Andy Burnham nears Labour leadership finish line
Labour should ditch the triple-lock pensions promise to help tackle the UK’s straitened public finances, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has urged. Heather Stewart has the story.
I’m afraid we are not going to be able to open comments today for staffing reasons. If you want to contact me directly, it is probably best to get me on on Bluesky at @andrewsparrowgdn.bsky.social.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Andrew Bailey says he does not regret meeting Reform UK leader to discuss cryptocurrency regulation
The Bank of England governor has said he would have put off a meeting with Nigel Farage last autumn had the Reform UK leader’s £5m gift from a crypto billionaire been under investigation at the time.
Andrew Bailey said he did not regret meeting Farage to discuss the Bank’s plans for cryptocurrency regulation last September, months before the controversial donation from the Thailand-based investor Christopher Harborne was revealed by the Guardian in April.
Continue reading...Trump’s nominee – his former personal defense lawyer – will face what is expected to be a contentious Senate nomination hearing
Former president Joe Biden will publish a memoir this fall, publisher Little, Brown and Company told the Associated Press.
‘Promise Me, America,’ which Biden says will touch upon everything from the economy to his decision to drop his bid for reelection, is scheduled to come out 17 November.
Continue reading...Worse-than-expected figures for three months to June come amid concerns over lopsided economy
China has posted worse-than-expected growth figures for the three months to June as its economy expanded by just 4.3% – one of its lowest quarterly readings on record.
The rate, which came in under the government’s target of 4.5% to 5%, was one of the weakest since reporting on official quarterly GDP figures began in the early 1990s.
Continue reading...Partnered Health says personal information and medical details and notes were breached in the attack on 21 clinics
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Thousands of medical records and patient information stored with one of Australia’s biggest healthcare providers have been breached in a cyber-attack.
Partnered Health, owned by private equity firm Quadrant, said 21 clinics across several cities including Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra have been affected by the breach which occurred on 23 June.
Continue reading...Mayor of London backs calls from unions to update health and safety rules in light of more frequent heatwaves
The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is backing calls for a maximum workplace temperature as pressure grows on the government to protect workers from the impact of repeated heatwaves across the UK.
The extreme heat has left people struggling to cope as temperatures in some workplaces climb above 40C, causing thousands of schools to close and hospital and transport systems to break down.
Continue reading...Oil giant has denied involvement, but climate activists are closely watching court case against Israeli private investigator for answers
A group of American climate activists are closely watching a US court case that could reveal who hired hackers to target their inboxes a decade ago.
In 2015, a set of explosive media reports revealed that ExxonMobil’s own scientists determined as early as 1982 that the extraction and burning of fossil fuels caused the climate crisis – but Exxon went on to fund climate denial campaigns anyway. The reports prompted attorneys general to investigate the company.
Continue reading...Agents killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas, even though both were not targets of enforcement action
US officials are facing mounting calls to remove US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from American streets after federal agents killed two men who were not the target of enforcement action in less than a week.
Advocacy groups, including the National Police Accountability Project and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, described the fatal shootings of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas as extrajudicial killings.
Continue reading...Extradition request for James ‘Fergie’ Chambers sparks concerns that US government is conflating humanitarian aid with terrorism
The arrest in Ibiza and US justice department extradition request for a wealthy American donor to lefwing causes in connection with alleged material support for Hamas is sending ripples through leftwing circles in Spain and being closely monitored in the US for potential “chilling effects” on support for Palestine.
Spanish authorities detained James “Fergie” Chambers Friday and are now holding him without bail in Madrid. A hearing is scheduled on whether he can be released on bail for Thursday.
Continue reading...Annual results show struggling firm’s net debt has risen to £18.5bn, up from £16.8bn a year earlier
Thames Water has said it has sufficient funding to survive until the end of the year but warned of “material uncertainty” over its future as it scrambles to recapitalise to avoid nationalisation.
The UK’s largest water company, which serves 16 million customers in London and the south of England, said it continued to work with creditors, regulators and the government on a recapitalisation plan.
Continue reading...Tehran shuts strait of Hormuz and carries out retaliatory strikes as Trump threatens to hit civilian infrastructure
Iran has threatened to halt all energy exports from the Middle East after the US reimposed a blockade of its ports and ships, as the two countries continued to trade strikes for a fifth day, further threatening the interim deal between them.
The US blockade came into force early on Wednesday, prompting Iran to shut the strait of Hormuz and carry out a wave of retaliatory airstrikes on countries hosting US bases in the region.
Continue reading...Treaty came into effect at midnight, eliminating border controls on land frontier with British overseas territory
Spain and Gibraltar are celebrating the fall of the last frontier fence in western Europe after the signing of a post-Brexit deal that brings an end to border checks for residents, tourists and the thousands of Spanish workers who cross into the British overseas territory every day.
The agreement, which was signed in Brussels on Tuesday and came into effect at midnight, marks the conclusion of more than four years of negotiations between the UK, Spain, Gibraltar and the EU after Britain’s departure from the bloc.
Continue reading...Police investigating Hamish Tait – who faces 329 child abuse charges – have released list of 55 locations where he worked or attended
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A federal police investigation into an accused paedophile facing more than 300 child abuse charges has expanded to a remote community in South Australia.
Hamish Tait, 35, faces 329 charges of child abuse between 2009 and 2025 while working across 62 centres.
Continue reading...Canadian scientists visit remains of polar exploration vessels in ‘golden era for shipwreck investigating’
Moments after devouring the final glimmers of light, the seafloor offered nothing but darkness and silt. Then the bow appeared.
More than 1,000ft (305 metres) below the surface of the Labrador Sea, off the coast of Canada, the skeleton of the final ship used by the famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton appeared in its silty grave.
Continue reading...Alleged attack may have been motivated by a social media post, police prosecutor tells court
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A Brisbane child accused of stabbing a fellow student was allegedly subjected to months of “racist” abuse and threats, a court has heard.
The 16-year-old child was arrested after allegedly stabbing a 17-year-old schoolmate on Tuesday.
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