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A British woman has pleaded guilty to being part of a global monkey torture network.Holly LeGresley, 37, from Kidderminster in Worcestershire, admitted uploading 22 images and 132 videos of monkeys being tortured to an online chat group.She was charged after an investigation by the BBC into the torture of monkeys ov...

Business secretary defends move, saying it ‘puts to bed myth that Rwanda is not a safe place’Kemi Badenoch, who is minister for women and equalities as well as business and trade secretary, is launching a move to root out “bad guidance” on access to single-sex spaces. The initiative seems intended to restrict the extent to which trans women use these facilities.She said:Single-sex spaces are...

Susan Hall became member a day after an exposé about its contents – much of which is directed at Sadiq KhanTory staff running network of anti-Ulez Facebook groups riddled with racism and abuseSusan Hall, the Tory candidate for London mayor, has joined a Facebook group which contains Islamophobic hate speech and abusive comments about her opponent Sadiq Khan, the day after an exposé about...

Timeline for scheme comes after government accused of trying to ‘wriggle out’ of move to speed up payouts to victimsUK politics – latest updatesMinisters in the UK have agreed to a three-month deadline to establish a compensation scheme for victims of the infected blood scandal but warned it could be “unavoidably” delayed if parliament was not sitting.While making no mention of an election, the...

Met chief says one officer sustained hand injuries and another had surgery for ‘horrifically serious’ wounds to her armA police officer came close to losing her hand in the sword attack in Hainault, north-east London, the Metropolitan police commissioner, Mark Rowley, has said.A 14-year-old boy was killed and four other people were injured during the incident on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Interim role will include overseeing compensation payments as result of Horizon IT scandalBusiness live – latest updatesThe ex-chief executive of the former national lottery operator Camelot has been named as the new interim chair of the Post Office.The government said on Wednesday that the business secretary, Kemi Badenoch, had appointed Nigel Railton to the role, replacing Henry Staunton, who was sacked in January. Continue...

Met Police say incident does not appear to be terror-related after reports of vehicle being driven into house in Thurlow Gardens areaTell us: how have you been affected by the incident in Hainault?The home secretary, James Cleverly, said he is being regularly updated about the incident in Hainault and thanked emergency responders for responding to the attack.“I would urge people not to speculate or...

Polling puts Ben Houchen on course to win in Tees Valley with Andy Street just ahead of Labour’s Richard Parker in West MidlandsKeir Starmer said his views on gender issues “start with biology” as he backed blocking trans women from female-only hospital wards and prisons in an interview with ITV’s Good Morning Britain, PA Media reports. PA says:The Labour leader was speaking as the...

Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza says her banning shows Rwandan government does not adhere to international lawA Rwandan opposition leader who has been banned from standing for election has cast doubt on whether her government will stick to the terms of the deportation deal agreed with Rishi Sunak.Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza told the Guardian that the Rwandan government’s refusal to allow her to stand or leave the...

Two men to appear in Manchester crown court charged with murder of 67-year-old Stuart EverettPolice have named a man whose body parts were found in a Salford nature reserve this month as 67-year-old Stuart Everett.Two men are to appear in court on Tuesday charged with murdering Everett, whose dismembered abdomen was found on 4 April in Kersal wetlands, a popular walking spot, causing “shock...

Bank says it has started search for a successor as it reports quarterly profits beat forecastsBusiness live – latest coverageThe chief executive of HSBC, Noel Quinn, is unexpectedly stepping down after an “intense” five years in the role, as the bank reported better-than-expected profits.Europe’s largest bank has kicked off a search for a successor and said Quinn, 62, will stay in the post until...

Moves come despite hospitality group reporting record profits and increasing returns to shareholdersBusiness live – latest coverageThe Premier Inn owner Whitbread is to cut 1,500 jobs in the UK and shut more than 100 struggling restaurants despite announcing a significant rise in returns to shareholders.Whitbread, which runs 850 hotels in the UK and has the sector’s biggest brand, Premier Inn, said it was starting...

Met police confirm ‘serious incident’ after reports of vehicle driven into house and people stabbedHainault attack – live updatesA man with a sword has been arrested after an attack on members of the public and police officers in Hainault, north-east London, police have said.In a statement, the Metropolitan police said: “Police and other emergency services are in Hainault, east London, at a serious incident...

Minister says ‘officers are used to this’, as figures suggest Home Office is in contact with only 38% of people it wants to removeThe Home Office is “used to” losing contact with asylum seekers, a UK government minister has said, after official figures suggested thousands of people it hoped to deport to Rwanda had stopped reporting.The impact assessment on the Home Office’s website on...

Doctor Who star will play Algernon in the ‘hilariously subversive’ comedy, said artistic director Rufus NorrisDoctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa is to make his debut at the National Theatre in London in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest.Gatwa will play hedonistic bachelor Algernon Moncrieff in Wilde’s “trivial comedy for serious people” this winter. It marks his first major role in a theatre production...

Scotland’s first minister set to resign after failing to muster enough votes to survive a no confidence vote this weekHumza Yousaf is holding a press conference at noon, Sky News and the BBC are reporting.Mandy Rhodes, editor of the Holyrood magazine, says she was due to interview Humza Yousaf this afternoon, but he’s cancelled. Continue reading...

Decision to step down could come within hours as SNP leader faces no-confidence vote at HolyroodUK politics – latest updatesHumza Yousaf is expected to stand down as Scotland’s first minister on Monday lunchtime after failing to muster enough votes to survive a vote of confidence later this week. Yousaf is due to make a statement at noon at Bute House, his official residence in...

Peter Smith is in intensive care after suffering damage to an arm, leg and hand and puncture wounds to abdomenA British tourist who was seriously injured in a shark attack off a Caribbean island is “aware of what is happening and can communicate” in intensive care, his wife has said.Peter Smith, 64, from Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, was savaged 10 metres (33ft) off the shore near...

Allies of Scottish first minister say he ‘will come out fighting’ after Greens say they would back no-confidence motionUK politics – latest updatesScotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, has cancelled a speech he was due to give in Glasgow amid speculation over his political future.Yousaf had been due to speak about the labour strategy in an independent Scotland, take part in a Q&A session and...

First minister cancels event as Strathclyde University as he faces no confidence voteStephen Flynn is viewed by some people as the most talented politician in the SNP and, in his interview on the Today programme, he was asked if he would stand for the leadership if Humza Yousaf were to resign. He replied:I have been asked this question previously the last time there was...

Yien Both, from South Sudan, and Tajdeen Adbulaziz Juma, from Sudan, charged with immigration offences in UKTwo men have been charged with immigration offences in connection with the investigation into the deaths of five people, including a child, who were trying to cross the Channel.Yien Both, a 22-year-old from South Sudan, has been charged with assisting unlawful immigration and attempting to arrive in the...

Chris Philp gets confused over neighbouring countries when discussing government’s Rwanda deportation policyUK politics – latest updatesThe policing minister, Chris Philp, appeared to confuse the countries of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on BBC Question Time on Thursday.When discussing the government policy of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda, the MP for Croydon South responded to an audience member’s question during the...

Micheál Martin says UK asylum seekers fearful of being removed to Rwanda are seeking sanctuary in IrelandThe UK government’s Rwanda policy has been described as a “kneejerk reaction” to migration by Ireland’s deputy prime minister, who said an influx of asylum seekers could arrive in Ireland as a result.Micheál Martin, Ireland’s Tánaiste, reportedly said asylum seekers fearful of being removed from the UK to...

Exclusive: Action by organisation supporting migrants argues new rules are discriminatoryAn organisation that supports migrant workers has launched a legal challenge against the government’s new policy to bar care workers from bringing children and partners to the UK, warning that it is “tearing families apart”.According to Migrants at Work, care workers have to choose between family life with their children and partners or getting...