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London-born musician Dumile Daniel Thompson, 49, had a lack of oxygen to his brain after a reaction to a blood pressure drugAn NHS trust has apologised for the substandard care given to MF Doom, an underground rap icon who died aged 49 while having hospital treatment.The artist behind songs including Accordion and That's That, whose real name was Dumile Daniel Thompson, died in October 2020 due to a lack of oxygen to his brain after a reaction to a drug prescribed for blood pressure. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Lady Lawrence calls decision a disgrace' after announcement despite errors made by senior detectives leading to suspects remaining freeThe mother of Stephen Lawrence has said it was a disgrace" for prosecutors to decide not to bring charges against four senior detectives accused of bungling the first investigation into the teenager's murder.The Crown Prosecution Service spent more than two years considering whether the errors made in the weeks after the 18-year-old was murdered were so serious that they amounted to the criminal offence of misconduct in public office. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Grayson Perry and Olivia Colman lead group of creative figures supporting Keir Starmer's plan to improve human' skillsA group of prominent actors, artists and authors have praised Labour's proposal to instil more creativity in the school curriculum, saying the arts currently risk being a pursuit that only the most privileged can follow".The open letter, signed by Grayson Perry, Olivia Colman, Simon Rattle, Adrian Lester and Patrick Stewart, follows Keir Starmer's pledge to reprioritise creativity and other human" skills in a world of artificial intelligence. Continue reading...

Having survived the collapse of its parent organisation, the festival returns with a slimmed-down eventThe Edinburgh film festival, which until recently faced the threat of permanent shutdown, has announced the complete lineup for its 2023 edition.The festival plans to show 36 features - 24 of which are new - over six days in August, having shifted its dates from June to return to its traditional late summer berth that coincides with the rest of the city's large-scale festival activity. Continue reading...

Government loses legal challenge to block Boris Johnson's unredacted WhatsApps from being handed to official Covid inquiryStarmer is now being heckled by someone complaining about his lack of commitment to a green new deal.He says he has already given a speech on this. He offers to speak to the protesters later.Keir Starmer asked two protesters holding a banner saying Green New Deal now" to let me finish" as they interrupted his speech.The Labour leader told the pair he would speak to you after" as they accused of him of U-turning on his 28bn green prosperity plan, before being led off stage by security.I promise you this, wherever there are obstacles to opportunity, wherever there are the barriers to hope, my Labour government will tear them down. Continue reading...

The Liberal senator is vying for a winnable spot on the party's federal ticket at Friday's preselection

Backbenchers respond to police bounties placed on activists, as minister challenged over meeting with Chinese officialHong Kong officials involved in targeting UK-based pro-democracy activists who had bounties placed on them should be subject to sanctions, opposition and Tory backbenchers have urged the government.A Foreign Office minister responding to concerns raised in parliament was also challenged by one of her own colleagues over her recent meeting with a Chinese official, whom the Tory MP Tim Loughton described as China's chief dissident snatcher." Continue reading...

Chatbot said it was impressed' when Jaswant Singh Chail told it he was an assassin' before he broke in to Windsor Castle, court hearsA man who planned to assassinate the late queen with a crossbow drew encouragement from an AI chatbot in the days before breaking into the grounds of Windsor Castle, the Old Bailey has heard.Jaswant Singh Chail, who was 19 at the time, also exchanged thousands of often sexually charged messages with Sarai, his AI girlfriend, before scaling the fence to the royal estate on Christmas Day 2021, the court was told. Continue reading...

Labour leader's five missions' may lack detail and sound cautious, but contain novel ideas and outline framework for governmentPolitics is full of paradoxical moments, and thus it was for Keir Starmer that his speech explaining the urgency of helping young people express themselves was interrupted by two notably eloquent examples, who proceeded to accuse him of a U-turn on green policies.As the duo stepped forward from the young and telegenic lineup placed behind the Labour leader at MidKent College in Gillingham, unfurling a banner, you could almost hear the exasperated sighs of frustration from Starmer's aides. Continue reading...

Joint service for best friends Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, takes place in ElyThousands of people have gathered for the funeral of two teenagers whose deaths sparked a riot in Cardiff.A joint service for best friends Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, began at the Church of the Resurrection on Grand Avenue in Ely just after 1pm on Thursday. Continue reading...

Recommendations of standards committee inquiry will trigger recall petition in MP's Tamworth constituency

Despite Yevgeny Prigozhin's rebellion against the Kremlin, his military contracts are proving too profitable to lose

Judges say law does not allow group to challenge charitable status of new organisation with opposing viewsThe transgender children's charity Mermaids has lost its attempt to have charitable status stripped from the new gay rights organisation LGB Alliance.Tribunal judges Lynn Griffin and Joseph Neville rejected a challenge lodged last year by Mermaids, concluding after seven months of deliberation that the law does not permit Mermaids to challenge a decision made by the Charity Commission to register LGB Alliance as a charity. Continue reading...

Acclaimed architect, whose firm is designing London memorial, accused of sexual assault and harassment by three womenThe acclaimed architect Sir David Adjaye has stepped back from working on the planned UK Holocaust memorial in Westminster after being accused of sexual misconduct.His architectural firm, which won a competition to design the memorial, has told the government that Adjaye will not be involved in the project until the issues raised by the allegations have been addressed. Continue reading...

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Belarus president says head of mercenary group is in St Petersburg and may be moving on to Moscow

Foreign minister says Ukraine war has changed country's mindset about chequebook diplomacy'

Higgins had called on the senator to stop' after Reynolds confirmed she intended to refer commonwealth's settlement with Higgins to anti-corruption watchdog

Newspaper publisher says ad should not have run' after federal independent Kate Chaney accuses no campaign of stoking fear and hate'

Google, the first of the firm's customers directly linked to the tax scandal, was not told the information was confidential and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing by the company

Aluel Ajak died after being struck by a car on Shaws Road in Werribee on Wednesday night

Workers say children being kept in lockdown 80% of the time, with one prison short-staffed for 359 of 365 days last year

With the inquiry findings due, Colleen Taylor is hoping for permanent reform to prevent such a shameful episode happening again

Investigations into the separate thefts have been launched by Victorian and Queensland police

Influenza cases are rising fastest among very young children as well as those aged five to 16 years, health authorities say

Shortage of children's doctors has led to long waiting lists, clinic closures and even prompted prospective parents to think againA shortage of paediatricians in South Korea is leaving hospitals unable to fill posts while raising risks for children's health, doctors have said, claiming that the shortage is both a result of the world's lowest birthrate and increasingly a factor behind it.The number of paediatric clinics and hospitals in the capital, Seoul, has fallen by 12.5% over the five years to 2022, to just 456. Over the same period, the number of psychiatry clinics increased by 76.8%, while anaesthesiology centres saw a 41.2% rise, according to the Seoul Institute, a public administration thinktank. Continue reading...

Justice Bernard Murphy dismisses Mostafa Moz' Azimitabar's application but delivers scathing rebuke of hotel detention policy

Leak in informal settlement in Boksburg on outskirts of city may be linked to illegal mining, authorities say, as search continues for more casualitesAt least 16 people, including three children, died when toxic gas leaked from a cylinder near Johannesburg, South African police have said. Emergency services said the leak appeared to be linked to illegal mining activities.Emergency services initially announced that as many as 24 people might be dead in the Angelo informal settlement in Boksburg, a city on the eastern outskirts of Johannesburg. But police and Gauteng Province premier Panyaza Lesufi later said the number of deaths had been confirmed as 16 after a recount of the bodies. Police said the three children killed were aged one, six and 15. Two people were taken to the hospital for treatment, police said. Continue reading...

Tabrez Ansari was tied to a pole in Jharkhand, tortured for 12 hours and made to chant Hindu slogans widely used by Hindu hardlinersAn Indian court has sentenced 10 men to 10 years each in jail for the lynching of a Muslim man, who died after being tortured and forced to chant Hindu slogans.Tabrez Ansari was tied to a pole and tortured for 12 hours in 2019, as he cried and pleaded with a mob that accused him of burglary in the eastern state of Jharkhand. Continue reading...

NSW Bar Council has resolved to reprimand barrister after finding she engaged in unsatisfactory professional conduct' after complaint by Jo Dyer

Work to persuade Turkey to drop its objections continues, as president meets with Sweden's prime minister at White HouseUS President Joe Biden has told prime minister Ulf Kristersson of Sweden that he is looking forward" to the country's stalled Nato membership bid winning final approval, amid doubts that Turkey will withdraw its opposition in time for a major summit next week.Speaking in the Oval Office on Wednesday, Biden said he wanted to reiterate that he fully, fully supports Sweden's membership in Nato" and was anxiously looking forward" to the bid being ratified. Continue reading...

Local papers reported so-called anti-rioters' wore hoods and masks to apprehend suspected troublemakers during unrestThe French navy is investigating claims that masked, off-duty marines tackled rioters in the western city of Lorient, home to a major military base, during national unrest last week.Local newspaper Le Telegramme published pictures of groups of so-called anti-rioters" who wore hoods and masks as they apprehended and beat up suspected troublemakers in the city on Friday night. Continue reading...

Ch Insp Dale Sexton was cleared of wrongdoing in March but, after a review of the evidence, the CPS has been asked to investigateThe police officer in charge of emergency services on the night of the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017 could face criminal charges after a review of the original investigation was carried out at the request of the victims' families.A file of evidence concerning Ch Insp Dale Sexton's comments will be passed to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the police watchdog has confirmed. Continue reading...

Labour leader will argue against snobbery of vocational' and academic' education, saying young people need bothBritain needs to shatter its snobbish class ceiling" that prevents children from getting ahead, Keir Starmer is to argue in a speech setting out his fifth and final mission" aimed at removing barriers to opportunity.Speaking at a college in Gillingham, Kent, the Labour leader will argue that students must be taught creativity and the human" skills that cannot be done by computers, advocating a shift in focus for the artificial intelligence age.Highest sustained growth in the G7. The first mission to be announced, this is the most specific of the five and arguably the most risky, given it depends on events in other countries. In a rare moment of agreement with Liz Truss, Starmer said economic growth targets were useful, while insisting Labour's plan would be based on a stable mix of free markets and the state.Cutting crime. A perennial pledge for any opposition party, this is seen as particularly relevant given a perception of police absence and court delays. Starmer pledged to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, using measures including dedicated rape courts" and domestic violence experts taking 999 calls.Restoring the NHS. Another obvious subject for the roster, Starmer said Labour would increase real-terms spending on NHS England, although he dodged questions on how this would be done. Other priorities included a focus on better preventive health.Making the UK a clean energy superpower. Very firmly building on the work of Ed Miliband, this mission is a restatement of intent after the party rowed back on its promise to invest 28bn in a green industrial strategy. Starmer said he would throw everything" at net zero and create jobs for a low-carbon future.Improving social opportunity. The last mission to be launched, this covers everything from a revised school curriculum aimed at boosting creativity and human" skills in the AI age, to bringing child poverty reduction experts into schools. Starmer has promised it will tackle the class ceiling" in which children are pigeonholed according to background. Continue reading...

Home affairs select committee members criticise policy of working with businesses such as VivastreetSenior police officers have cosied up" to pimping websites" that allegedly allow trafficked women to be raped multiple times a day", MPs have said.Dame Diana Johnson, the chair of the home affairs select committee, said it was disgraceful" that police forces and the National Crime Agency (NCA) were engaging with businesses such as Vivastreet. Continue reading...

West Lindsey council votes down proposal to relocate dog, named after a racial slur, to Norfolk airbaseCouncillors have rejected proposals to exhume and relocate a dog buried at the former base of the Dambusters put forward amid concerns about the suitability of the grave's location once the site is repurposed as accommodation for asylum seekers.During an extraordinary planning meeting on Wednesday evening, West Lindsey district councillors unanimously voted down an application by RAF Heritage to relocate the dog to an airbase in Norfolk. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Experts say fall in funding caused turning point' in standards in health service in EnglandThe quality of care that the NHS provides has got worse in many key areas and patients' long waits to access treatment could become even more common, research has found.The coalition government's austerity programme in the early 2010s led to the heath service no longer being able to meet key waiting time targets, the Nuffield Trust and Health Foundation said.Fewer people with long-term heath conditions such as cancer, diabetes and depression, are getting enough help to manage their condition.Breast cancer screening rates for women aged 53-74 have fallen.It has become harder for patients to see a named GP.Only 6% of midwives think their maternity unit has enough staff to do its job properly. Continue reading...

The singer was known for voicing Mulan in the Mandarin version and becoming the first Chinese American to perform at the OscarsCoco Lee, a Hong Kong-born singer and songwriter who had a highly successful career in Asia, has died by suicide, her siblings said on Wednesday. She was 48.The star had depression for several years, Lee's elder sisters Carol and Nancy Lee said in a statement posted on Facebook and Instagram, with her condition deteriorating drastically over recent months.In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is at 800-273-8255 and online chat is also available. You can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis text line counselor. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org Continue reading...

Gillian Keegan says she can't think of a worse time' for action by NEU membersThe education secretary, Gillian Keegan, has accused striking teachers of undermining children's recovery from the Covid pandemic, saying she did pretty well" at winning extra funding for schools from the Treasury.Keegan told a conference in Bournemouth: Let me be clear, we should not be having these strikes in general, but certainly not now. Children have been through so much in the pandemic and I can't think of a worse time to be willingly keeping them out of school." Continue reading...

Yolanda Diaz says money for study, training or starting a business would ensure equality of opportunity'Spain's leftwing labour minister, Yolanda Diaz, has proposed a scheme to tackle social inequality by giving every young person in the country 20,000 (17,000) to be spent on study, training or setting up a business once they reach the age of 18.According to Diaz's Sumar platform, which announced the policy before Spain's snap general election on 23 July, the initiative would cost 10bn, which would be raised by taxing the rich. Continue reading...

This live blog has now closed, you can read more about the war in Ukraine hereSuspilne, Ukraine's state broadcaster, reports that overnight residential buildings and a medical facility were damaged by a rocket attack on Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region.The claims have not been independently verified. Continue reading...

Police said man charged with assault, which could see him fined and jailed for a yearIndian authorities on Wednesday demolished the home of a man accused of publicly urinating on a member of a tribal community after footage of the alleged assault sparked public condemnation.A video shared widely on social media appeared to show Pravesh Shukla urinating on his young victim in a dark street in the central Sidhi district while smoking a cigarette. The attack took place last year but came to public attention only this week. Continue reading...

From rising demands to falling pay and the pressures of underfunding, teachers are leaving the profession in record numbersMax, in his 30s, a primary school teacher from southern England, is among thousands of teachers in England who will be striking on Wednesday to protest against the government's offer of a 4.3% pay rise and 1,000 one-off payment.He will only be striking, though, he says, in solidarity with colleagues. I have handed in my notice and will be leaving the profession in 10 days' time. It is my third year as a teacher and it has been horrendous." Continue reading...

Clean-up begins after three-day operation, the largest attack on occupied West Bank in two decadesOn the second floor of the Shibli family home in the Jenin refugee camp, three small boys knelt on the tile floor, picking up hundreds of spent bullet casings left by Israeli snipers who had used their kitchen as a firing position. The cartridges clinked and chimed gently as the children cleared up and their glum parents surveyed the extent of the damage inflicted on their property.The 50 members of the extended family, who all live in flats in the same large building, returned to their homes on Wednesday morning after Israeli forces withdrew the night before. The three-day operation, codenamed Home and Garden, was the largest Israeli offensive in the occupied West Bank in two decades, involving airstrikes and up to 2,000 ground troops. Continue reading...

Body of Bruno Delnegro was found in a cave in Abruzzo last year, with three sons and girlfriend of one now under investigationItalian police believe that the body of man found by walkers in a remote spot in the Abruzzo region a year ago had been left there by his sons who continued to pocket his pension.The body of Bruno Delnegro, who died of natural causes, was found by two Canadian walkers last July in a cave about 215 miles (350km) from his home in Trani, in the southern Puglia region. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed, you can read more of our UK political coverage hereYesterday Sajid Javid, the Tory former health secretary, called for the creation of a royal commission to consider the future of the NHS. He argued that this would take the debate about the future of the service out of the realm of party politics, and, in an article in the Times, he said that in private politicians believed that the NHS was unsustainable in its current form. He said:Of course, as we approach that next general election, political parties will energetically debate the future of the NHS. But behind closed doors, they know the current set-up is unsustainable. Saying that publicly is much more difficult.We are investing now and building a workforce for the future. So I'm very confident that in 25 years time, the NHS will be thriving.I don't begrudge NHS staff past and present celebrating the enormous contribution they make and the NHS has made to our country over the last 75 years.What I do begrudge is the prime minister and other government ministers out celebrating, because when you look at the state the NHS is in today objectively we have the worst crisis in its history, the shortest or the lowest patient satisfaction ever and the highest waiting lists on record. Continue reading...

Median unit in harbour city now costs more than median house in every other capital, Domain says, as immigration adds to rental pressure cooker'

Whistleblower tells Senate inquiry into federal government's use of consultants that self-regulation is failing' across the industry

Neuropsychologists and psychiatrists argue the evidence for broad-scale implementation of psychedelic drug use is insufficient

Though there are usually no signs initially, symptoms such as wheezing and a persistent cough can emerge over timeFor the first time since records began, the number of women diagnosed with lung cancer in the UK is to overtake the number of men this year, according to a Cancer Research UK analysis for the Guardian.Experts say the earlier lung cancer is detected, the easier it is to treat. While there are usually no signs or symptoms in the earliest stages, they can emerge as the condition progresses.A cough that does not go away after three weeks.A longstanding cough that gets worse.Recurring chest infections.Coughing up blood.An ache or pain when breathing or coughing.Persistent breathlessness.Persistent tiredness or lack of energy.Loss of appetite or unexplained weight loss.Changes in the appearance of your fingers, such as becoming more curved or their ends becoming larger (this is known as finger clubbing).Difficulty swallowing or pain when swallowing.Wheezing.A hoarse voice.Swelling of your face or neck.Persistent chest or shoulder pain. Continue reading...