Minneapolis police chief resigns after scandal over sexual misconduct investigation 27. May 2026 (17:44) A report found that Brian O’Hara probably interfered with investigation in what mayor called a ‘breach of trust’The Minneapolis police chief, Brian O’Hara, resigned on Tuesday after a report found that he probably interfered with an investigation into alleged sexual misconduct.O’Hara stepped down after a meeting with the Minnesota city’s mayor, Jacob Frey, who earlier this month nominated him to serve a second term after his appointment in 2022 to steady a police department still in turmoil after the murder of George Floyd two years earlier. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Hundreds of dead sharks and fish wash up on two beaches in Wales 27. May 2026 (17:40) Local conservationist says a fishing boat hoping for a more commercial catch may have thrown them overboardHundreds of dead sharks and fish believed to be part of a discarded catch have washed up on two Welsh beaches.Dog walkers found a full net of dogfish, also known as catsharks, on Carmarthenshire’s Cefn Sidan on Saturday. A few days earlier, hundreds of dead sharks and fish had been found on Saundersfoot beach in neighbouring Pembrokeshire. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Swimmers urged to keep out of Hampstead Heath pond to protect nesting swans 27. May 2026 (17:36) Nature groups say cygnets and their parents need to be left alone by people trying to stay cool in heatwaveNature groups have pleaded with swimmers to give wildlife a wide berth after dozens of people swam in a nature pond on Hampstead Heath among nests of baby birds.Swans and their 12-day-old cygnets were disturbed by hordes of splashing revellers in the north London park on Monday as London reached record 35C temperatures. In one video, a swan was seen poking an unhatched egg with its beak after it fell into the water during the chaos. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Manchester United take £22m hit from sacking of Ruben Amorim 27. May 2026 (17:02) On-pitch performance and cost-cutting help to halve pre-tax losses to £18m in the first nine months of the yearManchester United have taken a £22m hit from the sacking of their former manager Ruben Amorim but cut their losses in half thanks to improved performance on the pitch and the cost-cutting zeal of the co-owner Jim Ratcliffe.United’s successful pursuit of Champions League football under Michael Carrick drove a 57% rise in broadcast income during the third quarter of the financial year to nearly £65m, as more of the club’s games were picked for TV. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Soft toys, memes and a movie villain: Labor tries to simplify the message but selling a budget isn’t child’s play 27. May 2026 (17:00) As the budget fight plays out fiercely online, Labor senator Ellie Whiteaker turns to a zebra and a giraffe for helpGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSelling a complicated federal budget isn’t exactly child’s play, but Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers could do worse than following the example of their colleague’s toy giraffe and zebra to help explain their contentious tax changes.The budget fight is dominating parliament and Senate estimates, but it’s being fought just as fiercely online. The weapons of choice? Memes, fluffy animals and a questionable reference to a serial killer cannibal. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
New NDIS eligibility rules will cut 240,000 participants from scheme in four years, documents reveal 27. May 2026 (17:00) Modelling predicts 241,000 people on the scheme before January 2028 won’t be receiving supports by mid-2031Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMore than 240,000 participants are expected to be shifted off the national disability insurance scheme in the four years after new eligibility rules are introduced, internal documents reveal.Newly released departmental modelling also shows proposed cuts to funding for social, civic and community participation will help achieve the single biggest saving of the measures the Albanese government is pursuing to contain the scheme’s ballooning growth. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Republicans race to back Ken Paxton as runoff sets up closely watched US Senate battle in Texas 27. May 2026 (16:56) Donald Trump moves quickly to unite Republicans behind the Texas attorney general as Democrats eye rare openingUS politics live – latest updatesSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailRepublican leaders rushed to throw their weight behind Ken Paxton following his big primary victory in Texas over the four-term US senator, John Cornyn, amid anxiety within the party over his prospects in November’s general election.Hours after the race was called, Donald Trump – who backed Paxton, despite intense concern among establishment Republicans – took to Truth Social to attack his Democratic rival in the midterm elections. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Extreme heat in Europe ‘a brutal reminder’ of climate crisis, UN chief says 27. May 2026 (16:50) Simon Stiell said burning fossil fuels was driving intense heatwaves as UK and France broke temperature records on consecutive daysThe UN climate chief has said an extreme early heat event sweeping parts of western Europe was “a brutal reminder of the spiralling impacts of the climate crisis”, after France and the UK set new temperature records for May on two consecutive days.Simon Stiell, the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, said on Wednesday the “main culprit” was humanity’s burning of coal, oil and gas – known to be the primary driver of climate change. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Thirty-five people want to be the next president of France. What could possibly go wrong? 27. May 2026 (16:30) Unless the mainstream gets its act together, next year’s election looks likely to hand the keys of the Élysée to the far right• Don’t get This Is Europe delivered to your inbox? Sign up here“The real risk,” France’s prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, reportedly said last month, “is that this tangle of ambitions reflects such a lack of engagement with reality on the part of all these candidates that voters find the whole thing grotesque.”He has a point. By this time next year, France will have a new president and Emmanuel Macron, who is constitutionally barred from serving more than two consecutive terms, will have left after a decade in the Élysée Palace. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Hungarian MPs vote to remain member of ICC, overturning decision made by Orbán 27. May 2026 (15:03) Since Péter Magyar’s election victory he has vowed to reverse withdrawal from court before it took effectLawmakers in Hungary have voted overwhelmingly for the country to remain a member of the international criminal court, reversing a decision made by the previous government of Viktor Orbán.Wednesday’s vote came days before the country was poised to become the only EU member state not to recognise the jurisdiction of the global tribunal, which aims to prosecute those accused of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
