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Confidential report comes in the wake of Senate inquiry which highlighted deficiencies in branch closure processes' across regional areas

Shock waves triggered by archbishop's resignation are culmination of years of simmering rage among churchgoers and survivors of abuseAs the faithful give thanks to God in England's 16,500 parish churches on Sunday, beneath the comforting ritual of prayers and hymns will run a strong undercurrent of shame, anger, sadness and dread.The Church of England is facing its biggest crisis in modern times, and there is no clear pathway to recovery. The archbishop of Canterbury has been forced to resign, other senior figures are facing calls to quit and the church is reeling from its shameful failures over a prolific and sadistic child abuser. Continue reading...

Rocky Leanders, then 15, was beaten with wooden paddle by Smyth at camp where boys were made to swim nakedWhen John Smyth gave a presentation at their school about his Christian holiday camps in 1993, Rocky Leanders and his school friends were blown away".This is Zimbabwe in the early 90s; the technology wasn't great. These guys set up a projector with colour videos of speed boats ... abseiling, golf, tennis, paddle boarding, swimming pools, diving boards," recalled Leanders, who was 15 at the time. We insisted we needed to go." Continue reading...

Anthony Albanese meets with leaders of Peru and Indonesia as middle nations seek to diversify trade away from the USThe prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has hailed inclusive trade and investment" at a major Asia-Pacific economic forum in Peru where leaders are attempting to push against the protectionist policies favoured by US president-elect Donald Trump.Speaking at the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders summit, which assembles 21 of the world's largest economies, Albanese told a press conference that Apec leaders consistently spoke about the importance of free and fair trade between our economies to lift up the living standards of people throughout this region".Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Continue reading...

Exclusive: Rights group expresses concerns as it emerges US spy tech company has been lobbying UK ministersThe US spy tech company Palantir has been in talks with the Ministry of Justice about using its technology to calculate prisoners' reoffending risks", it has emerged.The proposals emerged in correspondence released under the Freedom of Information Act which showed how the company has also been lobbying new UK government ministers, including the chancellor, Rachel Reeves. Continue reading...

Another 16 infants were in critical condition after the blaze at a neonatal unit in Jhansi, Uttar PradeshTen newborn babies have died after a fire broke out at the neonatal unit of a hospital in northern India, with another 16 clinging to life.The fire broke out late on Friday at the Maharani Lakshmibai Medical College in Jhansi, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, 450km (280 miles) south of Delhi. Continue reading...

Transparency International writes to EU requesting inquiry into potential failure to declare travel and ticket expensesAn NGO has called for an investigation into five far-right members of the European parliament, warning of a potential failure to declare expenses for a trip to attend a gala dinner in New York headlined by Donald Trump.Transparency International's EU office has written to the parliament's watchdog on MEP conduct requesting an inquiry into five politicians over a potential failure to declare travel and tickets to the black-tie gala hosted by the New York Young Republican Club (NYYRC) in December 2023. Continue reading...

Supermarket fizz bursts the prestigious French label's bubble in blind tastings by consumer group Which?Champagne at prosecco prices? Every little helps. Tesco's Finest champagne has triumphed over the prestigious French label Moet & Chandon in a festive quaff test.The Tesco Finest premier cru brut champagne received the top score of 82% in a blind taste test conducted by the consumer group Which?. The 25-a-bottle bubbly was hailed by judges for its nutty aroma and fresh, fruity flavours". The supermarket fizz beat Moet & Chandon, which scored 77% and at 44 is almost twice as expensive. Continue reading...

Gellibrand, Dereel and Kadnook residents told to leave as total fire bans declared across parts of South Australia and Victoria

Victoria police believe building on Spencer Street was empty at the time of the blaze

High court rules Aboriginal woman can pursue damages for abuse allegedly suffered in state care more than 60 years ago

Nationwide says New Forest is most expensive national park with an average property price of 576,000Buying a home in a national park comes at a 25% price premium, with the New Forest the most expensive of the 13 parks in England and Wales, according to Britain's biggest building society.Nationwide said properties in a national park enjoy a valuation almost 67,000 more than a similar property elsewhere, based on the average UK house price of 266,640.New Forest - 576,000South Downs - 400,000Peak District - 375,000Yorkshire Dales - 353,000Lake District - 333,000Dartmoor - 310,000Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) - 274,000Eryri (Snowdonia) - 173,000 Continue reading...

Reform may well be Labour's new main opponent, and the next battleground may not be where anyone expectedTwo key rules of politics are to always look ahead, and to understand your opponent. And so it is that just months after crushing the Conservatives in a general election, many Labour MPs are bracing for fresh challenges and a new foe - Reform UK.Nigel Farage's party is in parliamentary terms a minnow, its five MPs giving it little more than 1% of the Commons strength enjoyed by Keir Starmer. But many within Labour believe that by the time of the next election, things could be very different. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Welsh secretary to announce 80m funding to help 2,800 Tata steelworkers and local economyPort Talbot steelworkers and their families affected by the closure of furnaces will be entitled to grants of up to 10,000 to start businesses, the Welsh secretary will announce on Saturday.As Labour holds its annual Welsh conference in Llandudno, Jo Stevens will say the government is funding 80m to help 2,800 Tata steelworkers and local businesses. Continue reading...

Uncertainty surrounds nominations of Pete Hegseth as defense secretary and Matt Gaetz as attorney generalThe confirmation prospects of two of Donald Trump's most controversial cabinet choices were in jeopardy over sexual misconduct allegations on Friday in developments mirroring the president-elect's own history of abusive behavior towards women.Uncertainty surrounded the nomination of Pete Hegseth, Trump's choice as defense secretary - whose path to Senate confirmation was already complicated over concerns about his inexperience and extreme views - following revelations that police in California investigated a sexual assault allegation against him in 2017. Continue reading...

Wes Streeting speaks out after deaths in Turkey among women travelling for procedures such as butt liftsBritons should resist the temptation to have cosmetic surgery abroad at rock-bottom" prices in case they are harmed by substandard care, the health secretary has said.Wes Streeting spoke out after a spate of deaths among women who had travelled to Turkey for aesthetic treatment such as a Brazilian butt lift (BBL). Continue reading...

Police investigate claim that Israeli PM's chief of staff changed recorded time of call made about Hamas attacksA top aide of Benjamin Netanyahu has been questioned by police investigating reports of alterations made to official records of phone calls involving the Israeli prime minister on the morning of the 7 October attacks.Israeli media reported that Netanyahu's chief of staff, Tzachi Braverman, is suspected of changing the recorded time of a conversation the prime minister held with his military secretary in the first minutes of the attack to protect the prime minister. Continue reading...

Previous provincial government said most patients were misdiagnosed and instead had dementia or cancerThe newly elected premier of New Brunswick has called on Canada's federal government to aid in a full, open scientific investigation" into the mysterious brain illness that has plagued the province for years, in a move that those suffering from the condition hope could finally bring answers.We need to conduct a thorough investigation into what is making people sick," the premier, Susan Holt, told the National Post. Continue reading...

Carl Alesbrook, now 19, unanimously convicted of murder over death of four-month-old Elijah ShemwellA teenager who shook his girlfriend's baby to death has been jailed for life.Carl Alesbrook, who is now 19, was unanimously convicted of murder after breaking the ribs of four-month-old Elijah Shemwell and causing him catastrophic" brain injuries when he was left alone with the infant as a 16-year-old in January 2022. Continue reading...

Myles McHugh, one of three officers found guilty of gross misconduct over files, is dismissed without noticeA serving Metropolitan police officer has been sacked after accessing confidential files about the kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard.PC Myles McHugh was among three officers who were found to have committed gross misconduct at a three-week disciplinary tribunal in south-east London. Continue reading...

Senior official Bassem Naim says militant group ready for ceasefire' and urges Donald Trump to pressure' 'Israel to end the aggression'Wafa, the Palestinian news agency, is reporting that two Palestinian people were killed in an Israeli artillery attack in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza. Three other Palestinians were killed in a separate Israeli airstrike near the general security junction in western Gaza City, according to Wafa. A renewed Israeli assault was launched on the northern part of the Gaza Strip last month, with the Israeli military claiming it was to stop Hamas fighters regrouping there. The blockage of aid and food deliveries and the targeting of civilian infrastructure, however, have led to accusations that Israel is committing the war crime of seeking to forcibly displace the remaining population. The entirety of northern Gaza has been under Israeli evacuation orders but it is unclear how many people remain.We have some comments coming through from Ali Larijani, the senior advisor to Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei. He has been speaking with Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri and Lebanon's caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, in Beiurt. Continue reading...

Ministers told they risk more miscarriages of justice by not backing bill to replace indefinite jail terms with fixed onesPeers have said the government is failing to deal with a miscarriage of justice akin to the Post Office scandal, after ministers refused to back legislation that would give new sentences to thousands of prisoners jailed indefinitely.James Timpson, the prisons minister, said the 2,964 people currently serving indeterminate sentences would in future have a better chance of being released, with more regular reviews of their readiness every six months. Continue reading...

Regulator approves bid by open-access operator Go-op to run trains in south-west England from late next yearThe UK's first co-operatively owned railway service could begin running trains in the south-west of England late next year.The Office of Road and Rail (ORR) has approved a bid from open-access operator Go-op to run several new services between Swindon, Taunton and Weston-super-Mare, and compete with Great Western Railway on the line. Continue reading...

Mel Stride said there must be no suggestion of the UK going back into the EU single market or customs unionIn news that will disappoint those of you who enjoy a Liberal Democrat stunt, PA has just reported that Ed Davey will not, as was planned, be taking a bus-driving lesson at a depot in Oxfordshire, due to logistical issues. Instead he will be visiting high-street businesses.It is part of a campaign by the Liberal Democrats to get Labour to keep the bus fare price cap at 2 in England when it extends the scheme into next year.The fare cap increase is like a bus tax for people across the country, impacting bus users and commuters already struggling to make ends meet. MPs must be given a say on this bus fare hike on behalf of their constituents.Our communities have already paid too high a price for years of Conservative neglect and incompetence. This bus fare hike will hit cherished local businesses and high streets, many of which are already struggling.Uncertainty around Labour's first budget and high interest rates played their part, but [the GDP figures are] still a blow for Rachel Reeves, as [it] underlines difficulty of reaching her ambitious growth target.Some in Labour want to recalibrate economic focus away from growth and towards cost of living ie will people feel better off by time of next election?" Continue reading...

Attacks on Thursday night bring total number of emergency workers killed by Israel in Lebanon to more than 200

General Motors unit to pay $500,000 fine after failing to disclose key details of 2023 San Francisco crash to NHTSAGeneral Motors' self-driving car unit, Cruise, admitted on Thursday to submitting a false report to influence a federal investigation and will pay a $500,000 criminal fine as part of a deferred prosecution agreement, the justice department said.The department said Cruise failed to disclose key details of an October 2023 crash to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in which one of its robotaxis in San Francisco struck a pedestrian after she was hit by another vehicle and dragged her 20ft (6.1 meters). Continue reading...

Experts concerned over the Fox & Friends host, his Christian nationalist ideology and militant languageExtremism experts are sounding the alarm about Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump's pick for secretary of defense, whose writings and online presence reveal someone immersed in a culture of rightwing Christianity, political extremism and violent ideation.The Fox & Friends host, who has served in the US army but has no experience in government, drew shock from Pentagon officials when Trump nominated him. Hegseth's books on American culture and the military, his commentary on Fox and his frequent posts on social media showcase his far-right ideology. On these platforms, Hegseth telegraphs paranoia and anger toward leftists", an ultra-masculine Maga persona and apparent revulsion toward service members who do not fit his vision - including women. Continue reading...

Duke is one of two claimants whose claims are still live' against NGN, court told, the other being ex-MP Tom WatsonThe Duke of Sussex is continuing his lawsuit against the publisher of the Sun over allegations of unlawful information gathering, the high court has heard.Prince Harry is one of two claimants whose claims are still live" against Rupert Murdoch's News Group Newspapers (NGN), his barrister David Sherborne said, with the other being the former deputy Labour leader Tom Watson. The court was told 39 cases had been settled since a previous hearing in July. Continue reading...

Four teenagers and man, 45, convicted of killing Mason Rist and Max Dixon, whom they wrongly blamed for house attackFour teenagers and a 45-year-old man have been convicted of murdering two boys who they had mistaken for the perpetrators of an earlier attack on a house in Bristol linked to a long-running postcode rivalry.Mason Rist, 15, and Max Dixon, 16, were fatally attacked in the Knowle West area of the city on the evening of 27 January. Continue reading...

After rare accord with Biden White House on climate, China may now be more wary of adopting robust policy measuresChina is facing crucial decisions on its climate policies as its hard-won relationship with the US on tackling the crisis looks set to founder during Donald Trump's second presidential term.World leaders and heads of delegations from many countries gathered at the Cop29 UN climate summit are trying to salvage commitments that China has made during Joe Biden's term, which ends in January. Continue reading...

Schools ordered to close in Delhi and Punjab province as neighbouring countries battle dangerous air pollutionIndia's capital, Delhi, has ordered all primary schools to cease in-person classes until further notice while Pakistan's Punjab province has declared a health emergency, banning construction, shutting schools for another week and moving universities online, as both countries battle an air pollution crisis.Delhi and the surrounding metropolitan area, home to more than 30 million people, consistently tops world rankings for air pollution in winter, which is estimated to reduce life expectancy for the capital's residents by up to seven years. Continue reading...

CAA called suspension of 30 arms exports to Israel obscene' and said UK's decisions were hostile to Jewish state'The Charity Commission is assessing a statement by the Campaign Against Antisemitism in which it called the government's decision to suspend 30 arms export licences to Israel obscene".The review follows a complaint by the former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, who wrote to the commission asking how the blogpost was consistent with the CAA's stated charitable objectives, amid allegations that it represents improper political activity. Continue reading...

Air mass from Azores results in new world record for warmest November night above 60 latitudeRecord-breaking warmth was observed in Iceland on Monday night as temperatures reached 22.9C at a site on the Olafsfjararvegur Road near Sauanes in the far north.Other weather stations in the region recorded temperatures in the high teens and low 20s celsius, making it the warmest place in Europe that night and setting a world record for the warmest November night above 60 latitude. These temperatures are typically 10-15C warmer than July averages. Continue reading...

Authorities matched fingerprint of Timothy Joley, 71, from taxi application to evidence on truck of one of the victimsAuthorities investigating a 1978 double murder in Massachusetts have arrested a suspect in Florida after matching his fingerprint from a taxi application to evidence on the truck of one of the victims.The arrest of Timothy Joley, 71, in the shooting deaths of Mark Harnish, 20, and Theresa Marcoux, 18, not only demonstrated the power of forensic fingerprint analysis - but it brought a measure of justice to families who had shown patience, resolve and ... faith" for nearly 46 years, Hampden county, Massachusetts, district attorney Anthony Gulluni said at a news briefing on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Public officials targeted by Trump say they're preparing for extreme scenarios, including possibility of being arrestedMembers of Congress and other US public officials targeted for retribution" by Donald Trump say they are taking extraordinary security precautions for themselves and their families and are now bracing for scenarios as extreme as the possibility of being rounded up and arrested, after Trump returns to the White House.Two Democratic House members who have been vocal in their criticisms of Trump and his policy agenda told the Guardian they and their colleagues are preparing for some pretty surreal and dystopic scenarios". They range from bogus investigations or tax audits of present and former members of the federal government to out-and-out violence inspired by Trump's rhetoric of revenge. Continue reading...

Man charged with assaulting police, false imprisonment, threats to kill and other offences following a carjacking and siege

UK property developer says occupancy across central London portfolio has climbed to almost 98%

Statement acknowledges mistake' that prompted complaints from some Hindus, including a Tory MP

Blow to Rachel Reeves as first quarter under Labour shows services and manufacturing struggled in run-up to budget

Speaking from his jail cell, the former superstar cricketer had told the Guardian he would be willing to engage with army leadershipPakistan's military has no intention of entering into negotiations or cutting a deal with incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan, senior military sources told the Guardian, after Khan said he would be willing to engage with the army leadership from his jail cell.Khan, who is being held in Pakistan's Adiala jail, is banned from meeting journalists but the Guardian was able to submit questions through his legal team. Continue reading...

Liliana Goodson is capable of rehabilitation' after being caught travelling from US to Australia with firearm, lawyer says

State's housing pattern book, launching in 2025, seeks to cut red tape and reduce development application times with pre-approved designs

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Agency hopes tens of thousands of people will log details of their flatulence on an app to help researchers better understand gut health

Robert Jenrick and Oliver Dowden were on committee that supported paying 15m for asbestos-ridden former prisonLeading Tories Robert Jenrick and Oliver Dowden were on the committee that backed plans for the rushed and misjudged" 15m purchase of an asbestos-ridden site for asylum accommodation, Whitehall's spending watchdog has disclosed.The then immigration minister and the former chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster were members of the small ministerial group that oversaw the purchase of the Northeye site in Bexhill, East Sussex, as the government attempted to move asylum seekers from hotels. Continue reading...

Higher education regulator says sector needs to take take bold action' and consider mergers or cost sharingEngland's universities face financial turmoil with nearly three in four expected to be in the red next year, according to gloomy forecasts from the higher education regulator.The Office for Students (OfS) said the sector would have to take bold and transformative action" to compensate for a 3.4bn drop in income forecast for 2025-26, with universities needing to consider mergers or cost sharing. Continue reading...

New analysis on the cost of decarbonising Australia's power grid runs closely to the national market operator's own - but you wouldn't know it from the headlines

Jewish and Muslim communities speak of heightened fears as questions linger about events around football matchCarrying white signs scrawled with messages urging unity, they took turns laying white roses at the statue of Anne Frank, steps away from the home where she, her family and four other people had hidden from Nazi persecution.Days after Amsterdam was gripped by what officials described as a toxic cocktail" of hooliganism, antisemitism and anger over the war in Palestine and Israel, the handful of imams and rabbis from European organisations had travelled to the city in an attempt to calm tensions. Continue reading...

Victorian premier furious' as unveiling of festive season attraction in Melbourne's Bourke Street mall scrapped

Paul Brereton says blame culture' deters people from owning mistakes as he insists watchdog will not be influenced by public pressure