Push to give English same status as Mori and NZ sign languages sparks backlash from opposition parties and linguistic expertsA bill to recognise English as an official language of New Zealand has cleared its first hurdle in parliament amid ridicule from opposition parties and linguists who say it is unnecessary" and cynical".The bill seeks to give English, which is spoken by 95% of the country, the same official status as te reo Mori (Mori language) and New Zealand sign language. The bill said the status and use of the existing official languages would not be affected. Continue reading...
Nigel Farage's recent efforts to woo centre-ground voters may cause tension in party's right flank, says Hope Not HateMore than half of Reform UK members believe non-white British citizens born abroad should be deported or encouraged to leave, according to the first publicly available poll of those in Nigel Farage's party.The findings come as the Reform leader attempts to court centre-ground voters while facing pressure from his right flank, including a hardline new party launched by Rupert Lowe, who left Reform after falling out with Farage. Continue reading...
Despite rebukes from Donald Trump, many MPs back Keir Starmer's stance so far, and say lessons from conflict in Iraq must not be forgottenCalvin Bailey keeps his Iraq medal, issued to members of the British armed forces who served as part of Operation Telic, safe in a drawer in his home. It features a clasp, given to personnel who were part of the very first wave of flights to leave British bases to invade Iraq in March 2003.So when the Labour MP for Leyton and Wanstead spoke at a meeting between Labour MPs and the prime minister on Monday evening, people listened. I was exposed to and aware of all the things that were happening in the lead up to the invasion of Iraq, the groupthink, the sense of unstoppable momentum," he said on Tuesday. If you look at what is happening right now, it's materially different to 2003, but I think I can speak with adequate weight and credibility." Continue reading...
Yvonne Ford, who died after scratch from dog in Morocco, had been referred to mental health expert due to symptomsA woman who died in the UK after contracting rabies while on holiday in Morocco was diagnosed with the disease after a psychiatrist was called in to assess her symptoms, an inquest has heard.Yvonne Ford, 59, died in Barnsley hospital on 11 June, four months after she was scratched by a puppy in February while on a beach in the north African country. Continue reading...
by Hannah Al-Othman North of England correspondent on (#73ZFK)
Glasgow high court found Lee Milne, from Dundee, guilty of the culpable homicide of Kimberly Milne, 28A man has been convicted of killing his wife after she took her own life following a campaign of domestic abuse, in what is the first prosecution of its kind in Scotland.Kimberly Milne, 28, died after jumping from a motorway bridge in July 2023. Her husband Lee Milne, 39, from Dundee, had denied culpable homicide and a separate charge of domestic abuse, but was found guilty following a trial. Continue reading...
Cosa Nostra leader, who controlled most of eastern Sicily, dies while serving multiple life sentences for murderBenedetto Nitto" Santapaola, a Sicilian mafia boss and one of the most dangerous figures in Italian criminal history, has died aged 87.Santapaola, who was widely believed to have been the architect of a campaign of bloodshed that scarred Italy in the 1980s and 1990s, died on Monday in a Milan prison where he was serving multiple life sentences. An autopsy has been ordered. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Jury was never told about inquiry into key prosecution witness Peter Hindmarsh, which looked into allegations including of harm to patientsA doctor who gave crucial expert evidence about insulin poisoning for the prosecution of the nurse Lucy Letby was under investigation by the medical regulator at the time due to serious concerns about his fitness to practise.The General Medical Council (GMC) opened an investigation into concerns about Prof Peter Hindmarsh, including that he had harmed patients, on the first day he gave evidence at Letby's trial in late 2022. Continue reading...
by Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Gaurav Pokharel in Damak on (#73Z3F)
With 46% of Nepal's population under the age of 24, the election will be a test of whether their hopes and frustrations are being taken seriouslyIn the unassuming, dusty lanes of the Nepali city of Damak, an unprecedented political showdown is unfolding. Pitting an old political heavyweight against a rapper-turned-politician with a penchant for dark sunglasses and sharp suits, the battle is one that could completely reshape the country's politics.As Nepal heads into its most gripping election in years, at the forefront stands Balendra Shah, the 35-year-old known simply as Balen. He rose to fame as a popular rapper whose songs criticised the ruling elite, before pivoting to politics and winning a resounding victory to become the mayor of Kathmandu in May 2022. Continue reading...
In today's newsletter: senior international correspondent Julian Borger on what next as Iran targets its Gulf neighbours and the conflict escalatesGood morning. The regional war many countries had long feared is here.On Saturday, global attention turned to Iran after an extraordinary joint aerial assault by the US and Israel. The intense bombardment was followed with news of the assassination of the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with large numbers of Iran's military and political leadership.Middle East | Israel's determination to attack Iran and the certainty US troops would be targeted in response forced the Trump administration to take pre-emptive strikes, Marco Rubio said, in a new explanation for Washington's surprise entry into the conflict.Travel | More than 100,000 Britons were stranded in the Gulf on Monday, with airspace in the region still closed to most flights and overland evacuation regarded as risky.UK politics | Nigel Farage has been accused of Donald Trump-style election denial by the Green party's new MP for Gorton and Denton, after he claimed her Reform rival came first" among British-born voters in last week's byelection.UK news | Scotland has become the first part of the UK to legalise hydrolysis, an environmentally friendly alternative to cremation or burial, reflecting increasing demand for more sustainable funeral arrangements.Environment | UK programmes to protect nature and the climate in developing countries are suffering budget cuts despite ministers' promises, the Guardian has learned. Continue reading...
Beijing can again leverage its critical minerals dominance over an increasingly busy US military, as Taiwan slides further down the White House list of prioritiesAs the US and Israel opened a new chapter of chaos in the Middle East, China stands to benefit from a Washington establishment that does not have the political or physical resources to focus on Asia.Officially, China has condemned the attacks. Wang Yi, the foreign minister, called them unacceptable" and called for a ceasefire, rhetoric that is typical of Beijing in response to Donald Trump's increasingly erratic foreign policy moves. Continue reading...
by Denis Campbell Health policy editor on (#73YYD)
Latest research based on animal model trials shows GLP-1 drugs may prevent problem of no-reflow' in recoveryWeight-loss drugs could help people who have had a heart attack avoid suffering potentially fatal complications afterwards, research has found.Drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy reduce the risk of the tissue damage that affects up to half of the 100,000 people a year in the UK who suffer a heart attack, according to the study. Continue reading...
Law Society says home secretary's review of refugee status after 30 months is in tension with UK's legal obligationsShabana Mahmood's decision to tell every person applying for asylum from Monday that their status is temporary could undermine the refugee convention, the Law Society has said.The body representing solicitors in England and Wales said the home secretary's move to review every refugee's status after 30 months was in tension" with the UK's legal obligations. Continue reading...
Former Oxford professor Tariq Ramadan did not appear in court as he was in a Geneva hospital, according to lawyersThe prominent Swiss academic and Islam scholar Tariq Ramadan has not appeared in court for the first day of his trial in Paris on charges of raping three women in France between 2009 and 2016.The head judge in the case adjourned proceedings until Wednesday and ordered a medical report on Ramadan's health, after his lawyers said he was in hospital in Geneva because of his multiple sclerosis. Continue reading...
Exclusive: National Film and Television School introduces fully accessible accommodation and bursary scheme at its Beaconsfield campusFor a long time, physically disabled students who dreamed of studying at the UK's most prestigious film and TV production school had nowhere to stay in the local area. And when they commuted, they would encounter hundreds of inaccessible areas on campus.In an industry where just 12% of TV employees are disabled, compared with 18% in the labour market as a whole, something had to change. Continue reading...
Grenade-throwing contests replaced PE and denazification' speeches became homework. Pavel Talankin's undercover film about his school's indoctrination drive won a Bafta and is tipped for an Oscar, but has left him in exileIn order to watch the Oscar-nominated documentary in which many of them have starring roles, pupils at Karabash School No 1 have had to source bootlegged copies, viewing the film in private, on their phones or their laptops.Last week's Bafta best documentary win for Mr Nobody Against Putin has been studiously ignored by Russian state media, and the prize the film won at Sundance last year was also met with silence. Staff at the school and government officials in the Kremlin seem united in their desire to pretend that they know nothing about the film. Continue reading...
Tufan Erginbilgic says decision is for the government but German participation remains a possibilityThe boss of Rolls-Royce has said he would welcome Germany helping to build Britain's next-generation fighter jet, arguing that it would bring in more business for the project.The aircraft, designed to replace the Eurofighter Typhoon, is a joint effort between the UK, Italy and Japan. Rolls-Royce is building the engine for the jet, which has attracted fresh attention as plans for a rival Franco-German warplane edge towards collapse. Continue reading...
by Rowena Mason Whitehall editor and Helena Smith in on (#73Y0A)
Within hours of the prime minister's statement, the UK's Akrotiri air force base in Cyprus was reportedly hit by a droneThe UK has agreed to let the US use British military bases to attack Iranian missile sites, Keir Starmer has said.The UK has so far not been involved in the US-Israeli strikes on Iran, but in a recorded statement on Sunday evening, the prime minister said that Iran's approach was becoming more reckless and putting British lives at risk, leading to the decision to allow the US to use two of its military bases. Continue reading...
Thinktank's board distances itself from Josh Simons' decision in 2023 to hire lobbying firm to investigate journalistsA Labour thinktank that helped Keir Starmer into No 10 has said it is making a clean break" from the past after its former director, Josh Simons, resigned as a minister over a report falsely linking journalists to a pro-Kremlin" network.The board of Labour Together distanced itself from Simons' decision in 2023 to hire a lobbying firm to investigate Sunday Times, Guardian and independent reporters who were looking into its failure to declare more than 700,000 in donations. Continue reading...
by Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent on (#73XRW)
Regulator says Prof Jacob George will no longer be involved after gender-criticial social media posts from last yearA health official who reportedly intervened to pause a clinical trial on the use of puberty blockers has been removed from any further involvement due to accusations of bias.Prof Jacob George, who was appointed chief medical and scientific officer at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in January, raised concerns that led to the Pathways trial being put on hold by the government, according to the Sunday Times. Continue reading...
Party leader Zack Polanski says surge in numbers proves that the future of progressive politics belongs to the Greens'The Green party said its membership had passed 200,000 this weekend in the wake of its victory in the Gorton and Denton byelection, in which it overturned a huge Labour majority.The party's membership has tripled since September last year, when it was about 68,000, after the announcement of Zack Polanski as its leader. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Police forces argue bean-bag and foam baton rounds are less harmful than firearms, but the projectiles have been linked to deaths around the world
Experts say trusted adults must be brave and discuss issue or risk children looking for answers from unsafe sourcesTeachers and parents in the UK need to be brave and discuss Jeffrey Epstein's crimes with children and young people or risk them looking for answers from dubious or dangerous sources, according to experts who will host the first public seminar for schools on the issue.Thrive, the education consultancy hosting the online seminar on the convicted child sex offender, said: Many children and young people are encountering this material often without context, warnings or adult support, leaving educators to manage the emotional and safeguarding impact in real time." Continue reading...
After byelection defeat and with right-leaning advisers gone, will PM return to his instincts and embrace Labour DNA' on climate?Less than a year ago, Keir Starmer stood in front of an audience of senior officials and business leaders from 60 countries in London to declare climate action was in the DNA of my government".Vowing to go all out" for net zero and to accelerate" while others were slowing down, the Lancaster House speech was his strongest intervention yet on the issue. We're paying the price for our overexposure to the rollercoaster of international fossil fuel markets," he said. Homegrown clean energy is the only way to take back control of our energy system." Continue reading...
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