Duchess’s lawyers reject claim made by Mail publisher in latest hearing of legal actionThe Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not collaborate with the authors of a recent book about them, Meghan’s lawyers told the high court in the latest hearing of her legal action against the Mail on Sunday.Meghan, 39, is suing Associated Newspapers (ANL), publisher of the Mail on Sunday and Mail Online, over articles that reproduced part of her handwritten letter to her estranged father, 76-year-old Thomas Markle, in August 2018. Continue reading...
by Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington on (#58D2A)
Hikvision’s surveillance tech has also been installed in leisure centres in LondonSurveillance cameras made by Hikvision, the Chinese company that has been implicated in grave human rights violations and has been blacklisted by the US government, are being used across the UK, from leisure centres in London to school toilets in west Norfolk.While use of the surveillance cameras had already rung alarm bells in the British parliament last year, use of the cameras has expanded in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic despite allegations by the US government that the company’s cameras have been used to monitor Uighurs and other Muslim minorities in China who are being held in internment camps. Continue reading...
Lloyds and Barclays among banks taking action due to lack of post-Brexit trade dealThousands of Britons living in the EU will have their UK bank accounts closed by the end of the year because of the UK’s failure to agree a post-Brexit trade deal.Lloyds, Barclays and Coutts have informed retail and business customers that they will lose their accounts before or when the Brexit transition period ends on 31 December and more banks are expected to follow suit. Continue reading...
In 2006, the 20-year-old was killed on the orders of family members. Ahead of an ITV drama on the case, her sister reflects on the police responseAs a television drama of the real-life investigation into the murder of a young woman by her family airs this month, her sister told the Guardian little had changed since Banaz Mahmod was killed in 2006.“Lessons have not been learned. Banaz is not the first ‘honour’ killing and she won’t be the last,” says Payzee Mahmod, a British Kurd, who was a teenager when her sister disappeared from her south London home. Banaz had gone to the police five times for help. Continue reading...
Investigation found department’s operations ‘fell short of ethical standards’ after land was valued at just $3.1mTaxpayers stumped up $26.7m too much for land to build a second runway at Western Sydney airport after 2050, the auditor general has found.In a scathing report, released on Monday, the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) found the $30m price tag paid by the infrastructure department was almost 10 times its fair value. Continue reading...
Victory for Chloé Zhao’s drama starring Frances McDormand means it now looks certain to get a best picture Oscar nominationNomadland, the recession-era retirees study starring Frances McDormand, has won the Toronto film festival people’s choice award, adding the influential prize to the Venice Golden Lion it was awarded a week ago.The Toronto award is much prized in the industry, as it counts a significant number of Oscar best picture awards and nominees among its recent winners, including Green Book (2018), Room (2015) and 12 Years a Slave (2013). Nomadland’s director Chloé Zhao is also the first woman to win the award since 2011, when Nadine Labaki’s Where Do We Go Now? triumphed. Nomadland would now appear to be a major contender for end-of-year awards, with a best picture Oscar nomination a virtual certainty Continue reading...
by Owen Bowcott Legal affairs correspondent on (#58CRE)
Response to FoI request from victim’s son says disclosure may attract ‘disruptive’ media coverageThe Treasury is refusing to publish key documents about the treatment of haemophiliacs infected by the NHS with HIV on the grounds that it would be “disruptive” and material might be “distorted” by the media.The unusual reasons cited by officials for refusing a Freedom of Information (FoI) request have emerged before a new round of public hearings at the Infected Blood Inquiry Continue reading...
Leifer faces 74 child sex abuse charges relating to her time as principal of a Melbourne schoolAn Israeli court has ordered that accused child sex abuser Malka Leifer can be extradited to Australia, the latest ruling in a saga which has dragged on for more than a decade.Leifer, 52, is accused of sexually assaulting female students during her time as principal of the ultra-Orthodox Adass Israel school in Melbourne’s south-east. Victorian police have charged her with 74 offences. Continue reading...
Commonwealth needs to prepare for new argument former human services minister knew scheme was unlawful, court saysA federal court trial set to decide whether robodebt victims are entitled to compensation has been delayed after fresh claims were levelled against government minister Alan Tudge.The court heard at a pre-trial hearing on Monday that Gordon Legal plans to argue Tudge, who was human services minister in 2016-17, either knew or was “recklessly indifferent” to the fact the botched program was unlawful. Continue reading...
Inquiry also hears doubts over validity of Juukan Gorge approval mean WA could be liable for compensation claimAn inquiry into the destruction of Juukan Gorge has heard that Rio Tinto is expected to destroy another 124 Aboriginal heritage sites at a new iron ore development less than 100km away from the exploded rock shelters.Questions have also been raised over whether the approval granted by the WA government to destroy the 46,000-year-old sites in Juukan Gorge was valid. Continue reading...
Post-colonial west African portrait photography is celebrated in a show bringing together the work of some of the region’s most important photographers, including Sanlé Sory, Rachidi Bissiriou, Malick Sidibé and Leonce Raphael Agbodjélou.Tête à Têtes - West African Portraiture from Independence into the 21st Century is at David Hill Gallery 18 September to 27 November Continue reading...
Prototype technology could help alleviate growing shortage of human crop pickersThe job of harvesting cauliflowers could one day be in the mechanical hands of robots thanks to a collaboration between scientists and the French canned vegetable producer Bonduelle.Fieldwork Robotics, the team behind the world’s first raspberry-picking robot, is designing a machine in a three-year collaboration launched on Monday. Continue reading...
Refugee groups urge ministers to ensure safety of 400 people housed in barracksThe people of Folkestone have become used to the sound of helicopters buzzing over their heads at night, as authorities scour the waters off the south coast for asylum seekers crossing the Channel on small boats.September has become the busiest month on record for migrant Channel crossings, while more than 6,500 have made the journey this year – more than three times the total in 2019. The sight of new arrivals, some in flimsy dinghies and using spades as oars, has become an almost daily occurrence. Continue reading...
With case numbers down now in both states, attention turns to the threat from warmer weather and crowded beachesState premiers in Victoria and New South Wales have begun outlining plans for “a summer like never before” as authorities scramble to prepare for large crowds at beaches and warn of the possibility of Covid-19 outbreaks in the warmer months ahead.On Monday the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, said it was “a great day” after the state recorded 11 new Covid-19 cases. Continue reading...
by Dorothy Wickham and Ofani Eremae in Honiara on (#58CGS)
NGO workers mapping second world war bomb sites died when ordnance detonated in their homeAn Australian man and his British colleague working to map unexploded bombs have been killed in an explosion at their home in Honiara, the capital of Solomon Islands.Australian Trent Lee and Briton Stephen “Luke” Atkinson died when an unexploded ordnance is believed to have detonated shortly after 7.30pm on Sunday. Continue reading...
Demand for housing could fall by 232,000 dwellings over next three years due to international border closures and decline in population growthThe coronavirus pandemic could cut demand for housing in Australia by between 129,000 and 232,000 dwellings over the next three years, research by a federal government agency shows.The National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation’s study found that population growth could be cut by 214,000 between 2019 and 2021, a 0.8% decline only surpassed by the first world war and the unwinding of the 1971 baby boom. Continue reading...
Monday: Joe Biden accuses Trump and Republicans of abuse of power. Plus: former Reserve Bank boss blasts Coalition tax cutsGood morning, this is Emilie Gramenz bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Monday 21 September. Continue reading...
by Presented by Anushka Asthana with Luke Harding; pr on (#58C71)
Luke Harding tells Anushka Asthana the alleged attack on Navalny has all the hallmarks of a state-sponsored hit. As Navalny appears to be recovering from the incident, western leaders are demanding answers from Russia Continue reading...
Rights coalition calls on mayors to withdraw from U20, which coincides with anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi’s murderMainly leftwing mayors of some of the world’s biggest cities are being urged to boycott a G20 urban summit hosted by Saudi Arabia on the 2nd anniversary of the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.The Urban 20 (U20) is being held as part of the Saudi Arabian chairmanship of this year’s G20. Among the mayors slated to attend include, Berlin’s Michael Müller, London’s Sadiq Khan, New York’s Bill de Blasio, Paris’s Anne Hidalgo, Rome’s Virginia Raggi as well as the mayors of Los Angeles and Madrid. Continue reading...
About 15,000 to 20,000 Argentinians are estimated to have moved to Uruguay since the pandemic beganAgustina Valls’ phone is ringing off the hook.“It started as a trickle when the pandemic first hit Argentina, but now we’re getting over 20 calls a day,” she said from her office in Uruguay’s luxury beach resort of Punta Del Este.
The woman behind cult HBO comedy Insecure has been making and starring in her own series for years. What took Hollywood so long to notice?Issa Rae, one of the first black women to create and star in a premium cable series and potentially the hardest-working person in Hollywood, is putting in overtime with the aim of having it all. She is Emmy-nominated. She is Golden Globe-nominated. She is a writer, an actor and an executive producer, often all at once. Her hit HBO show, Insecure, which just aired its fourth season, has transformed her into the patron saint of black millennial creatives. She is the black Madonna, adorning endless mood-boards.Fans, black fans specifically, don’t simply watch Insecure, we live-tweet it, we argue about it, we create petitions for it to be extended to one hour, much to the chagrin of its creator. “We sold a half-hour comedy,” Rae tells me when I press her on fan demands for longer episodes, “and I literally have no desire to make an hour show!” A bad Zoom connection means I can’t see her, but I can hear the smile. She is warm, witty, and a total potty-mouth. “Even hearing people say: ‘This is how you can make it an hour, you can do this, you can do that…’ OK, well we don’t want to!” Continue reading...
Huge clan is believed to have originated from a pair of cats taken in three years agoAnimal charities in southern Spain were urgently seeking homes for 110 cats on Saturday after they and their owner were evicted from a flat in the Valencia region.Spama Safor, an animal shelter in the south-eastern seaside town of Gandia, had initially thought there were only 96 cats in the flat. But by Saturday evening, the charity said it had removed a total of 110 cats and urgently needed help to shelter them “at least until they are vaccinated or sterilised”. Continue reading...
Indigenous legal service calls for government to implement all recommendations from royal commission saying cycle of violence must endFive Aboriginal deaths in custody since June is a national emergency that needs urgent leadership, the national Aboriginal and islander legal services has said.The death of 49-year-old Sherry Fisher-Tilberoo last week while on remand in the Brisbane watch-house is the fifth Aboriginal death in custody since June, bringing to at least 441 the number of people who have died in custody since the royal commission handed down its final report in 1991. Continue reading...
Email reveals high-level official was told minister might need to formally order Sport Australia to make her decision-makerA warning about former sports minister Bridget McKenzie’s legal authority to give out millions of dollars in grants went to a high-level official in the health department but was ignored, according to new evidence to the sports rorts inquiry.An email handed to the Senate inquiry reveals that in June 2018 a health department official warned a superior that McKenzie might need to formally order Sport Australia to make her the decision-maker for grants programs. The official suggested the department get legal advice. Continue reading...
Britain’s cyclists take matters into their own hands as criminals cash in on post-lockdown popularity of cyclingIt’s the buzz he gets from reuniting the cyclists of Cambridge with their stolen bikes that has turned Omar Terywall into a self-proclaimed “vigilante”. He said: “You get really hooked on it when you start seeing major progress – and, well, it’s just nice helping people really, isn’t it?”Like others across the country, from Portsmouth to Glasgow, Terywall runs a local Facebook group where Cambridge cyclists share details of their stolen bikes in the hope they will be spotted. Well-regarded by local police, Terywall happily spends hours each day hunting down stolen bikes via online advertisements and local tip-offs. Continue reading...
Government expands scheme for linguists who risked lives for British troopsDozens more Afghan interpreters who risked their lives for British troops will be able to apply to settle in the UK following the government decision to expand a relocation scheme.Former interpreters and servicemen have welcomed the move, which could mean about 100 linguists and their families will be made eligible to apply for resettlement – but say more must be done for the hundreds still at risk of reprisals in Afghanistan. Continue reading...
The sandwich chain has become a symbol of the way we used to live, pre-pandemic. Can boss Pano Christou turn things around?The Pret a Manger head office in Victoria, London, has all the trappings of an internet startup: the open-plan kitchen offering free coffee, fruit and snacks; a red telephone box next to a meeting room where you can take a private call (Google’s office in London has those, too); a fibreglass cow grazing on fake grass in the atrium; and an area to host “town hall meetings” with a scattering of quirky cushions on a series of raised steps. On the steps is written: “Millions of healthy customers, thousands of opportunities, hundreds of shops, one vision, two founders.”Of course, there are no longer thousands of opportunities for some of its employees. At the end of last month, the sandwich chain announced that nearly 2,900 of its 8,800 staff were being axed; 30 shops have closed; many of the ones that remain open are now shutting as early as 3pm; and the menu has been slimmed down. Continue reading...
The US president reacted with visible surprise when reporters informed him the 87-year-old supreme court justice had died. 'She led an amazing life,' Trump said after a rally in Minnesota. 'What else can you say? She was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. I'm actually saddened to hear that.'
by Joe Parkin Daniels in Bogotá, Dom Phillips in Rio on (#58AV4)
The region has seen some of the longest lockdowns in the world but experts are urging countries not to reopen too soonThe scene in Rio de Janeiro was as though much of 2020 had never happened.The beaches at Ipanema and Copacabana heaved with visitors, the white sand obscured by bronzed bodies, sun loungers and parasols, as locals enjoyed the blistering 38C heat. Continue reading...
Officials says they will launch new measures on Monday despite overwhelming oppositionThe US will break with almost every other UN security council member state including its closest allies on Saturday night by declaring UN sanctions back in effect on Iran.Administration officials say they will launch a raft of new punitive measures on Monday, which some observers believe may be aimed at seeking to provoke a confrontation with Tehran in the run up to the US election. Continue reading...
Five people who stayed close talk about navigating a seismic shift in their relationship, plus their partners on how it was for themTom Gaebel, 54, is engaged to Allie Velasquez, 41. The couple live in Los Angeles. Continue reading...
The police protection officer had been returning from a US trip with the foreign secretaryA police protection officer who was travelling with Dominic Raab has been suspended from duty after reportedly leaving his gun on a plane.The officer had been travelling with Raab on a visit to the US when he allegedly left his gun on a plane at Heathrow airport on Friday. The gun was reported to have been found by a cleaner. Continue reading...
Covid has forced many people out of workplaces. Some have saved money by moving overseasWhen the coronavirus lockdown forced Mason Palmer, 26, to start working from home, the digital content creator had a rethink about where that home was and in July he moved from Bristol to Milan. “I’ve always loved travelling to Italy,” he says. “I was always going over there; it was like an expensive hobby.”He did not expect his boss to necessarily be on board with his plans and suggested that he move to working for the company, Working Word, on a freelance basis. But the firm was open to the idea and his boss kept him on staff. “Now I’m like the unofficial Milan branch,” he laughs. Continue reading...
In 2015, 193 countries agreed a blueprint for a better planet. 2020 was supposed to be a Super Year of progress – we can’t let the pandemic knock us off courseI’m aware this is a strange article to be writing. As most people struggle with the day-to-day complexity of life under the pandemic, how we do find the headspace to think about something as global as the sustainable development goals? But I’m inspired by a recent article by the activist and author Arundhati Roy. “Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next,” she wrote.And for me, the roadmap on this journey comes from the global goals – the superdetailed blueprint, agreed by 193 countries in 2015, for transformation for people and planet by 2030. Continue reading...
The accident led to the deaths of 121 people, and an eight-year legal battle for engineer Alan Irwin. This is what happens when the finger of blame is pointed at youEarly on the morning of 14 August 2005, Alan Irwin, then 44, was with his partner, Donna, and their two young children in an apartment in Larnaca, Cyprus. It was a convenient base, only minutes from the airport. Irwin was an aircraft engineer; he had become obsessed with the technical aspects of planes as a young man in the Royal Air Force, following in the footsteps of his father, also an aircraft engineer and pilot. “I enjoy being around machines,” Irwin says. “If they’re broken, they’re broken. You can’t get angry at them. People can be quite frustrating.”Irwin went on to work for airlines such as McAlpine Aviation and Monarch, and by 2005 had been a freelance licensed engineer for 15 years. The work suited him: it was well paid, and he liked to travel. He had worked in Kuwait, China, Malaysia, the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, Miami. Continue reading...
For diners with money to spare it is the taste of autumn but decline of red pine forests has left it with a precarious futureIn a country that prides itself on its seasonal cuisine, few ingredients generate as much anticipation in Japan as the delicate, unmistakably autumnal flavours of the matsutake mushroom.As the humidity of summer gives way to cooler days, it will soon appear on special display in supermarkets; upmarket ryotei restaurants will present delicate slivers in clear soups, or steamed with gently seasoned rice. Continue reading...