section
Politics
Policy, power, and the news of the day.
5493 stories archived
Star Wars dubbed into Welsh for first time for S4C broadcast
Rhys Ifans, Matthew Rhys, Aimee-Ffion Edwards and Mark Lewis Jones among actors voicing characters from 1977 blockbuster There are a few links between the Star Wars franchise and Wales, including the secretive building of the Millennium Falcon in an old hangar in the far south-west of the Celtic nation. But until now speakers of Welsh – Cymraeg – have not been able to hear the words of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia spoken in their own language. Continue reading...
Electronic tagging system unprepared to monitor thousands of early-release prisoners, watchdog warns
Probation inspector says ‘clunky’ system needs upgrade and huge increase in staff to monitor offenders effectively The electronic tagging system which will be relied upon to monitor thousands of offenders released early from prison is failing to alert the authorities of potential breaches of conditions, a watchdog has warned. Martin Jones, HM inspector of probation in England and Wales, said the current system relies upon hard-pressed police and probation officers looking up individual cases and then deciding whether potential breaches need to be investigated further. Continue reading...
US federal judge blocks New York’s ban on ICE officers wearing masks
Judge puts hold on mask ban while allowing state law prohibiting cooperation between police and ICE to stand A New York law banning US Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring that they wear visible identification has been put on hold by a federal judge. But a state law prohibiting cooperation between local police departments and ICE has been allowed to stand. The mask ruling comes after federal judges have blocked similar laws in California, Virginia and Pennsylvania that sought to ban federal immigration agents from covering their faces. They are still required to wear agency identification badges and badge number. Continue reading...
Inside a Texas summer camp for LGBTQ+ kids – in pictures
Color Splash Out provides a safe space in a state that has targeted and demonized trans people Read the full story here Continue reading...
Safety, freedom and no misgendering: inside the Texas summer camp for trans kids
At Color Splash Out, LGBTQ+ kids can play, create and connect without judgment, especially in a state that passed seven anti-trans bills last year Color Splash Out summer camp – in pictures For the first time in his life, 17-year-old Alastair Mendoza didn’t think twice about jumping in the water. He kayaked through tangles of reeds, taking in the schools of minnows beneath him and the hawks overhead. He splashed around with friends he had made only days prior. “I actually felt comfortable,” Mendoza said of swimming in public, something trans kids like him often struggle with. But at Color Splash Out, a four-day summer camp open to queer and trans youth in Texas, Mendoza swam whenever he could. “There was less fear of judgment and anxiety knowing that you were safe around these people,” he said. Continue reading...
Peter Gill, playwright who turned ordinary lives into extraordinary drama, dies aged 86
Beginning his career as an actor, Gill went on to write plays including The York Realist as well as directing for the Royal Court and National Theatre Tributes have been paid to the director and playwright Peter Gill who died on Monday at the age of 86. His agent Mel Kenyon said Gill’s work had a “rare emotional delicacy” and was “beautifully observed and finely tuned” while the director Michael Grandage said Gill’s “contribution to the British theatre will come to be regarded as quietly seismic”. Gill began his career as an actor at London’s Royal Court in 1958 when still in his teens. Over the next six years, he played Silvius opposite Vanessa Redgrave as Rosalind in Michael Elliott’s lauded RSC production of As You Like It, as well as several roles in the British premiere of Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle. Continue reading...
Man charged in Washington state with starting largest wildfire in the area
Suspect had a prior conviction for reportedly shooting his father in Arizona, after he told his son to do the dishes Authorities on Monday charged a man in Washington state with starting a wildfire that has consumed almost 4,000 acres and forced tens of thousands from their homes. Aaron F Farinacci, 37, of Spokane, was arrested and charged with first-degree arson for setting the Old Trails fire, the largest of three devastating wildfires burning through the region. Continue reading...
Asking Anthony Fauci for medical advice then calling for him to be jailed? Katie Miller is the latest Maga hypocrite | Arwa Mahdawi
The vocal vaccine sceptic and wife of Trump’s deputy chief of staff turned to the former US science adviser when she was worried about Covid. Now, she’s claiming it was a cunning plan You should keep your friends close, your enemies closer, and Stephen and Katie Miller as far away from your general vicinity as humanly possible. Many people will not need to be told this. Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, is famous for masterminding the first Trump administration’s family separation policy and Muslim ban . His wife, Katie, is similarly enthusiastic about mass deportation and has reportedly said she didn’t feel compassion for families separated at the border. Stephen met Katie when they were both working in government, but she has since left politics to start a podcast . Now she asks guests such as JD Vance important questions such as: is a hotdog a sandwich? While I may not need to inform you that the Millers are bad news , it seems Dr Anthony Fauci is only just getting the memo. The former top US government science adviser, who helped guide the country’s Covid-19 response, was forced to appear at a US Senate committee hearing last week. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky framed the hearing as an investigation into the origins of the pandemic. Really, however, it was an opportunity for Republicans to harass Fauci, who is widely loathed among the Maga base. He has become such a target of vitriol that Biden preemptively pardoned Fauci before leaving office in case he was prosecuted by the Trump administration. Continue reading...
Jordan convenes emergency meeting over Israel’s potential to ‘trigger religious conflict’
Israeli takeover of al-Aqsa mosque and Dome of the Rock compound in Jerusalem said to be ‘imminent’ threat Middle East crisis live – latest updates Jordan is convening an emergency meeting of foreign ministers from the Arab and Islamic world over what it says is an “imminent” threat of an Israeli takeover of the most important religious site in Jerusalem, with the potential to “trigger a religious conflict”. The meeting on Wednesday – and the Jordanian warning – follow an escalating pattern of government-backed incursions by Jewish religious extremists on the compound around the al-Aqsa mosque and Dome of the Rock, in violation of a status quo treaty overseen by Jordan’s Hashemite monarchy, by which only Muslims can pray at the site. Continue reading...
Middle East crisis live: Bessent claims US could reach Hormuz deal with Iran by tomorrow
Comments from US Treasury secretary come despite statements from Iran denying that any negotiations are taking place The US treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, said Washington could reach a deal with Iran by tomorrow to reopen the strait of Hormuz. “We are in talks with the Iranians, and I think there is a chance we may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the strait and move towards a more normalised position in this conflict,” Bessent said in an interview with CNBC . Continue reading...
UN experts urge Canada to protect Sikh activist amid credible threats to his life
Special rapporteurs say ‘transnational repression by Indian authorities’ has put Moninder Singh in danger UN rights experts have urged Canada to take all feasible measures to protect the Sikh activist Moninder Singh , who has been repeatedly warned by the Canadian authorities of credible threats to his life. In a letter to the Canadian government, the five UN experts raised “concerning allegations of foreign intimidation and reprisals” against Singh, a Canadian national. Continue reading...
Gatwick airport to open second runway after legal challenge fails
£2.2bn project will allow about 100,000 more flights a year to use Britain’s second busiest airport Business live – latest updates Gatwick airport is to start development of its second runway after campaigners lost a legal challenge to the plans. The court of appeal on Tuesday dismissed a bid by local campaign groups to challenge an earlier high court ruling that the scheme could proceed. Continue reading...
Washington state Democrat who flipped pro-Trump district faces tough primary
Incumbent Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a moderate who owns an auto repair shop, hopes to retain congressional seat The two-term Democratic congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez is heading into one of the country’s most closely watched contests on Tuesday after national recognition for flipping a Republican seat in 2022. Representing Washington state’s third district, Gluesenkamp Perez finds herself squeezed between Democrat and progressive Brent Hennrich and Republican state senator John Braun on her right. There are six other candidates on a single crowded ballot and the top two finishers will advance to the November general election regardless of party. Continue reading...
Can Vivek Ramaswamy count on Ohio’s Indian Americans as he struggles to connect with voters?
Ohioans of Indian heritage will see one of their own take center stage in race for governor, but their support amid a rocky campaign is not a guarantee At the Hindu Temple of Dayton in south-west Ohio, there’s no little pride for gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy – he and his parents have been coming here to pray for decades. On a quiet recent Tuesday afternoon, a priest lights incense sticks at the mandir of the temple. Outside, a group of first-time visitors to the temple take a relaxed walk around the grounds. Continue reading...
My son has cancer. Kalshi wants you to be able to bet on his medical future | Joshua Pederson
The predictions market is planning to allow betting on clinical trial results and regulatory decisions as our family fights for his survival My son is 12 years old. No matter how many Legos we get him, he will only build robotic mechs. He draws haunting pictures in pen and ink but refuses to take an art class. He was devastated to learn that Chuck E Cheese is phasing out its animatronics. His guidance counselor says he’s so kind, he’s really hard to say no to. He sneezes when he steps out into the sunlight. And he also has a very aggressive tumor growing inches below his heart. Further, if Kalshi has its way, you could soon be able to bet on health treatments that could be essential to his survival. Joshua Pederson is professor of humanities at Boston University and the author of Sin Sick: Moral Injury in War and Literature Continue reading...
Prisoner early release scheme gives Burnham his first taste of unpopularity
After a blitz of small wins, PM is finding that like Keir Starmer there is only so much he can control on the big calls UK politics live – latest updates If Andy Burnham wanted to demonstrate he was the anti-Keir Starmer, the first fortnight could not have gone better. Instead of painting a gloomy picture of tough times and an economic black hole that would only improve with sacrifices such as cutting winter fuel allowance, Burnham’s first week was a blitz of small wins including cutting bus fares. But the new prime minister can only control so much. And like Starmer, within his first days in office he found himself facing immediate decisions where every call will make you unpopular. And – like Starmer – blaming your predecessor counts for nothing with an angry public. Continue reading...
A rail nightmare: what it’s like on England’s busiest commuter-only train
This evening service from London to Crewe is hot, sweaty and heaving with people, many having to stand or sit in the gangways The 5.46pm train from London Euston to Crewe is the low point of Nikhil Patel’s week. “I’ve never gotten a seat. I always stand up even when I get here early,” says the 22-year-old, struggling to keep his balance while the gangway underneath sways from side to side. Painfully for Patel, who is commuting back and forth to the capital for a computer science internship, it’s the first leg of a three-hour journey home to Walsall. He grabs the back of a chair to remain steady but says he’s just thankful that the train has left on time – and that it’s even on the move at all. Continue reading...
The US government’s mislabelled map of Africa at a global Aids conference shows again a failure to understand the continent | Kenneth Ngure
This crude lack of thought is influencing crucial budget decisions on HIV programmes, which were cut by 25% worldwide in 2025 At the end of July, thousands of scientists, advocates and policymakers gathered at Aids 2026, the 26th International Aids Conference in Rio de Janeiro, to advance the global HIV response. But during one high-profile session, a jarring moment threatened to derail our focus: a slide presented by a senior US state department official displayed a map of Africa with country names glaringly scrambled and mislabelled. While the mistake apparently occurred due to an over-reliance on AI tools, it carried a painful symbolic weight for many of us. It reinforced a longstanding frustration: that too many political leaders treat Africa as a monolithic abstraction rather than a continent of 54 distinct sovereign nations. Continue reading...
Trump Fed chair’s inflation strategy: leave it to the market | Eduardo Porter
Kevin Warsh would rather stay out of the fray – and thus devalue the Fed’s credibility as an economic steward It must feel strange to argue that government action is inevitably counter-productive – illegitimate even – when the government is you. For the last half century, the Republican party has been comfortable with the contradiction. It’s framed in that clever quote from Ronald Reagan’s 1981 inaugural: “Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” Solutions, in this view, are delivered by free, unencumbered markets. Eduardo Porter is a journalist focused on economics and politics. He writes the newsletter Being There on Substack Continue reading...
First Thing: Trump chastises oil companies for ‘making too much money’ from his Iran war
US president takes aim at profits as oil companies worldwide benefit from US-Iran conflict. Plus, can you tell if someone is secretly filming you with Meta’s glasses? Good morning. Donald Trump has criticised oil companies for “making too much money” from the global energy market disruption caused by his war on Iran. The US president took aim at the windfall profits revealed last week by ExxonMobil and Chevron, and claimed the companies would “give some of that back to the public”. The US oil companies made profits totalling more than $26bn for the three months to the end of June. Chevron reported its highest ever quarterly profit of $12.2bn, a fivefold increase on the same period last year. ExxonMobil reported a profit of $14.5bn in the second quarter, double what it made in the same period a year ago. Is it just US oil companies profiting from Trump’s war? Europe’s largest oil company, Shell, doubled its net profit to almost $10bn in the three months to June. The crisis helped Saudi oil company Aramco to a 44% rise in net profits, to $32.69bn, in the same period, despite disruptions in the strait of Hormuz. BP has reported its highest quarterly profits since the first year of Russia’s war on Ukraine, though its new chief executive, Meg O’Neill, said there was “more to do” because BP was “not making the most” of its potential. What is happening with Trump’s new trade tariffs? A coalition of 25 US states sued the Trump administration on Monday over new tariffs pegged at 10%-12.5% on goods from 60 trading partners, calling them a pretext for replacing import taxes that were struck down by the supreme court in February. According to the states involved in the action, tariffs on 59 countries and the European Union imposed last month account for 99.4% of US imports. What else has happened in ICE detention this week? Attorneys for a man detained in a California immigration detention center have released footage showing him holding up a bottle of water from inside the facility that appeared to be contaminated with worm-like creatures . Carlitos Ricardo Parias, a Los Angeles man who has been detained for months at the Adelanto Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility, north-east of LA, said the water was given to detainees to drink. Continue reading...
Dinghy carrying 157 people capsizes in Channel after engine catches fire
Passengers rescued by French and British vessels and some being taken to Boulogne-sur-Mer in France A dinghy carrying 157 people has capsized in the Channel after its engine caught fire at sea. They were rescued from the water by French vessels aided by two British Border Security Command boats and a RLNI lifeboat, and are being taken to Boulogne-sur-Mer, French authorities said. Continue reading...
Vote to take place on Blanche nomination after GOP senators drop opposition – US politics live
Trump’s former personal lawyer appears on track to become attorney general despite reservations over deal withdrawing ‘anti-weaponization fund’ Critics denounce Blanche deal to halt Trump slush fund Sign up for US Breaking News email Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer Todd Blanche appears on track to become the next US attorney general after two Republican senators drop their opposition to his nomination. Trump declined to call for Rep Max Miller’s resignation following allegations of domestic abuse from his ex-wife, Emily Moreno. Trump said he has always known Miller as “a good person” and called the situation “a very sad thing.” In an 89-4 vote, the Senate voted to take up a measure that would temporarily keep the government funded and help avoid a shutdown in the fall. The measure, known as a continuing resolution, would maintain government funding at current levels through 11 December, with some adjustments for specific programs. The Senate is slated to debate the funding bill and move it closer to a final vote. A coalition of 25 US states sued the Trump administration over new tariffs pegged at 10% to 12.5% on goods from 60 trading partners, calling them a pretext for replacing import taxes struck down by the supreme court in February. The states are asking the US Court of International Trade to halt the tariffs, declare them unlawful and order refunds of duties that have already been paid. More here . Trump accused US attorney Jeanine Pirro of having “folded like an umbrella” amid reports that he was considering removing her from her post. Trump criticized Pirro on Monday after she dropped vandalism charges against a former Olympian accused of damaging the recently renovated Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool. More here . Continue reading...
Michigan votes in key Senate primary as Democrats battle over party’s future
Progressive Abdul El-Sayed leads in polls against centrist Haley Stevens as party looks to regain control of US Senate The Democratic party faces a crucial test of its direction today as voters in the midwestern swing state of Michigan decide whether to nominate for US Senate a progressive candidate advocating for universal healthcare or an-establishment-backed moderate. The state’s Democratic primary is the latest high-profile battle over the party’s future, as it seeks to chart a course back to power in Washington following Donald Trump’s victory in 2024. Continue reading...
We are US civil rights lawyers. Trump’s policies have driven us to seek justice internationally| Thomas Becker and Antonio Romanucci
On Tuesday, a human rights commission will hold an extraordinary hearing over the administration’s alleged attacks on protesters, journalists and others We are constitutional law, civil rights, and human rights scholars and practitioners who have spent decades litigating government abuse cases in the United States. Despite the US legal system’s flaws, our work – from securing a record civil settlement for George Floyd’s family to holding Bolivia’s ex-president accountable in US federal court for the massacre of Indigenous protesters – has demonstrated that US courts can reign in state power and provide a path to accountability. But this pathway is narrowing. As Donald Trump attacks the courts, weaponizes the Department of Justice, and targets attorneys who challenge his administration, we have been forced to seek justice beyond our borders. Continue reading...