BT boss takes home £5.6m as pay and bonus package more than doubles

• Tensions in the Middle East are escalating as warring parties resume hostilities and diplomatic relations deteriorate. • Iran remains defiant, demanding that the United States take accountability for ceasefire violations involving military strikes.

• The UK, Australia, and Canada have launched a major new international fund designed to scale civil society initiatives and address the root causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. • The fund will invest in grassroots projects aimed at rebuilding trust and reducing community divisions, integrating civil society efforts directly into broader diplomatic strategies.

• UN Secretary-General António Guterres addressed a Security Council open debate in New York, urging member states to utilize the UN Charter to settle Middle East disputes peacefully. • Guterres highlighted how restrictions on navigational rights in the Strait of Hormuz are destabilizing global energy prices and disrupting critical supply chains.

• UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk announced that investigators will probe potential breaches of international humanitarian and human rights law by all parties involved in the Lebanon conflict. • The escalation, featuring Hezbollah attacks and an extensive Israeli air and ground campaign, has resulted in over 3,660 deaths and the displacement of more than one million people.

• India's Secretary (East) Rudrendra Tandon advocated for a rules-based order and strengthened diplomacy during the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) meeting held in Manila. • The ARF operates as a "track-one" diplomatic forum, focusing on a gradual evolutionary process to move from confidence-building measures toward full conflict resolution.

• The United States launched a second consecutive day of military strikes against Iran, following Donald Trump's vow to "hit them hard again" after accusing Tehran negotiators of deception. • Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baqaei, stated that these attacks have jeopardized ongoing ceasefire negotiations and accused Washington of undermining diplomatic efforts.

• The UAE is positioning its energy transformation as a global model for balancing economic growth with long-term environmental sustainability. • The strategy focuses on reconciling the urgent need for energy security with accelerated climate action to meet international goals.

Labor talking points this week concede Australians are frustrated with an economy that ‘isn’t working for them’. The goal will be to convince voters One Nation isn’t eitherGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIt was mid-January when Anthony Albanese publicly admitted his “worry” about the rise of One Nation.The prime minister’s concern was not the political risk to himself or to Labor but rather the threat Pauline Hanson posed to the stability of Australia’s two-party system. Continue reading...

Despite his managerial veneer and quiet approach, outgoing defence secretary is a highly political operatorUK politics live – latest updatesIf there was one thing for which Downing Street could rely on with John Healey, it was avoiding unnecessary drama. Whether in parliament or on the morning broadcast round, his sober suits and general demeanour of a benign but firm headmaster spelled reassurance.But then just before 12.10pm on Wednesday, the drama arrived. In a letter posted to social media, Healey resigned as defence secretary, a job he had held – whether in government or its shadow equivalent – from the moment Keir Starmer became Labour leader. Continue reading...

US president warns of further military action as both sides accuse each other of breaching temporary ceasefireMiddle East crisis – live updatesUS politics live – latest updatesDonald Trump has said the US will take control of Iran’s oil and gas infrastructure and launch further strikes on Iran on Thursday night, just hours after the two countries exchanged fire for the second consecutive day despite a nominal ceasefire in place.In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the US would hit Iran “VERY HARD, TONIGHT”, claiming that most of Iran’s offensive capacity had been destroyed. He also said the US would seize Kharg, an island in the Gulf that handles about 90% of Iran’s oil exports and hosts vast storage facilities. Continue reading...

Published for the first time, the data recorded 2,241 daily cases of A&E corridor care, with 699 patients also treated in other inappropriate settingsAlmost 3,000 patients a day in England are receiving care in hospital corridors due to an unavailability of beds in A&E units across the country, according to official figures.Corridor care occurs when a patient receives treatment in a setting that is clinically inappropriate and is deemed to be undignified and unsafe. Continue reading...

Labour leadership hopeful says he does not support payments after backlash but is open to other benefitsAndy Burnham has ruled out paying compensation to the “Waspi women” who claim they lost out owing to changes to the state pension age – but said he was open to the idea of giving them other benefits.Burnham had previously indicated he backed compensating as many as 3.6 million women born in the 1950s, some of whom claim they lost thousands of pounds because they were ill-informed about the changes. Continue reading...