World news | The Guardian

UK mining company reveals break-up plan in bid to avoid takeover by Australia-based BHP

Major shortfalls predicted over next two years as Jim Chalmers downplays potential for inflationary pressures

Plea comes as US secretary of state makes first visit to Ukraine since new aid package was passed by Congress

A surplus matters less than what choices the government makes in its budget - here's what Jim Chalmers' statement tells us

Defence says approved spending for Australia's acquisition of subs so far totals $13.6bn

With many NHS maternity services struggling and a shortage of midwives, MPs' plan for overhaul is ambitiousThat the findings of the UK's first inquiry into birth trauma are far from surprising does not diminish the fact that they are shocking, devastating and difficult - indeed distressing - to read. The all-party parliamentary group (APPG) for birth trauma's 80-page report should give ministers, NHS bosses and the midwives and obstetricians who deliver care serious pause for thought.It highlights how mistakes and failures" by maternity staff lead to stillbirths, premature births, babies being born with cerebral palsy because they were starved of oxygen at birth, and life-changing injuries to women as the result of severe tearing". How some mothers were mocked, shouted at, denied pain relief, not told what was going on during their labour, left alone in blood-stained sheets, with desperate bell calls for help going unanswered - all examples of care that lacked compassion". And how, in some cases, these errors were covered up by hospitals who frustrated parents' efforts to find answers". It amounts to a shameful catalogue of negligence in the only area of NHS care where two lives - one still unborn - are on the line. Continue reading...

Dubliners urged to give Irish welcome' via interactive sculpture but bad behaviour is also on displayRain sluiced down on a grey Dublin afternoon but the crowd clustering around the portal ignored the downpour and waved at a man cycling towards the screen on a sunny morning in Manhattan.He gazed back, waved and wobbled before recovering his balance and vanishing down Fifth Avenue, eliciting a cheer from the sodden observers on North Earl Street. Continue reading...

So-called minister for common sense says she wants to ban wearing of rainbow lanyards among other measures

UK birth trauma inquiry finds women variously mocked, ignored, fobbed off with paracetamol and left permanently damagedWomen in labour have been mocked, ignored, fobbed off with paracetamol and left with permanent damage by midwives and doctors, and hospitals have covered up their staff's failures, a damning report by MPs has found.Mothers have been left with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), unable to bond with their baby and too incapacitated to go back to work because of horrendous experiences while having a child, the UK's first inquiry into birth trauma found. Continue reading...

Letter sent to defence minister and IDF chief says assault on city appears to be nothing short of recklessness'The parents of more than 900 Israeli soldiers deployed in Gaza have signed a letter urging the military to call off its ongoing offensive in Rafah, calling it a deadly trap" for their children.It is evident to anyone with common sense that after months of warnings and announcements regarding an incursion into Rafah, there are forces on the other side actively preparing to strike our troops," says the letter, sent on 2 May. Continue reading...

Former chancellor plans to join online retailer owned by the billionaire Barclay family in June

Notorious alleged jihadi changed from a peaceful convert after being influenced by an inflammatory' brand of Islam, a magistrate has heard

Creatives at Jamaica Street Studios fear building will be snapped up by a developer if they don't raise funds in time

Police Scotland's Jo Farrell says other agencies need to step up' and allow officers to focus on core dutiesPolice Scotland is overwhelmed" by the appalling" demands made on officers by failing mental health services and a court system that requires complete reform, according to its chief constable, Jo Farrell.The first woman to lead Police Scotland, the UK's second largest force, Farrell took command of the national service last October. Continue reading...

As Putin's forces press towards ruined Chasiv Yar, Ukrainians try to survive under bombardment in the shadow of the frontlineFor months, Serhiy Gorbunov has been trying to persuade residents of Chasiv Yar, Russia's current target in eastern Ukraine, to leave. There's intense shelling. The place is being bombarded. It's a difficult situation," he said. People are living underground in basements. We tell them: Please go.' They answer with excuses. Most say they don't want to abandon their homes. We try to help but they refuse."Gorbunov is the head of the city military administration in Kostiantynivka, the nearest functioning city to the frontline. That is 7 miles (11km) from his office, reached via a dusty and potholed back road that climbs up to the heights of Chasiv Yar. The Russians, who have been besieging the town for well over a year, have now reached its eastern outskirts and are trying to surround it. Continue reading...

Results put Gitanas Nausda ahead but he will face Ingrida imonyt in a run-off election on 26 MayLithuania's president, Gitanas Nausda, appears on course for a second term after an election dominated by the war in Ukraine and fears over neighbouring Russia.Nausda was ahead with 46% after almost all votes from Sunday's election had been counted while prime minister Ingrida imonyt had 16%. As no candidate won more than 50% the pair will head to a run-off election on 26 May. Continue reading...

Temperatures reach as high as 26.5C on Sunday but warm and sunny spell could be over by Monday morningWeather warnings for rain have been issued across the UK after the hottest day of the year so far.Temperatures reached as high as 26.5C (79.7F) on Sunday but the Met Office has said the recent warm and sunny spell could end by Monday morning. Continue reading...

Heavy bombardment and airstrikes reported in devastated north while clashes also seen in south as tens of thousands flee Rafah

Unseasonably cold weather had slowed UK season, but sunny spell has helped crop grow like stink'Shoppers angered by discovering imported asparagus on supermarket shelves during the short British season for the vegetable are expected to receive a fillip after a sudden burst of sunshine helped the domestic crop.Supermarket shoppers had complained after finding asparagus grown in mainland Europe and the Americas on sale during the peak" British season. Continue reading...

Secretary of state Antony Blinken defends decision to pause bomb delivery to Israel: We have real concerns about the way they're used'On Sunday, more families, estimated in the thousands, were leaving Rafah as the Israeli military pressure intensified. Tank shells landed across the southern Gaza city as the army gave new evacuation orders covering some neighbourhoods in the centre of Rafah, which borders Egypt. Israel yesterday called for Palestinians in more areas of Rafah to head to what it calls an expanded humanitarian area in al-Mawasi, a narrow strip of coastline at the southernmost end of the territory. But there are grave concerns for the security of those fleeing to the area, which aid workers say is packed with hundreds of thousands of displaced people who have already overwhelmed inadequate supplies of food, clean water and healthcare. Sanitation barely exists, leading to the rapid spread of disease.The UK's foreign secretary, David Cameron, has said it would be wrong for Israel to carry out a major offensive in Rafah without a plan to protect people". For there to be a major offensive in Rafah, there would have to be an absolutely clear plan about how you save lives, how you move people out the way, how you make sure they're fed, you make sure that they have medicine and shelter and everything," the former Conservative prime minister told Sky News. We have seen no such plan ... so we don't support an offensive in that way," he added, echoing similar statements by the US. The closure of the Rafah border crossing to Egypt, the difficulties of reaching the Kerem Shalom crossing because of the fighting, a lack of transport because of fuel shortages and the flight of key workers mean almost no aid is reaching southern and central Gaza.The UN secretary general, Antonio Guterres, urged for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and an immediate surge in humanitarian aid" into the besieged Gaza Strip. But a ceasefire will only be the start," Guterres told a donor conference in Kuwait. It will be a long road back from the devastation and trauma of this war," he said.Palestinians reported heavy Israeli bombardment overnight in the Jabaliya refugee camp and other areas in the northern Gaza Strip, which has suffered widespread devastation. Residents said Israeli warplanes and artillery struck across the camp and the Zeitoun area east of Gaza City.On Sunday, more families, estimated in the thousands, were leaving Rafah as the Israeli military pressure intensified. Continue reading...

Survivors pick through debris-littered streets and damaged buildings as rescue workers dispatched amid warning some areas cut off by floodingMore than 300 people were killed in flash floods that ripped through multiple provinces in Afghanistan, the UN's World Food Programme said, as authorities declared a state of emergency and rushed to rescue the injured.Many people remained missing after heavy rains on Friday sent roaring rivers of water and mud crashing through villages and across agricultural land in several provinces, causing what one aid group described as a major humanitarian emergency". Continue reading...

Leaflet instructs Palestinians to leave southern Gaza city as Benjamin Netanyahu shuns pressure from Joe BidenTens of thousands of Palestinians were fleeing Rafah, Gaza's southernmost city, on Saturday, after Israeli warnings to evacuate before an imminent military assault that will open a bloody new phase of the seven-month-long conflict.Roads leading out of Rafah were choked with long columns of young and old, sick and healthy, riding in overloaded pick-up trucks and battered cars, in pony carts and on hand-pulled trolleys. Many walked, carrying their belongings, under a searing summer sun. Some were pushed in wheelchairs or even carried. Continue reading...

Academics call for government to avoid inflaming situation but Jewish students say they want to feel safeAcademics have called on the government to avoid inflaming" the situation on British campuses, as students protest against the war in Gaza and their universities' links to Israel.Some senior staff accused Rishi Sunak of scaremongering" by summoning vice-chancellors to Downing Street last Thursday to urge them to take personal responsibility" for protecting Jewish students. Continue reading...

Speeches by Cameron, Lammy and Miliband all depicted a darkening world but differed on where to find alliesIn a TikTok world it's rare that three big foreign policy speeches come along all at once, all trying to chart a new course for the UK in a more perilous world, and all written by someone christened David.But it says something for how foreign affairs dominates so much political thinking currently that speeches this week by David Cameron, the foreign secretary, David Lammy, his shadow, and David Miliband, Labour's non-resident foreign policy guru, all required attention. Continue reading...

Competing rallies are on the streets, Netherlands' entrant is under investigation and others complain music is being overshadowedThe official motto of the 68th edition of Eurovision is united by music", but as the continent's beglittered and sequined masses descended on the Swedish city of Malmo for Saturday's grand final, music's ability to heal and bridge divides was looking in serious doubt.In the run-up to the song contest's main event, the Netherlands' performer Joost Klein missed his slot in two dress rehearsals after being put under investigation by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) due to an unexplained incident". Continue reading...

Actions of Netanyahu's government have sparked international anger and made a long-threatened diplomatic tsunami' real

Raj Sidpara charged after body of bubbly, caring' Tarnjeet Riaz found at address in east LeicesterA 50-year-old man has been charged with the murder of Tarnjeet Riaz, a 44-year-old woman described by her family as a bubbly, caring and funny character".Raj Sidpara was charged by Leicestershire police after Riaz's body was found at an address in Thurnby Lodge, east Leicester, on Monday. Continue reading...

Victoria police wrote to university vice-chancellors saying there was a strong likelihood' of violence if pro-Palestine encampments continued to grow

Lawyers were due to open their case after Lynn, 57, pleaded not guilty to murdering the pair in March 2020

MP for Stratford-on-Avon, former chancellor and Conservative party chair will not seek re-electionNadhim Zahawi, a former chancellor under Boris Johnson, has become the latest Conservative MP to announce he will not be standing again at the general election.First elected in 2010, Zahawi said on Thursday he had come to feel that the time is right for a new, energetic Conservative to represent Stratford-on-Avon". Continue reading...

Force says Right Care Right Person scheme has saved 34,000 officer hours but concerns lead to calls for it to be pausedThe Metropolitan police have said their refusal to routinely go to mental health calls means officers can spend more time at crime scenes, but charities say the policy could endanger lives.Six months ago the Met introduced a scheme called Right Care Right Person, aiming to cut the time officers spent dealing with mental health calls, which it said was diverting the force from fighting crime. Continue reading...

Online fashion retailer cut over 1,000 jobs in year to February amid competition from rival Shein and resurgent high streetBoohoo has cut more than 1,000 jobs and dived into debt after its losses soared and sales slumped 13% amid heavy competition from the Chinese online seller Shein and the revival of the high street after the pandemic lockdowns.The online fashion specialist, which owns Debenhams, Warehouse, Dorothy Perkins and Pretty Little Thing, said it had built up net debts of 95m in the year to the end of February - down from almost 6m of net cash a year before - after losses widened 76% to 160m and sales fell to 1.8bn. Continue reading...

National Crime Agency says it has identified Russian national behind dangerous cybercrime groupThe alleged leader of what was once the world's largest ransomware outfit, LockBit, has been named as Russian national Dmitry Khoroshev by the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA), after the seizure of the criminal gang's infrastructure.Khoroshev, who lived his online life under the name LockBitSupp, has been sanctioned by the UK, US and Australia as a result of the unmasking. Continue reading...

Collection of more than 1,000 fossils including rare dinosaurs given to National Museum in Rio six years after devastating blazeNearly six years after it was engulfed by a devastating fire that inflicted incalculable damage on Brazil's cultural heritage, the country's national museum has received an important donation of more than a thousand fossils as part of a campaign to help rebuild the collection lost to the flames.The fire, caused by an electrical short-circuit on the night of 2 September 2018, consumed the former imperial palace which housed the 200-year-old museum in a park just north of Rio de Janeiro's city centre and destroyed about 85% of its archive of 20m artefacts. Continue reading...

New SNP leader seventh to hold the office, vacated after Humza Yousaf axed deal with GreensThe new Scottish National party leader John Swinney will become Scotland's seventh first minister after winning the backing of MSPs.As is traditional, opposition leaders stood against Swinney in the vote, which he won just eight days after Humza Yousaf dramatically announced his departure, with the backing of 64 SNP MSPs, while the seven Scottish Greens abstained. Continue reading...

Chinese premier has lunch with Emmanuel Macron before heading to Serbia on his closely watched trip to Europe. This live blog is closedChina hacked UK ministry: reportThe Chinese state has hacked the British ministry of defence, Sky News reported this morning. Continue reading...

Sector wants tax cuts, better buying incentives and more electric charging points as sales in EVs stallCar manufacturers have called for urgent action to reignite the switch to electric vehicles, after sales figures showed slowing demand among ordinary motorists for battery-powered cars.While overall UK registrations grew by 1% in April year-on-year to 134,000, the increase was caused by fleet sales, with private buyer sales down by almost 18% on last year. Continue reading...

Oil company to maintain pace of share buybacks despite impact of falling gas prices

The new premier had little relief from cost-of-living pressures for single people, couples without children and older Victorians

Education minister doubles down on need for states to do more for students with a disability, in the wake of Guardian Australia investigation

Turnaround is likely to redouble calls on Benjamin Netanyahu not to go ahead full-scale offensive on Rafah

Exclusive: Acting inspector removed from role after ethical standards command investigation into high-ranking officers' social media use

Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno widely expected to win poll as observers voice doubts over electoral processChad goes to the polls on Monday in its first presidential election in three decades without Idriss Deby, the former president, in contention.Ten men will be on the ballot, but Deby's son, Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, who seized power at the head of a junta on the day rebels shot and killed his father in April 2021, is widely expected to win. Continue reading...

About 52,000 people are eligible under the scheme, but a government spokesperson said Kigali would accept thousands'Rwanda has admitted it cannot guarantee how many people it will take from the UK under Rishi Sunak's deportation scheme.The east African country did not give assurances that the estimated 52,000 asylum seekers in the UK who are eligible to be sent to Kigali would be accepted, instead saying it would be thousands". Continue reading...

Carly Kind's comments come after major leak of customer data collected by IT provider for NSW and ACT clubs

Midwives and social workers will also be given $320 weekly payment for undertaking mandatory work placements at university

People around the world have sent the book, with their personal stories, to Edinburgh for an installation to mark its publication 75 years agoCopies of George Orwell's dystopian masterpiece Nineteen Eighty-Four have been arriving at an artist's studio in Edinburgh for months. Every shape and size, posted from Ukraine, Hong Kong, Peru, Germany, Cape Cod and Sarajevo.Some are in mint condition, others dog-eared, tea-stained, heavily annotated or turned into graffitied art works. One is a water-stained first edition; one is a secret love letter from a married woman to her first love; another, a graphic novel version, came from Orwell's son Richard Blair. Continue reading...

Area around Rio de Janeiro beach filled for several blocks as singer closes her Celebration world tourMore than a million people have thronged Brazil's Copacabana beach for a free Madonna concert, braving the heat to see the end of her Celebration world tour.The sand and oceanfront boulevard around Rio de Janeiro's famed beach were filled for several blocks on Saturday night by a crowd the city estimated at 1.6 million. Continue reading...

Measure to ensure student debts can't outpace wage growth by retrospectively capping indexation rate for loans

Family devastated' by fatal stabbing of 14-year-old while he walked to school, as Arsenal remember him at Emirates StadiumThe family of Daniel Anjorin have issued a statement paying tribute to their son, as Arsenal led tributes to the teenager, who was fatally stabbed as he walked to school.Daniel, a 14-year-old Arsenal fan, was attacked with a sword in Hainault, east London, and suffered fatal wounds to his neck and chest. Continue reading...