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Meta urged to act after sacking of Guillermo Camacho, union leader who protested against working conditions at London officesThe Facebook owner Meta has come under fire after one of its contractors was accused of sacking a union leader in retaliation for leading protests against the company’s poor working conditions and excessive workload for its London-based cleaners.Guillermo Camacho had worked as a contracted cleaner for the company for almost seven years until he organised the protests outside Facebook’s Brock Street offices in the summer of 2021. He was suspended from his job within months, and fired in October for inadequate performance. Continue reading...

Initiative running to end of year will also benefit leisure travellers and touristsA scheme allowing free travel on suburban and middle-distance trains has begun in Spain, the latest in a series of European public transport initiatives intended to address increasing fuel costs.German rail fares returned to normal on Thursday after a three-month experiment with €9 (£7.75) tickets for a month’s unlimited travel on local and regional public transport networks. Continue reading...

Federal study on math and reading scores offers an early glimpse of the sheer magnitude of the learning setbacksMath and reading scores for America’s nine-year-olds fell dramatically during the first two years of the Covid pandemic, according to a new federal study – offering an early glimpse of the sheer magnitude of the learning setbacks dealt to children.Reading scores saw their largest decrease in 30 years, while math scores had their first decrease in the history of the testing regimen behind the study, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the US education department. Continue reading...

Damning report cites human rights violations against Uyghur Muslims in north-west Chinese provinceChina has committed “serious human rights violations” against Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang province which may amount to crimes against humanity, the outgoing UN human rights commissioner has said in a long-awaited and damning report. Continue reading...

Inspectors on site after Russia and Ukraine accuse each other of trying to sabotage visit

Town councillor Ken Walker was left with life-threatening injuries after incident in his and wife Freda’s homeA town councillor has died seven months after an attack at his home in which his 86-year-old wife was fatally wounded.Ken Walker was left with life-threatening injuries after the incident at the couple’s Derbyshire home on 14 January. Continue reading...

Multiverse, founded by son of former PM, is first apprenticeship provider allowed to award degreesTony Blair was the prime minister who met his aim of enrolling more than half of all young people in university by this century. Now his son is pioneering a way of awarding degrees with no need for a university at all.Euan Blair’s company, Multiverse, has become the first apprenticeship provider granted a licence to award degrees on the job. Continue reading...

UK chancellor says more help will be provided to heat homes this winter but does not explain howThe chancellor, Nadhim Zahawi, has said households should not be cut off if they cannot afford their energy bills, as the Treasury examines a range of options to help consumers cope with the cost of living crisis.Zahawi promised that the government would expand on the £37bn package of aid announced earlier this year to help households tackle soaring energy costs. He told Sky News: “No one should be cut off because they can’t afford their bills. Continue reading...

Labour leader defends proposals for freeze on bills part-funded by expanded windfall tax on oil and gas profits

PPF in line to acquire shares in Allwyn Entertainment, whose UK arm won lottery licence from Camelot

What can be done on rising prices – and would nationalising gas and electricity firms help?Governments across Europe have been funding pain relief measures to help with energy and petrol bills. The UK announced a £15bn package in May, largely in the form of cash payments to households, while EU member states are estimated to have spent €280bn (£243m) over the past year on everything from subsidies and price caps to one-off payments. But bills for households and businesses are reaching unsustainable levels, with further increases expected next year, sharpening the debate over whether ministers should be intervening directly in energy markets to help bring prices down.As Russia threatens to further reduce gas supplies, politicians in Italy, Spain, Greece and the Czech Republic are among those pushing for coordinated action. The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Monday Brussels was considering a measures to be adopted by the 27 member states. What are the options? Continue reading...

Laxman Narasimhan surprises investors by saying he will leave for US halfway through turnaround planThe boss of the Dettol disinfectant maker Reckitt Benckiser has abruptly resigned in order to take a new job in the US, surprising investors after a relatively brief three-year stint at the top of the FTSE 100 company.Laxman Narasimhan will step down as chief executive on 30 September, despite being partway through a turnaround plan he launched after joining in September 2019. Continue reading...

Truss has rejected idea but Gove says priority should be to ensure there is enough energy for households

The scale of the crisis in several European countries, and what governments are doing about itGovernments across Europe are scrambling to cushion citizens from soaring energy prices and have so far allocated a total of about €280bn (£240bn) to helping reduce the impact of the crisis, according to the thinktank Bruegel.Pressure is mounting for joint action beyond a voluntary 15% cut in consumption agreed in July, and the EU will hold an emergency summit on 9 September to discuss measures including a bloc-wide price cap. Continue reading...

Price of gas for delivery on Friday drops 21% from last night’s price of 405p per therm to 320pWholesale gas prices have tumbled amid signs that European leaders’ plans to avert a winter energy crisis are taking shape.The price of gas for delivery on Friday dropped 21% from last night’s price of 405p per therm to 320p, as the European Commission confirmed it is working on “emergency measures” and the German government said it is “prepared” for the winter. Continue reading...

Heavy reliance on gas is behind price surge, with the impact on poorest households also the worst in EuropeThe energy crisis is hitting UK household budgets harder than any country in western Europe, according to analysis by the International Monetary Fund. The difference between the cost burden on poor and rich households is also far more unequal in the UK compared with other countries.The reason is the UK’s heavy reliance on gas to heat homes and produce electricity at a time when Russia’s war in Ukraine has sent gas prices soaring. In addition, the UK has the least energy efficient homes in western Europe. Continue reading...

Royal commission found bank and blank cheques had been exchanged for chips at Crown in Melbourne in breach of restrictions

In parliament’s great hall unionists, civil society and business give a little of their time, maybe endure a little boredom, in a bid to influence policy

Rosmah Mansor convicted of receiving over £1m to help a firm get a schools business contractThe wife of the former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for soliciting and receiving bribes in exchange for government contracts, one week after her husband was sent to prison for corruption linked to the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal.Rosmah Mansor, 70, had pleaded not guilty to three charges of soliciting bribes and receiving 6.5m ringgit (£1.3m) in exchange for helping a company secure a contract to provide solar power to schools. Continue reading...

Virginia Laparra detained in conditions ‘bordering on torture’, which critics say is retaliation for her efforts to fight corruptionA Guatemalan anti-corruption prosecutor has been locked up for six months in conditions “bordering on torture”, as the country’s ruling elite pursues a strategy to purge the justice system and derail corruption investigations against their allies.Virginia Laparra, 42, a senior anti-corruption prosecutor, was accused of abuse of authority in apparent retaliation for reporting her suspicion that a judge had leaked sensitive details from a sealed corruption case to a colleague in 2017. Continue reading...

For every 100 Covid-related death in Australia, around 13 young people lost one or both of their parents, ANU study finds

The first day of the jobs and skills summit is under way in Canberra. Follow the day’s news live

Budget estimates hears business case for $309m project is being ‘re-prosecuted’ despite acquisition notices issued to site next door

Company says it regrets past action against far-right websites because of subsequent calls to move similarly against human rights sites

Presenter died peacefully at his home in Suffolk surrounded by his family on Wednesday, statement saysThe former BBC Breakfast host Bill Turnbull has died at the age of 66, his family has said.They said in a statement: “Following a challenging and committed fight against prostate cancer, Bill passed away peacefully at his home in Suffolk surrounded by his family on Wednesday 31 August. Continue reading...

Deputy state coroner says it is clear from the evidence that nurses ‘were run off their feet’ and doing too many jobs for one person

Four layers of code cover limited edition 50 cent coin released for 75th anniversary of Australian cybersecurity agency

Former prime minister jeered by University of Sydney students decrying policies of former Coalition government

Weather forecasters say naming storms helps raise public awareness and enables people to stay safeThe Met Office has revealed the storm names for the 2022-23 season.The annual list, first launched in 2015, generally runs from early September until late August, coinciding with the beginning of autumn. Storms are named when they have the potential to cause an amber or red warning. Continue reading...

Justice Judith Kelly uses speech on Indigenous domestic violence to claim there’s a ‘culture in some communities that tolerates violence against women’

In letter sent to parents, headmaster says posts ‘contrary to the values and culture’ of the school

Prime minister opens summit by pledging a $1.1bn training blitz and reforms to improve bargaining for workplace pay deals

UN security council hears bleak assessment of country’s prospects after violence between militia in capitalLibyans have lost faith that the political class and its allied militias and mercenaries are willing to end their robbery of the nation’s wealth, a senior US diplomat has warned, after some of the worst violence in Tripoli in years.More than 32 people were killed and 150 wounded in clashes in the capital last week between militia allied to the rival prime ministers Abdul Hamid Dbeibah and Fathi Bashagha. Continue reading...

Activists say ‘conversations about important things’ classes will seek to indoctrinate children as young as sixWhen Russian schools open on Thursday, students will have a new lesson on their schedule: “conversations about important things”, a mysterious class that critics believe will be used to deliver propaganda about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Russian activists are calling for parents and teachers to boycott required “patriotic” lessons in Russian schools that many fear will seek to indoctrinate students as young as six. Continue reading...

Tanker blocked canal for hours, close to where Ever Given container ship became stuck, disrupting supply chains for a weekA tanker getting stuck used to be more the domain of niche business news, but that was before the Ever Given, so all eyes were soon on the Affinity V tanker’s plight in the Suez Canal.On Wednesday, the 250-metre long Affinity V tanker was bound for Saudi Arabia when it ran aground close to the same spot in the narrow southern section of the canal in Egypt where the Ever Given container ship caused a week-long halt to traffic in March 2021, dominating global headlines and paralysing supply chains. Continue reading...

Dawson’s lawyer has told a Sydney court the 74-year-old was seeking special protection after suffering ‘constant threats’ since Tuesday’s verdict

Canada’s PM defends need for ‘flexible and creative’ intelligence work by CSIS after claim operative delivered 15-year-old to Islamic StateJustin Trudeau has pledged to “follow up” on allegations that a spy working for Canadian intelligence trafficked British schoolgirls into Syria where at least one married an Islamic State fighter.Shamima Begum was smuggled into the hands of Islamic State at the age of 15, and the work of the people smuggler for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) was covered up by the police and Britain’s security services, it has been claimed in a book out this week. Continue reading...

‘Your children should feel safe and secure and happy,’ says Alifjane Begum, one of millions who live in cold homes. ‘They’re not’

In-depth analysis of 36 people threatened with removal to African country says it compounded mental health problems for someThe threat of being sent to Rwanda has increased the risk of suicide among some vulnerable asylum seekers, according to medical evidence in a report.The report, called Who’s Paying the Price? The Human Cost of the Rwanda Removals, from the charity Medical Justice, is the first in-depth analysis of 36 recently arrived asylum seekers in the UK who were held in immigration detention centres and threatened with removal to Rwanda on 14 June.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 befrienders.org. Continue reading...

Survey finds more than a quarter of minority ethnic workers have faced racist jokes in last five yearsMore than 120,000 workers from minority ethnic backgrounds have quit their jobs because of racism, suggests a landmark study that has found workplace discrimination is sapping the confidence of a large part of the UK workforce.More than one in four workers from black and other minority ethnic backgrounds have faced racist jokes at work in the last five years and 35% said it left them feeling less confident at work, according to what is believed to be the largest representative survey conducted of the UK’s 3.9 million minority ethnic workers. Eight per cent of victims left their job as a result of the racism they experienced, according to the study by the Trades Union Congress. Continue reading...

Costs expected to rise by £2m a month for some English trusts, leading to funding gap and difficult choicesHospital trusts in England face “eye-watering” rises in energy bills of £2m a month each due to the fuel price surge, with NHS leaders saying patients may face longer waiting times or even see their care “cut back” as a result.NHS trusts are concerned they will have to make critical choices on staff levels and the services they provide in order to keep operating, with energy costs predicted to be as much as three times higher than a year ago. Continue reading...

Jameson Shapiro killed by police gunfire after officers called to domestic dispute in Kawartha Lakes, Ontario, in November 2020Three police officers in Canada have been charged with manslaughter in the death of an 18-month-old boy, nearly two years after he was killed by police gunfire.Ontario’s police watchdog, the Special Investigations Unit, announced the charges on Wednesday afternoon. Continue reading...

Alleged massacre took place on market day in Hombori after military convoy hit explosive deviceAt least 50 civilians were killed during a military operation conducted by Mali’s army and “foreign troops” on 19 April, according to a report by the UN.The UN has repeatedly accused Malian soldiers of summarily executing civilians and suspected militants during their decade-long fight against groups linked to al-Qaida and Islamic State. Continue reading...

Canada and UK accused of covering up involvement of double agent in British teenager’s recruitment for IS

This live blog has now closed. You can find our latest coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war hereConservative leadership hopeful Rishi Sunak said the legacy of Mikhail Gorbachev will be “remembered by us all” and that he helped “bring peace to Europe”.Boris Johnson has paid tribute to Mikhail Gorbachev, describing him as a man “who changed the world and unquestionably changed it for the better”.Mikhail Gorbachev is one of those people who changed the world and unquestionably changed it for the better. When you look at what he did to make Europe whole, free, to give freedom to the countries of the former Soviet Union – it was quite an extraordinary thing.And of course, Mikhail Gorbachev is one of those people who triggered a change, a series of changes, that perhaps he didn’t anticipate. Continue reading...

Politicians wait to see whether Russia switches back on Nord Stream 1 gas supply to EuropeRussian state-backed energy firm Gazprom is poised to hand a bumper £8.6bn payout to the Kremlin after notching up record profits.The company reported a net profit of 2.5tn roubles (£35.8bn) for the first six months of this year. Oil and gas prices soared during that period, pushed higher by concerns over supplies after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Continue reading...

CoreLogic says every capital city except Darwin fell in August, with Sydney dropping 2.2%