Volodymyr Zelenskiy vows to defend Ukrainian citizens after Moscow-backed officials declare victory in regional ‘referendums’ on joining Russia

Cost of living crisis blamed for fast-fashion brand’s performance, with 10% fall in total revenues in first halfBoohoo has issued a profit and sales warning as the cost of living crisis causes a slump in shopper demand for the fast-fashion brand’s products.The online clothing retailer, whose brands include Pretty Little Thing and Nasty Gal, reported a 10% fall in total revenues to £882m in the half year to 31 August and said it now expects annual sales to be down about the same level. Continue reading...

Detectives found Karthik Pappu’s fingerprints on a book containing information about 305 bank accounts and 68 compromised identities

Federal government believes the company should pay, not taxpayers. This blog is now closed

As lenders pull mortgage products amid interest rate turmoil, experts forecast ‘significant fall’House prices are likely to fall by at least 10% next year as mortgage providers pull deals and raise interest payments to levels not seen since before the 2008 financial crisis, property experts have predicted.Nearly 300 mortgage deals have been pulled by banks and building societies, after a fall in the pound fuelled forecasts of a jump in the Bank of England base rate to nearly 6%, with those offers remaining on the market entailing huge borrowing costs for potential buyers, reducing how much they can pay for properties. Continue reading...

The German author’s contribution will remain unseen, alongside contributions from authors including Margaret Atwood and David Mitchell, until 2114German writer Judith Schalansky has become the ninth author to be selected for the Future Library, which asks authors to create a work that will not be revealed to readers until 2114.The Future Library is an organic artwork dreamed up by the Scottish artist Katie Paterson. It began in 2014 with the planting of 1,000 Norwegian spruces in a patch of forest outside Oslo, and one writer a year is asked to contribute a manuscript to the project. Continue reading...

Fighting since country’s election in July has continued in the highlands, with women and children most vulnerableAn estimated 90,000 people have been displaced by violence in the highlands of Papua New Guinea since May, with about 25,000 children unable to attend school and reports of rape, kidnapping and other violence, say the UN and local officials.The fighting has been related in many cases to the recent national elections, in which around 50 people were killed and schools and other public buildings burnt down. Continue reading...

Film’s sudden disappearance in China prompts censorship accusations amid heightened sensitivity ahead of key Communist party meeting

Commission of Inquiry into Forensic DNA Testing hears police demanded retesting, resulting in profile found to match offender

Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson to announce plan to fund breakfast clubs in every primary schoolLabour will rebuild a new childcare system to ease the pressure on parents from the “end of parental leave right through to the end of primary school”, shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said, starting with a pledge on free breakfast clubs.Phillipson will announce on Wednesday that fully funded breakfast clubs for every primary school in England would be funded by the revenues raised by restoring the top rate of income tax to 45p, if Labour were elected. Continue reading...

Artist dined at Mayfair restaurant almost every night in later years, and would sometimes share a table with co-founder Jeremy KingA portrait by Lucian Freud of the restaurateur behind the Wolseley, the Mayfair establishment where the artist dined nearly every evening in the last few years of his life, is to be sold next month.Freud was completing the etching of Jeremy King when he died in 2011. The two had become friends over a period of about 30 years after Freud began dining at Le Caprice, another King establishment (and a favourite of Diana, Princess of Wales’s), and at the Wolseley when it opened in 2003. Continue reading...

One in five asthmatics had attack as result of cutting back on food, heat or medicine due to costs, survey findsMore than a million people in the UK have experienced life-threatening asthma attacks after cutting back on medicine, heating or food amid the soaring cost of living crisis, a survey suggests.One in five (20%) people living with asthma in the UK – of which there are 5.4 million – have had an attack as a result of changes they have been forced to make due to rising energy, food and household bills, according to the research by Asthma + Lung UK. Fuel poverty campaigners described the figures as “distressing”. Continue reading...

Inmates in England and Wales still held under ‘imprisonment for public protection’ scheme scrapped 10 years agoAlmost 3,000 prisoners in England and Wales stuck behind bars under an abolished “irredeemably flawed” indefinite sentencing scheme should be re-sentenced, MPs and peers have said.The indefinite nature of jail terms under the imprisonment for public protection (IPP) scheme has contributed to feelings of hopelessness and despair that has resulted in high levels of self-harm and some suicides among prisoners, according to the justice select committee. Continue reading...

DMZ trip comes days after North Korea warned that the South and the US risked ‘triggering conflict’ with joint naval drills

ACCC warns outlets against passing on increased excise before running down supplies of half-taxed fuel

Liberal leader urges government to ignore criticism on threshold test for public hearings and says there is ‘no place for corrupt behaviour in public life’

Australia’s drugs regulator issues 73 infringement notices over claims prescriptions could treat conditions such as cancer and epilepsy

60 properties in warning area after privately owned dam’s wall shows signs of structural failure

New role likely to grant prince sovereign immunity in case concerning journalist murdered in Saudi Arabian embassyMohammed bin Salman has been named prime minister of Saudi Arabia in a move that experts said would probably shield the crown prince from a potentially damaging lawsuit in the US in connection to his alleged role in the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday that King Salman was making an exception to Saudi law and naming his son as prime minister, formally ceding the dual title of king and prime minister he had personally held until now. Continue reading...

Communication Workers Union say industrial action will cover Black Friday and the Christmas buildupRoyal Mail workers are to hold a further 19 strikes in October and November in a deteriorating and long-running dispute over pay and conditions.The Communication Workers Union (CWU) announced that the industrial action in the run up to Christmas will be a mixture of single days and rolling action across Royal Mail Group’s network. Continue reading...

While the Labour leader spoke to a party that smells power again, some big obstacles remain in the wayIn Keir Starmer’s first radio interview after becoming Labour leader he was asked what his first priority would be in opposition. From a broad slate of possible responses – social justice, a stable economy, investing in public services – he didn’t hesitate. “To win the next election.”At the time, his answer was, frankly, laughable. Labour had just suffered its biggest election defeat in more than 80 years and the party was divided, exhausted and traumatised by the defeat. But life, and in this case politics, comes at you fast. Continue reading...

Opposition leader says Tories have ‘lost control’ and Labour is now the party of ‘sound money’Keir Starmer pledged to establish a publicly owned energy company in his first year in office as he reflected Labour’s growing hope that the party is on the path back to power.In a conference speech that set out his vision for government, the Labour leader told delegates they must “spend each day” between now and the next election working to earn the trust of the British people, adding: “As in 1945, 1964, 1997, this is a Labour moment.” Continue reading...

Idea of publicly owned energy firm and policies addressing climate crisis go down particularly wellKeir Starmer has hailed a “Labour moment”, describing the party as the “political wing of the people” in his keynote speech at the Labour conference in Liverpool.Setting out his plan for a Labour-run UK, Starmer said the party would establish a state-owned energy company, increase investment in the NHS and would aim to raise home ownership to 70%. Continue reading...

Swedish seismologists says blasts detected near gas pipelines, which are leaking into Baltic sea. This live blog is now closed.

Keir Starmer’s proposals closely match advice given by energy economists and won praise from unions and businessA publicly owned energy company, insulation for every British home, carbon-free power by the end of the decade – the Labour conference showed Keir Starmer putting a low-carbon future firmly at the centre of his economic plans.Crucially, however, these announcements were not just green in intent – they are mainly aimed at tackling the soaring cost of living, and at “levelling up” the UK’s regions. With the world in the grip of a gas crisis while renewable energy has tumbled in price, the real costs of fossil fuel addiction are increasingly clear, and a low-carbon energy system looks the economic choice.A £60bn plan to insulate 19 million UK homes over the next decade, permanently saving about £1,000 per household on energy bills, set out by Ed Miliband.A low-carbon electricity sector by 2030.Boosting fledgling “green” hydrogen technology, through the national wealth fund set out by the shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves.Electric vehicle development, also through the national wealth fund.Adopting green steel technology, to reduce carbon emissions and end reliance on fossil fuels.Moves to decarbonise the UK’s heavy industry. Continue reading...

Party reports significant increase in business interest as Labour continues to perform well in polls

Research by criminologists in 10 towns in England and Wales finds public space orders ‘merely recycle homelessness problem’Dispersing rough sleepers from town centres fails to stop so-called antisocial behaviour and wrongly criminalises homeless people, a study of 10 towns by criminologists has found.Councils in England and Wales using public space protection orders (PSPOs) to levy £100 fines to control or ban behaviours such as drinking, pitching tents and sleeping in public simply see homeless people come back later, according to research by Sheffield Hallam University with recommendations for fairer treatment endorsed by Crisis, the homelessness charity. Continue reading...

Party whip suspended after Labour MP accused of making ‘racist’ comment about chancellor

Leader’s address was a victory lap after marginalising the Corbynite left, and was well received in the hallOccasionally a party conference speech gets remembered and quoted for years, but more often they are largely forgotten soon after conference season and this speech was in the latter category – a standard conference speech, rather than a belter. It was calm, rather than excitable; sensible, rather than audacious; realistic more than inspirational. But after three years of Boris Johnson, and with Liz Truss as PM, there is a lot to be said for calm, sensible and realistic. It was a successful speech for Starmer, in that it did the job.There was policy in it, but the key takeway from the speech – and the feature for which it will be remembered – is what it said about Labour being back in the centre-ground of British politics. Starmer said:Conference, on climate change, growth, aspiration, levelling-up, Brexit, economic responsibility we are the party of the centre ground.Once again, the political wing of the British people, and we can achieve great things. Continue reading...

Banks and building societies pull hundreds of deals in anticipation of further interest rate rises

Attorney general Mark Dreyfus also confirms integrity commission will be able to investigate conduct retrospectively

Tokyo demands apology from Moscow after diplomat subjected to ‘coercive interrogation’ in Vladivostok

Boris Johnson may have failed to meet standard of public life when mayor over links to Jennifer Arcuri, GLA findsEthics rules for the London mayor must be strengthened as Boris Johnson may have failed to meet the standard expected of public figures over his failure to declare personal links to the US businesswoman Jennifer Arcuri, an inquiry into the affair has found.An investigation by the Greater London Authority’s oversight committee said Johnson had opened himself up to “a perception of lack of due process and favouritism” over Arcuri’s inclusion on trade missions in an unofficial capacity. Continue reading...

Passengers heading to Armenia and Turkey amid fears Russia could soon close borders to men of fighting age

Satellite trackers show two of the animals are now ‘well south’ of Tasmania

Dominique Ogilvie, who invested $2.5m with Caddick’s fake company, tells inquest she met another woman who warned her the conwoman was acting illegally

Royal commissioner says inquiry’s focus will be on those who had or should have had oversight over the automated debt recovery scheme

Air force insists standards did not drop as a result of campaign that prompted resignation of group captainThe Ministry of Defence has said “some mistakes were made” following a recruitment drive that prioritised women and minority ethnic groups in an attempt to meet “impossible” diversity targets.It was claimed in August that the head of recruitment for the Royal Air Force deemed it “unlawful” to prioritise women and minority ethnic groups, and had refused to follow recruitment practices that would to prioritise such candidates over white men. Continue reading...

Leader will promise ‘fresh start’ for UK after turbulence of successive Conservative governments in keynote address to conferenceKeir Starmer will attempt to take on the mantle of Tony Blair on Tuesday by describing Labour as the “political wing of the British people” as he accuses the Tories of losing control of the economy and ceding the political centre.In his keynote speech to the Labour conference in Liverpool, Starmer will set out his stall for the next general election by saying his plans show that Labour is once again “the party of the centre ground”. Continue reading...

After a day of volatility, the Bank’s statement was a far cry from the cavalry arriving to help the battered pound

Riccardo Tisci’s fingerprints were all over the high-gothic Victoriana of long, intricate lace dressesThe Burberry catwalk show was perhaps not quite the triumphant moment of upbeat glamour that had been planned for this season’s London fashion week, but it was a blockbuster display of its firepower.When Britain’s biggest luxury brand swiftly postponed its post-pandemic return to the schedule as a mark of respect after the Queen’s death, Burberry’s prime Saturday slot turned into a Monday one sandwiched between Milan and Paris fashion weeks. Continue reading...

Letter undermines Priti Patel’s claim that Albanians arriving with ‘spurious’ claims could be removed quicklyThe Home Office has conceded that it does not have the right to fast-track the deportation of Albanian asylum seekers after their arrival in the UK, in an abrupt policy U-turn.Priti Patel, the former home secretary, signed a deal with the Albanian government in August to return those who arrive illegally. She claimed it meant the UK could quickly return asylum seekers who arrived in the UK and made “spurious” claims. Continue reading...

Backbenchers express concern the new leadership team has already lost them the next election

Untrained conscripts being sent directly to Ukraine frontline, Kyiv claims; UK announces new package of sanctions. This live blog has now closed

Observers expect Giorgia Meloni and Matteo Salvini to float policies inimical to migrants, LGBT rights and abortionsMatteo Salvini, the leader of Italy’s far-right League, has promised that his alliance with Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy will deliver a long-lasting government as Italians began to digest the outcome of an election that delivered the country’s most rightwing government since the end of the second world war.Final results on Monday gave the coalition control of both houses of parliament with 44% of the vote and confirmed the swing in the balance of power in the Italian far-right towards Meloni after her party made spectacular gains in the League’s northern strongholds of Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia. Continue reading...

Boys, 15 and 16, remanded in custody after stabbing of teenager outside school in HuddersfieldTwo teenage boys have appeared in court charged with the murder of 15-year-old Khayri McLean, who was stabbed outside his school on Wednesday.The boys, 15 and 16, were also charged with possession of a bladed article at Leeds youth court on Monday. Continue reading...

Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party is set to lead a coalition; Kremlin welcomes what it calls ‘more constructive’ parties leading Italy

LGTBQ+ activists denounce discrimination at polling stations in Sunday’s general election

Conference also passes motion in support of Labour MPs attending picket lines, in rebuke to Keir Starmer

Call comes as EU consults on whether Google and others should help pay towards soaring infrastructure costsThe bosses of Europe’s biggest telecoms operators including BT, Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom have called for tech firms such as Netflix an Amazon to pay for some of the soaring costs of data fuelled by the global streaming and internet boom.The call from the 16 chief executives comes as the European Commission prepares to launch a consultation into whether technology companies such as Google, Facebook, Netflix and Microsoft should be made to pay some of the soaring costs for the huge amount of global internet traffic they carry on their telecoms networks. Continue reading...