comes as missing Lancashire woman’s family make appeal to public for informationA timeline of the last known movements of the missing Lancashire woman Nicola Bulley has been released by police as her family made an appeal for information.Speaking to Sky News, her sister Louise Cunningham said: “Something has got to have been missed. Somebody must know something. People don’t just vanish into thin air.” Continue reading...
Action is latest move in bitter row between CWU union and company over pay and working conditionsAbout 115,000 postal workers at Royal Mail are to stage a 24-hour strike on 16 February in their continuing dispute with management over pay and conditions.The strike will affect all shifts for 24 hours from 12.30pm that day, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) said. Continue reading...
David Holden, 53, convicted 0f manslaughter of Aidan McAnespie, 23, who was killed at checkpoint in 1988A former soldier has been given a suspended sentence for killing a man at an army checkpoint in Northern Ireland more than 30 years ago.David Jonathan Holden, 53, was sentenced to three years at Belfast crown court, but the judge, Mr Justice O’Hara, suspended the term for three years. Continue reading...
by Josh Halliday North of England correspondent on (#68F1Y)
Manchester United footballer, 21, was charged with attempted rape offence last yearThe Manchester United footballer Mason Greenwood is no longer facing criminal proceedings over attempted rape after prosecutors dropped the case against him.The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said there was “no longer a realistic prospect of conviction” after key witnesses withdrew their cooperation from the investigation. Continue reading...
Risk to humans, though low, is of concern after at least 200 cases of infection in mammals detected worldwideAvian flu surveillance is being ramped up in the UK after the detection of at least 200 cases of infection in mammals.Public health experts say the risk of a jump to humans is still very low, but that this risk would be monitored through increased genomic surveillance and targeted testing of people who had been exposed to the virus. Concern was also sparked by a recent outbreak of avian flu at a mink farm in Spain and a mass mortality of seals in the Caspian sea that is possibly linked to the infection. Continue reading...
Car bomb killed 29 people in deadliest atrocity of Northern Ireland’s TroublesThe British government will hold an independent statutory inquiry into the 1998 Omagh bombing, the Northern Ireland secretary has announced.Chris Heaton-Harris told the House of Commons on Thursday that he intended to establish an inquiry into the atrocity that claimed 29 lives and injured 220 people on 15 August 1998, four months after the Good Friday agreement. Continue reading...
by Hannah Ellis-Petersen South Asia correspondent on (#68EXR)
Muslim reporter Siddique Kappan had been charged under draconian anti-terrorism lawsIndian journalist Siddique Kappan, who was held in jail for two years without trial, has walked free after being granted bail in a case human rights groups alleged was politically motivated.Kappan, a Muslim journalist from the southern state of Kerala, was arrested in October 2020 as he was on his way to the northern state of Uttar Pradesh to report on the high-profile case of a Dalit girl who was gang-raped and later died. Continue reading...
Panahi says he will not eat until he is released, after lawyer successfully challenged his detentionOne of Iran’s most illustrious film-makers, Jafar Panahi, is on hunger strike in protest at his continued detention in Tehran’s Evin prison, his wife has said.The Cannes film festival award-winner and director of The White Balloon, The Circle and No Bears took the step after plans for his release were dashed, even though his lawyer had successfully challenged his detention. Continue reading...
Leaked memo forecasting Taiwan strait conflict in 2025 triggers debate about ‘undisciplined’ commentsA leaked memo from a US four-star general saying his “gut” told him the US would be at war with China in 2025 has prompted warnings about the danger of “undisciplined” predictions of a Taiwan strait conflict.The memo, by the head of the US Air Mobility Command (AMC), Gen Mike Minihan, was the latest prediction of a Chinese military invasion of Taiwan, which have ranged from 2022 to 2049. It has triggered a debate about US readiness, accusations of warmongering, and concerns about desensitising people to the real risk of invasion. Continue reading...
Debt collectors allegedly broke into homes to fit meters despite signs of children and vulnerable people living thereThe energy regulator has launched an investigation into British Gas after it emerged that agents working on its behalf ignored customers’ vulnerabilities.Ofgem said it would not “hesitate to take firm enforcement action” against the energy supplier after it was alleged that Arvato Financial Solutions, a company used by British Gas to pursue debts, had broken into homes to fit meters when there were signs that young children and people with disabilities lived in the property. Continue reading...
by Aubrey Allegretti Political correspondent on (#68ES3)
Head of FDA union criticises PM for ‘point blank’ refusing to say if he was aware of informal concernsRishi Sunak has been urged to “come clean” over whether he knew of informal concerns about Dominic Raab’s behaviour before appointing him, as an investigation into the deputy prime minister continues.Eleven weeks since the inquiry began looking into complaints from about two dozen civil servants across three government departments, pressure is growing on the prime minister to suspend Raab and reveal what he knew and when. Continue reading...
James Dyson and Tina Green, wife of Philip Green, among British business figures on register of overseas entitiesBillionaires and business figures including James Dyson and Tina Green own UK property via overseas companies, according to a new register aimed at improving transparency.The tycoons feature on a list that a Guardian investigation revealed last week includes the racing driver Lewis Hamilton, the Chinese government, a string of Gulf royals and at least 20 donors to the Tory party. Continue reading...
by Rebecca Ratcliffe South-east Asia correspondent on (#68ENS)
Deal expands Washington’s access to military bases close to Taiwan and the South China SeaThe Philippines has granted the United States expanded access to its military bases, greatly enhancing Washington’s presence in the region at a time of growing concern about Chinese aggression.Washington would be given access to four additional military bases in “strategic areas of the country”, without specifying the locations, the Philippines’ Department of National Defence said on Thursday in a statement. Continue reading...
An open letter, backed by opinion poll, urges the UK to restore aid budget on eve of a three-day ‘pilgrimage for peace’ in the east African countryThe British government’s financial support for Ukraine must not be at the cost of aid to other areas of the world in crisis, three faith-based charities have warned, on the eve of an unprecedented joint pilgrimage to South Sudan led by Pope Francis.The organisations are calling on the government to restore the 59% cut in the UK’s aid budget to South Sudan, and invest in peacebuilding, conflict management and reconciliation. Continue reading...
People from Niger delta areas of Ogale and Bille seeking justice in London’s high courtNearly 14,000 people from two Nigerian communities are seeking justice in the high court in London against the fossil fuel giant Shell, claiming it is responsible for devastating pollution of their water sources and destruction of their way of life.The individuals from the Niger delta area of Ogale, a farming community, lodged their claims last week, joining more than 2,000 people from the Bille area, a largely fishing community. In total 13,652 claims from individuals, and from churches and schools, are asking the oil giant to clean up the pollution which they say has devastated their communities. They are also asking for compensation for the resulting loss of their livelihoods. Their ability to farm and fish has been destroyed by the continuing oil spills from Shell operations, they claim. Continue reading...
Advisers argue he has made progress, but the new intake are frustrated and voters believe he is ‘out of touch’Rishi Sunak has now survived 100 days as prime minister – a pretty small feat by historical standards but twice the length of his predecessor’s term. But the circumstances he inherited – the lack of mandate, plummeting polls and an economy in freefall – have deeply constrained what he is able to do with his time in office.Inside No 10, key advisers argue that Sunak has already made significant progress, that the economy is starting to recover, that he has set out a clear stall with five pledges on inflation, national debt, the economy, immigration and the NHS, and that he has largely taken the Tory party infighting off the front pages. Continue reading...
by Zeinab Mohammed Salih in Khartoum and Jason Burke on (#68EKR)
Russian fighters clash with rebels as Kremlin tries to extend power in mineral rich countryRussian mercenaries from the Wagner Group have sustained heavy casualties in a new surge of fighting between government troops and rebels over the control of lucrative goldmines in Central African Republic (CAR).The clashes come amid increasing instability in the anarchic, resource-rich country, which in recent years has become one of Russia’s main hubs of influence in sub-Saharan Africa. Continue reading...
by Charley Piringi in Honiara, and Reuters on (#68EFZ)
Move comes amid concerns about Beijing’s military ambitions in Indo-Pacific region after it struck a security pact with Solomons last yearThe United States has opened an embassy in Solomon Islands after a 30-year absence as it seeks to boost diplomatic relations in the Pacific as a counter to China.The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, announced the news late on Wednesday, saying that “more than any other part of the world, the Indo-Pacific region – including the Pacific Islands – will shape the world’s trajectory in the 21st century”. Continue reading...
Israeli army confirms ‘striking in the Gaza Strip’ early on Thursday, hours after it said it intercepted a rocket fired from the Palestinian territoryIsrael conducted airstrikes on the central Gaza Strip early on Thursday, according to journalists and witnesses, hours after the military said it intercepted a rocket fired from the Palestinian territory.New rounds of rockets were fired from Gaza after these strikes, and fresh explosions could be heard from Gaza City at about 3.15am local time, Agence France-Presse journalists reported. Continue reading...
Oleksii Reznikov said that as many as 500,000 troops may have been mobilised by Russia as he calls for more weapons to be sent to UkraineRussia is planning a major offensive to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine on 24 February, according to the country’s defence minister, Oleksii Reznikov.Speaking to French media, Reznikov warned that Russia would call on a large contingent of mobilised troops. Referring to Russia’s general mobilisation of 300,000 conscripted soldiers in September last year, he claimed that numbers at the border suggest the true size could be closer to 500,000. Continue reading...
Authorities claim animals in the zoo in city of Chilpancingo were sold, traded or eaten under orders of former directorThe former director of a zoo in southern Mexico killed four of the zoo’s pygmy goats and served them up at a Christmas-season party, authorities have alleged.“These four animals [were] slaughtered and cooked on the zoo’s premises, and were served as food at the year-end party,” said Fernando Ruiz Gutierrez, the state environment department’s director of wildlife, blaming the zoo’s director at the time, José Rubén Nava. “This put the health of the people who ate them at risk, because these animals were not fit for human consumption.” Continue reading...
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