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Measure would tighten eligibility for health and food programs for the poor and could add $3.8tn to US debtThe Republican-controlled US House of Representatives narrowly passed a sweeping tax and spending bill that would enact much of President Donald Trump's policy agenda on Thursday and saddle the country with trillions of dollars in debt.The bill would fulfill many of Trump's populist campaign pledges, delivering new tax breaks on tips and car loans and boosting spending on the military and border enforcement. It will add about $3.8tn to the federal government's $36.2tn in debt over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO). Continue reading...

Global oil prices tumble after reports that Opec+ may increase output despite weaker demand for fossil fuelsGlobal oil prices have tumbled by more than $1 a barrel in a sign that pressure on hard-pressed households at the petrol pumps could ease further.The price of Brent crude fell to $63.86 a barrel on Thursday after reports that the Opec oil cartel and its allies may increase their production for July despite weaker global demand for fossil fuels. Continue reading...

Facility said to be no longer needed after recent trade deal with EU that eases need for checksThe UK government is reportedly considering selling a post-Brexit border check facility in Kent that could fall out of use as a result of this week's trade pact with the EU.The site, based in Sevington, Ashford, was erected in 2021 with capacity for 1,300 lorries that were expected to face extra checks on plants and animal goods, including dairy and meat, entering and leaving Britain after Brexit. Continue reading...

George Simion, a pro-Trump ultranationalist, had alleged foreign interference in rerun vote won by Nicuor Dan

Liberals will attend a virtual party room meeting this afternoon after Ley and Littleproud attempt to broker agreement two days after dramatic split. Follow today's news live

The Liberals and Nationals are likely to get back together - not because the bickering exes are a perfect match, but because there's too much to lose in the divorce

Joel Cauchi suffered deterioration in performance IQ' and some cognitive functions leading up to attack, expert tells Sydney coroner's court

Government had been due to give green light to deal handing sovereignty of islands to MauritiusA high court judge has blocked the UK government from concluding its deal to hand over the Chagos Islands with an injunction granted in the early hours of Thursday.The agreement to hand sovereignty over the Chagos islands to Mauritius was due to be given the green light by ministers on Thursday. Continue reading...

Kisunla is first new treatment registered by TGA in 25 years but could cost patients more than $80,000 and less than one in five will be eligible

April figure more than expected and comes despite chancellor's increase in employment taxesThe UK government borrowed more than expected in April, underscoring the challenge for Rachel Reeves to fix public services and grow the economy while meeting her fiscal rules.With the chancellor under pressure on Labour's tax plans, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said public sector net borrowing rose to 20.2bn in April, 1bn more than the same month a year earlier and the fourth-highest April borrowing figure on records dating back to 1993. City economists had forecast borrowing of 17.9bn. Continue reading...

Nationals leader suggests dispute could be settled before parliament resumes in late July

Charities say more should be done to support girls who experience prolonged bleeding and severe menstrual painHeavy, prolonged periods and severe menstrual pain are linked with lower school attendance and poorer GCSE scores, according to new research.The England-based study found that more than a third of girls (36%) who participated experienced heavy or prolonged menstrual bleeding, which was associated with missing an additional 1.7 days of school every year. Continue reading...

South Korea said the destroyer was lying sideways in the water after ceremony to launch the new 5,000-tonne shipA ceremony to welcome a new addition to North Korea's naval fleet has ended in embarrassment following a major accident during the ship's launch that the country's dictator, Kim Jong-un, described as a criminal act".Kim was present when the 5,000-tonne destroyer appeared to go off balance during its launch in the eastern port city of Chongjin on Wednesday. The tipping caused damage to sections of the hull, the state-run KCNA news agency said on Thursday. Continue reading...

This blog has now closed. You can read more of our US politics coverage hereA federal judge has rejected a bid by the US treasury department to cancel a union contract covering tens of thousands of IRS staff, Reuters reports, in an early blow to Donald Trump's efforts to eliminate collective bargaining rights for many federal workers.US district judge Danny Reeves in Lexington, Kentucky, said in a written opinion late on Tuesday that the department lacked legal standing to bring a lawsuit against the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU). Continue reading...

They're being executed,' US president tells Cyril Ramaphosa in chaotic meeting in Oval Office

Pheobe was last seen near Bundaberg airport and police have since declared crime scenes at Gin Gin

President says he will speak with advisers about taking public firms that support about 70% of US mortgagesDonald Trump said he will make a decision in the near future about taking Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac public, a move which he said he is giving very serious consideration".In a post on Truth Social, the US president said he will speak with treasury secretary, Scott Bessent; commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick; and federal housing finance director, William Pulte, about doing so. Continue reading...

Flat Earth: Stolon Press, which was called off after Sabsabi was dumped as Australia's representative at the Venice Biennale, will now open on 29 May

Justice secretary expected to back radical sentencing reforms, including use of libido-suppressing drugs in England and WalesShabana Mahmood, the lord chancellor, is considering mandatory chemical castration for the most serious sex offenders, according to government sources.The minister's department is planning to expand a pilot to 20 regions as part of a package of radical" measures to free thousands of prisoners and ease prison overcrowding in England and Wales.Ensure custodial sentences under 12 months are only used in exceptional circumstances.Extend suspended sentences to up to three years and encourage greater use of deferred sentences for low-risk offenders.Give courts greater flexibility to use fines and ancillary orders like travel, driving and football bans.Allow probation officers to adjust the level of supervision based on risk and compliance with licence conditions.Expand specialist domestic abuse courts to improve support for victims.Expand tagging for all perpetrators of violence against women and girls.Improve training for practitioners and the judiciary on violence against women and girls.Change the statutory purposes of sentencing so judges and magistrates must consider protecting victims as much as they consider punishment and rehabilitation when passing sentences. Continue reading...

Attendances are up and average ticket prices down, even in the West End, but the sector faces mounting and unsustainable strainA report by the Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre, released on Thursday, puts the spotlight on an industry struggling with rocketing production costs and in need of urgent funding. The sister trade associations have called for the government's comprehensive spending review to dramatically increase public investment, including 500m for infrastructure, and to support its Theatre for Every Child initiative which aims to ensure all pupils attend a professional theatre production before leaving school.The organisations' co-CEOs, Claire Walker and Hannah Essex, said: Theatres are doing more with less - and the strain is showing. Rising costs, shrinking support and ageing infrastructure are putting the sector under unsustainable pressure. We are seeing world-class organisations forced to cut programmes, delay maintenance and scale back outreach. If we want to maintain the UK's position as a global leader in theatre - and continue to inspire the next generation of actors, writers, and technicians - then government must act." Continue reading...

New Labour initiative created remarkably long-lasting' health and education improvements, says reportSure Start children's centres provided 2 of savings for every 1 in costs, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), prompting calls for the government to look at such services as potentially paying for themselves.The centres, championed by the last Labour government, created 2.8bn in savings and revenues at the scheme's peak in England, according to the IFS study. Continue reading...

President calls government meeting to address finding that Muslim Brotherhood poses threat to national cohesion'Emmanuel Macron's centrist political party has suggested banning girls under 15 from wearing the Muslim headscarf in all public places, as the president chaired a high-level government meeting to discuss what it called political Islamism" in France.The French president's office said he had asked ministers to come up with proposals before June to address the serious" findings of a report that Macron commissioned last year into the presence of the Muslim Brotherhood in France. Continue reading...

Officials at animal refuge near Culiacan, capital of violence-torn Sinaloa state, faced threats from powerful drug gangsHundreds of animals including elephants, crocodiles, lions and tigers have been moved from a violence-torn Mexican cartel heartland to a new home in an operation described as a 21st-century Noah's Ark".The transported species, which also included exotic birds, had been housed at the Ostok animal refuge near Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa state, home to one of the country's most powerful drug gangs. Continue reading...

Homeland security agent Gerard Gannon testifies about federal raid on Miami Beach property in March last yearThe federal trial of Sean Diddy" Combs entered its eighth day of testimony in New York on Wednesday, with a homeland security agent resuming testimony about the federal raid of Combs's Miami property last year.Combs, 55, is facing charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution. He was arrested in September and has pleaded not guilty. Continue reading...

Liam O'Hanna accused of displaying banned flag in breach of UK terrorism lawsLiam O'Hanna, who performs with the Irish rap trio Kneecap, has been charged with a terrorism offence for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in London, police said.

PM gives news conference, saying Israel is prepared for an opportunity for a temporary ceasefire and hostage release dealReuters has spoken to Mahmoud al-Haw at one of the soup kitchens in Gaza. The father-of-four says he has been regularly waiting in crowds for up to six hours to obtain food, and sometimes returns empty-handed.I have a sick daughter. I can't provide her with anything. There is no bread, there is nothing," the 39-year-old told the news agency. Continue reading...

Shots force delegation representing 31 countries, including Italy, Canada, Egypt and UK, to run for cover

Head of Probation Service says public at risk from greater use of prison alternatives unless service is better fundedPlans to allow thousands more criminals in England and Wales to serve their sentence in the community risk catastrophic consequences" unless the Probation Service is overhauled, a watchdog has told the Guardian.Martin Jones, HM chief inspector of probation, said government plans to hand responsibility for overseeing offenders from prisons to probation officers meant the risk is carried directly into the community". Continue reading...

Head of strategy of Finnish defence forces says they are monitoring Moscow's manoeuvring very closely'Finland has said it expects Russia to further build up troops along their shared border when the war in Ukraine ends, after reports that Moscow had strengthened its military bases near the Nato frontier.Maj Gen Sami Nurmi, the head of strategy of the Finnish defence forces, said the military is following Moscow's manoeuvring very closely" and that it was their job, as part of the Nato alliance, to prepare for the worst". Continue reading...

Bank's UK division hardens hybrid working policy with requirement to spend at least 60% of time in officeHSBC has told staff in its UK high street banks that it may cut their bonuses if they do not work in the office frequently enough.The bank told employees at its HSBC UK division, which includes its retail and domestic commercial banking businesses, that anyone who did not spend at least 60% of their time in the office could end up being paid less, according to a report by Bloomberg. Continue reading...

National Parking Platform where motorists can pay for all parking on single app to launch as soon as possible'For motorists fed up with having to wrestle with a phone full of apps to pay for parking their car, relief could finally be in sight with a unified app.Lengthy delays have dogged a government-funded initiative, the National Parking Platform (NPP), designed to let people use one app to pay for all their parking instead of having to sign up to a plethora of services. Continue reading...

The Oscar-winning actor will bring The World of Tomorrow to the Shed in New York later this yearTom Hanks is set to co-write and appear in an off-Broadway play.The Oscar winner will bring The World of Tomorrow to the Shed's Griffin Theatre in New York in October through December. Continue reading...

Downing Street unable to say how many more pensioners would receive winter fuel payments or when changes would come inYouGov has published more details of its polling on the electorate's relationship with Labour, as covered in the Sky News report mentioned earlier. (See 10.06am.)It shows that Reform UK supporters are most likely to think that Labour is trying hard to appeal to them - but least likely to say they would respond positively. Only 4% of Reform UK supporters say they would consider voting Labour, the poll says.I ask her if there will be any changes as demanded by MPs

Far-right activist to appear in court next month accused of two counts of harassment causing fear of violenceTommy Robinson, the jailed far-right activist, has been charged with harassment of two journalists.Robinson, 42, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is accused of two counts of harassment causing fear of violence between 5 and 7 August last year. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Residents asked to sign contracts with a new company operated by a relative of Core & Capacity's director after it was declared insolvent

Fears split with Coalition will diminish party's relevance and ability to advocate for rural communities

Sussan Ley expected to unveil shadow cabinet as early as Thursday, with Liberals adamant Nationals should lose extra staff and resources after split from Coalition

Plug-in hybrid sales nearly double in first three months of national efficiency standards for new cars

Former politician Andriy Portnov advised the pro-Russian Viktor Yanukovych and had fled Ukraine in 2014For more background on Portnov, here is his profile as drafted by the US Treasury in 2021, when he was sanctioned on the International Anti-Corruption Day, no less.Andriy Portnov (Portnov), the former Deputy Head of the Ukrainian Presidential Administration under former President Yanukovych, has cultivated extensive connections to Ukraine's judicial and law enforcement apparatus through bribery.Widely known as a court fixer, Portnov was credibly accused of using his influence to buy access and decisions in Ukraine's courts and undermining reform efforts. Continue reading...

Government to loosen eligibility rules for pensioners in face of backlash against decision to means test benefit

Group calling itself Last Defence Wave' had recruited other teens online and promoted extremist terrorism'German police have staged early morning raids against an alleged far-right terrorist" cell on suspicion of attacks against asylum seekers and political enemies, arresting five teenage suspects, federal prosecutors said.The operation on Wednesday targeting a neo-Nazi group calling itself Last Defence Wave" marked the latest high-profile action against groups Germany says are working to destabilise its democratic order. Continue reading...

All 10 council areas controlled by rightwing party tell the Guardian they have no low-traffic neighbourhoodsReform UK's pledge to remove all low-traffic neighbourhoods from the council areas it controls looks to be achieved in record time after the 10 local authorities said they do not actually have any in place.Zia Yusuf, Reform UK's chair, said last week there would be a large-scale reversal" of existing LTNs in the 10 areas across England where the party won control of the councils in local elections on 1 May. Continue reading...

Andriy Portnov, ex-aide to pro-Russia former president, was dropping off children when he was targeted by gunmenUnidentified gunmen have shot and killed a former Ukrainian politician, Andriy Portnov, outside a school in an upmarket suburb of Madrid.The killing of Portnov, who had worked as a senior aide to Ukraine's pro-Russia former president, Viktor Yanukovych, took place on Wednesday morning outside the American School of Madrid in Pozuelo de Alarcon. Continue reading...

More than half of troupe's dancers write to minister criticising Demis Volpi and five soloists resign

Business committee orders three ministers to answer questions over fears arms being sent for use in Gaza

Kremlin said the Russian president visited the region on Tuesday and met with the interim governmentThe Kremlin said on Wednesday that no decision had been made on a venue for Russia-Ukraine peace talks, responding to a question about whether they could be hosted by the Vatican, reports Reuters.US president Donald Trump said on Monday it would be great" for Russia and Ukraine to hold ceasefire talks at the Vatican, saying it would add extra significance to the proceedings. Continue reading...

Push It hitmakers Sandra Denton and Cheryl James claim Universal is blocking the return of their copyright, but label claims it has repeatedly attempted a resolutionThe pop-rap group Salt-N-Pepa have sued Universal Music Group as they try to regain control over their master recordings.Salt-N-Pepa are known for irrepressible hits across the 1980s and 1990s such as Push It and Let's Talk About Sex, which both reached No 2 in the UK and the US Top 20. Continue reading...

Dance teacher Leanne Lucas launches campaign against traditional pointed knives that can be used as weaponsA dance teacher who survived a knife attack in Southport last summer has started a campaign calling for pointed kitchen knives to be replaced by ones with blunt tips.Leanne Lucas, 36, was critically injured in the attack at the Taylor Swift-themed dance class she was leading during last year's school summer holidays. Continue reading...

Conditions are expected to persist into the rest of the day, with 150 to 200mm of rainfall predicted in the mid-north coast. Follow today's news live

Memo from deputy PM to chancellor proposing eight potential measures highlights unease over spending plansAngela Rayner urged Rachel Reeves to consider a series of wealth tax rises, it has been revealed, in a move that underscores growing unease within the government over the chancellor's tight spending plans.A memo sent by the deputy prime minister to the chancellor before March's spring statement proposed eight potential tax measures worth an estimated 3bn to 4bn a year, including reinstating the pensions lifetime allowance and increasing the corporation tax rate for banks. Continue reading...