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Shooting to fame as a teenager with the Royal Ballet, Grey won international acclaim as a dancer and was artistic director of the company that became English National BalletThe renowned dancer Dame Beryl Grey, one of the great pioneering forces in British ballet, has died at the age of 95. The Royal Ballet announced the news on Twitter on Saturday and said she had been a “commanding figure” since her Swan Lake debut aged 15. English National Ballet tweeted that she would be “remembered for her significant legacy and immeasurable contribution to the artform”. The organisation bbodance said that Grey, who was their president, was a “truly wonderful ballerina who will be sorely missed by us all”.A teenage prodigy, Grey rose to fame at the Royal Ballet, which she left in 1957 to pursue an international career as a freelance ballerina. Grey was not only the first British ballerina to dance in Russia (with the Bolshoi in 1957, during the cold war) but also the first western ballerina to perform in Beijing (with Peking Ballet in 1964). Later she was appointed artistic director of London Festival Ballet (1968-79), transforming the fortunes of the company that became English National Ballet. Continue reading...

Government rebuffs union offer to suspend action in return for talks, saying it can’t depart from review body’s recommendationMinisters have rebuffed an offer by nursing unions to suspend planned strikes in return for negotiations on pay, arguing that it was not possible for the government to amend awards decided by the independent pay body for NHS staff.The foreign secretary, James Cleverly, told Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday show that the health secretary would happily talk to the unions, but only about improving NHS performance and working conditions, and not about pay. Continue reading...

I Camisa has been battered by the pandemic and rising costs and is threatened with doom after almost a century of tradingFor decades, the I Camisa deli has been at the heart of the community in London’s West End. Opened in 1929 by the Italian brothers Ennio and Isidoro Camisa, the Soho institution sells speciality produce including imported meats and cheeses, as well as handmade pasta and sauces, and hot sandwiches on freshly baked bread.The food has won it an array of accolades, praise from critics and cameos on TV shows including The Great British Bake Off and actor Stanley Tucci’s BBC travel show. But now, battered by the effects of the pandemic, I Camisa looks set to shut for good almost 100 years after it began trading. Continue reading...

Move by Task Force Rusich raises fears of rogue paramilitary attacks on Baltic nations of Latvia, Lithuania and EstoniaA neo-Nazi paramilitary group linked to the Kremlin has asked its members to submit intelligence on border and military activity in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, raising concerns over whether far-right Russian groups are planning an attack on Nato countries.The official Telegram channel for “Task Force Rusich” – currently fighting in Ukraine on behalf of the Kremlin and linked to the notorious Wagner Group – last week requested members to forward details relating to border posts and military movements in the three Baltic states, which were formerly part of the Soviet Union. Continue reading...

Peter Hain says Labour leader must have plans ready to limit the damage caused by leaving the EU if he becomes PMKeir Starmer must urgently develop a series of practical policies to address the economic “disaster” of Brexit and prevent it from driving Scotland towards independence, a former Labour Europe minister has warned.Backed by several other Labour peers, Peter Hain, who is also a former Northern Ireland secretary, says the crises caused by climate change, the Ukraine war, the lack of economic growth and rising energy prices can only be tackled through closer cooperation with our EU neighbours than the current Brexit arrangements allow. Continue reading...

Senior politicians from both major parties to travel to Vanuatu, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and Palau this week. This blog is now closed

Company says ‘the welfare of our staff is our absolute priority’ and it will ‘take these allegations very seriously’

There is little to soothe the pain on the front pages, with ample reminder of Harry Kane putting it over the crossbar to send his team homeHarry Kane’s penalty shot went over the crossbar and that was it for England’s World Cup hopes. Here is how the papers covered the World Cup quarter-final.“England 1 France 2 – Heartbreak for Harry” – the Observer’s take on the result. It was, the paper says, a “stinging end” to an “enthralling World Cup quarter-final”. There’s also room on the front for “We’ll suspend strikes if you talk about pay: health unions”. Continue reading...

Baird will take over from February with his predecessor stepping down and taking the chief executive’s job with HBF

In defence of energy price caps, minister Chris Bowen says Australians should pay a fair cost for gas extracted in Australia rather than a ‘wartime price’

Release of names, numbers and addresses of some unlisted customers was not due to cyber-attack

Nato head warns the war could spin out of control and Ukrainian president says eastern city of Bakhmut has been ‘destroyed’

Ruben Ostlund’s Palme d’Or-winning satire takes best picture, director, actor and screenplay at continent’s answer to the OscarsIt was plain sailing at this year’s European film awards in Reykjavík for Triangle of Sadness, Ruben Ostlund’s luxury yacht-set satire of western entitlement and self-regard, which won best film as well as three other major prizes.The Swedish director, fast becoming an EFAs favourite, also took best director and best screenwriter to add to his six European awards for his 2017 art-world roast The Square. Veteran Croatian actor Zlatko Burić scooped best actor for his role as a Russian fertiliser magnate who becomes an unlikely revolutionary aboard Ostlund’s puke-swilling ship of fools. Continue reading...

Vessel thought to have embarked from Bangladesh is reportedly near Malaysia with 160 people onboard who have no food or waterActivists have called for urgent assistance to rescue 160 Rohingya refugees, including young children, who they say are stranded at sea on a damaged boat and have been without food or water for days.The boat, which activists say is near Malaysian waters, is believed to have left on 25 November from Bangladesh, where almost 1 million Rohingya live in squalid and cramped refugee camps. Continue reading...

Flights cancelled or diverted after Met Office says temperatures below 0C may cause travel disruptionManchester airport was earlier forced to close both its runways because of heavy snow on Saturday morning, and large parts of the UK have been warned to expect severe weather over the weekend.Passengers were told the runways had been temporarily closed and to contact their airlines for the latest information. However, airport managers reopened one runway at 11.30am, allowing a limited number of services to resume, with work continuing to reopen the other. Continue reading...

More than 150 groups urge PM to rule out once and for all its replacement with Dominic Raab’s bill of rightsMore than 150 civil society groups have written to Rishi Sunak urging him to commit to retaining the Human Rights Act and rule out its replacement by a British bill of rights.The prime minister’s position in regards the proposed legislation is in doubt but Dominic Raab, having been reappointed justice secretary, remains determined to push through his pet project, which was shelved under Liz Truss’s premiership.Fundamentally weaken the right to respect for private and family life.Remove the legal duty on courts and public bodies to interpret other laws compatibly with human rights, exposing people to the arbitrary use of laws with no checks.Limit access to justice by adding barriers to bringing a human rights case to court.Destroy the positive obligation on public bodies to take proactive steps to protect people from harm, including protecting domestic and child abuse survivors. Continue reading...

Government likely to accept 18 out of 20 recommendations but risks triggering another standards rowRishi Sunak’s government is expected to accept most of a proposed new code of conduct for MPs after the Owen Paterson scandal but has rejected the idea that ministers should declare more details about free hospitality from lobbyists and companies.MPs will debate the proposals put forward by the standards committee on Monday, with Penny Mordaunt, the leader of the House of Commons, likely to accept 18 of the 20 recommendations. Key measures include tightening the rules on lobbying to stop MPs providing paid parliamentary advice, consultancy or strategy. Continue reading...

Like the players, brands have in the end shied away from confrontation with the hosts during the World CupMore than £100m will be spent by brands hoping to cash-in on World Cup fever, but when it comes to taking host Qatar to task over its human rights record protest marketing has taken a back seat to sales targets.In the run-up to kick off of the football tournament in Qatar criticism of the gulf state was akin to shooting at an open goal. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Vaccine recommendations should also consider effects of long Covid on the health system and workforce, Dr Michelle Ananda-Rajah says

Minister exalted by Margaret Thatcher also advised David Cameron and ran businesses including Cable & WirelessLord Young of Graffham, a cabinet minister under Margaret Thatcher and a successful businessman, has died aged 90.A Conservative party spokesperson confirmed the death of the peer, who became secretary of state for employment in 1985 and was appointed secretary of state for trade and industry after the 1987 election. Continue reading...

Combination of overstretched forces and few licensed drivers means requests expected to be turned downPolice say they will not replace striking ambulance drivers as health trusts scramble to limit the effects of a wave of industrial action.The trusts, which are responsible for running ambulances, have approached individual police forces to see if officers might ferry patients to and from hospital. Continue reading...

The RCN boss poised to lead the first NHS-wide strike reflects on her long-established readiness to tackle perceived injustices

Two sarcophaguses unearthed in reconstruction work after 2019 fire identified as elite canon of cathedral and young cavalierTwo lead sarcophaguses discovered buried under the nave at Notre Dame Cathedral in what was described as an “extraordinary and emotional” find have begun giving up their secrets, French scientists announced on Friday.The first contains the remains of a high priest who died in 1710 after what experts say appeared to be a sedentary life. The occupant of the second has not yet been identified – and may never be – but is believed to be a young, wealthy and privileged noble who could have lived as far back as the 14th century. Continue reading...

Home secretary supports bill aimed at criminalising harassment of women in publicSexual harassment in the street in England and Wales will lead to sentences of up to two years in prison, under plans backed by the home secretary.After years of lobbying by campaigners, the UK government has backed a private member’s bill, tabled by the former business secretary Greg Clark, which will make sexual harassment in public space a crime. Continue reading...

Some routes will be cut for almost a month as operators wrestle with the full impact of the RMT overtime banAbout 4,000 trains will be cancelled daily even after next week’s strikes, with services on some routes cut for almost a month, as operators wrestle with the full impact of the RMT overtime ban.Passengers had already been warned that the railway would grind to a halt next week when thousands of members of the RMT union strike for four days from 13 December. Continue reading...

No chance of finding skipper and crew members of L’Ecume II alive after collision in Channel, rescuers concludeThe search for a skipper and two crew lost when their Jersey fishing boat collided with a freight vessel in the Channel and sank has been called off after rescuers concluded there was no chance of them still being alive.An investigation into the cause of the collision is being led by Jersey maritime accident experts with support from the island’s police force. Continue reading...

Manitoba site pauses operations, raising prospect that search for bodies of Long Plain First Nation women could be possibleOperations have paused at a Canadian landfill where the bodies of at least two Indigenous victims of an alleged serial killer are believed to be buried, amid mounting frustration that authorities are not doing enough to recover the bodies.Police in Winnipeg announced last week they had charged Jeremy Skibicki, 35, with the murder of Morgan Beatrice Harris, 39, and Marcedes Myran, 26, of Long Plain First Nation, months after he was accused of killing Rebecca Contois, 24, from O-Chi-Chak-Ko-Sipi First Nation. Continue reading...

Chancellor did not contest claim when asked whether his department blocked a pay rise of around 10% for rail workersAn international watchdog has accused British politicians of contributing to a “hostile and toxic” environment for transgender people in the UK.Dunja Mijatović, the Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, made the comment in a wide-ranging report on the UK, based on what she observed during a visit in the summer.Trans persons in the UK face increasingly hostile and toxic political and public discourse …Both government officials and certain parliamentarians have actively contributed to an intolerant and stigmatising discourse. In line with her previous warnings about the increasing political manipulation of intolerance against LGBTI people in Europe, the commissioner is particularly concerned by the apparently deliberate attempts by some politicians to turn the situation of trans people into ‘culture wars’ or ‘wedge’ issue for electoral purposes.Another worrying feature of the current discourse is the framing of the protection of the rights of trans people as diametrically opposed to, and incompatible with, the protection of the rights of women, or of lesbians, gays or bisexuals. The commissioner is of the opinion that such distortions of human rights as a zero-sum game between different groups must be vigorously rejected.There is unanimity across the government in that it wants high inflation to be temporary, and I think there is understanding that that is essential for the very people who are feeling most angry about their situation.We have to be really careful not to agree to pay demands that have the opposite of the intended effect because they lock in high inflation.So if we make the wrong choices now, we won’t have that 3.7% of inflation in January or February of 2024 and this will change from being a one-off problem, to being a permanent problem, which will be the worst possible thing for people working in public services. That is why it’s generally a very difficult issue. Continue reading...

Only 179 out of 240 existing teacher training courses have been accredited under DfE’s new standards from 2024England’s teacher shortage could worsen after the government rejected appeals by dozens of established providers to gain official accreditation for their initial teacher training courses.Only 179 out of 240 existing courses have been accredited by the Department for Education (DfE) under its new standards for initial teacher training from 2024, and the DfE has now turned down all appeals from courses that missed out, including those run by the universities of Durham, Sussex and UWE Bristol. Continue reading...

Former Pemira chief named deputy chair as government overhauls licence feeThe BBC has appointed one of the UK’s most well-known private equity barons, Sir Damon Buffini, as its deputy chair in the latest move to sharpen the corporation’s commercial focus as the government pursues an overhaul of the licence fee.The 60-year-old, a founding partner of the global investment firm Permira for more than a decade until 2010, joins chair and ex-Goldman Sachs banker Richard Sharp to plot the financial future of the BBC as it seeks to drive commercial revenues before a crucial renewal of the corporation’s royal charter in five years’ time. Continue reading...

Fuel poverty charity urges government to provide more support for ‘those at greatest peril’A snow and ice warning has been issued for London and the south-east of England as freezing temperatures are expected to trigger cold weather payments for people on the lowest incomes.Eligible households in England and Wales will receive a government payment of £25 when the average temperature has been recorded as, or is forecast to be, 0C or below for seven consecutive days. Continue reading...

Sheikh Hasina continues her repressive campaign against opposition Bangladesh Nationalist partyTwo top leaders of Bangladesh’s main opposition party have been arrested amid a violent crackdown on government opponents during which at least seven people have been shot dead and thousands arrested.Over recent weeks, Sheikh Hasina’s government has launched a repressive campaign against the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist party (BNP), which has been holding rallies calling for her resignation. Continue reading...

The award-winning singer-songwriter has written an original script and will bring it to the big screen with Searchlight PicturesTaylor Swift is set to make her feature-length directorial debut with a new film for Searchlight Pictures.The award-winning singer-songwriter has written an original script, details of which are unknown. Swift has previously directed videos for All Too Well and The Man, winning MTV VMAs for both. All Too Well: The Short Film is also eligible for next year’s Oscar for best short film. Continue reading...

Overlapping harvest seasons have increased availability of the tropical fruit at markets, putting prices as low as $1.90 apiece

The Victorian Labor and Liberal parties face challenges over the next four years after a decisive election result

Politician sentenced to eight and a half years over series of posts about atrocities in Bucha

Archbishop of Canterbury calls for approach based on compassion and recognition of human dignity in House of Lords debateThe archbishop of Canterbury has accused the government of cruelty in its asylum policy, and said that people-smuggling is as serious as slave trading in the 19th century.Opening a debate in the House of Lords on Friday with a rebuke aimed at the home secretary, Suella Braverman, Justin Welby said the “harmful rhetoric” that those arriving in the UK are “invaders” must cease. Continue reading...

• PPE Medpro and partners made as much as £100m profits

Shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, says she would prioritise applications from countries such as AlbaniaLabour would rush through asylum applications for people from certain countries deemed “safe”, including Albania, in an attempt to clear the backlog of claims, Yvette Cooper has said.The shadow home secretary said she wanted to resurrect a system Labour operated while in government, in which the Home Office prioritised claims from certain countries and processed them within days. Continue reading...

PC Rupert Edwards charged in relation to alleged incidents in south London and Surrey in August and SeptemberA serving Metropolitan police officer has been charged with rape, the force has said.PC Rupert Edwards, attached to the south-west basic command unit, was arrested on suspicion of rape on5 September, after which he was bailed and suspended from duty, Scotland Yard said. Continue reading...

Financial Conduct Authority found ‘serious and persistent gaps’ in bank’s controlsSantander UK has been fined more than £100m after an investigation by the British financial watchdog found “serious and persistent gaps” in its money laundering controls, resulting in hundreds of millions of pounds of suspicious transactions through customer accounts.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) imposed the £107.7m penalty after an investigation found that between December 2012 and October 2017 the bank failed to “properly oversee and manage” the controls that affected the oversight of more than 560,000 business customers. Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak says defence deal for Tempest means ‘outpacing those who seek to do us harm’Britain will work to develop next-generation fighter jets with Italy and Japan, Rishi Sunak has announced.The prime minister said the defence partnership will ensure the UK and allies are “outpacing and outmanoeuvring those who seek to do us harm”. Continue reading...

Smith will take on the role of ‘theatre’s best-loved mum’ in Willy Russell’s play in London in FebruarySheridan Smith is to return to the West End stage next year in Willy Russell’s 1986 comedy Shirley Valentine.The star said that she was “honoured to be entrusted” by the playwright to take on the role of a Liverpudlian woman whose life is in the doldrums and who dreams of escape while talking to the kitchen wall. “As a mum now myself I’m delighted to be playing theatre’s best-loved mum,” said Smith, adding that it was time for her “to practise cooking chips and egg” – the expected dinner of Shirley’s husband. Continue reading...

Thousands of striking staff head to Westminster for protest outside parliament over conditions and payMore than 100,000 postal workers have begun the first of a series of days of strike action that threaten to disrupt deliveries across the country in the run-up to Christmas, after the failure of 11th hour talks to resolve a protracted and bitter dispute over pay and conditions.The Communications Workers Union (CWU), which has planned six days of strikes on 9,11, 14, 15, 23 and 24 December, has organised a protest by workers at the Houses of Parliament on Friday as the row with management continues to escalate. Continue reading...

Jordan Crugnale claims Bass, seeing the party’s presence in the lower house increased by one seat

Fact-finding team sent by Pakistani government finds contradictions in reports on Arshad Sharif’s deathA team set up by the Pakistani government to investigate the killing of a well-known Pakistani journalist in Nairobi said it found several contradictions in the version given by Kenyan authorities, and believes it was a case of pre-meditated murder.The TV journalist Arshad Sharif, who had fled Pakistan citing threats to his life, was shot dead in Nairobi in October. Kenyan officials said it was a case of mistaken identity and that police hunting car thieves opened fire on his vehicle as it drove through a roadblock without stopping. Continue reading...

President hails ‘revolution for contraception’ as government seeks to curb STIs and unwanted pregnanciesThe French president has said condoms will be made available for free in pharmacies for 18- to 25-year-olds in an attempt to reduce unwanted pregnancies among young people.“It’s a small revolution for contraception,” Emmanuel Macron announced during a health debate with young people in Fontaine-le-Comte, a suburb of Poitiers in western France. Continue reading...

Treasury advised the PM and premiers not to deliver the rebates as cash handouts due to risk of fuelling inflationary pressure

Watchdog says HM Passport Office must learn from chaos and prepare for similar level of demand in 2023Hundreds of thousands of people were affected by delays in processing passport applications and many had travel plans disrupted as a result this year, Whitehall’s spending watchdog has found.HM Passport Office (HMPO) processed a record number of applications amid “unprecedented demand” as Covid travel restrictions were lifted but struggled to keep up with higher demand from customers, according to the National Audit Office (NAO). Continue reading...