Backs

• Vienna-based fintech Talentir has raised €4 million in a seed funding round to modernize cross-border payout infrastructure for creators, freelancers, and contractors. • The round was led by Redstone VC and supported by Inovia Capital, featuring backing from former Google CFO Patrick Pichette and eight other investors. • Talentir aims to solve inefficiencies in platform payments by utilizing AI and stablecoin rails to streamline global financial transfers.

Debate in Labour and union movement over climate commitments as many call for Burnham not to allow drilling in North SeaAnalysis: ‘Act on the evidence outside the window’: Andy Burnham urged to stick to net zero targets if he becomes PMBacksliding on climate action would drive the Labour party into political obscurity, Zack Polanski has warned, as trade union leaders said more drilling in the North Sea would not help UK workers.The Green party leader, speaking to the Guardian as searing heat swept the country for the second time this year, urged Andy Burnham – widely expected to be the UK’s next prime minister – to be bold on climate justice. He said any move to water down the party’s commitments would have dire consequences at the ballot box. Continue reading...

Allies of Reeves lobby to keep her as chancellor as the ‘stable’ choice while Wes Streeting and Ed Miliband also in the pictureUK politics live – latest updatesRachel Reeves has given her support to Andy Burnham to be the next prime minister, despite reports that she is likely to be moved out of the role of chancellor if he becomes the next Labour leader.The chancellor told the BBC she and Burnham were friends and did not appear to rule out accepting a more junior cabinet position. “I’m supporting Andy to be prime minister,” she said. Continue reading...

Recommendations from commission propose gradual rise in retirement age to about 70 by the early 2090sEurope live – latest updatesGermany will gradually raise its retirement age to about 70 by the early 2090s under recommendations backed by the chancellor, Friedrich Merz, as a means of future-proofing the pension system for an ageing population.Presenting its findings on Tuesday, an expert commission set up to explore reforms to the pension system said retirement age should be linked to rising life expectancy and early retirement should be scrapped. Continue reading...

The PM said in May that ‘stories beat spreadsheets’, but what does the data tell us about his time in office?Keir Starmer is to step down as prime minister after just two years in office.Despite promising an end to Conservative sleaze and scandal, much political bandwidth towards the end of his time in No 10 was taken up by the fallout surrounding his appointment as US ambassador of Peter Mandelson, who had a close relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Continue reading...

• Gorillaz performed their biggest concert to date, featuring a career-spanning setlist and a high-energy atmosphere described as "ridiculous." • The event featured backstage insights and collaborations with prominent artists, including Damon Albarn, De La Soul, and Moonchild Sannelly. • This one-off stadium show serves as a massive celebration of the band's musical evolution and visual spectacle.

Exclusive: European Commission planning to rewrite key law to allow water-intensive mines in regions suffering from droughtThe European Commission plans to rewrite the EU’s flagship water protection law to speed up the development of critical minerals mines, despite many being located in drying and water-stressed regions, analysis has found.Mining is a water-intensive industry, requiring large volumes of water for ore processing, dust suppression, waste management and mine dewatering. While modern projects recycle water, they still require significant amounts, and in water-stressed regions those demands can add to pressure on already stretched rivers, aquifers and water supplies. Continue reading...

• Spain's Council of Ministers, via the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Service, has authorized the creation of an AI gigafactory to host large-scale GPU capacity. • The project will be managed by the Spanish Society for Technological Transformation (SETT), which is forming a public-private consortium to lead the development. • This initiative aims to enhance European technological sovereignty by providing the necessary infrastructure for training and deploying advanced AI models.

Republicans question details of deal set to be signed later in the week as European leaders seek to join talks. Plus: can we refreeze the Arctic?Good morning.Donald Trump, facing severe criticism from some domestic supporters for conducting a war against Iran that has met hardly any of its original objectives, has backed a joint G7 leaders’ statement that welcomes his proposed peace deal.What is the domestic criticism of the deal? Many Senate Republicans said there were still unanswered questions and they needed thorough briefings before it was finalized. Senator Lindsey Graham, a close ally of Trump and a longtime hawk on Iran, said: “The way Iran describes it, it’s awful. The way we describe it, it makes sense to me. Let’s look at it and see what it actually is.”How do people in Iran feel about the deal? The Guardian’s Deepa Parent found a shared sense of exhaustion, and anger that nothing has really changed.What does the deal mean for US-Israeli relations? The strategic interests of the US and Israel appear to be diverging and Benjamin Netanyahu has been left in a political bind, facing an election having led Israel in three wars – in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran – without a clear victory in any of them.How are authorities cracking down on protests against ICE? Fifteen people in Minnesota have been charged with conspiracy to impede or injure federal officers over their response to a deadly immigration enforcement crackdown in the state earlier this year. The prosecutors allege the defendants were part of two Minneapolis-based “antifa” groups that “violently oppose immigration law enforcement”. Continue reading...

Joint statement welcomes Trump’s deal with Iran to end war and calls for further talks involving European leadersEurope live – latest updatesDonald Trump has backed a joint G7 leaders’ statement that welcomes the deal he has struck with Iran but says a follow-on agreement is necessary to rein in Iran’s ballistic missile programme, an issue not directly addressed in the memorandum of understanding that is due to be signed on Friday by Iran and the US.The statement says future negotiations with Iran would benefit from the involvement of a wider group of regional and international actors including the UN nuclear weapons agency, the IAEA. Continue reading...

Endorsement by former soldier, despite party’s apparent efforts to distance itself from him, is likely bid to attract Restore Britain votersReform UK’s candidate in the Makerfield byelection has been criticised for welcoming an endorsement by Ant Middleton, the former soldier and TV presenter who the party had distanced itself from over his increasingly extreme views.Robert Kenyon shared a video of himself with Middleton, who he described as “one of my heroes”. Middleton has previously said “well done Southampton” in the wake of violence after the murder of Henry Nowak, and has repeatedly used his own X account to make anti-Muslim comments. Continue reading...

• General Atlantic Co-President Martin Escobari discussed India's economic trajectory during a conversation with Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath on June 11, 2026. • Escobari, representing a firm that has invested over $5 billion in India, urged the nation to be patient and avoid simply replicating China's development model. • He emphasized that India must develop a unique growth strategy tailored to its own specific strengths and systemic complexities to ensure sustainable success.

• A Leamington-based startup has announced its support for UK Small Business Week, a national campaign initiated by Entrepreneurs Circle to honor the impact of small businesses on local communities. • The startup has developed a specialized AI system designed to transform occupational health services, addressing long-standing challenges faced by providers globally. • This initiative highlights the intersection of technological innovation and small business growth, emphasizing how AI can streamline health services for smaller enterprises.

Liberals and Nationals grappling with surging support for Pauline Hanson’s party, which threatens to replace them as Australia’s main conservative partyFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe new Liberal president, Tony Abbott, has backed preference deals with One Nation as he declared the party wouldn’t win the next election by being “slaves to focus groups” and just a “little less woke than Labor”.The opposition leader, Angus Taylor, all but confirmed he was open to such deals with Pauline Hanson, declaring the party was prepared to cooperate with “whoever we can to get rid of this rotten Labor government’”. Continue reading...

• India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has reaffirmed its position that dialogue and diplomacy are the only viable methods to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict. • This statement follows an open letter from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Vladimir Putin, in which Zelenskyy proposed direct peace negotiations. • The move underscores India's consistent diplomatic strategy of neutrality and its push for a peaceful resolution to the war.

• The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Thursday to uphold the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) authority to use "disgorgement" to recover illegal profits. • This decision preserves a critical financial remedy used by the Wall Street watchdog to strip wrongdoers of illicit gains. • The ruling follows a separate 2024 decision where the Court limited the SEC by rejecting its ability to handle certain securities fraud penalty proceedings in-house.

Justices uphold FCC authority to impose in-house penalties, rejecting AT&T and Verizon jury trial claimsSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailThe US supreme court backed the Federal Communications Commission’s system for levying fines, ruling on Thursday against wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon in their challenge to the agency and handing a win to Donald Trump’s administration.The ruling was 8-1. At issue in the legal dispute was whether the agency’s in-house proceedings for imposing the penalties deprived the companies of their right to a jury trial under the US constitution. Trump’s administration defended the FCC’s system for assessing financial penalties, known as forfeiture orders. Continue reading...

Senior independent director to handle process again after Albert Manifold’s shock departure last weekBusiness live – latest updatesBP has backed Dame Amanda Blanc to lead its search for a new chair for a second time, shrugging off investor concerns over her role at the oil company after the shock departure of its chair last week.Some shareholders have voiced concerns over Blanc, the senior independent director at the British oil company, running the process again after Albert Manifold’s short stint as chair. Continue reading...

• French private equity firm Ardian is backing the development of a €5 billion AI "gigafactory" located outside of Paris. • The project involves the construction of a massive data center and research facility designed to bolster Europe's technological infrastructure. • This investment is part of a broader strategic effort to establish a "digital backbone for the future," reducing Europe's reliance on non-EU AI infrastructure.

• Investment firm Ardian has joined the AION consortium in a €10 billion bid to construct an AI gigafactory in France. • The project is part of a broader European Union strategy to enhance AI compute capabilities and reduce technological dependence on the US and China. • If France secures the official EU gigafactory designation, it may attract significant investment and talent, potentially overshadowing competing infrastructure ambitions in Germany, the Netherlands, and the Nordics.

Marles tells Shangri-La Dialogue delegates that ‘seabed is a battlefield’. Follow updates liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastOne Nation leader Pauline Hanson has supported Angus Taylor’s plans to index Australia’s tax thresholds, telling Sky News “they just keep moving all the time”.Hanson says she wants to have a look at tax policy ahead of the next election, proposing an “overhaul” to “make it a fairer system.”Those people who work overtime do their 40 hours a week or 38 hours a week, they’re working overtime, they’re taxed to the hilt, and I think we need to overhaul the whole taxation system.We have witnessed a series of attacks against subsea critical infrastructure at a scale and frequency that is historically unprecedented.Our ability to operate as a modern economy and a functioning state, all of it is critically dependent on infrastructure that is exposed, that cannot move.As we’ve now seen demonstrated in the Baltic, [it] can be cut with an anchor in the middle of the night. Continue reading...

• On May 27, the Supreme Court upheld the Election Commission of India’s authority to conduct Special Intensive Revisions of electoral rolls to ensure voter list accuracy. • The ruling reinforces that citizenship is the fundamental basis for voting rights, aiming to prevent non-citizens and illegal immigrants from participating in elections. • This decision is significant as it validates the Commission's power to remove ineligible names, thereby tackling illegal immigration through administrative scrutiny.

• Europa Cinemas has launched the sixth edition of "Collaborate to Innovate," providing €947,000 in funding to support nine collaborative exhibition projects. • The initiative will benefit 51 member cinemas across Europe, focusing on innovative business models and operational improvements. • A key project includes Cineville Denmark, coordinated by Reprise Teatret in Holte, which aims to implement an unlimited subscription model for independent cinemas.

Will Lawrence, an outspoken opponent of AI data centers, is running in swing district where three mega complexes loomA prominent environmental organizer calling for a nationwide moratorium on data centers as he runs for the Democratic nomination in a swing Michigan congressional district has secured an endorsement from Bernie Sanders.Will Lawrence, co-founder of the youth-led Sunrise Movement climate justice group, was a key figure behind the campaign for a Green New Deal to battle economic and racial injustice while also fighting climate change. Continue reading...

Suit says administration is impinging on rights to life and liberty by worsening planet-warming and toxic pollutionEighteen American youth are demanding that a court immediately halt the Trump administration’s repeal of the scientific finding underpinning virtually all US climate regulations.The plaintiffs sued the Trump administration in February days after officials revoked the 2009 endangerment finding, which found that greenhouse gas pollution threatens public health and welfare. Filed in the Washington DC circuit court of appeals Venner v EPA alleges that the move infringes upon rights guaranteed by the US constitution, including to religious freedom, life and liberty. Continue reading...

Outcry follows release of previously secret documents naming Wollongong suburb as preferred east coast Aukus baseAs Aukus spending and delays blow out, will Australia’s nuclear submarines ever materialise?Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA labour union has expressed alarm about newly released documents that reveal Port Kembla to be a preferred Australian base for nuclear-powered submarines, saying it would “place a massive target on our backs”.The South Coast Labour Council has warned federal and state politicians of “political fallout” should they proceed with “surrendering Port Kembla to Trump’s Navy” as an Aukus base. Continue reading...

Bill Cassidy raised ire of US president for voting to impeach after January 6 – so Trump is backing Julia LetlowThe power of Donald Trump’s endorsement will be put to its latest test on Saturday, when Louisiana holds primary elections in which the US senator Bill Cassidy, who voted to impeach the president following the January 6 insurrection, then tried to make amends by casting the pivotal vote to confirm Robert F Kennedy Jr as health secretary, stands a chance of losing his party’s nomination.An incumbent Republican running for a third term representing a deeply Republican state, Cassidy would normally be a shoo-in for re-election. But in January, Trump abruptly said that the US representative Julia Letlow should run against Cassidy and offered his endorsement, underscoring his continued willingness to seek revenge against anyone in the Republican party who has crossed him. Continue reading...

Backbencher says Keir Starmer’s speech was ‘too little, too late’ but stops short of standing herselfWho are the main threats to Keir Starmer’s Labour leadership?Catherine West, the Labour MP who announced a challenge to Keir Starmer’s leadership, has changed course and said she instead wants the prime minister to set a timetable of September for his departure.West, the MP for Hornsey and Friern Barnet and a former Foreign Office minister, announced on Saturday that she would seek the gather the 81 Labour MPs’ names needed to formally challenge Starmer, while arguing that this was just a device to tempt others to stand, and that she did not wish to take over. Continue reading...