Victims misidentified and ‘commingled’ parts of more than one person placed in same casket, says lawyer
British families grieving after the Air India disaster have discovered that the remains of their loved ones have been wrongly identified and repatriated, according to an aviation lawyer representing them.
Relatives of one victim had to abandon funeral plans after being informed that their coffin contained the body of an unknown passenger.
Continue reading...Former Geelong Revival Centre members tell inquiry abuse went unreported because group believed its authority was ‘higher than the law of the land’
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A Sunday school teacher who was jailed for sexually abusing nine children was protected by the leader of his fundamentalist church, after parents reported the abuse to him instead of police, a Victorian parliamentary inquiry has heard.
Catherine and Ryan Carey, former members of the Geelong Revival Centre (GRC), gave evidence at the first hearing of the parliamentary inquiry into the practices of cults and organised fringe groups on Wednesday.
Continue reading...Newly-appointed shadow housing secretary James Cleverly says there is no excuse for recent riots but government is making a difficult situation worse
Charities have warned of the increasing danger to asylum seekers posed by far-right protesters after small boat arrivals were moved from their usual landing place in Dover to further along the coast to avoid clashes.
The Guardian understands that Home Office officials received intelligence that some of those participating in what was billed the Great British National Protest in Dover on Saturday afternoon could have been planning to target Kent Intake Unit, where small boat arrivals are initially processed after being escorted to shore in Dover by the Border Force.
Continue reading...FRC examines whether accounting firm ‘gave sufficient consideration to risk of non-compliance with laws’
The accounting firm Deloitte is under investigation by the sector regulator over eight years of its audits into the FTSE 100 commodities and mining company Glencore and a UK subsidiary.
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said it was looking into whether Deloitte’s audits of Glencore and its subsidiary Glencore Energy UK for the financial years ending 2013 to 2020 “gave sufficient consideration to the risk of non-compliance with laws and regulations”.
Continue reading...Richard Marles has confirmed payment was made in the second quarter of 2025 to boost US boat-building, bringing total paid to $1.6bn
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Australia made a second $800m payment to America’s shipbuilding industry – bringing total payments so far to $1.6bn which was promised before the Trump administration placied the Aukus agreement under review.
As part of the Aukus deal – in which Australia would buy nuclear submarines from the US ahead of its own nuclear submarines being built in Adelaide – Australia has agreed to pay about $4.6bn towards boosting US shipbuilding capacity.
Continue reading...Legislation will give education department powers to cancel the childcare subsidy if standards fall – and publicise its decision
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The prime minister says federal funding and potential cancellation of payments will be used as a threat to “drive the change” for safety in childcare centres, as governments scramble to respond to shocking allegations of abuse in early education centres.
More safety training for childcare workers, CCTV in centres and changes to working with children checks are on the agenda for federal and state authorities. Under new federal legislation revealed on Wednesday, childcare centres could lose federal funding from just one safety breach “strike”.
Continue reading...Jon Farley arrested under Terrorism Act at Leeds demonstration for holding sign making joke about Palestine Action ban
The terrorism arrest of a man for holding up a Private Eye cartoon during a protest at the weekend was “mind-boggling”, the magazine’s editor, Ian Hislop, has said, as the retired teacher called for an apology from police.
Jon Farley was picked up by police at a silent demonstration in Leeds on Saturday, which he described as a “pretty terrifying and upsetting experience”, for holding a sign that made a joke about the government’s proscription of the group Palestine Action from the last issue of the fortnightly satirical magazine.
Continue reading...In today’s newsletter: A year into opposition, Kemi Badenoch’s party is still searching for its place in UK politics
Good morning. Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the Conservative party (remember them?), has announced a reshuffle of her top team a year into her leadership.
The reshuffle itself has not come as a surprise – it was rumoured for months. Badenoch has kept much of her team in place, including the shadow home secretary, Robert Jenrick, shadow chancellor, Mel Stride, and the shadow foreign secretary, Priti Patel.
Israel-Gaza war | Israel’s government is pursuing an “unacceptable and morally unjustifiable” policy in Gaza, the Catholic Latin patriarch of Jerusalem has said after visiting a church in the territory that was attacked by Israeli forces and meeting survivors.
Environment | The world is on the brink of a breakthrough in the climate fight and fossil fuels are running out of road, the UN chief said on Tuesday, as he urged countries to funnel support into low-carbon energy.
Immigration | Officials are to start using artificial intelligence to help estimate the age of asylum seekers who say they are children, Angela Eagle, the immigration minister, said on Tuesday.
UK news | A man has been found guilty of assisting a foreign intelligence service after handing over personal details of the then defence secretary, Grant Shapps, to two British undercover officers he believed to be Russian agents.
Music | Ozzy Osbourne, whose gleeful “Prince of Darkness” image made him one of the most iconic rock frontmen of all time, has died aged 76. His death comes less than three weeks after his retirement from performance.
Continue reading...Forty people who have been offered scholarships unable to travel without biometric data they have no way of getting
Pressure is mounting on ministers to intervene on behalf of 40 students in Gaza who have been offered full scholarships to study at UK universities, but are unable to take up their places this September because of government red tape.
A high-level meeting is understood to have taken place at the Home Office on Tuesday after MPs and campaigners highlighted the students’ plight, calling on ministers to take action to help secure their safe passage to the UK. Some students are reported to have been killed while waiting, while others are said to be in constant danger.
Continue reading...Home Office orders diversion from usual landing place to Ramsgate to avoid clashes with far right
Charities have warned of the increasing danger to asylum seekers posed by far-right protesters after small boat arrivals were moved from their usual landing place in Dover to further along the coast to avoid clashes.
The Guardian understands that Home Office officials received intelligence that some of those participating in what was billed the Great British National Protest in Dover on Saturday afternoon could have been planning to target Kent Intake Unit, where small boat arrivals are initially processed after being escorted to shore in Dover by the Border Force.
Continue reading...Operator says if rivals are allowed to squeeze into existing facilities it could jeopardise its investment
Eurostar has urged the UK government to choose a “credible long-term strategy” for international rail or risk “falling behind” the rest of Europe, before a crucial decision by the regulator that could end its cross-Channel monopoly.
The high-speed train operator warned that a “premature” ruling from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to allow competitors to squeeze trains into existing facilities could jeopardise its planned investment and expansion.
Continue reading...Move by Ukrainian president widely opposed and may prove a setback to hopes of country one day joining the EU
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has defended his approval of a contentious bill that weakens Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies as its passage into law triggered the first serious protests against his government.
The move on Tuesday has put the president on a collision course with civil society activists and some of Ukraine’s veterans, and is likely to dismay Ukraine’s European partners.
Continue reading...The warning comes after a string of shows by women comedians joking about men went viral
Chinese provincial officials have warned comedians against stirring up discord between the genders, instructing them to criticise constructively rather than “for the sake of being funny”.
The warning came from authorities in eastern Zhejiang province on WeChat over the weekend after a comedian referred to her allegedly abusive marriage in a performance that went viral on Chinese social media.
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