Japanese premier warns of Ukraine-style invasion by ‘autocratic powers’

Kishida also promised increased reliance upon nuclear power for future energy independence

Boris Johnson and Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida have warned that the invasion of Ukraine could be replicated in east Asia if democratic powers do not stand up to autocratic ones.

“Ukraine may be east Asia tomorrow,” Kishida said on Thursday during a visit to London, as he called for Indo-Pacific leaders to recognise that the invasion of Ukraine was not just a European problem. Asked about the implications for Taiwan, he said: “We must collaborate with our allies and like-minded countries, and never tolerate a unilateral attempt to change the status quo by the use of force in the Indo-Pacific, especially in east Asia.”

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UK aid cuts have forced 40,000 Syrian children out of school, charity says

Funding for 133 schools run by Syria Relief ended on 30 April, leaving pupils at risk of child labour and early marriage

More than 40,000 Syrian children are out of school as a direct result of British aid cuts and more schools could soon close, a leading charity has said.

British funding for 133 schools run by Syria Relief ended on 30 April, as the government cut its total foreign aid spending from its commitment of 0.7% of gross national income to 0.5%.

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Degrees underfunded by £1,750 per student, Russell Group says

Group says deficit would widen to £4,000 under plan to freeze tuition fees in England until 2024-25

Each undergraduate costs England’s leading universities nearly £2,000 as tuition fees and teaching grants fail to fully fund a degree, and that amount is likely to double soon unless the government acts to fill the gap.

A submission by the Russell Group of research-intensive universities – including the University of Manchester and University College London – to a consultation on higher education funding revealed that the average cost per student was £1,750 more than they receive in tuition fees and teaching grants.

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Election leaflets distance ‘Local Conservatives’ from Boris Johnson

Tory candidates ask voters not to punish them for ‘mistakes’ in Westminster in wake of Partygate

Hundreds of Tories are distancing themselves from Boris Johnson by standing as “Local Conservatives” in Thursday’s council elections, with rebel MPs saying they will gauge support over the weekend for a move against the prime minister.

Election leaflets seen by the Guardian show local candidates across England playing down their Tory affiliations, eschewing pictures of Johnson and styling themselves as “Local Conservative” on voting ballot papers.

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Father who killed his two-year-old son sentenced to life

The judge in Edinburgh described the murder as ‘truly evil’, and the child’s mother said she will fight to ensure Lukasz Czapla ‘never leaves prison’

A father who killed his two-year-old son after discovering that his mother was in a new relationship has been jailed for life.

Lukasz Czapla, 41, was unanimously found guilty of the murder of Julius Czapla and was ordered to spend a minimum of 23 years behind bars.

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Calls for buffer zones around abortion clinics in Scotland after protests

SNP urged to act by Scottish Labour and campaigners as fears grow threat to Roe v Wade in US could embolden anti-choice movement

The Scottish government is facing growing calls to impose buffer zones around abortion clinics amid fears that potential changes to abortion rights in the US are emboldening anti-choice protesters.

A leaked US draft supreme court ruling overturning Roe v Wade has sharpened anxieties over delays in implementing the SNP’s 2021 manifesto pledge to support local authorities to establish protest-free zones around clinics.

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Diego Maradona ‘hand of God’ shirt sold for record £7.1m at auction

Blue Argentina No 10 jersey kept by England player Steve Hodge beats mark set by 1892 Olympic manifesto

The shirt worn by Diego Maradona when he scored twice – including the “hand of God” goal – to knock England out of the 1986 World Cup has sold for a record-breaking £7.1m at auction.

The late Argentinian player described his opening goal in the quarter-final as “a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God”. He and the England goalkeeper Peter Shilton leapt to reach the ball, which touched Maradona’s left hand and bounced into the net. The referee did not have a clear view and allowed the goal to stand.

The last violin played on the Titanic was sold at auction for $1.7m in less than 10 minutes in 2013. The instrument belonged to Wallace Hartley, an English musician whose eight-piece band played as the ship sank into the frozen waters of the Atlantic in April 1912. According to reports, Hartley’s body was pulled from the water days afterwards with his violin case still strapped to his back.

John Lennon’s flowered porcelain toilet sold for almost $15,000 (£9,500) – about 10 times the estimate – in 2010. The toilet came from Tittenhurst Park, an English estate owned by Lennon and Yoko Ono, where the former Beatle recorded his Imagine album and film. When Lennon had the toilet replaced, he told builders to “put some flowers on it or something”. Sale organisers called it the most unusual item they had ever handled.

An oak chair that JK Rowling used while writing the first two books of the Harry Potter series sold for $394,000 (£278,000) in 2016. The 1930s chair was one of four mismatched chairs given free to the then little-known writer for her council flat in Edinburgh. Before she donated it for auction in aid of the NSPCC in 2002, Rowling painted on the chair: “You may not/find me pretty/but don’t judge/on what you see.”

Marilyn Monroe’s white halter dress that she wore in the 1955 film The Seven Year Itch sold for $4.6m in 2011. “Oh, do you feel the breeze from the subway? Isn’t it delicious?” Monroe famously says in the film as the dress is blown up by air from a New York subway grate. That image become one of the most memorable in film history. The dress was designed by William Travilla and made from rayon-acetate to give it sharp pleats.

A copy of the Bible used by Elvis Presley sold for £59,000 in 2012. A pair of Presley’s unwashed and soiled underpants worn underneath his famous white jumpsuit during a 1977 concert performance went unsold after bids failed to meet the £7,000 reserve price.

False teeth belonging to Winston Churchill were sold for £15,200 in 2010. The upper dentures, one of several sets made for the wartime prime minister, were specially constructed to preserve his natural lisp and were so important to him that he carried two pairs at all times. They were designed to be loose-fitting so that Churchill could preserve the diction famous from his radio broadcasts during the second world war.

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‘Some new evidence’ found against Madeleine McCann suspect

German prosecutor says investigators are sure Christian Brückner killed three-year-old and have ‘new facts’

Fresh evidence has been found against the prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, a German prosecutor has revealed.

Hans Christian Wolters said in an interview on Portuguese television that investigators believed they had found “some facts, some new evidence, not forensic evidence.”

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Local election leaflets show Tory candidates are ‘ashamed’ to be associated with Boris Johnson, Labour says – as it happened

Angela Rayner says Tory candidates at the local elections ‘are trying to hide from their own government’s record’. This live blog is closed – please follow this one for updates on the war in Ukraine

Savanta ComRes has published some new polling on voting intention in Scottish parliaement elections. Here are the figures for the constituency section.

And here are the figures for the list section.

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Scottish medicines body to reassess menopause drug amid HRT shortage

Davina McCall documentary highlights benefits and postcode lottery of previously rejected utrogestan

A sought-after hormone replacement therapy is being reassessed for use in Scotland after TV presenter and menopause campaigner Davina McCall revealed a postcode lottery in its prescription across the UK.

Amid an ongoing supply crisis of HRT products, McCall spoke to specialists about the benefits of utrogestan, a “body identical” micronised progesterone, which is derived from plants, in her Channel 4 documentary Sex, Mind and Menopause, broadcast on Monday.

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Climate sceptic thinktank received funding from fossil fuel interests

Exclusive: Global Warming Policy Foundation has led the backlash against UK government’s net zero policy

An influential thinktank that has led the backlash against the government’s net zero policy has received funding from groups with oil and gas interests, according to tax documents seen by the Guardian and OpenDemocracy.

Though the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF) has always said it is independent of the fossil fuel industry, the revelations about its funding will raise questions over its campaigning.

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Boohoo likely to raise prices after pre-tax profits fall 94%

Fast fashion retailer blames delivery disruption and wavering pandemic demand for increasing costs

Boohoo has admitted its clothing prices are likely to rise this year after profits almost halved amid weakening consumer demand and rising costs.

The online fashion specialist said pre-tax profits fell 94% to £7.8m in the year to 28 February. Sales rose 14% to almost £2bn but growth was down more than 40% in the previous year, as deliveries overseas were held up by disruption to international shipping and wavering demand during the pandemic.

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Crossrail: much-delayed Elizabeth line to open on 24 May

Tunnelled section of £19bn project through centre of London finally ready for passengers

London’s Elizabeth line is to open on 24 May, it has been announced, with the long-delayed tunnelled central section of the £19bn Crossrail project now ready for passengers.

Transport for London (TfL) said the line would open, subject to final safety approvals, the week prior to the Queen’s jubilee celebrations.

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Aston Martin appoints third CEO in three years as Tobias Moers steps down

Former Ferrari boss Amedeo Felisa will take over as chief executive of British carmaker

Aston Martin has appointed its third chief executive in three years, with Tobias Moers stepping down after only two years in charge.

Moers will leave the board of the British carmaker with immediate effect but will stay until the end of July to “support the leadership team with a smooth transition”, Aston Martin Lagonda announced.

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‘Embarrassed to be British’: Brexit study reveals impact on UK citizens in EU

Exclusive: Survey of Britons on continent shows ‘deep transformations’, shame and disappointment

The first major study since Brexit of UK citizens living in the EU has revealed its profound impact on their lives, with many expressing serious concerns over their loss of free movement and voting rights – and a very different perception of Britain.

The survey, of 1,328 British nationals across the continent, showed that if “the public narrative suggests Brexit is done and dusted, it has brought deep transformations to the lives of British citizens in the EU and EEA”, the study’s co-lead, Michaela Benson, said.

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Boris Johnson says police have not contacted him about Lee Cain party

PM is reported to have given speech and poured drinks at leaving do for former spin doctor in November 2020 despite lockdown

Boris Johnson has said he has not been contacted by police about a leaving party held for his former spin doctor Lee Cain in November 2020.

The prime minister said he had not yet received a questionnaire in relation to his alleged attendance at the party for Cain, his former director of communications, even though other people present are reported to have got them. Johnson is said to have given a speech and poured drinks at the event on 13 November, despite it being at the time of a stay-at-home lockdown.

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Met police commissioner: likely candidates to succeed Cressida Dick

The possible contenders remaining in the race to take the top job in London policing

It is not the done thing for candidates for the Metropolitan police commissionership to publicly discuss their candidacy, and those who apply will face an anxious wait to see if they have made the shortlist.

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Boris Johnson’s ‘out of touch’ comments on cost of living crisis anger Tory MPs

PM’s interview on Good Morning Britain causes concern about party’s performance in upcoming local elections

Boris Johnson’s fumbled defence of the government’s record on the cost of living has exasperated Conservative MPs and sharpened fears about the party’s performance in Thursday’s local elections.

Asked about a pensioner forced to travel around on buses to stay warm and keep heating bills down, the prime minister’s first response was to boast that he introduced free travel for older people. During the interview on Tuesday, he admitted that the government had failed to do enough to alleviate the pain of soaring costs.

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Civil servants called UK Covid testing scheme ‘unlegit’, court hears

Details of emails released in Good Law Project challenge to awarding of contracts to Abingdon Health for antibody tests

Civil servants described the government’s Covid testing programme as “unlegit” and “no way to do business” in emails revealed in a high court challenge to the awarding of up to £85m in contracts for antibody tests.

The campaigning organisation Good Law Project (GLP) is challenging the health and social care secretary, claiming the contracts with Abingdon Health, a medium-sized UK firm, were unlawful because they were not advertised nor open to competition, and the correct procurement process was bypassed.

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Partygate means all Covid fines should be overturned, lawyer argues

Call for penalties to be scrapped in light of Boris Johnson’s defence of breaches, as 23 already struck down

Covid fines should be overturned en masse in light of the prime minister’s defence for attending lockdown-breaching events, a lawyer has argued, as it emerged more than 20 penalties imposed on businesses had been struck down in recent months.

Lucinda Nicholls, who successfully represented 23 firms and is still fighting on behalf of seven more, said serious deficiencies in the evidence presented against her clients – as well as Boris Johnson’s own apparent confusion about how to apply his own rules – called every penalty imposed under Covid legislation into question.

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