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His resignation comes after four Welsh ministers stepped down from their posts in an apparently calculated move to force his handThe JD Vance comment about Britain supposedly becoming an Islamist country under Labour (see 8.42am) is an example of the extreme political rhetoric that has coarsened politics on both sides of the Atlantic in recent years. Yesterday Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, announced that she will chair a meeting of the Defending Democracy taskforce to consider how election candidates are being exposed to more aggression and intimidation than in the past.This morning Brendan Cox, whose wife, the Labour MP Jo Cox, was murdered by a far-right terrorist during the Brexit referendum in 2016, told the Today programme that he thought the problem was getting worse. He said:There was a wide range of intimidation, but I do think it was another level.Having spoken to lots of MPs about it, there was a sense that something had changed, that they felt hunted, that they felt unable to go about campaigning - that there were men in balaclavas, there were fireworks being thrown, there were tyres being slashed ... Continue reading...

Exclusive: Pouria Zeraati no longer felt safe in UK' as Tehran regime steps up threats and attacks on critics in exileAn Iranian television presenter, who was attacked in London by men believed to be acting for the Tehran regime, has fled to Israel saying that he no longer felt safe in the UK.Pouria Zeraati said the UK's approach to the threat posed by Iran on British soil could not guarantee his safety. Continue reading...

Vance described Trump as cultural heroin' in 2016 before pivoting to endorse the false narrative that the 2020 election was stolenJD Vance has gone on a long journey from being a fervent critic of Donald Trump to his running mate and possible future US vice-president.The author of Hillbilly Elegy, a memoir of his upbringing among the left-behind white working class of Ohio, was viewed as having a unique insight into the Trump voter base after the 2016 election. The book described the future president as cultural heroin" and someone leading the white working class to a very dark place". Continue reading...

Controversies overshadowed first minister's brief time at helm but some fear party's woes in Wales may run deeper than one manWhen Vaughan Gething was elected Labour leader in Wales not four months ago, making him the first black head government in Europe, it was hailed as a historic moment. But his brief time at the helm of the devolved Welsh government has been overshadowed by controversy.In his resignation statement, Gething said he had hoped the summer would have provided a period of reflection, rebuilding and renewal" under his leadership, but when four ministers quit his team on Tuesday, he recognised that this would not be possible. Continue reading...

The US secretary of state reportedly told senior Israeli leaders they must do more to reduce civilian casualtiesAt least eight Palestinians were killed and several were wounded in an Israeli air strike on a school in central Gaza on Tuesday, Gaza health officials said.The strike hit Al-Awda school in Al-Nuseirat camp, the ministry said. Continue reading...

Revenues from technology arm, which sells robots to retailers, climbed by nearly 22% in six months to JuneShares in Ocado jumped by as much as 18% after the UK online grocer reported narrowing losses and raised its annual guidance for its technology arm, which sells warehouse robots to other retailers around the world.Technology revenues climbed by nearly 22% year on year in the six months to 2 June, while retail revenues were also up by 11%. Ocado sells groceries in the UK through its joint venture with Marks & Spencer and was the fastest-growing grocer for the fifth month in a row based on recent sales figures, according to the data analytics company Kantar. Continue reading...

AfD-supporting publication has fed racist and far-right nationalist conspiracy theoriesThe German government has banned the rightwing extremist magazine Compact, accusing it of whipping up unspeakable" hatred of Jews, Muslims and foreigners while undermining the country's constitutional democracy.In what she called a hard blow" against the far right, the interior minister, Nancy Faeser, ordered dawn raids in four German states at properties linked to the publication, which is ideologically close to the Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) party and promotes its drive for power. Continue reading...

Residents in High Lane have already fought one battle against new homes. But some welcome grey belt' proposalsHigh Lane, a village on the outskirts of Stockport, is an attractive place to live - close to plenty of green space with the beauty of the Peak District on the doorstep, but with the prospering city of Manchester within easy reach. An ideal place, some might say, to build some of the Labour government's promised 1.5m new houses.But in 2020 Stockport council voted against the proposed Greater Manchester spatial planning framework put forward by Andy Burnham's Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). The rebellion came from Conservative and Liberal Democrat councillors objecting to green belt development in High Lane and elsewhere in the borough. Continue reading...

Coalition of progressive groups wave Palestinian flags and anti-Trump banners on protest in downtown MilwaukeeAs the Republican national convention kicked off in Milwaukee on Monday, about a thousand people led a spirited demonstration against Donald Trump and his party on the streets outside.The March on the RNC gathered in a park a couple of blocks from the Fiserv Forum, where Trump was formally nominated at the Republican candidate for president. Continue reading...

President to unveil rent control plan for larger landlords that would restrict increases to 5%, or risk losing tax breaksPresident Joe Biden wants to curb rent increases by penalizing landlords who hike rents beyond 5% each year, but he needs the help of Congress to put the plan into action.The Biden administration will announce the idea in Nevada on Tuesday along with a host of other housing-related policies, including an influx of funds to add more housing in Nevada and elsewhere and a plan to use public federal lands for affordable housing near Las Vegas. Continue reading...

Supreme court justice Gregory Geason has pleaded not guilty to emotional abuse or intimidation and common assault

Maurice Hawell, his brother Marius Hawell and Andrew David were convicted after the February 2022 incidents involving three teenage women

SES receives more than 300 calls as strong winds and rain felled trees, damaged dwellings, and flooded low-lying areas and river catchments

Australian senator Ralph Babet demands the duo, Hollywood star Jack Black and musician Kyle Gass, be deported over the latter's comment

Marco Yandle, 20, admitted covering up alleged shooting of Steven Murphy by his father Keith Yandle, who has pleaded not guilty to murder

Authorities say attempts to clear NHS backlogs sucking up scant funds at expense of preventive careVulnerable people face being denied basic preventive social care at home due to a wave of rapid discharges from hospitals that is sucking up resources, council bosses have warned.Despite cross-party support for more early care at home, town hall officials are having to allocate resources to people with more complex needs, many discharged from hospital early as part of attempts to clear NHS backlogs. Continue reading...

Conservatives had announced end of vocational qualification introduced in 2020, while Labour plans to review itGordon Brown has called on the new government to retain the Conservatives' technical qualifications, which Rishi Sunak had promised to ditch.In a foreword to a report, Brown argues that T-levels are one of the few genuinely successful new ideas and initiatives of the last decade" and that scrapping them would be calamitous and costly". Labour previously said it would review them after taking office. Continue reading...

Former NSW Liberal minister calls on renewables sector to put your mouth where your money is' in first speech as incoming Climate Change Authority chair

Party's advances in Northern Ireland contrast with slump in Ireland, while new Labour government is keen to bury issueSinn Fein has completed a historic hat-trick for Irish nationalism by becoming Northern Ireland's biggest party in local government, the Stormont assembly and Westminster.On 4 July it increased its majorities in several constituencies and whittled those of opponents, teeing up potential gains in the next general election. Meanwhile, the party's vice-president, Michelle O'Neill, has made history as the first nationalist first minister. Continue reading...

British Red Cross says thousands have been at risk and calls for improved safeguarding and resettlement schemesThousands of Ukrainian refugees who fled to the UK seeking sanctuary after Russia's invasion have been placed at risk of homelessness and exploitation in the UK, according to the British Red Cross.A report by the humanitarian organisation found that while overall the UK government's schemes provided a lifeline to families seeking sanctuary, some Ukrainians faced weaknesses in safeguarding procedures and a lack of sufficient training and ongoing support for hosts. Continue reading...

Sector says too many people dying in avoidable pain', with soaring numbers being pushed back into the NHSOne in five hospices in the UK are cutting services amid the worst funding crisis in two decades, a report has warned, with soaring numbers of patients being pushed back into the NHS.Research by Hospice UK found small and wildly varying" state funding had failed to keep pace with growing demand and rising running costs. Continue reading...

New business secretary set to tell international counterparts at G7 meeting Britain is back on world stage'Britain is taking its first steps towards forging closer trading links with the EU in meetings between the new business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, and international counterparts in Italy.In his first overseas visit since Labour's election landslide, Reynolds will tell a G7 meeting of trade ministers in the Italian city of Reggio Calabria that the new UK government wants to foster a closer, more mature relationship with our friends in the EU". Continue reading...

The island networks of Vava'u and Haapai were cut more than two weeks ago following damage to the undersea cableParts of Tonga have been without internet for more than two weeks after an undersea cable was damaged in an earthquake, leaving a third of the country's population in the dark and causing chaos for local businesses.The crisis has been further compounded after the government ordered the Starlink internet satellite company to cease operations in Tonga until it was granted a licence. Continue reading...

Journalist whose book about Iraqi soldiers was adapted into acclaimed HBO series killed himself on FridayEvan Wright, the award-winning journalist who wrote about US subcultures in the book Generation Kill, which he helped adapt into the HBO miniseries of the same name, has died aged 59.Wright died by suicide on Friday at a home in Los Angeles, a report by the Los Angeles County medical examiner said. Continue reading...

Elizabeth Warren calls Vance faux populist while party says he will take women back decades' on abortion

Alleged shooter was member of local gun club and used legally purchased firearm, leaving community reeling'FBI agents went house to house scouring the Bethel Park neighborhood lived in by Thomas Matthew Crooks and his family as mystery continued to surround the motives of the gunman who tried to assassinate Donald Trump while he was addressing a crowd in nearby Butler, Pennsylvania.The FBI said it had managed to access Crooks's phone but preliminary analysis of the information at the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia, had reportedly not advanced the search into Crooks's reasons for shooting at Trump, injuring the former US president, killing a rally-goer and wounding two more. Continue reading...

Stock market indices also rise as chances of Trump victory in November election are perceived to grow

Victim died in kidnap-for-ransom in Hertfordshire 54 years ago after being mistaken for then-wife of Rupert MurdochPolice have begun a new search for the remains of Muriel McKay, who was murdered in a kidnap-for-ransom case more than 54 years ago.Nizamodeen Hosein and his brother, Arthur, mistook McKay, 55, for Anna Murdoch, the then-wife of the newspaper magnate Rupert Murdoch, when they kidnapped her in 1969. The pair held McKay at a farm in Hertfordshire and demanded a 1m ransom. Continue reading...

Move follows pro-Russian prime minister Viktor Orban holding rogue meetings with foreign leaders about UkraineTop EU officials will boycott informal meetings hosted by Hungary while the country has the EU's rotating presidency, after Hungary's pro-Russian prime minister Viktor Orban held a series of rogue meetings with foreign leaders about Ukraine that angered European partners.The highly unusual decision to have the European Commission president and other top officials of the body boycott the meetings was made in light of recent developments marking the start of the Hungarian (EU) presidency", commission spokesperson Eric Mamer posted on Monday on X. Continue reading...

Once an outspoken Trump critic, the senator believes the former US president is the best president' of his lifetime'

Another schoolmate tells Inquirer the suspect wasn't harshly bullied', while 20-year-old's motive remains unclearAs mystery continues surrounding the possible motivations of the 20-year-old Pennsylvania man accused of trying to kill Donald Trump at a campaign rally, one former classmate of his has come forward to describe him as being definitely conservative" while they were in school together.It makes me wonder why he would carry out an assassination attempt on the conservative candidate," Max R Smith told the Philadelphia Inquirer of the shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks. Continue reading...

Ministers will meet to address what home secretary calls an alarming rise in intimidation of politiciansAn alarming rise in candidate intimidation during the UK's general election campaign will be addressed next week at a meeting of ministers and civil servants, the home secretary has said.Yvette Cooper said there had been disgraceful scenes" in some areas in the run-up to the 4 July vote, as she announced she would chair a meeting of the defending democracy taskforce. Continue reading...

Far-right Florida congressman is asked by critic: Are you admitting to a quid pro quo?''The far-right Florida Republican Matt Gaetz has hailed Aileen Cannon - the judge who dismissed the classified documents case against Donald Trump - as a future supreme court justice".Future supreme court justice Cannon," Gaetz posted Monday to social media, with a picture of the Florida jurist. Continue reading...

Health secretary understood to be minded' to make ban permanent as Labour MPs criticise move to retain Tory policyWes Streeting is expected to tell MPs his reasons for supporting a ban on puberty blockers being prescribed to children for gender-based reasons, amid discontent in his own party.After growing criticism among some Labour MPs, the health secretary used social media to defend his backing of an emergency ban on the drugs' use, imposed by his Conservative predecessor Victoria Atkins, which is being challenged in the high court. Continue reading...

Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah is suing three government departments over Ella's fatal asthma attackThe mother of a nine-year-old girl who became the first person in the UK to have air pollution cited on their death certificate has said she wants an official apology for her daughter's suffering as her high court claim against the government heads to trial.Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah is suing three government departments for compensation for personal injury arising from the illness and premature death of her daughter Ella, who had a fatal asthma attack in 2013 after being exposed to excessive air pollution. Continue reading...

Gabriel Natale-Hjorth, given life over killing of a police officer, to be detained at his grandmother's homeAn American tourist convicted and jailed over the murder of a police officer in Rome has been moved to house arrest, in a decision that left the victim's widow totally shocked", her lawyer said.Gabriel Christian Natale-Hjorth and his friend Finnegan Lee Elder were given life sentences for the 2019 murder of Carabinieri police officer Mario Cerciello Rega, 35, who was stabbed to death after a botched drug deal. Continue reading...

Republicans, however, were eager to see judge Aileen Cannon end the illegal' pursuit of the former US presidentFrom breathtakingly misguided" to unthinkable", and her audition for a seat on the US supreme court", judge Aileen Cannon's ruling to dismiss Donald Trump's classified documents case on Monday drew a range of outrage and surprise from Democrats and law experts.Republicans, by contrast, were almost delirious with joy, celebrating what they saw as the end of special prosecutor Jack Smith's illegal" pursuit of the former US president, and an opportunity for Trump himself to continue to roll out his new message of unity" that followed Saturday's assassination attempt. Continue reading...

Oscar-winning singer chooses book by Oliver Jeffers that highlights importance of protecting natureBillie Eilish has become the latest star to read a CBeebies bedtime story, having chosen a book that teaches children about interacting with nature.The Oscar-winning singer of What Was I Made For? and Birds of a Feather read This Moose Belongs to Me by the author and illustrator Oliver Jeffers. Continue reading...

CQC got things wrong' implementing inspection regime and new computer system, interim chief admitsEngland's healthcare regulator has issued a public apology over reforms to its monitoring of tens of thousands of hospitals, care homes, dentists and GPs.The apology from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) came in the wake of care organisations complaining of a hostile" inspection regime and a major new computer system failing to work properly. Continue reading...

MPs approve cull of 481 bears this year, up from 220 last year, to control overpopulation' of protected speciesRomania's parliament has approved the culling of almost 500 bears this year in an effort to control the overpopulation" of the protected species after a deadly attack on a hiker sparked nationwide outcry.The country is home to 8,000 brown bears, according to the environment ministry, Europe's largest brown bear population outside Russia. Continue reading...

TV attack ads and $50m advertising blitz are suspended as US president pleas to lower the temperature in our politics'

Home secretary to host meeting of government's Defending Democracy taskforce after reported rise in harassment during election campaignMore in Common, the group that campaigns to reduce polarisation in politics, published a good slideshow presentation last week, based on polling it carried out, giving an analysis of the general election results. It has followed that up today with the publication of a 129-page report on the election, based on the same polling and on what it learned from focus groups.One of the main interesting points it makes is that the government will be judged, above all, on whether it can bring down NHS waiting lists and the cost of living, polling suggests. The report says:How does the public plan to judge the government on its delivery of change and what benchmarks will they use to evaluate progress?First and foremost, the public will look to NHS waiting lists and the cost of living to judge Labour's success or failure. These are top performance indicators for every segment, with the elderly tending to be more concerned than average about waiting lists and younger generations more so about the cost of living. As inflation falls and interest rates seem set for a summer cut, waiting lists are arguably the new government's key challenge in maintaining public support. Continue reading...

Campaigners applaud decision not to repeal law in west African country with one of the highest rates of FGMMPs in the Gambia voted on Monday to retain a law outlawing female genital mutilation (FGM), sparking joy and relief among campaigners.Thirty-four out of 53 lawmakers voted to maintain the ban, which was introduced in 2015, aid workers told the Guardian. The remainder voted to repeal it. Continue reading...

Moscow-born writer and prominent critic of Putin was charged with spreading false information about the militaryUS journalist and author Masha Gessen has been convicted in absentia by a Moscow court on charges of spreading false information about the military and was sentenced to eight years in prison.The Moscow-born Gessen, a staff writer for the New Yorker and a columnist for the New York Times who lives in the US, is a prominent critic of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and an award-winning writer. Continue reading...

Deir Al-Balah, in central Gaza Strip, says it can no longer provide drinking water after running out of fuel

Heat advisories are in place from Texas to New York as major east coast cities under air quality alertsMillions of Americans are bracing themselves for dangerous temperatures at the start of the working week as a heat dome blankets the midwest and eastern United States.Heat advisories are in place in Kansas and Texas all the way to New York and South Carolina, as the area of high pressure that caused misery in the west last week slowly makes its way across the country. Continue reading...

Police files document that a former partner was found to have died from a gunshot wound on his property, court has heard

Latest high court battle against approval of road tunnel under the world heritage site began on MondayMinisters were inadequately briefed" by officials on alternative schemes before approving a road tunnel under Stonehenge for a second time, lawyers for campaigners have argued in the high court, in the latest legal attempt to stop the controversial scheme.Campaigners argue that the proposed two-mile (3.3km) road tunnel, part of a new eight-mile (13km) dual carriageway for the A303 road, would destroy a large area of the heritage site around Stonehenge - including ancient monuments and listed buildings - as well as costing at least 2.5bn and increasing emissions. Continue reading...

Kallas has been nominated to serve as the EU's next high representative for foreign affairs, succeeding Josep BorrellRussian-American journalist Masha Gessen was sentenced in absentia to eight years jail by a Moscow court today, AFP reported.The court sentenced Gessen for knowingly spreading false information about the use of the Russian army." Continue reading...

Spanish police say rescuers have found remains in Masca area where British teenager disappeared in JuneRescue teams on the Spanish island of Tenerife have discovered the body of a young man in the area where the British teenager Jay Slater disappeared.In a statement, Spain's national police force, the Guardia Civil, said rescuers had found remains. Continue reading...