‘Excessive’ financial risks threaten survival of many English universities, report warns

Mark Rutte praises ‘very frank’ talks but declines to say if president discussed potential withdrawal from allianceMark Rutte, the secretary general of Nato, has said Donald Trump was “clearly disappointed” that the US’s allies had refused to join its war against Iran, following a closed-door meeting in Washington on Wednesday.Speaking to CNN after his private meeting with the US president, Rutte declined to say directly whether Trump raised his threat to withdraw from the military alliance over the Iran war, but described the exchange as a “very frank, very open” discussion between “two good friends”. Continue reading...

Customers make hundreds of thousands of dollars as records show substantial bets made before announcementA group of new accounts on the prediction market Polymarket made highly specific, well-timed bets on whether the US and Iran would reach a ceasefire on Tuesday, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in profits for these new customers.These bets were made even though, in the hours before a two-week ceasefire was announced on Tuesday, Donald Trump’s rhetoric had escalated sharply and there were few signals that a ceasefire deal was imminent. Early in the day Trump had issued a warning on social media that “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran did not meet his demand to open the Ssrait of Hormuz by his 8pm ET deadline. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Transdev undertook ‘coupling project’ after teen trapped between carriages in 2023. Trial restarted after second fatality, ex-employee claims, while Transdev denies ‘assessment’ ever shelvedThe company that operates Sydney’s light rail investigated safety upgrades following a fatal incident in 2023, but cancelled the project due to its cost before a second person died, a whistleblower alleges.After the first death, Transdev successfully trialled sensors that would detect a person entering the coupling area between two joined trams, according to the former employee who requested anonymity. But the project was stopped before another death in 2025, they said. Continue reading...

USC student Tucker Collins’s attorney accuses homeland security of ‘overt act of repression’ at Los Angeles protestA freshman at the University of Southern California has lost an eye after he was shot last month with a less-lethal projectile by a Department of Homeland Security agent at a No Kings march, according to his attorney.On 28 March, Tucker Collins, 18, took to the streets of downtown Los Angeles to photograph throngs of protesters, who held signs and chanted slogans denouncing the Trump administration’s policies, his lawyer V James DeSimone said in a statement on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Ukraine’s president tells podcast he has tried to draw White House’s attention to collaboration between Moscow and Tehran over strikes on US basesHow the Ukraine and Iran wars are starting to overlapThe US has ignored compelling evidence that Russia has been helping Iran to target US bases in the Middle East because it “trusts” Vladimir Putin, according to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.Speaking in an interview with Alastair Campbell on The Rest is Politics podcast, Zelenskyy said he had tried to draw the White House’s attention to the close collaboration between Moscow and Tehran. Continue reading...

Analysis of six extreme heatwaves found when temperature and humidity were accounted for, all were potentially deadly for older peopleExtreme heat is already creating “non-survivable” conditions for humans in heatwaves that have killed thousands and likely many more, according to new research that warns people are more susceptible to rising temperatures than first thought.Scientists re-examined six extreme heatwaves between 2003 and 2024 and found that when temperature, humidity and the body’s ability to stay cool were accounted for, all were potentially deadly for older people. Continue reading...

Threat of losing benefits will be lifted but campaigners say more help needed to tackle hostile workplaces The government has unveiled its plan to allow disabled people to try work without fear of losing their benefits, but campaigners warn the policy does not go far enough to tackle hostile workplaces.Legislation laid before parliament on Thursday will mean that people who start work or volunteering no longer automatically face a benefit reassessment, a prospect disabled people said was holding them back from trying to gain employment. Continue reading...

Joint statement calling for aid worker protections amid worsening humanitarian crisis also signed by Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Sierra Leone and the UKAustralia says Lebanon must be included in the Middle East ceasefire and has led a group of other countries in expressing deep concern about “the worsening humanitarian situation and displacement crisis in Lebanon.”Overnight, Israel carried out its largest attack on Lebanon since its war with Hezbollah began, killing at least 254 people and wounding 837, an assault that prompted Iranian officials to warn Tehran could withdraw from the ceasefire agreed with the US this week. Continue reading...

David Lammy says those affected by a heinous crime cannot be expected to engage with the justice system within the existing 28-day limitVictims and bereaved families will be given six months to challenge “unduly lenient” sentences handed to criminals, under changes announced by David Lammy.Relatives of murder victims campaigned for the government to scrap the 28-day time limit to submit a formal request after an offender is sentenced. Continue reading...

The prime minister will hold talks with his opposite number to shore fuel suppliesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPenny Wong says the US-Iran ceasefire is fragile but must hold for the sake of the world economy and energy markets.Speaking on ABC’s 7.30, the foreign minister said there were obvious differences between the two parties but the potential downsides to the truce failing meant it was imperative that it worked.This ceasefire is fragile, there’s no doubt about that. The ceasefire is fragile but the world does need it to hold. There are obviously substantial points of difference between the parties. But I think we all know that the damage that is happening to the global economy, to global energy markets, means that the world does need this ceasefire to hold.And you know, I spoke early on to Singapore, to Korea, to Malaysia, the Prime Minister, as you said, is going to Singapore, we’ve seen one announcement already and we will continue to work with them. I spoke to the Japanese foreign minister just before this interview, we want to keep engaging with our counterparts, because this is a very large shock to global energy markets, and one that will continue to have an effect.I can understand people being really concerned about what is happening on global markets and what has happened in the Middle East, and the way this has escalated, which is why we have been saying for some time, it’s time for de-escalation. Continue reading...

Loyalists rush to defend president for ‘outsmarting the critics’ but others decry deal as ‘a negative for our country’Donald Trump’s acceptance of a two-week ceasefire in Iran has exposed fresh divisions in his Make America Great Again (Maga) movement, with some supporters expressing vindication and others accusing the US president of betrayal.The US and Iran both claimed victory after the two countries agreed to pause hostilities following more than a month of war. But the strait of Hormuz remained closed on Wednesday and fighting was still taking place as Israel launched its biggest attacks yet on Lebanon. Continue reading...