At the end of a day of embarrassment and existential despair for the Tories, two cabinet members quitYou’d have thought ministers would have learned by now not to open their mouths to the media without their lawyers being present. Come to think of it, they might also want to have their lawyers around when they are being briefed by the prime minister on what they are expected to say. After all, lying is second nature to Boris Johnson: he thinks nothing of misinforming friends, family and colleagues as well as the rest of us. All he asks from his cabinet of all the talentless is complete naivety and a willingness to be humiliated over and over again.On Sunday it had been Therese Coffey’s turn. She had crashed and burned as she tried to remember what it was she was supposed to have forgotten about No 10’s latest version of what The Convict had known about Chris Pincher’s previous. On Monday, it had been children’s minister Will Quince who was trying to forget what nonsense he was supposed to remember. He looked so traumatised by the experience that he was begging to be admitted to a psychiatric ward. Continue reading...
Zero-Covid strategy shuts down north-central city of 13 million following 18 reported cases of OmicronBusinesses, schools and restaurants in Xi’an will close for one week, officials have said, after the Chinese city logged a handful of Covid-19 cases as outbreaks nationwide strain Beijing’s zero-tolerance virus approach.China is the last major economy wedded to a zero-Covid strategy, deploying snap lockdowns, quarantines and travel curbs in a bid to weed out new infections. Continue reading...
Prime minister Abiy Ahmed blames Oromo Liberation Army but group says government-allied militias behind attacksAn unknown number of villagers have been killed in an ethnically motivated massacre in western Ethiopia, the country’s state-appointed rights body said, in the latest wave of violence following a mass killing in mid-June.The Oromia region, where the Amhara are a minority ethnic group, has experienced outbreaks of violence for many years, rooted in grievances about political marginalisation and neglect by the central government. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Women for Refugee Women says it is in touch with first woman considered for removalA woman in immigration detention has been targeted for removal to Rwanda, a UK refugee charity has said.Women for Refugee Women said it was in touch with a survivor of trafficking who was recently issued with a notice of intent that she was being considered for removal to Rwanda. Continue reading...
Rising costs push up prices and drivers wait more than 12 months to take delivery of some modelsSales of new cars in the UK fell by almost a quarter last month, the worst June since 1996, as global chip shortages hammered the industry.Global shortages of components such as semiconductors, exacerbated by Covid restrictions in China, continue to hamper manufacturers’ ability to keep up with demand, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said. Drivers are waiting more than 12 months to take delivery of some models. Continue reading...
Prof Andrew Pollard says there are ‘extraordinary’ number of infections in England, with 1,000 people being admitted dailyIt would be “sensible” for hospitals to reintroduce mandatory mask-wearing, the chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has said, as several trusts in England and Wales announced the move.When NHS rules on wearing masks in England were dropped on 10 June, local health bodies were given the power to draft their own policies. Their guidance, however, is no longer legally enforceable. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Political correspondent on (#612WF)
With four decades of experience as a diplomat and official, the 61-year-old is an unlikely figure to accuse a government of lyingA brief glance at Simon McDonald’s career résumé makes him appear one of the unlikeliest people to openly accuse a government of lying: four decades as a diplomat and official, with a string of top honours after his name, culminating in a peerage.It is true that during his long stint at the Foreign Office, the man known formally as Lord McDonald of Salford had to deal with a string of hugely sensitive issues, from the tantrums of Donald Trump to being accused himself of complicity in undermining an overseas government. Continue reading...
by Josh Taylor, Caitlin Cassidy, Stephanie Convery an on (#612GS)
Federal disaster payments available to 23 flood-affected areas; nation records 46 Covid deaths as Brad Hazzard says antivirals should be more accessible and Victoria extends pandemic declaration. This blog is now closed
Sunny Duong denies allegations he made a $37,000 hospital donation to gain influence over the Australian governmentA Chinese community leader accused of planning foreign interference allegedly singled out former minister Alan Tudge because he believed he would one day be prime minister.Prosecutors allege Di Sanh Duong, who uses the name Sunny, made a $37,000 donation to the Royal Melbourne Hospital in 2020 as a way to gain influence over the Australian government through Tudge. Continue reading...
Jamaican-British actor, who played Blossom Jackson in BBC soap, hailed as a ‘pioneer’ and ‘trailblazer’Mona Hammond, best known for playing the matriarch of the Jackson clan, Blossom Jackson, in the BBC soap EastEnders, has died aged 91.A distinguished Jamaican-British stage actor of Chinese descent, Hammond has been hailed as a “pioneer” and “trailblazer” for her work on stage, screen, television and radio, and for her support for Black British actors. Continue reading...
Soaring inflation piling pressure on country already struggling with shortages and stirring memories of Mugabe chaosZimbabwe’s central bank will start selling gold coins this month as a store of value to tame runaway inflation, which has considerably weakened the local currency.The central bank governor, John Mangudya, said in a statement on Monday that the coins would be available for sale from 25 July in local currency, US dollars and other foreign currencies at a price based on the prevailing international price of gold and the cost of production. Continue reading...
Signs that Omicron surge is becoming ‘more intense’, with cases rising steadily and more people in hospital than at any time since AprilNew Zealand is on the brink of another Omicron wave, experts warn, with average cases rising as immunity wanes, more infectious variants arrive, and winter sets in.Public health experts, however, are concerned that the public and government are primarily focused on “moving on” from the virus, after the country transitioned out of its Covid elimination strategy – and are not taking the necessary steps to try to reduce transmission. Continue reading...
Complaint handling costing firms more than £9bn a month in lost time amid supply issues and staffing crisisCustomer service complaints have hit their highest level on record and are costing British businesses more than £9bn a month in lost staff time, research has found.As firms struggle to cope with global supply issues and a staffing crisis, the Institute of Customer Service found more consumers were experiencing service issues than at any point since its customer satisfaction index began in 2008. Continue reading...
Universities say they want to reverse the grade inflation seen during the Covid pandemicThe proportion of top degree grades awarded to undergraduates in England could fall by nearly 25% after universities said they want to reverse the grade inflation seen during the Covid pandemic.Universities UK and GuildHE, representing institutions across the higher education sector, have jointly announced plans to return to pre-pandemic levels of firsts and 2:1s being awarded over the next two years. Continue reading...
by Patrick Butler Social policy editor on (#612NT)
Philippa Stroud who heads new commission aimed at tackling hardship says ministers need a long-term plan to help the poorA Conservative peer and ex-adviser to former welfare secretary Iain Duncan Smith has accused the government of treating the UK’s poverty crisis as a “political football” and lacking the will and ambition to tackle soaring hardship and destitution.Philippa Stroud, who this week launches an independent cross-party commission aimed at finding practical solutions to poverty, said the pandemic and the cost of living crisis had showed long-term policy change was needed to transform the lives of millions of people struggling on low incomes. Continue reading...
Rising water levels on the Imjin River caused by suspected release prompts holidaymakers and residents to leaveNorth Korea appears to have released water from a dam near its border with South Korea, prompting vacationers in the neighbouring country to evacuate over rising water levels on the Imjin River.The water level at a bridge across the river in the South’s border county of Yeoncheon surpassed 1 metre on Monday afternoon, requiring visitors on the riverbank to evacuate. Continue reading...
Labor and Liberal members deny making any such agreement with Enid Lyons List, a group with stated aim of getting more ‘pro-life’ women into parliament
TikTok craze for dressing up linked to unruly behaviour among young people at screeningsSome UK cinemas have banned groups of young people wearing suits during screenings of Minions: The Rise of Gru.The decision came after some young moviegoers were criticised for rowdy behaviour after a viral trend erupted on the social media app TikTok. Continue reading...
All England club emails tennis stars, who get £90 a day, and coaches, suggesting they rein in consumption to avoid shortagesWimbledon stars have been asked to be “judicious” about maxing out their daily food allowance so supplies do not run out.Competitors are given a £90 a day allowance to spend on food and drink in dedicated restaurants across SW19. Coaches are allocated about half that amount, with the funds available on accreditation tags that can be scanned at checkout. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Political correspondent on (#612D3)
Labour leader says he will rebuild trust with EU and get ‘a better deal for the British people’Keir Starmer has thrown Labour back into the Brexit debate by ruling out any return to the single market or customs union, but arguing he could remove trade and travel barriers as prime minister because the EU would trust him.In a speech on Monday evening that ended Labour’s habitual silence on the subject since the referendum, Starmer pledged to tackle what he called a “fatberg of red tape and bureaucracy” caused by Johnson’s Brexit deal. Continue reading...
by Angela Giuffrida in Canazei, and agencies on (#611W6)
Visiting scene, Italian PM says country must take measures to ensure such a tragedy does not happen againThunderstorms have hampered the search for more than a dozen hikers who remain unaccounted for a day after a huge chunk of an Alpine glacier in Italy broke off, sending an avalanche of ice, snow and rocks down the slope.The Italian prime minister, Mario Draghi, pledged on Monday night that his government would work to avoid a repeat of the tragedy in which at least seven people were killed. Continue reading...
Exclusive: In latest revelations from submissions to inquiry into police culture, former officer says she was told to ‘calm down’ colleague’s wife who made complaint against him
Heavily armed 22-year-olds died in shootout that left six police officers injured in Saanich, British ColumbiaPolice in Canada have identified the heavily armed culprits of a brazen bank robbery last week as twin brothers whose social media posts showed an obsession with guns and fears of government “tyranny”, and an interest in infamous bank heists.On Saturday, police identified Mathew and Isaac Auchterlonie, 22, as the two men killed after they attempted to rob a bank in the municipality of Saanich, British Columbia. Continue reading...
Isyaka Mamman, believed to be 85, due to be sentenced after admitting gross negligence manslaughterA woman died after a doctor botched a routine procedure, a Manchester court has heard.Dr Isyaka Mamman, who is believed to be 85, had been suspended once by a medical watchdog for lying about his age and had been sacked but then re-employed by the Royal Oldham hospital, where he was responsible for a series of critical incidents before the fatal appointment, Manchester crown court was told. Continue reading...
by Gwyn Topham Transport correspondent on (#61202)
Departure of Peter Bellew will put increased focus on CEO Johan Lundgren to turn around airline’s fortunesEasyJet is parting ways with its chief operating officer, after weeks of turmoil and last-minute cancellations hit the airline’s reputation for reliability and customer service.The airline said Peter Bellew had resigned at the end of last week “to pursue other business opportunities” after two and a half years in the role. Continue reading...
But forensic analysis of bullet that killed Palestinian-American journalist found to be inconclusiveUS investigators believe Israeli army gunfire probably killed the Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, although a forensic analysis of the bullet was inconclusive.A statement released by the State Department spokesperson Ned Price said “detailed forensic analysis, independent, third-party examiners … could not reach a definitive conclusion regarding the origin of the bullet”, which was badly damaged. Continue reading...
Ukrainian forces retreat from Lysychansk as Zelenskiy vows to regain the key eastern city with the help of long-range western weaponsUkrainian forces have raised the country’s flag on Snake Island, a strategic and symbolic outpost in the Black Sea that Russian troops retreated from last week after months of heavy bombardment. “The military operation has been concluded, and … the territory, Snake Island, has been returned to the jurisdiction of Ukraine,” Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s southern military command, told reporters. Ukraine has considered control of the island as a critical step in loosening Moscow’s blockade on its southern ports.Leaders from dozens of countries, international organisations and the private sector gathered in Switzerland today to hash out a ‘Marshall plan’ to rebuild war-ravaged Ukraine. Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who took part virtually, earlier warned that the work ahead in the areas that have been liberated alone was “really colossal”. “And we will have to free over 2,000 villages and towns in the east and south of Ukraine,” he said.Ukraine’s prime minister Denys Shmygal has put a price tag on the recovery of his country at $750bn (£620bn). He said the Ukrainian government believed a key source of funding for the recovery plan should be assets confiscated from Russian oligarchs, and that there had been more than $100bn of direct damage to infrastructure from Russia’s invasion so far.Ukrainian forces on Sunday retreated from Lysychansk as Russia claims it is now in control of Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region. The Russian defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, said Moscow’s forces had established “full control” over Lysychansk and several nearby settlements. Ukraine’s military command confirmed that its troops had been forced to pull back from the city, saying there would otherwise be “fatal consequences”. Lysychansk was the last Ukrainian-controlled city in the Luhansk region.Zelenskiy vowed to regain Lysychansk with the help of long-range western weapons. “We will return thanks to our tactics, thanks to the increase in the supply of modern weapons. Ukraine does not give anything up,” he said in an evening address.Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Russian troops on “liberating” the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk. In a televised meeting with defence minister Sergei Shoigu on Monday, Putin congratulated Russian forces on their “victories in the Luhansk direction”. Reuters reports he said those who participated in the combat should “absolutely rest and recover their military preparedness”, while other units continue fighting in other areas.Russia will shift the main focus of its war in Ukraine to trying to seize all of the Donetsk region after capturing neighbouring Luhansk, the Luhansk region’s governor Serhai Haidai has said. He claimed about 8,000 civilians remain in occupied Sievierodonetsk and about 10,000 in newly occupied Lysychansk.Russian forces hit a secondary school in the Kharkiv district at 4am Monday morning, according to a report from Oleh Synyehubov, governor of the region. There were no reported casualties. He also said three people were killed and six injured in an attack on the village of Bezruky in his region. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Contractors at ‘high risk’ of Taliban reprisals still have no idea how to get out of country safelyMore than 180 British Council contractors left trapped in Afghanistan have been given immediate permission by the UK government to apply online to come to Britain, but no hint of how to get out of the country safely.The partial breakthrough came after a campaign led by MPs and former colleagues of the staff that had been horrified that they had been left behind, and exposed to retribution by the Taliban for teaching values of diversity and openness. Continue reading...
Sandwich chain bounces back after Covid restrictions as half-year revenues more than tripleThe sandwich chain Pret a Manger has returned to profitable operations after two years in which it lost a cumulative £570m.Announcing trading figures for the first six months of 2022, the company said its recovery had “continued and accelerated”, with half-year revenues more than tripling year on year to £357.8m, helping it return to profitability in March and becoming cashflow positive since May. Continue reading...
Anas Sarwar calls instead for creation of ‘senate of nations and regions’ and rules out pact with SNPA Labour government would scrap the House of Lords and create a “senate of the nations and regions” in its place, the Scottish Labour leader has announced.Giving a speech in Westminster, in which he also ruled out any pact or coalition with Nicola Sturgeon’s Scottish National party (SNP), Anas Sarwar said: “A central part of the mission of the Labour party must be to renew democracy. Continue reading...
by Vincent Ni China affairs correspondent on (#611W7)
Canadian-Chinese businessman Xiao Jianhua will finally stand trial in case linked to President Xi’s corruption driveChina has formally put Canadian-Chinese tycoon Xiao Jianhua on trial, more than five years after his alleged abduction in Hong Kong, which rattled the city and sparked fears about residents being forcibly disappeared.The Canadian embassy in Beijing confirmed on Monday that Xiao’s trial had begun this week. “Canadian consular officials are monitoring this case closely, providing consular services to his family and continue to press for consular access,” it said in a statement, without providing the location of the trial and charges against him. Continue reading...
Jonathan Spector’s 2018 play Eureka Day, about the social disarray after an outbreak of mumps, will receive its European premiere in SeptemberHelen Hunt is to star in a “wince-inducing” satire at the Old Vic in London, about a community split by their views on vaccination.Eureka Day, about a mumps outbreak at a school in California, is described by the theatre’s artistic director, Matthew Warchus, as “a very funny, clever and thought-provoking new play set amidst the panic of a highly contagious virus”. Jonathan Spector’s 2018 drama also explores the frenzy of trolling as parents struggle to reach a consensus on mandatory vaccination. Continue reading...
Government U-turns over plans to curtail autonomy of Karakalpakstan but fears rise tensions may escalateEighteen people were killed and 243 wounded during unrest in Uzbekistan’s autonomous province of Karakalpakstan over plans to curtail its autonomy, Uzbek authorities said.Security forces detained 516 people while dispersing protesters on Friday but have released many of them, the national guard press office told a briefing. Continue reading...
by Peter Walker Political correspondent on (#611SN)
Jenny Chapman says PM must answer questions over what he knew when he appointed Tory deputy chief whipBoris Johnson still has questions to answer over the appointment of Chris Pincher as Conservative deputy chief whip, Labour has said, as a minister said it was possible the prime minister knew of general concerns about the MP’s behaviour.Johnson faces a backlash for promoting Pincher despite what staffers say were warnings about sexual misconduct by him. Continue reading...
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