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- Nick Clegg hosts his Call Clegg phone-in: Politics live blog
- Falling Chinese factory activity and Fed taper weigh on markets - business live
- Syria wiping neighbourhoods off the map to punish residents – rights group
- Missouri executes Herbert Smulls as appeals fail
- Shell shelves plan to drill in Alaskan Arctic this summer
- Mexican journalist beaten to death
- Scarlett Johansson steps down from Oxfam ambassador role
- Tony Abbott cabinet rejects $25m assistance plea from SPC Ardmona
- Mob attacks remote Indian village in land dispute
- Australia's relations with Indonesia at stake over secret East Timor papers
- Tehran in numbers
- David Cameron to face questions on security strategy
- Clive Palmer drops to No.50 on rich list as his wealth dips by 40% to $632m
- ABC and SBS costs will be reviewed, says Malcolm Turnbull
- Heavier drinking penalties will increase Indigenous prison population: lawyer
- Justin Bieber facing assault charges over incident with limousine driver
- Chinese new year 2014: the year of the horse gallops into Google doodle
- Asylum seekers on Manus Island should be made aware of legal rights, court told
- China's Communist party expels disgraced former mayor of Nanjing
- Police investigated Salvation Army paedophile ring allegations in 1990s
- Tony Abbott cabinet rejects SPC plea for $35m in assistance - video
- Kenyan firm turns flip-flops into art
- Animals take a swim – in pictures
- ANZ launches review after $70m error in home loan charges
- WA Senate count: Labor wants result to stand despite lost ballot papers
| Nick Clegg hosts his Call Clegg phone-in: Politics live blog Posted: 30 Jan 2014 01:09 AM PST Andrew Sparrow's rolling coverage of all the day's political developments as they happen, including the immigration debate and Nick Clegg hosting his Call Clegg phone-in       |
| Falling Chinese factory activity and Fed taper weigh on markets - business live Posted: 30 Jan 2014 01:03 AM PST Japan's Nikkei drops 2.5% after US central bank pushes on with tapering despite emerging market turbulence       |
| Syria wiping neighbourhoods off the map to punish residents – rights group Posted: 30 Jan 2014 01:01 AM PST Report contains satellite imagery showing seven areas that have been largely or completely destroyed  |
| Missouri executes Herbert Smulls as appeals fail Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:34 AM PST Lawyers challenged Missouri's use of lethal injection from unnamed source but US supreme court allowed procedure to go ahead       |
| Shell shelves plan to drill in Alaskan Arctic this summer Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:29 AM PST  Anglo Dutch oil giant's new chief executive slashes exploration and development spending as profits fall 71% Shell has announced plans to slash its exploration and development spending from $46bn (£27.8bn) to $37bn this year and has ditched plans to drill in the Alaskan Arctic this summer. The cutbacks were unveiled by new chief executive, Ben van Beurden, who said they were part of a range of initiatives to make up for what he described as Shell's "loss of momentum". Van Beurden, who took over from Peter Voser at the turn of the year confirmed that fourth quarter profits – on a current cost of supply basis – had plunged by 71% to $2.1bn. Annual earnings almost halved to $16.7bn. The company will increase the pace of overall asset sales, which are expected to be $15bn over the next financial year – both in the exploration and refining sides of the business. "We are making hard choices in our worldwide portfolio to improve Shell's capital efficiency", van Beurden said. "Our ambitious growth drive in recent years has yielded a step-change in Shell's portfolio and options, with more growth to come, but at the same time we have lost some momentum in operational delivery, and we can sharpen up in a number of areas," he added. The decision to shelve drilling off Alaska this summer will delight environmentalists and is just the latest set back for the Anglo Dutch oil giant in the far north. It follows a US court ruling that the department of the interior had failed to consider all environmental impacts of the exploration in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas when it gave Shell permission to drill. "This is a disappointing outcome, but the lack of a clear path forward means that I am not prepared to commit further resources for drilling in Alaska in 2014," van Beurden said. "We will look to relevant agencies and the court to resolve their open legal issues as quickly as possible." Van Beurden will be under pressure to give a wider explanation of the company's plans and problems when he faces investors and media later on Thursday. Meanwhile Shell said it had distributed more than $11bn to shareholders in dividends and repurchased $5bn of shares in 2013. Reflecting confidence in the potential for free cash-flow growth in 2014, the company said it was expecting the first quarter of 2014 dividend to be $0.47 a share, an increase of over 4% compared with the same period of 2013, and total dividends announced in respect of 2014 to be potentially over $11bn. The basic financial results were known two weeks ago when the company issued a shock profit warning. At the time the Anglo Dutch group blamed a whole host of issues including higher exploration costs, security problems in Nigeria, a high dollar exchange rate as well as heavier than anticipated maintenance work on liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants. City analysts did not to react strongly to the bad news believing it was largely part of a traditional "kitchen sinking" of all the bad news by an incoming chief executive. But Nick Butler, a former energy adviser to Number 10 and now a columnist with the FT, said this explanation was unlikely and yet he questioned what had changed so quickly since a benign third-quarter presentation on 31 October. "Anything less (than a full and detailed explanation today) will reinforce the impression that there is a governance problem which has left top management and directors out of touch with the operations of the business," he wrote earlier this week. Shell is traditionally seen as an extremely cautious company although it had its own brush with scandal almost exactly 10 years ago when the company was accused of fiddling its reserve figures. The company has already said it will make up to $15bn of divestments in a bid to concentrate on higher value assets. On Wednesday it announced its latest sale of a stake in a Brazilian field to Qatar for $1bn. Shell has also recently sold off $1bn interests in the Wheatstone LNG scheme in Australia, is reviewing some of its US shale gas holdings, and there is speculation that it is losing heart with its huge but trouble-hit Nigeria business. theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds       |
| Mexican journalist beaten to death Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:29 AM PST  A Mexican journalist found dead in his home is thought to have been a robbery victim. Police believe Miguel Ángel Guzmán Garduño, an opinion columnist for the daily paper Vértice, was beaten to death by men who broke into his house on 23 January and stole various electrical goods before driving off in his car. But Mexico's National Human Rights Commission is to hold a separate investigation into the killing in Chilpancingo, in the state of Guerrero. It is the first killing of a journalist in Mexico this year. The commission said: "Federal and state authorities have the obligation to conduct a timely and effective investigation into threats against journalists in order to counter impunity and stop the deterioration of freedom of expression." Sources: Knight Centre In Spanish: Diario de Guerrero theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds       |
| Scarlett Johansson steps down from Oxfam ambassador role Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:28 AM PST  Avengers star attracts wrath of activists after appearing in ad for company with West Bank settlement factory Scarlett Johansson has quit her ambassador role with Oxfam following criticism over her decision to star in an advertising campaign for SodaStream, the fizzy drinks company which owns a factory in an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. In a statement, Johansson said she was ending her relationship with The humanitarian group over "a fundamental difference of opinion". "Scarlett Johansson has respectfully decided to end her ambassador role with Oxfam after eight years," the statement said. "She and Oxfam have a fundamental difference of opinion in regards to the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. She is very proud of her accomplishments and fundraising efforts during her tenure with Oxfam." SodaStream has come under fire from pro-Palestinian activists for maintaining a large factory in the West Bank. Oxfam opposes all trade in goods produced by Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories, saying they are illegal and deny Palestinian rights. The star of current awards season favourite Her and superhero ensemble The Avengers became global brand ambassador for SodaStream International Ltd. earlier this month. Activists seized on her appearance in an advert for SodaStream scheduled to air during half-time at this Sunday's US Super Bowl, the advertising slot with the largest audience on American television. Johansson has been quick to defend her association with the company, and said last week she was a "supporter of economic cooperation and social interaction between a democratic Israel and Palestine." But Oxfam had come under increasing pressure to dismiss her from the ambassadorial role, with campaigners claiming the position was untenable. "Oxfam is a human rights organisation. They cannot maintain an ambassador if they are involved in a complicit Israeli company built in a settlement. They can't keep both. You can't maintain something and its contradiction," boycott campaign founder Omar Barghouti told the Guardian. Oxfam later told the Guardian it was considering its position. A spokesperson told the Guardian that the charity was "considering the implications" of Johansson's statement. theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds       |
| Tony Abbott cabinet rejects $25m assistance plea from SPC Ardmona Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:25 AM PST Prime minister says parent company Coca-Cola Amatil has the resources to stand behind the company without need for taxpayer support       |
| Mob attacks remote Indian village in land dispute Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:17 AM PST  At least 10 killed after gunmen from neighbouring state open fire in Chauldhua in northern Assam state A mob armed with shotguns has attacked a remote village in north-east India, killing at least 10 people in a long-simmering land dispute, police say. The attackers fired indiscriminately on Wednesday evening in Chauldhua in northern Assam state, said a resident, Indrashwar Das. "A large mob attacked us with guns. Everyone was surprised," said Das, who was shot in the leg. "I saw people falling and I ran." The gunmen came from neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh state, police said. It took officers several hours to access the densely forested area. The dispute dates back to 1987, when Arunachal Pradesh state was created and the village was declared to be in Assam. There have been similar attacks before, but this was the most deadly. The supreme court has taken up the case. Chauldhua is nearly 155 miles north of Gauhati, the state capital of Assam. theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds       |
| Australia's relations with Indonesia at stake over secret East Timor papers Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:17 AM PST Canberra blocking release of 30-year-old documents on atrocities as it seeks to rebuild ties with Jakarta  |
| Posted: 30 Jan 2014 12:00 AM PST In the first of our series looking at the data behind individual cities, we examine the Iranian capital and find a loud, smokey metropolis that's exciting investors       |
| David Cameron to face questions on security strategy Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:57 PM PST  PM to be grilled by MPs and peers on UK's relationship with the US following revelations by whistleblower Edward Snowden The prime minister will be questioned about the national security strategy in parliament on Thursday amid continued concern about defence cuts and the activities of the intelligence agencies. David Cameron will be asked about the effectiveness of the National Security Council (NSC) and how the next strategy, expected in 2015, will respond to the changing risks facing the country. The session with MPs and peers on the national security strategy committee is likely to cover the UK's relationship with the US, which has come under scrutiny following the intelligence revelations from the whistleblower Edward Snowden and warnings about the impact of defence cuts from the former Pentagon chief Robert Gates. The committee has also previously raised concerns about the US's strategic "pivot" away from Europe towards the Asia-Pacific region. Other topics likely to be covered include the government's response to events in Syria and the Ministry of Defence's decision-making on the future of the army. The evidence session is also expected look at wider national security concerns, including energy and food security, and the ownership of critical national infrastructure. The joint committee, chaired by the Labour former foreign secretary Margaret Beckett, includes the former security minister Lady Neville-Jones, and the intelligence and security committee chairman Sir Malcolm Rifkind. The former energy secretary Chris Huhne last year raised concerns about the information given to the NSC following Snowden's disclosure of techniques used by GCHQ and its American counterpart the National Security Agency. He said the NSC and the cabinet had been kept in the dark about the Tempora spy programme and the British use of the American Prism system. "If anyone should have been briefed on Prism and Tempora, it should have been the NSC," he said. While the Snowden leaks have focused attention on the close relationship with the US intelligence agencies, difficulties in the military partnership were highlighted earlier this month by Gates. He said defence cuts, including the lack of an operational aircraft carrier, had reduced its ability to be a "full partner" to the US across the whole range of military operations. But Cameron insisted Britain remained a "first-class player" in defence terms and dismissed Gates's claims that spending cuts had left the UK diminished on the world stage as "wrong". theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds       |
| Clive Palmer drops to No.50 on rich list as his wealth dips by 40% to $632m Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:56 PM PST Another mining tycoon, Gina Rinehart, keeps her place at the top, with the iron ore queen's fortune climbing to $20.3bn       |
| ABC and SBS costs will be reviewed, says Malcolm Turnbull Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:41 PM PST Communications minister says study will not examine either broadcaster's charters, or editorial or programming decisions       |
| Heavier drinking penalties will increase Indigenous prison population: lawyer Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:39 PM PST Chief legal officer of NSW Aboriginal Legal Service says bigger fines could create a vicious cycle in regional and remote areas       |
| Justin Bieber facing assault charges over incident with limousine driver Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:38 PM PST  Police sources say pop star will be charged over incident in December involving Toronto limousine driver Justin Bieber will be charged with assault in Toronto over an incident in December involving a limousine driver, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has said, citing unidentified police sources. The Canadian popstar arrived at Toronto police station on Wednesday and is expected to be formally charged. Bieber's representatives declined to comment on the report. Bieber, 19, was charged with driving under the influence in Miami last week after Florida police caught him drag racing a rented Lamborghini. He told police he had taken prescription medicine, had been smoking marijuana and had consumed alcohol. According to court records, he pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to those charges in a written plea submitted by his lawyer. If convicted, Bieber could face up to six months in prison, although experts say he is likely to receive a lighter sentence because it would be his first offence. Bieber is scheduled to make a court appearance on 14 February to formally answer the charges. He was also charged with driving on an expired licence and resisting arrest without violence. Bieber, a native of Ontario, Canada, has had a year of problems, ranging from scuffling with paparazzi in London to a felony investigation into whether he pelted a neighbour's house with eggs in his gated community near Los Angeles. On Wednesday, an online petition asking the Obama administration to deport Bieber from the United States after his Miami arrest passed the 100,000 signature threshold required for a White House response. Bieber was unlikely to be deported because federal law dictates that a visa can only be revoked or denied for a conviction of a violent crime with a minimum one year prison sentence. Bieber and R&B singer Khalil Amir Sharieff were arrested last week in Miami Beach during what police described as an illegal street drag race between a Lamborghini and a Ferrari. theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds       |
| Chinese new year 2014: the year of the horse gallops into Google doodle Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:35 PM PST  Celebrations as the year of the horse begins will last for 15 days and take place in all parts of the Chinese diaspora Google have marked the eve of the Chinese new year with a celebratory doodle featuring a rocking horse and Chinese lanterns. The year of the horse begins on Friday 31 January 2014 as the year of the snake comes to an end. The Chinese new year is also the beginning of the lunar year and begins on a different year every day. Celebrations, which include lion dances, gift exchanges and feasting, last for 15 days and take place in all parts of the Chinese diaspora. In London, the new year will be marked when the London Eye is lit red although the main celebrations will take place on 2 February. On Sunday, a parade will begin at 10am and pass along Charing Cross Road and Shaftesbury Avenue before arriving in Chinatown. Dozens of activities will take place in Trafalgar Square and Chinatown throughout the day. In China, celebrations vary widely but most involve the reunion of families, the cleaning of homes for the new year and a profusion of red decorations and dress. Gifts are often given in red envelopes. The Chinese calendar does not use numbered years but some scholars date it from the third millennium BC. According to different opinions, this year of the horse is 4712, 4711 or 4651. theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds  |
| Asylum seekers on Manus Island should be made aware of legal rights, court told Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:25 PM PST Papua New Guinea supreme court also gives PNG opposition leader green light to challenge asylum agreement with Australia       |
| China's Communist party expels disgraced former mayor of Nanjing Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:22 PM PST Ji Jianye had earlier removed from city mayoralty amid accusations of sweeping corruption       |
| Police investigated Salvation Army paedophile ring allegations in 1990s Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:11 PM PST Strike Force Cori did not find enough evidence to pursue claims that a Salvation Army officer ran a paedophile ring       |
| Tony Abbott cabinet rejects SPC plea for $35m in assistance - video Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:02 PM PST At a news conference in Canberra late on Thursday, the prime minister confirmed the plea for taxpayer support was rebuffed after a three-hour ministerial discussion       |
| Kenyan firm turns flip-flops into art Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:00 PM PST  Artisan manufacturing company turns dirty, discarded flip-flops into animal ornaments and jewellery What do you do with a pair of old flip-flops? Not an idle question as the planet produces billions of pairs of non-biodegradable pairs every year. But now a Kenyan biologist turned businesswoman has at least a partial solution. Julie Church's artisan manufacturing company, Ocean Sole, turned about 50 tonnes of dirty, discarded and damaged flip-flops into animal ornaments and jewellery in 2013. She anticipates doubling that amount this year, and will pay 25p per kilo to whoever brings them in. In Kenya, where plastic flip-flops cost a dollar, beaches are littered not just with broken and battered domestic varieties but with flip-flops from all over the world. Branded flip-flops turn up on Kenya's east-facing shoreline from the Middle East, South Asia and Australasia. Ocean Sole is Church's private sector attempt to educate consumers and producers alike. Sales have tripled in the last year and it is reaching a global market supplying some of the world's most famous zoos and aquariums. "Their shops are usually full of stuff that is so bad for the environment," Church says. The UN estimates that every square mile of ocean hosts nearly 50,000 pieces of plastic. "When someone says they're throwing something away, where is away?" Church says. When plastic is concerned, "away" often equates to ending up in one of the worlds rivers or oceans. Kenyan paleontologist Louise Leakey once warned that the legacy of our era on earth would be a layer of subcutaneous plastic. Ocean Sole's production manager, Idah Marangu, has just overseen the manufacturing of nearly 200 plastic bison for an American bison association. Distinctive bright stripes run the length of the stocky little body, which was a challenge for her team of artisan carvers, who are used to African safari animals. Jonathan Lenato, 30, is one such trained carver who sits shaping a dolphin – his seventh that day. He reveals that he has a hard time explaining to his friends what he does. "It's strange, unique – and everybody wants to see". Conversations inevitably require him to explain why dirty flip-flops are his raw material of choice. "I tell them how they damage marine life. My friends have learned", he says. The next challenge for Ocean Sole is to "up-cycle" dirty old flip-flops to produce shoes from shoes. theguardian.com © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds       |
| Animals take a swim – in pictures Posted: 29 Jan 2014 11:00 PM PST Animals take a swim - in pictures       |
| ANZ launches review after $70m error in home loan charges Posted: 29 Jan 2014 10:34 PM PST Bank to refund 235,000 customers after the discovery of a glitch in interest calculations dating back to 2003       |
| WA Senate count: Labor wants result to stand despite lost ballot papers Posted: 29 Jan 2014 10:30 PM PST ALP lawyer tells high court there was no problem with the first count which elected Louise Pratt and the Pup's Zhenya Wang       |
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