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Ford's Ranger ute was again Australia's most popular vehicle and majority of new vehicles sold in 2024 - about 57% - were SUVs

Bosses will hit milestone marginally quicker this year on the third working day of 2025 with median hourly pay of 1,298, says High Pay CentreThe chief executives of FTSE 100 companies will have made more money in 2025 by midday on Monday than their average worker does in a whole year, according to the latest measure of inequality between bosses and their employees.Median pay for FTSE 100 chief executives is 4.22m, 113 times the median full-time worker's pay of 37,430, according to the High Pay Centre, a campaign group. That means UK bosses will exceed their workers' annual pay within 29 hours - or at about 11:30am on Monday, if they started work straight after the new year holiday. Continue reading...

The capital beats Paris and Dublin, in second and third place, as traffic congestion gets consistently worseMuch like its gridlocked traffic, London's position as the most congested city in Europe has remained unmoved, with it coming top of the list ahead of Paris and Dublin.Drivers in the capital spent an average 101 hours sitting in traffic last year, a 2% increase from the previous year, according to the transport analytics company Inrix. Continue reading...

Magistrates court heard Ilaisa Tanoa Degei allegedly sexually assaulted a 21-year-old crew member in the early hours of the new year

Former French president alleged to have received millions of euros from Libyan dictator's regime to fund campaignThe former French president Nicolas Sarkozy will go on trial on Monday over the biggest political financing scandal in modern French history, in which he is alleged to have received millions of euros in illegal election campaign funding from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.The historic trial of the rightwing former French president and 12 other people - including three former government ministers - for criminal conspiracy to receive funds from a foreign dictator on a massive scale threatens to worsen voters' already low trust in the French political class. Continue reading...

Portraits of wealthy American heiresses who married into British society will be shown at Kenwood in LondonMargaret Daisy" Leiter was just 19 when in 1898 she was painted by the most celebrated society portraitist of the age, John Singer Sargent. Leiter, the youngest daughter of an American retail magnate, was a celebrated beauty who was said to have the loveliest eyes in Washington".Sargent's resulting portrait, in which Leiter stands full length, exuberantly swathed in fabric, radiates with the monied self-assurance of a young woman fully aware of her own social power. Continue reading...

The low-budget immigration saga and the Netflix crime musical picked up major film wins while the historical epic dominated television awards

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Event in February that commemorates signing of New Zealand's founding document expected to draw tens of thousands but PM will not attendOrganisers of New Zealand's national day commemorating the signing of the country's founding treaty between Mori tribes and the British crown are expecting record attendance in 2025, following a year of rising tensions over the government's policy direction for Mori.In February, tens of thousands of people are expected to descend on Waitangi, in New Zealand's Northland region, to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, which was signed by Mori chiefs and the British Crown in 1840 and is instrumental in upholding Mori rights. Continue reading...

Bestselling author and Netflix producer said extensive early experience of grief was very cruel but effective teacher'American thriller writer Harlan Coben said experiencing quite a bit of tragedy" in his 20s made him a better writer.The bestselling author, who wrote the Myron Bolitar thriller series and novels turned Netflix shows such as Fool Me Once and Missing You, said he was in his 20s when his father died of a heart attack at the age of 59 in 1988. Continue reading...

Child poverty plan must address the 70% of families with at least one parent in work, Resolution Foundation saysLabour must offer extra support to working parents, including with childcare and commuting, if it is to fulfil its promise of cutting child poverty, the Resolution Foundation thinktank has argued.The government's manifesto promised an ambitious strategy" on child poverty, and ministers have said they will publish a 10-year plan in the spring. Continue reading...

Scottish Labour, Greens and Lib Dem MSPs accuse first minister of creating false narrative'John Swinney, Scotland's first minister, will warn opposition parties that they will fuel populist forces if they prevent his budget from being passed this month.In a keynote speech in Edinburgh on Monday to mark the new year, Swinney will say Scottish voters would be astonished and public services damaged if MSPs fail to allow the budget to go through. Continue reading...

The Multibank, founded by Gordon Brown, receives boost with Amazon-led drive for 250,000 items this monthA charity founded by the former prime minister Gordon Brown is to increase its campaign efforts against child hygiene poverty this year.The Multibank, which was founded by the former Labour leader, is working with a number of sports clubs across Britain and the Hygiene Bank charity. Over the Christmas and new year period it collected thousands of hygiene products at sporting fixtures. Continue reading...

Proposals to be outlined by Keir Starmer will offer patients 500,000 more appointments a year, as health secretary says without reforms NHS could collapse like Woolworths'Patients in England will be offered 500,000 more appointments a year via seven-day health hubs under plans to tackle lengthy waiting times, as ministers warned the NHS could collapse like Woolworths without major reform.Millions of people will be able to access checks, tests and scans closer to home as the health service expands the number of community diagnostic centres (CDCs) opening 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Continue reading...

Met office warns of continued likely travel delays, stranded vehicles and power cuts due to wintry conditions

Tributes flood in for warm-hearted and amazing' drag artist James Lee WilliamsJames Lee Williams, known as drag artist The Vivienne, has died at the age of 32, their public relations representative announced on Sunday.Simon Jones posted on Instagram: It is with immense sadness that we let you know our beloved James Lee Williams - The Vivienne, has passed this weekend. Continue reading...

Exclusive: 414,137 people believed to have experienced some level of harm in last year, Guardian analysis findsMore than 1,000 patients a day in England are suffering potential harm" because of ambulance handover delays, the Guardian can reveal.In the last year, 414,137 patients are believed to have experienced some level of harm because they spent so long in the back of ambulances waiting to get into hospital. Of those, 44,409 - more than 850 a week - suffered severe potential harm", with delays causing permanent or long-term harm or death. Continue reading...

Tributes paid to Lib Dem peer and former Wales culture minister who introduced free entry to museumsTributes have been paid to Jenny Randerson, a titan" of Welsh politics who introduced free entry to museums in Wales, after her death at the age of 76.Lady Randerson brought in the measure while a minister in the Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition in the Welsh parliament between 2000 and 2003. She died on Saturday. Continue reading...

It is unclear what prompted Musk to write on X that Farage doesn't have what it takes' to be Reform UK's leaderElon Musk has called for Nigel Farage to be replaced as Reform UK leader hours after Farage described the billionaire businessman as a hero", in what is likely to be a preview of how a chaotic Donald Trump presidency could affect British politics.Farage, who is also the de facto owner of Reform, doesn't have what it takes", Musk said on X, the social media platform he owns, less than three weeks after the pair held seemingly warm talks at Trump's Florida home. The Reform party needs a new leader," he wrote. Continue reading...

Four days of mourning declared for death of Pasok party co-founder, the architect of country's entry into euroTributes have been paid to the former socialist prime minister Costas Simitis, who with dogged determination guided Greece into the eurozone and took the vital steps to ensure it was ready to host the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.News of Simitis's death at the age of 88 was met on Sunday with outpourings from across the political spectrum, with friends and foes alike voicing admiration for a man credited with overseeing some of the country's most momentous changes. Continue reading...

New path' to power may be opening for FPO after collapse of talks between country's centrist partiesAustria's president has said he will meet the leader of the country's far-right Freedom party (FPO), amid speculation that the pro-Kremlin, anti-Islam party will be tasked with trying to form a government after centrist parties failed to find agreement.The Alpine country of 9 million has been plunged into political crisis after the collapse of coalition talks aimed at keeping the far right out of government. On Sunday it appeared the FPO - narrowly the most voted-for party in September's parliamentary elections - would be most likely to benefit from the turmoil. Continue reading...

Drinks flow and friends are made as people hunker down overnight at the Tan Hill Inn in North YorkshireDo you want a shot?" asks Katy Sherrington from Durham, offering up a tiny glass of a pink liquid. Nobody is going anywhere at this point, so it would be rude not to accept.On Saturday night at the Tan Hill Inn, Britain's highest pub, the snow is falling and the crowd of about 30 people inside know they are probably stuck here for a couple of days. Throughout the place, at the northern edge of North Yorkshire, drinks are flowing and friends are being made. Continue reading...

Shadow justice secretary's comments about British Pakistanis were condemned by former race adviserKemi Badenoch has defended Robert Jenrick after he described Britons of Pakistani origin as people from alien cultures", saying it was vital to have an open debate about the abuse and rape of women and girls by grooming gangs.The Conservative leader's intervention was made after Samuel Kasumu, a former Tory adviser on race issues, said Jenrick's comments were highly divisive and risked people getting killed. Continue reading...

Exclusive: David Neuberger believes lack of access to state-funded lawyers for family disputes is wrong in principle'The former president of the supreme court has said parents are being deprived of their human rights by having to fight for contact with their children without lawyers.David Neuberger said legal aid cuts to family cases were an affront to human rights and that taking away legal aid from family disputes is wrong in principle". Continue reading...

Runways all open at Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool but passengers still face delays with road and rail users also hit by the weatherThe Met office has issued a new yellow warning for heavy rain in southern England, adding to the rainfall warning issued across Wales. The introduction of rain to heavy snowfall could lead to flooding.Football journalist Paul Joyce reports that Liverpool City Council's Ground Safety Advisory Group will meet at midday to decide if the game between Liverpool and Manchester United will go ahead. The group met earlier at 9am. Continue reading...

Global heating has made conditions more favourable for growing grapes - and finding the right variety is keyHeard the one about Irish wine? Like its English counterpart, it is no longer a joke, with more than a dozen vineyards now producing bottles to emulate those of the terroirs of France, Spain and Italy.At about 60 (50) a bottle and produced in small quantities, it is far from a commercial activity, but efforts over the last 10 years have produced what one retailer described as an arguably very fine" rose. Continue reading...

Unrwa senior officer describes 60,000 people sheltering in school buildings sharing 12 bathrooms, but says without aid things will get worseSocial order in Gaza is likely to collapse further if Israel goes ahead with its threat this month to end all cooperation with the UN refugee agency for Palestinians, Louise Wateridge, its senior emergency officer, has warned.Wateridge, who has just returned from Gaza, described the territory as increasingly fractured and said the two Knesset bills due to come into force at the end of the month blocking cooperation with the agency would make it impossible for Unrwa to operate or to distribute aid in a war zone. Continue reading...

Germany's ambassador to UK suggests Starmer will have to agree concessions in order to secure economic benefitsKeir Starmer's effort to reset Britain's relations with its European allies is contingent upon a UK-EU youth mobility scheme, a top diplomat has indicated.Miguel Berger, Germany's ambassador to the UK, said stability across Europe could be undermined if the allies could not secure a number of clear measures" that demonstrate the concrete advantages" of their relationship - one being the youth mobility scheme. Continue reading...

PM frames federal poll as choice between building Australia's future' under Labor or taking Australia backwards' under Coalition

Bank faces criticism over adverts saying people testing its services could fabricate' conditions for 45 a visitBarclays is facing criticism over adverts for paid mystery shoppers" which suggested that people could pretend to be blind or deaf to test the services at the British bank's high street branches.The bank hired market research firm Ipsos to carry out testing at branches. The Barclays-branded instructions said candidates for the roles would ideally be blind or deaf, but also suggested candidates could fabricate" conditions if necessary, for 45 a visit, according to the Mail on Sunday (MoS). Continue reading...

US president-elect praises Italian prime minister at Florida resort for really taking Europe by storm'Italy's prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, made a flying visit to Donald Trump's Florida golf club on Saturday, during which the US president-elect praised the far-right leader for really taking Europe by storm".The pair were photographed in the grand ballroom of Trump's Mar-a-Lago club. Continue reading...

Footage purports to show Ukrainian armoured columns advancing towards village of Bolshoe SoldatskoeUkrainian armed forces have begun a surprise offensive in Russia's Kursk region, according to Ukrainian officials and Russian military bloggers.Video showed Ukrainian armoured columns advancing across snowy fields towards the village of Bolshoe Soldatskoe, north-east of the Ukrainian-held Russian town of Sudzha. The scale of the Sunday morning operation was not immediately clear. Continue reading...

As superbugs spread across the globe, death rates from antimicrobial resistance are set to double, says England's former chief medical officerDame Sally Davies has a straightforward message about the coming year. We face a growing antibiotic emergency that could have devastating impacts on men, women and children across the globe, she says.Davies, a former chief medical officer for England, has become a leading advocate for global action to fight the scourge of superbugs. Continue reading...

Months before fatal attack, city found a Ford F-150 could enter Bourbon Street at 70mphMonths before the deadly New Orleans vehicle attack on New Year's Day, the city modeled scenarios for how an attacker could enter Bourbon Street at various intersections in a crew-cab Ford F-150 similar to the one used to kill 14 people and injure dozens more.Engineers found such a pickup could enter the crowded tourist strip at speeds ranging from 12-70mph - yet city officials are installing new street barriers that can only withstand 10mph impacts, according to an April city-contracted engineering analysis and city bid documents reviewed by Reuters. Continue reading...

Record numbers of teens now abstain, a trend starting during the Covid pandemic and continuing to the presentDrug and alcohol use among teenagers has continued to decline, according to a new study, continuing a downward trend observed at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.Record numbers of teens are abstaining from drugs, alcohol and tobacco, according to a survey from Monitoring the Future, an ongoing project at the University of Michigan Survey Research Center. The survey, conducted annually since 1975, released its latest findings based on responses from about 24,000 students in grades 8, 10 and 12 across the US. Continue reading...

Appointing new archbishop of Canterbury likely to take months after Welby's resignation over abuse scandalJustin Welby will relinquish his role as archbishop of Canterbury at midnight on Monday, formally starting the firing gun in the search for a new de facto leader of the Church of England and the global Anglican church.The process is expected to take months, with the name of the new archbishop unlikely to be announced until the autumn. Continue reading...

TUC criticise retailers for endangering workers' rights by using apps such as YoungOnes and TemperLush, Uniqlo and Gymshark have stopped using freelance retail workers hired through apps such as YoungOnes and Temper, after unions criticised the gig economy companies.The TUC wrote to the retailers urging them to stop using freelance retail workers amid concerns they were missing out on significant employment rights. Continue reading...

Around-the-clock work will be commonplace to tackle an M&A surge fuelled by tax changes, activist investors ... and the Trump factorWhether they're on skis or a sunlounger, there is no beach, mountain or fireside that can spare lawyers from the urgent calls of zealous, dealmaking executives and private equity bosses. After a breathless 2024, the City's army of corporate lawyers are set for another year of masking their poolside backgrounds on video calls, braced for an even busier 2025.Sadly, we were incredibly busy in July and August. We were both on holiday and working up to 14 hours a day," says Patrick Sarch, partner at law firm White & Case and head of its public mergers and acquisitions (M&A) division. He and Sonica Tolani, another partner at the same firm, specialise in advising activist investors. Continue reading...

Doctors will be given 20 each time they consult with a specialist to see if there is an alternative to hospital visitsGPs will be offered financial incentives to discuss with specialists whether patients can be treated outside hospital, under radical plans to cut NHS waiting lists.Doctors will be given 20 each time they consult a specialist either by phone or email under the so-called advice and guidance (A&G) scheme, to see if there is an alternative to hospital visits and treatment. Continue reading...

Experts say measures announced so far are not enough to turn the tideLabour must reverse years of political failure on extremism to stop it fuelling more disorder, violence and terrorism in Britain, leading figures have said.Neil Basu, the former head of counter-terrorism policing, and Dame Sara Khan, previously the government's counter-extremism tsar, warned that proposals unveiled last month would not be enough to address a toxic pool of hatred, conspiracy theories and dangerous rhetoric" from high-profile figures including Elon Musk. Continue reading...

Laura Cullen was among 5,000 people at a 2017 Sydney protest when she was knocked down and injured as NSW police tried to arrest a man

Government plans for publicly funded operator CalMac have been mired in controversy, with replacement vessels delayed and costs spirallingAlmost 100m has been spent over the past decade on repairs for eight of the largest publicly owned ferries in Scotland.The figure has been described as eye-watering" by Sue Webber, transport spokesperson for the Scottish Conservatives, who obtained details of the repair bill from ferry operator CalMac. Continue reading...

Front dragging warm air from the Pilbara brings particularly hot' weather to SA, NSW, Victoria and Tasmania

More than 95 firefighters and 26 trucks deployed to Nunawading, with dozens of nearby residents evacuated

Microlight wreckage found after witness saw plane go down near Nambucca Heads on the mid-north coast

Closed roads, multi-vehicle collisions and train interruptions reported as Met Office yellow and amber warnings remain in placeHomes were left without power, roads were closed, cars stranded, and flights and train services disrupted on Saturday as heavy snow and freezing rain hit much of the UK.The National Grid said on Saturday night that power was cut to properties across the Midlands, south-west England and South Wales, including Birmingham, Bristol and Cardiff, and that work was under way to get services restored. Continue reading...

Police report road collisions and warn motorists only to travel if necessary while power cuts affect parts of England and WalesNational Highways warned a spell of disruptive snow" would spread across southern and central parts of the road network on Saturday night.The PA news agency reports that drivers in high-altitude areas, especially the Cotswolds and Peak District, were warned to take particular care. Gwent police issued a warning for black ice on Friday. Continue reading...

Chancellor Karl Nehammer to step down after failure to form government without far-right Freedom partyTalks between the two biggest centrist parties in Austria on forming a coalition government without the far-right Freedom Party (FPO) have collapsed, Chancellor Karl Nehammer said on Saturday, adding that he would step down in the coming days.The announcement came a day after a third party, the small, liberal Neos, threw the process into disarray by saying it was quitting the talks, blaming the other parties for failing to take the bold and decisive action it said it had called for. Continue reading...

The PM's milestones' include 92% of patients waiting no more than 18 weeks - but not one of the 124 trusts is hitting the markEvery acute hospital trust in England is failing to hit Keir Starmer's key target to treat 92% of patients within 18 weeks, analysis of NHS figures reveals.The new data exposes the scale of the challenge facing the prime minister this year as he tries to reform the NHS. The most recent waiting list data reveals that in some hospital trusts, more than half of patients are waiting longer than 18 weeks. Out of 124 acute trusts across the country, none are hitting the target, according to analysis of the figures by the Observer. Continue reading...

Family of now 19-year-old conscript Liri Albag appeals to PM to take decisions as if it were your own children there'The armed wing of Hamas has released a video it says is of an Israeli hostage held in Gaza since its October 2023 attack.Liri Albag, described by local media as a soldier, was 18 when she was captured by Palestinian militants at the Nahal Oz base on the Gaza border along with six other women conscripts, five of whom remain in captivity. Continue reading...