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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...

Seven-day-old Poppy Hope Lomas died after complications during home birth encouraged by midwives at Barnet hospitalA mother who lost her baby a week after an “unsafe” home birth that went against medical advice was failed by the NHS, an inquest has found.Poppy Hope Lomas was seven days old when she died at University College hospital in London on 26 October 2022 after complications during a home birth that, according to her mother, was encouraged by midwives at Barnet hospital. Continue reading...

NSW and Queensland governments ‘severely underdelivered’ on promised infrastructure to improve water flows, independent review findsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastTwo state governments have drastically underdelivered more than $160m in infrastructure measures to improve river health in the northern Murray-Darling basin eight years since they were promised, a major independent review has found.This includes failure by the New South Wales government to secure any of the private land access needed to improve water flows over floodplains in the state’s Gwydir region where scientists had to scramble to rescue turtles in dried up wetlands last week. Continue reading...

Deputy leader ran shell companies that reportedly did not pay tax on profits from 2020 to 2022, during which time his firm donated £1.1m to partyRichard Tice allegedly failed to pay almost £100,000 in corporation tax to the benefit of his investment company, which in turn made donations to Reform UK, it has been reported.In response to the report in the Sunday Times, the deputy leader of Reform UK posted a lengthy statement on X, in which he said: “A long career with multiple businesses is bound to feature some errors. Naturally I am always happy to put things right and if numbers need rechecking, of course I will pay what is owed – be that more or less.” Continue reading...

PM says he is ‘furious’ and did not know security officials had recommended that Mandelson be denied clearanceUK politics live – latest updatesKeir Starmer has said it was “unforgivable” that he was not told that Peter Mandelson had failed his security vetting before being appointed as ambassador to Washington.The prime minister said he was “furious” about what had happened, as he insisted he had not known that security officials had initially recommended that Mandelson be denied clearance. Continue reading...

Guardian investigation uncovers decision by UK security officials to deny clearance before Mandelson took up role as US ambassadorOfficials debate withholding Mandelson vetting documents from parliamentFive key questions: Who overruled the decision to deny Mandelson security clearance?Peter Mandelson failed his security vetting clearance but the decision was overruled by the Foreign Office to ensure he could take up his post as ambassador to the US, an investigation by the Guardian can reveal.According to multiple sources, Mandelson was initially denied clearance in late January 2025 after a developed vetting process, a highly confidential background check by security officials. Continue reading...

• Iranian delegates have claimed they felt "seriously threatened" following the collapse of Vice President JD Vance's negotiations in Islamabad, with Tehran suggesting the failure extended beyond diplomatic disagreement. • An Iranian delegate alleged the team faced security threats on their way home, following Iran's Foreign Ministry condemnations of open calls in U.S. political and media circles for the assassination of Iranian negotiators. • The failed talks represent a major embarrassment for the Trump administration, with claims that the U.S. may have attempted to target Iran's negotiating team.

Iranian sources, however, blame ‘excessive’ demands from Washington for breakdown of talks in Islamabad to resolve US-Iran conflictMiddle East crisis – liveThe US vice-president, JD Vance, has blamed the failure of marathon negotiations with Iran on the country’s refusal to abandon its nuclear weapons programme, while Iranian sources have hit back at “excessive” demands from Washington.Vance, who left Islamabad on Sunday morning after 21 hours of talks with Iranian officials in the Pakistani capital, said his team had been very clear on its red lines, as hopes faded of a quick end to the conflict that began on 28 February. Continue reading...

As president Patrice Talon steps down after a decade, the west African country’s finance minister is favourite to winThis Sunday, just four months after a failed coup, Benin heads to the polls for a presidential election that feels more like a coronation than a contest.Patrice Talon, the businessman turned politician who has been president since 2016, is ineligible to run again after serving two five-year terms. Continue reading...

Australia’s foreign affairs minister says priority ‘must be to continue the ceasefire and return to negotiations’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia’s foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has urged the US and Iran to continue the ceasefire and return to negotiations quickly, after peace talks failed to secure a deal or the re-opening of the strait of Hormuz.Historic face-to-face meetings in Pakistan – marking the highest-level of direct engagement between Washington and Tehran in decades – seemingly broke down after a marathon 21-hour first day of talks. Continue reading...

• Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin lost a confidence vote on April 7 after opposition parties united against his administration, citing corruption allegations and mishandling of economic policy. • The vote count was 272 to 198 against the government; Thavisin announced his resignation and said the coalition government has become unviable, triggering a constitutional crisis over succession. • Thailand's King has been briefed on developments; political analysts warn the instability could undermine investor confidence as the nation faces economic challenges and recovery from recent banking sector stress.

Reports on English policies seen in Wales as relating to whole of UK contribute to widespread confusion, researchers sayUK media is failing to report properly on devolved issues in Wales, leaving voters ill-informed about May’s Senedd elections, a report has found.A Cardiff University study of more than 3,000 news items found repeated patterns in coverage across different broadcasters and platforms, including not signposting whether an issue was relevant to England or England and Wales only, widespread references to “the government” rather than “the UK government”, and the use of “you” and “your” in contexts that apply only to people living in England. Continue reading...

Review finds no ‘meaningful impact’ five years after race action plan launched, amid calls for government to step inPromises by police chiefs to tackle racial bias failed owing to “a lack of clear national leadership”, an independent police report has found.The promises were made five years ago in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement and led police bosses in England and Wales to launch a race action plan promising to tackle the “stigmatising and humiliating” experiences of Black people at the hands of officers. Continue reading...

Senator’s comments come amid growing divisions within the party, which he says has ‘too small of a coalition’Cory Booker, the Democratic senator from New Jersey, renewed his calls for new leadership of the Democratic party, saying the party has “failed this moment”.“As a whole, our party has failed this moment,” Booker said on Sunday. “I’ve called for a generational renewal, because this left-right divide is killing our country and our adversaries know it.” He also said that “purity tests” within the party have led to more division in the US. Continue reading...

PM’s party forecast to win most votes, but another centrist or centre-right coalition appears likelyMette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats and Denmark’s other left-leaning parties appear to have failed to win enough votes to gain a clear mandate to form a government in an election fought amid geopolitical tensions with the US over Greenland.According to two exit polls released shortly after voting stopped on Tuesday evening, the prime minister’s party looked to have won the most votes but still performed worse than expected, with an estimated 19%-21% of the vote. Continue reading...

• The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation announced rescission of its Statement of Policy on Qualifications for Failed Bank Acquisitions, effective March 23, 2026. • The move simplifies regulatory approach to bank resolutions amid ongoing financial policy adjustments under the Trump administration.

Exclusive: Lack of enforcement is allowing people to drop rubbish with complete impunity, says Clean Up BritainScores of councils across the UK have in effect ended enforcement of fines for littering, while others are letting litterers off lightly and many more are neglecting to enforce fines for fly-tipping.At least 71 councils failed to issue a single fine for littering last year, while a further 67 issued fewer than 10, according to data from the Clean Up Britain campaign. Continue reading...