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Politics
Policy, power, and the news of the day.
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Done Quixote? Film archivists on quest to finish Orson Welles passion project
Team hope 30 of hours of footage held by three countries will be enough to bring to life film-maker’s vision More than 70 years after he shot the first few frames, Orson Welles’s ambitious project to put Don Quixote on the big screen may finally be completed thanks to a consortium of European film archivists. Oja Kodar, the American film-maker’s partner and collaborator, has given her blessing to the project led by archives in France, Spain and Italy, along with the Munich film museum, to produce a coherent film out of 30 hours of footage scattered among them. Continue reading...
The US supreme court just put the lives of 1.3 million immigrants in danger| Heba Gowayed
The court’s TPS decision is devastating for those whose countries of origin are deemed unsafe. Congress must act On Thursday, the US supreme court authorized the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS), facilitating the largest single assault on immigrants in contemporary United States history. While the case concerned the 350,000 Haitian and 6,000 Syrian holders of this status, the decision could expose more than 1.3 million people to potential deportation to countries that the United States has recognized as unsafe. Heba Gowayed is an associate professor of sociology at Cuny Hunter College and Cuny Graduate Center and author of the book Refuge: How the State Shapes Human Potential Continue reading...
Ex-Alaska mayor and ‘parent of the year’ charged with sexual abuse of minors
Ulric Ulroan charged on 47 criminal counts amid allegations he sexually assaulted teenage girls from 2009-2025 The former mayor of a city in Alaska – who has also coached high school girls basketball and won a parent of the year award – has been criminally charged on allegations that he sexually assaulted several teenage girls over a yearslong period, according to authorities in that state. Ulric Ulroan, 48, first drew scrutiny from Alaska’s bureau of investigation in January, when the agency received a tip that he had purportedly inflicted sexual abuse on a 17-year-old girl in the village of Chevak between 2009 and 2010. The tip prompted an investigation which brought forth more reports of Ulroan having “sexually assaulted and/or abused various teenage girls” between 2009 and 2025 in Chevak as well as the Alaska communities of Anchorage, Mountain Village and Nome, officials said in a news release published on Friday. Continue reading...
Trump renaming fiasco fuels jokes as Maher takes Kennedy Center’s Mark Twain prize
Punchlines on president’s thwarted bid to have building named after him come thick and fast at Washington DC gala Outside the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts , a giant tarpaulin remained in place to conceal Donald Trump’s humiliation. Guests entering the national arts complex on Sunday night could not see the section of its marble facade where Trump’s name was recently erased to comply with a court order. Continue reading...
Venezuela in ‘critical hours’ to find earthquake survivors as more search and rescue teams arrive – latest updates
At least 1,450 are known to have died but the number is expected to rise The president of Venezuela’s National Assembly has warned time is running out to rescue survivors trapped under the rubble. The death toll from the earthquakes has risen to at least 1,450 people, with 3,150 injured and 12,721 others displaced, Jorge Rodríguez said yesterday in a televised address. Continue reading...
Keir Starmer's attempts to placate big tech were a disaster. Andy Burnham must take a stand | Beeban Kidron
Labour came to power promising to tackle Silicon Valley. But from workers’ rights to online privacy it has failed at almost every turn During a recent conversation in the House of Lords, a former senior US government official told me that “democracy was broken”. When I asked why, they pointed to research that showed that governments – regardless of party – represent the interests of the wealthy and not the people who vote for them. Nowhere is this more visible than with the tech lobby, which has effectively thwarted all attempts to hold the sector to account, while at the same time embedding its services into the heart of the state and our personal lives. Beeban Kidron is a crossbench peer and the author of How Big Tech Took Control and How to Fight Back Continue reading...
British American Tobacco to slash 9,000 jobs as it turns to AI
Dunhill maker to cut about a fifth of workforce, aiming to reduce costs and become more ‘technology enabled’ Business live – latest updates British American Tobacco (BAT) will cut about a fifth of its 47,000-strong workforce this year, as the cigarette-maker looks for ways to push down costs and become more “technology enabled”. BAT, which is one of the biggest tobacco groups in the world , has announced it will cut 5,500 jobs by the end of the year and outsource a further 3,500, affecting a total of 9,000 employees. Continue reading...
Andy Burnham to propose devolution plan in first major policy speech since launching bid for No 10 – UK politics live
Makerfield MP and hopeful prime minister to pledge ‘growth in every postcode’ Good morning. When Keir Starmer became PM, he had published his missions and his first steps, Labour was awash with policy, but some people still felt it was hard to know what his driving motivation was, what was the single big goal he wanted to achieve in politics. Andy Burnham is set to become PM three weeks today and in his case it is easy to answer this question because he published a book about it in early 2024 with Steve Rotheram, the Liverpool city region mayor, called Head North . They argue that the north of England has lost out because power in the UK is hoarded in the south and they propose a huge rebalancing, achieved by the devolution of decision making and spending away from London, building on some of the work they had been able to achieve as metro mayors. Anyone curious as to what Burnham will do in Downing Street has to start here. The book even includes a 10 point plan, some elements of which will almost certainly be dropped but some of which will be at the core of the Burnham project. Continue reading...
White working-class children failed by England’s school system, inquiry finds
Report says once-in-a-generation changes needed to tackle why such children are lowest-performing large demographic UK politics live – latest updates The education system is “not set up to serve white working-class children and families”, an independent inquiry has concluded. The Independent Inquiry into White Working-Class Educational Outcomes also determined that once-in-a-generation changes were needed to tackle why such children were the lowest-performing large demographic in England’s school system. Continue reading...
London cafe in legal battle with restaurant chain over ‘Eat Drink Work’ slogan
Subsidiary of FTSE 250 company says Coffee Studio’s phrase too similar to its ‘Eat Drink Meet’ trademark When Tahir Mehmet, the owner of an independent coffee shop, tried to register “three simple words”, Eat Drink Work, as its slogan, he had little idea it would pitch him into a legal battle with one of the UK’s largest hospitality groups. The application in relation to the Coffee Studio, which has two London cafes, has been opposed by a subsidiary of Mitchells & Butlers, whose brands include Toby Carvery, Harvester, All Bar One and O’Neill’s, which says it is too similar to its Eat Drink Meet trademark. Continue reading...
Extreme heat continues in central and eastern Europe with temperatures of 38C expected – Europe live
Germany, Czechia, Poland and Hungary reached record temperatures of more than 40C on Sunday Good morning, or dzień dobry, from Warsaw, Poland as the heatwave that affected much of the continent last week continues to impact central and eastern Europe. It’s 9am local time and already 32C. I have seen two people cycling home with large fans, trying to get back before the heat hits the fan again. None of this is normal. Continue reading...
Liberal frontbencher calls for party ‘rebrand’ after drop in polls, prompting ridicule from Labor
Melissa McIntosh’s comment comes after Angus Taylor’s claim Morrison government ‘breached trust’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Liberal frontbencher Melissa McIntosh has said the party might need a “rebrand” to win back voters who continue to desert the opposition, with the Coalition hitting a new historic polling low. Her comments came after the opposition leader, Angus Taylor, claimed the Morrison government – of which he was a senior minister – had “breached trust” with the electorate during the Covid pandemic by supporting “big government”. Continue reading...
Bruce Lehrmann loses bid to get footage from documentary featuring Brittany Higgins ahead of rape trial
Judge says ‘no legitimate forensic purpose’ to former Liberal staffer’s subpoena requesting footage, ahead of his Queensland trial Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Former political staffer Bruce Lehrmann has lost a legal bid to access copies of all footage from a documentary featuring Brittany Higgins. Lehrmann had subpoenaed the producers of the documentary Silenced and signalled a possible attempt to ban its broadcast before his Queensland trial for rape. Continue reading...
BT and Verizon to create joint global business in $625m deal
UK telecoms group’s 50/50 venture ends more than 18-month search for a buyer of its international operations Business live – latest updates BT and the US mobile company Verizon are to combine their international businesses, ending the British telecom group’s more than 18-month search for a buyer. Verizon will pay a $625m (£473m) “equalisation” fee to BT to guarantee equal voting rights in the new 50/50 joint venture, the companies announced on Monday. The deal is expected to create a company with more than 3,000 customers across about 180 countries and $4bn in combined annual revenue. Continue reading...
‘Will I make it here again? This could be it’: Serena Williams on her Wimbledon return
The seven-time Wimbledon singles champion who ‘evolved away’ from tennis shares why she’s back For two long weeks, since her return to the courts of a professional tennis tournament at the Queen’s Club, a clock was ticking in Serena Williams’s mind. She had already committed to making her comeback in doubles at 44 after four years away from the sport, but doubles only requires a player to cover half a court with the help of a partner. The real question was whether she would dare to put herself on the line again in singles against the best tennis players in the world. Williams’s decision to supercharge her comeback by taking a singles wildcard into Wimbledon, it turned out, was exactly as last minute as it appeared. She was only announced as the final wildcard for the women’s singles draw on Sunday 21 June, one day before the qualifying draw was made: “I had until Monday to decide. I think it was like Sunday. I just wasn’t sure up until then. Honestly, I’m still not even sure, but we’ll see,” Williams says, smiling, in her pre‑tournament press conference. Continue reading...
New campaign urges public to reduce water use as UK emerges from heatwave
Exclusive: £75m publicity drive will ask people to treat water as precious resource and cut daily use by 28 litres The biggest ever campaign to encourage the public to reduce their water use will launch this week, as the UK emerges from record temperatures attributed to the climate crisis. The £75m publicity drive, called Let’s Save Water, will advise and encourage people to treat water as a precious resource and has a target for everyone to cut their daily use by 28 litres – or two large buckets – from the current average use of about 140 litres a day. Continue reading...
One person a week in England dies with undiagnosed TB, study finds
British-born, older men among those most likely to have disease found only postmortem, say researchers One person a week dies with undiagnosed and therefore untreated tuberculosis in England, a study has found. British-born, older men were among those most likely to have TB diagnosed only after death, researchers said, suggesting healthcare workers could be overlooking the possibility of the disease in these patients. Continue reading...
‘We were broke, but fascinated by freedom’: exhibition showcases East German artist Gabriele Stötzer
Show at Martin Gropius Bau gallery in Berlin is biggest ever celebration of an East German female artist in a state museum Gabriele Stötzer remembers the days when she had to decide: “Am I buying a sausage, or film for my Super 8 camera?” Stötzer was one of the most radical artists in communist East Germany, and her desire to create was born in defiance of and in spite of the material conditions and oppressive restrictions of the GDR regime. Continue reading...
HMRC scheme that wrongly cut child benefits did not ‘adequately consider’ impact, report finds
NAO inquiry follows suspension of payments after erroneous records that claimants had emigrated An HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) anti-fraud crackdown that stripped 23,000 families of their child benefit failed to “adequately consider” the policy’s impact on claimants, an official report has found. The report by the National Audit Office followed HMRC’s decision to suspend payments after flight records provided by the Home Office purportedly showed thousands of parents had emigrated. Continue reading...
Man charged with DV murder after allegedly shooting Gold Coast mother who could ‘light up any room’
Mallorie Jane Roberts, 23, found with gunshot wounds on Sunday evening with her partner arrested at the home A woman who died from gunshot wounds in an alleged domestic violence murder was “a beautiful young mother” who leaves behind a two-year-old son. Emergency services were called to a home on Loder Street in the Gold Coast suburb of Biggera Waters, in Queensland, about 8pm on Sunday. Continue reading...
‘Get your dirty hands off our kids’: fossil fuel industry’s presence in schools and sports clubs sparks concern
Greens and David Pocock accuse industry of using programs and sponsorships to ‘build social licence’, push for parliamentary inquiry Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Greens and David Pocock have backed calls for a parliamentary inquiry into the alleged “petro-grooming” of children after an investigation exposed the extent of the fossil fuel sector’s presence in schools, sports clubs and other educational institutions. The resources minister, Madeleine King, has defended industry sponsorships of grassroots and elite sports and said it was fortunate so many companies were prepared to support clubs. Continue reading...
Moira Deeming misunderstood meaning of ‘headlock’ but won’t apologise to Matthew Guy for assault allegation
The Victorian Liberal MP says the interaction with her colleague left her fearful and confused Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming says she misunderstood the “technical meaning of the term ‘headlock’”, but will not apologise to her colleague Matthew Guy over the allegation he assaulted her. Last week, it was revealed Deeming had in June reported to police that Guy, the opposition’s public transport spokesperson, had assaulted her at a Macedonian community event in Sunshine, Melbourne in May. Continue reading...
Reversing UK employment tax rises ‘would do little to help young people find jobs’
Resolution Foundation calls for extra funding for apprenticeships and increase in number of youth support grants Ministers should reject calls to reverse employment tax increases as a way to boost jobs for young people in favour of extra funding for apprenticeships and increasing the number of youth support grants, according to a leading thinktank. The Resolution Foundation said an in-depth study showed a cut in employers’ national insurance contributions (NICs) and a reduction in the minimum wage for under-21s – measures demanded by business groups – would do little to promote the chances of younger workers finding a job. Continue reading...
Doubling leave to remain timeframe for UK care workers ‘cruel’, say campaigners
Experts and activists back Mike Tapp’s proposal for care worker exclusion that led to row with Shabana Mahmood Doubling the leave to remain timeframe for care workers to 10 years is “cruel and unconscionable”, according to workers rights campaigners who back a Home Office minister’s proposal to exclude the cohort from the government’s immigration plans. Mike Tapp is at the centre of a political row with the home secretary , Shabana Mahmood, after writing an article in which he said migrant care workers should be excluded from plans to retrospectively change the length of time people must work before they can permanently settle in the UK. Continue reading...