Three men and two women accused of conspiring to collect information intended to be directly or indirectly useful to an enemy'The UK's Crown Prosecution Service has authorised charges against five people suspected of spying for Russia.The three men and two women, aged between 29 and 45, are accused of conspiring to collect information intended to be directly or indirectly useful to an enemy", the CPS said. Continue reading...
Kristen Michal says clean air is human right' and breathing should not make us sick' after revelations about Europe's toxic airSpeaking in the French senate, Britain's King Charles III underscored the role of the private sector in developing solutions that allow for a transition to a more sustainable world.Together with the French president. Emmanuel Macron, the king will meet today with French and British business leaders to discuss investment in clean growth and preserving biodiversity. Continue reading...
Proposed law aims to improve representation in a parliament where women hold only a little over 13% of seatsIndia's lower house of parliament has passed a bill to reserve a third of seats for women, almost triple the current number, in a move that could transform Indian politics.More than 27 years after it was first proposed in parliament, the women's reservation bill was given almost unanimous support by MPs in the lower house, with only two voting against it. Its passage through the upper house is expected to be smooth thanks to broad political support. Continue reading...
Deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden says it would disproportionate to undertake further action' against former PMBoris Johnson is to avoid censure for breaking the rules on ex-ministers taking up new jobs despite the government accepting he committed a breach over his appointment as a Daily Mail columnist.Oliver Dowden, the deputy prime minister, told the post-government appointments watchdog on Thursday that it would be disproportionate to undertake further action" other than acknowledging that there had been a breach. Continue reading...
Former soldier was in HMP Wandsworth on remand charged with terrorism offencesFormer soldier Daniel Khalife has pleaded not guilty at the Old Bailey to escaping custody at HMP Wandsworth where he was on remand after being charged with terrorism offences earlier this year.More details soon ...
by Martin Belam, Guardian staff and agencies on (#6EY9Q)
Russia strikes at least six cities across Ukraine in biggest attack since August; Poland will no longer arm Ukraine, says prime minister Continue reading...
Republicans propose stopgap funding bill that does not include funding for Ukraine as both parties signal they have questions for Ukraine delegationVolodymyr Zelenskiy is likely to find his latest visit to Washington a much tougher occasion than the hero's welcome he was given nine months ago.Zelenskiy was given a standing ovation when he delivered an address to a joint sitting of Congress in December, but on Thursday morning there will be minimal ceremony, and the Ukrainian president faces difficult conversations behind closed doors when he meets congressional leaders who are in the midst of a bitter spending battle that could lead to a government shutdown. Continue reading...
Retailer ups full-year expectations for third time in four months as it signals prices could fall in springNext has raised its full-year profit expectations for the third time in four months and signalled that prices could start to fall next spring for the first time in at least two years.The fashion and homewares retailer upped its annual profit guidance by 30m to 875m as it said better ranges, the sunny spring and pay rises for many of its customers had helped lift sales. Continue reading...
by Philip Oltermann European culture editor on (#6EYEY)
French and German politicians are in a standoff over a quota designed to boost European productionsBrussels must not shut the door" on British film and television, MEPs have said, as the European Commission mulls excluding the UK from a quota system designed to boost European productions on streaming platforms.In order to operate across Europe, streaming platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+ currently have to ensure that at least 30% of the films they have in their online catalogues are European works". Continue reading...
Home Office-funded survey exposes failures over serious sexual crimes by officers in England and WalesThe full extent of the trauma rape survivors experience as a direct result of their interaction with police has been shown for the first time in a damning official survey.Three-quarters of respondents to the largest ever survey of rape and sexual assault survivors in England and Wales said their mental health was damaged as a direct result of what police did, or failed to do, in their case", according to researchers. Continue reading...
by Patrick Butler Social policy editor on (#6EYDC)
From views on gay sex to women's role in the home, British social attitudes survey reveals a near revolution'From attitudes to gay sex and single parenting to views on abortion and the role of women in the home, Britain has evolved into a dramatically more liberal-minded country over the past four decades, a leading study has found.The transformation in public opinion on many social and moral issues - described by one of the study's researchers as a near revolution" - is captured in the latest British social attitudes (BSA) survey, which is marking its 40th year of mapping Britain's cultural and political landscape. Continue reading...
Exclusive: analysis of results in 31 countries last year found 32% of votes were cast for parties that are populist, far-left or far-rightAlmost one-third of Europeans now vote for populist, far-right or far-left parties, research shows, with wide support for anti-establishment politics surging across the continent in an increasingly problematic challenge to the mainstream.Analysis by more than 100 political scientists across 31 countries found that in national elections last year a record 32% of European voters cast their ballots for anti-establishment parties, compared with 20% in the early 2000s and 12% in the early 1990s. Continue reading...
by Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent on (#6EYDE)
Secret camera footage last year showed Ann King being taunted, shouted at and roughly handled at Reigate Grange in SurreyA criminal investigation has been launched into a luxury care home in Surrey where Ann King, an 88-year-old resident, was abused by staff in a case that shocked the country.The Care Quality Commission, which regulates social care in England, announced the investigation into Reigate Grange 11 months after the Guardian broadcast distressing secret camera footage of staff taunting, shouting at and roughly handling the former nurse who was living with dementia. King died in October 2022 after her children took her back home in March 2022 in disgust at her treatment. Continue reading...
Anti-establishment parties look likely to play a significant role in elections in Slovakia, Poland and the NetherlandsThe shape of three European governments could be decided by the performances of populist, far-right, or anti-establishment parties in elections this autumn, as the continent's fractured political landscape continues to splinter.September's parliamentary poll in Slovakia, a country of just five million people, could prove critical to Europe's continuing support for Ukraine against Russia's aggression, returning to power a proto-populist, Robert Fico, who is stridently pro-Moscow. Continue reading...
by Presented by Nosheen Iqbal with Kiran Stacey; prod on (#6EYBM)
The PM has torn up his ambitious plans for Britain to achieve its commitments on net zero emissions, saying they were unrealistic and punitive'. Kiran Stacey reportsRishi Sunak has announced a major policy shift, rowing back on some of the government's net zero policies that impose a direct cost on consumers, as the Conservatives attempt to create a dividing line with Labour before the next election.As our political correspondent Kiran Stacey tells Nosheen Iqbal on a chaotic day in Westminster, the plans amount to delaying a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and watering down the phasing out of gas boilers. Sunak also dropped proposals for new energy-efficiency targets for private rented homes. Continue reading...
New York-based Vacharaesorn Vivacharawongse signals he rejects Thailand's harsh lese majeste laws, which ban criticism of the royal familyAn estranged son of Thailand's king who has spent almost all his adult life away from his homeland has unexpectedly gone public with his belief that open discussions about the country's monarchy should be allowed, in a rejection of a harsh royal anti-defamation law.Vacharaesorn Vivacharawongse, one of the king's five sons, posted his opinion on Facebook after attending a photo exhibition in New York about people who have been charged under the law, Article 112 of Thailand's Criminal Code. Continue reading...
The 14-year-old boy was put in handcuffs and marched out of his classroom on MondayThe French government has defended the arrest of a teenage boy in the middle of class over claims of bullying a transgender classmate, a rare move that angered many pupils and parents despite widespread support for a crackdown on harassment.The 14-year-old boy was put in handcuffs and marched out of his classroom in the Paris suburb of Alfortville on Monday. Continue reading...
Building society's regular saver for current account holders is one of a growing number paying 6% interest or moreCompetition among financial firms for a slice of the nation's savings is intensifying, with Nationwide launching an account paying a market-leading" 8% interest.A string of Bank of England interest rate rises have pushed up savings rates across the board, and many experts expect another one on Thursday. Continue reading...
by Sally Weale Education correspondent on (#6EY7J)
Research finds breakdown in parents' social contract with schools since Covid lockdowns and cost of living crisisParents in England no longer subscribe to the view that their children need to be in school full-time, according to new research which says there has been a seismic shift" in attitudes to attendance since the pandemic.For decades, attendance at school by all pupils every day throughout term time has been part of a social contract between schools and families, but the report says this is no longer the case. Continue reading...
Severed fibre-optic cables hamper search for survivors in eastern Libya where thousands died after dams collapsedA daylong communication outage in the flood-stricken city of Derna in eastern Libya has further complicated the work of teams searching for bodies under the rubble and at sea.The country's chief prosecutor, meanwhile, vowed to take serious measures" to deliver justice for the victims of the floods, which killed thousands of people and devastated the coastal city more than a week ago. Continue reading...
Leaders seeking south Yemen's independence say they have been sidelined from talks between Saudi Arabia and Houthi rebelsLeaders of the Southern Yemen independence movement said they have been sidelined from the critical talks held in Riyadh between Saudi Arabia and Houthi rebels on the future of Yemen. They warned any peace deal cannot be imposed upon the south, saying possible Iranian control of the strategic Bab el-Mandeb waterways was at stake.After an unprecedented five days of meetings with the Saudi defence minister, Khalid bin Salman, Houthi leaders returned on Tuesday to their capital Sana'a saying the talks were positive. It was the first official meeting between the Saudis and Houthi rebels since the Saudi military intervention in 2015 and reflects Saudi Arabia's determination to end the conflict. Continue reading...
The fright" look is all naturally mine,' riposted Rose Knox-Peebles after FT reviewer assumed she had makeup on in Das RheingoldRose Knox-Peebles was on a high after the opening night of Das Rheingold at the Royal Opera House earlier this week.It was the first time the 82-year-old model, who plays Erda, the weary, gnarled earth mother who has seen it all, who knows what has been, what is and will be, had performed in an opera. In quite the baptism of all sorts of fire, director Barrie Kosky decided to keep her character on stage, naked, for the entire two and a half hour performance - with no interval. Continue reading...
Family of Alice Litman, who died aged 20, say she was failed by those tasked with her care'The family of a young trans woman who is believed to have taken her own life have said she was failed by those tasked with her care", as the coroner investigating her death described services for transgender people as underfunded and insufficiently resourced".Alice Litman had been waiting to receive gender-affirming healthcare for more than three years when she died in Brighton at the age of 20 in May 2022.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org. Continue reading...
Seventeen authors have joined a new lawsuit alleging systematic theft on a mass scale' by the programJohn Grisham, Jodi Picoult and George RR Martin are among 17 authors suing OpenAI for systematic theft on a mass scale", the latest in a wave of legal action by writers concerned that artificial intelligence programs are using their copyrighted works without permission.In papers filed on Tuesday in federal court in New York, the authors alleged flagrant and harmful infringements of plaintiffs' registered copyrights" and called the ChatGPT program a massive commercial enterprise" that is reliant upon systematic theft on a mass scale". Continue reading...
Teresa Ribera calls for alert systems in every country by 2027 after spate of natural disasters across the worldThe latest spate of natural disasters - from the floods in Libya, Greece and Spain to the wildfires in Hawaii and Canada - has further underscored the need for early warning systems to help the world cope with the realities of the climate emergency, Spain's environment minister has said.Speaking to the Guardian as she prepared to travel to New York to take part in the UN's climate ambition summit and sign a landmark treaty to protect the high seas, Teresa Ribera said the calamities laid bare the challenges the planet faced. Continue reading...
Springwatch host claims politicians ignored veteran conservationist's message on the climate crisis - and failed humanity wholesale'Broadcaster and conservationist Chris Packham has claimed that David Attenborough's Cop 26 speech had no impact. The Planet Earth creator was lauded for his 2021 address at the Glasgow climate summit, in which he urged an audience including US President Joe Biden to commit to holding global temperature rises to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.However, Packham claims that politicians' total failure to take the broadcaster's words on board meant they had no impact. Continue reading...
Archaeologists to survey waters off coast of northern France using latest technology to scour seabedChurchill called the mass evacuation of allied forces from the beach and pier at Dunkirk a miracle of deliverance", but the operation to rescue more than 330,000 troops trapped by German forces in May 1940 came at a heavy cost.Of the up to 1,000 vessels, from military warships to fishing boats, lifeboats and pleasure craft, that scrambled to help the stranded men, hundreds were sunk during the nine-day Operation Dynamo with the loss of many lives. Continue reading...
by Amy Hawkins Senior China correspondent on (#6EXN3)
Series with 370m views echoes Chinese state media calls for return of cultural relicsA viral series on the Chinese version of TikTok about a jade teapot that turns into a woman and escapes from the British Museum is to be adapted into an animated film.The plot of Escape from the British Museum, a series made by two social media influencers, echoes Chinese state media calls for the British government to make amends for historical sins" and return Chinese cultural relics. Continue reading...
Bronx day care owner Grei Mendez and Carlisto Acevedo Brito charged after fentanyl allegedly stored on top of play matsThe owner of a New York City day care center where a one-year-old died after being exposed to fentanyl allegedly stored on top of play mats took steps to cover up her involvement in a drug distribution operation, federal prosecutors have said.Grei Mendez, the 36-year-old owner of the day care center, and Carlisto Acevedo Brito, a 41-year-old man who rented a room from her, were hit with federal narcotics conspiracy charges on Tuesday. The charges came just days after the pair were charged with murder of depraved indifference" in the death of Nicholas Dominici in state court. Continue reading...
by Ashifa Kassam European community affairs correspon on (#6EXM1)
Police raid homes of members of US-linked group as part of nationwide crackdown on extremismGermany has banned the neo-Nazi group Hammerskins Deutschland, describing it as an extremist organisation with ties to the US that sees itself as the elite of the rightwing skinhead scene.The German organisation, believed to play a leading role in Europe's rightwing extremist scene, was an offshoot of Hammerskins Nation, an organisation founded in Texas in 1988, Germany's interior ministry said on Tuesday. Continue reading...
by Josh Halliday North of England correspondent on (#6EXJP)
Parole Board confirms that Venables, who was turned down for parole in 2020, has been listed for review in NovemberThe child killer Jon Venables will make a fresh bid to be released from prison at a parole hearing in November.Venables and his schoolfriend, Robert Thompson, were both 10 when they murdered two-year-old James Bulger after taking him from his mother's side in a shopping centre in Merseyside in 1993. Continue reading...
Officials reverse earlier position that killings were murder-suicide after two adults and their two children found dead in RomeovillePolice in Chicago have said the deaths of four people in their Romeoville subdivision home were not a random act", a reversal of an earlier position that the killings were a murder-suicide.An Illinois family of two adults, two children and three pet dogs were found dead by police on Sunday during a wellness check after a member of the family did not show up to work or respond to phone calls from relatives. Continue reading...
by Tom Phillips Latin America correspondent on (#6EXJR)
Concern for future of Guatemalan democracy amid alleged attempts to block inauguration of anti-corruption crusaderInternational concern over the future of Guatemala's democracy is growing, as Brazil's president warned of a possible coup to stop the president-elect taking power and the US denounced unprecedented attempts to undermine the Central American country's election result.The centre-left anti-corruption crusader Bernardo Arevalo was elected Guatemala's new president last month. This week thousands of supporters took to the streets to protest against alleged attempts to block his inauguration in January. Continue reading...
Weather warnings in place for areas of Wales, the north-west and south of England and west ScotlandHundreds of homes and businesses have been hit by power cuts, and roads and a railway line have been blocked, as heavy rain and high winds battered parts of the UK.Yellow weather warnings were in place on Wednesday for areas of Wales, the north-west and south of England and west Scotland, with travel disruption predicted in some parts into the early hours of Thursday. Continue reading...
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