Australia news live: Qantas’ new ultra-long-range test plane to land in Melbourne after 19-hour odyssey from Toulouse 23. July 2026 (23:50) Follow today’s news liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastUS to slap 12.5% tariff on Australian goodsAustralian exports sent to the US will be hit with a 12.5% tariff as the US president imposes levies on more than 80 nations.This, in our view, makes no sense.Forced labour is definitely something which needs to be combatted around the world, so we support that objective.We absolutely need to see the Strait of Hormuz be open and for freedom of navigation to happen there, for commercial shipping to be allowed through, and we very much call on Iran to allow that to be the case.We need to see a restoration to the normal global fuel supply chain because it’s having a significant impact around the world. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Regional mayors to take key roles in UK policy decisions as part of No 10 North plans 23. July 2026 (23:30) Burnham says ‘no one in government loses when power is shared’ as he revives Brown-era national economic councilIt’s not just a No 10 in the north, it’s an engine for growth throughout the whole UK | Andy BurnhamRegional mayors are to be given a leading role in the UK’s economic policy, Andy Burnham has said, as he called the opening of No 10 North “the biggest rebalancing of power our country has seen”.The new prime minister has revived the national economic council [NEC], first set up by Gordon Brown to put the government on a war footing during the 2008 financial crash, arguing that economic growth requires the same level of urgency, focus and collective action. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Louisiana House candidate accused of rape says he hopes to again ‘earn’ Trump endorsement 23. July 2026 (23:13) Republican Blake Miguez is weighing what district to run in after state redrew map following supreme court decisionA congressional candidate from Louisiana who was the subject of a police report accusing him of rape – which he denies – says he is hoping to again “earn” Donald Trump’s endorsement as he considers precisely where to run amid redistricting.The candidate, Blake Miguez, is weighing running in one of two districts, neither of which he lives in but in which he is allowed to run. He has been mulling that choice after the supreme court’s landmark decision in Callais v Louisiana prompted the state to swiftly redraw its US House districts – and after he had secured the president’s backing under the previous congressional map. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump says nearly 200 firms have signed pledge to protect Americans from costs arising from datacenters 23. July 2026 (21:56) ‘Ratepayer Protection Pledge’ president has touted is non-binding as people continue to struggle with rising billsDonald Trump has announced that about 200 entities have signed on to his non-binding “Ratepayer Protection Pledge”, expanding a voluntary commitment which claims to ensure US consumers will not bear the cost of the AI datacenter build-out.Trump delivered remarks on Thursday at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) headquarters, alongside Lee Zeldin, the agency’s administrator, and Chris Wright, the energy secretary. Other attenders included governors who signed on to the pledge, including Brian Kemp of Georgia, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Spencer Cox of Utah and Jeff Landry of Louisiana. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Kemi Badenoch ‘has to adapt’ her rhetoric to take on Andy Burnham 23. July 2026 (20:14) Conservative leader is becoming more confident and forging a message for her party, but faces a new opponent “So, Andy Burnham seems like a nice guy.” Those were the slightly unexpected opening words of Kemi Badenoch’s first speech since the change in prime minister. But make no mistake: she was there to bury her opponent.Even Badenoch-sceptics inside the Conservative party and farther afield agree the Tory leader is becoming more confident, and has been able to forge an increasingly coherent message for her party, one based on a promise of economic competence. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Lobbying firm pressed for details about payments to journalists for favourable stories 23. July 2026 (19:52) MPs and others condemn behaviour of CT Group, which offered cash for positive coverage of clientsA political lobbying firm secretly paying journalists for articles favourable to its clients is facing calls to reveal full details of the payments, after the practice was denounced as a dangerous “attack on democracy”.MPs, senior lobbyists and transparency campaigners all condemned the behaviour of CT Group, the firm co-founded by the campaign strategist Lynton Crosby, an election guru previously hired by David Cameron and Boris Johnson. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Secret Service agent on Vance’s detail under investigation 23. July 2026 (19:52) Agent came under suspicion after allegedly providing info in MS Now report about vice-president’s helicopter tripA Secret Service agent assigned to JD Vance’s protective detail is “the subject of an administrative investigation, and potential criminal inquiry, involving allegations of compromising operational and information security”, according to the Secret Service chief of communications.The agent came under suspicion after allegedly providing information that appeared in an MS Now report about the vice-president’s planned Marine Corps helicopter trip with his son to a golf lesson, a source told CNN. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Southport killer Axel Rudakubana moved to Broadmoor psychiatric hospital 23. July 2026 (19:51) Exclusive: Clinical assessments concluded Rudakubana could not be safely managed in prison, sources sayThe Southport killer Axel Rudakubana has been moved from prison to a psychiatric hospital after an assessment by psychologists, the Guardian can disclose.He was transferred to Broadmoor high-security hospital from the category A prison Belmarsh this week after it was concluded that he could not be managed safely in a prison environment, sources confirmed. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Minnesota man sentenced to life for killing Democratic lawmaker Melissa Hortman 23. July 2026 (19:32) Vance Boelter receives two life terms after admitting politically motivated killings and shootingsSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailThe Minnesota man who pleaded guilty to killing a top Democratic lawmaker and her husband was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison on Thursday, a little over a year after the political attacks.Vance Boelter, 59, was sentenced to two consecutive life terms plus 40 years in prison after pleading guilty in June to the six counts related to the killings of the former house speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and the shootings of state senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
The Hegseth budget: defense secretary’s $1.5tn ask reveals military-industrial chaos 23. July 2026 (19:17) The Pentagon head proposed a 44% increase – to second world war levels – while ‘woke’ programs are guttedUS politics live – latest updatesWhen the ‘“department of government efficiency” was raging unchecked through the federal government in February 2025, the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, ordered his subordinates to find cuts of 8% a year for the next five years, theoretically trimming a total of $340m from the Pentagon budget.The disclosure briefly sent Palantir and defense stocks tanking – though soon the plan evaporated, as if it never existed. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
