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John Healey gives operational update in the House of CommonsFarage is now talking about London, where council elections are taking place.He says that Sadiq Khan has said he will run for a fourth term as mayor. Continue reading...

Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel peace prize winner will lay out vision for the country in book publishing in USVenezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado will publish a book in the US that lays out her vision for Venezuela's political reconstruction as the country faces significant upheaval.The 120-page work titled The Freedom Manifesto is being released by Regnery Publishing, a conservative book publisher acquired by Skyhorse Publishing in 2023. Continue reading...

The White House's official retelling of the January 6 insurrection strains credulity

Remarks by US secretary of state come after Greenland and Denmark request urgent meeting over Trump threats

US European Command says it boarded the Marinera over alleged sanctions violations, a move that risks confrontation with Moscow

Nine children and nine adults suffered minor injuries in collision, with two taken to hospital for further treatmentTwo school buses have crashed on icy roads as Arctic weather conditions continue to cause widespread disruption and parts of the country brace for up to 30cm of snow.Nine children and nine adults suffered minor injuries following a collision between a school coach and a Reading bus on icy roads in Wokingham on Wednesday. Continue reading...

The White House has said using the US military is always an option, but few analysts believe it a likely one

New guidance presented by Robert F Kennedy Jr prioritizes protein, healthy fats and declares war on added sugar'The Trump administration has released updated dietary guidelines for Americans on Wednesday that emphasize eating whole and minimally processed foods, scaling back refined carbohydrates, and declaring war" on added sugars.The recommendations encourage prioritizing high-quality protein, healthy fats, fruits, vegetables and whole grains" while steering clear of highly processed foods. Robert F Kennedy Jr, the health and human services (HHS) secretary, and Brooke Rollins, the agriculture secretary, are presenting the new guidance at a White House briefing. Continue reading...

Marco Rubio lays out three-point plan as US signals interior minister must back acting president, Delcy RodriguezThe Trump administration has reportedly put Venezuela's hardline interior minister, Diosdado Cabello, on notice that he could be next to fall if he does not support the acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, who has been in power since Nicolas Maduro was seized on Saturday.Reuters reported that US officials are especially concerned" that Cabello, long seen by many as the regime's real No 2, could sabotage Washington's plan to keep key figures from Maduro's inner circle in place in the name of stability while pursuing a transition and unrestricted access to Venezuela's oil. Continue reading...

Stonewall's corporate funding halves against backdrop of US attacks on DEI and freezing of aid for LGBTQ+ causesLGBTQ+ charities in the UK are operating in a newly hostile environment", experts have warned, as the ripple effect of Donald Trump's attacks on equalities programmes sharpens financial pressures.The concerns come as yearly accounts submitted by Stonewall, the UK's biggest LGBTQ+ charity, revealed corporate donations had more than halved in the last financial year, falling from 348,636 in 2024 to 143,149 in 2025. Continue reading...

Officers find murderer Matthew Armstrong, 35, in Warwickshire and Daniel Washbourne, 40, in BristolA convicted murderer and a second man have been arrested after allegedly absconding from an open prison on New Year's Day, police have said.Matthew Armstrong, 35, and Daniel Washbourne, 40, left HMP Leyhill, South Gloucestershire, between 5pm and 8pm on 1 January. Continue reading...

Laila Cunningham tells press conference that people pity Londoners for having to live in a city that is no longer safe'

John Healey confirms RAF provided extra surveillance and navy refuelling while capture under way

Camp beds set up as more than 1,000 travellers spend night at key flight hub during freezing European weather

Miles Cross sentenced to 14 years in prison for selling the substance anonymously via online forum to four peopleA man who sold a deadly chemical online to help people kill themselves has been jailed in what is believed to be the first case of its kind in the UK.Miles Cross, 33, pleaded guilty to four counts of intentionally doing an act capable of encouraging or assisting suicide and was sentenced at Mold crown court on Wednesday to 14 years in prison. Continue reading...

Video game spinoff was the highest-grossing film of the year at 56.88m as the sector continued its recovery after CovidThe UK and Irish box office has recorded its best annual performance since the Covid pandemic, with A Minecraft Movie ending 2025 as the highest-grossing film of the year.Figures released by box-office analysts Comscore show that box office revenue in the UK and Ireland totalled 1.07bn, an increase of 1% on 2024's total of 1.06bn. At the same time there was a slight decrease in the amount of films released: 1,092 in 2025, compared with 1,124 in 2024. Continue reading...

Unseasonably high rate of influenza, dubbed Super-K, comes as vaccination rates plummet among those most vulnerable, GPs say

Updated government assessment says measures will now entail no more than a modest increase' for employersLabour watering down its sweeping overhaul of workers' rights is expected to slash the cost of the plan for UK businesses by billions of pounds, the government's own analysis shows.According to an updated Whitehall impact assessment published on Wednesday, concessions by ministers could reduce the cost of the employment rights bill for businesses to about 1bn. Continue reading...

Harte, who was been Aurora orchestra's chief executive since 2009, replaces Kathryn McDowellThe London Symphony Orchestra has announced that John Harte will be the orchestra's next managing director, replacing Dame Kathryn McDowell, who steps down after 20 years in the role at the end of the summer.Harte has been chief executive of Aurora Orchestra since 2009, where, alongside principal conductor Nicholas Collon and creative director Jane Mitchell, he has built the group from a startup into one of the most successful and innovative new British arts organisations in recent decades. Prior to his role with Aurora, Harte worked for the British choral label Collegium and completed a doctorate in Middle Eastern history at the School of Oriental and African Studies. Continue reading...

UK and France ready to send peacekeeping troops PM tells House of Commons

Service attended by singers, animal rights activists, and public figures including Marine Le PenBrigitte Bardot, the film star turned animal rights activist, will be laid to rest in her home town of Saint-Tropez on Wednesday during a funeral attended by her favourite politician, the far-right leader Marine Le Pen.Bardot died at her La Madrague villa on 28 December aged 91. Her funeral is being held at the Notre-Dame de l'Assomption church and broadcast on large screens across the town. Continue reading...

Nine in 10 families are worried about price of back-to-school essentials as inflation continues to bite, research has found

DC John Rigby, who is awaiting sentence after pleading guilty to charges, told he brought policing into disrepute'A Merseyside police detective who paid a 17-year-old boy for sex has been sacked and told he acted in a way that brings policing nationally into disrepute".DC John Rigby has pleaded guilty to criminal charges and is on remand in prison awaiting sentence. Continue reading...

Gamblers who placed bets totalling $10.5m angered after capture of Nicolas Maduro deemed not to qualifyThe online wager platform Polymarket has angered some gamblers by declaring it will not pay out yet on millions of dollars' worth of bets on a US invasion of Venezuela, arguing that the capture of the then president, Nicolas Maduro, does not qualify.Before Donald Trump's forces captured Maduro on Saturday morning, some traders appeared to have anticipated the shock move by placing bets on prediction markets". Continue reading...

Hot conditions for NSW, Victoria, South Australia, the ACT, Tasmania and WA as authorities warn of high fire danger

Friends of Palestine has criticised the decision to invite Israel's head of state to Australia in a sign of further strain within the Labor movement

In today's newsletter: Leaders' refusal to condemn the US's intervention in Caracas shows a desperation to keep the White House on side - but a red line might not be far awayGood morning. The dramatic seizure of Nicolas Maduro from Caracas by US forces, to face trial in New York, has sent diplomatic shock waves around the world. For European leaders, it has exposed an uncomfortable dilemma: how to welcome the removal of an authoritarian ruler without endorsing an action that many legal experts say tramples over international law.Politicians in opposition, of course, are freer to speak their minds. In the UK, the Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, said that where the legal certainty is not yet clear, morally I do think it was the right thing to do", while Liberal Democrat Ed Davey demanded that Keir Starmer condemn what he unequivocally described as an illegal action in Venezuela".Greenland | Donald Trump and his advisers are looking into a range of options" in an effort to acquire Greenland, noting in a White House statement on Tuesday that using the US military to do so is always an option".UK politics | The government must find ways to reconnect emotionally with voters, Keir Starmer's chief of staff is said to have warned cabinet ministers, in a meeting where the prime minister said they were in the fight of our lives".Crans-Montana fire | Authorities in Crans-Montana have said the bar that caught fire in the Swiss ski resort on New Year's Eve, killing 40 mainly young partygoers, had not been inspected by safety officers for the past five years.Spain | A foundation representing Princess Leonor, the 20-year-old heir to the Spanish throne, has warned that scammers are using AI-generated videos of the princess posted by fake profile pages to cheat social media users out of money.US politics | The Trump administration has abandoned efforts to combat child exploitation, human trafficking and cartels as it diverts thousands of law enforcement personnel to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Democratic senators said in a letter to the White House. Continue reading...

Bobbi Lockyer says she sent the item express post with tracking as the national postal service says the search continues

Groups are coming together across the country to help refugee families settle and integrate into local lifeOur children correct us when we don't pronounce some words with the proper Derbyshire accent," says Samir*, an Afghan refugee whose family have settled into their new lives in the north of England.Initially, he says, it was difficult for the family to get used to rural life in Derbyshire, but after a while they had integrated into the local community so well that his children, who have adopted the Derbyshire accent, tease him about his. Continue reading...

MPs criticise 10-year deal struck in blind panic' to rent Dartmoor prison, where high levels of radon had been detectedA catastrophic" decision by the Ministry of Justice to sign a 10-year lease on a prison where high levels of a poisonous gas had been detected is expected to cost the UK taxpayer more than 100m, parliament's spending watchdog has concluded.The public accounts committee said the 2022 deal to rent HMP Dartmoor from the Duchy of Cornwall was signed in a blind panic" by senior civil servants looking to guarantee prison places. Continue reading...

Seven men have been charged with more than 300 offences, after police found allegedly stolen vehicles in shipping containers in Brisbane and Melbourne

eSafety Australia says it has received several reports relating to the use of Grok to generate sexualised images without consent' since late 2025

Exclusive: Dr Eric Descheemaeker sued the university over his attempted sacking after an email he sent was leaked and posted around campus

Democrats held hearing to examine impact of January 6, while protesters commemorated attack on Capitol groundsCongressional Republicans were largely silent on the fifth anniversary of the January 6 insurrection on Tuesday, even as Democrats sought to use the occasion to blast Donald Trump and a small group of protesters convened on the grounds of the US Capitol in solidarity with those who carried out the attack.Democrats, who are in the minority in Congress after fruitlessly hoping that the well-documented violence would cause voters to reject Trump for good, seized on the anniversary to decry the president as a threat to democracy, and accuse Republicans of acting as his accomplices. Continue reading...

Meera Naran, whose son inspired Dev's Law', said the measures proposed by the government would save lives

Starmer and Macron sign declaration of intent' following Paris meetingTheir statement also says they will not stop defending" the UN Charter principles, including sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders".Nato has made clear that the Arctic region is a priority and European allies are stepping up." Continue reading...

Trilateral declaration of intent signed after coalition of the willing' summit in Paris with plan to establish military hubsBritain and France have declared they are ready to deploy troops to Ukraine in the aftermath of a peace deal, a major new commitment that has been under discussion for months, although one which Russia is likely to block forcefully.The announcement came after a summit in Paris hosted by the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and attended by more than two dozen leaders of the states that make up the coalition of the willing" of Ukrainian allies, plus the US envoy Steve Witkoff and Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, who said the US president strongly stands" behind the security protocols. Continue reading...

Police leaders defend position after being recalled to give further evidence in second hearing to home affairs committeePolice chiefs facing scrutiny over a decision to ban fans of an Israeli football team from attending a match in Birmingham have insisted the move was not politically influenced.West Midlands police (WMP) leaders defended their position at the home affairs committee on Tuesday after being recalled to give further evidence over the decision to ban fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa on 6 November. Continue reading...

More seriously, US president claims ousted Venezuelan leader has killed millions of people' in remarks to congressional RepublicansAs if his humiliation was not complete, Nicolas Maduro is facing a new charge: copying Donald Trump's dance moves.The US president on Tuesday accused the ousted Venezuelan leader, who faces terrorism and drug trafficking charges, of imitating Trump's signature hip-swaying and stiff arm-waving. Continue reading...

Paramilitary groups known as colectivos patrol streets with assault rifles, stop and search cars and people's phones

Morgan McSweeney says Labour needs three Es' of emotion, empathy and evidence, sources sayUK politics live - latest updatesThe government must find ways to reconnect emotionally with voters, Keir Starmer's chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, is said to have warned cabinet ministers, in a meeting where the prime minister said they were in the fight of our lives".The prime minister sought to rally his cabinet on Tuesday, telling them to ignore the polls and to prepare to take on Nigel Farage's Reform UK. Continue reading...

Fresh warnings across parts of England and Wales will follow days of delays and closures from Oxford to OrkneyThe UK is braced for further disruption as heavy snow and strong winds are forecast to hit swathes of England and Wales on Thursday, with the arrival of Storm Goretti.Many parts of the country are already reeling from days of travel chaos and school closures, although Tuesday night was not expected to be as chilly as Monday, when temperatures fell to minus 12.5C in Norfolk, making it coldest night of winter so far. Continue reading...

Both families will be offered support from specialist services after mix-up in mid-DecemberThe family of a teenager badly injured in a car crash were told that he had died following a mistake in identifying him and another victim, police have said.South Yorkshire police said it had referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over the mis-identification, which happened after a serious collision on Todwick Road in Rotherham on 13 December. Continue reading...

Science secretary says the deepfake content being produced on the platform is unacceptable in decent society'In her Today programme interview this morning Kemi Badenoch tried to outflank Nigel Farage on net zero scepticism by claiming (wrongly) that she started talking out this before he did.Asked by the presenter, Nick Robinson, to give an example of a single policy that the Conservatives would implement to boost economic growth, Badenoch said that they would allow more drilling for oil in the North Sea.There wasn't a Reform party then ...I have always been a net zero sceptic, even in government. I was the one who argued that we need to bring back some of these targets ... I've been consistent. Nigel Farage is following me.Keir Starmer doesn't have a plan, doesn't have an agenda. He's weak.Nigel Farage is a one-man band who is all about himself and would make a mess of things. [He] doesn't do detail.More trucks are entering Gaza, and this is very welcome, but right now, key crossings remain closed, convoys are being turned back, medical and shelter supplies are blocked, and NGOs are being banned.We joined nine other countries in stating that this is not acceptable, over the recess. The peace plan cannot work if NGOs are shut out. Israel's decision to ban 37 of them is unjustifiable. Continue reading...

Paul Patterson questioned by MPs as firm continues to make millions from UK government contractsFujitsu's European boss has told MPs the company is not a parasite", after being criticised for continuing to make hundreds of millions of pounds from UK government contracts while refusing to give a compensation figure for victims of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal.Two years ago Paul Patterson said Fujitsu had a moral obligation" to pay financial redress to the victims of Horizon - admitting it had known the accounting IT system was faulty since the 1990s - with the government estimating the final cost to taxpayers of payouts to be 1.8bn. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Tender posted for construction of 3,401 homes in settlement designed to bury idea of a Palestinian state'Israel is moving to start construction on a vast illegal settlement in the heart of the West Bank, designed to bury the idea of a Palestinian state".The Israel Land Authority in mid-December quietly posted a tender for construction of 3,401 homes in the E1" project, which will effectively sever the north and south of the occupied West Bank for Palestinians, and further cut off East Jerusalem. Continue reading...

Heba Muraisi having muscle spasms and Kamran Ahmed losing hearing, with both well into critical phase'Palestine Action-affiliated prisoners taking part in a hunger strike have shown an alarming deterioration in their health as one of them has entered the third month of refusing food, supporters have said.Heba Muraisi, 31, who is on day 65 of her hunger strike, is said to be suffering from muscle spasms and breathing problems, while Kamran Ahmed, on day 58, has reported intermittent hearing loss. Continue reading...

Statement of support comes after presidential aide says no one will fight US militarily over future of Greenland'

Opposition leader says her movement is ready to win a fair election and praises Trump for toppling the president

The internationally acclaimed film-maker was renowned for beautifully shot cinematic epicsBela Tarr, the Hungarian film-maker renowned for lengthy, challenging and beautifully shot films including Satantango, Werckmeister Harmonies and The Man from London, has died aged 70. The Hungarian Film Artists Association said in a statement that Tarr died on Tuesday after a long and serious illness" and that the grieving family asks for the understanding of the press and the public, and that they not be contacted for a statement during these difficult days".Tarr became renowned internationally in the 90s and 00s as his films were shown more widely - partly because of their inordinate length (including the seven-and-a-half-hour Satantango), and partly because of what appeared to be his definitive expression of middle-European black and white miserablism. But in an interview with the Guardian's Peter Bradshaw in 2024, well after Tarr had retired from active film directing in 2011, he said his films had been misunderstood: My opinion is that we were doing comedies. You can laugh a lot." He added that they were not pessimistic. I only ask this - how did you feel when you came out of the movie theatre after watching my film? Did you feel stronger or weaker? That's the main question. I want you to be stronger." Continue reading...