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Minister says Labour is looking into whole incident' as Andrew Gwynne sacked over allegedly offensive messagesLabour has launched an urgent investigation into a WhatsApp group in which the Labour MP Andrew Gwynne posted completely unacceptable" messages, a minister has said.Gwynne, 50, was sacked as a health minister after reports he shared racist remarks about Diane Abbott and sexist comments about Angela Rayner, and joked about an elderly woman dying before the next election. Continue reading...

Corruption in Mexico is a problem, experts say, but any claim the two are linked shows a lack of comprehensionMexico breathed a sigh of relief this week when Donald Trump delayed his threatened tariffs by a month, apparently swerving away from an economic crisis at the last moment.But one aspect of the spat still rankles: the Trump administration's vague but shocking accusation of an intolerable alliance" between Mexico's government and organised crime. Continue reading...

Weakened state of three freed Israelis shocks country, while several released Palestinians also need hospitalisationHamas freed three hostages from Gaza and Israel released 183 prisoners and detainees on Saturday, the fifth exchange under a fragile, three-week-old ceasefire deal.The gaunt appearance of the three Israeli men shocked the country, sparking anger and dismay that could increase pressure on the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to extend the agreement to a second stage, bringing home the remaining Israeli captives. Continue reading...

The Trump ally's health plans have delighted his supporters - but others are horrified by the potential for harmAmericans suspicious of modern medicine and the status quo are watching Robert F Kennedy Jr's nomination to secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) with a mixture of glee, astonishment and skepticism.Last week, Kennedy used his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee to demonstrate how fully his wellness agenda, Make America Healthy Again, and Trumpism had fused - often to the delight of supporters. Continue reading...

As Trump aims to dismantle large swaths of US government, growing outcry from Democrats appears to be having an effectWhen organizers announced a Nobody Elected Elon" protest at the treasury department's headquarters in Washington - in response to the revelation that Elon Musk's department of government efficiency" (Doge) had accessed sensitive taxpayer data - not a single Democratic lawmaker had agreed to attend.But as public outrage mounted over Donald Trump's brazen assault on the federal government, the speaking list grew. In the end, more than two dozen Democratic members of Congress including Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, spoke at the event, which drew hundreds of protesters outside on a frigid Tuesday last week. In speech after speech, they pledged to do everything in their power to block Trump from carrying out his right-wing agenda. Continue reading...

Open panic has yet to set in but MPs voice growing fears over leader's approach and threat from Reform UKOn Monday, it will be 100 days since Kemi Badenoch became the leader of a demoralised rump of 121 Conservative MPs. So, at this traditional moment for gauging initial success, how well is she doing? It depends, perhaps inevitably, on how you measure it.What you have to remember is that for the first 18 or so months after you lose an election, especially as badly as we did, no one cares what you do," one Tory MP said. From that point of view, Kemi's caution in not rushing into policies makes sense. No one is listening yet. She has time." Continue reading...

Deputy PM acknowledged there wasn't a consensus' over future of tower block after her decision to dismantle itAngela Rayner has defended her handling of a meeting with bereaved families and survivors of the Grenfell disaster after some said they felt ignored by her decision to tear down the tower.The deputy prime minister did not feel she had been aggressive" during the meeting on the future of the site, she said, despite criticism from some of those present. If anyone felt that way, then I would be sincerely upset about that," she added. Continue reading...

One federal Labor MP said his party's brand has taken a dive' in Victoria - but others at the state level believe time is on their side

Despite government pledge to recruit 6,500 new teachers, headteachers are under renewed pressure to avoid going into deficitSchools across England say they are being forced to make teachers and teaching assistants redundant to avoid going into deficit, in a serious blow to the new government's plans to improve education.Labour swept into government in July with a central promise to tackle the crisis in schools by recruiting 6,500 teachers. But unions have told the Observer that schools have already started making teachers redundant to balance their books, arguing that after more than a decade of funding cuts under the Tories there remain no less painful efficiencies to be made. Continue reading...

Leading climate group warns of damage to green agenda if giant project goes aheadKeir Starmer will do huge damage to the global fight against climate change if he gives in to political pressure and allows the development of a giant new oilfield in the North Sea, according to an analysis by the country's leading environmental institute.Chaired by Nicholas Stern, the Grantham Institute on Climate Change will fire a warning shot to ministers not to give the green light to the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields, after suggestions that the Treasury is now in favour of allowing drilling to maximise economic growth. Continue reading...

Defiant Gazans reject Trump's resettlement plan after enduring 15 months of conflictSaaed Salem's eyes filled with tears as he surveyed the remains of his north Gaza neighbourhood on a freezing February morning. He was resting in a chair that had somehow survived the war, surrounded by grandchildren and rubble, his hope for the future and the ruins of his past.His family had lost one home in 1948, when they fled Hirbiya village, now the site of Zikim kibbutz inside Israel, to escape shelling and reports of atrocities by Israeli forces. Continue reading...

The star of TV drama The Split joins Sandi Toksvig, Richard Madeley and more in Radio 4 sitcom based on the fictional tropical isleAs the latest Desert Island Discs castaway this Sunday morning the actor Stephen Mangan is happy to confess that his first big theatrical role was as Beauty in an infant production of Beauty and the Beast. The star of the popular television drama The Split also freely admits that he saw his childhood stint as a church altar boy chiefly as a chance to enjoy the limelight.But the really surprising discovery for listeners is that if Mangan had not now been marooned as a guest on the long-running BBC programme by presenter Lauren Laverne, he could never have made his next show. Continue reading...

Rising demand and ballooning council deficits have left a threadbare service - and children and parents in crisisSuccessful complaints about councils' special educational needs and disability (Send) services in England have quadrupled in four years, in the latest evidence of the crisis facing the system.The local government and social care ombudsman (LGO), which handles complaints about English councils, upheld 1,043 cases regarding Send provision in 2024 - nearly 40% more than in 2023, and four times more than the 258 upheld in 2021. Continue reading...

The group of five workers were greeted at Bangkok airport by overjoyed family members and officials after being held for over a year in Gaza

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Greens concede loss to Liberals in Prahran and ALP on a knife-edge in Werribee

One woman killed and another taken to hospital with injuries to hands and face, paramedics say

Birth control devices and HRT therapies to be listed on PBS alongside Medicare and bulk-billing changes, with Coalition immediately backing policy

Project aims to enable faster information exchange among involved parties to modernise cumbersome' processThe government is planning to digitalise data shared during property sales to tackle delays in transactions and speed up the homebuying process.Labour has announced a 12-week project to decide on the design and implementation of agreed rules on data" so that it can easily be shared between conveyancers, lenders and other parties involved in a transaction. Continue reading...

Those affected were accused of being bots and asked to fill out a form for the tour's promoters to reviewOasis fans have said their dreams have been crushed" after Ticketmaster cancelled their tickets to the band's reunion tour, accusing them of being bots.Several people have received an email from the company that said bots were identified making their purchase for Oasis Live '25 tickets, and urged them to fill out a form to rectify the issue. Continue reading...

Children seeking gender dysphoria treatment are finding care interstate after LNP government's prescriptions pause

Demonstrators at the proposed site included Hongkongers who fear it could be used to illegally detain dissentersLarge crowds gathered outside the proposed site of a new Chinese mega-embassy" in London on Saturday, as politicians and protesters expressed concerns it could be used to control" dissidents.More than 1,000 people congregated outside the Royal Mint Court, the former headquarters of the UK's coin maker, near the Tower of London. The site could soon be turned into a Chinese embassy. Continue reading...

The rise of Nigel Farage's party is a concern for many MPs in seats where Reform came a close second at the general electionReform UK, led by Nigel Farage, is now neck and neck with Labour largely because its stance on immigration is proving attractive to floating voters, according to the latest Opinium poll for the Observer.The rise of the populist rightwing party is causing increasing concern in the Labour high command and among the many Labour MPs who hold seats where Reform came a close second at last summer's general election. Continue reading...

Benjamin Netanyahu has denounced the shocking' images of freed Israeli hostages as Hamas accused Israel of slow killing' imprisoned PalestiniansA small crowd has gathered at Tel Aviv's Hostages Square, which will only grow as the release of Ohad Ben Ami, Or Levy and Eli Sharabi draws closer, Israel's Haaretz newspaper is reporting.The people are holding signs with posters of the three hostages, and one is holding a homemade sign reading I'm sorry that it took so long, welcome back". Continue reading...

Parents of Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe also criticise televising of Axel Rudakubana's sentencingThe parents of two of the girls murdered in Southport have spoken of the moment they were told something awful has happened" to their children at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.The families of Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe also called for more protection for children from the internet and criticised the decision to televise the sentencing of Axel Rudakubana, who was jailed last month for a minimum term of 52 years. Continue reading...

MP also suspended from Labour party after exposure of messages in which he said he hoped for pensioner's deathA Labour minister has been sacked and suspended from the party after messages were exposed in which he said he hoped a pensioner who did not support him would die before the next set of elections.Andrew Gwynne, who was a health minister, was also accused of writing a series of other messages containing racist and sexist comments. They included apparent antisemitic remarks and demeaning comments about Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister. Continue reading...

Pledge to fix broken welfare system follows new evidence that people are worried about returning to work for fear that benefits will be withdrawnBritain's broken welfare system is fuelling the greatest unemployment challenge of a generation", ministers have concluded as they draw up a root-and-branch overhaul designed to counter the spiralling numbers deemed too unwell to work.Rules that force benefit claimants into an all or nothing" choice between working and being deemed too sick to work are set to be redrawn, the Observer understands. It follows new evidence that thousands of people who want to work are worried about taking steps to return to the workplace out of fear that their benefits will be withdrawn. Continue reading...

When Covid hit, people were anxious and frightened. So Catherine Barrett started a page - the Kindness Pandemic - to let them know they weren't alone

Shareholder lobby group says parents trust G8 Education to look after children but carers are not supported to look after their own'

A bizarre mining business's fake audit reveals the potential for fraudsters at Companies HouseAt first glance, there is nothing remarkable about Gofer Mining plc. It appears to be just another multibillion-pound corporate giant, with London headquarters in Canary Wharf and interests stretching from Tibet to Ukraine.Its lengthy financial accounts are full of prosaic details about mineral weights, rare metal assets and exploration plans. Continue reading...

Reform has surged in the polls, panicking both Labour and the Conservatives. It's a trap, and the risks are highNigel Farage is making trouble again. Reform, his latest political vehicle, has surged in the polls, moving into first place with some pollsters, and ruffling feathers on Labour back benches.While Farage has caused headaches for every prime minister since David Cameron, his recent rise is something new. Reform scored an average of almost 25% in January polls, past the peaks achieved by Ukip or the Brexit party in earlier parliaments. And while past Farage surges were spikes driven by circumstances - European parliament elections, the EU referendum, the collapse of Theresa May's government - the current rise is more sustained. This Farage boom is no bubble. Continue reading...

From the third runway to Rosebank, the party is rethinking policies, amid the threat of Reform and return of TrumpIt only takes a quick look at today's poll by Opinium for the Observer to see why a big tactical rethink (some in the Labour party call it a panic) is under way in Downing Street.In the space of a couple of weeks, the Labour high-command has morphed from being a risk-averse, technocratic operation which said and did very little that was interesting in order to win power - and did little more in the first six months after taking it - into something else entirely. Continue reading...

Leaders from across Africa call for immediate ceasefire at cross-party summit in TanzaniaA summit of regional leaders has called for an immediate unconditional ceasefire within five days in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.The Rwandan president, Paul Kagame, and the president of the DRC, Felix Tshisekedi, joined a summit in Tanzania on Saturday, where African leaders said they were deeply concerned by the crisis. Continue reading...

Kerr's mother, Dawn Searle, and her partner Andrew were found dead at their rural home in south-west France on ThursdayA former Hollyoaks actor has said he is grieving the tragic loss" of his mother after she was found dead alongside her husband in France.The bodies of Andrew Searle, a retired fraud investigator, and his wife, Dawn, a project manager, were discovered at about 12.30pm on Thursday at their home in the village of Les Pesquies, south of Villefranche-de-Rouergue. The couple had moved to south-west France from Scotland about 10 years ago. Continue reading...

March in tribute to Harvey Willgoose, 15, a Sheffield United fan, ends at club's Bramall Lane stadiumThe family of 15-year-old Harvey Willgoose, who died after being stabbed at his school in Sheffield, led a march through the city in tribute to him.Harvey's parents, Caroline and Mark, held a banner as they marched from Sheffield town hall towards Sheffield United's stadium in Bramall Lane. Continue reading...

Defra officials concerned about conflicted position' of Sir Adrian Montague over dual role chairing holding companyThe chair of Thames Water was suspected by government officials of holding a potentially conflicted position" when his company made an unjustified" dividend payment of 37.5m to its shareholders.The water provider, on the brink of bankruptcy, was in the high court last week seeking an emergency 3bn loan as it struggles to stay afloat under massive debts. It is under fresh scrutiny over its dividend payments. Continue reading...

US president also offers asylum to Afrikaners and criticises law that allows land seizures without compensation in some circumstancesThe US president, Donald Trump, has signed an executive order to cut financial assistance to South Africa, accusing the country's government of unjust racial discrimination" against white Afrikaners and offering them asylum in the US.The order criticised a law signed by the South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa, last month that allows for land to be expropriated with nil compensation" in limited circumstances. Continue reading...

Rita and Philip Potter never gave up hope' after their labrador Daisy was stolen by suspected backyard breedersA couple whose dog was stolen more than seven years ago have said it was a dream come true" when the RSPCA reunited them.Rita and Philip Potter, from Norfolk, said they never gave up hope on her being found one day" after thieves stole their labrador Daisy from their garden in November 2017. Continue reading...

Jocelyn Samuels says her dismissal from EEOC is part of greater strategy to target inequity and roll back rights for trans employeesSeven days after Donald Trump was inaugurated, Jocelyn Samuels received a message from the White House saying that the president - who had first appointed her as a commissioner to the US government agency tasked with fighting workplace discrimination - now wanted her gone.Like so many other officials Trump has axed since retaking office, Samuels was informed she was being terminated from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) because of her support for radical Biden administration guidance, DEI initiatives and a refusal to defend women against extreme gender ideology". Continue reading...

Families at Downing Street meeting on Wednesday will call for judge-led inquiry into killingsThe families of those killed in the Nottingham attacks will meet the prime minister next week to call for a judge-led statutory inquiry into the killings.On Wednesday a report found that Valdo Calocane, who killed students Barnaby Webber, 19, Grace O'Malley-Kumar, 19, and caretaker Ian Coates, 65, before attempting to kill three other people in a spate of attacks in the city in June 2023, was not forced to take injectable antipsychotic medication because he did not like needles. Continue reading...

The US sports betting industry has boomed since 2018 - with it brings a dark side' as gambling addiction also risesMore Americans than ever are expected to place bets on Sunday's Super Bowl, with a record $1.39bn of estimated wagers to be placed, amid concerns over the rise of gambling addiction.Since the supreme court overturned a federal law that made sports betting illegal in 2018, the industry has boomed, with 38 states opting to legalize. Gambling revenue hit $99.4bn in 2022, according to the American Gaming Association (AGA), the industry lobby group. Continue reading...

Problems began in the UK at about midnight on Friday, with more than 71,000 users complaining of losing access to online eventsThe PlayStation Network (PSN) is down, depriving online gamers around the world from accessing weekend events.The PSN is the service that Sony's PlayStation console owners use to access its online gaming network. It allows players to connect with other gamers around the world. Continue reading...

Company will start sunsetting' goals it set in 2017 after an evaluation of changing US political landscapeAccenture has scrapped its global diversity and inclusion goals after an evaluation of the changing US political landscape.According to an internal memo sent by its CEO, Julie Sweet, seen by Reuters and also reported in the Financial Times, the company will start sunsetting" the diversity goals it set in 2017, along with career development programmes for people of specific demographic groups". Continue reading...

Two months after the fall of Assad's regime, Whitehall's decision to pause asylum applications from Syrians has left more than 6,600 cases stuck on hold in the UKMore than 6,000 Syrians in Britain are stuck in limbo because of an ongoing freeze on their asylum claims, two months after the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime.The Home Office announced a pause" on Syrian asylum seekers' claims on 9 December, the day after rebels swept into Damascus, saying that it needed to assess the current situation". Continue reading...

Talks with UK government at early stage about returning Sinaga, found guilty in Manchester of assaulting 48 menThe UK has begun talks with Indonesia to repatriate a serial rapist convicted of assaulting scores of men.Reynhard Sinaga, 41, was found guilty in Manchester in 2020 of assaulting 48 men, whom he drugged after taking them back to his apartment from bars and clubs in the city. Continue reading...

Demoralised clergy speak of church in freefall and crisis of trust in run-up to governing body meetingMutiny may be in the air when the Church of England's normally staid ruling body, the General Synod, meets for a five-day session next week.The gathering of the 500-member church parliament follows a series of tumultuous events that have resulted in the unprecedented resignation of the archbishop of Canterbury, repeated calls for the archbishop of York to stand down, and the sudden departure of the bishop of Liverpool. Behind all are cases of abuse, alleged abuse and the church's failure to deal with abuse. Continue reading...

Veterans of May and Johnson governments share lessons from their experiences with unpredictable US presidentIt was just a few mangled sentences spoken in the darkness on an airport tarmac. But Donald Trump's comments this week - his most significant yet regarding the UK - were enough to give heart to people in Downing Street and the Foreign Office.UK is out of line. But I'm sure that one, I think that one, can be worked out," Trump said to reporters travelling with him at the Joint Base Andrews air force facility in Maryland. Prime Minister Starmer has been very nice. We've had a couple of meetings, we've had numerous phone calls, we're getting along very well." Continue reading...

Warning by vice-chancellor Deborah Prentice comes as Silicon Valley' planned between Oxford and CambridgeThe University of Cambridge risks losing unbelievable talent" owing to a drop-off in funding for PhDs, the vice-chancellor has cautioned.Prof Deborah Prentice, who took over as vice-chancellor in 2023, described PhD students as the lifeblood" of the university's research and innovation work, and expressed concern that funding from research councils had dropped off significantly". Continue reading...

Figures show practice continues eight years after pledge to end it, potentially impeding young people's recoveryChildren and young people in England with serious mental health problems are still being sent for treatment many miles away from their homes because bed shortages in some areas remain so severe, despite a pledge to end such practices eight years ago.NHS England promised in 2017 to stop forcing highly troubled under-18s to leave family and friends after some received care more than 300 miles from where they lived. Continue reading...

Widowed parent's allowance claims for those not married or in civil partnership can only be backdated from 30 August 2018Two bereaved parents have filed a case at the European court of human rights, claiming that the UK government's treatment of them is discriminatory.Jyotee Gunnooa and Andrew Byles lost their partners but were unable to claim a benefit for widowed parents because they were not married or in civil partnerships when the deaths happened. Continue reading...