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Thinktank says juicy cuts this year follow far bigger increases in 2023 and precede planned chunky rises'Jeremy Hunt's expected pre-election giveaway budget will be sandwiched between 20bn of tax increases already implemented and a further 17bn of hikes pencilled in for after polling day, a thinktank has said.The Resolution Foundation said it expected Hunt to freeze fuel duty and cut income tax on 6 March but warned the chancellor's tax sandwich" was based on the fiscal fiction" of 30bn of spending cuts in the next parliament. Continue reading...

Man aged in his 80s kept the substance in his home after it was no longer required for another person, coroner toldA man who took a voluntary assisted dying substance intended for someone else was found dead at home by his adult daughter, an inquest has heard.I thought he was asleep in the chair. I put my arms around him. He was cold," the woman said. Continue reading...

Figures show speeds on many roads have dropped by 4mph, but critics say policy is monumental' waste of moneyWelsh ministers have claimed their controversial 20mph limit rollout has proved successful after figures suggested speeds on many roads had dropped by 4mph.However, opponents of the scheme say the modest reduction shows the policy has been a monumental" waste of money and called for it to be scrapped. Continue reading...

James Cleverly gets top civil servant to fire David Neal after clashing over series of critical reportsRishi Sunak has been accused of total Tory chaos" over immigration policies, after Britain's borders watchdog was sacked in a hastily arranged Zoom call.David Neal, the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, was told by a top civil servant on Tuesday that James Cleverly was terminating his job with immediate effect. Continue reading...

Campaigners to appeal after court declines to block export licences despite concerns about human rights breaches in Gaza warThe high court has dismissed a case urging the suspension of UK arms sales to Israel.The legal challenge against the UK Department for Business and Trade was launched in December by the Palestinian human rights organisation Al-Haq and the UK-based Global Legal Action Network (Glan). Continue reading...

Gabriela Rodriguez, who is taking former employer to tribunal, thanks trade union for its supportThe cleaner sacked for taking a discarded 1.50 tuna sandwich from a meeting room at a top City law firm has said it was common practice" for staff to take leftovers for their own lunches.Gabriela Rodriguez was let go by contractor Total Clean for taking client property ... without authority or reasonable excuse" after she was accused of taking a sandwich from the offices of Devonshires Solicitors from a platter after a meeting. Continue reading...

The Australian writer was found guilty on espionage charges in February after spending five years in prisonAustralian writer Yang Hengjun will not appeal against the suspended death sentence imposed by a Chinese court, with his family saying further legal challenges would be detrimental to his welfare.Yang was found guilty on espionage charges in China in February after spending five years in prison. Continue reading...

Crucial vote on party's new call for humanitarian ceasefire' goes before MPs on Wednesday as thousands of protesters expected in Westminster

Johnny Mercer tells UK inquiry of reports SAS had killed civilians between 2010 and 2013The UK's minister for veterans, Johnny Mercer, has effectively admitted in front of a public inquiry that he believed members of the SAS had engaged in dozens of unlawful killings of Afghan civilians between 2010 and 2013.Mercer told the inquiry on Tuesday that at one point, shortly after first becoming a minister in 2019, Mercer said he told the then defence secretary, Ben Wallace, that something stinks". His boss replied: There is no new evidence, Johnny," and the cabinet minster chose not to take any further action. Continue reading...

Stephen Flynn says decision by Labour is long-overdue' and Starmer was forced into position by public pressure and the SNP. This live blog is closed

Campaigners accused of criminal damage after draping black fabric over the property in North YorkshireThree Greenpeace activists who draped oil-black fabric over the side of Rishi Sunak's North Yorkshire mansion, in a protest responding to his promise to max out" UK oil and gas reserves, have been charged with criminal damage.Mathieu Soete, 38, of Hackney in east London, and Amy Rugg-Easey, 33, and Alexandra Wilson, 32, of Shiremoor, North Tyneside, were each charged with a single count of criminal damage over the stunt at the prime minister's family residence last August. Continue reading...

Ilya Yashin says Vladimir Putin ordered murder of Alexei Navalny, as Russian state opens new criminal case against latter's brotherA jailed member of Russia's opposition has said he fears for his life after the death of Alexei Navalny, as the Putin critic's widow, Yulia Navalnaya, demanded the Kremlin release his body so he can be buried with dignity".Yet as the appeals came, the Russian state opened a new criminal case on Tuesday against Navalny's brother, Oleg, signalling it would continue the pressure on his family and supporters as they seek to mourn the late opposition leader. Continue reading...

Lawyers seek permission at high court to appeal against WikiLeaks founder's extraditionJulian Assange faces the risk of a flagrant denial of justice" if tried in the US, his lawyers have told a permission to appeal hearing in London, which could result in the WikiLeaks founder being extradited within days if unsuccessful.Assange, who published thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, could be jailed for up to 175 years - a grossly disproportionate punishment" - if convicted in the US, the high court heard on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Gove enjoyed VIP hospitality at football match with owner of company awarded 164m of contracts after Gove's referralMichael Gove failed to register hospitality he enjoyed with a Conservative donor whose company he had recommended for multimillion pound PPE contracts during the Covid pandemic, the Guardian can reveal.While still minister for the Cabinet Office, in August 2021 Gove was entertained to VIP hospitality at a Queens Park Rangers (QPR) football match with David Meller, whose fashion products company had been awarded 164m PPE contracts following Gove's referral in May 2020. Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak's charm offensive at the NFU conference has not won over rural voters who are also skeptical of LabourFarmers often feel ignored by Westminster politicians. Now, however, as a general election heaves slowly into view and the fight for the rural vote begins, it was not a huge surprise when the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, turned up at their annual conference.Sunak told farmers: I have your back" and waxed nostalgic about the bucolic British countryside and his experience milking a cow. Continue reading...

Vote in 15-member security council was 13-1 with UK abstaining, making it the US's third veto of such a resolutionThe US vetoed an Arab-backed UN resolution on Tuesday demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in the embattled Gaza Strip.The vote in the 15-member security council was 13-1 with the UK abstaining, reflecting the wide global support for ending the more than four-month war that started with Hamas's surprise invasion of southern Israel that killed about 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage. Since then, more than 29,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military offensive, according to the Gaza health ministry. Continue reading...

Greg Clark, with Peter Mandelson and Vince Cable, said UK must be more active' in approach to industry

Five women targeted investment bank with hammers and chisels during Extinction Rebellion protest, jury toldFive climate protesters armed with hammers and chisels smashed a glass door at the European headquarters of the American investment bank JP Morgan in London, a court heard.The Extinction Rebellion activists targeted the bank in the City of London, smashing a large glazed panel revolving door and causing many thousands of pounds-worth of damage, a jury was told on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Administrators tell staff seven shops will shut immediately with more to follow as business battles to surviveThe Body Shop is to cut 300 jobs at head office while nearly half of its 198 stores in the UK could close with the loss of hundreds more jobs as the business battles for survival.Administrators told staff on Tuesday that seven stores would close immediately, with more set to follow, while numbers at its offices in London and Littlehampton in West Sussex were being cut by 40% to 400. It is not clear if jobs at the group's warehouse, also in Littlehampton, will be affected. Continue reading...

The World Health Organization has said the destruction around Nasser hospital is indescribable'UN agency Unicef has warned the Gaza Strip is poised to witness an increase in what an official said was the already unbearable level of child deaths" due to a worsening food crisis.A report by the Global Nutrition Cluster (GNC), an aid partnership led by the UN's children's agency, says more than 90% of children under five in Gaza eat two or fewer food groups a day, known as severe food poverty. A similar percentage are affected by infectious diseases, with 70% experiencing diarrhea in the last two weeks.Analysis indicates a dire nutrition situation for the entire population of Gaza, both in the short and long term. It is expected that all areas of Gaza will be affected by malnutrition, but governates receiving limited or no humanitarian assistance will be particularly impacted. Continue reading...

Volodymyr Zelenskiy accuses Warsaw of mockery' as farmers blockade Ukrainian grain at border

Defendants are being tried in absentia over kidnapping and murder of Italian student in 2016Four Egyptian security officials have gone back on trial in absentia in Rome on charges related to the kidnap and murder of an Italian student in Cairo.Giulio Regeni, 28, had been conducting research when he was abducted in January 2016. His body was found nine days later, dumped on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, bearing extensive signs of torture. Continue reading...

Party attempts to head off rebellion by its MPs in SNP's Gaza motion by issuing strongly worded amendment

Vertical Aerospace's total taxpayer backing rises to 37m but investors largely remain scepticalBritain's flying taxi pioneer, Vertical Aerospace, has been handed another 8m grant from the government, taking its total taxpayer backing to 37m as it tries to get its electric aircraft off the ground.The company said the funding to develop the propellers for its electric vertical take-off and landing (eVtol) aircraft was a vote of confidence" in its technology, despite recent struggles. Continue reading...

Families of three people stabbed to death welcome review into Calocane's indefinite hospital orderThe families of the three people stabbed to death in the Nottingham attacks last year have welcomed a court of appeal review of the unduly lenient" sentence of the perpetrator, Valdo Calocane.The killer was sentenced to an indefinite hospital order last month for the attacks on university students Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both 19, and a school caretaker, Ian Coates, 65, in the early hours of 13 June last year. Continue reading...

Glenn Horowitz, Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski accused of conspiring to own and try to sell Eagles manuscriptsIn the mid-1970s, the Eagles were working on a spooky, cryptic new song.On a lined yellow pad, Don Henley, with input from his band co-founder Glenn Frey, jotted thoughts about a dark desert highway" and a lovely place" with a luxurious surface and ominous undertones. And something on ice, perhaps caviar or Taittinger - or pink Champagne? Continue reading...

Environment secretary Steve Barclay says incident is deeply concerning' and reiterates government commitment to combatting antisemitismA statue of Amy Winehouse in her former home of Camden has had a pro-Palestinian sticker placed over a star of David necklace, prompting condemnation from many including environment secretary Steve Barclay.Metropolitan police acknowledged the incident would cause upset to many people", and said they were making inquiries with Camden Market to establish the circumstances and what evidence, such as CCTV footage, may be available". Continue reading...

Bank announces drop in profits to 6.6bn as it says it plans to return more to shareholders

Entertainment company pays tribute to performer's impeccable dancing' and vibrant spirit'The former Strictly Come Dancing professional Robin Windsor has died at the age of 44.He most recently appeared in the stage show Come What May, a tribute to Moulin Rouge. Continue reading...

Competition and Markets Authority launches full-scale investigation after finding costs have risenThe cost of infant milk remains at historically high" levels despite some price falls in recent months, Britain's competition watchdog has said, as it launched a full-scale investigation into baby and toddler formula.The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found in November that the average price of infant formula had risen by 25% in the past two years and families could save more than 500 over the first year of a baby's life by switching to cheaper powders. The findings were part of an analysis of pricing in 10 food categories, which also included milk and ready meals. Continue reading...

Martine Moise alleged to have conspired with former PM to kill president and replace him herselfA Haitian judge in charge of the investigation into the assassination in 2021 of the country's last president, Jovenel Moise, has charged 50 people including his widow and a former prime minister, according to a document leaked to local media.According to the 122-page document from Judge Walther Wesser Voltaire, made public by AyiboPost, the president's widow, Martine Moise, conspired with the former prime minister Claude Joseph to kill the president in order to replace him herself. Continue reading...

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Exclusive: Group of London toilet cleaners and attendants at court of appeal over legality of outsourced contractsA group of toilet cleaners and attendants for London's most famous parks could be about to make legal history in the court of appeal by arguing that their outsourced contracts amounted to indirect race discrimination.While Royal Parks' mostly white in-house staff were paid at least the London living wage, its outsourced cleaners, who were almost all black, only received the minimum wage until they went on strike in 2019. Continue reading...

Senator says two emergency operations in 2019 after abscess erupted behind her tonsils have left her with speech challenges

While analysts are asking why the licence was not cancelled after the first inquiry in 2022, thousands of jobs are at stakeThe Star Entertainment Group may be about to find out how low it can go before its casino licence is cancelled.Almost 18 months since Star was fined $100m after being found unsuitable to run a casino, and after the appointment of an external manager and criticism for not taking its responsibilities seriously, the New South Wales regulator has taken action - with another review. Continue reading...

A complacent incumbent, an insurgent rightwing challenger - but key differences mean talk of wipeout may be overblownOverseas elections from more than 30 years ago are rarely hot topics of conversation in modern UK politics. But whisper Canada 1993" into a Conservative MP's ear and don't be surprised if they break into a sudden cold sweat.This is the model for the extinction-level event" experienced by a previously dominant rightwing party - one that some Tory opponents of Rishi Sunak warn he risks emulating at the next general election. Continue reading...

New data from consumer group reveals four in five shoppers say it is hard to know whether markdowns represent value for money

Prime minister James Marape to seek help from Australia to support police after the deadly killings in Enga provinceAuthorities in Papua New Guinea are bracing for an escalation of violence after dozens of men were killed in a tribal massacre on Sunday.In the wake of the killings, the prime minister, James Marape, is facing calls to declare a state of emergency to address the ongoing fighting. Continue reading...

Police said the man, found inside the chute of a bin near Westfield Tuggerah, had died at the scene

Exclusive: FOI request reveals fears many would sell up if they saw assessment of post-Brexit farming payments schemeGovernment officials have buried an analysis of the financial prospects for some of the most vulnerable farmers in the UK after realising it was almost entirely bad news, the Guardian can reveal.The analysis was to have been part of an optimistic look at the financial situation for upland farmers, some of the poorest in the country, but minutes from meetings about the plans obtained through a freedom of information request have revealed concerns were raised about the negative findings.One official commented: Could end up with no pathways to success at the end. We only want to publish if we have something which is positive to tell people."Government officials admitted that upland farmers were falling into financial crisis and may go out of business.Officials feared that when upland farmers saw the data showing how much money they would make they would sell up.Officials believed upland farmers were dismissive of the environment. Continue reading...

Independent experts to review energy firms' response to storms that left more than half a million customers without power

In defamation case brought by Mina Greiss Seven network succeeded in arguing contextual truth defence but lost argument of honest opinion

Coroner pauses inquest into death of Jarrad Antonovich, who died after drinking ayahuasca and partaking in a kambo' ritual

Proposed $4.9bn takeover of Queensland company's banking arm gets green light as tribunal rules that it will not lessen competition

Carroll says she raised intentions with police minister early due to heightened speculation and commentary'

Sgt Benedict Bryant to face charges of dangerous and negligent driving occasioning death after incident in Sydney in February 2022

Animal welfare groups say smell from the build-up of faeces and ammonia on the ship are indicative of the conditions animals endureAuthorities in Cape Town have launched an investigation after a foul stench swept over the South African city.Officials inspected sewage facilities for leaks and an environmental health team was activated before the source of the smell was discovered: a ship docked in the harbour carrying 19,000 live cattle from Brazil to Iraq. Continue reading...

Six large, heavily armed warships capable of being operated remotely, will be added to fleet under $11bn shake up which comes after damning review

Sport's governing body confirms that the three-time medallist has not breached its code of conduct

NHS bowel screening programme will offer specialist assessment every two years to people with conditionThousands of people in England with Lynch syndrome, a genetic condition that increases the risk of cancer, are to be offered gamechanging" screening on the NHS.The world-first programme aims to reduce the number of cancer cases and identify them earlier when successful treatment is more likely. Continue reading...