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Election of Colin Boyce to federal parliament leads to a series of taunts from state Labor frontbenchers

Six men arrested after Pakistani-Spanish women were strangled and shot after being tricked into travelling to GujaratTwo sisters with dual Pakistani and Spanish citizenship were allegedly killed by their husbands, uncle and brother in a so-called “honour” killing a day after they were tricked into travelling to Pakistan.Aneesa Abbas, 24, and Arooj Abbas, 21, were strangled and shot dead on Friday after arriving in the eastern city of Gujarat with their mother, Azra Bibi. Continue reading...

Rapid rise in cases prompts some pathology providers to include influenza tests as part of Covid PCR tests

Analysis of nearly 100,000 samples found residues in a third of apples and half of blackberriesContamination of fresh fruits by the most hazardous pesticides has dramatically increased in Europe over the past decade, according to a nine-year study of government data.A third of apples and half of all blackberries surveyed had residues of the most toxic categories of pesticides, some of which have been linked to illnesses including cancer, heart disease and birth deformities. Continue reading...

Dr Neville Lawrence says senior officers fail to listen and are doomed to repeat the same mistakesThe father of Stephen Lawrence has criticised police chiefs for their new race plan, accusing them of failing to listen and saying they are doomed to repeat the same mistakes.Dr Neville Lawrence was speaking after police chiefs unveiled a scheme they claim will repair relations with Britain’s black communities. Continue reading...

City centres are gradually getting busier, but it is likely some degree of remote working is here to stay

Environmental Protection Authority says Yarra Valley Dairy failed to stop ‘unreasonable’ smell escaping premises

Six people taken to hospital are in stable condition as all lanes of Pacific Motorway closed for up to 25 minutes after 12-car pile-up

This live blog is now closed, you can find our latest coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war hereThe RIA news agency reports that Russia’s defence ministry says its forces destroyed a Ukrainian unit of US-produced M777 howitzers, a type of artillery weapon.The claim has not been independently verified. Continue reading...

Sir Philip Barton castigated along with Dominic Raab in damning report by MPs into UK’s chaotic exitThe senior civil servant in charge of the Foreign Office should consider his position after presiding over a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan that betrayed UK allies, put lives in danger, showed a total absence of planning and was chaotically managed, MPs have concluded in a damming report.The report from the foreign affairs select committee said the absence of leadership – both ministerial and official, including the permanent secretary, Sir Philip Barton – when Kabul fell was inexcusable and a grave indictment on those supposedly in charge. It added that Barton failed to give candid evidence to the committee, and says as a result it had lost confidence in him. The committee also accused him of covering up political interference in the fast-tracking of some individuals out of Afghanistan. Continue reading...

Mother says she believes ‘racial stereotyping’ was a factor in her mixed-race daughter’s caseA 14-year-old girl of mixed white and black ethnicity was so traumatised after being strip-searched by Metropolitan police officers that she tried to kill herself, her mother has said.Olivia, not her real name, was menstruating when she was handcuffed and searched in front of male officers after more than 20 hours in custody.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org. Continue reading...

Damien Abad, appointed to the new government on Friday, denies ‘deeply wounding’ accusationsA member of France’s newly installed government who has faced accusations of rape has strongly denied the allegations and insisted he will not stand down.Damien Abad, 42, appointed the minister for solidarity and the disabled, was forced to make a statement after two women accused him of rape in 2010 and 2011. Continue reading...

Boris Johnson, seen with wine in hand, repeatedly said he had been unaware of any law-breaking parties

The monarch was chauffeured around the Royal Horticultural Society event in LondonAfter two years of disruption the Chelsea flower show returned to its traditional May slot, with the Queen dropping in as guest of honour ahead of its opening to the public on Tuesday.The 96-year-old monarch arrived in a buggy to tour the Royal Horticultural Society’s showpiece event. Continue reading...

Fewer card and direct debit transactions made between 1 and 30 April, says NationwideBritons slashed spending on subscriptions to services such as Netflix and Disney+ in April as cash-strapped households made cutbacks where they could, card transactions show.The figures from Nationwide building society also reveal that charities continued to feel the impact of the cost-of-living squeeze, which accelerated last month amid soaring inflation, a jump in the energy price cap and a rise in national insurance contributions. Continue reading...

Labor MP says he would ‘seek an early briefing’ on prosecution of Collaery after criticising commonwealth’s handling

Exclusive: Lack of progress on addiction and treatment ‘plays into the hands of traffickers’, says author of ‘ice’ report

United Australia party prepares legal challenge in one seat after candidate allegedly follows and records electoral officers

Train operator has axed more than 1,000 services after drivers rejected pay offer and refused overtimeScotRail will open talks with the rail union Aslef on Tuesday to resolve a pay dispute that has led to the train operator axing more than 1,000 services from its timetable.The company confirmed on Monday it would meet union leaders hours after Aslef’s Scottish organiser, Kevin Lindsay, accused it of repeatedly ignoring his invitations to negotiate. Continue reading...

Scotland confirms first case as health officials say outbreak is ‘significant and concerning’ but poses low riskThe number of confirmed monkeypox cases in the UK has more than doubled to 57, the UK Health Security Agency has confirmed.There are 56 cases in England, and Scotland confirmed its first case on Monday. Previously there were 20 confirmed cases. Northern Ireland’s Public Health Agency and Public Health Wales each said they had no cases. Continue reading...

Lady Diana Brittan and ex-MP Harvey Proctor say Lord Hogan-Howe, who oversaw Operation Midland, should be ruled outBoris Johnson’s attempt to appoint a former Metropolitan police commissioner into another senior police role has prompted a furious backlash from three high-profile victims of the VIP paedophile ring scandal.The widow of the late former home secretary Leon Brittan, the family of the late war hero Lord Bramall, and the former Tory MP Harvey Proctor have demanded that the prime minister reconsider whether Bernard Hogan-Howe is suitable to be the head of the National Crime Agency after presiding over the disastrous Operation Midland. Continue reading...

Bahia Bakari, who was 12 at the time, tells French court of the moments leading up to crash in which 152 diedA woman who was 12 when she became the sole survivor of the 2009 Yemenia Airways crash in the Comoros islands that killed all 152 others on board has described the terrifying moments leading up to her plunge into the ocean and subsequent rescue as part of the French trial against the airline.Bahia Bakari, 25, has sat through several hearings with her father but had not testified or spoken to journalists attending the trial, which opened this month. Continue reading...

President gives insight into country’s casualties, as Luhansk governor says Russia using ‘scorched-earth’ tactics

Analysis: Key questions answered about report into Downing Street lockdown breach claims

Process to be eased to exempt applicants with special expertise from case-by-case assessment

RMT calls out 4,000 members in protest at TfL plans to cut 600 posts to reduce costsLondon Underground station staff will stage a 24-hour strike on Monday 6 June, the day after the platinum jubilee holiday weekend, in a dispute over job cuts.The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) has called 4,000 members out on strike in protest at Transport for London’s plans to cut 600 posts to reduce costs. Continue reading...

Ministers and deacons to be allowed to opt in to officiate at same-sex weddings, ending centuries-old banThe Church of Scotland has voted to allow same-sex marriages, after fresh warnings that its historical opposition had increased the church’s decline towards irrelevance.The church’s general assembly, its decision-making body, voted by 274 to 136 on Monday to allow its ministers and deacons to opt in to officiate at same-sex weddings, ending a centuries-old prohibition. Continue reading...

Maria Zakharova says idea book is about totalitarianism is ‘one of the biggest global fakes’, in claim disputed by Russian translator

Allegations against Manchester City footballer include seven alleged rapes, one attempted rape and one sexual assaultThe Manchester City footballer Benjamin Mendy has pleaded not guilty to nine counts of sexual offences, including seven alleged rapes, against six women.The France international entered not guilty pleas to the allegations when he appeared at Chester crown court on Monday. Continue reading...

PM’s spokesperson says No 10 officials suggested meeting, after conflicting briefings about who sought it

Countries affected by loss of grain from Ukraine could help escort ships, says Gabrielius LandsbergisLithuania has called for a naval coalition “of the willing” to lift the Russian Black Sea blockade on Ukrainian grain exports.The Lithuanian foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, proposed the plan during talks with the UK foreign secretary, Liz Truss, on Monday in London. Continue reading...

Retailer launches £300m share buyback as it retains most of sales increase during Covid pandemicB&Q owner Kingfisher has said it is managing inflationary pressures amid “resilient demand” for DIY despite the cost of living crisis in the UK and other markets.The retailer, whose other UK brand is the hardware trade supplier Screwfix, said sales had remained at elevated levels seen during the coronavirus pandemic, and that it was confident enough about its outlook to launch a £300m share buyback. Continue reading...

Anthony Albanese has spoken to the British prime minister on his flight to the Quad meeting in Tokyo after being sworn in, along with four senior ministers; Monique Ryan says ‘work begins anew’ after Josh Frydenberg concedes; Dave Sharma concedes Wentworth; nation records at least 11 Covid deaths. This blog is now closed

Guards say arrests linked to Israel made after shooting of Hassan Sayad Khodayari outside his homeIran will avenge the killing of a Revolutionary Guards colonel who was shot dead in Tehran, President Ebrahim Raisi has said.Col Hassan Sayad Khodayari was killed on Sunday outside his home by assailants on motorcycles. Iran blamed “elements linked to the global arrogance”, its term for the US and its allies including Israel. Continue reading...

A colleague at childcare centre where Lynette Dawson worked tells court she saw bruises in January 1982

In a blistering attack in Perth, the Western Australia premier also took aim at Peter Dutton, labelling him a conservative ‘extremist’

Russian embassy asked to pick up bill to repair tribute to Russian president’s hero, gifted during 2003 visitA statue of Peter the Great in Deptford, south London, that Vladimir Putin’s government gifted to the UK has been damaged in an attempted robbery, leaving a diplomatically awkward repair bill of thousands of pounds.Millennium Quay, the owners of the Thames-side housing estatethat surrounds the statue, suggested the Russian embassy could pick up the tab. The embassy has not responded to requests for comment. Continue reading...

Root-and-branch review calls for five-year, £2.6bn programme to reform a system that is under ‘extreme stress’An urgent multibillion-pound overhaul of children’s social care in England is needed to transform the life chances of thousands of vulnerable young people and reform a system that is spiralling out of control, a government-commissioned review has concluded.The author of the report, Josh MacAlister, said failure to tackle major problems in children’s services would lead to record numbers of youngsters entering care within a decade, at huge cost to families and the taxpayer. Continue reading...

Ahead of meeting with Biden, Kishida and Modi in Tokyo, Anthony Albanese warned Australia would always stand up for its values against ChinaAnthony Albanese will fly to Tokyo on Monday to take part in the Quad leaders’ meeting, just hours after being sworn in as the new Australian prime minister and warning that relations with China would remain “difficult”.The Labor party defeated the Coalition government, led by Scott Morrison, on Saturday. It is not yet known whether the Labor party, which Albanese leads, will reach the 76-seat majority needed to govern in its own right. Continue reading...

Museum’s deputy director had told Unesco meeting contested treasures ‘were not all hacked’ from Greek templeThe dispute over the Parthenon sculptures has deepened after Greece rejected a claim by the British Museum that much of the statuary, removed at the behest of Lord Elgin, was retrieved “in the rubble” around the monument.The assertion, made at a Unesco meeting on Friday, added a new twist to the long-running cultural row and came only days after it emerged that the UK was willing to discuss Greece’s demand for the ancient carvings to be reunified with other treasures in Athens. Continue reading...

Analysts say election of Albanese government will not ‘shift the dial’ on economic forecasts

MP who held ultra-marginal seat of Bass says party needs to abandon culture wars and return to basics

Participants in charity’s year-long inquiry describe being ignored and feeling patronised and dehumanisedSystemic racism within UK maternity care is risking the safety of people from Black, Asian and mixed ethnicity backgrounds, often with devastating consequences, according to a report by the childbirth charity Birthrights.More than 300 people with lived and professional experience of racial injustice in a maternity setting gave evidence to an expert panel chaired by Shaheen Rahman QC, a barrister who specialises in clinical negligence, as part of the charity’s year-long inquiry into the issue. Continue reading...

After narrowing during pandemic, analysis suggests FTSE 350 CEOs will collect 63 times average median pay at their companiesThe gap between the pay of bosses and employees will widen again this year after narrowing during the pandemic, research suggests.FTSE 350 chief executives are expected to collect 63 times the average median pay of workers at their companies , according to the High Pay Centre thinktank, which campaigns for fairer pay structures. Continue reading...

‘Staggering milestone’ calls for urgent international action to address underlying causes of conflict, persecution and the climate crisis, says high commissioner for refugeesThe UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has said the global number of forcibly displaced people has passed 100 million for the first time, describing it as a “staggering milestone”.The UN high commissioner for refugees, Filippo Grandi, said the grim new statistic should act as a wake-up call for the international community and that more action is needed internationally to address the root causes of forced displacement around the world. Continue reading...

Boxer Anthony Joshua among those to contact Raheem Bailey, who suffered racial and physical abuse from fellow pupilsSport stars including boxer Anthony Joshua have sent messages of support to an 11-year-old boy who lost a finger while trying to escape from school bullies.Raheem Bailey, from Abertillery in south Wales, was attacked by a group of children on Tuesday, according to his mother, Shantal. Continue reading...

Driver’s details shared on social media after allegedly running over ducklings near Stoke-on-Trent as other drivers waited for them to crossPolice have urged the public against any vigilante actions after the registration of a driver who allegedly ran over a brood of ducklings was published online.Staffordshire police confirmed it is investigating a Facebook post which claimed that at least three ducklings were killed on Friday at a roundabout in Trentham near Stoke-on-Trent. The post claimed they were killed by the driver of a white transit van who allegedly ignored other drivers who were waiting for the ducks to cross the road. Continue reading...

Close contacts of those infected with rare disease offered vaccines and told to isolate for up to 21 daysPublic health officials are to announce more UK monkeypox cases on Monday, as efforts ramp up to contain the first multinational outbreak of the virus that has led to cases in at least 14 countries.The unusual outbreak of the rare disease has sparked a wave of contact tracing and testing, with the closest contacts of confirmed cases – such as partners and people in the same household – offered a vaccine and told to isolate at home for up to 21 days. Continue reading...