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Politics
Policy, power, and the news of the day.
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US seized American heir’s cellphone in violation of treaty agreement, lawyer says
James ‘Fergie’ Chambers, in prison in Spain, has applied for asylum as US seeks extradition over alleged Hamas support US authorities seized wealthy activist James “Fergie” Chambers’s cellphone at some point after Spanish police arrested him in July without notifying him or his attorneys, the Guardian has learned. Chambers, a US citizen and wealthy donor to leftwing and humanitarian projects, is imprisoned in Madrid. His case is the first known instance of the US seeking to extradite a citizen over alleged support for Hamas, an accusation tied to money Chambers has donated to support Palestinians, including the Sameer Project , in Gaza. Continue reading...
‘Why would I leave?’: Middlesbrough pushes back against ‘hardest place to grow up’ label
Teesside town has come out worst in children’s commissioner’s report, but residents say such rankings are demoralising and counterproductive “It’s disappointing, it’s just another kicking,” said a youth worker after the town in which they work was labelled as the hardest place in which to be a child in England. “It suggests our children are living unhappy lives,” said a teacher, who described her pupils as joyful. Continue reading...
The boss whose twice-bust business appears to be back despite £3m debts
Andrew Woosnam took millions from his recruitment firms before creditors, including HMRC, were left out of pocket Companies revived in ‘phoenix’ deals more likely to fail, study finds For three decades, the recruitment industry treated Andrew Woosnam well. Having learned his trade during the 1990s, he graduated to create his own firm at the turn of the millennium – which allowed him to bank millions of pounds in salary, dividends and loans and to buy assets including a grand house in Berkshire once owned by the comedians Dawn French and Lenny Henry. Continue reading...
Bust companies revived in ‘phoenix’ deals more likely to fail again, study finds
Exclusive: research for the Guardian shows ‘pre-pack’ deals with former management also pay far less to creditors The boss whose twice-bust business appears to be back Insolvent businesses reacquired by their previous management in “pre-pack” administrations are much more likely to fail again and tend to repay far less to creditors, research for the Guardian suggests. The study is the latest to raise questions about the practice of “ phoenixism ” – accounting’s controversial art of liquidating companies to allow directors to return with a new entity, free of debts. Continue reading...
Brazilians vote in presidential election runoff pitting leftist Lula against far-right Bolsonaro
Incumbent president lost in first round to senator and son of convicted ex-president Brazilians are going to the polls on Sunday in a highly unpredictable runoff in which the leftist president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva , is attempting an unprecedented comeback against the far-right senator Flávio Bolsonaro , who won the first-round vote. Bolsonaro’s surprise victory despite not leading most polls made him the favourite three weeks ago, but since then Lula’s campaign has gained ground, and the two go into the contest virtually tied. Continue reading...
‘I can’t believe I get to see that’: One Born Every Minute is back for a 12th series
Reality TV show returns to focus on childbirth, diversity and the sharing of stories in a social media age [PIX HERE: https://media.gutools.co.uk/search?query=One%20Born%20Every%20Minute&since=2026-10-19T23:00:00.000Z ] When One Born Every Minute first aired in 2010, viewers loved its fly-on-the-wall take on life in a maternity unit, from midwives idly chatting about unusual pregnancy cravings to parents squabbling over whether to call their child Zeus. Continue reading...
Zadie Smith tells Dua Lipa inequality has made culture clashes feel ‘existential’
Novelist says demise of Britain’s ‘incredible’ welfare system and housing struggles have led to deeper divisions The novelist Zadie Smith has said that inequality has made culture clashes feel “existential”, adding that it has become “natural to look to your left and think ‘who the fuck are you?’” In an interview with Dua Lipa as part of the Southbank Centre’s London literature festival, Smith argued that the demise of Britain’s “incredible, historic” welfare system has led to greater divisions. Continue reading...
Ageing users and record deaths – the data behind Britain’s £9.8bn-a-year cocaine habit
Sewage samples and crime statistics paint a picture of established users taking more cocaine, more often Cocaine-linked crimes on the rise in Britain as consumption surges Pubs, festivals and workplaces: how cocaine has become an everyday habit From pub toilets and private parties to football terraces and far-right marches, cocaine has become a familiar presence across modern Britain. Deaths linked to the drug have risen to record levels, while its supply supports a multibillion-pound criminal industry. But who is using the drug, and how has the picture changed? The figures do not necessarily show millions of new users, but highlight an established market in which some people take more cocaine, more often – and face greater harm as they grow older. Continue reading...
Cocaine-linked crimes on the rise in Britain as consumption surges
Exclusive: Wastewater analysis in England suggests people took roughly 2.5bn lines of drug in one year Ageing users and record deaths – the data behind Britain’s £9.8bn-a-year cocaine habit Pubs, festivals and workplaces: how cocaine has become an everyday habit British police are recording a growing number of crimes linked to cocaine, including assaults, domestic abuse and dangerous driving, as figures show consumption has surged across England. A Guardian investigation has found police forces across Britain recorded a 10% rise in crime rates associated with the class A drug since 2019, while the Home Office estimates cocaine usage at sites across England has risen by 26% since 2021. Continue reading...
Eleven sustain gunshot wounds in shooting near Florida university
Police said an altercation at a homecoming party escalated into gunfire, resulting in six adults and six juveniles injured A shooting near a Florida university campus in Tallahassee has left 11 people with gunshot wounds and another person injured, authorities say. The shooting took place near the Florida Agricultural + Mechanical University’s campus on Perry Street on Saturday night, the university said, while police counted six adults and six juveniles among the injured. Continue reading...
‘That’s the way the city works’: how the UAE changed the face of Andy Burnham’s Manchester
The story of the emirates’ presence in Manchester winds from the Arab Spring to some of the most deprived places in England – with complicated results Emirati-linked firms’ ownership of Manchester land ‘up 39%’ in 10 years When Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s long-ruling dictator, was toppled from power in the Arab spring protests of 2011, his downfall sent shock waves across the Middle East. It also helped change the face of modern Manchester. Mubarak’s successor, the Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Morsi, was a sworn enemy of the United Arab Emirates, whose rulers feared the advance of Morsi’s Islamism. Continue reading...
‘Gaza’s suffering has become campaign fodder’: Palestinians fear the worst from Israel election
Humanitarian catastrophe largely ignored as rivals Gadi Eisenkot and Benjamin Netanyahu vow to end Hamas rule As Israel prepares to go to the polls , Palestinians in Gaza are bracing for an outcome that could shape their future, knowing their fate rests with the country that has reduced much of the territory to rubble and killed nearly 75,000 people. Gaza, where nearly a million displaced Palestinians face dire sanitary conditions, water shortages and the constant threat of Israeli strikes, has been largely absent from the election campaign . Continue reading...
‘Unusually large’ multi-state storm causing flood warnings and severe weather for Australia’s east
BoM predicts hail, damaging winds, flash flooding and power outages across southern Queensland, western NSW, the ACT and eastern Victoria on Sunday afternoon Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Large parts of eastern Australia were put on alert for severe thunderstorms on Sunday afternoon with more potential storms and flood risk in store for Monday. The Bureau of Meteorology said a broad line of storms had already swept through western New South Wales, while eight flood warnings were in place across southern Queensland after days of torrential rain. Continue reading...
Brewers erase four-run deficit to stun Rays and take 2-0 World Series lead
Milwaukee rally from 4-0 down to win 5-4 in Game 2 Frelick homers before Pratt delivers go-ahead single Rays undone by defensive mistakes in seventh inning Sal Frelick tied the score with his first home run in three months, Cooper Pratt hit a go-ahead single in the seventh inning and the Milwaukee Brewers stunned the Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 on Saturday night for a 2-0 World Series lead by overcoming a four-run deficit for the second time in the postseason. Tampa Bay, who won the AL pennant by forcing opponents into mistakes, committed one error, made two other misplays that could have been charged as errors and had a runner thrown out at the plate. Continue reading...
AFP boss says politicians’ heated rhetoric is fuelling threats against MPs
Commissioner Krissy Barrett says women are more often singled out, often with threats of sexual violence Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s top federal law enforcement official has drawn a direct link between politicians’ rhetoric and threats and abuse being directed at leaders. The safety of elected representatives at all levels has been thrown into the spotlight after independent MP Helen Haines was allegedly deliberate attacked outside her Wangaratta electoral office. Continue reading...
Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi ‘sounds strong’ but is isolated, son says
Kim Aris tells the Guardian chance to speak with detained Nobel laureate was ‘public relations’ move from military leaders Myanmar’s former democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi appears to be in good physical and mental health but is living in near-complete isolation, her son has said after the first call with his 81-year-old mother in more than five years. “She still sounds certainly all there mentally, and physically she sounds strong,” Kim Aris said. “I don’t think she has anybody outside of the military or the police around her, so essentially she’s been held in solitary confinement from what I gather.” Continue reading...
California leaders rebuke Trump administration’s push over alleged noncitizen voting
Election personnel concerned directive to ‘quickly’ verify 20,000 ballots could disenfranchise citizens California’s top leaders have rebuked the Trump administration’s efforts to quash alleged noncitizen voting. Less than two weeks before the midterms, federal prosecutors called upon California election officials to verify within 48 hours a list of about 20,000 ballots belonging to suspected noncitizens. Continue reading...
Barack Obama rallies Michigan crowd for El-Sayed, saying he’s ‘fighting for real change’
Former president speaks to rapturous crowd of thousands in support of Democrat Abdul El-Sayed for US Senate Barack Obama told a Detroit crowd on Saturday that Abdul El-Sayed was “fighting for change, real change, that will get money out of politics and put money in your pocket”, as he threw his weight behind the Democratic Senate candidate and the rest of the ticket on the first day of early voting in Michigan. Obama said in front of thousands of onlookers at Cass technical high school in Detroit that El-Sayed would “finish the job we started with the Affordable Care Act and guarantee quality, affordable healthcare to every single American”. Continue reading...
Four people injured after drive-by shooting outside boxing event south of Brisbane
Offenders still at large after shots fired from vehicle outside licensed premises in Loganholme Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Four people have been injured after a drive-by shooting outside a venue hosting a boxing event. Police said they responded to reports of shots being fired from a vehicle outside a licensed premises in Loganholme, south of Brisbane, at 8.15pm. Continue reading...
Andy Burnham says he wants ‘honest discussion’ about freedom of movement with EU
Prime minister is considering different options for new relationship with Brussels ahead of summit in November Andy Burnham says he wants an “honest discussion” with the British public about the possibility of a return to free movement between the UK and the EU as part of his plans for a new relationship with the bloc. The prime minister has been open about his desire to revisit the relationship between Britain and Brussels. He has said a new deal could mean the UK goes “all the way” and rejoins the EU. Continue reading...
Storm Boelo: Travel disrupted and events cancelled as UK hit by wind and rain
Fresh deluge of wet weather comes after Storm Austen brought strong winds to many regions on Friday Amber weather warnings have come into force as the worst of Storm Boelo could be set to hit parts of the UK. Storm Boelo’s winds will peak from Saturday evening, leaving areas in the warning zone, including Scotland, parts of Northern Ireland and the far north of England, braced for gusts of 60-70mph and even 80mph in exposed coastal spots, the Met Office said. Continue reading...
Man detained at Georgia immigration detention center dies as hunger strike continues
Death inside Folkston facility comes as officials allegedly threaten hunger strikers there with force-feeding An immigrant detained at a sprawling detention center complex in Georgia died on Friday, local and federal officials confirmed, after the facility has already faced national scrutiny for its response to an ongoing hunger strike inside. The death inside the D Ray James facility in Folkston, Georgia, comes as federal immigration officials and private contractors are allegedly threatening hunger strikers there with force-feeding, a detained hunger striker, his wife, attorneys and advocates all said this week. Detainees are refusing food to protest prolonged captivity and bad conditions. Continue reading...
Healey’s first budget to include big devolution package to boost growth
Chancellor will build on Burnham’s promise that local leaders in England will no longer have to ‘come cap in hand to Westminster’ Andy Burnham has promised that local leaders in England will no longer have to come “cap in hand to Westminster” ahead of a fresh drive to devolve spending power in next week’s budget. In his statement on Wednesday, the chancellor, John Healey, will include plans for a new £1.5bn borrowing facility, to be drawn up in collaboration with mayors over the next two years. Continue reading...
Nashville SC seal first MLS Supporters’ Shield with 2-0 win over CF Montreal
Surridge and Mukhtar fire Nashville to 2-0 victory Nashville extend unbeaten streak to seven matches Montreal teenager Keita impresses on MLS debut Nashville SC scored twice in the second half to claim the Supporters’ Shield as the top team in MLS with a 2-0 win at CF Montreal on Saturday. The win allowed Nashville (21-3-7, 70 points) to stretch their unbeaten streak to seven games (5-0-2). Continue reading...