As Labor and the LNP try to woo regional and metro voters with at-times contradictory messages, minor parties thriveOn Sunday in Clermont – in the dusty heart of Queensland – the coal fanatic Liberal National party senator Matt Canavan and the mining magnate Clive Palmer will hold a rally, mocking the convoy of climate protesters who made a somewhat unwelcome voyage north last year.Three days earlier, almost 1,000km away in Brisbane’s trendy western suburbs, the Greens announced state election plans to provide free school meals, funded by a $55bn increase to mining royalties. Continue reading...

She is wildly popular in the polls but significant risk lies in Labour’s decision to pin all their hopes on their leader’s profile

Rishi Sunak announces new furlough scheme as tough curbs loom in parts of England

House speaker says UK system is not on a par with US’s ‘very stringent rules’ about vaccines

Both sides hope imminent Brussels summit will lead to decisive secret negotiationsBritish and EU Brexit negotiators have renewed belief that the bloc’s leaders will be able to usher in an intense and decisive “tunnel” negotiation for the last weeks of October when they meet at a summit in Brussels on Thursday.A meeting between the UK’s chief negotiator, David Frost, and his EU counterpart, Michel Barnier, in London on Friday morning was said by diplomatic sources to have been positive, with the negotiating teams now due to reengage on Monday. Continue reading...

Two sides urged to suspend fighting to allow for exchange of prisoners and recovery of bodiesRussia has moved to stop the worst escalation of fighting in the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh in more than a quarter of a century by hosting ceasefire talks on Friday.Vladimir Putin called on Armenian and Azerbaijani forces to suspend the fighting that has raged in the disputed south Caucasus region for almost two weeks. The Kremlin said Putin’s initiative followed a series of calls with the Armenian prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, and the Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliyev. Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak announces new economic support measures; London mayor says ‘highly likely’ capital will face extra measures soon; Sturgeon concedes new Scotland cafe rules have caused confusion

Campaigner gives first major interview after being appointed as government adviser on issueThe UK needs a frank conversation about the fear of male violence that women live with every day, according to the government’s new adviser on violence against women and girls.In her first major interview since her role was announced on Friday, the feminist campaigner Nimco Ali – who has been a key figure in the global fight to end female genital mutilation (FGM) – said she wanted to work across political, ethnic and gender lines. Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak has said the government will cover two-thirds of workers’ wages at businesses forced to close during new coronavirus lockdowns. The chancellor said the government would subsidise pay by providing grants to companies forced to shut – most likely pubs, bars and restaurants.Under the expansion, firms whose premises are legally required to shut for a period over winter as part of local or national restrictions can receive grants to pay up to 67% of employees’ salaries

Security council called on to review Turkey’s decision to reopen Varosha seafrontThe UN security council has been called on to address whether the opening of what was once the fabled Varosha beachfront in breakaway Turkish northern Cyprus is admissible under international law.The council is expected to review the controversial decision, which Ankara encouraged on the eve of presidential elections in the territory, as criticism mounts both internationally and on the island itself. Continue reading...

London trial hears detailed account of journey taken by 39 victims and messages sent

European countries tighten regional lockdowns as daily cases of Covid-19 keep rising

The singer, who has died aged 80, was silenced in his home nation for his outspoken criticism – but his artistry played on in the hearts of Iranians at home and abroadI vividly remember the first time I met Mohammad Reza Shajarian on a summer afternoon in Berlin in 2011. He was touring Europe, along with his daughter Mojgan and an ensemble of young musicians. For Iranians, this was – along with North America – the only place they could experience their great idol on stage, given that the outspoken maestro of Persian classical music had been banned from performing inside Iran two years earlier.Related: Iranian singer Mohammad Reza Shajarian dies aged 80 Continue reading...

Head of charity in standoff with Johnny Mercer over legislation’s treatment of military veteransThe boss of the Royal British Legion became embroiled in a public standoff with a junior defence minister this week after warning that the overseas operations bill breached a commitment to treat veterans fairly.Charles Byrne, the director general of the poppy appeal charity, was speaking out against one aspect of the bill, which proposes a six-year deadline for civil claims to be brought against the Ministry of Defence. Continue reading...

Prosecutor demands maximum sentence for Helga Wauters over Xynthia Hawke’s death in FranceAn anaesthetist who had been drinking before an emergency caesarean that led to the death of a British woman should serve the maximum three years in jail if convicted and should be banned from working as a doctor, a French prosecutor has demanded.Helga Wauters is on trial in Pau, south-west France, for the manslaughter of Xynthia Hawke in 2014. She is accused of starving Hawke of oxygen for up to an hour after pushing a ventilation tube into the wrong passageway. Continue reading...

Court of appeal issues ruling over firearms officer who shot and killed 28-year-old in 2015A firearms officer who killed Jermaine Baker during a foiled prison breakout can face misconduct proceedings, the court of appeal has ruled following a challenge by the police watchdog.Baker, 28, of Tottenham in north London, was shot during a Metropolitan police operation that thwarted a plot to snatch two prisoners from a van near Wood Green crown court, also in north London, in December 2015. Continue reading...

More than 90,000 face extreme hunger with another 400,000 hit by food crisis, says reportNearly 500,000 refugees in Uganda are struggling to eat as a result of cuts to food aid and Covid-19 restrictions.More than 91,000 people living in 13 refugee settlements around the country are experiencing extreme levels of hunger, according to the latest analysis by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), published this week. More than 400,000 refugees are considered to be at crisis hunger levels. Continue reading...

Spokeswoman voices fears over openness of UK market after MPs say Huawei is security riskChina has said it is highly concerned about the future openness and safety of Chinese investments in the UK after the Commons defence select committee said the presence of Huawei in UK 5G networks represented “a significant risk to individuals and government”.The committee also dismissed claims by Huawei that it was independent from the Chinese Communist party. Continue reading...

Sophie Petronin vows to return to aid work in west Africa after four years being held hostageA 75-year-old French aid worker held hostage for four years by Islamic extremists in Mali has arrived in France, saying she wants to return to her aid work with malnourished children despite the ordeal.Relatives greeted Sophie Petronin as she descended from a plane at the Villacoublay military airport south-west of Paris, where she was met by the French president, Emmanuel Macron. Continue reading...

With more than 1,200 co-signatories in North America including Neil Gaiman and NK Jemisin, message follows row over comments by JK RowlingStephen King and Margaret Atwood are among the signatories to an open letter offering support to the trans and non-binary communities of the US and Canada, as a bitter divide over trans rights continues to split the literary world.The message from writers and members of the US literary community follows a similar letter from authors in the UK and Ireland. Both letters come in the wake of a fierce row over JK Rowling’s comments on trans rights, including her comment that “if sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased”. Continue reading...

Christoph Koncz has used gut-stringed baroque instrument to record Mozart’s violin concertos

Forget the party conference glitches, the government’s skills test says I should become a boxerIf you’re going to have a virtual party conference then it’s as well to either have a functioning online platform or to keep the whole thing as low key as possible. The Tories somehow managed to do neither, even though none of their keynote speakers seemed to have anything of interest to say. The website itself was a total disaster. Friends who had logged in over the weekend reported major glitches with the site and they were still in evidence when I checked in today. First off it took me an age to actually find any sign of life. After several failed attempts to get in to a “fireside’ chat” with Gavin Williamson, I ended up in a fringe event with Steve Barclay that was buffering so badly it was impossible to tell if he was talking sense or not – my guess is not – and the only way to leave the meeting was to switch off and reboot my laptop. After I had logged back in, the only way I managed to catch Rishi Sunak’s short and sweet 10-minute lightness of being keynote speech was by catching up on Facebook later on as the icon for the main auditorium had gone missing from the front page of the website. It was the advertisers I felt most sorry for though, as most had paid thousands of pounds for the pleasure of not being able to be found by visitors. The online exhibition hall turned out to be pitch black with just a few icons that only worked intermittently. It took several attempts to find some jewellery I didn’t want, along with some face masks, greeting cards and Boris Johnson T-shirts that I didn’t want. The weirdest stand was something called “Rose Garden”, which I had imagined might be an online garden centre. Instead all I got was a 30-second video of Boris Johnson in a hi-vis jacket making various promises that he had no idea if he could keep that was playing on a loop. Somehow it felt like a metaphor for the entire conference. Continue reading...

A surfboard was recovered from the water at Wylie Bay but the male surfer has not been located, a police spokesman saysA surfer is missing after receiving “a serious shark bite” in front of fellow surfers at a beach near Esperance in Western Australia.Police on Friday evening said several witnesses had seen the man being attacked at Kelp Beds beach in Wylie Bay before 11am local time. A surfboard with “obvious signs of shark attack” was recovered a short time later. Continue reading...

Organisation wins prestigious award for efforts to combat hunger in war-hit areasThe World Food Programme (WFP) has won the 2020 Nobel peace prize for its efforts to combat hunger and to improve conditions for peace in conflict areas.The chairwoman of the Norwegian Nobel committee, Berit Reiss-Andersen, revealed the 2020 laureate at the Nobel Institute in Oslo, where coronavirus restrictions drastically reduced the usual throng of reporters in attendance. Continue reading...

Nicola Sturgeon’s 16-day ban called ‘dysfunctional’ after contradictory statements

Borsa Italiana deal clears way for LSE purchase of financial data provider RefinitivThe London Stock Exchange Group has agreed to sell the Milan stock exchange to the rival group Euronext for €4.3bn (£3.9bn) in cash, clearing the way for the LSE’s purchase of the financial data provider Refinitiv.The LSE and Euronext, which owns several European stock exchanges including the Paris bourse, began exclusive talks over the Borsa Italiana deal in September. Continue reading...

Phone records of former police chief considered crucial in investigation to determine who made the decision to use private security guardsVictoria police never formally requested Telstra provide ex-police chief Graham Ashton’s phone records to help the hotel quarantine inquiry uncover who made the decision to use private security guards in the botched program, Guardian Australia can reveal.On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Victoria police told Guardian Australia that police “did contact Telstra and request incoming call data for the former chief commissioner’s phone”. Continue reading...

One Nation leader declares she received flights and accommodation for two to film A Current Affair special in which she scaled sacred site before banPauline Hanson has declared that Channel Nine paid for her to fly to Uluru to film a controversial A Current Affair special in which she scaled Uluru before the activity was banned.Climbing Uluru was banned from October 2019 by the Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park out of respect to traditional owners, the Anangu Aboriginal people, who consider it a sacred site. Continue reading...

The number of locally transmitted cases in Sydney is growing, dashing hopes of the Queensland border reopening next month. Follow live

Wildfires, mostly caused by land clearing for cattle grazing and soya production, have set four nations ablaze

Fighting leaves seven dead as rival factions fight for control of drugs trade and terrorise vulnerable refugeesFighting between rival gangs in the Rohingya refugee settlements in Bangladesh has forced hundreds of people to leave their shelters in a week where at least seven have died.“When it is night, it becomes hell. When you try to sleep you hear a lot of firing, you hear a lot of bullets, people are screaming, people are fleeing from home,” said a Rohingya refugee who lives close to where the fighting has taken place. Continue reading...

The beachfront of Varosha has been opened to the public on Thursday for the first time in 46 years in a move by the Turkish-backed government of Northern Cyprus. Hundreds of people descended on the beach in the former resort town that was abandoned when Varosha’s Greek Cypriot inhabitants fled as Turkish troops advanced in 1974. The area was placed under the control of the Turkish military before it was cordoned off and left to the elements for nearly five decades. The move to reopen the area has been criticised by Cyprus's president amid concerns of rising tensions between Turkey and EU members, Greece and Cyprus

Unions warn of further action over non-payment of rise agreed in 2018, as hundreds of Assam tea estates close

Remarks follow request for supreme court to investigate Podemos leader’s actions in spying caseSpain’s deputy prime minister, the Podemos leader, Pablo Iglesias, has dismissed speculation that he may be investigated by the country’s supreme court, describing it as part of a long-running campaign to discredit him and his party, and to topple the leftwing coalition government and thwart its reforms.A judge at Spain’s highest criminal court, the audiencia nacional, sent a written request to the supreme court this week asking it to look into Iglesias’ actions in relation to a tangled and long-running spying case. Continue reading...

Having broken through off Broadway with Sean Penn and Val Kilmer, it’s no surprise that the actor has spent 35 years striving to put being a teen idol behind him. ‘I’m drawn to dark things,’ he saysAlarm bells would ring for most couples if one partner suggested marriage as the perfect subject for a horror movie. Kevin Bacon does not seem perturbed, though, that his latest film, You Should Have Left, was inspired by just such an idea that his wife, the actor Kyra Sedgwick, came up with.“I’m drawn to dark things,” he says down the phone from their farm in Connecticut. “On some level, it’s therapeutic. I have a marriage that works and I didn’t have a tremendous amount of trauma as a child and yet I feel all human beings have darkness in their souls. Fear and anger and doubt live within us. Part of what I like about my job is tapping into those demons. I became an actor because I wanted to explore all sides of the human condition. Being heroic or handsome or winning the big game – I couldn’t care less about those things! But to go into the darker corners of a man’s psyche is an interesting thing to do.” Continue reading...

Beijing joins initiative against ‘vaccine nationalism’ in contrast to US, which is not part of alliance

Satellite images suggest show of strength will feature thousands of troops and missile hardware paraded before Kim Jong-unSpeculation is building that North Korea will unveil its latest weaponry at a huge parade this weekend to mark the 75th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ party.The event, which will be keenly watched for signs of improvements in the regime’s nuclear and missile capabilities, is expected to be the biggest of its kind in the country’s history. Continue reading...

Supporting legalisation of marijuana, they argue its use should be seen as a health issue ahead of referendumSome of New Zealand’s most experienced public health experts have thrown their support behind legalising marijuana, a week out from the country’s general election.In an editorial in the New Zealand Medical Journal, specialists from the fields of addiction treatment, public health, health promotion and epidemiology have urged New Zealanders to tick yes in the referendum, days after a poll showed the vote on a knife-edge. Continue reading...

Elliott Broidy allegedly asked the US president to play golf with now disgraced Malaysian PM Najib Razak as part of effort to end investigationA former leading fundraiser for president Donald Trump has been indicted on a charge that he illegally lobbied the US government to drop its probe into the Malaysia 1MDB corruption scandal and to deport an exiled Chinese billionaire.Elliott Broidy was charged in Washington federal court with one count of conspiracy to act as an unregistered foreign agent after allegedly agreeing to take millions of dollars to lobby the Trump administration. Continue reading...

A large fire has spread throughout a 33-storey apartment block in the South Korean city of Ulsan. The fire began on the 12th floor before spreading across the building that houses 136 apartments. Seventy-seven people had been treated for smoke inhalation, the fire department said, and the blaze has now been extinguished. The blaze, which broke out at about 11pm on Thursday, was fanned by strong winds. Continue reading...

FBI said plot involved contacting members of a militia who ‘talked about murdering tyrants or taking a sitting governor’Six people have been charged with a plot to kidnap the Michigan governor, Gretchen Whitmer, that involves links to a rightwing militia group, the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced.Another seven people were charged with plotting to target law enforcement and attack the state capitol building. The state attorney general, Dana Nessel, announced additional charges under Michigan’s anti-terrorism law. Seven men, all in custody, are linked to the militia group Wolverine Watchmen. Continue reading...

Dr Saman Mir Sacharvi and Vian Mangrio, 14, were found dead inside a house in BurnleyA 51-year-old man has been charged with the murder of Dr Saman Mir Sacharvi, 49, and her daughter, Vian Mangrio, 14, who were found dead inside a fire and smoke-damaged house in Burnley last week.Lancashire police have charged Shabaz Khan, of Ribble Avenue, Burnley, with two counts of murder and one count of arson being reckless as to whether life is endangered. Continue reading...

Authorities confirm release of Sophie Pétronin along with two Italian captives and Malian politicianAuthorities in Mali have confirmed the release of an elderly French aid worker, two Italian captives and a top Malian politician, all believed to have been held by jihadists.A tweet on Thursday said that French woman Sophie Pétronin, 75, and Soumaïla Cissé, 70, were on their way to the capital Bamako. Continue reading...

Arrivals from Lesbos, Santorini, Serifos, Tinos and Zakynthos will not have to self-isolate

Chinese Community Party accused of ‘increasing its oppressions and control of Uighurs at an alarming rate’Representatives of the Uighur community in Australia are set to tell a parliamentary inquiry of the “intimidation and harassment” they face to prevent them from speaking out against the Chinese government, including fears their relatives will be harmed.The inquiry is also expected to hear calls from other groups on Friday for the Australian government to introduce Magnitsky-style laws to impose targeted sanctions against human rights abusers. Continue reading...

The judge had been missing since leaving his north Brisbane home early on SundayThe body of the missing federal circuit court judge Guy Andrew has been found by police in Brisbane’s Mount Coot-tha forest.Late on Thursday, Queensland police said the body was yet to be formally identified as that of the 55-year-old. Continue reading...

Narges Mohammadi suffers from neurological condition and was initially sentenced to 10 years in prisonThe most prominent human rights activist imprisoned in Iran, Narges Mohammadi, has been released from jail after her sentence was reduced amid renewed fears for her health.Iran has been hit by a third wave of coronavirus that has seen the daily numbers of new infection break records, with a new high of 4,392 on Thursday. Continue reading...

Businessman was ‘misled’ by Sir Philip Green when he purchased chain in 2015, jury hearsThe businessman Dominic Chappell evaded tax on the £2.2m income he received from buying the failed BHS high street chain from retail tycoon Sir Philip Green, a court has heard.He ended up in this position because “he was simply too busy” to sort out his business dealings properly and he was “let down by others”, a jury at London’s Southwark crown court was told. Mark Bryant-Heron QC, prosecuting, said Chappell claims he was “misled” by Green. Continue reading...