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Claire O’Neill, a former climate minister, says PM’s move was to ‘try and create political division and dividing lines’The UK government’s decision to weaken some of its climate commitments was a “retrograde step” that will set back vital cross-party action to cut carbon emissions, Claire O’Neill, a former Conservative climate minister has said.O’Neill, who was known as Claire Perry when she served as a...

UK’s blue-chip index reaches 8,076, surpassing previous high of 8,047 in February 2023Business live – latest updatesThe UK stock market hit a record high on Tuesday, as shares were lifted by hopes of interest rate cuts and an easing of geopolitical tensions.The FTSE 100 index of blue-chip stocks listed in London hit 8,076 points on Tuesday, surpassing a previous high of 8,047 in February...

State department says Hamas has changed their demands, but that the US will keep pushing for an agreementSee all our Israel-Gaza war coverageUN rights chief Volker Turk has said he was “horrified” by the destruction of the Nasser and al-Shifa medical facilities in Gaza and reports of mass graves discovered there.The emergency services said yesterday that 73 more bodies had been found at the...

International concern over new law increases as UN high commissioner for refugees says it marks ‘step away from UK’s tradition of providing refuge’Three men, a woman and a child were killed attempting to cross the Channel in the early hours of this morning, according to a French coastguard statement.Enver Solomon, the Refugee Council’s chief executive, said this was “another devastating human tragedy” that should...

French coastguard says small boat was carrying more than 100 people during failed crossing attemptFive people have died in an attempt to cross the Channel near the town of Wimereux, south of Calais, French police have said.A spokesperson for France’s national police told Reuters that five asylum seekers had died, while the French coastguard confirmed there was a failed attempt to cross the Channel...

Ex-Democrat, reported contender for Trump running mate, sued Clinton for Russia remark but dropped caseTulsi Gabbard, the former Democratic congresswoman, has repeated a discredited claim about Hillary Clinton that previously saw Gabbard lodge then drop a $50m defamation suit in a new book published as she seeks to be named Donald Trump’s running mate for US president.Accusing Democrats of making up “a conspiracy theory...

Shoppers spend more on promotions as Easter lifts sales of chocolate eggs and hot-cross bunsBusiness live – latest updatesGrocery price inflation in Great Britain has slowed to 3.2%, the lowest since November 2021, as the cost of toilet rolls, butter and milk fell and people spent more on store promotions.The decline in the four weeks to 14 April marked the 14th monthly drop in...

Man worked as assistant to Maximilian Krah, top candidate in European parliament elections, say prosecutorsAn aide to a German far-right politician standing in the European elections in June has been arrested on suspicion of spying for China, German prosecutors have said.The man, named only as Jian G, was accused of sharing information about negotiations at the European parliament with a Chinese intelligence service and...

Government borrowed £120.7bn in the last financial year, with just under £12bn in MarchBusiness live – latest updatesJeremy Hunt’s scope for a substantial pre-election tax giveaway has been hit after the latest set of official figures showed the UK’s public finances in worse shape than thought at last month’s budget.Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the government borrowed £120.7bn in the...

Commissioner expresses grave concern after Rishi Sunak’s asylum policy passes parliamentary stagesThe Council of Europe’s human rights watchdog has condemned Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda scheme, saying it raises “major issues about the human rights of asylum seekers and the rule of law”.The body’s human rights commissioner, Michael O’Flaherty, said the bill, expected to be signed into law on Tuesday after passing its parliamentary stages on...

This blog is now closed.Elon Musk’s X v Australia’s online safety regulator: untangling the tweet takedown ordersGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastAnglicare says government spending eight times more on private investors than building housing itselfThe Anglicare Australia executive director, Kasy Chambers, says the government must step up and intervene, instead of leaving housing to the private sector:We...

Anthony Albanese responds to X owner who criticised Australian authorities demanding videos of a Sydney church stabbing be removedAustralia’s prime minister has labelled X’s owner, Elon Musk, an “arrogant billionaire who thinks he is above the law” as the rift deepens between Australia and the tech platform over the removal of videos of a violent stabbing in a Sydney church.On Monday evening in an...

Despite eventual visa backflip by authorities, ABC’s south-Asia correspondent Avani Dias left after being made to ‘feel so uncomfortable’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe south-Asia correspondent for Australia’s national broadcaster, Avani Dias, has been forced out of India after her reporting fell foul of the Indian government, in a...

Outside court in Sydney, John Walford says he is ‘not sure’ how his client will plead to alleged murders of Jesse Baird and Luke DaviesFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe lawyer for former police officer and accused double murderer Beau Lamarre has suggested the charges could be defended on...

Videos on social media show helicopters flying in formation when one clipped another and both crashedTwo Malaysian navy helicopters have collided in mid-air during a rehearsal for a parade, killing all 10 crew members on board, the navy has said.The incident occurred at the Lumut naval base in the western state of Perak at 9.32am on Tuesday (0132 GMT), the navy said in a...

In today’s newsletter: After months of wrangling, Parliament passed the government’s controversial plan to tackle small boats• Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First Edition Continue reading...

In move seen by the opposition as an attempt to de-sinocise Taiwan, the ruling party is pushing ahead with plans to rid the island of monuments to the dictatorTaiwan’s government has pledged to remove almost 800 statues of Chiang Kai-shek, the Chinese military dictator who ruled the island for decades under martial law, but whose legacy remains a point of contentious debate.In 2018 the...

Authorities move to break up encampments at two more US universities on Monday, as Columbia University cancels in-person classesPolice arrested dozens of people at pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Yale University in Connecticut and New York University in Manhattan, as student protests over Israel’s war in Gaza continue to roil US campuses.On the Yale University campus in New Haven, Connecticut, authorities arrested at least 47 protesters...

International Energy Agency says 17m vehicles will be sold this year, up more than 20% compared with 2023Electric and plug-in hybrid car sales will jump to a new global record in 2024 despite slowing growth in some markets, according to forecasts from the influential International Energy Agency (IEA).The Paris-based forecaster said that 17m battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles will be sold...

Government claims no appropriate location could be found for long-mooted second facilityFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastA proposed safe injecting room in Melbourne’s CBD has been rejected by the Victorian government, with addiction experts warning the decision will “cost lives”.The government on Tuesday announced that a trial facility, recommended...

Queenslander Daniel Billings was on bail for earlier charges including stalking and cruelty before arrest for alleged murder, NSW court hearsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastA man accused of murdering his ex-girlfriend in regional New South Wales while on bail for rape and stalking charges against her will remain...

Plan to expand Ruaha national park has been beset by allegations of abuse, leading bank to withhold final $50m of $150m budgetThe World Bank has suspended financing intended to develop tourism in southern Tanzania after allegations of killings, rape and forced evictions.The bank began investigating last year after being accused of enabling abuses around Ruaha national park, which was due to double in size...

The 36-year-old Cairns man was shot dead by police while stopped on the Bruce Highway near Colosseum on Monday morningFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastQueensland police believe a man they shot and killed in a standoff outside Gladstone yesterday had stolen three vehicles before pointing a stolen loaded rifle...

Drag star celebrated with massive support at home after taking top prize in the long-running US reality showA drag queen has sparked national celebration as the “pride of Taiwan” and won praise and congratulations from the island’s president after winning RuPaul’s Drag Race at the weekend.On Saturday, the long-running, Emmy award-winning US reality show, in which drag queens compete in challenges including lip-sync performances,...