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Annastacia Palaszczuk says the trio are barred from lobbying ministers until after the 2024 state election

Judge says Brendan Leigh Russell showed no remorse after a woman died of an infection from procedure he performed

Lucy Powell raises with Dominic Raab case of young black men jailed after taking part in a group chatA Manchester MP is to raise concerns with the justice secretary over the conviction of several young black men who were jailed after taking part in a group chat discussing revenge for their friend’s murder.Lucy Powell, the MP for Manchester Central and shadow culture secretary, said it was just the latest example of black youths in her constituency being unfairly drawn into a “gang” narrative because of the music they listen to and who they know. Continue reading...

Irish distillers are closing the market gap on their hitherto dominant Scottish rivalsKaren Gregory, a tourist from Oklahoma, visited Dublin this week, inhaled an aroma of malted barley at Teeling Whiskey Distillery, and picked a side in a centuries-old contest. “Definitely Irish. It’s lighter and brighter. Scotch is too heavy.”The crowd of visitors merrily sipping neat whiskeys, whiskey cocktails and whiskey-infused coffees suggested more converts to the Irish side of a rivalry that has pitted two venerable traditions in a battle for market domination. Continue reading...

Hong Kong legislator tests positive after meeting Chinese president, and city-wide testing begins in Macau to contain its worst outbreakA Hong Kong legislator who appeared in a group photo with Xi Jinping during his visit to the territory has said he has tested positive for Covid, as Macau kicks off a new round of city-wide coronavirus testing.In his first trip outside mainland China since the pandemic began, the Chinese president stayed for less than 24 hours in Hong Kong and met only people who had undergone quarantine. Continue reading...

Local historians seek to preserve part of Santiago de Compostela’s heritage after residents find nine-hole patterns across cityA local historical association in Santiago de Compostela has called for the protection of a lesser-known facet of the Spanish city’s past: the almost 200 games of noughts and crosses carved centuries ago into some of its most emblematic buildings and spaces.“They’re hidden in plain sight,” said Luis Leclere of Colectivo A Rula. “We’ve never heard of anything like the concentration of games we have here.” Continue reading...

Camping association wants overhaul of law to ensure that waste is properly buried and at least 50 metres from nearest waterwayA New Zealand law allowing people to poo in public – so long as they do not think they are being watched – must be tightened, says a freedom camping association, amid long-running allegations that campers are to blame for much of the human waste in the natural environment.It is currently an offence to defecate or urinate in a public place (other than in a public lavatory), but, if the person can show they had reasonable grounds for believing they were not being observed, they may be able to escape a $200 fine. Continue reading...

Authorities urge people to adjust travel plans and avoid driving on Monday amid heavy rain and flooding in parts of NSW

Yoorrook commission says it needs time to create culturally appropriate model as interim report details ongoing pain of First Nations elders

Foreign minister tells regime Beijing expects it to seek ‘political reconciliation’, amid regional concerns over spiralling civil violenceChina’s foreign minister has called for Myanmar’s junta to hold talks with its opponents, during his first visit to the country since the 2021 coup that plunged it into turmoil.Beijing is one of the Myanmar military’s few international allies, supplying arms and refusing to label the power grab that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s government a coup. Continue reading...

Foreign secretary ‘supportive’ of idea that frozen Russian assets could be redistributed to victims of invasion

Parliamentary staffers and Tory MPs say allegations of sexual misconduct were not acted on by whipsBoris Johnson is facing a backlash over the promotion of his ally Chris Pincher, as a group of Conservative parliamentary staffers accused the prime minister of a “failure to act on warnings” of sexual misconduct by his MPs.As new claims emerged about Pincher, who resigned as deputy chief whip over allegations that he groped two men in a London club, No 10 continued to insist that Johnson was unaware of any “specific” warnings until last week. Continue reading...

Labour MP wants inquiries into potential sexual misconduct to be possible before a specific victim comes forwardSexual misconduct allegations about MPs should be investigated without always needing a victim to formally come forward, Jess Phillips, the Labour MP and victims advocate, has said.Phillips, a shadow Home Office minister, said it was not right that Boris Johnson used the lack of a formal complaint against Chris Pincher as an “excuse” for the Conservative party not to have looked into widespread rumours about his conduct. Continue reading...

One set of charges laid and 22 matters still under investigation from police group set up to tackle anything from threats of violence to false informationFederal police conducted 39 investigations under a special taskforce related to the federal election, with numerous politicians and political candidates the target of threats, menacing phone calls and social media harassment.Police laid one set of charges over threats to the former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce, while police are still making inquiries around a further 22 matters that are ongoing.Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning Continue reading...

Tony Burke, who holds arts and workplace portfolios, says national cultural policy must include ‘assurances of a safe workplace for women’ after #MeToo allegations

Lawyers say the ‘preventive policing’ suspect target management plan, which disproportionately focuses on Indigenous youth, uses potentially unlawful tactics

Flight could take off within weeks and before court has ruled on whether scheme is lawfulThe Home Office is planning a second flight to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, which could take off before the courts have ruled on whether the scheme is lawful, the Guardian has learned.It is understood that a second flight could take off in a matter of weeks despite the fact that the full high court hearing to examine the government’s Rwanda plans does not begin until 19 July. Continue reading...

Rarely seen erotic drawings offer glimpse into the painter’s private life and relationship with womenJMW Turner is revered as a genius landscape painter, the king of the turbulent maritime scene, but much less is known about the more private side of the artist. Specifically: Turner and sex.The curators of a new exhibition, Between the Sheets, Turner’s Nudes, hope to change that by displaying rarely seen erotic watercolour drawings that he made over the course of his career. Continue reading...

Clubs hope to boost sport’s profile further after World Cup surge in popularity as tournament opens in England this weekNaomi Short has been playing football on and off for nearly 30 years and cannot wait for England to host the Euros this week, but she’s even more excited that her 13-year-old daughter will witness the biggest ever women’s sporting event. “It’s brilliant – they’ve got the future I probably would have wanted,” she says.Short, 45, plays for Longford Park Ladies FC in Manchester, a grassroots team that was set up by mothers five years ago to train alongside their children when there were hardly any teams around for women who just wanted to play for fun. Continue reading...

Dr Jenny Harries says hospitalisations are set to exceed April peak in weeks ahead as infections soarHealth chiefs are braced for a “bumpy ride” over the coming months amid fears that the latest wave of Covid will drive hospitalisations to their highest in more than a year and seasonal flu pressures could hit early.Dr Jenny Harries, the chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency, told the BBC’s Sunday Morning programme that hospital cases with Covid were expected to rise in the weeks ahead, with admissions likely to exceed the April peak driven by the BA.2 subvariant of Omicron. Continue reading...

Russia claims to have taken full control of Lysychansk; blasts in Russian city near Ukrainian border

Frans Timmermans’ comments reveal depth of concern about rule of law in central European countryA senior European Commission official has criticised a decision by his colleagues to approve Poland’s Covid recovery plan, in comments that reveal the depth of concern about the rule of law in the central European country.Frans Timmermans, a commission vice-president, who spent nearly four years leading EU efforts to safeguard independent courts in Poland, said the approval of Poland’s long-delayed Covid recovery plan last month was “incorrect”. Continue reading...

Court request comes as president faces criticism for ditching promise to turn Saudi Arabia into a ‘pariah’A US judge has asked the Biden administration to weigh in on whether Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, should be granted sovereign immunity in a civil case brought against him in the US by Hatice Cengiz, the fiancee of Jamal Khashoggi, the journalist who was killed by Saudi agents in 2018.John Bates, a district court judge, gave the US government until 1 August to declare its interests in the civil case or give the court notice that it has no view on the matter. Continue reading...

The smell was not overpowering when Jess Williams returned home before an explosion that led to 70% burns

The director’s landmark achievements include a nine-hour Mahabharata, putting Shakespeare on trapezes and directing Olivier, Gielgud and Scofield at the RSC

PM under pressure to explain what he knew about former deputy chief whip’s alleged sexual misconductBoris Johnson is facing accusations he ignored warnings about alleged sexual misconduct by his former deputy chief whip Chris Pincher, after a string of further claims about the MP emerged.The prime minister is under pressure to explain what he knew about Pincher’s conduct, amid claims by the former No 10 aide Dominic Cummings that Johnson referred to him as “Pincher by name, pincher by nature”. Continue reading...

Man drowns after boat capsizes in Abbotsford; vaccination mandates to ease on international flights; PM says ADF available as thousands are urged to evacuate in Sydney flood crisis; 30 Covid deaths recorded nationwide. This blog is now closed

Danger is a daily reality for the health workers, and moments of upheaval raise the risk, expert saysBoulder, Colorado, has for decades made its abortion providers feel welcome. The city council passed one of the country’s first laws regulating how close demonstrators could get to patients seeking reproductive care, and residents took to the streets in protest when it became clear that the supreme court was ready to overturn the constitutional right to abortion, as it did last month.“Boulder is probably the most pro-choice community in the country,” said Warren Hern, director of the Boulder Abortion Clinic. “But there are people in the community who want me dead.” Continue reading...

Cases rejected include assaults on health workers and harrassment offencesSolicitors in London are turning down new instructions for defendants accused of assaults on emergency workers and harassment offences in an escalating dispute over legal aid fees.Criminal defence lawyers in the capital are already refusing burglary cases because they say legal aid fees are too low. Continue reading...

The advent of the micropub is the latest trend to be reflected in changing pub signsInn is out. Bar, on the other hand, is very much in. Traditional pub names are on the decline, a reflection of the problems facing licensees and the success of the craft brewing boom.Data from the Food Standards Agency shows there were 103 fewer licensed establishments with “Inn” in the name in 2022 compared with 2020 – the biggest faller. “Arms” was also down by 49, while “Bar” was up by 119 and “Tap” up by 48. Continue reading...

‘Disastrous’ attempt to intervene over Pincher may intensify backbench calls for prime minister to goThe former Tory whip who has been suspended as an MP for allegedly groping two male colleagues said on Saturday he was seeking “professional medical support” for his problems as the latest Tory sex scandal spelt yet more trouble for Boris Johnson.Chris Pincher, who has been referred to the independent complaints and grievance scheme in relation to incidents at the Carlton Club in central London on Wednesday evening, said he was “truly sorry” and that he hoped be back serving his constituents again “as soon as possible.” Continue reading...

Courtroom battle looms as author argues her book revealing inspiration for character became basis of an American novelTwo authors are to go head to head in the high court in London this week in a bitter literary plagiarism row that revolves around the love life one of the most romantic of all heroines, Lara Antipova from the Russian epic Dr Zhivago.British author Anna Pasternak, a descendant of the Russian author of the original novel, will argue in court that substantial sections of her own factual account of the real-life inspiration for the character of Lara have since been copied and exploited in an American novel. Continue reading...

Overseas students have vanished from courses and then been found working in exploitative conditionsUniversities have been urged to be on high alert for human trafficking after suspected victims brought to Britain on student visas vanished from their courses and were found working in exploitative conditions hundreds of miles away.In a recent case, Indian students at Greenwich, Chester and Teesside universities stopped attending lectures shortly after arriving in the UK, according to a report by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) seen by the Observer. Continue reading...

People arriving in the country will no longer need to use the digital passenger declaration under changes to come into effect next week

Former emergency services minister offered a state funeral to honour her ‘life of service’

Officials allege contract was corruptly procured by business duo behind P&ID as saga of energy project and secretive tribunal heads for high courtIt has been described as one of the most extraordinary cases ever to come before the high court, involving an Irish impresario, an alleged $50,000 bribe stuffed into a bag and potentially one of the biggest payouts in legal history.The saga of two Irish businessmen, Michael Quinn and Brendan Cahill, who promised to revolutionise Nigeria’s energy sector, will be at the centre of a high court trial early next year. Continue reading...

Experiment in London speeds up handover by emergency ambulance crews to doctors and is safer for patientsParamedics have begun looking after patients inside an A&E unit, in an initiative by the health service to stop ambulances queueing outside hospitals and ease the strain on overstretched casualty staff.The scheme has led to patients being handed over much more quickly at a hospital that was one of the worst in England for sick people being stuck, sometimes for many hours, in the back of an ambulance. Continue reading...

Murders, corruption and ‘Mocro Maffia’ prompt Dutch to set up war chest to tackle wave of organised crime sweeping nationJournalists and lawyers under protection or murdered on the streets, court hearings guarded by the army, witness statements anonymised, and billions in dirty drug money that leaches through society, corrupting as it goes.This is the Netherlands, where these facts have now inspired a crackdown pitting some €500m a year against a level of organised crime that politicians fear is increasingly “undermining” public order. Continue reading...

Federal health minister Mark Butler says new BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants increase the risk of reinfection

Planned action by the airline’s Spain-based cabin crew over working conditions will increase disruption for holidaymakersBritish holidaymakers are braced for fresh travel chaos across Europe this summer with staff at Ryanair on Saturday becoming the latest to threaten strike action.As striking airport workers in Paris forced the cancellation of dozens of flights on Saturday and promised more industrial action later in July, Spain-based cabin crew at Ryanair revealed they now plan to strike for 12 days in July. Continue reading...

NSW State Emergency Service issues emergency alert text messages as severe weather threatens low-lying areas

Redlands mayor Karen Williams is due in court next month after crashing her vehicle while allegedly three times over the legal blood alcohol limit

Department for Transport says accreditation for aviation workers being processed in under 10 daysMinisters battling to dampen the chaos at airports claim security tests for new workers are being completed in record times as passengers criticised “disaster movie” scenes.The transport secretary, Grant Shapps, is trying to alleviate flight disruption this summer to avert the mayhem seen over the Easter and jubilee holidays. Continue reading...

Many teens and young adults are caught between systems for supporting adults and the child protection system

Defence minister says Australia must ‘make right this appalling set of circumstances’ and promises to keep parliament informed of progress

Greens say ‘staggering’ figures should be examined as part of parliamentary inquiry into management and protection of state’s wildlife

Exclusive: Submission to state inquiry alleges Queensland police routinely hid domestic violence failures from coroner

Claire Chandler asks supporters to donate to $45,000 ‘action fund’ to raise awareness around the issueLiberal senator Claire Chandler is continuing to raise funds on the issue of the participation of trans women in female sport, after putting legislation on the issue on the backburner, admitting it does not have enough support to pass in the new parliament.The sports minister, Anika Wells, has said the federal government has no plans to introduce legislative change on the issue, adding that Chandler’s “alienating bill can go right to the back of the shelf to gather dust”. Continue reading...

Trusts reveal only five wholly new hospitals planned, as Labour says the scheme ‘exists only in PM’s imagination’The government’s official spending watchdog is to launch an inquiry into Boris Johnson’s claim that 40 new hospitals will be built by 2030, as concerns grow in Whitehall that the pledge is unaffordable and has been greatly oversold to the public.In a move that could prove hugely embarrassing for the prime minister, the independent National Audit Office (NAO) has decided to conduct a “value for money review” into the entire scheme, which was a cornerstone of the Conservative party’s 2019 general election manifesto. Continue reading...

British Medical Association says move will put patients and healthcare workers in England at significant riskScrapping special Covid leave for NHS staff is “completely unacceptable” and will put patients and healthcare workers at significant risk, the British Medical Association has warned.From 7 July the government plans to withdraw the special paid leave for Covid-related sickness and isolation for NHS staff in England, meaning they will revert to normal contractual sick pay arrangements. Continue reading...