The Guardian

The proposed changes, which the government claims are needed to combat AI-generated requests, would also reduce what documents can be releasedGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Albanese government’s proposal to introduce fees for freedom of information requests and reduce what documents can be released has been widely slammed by opposition and crossbench senators as “undemocratic” and evidence of Labor’s “addiction to secrecy”.The Labor-chaired Senate inquiry released its report on Wednesday recommending the bill be passed but the Coalition, the Greens, and senators David Pocock and Jacqui Lambie all submitted their own reports condemning the plans.

Government also reveals it spent nearly $100,000 sending Annika Wells and two others to the US during the UN General Assembly Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Future Fund spent $20,000 to send the CEO’s then-executive assistant on a scoping trip to assess hotels in the US and negotiate hotel rates, Senate estimates has been told.It comes as the government is also under fire for charging taxpayers nearly $100,000 to send the communications minister, Anika Wells, her staff member and a department official to the US during

Former political staffer was seeking to overturn 2024 ruling by federal court judge which found on the balance of probabilities he raped colleague Brittany Higgins Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastBruce Lehrmann has lost his appeal against a defamation judgment which found he raped Brittany Higgins.But the full bench of the federal court went further than the defamation trial judge, arguing federal court judge Michael Lee should have found Lehrmann knew Higgins did not consent to sexual intercourse. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/dec/03/bruce-lehrmann-appeal-defamation-case-network-ten-lisa-wilkinson-ntwnfb Author : Amanda

Christie’s says the sale price is the highest for a Fabergé, beating a £8.9m auction in 2007A vintage jewel-studded Fabergé egg that belonged to the mother of Russia’s last emperor has been sold for a record £22.9m in London.The Winter egg was commissioned in 1913 by Emperor Nicholas II as an Easter gift for his mother, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, and is described as one of the most lavish of Fabergé’s imperial creations. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/dec/02/faberge-egg-mother-russia-tsar-23m Author : Serena Richards Publish date : 2025-12-02 23:37:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.

Meanwhile Guardian Australia report on Roblox gaming platform raised at Senate estimates. Follow today’s news liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMore on the eSafety commissioner’s letter to a US lawmakerJulie Inman Grant told senators that Australians expect companies providing services into Australia to abide by Australian laws. She also pointed out that since the Wakeley church stabbing case that X challenged in the court and eSafety ended up dropping, the agency had accepted geo-blocking Australian users from seeing the posts as compliance with Australian law.So the conclusion is nothing that we do here with the

Approval of legislation to ban Pfas would be major win for advocates pushing for safer gear alternatives across USA new bill proposed in the New York city council would ban the use of toxic Pfas “forever chemicals” in protective gear worn by the city’s 11,000 firefighters.The New York fire department is the nation’s largest firefighting force, and approval of the legislation would mark a major win for advocates who are pushing for safer “turnout gear” alternatives across the US. Massachusetts and Connecticut last year became the first states to ban the use of Pfas in turnout gear, and Illinois enacted

Belgian police raid EU foreign service HQ and College of Europe and arrest Federica Mogherini and two othersBelgian police have arrested three people including the EU’s former top diplomat Federica Mogherini and raided the headquarters of the EU foreign service and the elite College of Europe as part of an investigation into suspected fraud.The three were detained “as part of a probe into suspected fraud related to EU-funded training for junior diplomats”, the European public prosecutor’s office said in a statement, without naming individuals. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/02/former-eu-top-diplomat-federica-mogherini-arrest-fraud-investigation Author : Jennifer Rankin in Brussels Publish date : 2025-12-02

Justice secretary expected to pull back from plans to reserve jury trials from only the most serious casesThe former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner will lay an amendment on Wednesday to speed up the workers rights’ bill, after “considerable anger” that unelected Lords forced the watering down of day-one rights, Jessica Elgot and Pippa Crerar report.Twelve more prisoners have been mistakenly freed in the past month and two are still at large, David Lammy has said.I’m not going to give details of those cases, because these are operational decisions made by the police, and you’ll understand if they’re about to

Defence secretary gave order for strikes but did not say to ‘kill everybody’, according to White House spokespersonA congressional special election in Tennessee has become the latest battleground for Democrats and Republicans as the contest is seen as a critical bellwether heading into the all important midterms next November.Historically, Tennessee’s seventh congressional district is reliably conservative, with Republicans having controlled it for four decades. Donald Trump won there by 22 percentage points in last year’s presidential election but this special election looks like it is going to be much tighter with a strong Democratic candidate in the race. Continue reading...

Independent inquiry into fire and media questions to leader would not happen in mainland China, but crackdown on dissent has begunAs Hong Kong mourns the victims of its worst fire in decades, the response to the disaster reveals the ways in which the semi-autonomous city retains differences from mainland China – and how some of those differences are being eroded.Hong Kong’s leader, John Lee, announced on Tuesday the creation of an “independent committee” to investigate the blaze, which killed 151 people at the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex in Hong Kong’s New Territories. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/news/2025/dec/02/hong-kong-fire-response-contrast-mainland-china Author

Talks come after Witkoff led US discussions with Ukraine at weekend amid European concerns that Kyiv will be pressured to make concessions to MoscowUS-Russia talks may pile pressure on Kyiv to make concessions, says EU foreign policy chief See all our Ukraine war coverageThe Kremlin has said Vladimir Putin will meet Steve Witkoff for their talks on Tuesday afternoon. It’s now approaching 9.10am local time in Moscow.Their meeting would take “in the second half of the day”, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, while refusing to be drawn on Moscow’s red lines, saying megaphone diplomacy was not helpful.Russian military commanders told

Sanae Takaichi’s not-so-catchy remarks about everyone working like a horse did not go down well in a country notorious for its demanding work cultureIt is not, perhaps, a word many people in Japan will want to hear as they prepare for the bonenkai office party season and some well-earned time off over the new year.But the promise made by Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, that she would “work, work, work, work, and work” on behalf of her country has clearly struck a chord. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/02/japan-pm-sanae-takaichi-work-win-catchphrase-of-year Author : Justin McCurry in Tokyo Publish date : 2025-12-02

Amar Subramanya will replace John Giannandrea after firm has struggled to catch up with AI rollouts by competitorsApple’s head of artificial intelligence, John Giannandrea, is stepping down from the company. The move comes as the Silicon Valley giant has lagged behind its competitors in rolling out generative AI features, in particular its voice assistant Siri. Apple made the announcement on Monday, thanking Giannandrea for his seven-year tenure at the company.Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, said his fellow executive helped the company “in building and advancing our AI work” and allowing Apple to “continue to innovate”. Giannandrea will be replaced by longtime

Karoline Leavitt defends second strike on alleged drug-smuggling boat; Trump says he believes Pete Hegseth’s statement ‘100%’ that defense secretary didn’t ordered the attack Trump reportedly gave Maduro ultimatum to relinquish power in VenezuelaThe president has picked up where he left off before Thanksgiving, when it comes to his anger at the six Democratic lawmakers who took part in a video urging service members to “refuse illegal orders”.A reminder, that Trump initially went on a Truth Social tirade, accusing the members of Congress (all of whom are veterans or former intelligence officials) of sedition, adding that their actions are “punishable

The Nationals MP says outer suburban seats are vulnerable to populist challenge. Follow today’s news liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastGood morning, and happy Tuesday. Another day closer to Christmas. Nick Visser here to take over the blog. Let’s get to it.BoM blames APS caps, Covid for website costsWe needed to make sure it is secure and stable and can draw in the huge amounts of data gathered from our observing network and weather models as we handle millions of visits each day. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2025/dec/02/australia-news-live-one-nation-liberal-coalition-barnaby-joyce-pauline-hanson-budget-estimates-labor-ai-plan-ntwnfb Author : Guardian Staff Publish date

Richard Hughes departs after investigation into how official forecaster accidentally published budget 40 minutes earlyRichard Hughes, the chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility, has quit after the findings of an urgent inquiry by the watchdog into how it inadvertently published Rachel Reeves’s budget 40 minutes early.Hughes wrote to the chancellor and Meg Hillier, the Labour chair of the Treasury select committee, on Monday saying he took “full responsibility the shortcomings identified in this report”. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/dec/01/obr-chair-inquiry-early-release-rachel-reeves-budget-richard-hughes Author : Peter Walkerand Kiran Stacey Publish date : 2025-12-01 17:39:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked

Michael Bohacek, state senator whose child has Down syndrome, says US president’s ‘choices of words have consequences’A Republican Indiana lawmaker whose child has Down syndrome has promised to oppose efforts to redraw the state’s congressional map to favor his party after Donald Trump aimed a slur for people with intellectual disabilities at a political opponent.Michael Bohacek, a member of Indiana’s state senate, wrote Friday on Facebook that he has been “an unapologetic advocate for people with intellectual disabilities” since one of his daughters was born with Down. Referring to how the president – his fellow Republican – used an ableist

Ukrainian president embarks on busy week of diplomacy as US ups pressure to end warUK prime minister Keir Starmer is delivering a major economy speech this morning.You can follow all the key lines on our UK live blog with my colleague Andrew Sparrow, but there’s a particular line of argument that will no doubt reasonate in Europe, too.“Let me be crystal clear, there is no credible economic vision for Britain that does not position us as an open, trading economy.So we must all now confront the reality that the Brexit deal we have significantly hurt our economy and so for

Hundreds remain missing in Indonesia and Sri Lanka as rescue efforts continue after Cyclone DitwahHow cyclones and monsoon rains combined to devastate parts of Asia – visual guideThe floods in Thailand have killed more than 170 people across eight southern provinces. The southern Songkhla province has reported the most deaths.The flooding, which began just over a week ago, has caused severe disruptions, leaving thousands of people stranded, rendering streets impassable and submerging low-rise buildings and vehicles. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/dec/01/death-toll-floods-indonesia-sri-lanka-malaysia-thailand-latest-updates-news-live Author : Yohannes Lowe Publish date : 2025-12-01 10:02:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.

Siddiq, who serves as an MP for Hampstead and Highgate in London, has denied the allegationsWhat led to Bangladesh trial of Tulip Siddiq in her absence?A court in Bangladesh has sentenced the British MP Tulip Siddiq to two years in jail after a judge ruled she was complicit in corrupt land deals with her aunt, the country’s deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina.In a ruling on Monday, a judge found Siddiq, the Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate, guilty of misusing her “special influence” as a British politician to coerce Hasina into giving valuable pieces of land to her mother, brother

Ukraine will top agenda, but meeting comes as positive sentiment towards Germany in Poland hits near record lowsWhen the Polish and German governments meet on Monday for annual political talks in Berlin – the first since Friedrich Merz became chancellor – the headlines are likely to be dominated by Ukraine.Amid growing US pressure for a peace deal with Russia, Warsaw and Berlin will want to send a signal of support for Kyiv and of unity between central Europe’s largest – and militarily strongest – countries. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/01/polish-german-leaders-meet-tensions-ukraine Author : Jakub Krupa Publish date : 2025-12-01 05:00:00

Trump remained tight-lipped on details of call with Venezuelan president as tensions rise between countriesDonald Trump confirmed on Sunday that he had spoken with Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, but he did not provide details on what the two leaders discussed.“I don’t want to comment on it. The answer is yes,” the US president said when asked if he had spoken with Maduro. He was speaking to reporters onboard Air Force One. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/30/trump-nicolas-maduro-venezuela-call Author : Reuters Publish date : 2025-12-01 00:16:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.

President plans to honor Sarah Beckstrom, who was fatally shot, as well as Andrew Wolfe, who is in critical conditionDonald Trump said on Sunday that he invited the family of a national guard member fatally shot last week to the White House, adding that he spoke to her parents and they were “devastated”.US army specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, was killed in a shooting on Wednesday in Washington DC. Her fellow service member, US air force staff Sgt Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains hospitalized in critical condition. Vigils across West Virginia have taken place in their memory. Continue reading... Source link :

Greens senator Steph Hodgins-May says gas corporations have created a “crisis” that Australian households have had to pay for. Follow today’s news liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSixteen protesters with Rising Tide have locked themselves to coal equipment in Newcastle this morning.Rising Tide said eight people have locked on to two coal loaders and another eight on to conveyor belts on the final day of the People’s Blockade, an annual climate protest that has seen thousands gather to protest against the use of fossil fuels.It’s time that our government starts supporting coal workers by investing

Liverpool gathering lays bare bitter divisions within new party founded by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah SultanaThe new leftwing party founded by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana will be called Your Party after a vote by members, but its weekend conference laid bare bitter divisions.Some 37.06% of members voted for the provisional name of “Your Party”, adopted when it was launched earlier this year, to become permanent. The votes for others on the shortlist were 25.23% to be called “For The Many”, 25.23% for “Popular Alliance” and 14.19% for “Our Party”. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/nov/30/your-party-members-vote-to-make-name-permanent-at-tense-first-conference Author : Ben Quinn