Voting is particularly high in states with tight Senate races that could determine which party controls the chamberUS citizens are casting ballots in record numbers ahead of the midterm elections on Tuesday, another potential indication, analysts say, of voter dissatisfaction with Republicans and Donald Trump.Voting was particularly high in states that feature tight Senate races that could determine which party controls the chamber. Continue reading...
Trump had said he had ordered DoJ to file suit, in move termed unprecedented intervention' by expertsA judge has dismissed the Donald Trump-backed lawsuit seeking to block certification of Alaska's US Senate race if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan loses.Trump had said on 23 October that he had ordered the justice department to file the lawsuit in a move that voting rights experts called an unprecedented intervention" by the federal government with control of Congress in the balance. Continue reading...
Third day of indirect talks as Qatar tries to negotiate release of $6bn in Iranian assets that could lead to waterway's reopeningOfficials from the Gulf states are braced for the worst" as they wait for Washington's response to an Iranian proposal that could reopen the strait of Hormuz before the US midterm elections on Tuesday.Indirect talks in Doha ran into a third day on Sunday with Qatar trying to negotiate the release of more than $6bn in Iranian assets, which could lead to the reopening of the strait of Hormuz and the restart of negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme. Continue reading...
Stevens lost the party's Michigan primary by a close margin and had refused to endorse El-Sayed, with tensions between the two highCongresswoman Haley Stevens, who lost the Michigan Democratic Senate primary to Abdul El-Sayed, endorsed his Republican rival, Mike Rogers, in an extraordinary rebuke of her party's nominee on the eve of the midterm elections.Her endorsement came in a video posted to X after she attended an event with Rogers at the predominantly Black Perfecting church in Detroit on Sunday. The event marks a stunning political moment in Michigan, where control of the seat could be crucial to Democratic party. Continue reading...
by Daniel A Medina with photographs by Eric Ruby on (#79EX4)
Residents of Menomonie mounted a successful protest against a huge campus in the city as national resistance to the AI boom growsIn the spring of 2025, Sydney Brennan was riding high. The 22-year-old was finishing college and was a newly elected councilwoman in Menomonie, a city of about 17,000 in the lush plains of north-western Wisconsin.Weeks into the new job, she was invited to a meeting with consultants pitching a $1.6bn AI hyperscale datacenter campus that an undisclosed big tech company wanted to build just outside of town. The project's numbers were eye-opening: a 320-acre site that would use an estimated 75,000 gallons of water per day, making it the most significant development in Menomonie's nearly 150-year history. Continue reading...
by Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent on (#79EX5)
Arrests come ahead of Wednesday's supreme court challenge to the ban on the direct action groupPolice have said they arrested 325 people on Saturday at a demonstration outside the US embassy in London against the proscription of Palestine Action.In updated arrest figures released on Sunday, the Metropolitan police said 320 people were detained outside the building in Battersea, south London, for allegedly expressing support for an organisation banned under the Terrorism Act. Continue reading...
Kremlin says Kyiv is simply ignoring' US wishes days before midterm elections after reported strikes on two oil sitesUkraine has resumed its attacks on Russian oil refineries in defiance of pressure from Donald Trump ahead of the US midterm elections, with a ceasefire in the occupied town of Oleshky due to end late on Sunday.Russian state media said on Sunday Ukrainian long-range drones had set fire to the Kstovo refinery in Nizhny Novgorod oblast overnight, soon after a major strike against another big refinery in Samara oblast, owned by the Russian state energy giant Rosneft. Continue reading...
Mann taken to hospital with superficial injury after weapon accidentally discharged while holsteredHollywood director Michael Mann has been taken to the hospital following an apparently accidental shooting at a Los Angeles gun range, according to the Associated Press.Mann, 83, reportedly shot himself in the leg while at the The Range LA. The news was first reported on celebrity website TMZ. He sustained what his representative described as a superficial injury after a weapon accidentally discharged while holstered. Continue reading...
Youth-led protests end with street violence in cities across France, Germany, Switzerland, Portugal and AlbaniaFrench officials have opened an investigation into the attempted murder of a police officer and Germany's interior minister has called for harsh penalties after peaceful and mainly youth-led protests across Europe ended in violence.In Portugal, police - some with dogs - cleared protest camps with baton charges, while security forces in Switzerland were attacked with paving stones. Continue reading...
Police say three separate shootings occurred in Deep Ellum neighborhood and are trying to determine if they're relatedPolice in Dallas say four people are dead and 15 are injured following separate shootings in a Dallas neighborhood. It was among several violent incidents nationwide on Halloween weekend.The police chief, Daniel Comeaux, said police are still trying to determine if the shootings in the Deep Ellum neighborhood were related. Continue reading...
Police searching for unknown group' that gained entry to property in Chandler's Ford on Saturday nightFive teenage boys were stabbed at a Halloween party, after an unknown group" gained entry to the event on a residential road, police have been told.The boys, all aged 16 and 17, were found injured after police were called to a report five teenagers had been stabbed at a property in Chandler's Ford near Eastleigh, Hampshire, just after 10.30pm on Saturday. Continue reading...
Led by Congress party, India's opposition alliance channels anger over removal of 130 million names from voter rollThousands of opposition supporters have gathered in Delhi as protests against the Narendra Modi government continue to gather momentum.Led by the Congress party, India's opposition alliance has brought together supporters from across the country, amid growing anger over a large-scale revision of the country's voter roll that has seen 130 million names erased. Continue reading...
Prime minister says shake-up is vital to restore tribunal crippled by years of political disputesPoland's prime minister, Donald Tusk, has vowed to see through a contested overhaul of the country's constitutional court, declaring that in certain matters, there can be no compromise".In a prime-time television address on Saturday night, Tusk was defiant, despite overnight protests that saw riot police drafted to protect the court's building, saying the shake-up was vital to restore a tribunal crippled by years of political disputes. Continue reading...
Ahead of a meeting with Commonwealth leaders, Andy Burnham wrote that Britain needed to acknowledge its complicated history'At the end of his interview with Kuennsberg, Healey was also asked to comment on a potential apology for Britain's near-250 years of perpetrating the slave trade and why the government should or shouldn't pay reparations to enslaved people and their countries.Sitting in the grand settings of Number 11 Downing St, Kuenssberg pointed out the lavish interiors:Considering a formal apology doesn't mean accepting that British people now should accept the financial liability for any party and things that happened hundreds of years ago, in which they had no role.For almost 250 years (1560s-1807), British ships trafficked more than three million enslaved African men, women and children in a state policy backed by the monarchy and parliament.Many were taken to British-owned plantations in the Caribbean, which enslaved generations. Children were born into slavery, uprisings were put down with extreme brutalityThere were still 800,000 enslaved people on British plantations when enslavement was finally abolished by parliament in 1833Abolishment was only achieved because the government agreed to compensate" the enslavers. The government paid an enormous sum, the equivalent of billions of dollars these days, to the owners" of enslaved people; this came from a huge loan that was only paid off in 2015.Britain has never paid any compensation or reparations to the people who were enslaved, or their countries.U.K. politicians have traditionally focused on the country's role in banning the slave trade in 1807 and outlawing slavery throughout the British Empire in 1833. Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#79ET6)
Adrian Ramsay says some new members would be more at home' in Your Party or Socialist Workers partyThe former Green party leader Adrian Ramsay has said the party must fix its internal democracy to avoid a takeover by the hard left, saying that some new members might be more at home" in Your Party or the Socialist Workers party.Ramsay, who has been critical of the handling of the row over a Zionism is racism" motion passed at the Green party conference, said there were a small number" of individuals who used divisive" tactics to influence the party's agenda. Continue reading...
In state that become ground zero' for discrimination against south Asians, experts say they are seeing voters motivated to fight backLast winter, while Pooja Sethi was canvassing to become the Democratic candidate for the Texas house of representatives, she received a text from a staff member alerting her to a post on X. The Turning Point USA influencer Savanah Hernandez - a Trump supporter known for creating videos that target immigrants - had posted a photo of Sethi's campaign banner with the caption: Welcome to politics in Texas."The post went viral. Continue reading...
Hundreds of adult gaming centres in England have bingo licences that still qualify them for discounted business ratesHundreds of high street slot farms" could continue claiming a discount on their business rates, unless the government closes a loophole that allows them to pose as bingo halls.John Healey singled out adult gaming centres (AGCs) in his first budget this week, in which he increased duty on slot machine takings from 20% to 25%, claiming he was raising taxes on gambling to support good growth on every high street". Continue reading...
A truce has cooled the trade conflict, but neither country has done anything to limit the outbreak of new hostilitiesDonald Trump's trade wars have largely fallen off the headlines. Fears of new tariffs flare up from time to time when the US president goes off the rails - for instance, threatening to end US trade with countries with which it has a deficit unless the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates. But the sense that the world's two largest economies are plowing ahead into an overt economic conflagration has taken a back seat to other, more salient fears, about Trump ending American democracy, AI killing us all and stuff like that.The sense of calm is misleading. Under the radar, the world is marching toward an economic war of potentially epic proportions, one that, history suggests, could well spill over into the real thing. Continue reading...
Cryptocurrency exchange says 90% of losses covered as FBI blames North Korean state-sponsored group TraderTraitorThe cryptocurrency exchange Binance has started to allow its customers to withdraw their funds from the platform, as it recovers from a record $6.3bn (4.7bn) hack.The exchange was hit by the theft on Thursday, which has since been described as the biggest heist in history, with experts identifying North Korea as the likely culprit. Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#79ERN)
Chancellor John Healey fails to guarantee equalisation with adult wage will happen in timeframe set out in manifestoLabour looks less likely to meet its manifesto pledge to equalise the minimum wage for younger workers before the next election, after the chancellor failed to guarantee the rise would happen within that timeframe.John Healey said on Sunday the government was still committed to the increase but failed to spell out when it would be achieved. In the budget, a rise in the minimum wage was handed to adults - to 13.21- and under-20s - to 11.27 - but a larger rise for younger workers would have been needed to move towards equalisation. Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#79ERP)
Tory leader says apology would be navel-gazing distraction' and would be used as lever for financial compensationKemi Badenoch has said an apology for Britain's role in the transatlantic slave trade would be a navel-gazing distraction", describing slavery as an evil in which people from every continent and region participated".Speaking to broadcasters on Sunday, Badenoch also questioned whether it was worth future leaders attending the Commonwealth summit, given that it was now dominated by calls for reparations. Continue reading...
The Preventative Departmental Expenditure Limit will be money ringfenced in the budget for preventive policiesJohn Healey's debut budget was far from a blockbuster, but it may come to be remembered for the birth of a plucky new character in the tax and spend universe - little PDEL.It may not have the charm of Disney's Wall-E, but PDEL (pronounced P-Del), Preventative Departmental Expenditure Limit, to give it its full name, marks a welcome, and potentially very consequential, addition. Continue reading...
With heir apparent Danny Tommo also in custody, Robinson's conviction for harassing journalists is blow to anti-migrant movementThe verdict was met with a groan from Tommy Robinson's supporters, who had sat behind the dock throughout his harassment trial.It took more than 11 hours of jury deliberations to find the far-right activist guilty of harassment causing fear of violence to two journalists, enough time for a band of lieutenants and hangers-on to get their hopes up that he might be acquitted. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#79EQ2)
Mayor questions impact on air quality, congestion and jobs as government poised to allow driverless vehicles in capitalLondon's mayor has called for a cap on the numbers of robotaxis on its streets, with the UK government poised to allow fully driverless vehicles to operate in the capital.Sadiq Khan said politicians had failed to grasp the pace of change" from the technology, which could threaten jobs and increase congestion in the city, and questioned whether the rules for autonomous cars were fit for purpose. Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#79ENT)
Former chancellor says leaving European Union has made Britain poorer, weaker and less secure'The former chancellor Rachel Reeves has argued Britain's future should be back in the European Union, saying Brexit has made the UK poorer, weaker and less secure."In her first major intervention since leaving the Treasury when Andy Burnham took office, she said those forging a path back towards EU membership had to make compelling arguments to the public. Continue reading...
Guardian understands Home Office continues to detain dozens of people, with one group forcibly removed this weekThe Home Office is still putting asylum seekers on to planes to France weeks after the controversial scheme to remove them ended, the Guardian has learned.The one in, one out" scheme was announced by the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the former prime minister Keir Starmer in July 2025. It aimed to deter small boats crossing the Channel to the UK from northern France, with some asylum seekers arriving here forcibly returned to France while a similar number in northern France were brought legally to the UK. Continue reading...
by Jessica Murray Social affairs correspondent on (#79ENV)
UK children's minister Josh MacAlister has travelled to Copenhagen to see what can be learned from Danish systemIn a quiet suburb on the outskirts of Copenhagen sits a large white house, set back from the road behind a purple-leaved plum tree. It looks much like the rest of the buildings on the street and there is little outward sign this is Josephine Schneider's House, considered one of the best children's homes in the world.Danish children's homes are often cited as the gold standard of children's residential care globally. They are now being studied by the British government as it tries to create a roadmap out of the crisis in which its own children's home system has become mired. Continue reading...
Former New Zealand prime minister has moved to Australia and is lecturing at University of Sydney - and from stage of city's famous landmarkJacinda Ardern, who now calls Sydney home, has delivered a message to Australian politicians from the stage of the city's Opera House.Politicians, the former New Zealand prime minister turned academic told the audience on Sunday, were exacerbating the problem of polarisation within society and needed to be better. Continue reading...
Demonstrations also taking place in Germany, where officers fire teargas to disperse crowds as evening fallsClashes erupted in Paris, Marseille and other cities on Saturday after tens of thousands of demonstrators, some in Halloween fancy dress, marched across France in a third wave of protests over the cost of living and deteriorating public services.The interior minister, Laurent Nunez, said about 150 planned demonstrations around the country had passed off peacefully, but police had encountered an extraordinary" level of violence from some rioters as the rallies ended. Continue reading...
The 35-year-old was charged after police searched properties in Shankill Road and Edwina Street areasA man has been charged under the Explosives Act and Firearms Order after police searched properties in Belfast.The 35-year-old was charged with offences including two counts of possessing explosives under suspicious circumstances, and possession of a prohibited weapon (discharge of electricity or noxious gas). Continue reading...
Residents of nearby villages line highway waving flags to greet the evacuees' convoy from the Russian-occupied cityEvacuees from Russian-occupied Oleshky have been reunited with their families after crossing into Ukrainian-held territory on Saturday.The major rescue operation began on Friday and was carried out under the most significant truce since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine four and a half years ago. Continue reading...
British Heart Foundation describes exceptionally challenging' trading after Oxfam's retail profit reportedly fell 23% amid rise of platforms such as VintedProfits at some of the UK's best-known charity shops have plummeted as they face a number of pressures, including from online secondhand clothes platforms, prompting claims that a key part of the sector's fundraising model could be under threat.According to unpublished accounts seen by the Financial Times, Oxfam's retail profit fell 23% to 4.9m in the last financial year, compared with 6.4m in the previous year. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Senior political correspondent on (#79EA6)
Tucked away in John Healey's budget is decision to ringfence preventative projects where future savings outweigh initial costIt merited the briefest of mentions in John Healey's speech and just one paragraph in the 166-page budget document, but some believe it could revolutionise not just public spending but the very process of government itself: a new focus on long-term outcomes.The idea in the broad sense is very simple. Any spending deemed to be preventative" - that is, the initial outlay will be more than made up for by future savings - will from now on be ringfenced, meaning it cannot be raided for more immediate needs. Continue reading...
Shift in dealings with Washington not likely to reset once Trump leaves Oval Office, former PM saysThe UK and other European nations must draw closer together as the US becomes a less-reliable partner, Keir Starmer has said in his first significant political intervention since leaving No 10.The former prime minister warned European leaders of the threat posed by Russia, among others, and said the shift in relations with Washington during Donald Trump's presidency was not likely to reset once he leaves the Oval Office. He accused them of being caught out by these new realities twice already. Continue reading...
by Rob Evans, Harry Davies,Louisa Loveluck and Emine on (#79E8B)
According to documents obtained by the Guardian, officials accused Cambridgeshire force of breaching US-UK deal by handing over case of woman strangled by US pilotMinistry of Defence officials have privately accused a UK police force of wrongly handing over the investigation of an American fighter pilot who strangled a British woman to the US military, according to documents obtained by the Guardian.Cambridgeshire police allowed the US military police to quickly take control of the investigation into Capt Jacob Wulfson after he had been accused of sexually assaulting Sarah Steele in his Cambridge flat. Continue reading...
The 15th amateur to challenge Littler in Netflix stream on Friday evening, Sherrock was lost for words' after winning 501,000 prizeThe name of the programme was Beat Luke Littler and Fallon Sherrock did just that.On one of the biggest nights of the year for British TV and Netflix, there was much at stake: not just 501,000 to any of the 20 amateur challengers who managed to beat Littler in a single leg of darts, but also the jeopardy of whether audiences would choose to watch the streamer's first UK live entertainment event - or the final of BBC juggernaut The Celebrity Traitors. Continue reading...
UK chancellor's plans add to concerns government is moving away from pro-renewables agendaJohn Healey has said he will veto new offshore wind projects if they will not lower bills, adding to concerns that the government is moving away from the pro-renewables agenda.Announcing his plans, the chancellor said clean power is how we break the grip of international gas prices on our bills", but added the shift towards it has to come at the right pace, in the right places, with the grid to carry it". Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#79E4Q)
London Paddington and Birmingham New Street stations will shut for five days but most routes will stay openPassengers travelling on some of Great Britain's busiest railway lines at Christmas have been warned of significant disruption from 10 days of engineering works.Work will close London's Paddington station - affecting intercity trains to the west of England and Wales until January - as well as Birmingham New Street, the UK's busiest station outside the capital, for five days over the holiday period. Continue reading...
Defence secretary says value for money and modernisation key for spending to fight the wars ahead'The defence secretary, Wes Streeting, says he started stockpiling food and water weeks ago in case of a national emergency, as he talked up the threats to the UK and said his department had already begun ramping up its spending in response.Streeting spoke after the chancellor, John Healey, said he wanted defence spending to reach 3% of GDP by 2030 and 3.5% by 2035; having already asked Whitehall departments to find 1% cuts in their budgets for long-term investment to fund defence spending. Continue reading...
by Deborah Cole in Berlin and Jon Henley in Paris on (#79E3H)
Activists call for people to make their anger known over poor public services including education and housingStreet protests sweeping Europe are expected to spread to Germany and reignite in France on Saturday, with police mobilised to stop potential looting and rioting on the fringes of what organisers hope will be peaceful rallies.Weeks of, at times violent, student demonstrations have rocked Italy, Spain, Portugal, Albania and France, where activists on Halloween have again called for people to make their anger over the cost of living and deficient public services felt across the country. Continue reading...
The former comedian and his wife gave evidence in the case in which he denies all charges against himRussell Brand's trial at Southwark crown court began with widespread media coverage on 12 October. The former comedian and presenter faces three charges of rape, three of sexual assault and one of attempted indecent assault against six women, in allegations spanning 10 years from 1999. He denies all the charges. Here are five things we learned in the third week of his trial. Continue reading...
Mouria coffeehouse unable to renew lease in Exarchia, known for leftwing solidarity, resistance and radicalismIt has been the hangout of writers, artists, poets and politicians, doctors and lawyers, radicals and revolutionaries for as long as anyone can remember. And for 44 years, Christos Vanas, the proprietor of Mouria, has let them all in.Every day at 7am, the taciturn former waiter has been the first man to step inside the historic cafe in Exarchia, the heart of leftwing Athens. It is a ritual he has kept punctiliously, opening up the famous gathering place before he himself has had his first coffee. Continue reading...
Editor, agony uncle, crossword compiler - he even interviews himself. Our sketchwriter finds there's no end to Farage's talentsWelcome to your new super, soaraway Reformer. The paper that aims to take you back to the 1950s with all the stories that the mainstream media don't want you to read. Free to all patriots. And those who happen to have found a copy on the floor of the bus. Continue reading...
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