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Arkansas-born showman – known as ‘The Hawk’ – cut his teeth on the South’s tough 50s circuit but settled in Canada where he nurtured local talentRonnie Hawkins, the Arkansas-born rock’n’roll legend who mentored the young Canadian and American musicians later known as the Band, has died.Hawkins, described in tributes as the most important rock’n’roller in Canadian history, died at the age of 87 after an illness, his wife, Wanda, said on Sunday. Continue reading...

Tweet about Wellington water feature drew light-hearted responses from MPs and the public, with one saying: ‘There’s a fine line between iconic and crap’The husband of New Zealand’s British high commissioner has announced his loathing of the Wellington bucket fountain, a well-known and polarising water feature that graces the centre of the nation’s capital.Toby Fisher, husband of British commissioner Laura Clarke, tweeted: “After 4 years in Wellington, it’s time to be straight with you all, this is the crappiest fountain ever.” Continue reading...

Country could double spending and acquire ‘first-strike’ capability in shift away from defensive postwar postureWeeks after he became Japan’s prime minister last year, Fumio Kishida pulled on a dark green bomber jacket, the hinomaru flag emblazoned on his sleeve, and climbed into a tank.Official photos show him displaying an awkward smile for his audience at Camp Asaka – the men and women of the the country’s Self-Defence Forces – an indication, perhaps, that postwar Japanese leaders and military hardware have not always been easy bedfellows. Continue reading...

Rivals Gustavo Petro will face Rodolfo Hernández on 19 June amid growing discontent over inequality and inflationColombia’s election will go to a runoff between two opposing anti-establishment candidates on 19 June after voters on Sunday were unable to pick a president outright.Gustavo Petro, a leftist former guerrilla and onetime mayor of Bogotá, won the largest share of the vote, with 40%, but fell short of the 50% required to win outright and prevent a second round. Petro’s rival in the runoff will be Rodolfo Hernández, a business magnate and social media firebrand, who is viewed as a conservative, populist outsider. Continue reading...

Gathering was said to have taken place on PM’s birthday but not included in Sue Gray’s reportLabour has called for an investigation into leaked text messages suggesting there was a second gathering in Boris Johnson’s Downing Street flat during lockdown, held by his wife, Carrie, on his birthday.The emergence of new evidence of an event hosted on 19 June 2020, which was not mentioned in the Partygate report by Sue Gray, sparked accusations of a cover-up and calls for No 10 to “come clean”. Continue reading...

New homeowners face deadline two months earlier to access government-backed equity loanFirst-time buyers who want to take advantage of the government’s help-to-buy scheme will have to reserve a property by the end of October, it has emerged – two months earlier than had been expected.The scheme, which offers an equity loan to buyers to enable them to buy a new-build property with a deposit of just 5%, is set to end in March 2023 – a decade after it was launched to kickstart the housing market after the financial crisis. Continue reading...

Hundreds of thousands turn out for nine-mile victory parade despite defeat to Real MadridA victory parade planned three weeks in advance always promised to be a hostage to fortune. In the end though it didn’t matter that Liverpool had won two trophies instead of four, nor that they fell agonisingly short of European glory on Saturday night, as hundreds of thousands of fans welcomed their heroes home on Sunday.Liverpool’s players danced alongside the DJ Calvin Harris as their open-top bus was met with fireworks, flares and flags on a raucous lap of honour around the city, where fans hung from traffic lights as helicopters hovered above. Continue reading...

Influencers working across TikTok, YouTube and Instagram face wildly varying rates of payFor social media influencers, success comes in units of thousands and millions – but for many of them that is followers, not pounds.This month, MPs recommended that the government investigate pay standards in the industry as part of a wider review of the influencer market, citing inconsistent pay rates and evidence of a racial pay gap. Continue reading...

Witnesses say they feared for their lives as French police fired teargas into the crowds ahead of Champions League finalThe families of Hillsborough victims have likened the “terrifying” treatment of Liverpool fans at the Champions League final to the disaster that scarred the city 33 years ago.Witnesses described seeing people scared for their lives, with children “trembling with fear”, as French police fired teargas into crowds outside the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday night. Continue reading...

Opinion divided among shoppers and traders in Shrewsbury at prospect of moving away from metric systemMatt Tandy is feeling the pressure. He may be the manager of a fabric and craft shop, but he’s also only 26 years old. As such, being asked whether he thinks three yards is longer or shorter than 2.5 metres is causing him undue stress.“This is the one I need to get right, don’t I?” he says before sighing with relief when his answer – three yards is in fact longer – is correct. Nearby, a shopper more advanced in years smirks at Tandy’s hesitancy. Continue reading...

A deal to placate Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, could allow pipeline imports via Ukraine

Jon Boutcher, former head of the Bedfordshire force, has been told his application will no longer be consideredA police chief who criticised his colleagues for failures on racial justice has been ousted as a candidate to be the next commissioner of the Metropolitan police.Jon Boutcher, the former head of the Bedfordshire force and a former Met senior counter-terrorism detective, applied three weeks ago to succeed Cressida Dick as Britain’s top officer. But the Guardian has learned that he has been told by the Home Office that his application will no longer be considered. Continue reading...

Parents said he had been able to celebrate with other children for the first time since suffering life-changing injuries in 2019 attackA boy who was thrown from the 10th floor of the Tate Modern in London has been able to celebrate his birthday with other children for the first since the attack.The French boy, who was aged six at the time, suffered life-changing injuries in the attack by teenager Jonty Bravery in August 2019. In an update on his recovery, his parents said he had been able to invite classmates and a friend from their former neighbourhood to celebrate the day. Continue reading...

Prof Kerry Carrington had spoken to media after giving evidence about police culture at inquest of murdered Logan woman Doreen Langham

Case to test the limits of outsourcing in sector amid concern about food standards in some facilities

David Littleproud and Darren Chester make the case for a refresh in wake of Coalition rout

Israeli media estimated around 25,000 people took part in contentious annual flag march through Muslim parts of the Old CityThousands of Israeli religious nationalists have paraded through Muslim parts of the Old City of Jerusalem, putting the city on edge after violence during the same event last year helped spark an 11-day-war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian militant group in the Gaza Strip.The annual flag march, in which religious nationalists enter the highly symbolic Damascus Gate and walk through the Muslim Quarter waving Israeli flags, takes place around sunset on what Israel calls Jerusalem Day, the celebration of the capture and annexation of East Jerusalem in the 1967 war, a move that is not internationally recognised. Continue reading...

Predicted wind gusts could cause fire to jump containment lines as crews in New Mexico try to stop growth of US’s biggest wildfireWarnings of critical fire conditions are peppered across much of the US south-west this weekend, as crews in northern New Mexico worked to stop the growth of the nation’s largest active wildfire.Two fires that merged to create the largest wildfire in New Mexico history have both been traced to planned burns set by federal forest managers as preventative measures, federal investigators have announced. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Formal extradition is to be pursued if actor fails to come back to the country voluntarilyBritish authorities are pursuing the return of Kevin Spacey from the US to face sexual assault charges.An official familiar with the process told the Guardian the UK would seek the actor’s formal extradition unless he decided to come back voluntarily. Continue reading...

Children’s author says she told her elderly mother to get rid of it as she was terrified of being mistakenly shotThe children’s author, Dame Jacqueline Wilson, has said her elderly mother slept with a gun beneath her pillow.Wilson, creator of the Tracy Beaker series, told an audience at the Hay festival in Wales that she was the daughter of a character more colourful than any she had written – and that she was terrified her mother might shoot her by accident, and persuaded her to get rid of it. Continue reading...

Trump’s presidency saw three new rightwing judges, each backed by the powerful gun lobby movementAs the world looks on in horror following mass killings in Buffalo, New York and Uvalde, Texas, the US supreme court is set to issue its first major ruling on gun rights in over a decade.And with a conservative super majority now installed on the bench, most onlookers expect a substantial broadening of second amendment rights in the country despite the widespread revulsion at the latest shootings in a supermarket and a school. Continue reading...

Jean-Luc Mélenchon criticises ‘confrontational policing’ at Paris final, saying country seems ill-prepared for future eventsFrench opposition politicians have criticised the government over policing at the Champions League final in Paris on Saturday night, saying the chaotic scenes showed a poor image of France.Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the radical left leader, whose left alliance is seeking to win seats in forthcoming parliament elections, said the “lamentable” and “worrying” scenes suggested France and its security services were not prepared for sports events such as next year’s Rugby World Cup or the 2024 Paris Olympics. Continue reading...

Vladimir Kara-Murza’s wife Evgenia says Russian president will fall over war in UkraineVladimir Kara-Murza’s wife Evgenia thinks he will have been like a “hurricane contained inside a bottle” since he was arrested on 11 April in Moscow and held in pre-trial detention over a speech he had made in Arizona criticising the war in Ukraine.“He has so much energy, so many ideas, and initiatives, that being contained within the four walls of a prison will be the hardest part for him,” said Evgenia, who has not been allowed to speak to him. Continue reading...

Processing times remain lengthy, despite ministers pledging 700 more staff to deal with backlogFamilies are suffering a nailbiting, up-to-the wire wait this weekend as they face the prospect of having to cancel their half-term holiday plans as ongoing Passport Office delays put trips abroad at risk.The summer half-term break starts on Monday for much of the UK but a backlog of passport applications has caused months of delays, with some people now set to miss their holiday bookings. Continue reading...

Privileges committee looks set to report in October, when Boris Johnson will be aiming to win back members’ trustA House of Commons inquiry over whether Boris Johnson misled MPs over Partygate is on course to coincide with a Tory party conference already seen as crucial in resetting his leadership.The prime minister appeared to have survived any immediate threat to his leadership in the wake of last week’s Sue Gray report on Downing Street parties, which revealed damning details of rule-breaking, drunkenness and abuse of No 10 staff during Covid lockdowns. Continue reading...

Senior figure warns that man mentioned 24 times in Sue Gray report would be ‘representing the Queen’ as ambassador to Saudi ArabiaSenior Tories are warning Boris Johnson against appointing an official at the heart of the Partygate scandal to a top diplomatic job after it emerged that the man was being lined up to be Britain’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia.Martin Reynolds quit as Johnson’s principal private secretary in February following outrage about Partygate. He left after an email emerged in which he had invited hundreds of Whitehall staff to a “bring your own booze” party in the Downing Street garden in May 2020. Continue reading...

Bushmaster reportedly destroyed in fighting in Ukraine; nation records 30 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed

Critics warn chancellor Rishi Sunak will raise only a fraction of planned £5bn if firms offset new investment against profitsNorth Sea oil and gas companies that already benefit from huge tax breaks could use fresh rules to slash how much they pay under a new windfall tax announced by Rishi Sunak as part of his £15bn cost of living package, according to a thinktank.The chancellor risks raising a fraction of the £5bn he expects from the complex scheme – which allows the cost of new investments to be offset against profits – should oil and gas companies take the opportunity to dramatically reduce their contribution to the exchequer, said the left of centre Common Wealth. Continue reading...

US secretary of state says conditions imposed on Michelle Bachelet prevented independent assessment of abuses against Uyghurs, including genocideUS secretary of state Antony Blinken has expressed concern over China’s “efforts to restrict and manipulate” the visit of the UN’s top human rights official to the Xinjiang region.“The United States remains concerned about the UN high commissioner for human rights Michelle Bachelet and her team’s visit to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and PRC efforts to restrict and manipulate her visit,” Blinken said in a statement on Saturday. Continue reading...

Funding will repair seawalls and buildings, improve wharf access and remove contaminants over the next four years

Prime minister says he will treat Peter Dutton with respect: ‘I never underestimate my opponents’

Army and Red Cross said the notorious Allied Democratic Forces were behind the attack in the country’s eastAt least 27 civilians have been killed by members of a notorious rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, the army and Red Cross said.The Kivu Security Tracker (KST), which monitors violence in the region via a team of experts on the ground, posted on Twitter to say that at least 27 civilians were killed in Saturday’s attack by the rebel Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). Continue reading...

Senior civil servants allegedly urged Gray to omit names and some details of Covid rule-breakingDowning Street officials have been accused of attempting to dilute Sue Gray’s report into the Partygate scandal, with demands to anonymise staff who broke coronavirus rules and to change how the so-called “Abba party” was reported.Partial drafts of the findings were allegedly circulating in No 10 the day before the final report was handed over on Wednesday, the Sunday Times reported. Continue reading...

Russia’s defence ministry says town of Lyman is now under full control of its forces, after days of fighting

Met assistant commissioner will ask Home Office why he was overlooked for top jobNeil Basu has said he will be demanding an explanation from the government about why he was overlooked to be the next leader of the National Crime Agency (NCA).The Met assistant commissioner, 53, said he would not be reapplying to be director-general after the application process was reopened. Continue reading...

With the Nationals now out of power, we examine the Albanese government’s promises and priorities for the bush

Open letter signed by more than 100 actors and public figures urges end to entertainment industry’s ‘entrenched’ ageismActors including Juliet Stevenson, Meera Syal, David Tennant and Zawe Ashton have called for better onscreen representation of women older than 45 to fight against the “entrenched” ageism of the entertainment industry.In an open letter signed by more than 100 actors and public figures, the Acting Your Age Campaign (AYAC) called for equal representation in the UK between men and women over 45 and urged immediate action on a “parity pledge”. Continue reading...

As support among some European allies appears to waver, Kyiv calls for advanced rocket systems to hit Russia’s supply lines

Laboratory chief blames Brexit for closure as money for corvid brain power research dries upOne of Britain’s most important, and unusual, centres for studying cognition is facing imminent closure as a result of Brexit. Set up 22 years ago to study the minds of crows, rooks and other birds noted for their intelligence, the Cambridge Comparative Cognition Laboratory is set to cease operations in July.Its director, Professor Nicola Clayton, told the Observer she was devastated by the prospect of ending her research there. Nor was she in any doubt about the prime reason for the centre’s closure. Continue reading...

Animal Justice Project protesters who scaled roof at expo in County Durham say they were confronted by angry farmersAnimal rights activists have scaled the roof of a national beef industry event in protest against the meat industry.The demonstration, which began in the early hours of Saturday, is said to have resulted in one protester being taken to hospital after chaos unfolded outside Darlington Farmers Auction Mart (DFAM) in County Durham. Continue reading...

Minister says PM in ‘yellow card territory’ after Sue Gray’s Partygate report as more MPs hand in letters of no confidence

The great poet’s newly released missives to his lost love put the lie to his aloof image – but were dismissed by the man himself as fantasyTo many who knew him, TS Eliot was considered a remote and intellectually aloof man, as perhaps befitted the author of the bleak and foreboding epic The Waste Land. His contemporary, the poet Siegfried Sassoon, went as far as to describe him as “cold-storaged humanity”.But previously unpublished letters show that the great modernist writer was actually an intensely emotional and passionate man. Continue reading...

Strategic town in eastern Ukraine was bombarded by missile and aircraft strikes before being taken on Saturday

Public health authorities are following up with those who have had close contact with the personThe first confirmed case of monkeypox in Ireland has been identified, the Health Service Executive (HSE) has said.The infection was reported in the east of the country on Friday night and the person affected was not kept in hospital. Continue reading...

Ferry was carrying 43 people when it capsized after running out of fuel in bad weather in the Makassar StraitTwenty-six people are missing after a ferry ran out of fuel and sank in bad weather off the coast of Indonesia, officials have said.The country’s search and rescue agency said the vessel was carrying 43 people when it capsized on Thursday in the Makassar Strait, the sea separating the islands of Sulawesi and Borneo. Continue reading...

Vincente Gomes is a cousin and former colleague of Emanuel Gomes, who died after going into work with a feverA government cleaner has described how he and his colleagues feel powerless to refuse difficult situations such as clearing up after parties, amid alleged maltreatment and low pay.Sue Gray’s report on the Partygate scandal disclosed that government cleaners and security guards were subjected to a “lack of respect and poor treatment” while officials drank excessively, spilled wine on the walls and partied into the small hours. Continue reading...

Dr Omar Khorshid calls on commonwealth to work with states as union protests ambulance ramping and staffing shortages in NSW

Scant details released apart from promises of infrastructure support, amid western concerns that China is seeking to expand its security presence in regionSamoa signed a bilateral agreement with China on Saturday, promising “greater collaboration”, as Beijing’s foreign minister continues a tour of the Pacific that has sparked concern among western allies.The deal’s details are unclear, and come midway through a Chinese delegation’s eight-nation trip – but an earlier leaked draft agreement sent to several Pacific countries outlined plans to expand security and economic engagement. Continue reading...