World news | The Guardian

The ultimate responsibility for the tower's safety lay with its architect, said the 1,700-page report, which highlighted a widespread failure among the profession'. Why are so many architects now utterly detached from the realities of construction?Lying manufacturers, incompetent inspectors, muddled regulations, contemptuous landlords - the blame for the Grenfell Tower fire has been hurled in all directions, exposing a housing and construction industry that is rotten at every level. But, after seven years of waiting, yesterday's inquiry report makes it very clear that there was one professional actor that bore the ultimate responsibility for ensuring the safety of what was designed and built: the architect.

Antisemitism and Islamism have no place here,' Scholz says after incident also close to Nazi documentation centreThere is no place" in Germany for antisemitism or Islamist extremism, the German chancellor has said after police in Munich shot dead a man carrying a long-barrelled gun" following an exchange of fire near the Israeli consulate.In a joint statement, the Bavarian state police and prosecutors said they believed the man had been planning a terrorist attack involving the consulate general of the state of Israel". Continue reading...

Universities UK likely to recommend smaller increase as institutions struggle with deepening financial crisisTuition fees in England would need to rise to 12,500 a year to break even, according to analysis presented to vice-chancellors, amid warnings of the deepening financial crisis facing universities.But higher education leaders attending the Universities UK (UUK) annual conference were told they would look out of touch" if they asked for a 35% increase in undergraduate fees from the current level of 9,250, with a UUK taskforce likely to recommend a smaller increase. Continue reading...

Lime, Dott and Tier Mobility licences to be cancelled from October due to issues with circulation and parkingMadrid will ban e-scooters rented through mobile apps after the city's three licensed operators failed to implement limits on their clients' circulation or to control their parking, the Spanish capital's mayor has said.Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida said on Thursday the licences of Lime, Dott and Tier Mobility would be cancelled from October, adding that the city had no plans to grant new licences to any other operators. Continue reading...

Australian Workers Union says it is a rightwing seat but UWU's Jo Briskey has backing of Queensland powerbroker

Exclusive: Health minister says John Brogden and former deputy premier Carmel Tebbutt respected across the aisle'

PM says plan to end family domestic and sexual violence in a generation will require an all-hands-on-deck approach' but funding questions remain

Exclusive: Alliance for Gambling Reform to ramp up pressure on Albanese government to impose a full gambling ad ban

Bill would no longer require women to request access to period products and instead make them readily availableWhen Kimberly Haven struggled to acquire a tampon in prison, she made one, which she said led to her getting toxic shock syndrome and needing an emergency hysterectomy.Haven's case - emblematic of an issue thousands of incarcerated women still face today - underscores the pressing need for improved menstrual product access in facilities across the US. Continue reading...

CPS says no longer a realistic prospect of conviction' over two charges against disgraced Hollywood producerProsecutors in the UK have discontinued two indecent assault charges against the disgraced Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein.The Metropolitan police were given the green light two years ago by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to charge Weinstein with two charges of indecent assault against a woman, in her 50s at the time of the announcement of the charges, in London in 1996. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can read more of our Israel-Gaza war coverage herePalestinian news agency Wafa reports that three people have been killed in an apparent Israeli strike on Gaza City in the north of the territory. The attack happened in the al-Zaytoun neighbourhood.There has been an apparent shooting attack near the Israeli consulate in Munich in Germany on the anniversary of the 1972 Munich Olympics attack on Israeli athletes and staff at the Games. There are no reports of casualties, but the suspected attacker has been shot and killed. My colleague Lili Bayer has the latest developments here ... Continue reading...

Online fashion retailer hands control of brand to Jack & Jones owner with sale of 75% stake to help repay debts

Minister for social services commits to committee recommendation for SmartCard, which quarantines 50% of income, to become voluntary

Boy, who cannot be named, to appear in crown court later on Thursday over death of Bhim Kohli in park on SundayA 14-year-old boy has appeared in court charged with murdering an 80-year-old grandfather in a park assault.A murder investigation was launched after Bhim Kohli died from serious injuries suffered while walking his dog Rocky in Franklin Park, seconds away from his home in Braunstone Town, Leicestershire, on Sunday evening. Continue reading...

The stoush between Jasmine Chambers and the Bureau of Meteorology began when she took two days of personal leave before a conference

Selling would be bad news for struggling homeowners, but Michele Bullock likely thinks a long period of high inflation would be worse

This blog is now closed

Recommendation comes amid wider regulator review of Royal Mail's universal service obligation

Exclusive: Ken Ludwig gives Shakespeare Birthplace Trust largest private donation in its 177-year historyThe charity that cares for historic Shakespeare sites in Stratford-upon-Avon has received an unprecedented donation of 1m from the Olivier award-winning US playwright Ken Ludwig.The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT) can now pay for crucial conservation work on Hall's Croft, the home of Shakespeare's daughter Susanna and her physician husband, John Hall, who is believed to have advised his father-in-law on medical matters. Continue reading...

Increasing amounts spent on educating pupils outside mainstream where quality and safety is less guaranteed'Suspensions and exclusions from schools in England went up by more than a fifth in the past year, according to analysis of live attendance data in a new report that raises concerns about children being shifted out of mainstream education into alternative provision.Research by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) found that cash-strapped councils are spending increasing amounts on educating pupils outside the mainstream schools where quality and safety is less guaranteed". Continue reading...

Brand partnership for pastis, a traditional Marseille aperitif, with arch-rival decried as stab in the back'It is the quintessential pre-dinner apero enjoyed in the Provencal afternoon sun, as unmistakably southern French as the clicking sound of a game of petanque.But the cloudy, aniseed-flavoured aperitif Ricard Pastis is leaving an aftertaste even more bitter than its makers intended in the mouths of some football fans in the southern city of Marseille. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Lord chancellor says she wants to inject energy' into stalling efforts to set up Nuremberg-style trialThe new Labour government wants to inject renewed energy into the two-year-long international effort to set up a special tribunal with the authority to try Russia's leadership for the crime of aggression, the lord chancellor, Shabana Mahmood, has said.Discussions have been dogged by disputes over the appropriate body to set up the special tribunal, and fears in the US that if an organisation were empowered to strip the Russian leadership of immunity from prosecution in a foreign court, western leaders might face the threat of legal action in the future. Continue reading...

Health bodies say the questions are needed to fill gaps in much-needed research

Some of the 92 now about to lose their seats can trace their family's presence in the Lords back to the middle agesThe UK's 92 remaining hereditary peers are to lose their right to sit and vote in the House of Lords under proposals being put forward by the government. The change, which will probably take effect next year, has been billed as the biggest parliamentary reform in a quarter of a century.It will round off changes begun by Tony Blair's government in 1999, which revoked a 700-year-old right for all peers to sit on and vote from the red benches. Blair excluded 667 hereditary peers from the upper chamber and allowed only 92 of them, elected from the whole group, to continue doing so pending further changes. Continue reading...

Government's bill would prevent the 92 remaining peers who inherited their titles from siting in upper chamberThe government is proposing to banish all remaining hereditary peers from the House of Lords in the biggest shake-up of parliament in a quarter century.The UK's 92 remaining hereditary peers - who have inherited their titles from their parents - will lose their right to sit and vote in the upper chamber under proposals put forward by ministers on Thursday. Continue reading...

Academics say vulnerability of the two countries' nuclear launch sites makes dangerous mistakes more likelyThe US and its allies are capable of threatening and destroying all of Russia and China's nuclear launch sites with conventional weapons, creating what two experts describe as a potentially unstable geopolitical situation.Prof Dan Plesch and Manuel Galileo, from Soas University of London, describe a quiet revolution in military affairs" reflecting increased US military power relative to Moscow and Beijing, particularly in missile technology. Continue reading...

Paul Nowak welcomes government's crucial first step' on pay, but says more needs to be done after 14 years of wage declineThe government should award public sector workers entirely legitimate" pay restoration deals despite the tough economic backdrop to make up for more than a decade of real-terms salary cuts, the head of the Trades Union Congress has said.Paul Nowak, the general secretary of the organising body for trade unions in England and Wales, said Rachel Reeves's decision to deliver real-terms pay rises in July was a crucial first step" in dealing with staffing pressures in frontline services. Continue reading...

CEOs in England and Wales could face two years in prison under proposals to force firms to supply data quicklyWater bosses in England and Wales could be jailed for up to two years if they cover up sewage dumping, under legislation proposed by the Labour government.At the moment, CEOs of water companies face fines for failing to comply with investigations by the Environment Agency (EA) and the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI), but there have been just three such fines since privatisation three decades ago. Continue reading...

Truth Social shares closed below $17 on Wednesday, reversing all gains since the company's rapid rise from JanuaryDonald Trump's tiny social media empire has seen its extraordinary stock market rally wiped out by a steep sell-off.Shares in Trump Media & Technology Group, owner of Truth Social, closed below $17 on Wednesday, reversing all their gains since the company's rapid rise took hold in January. Continue reading...

Woman who falsely built reputation as a wealthy German heiress named Anna Delvey finds newest ventureAnna Sorokin, the con artist who was convicted of swindling banks, hotels and friends in 2019 after falsely building a reputation as a wealthy German heiress named Anna Delvey, has found her newest venture: Dancing With the Stars.Described as the notorious ankle bracelet fashionista" in a press release, Sorokin was announced on Wednesday on Good Morning America along with the likes of the former NBA star Dwight Howard, actor Tori Spelling and Jenn Tran, The Bachelorette lead whose season ended in heartbreak just Tuesday night. Tran, the first Asian American Bachelorette, was a contestant on Joey Graziadei's season of The Bachelor - and he, too, will be vying for the trophy.1. former Super Bowl champion Danny Amendola2. Anna Sorokin, who is being billed as Anna Delvey"3. Joey Graziadei from The Bachelor4. former NBA champion Dwight Howard5. Chandler Kinney, star of Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin6. rugby player and Olympian Ilona Maher7. model Brooks Nader8. gymnast and Olympian Stephen Nedoroscik9. Phaedra Parks, attorney and Real Housewives of Atlanta star10. Eric Roberts, prolific movie actor, brother of Julia and father of Emma11. Tori Spelling of Beverly Hills 9021012. Jenn Tran from The Bachelorette13. Reginald VelJohnson of Family Matters and Die Hard Continue reading...

Expulsion of Huang Ping comes after ex-aide to Governor Kathy Hochul charged with acting as Chinese agentChina's consul general in New York has been expelled, CNN reported on Wednesday, deepening the crisis swirling around the former aide of the New York governor, Kathy Hochul, who has been charged with acting as a secret agent for the Chinese government.The news network said that Hochul had broken the news about the expulsion of Huang Ping, the consul general, at an unrelated event. She told reporters that she told the Chinese consulate she wanted Ping expelled after she had been in touch with the US state department at the request of the secretary of state, Antony Blinken. Continue reading...

First minister makes eradicating child poverty his top priority while Scottish Labour says he had no vision'John Swinney has been accused of signalling 18 months of managed decline" in the run-up to the next Scottish parliament elections, as he set out his inaugural programme for government the day after his finance secretary announced savage cuts to fill a 1bn hole in this year's government finances.Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, said the first minister's programme - the Holyrood equivalent of the king's speech - revealed an SNP government with no vision, no strategy and no plan", while the general secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress, Roz Foyer, said the slimmed-down prospectus indicated managed decline" ahead of the 2026 elections. Continue reading...

Minnesota governor has conceded state education officials did insufficient due diligence to prevent scheme

Belongings and tents removed, and residents bussed away, as part of official policy to deter coastal encampmentsFrench police have cleared a camp believed to have been used by some of the dozen people, including six children, who died after their dinghy ripped apart in the Channel.In the early hours of Wednesday, belongings and tents were removed and tens of people were bussed away from an unofficial refugee settlement near Calais known locally as the BMX site". Continue reading...

Joe Cornelius Sr, 82, and Keisha Miles, 31, were found dead with multiple gunshot wounds on SundayAn 11-year-old boy has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder after the fatal shootings of a former Louisiana mayor and his daughter.In a press conference on Tuesday, Jared McIver, police chief of Minden, a small town in north-west Louisiana, said that at about 6.30am on Sunday police responded to reports of a shooting inside a house on Austin Street, according to local reports. Continue reading...

Former home secretary finishes behind Mel Stride after only securing 14 votes

President carries out biggest government shake-up since start of war as deadly attacks continue

Exclusive: Case of Sia Kasparis, who has dementia, had been highlighted in Guardian investigation into unpaid care

Volodymyr Zelenskiy says reshuffle linked to strengthening our state' after foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and others step downThe mayor of Lviv shared a photo of a mother and her three daughters who were killed in Russia's attack today.Norway has contributed funding for buying drones and strengthening Ukrainian air defence. Continue reading...

We need more people to use AI and to do that we need to build trust', says industry and science minister Ed Husic

Grattan Institute says losses in Australia are double those in the US, and poker machines are more common in Australian suburbs than ATMs

Derwent Valley residents say the water rose at a frightening pace in the biggest flood since Meadowbank dam was built

Australian Human Rights Commission says Peel hotel's right to refuse heterosexual people was granted to help gay men achieve equality

Met says inquiry report reaches clear conclusions', but that any prosecutions are not expected until 2027

Charges against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and at least five others accuse them of orchestrating the attack that killed 1,200 peopleThe main United Nations agency for Palestinians says it is making good progress in rolling out a polio vaccine to children in Gaza, but called for a permanent ceasefire in the 11-month war to ease humanitarian suffering.UNRWA said that three days into the campaign in areas of central Gaza around 187,000 children have received the vaccine. The campaign will move to other areas of the enclave in the second stage. Continue reading...

Prime minister condemns horrific failings' and promises to speed up process of removing unsafe cladding

London fire brigade says two flats on the ninth and 10th floors of block in Catford are alightTen fire engines and about 70 firefighters are tackling a blaze at two flats in a tower block in Catford, London fire brigade (LFB) has said.The fire, on the ninth and 10th floor of the block, comes on the day that a damning report was published into the causes of the fire at Grenfell Tower, which killed 72 people. Continue reading...

Don Antonio Coluccia was leading anti-crime march when he was reportedly assaulted with planks, bottles and sticksAn Italian antimafia priest who has been fighting for years against crime and drug-dealing in Rome has been subjected to a violent mafioso attack" in the country's capital.Don Antonio Coluccia, 49, who lives under round-the-clock protection due to numerous threats from criminal organisations, was reportedly assaulted on Sunday night with planks, bottles, and sticks in the Quarticciolo district, of the capital, where he was leading an anti-crime march. Continue reading...