CATEGORIES

FBU bars former senior member over racist posts

The Fire Brigades Union has barred a former member of its governing executive for allegedly making racist posts online and promoting material in support of a far-right party.

I was wrong when I said tax rises wouldn't be needed, Reeves admits

Rachel Reeves has admitted that she was wrong to say before the election that no big tax rises would be needed, but promised that there was \"no need to increase taxes further\" after last week's budget raised £40bn.

Partygate scandal was overblown - Badenoch

The new Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, said the Partygate scandal was \"overblown\" as she rejected the need to \"churn over\" everything that had gone wrong with previous Tory prime ministers.

Harris and Trump make final push in swing states

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are returning to the key US swing state of Pennsylvania today for one last push to sway wavering voters on the eve of a deeply polarised presidential election race that polls have suggested will go down to the wire.

From voting day to the inauguration A complete guide to the US election

The 60th US presidential election will decide the 47th president - widely held to be the most powerful job in the world - and 50th vice-president.

Europe's view: Even far-right voters want a win for Harris

Most western Europeans - and even many who vote for far-right parties would like Kamala Harris to win next week, polling suggests.

Time's up for old adage that claims apes could replicate Shakespeare

Mathematicians have called into question the adage that a monkey typing randomly at a keyboard for long enough would produce the complete works of Shakespeare.

Thomas Wei Huang named as boy jailed for private school hammer attack

A 17-year-old boy sentenced to life for attacking two sleeping pupils and a teacher with hammers at a private school can be named after a judge lifted reporting restrictions.

Money hacks How to set up and maintain a happy house-share

The main things people disagree on when they share a property are \"cleaning, noise, bills and other people's other halves\", says Matt Hutchinson, a director of the property-sharing website Spareroom.

Budget checklist What you need to do now to make the most of your cash

Rachel Reeves's changes could make a difference to the tax you pay. Rupert Jones, Hilary Osborne and Shane Hickey report

Superstar of cuteness Hello Kitty turns 50 and makes $4bn a year

She sports a signature red bow; her hobbies are travelling, reading and baking, and - despite celebrating her 50th birthday - she stands at only five apples tall.

House price rises slow but stamp duty move may lead to 'buyer rush'

The growth in UK house prices slowed unexpectedly last month, Nationwide said, as it warned buyers to expect a rush in transactions early next year prompted by changes to stamp duty rules in the budget.

US adds only 12,000 jobs in final report before election, as hurricanes and strike bite

The US added only 12,000 jobs last month, less than a tenth of the number economists had forecast, a figure affected by the strike at Boeing and two hurricanes, in a final snapshot of the employment market before the country chooses a new president.

'Everything is expensive' No end to price pressures for your average family

I sort of assumed the cost of living crisis would be temporary and things would go back to how they were before,\" said Jess Daly. \"Maybe I was being naive. Everything is just expensive now.

Income inequality rises among European farms

The income gap between the biggest and smallest farms in Europe has doubled in the past 15 years and hit record levels at the same time as the number of small farms has collapsed, a Guardian analysis of agricultural income data has found.

Cloud-milking Extraction of water from fog is revolutionising recovery of forests

Cloud milking, a zero-energy technique to extract water from fog, is revolutionising the recovery of forests devastated by fire and drought.

Living in fear of Russia Georgia and Moldova cool on joining the EU

Lately, Levan just can't stop thinking about the time he saw Russian tanks roll into his home town of Gori, an hour's drive from Georgia's capital, Tbilisi.

Lebanon PM denies US requested unilateral ceasefire

The US asked Lebanon to declare a unilateral ceasefire to revive stalled talks to end hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, according to a report later denied by the Lebanese prime minister.

Pollution: Lahore and Delhi choke as annual smog rolls in

As the smog descended over Lahore, people began to feel the familiar symptoms. First came the scratchy throat and burning eyes, then the dizziness, tightness in the chest and the dry racking cough.

Apocalyptic conditions Israel's ban on Unrwa 'will mean mass starvation'

In bags were piling up at one end of the chaotic main thoroughfare in Shuafat refugee camp yesterday morning as shoppers walked by, stepping over a stream of wastewater trickling from a nearby drainpipe.

Frozen assets Ski resorts keep their snowfall on ice to beat the climate crisis

Before the arrival of electric fridges and freezers, people across Finland would saw a block of ice from a river or lake before the spring thaw, thickly cover it in an insulating layer of sawdust, and stack it in a barn, pit or ice cellar to be protected from the warm air of the summer months.

Huge demand for $700 a month sleeping pods in San Francisco

A company that rents \"sleeping pods\" in downtown San Francisco for $700 (£540) a month has had 300 people apply for its remaining 17 beds, the company's chief executive has said.

Mass gunfight shows that France is at tipping point over drugs, minister says

A shooting and massive brawl linked to drug trafficking has seriously wounded five people, including three teenagers, in western France, in the latest such gunfight to injure children.

Botswana's BDP voted out after 58 years in power

Botswana's president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, has conceded defeat as early results from Wednesday's election showed his Botswana Democratic party (BDP) losing by a landslide after nearly six decades in power.

Death toll from Spanish floods rises to 205 as extra troops mobilised

The death toll from the floods in Spain this week has risen to 205, as residents in the Valencia region were warned to brace for more rain and an additional 1,000 soldiers were earmarked to help with the rescue operations.

A month in Ambridge Poor George, all banged up with the big lads

Poor George, all banged up with the big lads

Stage review: Tale of a small-town ogre told by a Virtuoso

What an astonishing performance. In a kind of true-crime version of Under Milk Wood, Jack Holden evokes the life of small-town Skidmore, Missouri, in an audacious display of technical skill.

Less 'crush and rush'? Euston rule change brings stress relief but station still unloved

Waiting for her train home to Glasgow, Beth Johnson expresses a sentiment familiar to those who regularly travel north out of London: \"Euston is hell.\" The station, a dreaded entry and departure point to and from the capital, is synonymous with nightmarish scenes of overcrowding and passenger crushes caused by last-minute train announcements.

'Like a gangster' How Tommy Robinson rose to be leader of Britain's far right

At a 40,000-strong rally in Trafalgar Square in London in July, the far-right activist Tommy Robinson was characteristically defiant. \"Death, prison or glory, we will never submit to your lies,\" he declared. \"They want to send me to jail [but] the world will know I told the truth.\"

Forgotten tragedy: film recalls disaster that left hundreds of allied POWs dead

A Chinese film that brings to light a little-known tragedy from the second world war has been barred from the Oscars best international feature prize because it contains too much English dialogue.