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Denmark has slashed asylum numbers by granting only short-term status and by targeting ghettoes', which critics say has damaged the country's valuesOf all the measures introduced to deter people from seeking asylum in Denmark over the last decade, it is the impermanence of refugees' status that is often cited as the most effective.Before 2015, refugees in Denmark were initially allowed to stay for between five and seven years, after which their residence permits would automatically become permanent. But 10 years ago, when more than a million people arrived in Europe fleeing conflict and repression, largely from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Eritrea, the Danish government dramatically changed the rules. Continue reading...

From Taradell to Galicia, cooperatives are supplying cheap, clean electricity to homes and helping tackle fuel povertyIt began in the small Catalan town of Taradell as a plan to provide local people with allotments where they could grow their own food.Four activists came together with the aim of promoting good environmental practices in local agriculture and business, as well as supplying renewable energy. The project, however, was about much more than growing vegetables. Continue reading...

Testing and remediation to take place in 16 schools after a consumer safety recall was issued for coloured sand used in sensory play and arts and crafts

Climate advocates fear the project, proposed by Japanese oil and gas giant Inpex, would turn the area into the world's largest carbon dumping ground'

Takaichi caused a stir last week after she summoned aides to her office for a 3am meeting to prepare for a budget committee hearingJapan's prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has said she gets by on just two to four hours sleep a night - prompting concern over her commitment to a better work-life balance among the country's fatigued employees.Pointing to the bags beneath her eyes, Takaichi told MPs that she survives on minimal sleep - a habit she shares with her political hero Margaret Thatcher - after being asked how she would tackle Japan's notoriously long working hours. Continue reading...

Pictures posted on social media showed different sites in flames and residents gathering in rubble-strewn streets outside apartment buildingsRussia unleashed a massive combined attack on Kyiv early Friday, sparking fires and scattering debris across many districts of the capital, mayor Vitali Klitschko said. At least 11 people were injured as emergency crews responded to multiple strikes, he said in a statement.Five people were hospitalised, including one man in critical condition and a pregnant woman, after a series of powerful explosions sounded in the city and air defences were activated. Continue reading...

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Charvet Drucker captures dramatic video and photos of seal being hunted by orcas in Salish Sea, north-west of SeattleA wildlife photographer on a whale-watching trip in waters off Seattle captured dramatic video and photos of a pod of killer whales hunting a seal that survived only by clambering on to the stern of her boat.Charvet Drucker was on a rented 20ft (6 metre) boat near her home on an island in the Salish Sea about 40 miles north-west of Seattle when she spotted a pod of at least eight killer whales, also known as orcas. Continue reading...

Case has attracted attention from Chinese Australian community and on social media due to her lavish wealth and speculation about her background

Labour had laid the ground to break a manifesto pledge on taxes for working people but has now made a U-turnRachel Reeves is set to abandon a plan to raise income tax in her budget with the chancellor reportedly ripping up" the main measures in the wake of turmoil in the party.A source told the Guardian that plans to break the manifesto pledge on income tax had been ditched by the prime minister, Keir Starmer, and the chancellor. Continue reading...

Well-preserved oak and maple boats used for transport and fishing to be displayed in PeterboroughAfter lying undisturbed in mud for more than 3,000 years, three rare bronze and iron age log boats have emerged to offer fresh insights into prehistoric life.The boats were among nine discovered in a Cambridgeshire quarry 13 years ago - the largest group of prehistoric boats found in the same UK site. Most were well preserved, with one still able to float despite its long incarceration. Continue reading...

Death of 28-year-old childhood educator in Forbes, NSW, intensified a national campaign against domestic and gendered violence

Row continues between camps of Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, whose company holds hundreds of thousands of pounds of party fundsThe leftwing Your Party, set up by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, is embroiled in another public row over donations to the party.A statement from Corbyn along with Shockat Adam MP, Adnan Hussain MP, Ayoub Khan MP and Iqbal Mohamed MP states that hundreds of thousands of pounds were donated to the party by supporters in good faith, but have since remained beyond its reach", which they describe as being extremely frustrating and disheartening". Continue reading...

We strongly disagree there is a basis for a defamation claim', reads statement expressing sincere regrets' over Panorama episodeThe BBC has apologised to Donald Trump over the editing of a Panorama documentary that led to the resignation of its director general, Tim Davie, and the BBC News chief, Deborah Turness.However, the corporation has rejected his demands for compensation, after lawyers for Trump threatened to sue for $1bn (760m) in damages unless the BBC issued a retraction, apologised and settled with him. Continue reading...

Hits include country songs and a Dutch anti-refugee anthem, both entirely made without human compositionThree songs generated by artificial intelligence topped music charts this week, reaching the highest spots on Spotify and Billboard charts.Walk My Walk and Livin' on Borrowed Time by the outfit Breaking Rust topped Spotify's Viral 50" songs in the US, which documents the most viral tracks right now" on a daily basis, according to the streaming service. A Dutch song, We Say No, No, No to an Asylum Center, an anti-migrant anthem by JW Broken Veteran" that protests against the creation of new asylum centers, took the top position in Spotify's global version of the viral chart around the same time. Breaking Rust also appeared in the top five on the global chart. Continue reading...

Revelation comes despite US justice department downplaying possibility that other men involved in Epstein's abuseWhile Donald Trump's justice department has downplayed the possibility that other men were involved in Jeffrey Epstein's abuse of teen girls, an email released on 12 November as part of the House oversight committee's Epstein investigation shows an exchange between the late financier and an associate where they discuss girls" and travel.Epstein sent an email asking what is your schedule?" on 23 July 2010 to an associate. The latter responded the next morning saying: the other girl name is [redacted]." The Guardian is withholding the associate's name, as attempts to identify and contact him were unsuccessful. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Move could cause huge disruption and present ministers with major new headache

Diana Santillana Galeano's detention sparked outrage after agents dragged her from a daycareA Chicago daycare worker whose arrest by federal agents last week sparked widespread outrage has been released from custody.On Thursday, Diana Santillana Galeano's attorney said she was released from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Clay county, Indiana, on Wednesday night. Her release followed a federal judge's ruling earlier in the day that her arrest was unlawful" as she had not had a preliminary bond hearing. Continue reading...

Lawsuit against US government alleges life-threatening' medical neglect and says residents frequently go hungrySeven people detained at California's largest Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center have sued the US government, alleging they have been denied essential medications, frequently go hungry, and are housed in a decrepit" facility.The federal class-action complaint filed against ICE on Wednesday challenges the inhumane conditions" at the California City detention center, which opened in late August inside a shuttered state prison. The suit alleges life-threatening" medical neglect, with the plaintiffs saying they have been denied cancer treatment, basic disability accommodations and regular insulin for diabetes. Continue reading...

Republican Kevin Stitt commutes Tremane Wood's death sentence to life in prison for 2002 murder of Ronnie Wipf

Bells ring out across French capital marking 10th anniversary of country's deadliest peacetime attack

Closeup of studded stilettos in trailer for The Devil Wears Prada 2 causes fashion debate on social mediaPosting the first trailer for The Devil Wears Prada 2 on Instagram on her birthday this week, the film's star Anne Hathaway captioned the video with it's everybody's birthday", prompting copious comments featuring emojis of flames, hearts and - of course - the red shoe now associated with the film's poster.But with the trailer circulating on social media, it's the shoes that have become the focus of fashion debate - and not in a good way. Continue reading...

This blog has now closed, you can read more on this story herePA Media has more on what the monthly performance figures from NHS England show. PA says:The data shows 180,329 people in England had been waiting more than a year to start routine hospital treatment at the end of September, down from 190,549 at the end of August.Some 2.4% of people on the list for hospital treatment had been waiting more than 52 weeks in September, down from 2.6% the previous month.The NHS waiting list is 230,000 lower than July last year, even as the health service approaches its limit' with A&E and ambulances facing record demand ahead of winter.The overall waiting list for September was 7.39m (an estimated 6.24m patients) down 15,845 compared to the previous month and 230,000 fewer than July 2024.Thanks to the investment and modernisation this government has made, waiting lists are falling and patients are being treated sooner ...The past year is the first time in 15 years that waiting lists have fallen. There's a long way to go, but the NHS is now on the road to recovery. Continue reading...

Proposal includes 72,000 social homes to tackle housing crisis, but critics call it old wine in a new bottle'The Irish government has announced a long-awaited plan to tackle the country's severe housing shortage by building 300,000 new homes within five years.It plans to boost supply by increasing construction capacity and the amount of zoned and serviced land, and to increase support for vulnerable groups, according to proposals published on Thursday. Continue reading...

Judges in Luxembourg said EU law clearly prohibited the term non-alcoholic gin', after a case was brought against the makers of Virgin Gin AlkoholfreiThe makers of spirits may be raising a toast to the European judges of Luxembourg, after the EU's court ruled that non-alcoholic drinks cannot be called gin.Only spirit drinks based on ethyl alcohol flavoured by juniper berries with a minimum alcoholic strength of 37.5% by volume can be known as gin, the court said in a judgement issued on Thursday. Continue reading...

Unfair labor practice strike on red cup day' in over 40 cities comes amid stagnant negotiations with coffee chainMore than a thousand Starbucks workers have commenced a strike in more than 40 cities across the US on Thursday amid stagnant negotiations with the world's largest coffee chain over a first union contract.On the company's annual red cup day", hailing the start of the lucrative holiday season, Starbucks Workers United is launching an unfair labor practice (ULP) strike, with rallies planned in locations including New York City; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Chicago, Illinois; Columbus, Ohio; and Anaheim, California. Continue reading...

Yulia Svyrydenko says government will conduct major audit of Energoatom and other state-owned firms in bid to fight corruption allegationsA bitter battle over the future of a Chinese-owned chipmaker in the Netherlands that threatened to cripple the global car industry is a wake-up call to Europe and the west", the minister at the heart of the row has warned.The six-week standoff between the EU and Beijing over Nexperia and its vital supplies of automotive semiconductors has served up a sobering lesson to world leaders over their dependency on China, says Vincent Karremans. Continue reading...

Health secretary has always been open about his ambitions but recent actions hinted at reasons for potential coup plot

Billionaire populist Andrej Babi insisting he will meet legal obligations before taking officeAndrej Babi, the self-proclaimed Trumpist" billionaire who won last month's Czech election, has refused to sell his huge business empire, but insisted he will resolve a conflict of interest that threatens to bar him from becoming prime minister.Babi, whose ANO party finished a comfortable first in the October vote but failed to secure a majority in parliament, said in a social media post on Thursday he would not sell his Agrofert farming, food processing and chemicals conglomerate. Continue reading...

Lots include the annotated shooting script for Die Hard and a hand-drawn Halloween card from his Harry Potter co-star Rupert GrintAlan Rickman's obsessive attention to detail is revealed in the copious annotations he made on all his scripts, as a number of film-related items from the late actor's personal collections are put up for auction including screenplays from Die Hard and Harry Potter.Propstore, the Los Angeles and London-based auction firm that specialises in entertainment industry memorabilia and recently sold a Star Wars lightsaber for 2.7m, is staging a three-day sale in which a number of lots originating from the Alan Rickman archive will be available. Continue reading...

System introduced in 2012 across England and Wales has faced criticism from police chiefs

Education secretary says report highlights glaring failures and missed opportunities' by various agenciesServices in Surrey failed to identify that Sara Sharif was at risk of abuse, did not question unexplained bruising, and staff members visited the wrong address the day before her murder, a safeguarding review has found.Sara, 10, was killed by her father, Urfan Sharif, and her stepmother, Beinash Batool, in August 2023 after years of escalating brutality that left her with bruises, burns, human bite marks and at least 25 fractures. Continue reading...

British luxury brand urges chancellor to pursue progressive policies' in budget to increase spending sprees by foreignersBosses at Burberry have urged Rachel Reeves to reinstate a tax-free shopping scheme for tourists in the budget to unlock further growth" and increase tourist spending.Executives at the British luxury brand called on the chancellor to pursue progressive policies" to boost shopping sprees from tourists, pointing specifically to a value-added tax (VAT) refund programme for foreigners that was scrapped five years ago. Continue reading...

Secretary for women presents plan, including prison sentences, after Claudia Sheinbaum was groped on streetThe shocking public groping of Mexico's president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has prompted rapid political action to tackle sexual abuse, as well as public debate on how best to address the problem, which is widespread across the country.Citlalli Hernandez, Mexico's secretary for women, presented a presidential plan to confront the issue, which would include actions such as ensuring prison sentences for sexual abuse across Mexico, encouraging women to report incidents, and training prosecutors and other officials on how to handle the matter. Continue reading...

Cabinet minister says PM would not have backed attacks on Wes Streeting but briefing is longstanding aspect of politics'

Messages sent months after former prince said he ended relations and also appear to confirm Virginia Giuffre photoNewly released Jeffrey Epstein emails have cast further doubt on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's account of when he cut ties with the child sex offender and his denials about meeting his accuser Virginia Giuffre.In March 2011, four months after he later claimed to have ended his relationship with Epstein, the former prince told him and the convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell: I can't take any more of this," in response to allegations put to him by the Mail on Sunday. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Dutch minister says tussle with Chinese-owned Nexperia was like an economic thriller' and is sobering lesson to world over its dependency on ChinaA bitter battle over the future of a Chinese-owned chipmaker in the Netherlands that threatened to cripple the global car industry is a wake-up call to Europe and the west", the minister at the heart of the row has warned.The six-week standoff between the EU and Beijing over Nexperia and its vital supplies of automotive semiconductors has served up a sobering lesson to world leaders over their dependency on China, says Vincent Karremans. Continue reading...

Climate groups call backflip a disaster' while moderate Liberals worry about impact on winning back urban electorates

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Sewell, 32, must not be in Melbourne's CBD or talk to alleged camp attack co-accused as part of bail conditions

Future Coalition government would not withdraw from Paris climate agreement altogether, Liberal frontbench decides a day after five-hour party room debate

Chain among Australian retailers to have sold some of the affected Creatistics, Kadink and Educational Colours products since 2020

Based on the largest poll of supporters yet, these charts and maps show five distinct groups that could hand Reform a majority

Anya Phan, 53, who also claimed to be a feng shui master, allegedly exploited vulnerable clients who took out loans based on her predictions

Restrictions for entry to Schengen zone announced last Friday because of sabotage attacks linked to RussiaRussian opposition figures have reacted with anger and dismay to a decision by the European Union to introduce a ban on multi-entry visas to the Schengen zone for Russian citizens, announced in recent days.Starting a war and expecting to move freely in Europe is hard to justify," said the EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, when announcing the decision last Friday. She added that the tightened rules were a response to Russian drone incursions into European airspace and sabotage attacks linked to Russia. Continue reading...

Former Advance chair and Catholic education leader appointed in changes that come amid breakdown in teacher pay negotiations

The truce broke down this week after a Thai soldier lost a leg to a landmine blast, prompting Thailand's PM to say the peace deal was now over'One person has been killed by gunfire along the Thai-Cambodia border as conflict heats up between the two nations days after a Trump-backed ceasefire agreement collapsed.Fighting erupted between Thai and Cambodian troops over five days in July, with 43 people killed and 300,000 displaced in the worst fighting along the border in a decade. Donald Trump oversaw the signing of a ceasefire agreement between the two nations in Malaysia this October, after the US president previously threatened to withhold trade privileges from the two countries unless they stopped fighting. Continue reading...

British American Tobacco pushed Zambian ministers to drop or delay ad bans, health warnings and restrictions on flavoured products, letter showsBritish American Tobacco has been accused of utter hypocrisy" for lobbying against tobacco control measures in Africa that are already in place in the UK.A letter seen by the Guardian, sent from the company's subsidiary in Zambia to the country's government ministers, asks for plans to ban tobacco advertising and sponsorship to be abandoned or delayed. Continue reading...

Amendment would have watered down law to allow abortion only where it would save life of mother or another foetus, or for significant risk of abnormalities