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Attainment gap between pupils from wealthy and deprived areas only closes slightly, despite being SNP's core missionMinisters in Scotland are facing intense criticism over the sluggish increase in exam passes by teenagers from deprived areas despite repeated promises to greatly improve performance.Opposition parties and Scotland's largest teaching union said progress in closing the attainment gap - the difference between exam passes for pupils from the wealthiest areas with the most deprived - was too slow and too patchy. Continue reading...

Oil and gas group trying to fend off activist investors says it can and will do better' for its shareholders

Genie 3 world model's ability to simulate real environments means it can be used to train robotsGoogle has outlined its latest step towards artificial general intelligence (AGI) with a new model that allows AI systems to interact with a convincing simulation of the real world.The Genie 3 world model" could be used to train robots and autonomous vehicles as they engage with realistic recreations of environments such as warehouses, according to Google. Continue reading...

Emergency services called on Monday night after member of host family in Hunter region heard a commotion and found older girl with stab wounds

Interim report on digital economy also mulls changes to privacy rules and copyright collections to help harness AI's benefits

Boy, 15, became separated from his family, who were due to fly back to London Stansted, at island's Mahon airportA British teenager separated from his family at a busy Spanish airport on Monday boarded a flight to Italy instead of his return flight to London.The 15-year-old was supposed to fly with Tui from Menorca to Stansted but disappeared in the island's Mahon airport. Continue reading...

Former presenter of BBC's The Repair Shop will appear in court in connection with charges next weekThe TV presenter Jay Blades has been charged with two counts of rape, police have said, and will appear in court next week.West Mercia police said in a statement: Jason Blades, 55, of Claverley in Shropshire, has been charged with two counts of rape. He is due to appear at Telford magistrates court on 13 August 2025." Continue reading...

James Vlassakis, the youngest of four men convicted over the serial killings, was found guilty of being involved in four of 11 murders between 1992 and 1999

Seedy Fofana sought 500,000 compensation over graffito that colleague in Gloucester did not mean as racial slurA Black warehouse worker has won a race harassment claim after a disgruntled colleague wrote the word slave" on a piece of machinery.The colleague had meant it not as a racial slur but as an expression of his anger at, as he saw it, being overworked and underpaid, an employment tribunal heard. Continue reading...

FCA also bans former star stock picker from holding senior manager roles and managing funds for retail investors

Erika McEntarfer's exit could push US into category of countries found to have massaged economic dataDonald Trump's firing of the head of the main agency for producing jobs figures risks propelling the US into the same category as countries notorious for cooking the books" such as Argentina and Greece, experts have warned.Donald Trump fired Erika McEntarfer, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) commissioner last Friday, after accusing her agency of faking" the latest employment figures for political purposes," which showed the US economy adding a lower-than-expected 73,000 jobs in July. Continue reading...

British drinks firm, which is searching for new CEO, expands cost-cutting planThe world's biggest spirits company, Diageo, has revealed a slump in annual profits and expanded its cost-cutting plan as it searches for a new boss after the resignation of the chief executive, Debra Crew.The FTSE 100 company, which owns brands including Guinness, Johnnie Walker whisky, Gordon's gin and Smirnoff vodka, reported a nearly 28% fall in operating profit in the 12 months to the end of June compared with a year earlier. Continue reading...

Police are investigating the alleged incident which took place outside a school in Bungendore in July

The Waratah Super Battery will stabilise the grid and put further downward pressure on electricity prices, experts say

Police officer was concerned ex-army chief, a Teledyne adviser, sought to have input' into factory attack investigationA member of the House of Lords urged ministers to crack down on Palestine Action at the request of a US defence company that employs him as an adviser.Richard Dannatt, a former head of the British army, wrote privately to two separate Home Office ministers asking them to address the threat" posed by the group after its activists targeted a factory in 2022. Continue reading...

Charities urge government to move quickly after it announced scheme to help critically ill and injured childrenMore than 100 critically ill and injured children in Gaza hope to come to the UK as soon as possible after the government announced a scheme to provide those in severe need with NHS care.The government announced on Sunday that it would evacuate children from Gaza to the UK for treatment under a scheme to be announced within weeks. Continue reading...

Three Mogami-class frigates part of wider deal to replace ageing Anzac-class frigates and give navy a more lethal surface combatant fleet

Scotland says there have been 119 incidents on the rail network caused by Storm Floris, including 75 tree-related onesThe Scottish government has held emergency meetings in response to the significant disruption" caused by Storm Floris across the country, with warnings of further travel chaos on Tuesday as poor weather continues.On Monday night, the Scottish government's Resilience Room held a meeting to help decide an appropriate response to the storm, which has included power outages and almost 120 rail incidents. Representatives from the Met Office, Police Scotland, Transport Scotland and transport and utilities companies were in attendance. Continue reading...

Application lodged for permanent legal protection of Victoria Park, where state and federal governments plan to spend billions on sports infrastructure

Both major parties want to expel Ward from parliament after he was convicted, but the Kiama MP has engaged lawyers from his prison cell

Anthony Albanese spoke to Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday about humanitarian aid

Combs was acquitted last month of most serious charges in sex-trafficking trial but convicted on two lesser countsSean Diddy" Combs cannot go home from jail to await sentencing on his prostitution-related conviction, a judge said on Monday, denying the mogul's latest bid for bail.Combs has been behind bars since his September arrest. He faced federal charges of coercing girlfriends into having drug-fueled sex marathons with male sex workers while he watched and filmed them. Continue reading...

Victims, also including Irish missionary and seven workers, were taken outside of Port-au-Prince in planned act'An Irish missionary and a three-year-old child are among nine people missing in Haiti after a mass kidnapping from an orphanage in the country's capital, Port-au-Prince.The victims were seized from the Sainte-Helene orphanage in the commune of Kenscoff, about 6.2 miles (10km) south-east of the capital on Sunday, officials said. Continue reading...

Air and ferry services also affected in Scotland with the Military Tattoo in Edinburgh cancelled; around 2,700 homes in Ireland still without powerAmber wind warnings are now in place for Scotland as we are past 10:00 BST. It is expected to be in place until 10pm and could bring injuries and danger to life in areas along the coast.Some roads and bridges will likely close, and there is a greater chance of power cuts and a greater risk of falling trees. Continue reading...

Lindsay and Craig Foreman were detained seven months ago on espionage charges while on global motorbike tripA British couple detained in Iran for seven months on espionage charges have been moved to separate prisons in and near Tehran, heightening fears for their welfare, their son said on Monday.Lindsay and Craig Foreman, both 52 and who previously split their time between south-east England and Spain, were seized in Kerman, in central Iran, in early January while on a round-the-world motorbike trip. Continue reading...

Girl died in hospital after initial treatment at scene, police say, as water park announces a day's closureA four-year-old girl has died following an incident at a swimming pool at Waterworld in Staffordshire, police have said.Officers were called to the water park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent at about 4.20pm on Monday to reports of a child in a critical condition. She was treated at the scene and then taken to hospital for further treatment but later died. Continue reading...

Former director general died on Sunday night surrounded by her beloved family and dogs'Stella Rimington, the first female director of MI5 and the first head of the domestic spy agency to be publicly named, has died aged 90.She died on Sunday night surrounded by her beloved family and dogs and determinedly held on to the life she loved until her last breath", her family said in a statement. Continue reading...

Video posted online showed the far-right activist near a man lying on the ground at St Pancras stationThe far-right activist known as Tommy Robinson has been arrested by British police on suspicion of grievous bodily harm after a man was allegedly assaulted at a London railway station.Robinson was arrested on Monday evening at Luton airport as he stepped off a flight from Faro, Portugal. Continue reading...

Coastguard and police continue to scour land and sea for Michele Bourda, who was last seen on a sunbedA mammoth search-and-rescue operation for a British woman last seen lounging on a sunbed in Greece has intensified days after her mysterious" disappearance.The Hellenic coastguard, backed by a flotilla of pleasure craft and fishing boats, has fanned across the waters off Ofrynio beach near the northern town of Kavala, where Michele Bourda, 59, went missing on 1 August. Continue reading...

Wolves need to know humans are bad,' says US department of agriculture representative, explaining unusual strategy to save cattleMarriage Story, Noah Baumbach's drama starring Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver as a divorcing couple engaged in a raging custody battle, won universal acclaim from critics and numerous awards, including six Oscar nominations and one win, for Laura Dern's barnstorming attorney.But perhaps the highest honour has just been revealed by the Wall Street Journal, which reports that audio of the central couple screaming at one another has been judged so upsetting it is now being used to deter wolves from attacking livestock. Continue reading...

Danish agency for palaces and culture requests removal of 14-ton sculpture from Dragor Fort in CopenhagenA debate has erupted in Denmark over the fate of a mermaid statue that is to be removed from public view after being decried as ugly and pornographic" and a man's hot dream of what a woman should look like".The Danish agency for palaces and culture is reportedly removing the 4x6 metre Den Store Havfrue (the Big Mermaid) from Dragor Fort, part of Copenhagen's former sea fortifications, because it does not align with the cultural heritage of the 1910 landmark. Continue reading...

Prime minister faces a choice between high tariffs or giving up cheap oil, putting New Delhi's non-alignment policy under severe strainThe relationship between India and the US is facing one of its most significant challenges in decades, as the Trump administration doubles down on its demands that India stop buying Russian oil or face punitive tariffs.The US president, Donald Trump, has refused to cut tariffs on Indian exports to the US, as he has for other countries, and on Monday said he would significantly raise them over its purchases of cheap Russian oil, which now account for one-third of its imported oil. Continue reading...

Witkoff expected to visit Russia as latest deadline set by Donald Trump exires on Friday, requiring Putin to agree to a ceasefire or face sanctionsUS special envoy Steve Witkoff's visit to Moscow is now expected to take place on Wednesday, Tass news agency reported citing sources.The latest deadline, set by US president Donald Trump, requiring Russia to agree to a ceasefire or face sanctions is set to expire on Friday. Continue reading...

Shipwreck in Gulf of Aden leaves only 32 survivors so far, with the rest missing and presumed dead, says UN agencyA boat has capsized off Yemen's coast leaving 76 people dead and 74 others missing, the UN's migration agency said.Yemeni security officials said 76 bodies had been recovered and 32 people rescued from the shipwreck in the Gulf of Aden in what a senior official from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) described as one of the deadliest" shipwrecks off Yemen this year. The UN migration agency said 157 people were onboard. Continue reading...

Mass accommodation site in Kent, marred by controversy since opening, had been due to close in SeptemberNapier barracks, one of the first mass accommodation sites opened to house asylum seekers, will not be closing as planned in the coming weeks, as the government attempts to deal with an influx of small boats arrivals.Officials informed parliament in a Home Office document uploaded to parliament's cross-party home affairs committee in March 2025 that the Home Office intend to occupy and deliver services at Napier until September 2025, at which point the site will be handed back to the Ministry of Defence". Continue reading...

Karin Keller-Sutter accused of mishandling talks as shares dive after Switzerland hit with 39% tariff

Ruth Szymankiewicz should have been under constant watch at Huntercombe hospitalA 14-year-old girl who was supposed to be constantly observed in a psychiatric hospital died after an agency support worker with a false identity left her alone, an inquest jury has heard.When he heard that Ruth Szymankiewicz, who was suffering from an eating disorder, had died, the worker fled from the UK to Ghana, the court was told.In the UK, Beat can be contacted on 0808-801-0677. In the US, help is available at nationaleatingdisorders.org or by calling ANAD's eating disorders hotline at 800-375-7767. In Australia, the Butterfly Foundation is at 1800 33 4673. Other international helplines can be found at Eating Disorder Hope Continue reading...

Alan Garber told faculty a settlement with the White House is not imminent, according to Harvard's student newspaperThe Harvard University president, Alan Garber, has told faculty a deal between the Ivy League institution and the Trump administration is not imminent - and denied reports that the university is considering a $500m settlement with the White House, Harvard's student newspaper the Crimson reported.The Crimson attributed that information to three unnamed faculty members in a report published early on Monday. Continue reading...

Local rescue service chief says two helicopters had to be used after man, 60, ventured on to path closed due to riskA British hiker has been charged more than 14,000 (12,000) by the Italian mountain rescue service after ignoring danger warnings in the Dolomites.The man, aged 60, had to be rescued after venturing to the Ferrata Berti, a rocky mountain path at an altitude of 2,500 metres (8,200ft) in the San Vito di Cadore area of the northern Italian peaks where dozens of paths were closed last week because of the high risk of landslides. Continue reading...

Rodent said to be 22in (56cm) long from nose to tail found in Normanby, where rat problem is said to be worseningCuts to council pest control services are being blamed for a town's rodent problem, which includes the discovery of a supersize rat said to be 22in (56cm) from nose to tail.The giant rat, about the length of the carry-on luggage people might be wheeling on to a flight - or, if not on holiday, a desktop monitor - was found inside a person's home in Normanby, Teesside. Continue reading...

Pit bull faced traffic and led a stranger to a secluded' tent encampment where a man and woman were unconsciousA dog reportedly braved heavy traffic to catch a stranger's attention and get life-saving emergency help to the animal's two owners after they became unresponsive in a tent encampment in Pittsburgh recently, earning the canine feting as a hero.As local resident Gary Thynes put it both in a social media post and an interview with the Pittsburgh television station WTAE, he was playing with his dog at a park on the evening of 29 July when a pit bull approached barking and evidently trying to get someone's attention. Continue reading...

Flights delayed after technical fault with a single metal detector' but airport says there is no safety or security threat

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Lawyers for founder of Giggle for Girls app says special measure' under Sex Discrimination Act allows for women-only safe space'

The prime minister is seeking a phone call with Benjamin Netanyahu this week, after a pro-Palestine protest marched across Sydney Harbour Bridge

Low-lying residents in the northern tablelands and Hunter warned to prepare for floods with alerts also issued along the Namoi River

Damning review exposes ongoing issues at Forensic Services Queensland, including failure to properly test sample from violent unresolved crime

Video from local tip and police search of Patterson's Leongatha home made public by Victorian supreme court

Exclusive: School leaders say plans lack precision and do not account for new Send education requirementsProposals for overhauled school inspections have been criticised as cosmetic, vague and potentially out of date by school leaders and Department for Education (DfE) officials, just days before approval by Ofsted's management.Ofsted, the schools inspectorate, has made changes to its new school inspection toolkit - how it will carry out inspections - after earlier criticisms. It plans on renaming grades and shrinking the number of evaluations areas from nine to seven, in the latest draft seen by the Guardian, but appears unlikely to win over sceptical teachers in England. Continue reading...

South Australian premier says more than 15 national and international parties have passed final EOI phase