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Users of the salary advance service marketed by their employers say it was all too easy to slip into debt

Critics concerned as Wagestream offers loans of up to 25,000 to workers at Pizza Express, Asda and others

It is understood an investigation will look at whether Paul Bean of Durham council breached civil service codeA local councillor for Reform UK who works for the Home Office processing asylum and immigration claims has been suspended from his job while an investigation is carried out, the Guardian has learned.Paul Bean, who serves as a councillor for Crook ward at Durham county council, declared his day job as a civil servant at the Home Office in his register of interests. Continue reading...

An agreement relating to the NZYQ cohort, who previously faced indefinite immigration detention, was signed by home affairs minister Tony Burke on Friday

As a new academic year begins providers say national insurance rises and food price inflation has forced up pricesParents across England are facing higher prices for school lunches as the new school year begins, with caterers blaming the government's national insurance increase alongside rising food and energy costs.Lunch providers say increases in staffing costs, including employer national insurance contributions announced by the chancellor last year, have added significant extra pressure" to their budgets. Continue reading...

Organiser of petition says French president ignoring expert advice that artefact too fragile to be transported to UKThe Bayeux tapestry is so fragile that transporting it risks irreparable damage, French experts have said, as a petition urging Emmanuel Macron to reverse a catastrophic" decision to loan the unique embroidery to Britain passed 60,000 signatures.France's president declared in July that the nearly 1,000-year-old, 70-metre-long wool-on-linen artwork, which depicts William the Conqueror's victory over King Harold II of England at Hastings in 1066, would cross the Channel next year. Continue reading...

Analysts say Putin and Xi will aim to align positions during Russian leader's unusually long stayVladimir Putin will travel to China this weekend for what the Kremlin has called a truly unprecedented" visit to his most important ally, which comes at a crunch moment in talks over Ukraine.During the trip, which is expected to stretch to close to a week - unusually long for the Russian leader - he will attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, hold talks with Xi Jinping, and take in Beijing's Victory Day military parade marking 80 years since Japan's defeat in the second world war, where Putin is due to be the star guest alongside North Korea's Kim Jong-un and leaders of Iran and Cuba. Continue reading...

MHRA is cracking down on unlicensed anti-wrinkle products after spate of botulism cases in EnglandSellers of fake Botox jabs could be jailed for up to two years, the UK's medicine watchdog has warned, as it increases efforts to track down those flouting the law.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) says it is cracking down on the trade of unlicensed botulinum toxin products after a spate of botulism cases across England thought to be linked to them. Continue reading...

The 56-year-old made a series of threats against police and had a long history of minor offences, culminating in the loss of his driver's licence in 2022

County court judge found physical and psychological injuries from the accident caused complete destruction of her capacity for any form of meaningful remunerative work'

Home Office and Bell hotel owner challenged injunction granted to council that would have stopped dozens of asylum seekers being housed thereUK bank shares tumbled on Friday, cutting the stock market value of the sector by almost 8bn in morning trading, as fresh calls for a windfall tax on large lenders in the autumn budget spooked investors.Calls for a tax grab, in a paper written by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) thinktank, took a toll on some of the UK's biggest high street banks. NatWest Group suffered the biggest drop on Friday morning, registering a decline of as much as 5% in its share price, while Lloyds Banking Group and Barclays followed close behind, falling 4.5% and 3.6% respectively. HSBC dropped more than 1%. Continue reading...

Malcolm Kenyatta is on a 105-mile march to highlight drastic cuts to the stat's regional public transport servicesThe best part of this is I get to eat as many carbs as possible," jokes Malcolm Kenyatta, who has lost 100lbs over the past two years. I had a bagel already, I'm eating snacks, I'm having a good time."The Democratic state representative was speaking by phone from Broomall, Pennsylvania, on Friday, around 12 miles into a one-man, 105-mile march from Philadelphia to Harrisburg in protest to drastic cuts to regional public transport services. Continue reading...

Fletcher Merkel, eight, and Harper Moyski, 10, died during the attack on the Annunciation Catholic school churchAn eight-year-old boy and a 10-year-old girl who were killed in a mass shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic school have been identified by their parents.Fletcher Merkel, eight, and Harper Moyski, 10, died during the attack on the Annunciation Catholic school church on Wednesday morning, their parents confirmed. A further 17 people, 14 of them children, were injured in the shooting. Continue reading...

Trump officials accused of false imprisonment and unconstitutional racial profiling' over incident in LAThe mother of a 15-year-old boy who was detained at gunpoint by federal immigration agents is seeking $1m in damages and accusing the Trump administration of false imprisonment and unconstitutional racial profiling".The teenager, a US citizen with disabilities, was in a vehicle with his mother outside Arleta high school in Los Angeles on 11 August when masked immigration agents surrounded them and pulled them from the vehicle. They said the boy was a suspect in a crime, and handcuffed him for several minutes until they realized had the wrong person, the Los Angeles Times reported. Continue reading...

Israeli military announces move in Gaza City as it steps up attacks before planned offensiveIsrael's military will no longer pause fighting to allow aid deliveries in Gaza City, a military spokesperson has said, in a decision likely to deepen the famine already gripping the north of the territory.Israeli forces have been stepping up attacks in and around Gaza City as the military prepares for a ground operation that humanitarian groups and many of Israel's closest allies have warned will be catastrophic for hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians already struggling to survive hunger, disease and Israeli attacks. Continue reading...

First female senator to represent Iowa had a rocky reception from constituents earlier year over Medicaid cuts

Step comes when France is leading a push to recognise Palestinian state after Israel's unyielding bombing of GazaThe US has begun denying and revoking visas from members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) ahead of the United Nations general assembly meeting in September, the state department said on Friday.The Trump administration has been clear: it is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace," it said in a statement. Continue reading...

Ruling has bought government time to plan closures but Farage and Tories have more fuel for their grievances

At hearing for Federal Reserve governor's suit over firing, attorney says president engages in litigation by tweet'Donald Trump has been accused of wielding unconfirmed allegations of mortgage fraud as his weapon of choice" to attack the Federal Reserve's independence, as a governor at the central bank sues the president over his bid to fire her.In court on Friday, lawyers for Lisa Cook argued she was fired without the notice or cause" required to remove a Fed governor. Cook learned of her removal from the board via a post on social media, they said. Continue reading...

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Chao Xu, of Greenwich, admits 24 offences against six women and police say there could be many more victimsA businessman who concealed cameras in his home and drugged women has pleaded guilty to a string of sexual offences, and police fear the full scale of his crimes may be vast".Chao Xu, 33, pleaded guilty at a pre-trial hearing on Friday to 24 offences against six young women in London over three years, including rape, digital penetration, sexual assault, administering a substance with intent and voyeurism. Continue reading...

Judges say decision to allow injunction was seriously flawed' and contained several errors in principle'

French president says he will speak to US counterpart amid calls for a Monday deadline for Russian leader to agree to bilateral talksEuropean Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is in Latvia today, and has been speaking to the media in the last few minutes.Speaking alongside Latvia's prime minister Evika Silia, she praised the country's work on becoming a true drone and anti drone powerhouse" in Europe, contributing to Nato's security in the region bordering with Russia.We know that Europe is only safe if the eastern border is safe.The risks your country and the other Baltic States warned us about, unfortunately, have materialised.Russia's brutal war against Ukraine is now in its fourth year, Putin is a predator, Putin's proxies have been targeting our societies for years with hybrid attacks, with cyber-attacks, [and] the weaponising of migrants is another example." Continue reading...

Greg Abbott battled Democrats to bring bill to vote, and redrawn district maps will heavily favor RepublicansTexas's governor, Greg Abbott, has signed a new redistricting bill that will redraw the state's congressional map to heavily favor Republicans.On Friday, Abbott signed the highly controversial bill which prompted state Democrats to stage a weeks-long walkout earlier this month. Continue reading...

Elias Morgan, 35, shot former HMP Altcourse officer Lenny Scott four years after a row over an illicit phoneA former inmate has been found guilty of murdering a prison officer in a revenge killing, four years after saying I promise I will get you."Elias Morgan, 35, planned and carried out the shooting of Lenny Scott, a former HMP Altcourse prison officer who had discovered Morgan's illicit mobile phone hidden behind bars in his cell. Continue reading...

Trump administration to end nearly all abortions even though third of female veterans are sexual assault survivorsDoctors at the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) would be barred from performing abortions, even in cases of rape and incest, under new rules proposed by the Trump administration.The draft regulations, which also forbid providers from counseling female veterans about terminating a pregnancy, have generated nearly 20,000 comments in the federal register from conservative activists, abortion rights supporters and female veterans, many of them survivors of sexual assault. Continue reading...

Durham council says strong rope on bunting was found to be a risk, amid controversy over flag-flying across EnglandA Reform-led council has started to remove flags and bunting displaying the St George's cross and the union flag after concerns were raised that they could cause accidents.Durham county council issued a statement on X on Friday saying that while the council understand and respect the community's desire to express national pride, celebration, or remembrance, it is important to ensure such expressions do not compromise public safety". Continue reading...

Controversial painting of Robert E Lee and enslaved man taken down after 2020 law to remove Confederate tributesA controversial portrait of General Robert E Lee, which shows an enslaved man holding the Confederate leader's horse, is being returned to the library at West Point, according to Pentagon officials who spoke with the New York Times.The nearly 20ft canvas, which had hung in the US military academy since 1952, was removed following a 2020 law that ordered Confederate names and tributes to be stripped from military installations. Continue reading...

Unifil mandate extended but troops patrolling Lebanon-Israel border to be withdrawn in December 2026

Apple will source all of its iPhone glass from Harrodsburg, but residents worry about taxes and threats to immigrantsFor people reading the news on an iPhone, the chances are the glass screen they are tapping on was made in a small town in central Kentucky you've never heard of.Now, Donald Trump wants all iPhone and Apple Watch glass screens to be made in the US, and the giant tech company recently announced it would oblige. Continue reading...

President's new security directive cancels one-year extension signed by Biden before leaving officeDonald Trump has revoked Secret Service protection for the former vice-president and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, according to a letter obtained by CNN and confirmed to the Guardian by a senior White House official.The letter, dated on Thursday and titled Memorandum for the Secretary of Homeland Security", instructs the Secret Service to discontinue any security-related procedures beyond those required by law" effective 1 September 2025. Continue reading...

Roger Wicker and Deb Fischer meet island's president in Taipei as Beijing says trip sends gravely wrong signal'A visit to Taiwan by two US senators has drawn criticism from China, which claims the island as its own and objects to any contact between officials of the two sides.The chair of the Senate armed services committee, Roger Wicker, and the Nebraska senator Deb Fischer arrived in Taipei on Friday for a series of high-level meetings with senior Taiwanese leaders to discuss US-Taiwan relations, regional security, trade and investment, according to the American Institute in Taiwan, Washington's de facto embassy in lieu of formal diplomatic relations with the self-governing island democracy. Continue reading...

Educating Yorkshire Part 2 shows inspirational teachers negotiating challenges in young people's livesBasically, there's summat wrong with me. I'm like ... a psychopath. Genuinely!" A teenage girl with the face of an angel is confiding in Mr Wilson, one of the student managers. He listens solemnly, but his mouth twitches with the beginnings of a smile.I'm going to start by disagreeing with you," he says with all the seriousness he can muster. You're not a psychopath." The girl in the sky-blue hoodie relaxes and rewards him with a broad smile. Continue reading...

Guardian US partner WWL Louisiana called in Ray Theriot, who used utility bills, driver's licenses and property recordsA woman who died at home during Hurricane Katrina in a community outside New Orleans, but who remained unidentified for nearly two decades, has finally been named before the storm's 20th anniversary on Friday.The woman, who was identified with the help of New Orleans's CBS affiliate, WWL Louisiana, has been named as Dorothy Virginia Driggers Taquino, 81. Continue reading...

Human Rights Watch says US military personnel could face criminal prosecution for assisting Israel's war in GazaHuman rights groups and activists who protest against continued US support for Israel have focused primarily on the flow of US weapons, warning that continuing to send weapons to a state which has been documented using them in probable war crimes makes the US complicit.However, this week, Human Rights Watch (HRW) highlighted another facet of US military support for Israel: military cooperation and intelligence sharing. Continue reading...

Investor jitters follow report by IPPR, with stock market value of sector cut by almost 8bn in morning trading

Outsourcing firm Mitie listed several roles aimed at providing safe and productive' environment for detaineesJobs aimed at improving the wellbeing of people at an immigration detention centre, including holding workshops in floristry and balloon craft, are unnecessary and should be removed, a government minister has said.The outsourcing firm Mitie, which manages the Heathrow immigration removal centre (IRC) in west London, listed several roles online, including a painting and decorating tutor and gym manager, for salaries ranging between 31,000 and 38,000. Continue reading...

Veteran rocker characterises US administration as fascistic in song recorded at Chicago sound checkNeil Young has released a new song lambasting Donald Trump, entitled Big Crime.The Canadian-American rocker has long been a critic of the US president, suing him (but later dropping the lawsuit) over the use of his songs at campaign rallies and calling him the worst president in the history of our great country". Continue reading...

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Victoria police arrested and interviewed a 42-year-old woman and a 15-year-old boy, releasing them pending further inquiries'

Missile strikes on Ukrainian capital hit EU and British Council offices in deadliest assault in monthsThe UK and European Union have summoned their Russian envoys after overnight missile strikes on Kyiv killed at least 23 people and damaged the city's British Council and EU offices, in the deadliest aerial assault on the Ukrainian capital since the Alaska summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.Four children were among those killed after a residential building in the eastern Darnytskyi district was struck in the middle of the night, according to Ukraine's interior minister, Ihor Klymenko. Continue reading...

Gusts reaching up to 130km/h expected to push further into south-eastern states on Saturday, bringing showers, hail and thunderstorms

Exhibition explores Bank's former grandeur and its rebuilding under Sir Herbert Baker that began 100 years agoA century ago the wrecking ball demolished the halls, courtyards, arches and domes of one of London's best-loved buildings in what the architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner would decry as the greatest architectural crime" to befall the capital in the 20th century.The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street (as the Bank of England was nicknamed after a satirical 1797 cartoon of William Pitt the Younger, prime minister from 1783 to 1801, wooing an old lady dressed in pound notes) has been the heart of the City since 1734. Continue reading...

Campaigners call for Paris-style parking charges amid fears big vehicles are taking up excessive public spaceThe number of giant cars in England's cities has increased tenfold in recent years, according to researchers, who warn the vehicles are taking up excessive public space and posing a threat to public safety.Analysis published by Clean Cities has found SUVs have gone from 3% to 30% of existing cars in the past two decades. In London, the number of SUVs has increased from about 80,000 in 2002 to about 800,000 in 2023. Continue reading...

Media company mulling defamation action after independent MP calls reporter Josh Bavas a racist' for asking a question about Katter's Lebanese heritage

Reality TV star accused of trying to cover up evidence following the February 2022 crash that killed co-star Chris Willow' Wilson

A fight over a redrawing of the congressional map in Texas united Democrats across the country. This week, we hear from the state representative Nicole Collier about why she slept on the House floor for two nights, and Jonathan Freedland speaks to the KQED reporter Marisa Lagos about why the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, sees an opportunity in fighting dirtyArchive: ABC 7, ABC 10, ABC News, CBS News, CNN, DRM News, Fox 11 Los Angeles, Fox Business, KARE 11, KPRC 2 Click2Houston, MSNBC, WHAS11, WKYC Channel 3 Texas, WSYX ABC6, WTKR News 3 Continue reading...

Footage from a small North Island town store is the first confirmed sighting of Tom Phillips in a year, nearly four years after he disappeared with his three childrenNew CCTV footage believed to show New Zealand fugitive Tom Phillips and one of his children allegedly breaking into and stealing from a convenience store has been released by police.Detective senior sergeant Andy Saunders told media on Friday that investigators believe the pair in the video are Phillips and one of his three children, who vanished almost four years ago. It is the first confirmed sighting of Phillips in a year. Continue reading...

Prime minister Narendra Modi's four-day trip, which includes Japan visit, comes while India seeks to diversify trade and bolster ties with BeijingIndian prime minister Narendra Modi will land in China this weekend for his first visit in seven years - a trip that puts him in the company of Chinese president Xi Jinping and Russian president Vladimir Putin just as India's ties with Washington have soured.Modi's visit to Tianjin for a regional security summit comes days after the US doubled tariffs on Indian exports to 50%, citing New Delhi's refusal to stop buying Russian oil. Continue reading...

Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the daughter of former prime minister Thaksin, has been accused her of failing to protect Thailand's interestsThailand's constitutional court will decide on Friday whether suspended prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra should be removed from office over comments she made in a leaked phone call to the former leader of Cambodia.Paetongtarn, Thailand's youngest prime minister, was suspended last month after a recording was leaked of her phone conversation with Hun Sen, in which they discussed a simmering border dispute between the neighbouring countries. Continue reading...