The Guardian

Opposition leader says more competition needed as growing numbers unable to afford home and car insuranceFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe opposition leader, Peter Dutton, says the Coalition could seek to break up insurance companies found to be gouging policyholders and more competition is needed in the sector.In an interview with Sky News on Sunday, Dutton said the Coalition’s divestiture policy – which threatens to carve apart big supermarkets and hardware chains as a “last resort” to combat price rip-offs – could also be applied to big

Three non-citizens with criminal histories taken into immigration detention in preparation for removal from Australia, home affairs minister saysFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThree members of the NZYQ cohort of non-citizens, including a convicted murderer, will be resettled in Nauru after the Albanese government struck a deal for an undisclosed sum.The trio, who were among those released into the community in Australia after a landmark 2023 high court decision, were placed into immigration detention in preparation for their removal from Australia after being granted 30-year resettlement visas

Follow all today’s headlines liveAnalysis: With a cost-of-living election to fight, Dutton strikes a delicate balance on the ‘trans debate’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastOn the upcoming election, Spender says “we need to see how this plays out” and that “it is very unclear exactly what is going to look like in the end.”On statements from Peter Dutton this morning that the Independents should back him in any minority government:Yes, I’m sure that is what he thinks and it will depend on the numbers and the shape of the crossbench and what people are willing

Courts are currently backlogged with 3.7m cases as US president demands more deportationsThe Trump administration fired 20 immigration judges without explanation, a union official said on Saturday amid sweeping moves to shrink the size of the federal government.On Friday, 13 judges who had yet to be sworn in and five assistant chief immigration judges were dismissed without notice, said Matthew Biggs, president of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, which represents federal workers. Two other judges were fired under similar circumstances in the last week. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/15/trump-administration-fires-immigration-judges Author : Associated Press Publish date :

The suspect was detained in the city of Villach after a 14-year-old boy diedA 14-year-old boy has died and four other people have been injured in a knife attack in southern Austria on Saturday, according to police, who said they had arrested a 23-year-old suspect.The suspect was detained in the city of Villach, where the attack took place, police said on Saturday. He is a Syrian national with legal residence in Austria, they said. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/15/teenage-boy-dies-and-four-injured-in-knife-attack-in-austria Author : Associated Press Publish date : 2025-02-15 20:31:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.

Wildfire-management groups say Trump’s latest push to trim government could impede firefighting effortsThe US Forest Service is firing about 3,400 recent hires while the National Park Service is terminating about 1,000 workers under Donald Trump’s push to cut federal spending and bureaucracy, according to a report on Friday.The terminations target employees who are in their probationary employment period (which includes anyone hired less than a year ago), according to Reuters, and will affect sites such as the Appalachian trail, Yellowstone, the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr and the Sequoia national forest. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/15/us-forest-service-national-park-service-layoffs Author :

As her £9.9bn of headroom evaporates, chancellor will have to raise taxes, cut spending or break ‘iron-clad’ fiscal rulesWhen Rachel Reeves stood up in the House of Commons on budget day on 30 October as this country’s first woman chancellor, she was brimming with pride: “To girls and young women everywhere, I say: Let there be no ceiling on your ambition, your hopes and your dreams.”Four months on, however, there are few women or men, young or old, at Westminster, who would envy Reeves’s lot in charge of the country’s finances. The bind she finds herself in is more the

The district of Plaka dates to neolithic times but a new wave of development is luring more tourists – and local people are fighting backIn a neoclassical building in Athens on the oldest street of one of the oldest neighbourhoods in the western world, residents gathered last week with much on the minds.Items on the agenda included noise pollution, congestion and other modern afflictions, but there was one that was met with instant relief: Haris Doukas, the city’s mayor, had decided to set up a taskforce to save Plaka, the ancient quarter at the heart of the capital’s historic centre.

Keith Kellogg tells countries to offer concrete solutions and boost spending instead of complaining about talks roleEurope will be consulted – but ultimately excluded – from the planned peace talks between Russia, the US and Ukraine, Donald Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine has revealed.Asked if Europe would be present at the planned talks, Keith Kellogg said he was from “the school of realism, and that is not going to happen”. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/15/europe-will-not-take-part-in-us-russia-talks-ukraine-kellogg Author : Patrick Wintour in Munich Publish date : 2025-02-15 15:22:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.

Police search for member currently on the lam from charges linked to killings across the countryThe killing of US border patrol agent David Maland near the Canadian border in January and five other homicides in Vermont, Pennsylvania and California have been tied to a cultlike group.Interviews and online postings reveal how young computer scientists described by those who know them as highly intelligent appear to have become increasingly violent. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/15/zizian-group-killings Author : Associated Press Publish date : 2025-02-15 14:28:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.

David Butler survived being drugged and robbed in 2021 by Danette Colbert, now tied to death of Adan ManzanoA man who survived being drugged and robbed of more than $134,000 by a woman linked to the death of a television sports journalist covering the recent Super Bowl in New Orleans said he wants “to see her go to jail for as long as she can” after she was let off with probation in his case.David Butler, 52, also said he had tried to warn both the public and the courthouse that handled his case against Danette Colbert that she might

Rodent infestation and out-of-date food was found across government canteens and cafes in recent inspectionsWhitehall’s restaurants and bars have often been the scene of a grubby deal or plot in the occasionally dirty business of politics. But, according to a series of health inspections, they have needed to clean up their acts in more ways than one.Instances of mouse-nibbled snacks, repeated discoveries of their droppings, mouldy veg and other serious hygiene issues have been raised in recent years in inspections of canteens, cafes and restaurants across Westminster, the Observer can reveal. In one case, the inspector warned that eating in

Release comes after Hamas and Israel had traded accusations over ceasefire violations•​ Middle East crisis – live updatesGaza militants have released three Israeli hostages in exchange for 369 Palestinians in Israeli custody, the sixth swap in a truce that came close to collapsing this week.Israel and Hamas have traded accusations of violating the 19 January ceasefire, with the Palestinian group saying it would pause releases and Israel threatening the resumption of war in the Gaza Strip. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/15/israeli-hostages-palestinian-prisoners-to-be-released-after-week-of-uncertainty-over-gaza-ceasefire Author : Guardian staff and agency Publish date : 2025-02-15 07:47:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the

Ukrainian president says Putin only seeking ceasefire to lift sanctions and regroup as he prepares to address Munich security conferenceThe US vice-president and the Ukrainian president were locked in bilateral discussions at the Munich Security Conference on Friday as part of Donald Trump’s push for a negotiated peace agreement to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Zelenskyy referred to it as a “good conversation” and both spoke of more talks to come. You can see our video report on the story here: Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/feb/15/russia-ukraine-war-munich-security-conference-jd-vance-zelenskyy-putin-europe-latest-news-updates Author : Amy Sedghi Publish date : 2025-02-15 09:02:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs

Three Israeli hostages and 369 Palestinian prisoners to be freed Live footage from the scene shows Red Cross vehicles arriving at the scene in Khan Younis where the hostages are to be released.Israelis are also preparing to watch the release of the hostages. Here are a few pictures from Tel Aviv: Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/feb/15/middle-east-live-israeli-hostages-palestinian-prisoners-to-be-released-as-trump-calls-for-hard-stance-on-gaza-live Author : Helen Livingstone Publish date : 2025-02-15 07:45:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.

Prime minister tells Salmon Tasmania of promise to change legislation and allow ‘sustainable’ farming to continueGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAnthony Albanese has promised to introduce legislation that will allow “sustainable salmon farming” to continue in Tasmania’s Macquarie Harbour, sparking anger from conversationists and researchers who urged for the local industry to be scaled back.The promise, made in a letter to industry group Salmon Tasmania, came after years of lobbying for action in Macquarie Harbour to save the threatened Maugean skate from extinction.Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading... Source link :

Exclusive: Barristers at Doughty Street Chambers say they have been subject to surveillance, hacking and rape threatsUK-based lawyers have spoken out about being targeted by the Chinese state and its supporters in a campaign of intimidation including surveillance, hacking of bank accounts and rape threats.The barristers, from Doughty Street Chambers in London, say there has been a coordinated and concerted campaign against them since they began acting for the jailed Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and media mogul, Jimmy Lai, three years ago. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/15/uk-based-lawyers-for-hong-kong-activist-jimmy-lai-targeted-by-chinese-state Author : Haroon Siddique Legal affairs correspondent Publish date : 2025-02-15 05:00:00

Residents in Sierra Madre begin cleanup effort after strongest storm of year sweeps through southern CaliforniaResidents of a southern California mountain community near the Eaton fire burn scar dug out of roads submerged in sludge on Friday after the strongest storm of the year swept through the area, unleashing debris flows and muddy messes in several neighborhoods recently torched by wildfires.Water, debris and boulders rushed down the mountain in the city of Sierra Madre on Thursday night, trapping at least one car in the mud and damaging several home garages with mud and debris. Bulldozers on Friday were cleaning up

Trump had said defense bureau was high on list of world’s richest man’s federal budget and personnel slashing teamMembers of Elon Musk’s “department of government efficiency” arrived at the Pentagon Friday, in what appeared to be their first meeting with defense department staff, a US official told Reuters. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.Donald Trump has said the Pentagon would be an early target of Musk’s government budget and personnel slashing team and that he expects the tech billionaire to find hundreds of billions of dollars in fraud and abuse in the department. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/14/elon-musk-government-efficiency-team-pentagon

Attorney general declines to refer Axel Rudakubana’s 52-year minimum sentence to unduly lenient sentence schemeThe sentence of the Southport killer will not be referred to the court of appeal under the unduly lenient sentence scheme, the attorney general has said.Axel Rudakubana, 18, was handed a 52-year minimum sentence for murdering three girls at a dance class, the second-longest sentence imposed by the courts in English history, but the Southport MP Patrick Hurley previously asked the attorney general to review the sentence as “unduly lenient”, saying it is “not severe enough”. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/feb/15/southport-killers-sentence-will-not-be-referred-to-court-of-appeal Author : Donna Ferguson

US vice-president’s speech and meeting with Germany’s AfD chief signal administration’s wider plans for continentThe Trump administration is making a big bet on Europe’s hard right.Speaking at a conference of Europe’s leaders in Munich on Friday, the US vice-president JD Vance stunned the room by delivering what amounted to a campaign speech against Germany’s sitting government just one week before an election in which the anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim AfD is set to take second place. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/14/trump-vance-europe-far-right Author : Andrew Roth, Global affairs correspondent Publish date : 2025-02-14 23:14:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked

Andrew Lester pleaded guilty to lesser charge in shooting of Black honor student who mistakenly rang his doorbellAn 86-year-old Kansas City man has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge in the 2023 shooting of Ralph Yarl, a Black honor student who was then 16 and rang the man’s doorbell by mistake.Andrew Lester’s plea on Friday came days before he was supposed to stand trial on charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action in the shooting of the teenaged student. Lester pleaded guilty to second-degree assault as part of a deal with prosecutors that averted the trial. Continue reading... Source

Transport safety board said recording suggests crew missed directive before crashing into passenger plane, killing 67The crew of the helicopter that collided in midair with an American Airlines jet near Washington DC’s Ronald Reagan National airport might not have heard instructions from the air traffic controller to pass behind the plane, investigators said on Friday.The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) chair, Jennifer Homendy, said the recording from the Black Hawk helicopter cockpit suggested the crew may have missed the key instruction just before the 29 January collision, in which all 67 people onboard the two aircraft were killed. Continue reading...

Workers for Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describe chaos and fear as lawsuits and basic functions grind to a haltThe termination email for a score of employees at the top US consumer watchdog arrived in the late hours of the night.“Unfortunately, the Agency finds that you are not fit for continued employment because your ability, knowledge and skills do not fit the agency’s current needs,” dozens of probationary staffers at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau were informed on 11 February. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/14/trump-consumer-financial-protection-bureau Author : Joseph Gedeon in Washington Publish date : 2025-02-14 19:41:00 Copyright for syndicated content

Claudia Scheinbaum warns of reciprocal action if Washington designates country’s cartels as terrorist groupsMexico’s president has warned US gunmakers they could face fresh legal action as accomplices of organized crime if Washington designates the country’s cartels as terrorist groups.The Latin American country, which is under mounting pressure from Donald Trump to curb illegal drug smuggling, wants its neighbor to crack down on firearms trafficking in the other direction. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/14/mexico-gunmakers-lawsuit-terror Author : Agence France-Press in Mexico City Publish date : 2025-02-14 18:06:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.