Labour claims Reform UK won’t protect women, as poll suggests Farage’s party heading for ‘seismic’ wins in May – UK politics live

Canada’s Intact Financial Corp is said to be exploring offer, as London-listed Tate & Lyle attracts US suitorShares in Hiscox surged to record highs on Friday as it became the latest UK takeover target after a flurry of overseas bids for British businesses this week.Canada’s Intact Financial Corp, which provides property and casualty insurance, is said to be exploring a potential takeover of Lloyd’s of London insurer Hiscox, according to a report by the Insurance Post. Continue reading...

Union leaders say veto from Democrat Abigail Spanberger is an about-face from promises she made on campaign trailVirginia’s Democratic governor Abigail Spanberger vetoed a bill Thursday that would have restored collective bargaining rights for 50,000 public sector workers in the state. Union leaders say the veto is a “betrayal” and “slap in the face” after the governor campaigned last year on promises to restore collective bargaining rights.Though majorities in both chambers of Virginia’s general assembly passed legislation that would restore bargaining rights to most public sector workers, Spanberger introduced an amended version of the bill last month that was eventually rejected by the assembly. Continue reading...

Group of MPs and peers in effect accuse government of failing to comply with parliament’s will over release of filesA powerful parliamentary committee tasked with reviewing files relating to Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador has revealed that the government is withholding his vetting file despite not having the authority to do so.In an extraordinary intervention, the intelligence and security committee (ISC) has criticised the government over its handling of the release of Mandelson-related papers and in effect accused ministers failing to comply with parliament’s will. Continue reading...

Migrants are generally younger than the average Australian, are skilled and more educated. And they typically pay more tax than they receive in benefitsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAngus Taylor’s thinly veiled attempt to paint migrants as bludgers is not supported by the facts. The typical migrant over their lifetimes pays more in taxes than they receive in government services.Far from lobbing up on our shores and demanding welfare, most migrants arrive hungry for work and motivated to make a life for themselves and their family. Continue reading...

The Manchester City striker will feature in Viqueens, an animated film by director Harald Zwart, who described him as ‘powerful, fearless and uniquely Norwegian’Manchester City striker Erling Haaland is to make his feature acting debut, in an animated film as the voice of a Viking – called Haaland.According to the Hollywood Reporter, the Norwegian international is to play “an animated version of himself” in Viqueens, directed and co-written by Harald Zwart, the Dutch-Norwegian director of The Karate Kid and Agent Cody Banks. Continue reading...

Port Kembla residents will likely resist base due to risk of nuclear accident and potential as target for ‘military adversaries’, documents stateGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA proposed nuclear submarine base in Port Kembla “could be a target for Australian military adversaries”, previously secret New South Wales government documents have revealed.The documents, prepared by the NSW cabinet office and premier’s department, identify Port Kembla – 75km south of Sydney – as the preferred east coast base for Australia’s proposed nuclear submarine fleet. No site has been announced, but speculation has focused on Brisbane, Newcastle and Port Kembla. Continue reading...

Lead singer Stuart Murdoch’s self-deprecating It Only Takes One Lion is inspired by team’s current song, Yes Sir, I Can BoogieThe lyrics came to Stuart Murdoch in the hazy aftermath of Scotland’s dramatic qualification for the World Cup.The Belle and Sebastian frontman had watched his side’s playoff victory over Denmark through his fingers before deciding to write his own anthem to a team he has followed for more than 50 years. “Most people recognised instantly the next day that they’d witnessed the most important Scottish game ever,” says Murdoch. “That was our magic moment.” Continue reading...

Army supported by Russian mercenaries launches airstrikes after offensive by coalition of Islamist extremists and Tuareg separatistsMali’s armed forces, supported by Russian mercenaries, have launched airstrikes targeting a rebel alliance of Islamist extremists and Tuareg separatists as the ruling junta struggles to maintain its hold on power in the unstable west African country.Earlier this week warplanes targeted the key northern town of Kidal, which was lost when the rebels launched a surprise offensive across much of Mali in late April. Continue reading...

Bafta winner tells preview screening in Bristol there is not enough on television about the female perspectiveThe Bafta-winning actor Katherine Parkinson has lauded the television series Rivals for its “radical” depiction of sex from a woman’s perspective.Speaking at a preview screening in Bristol, where much of the series was filmed, Parkinson, who plays the romance author Lizzie Vereker in the show, said there were not enough examples on television of a woman’s view of sex. Continue reading...

Keir Starmer accuses Robinson of ‘peddling hatred and division’ and archbishop of Canterbury urges people to ‘choose hope’ Eleven foreign far-right activists have been blocked from the UK ahead of a rally by Tommy Robinson supporters as Keir Starmer accused him of “peddling hatred and division”.The archbishop of Canterbury urged people to “choose hope”, and faith leaders spoke out before the rally on Saturday, the second of its kind after more than 100,000 attended one last year. Continue reading...

Man admits to coating relic in concrete after taking it from church because he objected to it being displayed, police sayCzech police have found the skull of a 13th-century saint, days after it was stolen from a church in the north of the country.Police said they had arrested a suspect, who they said admitted to taking the skull of Saint Zdislava of Lemberk from a glass shrine in the basilica of St Lawrence and St Zdislava in the town of Jablonné v Podještědí on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Mississippi politicians are threatening to redraw the district of Bennie Thompson, the state’s lone Democrat in CongressThe supreme court decision that effectively gutted the Voting Rights Act (VRA) “was red meat to the Republican legislators of the south” the US House representative Bennie Thompson said.Conservative lawmakers in Mississippi, where Thompson is both the state’s lone Black and only Democratic congressional representative, have used the opportunity to explicitly target him, threatening to redraw the second congressional district, that he represents. Continue reading...