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It’s a landlord’s market, as hundreds queue to rent properties with negotiable prices that many simply can’t affordPeak housing bodies are calling for nationally consistent rental laws to crack down on bidding wars putting pressure on tenants in a shrinking market.Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania have introduced reforms to ban rent bidding – the process of negotiating the price of a rental by advertising a property within a “range” or without a fixed cost.Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning Continue reading...

The Trust’s state conservation director wrote letters to the public and organisations citing concerns over the plan’s scale and impact

Some noncitizens can already vote in Australia, a parliamentary committee is considering extending that to permanent residents from New Zealand

Detainees accused of being ‘agitators’, as death toll rises and tribunal says 2019 repression was crime against humanityIran’s ministry of intelligence has said that nine foreign nationals have been arrested in a round up of “agitators” allegedly linked to a wave of anti-government demonstrations that have now reached their third week. It said the detainees included nationals from Germany, Poland, Italy, France, the Netherlands and Sweden.In a lengthy statement on Friday, the ministry also accused the US of trying to break the Iranian government’s control on the internet. Continue reading...

Detectives are analysing a small sample of the remains and some clothing on Saddleworth Moor near ManchesterPolice are digging on Saddleworth Moor near Manchester after a skull was reportedly found that could belong to Moors murder victim Keith Bennett.Keith was murdered 58 years ago at the age of 12 by Ian Brady and Myra Hindley, but his body has never been found. Brady died in 2017 and Hindley in 2002. Continue reading...

Parentless labels reveal collections, with Miyake’s fluid inventions repurposed for 2023What happens to a fashion house after its founder dies? If you’re Issey Miyake and Off White, two labels made parentless in the past 12 months, you carry on making collections in their name while peering through the sartorial looking glass as you figure out what to do next.Closing was never an option for Issey Miyake. The first Japanese designer to crack Paris fashion week, Miyake’s name was already a byword for cutting-edge style and Steve Jobs polo-necks when he died in August aged 84. Miyake had not designed at his label since 2020 (Satoshi Kondo is the current creative director) but his fingerprints have always been all over the label’s collections. Continue reading...

DJ, whose last track on his ‘big show’ was Queen’s Radio Ga Ga, will continue to broadcast on the BBCSteve Wright has signed off from his final Radio 2 afternoon show with the DJ thanking his listeners for tuning in for the last 23 years.He played out with Queen’s Radio Ga Ga and its final lyrics: “You had your time, you had the power, you’ve yet to have your finest hour.” As the music faded, Wright said: “Those are the closing moments of Steve Wright in the Afternoon on Radio 2.” Continue reading...

As a Moscow concert marked Putin’s declaration of the annexation of four regions of Ukraine, the backlash to mobilisation reached fever pitch

Paris Saint-Germain forward posts video in support of far-right president, who is trailing badly in polls ahead of Sunday’s voteThe Brazilian football star Neymar has come out in support of President Jair Bolsonaro, three days before the far-right leader looks set to lose a bitter re-election race against his leftist rival Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.Lounging in a gaming chair, the Paris Saint-Germain forward recorded a video singing along to a Bolsonaro jingle and making V signs with both hands to signify 22, the number of Bolsonaro’s party as it appears on Brazil’s electronic ballots. Continue reading...

PM reneging on Conservative promise to increase benefits in line with inflation ‘morally indefensible’, say experts

Already tough times expected to get worse for millions if Truss drops pledge to raise benefits in line with inflationSuch is the Begum family’s financial strife that seven-year-old Anisa recently told her mother they were so poor they might as well move to where her grandmother lives: Bangladesh.Fleeing to one of the world’s more impoverished countries may seem strange, but the fact it is being discussed in one east London home is telling of widening desperation. Now, at the end of an already gruelling week, things could be about to get worse for millions with real-terms welfare cuts reportedly under consideration by a government that recently cut taxes for the rich. Continue reading...

Russian president signs ‘accession treaties’ at Kremlin in defiance of international law and US responds with sanctions

Russian leader’s rambling speech focuses on western sins and leaves key Ukraine questions unanswered• Russia-Ukraine war: latest updates• Putin annexes four regions of UkraineEight-and-a-half years after Vladimir Putin announced the annexation of Crimea, he gathered the elites of Russia in the Kremlin’s St George Hall for another land-grab ceremony: this time laying claim to four more Ukrainian regions.The annexation formalities were preceded by an angry, rambling speech which dwelled only briefly on either Ukraine or the four regions of which Russia now claims ownership. Instead, Putin railed at the west for a litany of sins, ranging from destabilising Russia in the 17th century to allowing gender reassignment surgery. Continue reading...

Budget watchdog to give assessment of fiscal plans next week but public will have to wait until chancellor’s November statementFollowing a meeting with the prime minister, Liz Truss, and the chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, the Office for Budget Responsibility has confirmed it will deliver an initial forecast on 7 October.A spokesperson for the OBR said:[The forecast] will, as always, be based on our independent judgment about economic and fiscal prospects and the impact of the government’s policies.We discussed the economic and fiscal outlook, and the forecast we are preparing for the chancellor’s medium-term fiscal plan.We will deliver the first iteration of that forecast to the chancellor on Friday 7 October, and will set out the full timetable up to 23 November next week. Continue reading...

Blast tore through metal and shattered glass as people queued to travel to Russian-occupied territory

Family of French boy injured in August 2019 attack report ‘our little knight sees better and better’The family of a boy thrown from the 10th floor of London’s Tate Modern art gallery have said their “little knight sees better and better” as medics noted a clear improvement in his eyesight.The French youngster was six when he was badly hurt in an attack by Jonty Bravery at the tourist attraction in August 2019. Continue reading...

Vladimir Putin formalises annexation of four occupied regions of Ukraine; at least 25 people killed as Russian missiles hit civilian convoy

Judge tells David Ames he is a ‘menace to anybody unfortunate enough to do business with you’An Essex businessman behind a £226m luxury Caribbean holiday homes fraud in which thousands of people lost their life savings and pensions has been sentenced to a 12-year term after a judge described him as running a “gigantic Ponzi scheme”.David Ames, 70, was convicted last month at Southwark crown court on two counts of fraud by abuse of position, after a Serious Fraud Office investigation found he had deceived more than 8,000 UK investors in the Harlequin Group, a hotel and resorts development venture, using celebrity endorsements to lure people in. Continue reading...

Talks held between FCA and lenders over concern millions could struggle to afford higher payments

People seeking to clarify immigration status facing ‘hostile environment’ problems, research revealsThousands of people living lawfully in the UK are encountering delays in the visa renewal process, which then cause them problems with hostile environment policies, according to research published this week by a migrant rights charity.People seeking to extend or formalise their immigration status are given the little-understood status of “3C leave” while they wait for the Home Office to process their application. During this period, their right to work, rent property and access healthcare is in theory protected, but because they have no documentary evidence proving their status, many face difficulties with landlords and employers. Continue reading...

Threats of mass protests after former general Prayuth Chan-ocha judged not to have exceeded term limitThailand’s constitutional court has allowed the prime minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, to remain in his job after suspending him in August while it considered whether he had overstayed his term limit.The court ruled Prayuth, a former army general who first came to power in a military coup in 2014, had not yet reached the limit of his term, even though prime ministers are barred from serving for more than eight years under Thailand’s constitution. The case had been brought by opposition MPs who argued Prayuth had violated the limit. Continue reading...

Number of billionaires interested in superyachts said to have grown despite Russia sanctions and global economic crisis“Change the TV channels now,” the captain of a $95m (£85m) Albatross superyacht calls out to a deckhand. “That guy has probably lost two mil in the last two minutes and we’re trying to convince him to drop 95.”“That guy” is a prospective buyer of the 72-metre long vessel floating in Monaco’s Port Hercules where the world’s richest people (and their entourages) have gathered this week for the annual yacht show. With more than €4bn (£3.5bn) worth of marine luxury on display, it is as brokerage firm Burgess puts it: “The chicest way for billionaires to celebrate the end of summer”. Continue reading...

Levy could raise €140bn, and energy ministers also set targets to cut electricity useEU energy ministers have agreed to levy windfall taxes on energy companies’ profits, and to cut electricity use, but remain at loggerheads over proposals to cap the price of gas.Meeting in Brussels on Friday, the bloc’s 27 energy ministers signed off on proposals to levy a “solidarity contribution” on fossil fuel producers that have benefited from soaring energy prices. Continue reading...

Rumours rife as farmers fear PM plans U-turn on financial subsidy measures to improve environmentThe chaos in the English countryside began with the click of a civil servant’s mouse. At the end of last week, farmers who had been working with the government on environmental subsidy schemes saw that their regular meetings about it had been removed from their online diaries without warning.This appeared to hint at what had been feared – that the new post-Brexit farming subsidy scheme was in danger of being scrapped. Continue reading...

Attack comes as Vladimir Putin prepares to publicly sign annexation orders for four Ukrainian regions

Tours at sites in north of England aim to be academically rigorous and shed light on the ruins’ deeper histories“It is autumnal isn’t it, you can feel the death and decay,” said the clearly delighted historian Michael Carter as he prepared to embark on a new venture at some of England’s most spectacular and atmospheric ruins.English Heritage will this weekend begin a new series of ghost story tours at five of its northern monasteries. Continue reading...

A NSW parliamentary committee has released a scathing appraisal of the decision to build the $1.34bn project on a site with ‘very real flood risks’

Former host says broadcaster wanted her to say she was walking away when in fact it was ‘refreshing’ the formatSue Barker has said she regrets the way her 24 years of hosting Question of Sport came to an end.The former professional tennis player and broadcaster, 66, criticised the way in which her departure was handled by the BBC. Continue reading...

Fact-finding mission reports brutal massacres and sexual slavery in gold-rich arc where armed gangs fight for controlStruggling to get by amid Venezuela’s runaway inflation, widespread shortages and rampant unemployment, a young woman left the city of San Félix for the promise of a job deep in the forests of Bolívar state.The offer made on Facebook promised a good salary in exchange for working in a booming mining town. Continue reading...

As Hurricane Ian hits the Americas, Noru has been ripping through the Philippines, Vietnam and ThailandHurricane Ian has been in the headlines but it is not the only storm that has been causing havoc in the past week.On Tuesday, Typhoon Noru struck south of the city of Da Nang in Vietnam, heading westwards to Thailand. Initially a tropical storm, Noru originated in the Philippine Sea on 23 September, propagating westwards while gathering moisture and strengthening. Continue reading...

Organisation reportedly sent chest-flattening devices to children against parents’ wishesA transgender rights organisation is being investigated over reports it has given breast binders to children.Mermaids, which supports transgender, non-binary and gender diverse children and their families, reportedly sent the chest-flattening devices to children against their parents’ wishes. Continue reading...

Penny Wong defends appointing former Labor minister as a sign of the ‘eminence of Australia’s relationship with the UK’

UN refugee agency says many refugees have been traumatised by years in Australian detention camps, hampering uptake of the offerIn nearly six months, just 36 people have taken up New Zealand’s offer to resettle refugees held in Australian detention camps such as Nauru, with UN’s refugee agency saying the brutality of Australia’s immigration regime is partly to blame.In March 2022, Australia’s government accepted a longstanding offer from New Zealand to resettle up to 450 refugees from Australia’s regional processing centres over the next three years, at a rate of up to 150 per year. But after nearly six months, uptake has been slow – stymied by the dire mental health of prospective applicants. Continue reading...

Tanya Plibersek says Australian Antarctic Division’s work is ‘far too important to be tainted’

No immediate claim of responsibility for the attack in which suicide bomber detonated explosives, say policeA suicide blast at an education institute in the Afghan capital of Kabul has killed 19 people and wounded 27, police said on Friday.The explosion happened inside the centre in the Dashti Barchi neighborhood of Kabul, said Khalid Zadran, the Taliban-appointed spokesman for the Kabul police chief. Continue reading...

Decision a blow for Aboriginal land rights and leaves traditional owners ‘voiceless’, critics say

Trend most pronounced in Melbourne and Sydney, reflecting sharper downturns in major cities

Backflip comes after resistance from real estate industry and NSW’s refusal to hand over informationThe Queensland government has scrapped a proposal to alter land tax arrangements for interstate property investors, in a move described as bowing to industry pressure and wealthy landlords.The proposal – which met fierce resistance from the real estate sector and other states – would have seen interstate property holdings taken into account when determining whether an investor meets the threshold for land tax concessions.Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning Continue reading...

New flood warning system launched as cold, wet weather expected to continue next week

Anthony Koletti says he maintains Asic was responsible for Caddick’s death due to their ‘cruelty and inhumanity’

Private letter says ‘illegal’ plan could jeopardise free trade deal between UK and Gulf Cooperation CouncilArab ambassadors in London are urging Liz Truss not to go ahead with “an illegal and ill-judged” plan to move the British embassy to Jerusalem.Some Arab diplomats have even said the plan could jeopardise talks on a highly prized free trade deal between the UK and the Gulf Cooperation Council due to be completed this year. Continue reading...

Dozens of women found to have been ignored, disrespected and neglected in Mackay hospital, with many suffering lifelong injuries

Optus has agreed to repay the cost of replacement passports for those affected by the huge data breach, the prime minister said

Workers in health, disability and aged care will be exempt when both measures are scrapped on 14 October, Anthony Albanese says

Stokes, a senior member of Dominic Perrottet’s cabinet, made a failed attempt to replace Gladys Berejiklian as premier last year

Each will receive distributable profit of £1,058,000 in year to end of May – 33 times UK’s average annual payPartners at Deloitte in the UK and Switzerland will receive an average income of more than £1m each for the second year in a row, after the accountancy firm enjoyed another successful year.Each partner will receive an average distributable profit of £1,058,000 in the year to the end of May, about 33 times the UK’s average annual pay. This is the first time the sum has exceeded £1m and is an increase of about 24% compared with the same period the year before. Continue reading...

New monarch depicted facing left on Royal Mint’s new coin designs, the opposite way to Queen Elizabeth IIA new 50p design featuring an image of King Charles III has been unveiled by the Royal Mint and will enter circulation by the end of the year.Meanwhile, a special memorial coin range commemorating Queen Elizabeth II will be released on Monday at 9am. Charles’ portrait will appear on a £5 crown and a 50p celebrating the Queen. Continue reading...

The radio show, which has not been repeated since first airing in 1955, will be played on Radio 4 on 18 OctoberA lost episode of 1950s radio show Hancock’s Half Hour has been found and restored and will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 next month.The episode, the only one to feature the actor and comedian Peter Sellers – who was standing in for Hancock’s regular collaborator Kenneth Williams – is from the first series of the sitcom and is called The Marriage Bureau. Continue reading...

Tehran says film-makers, athletes and actors who have backed demonstrations ‘fanned flames of riots’Iran has stepped up pressure on celebrities and journalists over the wave of women-led protests sparked by outrage over the death of Mahsa Amini, after she was arrested by the Islamic republic’s morality police.Film-makers, athletes, musicians and actors have backed the demonstrations, and many saw it as a signal when the national football team remained in their black tracksuits when the anthems were played before a match in Vienna against Senegal. Continue reading...

Watchdog said it was ready to supply information, but was not asked to do so by Kwasi KwartengQ: Can you reassure listeners that your judgment is better than that of people like the IMF and the Bank of England, who have criticised the mini-budget?Truss says:I have to do what I believe is right for the country and what is going to help move our country forward. Continue reading...