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Politics
Policy, power, and the news of the day.
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Home Office denies British baby living in Thailand chance to meet great-grandfather in UK
British father would like to take his family to Lancashire to see ill relative but officials refused visa for his partner, a refugee from Myanmar The Home Office has denied a great-grandfather from Lancashire the chance of meeting his five-month-old British great-grandson, who lives abroad. William Cross was born in Thailand on 30 April to parents Matthew Cross, 31, who is from Burnley in Lancashire, and Khin Thant Zin, known as Jue Jue, also 31, a refugee who fled persecution in Myanmar to Thailand. Continue reading...
Child sex abuse charges against actor Timothy Busfield dismissed by judge
Prosecution did not act in fair and impartial way in grand jury proceedings, judge rules, after West Wing actor charged with groping young boy on TV set A state court judge in New Mexico has dismissed charges of child sexual abuse against West Wing actor and director Timothy Busfield, saying the prosecution did not act in a fair and impartial manner during grand jury proceedings. Judge Joseph Montano said prosecutors could pursue new charges against Busfield. Continue reading...
Trump puts new Russia sanctions passed by Congress on hold amid deepening row with Ukraine
President signed the legislation championed by late senator Lindsey Graham last month but has waived the restrictions as they were due to come into effect Donald Trump has put on hold a sweeping new sanctions package targeting the Russian economy, telling Congress the pause on the legislation passed by both chambers was in the national interest. In an executive order on Friday, the US president said he was waiving many sanctions, restrictions and duties on Russia, in a move that comes as he has been publicly criticising Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, including suggesting that Ukraine needs a new leader. Continue reading...
Mexican judge sentences three men to 158 years in prison for murders of Australian and US surfers
Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson, and their American friend Carter Rhoad, were killed while on a surf trip in Baja California in 2024 Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Mexican judge has sentenced three men to 158 years and nine months in prison each for the killings of two Australian brothers and their American friend during a 2024 surf trip to the state of Baja California. The defendants were declared guilty a week ago of homicide, aggravated robbery, robbery with violence and vehicle theft with violence, crimes committed against Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson, and their American friend Carter Rhoad. Continue reading...
Mimicking populists will not ease cost of living or boost productivity, Mathias Cormann warns
Former minister and OECD head urges Australia not to adopt migration caps, with research showing migrants boost employment Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s mainstream political parties are being warned not to adopt populist policies such as migration caps to address voters’ grievances over the cost of living. Instead, Australia’s longest-serving finance minister Mathias Cormann is urging politicians to deliver housing, real wage growth and lower energy costs by boosting productivity. Continue reading...
Trump administration threatens California officials if noncitizens vote in midterms
Justice department warns election officials of prosecution if they ‘knowingly tabulate ballots’ cast by noncitizens The Trump administration is escalating its fight with California ahead of next month’s midterm elections , warning that local officials who process and tabulate ballots submitted by suspected noncitizen voters are putting themselves at risk of criminal investigation and potential prosecution. The letter on Friday from senior justice department officials and obtained first by the Associated Press is the latest salvo in an ongoing tussle with heavily Democratic California, coming just a day after the Trump administration sued the state to prevent it from counting mail-in ballots from people the federal government has identified as “likely” noncitizens until their immigration status can be confirmed. Continue reading...
Gone to the dogs: racing fans mourn closure of ‘Wenty’, Sydney’s historic greyhound track
Thousands pack Wentworth Park for the final time before the stadium is demolished and returned to parkland Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The end of an era has fallen upon an Australian sporting landmark as the greyhound races at an inner-city track kick off for the very last time. Thousands packed into Wentworth Park in central Sydney on Friday night, where greyhound races have been held since 1932, for the last race meeting before the track’s planned demolition. Continue reading...
Mortgage repayments are now cheaper than rent in some Australian suburbs. Is yours among them?
As house prices plateau, the gap between the cost of buying and renting is narrowing in dozens of suburbs Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast High rents and falling property prices have opened a rare window for Australian tenants to become homeowners, with mortgage repayments cheaper than rent in dozens of suburbs. Guardian Australia’s analysis of Cotality data shows that median rents in inner-city Melbourne, suburban Canberra and Darwin are now nearly matching weekly home loan repayments. In one in 10 suburbs and towns across the country, repayments are less than $200 a week higher than rent, for the typical property. In some suburbs, they are actually cheaper. Continue reading...
Trump in Georgia falsely claims election of Jon Ossoff was illegitimate
President appears at rally for struggling Mike Collins, dismisses critics and touts ‘most successful’ two-year run At a rally in north Georgia, Donald Trump again claimed that the 2020 election in Georgia was fraudulent, alleging that the election of US senator Jon Ossoff was illegitimate. Ossoff, who faces US congressman Mike Collins in November, does not represent Georgia’s values, Trump said. Continue reading...
Oregon shooting victims: three boys and female teacher killed at elementary school
Father of five-year-old Rhoam Summer says family ‘broken and lost’, while seven-year-old and 54-year-old in hospital Authorities are investigating a shooting at an elementary school in Bend, Oregon, where a 16-year-old shooter killed four people before being shot dead by a bystander. The shooting took place on Thursday afternoon at Silver Rail elementary school, about 125 miles (200km) south-east of Portland. Continue reading...
Reform councillor resigns after being filmed making racist remarks
Alan Feeney, who sat on Solihull and Birmingham councils, said there was ‘no excuse’ for his comments Alan Feeney has resigned as a Reform councillor for Solihull and Birmingham after backlash over racist comments that were captured in an undercover investigation. In a Facebook post on Friday, Feeney wrote: “There is no excuse for my comments. With responsibility comes accountability, and it is for that reason that I have resigned every post I hold on both Solihull borough council and Birmingham city council.” Continue reading...
Katie Zacharia’s five days as press secretary expose flaws in Trump’s TV-driven hiring
The president reportedly chose Zacharia after seeing her on television, but her first press briefing and disastrous interviews sealed her fate And so Katie Zacharia joins the mayfly ranks of Liz Truss, Anthony Scaramucci , New Coke, CNN+ and Quibi. To say she burned twice as bright and half as long would be too kind. She went out like a firework on a soggy night. The White House confirmed on Friday that Zacharia is leaving her role as press secretary after just five days on the job. No one was surprised after a lacklustre press briefing debut and scrutiny over her legal credentials. Continue reading...
Healey backs pro-growth case for Heathrow third runway after Burnham ducks issue
Chancellor says government will study responses to public consultation, with airports being ‘big part of jobs and growth’ John Healey has said there is a pro-growth case for going ahead with a third runway at Heathrow despite the prime minister declining to back it. Healey’s predecessor as chancellor, Rachel Reeves, put approval of the long-planned runway at the heart of her “growth speech” last year, saying it would “make Britain the world’s best-connected place to do business” . Continue reading...
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs moved to new prison after reports of a luxury lifestyle behind bars
Disgraced music mogul moved to Pennsylvania prison after reports of perks and fight injuries at New Jersey lockup Sean “Diddy” Combs , who was convicted of prostitution-related crimes, has been moved to a federal prison in Pennsylvania after reports that the disgraced music producer was living the high life and was injured in a fight at his New Jersey lockup, according to reports. The US Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is transferring Combs, 56, from FCI Fort Dix to FCI Allenwood Low, a low-security facility south of Williamsport and about 155 miles (250km) west of New York City, a person familiar with the matter said to the Associated Press. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and did so on condition of anonymity. Continue reading...
Who could replace Katie Zacharia as White House press secretary?
Her abrupt firing five days after assuming the position reopened the contest for one of the most prominent roles in the Trump administration The White House is without a press secretary again after the ousting of Katie Zacharia, just five days into her appointment as Donald Trump’s spokesperson. Zacharia’s departure comes just months after Karoline Leavitt unexpectedly resigned as the White House press secretary to focus on her family. Continue reading...
Bystander who killed Oregon shooter identified as father of girls at elementary school
Kaylub Giamanco, who was reportedly driving home when he heard gunshots, ‘not seeking recognition’, family says Details are beginning to emerge about Kaylub Giamanco, the man who brought the deadly shooting at elementary school in Bend, Oregon on Thursday , to an end by fatally shooting the 16-year-old suspect in the midst of a violent rampage. Authorities have yet to officially release the man’s identity, but Kaylub Giamanco’s family issued a statement on Friday confirming that he shot and killed the suspect. Continue reading...
Family of US man who died on Six Flags ride question if death was preventable
Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem died after reportedly ‘passing out’ and falling off Goliath rollercoaster in Georgia The family of a man who was ejected from a rollercoaster at a Six Flags amusement park in Georgia and died has publicly questioned whether the death could have been prevented. Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem was riding the Goliath rollercoaster at Six Flags Over Georgia near Atlanta alongside his niece during a family trip to celebrate her birthday when he was thrown from the ride. His niece witnessed her uncle’s death, a relative told the Atlanta ABC News affiliate WSB-TV . Continue reading...
Brazilian Amazon deforestation falls to lowest on record as pivotal vote looms
Forest clearance lowest since records began in 1988 in success for Lula ahead of presidential run-off Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen its lowest level since records began, new government data shows. But whether this globally important success is maintained or reversed is on a knife edge ahead of a presidential election run-off on 25 October between two candidates with sharply different visions for the future of the rainforest and how that affects relations with the US under Donald Trump. Continue reading...
Case against Leon Black dismissed after plaintiff said she was ‘medically incapable of continuing’
In civil suit, ‘Jane Doe’ alleged billionaire raped her after being ‘handed off’ by Jeffrey Epstein. Black denied the allegations and called claims a fabrication A federal judge has agreed to dismiss a lawsuit brought against Leon Black after the plaintiff in the case, who had accused the private equity billionaire of rape, said she was “medically incapable of continuing” and at risk of “acute psychiatric crisis”, including suicide. The woman known only as “Jane Doe”, who claimed in a lawsuit that was first filed in July 2023 that she had been “handed off” to Black by his associate Jeffrey Epstein and then sexually assaulted by him, had been acting without a lawyer in the case. Doe has alleged that the assault occurred in 2002, when she was a teenager. Continue reading...
‘Well-known individual’ tries to secure permanent injunction against Guardian and ITN
Lawyers tell high court that client could harm himself if serious allegations against him are made public A “well-known individual” is trying to secure a permanent injunction against the Guardian and ITN to prevent them from publishing details of serious allegations made against him. At a high court hearing on Friday, the claimant’s legal team said there was a serious risk that he could harm himself should the allegations be made public. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org , or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org Continue reading...
No 10 leaves option open to impose Chinese EV tariffs if UK joins EU scheme
Beijing warns against ‘discriminatory’ step after France drops opposition to British role in Made in Europe package No 10 has left the door open to imposing tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles as part of the Made in Europe package, prompting a warning from Beijing that such a move would be “discriminatory”. Downing Street said on Friday that it would “welcome the objective to have the UK included in the Industrial Accelerator Act” after France dropped its opposition to Britain joining the scheme . Continue reading...
Katie Zacharia fired after five days as White House press secretary – reports
Zacharia hosted widely panned first briefing on Tuesday and faced scrutiny after admitting she didn’t pass bar exam Katie Zacharia was fired as the White House press secretary on Friday, just five days after she assumed the role, according to media reports. Zacharia had a rocky start to her tenure as press secretary, hosting a widely panned first briefing on Tuesday. She had also faced questions over her legal credentials after admitting she did not pass the bar exam. Continue reading...
Amber Guyger, police officer who murdered black neighbor in his home, released from prison
Guyger, convicted of murder of Botham Jean in Dallas in 2018, served seven years of 10-year sentence The former Dallas police officer who was convicted of murdering Botham Jean after entering his apartment and shooting him in 2018 was released from prison on Friday morning after spending seven years in prison. Amber Guyger, 38, regained her freedom a little more than two weeks after the Texas board of pardons and paroles approved her release , despite opposition from Jean’s family. Continue reading...
Met police investigating row over founding of Your Party
Inquiry said to have been launched after force received report ‘relating to alleged unauthorised access of a political party’s database’ Police are carrying out a criminal investigation into a row over the founding of Your Party, which split the leftwing party as it was established last year. A spokesperson for London’s Metropolitan police said they had launched an investigation after they received a report in September 2025 “relating to the alleged unauthorised access of a political party’s database”, the Politico website reported. Continue reading...