Police release image of person they want to speak to over incident in Stoke Newington on 18 November
Police are searching for a woman who allegedly struck a woman in the face and grabbed her hijab in north London in what they describe as a racially and religiously motivated assault.
Police have released an image of a woman they would like to speak to in connection with the incident, which happened on 18 November.
Continue reading...Greater Manchester police, who have launched murder inquiry, say victim was likely to be older than 40
Human remains found wrapped in plastic at a nature reserve in Greater Manchester are those of a man older than 40 and who had been dead for only a matter of days, police said.
A human torso was found on the Kersel Wetlands, former home of the Manchester racecourse, on Thursday evening, Greater Manchester police said.
Continue reading...Former prime minister says a western arms embargo on Israel would ‘hand victory’ to Hamas
Boris Johnson has said banning arms sales to Israel would be “insane”.
The former prime minister also criticised the foreign secretary, David Cameron, for remaining silent on the debate over curtailing UK arms sales to Israel.
Guardian Newsroom: Crisis in the Middle East
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Pouria Zeraati said he is back on the airwaves with Iran International, a dissident broadcaster based in the UK
An Iranian journalist who was stabbed outside his London home last week has returned to work, saying the “show must go on”.
Pouria Zeraati was knifed in the leg by a group of three unknown assailants as he approached his car in Wimbledon on 29 March.
Continue reading...John Alfred Tinniswood, who was born in 1912 in Liverpool, acquired the title after Japan’s Gisaburo Sonobe, 112, died in March
An 111-year-old man from England is now the world’s oldest living man and says the only diet he follows is eating fish and chips every Friday.
John Alfred Tinniswood, who was born in 1912 – the same year the Titanic sank – insist the secret to his long life is “pure luck”. He obtained the title of world’s oldest man after 112-year-old Gisaburo Sonobe, from Japan, was confirmed to have died on 31 March.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Treatments near approval but lack of diagnostic capacity means NHS unprepared for rollout, report says
Hundreds of thousands of dementia patients in England face being denied access to revolutionary new drugs because the diagnostic capacity of the NHS lags behind every other G7 country, according to a damning report.
After decades of research to find a cure for the condition projected to affect 153 million people worldwide by 2050, scientists have successfully developed the first treatments to tackle the underlying causes rather than only relieve the symptoms. Two new drugs could get the green light for use on the NHS within weeks.
Continue reading...Evans says he was first to alert authorities after receiving messages in what is suspected to be part of wider attempt to target MPs
A Conservative MP has revealed that he was targeted in the Westminster sexting scandal and was the MP that first alerted the authorities.
Luke Evans said he was messaged in what is suspected to be part of a wider attempt to target MPs.
Continue reading...Relatives of Kelly Faiers say police failed to properly inform them that a body had been found
The family of a woman found dead at a sex offender’s home have criticised the police’s “bodged” investigation after his body is believed to have been found this week in a caravan close to where he vanished six months ago.
Relatives of Kelly Faiers said they were upset at how the news about the possible discovery of Richard Scatchard’s body was broken, claiming they did not have time to alert others close to Faiers before the police went public.
Continue reading...Greater Manchester police say they are working to identify victim after body part found in Kersal Wetlands
Police have launched a murder investigation after human remains were found at a nature reserve in Greater Manchester.
A body part believed to be a torso was found by passersby in Kersal Wetlands in the Salford area on Thursday evening. Greater Manchester police (GMP) confirmed on Friday afternoon the body was in a state that meant it was “not possible for the victim to have survived”.
Continue reading...Boys and young men need guidance – not punishment – to avoid ‘manosphere’, teacher tells NEU
Teachers should promote positive masculinity in schools in England and Wales in order to support boys who might otherwise feel demonised and end up turning to “the manosphere” for hope, a union conference has been told.
Charlotte Keogh, a secondary school English teacher from Worcestershire, said boys and young men needed support and guidance as they grappled with ideas about masculinity, rather than being punished and silenced.
Continue reading...Writer was one of the first female news reporters on British TV, interviewing stars including Charlie Chaplin and Audrey Hepburn
The author Lynne Reid Banks has died at the age of 94.
The novelist, known for writing books including the children’s story The Indian in the Cupboard, died of cancer “peacefully with her family around her” on Thursday afternoon, her agent, James Wills, said.
Continue reading...In today’s newsletter: Scotland’s new Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act was supposed to protect its most vulnerable communities. Instead, it’s served only to create even bigger divides
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I should be broadcasting to Australia right now, but I politely declined the request so I could write to you instead. I love my job as Scotland correspondent and, of course, lots of the topics I report on have global relevance. But it’s not every week that I’m fielding calls from international newsrooms desperate for me to explain the technicalities of the latest Holyrood parliament legislation.
So it was this week. The Scottish government’s new hate crime law is supposed to protect vulnerable communities from abuse. Instead, it has resulted in an almighty omnishambles that has dominated the headlines at home and abroad, with fierce arguments about the limits of free speech, police officers overwhelmed by thousands of potentially vexatious complaints and, most critically, the groups it was seeking to protect warning that the debate has veered too far from the reality of hate crime they experience on the streets of Scotland every day. I’ll explain what the law was designed to do and why it has proved so controversial after this morning’s headlines.
Gaza | Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has said Israel will increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, including the temporary reopening of a key crossing that was destroyed in the 7 October Hamas attack. The move came after Joe Biden said future US support for Israel will depend on it taking concrete action to protect civilians and aid workers.
Garrick Club | The men-only Garrick Club has moved closer to admitting female members, after an emergency committee meeting acknowledged there was nothing in the rules to prevent them from joining. The late-night vote means women could become members within months, 193 years after the club was founded, sources said.
Politics | Leaked documents show Tory executives discussed exploiting Conservative party members’ personal data to build a mobile phone app that could track users’ locations and allow big brands to advertise to Conservative supporters. The party would then take a cut of sales.
Crime | A senior Conservative MP has reportedly admitted giving out the personal phone numbers of colleagues to a person he met on a dating app. William Wragg told the Times he gave the information after he had sent intimate pictures of himself, saying he was “scared” and “mortified”. Police are investigating after MPs were apparently targeted in a “spear-phishing” attack, in what security experts believe could be an attempt to compromise parliament.
Journalism | Hella Pick, the Guardian’s pioneering former foreign correspondent and diplomatic editor, has died at the age of 96. Her career spanned more than seven decades, covering geopolitical upheavals and tectonic shifts in global power. Her last article, on the war in Gaza, was published in January.
Continue reading...Daniel Kebede accuses government of failing to tackle issue of sexism and its spread online among children
The leader of the UK’s largest education union has called for an independent inquiry into the rise of sexism and misogyny among boys and young men, saying it should not be left to parents and schools to police.
Daniel Kebede, the general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), said it was “a huge issue” in schools and expressed particular concern about the ease with which pupils are accessing aggressive hardcore pornography on their phones.
Continue reading...Avanti West Coast services among those affected by Aslef industrial action, which continues on Saturday and Monday
Rail passengers across England will face significant disruption on Friday as train drivers at five operating companies carry out industrial action.
The 24-hour strike will be the first of three days of rolling strike action being taken by the train drivers’ union Aslef, with services on Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway all affected.
Continue reading...Move comes after Guardian revealed names of powerful men among club’s exclusive membership
The men-only Garrick Club has edged closer to admitting female members, after an emergency committee meeting acknowledged that there was nothing in the club rules to prevent them from joining.
The late-night vote on Thursday means that women could finally become members of the club within months, 193 years after the Garrick was founded and following decades of controversy over its discriminatory rules, sources said.
Continue reading...William Wragg says he was pressed for colleagues’ details after sharing compromising photos of himself
A senior Conservative MP has reportedly admitted to giving out the personal phone numbers of colleagues to a person he met on a dating app.
William Wragg told the Times that he gave the information after he had sent intimate pictures of himself, saying he was “scared” and “mortified”.
Continue reading...Number of signatories warning Sunak over breach of international law in arming Israel rises to more than 750
A fourth former supreme court justice has put his name to a letter warning Rishi Sunak that the UK is breaching international law by continuing to arm Israel, as the number of legal experts signing the letter rose to more than 750.
Lord Carnwath joins Lady Hale, who was president of the UK’s highest court, and lords Sumption and Wilson, in urging ministers to act to prevent the “plausible risk” of genocide in Gaza.
Continue reading...Post-Brexit charges of up to £145 may lead to a reduced range of goods available for consumers
British small businesses have hit out at newly announced post-Brexit import fees coming in later this month, warning they could wipe out profits and make importing some products unfeasible.
Trade bodies, retailers and small firms said that the new charges of up to £145 for each consignment could force them to limit the range of items they can offer, while others may have to push up their prices.
Continue reading...Chain signs up 1m new members and invests more than £90m in cutting prices
Despite record levels of shoplifting in its food stores, the Co-op increased profits in its grocery business last year as it signed up 1 million new members and invested more than £90m in cutting prices, including introducing special discounts for members.
Profits rose 11% year on year to £154m despite a 6.4% fall in sales to £7.3bn, driven by the sale of the Co-op’s petrol forecourt chain to Asda. Underlying sales rose 4.3%, excluding the impact of that deal, although that was still well behind the pace of grocery inflation.
Continue reading...Ping Pong introduces 15% ‘brand charge’ months before new law will ensure workers get full share of tips
A London restaurant chain has banned customers from paying a tip by card and introduced a “brand” fee instead, just three months before new legislation makes it compulsory to give all tips to staff.
Ping Pong, which operates five dim sum outlets in the capital, said the new optional 15% charge would go towards “franchise fees and other brand-related expenditure”, and replace a 12.5% service charge, 90% of which went to staff.
Continue reading...