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Chelsea player and Matildas captain faces trial over January incident involving officer responding to taxi fare disputeSam Kerr, the Chelsea and Australia footballer, is to face trial in the UK accused of the racially aggravated harassment of a police officer.The 30-year-old appeared in court on Monday accused of using insulting, threatening or abusive words that caused alarm or distress to an officer who was responding to a complaint over a taxi fare in Twickenham, south-west London, on 30 January 2023. Continue reading...

Health spending in England to suffer 1.2% cut, worth 2bn, despite extra costs, thinktank's analysis findsNHS funding faces the biggest cuts in real terms since the 1970s, an influential analysis shows, amid growing pressure on Jeremy Hunt to prioritise public service funding over tax cuts in the budget.It comes as the Guardian has learned that the chancellor is planning to clamp down on the NHS's annual 4.6bn bill for agency workers who cover for doctor and nurse shortages at the frontline. Continue reading...

Party now on course to field as many as 90 candidates in general election and looking to team up with independentsUntil George Galloway's Rochdale byelection win, few may have taken notice of the Workers party beyond those intrigued by the minutiae of the far left. Others may have flicked through some of its literature, such as Ukraine and the origins of the special military operation", a 44-page pamphlet using Vladimir Putin's term for Russia's invasion of Ukraine and echoing Kremlin talking points on the conflict.But the win last week has suddenly catapulted it to national prominence as a vehicle for challenges that could deprive Labour of votes in scores of constituencies where anger at Keir Starmer's stance on Gaza may now have a focus. Continue reading...

Chancellor Olaf Scholz says he will not give rockets that could strike at strategic Crimea bridge, as Russia seeks to exploit leak

Armed gangs attack international airport and free over 3,800 prisoners in seemingly coordinated effort to oust Ariel Henry

The hugely successful beach-set drama is returning to television after an underwhelming response to 2017 movieA reboot of the highly successful drama Baywatch is heading to television.The original series became one of the most watched shows in the world running for 11 seasons in the late 80s and 90s. The new version will again follow a group of Los Angeles county lifeguards as they deal with various emergencies. Continue reading...

Rachel Roberts and more than 900 photographers had signed petition about clergy obstructing their workA wedding photographer at the centre of a row with vicars that has sparked an intervention by a former archbishop has called for the two camps to put aside their differences and work in peaceful harmony.Last week more than 900 wedding photographers signed a petition started by photographer Rachel Roberts, who urged vicars to improve" their working conditions after complaints that some clergymen and women had been making it difficult to take photos inside church premises. Continue reading...

Only he can save the UK in its hour of need, and he'll start by taking out Angela Rayner at the general electionIt's a grubby job, but someone has to do it. There's a House of Commons resolution dating back to 1688 that requires a new MP to be introduced by two current MPs at their swearing in. So all eyes were on who had drawn the short straw to stand with George Galloway.One early contender had been the Tory MP David Davis, who takes his libertarian principles seriously. He may not like what you say, but he believes in your right to say it. But even he melted away after the prime minister's deranged rant outside Downing Street on Friday evening. These days you can be found guilty of crimes against humanity in Rishi Sunak's Conservative party for even thinking of observing parliamentary convention by coming to someone like Galloway's aid. Davis has now been sent to the gulags for 20 years re-education. Continue reading...

Trial drew attention to violence faced by sex workers in city, where the cases of four women killed in 1990s remain unresolvedPolice Scotland is examining several unsolved murders of women in Glasgow after the trial of the serial rapist and killer Iain Packer highlighted the horrific levels of violence facing sex workers in the city.Packer was sentenced to at least 36 years in prison last Wednesday for the murder of Emma Caldwell in 2005 and a catalogue of other sexual and violent offences, including 11 rapes. Continue reading...

Workers party leader says there are many places where it can win or make sure that Keir Starmer doesn't'George Galloway has said he will target more seats in the next general election including the deputy Labour leader's after his swearing-in at Westminster following last week's Rochdale byelection victory.Speaking outside parliament, Galloway singled out Angela Rayner's constituency of Ashton-under-Lyne, where she is defending a majority of 4,263, as an example of where his Workers Party of Britain, or a candidate backed by it, could cause havoc for her chances of re-election. Continue reading...

Officials say pressure is rising' on two fugitives after arrest of a third last week and raids at weekendAuthorities in Germany have called on two suspected leftwing terrorists to turn themselves in and said they were close on their tails.After the arrest a week ago of Daniela Klette, the last remaining female member of the Red Army Faction at large, officials said the net was closing in on her two alleged accomplices, Burkhard Garweg, 55, and Ernst-Volker Staub, 69. Continue reading...

Opposition wins vote by huge margin as government suffers first defeat on billThere will be one urgent question in the Commons today at 3.30pm, on the Home Office's decision to publish 13 reports from the former independent chief inspector of borders and immigration last week on Thursday afternoon.The former minister Paul Scully has announced he will stand down at the next election in a statement suggesting the Conservative party has lost its way" and is heading down an ideological cul-de-sac". Continue reading...

Group action demands compensation over alleged fitting of IUDs in women and children in late 1960sNearly 150 Greenlandic women have sued the Danish state, alleging that they were fitted with the contraceptive coil without their consent or knowledge.A group of 143 women took legal action on Monday, demanding a collective payment of close to 43m Danish kroner (4.9m) for what they describe as a violation of their human rights. Continue reading...

Attack on two prisons comes amid outbreak of violence as PM in Kenya trying to salvage UN-backed security forceHaiti has declared a three-day state of emergency and a night-time curfew after armed gangs stormed the country's two biggest jails, allowing more than 3,000 dangerous criminals, including murderers and kidnappers, to escape back on to the streets of the poor and violence-racked Caribbean nation.The finance minister, Patrick Boisvert - who is in charge while the embattled prime minister, Ariel Henry, is abroad trying to salvage support for a UN-backed security force to stabilise Haiti - said police would use all legal means at their disposal" to recapture the prisoners and enforce the curfew. Continue reading...

Special congress expected to approve irreversible' amendment with result expected on Monday eveningThe French parliament met in an historic joint session at the Palace of Versailles on Monday for a final vote on enshrining abortion as a constitutional right.The vote, which is expected to achieve the three-fifths majority necessary to pass, will give women the guaranteed freedom" to choose an abortion. Continue reading...

Move by Spanish regional government to tackle period poverty will benefit about 2.5m peopleThe Catalonia region in Spain has begun providing free reusable menstrual cups, period underwear and cloth pads at pharmacies, in one of the first initiatives of its kind in the world.The programme is part of a drive by the regional government to reduce period poverty after a survey found 44% of women using menstruation products in Catalonia could not afford their first-choice product and 23% said they had to reuse items designed for single use. Continue reading...

Penalty for breaching competition law is four times higher than forecast as Brussels looks to send message to tech firmsApple has been fined 1.8bn (1.5bn) by the EU after an investigation found it had limited competition from music streaming services such as Spotify.The fine is nearly four times higher than expected as the European Commission attempts to show it will act decisively on tech companies who abuse their dominant position in the market for online services. Continue reading...

German ambassador to Moscow summoned to Russian foreign ministry in order to explain leaked military discussion. This live blog is now closed

The acclaimed dancer, director and choreographer takes on ballet's favourite frosty Christmas show, with his Cuba-based company Acosta DanzaI want to make it snow in Havana," said Cuban ballet star Carlos Acosta as he announced a new version of ballet's favourite frosty Christmas show The Nutcracker on Monday. Nutcracker in Havana will weave traditional Cuban rhythms and dances together with classical ballet, all set to a revised version of Tchaikovsky's famous musical score by Cuban composer Pepe Gavilondo.Having grown up in Havana under Fidel Castro, who effectively banned Christmas, Acosta did not celebrate it until he left the island to join Houston Ballet in 1993, aged 20. He was staying with the company's director when he came home one day to find a giant tree in the living room. I said, this man has gone mad! What is he doing planting a tree in the living room?!" But over Acosta's 17 years dancing with the Royal Ballet in London, he came to love the annual festivities. It's a lovely period of bringing everyone together," he said. I want to give my nation that kind of experience." Continue reading...

Palestinian Authority ministry of health said the killing of Mustafa Abu Shalbak happened in the early morning hours. This live blog is closed

Met police seize vehicle, stolen in Italy in 1995 and worth 350,000, in London as it was about to be sold to a US buyerThe wheels of justice may move painfully slowly compared with the speed of Formula One, but Scotland Yard has recovered a special edition Ferrari belonging to the racing driver Gerhard Berger 28 years after it went missing.The red F512M Testarossa, worth 350,000, was stolen in Imola, Italy, in 1995 as crowds gathered for a grand prix. Continue reading...

Acclaimed British movie starring Morfydd Clark will be adapted for Live theatre in Newcastle by Jessica Andrews, with music by Gazelle TwinThe British horror film Saint Maud is to be adapted for the stage in a new production at Live theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne this autumn.Rose Glass's atmospheric debut feature, released to huge critical acclaim in 2020, starred Morfydd Clark as a troubled caregiver in Scarborough who develops a damaging obsession with her patient (Jennifer Ehle). The stage adaptation is by Jessica Andrews, whose novels include the award-winning Saltwater, and it will feature new music by Gazelle Twin. Continue reading...

Research into 220 Australian families over two years concludes exposure to television, phone and other screens hinders young children's language skills

Kremlin claims audio of officers discussing UK help with missiles shows involvement of collective west'

Campaigners say fully automated' approach risks repeat of Post Office Horizon scandal

Outgoing climate chief not ready' to give up on 1.5C goal. Plus, Nikki Haley wins her first Republican primary in Washington DC

Police killed Jason Maccani as he held a fork, one of many cases of confused Los Angeles officers rushing to use lethal forceThe first report from the Los Angeles police department about the killing of Jason Maccani on 3 February immediately drew scrutiny: an officer had fatally shot a man who had been armed with a stick" and threatening people in a building on Skid Row, the department said.LAPD's update a day later raised new concerns: the 36-year-old Maccani hadn't been holding any weapon, but rather a white plastic fork". Continue reading...

The party misses the chance to have a female candidate in the safe seat vacated by former prime minister Scott Morrison

ID3 tag on a track of his posted to SoundCloud in 2014 saying vaccines are poisonous' has been changed, said the musicianAphex Twin has clarified his stance on vaccines after anti-vax sentiments and other conspiracy theories appeared in the ID3 tag of a song posted to SoundCloud.A Reddit user found an ID3 tag on a song posted by the Cornish producer AKA Richard D James in 2014, reading vaccines are poisonous, mercury, aluminum can+ autism, cancer" and also referencing 9/11, Hamas and chemtrails. Continue reading...

As discontent with leader, John Pesutto, rises, the fractured party is casting around for a replacement that will unite them

Crash in Andhra Pradesh state in October took place as India played England during one-day World CupThe drivers of a train that missed a signal and ploughed into another train, killing 14 people, were distracted because they were watching cricket on a phone, India's railways minister has said.The fatal collision in Andhra Pradesh state in October took place as hosts India played England during the one-day World Cup. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Sobhia Khan's husband was being monitored in hospital over violent and sexual offences against a former partnerThe family of a woman who was murdered by a convicted violent offender when he was supposed to be under supervision have said she would still be alive had the police, social services and mental healthcare providers not failed her.Sobhia Khan, 37 at the time of her death in May 2017, was subjected to domestic violence on a savage scale" before being beaten to death by her newlywed husband, Ataul Mustafa. He was being monitored in the community as a restricted patient after earlier being sentenced to a hospital order for violent and sexual offences against a former partner.In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 988 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org Continue reading...

Exclusive: Joseph Rowntree Foundation finds widening gulf between demand for tax cuts and reality for millions strugglingJeremy Hunt has been told Wednesday's budget risks condemning Britain to a second lost decade" for living standards that would leave working families 1,900 a year worse off.The chancellor enters a crunch week under pressure from his party to deliver a package of pre-election tax cuts, but analysis by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) finds a widening gulf between these political demands and the reality facing millions of struggling people. Continue reading...

Annual appearances were rare opportunity for foreign media to engage with high-ranking Chinese officialsChina's leading economics official, premier Li Qiang, will not address the press at the country's major annual political gathering in Beijing, in a break with tradition.The Two Sessions has started against a backdrop of major economic headwinds, decreasing transparency on government indicators, and growing concern among international business and investors. Continue reading...

Judge overturns one finding against former ACT director of public prosecutions Shane Drumgold

This blog is now closed.

Synergy 360 is seeking damages after claiming news articles were defamatory, while Nine says it will vigorously defend' the claim

Attempt by ex-Liberal MP for parliamentary expenses authority's decision over his travel claims to be reviewed thrown out by federal courtA court challenge by former federal Liberal MP Andrew Laming against parliament's expenditure watchdog over travel expenses has been dismissed.Laming, who is running for mayor of Redland city council in Queensland's March local government elections, took the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority to the federal court over its conclusions about his travel. Continue reading...

Proposals to reduce funding for services from bin collections to social care, arts and libraries leave many worried for the futureIt wasn't long ago that the people of Birmingham were being told the city was on the brink of a golden decade", with record levels of investment off the back of events including the Commonwealth Games and the arrival of HS2.Now the council has declared itself effectively bankrupt and councillors will decide on Tuesday whether to approve a range of proposed budget cuts and a council tax rise of 21% over the next two years, leaving residents worried for what the future holds. Continue reading...

Prime minister Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia would reopen the investigation if there was compelling new evidenceMalaysia is willing to reopen an investigation into the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines MH370 if there is compelling new evidence, prime minister Anwar Ibrahim has said.Flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, carrying 12 Malaysian crew members and 227 passengers, vanished from air traffic radar on 8 March 2014. Its disappearance sparked the largest ever search operation but the fate of the plane has never been resolved and it remains one of the greatest aviation mysteries.

Pressure mounts on government not to extend Wentworth Park's lease as petition to shut venue gathers more than 3,000 signaturesTwo greyhounds have died within a fortnight at Sydney's Wentworth Park, intensifying calls for the inner-city racetrack to close immediately.Two-year-old Oceanside was euthanised after suffering fractures to its foreleg and hindleg during the first lap of the race on Saturday 2 March, the Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission stewards' report has revealed.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...

Exclusive: findings raise concerns over two-tier service' with poorer people also feeling less heard by medicsPoorer people find it much harder to access NHS care than the well-off and have a worse experience when they do get it, research by the health service's consumer watchdog has found.Those on the lowest incomes have much more difficulty getting a GP appointment, dental care or help with mental health problems, according to a survey by Healthwatch England.42% of those who described their financial situation as really struggling" said they had trouble getting to see a GP, double the 21% of those who were very comfortable".38% of the worst-off found it hard to get NHS dental care, compared with 20% of the better-off.28% of the very poor had difficulty accessing mental health treatment, whereas only 9% of the very comfortable did so. Continue reading...

Mariana Mortagua warns victory in Sunday's election could reverse social gains and mark return of political bankruptcy'A victory for the right in the Portuguese general election this week could reverse the social advances of the past few years and herald a return to the moral, theoretical and political bankruptcy" that followed the 2008 financial crisis, the leader of the small Left Bloc party has said.Speaking to the Guardian as Portugal prepared to go to the polls on Sunday in a snap election triggered by the collapse in November of Antonio Costa's socialist government, Mariana Mortagua said rightwing and far-right parties did not have viable solutions to the country's housing, healthcare and wage crises. Continue reading...

Opposition leader's latest trip west to celebrate with the billionaire raises questions among Labor MPs and his usual media supporters

Exclusive: Airservices Australia says Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games will be catalysing event for air taxis', with 60m drone flights of all types expected by 2043

The recording of call involving military officers included a discussion of weapons for Ukraine and a potential strike by Kyiv on a bridge in CrimeaGermany's defence minister has accused Russia of conducting an information war" aimed at creating divisions within the country, in his first comments after the publication of an audio recording of a meeting of senior German military officials.Russian media on Friday published a 38-minute recording of a call in which German officers were heard discussing weapons for Ukraine and a potential strike by Kyiv on a bridge in Crimea, prompting officials in Moscow to demand an explanation. Continue reading...

A 70-mile stretch of the major corridor was nearly impassable as blizzard conditions continue and a second storm is on the horizonBlizzard conditions in California continued to batter the Sierra Nevada mountains on Sunday, keeping a 70-mile stretch of Interstate 80 closed near the Nevada state line, even as forecasters warned of more snow on the way.Sections of Interstate 80 to the west and north of Lake Tahoe were made impassable by blowing snow piling up in lanes, with no estimate for reopening, the California Highway Patrol said. Continue reading...

Union criticises education recovery funding as attainment gap in primary school pupils grows to 8.7 monthsChildren from low-income families in England are further behind their peers in maths than they were before the pandemic, research suggests.The attainment gap for disadvantaged primary school pupils in maths has grown from an average of 6.9 months to 8.7 months, the study by the thinktank the Education Policy Institute (EPI) and the software firm Renaissance Learning has found. Continue reading...

Charity's work has transformed since the lifesaving service was founded in a London tavern in 1824It was founded in a London tavern on 4 March 1824, a lifesaving service designed to go to the aid of the ships that crashed with alarming regularity on to the coasts of Britain and Ireland.Exactly two centuries on, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is launching its bicentenary celebrations and has calculated that it has, so far, saved a grand total of 146,277 lives, an average of two a day. Continue reading...

Fallen Women group wants police to make domestic abuse a key line of inquiry in murder investigationsCampaigners are calling for an immediate review into cases where women have fallen from a height to ensure domestic abusers cannot get away with murder.There could be as many as 130 hidden homicides" a year in England and Wales, the Killed Women campaign group estimates, in which women were murdered by a partner or family member but their deaths were officially recorded as accidental or suicide. Continue reading...