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• NASA is investing $30 million in the "Swift Boost" mission, scheduled to launch on June 27, to rescue the aging Swift observatory. • The nearly 22-year-old telescope is currently being dragged toward Earth's atmosphere, risking a premature reentry and destruction. • This first-of-its-kind rescue operation is critical to preserving the observatory's ability to monitor cosmic events from space.

• Reporter Catherine Herridge is petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to block a ruling that requires her to reveal confidential sources or face a $800-per-day fine. • The legal battle stems from a privacy act lawsuit filed by an individual named Chen, who seeks to identify the sources of stories Herridge wrote for Fox News in 2017. • The case centers on information Herridge reported regarding a U.S. government investigation into Chen's background and an educational program in Virginia.

Catherine Herrridge makes final bid to stave off penalty related to series of stories she wrote in 2017 for Fox NewsMore than two years ago, a US district court judge took the extraordinary step of holding the veteran investigative journalist Catherine Herridge in civil contempt, ordering her to pay a steep daily fine of $800 per day unless she reveals her sources for a series of stories she wrote in 2017 for Fox News.Since then, the case has slowly moved through the appeals process, with Herridge dealt a series of defeats. On Tuesday, the US court of appeals for the District of Columbia circuit issued a one-sentence ruling denying Herridge’s plea to stay the February 2024 ruling holding her in contempt, an order made by district court judge Christopher R Cooper. Continue reading...

The monarch’s declaration doesn’t tell us much, except that his bill is lower than for people with much smaller fortunesThe veil of secrecy that surrounds the royal finances was nudged aside a little on Thursday to allow the release of a new piece of information. We learned for the first time how much the king’s annual tax bill comes to.This was not a full tax return. It was a two-sentence declaration, stating his tax payable amounted to £12.9m in 2024-25, and a slightly smaller sum the year before. His total tax payable since accession comes to £30m. Continue reading...

New member for Makerfield and expected next prime minister joins other MPs who donate some or all of their payAndy Burnham has said he will be donating 15% of his MP’s salary to local causes in his constituency of Makerfield.An MP’s salary currently stands at £98,599 and a number of MPs currently donate all of their salary or a part of it to charities and causes in the areas they represent. Continue reading...

Apple Macbook 13-inch prices jumps from $1,799 to $2,099 while the cost of iPads surges by 25%Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralians woke up on Friday to higher prices for Macbooks and iPads after Apple hiked worldwide, blaming an AI-driven cost crunch for computer parts.The iPhone range was unaffected but experts predict Apple will raise prices for its flagship product later this year. Microsoft also lifted its Xbox prices overnight amid a wave of increases for phones and devices. Continue reading...

• Only four EU member states have implemented the EU’s Pay Transparency Directive, failing to meet the June deadline for adoption. • The directive is designed to strengthen the enforcement of equal pay rules and reduce gender-based wage gaps across the European Union. • This widespread failure to comply highlights a significant split within the bloc regarding the urgency and implementation of pay equity laws.

• JPMorgan Chase has launched a $50 billion share buyback program, signaling strong confidence in its financial position. • The move follows Federal Reserve stress tests, which confirmed that major U.S. banks maintain strong capitalization and stable capital requirements. • This initiative is part of a broader trend among top U.S. financial institutions to increase shareholder payouts following the regulatory approvals.

• 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.

Agreement is first by federal government to resolve enforcement claims against a major Pfas manufacturerThe Trump administration on Wednesday reached a multi-state settlement with chemical giant Chemours Co over years-long, illegal discharges of synthetic “forever chemicals” used to make products resistant to water, grease and stains. The settlement is the first by the federal government to resolve enforcement claims against a manufacturer of harmful chemicals known as Pfas.Under the agreement, filed in federal court in West Virginia, Chemours will pay a civil penalty of $22.5m for alleged violations and spend $90m over 15 years to mitigate Pfas discharges in three states: West Virginia, North Carolina and New Jersey. Continue reading...

Customers report having to use cash at stores such as Tesco and to buy drinks due to outage at payments processor WorldPayShoppers reported problems with making card payments at British pubs and supermarkets on Tuesday after a power outage affected one of the world’s largest payment processing platforms.Customers said contactless payments were not working at a number of stores including Tesco branches at a time when football fans were watching the World Cup group game between England and Ghana at pubs, screenings and restaurants. Continue reading...

The victory may have dinged Labor’s chances of easily passing its significant cost-cutting reforms to the NDIS through the Senate in AugustGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe government scored a crucial win on Tuesday, securing support for its tax changes through the Senate. But that victory may have dinged Labor’s chances of easily passing its other major budget measure – significant cost-cutting reforms to the NDIS – through the Senate in August.Labor’s deal with the Greens sees an inquiry into the NDIS extended for two months, with plans for new public hearings and more time for a committee process, after even the health minister, Mark Butler, admitted he had heard “confronting” evidence from the disability community fearful of losing access to key supports. Eight additional weeks of a public inquiry, spearheaded by an activist party hellbent on trying to kill this bill, is not nothing. Continue reading...

Martin Seidenberg, chief executive of parent company IDS, handed payouts after takeover of UK postal serviceBusiness live – latest updatesThe boss of the parent company of Royal Mail saw his pay and bonus package more than triple last year to almost £7m, despite group profits slumping by a fifth.Martin Seidenberg, the group chief executive of International Distribution Services (IDS), took home £6.9m in pay, bonus and long-term incentive scheme awards in the year to 31 March. This compares with the £2.1m he took home the previous year. Continue reading...

One Nation leader says she isn’t suggesting Australia get rid of taxpayer-funded parental leave entitlementsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPauline Hanson says small businesses will “fold” under the cost of providing paid parental leave, as Labor suggested the One Nation leader didn’t understand how the policy worked.It is not compulsory for employers to pay parental leave entitlements in Australia, though most businesses do provide it and employees are entitled to 12 months of unpaid leave. Continue reading...

Ursula von der Leyen, Merz and Zelenskyy say UK PM helped increase European and Ukrainian securityEuropean leaders have paid tribute to Keir Starmer after he announced his resignation as prime minister, triggering the postponement of an upcoming EU-UK summit.The European Council president, António Costa, said “for sure we need to postpone it, but we are reassessing the opportunity to hold this new summit”. Continue reading...

Two-thirds of respondents support increasing the 2% digital services tax for multinationalsTaxpayers want the UK to increase levies on giant global technology companies such as Facebook owner Meta, Google and Amazon, a survey of Britons’ attitudes on corporate taxes suggests.The polling released on Monday by the Fair Tax Foundation – abody providing businesses with certification around responsible tax conduct – found that 67% of respondents believe that the government should charge higher digital services taxes on multinational technology groups “to increase their overall tax contribution in the UK”. Continue reading...

Albanese government under pressure to wind back fuel tax credit scheme for multinational miners as analysis shows cost to budgetGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastCoal companies could receive an extra $6.2bn in taxpayer refunds for the diesel they use if the Albanese government greenlights just half the mine developments up for approval.The finding, in an analysis released by activist group Lock the Gate, comes as the government faces an internal campaign before next month’s Labor party national conference to commit to winding back a fuel tax credit scheme for multinational miners. Continue reading...

Liam Byrne, who chairs Commons business committee, says too many operators are still waiting for redressThe Japanese tech company at the centre of the Post Office IT scandal is facing calls from a parliamentary committee to make an “immediate” payment towards the compensation bill for victims.Fujitsu supplied the faulty Horizon software to the UK Post Office, which led to branch operators being wrongly prosecuted over discrepancies in their business accounts. Continue reading...

• The EU Pay Transparency Directive entered into force in May 2023, requiring all member states to implement compliant local legislation by June 7, 2026. • The directive aims to combat gender-based pay discrimination by introducing clearer, more practical reporting and transparency obligations for employers. • In Portugal, employers are advised to review hiring practices and organize pay data now to prepare for legislation following the February 2026 elections.

Labour and Tories claimed Green party leader breached London assembly ethics code over non-payment of taxZack Polanski has been cleared by an ethics inquiry looking into complaints that he did not pay council tax while living on a houseboat.A report by the Greater London authority’s monitoring officer found that the circumstances of the Green party leader’s living arrangements were beyond its scope and he had therefore not breached the code of conduct for London assembly members. Continue reading...

• Five subsidiaries of the JoongAng Group, the media empire responsible for hits like "Culinary Class Wars," have filed for financial restructuring. • The instability threatens Plus M, a major film distributor, specifically casting doubt on the release of the highly anticipated blockbuster "Hope." • Directed by Na Hong-jin and starring Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander, "Hope" is considered the event release of the year after premiering at Cannes in May.

Congressman Jamie Raskin alleges FBI director authorized substantial recurring payments to agents in his inner circleFBI director Kash Patel has been accused of directing more than $1m in taxpayer-funded bonus payments to a small circle of loyalist agents as part of a “personal slush fund” that may have violated federal law.Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the ranking member of the House of Representatives judiciary committee, alleged Patel had authorized substantial recurring payments to agents in his inner circle and security detail. Continue reading...

National Audit Office says agency proposes closing operations in 11 countries as part of turnaround planThe British Council faces cutting its workforce further and closing operations in 11 countries as it struggles to repay a crippling £197m Covid-era government loan that threatens its survival, the public spending watchdog has said.The UK’s soft-power agency remains loss-making six years on from the pandemic and is not expected to make a profit until 2029-30, a report from the National Audit Office says. Continue reading...

General secretary of TUC calls Reform proposal ‘a smokescreen for slashing women’s rights’UK politics live – latest updatesA law proposed by Nigel Farage to “strengthen women’s rights” could cost female workers money by removing equal pay for work of equal value, unions have said.A proposal, made by Reform UK days before the Makerfield byelection, to introduce a Women and Motherhood Protection Act that it says will restore equality before the law has been described as “shameless and deceptive”. Continue reading...

Former Howard-era adviser says Pauline Hanson’s party is channelling Donald Trump’s health agendaGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMedical experts have blasted One Nation’s health policies, saying they do not make sense, are based on misconceptions and could cost taxpayers more money while leaving vulnerable Australians without access to care.The party has promised to withdraw Australia from the World Health Organization and to scrap regulator the Therapeutic Goods Administration, rolling its “essential functions” into the health department. It has also proposed adding photo ID to Medicare cards. Continue reading...

Prime minister flags an announcement following deliberations of cabinet’s expenditure review committeeAnthony Albanese has signalled the federal government is open to extending the temporary cut to the fuel excise to help cushion motorists from a months-long tail to the Middle East conflict.The prime minister also welcomed the announcement of a peace deal between the US and Iran to end the war and reopen the strait of Hormuz. Continue reading...

Some fighters will receive bonuses in ‘stablecoins’ issued by Trump family business World Liberty FinancialThe Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) announced on Friday that it will pay bonuses to fighters in a form of cryptocurrency issued by Trump family business World Liberty Financial at the heavily publicized White House mixed martial arts event on Sunday.The development connects the Trump family’s financial interests to the high-profile UFC competition being promoted on government property. The competition on the south White House lawn is scheduled for 14 June, Donald Trump’s birthday. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Former minister calls for urgent action against companies such as X that allow incitement to violenceWes Streeting has called for Keir Starmer to take urgent action against X and other online platforms that have helped whip up social tensions, suggesting they should be forced to contribute to rebuilding costs after the riots in Belfast.The intervention by the former health secretary, who is seen as a likely challenger to Keir Starmer in any leadership contest, comes after Downing Street said any response would be left to Ofcom, the media regulator, meaning no action is likely for at least two months. Continue reading...