Starmer ready to counter 'nanny state' jibe to boost child health

Keir Starmer has said he is \"up for the fight\" of defending the \"nanny state\" as he announced plans to improve child health under a Labour government, including supervised toothbrushing in schools.

Speed up law mouldy homes law or more people will die, Gove warned

The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has called on Michael Gove to accelerate a promised crackdown on landlords failing to fix tens of thousands of mouldy homes with a warning that unless laws are toughened many more people will die from the effects.

Reeves makes debut as novelist in collaboration with sci-fi author

The Canadian actor Keanu Reeves will publish his first novel this year in collaboration with the British author China Miéville.

One small delay, or one giant issue? Nasa pushes back plans to return humans to moon

Nasa has postponed its plans to send humans to the moon after delays hit its hugely ambitious Artemis programme, which aims to get boots on the lunar surface for the first time in half a century.

Inflation forecast to fall below 2% by the spring

The Bank of England may be forced to bring forward the date of its first interest rate cut after three leading forecasters issued a surprise update suggesting the inflation rate will halve to 2% by April.

Hundreds of Post Office victims to get convictions overturned

Hundreds of post office operators are to have their convictions quashed by parliament within months in an unprecedented move designed to draw a line under one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in British history.

Ajax keen on Henderson as Spurs confirm Werner loan

Ajax are keen to sign the former Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson if he is allowed to leave Al-Ettifaq this month. He is exploring options to return to Europe less than six months after his controversial move from Anfield to Saudi Arabia.

'Dangerous' words Barton in sports minister's sights for misogynist attacks

The UK sports minister has condemned Joey Barton's comments about women's football commentators as \"dangerous\" and has promised to intervene with social media platforms.

Lijnders' pre-season punchline helped spark Liverpool revival

Pepijn Lijnders has attributed Liverpool's stirring recovery this season to their summer recruitment, fresh leadership and the threat of a punch in the face.

Hackney applies finishing touch to put Middlesbrough in driving seat

Chelsea fans probably did not expect their expensively assembled team to be tortured by a right winger who cost Middlesbrough a nominal fee when he made the step up from Tooting and Mitcham five years ago.

Beckenbauer was a player out of time but football sang for him

The Bayern Munich and Germany legend had no obvious position so he invented a role for himself

JPR Williams: a fighter, a revolutionary and the ultimate competitor

The foresight of a primary school teacher in Wales helped create one of the best attacking full-backs of the 70s

Danone to cut baby formula prices by 7% as competition watchdog scrutinises market

Danone has agreed to cut the wholesale price of its Aptamil infant powdered formula by 7% from Monday after the UK's competition watchdog launched an investigation into high inflation in the market.

'Critical' issues found in half of Grenfell firm's residential blocks

More than half the residential blocks built by the company responsible for installing the deadly cladding on Grenfell Tower have been found to have \"life-critical\" fire safety issues, it can be revealed.

Escape from Mariupol The Ukrainian soldier who defied the odds

It was May 2022 and Oleksandr Ivantsov was trapped. The Russians had seized the city of Mariupol.

Regions revolt as Spain brings back hospital face mask rules

Spain is reintroducing the mandatory use of face masks in hospitals and health centres from today amid a surge in cases of flu, Covid and other respiratory illnesses.

Norway approves deep-sea mining in spite of warnings

Norway is a step closer to becoming the first country in the world to open up its seabed for commercial deep-sea mining after approving it in a highly contentious parliamentary vote yesterday.

Judges doubt Trump's immunity defence

A federal appeals court yesterday signalled it would reject Donald Trump's arguments that he cannot be criminally prosecuted for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

Macron appoints France's youngest and first gay PM

Emmanuel Macron has appointed France's youngest prime minister, Gabriel Attal, as he seeks to reinvigorate a difficult second term as president and limit any possible gains for the far right in the European elections in June.

Labour is urged to boost local buyouts of community assets

Vacant pubs, shops and community centres put up for sale in England could be offered to local groups first under \"take back control\" plans being explored by Labour.

Flooding and sewage pollution 'worse due to Tories'

Increased sewage pollution, urban flooding and water supply interruptions are the result of a decade of failures by Conservative ministers, according to experts who are calling for an independent inquiry into water to be set up by the next government.

Peace process Nandy calls for urgent focus on two-state solution after 'lost' decade

Labour's Lisa Nandy has called for an urgent focus on a two-state solution to end violence in Israel and occupied Palestine, saying the international community had not done enough to seek a lasting solution to the conflict before the latest outbreak of war.

US diplomacy Palestinians' rights vital to secure peace, says Blinken on Israel visit

Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, has reaffirmed his country's \"unique bond\" with Israel in Tel Aviv, and rejected calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza but told his hosts that other regional powers had made clear that a pathway to the realisation of Palestinian political rights was essential for peace.

Lebanon conflict escalates again as Hezbollah drones attack Israeli base

Israel and Hezbollah edged closer towards full-scale war yesterday, as the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group launched explosive drones at a key Israeli command base, declaring the attack part of its response to recent high-level Israeli assassinations in Lebanon.

Spurs' plan to fence off part of public park for academy sparks local anger and judicial review

The expansion of women's football has been pitched against public green space and a rewilded golf course in a growing dispute between Tottenham Hotspur football club and local residents.

Video fuelled violent protest outside asylum seeker hotel, court told

Protesters surrounded a hotel in Merseyside housing asylum seekers, shouting \"get them out\" as police vehicles were set on fire and officers were injured, a court heard yesterday.

PM's wife gives up shares in childcare firm after code of conduct breach

Akshata Murty, the millionaire businesswoman married to Rishi Sunak, has donated her shares in the childcare firm Koru Kids to charity, after concerns about whether she stood to benefit from government policies.

Blast of Arctic weather to bring more snow and 'wintry hazards'

Ablast of cold weather from the Arctic is set to bring more wintry conditions to the UK at the start of next week, the Met Office has warned.

O'Connor died natural death, coroner finds, as tribute gig announced

Sinéad O'Connor died from natural causes, a coroner said yesterday. The Dublin-born singer was found unresponsive at her south-east London home on 26 July last year and pronounced dead. She was 56.

'I wish I could tell him' Widow tells of anguish over husband's secret suffering

The widow of a post office operator accused of misappropriating funds in the Post Office Horizon scandal has spoken of her anguish that he died before his name could be cleared.