Chief executive calls on government to give more support to people on lower incomes in mini-budgetProfits at the B&Q owner Kingfisher fell by almost a third in the first half of the year as the pandemic DIY boom came to an end, but the company is benefiting from soaring demand for home insulation.Pretax profits at Kingfisher, which owns the B&Q and Screwfix chains in the UK along with Castorama and Brico Dépôt in France, fell to £474m in the six months to 31 July, a near-30% drop from a year earlier. Continue reading...
Network Rail says services affected until noon on Tuesday after thousands of mourners missed funeralThe disruption to train services that caused thousands of mourners to miss the Queen’s funeral will continue until noon on Tuesday, passengers have been advised.Network Rail said work to fix damaged overhead electric wires affecting services at Paddington, west London, was ongoing. Continue reading...
by Justin McCurry in Osaka and agencies on (#63TV0)
Two dead and thousands without power as storm dumps heavy rain and authorities warn six million to evacuateTwo people have died and more than 100 were injured after Typhoon Nanmadol slammed into Japan on Monday, dumping heavy rain, paralysing traffic and leaving tens of thousands of homes without power.The worst of the rainfall was seen in the southernmost island of Kyushu, where two people died, according to the fire and disaster management agency, before the typhoon was downgraded to a tropical storm as it made its way to the Pacific Ocean. Continue reading...
by Julian Borger and Patrick Wintour in New York on (#63TSZ)
The general assembly is expected to see fresh tussles over future of Ukraine, as well as the threats of famine and the climate crisis in the global southThe UN general assembly summit this week will be dominated by a struggle – between the US and its allies on one side and Russia on the other – for global support over the fate of Ukraine, as the global south fights to stop the conflict from overshadowing the existential threats of famine and the climate crisis.With a return to fully in-person general debate, presidents and prime ministers will be converging on New York, many of them direct from London, where the diplomacy got underway on the sidelines of the Queen’s funeral. Continue reading...
Inquest into death of 14-year-old who killed herself after viewing graphic content online begins after multiple delaysThe inquest into the death of the teenager Molly Russell, who killed herself after viewing graphic content online, opens on Tuesday, with executives at Instagram’s parent company and Pinterest among the witnesses scheduled to appear.Molly, 14, from Harrow, north-west London, viewed a large amount of online material, including some linked to anxiety, depression, self-harm and suicide, in the months before she died in November 2017. Her father, Ian Russell, has become a prominent campaigner for regulating social media platforms in order to better shield young people from damaging content.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is at 800-273-8255 or chat for support. You can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis text line counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org. Continue reading...
Bloc must halve its food waste by 2030 to tackle climate crisis and improve food security, say campaignersThe EU wastes more food than it imports and could puncture food price inflation by simply curbing on-farm waste, according to a report.About 153m tonnes of food in the EU are frittered away every year, double previous estimates and 15m tonnes more than is shipped in, according to the study’s estimates. Continue reading...
by Guardian staff and agencies in Mexico City on (#63TC4)
Quake registered at 7.5 magnitude and struck off the coast of La Placita de Morelos on the anniversary of two devastating tremorsA magnitude 7.5 earthquake has struck western Mexico on the anniversary of two earlier devastating tremors, killing at least one person and causing flooding on the Pacific coast.The quake hit at 1.05pm local time, striking near the town of La Placita de Morelos in the state of Michoacán at a depth of 15km. Continue reading...
A rapprochement seemed far away as the two princes and their spouses avoided interactionThere was no eye contact or acknowledgment between Prince William and Prince Harry as they walked behind the Queen’s coffin. Nor indeed, it appeared, as the two princes were joined by their wives, Kate and Meghan, in Westminster Abbey.Harry, wearing a morning suit on to which his medals were pinned rather than military uniform, the traditional dress permitted of working members of the royal family at ceremonial events, kept his gaze focused ahead during the procession from Westminster Hall to the abbey and later at Windsor Castle. Continue reading...
State education department issues guidance reinstating bathroom and locker room restrictions and curbing pronoun changesVirginia is attempting to roll back major protections for school students who are transgender, according to the latest set of guidelines announced by the state’s education officials.The state’s department of education announced on Friday that it had rewritten a number of policies around the treatment of transgender students, issuing guidance for school districts to follow that ease up accommodations from the previous administration. Continue reading...
by Kalyeena Makortoff Banking correspondent on (#63T5P)
Use of services such as Klarna, Clearpay and Laybuy rising as staff rejected by mainstream lendersExperts have raised concerns over cash-strapped public sector workers turning to controversial buy now, pay later loans after being turned down by mainstream lenders.Analysis by the University of Edinburgh found that one in 10 public sector and NHS staff, who were initially rejected for a more conventional loan on the basis that they could not afford to repay it, went on to secure credit from buy now, pay later (BNPL) firms last year. Continue reading...
Leader of centre-right Moderates formally asked to try to form coalition that could include anti-migrant populistsThe leader of Sweden’s third largest party – the centre-right Moderates – has been formally asked to try to form a government that could include the far-right, populist Sweden Democrats, either inside a governing coalition or outside to secure a majority.In Sweden’s election on 11 September, the country’s four centre-right and far-right parties won 176 seats, while the centre-left coalition that includes the ruling Social Democrats got 173 seats. Andreas Norlén, the speaker of the 349-seat Swedish parliament, the Riksdagen, has asked Ulf Kristersson, the leader of the Moderates, to see if he can form a governing coalition. Continue reading...
Peter Soulsby says claims circulating online are very distorting, after tensions between Hindu and Muslim groupsDisorder that broke out in Leicester over the weekend between Hindu and Muslim communities escalated as a result of social media disinformation and a distortion of facts, the city’s mayor has said.Fifteen people were arrested on Monday, after weeks of disturbances between Hindu and Muslim people since an Asia Cup cricket match between India and Pakistan on 28 August. Continue reading...
by Rowena Mason Deputy political editor on (#63T0A)
Institute for Fiscal Studies says reversal of national insurance rise likely to benefit richest by £150 a monthThe lowest-paid workers stand to gain just 63p a month while the richest could get back £150 a month from tax cuts likely to be outlined by the chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, this week, analysis has found.The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has produced data suggesting the full reversal of the rise in national insurance is likely to benefit most those who earn more than £100,000, and will barely help the poorest 3m households. Continue reading...
Flotation on Frankfurt stock market would be one of the largest European public offerings to dateThe luxury carmaker Porsche could be valued at as much as €75bn when it floats on the Frankfurt stock exchange later this month, which would make it one of the largest European public offerings to date, according to the pricing of shares by its parent company, Volkswagen.Volkswagen, which is planning to float 12.5% on 29 September, has priced the shares in Porsche at between €76.50 (£67.14) and €82.50. Continue reading...
School districts in 32 states banned 1,648 individual titles in the last school year, a report by Pen America foundThere is a “rapid acceleration” of book censorship occurring across the US, with more than 2,500 different book bans taking place over the past school year, a new report has found.A total of 1,648 individual book titles, many of them that mention issues relating to race or sexuality, were the subject of bans by school districts in 32 states in the last school year, according to the new analysis. Continue reading...
Locals claim ‘buffer zones’ have been established in areas previously under Indian controlIndian people living near the country’s disputed Himalayan border with China have accused their government of giving away swathes of land after both sides agreed to withdraw troops from some contested areas and create buffer zones.Earlier this month, Indian and Chinese troops, who have been locked in a tense border dispute since June 2020, began to draw back from the contested area of Gogra-Hot Springs after an agreement was reached to disengage. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Russian football union accuses Oleksandr Petrakov of discrimination and political biasRussia is urging Uefa to ban the manager of the Ukraine men’s national team from football after he expressed a wish to fight Vladimir Putin’s invading forces, the Guardian can reveal.The Football Union of Russia has written to the governing body accusing Oleksandr Petrakov of discriminating against Russians and failing to remain politically neutral. Continue reading...
It played host to Hendrix and the Stones and was a haven for acid-house parties. After lying dormant for years, Manchester’s iconic concert hall is back“I was standing in line late 1966 with a lot of people to see the Jimi Hendrix Experience,” says John Cooper Clarke. “I noticed that everyone in the queue except me was wearing a tie.” The renowned punk poet, speaking over the phone on the way to a gig in Kidderminster, hastens to add that he still looked dapper, wearing a Fred Perry (“You can’t wear a Fred Perry and a tie, you’d look like a schnorrer!”) and a striped sports coat. “I couldn’t get in,” he says, mimicking the doorman: “No tie!”The venue was Manchester’s New Century Hall, a 1,000-capacity space adjacent to New Century House. Designed by Gordon Tait for the Co-Operative Insurance Society in 1962, it played host to major acts such as Hendrix, the Stones, Tina Turner and the Kinks, before becoming an unexpected haven for acid-house parties thrown by local producers A Guy Called Gerald and 808 State. Continue reading...
Police said groups of men were gathering in North Evington after incidents of violence and damage in the city’s eastFifteen people have been arrested during a policing operation in east Leicester “to deter further disorder”.It comes after two arrests were made when police said disturbances broke out at an unplanned protest on Saturday night and Sunday morning. Continue reading...
by Nadeem Badshah (now) and Martin Belam (earlier) on (#63RQB)
Decision taken to close entry to queue permanently after it reached capacity before Monday’s funeralThe New Zealand prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, has told the BBC that in her conversation with King Charles he expressed gratitude for the condolences of the people who had come out to take part in the week’s events. PA Media reports she said:I’ll keep my comments here very, very general because we always try to keep in close confidence the conversations we are lucky enough to have with His Majesty.But the overriding sentiment was just the gratitude for the great effort that people were putting into coming and paying their respects, and by that I mean not just leaders, but people.What you’re going to expect is the best of funeral services, the prayer book service, the words which were an inspiration to Shakespeare.You’re going to hear this wonderful English at its best, also you’re going to hear angelic voices of the choir of the abbey plus the Chapels Royal, you really hear voices that are singing to the glory of God. Continue reading...
King’s ‘accession tour’ of UK draws to a close as prime ministers and presidents gather to pay their respectsAfter 10 days receiving the condolences of the British people, King Charles III was embraced by world leaders before Monday’s funeral for the Queen, after which he will finally lay his mother to rest in a private ceremony in a Windsor chapel.The King’s black Rolls-Royce swept on to the forecourt of Buckingham Palace on Sunday morning as prime ministers and presidents from the US to Rwanda gathered. He waved to cheering crowds which have followed him around Britain over the last week on his “accession tour”, before holding his second meeting with Liz Truss, the prime minister. Continue reading...
Royal family procession at Queen’s state funeral to include Prince George and Princess CharlotteThe royal family and the country will say a “last farewell” to Queen Elizabeth II during a state funeral at Westminster Abbey on Monday in which nine-year-old Prince George and his seven-year-old sister, Princess Charlotte, will walk behind their great-grandmother’s coffin.George and Charlotte, now second and third in line to the throne, will follow their parents, the Prince and Princess of Wales, as the coffin is carried through the abbey in front of a 2,000-strong congregation including world leaders. Continue reading...
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