Tractor protest in city centre comes as Emmanuel Macron confirms he will vote against accord on FridayFrench farmers in tractors have blocked roads around the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe in protest at an imminent EU trade deal with South American countries that they say will create unfair competition.The farmers blockaded motorways outside Paris on Thursday and dozens of tractors overran police checkpoints to reach the city centre in a pre-dawn protest organised by the Coordination Rurale union. Continue reading...
Lawsuit accuses AI chatbots of harming minors and includes case of Sewell Setzer III, who killed himself in 2024Google and Character.AI, a startup, have settled lawsuits filed by families accusing artificial intelligence chatbots of harming minors, including contributing to a Florida teenager's suicide, according to court filings on Wednesday.The settlements cover lawsuits filed in Florida, Colorado, New York and Texas, according to the legal filings, though they still require finalization and court approval. Continue reading...
Electoral Commission says tools to detect AI-generated content could be in place before campaigns beginElection officials are working at speed" with the Home Office on a pilot project to combat the use of deepfakes to target candidates standing in this year's Scottish and Welsh elections.Officials at the Electoral Commission in Scotland said they and the Home Office expected software capable of detecting AI-generated deepfake videos and images to be operational before election campaigns begin in late March. Continue reading...
Complainant to appeal against C of E's dismissal of accusation about Sarah Mullally's handling of abuse claimAn alleged abuse victim at the centre of a complaint against Sarah Mullally, the incoming archbishop of Canterbury, says she is not fit for the job as the church dismissed his allegation against her.The alleged victim, known as N, told the Guardian he would exercise his right of appeal against a decision on Thursday to take no further action against Mullally who he accused of colluding with his alleged abuse. Continue reading...
Conservative leader criticises government's U-turn but change likely to be welcomed by pub tradeHelena Horton is a Guardian environment reporter.Emma Reynolds, the environment secretary, has insisted that is it" in response to farmers claiming the inheritance tax U-turn does not go far enough.Since starting this role in September I've listened to farmers and stakeholders about your cncerns on proposed changes to inheritance tax. You told me the threshold was too low. You told me it would hit small family farms. We listened, and we are making changes.In terms of inheritance tax changes, that is it. I also say with the greatest respect to those outside, it is those inside who have engaged with us constructively and relatively quietly that have had an influence in this process, not those blaring their horns.If the Tories took the red wall in 2019 - and I was part of that, by the way, I represented a seat in the Midlands - we took the rural wall in 2024. We've got 49 rural seats and 87 semi rural on one of them. So 136 rural and semi rural seats. That's a huge representation in parliament.And I have conversations with those MPs week in, week out, and they are expressing concerns or ideas to ministers all the time, and I'm doing all that I can to ensure that rural communities know that we're on their side. As a government, we truly care about rural Britain, because we are the, you know, we can have. We are the party with more representation than others. Continue reading...
Parents of Harry, Roman and Elsa, who were discovered in same area in 2017, 2019 and 2024, have never been foundThe third of three siblings who were abandoned in east London over an eight-year period is to be adopted, as a judge called her story quite extraordinary".Three children - known as Harry, Roman and Elsa - were discovered in the same area of east London in 2017, 2019 and 2024, respectively. Despite an extensive police search, their parents have never been found. Continue reading...
by Tom Ambrose (now) and Jakub Krupa (earlier) on (#72NZR)
French president warned the US under Donald Trump was breaking free from international rules'Another news line dominating this week's coverage of European politics is to do with Greenland, and the US president Donald Trump's ambitions to somehow take control of the Danish semiautonomous territory.The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said last night that he had plans to meet Danish officials next week to discuss Greenland as a crisis escalates within Nato over US threats to take over the Arctic territory. Continue reading...
Riyadh says Aidarous al-Zubaidi, leader of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council, was helped to flee YemenSaudi Arabia has accused the United Arab Emirates of smuggling a UAE-backed separatist leader out of Yemen after he failed to turn up for crisis talks in Riyadh on Wednesday.The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said Aidarous al-Zubaidi had fled the port city of Aden for Abu Dhabi under Emirati supervision, deepening a diplomatic row between Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Continue reading...
Director general says BBC needs to reach young audiences online amid pressure to leave Elon Musk-owned siteThe BBC's director general, Tim Davie, has said he will not be taking the broadcaster off Elon Musk's social media platform, X, saying that its presence is needed to resist a flood of global misinformation.Davie said he had come under pressure to withdraw from the platform, given numerous complaints that it has shifted significantly to the right under Musk's ownership. Continue reading...
UnitedHealth says it will continue to engage' with lawmakers who began investigating their involvement in nursing home care after Guardian investigationUnitedHealth has refused to hand over key internal records to lawmakers investigating the company's efforts to reduce hospital transfers for nursing home residents, according to a 7 January letter sent to the company by the US senators Ron Wyden and Elizabeth Warren.
by Henry Dyer, Daniel Boffey and Mark Blacklock on (#72P72)
Exclusive: Dulwich college contemporaries say Reform leader often used antisemitic language and racial epithetsThirty-four school contemporaries of Nigel Farage have now come forward to claim they saw him behave in a racist or antisemitic manner, raising fresh questions over the Reform leader's evolving denials.One of those with new allegations is Jason Meredith, who was three years below Farage at Dulwich college, a private school in south-east London. He claims that Farage called him a paki" and would use taunts such as go back home". Continue reading...
by Sarah Marsh Consumer affairs correspondent on (#72P4P)
Exclusive: Haul of illicit products led by medicines regulator was described as world's largest of its kind, but no arrests have yet been madeWedged between an air-compressor service and an auto repair shop on a Northampton industrial estate is an undistinguished red-brick unit that was, until recently, the base for a major illegal weight-loss drug operation.In late October, enforcement officers arrived here for a two-day raid, seizing thousands of unlicensed Alluvi-branded weight-loss pens, raw chemical ingredients, manufacturing equipment, packaging materials and 20,000 in cash. Some of the pens were labelled as containing retatrutide - a powerful GLP-1 agonist still in clinical trials, unapproved for medical use but widely hyped online as the next Mounjaro. Continue reading...
Jonty Bravery given 16-week term for attack at Broadmoor psychiatric hospital where he is serving life sentenceA man who threw a six-year-old boy off the Tate Modern's 10th-storey balcony has been given a 16-week jail sentence after attacking two nurses at Broadmoor hospital.Jonty Bravery, 24, was found guilty of assaulting Linda McKinlay and Kate Mastalerz after he kicked one in the thigh and clawed at the face of another in September 2024. Continue reading...
Mayor says ICE claims incident was self-defense are not true and urged ICE to leave Minneapolis. Plus, Trump pulls US out of 66 international bodiesGood morning.Federal agents shot and killed a woman during a large-scale immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis on Wednesday. The woman has been identified as 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune.What has the Trump administration said? In a post on X, the homeland security department (DHS) insisted the person was a domestic terrorist" who weaponized her vehicle" and attempted to run over our law enforcement officers in an attempt to kill them". Videos appeared to contradict that statement, showing the SUV clearly reversing away from ICE officers as they approach.What have local elected officials said? Jacob Frey, the mayor of Minneapolis, affiliated with the national Democratic party, said the Department of Homeland Security was trying to spin this as an action of self-defense. Having seen the video myself, I want to tell everybody directly, that is bullshit."Frey added: To ICE, get the fuck out of Minneapolis. We do not want you here. Your stated reason for being in this city is to create some kind of safety and you are doing exactly the opposite." Continue reading...
by Dan Jervis-Bardy Chief political correspondent on (#72NZT)
The prime minister says he takes the time to choose the right path' - but it was right there in front of him the whole timeTen days ago, Anthony Albanese fiercely argued against a royal commission into antisemitism. On Thursday, from that very same lectern, he declared such an inquiry was vital to heal" and unite a wounded nation after its worst-ever terror attack.Which invites the obvious question: What prompted such a screeching reversal? Continue reading...
by Alexandra Topping Political correspondent on (#72NZV)
Article by former British ambassador to US is likely to be seen as criticism of Keir StarmerPeter Mandelson has accused European leaders including Keir Starmer of a histrionic" reaction to Donald Trump's plan to take over Greenland, arguing that without hard power and hard cash" they will continue to slide into unimportance in the age of Trump".In his first political comments since being sacked as Britain's ambassador to Washington last year, Lord Mandelson said Trump had achieved more in a day than orthodox diplomacy was able to achieve in the past decade" when he captured the Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#72NZE)
Discovery of more than 800 whetstones, used to sharpen weapons, seen as one of the most significant finds in northern England for a centuryArchaeologists have found evidence of a huge and previously unknown industrial hub of Roman manufacturing in a discovery seen as one of the most significant finds in northern England for a century.Researchers were astonished to discover more than 800 whetstones at a site on the banks of the River Wear, and evidence of there being hundreds, if not thousands, more buried in the riverbank. Continue reading...
by Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent on (#72NWV)
Human Rights Watch and Justice say recent legislative changes have had a chilling effect and should be repealedThe right to protest is under attack in England and Wales with laws trampling over human rights protections and more oppressive restrictions in the pipeline, two major reports have warned.Both Human Rights Watch and the cross-party law reform organisation Justice say recent legislative changes have created a chilling effect on lawful protest and should be repealed. Their reports, simultaneously published on Thursday, also say that proposals for more curbs should be halted. Continue reading...
West Midlands police face MPs after barring Israeli football team's supporters from match against Aston VillaWest Midlands police did not do themselves any favours" when giving evidence to MPs about a decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans, a Birmingham Jewish leader has said.The force's chief constable, Craig Guildford, is facing growing calls from MPs and Jewish groups to resign after further details emerged about the circumstances surrounding a ban on away fans attending the Europa League match against Aston Villa at Villa Park on 6 November. Continue reading...
by Vikram Dodd Police and crime correspondent on (#72NSE)
Abandoning checks on staff and officers was a dereliction of the Met's duty to keep London safe', says home secretarySerial rapists including David Carrick were left in the ranks of the Metropolitan police because of a failure to carry out necessary vetting on thousands of officers and staff, it has been revealed.An internal review by the force found it had lowered vetting checks into the backgrounds of prospective and existing police officers and staff between 2013 and 2023. Continue reading...
Joshua Johnson died in a collision near Rotherham in December but was initially identified by police as Trevor Wynn, who survivedThe family of a teenager who died in a car crash in Yorkshire and was mistakenly identified as another boy by police have spoken of their unimaginable" ordeal.Joshua Johnson, 18, died after a collision near Rotherham in the early hours of 13 December. Continue reading...
by Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor on (#72NQD)
Exclusive: Chancellor says Reform leader wants to keep children in poverty based on skin colour after U-turnRachel Reeves has said she was angered by Nigel Farage's suggestion that only British-born families should have the two-child benefit cap lifted, saying the Reform UK leader would keep children in poverty based on their skin colour.The chancellor, who will introduce legislation to lift the cap on Thursday, said it had been a burden for her not to be able to do so sooner, but it had been vital to do it at a moment of market stability. Continue reading...
People gathered at the scene of the killing to protest after city's mayor demands ICE get the fuck out'When a federal agent shot and killed a woman during a large-scale immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis on Wednesday, the Guardian was nearby, shadowing observers who have trained for months to monitor and respond to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity in the state.ICE vehicles, unmarked, lined the street, and yellow police tape cordoned off the area in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. Dozens of protesters and community members were seen on the snowy street, shouting at ICE agents and at the local police. More agents arrived amid the chaos. Continue reading...
by Nadeem Badshah (now) and Andrew Sparrow on (#72N33)
John Healey gives operational update in the House of CommonsFarage is now talking about London, where council elections are taking place.He says that Sadiq Khan has said he will run for a fourth term as mayor. Continue reading...
Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel peace prize winner will lay out vision for the country in book publishing in USVenezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado will publish a book in the US that lays out her vision for Venezuela's political reconstruction as the country faces significant upheaval.The 120-page work titled The Freedom Manifesto is being released by Regnery Publishing, a conservative book publisher acquired by Skyhorse Publishing in 2023. Continue reading...
by Libby Brooks Scotland correspondent on (#72N2B)
Nine children and nine adults suffered minor injuries in collision, with two taken to hospital for further treatmentTwo school buses have crashed on icy roads as Arctic weather conditions continue to cause widespread disruption and parts of the country brace for up to 30cm of snow.Nine children and nine adults suffered minor injuries following a collision between a school coach and a Reading bus on icy roads in Wokingham on Wednesday. Continue reading...
New guidance presented by Robert F Kennedy Jr prioritizes protein, healthy fats and declares war on added sugar'The Trump administration has released updated dietary guidelines for Americans on Wednesday that emphasize eating whole and minimally processed foods, scaling back refined carbohydrates, and declaring war" on added sugars.The recommendations encourage prioritizing high-quality protein, healthy fats, fruits, vegetables and whole grains" while steering clear of highly processed foods. Robert F Kennedy Jr, the health and human services (HHS) secretary, and Brooke Rollins, the agriculture secretary, are presenting the new guidance at a White House briefing. Continue reading...
by Tiago Rogero South America correspondent on (#72NC5)
Marco Rubio lays out three-point plan as US signals interior minister must back acting president, Delcy RodriguezThe Trump administration has reportedly put Venezuela's hardline interior minister, Diosdado Cabello, on notice that he could be next to fall if he does not support the acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, who has been in power since Nicolas Maduro was seized on Saturday.Reuters reported that US officials are especially concerned" that Cabello, long seen by many as the regime's real No 2, could sabotage Washington's plan to keep key figures from Maduro's inner circle in place in the name of stability while pursuing a transition and unrestricted access to Venezuela's oil. Continue reading...
Stonewall's corporate funding halves against backdrop of US attacks on DEI and freezing of aid for LGBTQ+ causesLGBTQ+ charities in the UK are operating in a newly hostile environment", experts have warned, as the ripple effect of Donald Trump's attacks on equalities programmes sharpens financial pressures.The concerns come as yearly accounts submitted by Stonewall, the UK's biggest LGBTQ+ charity, revealed corporate donations had more than halved in the last financial year, falling from 348,636 in 2024 to 143,149 in 2025. Continue reading...
Officers find murderer Matthew Armstrong, 35, in Warwickshire and Daniel Washbourne, 40, in BristolA convicted murderer and a second man have been arrested after allegedly absconding from an open prison on New Year's Day, police have said.Matthew Armstrong, 35, and Daniel Washbourne, 40, left HMP Leyhill, South Gloucestershire, between 5pm and 8pm on 1 January. Continue reading...
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