PM took questions from leader of the opposition and other MPs in final PMQs before recess
Here is the running order for PMQs.
Nigel Farage was given £5m by the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne shortly before announcing he would stand in the 2024 British general election, Anna Isaac reports.
Continue reading...Republican Chris Carr accused of trying to revive bid for governor with indictment – ‘the last gasp of a dying man’
Georgia’s top law enforcement official has drawn accusations of using the weight of his office to lift his own political fortunes by bringing a new indictment against protesters of the Atlanta police training center known as Cop City.
Amid bluster about “holding the line against antifa”, Georgia attorney general Chris Carr announced charges against three activists late last week even as his bid to become Georgia’s Republican nominee for governor limps along, with less than double-digit support in polling ahead of a 19 May primary.
Continue reading...US president posts image on Truth social saying Iran ‘better get smart soon’ as king to travel to New York to lay wreath at 9/11 memorial
An attempt by the Trump administration to gain access to Arizona’s detailed voter records was thwarted by the courts on Tuesday, when a federal judge dismissed the US justice department’s lawsuit against the state.
The ruling marks the latest legal setback in an unprecedented nationwide effort by the administration before the midterm elections to collect sensitive information about tens of millions of Americans. The DoJ has sued at least 30 states and the District of Columbia seeking to force release of the data, which includes dates of birth, addresses, driver’s license numbers and partial social security numbers.
Continue reading...Man has been arrested after incident in north-west London, says volunteer organisation Shomrim
A man has been arrested after two people were stabbed in Golders Green, north-west London, the Jewish neighbourhood watch group Shomrim has said.
The man was seen running along Golders Green Road armed with a knife and “attempting to stab Jewish members of the public”, Shomrim said on social media.
Continue reading...Ruling is blow to Office for Students after it issued record fine for allegations over professor’s trans rights views
Sussex University has overturned a £585,000 fine by England’s higher education watchdog after the high court rejected claims the university had breached free speech regulations involving its former professor Kathleen Stock.
The ruling is a damaging blow to the credibility and management of the Office for Students, after the court rejected the regulator’s lengthy investigation, following Sussex’s handling of the protests aimed at Stock over her views on transgender rights and her subsequent resignation in 2021.
Continue reading...Wicked star’s one-woman West End show was stopped in response to an increasingly common problem for theatres
A performance of Dracula in the West End on Monday night was halted after its star, Cynthia Erivo, spotted that an audience member appeared to be filming the show.
A representative for the production, in which Erivo plays all 23 roles, confirmed that there had been a short stop caused by the incident. A commenter on the forum Theatreboard, who said they had been at the show, wrote that Erivo – roughly an hour into the performance – “looked out into the audience and said: ‘Are you filming? Is someone filming?’ and stopped the show”. Another commenter said that they had attended Dracula – which is at the Noël Coward theatre – the following night and that there were extra reminders to the audience about taking photos and filming.
Continue reading...Annual event in Red Square to feature no armoured vehicles or missile systems for first time in two decades
Russia’s annual Victory Day parade will be held on 9 May without military hardware for the first time in almost two decades because of fears of a long-range attack by Ukrainian drones.
The defence ministry said no armoured vehicles or missile systems would roll across Red Square during the parade, which marks the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany, citing “the current operational situation”.
Continue reading...Reform leader changed his mind about standing as MP after gift from Thai-based crypto tycoon Christopher Harborne
Nigel Farage was given £5m by the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne shortly before announcing he would stand in the 2024 British general election, the Guardian can reveal.
Farage had stated he did not intend to stand as a prospective MP but U-turned in June 2024, within weeks of receiving the personal gift from the Thailand-based businessman.
Continue reading...Comey, one of Donald Trump’s political enemies, charged with two felonies. Plus, Disneyland introduces facial recognition
Good morning.
The justice department filed new criminal charges against James Comey, the former FBI director, on Tuesday.
What has he been charged with? Two felonies: making a threat against the president, and transmitting that threat, via social media, across state lines.
What does the indictment say? That the seashell numbers were something a reasonable person “would interpret as a serious expression of an intent to do harm to the President of the United States”.
And how about Comey? He published a video of himself saying: “Well, they’re back. This time, about a picture of seashells on a North Carolina beach a year ago. And this won’t be the end of it, but nothing has changed with me. I am still innocent. I am still not afraid. And I still believe in the independent federal judiciary. So, let’s go.” He continued: “It’s really important that all of us remember – this is not who we are as a country, this is not how the Department of Justice is supposed to be, and the good news is we get closer every day to restoring those values. Keep the faith.”
Continue reading...US suspect held in south-east Asia after genealogical DNA identified him in Tampa-area case involving 7-year-old girl
A man accused of kidnapping and sexually abusing a 7-year-old girl in Florida in 1989 was recently arrested in the Philippines, according to authorities.
Preserved DNA and genealogical research allowed investigators to identify Young Tom Talmadge, 69, as the suspect in the Tampa-area case, the Philippines’ government said in a statement.
Continue reading...Utility bills are up as much as 40% in some regions, and companies shut off power to customers 13m times in 2025
The US’s top utilities’ CEOs enjoyed a 16% pay raise last year – to an average of $12.3m – even as consumers shoulder the pain from high bills spurred by continuing inflation, the Iran war and datacenter growth, a new review of industry financial documents shows.
Utility bills are up as much as 40% in some regions since 2021, and, nationwide, utilities shut off power to customers 13m times last year, federal data shows.
Continue reading...Commission says tech company does not have effective measures to keep under-13s off Facebook and Instagram
The tech company Meta has been found to be in breach of EU law for failing to prevent children under 13 from using its Facebook and Instagram platforms.
Issuing the preliminary findings of a nearly two-year investigation, the European Commission said on Wednesday that Meta did not have effective measures in place to stop under-13s accessing its services.
Continue reading...The Pitch Perfect actor is being sued by Charlotte MacInnes, the lead actor of Wilson’s directorial debut, The Deb
Hollywood star Rebel Wilson has rejected an “absolutely outrageous” accusation that she dumped her phone to avoid handing over key communications in a defamation case.
The Pitch Perfect star is being sued by Charlotte MacInnes, the 27-year-old lead actor of the musical comedy The Deb.
Continue reading...Remarks by US president likely to cause embarrassment for aides of UK monarch, who usually remains neutral
Donald Trump has said King Charles agrees with him that Iran should never be allowed nuclear weapons.
Trump made the remarks at a White House state dinner on Tuesday in honour of the visiting Charles and Camilla, after the two men sat down to bilateral talks earlier that day.
Continue reading...Anant Ambani revives offer to transport 80 animals, all descendants of Colombian drug kingpin’s pets, to India
It remains one of the strangest conundrums in modern zoological history – what to do with the descendants of Pablo Escobar’s hippos?
The animals – herbivores native to sub-Saharan Africa – were originally imported into Colombia by the drug kingpin for his own entertainment. But the beasts and their offspring were left to roam free after his death in 1993.
Continue reading...Soaring oil prices and the blockade are preventing food, fuel and medicine being delivered to millions of people in desperate need, say NGOs
The volatility of global oil prices caused by the US and Israel’s war on Iran is taking a toll on the most vulnerable people, by slowing or blocking food and medical aid from reaching them.
Now aid organisations are calling for a “humanitarian corridor” to be opened through the strait of Hormuz amid rocketing transportation costs.
Continue reading...Coleen Lamarre, 63, charged with perverting the course of justice in relation to trial over alleged murders of Luke Davies and Jesse Baird
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The mother of a former police officer who allegedly murdered Luke Davies and Jesse Baird two years ago has been charged after allegedly attempting to influence a key witness to change their evidence in her son’s trial.
New South Wales police said Coleen Lamarre, 63, was arrested in Balmain and charged with perverting the course of justice, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 14 years.
Continue reading...Albanese defends plan forcing Meta, Google and TikTok to make deals with Australian news publishers through a levy
The Trump administration has described Australia’s moves to make big tech companies pay for news online as “extortion” but Anthony Albanese defended the plan by saying it was about protecting and rewarding media outlets for the work they produce.
Labor’s plan to encourage Meta, Google and TikTok to make deals with Australian news publishers, or face a 2.25% levy, is likely to be supported by the Coalition and Greens in parliament. But a bigger problem may be the ire of Donald Trump, who has strongly opposed extra regulation being imposed on US-based tech companies. A major tech industry lobby group on Wednesday urged the White House to consider retaliatory trade measures.
Continue reading...Dublin scholars find 1,200-year-old manuscript of Caedmon’s Hymn composed by Northumbrian cattle herder
A lost copy of a poem composed in the seventh century by a Northumbrian cattle herder – the earliest surviving poem in the English language – has been discovered in Rome.
Scholars from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) uncovered the manuscript that contains Caedmon’s Hymn at the National Central Library of Rome.
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