45 m. ago SNP adviser accused of 'undermining Scottish Government officials' over immigration policy

Special Adviser Kate Higgins was part of a row with an official after she seemingly pushed to include devolution of immigration powers in a comment, a Freedom of Information Request has revealed.

Politics

49 m. ago Who will replace Rudd as US ambassador? Defence boss, career diplomat and former ministers in mix

Analysts and experts say the PM would do well to consider the Aukus alliance and reactions from Maga base in making his choiceFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFormer Labor ministers, the defence department boss and a career diplomat are among the names being touted by government figures to replace Kevin Rudd as Australia’s ambassador in Washington.Rudd, the former prime minister and foreign minister, won praise for stabilising relations with the US president, Donald Trump, on Monday, after the surprise announcement he would depart a year early to return to the Asia Society thinktank. Continue reading...

Politics

97 m. ago Supreme Court takes up culture war battle over transgender athletes in school sports

The Supreme Court is hearing arguments over state laws barring transgender girls and women from playing on school athletic teams

Events

1 hour ago An ecosystem of smuggled tech holds Iran’s last link to the outside world

Despite internet blackout, a small number of Iranians are risking their lives to share messages as protests continueFor most of Iran, the internet was shut off on Thursday afternoon – the most severe blackout the country has seen in years of internet shutdowns, coming after days of escalating anti-government protests.For a very small sliver of the country, it is still possible to get photos and videos to the outside world, and even to make calls. The Telegram channel Vahid Online on Monday posted photos of dead bodies lying next to a street in Kahrizak, on the southern outskirts of Tehran; on Sunday, it shared a video of Iranians chanting “death to Khamenei” at a funeral. Continue reading...

Politics

1 hour ago ‘The real ringleader’: the Venezuelan security chief with a $25m bounty on his head

Security chief Diosdado Cabello is nicknamed the Octopus for good reason, with the regime’s fate said to rest with himHis nickname is the Octopus, he hosts a TV show called Hitting it with a Sledgehammer and many Venezuelans consider him the real power in the land.Diosdado Cabello runs the regime’s security apparatus and is perhaps the most feared, reviled and, in some quarters, revered government figure, with influence to rival that of the interim president, Delcy Rodríguez. Continue reading...

Politics

1 hour ago Greenland is Europe’s credibility litmus test – it must show Trump that aggression carries a price | Fabian Zuleeg

In the new dog-eat-dog world order, appeasement doesn’t work. Time for the EU to grow upFabian Zuleeg is chief executive of the European Policy CentreDonald Trump’s intervention in Venezuela is not a one-off shock. It epitomises his approach of interventionist isolationism based on a revisionist, neo-nationalist agenda in which power is exercised bluntly, international rules are optional and alliances are transactional. In such a dog-eat-dog world, hesitation and ambiguity do not stabilise the system; they become vulnerabilities to be exploited by a volatile and predatory Washington.The seizure of Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, combined with Trump’s renewed musings about acquiring Greenland, potentially by using the US military, should dispel any lingering illusion that this is merely erratic behaviour. It reflects a worldview in which sovereignty is conditional, spheres of influence are legitimate, and coercion is normalised when it delivers results in the interest of Trump...

Politics

1 hour ago People risk £100 penalty if they miss '18 day' HMRC January deadline

Customers must file their tax return online but they do not have very long

Events

1 hour ago Emmerdale's Mark Charnock teases Ray's killer and says 'there are no options left'

Marlon Dingle is one of the main suspects after Ray Walters was found dead

Events

1 hour ago UK and US condemn Russia’s Oreshnik ballistic missile strike on Ukraine: ‘Dangerous escalation of war’

Acting British ambassador James Kariuki says Putin ‘claims to want peace and yet his actions tell a different story’

Events

3 h. ago Haunting update in Bolton car crash tragedy that's left community 'absolutely broken'

Masrob Ali, described as "the "gentlest soul", died after the Citroen C4 Picasso taxi he was driving on Wigan Road in Bolton, Greater Manchester collided head on with a red Seat Leon

Events

4 h. ago Shocking footage shows Seat Leon racing through suburban roads at 122mph... 'uploaded by teen' who was killed in horrific head

The heart-stopping clip is understood to have been uploaded onto social media by one of the trio who died when their Seat Leon ploughed into a private hire car in Bolton in the early hours of Sunday.

Events

4 h. ago ‘Anonymity online is an illusion’: NSW teen charged over alleged mass shooting hoax in US

Police say the boy is part of an alleged decentralised online crime network falsely claiming mass shootings are taking placeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA teenager in New South Wales was charged after allegedly making multiple hoax reports to emergency services – a practice known as “swatting” – falsely claiming mass shootings were taking place at major retail and educational institutions in the US. The Australian federal police (AFP) charged the boy on 18 December, claiming he is part of an alleged decentralised online crime network hiding behind keyboards in order to trigger an “urgent and large-scale emergency response”.Officers seized a number of electronic devices and a prohibited firearm in the juvenile’s possession as part of Taskforce Pompilid established in October 2025. Continue reading...

Events

5 h. ago PBS weekend newscasts shut down due to funding cuts, replaced by single

“PBS News Weekend,” the companion to the weekday “NewsHour” program, has signed off, eliminated due to federal funding cuts to public broadcasting

Politics

5 h. ago Pictured: Police officer convicted of assaulting his neighbour in row over parking outside his home

PC Daniel Traynor, 38, pushed Joshua Smith on November 29, 2024 after he returned to his home in east London to find a vehicle 'blocking access to his property'.

Events

5 h. ago Ukraine war briefing: Oreshnik missile sparks anger at UN security council

Strike on Lviv that used nuclear-capable ballistic missile a ‘dangerous, inexplicable escalation’. What we know on day 1,420 The US and Britain have condemned Russia for dropping a nuclear-capable Oreshnik ballistic missile on Ukraine. At an emergency meeting of the UN security council, Tammy Bruce, US deputy ambassador, called the Lviv strike a “dangerous and inexplicable escalation”. Britain’s acting UN ambassador, James Kariuki, called the attack “reckless”, adding that “it threatens regional and international security and carries significant risk of escalation and miscalculation”.Russia claimed the Oreshnik targeted an aviation repair factory. Ukraine has not confirmed what was hit but said the missile struck during a wider attack using drones and other rockets. The rarely used, multiple warhead Oreshnik missile is thought to be in limited supply – Ukraine’s military and special forces claim to have destroyed at least one of them on the ground in Russia. Observers have rated the...

Events

5 h. ago Police chief quits amid claims he 'abused his position to have affairs with officers'

Scott Chilton retired as chief constable of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary after the police watchdog said it was investigating alleged gross misconduct.

Events

6 h. ago Skier, 53, found dead inside mountain cable car by driver after it arrived at base

A 53-year-old skier was found dead inside a mountain cable car by the horrified driver after arriving at its base. The tourist is believed to have boarded the lift at the Val Cenis ski resort in Savoie, southeastern France, by himself on the afternoon of January 6. But when the gondola reached the mountain peak...

Events

6 h. ago NADHIM ZAHAWI: It breaks my heart to see what's happened to the country I love under Labour

When my family and I narrowly escaped the clutches of Saddam Hussein's brutal secret police to settle in Britain almost half a century ago, little did I know how far my fortunes would change.

Politics

6 h. ago Is your back pain a spinal FRACTURE? Staggering 2.2million Brits ‘living with hidden, agonising’ breaks

SPINE fracture checks will be added to OAP bone scans on the NHS to try and catch tens of thousands of breaks earlier. An estimated 2.2million Brits have “hidden” spinal fractures that may cause terrible back pain but get missed on standard tests. X-ray scans are common practice for people at higher risk of falls...

Politics

6 h. ago Exposed: The fantasy figures that mean Ed Miliband's Net Zero dream will cost BILLIONS more than expected

Government estimates are based on 'fantasy assumptions' and the real cost could exceed even the highest official predictions of £7.6trillion, according to the analysis.

Economics