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Labour condemns Reform’s plan for £100bn in cuts as ‘half-baked’ and ‘incredibly reckless’ – as it happened
The Guardian

Labour condemns Reform’s plan for £100bn in cuts as ‘half-baked’ and ‘incredibly reckless’ – as it happened

This blog is now closedThe Electoral Commission has released political donation figures for the second quarter of 2026. They show that Reform UK continues to rake in far more than other parties. Nigel Farage’’s party had declared donations worth £5.3m. Labour got £3.6m, and the Conservatives £2.8m.Most of Reform UK’s money came from Ben Delo, who gave £4m. As Rowena Mason reported earlier this yea...

Nobel laureate Machado: ‘Illegitimate’ Venezuela regime has no right to strike US oil deal
The Guardian

Nobel laureate Machado: ‘Illegitimate’ Venezuela regime has no right to strike US oil deal

Opposition leader says interim government lacking democratic mandate to negotiate on natural resourcesThe Venezuelan opposition leader, María Corina Machado, has questioned Donald Trump’s oil deal with Venezuela’s interim government, declaring that the country’s natural resources do not belong to “an illegitimate regime”.In her first public comments since Trump announced what he called “the bigges...

Venezuelan opposition leader questions US oil deal with ‘illegitimate regime’
The Guardian

Venezuelan opposition leader questions US oil deal with ‘illegitimate regime’

María Corina Machado says interim government does not have democratic mandate to negotiate natural resourcesThe Venezuelan opposition leader, María Corina Machado, has questioned Donald Trump’s oil deal with Venezuela’s interim government, declaring that the country’s natural resources do not belong to “an illegitimate regime”.In her first public comments since Trump announced what he called “the ...

US House passes bill penalizing universities that participate in boycott of Israel
The Guardian

US House passes bill penalizing universities that participate in boycott of Israel

GOP-backed bill mandates institutions receiving federal funds not impose restrictions on programs related to IsraelThe US House of Representatives on Thursday passed a Republican-backed bill that would penalize universities that participate in boycotts of Israel, or attempt to prevent students from taking part in exchange programs with the country.The Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act pass...

Labour condemns Reform’s plan for £100bn in cuts as ‘half-baked’ and ‘incredibly reckless’ – UK politics live

Labour condemns Reform’s plan for £100bn in cuts as ‘half-baked’ and ‘incredibly reckless’ – UK politics live

The Guardian

Labour chair says uch cuts ‘could mean vital public services like hospitals, schools and law enforcement are put at risk’The Electoral Commission has released political donation figures for the second quarter of 2026. They show that Reform UK continues to rake in far more than other parties. Nigel Farage’’s party had declared donations worth £5.3m. Labour got £3.6m, and the Conservatives £2.8m.Mos...

EU’s ability to defend against invasion remains in doubt, finds official report

EU’s ability to defend against invasion remains in doubt, finds official report

The Guardian

Fragmented infrastructure and reliance on US continue to hinder ‘defence readiness’, says European court of auditorsEurope live – latest updatesThe EU’s ability to respond to a foreign invasion by 2030 remains in doubt due to a continuing reliance on the US and fragmented national defence systems, according to a report from its official auditor.The European court of auditors (ECA) said the EU was ...

Manchester synagogue attack: ministers seek to block MI5 files from inquest

Manchester synagogue attack: ministers seek to block MI5 files from inquest

The Guardian

Government lawyers tell coroner disclosing intelligence would pose serious risk to national securityMinisters are seeking to block intelligence material from being heard at an inquest into the death of two men killed in the 2025 Manchester synagogue attack.Lawyers for Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, told a coroner on Thursday that disclosing the MI5 files would pose a serious risk to national...

Manchester synagogue attack: ministers seek to block M15 files from inquest

Manchester synagogue attack: ministers seek to block M15 files from inquest

The Guardian

Government lawyers tell coroner disclosing intelligence material would pose serious risk to national security Ministers are seeking to block intelligence material from being heard at an inquest into the death of two men killed in the 2025 Manchester synagogue attack.Lawyers for Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, told a coroner on Thursday that disclosing the MI5 files would pose a serious risk t...

Aid operations in aftermath of deadly Nepal floods hampered by conditions | First Thing

Aid operations in aftermath of deadly Nepal floods hampered by conditions | First Thing

The Guardian

Guardian reporters in Nepal have witnessed first-hand the scenes of destruction and grief after the flash floods. Plus, a not-to-be-missed interview with the legendary Mr TGood morning. Thousands remain missing and the delivery of aid has been hampered by treacherous conditions in communities almost wiped out of existence by the flash flooding in Nepal and Tibet. A week after the disaster, survivo...

BoM forecasts strongest El Niño on record as research points to ‘alarming’ climate change influence

BoM forecasts strongest El Niño on record as research points to ‘alarming’ climate change influence

The Guardian

Bureau of Meteorology suggests El Niño has already broken records, with Pacific ocean temperature change exceeding 2C in six monthsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesSign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter hereThe growing El Niño weather phenomenon to Australia’s east is already breaking heat records, with forecasts showing it will like...

US commerce secretary erroneously said no Americans have died in Iran war, Trump claims

US commerce secretary erroneously said no Americans have died in Iran war, Trump claims

The Guardian

President said Howard Lutnick had Venezuela operation on his mind when he was discussing Iran war on CNBCDonald Trump has claimed his commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, erroneously stated that no Americans had been killed in the war with Iran because he was thinking about a previous US operation, in Venezuela.The claim, at odds with the Pentagon’s count of 18 US service members dead in the US-Isr...

Rise of far-right leader Roberto Vannacci challenges Meloni as she celebrates Italian milestone

Rise of far-right leader Roberto Vannacci challenges Meloni as she celebrates Italian milestone

The Guardian

Futuro Nazionale’s speedy rise in polls prompts questions over whether PM will return to her roots before electionEurope live – latest updatesGiorgia Meloni’s government has become the longest-running in Italy since the second world war – a milestone the prime minister is determined not to let pass unnoticed.In the port area of Bari, capital of the southern Italian region of Puglia, where Meloni h...

Rise of far-right Vannacci poses dilemma for Meloni as she celebrates Italian milestone

Rise of far-right Vannacci poses dilemma for Meloni as she celebrates Italian milestone

The Guardian

Futuro Nazionale’s speedy rise in polls prompts questions over whether PM will return to her roots before electionEurope live – latest updatesGiorgia Meloni’s government has become the longest-running in Italy since the second world war – a milestone the prime minister is determined not to let pass unnoticed.In the port area of Bari, capital of the southern Italian region of Puglia, where Meloni h...

Martin McDonagh says CIA has ‘done awful things all around the world’

Martin McDonagh says CIA has ‘done awful things all around the world’

The Guardian

McDonagh’s new film, Wild Horse Nine, stars John Malkovich as an agent in 1970s Chile who feels ‘guilt and regret’ over his role in global interventionsThe US’s history of intervening in democratic processes around the world deserves more attention in the light of current political developments, playwright and film-maker Martin McDonagh has said, as his Oscar-tipped film about a rueful CIA agent p...

Iran targets US bases as Israel warns sanctions could drive Tehran to ‘desperate steps’

Iran targets US bases as Israel warns sanctions could drive Tehran to ‘desperate steps’

The Guardian

Air bases used by US in the UAE and Kuwait hit as the Israeli defence chief says Iran’s regime fears collapse due to economic pressuresIran has continued to demonstrate an ability to target bases in the Gulf used by the US despite six months of war and a new sanctions regime described by the Trump administration as an “economic D-day”.As Iran’s military targeted US bases in the United Arab Emirate...

Leon Black fails to appear for US House deposition about Epstein ties

Leon Black fails to appear for US House deposition about Epstein ties

The Guardian

Billionaire financier, who previously walked out of a deposition, instead launches lawsuit against the committeeBillionaire financier Leon Black did not appear Thursday in front of the House oversight committee for a scheduled deposition about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, and has instead launched a lawsuit against the committee arguing that it does not have the authority to compel him to turn over...

Shootout in Kyiv between Ukrainian spy services ‘disgraceful’, says Zelenskyy

Shootout in Kyiv between Ukrainian spy services ‘disgraceful’, says Zelenskyy

The Guardian

Domestic security service says clash with military intelligence directorate ‘definitely shouldn’t have happened’Several people have been injured in a shootout in central Kyiv between two branches of Ukraine’s security services, in an incident Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as “disgraceful”.The shootout, which took place on Wednesday morning in a downtown area of the capital, was between officers fr...

Kafka in paradise: Hawaii fire survivors in bureaucratic trap as US ends mail delivery

Kafka in paradise: Hawaii fire survivors in bureaucratic trap as US ends mail delivery

The Guardian

Wildfire victims rebuilt their homes in Lahaina only to find USPS had ‘eliminated’ their addresses – while houses that didn’t burn receive mail as normalTwo months after a devastating wildfire whipped through Lahaina in August 2023, Pam Reader was allowed back to see what was left of her home. With a heavy heart, she returned to the Hawaiian oceanside town now filled with endless blocks of burned ...

Kafka in paradise: Hawaii fire survivors in bureaucratic trap as US says no more mail delivery

Kafka in paradise: Hawaii fire survivors in bureaucratic trap as US says no more mail delivery

The Guardian

Wildfire victims rebuilt their homes in Lahaina only to find USPS had ‘eliminated’ their addresses – while houses that didn’t burn receive mail as normalTwo months after a devastating wildfire whipped through Lahaina in August 2023, Pam Reader was allowed back to see what was left of her home. With a heavy heart, she returned to the Hawaiian oceanside town now filled with endless blocks of burned ...

‘Leon Black is hiding behind litigation’: outrage after billionaire sues Congress over subpoenas for Epstein investigation – live

‘Leon Black is hiding behind litigation’: outrage after billionaire sues Congress over subpoenas for Epstein investigation – live

The Guardian

Republican oversight chair James Comer says he will speak to committee about next steps as Democrat calls for holding billionaire in contempt for defying two subpoenasSign up for US Breaking News emailsRepublican oversight chair James Comer has also weighed in on Leon Black not sitting for a deposition about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. The billionaire financier, who has denied wrongdoing, filed s...

Hillary Clinton leads tributes to Gloria Steinem: ‘Her activism was rooted in optimism’

Hillary Clinton leads tributes to Gloria Steinem: ‘Her activism was rooted in optimism’

The Guardian

Former US secretary of state joins Roxane Gay, Rachel Cargle and others in heralding groundbreaking feministGloria Steinem, groundbreaking feminist campaigner, dies aged 92‘We badly need to raise our boys more like our girls’: Gloria Steinem – a life in quotesHillary Clinton led tributes to Gloria Steinem on Thursday, hailing the American feminist icon who died at 92 at home in New York as “one of...

Nvidia to buy developer platform Hugging Face in $12.9bn deal

Nvidia to buy developer platform Hugging Face in $12.9bn deal

The Guardian

Semi-conductor giant bets that support for open AI models could offset potential slowdown in demand for chipsNvidia will buy the popular developer platform Hugging Face for nearly $13bn, betting that support for ⁠open AI models could offset a potential slowdown in demand for the semiconductor giant’s chips.Shares ⁠in Nvidia were ⁠slightly lower ​after the $12.93bn (£9.57bn) deal – which ranks amon...

John Lewis to launch YouTube chatshow to improve AI search results

John Lewis to launch YouTube chatshow to improve AI search results

The Guardian

Department store chain’s Gift List ‘vodcast’ will be hosted by TV presenter Angela ScanlonBusiness live – latest updatesJohn Lewis is launching an online chatshow and social media studio to help make itself and its products more visible to chatbots and more prominent in AI search results.The department store chain’s Gift List “vodcast” hosted by TV presenter Angela Scanlon will air on YouTube with...

Teenager in Wales given detention sentence for stabbing teacher in head

Teenager in Wales given detention sentence for stabbing teacher in head

The Guardian

Judge voices concern about possible copycat incidents after boy, 16, found guilty over attack at school in PembrokeshireA judge has expressed concern over possible copycat attacks on school staff as he sentenced a teenager who stabbed a teacher in the head to four and a half years in youth detention.Judge Thomas KC said it was the second such attack in south-west Wales in two years and that the au...

Alarm as US domestic violence killings remain high despite drop in homicides

Alarm as US domestic violence killings remain high despite drop in homicides

The Guardian

Non-profits say requests for legal help and housing on rise amid Trump funding cuts for prevention and responseAs cities and states across the US report historic drops in homicides, domestic violence killings remain alarmingly high.In Chicago, where homicides fell from 805 in 2021 to 425 in 2025, killings tied to domestic violence increased by 15% between 2024 and 2025. In Kansas City, Missouri, h...

Defending his commerce secretary, Trump says 18 Americans have died in Iran – live

Defending his commerce secretary, Trump says 18 Americans have died in Iran – live

The Guardian

Trump says ‘Sec. Lutnick had Venezuela on his mind when he said nobody was killed’ after the commerce secretary’s erroneous claim in a CNBC interviewSign up for US Breaking News emailsDonald Trump is doing his version of damage control after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick erroneously claimed no Americans have died during the US war on Iran.“The way the president is playing Iran…there haven’t be...

Spain’s PM says no evidence ‘whatsoever’ Morocco behind Ceuta border breach

Spain’s PM says no evidence ‘whatsoever’ Morocco behind Ceuta border breach

The Guardian

Pedro Sánchez continues to defend Rabat after police report claiming border forces helped 70,000 cross borderEurope live – latest updatesSpain has seen no evidence “whatsoever” that Morocco planned or facilitated a mass border breach into its north African enclave of Ceuta, the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has told parliament.The address on Thursday followed the emergence of a police rep...

Invasive tropical mosquito found breeding in east London

Invasive tropical mosquito found breeding in east London

The Guardian

Climate crisis could increase incursions of Aedes aegypti, which can transmit Zika virus and dengue, experts sayAn invasive mosquito capable of transmitting tropical diseases has been found breeding in homes in east London, with warnings that the rapidly warming climate will lead to greater “incursions of invasive mosquitoes”.This is the first time the species has been identified breeding in the U...

‘We need a touch of humanity’: Swedish opposition pledges to help Britons facing deportation

‘We need a touch of humanity’: Swedish opposition pledges to help Britons facing deportation

The Guardian

Migration spokeperson says if Centre party wins power it will change law to end plight of British citizens hit by post-Brexit policyA leading Swedish opposition party has promised an urgent reprieve for British nationals facing deportation from the country over Brexit administrative issues.Niels Paarup-Petersen, the migration spokesperson for the Centre party, said it would introduce laws to end t...