Monday briefing: How is it possible the prime minister didn’t know about Mandelson’s vetting failure?

Reviews website features pages praising unlicensed sites’ supposed qualities as if they were legitimate businessesTrustpilot, the reviews website that offers to “find a company you can trust”, is hosting ratings of illegal casinos, raising concerns in Westminster about the potential risks posed to consumers.Unlicensed casino operators linked to financial harm, addiction and even suicide have flooded the UK market in recent years, often targeting people who are trying to limit their gambling by “self-excluding” from licensed operators. Continue reading...

Former president looks likely to take power following eighth election in five yearsBulgarian ex-president Rumen Radev – an EU critic who has called for renewing ties with Russia – on Sunday hailed a “victory of hope” after his formation topped the eighth parliamentary elections in five years.Projections from polling agencies put his Progressive Bulgaria (PB) grouping at 44%, which would give him an absolute majority of at least 129 seats in the 240-seat parliament. Continue reading...

Douglas Alexander says lessons need to be learned but he expects Keir Starmer will continue as PMIt was a mistake to announce Peter Mandelson as the UK’s ambassador to the US before he was security vetted for the role, one of Keir Starmer’s senior ministers has said before the prime minister’s statement to MPs about the scandal.With Starmer aiming to explain to the Commons on Monday afternoon why he did not know the Foreign Office had overruled a decision to refuse Mandelson vetting, some senior government figures believe the coming week could decide whether or not he remains in No 10. Continue reading...

Office for Students plans new complaints system as Bridget Phillipson says academics too often are being silencedUniversities in England that fail to protect free speech could face fines of £500,000 or 2% of their income, and in some cases risk losing public funding, under a new complaints system, the government has said.The Office for Students (OfS) will run a “first-of-its-kind” scheme from the new academic year allowing university staff, external speakers, and non-student members to raise concerns about providers, the Department for Education (DfE) said. Continue reading...

Heavily indebted UK-listed gambling company says it is discussing possible offer from US group at 50p a shareBusiness live – latest updatesEvoke, the London-listed gambling company that owns William Hill and the 888 online casino brand, is in takeover talks with the US casino operator Bally’s Intralot.The heavily indebted company said in a statement to the stock market that it is in discussions with Bally’s “regarding a possible offer” for the business at 50p a share, almost a third higher than its closing price on Friday and valuing the group at £225m. Continue reading...

Newspaper broke embargo on confidential briefing note about the royal couple’s movements five days before they arrived in Melbourne for their Australia visitThe Daily Mail’s “aggressive” approach to reporting on Prince Harry and Meghan’s Australian visit has “irreparably damaged” the Sussexes’ ability to brief press ahead of trips, Guardian Australia has been told.The Daily Mail broke the embargo by publishing the royal couple’s movements five days before they landed in Melbourne, despite that information being strictly non-publishable until they arrived. Continue reading...

Band shows montage of leaders whose death or ousting the CIA has been proven or suspected to have been part ofUS band the Strokes have used their Coachella set to make a stark political statement against America’s history of foreign intervention and war in other countries, including Iran and Palestine.At the end of their set at the second weekend of the California music festival, the band performed their 2016 song Oblivius in front of giant LED screens that showed a montage of world leaders whose death or ousting the CIA has either been a proven or suspected party in, as lead singer Julian Casablancas sang the lyrics: “What side you standing on?” Continue reading...

First recorded in 687BC, the meteoroids were once part of the tail of a comet discovered in 1861This week, the annual Lyrid meteor shower returns to the spring skies. Although active since 16 April, the shower peaks during the late evening of Wednesday 22 April and early the next morning.The chart shows the view looking east from London at 00.01 (BST) on Thursday 23 April. The origin point of the meteors, known as the radiant, is labelled Lyrids. It sits in the constellation of Lyra, the Lyre, close to the bright star of Vega. Continue reading...

Former minister leading review into young people and work cites survey showing most teachers decry lack of ‘soft skills’ An “exam-obsessed” school system is leaving young people unprepared for work, Alan Milburn has said, as new polling suggests teachers believe pupils are leaving education without the skills they need for adult life.Milburn, a former cabinet minister under Tony Blair and now leading a government-commissioned review into young people and work, said the system had become overly focused on academic sorting rather than real-world readiness. Continue reading...

Head of newly formed institution questions whether naming is ‘reflective of our current reality’ amid criticism of ‘shameful’ fossil fuel company promotionGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe newly formed Adelaide University is considering removing gas company Santos’s name from one of its buildings.On Saturday, students and conservationists rallied outside the Santos Petroleum Engineering building, calling on the university to dump the name because of the company’s new gas projects. Continue reading...

National Gallery, the Box in Plymouth and the Fitzwilliam in Cambridge also shortlisted for £120,000 Art Fund prizeThe V&A East Storehouse, the National Gallery and an accessible castle in Norwich are among the contenders for this year’s Art Fund museum of the year award, the most prestigious UK prize in the sector.The annual prize offers the winner £120,000, with £20,000 going to each of the other finalists, who the Art Fund’s director, Jenny Waldman, said had all “innovated in different ways”. Continue reading...