World news | The Guardian

Second stage of the light rail was recommended to be delayed alongside other ‘mega-projects’

Furious winds continue to lash NSW with a severe weather warning issued for damaging gusts of 60-70km/h on and east of the Great Dividing Range

Medium-range rocket systems, helicopters and anti-tank weapons form part of latest US package to help desperate situation in Donbas

Locals who were trying to help rescue residents and feed evacuees clashed with NSW agencies, community witnesses say

Chances of homeownership and higher incomes undermined by pandemic and cost of living crisisThe postwar dream of doing better in life than your parents has faded, with the UK now a country where opportunities for upward social mobility and economic advancement are increasingly limited, research has claimed.It contrasts with the golden age of social mobility enjoyed by the UK in the early years of the Queen’s reign when an expanding economy allowed a generation to take professional jobs and own their own homes. Continue reading...

Doctors say violence now commonplace as surgeries struggle to cope with ‘unmanageable levels of demand’

Policy aims to stem record number of overdose deaths by easing a fear of arrest by those who need helpCanada’s government has announced that it will allow the province of British Colombia to try a three-year experiment in decriminalizing possession of small amounts of drugs, hoping it will help stem a record number of overdose deaths by easing a fear of arrest by those who need help.The policy approved by federal officials doesn’t legalize the substances, but Canadians in the Pacific coast province who possess up to 2.5g of illicit drugs for personal use will not be arrested or charged. Continue reading...

Labour confirms force has been in touch with leader and deputy as part of lockdown gathering investigationKeir Starmer and Angela Rayner have been sent questionnaires by Durham police investigating whether they broke lockdown laws with a gathering for beer and curry on the campaign trail last year.The Labour leader, who has promised to resign if fined for breaching the law, has denied any wrongdoing, saying he and his team were working on the night in question when they stopped for something to eat. Continue reading...

Michael Sussmann cleared of lying to FBI when he pushed information meant to cast suspicions on TrumpA lawyer for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign was acquitted Tuesday of lying to the FBI when he pushed information meant to cast suspicions on Donald Trump and his alleged links to Russia in the run-up to that year’s race.The jury in Michael Sussmann’s case deliberated on Friday afternoon and Tuesday morning before reaching its verdict. Continue reading...

Regulator announces move after postal service’s admission that fifth of first-class deliveries arrived day or more late in year to AprilRoyal Mail is facing a formal investigation by the UK communications regulator after the postal service admitted that almost a fifth of first-class deliveries arrived at least a day late.Ofcom said it would look into Royal Mail’s “failure to meet its delivery targets during the past year” and whether the company was meeting its obligations. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Home Office assessment found that lifting restrictions may lead to more BAME people being stoppedPriti Patel was warned by her own officials that lifting restrictions on police stop and search powers could damage community relations and lead to more people from a minority background being targeted.An equality impact assessment of stop and search options, commissioned by the Home Office, found that making it easier for the police to stop people may lead to more people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds being stopped. Continue reading...

Actor performs in UK for second night in a row while awaiting US defamation lawsuit verdictJohnny Depp has appeared on stage alongside Jeff Beck for a second night in a row ahead of his defamation trial verdict in the US.Concertgoers had expressed hope the actor would appear at the Royal Albert Hall in west London after he made a shock appearance at the Sheffield date of Beck’s UK tour on Sunday – just 48 hours after the jury was sent out to consider its verdict in the multimillion-dollar defamation lawsuit with his ex-wife Amber Heard. Continue reading...

It is unknown if the leg’s owner is alive or dead as no further body parts have been found despite an extensive search

TGA urges GPs to limit prescriptions to approved use for diabetes management amid surge in off-label demand

Canberra trial due to start on Monday but lawyers for Bruce Lehrmann, who has pleaded not guilty, say he needs more time to seek new counsel

Elizabeth Wilson, a former physiotherapist, found by Vcat to have failed in key aspects of her role at Bacchus Marsh hospital

Star enabled suspected money laundering, organised crime, fraud and foreign interference, NSW gambling regulator told

Delay in approving emergency contraception, and the possible $780 cost, reflect priorities of male-dominated parliament, say criticsWomen in Japan could be forced to seek their partner’s consent before being prescribed the morning-after pill, which will reportedly be approved late this year – almost four decades after it was made available to women in the UK.Under Japan’s 1948 Maternal Protection Law, consent is already required for surgical abortions – with very few exceptions – a policy that campaigners say tramples over women’s reproductive rights. Continue reading...

China has almost doubled its incursions this year, as it attempts to keep island under pressureChina has made the second largest incursion into Taiwan’s air defence zone this year with Taipei reporting 30 jets entering the area, including more than 20 fighters.Taiwan’s defence ministry said late on Monday it had scrambled its own aircraft and deployed air defence missile systems to monitor the latest Chinese activity. Continue reading...

New agency established after the black summer bushfires accused of hindering instead of helping disaster response

Body calls for balance between large and small projects, and urges reconsideration of the need for some

Analysis: Airlines have long had strict criteria for flight attendants’ appearance, with some still specifying weight and height

Four assaults in high-rise apartments in Melbourne’s inner north in the 1980s believed to be linked, police say

Beijing’s foreign minister signing bilateral deals with leaders but reporters are blocked, sometimes physically, from asking questionsJournalists covering the Chinese foreign minister’s tour of the Pacific say they have been blocked from filming or accessing events, and that not a single question from a Pacific journalist has been allowed to be asked of Wang Yi.The allegations raise serious press freedom concerns and alarm about the ability of Pacific journalists to do their jobs, particularly as the relationship between the region and China becomes closer. Continue reading...

Emotional prime minister gives first post-election address to caucus and confirms Indonesia visit this weekend

Thousands of NSW and Queensland homes lose power, Adelaide hit by small tornado and Melbourne braces for coldest day of the year

This live blog is now closed, you can find our latest coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war hereThe Tass news agency is reporting that grain is being shipped from Kherson, which the Russians now occupy, to Russia.They quote Kirill Stremousov, deputy head of the military-civilian administration that has been imposed on Kherson, as saying “We have space to store (the new crop) although we have a lot of grain here. People are now partially taking it out, having agreed with those who buy it from the Russian side.”Brigade and battalion commanders likely deploy forwards into harm’s way because they are held to an uncompromising level of responsibility for their units’ performance.Similarly, junior officers have had to lead the lowest level tactical actions, as the army lacks the cadre of highly trained and empowered non-commissioned officers (NCOs) who fulfil that role in Western forces. Continue reading...

Co-leader Rawiri Waititi, whose party is expected to become kingmakers, accuses Act of ‘emboldening racism across the country’ through its rhetoricNew Zealand’s Māori party, Te Pati Māori, which could hold the balance of power at the next election, has ruled out forming a coalition with Act and National, if the rightwing Act party stays its current policy course.The comments came as a series of polls placed Te Pāti Māori as “kingmakers” in the upcoming New Zealand election. Asked by the Guardian whether the party would consider a National-Act coalition, based on current policies and rhetoric, co-leader Rawiri Waititi said: “It’s a no. Absolutely. It’s a hard no.” Continue reading...

Experts have queried a report urging women against ‘laughing gas’ as pain relief during labour due to its environmental impact

Apra warns coming years ‘will be far from plain sailing’ as it flags concern over banking sector’s response to climate change risk

Analysis: It is a worrying sign that, amid the talk of a ‘new cold war’, even the UN is unable to help bridge the divideUN rights chief Michelle Bachelet’s six-day trip to China began with some controversy, and ended with even more. On Saturday, western journalists left the virtual press conference without satisfying answers. Some complained Bachelet had dwelled too much on the US’s human rights problems but not China’s.Knowing a top envoy from the UN would be restrained in her tone and delivery, Beijing took the occasion to say Bachelet’s trip was an opportunity “to observe and experience first-hand the real Xinjiang”. State media claimed that Bachelet had expressed “admiration” for China’s progress on human rights, only to be met with the UN’s own statement denying she had ever said it. Continue reading...

Two-thirds of imports will be banned and Sberbank ejected from Swift but Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia to keep suppliesThe European Union has agreed to a partial embargo on Russian oil after late-night talks at a summit in Brussels.The president of the European Council, Charles Michel, hailed the deal as a “remarkable achievement”, after tweeting on Monday night that it “immediately covers more than two-thirds of oil imports from Russia, cutting a huge source of financing for its war machine”. Continue reading...

Information commissioner says indiscriminate gathering of details is undermining trust in justice systemPolice and prosecutors have been told to stop the mass collection of personal information from rape victims or face being fined by the UK’s data watchdog.The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said they must immediately stop getting complainants in rape and serious sexual offence cases to sign forms, known in England and Wales as Stafford statements, which give officers general consent to obtain often highly sensitive third-party materials, including medical, education and counselling records. Continue reading...

Ten-year decline has caused sharp rise in waiting times for A&E, ambulances and surgeryThe NHS has lost almost 25,000 beds across the UK in the last decade, according to a damning report that says the fall has led to a sharp rise in waiting times for A&E, ambulances and operations.The Royal College of Emergency Medicine said the huge loss of beds since 2010-11 was causing “real patient harm” and a “serious patient safety crisis”. At least 13,000 more beds are urgently needed, it added, in order to tackle “unsafe” bed occupancy levels and “grim” waiting times for emergency care and handover delays outside hospitals. Continue reading...

Agreement to provide contingency travel services terminated over layoffs of nearly 800 seafarersMinisters have cancelled a contract with P&O Ferries after it sacked nearly 800 seafarers without notice in March.The Home Office announced that the agreement with the Border Force agency would come to an end with “immediate effect”. Continue reading...

Journalist was in an evacuation vehicle in Sievierodonetsk, the largest city in Donbas still in Ukrainian hands

Shadow Treasury secretary asks Office for Budget Responsibility to examine Rishi Sunak’s emergency cost of living measuresLabour has called for an independent assessment of whether Rishi Sunak’s £21bn cost of living emergency package could cause inflation to rise even higher and a verdict on the fiscal impact of substantial borrowing.Pat McFadden, shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, wrote to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to ask it to analyse the impact of the measures. Continue reading...

Even people who take sugar seem at lower risk, say experts, but results may be due to coffee drinkers being more affluentPeople who drink coffee – whether with or without sugar – appear to have a lower risk of an early death, although experts caution the finding may not be down to the brew itself.About 98m cups of coffee are drunk every day in the UK, according to the British Coffee Association, with the National Coffee Association revealing that in the US the figure is about 517m cups. Continue reading...

Several Tory MPs believe the 54-letter threshold has been reached and that a challenge to PM could be mounted as soon as next weekBoris Johnson’s lurch to the right after Partygate is fuelling even more anger among rebel Tory MPs, with momentum now building for a leadership challenge next week.Conservative whips spent the first day of recess anxiously phoning round the parliamentary party to shore up support for the prime minister, as four more MPs called on him to resign, including Jeremy Wright, the former attorney general. Continue reading...

Ex-Labour minister tells Hay festival that the involvement of former leaders in the ‘next phase of politics’ may not be sensibleEd Balls has said former prime ministers such as Tony Blair and David Cameron should not attempt to return as “figureheads for the next phase of politics”.The former cabinet minister’s comments addressed Blair’s upcoming Future of Britain conference, which is seen as an attempt to reinvigorate centrist politics in the UK by taking inspiration from the success of La République En Marche, the recently created centre-left party that brought Emmanuel Macron to power in France. Continue reading...

Earthquake on Monday was third quake with a magnitude of greater than two to hit UK within 24 hoursA 3.8-magnitude earthquake has been recorded in the centre of Shropshire, the third quake to hit the UK within 24 hours.The British Geological Survey (BGS) said the earthquake hit just to the east of the town of Wem at a depth of 7km (4.35 miles) at 2.36pm on Monday. Continue reading...

David and Edward King stabbed Neil Charles to death after he was allegedly seen trying to steal from the older man’s carA father and son have been found guilty of murdering a suspected thief in a vigilante killing.David King and his 19-year-old son Edward King murdered Neil Charles after seeing him trying car door and house handles in Bury St Edmunds in June last year. Continue reading...

French journalist is killed near Sievierodonetsk; EU leaders fail to agree on a Russian oil import ban

People told to look out for 'new spots, ulcers or blisters on any part of their body’ as UK cases reach 179A further 71 cases of monkeypox have been detected in England, the UK Health Security Agency has said.The latest cases, as of 29 May, bring the total number confirmed in England since 7 May to 172. There are currently four confirmed cases in Scotland, two in Northern Ireland and one in Wales, taking the UK total to 179. Continue reading...

Moscow has threatened retaliation if missiles are used against its territory but US plans to ship shorter range systems

Mark Rowley and Nick Ephgrave still in running for commissioner, after three other applicants eliminatedThe search for a new Metropolitan police commissioner has been whittled down to a final two: Mark Rowley, a former head of counter-terrorism, or Nick Ephgrave, currently part of the embattled force’s top leadership.The process of picking Cressida Dick’s replacement has hastened, with the three other applicants being eliminated before any interviews took place. Continue reading...

With some airlines struggling to cope with the half-term holidays, what should you do if your plans are disrupted?Holidaymakers have seized the opportunity of school half-term holidays and the Queen’s platinum jubilee bank holidays to take long-awaited trips abroad, but many have met with long queues at airports and cancelled flights. So what is going on, and what can those who’ve had their plans disrupted do? Continue reading...

In the wake of partygate, turning to issues popular with the Tory faithful is a likely placation strategyIt is a moment often seen in the downward trajectory of embattled prime ministers: a whirl of new policy ideas intended to appeal to voters, but which are in fact more often aimed at placating their own MPs. Boris Johnson is, some would argue, approaching this point.Recent days have seen Downing Street brief in favour of grammar schools and imperial measurements. Earlier weeks saw forays into other Conservative comfort zones, including bashing the EU and talking up fossil fuels. Continue reading...

North Yorkshire and Sunderland leaders among those calling for PM to step down amid Partygate falloutRishi Sunak’s local council leader is among a growing number of senior Conservatives calling for Boris Johnson to step down as party members lose patience with his leadership.Carl Les, the Conservative leader of North Yorkshire county council, said he thought it was time for a leadership election, blaming Boris Johnson squarely for heavy losses in the local election. Continue reading...