Charities and non-profit bodies urge Jeremy Hunt to introduce discount tariff from April 2024Jeremy Hunt is facing calls for a “social energy tariff” providing cheaper gas and electricity for low income households to be introduced when government support ends next year.In an open letter to the chancellor, 95 charities and non-profit organisations have urged the government to move quickly to legislate for a change in energy bills for “those in greatest need to ensure they are able to live in their homes comfortably”. Continue reading...
UK medicines watchdog advises GPs to ‘taper’ doses for patients who want to stop taking the drugsGPs whose patients want to stop taking antidepressants should reduce the dose of their medication in stages to lower the risk and severity of withdrawal symptoms, the medicines watchdog has said.About one in six (16%) adult Britons experience moderate to severe depression, according to the Office for National Statistics. In England alone, 21.4m antidepressant drugs were prescribed between July and September 2022, according to the NHS Business Services Authority. Continue reading...
by Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent on (#67WTB)
Census data analysis shows growth of ‘rainbow’ towns and cities, as more people live with neighbours of different backgroundsEthnic segregation in England and Wales is on the wane as more people live alongside neighbours of different backgrounds, creating “rainbow” towns and cities, research reveals.Neighbourhood diversity more than doubled nationally between 2001 and 2021, with huge transformations in some places. There was close to a tenfold increase in diversity in Boston, Lincolnshire, albeit from a low base; Barking and Dagenham recorded a ninefold increase, while diversity in Watford and Reading increased fourfold. Continue reading...
Almost half of the children surveyed by Oxford University Press chose ‘Queen’ as their top word, with ‘happy’ and ‘chaos’ in second and third place“Queen” has been chosen by young people as the Oxford children’s word of the year for 2022.Almost half of children surveyed by Oxford University Press (OUP) chose “Queen” as their word of the year. In second place was “happy”, chosen by 36% of children, with “chaos” coming in third with 14% of the vote. Continue reading...
Rebel Tories drop amendment after ministers agree to make managers criminally liable for persistent breaches of duty of careTech executives whose platforms persistently fail to protect children from online harm will face criminal charges after ministers reached a deal with Conservative backbenchers.Rishi Sunak was facing the prospect of defeat in a Commons vote on Tuesday after a rebel amendment to the online safety bill won opposition support. However, supporters have now withdrawn the amendment after the government agreed to change the legislation. Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#67WMD)
Angela Rayner claims people in certain job categories could lose the right to withdraw their labour under Tory plansRishi Sunak’s new anti-strike laws would prevent certain job holders from ever being able to take industrial action, Labour’s deputy leader said during fiery exchanges in the House of Commons.Angela Rayner promised on Monday that Labour would repeal the government’s anti-strikes bill, saying it was one of the most “indefensible and foolish pieces of legislation to come before this House in modern times”. Continue reading...
More than 20 injured in incident involving a truck, after 40 died in two-bus collision in Kaffrine regionA collision between a truck and a bus in northern Senegal has killed 22 people, firefighters have said, a week after a crash between two buses left 40 people dead.More than 20 people were injured in the latest accident, which occurred on Monday near Sakal in the Louga region, Papa Ange Michel Diatta, a colonel with the national firefighting service, told AFP. Amadou Ba, the country’s prime minister, visited the site, pledging to enforce new rules of the road. Continue reading...
Producers argue Albanese government’s price cap intervention has ‘paralysed the market’Strains in the gas market have not been eased by the Albanese government’s price caps imposed late last year, with an industry group claiming supply shortages remain while the peak gas lobby is warning the sector has become “virtually paralysed”.One month on from the government’s rare intervention to limit domestic gas prices to $12 a gigajoule and black coal to $125 a tonne, big commercial gas users are hoping new compliance guidelines to be released soon by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission will force suppliers to provide an adequate supply.Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...
Nicola Sturgeon says Scottish government will defend its legislation ‘and stand up for Scotland’s parliament’This is what Keir Starmer said in his LBC interview about Scotland’s gender recognition reform bill, and the UK government’s reported intention to block it.Starmer suggested the SNP and the Tories were both exploiting the Scottish gender recognition bill for political advantage. He said:I am worried about the fact that I think this is being used by the SNP as a sort of devolution political football. And I think it’s being used by the government – or might be used – as a divisive football in relation to the particular issue.On this whole issue of trans rights, I think the government is looking to divide people rather than bring people together.He refused to say whether Labour would support the UK government if it did block the legislation. When it was put to him that, from what he was saying about his reservations about the bill that he was minded to support Rishi Sunak on this, he did not accept that. He said he would want to see exactly what the government said before deciding how to react. Blocking Scottish legislation would be “a big step for a government to take”, he said. But he also said No 10 was treading “very, very carefully” (which rather undermines the claim he made about the Tories potentially exploiting this for party political advantage).He said that he accepted the Gender Recognition Act needed to be modernised. But he confirmed that he thought people should not be able to self-certify their gender at the age of 16 (as they would be able to under the Scottish law). And he said he was worried about the potential impact of the Scottish bill on UK equality laws.He said that only a tiny proportion of people were likely to want to change gender. He said:I approach it on the basis that for 99.9-something percent of women, it is all about biology. Sex-based rights matter, and we must preserve all those wins that we’ve had for women over many years, and including safe spaces for women.Whilst I am sympathetic to the change that is made to make the rights of trans people in Scotland, I think we may have a clash between the position in the UK-wide legislation and the position in Scotland …[The legislation] may mean – even though I suspect political mischief on the part of the Conservative government and culture wars – they may have a point. It is arguable, at least, that what’s happened in Scotland has a potential impact on the legislation as it operates UK-wide. Continue reading...
by Harry Taylor, Jamie Grierson and Tom Ambrose on (#67WC3)
Duke and Duchess of Sussex respond to TV presenter’s message apologising for article he wroteThe Duke and Duchess of Sussex have accused Jeremy Clarkson of writing articles “that spread hate rhetoric, dangerous conspiracy theories and misogyny”, after the Grand Tour presenter apologised to the couple over a controversial article he wrote for the Sun.More than 20,000 complaints were made to Ipso, the independent regulator of most of the UK’s newspapers and magazines, about the column in December, in which Clarkson said of Meghan that he was “dreaming of the day when she is made to parade naked through the streets”. Continue reading...
Joseph takes £25,000 prize for Sonnets for Albert, which weighs the impact of growing up with a largely absent fatherAnthony Joseph has won the TS Eliot prize for his collection Sonnets for Albert, described as “luminous” by the judges.Joseph takes the £25,000 poetry prize, which this year saw a record 201 submissions. Continue reading...
Thousands of schools set to close as NEU members plan mass strike on 1 February, followed by regional stoppagesThousands of schools in England and Wales are set to close in February after teachers voted to strike, union leaders have announced, as nurses also prepare for further stoppages.Action by members of the National Education Union will begin with a mass strike on 1 February, to coincide with the Trades Union Congress’s national “protect the right to strike” day of action, followed by six days of regional stoppages. Continue reading...
Alireza Akbari’s sister and daughter went to cemetery to collect his remains but were told he had already been interredThe Tehran-based family of the executed British-Iranian dual national Alireza Akbari have been prevented from seeing his body or burying him in the grave in which he had asked to be laid to rest in Shiraz, his birthplace, family members have told the Guardian.Akbari was executed for spying for M16, charges he vehemently denied and for which there is no substantive evidence, save a confession extracted under torture. Continue reading...
UK ministers to use provisions in Scotland Act to block legislation making it easier for transgender people to self-identifyRishi Sunak’s government has blocked legislation passed by the Scottish parliament that would make Scotland the first part of the UK to introduce a self-identification system for people who want to change gender.The Scottish secretary, Alister Jack, announced that he would use section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998 for the first time to halt the gender recognition bill after a review by UK government lawyers. Continue reading...
Michael Holmes’s wife, Teresa, who was injured says ‘traumatic’ incident happened on regular pandemic strollA man died after being trampled by cows during a pandemic walk he had done many times before with his wife, an inquest has heard.Michael Holmes, 57 was crushed by cattle in a field near his home in the village of Netherton, West Yorkshire, in a “traumatic” incident that left his wife, Teresa, needing to use a wheelchair. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#67WGD)
But drivers’ union Aslef set to reject initial pay offer from train operators, meaning resolution is some way offTalks will continue this week between the rail industry and the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) amid renewed optimism that a deal can be reached without further strikes.However, the drivers’ union Aslef was set to reject an initial offer from train operators, meaning a full resolution to the long-running pay dispute on the railway is likely to remain some time away. Continue reading...
Royal who reigned for barely three years before being exiled is laid to rest six days after death was announcedHe was a king without a crown, a monarch without a kingdom, for longer than most can remember. But for a few hours in Athens on Monday, Constantine II, the royal who reigned for barely three years before being forced into exile was king of the Hellenes again – or at least of thousands of his former subjects.From a little before dawn, six days after his death was announced at the age of 82, Greek monarchists young and old, rich and poor, lined up patiently to pay their last respects. Continue reading...
Africa’s most industrialised economy being hit by daily power cuts as anger grows among opposition and publicCyril Ramaphosa has cancelled his trip to the World Economic Forum in Switzerland as South Africa grapples with an unprecedented energy crisis that has resulted in daily power cuts of between eight and 11 hours across the country.Anger is growing as offices, hospitals, factories and tens of thousands of small businesses are forced to close, with outages also causing increased crime, traffic disruption and massive wastage as food supply chains collapse. Continue reading...
The two judges previously found the Home Office’s plan to be lawful and rejected some grounds for appealTwo judges who ruled that the Home Office’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda to have their cases processed was lawful have granted permission for parts of their decision to be challenged at the court of appeal.The ruling in the high court on Monday was welcomed by those challenging the judgment of Lord Justice Lewis and Mr Justice Swift last month. Continue reading...
Abdul Latif Afridi was killed by a junior lawyer in Peshawar in what is believed to be a grudge attackA top lawyer has been murdered at a Pakistan high court by a colleague who shot him six times while dressed in full judicial robes, according to police and a witness.Abdul Latif Afridi, former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan, was lounging with co-workers in a break room at Peshawar high court when he was killed in an apparent grudge attack. Continue reading...
Actor and photojournalist was best known for appearances in films such as Beat the Devil, Solomon and Sheba and Buona Sera, Mrs CampbellGina Lollobrigida, the Italian actor once called “the most beautiful woman in the world”, has died at the age of 95. Corriere della Sera reported the news, saying she had been “hospitalised for some time”.Through the 1950s and 60s, Lollobrigida was one of the world’s most desired performers and starred in a large number of European and American films opposite many of Hollywood’s leading men of the day. Continue reading...
by Lisa O'Carroll Rowena Mason and Jennifer Rankin on (#67W2V)
Both sides agree to keep working to find solutions in a ‘constructive and collaborative spirit’The UK foreign secretary, James Cleverly, and the European Commission’s vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič, have committed to further talks to resolve the dispute over Brexit trading arrangements in Northern Ireland.Following a “stock-taking” meeting on Monday afternoon, they agreed to continue what they described as “scoping work” to find potential solutions in a “constructive and collaborative spirit”. Continue reading...
by Samantha Lock, Martin Belam and Léonie Chao-Fong on (#67VRZ)
Russia and Belarus begin joint air force drills which Ukrainian officials say will increase number of air alerts; Death toll from weekend Russian missile attack on Dnipro rises to 40
Lambeth council licensing team makes decision after incident at Asake gig left two dead in DecemberThe O2 Academy Brixton has had its licence suspended for three months after a fatal crowd crush at the venue left two people dead and one in critical condition.Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, and the security guard Gaby Hutchinson, 23, died in hospital after the incident during a gig by the Afrobeats singer Asake on 15 December, during which a number of people appeared to enter without tickets. Continue reading...
Dance company Marrugeku has put together a blistering Australian take on the hit song and video, taking in our colonial past and our treatment of refugees
Army says Omar Khmour was shot in refugee camp near Bethlehem after people threw Molotov cocktails at soldiersIsraeli forces have killed a Palestinian boy near Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, where the army said they opened fire after people threw Molotov cocktails.Omar Khmour, 14, was shot in the head early on Monday in the Dheisheh refugee camp in the southern West Bank and “succumbed to his wounds”, the Palestinian ministry said. Continue reading...
Deal with EBU and Warner Bros Discovery retains same coverage as existing agreementThe Olympics will remain on the BBC until at least 2032 after a new deal with rights holders that guarantees wider free-to-air coverage by broadcasters across Europe.The corporation’s deal, which secures the same 500 hours of TV coverage and a maximum of two live events as its existing agreement, has been struck with the new joint rights holders the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the US pay-TV company Warner Bros Discovery (WBD). Continue reading...
Victim tells of abuse, threats and rape, while mother, childhood friend and neighbours recall violent behaviourA former girlfriend of the armed police officer David Carrick has told how he allegedly raped, strangled and threatened her, saying: “I can kill you without leaving any evidence.”Carrick, 48, reportedly used his status to intimidate and control her, restraining her with his police-issue handcuffs and boasting that he was a powerful man who guarded the prime minister. He coerced the woman into staying in the relationship by convincing her he would plant drugs in her car, saying: “Who are they going to believe?” Continue reading...
Exclusive: Hundreds of thousands of people are not covered by price cap and have faced huge rise in costsResidents of flats with communal heating systems could mount a legal claim against their network operators after experiencing rises of up to 700% in their bills.Lawyers are investigating the possibility of a legal claim on behalf of residents whose home heating and hot water is supplied through a heat network, the Guardian can reveal. Continue reading...
Genaro García Luna, accused of accepting millions in bribes from cartels, in trial that could implicate officials on both sides of borderOne of Mexico’s most powerful former officials will stand trial in the US this week, charged with accepting million-dollar bribes from a violent cartel in a case with profound political implications that could expose the inner workings of the “war on drugs” on both sides of the border.Genaro García Luna, a former head of Mexico’s equivalent of the FBI who went on to lead the country’s security ministry, was arrested in Texas in 2019, charged with conspiring to traffic cocaine and lying to the US government. Continue reading...
Independent experts find western-supplied materials are still finding their way into military’s handsCompanies in 13 countries across Europe, Asia and North America are assisting Myanmar’s junta – either indirectly or directly – by supplying materials to the stated-owned entity that produces the military’s weapons, a report by the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M) has found.The weapons are then being used to commit human rights atrocities. Continue reading...
Retail chain to invest £480m in rejuvenate its presence on the high streetMarks & Spencer is to open 20 large stores and create 3,400 jobs as part of a £500m plan to rejuvenate its presence on the high street after bumper Christmas trading.The retail chain – which in October said it would close 67 of its “lower productivity” sites that sold clothes and homewares, about a quarter of its estate of bigger stores – said it planned to open the 20 new “bigger, better” stores in locations across the UK in the next financial year. Continue reading...
by Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Aakash Hassan in Delhi on (#67W0C)
Harrowing footage shows passengers had no idea plane was in danger before crashIn the moments before Nepal’s deadliest air crash in decades on Sunday, four friends from India who were onboard began excitedly recording the descent on a Facebook live video.They were heading to Pokhara for the trip of a lifetime, visiting temples and paragliding in Nepal’s famed Annapurna mountain range. “It’s really fun,” one of the men can be heard on the video surveying the city below as the plane began its descent. The friends can be heard laughing and joking as the camera is turned on a smiling Sonu Jaiswal, a 29-year-old father-of-three, who ran a small business back home in India. Continue reading...
by Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent on (#67W0D)
Lawyers for more than 1,000 infected and affected people want evidence to be passed to prosecuting authoritiesVictims and family members affected by the contaminated blood scandal are calling for criminal charges to be considered as the public inquiry into the tragedy draws to a close.While the inquiry, which will begin to hear closing submissions on Tuesday, cannot determine civil or criminal liability, people affected by the scandal are keen for the mass of documents and evidence accumulated over more than four years to be handed over to prosecutors to see whether charges can be brought. Continue reading...
Arrest linked to drive-by attack outside Euston church that left seven-year-old girl critically injuredA 22-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a drive-by shooting outside a church in London that left a seven-year-old girl with life-threatening injuries.It is the first arrest linked to the shooting outside St Aloysius church near Euston station on Saturday. Continue reading...
Analysis shows police more likely to be in schools with higher numbers of pupils of colour and those eligible for free mealsNearly 1,000 police officers are operating within UK schools, figures show, with these officers being more likely to be based in areas with higher numbers of pupils eligible for free school meals.Analysis by the Runnymede Trust shows that of the 979 police officers operating in UK schools, half are based in London. Continue reading...
Bereaved billed up to month’s worth of care, despite UK regulator saying such charges are likely to be illegalBereaved families are being charged thousands of pounds in care home fees after the death of a relative in residential care, despite the competition watchdog saying such arrangements are likely to be unlawful.Some providers are billing next of kin sums equivalent to up to a month’s worth of care after the death of a resident, four years after the Competition and Markets Authority declared such charges illegal. Continue reading...
YouGov research finds financial worries besetting nearly half of adults in BritainThe cost of living crisis is damaging the mental health of nearly half of adults in Great Britain, with people in Wales the unhappiest of all, according to research.In Wales, 61% of adults said their current financial situation was damaging their mental health, compared with 48% of people in Scotland and 47% in England, according to YouGov research for Business in the Community (BITC), the Prince’s Responsible Business network. Continue reading...
So-called ‘black boxes’ are in good condition, says official investigating deaths of at least 68 people when Yeti Airlines flight plummeted into a gorgeThe black box and cockpit voice recorder from the Yeti Airlines plane that crashed in Nepal have been located, as the country observed a day of mourning on Monday for the victims of its deadliest aviation disaster in three decades.Teknath Sitaula, a Kathmandu Airport official, said the so-called black boxes were “in a good condition now. They look good from outside.” Continue reading...
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