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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...

Inquest into case of a 61-year-old Norfolk woman left in an ambulance queue triggers challenge to Steve BarclayA coroner has urged the health secretary to take action to prevent needless deaths after a woman died of heart failure following a four-hour wait in the back of an ambulance.Lyn Brind, 61, was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, with chest pains and low blood oxygen levels but could not be admitted because the hospital had “no space”. Instead she remained in a queue of ambulances outside A&E without a timely diagnosis or treatment and where warning signs about her condition were missed. Continue reading...

Labor opposition says move a decade overdue, with similar courts already operating in Queensland and overseas

New York group, which broke up in 1978, best known for Marquee Moon and whose singer-songwriter also worked with Patti SmithTom Verlaine, the frontman, songwriter and legendary guitar player of the New York City band Television, has died aged 73.His death was announced by Jesse Paris Smith, the daughter of Patti Smith, who said that he died “after a brief illness”. Continue reading...

Leaked memo shows then cabinet secretary Simon Case warned PM on issue days before Sharp’s BBC appointmentBoris Johnson was formally asked by his then cabinet secretary to stop seeking “advice” about his financial affairs from Richard Sharp just days before he was announced as the BBC chair, according to reports.A leaked Cabinet Office memo shows Johnson, who was prime minister at the time, was warned by Simon Case on 22 December 2020 to cease speaking to Sharp about his “personal financial matters”, the Sunday Times said. Continue reading...

South Wales police say man and women, both 32, died at scene of incident on FridayTwo people have died after a collision involving a car and pedestrians in Pontypridd, south Wales.The crash happened on the B4273, Ynysybwl Road at 6.30pm on Friday. Continue reading...

Former prime minister’s 84 disclosed public speaking activities to soon be marked ‘ceased’ on foreign influence register when he takes up position in US

A chain reaction of killings leaves Israel and the occupied territories on the brink of a new round of bloodlettingOn Friday nights, quiet descends upon the holy city of Jerusalem. Many Muslim families are at home, spending time together after afternoon prayers; Jewish-owned businesses close just before sunset, buses and trams stop running and candles on dining tables announce the beginning of Shabbat.What began as a normal, peaceful Friday evening ended in tragedy for the Mizrahi family, who live in the occupied East Jerusalem settlement of Neve Yaakov. At about 8pm, a lone Palestinian gunman opened fire on people outside a synagogue, killing seven and wounding nine. Continue reading...

16-year-old detained on suspicion of murder after incident in Hexham in which a boy, 16, was also injuredA teenage boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a 15-year-old girl was stabbed to death in Northumberland.Northumbria police were called shortly after 5.10pm on Friday to a report of a teenage boy and girl injured in the Priestpopple area of Hexham. Continue reading...

Whistleblower tells of threats and illegal detention in fresh revelations about failures that drove children into hands of criminalsChildren seeking asylum in the UK were threatened and subjected to racist abuse by staff at a Home Office-run hotel, a whistleblower has claimed as pressure grows on the government to act over the growing crisis in the system.The source, who worked in the Brighton hotel for more than a year, said that in such an environment of “emotional abuse”, scores of children, who had arrived in the UK without parents or a carer, were driven on to the streets and into the hands of criminals. Continue reading...

Lord Young suggests ministers should feel able to step aside for the duration of any investigationNadhim Zahawi should step away from his Conservative party role while the inquiry into his tax affairs continues, a senior Tory peer and former Commons standards chair has appeared to suggest.Lord Young, who served in several Conservative administrations from Margaret Thatcher’s to Theresa May’s, suggested that ministers under pressure should feel able to step aside for the duration of any investigation. Continue reading...

‘Never again will Labour allow hate to spread unchallenged,’ Labour leader says at annual conference in LondonNever again will Labour be the party of protest not public service, and never again will it allow hate to spread unchallenged, Keir Starmer has said, as he reiterated his promise to make it the party of “sound money”.The Labour leader addressed approximately 600 people at London Labour’s annual conference on Saturday, and outlined how his government will “give people a sense of possibility again”, while focusing on the changes he has made since the party lost the 2019 general election. Continue reading...

De Sarno, who spent 13 years reinvigorating Valentino, replaces Alessandro Michele, who led a stellar renaissance at the brandThere is a new name in fashion. The most illustrious job vacancy in the industry has been filled, with Gucci announcing the appointment of Sabato de Sarno to the role of creative director.Events at Gucci have been moving fast, as the brand undergoes a shake-up to turnaround “brand fatigue” blamed for the house being overshadowed in growth last year by Kering Group’s stablemate Saint Laurent. Continue reading...

Shooting comes hours after seven people killed outside synagogue and two days after deadliest Israeli raid in West Bank for 20 yearsTwo Israelis have been shot in occupied East Jerusalem hours after a gunman killed seven people outside a synagogue, as the worst violence in years across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories continues to escalate.Israel’s ambulance service said a father and son, in their 50s and 20s, were badly hurt in the incident in a Jewish neighbourhood near the Old City on Saturday morning. Police said the assailant had been shot and killed at the scene by armed passersby. Continue reading...

More than 100 members of PCS union to strike for seven days from 13 FebruaryFresh strikes have been called by the biggest civil service union in its long-running dispute over jobs, pay and pensions.Members of the Public and Commercial Service union (PCS) at the British Museum will take industrial action in February’s half-term school holiday.. Continue reading...

UK act Eliza Rose places No 2 in the countdown, with Spacey Jane landing at No 3, No 5 and No 6

Independent Monitoring Authority concerned by Home Office error and impact it could have on those affectedMore than 140,000 EU citizens in the UK may have received benefits they were not entitled to due to a Home Office error, it has emerged.The Independent Monitoring Authority (IMA), the statutory body charged with protecting EU citizens’ rights post Brexit, has expressed concern that the situation arose and the impact it could have on those affected. Continue reading...

Small device already used in Europe and US works by making tongue contract and move out of windpipeNHS doctors have begun treating people with one of Britain’s most common sleeping disorders with a pioneering implant that helps patients get a better night’s rest.The procedure involves implanting a small device in the chest of people with sleep apnoea to prevent their breathing stopping and starting hundreds of times while they are asleep. Continue reading...

Fire and Emergency Services official says capsule left Rio Tinto mine site on 10 January but was not found missing for 15 days

Ersin Tatar, president of unrecognised Turkish republic, says north will otherwise become more dependent on TurkeyTurkish-occupied northern Cyprus will become ever more dependent on Turkey, and the hydrocarbon reserves surrounding Cyprus could be left unexploited, unless a solution to the 50-year dispute over the partitioned island is reached soon, Ersin Tatar, the president of the unrecognised “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus”, has said.Speaking from his presidential palace in the divided city of Nicosia, right by the UN-policed green line with Greek Cyprus, Tatar is trying to find ways to persuade others to “think out[side] the box” and join him in advocating for a two-state solution for the island. Continue reading...

Fresh wave of Russian attacks in east and south Ukraine kill at least 10 civilians; troops locked in ‘fierce’ fighting for Donetsk town of Vugledar

Even under the most conservative scenario, modelling suggests average Help debt will increase by at least $1700 when indexed on 1 June

Laura Winham lay dead in her flat for three years before her brother discovered her bodyThe family of a severely mentally ill woman who lay dead and undiscovered in her flat for more than three years said they were unable to have any contact with her because of privacy laws.Laura Winham, 38, had schizophrenia, struggled to look after herself and had become estranged from her family, who she thought were trying to harm her. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Domestic abuse charges authorised by CPS declined from 82,158 to 43,836 in 2021-2022, Labour party revealsThe number of charges related to domestic abuse has halved since 2015, figures for England and Wales uncovered by the Labour party have revealed, while similar offences recorded by police have more than doubled.Domestic abuse charges authorised by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have steadily declined from 82,158 in 2015-2016 to 43,836 in 2021-2022, the data shows. Over the same period, the total number of domestic abuse-related crimes recorded by the police has soared by 116% from 421,185 in 2015-2016 to 910,980 in 2021-2022. Continue reading...