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PM’s revelation has been criticised by the opposition, with Labor leader Anthony Albanese labelling the news as ‘extraordinary’

The British School at Rome set up grievance panel after staff and alumni complained of a ‘divisive atmosphere’A taxpayer-funded charity that runs a prestigious art school in Rome has been accused of failing in its duty of care after allegations of mismanagement, a “toxic” working environment and unfair working practices.The British School at Rome (BSR) launched an inquiry after 24 staff, former employees and alumni complained about the charity’s operations in April 2020 to its trustees. It was alleged that staff were suffering “physical and mental health issues” because of poor working conditions. Continue reading...

Report says sidelining of parliament by Tory government has further eroded trust in political systemA dramatic loss of faith in the ability of British democracy to serve the interests of UK voters is revealed in a new report that finds that donors to political parties and big businesses are now commonly viewed by the electorate as the main drivers of government policy.Disturbing evidence that millions of voters feel their voices and views go largely unheard while big money interests hold most sway is uncovered in the latest report by the IPPR thinktank, in collaboration with the Observer, on the future of democracy. Continue reading...

Will bullying claims against the PM, and independents demanding climate action, damage conservatives’ chances of holding on to power?• Scott Morrison: frustrated, frazzled and under siege

Star proposes in Detroit while singing lyric ‘let’s get married’, before ceremony performed by label co-founderJack White surprised fans by marrying the musician Olivia Jean on stage during his Detroit homecoming show on Friday.The Detroit-born singer, songwriter and producer invited Jean onstage to join his performance and introduced her as his girlfriend. Continue reading...

The bestselling novelist wrote 85 books, mostly thrillers and spy stories, using the pseudonym Jack HigginsHenry Patterson, the bestselling novelist who wrote the The Eagle Has Landed, has died aged 92.The writer died at his home in Jersey surrounded by his family, his publisher HarperCollins said. Continue reading...

Former speaker says treasurer Josh Frydenberg should authorise corporate regulator to decide claims under compensation scheme for defective administration

Unlike Queensland and New South Wales, Victoria has no culturally specific family violence refugesZara* believes she and her children wouldn’t be alive today were it not for the support she received while at a family violence refuge in New Zealand tailored to her cultural needs.“The mainstream refuge didn’t understand the seriousness of abuse the ethnic women go through,” Zara said. “I have been told by my own family, community and society to reconcile so many times and every time the abuse worsens.In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 1-800-273-8255 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org Continue reading...

Senior party figures think the furore over the chancellor’s US green card and his wife’s tax affairs have put an end to his chancesSenior Conservatives have written off Rishi Sunak as a potential prime minister – and now believe Boris Johnson will have to remove him as chancellor in his next reshuffle – following the furore over his US green card and his wife’s tax affairs.One former Tory minister told the Observer that the fear among Conservative MPs with small majorities was that the party was now in a “death spiral” with its two leading figures – the PM and chancellor – both having lost respect among voters. Continue reading...

Prime minister found to have broken the law by supreme court after attempt to stop vote going aheadPakistan’s prime minister, Imran Khan, has lost a no-confidence vote in parliament after a dramatic week in which he violated the constitution in an effort to stop the move going ahead.Khan, Pakistan’s former premier cricketer turned pious Islamist politician, has been fighting for his political life for weeks, after he lost his parliamentary majority. Continue reading...

Ivan Fedorov, the exiled mayor of occupied Melitopol, says the battle for Donbas is also a fight for global security

While investigators uncover the remains of civilians, heartbroken families wait nearby to reclaim their loved ones

Gun battle in occupied West Bank leaves at least one Palestinian militant dead, according to Israeli and Palestinian accountsIsraeli troops on Saturday raided the home town of a Palestinian who carried out a deadly shooting in Tel Aviv, causing a gun battle in the occupied West Bank that left at least one Palestinian militant dead, according to Israeli and Palestinian accounts.The arrest raid was the latest in a series of events that have escalated tensions during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Clashes and protests in Jerusalem last year helped spark an 11-day war with Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. Continue reading...

Premier League champions’ global partner Marathonbet is one of around 20 firms cleared to operate in RussiaManchester City football club faces scrutiny over its official global betting partner Marathonbet, which is approved by the Kremlin for its gambling operations in Russia.Marathonbet, which was established in Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan in 1997, is one of around 20 firms approved in Russia for betting, according to Kremlin federal tax office documents seen by the Observer. Continue reading...

The Patriarchs – An Elegy shared via royal social media accounts on first anniversary of Duke of Edinburgh’s deathThe royal family have shared a poem in tribute to the late Prince Philip on the first anniversary of his death.The elegy was written by the poet laureate Simon Armitage and shared via official royal social media accounts on Saturday. Continue reading...

Adrian Chesters, a Briton who was rescued on Saturday, says his son Nathen died while they were adriftThe 14-year-old son of a British man is believed to have died following reports that he went missing on a diving trip in Malaysia.Adrian Chesters, 46, reportedly told the Malaysian coastguard his son Nathen, who has Dutch nationality, had died while they were adrift. Following a dive off the coast of Mersing, in the southern state of Johor, on Wednesday, the group surfaced but were unable to find their boat. Continue reading...

Two leaders will ‘discuss UK’s long-term support to Ukraine’ and Johnson will set out new aid package, says No 10Boris Johnson is meeting the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy during an unannounced visit to Kyiv, Ukrainian officials have said.A picture posted on Twitter by the embassy of Ukraine to the UK showed the two leaders sitting across a table in the capital, with their respective flags in the background. Continue reading...

Soaring energy and food prices caused by war in Ukraine could hand the EU’s ‘illiberal’ leaders a major boostFor a brief moment, it looked like the longstanding love affair between most of Europe’s rightwing, nationalist, anti-immigration and EU-critical politicians with Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin would prove a fatal mistake. Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine has certainly embarrassed them. But so far at least, it does not appear to have done them terminal harm.A newcomer to the scene, France’s Eric Zémmour, whose extreme Islamophobic rhetoric has done much to make Marine Le Pen seem reasonable, has seen his poll ratings plunge in part because of his previous avowed admiration for Moscow. But Le Pen, despite extensive cosying-up to Putin (including at least one Kremlin meeting with the Russian president, support for his annexation of Crimea, and campaign loans from Moscow banks) has barely been affected by it at all. Continue reading...

In Lithuania, Russians commuting to Kaliningrad come face-to-face with photographs of bombed Ukrainian cities and bloodied bodies

Leader Anas Sarwar is confident of gains in May elections, amid predictions the party could come second to SNPWith a brisk and bracingly cold sea breeze buffeting the red, green and yellow trade union flags in bright sunshine, the protest at P&O’s Scottish ferry port had the air of a labour movement revivalist rally.Union leaders railed against P&O’s bosses and the Conservative government in Westminster, demanding legal action and boycotts, applauded by Labour’s leader in Scotland, Anas Sarwar, who then led the march to the shuttered P&O terminal at Cairnryan on the Irish Sea. Continue reading...

Thousands take to the streets to call for the resignation of president Gotabaya RajapaksaAs thousands of angry cries and anti-government slogans filled the streets of the Sri Lankan city Colombo on Saturday, Chanda Upul stood quietly nearby, desperately pushing his wares of soft drinks and bottled water on protesters. But in his heart he was chanting along with them.As Sri Lanka has descended into its worst financial crisis since independence, with food, fuel, medicine and electricity becoming increasingly scarce, and calls for the president Gotabaya Rajapaksa – frequently referred to as Gota – to step down, 50-year-old Upul, who lives in a poor northern suburb of the city, is among those who have been pushed to the brink of survival. Continue reading...

Charges for taking out £250 at an overseas ATM can be as high as £15, but there are ways to avoid themUsing a typical credit or debit card to withdraw cash on an overseas break could mean paying costly and unnecessary fees. But shop around before you go and you could avoid paying over the odds.The financial firm Moneyfacts say a holidaymaker taking out £250 from an overseas ATM will typically face charges of £11.88. The same withdrawal on a credit card would typically attract £14.95 in fees, before interest. Continue reading...

High rates of staff absences due to Covid and fallout from P&O Ferries scandal contribute to disruption over busy spring breakHolidaymakers looking to get away for Easter are facing major disruption to travel, as airlines cancel more than 100 flights a day because of staff shortages and ferry operators struggle to meet demand following the suspension of P&O Ferries services.The rise in passenger numbers over the spring break has coincided with high rates of staff absences due to the latest wave of Covid infections. Continue reading...

Governor issues warning as US says Moscow likely planning to deploy tens of thousands of soldiers in east

Aviation authority has imposed zero-tolerance policy and says incidents have soared since 6 January Capitol attackAn American Airlines passenger who allegedly pushed a flight attendant and spat at crew members has been hit with the biggest fine ever issued by US aviation regulators, and another fine topping $75,000 (£57,500) was issued to a Delta Air Lines passenger who bit a fellow passenger after trying to hug and kiss another.Since January 2021 when the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) imposed a zero-tolerance policy, the agency has proposed fines of about $7m for disruptive passengers. Two new fines issued on Friday were the highest yet. Continue reading...

Tornado with speeds of up to 114mph swept up sheep and caused extensive damage to farm in PennalStrong winds that caused “at least £100,000” of damage to a farm in north Wales have been confirmed as a tornado by experts.The extreme weather struck Gogarth Hall Farm in Pennal on Wednesday, uprooting trees and lifting a ewe and lambs into the air. Continue reading...

Chancellor obfuscated while imposing steep tax rises on ordinary Britons, says shadow ministerRishi Sunak and his family potentially avoided paying tens of millions of pounds in taxes through his wife’s “non-dom” status while the chancellor imposed tax rises on the public, Labour has said.The chancellor’s wife, Akshata Murty, gave in to mounting pressure on Friday, announcing she would pay UK taxes as Sunak’s position began to appear increasingly tenuous. Continue reading...

Tony Ikin, a dog breeder, had been travelling to Royal Easter Show when his car was submerged at CobbityA UK-born man has died after being caught in flood water on the outskirts of Sydney.The body of the 68-year-old was found in his van on Friday morning at Cobbity about 43 miles south-west of Sydney’s central business district, New South Wales police said in a statement. Continue reading...

Analysis: While the chancellor says his wife paid all UK taxes due, pressure is building over what he hasn’t said about their financesRishi Sunak is under huge pressure over his financial affairs and those of his wife, Akshata Murty, the daughter of an Indian billionaire who made his money in IT. These are the key unanswered questions: Continue reading...

Scott Morrison takes credit for saving 40,000 lives from Covid in social media video; prime minister expected to call federal election this weekend; hundreds of NSW residents still under evacuation orders; NSW records 10 Covid deaths; seven Covid deaths in Victoria; Queensland reports two virus deaths; police officer and driver killed in Victoria crash. This blog is now closedExclusive: Schools chaplaincy provider bans cohabitation and ‘sexually intrusive’ behaviour in staff’s private life

Anthony Albanese says Labor the underdog and prime minister treating the election as a ‘game’

Staff shortages, delays and rising prices are playing havoc with the healthcare, education, farming, hospitality and travel sectorsAlthough the UK no longer faces the threat of lockdowns or intensive care units being imminently overrun, coronavirus is still disrupting much of society and the economy.As Britain learns to live with Covid, the virus is still playing havoc with our daily lives, and these difficulties have been compounded by post-Brexit chaos in some in sectors. Continue reading...

On a two-day visit, tales emerge of killings and looting by a demoralised invasion forceThe day the Russians arrived in the sleepy, windswept village of Staryi Bykiv, they killed six men. By the time they had departed 32 days later, the soldiers had carried out at least three more killings, destroyed the school, systematically looted dozens of houses and turned much of the central street into a wasteland of charred buildings and rubble.The images from Bucha, west of Kyiv, have shocked the world and intensified Ukrainian anger over the Russian invasion, but the story emerging in harder-to-access small towns and villages east of the Ukrainian capital suggests those war crimes are far from an anomaly. Continue reading...

Three divers and their instructor had been unable to find their boat after surfacingA British man and a French woman were rescued in Malaysia on Saturday three days after going missing while diving, but the Briton’s son was still missing, police said.The trio and their instructor got into trouble on Wednesday after they surfaced from a dive near a southern island but could not find their boat. Continue reading...

Volodymyr Zelenskiy likens missile strike to Bucha atrocities after dozens die at train station where civilians were being evacuated to safety

Frustrated travellers complain of backlog at HM Passport Office prompting many to cancel breaksTravellers are being forced to cancel Easter travel bookings because of a backlog at HM Passport Office which is delaying renewals.Some passengers have been left hundreds of pounds out of pocket because their new passports failed to arrive before their departure date. Continue reading...

Houston, who resigned as global senior pastor last month, attacks church he founded in online postThe founder of Hillsong, Brian Houston, has accused the megachurch of “losing its soul” and says his wife has been made redundant by the church’s board “through no choice of her own”.Houston resigned last month from the megachurch he founded in Sydney two decades ago after internal investigations found he had engaged in inappropriate conduct of “serious concern” with two women. Continue reading...

PM also agrees with view that some Covid rules appear ‘inhumane’ in retrospectBoris Johnson has agreed with the view of one of his minister’s that some Covid regulations appeared “inhumane” in retrospect, while arguing it was impossible to rule out another lockdown in the future.In an interview with GB News conducted by two backbench Tory MPs, Philip Davies and Esther McVey, Johnson also argued that “a lot of nonsense” had been said about lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street. Continue reading...

Covert flow of information from BND enabled Konrad Adenauer to cement his hold on power, historians revealGermany’s first democratically elected chancellor used the country’s foreign intelligence service to systematically spy on his biggest political rivals for almost a decade, a group of independent historians tasked with researching the formerly West German spy agency’s history have discovered.The covert and illegal flow of information between the offices of Konrad Adenauer and the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND) chief, Reinhard Gehlen, enabled the conservative politician to cement his hold on power through accurate insider knowledge on the campaign strategies, parliamentary manoeuvres and internal power struggles of the Social Democratic party (SPD), which led the opposition in the Bundestag at the time. Continue reading...

Dmitry Muratov posts picture and says his assailant shouted ‘here’s one for our boys’ in assault on train

Decision taken after MPs rejected draft bill is seen as humiliating defeat for chancellor Olaf ScholzThe German government has buried its plans to introduce a coronavirus vaccine mandate after parliament rejected it, but says further restrictions may be inevitable to protect more vulnerable citizens.MPs voted against the draft bill on Thursday, which had it passed would have made it compulsory for over-60s to receive a vaccine, in what is seen as a humiliating defeat for the chancellor, Olaf Scholz, who has long been calling for the legislation. Continue reading...

Emerging footage adds weight to sense that number of deaths is far greater than officials admit

Lockdown had been due to end on Tuesday, leaving residents unprepared to be indefinitely houseboundStories of desperation are emerging in Shanghai as the city enters its third day of strict lockdown, with increasingly widespread reports of residents being unable to access food, medicine and other essentials.The city’s Covid lockdown was extended indefinitely earlier this week after staggered restrictions failed to contain infections. City officials had promised the staggered lockdown would end on 5 April, leaving many residents of the Chinese megacity unprepared to be indefinitely housebound. Continue reading...

Second adjournment prolongs agony of Afghans Amir Zahiri and Akif Rasuli, serving 50-year sentences for piloting a migrant boatMEPs appalled by “shocking” legal proceedings against two Afghans convicted of people smuggling in Greece have vowed to raise the issue with the European parliament.Lawmakers who had flown into Lesbos for a scheduled appeals court hearing of the asylum seekers on Thursday – the second in three weeks – were outraged when judges again adjourned the case, prolonging the agony of the refugees, who are currently serving 50-year prison terms. Continue reading...

Staff were uneasy after Koci Selamaj booked room at his estranged wife’s workplace, but police did not attendStaff at a hotel were uneasy about the behaviour of Koci Selamaj and called the police hours before he murdered Sabina Nessa, but officers failed to attend, it has emerged.On the day of the killing, Selamaj, 36, a petrol station worker who lived in Eastbourne, booked a £300-£400 room at the Grand hotel in the seaside town, where his wife, Ionela, worked. Continue reading...

Despite Covid deaths and enduring drug violence, voters look poised to keep president in office in referendum he supportsMaria de Lourdes loves her leader and is desperate for him to stay.“He’s the best president we’ve had in 70 years,” the retiree enthused this week as she prepared to bombard her phone contacts with calls urging them to back him on Sunday, when Mexico goes to the polls. Continue reading...

The AFL-CIO is leading a coalition demanding Fifa address concerns around human and labor rights at the 2026 World Cup in United States, Canada and MexicoThe US’s largest federation of labor unions is leading a coalition demanding Fifa address concerns around human and labor rights at the 2026 World Cup in US, Canada and Mexico and commit to minimum standards on these issues.The 2022 World Cup in Qatar to be held later this year has already been marred in egregious human rights and labor violations, including the deaths of thousands of migrant workers who were brought into the country to build stadiums and infrastructure for the event, evidence of forced labor, reports of withheld wages, exorbitant recruitment fees charged to workers, and paltry pay. Continue reading...

PM expected to visit governor general this weekend to trigger mid-May election after court refused to hear appeal against ‘captain’s picks’