Housing secretary says Home Office moved goalposts with disruptive' change to permanent residence rulesAngela Rayner has stood by her criticism of Home Office reforms that would make it harder for foreign care workers to claim permanent residence in the UK, describing them as disruptive".Last year, Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, announced that low paid migrants on jobs below graduate level would have to be in the country for 15 years before applying for settlement. Rayner previously attacked the plans as being un-British". Continue reading...
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez has bullet lodged in back as accounts differ over events leading to traffic-stop shootingThe Venezuelan man shot by federal immigration officers after a traffic stop in Texas needs surgery to avoid losing feeling on the left side of his body, according to his supporters.Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, has spent the past five days in detention with a bullet lodged in his back, after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) rapidly removed him from a hospital in Austin where he had been taken on Sunday after the shooting. Continue reading...
Ministers have been speaking to farming activists to try to build bridges after tax changes introduced under Starmer soured relationsAs an arable farmer, Olly Harrison's WhatsApp messages are normally concerned with the more mundane matters of working the land: logistics, supplies and the occasional chat about the weather.So when a recent message came through from Andy Burnham, it was more than a little unexpected. Continue reading...
Israel categorically rejects' publication and says businesses on database have committed no wrongdoingThe UN human rights office has added 61 more companies to a blacklist of firms that it says are involved in violating Palestinian human rights through business ties to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.The vast majority of the total 214 companies, which are based in 11 countries, are Israeli. Five of the 158 companies listed last year were removed in the latest update. Continue reading...
Artists including Tinie Tempah and the Smiths' drummer Mike Joyce ramp up pressure on government to keep its pledge to outlaw for-profit resalesThe government has stepped up work on new laws to stop ticket touts fleecing fans, as the prime minister came under pressure from artists including the drummer from the Smiths, one of his favourite bands.Keir Starmer said last year that the government would stop fans from being ripped off" by outlawing the for-profit resale of tickets on sites such as Viagogo and StubHub, a pledge Labour first made in its 2024 election manifesto. Continue reading...
Behind the stories of bombings and mass deaths, the everyday challenges facing Palestinians living under siege portray a quieter tragedy we rarely hearWhat does it take to make a morning cup of tea in Gaza?For Alaa Hessi, in her final month of pregnancy, this small ritual begins with a calculation of gas rations. Her family gets a ration of 6kg of gas every three months - enough to heat a pot for 18 precious minutes a day. That's needed for cooking - so for tea, a fire must be built instead. Continue reading...
Third US president wrote in 1787 about importance of peace, paying off debt and supporting agricultureA remarkably prescient letter written by Thomas Jefferson, the third US president, advising how the newly created country could prosper, has been put up for sale by a private collector. The handwritten document from 1787 warns specifically against many of the missteps Donald Trump has taken to drag down his own second term of office.Written in Paris, where Jefferson was the fledgling government's minister to France, the note to David Rittenhouse, a friend and fellow member of the American Philosophical Society, muses on the priorities and principles he believed future presidents should follow. Continue reading...
Tehran awaits official response to plan, but US president is said to expect renewed strikes after midtermsIran is awaiting an official US response to its proposal to reopen the strait of Hormuz within a week and resume nuclear talks in return for the lifting of the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, as Donald Trump was reported to have rejected the deal.Although Iran is yet to receive his official response, the US president is said to be privately sceptical Iran would meet his demands to dismantle its nuclear programme, according to unnamed US officials cited by the Wall Street Journal. Continue reading...
Alan Milburn said 16- to 24-year-olds with most complex needs should not have to keep proving they cannot workYoung people whose complex disabilities mean they have little prospect of getting a paid job should get fast-track access to disability benefits, an official review of youth employment will say.The review, by the former Labour health secretary Alan Milburn, will say 16- to 24-year-olds with the most severe lifelong needs should be guaranteed swift and unconditional benefit support rather than having to prove they cannot work. Continue reading...
Only 26% of PHEVs sold across top 20 models can use chargers with power of 50kW or more, analysis findsThree-quarters of the 20 top-selling plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) in the UK cannot use rapid chargers, research has found, amid concerns that many are essentially petrol cars pulling round a heavy battery".The cars, which can run on electric batteries as well as combustion engines, have been promoted by carmakers as a way to cover long distances in a single drive - unlike fully electric cars - while still reducing emissions. Continue reading...
President's hard, drastic and necessary measure', likely to attract widespread public support, polls suggestThe Brazilian president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has signed an order banning fixed-odds sports betting just over a week before the first round of the presidential election, in a move he said was designed to tackle the pervasive problem of families falling into debt.The decision ends the operation, offering, intermediation and advertising of betting. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#78N40)
Exclusive: Dog Painting 17 is believed to be one of only six of works from Dog Series in private hands and first to be auctionedDavid Hockney adored his dachshunds Stanley and Boodgie and let them run riot - so much so that after one had an accident in the LA home of the actor Dennis Hopper, the painter is said to have quipped: It'll be dry in the morning, luv, and you can just pick it up."But Hockney did not just indulge his four-legged companions, he treated them as portrait subjects for a series of paintings, one of which is to be sold by Christie's. Continue reading...
Cabin crew worker was among thousands of staff laid off during pandemic in what MPs called a national disgrace'During a 30-year career as a member of British Airways' cabin crew, Tess De Mello took pride in a job well done, saying she regularly went above and beyond to make passengers more comfortable. To her, the role was more than just employment - it was part of her identity.I took pride," she said. I really took pride in myself, I took pride in my role, I took pride in everything because it was everything I wanted to be." Continue reading...
Trump tries to dominate at the UN as his approval ratings plummet and even some Republicans stray from the scriptDonald Trump stood before the United Nations on Tuesday and threatened to annihilate" Iran. Yet even as the most powerful man on the planet flexed his military muscles, he was powerless to keep the gravitational pull of domestic politics at bay.Heading into the UN building in New York, the US president was questioned by Kaitlan Collins, an anchor at CNN, which he had banned from the White House before a judge ruled against him. I'm surprised that CNN is here covering me," the 80-year-old snapped. You should not be here covering me." Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#78N2H)
The deputy leader wants the party to take advantage of a split on the right and not be embarrassed to show its valuesLabour must reunite the progressive voter coalition" if it is to take advantage of a split on the right and win the next election, the party's deputy leader has said.Lucy Powell, who won the race to be deputy leader 12 months ago with a warning that Labour was losing the fight to be heard as Reform UK surged, said the government now had a second chance under Andy Burnham. Continue reading...
From a difficult economic landscape to decisions on oil and gas drilling, welfare spending and the Chagos Islands, we look at what's on the horizonAndy Burnham is riding high ahead of the Labour party conference after a successful first meeting with Donald Trump, and with his party faithful excited by their uplift in the polls. He plans to bring a message of hope and optimism to the autumn gathering in Liverpool, and will benefit from goodwill among members as he makes his first speech as leader on Tuesday.However, the real tests will start to land from October onwards, with a difficult economic landscape, the ongoing impact of the war in Iran and domestic challenges to navigate. Here is what Burnham has to look forward to after the conference is over. Continue reading...
Despite guidance keeping mobile phones out of England's schools, cheaper travel may only be available via an appSchoolchildren who do not own smartphones face paying hundreds of pounds extra in annual bus fares as cheaper travel passes are digitised.Critics argue that by only making discounts available through an app, operators are undermining government guidance to keep mobile phones out of schools. Continue reading...
Files could have seismic consequences for online casinos, including those accused of illegally targeting consumersThe secrets of thousands of online casinos have been laid bare in a vast leak of data that could have seismic consequences for offshore gambling firms, including some accused of illegally targeting consumers around the world.The Casino Secrets leak reveals tens of thousands of previously confidential files stored by the gambling regulator on the Caribbean island of Curacao. Continue reading...
Trial had been set for Monday over claims by Alabama that TikTok misled parents about tools meant to shield children from harmful contentTikTok has agreed to pay Alabama at least $100m and enact time limits and other restrictions for teenage users, avoiding a trial with a settlement that was modelled on Instagram-owner Meta's recent agreement with US states.Alabama described it as a first-in-the-nation settlement" with a state in the sweeping litigation over social media's affect on teen wellbeing. Continue reading...
Mountaineer's body recovered about 20 metres below the summit of Torrecerredo, the highest peak of the Picos de Europa rangeA British man has died after falling about 61 metres (200ft) while descending from the summit of a mountain in northern Spain, according to local law enforcement.The 28-year-old mountaineer fell down a vertical gully on the east side of the Torrecerredo - the highest peak of the Cantabrian mountains - on Thursday afternoon, the Spanish Civil Guard for the Asturias region said. Continue reading...
Investigation determined Dale Caldwell violated state ethics rules and engaged in harassing behaviorDale Caldwell, the lieutenant governor of New Jersey, resigned from his position on Friday, after the release of a report accusing him of sexually harassing a female staffer, among other ethics violations.New Jersey's governor, Mikie Sherrill, announced on Friday afternoon that Caldwell had submitted his resignation to her earlier in the day. Continue reading...
Officials say man found dead in a church decades ago may be linked to poisonings in Chicago area in 1982A man found dead in an Idaho church decades ago may be connected to unsolved poisonings in 1982 in the Chicago area that were dubbed the Tylenol murders" and ushered in child safety caps for medicines, authorities announced recently.Detective Tim Cooper of the Ada county sheriff's Office reopened a cold case investigation in 2019 that led authorities to identify Dr Mathew Francis Betkouski posthumously. Betkouski fatally poisoned himself with cyanide more than 40 years ago and was buried anonymously. Continue reading...
Group calls for proper enforcement of ICC rulings as Trump administration widens attacks on courtThe US threat to impose sanctions on the international criminal court (ICC) as an institution, not just its leading judges, could fundamentally disrupt its operation and needed to be resisted, a coalition of countries to defend international law heard at the United Nations on Friday.Ronald Lamola, South Africa's foreign minister, issued the warning at an event during the UN general assembly called to protect the system of international law from a growing array of threats, including open flouting of its tenets and rulings by Israel. Continue reading...
by Presented by Lucy Hough with Devika Bhat; produced on (#78MRF)
More than 100 people were arrested at large protests against the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address to the UN general assembly. Susan Sarandon, Chelsea Manning and Caleb Hearon were among the famous faces arrested. Inside the assembly hall, Netanyahu faced a mass walkout as he took to the stage. Then, in an inflammatory address, he claimed Israel's war in Gaza was the opposite of a genocide' and labelled the New York mayor, Zohran Mamdani, antisemitic. Lucy Hough speaks to UK global editor Devika Bhat - watch on YouTube - Listen to Thursday's episode of Stateside with Kai and Carter on whether Netanyahu has lost America here Continue reading...
Kent facility became dangerously overburdened after ministers halted transfers to hotelsA catalogue of failures including racism, use of force and chronic overcrowding at a Home Office processing site for people who arrive on small boat were linked to decisions made at the highest level of government, an independent inquiry has heard.The government commissioned the Manston independent inquiry to look at problems under the Conservative government between 1 June and 22 November 2022 at the facility in Kent. Continue reading...
Walter Moorhead, arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, murdered Santos Maria Chilel Soto, partner allegesThe partner of a Delaware woman who was shot dead by a hunter allegedly mistaking her for a deer has said the killing was senseless" and the hunter had no excuse".I have never seen a deer with only two legs," Minivaldo Velasquez told the Delaware public news outlet WHYY in an interview published on Thursday about the death six days earlier of Santos Maria Chilel Soto. It doesn't make sense - no." Continue reading...
Funds to help local people turn empty shops, pubs and clubs into community hubs, shared workspaces and cafesThe UK government has pledged 210m to regenerate high streets by taking boarded-up shops, pubs and clubs and turning them into shared workspaces, cafes and community hubs.Andy Burnham said the funds would help put power back into the hands of locals who know their area best" as part of his effort to restore pride and bring hope back". Continue reading...
Experiment suggests organisms could live in harsh environment under Enceladus's icy crust, strengthening possibility moon could support lifeFrom the moment scientists spotted plumes of water erupting from Enceladus, one of Saturn's moons, it became the most tantalising place in the solar system to search for life beyond Earth.Now the case is even more compelling after researchers found that organisms that live in deep-sea waters off Japan can survive the harsh conditions expected in the briny ocean that lurks beneath Enceladus's icy crust. Continue reading...
Trump and officials claimed database combats noncitizen voting but critics said it could disenfranchise eligible votersThe US supreme court has lifted restrictions on a controversial federal database of voters as Donald Trump seeks to impose tougher restrictions on voting ahead of November's midterm elections.The ruling issued Friday by the chief justice, John Roberts, in the name of the court temporarily sets aside an injunction issued by US district judge Sparkle L Sooknanan, who ruled on 22 June against the Trump administration's plan to use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements - Save - database to vet voter registration eligibility. A federal appeals court later declined to pause that ruling. Continue reading...
Rat-free' Canadian province recently took a verminous hit when a dead rodent turned up in town of BowdenFor more than seven decades, residents of Alberta have shared something in common with Antarctica and the high Arctic: all locations are officially free of rats.But on Thursday the Canadian province's reputation as a firewall against rodent infestation took a hit when the town of Bowden announced the discovery of a dead rat and called on the province's rat patrol" to investigate. Continue reading...
by Alexandra Topping Political correspondent on (#78MRH)
About 1.5 million people have watched footage of foreign secretary that capitalises on social media's love of a cringe momentIt sparked delight among the diehard Milifans and a begrudging smile from those less keen on the foreign secretary, but a viral video of Ed Miliband has - possibly - confirmed his status as the internet's awkward dad.About 1.5 million people have viewed an interaction between Miliband and the TikTok personality Feroz Khan on the streets of New York, during which the digital content creator asks Miliband a series of questions including his name, job and his top piece of advice. Continue reading...
by Joseph Gedeon, Dara Kerr and Chris Stein on (#78M7D)
Who are the groups backing candidates in the midterms - and why? Joseph Gedeon, Dara Kerr and Chris Stein answered your questionsSign up to The Stakes newsletter: your weekly guide to the US midtermsNola67 asks Alex Vindman had $16 million fundraised during his losing campaign against Angie Nixon [to be the Democrat's Senate nominee in Florida]. Will he be giving that money to Nixon now, and is she getting more funding help from the national Democratic Party?Joseph: Our understanding is that he's using his sizeable war chest to boost Democrats across the country, and to the Florida Democratic state party, though not Nixon herself. He announced back in August that he'd be sending $250k to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign committee and candidates like Abdul El Sayed in Michigan, Troy Jackson in Maine, Roy Cooper in North Carolina, Sherrod Brown in Ohio, Charles Booker in Kentucky, and more.In Florida, he says he invested $400k to the state democratic party, though not directly to Nixon herself. It seems like the Senate Majority PAC, led by Chuck Schumer and meant to boost Democrats to the Senate, are steering clear of Nixon's campaign - it seems they don't find that one winnable, and don't want to put the investment into it.Dara: Theoretically AI could be used for recovering debt for investors for the government, but given the mistakes and bias the technology still has it would likely need human oversight for this work. It's more feasible that AI will be used as a tool to help identify trends and organize material, but then people would have to direct this work and keep tabs on the technology to ensure all rules and regulations are being followed. Continue reading...
by Jakub Krupa (now) and Tom Ambrose (earlier) on (#78MDJ)
The pope gives landmark speech on AI development and Europe's futureLater today, Pope Leo will go to the Elysee Palace for (another) formal welcome and a meeting with authorities, civil society and the diplomatic corps, before visiting Unesco and delivering a speech on AI in mid-afternoon.He is then expected to go on a stroll through the streets of Paris, before going to the restored Notre Dame Cathedral. Continue reading...
Powered by sun and wind, the uncrewed vehicle will collect data to help Australian scientists better understand how oceans absorb emissionsA small uncrewed vessel has embarked on a lap around Antarctica and may not return for months.The seven-metre craft, which looks like a large kayak in hi-vis orange, is expected to travel about 22,000km through inhospitable waters, propelled by powerful westerly winds and energy from the sun. The journey is seven times the distance between Sydney and Perth. Continue reading...
by Amy Qin with graphics by Flávio Pessoa on (#78MMT)
National Center for Education Statistics, which collects critical data to guide policy on learning, was decimated after Doge canceled crucial contractsAs reading and math scores fall to their lowest point in the past quarter-century, the US now has fewer tools to understand and develop interventions for this troubling trend.When the Trump administration took a wrecking ball to the Department of Education last year, firing nearly half of its workers and allowing the so-called department of government efficiency" (Doge) to cancel nearly $900m in contracts, a little-known agency called the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) was among the hardest hit. Continue reading...
As the UN warns traditional safeguards are unravelling', Donald Trump says he will encourage, not restrain, the AI raceWhen the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, sat down for an interview in the heart of Silicon Valley at the weekend he had known for two days that his was the first government known to have been attacked by a rogue AI agent.He didn't reveal the attack then, but he sounded a warning about the march of AI: the risk is that AI develops in a way in which humans are no longer in control of what AI is producing." Continue reading...
by Tom Ambrose (now); Taz Ali and Martin Belam (earli on (#78MEZ)
The media organisation reports that three of its journalists were denied media passesA record 66m of emergency security funding was issued by the Home Office for mosques and related community sites in the UK when violent disorder spread in the aftermath of the Southport attacks in 2024.Exclusive figures obtained by the Guardian also reveal a record of about 41m of security funding was issued for mosques and related community sites for the year from April 2025-26 as part of the protective security scheme.We reserve the right to reject an application if we cannot find any evidence the applicant is a working journalist or photographer with a political portfolio or working on behalf of a relevant media outlet." Continue reading...
Unnamed woman who filed and later dropped lawsuit against rap superstar states that she never met him, contrary to initial allegation of 2000 assaultA woman who accused Jay-Z of raping her when she was 13 years old has formally withdrawn her allegation, saying that she has never met the rap superstar.The unnamed woman had originally made the allegation in a lawsuit filed in 2024, claiming that Jay-Z, real name Shawn Carter, had drugged and raped her with Sean Combs, known as P Diddy. The incident was alleged to have happened at a party after an MTV awards ceremony in 2000. Continue reading...
by Ashifa Kassam European community affairs correspon on (#78MH3)
Critics say decree also banning burqa in schools shows Italian PM running scared ahead of next year's voteRights campaigners have accused the Italian government of ramping up divisive rhetoric in an attempt to court far-right voters ahead of next year's general election after it passed a decree aimed at capping the number of newly arrived migrants in classrooms and banning the burqa and niqab in schools.The prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, who leads the far-right Brothers of Italy party, said her government had approved what she called commonsense measures that do not divide but genuinely help to integrate". Continue reading...
Thomas appeared at Basingstoke magistrates court on Friday after being charged with criminal damageThe far-right activist Daniel Thomas has pleaded not guilty to criminal damage after he allegedly slashed a boat in the Channel with an emergency responder on board.Thomas, 37, of no fixed address, appeared at Basingstoke magistrates court on Friday after being charged on Thursday night. He also denied failing to disclose the pin to his phone to police, under section 53 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. Continue reading...
Trump officials and Republicans are rolling back protections against heat-related illnesses and deathsWhen it's 90F on a hot summer day, Esther Minton wears a long-sleeved shirt to work.Working outside, you don't have cover. There's nowhere for you to really go if you're on a roof or if you're on the side of a building," said Minton, a member of the Sheet Metal Workers Local Union 28 in New York City. Having the sun beaming on your skin all day long, you'll never make it through, so what you wear makes a difference." Continue reading...
After years of illegal mass flytipping in Gospi, fed-up residents decided to take matters into their own handsGospi is our home," eljka iki shouted to a crowd of 40,000 people outside the Croatian parliament earlier this month. The slogan is the name of a campaign she helped to set up to protest against the illegal dumping of waste in Gospi, a town in the mountainous Lika region of central Croatia.Between 2022 and 2024, waste was illegally abandoned at several sites in the town. At one of the biggest, just 50 metres from iki's home, an estimated 35,000 tonnes of waste, some of it hazardous, was dumped and buried. Continue reading...
Government-backed help to save is aimed at working people on universal credit and pays 50p for every 1 saved over four yearsAmid claims that millions are missing out, the UK government is encouraging low earners to sign up to a savings scheme that offers free cash.Help to save is a government-backed savings account that lets people earn a bonus of 50p for every 1 they save over four years. Continue reading...
Catherine Corless's exposure of almost 800 infant deaths at a home led by nuns prompted Neeson to bring the story to screenLiam Neeson still remembers his shock and shame when he read a New York Times article about the mother and baby institution in Tuam, County Galway.It was 2017 and the article chronicled the campaign by Catherine Corless, an amateur local historian, to expose abuse and neglect by Irish nuns that led to hundreds of children being buried in a mass, unmarked grave. Continue reading...
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