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Company tells Bramley residents that tests have indicated possible deterioration in quality' after historical fuel leakMore than 600 households in Surrey have been told not to drink their tap water after tests carried out by Thames Water.The company said results on Thursday indicated a possible deterioration in quality" of drinking water in some areas". Continue reading...

Townsville's 10 councillors join Queensland premier in calling for mayor to stand down after revelations he exaggerated his military history

Justice Michael Lee found former Liberal staffer was not defamed by Lisa Wilkinson and Ten during a broadcast interview with Higgins in February 2021Bruce Lehrmann has lodged a notice of appeal against the federal court judgment in his defamation claim against Network Ten and presenter Lisa Wilkinson which found that on the balance of probabilities he raped Brittany Higgins on a minister's couch in Parliament House in 2019.Lehrmann has always denied the allegation and pleaded not guilty at the criminal trial of the matter, which was aborted due to juror misconduct and Higgins' mental health was cited as the reason for no retrial. Continue reading...

Victorian premier Jacinta Allan announces Australia's first saturation model' after family violence prevention package unveiled

The 55-year-old was charged with offences that police allege occurred over several years and involved multiple victims

Former president calls verdict a disgrace' after being convicted in New York on all 34 counts of falsifying business records

Parliament's failure to reflect the bloc's diverse population could worsen with European elections

Old approach of seeking ultra-niche audiences has fallen out of favour as main parties spend tens of millions onlineDon't expect to see Cambridge Analytica-style microtargeted political adverts driven by personal data during this general election: the tactic is now considered by many to be an ineffective red herring" and is increasingly being blocked by social media platforms.The digital strategist Tom Edmonds said Facebook had banned political campaigns from using many of the tactics deployed in past contests. Running a campaign aimed at 500 people didn't earn them much money and just got them loads of shit," he said. Continue reading...

CWU calls for new business model and says commitments for takeover do not go far, or long enough'The union that represents workers at Royal Mail has called for a new business model for the company that would see workers given a stake in the company and pay tied to growing services and meeting certain social benefits.Dave Ward, the general secretary of the Communications Workers Union (CWU), said that the potential takeover by the Czech billionaire Daniel Ketinsky should provide a moment to overhaul how the company is structured, which could mirror that of US-style public benefit corporations. Continue reading...

Stacy Gilbert, who quit post as senior adviser on Tuesday, says report went against consensus of experts

Greens leader Adam Bandt says Donald Trump unfit to be president' after hush money trial verdict while Nationals senator Matt Canavan claims prosecution was a witch hunt'

At least 55 students arrested in police raid on Gaza solidarity camp accused of flouting code of conduct and threatened with sanctionsThe University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has threatened to discipline and withhold degrees from at least 55 students involved in pro-Palestinian demonstrations, according to faculty members supporting the students.Students who were arrested on 2 May when police forcefully raided the Gaza solidarity encampment received letters on Friday from administrators accusing them of violating the student code of conduct and warning them of a range of potentially serious sanctions. In the letters, copies of which have been reviewed by the Guardian, assistant deans write that the students failed to respond to police's dispersal orders and engaged in disorderly behavior", disturbing the peace" and failure to comply". Continue reading...

Nearly 300 people on electric scooters caught breaking laws against riding without helmets, on footpaths and ignoring traffic lights

Visits to high streets, shopping centres and retail parks fell by 3.6% in May, continuing downward trendRetailers have called on the government to rethink business rates and planning laws to revive high streets and shopping centres after visitor numbers fell again in May.Shoppers at stores on high streets, shopping centres and retail parks decreased by 3.6% in May, maintaining a trend that began last summer as a mini-boom in high street visits after the pandemic lockdowns petered out. Continue reading...

US official says policy change relates to counter-fire purposes' and prohibits long-range attacks inside of RussiaJoe Biden has allowed Ukraine to use some US-made weapons over one part of the Russian border, to allow Kyiv's forces to defend against an offensive aimed at the city of Kharkiv, relaxing an important constraint on Ukraine's able to defend itself.The president recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use US-supplied weapons for counter-fire purposes in the Kharkiv region so Ukraine can hit back against Russian forces that are attacking them or preparing to attack them," a US official said. Continue reading...

Labour leader accused of cull' and picking close allies to contest safe seats as others are blocked from standing for party in UK electionKeir Starmer is under mounting pressure to end what his critics say is a purge" of those on the Labour left before a meeting of the party's governing body next week.Party members on Thursday accused the Labour leader of orchestrating a cull of leftwingers" after several high-profile figures were told they would not be selected as candidates for seats they held or had previously contested. Continue reading...

US chatshow host describes as dumb' decision not to endorse Faiza Shaheen as candidate for London seat over tweets she likedThe US satirist Jon Stewart has waded into the row about Britain's Labour party blocking an academic from standing as a candidate in July's general election over her social media activity.Faiza Shaheen was not endorsed as the Labour candidate for Chingford and Woodford Green in north London after she liked a series of posts on X that allegedly downplayed antisemitism accusations, one of which featured a clip from an episode of The Daily Show, which Stewart hosted. Continue reading...

Pretty Girls Walk by Big Boss Vette was used by the party as it promoted its policies on the platformThe Scottish National party has deleted an election campaign video on TikTok after it featured a sexually explicit song by the American rapper Big Boss Vette.The track, Pretty Girls Walk, carries an explicit lyrics warning on streaming platforms and starts with an expletive-laden first verse. Continue reading...

Police detain and later release man and woman in their 30s while they investigate theft and subsequent death of staff memberTwo people have been arrested over a robbery at a jewellery shop in south-west London, shortly after which a staff member was found dead.A man and a woman, both in their 30s, were detained by officers this weekand later released while police continue to investigate. The body of Oliver White, who was assaulted but not seriously injured during the robbery, was found in Surrey the next day. Police have said they are not treating his death as suspicious. Continue reading...

Open letter says party's inability to make a decision on Abbott's future is example of systemic racismLeading Black British actors, professors, authors and broadcasters have urged Labour to rectify and reverse" the disrespectful" treatment of Diane Abbott or risk losing the backing of the party's most loyal supporters.Lenny Henry, David Harewood, Renni Eddo-Lodge, Misan Harriman, Afua Hirsch, Jackie Kay, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Adrian Lester and Gary Younge are among the prominent Black figures to have signed a damning open letter, classing various briefings and Abbott's own claim that she has been barred from standing for the party as disproportionate, undemocratic and vindictive". Continue reading...

Former Bolton North East MP says Tory party is now unrecognisable' and likens this general election to 1997Rishi Sunak has been dealt a fresh blow from within his own ranks after another outgoing Conservative MP said he is now backing Labour.Mark Logan, who represented Bolton North East until parliament was dissolved, said the Tory party was now unrecognisable" from the one he joined a decade ago and that Labour could bring back optimism into British life". Continue reading...

French actor says he does not recognise himself' in allegations of harassment and assault by six womenEdouard Baer, a French actor best known for playing Asterix on screen, has become the latest star to feel the impact of sexual assault allegations as his live show in Paris was cancelled.Baer, who played the fictitious Gaul in the 2012 blockbuster Asterix and Obelix: God Save Britannia alongside Gerard Depardieu, was accused by six women of harassment and sexual assault in a joint article by online news site Mediapart and the feminist website Cheek last week. Continue reading...

Western governments condemn verdict in biggest case since introduction of national security lawFourteen people have been found guilty of subversion by a court in Hong Kong in the biggest case against pro-democracy campaigners - against a group known as the Hong Kong 47" - since China imposed a national security law to crush dissent.A panel of judges handpicked by Hong Kong's government found that the convicted people - one organiser and 13 candidates, almost all of them former politicians - had committed the national security offence of conspiracy to subvert state power" by holding unofficial election primaries in 2020. Continue reading...

Marin Mrela also calls on EU to join Group of States Against Corruption to show it is serious about tackling misconductPolitical parties across Europe, including the UK, should be forced to publish the names of their private funders before elections, not after, the president of the Council of Europe's anti-corruption body has said.Unveiling the annual report of the Group of States Against Corruption (Greco), Marin Mrela, who is the justice of the supreme court of Croatia, also called on the European Union to stop using excuses" not to join the body. Continue reading...

It comes after former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the party's treatment of Abbott was a disgrace'

Election campaigns kick off with policies on single market, climate crisis, NHS and clean seasPlaid Cymru and the Green party have launched their election campaigns, focusing on issues ranging from offshore windfarms' profits to initiatives for improving water and air quality.The parties, which hope to win about four seats each, vowed to keep a Labour government in check and to push the party's leader, Keir Starmer, to be bolder in areas such as health, housing and the environment. Continue reading...

Figures show statistics, computing, physics and maths have risen in popularity and languages bouncing backFewer pupils in England are studying drama, media and performing arts at GCSE and A-level, while the popularity of statistics, computing, physics and maths has gone up.Provisional figures for exam entries in England this summer, published by the exams regulator Ofqual on Thursday, also reveal a growing enthusiasm for modern foreign languages, which had been in long-term decline. Continue reading...

Gabriel Attal cautions against backing Marine Le Pen's National Rally, which leads solidly in polls for European electionsThe French prime minister, Gabriel Attal, has said voters choosing the far right in the European elections next week risk becoming like British people who regret backing Brexit.Don't be like the British who cried after Brexit," he told RTL radio on Thursday. A large majority of British people regret Brexit and sometimes regret not turning out to vote, or voting for something that was negative for their country. Continue reading...

The business groups' big ideas, from payroll savings schemes to making big tech compensate for fraud on its platformsBusiness interest groups are jostling for influence over political parties' priorities ahead of the 4 July election. Here are some of the big ideas being touted by the UK's largest industry bodies in their own manifestos. Continue reading...

Primary school teacher Fiona Beal sentenced to life after killing Nicholas Billingham at their home in 2021A primary school teacher who murdered her boyfriend and buried his body in their back garden has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 20 years.Fiona Beal, 50, stabbed and killed her partner, Nicholas Billingham, 42, at their home in Northampton in 2021. His remains were discovered in March 2022, four and a half months after he had last been seen. Continue reading...

US anti-pornography campaigning group has advised, promoted and endorsed anti-LGBTQ+ activists and politicians in UgandaA long-standing US anti-pornography campaigning group has advised, promoted and endorsed anti-LGBTQ+ activists and politicians in Uganda, including a governing party member who endorsed anti-LGBTQ+ laws by saying gays should be castrated", and a virulently homophobic founder of a militaristic" Christian boys camp.The revelations about Washington DC-based National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) and its spin-offs and affiliates - based on documents, audio and video recordings and open-source materials - raise questions about its recent disavowals of its history of anti-LGBTQ+ positions, and its role in Uganda's passage last year of laws on homosexuality which are among the most punitive and restrictive in the world. Continue reading...

Ukraine's top commander says enemy sending reinforcements to area but lacks numbers for a major pushRussia's foreign ministry said on Thursday it was finalising a proposal for retaliatory measures" against the EU over the bloc's ban on the broadcast of four Russian media outlets on its territory.The EU said earlier this month it was suspending the distribution of the Voice of Europe, the RIA Novosti news agency and the Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspapers. Continue reading...

Haaretz journalist was warned of consequences' if he reported on attempts by Mossad chief to intimidate ex-prosecutor

Brick Fest Live promised lifesize models and rare collectibles but disappointed visitors of all agesAn event advertised as the UK's biggest Lego festival" has been called a complete rip-off" by attendees who described it as a half-empty room with piles of bricks.Brick Fest Live, which took place at the NEC in Birmingham over the bank holiday weekend, was promoted by organisers as the world's largest hands-on Lego event" with more than a million bricks on display. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Deputy leader says Abbott has not been treated fairly by some and confirms she has not been barred from running

Platja d'Aro announces fines up to 1,500 for appearing in public with clothing representing human genitals'A popular resort town on Spain's Costa Brava has banned inflatable penis costumes and sex dolls from stag and hen night celebrations, with fines of up to 1,500 (1,276).Platja d'Aro, whose population of 12,500 can host as many as 300,000 visitors on a summer weekend, is a favourite destination for bachelor and bachelorette nights. Numerous websites offer packages that include accommodation, cruises and male or female strippers. Continue reading...

Group says membership crisis means it cannot pay conference contracts as top writer condemns RWA's retreat from commitment to equality'For decades, the Romance Writers of America (RWA) served as a champion for the mostly female authors of one of the country's most popular - and denigrated - genres of fiction.But even as sales of romance novels have boomed in recent years, RWA has struggled, reporting that its membership has declined 80% amid bitter internal battles over racism within publishing, and within the group itself. Continue reading...

David Anderson says News Corp is obsessed' with the ABC after Tingle faces backlash over racist country' comments

Mike Sneesby a signatory to all-staff email detailing response to allegations of predatory behaviour and bullying in newsroomsNine Entertainment has acknowledged the trauma" caused by alleged acts of bullying, misuse of power and sexual harassment in its newsrooms and conceded to staff it needs to do more" to make it a safe place to work.In an all-staff email sent to staff late Thursday, Nine outlined its response to widespread reporting of predatory behaviour, bullying and sexual harassment by senior executives across the company. Continue reading...

Mary Bono had argued that she no longer needed to pay royalties to Cher after invoking a feature of US copyright law, but a judge has ruled otherwiseCher has prevailed in a long-running lawsuit that she filed against the widow of her former musical partner and husband, Sonny Bono.Cher had received royalties from her chart-topping song catalogue with Bono since an agreement in their 1978 divorce settlement, that stated publishing revenue would be split evenly between the pair. Bono died in 1998, and his share passed to his heirs. Continue reading...

The viral disease kills 5,000 people a year in west Africa, and has been described as an epidemic threat to global healthClinical trials for the first new treatment for Lassa fever in almost 40 years are planned to be held in Nigeria this year.The neglected tropical disease kills about 5,000 people a year and is endemic in west Africa. Continue reading...

Find out who's up and who's down in the latest polls - and how many seats each party is likely to win in the next general election

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Five-week pursuit by Australian company comes to end as last-ditch talks collapseAnglo American has survived an almost 39bn takeover plot by the Australian mining rival BHP after last-ditch talks over restructuring the 107-year-old company collapsed.The five-week pursuit came to an end after Anglo rejected BHP's 11th-hour appeal to extend the takeover talks for a second time, after three failed takeover proposals from the Melbourne-based miner. Continue reading...

Officials are still trying to pinpoint the exact death toll, as rescue teams are set to begin using heavy machinery to recover the deadOfficials in Papua New Guinea have said they do not expect to find survivors under the rubble of a massive landslide in the country's remote north, with the exact number of dead under almost two storeys of debris and mud still unknown.Heavy equipment and aid have been slow to arrive to the site of the landslide - which hit almost a week ago - because of the treacherous mountain terrain, a damaged bridge on the main road, and tribal unrest in the area. Continue reading...

Immigration minister says we know where they are', as Labor talks tough during fallout over visa cancellation and indefinite immigration detention

Party hopes to lure voters who want radical change and strong climate policies, rather than centrismLabour will face a renewed attack from the Green party in key marginal seats at this general election, as the group known primarily for its climate stance tries to reach voters who want radical change rather than centrism.In sharp contrast to all of the main parties, the Greens will make an unabashed argument for higher taxes, which they will say are needed to fund the NHS, education and other priorities, alongside their call much stronger action on the climate crisis. Continue reading...

The notorious ShinyHunters collective is claiming hack of personal details of 560 million global customers

Spain and France are among the most opaque when it comes to declaring who party funders are, analysis showsOnly seven out of 27 EU countries

Marion Marechal's Reconquete received nine times more donations than Marine Le Pen's National Rally, analysis revealsPolitical funding in France has swerved to the right, with private donations to the small nationalist group backed by Marine Le Pen's niece overtaking those raised by President Emmanuel Macron's ruling party.Reconquete received 5.5m (4.7m) from private donors in 2022, the year Macron secured a second term after a final round showdown against Le Pen, analysis by the Guardian of the annual reports of the 15 main French parties shows. Continue reading...