News

No 10 ‘did not know’ of aide’s links to paedophile when he was given peerage

Downing Street not aware of Matthew Doyle’s support for Sean Morton when peerage was granted, minister says UK politics live – latest updates Downing Street was not aware that Keir Starmer’s longstanding communications chief had campaigned for a paedophile when his peerage was announced, a minister has said. Matthew Doyle, who stepped down as the No 10 head of communications last March, was suspended on Monday from the Labour whip in his new role in the Lords after it emerged that he had camp...

Ghana declares Wednesday 'Fugu Day' to promote traditional outfit after online mockery

The iconic attire has been trending online for days following the banter between Ghanaians and Zambians.

Starmer faces PMQs amid pressure over why ex-No 10 aide friendly with sex offender was given peerage – UK politics live

Labour has removed the whip from Matthew Doyle, Starmer’s former director of communications, who only recently became a peer Good morning. At PMQs last week Keir Starmer had to face questions about a Labour peer with a paedophile friend. Today he seems likely to face questions about another peer in this category. As Peter Walker reports, yesterday Labour said it had removed the whip from Matthew Doyle, who only recently became a Labour peer, having previously served as Starmer’s director of c...

‘Finding Harmony’ Documentary on King Charles Shows His Longtime Concern for Environment

Environmentalism may have gone out of fashion on Wall Street and in the White House, but the British monarch says he remains deeply committed to the cause in a new documentary, ‘Finding Harmony’.

Angus Taylor resigns from shadow cabinet and says he does not believe Sussan Ley in position to lead Liberals

Taylor says party in ‘worst position’ since formation and says it needs ‘strong leadership, clear direction’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Angus Taylor has resigned from shadow cabinet and is expected to challenge Sussan Ley for the Liberal leadership, declaring the party is in the “worst position” since its formation in 1944. Taylor announced Wednesday evening he was resigning from shadow cabinet, the first step in an expected bid to depose the party’s first fe...

‘We need a helicopter to go find them’: 13-year-old’s triple zero call to save family stranded off WA coast revealed

Austin Appelbee told authorities he was ‘really scared’ after swimming 4km in rough seas to get help for mum and two siblings Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast “We got lost out there,” 13-year-old Austin Appelbee tells the triple-zero operator, after swimming 4km (2.5 miles) in the rough, open ocean and running 2km (1.25 miles) to save his family. The operator asks how long it is since he set off. Continue readi...

India orders social media firms to remove unlawful content within three hours

Critics worry the rules would be a compliance challenge for tech platforms and could expand censorship.

Her sons were killed by Islamist militants. She's among thousands who had to flee

Yameogo Aminata says her four sons were slaughtered and her daughter is missing.

Canada Launched Major Gun Reforms in 2020 After Its Deadliest Mass Shooting

Some of world’s oldest trees hit by climate-fuelled wildfires in Patagonia

Wildfires that left 23 people dead were made about three times more likely by global heating, researchers say The climate crisis inflamed deadly wildfires that left 23 people dead in Chile and devastated forests in Argentina that host some of the world’s oldest trees, scientists have found. The hot, dry and windy conditions that enabled the fires to blaze across huge areas in January were made about three times more likely by global heating, researchers from the World Weather Attribution (WWA...

Commonwealth Bank posts record half-year cash profit as investors pile into housing market

CBA shares surge by 7% after bumper $5.45bn result while data shows owner-occupiers’ share of lending has decreased in tight property market Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Commonwealth Bank has delivered a record $5.45bn half-year cash profit, as investors pile into the housing market and take market share from owner-occupiers. Australia’s biggest lender said on Wednesday it was settling more than 3,000 h...

Police detain person of interest as search for Nancy Guthrie continues

Police are now searching the home of the person, who was taken into custody at a traffic stop.

NSW police commissioner urged to apologise to ‘entire Muslim community’ after officers disrupted prayer at Sydney protest

Mal Lanyon says police were ‘required’ to disperse crowd, while Mehreen Faruqi accused them of ‘assaulting Muslims’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Muslim group has urged the New South Wales police commissioner to apologise to the entire Muslim community after police disrupted a group of people praying at a protest against the visit by Israel’s president in Sydney on Monday. Australian National Imams Council...

Family of worker killed on Saudi World Cup site still waiting for compensation a year on

Lengthy delays in compensation are ‘emblematic’ of what many relatives of migrant workers go through in the Gulf kingdom, say rights groups When Mohammad Arshad fell to his death while constructing the first new stadium for the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia, one of the main stadium contractors, the Belgian construction multinational Besix, promised it would take immediate steps to ensure all end-of-service and insurance payments were, “handled in a timely and respectful manner”. Almost a yea...

Mia Amor Mottley on course for third term, as Barbados heads to the polls

PM and global climate action advocate looks set to secure another victory despite voter concerns over cost of living and crime Barbados prime minister and global climate action champion, Mia Amor Mottley, is on course for a third consecutive term in office, forecasts suggest, as voters head to the polls on Wednesday. Mottley is the country’s first female leader since its independence in 1966, and her strong international advocacy for climate action and support for small and vulnerable nations...

Canada launched major gun reforms in 2020 after its deadliest mass shooting.

Broken ribs, ruptured bowels: ebike injuries double at major Sydney hospital in one year

More than half of the cases presenting to the St Vincent’s emergency department in Sydney had self-reported speeds of more than 25km/h Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast “You don’t understand the power of an ebike until you get on one,” Dr Tony Grabs warns. Grabs, the director of trauma at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, cites a patient who jumped on a rental ebike after a night of drinking with friends – the fi...

‘I’m thinking of building an ark’: the Cornish village soaked by 41 consecutive days of rain

In Cardinham, which has had 366mm of rain this year, there’s little need to check the weather forecast: more rain Tell us: how have you been affected by the rainy weather in the UK? “I’m thinking of building an ark,” said Sarah Cowen, an artist and cafe owner. “It’s been horrendous. We’ve never known anything like it. The mud, the silt, the endless rain.” Cowen is one of a hardy, if soggy, bunch who live or work in and around the parish of Cardinham , on the edge of Bodmin Moor in Cornwall, w...

Nurses’ families fear being torn apart in UK immigration crackdown, survey says

Exclusive: Most people in charity’s study say they worry about being separated from relatives under Mahmood plans Families of nurses and carers have said they fear being torn apart under an immigration crackdown condemned as “an act of economic vandalism”. A survey of more than 1,000 people, many of whom moved to Britain to work or study, found that three in five worry about being separated from their relatives. Continue reading...

Netanyahu to meet Trump as Iran nuclear talks reach critical stage

The Israeli prime minister is expected to press Trump to pursue a deal that would halt Iran's uranium enrichment.