World news | The Guardian

Heather Wheeler reportedly said she had been ‘at a conference in Blackpool or Birmingham or somewhere godawful’A Tory minister has been forced to apologise for describing Birmingham and Blackpool as “godawful”.Speaking at the launch of the government’s new digital strategy on Thursday, Heather Wheeler, a junior minister in the Cabinet Office, was reported to have said: “I was just at a conference in Blackpool or Birmingham or somewhere godawful.” Continue reading...

Health secretary says service has enough resources but admits waiting lists will grow before they shrinkThe NHS needs reform rather than more money, the health secretary has said, while admitting that record-high waiting lists will continue to rise before they fall.Sajid Javid said the health service already had the resources it needed and did not require more to care for patients effectively. “The NHS now has locked in the resources it needs. It doesn’t need any more money. What it needs to deliver for more people is not money. It needs reform,” he said. Continue reading...

Ministers intervene to stop interest rate in England and Wales reaching 12% with inflation by SeptemberMinisters have intervened to reduce a sharp rise in interest rates charged on student loans, after the recent increase in inflation which meant rates would treble for many graduates by the autumn.The Department for Education said the maximum rate from September is to be fixed at 7.3% rather than the 12% it would have reached by September, based on earlier inflation figures plus 3%. Continue reading...

Many in the opposition fear their leader is not sufficiently punishing the government’s weaknessAt Tuesday’s shadow cabinet meeting, less than 24 hours after Boris Johnson’s humiliating confidence vote, Keir Starmer gave his troops what one called “a bit of cold reality” about how much work remains to be done in developing Labour’s policies and message in the months ahead.Many could not agree more. Conversations with shadow cabinet members, party aides and other senior Labour figures this week revealed deep disquiet about whether Starmer and his team are ready to capitalise on the Tories’ weakness. Continue reading...

Footage shows man striking and dragging woman outside after she pushes him awayEight people have been arrested over a vicious attack on a group of women at a restaurant in China, police said on Saturday, in a case that has prompted outrage over predatory sexual behaviour.Footage of the incident widely circulated online shows a man placing his hand on a woman’s back as she shares a meal with two companions at a barbecue restaurant in northern China’s Hebei province. Continue reading...

French defence minister welcomes Australia’s payment to Naval Group over submarine cancellation; 70 Covid deaths across the country. This blog is now closed

Parents and teachers say some students predicted to gain A* grades are being rejected after a surge in applicationsThe first post-Covid cohort of school leavers face a summer of uncertainty that “threatens to hold back a generation”, as students compete for fewer places on popular university courses.After A-level grade inflation during the pandemic forced universities to take on more students, institutions are now retrenching in popular subjects despite a surge in applications. Continue reading...

The actor has been coy about returning to movies after his blockbuster defamation case – but PR moves are being madeJohnny Depp can probably thank his lawyers and PR for suddenly having a shot at a dramatic public image resurrection, but the question remains whether Hollywood will soon restore him to the big screen he used to dominate.In the wake of his dramatic win in the defamation case against his ex-wife and fellow star Amber Heard – though Heard herself also won on one count against her former husband’s agent – speculation is now rife that Depp may go back to movies, despite his own claims that he has no interest in returning to the franchise blockbusters that supplied his fortune. Continue reading...

Anthony Albanese pledges to reset Australia’s strained relationship with France after settling cancelled contract with Naval Group

Richard Marles outlines vision of economic cooperation and military deterrence but warns lack of transparency can upset balance

Prices have spiralled out control since invasion of Ukraine as market struggles to adaptEldar Gadzhiev’s heart sank when he heard the sputtering from the engine of his Skoda one day in April. Gadzhiev, who owns a fleet of four cars that he leases as taxicabs in Moscow, knew it was a terrible and expensive time for a breakdown.Prices for spare parts, if you even could find them, had spiralled out of control since Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine two months earlier. “I understood that I was in a bad situation,” he said. “I thought: the repairs are going to cost as much as the car.” Continue reading...

Surge in incidents comes as the cost of filling a family car passes £100 for the first timeRising petrol prices have led to an increase in the number of drivers trying to drive off without paying, with forecourts facing up to three attempted thefts a day on average, figures from industry experts show.As the cost of filling up has soared in recent weeks, so has the number of incidents where motorists have either driven away without paying or claimed to have no means of payment. Continue reading...

State to work with federal government on $1bn upgrade that could slash travel time between Sydney and Gosford to 25 minutes

Australian research shows six in 10 have sought professional help for their mental health

Court finds rightwinger defied constitution during chaotic exit of Evo Morales, from whom she took over presidencyA Bolivian court has found former president Jeanine Áñez guilty of orchestrating a coup that brought her to power during a 2019 political crisis.She was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Continue reading...

‘Poison in every puff’ message proposed amid government concern photo warnings on tobacco packages have lost impactCanada is poised to become the first country in the world to require that a warning be printed on every cigarette.The move builds on Canada’s mandate to include graphic photo warnings on tobacco products’ packaging, a policy that started an international trend when it was introduced two decades ago. Continue reading...

Indigenous funeral fund creditors told of preliminary investigations into whether payments to founder’s company were illegal

Cholera warning as Russia accused of razing high-rises in Mariupol without removing bodies; Serbia rejects call to impose Russia sanctions; fighting rages in Sievierodonetsk

This blog is closed. You can catch up on the week in Ukraine here. Live coverage will resume later.The UK’s foreign secretary Liz Truss will raise the case of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner, the two British men sentenced to death by a pro-Russian court in occupied Ukraine, when she speaks to Ukraine’s foreign secretary Dmytro Kuleba later today, PA Media reports.Truss has already called it a “sham judgement” and insisted it has “absolutely no legitimacy”. Continue reading...

Man arrested in Kent after teenager was killed and his mother injured on Thursday nightA 44-year-old man has been arrested in Kent on suspicion of murder after a teenage boy was stabbed to death and his mother was injured at a Manchester home, Greater Manchester police said.Police said the man, from Manchester, is believed to be known to the victims. Officers were called by colleagues from North West ambulance service at about 9.30pm on Thursday after the domestic incident in Miles Platting. Continue reading...

Popstar posted video showing inability to move his face muscles due to Ramsay Hunt syndromeJustin Bieber has cancelled a series of shows on his latest tour after a virus caused “full paralysis” on one side of his face.The Canadian popstar said he had been diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome after a virus had damaged the nerves in his ear. He said he was suffering a “pretty serious” case in a video he posted to his Instagram page. Continue reading...

Source says Prince of Wales was ‘more than disappointed’ with deportation plansPrince Charles has privately criticised the government’s policy of deporting migrants to Rwanda, calling the practice “appalling”.The heir to the throne has been heard opposing the policy behind closed doors, a source has told the Times and the Daily Mail. Continue reading...

Heather Wheeler, a minister in the Cabinet Office, made comments at technology event in LondonA UK government minister has apologised after calling England’s second city and one of the country’s best-known seaside resorts as “godawful”.Heather Wheeler referred to Birmingham and Blackpool during a launch of the government’s new digital strategy on Thursday. According to Chris Middleton, a technology journalist who was at the launch, the junior minister in the Cabinet Office said: “I was just at a conference in Blackpool or Birmingham or somewhere godawful.” Continue reading...

Federal ministers Mark Butler and Anika Wells warn providers with low vaccination rates will have to explain themselves

New party hopes to win up to 10 seats in November’s state election, but political insiders and observers have doubts

Minister say he’s not aware of any specific allegations but ‘would not tolerate’ inappropriate behaviour

A lot has changed since the fraught trans-Tasman exchanges of the Morrison government with the two countries now hitting reset

Gas shortages, reported delays to major projects and coal-fired power woes are among the gifts handed to the new energy minister

Almost 99% of people infected are men and the average age is 38 according to UK Health Security Agency dataFour-fifths of the people in England who have been infected with monkeypox live in London, an investigation by the UK Health Security Agency has found.Of the cases interviewed, 99% of those infected are men and their average age is 38, the agency added after analysing 336 of the 366 confirmed cases found in the UK since the outbreak began last month. Continue reading...

After nine years on the run in Spain, Panitzke has been jailed for eight years for her ‘pivotal role’ in a £1bn mobile phone tax scamA woman once described as “one of Britain’s most-wanted” fugitives has been jailed for eight years for her part in a £1bn money laundering scam.Sarah Panitzke spent nine years on the run when she fled during her trial in May 2013 for a £1bn mobile phone tax scam. She became the only woman on the National Crime Agency’s list of most-wanted fugitives after fleeing the country to Spain. Continue reading...

Ukraine ‘almost out of ammunition’; death sentences at a show trial; the battle for Sievierodonetsk

Analysis: Two years ago the PM promised a ‘war on fat’ – but there’s little of substance in this can-kicking document

Show claiming to feature works by Van Gogh, Matisse and Picasso abruptly cancelled as police launch investigationAn exhibition in Slovenia claiming to feature works by Picasso, Van Gogh and Matisse was abruptly cancelled this week over fears some works were forged, prompting a police probe on Friday.The National Museum of Slovenia planned to officially open the show on Wednesday this week, entitled “Travels” and featuring 160 paintings owned by the little-known Boljkovac family. Continue reading...

A man thought to be in his 40s and a woman in her 60s, both with disabilities, died at Roadford LakeDevon and Cornwall police and the marine accidents body have both launched investigations after two people died in a lake in Devon when a motor boat capsized.A man, believed to be in his 40s, and a woman in her 60s, both with disabilities, died after a boat capsized at about 1.30pm on Wednesday at Roadford Lake, near Okehampton. Their bodies were pulled out of the lake on Thursday, about 24 hours after the incident. Continue reading...

Judge refuses to grant interim relief after lawyers for asylum seekers argued policy was unlawfulA high court judge has ruled that a controversial deportation flight to Rwanda that was due to take off early next week can go ahead.Mr Justice Swift refused to grant interim relief – urgent action in response to an injunction application made by four asylum seekers facing offshoring to Rwanda. Continue reading...

Centrica accuses two big suppliers of resisting proposals in wake of collapse of scores of energy firmsThe British Gas owner, Centrica, has accused rivals of blocking plans to protect customer deposits in response to the collapse of scores of energy firms.Centrica has accused two big suppliers – understood to be Ovo Energy and Octopus Energy – of resisting the proposals to ringfence deposits. Continue reading...

Vladimir Putin compares his actions in Ukraine to conquests of Peter the Great; Zelenskiy says Ukraine ‘holding on’ to key frontline cities in Donbas

Former political research manager says he accepts colleagues had misgivings about methodologyA former manager at YouGov has retracted a claim that the polling company suppressed research suggesting Jeremy Corbyn won a general election debate because it was “too positive about Labour”.Chris Curtis said he was “happy to clarify the position and apologise to YouGov for any confusion caused” after accepting that the results were pulled because of concerns over the methods used. Continue reading...

France’s biggest ever criminal trial enters final weeks, with prosecutors expressing regret about unanswered questionsFrench prosecutors have called for life sentences for 12 of the 20 men suspected of key roles in the November 2015 Paris terrorist attacks on a stadium, bars and restaurants and a rock gig at the Bataclan concert hall.As the biggest criminal trial ever held in France entered its final weeks, prosecutors summed up the evidence and regretted that there were still key, unanswered questions about the coordinated attacks that killed 130 people and injured more than 490. Continue reading...

Draft legislation to be issued Monday, as Keir Starmer promises a Labour government would repeal law if it passesControversial legislation to disapply parts of the Northern Ireland protocol will be published next week, but senior government sources acknowledged it was going to be a “difficult” process to get it through parliament.The new laws are aimed at unilaterally changing parts of the protocol to make trade easier between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, but critics warned that overriding the post-Brexit treaty could contravene international law. Continue reading...

Civil Aviation Authority warns airports could face court action if services for disabled users do not improveThe aviation regulator has warned UK airports they will face enforcement action if they keep failing disabled and less mobile passengers.The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has demanded airports set out improvements by next week and said it will use enforcement powers, which include court orders, if failures continue. The regulatory threat comes after a series of incidents where wheelchair users have been abandoned on aircraft or offered no help despite having booked assistance. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed, you can find all the latest UK political news hereAnd these are from the BBC’s home and legal correspondent, Dominic Casciani, on the high court hearing this morning on the proposed removal of asylum seekers to Rwanda.

Analysis: Kyiv’s fighting strength is stretched, yet Russia could now benefit from a pause in fighting

Body criticises plan to grant conditional immunity to people accused of murder in Northern Ireland conflictThe Council of Europe has rebuked the UK over a plan to grant conditional immunity to people accused of murder and other offences during the Northern Ireland Troubles.The body, which oversees the European court of human rights (ECHR), on Friday accused the government of not consulting stakeholders and expressed concern over the stated intention to pull the plug on inquests. Continue reading...

Letters to asylum seekers assured them UNHCR was ‘closely involved’ in deportation scheme, high court hearsThe United Nations refugee agency has made a dramatic intervention to try to halt Priti Patel’s plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda.In a late submission of evidence, the UNHCR claimed the home secretary misled refugees over the organisation’s support for the plan. The agency has also said the scheme failed to meet the required standards of “legality and appropriateness” for transferring asylum seekers from one country to another. Continue reading...

As the cost of filling up hits new high, drivers at one service station do their best not to let it spoil their weekend

Requirement to test negative, which has been in place since January 2021, criticized by travel industry and some lawmakersThe Biden administration will today announce the end of its requirement that people entering the country test negative for Covid-19, a senior administration official has told news outlets.According to Reuters, the move will go into effect for US-bound air travelers on Sunday at midnight. Continue reading...

Foreign secretary and counterpart ‘discuss efforts to secure the release’ of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner

Change will allow teachers around the world with equivalent qualifications and experience to apply for jobsQualified teachers from any country in the world will be able to work in schools in England if they have equivalent credentials and at least one year’s classroom experience, ministers have said.The change, which comes into force next near, will open up opportunities for teachers from countries outside the 39 where teaching qualifications are currently recognised, which include across Europe, the United States, Canada and Australia. Until now, teachers from other countries had to pay to retrain before they could teach in English schools.