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Mild winter and falling wholesale gas prices lead to lower level, in boost for household financesThe energy price cap in Great Britain will fall by 238 to 1690 this spring as a mild winter and lower gas prices ease pressure on household finances.The 29 million households in England, Wales and Scotland can expect to pay the average annual bill from April after the energy regulator Ofgem dropped the price cap by 12.3% from 1,928 in the current quarter. Continue reading...

Announcement comes after student survey found one in 20 students had been sexually assaulted since starting university and one in six had reported being sexually harassed

Authorities say in eight overdose cases where drug samples were available, heroin was the opioid identified

Indigenous leader says yes campaign lacked necessary bipartisanship and federal reform for Aboriginal people has come to a complete standstill'

The 39-year-old died suddenly and violently after a ritual involving Amazonian frog poison in Mullumbimby in 2019

Judges to decide whether revoking citizenship of teenager who joined Islamic State was unlawfulShamima Begum, who left the UK as a 15-year-old schoolgirl to join Islamic State is to find out whether her appeal against the removal of her UK citizenship has been successful.Three court of appeal judges, including the chief justice, Sue Carr, will rule on Friday whether the home secretary's revocation of her citizenship, on the basis that it was conducive to the public good", and the special immigration appeals commission's (Siac) ruling to uphold his decision, were unlawful. Continue reading...

Lamarre, 28, turned himself to NSW police on Friday morning and is assisting with inquiries at Waverley police station

Thirteen reported injured as 22 teams of firefighters fight flames engulfing 14-storey buildingSpanish firefighters have been battling high winds to put out a huge fire that gutted a multi-storey apartment block in Valencia and left four dead.At least 13 people have been injured, including a minor and six firefighters, emergency services and regional officials in the eastern port city said, without providing details on the extent of the injuries. The emergency services earlier said seven people were lightly injured, mostly from smoke inhalation. Continue reading...

Study analysing data from 10m consultations in England also says practice can free up millions of appointmentsSeeing the same GP improves patients' health, reduces doctors' workloads and could free up millions of appointments, according to the largest study of its kind.Primary care is under enormous strain, with patients struggling to book consultations, GPs quitting or retiring early, and financial pressures causing some practices to close. Four-week waits hit a record high in 2023, with 17.6m appointments taking place at least 28 days after being booked in England last year. Continue reading...

Maximum will be 2 for younger adults but campaigners say government has not gone far enoughThe amount that can be staked on the spin of an online slot machine will be capped at 5, or 2 for younger customers, as part of government plans to tighten regulation of the 11bn-a-year gambling industry in Great Britain.Online slots are currently exempt from limits on how much punters can wager.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...

TUC survey finds teaching staff perform the most unpaid overtime of any profession, losing out on 15,000 a year eachTeaching unions have accused ministers of daylight robbery" after a new survey by the Trades Union Congress revealed that teachers perform the most unpaid overtime of any profession.The TUC survey - published to mark its Work Your Proper Hours Day on Friday - found that two out of five teaching staff in the UK worked 26 hours for free each week, for a combined 5.5m hours a year. Continue reading...

New mobile data leads police to comb Mount Clear area for clues nearly three weeks after Murphy was last seenMobile phone data has provided a new lead in the search for Ballarat woman Samantha Murphy, who Victoria police now suspect that one or more parties" were involved in her disappearance three weeks ago.The 51-year-old mother of three left her home at Eureka Street in Ballarat East on 4 February to go jogging and has not been seen since. Continue reading...

Saunders, who was arrested at his Broome home on Wednesday, is facing multiple historical child sexual abuse allegations

President and vice-president speak out against ruling while Haley attempts to retract comments on embryos being babiesThe decision of the Alabama supreme court on in vitro fertilization, granting legal protections to frozen fertilized eggs, drew fire from President Joe Biden and other Democratic leaders on Thursday, laying responsibility for the decision on the US supreme court's ruling overturning Roe v Wade in 2022.A court in Alabama put access to some fertility treatments at risk for families who are desperately trying to get pregnant," Biden said in prepared remarks Thursday. The disregard for women's ability to make these decisions for themselves and their families is outrageous and unacceptable." Continue reading...

Peter Moffat will write show about what is considered one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in NHS historyITV has announced a drama on the contaminated blood scandal, widely considered to be one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in NHS history, after the success of its series on the Post Office.The drama, which is being written by the Bafta award-winning screenwriter Peter Moffat, will show how people with haemophilia and other blood disorders were contaminated with blood infected with HIV and Hepatitis C, the American media site Deadline reported. Continue reading...

Thousands of residents from almost 30 communities near Ballarat told to leave now'

Letter shows Post Office told ministers it would oppose attempts to overturn 369 prosecutionsThe Post Office has admitted writing to ministers saying it would stand by the prosecution of more than half of the post office operators targeted during the Horizon scandal as recently as last month.Despite the outpouring of concern and anger after what has been described as Britain's worst miscarriage of justice, the letter from the Post Office's chief executive, Nick Read, showed it would oppose attempts to overturn the prosecutions in 369 cases. Continue reading...

By the time she was six, Broadbent was sharing her story on TV, with the aim of educating the public and reducing stigmaHydeia Broadbent, an HIV/Aids activist who from a young age campaigned to reduce stigma around the virus, died on Tuesday in her home in Las Vegas. She was 39.Her father, Loren Broadbent, announced her death in a Facebook post. He did not share a cause of death. Continue reading...

Ian Connell is accused of strangling Donald Prentice' Patience in a dosshouse' in RadcliffeA statistician was murdered in a dosshouse" in Greater Manchester by a man who later stole his labradoodle after a disagreement over money, a court has heard.Ian Connell, 39, is accused of strangling Donald Prentice" Patience, 45, after a row and returning later to break into his property to take the dog, named Layla. Continue reading...

Australian Education Union report finds a $31.8bn divide in capital spending over 10 years

Exclusive: Analysis also shows same number would probably not be able to afford cost of improved insulationAlmost 10m households across the UK are living in cold, damp and poorly insulated homes while not earning enough to be able to make improvements to them, according to analysis.A total of 34% of UK households or 9.6m are living in cold, poorly insulated homes, according to analysis of the English Housing Survey by the Institute of Health Equity and Friends of the Earth. Continue reading...

Scout Association and one of its employees referred to police in Ben Leonard inquestA 16-year-old scout was unlawfully killed when he fell to his death during a trip to a rugged beauty spot in north Wales, a jury has concluded.Ben Leonard from Stockport, Greater Manchester, became separated from his group and fell about 60 metres (200ft) at Great Orme in Llandudno, suffering a head injury. Continue reading...

The CEO described Rolls as a burning platform' when he arrived in 2023, but its trajectory was already upwardsIt wasn't an imagined nightmare: Rolls-Royce really was flat on its back in 2020 during the early stage of the Covid pandemic. Cash was flowing out of the engine-maker at an annual rate of 4bn as the commercial airline industry, like the rest of us, went into lockdown.Management was modelling a severe but plausible downside scenario" in which things could get even worse. The finance director skipped off to Ocado, which, at the time, had a stock market value three times that of Rolls. An emergency rights issue to raise 2bn at the miserable price of 32p a share was eventually launched that autumn, with the government playing a supporting role as guarantor of 3bn of the company's debt. Continue reading...

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Paul Maynard is accused of using his taxpayer-funded constituency office for Tory campaigningThe parliamentary watchdog has launched an investigation into allegations that the pensions minister, Paul Maynard, used his taxpayer-funded constituency office as a Conservative campaign office.The investigation by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa), which oversees expenses, follows reports that Maynard charged taxpayers when producing political materials. Continue reading...

PM implies he is willing to draw a line under Gaza ceasefire vote chaosSpeaking on BBC Newsnight last night, the SNP's culture spokesperson John Nicolson denied that the group had purposefully walked out of the chamber together with Tory MPs as the debate ended yesterday.Nicolson said:SNP MPs thought the whole procedure was absurd. What SNP MPs did was they went to the lobby, that's the rooms beside the main parliamentary debating chamber, ready to vote, they were anticipating and expecting a vote.A number of MPs cross-party said they wanted their constituents to know where they stood on this and the problem with staged shenanigans was that MPs weren't allowed to express their views in the lobbies and vote.Senior Labour figures tell me @CommonsSpeaker was left in no doubt that Labour would bring him down after the general election unless he called Labour's Gaza amendmentThe message was: you will need our votes to be re-elected as speaker after election with strong indications this would not be forthcoming if he failed to call the Labour amendment Continue reading...

Lyudmila Navalnaya says she was driven to morgue and told to agree to secret burial

US daytime talkshow host's team confirms diagnosis in effort to correct inaccurate and hurtful rumors about her health'Wendy Williams, a longtime US daytime talkshow host, has been diagnosed with aphasia and dementia, her team has confirmed in a press release.On Thursday, Williams' team shared a very personal update" in an effort to correct inaccurate and hurtful rumors about her health". Continue reading...

Aristocrat still had nearly 19k in bank just before search launched for fugitive couple and baby VictoriaA fugitive aristocrat was given nearly 50,000 from her trust fund around the time she disappeared with her partner and newborn baby, a court has heard.Constance Marten was given 47,886 by bankers C. Hoare & Co between 1 September 2022 and 17 January 2023. A police appeal to find them was launched on 6 January last year. Continue reading...

Intel report says some accusations that aid workers participated in Hamas attacks credible but could not be independently verifiedA US intelligence assessment of Israel's claims that UN aid agency staff members participated in the Hamas attack on 7 October said some of the accusations were credible but that the claims of wider links to militant groups could not be independently verified.The assault precipitated a full-scale invasion by Israel of Gaza that has killed upwards of 30,000 Palestinians. Earlier this year, Israel accused 12 employees of the United Nations Reliefs and Works Agency (UNRWA) of participating in the 7 October attacks alongside Hamas. It also said 10% of all UNRWA workers were affiliated with Hamas. Continue reading...

Many other members have signalled they would back Dutch leader as alliance faces major challengesThe US and UK have endorsed the Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte's candidacy to become the next secretary general of Nato, at a time when the alliance faces major challenges amid Russia's war in Ukraine and renewed questions about the future of the US commitment to the transatlantic relationship.President Biden strongly endorses PM Rutte's candidacy to be the next secretary general of Nato," a US official told Reuters on Thursday. Continue reading...

Senior official tells Reuters that Israel is seeking people not affiliated with Hamas to manage civilian affairs in areas of the Gaza StripFive people have been killed when a home in Rafah was targeted" during an intense bombing campaign across Rafah city", according to a report by Al Jazeera journalist, Hani Mahmoud.Reporting from Rafah in southern Gaza, Mahmoud said on Thursday that an intense bombing campaign across Rafah city" had stretched into the early hours of this morning". He said loud explosions could be heard from the northern part of the city" and that the sound was coming from the systematic demolition of homes".Overnight, we're looking at attacks in the eastern part, the northern part and even the western part where literally hundreds of thousands of people have been sheltering.A mosque nearby was destroyed completely, and we are looking at least three to four homes within its vicinity that have been severely damaged. Continue reading...

The Gibson Garage, the brand's second store globally, has a secret VIP bar behind a door hidden inside a phone boxGibson, the Nashville guitar maker beloved by Jimmy Page to Ray Davies, has opened its first big store outside the US just off London's Oxford Street, where VIP visitors will be ushered into a secret bar accessed via a door hidden in a red phone box.The 4,500 sq ft (420 sq metres) of space on Eastcastle Street is within stumbling distance of the 100 Club, the music venue where bands such as the Rolling Stones, the Clash and Blur have played. It is also close to Denmark Street, once home to recording studios and music publishers and still home to London's biggest cluster of instrument stores. Continue reading...

Nihal Abu Ayash, 16, was reportedly the 100th Palestinian child to be killed in the West Bank since Hamas's 7 October attackNihal Abu Ayash was wearing his football kit and carrying his school bag when he was shot in the head and killed after Israeli forces opened fire in the West Bank town of Beit Ummar.The first bullet reportedly hit the 16-year-old in the leg. He collapsed, and as he tried to stand up, he was shot for a second time in the head, according to the schoolboy's family. Continue reading...

Commons speaker fights back against Tory and SNP attempts to oust him after chaotic scenes over ceasefire motion UK politics live - latest updates Why is speaker facing calls to quit?Lindsay Hoyle has come out fighting in the face of Tory and Scottish National party attempts to oust him, as Rishi Sunak's spokesperson repeatedly refused to say the prime minister has full confidence in him.After chaotic scenes during Wednesday's Gaza ceasefire vote, Hoyle's future as the Commons speaker is in doubt as the SNP said his position was untenable and dozens of backbench Tory MPs signed a motion calling for a confidence vote in him. Continue reading...

Woman alleges Dr George Dimitroulis did not disclose his commercial interest in company that manufactures prosthethes, but he says he told her of his involvement in device's creation and denies any negligence

Australian drug regulator gives company green light for tablet - although it won't be subsidised by Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme

Exclusive: Documents obtained by Guardian Australia show confidential advice given to the foreign minister, Penny Wong, before she authorised yes' vote at UNAustralia voted for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza after officials privately advised the government the unprecedented crisis on the ground" and shifting positions" of allies could justify a policy change.Guardian Australia has obtained documents revealing the confidential advice given to the foreign minister, Penny Wong, before she authorised a yes" vote at the UN general assembly in December - a decision that continues to fuel tensions with the Israeli government.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...

Fears Maduro government is trying to shut down scrutiny after lawyer is arrested and UN human rights office shut downHuman rights groups are calling for the Venezuelan government to halt a crackdown on civil society after it jailed a prominent lawyer and then banished a UN human rights office from Caracas for criticising her arrest.The arrest of the 57-year-old lawyer and military expert Rocio San Miguel has shocked observers, who say Venezuela is entering a darker phase of state oppression intended to crush government opposition in the lead-up to elections expected later this year. Continue reading...

Standon Calling among events scheduled for 2024 to call time amid fears of impact on new talentWhen Standon Calling - the summer music festival during which 17,000 people descend on the Hertfordshire countryside to see headliners such as Bloc Party and Wolf Alice - announced this year would be its last, it became the ninth festival for 2024 to cancel or call time for good.The Association of Independent Festivals' (AIF) CEO, John Rostron, has called for urgent government intervention" to assist events hit by rising supply chain costs, debts incurred during the Covid pandemic and slower ticket sales, stymied further by the cost of living crisis. Continue reading...

Bank's profits rise 57% but it says there is significant uncertainty' over liability amid FCA investigation

Engine-maker says it has made 150m of its 400m to 500m savings target, with up to 2,500 jobs to go

William Shawcross says Home Office ignored key recommendations and more attention should be paid to Islamist extremismThe author of a controversial review of Britain's counter-terrorism strategy claims the public have been left at risk" because many of his key recommendations have been ignored.In a heavily criticised review of Prevent for the Home Office last year, William Shawcross concluded that it had concentrated too much on the far-right and not enough on Islamist extremism. Continue reading...

Health minister Maria Caulfield disappointed and surprised' by Lindsay Hoyle's actions but refrains from calling for his resignation

Britain joins France, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands in withdrawing from charter it says penalises' shift to net zeroThe UK is pulling out of a treaty that lets fossil fuel firms sue governments over their climate policies.The government said the UK was withdrawing from the energy charter treaty after efforts to modernise it ended in stalemate. Continue reading...

An emergency warning has been issued for 28 communities west of Ballarat, with conditions not expected to ease until about midnight

NSW police searching for former Channel 10 presenter, 26, and Qantas flight attendant, 29, after blood discovered at Paddington property and on personal possessions in Cronulla bin

Research from the Royal Agricultural University suggests possible big cat presence in the UK, but others say evidence is flimsyWhen you think of four-legged British wildlife, the first animal that comes to mind may not be a black leopard.Yet that is exactly what Sharon Larkin-Snowden insists she has seen roaming the Cumbrian countryside over the past few months. The 52-year-old part-time construction worker was first told about alleged sightings of the so-called Beast of Cumbria in November, when local farmers noticed unusual activity" on their land. But it wasn't until later in the month that she claims to have had her own sighting. Continue reading...

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The airline is flush with enough cash for a $400m share buy-back, a great transfer of wealth from customers to shareholdersIt may be slightly less profitable and boast a friendlier CEO who says she does a lot more listening than talking", but Qantas remains an airline making serious money that could do much more to win back Australians' hearts.The $1.25bn pre-tax half yearly profit unveiled on Thursday, while down 13% on the same period last year, was still 40% higher than the last half-year trading period before the pandemic upended travel.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...