The Guardian

In triggering an entirely optional byelection, Nigel Farage has given opponents weeks to repeat the claims about his finances To some, Nigel Farage appears to be in a trap of his own making, fighting for re-election in single combat with a giant bin before potentially having to do it all again against the other political parties. But inside Reform UK, the mood is upbeat. As one insider said of th…

Outsourcing firm counts cost of failures that left retired UK civil servants without an income for months Capita has revealed that the bill for cleaning up its mess at the crisis-hit civil service pension scheme could wipe up to £40m off annual profits – a day after its chief executive apologised to MPs for a “very poor service”. The company had faced a grilling at a Commons committee hearing on …

Platner’s former backers are seeking ‘real progressive’ to prevent nomination going to establishment Democrat US politics live – latest updates Progressive groups and lawmakers who rallied behind Graham Platner’s insurgent bid for a US Senate seat are now racing to decide where to transfer their support after his withdrawal from the Maine race following yet another allegation of sexual assault. T…

President ordered investigation after fictitious federal body allocated funding and office space, triggering renewed scrutiny of corruption A fictitious federal entity that was allocated 1.3 billion naira (£705,248) in Nigeria’s 2026 budget has precipitated a political storm in Africa’s largest democracy in the run-up to January’s general election. The fake agency came to light last October when …

Keir Starmer revealed Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s strange choice of gift on the flight back from Ankara What does a world leader do with a gun and six bullets? That was the conundrum Nato leaders faced after the Turkish president offered them each a revolver after the Ankara summit. Keir Starmer was the first to mention the highly unusual gift presented by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to his guests. On the fl…

Exclusive: PM-in-waiting says party must ‘do better’ in approach to Middle East and he will put more pressure on Israel UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has apologised for Labour’s initial response to Israel’s military action in Gaza, saying the party “didn’t get it right” and needs to “do better” under his leadership, as he signalled a significant shift in the UK’s approach to the …

Widow of far-right activist Charlie Kirk asks judge for ‘transparency’ to head off conspiracy theories Erika Kirk, the widow of the far-right activist Charlie Kirk , has asked a judge in Utah to allow the open courtroom display of every exhibit relating to her husband’s killing, saying she fears the proliferation of conspiracy theories. Kirk’s motion came on the third day of a preliminary hearing…

Former transport secretary said she was one of several victims of ‘sexist and unpleasant’ press briefs Louise Haigh has accused Keir Starmer’s allies of briefing “consistently and viciously” against her after she resigned as transport secretary as she spoke openly about her departure from the cabinet in 2024 and her reasons for backing Andy Burnham. She has helped mastermind Burnham’s likely asce…

Exclusive: ‘The preferred policy is, of course, a carbon price,’ Dr Huw McKay says, amid slowdown in BHP action on emissions Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A former chief economist at mining company BHP says stronger climate policy by governments is needed to “move the needle” and incentivise tough decarbonisation decisions at major resource companies. Internal docum…

Exclusive : Documents show $117,455.50 was spent in a single legal fight over laws rushed through after Bondi attack Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The New South Wales government has already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on legal fees to unsuccessfully defend constitutional challenges against protest laws that were expected to be struck down. The costs, outl…

A brown huntsman is the quickest of more than 250 species analysed by scientists in the UK and Germany If arachnophobes were not frightened enough by the horrific ability of Australia’s huntsman spiders to drag dead mice up the sides of fridges , they now have another reason. They might be the fastest spiders on the planet. Continue reading...

Residents in Bandar Abbas and Sirik regions describe communities in fear and ‘feeling abandoned’ after US launch fresh strikes over two-day period Residents in southern Iran have described two nights of fear this week after explosions shook coastal communities as the US launched fresh strikes on targets including the port cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik . US Central Command confirmed the attacks…

David Hearn is accused of destroying ‘American flag blue’ lining material on the bottom of the reflecting pool David Hearn, a former Olympic canoe racer, pleaded not guilty on Thursday to damaging Washington’s reflecting pool after a $14.7m renovation project. Hearn, a three-time US Olympian, was indicted last week on a single felony count of property destruction. He appeared in local superior co…

Exclusive: Questions grow over close ally’s role as party says he has never held an official position UK politics live – latest updates Why is Farage quitting as an MP, only to stand again? George Cottrell was routinely introduced as Nigel Farage’s chief of staff before the 2024 election despite denials that he had any official role, according to a Reform UK candidate who stood aside for the part…

‘Highly unprecedented anomaly’ meant 135 people given incorrect scores and wrongly informed of promotions The air force has canceled the promotions of dozens of service members after discovering what it said was a grading error in a test of their security knowledge. The “isolated and highly unprecedented anomaly” was announced in a press release on Tuesday, which said 135 airmen and women had bee…