Treasury threatens Defra with £4bn bill if Thames Water nationalised

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Exclusive: Treasury threat an example of ‘scare tactics’ to help force through private sector deal, sources suggest

Whitehall officials have been at loggerheads over the fate of Thames Water since the Treasury told the environment department that it would have to meet the cost of a multibillion pound temporary nationalisation.

Britain’s biggest water company recently came within days of running out of money. Thames is in a desperate race to find a buyer willing to inject cash, with the US private equity firm KKR in pole position.

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Scientific societies to do climate assessment after Trump administration dismissed authors

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Two groups join forces for peer-reviewed research after key contributors on Congress-mandated report dismissed

Two major US scientific societies have announced they will join forces to produce peer-reviewed research on the climate crisis’s impact days after Donald Trump’s administration dismissed contributors to a key Congress-mandated report on climate crisis preparedness.

On Friday, the American Meteorological Society (AMS) and the American Geophysical Union (AGU) said that they will work together to produce over 29 peer-reviewed journals that will cover all aspects of climate change including observations, projections, impacts, risks and solutions.

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Huge hound and pocket-sized pup: meet-and-sniff with world’s tallest and smallest dogs

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Reginald, a great dane, and Pearl, a chihuahua, met after winning their respective Guinness World Records categories

A playdate between the world’s tallest and smallest living dogs went the way of most dog park encounters despite the 3ft (0.91-meter) height difference – lots of tail wagging, sniffing and scampering.

Reginald, a seven-year-old great dane from Idaho, and Pearl, a chihuahua from Florida, are both certified winners in their respective height titles by Guinness World Records. The fact that Reginald is the size of a small horse and Pearl is as small as an apple didn’t stop them from getting along famously.

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Israeli airstrikes kill at least 40 people in Gaza, officials say

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Bureij, Beit Lahiya, Gaza City and Khan Younis hit as Israeli government prepares to expand offensive

Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 40 people across Gaza during the past 24 hours, civil defence officials in the devastated Palestinian territory said, as Israel’s government prepared to order an expansion of its military offensive.

Nine people were killed when a strike hit a home in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza; another six people died in a separate strike targeting a family home in the northern city of Beit Lahiya; six more died in a strike on a community kitchen in Gaza City, and an overnight attack on the Khan Younis refugee camp killed at least 11 people including three babies up to a year old, the officials said.

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Mass resignations at labor department threaten workers in US and overseas, warn staff – as more cuts loom

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Exclusive: Insiders sound alarm over ‘catastrophic’ impact of widespread departures and cuts under Trump

A “catastrophic” exodus of thousands of employees from the US Department of Labor threatens “all of the core aspects of working life”, insiders have warned, amid fears that the Trump administration will further slash the agency’s operations.

The federal agency has already lost about 20% of its workforce, according to employees, as nearly 2,700 staff took retirement, early retirement, deferred resignation buyouts or “fork in the road” departures earlier this year.

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‘We’re All in One Ship’: Druse in Syrian Town Rocked by Violence Agree to Disarm Militias – The New York Times

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  1. ‘We’re All in One Ship’: Druse in Syrian Town Rocked by Violence Agree to Disarm Militias  The New York Times
  2. Armed Syrians Take Defense of a Besieged Druse City Into Their Own Hands  The New York Times
  3. Deadly clashes in Syria's Druze areas raise fears of widening unrest  BBC
  4. What is behind latest clashes in Syria between Druze and pro-government gunmen  The Times of Israel
  5. What is behind the violence in Syria?  Al Jazeera
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Australia opposition leader Dutton loses seat in shock vote defeat – Reuters

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  1. Australia opposition leader Dutton loses seat in shock vote defeat  Reuters
  2. Andrew Bolt says it was the voters who were wrong as Sky News commentators grieve Dutton election loss  The Guardian
  3. Who is Ali France, Labor's candidate who unseated Peter Dutton?  BBC
  4. Live: Albanese gets warm welcome in electorate as Coalition confronts worst-ever result  Australian Broadcasting Corporation
  5. Labor routs the Coalition as voters reject Dutton’s undercooked offering  The Conversation
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Australia’s center-left Labor Party retains power as conservative leader loses seat, networks report – CNN

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  1. Australia’s center-left Labor Party retains power as conservative leader loses seat, networks report  CNN
  2. Australia federal election: PM Albanese wins in landslide  BBC
  3. Australia’s Prime Minister Clinches Second Term in Remarkable Comeback  The New York Times
  4. Australia’s Labor Party, buoyed by anti-Trump bump, set to win reelection  The Washington Post
  5. Anthony Albanese and Labor claim landslide election win as Peter Dutton loses seat  Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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India bans imports from Pakistan amid tension over tourist killings – Reuters

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  1. India bans imports from Pakistan amid tension over tourist killings  Reuters
  2. After New Delhi's Strong Move, Pakistan Shuts Ports For Indian Ships  NDTV
  3. Flights from India to Europe and North America are taking up to 4 extra hours with fuel stops as airlines avoid Pakistan  Business Insider
  4. The $10bn India-Pakistan trade secret hidden by official data  Al Jazeera
  5. Huge blow to Pakistan as India now bans all imports after Pahalgam attack  Hindustan Times
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Thousands of Islamists rally in Bangladesh against proposed changes to women’s rights – AP News

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  1. Thousands of Islamists rally in Bangladesh against proposed changes to women’s rights  AP News
  2. Bangladeshi Islamists protest women's rights proposal  dw.com
  3. Bangladesh's influential Islamists promise sharia as they ready for polls  Yahoo
  4. Bangladeshi Islamists protest interim govt’s proposal for women’s rights  Wion
  5. Won't get even 5 minutes to escape: Islamists warn Bangladesh govt  India Today
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World may be ‘post-herd immunity’ to measles, top US scientist says

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As infections pummel communities in the US, Mexico and Canada, fear of ‘the most contagious human disease’ grows

A leading immunologist warned of a “post-herd-immunity world”, as measles outbreaks affect communities with low vaccination rates in the American south-west, Mexico and Canada.

The US is enduring the largest measles outbreak in a quarter-century. Centered in west Texas, the measles outbreak has killed two unvaccinated children and one adult and spread to neighboring states including New Mexico and Oklahoma.

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