UK extreme heat prompts Cobra emergency meeting 12. August 2026 (07:55) High temperatures continue with forecasts reaching 38C on Thursday and wildfires stretching emergency servicesThe prime minister will chair a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee on Wednesday in response to extreme heat, which has caused wildfires and plunged many parts of Britain into drought.Andy Burnham will meet with ministers, officials and agencies as high temperatures continue across the UK on Wednesday afternoon, with temperatures of 33C forecast, and up to 38C on Thursday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Members of Liberal group received ‘kickbacks’ from lobbying company’s Catholic Schools NSW contract, Icac hears 12. August 2026 (07:37) Lobbyist Jeremy Greenwood gives evidence about allegations linked to Reformers at Independent Commission Against Corruption hearingFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMembers of a conservative Christian Liberal party faction received a “kickback” from consultancy payments made by the governing body for more than 600 schools in New South Wales, an inquiry has heard.Consultant and lobbyist Jeremy Greenwood gave his third day of evidence to the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s (Icac) Operation Rosny on Wednesday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
All-British chocolate bar made by scientists using Reading-grown cocoa 12. August 2026 (07:00) Master’s student made first bar with 100% UK ingredients since 1932 to highlight affect of climate crisis on cocoa plants The late queen was the only person in history to have ever eaten a chocolate bar made with 100% British ingredients, after she was given one as a six-year-old in 1932 by the confectioner Rowntree’s.The bar was created from a glasshouse-grown cocoa plant, at Rowntree’s headquarters in York. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mass evacuations in Beijing as Typhoon Dolphin brings more torrential rain to China 12. August 2026 (06:43) Forecasters warned the Chinese capital could receive more than one-third of its average annual rainfall over 24 hoursThousands of people have been evacuated from areas at risk of flooding and landslides in Beijing, as the remnants of Typhoon Dolphin continue to bring torrential rain to northern and central China.Forecasters warned on Tuesday that the Chinese capital could receive more than 150mm of rain over the following 24 hours, with some districts forecast to exceed 200mm – more than one-third of Beijing’s average annual rainfall of 528mm. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Massive bailout for Australia’s largest aluminium smelter expected to be announced by PM and NSW premier 12. August 2026 (06:29) Rio Tinto said in December it may cease operations at the Tomago aluminium smelter at the end of its current electricity supply contractFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAnthony Albanese and the New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, are preparing to mount a major bailout of Australia’s largest aluminium smelter, in a deal worth as much as $2.5bn.Resources giant Rio Tinto said in December it was contemplating ceasing operations at the Tomago aluminium smelter in NSW at the end of its current electricity supply contract. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Francesca Hong aims to ride progressive wave in Wisconsin primary for governor 12. August 2026 (06:13) Democratic socialist is frontrunner in four-way race to face Republican Tom Tiffany in test of anti-establishment moodWisconsin voters will decide on Tuesday whether to nominate a democratic socialist for the state’s highest office in the latest test of an anti-establishment wave among Democratic primary voters.Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist state lawmaker, emerged as the frontrunner in a four-way race to succeed Tony Evers, the Democratic governor who is not seeking another term. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK heatwaves may have cost economy £4.4bn in lost output so far this year, analysis finds 12. August 2026 (06:00) Verdant thinktank says cost could top £25bn a year by 2030 and calls for maximum temperature for working and urban redesign to cool down citiesRepeated debilitating heatwaves this summer are likely to have cost the UK economy more than £4bn in lost economic output by the end of July, new analysis shows.Green thinktank Verdant had suggested June’s unseasonally hot weather had an economic cost of £2.36bn. Updating its assessment to include last month’s high temperatures, it finds a £4.4bn hit to output. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Israel deliberately starting wildfires in southern Lebanon, firefighters say 12. August 2026 (06:00) First responders, residents and environmental groups say military dropping flares to destroy forests and cropsFirefighters and residents of south Lebanon have accused the Israeli military of lighting wildfires in the region, as forested areas burned down in blazes sparked by Israeli bombing.Environmental groups said the fires in recent weeks were part of a longstanding Israeli practice of targeting Lebanon’s natural environment. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
British man with dementia told to leave Sweden after losing migration case 12. August 2026 (06:00) Exclusive: Horace Mason, 74, who has lived in Sweden for 25 years, faces being deported after court rulingA 74-year-old British man who has been living in Sweden for 25 years who needs round-the-clock care for dementia has been given 10 days to leave the country after he lost a post-Brexit migration court case.The deportation order comes after a Swedish court ruling in July that the government’s drive to reduce immigration trumped the needs of a man in full-time care. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Progressive Peggy Flanagan sweeps Minnesota Senate primary in race defined by anti-ICE anger 12. August 2026 (05:36) State’s Democratic lieutenant governor bests Angie Craig in another election contest pitting a progressive against a moderatePeggy Flanagan, Minnesota’s lieutenant governor, won the Democratic primary for US Senate in the state, in another election contest that pitted a progressive against a moderate, this time with immigration issues at the center.The US Senate race in Minnesota, in which Flanagan ousted congresswoman Angie Craig, was yet another example of progressive campaigns toppling moderates as an anti-establishment wave continues across Democratic primaries. But the state’s race was also a response to the long shadow of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in January. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
