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Sky News host Andrew Bolt says blunder shows Pauline Hanson's party is literally making up policy as it goes along'

Ukrainian president proposes meeting in neutral third country as Trump says both sides have to make compromises'The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has called for face-to-face negotiations in a public letter addressed directly to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.The letter, the first Zelenskyy has publicly written directly to Putin since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, was a sweeping criticism of the Russian leader's 26 years in power. Continue reading...

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Russians are increasingly tired of the conflict and the time to end it is now, Ukraine's president tells his Russian counterpart in an open letterVolodymyr Zelenskyy, in an open letter to the Vladimir Putin, has called for a face-to-face meeting with the Russian president to end his war against Ukraine.The letter sets out Zelenskyy's view of the four-year-old conflict and says that while Ukrainians' resilience remains intact, most Russians have grown weary of its effects and are ready for peace. Continue reading...

Platner says claims in New York Times article of physical misconduct and offensive remarks politically motivated'Graham Platner, a Democratic candidate for the US Senate, has rejected an explosive new report about his treatment of women, insisting that allegations of abusive behavior are politically motivated".Platner, a progressive running for election in Maine, was responding to a New York Times article published on Thursday that included an interview with a Republican operative who accused him of womanizing, physical misconduct and making troubling comments about rape. Continue reading...

US secretary of state Marco Rubio says anyone providing services to listed entities is at risk of sanctions themselves'The United States has announced fresh economic sanctions on Cuba's president and some of his immediate family, alongside members of the Castro family, in Washington's latest ramping up of pressure on its communist-led neighbour.Among those targeted were the son and a grandson of former president Raul Castro, who no longer holds an official position but remains a key figure on decisions about the future of the island. Continue reading...

Legislation would also sanction key segments of Russian economy, overriding objections from Republican leadersThe House passed legislation Thursday that would aid Ukraine and sanction key segments of the Russian economy, overriding objections from Republican leaders who warned the bill would undermine negotiations designed to achieve a comparable but stronger result.The 226-195 vote is a sign of impatience with Donald Trump's approach to the war and represents the House's second major foreign policy break with Trump this week. The day before, the House, for the first time, approved a war powers resolution aimed at halting US military action against Iran. Continue reading...

Police allege the 44-year-old lauded for disarming one of the gunmen in December's attack put his father in a headlock

The invertebrates were likely destined for the pet trade, including as reptile foodMore than 100,000 live, exotic cockroaches have been seized from a commercial breeder in New South Wales in a record-breaking bust linked to the pet trade.Biosecurity officials seized the animals, which have a commercial value of up to $200,000, from a commercial breeder in Bathurst in the state's central west this week. Continue reading...

Announcement seeks to close a difficult chapter for the company after the Guardian revealed its platform was used in mass surveillance of PalestiniansMicrosoft has said it will tighten human-rights controls when working with national security agencies after an inquiry into how the Israeli military used its cloud technology for the mass surveillance of Palestinians.On Thursday, Microsoft announced the completion of the inquiry and a series of new measures that include changes to how the company oversees employees with security clearances issued by foreign governments. Continue reading...

Since 2015, fires have undone years of effort to reduce ozone levels, underscoring a growing public health crisisThe highly destructive wildfires that have battered the US and North America in recent years have significantly increased emissions and been linked to tens of thousands of premature deaths, but their impact on air quality is greater than previously known, according to new research.A study published in Science on Thursday found that, since 2015, wildfires have reversed US progress toward ozone air quality standards, as the worsening pollution caused by wildfire smoke has undone years of efforts to reduce emissions. Ground-level ozone (O3) is created when pollutants from cars, refineries and industrial sources react with sunlight, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Continue reading...

Policy agreement means trans people will continue to have access to Kenwood Ladies' and Highgate Men's ponds in north-west LondonThe bathing ponds at Hampstead Heath in north-west London will remain trans-inclusive after a public consultation overwhelmingly favoured its existing rules.There are gender-segregated ponds for men and women, with trans people able to swim in whichever they feel most appropriate, or use the heath's mixed-gender pond instead. Continue reading...

Ron Wyden tells of grave concerns' over plan, first revealed by Guardian, to hold families at sprawling Louisiana facilityThe ranking member on the US Senate's influential finance committee has demanded transparency over a proposed first-of-its-kind" ICE family and child detention center in Alexandria, Louisiana, citing reporting by the Guardian that first revealed the Trump administration's plans in March.Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, has written to the project's contractors and to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) expressing concerns over conflicts of interest, environmental contamination and the absence of a public process" in the center's planning. Continue reading...

Mother demands overhaul of maternity care after settling case over birth at Queen's hospital in Romford in 2019The family of a girl left brain-damaged at birth have agreed to accept 28m in damages after the NHS trust involved admitted that its mistakes led to the tragedy.Barking, Havering and Redbridge university hospitals NHS trust failed to monitor the baby's heart rate while her mother was in labour or ask an obstetrician to review the case, either of which might have led to the girl being born in a healthy condition. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Greater Lincolnshire mayor walks out on cabinet minister after row over social media role in community tensionsAndrea Jenkyns walked out of a meeting with a cabinet minister and several other metropolitan mayors on Thursday after a heated discussion about the murder of Henry Nowak and the civil unrest that has followed.The Reform mayor of Greater Lincolnshire walked out of the meeting with the communities secretary, Steve Reed, and other regional leaders after a row over the role social media has played in exacerbating community tensions. Continue reading...

While huge donations are nothing new in UK politics, some fear electoral finance is distorting democracy itselfKeir Starmer may be relaxed about allowing millions from cryptocurrency billionaires to flow into Reform UK's coffers but Labour MPs are tearing their hair out every time the quarterly data on electoral finance drops.I look at it through my fingers," says one MP, as the latest figures show a further 7m went to Reform UK from just two men, Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo. Continue reading...

PM says Britons are reasonable, tolerant people' and backs MP's legal action against Grok firm over fake sexualised images

Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad made a surprise appearance at a performance of Abba VoyageAbba Voyage concerts can be deafening enough. But when the real-life Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad made an appearance in the hall, which was packed with hundreds of schoolchildren, even security staff present were surprised by the din.On Tuesday, at the custom-built Abba Arena in east London, the virtual concert residency launched its expanded education programme, which aims to support young people across the area getting into creative industries. Continue reading...

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador says Washington is using investigations into governors and propaganda to boost rivalsMexico's former president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, has accused US officials of trying to weaken the governing party to strengthen the opposition, amid rising tensions between the two countries over Washington's investigations into several Mexican governors.Some US officials are plotting to weaken Morena and strengthen the rightwing opposition in Mexico with the aim of restoring a subservient, corrupt, mafia-like, and cruel government," Lopez Obrador wrote in a lengthy letter posted on X on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Beluga whales, which Marineland threatened to euthanize in 2025, will be moved to sanctuaries in Spain or across USCanada and an embattled marine park have reached a tentative deal on the future of 30 beluga whales, ending a saga that has captivated the public and angered animal rights groups.The federal fisheries ministry announced this week that all of Marineland's belugas would be shipped to either Spain or one of four locations in the US, ending whale captivity in Canada. Continue reading...

Peter Kyle says British politics fails to reward political accomplishment and Labour risks aping Tory instabilityThe Labour party has not learned the right lessons from the Conservatives about changing leader, a senior cabinet minister has warned, saying in a swipe at potential challengers that entitlement is not a qualification".Peter Kyle, the business secretary, said he was worried that British politics rewards the wrong behaviour" and there was little credit for the work of his own department, including negotiating trade deals, rescue packages for companies and preserving British industry. Continue reading...

State election officials continue to sift through uncounted primary ballots, which could take days or even weeksThe California governor's race remained unsettled Thursday, as state election officials continued to sift through uncounted primary ballots - a process that could take days or even weeks as voters eagerly await the results.Polls indicated that British-born conservative pundit Steve Hilton was narrowly leading the race, followed by former US health and human services secretary Xavier Becerra. Billionaire Tom Steyer trailed behind the pair. Under California's primary system, the top two vote-getters will advance to the general election. Continue reading...

Saudi national, 21, held on suspicion of attempted murder over incident at Manor Park student village in GuildfordA former University of Surrey student has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a man was shot with a crossbow in Guildford.The victim, who is in his 50s and a member of the university's campus safety team, was seriously injured in the incident and is being treated at Royal Surrey County hospital close to the scene of the shooting. Continue reading...

Trump, still negotiating to conclude the war, claims it's already over. Some Republican lawmakers have had enoughDonald Trump has two things to say about his war with Iran. The first is that it's already over. And second, a symbolic congressional vote to end it - carried by four members of his own party - is a stab in the back that could derail the peace talks he's conducting for the war that's already over.By a 215-208 margin on Wednesday, the US House of Representatives voted to direct the president to withdraw US forces from hostilities with Iran, the first time either chamber has passed such a measure in the little over three months since Operation Epic Fury began on 28 February. By Thursday morning, Trump was on Truth Social calling the vote unpatriotic" and blaming it on Trump Derangement Syndrome". Continue reading...

The private meeting will take place in Downing StreetKemi Badenoch has posted a message on social media saying she met Henry Nowak's father, mother and stepmother this morning. She praises their courage, and says:Henry's family do not want anger to tear communities apart. They are a family who have friends across faith and race, and so did Henry. His family want his memory to help bring our society together.Everyone knows I have strong views about how we should deal with equality under the law. What the family agreed with me on is that we need to bring common sense back, and that is what we should all be fighting for.At best" Jenrick is a political chameleon. Others words beginning with C might also be appropriate. I still remember him begging for my vote in the leadership (he called me on the day of the last MPs round) when he described Kemi as being too of the right & he was the moderate Continue reading...

Farage's party brings in 9m largely from crypto billionaires in three months, more than twice that of Labour and Tories

Climbing support team rescue Hillary Dawa Sherpa almost a week on from when he was last seenA Nepali Sherpa guide who was believed to have died on Mount Everest has been found crawling to base camp a week after going missing - and after his funeral rites had begun.Hillary Dawa Sherpa, named after the famous climber Edmund Hillary, was last seen on 29 May but did not reach base camp with other climbing groups. Continue reading...

The country's defence minister said the IDF will not withdraw from southern Lebanon and will not allow the return of the population'

Prosecutors say they intend to try all five killings together next year after brief arraignment in Portland

Criticism comes from across political spectrum after blow to Friedrich Merz's governmentGermany's unprecedented failure to win one of the rotating seats on the UN security council has prompted an intense round of soul searching in Berlin, and raised questions about its claims to international leadership under Friedrich Merz.The council vote on Wednesday, which elected Austria and Portugal to a two-year term along with Trinidad and Tobago and Zimbabwe, was a blow to Merz's struggling government, which has sought to position itself as a leading European voice on the world stage. Continue reading...

USDA confirms first case of New World screwworm in cattle in six decades, posing threat to livestock industryA flesh-eating parasite rarely seen in the US in six decades has been found in a calf in Texas, agriculture officials said, in an alarming development for the country's cattle industry.The New World screwworm fly (NWS) was confirmed in the animal in the south of the state, about 50 miles from the Mexico border, Brooke Rollins, the agriculture secretary, said late on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Plan departs from policy of bringing CDC staff back to US for treatment and offering support to all health workersFormer top US officials and other experts are urging the Trump administration to abandon plans for an Ebola quarantine and treatment centre in Kenya, as the union for workers with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) calls for Americans exposed to Ebola to be brought home for treatment.Soon after the US revealed it was setting up a field hospital in Kenya for the Ebola quarantine and treatment of Americans, the Kenyan high court blocked the order - but the Kenyan and US governments moved forward anyway, with the first American responders reportedly landing at the Laikipia airbase on Saturday. Continue reading...

Registrations up 7% in the month, with battery EVs recording fastest growth and Tesla jumping 45% as motorists look to cut fuel billsBritish car sales rose in May to their strongest level for the month since before the Covid pandemic, driven in part by strong growth from the Chinese manufacturers BYD and Chery.Car registrations rose by 7% to 160,662 during the month, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), a lobby group. Continue reading...

Exclusive: New loopholes for developers will exacerbate extreme environmental disparities, charity coalition warnsThe poorest and most nature-deprived communities in England will be further left behind in their access to green spaces if proposed changes to planning laws go ahead, a report finds.More than 7.4 million people in England live in areas completely devoid of immediate biodiversity, including 1.42 million children under 15, the report commissioned by a number of wildlife and environmental NGOs says. Continue reading...

Pulp Fiction director writes in Sight and Sound that since the pandemic ... it seems almost impossible for a new movie to come out that I don't pick to death'Quentin Tarantino has criticised contemporary Hollywood, calling it a flavourless sausage factory".Writing in Sight and Sound magazine, Tarantino said that since the pandemic ... it seems almost impossible for a new movie to come out that I don't pick to death". He added: Flaws, implausibilities, audience pandering, miscast performers or just plain stupid shit usually torpedoes every new movie coming out of the flavourless sausage factory that used to call itself Hollywood." Continue reading...

Comments from Europe and Japan focus on immigration and statements about Britain's descent into depths of the earth'

Scientists praise moves to investigate, retract or remove controversial studies. The authors stand by their workThree scientific papers that raised questions about vaccine safety and were used by the Trump administration to justify controversial changes to US vaccine policies have over the last two months been removed, retracted or placed under investigation by the journals that published them.In some cases, the actions occurred years after scientists first raised alarms about the studies' scientific merits. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Analysis shows resort has yet to recoup Disney's investment despite record revenue and 16m annual visitorsDisney has still not recouped $4.2bn of its investment in Disneyland Paris after more than 30 years, even though the resort is now its best-performing international outpost, according to an analysis of recent filings.The sprawling theme park complex swung open its ornate iron gates in 1992 and now attracts about 16 million visitors every year. It is wholly owned by Disney and is home to two theme parks - the fairytale-inspired Disneyland and Disney Adventure World, which launched its largest-ever expansion in late March. The lavish land, themed to the hit animated movie Frozen, is part of a $2.5bn (2bn) investment by Disney, and its new chief executive, Josh D'Amaro, was on hand for the opening alongside Emmanuel Macron. Continue reading...

Allegations made in Melbourne magistrates court on Thursday as Zeinab Ahmad, 31, applied for bail, a month after she was charged with slavery offences

Business secretary to meet European counterpart on Friday as EU industry leaders worry about retaliatory measures by UK

Government hopes to rush NDIS and tax changes through parliament but opposition and crossbench push for more scrutiny

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Bosses believe single booking process will drive up ticket sales for all festivals to offset funding squeezeThe Edinburgh festivals hope to launch a single box office for all the city's 11 festivals to make it simpler to buy tickets and profit from the lake" of customer data they hold.Festival directors hope a universal box office will allow them to increase ticket sales and attract a wealthy corporate sponsor, such as Mastercard, to offset deep cuts in public funding they expect to see in coming years. Continue reading...

Government-ordered review reveals routine ostracism' of Jewish staff and patients in health serviceThe NHS is taking action to tackle antisemitism after a government-ordered report found that Jewish patients and staff face routine ostracism" in the service.Anti-Jewish hatred in the NHS means some patients hide their identity and staff suffer in silence", a review by Lord Mann, the government's adviser on antisemitism, has found. Continue reading...

The state's commissioner for children and young people raised the alarm about cycles of ineffective referrals to voluntary services and closed reports in 35 cases of children who died after interactions with the system

No service expected on Circle or Piccadilly lines with Metropolitan and Central lines also badly affectedA London Underground drivers' strike has brought another day of transport disruption to the capital on Thursday.Transport for London (TfL) had urged the RMT union to call off the strike, the second 24-hour stoppage this week in a dispute over the introduction of a four-day working week. Continue reading...

NSW police appeal after comprehensive class action loss in 2025 when force admitted music festival search of Raya Meredith was unlawful and unjustified

Light from nearly 4m galaxies measured as it twisted and travelled through intergalactic space

High court dismisses organisation's injunction attempt against designation as a hate group