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Committee ends fifth hearing, with next sessions expected in July

PM had previously said deportations were ‘simply not going to happen’ but now admits in theory they couldUkrainian refugees face being sent to Rwanda if they travel to the UK without authorisation, Boris Johnson has said in an escalation of government plans to deport those who travel across the Channel seeking sanctuary.During a visit to the Rwandan capital, Kigali, the prime minister also urged Nato and G7 countries not to settle for a “bad peace” in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, saying it would lead to escalation by Vladimir Putin’s war machine.Politicians from 11 European countries condemned the Rwanda-UK scheme. But it emerged that Johnson did not raise human rights abuses when he met the country’s president, Paul Kagame, on Thursday, despite previous indications that he would.Ahead of a meeting with Prince Charles on Friday, Johnson was bullish in saying he would defend the policy after the heir to the throne reportedly called it “appalling” – but Downing Street and Clarence House sources suggested the subject would not be raised.The Rwandan government confirmed it has already received £120m from the UK government to house asylum seekers who have yet to arrive, and has spent a proportion of the money.The prime minister pledged £372m in aid to provide help for countries grappling with soaring food prices. Continue reading...

Ex-adviser to Boris Johnson holds forth about his hero Otto von Bismarck at Orwell Festival of Political WritingMore than a year since walking out of Downing Street clutching his possessions in a cardboard box, Dominic Cummings has emerged in public again, recasting himself as a political speaker,From No 10 to a lecture hall in the Darwin Building at University College London, the man who was once Boris Johnson’s senior adviser and de facto chief of staff, appeared on Thursday night in a panel discussion at the Orwell festival of political writing. Continue reading...

Cabinet secretary says he had ‘informal’ conversations with the Earthshot prize about available roles for the PM’s wifeCabinet secretary Simon Case has admitted discussing “opportunities” for the prime minister’s wife, Carrie Johnson, with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Earthshot prize, but denied recommending her for any paid role.Case’s account followed reports that he had sought to secure a job for Carrie Johnson at their charity, the Royal Foundation, which offers the prize for environmental innovation. Continue reading...

Prison in Les Cayes that ran out of food two months ago reports deaths as UN urges government to tackle food and water crisisAt least eight inmates have starved to death at an overcrowded prison in Haiti that ran out of food two months ago, adding to dozens of similar deaths this year as the country’s institutions crumble.Hunger and oppressive heat contributed to the inmates’ deaths reported this week by the prison in the south-west city of Les Cayes, Ronald Richemond, the city’s government commissioner, said on Thursday. He said the prison houses 833 inmates. Continue reading...

Move opens door to EU membership amid outrage over the brutality of the unprovoked Russian attack

Maintenance and train company staff in parallel negotiations as ministers plan to use agency workers to break strikeThe second 24-hour national rail strike has emptied railway stations across Great Britain as commuters opted to work from home while ministers pushed ahead with controversial plans to allow agency staff to break strikes.Talks resumed between the RMT union and rail industry bosses as 40,000 union members at Network Rail and across 13 train operating companies downed tools. No firm progress was reported, with a third strike due on Saturday, as the two separate sets of negotiations in London, for railway maintenance and train company staff, continued throughout the day. Continue reading...

Work paying homage to victims of 2015 attack – painted on door at Bataclan concert hall – was stolen in 2019A French court has convicted eight men for the theft and handling of a Banksy painting paying homage to the victims of the 2015 attack on the Bataclan concert hall in Paris.Three men in their 30s who admitted to the 2019 theft were given prison sentences, one of four years and two of three, although they will be able to serve them wearing electronic tracking bracelets rather than behind bars. Continue reading...

Pro-Ukraine Bulgarian prime minister blames corruption and pro-Russian influence on collapse of coalition governmentStaring down a vote of no-confidence his government was destined to lose, the Bulgarian prime minister, Kiril Petkov, sighed as he joined a video call. “It’s a tough few days ahead. We are fighting hard to stay on the right side of history,” he said.Petkov blamed two problems for his coalition’s troubles: corrupt interests and pro-Russian influence in Bulgaria, which, he says, have “joined forces” to bring down his government. Continue reading...

Decision comes four months after introduction of controversial law that was never enforcedAustria is scrapping its vaccine mandate, four months after it became the first EU country to make jabs obligatory for all adults and as infection rates across Europe are rising again.The controversial law was introduced amid great international interest in February but never enforced. It has been suspended since March. Continue reading...

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Experts’ warning comes after data shows less than half 13 to 14-year-olds received booster in parts of England last yearLow polio vaccination coverage among teenagers risks the re-emergence of virulent polio infection in the UK, experts have warned.Fewer than half of 13 to 14-year-olds received their teenage booster against polio in some parts of England last year, data shows, after public health officials declared a national incident over evidence the virus is spreading in the community. Continue reading...

UK’s chance of hosting edges closer as the European Broadcasting Union says it is in talks with the BBCBritain’s chances of hosting Eurovision in 2023 have edged closer after the song contest’s organisers doubled down on its decision to keep it out of Ukraine.The country won this year with Kalush Orchestra’s Stefania, as viewers across the continent showed solidarity with the nation after Russian’s invasion. Continue reading...

Latest updates: PM due to meet Prince of Wales during his visit to Rwanda; voters go to polls in Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton

Action is part of effort by Food and Drug Administration to bring scientific scrutiny to multibillion-dollar vaping industryUS health officials ordered the vape company Juul to stop selling its popular electronic cigarettes on Thursday, the latest blow against the tobacco industry by the Biden administration.The action is part of a sweeping effort by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to bring scientific scrutiny to the multibillion-dollar vaping industry after years of regulatory delays. Continue reading...

Economy minister says cut in deliveries is ‘economic attack on us by Putin’Germany has moved one step closer to gas rationing, after the country’s economic ministry on Thursday warned of a high risk of long-term supply shortages due to Russia systematically choking off gas deliveries.Economy minister Robert Habeck announced the second of three energy emergency plan phases, which enables utility firms to pass on high gas prices to customers and thereby help to lower demand. Continue reading...

Russia has made steady advances towards capturing Sevierodonetsk and Lysychansk, the last two cities under Ukrainian control, advisers have saidRussia-Ukraine war – latest newsThe battle for two key cities in eastern Ukraine is edging towards “a fearsome climax”, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has said, as the war in Ukraine is set to enter its fourth month on Friday.Russia’s efforts to capture Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk – the two remaining cities under Ukrainian control in Luhansk – have turned into a bloody war of attrition, with both sides inflicting heavy casualties. Moscow, over the last two weeks, has managed to make steady gains. Continue reading...

Analysis: From economic impact to Northern Ireland protocol, former chief negotiator has given his verdictOn 23 June 2016, slightly more than half of the UK, 51.9%, voted to leave the European Union, sending shockwaves around the world as the UK started the painful process of divorce from the bloc.The result also sowed the seeds of one of the most divisive periods in British political history, with the resignation of two Conservative prime ministers, the sacking of 21 Tory rebels and a comprehensive victory for Boris Johnson on the back of his promise of an “oven-ready Brexit deal”. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Drop prompts warnings ministers’ attacks on lawyers could be having chilling effect on judgesSuccessful high court challenges to government policy and decisions by public bodies have fallen dramatically, prompting warnings that ministers’ attacks on lawyers could be having a chilling effect on judges.The proportion of civil judicial reviews, excluding immigration cases, which claimants won out of total claims lodged fell by 50% on 2020, according to analysis seen by the Guardian. The figure is 26% if the success rate is measured out of cases that went to a final hearing. Continue reading...

BA accused of using ‘fire and rehire’ tactics during lockdown to slash 10% off Unite and GMB workers’ payHeathrow airport faces disruption from strikes this summer, as hundreds of check-in and ground staff voted in favour of walkouts during the peak holiday period in a dispute with British Airways over pay.As a second day of national rail strikes is under way, 700 workers employed by BA were balloted on industrial action by unions including GMB and Unite. Some 95% of those who voted (about half the total 700 workers) said they were prepared to strike, on a turnout of more than 80%. Strike dates will be confirmed in the coming days but are likely to be during the school holidays. The Unite ballot closes on Monday. Continue reading...

Former NUM leader says he feels duty-bound to offer his support to striking workers, and has choice words for Starmer and Johnson“I will never stop fighting … you must be joking?” said Arthur Scargill as he joined striking railway workers on the picket line in Sheffield.The former leader of the National Union of Mineworkers is 84 and maybe not as nimble on his feet as he once was, but none of the fire in his belly would seem to have died down. Nor have his opinions mellowed. Continue reading...

Christina Efthimiou claimed price increase at Kenwood ladies’ bathing pond had unfair impact on people with disabilitiesA disabled swimmer has lost a high court case over ticket prices at the Kenwood ladies’ bathing pond in Hampstead Heath in north London.Christina Efthimiou had asked the court to overturn a 2021 increase in prices at the pond on the grounds that the cost disproportionately affected people with disabilities. Continue reading...

Officers in WhatsApp group were sent images of Nicole Smallman and Bibaa Henry taken by two colleaguesThree Metropolitan police officers who received horrific pictures taken from the scene where two black sisters lay murdered have been allowed to keep their jobs.The three constables were in a WhatsApp group that received the photos taken by two colleagues who were later jailed for their actions. Continue reading...

Independent Office for Police Conduct will reinvestigate way Scotland Yard handled deaths of serial killer’s victimsThe Metropolitan police are to be reinvestigated by the police watchdog over the handling of the murders of four young men by the serial killer Stephen Port as families of the victims believe a “big question mark” remains over whether homophobia played any part in the flawed police inquiries into the killings.The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said on Thursday it would re-examine how Scotland Yard investigated Port’s killing spree in Barking, east London, from June 2014 to September 2015, after none of the 17 officers involved in the case faced disciplinary action. Continue reading...

A 31-year-old man, charged with stabbing the pensioner to death, will appear in court later on Thursday, police sayA 31-year-old man has been charged with murdering his grandmother.Verushan Manoharan is due to appear in court later on Thursday after being charged with stabbing 89-year-old Sakunthala Francis to death. Continue reading...

Andrea Prudente, who was on holiday in Gozo when she began to miscarry, was denied the procedure due to the country’s total banAn American woman who was denied a request for abortion in Malta after suffering the symptoms of a miscarriage, has been allowed to travel to Spain to terminate her pregnancy there, her lawyer said on Thursday.Andrea Prudente, 38, who is 16 weeks pregnant, was on holiday in Malta with her partner, Jay Weeldreyer, when she started to miscarry a week ago and was admitted to hospital with severe bleeding. Continue reading...

Nearly 200 people had risked missing out on the company’s Historical Shortfall Scheme after being given only three months to applyDozens of Post Office managers who faced losing out on compensation after being falsely accused of fraud have been told that they will now be in line for payments after a report by the Guardian.Nearly 200 postmasters and mistresses had been told they may be disqualified from a scheme to compensate those forced to pay sums of up to five figures after faulty software wrongly showed shortfalls in their accounts. Continue reading...

Unions and recruiters say move would harm relations and point out UK government condemned P&O for doing same thingUnions and recruiters have condemned government moves to allow agency workers to replace striking staff, saying it would “poison” relations and endanger safety.The business secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, said the government was pressing ahead with a change in the law, as rail workers walked out for the second of two 24-hour strikes this week. Some bus workers and nurses are also set to strike, while teachers may take industrial action this year. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Ruth Neave aims to overturn 1996 verdict as James Watson is sentenced for six-year-old’s killingThe mother of murdered schoolboy Rikki Neave has said she is hoping to challenge her 26-year-old conviction for child cruelty offences as a man is finally sentenced for the 1994 murder of her son.In an exclusive interview, Ruth Neave, who was acquitted of her six-year-old son’s murder in 1996 but jailed for child cruelty offences, said she was advised to plead guilty to all offences – including murder – by her solicitor and denies all allegations. Continue reading...

Prime minister has also been invited to Ukraine as part of his trip to Europe for the Nato summit

Men in their 20s due to appear before Thames magistrates after alleged theft of £70,000 watchThree people are due to appear in court after former boxing world champion Amir Khan was allegedly robbed at gunpoint.The Metropolitan police said Ahmed Bana, 25, Nurul Amin, 24, and Dante Campbell, 20, have been charged over the incident in Leyton, east London, in April. Continue reading...

Just one in five trains set to run as RMT accuses UK government of ‘wrecking negotiations’ and TSSA union accepts 7.1% offerA second day of strike action is under way after talks to avert the stoppage collapsed in rancour on Wednesday night.Millions of passengers face disruption to train services across Great Britain on Thursday as 40,000 RMT members working for Network Rail and 13 train operating companies stage their second strike in a week. Continue reading...

The hardline Islamist leadership says help needs to be ‘scaled up’ after the quake devastated towns and villages in the country’s mountainous eastAfghanistan’s Taliban-led government has appealed for more international aid as it struggles to cope with the devastating earthquake in a mountainous eastern region that has left more than 1,000 people dead and many more injured.With the war-ravaged country already stricken by an economic crisis, the hardline Islamist leadership said sanctions imposed by western countries after the withdrawal of US-led coalition forces last year meant it was handicapped in its ability to deal with Wednesday’s disaster in Khost and Paktika provinces. Continue reading...

A self-published novel by Michael Winkler joins Alice Pung, Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Michelle de Kretser and Jennifer Down to compete for $60,000

Consumer champion believes he was turned down because he was honest about limited time he could commitThe consumer champion Martin Lewis has revealed an application he made to become a member of the House of Lords has been turned down.Lewis, who is regarded as the one of most trusted people in Britain, said he believed his request for a cross-bench peerage was rejected because he was honest about the limited time he could commit to the role. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Email from head of Investment NSW said New York position would now be handled as an ‘internal matter’

Exclusive: Figures provided to the Guardian reveal exorbitant legal bill for pursuing cases against Collaery, Witness K, Richard Boyle and David McBride

Exclusive: St Thomas’ hospital in London did not reveal that four premature babies – one of whom died – were infectedA leading NHS hospital failed to publicly disclose that four very ill premature babies in its care were infected with a deadly bacterium, one of whom died soon after, the Guardian can reveal.St Thomas’ hospital did not admit publicly that it had suffered an outbreak of Bacillus cereus in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of its Evelina children’s hospital in late 2013 and early 2014.Did not acknowledge either the incident or infant’s death in any public forum.Failed to mention the death in the report of its own internal inquiry into the outbreak.Did not tell its own board that one of the four infected children who were given contaminated total parenteral nutrition (TPN) died, despite the board’s legal duty to oversee the trust.Did not alert the media to the outbreak and instead prepared a statement in case it received any inquiries – none of which arrived, because GSTT never publicly acknowledged the incident. Continue reading...

Effort to revive fortunes of Piers Morgan-fronted rightwing channel include replacing boss and expected relaunchRupert Murdoch’s talkTV has been struggling to attract an audience for its culture-war output. But staff at the channel are now worried that they have recently gained one particular viewer: Murdoch himself, who has arrived in London and is taking an active interest in his station’s fate.The media mogul has invested tens of millions of pounds in talkTV, but after just two months on air, there are fears it could become a costly disaster unless he makes a rapid intervention, with official viewing figures dipping to zero at some points during evening broadcasts. Continue reading...

Labour clear favourite to win in Wakefield while Tories and Lib Dems in close race in Tiverton and HonitonBoris Johnson faces a hugely important verdict from voters on Thursday as the Conservatives defend seats in Wakefield and in Tiverton and Honiton, with a double defeat likely to reignite speculation about a new challenge from Tory MPs.The byelections were called after the respective MPs resigned in disgrace. Imran Ahmad Khan stepped down in Wakefield having been convicted of sexually assaulting a teenage boy, while Neil Parish quit in Tiverton and Honiton after watching pornography in the Commons. Continue reading...

David Crisafulli announces policies aimed at closing gender pay gap and increasing workforce participation

Western Australian parliamentary committee recommends mining sector should explore options for a register of sexual offenders

Senior roles still dominated by white people while appeals depict countries as inferior to UK, says international development committeeBritish MPs have issued a scathing report on racism in the aid sector, warning that colonial mentalities are pervasive across charities and in government.In their public appeals, international aid organisations depict the communities they serve as “helpless and needy” and “strip them of their dignity”, implying the countries in which they work are “inferior to the UK”, said the international development committee. Continue reading...

Announcement comes as peak advocacy group calls on government to end compulsory seclusion and restraint on wards

NSW premier directs head of department to conduct review into appointment as upper house conducts inquiry

Channel 10 and Wilkinson will promise not to make public comments after trial of Bruce Lehrmann was delayed to 4 October

Report suggests visitor levy like that used in Canada could further develop and market local tourism

Health minister says winter brings threat of significant Covid and flu spread and warns country is ‘still very much in this pandemic’

Veteran Labour MP says it is ‘downright embarrassing’ that her party has never a woman as leaderHarriet Harman has said Labour’s next leader should be a woman, adding that it was “downright embarrassing” that the party had never had a woman at its helm.The veteran Labour MP also spoke about the grief of losing her husband, Jack Dromey, “out of the blue” when he died in January. Continue reading...

MSP Natalie Don launches Holyrood bill to pardon people tortured and executed under Witchcraft Act 1563The failure to serve posthumous justice to the thousands of people – mainly women – persecuted as witches in post-Reformation Scotland “prolongs misogyny”, an MSP launching a bid to grant them a legal pardon has said.Speaking before the launch of a Holyrood member’s bill on Thursday, the SNP MSP Natalie Don explained: “The only way we can move forward in terms of where we are with misogyny and prejudice in society is by fixing these injustices of our past.” She also hoped that the member’s bill could contribute to awareness of parts of the world where women and girls still faced such accusations and their violent consequences. Continue reading...