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Amid claims of dirty tricks, Aleksandar Vučić has held on to the presidency, but activists are saying he is silencing opponentsDemocracy watchdogs and civil society activists in Serbia have warned that the country is sliding towards autocracy under President Aleksandar Vučić, who was elected for a second term this month with a large majority.After a campaign marred by reports of widespread bribery, intimidation and gerrymandering, Vučić won 60% of the presidential vote. The outcome of the parliamentary and Belgrade city elections, however, is still unclear. The opposition is waiting for courts to decide whether balloting will be repeated in areas where they have raised complaints of severe irregularities. As a result, a new government will not be formed for several months. Continue reading...

Each week we ask experts to break down a political advertisement: who are the candidates trying to reach, and are they succeeding?

Person Five told the court he sent Victoria Cross recipient a confidential document about evidence he gave to the Australian Defence Force

Comedians such as Nish Kumar say they have noticed a change since crowds have returned to clubsIt was halfway through a show in Shrewsbury when Nish Kumar noticed an audience member being disruptive. It became so bad that he asked the man to leave, and on his way out the man turned to the comedian.“He shouted: ‘To be completely honest with you, my friend bought these tickets, and I thought I had tickets to see Romesh [Ranganathan],” Kumar said. He responded by explaining to the audience why the comment could be construed as racist and moved on. Continue reading...

Morrison says he’s sorry for comments about autistic children – maybe he is just relieved he doesn’t have to rely on a system that’s failing those that need it most

Obamas’ media company Higher Ground reportedly seeking new partnerBarack and Michelle Obama are leaving Spotify amid reports of frustration over the terms of their multimillion dollar deal to exclusively make podcasts with the streaming giant, according to Bloomberg.The Obamas announced in 2019 they would partner exclusively with Spotify to release podcasts through their media company Higher Ground, in a deal rumoured to be worth $25m. Renegades: Born in the USA, Barack Obama’s show with musician Bruce Springsteen, and The Michelle Obama Podcast, have both been successes for Spotify. Continue reading...

Analysis: As Russian troops turn to Donbas, Ukraine’s pleas for munitions continue

Savings are worth the extra time, say some shoppers, though the increased carbon footprint does cause some uneaseTins of spaghetti, soap, pasta shells and raw almonds: purchases more commonly carted into New Zealand homes by shopping trolleys and car boots than jetted on international flights. But as prices hit new highs, shoppers are taking drastic measures – including ordering groceries for delivery from Australia.“It’s almost like Christmas,” said Belinda*, a Wellington woman who said she now regularly ordered groceries online from across the Tasman to supplement her local shopping. Browsing Australian groceries, she said, she was startled by the range of products and how much cheaper they were than those stocking New Zealand shelves. Continue reading...

PM says sorry for remark during leaders’ debate after claiming that opponents ‘twisted’ his words

The attorney general said changes were not being considered, despite the issue now being front and centre in the Coalition’s campaign

Leigh James Pattinson was acquitted of seven counts of aggravated sexual assault but found guilty of intentionally choking the womanA Sydney man accused of ignoring a safe word during consensual sex has been cleared of rape but found guilty of choking with recklessness.Leigh James Pattinson faced a judge-alone trial in the New South Wales district court on nine charges relating to the 2019 incident. Continue reading...

Agency says mandate for public transportation ‘remains necessary for the public health’ after judge voided itThe Department of Justice is filing an appeal seeking to overturn a judge’s order that voided the federal mask mandate on planes and trains and in travel hubs, officials said Wednesday.The notice came minutes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) asked the justice department to appeal the decision handed down by a federal judge in Florida earlier this week. Continue reading...

Australian Paramedics Association says demand dramatically outstripping availability as it announces month-long industrial action over staff shortages

Spawning event goes wrong near colossal coral bommie dubbed Ayers Rock

Police called by ambulance service to incident on Pollard Street in Ancoats area at about 6.30pm on WednesdayA man has died and another has been injured during a double stabbing in Manchester.Greater Manchester police said officers were called by the ambulance service to an incident on Pollard Street in the Ancoats area at about 6.30pm on Wednesday. Continue reading...

PM made comments on plane en route to India where he will seek to deepen trade tiesBoris Johnson has cast doubt on the prospects for a negotiated peace in Ukraine, comparing it to holding talks with a “crocodile”, as he flies to India to discuss the conflict with prime minister Narendra Modi.Speaking on a plane en route to India, where he will seek to deepen trade ties, as well as discussing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the prime minister suggested it would now be impossible for Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s government to trust Russia in any talks. Continue reading...

Government changes tack and attempts to delay investigation until after the full publication of Sue Gray reportBoris Johnson has been forced to abandon efforts to block an inquiry into whether he misled MPs over Partygate lockdown breaches, instead urging rebellious MPs to delay any investigation.Government whips scrambled on Wednesday night to derail a Labour motion designed to trigger a Commons inquiry into whether Johnson lied about rule-breaking in Downing Street – including the potential release of hundreds of damaging messages and photographs. Continue reading...

Only handful of rebels vote against government to support Lords amendmentsThe actor Juliet Stevenson has made an 11th-hour plea to Conservative MPs voting on the government’s controversial immigration bill on Wednesday to “be brave and vote with your heart, not with your party membership card”.Stevenson has urged MPs who are backing the nationality and borders bill to instead back Lords amendments in support of refugees. Continue reading...

Brexit opportunities minister raises possibility of dramatic intervention after Stormont assembly electionsThe UK will “reform” the Northern Ireland Brexit protocol if the EU will not, Jacob Rees-Mogg has warned, raising the possibility of a dramatic intervention after the assembly elections in a fortnight’s time.The Brexit opportunities minister said he could not reveal any more due to the sensitivities of the Stormont election in Northern Ireland, where tensions have flared over the protocol. Continue reading...

Former Labour leader does not blame Nato for Russian invasion but questions role of military alliancesThe former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he hoped military alliances like Nato could be ultimately disbanded, saying they could create “greater danger” in the world.In comments that are likely to inflame further tensions with Labour HQ, Corbyn said he did not blame Nato for the Russian invasion of Ukraine but that it had to be looked at in historical context. Continue reading...

Murder investigation launched after bodies of men and woman foundThree people have been found dead at a home in Buckinghamshire in what police believe to be a “targeted attack”.A murder investigation has been launched after the bodies of a man and woman in their 60s and another man in his 50s were discovered in Spring Gardens, Bourne End on Tuesday evening. All three victims were understood to be known to each other. Continue reading...

Prime minister refuses to apologise for reported comments about archbishop and denies criticising BBC’s Ukraine coverage

Downing Street refuses to deny PM told MPs archbishops were being unfairly critical as church figures defend Justin Welby

Marine commander appeals for help as another Russian ultimatum calling for remaining troops in city to surrender expires

Providers say they continue to face severe staffing challenges and ‘are not aware of any data that reflects this level of growth’

While business groups celebrate change to isolation rules, some experts remain cautious

English Heritage announce bid to stage world’s largest gathering of people dressed as a vampire at site that inspired Bram StokerYou will need black shoes, black trousers or skirt, a white shirt, waistcoat and a black cape. Fangs on the upper teeth are compulsory, pallid skin helpful and a murderous demeanour optional.English Heritage has announced plans to break a world record few knew needed breaking: it wants to stage the world’s largest gathering of people dressed as a vampire. Continue reading...

IOPC condemns stops based on ‘stereotypes and racial bias’ and cites case of teenager reportedly stopped 60 timesPolice abuse of their stop and search powers is so serious that black people need “protecting” from stereotyping and racial biases, the police watchdog said, as it revealed allegations one child was stopped 60 times.The Guardian understands the force concerned was the Metropolitan police which is alleged to have stopped the teenager so often he was left traumatised. He was sometimes searched multiple times in the same day over two years, starting in 2018 when he was aged 14. Continue reading...

Union of Jewish Students raised concerns about recent NUS social media postsNadhim Zahawi, the education secretary, said he was worried by allegations of “systemic antisemitism” within the National Union of Students, telling MPs that the government may sever links with the organisation unless it reforms.Zahawi’s intervention follows concerns raised by the Union of Jewish Students, including a social media posts by the NUS’s incoming president, Shaima Dallali, that invoked an historic assault on Jews in the Middle East. Continue reading...

Announcement follows outcry over strip search of girl by Metropolitan police officers at the London schoolThe headteacher of the school where Child Q was unjustly strip-searched by police has stepped down due to ill health, the school has announced.The east London secondary school made the announcement in a letter to parents at the start of the new term, telling them that a replacement head had already been appointed. Continue reading...

Company expects to lose 2 million more over the next quarter as subscribers rethink commitment to streaming servicesShares of Netflix lost more than 35% of their value in New York on Wednesday morning, after the streaming giant announced it had lost more than 200,000 subscribers in the first three months of the year and said it and expects to lose 2 million more over the next quarter.The sharp drop in value – the largest for the service in over a decade – comes as subscribers rethink their commitment to streaming services that grew their numbers sharply during the homebound months of peak lockdown. Netflix had anticipated it would add 2.5 million customers in the first quarter. Continue reading...

Duke of Sussex unsure if he will attend platinum jubilee, citing ‘security issues and everything else’The Duke of Sussex has said he wants to ensure that his grandmother, the Queen, is “protected” and has the “right people around her”, adding that he does not yet know if he will return to the UK to celebrate her platinum jubilee because of “security issues and everything else”.During an interview with US network NBC’s Today Show , Prince Harry, who met the Queen for tea last week, did not elaborate on whether he was referring to palace aides or the royal family. Continue reading...

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Irene Silsby describes terrible pain after fracturing pelvis at Rutland care home and waiting to go to hospitalA woman has described how she spent more than six hours of her 100th birthday waiting in agony for an ambulance after slipping and fracturing her pelvis while getting ready for a family lunch.Irene Silsby was due to be picked up by her niece, Lynne Taylor, for a celebration to mark her centenary on 9 April. But she fell in the windowless bathroom of her care home in Greetham, Rutland, and staff called an ambulance at 9am after she managed to summon help. Continue reading...

Shelling and strikes in Donbas increasing but Russians hampered by logistical problems, Ministry of Defence claims

War critics grow increasingly vocal while state media fuels hatred for the west

The story of the real-life escape from Stalag Luft III in 1944 is to be told at the London venue used as an internment camp for ‘enemy aliens’ during the first world warThe story behind the audacious 1944 escape from the Luftwaffe’s Stalag Luft III prison camp is to be retold in a new play at London’s Alexandra Palace, which was itself used as an internment camp for German, Austrian and Hungarian “enemy aliens” during the first world war.Tom, Dick and Harry will recount the breakout of 76 allied airmen from the camp at Sagan in Germany (now Żagań in Poland) which inspired the 1963 film The Great Escape, featuring an all-star cast and a thrilling though fictitious motorbike exploit for Steve McQueen. The play is written by Theresa Heskins, Andrew Pollard and Michael Hugo with Heskins also directing. Continue reading...

Actor takes stand in defamation trial and denies Heard’s domestic abuse claims, saying ‘I have never struck any woman in my life’Taking the stand in his libel lawsuit against his ex-wife Amber Heard, Johnny Depp said her domestic abuse allegations against him were disturbing, heinous and “not based in any species of truth”.“Nothing of the kind ever happened,” Depp said in court on Tuesday. “Never did I myself reach the point of striking Ms Heard in any way. Nor have I ever struck any woman in my life.” Continue reading...

Latest updates: the prime minister apologises for breaking Covid lockdown rules but Labour says the public ‘don’t believe a word he says’

Streaming giant blames factors including increased competition, war in Ukraine and the number of people who share their loginsNetflix lost subscribers for the first time in 10 years at the start of the year and said it expects to lose even more in the spring, sending its share price crashing again on Tuesday.The streaming giant’s share price initially fell close to 20% on news that ​​it had lost 200,000 subscribers globally during the first quarter. Wall Street had been expecting the company to add 2.5 million subscribers. Netflix expects to lose 2 million global subscribers in the current quarter. Continue reading...

Aiden Aslin’s relatives say he is speaking under duress and was legitimate combatant with Ukraine

Stephen Watson spoke of how force had dealt with grooming gangs and ‘things that would not be done now’One of the UK’s biggest police forces has historically failed children and was “borderline incompetent” in the way it previously dealt with organised grooming gangs, its current chief constable has said.Stephen Watson, the head of Greater Manchester police, last week apologised in person to three women who were victims of gangs in Rochdale more than 10 years ago. It came with “substantial” damages and after a long, attritional campaign to get the force to admit failures. Continue reading...

MPs will vote on whether the privileges committee should look at PM’s alleged misleading of CommonsA vote will be held later this week on whether a special parliamentary investigation should be launched into Boris Johnson’s Partygate denials.Separate from the Whitehall and police inquiries, this would specifically look at if the prime minister purposely misled parliament. Continue reading...

Federal health data shows 4,547 people have died of Covid-19 this year to date, compared to 2,239 over 2020 and 2021

Under state law, sex workers can be evicted, refused accommodation and charged higher rents or fees

Albanese’s disapproval rate rose by five points but over half of all respondents still believe Labor will win the next election

Despite the release of 80,000 extra packages, thousands of people are still waiting for adequate in-home care

Maritime agency found issues with crew’s training, fire safety and lifeboat drills on European CausewayMaritime inspectors listed an unprecedented 31 separate failings on a P&O Ferries vessel detained last month, ranging from problems with fire safety to lifeboat drills.Inspectors for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) refused to allow the European Causeway to keep sailing from Larne, Northern Ireland, after discovering issues with labour conditions, navigation and documentation. Continue reading...

Country takes pride in limited-edition design featuring soldier giving middle-finger salute