Guardian

One Nation outperforms the Coalition for the first time, while the rightwing populist party’s leader has a positive rating among all age groupsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA majority of surveyed Australians approve of Pauline Hanson’s leadership of One Nation, giving her a higher job approval rating than Anthony Albanese and Angus Taylor, as the Guardian Essential poll finds the rightwing populist party is outperforming the Coalition for the first time.The results come as Australians are becoming more pessimistic about the country and the economy, with the majority of respondents saying they expected things to get worse in coming months. Continue reading...

Scott Trust identifies priorities for communities in Jamaica and US Sea Islands with plans to allocate millions of poundsWe asked what repairing the harm of enslavement would look like. This is what we foundThe owner of the Guardian has announced the next phase of its 10-year restorative justice plan to address and atone for the news organisation’s historical links to transatlantic enslavement.The Scott Trust launched the Legacies of Enslavement programme in 2023, acknowledging that the founder of the Manchester Guardian, and his backers, profited from the enslavement of African people in Jamaica and the US. Continue reading...

Investigation of Family Dollar and Dollar General prompts lawmakers to double penalties for retailers that repeatedly charge more at checkout than prices listed on shelvesUtah lawmakers have voted to stiffen penalties on retailers who chronically overcharge customers.The new state law, which takes effect on 6 May, was introduced in direct response to a Guardian investigation of pricing practices at two national chains, Dollar General and Family Dollar, according to an official who oversees the state’s price-accuracy inspections. Continue reading...

TMTG drops defamation claim over report that prosecutors were investigating payments received as possible money launderingDonald Trump’s media corporation has dropped a defamation claim against the Guardian and two other defendants over a report that federal prosecutors were investigating $8m in payments the company received from entities with ties to Vladimir Putin as possible money laundering.A filing in the 12th judicial circuit in Sarasota county, Florida, on Friday confirms that Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), the parent company of the president’s Truth Social platform, was withdrawing its claims without prejudice, meaning it could refile the lawsuit at a later date. Continue reading...

Our wildlife series Young Country Diary is looking for articles written by children, about their spring encounters with natureOnce again, the Young Country Diary series is open for submissions! Every three months we ask you to send us an article written by a child aged 8-14.The article needs to be about a recent encounter they’ve had with nature – whether it’s a marauding toad, a fascinating flower or a garden bird. Continue reading...

The US is recklessly spreading economic havoc among global friends and foes while suffering little harm itselfTo shield ordinary Indians from the war in Iran, the government in Delhi redirected supplies of liquefied gas to Indian families, for which it is the main cooking fuel, limiting supplies to the plastics industry. The Nepalese government rationed gas and the Philippines trimmed the government workweek to four days. Bangladesh closed universities and rationed fuel.They have been hardest hit by Iran’s closure of the strait of Hormuz. Economies in Asia import over a third of the energy they consume, on average. Korea imports four-fifths; Japan nine-tenths; Thailand 55%. Most of this comes from the Gulf. About 80% of oil and oil products transiting through the strait in 2025 was destined for Asia, according to the International Energy Agency. But traffic through its waters has collapsed by 90%. Continue reading...

Poll also finds Australians keener for government to forge closer ties with ‘middle powers’ such as Canada and JapanGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastOnly one in four Australians approve of the US-Israel war on Iran, and just a third have backed the federal government’s actions in sending a military plane and troops to the region, according to a new poll.The latest Guardian Essential poll found Australians are keener for the government to forge closer ties with so-called “middle powers” such as Canada and Japan, with about a third wanting to distance from the US. Continue reading...