World news | The Guardian

From Sunday roast spaghetti to royal superyachts, the highs and lows of this year’s UK bandwagon of deceptionFor most people April Fools’ Day is either a bright spot in grim times, or a tedious parade of poor jokes we could all do without, with nothing in between. With a pandemic and a global focus on conflicts in Ukraine and elsewhere, judging the tone of a decent April Fools’ gag has become much harder for companies, and even more so for news organisations battling a rising tide of disinformation on social media.For the Telegraph, the big news on April Fools’ Day was a plan by the England and Wales cricket board to drop the dreary and unsuccessful England men’s cricket team defeated in the West Indies and replace them wholesale with Heather Knight’s World Cup finalists. Continue reading...

Documents show Duke of York has repaid cash in dispute involving Turkish woman and businessmanThe Duke of York and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, have been named in a ruling on a high court case featuring a dispute between a Turkish woman and businessman.Nebahat Isbilen, 77, was allegedly tricked by Selman Turk into giving Prince Andrew £750,000 “by way of payment for assistance” with her passport, court documents reportedly show. Continue reading...

Irish police force inspector calls on officers to grow proper beards or shave in internal memoTo beard or not to beard, that is the question vexing Ireland’s police force in a controversy over officers’ patchy facial hair.A Garda Síochána supervisor has instructed subordinates to “smarten up” and grow a proper beard or to be clean-shaven and to avoid a ragged in-between look that resembles “a badly watered lawn in a heatwave”. Continue reading...

Demarchelier photographed Princess Diana, Beyonce and Madonna during long careerPatrick Demarchelier, the fashion photographer who worked with high-profile figures including Diana, Princess of Wales, has died at the age of 78.His death was announced by his representatives on Instagram on Thursday. “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Patrick Demarchelier on 31 March 2022, at the age of 78,” the post read. “He is survived by his wife Mia, his three sons Gustaf, Arthur, Victor and three grandchildren.” Continue reading...

As Easter visitors arrive in the northern rivers, at least 60 people will be moved to alternative accommodationGet our free news app; get our morning email briefingAt least 60 flood victims in temporary housing in the New South Wales northern rivers will be relocated across the border to make way for tourists travelling to Byron Bay for the Easter holidays.Widespread flooding in the northern rivers region has resulted in 28,000 people being relocated across the region. Continue reading...

Mayor’s aide says city remains closed for anyone trying to enter and ‘very dangerous’ for those trying to leave

Landmark agreement to protect garment workers from violence follows last year’s murder of Jeyasre Kathiravel, a Dalit womanH&M has signed a legally binding agreement with one of its largest Indian clothing suppliers that pledges to end sexual violence and harassment against women on the factory floor after the murder of a young garment worker by her supervisor last year.In January 2021, Jeyasre Kathiravel, a 20-year-old Dalit woman, was found dead on farmland near her family home after finishing a shift at Natchi Apparel, a factory making clothes for H&M in Kaithian Kottai, Tamil Nadu. Continue reading...

Officials amend state’s total coronavirus fatalities after revision by registry births, deaths and marriages

Fatima al-Masri, a 19-month-old with a hole in her heart, waited five months for Israel to issue a permit allowing her to travel for treatmentA 19-month-old child has died in Gaza after waiting for five months for Israel to grant her permission to leave the blockaded enclave for treatment.Human right groups said Israel’s blockade of Gaza was responsible for the death of Fatima al-Masri, who was diagnosed last year with a hole in the heart and who died on Friday. Continue reading...

Curfew lifted a day after 45 people were arrested when an angry crowd demanded the resignation of Gotabaya RajapaksaNearly 50 people were injured after authorities used teargas and water cannon to drive back a crowd that stormed the home of Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, amid anger over the government’s handling of the nation’s deepening economic crisis.The crisis, the worst in living memory, has caused massive discontent, with people unable to find gas for cooking, medicines, fuel and basic items of food such as milk powder because the country has run out of foreign currency to pay for imported goods. Continue reading...

Payment of £400m debt led to release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh AshooriMPs are to examine why ministers delayed paying a debt to Iran even though they knew the payment was likely to lead to the release of two British-Iranian detainees.The foreign affairs select committee formally confirmed it was launching an inquiry adding that Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori deserved the truth. Both were released a fortnight ago and returned to the UK from Iran after payment of the £400m debt on the understanding the money was used for humanitarian purposes. Continue reading...

Exclusive: survey finds ‘hidden epidemic’ of people humiliated, outed or shunned by family over their sexuality or gender identityYoung LGBTQ+ people in the UK are facing a “hidden epidemic” of abuse by close family members based on their sexuality or gender identity, according to a study.Nearly one in three LGBTQ+ people have experienced abuse – ranging from verbal harassment to threats of homelessness and physical violence – by a relative, most often their own parents, with two-thirds of them aged under 18 when the abuse first occurred, research for the anti-abuse charity Galop found. Continue reading...

Police on camels, a water slide into the Yarra – did you get got? Plus: the ones we wished were real, and the real news we were hoping was a jokeDid you hear about Melbourne’s latest tourist attraction? The lord mayor, Sally Capp, has announced a massive winter water slide that will operate in the city’s CBD, depositing thrill seekers into the murky Yarra River.And after a big day of water sports, kick back and watch one of the many new Australian shows airing on streaming service Amazon Prime. Continue reading...

Paul Troja, 73, was a passenger on board the aircraft, as investigators comb wreckage to determine cause of crash

Young First Nations people are 5.8% of population aged 10-17 but make up 49% of all youth in detention, report says

Suffragettes used to ‘chain themselves to Parliament House’, says one MP concerned by protest crackdown

Sydney can look forward to some sunshine from Sunday, but not before wind gusts of up to 100km/h and damaging surf

US says the invasion has been a ‘strategic disaster’ for Moscow and that Putin is isolated as peace talks are due to resume

Seedlings, apparently planted by anti-Covid mandate protesters, have been removed after speaker asked for ‘weed to be weeded’After a weeks-long illegal occupation that ended in a riot, New Zealand’s parliament has a new unwelcome visitor to contend with: cannabis seedlings popping up among its rose gardens.An eagle-eyed Wellingtonian spotted the tiny green leaves emerging from the soil this week and posted his find to social media. The man wished to remain anonymous, but a parliament groundskeeper confirmed to the national broadcaster, RNZ, that the plants were indeed “a few cannabis seedlings” thought to be left by the protesters. Continue reading...

House values up in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and the ACT, along with several regional areas

Report commissioned by city council says blood of enslaved people is ‘built into the very bones’ of the metropolisGlasgow authorities have apologised for the city’s role in the Atlantic slave trade, saying the “tentacles” of money from the practice reached every corner of Scotland’s biggest metropolis.The apology comes as Britain increasingly reckons with the legacy of its colonial past in the wake of global Black Lives Matter anti-racism protests. Continue reading...

MoD officials exploring legal challenges but Boris Johnson ‘full steam ahead’ with proposalA group of Tory MPs is lobbying Downing Street to consider commandeering one of the superyachts seized as part of the sanctions regime for use by the royal family.The idea has won favour with some senior figures in No 10, which was widely criticised last year after it commissioned a “national flagship” for state visits by the Queen, reportedly costing £200m. Continue reading...

Independent MP, who could hold balance of power, says she has ‘grave concerns’ over PM’s leadership and influence of the Nationals

Leaked document had suggested plans to ban practices were being ditched despite repeated promisesBoris Johnson has reportedly performed a hasty retreat after sparking a furious backlash after an announcement that ministers were abandoning plans to ban conversion practices.Conversion practices attempt to change or suppress a person’s sexuality or gender identity and Johnson and his predecessor Theresa May had promised to make it illegal. Continue reading...

‘At least I didn’t get up and slap anybody’, chancellor says in interview after tough weekRishi Sunak has compared himself to Will Smith as the chancellor defended his wife against criticism over financial links to Russia, saying: “At least I didn’t get up and slap anybody.”Sunak has come under mounting pressure over accusations that his wife is collecting “blood money” in dividends from a family company that continues to operate in Russia despite the invasion of Ukraine. Continue reading...

Eric Vidaud to step down after investigation criticises ‘failure to master the issues’ on war

Foreign secretary urges democracies to join in applying sanctions to Russia after Ukraine invasionIndia’s external affairs minister, Dr S Jaishankar, has defended his country’s right to buy discounted oil from Russia following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, despite an appeal from the from his UK counterpart, Liz Truss, for democracies to show solidarity against authoritarians.He also contrasted the concern the west has shown about the invasion with what he described as the relative uninterest in the Taliban takever of Afghanistan, saying people seemed motivated by the proximity of a crisis, as much as anything. Continue reading...

Government move shows ‘utter contempt’ for service that has worked through pandemic, say unionsPublic sector unions have reacted with fury after ministers announced that pay increases across the civil service would be pegged at an average of 2% for the year ahead, despite surging inflation.In a written statement published on Thursday, the Cabinet Office minister Heather Wheeler said public sector employers would “have freedom to pay average awards up to 2%”, plus up to an extra percentage point in some cases, to be “targeted at specific priorities in their workforce and pay strategies”. Continue reading...

Supreme court justice was fined 50,000 kronor after she was caught trying to hide a number of food items in StockholmA supreme court justice in Sweden has been fined for shoplifting a Christmas ham and meatballs, among other items, the prosecutor in the case has said.The 67-year-old woman was caught by staff at a grocery store in central Stockholm a week before Christmas. Continue reading...

Man who alleges assault by Imran Ahmad Khan when he was 15 contacted party press office after election of Wakefield MP in 2019A man who alleges he was sexually assaulted by a Tory MP when he was 15 has told a court that he contacted the Conservative press office to tell them what happened.The people he spoke to did not take him “very seriously,” a jury at the trial of Imran Ahmad Khan heard on Thursday. Continue reading...

Independent expert Wendy Williams finds ‘lack of tangible progress or drive to achieve cultural changes required’• Analysis: Claims of compassion ring increasingly hollowThe Home Office has broken pledges to transform its culture and become more compassionate after the Windrush inquiry, according to a report that prompted warnings the scandal could be repeated.Expressions of disappointment appear 13 times in the progress report published on Thursday by Wendy Williams, who was appointed to advise the Home Office on how to make changes. Continue reading...

Retailers to begin competing over price of tests as supermarket and Boots reveal pricesTesco is selling lateral flow tests in 1,5oo stores, many without pharmacies, as a high street price war sees kits go on sale for less than the price of a takeaway coffee.As universal free testing ended in England on Thursday, the UK’s biggest retailer said the £2 individual tests, from healthcare firm Everything Genetic, would be available in its supermarkets and, from May, across the country on its website. Continue reading...

Government has already decided to give ground on elections bill in an attempt to make it law before Commons is proroguedMinisters may be forced to make significant concessions on a string of flagship government bills to get them through the current session of parliament, it has emerged, amid an increasingly tight legislative logjam.The government has already written to peers saying it will give ground on a key part of its controversial elections bill before it is scrutinised by the House of Lords, in an attempt to get it into law before the Commons is prorogued, expected to happen later this month. Continue reading...

A worker at Anglicare facility tried to tell victim that assault didn’t happen, commission told

If minimum wage rises it’s ‘only a matter of time’ before cafes charge $7 for a coffee, employers say

Nadine Dorries’ second choice for Ofcom chair showed few signs of being the attack dog she had hopedJust a few weeks ago, Nadine Dorries had almost shed a tear during a Commons statement as she praised the efforts of BBC and Channel 4 journalists in reporting the war in Ukraine.For someone who has spent most of her career trashing the BBC and Channel 4, this was a rare slip. The culture secretary is a good hater. She doesn’t forgive and she doesn’t forget. Just as soon as the war is over she will revert to type. It will be like Lyse Doucet and Matt Frei never existed. Continue reading...

Kev Crane, 50, who landed record contract after he was overheard singing at work, signs movie deal for rights to his storyA plumber who landed a record contract after he was overheard singing at work has now signed a Hollywood movie deal for the rights to his story.Kev Crane, a 50-year-old plumber from Leicestershire, was fitting a bathroom for local record producer Paul Conneally in August last year when he started singing along to the radio. Continue reading...

Readers describe how soaring gas and electricity costs are adding to the cost of living crisisHouseholds in the UK will see their energy bills rise by 54% from 1 April, with prices expected to rise again in six months. Despite the chancellor’s spring statement offering a fuel duty cut and changes to the national insurance threshold, people are still struggling with the cost of living.We spoke to six people about their experiences and what spiralling heating costs will mean for them. Continue reading...

Russian president signals supplies could be halted from Friday unless ‘unfriendly’ states start paying in roubles

Concerns over Willis, who is ‘stepping away’ from acting after an aphasia diagnosis, had been circulating on sets, report saysAfter a statement revealed that Bruce Willis would be “stepping away” from acting after an aphasia diagnosis, a Los Angeles Times report has revealed that concerns over his cognitive state have been circulating for years.Speaking to directors and other crew members who have worked with the 67-year-old actor, the article details Willis struggling to remember dialogue, expressing confusion at his surroundings, needing shortened work days and having issues with gun use. Continue reading...

Measures will sever targets from UK wealth and help expose Russia’s ‘torrent of lies’, says foreign secretaryThe UK government has expanded its sanctions against Russia to 14 more people and organisations principally involved with information and media, including a prominent TV anchor and the group which controls the RT television channel.The new measures, unveiled by the foreign secretary, Liz Truss, is aimed at countering what Truss called the “torrent of lies” from Russian media about the invasion of Ukraine. Continue reading...

Buses head to Mariupol in another attempt to evacuate people; morale low among Russian troops, says GCHQ

Officials and activists had urged more women to stand after none of the female candidates were elected in 2017Equalities campaigners are dismayed that only eight women are standing for election to Western Isles council, despite a campaign to diversify Scotland’s only all-male local authority.Council officials and equalities activists had urged more women to stand for Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, Gaelic for the Western Isles council, after none of the seven female candidates who stood in 2017 were elected, leaving the authority run solely by men. Continue reading...

Labour leader says No 10 should own up if Carrie Johnson gets fixed penalty notice over lockdown partiesKeir Starmer has said the public should be told if the prime minister’s wife, Carrie Johnson, receives a fixed penalty notice for breaking lockdown rules.No 10 has said it will reveal whether the prime minister – or the cabinet secretary, Simon Case – have received a fine, but have suggested other individuals will not be named. Continue reading...

Bloc pressed to threaten sanctions at summit on bilateral relations amid concern about authoritarian alliance

The Gender Index aims to support growth of female-led companies, which tend to have lower turnoversCompanies led by women disproportionately attract less investment than those led by men, according to a large-scale study of female entrepreneurship in the UK.The Gender Index, which was launched on Thursday, is a research study of all 4.4m active UK companies and allows users to track the impact of female-led firms on the economy via an online, interactive tool. Continue reading...

Committee says it has reservations over selection process and lack of diversity in shortlistA committee of MPs has rejected the government’s choice for the next chair of the Charity Commission, blaming ministers for a “slapdash and unimaginative choice” in selecting the one-time Conservative parliamentary candidate Orlando Fraser.While the digital, culture, media and sport (DCMS) committee said it had no grounds for concern about Fraser as an individual, it had serious reservations about the selection process, including the lack of diversity in the shortlist. Continue reading...

Shadow home secretary says tens of thousands of desperate people still stuck in system

A change to the law, ending a 20-year battle by 100-year-old Harry Shindler, passes a critical stage in the LordsBritish nationals living overseas for more than 15 years are set to get the right to vote in UK general elections, after a proposed change in the law passed a critical stage in the House of Lords.The move will end a 20-year battle by 100-year-old Harry Shindler who challenged the 15-year limit on voting rights in the high court in 2016 and in the European court of justice in 2018. Continue reading...