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After men's conker world champion was accused of cheating, Peckham event says he would be welcome in south-east LondonNever in its proud 60-year history has an allegation of such audacious cheating been made against a competitor in the World Conker Championships (WCC) as that levelled at 82-year-old David Jakins - King Conker" himself, no less.As a competitor since 1977, and having finally won this year's men's competition, the holder of the King Conker honorary title and the mascot" of the championships was subsequently found to have a steel conker in his pocket. Continue reading...

Kim Leadbeater, sponsor of bill, says it will include stringent' criteria and only apply to terminally ill adults

Lawyers for music mogul, 54, charged in wide-ranging sex-trafficking case, criticize onslaught of baseless allegations'Sean Diddy" Combs wants prosecutors in his sex-trafficking case to disclose the names of his accusers, Manhattan federal court documents show.Combs, 54, needs to know the identities of his accusers so as to prepare for the 5 May trial, his legal team argued in a Tuesday letter to judge Arun Subramanian. Continue reading...

Image used as visual prompt in standard and advanced English paper 1 sparks accusations of hypocrisy

2021-22 Personal Safety Survey finds 2 million women and 650,000 men have experienced stalking since the age of 15

Campaign group warns of emergency on our streets' after estimated 155 people died while rough sleeping last yearAndrew Reece was 37 and sleeping rough in Stoke-on-Trent when on 10 May 2023 he took his own life in an abandoned and roofless children's home.Reece, known locally as Pud, was one of an estimated 155 people who died in the UK last year while rough sleeping, an annual increase of 42%, according to a count by the Museum of Homelessness project.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org. Continue reading...

Source says backstage brush-by' did not include discussion of VIP protection given to star, a decision made by Scotland YardKeir Starmer met Taylor Swift at one of her London concerts days after a decision was taken to grant her a blue light" police escort, No 10 sources have confirmed.The prime minister and his family had a 10-minute meeting with the pop megastar and her mother, Andrea, backstage at Wembley on 20 August, with the conversation covering the Southport murders, which took place at a Swift-themed holiday club. Continue reading...

Chancellor's words will be interpreted as signal she will not give in to ministers over cuts she imposes in budgetRachel Reeves has told the cabinet that the UK still faces a 100bn black hole in the public finances over the next five years amid concerns that ministers are yet to grasp the full scale of the fiscal deficit ahead.At a meeting of the political cabinet, the chancellor said the 22bn gap this year - which the government has blamed on their poor economic inheritance from the Tories - would be a recurring cost each year of this parliament. Continue reading...

Comments from PM's office come amid continued attacks on Lebanon and Gaza and after reports of assurances to US

Mikhail Pichugin survived but the ordeal claimed the lives of his brother and teenage nephewA Russian man survived more than two months drifting in icy seas on an inflatable boat in an ordeal that claimed the lives of his brother and teenage nephew, officials and reports said.Mikhail Pichugin may have survived because of his 100kg (220lb) build, according to his wife. Media reports said he weighed just 50kg when found on Monday. Continue reading...

Donald Trump went off script on Monday night and abandoned the usual Q&A format of a townhall event in favour of bopping along to his campaign playlist. Chris Michael has the details Continue reading...

Foreign Office declines to penalise two Israeli ministers as ex-foreign secretary David Cameron had planned

Modi government agents alleged to have collaborated with syndicate run by mob boss Lawrence BishnoiCanadian police have accused the Indian government of working with a criminal network run by one of India's most notorious gangsters, Lawrence Bishnoi, to carry out targeted killings of dissidents in Canada.A diplomatic row broke out between India and Canada on Monday after Canadian police accused Indian diplomats of criminal" activities in the country, including extortion, intimidation, coercion and harassment, and involvement in targeted killings of Canadian citizens. Continue reading...

Ex-president swayed to songs such as YMCA and Ave Maria during Pennsylvania event after two attendees faintedOpposition outrage over Donald Trump's rabble-rousing demagoguery turned to bewilderment after the Republican nominee spent 40 minutes swaying to his favourite songs at a rally near Philadelphia, prompting Kamala Harris to express apparent concern for his mental state.Hope he's okay," Harris, the US vice-president and Democratic nominee, posted on social media, accompanying footage of a performance that many observers agreed was bizarre, even by Trump's standards. Continue reading...

Unleashed, which covers Johnson's time as mayor of London, foreign secretary and prime minister, was the bestselling book of the weekBoris Johnson's memoir, Unleashed, sold 42,528 copies in its opening week after being published on 10 October, making it the bestselling book of last week.This means Johnson has outsold David Cameron's 2019 memoir, For the Record, which sold 20,792 copies in the week it was published, though Tony Blair's memoir, A Journey, sold 92,060 copies in its opening week. Liz Truss shifted just 2,228 copies of her memoir, Ten Years to Save the West, in its first week on sale earlier this year. Continue reading...

Family-owned group closed shop on London's Bond Street in February and has eight stores led by Newcastle

As the Israeli military attacks United Nations peacekeepers, we look at the background to the violence

Coverage with UK-European provider will be in place by end of month, says island's main telecoms companyTaiwan is expected to have access to low earth orbit satellite internet service by the end of the month, a step the government says is crucial in case a Chinese attack cripples the island's communications.The forthcoming service is via a contract between Taiwan's main telecoms company, Chunghwa, and a UK-European company, Eutelsat OneWeb, signed last year, and marks a new milestone in Taiwan's efforts to address technological vulnerabilities, particularly its internet access, after attempts to get access to Elon Musk's Starlink service collapsed. Continue reading...

Exclusive: EA warns it lacks budget to tackle England's rising number of potential forever chemicals' locationsThe number of sites identified as potentially having been polluted with banned cancer-causing forever chemicals" in England is on the rise, and the Environment Agency (EA) says it does not have the budget to deal with them.A former RAF airfield in Cambridgeshire and a fire service college in the Cotswolds have joined a chemicals plant in Lancashire and a fire protection equipment supplier in North Yorkshire on the agency's list of problem sites" for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Continue reading...

Unions plan to rally members after vice chancellor Prof Genevieve Bell requests forgoing 2.5% December increase

Girl's grandmother, Caroline Sturgess, reads statement to inquiry into death of Dawn Sturgess in 2018The daughter of a woman killed in the Wiltshire novichok poisonings has told an inquiry into her death of her sadness that she never got to say goodbye to her.In a statement read to the inquiry by Dawn Sturgess's mother, Caroline Sturgess, the girl said: Me and my mum had a bond that I will never forget. The day I heard she had fallen really ill was heartbreaking to hear." Continue reading...

Men from countries deemed safe are transferred to Albania to have asylum claims processedThe first people to be intercepted at sea by the Italian navy under a controversial migration deal with Albania are on their way to the Balkan nation to have their asylum claims processed.As part of the pact signed off by Italy's far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, a navy ship set off on Monday and is due to arrive at the port of Schengjin on Wednesday morning. The interior ministry confirmed on Monday night that 16 men - - 10 Bangladeshis and six Egyptians - who it said had arrived from Libya and were rescued on Sunday in international waters by the Italian coastguard were on board. Continue reading...

Roads have long been unused but destroying them sends clear message Pyongyang does not want to negotiate with Seoul, experts saySouth Korea has condemned North Korea after it destroyed roads linking the countries on Tuesday, in another blow to bilateral ties on the increasingly tense peninsula.The South Korean unification ministry, which overseas inter-Korean relations, described the North's decision to blow up roads on its side of the countries' heavily armed border as abnormal" and a violation of bilateral agreements designed to lower tensions. Continue reading...

Under-pressure housebuilder says drive to increase UK housing stock could generate long-term growth

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Exclusive: Jo Tarnawsky's lawyer Michael Bradley claims adversarial' legal letter raises serious questions about role of PWSS

Eyes wide open' clause will require new residents in some suburbs to formally acknowledge they are moving into an area with late-night entertainment

Drumgold says he has always maintained that [his] conduct has been proper and appropriate'

Engaged couple purchase four-bedroom oceanfront house to be closer to Haydon's family

Deputy mayor says Czech capital doesn't want type of visitor who comes for a short time only to get drunk'Prague city councillors have banned night-time pub crawls organised by travel agencies because the city wanted to target more cultured" tourists.The Czech capital of 1.3 million people has for a long time been a popular destination for noisy stag parties and pub crawlers, largely from Britain. Continue reading...

Accusations made hours after both countries expel senior diplomats in escalating row over killing of Sikh activistCanadian police accused Indian diplomats and consular staff of clandestine" and criminal" activities in the country on Monday night, hours after senior diplomats were expelled from both countries in an escalating geopolitical row.Speaking to reporters at a hastily organised press conference, the head of the Royal Canadian Mounted police (RCMP) said the force had evidence of agents" acting on behalf of the Indian government engaging in extortion, intimidation, coercion and harassment. Continue reading...

This blog has now closed. You can read our latest full report here and all our coverage from the region here.More now on the Hezbollah strike on an IDF training base we reported on earlier (see post 7.33BST)

Energy crisis panel warns country is dangerously unprepared' and must shift away from gas quicklyBritain is at risk of experiencing a repeat of the sharp increase in energy costs which has fuelled the continuing cost of living crisis because it relies too heavily on gas, according to an expert panel of industry leaders.The Energy Crisis Commission has warned that the UK is still dangerously underprepared" for another crisis because it continues to rely on gas for its power plants and home heating. Continue reading...

Metal replica conker found in pocket of David Jakins AKA King Conker, first-time winner after competing since 1977The World Conker Championships is investigating cheating allegations after the men's winner was found to have a steel chestnut in his pocket.David Jakins won the annual title in Southwick, Northamptonshire on Sunday for the first time after competing since 1977. Continue reading...

Hezbollah fires rockets at Tel Aviv in apparent response, while Israeli attacks on Gaza include a hospital courtyard

Prosecutions of passengers accused of using 16-25 railcard for discounts at wrong time of day are being withdrawnRail passengers could be entitled to compensation after Northern was accused of breaking its fare evasion rules to prosecute commuters.The train operator said on Monday all prosecutions of people accused of using a 16-25 railcard to obtain a discount at the wrong time of day were being withdrawn and thousands of previous cases reviewed. Continue reading...

With Israel expected to retaliate, it is not surprising US has announced it will deploy Thaad missile defence systemsAs Israel's conflict with Hezbollah and Iran has escalated, it has begun to show a degree of vulnerability. A Hezbollah drone evaded Israel's much vaunted air defences on Sunday and struck a military canteen when it was busy with soldiers eating dinner. Four were killed and 58 wounded, seven seriously, at a location 40 miles south of the Lebanese border.The drone that hit the canteen of the Golani base near Binyamina appears to have been part of a synchronised attack that allowed it to elude the country's well organised air defences. Three drones flew from Lebanon over the Mediterranean, and though they were all initially spotted, and two shot down, the other was able to reach its target. Continue reading...

Urfan Sharif is accused alongside Sara's stepmother and uncle of killing 10-year-old at Surrey home in August 2023

Bob Lambert told two managers of his secret Scotland Yard unit but they decided to do nothingAn undercover police officer bragged" that he had fathered a child with an activist from whom he had concealed his real identity, a public inquiry has heard.The officer, Bob Lambert, had the child with the woman, known only as Jacqui, while he was infiltrating animal rights and anarchist groups. Continue reading...

Keir Starmer is going to Samoa to discuss shared challenges and opportunities', says spokespersonThe issue of reparations for slavery is not on the agenda for next week's Commonwealth heads of government (Chogm) summit, and the UK is not considering paying up, Downing Street has said.The stance could put Keir Starmer, who will attend the gathering in Samoa, on a collision course with other nations. All three candidates to succeed Patricia Scotland as Chogm secretary general at the event have said they support reparations for countries affected by slavery and colonisation. Continue reading...

Consumer advocate says results are a worrying reminder' children are at risk from insecure battery components on most items

Warm air from south to deliver above-average temperatures - but heavy rain expected to followNorth-west Europe is forecast to experience a burst of autumn warmth this week, thanks to warm air from southern Europe spreading northwards. This brief episode of warmer-than-average conditions will be driven by an amplified, or wavy", jet stream, which will allow warm air to push farther north.Daytime temperatures across much of France are forecast to reach the mid-20s on Tuesday and Wednesday, with some areas in the south-west potentially exceeding this. Meanwhile, the Benelux area and south-east England are expected to reach the low-20s by midweek. Continue reading...

Treasurer says uncovering unfair' practices also part of proposed surcharge revamp designed to give consumers better deal and cut small business's costs

Steven Miles says he would prefer Crisafulli minority government over horse-trading if he fails to win absolute majority at October election

Company tried to convince police to take action against a post office operator this year, it has emergedThe Post Office tried to use selective positive comments about the reliability of the Horizon IT system from a damning high court judgment to try to get police to review a decision not to launch criminal proceedings against an operator earlier this year, it has emerged.More than 550 post office operators - including Alan Bates and Jo Hamilton who were portrayed in the hit ITV drama on the Horizon IT scandal - were vindicated in 2019 when a 400-page judgment found the faulty system relied upon to secure the convictions was not remotely robust" and the Post Office agreed to pay 58m to settle the claims. Continue reading...

Former cabinet colleague of Tory leadership candidate says muddled' campaign essay does not take correct approach'

Judge says forfeiture rule should not apply in case of Philip Morris, whose wife, Myra, had multiple system atrophyA man who helped his terminally ill wife travel to Switzerland to end her own life is entitled to inherit part of her estate, a judge has ruled.Philip Morris, 76, with very great reluctance" assisted his wife, Myra Morris, then 73, when she went to the Pegasos clinic in Liestal, Switzerland in December 2023 and self-administered a fatal dose of pentobarbital. Continue reading...

Tim Davie says corporation is committed to change after controversies involving senior presenters, including Huw EdwardsThe BBC director general has said he has kind of banned" referring to its high-profile staff as talent" as the corporation grapples with the fallout from controversies involving a number of senior presenters.Tim Davie was speaking after the BBC launched an independent review of its workplace culture after scandals, including the one surrounding the disgraced presenter Huw Edwards. Continue reading...

Revealed: USAid officials meet Israeli counterparts at Sde Teiman base, where detainees say abuse runs rampantOfficials from the US's main humanitarian agency attend daily meetings on an Israeli military base that also hosts a notorious prison for Palestinian detainees where torture reportedly runs rampant, the Guardian has learned.According to three officials with the US Agency for International Development (USAid), Israel's humanitarian relief hub began operating at the desert military base Sde Teiman on 29 July, with a regular US presence. USAid is tasked with facilitating urgently needed humanitarian assistance to Gaza. Continue reading...

Multinational claims upcoming ABC report into it will likely be inaccurate and unbalanced' as experts say without intervention smaller venues will struggle to survive