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Tory leader tells Sun that there won't be council tie-ups as Farage's party is not serious' as votes under way in England, Wales and ScotlandAnd here is the eve-of-poll statement that Rhun ap Iorwerth, the Plaid Cymru leader, issued yesterday.Service is a value which has always sustained Wales. It's a value instilled in me from a young age by my parents, both teachers. It's a value I've sought to pass on to my children - the gift of giving back to the people and places who gave us so much.Tomorrow is a chance for the people of Wales to choose who serves our nation for the next four years. It's Plaid Cymru's deep sense of service to Wales - focusing just on our needs and our future - that first drew me to politics.Today is Scotland's opportunity to choose a better future by voting SNP for real action on the cost of living, to lock Nigel Farage out of power, and to secure a fresh start with independence.

US secretary of state speaks with Leo and officials after tensions following attacks by Trump over Iran warThe Vatican has said it raised the need to work tirelessly in favour of peace" in talks with the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, who is in Rome on a trip widely regarded as an effort to ease tensions after Donald Trump's repeated criticisms of Pope Leo.Amid unprecedented strain on relations between the Holy See and Washington, Rubio was received by the pope on Thursday at the Apostolic Palace, before holding a series of meetings with Vatican officials Continue reading...

Musician whose real name is Bill Kahan Kapri is charged with trafficking MDMA after incident last NovemberKodak Black, the Florida-based rapper, was scheduled to appear in court in Orlando on Thursday on a felony drug charge stemming from an incident last year in which gunshots were allegedly fired near a children's educational building.The musician, who has a long history of arrests and was sentenced to a three-year prison term on a firearms charge in 2019 before being pardoned by Donald Trump, turned himself in to the Orange county jail on Wednesday, multiple media reports said. Continue reading...

Comments with optimistic tone went viral on social media, with some calling it an unofficial start of his 2028 campaignMarco Rubio, the top US diplomat, has stoked speculation about a potential run for president in 2028 by releasing a campaign-style video that articulates a hopeful vision of America.The minute-long vertical video features images of Rubio, Donald Trump, jets flying over the White House, Americans of different races, former US president Ronald Reagan, and the Stars and Stripes being hoisted against a blue sky. Continue reading...

Republican senator for Maine, facing tough re-election battle, says she has had benign essential tremor for decades

Report using research from senior Blair and Clinton pollster comes as Labour braces for dismal election results

Crowds were invited to stand in silent solidarity with the family of the Warlpiri girl who was allegedly murdered in Alice Springs last week

CEO of Danish shipping group says increased costs due to higher fuel bills passed on to customers

In an exclusive interview from prison, Sadia Moalim Ali, a 27-year-old rickshaw driver, tells of her treatment after being arrested for demonstrating against the governmentA woman being held in prison in Somalia for taking part in peaceful protests has described how she was tortured by her guards.Sadia Moalim Ali, 27, told the Guardian she was stripped naked by two male guards in a room monitored by CCTV, kicked, beaten with a baton and left for two days in a small cell without food. Continue reading...

People gathered at dusk under the fig tree canopy of Sydney's Hyde Park to pay tribute to the 32-year-old who died nearby and laid undiscovered for up to a week

Pair left MV Hondius before outbreak was detected and are not reporting symptoms, according to UK Health Security AgencyTwo people who were onboard a cruise ship hit with a deadly outbreak of hantavirus have returned to the UK and are self-isolating, British health officials have said.Neither of the two British people, who left MV Hondius at St Helena in late April, are reporting symptoms, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKSA). Continue reading...

Jason Atherton, who has restaurants in Dubai, St Moritz and now Tuscany, says it's tough to stay afloat in UK hospitality industryA British Michelin-starred chef says he is opening restaurants abroad to subsidise his UK venues against a backdrop of high taxes and a struggling hospitality sector.Jason Atherton is now in Forte dei Marmi, on the Tuscan coast in Italy, where he is preparing his newest opening, Maria's, which will be in the Principessa hotel. The Sheffield-born chef now has restaurants all over the world, including in Dubai and St Moritz. Continue reading...

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Local beekeeper Mitch McLennan says hive thefts have become quite commonplace' due to rise of parasitic varroa mites

IOPC has launched investigation into one serving and four former police officers for potential misconductA serving Metropolitan police officer and four former officers are being investigated over their handling of allegations of sexual abuse made against Mohamed Al Fayed, according to reports.The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has launched an investigation into the five individuals for potential misconduct following complaints against the former Harrods owner, who died in 2023 aged 94. Continue reading...

Albanese government announces east coast gas reservation policy, which will require producers to set aside 20% of export volumes

Victorian and federal Labor governments greenlight Otway basin drilling project with potential to supply one-third of state's gas

Local, mayoral and parliamentary contests could upend political landscape as Reform, Greens and Lib Dems surgePolling has opened across England, Scotland and Wales in a series of local, mayoral and parliamentary contests - the biggest electoral test Keir Starmer and the Labour government have faced since the 2024 general election.As millions of people across Great Britain go to the polls on Thursday, party leaders are poised for a set of results that could fundamentally change the political landscape nationally in Scotland and Wales, and across local authorities in England. Continue reading...

Partnership between top startup DeepL and Amazon comes amid concern about Silicon Valley's monopoly over digital infrastructureAI companies in Europe risk losing their world-leading status in the field of machine translation, industry figures have said, after the decision by one of the continent's leading startups to partner with Amazon's cloud computing division provoked alarm.While businesses in the EU have generally lagged behind the US and China in AI adoption, a small group of European companies have cornered the global market for high-quality machine translations for professional use. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Taped conversations also cover playwright's relationship with fame, self-doubt and communismHe was one of the greatest playwrights of the 20th century and she was one of the greatest actors. In newly unearthed recordings made over a period of nearly three decades, Arthur Miller opened up about his short-lived marriage to Marilyn Monroe, saying she wanted a husband who was a father, lover, friend and agent," and the child she longed for would have been an additional problem".In taped conversations with his friend and biographer Prof Christopher Bigsby, Miller said he had felt death was always on her [Monroe's] shoulder - always". He had believed that if he did not take care of her life" she would come to a catastrophic end". Continue reading...

Davis, 32, arrested on Wednesday and charged with inciting hatred and causing fear. Arrest comes after police criticised at royal commission into antisemitism

Julie, once a circus elephant, and Kariba, from a Belgian zoo, are to be moved to a former ranch in PortugalEurope's first large-scale elephant sanctuary, which is opening to offer a more natural environment for some of the 600 animals still held in captivity across the continent, is to receive its first arrivals.Julie, Portugal's last circus elephant, will be moved next month to the animal charity Pangea's multimillion pound sanctuary in the Alentejo, 200km (124 miles) east of Lisbon, close to the border with Spain. Continue reading...

Cap of 20mph in towns and cities and 60mph on motorways would cut fuel demand and combat rising prices, IPPR saysBritain should lower speed limits for drivers as part of a package of measures to reduce the impact of the Iran war on consumers, a thinktank has said.Capping legal speeds at 20mph in towns and cities and 60mph on motorways would help reduce fuel demand and combat soaring oil prices triggered by conflict, according to the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR). Continue reading...

Al Nahyans' control over farmland in Europe has meant they receive proportion of payments to farmsThe United Arab Emirates' ruling royal family is benefiting from tens of millions in EU subsidies to grow crops destined for the Gulf, it can be revealed.A cross-border investigation by DeSmog and shared with the Guardian found subsidiaries controlled by the Al Nahyans collected more than 71m (61m) in six years for farmland it controls in Romania, Italy and Spain. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Voters remain split on issues critical to EU, such as support for Ukraine and dependence on Russian energyMore than three-quarters of Hungarians who voted for Peter Magyar in last month's election want his government to do more to address the climate crisis, and more than 70% want him to protect LGBTQ+ rights, a poll has found.Magyar's opposition Tisza party won a supermajority in the vote, bringing an end to Viktor Orban's 16 years in power. The new prime minister will be sworn in on Saturday, weeks after the results set off celebrations in Budapest and Brussels. Continue reading...

Authorities investigate Florent Montaclair over award given to himself and others including Noam ChomskyAt a ceremony at the French national assembly attended by Nobel prize winners, former government ministers, MPs, decorated scientists and academics, all attention was on a previously unknown literature professor.Florent Montaclair, then 46, a balding, bespectacled figure in an ill-fitting suit and rose-coloured shirt, was receiving the 2016 Gold Medal of Philology - the study of linguistics - from an international society of the same name. Continue reading...

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Ex-TV star launches viral video a day before debate with mayor Karen Bass and city council member Nithya RamanLos Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt reposted a scathing AI-generated ad on X on Tuesday, which cast the city as a bleak hellscape under its current leadership.In the viral video, created by film-maker Charlie Curran, flames engulf the Hollywood sign; a socialist militia patrols the streets; and California's political brass, including governor Gavin Newsom, mayor Karen Bass and former vice-president Kamala Harris, are depicted as royal bourgeois who care little for their subjects' plights. Continue reading...

Argentina, where the MV Hondius cruise departed, consistently ranked by WHO as having highest incidence of hantavirus in regionOfficials and experts in Argentina are scrambling to determine if their country is the source of a deadly hantavirus outbreak that has gripped an Atlantic cruise ship, amid reports that a number of passengers have already returned to their home countries.Argentina, where the cruise to Antarctica departed, is consistently ranked by the World Health Organization (WHO) as having the highest incidence of the rare, rodent-borne disease in Latin America. Investigators there are working to contact trace the source of contamination. Continue reading...

The 16-page report was led by Trump-ally Sebastian Gorka, and places drug cartels in the Americas at the centre of counter-terrorism effortsThe Trump administration has accused Europe of being an incubator" for terrorism fuelled by mass migration, in a new counter-terrorism strategy unveiled on Wednesday.The strategy also focuses on rooting out violent left-wing extremists" including radically pro-transgender" groups, as Trump's conservative administration steps up its political attacks on opponents. Continue reading...

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Four women and nine children expected to return to Australia on Thursday with all apart from a mother and her child expected to go to Victoria

Clinical consensus statement' also urges heart doctors to advise patients to not eat late at night, and chew slowlyWant to reduce your intake of ultra-processed food? If so, cook at home more often, don't eat late at night and chew your food more slowly.Those are among some of the tips doctors have offered to help people limit the amount of UPF they consume given the acute and growing danger it poses to human health worldwide. Continue reading...

Michael Marx was shot by authorities multiple times and then taken to a hospital after bystander was woundedA man accused of firing a gun at law enforcement officers near the Washington monument this week was walking along the path of JD Vance's motorcade before the shooting and made a vulgar remark about the White House after the confrontation, according to a court filing on Wednesday.Michael Marx, 45, of Midland, Texas, was shot multiple times during Monday's confrontation and was in the back of an ambulance on his way to a hospital when he said: F-k the White House' and Kill me, kill me, kill me'", a Secret Service agent said in an affidavit. Continue reading...

University of California at Los Angeles says admissions are based on merit' and it complies with state and federal lawsThe US Department of Justice found on Wednesday that the medical school at the University of California, Los Angeles illegally considered race in admissions as the Trump administration ramps up scrutiny of colleges' processes for selecting students.The finding escalates the Trump administration's ongoing standoff with UCLA, which has focused mostly on the main campus's response to allegations of antisemitic harassment. Continue reading...

British guide Martin Anstee, 56, among those evacuated from MV Hondius, which is now heading for Canary Islands

Democrats sharply criticize the US commerce secretary's testimony, saying he was dishonest' and should resignThe US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, appeared before the House oversight and reform committee on Wednesday to answer questions over his past ties to Jeffrey Epstein.Lutnick agreed in March to sit for a transcribed interview with the committee after the justice department's release of millions of documents related to Epstein, which included documents showing that Lutnick continued correspondence with Epstein after the disgraced financier had been convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor. The session is part of the committee's broader investigation into Epstein. Continue reading...

Powerful property and farming firm Grosvenor Group says knock-on effect of Iran war could arrive next yearFertiliser shortages caused by the Iran war have driven up costs for UK farmers by up to 70% and will have a dramatic" impact on food prices globally next year, according to one of Britain's most powerful property and farming companies.Mark Preston, executive trustee of the 349-year-old Grosvenor Group, controlled by the Duke of Westminster, said fertiliser was already quite expensive" before the 50% to 70% surge in prices since the start of the Iran war in late February. Continue reading...

Shabana Mahmood has announced plan to cut leave to remain from five years to 30 months, to concern of UN refugee agencyTwo Sudanese asylum seekers are challenging a central element of Labour's plans to strip refugees of basic rights, rejecting the home secretary's accusation that they are asylum shoppers".Shabana Mahmood has announced plans to halve refugees' leave to remain in the UK, from five years to 30 months. Previously, people could apply for permanent settlement after five years but now refugees will have to wait 20 years before being eligible. Continue reading...

With gas more than $6 in state, delivery of about 2m barrels is last planned shipment to pass through strait of Hormuz

After two years in parliament, the Reform UK leader has brought in 2m on top of his Commons salary

Reform UK leader has registered wide range of financial interests on top of his Commons salary since July 2024

Video shows looksmaxxing' influencer shooting an apparently already dead alligator in the EvergladesA controversial social media influencer known as Clavicular is facing charges in connection with a live stream showing him shooting an apparently already dead alligator in the Everglades, local Florida media has reported.Clavicular, whose real name is Braden Eric Peters and is known for the practice of looksmaxxing", faces charges of unlawfully discharging a firearm in a public place or residential property, according to legal files obtained by television station ABC6 in South Florida. The charges stem from his alleged actions in a 26 March live stream. Continue reading...

Utz issues voluntary recall for certain varieties of Zapp's and Dirty potato chips over contamination linked to seasoning

Suit says director used Q'orianka Kilcher's features without permission after seeing her in advert for The New World

Though Trump's popularity has dwindled, staying loyal to him seems to still be a winning strategy among the GOP

Sarah Schloegl was unable to board flight home from Spain as 11-month-old lacked documents needed under new rulesA British woman from Aberdeen has been stranded abroad after her 11-month-old baby was prevented from boarding a flight because of new rules regarding dual nationals.Sarah Schloegl was unable to board a Ryanair flight from Alicante last week after she went to Spain for a short break with her Austrian husband, Philipp, their three-year-old daughter and 11-month-old baby. Continue reading...

Approval for exploration in 70 new areas prompts fierce backlash from fossil fuel opponentsThe Norwegian government has been heavily criticised for approving plans to reopen three North Sea gasfields nearly three decades after they were closed to help fill the gap in energy supplies created by the Middle East war.Amid sharp price rises in oil and gas since the US and Israel's attack on Iran in February, Oslo has also given its approval for oil and gas companies to explore in 70 new locations in the North Sea, Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea. Continue reading...

Finding would explain why type of stroke affecting about 35,000 a year in UK is not as responsive to some medicationThe cause of a type of stroke that affects about 35,000 people across the UK each year has been uncovered by researchers and may explain why some medications are ineffective as treatment.Lacunar strokes, which account for a quarter of all strokes in the UK, had been linked to the blockage of arteries in the brain by fatty deposits. However, a study published on Wednesday suggests they are not caused by blocked arteries but by the enlargement and widening of arteries in the brain. Continue reading...

Researchers found that TikTok's For You pages prioritized pro-Republican content in New York, Texas and GeorgiaA study published Wednesday in the journal Nature finds that TikTok's algorithm systematically prioritized pro-Republican content in three states leading up to the 2024 US elections.Researchers created hundreds of dummy accounts and conditioned them to mimic real users' behavior by watching a set of videos either aligned with the US Democratic or Republican parties. Then, they tracked the videos TikTok recommended on these accounts' For You pages, TikTok's main feed. Continue reading...