4 h. ago Tory leader Kemi Badenoch gets financial boost as video game tycoon donates £2million to Conservative Party

The money from Jeremy Elliott, who is better known as Jez San, will give a huge boost to Kemi Badenoch's leadership, just days before challenging local elections.

Economics

6 h. ago Valerie the dachshund is found safe and well after 529 days on the run on South Australian island

Rescuers on Kangaroo Island say they are ‘overjoyed’ after the dog walked into one of their trapsElection 2025 live updates: Australia federal election campaignGet our afternoon election email, free app or daily news podcastAfter 529 days on the run, Australia’s favourite fugitive has been caught at last.Valerie the miniature dachshund, who went missing on Kangaroo Island way back in 2023, has been rescued by conservationists. Continue reading...

Politics

10 h. ago Challenge to Reform UK Lincolnshire mayor candidate is rejected

Dame Andrea Jenkyns, who served as a minister in the last Conservative government, is standing as Reform’s candidate in the Lincolnshire mayoralty.

Politics

10 h. ago Reform’s Andrea Jenkyns cleared to run for Lincolnshire mayor just days before election

Dame Andrea said the move to prevent her from standing was a ‘political hit job aimed at smearing my candidacy’

Politics

11 h. ago Reform facing humiliation as Andrea Jenkyns still not cleared to run for Lincolnshire mayor with days until election

With just days to go before voters go to the ballot box in Lincolnshire to elect a new mayor a decision has been deferred on whether Reform’s Dame Andrea Jenkyns meets residency qualification criteria to stand as mayor

Politics

15 h. ago Fact check: Reform UK’s council election claim, Pope Francis and St George’s Day

Round-up of fact checks from the last week compiled by Full Fact.

Politics

17 h. ago Reform on course to beat Labour and the Tories in Red Wall mayoral elections as polls suggest a bad night for main parties

Andrea Jenkyns, the former Tory minister, is set to romp home in Greater Lincolnshire, while in neighbouring Hull and East Yorkshire, former boxer Luke Campbell is ahead.

Politics

4 d. ago ‘A signal of simplicity’: Pope Francis’s funeral will be his final humble gesture

One of pontiff’s last acts was to simplify papal rites, stripping away elaborate rituals and scaling back processionLatest updates: tributes paid after Pope Francis dies aged 88When the late Pope Francis stepped on to the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica to give his first speech as leader of the Catholic church in March 2013, he cast away formality by dressing in simple white robes instead of the regal ermine-trimmed cape usually worn by newly elected pontiffs.The next day, Francis – a name chosen in honour of Francis of Assisi, the Italian saint who renounced a life of luxury to help the poor – returned to the Rome hotel in which he had stayed before the conclave to pick up his luggage and pay his bill. He substituted a plush apostolic apartment for a simple room within the Vatican walls and, unlike his predecessors, did not spend his summers in Castel Gandolfo, an opulent 12th-century fortress close to Rome. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Ukraine war briefing: Putin suddenly open to bilateral talks with ‘Kyiv regime’

Russian president has previously spurned direct negotiations unless Ukraine holds elections; Ukrainian delegation headed to London. What we know on day 1,154 Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago More problems for Farage as Andrea Jenkyns faces bid to disqualify her from mayoral election

A council in Lincolnshire will hold a hearing next week to decide if Dame Andrea Jenkyns is eligble to stand as mayor for the county amid allegations she does not live in the county

Politics

8 d. ago Estimated declaration times for May 1 local and mayoral elections

Polling day will see elections taking place in 23 councils in England, while six mayors will also be chosen.

Politics

8 d. ago Afghan teenager charged in Oklahoma plot for Election Day attack pleads guilty

An Afghan teenager has pleaded guilty for his role in a plot to carry out an Election Day attack in Oklahoma

Politics

1 week ago Why has Singapore dissolved its parliament and when is the general election?

Nomination day for candidates set for 23 April as voting to take place on 3 May

Politics

1 week ago Former Tory MP among 15 charged over bets on timing of 2024 UK election

Charges follow investigation into alleged cheating related to bets placed on when general election would be heldThe former Conservative MP Craig Williams is among 15 people, including several other senior Tories, charged by the Gambling Commission for alleged cheating connected to bets based on the date of the 2024 UK general election.Williams was the MP for Montgomeryshire and Rishi Sunak’s parliamentary private secretary, but lost the support of the Conservative party after a Guardian story about alleged bets placed on a July election just days before the date was announced. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Former Tory MP among 15 facing charges related to gambling on election date

The former Montgomeryshire MP admitted at the time to having a ‘flutter’ on the general election date just days before it was announced.

Politics

2 w. ago Rory McIlroy’s electric finish ignites Masters bid as Justin Rose leads pack

Northern Irishman roars into tie for third with sublime 66Rose leads on -8 with Bryson Dechambeau one shot backRory’s revenge. Rory McIlroy had opted to keep his thoughts to himself after the wounding end to his first round at the 89th Masters. An inspired follow up by the Northern Irishman made it easy to assume he had taken things personally. Did you think the two double bogeys in four closing holes ended his latest attempt at claiming the career grand slam? Think again. Courtesy of spellbinding, stunning golf, McIlroy blasted his way through the Georgia pines and back into contention.Statistical gurus had insisted glory was already beyond him. Craig Stadler was the last man to triumph here with more than one double bogey on his card. That happened in 1982. What the numerati failed to acknowledge was that McIlroy had 54 holes to recover. With 36 remaining, he sits two from Justin Rose. Buckle up. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Birmingham bin strikes: Locals earn extra cash with waste collections as rubbish piles up on streets

Local Reece Ticer, 29, is juggling his day job as an electrical engineer with collecting bins from homes and local businesses, as negotiations to end the Birmingham bin strikes continue

Events

2 w. ago Ted Cruz warns of midterm ‘bloodbath’ if Trump tariffs cause a recession

Texas senator’s comments another sign of Republican unease over ‘reciprocal tariffs’ and stock market plungeTed Cruz, the US senator from Texas, has warned that his fellow Republicans risk a “bloodbath” in the 2026 midterm elections if Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs cause a recession.Cruz also warned that the president’s tariffs, if they stay in place for long and are met by global retaliation on American goods, could trigger a full-blown trade war that “would destroy jobs here at home, and do real damage to the US economy”. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago North Carolina judges back Republican colleague in bid to toss votes and overturn election

Appeals court sides with Jefferson Griffin, who lost supreme court election and wants thousands of ballots thrown outMore than 65,000 people in North Carolina who believed they were eligible to vote could have their ballots thrown out nearly five months after election day, flipping the results of a supreme court election, a state appeals court ruled on Friday.The 2-1 ruling from the North Carolina court of appeals came in response to Republicans’ months-long effort to overturn the results of the state supreme court election in November. The Democrat Allison Riggs, who currently sits on the court, defeated appellate judge Jefferson Griffin, a Republican, by 734 votes. After the election, Griffin filed a protest seeking to get around 60,000 votes thrown out. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Democrats’ deference to Biden was a disaster. They still haven’t learned their lesson | Norman Solomon

Conformity and fear of party leadership are impairing Democrats’ ability to fight Trump and drive a progressive agendaJoe Biden’s insistence on running for re-election was certainly disastrous. It kept credible contenders out of the Democratic presidential primaries and prevented the selection of a nominee who had gained momentum in the winnowing process. Even after his stunningly feeble debate performance on 27 June last year, Biden took several weeks before finally opting out of the race. That left Kamala Harris a mere 107 days between the launch of her campaign and election day.Ample evidence shows that the Biden team was riddled with obstinate denial and misrepresentation aimed at the public. But tales of tragic egomania in high places can take us only so far. What’s essential is to scrutinize how – and why – the Democratic party, its leaders and its prominent supporters enabled Biden and his inner circle to get away with such momentous stonewalling for so long. Continue reading...

Politics