The Guardian - October 16, 2024

In this issue

October 16, 2024

Minister vows to end scandal that left thousands of carers in debt

Review launched after benefit breaches led to threats of prosecution

4 mins

Undercover officer spied on Starmer in libel case

An undercover police officer has admitted that he spied on Keir Starmer while he was a radical barrister, a public inquiry heard yesterday.

3 mins

US weapons warning to Israel over Gaza aid

The Biden administration has warned Israel that it faces possible punishment, including the potential stopping of US weapons transfers, if it does not take immediate action to let more humanitarian aid into Gaza.

3 mins

Vulnerable people not at risk from assisted dying bill, says MP

The lives of disabled and vulnerable people would not be at risk from a proposed assisted dying law because it would only apply to terminally ill adults, with two doctors and a judge likely to rule on each case, the MP sponsoring said yesterday.

3 mins

£50m centrepiece of next UK city of culture standing empty after operator pulls out

Bradford council has been plunged into controversy over its handling of a £50.5m publicly funded venue that has been completed with no operator in place to run it.

3 mins

Residents and experts baffled after gooey blobs wash up on beaches in Newfoundland

They are slimy on the outside, firm and spongy on the inside, and surprisingly combustible. In recent months, the white \"blobs\" spotted on beaches in the eastern Canadian province of Newfoundland have baffled residents and marine scientists.

1 min

Starmer spoke to Swift at show days after police escort agreed

Keir Starmer met Taylor Swift at one of her London concerts days after a decision was taken to grant her a \"blue light\" police escort, No 10 sources have confirmed.

2 mins

Return of the Blairites Milburn set to make a comeback with NHS role

Wes Streeting is set to give Alan Milburn a major role in the running of the health ministry in a move that has reignited the row over Labour figures with private interests having access to government.

3 mins

Reeves warns cabinet of £100bn budget shortfall over five years

Rachel Reeves has told the cabinet that the UK still faces a £100bn shortfall in the public finances over the next five years amid concerns that ministers are yet to grasp the full scale of the fiscal deficit ahead.

2 mins

Public finance Rise in NICs for employers 'a tax on jobs'

A rise in employer national insurance contributions in the budget could hit hiring and limit pay rises, employers have warned - hurting businesses including bars, pubs, hotels and restaurants.

2 mins

Team Kemi know Jenrick will do their job for them - if they can just keep her quiet

It's been a round-the-clock job. If you're wondering why you haven't seen Kevin Hollinrake, Laura Trott and Chris Philp in the same room recently, it's because they have all been otherwise engaged. Each tasked with a gruelling, daily eight-hour shift to make sure that Kemi Badenoch remains silent.

2 mins

Schoolgirl made to wear hijab to conceal injuries from beatings, court told

The 10-year-old schoolgirl Sara Sharif was made to wear a hijab to conceal her injuries and was homeschooled in the months before she was beaten to death, a court heard yesterday.

2 mins

Briton is youngest woman to conquer 14 highest peaks

A 23-year-old has become the youngest woman to climb all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre-plus peaks.

2 mins

Asian Network news service closed as BBC cuts 130 jobs in current affairs

The BBC has announced a round of job cuts, involving a net loss of 130 roles in its news and current affairs department.

1 min

Want to use more energy while out on a walk? Take a break, say researchers

Researchers have hit on an unusual tip for walkers who want to burn more calories: rather than plodding along steadily from start to finish, consider taking rest stops.

2 mins

First part of telescope's 3D map of universe is revealed

The first chunk of what will be the largest 3D map of the universe ever made has been revealed, putting 14 million galaxies - not to mention tens of millions of stars in our own Milky Way on show in incredible detail.

2 mins

Fine employers over unhealthy workplaces, thinktank urges

Employers should be fined if they create unhealthy workplaces as part of the plan to get unemployed people fit to work, a thinktank has said.

1 min

Iranian targets Netanyahu's office denies pact to avoid nuclear sites

Benjamin Netanyahu's office has said that Israel will decide alone on the form of any retaliation to Iran's barrage of 180 missiles fired at the country earlier this month, although it would listen to advice from Washington.

2 mins

Italy's PM to visit Lebanon after criticising Israel for strikes against UN forces

Italy's prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, said yesterday she would visit Lebanon on Friday as she demanded security guarantees from Israel for her country's troops there days after UN peacekeepers came under attack.

2 mins

Mulled white wine 'Perfectly fit for purpose'

Mulled wine is a drink tied to a moment. It's not enough for the weather to be cold, grey and rainy, it needs to feel festive - preferably in the presence of at least one adult dressed as an elf.

2 mins

'No evidence' nut allergens spread by plane ventilation

It is an airline PA system request familiar to many: please refrain from eating peanut-based foods inflight to protect a passenger with allergies.

1 min

'Emergency on our streets' as rough sleeper deaths rise

Andrew Reece was 37 and sleeping rough in Stoke-on-Trent when on 10 May 2023 he took his own life in an abandoned children's home.

2 mins

Officer who shot unarmed driver denies exaggerating, jury hears

The police officer who shot dead Chris Kaba has denied making false or exaggerated claims to justify opening fire.

1 min

Alarm at rising cost of tackling sites polluted with 'forever chemicals'

The number of sites identified as potentially having been polluted with banned cancer-causing \"forever chemicals\" in England is rising, and the Environment Agency (EA) says it does not have the budget to deal with them.

1 min

Sturgess's child 'never got to say goodbye'

The daughter of Dawn Sturgess, who was killed in the Wiltshire novichok poisonings in 2018, told an inquiry into her death yesterday of her sadness at never getting to say goodbye to her mother.

1 min

Don't overpay for driving tests, warns the RAC

The RAC has issued warnings to learner drivers trying to beat the backlog by booking tests through unregulated websites after it found they could be paying up to four times the going rate.

1 min

Letby seemed excited to discuss deaths of babies, Thirlwall inquiry hears

Lucy Letby responded to the death of a newborn baby in a manner that a children's nurse said she had \"never seen\" before or since, a public inquiry was told yesterday.

2 mins

Former Post Office IT chief claims Horizon system was not flawed

The former head of IT at the Post Office named by the ex-chief executive Paula Vennells as one of five people responsible for the Horizon scandal has said he still has not seen evidence of a \"fundamental flaw\" in the IT system.

1 min

All-conquering champion is accused of conker cheating with steel nut

Never in its proud 60-year history has an allegation of such audacious cheating been made against a competitor in the World Conker Championships (WCC) as that levelled at 82-year-old David Jakins - \"King Conker\" himself, no less.

2 mins

Behind the rupture The issue, the claims and what's at stake

Relations between India and Canada have sunk to historic lows in the latest diplomatic spat, with India rejecting the Canadian police allegations as ludicrous”.

3 mins

Canadian police accuse India of working with criminal network to kill dissidents

Canadian police have accused the Indian government of working with a criminal network run by one of India's most notorious gangsters, Lawrence Bishnoi, to carry out targeted killings of dissidents in Canada.

3 mins

'We won't spare anyone' Brazen gang shooting brings up fears from Mumbai's past

It was a murder unlike anything Mumbai had seen in almost three decades.

2 mins

Democrats Pelosi says she has not spoken to Biden since July

Nancy Pelosi has said she has not spoken to Joe Biden since her intervention in July led to his decision to drop out of the presidential race, after his poor performance in a debate with Donald Trump.

2 mins

‘Let's just listen to music': Trump spends 40 minutes dancing on stage during rally

Opposition outrage over Donald Trump's rabble-rousing demagoguery turned to bewilderment after the Republican nominee spent 40 minutes swaying to his favourite songs at a rally near Philadelphia, prompting Kamala Harris to express apparent concern for his mental state.

2 mins

Von der Leyen urges EU states to consider migration 'hubs' outside bloc

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has called for an exploration of \"return hubs\" outside the EU in a letter on migration sent to the bloc's national leaders, citing a deal between Italy and Albania as a possible model.

1 min

Italy's snub to Saviano sets scene for Frankfurt book fair fireworks

The Gomorrah author Roberto Saviano will appear at the Frankfurt book fair this week despite being snubbed by organisers of the official Italian delegation, setting the scene for a clash between the country's far-right government and some of its most prominent writers.

1 min

China's 'sweetheart' propaganda labelled 'creepy' in Taiwan

A Chinese propaganda image dispersed during Monday's military drills around Taiwan was supposed to send a positive message to the island's people, but instead has been decried as weird, creepy, and akin to \"sexual harassment\".

1 min

'Sea of houses' vacated due to climate change, archaeologists say

Archaeologists digging at the site of a bronze age kingdom in northern Germany have uncovered remains of what they say was a surprisingly densely populated community of farmers and traders whose lives were upended by climate change.

2 mins

Russian man rescued after two months adrift at sea

A Russian man has been rescued in the Sea of Okhotsk alongside the bodies of his brother and nephew after drifting for more than two months in a tiny inflatable boat that lost its engine.

1 min

Boeing seeks $25bn to shore up finances amid delays to production

Boeing is seeking to raise up to $25bn (£19bn) in an attempt to shore up its finances as it struggles with production delays amid a strike by 33,000 workers and ongoing safety concerns.

1 min

Cost of fossil fuels 'to fall amid transition to clean energy'

Fossil fuels could soon become significantly cheaper and more abundant as governments accelerate the transition to clean energy towards the end of the decade, according to the International Energy Agency.

2 mins

EU combustion engine ban will shrink industry, says BMW boss

The EU's plans to ban the manufacture of traditional combustion engines from 2035 will shrink the industry, BMW's chief executive has warned as German carmakers battle with increased competition from China in the electric vehicle sector.

1 min

Fenwick shop chain halves losses to £38m

The department store chain Fenwick, which closed its historic shop on Bond Street, London, in February, has reported its seventh year of losses after sales fell.

1 min

Wars, debt and climate crisis stall anti-poverty fight-report

Wars, debt, the climate crisis and the pandemic have combined to halt progress in the fight against poverty, the World Bank said yesterday.

2 mins

City chiefs to meet at No 11 in revival of infrastructure taskforce

City bosses are to be summoned to Downing Street this week for the first post-election meeting of Labour's British infrastructure \"taskforce\", as the chancellor looks to steer more private cash towards a string of national investment projects.

1 min

Wage growth falls below 5%, setting stage for new rate cut

The growth in employee annual earnings has fallen below 5% for the first time in more than two years, closing the gap between wages and inflation and increasing the likelihood of a further cut to interest rates.

2 mins

Cooling labour market adds to dilemma for Reeves as she mulls national insurance rise

Rachel Reeves has dropped a broad hint that she plans to increase employers' national insurance contributions as part the budget.

2 mins

Alphonse Le Grande loses Cesarewitch after whip rules breach

\"There is simply no excuse for using the whip four times or more above the permitted level [of six],\" Brant Dunshea, the British Horseracing Authority's chief regulatory officer, said yesterday, after the regulator's whip review committee had disqualified Alphonse Le Grande and Jamie Powell from first place in the Cesarewitch Handicap at Newmarket on Saturday.

2 mins

Ghulam's debut century steadies Pakistan ship

It remains to be seen whether the Pakistan team selection, which before play had raised more eyebrows than hopes, was inspired rather than desperate but so far only one of their big calls has been tested and Kamran Ghulam was everything they could have hoped.

4 mins

Lawyer leading brain injury case probed over player recruitment

The man leading the brain injury lawsuit representing hundreds of rugby players is under investigation from the Solicitors Regulation Authority after a former England international claimed in a submission to court that he felt pressured to lie about having dementia.

1 min

England crash out after defeat by West Indies

Panic sets in after injury to Knight and Dottin’s all-round excellence proves decisive

3 mins

Borthwick left sweating over key players for autumn games

England are still awaiting news on the availability of key individuals as the head coach, Steve Borthwick, prepares to unveil a 36-man squad for the Autumn Nations Series next month.

1 min

Ferguson loses ambassador role as United cuts continue

The latest victim of the Ineos-led economy drive at Manchester United is none other than Sir Alex Ferguson. Since his appointment as a club ambassador in 2013, after stepping down as manager, Ferguson has been the recipient of a lucrative stipend, with company accounts in 2014 showing he received £2.16m for that role.

1 min

Eidevall resigns as Arsenal head coach after dire run

Jonas Eidevall has resigned as the Arsenal head coach amid intense pressure after a poor sequence of results. The Swede had been in charge since 2021, winning the League Cup twice, but quit after the heavy defeat by Bayern Munich in the Women's Champions League last Wednesday was followed by the Women's Super League loss at home to Chelsea on Saturday.

1 min

Mbappé fury at reports of rape claim in Swedish media

Swedish prosecutors say a rape investigation had been opened in Stockholm without mentioning Kylian Mbappé, following media reports that the France captain and Real Madrid player was the suspect.

1 min

Writing was on the wall after fans lost faith in project

It is sad to see a journey that started with such promise end in a whimper. That is the reality of Jonas Eidevall's Arsenal tenure, which was bookended by matches against Chelsea - his opening game a thrilling 3-2 victory and his final one a blunt 2-1 defeat that epitomised problems that just would not go away.

2 mins

Scotland frustrate Ronaldo in reminder of Clarke's qualities

Those with pitchforks pointing in the direction of Steve Clarke could barely have enjoyed this.

3 mins

Tuchel is an intriguing, baggage-heavy choice that makes sense

Acombustible Champions League winner and tactical zealot with authority issues’. The narrative has been all England need isa winner. Well, now you've got one

5 mins

The 'footballaholic' Could tactical Thomas solve England puzzle?

One of Thomas Tuchel's old bosses calls him a \"footballaholic\". The image is of a man who spends every minute of every day poring over the game's tactical intricacies.

3 mins

Tuchel time German agrees deal to be England's new manager

Thomas Tuchel has agreed to become England's manager after talks with the Football Association accelerated yesterday.

2 mins

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