The Guardian - December 04, 2024

In this issue

December 04, 2024

British Steel could be returned to state control

Ministers are considering renationalising British Steel in a last-ditch attempt to save thousands of jobs, amid a standoff between the government and the company's Chinese owners over a £1bn investment.

3 mins

Turmoil in South Korea after president declares martial law

United opposition from national assembly forces troops back to barracks

4 mins

Aleppo's residents wait in fear for Assad reprisal

A billboard of the Syrian president that once overlooked a central square in Aleppo has been burnt almost beyond recognition, but the influence of Bashar al-Assad is still felt in the now rebel-held city as residents live in fear of bombardment by his regime.

3 mins

South Western first train firm nationalised under Labour

South Western Railway will be the first train operator nationalised under the Labour government, ministers have announced.

2 mins

Jasleen Kaur wins 2024 Turner prize with fusion of Sufi music and Irn-Bru

Jasleen Kaur has won the 2024 Turner prize for work that animates everyday objects to reflect the pluralities of identity and community.

3 mins

Sign language TV star 'made lewd requests to interpreter'

Gregg Wallace asked a British Sign Language interpreter to sign \"big boobs\" and \"sexy bum\" in front of a live audience at the BBC Good Food show, an attendee has told the Guardian.

2 mins

MasterChef specials dropped as claims against Wallace grow

The BBC has pulled two MasterChef celebrity specials from its Christmas schedule as new allegations emerged against Gregg Wallace.

2 mins

Four minutes a day of exertion 'can halve women's risk of heart attack'

Women who add four minutes a day of high intensity routine activities, such as climbing the stairs instead of taking a lift, could halve their risk of heart attacks, a study suggests.

2 mins

Welsh village sinkhole still growing as residents face festive gloom

People who have been evacuated from homes perched precariously close to a large and growing sinkhole in south Wales that appeared in the wake of Storm Bert fear they may not return by Christmas.

2 mins

'A foolhardy decision' Yoon over-estimated nostalgia for military

In declaring martial law, South Korea's president, Yoon Suk Yeol, sought to awaken ghosts that the rest of the country thought had been laid to rest for good.

2 mins

British food exports to EU drop by '£3bn a year since Brexit'

Exports of British food to the EU have dropped by nearly £3bn a year since Brexit, a thinktank has said, with new physical and documentary checks at the border complicating trade.

2 mins

Owner of bitcoin lost in tip says it can be retrieved

For more than a decade, a computer expert from Newport in south Wales has doggedly fought to recover £500m of bitcoin he says was accidentally thrown into a council tip.

1 min

Models take back seat as Jaguar unveils much-hyped EV at last

Jaguar's design boss said yesterday the car brand had shown \"fearless creativity\" as he unveiled a much-hyped electric vehicle that has attracted an online backlash over its unusual marketing campaign.

2 mins

'It turns heads' Industry experts give their verdict on the Type 00

Jeff Dodds Former marketing director at Honda, now chief executive of Formula E, in which Jaguar competes

2 mins

Schools get £740m boost to increase provision for pupils with special needs

Schools are to get £740m to create more places for pupils with special needs, in a new push by the government to ease the strains on England's education system.

1 min

Sports Direct under fire for misspelling Wales on hat

There are undoubtedly some Welsh names that can be difficult for someone who does not speak the language to negotiate, but the country itself - Cymru - is surely not too tricky.

1 min

'Fighting a losing battle' to save red squirrels, new data suggests

Campaigners are concerned about the rising presence of grey squirrels in England's last remaining strongholds of reds.

2 mins

New gastric balloon simulating digestion could cut food intake

From weight loss jabs to vibrating pills, the obesity crisis has spawned myriad innovations to help people shed pounds.

2 mins

Chef's stolen van found but 2,500 pies too spoiled to eat

A van that was stolen carrying 2,500 pies has been found abandoned, with its cargo too damaged to eat.

1 min

Prison places plan devised by Tories '₤4bn over budget and insufficient'

Boris Johnson's plan to provide 20,000 new prison places by 2026 was due to be completed five years late and billions over budget, a scathing assessment by Whitehall's spending watchdog said yesterday.

2 mins

A reset is long overdue for ancient relics in Britain - and not just Jacob Rees-Mogg

There must be something in the water. It's normally in early January that people start to think of giving themselves a makeover.

3 mins

'Real fear' of new scandal Full shift to eVisa system delayed due to access flaws

People with British residency rights will be allowed to use expired identity documents to travel to the UK because of flaws in the eVisa system, a minister has told the Guardian.

2 mins

Stalking Victims to be told abuser's identity

Victims will be given the right to know the identity of the person who is stalking them as part of a wider look at whether legislation connected to the crime was fit for purpose, Jess Phillips, the safeguarding minister, said yesterday.

2 mins

School areas 'flooded' by fast food chains - study

Fast food chains such as KFC, Domino's and Subway are \"flooding\" areas close to schools by opening almost 1,000 outlets near them in recent years, research reveals.

2 mins

Puns on politics, pop and sprouts win Christmas cracker joke vote

What do you get if you mix Keir Starmer, Thames Water, and a weight-loss drug-taking Father Christmas?

1 min

Tamils arrive in UK from Diego Garcia after three-year legal fight over asylum

Dozens of people stranded in hellish conditions for more than three years on the remote Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia have arrived in the UK and spoken of their relief that their journey was over.

2 mins

Husband of royal took own life after adverse reaction to antidepressants

The son-in-law of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent killed himself after suffering adverse side-effects from prescribed antidepressants, an inquest has found.

1 min

Winslet hits out after 'appalling' experience of body-shaming

Kate Winslet has broken down at the memory of being told she was overweight by journalists on the red carpet as a 22-year-old.

1 min

Undercover officer 'was reckless in fathering a child'

An undercover police officer was accused of behaving \"recklessly\" when he fathered a son with a woman from whom he had concealed his real identity, a public inquiry has heard.

2 mins

Leader of Welsh Tories quits after confidence vote

The leader of the Welsh Tories, Andrew RT Davies, has resigned after dismal UK general election results and concern over comments he has made on subjects ranging from halal meat to the country's divisive 20mph speed limit law.

1 min

Sleeping saint is the story of a subversive, sensual masterpiece

It's a cosy tradition at the National Gallery to showcase one of its Christmassy paintings at this time of year - a Nativity, or an Adoration of the Magi perhaps.

2 mins

Campaigners accuse Coca-Cola of scrapping vow on packaging

Coca-Cola has been accused of quietly abandoning a pledge to achieve a 25% reusable packaging target by 2030 in what campaigners called a \"masterclass in greenwashing\".

1 min

Swashbuckling revival of Mike Leigh staging

ENO has several times tried to attract another bolt of the Gilbert and Sullivan lightning that brought the company Jonathan Miller's hit 1986 production of The Mikado.

1 min

Applications to hardship fund for writers rise fivefold in a year

Applications for the Royal Literary Fund's hardship grants for professional writers increased by 400% between last year and this year, the charity has said.

1 min

Insurgents widen attacks and could cut off critical route for Assad's forces

Syrian insurgents fighting forces loyal to the president, Bashar al-Assad, have launched attacks in the central province of Hama, threatening to cut off government troops from a key route linking the capital, Damascus, with rebel-held Aleppo.

3 mins

'Problems for Moscow' Fall of Aleppo threatens Russia's foothold in Syria

The walls of the military office in Aleppo were adorned with pictures of the Kremlin, flanked by Russian and Syrian flags. On the desks, documents detailing the two nations' cooperation lay abandoned - telltale signs of Bashar al-Assad's forces' hasty retreat as rebels closed in on Syria's second-biggest city over the weekend.

2 mins

'A shocking picture of violence' IDF soldiers accused of routine abuse on streets of West Bank

Israeli soldiers based in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron have intensified a campaign of arbitrary detentions, beatings and abuse of Palestinians, according to Guardian interviews with residents and research by the human rights group B'Tselem.

4 mins

France's government on brink of defeat in no-confidence vote

France is staring into the unknown as the minority government of the prime minister, Michel Barnier, faces near-certain defeat in a confidence vote that could dramatically intensify the political crisis in one of the European Union's key member states.

2 mins

Unknown future after summer paralysis

When Emmanuel Macron welcomes world leaders to the reopening of Notre Dame cathedral this weekend after fire damaged it five years ago, he might have hoped it would serve as a metaphor for people from all backgrounds coming together in Paris to prevent a hallowed edifice from collapse.

2 mins

White House Rushes Weapons To Ukraine Before Trump Takeover

The Biden administration is hurrying military equipment to Ukraine in a last-ditch effort to shore up the country's defenses against the Russian invasion before Donald Trump assumes the US presidency in January.

1 min

America's priciest home: $295m, all mod cons - and a very big flood risk

A sprawling Florida mansion set beside a beach of powdery white sand overlooking the azure Gulf of Mexico is the most expensive property listed for sale in the United States, yours for a mere $295m (£233m).

2 mins

Man jailed for life for brutal murder of Italian student, 22

Filippo Turetta has been sentenced to life in jail for the murder of the university student Giulia Cecchettin, whose brutal killing cast a grim spotlight on femicide in Italy.

2 mins

Masterpiece resurfaces 130 years after it was sold to collector

A painting by the Spanish artist Joaquín Sorolla has gone on public show for the first time since it vanished after being sold to a private collector 134 years ago.

1 min

Meloni Vows to defend Stellantis workers in Italy after boss's exit

The Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, has said her government will try to protect jobs as political tensions mount with Fiat-maker Stellantis after the abrupt resignation of its boss.

2 mins

EDF extends lifetime of four nuclear power plants

Four of Britain's oldest nuclear power plants will continue running for more than a decade longer than initially planned to help bridge a gap before the delayed Hinkley Point nuclear station starts up.

1 min

Musk's $56bn Tesla pay package rejected again by Delaware judge

A judge has ruled that the Tesla chief executive, Elon Musk, is still not entitled to receive a $56bn compensation package even though shareholders of the electric vehicle company had voted to reinstate it six months ago.

1 min

Elon Musk's legal battle for his $56bn pay award goes on, and Tesla's board still looks supine

The first time around, the judge Kathaleen McCormick of the Delaware court of chancery got it right. The $56bn (£44bn) pay package awarded by Tesla to Elon Musk in 2018 was indeed a governance abomination, a stitch-up in which ordinary shareholders weren't told about the \"deeply flawed\" process whereby a \"superstar CEO\" secured wildly over-the-top terms from pliant directors.

2 mins

Water firms urge higher returns to fund investment

Water firms want to see higher returns for shareholders to ensure record investment into sewage pipes and treatment plants is delivered.

1 min

Poorest Countries Struggle To Pay Record Debt Costs After Rates Soar

Developing countries spent a record $1.4tn (£1.1tn) in debt payments to foreign lenders in 2023 as soaring interest rates pushed the cost of financing loans to a 20-year high, the World Bank's latest International Debt Report shows.

2 mins

NatWest on 'fast trajectory' to full private ownership in 2025, says boss

The chief executive of NatWest has said the bailed-out bank is on a \"fast trajectory to private ownership\", with the government likely to fully exit its stake within the first half of 2025.

1 min

Concern after ONS says better employment survey could be years away

Policymakers risk making \"misinformed\" decisions because they are relying on a defective jobs survey that may not be fixed until 2027, the chair of the Treasury select committee has warned.

1 min

Woods wants US Ryder Cup team paid if cash donated

Tiger Woods believes American players should all be paid millions to play in the Ryder Cup, providing those funds are donated to charity.

2 mins

Evenepoel crash with van leads to several fractures

The double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel suffered fractures to his rib, right shoulder blade and hand, his team, Soudal-QuickStep, said yesterday.

1 min

'It was easy to keep the secret and stick to our Olympic focus'

The big interview Emma Finucane Olympic medallist talks about her raw emotions while racing and how she kept quiet about her boyfriend's defection to GB

7 mins

Calm swashbuckler Bethell's Test selection may prove inspired, but Key still has to be canny

Nearly six years ago the 15-year-old Jacob Bethell was given the Gray Nicolls Young Cricketer of the Year award and I sat next to him at lunch after the presentation.

3 mins

Clinton delivers early to give experimental England edge

An experimental England side recorded a slender win over next summer's European Championship hosts Switzerland as Sarina Wiegman gave youth a chance to impress in the Lionesses' last friendly for at least six months.

3 mins

Renaming of Championship planned for next season

The Women's Championship could be renamed Women's Super League 2 from next season.

1 min

Scotland out in the cold after playoff defeat

Scotland face a bleak winter after their hopes of qualification for the European Championship in Switzerland next summer were extinguished in a frozen Helsinki.

2 mins

Cain enables clinical Wales to write names in history

Wales made history in Dublin last night as they qualified for the first major tournament in their nation's history.

2 mins

Guéhi could be hit by FA charge over message on armband

Marc Guéhi is likely to face punishment from the Football Association after the Crystal Palace captain wrote \"Jesus loves you\" on his rainbow armband in the game against Ipswich.

2 mins

Clinical Mateta proves the difference to ease pressure for Palace

Perhaps the alarm bells can ring a little less loudly for Crystal Palace.

3 mins

Slot warns his Liverpool team not to rest on their laurels

Arne Slot believes Liverpool's imperious form has made them a bigger target for Premier League rivals and that trips to Newcastle and Everton could be more problematic than the statement wins against Real Madrid and Manchester City.

1 min

Ødegaard the inspiration for Arsenal's uplift, admits Arteta

Mikel Arteta believes Martin Ødegaard's influence has been instrumental in Arsenal's return to form as they attempt to haul back Liverpool in the Premier League title race.

1 min

Daka decks the halls to give Van Nistelrooy opening win

As one manager celebrated his first game in charge, another may have endured his last. Ruud Van Nistelrooy enjoyed a fortuitous but hard-earned victory as he could luxuriate in seeing Leicester move four points clear of the relegation zone but Julen Lopetegui must be fearing for the worst.

3 mins

'I was never cool' Guardiola denies his six-finger sign shows he is losing grip

Pep Guardiola has denied that raising six fingers during Manchester City's defeat at Liverpool on Sunday shows he is losing his cool in the manner José Mourinho did when showing three digits during his time in charge of Manchester United.

1 min

Amorim gives United stark warning of 'tough times'

Ruben Amorim has warned his Manchester United players \"the storm will come,\" and there will be difficult times ahead despite a promising start to his tenure, as his team prepare to face Arsenal.

1 min

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