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Politics
Policy, power, and the news of the day.
4724 stories archived
UK ministers hit back at Argentinian Falklands claim and insist islands remain British
Defence secretary says ‘winds of change’ remarks by Argentina’s president are more about domestic politics UK politics live – latest updates British ministers have hit back after the Argentinian president said “winds of change” favourable to his country’s claim to the Falklands were “blowing around the world”. Wes Streeting, the defence secretary, said the statement by Javier Milei on Thursday night “tells us more about domestic politics in Argentina than it does about the Falkland Islands”. Continue reading...
The wild world of LSU: from tigers on the field to wooing ex-NFL players
Recruiting ex-pros. Inflaming Ukraine-Russia tensions. Suing the SEC and being sued back. The school is adapting to a new reality – and also creating a new one In 1893, a chemistry professor named Charles Coates arrived at Louisiana State University and wrote that, to his surprise, “there was practically no athletics in the student body: no football, no tennis, and only very little baseball in the spring.” A broad program of sports struck him as the kind of thing a school should have, particularly as US universities were beginning to tout intercollegiate athletics as critical to a balanced higher-ed experience and another way to justify the cost of entry. But 133 years on, sports aren’t merely the main attraction at LSU. They’re the school’s raison d’être , the blinkered obsession that consumes the university and its most prominent ambassadors. Any doubt that the business of educating college students is just a nettlesome distraction from the business of college sports in Baton Rouge has been emphatically dispelled over the past 10 months. On the football side, the school has spent or committed roughly $162m to its last three head coaches: Ed Orgeron, the folksy national champion in 2019 who received a $17m buyout when he was fired two years later; Brian Kelly, the unloved underachiever who received a $54m buyout after being fired last October; and Lane Kiffin, the Kelly replacement whom it signed to a $91m deal a month later. Clemson, the opponent for LSU’s season opener at home on Saturday, are about to find out what all that money buys. Continue reading...
‘Astronomical’ fuel price surge hits farmers in UK and US
Intensification of Middle East conflict and ongoing Russian export ban sees diesel prices rise 10% in less than a week Farmers are facing an “astronomical” jump in the price of fuel needed to operate their vehicles and machinery after a surge in diesel costs in the UK and US. Renewed fighting between the US and Iran has driven up the price of crude oil, while last week Russia extended a ban on diesel exports, further pushing up market prices. Continue reading...
Britain’s schools are failing its young people – and 1m Neets are paying the price | Simon Jenkins
Obsessed with exams, devoid of vocational training: there is a total mismatch between schools and life beyond their gates Blame the schools. Alan Milburn’s report on Neets , published in May, was one of the most damning comments on the welfare state I have read. It described a new generation of a million mostly poor Britons now encouraged to fare worse, not better, than their parents. This means, said Milburn , that “the great British promise” – the advance of generations – is being broken. A sizeable chunk of the population is going backwards. The number of young people not in education, employment or training – one in eight of all 16- to 24-year-olds – is rising fast and will be 1.25 million by 2030. More than 80% of them claim to want to find a job, education or training. A third even have “good GCSEs”, but 44% of them are on state benefits, now costing £8.1bn. Many of them suffer from anxiety and other disabilities, according to the NHS. The number of young people with special educational needs has doubled in 10 years. Mental ill-health is bordering on pandemic levels. Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
Russia maintains attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure – Europe live
The efforts are part of an ongoing attempt to cripple the country’s power grid ahead of winter Russia keeps targeting Ukraine’s energy facilities in its latest round of overnight attacks, part of an ongoing attempt to cripple the country’s power grid ahead of winter. Odesa region governor Oleh Kiper said that one was died and at least five were injured in the attack. Continue reading...
South Korea pushes back on reports it is readying Hormuz deployment amid US pressure
Seoul reportedly seeking parliamentary approval to send military assets to Middle East but president’s office plays down claims South Korea is reviewing a possible deployment of military assets to the strait of Hormuz amid pressure from Donald Trump over Seoul’s reluctance to provide support in the region, according to domestic media reports. Citing unnamed government and military sources, the reportspublished on Thursday and Friday said preparations were under way and that the government intended to seek parliamentary approval for a new deployment. The reports, which appeared in major South Korean outlets, said the exact scale and timing have not been agreed. Continue reading...
Labour asks Met police to launch criminal inquiry into Reform UK donations after undercover report – UK politics live
Two key aides to Nigel Farage have stepped down pending an internal investigation Ed Davey , the Lib Dem leader, says Nigel Farage was ultimately responsible for the apparent attempt to evade electoral law on donations exposed by the undercover investigation shown on Channel 4 News. In a post on social media this morning, he says: So much for this being a “hoax” then. Clearly very serious questions for Farage to answer given his role in the meeting. Continue reading...
Jackdaw gasfield set to be approved by ministers this month, sources say
Energy secretary could recommend new North Sea drilling as soon as next week, with Rosebank oilfield likely to follow UK politics live – latest updates Business live – latest updates Ministers are poised to approve a controversial new gasfield in the North Sea later this month, according to government sources, and are also likely to approve a major oilfield later this year. Miatta Fahnbulleh, the energy secretary, will give her recommendation to approve the Jackdaw field off the coast of Aberdeen as soon as next week, according to people close to the decision, with the formal approval following as soon as a week after. Continue reading...
Farage aides step down after undercover report on Reform UK donations
James Orr and Dan Jukes have stepped down from positions pending outcome of party investigation, says Reform UK Two key aides to Nigel Farage have stepped down from their roles pending the outcome of an investigation by Reform UK into a broadcast by Channel 4 News alleging they breached political donation rules , a party spokesperson said. James Orr and Dan Jukes are alleged to have breached donation rules by having polling paid for by an overseas company. Continue reading...
Sports quiz of the week: transfer deadline day, the US Open and rugby drama
Have you been following the big stories in football, cricket, tennis, boxing, Formula One and cycling? Continue reading...
Andy Ruiz Jr once turned boxing upside down. Can he do it again at 36?
Seven years after springing one of the biggest upsets in boxing history, the Mexican Rocky is back with his old trainer for one final run at the heavyweight summit Seven years ago, Andy Ruiz Jr became the first fighter of Mexican descent to win the world heavyweight championship in one of the biggest upsets boxing has ever seen, stopping the undefeated Anthony Joshua inside seven rounds at Madison Square Garden. A replacement opponent summoned on five weeks’ notice who went off as an 11-1 underdog, Ruiz came off the canvas in the third to knock Joshua down four times before the referee finally waved it off. Hailed as the “Mexican Rocky”, he was lionized as a border-straddling hero in his hometown of Imperial, the dusty agricultural community framed by the mountain ranges and flat deserts of south-eastern California. He made the late-night rounds , took an audience with Mexico president Andrés Manuel López Obrador and signed a $10m guarantee when Joshua activated his rematch clause. The money, cars, fame and women arrived all at once. Continue reading...
British army told to halt non-essential training exercises to save money
Collective training exercises for UK-based units to be suspended for most of this year amid budget pressures The British army has been ordered to halt non-essential training exercises in an effort to save money. Troops preparing to be deployed or on deployments, those who are on standby or in a quick-reaction role will continue to train as normal. But collective training exercises for UK-based units are being suspended for most of this year amid budget pressures. Continue reading...
Charles Perrottet denies asking brother as premier to appoint cabinet minister, Icac hears
Charles says claims by developer Jean Nassif in an intercepted phone call that ‘we’re reshuffling the government’ did not reflect promises allegedly made to Nassif Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The younger brother of Dominic Perrottet has denied asking his brother to appoint a cabinet minister to achieve outcomes for a property developer, a corruption inquiry has heard. Charles Perrottet told the Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) on Friday that claims made in an intercepted phone call featuring developer Jean Nassif days before his brother became the NSW premier – in which Nassif described Dominic Perrottet as “my boy” – did not reflect promises allegedly made to Nassif. Continue reading...
Australian ski resorts to close up to a month early due to global heating and El Niño
‘Challenging’ weather conditions and lack of snowfall are being blamed after a winter that broke multiple heat records Major Australian alpine resorts are closing their ski operations up to a month early after a winter that broke multiple records for heat with limited snow falls being washed away by rain. Predictions in June that a building El Niño could combine with global heating for a challenging ski season came to pass , with seven resorts either already closed or announcing ski lifts will stop operating this weekend. Sign up to get climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s Clear Air column as a free newsletter Continue reading...
UK has not done enough to prepare for shocks to food supplies, says watchdog
National Audit Office urges government to act as climate crisis, disease and cyberattacks pose growing risks The climate crisis, disease and cyber-attacks pose growing risks to the UK’s food supplies and the government needs to act to make the system more resilient, according to the public spending watchdog. The National Audit Office (NAO) is urging the Department for Food, the Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) to work more closely with households, communities and businesses to ensure the flow of crucial food into the country can withstand supply shocks that are becoming increasingly common and severe. Continue reading...
Revealed: how companies ‘secretly’ use billions of litres of public water in drought-hit England
Exclusive: As millions of people face hosepipe bans, many companies are not required to report, let alone cut, use of public supply Less than 1% of businesses in England use more water than the daily needs of 10 million people, as millions of households face hosepipe bans and three-quarters of the country is in drought. Businesses across England use 2.6bn litres a day from the public water supply, which includes potable and non-potable water provided by water companies. In total, businesses account for about 30% of public supply use, with two-thirds of their consumption in water-stressed areas, according to Mosl, the organisation that operates England’s business water market. Continue reading...
President Javier Milei says ‘winds of change’ support Argentina’s claim to Falkland Islands
President cites Donald Trump’s suggestion that he might reconsider US support for British sovereignty, and threatens swifter sanctions on British oil interests President Javier Milei has said “winds of change favourable” to Argentina’s claim to the Falkland Islands were “blowing around the world” in a televised address, citing signs that Donald Trump might reconsider the US position on the islands’ sovereignty. “Recently, President Trump declared that the US is re-evaluating its historic position in relation to the Malvinas,” he said, using the Argentinian name for the islands. Continue reading...
‘Capitalism is dying’: in Luton, these former car workers have a moral tale for our times | Aditya Chakrabortty
Abandoned by the company they worked for, let down by Labour and their unions – now they watch their friends turn to Reform for answers After everything, why would anyone still back Nigel Farage? In some of the comments below my piece last week about Reform UK, I spot the usual answers: Farage’s supporters are dim, racist, deplorable. Yet away from Westminster and the news cycle, Reform voters are being manufactured – not with headlines or crypto funds but through the failure of institutions they once trusted to protect them. To see what I mean, leave SW1 and go 40 miles up the road, to Luton. In a deserted hotel bar, five men are reminiscing about how their world ended. Their minds are on a Friday afternoon in March last year, as the place where they had worked for two or three decades apiece, making friends and even meeting future wives, is about to shut for good. Continue reading...
Europe weighs solutions to curtail Russia’s growing hybrid warfare
Governments now moving faster to impose costs on Moscow for its increasing attacks over support for Ukraine Russia’s suspected sabotage campaign across Europe appears to be gathering pace again, confronting governments with a problem they have struggled to solve since the start of the war in Ukraine: how to impose a meaningful cost on Moscow for attacks that remain deliberately below the threshold of conventional war. Over the past month alone, an explosives-laden drone was discovered next to a Ukrainian cargo plane at Germany’s Leipzig airport, Poland has faced suspected acts of sabotage, and a string of unexplained explosions and fires have hit defence facilities supplying Ukraine across Europe. Continue reading...
Nepal-Tibet floods: two workers pulled alive from tunnel nine days after disaster
Officials say pair were rescued from Trishuli 3A hydropower tunnel in Nepal after being trapped in depth of 170 metres Two people have been pulled out alive from a hydropower tunnel in Nepal nine days after deadly flash floods buried the projects in deep mud and left them trapped. The workers were rescued during an ongoing operation at the Trishuli 3A tunnel, a hydropower project in one of the areas worst-affected by last week’s deadly Nepal floods , according to army spokesperson Brig Gen Raja Ram Basnet. Continue reading...
‘This could just be the beginning’: minorities fear first far-right win in German state election
As polls point to victory in Saxony-Anhalt for AfD party promising deportations, people face agonising choice: stay or go As the Bible study session wrapped up, leaving worshippers to mingle over cake and coffee, Fatemeh, 44, fought back tears as the conversation turned to Sunday’s state election in Saxony-Anhalt. “I worry about it every day,” she said. “I can’t stop thinking about my son and what might happen to us.” Fatemeh worries about what might happen after the elections. Photograph: Christian Jungeblodt/The Guardian Continue reading...
H.R. 10303: FLIGHT DECK Act
Bill Text: This bill's text is now available.
EV sales outpace petrol cars for first time as Australians dodge soaring fuel costs
New record for Australia as more than 27,000 EVs sold in August, driven by the rising cost of fuel and new government policy Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Electric vehicle sales in Australia exceeded petrol cars for the first time last month as a transformation driven by high fuel prices and government policy encouraging clean car uptake accelerated. More than 27,000 EVs were sold in August, a new record for a single month and representing 24.9% of new cars sold. The climate-friendly technology surpassed both petrol vehicles (nearly 26,000 sold) and diesel cars (23,600). Continue reading...
Molly Ticehurst’s killer called woman he’d met on Tinder after stabbing and said ‘I’m sorry I murdered her’, court hears
Daniel Billings said ‘I did what I did’ in call from friend’s house after 2024 domestic violence murder Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Two hours after Daniel Billings murdered his ex-girlfriend Molly Ticehurst in a frenzied stabbing he spoke to a woman he had met on Tinder. “I’m sorry I murdered her,” Billings told the woman during a phone call at 2.02am on 22 April 2024. Continue reading...