World news | The Guardian

After Brittany Higgins alleged she was raped by a colleague in a minister’s office, a mistrial and media scrutiny have failed to answer key questionsIt is a case that has shaken Australian politics to its core. An allegation of rape in the nation’s parliament, levelled by a government staffer against a colleague, has led to senior ministers appearing before court, triggered a slew of internal reviews and forced a reckoning over the gendered dynamic and toxic atmosphere plaguing an ecosystem devoid of workplace protections.While Brittany Higgins’ story has become a mainstay of Australia’s political discourse, in recent days it has taken an extraordinary turn. Last week, before a retrial after the first was abandoned due to juror misconduct, the prosecution of the accused man, Bruce Lehrmann, was aborted out of concern for Higgins’ mental health. Continue reading...

Online card retailer expects revenues of £320m rather than £350m as Royal Mail strikes also have effectThe personalised card retailer Moonpig has warned sales will be lower than expected this year as cash-strapped shoppers shifted to lower-priced gifts and Royal Mail postal strikes hit its business.The British firm said trading conditions had become progressively more challenging in October and November because of “macroeconomic uncertainty” and the run of industrial action by postal workers. Continue reading...

Peak medical body says mask mandates should be considered and calls for ‘plan that relies on more than vaccination’

Laura Hand-Ross says party’s opposition to constitutional recognition is an ‘insult’ that has caused disquiet in the community

Poorly insulated Northern Territory houses that people can’t afford to cool can rise to dangerous temperatures

Pro-choice activists are focusing on expanding abortion access, voter registration and education, and shield laws for providersRenee Bracey Sherman answers the phone and apologizes – is it OK if we speak while she drives? Like many abortion advocates, she tends to keep a packed schedule and talk at lightning speed – the next initiative, the next law, the next policy on the horizon. Ask advocates how they felt in June after the Dobbs decision sharply curtailed reproductive rights across the US, or in November after wins in the midterm elections signaled strong public support for abortion, and they’ll answer immediately: We knew this was coming; but the fight’s not over.What Bracey Sherman – founder and executive director of We Testify, a group focused on the leadership and representation of people who have abortions – and her colleagues in the pro-choice movement don’t spend much time doing is elaborating on the past, or how they mourned or celebrated, because it’s already in the rear-view window. Their eyes are laser-focused on the future. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Gareth Quarry, who now donates to Labour, says Conservatives have trashed their reputation

Labour promises extra help and says rise is due to years of underinvestment in health and social careWorsening health in Britain has led the number of new disability benefit claims to double in the past year, according to a report.The Institute for Fiscal Studies said claims for the personal independence payment (Pip) benefit had doubled to 30,000 a month between the summer of 2021 and July this year, with no sign of slowing. Continue reading...

Plan will flood neighbourhoods subjected to extortion by criminal groups in two largest cities for next 30 daysAuthorities in Honduras will partially suspend constitutional rights as part of an effort to combat an apparent rise in extortion, raising fears of human rights violations and warnings of creeping authoritarianism in Central America.Under the plan, which will come into effect late on Tuesday and will be in effect for at least 30 days, thousands of security forces will be deployed to 162 gang-infested neighborhoods in the country’s two largest cities, San Pedro Sula and the capital, Tegucigalpa. Continue reading...

Campaigners seeking abolition of year 6 Sats staged event at which children invigilated tests on parliamentariansMPs and peers tasked with completing a year 6 Satss exam have scored lower results on average than the country’s 10-year-olds.MPs including Commons education select committee chair Robin Walker took part in the exams, invigilated by 11-year-olds, at a Westminster event organised by More Than A Score, who campaign for the tests to be scrapped. Continue reading...

Moscow accuses Ukraine of ‘nuclear terrorism’; Kremlin spokesperson says there is no prospect for negotiations with Kyiv at the moment

Eleanor Williams tells Preston jury she met Mohammed Ramzan at 12 and that he later became her ‘boyfriend’A woman accused of lying about being trafficked and sexually exploited by an Asian grooming gang has told a court she was in love with the alleged ringleader.Eleanor Williams, 22, from Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, finally gave evidence at Preston crown court on Tuesday, two months into her trial for perverting the course of justice. Continue reading...

Hazim Mustafa says he paid $380,000 for cattle at South African president’s ranch in 2019A Sudanese businessman has confirmed that he made the payment of hundreds of thousands of dollars for cattle at the centre of the scandal threatening to unseat South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa.The embattled president launched legal action on Monday to challenge a report handed over last week by an independent panel appointed by parliament that accused him of serious misconduct after the theft from his private game ranch of a sum reported to be between $500,000 (£410,000) and $5m in cash almost three years ago. Continue reading...

Network files formal request against Israel over shooting of Palestinian-American journalist in West BankAl Jazeera television network has filed a formal request to the international criminal court against Israeli forces over the killing of the veteran Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.Abu Akleh was shot in the head during an Israeli raid in a refugee camp on the outskirts of the occupied West Bank city of Jenin in May, while wearing a helmet and flak jacket that clearly indicated she was a member of the press. Several investigations by human rights organisations, as well as international news outlets and the UN, have concluded that Abu Akleh, 51, was shot by an Israeli soldier. Her colleague Ali al-Samoudi survived after being shot in the shoulder. Continue reading...

Rights groups say amended criminal code underscores shift towards fundamentalismIndonesia’s parliament has overhauled the country’s criminal code to outlaw sex outside marriage and curtail free speech, in a dramatic setback to freedoms in the world’s third-largest democracy.Passed with support from all political parties, the draconian legislation has shocked not only rights activists but also the country’s booming tourism sector, which relies on a stream of visitors to its tropical islands. Continue reading...

Home affairs tells Ahmad Merhi’s lawyer the law used to strip him of Australian citizenship was invalid with almost 20 other cancellations also voided

Supermarket hopes to grab bigger share of burgeoning sector, possibly threatening Sainsbury’s second positionAsda is planning to open 300 convenience stores and create 10,000 new jobs in the next four years as it tries to grab a bigger share of the grocery market and potentially overtake rival Sainsbury’s to become the UK’s second largest supermarket.The retailer, which is controlled by the billionaire Issa brothers and private equity firm TDR Capital, currently has just two Asda Express stores – in Sutton Coldfield, near Birmingham, and Tottenham Hale, in north London. Continue reading...

GMB, Unison and Unite announce industrial action by ambulance staff and other NHS workers

Move comes after Guardian revealed she appeared to have received millions from the profits of PPE firm

Government ‘coordinating attack on working people’ and seeking to ‘ratchet up dispute’, says RMTThe RMT general secretary has defended rail strikes across the UK over Christmas and said unions have a “duty to coordinate what they do”, saying the government is sending a message that pay rises will only come with worse terms for workers.Mick Lynch said the government was “coordinating … an attack on working people” by changing working conditions and offering below-inflation pay rises. Continue reading...

No casualties reported as facility set on fire, one day after Russia blames Ukraine for two other drone strikes

Muriel Bamblett tells Victoria’s Yoorrook commission there is little oversight of cultural plans for Indigenous children in permanent care

Counsel for former PM says he should be able to refer to secret cabinet documents when giving evidence

ACCC says they will closely monitor companies to ensure they do not keep prices high through artificial scarcity

NSW treasurer says referendum is an ‘opportunity to unite the nation’ and the party’s backing would ensure broad support for yes vote

Labour-endorsed study finds initiative would save families thousands of pounds, cut benefits spending and raise tax revenuesFree universal preschool childcare and more funding for after-school clubs could increase government revenues and save a family with young children between £620 and £6,175 a year, a joint report endorsed by the Labour party has revealed.The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and the charity Save the Children have called for a universal childcare guarantee for all families until the end of primary school to allow more women to get back into work and reduce the attainment gap between rich and poor children in their early years. Continue reading...

Accolade presented by Florence Pugh at London ceremony that Balenciaga creative head was absent from after ad controversyPierpaolo Piccioli, the creative director of Valentino, has won the designer of the year award at the 2022 Fashion Awards.Piccioli was presented with his award on Monday night by the actor Florence Pugh, who regularly wears the Italian brand for red carpet events. Continue reading...

Ruling party’s decision is a relief for the country’s president after doubts about his political futureSouth Africa’s ruling African National Congress party has said it will block attempts to impeach the country’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, at a crucial vote in parliament on Tuesday, providing relief to the embattled leader after days of uncertainty about his political future.Ramaphosa launched legal action on Monday to challenge a report handed over last week by an independent panel appointed by parliament that accused him of serious misconduct after the theft from his private game ranch of somewhere between $500,000 (£410,000) and $5m in cash almost three years ago. Continue reading...

No reports of missile impacts in Kyiv but two killed in Zaporizhzhia and Odesa hit hard after Russian strike follows blasts at Russian airfields. This blog is now closed

Proposals, including abolishing House of Lords, aimed at moving power away from LondonKeir Starmer has vowed to undertake a root-and-branch reform of the UK constitution, moving political power out of London, banning second jobs for MPs and abolishing the House of Lords.The plans are a victory for the former prime minister Gordon Brown, who has pushed for Labour to set out a bold strategy that would hand new powers to local and regional government, including over transport and infrastructure, development funding, housing, training and jobcentres. Continue reading...

Keir Starmer had something for everyone in his speech, but the details were a little sketchyGo out on to the streets of Leeds, Keir Starmer told the BBC’s Chris Mason. And what you will hear is that people have a passion for constitutional reform. Not sure that’s exactly what I overhear when I’m out and about. The conversations I eavesdrop tend to be rather more mundane. Why the buses and trains aren’t running on time. Hospital appointments being cancelled. The cost of living. What they are planning on eating that night.But no one can accuse Labour of ducking the difficult issues. Where the Conservatives are out of ideas, running on fumes and trying not to collapse under the weight of the latest daily crisis – the political entropy of 12 years in government – Starmer is trying to think beyond daily survival. Continue reading...

Shopkeepers and truck drivers from almost 40 cities are participating in mass walkoutsIranian shopkeepers and truck drivers staged a walkout in nearly 40 cities and towns on Monday after calls for a three-day nationwide general strike from protesters as the government declined to confirm a claim by a senior official that the morality police had been abolished.Iranian newspapers instead reported an increase in patrols, especially in religious cities, requiring women to wear the hijab, and shop managers being directed by the police to reinforce hijab restrictions. Continue reading...

Family pays tribute to one of four Vietnamese men whose bodies were found at millThe family of one of four men whose bodies were found after a mill fire in Oldham earlier this year say they are devastated to learn of the “most terrible circumstances” of his death.An inquest into the deaths of Cuong Van Chu and three other Vietnamese men whose remains were found by demolition workers in August after a fire at the derelict Bismark House Mill in May, was opened and adjourned pending a criminal investigation. Continue reading...

Hip replacements fell 46% in UK as a result of Covid and knee operations by 68%, study findsBritain may be the hobbling man of Europe, according to figures showing that the fall in the number of hip and knee surgeries as a result of the Covid pandemic was greater in the UK than in any EU country.The number of hip replacement operations fell 46% in 2020 in the UK, compared with just 7% in Germany and 12% in France. Meanwhile, the number of knee operations slumped 68% in the UK, compared with just 3% in Finland and an average of 24% across the EU. Continue reading...

No plans to amend legislation that could stop removal back to Greece, after secret talks held over their futureRishi Sunak has ruled out changing a law that could prevent the British Museum from handing the Parthenon marbles back to Greece, after it emerged that trustees have held secret talks with the Greek prime minister about the future of the artefacts.The prime minister’s official spokesperson said there were no plans to amend legislation under which a museum can dispose of objects within its collection only in very limited circumstances. However, it could decide to lend part of the collection to Greece. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Officials told of delays caused by Dominic Raab’s refusal to review Kabul evacuation documents in formats he did not likeA meeting of Ministry of Justice officials at which Dominic Raab’s conduct was discussed was told “people had died” in the Afghanistan evacuation because of his refusal to review documents in formats which he did not like, the Guardian has been told.Raab, who was formerly foreign secretary but was recently reappointed as justice secretary and deputy prime minister, is the subject of an investigation into bullying allegations, first revealed by the Guardian. They have led to Rishi Sunak’s judgment being called into question for bringing him back into the cabinet. Continue reading...

Jewellery and watches stolen during break-in on Saturday at Leatherhead home of England footballerJewellery and watches were among items stolen at the Surrey home of the England footballer Raheem Sterling in a burglary that forced the winger to return to the UK from the World Cup in Qatar.Surrey police confirmed it was investigating a burglary at a property in Oxshott, Leatherhead, after Sterling missed England’s win against Senegal in the knockout stages of the tournament on Sunday due to a “family matter”. Continue reading...

Economists widely predict 25 basis point rise but some say central bank may consider pausing rates after seven straight hikes

‘There’s too much risk in doing it on our own’, says shadow defence minister citing an immediate need for ‘hard power’

Emails show how NSW premier Dominic Perrottet’s advisers, along with several other ministers, sought to fast-track bill after media furore

Chinese fashion retailer responds after Channel 4 documentary alleged 18-hour days with one day off a monthThe Chinese fashion retailer Shein has vowed to invest $15m (£12.2m) in improving standards at its supplier factories as it admitted working hours at two sites breached local regulations.The online brand said an independent investigation, launched after allegations over labour abuse made in a recent UK documentary, had uncovered that employees at two of its Chinese sites were working hours that were longer than allowed. Continue reading...

Former Conservative MP was jailed for 18 months in May for sexually assaulting teenage boy in 2008The former Wakefield MP Imran Ahmad Khan has lost a court of appeal challenge against his conviction for sexual assault.Khan was sentenced to 18 months in jail in May, and expelled from the Conservative party, for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy after plying him with gin at a party in 2008. Continue reading...

Nick Read will be replaced as CEO by finance chief Margherita Della Valle during search for successorThe Vodafone chief executive, Nick Read, is to step down after failing to reverse a sharp fall in the company’s share price, as the telecoms company launches steep cost cuts and potential job losses.Read, a two-decade Vodafone veteran who has run the company since 2018, has been ousted after failing to get to grips with a more than 40% fall in the company’s share price during his four-year tenure. Continue reading...

Pilot scheme is under way in Cornwall, with hope that self-testing will ease pressure on NHSThe midlife health check with a GP, designed to spot some of the most common conditions that affect people as they age, is to be moved online in England, relying increasingly on self-testing, under plans announced by ministers.A pilot scheme is under way in Cornwall, with health officials saying they hope to capitalise on people’s increased familiarity with testing themselves at home and reporting the results online since the emergence of Covid, to ease the burden on the NHS. But, while some patients’ groups welcomed the move, they said self-testing would not be for everyone. Continue reading...

Big Brother Watch’s FoI request shows force rebuked by watchdog for recording 2019 school strike action in LondonPolice unlawfully spied on children as young as 10 taking part in a climate strike protest in London, documents have shown.The previously unseen papers reveal the Metropolitan police was rebuked by the information commissioner’s office (ICO) for video surveillance of the March 2019 protest, which was attended by up to 10,000 children and young people. Continue reading...

Activists are cautiously hopeful that the incoming president will bring relief to Bolsonaro’s forest-wrecking administrationIt was a hunting shotgun like to the one used to murder Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira – and it was pointing straight at Julia Kanamari’s chest.“You’ll be next,” she remembers the bleary-eyed gunman snarling after being caught smuggling a boat-load of illegally poached river turtles out of the Javari Valley Indigenous territory in the Brazilian Amazon. Continue reading...

Matthew Jordan Lindner of Texas is alleged to have harassed and threatened to kill a doctor at Fenway Institute center in BostonA Texas man has been charged with threatening a Boston doctor for providing medical care to transgender patients and gender-nonconforming children.On Friday, the US attorney’s office in Massachusetts said Matthew Jordan Lindner, 38 and from Comfort, Texas, was arrested and charged with one count of transmitting interstate threats. Continue reading...

Term resonates with people feeling ‘overwhelmed’ with having to present their best selves“Goblin mode” has been chosen by the public as the 2022 Oxford word of the year. The term, which refers to “a type of behaviour which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations”, has become the first word of the year to have been decided by public vote.Given a choice of three words (or phrases/hashtags – “word” is defined fairly loosely), narrowed down by lexicographers from Oxford University Press (OUP), more than 340,000 English speakers around the world cast their vote. Continue reading...

Flavia Nascimento insists Brazilian footballing great ‘is not saying goodbye right now’The Brazilian footballing great Pelé has not been moved to palliative care, one of his daughters has said, downplaying reports that he was in end-of-life care after the 82-year-old was hospitalised last week to re-evaluate his treatment for colon cancer.One of the greatest players of all time, Pelé had a tumour removed from his colon in September 2021 and has been receiving hospital care on a regular basis. Continue reading...