Infrastructure cuts to pay for defence will cost UK 10,000 jobs, analysis shows 02. July 2026 (20:46) Exclusive: Findings cast doubt on Starmer claims that reallocation of funds to MoD will boost British jobsKeir Starmer’s decision to cut billions of pounds of infrastructure spending to pay for more defence equipment will end up costing the UK 10,000 jobs, according to an analysis of the government’s own figures.The prime minister announced this week he was putting an extra £15bn into defence investment to revamp the country’s armed forces and boost British manufacturing. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Burnham ‘coronation’ will anger some Labour members, party bosses warned 02. July 2026 (20:01) NEC told it must take steps to address fears – including not hiring Everton stadium to announce new leader before nominations even openLabour chiefs have been warned they must placate disgruntled Labour members who are angry at the lack of party democracy because Andy Burnham is not expected to face a challenge to become Labour leader.MPs have told the party there are growing complaints from members about the lack of involvement from members if Burnham does not face a leadership contest from any other MP. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Sitting for more than 30 minutes at a time linked to higher risk of cancer death 02. July 2026 (20:00) Study suggests even light activity such as ironing could reduce health risks linked to prolonged sedentary behaviourSitting for longer than half an hour at a time each day raises the risk of dying from cancer, a study suggests.Researchers who tracked more than 90,000 people over a decade found that sitting or lying down while awake for more than 30 minutes in one period each day was associated with an increased risk of cancer death. The risk increases for every additional hour of continuous inactivity, the findings suggest. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Lisa Nandy quits X over fears Musk-owned site pushes ‘abuse and misinformation’ 02. July 2026 (19:43) Culture secretary says her department will stop using platform, citing concerns over far-right content fuelling violence and divisionThe UK’s culture and media department will stop using X because the site “now favours abuse and misinformation over meaningful debate”, Lisa Nandy has announced.The culture secretary’s department is the UK’s second to quit the Elon Musk-owned platform over increasing concerns about the way it highlights and prioritises often inaccurate far-right and racist content and is used to incite violence and division. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce donate $26m to charities ahead of reported wedding 02. July 2026 (19:28) Couple pledges millions to children’s hospitals, food banks and educational programs in advance of their big dayTaylor Swift and Travis Kelce are donating $26m to charities in advance of their rumored wedding at New York’s Madison Square Garden this weekend, a representative for the couple has confirmed to the Guardian.The 20 named charities include organizations in meaningful locations to the couple such as Nashville (where Swift got her start in music), Kansas City (the home of Kelce’s Chiefs NFL team) and New York City, where Swift and Kelce’s wedding is reported to take place. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Hugely significant’: those affected by forced adoptions welcome apology but demand more remedy 02. July 2026 (19:25) Victims say hearing Keir Starmer’s acknowledgment of their suffering was emotional but want more mental supportThis summer’s World Cup fever vividly takes Ann Keen back to 1966 and the day England won the tournament – she was 17 years old and it was the day she told her father she was pregnant. “It was the worst thing that could ever have been said to him. I was told I’d put shame on the family and I must be sent away,” the former Labour MP said.“I was in an unmarried mother’s home where I had to scrub the steps from morning until night. It was all about punishment. Even in the delivery room I was told I couldn’t have anything for the pain, because I was a bad girl. And when NHS staff are telling you that, you start to believe it.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Venezuelan man saved from collapsed mall eight days after earthquakes 02. July 2026 (19:24) Security guard Hernán Alberto Gil Flores, 43, initially told rescuers not to tell his wife in case he did not surviveA 43-year-old security guard who survived last week’s devastating earthquakes in Venezuela thanks to a pocket of air in his workstation cabin has been pulled from the collapsed basement of a shopping centre amid huge cheers from international rescue teams.Hernán Alberto Gil Flores had been trapped for eight days under the rubble of the Galerías Playa Grande in the hard-hit coastal port city of La Guaira since the back-to-back quakes struck. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Man accused of ordering Daphne Caruana Galizia murder paid hitmen’s legal fees, court hears 02. July 2026 (19:21) Yorgen Fenech said to have spent €400,000 on fees for men convicted of car bombing that killed investigative journalistA businessman accused of commissioning the murder of the Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia spent more than €400,000 (£343,000) on legal fees for the hitmen convicted of her killing, prosecutors claim.Yorgen Fenech, the 44-year-old heir to one of Malta’s largest fortunes, arrived in court for the second day of his trial on Thursday in an unmarked armoured police vehicle. He is on house arrest having pledged a record bail estimated at €50m. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Truly international’ network of drug-facilitated rape uncovered by UK crime agency 02. July 2026 (19:05) NCA says offenders arrange to sexually assault and film victims via online networks with crimes often taking place in trusting relationshipsCriminal investigators in the UK say they have uncovered a “truly international network” of organised drug-facilitated sexual assault in which victims are sedated before being raped and sexually assaulted.The National Crime Agency [NCA] has said online networks, “many as yet unidentified by law enforcement”, were allowing offenders to arrange to rape and abuse victims or arrange for sexual assaults to be filmed. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Outrage over ‘cruel’ Florida move to ban undocumented students from college 02. July 2026 (18:56) Critics condemn decision by education board aligned with hard-right Ron DeSantis to block access to college systemImmigration advocates in Florida have decried a “cruel and harmful” new rule by education officials aligned with hard-right Republican governor Ron DeSantis to ban undocumented students from state colleges and universities.The Florida board of education voted on Tuesday to bar access to its 28 state-funded institutions to anybody not a US citizen or “lawfully present” in the country. It follows Florida’s move last year to strip discounted in-state tuition rates for certain immigrant students. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
