Question

De leider van Reform UK heeft de helikopter gebruikt om bijeenkomsten in het hele land bij te wonen, meest recent op vrijdag Nigel Farage krijgt vragen over waarom hij het gebruik van de helikopter van een donor, om voor bijeenkomsten door Groot-Brittannië te reizen, niet heeft gemeld. De helikopter, die Farage nog gebruikte op vrijdag na lokale verkiezingen in heel Groot-Brittannië, is eigendom van een bedrijf van Lorenzo Zaccheo, een zakenman die vorig jaar £25.000 aan Reform heeft geschonken. Lees verder...

Taiwan, tarieven en de Straat van Hormuz staan op de agenda van de bijeenkomst voor Beijing – maar zal de Amerikaanse president gedwongen worden om hulp te vragen bij het beëindigen van zijn oorlog met Iran? On 20 februari bevestigde een functionaris van het Witte Huis dat president Donald Trump de volgende maand naar Beijing zou reizen om Chinese leider Xi Jinping te ontmoeten. Hoogst op de agenda: de handelsdoorstrijd tussen de VS en China. Eén week later keurde Trump gezamenlijke aanvallen met Israël tegen Iran goed, waarmee een nieuwe oorlog in het Midden-Oosten begon. De gevolgen hiervan hebben zich ver buiten de regio verspreid en hebben gezorgd voor onrust in Beijing. De presidentiële top is uitgesteld. Lees verder...

Reform-leider geïrriteerd bij vragen over geld van Christopher Harborne op dag van verkiezingswinsten van partij

Stanley Burkhardt, veroordeelde misbruiker en voormalig onderzoeker van seksuele misdrijven tegen kinderen, legt verklaring af in civiele zaak

US commerce secretary to sit for transcribed interview as part of House oversight committee’s broader investigationThe US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, will appear before the House oversight and reform committee on Wednesday to answer questions over his past ties to Jeffrey Epstein.Lutnick agreed in March to sit for a transcribed interview with the committee following the justice department’s release of millions of documents related to Epstein, which included documents showing that Lutnick continued correspondence with Epstein after the disgraced financier had been convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor. The session is part of the committee’s broader investigation into Epstein. Continue reading...

Ryan Cohen said he didn’t understand questions about how the video games retailer could afford its $55.5bn bidSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailGameStop’s shares fell more than 10% on Monday as questions emerged about how the company would finance its surprise $55.5bn bid for eBay.In an interview with CNBC, Ryan Cohen, GameStop’s CEO, skirted repeated inquiries about how the video games retailer could afford the deal, saying he didn’t understand the questions. Continue reading...

President says US navy will ‘guide’ stranded ships out of waterway but report says warship was hit by IranMiddle East crisis – live updatesThe world’s shipping industry has questioned if vessels will be able to travel safely to and from the Gulf after Donald Trump announced his latest plan to open the strait of Hormuz.The US president wrote on Monday that the navy would “guide” stranded ships out of the waterway, writing on his social media site Truth Social that the operation, “Project Freedom”, would be a humanitarian gesture “on behalf of the United States, Middle Eastern Countries but, in particular, the Country of Iran”. Continue reading...

As antisemitic incidents rise, some Jewish people are asking if it’s time to leave – and where they might go nextFor many Jews sitting down with family and friends for Friday night dinner, the conversation is now turning to their “red line”. “What do we do? Do we have to leave?” asked Barry Frankfurt. Israel had once been a place some might have considered retiring to, to live by the sea. “Never in our lifetime has it been considered we need to run away, we need to seek refuge … and that place might have to be Israel,” said Frankfurt, a brand consultant in north London. “We might have to do that because we don’t feel safe in the country we call home.“Every couple of weeks you’ll hear of another couple or family in the community who have moved or will be moving soon to Israel,” he said. “And that should be the thing that shocks us as a country.” Continue reading...

Critics say women face unequal treatment but others say tighter controls reflect legitimate medical concernsA psychologist who was denied sterilisation on the NHS has successfully challenged the decision after taking her case to the health ombudsman, raising questions over how accessible the procedure should be.Leah Spasova spent years seeking an operation to prevent pregnancy by blocking the fallopian tubes. Many argue that barriers faced by women, from funding refusals to stricter eligibility criteria, amount to unequal treatment compared with men seeking vasectomies, and limit bodily autonomy. Continue reading...

• Hundreds gathered at the U.S. Supreme Court on April 29, 2026, for arguments on Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians and Syrians, with justices scrutinizing President Trump's authority to end the program. • The bench appeared skeptical of broad executive power to revoke deportation amnesties, per reports from the hearing. • A ruling could impact thousands facing deportation and test limits on immigration executive actions ahead of midterms.

The 155-page interim report released on Thursday shows how little is known – and can be shared – about the 14 December shootingGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIf there’s one thing that’s clear from the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion’s 155-page interim report, it’s how much about the Bondi massacre remains unknown – and how little of what is known can be shared with the public.More than a third of the recommendations from the report – which was released on Thursday – were confidential, although the Albanese government plans to implement all of them. Continue reading...

Reform leader went public after approach from Guardian, but does his claim stack up that money was for his security?Nigel Farage was given undisclosed £5m by crypto billionaire in 2024Nigel Farage has admitted he received a personal gift of £5m from the Reform UK mega-donor Christopher Harborne shortly before the general election in 2024.He did not disclose that gift at the time. And he made no mention of it in the year since. That is, until Wednesday morning, when the Daily Telegraph published a story in which Farage admitted receiving the money from Harborne – saying it was for his personal security. Continue reading...

• Pittsburgh Steelers' 'Asked and Answered' session on April 28 addressed fan concerns over recent first-round offensive line selections. • The discussion referenced past misses like Jamain Stephens and quarterback records such as Mason Rudolph's 5-4-1 mark. • Injuries highlight the risks of drafting linemen, impacting team strategy for upcoming seasons.

Secret Service director says security succeeded in stopping shooter before he could do further harm but others disagreeThe shooting in the White House correspondents’ gala has prompted questions over security with some asking how a shooter was able to get close to where Donald Trump and many other senior administration officials were gathered and many others praising the actions of law enforcement that swiftly stopped the attack.As details about the shooting at the Washington Hilton continued to surface, the alleged shooter Cole Tomas Allen, 31, mocked an “insane” lack of security at the Washington dinner in a manifesto reportedly send to his family 10 minutes before his assault started. Continue reading...

Hope Not Hate campaign identifies election hopefuls calling for a ‘white Britain’ and complaining of ‘kowtowing to the black community’A Reform UK candidate who called for a “white Britain” and said Keir Starmer should be shot is among a number of contenders fuelling doubts about the party’s claim to have tightened up its vetting.The past comments of Linda McFarlane and other political hopefuls have been unearthed ahead of the 7 May elections, including one who complained about “constant kowtowing to the black community” and others who endorsed the far-right activist Tommy Robinson. Continue reading...

• House Republicans openly questioned President Donald Trump's mid-decade redistricting strategy on Wednesday, following a Democratic victory in Virginia on Tuesday that threatens the GOP's slim House majority. • The Virginia vote paves the way for as many as four Republican seats to be lost, intensifying GOP concerns about the redistricting war Trump sparked. • Republican lawmakers are now expressing misgivings about the strategy, signaling potential fractures within the party over Trump's aggressive electoral positioning ahead of the November midterms.

Health secretary says ‘I had nothing to do with the measles outbreak’ and claims to support measles and MMR vaccinesHealth secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr faced intense questioning from several US senators on Wednesday during a hearing largely focused on how the administration has responded to the measles outbreak and the spread of vaccine misinformation.In his opening remarks to the Senate finance committee, the senator Ron Wyden criticized Kennedy’s messaging on vaccines, saying: “When it comes to vaccines, Robert Kennedy has used this once-in-a-lifetime platform to make parents doubt themselves and doubt their doctors,” before adding: “The secretary has ducked, bobbed and weaved without taking the responsibility of saying what needs to be said: vaccines save lives in America.” Continue reading...

Mandelson received two ‘clearance denied’ red ticks yet top Foreign Office civil servant says he did not have access to file – which he later readUK politics live – latest updatesThe verdict on Olly Robbins’ parliamentary testimony, among fellow knights of the civil service realm at least, was unanimous. Lord Sedwill, a former Cabinet secretary, called on the prime minister to “retract his accusations against Olly Robbins and reinstate him”.Simon McDonald, who once held Robbins’ job as top civil servant in the Foreign Office, said if Keir Starmer had only waited to hear his evidence to the foreign affairs select committee he would never have sacked him. Continue reading...

Exclusive: McSweeney summoned by foreign affairs select committee in rare step, as Mandelson vetting row continuesUK politics live – latest updatesMorgan McSweeney, the prime minister’s former chief of staff, has been summoned before the foreign affairs select committee as the Peter Mandelson vetting row continued to undermine Keir Starmer’s premiership.As MPs attempt to unravel the facts, McSweeney is to appear next Tuesday to respond to allegations that Downing Street put huge pressure on the civil service to approve his appointment as the UK’s ambassador to Washington. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Victims’ commissioner makes formal complaint after committee session left one attender ‘shocked, upset and extremely distressed’Victims of rape and sexual violence have told parliamentarians they felt anxious and distressed during a Westminster evidence session, with one stating that witnessing “pugnacious” questioning had resulted in her “breaking down, sobbing and struggling to breathe”.The victims’ commissioner has made a formal complaint to the chair of an influential group of MPs after a highly charged evidence session carried out by the public bill committee for the courts and tribunals bill about controversial changes to jury trials. Continue reading...

Jose Ramos-Horta urged by opposition to explain diplomatic passport given to businessman behind resort project, who denies any involvement with organised crimeTimor-Leste’s opposition has questioned how foreign investors in a proposed cryptocurrency resort obtained prime beachfront real estate in the country’s capital, and has called on the president to explain why he issued a diplomatic passport to a Chinese businessman involved in the project.Speaking in parliament in Dili on Monday, Fretilin opposition party MP Florentino Ximenes da Costa “Sinarai” raised concerns about the proposed AB Digital Technology Resort, which was the subject of a months-long investigation by the Guardian and Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP). Continue reading...

Sacked Foreign Office chief tells MPs he was briefed that UKSV considered Mandelson ‘a borderline case’UK politics live – latest updatesAn account of Peter Mandelson’s vetting process given by the former top civil servant Sir Olly Robbins has raised new questions about whether Robbins was misled about the findings of the agency responsible for vetting.Robbins, who was sacked from his role of permanent secretary at the Foreign Office last week after revelations in the Guardian, gave testimony about the process to a select committee. Continue reading...

Robbins was forced out as Foreign Office permanent secretary over the Mandelson vetting revelations in the GuardianDonald Trump seems to be conducting his relationship with Keir Starmer chiefly by online trolling at the moment. He was at it again overnight, with a post on his Truth Social network saying that, when Starmer appointed Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US, it was a “really bad pick”.Good morning. At 9am Olly Robbins will give evidence to the Commons foreign affairs committee about the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US. Until last week Robbins was permanent secretary at the Foreign Office and his predecessor but one in that office, Simon McDonald, was the man who terminated Boris Johnson’s career with a revelation showing that Johnson had lied about his knowledge of a sleaze allegation about a minister. Robbins is not expected to produce a bombshell on that scale, but his evidence will be moment of jeodpardy for Keir Starmer nevertheless.Back before Lord Mandelson was announced as the appointee, there was a process … within the Cabinet Office to make sure that the prime minister was aware of Lord Mandelson and the issues around his appointment. There was then a process of clearing his conflicts of interest, which the employing department [the Foreign Office] oversaw, which we have talked about. In parallel with that process, we also went through the standard UK national security vetting process for DV [developed vetting].By the time we are describing [when DV was carried out], it was clear that the prime minister wanted to make this appointment himself. Continue reading...

The prime minister’s leadership is still in the spotlight after Mandelson was appointed US ambassador after he failed security vettingLiz Kendall has repeated David Lammy’s claim the prime minister would have stopped Peter Mandelson’s appointment if he had known the peer had failed security vetting.Speaking to Trevor Phillips on Sky News on Sunday, the science and technology said Keir Starmer was a “man of integrity”. Continue reading...

Exclusive: The club, owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, received the grant without a contract or final state aid assessment in placeWrexham AFC, the football club part-owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, was given a £3.8m government grant without a contract or a finished state aid assessment in place, raising questions over whether the award was lawful.The club has received £18m in taxpayer-funded grants – far more than any other in the UK – to help to redevelop its stadium, the Racecourse Ground (Y Cae Ras in Welsh). Continue reading...

How did the PM’s chosen US ambassador fail security vetting but still get approved, what exactly did he know, and who is to blame?Downing Street has tried to do a lot of explaining, as has Keir Starmer himself. But there are still plenty of things we do not know about how Peter Mandelson failed security vetting, and what the prime minister did or did not know about it. Continue reading...

Patchy employment records, bankruptcies and allegations of wrongdoing blemish the records of several new recruitsSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxRapid recruitment and expansion by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has led to an influx of employees with questionable qualifications, an investigation has found.The track records of some of the new recruits amid the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda stand out – and not in a good way. Continue reading...

Brian Hooker told police that Lynette Hooker fell overboard and that strong currents carried her awayPolice in the Bahamas have released without charges a Michigan man who said his wife disappeared after falling overboard from a small boat in waters off the Caribbean island country, authorities said Monday.Brian Hooker, of Onsted in southern Michigan, had been in police custody since 8 April – five days – after being questioned by authorities. Continue reading...