Ending

• La Cámara de Representantes de Estados Unidos aprobó el jueves un proyecto de ley de asignaciones para Homeland Security, despejando el camino para poner fin a un cierre de la agencia de dos meses que había paralizado partes de las operaciones federales de inmigración, fronteras y ciberseguridad. • El presidente Donald Trump firmó la medida poco después, restableciendo la financiación total para el Department of Homeland Security y evitando posibles interrupciones en la seguridad aeroportuaria, las operaciones de deportación y la aplicación de la ley fronteriza durante el año fiscal. • El enfrentamiento por el cierre enfrentó a los aliados de Trump con los republicanos centristas y los demócratas por los niveles de aplicación de la ley fronteriza, pero el proyecto de ley final preservó las iniciativas fronterizas centrales de la era Trump mientras suavizaba algunas demandas de gasto de línea dura.

• La medida bipartidista incluye financiamiento para el Secret Service y la TSA, pero excluye las operaciones de control de inmigración • El cierre parcial del gobierno termina después de que el Congreso votara para financiar el DHS • La Cámara de Representantes de EE. UU. ha votado para financiar gran parte del Department of Homeland Security –excluyendo las operaciones de control de inmigración– y poner fin al cierre de una agencia gubernamental más largo de la historia.

El Reino Unido le siguió de cerca, exportando 675.000 toneladas, con gran parte de los residuos enviados a Turquía, Malasia e Indonesia. Alemania fue el mayor exportador mundial de residuos plásticos en 2025 y envió más de 810.000 toneladas al extranjero, según un análisis de datos comerciales realizado para The Guardian. El Reino Unido le siguió de cerca, según el análisis de Watershed Investigations y la Basel Action Network. Exportó más de 675.000 toneladas, su nivel más alto en ocho años y lo suficiente para llenar unos 127.000 contenedores de transporte. Seguir leyendo...

La producción del primer trimestre, impulsada por la inversión en AI y el gasto gubernamental, aumentó mientras el choque petrolero alimenta los temores de inflación. US gross domestic product (GDP) se aceleró un 2% en los primeros tres meses de 2026, aunque el gasto de los consumidores se está ralentizando a medida que la guerra con Iran continúa impactando los precios de la energía. La última lectura del GDP para el cuarto trimestre de 2025 mostró que el crecimiento económico de US se ralentizó a un ritmo del 0,5%, debido en gran medida a una contracción en el gasto gubernamental tras los despidos masivos de trabajadores federales el año pasado. El gobierno federal cuenta con 355.000 trabajadores menos, o el 11,8% de la fuerza laboral, desde octubre de 2024, según la Bureau of Labor Statistics. Continue reading...

• Una mayoría de estadounidenses expresa preocupación por el aumento de los costos de atención médica y apoya un mayor gasto de impuestos federales para abordar estos desafíos, según el Axios/Ipsos American Health Index publicado el 17 de marzo de 2026. • La encuesta demuestra un apoyo bipartidista a la acción del gobierno sobre la asequibilidad de la atención médica, lo que refleja la preocupación generalizada entre el público de EE. UU. por el incremento de los gastos médicos. • Los estadounidenses también muestran una mayor confianza en la gestión gubernamental de las decisiones sobre vacunación infantil, lo que indica una mayor confianza pública en las intervenciones de políticas de salud.

• La transición y el traspaso legal del hospital del operador privado Healthscope a NSW Health se llevará a cabo a las 7:00 a. m. del miércoles • Siga nuestro blog en vivo de noticias de Australia para obtener las últimas actualizaciones • Obtenga nuestro correo electrónico de noticias de última hora, la aplicación gratuita o el podcast de noticias diario

• El director ejecutivo del banco señala el aumento del fraude mientras reserva otros 105 millones de libras para compensaciones de financiación de vehículos. • Barclays está reduciendo los préstamos a prestatarios riesgosos, mientras su director ejecutivo advierte sobre el incremento de casos de fraude y el banco sufre un impacto de 228 millones de libras tras el colapso de un prestamista hipotecario. • El prestamista hipotecario Market Financial Solutions (MFS) colapsó en febrero en medio de acusaciones de fraude, y el regulador financiero del Reino Unido ha iniciado desde entonces una investigación sobre el escándalo.

Home secretary indicates Whitehall talks about returns programme, a move that would shock humanitarian groupsShabana Mahmood has refused to rule out sending rejected Afghan asylum seekers back to the Taliban-controlled country.The home secretary said she is “monitoring very closely” talks between Kabul and EU countries about a returns programme for refused claimants. She also indicated that “additional conversations” about Afghan returns were happening inside Whitehall. Continue reading...

Minister tells Guardian Australia despite substantial changes to disability scheme, it will remain one of best support services ‘anywhere in the world’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMark Butler has defended the government’s decision to trim the NDIS just days after announcing $53bn in new defence spending, with the health minister conceding Australians may be “uneasy” but insisting it would remain one of the best support services “anywhere in the world”.The Coalition looks likely to back the proposed changes, despite alarm from the Greens and some in the disability sector about the 160,000 participants expected to be removed by 2030 and changes to who can access the scheme. Continue reading...

Shell Australia says campaign needed to ‘counter-balance’ claims by levy advocates – but Ed Husic urges industry ‘do not spend millions defending the indefensible’The gas giants are mounting a multi-million dollar advertising campaign to fight against a new export tax, prompting Labor MP Ed Husic to accuse the industry of “defending the indefensible”.Shell Australia is among half-a-dozen oil and gas companies contributing around $1m to an Australian Energy Producers (AEP) campaign that attempts to justify the amount of tax the industry pays, a parliamentary inquiry heard on Wednesday. Continue reading...

The trend has been accelerated by the US-Israel war on Iran, leaving households – and cafe owners – glum, surveys suggestFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFor many coffee drinkers, takeaway orders are changing from a habitual purchase to an occasional treat, as elevated petrol prices and other living costs leave households feeling glum.This rapid shift in behaviour has disappointed cafe owners and surprised economists, raising an uneasy question: if takeaway coffee sales are falling, is the economy next? Continue reading...

Discussions reportedly come after Trump’s decision to stop initiative that allowed group to apply to resettle in the USThe Trump administration is in discussions to potentially send up to 1,100 Afghans who helped US forces during the war in Afghanistan to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a non-profit confirmed on Tuesday.The resettlement talks, first reported by the New York Times, come after Donald Trump’s decision to stop an initiative that allowed Afghans who assisted US war efforts to apply to resettle in the US. Continue reading...

Health minister faces backlash from states as he announces major changes to scheme ahead of May budgetGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastNational disability insurance scheme service providers will be required to undergo mandatory character checks and eligibility rules will be tightened further for children under 18, as Labor moves to curb growth in the $50bn program.But the health minister, Mark Butler, faces a backlash from state counterparts as he announces major changes on Wednesday, with Queensland accusing federal Labor of walking away from responsibilities to families dependent on long-term care. Continue reading...

Head of UN’s humanitarian agency frustrated $2bn a week cost of conflict comes amid dramtic cuts to aid budgetThe $2bn (£1.5bn) a week that Donald Trump was spending on his reckless war in Iran could have funded saving more than 87 million lives, the head of the UN’s humanitarian agency, Tom Fletcher, said on Monday.He also warned the normalisation of violent language, such as threatening to bomb Iran back to the stone ages, was very dangerous since it encourages every wannabe autocrat to use similar threats and tactics, including the destruction of civilians and civilian infrastructure. Continue reading...

• AI integration is delivering measurable spending momentum for Google Cloud, with enterprise technology research data confirming AI as a primary driver of cloud adoption. • The ML/AI segment is pulling Google's broader cloud business forward, explaining significant improvements in Google Cloud's performance over the past two years. • This trend indicates that AI is not merely a marketing narrative for Google but a concrete factor influencing enterprise purchasing decisions and cloud strategy prioritization.

Aviation fuel costs remain significantly elevated amid the US and Israel’s ongoing war with IranSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxAir Canada has announced a temporary suspension of flights from Toronto and Montreal to New York’s John F Kennedy airport, citing rising fuel prices.The move comes amid growing concerns that airlines worldwide may scale back services as aviation fuel costs climb in the wake of the US and Israel’s ongoing war with Iran, which entered a fragile ceasefire earlier in April. Although Iran announced on Friday that the strait of Hormuz had reopened, helping ease oil prices, fuel costs remain significantly elevated after weeks of disruption. Continue reading...

The defence minister insists that increases in spending did not happen because of thinktanks, retired generals ‘or washed-up bureaucrats’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIf there’s anyone who knows just how much pressure Donald Trump is heaping on allies to lift defence spending, it’s Richard Marles.The message was received loud and clear when he met his US counterpart, Pete Hegseth, in Singapore nearly a year ago. Continue reading...

MPs and peers say pitting defence and welfare against each other risks losing public support for increased spending on the militarySenior Labour figures have warned that Rachel Reeves must find alternative ways to increase military spending rather than slashing welfare, saying it risks public support for investment in defence.Pressure has been mounting from Labour backbenchers for the Treasury to urgently agree the defence investment plan (Dip) after George Robertson, a former Nato secretary general, said there was a “corrosive complacency” on defence funding. Continue reading...

The new strategy to be unveiled by Richard Marles will see defence spending rise to about 2.4% of GDP – but US president has urged allies to spend 3.5%Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLabor will spend an extra $53bn on defence over the next decade, using the nation’s latest military blueprint to create new special investment programs to fund increases in capability using private capital.The defence minister, Richard Marles, will unveil the new national defence strategy on Thursday, as well as detailing a new integrated investment program for military capability, boosting the current budget by $14bn over the next four years, forward estimates period. Continue reading...

Treasury minister James Murray hits back at George Robertson’s criticism over military budgetUK politics live – latest updatesA Treasury minister has said balancing welfare and defence spending “is not a zero-sum game”, amid stark warnings that the UK will have to increase its military budget to ensure national security during global volatility.James Murray, the chancellor’s deputy, said the government was pushing ahead with the biggest sustained increase in defence investments since the cold war, but he would not say when it would publish its delayed defence investment plan. Continue reading...

Data from 22 police forces shows spending has more than tripled since the ban came into force in 2024Police spending on kennels and veterinary bills in England and Wales has more than tripled since the XL bully ban came into force, with some forces recording an almost 500% spending increase since the new law was enacted in 2024.Data from 22 police forces obtained via freedom of information requests showed police spending had soared from an average of £137,400 per force in 2022-23 to £423,136 in 2024-25. Continue reading...

Deal for resident doctors was in sight when sudden change by ministers forced latest action, says Jack FletcherMinisters killed the chance to end strikes by resident doctors when they suddenly reduced the amount of money they were offering to secure the peace deal, the doctors’ leader claims.Dr Jack Fletcher accused the government of “playing games” and forcing resident doctors to embark on their 15th strike over pay and jobs, which is disrupting the NHS this week. Continue reading...

Rhun ap Iorwerth launches party’s manifesto and says he is unconcerned by Reform UK threat in Welsh electionsUK politics live – latest updatesPlaid Cymru’s leader has promised “no more bending to Westminster’s will” as the nationalist party stands on the brink of taking office for the first time in next month’s Senedd elections.Speaking at Plaid Cymru’s manifesto launch in Wrexham on Thursday – chosen because of its football team, which has showcased Wales’s potential to the world – Rhun ap Iorwerth told a packed room of supporters there would be “no more toeing the London party line, no more defending the status quo and no more saying no to Wales”. Continue reading...

Government allocated 0.43% of national income to aid in 2025, with total spend down £1bn on previous yearThe UK government’s spending on foreign aid has hit its lowest level in nearly two decades, figures show, as humanitarian experts warn the cuts are costing lives.Provisional data shows the government allocated 0.43% of national income to official development assistance (ODA) in 2025, a decrease from 0.5% in 2024 and matching the level in 2008. Continue reading...

Report by the prime minister’s office says a total ban would have a ‘higher net benefit’ but would hit sporting codes very hardFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Albanese government’s plans to restrict gambling advertising will reduce Australia’s annual gambling spending by $62.7m a year – or just 0.8% – according to a government report which said a full ad ban would have had “a higher net benefit” but a large burden on media and sporting codes.The report from Anthony Albanese’s Office of Impact Analysis (OIA) also revealed podcasts, app stores and even the NRL and AFL websites will be subject to Labor’s gambling reforms, which ban online wagering ads unless those platforms build an opt-out feature for adults. Continue reading...

Republican Tony Gonzales ended re-election bid in March after admitting to having affair with a different aideSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxA second former female staffer for Tony Gonzales, a Republican congressman from Texas, has come forward claiming Gonzales sent her sexually explicit messages.The San Antonio Express-News first reported the text messages on Monday and NBC News later confirmed the report. Continue reading...

Aria Fani of University of Washington’s Middle East Center is latest critic of Israel to lose position at US universitySign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxA University of Washington professor was removed as head of the school’s Middle East Center after reportedly using newsletters from the center to criticize the US and Israel’s war on Iran and describe Zionism as “cancerous”.His case is one of at least three incidents in the past month in which higher education faculty members have faced suspension or dismissal after voicing opposition to US-Israeli actions in the Middle East. Continue reading...