World news | The Guardian

Damaging 90km/h winds forecast for parts of the Simpson district and a flood watch remains in place for the western inland region

Secretary of state to break ground on new US embassy while Hanoi reluctant to antagonise its powerful neighbourChina has reportedly refused to reschedule a visit from the US secretary of state, as Antony Blinken kicked off a trip to Vietnam, a crucial South-east Asian trade partner that Washington is looking to bolster ties with as it works to balance Beijing’s growing assertiveness in the region and beyond.In his first visit to the country as the top US diplomat, Blinken will meet with top Vietnamese officials, including Vietnam’s general secretary, Nguyen Phu Trong, and formally break ground on Saturday on a new US embassy compound in Hanoi. On Sunday he travels to Japan for a meeting of the Group of Seven wealthy nations. Continue reading...

Alexander Csergo, 55, was arrested in the Sydney suburb of Bondi on Friday on one count of reckless foreign interference

Nine killed and 21 wounded in Russian missile attack on apartment blocks in Sloviansk; Vladimir Putin signs bill sparking fears of new wave of mobilisation

Schnitzels are in and souffle is out as the cost-of-living crisis bites and diners seek more affordable, flexible dining options

Greens to use Parliamentary Budget Office costing to push Labor to clamp down harder on tax concessions for gas producers

Constitutional council’s ruling means government can pass law to increase minimum eligible age as early as next weekFrance’s highest constitutional court has approved Emmanuel Macron’s proposals to raise the minimum pension age from 62 to 64.The ruling means the government can pass the French president’s unpopular plans to increase the minimum eligible pension age as early as next week, to be in force by the end of this year. Continue reading...

RCN members refuse offer recommended by union leaders by 54% to 46% in ballotNurses are to launch fresh strike action across England later this month after rejecting the government’s pay offer, sparking fears stoppages could go on until Christmas.In a major blow to ministers, union leaders and health service bosses, members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) voted narrowly, by 54% to 46%, on a turnout of 61%, to reject the government’s offer of a 5% pay rise this year and a cash payment for last year. Continue reading...

Police say they want to speak to people among large group present in area of incident, after death of Tyler McDermott, 17A murder investigation has been launched after a teenager died following a shooting in north London. Tyler McDermott, 17, died on Friday afternoon after the incident in the early hours of Thursday.Scotland Yard said it was vital that officers spoke to a “large group of people” who may have heard or seen something suspicious in the area of the shooting in Norman Road, Tottenham. Continue reading...

This blog has now closed, you can read more of our Ukraine war coverage hereChina’s defence minister, Li Shangfu, will visit Russia from 16 to 19 April, and meet Russian military officials, Reuters reports the Chinese defence ministry said on Friday.The UK’s Ministry of Defence has claimed in its daily intelligence briefing that Ukrainian troops have been forced to make ‘orderly withdrawals’ from positions they previously held in the highly contested town of Bakhmut, and that the last two days have seen an intense artillery bombardment from Russian forces.Russia has re-energised its assault on the Donetsk oblast town of Bakhmut as forces of the Russian ministry and Wagner group have improved cooperation.The Ukrainian defence still holds the western districts of the town but has been subjected to particularly intense Russian artillery fire over the previous 48 hours. Continue reading...

Charges filed against cartel leaders, alleged chemical suppliers, lab managers, traffickers and others in fentanyl investigationThe US justice department has charged 28 members of Mexico’s powerful Sinaloa cartel, including sons of notorious drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, in a sprawling fentanyl-trafficking investigation.The attorney general, Merrick Garland, announced the charges on Friday alongside the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) chief, Anne Milgram, and other top federal prosecutors. The charges were filed against cartel leaders, as well alleged chemical suppliers, lab managers, fentanyl traffickers, security leaders, financiers and weapons traffickers. Continue reading...

This live blog has now closed, you can read more on this story hereNurses in England are preparing to go on strike until Christmas after members of the country’s biggest nursing union voted against the government’s pay deal, the Guardian has learned.The Royal College of Nursing will announce that members have rejected the government’s offer and will at the same time announce a new ballot for more aggressive strikes likely to last for the next six months.The vote has closed and the figures are being verified. There is no result until that point. We will make an announcement later today and tell our members first.Members of the GMB union at the company’s Coventry fulfilment centre will walk out on Sunday for three days.Further strikes are planned from April 21 to 23. Continue reading...

Government’s limiting of average pay rise to between 4.5% and 5% prompts fresh strike dates and potential FDA emergency ballotThe UK’s most senior civil servants could take their first strike action in more than a decade after ministers imposed an average pay rise of between 4.5% and 5%, in a move described as “unconscionable” by union leaders.The Cabinet Office published pay remit guidance limiting awards to an average of 4.5%, plus an additional 0.5% for the lowest pay bands. Continue reading...

Greater Manchester police confirms case against unnamed footballer arrested in 2021 has been droppedGreater Manchester police are to take no further action against a Premier League footballer who was arrested on suspicion of child sexual abuse offences.The unnamed player had been arrested in connection with an investigation that began in June 2021. Continue reading...

Social services were working to protect him before he was even born. Yet he died at 10 months. How did things go so wrong?September 2019: Shannon Marsden informs social services she is 20 weeks pregnant.October 2019: Derbyshire county council social services begin court proceedings in relation to the unborn child, and its parents, Marsden and Stephen Boden, are subject to regular drug-testing and checks on their home. Continue reading...

Guardian investigation estimates Charles has inherited gems worth at least £533m from the queenA 94.4-carat pear-cut diamond will have an unexpected starring role in the coronation of King Charles III. The stone will sit in the centrepiece of the crown worn by Camilla, the Queen Consort, replacing the Koh-i-noor, the better known but controversial jewel that was plundered from India.Unlike the Koh-i-noor, the replacement diamond is not part of the state-owned crown jewels. In fact, the Cullinan III is one of two large diamonds known as the Lesser Stars of Africa – the second being the Cullinan IV – that were privately owned by the late queen. They usually sit in what is probably the most valuable brooch in the world; one that, with its royal connections, could be worth well over £180m. They are also now the stars of what are likely to be the king’s own treasure chest of gems. Continue reading...

‘No substance in it,’ former chief justice Robert French says, while experts split on whether amendment should include ‘executive government’

Former ABC journalist tells joint select committee on voice wording that it is a ‘simple and unambitious and unthreatening’ proposal

The ‘lateral vascular neck restraint’ cuts blood supply to the brain and was used in combative arrests

Star and creator of show that’s taken the world by storm will discuss their careers at 2023 Vivid festival event

Company denies breaking the law but agrees to pay $210,000 penalty imposed by Liquor & Gaming NSW

Supreme court found no ‘special’ reason to continue bail after former NRL player found guilty of two counts of sexual intercourse without consent

PM joins ranks of Jennifer Coolidge, Beyoncé and Joe Biden as Justin Trudeau lauds his choice of a ‘path of hope and opportunity’

Premier cites major challenges including budget woes as reasons for changes less than a month after Labor’s election victory

Brightwater Care Group confirms it will shut three Perth centres due to rostering and financial pressures

This blog is now closed. Our main story is here.Overnight the Times of London has reported that MPs have warned that British lives have been put at risk by the leak of classified US intelligence documents. It writes:Tobias Ellwood, [the Conservative MP] who chairs the defence select committee, said the US leaks could “endanger lives”.“Given our long-established lead in scale and capability when it comes to elite forces it will come as no surprise that our special forces are doing much of the heavy lifting,” he said. Continue reading...

Kim Jong-un hails development of new solid-fuel rocket that can be deployed more quicklyNorth Korea says it has tested a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), with leader Kim Jong-un saying it marked a major step in Pyongyang’s capacity to conduct a nuclear counterstrike, state media reported.South Korea’s military said it had detected one “medium range or longer” ballistic missile launched on Thursday morning on a lofted trajectory – up, not outwards – from the Pyongyang area and it flew 1,000km (620 miles). Continue reading...

President says Belgrade ‘has not nor will it’ send Kyiv arms, after leaked Pentagon paper claimed Serbia had agreed to send weaponsThe Serbian president says his country has not sold arms to Ukraine and would not do so, after a leaked Pentagon report said Belgrade had agreed to provide arms to Kyiv, according to foreign media reports.“Serbia has not nor will it export weapons to Ukraine,” Aleksandar Vučić told reporters on Thursday, according to the Beta news agency. Continue reading...

Acting PM rejects discriminating against children and says leadership qualities are not linked to sexual orientation

Union to announce result of vote on Friday after its leaders recommended that ministers’ offer be acceptedNurses in England will go back on strike this month if RCN members reject ministers’ latest pay offer, with officials saying the result of the three-week ballot is too close to call.The Royal College of Nursing will announce the results of its vote on Friday after a lengthy consultation period in which many members have opposed the recommendation of union leaders to accept the government’s proposed deal. Continue reading...

Promoter claims ‘catastrophe’ has cost it more than £88k and accuses British government of hypocrisyKey members of a Ukrainian state orchestra were refused visas to play a series of concerts in the UK this month in a “catastrophe” that the promoter claims cost it more than €100,000 (£88,000).The Khmelnitsky Orchestra was due to tour the UK this month with two shows: The Magical Music of Harry Potter, and The Music From the Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit andThe Rings of Power. Continue reading...

Benjamin Netanyahu’s rightwing policies are emboldening attacks on 2,000-year-old community, says Catholic regional leaderThe head of the Roman Catholic church in the Holy Land has warned in an interview that Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government has made life worse for Christians in the birthplace of Christianity.The Vatican-appointed Latin Patriarch, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, said that the region’s 2,000-year-old Christian community has come under increasing attack, with the most rightwing government in Israel’s history emboldening extremists who have harassed clergy and vandalised religious property at a quickening pace. Continue reading...

Former senior minister accuses home secretary of undermining party for sake of her own leadership ambitionsMore senior Conservatives have hit out at Suella Braverman’s “racist rhetoric”, accusing her of undermining the party for the sake of her own leadership ambitions.Pressure was mounting on Rishi Sunak on Thursday to intervene to protect the party’s reputation after the home secretary stoked renewed anger by criticising police for confiscating a set of racist dolls displayed in an Essex pub. Continue reading...

US president calls for Westminster government to work more closely with Ireland and Northern IrelandChris Philp, the policing minister, has published an article in the Telegraph today explaining the changes being introduced to the way that police record crimes in England and Wales. The changes are being introduced following recommendations from the National Police Chiefs’ Council.Philp says:Firstly, we are dropping the requirement for police to record some crimes twice or more, reintroducing the previous “principal offence” rule. This will remove multiple entries on the database which effectively re-record the same incident many times.Accurate crime recording is vital, and these changes will better reflect victims’ experience. Recording crime does not equate to investigating crime and the police will continue to pursue all offences involved in the incident.Accurate records of crime must be kept, and crimes will be recorded. These changes to the crime-recording rules will enable police to target and focus investigations and provide victims the service they deserve.Ambulance response times for all types of emergencies have got longer, including for life-threatening illnesses and injuries, but remain below record levels.Meanwhile around one in 10 people arriving at major A&E departments are having to wait more than 12 hours before being admitted, transferred or discharged – the first time data of this kind has been published. Continue reading...

Jack Teixeira led Thug Shaker Central online group and is facing arrest in Massachusetts, say reportsThe man believed to be responsible for the leak of hundreds of US defence documents that have laid bare military secrets and upset Washington’s relations with key allies is reported to be a 21-year-old air national guardsman based in Massachusetts.Jack Teixeira was the leader of an online chat group who uploaded hundreds of photographs of secret and top secret documents, according to the New York Times. The online group called itself Thug Shaker Central, made up of 20 to 30 young men and teenagers who shared their love of guns, racist memes and video games. Continue reading...

Charity ‘dismayed’ over incident at Croome Court in Worcestershire, and Capability Brown memorial also vandalisedThe National Trust has been left “dismayed” by the scrawling of blue crayon over a two-centuries-old statue in Worcestershire.On Saturday, bright blue markings were discovered all over the face, arms and torso of a statue at Croome Court designed by the renowned sculptor John Bacon. Continue reading...

Rapist and murderer’s escape sparked outrage over competence of country’s police and criminal justice systemA fugitive rapist and murderer who left a burnt corpse in his cell during a jailbreak has returned to prison in South Africa after fleeing to Tanzania.The case has embarrassed authorities and sparked fresh outrage over the competence of South Africa’s police and criminal justice system. Continue reading...

The Big One in Blackpool was more terrifying than usual when it halted close to its 235ft summit on TuesdayOne of Britain’s most terrifying – or thrilling – rollercoasters became even more terrifying and less thrilling when the ride was halted metres from the summit because of sudden winds.It meant passengers had to disembark the Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and be escorted back down the ride’s dauntingly steep emergency stairs. Continue reading...

London gallery will be latest institution to offer after-hours events when it reopens in June after a £35m refurbishmentIf gazing at paintings in the hushed surroundings of an art gallery isn’t your thing, perhaps cocktails, live DJ sets and quirky fashion shows are. In which case, head straight to that art gallery.This week the National Portrait Gallery (NPG) in central London announced that when it reopens in June after a £35m refurbishment, a new bar will serve cocktails and small plates long after its display areas have closed. Continue reading...

Charles Michel says higher bills due to demands of Covid pandemic and Ukraine war after use of private jets comes under scrutinyThe president of the European Council, Charles Michel, has denied running up “extravagant” travel bills, after his use of private jets came under scrutiny.Michel, who is responsible for organising EU summits, said his travel bill was higher than his predecessors because of the demands of representing Europe on the world stage during the Covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Continue reading...

Ausra Plungiene disappeared after leaving home in Prestatyn on Tuesday morningA body has been found in the search for a woman who went missing while walking her dog, police have said.Ausra Plungiene, 56, from Prestatyn, north Wales, was last seen on Tuesday when she is believed to have left for a walk with her dog, Eyora, at about 10.30am but failed to return home. Continue reading...

Appeals to pay for private care linked to waiting lists or cost of living crisis have soared since Covid pandemicThe number of Britons crowdfunding for private medical care has soared since the Covid-19 pandemic, as NHS waiting lists continue to reach record lengths.Figures provided to the Guardian by GoFundMe, a website that helps people raise money, show 84% more medical crowdfunders mentioning “waits” or “waiting lists” were launched this March than in January 2019, before the pandemic.

The video, which has been removed from the ABC’s YouTube channel, had 127,000 views by the time Bruce Lehrmann’s claim was filed

Advocates fear court’s decision rejecting Coalition-era policy could result in a hasty legislative fix

Voice will not result in obligations on the executive or parliament, Anne Twomey says in submissions to inquiry

Data sharing between platforms could limit effectiveness of social media app’s ban from government devices

Residents of Leonora in country WA say the opposition leader was more interested in discussing the cashless debit card

Officers and former officers found guilty of ‘gross misconduct’ over texts, including some making fun of Katie Price’s disabled sonEight serving and former Metropolitan police officers have been found guilty of “gross misconduct” over discriminatory and offensive messages they shared, including some that made fun of Katie Price’s disabled son, Harvey.The officers – seven men and a woman – were found to have sent sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic and disablist comments in a WhatsApp group called “Secret Squirrel Shit” between 2016 and 2018. Continue reading...

Family says she was ‘an outstanding innovator of the Swinging Sixties’ and died peacefully at homeMary Quant, the British designer who made the miniskirt fashionable, has died aged 93.A statement from her family to the PA news agency said she “died peacefully at home in Surrey, UK this morning”. Continue reading...

Police, coastguards, lifeboat crews and volunteers joined search after person reportedly swept into seaA body has been found washed up on a beach after an extensive search operation around Brighton Palace pier during heavy winds.The search began just before 4pm on Wednesday after reports that a person had been swept into the sea as Storm Noa lashed the south coast. Continue reading...