The UK health secretary refused to rule out imposing tougher Covid restrictions in England before Christmas, after warnings that hospitalisations could peak at up to 10,000 a day without further action.Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, Javid acknowledged that the data on Omicron remained incomplete - but suggested it might be necessary to make decisions before a full picture is available
Urban and rural regions submerged as rivers burst banks after heavy downpours since FridayMore than 30,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in Malaysia as the country battled some of its worst flooding in years.The tropical nation in south-east Asia often experiences stormy monsoon seasons towards the end of the year, with flooding regularly prompting mass evacuations. Continue reading...
Video shared on social media shows anti-lockdown protester criticising MPs who voted for Covid curbsPiers Corbyn has been arrested on suspicion of encouraging people to burn down MPs’ offices.The Metropolitan police said a man in his 70s – whom they did not name – was arrested in Southwark, south London, in the early hours of Sunday. Continue reading...
by Lisa O'Carroll Brexit correspondent on (#5T6V0)
Resignation of Brexit minister led to fevered online reaction – and blue on blue fire in a Tory chat groupBrexit minister Lord Frost’s late Saturday night resignation prompted frenzied reaction on social media including a lively row on a Conservative party Whatsapp group ending with culture secretary Nadine Dorries being deleted by former chair of Brexit supporting backbenchers in the European Research Group.Some welcomed Frost’s departure, others immediately went to leadership questions. Continue reading...
by Bethan McKernan and Quique Kierszenbaum in the sou on (#5T6T2)
Participants in a West Bank immersive language project tell of the strong bonds being forged that counter the rise in settler violenceIn the plywood hut in which Palestinian Iman al-Hathalin and her family have lived since their home was bulldozed by the Israeli authorities in 2014, the warmth from a rickety samovar is welcome. Outside the only window, the winter sky is blinding white: it floods the room with an icy light and sends shadows dancing up the flimsy walls.Everyone has been ill lately, it seems, including Hathalin’s two-year-old daughter, who sleeps fitfully on her lap, and Maya Mark, her Arabic-speaking Israeli guest. “It is not exaggerating to say Maya is like my sister,” Hathalin said. “I was so worried when she was sick. We are family.” Continue reading...
He is one of Hollywood’s hardest working and well-liked actors. As the next instalment of his epic Matrix series hits the big screen, Tom Lamont meets the famously thoughtful starKeanu Reeves covers his face with both hands. Long bands of the actor’s straggly, jet-black hair flit from side to side as he shakes his cradled head. Reeves, who is 57, has a new Matrix movie out soon. It will be the first instalment in that famous sci-fi series since the turn of the century, when a visually splendid trilogy – The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions – shook blockbuster cinema to its foundations. I have just been telling him what an unforgettable outing that first Matrix movie was for me, back in 1999, when I saw it in a packed, noisy cinema full of people who couldn’t sit still for excitement. I’ve also just admitted to Reeves that, when The Matrix Resurrections is made available later this month, via various platforms, I’ll probably stream it at home, probably on a laptop.I only intend this as a light prompt to get him talking about Hollywood in 2021, a curious time for showbusiness, with Covid precautions and advances in streaming tech combining to make so many movies available for home viewing at the same time as they appear in cinemas. But perhaps Reeves is someone who feels things more deeply than most, because suddenly he begins to plead with me, through muffling fingers: “Dude? Don’t stream that movie… Don’t you fucking stream that movie.” Continue reading...
This year’s Guardian and Observer campaign supports four charities fighting global climate injustice. Here, we look at the work of East African farmers and Kew scientists
Former foreign secretary calls on Britain to back French proposal over UN Security Council powersBritain must back calls for countries in the United Nations security council to give up their veto on cases of alleged mass atrocities, genocide and war crimes, the former foreign secretary David Miliband has said.Miliband, now the president of the New York-based NGO, International Rescue Committee, said he supported a proposal from France that would suspend the power of the US, China, the UK, France and Russia to block action in these cases. He called on the foreign secretary, Liz Truss, to back the measure. Continue reading...
Billionaire owner of Chelsea qualifies under Portugal’s naturalisation scheme for descendants of Sephardic JewsThe billionaire oligarch Roman Abramovich has become an EU citizen, three years after withdrawing his application for a UK visa amid diplomatic tensions between London and Moscow.The surprise development was confirmed on Saturday by his spokesperson, who revealed the Russian-born owner of Chelsea Football Club had secured Portuguese citizenship earlier this year. Continue reading...
After his father’s death, he was propelled to the top of the totalitarian dynasty. How has he been allowed to last so long?How do tyrants survive? History is littered with examples of cruel dictators and despots who dominated their countries for years, oppressing millions of “subjects”, and were never forcibly deposed. Joseph Stalin famously died in his bed at the age of 74. Mao Zedong lasted longer, dying of natural causes in 1976, age 82. Spain’s thuggish dictator, Francisco Franco, seized power in 1939 and was still in office when he died in 1975 at 82.The obvious answer is fear. Other factors – cunning, chutzpah, charisma – play a role, too. But terror is the tool of choice for your typical tyrant. This is a lesson Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s “supreme leader”, learned at his father’s knee. And when Kim Jong-il died, 10 years ago last week, his then 26-year-old son was propelled willy-nilly to the top of the totalitarian dynasty founded in 1948 by his grandfather, Kim Il-sung. Continue reading...
by Melissa Davey (now) and Justine Landis-Hanley (ear on (#5T6JR)
One dead and two seriously injured following storm on Sydney’s northern beaches; 80 Covid cases in South Australia as positive case linked to second Ashes Test; Tennant Creek lockdown ‘likely’ to be extended – this blog is now closed
Last week’s byelection result laid bare the growing anger felt towards the PM – both from outside and within his own partyShortly after Owen Paterson resigned as the Tory MP for North Shropshire in early November, Helen Morgan, who had been trounced when she stood as Liberal Democrat candidate at the last general election, rang her party’s HQ in London with a message that took senior officials by surprise.“She told us that we really had a chance in the byelection, that we had to throw everything at it. Initially there was a lot of scepticism,” said a party official. “Nobody really believed it.” Continue reading...
Enforced takeovers during the crisis will mean a bumper year for the bankers who advise on billion-dollar dealsJust as most of us are feeling the effects of soaring inflation, which the Office for National Statistics said last week had reached a 10-year high of 5.1%, wealthy bankers and traders are looking forward to receiving extraordinarily large new year bonuses.Banks on both sides of the Atlantic are finalising bonus pool deals that could be inflated by as much as 50% compared with last year, reaching their highest levels since 2009 and the mergers and acquisitions boom that followed the financial crisis. Continue reading...
Lord Frost’s frustrated exit is yet another blow for PM struggling for control of his governmentBoris Johnson was dealt another major blow to his leadership on Saturday night as it emerged that the man overseeing Brexit was resigning from the cabinet.With Tory MPs already warning the prime minister that he would have to regain control of the government to survive as leader until the next election, it emerged that Lord Frost is to leave the government after frustrations over Brexit negotiations and broader concerns over the government’s Covid policies and tax increases. Continue reading...
Reports say he informed Boris Johnson last week but has been convinced to stay on until JanuaryBrexit minister Lord Frost has resigned from the cabinet, the Mail on Sunday has reported.Lord Frost, who has led negotiations with the EU, is reported to have handed in his resignation letter to Boris Johnson last week. But the Mail on Sunday reported he had been persuaded to stay on until January. Continue reading...
by Zeinab Mohammed Salih in Khartoum and Emma Graham- on (#5T6JV)
Millions are still fighting for a democratic government, three years after their protests beganAmany Galal lost her right eye to a tear gas canister fired by security forces as they tried to break up a demonstration in early 2019, making her one of the first casualties of Sudan’s long and faltering revolution.Three months later, the street movement had toppled the military dictator Omar al-Bashir but, three years later, millions of protesters are still fighting for a democratic government. Continue reading...
Senior party figures think cost of living increases next spring, if combined with poor local election results in May, will doom the PMRapidly rising prices and tax increases in the spring, followed by a drubbing for the Tories in May’s local elections, will mark the beginning of the end of Boris Johnson’s premiership, senior Conservative MPs now believe.After Johnson suffered a massive rebellion by his backbenchers over Covid rules in the Commons on Tuesday and a humiliating byelection loss to the Liberal Democrats in the previously safe Conservative seat of North Shropshire two days later, the prime minister is being told he has only three to four months to turn things around or risk being ousted. Continue reading...
Almas Nizamidin, whose wife has been sentenced to seven years in prison in Xinjiang, says a diplomatic boycott of the Olympics is not enoughWhat Almas Nizamidin knows of his wife’s arrest and disappearance is second-hand: the harried reports relayed by his relatives as it rapidly unfolded.The police came for Buzainafu Abudourexiti at her home in Ürümqi as she was travelling to a doctor’s appointment on 29 March 2017. Her family called, she cancelled her appointment and hurried home. Continue reading...
Aotearoa’s wild landscapes are world-famous but spectacular views are not confined to the walking trails – long-drop toilets also boast incredible panoramasBe it the crest of an icy mountain peak, the depths of the dense native bush, or the slopes of sleeping volcanoes, New Zealand’s wild and remote landscapes are coveted by outdoor enthusiasts the world over. But what really sets the country’s nature apart from the rest is what is at one’s disposal when nature calls – spectacular loos with views.These scenic spots – small, remote, and lacking in plumbing – are a curious quirk in New Zealand’s landscape, and offer up some of the best panoramas in the country. Continue reading...
Blast at branch in industrial area of city also leaves 16 injured as cause is investigatedAt least 15 people were killed and 16 others injured in an explosion on Saturday at a bank branch in Karachi’s industrial area, police said.A senior police officer said the blast at a branch of Habib Bank Ltd, Pakistan’s largest lender, could have been caused by a gas leak. Sarfaraz Nawaz also told reporters that the building appeared to have been constructed over a sewage drain. Continue reading...
The doctor turned comic and bestselling author on writing children’s books, hiding useful facts in disgusting jokes and how bad at Scrabble he isAdam Kay, 41, trained as a doctor and worked for the NHS for six years before quitting to become a writer and comedian. Both his memoirs, This Is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor and Twas the Nightshift Before Christmas, were bestsellers, with several million copies sold, making him the first author to have simultaneous No 1s for hardback and paperback nonfiction titles. He turned both books into hugely successful standup shows. Twas the Nightshift Before Christmas is touring the UK and a BBC Two series of This Is Going to Hurt, adapted by Kay and starring Ben Whishaw, is coming in 2022. He has also started writing children’s books, publishing Kay’s Anatomy last year and, in September, Kay’s Marvellous Medicine.What made you want to write children’s books?
A Peruvian author fears her adopted home is far from an apology for its Latin American abusesThe Plaza Mayor, where tourists gather to drink steep beers and feast on overpriced paella, may be better known. So may Puerta del Sol, where locals ring in the new year by eating a grape on each of the 12 chimes.But Madrid’s Plaza de Colón, a 25-minute walk from these spaces, has come to play its own special part in the social, political and historical life of the capital – and the rest of Spain. Continue reading...
The London mayor, Sadiq Khan, has declared a ‘major incident’ to help the capital’s hospitals cope with a surge in Covid-19 cases caused by the fast-spreading Omicron variant.Khan said the step would allow for closer coordination between different public agencies, after the UK reported the largest 24-hour rise in new cases since the pandemic began
Unearthed Oxford Union article by prime minister made passionate case for sculptures’ repatriation to AthensThe extent of Boris Johnson’s U-turn on the Parthenon marbles has been laid bare in a 1986 article unearthed in an Oxford library in which the then classics student argued passionately for their return to Athens.Deploying language that would make campaigners proud, Johnson not only believed the fifth century BC antiquities should be displayed “where they belong”, but deplored how they had been “sawed and hacked” from the magisterial edifice they once adorned. Continue reading...
Scotland Yard says 27-year-old held on suspicion of child neglect following blaze in Sutton will return to police station in JanuaryA woman who was arrested after a fire that killed four young children has been bailed.The 27-year-old, who was arrested on suspicion of child neglect following the blaze in Sutton, south London, on Thursday, will return to a police station in mid-January, the Metropolitan police said. Continue reading...
Games with bizarre rules played with our families during the holidays hold strong memories. Here, celebrities recall some of their finest momentsIt was the last week of my junior high school, so probably June 1974. After the summer I would be heading to senior school. The last week was pretty relaxed and one of our science teachers suggested we bring in board games and the like, since there was no actual teaching to be done. Continue reading...
UK stars Olivia Colman, Idris Elba and Benedict Cumberbatch are all in demand with US directors. We look at whyA sensitive, geeky youth, stuck on a lonely cattle ranch, might understandably yearn for a kindly uncle figure; someone to confide in, or be mentored by. But the companionship actor Benedict Cumberbatch offers his brother’s stepson, Peter, in the widely Oscar-tipped western Power of the Dog is a very long, precarious horse ride away from anything avuncular.In fact, Cumberbatch’s portrayal of the emotionally thwarted Phil Burbank is a study in twisted misery. In one early scene, Burbank notices some fragile paper flowers the teenager has made to decorate a dinner table at his mother’s canteen. But, instead of praising them, “Uncle Phil” is driven to publicly sneer. Continue reading...
The Doctor Who actor on her R&B obsession, the magic of Matt Haig and the Wagamama dish she has three times a weekMandip Gill, 33, was born in Leeds to a Sikh family and grew up on the estate where her parents owned a newsagents. She studied acting at the University of Central Lancashire and worked in theatre before landing her debut TV role as homeless teenager Phoebe McQueen in Hollyoaks. After leaving the Channel 4 soap three years later, she appeared in Cuckoo, Casualty, The Good Karma Hospital and Love, Lies and Records. Since 2018, she has starred in Doctor Who as the Doctor’s companion Yasmin Khan. Continue reading...
Traditional open-air singing and wassailing plans abound to keep spirit of Christmas alive in Britain this yearClad in mittens and bobble hats, carol singers are moving back to traditional open-air performance this Christmas in response to health concerns. A string of scheduled professional and amateur choral concerts will now take place outside, while many streets are organising door-to-door carolling for charity.Last year, group singing of any kind was deemed unsafe and, as Covid social restrictions return this December, singing alfresco has emerged as one of relatively few sanctioned communal activities. Continue reading...
Flower growers fear end of the UK’s £100m industry as Covid and border restrictions lead to lack of seasonal workersMillions of daffodil stems will be left to rot in the fields this spring, as growers face a critical labour shortage that they fear could spell the end of the entire industry.“If we can’t recruit more pickers, there won’t be a daffodil industry left. The situation is very grim,” said James Hosking, of Fentongollan Farm, near Truro in Cornwall. Continue reading...
The Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison, has committed thousands of dollars in support for the Tasmanian city of Devonport where five school children were killed in a jumping castle accident. 'I want to extend our deepest sympathies to the five families in particular who have lost those precious young ones and we think also of the families of the three who are still in a terribly critical condition,' Morrison said. 'We think of the entire community that is just heaving with sorrow.'
Lengthy tailbacks on M20 heading to Dover and at entrance to Channel tunnel follow change of rules on Friday nightA rush of passengers travelling to France to beat the country’s ban on UK tourists has led to a knock-on effect on freight traffic, resulting in long queues of lorries.There were lengthy tailbacks on the M20 motorway in Kent heading to Dover and at the entrance to the Channel tunnel on Saturday. Continue reading...
Lord Geidt asked what steps he will take after WhatsApp messages show Boris Johnson was in contact with a Tory donorBoris Johnsons’s adviser on ministerial interests has been contacted by a parliamentary committee over allegations that he was misled by the prime minister over the funding of the refurbishment of his Downing Street flat.In a letter to Lord Geidt, the crossbench peer who took up the adviser role in April after his predecessor resigned, MPs ask what steps are open to him if he believes he was misled during his inquiry into the handling of the work at the flat. Continue reading...
Dozens die after super typhoon pummels southern and central regions of the countryAt least 33 people have been killed in the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year, official tallies showed on Saturday, with a charity reporting “alarming” destruction on islands that bore the brunt of the storm.More than 300,000 people fled their homes and beachfront resorts as Typhoon Rai ravaged the southern and central regions of the archipelago, knocking out communications and electricity in many areas, ripping off roofs and toppling concrete power poles. Continue reading...
by Lisa O'Carroll Brexit correspondent on (#5T687)
Lord Dodds says UK ‘falling into line’ with EU and retreating from commitment to trigger article 16The government’s retreat from its hardline position in negotiations with the EU over Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland has elicited a furious response from the most senior unionist in the House of Lords.Lord Dodds, the former deputy leader of the Democratic Unionist party, has issued a veiled threat of “action” unless it restores the option of pulling the plug on the Northern Ireland protocol by using the article 16 process. Continue reading...
Shaped by her father’s early life in apartheid South Africa, the actor brings political awareness to all of her roles, from Black Mirror and The Morning Show to the new BBC thriller The Girl BeforeAs those of us who have spent more time than usual at home over the last couple of years will know, those four walls can be a sanctuary, prison or, at times, both. Beautiful, monolithic and eerily empty, the house in the new BBC/HBO drama The Girl Before is definitely both. “The house,” says Gugu Mbatha-Raw with a laugh, “is the real star.” At one point in the first episode, Mbatha-Raw’s character Jane appears to have developed an intense relationship with it, caressing its smooth stone and glass.In The Girl Before, adapted from the bestselling psychological thriller by JP Delaney, Jane passes a rigorous vetting process before being allowed to rent this minimalist dream home. In return for cheap rent, she has to agree to around 200 strange and stringent rules set by the architect and owner. “No books?” she says, incredulous, when the estate agent reels off some of the stipulations (no pictures, no ornaments, “no children, obviously”). Jane will be watched, her every move and metric monitored, even her moods influenced, by the technologically advanced house and its creepy creator. She soon finds out that she is the second tenant – and she makes a chilling discovery about the first, Emma (played by Jessica Plummer). Continue reading...
At this time of year, manufacturers have a few new tactics to get us to buy less for more moneyGetting value for money might not be your prime goal when buying Christmas presents but if you are planning to snap up chocolates or sweets for the ones you love, it pays to check what you are going to get for your cash. That fancy box or tub may come at a cost (financial and environmental) – and, contrary to appearances, it might mean fewer treats for the recipient, not more.We’ve all heard about “shrinkflation”, where companies sneak through price rises by shrinking pack sizes, but when it comes to festive confectionery, it’s important to be wise to the other packaging tricks that manufacturers and retailers maybe hope we won’t notice. Continue reading...