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Politics
Policy, power, and the news of the day.
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‘In walked this big bundle of energy’: the day Dolly Parton came to Rotherham
Country star came to South Yorkshire town in 2007 for UK launch of the Imagination Library, her book donation scheme Shane Jarman was up a ladder decorating a Christmas tree at the school where he was deputy headteacher when he got a call asking him to come to Rotherham hospital ASAP. It was December 2007 and Jarman’s wife, Claire, had given birth the previous day to their first child, a girl called Emma, so of course he rushed to the phone. All was well, he was told, but that “everything would become clear” when he got to the hospital. Once there, his wife told him – somewhat unexpectedly – that they were going to meet Dolly Parton. “And literally within what felt like five minutes,” he recalled, “there were great camera flashes , lots of noise, lots of clicking and in walked this real big bundle of energy.” Continue reading...
Nepal-Tibet floods: death toll rises to 626 and number missing climbs to nearly 3,000 – latest updates
Rescue workers and military personnel have been working around the clock since Wednesday’s disaster ‘The flood took everything I have’: survivors grieve for relatives and homes swept away in Nepal Chinese rescuers find ‘nothing but ruins’ at border crossing as Nepal seeks help to ID and store the dead The risk of a lake formed after the glacier collapse bursting near the China-Nepal border where the devastating flood occurred earlier this week has decreased, Chinese authorities said today, as its size appears to have shrunk. Satellite images from Thursday this morning suggest water in the lake – straddling the China-Nepal border at the confluence of two rivers – has been slowly flowing through, decreasing the reservoir gradually, state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing the Water Resources Ministry. Continue reading...
Statins can safely cut risk of heart attacks or strokes in healthy people aged over 70, world-first clinical trial shows
Australian-led trial finds low risk of side effects from common cholesterol-lowering medication for otherwise healthy older people Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Taking a common cholesterol-lowering medication can reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke for people aged over 70, with a low risk of serious side effects, a world-first clinical trial led by Australian researchers has found. Statins are already commonly prescribed to people under the age of 75 who meet certain risk criteria, such as having diabetes and high cholesterol, to prevent them from having a major heart event such as a heart attack, stroke, or from requiring heart surgery. Continue reading...
Households could save up to £173 a year by switching to fixed energy deal
Moving tariffs will cushion the blow from the October price cap rise and the increase widely predicted for January With higher energy bills looming and warnings of worse to come in the new year, many households could save up to £173 a year by switching to a fixed deal. Millions of households in Great Britain will face the highest energy charges in three years after it was announced that the government’s price cap will rise again in October. This will be the second increase in three months. Continue reading...
Sharp rise in incidents of AI escaping users’ control, research finds
Exclusive: Number of times AI lies, ignores instructions and pursues goals in harmful ways almost doubles in July Incidents of AIs escaping users’ control to lie, ignore instructions and pursue goals in harmful ways have hit a new high, according to research that also suggests the severity of deception and misalignment is worsening. Analysis of real-world loss of control incidents involving AI models flagged by businesses and individuals almost doubled in July compared with June, with more than 300 cases in the month, according to the Loss of Control Observatory, which monitors reports made by AI users on the social media platform X. Continue reading...
UK risks falling behind in AI race without faster telecoms upgrades, say executives
Planning delays and slow 5G upgrades could leave the UK unable to cope with a surge in AI-related traffic The UK risks becoming a laggard in the global AI race as crucial telecoms upgrades to harness the technology fall behind rival nations, according to senior industry executives. The infrastructure AI race has centred on the need to build datacentres , and to ensure they have access to the huge water and energy supplies required to cool and supply the computational power to train and run AI models. Continue reading...
Plug-in solar panels could save households up to $370 a year – if Australia legalised them like the UK
A plug-in solar kit that costs about $1,000 ‘pays for itself in three years’, one expert says Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Millions of Australians could be saving up to $370 a year on energy bills and doing their bit for the climate crisis if Labor followed the UK’s lead in legalising plug-in solar panels, an advocacy group has said. Plug-in solar refers to small standalone solar units that could be attached to balconies or used in back yards and plugged into power points, offsetting the energy used by household appliances. Continue reading...
Hilarity, unease and relief: games show China is not over the finish line in humanoid robot race
World Humanoid Robot Games showcased leaps Beijing has made in the tech, but also highlighted limitations as US rivals prepare their own launches With exploding pelvises, enough comic pratfalls for a Buster Keaton show reel and the odd moment of ruthless violence, the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing gripped the world this week with an unsettling mixture of hilarity, trepidation and relief. The five-day showcase staked out China’s claim to undisputed leadership in humanoid robotics as android martial artists landed knockout roundhouse kicks and robot teams marched into the arena heralded by flag-waving captains astride giant robotic dogs. The games’ blue-riband event, the 100m, did not disappoint when the robot-sprinters ran quicker than Usain Bolt before slamming mindlessly into a padded wall in a blaze of sparks, flames and flying mechanical limbs. Continue reading...
‘Winter panic’: EU gas stores at their lowest level in 13 years
As one of Europe’s biggest consumers of gas the UK may be particularly exposed to heightened price volatility Europe is on course to enter the cooler months with gas stores at their lowest level in 13 years, which has triggered “winter panic” among energy traders, experts have warned. The EU’s gas stocks were 63% full in the last week of August, well below the 80% average for late August over recent years and among the lowest levels ever recorded for this time of year. Continue reading...
Ireland will be united, says Gordon Brown
Former PM believes Northern Ireland will leave UK in the long term – but remains opposed to Scottish independence The former prime minister Gordon Brown has said it is inevitable that Ireland will become united at some point in the future, in a wide-ranging interview with the Guardian. While he added that any union would necessarily be “a long process” and based on mutual agreement, Brown’s comments are notable both because of his vehement opposition to Scottish independence, but also because of his involvement in government in efforts to bring peace to Northern Ireland. Continue reading...
‘The butcher may be gone, but to many he is a hero’: victims condemn glorification of Mladić
Architect of Srebrenica genocide is dead but those scarred by his atrocities say his ideology is still shockingly pervasive To most of the world, he was and will always be the “Butcher of Bosnia”, a grim epithet but one that still fails to fully convey the evil and horror inflicted on its people by Gen Ratko Mladić, who died in prison on Thursday . As commander of the Bosnian Serb forces, Mladić was responsible for the killing of an estimated 100,000 men, women and children during the savage breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. He was most notoriously the architect of ethnic cleansing and the genocide at Srebrenica in which at least 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were slaughtered. Continue reading...
What we know about the Australians missing in the Nepal floods
More than 40 Australians are among several thousand people unaccounted for after catastrophic flooding on the Nepal-Tibet border How the deadly Nepal and Tibet flash flood unfolded – a visual guide Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast An 11-year-old child, an ADF member and many other pilgrims and trekkers have been named among the Australians missing after deadly flash floods and landslides tore through valleys on the Nepal-Tibet border. As of Saturday there were 41 Australians among almost 2,500 people reported missing in the disaster, including at least 777 foreigners. At least 93,000 people were estimated to have been affected by the disaster, according to the Red Cross. Continue reading...
Chinese rescuers find ‘nothing but ruins’ at border crossing as Nepal seeks help to ID and store the dead
Nepal and China continue arduous search and rescue operations in flood-hit Himalayas Visual guide: how the deadly flooding unfolded Nepal-Tibet flash flood – latest updates A Chinese rescue team has reached the all-but-obliterated Gyirong border crossing complex for the first time and found “nothing but ruins” as Nepal and China continue their arduous rescue operations in the flood-hit Himalayas. Surveillance camera footage from the worst-hit Gyirong border crossing complex showed huge torrents of water and debris on Wednesday engulfing buildings and people trying to flee. Only on Friday were rescuers able to reach the area. Continue reading...
Man posed as 49ers player to scam women out of $1.3m, FBI says
Authorities say 26 women targeted across four states Suspect allegedly used dating apps, fake investments FBI believes there may be ‘many more victims’ Federal authorities claim a man posed as a San Francisco 49ers player and scammed more than two dozen women out of about $1.3m. The FBI arrested Daejon Love, 35, and his alleged accomplice Taylor Jamie Chan, 18, on 24 August in Boise, Idaho. They were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud, according to the US attorney’s office in the District of Oregon. The men remain in federal custody in Boise. Continue reading...
Controversial plans for a Daniel Andrews sculpture officially scrapped by Victorian government
The $134,000 cost of the statue of the former Victorian premier has been heavily criticised by the Liberal opposition Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Carroll government in Victoria has cancelled controversial plans for a statue of former Labor premier Daniel Andrews. Work began in May on the statue commemorating the former premier’s more than 3,000 days in office, as part of a 1999 policy recognising long-serving Victorian premiers. Continue reading...
Trump announces new US oil agreement with Venezuela
US president says US will have ‘majority’ control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves Donald Trump announced Friday a new US oil agreement with Venezuela, saying the US will have “majority” control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves. “At my direction, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, working closely with Highly Respected Interim President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez, and, through a partnership with private business, have secured majority U.S. control of more than 65 BILLION BARRELS of proven Oil Reserves in Venezuela, at no cost to the American Taxpayer,” Trump wrote on Truth Social . Continue reading...
Man, 41, dies after large sign falls at Christian festival in West Sussex
Six more people hospitalised after incident at Big Church festival near Steyning A 41-year-old man has died and at least six other people have been injured after a large sign fell at a Christian festival in West Sussex, police said. The man, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, was pronounced dead at the scene after the incident at the Big Church festival near Steyning on Friday afternoon. Continue reading...
Number of Australians missing in Nepal’s deadly floods rises again, as Albanese deploys more personnel
Figure rises to 41 on Saturday morning, with four rapid response teams to arrive in Kathmandu Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The number of Australians who were reported missing in the catastrophic Nepal flooding disaster has risen to 41, as one family celebrates after an unaccounted-for woman made contact with them yesterday. It means three additional Australians were confirmed missing overnight – up from 38 who remained unaccounted for on Friday evening. Continue reading...
Los Angeles fire survivors face record wait for federal disaster aid under Trump
Nearly 600 days after the devastating 2025 fires, thousands of Los Angeles residents are still waiting for more than $15bn in federal funds to rebuild their communities As thousands of residents in Spokane, Washington begin to grapple with a long recovery after a destructive set of blazes that consumed hundreds of homes in the state’s second most populated city this month, victims of the Los Angeles firestorm broke a grim record – they have faced the longest delay in modern history for federal aid. Nearly 600 days since a historic firestorm roared into communities across Los Angeles, reducing more than 16,000 structures to ash and toxic debris, the Trump administration has failed to appropriate more than $15bn in long-term recovery funds that are crucial to rebuilding. The delay in supplying the badly needed funds is months longer than the last record set when victims of the Maui fires had to wait 500 days to receive the support, LAist noted this week. Continue reading...
MLB suspends Dominican prospect after age-fraud plot involving fake grave
Report: player posed as nearly two years younger Scheme allegedly included fake grave and records $2.8m agreement with Guardians was canceled A once-prized prospect from the Dominican Republic has been suspended by Major League Baseball after a league investigation revealed the player was part of an elaborate plot to portray him as nearly two years younger than he actually was, ESPN reported Friday. The age-fraud plot included extreme efforts by the player’s handler such as falsifying school and medical records, faking birth and death certificates and even staging a gravesite, per the report. Continue reading...
Trump arch will alter sightlines of many Washington DC landmarks, report says
National Park Service, which backs the 250ft arch, says it is likely to disrupt historical significance of dozens of sites A new National Park Service report backs Donald Trump ’s proposed arch, despite what it says are adverse effects to the sightlines of a host of landmarks in Washington, including the Washington Monument and the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials. The report released Friday says the 250ft-tall (76-meter) memorial arch is likely to disrupt the historical significance of dozens of sites near its planned location adjacent to the Arlington Memorial Bridge. Continue reading...
Volunteers rescue man stuck on 10,000-ft high ledge in Sierra Nevada range
Climber, stuck on 6-in ridge, had veered off treacherous path and ‘any fall would almost certainly be fatal’ An ill-fated move left a man stranded on a 6-in ledge over 10,000ft off the ground for hours in California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range, before a volunteer rescue team came to his aid. The climber, who has not been publicly identified, had been scaling the Mendenhall couloir, a gully on the face of Laurel mountain, with a friend on Saturday. Continue reading...
Milo Yiannopoulos, a far-right political commentator, reportedly detained by ICE
A former editor of Breitbart News, Yiannopoulos has also served as an intern for Marjorie Taylor Greene Milo Yiannopoulos, a far-right British political commentator, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Louisiana, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In a statement on Friday, a DHS spokesperson said that Yiannopoulos was arrested on Thursday at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans international airport (MSY). The spokesperson said Yiannopoulos “legally entered the country” in May 2019, but that “he chose to overstay his welcome in violation of our nation’s laws”. Continue reading...
Judge grants hearing over bid to recant Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse allegations
Man claims he was coached extensively by authorities Pennsylvania says recantation is ‘highly suspect’ Sandusky serving sentence after 2012 conviction A judge has granted a hearing to explore claims that a man wants to recant allegations of sexual abuse years ago by Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. Sandusky, 82, has been serving a decades-long prison sentence since he was convicted of 45 counts of sexual abuse in 2012. Eight young men testified about what happened to them as boys. He has repeatedly lost efforts to get a new trial, but Sandusky’s lawyers are trying again. Continue reading...