World news | The Guardian

Shadow health secretary condemns Kwasi Kwarteng’s ‘reckless gamble’ and says Labour ‘cavalry is coming’

Fleet review ordered after two Emerald-class vessels developed steering issues in as many days

Mali Cooper discharged into psychologist’s care after locking themself to steering wheel of a car to block traffic

East Asia and Pacific annual growth forecasts downgraded from 5% to 3.2% as China’s economy cools, largely due to zero-Covid policyCovid-zero policies and the housing market crisis have put China’s economic growth behind the rest of the Asia-Pacific region for the first time in more than 30 years, according to World Bank forecasts.In a biannual report released on Tuesday, the US-based institution said the annual growth outlook for East Asia and the Pacific region had been downgraded from 5% to 3.2%. However much of that decline was down to economic woes in China, which constitute’s 86% of the region’s economic output. Continue reading...

Australian Securities and Investments Commission issues guide for paying compensation and tells companies to pay up quickly

Jody Nobbs questioned about text messages between Constable Zachary Rolfe and other police officers that used racist language

Trek organiser says the US climber had an accident on Monday as bad weather hampered rescue effortsRenowned US ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson has gone missing on Nepal’s Manaslu mountain, on the same day that an avalanche killed a Nepali climber on the same peak, expedition organisers and officials said.Nelson was skiing down Manaslu after having successfully summited the world’s eighth-highest mountain with her partner, Jim Morrison, on Monday. Continue reading...

UK firms now temptingly cheaper, with a ‘wave of bids’ from overseas buyers meaning payouts for bankersBankers could rake in bumper bonuses from a “wave of bids” by overseas buyers for UK businesses made temptingly cheaper as a result of the plunge in the pound against the dollar. A fresh frenzy of merger and acquisition activity would mean a ramp-up in payouts for City dealmakers.Sterling fell by nearly 5% at one point on Monday to $1.0327, its lowest since Britain went decimal in 1971. The currency has fallen by more than a fifth against the dollar this year. Continue reading...

EU financial watchdog blames small fines and feeble controls in some states for amount of illegal seafood

Front pages channel fears about Truss government’s economic strategy after pound sinks to all-time low against the dollarTurmoil in financial markets which saw the pound fall to a record low against the dollar dominates today’s front pages.The currency tumbled as investors lost confidence in the UK’s public finances after last Friday’s mini-budget. Continue reading...

Analysis also challenges argument that the scheme attracts wealthy people who would otherwise leave the countrySuper-rich overseas people in the UK registered as having non-domicile status are being legally allowed to avoid paying more than £3.2bn of tax on at least £10.9bn of offshore income a year, according to a report.An analysis by academic economists found that 26,000 people granted non-dom tax status by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) collect an average of £420,000 a year in unreported overseas income and capital gains. Continue reading...

Royal Mail also announces four stamps featuring portraits of the late Queen to be released in her memoryThe King’s new monogram has been revealed ahead of the official period of royal mourning for the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, coming to an end.Charles’s cypher will appear on government buildings, state documents and on some postboxes in the coming months and years. Continue reading...

Pledge comes after repeated complaints by British prisoners abroad of Foreign Office indifferenceBritish citizens abroad will have a statutory right to receive Foreign Office consular assistance under a Labour government in plans proposed by the shadow foreign secretary, David Lammy.The proposals come in the wake of repeated complaints by British prisoners abroad of Foreign Office indifference, or determination to put British diplomatic interests ahead of individual citizens. Continue reading...

Former England player was ‘sparked’ into action by then Tory minister’s comments on footballers’ payGary Neville has pointed to former health secretary Matt Hancock telling footballers to take a pay cut and “play their part” during the Covid pandemic as the moment he was inspired to get involved in Labour politics.The former England footballer said the Tory politician’s remarks “sparked me into speaking politically” as he appeared at Labour conference in Liverpool to call for a change in government. Continue reading...

Campaigners celebrate as conference overwhelmingly backs motion but Keir Starmer expected to ignore moveThe Labour conference has overwhelmingly backed a motion calling on the party to embrace a proportional electoral system, sparking celebrations from campaigners even though Keir Starmer seems certain to ignore the move.The motion, which says a Labour government should ditch the current first-past-the-post system in favour of a form of proportional representation (PR), passed easily via a show of hands in the conference hall in Liverpool, prompting loud cheers. Continue reading...

Figures from NHS England also show 29 people were killed by prescription errors in 2021A pregnant woman who died after being given the wrong dosage of drugs was one of almost 6,000 people harmed and 29 killed following prescription errors in the NHS in England last year.Figures from NHS England show that 98 hospital trusts experienced an increase in the number of prescription errors reported in 2021, including cases where patients were given the wrong drug, wrong dosage or were not given medicine when needed. Meanwhile, the number of errors fell at 105 trusts. Continue reading...

More than 100 Coalition development projects could be cut as government pledges to go through budget ‘line by line’ to find savings

Use of Ayurvedic medicine Kamini Vidrawan Ras resulted in 24 reported presentations to addiction clinics in Queensland and Victoria

Clare O’Neil says penalties for telcos are ‘totally inappropriate’ and data breach was ‘significant error’

Inquest hears that some of content viewed by 14-year-old on Instagram in months before her death violated guidelines in place at the timeA senior executive at Instagram’s owner has apologised after admitting that the platform had shown Molly Russell content that violated its policies before she died.Elizabeth Lagone, head of health and wellbeing policy at Meta, acknowledged that some of the posts and videos had broken Instagram guidelines at the time, which prohibited the glorification, encouragement and promotion of suicide and self-harm. Continue reading...

Labour’s Tulip Siddiq calls on City watchdog to determine whether hedge fund billionaires knowingly profited from Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budgetThe City watchdog is being urged to investigate whether leaks of Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget allowed billionaire hedge fund investors to make “small fortunes” by betting against the pound.Tulip Siddiq, the shadow economic secretary to the Treasury, said the Financial Conduct Authority needed to determine whether it was possible for traders to have used insider information to benefit from the crashing currency. Continue reading...

DPP is challenging decisions by judges not to keep defendants behind bars in cases affected by strikeJudges acted wrongly when expressing views on the criminal barristers’ strike as they refused to keep defendants behind bars in cases delayed by the ongoing pay dispute, the high court has heard.The director of public prosecutions (DPP) is challenging the legitimacy of decisions taken by judges at Bristol and Manchester crown courts not to extend the period that three men in two cases could be held on remand beyond the six-month limit. Continue reading...

Against a backdrop of the falling pound, the opposition sets out an alternative vision“It will fall to us to fix the damage the Tories have done. We have done it before, we will do it again.” Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, making her speech to congress on the day the pound hit a record low against the dollar. Continue reading...

Phishing attacks have started to target people in difficult financial situations, ONS reportsFraudsters have adapted their tactics to exploit the rising cost of living, officials have said.A report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said anti-fraud squads had identified new trends as phishing attacks – when perpetrators attempt to trick users into clicking a bad link – have started to target those in difficult financial situations. Continue reading...

Public and press excluded as details of king’s coronation to be discussed as part of argument against losing licenceThe public and press have been excluded from the sentencing of the Duke of Norfolk on grounds of national security as details of the coronation of King Charles III were to be discussed as part of his argument against losing his driving licence.The earl marshal, 65, who organised the Queen’s funeral and has a key role in the orchestration of the king’s coronation, pleaded guilty at Lavender Hill magistrates court on Monday to using his mobile phone while driving. Continue reading...

A Russian man has shot the leader of the local military draft committee in a Siberian town; protests against Kremlin’s military call-up continue

Italy’s new far-right government has been rebranding in recent years to assume pro-Nato stance, but is yet to disclose path of confrontation with EU

Amnesty says at least four children among people killed by state forces since start of protests over woman’s death in custodyAt least 450 people have been arrested in Mazandaran, a northern province of Iran, during the last 10 days of protests, according to the province’s chief prosecutor.Protests sparked by the death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini have spread across the country. They have been met with internet shutdowns and violent repression. Continue reading...

Lead investigator tells court ‘I was doing my job’ after suggestion she was to blame for death

Labour’s Peter Kyle says he would be prepared to call referendum on Irish unity if certain conditions were metNorthern Ireland unionists have expressed alarm after the shadow Northern Ireland secretary, Peter Kyle, said he would be prepared to call a referendum on Irish unity if certain conditions were met.Kyle would set out the criteria for calling a border poll if Labour were in power, he told the BBC’s Sunday Politics show at his party’s conference. Continue reading...

Van der Poel flies out of Australia after being fined A$1,500 in local court but lawyer says his client will appeal convictionsDutch cycling star Mathieu van der Poel will attempt to overturn a conviction for assaulting two teenage girls in a Sydney hotel the night before the men’s world championship road race.The Tour de France stage winner was arrested hours before Sunday’s race in Wollongong where the 27-year-old was one of the favourites. Continue reading...

Early official results from the Italian interior ministry confirm exit poll suggestions that the rightwing coalition led by Brothers of Italy could win enough seats to form a governmentFollow the live blogThe vote was triggered when the Five Star Movement abruptly withdrew its support for Mario Draghi’s technocratic government, but an election was due next year in any event. Continue reading...

Shadow chancellor decries government’s economic plans as ‘reckless, irresponsible and unfair’

Barry Collins says his ex-wife Sharon Graham told him someone was ‘going to get hurt’ while clearing land

Mark Dreyfus reassures independent MPs that anti-corruption bill will include a broad scope for investigations and public hearings

More than 50 past and present leaders to gather amid domestic opposition to ceremony fuelled by links between Abe’s party and Unification ChurchThe US vice-president, Kamala Harris, the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, and British foreign secretary, James Cleverly, will be among foreign dignitaries arriving in Japan to attend a state funeral for the assassinated former prime minister, Shinzo Abe, despite strong public opposition to the ceremony.They will be among about 700 people from overseas, including 50 former and current leaders, who are expected to attend the funeral in Tokyo on Tuesday, almost three months after Abe was shot dead while making a campaign speech. Continue reading...

Darren Rodwell denies conflict of interest and has invited disabled people and looked-after children to box at stadiumA town hall leader bidding to become an MP has accepted close to £10,000 worth of free Premier League tickets from a Los Angeles movie company after his council approved plans for its new film studios.Darren Rodwell, the Labour leader of the London borough of Barking and Dagenham, has been entertained 19 times by MBS Group in a luxury corporate box at West Ham’s stadium in the wake of deals paving the way for MBS and its parent company, Hackman Capital Partners, to create 12 sound stages on former industrial sites. Continue reading...

Friday is last day Bank of England’s old-style notes will be legal tender, having been replaced by polymer versionsThe Post Office is preparing for a “last-moment” rush of customers depositing paper £20 and £50 banknotes this week, before they can no longer be used in shops or to pay businesses.This Friday, 30 September, is the last day the Bank of England’s paper £20 and £50 banknotes will have legal tender status, having been replaced by new polymer versions. Continue reading...

Changes to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme expected to save Australians $130m per year, federal government says

At least 41 people have died in unrest sparked by young woman’s death as judiciary warns of ‘decisive action without leniency’Iranians have taken to the streets for a 10th consecutive night to protest against the death of Mahsa Amini in defiance of a warning from the judiciary.Officially at least 41 people have died since the unrest began, mostly protesters but including members of the security forces, but sources say the real figure is higher. Continue reading...

Giorgia Meloni and far-right Brothers of Italy in line to form new coalition with right getting 41-45% of the vote, while left alliance has 25-29%

Dozens assembled to call for an end to the Islamic republic, some of whom became involved in altercations with officers and one anotherTwelve people have been arrested during protests in London calling for an end to Iran’s Islamic republic, including outside the country’s UK embassy, after the death of a 22-year-old woman.Angry protesters could be seen shouting and pushing officers who had formed a cordon in front of the embassy in Princes Gate, Knightsbridge. Continue reading...

Technology’s use in crown courts will spare victims trauma of testifying in live trial settingThe use of pre-recorded evidence of victims and witnesses to crimes has been introduced at crown courts in England and Wales.The Ministry of Justice said that from Monday the technology would be available at a final 20 crown courts in Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, East Anglia, Essex, London and the south-east, marking the end of a national rollout. Continue reading...

Greater Manchester mayor predicts regaining lost ‘red wall’ seats in Q&A with Guardian editor-in-chiefAndy Burnham has said Labour is on the brink of government, predicting the party will win back all of the “red wall” seats it lost in 2019.The Greater Manchester mayor also doubled down on calls for Labour to reinstate the 20p tax rate after planned cuts by Liz Truss, saying the money should be directed to public sector pay, and reiterated calls for nationalisation of the railways, calling it a “no-brainer”. Continue reading...

Exclusive: The defence force’s alleged handling of the training course prompted a complaint to the Australian Human Rights Commission

Reports suggest local population in occupied areas has overwhelmingly boycotted Kremlin’s referendum

Research project hopes to help coarser fleece from hill-farmed flocks compete with imported merino and cashmereIn a laboratory in Edinburgh, carefully selected enzymes are right now breaking down a sheep’s fleece in the name of science.In a world-first research project that advocates for native textiles believe could catalyse a revival of the Scottish wool industry, researchers are exploring ways to treat the coarser fleece that is usually produced by hill-farmed flocks to make it more suitable for clothing. Continue reading...

Intan says he paid more than a month’s wages from his old job to guarantee his place, but remains unemployed

Exclusive: Workers say they have been charged to guarantee a job – which may be illegal – and have not yet had an interview

Emergency services called to blaze on top floor of tower block in Easton in early hours of SundayA man has died after a fire at a tower block in Bristol, police said.Emergency services were called to the blaze on the top floor of Twinnell House on Wills Drive in Easton, Bristol, shortly after 2.15am on Sunday. Avon and Somerset police said the fire was quickly extinguished. Continue reading...