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Treasurer defends economy despite slowdown, saying with all the uncertainty in the world, any growth is a decent outcome'

Focus on capital spending in northern cities and Midlands is recognition Labour needs better economic story for voters

Ex-movie mogul is charged with assaulting three women from 2006 to 2013, and has attended trial in wheelchairThe third sexual misconduct trial of former movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was rapidly heading toward a conclusion on Tuesday, as prosecutors and the defense began delivering closing arguments in Manhattan criminal court.If there is a doubt about their case, you gotta throw it out," defense attorney Arthur Aidala said of three women who testified against Weinstein. These are the people they want you to believe - they're all women with broken dreams." Continue reading...

Johnnie Moore, also an adviser to Trump, named as US- and Israeli-backed initiative tries to recover from resignationsAn evangelical leader and adviser to Donald Trump on interfaith issues has been appointed the new head of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) as the controversial US- and Israeli-backed initiative attempts to recover from top-level resignations during a tumultuous rollout last week.Johnnie Moore, a member of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom and founder of the boutique advisory firm Kairos Company, was appointed the new head of the GHF after Jake Wood, a former marine, resigned, saying that he could not guarantee the GHF's independence from Israeli interests. Continue reading...

Judge says challenge should have been brought in specialized trade court but ruling allows state to file appealA United States judge dismissed California's challenge to Donald Trump's tariffs, allowing the state to file an appeal over the court's ruling that the dispute should have been filed in a specialized US trade court in New York.The ruling, handed down late on Monday by US district judge Jacqueline Corley in San Francisco, did not delve into the merits of California's lawsuit. Now, three separate US appeals courts may simultaneously consider the legality of Trump's sweeping tariffs on US trading partners and a separate set of tariffs targeting imports from China, Mexico and Canada. Continue reading...

Donald Trump appointed himself chair of the performance center in February, leading to boycotts and cancellationsThe Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has reportedly seen subscription sales fall by about $1.6m - or roughly 36% - compared with 2024 amid Donald Trump's having appointed himself to lead the institution.The center has made less than $2.7m as of the start of June through subscriptions to its theater, dance, classical and other seasons of performances. The center had generated more than $4.4m by this point a year earlier, according to data obtained by the Washington Post. Continue reading...

Disclosure comes as calm weather and fuller boats leading to more Channel arrivals, Home Office saysA new law to fast-track the removal of asylum seekers who arrive from countries deemed to be safe is being drawn up by ministers, prompting concerns that thousands of claimants may not be given a fair hearing.Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, said she would legislate to speed up the processing, appeals and deportation of people who should not be sitting in the asylum system for a long time". Continue reading...

Girl's lawyer tells police misconduct hearing that she felt physically violated' by incident at her London schoolA black schoolgirl suffered mental harm and felt physically violated" when she was strip-searched at school by police, a misconduct hearing for three officers has been told.The girl, who was 15 at the time and has been known as Child Q, was strip-searched in December 2020 at her school in Hackney, east London, while menstruating, having been wrongly accused of possessing cannabis. Continue reading...

Group of international reporters stopped on way to Masafer Yatta, which features in documentary No Other LandMasked Israeli soldiers have blocked an international group of reporters from visiting Palestinian villages on the West Bank that have been under sustained attack by Jewish settlers, and which were the subject of an Oscar-winning documentary film.The Academy Award won by No Other Land has not stopped the attacks on Masafer Yatta, a cluster of villages on the southern edge of the occupied territory, which has been the target of settler violence and house demolitions and forced displacement by the army for many years. Continue reading...

New president faces formidable challenges that could plunge his term into crisis before it has even begunLee Jae-myung will need to draw on his considerable survival instincts as he attempts to steer South Korea out of the political morass of the past six months.The liberal candidate, who on Tuesday became the country's president at the third attempt after defeating his conservative rival, Kim Moon-soo, has promised to govern for all South Koreans - and for good reason. After a swift transfer of power that will take him to the presidential Blue House on Wednesday, Lee will inherit a deeply scarred country. Continue reading...

Man who led campaign to oust Yoon Suk Yeol wins race as conservative opponent raceLiberal candidate Lee Jae-myung has won the vote to become South Korea's new president after a snap election triggered by a brief period of martial law imposed by the now-impeached former leader Yoon Suk Yeol.His closest rival, the conservative Kim Moon-soo, conceded as Lee, of the Democratic party, was comfortably ahead on 48.523% with 70% of the vote counted in the race to lead Asia's fourth-biggest economy. Continue reading...

Joanna Miller said her grandpa would hate the mechanical replica to be debuted in July, calling it an imposter'Walt Disney's granddaughter has condemned the entertainment giant he founded for re-creating the late entrepreneur as a soulless robotic grampa" for the 70th anniversary celebration of California's Disneyland theme park in July.Disney, who died in 1966, will appear as an animatronic figure in a new attraction called Walt Disney - A Magical Life in the park's Main Street Opera House that commemorates the resort's 17 July 1955 opening. Continue reading...

Schoof said his coalition government will become a caretaker administration up until the new electionItalian prime minister Giorgia Meloni and France's president Emmanuel Macron will aim to reconcile their difference in talks in Rome on Tuesday, according to AFP.The European rivals are meeting in the Italian capital from 18.00 GMT for talks and then dinner, an encounter Macron said he had initiated. Continue reading...

Trucks carrying food for 2m people in famine-threatened El Fasher targeted in RSF-controlled Al Koma, western SudanA UN aid convoy carrying critical food supplies to a famine-threatened city in western Sudan has been targeted in an attack that killed five people and injured several others.Trucks belonging to the UN's food and children's agencies were struck as they headed towards El Fasher, capital of North Darfur, which has been besieged by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) for more than a year. Continue reading...

Master-race stories of heroic characters battling against zombie Nazis and western spies to recover imperial grandeur are a bleak new spin on an old propaganda traditionZ literature", a subgenre of Russian fantasy fiction characterised by nationalistic, pro-war storylines, has been on the rise since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began three years ago and may be pushing young readers towards enlisting in combat.Z literature - named after the Z" symbol of support for the invasion - often features popadantsy, or accidental travel" narratives, involving a protagonist being transported to pivotal moments in Russia's past and using modern knowledge to intervene and alter history in Russia's favour. Continue reading...

Facebook and Instagram parent's deal follows other big tech companies signing agreements with power companiesMeta on Tuesday said it had struck an agreement to keep one nuclear reactor of a US utility company in Illinois operating for 20 years.Meta's deal with Constellation Energy is the social networking company's first with a nuclear power plant. Other large tech companies are looking to secure electricity as US power demand rises significantly in part due to the needs of artificial intelligence and datacenters. Google has reached agreements to supply its datacenters with nuclear power via a half-dozen small reactors built by a California utility company. Microsoft's similar contract will restart the Three Mile Island nuclear plant, the site of the most serious nuclear accident and radiation leak in US history. Continue reading...

Coalition leaders call decision by Geert Wilders to withdraw from alliance over immigration policy irresponsible'

Rijksmuseum exhibition includes contraceptive featuring erotic etching of a nun and three clergymenA 200-year-old illustrated condom will go on display with Dutch golden age masters in Amsterdam this week, after the 19th-century luxury souvenir" became the first-ever contraceptive sheath to be added to the Rijksmuseum's art collection.The condom, which was probably made of a sheep's appendix circa 1830, is thought to have come from an upmarket brothel in France, most likely in Paris. It features an erotic etching depicting a partially undressed nun pointing at the erect genitals of three clergymen, as well as the phrase Voila, mon choix (There, that's my choice"). Continue reading...

Rose Njeri charged with breaching cybercrime law over tool for people to show opposition to proposed tax changesA Kenyan software developer who was arrested last week after creating a tool for people to express their opposition to a proposed law has been arraigned in court and released on bail, amid public anger at her detention and growing signs of repression in the east African country and its neighbours.Rose Njeri was charged on Tuesday with unauthorised interference with a computer system" in violation of the country's computer misuse and cybercrime law. Continue reading...

IDF says it fired at individual suspects who advanced towards troops' during incident at food distribution point in southern Gaza Strip

Bank of England policymaking affected by US administration's on-off trade decisions, Andrew Bailey tells MPs

Paramilitaries and organised crime gangs make it UK's most dangerous place to be a reporter, rights group saysJournalists in Northern Ireland routinely face attacks and death threats from paramilitary and organised crime groups that act with impunity, according to Amnesty International.Reporters have been physically assaulted and told they will be shot, stabbed, raped or blown up, making Northern Ireland the most dangerous place in the UK for journalism, a report said on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Festival adds secret sets to lineup at prime slots on Pyramid and Park stages, as it reveals full timings and artist detailsGlastonbury festival has announced its full lineup of over 3,000 performances between 25 and 29 June, adding a number of new artists to the main stages along with timings and a series of tantalising secret sets.Installed in a plum spot at 6.15pm on the Pyramid stage on Saturday night, after John Fogerty and before Raye and Neil Young, is an act called Patchwork - unlikely to be the alternative country fusion" band from British Columbia or Tennessee's occult emotional hardcore" outfit of the same name. In 2022, Glastonbury announced a similarly unheard-of band called the Churnups playing on the Pyramid stage, who ended up being Foo Fighters. Continue reading...

A Russian rocket attack on the city of Sumy kills two people on Tuesday, after at least five people killed in eastern Ukraine on MondayUkrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has commented on the deadly Russian airstrike on Sumy earlier today, which he called a savage" assault that deliberately targeted civilians on ordinary streets".The Ukrainian leader said many people have been wounded" and that at least three people have been killed.It is obvious: without global pressure - without decisive actions from the United States, Europe, and everyone in the world who has the power - Putin will not agree even to a ceasefire.Not a single day goes by without Russia striking Ukrainian cities and villages. Every day, we lose our people to Russian terror. Every day, Russia gives new reasons for tougher sanctions and stronger support for our defence.In just one week - from 26 May to 2 June - rescuers of the state emergency service of Ukraine came under enemy fire about a dozen times.Emergency workers from Zaporizhia, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Sumy, and Kharkiv regions were hit. Six fire and rescue units and 6 more pieces of equipment were damaged. Continue reading...

Report finds deep-rooted, systemic' failures that need stronger regulation, but critics say it is not bold enough

Adventurous Amber spotted by two men in a boat in Poole Harbour after travelling across Hampshire and DorsetAn adventurous dog who went missing for 36 days and covered about 100 miles has returned from her extended walkies, after being rescued by a charity.Amber, a retriever cross, had been rescued as a street puppy in Qatar by a charity and moved to the UK but went missing after only one night with her new foster family near Bramshaw, in the New Forest. Continue reading...

Not content with consigning the Coalition to a regional rump, PM also raises questions for the Greens with latest coup

Murder accused also tells jury she was never diagnosed with ovarian cancer and feels ashamed' of Facebook messages she wrote about her family

This blog is now closed

Four years after alleged assault, staffer wrote to Kiama MP in 2019 stating your friendship means the world to me', Sydney court hears

Reserve Bank vetoed a 50 basis point cut in cash rate last month, but is willing to take such action if global economy demands it

Fair work commission decision falls between demands from the peak union body and business groups

Exclusive: Two further students suspended, with the four given 20 days to lodge an appeal, after vice-chancellor accused group of improper conduct'

Group led by Steve Rotheram says introducing local tourism tax would empower regional growthA coalition of mayors from across England are urging the government to allow local authorities to bring in a Barcelona-style visitor levy to generate income from tourism.The group, led by the Liverpool city region mayor, Steve Rotheram, argues that a visitor levy would unlock vital funding for tourism and cultural infrastructure, empower regional growth and reduce dependence on central government funding. Continue reading...

Fringe Society CEO says venues could offer concertgoers morning after' shows or tempt residents who want to hide'Organisers of Edinburgh fringe events have been urged to be pretty smart" and capitalise on the decision by Oasis and AC/DC to play gigs in the city midway through the festival.There was surprise and irritation when it emerged the bands would be staging four concerts at Murrayfield stadium in mid-August when the world's largest arts festival is in full flow. Continue reading...

Shock decision has raised fears ancient site with almost 2,000-year-old geoglyphs will be exploited by illegal minersArcheologists and environmentalists have expressed their outrage at a shock decision by Peru's culture ministry to cut by nearly half the protected archaeological park around the iconic Nazca Lines, excluding an area nearly the size of urban Lima, the country's capital city.The Unesco world heritage attracts thousands of tourists to see the massive hummingbird, monkey and whale figures in the desert in Peru's second-biggest tourist attraction after Machu Picchu. Last year, archaeologists using AI discovered hundreds of new geoglyphs dating back more than 2,000 years, predating the famous lines in the sand. Continue reading...

Offer gives no ground on Tehran's demand to continue to enrich uranium inside country, sources sayIran is on the brink of rejecting US proposals on the future of its nuclear programme after the US draft insisted that Tehran would have to suspend the enrichment of uranium inside Iran and set out no clear route map for lifting US economic sanctions.The US proposals were the first in written form since five rounds of indirect talks started, but Iranian diplomatic sources said the US proposals gave no ground on Iran's demand to continue to enrich uranium inside the country. Continue reading...

Police believe remains are of Izabela Zablocka, from Normanton, and have launched murder investigationHuman remains have been found in a search for a woman missing for more than 15 years as police launch a murder investigation into her disappearance.Izabela Zablocka, from Normanton in Derby, was 30 when she went missing in 2010. Originally from Poland, she had last made contact with family on 28 August 2010. Continue reading...

The actor and director claims that an Austrian newspaper invented a recent interview with himClint Eastwood has released a statement to claim a recent interview with him is a fabrication.Quotes from an alleged interview with the Oscar-winning actor and director had gone viral over the weekend and were picked up by a number of sites. Yet Eastwood has now said that he never spoke to anyone from German-language Austrian newspaper Kurier. Continue reading...

Party tells council officers they risk gross misconduct' if they block Elon Musk-inspired initiativeReform UK has told council officers they will face gross misconduct" if they obstruct an Elon Musk-style department of government efficiency unit to examine all council spending in areas they control.The party will pilot the Doge-style scheme in Kent county council, led by a team including the Brexit donor Arron Banks as well as cybersecurity entrepreneur Nathaniel Fried. Continue reading...

Delegations in Istanbul agree swap of at least 1,000 prisoners, and Ukraine says Russia agreed to return some abducted childrenNegotiations between Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Istanbul ended without agreement on a ceasefire on Monday, but with both sides agreeing to exchange more prisoners.Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said the two sides had agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each, with the possibility of swapping an additional 200 PoWs. He said an agreement had also been made to return the remains of killed service personnel, but added that this would take careful preparation. Continue reading...

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Victory of radical-right candidate could seriously destabilise the coalition government of pro-EU prime minister Donald TuskThe victory margin of the nationalist Karol Nawrocki in Poland's presidential elections may have been wafer-thin, but it marks a huge upheaval in the country's political landscape whose impact will be felt not just in Warsaw but across the EU.Backed by the previous ruling conservative Law & Justice (PiS) party and, openly, by Donald Trump's Maga movement, Nawrocki, a radical-right historian, defeated his liberal rival, the capital's mayor, Rafa Trzaskowski, by 50.89% to 49.11%. Continue reading...

Exclusive: More schools identified as targets after controls on IDF action against Hamas operatives at civilian sites loosenedA series of recent deadly airstrikes on school buildings sheltering displaced people in Gaza were part of a deliberate Israeli military bombing strategy, with further schools identified as targets, the Guardian has learned.At least six school buildings have been struck, reportedly killing more than 120 people, in recent months as part of a targeting effort by the Israeli military. Continue reading...

The sometimes vague plan could be clearer about what is necessary to maintain security in an unpredictable worldLabour's defence review is full of contradictions. It paints a picture of a more dangerous world, with Britain facing multiple, direct threats" to its security, particularly from nuclear-armed states such as Russia and China, and warns that the west's long-held military advantage is being eroded".But when it comes to spending taxpayers' money, the exercise is considerably more cautious. The reviewers, a team of three led by the former Nato secretary general George Robertson, accept the spending envelope given to them by the prime minister, Keir Starmer: a gradual lift in defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 and a looser promise to increase spending to 3% by the end of the next parliament. Continue reading...

Switch comes as Nigel Farage defends advert attacking Scottish Labour leader that prompted accusations of racism

Block of Parmigiano Reggiano opened after 27 years and three months - six years longer then previous holderA wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano has been celebrated as an authentic jewel of nature" after setting a longevity record for parmesan cheese.The still edible 36kg wheel was one of the last made in 1998 by Romano Camorani and his wife Silvia at their dairy in Poviglio, a small town in Italy's northern Emilia-Romagna region. Continue reading...

John Sutherland says he was conscious when Sam Wilks gave excruciating' chest compressionsA leading academic of English literature has criticised prosecutors for dropping an assault charge against a police officer who allegedly gave him forceful chest compressions meant for a heart attack victim while he was awake.John Sutherland, 86, emeritus Lord Northcliffe professor of modern English literature at University College London, fell ill on a London underground train in May 2023. Continue reading...

Tory MP's claim that officers should carry guns to stop prison violence dismissed as headline-grabbing'Robert Jenrick's demand for armed prison guards has been described as headline-grabbing nonsense" by organisations representing governors and staff.The UK shadow justice secretary, who has made a series of eye-catching demands over the last few days, said on Sunday that prison officers should be allowed to carry guns and build up armouries" to clamp down on violence from Islamist gangs and violent prisoners. Continue reading...