Turner prize-winning artist joined on X by broadcaster Jon Sopel a fellow EDF customer, who complained of being asked for 18,000One is a Turner prize-winning artist, the other is a well-known journalist and broadcaster but both have been brought together by a seemingly evergreen gripe - inordinate energy bills.Grayson Perry, known for his ceramic vases and tapestries, revealed on X on Monday he had been stung with a 39,000 a month electricity bill - an astronomical leap from the previous charge of 300 a month. Continue reading...
by Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent on (#6H7S2)
Department hopes to save 4.5m a year by digitising - then binning - about 100m wills that date back 150 yearsSheer vandalism" and insane". This is how leading historians on Monday described government plans to destroy millions of historical wills to save on storage costs.The Ministry of Justice is consulting on digitising and then throwing away about 100m paper originals of the last wills and testaments of British people dating back more than 150 years in an effort to save 4.5m a year. Continue reading...
Likeness on display at Grevin Museum since 1981 is removed as allegations against actor are back in spotlightA French museum has removed a wax likeness of Gerard Depardieu, the latest measure taken against the actor since he faced allegations of sexual assault.The Grevin Museum in Paris said on Monday it had taken away the waxwork following the negative reactions of visitors" passing in front of it, as well as comments on social media. Continue reading...
Serbia Against Violence opposition says it will not recognise results and will demand a rerun of the ballotSerbia's ruling populist party comfortably won Sunday's parliamentary elections, according to an early official vote count, but political tensions rose over allegations of irregularities in a local election race in the capital, Belgrade.An opposition group said it was robbed of victory in the Belgrade local election, would not recognise the results and would demand a rerun of the ballot. Continue reading...
The education minister joins Vaughan Gething, the economy minister, in contestJeremy Miles has entered the race to become Welsh first minister and said that as a young gay man from a working-class family he could never have imagined putting himself forward as the leader of Labour and Wales.Miles, the education minister, joins the current economy minister, Vaughan Gething, in the contest to replace Mark Drakeford, who announced his resignation last week. Continue reading...
Rock star is sued by unnamed woman who alleges he attacked her on board helicopter in 2003Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee has been accused of sexual assault, in an incident in 2003.A new civil lawsuit filed on Friday by an unnamed woman, Jane Doe - and reported by Rolling Stone - accuses Lee of forcibly groping, kissing and penetrating her with his fingers, and attempting to force her to perform oral copulation". The woman had been invited on to a helicopter by pilot David Martz and believed she would be on a sightseeing tour around San Diego, but was told they would be flying with Lee to Los Angeles. Continue reading...
Russia says 35 Ukrainian drones shot down overnight as Ukraine reports 20 Russian; Putin vows to make Russia a sovereign, self-sufficient power'Russia and Ukraine launched drones on each other's territory for the second day running. The Russian Defence Ministry said 35 Ukraine drones were shot down overnight in three regions in south-western Russia. A Russian airbase hosting bomber aircraft used in Ukraine was among the targets, according to a Russian Telegram channel critical of the Kremlin.Russian troops launched 20 Shahed drones in southern and western Ukraine, as well as one X-59 cruise missile from the country's occupied south. Ukraine's air force said it shot down the Iranian-made drones. A civilian was also killed overnight near Odesa, a key port on Ukraine's southern Black Sea coast, after the remnants of a destroyed drone fell on his house, Ukraine's military said.Russian president, Vladimir Putin, vowed to make Russia a sovereign, self-sufficient" power. In a campaign speech he accused the west of unsuccessfully trying to sow internal troubles" in Russia.Putin also warned of problems" with neighbouring Finland after it joined Nato earlier this year. Russia plans to reorganise military divisions to station more troops in its north-west region, by the EU and Nato border.But Putin dismissed claims from the US president, Joe Biden, that Russia could attack a Nato country as nonsense". It came after Biden said Russia would not stop at Ukraine if it secures victory, as he pleaded with Republican lawmakers to authorise further aid to Kyiv.The Freedom of Russia Legion, a Ukrainian-based paramilitary group of Russians who oppose Putin, claimed responsibility on Sunday for a cross-border attack a few kilometres into Russia's Belgorod region. The group said it had destroyed a platoon stronghold of Russian troops near Terebreno village. The Guardian could not verify their claims. Earlier on Sunday, Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of Belgorod region, which experiences frequent attacks by Ukrainian forces, said Terebreno was under fire from Ukraine's Armed Forces and that a shooting battle" was under way on the village edge.A 69-year-old was reported killed in a Ukrainian border village in the northern Sumy region, about 25 kilometers west of Terebreno. According to the Ukrainian regional prosecutor's office, the woman died after a Russian shell flew into her home. It wasn't immediately clear whether her death was linked to the reported clashes.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine will officially launch" an assessment with the European Commission. The country will begin assessing Ukrainian legislation for compliance with EU legislation, Zelenskiy said in his nightly address on Sunday. EU accession talks are expected in the spring.Ukraine foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has won sincere and well-deserved admiration" among Ukrainians for his role in the EU's recent decision to open membership talks for Kyiv, Ukraine.Ukraine security services reported a bug found in one of the offices of the country's army command. The bug was not found in the direct office of Ukraine army chief, Valery Zaluzhvy, but a premises which could be used by the army official, according to a statement. Continue reading...
by Aseel Mousa in Gaza and Emma Graham-Harrison on (#6H7C4)
With pupils and teachers uprooted and buildings destroyed, it is likely to be many months before classes can resumeMohammad Mosa packed his laptop when he fled his home in October and hoped he would still be able to Zoom into classes between airstrikes. The 14-year-old has his heart set on a competitive scholarship and has studied through wars before.Two months later, the only new thing he has learned is how to bake bread over an open fire. Intense bombardment and a tight blockade have meant that civilian life in Gaza has turned into a daily fight to survive, and education is one of the many casualties. Continue reading...
British artist, who has undergone multiple surgeries for cancer, says horrible complications' in her intestine were made a million times worse by flying'Renowned British artist Tracey Emin is recovering in Thailand after her small intestine nearly exploded" due to complications after an operation.Emin, one of Britain's best-known living artists, has battled cancer and undergone major surgery in recent years. On Sunday she shared on Instagram that she has been very unwell" and felt she had used another one of my nine lives". Continue reading...
Professor complains that show's Oxbridge bias is even more pronounced in Christmas specials and calls for public debateA campaigner has called on BBC bosses to defend the elitist" format of University Challenge in a public debate, after complaining that the show's Oxbridge bias is even more pronounced in its Christmas specials.Frank Coffield, an emeritus professor of education, has asked for fairer entry rules that would confine Oxbridge and Cambridge to one team each in line with all the other universities. In a yearlong campaign, he has argued that the current format is rigged in favour of Oxbridge colleges, which he claims breaches BBC rules on impartiality. Continue reading...
New guidance says parents should be told if pupils say they want to transition but stops short of blanket approachTeachers in England will not be made to automatically out" pupils who come to them with questions over gender identity, despite a push from Conservative rightwingers for a blanket approach, government guidance due to be published this week will say.Schools will be expected to inform parents if children tell staff that they want to take any steps towards transitioning, but they will not have to flag conversations if children are just asking general questions, or in the event of safeguarding issues. Continue reading...
Lawsuit, which was dismissed with prejudice in a Los Angeles court on Friday, had alleged the actor coerced sexual contact' with 14-year-old when he was 35A judge has thrown out a lawsuit that accused Warren Beatty of coercing a teenage girl into sex in 1973.Kristina Hirsch filed a lawsuit against the actor in November 2022, alleging Beatty had coerced her into sex in 1973 when he was 35 and she was 14 and 15.Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 802 9999. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html Continue reading...
Japan's government has called a meeting of its national security council in response to the launchesNorth Korea has fired two ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast, according to the South Korean military.The South Korean military said in a statement that the launch was made on Monday morning and that the missile flew about 1,000km before falling into the sea. Continue reading...
Greenpeace UK and Uplift are seeking a judicial review in the Scottish courts to stop opening of huge new oilfieldClimate campaigners have launched two separate legal challenges to government plans to open a massive new oilfield in the North Sea.Greenpeace and the campaign group Uplift argue that the decision to press ahead with the Rosebank development - the UK's biggest untapped oilfield - is incompatible with the UK's legally binding climate commitments, and say ministers' original analysis ignored the devastating impact of burning oil from the site. Continue reading...
Independent Monitoring Board also finds longer detentions and raises concern about treatment of vulnerable peopleAlmost 80% of people held in UK immigration detention centres in 2022 were released into the community rather than deported, according to a report.The purpose of immigration detention is to prepare people for deportation from the UK, but the annual report by the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) on the immigration detention estate found that the vast majority were released. Continue reading...
Clinicians ranked patient self-assessments as the least important type of evidence during diagnosisHealth experts say more attention should be given to patients' experiences after research found multiple examples of their insights being undervalued.A study led by the University of Cambridge and King's College London found clinicians ranked patient self-assessments as the least important when making diagnostic decisions. Continue reading...
Michael Gove to announce extra support for social care and housing as one in five English councils foresees going bustMinisters will announce a 6.5% increase in the funding for local councils in England in a desperate attempt to stop them going bankrupt.Michael Gove, the communities secretary, will announce the 64bn support package on Monday, less than a fortnight after he was warned that an unprecedented number of councils are likely to declare themselves bankrupt. Continue reading...
Award-winning director made most of his films in France, where he was free to be critical of his home countryOtar Iosseliani, an award-winning film-maker, has died in his native Georgia, his French distributor said Sunday. He was 89.Iosseliani made most of his films in France, where he was free to make films that were sometimes overtly critical of his home country. His death on Saturday night was confirmed by Regine Vial, from the Les Films du Losange company. Continue reading...
Jamell Demons, known as YNW Melly, to go on trial next year in Florida for allegedly killing two fellow rappers five years agoJamell Demons, known to millions of rap fans as YNW Melly, will go on trial early next year in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for a double murder he allegedly committed five years ago.But after a mistrial on the same charges in July, Florida prosecutors are now controversially planning to introduce his lyrics into evidence in a case that could carry the death penalty if he is convicted. Continue reading...
Fatalities in last 24 hours come amid public anger over mistaken killing of three hostages by Israeli forcesAirstrikes in the Gaza Strip have killed at least 100 people over the last 24 hours, as Israel's leadership faces growing international pressure for a ceasefire and calls at home to resume hostage negotiations after the Israeli army shot and killed three men kidnapped by Hamas.The health ministry in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory said on Sunday that at least 90 people had been killed by Israeli bombardment in the Jabalia camp in the north, and another 12 had died in bombings in the central city of Deir al-Balah, as fighting was reported in several parts of Gaza. Continue reading...
Small vehicles could travel through tunnel, which comes within 400 metres of Erez border crossingThe Israeli army has said it has uncovered the biggest Hamas tunnel in the Gaza Strip so far, just a few hundred metres from a key border crossing.Such was its size that small vehicles would be able to travel within the tunnel, an AFP photographer granted access to it reported. Continue reading...
Comedian and activist had hoped to be on ballot to try to take seat from Greens when Caroline Lucas stands downEddie Izzard has failed in her second attempt to be selected as a Labour candidate and represent the party as an MP at the next general election.The comedian and activist, 61, who first spoke about being trans in 1985, had hoped to stand as the Labour MP for Brighton Pavilion but was beaten by the music industry activist Tom Gray. Continue reading...
Response to Houthi attacks from Yemen seeks to reassure commercial shipping companies avoiding use of Red SeaThe US is to announce the launch of an expanded maritime protection force involving Arab states to combat the increasingly frequent Houthi attacks being mounted from Yemen's ports on commercial shipping in the Red Sea.The force, provisionally entitled Operation Prosperity Guardian, is due to be announced by the defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, when he visits the Middle East. Much like the Task Force 153 already operating out of Bahrain, the larger protection force is designed to provide reassurance to commercial shipping companies that Houthi attacks will be seen off, and that the sea remains safe for commercial shipping. Continue reading...
The prolific Chicago artist created more than 160 commissioned public art pieces across the US that drew praise from presidentsRichard Hunt, a prolific Chicago artist who was the first Black sculptor to receive a solo retrospective at New York City's Museum of Modern Art (Moma) and whose public works drew praise from presidents, has died at age 88.Hunt passed away peacefully" Saturday at his home, according to a statement posted on his website. No cause of death was given. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#6H73H)
Owners of gite where formerly missing British boy spent time say he enjoyed sharing in their family lifeThe owners of a remote French gite where teenager Alex Batty stayed on and off for two years have said he was eager to go to school and get back to a normal life".Ingrid Beauve and Fred Hambye said they treated Alex as part of their family and had no idea of his true identity until last week. Continue reading...
Update to pay policy includes room for necessary flexibility' to attract best talent to London-listed firmOne of the largest UK pension and insurance firms has opened the door to backing US-style mega-bonuses for London listed companies despite fears that executive pay is fuelling inequality and encouraging short-term risk taking".Legal & General Investment Management has updated its pay policy to say there is room for the necessary flexibility" needed to attract the best talent. It acknowledges an increased push" by UK companies towards remunerations structures that are more closely aligned to US-style pay". Continue reading...
Vladimir Putin vows to make Russia self-sufficient power in face of west and warns of problems' with neighbouring FinlandRussian president Vladimir Putin vowed to make Russia a sovereign, self-sufficient" power in the face of the west. In a campaign speech he accused the west of unsuccessfully trying to sow internal troubles" in Russia.Putin also warned of problems" with neighbouring Finland after it joined Nato earlier this year. Russia plans to reorganise military divisions to station more troops in its north-west region, by the EU and Nato border.But Putin dismissed US president Joe Biden's claims that Russia could attack a Nato country as nonsense". It came after Biden said Putin would not stop at Ukraine if it secures victory, as he pleaded with Republican lawmakers to authorise further aid to Kyiv.Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskiy's visit to Washington DC last week has yet to bear fruit as Biden called lack of Congressional support for aid a Christmas gift" to Russia. Biden has requested $61.4bn (48.4bn) in further aid to Ukraine but Republicans in Republicans in Congress have rejected the proposals.Russia is not interested in extending the Black Sea grain deal, the agriculture minister said. The deal led to 33m tonnes of grain leave Ukraine's ports before it collapsed in July.Ukraine claims Russia has suffered almost 350,000 troops dying or being injured. The figure is higher than the 315,000 estimated by US intelligence, according to reports, but even that represents a significant toll for Moscow.Ukraine continued its use of memetic warfare' as the defence ministry posted a video of two Russian tanks being destroyed, with guitar music and the caption WELCOME TO UKRAINE." Scholars have tracked the use of memes to try and grab control of the war narrative.An intelligence report from the UK Ministry of Defence said Russia is likely to deploy electoral fraud and voter intimidation" when elections take place in occupied Ukrainian territories. Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia will vote in March's presidential elections but they are expected to not be free or fair".It comes as Vladimir Putin was confirmed to be running for president again as an independent candidate in Russia after two decades in power. Russian news agencies reported the news on Saturday, with the victory of Putin, 71, a formality.Russia continued to batter Ukrainian targets with mortars overnight, with Dnipro in the centre, Sumy in the north and Zaporizhzhia in the south-east hit with artillery.Russian rocket forces have loaded a new Yars intercontinental ballistic missile into a silo at the Kozelsk base south-west of Moscow. The missiles are capable of delivering multiple nuclear warheads.More than a year after the Russians retreated from Izium, the Ukrainian city is wracked by suspicion and distrust about collaborators. Read Shaun Walker's Observer dispatch from a city still in ruins here.Lorry blockades are continuing at the Polish-Ukrainian border. Polish drivers say Ukraine is undercutting them as about 2,150 Ukrainian lorries remain stuck in Poland unable to return. Continue reading...
Russia has no interest in fighting with Nato country, Vladimir Putin says, but says he will send military units near border with Finland. This live blog is closed
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