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Force sets ambitious' target to complete 30 misconduct and 30 incompetence hearings a monthThe Metropolitan police has a backlog of 355 officers who are waiting to face gross misconduct hearings, the force has said.The London force's deputy assistant commissioner, Stuart Cundy, said the backlog was a significant increase compared to this time last year" and added that the Met wanted 30 gross misconduct hearings and 30 gross incompetence hearings to take place a month. Continue reading...

Warnings in place amid landslides and cancelled train services, with a month's worth of rain in 36 hours expected in some areasTen people have been airlifted to safety after heavy rainfall across Scotland caused flooding and landslides.Weather warnings remain in place across the region and there is widespread travel disruption. The Met Office has warned that the extreme weather could present a danger to life. Continue reading...

Presenter contacted Roberto Gocan, 35, about her comment during Question Time in WolverhamptonFiona Bruce has apologised to a Question Time audience member for identifying him as the black guy" on air.The BBC broadcast an episode of Question Time on Thursday from Wolverhampton. Bruce, who had identified other white members of the audience by what they were wearing, directed the microphone to Roberto Gocan, 35, by calling him the black guy in the middle". The remarks were broadcast on BBC One but later edited out when the show was available to watch on iPlayer. Continue reading...

Incursion shocks international observers, particularly among governments of the Middle East

This live blog is now closed, you can read more of our Ukraine war coverage hereOne woman was killed and two more people injured in the Russian shelling of the village of Bilenke in the Zaporizhzhia oblast this morning, the head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration said on Telegram.A private house and outbuildings were damaged in the attack, said Yuriy Malashko. Continue reading...

A decade of SNP dominance will be swept away in Scotland if Labour can repeat its Rutherglen success at a general electionThursday was a big day for Scottish Labour. Within minutes of the declaration that Labour had retaken Rutherglen and Hamilton West from the SNP, phones and social media lit up with triumphant messages from the winning party. And with good reason. This was the best result for Labour in a Scottish byelection since the second world war, and the worst for the SNP since the independence referendum upended Scottish politics.Some caveats apply. This was one of the SNP's most marginal seats, where Labour prevailed as recently as 2017. A cloud of scandal hung over a contest triggered after the sitting MP Margaret Ferrier was sanctioned for repeatedly breaking Covid rules. As Boris Johnson has learned, voters judge such behaviour harshly. Continue reading...

Israel's advanced surveillance of Palestinians makes scenes of Hamas gunmen moving through its streets all the more astoundingHamas's surprise attack on Israel, on the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur war, will be remembered as an intelligence failure for the ages.In the space of several hours, dozens of Gaza militants broke through the border fence into southern Israel, surprising local military positions. Continue reading...

Joshua Haveman employed tactical combat casualty care to patch up the wounded hiker's badly mangled legs and help him to safetyAn off-duty US air force flight instructor braved strong winds, hail and slippery conditions to rescue a fellow climber who had fallen about 80ft (24.4 meters) down a slippery slope at Yosemite national park this past Labor Day weekend, according to the military branch.Joshua Haveman's valiant actions not only earned him a hero's praise from his air force colleagues - but they also prevented another hiking tragedy from occurring after the last few months have seen multiple hikers lose their lives amid a range of perilous conditions. Continue reading...

Focus on early diagnosis as shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, says NHS needs to modernise or die'Labour has pledged to double the number of CT and MRI scanners in hospitals in England as part of an increased focus on early diagnosis and treatment.The shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, said the NHS needed to modernise or die" and that investment in new equipment would be key to bringing waiting lists down and delivering better outcomes. Continue reading...

Recent Tory discourse and rhetoric displays key far-right markers, says expert on populist politicsSuella Braverman's Conservative conference speech could have been delivered by a populist, far-right continental leader such as Marine Le Pen and there are strong signs that is the way the party may be heading, European political scientists have said.The UK home secretary warned delegates in Manchester this week of a hurricane" of mass migration, suggested the Human Rights Act should be renamed the Criminal Rights Act" and attacked the luxury beliefs" of a privileged woke minority". Continue reading...

Man dies outside shopping centre in Melbourne's north and another taken to hospital with serious injuriesA man has been shot dead outside a shopping centre in Melbourne's north in what police believe was a targeted attack.Emergency workers arrived at Craigieburn Central shopping centre on Windrock Avenue just before 3pm on Saturday after reports of several shots fired. Continue reading...

Former zookeeper's collection of animal excrement spanning 20 years goes on display Quiz: can you match the poo to the animal?A pile of something resembling chocolate raisins is displayed on what looks like a cake base. There's an artful assemblage of something the size and shape of oysters - and isn't that chocolate torte and sticky toffee pudding over there?They look like something from Bake Off," says Tracey Lee, an artist and former zookeeper, whose unique collection of animal excrement goes on public display for the first time this weekend in London. Continue reading...

Campaign launched to raise awareness about exposure to sophisticated criminal networks'People in the UK who illegally stream movies, sport and TV shows online are being warned they risk having their bank accounts emptied or their identities stolen.A major new awareness campaign has just been launched to highlight the various dangers associated with using illicit streaming services to watch paid-for content. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Papua New Guinea official accuses Australia of abandoning 70 men but government maintains it has no responsibility for them

PM says he won't take lectures from Tony Abbott and John Howard after pair claim voice wouldn't help central Australia

The six Colombians had been arrested on the day Fernando Villavicencio was shot dead in AugustSix men suspected of involvement in the August murder of Ecuador's anti-corruption presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio have been killed in prison, the prisons agency has said, barely a week before a crucial run-off election.The killings took place on Friday in a penitentiary in Guayaquil, the South American country's largest city, the attorney general's office announced earlier. Continue reading...

Election is contest between Law and Justice party and politician it claims represents malevolent foreign forcesI want this message to reach everybody in Poland," said Donald Tusk, speaking to a rally of supporters, gathered in a cavernous indoor sports arena in the city of Bydgoszcz. This is really the last chance."As a vicious, bruising campaign comes to its climax ahead of parliamentary elections on 15 October, Tusk, a veteran of Polish and European politics, has sought to make this point with increasing urgency. Continue reading...

Boy and his grandmother killed in Russian missile attack on block of flats in Kharkiv, hours after strike in regional village of Hroza that left 52 dead

Emergency services were called to the scene on Cabbage Tree Road in Bayview in the early hours of Saturday morning

Teenager held on suspicion of murder over the Tuesday stabbing of a 22-year-old, Keelen Morris WongA 15-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder over the stabbing of a man in front of shoppers in south London.The teenager was also arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon. He remains in custody. Continue reading...

An Australian take on how the emu won the 1932 battle premieres this month, before shooting on the UK comedian's film has begun

MP since 2001, nicknamed Failing Grayling' for fraught record as transport secretary, says time for a change after cancer treatmentChris Grayling, the former transport secretary, has become the latest Conservative MP to announce he is standing down at the next general election.Grayling said he had been successfully treated for prostate cancer this year and the diagnosis had led him to decide it was time for a change". Continue reading...

Demonstrations surge after court upheld suspension of Bernardo Arevalo's party over alleged voter registration fraudThousands of protestors have blocked roads across Guatemala in surging demonstrations to support the president-elect, Bernardo Arevalo, after the country's highest court upheld a move by prosecutors to suspend his political party over alleged voter registration fraud.Arevalo, an anti-corruption crusader who won a landslide victory in the August election, has denounced the suspension as a coup" aimed neutralizing him before he takes office in January, and his supporters are demanding the resignation of the prosecutors responsible. Street blockades that started this week grew from 14 on Monday to 58 road and highway blockages Friday. Continue reading...

Nancy Marks tells court on Long Island she and congressman submitted campaign finance reports embellished with fake loanThe ex-treasurer for US congressman George Santos pleaded guilty Thursday to a fraud conspiracy charge and implicated the indicted New York Republican in a scheme to embellish his campaign finance reports with a fake loan and fake donors.Nancy Marks, who was a close aide to Santos during his two congressional bids, entered the plea at a federal courthouse on Long Island, where she was a longtime political operative and bookkeeper for multiple candidates. Continue reading...

Inspectorate demands emergency changes as Scotland Yard accepts its child protection services are in chaosThe Metropolitan police are failing in their efforts to protect children from criminal and sexual exploitation while bungling efforts to find missing young people, a damning official report has found.The findings have led Scotland Yard to accept its child protection services are in chaos, and a senior officer admitted that too often we are letting them down". The policing inspectorate, which authored the report, said it was also concerned with the frequency with which officers and staff use victim-blaming language". Continue reading...

Duane Keffe D' Davis was arrested in the early morning hours of 29 September without incident by Las Vegas policeNewly released police body camera video shows officers arresting Duane Keffe D" Davis for the 1996 murder of Tupac Shakur off the Las Vegas strip.Davis, 60, was walking near his home in the Las Vegas suburb of Henderson on 29 September when Las Vegas metropolitan police department officers approached at dawn and called out to him as he was on the other side of the street. Continue reading...

Resolution Foundation analysis claims stealth move of freezing tax thresholds will raise 40bn a yearRishi Sunak's government is responsible for the biggest income tax rise for decades in a stealth move that will raise 40bn a year, according to new analysis.Taxpayers in the higher bracket will be handing over 3,700 a year more in tax as a result of a six-year freeze to income tax thresholds by 2027-28, the Resolution Foundation calculated. Continue reading...

Test satellites for Project Kuiper network, which will compete with Elon Musk's Starlink, launched on Friday afternoonAmazon launched its first two prototype satellites into space on Friday, as Jeff Bezos' tech giant races to compete with Elon Musk's SpaceX in building a mega-constellation of broadband internet-providing satellites.The test satellites were set to launch from Florida's Cape Canaveral space force station during a two-hour window that opens at 2pm EDT (6pm GMT), and they blasted off smartly at the top of the time window. Continue reading...

US and European leaders accuse Russia over attack on cafe and grocery store in Hroza that killed dozens; further airstrikes in Kharkiv kill two and injure 28

Return to Nature funeral home, now under investigation, performed green' burials without embalming chemicalsPolice said on Friday they have found at least 115 bodies at a Colorado so-called green" funeral home under investigation for improper handling of remains.The Fremont county sheriff, Allen Cooper, said they are coordinating with other agencies to determine if there is any wrongdoing. Continue reading...

Viktor Orban used provocative language at summit, saying EU had gone ahead without his or Poland's supportEU leaders have clashed again with Hungary after the country's prime minister, Viktor Orban, insisted at a summit in Granada that it would not support proposed laws to deal with migration.Poland also joined the protest, accusing Brussels of imposing a diktat" on other member states regarding the proposed laws that would apply in the event of a sudden refugee crisis such as that of 2015, when more than 1 million people arrived in the EU from Syria and beyond. Continue reading...

Mohammadi wins prize for her fight against oppression of women in Iran and to promote human rights for all

Exclusive: Deputy leader and shadow housing secretary Angela Rayner says party would get tough on developers

EU's 27 leaders have adopted statement at Granada but planned section on migration has been left out, senior EU diplomat confirmsThe Irish leader, Leo Varadkar, said in Granada this morning that the EU should accelerate its enlargement process.I'm very ambitious about enlargement. I think some countries, particularly some of the countries in the Balkans, have been asked to wait too long. I think we should speed it up. But I also think we need to be honest and realistic with people about how long it takes. You have to meet certain standards to join the European Union. Continue reading...

Lender's stock hit all-time low after news it was exploring selling off up to 40% of mortgage bookMetro Bank shares rebounded from all-time lows on Friday, amid reports that the embattled lender was sitting on a 600m offer from bondholders that could cover its looming funding pressures.Regulators have been keeping a close eye on developments at the high street lender, which needs fresh investor funding, and is exploring selling off up to 40% of its mortgage book, in order to shore up its balance sheet and ensure it can continue to grow. Continue reading...

Official calls for use of hunting guns in towns to be made legal amid rise in number of marauding bearsThree bears that snuck into a tatami mat factory in northern Japan and were holed up inside for nearly a day have been captured and killed, according to town officials and media reports.A patrolling official spotted the bears, believed to be a parent and two cubs, as they entered the factory on Wednesday morning in Misato, a town in Akita prefecture, where there have been a number of reported bear attacks in or near residential areas. Continue reading...

Legislation under debate stipulates share of state language on television and radio should grow to 70%Kazakhstan has announced efforts to promote the use of the Kazakh language over Russian in its media, amid growing scepticism over Moscow's influence in the country since the invasion of Ukraine.Kazakh is the official language of the former Soviet republic in central Asia, but Russian is recognised too and is widely spoken among the tightly controlled country's population of about 20 million. Continue reading...

Gavin Plumb, 36, from Harlow, Essex, is charged with soliciting a man to commit murder and incitement to commit kidnapA 36-year-old man has appeared in court charged over an alleged plot to kidnap and murder the TV personality Holly Willoughby.Gavin Plumb, from Harlow, Essex, is charged with soliciting a man named David Nelson to commit murder, and incitement to commit kidnap between 2 October and 5 October in Harlow, Essex. Continue reading...

A group of more than 5,300 hotels in 120 countries to hear next year whether they have won what may become a coveted symbolThe world-famous Michelin Guide, the red gastronomic bible that awards stars to the best restaurants, is to begin rating hotels using key symbols.Guide editors say they want to create a trusted reference" to help travellers navigate the large and varied offers of accommodation on the internet by flagging up establishments offering exceptional hotel and travel experiences". Continue reading...

Judge rules 126m harassment case brought by Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn outside court's jurisdiction

Heavy rain and possible flooding in northern regions, while south will stay mostly dryThe UK is likely to experience a sharp contrast in weather over the weekend, with people in northern areas told to prepare for torrential rain and possible flooding, while temperatures could reach 25C in the south.The Met Office has issued both amber and yellow rain warnings for large parts of Scotland and northern England from Saturday to Sunday morning. Continue reading...

Emma Morrissey, from Warrington, died from internal bleeding after weight-loss surgery in July 2022A man whose fiancee died after weight-loss surgery in Turkey has warned about the risks of medical tourism.Jon Burt said Emma Morrissey, 44, had always struggled with her weight but did not meet the criteria to have bariatric surgery on the NHS. She travelled to Termessos hospital in Antalya for a gastric sleeve operation, which is about four times more expensive in the UK. Continue reading...

Vandalism stirs concern about safety of collections amid rise in attacks on cultural heritage in JerusalemIsraeli police have arrested an American tourist at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem after he hurled works of art to the floor, defacing two second-century Roman statues.The vandalism late on Thursday raised questions about the safety of the priceless collections and stirred concern about a rise in attacks on cultural heritage in Jerusalem. Continue reading...

In 2019 there seemed to be a triple lock' keeping the party from power, but in 2023 it has been unpickedKeir Starmer was not wrong to describe the result of the Rutherglen and Hamilton West byelection as seismic". Labour's gain was on a massive swing, 20 percentage points, that even the party's wildest optimists could not dare predict.The circumstances of the byelection were embarrassing for the SNP, the recall petition was an opportunity for a sustained period of Labour campaigning, a strong candidate was in place and both the SNP in Scotland and the Conservatives in the UK were running unpopular governments. But even accounting for all these factors, and the low turnout, the result was a big vindication for the Labour party with more general significance. Continue reading...

Heavy rain and strong winds force schools and businesses to shut and leaves thousands without powerTyphoon Koinu made landfall in southern Taiwan on Thursday morning, reaching the country as a category 4 typhoon on the Hengchun peninsula as the storm's eye crossed over Eluanbi for about five minutes. At this stage, the maximum sustained winds were recorded at 135mph, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center.By Thursday afternoon, the storm was 62 miles off the western coast of Eluanbi, with maximum sustained winds of 89mph. Despite weakening, Koinu is expected to reach coastal areas of southern China this weekend, and the city of Guangzhou has already cancelled some flights and trains. Continue reading...

Transparency group US Right to Know finds members linked to Nestle, Coca-Cola and others, raising conflict-of-interest questionsAlmost half of a federal government panel that helps develop US nutritional guidelines has significant ties to big agriculture, ultra-processed food companies, pharmaceutical companies and other corporate organizations with a significant stake in the process's outcome.The revelation is part of a new report from US Right to Know, a government transparency group that looked for ties to corporate interests among the 20-member panel of food and nutrition experts that makes recommendations for updating the US government's official dietary guidelines. Continue reading...

Land access groups worry it will lead to charges at other sites, while pagans are alarmed about restrictions on worshipFor generations walkers, pagans and artists have freely roamed around the standing stones at Calanais on Lewis, drawn by its monumental scale, its coastal views and the spiritual impact of the rising sun and moon there.But there are growing fears that proposals by Historic Environment Scotland (HES) to introduce an admissions charge, and to control access to the neolithic site for the first time, could have a significant impact on those freedoms. Continue reading...

Party's victory may point to a change in Scottish political alignments that spells danger for Humza YousafAnas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, had used the word earthquake" last week to foreshadow Labour's remarkable victory in Rutherglen and Hamilton West, where its winning margin of 30 percentage points exceeded even its predictions.He did it cheekily, stealing one of the favourite lines often used by the former Scottish National party leader Alex Salmond when the nationalists were crushing Labour at repeated elections in the past. That theft of Salmond's phrase has additional resonance. It points to a change in Scottish political alignments that spells danger for the SNP and its current leader, Humza Yousaf. Continue reading...

Civil society groups call on broadcaster not to comply with order they say is an alarming overreach' and undermines press freedom'

High mortgage costs result in sixth straight month of sellers being forced to reduce prices, says Halifax