News of resignation comes day after publication of official report downplaying structural racismBoris Johnson’s adviser on race has resigned, it has emerged. The news comes a day after the government released a controversial report downplaying structural racism in the UK.Samuel Kasumu, No 10’s special adviser for civil society and communities, will leave his role next month and informed colleagues of his decision on Wednesday, sources have confirmed. Continue reading...
Ice cream factory delivery bikes and Lego that you can’t step on also among products apparently being launchedMedia April fool stories may be a little thinner on the ground in an era where “fake news” has become a concern, and at a time when a global pandemic makes judging the tone trickier.The Telegraph chose 1 April to announce that Barnard Castle was intending to add a life-sized statue of Dominic Cummings to the estate, while the Sun returned to the row over Harry & Meghan’s Oprah Winfrey interview by suggesting that Justin Welby officiated over their “secret” pre-wedding while acting as an Elvis impersonator. The Guardian’s own joke, in light of the recent Ever Given grounding, was that there were plans to build a second Suez Canal to avoid a similar situation happening again. Continue reading...
All Nippon Airways’ first-class meals on grounded jets is latest industry wheeze to claw back revenue lost in Covid crisisJapan’s biggest airline has started offering luxury dining aboard a parked airplane titled the “winged restaurant,” for £390 a meal.Diners rushed to relive the cabin dining experience on Wednesday, despite being unable to travel due to the pandemic. Continue reading...
Author was so opposed to Brexit that he took Irish citizenship to remain EuropeanJohn le Carré, the great embodiment and chronicler of Englishness, saved his greatest twist not for his thrillers but the twilight of his own life: he died an Irishman.The creator of the quintessential English spy George Smiley was so opposed to Brexit that in order to remain European, and to reflect his heritage, he took Irish citizenship before his death last December aged 89, his son has revealed. Continue reading...
Chinese embassy in Ireland Twitter account riffs on fable Wolf and the Lamb, with onlookers asking, ‘Who is the wolf?’A butchered Aesop’s Fable from the Twitter account of China’s embassy in Ireland has drawn mirth from observers and highlighted the growing sensitivity of Chinese diplomats to international criticism.As China engages in international disputes ranging from fist fights with Taiwanese officials to trade sanctions to threats of conflict, the behaviour of current foreign officials has earned the nickname “wolf warrior diplomacy” – a belligerent and aggressive style of communication that is most fervently conducted online. Continue reading...
by Jamie Grierson Home affairs correspondent on (#5G1ZN)
Criminal investigation was dropped after two years and officer was never arrestedA Metropolitan police officer accused of raping two colleagues continues to serve on the force despite being subject to a misconduct inquiry, it has emerged.The accused man remained in post during a two-year criminal investigation into the allegations, which were first made in 2017, and he is now facing an internal inquiry over potential breaches of professional standards, the BBC and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism found. He has never been arrested or charged. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Political correspondent and Martin Be on (#5G1VS)
Monday 29 March saw England move forward with the government’s unlocking plan. Here’s what comes nextEngland has proceeded to the next step of the UK government’s plan for easing the Covid restrictions imposed at the beginning of January, with “rule of six” meetings permitted in the open air, and group outdoor sporting activities for adults and children allowed to resume.The proposed timetable outlined four steps along the way to a full re-opening, with the government stressing that after the first step the subsequent stages of reopening could be subject to delay and that the programme would be guided by “data rather than dates”. Continue reading...
Guardian Australia picks the best and worst of the day’s pranks and punsLast year was bleak. So this April Fool’s Day everyone from government agencies to brands and even Gina Rinehart jumped at the chance to generate some laughs in 2021.Many organisations created their own promotional videos or press releases to test the credulity of the Australian public. Guardian Australia sorted through them all to bring you the best – and worst – of this year’s jokes. Continue reading...
The federal court allows an appeal against a judgment that the acting immigration minister unlawfully deprived a detainee of libertyThe full federal court has allowed Alan Tudge’s appeal against a judgment that while acting immigration minister he “engaged in conduct which can only be described as criminal”.In a joint decision three justices rejected controversial findings that Tudge personally had unlawfully deprived a person of his liberty by leaving him in detention for five days, instead attributing the failures to the home affairs department. Continue reading...
The annual arrival of migratory grey whales at El Vizcaíno sanctuary in Mexico has aided the region’s tourism industry. The whales travel about 5,600 miles from their summer feeding grounds in Alaska to mate and give birth in the warmer waters off north-western Mexico Continue reading...
Victims’ commissioner for England and Wales said new code is ‘excellent step’ but says attitudes must changeThe victims’ commissioner has hailed as “an excellent step” a new code that will ensure victims of crime are always alerted when an offender is due to leave prison.The code is a charter of rights that dictate the minimum level of service victims can expect at every stage of the justice process, regardless of whether they choose to report the crime or not. Continue reading...
Test your knowledge of famous pranks on one of the most divisive days of the yearThere are only two types of people in the world. Those who enjoy media organisations and brands pulling April fool stunts. And joyless monsters. Assuming you are not one of the latter, while you are waiting to see what this year’s selection of hoaxes has to offer, why not take our quiz of famous and “funny” April fool pranks from throughout the years. Continue reading...
Porter team’s letter setting out his case for aggravated damages cites concerns accuser’s parents had about historical allegationChristian Porter’s lawyers have accused the ABC of failing to disclose that the parents of the woman who accused him of rape feared “she may have confected or embellished the allegations”.In a letter to the ABC, published by the federal court on Thursday, Rebekah Giles explained Porter’s bid for aggravated damages, accusing the ABC and reporter Louise Milligan of omitting material that cast doubt on the complainant’s claim and inappropriately lobbying for an independent inquiry. Continue reading...
by Luke Henriques-Gomes (now) and Matilda Boseley (ea on (#5G19S)
Queensland premier says noon lockdown finish allows Easter weekend travel to start; NSW reports no new local infections. Follow the latest updates, live
Threat to shut Dadaab and Kakuma settlements comes amid row with Somalia and prompts alarm about risks during pandemicKenya has once again threatened to close two huge refugee camps in the country, in a move that has alarmed the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and donor organisations.A tweet from the ministry of interior gave the UNHCR a “14-day ultimatum to have a roadmap on definite closure of Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps”. Continue reading...
The waste caught by fishing boats used to be thrown back into the sea but in Kerala it is now turned into black goldFor years, plastic caught by fishing communities on the Kollam coast in India’s southern state of Kerala was thrown back into the water, damaging aquatic ecosystems and killing fish.But fishers are spearheading an innovative initiative to clean up the ocean – along with their daily hauls of fish, they pull in and collect the waste that gets enmeshed in their nets. Continue reading...
Prophetic, frenetic and shockingly brutal, the film became a British classic. For its 40th anniversary, Mirren and other cast members relive their roles in the menacing gangland masterpieceIt has been 40 years since the release of The Long Good Friday, a gangster film still revered as one of the best British movies of all time. Shot in London in the late 1970s and starring the late Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren, it told the story of an underworld boss trying desperately to stop the IRA from dismantling his empire.The backdrop for the film was the London Docklands, then mostly undeveloped. With corrupt city planners in his pocket, Hoskins’ character – the pugnacious, barrel-chested Harold Shand – attempts to woo the New York mafia into a partnership to transform the area, selling the idea to them with a speech during a trip up the Thames on his yacht. “Our country is not an island any more,” he snarls. “We’re a leading European state. And I believe this is the decade in which London will become Europe’s capital … no other city in the world has got, right at its centre, such an opportunity for profitable progress.” Continue reading...
Five people killed in Ohatchee, Calhoun County, homes destroyed and thousands left without electricity across stateA series of tornadoes swept through the state of Alabama last Thursday, leaving a trail of destruction and death. The tornadoes formed from supercell thunderstorms, which later moved eastwards into Georgia. As many as eight tornadoes are believed to have formed, with one tornado reportedly staying on the ground for more an hour, covering a path of 100 miles. At least five people were killed in the town of Ohatchee, in Calhoun County, and many homes and businesses were ruined. Trees were uprooted and 35,000 people across the state were without electricity. The first lady, Jill Biden, postponed a planned trip to the state.Meanwhile, the east coast of Australia has been affected by widespread historic flooding due to prolonged heavy rainfall. New South Wales and Queensland have been worst affected, with some parts of NSW recording almost 1 metre of rain. This follows the third wettest summer for Australia since 1900. At the height of the flooding last week at least 40,000 people were evacuated, and two people drowned after being trapped in their vehicles. The severe weather has also led to delays in Australia’s vaccination programme against Covid-19. Continue reading...
One of the world’s most outrageous comedians, Cho is helping to lead the battle to end racism against Asian-Americans. She discusses hatred, hope and how humour saved her life● Warning: this article contains discussion of suicide from the startThe thing about being a standup comedian is that you can never turn off that part of your brain, not even when you are trying to kill yourself. Margaret Cho learned this in 2013 when she attempted suicide in a hotel room, using a shower curtain rail. “It started bending and I was like: Oh shit, I’m too fat to kill myself, so I had to get down,” says Cho. “I thought: I’ll go on a diet and I’ll try again when I reach my goal weight, which means I’m never going to kill myself, because I’ll never reach my goal weight.”The 52-year-old Emmy-, Grammy- and Oscar-nominated comedian, author, actor and podcaster lets out a delighted cackle. “That joke … people get really upset. They’re like: ‘You should put in a trigger warning.’ I don’t know how to do a trigger warning!” The point Cho is trying to make is a serious one. “My sense of humour probably saved me from dying,” she says. “You can’t really shut that part of you off, because humour is really hope. Humour and laughter is the intake of breath, which is the preservation of the body for the next moment … at your darkest moments; it’s actually the thing that shines the brightest. I’m really grateful for it and I’m really grateful I got to live.” Continue reading...
How did a lorry carrying 273 dead bodies end up stranded on the outskirts of Guadalajara?On the southern outskirts of Guadalajara, early in the morning of 15 September 2018, a large container, the type normally attached to a lorry, sank into the soupy ground beside a rutted country road. The refrigerated container could store up to 18 tonnes of material, cooled to -40C. Across its white exterior, a cartoon polar bear in a blue work shirt smiled and gave a thumbs up.A container like this was a common enough sight in the neighbourhood of Tlajomulco de Zúñiga. What attracted attention was the smell. Sitting there, slumped between cornfields on one side and dilapidated concrete houses on the other, it gave off a thick, cloying odour. Some said it reeked of rotting cabbage and fish, others mentioned putrid meat. But they all agreed: the container exuded death. Continue reading...
First figures available for Jacinda Ardern’s term in office reveal inadequate government response despite huge boost in fundingNew Zealand’s mental health system is “in crisis” and in worse shape now than four years ago, practitioners say – despite much-heralded government efforts to reform it and prioritise national wellbeing.A commitment to improving New Zealand’s mental health record has been at the heart of the progressive, Jacinda Ardern-led Labour government. The country has enduring challenges with mental health, including the highest rate of youth suicide in the developed world. When Ardern was leading her first election campaign in 2017, she made it a central election issue. Continue reading...
Accusations of violence, denied by all five people, could result in 16-20 years’ jail under laws that protect royal familyProsecutors in Thailand have indicted five pro-democracy activists on charges of attempting to harm the queen during a street demonstration in October last year, in which some protesters shouted slogans critical of the monarchy.Queen Suthida, the wife of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, was not in any evident danger in the incident, which occurred when a limousine carrying the queen and the king’s son, Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, passed through a small crowd of protesters mixed with supporters of the royal family. Continue reading...
Some people eat hot cross buns the right way and some people eat them the wrong way. Which side are you on? Tell us in the commentsNow that Easter is finally upon us, we can stop arguing about the correct time for hot cross buns to appear on bakery shelves and move on to the more contentious question of the correct way to eat them.The Guardian Australia newsroom is already divided over whether they should be microwaved or toasted … Continue reading...
Drugmaker said it found the problem at a production site in Baltimore and it wasn’t clear how many doses were lostJohnson & Johnson has said that a batch of its Covid-19 vaccines failed quality standards and can’t be used.The drugmaker didn’t say how many doses were lost, and it wasn’t clear how the problem would impact future deliveries. Continue reading...
Scientist recognised for her leadership in fight against Covid-19 says she accepts honour on behalf of all who helped tackle pandemicScientist Siouxsie Wiles has been named New Zealander of the Year for her leadership through the country’s Covid-19 response.Wiles was presented with the award at a gala dinner in Auckland on Wednesday night attended by 800 people: New Zealand’s pandemic success made manifest. Continue reading...
Diana to be among six women honoured as part of English Heritage’s scheme following public campaignDiana, Princess of Wales, is to be celebrated with a blue plaque in what would have been her 60th birthday year.English Heritage on Thursday announced its 2021 plaques for six women, who also include the anti-slavery campaigner Ellen Craft; Caroline Norton, who helped change Britain’s divorce laws; and the fashion designer Jean Muir. Continue reading...
DRC taxi driver had been vaccinated but caught disease, then suffered a relapse and infected 91 othersA man in Africa who developed Ebola despite receiving a vaccine recovered but suffered a relapse nearly six months later that led to 91 new cases before he died. The case, outlined in the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday, adds to evidence that the deadly virus can lurk in the body long after symptoms end, and that survivors need monitoring for their own welfare and to prevent spread.Relapses such as this, from the 2018-2020 outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, are thought to be rare. This is the first one clearly shown to have spawned a large cluster of new cases. Continue reading...
Oxford Brookes University student has not been seen by his family in west London for nine daysPolice investigating the disappearance of student Richard Okorogheye are conducting searches in Essex after a new confirmed sighting last placed him in the area.The Metropolitan police have released CCTV images of the 19-year-old in Loughton in the early hours of Tuesday 23 March. Continue reading...
Industry claims it was misled by Defra over post-Brexit position and will sue unless trade with Europe restarts soonThe environment secretary, George Eustice, is facing a threat of legal action from shellfish farmers over claims that the government has misled the industry over its post-Brexit arrangements with the EU.A solicitor representing 20 shellfish firms told the Guardian the government had shown “negligence and maladministration” and that a group action was being considered for compensation. Continue reading...
Cooler conditions forecast after temperatures rose above 20C across much of England and WalesAfter a spell of warm weather that brought the hottest March day in half a century, dramatically cooler conditions are forecast to spread across the UK over the next few days, making for a somewhat wintry-feeling Easter weekend.Temperatures across much of England and Wales climbed above 20C (68F) this week. There had been predictions of the record for the hottest March day possibly being smashed on Wednesday but several factors, including cloud in some places, prevented it, though a high of 24C was recorded in Weybourne, Norfolk. Continue reading...
by Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent on (#5G13W)
Conflict of interest claims after it emerges that Colin Todd’s son now works for Kensington and Chelsea councilAn expert witness to the Grenfell Tower public inquiry tasked with assessing how the council landlord handled fire risk is embroiled in conflict of interest claims after it emerged that his son now works for the council as its head of fire safety.Colin Todd is advising the disaster inquiry on the adequacy of fire risk assessments carried out on the council block before the fire, which killed 72 people. His son, Keith Todd, works as director of fire safety for the tower’s owner, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC). Continue reading...
Opposition leaders demand impeachment for what they say is president’s illegal attempt to co-opt the country’s armed forcesProminent leaders of Brazil’s opposition have called for president Jair Bolsonaro to be immediately removed from office to prevent his “coup-mongering, authoritarian delusions” becoming a reality.“We cannot be bystanders to this barbarism,” congressman Marcelo Freixo said on Wednesday as parliamentarians demanded Bolsonaro’s impeachment for what they called his illegal attempt to co-opt the armed forces. Continue reading...
Russian opposition leader says he has been denied medical care and subjected to sleep deprivationAlexei Navalny has gone on hunger strike after saying he was denied urgent medical treatment in prison.The Russian opposition leader has complained of a “sharp deterioration” in his health since his transfer to a prison colony in the Vladimir region to serve a two-and-a-half year sentence on embezzlement charges. The colony, which is 60 miles from Moscow, is notoriously strict and said to excel at isolating inmates from the outside world. Continue reading...
by Presented by Laura Murphy-Oates and reported by Ch on (#5G0WR)
As March came to an end, the numbers came in: there had been 670,000 Covid-19 vaccinations in Australia. These numbers fall far short of the original 4m goal set by the Coalition and puts in doubt revised goals as well. In this episode of Full Story, we speak to a general practitioner about the problems he has seen in the rollout and reporter Christopher Knaus examines the systemic problemsRead more on Australia’s vaccination program: Continue reading...
Washington’s top diplomat in Canberra says the countries are discussing how they would respond to a range of scenarios including conflict in the Taiwan StraitThe United States and Australia are discussing how they would respond to a range of military scenarios including an outbreak of war in the Taiwan Strait, Washington’s top diplomat in Canberra has signalled.The US embassy’s chargé d’affaires, Michael Goldman, also expressed “enormous respect” for how Australia had stood up to China’s “economic coercion” over the past year, and said the Biden administration wanted to reassure Canberra and other allies “that we have their backs”. Continue reading...
Adored by Rihanna and Jay-Z, he finds his subjects in supermarket queues – and on the streets of LA’s toughest neighbourhoods. How has the artist found lockdown in a tiny Somerset village?“Other people look; Taylor sees.” That was Zadie Smith’s assessment of the American artist Henry Taylor. Thirty seconds into my Zoom call with him, I begin to understand what she meant, as he joyfully dissects the decor in my room. “Oh, you got a guitar back there?” he says. “What are you going to do, play me a song?” Then, noticing the slogan on my cap, he laughs and says: “I can’t be Free and Easy … peasy.” Suddenly, I’m wondering what else is in view.You might think this was an artist trying not so subtle unsettling tactics at the beginning of an interview. But Taylor is far too spontaneous for anything like that. A question about what he’s interested in at the moment prompts an answer that turns into a rapid-fire breakdown of his artistic worldview, and a glimpse into how his mind works. “I’m receptive, you know what I mean? I’m a sensitive individual. I respond to things. I’m empathetic. I don’t try to be hardcore, I don’t want to fake the funk. I just tried to keep it real, bro. If I want to sit down and paint you, I’ll paint you.” Continue reading...
Sandra Muller, who founded French version of #MeToo, succeeds in overturning conviction for defaming Eric BrionA French appeals court has overturned the defamation conviction of the woman behind France’s answer to the #MeToo movement, who was sued by the man she accused of sexual harassment.Sandra Muller, a French journalist, coined the viral hashtag #BalanceTonPorc (“expose your pig”) to describe the TV executive Éric Brion. Continue reading...
Green party says candidate Tareq Alaows, had ‘massive experiences of racism’ since announcing candidacyA Damascus-born Syrian man running to become the first refugee to enter the German parliament has withdrawn his candidacy, citing personal threats and security concerns.Tareq Alaows, 31, who fled conscription in Syria and arrived in Germany in 2015, was in January nominated as a Bundestag candidate for the Green party in the district of Oberhausen, in North Rhine-Westphalia. Continue reading...
‘I came upon them in an abandoned parking lot. Watching them was like reliving my own childhood’This was taken in 1981, in Brownsville, my neighbourhood in Brooklyn. I was 21 and my father, who photographed weddings and took portraits in our community, had been teaching me the science of speed and light, and how to capture decisive moments. When I came upon this scene in an abandoned parking lot, I felt something was coming on. They reminded me of myself as a child. Observing them was like reliving my own childhood. I took three frames, but it wasn’t until I got the film developed that I realised I had created something magical.This has become one of my most popular images. It’s housed in a number of renowned institutions in the US. It was used on the cover of Undun, the album by hip-hop band the Roots. It’s also the cover of one of my books, Seconds of My Life. A magical image is, for me, one that has a magnetism, that draws you in and holds your attention. You don’t need a caption. You can study it and draw your own conclusion. Continue reading...
This is about appealing to the Tory heartlands and ignoring the rest of the UK, writes John Cookson. The community I was once a member of – the EU – has been taken away from me, says Tim Shelton-JonesI find your editorial (29 March) on the “festival of Brexit” staggering. If we are celebrating Brexit, where does it put the majority of people in Northern Ireland and Scotland who voted against the economic disaster that they are now mired in? What exactly do they have to celebrate? This is about appealing to the Tory heartlands and ignoring the rest of the UK. The comparison with the Festival of Britain is ludicrous, since Brexit has created massive divisions throughout the UK, which wasting vast amounts of taxpayers money to celebrate will not assuage, only exacerbate.Since this government treats every expenditure as an opportunity to corruptly benefit its allies, donors and friends, we can expect that to be a prominent part of the Brexit celebrations. Renaming it the “Festival for the end of the United Kingdom” would be more appropriate.
Freed protesters and a journalist detained by the junta describe beatings and squalid conditionsReleased from detention in Myanmar, protesters and journalists have described beatings, squalid conditions and cruelty under the military dictatorship that is opposed by most of the population.Hnin, 23, was arrested along with 400 other young people in a haze of stun grenades and teargas in the commercial capital Yangon on 3 March for protesting against the military coup. Continue reading...
European commission’s latest move in long-running dispute draws defiant response from WarsawThe European commission has said it is taking Poland to the bloc’s highest court over a legal change it alleges undermines judges’ independence and prevents them applying EU law, drawing an instant and defiant response from Warsaw.In the latest salvo in a longstanding dispute over respect for the rule of law, Brussels said on Wednesday it was also asking the European court of justice (ECJ) to make an interim order suspending Poland’s 2019 law until its final judgment is delivered. Continue reading...
Italian navy captain arrested for allegedly handing over confidential documents for cashItaly has expelled two Russian officials after an Italian navy captain was arrested for allegedly passing confidential documents to one of them.Police said they had intervened “during a clandestine meeting” between the Italian and a Russian military official and “immediately after the transfer of a document by the Italian officer in exchange for a sum of money”. Continue reading...
UN security council set for emergency meeting as death toll from military crackdown passes 520Myanmar’s deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi appeared in good health during a video meeting with her lawyers, it has emerged.Details on the condition of the 75-year-old were disclosed as the US ordered non-essential embassy staff to leave the country after weeks of violence over a 1 February coup and fears mounted that the escalating violence was drawing in the country’s minority groups. Continue reading...
New guidance for England and Wales welcomed but critics say it fails to address perpetuation of rape myths and ‘contact at all costs’ approachThe family courts should prioritise the issue of coercive and controlling behaviour when considering disputes between parents in domestic abuse cases, court of appeal judges have advised.Three senior judges set out fresh guidance on how these sensitive cases should be approached as part of a 47-page judgment after hearing four linked appeals brought by mothers over child contact. Continue reading...