World news | The Guardian

Merged institutions will become second largest mainstream university in UK with about 47,000 studentsKing's College London has agreed to merge with Cranfield University, creating a new UK super-university" that would rival many of its international competitors in size and research output.The merger would result in KCL taking on another 5,000 mainly postgraduate students and become the second largest mainstream university in the UK, with about 47,000 students, overtaking the University of Manchester and behind only University College London. Continue reading...

Shares in Spire Healthcare jump after approach from Toscafund, founded by City figure known as the Rottweiler'

Privilege being mistaken for competence as study reveals no evidence to suggest companies run by state-educated peers underperformChief executives who attended private school are perceived by investors as a safer bet", according to a study, despite there being no evidence they perform or behave differently to their state-educated counterparts.Companies run by privately educated bosses tend to experience lower stock market volatility, even though there are no meaningful differences in their performance, decision-making or crisis management, the research from the University of Surrey found. Continue reading...

Eleven ambulances as well as two helicopters attended the scene, where one person was trapped under a bus

Health minister Mark Butler says six passengers who have tested negative for hantavirus will land in Western Australia on Friday

Ronald dela Rosa, wanted over involvement in Duterte's war on drugs', reportedly left heavily guarded building before dawnA Philippine lawmaker wanted by the international criminal court for his alleged role enforcing Rodrigo Duterte's bloody anti-drugs crackdown has secretly fled the senate, after spending days holed up in the building to avoid arrest.The senate president, Alan Peter Cayetano, confirmed to media that senator Ronald dela Rosa was no longer in the building", after reports that he had slipped out of the heavily guarded building before dawn. Continue reading...

Designer suggests decision to stage show in Los Angeles is part of strategy to deepen label's cinema presenceLike Christian Dior, the founder of the house he now leads, fashion designer Jonathan Anderson's ambition is to be not just a Parisian couturier but a Hollywood power player. We think of Dior as this romantic character, but he was also a very savvy businessman," said Anderson before a blockbuster catwalk show in Los Angeles. Stage Fright, the Hitchcock caper-noir for which Dior dressed Marlene Dietrich, was the show's origin story. There is all this amazing correspondence between Dior, Dietrich and Hitchcock, which shows how he navigated the money that it cost to make that film. I think we underestimate how much negotiation Dior did with studio executives. He was very smart in that way."Anderson, 41, who was born in Northern Ireland but since being appointed to Dior splits his time between London and Paris, has his own Hollywood side hustle as the costume designer for Luca Guadagnino's films, and is set on reinvigorating Dior's relationship with the film industry. Continue reading...

Asymptomatic people allowed off ship from Wednesday afternoon but those infected ordered to remain in isolationA norovirus-hit cruise ship carrying mainly passengers from the UK and Ireland has had a French lockdown order lifted.All 1,701 people onboard Ambition were prevented from disembarking for more than 24 hours after it docked in Bordeaux on Tuesday, as one person died and dozens became ill with a vomiting virus. Continue reading...

The state's opposition said case was proof the justice system is broken'

UK expert tells Australian inquiry how antisemitism developed and that governments must define it in order to develop policies against it

Member of army squad sent with medics to assist suspected hantavirus patient recounts descent to remote islandThe hardest part of the parachute jump, according to Capt George Lacey, is falling backwards through the air. It is Saturday and Lacey, and his squad of six plus two medics, have just leapt out of an RAF transport, 2,500 metres over the south Atlantic.The parachute can only go forward so quickly," he says, meaning that it has to be pulled at precisely the right moment. So you have to turn into the wind and basically fly backwards, which is a very weird sensation, as you can imagine." Continue reading...

Reform UK leader records video with Essex pastor to support his battle against council banning orderNigel Farage has been criticised for giving his full support to a Christian church leader who preached that homosexuality was an abomination" and would lead to eternity in hell.The Reform UK leader recorded a video with Stephen Clayden after Colchester council applied for a banning order to limit his street preaching. Continue reading...

As Keir Starmer's leadership totters, investors warn a Labour leadership contest ignoring public finances and market realpolitik could be disastrousA rise in borrowing costs and warnings to avoid a Liz Truss moment". As Keir Starmer faces a potential leadership challenge, the spectre of the bond market looms large.Amid febrile conditions in Westminster, the prospect of Britain switching prime ministers for a sixth time in seven years has fuelled a sharp sell-off in the market for UK government debt. Continue reading...

US's apparent decline has fuelled growing Chinese nationalism while US president has lost his novelty value

Ahmed al-Doush's health said to be in sharp decline since his arrest in 2024 in relation to social media postsThe wife of a British national who has been imprisoned in Saudi Arabia since 2024 for social media posts, has pleaded for his release as his wellbeing declines.In November, the UN working group on arbitrary detention found Ahmed al-Doush was being detained arbitrarily under international law and recommended his immediate release, as well as the payment of compensation. The findings followed its eight-month inquiry Continue reading...

Millions of documents chronicling generations of trauma saved from Gaza and East Jerusalem in 10-month Unrwa operationEast Jerusalem to Amman should have been an easy trip: a short drive down to the Dead Sea, across the border checkpoint and swiftly on to the Jordanian capital.But in the early summer of 2024, the distance appeared an almost insurmountable obstacle to humanitarian workers from Unrwa (the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees), as they sought to safeguard huge quantities of archival documents vitally important to decades of recent Palestinian history. Continue reading...

Addition of Tasmanian crossbencher means Labor has gained a seat in the Senate - but still doesn't have a majority

All Her Lives is only the fifth short story collection to win the prestigious NZ$65,000 prize in 58 yearsFirst-time fiction writer Ingrid Horrocks has won New Zealand's richest literary prize for her debut short story collection, All Her Lives.The Wellington-based poet, essayist and memoirist won the prestigious NZ$65,000 (A$53,000, 28,500) Jann Medlicott Acorn prize for fiction at the 2026 Ockham New Zealand book awards on Wednesday night. The book follows nine women across nine different life stages and generations, as they navigate politics, gender and motherhood. Continue reading...

Landmark finding against supermarket giant comes after competition watchdog argued that markdowns did not represent genuine savings

Researchers say budget decision to cut commercialisation program to fund the CSIRO and other science initiatives undermines the government's own priorities

Mariyah Symone Collington and Kendrick Lamont Key Jr, who also died, had fallen off a cliff during an off-duty hikeThe remains of the second US army soldier who went missing during military exercises in Morocco have been recovered, the army said on Wednesday, ending a multinational search operation that deployed air, naval and artificial intelligence assets.The soldier was identified as Spc Mariyah Symone Collington of Taveres, Florida, the US Army Europe and Africa said in a statement. She was 19 years old. Continue reading...

Homebuyers more cautious due to possible mortgage rate rises and higher inflation as sellers sit on propertiesFears of higher mortgage rates and rising inflation as a result of the Middle East conflict are leading to a subdued and downbeat housing market, according to estate agents.Demand from potential homebuyers across England and Wales has shown a noticeable softening" recently, according to a monthly survey of estate agents by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Continue reading...

Greenpeace finds cocktail of pesticides including seven banned in EU may have been used on seven categories of vegetables and soft fruitIt is a beautiful early summer Sunday afternoon and you have stopped for a pub lunch. A waiter sets down a roast served with carrots, peas, parsnips, potatoes and onion gravy, and then for pudding, strawberries and cream. It feels like the perfect rustic meal to accompany a day in the country.However, a report by Greenpeace, published on Thursday, has found that the ingredients of the traditional Sunday roast have potentially been treated with a cocktail of more than 100 pesticides. Data from the Fera pesticide usage survey for 2024, showed 102 - including seven banned in the EU - were used on seven vegetable and soft fruit categories. Continue reading...

Medicines watchdog approves two treatments for patients with spinal muscular atrophyHundreds of children with a rare muscle-wasting disease will be able to receive two drugs that can improve their survival in a move parents hailed as a lifeline".The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) has published final draft guidance recommending that any patient who would benefit can have either drug. Continue reading...

Prime minister under pressure over failure to grant military service exemptions as multi-party government looks at risk of collapseIsrael's ruling coalition has submitted a proposal to dissolve parliament to pave the way for early elections as the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, came under mounting pressure from ultra-Orthodox parties.The move, initiated by Netanyahu's rightwing Likud party, came as Netanyahu appeared to be facing a possible collapse of his fractious coalition. Continue reading...

Dalton Eatherly, 28, known as Chud the Builder, accused of firing at another man outside courthouse in ClarksvilleAn influencer has been detained in Tennessee following his alleged involvement in a shooting, according to local police.On Wednesday afternoon, Dalton Eatherly, 28 - known online as Chud the Builder - was involved in a confrontation with another man outside the Montgomery county courthouse in Clarksville, Tennessee, during which shots were fired, the office of the district attorney general said in a statement. Continue reading...

Kouri Richins was convicted for lacing her husband's cocktail with five times the lethal dose of fentanyl

Resolution fails by 49-50, with Lisa Murkowski and fellow GOP members Rand Paul and Susan Collins voting in favorThe Senate on Wednesday rejected the seventh attempt by Democrats to force an end to American involvement in the war on Iran, even as the ranks of Republicans opposed to Donald Trump's strategy grew.The war powers resolution proposed by Jeff Merkley, a Democratic senator from Oregon, failed in a 49-50 vote. All Democrats with the exception of John Fetterman of Pennsylvania supported its advancement. Continue reading...

Warsh will serve four-year term as chair, taking over amid rising inflation and pressure from Trump to lower ratesThe US Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as chair of the Federal Reserve, one of the most powerful roles in the federal government that holds enormous sway over the economy.The 54-45 Senate vote on Wednesday was split along party lines, with the exception of the Democratic senator John Fetterman from Pennsylvania, who joined the Republican majority. It was most divisive confirmation vote for the position in history. Continue reading...

Lindsay and Craig Foreman were given 10-year sentences after entering the country on a motorcycling tripThe terrified" family of a British couple jailed for 10 years in Iran on spying charges have said they have lost all contact with them.Lindsay and Craig Foreman, both 53, were arrested in January 2025 while travelling through Iran during an around-the-world trip by motorcycle. Continue reading...

Elias Calocane says he thought violent messages sent by brother related to suicidal thoughts not harming othersThe younger brother of Valdo Calocane, who killed three people in an attack in Nottingham, said he felt powerless" over his sibling's mental ill health and believed violent messages his brother had sent concerned suicidal thoughts.Valdo Cacocane, who was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2020, stabbed to death Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both 19, and caretaker Ian Coates, 65, on 13 June 2023, and seriously injured three others. Continue reading...

Health secretary's move to force race sparks scramble on left of Labour for candidate to oppose himWes Streeting is preparing to launch a leadership challenge against Keir Starmer on Thursday if the health secretary can secure the support of enough MPs to trigger a contest.Streeting's move to force a race has sparked a frantic scramble on the left of Labour to find a candidate to oppose him, with Ed Miliband and Angela Rayner both possible contenders. Continue reading...

The covert meeting with the UAE's president is the latest milestone in a rapidly developing Middle East allianceBenjamin Netanyahu has revealed he made a secret trip to the United Arab Emirates at the height of the Iran war to meet president Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.This visit has led to a historic breakthrough in relations between Israel and the UAE," the Israeli prime minister's office said in a statement on Wednesday night. Continue reading...

Health secretary's lack of challenge had reassured Starmer and his allies - but then briefings for a speculative Thursday launch emergedAs the unofficial political truce of the king's speech approached, with still no sign of a leadership challenge from Wes Streeting, some of his Labour colleagues assumed the health secretary's chance to go for the top job might have passed for ever.There is a risk he becomes the David Miliband of this generation if he doesn't do something," one MP said, a reference to another longtime heir apparent who never made the final step. Continue reading...

St John the Divine, Kennington has built one of UK's largest youth choral programmes in area marked by deprivationSt Paul's Cathedral school, one of the UK's most prestigious private schools, has long been associated with the musical elite. So was seven-year-old N'raeah, from south London, nervous about auditioning for its internationally renowned choir?No," she said, beaming. Everybody's counting on me to sing beautifully." Continue reading...

Greater Manchester mayor seeks to reassure his supporters after potential seats for him fail to materialiseAndy Burnham has told Labour MPs they should hold the line and that he has options to return to parliament after several seats identified by allies of the Greater Manchester mayor failed to materialise.Two seats his backers had described as nailed on" as recently as Monday night are now out of contention after the MPs concerned got cold feet. Continue reading...

Project organisers say high costs and energy crisis have scuppered green route from Camden to King's CrossThe Camden Highline, a multimillion-pound effort to transform a disused rail line into a greenery-filled walking and cycling paradise, has been all but scrapped.Nearly a decade since it was conceived as London's answer to New York's fabled High Line, the project has fallen victim to high costs and the energy crisis. Continue reading...

One of PM's expanding cohort of critics in Labour party says policy programme sums up where we have gone wrong'For Keir Starmer's Labour critics, his second king's speech, in which the government set out what it would do in parliament over the next 12 to 18 months, was a crystallisation of everything that was wrong with the prime minister's strategy.Over 34 bills and three draft ones, Starmer set out a programme he said would make this country stronger and fairer". But the package, which included limiting trial by jury, reshaping the NHS and moving the country closer to the EU, fell short of what some in the prime minister's party feel is needed to win back voters' trust. Continue reading...

Organisers as well as speakers will be held responsible for unlawful speech as police face exceptionally busy weekendThe Metropolitan police have said organisers of this weekend's Unite the Kingdom and March for Palestine demonstrations will be held responsible for any hate speech connected with the events, in what they expect to be one of the busiest days for policing in London in recent years".Tens of thousands of people are expected to march in the capital for the Unite the Kingdom event in central London and the Nakba: 78 March for Palestine from south Kensington to central London. Senior officers said protesters would face the highest degree of control". The FA Cup final is also due to be held at Wembley on Saturday. Continue reading...

Passengers will now continue their 45 days of isolation at home, with health officials confirming they remain asymptomaticSix people who were on the cruise ship linked to an outbreak of hantavirus have left Arrowe Park hospital in Wirral to isolate at home, health officials have said.Passengers from the MV Hondius were taken to the Merseyside facility for checks by specialists. Continue reading...

Beloved animated series will return for 36th season in the fall after telecoms giant Bell Media reaches deal with DisneyFans of Les Simpson have a message for anyone who doubted the future of the beloved and long-running Quebecois version of the animated satirical show: Mange de la crotte.Les Simpson will return for its 36th season in the fall after telecoms giant Bell Media said it had reached an agreement with Disney for the rights to air and dub the show. The deal caps nearly a year of uncertainty surrounding the adaptation, which is beloved in Canada's lone francophone province. Continue reading...

New rules would enable single-ticket bookings across multiple rail operators throughout EuropeCross-border train journeys through several European countries are the stuff of many a holidaymaker's dreams.But the reality of trying to buy the tickets, navigating multiple websites without knowing who can help if a connection is missed, can prove less than relaxing. As one MEP puts it, it can often require five tabs, three apps and a prayer". Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can read more of our Ukraine war coverage hereResponding to the Guardian's questions, the operator also confirmed that the vast majority of the 1,187 guests on board are British. There are also 514 crew members.Ambassador Cruise Line also confirmed that a 92-year-old man died on board earlier this week, but he did not report any symptoms at the time and the cause of his death is yet to be established. Continue reading...

The country's new leadership has pledged to reverse years of democratic backsliding, but they must act quickly Don't get This Is Europe delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereUnder blue skies on Saturday, crowds cheered as the EU flag was raised on the facade of the Hungarian parliament after a long absence. It was a powerful symbol on the day Peter Magyar was sworn in as Hungary's prime minister, with a declaration that Hungarians had given his party a mandate to launch a new chapter" in the country's history, and change the system.The new government, seen as an experienced technocratic team, immediately signalled its new direction. Hungary's place is in Europe; naturally, firmly and without question," foreign minister designate Anita Orban said. Soon after, Hungary dropped its long-standing veto over sanctions against violent Israeli settlers - a sign it no longer sought to be outside the EU mainstream. Continue reading...

About 50 people on vessel carrying mostly British and Irish passengers have symptoms, say officialsFrench authorities have confined more than 1,700 passengers and crew members to a cruise ship docked in Bordeaux after an outbreak of suspected norovirus, officials have said.The vessel, Ambition, which is carrying 1,233 passengers, most of them British or Irish nationals, arrived in Bordeaux on Tuesday. About 50 people had shown symptoms of the virus, French health officials said. Continue reading...

With US inflation at a three-year high, US president insisted he's not focused on economic hardship sparked by the conflict

Lineup to include pastor who called Democratic platform demonic', Christian author who said he would die in fight to overturn 2020 election and rabbi who has defended tortureThe defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, will this weekend headline a faith rally on the National Mall in Washington DC hosted by a private foundation operating in partnership with the White House, which includes some speakers that experts have characterized as Christian nationalist or extremist.Rededicate 250, billed as the faith-based component of America's semiquincentennial, features speakers including a Detroit pastor who has called the Democratic platform demonic" and launched his own memecoin after praying at Trump's second inauguration; a rabbi who has defended the use of torture and authored an essay titled The Virtue of Hate"; and a Christian author and radio host who said in 2020 he would die in the fight to keep Joe Biden out of the White House and was later named in a defamation suit over 2020 election fraud claims. Continue reading...

US authorities arrested French citizen Marie-Therese Ross-Mahe after she missed an immigration appointmentThe wailing at the Louisiana immigration detention facility began at night, Marie-Therese Ross-Mahe remembered, back at home in France. Children crying, and even babies."The 85-year-old's detention last month as part of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown made international headlines. Now, nearly a month after her release, she was ready to talk about it - and the late-in-life love story that had brought her to the US. Continue reading...

The ex-lawyer who Trump described as very talented' was previously deputy commissioner for food at the FDAThe new acting commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), who Donald Trump described as a very talented person", is a former corporate lawyer who previously defended a popular formula maker against claims of its product harming premature babies.Kyle Diamantas, who most recently served as the FDA deputy commissioner for food, will be taking over as acting FDA commissioner. Continue reading...

Opposition leader to unveil plan to dramatically cut number of migrants in budget reply speech on Thursday