Bank criticised for tone of spending summaries, with one user complaining to ombudsman over humiliating' use of dataWhen does lighthearted banter become inappropriate and humiliating?The digital bank Monzo has been accused of overstepping the mark by using the data it holds to tell one customer with a past eating disorder that she eats a lot of fast food, spends more than most" on Just Eat takeaways, and had banished her life goals thanks to her spending choices. Continue reading...
Washington says new measures not aimed at easing restrictions on Moscow and only affect supplies already in transitThe US treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, said on Friday that his government was considering lifting sanctions on more Russian oil, a day after it temporarily authorised India to buy from Moscow as global oil prices surged.The US-Israel war on Iran and Tehran's retaliatory attacks across the Gulf region have upended the world's energy and transport sectors, virtually halting activity in the strait of Hormuz. Continue reading...
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's deplorable' alleged actions warrant his removal from the royal line of succession, Carney saysThe Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, has said Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor should be removed from the royal line of succession for alleged actions he described as deplorable".Speaking to reporters in Tokyo, Carney said the actions that have caused the former prince to be stripped of his royal titles necessitate" his removal from the line of succession. Continue reading...
Thousands in Chicago honored civil rights champion' who stepped forward again and again', Obama saidAt the longtime civil rights activist's memorial celebration on Friday, the Rev Jesse Jackson was remembered as a champion" for the poor and the dispossessed" - as well as one of the most effective community and political organizers of our time".Such tributes came from past Democratic US presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Joe Biden, along with former vice-president Kamala Harris, who received cheers and applause while they joined thousands of others in a Chicago church for a celebration of life for Jackson. Continue reading...
Jenny Ware says party is at crisis point' and cannot be competitive at election time unless it selects candidates who better reflect the makeup of Australia
Gillian Morand, 36, died in Bexley, south-east London in 2020 after which allegations against her husband emergedA man has been charged with manslaughter over the death of a woman in 2020, in a rare prosecution of alleged domestic abuse linked to suicide, police have said.Gillian Morand, 36, died in Bexley, south-east London, and an inquest concluded she had taken her own life. Continue reading...
by Alexandra Topping Political correspondent on (#742D5)
James Robinson, husband of Gloria De Piero, says police visited their home with a warrant but he has not been detained or questionedThe husband of former Labour MP Gloria De Piero has confirmed his home was searched on Wednesday as part of a police investigation into an alleged Chinese spying ring.James Robinson, a former aide to the ex-Labour deputy leader Tom Watson, issued a statement confirming the raid on the home he shares with his wife, but said he had not been detained or questioned by police. Continue reading...
by Raphael Boyd at Co-op Live, Manchester on (#7429S)
Styles will perform new album in full at Co-op Live arena show, with tickets being traded for well above 20 face valueMore than 20,000 fans from all over the world flocked towards the Co-op Live arena in Manchester on Friday to watch Harry Styles perform his first concert in two and a half years - some waiting 48 hours for a place down the front.Styles will perform his new album Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally in full, after its release earlier today. Anticipation for the show had been high since tickets went on sale for 20 in early February, which, barring a performance of the album's lead single Aperture at the Brit awards - which took place at the same arena a week earlier - will be Styles' first time on stage since closing out a tour in Italy in July 2023. It has been marketed as a homecoming show for the pop star, who was raised outside the city in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire. Continue reading...
Exclusive: senior party figures share data suggesting Green surge could leave Labour fourth place in capital in MaySenior Labour politicians across London have warned the government not to take progressive voters for granted, with concerns the party faces a political earthquake" in the capital in May after a surge in support for the Greens.They have been privately circulating new data that suggests Labour could drop from first to fourth place in London in the May elections - losing control of all but two of their councils - with the Greens soaring into first place to take nine. Continue reading...
Lord Chadlington introduced government to supplier in which he had financial interest in 2020The Conservative peer Peter Gummer has said he will leave the House of Lords after an investigation found he committed five breaches of standards over Covid PPE deals and failing to cooperate with previous inquiries.The Lords standards commissioner, Martin Jelley, also found that Gummer, whose peerage title is Lord Chadlington, did not act on his personal honour" by failing to cooperate with the previous investigations, which cleared him. Continue reading...
Firm says AI tools are masking identities of false applicants, who then funnel wages from remote IT jobs to North KoreaFake IT workers deployed by North Korea are using AI technology, including voice-changing tools, to trick western companies into hiring them, Microsoft has said.The US tech firm said a signature Pyongyang money-raising ruse is being enhanced by AI, which is helping create fake names and alter stolen IDs to increase the credibility of false applicants for IT and software development jobs. Continue reading...
The European media giant Axel Springer has scuppered the Daily Mail owner. But why did it not bid sooner? And what will Brexit-backing readers think?After three years, a series of failed bids stretching from the US to Abu Dhabi, internal rebellions and even changes in the law, it should be no surprise that the tortured sale of the Telegraph has delivered another spectacular twist with a blockbuster offer from the media giant Axel Springer.It has torpedoed the long-held dreams of the Daily Mail proprietor, Lord Rothermere, to secure the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph and begin the next chapter of his family's love affair with the British press. Continue reading...
by Tom Ambrose (now) and Fran Singh (earlier) on (#741XG)
Reform UK leader told a Save Chagos Boat Party' yesterday he would be raising the issue in his meeting with the presidentA second government charter flight to bring UK nationals back from the Middle East is due to depart Oman this evening, Downing Street has confirmed.Further flights are expected in the coming days and more than 160,000 British nationals have now registered their presence with the Foreign Office in the region.The deputy prime minister is sliding down the slippery slope to full conflict by backing direct UK strikes on military positions in Iran.We need an urgent clarification from number 10 on whether this is a change in Britain's position on involvement in Trump's illegal war.We must not copy Trump's unconstitutional and illegal approach to war in the Middle East. Continue reading...
Ukraine police investigating what foreign ministry calls a hostage' situation involving seven employees of Oschadbank stopped by HungaryIcelandic foreign minister orgerur Katrin Gunnarsdottir submitted a government motion for a referendum on resuming accession talks with the European Union, proposing the vote should take place on 29 August, state broadcaster RUV has reported.The draft resolution will be put to Icelandic parliament for approval next week. Continue reading...
Richard Eaton, who said this week that importers must be paid back, reportedly meeting customs agency lawyersA US judge will reportedly meet government lawyers to agree how to refund up to $175bn in tariffs that were collected illegally from more than 300,000 importers.Judge Richard Eaton of the US court of international trade would hear from lawyers for the customs agency responsible for the repayments on Friday, Reuters reported. The supreme court decided last month that a 1977 law designed to address national emergencies did not provide the legal justification for most of the Trump administration's global tariffs. Continue reading...
by Leyland Cecco in Toronto and Deepa Parent in Paris on (#74248)
Police say Masood Masjoody was most likely murdered; Iranian expats suspect he was killed for his criticism of the theocratic regimePolice in Canada have concluded that a missing Iranian activist was most likely the victim of murder, prompting fears that his disappearance has the hallmarks of a transnational repression campaign targeting critics of Tehran.Masood Masjoody, a mathematician critical of both Iran's theocratic regime and the exiled family of the former shah, went missing in early February in the city of Burnaby, British Columbia. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#7422Y)
Sharaz Ali, 40, sentenced over arson attack in which his ex-partner's sister and her three children diedA man who killed his ex-partner's sister and her three children by setting fire to their house has been sentenced to a whole-life order.Antonia Gawith said she was haunted" because she was the intended target of the arson attack by her former boyfriend, Sharaz Ali. Continue reading...
With voting now closed, the months-long campaign for Oscar glory is over - but industry insiders are still dissecting every award-season clue in a tight best picture raceVoting for the Oscars closed at 5pm PT on Thursday, meaning that the months-long campaigns of the favoured films have hung up their spurs: the red carpets have been rolled up, hospitality pavilions shut down, the PR minders putting their feet up until the Oscars ceremony itself takes place. The prefatory campaign - on-stage Q&As, special-screening paparazzi shoots, the string of lesser awards ceremonies - is over, and there is now nothing for the nominees to do but kick back and count the days.Over the long haul of awards campaigning, which can reasonably be said to start with the near-simultaneous late summer film festivals in Venice, Telluride and Toronto and hits its peak in mid-February as Oscar voting opens, reading the runes has become a full-time activity across the entire film industry, and an absolute obsession for Hollywood insider publications such as Variety, the Hollywood Reporter and Deadline. Every ebb and flow of the process - a critics-awards nomination here, a trade-guild snub there - is endlessly picked over for what it might mean for the end result. Continue reading...
Counter-terrorism police say investigation linked to alleged spying on locations and people linked to Jewish communityArmed police have arrested four men suspected of spying for Iran and allegedly targeting synagogues as well as Jewish individuals in London.Counter-terrorism detectives are investigating why the alleged surveillance of Jewish locations and individuals was being carried out, and whether it was linked to a wish to carry out attacks on British soil. Continue reading...
Officers have decided former minister is not a flight risk, but he remains under investigationPolice have released Peter Mandelson from his bail conditions after deciding he was not a flight risk, the Guardian has learned.Sources say the Metropolitan police have decided to drop the conditions they applied after arresting him on suspicion of misconduct in public office last month, though he remains under investigation. Continue reading...
After years of court action and official complaints, Spain's trademark office rules brand must change its nameA Spanish restaurant chain called The Mafia Sits at the Table may soon have to change its name after the country's patent and trademark office heeded objections from the Italian government and ruled that the brand's nomenclature ran counter to both public order and morality".Italy has pursued its claim against the chain - known in Spanish as La Mafia se sienta a la mesa - through various courts and official bodies over the past few years, alleging that the name trivialises both organised crime and efforts to fight it. Continue reading...
by Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington and Angela G on (#741ZA)
Investigation finds three were hacked by Paragon spyware at same time, potentially fuelling questions for governmentItalian prosecutors investigating a domestic spying scandal say they have independently confirmed that two immigration activists and a journalist were hacked at the same time in late 2024, suggesting all three were part of the same infection campaign".The development could bring more questions for the far-right government of Giorgia Meloni, who has denied any involvement in the hacking of the journalist, the Fanpage editor-in-chief, Francesco Cancellato. Continue reading...
Move is part of scheme to target families for expedited voluntary removals before enforced removal proceedingsChildren may be forcibly removed from the UK in handcuffs to overcome noncompliance" as part of proposals Home Office is considering to send more asylum seeker families back to their home countries.Since coming into office, the government has pledged to deport more migrants and has increased both voluntary and enforced returns, although some of those who have left the UK voluntarily did so without informing the Home Office. Continue reading...
Inquest into fatal shooting of Steve Pampalian told statement by assistant commissioner he was known to police' was incorrectA man shot dead by a NSW police officer after he ran at him with two knives was not known to police, a coroner says, despite a very unfortunate" claim to the contrary made by the assistant commissioner of the force immediately after the incident.Steve Pampalian, 41, was shot three times by a police officer in the driveway of his home on a quiet suburban street in Sydney's North Willoughby on 25 May 2023 after he had a psychotic episode. Continue reading...
Adam Tickell, of University of Birmingham, says money is loaned to people who are not really capable of graduating'A leading vice-chancellor has questioned whether students without A-levels should be eligible for government-backed student loans, as part of an effort to solve England's university funding crisis.Adam Tickell, vice-chancellor of the University of Birmingham, said universities face an almost existential challenge" and falling public support that requires a radical review of higher education funding. Continue reading...
by Patrick Butler Social policy editor on (#741TM)
Head of government-commissioned review says adult social care is held together by sticking plasters and glue'England's creaking" adult social care system is confusing and impenetrable to the people that rely on it and held together with sticking plasters and glue", the head of a government-commissioned review has said in a withering critique.Louise Casey said the country faced a moment of reckoning" over its failure to effectively and fairly meet the needs of Britain's ageing population and rising numbers of people with chronic conditions such as dementia and Alzheimer's. Continue reading...
Iraq emerges as key front in new and often clandestine confrontation after launching dozens of attacksIran-backed militias around the Middle East are intensifying attacks against Israel, the US and their allies, in retaliation for the ongoing joint US-Israeli offensive against Tehran as the war draws in new armed actors, threatening wider chaos and violence.Israel and the US have targeted Iran's network of militant groups, with Iraq emerging as a key front in this new and often clandestine confrontation. Continue reading...
Decision marks end of years-long legal saga for 78-year-old critic of Chinese Communist partyJimmy Lai, the prominent pro-democracy activist who was recently sentenced to 20 years in prison in Hong Kong, has said he will not appeal his conviction.The decision marks the end of a years-long legal saga for the 78-year-old critic of the Chinese Communist party (CCP), and opens the door for political negotiations to his release. Continue reading...
Cause of death of 19-year-old in January was drowning in the setting of multiple injuries, due to, or as a consequence of a dingo attack'Canadian backpacker Piper James died as a result of drowning" following a dingo attack at K'gari, the Queensland coroners court says.The court on Friday said Piper's cause of death had been determined by a forensic pathologist and accepted by the investigating coroner. Continue reading...
by Eva Corlett (now); Lucy Campbell, Kyriakos Petrako on (#740W9)
This liveblog is closed. Follow live coverage of the Middle East crisis hereIran says it has targeted Kurdish groups in Iraq and warned separatist groups" against action in the widening war.Tehran said on Thursday it had hit Iraq-based Kurdish groups opposed to the revolution", as reports said the US was looking to arm Kurdish militias to infiltrate Iran.We will not tolerate them in any way. Continue reading...
Ukrainian president orders equipment and expertise to be provided to US in return to diplomatic support against Russia, saying we help to defend from war those who help us'The United States and its allies in the Middle East are seeking Ukraine's expertise in countering Iran's Shahed drones, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.Various countries, including the US, have approached Ukraine for help in defending against the Iranian drones, Zelenskyy said late on Wednesday. He said he has spoken in recent days to the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait about possible cooperation. Continue reading...
Briton with cancer operated on by doctor located 1,500 miles away using four-armed robot fitted with 3D cameraThe patient was in Gibraltar. The surgeon was in London. The outcome was a remarkable triumph for remote robotic surgery that saved the life of a 62-year-old football fan with prostate cancer.Inside the operating theatre at St Bernard's, the only hospital in the British overseas territory, a hi-tech robot with four arms, and fitted with a 3D camera, removed the prostate of Briton Paul Buxton, who moved to Gibraltar 40 years ago. Continue reading...
Meta CEO, grilled about children's safety, says in taped deposition a user pool of billions will include bad actorsHarms to children, such as sexual exploitation and detriments to mental health, are inevitable on Meta's platforms, the company's CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram leader Adam Mosseri said in taped depositions played at a trial in New Mexico on Tuesday and Wednesday.I just think if you're serving billions of people, the unfortunate reality is that some very small percent of them are going to be criminals, and we should work as hard as we can to stop that activity from happening," said Zuckerberg. I don't think that the standard for our platforms would be that you should assume that it will ever be perfect." Continue reading...
World news | The Guardian