by Peter Walker Senior political correspondent on (#6XSQ4)
Akua Reindorf said law never permitted self-ID, but trans campaigners call remarks profoundly unhelpful'Transgender people must accept a reduction in their rights after the supreme court decision on gender because they have been lied to over many years" about what their rights actually were, one of the commissioners drawing up the official post-ruling guidance has said.Speaking at a debate about the repercussions of April's ruling that woman" in the Equality Act refers only to a biological woman, Akua Reindorf said trans people had been misled about their rights and there has to be a period of correction". Continue reading...
Historian mapping medieval murders has evidence John Ford's stabbing was revenge hit by impenitent ex-loverAlmost 700 years ago, in a busy London street in the shadow of St Paul's Cathedral, a priest called John Ford was brazenly stabbed to death in a crime notable both for its public nature and its ferocity.It was early evening, just after vespers on 4 May 1337, and the street in Westcheap would have been bustling with passersby. In full view of them all, one man sliced Ford's throat with an anelace, a foot-long dagger, while two others used long knives to stab him in the belly. Was someone trying to make a very public example of the victim? Continue reading...
Consumer group makes claims of some questionable and dodgy pricing tactics' on retailer's websiteSports Direct could be breaking the law by misleading shoppers into thinking they are getting a good deal, a consumer body has claimed, after it looked at prices of items ranging from trainers to hoodies.Which? said it had reported the retailer to the Competition and Markets Authority after uncovering what it claimed were some questionable and dodgy pricing tactics" on its website. Continue reading...
by Patrick Butler Social policy editor on (#6XSNW)
Exclusive: Levels of multi-stress' at highest since 2008 crash, study says, with people feeling profoundly powerlessMore than 5 million UK adults are experiencing a triple whammy of financial, health and housing insecurity as British households hit levels of multi-stress" not seen since the global economic crash well over a decade ago, research shows.One in 10 working-age adults are juggling low income and debt, insecure tenancies and high rents, and problems accessing NHS care. They are at least twice as likely as the rest of the population to report mental stress, sleeplessness and isolation. Continue reading...
Victorian woman, 50, has pleaded not guilty to three charges of murder and one of attempted murder after a fatal beef wellington lunch in Leongatha in 2023. Follow livePatterson denies telling ex-partner she had important medical news she wanted advice onRogers says Simon gave evidence that on 16 July 2023 - two weeks prior to the lunch - Patterson approached him after a church service and said she had some important medical news she wanted advice on and how to break it to the children. Continue reading...
by Presented by Helen Pidd with Tess McClure; produce on (#6XSMQ)
Tess McClure reports on a landslide in Switzerland that left one person missing and destroyed a villageThe Swiss village of Blatten was wiped out in seconds. A glacier collapsed above the village on 28 May, triggering a landslide. The 300 residents had been evacuated a week earlier, but a 64-year-old man who is believed to have stayed is missing.Tess McClure, the Guardian's commissioning editor for the Age of Extinction, reported on the aftermath. Continue reading...
Car company's shares dropped by 14.2% as US president and the billionaire trade barbs on social mediaTesla's shares dropped by around 14.2% on Thursday at market close as a feud between Elon Musk and Donald Trump erupted into public view, decreasing the value of the company to roughly $900bn. The former political allies traded threats and insults through posts on their respective social media platforms throughout the afternoon as the company's price fell.Trump suggested on Truth Social that he could cut Musk's government subsidies and contracts, of which both Tesla and SpaceX have been immense beneficiaries. Musk meanwhile threatened to decommission the SpaceX spacecraft that Nasa relies on for transport missions, called for Trump's impeachment, derided the president's signature tariffs and accused him of being affiliated with notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Continue reading...
Gang of about 100 armed men' operate in eastern Rafah with tacit approval of IDF in apparent attempt to counter HamasIsrael's government has been accused of arming a Palestinian criminal gang whose members have allegedly looted humanitarian aid, in an apparent attempt to counter Hamas in Gaza.Satellite images and videos verified by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz showed on Thursday that a new Palestinian militia has expanded its presence in southern Gaza, and is operating inside an area under the direct control of the Israel Defense Forces. Continue reading...
Friedrich Merz struggles to get word in as US president focuses on record of former German leader who left office in 2021Donald Trump has heaped criticism on the former German chancellor Angela Merkel for opening up her country to refugees, telling her successor: I told her it shouldn't have happened."During an appearance with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, on Thursday, Trump was asked about the sweeping travel restrictions on 19 countries that he announced the previous day. Continue reading...
Jay Emmanuel-Thomas was arrested after NCA officers seized cannabis being transported through Stansted by two women he had recruitedAn ex-Arsenal academy footballer has been jailed for four years for his involvement in a 600,000 drug smuggling plot after a court heard his financial difficulties after a period out of contract led to a catastrophic error of judgment".Jay Emmanuel-Thomas was arrested after officers from the National Crime Agency seized an estimated 600,000 of cannabis as it was being brought through Stansted by two women he had recruited - his girlfriend and her friend. Continue reading...
by Presented by Jonathan Freedland, with Susan Glasse on (#6XSCR)
As Elon Musk and Donald Trump continue to sling accusations at each other on their social media platforms, Jonathan Freedland speaks to Susan Glasser of the New Yorker about what caused it to all fall apartArchive: Fox News, CBS News, CNBC, Associated Press, ABC 7 Chicago, NBC Continue reading...
US president adds sometimes you're better off letting them fight for a while' as he and German chancellor also express unhappiness with Russian invasionUK trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds has also called for reforms of the WTO including changes to the much-criticised dispute resolutions system which can also take years to settle disputes between trading nations.We do recognise that reforming and repositioning the WTO so that it can respond more effectively to the challenges of today is the only way to safeguard long term stability and growth tomorrow. Continue reading...
Heckles, chants and legal threats at meeting as people condemn plan for brutalist' block where loved ones are buriedDozens of grave owners confronted Highgate cemetery's bosses and their architects this week in a growing row over a maintenance and toilet block in a part of the graveyard where almost 200 people were recently buried.The cemetery called Tuesday's private meeting in an attempt to placate objectors by setting out adjustments to a new building that is part of an 18m redevelopment of the graveyard. Continue reading...
Judges consider verdicts against three men after hearing four days of evidence that prosecutor calls overwhelming'Three former executives at the French video game company Ubisoft used their position to bully or sexually harass staff, leaving women terrified and feeling like pieces of meat, a French court has heard.The state prosecutor Antoine Haushalter said the trial of three senior game creators for alleged bullying, sexual harassment and, in one case, attempted sexual assault was a turning point" for the gaming world. It is the first big trial to result from the #MeToo movement in the video games industry, and Haushalter said the case had revealed overwhelming" evidence of harassment. Continue reading...
It's odd that the move comes as a sunset clause' that allows Kristo Kaarmann enhanced rights here approaches expiryBack in 2021, the arrival on the London stock market of Wise, a rapidly expanding money transfer company, generated a feelgood factor at a useful moment.It came a month after overhyped Deliveroo flopped on debut. And, since Wise was a pure fintech business, as opposed to a pizza delivery outfit with an app, there was reason to think the UK might be getting its act together in the sector that politicians swoon over. Shoreditch's finest, and its Estonian founders, would show the way in UK fintech. Wise sported a 9bn valuation. Continue reading...
Yusuf had suggested it was dumb' for Sarah Pochin to call on prime minister to introduce a banZia Yusuf has resigned as chair of Reform UK after earlier suggesting it was dumb" of the party's newest MP to call for a ban on the burqa.Yusuf was a donor to the party before becoming its chair last summer after the election. Continue reading...
Felton to make Broadway debut in play set 19 years after events of the final book in JK Rowling's fantasy seriesTom Felton is to reprise his role as Draco Malfoy for the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play.The actor, who starred in all the film adaptations of JK Rowling's fantasy novels, will make a comeback as Harry Potter's school bully on Broadway at the Lyric theatre in New York later this year. Continue reading...
Zia Yusuf said Sarah Pochin's question to the prime minister on banning the burqa was not party policyA row has broken out in Reform UK after its newest MP called on the prime minister to ban the burqa, with that party's chair, Zia Yusuf, saying it was a dumb" question given that was not party policy.Sarah Pochin, who recently won the Runcorn and Helsby byelection, asked Keir Starmer in parliament on Wednesday: Given the prime minister's desire to strengthen strategic alignment with our European neighbours, will he in the interests of public safety follow the lead of France, Denmark, Belgium and others and ban the burqa?" Continue reading...
Victorian woman, 50, has pleaded not guilty to three charges of murder and one of attempted murder over a fatal 2023 beef wellington lunch. Follow live updatesPatterson is shown a photo of the dehydrator at the tip and asked if this is the one she owned.I presume so," Patterson says.This post was amended on 5 June 2025 to correct the location of the police search, which was at Patterson's Leongatha home and not at Leongatha hospital as previously stated. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Excitement is higher elsewhere, in global split that seems to mirror level of trust in government regulationPeople in English-speaking countries including the UK, US, Australia and Canada are more nervous about the rise of artificial intelligence than those in the largest EU economies, where excitement over its spread is higher, new research suggests.A global split over what has been dubbed the wonder and worry" of AI appears to correlate with widely divergent levels of trust in governments to regulate the fast-developing technology. Continue reading...
by Nadia Khomami Arts and culture correspondent on (#6XRS7)
Exclusive: Demand the Impossible interrogates police injustice and infiltration of 1,000 political groupsThere's one moment from the public inquiry into undercover police officers - known as spycops" - that sticks in the theatre director Rhiannon White's mind. It was during the questioning of Bob Lambert, an officer who deceived at least four women into sexual relationships in the 1980s, and fathered a child with one of them.Lambert's lack of attention to detail was shocking; the whole thing seemed like a process to him. Whereas Belinda Harvey, one of the women, meticulously remembered every single detail of their relationship, every feeling, every thought. She said she was in her early 20s when she met him, and she was basically groomed into activism by him. This is someone whose life was completely turned inside out and upside down by the state. This is someone who was raped by the state." Continue reading...
In today's newsletter: The Dutch government collapsed after Wilders pulled out of the coalition - leaving renewed political uncertainty as parties scramble to redefine their positionsGood morning. The Dutch government dramatically collapsed on Tuesday after far-right politician Geert Wilders pulled out of the coalition, citing his frustration over immigration and asylum policy.Shortly afterwards the prime minister, Dick Schoof, handed in his resignation to King Willem-Alexander. Fresh elections are expected in October. Until then ministers will remain in place in a caretaker capacity.US news | Donald Trump has signed a sweeping order banning travel from 12 countries and restricting travel from seven others, reviving and expanding the travel bans from his first term. Security concerns and visa overstays, the US president said, justified the move.Fuel poverty | Bereaved families of tens of thousands of dead pensioners could be pursued by tax officials to recoup winter fuel payments under a new system being explored by the Treasury, the Guardian has learned.Israel-Gaza war | The Palestinian Red Crescent Society has detailed the harrowing account of one of its paramedics, Asaad al-Nasasra, 47, who told the organisation he heard Israeli troops shoot first responders. The attack on a convoy of emergency vehicles killed 15 others.UK economy | Keir Starmer has said he hopes a trade deal struck last month with the US can come into effect in just a couple of weeks", as the White House has signalled that the UK will be spared the 50% steel and aluminium tariffs that came into force on Wednesday.Global health | A cure for HIV may be closer after researchers discovered a new way to force the virus out of hiding in human cells. This overwhelming" breakthrough could help overcome one of the biggest obstacles to a cure: the virus's ability to lie dormant in certain white blood cells. Continue reading...
by Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent on (#6XRSA)
UK watchdog has had 40 reports relating to pregnancies in people using drugs such as Ozempic and MounjaroWomen using weight-loss drugs have been urged to use effective contraception after dozens have reported becoming pregnant while taking the medication.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has issued its first alert to the UK public regarding contraception and weight-loss medications after it received 40 reports relating to pregnancies while using drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro. Continue reading...
by Eleni Courea Political correspondent on (#6XRSB)
First survey of party's Muslim MPs, councillors and mayors reveals support for sanctions on Israel and arms exports banLabour is facing calls for action from a large group of its Muslim MPs, councillors and mayors, who believe Keir Starmer is mishandling the crisis in Gaza.In the first-ever survey of the party's Muslim representatives, 77% of respondents said they believed the government should end all UK arms exports to Israel and 84% supported sanctions against the Israeli government, the Labour Muslim Network (LMN) said. Nearly all respondents - 97% - said they supported the immediate recognition of the state of Palestine. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Government review into how the influencer obtained citizenship found no fault with his documents and Tate will remain a citizenVanuatu is not planning to revoke the citizenship of Andrew Tate, with a government spokesperson confirming that the influencer remains a Vanuatu citizen, and the government is not taking any steps to reverse that.This week investigative outlet, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) revealed that Tate obtained Vanuatu citizenship around the time of his 2022 arrest by Romanian authorities on charges including rape and human trafficking. Continue reading...
Consumer watchdogs accuse Chinese fashion firm of dark' practices in formal complaint to European CommissionConsumer watchdogs from 21 countries have filed a formal complaint to EU authorities about alleged dark" practices by the Chinese fast fashion firm Shein including the shaming" of customers into buying more than they can afford.The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) has submitted a 29-page dossier to the European Commission citing multiple examples of dark patterns", or deceptive techniques designed to encourage purchases. Continue reading...
by Lanre Bakare Arts and culture correspondent on (#6XRR8)
New owner wants to take Sculpture with Colour (Deep Blue and Red), created in Cornwall in second world war, overseasA fundraising drive with a target of almost 3m is under way to prevent a Barbara Hepworth masterpiece from being sold to a private buyer and taken out of the UK.Art Fund, the charity that secures art for public collections while providing financial support for museums and the Hepworth Wakefield, is trying to secure the funds in order to keep Sculpture with Colour (Deep Blue and Red) in the UK. Continue reading...
by Presented by John Harris, with Kiran Stacey and Je on (#6XRRA)
Labour's pledge to build 1.5 million homes is reportedly under serious threat. What's gone wrong? And what happens if the government breaks its promise to tackle the housing crisis? John Harris talks to the political correspondent Kiran Stacey and social affairs correspondent Jessica Murray.Plus, will the chancellor's charm offensive ease concerns about the huge spending cuts expected next week? And, could Labour learn something from Robert Jenrick's social media success? Continue reading...
by Denis Campbell Health policy editor on (#6XRMS)
Royal College of Radiologists warns of long delays to have surgery or treatment, raising chances of disease spreadingPeople with cancer face a ticking timebomb" of delays in getting diagnosed and treated because the NHS is too short-staffed to provide prompt care, senior doctors have warned.An NHS-wide shortage of radiologists and oncologists means patients are enduring long waits to have surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy and have a consultant review their care.Our waiting times for breast radiotherapy are now the worst I have ever known in 20 years."Current wait for head and neck cancers [is] six weeks, meaning possible progression before radiotherapy."A multiple week wait for palliative treatment has sometimes led to deterioration to the point is no longer possible." Continue reading...
by Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent on (#6XRMT)
Research shows disparity in care after detection of aortic stenosis, also affecting those living in deprived areasWomen, people from minority ethnic backgrounds, and those living in the most deprived areas of England are less likely to receive treatment after a diagnosis of a deadly heart disease, according to one of the largest studies of its kind.Researchers at the University of Leicester analysed data from almost 155,000 people diagnosed with aortic stenosis - a narrowing of the valve between the heart's main pumping chamber and the main artery - between 2000 and 2022 across England, from a database of anonymised GP records. Continue reading...
by Eleni Courea Political correspondent on (#6XRMV)
Exclusive: Trial giving right to request review of evidence by different prosecutor could be extended to all of England and WalesVictims of rape and serious sexual assault who face their cases being dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service will be given the right to request a review under a government pilot.The six-month scheme, which will launch on Friday in the West Midlands, will give victims the right to ask for their case to be reviewed by a different prosecutor if the CPS indicates it intends to offer no evidence. Continue reading...
by Anna Betts in New York and agencies on (#6XREA)
Bryana Bongolan tells Manhattan jurors that the hip-hop mogul held her off Cassie's 17th-floor apartment in 2016A woman testified on Wednesday in Sean Diddy" Combs's federal racketeering conspiracy and sex-trafficking trial that thehip-hop mogul dangled her from the balcony of a 17th-floor apartment in 2016.Bryana Bongolan, a longtime friend of Combs's former girlfriend, singer Casandra Cassie" Ventura, told jurors in Manhattan federal court that in September 2016 Combs showed up unannounced one morning at Ventura's Los Angeles apartment, where she was staying at the time, and began banging on the door. Continue reading...
Vladimir Putin has warned Russia will respond to Kyiv's attacks on nuclear-capable aircraft at airfieldsAs Vladimir Putin pledges to retaliate against Ukraine for last weekend's unprecedented drone attack, Kremlin advisers and figures around Donald Trump have told the US president that the risk of a nuclear confrontation is growing, in an attempt to pressure him to further reduce US support for Ukraine.Kirill Dmitriev, the head of Russia's sovereign wealth fund and an important intermediary between the Kremlin and Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, called the Ukrainian drone strike an attack on Russian nuclear assets", and echoed remarks from Maga-friendly figures warning of the potential for a third world war. Continue reading...
by Lorenzo Tondo in Jerusalem and agencies on (#6XQSE)
Extended closure said to be for maintenance and follows deaths of at least 27 people killed by Israeli troops near distribution siteA US-backed group operating food distribution sites in Gaza has announced that its operations would be suspended for a second day on Thursday, due to maintenance and repair work", as the Israeli army warned that roads leading to distribution centres were considered combat zones".After Israeli troops opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians, killing at least 27 and injuring hundreds, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) pressed Israel to improve civilian safety beyond the perimeter of its distribution sites. Continue reading...
PM tells MPs he is considering imposing sanctions on Israeli government members but is resisting ban on arms salesKeir Starmer has called Israel's recent actions in Gaza appalling, counterproductive and intolerable", as the UK government comes under mounting pressure to take stronger action after the killings of dozens of civilians at food points in recent days.The prime minister told MPs on Wednesday the UK was considering imposing sanctions on members of the Israeli government, but is so far resisting growing calls for a complete ban on arms sales and immediate recognition of Palestine. Continue reading...
by Ashifa Kassam European community affairs correspon on (#6XREE)
Orban's ruling party delays vote on legislation allowing government to ban organisations with foreign fundingHungary's ruling party has postponed a planned vote on draft legislation aimed at organisations that receive foreign funding, following weeks of protests and warnings that the law would starve and strangle" civil society and independent media.Viktor Orban's rightwing populist party, Fidesz, put forward legislation last month that would allow the government to monitor, penalise and potentially ban organisations that receive any sort of foreign funding, including donations or EU grants. Continue reading...