Zia Yusuf’s post about Camden council leader is ‘straightforward racism’, says minister

Arrival marks the pair’s first visit to Ukraine and comes day after ‘substantive plans’ were discussed in MoscowThe US negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff have arrived in Kyiv for a second day of talks on how to end the war in Ukraine.Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, met Kushner and Witkoff in Sophia Square, in front of Kyiv’s historic Saint Sophia Cathedral. Zelenskyy greeted Witkoff with a hug, saying: “It’s good to see you, Steve.” Continue reading...

Robert Jenrick says party has followed legal protocol ‘at all times’ as Met police consider launching investigationNigel Farage has acknowledged the overseas donation row engulfing Reform UK “looks bad” for his party but denied it had ever taken foreign money in breach of electoral law.The Reform leader, who is battling to contain the fallout from the allegations, was asked to categorically rule out that foreign money had ever been funnelled to his party. He replied: “I can … never happened.” Continue reading...

Business secretary says masked anti-immigration protest was ‘not something we would want’ on British streetsA cabinet minister has condemned the blocking of Dover roads by dozens of masked and black-clad people on Saturday.Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, said that although peaceful protest was an “essential part of British life”, this differed from “dressing up in costumes like this and disrupting people’s lives”. Continue reading...

Polling stations open in Saxony-Anhalt with anti-immigration party AfD predicted to gain 41% vote shareGerman voterswent to the polls on Sunday for a crucial regional election where the far-right, anti-immigration and Moscow-friendly Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is expected to win.AfD, polling at more than 40% for months in Saxony-Anhalt, even has its sights on winning its first-ever state government, although this is far from assured. Continue reading...

Report documents use of commercial licensing for free or donation-based exercise classes in parks and on beachesAt 6am on the beach at Westgate-on-Sea in Kent, Angela Brier-Stephenson used to meet a small group of about 10 people for yoga.The class lasted 45 minutes and participants paid what they could. Continue reading...

The Reform UK leader is under pressure after senior aides appeared to plot how to bypass electoral laws on foreign donationsGood morning and welcome to our live coverage of UK politics. The Reform UK party leader, Nigel Farage, is scheduled to appear on Laura Kuenssberg’s Sunday politics programme at 9am, where he will likely be asked more about an undercover investigation broadcast by Channel 4 News which showed two of his senior aides appearing to plot to get around electoral laws on foreign donations.Accepting donations from a foreign company, including donations in kind such as polling, could constitute a criminal offence and the party has been reported to the police. Continue reading...

Passenger recalls seeing cabin lights flicker and ‘a lot of screaming’ after suspected engine issueGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLiza-Jayne Loch was returning home from a business trip to New Zealand when her Qantas flight ran into trouble.The plane was climbing above the scenic South Island’s mountain ranges on Saturday afternoon, bound for Sydney, when a bang shook the cabin. Continue reading...

Most gambling websites nudge users towards accepting tracking data and harvest it before consent is given, study showsOnline bookmakers and casinos have been accused of widespread non-compliance of information privacy requirements, including “data surveillance” of customers, according to a study.Nearly nine out of 10 (86%) licensed British gambling websites appear to be flouting the general data protection regulation (GDPR), the strict rules governing how organisations can collect, store and process personal data, according to the research. Continue reading...

Country loses 200 tennis courts in three years, but they still outnumber padel facilities by a factor of 11 to oneEngland has lost almost 200 tennis courts in three years as padel facilities have grown nearly sixfold.Guardian analysis of Sport England data found that the country has lost 183 tennis courts since 2023 – the first such decline since at least 2000. The data includes local authority and community-owned courts, privately run health facilities, schools and sports clubs. Continue reading...

Taraneh Rahimi was told prison guards would rape her sister, Romina, if she did not sign a confessionThe twins were 19 and still in high school when they were taken from their beds in the dead of night by masked men later identified as being sent by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.After four months of desperately seeking news from hospitals and state institutions, their mother, Marzieh Nourmohammadi, finally learned their fate. Taraneh and Romina Rahimi had been seized over their decision to join millions on the streets of Iranian cities during the January protests against the regime. The twins were unrecognisable by the time of their mother’s prison visit in May. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Tan Dhesi says Argentinian threats make it more crucial than ever that PM increase defence spendingJavier Milei’s threats to the Falkland Islands make it even more important that Andy Burnham increase defence spending immediately, according to the Labour chair of the defence committee.Tan Dhesi said the comments by the Argentinian president this week show why the government should raise military spending to 3% of GDP by 2030. But he said Burnham’s plans remain mired in confusion after the prime minister appeared to reassure him that the 2030 target would be hit, only for Downing Street to later retreat. Continue reading...