Starmer faces first PMQs since Olly Robbins’ Mandelson evidence to MPs – UK politics live

PM takes questions from MPs a day after sacked Foreign Office chief’s evidence on Peter Mandelson’s security vetting

UK inflation accelerated to 3.3% in March after the Iran war triggered the biggest jump in fuel prices for more than three years, Richard Partington reports.

Today the Liberal Democrats staged a photocall to publicise their line about this being “Trumpflation”. Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dem deputy leader and Treasury spokesperson, said:

People across our country have been struggling for years with a devastating cost-of-living crisis and Donald Trump’s idiotic war in Iran has added to it. The cost of fuel is soaring, mortgage rates are rising and fixed energy deals are already going up by hundreds of pounds.

But what is utterly inexcusable is that there are politicians in this country - Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch - who are happy to cheerlead Donald Trump as he hikes people’s bills. All the while this Labour government promised to fix the country but instead we’ve got political Groundhog Day: yet more sleaze and scandal.

1 of 6 missing crew found dead after typhoon flipped U.S.-flagged ship

The crew of the Mariana notified the U.S. Coast Guard on April 15 that the 145-foot vessel lost its starboard engine during Super Typhoon Sinlaku.

World food systems ‘pushed to the brink’ by extreme heat, UN warns

Severe heatwaves in commonly hot regions could leave farmers unable to work outside, with livestock mortality rates expected to rise

Extreme heat is threatening the world’s food systems, with farmers unable to work outside, livestock experiencing stress and crop yields falling, putting the livelihoods of more than a billion people in peril, the UN has warned.

Experts said food supply in some areas was being “pushed to the brink” by increasingly common and severe heatwaves, on land and at sea, in a major report written jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

Stern warning: one man’s mission to clear the rotting boats poisoning Cornwall’s creeks

Unwanted vessels left to decay release fibreglass shards into the water, harming marine life. Steve Green – with his trusty van Cecil – is determined to clean things up

Steve Green, a boat engineer from Cornwall, was pulled over by the police just before Christmas. He was driving a decrepit-looking VW campervan and towing an even more dilapidated yacht up to Truro. He hadn’t broken any laws, but he admits that Cecil the campervan, which runs on donated chip oil from local pubs and has a crane and a winch on the front, “wasn’t quite what VW intended”.

Green (and Cecil) are on a mission to rid the beautiful hidden creeks of Cornwall’s Helford and Fal rivers of 166 abandoned fibreglass yachts, which are leaking plastic and toxins into the predominantly marine waters. Marine biologists have likened the thousands of shards of fibreglass they have found embedded in the flesh of sea-creatures in areas with wrecks such as these to asbestos, a substance known to have a noxious effect on humans.

Green uses a detachable crane system at the front of his van to move around bags of plastic after they have been weighed. Cecil is upholstered in recycled denim

Contested Druzhba pipeline resumes operations with EU close to signing off on €90bn loan for Ukraine – Europe live

Member states meet this morning, as Ukraine starts pumping oil through Druzhba with Slovakia and Hungary deliveries to resume Thursday

During his press conference, Fico also doubles down on his criticism of the incoming Hungarian government led by Péter Magyar, in a further sign that the relations between Bratislava and Budapest could change dramatically in the next few months.

Fico has been close friends with Orbán, often teaming up with him on energy issues, but it doesn’t look like this Slovak-Hungarian partnership will continue under the new management in Budapest.

Ships attacked in Strait of Hormuz after ceasefire extension

Two vessels came under fire in the Strait of Hormuz, just hours after the U.S. and Iran failed to meet in Pakistan for talks to end the war and as President Trump indefinitely extended the ceasefire.

Am I a deluded attention-seeker? Why I’m running the London Marathon dressed as a badger

Isn’t running 26.2 miles difficult enough? Not for some. Whether it’s dressing up as a helicopter, a lobster or a pair of testicles, wearing a novelty outfit spurs many competitors on

Delusion. That’s the crucial prerequisite for running a marathon in fancy dress, according to the ultramarathon competitor and cancer survivor Jonathan Acott, who is attempting the fastest marathon dressed in a clanking suit of armour.

So that’s what it was when I decided to run this year’s London Marathon dressed as a badger. I’ve run a marathon once before, 19 years ago. I hated the suffering. I injured myself. And now I’m 51. Why was this a good idea?

Middle East crisis live: Ships reportedly attacked in strait of Hormuz after Trump extends Iran ceasefire

Two ships reportedly attacked off Iran after earlier reports of IRGC fire at a gunboat off Oman; claims Iran has seized two ships

• Trump announces ceasefire extension

• Why Trump’s erratic commentary is the real block to an Iran deal

If you’re just joining us, here’s the main news of the day. It is 9.30am in Tehran, 9am in Jerusalem and Beirut, and 2am in Washington DC.

Donald Trump unilaterally said he is extending the ceasefire with Iran at Pakistan’s request while awaiting a “unified proposal” from Tehran, even as the US military maintains its blockade of Iranian ports.

Trump made the announcement as ceasefire talks looked increasingly uncertain with a two-week truce set to expire on Wednesday. Both countries had said they were prepared to resume fighting if no deal is reached.

Trump said he would “extend the ceasefire until such time as [Iran’s] proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other”.

Trump later claimed in a Truth Social post that Iran is “collapsing financially” and was losing $500m every day that the strait of Hormuz is effectively closed.

Iran has yet to decide whether to join the negotiations in Pakistan, a foreign ministry spokesman said earlier on Tuesday, and will only take part if Tehran believes the discussions would yield results.

A container ship has reported being fired at by an IRGC gunboat, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said. The incident occurred 15 nautical miles north-east of Oman. The vessel sustained “heavy damage” to its bridge, the master of the ship said. All crew members were reported as safe.

Shares were mixed in Asia as markets waited to see if the US and Iran may resume talks. Brent crude edged higher to $98.51 a barrel, while US benchmark crude fell 0.4% to $89.29 a barrel.

One person was killed and two others wounded in an Israeli drone strike overnight on the outskirts of al-Jbour in Lebanon’s western Bekaa Valley, Lebanese state media reported. Israel and Lebanon agreed to a 10-day ceasefire on Friday.

Since the war started, fighting has killed at least 3,375 people in Iran and more than 2,290 in Lebanon, the Associated Press reported. Additionally, 23 people have died in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon and 13 US service members throughout the region have been killed.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened to prevent oil production in the Middle East if the Islamic republic faced attacks launched from its Gulf neighbours’ territory.

Virginia congressional map vote could embolden Florida Republicans to push for boundary changes, says Jeffries – US politics live

House Democratic leader says result should serve as a warning to Ron DeSantis after latest blow to Donald Trump’s redistricting battle

He can’t live with him and can’t live without him. But, finally, the conservative podcaster Tucker Carlson seems to have made up his mind about Donald Trump. Their up-and-down marriage of political convenience is heading for the divorce court.

On Tuesday Carlson admitted that he will be “tormented” for a long time by his support for Trump in the 2024 US presidential election “and I want to say I’m sorry for misleading people”. What he did not say is whether this presages his own run for president in 2028.

Dave Mason, co-founder of Traffic who had a star-studded solo career, dies aged 79

British singer and guitarist wrote and performed Traffic classics including Feelin’ Alright? before platinum-selling solo albums and work with Jimi Hendrix, Fleetwood Mac and more

Dave Mason, the co-founder of rock band Traffic who also collaborated with Jimi Hendrix, Fleetwood Mac and many other A-list musicians, has died aged 79.

A statement from his representative said he died peacefully on Sunday at his home in Gardnerville, Nevada, having settled in the US in 1969. “Dave Mason lived a remarkable life devoted to the music and the people he loved,” the statement added.

Iranian Vafaei struggling to focus on snooker at Crucible as bombs fall on his country

• ‘Persian Prince’ begins campaign amid conflict

• ‘I’m fighting as well for my country, for my family’

Hossein Vafaei begins his campaign at the snooker world championship later on Wednesday but the groundbreaking Iranian admits it has been hard to focus because of the bombardment of his country by the United States and Israel.

The war, which began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February, has since engulfed the Gulf countries and Lebanon and ignited fears of a global energy shock. For now, an uneasy truce reigns which was extended by the US president Donald Trump at the 11th hour on Tuesday.

Two ships attacked in Strait of Hormuz, UK says, after U.S. extends Iran ceasefire

The attacks come shortly after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would extend the ceasefire with Iran to allow peace talks to continue.

European Championship qualifying may switch to Nations League-style format

• Men’s tournament could follow Women’s World Cup method

• New format would likely come in after Euro 2028

An adapted version of the Nations League format is front runner among several options being considered for a revamp of the men’s European Championship qualifiers, which face an overhaul likely to be implemented after Euro 2028.

The Guardian understands the plans were presented to Uefa’s national team competitions committee on Tuesday and will now be considered by individual Football Associations, who will discuss them in smaller groups over the coming days. A final decision will be taken by the Uefa executive committee in Istanbul before next month’s Europa League final.

Should Barron Trump be drafted – or left alone to keep building his $150m fortune? | Arwa Mahdawi

Prominent Maga bros have suggested the 20-year-old son of the US president should be called up this year. Why does this seem so vanishingly unlikely?

It can’t be easy being the youngest son of a man who compares himself to the son of God. Rather a lot to live up to, isn’t there? Still, Barron Trump seems to be taking it in his stride. Rather than rebelling and becoming a socialist, the 20-year-old is shaping up to be just like dad: Barron is already worth $150m, according to a 2025 Forbes calculation. That’s largely from World Liberty Financial, a Trump family cryptocurrency company he co-founded. (Reportedly it’s Barron who got the president into crypto.)

Barron isn’t just trading alt-coins. The university student has also launched a yerba mate brand called Sollos. (Yerba mate is a caffeinated herbal tea from South America). And he’s been engaged with politics behind the scenes. Barron is widely credited for boosting his dad’s most recent election campaign by connecting him to manosphere influencers such as Adin Ross and Theo Von.

Nearly half of US children are breathing dangerous levels of air pollution, report warns

American Lung Association report comes amid Trump EPA’s expansive rollback of environmental protections

Nearly half of children in the United States are breathing dangerous levels of air pollution, according to a new report, as experts warned Donald Trump’s expansive rollback of protections will make the situation worse.

The 27th annual air quality report from the American Lung Association (ALA) released on Wednesday evaluates pollution across the country by grading levels of ground-level ozone – also known as smog – as well as year-round and short-term spikes in particle pollution, commonly referred to as soot. The report analyzed quality-assured data collected between 2022 and 2024.

‘Petro-masculinity’ is destroying the planet. Can eco-masculinity help save it? | Andrew Boyd

It’s crucial to understanding how gender is affecting our ability to rally behind a shared ecological vision

Feminist influencer Liz Plank opens her groundbreaking book For the Love of Men with a bold statement: “There is no greater threat to humankind than our current definitions of masculinity.” She means it at several levels, from the most intimate: how male partners are the leading cause of death for pregnant women in the US; to the most macro: how associating “eco-conscious behaviors with femininity and a repudiation of masculinity” is literally killing the planet. This Earth Day, it’s worth reflecting on why this is so and what can be done about it.

While it won’t come as news to most that, compared to women, men litter more, recycle less, and leave a bigger carbon footprint There’s something more extreme than simple thoughtlessness causing young men, in a form of anti-environmental protest known as “rolling coal”, to modify the diesel engines on their pick-up trucks to deliberately belch large amounts of grey-black exhaust, and then run Priuses and bicyclists off the road.

The Spin | Glitzy socials are one thing but it is more valuable to hear cricket’s most important voice

The ICC chair Jay Shah has dominated social media posts from global tournaments but his views on the future direction of the game are harder to find

“Visuals that the whole nation will remember for ages,” reads the social media post by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, introducing a 37-second video clip. It captures the celebrations after India’s T20 World Cup triumph in Ahmedabad last month, a victory built by an astounding squad; strong enough to exclude names such as Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal, nerveless enough to thump 255 in the final against New Zealand. But one man in a suit dominates the footage: Jay Shah.

The chair of the International Cricket Council (ICC) is in most of the shots, embracing the players and soaking in the moment alongside their head coach, Gautam Gambhir. He is all smiles alongside former India captains Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni, and at one point there is a frame of him on his own holding the trophy. He goes on to help Suryakumar Yadav lift it. Shah is not the honorary secretary of the BCCI any more; the whole sport is his responsibility. Yet here he was, transformed into the protagonist of a story that did not belong to him.

This is an extract from the Guardian’s weekly cricket email, The Spin. To subscribe, just visit this page and follow the instructions

‘Nobody knows what works. There’s a lot of panic’: can African pop get back to global success?

Tracks by Rema, Burna Boy and more were streaming in the billions, but hits are drying up. Stars and analysts across the African music industry fret about how to change course

In 2016, Afrobeats – the catchall term for a range of contemporary dance music emerging from west Africa – began to seep into global pop culture, propelled by intercontinental collaborations such as Wizkid and Drake’s Come Closer. Olabode Otolorin, then a university student, would dispatch optimistic forecasts on the internet about the genre’s future. Nearly a decade on and now a campaign associate at Mavin Records, one of Africa’s leading labels, Otolorin has a more downbeat outlook on Afrobeats. “It is currently in a perilous state in terms of our exports,” he says.

Otolorin is not alone in this sentiment. Addressing the 200 or so fans gathered at a spruced-up warehouse in Lagos for a recent listening party for his new album, Clarity of Mind, Afrobeats stalwart Omah Lay made a startling but accurate observation. “Afrobeats is declining overseas – that’s a fact. The sound from 2020 to 2024 isn’t what it is today. I’ve been watching, learning and studying my idols, looking for a way to bring that energy back,” he said pensively.

TikTok, an AI sitcom and clowns: how Hacks and The Comeback nail the humiliations of modern celebrity

No indignity is too great for the leads of these darkly funny shows as they pursue a comeback at any cost

In the fifth and final season of sitcom Hacks, the legendary comedian Deborah Vance has once again been plunged into crisis. After leaving America’s number one late-night talkshow in a flurry of controversy, a vengeful non-compete clause is barring her from performing new material. Season four of the Emmy-winning comedy ended on a cliffhanger, with TMZ mistakenly reporting that Deborah (Jean Smart) had died. Freshly resurrected for season five, the prodigal mother of comedy worries that her lifetime of work will be defined by her premature late-night exit. To secure her legacy, she sets her sights on staging a major comeback show at Madison Square Garden – and she’ll stop at nothing to make it happen.

Not uncoincidentally, the final season of The Comeback begins on a similar note of desperation. Valerie Cherish – the high-cringe sitcom star played by a red-haired Lisa Kudrow – is handed a career lifeline when she scores the lead role in a new sitcom. There’s just one catch: the script has been written by AI, and this is a secret that Valerie is forbidden from sharing. It’s the type of toe-curling scenario that could only come from Kudrow and her collaborator, Michael Patrick King, who is back on form after terrorising the world with And Just Like That.

Sali Hughes on beauty: red lipsticks don’t have to be in-your-face – some are as subtle as nudes

These new lipsticks are so beautifully muted that even the colour-shy and faint-hearted will carry them off

I have always said there’s a perfect red lipstick for every colouring, but not necessarily one for every disposition. I’ve had cause to reconsider. The new sheer, barely-there reds take the boldest, most classic of makeup looks and make it muted and unselfconsciously wearable by even the faint-hearted.

Merit’s entire brand is about understated makeup for the aesthetically cool, time-poor woman. Naturally, they’ve made her the perfect no-effort red. The new Signature Lip Blush (£25), a soft, very comfortable lip balm with a natural matt finish, is probably Merit’s cleverest formula to date. And with Kitten Heel, a classic, sheer, tomatoey red, it manages to make bold colour look as subtle as a nude. It’s so pretty and face-brightening without pulling focus that even the colour-shy will feel inconspicuous.

Pitch Points: the pioneering Pellegrino Matarazzo, a dramatic title race and Newcastle’s future

The world of soccer throws up no shortage of questions. Today, Graham Ruthven endeavors to answer three of them

With his Copa del Rey winners medal around his neck, Pellegrino Matarazzo struggled to find the words to sum up his remarkable journey from Fair Lawn, New Jersey, via Italy and Germany to a historic triumph as Real Sociedad manager.

RFK Jr. is on a congressional hearing blitz, after a long absence from Capitol Hill

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. caps off seven budget hearings in as many days, the first time he has testified before Congress since September.

'We can do better,' FAA head says of work to update U.S. analog air traffic system

The U.S. aviation system is being modernized — but FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford and other leaders say it will take more money to make the system more efficient and flexible.

Anthropic investigates report of rogue access to hack-enabling Mythos AI

‘Handful’ of people allegedly gain unauthorised access to model adept at detecting cybersecurity vulnerabilities

• Business live – latest updates

The AI developer Anthropic has confirmed it is investigating a report that unauthorised users have gained access to its Mythos model, which it has warned poses risks to cybersecurity.

The US startup made the statement after Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that a small group of people had accessed the model, which has not been released to the public because of its ability to enable cyber-attacks.

The Wonderful World that Almost Was by Andrew Durbin review – the queer artists who shaped New York cool

A tender but unflinching account of Peter Hujar and Paul Thek, forgotten stars of the 1960s scene

Andy Warhol sent Paul a Brillo box. Fran Lebowitz called Peter “a genius about sex”. The ending of Susan Sontag’s second novel was inspired by a bunch of Peter’s photographs. Sontag dedicated two books to Paul, and went to bed with him. The two men’s long list of admirers in the second half of the 20th century included Cy Twombly, Tennessee Williams, Gore Vidal and Alex Katz. The question, then, as with any once celebrated artist largely ignored by the history books – who were they, and what happened?

In this intimate and vibrant double biography, the author and critic Andrew Durbin reveals how the painter and sculptor Paul Thek and the photographer Peter Hujar slipped from the centre of the New York creative scene to obscurity. It begins in 1954 (a few years before they met as soul-searching twentysomethings) and ends in 1975 (a decade before they died of Aids). It tells the story of friends and lovers who, together, matured as artists and men; exceptionally talented, charming, sometimes cruel. They pushed the possibilities of what a gay relationship looked like – “open, and unapologetic” – and helped to define the New York art scene’s “cool”.

The Last Spy review – former CIA station chief tells it like it was from inside the tent

Peter Sichel gives a scrupulous and revealing insider’s view of the secret service and Washington circles in Katharina Otto-Bernstein’s documentary

This is a straightforward, scrupulously assembled documentary that pays tribute to retired spymaster Peter Sichel, a German Jew who escaped the Holocaust, joined the United States’s first espionage bureau OSS, and then became the chief in a number of crucial CIA stations after the war, such the ones in Berlin and Hong Kong. Still fully in possession of every marble at the ripe old age of 100, Sichel reflects to camera on his middle-of-the-action view of events during the cold war, and a little tea gets spilled along the way, but not so much that he’s likely to get in any trouble for revealing state secrets. Still, he’s unabashedly critical of some CIA operations, such as the plots to destabilise leftist regimes including that of Jacobo Árbenz in Guatemala.

Director Katharina Otto-Bernstein can be heard asking perspicacious questions off camera, but mostly her job here is to get Sichel going with the anecdotes and then fill in the historical blanks with a blend of archive footage and supplementary talking-head interviews. The latter come from a variety of old CIA hands and the journalists who covered them, including author Scott Anderson, journo Carl Bernstein and son-of-CIA-man John Hadden; they fill in the background on the subterranean politicking between CIA chief Allen Dulles and his secretary of state brother John Foster Dulles during the Eisenhower administration.

What is the biggest football scoreline without anyone grabbing a hat-trick? | The Knowledge

Plus: four different players scoring twice, trophy glory after being reinstated and injured physios (revisited)

• Mail us with your all of your questions and answers

“QPR recently scored six goals against Pompey with three players scoring a double each,” begins Dan Trelfer. “This threw up a few questions.”

So it did. Let’s take Dan’s questions one at a time.

#ToddlerSkincare: the ‘dark and exploitative’ world of children’s beauty videos on TikTok

Skincare videos are featuring children as young as two, Guardian analysis finds, prompting fears about the industry’s reach and lack of safeguards

• ‘An element of exploitation’: the world of TikTok child skincare influencers

Children as young as two are appearing in TikTok videos demonstrating their skincare routines, a Guardian investigation has found, raising concerns about the beauty industry’s reach and the lack of safeguards for child influencers.

The research found that 400 TikTok videos out of the 7,600 skincare-related posts analysed featured routines or advice presented by children believed to be under 13. At least 90 of these posts featured under-fives, including babies and toddlers.

What my zen week with a virtual power-washer taught me about gaming – and life | Imogen West-Knights

Some of the most popular simulator games are outlandishly boring. But curiously, it’s satisfying to complete pointless tasks when the stakes are so low

When I was at university I had a friend who had a strange hobby. He would sit in his room and play a hunting simulation game on his computer. “Game” struck me as a misleading word for what this program allowed you to do, though. You’d have to sit hunkered in the digital undergrowth waiting long, long stretches for a deer to walk through your gun sights. So long, in fact, that the game came with an inbuilt noughts and crosses function so you had something to entertain you while doing this supposedly entertaining thing.

His other friends and I thought this noughts and crosses thing was hysterical. Why play a game so dull that it needs another game inside it? But simulator games, of which hunting is just one type, have only grown more popular since then – and to an astonishing degree. The global simulation games market was worth an estimated $4.86bn (£3.6bn) in 2020, and is expected to generate about $21bn by 2030. And I don’t just mean games like The Sims or Rollercoaster Tycoon or Stardew Valley: brightly coloured games in which there are clearly exciting objectives and lots of things to do. I mean games that are almost outlandishly dull in their conceit. There is Farming Simulator and Euro Truck Simulator, where you drive an HGV across the continent, another where you pilot commercial flights in real time – and many, many more.

I write video games myself, narrative point-and-click stuff, so I have watched this trend with interest and confusion. I wanted to know: what is it about these games? Lawn Mowing simulator seemed the most purely boring to me, but sadly it is only available on PC. You can download an expansion pack for that one that allows you to mow lawns in “ancient Britain”. Wonders never cease. So instead I went for the PowerWash simulator as the game to try to get into – because when I was in the throes of an acute heartbreak some years ago, my poor mother suggested that instead of crying all day in the kitchen I might like to power-wash her patio while crying instead. Which I did, and remember finding it an oddly satisfying if abject experience. Power washers work very well. The patio became clean. Something was not going to shit.

The Shadow of the Object by Chloe Aridjis review – one of the boldest writers at work in English today

This fable-like novella about technologies of illusion and a life-changing friendship in Mexico City is enchanting

The Shadow of the Object, the new novel from Mexican-American author Chloe Aridjis, opens with an eruption of violence: Flora, a fortysomething woman, is visiting her mother and stepfather in Mexico City for the first time in many years when one evening, as she is bidding them goodnight, Diego – the household’s beloved guard dog – springs up and sinks his teeth into her hand. This unexpected incident is an assault not only on Flora’s body, but also upon those delicate fictions that have, until now, shaped her life and swathed that body in an illusory sense of safety. The ageing alsatian, who had lived until the instant of the attack with “his inner life and ours mysteriously, harmoniously, aligned”, suddenly gazes up at the benevolent limb of his human benefactor and sees “an unsettling sight” indeed: “A hand out of context, unattached to a body … A hand gone rogue, no longer following orders from headquarters.”

Condemned to spend the rest of her vacation confined to the winding corridors of a private hospital in Mexico City, Flora is ambivalent. On the one hand, the environment is hardly stimulating – but on the other, “hospital stays offer a rare occasion to check out … as a patient you are absolved of most responsibility, nothing expected of you except to mend”. The hospital is life’s waiting room, and it is during a languid midnight stroll of its corridors that she meets Wilhelmina Blau, an elderly yet redoubtable German admitted with a bad case of pneumonia.

‘I’m not trying to make him handsome’: Polly Samson on photographing husband David Gilmour – in pictures

The acclaimed author has spent two decades taking pictures of the Pink Floyd guitarist on tour and in the studio – an experience that still gives her chills

Winnie-the-Pooh’s 100th birthday is a great excuse to explore the Sussex forest that inspired the books

To mark the anniversary there are dozens of events planned around Ashdown Forest (aka the Hundred Acre Wood) – and, of course, playing Pooh Sticks is always a good idea

Deep in a medieval hunting forest, amid 6,500 acres of heathland, a wooden bridge spans a tributary of the River Medway. Every single day, no matter the weather, people flock to stand on its slats and cheer on sticks as they float downstream.

I know this because on a frosty but sunny morning, (“a very long time ago now, about last Friday”, as children’s author AA Milne might have said), I stood with two such adults jumping up and down with delight as my little piece of oak stormed ahead and won the race.

A moment that changed me: I thought landlords were unchallengeable – until I met one of mine at a party

When I bumped into my former landlord it changed my perspective. After years of renting, it gave me the confidence to stand up for myself in an objectively unfair game

After 12 years of renting, I’ve known my fair share of landlords – although “known” is probably the wrong term. I don’t usually meet them in person and rarely speak to them directly, only communicating through a managing estate agent or, if I’m lucky, email. They often exist in my mind as frightening spectres of exploitation: mere initials on a contract, but with the unsettling power to displace me at short notice.

But that all changed one freezing night in March 2023, at a friend’s house party in Dalston, east London. On arrival, I stuffed cans of White Claw in to the small fridge and scanned the room. I ended up chatting to a man I had never met before, who introduced himself as a friend of the host’s new boyfriend. He was a little older than me, with a mop of unremarkable brown hair and a slightly awkward demeanour.

The Deb actor in feud with Rebel Wilson signed $150,000 record deal, court told

Wilson is being sued for defamation by Charlotte MacInnes over social media posts alleging a sexual harassment complaint

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An actor accusing Rebel Wilson of damaging her career secured a $150,000 record deal with a publicist representing international superstars amid the feud with Wilson.

Charlotte MacInnes is suing the Pitch Perfect actor over social media posts claiming MacInnes complained about feeling uncomfortable after bathing with Wilson’s co-producer on musical film The Deb, Amanda Ghost.

El Salvador holds mass trial for 486 alleged members of notorious MS-13 gang

Human rights groups have warned that the collective prosecutions violate due process and block defendants from accessing legal counsel

A Salvadoran court on Tuesday began a collective trial of 486 alleged gang members, in one of the biggest mass trials under president Nayib Bukele’s crackdown on gang violence through controversial emergency powers.

Prosecutors say the charges against alleged members of the Mara Salvatrucha gang, or MS-13, span more than 47,000 crimes committed between 2012 and 2022, including a weekend that was El Salvador’s bloodiest since its civil war.

Priceless 2,500-year-old golden helmet returned to Romania after Dutch museum raid

The ornate Cotofenesti helmet, which was stolen in January 2025 while on loan to a Dutch museum, was recovered last month.

Mexico to beef up security at tourist sites after shooting at pyramids

Mexico's government is boosting security at tourist sites in preparation for the World Cup after a man opened fire at the Teotihuacan pyramids.

Gianluigi Buffon: ‘You have a perception that you are unbeatable, almost omnipotent’

Italy’s legendary goalkeeper on getting used to retirement, the decline of Italian football and why he blames himself for Zidane’s World Cup final red card

“I tear the gloves off my hands and my bare knuckles, reddened and soaked with sweat, shine in the neon light,” Gianluigi Buffon writes when he remembers leaving the pitch at half-time during the final game of his remarkable career, in May 2023. “I really feel dead inside. I am 45 years old, and around me many of my teammates walking in shorts towards the dressing room could easily be my children.”

The gripping and intimate tone of Buffon’s book, Saved, which opens with his last-ever game in a Serie B playoff for Parma, is matched by his warm and open character. The great goalkeeper played professionally for 28 years and his reflections are as moving as they are sombre. “Can you live without it, Gigi?” he asks. “No, I can’t … when you have outlived your youth, and the time when you feel strong and all-powerful has ended, and your muscles, joints and reflexes start to wear out, then it really is like dying.”

Spain champions migration’s benefits with regularisation scheme – but queues are long

Migrants navigate complicated documentation and long queues to regularise their status under decree expected to benefit at least 500,000 people

A few minutes’ walk from Calle Ponzano, where many madrileños go to drink, graze and chat into the early hours, a more sober ritual is playing out in the austere surroundings of the offices of Madrid’s regional transport consortium.

Every few minutes, individuals or couples emerge from its doors into the bright spring sunshine. The unlucky ones leave with a frown; the lucky ones with a document confirming their use of public transport through a trackable, top-up travel card.

The rush to appease Trump led Keir Starmer into this ethical void | Rafael Behr

Peter Mandelson’s flaws were mistaken for credentials to represent Britain in the court of a rogue president

You can’t kill something that is already dead. New details about Peter Mandelson’s disastrous appointment as Britain’s ambassador to Washington can trigger more paroxysms of outrage in Westminster. They can sharpen the pitch of opposition calls for the prime minister to resign. They can reinforce the view among Labour MPs that Keir Starmer shouldn’t lead them into a general election. But they can’t produce consensus around a replacement, or invent a way to choose one without self-destructive factional feuding.

Labour MPs’ craving for better leadership has been finely balanced with fear of holding a contest and emerging with someone worse. There is no final straw yet to come because the camel’s back was broken months ago.

Curry puff pies and king noodles: Ranie Saidi’s everyday Malaysian recipes

Malaysian home cooking is all about balance, and you will find that in abundance in a curried potato karipap pie and homely noodles in a punchy sambal

My late grandmother was a wedding cook in Malaysia. From her, I learned that Malay cooking is about kindness and balance; no single taste should dominate – it should never be too spicy or too sweet. She believed in celebrating rezeki, the blessing of being able to share food with others, and cooking her dishes has helped me to grieve her passing and shaped a branch of my identity rooted in hosting and sharing.

Body of New Zealand man swept away by floods found, as Wellington recovers after widespread damage

Philip Sutton was looking after a property for his sister when a torrent of flood water smashed through it

The body of a man who was swept away after severe flooding tore through his home in New Zealand’s capital has been found, police confirmed on Wednesday, as the city picked up the pieces after widespread damage.

Philip Sutton was looking after a property for his sister in Karori, in Wellington’s west, when a torrent of flood water smashed through it early on Monday.

Millions in India stripped of vote before critical state election, as government seeks to ‘purify’ electoral roll

Experts say Muslims and other minorities have been disproportionately deleted from the electoral roll ahead of the West Bengal elections this week

Millions of people in the Indian state of West Bengal have been stripped of their vote ahead of a critical state election this week, after a controversial electoral revision described by critics as a “bloodless political genocide” and mass disenfranchisement of minorities.

In West Bengal, a total of 9.1 million names have been deleted from the register, more than 10% of the electorate. While many were dead or duplicates, about 2.7 million people have challenged their expulsions, but still been removed.

Criminal Record season two review – Peter Capaldi is just devastating in this intense crime thriller

Cush Jumbo is excellent in Apple’s unsettling tale of police corruption. But the former Time Lord, whose death-stare is turned up to 11, is this show’s heart

’Ello, ’ello. What’s goin’ on ’ere, then? Criminal Record, is it? A second series, you say? Well, strike a light, guv, cos here it comes, nee-nawing through London’s perp-spattered streets with another investigational pea-souper. In the thick of it, once again, is DCI Daniel Hegarty (Peter Capaldi), baring his lower teeth while glowering at us through the windscreen of his Skoda Malfeasance.

Not that Capaldi’s peerlessly unsettling presence is the Apple TV drama’s sole distinguishing feature, mind. There is its depiction of London as a city impervious to natural light, with conversations, interrogations and “roughings-up” conducted against a backdrop of faulty streetlights and flickering tower-block TV sets. There is its portrayal of systemic corruption, with everything from the CID’s dimpled glass doors to the foreheads of its junior plods slick with an oily sheen of venality. And there are the questions it poses re the nature of control, with DS June Lenker (the ever-excellent Cush Jumbo) tormented by notions of who is in charge, and who ought to be.

Temporary accommodation linked to deaths of 104 children in England in six years

Calls for ‘urgent, sustained action’ over rising number of children who do not have permanent home

Living in temporary accommodation has contributed to the deaths of 104 children in England in the past six years, 76 of whom were under the age of one, according to data.

Statistics also show there were 64 stillbirths and 27 neonatal deaths involving mothers living in temporary accommodation (TA) in the UK in 2024. Experts say the housing crisis is pushing families into conditions that endanger their lives.

To see or not to see? Every single Shakespeare play – ranked!

Antony and Cleopatra? Exhausting. Lear? Magnificent but flawed. Hamlet? Limitless. For Shakespeare’s birthday, the Guardian’s former theatre critic ranks all the plays

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Pollen season in UK and mainland Europe extended by climate breakdown

Research finds global heating has already lengthened the pollen season in addition to worsening heatwaves and droughts

Climate breakdown has extended the pollen season in the UK and mainland Europe by between one and two weeks since the 1990s, a study has found, adding itchy eyes and runny noses to the harm wrought by fossil fuel pollution.

The finding may be less dramatic than the floods and wildfires typically associated with a warming planet but represents a “huge” increase in the combined suffering of tens of millions of people, the researchers say.

Spurs’ Wembanyama in concussion protocol as Blazers rally to even series

• Wembanyama exits after hard fall in Game 2

• Spurs star enters NBA concussion protocol

• Blazers rally to even series at one game apiece

San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama was placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol after tumbling face-first to the court and exiting in the second quarter of Tuesday night’s playoff game against the Portland Trail Blazers, who rallied for a 106-103 victory to level the series at one game apiece.

Wembanyama was being evaluated for a concussion and a determination could be made in the next 24 hours, a Spurs official said.

Judge dismisses Kash Patel's defamation lawsuit over claim he frequented 'nightclubs'

The lawsuit against Frank Figliuzzi was dismissed a day after FBI Director Kash Patel sued The Atlantic magazine over claims he abused alcohol.

Virginia voters OK a Democratic effort to redraw the state's congressional map

Virginia voters have delivered a significant win to Democrats, as the party aims to pick up four more U.S. House seats in the state.

4/21: The Takeout with Major Garrett

President Trump extends ceasefire with Iran; Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick resigns before facing ethics panel meeting.

Duffy on AI replacing air traffic controllers: "That's not gonna happen"

"Am I gonna replace a controller and have AI manage the airspace? The answer to that is hell no, that's not gonna happen," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told CBS News.

Ethics panel to decide penalty for Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick over theft allegations

The Florida Democrat is accused of stealing $5 million in FEMA funds for her campaign.

Cherfilus-McCormick resigns from Congress before Ethics hearing on sanctions

The Florida Democrat stepped down shortly before a House Ethics Committee hearing to determine whether she should be punished.

SpaceX secures option to buy AI startup Cursor for $60bn or partner for $10bn

Cursor is a Silicon Valley startup using AI to automate coding as Elon Musk’s firm seeks foothold in the AI market

SpaceX said it has secured an option to either acquire code-generation startup Cursor for $60bn later this year, or pay $10bn for their new partnership, as it pushes deeper into the lucrative market for AI developer tools.

Along with OpenAI and Anthropic, Cursor is one of several Silicon Valley startups that has drawn waves of developers by using artificial intelligence to automate coding, a business where AI companies have found early commercial traction.

Tim Cook to step down as Apple CEO, with John Ternus tapped as successor

Apple CEO Tim Cook will step down in August and become executive chairman of Apple's board.

John Ternus prepares to take over Apple after Tim Cook resignation

Tim Cook announced he would be stepping down as Apple CEO on Monday. Jo Ling Kent reports on John Ternus, the mechanical engineer preparing to take the wheel.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy: "AI is a tool, but we do not replace humans"

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy spoke with Kris Van Cleave about artificial intelligence technology in air traffic control, and Spirit Airlines' request for a government bailout.

Condom prices could rise 30% due to Iran war, says world’s top producer Karex

Karex produces more than 5 billion condoms annually and is a supplier to leading brands like Durex and Trojan, as well as the NHS

The world’s top condom producer, Malaysia’s Karex Bhd, plans to raise prices by 20% to 30% and possibly further if supply chain disruptions drag on due to the Iran war, its chief executive has said.

Karex is also seeing a surge in condom demand as rising freight costs and shipping delays have left many of its customers with lower stockpiles than usual, CEO Goh Miah Kiat told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday.

Mexican officials reveal new details about pyramid shooting

Mexican authorities say a gunman atop the Pyramid of the Moon, one of Mexico's most popular archaeological sites, shot at tourists and taunted first responders on Monday. CBS News chief correspondent Matt Gutman reports on the new details.

Trump extends ceasefire in Iran indefinitely

President Trump said he's extending the ceasefire until Iran has submitted a proposal in talks with the U.S. "and discussions are concluded."

How picking up trash helped a Wisconsin retiree rediscover purpose

Four years ago, Berny Clarke of Wisconsin longed for a purpose after retirement. Her doctor told her to walk in nature. What he didn't prescribe, but what really changed everything, was the trash she found on her walks.

Parents of slain Loyola student Sheridan Gorman say, "We've got to make changes"

Sheridan Gorman, an 18-year-old Loyola freshman, was shot and killed in Chicago last month and an undocumented immigrant from Venezuela is under arrest.

Louisiana shooting exposes "dangerous gaps" in domestic violence, gun laws

After the mass shooting in Shreveport, Louisiana, advocates are urging policymakers to reform domestic violence and gun control legislation.

Apple’s Tim Cook leaves behind complicated legacy on privacy

Outgoing CEO took stood up for users in battle with FBI but concessions abroad undermine claims of protecting ‘fundamental right’

In his 15 years as Apple’s top executive, Tim Cook has projected an image of the company as a champion of privacy rights. As he prepares to leave that role in September, that legacy has come back into focus. Cook trumpeted the iPhone maker’s commitment to privacy at home in the US and the EU, calling privacy “a fundamental right” but his acquiescence to government demands abroad call his dedication to protecting users into question.

Cook cemented Apple’s pro-privacy reputation in 2015 when he resisted the FBI’s demands to unlock the iPhone of a mass shooter in San Bernardino, California. The company played up that public image in 2019 with playful ads that read, “Privacy. That’s iPhone”, positioning Apple as the obvious choice for people who cared about privacy. In 2021, Apple added a feature, App Tracking Transparency, that allowed iPhone owners to limit an app’s ability to track their mobile activity. Apps that tracked users without permission would be removed, Cook said.

‘Stop sucking up to America’: Japan’s youth rises up to protect pacifist constitution

Protests are growing against moves to change Japan’s ‘supreme law’, a document written by the US that is now being challenged by Iran war

It may be a toy, but Gohta Hashimoto’s lightsaber is symbolic of the battle he and his fellow protesters face as they attempt to derail moves by Japan’s government to change the country’s pacifist constitution for the first time in its 80-year history.

“I’ve been interested in the constitution for about a year, ever since the rise of far-right parties in Japan,” says Hashimoto, a 22-year-old university student. “I wanted to be part of a movement that keeps my country peaceful and protects the constitution.”

Trump officials consider sending 1,100 Afghans who aided US forces to Congo

Discussions reportedly come after Trump’s decision to stop initiative that allowed group to apply to resettle in the US

The Trump administration is in discussions to potentially send up to 1,100 Afghans who helped US forces during the war in Afghanistan to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a non-profit confirmed on Tuesday.

The resettlement talks, first reported by the New York Times, come after Donald Trump’s decision to stop an initiative that allowed Afghans who assisted US war efforts to apply to resettle in the US.

Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick resigns House seat instead of facing punishment from colleagues

Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida became the latest U.S. lawmaker to step down amid allegations of ethics violations. It happened minutes before a vote to decide whether she should be forced out. Nikole Killion reports.

U.S. forces ready to restart fighting if necessary, officials say

The largest U.S. military presence in the Middle East since the invasion of Iraq has gotten even larger in recent weeks with the deployment of additional forces and a third aircraft carrier. Charlie D'Agata reports on the president's 21st-century "gunboat diplomacy."

DOJ charges Southern Poverty Law Center with fraud over secret funding of extremist groups

The Southern Poverty Law Center said it is "outraged" by what it called the "false allegations" by the Department of Justice.

Trump extends ceasefire, calls Iranian regime "seriously fractured"

President Trump threatened new attacks on Iran Tuesday and said he didn't want to extend the ceasefire. But later, he said he would extend the pause "indefinitely." Ed O'Keefe has the details.

Slow-moving monster storm hammers Michigan, dubbed "ice tsunami"

Homes along the Black Lake in Northern Michigan got hammered by a rare, slow-moving storm on Tuesday evening. Rob Marciano reports on this and has the weather forecast.

FBI investigating deaths, disappearances of staff at government labs

The disappearances and deaths of 10 government workers tied to nuclear or space technology have sparked speculation online. President Trump said the cases are "hopefully, coincidence."

Trump recounts Tim Cook call to 'kiss my ass,' in stark look at White House dealmaking

Tech executives from Amazon, Apple, Google and Meta have dined with Trump and donated millions to his inauguration fund and the White House ballroom.

DOJ charges Southern Poverty Law Center with fraud

A federal grand jury indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center on wire and bank fraud-related charges on Tuesday, the Justice Department says, accusing it of paying members of extremist groups as part of its efforts to investigate them.

‘Most difficult night’: Liam Rosenior hits out at Chelsea’s attitude after Brighton blow

• ‘That was unacceptable in every aspect of the game’

• Brighton overtake Chelsea in sixth with 3-0 victory

Liam Rosenior bemoaned the “most difficult night” and offered no defence of his Chelsea players after they slumped to a 3-0 defeat at Brighton.

“By far,” Rosenior replied when asked if this was the toughest day of his short Chelsea tenure. Questions of whether he survives in his position as head coach until Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final with Leeds will be floated after his team’s abject performance.

4/21: CBS Evening News

Slow-moving monster storm hammers Michigan; President Trump extends ceasefire with Iran.

Contract reveals fundraising deal for Trump's East Wing overhaul

The agreement, which was signed this fall, ensures donor anonymity, establishes a fee structure and institutes a ban on foreign contributions.

Lawmakers demand answers at hearing on hospice fraud

Congress asks experts, advocates and victims how to combat hospice fraud, after a CBS News investigation uncovered widespread signs of potential fraud in California.

Trump administration discussing currency swap line with United Arab Emirates

Such a move would provide liquidity in dollars to the oil-rich UAE, but could be politically tenuous for the administration amid higher prices at home.

United Airlines slashes 2026 forecast as fuel costs surge

The carrier's first-quarter earnings topped Wall Street's expectations.

Florida opens criminal probe over ChatGPT's alleged role in FSU shooting

Attorney General James Uthmeier said his office launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI after reviewing conversation logs between ChatGPT and a Florida State University student accused of killing two people last year.

Meta failed to protect social media users from scam ads, lawsuit alleges

The Consumer Federation of America accused Meta of allowing scam advertisements to "proliferate on its platforms."

Parents of Loyola student fatally shot in Chicago call for change: "This can't happen"

The parents of Loyola University student Sheridan Gorman called for change after a Venezuelan man, who was illegally in the U.S., allegedly shot and killed their daughter in Chicago last month. "This can't happen. We've got to make changes," they said in an exclusive interview with CBS News' Matt Gutman airing Wednesday on "CBS Mornings."

Gates Foundation reviewing Jeffrey Epstein ties, will slash 20% of staff, WSJ reports

Berkshire Hathaway Chair Warren Buffett had told CNBC he hasn't spoken to Bill Gates since details of Jeffrey Epstein's communications with him were revealed.

Trump extends ceasefire in Iran, citing 'seriously fractured' Iranian government

Trump's announcement came after an expected trip by Vice President JD Vance to Pakistan for a peace talks with Iranian officials was put on hold.

MasterChef review – the BBC’s disgraced cookery show is warmer, sharper and funnier than ever

New hosts Grace Dent and chef Anna Haugh have shaken off the show’s crusty, stale feel. They’re a real improvement on John Torode and Gregg Wallace

MasterChef is back, emboldened by the strange and giddy euphoria of an enforced refresh. For nigh on 20 years, the BBC’s premier cookery contest was judged by John Torode and Gregg Wallace and was just sort of … there. Not bad, but not very exciting either. That the hosts might have become a little crusty and stale wasn’t widely noticed or discussed.

One unsavoury year of allegations, investigations and cancellations later, not one but both of the show’s long-serving overlords have abruptly departed. Yet there’s something freeing about an unplanned change and MasterChef, happily, has embraced that by hiring two relatively low-profile women to replace the old men: season 22 is brought to you by Myrtle chef patron Anna Haugh and Guardian restaurant critic Grace Dent.

Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick resigns, third House member to quit this month

Cherfilus-McCormick was indicted in November in Miami federal court on charges accusing her of stealing $5 million in Covid-19 disaster funds.

Head’s up: 12 main-course cauliflower recipes from easy to ambitious

From quick and easy roasts to warming curries and a centrepiece wellington, these dishes make for filling dinners, with plenty left over for lunch

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Cauliflower looks like the ghost of broccoli, or a human brain that has been drained of blood. As is the case with many overlooked vegetables, boiling is the absolutely second-worst way to cook it (we do not talk about cauliflower rice), while roasting is best, to coax out its sweet and nutty flavours. A whole head is very good and affordable in Australia at the moment and can easily feed a whole family.

Analysis: Warsh emerges from a difficult hearing with his Fed 'regime-change' plan intact

The Fed chair faced many questions about his finances, but few about his plan to overhaul the central bank.

Microsoft cuts Game Pass subscription prices after new Xbox CEO promises to 'recommit' to gamers

Microsoft's new gaming leader, Asha Sharma, is making the Xbox flagship subscription more affordable. But it won't have every game at launch.

Vance trip to Pakistan for Iran talks is on hold, NYT reports

Trump told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Tuesday morning that he thinks the U.S. is "going to end up with a great deal" with Iran to end the war.

EU foreign ministers reject proposal to suspend association agreement with Israel

A part suspension was tabled by Ireland, Spain and Slovenia but did not receive enough backing from other member states

The EU remains split on imposing sanctions on Israel, despite some member states criticising the country over the plight of Gaza and violence against Palestinians by Israeli settlers in the West Bank.

Kaja Kallas, the EU foreign policy chief, said proposals for a part suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement remained on the table but required states to shift their positions to come into force.

The Guardian view on Starmer and Mandelson: when process follows power | Editorial

Olly Robbins exposed a deeper failure: when the prime minister’s decision came first, security vetting was left to catch up after the fact

It was a classic Whitehall performance: understated and explosive. Sir Olly Robbins did not bluster in front of MPs. The sacked Foreign Office chief calmly stuck to the language of process. He admitted clearing Peter Mandelson to be US ambassador despite UK Security Vetting (UKSV) – in his own words – “leaning against” approval. But the context was key: Downing Street had already set a “very, very strong expectation” that the peer would be in Washington fast and had a dismissive attitude to vetting. The decision to back the peer had effectively been made before the system could catch up.

On Monday, MPs skewered Sir Keir Starmer over appointing Lord Mandelson. The issue was not what the prime minister knew, but what he chose to do with the knowledge. By December 2024, he had seen Cabinet Office “due diligence” and was aware of the peer’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein after the financier’s child sex conviction. Sir Keir went ahead anyway. Announcement, royal approval and US “agrément” swiftly turned that judgment into policy – before vetting had even begun. Sir Keir insisted that he should have been told Lord Mandelson was, in his words, denied security clearance for the role of US ambassador. Diane Abbott cut through this defence with a single question: “Why didn’t you ask?”

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.

The Guardian view on the true cost of the Iran war: bombs kill – but so does the economic fallout | Editorial

There is growing international concern as the fragile two-week ceasefire reaches its Wednesday deadline. Whatever happens next, the poor will pay

More than 3,300 Iranians, including 383 children, have been killed since the US and Israel launched their illegal war, authorities said this week. Asked about Wednesday’s ceasefire deadline, Donald Trump first said that he expected to resume bombing, then unilaterally announced that he was extending the truce “until discussions are concluded”. Whatever happens – or doesn’t – with the US-Iranian peace talks due to take place in Islamabad, the costs of this disastrous conflict will keep growing. The only thing that the sides have in common is that each needs peace, but thinks that it can force the other into significant concessions.

Iran has deployed its drones and missiles to punishing effect, but knows that its chief weapon is the economic pain it can inflict, primarily through control of the strait of Hormuz. The International Monetary Fund warned last week that a further escalation could trigger a global recession. Its head, Kristalina Georgieva, had already said that the crisis would remain a threat to the global economy even if it ended overnight. The costs mount over time. But while the pain is widely spread, it is far from evenly shared. The combination of higher energy, food and fertiliser costs will increasingly hammer poorer and heavily import-reliant nations.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.

Bill banning people born after 2008 from buying tobacco clears UK parliament

Ministers hope tobacco and vapes bill, which will become law next week, will create a ‘smoke-free generation’

A bill banning anyone born after 2008 from buying tobacco in the UK has completed its progress through parliament in a move that ministers hope will create a “smoke-free generation”.

Under the tobacco and vapes bill anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 will never be able to be legally sold tobacco across the UK, in an effort to save lives and reduce the burden on the NHS.

Tim Cook turned Apple into a $4 trillion juggernaut by not trying to be Steve Jobs

Tim Cook's 15-year tenure at the helm of Apple was highly profitable for Wall Street, as the company's market cap swelled from $350 billion to $4 trillion.

Senate Republicans unveil immigration funding framework as DHS shutdown drags on

Democrats have opposed funding for ICE and Customs and Border Patrol since federal immigration enforcement agents killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis.

Hegseth scraps mandatory flu shots for troops

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said U.S. service members will no longer be required to get annual flu shots.

The snuggle is real: what happens when you can’t fall asleep without your partner?

Experts share why you might sleep better with that special someone and how couples can find healthy sleep dynamics

• Tell us: do you use AI for fitness?

I don’t live with my partner, but when we sleep in the same bed, I doze off almost instantly. When I’m alone in my own bed, I toss and turn throughout the night.

Between talk of “sleep divorces” being key to a healthy relationship and boyfriends being embarrassing, it’s been hard to admit that I sleep much better with my partner.