14 m. ago Bill Maher brands Larry David ‘insulting’ for mocking his Trump dinner with Hitler comparison

‘I don’t need to be lectured on who Donald Trump is,’ US host said

Politics

38 m. ago China ‘may exempt some US goods’ from tariffs; British retail sales beat forecasts – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsRachel Reeves used a brief speech to US investors at the British ambassador’s lavish residence in Washington last night, to acknowledge some of the downsides of globalisation, in a nod to Donald Trump’s stance.As she prepares to meet Treasury secretary Scott Bessent today, Reeves said China’s entry into the global trading system 25 years ago had created “huge benefits in terms of cheaper goods, more innovation and more opportunities to trade”.“They voted for change because they didn’t think that the economy worked well enough for them and their families. They saw the erosion of good jobs that paid a decent wage. They saw industries that once powered their towns disappear. And as elected politicians we have to respond to that”.“Some may say that under this very consequential president we have at the moment, this is a rollercoaster period and therefore a challenge to us all. But we would say that a rollercoaster is fine, as lon...

Economics

57 m. ago Pope Francis’s funeral to be masterpiece in managing ‘big egos’, says UK Cardinal as world leaders head to Rome

US President Donald Trump is among those due to attend the requiem mass for the late pontiff, joining dignitaries from across the globe

Politics

3 h. ago Mourners file through St Peter’s Basilica overnight as lying

Vast crowds are expected to gather ahead of Saturday’s funeral for Pope Francis in St Peter’s Square.

Politics

3 h. ago ‘I’ll hook you up to a f***ing polygraph test,’ a furious Hegseth told acting chair of the Joint Chief of Staff in hunt for leak: report

Hegseth threatened top staff with polygraph tests following reports that the Pentagon invited Elon Musk for a briefing on China

Politics

3 h. ago As immigrant arrests surge, complaints of abuse mount at America's oldest detention center in Miami

As President Donald Trump seeks to make good on his campaign pledge of mass arrests and removals of migrants, the U.S. immigration detention system is being overrun with prisoners

Events

3 h. ago Trump and Zelenskyy among dignitaries converging on Rome for funeral of Pope Francis

Heads of state and royalty will begin converging on Rome for Pope Francis’ funeral in the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square, but the group of poor people who will meet his casket in a small crosstown basilica are more in keeping with Francis’ humble persona and disdain for pomp

Politics

3 h. ago Vatican readies for Pope Francis’s funeral as world leaders set to fly in to Rome

Tens of thousands of mourners have queued for hours to pay their last respects to pontiff, whose coffin will be closed on Friday eveningThe Vatican will make final preparations on Friday for Pope Francis’s funeral as the last of the huge crowds of mourners file through St Peter’s Basilica to view his open coffin.Many of the 50 heads of state and 10 monarchs attending Saturday’s ceremony in St Peter’s Square, who include US president Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, are expected to arrive in Rome on Friday. Continue reading...

Events

3 h. ago Fears of racial profiling swirl over registration policy for immigrants in the US illegally

The Trump administration plans to strictly require anyone illegally in the U.S. to register with the government and carry documentation

Events

5 h. ago Automakers focus on the global market, chide the US over tariffs at Shanghai's auto show

Booths of big Chinese, German and Japanese automakers are bustling at Shanghai's auto show as the industry keeps its sights on the wider global market not subject to steep U.S. tariffs on imports of cars and auto parts

Economics

5 h. ago Bill Maher calls Larry David’s satire of his Trump dinner ‘kind of insulting to 6 million dead Jews’

‘Nobody has been harder about Donald Trump than me,’ Maher says after fellow comedian compared his meal with US president to meeting HitlerBill Maher has responded to Larry David’s satirical essay in the New York Times that compared Maher’s glowing account of having dinner with Donald Trump to dining with Adolf Hitler.Maher, a vocal critic of Trump in the past, had dinner with the US president and a group of his high-profile supporters, including their mutual friend Kid Rock, on 31 March. On an episode of his talkshow Real Time on 11 April, Maher described Trump as “gracious” and “much more self-aware than he lets on”, saying: “Everything I’ve ever not liked about him was – I swear to God – absent, at least on this night with this guy.” Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago Donald Trump pardons Republican politician who splurged fraud money on plastic surgery

Michele Fiore defrauded donors during her time on the Las Vegas City Council and then spent some of the $70,000 (£52,000) - meant for a statue of a police officer - for personal costs

Politics

6 h. ago Trump news at a glance: president berates Putin; judge blocks changes to voting rights

US renews push to end Ukraine war, reportedly on terms favourable to Russia – key US politics stories from 24 AprilDuring his election campaign Donald Trump had promised to end the war in 24 hours. But almost 100 days into his second term the US president has appealed directly to Russian president Vladimir Putin, telling him on social media: “Vladimir, STOP!”Trump’s remarks referred to the deadliest attack on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv this year, which killed 12 people and injured at least 90 on Thursday. The attack comes as Trump has made a renewed push to end the Ukraine war, reportedly on terms favourable to Russia. Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago 'Ukraine must decide': Starmer stands by Zelensky in a challenge to proposals by Trump just hours after taking thinly veiled swipe at US President

UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has challenged US president Donald Trump by explicitly stating that Ukraine must be allowed to decide the terms of a peace deal with Russia. 

Politics

6 h. ago IAN BIRRELL: These attacks on Kyiv are proof Putin is emboldened by US appeasement

Reports suggest Donald Trump is pushing a 'peace' plan that gives Moscow almost everything it wants, while simultaneously attempting to bully Ukraine's leaders into capitulation.

Politics

7 h. ago Angelina Jolie's father Jon Voight pitches wild plan to Trump to turn Hollywood MAGA after he was named 'special ambassador'

Hollywood royalty Jon Voight has already got to work on bringing MAGA to to liberal Los Angeles in his role as a 'special ambassador' to Tinseltown for Donald Trump .

Politics

7 h. ago Trump was so upset by ‘small hands’ reference in 1984 GQ cover story he told staff to buy up all copies, writer says

The journalist wrote that Trump had ‘hands small and neatly groomed’ in his 1984 profile

Politics

8 h. ago UK cardinal says Pope’s funeral to be ‘masterpiece’ in managing ‘big egos’

Leaders and dignitaries from all over the world will attend the late pontiff’s requiem mass.

Politics

9 h. ago Trump pardons Nevada politician who paid for her plastic surgery with funds to honor a slain officer

President Donald Trump has issued a full pardon for loyalist Michele Fiore, who paid for her plastic surgery with funds that were meant for a statue honoring a slain police officer

Politics

10 h. ago Trump targets Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue with memorandum

President directs attorney general to investigate supposed foreign contributions, an unsubstantiated rightwing claimThe Republican president is taking aim at a Democratic fundraising platform, issuing a presidential memorandum to crack down on supposed foreign contributions to elections, an unsubstantiated claim from the right..Donald Trump announced the memo on Thursday, directing the attorney general to investigate, and report to the president, “concerning allegations regarding the use of online fundraising platforms to make ‘straw’ or ‘dummy’ contributions and to make foreign contributions to US political candidates and committees, all of which break the law”. Continue reading...

Politics