Iran’s leader and security council ‘still need to approve’ peace deal with US

Global Pepfar program has long had Republican leadership and bipartisan support, but initiative is under fire US midterm voters overwhelmingly support Pepfar, an initiative to end HIV/Aids that also has strengthened health systems against other infectious disease threats but has come under fire from the Trump administration.About three in four (74%) of likely voters in the US midterm elections say they support funding the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (Pepfar), with voters more likely to back candidates who support Pepfar, according to a recent poll. Four in five (80%) of the voters said there is a moral argument for supporting lifesaving treatment for people at risk for or living with HIV/Aids, regardless of their personal choices. Continue reading...

The discussions highlight how seriously senior Labour figures are treating Burnham’s path back to WestminsterAndy Burnham has sought advice from Baroness Sue Gray, Keir Starmer’s former chief of staff, on how to manage a potential transition into Downing Street if he returns to Westminster and succeeds the prime minister.Gray is understood to have advised Burnham on how a future government could be formed as Labour’s internal succession chatter intensifies before the Makerfield byelection. Continue reading...

Ohio State is grappling with sexual abuse allegations and questions over donor influence as financial pressures mount across higher educationWhen Rocky Ratliff transferred to Ohio State University in Columbus to study political science and wrestle for the college in the mid-1990s, he soon found himself being sexually abused by a prominent member of the university athletic department’s medical staff.At the time, Dr Richard Strauss, who is believed to have abused hundreds of student athletes over a period of decades at Ohio State, and who killed himself in 2005, would subject young men to intense abuse, including rape. Continue reading...

Global prices are approaching a tipping point that could trigger inflation, shortages and, over time, recessionIf a US-Iran deal is about to be reached, three months on from the launch of Donald Trump’s Operation Epic Fury, it will not be a day too soon for oil markets, which are approaching a dangerous tipping point.The cost of a barrel of crude on the spot market – for immediate purchase, effectively – has bounced about $100 since Iran predictably responded to the onslaught from the US and Israel by closing the strait of Hormuz. Continue reading...

Andrew Weissmann argues for new law to hold political liars like US president accountable for harming democracyPoliticians must be held accountable if their lies damage democracy, according to a former US federal prosecutor and FBI general counsel who was pursued by Donald Trump.The US must be “as creative as possible” and introduce sweeping structural reforms if it escapes its current “mess”, said Andrew Weissmann, laying out a proposal for a legislative crackdown on election deceit.Liar’s Kingdom: How to Stop Trump’s Deceit and Save America is out now Continue reading...

Labour MP writes to chair amid concerns building societies are overusing quick votes and failing to add members to boardsNationwide is under pressure to address “emerging governance issues” across the building society sector, amid concerns bosses are bundling voting options and failing to allocate board seats for members.The Stockport Labour MP Navendu Mishra has sent a formal letter to the chair of Nationwide, Kevin Parry, outlining growing unease over the way executives, including at Nationwide, have been engaging with members who ultimately own their building societies. A letter raising similar concerns was sent to the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, in recent weeks. Continue reading...

Proposed framework hinges on a 60-day truce, reopening strait of Hormuz, and revived talks on limiting Iran nuclear programme• Middle East crisis: live updatesDonald Trump has said a “memorandum of understanding” in talks to end the US-Israel war on Iran “has been largely negotiated”.Official details of the deal are scant and it remains possible that some aspects of the memo could change. Here is what we know so far about the potential agreement that could bring an end to the war. Continue reading...

Research by National Preparedness Commission calls for ‘worst-case scenario’ planning by European statesBritain’s vital supply chains are unprepared for the prospect of a major shock such as war with Russia, and bold steps are needed to catch up with “worst-case scenario” planning by European states, ministers have been warned.Donald Trump’s “America First” transformation of the US, which has made what was once a trusted UK ally a much less reliable partner, should also feed into that planning, according to a new report. Continue reading...

Gerry ‘the monk’ Hutch comes fourth in contest won by Daniel Ennis of Social DemocratsThe Irish gangland figure Gerry “the monk” Hutch has failed in his bid for a parliamentary seat in a Dublin byelection.The 63-year-old came fourth in a contest won by Daniel Ennis of the Social Democrats, a victory for progressive politics after a campaign dominated by concerns over the cost of living and immigration. Continue reading...

Boys, aged 15, given youth rehabilitation orders for two separate attacks against two girls in Hampshire A judge’s decision not to jail two teenage boys who raped two girls has been described by one of the victims as a “rock straight in my face”.A trial at Southampton crown court heard the girls were raped in two separate attacks in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, the first attack on 26 November 2024 and the second on 17 January 2025. Continue reading...

Department for Transport is understood to back reducing levy, which critics have called a ‘pavement tax’Business live – latest updatesGovernment officials considered cutting the VAT charged on electricity used at public EV chargers from 20% to 5% at the last budget, but the Treasury under chancellor Rachel Reeves rejected the proposal amid disagreement between departments.Officials in the Department for Transport encouraged electric car charge point operators to write to the Treasury explaining how they would respond to a VAT cut, according to three industry sources. The charger companies said that they would pass the tax cut on to consumers. Continue reading...