The Guardian

Owner of Sports Direct chain says consumer confidence ‘very subdued’ with sales at sports division down 5.8% The owner of Sports Direct and Flannels has said sales have fallen at its UK retail businesses amid heavy discounting by rivals and “very subdued” consumer confidence. Frasers, which is controlled by the former Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley, said sales at its UK sports division were d…

Number of overseas nurses and midwives registered between April and September was half that of a year ago The number of overseas nurses and midwives coming to the UK is collapsing, figures reveal, with rising racism and changes to immigration rules blamed for the fall. Between April and September, 6,321 nurses and midwives from abroad joined the register of those licensed to practice in the UK, c…

Obtaining an eVisa to prove their status or right to legally reside in Britain is causing migrants high levels of stress The UK’s new digital-only immigration system is creating stress, fear and exclusion for immigrants who rely on their status, a new report has found. The digitalisation of immigration status began in 2018 and in the middle of this year the government set out that nearly all migr…

Of patients diagnosed with condition in 2024/25, only 18% were assessed for fall risk and just 16% had a medical review GPs are failing to provide adequate support for people living with frailty, an independent watchdog has found. Frailty is a syndrome related to ageing and in which body systems gradually lose their in-built reserves. Symptoms include exhaustion and people living with frailty are…

Rewilding charity helps bolster Scottish stronghold of species that once came close to extinction in UK Red squirrels have expanded their range across the Highlands by more than a quarter after a 10-year reintroduction programme moved hundreds to new homes. The species once came close to extinction in Britain when foresters killed them as pests and their natural habitat was destroyed. A deadly vi…

Strike comes amid congressional turmoil over legality of US attacks on suspected drug smugglers The Pentagon announced on Thursday that the US military’s southern command had conducted another deadly strike on a boat suspected of carrying illegal narcotics, killing four men in the eastern Pacific. Video of the new strike was posted on social media by the US southern command, based in Florida, wit…

Decision comes less than two weeks after judge ruled similar case against New York attorney general unlawful A grand jury declined to indict Letitia James on Thursday, less than two weeks after a judge ruled that a similar mortgage fraud case brought by federal prosecutors against the New York attorney general was unlawful. The move by the justice department to present the case again to a grand j…

Daughter of James Comey was dismissed by Trump justice department from job as prosecutor in New York Maurene Comey , the federal prosecutor who helmed criminal cases against Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, appeared at Manhattan federal court on Thursday, in a lawsuit claiming she was fired as political retaliation against her father, James Comey. Comey was terminated in July, shortly after…

Major win for Trump as justices reject lower-court ruling that found maps had been racially gerrymandered Texas can use a redrawn congressional map that adds as many as five Republican-friendly seats, the supreme court has ruled, giving Donald Trump and the GOP a major win in their push to add Republican congressional seats ahead of next year’s midterm elections. The supreme court’s decision came…

Union asks ‘would you want your mum strapped to an underpaid instructor?’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australian skydivers in three states have gone on strike while pay negotiations drag on. Skydiving instructors employed by tourism giant Experience Co were due to walk off the job on Friday at eight sites in Q…

Latest effort to control communications comes as regulator claims apps being used to ‘conduct terrorist activities’ Russian authorities blocked access to Snapchat and imposed restrictions on Apple’s video calling service FaceTime, the latest step in an effort to tighten control over the internet and communications online, according to state-run news agencies and the country’s communications regul…

AWU accuses skydiving company of seeking to turn employees into ‘gig workers’. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it will be Nick Visser with the main action. If you were planning to fall out of the sky today we have potentially bad news: in …

Democratic representative Jim Hines, who saw footage of attack, called it ‘one of the most troubling scenes’ he’s observed in public service US politics live – latest updates A Democratic congressman described an unedited video of an extrajudicial military strike that killed two survivors in the Caribbean as “one of the most troubling scenes” he’s seen in public service, as human rights advocates…

Decision not to hold vote on Israel’s participation comes in spite of several broadcasters calling for its exclusion Ireland, Spain and the Netherlands will boycott next year’s Eurovision after Israel was given the all-clear to compete in next year’s song contest in spite of several participating broadcasters calling for its exclusion. At the general assembly of the European Broadcasting Union, t…

Death of commander of Popular Forces is blow to Israel’s efforts to confront Hamas through proxy groups The leader of a Israeli-backed militia in Gaza has been killed, dealing a major blow to Israel’s efforts to build up its own Palestinian proxies to confront Hamas. Yasser abu Shabab, a Bedouin tribal leader based in the Israeli-held zone of the devastated territory, is thought to have died from…