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Prescribing of non-addictive drug in England clustered in London and West Midlands, with cheaper alternative issued far more oftenTens of thousands of prescriptions have been issued in England for a promising and non-addictive new sleeping pill, but doctors say NHS uptake is being held back by cost and patchy awareness.Daridorexant, approved last year, has been prescribed 67,000 times since November 2023, at an estimated cost of 2.6m to the NHS. The drug has been hailed for helping people fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer and wake up clear-headed - without the dependency risks of traditional pills. Continue reading...

Those sounding a noisy trumpet' or inciting a dog to bark' along part of the Merseyside coast will no longer risk arrestGood news, at last, for anyone who fancies beating their carpet, sounding a noisy trumpet" or wantonly singing" along a stretch of Merseyside coast: they will no longer face arrest.A 90-year-old bylaw that banned such activities is set to be scrapped by Wirral council. Continue reading...

Ha Dang will head to California in December to take part in the Excel world championships after seeing off 40 rivalsHe will not be the only Briton fancying his chances on the tables in Las Vegas this December, but Ha Dang prefers games of pure skill rather than blind luck.The 33-year-old has booked himself a place at the Microsoft Excel world championships by seeing off more than 40 rivals in the inaugural British competition, a feat that has left him astounded and privileged". Continue reading...

The bossa nova pianist Francisco Tenorio Cerqueira Junior went out for cigarettes after a concert in Buenos Aires - a forensic team has finally revealed his fateEarly on 18 March 1976, Francisco Tenorio Cerqueira Junior, a Brazilian pianist who had played alongside some of Latin America's greatest musicians, disappeared from the streets of Buenos Aires.For nearly 50 years, his fate has remained a mystery, sparking desperate searches, raising suspicions of government complicity, and inspiring international documentaries. Now the mystery has been solved, with forensic scientists formally identifying Tenorio Junior's body - and confirming he was a victim of Argentina's bloody dictatorship. Continue reading...

Defence minister says Henderson naval shipyard south of Perth very much an Australian sovereign capability' but admits US will use it too

Thousands of asylum seekers left without lawyers after firm took on thousands of cases with just five solicitorsAn immigration law firm that signed up thousands of asylum seekers and generated income of 1.7m in legal aid in the last year, despite only employing five solicitors to represent them, has had its government contract terminated after concerns about its performance, the Guardian has learned.The decision leaves many asylum seekers struggling to find new legal representatives at a time when the government is increasing the number of cases it refuses. Continue reading...

Kellie Sloane has ruled out moving a spill and James Griffin isn't eager. Alister Henskens is thought to lack the numbers. So, for now, the leader might be safe

Can you call the boss a dickhead' or argue that being called messy is harassment? Tribunal judges have their work cut outUsually the forum for humdrum disputes over hourly rates and unpaid overtime - employment tribunals are not the first place you'd look for an eye-catching yarn.But for dedicated followers of the tribunal service's list, recent weeks have been a purple patch of zingers, with judges settling the kinds of rows that belong more in a soap opera than in civil proceedings. Continue reading...

UK insurers require critical modifications for sale in country with higher levels of car theft than ChinaBritish authorities may have well-founded concerns about the cyber-spying threat from vehicles made in China, but it turns out the country's manufacturers have security worries of their own.Insurers have told Chinese carmakers they need certain critical modifications for vehicles on British streets: namely, tougher locking devices to make them harder to steal. Continue reading...

Official figures indicate net migration is falling, yet concern among Britons is close to the highest it has been since polling began in 1974Rolling news coverage of protests outside asylum hotels, a series of government announcements on asylum seekers, and Reform's party conference meant that immigration was once again the political topic of the summer.In August almost half of Britons (48%) listed immigration as one of the top issues facing the UK. This year has recorded the highest concerns over immigration - outside of one other period during the 2015 Europe migrant crisis - since polling company Ipsos started asking the question in 1974. Continue reading...

In his international dash for cash, Johnson appears to have repeatedly broken ethics rules as he tried to trade on relationships made in No 10Boris Johnson started the day with a jog. He had the kind of schedule that would be familiar to any occupant of Downing Street. From 8.44am, he talked with his aides, then chaired cabinet, ate lunch, prepped for prime minister's questions, took a briefing on security threats, and got ready for an interview with one of Rupert Murdoch's reporters.The entry for 5.48pm in the official log for Tuesday 26 April 2022 contains one of several privileged interactions that he would later seek to exploit for financial gain. Johnson was in his office, the log notes, alone texting MBS". Continue reading...

Opposition leader announces wider-than-expected shake-up amid fallout from NT senator's Indian migrant comments. Follow today's news live

More than 125 specialist officers search abandoned structures, mineshafts and huts' with Victoria police reaffirming resolve to find alleged killer

Sit Down was played at unite the kingdom' rally in London but singer says band is antithesis' of far-right movementThe lead singer of the band James has criticised Tommy Robinson for the cynical" use of the group's hit song in a protest video.Tim Booth said he was disgusted" that the alternative rock band's single Sit Down had been played without their permission, as he believed the song was the antithesis" of the far-right activist's movement. Continue reading...

Fishing village of Labodrie reportedly set on fire after killing of a gang leader in sign of rising violence outside capitalThe UN secretary-general has condemned the reported killing of at least 40 people during an attack by armed gangs in a fishing village north of Haiti's capital.Media in Haiti widely reported that the attack took place on Thursday night in Labodrie. It is another sign of escalating gang violence that has spread outside the capital. Continue reading...

Director Basel Adra reports his property was stormed while he was at a hospital with relatives injured in settler attacksPalestinian Oscar-winning director Basel Adra has said that Israeli soldiers have conducted a raid at his West Bank home, searching for him and going through his wife's phone.Israeli settlers attacked his village on Saturday, injuring two of his brothers and one cousin, Adra told the Associated Press. He accompanied them to the hospital. While there, he said that he heard from family in the village that nine Israeli soldiers had stormed his home. Continue reading...

Met police estimate 110,000 people attended rally, with smaller number of counter-protesters penned in'More than a hundred people have gathered outside Russell Square before the march against fascism' counter-protest against the unite the kingdom' march, featuring far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon. Both are being held in central London on Saturday.According to the PA news agency, people in Russell Square milled around with placards that said refugees welcome" and oppose Tommy Robinson". Chants of say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here" started at about 11.20am, the news agency reports.The far right are a menace to the whole of society. Their first targets, asylum seekers and Muslims, are broadening to all migrants, black people and on to trade unionists, all religious minorities and anti-racists.This is going to be big, but we are also talking about movement to the right of Reform UK and we still don't know where it is going. Continue reading...

Bart De Wever travelled to Essen, Germany to hear performance conducted by Lahav Shani, the music director of the Israel PhilharmonicBelgium's prime minister, Bart De Wever, has said he attended a concert by a German orchestra that was uninvited from a Belgian festival to show support for its Israeli conductor.The cancellation of a planned performance at the Flanders festival Ghent by the Munich Philharmonic over concerns about its Israeli future chief conductor, Lahav Shani, has triggered a storm of criticism and accusations of antisemitism. Continue reading...

NSW government to rezone Paramatta Road corridor and make room for 8,000 new homes - but plan omits mooted light rail

Preventive operations' included putting air defence systems on high alert and followed serious Russian incursion earlier in the weekPolish and allied aircraft have been deployed in a preventive" operation in Poland's airspace because of a threat of drone strikes in neighbouring areas of Ukraine, and the airport in the eastern Polish city of Lublin was closed, authorities have said.The alert on Saturday lasted about two hours. On Wednesday multiple Russian drones had crossed into Poland, prompting Nato to send fighter jets to shoot them down, underlining long-held concerns about the expansion of Russia's more than three-year war in Ukraine. Continue reading...

Head of Bashkortostan region reports second drone shot down and minor damage to Bashneft's Ufa refineryA Ukrainian drone has crashed into one of Russia's largest oil-refining complexes, sparking a fire and causing minor damage, a Russian official has said.The complex, which belongs to Russian oil company Bashneft, lies on the outskirts of the central Russian city of Ufa about 870 miles (1,400km) from the frontline in Ukraine. Continue reading...

Union makes announcement alongside condemnation of racial abuse George Abaraonye suffered after inappropriate remarks' celebrating shooting Charlie Kirk shooting - US politics liveThe president-elect of the Oxford Union will face disciplinary proceedings for making inappropriate remarks" celebrating the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk, the union has announced on social media.George Abaraonye, a student at the University of Oxford who became president-elect of the debating society after a vote in June, posted several comments in a WhatsApp group appearing to celebrate what happened, according to the Telegraph. Continue reading...

Twelve soldiers also killed during raids on two TTP hideouts on border with AfghanistanFierce clashes broke out in Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan when Pakistani security forces raided two hideouts of the Pakistani Taliban, killing 12 soldiers and 35 militants, the military said on Saturday.Twenty-two militants were killed in the first raid in Bajaur, a district in north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Thirteen more were killed in a separate operation in South Waziristan district. Continue reading...

Three years after leak led to claims of social media spying, city authorities have agreed to independent investigationI've realised how damaging the whole thing's been because, you know, you can't trust people," Jen Smith says from her home in Bristol.Smith is one of a number of parents of children with special education needs and disabilities (Send) who allege Bristol city council spied on them because of their online criticism of the local authority. Continue reading...

West Midlands detectives are looking for two white male suspects after incident involving 20-year-old in OldburyMPs have expressed their shock at reports of the racially motivated rape of a 20-year-old Sikh woman, said to have occurred in broad daylight.Detectives are looking for two white male suspects alleged to have racially abused the woman during the assault - they believe one suspect had a shaved head and wore gloves. Continue reading...

Joshua Oliver, 28, pleaded guilty to arson that gutted premises in Washington, Tyne and WearA 28-year-old man has admitted to starting a fire that destroyed the constituency office of Labour MP Sharon Hodgson.Joshua Oliver, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to arson, with the resulting fire wrecking the Washington and Gateshead South MP's office in the early hours of Thursday. Continue reading...

Peter Mandelson was effective if controversial choice as ambassador before all went wrong at worst possible time'Peter Mandelson was in his element. Lounging on a sofa one June evening at Butterworth's, a bistro serving as the gastronomical centre of the Maga movement in Washington DC, the recently appointed British ambassador was being honoured with a plaque that indicated he was easing his way into the conservative circles around Donald Trump.The appointment of Mandelson, an architect of Tony Blair's New Labour project in the 1990s, had not been without controversy. He was the first political ambassador to the United States in almost half a century and had twice resigned from Labour governments in the past over scandals (not to mention his past association with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein). Continue reading...

Henderson defence precinct to be used to build surface vessels and maintain submarines

Marina Ramazashvili says son, Giorgi Bachiashvili, was the victim of a vendetta' by billionaire politicianThe mother of a jailed former aide to Bidzina Ivanishvili has accused the de facto leader of Georgia of treating her son as his personal prisoner" as she appealed to the west for help.Marina Ramazashvili, a renowned ophthalmologist in Georgia, said Giorgi Bachiashvili, who has allegedly been beaten in his prison cell, was the victim of a vendetta" waged by the billionaire politician. Continue reading...

Initial count has ALP candidate securing 61.8% of the two-party preferred vote over Liberal Serena Copley

People in at least eight states have been infected with Chagas, new report says, amid low awareness of diseaseIn February, Luna donated blood at her high school in Miami, with the goal of helping save others.She was very proud to come home and say, I gave blood today,'" her mother, Valerie, said. (The Guardian is not using the mother or daughter's full names to protect their privacy.) Continue reading...

FSA says affected items could contain shiga toxin-producing Stec strain and have been recalled as a precautionSainsbury's has recalled two varieties of its own-brand hummus over fears they may contain a deadly strain of E coli, advising customers who have bought the products not to eat them.The affected items include 315g containers of JS Classic Houmous, with a use-by date of 13 September, and 200g tubs of JS Lemon & Coriander Houmous with a use-by date of 14 September. Continue reading...

One group of marchers complained about vaccines while Indigenous and pro-Palestinian groups took to streets against racism

Official agency's figures indicate those who took journalism or marketing far more likely to regret their decision

Educational bodies from Europe to South America are boycotting Israeli institutions, though Universities UK said it did not support the actionA growing number of universities, academic institutions and scholarly bodies around the world are cutting links with Israeli academia amid claims that it is complicit in the Israeli government's actions towards Palestinians.According to Gaza's health ministry, more than 63,000 people have been killed in the territory - the majority of them civilians - with the true toll likely far higher. UN-backed experts have confirmed parts of Gaza, much of which has been reduced to rubble, are now in a man-made" famine. Continue reading...

Newcastle building society aims for those with smaller deposits and no help hoping to get on to housing ladderFirst-time buyers are being offered the chance to borrow up to 98% of the price of a property - but they cannot get help with their deposit from the bank of mum and dad.Newcastle building society's First Step mortgage is designed to help those who have been saving to get on the housing ladder. Continue reading...

This blog is closed. You can see further coverage of the Charlie Kirk shooting hereHere are some images coming to us via the wires.Democracy is the way that we have diverse societies that don't kill each other, largely," Lilliana Mason, a leading scholar of partisanship, observed recently. She added: As soon as we stop believing in it, it disappears." Dr Mason's own research suggests that there is sharply rising tolerance of political violence. On Wednesday, it claimed one more victim. Continue reading...

Philip Davis pleads for rival groups to kiss and make up' after divisive campaign to replace him

With his government mired in scandal, an operation to dethrone Starmer is now under wayThere has been a joke going around Labour MPs over the past week about three envelopes in Soviet Russia. Whenever you run into trouble, open them in order," the instructions go. Envelope one says: Blame your predecessor." So he does - and it works. The party officials are satisfied. A year later, problems arise again. He opens envelope two. It says: Restructure the organisation."He does a big reshuffle, changes some titles, and again buys himself some time. Finally, another crisis comes. He opens envelope three. It says: Prepare three envelopes." Continue reading...

Researchers say social media myths drive nocebo effect' of side-effects that are real but psychological in originSocial media misinformation about the contraceptive pill is encouraging women to view it so negatively that many give it up, a study has found.Researchers have identified myths spread on TikTok and other social media platforms as a key driver of users suffering side-effects that are real but psychological in origin. It is called the nocebo effect", the opposite of the better-known placebo effect.An expectation at the outset that the pill will be harmful.Low confidence in how medicines are developed.A belief that medicines are overused and harmful.A belief that they are sensitive to medicines. Continue reading...

Commission asked platforms to apply content warnings to protect children or others who do not want to see US shooting

Tommy Robinson, Steve Bannon, Ant Middleton and Joey Mannarino among names to speak at London eventThe killing of Charlie Kirk is being used by Tommy Robinson to mobilise support before what is expected to be Britain's largest far-right rally in decades, which will include speakers from Britain, the US and Europe.Steve Bannon, Donald Trump's former chief strategist, is among those listed to appear on stage at the rally in central London, which is expected to draw tens of thousands for an event that Robinson has been heavily attempting to monetise. Continue reading...

Fitch downgrade to lowest level on record complicates new prime minister Sebastien Lecornu and President Emmanuel Macron's efforts to control France's financesThe Fitch agency downgraded France's credit rating on Friday, as President Emmanuel Macron struggles with political instability and disagreements on how to put the country's strained public finances in order.The US rating agency, one of the top global institutions gauging the financial solidity of sovereign borrowers, downgraded France on its ability to pay back debts, from AA-" to A+", the country's lowest level on record at a major credit rating agency. Continue reading...

Total of 33 groups and 10 individuals face continued financing sanctions as government adds new entity linked to Hamas'

Film-makers pledged not to work with institutions linked to genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people'Paramount said it does not agree with recent efforts to boycott Israeli film-makers", making it the first major studio to respond to a recent pledge not to work with institutions that supported or were otherwise involved in the genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people".The pledge circulated by an organization called Film Workers for Palestine has more than 4000 signatures including directors and actors like Jonathan Glazer, Ava DuVernay, Yorgos Lanthimos, Emma Stone, Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara, Olivia Colman and Mark Ruffalo. Continue reading...

President tells Fox News the radicals on the left are the problem' and refuses to seek common way forward

President makes remark on Fox & Friends after Memphis mayor said he requested financial resources insteadDonald Trump said on Friday that he will send national guard troops to Memphis as part of his administration's expanding military-led response to urban crime in Democratic-run cities.I think maybe I'll be the first to say it right now: we're going to Memphis," the US president said during an appearance on Fox & Friends, describing the violence in Memphis as dire. Continue reading...

Duke says serving others has saved him as he announces support for veterans through his Invictus foundationPrince Harry laid a wreath at a flower and flag memorial to Ukraine's war dead in Kyiv's Maidan Square during a surprise visit to support the country in its fight against Russia, as well as its thousands of seriously injured veterans.Harry said he wanted to do everything possible" to help the recovery of the thousands of military personnel who have been seriously injured in the three-year war against Russia. Continue reading...

Top Senate Republican says Democrats see shutdown as politically advantageous' as 30 September deadline loomsThe US government is drawing nearer to a potential shutdown after Donald Trump told Republicans on Friday don't even bother dealing with" the Democrats, whose congressional leaders are refusing to support spending bills that do not include their healthcare priorities.Congress is up against an end-of-the-month deadline to approve legislation funding the federal government, otherwise many departments will stop work and employees will be told to stay home. While the Senate and House of Representatives have made some progress on passing the 12 appropriations bills that make up the budget, it seems certain that Congress will need to pass a short-term measure to keep the government open beyond 30 September. Continue reading...

Reproductive rights group condemns ruling as backdoor abortion ban' and says 200 US clinics may face closureThe Trump administration can move forward with its plan to defund" Planned Parenthood by blocking it from receiving reimbursements from Medicaid, the US government's insurance program for low-income people, a federal appeals court ruled late Thursday.The ruling from the first US circuit court of appeals lifts a lower court's preliminary injunction, which had stopped the Trump administration from enacting a provision of its tax and spending bill that axed Planned Parenthood's ability to participate in Medicaid for one year. Continue reading...