World news | The Guardian

Greater Manchester mayor is calling on government to launch consultation on Duchy of Lancaster's use of bona vacantia

European Environment Agency says half of deaths could have been avoided by cutting pollution to recommended limitsDirty air killed more than half a million people in the EU in 2021, estimates show, and about half of the deaths could have been avoided by cutting pollution to the limits recommended by doctors.The researchers from the European Environment Agency attributed 253,000 early deaths to concentrations of fine particulates known as PM2.5 that breached the World Health Organization's maximum guideline limits of 5g/m3. A further 52,000 deaths came from excessive levels of nitrogen dioxide and 22,000 deaths from short-term exposure to excessive levels of ozone. Continue reading...

Reduced kangaroo populations and urban sprawl prompt proposal to end commercial culling in 10 council areas

Authorities say it will take at least another three to four days to bring blaze in city's north-east under control

Retailers say online sales on Friday were 10-25% up on last year, with the shopping event becoming bigger than Boxing Day

At defamation trial against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson, Lehrmann says two later emails he sent Higgins failed to mention evening because it was uneventful'

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Peak body for family violence says commission would fix highly complex and wicked problem' and give victim-survivors a voice

One of the investors bidding for the paper is the vice-president of the UAE, which is ranked far down the press freedom indexThe United Arab Emirates has a mixed record on free speech. Detention of journalists is not uncommon and the nation ranked 145th out of 180 countries included in a press freedom index compiled by Reporters Without Borders.Now a member of the ruling elite has set his sights on a UK newspaper whose roots can be traced back more than 100 years before the official creation of the Gulf state. Continue reading...

State government says revamped stadium will be able to hold 80,000 people for concerts as part of $2.7bn Olympic project

A surgeon at one of the territory's last functioning hospitals tells of desperate conditions amid an acute lack of medicine

Dutch general election results show how populist and far-right parties are advancing into political mainstream

Former PM seen quoting from Chinese-funded study in support of Sri Lankan developmentDavid Cameron is facing further questions about whether he was paid by Chinese interests to promote a port development in Sri Lanka, as footage emerged of him extolling its benefits.In the video from two months ago, the former prime minister can be seen telling investors in Dubai that he wanted to correct misapprehensions" about the project and quoting from a Chinese-funded study in support of the development. Continue reading...

Court in defamation trial shown CCTV footage of Higgins consuming six spirit-based drinks, two of which were bought for her by Lehrmann

Incident comes after maritime altercation between Toowoomba and Chinese warship last week off Japan's coast that injured navy divers

Man's bid for $13,444 in compensation from dog-sitter unable to convince sick labrador to eat medicine hidden in food fails

This blog has closed. You can follow our live coverage of the Israel-Hamas war here on our new blogThe German interior ministry says it is conducting searches in four federal states in relation to formerly announced bans of activities of Hamas, already a designated terrorist organisation in the country, as well as pro-Palestinian group Samidoun, Reuters reports.We continue our consistent action against radical Islamists," German interior minister Nancy Faeser said in a statement. Continue reading...

Restraints weren't up to standard at time Eugene Mahauariki, 6, fell from ride at the 2017 Rye Easter Carnival

Consumer groups have long lobbied for institutions to crack down on scams by rejecting transfers if name and bank details of recipient don't match

In effort to attract customers amid falling sales, retailer joins forces with Covid testing firm to offer full-body health checksJohn Lewis is to team up with Covid testing firm Randox Health to open clinics within its shops in the latest effort to draw in customers amid tough trading conditions.The clinics, which will be run by Randox staff, will offer full-body health checks including tests for vitamin deficiencies, hormone imbalances and key health concerns, among other services. Continue reading...

Two years on, families and refugee charities seek explanation and call for more help for refugees wishing to come to UKThe relatives of 27 people who died in the worst mass drowning in the Channel for decades have marked two years since the disaster by issuing an open letter demanding answers over what happened.Signed together with dozens of refugee NGOs, the letter states that the families still have no explanation as to why French and British authorities failed the people onboard a sinking dinghy who repeatedly called for help. Continue reading...

Lisa McManus says it is ignorant' to think all those affected by drug are included in 146 people registered to closed scheme

Cruise firms could dismiss crew unless they accept salary cuts and flexible working arrangementsP&O Cruises and fellow cruise firm Cunard have made provision to fire and rehire more than 900 UK-based crew unless they accept salary cuts and more flexible working arrangements.The affected crew include officers on the British flagship, the luxury ocean liner Queen Mary 2, and nine other ships operated under Carnival UK, which is part of the $18bn-listed Carnival group. Continue reading...

Lawsuit alleges the Hollywood star assaulted a woman while at Catch NYC & Roof, a restaurant and rooftop bar, in summer 2015Hollywood star Jamie Foxx has denied accusations that he sexually assaulted a woman while at a New York rooftop bar eight years ago.The lawsuit alleges in summer 2015, Foxx made comments such as, Wow, you have that supermodel body," while at Catch NYC & Roof, a restaurant and rooftop bar, before grabbing the woman by the arm and pulling her to the secluded" back of the rooftop. Continue reading...

Crowd chanting anti-immigrant slogans clashes with police hours after stabbing incident outside schoolViolent protests have flared in Dublin after a stabbing attack outside a school left three children injured.A crowd chanting anti-immigrant slogans set a police car on fire and attacked several officers on Thursday night hours after a man stabbed a woman and three young children, leaving one in a critical condition. Continue reading...

Education experts agree with Ofsted chief that many parents now disregard rules previously taken for grantedLockdown broke the spell" that bound parents and schools together, according to school leaders and experts who have endorsed the Ofsted chief's view that many parents now disregard rules on behaviour and attendance they once took for granted.Delivering her last annual report as chief inspector of schools in England, Amanda Spielman said: The social contract between parents and schools has been fractured by lockdowns and closures." And she warned: That social contract took years to build and consolidate and it will take time to restore." Continue reading...

Home secretary under pressure over abusive comments in Commons, with Tory mayor among those condemning themJames Cleverly is coming under pressure over abusive comments he made in the Commons after his explanation that he was insulting the local MP, not calling a Labour-held constituency a shit-hole", was met with scepticism.After Ben Houchen, the Conservative mayor for Tees Valley, condemned what he called Cleverly's childish and unprofessional language", the Labour MP concerned, Alex Cunningham, said he simply did not believe the home secretary. Continue reading...

Threefold increase since 2019 means focusing on immigration may be a risky move for the PM at next electionOf Boris Johnson's many broken promises, his failure to bring back control" of post-Brexit immigration is the one that Tory MPs believe matters most to their voters.Johnson has long fled the scene - Rishi Sunak is instead getting the blame from his new Conservative" backbenchers who predict they will be punished at the ballot box in the red wall" of the north and Midlands. Continue reading...

Trio of newcomers are joined by veterans Liam Gallagher, Catfish and the Bottlemen and Blink-182Reading and Leeds festivals have announced their headline acts for 2024, with Fred Again, Lana Del Rey and Gerry Cinnamon all headlining for the first time.Fred Again's booking continues his journey from backroom pop producer to underground dance star to bona fide mainstream name, having headlined Parklife festival this summer and secured one of the biggest crowds of Glastonbury 2023 for his performance on the Other stage. He - alongside sparring partners Four Tet and Skrillex - was also last-minute replacement for Frank Ocean to headline Coachella earlier in the year. He has said Reading and Leeds will be his only UK festival performances in 2024. Continue reading...

Crane operator says incident was very close call' as fire service confirms all people are accounted forTwo people have been saved from a burning high-rise building in a dramatic rescue using a crane.The operation was described as a very close call" by the man who was at the machine's controls. Glen Edwards was forced into action after a large fire broke out at the construction site in Reading. Continue reading...

UK foreign secretary hopes situation will provide opportunity to get hostages out and get aid into Gaza'

IDF claims al-Shifa hospital was Hamas command and control centre as footage of tunnels and underground rooms appears

People in Teesside town say comment attributed to James Cleverly was rude, wrong and revealing of Tory attitudesMelanie Greenwood had been helping to organise a books for children drive when she heard the news of the home secretary, James Cleverly, allegedly calling Stockton a shit-hole. She said: I was speechless. Angry. You work so hard and you think: is this what they really think of us?" She added: The annoying thing is that it was so off the cuff. I think that is what they think about underprivileged people, it speaks a lot about they truly believe."Greenwood co-owns the independent Drake the Bookshop in the town centre. A display had been hastily rearranged, away from the eyes of children, that summed up the vibe on Thursday morning. In the middle was a new activity book titled Fuck the Tories. Continue reading...

Group of owners and dog experts launch legal fight against rules due to be enforced in England and WalesA campaign group has launched a legal attempt to overturn the government's ban on American XL bully dogs after raising more than 160,000 to fund a potential judicial review.The group of XL bully owners and dog experts, Don't Ban Me - Licence Me, said it had instructed a lawyer and submitted a pre-action protocol to the government, and hopes to apply for an injunction to delay the ban before the end of the year. Continue reading...

Office for National Statistics raises previous figure by 140,000 and gives estimate for year to June of 672,000Net migration boosted the UK population by a record 745,000 in the year to December 2022, fuelled in part by a surge in overseas professionals arriving to work in the NHS and care homes and prompting a furious response from rightwing Conservatives.Amid signs No 10 might consider tightening guidelines on what has become a totemic issue for some Tory MPs, one group of backbenchers said a failure to deliver on the manifesto pledge to reduce net migration could prove existential" for the party. Continue reading...

For those who die with no will or heirs in parts of England, the king's estate claims their assets. Here are some of their stories

Pedro Sanchez says all civilians must be protected in Israel-Hamas war and reiterates call for two-state solution

This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereAs the Netherlands - and European capitals - assess the unexpected outcome of the Dutch election, Geert Wilders is celebrating with cake.The Austrian Freedom Party's Harald Vilimsky said he is proud of his political friends, posting a photo with Italy's Matteo Salvini, France's Marine Le Pen and the Netherlands' Geert Wilders. Continue reading...

Annual report on England's schools highlights absenteeism, disruptive behaviour and parental challenges to rulesThe unwritten agreement" between parents and schools in England has broken since the Covid pandemic, according to Ofsted's chief inspector, Amanda Spielman, with pupil absences remaining stubbornly high and disruptive behaviour now more common.Delivering her final annual report in the role, Spielman said she had noticed a disturbing shift in attitudes" among pupils and parents. Continue reading...

Zhongzhi, a wealth manager with links to China's ailing property market, says it is severely insolvent'One of China's biggest financial conglomerates with links to the country's ailing property market has admitted a shortfall of nearly 30bn as it warned investors that it is severely insolvent".Zhongzhi, an asset and wealth management company in China's shadow banking sector, said its total assets amounted to 200bn yuan (22.5bn) against obligations of up to 460bn yuan, in a letter to shareholders issued on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Pickard will leave post after next summer's classical music festival and says it feels like right time to goThe director of the BBC Proms has announced he will step down after nine years leading the classical music festival.David Pickard will leave the post after next summer's Proms and said he planned to explore new projects". Continue reading...

Scale of Netherlands vote for Geert Wilders' far-right party and its anti-Islam policies leads to concerns over rights and safetyGeert Wilders described it as the most beautiful day" of his political life. But for many across the Netherlands, news that Wilders' far-right, anti-Islam party had emerged with the most votes in Wednesday's election set off alarm bells over what might lie ahead in a country once regarded as a beacon of tolerance.These election results are shocking for Dutch Muslims," said Muhsin Koktas of the Contact Body for Muslims and Government. We did not expect such a party with a program that is against the basic principles of the rule of law to be so big." Continue reading...

An out-of-control blaze continues to challenge firefighters, with an emergency warning issued for Wanneroo, Jandabup, Mariginiup, Melaleuca, Sinagra and Tapping

Representative for Iovine says they are shocked and baffled' by allegations made in summons in New YorkJimmy Iovine, co-founder of Interscope Records and of the headphone brand Beats, has been accused of sexual abuse and harassment by an unnamed woman.Iovine was served a summons ahead of a lawsuit being filed against him. The New York court document contains allegations that the woman suffered as a result of being sexually abused, forcibly touched, and subjected to sexual harassment and retaliation in violation of anti-discrimination laws in or around August 2007". She is seeking compensation via damages. Continue reading...

Factories, dockers, postal workers and mechanics refuse to handle Tesla goods in fight to protect Swedish labour modelElon Musk has decried a wave of insane" strikes focused on Tesla factories in Sweden, as workers target the US electric car manufacturer in a strike calling for collective bargaining rights.In what has been portrayed as the largest fight to save Sweden's union model from global labour practices in decades, the powerful trade union IF Metall has been leading a strike across eight Tesla workplaces in Sweden for five weeks. Continue reading...

Malkinson will explore effects of wrongful conviction and will be joined by Ellie Goulding, James May and Hanif KureishiAndrew Malkinson, who spent 17 years in prison for a rape he did not commit, will be one of BBC Radio 4's guest editors of the Today programme over the Christmas period.Malkinson will use his programme to explore the psychological impacts of wrongful detention, the barriers to education in prison and how his passion for science and astronomy helped him while he was incarcerated. Continue reading...

The 38-year-old is also accused of negligent driving after a ute was submerged in waters near ParkesA 38-year-old man has been charged with manslaughter and negligent driving after a five-year-old boy died when he became trapped in a car swept away by floodwaters last year.The boy's body was found inside a submerged ute in Tullamore, north-west of Parkes in central western New South Wales in late 2022. Continue reading...

As Seoul claims Russia helped Pyongyang carry out spy satellite launch, North Korea warns of stronger armed forces on borderNorth Korea has warned it will deploy new weapons and stronger armed forces along its heavily armed border with South Korea, as officials in Seoul claimed that Russia had helped Pyongyang carry out a satellite launch.In a sign of rising tensions on the peninsula, North Korea said on Tuesday it would restore all military measures" it had halted under a 2018 confidence-building agreement with South Korea. Continue reading...

Reports claim Japanese carmaker will build replacements for its Qashqai and Juke crossover cars in possible 1bn investmentNissan is expected to announce it will build two new electric models in Sunderland, securing the future of the UK's largest car factory.The Japanese carmaker will build replacements for its Qashqai and Juke crossover cars, according to Sky which first reported the news. Continue reading...

Ofgem increases minimum price for energy suppliers to charge customers after rise in global gas pricesHouseholds will begin the new year with a 5% increase in energy bills after the regulator raised the price cap to an average of 1,928 a year for the typical gas and electricity bill.Ofgem raised the maximum price that energy suppliers can charge their customers from 1,834 a year for the typical household between October to December, after a rise in global gas market prices after the start of the Israel-Hamas war last month. Continue reading...