World news | The Guardian

Witness K’s lawyer gives first speech since case against him was dropped, argues for reform of the National Security Information Act

This blog is now closed

Leader of Britain’s police chiefs calls for better health and social care so police can ‘focus on solving crime’The leader of Britain’s police chiefs has challenged the new home secretary to improve health and social care in England and Wales to enable officers to focus on crime, as he promised police would attend all home burglaries.Martin Hewitt, the chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), said 64% of emergency calls to the police were not about crime, with a “substantial proportion” resulting in police stepping in to do health and social work because of an absence of other services. Continue reading...

Never have so many angry things been said by so many Tories about each other in a single day as on Monday. We rank the 10 most irate MPs

Optus yet to give specific information about what to do next to those who used Queensland driver’s licences or a passport to sign up

Counsel assisting the inquiry Ruth O’Gorman KC suggests system is ‘stacked against female victims’

Floods, militia raids and hunger mean a third of children are not in school at all, while the rest have too few teachers, aid groups warnNearly every school-age child in Sudan is missing out on education, either completely or facing serious disruption, aid organisations have warned.Schools in some states reopened this week after delays due to severe flooding but millions of children are still unable to go, leaving the country facing a “generational catastrophe”. Continue reading...

Flood watch alerts issued for almost 40 waterways in NSW and severe weather warning in western parts of state

Inscribed first edition of Emma to go on display in UK for first time at Chawton House, HampshireAn inscribed copy of a Jane Austen novel has become the most expensive of the author’s works ever sold after being bought for £375,000 and will go on public display in the UK for the first time.The unique first edition of Emma – which carries the handwritten message “from the author” – achieved the highest sale price for any printed work by the novelist.

Begun in 1929, the building was a collaboration between architects Theo Halliday and Sir Giles Gilbert Scott

Europe’s biggest brick building will have 254 apartments, as well as restaurants, bars, offices and shops

Band says 45-year-old singer ‘under strict doctor’s orders’ to rest and eight Brazil shows on world tour will be postponed to next yearColdplay has announced it is postponing several shows in its latest world tour after singer Chris Martin contracted “a serious lung infection”.In a statement posted on its social media accounts and its website, the band expressed “deep regret” and said the eight postponed shows, all in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, Brazil, would be rescheduled for early 2023. Continue reading...

Court finds retailer breached employment laws by directing workers to begin tasks before their rostered shift

Inquiry hears of several cases dealt with by ‘local management resolution’, including incidents of sexist behaviour

In police interview played in court, former Liberal staffer says she awoke in Linda Reynolds’ office to find Lehrmann on top of her, which he denies

Live-fire drill with the US supposed to be a show of strength, but ended in embarrassment and caused alarm among nearby residents

As demand for honey slows after the pandemic, stockpiles far exceed the amount usually sold in a yearNew Zealand is drowning in honey after a boom in beekeeping collided with slowing international demand to create towering stockpiles.Over the past five years, global desire for mānuka honey and demand for home-based honey remedies during the pandemic helped push up prices, creating a kind of honey gold rush on New Zealand farms. Continue reading...

Media groups and activists describe assassination of radio star, known on air as Percy Lapid, as a blow to press freedomA prominent Philippine journalist has been shot dead while driving in the country’s capital, Manila, according to police, prompting condemnation from media groups and activists, who described his assassination as a blow to press freedom.Radio journalist Percival Mabasa, 63, was killed by two assailants at the gate of a residential compound in the Las Pinas area of Manila on Monday night, police said. He was shot twice in the head. Continue reading...

Hearing told ambulance ramping ‘at its worst’ as emergency departments come under ‘incredible pressure’

Indian air force searches for remainder of group consisting of 34 mountaineering trainees and seven instructorsAt least four people died and several others were missing in the Indian Himalayas after a group of 41 mountaineers was hit by an avalanche on Tuesday, the mountaineering institute in northern India said.The group, consisting of 34 mountaineering trainees and seven instructors, was hit by the avalanche at 8.45am local time, the institute said. Continue reading...

Streaming service going ahead with 10 episodes, with Kelsey Grammer reprising his role as Frasier Crane, but other original cast members remain unconfirmedTossed salad and scrambled eggs are back on the menu (with a glass of sherry, of course): the much-anticipated Frasier sequel is officially going ahead.One of television’s most successful sitcoms, Frasier ran for 263 episodes between 1993 and 2004, winning 37 Emmy awards. When it was announced in February 2021 that a sequel was in development, it was revealed that Kelsey Grammer would be returning to the title role and serve as executive producer. Continue reading...

Voicemail message at Kuraby mosque described as ‘an act of psychological violence’ towards Muslim community

Corporate regulator alleges consumers were misled as interest-free payments required signing up for credit card with fees

TikTok campaign showed woman making sure football was on TV to ‘make him realise I’m a keeper’A Match.com ad campaign featuring a woman performing subservient tasks for her partner such as making sure that football is on TV, and ensuring there are a fresh towel and socks ready for after his shower has been banned for being sexist.The dating site ran a campaign on the video-sharing platform TikTok showing clips from a day in the life of a couple. The campaign opened with a voiceover of a woman explaining the tasks she does “that make him realise I’m a keeper”. Continue reading...

Research comes as government signals fresh round of public spending cutsMore than 330,000 excess deaths in Great Britain in recent years can be attributed to spending cuts to public services and benefits introduced by a UK government pursuing austerity policies, according to an academic study.The authors of the study suggest additional deaths between 2012 and 2019 – prior to the Covid pandemic – reflect an increase in people dying prematurely after experiencing reduced income, ill-health, poor nutrition and housing, and social isolation. Continue reading...

Ministerial discipline breaks down as home secretary accuses fellow Tories of trying to overthrow government

Duchess of Sussex discusses their depiction in films such as Austin Powers and Kill Bill in her podcast seriesMeghan has attacked Hollywood caricatures of women from Asian cultures as she resumed her podcast series after its hiatus after the death of the Queen.The Duchess of Sussex discussed their depiction in films such as Austin Powers and Kill Bill, as well as her own experience of Korean culture in the US, with her guests: the journalist Lisa Ling and the comedian Margaret Cho. Continue reading...

High court says Vardy must cover 90% of fellow footballer’s wife’s costs after she lost libel trialRebekah Vardy will have to pay up to £1.5m to Coleen Rooney in legal fees after losing yet another stage in the “Wagatha Christie” libel trial.The high court on Tuesday decided that Vardy must pay 90% of Rooney’s court costs, a larger proportion than in many equivalent cases. The judge imposed the punitive charge partly because Vardy deliberately destroyed WhatsApp messages and other evidence relevant to the trial. Continue reading...

A day after the chancellor’s forced tax-cut reversal, the Tories in Birmingham were still performing some jagged manoeuvresBlue on blue attacks, confusion over tax and spending plans and dogged determination to avoid apologising marked day three of the Conservative party conference in Birmingham.A sense of a government in turmoil continued to be felt even after Monday’s U-turn over the chancellor’s controversial mini-budget. Key moments on Tuesday stemmed from at least five interviews given by Liz Truss to broadcasters, as well as interventions by other ministers, MPs and frustrated party activists.Truss refuses to rule out benefits cutsMordaunt challenges the PMMembers vent frustration at party chairTruss refuses to publicly endorse her chancellorBraverman accuses Tory colleagues of staging “a coup” against TrussConfusion over government’s tax and spending planTruss refuses to apologise to homeowners facing rate hikesTruss says public shouldn’t judge her as prime minister until end of next year.Welsh secretary echoes Mordaunt’s implicit warning to Truss on benefitsTruss says she still wants to cut 45% top rate of tax in principle Continue reading...

Organisers said Met had previously told them of traffic problems that put childcare costs rally in jeopardyThe Metropolitan police have confirmed they will support a major London protest by families over the cost of childcare after concerns it would have to be cancelled.Last Friday, the organisers Pregnant Then Screwed said the Met told them a temporary traffic order could not be issued and road closures and traffic management were not possible, putting the “March of the Mummies” event at the end of October in jeopardy. But after a further meeting on Tuesday the group confirmed the event had been given the go-ahead. Continue reading...

Damien Bendall pleads not guilty to murder over deaths in Killamarsh and denies rape of one childA man has admitted the manslaughter of a mother and three children, but pleaded not guilty to their murders and denied raping one of the child victims.Damien Bendall, 32, is charged with the rape and murder of Lacey Bennett, 11, as well as the murder of her brother, John Paul Bennett, 13, their mother, Terri Harris, 35, and Lacey’s friend, Connie Gent, 11. Continue reading...

The treasurer was used to empathising with borrowers after the RBA’s ‘supersized’ rises – instead, he got to talk about the budget

Party has fractured into intersecting groups whose members are united on issues such as low tax or ‘woke’ students

Shares jump 10% after trading update from retailer despite cost inflation forcing it to put up pricesHot food meal deals are helping to fuel sales growth at the high street baker Greggs, which raised the price of its popular sausage roll on Monday for a second time this year.The grab-and-go retailer said it was trading well in “an environment where cost pressures are significant”, and added it expected its full-year profits to be in line with previous forecasts, despite the economic uncertainty. Its value offer appealed to cost-conscious customers, pushing up total sales by nearly 15% in the 13 weeks to 1 October. Continue reading...

Country’s current government had sworn it would no longer use the hacking softwareJournalists and human rights defenders in Mexico were hacked using spyware made by Israel’s NSO Group as recently as 2021, even after the country’s current government swore it was no longer going to use the hacking software, new research has found.The alleged victims of the spyware include two journalists who report on issues related to official corruption and a prominent human rights defenders, according to digital rights researchers at R3D (Red en Defensa de los Derechos Digitales) and The Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto, which tracks such infections. Continue reading...

Ex-hospital electrician who filmed himself abusing corpses charged with 16 more offencesA double murderer who sexually abused dead bodies in hospital mortuaries has been charged with 16 further offences.David Fuller, 68, beat and strangled Wendy Knell, 25, and Caroline Pierce, 20, to death before sexually assaulting them in two separate attacks in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, in 1987. Continue reading...

The winners of the prestigious US awards, in five categories, will be announced in a ceremony in NovemberGayl Jones, Imani Perry and Sharon Olds are among the finalists for the 2022 National Book Awards, to be held in November in New York.The finalists, announced by the New York Times on Tuesday morning, include 25 writers across the categories of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, translated literature and young people’s literature. Continue reading...

Number of new conscripts at lowest level in a decade as country tries to build defences amid threat of Chinese invasionThe declining birthrate in Taiwan could cause “major challenges” to the island’s military recruitment capabilities, at a time when Taiwan is building its defences to ward off potential Chinese invasion, its government has been told.Like much of east Asia, Taiwan is facing a demographic crisis, with fewer people having children each year as the population ages. The issue has social and economic effects on countries but in Taiwan there is also concern over its impact on military personnel levels. Continue reading...

Liz Truss’s refusal to commit to a rise in line with inflation has triggered unrest among ToriesDowning Street has signalled it must cut billions in public spending to pay for its remaining proposed tax cuts. It has so far refused to rule out making savings from the welfare bill. The possibility of a real-terms cut to benefits – by raising them in line with earnings, rather than inflation – has triggered unrest among Conservative backbenchers and anti-poverty campaigners alike. Continue reading...

Queen Margrethe refuses to back down on stripping four grandchildren of royal titles but says she ‘underestimated’ effectDenmark’s Queen Margrethe has apologised for upsetting members of her family with her decision to strip four of her grandchildren of their royal titles, but has refused to change her mind.The palace last week announced the four children of Margrethe’s youngest son, Prince Joachim, would no longer be called prince or princess but instead Count or Countess of Monpezat – the birth title of her late husband, the French-born Prince Henrik. Continue reading...

Boy, 14, and 13-year-old girl arrested after teenager found on Springwell estate dies in hospitalPolice have launched a murder investigation after a 14-year-old boy was fatally stabbed in Gateshead.Northumbria police said another 14-year-old boy had been arrested on suspicion of murder. Continue reading...

King may have lobbied ministers on emergency plan to help tenants as it could affect his Balmoral estateKing Charles has been allowed to vet and potentially lobby for changes to emergency legislation to freeze rents in Scotland because the measures could affect tenants on his private Highland estate at Balmoral.A bill to stop landlords unjustifiably raising rents for the next six months because of the cost of living crisis is being rushed through the Scottish parliament this week. Continue reading...

Kaba, killed by single shot to head fired by officer, was not a suspect but car he was driving had been flaggedChris Kaba was followed but not chased by police and was not a suspect before he was shot dead by a firearms officer, an inquest into his death has been told.The unarmed father-to-be was killed by a single shot to the head fired by an officer referred to only as NX121, in a residential road in Streatham on 5 September, Southwark coroner’s court heard on Tuesday morning. Continue reading...

Government’s 45p tax U-turn and calmer stock markets do not result in cheaper new mortgage dealsThe average rate on a two-year fixed mortgage has jumped to just under 6%, according to data released on Tuesday, dashing hopes that government efforts to calm the financial markets might ease the cost of home loans.Amid warnings from brokers that 95% mortgages could be the next casualty of the financial uncertainty triggered by Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget, research firm Moneyfacts said the average new two-year fixed rate jumped to 5.97% on Tuesday, having already risen to 5.75% on Monday. Continue reading...

Ben van Beurden also warns against EU moves to cap price of gas and electricity to protect consumersThe chief executive of Shell has said governments may need to tax energy companies further to fund efforts to protect the “poorest” people from soaring bills.Ben van Beurden, the outgoing boss of the oil and gas company, told an energy conference in London: “One way or another there needs to be government intervention. Protecting the poorest, that probably may then mean that governments need to tax people in this room to pay for it. Continue reading...

The lyrics to Baraye by Shervin Hajipour are taken from ordinary Iranians voicing their anger in the wake of Mahsa Amini’s deathAs demonstrations against the death of Mahsa Amini enter their third week in Iran, a protest song by one of Iran’s most popular musicians has become the soundtrack to the biggest civil uprising for decades, channelling the rage of Iranians at home and abroad.The lyrics to Baraye by Shervin Hajipour are taken entirely from messages that Iranians have posted online about why they are protesting. Each begins with the word Baraye – meaning “For …” or “Because of …” in Farsi. Continue reading...

International organisations cite 60% fall in civilian casualties over six months, but critics say benefits of truce have been exaggeratedThe expiry of a six-month ceasefire in Yemen has thrust the country back into war after limited improvements in humanitarian conditions, according to analysts.Charities have criticised the failure to extend beyond Sunday the truce that was first agreed in April, and which they said had created hope for Yemenis. Although critics have said it created only a temporary stop in fighting that allowed the Houthi rebels to strengthen. Continue reading...

‘Every time she’s thirsty you gotta go give her a drink’: details of gourd’s diet and battles against ‘animals and critters’ in top bidHe set out to squash rivals’ dreams and he succeeded. Retired commercial farmer Scott Andrusz spent sleepless nights tending to a giant gourd in his field and finally came up with a new US record – a plump pumpkin weighing in at 2,554 pounds.The latest record holder for heaviest pumpkin grown in the US tended his prize pie filling in upstate New York and pureed the previous record holder, a grower in New Hampshire whose 2,528 monster set the national standard in 2018, but in the end wasn’t a patch on Andrusz’s. Continue reading...

Launch is the first time the North has apparently sent a missile over Japanese territory since 2017North Korea has launched a intermediate-range ballistic missile over northern Japan for the first time in five years, prompting the government to urge people to shelter from falling debris, in an apparent escalation of recent weapons tests by Kim Jong-un’s regime.Japan’s government had activated its J-Alert system on Tuesday morning for residents in the northernmost main island of Hokkaido and the country’s north-eastern Aomori prefecture. Train services were temporarily halted in the region. Continue reading...

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has made the South American country’s deposits of bird poo more valuableAs countries around the world wrestle with shortages of imported fertiliser as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Peru has turned to a tried and tested alternative: bird poo.In the 19th century, fortunes were made and lost on guano, the potent excrement of fish-eating seabirds which was harvested by enslaved people from Africa and indentured Indigenous and Chinese labourers. Continue reading...