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Manager has been linked with move to Anfield ‘I would like to speak and listen to the plan for the team’ Roberto De Zerbi says he will hold further talks with Brighton before deciding whether to leave the club at the end of the season amid links to the Liverpool manager’s role. The Italian was in the away dugout at Anfield on Sunday to watch his Brighton side lose 2-1 against Liverpool . But with Jürgen Klopp to leave Anfield in the summer, and Xabi Alonso ruling himself out as a potential successor, De Zerbi is one of the main candidates, alongside Sporting’s Rúben Amorim, to take over and he has halted contract talks with Brighton. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/i2UdHnc

Ireland 21- 27 Italy Italians cling on for the win as Irish stage late fightback Hooker Vittoria Vecchini scored two tries as Italy beat Ireland 27-21 in the Women’s Six Nations in Dublin. Vecchini barged over the line from close range in the 25th minute and repeated the trick in the second half following a superb break from winger Alyssa D’Inca at the RDS Arena. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/cFfA0qS

“We shall overcome” read a banner passed through the bottom tier of the Trent End. “It’s time to bring the noise,” demanded a high-concept club social media post. In truth, the cacophony didn’t fully arrive until Chris Wood’s equaliser on the hour but once it did, the City Ground rocked with defiance until a hush descended at the final whistle. In Nottingham Forest’s first game since a four-point deduction was imposed to drop them into the relegation zone the occasion had demanded a statement performance from a team with just a single league victory in 2024 . The stage was set for a vindication that would never arrive. Even if Forest ended their day out of the relegation zone but the immediate afterglow carried the disappointment of an opportunity missed. “We’re gonna need them,” said Nuno Espírito Santo, the manager charged with pulling Forest clear, of the club’s fans. “We all realise we are in this position. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/bXCuU6e

The Oscar winner was a trailblazer who was happy to share the spotlight – and part of a disappearing class of Black acting nobility Preparation went out the window when Louis Gossett Jr became the third Black person to win an Oscar, in 1983, for his supporting role in An Officer and a Gentleman. He had planned to accept the award with his seven-year-old son, Satie – but the boy got stage fright at the last minute and stayed rooted to his seat. The speech Gossett had in mind? “It’s no use,” he told the capacity crowd at LA’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. “It’s all gone.” So he kept things short and sweet, thanking his family before pivoting to his fellow nominees – a tough crowd that included James Mason and John Lithgow. “All you other four guys,” Gossett said, raising his statuette, “ this is ours.” That was Gossett in essence: magnanimous, dignified, always hitting the mark. After the announcement of his death on Friday, at age 87, Gossett was remembered as a trailblazer who never h...

One of the most varied, fascinating and beautiful regions of Europe has one of the smallest tourist economies Across the Farne Islands, the spring chorus is once again under way. After wintering on the open seas, thousands of puffins are making their annual journey to England’s north-east coast to nest and breed, jostling for space with vocal kittiwakes, razorbills, eider ducks, shags and Arctic terns. Happily, tourists will be able to witness closeup one of the glories of Britain’s natural landscape for the first time since 2022. This week, the world-renowned seabird sanctuary welcomed the public back, after an outbreak of bird flu led to a temporary ban on visitors. The reopening has given local boat tour operators a timely boost, ahead of the summer. But on Easter bank holiday weekend, the news is also a reminder of how much the UK’s most overlooked tourist destination has to offer its visitors. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/XHaLGUs

Rules that favour spending on physical infrastructure over the public sector workforce should be overhauled The UK’s public services are in a state of near-collapse. Increased spending on health, care and social security is desperately needed, as the latest shocking poverty figures make painfully obvious. But while the NHS regularly tops voters’ lists of concerns , and a majority of the public favours higher spending , most people do not pay much attention to the technical details of government accounting. In the run-up to an election and spending review, this should change. Rules as well as figures require scrutiny. Rachel Reeves’s commitment to the principle that a Labour government should borrow to invest – but not otherwise – should concern everyone who wants to see the NHS, and the public realm more generally, restored. So should the Treasury’s definition of investment. Traditionally, this refers to capital projects such as new transport links, hospital buildings or energy inf...

The Wall Street Journal correspondent is not a spy. He is a journalist, and should be released immediately from his Russian jail Evan Gershkovich , a Wall Street Journal reporter, has spent nearly a year in a Moscow prison, awaiting trial for a crime he did not commit. Mr Gershkovich was arrested last March in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg and jailed on espionage charges. He is not a spy. He is a journalist, and should be released immediately. Hostage diplomacy lies behind his incarceration. As the US ambassador to Russia, Lynne Tracy , said, Mr Gershkovich’s case “is not about evidence, due process, or rule of law. It is about using American citizens as pawns to achieve political ends”. Vladimir Putin indicated in February that a prisoner exchange could lead to the release of Mr Gershkovich. There have been high-profile prisoner swaps in the past. In December 2022, Moscow traded a US basketball star convicted of a drugs offence in Russia for a Russian arms trafficker. But a jour...

Palestinian authorities say deaths resulted from attempts to recover crates that fell in water after parachutes went wrong Twelve people drowned trying to get to aid dropped by plane off a Gaza beach, Palestinian health authorities have said, amid growing fears of famine nearly six months into Israel’s military campaign. Video of the airdrop on Monday showed crowds of people running towards the beach, in Beit Lahiya in north Gaza, as crates with parachutes floated down, then people standing deep in water and bodies being pulled on to the sand. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/69zIMJb

Teenage skateboarding star and Olympic medallist displays maturity beyond her years and wants to excel in two events Over a breathless hour on Tuesday morning, Team GB’s 15-year-old skateboarding star, Sky Brown, lit up the London skyline with her dazzling repertoire of tricks – all from a floating half-pipe on the River Thames overlooking Tower Bridge. Commuters gawped. Schoolkids pointed. And while a drone buzzed constantly around her, capturing all her handplants, aerials and trademark Japan Air trick for a new campaign for Tag Heuer, she never missed a beat. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/EHWSu7e

Baseless claims that Ukraine played a role in the assault on a concert hall should not distract from a failure to heed credible warnings The worst terrorist attack on their soil for two decades has left Russians in shock and looking for explanations. Over the weekend, survivors graphically conveyed the horror that unfolded on Friday evening inside the Crocus City Hall, in Moscow’s commuter belt. Hunted down by at least four gunmen, minutes before a rock concert was due to begin, 137 people have so far lost their lives. That death toll is almost certain to rise, given the number of seriously wounded. After an atrocity that recalls all too clearly the Islamic State attacks on the Bataclan nightclub in Paris and Manchester Arena , the world has mourned with Russia. But after terror has come obfuscation and disinformation. Though all available evidence suggests this murderous rampage was the work of a branch of IS based principally in Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan, the Kremlin i...

Bath 42-24 Sale Finn Russell has hand in four of home side’s five tries Every point is going to count over the closing furlongs of the Premiership season and, on this evidence, Bath will have reason to thank Finn ­Russell when the playoff sums are done. Among the Scotland fly-half’s reasons for relocating to the west country was a desire to compete for silverware and, along with Joe Cokanasiga, he was among the key architects of a significant win which elevates his side to second in the table. A dominant last quarter from Bath’s forwards was also responsible for inflicting Sale’s sixth successive defeat in all competitions but ­Russell had a hand in four of his side’s five tries, kicked impressively from all angles and, for good ­measure, also landed first drop‑goal of his ­Premiership career off his weaker left foot. Two tries for ­Cokanasiga and one for England’s Ollie Lawrence also rammed home Bath’s overall superiority. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift....

Aggie Beever-Jones and Erin Cuthbert punished a resilient West Ham for their profligacy in the final third as Chelsea secured a 2-0 win to move back above Manchester City at the summit of the Women’s Super League table. It was not straightforward for the visiting Blues and, had Honoka Hayashi’s effort not been incorrectly flagged offside inside 15 minutes, it could have been a much more nervy affair. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/tw6Qmdy

Childhood fan, who is dying of pancreatic cancer, managed the home side to victory over Ajax at Anfield in a legends match Anfield was packed, the Liverpool squad boasted 985 caps and seven Champions League winners. The match was not the most competitive occasion the stadium will host this season but it was one of the most memorable on an emotional and perfect day for Sven-Göran Eriksson. The Swede watched on as Liverpool came back from two goals down to win a cerebral thriller 4-2. Eriksson listened to The Kop serenade the boyhood fan with “You’ll Never Walk Alone”, making an old man very happy. He might have wanted a crack at the Premier League with Liverpool but 90 minutes on a cold March day was more than enough for the former England manager who has less than a year to live after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/jc4RJw7

The exclusion of women tells us something about the men who choose to be part of it Where does the establishment reside in the 21st century? One of its homes is 15 Garrick Street, London. The membership list of the Garrick Club, as reported by the Guardian this week, includes senior judges and lawyers, peers and ministers, along with the heads of thinktanks and companies, rock stars, actors, senior journalists, the heads of MI6 and the civil service, and King Charles – but not a single woman. Men in charge of modern courts, government, business and culture relish membership of an institution which is 19th century not only in origin but mindset. Private members’ clubs are inherently exclusive: joining is expensive, and applicants are vetted by those already inside. It is not a great surprise, then, that the Garrick is overwhelmingly white and generally aged as well as male-only. Members like to portray it as old-fashioned in another regard: a little snoozy, though faintly glamoro...

Successive governments failed to explain pension changes. Thousands of women are entitled to compensation The final report by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on the way pension entitlement changes affecting women passed into law between 1995 and 2011 is a milestone in a long-running campaign – but not the end. Five years ago the women lost a discrimination case they had brought against the government. Their complaint to the ombudsman was the result, and the verdict vindicates their claim to have been unjustly treated. The ombudsman made an initial set of findings in the women’s favour, and against the Department for Work and Pensions, in 2021. Now, these are added to by further instances of maladministration . While the failures uncovered are serious in their own right, the expectation set out in the report that the DWP will refuse to act on them is also very concerning. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/hokJZ4v

A radical agenda is needed to deal with the crises of economic stagnation, political polarisation and the climate emergency. Rachel Reeves did not offer one On Tuesday night, Rachel Reeves gave an important speech in the City of London, in which she offered an insight into Labour’s economic thinking. In her Mais lecture, the shadow chancellor cast Britain in a “ moment of flux ”, comparable to the end of the 1970s when one economic paradigm replaced another. It was, in many respects, an admirably fluent analysis that highlighted the economic damage wreaked by austerity and the price paid by political instability. A radical agenda is needed to deal with the compounding crises of economic stagnation, political polarisation and the climate emergency. However, Ms Reeves’ response shrank from the scale of the challenge. This raised the question of whether Labour had learned anything from the last decade and a half. The extreme urgency of global heating means Britain can’t risk thrott...

Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/kKUY9MQ

Grace Jabbari lawsuit also accuses Marvel actor of intentional infliction of emotional distress, battery and malicious prosecution Jonathan Majors’ former girlfriend has filed a lawsuit accusing the Creed III and Marvel actor of battery, assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress, malicious prosecution and defamation. Majors, 34, in December was found guilty of misdemeanor charges of assault and harassment in connection to a March 2023 altercation with his then-girlfriend, actor and dancer Grace Jabbari. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/T9UYDhL

Vladimir Putin’s landslide victory in a fake contest marks the latest phase in a transition from authoritarianism to outright autocracy One of the curiosities of the Soviet Union was the serious weight its leaders attached to holding elections. In a dictatorship, why bother? Academic studies concluded that ensuring a 99% vote share for the only candidate on the ballot was a useful tool for civic mobilisation, and a way of isolating and intimidating anyone who aspired to a real democratic choice. Under the repressive, paranoid leadership of Vladimir Putin, Russians are going back to the future. Mr Putin’s 87% landslide in Russia’s presidential election – the highest percentage in any post-Soviet poll – confirms that, almost a quarter of a century after he first entered the Kremlin, the resumption of a form of totalitarian control is all but complete. Having changed the constitution to ensure he can continue to rule, a further victory in 2030 would see him surpass Stalin’s 31 years o...

Brighton 1-4 Manchester City, Tottenham 1-0 Leicester Manchester United 2-0 Bristol City, Liverpool 3-1 West Ham Manchester City bounced back from successive Cup defeats to earn a 4-1 win over Brighton at the Broadfield Stadium on Sunday and draw level with Chelsea at the top of the Women’s Super League. Gareth Taylor’s side completely dominated the match with Lauren Hemp, Yui Hasegawa and Laura Coombs all influential. Chelsea had opened up a three-point gap over City on Friday by beating Arsenal 3-1 but that is now closed with only goal difference separating the two sides. After City’s win, Taylor was keen to keep to his one-game-at-a-time mantra. “Just the next game,” he told BBC Sport. “We try and keep it as simple as possible, that’s the way to be. We just try and control what we can control. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/FYRvHop

This time last year, Rodrigo Muniz was struggling for gametime on loan at Middlesbrough and probably wondering whether he had made the right choice in swapping Flamengo for Fulham in 2021. Fast forward 12 months and the baby-faced Brazilian forward is quickly becoming one of the Premier League’s most prolific scorers after two goals here to take his tally to seven in his past seven matches as Fulham left in tatters Ange Postecoglou’s hopes of Tottenham leapfrogging Aston Villa into fourth place. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/hMonQ3T

Testimony contained in documents released by supreme court detail alleged plot to overturn result of 2022 Brazilian election Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro presented top military officials with a plan to carry out a coup d’état after his defeat in the October 2022 election, two former commanders have told the police, according to newly released judicial documents. In testimonies made public on Friday, former army commander Marco Antônio Freire Gomes and former air force commander Carlos Baptista Júnior said Bolsonaro held several meetings in December 2022 in which he presented a document that would have served as the basis to overturn the results of the election, which he lost to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Hpx92ml

Mo Yan is widely celebrated in China but now faces a lawsuit accusing him of smearing the Communist party amid an increasingly febrile atmosphere online At first glance, a Nobel prize winning author, a bottle of green tea and Beijing’s Tsinghua University have little in common. But in recent weeks they have been dubbed by China’s nationalist netizens as the “three new evils” in the fight to defend the country’s valour in cyberspace. Last month a patriotic blogger called Wu Wanzheng filed a lawsuit against China’s only Nobel prize-winning author, Mo Yan, accusing him of smearing the Communist army and glorifying Japanese soldiers in his fictional works set during the Japanese invasion of China. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/8kJSx1t

Backbenches respond to new guidelines with chorus of ‘what about me?’ but minister is untroubled Michael Gove stood before the house with his elaborately courteous mien dialled up to the max. The secretary for levelling up is so polite now that it reads as a kind of schoolboy humility as he gallops through his words, mindful of the great honour of his colleagues’ attention. “The United Kingdom is a success story,” he said, “a multinational, multi-ethnic, multifaith democracy, stronger because of our diversity.” This was the preface to the government’s new extremism guidelines , and there’s a world in which a celebration of diversity would be a reassuring starting point. That’s not, unfortunately, the world we’re in: the text of this guidance, as Gove describes it, doesn’t make a huge amount of sense, the subtext warps and weaves with every intervention, and the context makes a joke of the whole thing. Let’s not forget the lovely manners, though. Continue reading... from The Guardi...

The government’s new approach is not a serious effort to tackle rising hatred and division It is never a good sign when a minister needs to spend as long talking about what a new policy doesn’t do as what it does. Much of Michael Gove’s Thursday was occupied with stressing the limits of the new extremism definition . It will not be statutory, the communities secretary pointed out. It will “in no way threaten” free speech. It will not be used against environmental groups. It would not be used in response to an individual comment , he added, responding to the inevitable questions that arose because the crackdown coincided with the Guardian’s  revelation that one of the Conservatives’ top donors, Frank Hester, said in 2019 that Diane Abbott “should be shot”. What the new measure will do, said Mr Gove, is help the fight against extremism. It won’t. Had community cohesion and tackling hatred truly been a priority, a full public consultation and proper engagement with faith group...

Scandal is hard-wired into a system that makes parties over-reliant on mega-donors, as the opposition will discover soon enough Some political controversies are complicated. The row about offensive remarks made by Frank Hester , a businessman and Conservative donor, is not in that category. What he said was simply racist – declaring an impulse of hatred for all black women induced by the fact of Diane Abbott MP being a black woman. He says he abhors racism. Downing Street belatedly acknowledged the problem, although some Tory MPs still don’t get it. The main reason for such obtuseness is also not complicated. Mr Hester gave the party £10m. The pernicious influence that big money can have on politics is something voters intuitively understand and don’t like. Not all party donations are crudely transactional. Some philanthropists feel a duty to finance democracy. But there are all kinds of access advantages and policy favours potentially available from proximity to power that might ma...

Former prominent Conservatives have said a big backer’s comments were racist and sexist. It’s hard to disagree When the far right is rising in Europe, there is a very real concern that Britain’s ruling class is not being alert enough to its dangers. Since Brexit, the Conservative party has been transfixed by the threat of Faragist nationalism, marginalising its thoughtful voices and turning to “ deep state ” conspiracies. The Tories feel menaced by the Reform party, which draws about half its support from voters who backed the Conservatives at the last election. The Conservative party reasons that if it cannot beat the radical right it must join them. This is bad for Britain. Ministers trade in performative cruelty to refugees , and vulnerable and poor people. With a political and media ecosystem that has permitted society’s divisions to be openly stoked, arsenic is being poured into the water supply of our national conversation. Do you have an opinion on the issues ra...

Guardian’s imaging team identifies 20 anomalies with the picture that may require further inquiry Analysis: Attempt to dispel Princess of Wales rumours misfires The release of the first official picture of the Princess of Wales and her three children since her operation was undoubtedly meant to end speculation about her recovery. But that has backfired spectacularly after the princess was forced to admit she had edited it. Catherine apologised on Monday after the manipulation of the picture led international picture agencies to refuse to distribute it on grounds of editorial standards. 1. Jumper cuff does not match wrist edge. 2. Blurred edge detail jolts from one line to another. 3. Definitively inconsistent detail at base of jumper. 4. Strong horizontal line running through hair and jacket zip, indicating different focus and detail. 5. Visible selection lines within lower hair areas. 6. Edge of knee detail potentially blurs too quickly for the depth of field. 7. Suspect/...

This was the year that the Academy’s diversity standards were introduced – yet some argue that only structural change will make the film industry truly inclusive • Oscars 2024: full list of winners • Full report: Oppenheimer wins best picture This year’s Oscars will go down as the one where the Academy found its groove again. A big blockbuster with critical plaudits and huge box office won the day, but there was enough frivolity, nudity and politics to create the something-for-everyone evening producers were so keen to manufacture. Nine years on from the # OscarsSoWhite controversy , in which all of the acting nominations went to white performers, one thing was missing from the Barbie-dominated build up and the Oppenheimer aftermath: talk of diversity . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/AeuIUkm

Becky Spencer was the hero of Tottenham’s stunning penalty shootout win over Manchester City to send them into the FA Cup semi-finals. Spencer saved two of City’s five spot-kicks, against the England duo Alex Greenwood and Chloe Kelly, with Spurs converting all but one to seal victory. Mary Fowler’s early goal – rewarding the City manager, Gareth Taylor, for her rare start – looked like it would be the difference. It was City’s 11th goal without reply against Spurs this season, but the home team had learned from their three previous meetings, and Bethany England’s 96th minute goal to force extra time and then penalties was well deserved. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/ylpEHjb

Claiming landmark wicket during drubbing by India is fitting for a player who is still oddly full of fighting spirit You could find a fun little fact wherever you looked. On commentary as Jimmy Anderson celebrated his milestone moment was his old pal Graeme Swann, who began his Test career five years after the quick and retired a decade ago; in-between that the off-spinner became one of England’s greatest bowlers. Alastair Cook, who made his Essex debut after Anderson’s first World Cup campaign, paid his tributes in the TNT studio. “What he’s done is a joke,” said the former England captain. Sat next to Cook was Steven Finn, who had a fine fast-bowling career himself, taking 125 Test wickets before the knee played up; Anderson took 156 before Finn’s first game and has 237 since his last. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/XMnykLE

Rich history to 200 caves – from housing a secret printing press to widow’s shelter – as steps taken to protect the ‘sacred’ sites Hidden behind a tropical garden in the affluent Auckland suburb of Mount Eden is a subterranean secret – a cave opening from the ground like the yawning mouth of a giant. “People come down here and drop their jaws,” says its owner, Sean Jacob, who stands in the centre of the quiet rock chamber. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Y6PvMID

Government agency issues disqualification proceedings after inquiry into failed finance firm Greensill Capital The Insolvency Service has begun legal action to have Lex Greensill disqualified from running companies for up to 15 years after the outcome of an investigation into the directors of his failed finance firm. The government agency said it had issued disqualification proceedings on behalf of the business secretary against the former Australian sugar farmer, who founded the Greensill group of companies. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/U78C9ur

Jermyn Street theatre, London A tremendous cast capture the hope and despair of life in the ‘mother country’ in this powerful adaptation of the 1956 novel Lyrical and loosely structured, Sam Selvon’s 1956 British Caribbean novel does not readily lend itself to the stage. It is also a tricky proposition to bring his “big city” tale to life in a space as snug as this subterranean venue. So the power of this production, adapted by Roy Williams and directed by Ebenezer Bamgboye, is all the more startling. Selvon’s sprawling story about Windrush-era arrivals in London is given a small-scale expressionist treatment with a cast of seven sitting across the stage, postcodes flashing up in a glare of lights. The stripping down is counterintuitive but inspired. At Jermyn Street theatre, London , until 6 April Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/diMnBQq

Given the options available, Hunt’s scheme to encourage people to invest in UK firms could hardly be more modest British Isas ‘to encourage investment in UK firms’ Budget: key points at a glance It was a good week to announce a British Isa, one could argue. Another two mid-sized UK companies, the haulier Wincanton and the telecoms equipment group Spirent Communications, are falling to foreign buyers, causing fresh agonising over how the unloved UK stock market has become a bargain bin for overseas predators. A British Isa, goes the theory, will incentivise UK investors to prefer UK companies over the excitements of US tech stocks or S&P 500 tracker funds. Here’s the problem. The chancellor’s design for a British Isa could hardly be more modest. He has created a £5,000 allowance, with the same Isa tax advantages, to be invested in purely UK assets (precise definition to follow after a consultation). That’s on top of the existing £20,000 maximum, where investors are free to r...

One minute, she decided to try acting. The next, she had a plum role in Netflix’s Regency hit. And now she’s blazing into the West End. But that’s not nearly enough for this unstoppable star with a first class degree in PPE For a select group of actors, the pandemic was not the worst but the best of times, offering breakout triumphs that were the direct result of the rest of the world being shut in with nothing but the telly for company. Charithra Chandran is among them. After making her debut in Amazon’s teen spy series Alex Rider in 2021, she went on to play one of two Indian sisters who took the Regency “ton” by storm in the second season of the Netflix hit Bridgerton . While she is thankful, she is not naive. When I suggest that hers is a whirlwind success, given that she only landed her first job in 2020, she looks horrified and instantly protests: “I don’t think that at all. I think the complete opposite.” We’re sitting in a London cafe, close to the flat Chandran, who looks mu...

The Biden administration is gradually turning up the volume, but Israel’s prime minister is ignoring it. Airdrops are just a gesture The cogs of US diplomacy are grinding. But they are turning neither far nor fast, and the people of Gaza are dying now. The World Health Organization says starvation is killing children in the north . The UN has warned that over a quarter of the territory’s population are one step away from famine. In this context, the US airdrops that began last weekend offer such trivial relief that they verge upon the insulting. They are usually a last resort for delivery into hostile environments; this time the impediment to aid is a US ally that is itself dependent on US aid . Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/7p0c4MJ

Instead of sticking to arbitrary limits, politicians should be able to make the case for spending on urgent social repair The UK has had seven sets of fiscal rules since 2010. In a study comparing it with 34 peer nations since 1985, Britain not only changed its rules more frequently but they also had shorter lives. Clearly fiscal rules are not immutable laws of nature but arbitrary, human-made restraints. Implicit in this model is a dim view of human nature: that politicians cannot be trusted to resist the temptation to abuse government spending programmes for political or ideological ends. The result is that, instead of a political leadership that spends too much, Britain has politicians who spend too little. This is no way to run a country when there is urgent social repair needed. Instead, on Wednesday, Jeremy Hunt appears ready to deliver a budget full of tax giveaways and cuts to struggling public services to meet his fiscal rules. Labour should offer an alternative. ...

Hull FC 28-24 London Broncos Visitors remain winless after last-minute heartache Being 200 miles away from the sport’s traditional heartlands, London Broncos have never been strangers to a unique rugby league situation. But even by their standards this season is completely unprecedented given the reality that, no matter what the Broncos do upon their return to Super League in 2024, they will be asked to quietly collect their belongings and leave later this year. With only the top 12 clubs in IMG’s grading system given a seat at the top table in 2025, the fact London were ranked 24th in the provisional rankings at the end of last season – below clubs such as Batley and Doncaster – means they simply won’t improve enough on and, more importantly, off the field in one season to climb into the top 12. Even winning the grand final, unlikely as it would be, wouldn’t be enough to save them. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/MEnlWyO

Manchester City moved to the top of the Women’s Super League table after defeating Everton 2-1. City picked up where they left off in their first match since defeating Chelsea last month, with goals from Khadija Shaw and Lauren Hemp taking them three points clear of Emma Hayes’ side, who visit Leicester on Sunday. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/YpuREDf

The author and Labour MP on his book about the last men in Britain to be hanged for their sexuality, his misgivings about the Church of England and the novel he always goes back to Chris Bryant has been Labour MP for Rhondda since 2001. He is the shadow minister for creative industries and digital, and former chair of the Commons committee on standards and privileges. He has published eight books; his ninth, James and John: A True Story of Prejudice and Murder , out last month, reconstructs the lives and deaths of James Pratt and John Smith, who in 1835 became the last men to be hanged for homosexuality in Britain. James and John both tells the story of a terrible injustice and highlights how widespread the persecution of gay men was in this country: 404 British people were sentenced to death for the same “crime”. How did you alight on this particular case? A couple of years ago [in 2020], I wrote a book called The Glamour Boys about some gay Tory MPs in the 1930s who were killed i...

The new Rochdale MP is hardly unique. He is just highly adept at swimming in the toxic swamp that is so much of our politics You’re going to hear a lot of talk about George Galloway in the coming days, much of it negative and almost all of it true. But there will be one charge thrown at the new member for Rochdale – winner of a byelection victory yesterday as sweeping as the triumph he recorded in Bradford West more than a decade ago – that will be false and unfair. Start with the accusations that stand up. Galloway poses as a man of the left – his latest vehicle is called the Workers party of Britain. But he backed Nigel Farage’s Brexit party (now Reform) in 2019 – the pair had appeared together, during the 2016 referendum campaign, laughing and smiling – and the Conservatives in Scotland in 2021 . You did not misread that sentence: George Galloway voted Tory only three years ago. Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnist Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this art...

I still feel guilty every moment my loved ones are stuck there. But seeing the solidarity in London’s protests gives me hope Farah Morad is a Palestinian radiologist living in London When my three young children and I arrived in Gaza in August, we were looking forward to a two-month vacation to visit my family after 10 years spent building our lives abroad and in the UK. I am a radiologist, but since having my younger children I’ve been a full-time mum, preparing for fellowship exams while my husband works as a surgeon in London. The plan was to make happy memories for the children, who are nine, four and 18 months old – have them meet their relatives and see the place I grew up in for the first time. My husband was staying behind to work. And so, what feels like an eternity ago, we packed our bags and said goodbye to him. He wished us a safe trip, none of us suspecting that we would be trapped in a horrifying war, unsure if we would ever see each other again. We ended up fleeing ...