Police to get new powers to shut down protests before disruption begins

Plans aimed at preventing tactics such as ‘slow marching’ are part of Rishi Sunak’s public order crackdown

Police are to be given powers to shut down protests before any disruption begins under Rishi Sunak’s plans for a public order crackdown, which aim to prevent tactics such as “slow marching”.

Sparking outrage from civil liberties campaigners, the government said it would be laying an amendment to the public order bill to toughen its crackdown on “guerilla” tactics used mainly by environmental protesters.

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Neil Parish considering offering to stand for election again as a Tory

Former MP for Tiverton and Honiton resigned after admitting watching pornography in Commons

A former MP who quit after admitting watching pornography in the Commons said he was thinking of standing again at the next general election.

Neil Parish resigned from his Tiverton and Honiton seat after declaring that he was the politician whom other MPs had spotted watching X-rated material in parliament.

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Man arrested on suspicion of terror offence after Heathrow uranium seizure

Police launched investigation after traces of radioactive element found in material at the airport in December

A man in his 60s has been arrested on suspicion of a terror offence after traces of uranium were found at Heathrow airport at the end of December, Scotland Yard has said.

The man was arrested after counter-terrorism officers searched an address in Cheshire on Saturday, on suspicion of an offence under section 9 of the Terrorism Act 2006, which covers the making and possession of radioactive devices.

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Man rescued after being swept over waterfall in Scotland

Casualty suffered broken bones after falling into burn at Grey Mare’s Tail and being carried downstream

A man was airlifted to hospital with multiple injuries after he was swept over a waterfall in Scotland.

A rescue operation was launched after the man lost his footing and fell into the burn at the Grey Mare’s Tail waterfall near Moffat in Dumfries and Galloway on Saturday.

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Family of boy thrown from Tate Modern tell of improving condition

French boy is practising a gentle form of judo and adapted archery as he continues his recovery

The family of a boy thrown from the 10th floor of London’s Tate Modern art gallery has said he is practising a gentle form of judo and adapted archery as his condition slowly improves.

The French boy was six when he was badly injured in an attack by Jonty Bravery at the tourist attraction in August 2019.

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Nursing union warns that next strike will be twice as big

RCN says if progress not made on pay negotiations, action in February will include all eligible members in England

Double the number of nurses will be asked to strike in early February in a bid to increase pressure on the government, union leaders have warned.

The Royal College of Nursing has said that if progress is not made in negotiations by the end of January, the next set of strikes will include all eligible members in England for the first time.

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Girl, 7, critically injured in shooting at double memorial service in London

Another child and four women also injured in incident close to Euston following joint service for a mother and daughter

A seven-year-old girl is in hospital with life-threatening injuries after a suspected driveby shooting outside a memorial service in north London, the Metropolitan police have said.

A second child, a 12-year-old girl, was taken to hospital with a minor leg injury but has now been discharged.

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Most UK voters still back strikes by nurses and ambulance crews

Public support for industrial action by health workers remains strong in the face of government claims it is putting lives at risk

A majority of voters continue to support striking nurses and ambulance workers, despite government claims that they are putting the public at risk, according to the latest Opinium poll for the Observer.

Labour has also increased its lead over the Tories by 1 percentage point, to 16 points, after the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, and other cabinet ministers tried to make political capital by accusing Keir Starmer and his party of being in the pockets of the unions at a time of industrial unrest, the survey shows.

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UK set to brand Iran’s revolutionary guards as terrorists after Akbari execution

Britain and EU expected to coordinate response to hanging of British-Iranian accused of spying

The UK and the European Union are expected to coordinate moves to brand the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation after the execution of Alireza Akbari, a British-Iranian dual national who was lured back to Iran by the security services three years ago.

Akbari, who had been a senior defence figure in reformist governments nearly two decades ago, was hanged for being a spy for MI6, a charge his family deny. A friend of the family said “this is a murder case”, and vowed to prove the innocence of the 61-year-old, including allegations that he had been paid by British intelligence.

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Revealed: cabinet split over NHS pay disputes piles pressure on Sunak

Health secretary Steve Barclay urges unions to lobby PM over improved pay offer for striking nurses and ambulance workers

The health and social care secretary Steve Barclay has privately urged trade unions to help him make the case to the Treasury and No 10 for extra money for nurses, ambulance workers and other NHS staff in an extraordinary twist to the escalating crisis over health service strikes, the Observer can reveal.

A serious cabinet split has opened up, with Barclay now wanting more money for all NHS staff except doctors – while Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, are refusing to budge from their insistence that no more can be offered.

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Three dead boa constrictors discovered at Carbeth Loch near Glasgow

SSPCA says circumstances of incident suspicious as its launches appeal for information about the snakes

An animal rights charity is appealing for information after the bodies of three snakes were found at a fly-tipping spot near Glasgow.

The Scottish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) said the boa constrictors were discovered by a member of the public at a site near Carbeth Loch in Blanefield.

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Revealed: ministers sought Charles’s consent to pass conservation laws affecting his business

The government wrote to the then Prince of Wales in 2019, seeking approval for legislation that had implications for his estates

The government asked King Charles for permission to pass its post-Brexit “world-leading” Environment Act because laws requiring landowners to enhance conservation could affect his business interests.

Environment minister Rebecca Pow wrote to the then Prince of Wales in 2019 to ask if he would accept section seven of the environment bill, which became law in November 2021.

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UK looks clumsy and powerless in wake of Iran’s execution of Alireza Akbari

Culturally insulting language used by Rishi Sunak and James Cleverly will increase tension between the two countries

Britain’s relationship with Iran has a fraught, unedifying history, dating back to the 18th-century imperial tussle between England, Napoleonic France, and tsarist Russia for control of Persia. Iranians have long memories. To this day, they blame the UK for many of their woes.

Britain invaded in 1941 to limit Nazi influence and protect the Anglo-Persian company’s oilfields. In 1953 it intervened again, mounting a coup, with US help, to overthrow a democratically elected government and bolster the rule of the autocratic, pro-western shah.

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Ambulance workers accuse government of demonising them

In letter to Rishi Sunak, GMB union members say they feel ‘utterly betrayed’ by attempts to portray them as ‘uncaring about safety’

A group of ambulance workers has sent a furious letter to the prime minister saying they feel “utterly betrayed” by the government’s attempts to paint them as “uncaring about safety standards”.

Steve Rice, the head of the GMB union’s ambulance committee, sent Rishi Sunak a letter on behalf of ambulance workers protesting against the government’s plans to introduce anti-strikes legislation.

PA Media contributed to this report

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October start set for ban in England of single-use plastic tableware

Sale by retailers and food outlets in England of single-use plastic tableware to be banned but not ‘shelf-ready pre-packaged food’ containers

Single-use plastic plates, cutlery and a range of other items will be banned in England from October, to curb their “devastating” impact on the environment, the government has confirmed.

The Department for the Environment said the ban will also cover single-use plastic bowls, trays and certain types of polystyrene cups and food containers.

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UK private renters could save billions if energy efficiency minimum is raised

Bill payers stand to collectively save billions if minimum standard raised to a C rating, research suggests

Raising the minimum standard of energy efficiency to a C rating for privately rented homes would save bill payers about £570 a year, research has found.

This would amount to annual savings totalling £1.75bn across the UK, according to the thinktank E3G in a report called Cutting Energy Bills and Raising Standards for Private Renters.

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Ex-homelessness charity bosses get 15-year ban for misuse of funds

Charity Commission inquiry showed Ashley and Lee Dribben spent large sums meant for vulnerable people on themselves

Former homelessness charity bosses who authorised spending thousands in funds on watches, 50-in TVs and spyware to eavesdrop on clients have been found guilty of misconduct by the Charity Commission.

Ashley Dribben, an ex-trustee of the Ashley Foundation, and his father, Lee, its founder and former chief executive, personally benefited from funds intended to help vulnerable homeless people, the watchdog said.

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Surrey dog attack: woman killed believed to have been walking a number of dogs

Police have detained eight animals at the popular walking spot at Gravelly Hill, Caterham

Eight dogs were detained at the scene of an attack that left a woman dead on Thursday, according to Surrey police. Detectives are keeping their owners up to date with the investigation.

Police cordons have been lifted after the death of the 28-year-old woman at Gravelly Hill, Caterham, a popular local beauty spot. The victim is believed to have been walking a number of dogs when she was attacked

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Starmer calls on Sunak to stand up to ERG and ‘Brexit purity cult’– UK politics live

Leader of the Labour party made the comments during a speech on Brexit in Northern Ireland

The UK culture secretary, Michelle Donelan, has said she is “not ruling out” changing the online safety bill to allow regulators to prosecute social media bosses who are found not to have protected children’s safety.

Donelan told the BBC she was open to making changes that have been demanded by dozens of Conservative MPs, saying she would take a “sensible approach” to their ideas.

Obviously this is a very sensitive area and I know there were very robust debates and exchanges on it as the bill was passing in Scotland. What I’m concerned about is the impact of the bill across the United Kingdom.

There may be impacts across the UK that we need to be aware of and understand the impact of them, and that’s what we’re doing, and once the government has received final advice it will set out next steps.

This is not just a question about the GRR people’s individual views on it. This is about democracy.

The Scottish parliament has voted in favour of legislation that sits within devolved competencies, and it’s incumbent upon Westminster to ensure that legislation is passed in full.

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