Pupils missed 15m hours of school time during UK’s June heatwave, study finds

• Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian are arriving in India's national capital this weekend for the 18th BRICS Summit. • The summit will serve as a diplomatic hub for leaders to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war, the crisis in West Asia, and the evolving global economic order.

More than 30,000 due to attend Canadian artist’s opener at Plenitude arena, as thousands without tickets plan Friday night karaokeMore than 30,000 Céline Dion fans have gathered in Paris for the Canadian singer’s long-awaited return to performing on Saturday night – four years after she revealed her diagnosis of stiff person syndrome, a rare neurological condition.Thousands more people without tickets have flocked to a series of giant karaoke events across France to belt out Dion’s famous power ballads, in celebration of the star’s health stabilising enough for her to return to the stage. Continue reading...

Commemoration ceremonies to be held around the world for the nearly 3,000 killed in 2001 terror attack on US. Plus, JD Vance sets out his stall as heir to Donald TrumpGood morning. It is a sombre day for the nation as people gather to mourn and remember the nearly 3,000 victims of the attacks on September 11 2001, when 19 al-Qaida hijackers seized control of four airliners, slamming two of the planes into the World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and the fourth into a field in western Pennsylvania.We have comprehensive coverage of the anniversary, which will be marked by ceremonies around the world. There are stories of the day from people who were there. Stanley Praimnath and Brian Clark were two of only four individuals known to have survived above the impact zone in the south tower, and they spoke to our Washington bureau chief David Smith. Anna Sweeney Rossman was five when her mother, Amy Sweeney, a flight attendant, was killed onboard American Airlines flight 11, and she spoke to Ramon Antonio Vargas about how the events of that day have cast a shadow on her life.Donald Trump’s promise of a $5,000 “Trump dividend” for every US citizen if Republicans retain control of the US Congress in November’s midterm elections has sparked incredulity and accusations of bribery.With his approval rating at a historic low, Trump brought down the curtain on the Republicans’ first ever midterm convention by pleading with supporters to do him “the biggest favor” and “pretend” they are voting for him in November’s US elections.JD Vance, meanwhile, made a clear pitch that he should be the heir to Trump with a blistering speech that featured exaggerated claims of success, criticism of the Democrats as “lunatics” and an aggressive dismissal of a protester waving a Mexican flag.A US appeals court has rejected Trump’s attempt to impose sweeping restrictions on mail-in voting before November’s high-stakes midterm elections, dealing a fresh blow to the president’s attempted crackdown.Anthropic has detailed efforts by bad actors to misuse its AI for the production of bioweapons. More researchers and staff members at the AI startup have posted their own dire warnings about the safety of the technology, but Elon Musk called the chorus of concerns a “setup” and a “psyop”.California has adopted what Gavin Newsom described as “nation-leading” legislation that bans addictive social media features for young users, regulates companion chatbots and implements new safeguards around AI.Sales of previously occupied US homes declined in August to their slowest annual pace in more than a year as home shoppers grappled with rising mortgage rates and home prices. Continue reading...

Leader has said Greens are underdogs in race for Keir Starmer’s former seat but he is confident they can beat LabourZack Polanski, the Green party leader, has been selected as its candidate for the Holborn and St Pancras byelection on 8 October.The seat became vacant this month when the former prime minister Keir Starmer announced he was leaving parliament. Continue reading...

Militant feminist led campaigns to legalise abortion and divorce and went on to become foreign minister Emma Bonino, the radical Italian politician who led campaigns to legalise abortion and divorce against the objections of the Vatican, has died aged 78.“Today we lose not only our leader but also one of the most clear-sighted, courageous and free figures in the political history of our country,” the small party she founded, More Europe, said on Facebook on Friday. Continue reading...

Victims of those killed in September 11 attacks honored at memorials across the USHello and welcome to the US politics live blog.It is the 25th anniversary of 9/11, as Americans come together to remember and commemorate the devastating effects of the attacks, which claimed the lives of 2,977 victims.Donald Trump doubled down on his pledge to pay all US adults $5,000 if Republicans hold on to control of Congress in the midterm elections. He’s one of the few people to actually mention the pledge tonight, as many lawmakers and officials – including his vice-president, JD Vance – avoided mentioning the so-called “dividend” altogether. Trump defended his plan: “We can do that because our country has never done better. We’re taking in trillions, trillions of dollars.”In a shorter address to voters than his nearly two-hour speech on Wednesday, Trump again pleaded with voters to “pretend I’m on the ticket” in November. In an improvised pledge of allegiance to himself, Trump directed the audience to commit to voting in the midterm elections at all costs. The president asked Republicans in the arena to repeat: “I don’t care if I’m registered or not. I’m going to try. And cheat like hell like they do.” Trump also told those gathered in Dallas that they would “go to hell” if they didn’t vote.Earlier, JD Vance urged Republicans who may oppose parts of the Trump administration’s agenda not to abandon the party in November’s congressional races. The vice-president pointed to Charlie Kirk – the conservative activist killed a year ago today – to argue that voters shouldn’t “throw the baby out with the bathwater” over “a policy issue here or there”, an apparent nod to dissent over the Iran war that he avoided naming.Vance’s speech, in many ways, was an audition for a possible 2028 presidential run. He spent much of his time on stage setting out the threats of the so-called “far left”, listing the administration’s greatest hits and slamming Joe Biden’s tenure in office.Meanwhile, dozens of demonstrators gathered outside the arena to protest Trump’s policy agenda. Dallas police said that two people were taken into custody after an alleged assault involving a counter-protester and for blocking a roadway. Continue reading...

Paul Roberts, who was employed by UPS for 44 years, was working at a customer care center when he was struckA longtime United Parcel Service (UPS) employee less than two weeks away from retiring was struck and killed by one of the company’s vehicles while he was at work in St Louis, triggering a federal labor investigation along with an intense outpouring of grief from his family and colleagues.Paul Roberts, 63, was on duty at the UPS customer care center in Earth City, Missouri, on the night of 4 September when a company vehicle hit him, authorities said. Continue reading...

Widespread damage across Ni’ihau, Kaua’i and O’ahu after reportedly first-ever recorded tornado watch in Hawaii Hurricane Lowell caused significant damage to Hawaii’s western islands this week. On Tuesday night the centre of Lowell tracked 50 miles (80km) from the island of Ni’ihau in Kauai County as a category 2 storm with winds of up to 110mph. The strong winds resulted in widespread power outages across Ni’ihau, and the islands of Kaua’i and O’ahu.The event was particularly notable because a tornado watch had been issued for Kaua’i on Monday night and into Tuesday morning. According to research maps from Iowa State University, it was likely to be the first-ever recorded tornado watch in Hawaii’s history. In the event, a tornado was not documented, however hurricanes can produce tornadoes and most often occur in thunderstorms within rain bands away from the centre of the hurricane. Currently, five named stormed have occurred in the central Pacific with the strong El Niño this year being a key driver in the above normal hurricane season, as noted by the National Weather Service. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Calls from Labour grow as 105 MPs write to PM urging ‘obvious’ step to alleviate cost of living crisisAndy Burnham is coming under increasing pressure from his own MPs to commit to improving paternity leave in the UK in the next budget, with more than a quarter of Labour MPs writing to the prime minister to urge him to take action.Ahead of the chancellor’s first budget next month, 105 MPs have written to Burnham calling on him to increase statutory paternity leave to help alleviate the cost of living crisis and arguing that lowest-paid fathers are the hardest hit by meagre paternity leave provision. Continue reading...

Bill would allow terminally ill adults with less than six months to live to end their lives, after the approval of a panel of expertsEsther Rantzen has said she is no longer able to travel to Switzerland to end her life because she has become “too physically fragile”.Rantzen, who presented the TV current affairs programme That’s Life! for 21 years and founded the youth support charity Childline, had intended to end her life in a Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland after being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2023. Continue reading...

Memorials and remembrances will mark the 25 years since the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 on 11 September 2001The United States is marking the 25th anniversary of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on Friday, with memorials and remembrance ceremonies taking place across the country to honor the nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks.In New York City, the national September 11 memorial and museum will hold its annual commemoration ceremony, with the families of victims gathering at the 9/11 Memorial Plaza and reading aloud the names of those killed in the 9/11 attacks and in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Continue reading...