Andy Burnham to back electoral reform if he becomes prime minister

Weirs, culverts and sluices among 602 barriers demolished in year in attempt to restore 15,500 miles of rivers by 2030A few miles downstream from a lava field in western Iceland, the gargle of free-flowing water is unbroken for the first time in decades after hydraulic peckers chipped away at a dilapidated dam that once powered a farm. The structure, on the River Melsá, continued to block fish migration long after falling into disrepair.“It wasn’t providing any electricity; the old power house had sheep living in it,” said Hamish Moir, a river engineer from CBEC, a Scottish firm that provided technical support for the demolition in December. To see the river restored to its natural state, he said, “was really rewarding”. Continue reading...

Chancellor says she will raise tax on global oil giants to help meet costs of plans and confirms freeze on fuel duty increasesBusiness live – latest updatesRachel Reeves will cut VAT to 5% on summer attractions such as theme parks and softplay centres during the school holidays, as she aims to ease the impact of the war in Iran on cash-strapped households.The chancellor told MPs on Thursday she would also raise more tax from global oil firms operating in the UK, to help meet the costs of her plans. Continue reading...

Investment banker Lorna Hajdini says ex-colleague Chirayu Rana’s ‘malicious’ allegations ‘wreaked havoc’The JPMorgan Chase investment banker accused of sexual assault in an explosive lawsuit that went viral countersued her accuser, saying his malicious lies destroyed her reputation and “wreaked havoc” on her life.In papers filed on Tuesday night in a New York state court in Manhattan, Lorna Hajdini said her former colleague Chirayu Rana fabricated allegations that she raped and drugged him, in order to attract maximum press coverage, cause her pain and extract millions of dollars from her and JPMorgan. Continue reading...

Israel widely criticised after security minister’s video shows humiliating treatment of people on flotilla headed for Gaza The UK has summoned Israel’s chargé d’affaires as international outrage escalates over a video posted by the national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, in which he is seen taunting activists detained after a Gaza-bound flotilla was intercepted.The global outcry continued as Israel began releasing hundreds of the activists who attempted to breach Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza and are in the process of deporting them, according to a legal organisation working with the flotilla. Continue reading...

Nottingham university hospitals trust says 11 members of staff dismissed and 14 others given written warningsAn NHS trust has sacked 11 staff members who illegally accessed the medical records of the victims of the Nottingham attacks.Valdo Calocane killed two 19-year-old students, Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar, and Ian Coates, a 65-year-old caretaker, before attempting to kill three other people in the city in June 2023. Continue reading...

Firms hit by ‘perfect storm’ of uncertainty about Labour leadership and impact of Iran warBusiness live – latest updatesCompanies in the UK’s dominant services sector have reported one of the sharpest declines in business activity in a decade, according to a closely watched index.Businesses are grappling with a “perfect storm” of domestic political uncertainty around Keir Starmer’s leadership as prime minister and the growing impact of the Iran war, leading to soaring costs, supply shortages and job cuts, the report said. Continue reading...

Documents released by government also show queen was ‘very keen’ for former prince to have prominent roleUK politics live – latest updatesFormal security vetting and due diligence appears not to have been carried out before the appointment of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as trade envoy, the government has said, as it emerged that that the late queen was “very keen” for her son to take up a prominent role in promoting Britain’s interests.The first batch of documents relating to the appointment of the former prince as trade envoy in 2001 by Tony Blair have revealed a memo addressed to Robin Cook dated 25 February 2000, in which the then chief executive of British Trade International, David Wright, said Queen Elizabeth II’s “wish” had been for Mountbatten-Windsor, then the Duke of York, to take on the role. Continue reading...

US Preventive Services Task Force had already been largely sidelined before health secretary fired its two chairsThe Trump administration has fired the two leaders of an influential health group that determines when insurance must provide free preventive care, like mammograms and colonoscopies, for millions of Americans.In letters dated 11 May, the health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, notified the two doctors who chaired the US Preventive Services Task Force that he was terminating their appointments immediately, before the end of their multiyear terms. Continue reading...

Climbers take advantage of clear weather after threat of ice fall on normal route delayed start of spring season A record 274 climbers have reached the summit of Mount Everest from the Nepalese side in a single day after a spring season that started late because of the threat of ice fall on the normal tourist route.The climbers took advantage of the clear weather on Wednesday, said Rishi Ram Bhandari, of the Expedition Operators Association Nepal. Continue reading...

Critics of Royal Horticultural Society turn hose on corporate sponsorship, peat-free compost and general ‘wokery’There was King Charles and David Beckham as well as a nocturnal garden to support bats and a Viking-themed allotment full of edible plants in pots. The Royal Horticultural Society’s Chelsea flower show, which ends on Saturday, was as lovely and celebrity-glittered as ever, most agreed.But dig a little deeper, say critics on the conservative wing of the RHS – including one spectacularly outspoken former contributor – and not everything is necessarily smelling of roses. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Scotland Yard had been in talks to use Palantir’s AI technology to automate intelligence analysisA £50m Met police deal with the controversial US tech company Palantir has been blocked by the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, with City Hall citing a “clear and serious breach” of procurement rules.Scotland Yard had been in talks, revealed by the Guardian last month, to use Palantir’s AI technology to automate intelligence analysis in criminal investigations. But Khan intervened on Thursday to stop the flagship contract, which would have been Palantir’s largest yet in British policing. Continue reading...