World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk |
- European parliament votes through Brexit deal with big majority
- ‘An example to many’: journalist Maria Ressa wins Unesco press freedom prize
- ‘We’re all in this together’: Dr Fauci says world has failed India as Covid cases surge
- Scientists find way to remove polluting microplastics with bacteria
- Boris Johnson must ‘come clean’ about flat refurb, says Labour
- UK to slash funding for overseas water and sanitation projects by 80%
- UK universities are institutionally racist, says leading vice-chancellor
- New York Post reporter quits citing pressure to write incorrect story about Kamala Harris
- China orders companies to step up monitoring of foreigners in anti-spying push
- Publisher cancels Philip Roth biography after sexual abuse claims against Blake Bailey
- Liverpool to open discussions with fans after European Super League backlash
- Spain to welcome overseas travellers with Covid certificates from June
- Coronavirus live news: India deaths pass 200,000; crisis needs global response – Fauci
- Leading scientists urge UK to share Covid vaccines with poorer nations
- NHS app will be used as Covid ‘vaccine passport’ for foreign travel
- ‘They’re playing chicken:’ inside Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook’s feud
- ‘Bras are a curse!’ How lockdown changed readers’ views of their breasts
- Xernona Clayton: the civil rights legend who befriended a KKK leader – and changed his mind
- ‘My energy comes from optimism’: the hopeful music of spring 2021
- ‘It was so gripping I read it in two sittings’: 11 books to pull you out of a reading rut
- ‘What if Superman was your dad?’ Comics legend Mark Millar on Jupiter’s Legacy
- No stalkers’ register in domestic abuse bill an ‘insult to victims’
- ‘Living nightmare’: family of Australian businessman arrested in Iraq say he was caught in ‘trap’
- Kenya debates lowering age of consent from 18 to 16
- White House announces sweeping $1.8tn plan for childcare and universal preschool
- Brazil begins parliamentary inquiry into Bolsonaro’s Covid response
- Stuart Robert praises Scott Morrison for practising Pentecostal tradition of ‘laying on of hands’
- Dominic Raab is challenged to admit 40% cuts to foreign aid for girls’ education
- UK accused of stranding vulnerable refugees after Brexit
- Biden’s A team: key figures pushing the president’s agenda in his first 100 days
- Q&A: Covid vaccines offered to people 42 and over in England – what happens next?
- First female west coast Marines graduate at Camp Pendleton – in pictures
- Crematoriums in Delhi forced to build makeshift pyres as India's Covid crisis intensifies – video
- Dr Fauci calls for global response as Covid infections surge in India – video
- 'Do not let up now': Biden urges people to get vaccinated – video
- 'I felt hurt and I felt alone': Ursula von der Leyen on 'sofagate' – video
| European parliament votes through Brexit deal with big majority Posted: 28 Apr 2021 01:28 AM PDT UK and EU senior figures hail moment as a 'new chapter' of friendly relations after four years of division The European parliament has given its overwhelming backing to the Brexit trade and security deal, prompting senior figures on both sides to speak of hope for a "new chapter" of friendly relations after four years of division. Five MEPs voted against the deal, with 660 in favour and 32 abstentions, although in an accompanying resolution the chamber described the referendum result of 23 June 2016 as a "historic mistake". Continue reading... |
| ‘An example to many’: journalist Maria Ressa wins Unesco press freedom prize Posted: 27 Apr 2021 06:40 PM PDT Ressa has been subject to sustained campaign of gendered online abuse and has been targeted by Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte The UN's cultural agency has awarded its annual press freedom prize to Philippine journalist Maria Ressa whose reporting has made her a target of her country's judiciary and online hate campaigns. Ressa, a former Asia lead investigative reporter for US network CNN and head of domestic network ABS-CBN News, now manages the news website Rappler whose reporting has attracted the wrath of Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte. Continue reading... |
| ‘We’re all in this together’: Dr Fauci says world has failed India as Covid cases surge Posted: 27 Apr 2021 07:51 PM PDT US's top infectious disease expert lambasts wealthy countries for failing to provide equitable access to coronavirus vaccines
Dr Anthony Fauci, the White House's chief medical adviser, has said countries have failed to unite to provide an adequate global response to prevent the "tragic" coronavirus outbreak from overwhelming India, and singled out wealthier nations for failing to provide equitable access to healthcare around the world. Speaking to Guardian Australia from the US, Fauci said the situation in India had highlighted global inequality. Continue reading... |
| Scientists find way to remove polluting microplastics with bacteria Posted: 28 Apr 2021 12:00 AM PDT Sticky property of bacteria used to create microbe nets that can capture microplastics in water to form a recyclable blob Microbiologists have devised a sustainable way to remove polluting microplastics from the environment – and they want to use bacteria to do the job. Bacteria naturally tend to group together and stick to surfaces, and this creates an adhesive substance called "biofilm" – we see it every morning when brushing our teeth and getting rid of dental plaque, for example. Researchers at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) want to use this sticky bacteria property and create tape-like microbe nets that can capture microplastics in polluted water to form an easily disposable and recyclable blob. Continue reading... |
| Boris Johnson must ‘come clean’ about flat refurb, says Labour Posted: 28 Apr 2021 02:20 AM PDT Call comes as minister refuses to deny reports work at No 11 flat was originally funded by Tory donors Allegations of Conservative cronyism and sleaze must be cleaned up, the shadow foreign secretary has said, as a government minister repeatedly refused to deny reports the prime minister's flat refurbishments were originally funded by Tory party donors. Lisa Nandy renewed Labour's attack on its political opponents as questions surrounding Boris Johnson's financial affairs – and, therefore, his potential vulnerability to undue influence – refused to dissipate on Wednesday. Continue reading... |
| UK to slash funding for overseas water and sanitation projects by 80% Posted: 28 Apr 2021 02:17 AM PDT Scale of aid cut emerges in leaked FCDO memo, prompting experts to describe it as 'a national shame' The UK is to slash funding for lifesaving water, sanitation and hygiene projects in developing nations by more than 80%, according to a leaked memo. The cuts have been described as "savage", "incredible" and "a national shame" by experts highlighting that sanitation and handwashing is a key line of defence during the coronavirus pandemic. The reduction to the bilateral aid budget was revealed as details emerged of cuts in the foreign aid budget. Continue reading... |
| UK universities are institutionally racist, says leading vice-chancellor Posted: 28 Apr 2021 12:00 AM PDT Prof David Richardson cites systemic issues that disproportionately affect black and minority ethnic students UK universities are institutionally racist and must do more to support students of colour, a leading vice-chancellor has said. Prof David Richardson, chair of Universities UK's advisory group on stamping out racial harassment on campuses and vice-chancellor of University of East Anglia, said there was evidence of systemic issues that disproportionally affect students from black and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. Continue reading... |
| New York Post reporter quits citing pressure to write incorrect story about Kamala Harris Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:09 PM PDT Laura Italiano claimed she was forced to write a report about migrant children being given a copy of the VP's book as part of a welcome kit A reporter at Rupert Murdoch's New York tabloid has resigned after she claimed she was forced to write an incorrect story about migrants and Kamala Harris. The New York Post published a story on 23 April headlined "Kam on in", which claimed that migrant children were being given a copy of the vice-president's 2019 book, Superheroes Are Everywhere, as part of a welcome kit in Los Angeles. Continue reading... |
| China orders companies to step up monitoring of foreigners in anti-spying push Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:57 PM PDT State security will provide 'guidance' to organisations deemed to have anti-espionage responsibility as hostilities with western governments deepen Chinese social groups, enterprises and public entities will have increased responsibility to combat foreign espionage under new regulations issued by the country's ministry of state security. The regulations, which were released and took effect on Monday, come amid deepening hostilities between China and some western governments, including over the detention of foreigners accused of national security crimes. Continue reading... |
| Publisher cancels Philip Roth biography after sexual abuse claims against Blake Bailey Posted: 27 Apr 2021 08:29 PM PDT WW Norton has pledged to donate the amount of Bailey's book advance to organisations that fight against sexual assault The publisher of a highly anticipated and widely discussed biography of Philip Roth is pulling the book and cutting ties with author Blake Bailey, who faces multiple allegations of sexual harassment and assault. WW Norton and Company, which previously released Bailey's 2014 memoir The Splendid Things We Planned, said on Tuesday it was "permanently putting out of print our editions of Philip Roth: The Biography and The Splendid Things We Planned … Mr Bailey will be free to seek publication elsewhere if he chooses." Continue reading... |
| Liverpool to open discussions with fans after European Super League backlash Posted: 27 Apr 2021 03:28 PM PDT
Liverpool have agreed to open discussions with fans following the toxic backlash from their involvement in the controversial European Super League. Fenway Sports Group, the club's owner, was among the main drivers of the project which collapsed within 48 hours of plans being launched after outcry from all corners of the game with fans protesting outside Premier League matches to voice their opposition. Continue reading... |
| Spain to welcome overseas travellers with Covid certificates from June Posted: 27 Apr 2021 03:46 PM PDT Digital health certificates could show whether tourists have been vaccinated, tested negative or recovered from the virus Spain aims to reopen to overseas holidaymakers from June under the Covid digital health certificate scheme, the country's secretary of state for tourism has said. Fernando Valdés told the World Travel & Tourism Council summit in Mexico on Tuesday that the programme – under which tourists could show they have been vaccinated, tested negative or recently recovered from the virus - would prove "fundamental to offering travellers certainty". Continue reading... |
| Coronavirus live news: India deaths pass 200,000; crisis needs global response – Fauci Posted: 28 Apr 2021 02:25 AM PDT India hits another global record; US expert says richer countries must do more to help fight crisis in India
The EU justice commissioner Didier Reynders has warned that countries introducing their own Covid vaccination certificates would be left with a dangerous myriad of disjointed solutions if the bloc fails to build a joint system. Gabriela Baczynska reports for Reuters on wrangles within the EU. It is pushing to launch a shared digital health pass to allow tourists to travel freely this summer, but discussions are not yet settled on costs, data and privacy issues, as well as technical and medical aspects of the new system, among others.
A quick snap from Reuters here that Mexico will produce Russia's Sputnik V vaccine domestically, its foreign minister said on a visit to Moscow, in a TV interview shared on Twitter by the fund marketing the vaccine. Mexico's top diplomat had travelled to Moscow on Sunday amid talks to hammer out plans for Mexico to bottle the Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine domestically after delays in shipments. |
| Leading scientists urge UK to share Covid vaccines with poorer nations Posted: 27 Apr 2021 11:00 PM PDT Donating doses to countries such as India would tackle soaring death toll and curb new variants, experts say
Leading scientists are urging the UK to share the Covid vaccines it has bought with India and other nations, to tackle the soaring death toll and reduce the spread of the virus and new variants around the world. Sir Jeremy Farrar, the director of the Wellcome Trust, said rich countries including the UK that have bought up most of the vaccine supply "urgently need to start sharing these doses with the rest of the world, alongside national rollouts in their own countries, and through the Covax programme. And they must set out a timetable for how these donations will be increased as they vaccinate more of their populations domestically." Continue reading... |
| NHS app will be used as Covid ‘vaccine passport’ for foreign travel Posted: 28 Apr 2021 01:11 AM PDT Grant Shapps says work has started on app many people already use to book GP appointments International travellers will be asked to demonstrate their Covid vaccination and testing status using the NHS smartphone app, the UK government has confirmed, as the transport secretary promised to release a list of possible holiday destinations within a fortnight. Grant Shapps said work had started on developing the app many people use to book appointments with their GPs so that it can show whether they have been vaccinated and tested for the virus. Continue reading... |
| ‘They’re playing chicken:’ inside Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook’s feud Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:00 PM PDT Tensions between Facebook and Apple have been growing, but is it just an attempt to get ahead of US antitrust regulators? A longstanding feud between Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook could come to a head this week, as a highly-anticipated Apple operating system update will for the first time allow users to opt out of cross-platform tracking. Tensions between Facebook and Apple have been growing for some time, but the new operating system threatens to kneecap Facebook's business model, and has turned up the heat, said Ari Lightman, a professor of digital media and marketing at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College. Continue reading... |
| ‘Bras are a curse!’ How lockdown changed readers’ views of their breasts Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:00 PM PDT A year since the pandemic started, women's bodies and habits have changed. Here they discuss underwiring, sleep underwear, and how going bra-free helps with polymastia I was a teen in the 70s and morphed into a feminist. I find bras hideously uncomfortable; I only started wearing one in 2018 when I went back to work and the lack of confidence that often besieges women over 60 made me too self-conscious to face the public bra-free. Lockdown has released me from the bra, and the job, and I doubt I'll wear one again. Jackie, writer, Midlands Continue reading... |
| Xernona Clayton: the civil rights legend who befriended a KKK leader – and changed his mind Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:00 PM PDT An extraordinary activist, she fought for integrated hospitals, helped organise the March on Washington and became the first Black TV presenter in the south The words of Xernona Clayton's friend and mentor Martin Luther King Jr still ring in her ears, she says, not least his dictum that "if you can change a man's heart, you can regulate his behaviour". One incident illustrates how successful this philosophy can be. It was 1968 and Clayton was in Atlanta, Georgia, leading the Model Cities Program, a federal initiative to help reduce urban poverty. Also on the programme was a man named Calvin Craig, who was the Georgia "grand dragon" of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). At this time, the KKK was still a prominent entity, openly engaged in cross-burnings, racist violence and intimidation, such as protesting outside white-owned restaurants in their robes to discourage Black people from entering. Continue reading... |
| ‘My energy comes from optimism’: the hopeful music of spring 2021 Posted: 28 Apr 2021 02:00 AM PDT In part two of our series on the musicians foregrounding hope in their songs, Esperanza Spalding, Rostam and more discuss the importance of positivity I started writing songs after my father died when I was 13. I used music to release the sadness that was flooding my heart and held on to my guitar like it was a float in an ocean. As an artist, I've always wanted to provoke chills, because to me that means I've connected with the spirit that's giving me the music. Continue reading... |
| ‘It was so gripping I read it in two sittings’: 11 books to pull you out of a reading rut Posted: 28 Apr 2021 02:00 AM PDT For many people, reading has been difficult this last year - but a breakthrough is always possible. Guardian readers describe the books that drew them in 'Reading about the hope in others' hopeless lives kept me going' |
| ‘What if Superman was your dad?’ Comics legend Mark Millar on Jupiter’s Legacy Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:00 PM PDT The Kick-Ass and Kingsman creator is back with a TV series about a warring super-powered family. The Scot reveals how Carrie Fisher helped inspire it – and why he's delighted Covid scuppered his move to Hollywood Mark Millar is remembering one of the best bits of advice he ever came across, something he read as a teenager that was said by Alan Moore, the legendary creator of such milestones in comics as Watchmen and V for Vendetta. "Never believe that you're a genius," quotes Millar, himself the creator of such revered titles as Kick-Ass and Kingsman, "and also never believe you're rubbish." Speaking by Zoom from the office he keeps in his Glasgow home, Millar rounds this off with the words: "You've just got to do your best and enjoy it." It's a healthy rule to live by, given the sometimes toxic fandom that surrounds the comics world. Millar, whose only dream as a five-year-old was to write superhero adventures, has experienced this vitriol a fair few times. That's no surprise, considering the Scot's habit of chewing up and spitting out the expectations of the genre. Continue reading... |
| No stalkers’ register in domestic abuse bill an ‘insult to victims’ Posted: 28 Apr 2021 01:34 AM PDT Government faces criticism after cross-party peers abandon push to create automatic register Ministers have been accused of misleading and insulting victims after a cross-party group of peers abandoned a push to create an automatic register of dangerous domestic abusers and stalkers. The domestic abuse bill is expected to receive royal assent this week, four years after it was announced in the Queen's speech. But it will not include a specific stalkers' register, despite briefings from the government after the death of Sarah Everard that it was likely to support such a measure. Continue reading... |
| ‘Living nightmare’: family of Australian businessman arrested in Iraq say he was caught in ‘trap’ Posted: 27 Apr 2021 08:01 PM PDT Family of Robert Pether say they don't know what he was charged with or his whereabouts and are frustrated by Australia's slow and secretive response The family of an Australian businessman arrested in Iraq during a "trap" laid by the country's central bank say they are enduring a "living nightmare" and are frustrated by Australia's slow and secretive response. Mechanical engineer Robert Pether, 46, was arrested in Baghdad roughly three weeks ago, after travelling to Iraq from Dubai to attempt to restart work on the construction of a new headquarters for the Central Bank of Iraq. Continue reading... |
| Kenya debates lowering age of consent from 18 to 16 Posted: 27 Apr 2021 11:15 PM PDT While some point to the number of teenage boys jailed for consensual sex, others fear gender equality gains could be lost Kenya's judges and child welfare organisations are embroiled in a fresh debate on whether to lower the age of consent. Some members of the judiciary believe the age of consent should be lowered from 18 to 16 for heterosexual acts (gay sex is criminalised at any age, punishable by up to 14 years in prison) because boys and girls have "reached the age of discretion and are able to make intelligent and informed decisions about their lives and their bodies". Continue reading... |
| White House announces sweeping $1.8tn plan for childcare and universal preschool Posted: 28 Apr 2021 02:00 AM PDT American Families Plan, which includes tuition-free community college, aims to reshape the economy's social infrastructure The White House has introduced a sweeping $1.8tn plan that would invest billions in a national childcare program, universal preschool, tuition-free community college, health insurance subsidies and tax cuts for low- and middle-income workers. The American Families Plan, unveiled ahead of the president's address to Congress, reflects many of Joe Biden's campaign promises, and builds on his American Rescue Plan, which was the biggest expansion of the welfare state in decades. While the Rescue Plan was designed to bail the nation out of the depths of the coronavirus crisis – funding the $1,400 cheques that were sent to most Americans, and efforts to ramp up Covid-19 vaccinations – the plan unveiled on Wednesday aims to reshape the economy's social infrastructure. Continue reading... |
| Brazil begins parliamentary inquiry into Bolsonaro’s Covid response Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:20 AM PDT Opponents hope investigation will torpedo chances of re-election for far-right president Brazil's congress has launched a parliamentary inquiry into what critics call Jair Bolsonaro's disastrous and potentially criminal response to a Covid pandemic that has killed nearly 400,000 Brazilians. The politically charged investigation, which rivals of Brazil's far-right president hope will torpedo his chances of re-election, will be conducted by 11 of the country's 81 senators, including several of Bolsonaro's fiercest opponents. Continue reading... |
| Stuart Robert praises Scott Morrison for practising Pentecostal tradition of ‘laying on of hands’ Posted: 28 Apr 2021 01:46 AM PDT Employment minister also attended the Christian conference where the prime minister revealed he uses the Pentecostal tradition while working The employment minister, Stuart Robert, has sought to explain the Pentecostal prayer of the "laying on of hands" after prime minister Scott Morrison revealed he had practised the tradition in visits to disaster relief centres. Robert, who attended the conference of Australian Christian Churches on the Gold Coast last week, is a fellow Pentecostal Christian who Morrison acknowledged as "brother Stuie" and a member of his "band of Christian believers" in Canberra when addressing the 2,000-strong audience. Continue reading... |
| Dominic Raab is challenged to admit 40% cuts to foreign aid for girls’ education Posted: 27 Apr 2021 11:40 AM PDT Former minister Lady Sugg also accuses Foreign Office of cutting key sexual health programmes Lady Sugg, a former Foreign Office minister, has challenged her onetime boss Dominic Raab to admit he is cutting the UK aid budget for girls' education by more than 40% as the foreign secretary also suggested UK bilateral aid to Africa would be reduced to a third of what it was two years ago. She also claimed the government was planning to close its flagship Women's Integrated Sexual Health programme and impose cuts of about 70-80% to spending on the Reproductive Health Supplies Coalition. Continue reading... |
| UK accused of stranding vulnerable refugees after Brexit Posted: 27 Apr 2021 04:25 AM PDT Exclusive: Torture survivors and lone children stuck in Greece and Italy after Home Office 'deliberately' ends cooperation on family reunions The Home Office has been accused of failing to reunite vulnerable refugees who have the right to join family in the UK under EU law, leaving lone children and torture survivors stranded. The government faced widespread criticism when it announced that family reunion law would no longer apply after the UK left the EU, and it promised that cases under way on that date would be allowed to proceed. Continue reading... |
| Biden’s A team: key figures pushing the president’s agenda in his first 100 days Posted: 27 Apr 2021 11:00 PM PDT Seven officials, from Kamala Harris, to cabinet secretaries, to close advisers, have been crucial for the new government's impact Related: Biden's 100 days: bold action and broad vision amid grief and turmoil Joe Biden's first 100 days in office consisted largely of his administration's rush to reverse Donald Trump's approach to the coronavirus pandemic. Much of the national spotlight has fallen on how the new US president has addressed the crisis or which aides have been closely involved in coordinating the federal government's responses. Continue reading... |
| Q&A: Covid vaccines offered to people 42 and over in England – what happens next? Posted: 27 Apr 2021 02:56 AM PDT Younger people invited to get jab at more than 1,600 sites across country The Covid-19 vaccine rollout has been extended in England for the second time in two days. Adults aged 42 and over are now able to book their jab. Here are your questions answered as the NHS in England takes another step forward in the biggest vaccination programme in its history. Continue reading... |
| First female west coast Marines graduate at Camp Pendleton – in pictures Posted: 27 Apr 2021 11:00 PM PDT After Congress ordered the US Marine Corps to fully integrate women into its west coast training battalions, the first 53 female recruits have become Marines Continue reading... |
| Crematoriums in Delhi forced to build makeshift pyres as India's Covid crisis intensifies – video Posted: 27 Apr 2021 10:42 PM PDT Crematoriums in Delhi have been forced to build makeshift funeral pyres on spare patches of land after being inundated by bodies from the surging Covid-19 crisis sweeping India. Crematoriums across the city have been building new platforms after ambulances carrying bodies and grieving families were forced to wait for hours for a funeral pyre. The country recorded 300,000 new Covid cases on Tuesday and 2,771 new deaths. However, health experts believe the official toll to be far higher Continue reading... |
| Dr Fauci calls for global response as Covid infections surge in India – video Posted: 27 Apr 2021 07:52 PM PDT Dr Anthony Fauci, the White House's chief medical adviser, has said countries have failed to unite to provide an adequate global response to prevent the "tragic" coronavirus outbreak from overwhelming India. He singled out wealthier nations for failing to provide equitable access to healthcare around the world. "We're all in this together. It's an interconnected world. And there are responsibilities that countries have to each other, particularly if you're a wealthy country and you're dealing with countries that don't have the resources or capabilities that you have," he said Continue reading... |
| 'Do not let up now': Biden urges people to get vaccinated – video Posted: 27 Apr 2021 01:40 PM PDT US president Joe Biden has said that getting vaccinated is a 'patriotic duty' for everyone in the US and he urged people to continue efforts to bring the pandemic under control. 'Do not let up now, keep following the guidance and go get vaccinated now,' he said. Biden also spoke about the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relaxing its guidelines on mask-wearing for Americans. He said it was now possible for vaccinated Americans to go to the park for a picnic without having to mask up Continue reading... |
| 'I felt hurt and I felt alone': Ursula von der Leyen on 'sofagate' – video Posted: 27 Apr 2021 03:59 AM PDT The European commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Monday that she felt hurt and alone during a meeting with Turkey's president earlier this month and that she was treated poorly simply because she is a woman. She said that fortunately cameras were present at the meeting and that the images made headlines around the world, but she said that many women's experiences went unrecorded. Continue reading... |
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