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Extinction Rebellion co-founder among four charged after throwing paint over charity buildings in 2020The Extinction Rebellion co-founder Roger Hallam has been acquitted of conspiracy to damage property after taking part in a protest that involved throwing pink paint over several charity buildings.The 56-year-old was cleared of the count along with three other protesters involved in demonstrations at the headquarters of Christian Aid, Amnesty International, Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth on 21 July 2020. Continue reading...

Even as Nicola Bulley’s body was pulled from the river, ghoulish day-trippers were taking selfiesAfter three weeks under the glare of intense publicity, a stillness descended on the tiny Lancashire village of St Michael’s on Wyre on Monday. Children played in the primary school, the church bells rang every hour, and dog walkers took their usual route past the holly bush dotted with robins and thrushes to the bench where Nicola Bulley was last seen alive.For 23 days, St Michael’s on Wyre has been a community under siege. Even as Bulley’s body was pulled from the River Wyre on Sunday afternoon, ghoulish day-trippers were seen smiling and taking selfies at the riverside bench where the mystery began on Friday 27 January. A video of officers recovering her remains was viewed more than 2m times on TikTok. Continue reading...

Advertisement for assistant headteacher said candidates must be ‘on alert from 7am through until 6pm’A job advertisement for an assistant headteacher has attracted widespread criticism after it warned candidates they would have to work “ridiculously hard”, be “wedded” to their job and that “we cannot carry anyone”.The candidate for the role at Mercia school, a Sheffield secondary that has been described as “Britain’s strictest school”, is expected to supervise detentions on Saturdays and to attend meetings during the holidays. They must also be “highly talented”, “ooze leadership” and be “a great orator”. Continue reading...

The academic, who was conducting studies in the highlands, was taken hostage along with three other researchers

Judge-led inquiry rules Scotland Yard unit acted in a sexist and racist way and intrusions were not justifiedA judge-led public inquiry has found that an undercover police unit that infiltrated leftwing political groups caused “outrage and pain” to the public and acted in a sexist and racist way.The inquiry ruled that the Scotland Yard unit was not justified in intruding deeply into the private lives of campaigners, including their sexual relationships, and suggested it should have been disbanded early in its existence. Continue reading...

Israeli PM vows to press ahead with legislation to restrict judicial powers as upwards of 100,000 protesters take to streetsThe Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has accused protesters of “trampling democracy”, vowing that his far-right coalition will move ahead with controversial legislation to restrict the power of the judiciary.Upwards of 100,000 people gathered outside the Knesset in Jerusalem on Monday in protest against an initial plenum vote on bills that would give politicians control over appointments to Israel’s supreme court, and limit its ability to overturn laws. Protesters blocked major roads across the country, and prevented some politicians from leaving their homes. Continue reading...

Suppliers are expected to feel empowered by an easing in prices this year to hunt for customersSwitching between energy suppliers is expected to return later this year after a two-year pause due to lack of competition amid high bills.The energy consultancy Cornwall Insight said on Monday that easing costs later this year would present consumers with the chance to “take back some control” over their bills, as suppliers compete for customers again. Continue reading...

Supermarket’s third pay increase in a year puts it slightly ahead of Aldi and Sainsbury’sTesco is to increase hourly pay for shopfloor staff by 7% to a minimum of £11.02 an hour, its third pay rise in a year amid heavy competition for workers.The increase, which comes in from April, puts the UK’s biggest supermarket slightly ahead of the current best-paying grocers – Aldi and Sainsbury’s – which pay £11 an hour, and on track to beat rival Asda, which will raise pay to at least £11 an hour from the same month. Continue reading...

Man says he was instructed to falsely claim he was cousin of Nigerian politician’s daughterAn alleged victim of organ trafficking was instructed to falsely tell a London doctor that he was cousins with the daughter of a Nigerian politician before a meeting about donating his kidney, the Old Bailey has heard.Appearing in court for the first time, the man, who cannot be named, said he did not know why he had been taken to see the doctor until he mentioned a kidney transplant. “I was shocked because this was first time I heard about it,” he told the jury. Continue reading...

Investigations are under way in the hope this is the first conflict in which a full reckoning is made of environmental crimes

Many tears have been shed during inquest into what happened when Jake Davison went on rampageAs is frequently the case in mass shootings, Jake Davison’s eight-minute burst of savagery began with a domestic attack on a woman.Davison, 22, thickset and strong thanks to a combination of gym work and steroids, argued violently with his mother, Maxine, 51, in the modest Plymouth home they shared. Continue reading...

Relatives at inquest say Jake Davison should not have been granted gun licence with known history of violenceThe families of four people including a three-year-old girl killed by the Plymouth gunman Jake Davison have accused the police of giving him a “licence to kill” by allowing him to have a shotgun despite a known history of violence and are calling for “radical change” to the licensing system.Speaking after an inquest jury concluded that Davison, 22, unlawfully killed five people, the bereaved relatives said the attacks were “pure evil” but argued it was facilitated by systemic failings and incompetence. Continue reading...

US president pledges $500m in help for Ukraine while west prepares next phase of sanctions against Russia

Cybersecurity company defends against criticism from hedge fund Quintessential and othersDarktrace has hired EY to conduct an independent review of its finances as it tries to defend itself against a hedge fund that alleges questionable marketing, sales and accounting practices at the cybersecurity company.The FTSE 250 company said the accountancy firm EY would provide “additional independent third-party review of its key financial processes and controls”, in a statement to the stock market on Monday. Continue reading...

No 10 says ‘we shouldn’t gobblefunk’ with words, as Philip Pullman suggests work be left to go out of printRishi Sunak has intervened in the row over the rewriting of parts of Roald Dahl’s books to remove language deemed inappropriate, portraying it as an attack on free speech.His comments came after the author Philip Pullman suggested Dahl’s work should be allowed to fade away and be replaced by more modern children’s writers. Continue reading...

The airline is seeking to overturn in the high court a finding that it illegally outsourced 1,700 ground handlers jobs

Majority believe government at least partially to blame for rises but don’t assume Coalition would manage them better

Exclusive: Amendment will ‘stop the cycle of higher rates of Aboriginal child removal’ says Aboriginal child care agency chief

Pressure on restaurant margins as customer behaviour shifts and inflation eats into costsUK households ordered 12% less takeaway food in January than a year before, while the sector also faced more competition from restaurants and cafes after the lifting of pandemic restrictions.Despite the fall in the number of items ordered as customers tried to rein in spending amid the cost of living crisis, spending fell by just 2% as inflation pushed up the cost of each dish, according to the Hospitality at Home spending tracker by analysts at CGA and NielsenQ. Continue reading...

Gloria Orwoba attended a senate meeting in a suit stained with red dye as part of her campaign for free access to menstrual productsA Kenyan politician has become the subject of a vicious online hate campaign after she protested against period poverty by sitting through a senate meeting in clothing stained with fake menstrual blood.Senator Gloria Orwoba was asked to leave halfway through the session after her fellow parliamentarians requested the speaker eject her for supposedly violating the house’s “dress code”. Continue reading...

US president rallies support for Ukraine days before first anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion

The Cessna 340 with former Santos employees Simon Chipperfield and Karthi Santhanam lost contact on SaturdayTwo Australian men are feared dead after a plane lost contact in the Philippines with four people on board, as crews work to verify if a wreckage spotted near the crater of a restive volcano is the missing plane.The plane, which was bound for the capital Manila, lost contact with air traffic control on Saturday, three minutes after it departed Bicol international airport in Albay province, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said in a statement. Continue reading...

Bulley’s partner, Paul Ansell, says family trying to stay strong as private diving expert defends searchThe partner of the missing woman Nicola Bulley has described his family’s “agony” after a body was found more than three weeks after she disappeared.Paul Ansell told Sky News he had “no words right now, just agony” after walkers found a body in the River Wyre less than a mile from where the mother-of-two was last seen. He added: “We’re all together, we have to be strong.” Continue reading...

Andrew Gee says detractors will see voice to parliament is ‘uplifting moment’ after Linda Burney calls David Littleproud comments ‘scaremongering’

Two-thirds of local authorities did not prosecute anyone for disabled parking scheme fraud, data revealsFour councils are responsible for bringing more than half of the prosecutions in England for people abusing the use of disabled parking badges.Figures released by the Department for Transport (DfT) show that Lambeth, Birmingham, Hammersmith and Fulham, and Bromley carried out 54% of all legal cases for people misusing the blue badge system, for the year up to the end of March 2021. Continue reading...

Homes Victoria says ballot helps create ‘fair and transparent’ process but advocate fears those most in need may miss out

Most voyages carrying livestock out of Australia sailed without an observer, with half of those ships claiming they had insufficient space for an extra person

Exclusive: In address to NFU conference on Tuesday, Labour leader will make his pitch to the rural communityKeir Starmer will promise farmers a closer trading relationship with the EU and to protect high British food standards, as he says the Conservatives have “given up on farmers”.The Labour leader will make his pitch to the rural community in a speech to the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) on Tuesday, promising more police and community support officers in the countryside. Continue reading...

The broadcaster became something of a cult figure after fronting the ITV show for 20 yearsDickie Davies, formerly a familiar face on television as the presenter of World of Sport on ITV, has died aged 94.His former colleague Jim Rosenthal broke the news on Sunday night, writing on social media: “With huge sadness, we announce Dickie Davies passed away this morning. Continue reading...

While Lancashire constabulary’s investigative focus may have been right, it will face the consequences of its disclosures for years“I have never seen anything like it,” said Det Supt Becky Smith, the senior investigating officer on the case of missing Lancashire woman Nicola Bulley, last week. Though Smith was talking about the attention on social media, where wild speculation of the case had blown up, these could have been the words of anyone after what has become one of the highest profile – and most unusual – missing persons cases in years.To those who observed it closely, there was probably only one way that Bulley left the field where her phone was discovered, still logged on to a work call, nearly a month ago. And, sadly, after a body was found on Sunday morning in the River Wyre close to where Bulley went missing, it looks as though the police may have been right. Continue reading...

Deselection fuels speculation that those deemed responsible for Boris Johnson’s exit are being targetedThe Conservative MP Damian Green, the former de facto deputy prime minister, has been rejected as the party’s candidate for the newly created Weald of Kent constituency.Despite having served in the House of Commons since 1997, Green was deselected, fuelling speculation that grassroots campaigners are targeting those seen as responsible for Boris Johnson’s exit from No 10. Continue reading...

US secretary of state meets with top Chinese diplomat, Wang Yi, and warns of ‘serious problem for us’ if Beijing supplies weaponry to Vladimir PutinThe US has said it believes China may be about to provide lethal aid to help Russia in the war in Ukraine, prompting a direct warning against doing so from the secretary of state, Antony Blinken, to China’s top diplomat.Blinken made the warning to the Chinese state councillor Wang Yi on Saturday evening at a meeting on the sidelines of the Munich security conference during which he also rebuked China over the use of an alleged spy balloon over US soil. Continue reading...

Image of man battling serpents is confirmed as preparation for renaissance artist’s masterpieceA 16th-century drawing of a nude man, seen from behind, has been identified as a study by Michelangelo for his monumental masterpiece, the ceiling fresco of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.The red chalk drawing has been linked to one of the figures battling serpents on the Worship of the Brazen Serpent painting. It is thought to date from 1512, shortly before Michelangelo painted that final section of one of the world’s most famous works of art, which he had started in 1508. Continue reading...

Foreign affairs chief tells Munich security conference provision of ammunition has to be solved quickly

Move by retailer described as ‘heartbreaking’ as cost of staple products continues to riseCo-op stores in England have resorted to putting baby formula behind the tills in some stores to stop them from being stolen.A Brighton shop took action as the cost of living crisis continues to hit people up and down the country. Continue reading...

Polls put businessman ahead of the two main parties in next weekend’s elections seen as key ‘inflection point’ for African countryPolls in Nigeria have placed outsider candidate Peter Obi in the lead before presidential elections next weekend, heralding potentially sweeping change in Africa’s most populous nation.A win for Obi, a 61-year-old businessman turned politician, would overturn politics in Nigeria, ending decades of dominance by the two main establishment parties. Continue reading...

Pyongyang confirms rapid launch drill after warning of strong response to upcoming US-South Korea military exercisesNorth Korea has fired a ballistic missile toward the sea off its east coast, South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said, after Pyongyang warned of a strong response to upcoming US-South Korea military drills.Japan’s coastguard also said North Korea fired what could be a ballistic missile on Saturday. Continue reading...

David Prior helped arrange a meeting between NHSX and the private care company Teladoc, said to be keen to expand in the UKThe former Tory minister who chaired NHS England helped arrange a meeting for an American private health firm that paid millions of pounds to the investment bank that employed him.David Prior emailed Matthew Gould, a senior NHS executive, in February 2021 asking him to “have a conversation” with Jason Gorevic, chief executive of Teladoc, a multibillion-pound virtual medicine firm. Continue reading...

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Home Office rejects suggestions strikes by Border Force staff in Calais, Dunkirk, Dover and Coquelles impacting wait timesChildren and teachers returning to the UK from half-term school trips have endured delays of more than six hours at Calais, amid strike action by Border Force staff.P&O Ferries told customers that long wait times were “due to the queues at border control who are also on strike”, though the government rejected suggestions that industrial action was having an impact on wait times. Continue reading...

Bodies found in vehicle transporting 52 people, in deadliest incident linked to people-smuggling in countryBulgarian prosecutors have charged six people over the deaths of 18 Afghans who suffocated in a truck abandoned near the capital, Sofia.The bodies were found inside a vehicle on Friday, in the deadliest incident linked to people-smuggling in Bulgaria as the country struggles with a rise in illicit border crossings. Continue reading...

The Gulf state bank’s offer to buy the English Premier League team has been criticised by humanitarian organisations, LGBTQ+ fan clubs and advocacy groups for football governanceA Qatar-led bid to take over Manchester United should not be entertained because of concerns about state influence and human rights abuses in the country, rights groups say.Fears about an offer to buy the club have been raised by Amnesty International’s Manchester branch, which said it had been contacted by fans who were very worried by the news. Continue reading...

Attempted assassinations and abductions made public as Iranian broadcaster forced to quit London for US after safety concernsPolice and the security services have foiled 15 plots by Iran to either kidnap or kill British or UK-based individuals it considers “enemies of the regime”, counter-terrorism police revealed on Saturday.The toll of attempted assassinations and abductions was made public hours after a London-based Iranian broadcaster announced it had moved operations to the US after mounting safety concerns against its journalists from Tehran. Continue reading...

Doctors’ interpretation of state law prevents procedure, family tells Washington Post, despite baby’s fatal illnessIn a few weeks, a Florida couple will have to bid farewell to their child shortly after the baby is delivered, a gut-wrenching reality created by the US supreme court’s elimination of nationwide abortion rights last year.Because of a new Florida law that bans abortion after 15 weeks except under certain circumstances, Deborah Dorbert has become one of many women having difficulty accessing necessary abortion procedures after the supreme court overturned the rights granted by the landmark 1973 Roe v Wade decision. Continue reading...

As cybercriminals increasingly target the job market, antipoverty advocates say punitive welfare rules leave job seekers particularly vulnerable“I can’t stop kicking myself,” Rose* says.The 51-year-old has just lost $10,000 to scammers – a life-changing amount for the mother of three.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

Supermarket says cameras used to detect accidental wrong scans while experts say the technology is ‘punitive’ and call for reforms to protect privacy

‘Privatisation does not work. It has been a disaster for New South Wales and under Labor it stops,’ leader Chris Minns says

Research students turn to US and Europe instead of waiting for Department of Home Affairs to approve study in some Stem fields

More than 2 million tourists visit Australian coastal town annually, but a spate of injuries blamed on surfers not wearing leg ropes is raising tempersAmid the perfect blue rolling waves of Byron Bay’s beaches, a menace lurks.It’s not sharks or stingers that are spoiling the vibes at perhaps Australia’s most famous tourist town, but out-of-control surfboards. Continue reading...

The Office star says disappearance of Laurel Aldridge, 62, from West Sussex is ‘very out of character’The actor Mackenzie Crook has made a public appeal for information about his sister-in-law, who has gone missing in West Sussex.Police have urged people to check their outbuildings for Laurel Aldridge, who has been missing from the Walberton area, near Arundel, since Tuesday. Crook, best known for playing Gareth in The Office, said the family were “obviously really worried”. Continue reading...