General news

• US military's secret space plane lands with sonic boom in Florida

  07-05-2017 23:39 via theguardian.com
  
  Unmanned X-37B, which looks like a miniature space shuttle, was in orbit for more than 700 days before landing caused sonic boom heard across stateThe US military’s experimental X-37B space plane landed on Sunday at Nasa’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, completing a classified mission that lasted nearly two years, the US air force said. Related: Mysterious space plane blasts off for secretive US air force missionContinue reading...
  
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• Chelsea’s Antonio Conte insists Tottenham held advantage in title race

  07-05-2017 23:30 via theguardian.com
  
  • Manager says Chelsea in ‘building process’ while Spurs were better positioned
  • ‘This is my first season … Pochettino has been working there for three years’Antonio Conte has offered context to Chelsea’s imminent title success by claiming that their nearest challengers, Tottenham Hotspur, are “more advanced” in their development and would have won the Premier League at a canter if his own players had not produced a remarkable campaign
  
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• What does Emmanuel Macron's victory mean for Brexit?

  07-05-2017 23:29
  
  The French president-elect is said to favour a “hard Brexit”.
  
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• 82 Chibok schoolgirls freed in exchange for five Boko Haram leaders

  07-05-2017 23:10 via theguardian.com
  
  Young women, who were among 276 captured in April 2014, flown to Nigerian capital to meet president while charities call for them to be reunited with familiesMonths of negotiations involving participants across two continents has resulted in a deal in which 82 Chibok schoolgirls – who were seized from their dormitories in April 2014 and held captive for more than three years by the Islamist group Boko Haram – have been released in exchange for five militant leaders.But joy at their f
  
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• Wasps and Exeter lead way as dizzying season reaches thrilling finale | Robert Kitson

  07-05-2017 23:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Aviva Premiership campaign, which has seen try-scoring records tumble, reaches play-off stage with Wasps hosting Leicester and Saracens travelling to ExeterA record-breaking 2016-17 Aviva Premiership season is looking set for an equally fast and furious finish as the four title rivals enter the final stretch. Already the two leading sides, Wasps and Exeter, have surged past the longstanding record for team tries scored in a season, previously held by Newcastle in 1997-98, and the play-offs this
  
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• Trump congratulates Emmanuel Macron on French election win

  07-05-2017 22:48 via theguardian.com
  
  US president released statement notable primarily for its brevity, attempting to put behind him the implicit support he offered far-right leader Marine Le PenDonald Trump has congratulated the centrist Emmanuel Macron on his emphatic victory against Marine Le Pen in the French presidential run-off, attempting to put behind him the implicit support he had offered the far-right leader ahead of Sunday’s election.
  In a statement put out by his press secretary Sean Spicer and notable primarily
  
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• Banksy tackles Brexit in mural on building in Dover

  07-05-2017 22:11
  A mural has appeared on the side of a building in Dover by street artist Banksy showing a workman chipping away at one of the stars of the European flag.Representatives of the elusive artist confirmed the mural was his work and pictures of it appear on his official Instagram account.The town acts as one of the main gateways to the continent and comes as the country is in the middle of a General Election campaign and Brexit.
  
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• Nicki Minaj offers to pay students’ tuition after fan asks for help on Twitter

  07-05-2017 21:56 via theguardian.com
  
  The rapper said she would pay international airfare for contest winners, so a US student asked for help with tuition. Six minutes later, Minaj tweeted her offer
  Nicki Minaj was getting all the credit, with Twitter humming around the world in praise of her decision to spend thousands of dollars of her own money helping out impoverished American college students. But none of that would have happened without the chutzpah of CJ.Related: Nicki Minaj: US prison system 'is like slavery'Continue reading
  
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• World reacts as Emmanuel Macron, 39, becomes France's youngest president

  07-05-2017 21:48
  
  Exit polls give him a strong lead over far-right candidate Marine Le Pen.
  
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• French presidential election 2017 – live results tracker

  07-05-2017 21:47 via theguardian.com
  
  Voters in France today faced a choice between centrist independent Emmanuel Macron and the Front National’s Marine Le Pen, in the second round of the 2017 presidential election. Get results for every department as they are announcedFrench election 2017: second round – live
  Continue reading...
  
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• Tories intensify attacks on Brussels, saying it supports Labour

  07-05-2017 21:26
  
  The health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, said some people and organisations had a vested interest in the failure of Brexit negotiations.Conservative ministers intensified attacks on Brussels on Sunday, with the health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, suggesting the European commission had deliberately interfered in the general election to boost Labour’s electoral prospects.The home secretary, Amber Rudd, also condemned the “aggressive tactics” of the commission, after an unflattering account
  
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• The Guardian view on the French election: Good luck, Mr Macron. You will need it | Editorial

  07-05-2017 21:08 via theguardian.com
  
  French voters have averted the catastrophe of a Marine Le Pen presidency. The task for Emmanuel Macron is to deliver change, prosperity, unity and healingAny other result would have been a European catastrophe and, for once, thank goodness, the opinion polls got it right. Emmanuel Macron has swept Marine Le Pen aside to become France’s next president. Mr Macron won by an even wider margin than the polls have consistently implied: 65.1% to 35.9%. It is the decisive majority against Ms Le Pe
  
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• County cricket roundup: Steven Croft fires Lancashire to win at Warwickshire

  07-05-2017 20:56 via theguardian.com
  
  • Lancashire (351) beat Warwickshire (325) by 26 runs
  • Yorkshire top of North Group after 15-run win over DerbyshireLancashire’s poor start to their white‑ball campaign was arrested with a 26-run win against the champions Warwickshire thanks to a stunning innings of 127 from their captain, Steven Croft, which included three consecutive sixes in a 10-ball Oliver Hannon-Dalby over that cost 37.Croft’s 83-ball knock propelled Lancashire to 351, which they defended despi
  
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• The Guardian view on weapons that wait: clear them now

  07-05-2017 20:55 via theguardian.com
  
  Unexploded munitions, landmines and improvised devices kill thousands of civilians annually. They must be removed for communities to recoverThe evacuation of 50,000 people from Hannover this weekend, following the discovery of five unexploded second world war bombs, reminds us that conflicts can have a deadly impact long after the fighting ends. But while the German city’s residents have been inconvenienced briefly, millions of people around the world have been displaced for the foreseeabl
  
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• Corbyn’s share of blame for Labour’s meltdown at the polls | Letters

  07-05-2017 20:53
  
  Your editorial (6 May) is absolutely right to warn that Labour must avoid premature infighting – but what do we find on the opposite page?Jonathan Freedland’s article, headlined No more excuses – Corbyn is to blame for this meltdown.
  
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• Jürgen Klopp bemoans state of pitch after Southampton deny Liverpool

  07-05-2017 20:45 via theguardian.com
  
  • The Liverpool manager was unhappy with the dry Anfield surface in 0-0 draw
  • Klopp insists his players still enjoy playing at home despite poor recent resultsJürgen Klopp blamed a dry pitch for Liverpool’s laboured performance against Southampton while James Milner insisted their latest blank against Claude Puel’s team was his responsibility.Milner had a second-half penalty saved by the England international Fraser Forster as Liverpool failed to score against Southam
  
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• Jonny Bairstow turns on the style as England claim ODI series against Ireland

  07-05-2017 20:44 via theguardian.com
  
  • England 328-6; Ireland 243
  • England won by 85 runsJonny Bairstow has done all he can to nudge England towards a rethink of their plans before this summer’s Champions Trophy with his brutal exhibition of hitting and the golden arm of Joe Root setting up an 85-run win over Ireland at Lord’s.After the mis-match in Bristol on Friday Eoin Morgan’s side were looking for a stronger pre-tournament tune-up from the tourists, who in turn needed to salvage some pride and stav
  
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• Martin Rowson on John McDonnell's tax pledges – cartoon

  07-05-2017 20:42 via theguardian.com
  
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• The benefits system dial is set to brutal | Letters

  07-05-2017 20:34
  
  Homeless man in Leicester Square, London. Photograph: Jack Taylor/Getty Images
  
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• 'Revenge porn': one in five report they have been victims in Australian survey

  07-05-2017 20:30 via theguardian.com
  
  ‘Image-based abuse has emerged so rapidly … that inevitably our laws and policies are struggling to catch up,’ academic saysThe first comprehensive research on so-called revenge porn has shed light on the “mass scale of victimisation” across Australia and its sometimes devastating impact.A survey of nearly 4,300 people led by RMIT University and Monash University has found that far more people – men and women – had had sexual or nude images taken or dis
  
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• How to fix climate change: put cities, not countries, in charge | Benjamin Barber

  07-05-2017 20:18 via theguardian.com
  
  It can’t be left to dysfunctional nation states to tackle – but as Oslo and Seoul have shown, metropolitan centres can rise to the challenge of global warmingClimate change is the most urgent challenge facing humankind. Other issues make headlines: terrorism kills; inequality affects everyday life for billions around the globe. But climate is paramount, because in sustainability human survival itself is at stake. Why then have the nations governing the planet been so hopelessly ineff
  
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• The French presidency goes to Macron. But it’s only a reprieve | Timothy Garton Ash

  07-05-2017 20:11 via theguardian.com
  
  The centrist candidate’s victory over Marine Le Pen has avoided the worst – but the daunting work of reform in France and in Europe lies aheadFrench election 2017: second round – liveResults tracker – as they come in Like someone who has narrowly escaped a heart attack, Europe can raise a glass and give thanks for the victory of Emmanuel Macron. But the glass is less than half full, and if Europe doesn’t change its ways it will only have postpone
  
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• New Zealand-born Jason Woodward included in England training squad

  07-05-2017 20:07 via theguardian.com
  
  • Eddie Jones calls up 20 players for strength and conditioning camp
  • England coach looking for competition for Mike Brown at full-backJason Woodward, the New Zealand‑born full-back who joined Bristol from the Hurricanes last autumn, has been included in an England training squad that will gather on Tuesday for a strength and conditioning camp.Woodward, who spent two years with the Rebels in Melbourne but left before he qualified to play for the Wallabies on residency to have a
  
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• French champagne house Taittinger plants first vines in English soil

  07-05-2017 19:34 via theguardian.com
  
  Prestigious producer begins operations at vineyard in Kent aimed at producing sparkling wine by 2023One of France’s most prestigious champagne brands is hoping to capitalise on Britain’s wine boom after planting its first vines on English soil last week.Taittinger has chosen a vineyard near the Kent village of Chilham as the site for its venture into English sparkling wine, with the first bottle due to be drunk in 2023. Continue reading...
  
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• Trump staff insist healthcare bill is on track ahead of uphill battle in Senate

  07-05-2017 19:31 via theguardian.com
  
  There were already alarming signs for the White House of a groundswell of discontent among moderates that presages a stormy ride in the Senate
  Members of the Trump administration took to TV channels on Sunday to insist they were on track to pass a bill to repeal and replace the current healthcare law and return power to the states to fix an ailing healthcare system.Related: Republican healthcare bill heads to Senate, where it may undergo drastic changesContinue reading...
  
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• US university responds to backlash over 'Trumpism and democracy' class that discusses 'strategies for resistance'

  07-05-2017 19:26
  
  Officials have now amended the course description.
  
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• Prince and commoner: one rule for Philip and another for Jeremy

  07-05-2017 19:18 via theguardian.com
  
  Unlike ‘retiring’ Duke of Edinburgh, Corbyn has never been given a free pass by the press, none of his mistakes excused
  Prince Philip and Jeremy Corbyn have just shared a unique media experience. Both were able to read their obituaries before their deaths. The reasons were, of course, very different. The announcement that the Duke of Edinburgh was retiring from public engagements at 96 engendered the kind of response from television, radio and press newsrooms that more usually occurs
  
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• May maintains strong election lead in weekend opinion polls

  07-05-2017 19:04
  
  Prime Minister Theresa May maintained her strong lead inopinion polls ahead of next month's national election, with one analyst saying she was on course for the kind of huge success Margaret Thatcher enjoyed over 30 years ago.May is asking voters to strengthen her hand as she seeks a mandate for her plan to implement the result of last year's Brexit referendum by quitting the European Union's single market."... as the local elections showed, they are ... are on course for the type of victory las
  
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• Labour won’t be saved by talk at the top. But local action could do it | Zoe Williams

  07-05-2017 19:04 via theguardian.com
  
  We’ve had enough of politicians clinging to their positions. The party can unite through the principles its grassroots members still shareIt’s a Labour division that has reached peak bitterness since the bloodbath that was the local elections, but of course it’s been rumbling since 2015. I don’t mean the differences between the Corbyn faction and the centrists within the party (those count too, but are constantly aired), nor between the realists and the pur
  
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• Conservatives maintain strong lead in ICM poll

  07-05-2017 19:04
  
  LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party has an 18 percentage point lead over the main opposition Labour Party, implying a majority of at least 132 seats in a June 8 national election, according to an ICM poll for the Sun on Sunday. The Conservatives were at 46 percent, down one percentage point, against Labour on an unchanged 28 percent, the paper said. (Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Jason Neely)
  
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• Arsenal’s Danny Welbeck rises high to finish off Manchester United

  07-05-2017 19:01 via theguardian.com
  
  For Granit Xhaka the pain was excruciating. It came after a bang to a nerve in the back of his lower leg at Tottenham Hotspur last Sunday, only 20 minutes in, and the Arsenal midfielder feared he would have to come off. He gritted his teeth and battled on but when he eventually succumbed in the 65th minute his team were 2-0 down and heading for a morale-shattering defeat.What a difference a week makes. Xhaka felt the same injury here and he was removed from the fray in the 76th minute. This time
  
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• Eric Trump said family golf courses attracted Russian funding, author claims

  07-05-2017 18:57 via theguardian.com
  
  Three years ago he allegedly said the Trump Organization had ‘all the funding we need’ from Russia and Donald Trump ‘tossed off that he had access to $100m’
  Eric Trump said three years ago the Trump Organization had “all the funding we need out of Russia” for its golf course projects, according to an author recounting the story of a 2014 meeting with Donald Trump and his son. Related: Trump-Russia investigation reignites as Senate asks aides to hand over notes
  
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• Street artist Banksy tackles Brexit in Dover mural

  07-05-2017 18:39
  
  British street artist Banksy has taken on Brexit with a mural of a workman chipping away one of the 12 gold stars on the flag of the European Union on a wall in Dover, the ferry port that connects England with Calais in France.Banksy, whose identity is a closely guarded secret, posted pictures of the work, which appeared overnight, on his official Instagram feed on Sunday, the day of the French presidential election.Dover and its white cliffs, which are seen by many people arriving in and depart
  
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• 'Brexit boom' creates record number of UK billionaires

  07-05-2017 18:35 via theguardian.com
  
  Hinduja brothers top Sunday Times Rich List with £16.2bn as newcomers include author EL James and DJ Calvin HarrisBritain has more billionaires than ever in what equality campaigners said was a clear sign the UK economy is only working for the few at the top.There are now 134 billionaires based in the UK according to this year’s Sunday Times Rich List, 14 more than the previous highest total, as the super-rich reap the benefits of a “Brexit boom”. Fifteen years ago, there
  
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• Shakespeare's Richard III to be staged at Leicester Cathedral

  07-05-2017 18:16 via theguardian.com
  
  Organisers promise ‘sensitive’ production at cathedral where monarch was buried after remains were found under car parkA “sensitive” staging of William Shakespeare’s Richard III has been promised for a production at Leicester Cathedral, home to the medieval monarch’s remains, which were found under a council car park.
  The cathedral will be the setting in July for a play that portrays Richard as disfigured and a vicious, lying sadist. Continue reading...
  
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• When a woman crops her hair, it can send a powerful message

  07-05-2017 18:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Cara Delevingne is the latest celebrity to go for a buzzcut. When I shaved my head, it felt like a way to cut off the past and start againShaved heads are having a moment. Cara Delevingne’s silver scalp was the talk of the Met Ball last week, following Kristen Stewart sporting a bleached buzzcut in March for a new film role. In the fashion world, Adwoa Aboah and her grade-one fuzz is on the cover of both the latest i-D and LOVE magazine’s new issue, alongside Slick Woods, another mod
  
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• Chocolate Remix: the lesbian reggaeton artist taking on Argentina's 'supermachos'

  07-05-2017 18:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Reggaeton is almost as famous for its dodgy lyrics as its dancehall rhythms. But in Argentina, one woman is busting sexual taboos and outswaggering the menThe founding fathers of the testosterone-fuelled Latin pop genre reggaeton would probably be surprised to hear their penises described as dispensable. But this is the message from Chocolate Remix, a tiny Argentinian woman in a big cap taking aim at the “supermachos” in her single, Lo Que Las Mujeres Quieren. “Hey macho reggae
  
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• Banksy Brexit mural of man chipping away at EU flag appears in Dover

  07-05-2017 17:54 via theguardian.com
  
  Artwork confirmed as genuine is reclusive artist’s first comment on vote to leave EU and comes at time of increasing tensionsA Brexit-inspired mural by Banksy showing a metalworker chipping away at a star on the EU flag has appeared in Dover.The artwork emerged overnight on the Castle Amusements building near the ferry terminal, which connects the UK with mainland Europe.Continue reading...
  
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• Fernando Gaviria wins stage three of Giro d’Italia after winds cause chaos

  07-05-2017 17:45 via theguardian.com
  
  • Colombian takes stage win and the race leader’s pink jersey
  • Peloton buffeted by winds of 40kph in the final 30kmFernando Gaviria claimed his first Grand Tour stage victory as what looked like being the most straightforward day of the 100th Giro d’Italia blew apart in howling winds in Sardinia.Gaviria took the stage win and the race leader’s pink jersey after the Colombian’s QuickStep-Floors team led the decisive break when echelons split through the peloton
  
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• Letter: John Fraser obituary

  07-05-2017 17:39
  
  John Fraser in 1986. Photograph: ITN/Rex/Shutterstock
  
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• Latinos in heavily segregated city see limited success in pivotal Texas election

  07-05-2017 17:31 via theguardian.com
  
  With a couple of runoff elections to come, it looks unlikely that voters will install a set of leaders that truly reflect the ethnic diversity of Pasadena
  In the 1980s, the Houston suburb of Pasadena was a Klu Klux Klan hotbed and the setting for honky-tonk action in the John Travolta film, Urban Cowboy. Related: Texas town greets murder charge over teen shot by police in moving carContinue reading...
  
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• Winter wins 1000 Guineas at Newmarket for trainer Aidan O’Brien

  07-05-2017 17:28 via theguardian.com
  
  • Aidan O’Brien horse wins by two lengths from stablemate Rhododendron
  • O’Brien now focuses on his possible contenders for Derby at EpsomIt might have been the “wrong” winner as far as most punters were concerned but Aidan O’Brien bagged yet another Classic victory as Winter came home a couple of lengths clear of the 1,000 Guineas field, chased by her stablemate Rhododendron. Those who make a habit of lumping on the Irishman’s most fancied horse in
  
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• North Korea says it has detained another US citizen for 'hostile' acts

  07-05-2017 17:16 via theguardian.com
  
  Kim Hak Song worked for Pyongyang university, news agency saysAmerican accounting instructor from same college also heldNorth Korea said on Sunday it had detained another US citizen over unspecified hostile acts. Related: North Korea accuses CIA of biochemical plot to kill Kim Jong-unContinue reading...
  
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• Mean stream: how YouTube prank channel DaddyOFive enraged the internet

  07-05-2017 17:14 via theguardian.com
  
  A US couple have lost custody of their children after featuring them in allegedly abusive prank videos. They’re not the first to go too far in search of hitsPranks have been a booming part of YouTube’s scene for years – but it’s a subculture prone to attracting controversy. The latest incident has led to a US father and a stepmother losing custody of two of their children as a result of some of their prank videos.Mike Martin of Baltimore ran a channel named DaddyOFive, fe
  
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• Robotics, AI​​ and 3D printing could close UK's productivity gap

  07-05-2017 17:12 via theguardian.com
  
  Expanding hi-tech manufacturing is vital to the UK staying competitive, says Siemens UK boss Juergen MaierThe future has already arrived in a small factory in Worcester, according to the man hired by Theresa May to put Britain at the forefront of the next industrial revolution. Juergen Maier, the chief executive of Siemens UK, believes new technologies including robotics, artificial intelligence and additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, can deliver greater productivity and create more highly p
  
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• Jeremy Hunt knows one wrong word could be his last ... ever | John Crace

  07-05-2017 17:03
  
  Jeremy Hunt on the Andrew Marr Show: he’d give the health secretary a piece of his mind if he ever got the chance to meet him.It was the first time the Supreme Leader had risked letting Jeremy Hunt out in public during the election campaign, and one wrong word could easily be his last.The health secretary is widely tipped for elimination after the coronation of 8 June.
  
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• ​Israeli ministers back proposed law demoting Arabic language

  07-05-2017 17:03 via theguardian.com
  
  Parliament to consider nation state bill that would make Hebrew the lone national languageIsraeli ministers have approved the wording of a new law that would downgrade Arabic as an official language and which states that the right to self-determination in Israel “is unique to the Jewish people”, despite the country’s sizeable non-Jewish minority.The go-ahead for the nation state bill by the ministerial committee for legislation means it will now move forward to a vote by the co
  
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• Search under way for man seen clinging to rocks at St David’s Head

  07-05-2017 16:58 via theguardian.com
  
  Appeals for information as extensive search continues after 999 call about man in water off Pembrokeshire headlandA search is under way for a man who was seen clinging to rocks at St David’s Head in Pembrokeshire.A 999 call was made to coastguards at about 3pm on Saturday by a member of the public about seeing a man in the water off the headland in south-west Wales. Continue reading...
  
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• Fire destroys Tyneside landmark church

  07-05-2017 16:49
  
  A huge fire, visible from miles away, has gutted a Victorian seaside church, a local landmark in Whitley Bay on the north-east England coast.The fire in the redbrick Trinity United Reformed Church was reported at 8.25pm on Saturday night and had destroyed the roof and interior of the building within hours.Residents told the Chronicle newspaper the building was occasionally used by rough sleepers but was empty.
  
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• Labour looks at new tax bracket for those earning £80k-£150k

  07-05-2017 16:28
  
  John McDonnell hinted that a Labour government would introduce tax rises on those paying the top rate of tax – at £150,000 and above – and that Labour’s biggest tax increases would be reserved for the richest.The shadow chancellor said those most affected by income tax increases would be “the 1% at the top”, a figure that roughly equates to the proportion already on the highest, 45% rate, of income tax.McDonnell was careful to avoid being too specific but when
  
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