Eagle-eyed reader and consumer solicitor say local bylaws are key to question of enforcement
Are private fines sent by Bristol airport’s contractor to motorists who pick up passengers outside its designated, paid-for, drop-off and pickup zone unenforceable?
It looks as though they may be, if an eagle-eyed Guardian reader and a leading consumer solicitor are correctly interpreting the bylaws that govern the airport.
Continue reading...Living among film stars and estranged from his father and brother, Harry’s milestone birthday may bring moment of reflection
Ten years ago, Prince Harry was given the run of Clarence House for his 30th birthday. Guests headed by Prince William and including long-standing childhood friends enjoyed a black-tie dinner where they were reportedly serenaded by Ellie Goulding while Charles and Camilla discreetly decamped to their Scottish hideaway.
Such a family celebration now seems unthinkable as Harry prepares to mark his 40th on Sunday.
Continue reading...With more people getting their news online than on TV, Ben Herd, 20, records his experience of following current affairs
An Ofcom report this week marked a tipping point: more people now get their news online than on TV. We asked Ben Herd, a 20-year-old currently at university, to keep a diary for a couple of days of how he was following news stories and current affairs. He gets most of his news from social media …
Continue reading...US and UK leaders’ talks dominated by row with Russia over use of Storm Shadow missiles
Joe Biden dismissed sabre-rattling threats made by Vladimir Putin as the US president met with the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, at the White House on Friday.
Biden said he did not accept that Ukraine using western-made Storm Shadow missiles to bomb targets in Russia would amount to Nato going to war with Moscow.
Continue reading...PM defends choices such as cutting winter fuel allowance as long-term remedies as polls show his popularity falling
Keir Starmer has said painful decisions such as cutting winter fuel payment to save £1.4bn a year are necessary as failure to act would be simply “putting a lick of paint over the damp”.
The prime minister described the process of taking decisions “that aren’t going to be popular” as part of a strategy of “strip down the joint, rebuild the house”.
Continue reading...Move to use shared posts follows information commissioner concerns and sets collision course with EU over privacy
Mark Zuckberg’s Meta is to go ahead with controversial plans to use millions of UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train its artificial intelligence (AI) technology, in a practice that is effectively outlawed under EU privacy laws.
Meta said it had “engaged positively” with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) over the plan, after it paused similar proposals in June in the UK and EU. The pause came after the ICO warned tech firms to respect the privacy of users when building generative AI.
Continue reading...Marieha Hussain had denied her placard depicting Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman was racially abusive
A teacher who held a placard depicting Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman as coconuts has been found not guilty of a racially aggravated public order offence.
Marieha Hussain, 37, had denied the prosecution’s allegation that the placard she held at a pro-Palestine protest was “racially abusive”.
Continue reading...FSB says documents show diplomats in Moscow were helping to coordinate ‘escalation of military situation’ in Ukraine
Russia announced it had revoked the accreditation of six British diplomats in Moscow on accusations of espionage as Keir Starmer prepared to meet Joe Biden in Washington to discuss how Ukraine could use long-range missiles deep inside Russian territory.
Moscow’s FSB domestic spy agency said on Friday that it had acted on documents showing that part of the Foreign Office was helping coordinate what it called “the escalation of the political and military situation” in Ukraine.
Continue reading...Man, 18, held after emergency services find three people with injuries who were pronounced dead at scene
A teenager has been arrested after the deaths of three people at a property in Luton on Friday morning.
Officers were called at about 5.30am to reports of concerns for welfare at a flat in Leabank, off Wauluds Bank Drive. Emergency services attended and discovered three people with injuries. All three were pronounced dead at the scene.
Continue reading...Labour still more popular with voters than Conservative party but those saying they view party and leaders unfavourably has risen
The government’s defence review should consider the importance of Britain being able to “wage peace” as well as war, Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, told peers.
In a debate in the House of Lords on Sudan this morning, Welby said the strategic defence review (SDR) announced by Labour should include a “peace-building option”, to stop conflict before it happens.
A peace-building option, well developed and acting in areas of fragility, would extend our influence, protect our interests and guard against fresh waves of migration …
In other words, the SDR should be full spectrum, preparing this nation not only to wage war but to wage peace as well. I fear that may not be the case …
No, absolutely not
And let’s just try to quash this now. The budget is on October 30. So, between now and then, you are all going to ask me questions, as you did before the election, ‘will you rule out X, Y, Z?
Continue reading...Repair Shop presenter has appeared at Kidderminster magistrates court, say West Mercia police
The BBC presenter Jay Blades has been charged with engaging in controlling and coercive behaviour against his wife. The Repair Shop presenter appeared at Kidderminster magistrates court on Friday, West Mercia police said.
The Guardian understands that the BBC took steps to remove a programme featuring Blades from its Friday evening schedule after the charge, and that no programmes with the former furniture maker would be shown in the foreseeable future.
Continue reading...Some high-achieving pupils in England received lower than expected grades that rose after being re-marked
Concerns have been raised about the reliability of the marking of GCSE English this summer, after complaints that normally high-achieving pupils in schools in England were awarded lower than expected results, which then went up after being re-marked.
In some cases, marks for individual questions doubled after a review, and at least one pupil’s grade jumped from 6 to 9. GCSEs are graded on a scale of 1 to 9, with 9 the highest grade.
Continue reading...Enthusiasm for public sector pay awards tempered by concern over winter fuel payment cuts and job losses
“We’re hearing an awful lot about tough times: it’s like being in a Dickens novel. What comes after the tough times? We need to hear about hope.”
Onay Kasab, the national lead officer for the Unite trade union, was addressing a leftwing fringe meeting, but similar sentiments reverberated through the bars and coffee shops at this week’s TUC congress in Brighton.
Continue reading...The image of huge, glorious landscapes, where wildlife runs free under the protection of the state, is far from reality
What do you think of when you think of a national park? Is it a wide area of glorious natural beauty, where wildlife runs free under the protection of the state? Or is it a wide area mostly farmed by private landowners, in which nature is faring worse than outside its boundaries, and largely off-limits to the public?
In England, the reality is the latter, and this matters. The country is one of the most nature-depleted nations in the world, in the bottom 10% of nations for biodiversity. “Nature is in freefall in our national parks,” says Dr Rose O’Neill, the chief executive of the Campaign for National Parks (CNP).
Continue reading...International reaction muted over Russia’s warning about allowing Kyiv to strike it with western-made missiles
European leaders have dismissed Vladimir Putin’s warning that the west would be directly fighting Russia if it allowed Kyiv to strike Russian territory with western-made long-range missiles.
The US and UK are discussing, in conjunction with other allies, allowing Kyiv to strike military targets inside Russia with Storm Shadow missiles, which can hit targets up to 155 miles (250km) from their launch site.
Continue reading...UK PM responds to Putin’s threat that use of long-range British missiles inside Russia would put it at war with Nato
Keir Starmer has told Vladimir Putin that he started the war in Ukraine and could end it at any time after the Russian leader warned that any use of long-range British missiles into Russian territory would put Nato at war with his country.
The prime minister spoke en route to Washington to see US president Joe Biden as he sought to justify a western decision made behind closed doors that would allow Ukraine to attack inside Russia with partly British-made Storm Shadow missiles.
Continue reading...Marieha Hussain attended a London march against the war in Gaza carrying a sign depicting Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman as coconuts
A woman who held a poster depicting Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman as coconuts during a London protest against Israel’s war in Gaza has gone on trial accused of a racially aggravated offence.
Marieha Hussain, 37, pleaded not guilty as her trial began at Westminster magistrates court on Thursday morning. Prosecutor Jonathan Bryan said the term “coconut” was a “well-known racial slur which has a very clear meaning”.
Continue reading...Junk food ad ban, age limit on energy drinks and expanded water fluoridation among measures planned to help NHS
Plans to ban junk food ads and to stop children buying high-caffeine energy drinks are among radical public health measures being drawn up by ministers to prevent illness and so ease pressure on the NHS.
The government made clear it would face down “predictable cries of ‘nanny state’” because Keir Starmer was convinced this was the way to fix the service.
Continue reading...West Yorkshire city to host magic, music, film and theatre performances celebrating local talent, plus Turner prize
A city centre magic show, the Brontës as you’ve never seen them before, and a bassline house symphony are all part of Bradford’s City of Culture lineup, which its organisers call a celebration of everything that makes the West Yorkshire city great.
Shanaz Gulzar, the creative director of Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture, said the whole of the country was invited to come next year to a place she billed as young, diverse, creative and “the heart of the UK”.
Continue reading...Meta’s global affairs chief points to ‘behavioural issue’ around child safety tools on the social media platforms
Parents do not use parental controls on Facebook and Instagram, according to Meta’s Nick Clegg, with adults failing to embrace the 50 child safety tools the company has introduced in recent years.
Meta’s global affairs chief said there was a “behavioural issue” around using the tools, after admitting they were being ignored by parents. Regulatory pressure is building on tech companies to protect children from harmful content, with the Australian government announcing plans this week to ban younger teenagers from accessing social media.
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