by Aubrey Allegretti and Andrew Gregory on (#60J4S)
No 10 refuses to say if PM skipped NHS waiting lists for sinus operation and says he may return to work on TuesdayBoris Johnson was admitted to hospital for what No 10 said was a minor and routine operation on his sinuses.The prime minister was put under general anaesthetic and is now resting at home, with Dominic Raab, as deputy prime minister, put in charge of taking any significant decisions while he recovers. Continue reading...
It was a bad night for the president and a triumphant one for the far right. How long until a return to the polls?Emmanuel Macron’s alliance remains the largest force in France’s parliament, but the president – comfortably re-elected eight weeks ago – lost his overall majority amid a strong electoral showing by a new leftist coalition and a historic far-right surge.Here are five key takeaways from a shock legislative election that leaves the centrist leader needing to strike difficult deals with other parties to deliver his promised reforms – and that could yet plunge France into political chaos. Continue reading...
As average price of petrol hits 188.7p a litre, rail strike in Great Britain means many people have to driveCommuters forced to drive to work because of rail strikes are facing record costs to fill up their cars as UK fuel prices continue to rise.The average price of a litre of petrol hit 188.7p on Sunday after five weeks of relentless record prices when the price has jumped 23p from the 165.5p of mid-May. Continue reading...
by Kalyeena Makortoff and Sarah Butler on (#60HZY)
Customers will be able to order from about 2,000 items online, including children’s clothesPrimark will trial a click-and-collect service in the UK, in the budget fashion chain’s first significant move into online shopping as it confirmed price rises were on the way.The high street retailer will launch the trial at 25 stores in the north-west of England by the end of the year, but said it would only cover children’s clothing and accessories, as the company – owned by Associated British Foods (ABF) – tries to draw more families into its stores. Continue reading...
Exclusive: A new investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project and the Meduza news site has found links through an email domain name that appear to connect opulent properties across Russia
Walkouts in England and Wales from next week come amid ‘record backlog’ at crown courtsBarristers specialising in criminal law have voted to go on strike in a row over legal aid funding, with several days of court walkouts expected from next week.The Criminal Bar Association (CBA), which represents barristers in England and Wales, announced the industrial action after a ballot of members. Continue reading...
Lower hull of Global Dream II to be disposed of after shipbuilder filed for bankruptcyWhat was meant to be one of the world’s largest cruise ships is being prepared for its maiden voyage – to a scrapyard.Global Dream II, which was designed to hold more than 9,000 passengers, had almost been completed at a shipyard on Germany’s Baltic coast. However, the shipbuilder MV Werften filed for bankruptcy in January 2022 and the administrators cannot find a buyer for Global Dream II. Continue reading...
Congolese independence hero’s gold-capped tooth returned as ex-colonial power faces its bloody pastBelgian authorities have returned a tooth belonging to the murdered Congolese independence hero Patrice Lumumba, as the former colonial power continues to confront its bloody past and look toward reconciliation.The restitution of the relic took place after Belgium’s King Philippe expressed his “deepest regrets” this month for his country’s abuses in its African former colony, Congo, 75 times the size of Belgium. Continue reading...
Former health secretary says he has now recovered as he prepares to take part in Race for Life charity runThe former health secretary Jeremy Hunt has revealed he had cancer and has since recovered.The Conservative MP said he would be taking part in a 5km race to raise money for cancer charities after the disease affected some of his relatives “very dramatically” and he experienced a “minor" one” himself. Continue reading...
Parents of injured 12-year-old hope to challenge ruling Archie is brain-stem dead and treatment can be stoppedThe family of a 12-year-old boy at the centre of a life-support treatment dispute are preparing to mount an appeal after a high court judge ruled that the child is dead and his treatment can be stopped.Mrs Justice Arbuthnot recently ruled that doctors could lawfully stop providing treatment to Archie Battersbee after considering evidence at a trial in the family division of the high court in London. Continue reading...
by Rowena Mason Deputy political editor on (#60HX2)
Labour peer Peter Hain says PM is using Northern Ireland protocol bill to provoke populist row with EUBoris Johnson is engaging in “Putinesque” tactics by using the Northern Ireland protocol bill to cause a populist row with Brussels when the EU is willing to compromise, Peter Hain, a former Northern Ireland secretary, said on Sunday.Hain, who sits on a Lords subcommittee on the protocol, said Brussels appeared willing to compromise, but Johnson was more keen on engaging in a “parallel universe blame game”. Continue reading...
Gains by new French left alliance and historic surge by far right cast uncertainty over Macron’s second termEmmanuel Macron’s centrist grouping has lost its absolute majority in parliament, amid gains by a new left alliance and a historic surge by the far right in legislative elections.After five years of undisputed control of parliament, the recently re-elected Macron, known for his top-down approach to power, now enters his second term facing uncertainty over how he will deliver domestic policies such as raising the retirement age and overhauling state benefits. His centrists will need to strike compromises and expand alliances in parliament to be able to push forward his proposals to cut taxes and shake up the welfare system. Continue reading...
by Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent on (#60HTH)
Hairstyles and not drinking among reasons most minority ethnic respondents believe they have been treated in a prejudiced wayLarge majorities of black and Asian workers believe they have been overlooked for employment opportunities, including promotion, because of their identity, according to research, with some citing their hairstyles and not drinking alcohol as key factors.Seventy-one per cent of employees from a black background reported feeling overlooked for opportunities owing to their identity; 66% from Asian backgrounds and 65% of those who identified as LGBTQ+ also had the same experience. Continue reading...
by Bethan McKernan and Quique Kierszenbaum in the Jor on (#60HSH)
There are 77 Israeli farms and shepherding outposts across the West Bank, part of an explosion in settlement growth in recent yearsOn stretches of Route 90, the Israeli-built road running down the length of the Jordan Valley in the occupied West Bank, the west side of the highway is full of straw-like grass despite the summer heat. To the east of the road, what can be eaten by sheep and goats is gone.The difference is the only perceptible sign of the biggest strategic shift in the battle for control of Area C, the 60% of the West Bank under full Israeli control, in recent years: the emergence of Israeli settlers using shepherding as a tool for seizing the most land, with the least effort. Continue reading...
Restaurants are filling up again as clubs welcome daytime revellers, but the city remains under a cloud of warWalking around a small outdoor street market in a pretty Kyiv courtyard, one could be forgiven for forgetting for a brief moment that Ukraine is in the midst of a brutal war that not long ago saw some of its bloodiest fighting just a few miles from the capital.A DJ is playing techno tunes, so beloved in a city that has been proudly calling itself the new Berlin, as locals sell vintage clothes. Continue reading...
by Joe Parkin Daniels and Edinson Bolaños in Bogotá on (#60HPZ)
Former fighter in the M-19 militia beat populist business tycoon and fellow political outsider Rodolfo Hernández in runoff on SundayColombia has elected a former guerrilla fighter Gustavo Petro as president, making him the South American country’s first leftist head of state.Petro beat Rodolfo Hernández, a gaff-prone former mayor of Bucaramanga and business mogul, with 50.47% of the vote in a runoff election on Sunday and will take office in July amid a host of challenges, not least of which is the deepening discontent over inequality and rising costs of living. Hernández had 47.27%, with almost all ballots counted, according to results released by election authorities. Continue reading...
New laws also increase quotas on Ukrainian-language speech and music on television and radioUkraine’s parliament has voted through two laws that will place severe restrictions on Russian books and music as Kyiv seeks to break many remaining cultural ties between the two countries following Moscow’s invasion.One law will forbid the printing of books by Russian citizens, unless they renounce their Russian passport and take Ukrainian citizenship. The ban will only apply to those who held Russian citizenship after the 1991 collapse of Soviet rule. Continue reading...
Government outlines two-year wait for curbs on multibillion-pound industry as consumers face ‘bleak winter’The consumer champion Martin Lewis has criticised the “painfully slow” pace of progress on regulating the buy now, pay later industry, amid indications that promised tougher rules are unlikely to take effect until 2024.Buy now, pay later (BNPL) lets shoppers delay payment for products such as clothes and furniture. This form of credit enjoyed explosive growth during the pandemic, particularly among under-30s and those with tight finances. Continue reading...
The pop star’s single Bad Habits was also the most-played song of last year, according to new data from music licensing company PPLEd Sheeran was the most-played artist in the UK last year according to new data from music licensing company PPL, which calculates usage by radio stations, TV channels and public locations that play recorded music in order to distribute royalties.Sheeran also had the most-played track of 2021 in Bad Habits, from his fourth album, =. He previously held the PPL double in 2017, when he was the year’s most-played artist and his song Shape of You dominated public life. Continue reading...
Friends of Nigel Stonehouse, 58, who has kidney and lung cancer, seek help with costs of transporting him to his final festivalThe friends of a terminally ill man have launched a fundraising campaign to help him attend the Glastonbury festival next week.Nigel Stonehouse, 58, from Hartlepool, was recently diagnosed with kidney cancer, which has now spread to his lungs. After receiving the terminal diagnosis, his friends wanted to fulfil his “dying wish” of attending the festival for a final time. Continue reading...
by Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent on (#60HKH)
Barrister’s unlawful discrimination case sees levels of engagement rare for an employment tribunalWith its own dedicated (unofficial) Twitter account and people following proceedings daily live via video, the unlawful discrimination case brought by barrister Allison Bailey against her chambers Garden Court and Stonewall has seen levels of engagement rare for an employment tribunal.The reason is that the case, due to hear closing arguments on Monday, is a microcosm of the wider debate about transgender rights. Continue reading...
Prosecutors say allegations involve ‘young foreign woman’ who was forced to have ‘non-consensual’ sexual relations over two daysAuthorities detained Oscar-winning film director Paul Haggis on Sunday in connection with allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman in southern Italy, Italian news media said, quoting local prosecutors.The Canadian-born Haggis, 69, has been in Italy for a film festival that begins on Tuesday in Ostuni, a tourist town in Puglia, the region that forms the “heel” of the Italian peninsula. Continue reading...
Raymundo Garduno and Juan Francisco Aguilar, as well as six other people who were injured, were in van that flipped in desertA traffic crash in Mexico last week killed two actors from an upcoming original series by Netflix and injured six other people, according to officials and media reports.The killed actors, Raymundo Garduno and Juan Francisco Aguilar, were in a van that accidentally flipped Thursday in a patch of desert near the community of Mulege on the Baja California Sur peninsula. Other cast and crew members were hurt during the wreck, which reportedly occurred offset but during filming of the show The Chosen One. Continue reading...
People ‘killed like chickens’ as ethnic tensions continue in Africa’s second most populous countryWitnesses in Ethiopia said on Sunday that more than 200 ethnic Amhara have been killed in an attack in the country’s Oromia region and are blaming a rebel group, which denies it.It is one of the deadliest such attacks in recent memory as ethnic tensions continue in Africa’s second most populous country. Continue reading...
Officers have already arrested three people, one of whom confessed to killing British journalist and indigenous advocatePolice investigating the murder of the British journalist Dom Phillips and indigenous advocate Bruno Pereira have identified five more people connected with the killings, bringing to eight the number of suspects in a crime that has shocked Brazil.Police had already arrested two brothers, one of whom confessed to the crime, and a third man handed himself in to authorities on Saturday. Continue reading...
Report had claimed Boris Johnson tried to hire his now wife as chief of staff when foreign secretary, but then it was deletedAt first glance, the story appeared to be the political scoop of the weekend.On Saturday, the Times reported claims that Boris Johnson had tried to hire his now wife as his chief of staff when he was foreign secretary. Continue reading...
Writer and broadcaster says teaching about the past must not be a way of making people feel good about themselvesBritain’s relationship with history is “not fit for purpose”, according to a leading historian who said too many pupils are still taught a “dishonest version” of the nation’s past that left out uncomfortable truths.David Olusoga, the writer and broadcaster, told school leaders that Britain often saw its history as “recreational … a place that we go for comfort, a place to make us feel good about ourselves”, leading to ignorance about the history of its empire, and to immigration scandals such as Windrush. Continue reading...
by Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent on (#60HFC)
Olympic gold medallist reveals fears of court martial in army and toll on her mental health as she lifts 34-year public silenceGay rights campaigners have welcomed Dame Kelly Holmes’ decision to come out at the age of 52, in a move that sparked questions about how many older people remain afraid to be open about their sexuality after growing up in more homophobic times.The double Olympic gold medallist lifted a painful 34-year public silence on her sexuality on Sunday, saying that she felt as if she was going to “explode with excitement” by finally coming out after years in which she felt depressed, anxious and even suicidal, keeping her secret from all but close family and friends. Continue reading...
Campaigners say curtailing of women’s rights in Afghanistan means Trump-era waiver must be removedHuman rights groups are urging the UN to end a Trump-era waiver that allows Taliban members most responsible for the oppression of women in Afghanistan to travel abroad.In a test for the international community’s willingness to isolate the Taliban, critics argue that those Taliban members curtailing women’s right to leave their homes within Afghanistan should at minimum be banned from leaving their country. Continue reading...
Rufus Norris says DCMS levelling-up scheme will have opposite effect to that intendedThe director of the National Theatre in London is warning that the government’s levelling-up agenda will take its toll on its touring productions and schools programmes beyond the capital.Rufus Norris said that the decision by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in February “to redistribute Arts Council England (ACE) funding and level up access to the arts” across the country would be detrimental to the National Theatre’s work. Continue reading...
by Libby Brooks Scotland correspondent on (#60H98)
SNP’s Angus Robertson says government will continue to push for repeat of 2014 referendum processThe Scottish government will continue to press for a repeat of the “gold standard” set by the 2014 independence referendum process, the constitution secretary, Angus Robertson, has said.But he refused to comment on reports Nicola Sturgeon is planning to announce a “softer” consultative referendum in order to bypass Westminster’s ongoing refusal to grant Holyrood the powers to hold a legal vote. Continue reading...
by Rowena Mason Deputy political editor on (#60H99)
Transport secretary responds to Keir Starmer’s claim government wants to feed off division of RMT actionGrant Shapps has said it is “crazy” to suggest the Tories want rail unions to go on strike this week, as Labour accused the government of encouraging the walkouts to go ahead to stoke division.The transport secretary said the strikes by 40,000 rail workers, which is due to affect services across much of the country from Monday night, were “unnecessary” and a result of trade union leaders “gunning for” a fight. He accused RMT of planning to “punish millions of innocent people”. Continue reading...
Campaign disseminating disinformation sent thousands of tweets, often targeting the White HelmetsA network of more than two dozen conspiracy theorists, frequently backed by a coordinated Russian campaign, sent thousands of disinformation tweets to distort the reality of the Syrian conflict and deter intervention by the international community, new analysis reveals.Data gathered by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) identified a network of social media accounts, individuals, outlets and organisations who disseminated disinformation about the conflict, with 1.8 million people following their every word. The three principal false narratives promoted by the network of conspiracy theorists involved misrepresenting the White Helmets, the volunteer organisation working to evacuate people in Syria. They also focused on the denial or distortion of facts about the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons and on attacking the findings of the world’s foremost chemical weapons watchdog. Continue reading...
Duchess of Cornwall opens up about being a grandmother and learning from young people in rare interviewThe Duchess of Cornwall has spoken about her struggles with handling media attention in a rare interview, in which she also revealed that she played Wordle with her granddaughter every day.Speaking to British Vogue at Clarence House, the London home she shares with Prince Charles, Camilla opened up about approaching her 75th birthday, being a grandmother and learning from young people. Continue reading...
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