General news

• Government's legal battle to stop MPs voting on Brexit cost £1.2m

  19-07-2017 23:49
  The Government spent £1.2m on legal costs in its effort to stop MPs from voting on Brexit, figures have revealed.The unsuccessful battle to prevent a Commons vote on the triggering of Brexit negotiations under Article 50 cost £1,143,000, with the Liberal Democrats describing the bill as "a kick in the teeth for taxpayers".According to the annual report for the Department for Exiting the European Union, £78,000 was also spent on a separate case relating to the European Economic
  
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• New Kensington and Chelsea leader heckled by Grenfell fire survivors

  19-07-2017 23:42
  
  The new-elected leader of Kensington and Chelsea council, Elizabeth Campbell, was interupted and heckled as she spoke about Grenfell Tower.The new leader of Kensington and Chelsea council has been met with shouts of disbelief and calls to resign, after she promised survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire that she would oversee fundamental cultural change among local officials and politicians.Elizabeth Campbell was elected at a chaotic council meeting on Wednesday evening, which was dominated by emo
  
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• Mary Turner, longtime president of GMB, dies after long illness

  19-07-2017 23:33
  
  Mary Turner, a longstanding president of the GMB union, has died.Turner, who was also a Labour party executive member, was the UK’s most senior female union leader.Former GMB general secretary Sir Paul Kenny described her as the most outstanding female trade unionist of her generation, while others described her as a giant of the union movement.
  
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• Neo-Nazi pleads guilty after shoving black protester at Trump rally

  19-07-2017 23:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Judge waives jail sentence for Matthew Heimbach, who was caught on video repeatedly pushing demonstrator, court documents showA neo-Nazi leader has pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct, more than a year after a viral video showed him repeatedly shoving a young black protester at a Trump campaign rally in Louisville, Kentucky.Matthew Heimbach, an avowed National Socialist and the leader of the Traditionalist Worker party, will not face jail time in the case, sparking protest from an attorney for
  
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• New Grenfell council boss elected amid 'murderers' shouts at meeting

  19-07-2017 23:25
  
  The newly elected leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council has faced cries of "murderers" and "shame on you" from survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire during a stormy meeting.Conservative nominee Elizabeth Campbell was formally elected the new boss of the heavily criticised west London council amid angry scenes on Wednesday night.As Tory councillors voted for Ms Campbell, Grenfell survivors in the public gallery jeered and shouted.
  
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• Scotland and Wales formally call for funding boost after DUP deal

  19-07-2017 23:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Holyrood and Cardiff argue they should receive an extra £2.9bn and £1.67bn respectively under Barnett formula rulesThe Scottish and Welsh governments have joined forces to launch a formal dispute process over Theresa May’s deal with the Democratic Unionist party.Following last month’s general election, the prime minister agreed to give £1bn of additional funding to Northern Ireland in return for support from the DUP for her minority government. Continue reading...
  
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• BBC's Eddie Mair Asks Boss: 'Why Do On-Air People Get Paid More If They Have A Penis?'

  19-07-2017 22:59
  
  A BBC presenter has attempted to get to the meat of the matter over the corporation’s gender pay row, asking one of his bosses: “Why do on-air people get paid more if they have a penis?”
  
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• New Grenfell council boss elected amid 'murderers' shouts

  19-07-2017 22:43
  
  The newly-elected leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council has been told to immediately resign by furious Grenfell Tower residents during a stormy meeting.Conservative nominee Elizabeth Campbell was formally elected the new boss of the heavily-criticised west London council amid angry scenes on Wednesday night.As Tory councillors voted for Ms Campbell, Grenfell survivors in the public gallery jeered and shouted "shame on you" and "murderers".
  
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• England v Scotland: Euro 2017 – as it happened

  19-07-2017 22:41 via theguardian.com
  
  England overpower their old rivals with a 6-0 victory in Group D, Jodie Taylor’s hat-trick added to by goals from Ellen White, Jordan Nobbs and Toni Duggan 9.41pm BSTSo, England were ultimately far superior – just faster, stronger, quicker, technically better and of course far more clinical. Nobody had really expected any other outcome but Scotland will feel disappointed with the two late goals, which may well have made any hope of qualifying from the group much harder, and will also
  
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• Britain, Germany to stay close, Prince William says on pre-Brexit charm tour

  19-07-2017 22:26
  
  Britain and Germany will remain close even after Brexit, Prince William said on Wednesday during a tour meant to shore up relations with EU countries before Britain leaves the bloc.With the British government struggling to show unity as negotiations on leaving the European Union began in earnest this week, William and his wife Kate were in Berlin on what Deutschlandfunk radio called a "charm offensive in times of Brexit"."This relationship between the United Kingdom and Germany really matters,"
  
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• 'Shame on you' - survivors of tower block fire berate London council

  19-07-2017 22:01
  
  By Cassandra GarrisonLONDON (Reuters) - Furious survivors of the London tower block fire that killed at least 80 people booed the new leader of the local authority during chaotic scenes on Wednesday at the council's first meeting since the blaze.About 70 survivors of last month's fire at the Grenfell Tower apartment block and other local residents gathered to protest as councillors met amid tight security at Kensington Town Hall in north London.
  
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• BBC facing backlash from female stars after gender pay gap revealed

  19-07-2017 21:41 via theguardian.com
  
  Broadcaster threatened with legal action as list of 96 highest earners shows only a third are women and top seven are all men BBC publishes stars’ salaries – as it happened
  The BBC is facing a backlash from female stars over pay after revealing that only a third of its 96 top earners are women and the top seven are all men. Continue reading...
  
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• U.S. and UK to begin exploring post-Brexit trade - USTR official

  19-07-2017 21:26
  
  By Lesley WroughtonWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. and British officials will meet in Washington on Monday for the first meeting of a new trade and investment working group to explore a possible free trade agreement between the countries after Brexit, a U.S. official said on Wednesday.News that the allies will begin exploring their post-Brexit economic relationship comes in the first week of negotiations in Brussels between Britain and the European Union on Britain's departure from the European Unio
  
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• Steve Bell on Philip Hammond's austerity plans – cartoon

  19-07-2017 21:25 via theguardian.com
  
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• All for the best Brexit in the best of all possible worlds? | Letters

  19-07-2017 21:25
  
  Denis Macshane says that business should be telling the British people that ‘the amputational Brexit that David Davis [pictured], Liam Fox, Michael Gove, Andrea Leadsom, Chris Grayling, Priti Patel and others want will be economic suicide for Britain’.
  
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• Questions about Johanna Konta’s Britishness are legitimate | Letter

  19-07-2017 21:23 via theguardian.com
  
  People’s ethnic origin, and the nationality they identify with, is fascinating, writes Danielle Lowy, so inquiries like John Humphrys’ should not be made tabooAlthough John Humphrys admittedly used a rather abrasive tone best kept for interviews with recalcitrant politicians, I don’t think his questions regarding Johanna Konta’s nationality (Konta exposes faults in BBC host’s preparation, 19 July) were unreasonable. People’s ethnic origin, and the nationality
  
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• Investigation into possible Wimbledon match-fixing not linked to retirements

  19-07-2017 21:22 via theguardian.com
  
  • One main draw match and two qualifying matches spark concern
  • One match at French Open also raised alertAn investigation into the possibility that a match at Wimbledon was subject to match-fixing is not connected to any of the retirements that took place during the tournament.The London-based Tennis Integrity Unit announced on Wednesday that it is looking into alerts over unusual betting patterns involving one match at the French Open and three at Wimbledon, two of them in the quali
  
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• Russian man who helped develop Citadel malware gets 5 years

  19-07-2017 21:21
  ATLANTA (AP) — A Russian man who helped develop and distribute malicious software designed to steal personal financial information was sentenced Wednesday in Atlanta to serve five years in prison.
  
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• Provision of music in schools is evolving | Letters

  19-07-2017 21:19
  
  Instrumental tuition is still free for many children.The brief piece by Michele Hanson (Music in schools will soon be extinct, 18 July) doesn’t help the cause for school music.If we want the best graduates to come into the teaching profession, we need to present a more appealing case.
  
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• Time And Relative Dimensions In Selby | Letters

  19-07-2017 21:18 via theguardian.com
  
  A Time Lord from Yorkshire? This is the real horror of the Doctor Who casting news, writes Huw EvansI, too, have been horrified by the news of the casting for Doctor Who (Editorial, 18 July). So horrified, indeed that I almost sprayed the very fine kedgeree I was eating when I heard the news across the family silver. Even now I can barely write the words: they have cast someone from Yorkshire. My God, just think of the implications. Will the Doctor do battle with the Daleks wearing a flat cap? W
  
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• F1 confirms controversial halo device will be mandatory for 2018 season

  19-07-2017 21:15 via theguardian.com
  
  • Cockpit safety device will be required in all F1 cars next year• Move has been made to reduce injuries from flying debrisFormula One cars will look radically different next season after the sport’s governing body confirmed the controversial cockpit safety device known as the halo is to become mandatory.Following a meeting of the sport’s major players in Geneva yesterday, the FIA revealed it has given the go-ahead to introduce the concept next year. Continue reading...
  
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• Picking an Open winner becomes ever harder in era without a hierarchy | Andy Bull

  19-07-2017 21:14 via theguardian.com
  
  Rory McIlroy says ‘the margins are so fine’ between the leading players while Jordan Spieth cannot identify who would be in a ‘big four’, which means mental strength and adaptability could be key at Royal BirkdaleThe rain came late to Royal Birkdale, hours after the weathermen reckoned it would. They said the storm that swept across the south on Tuesday night would arrive around 11 in the morning. Then they pushed it back to two in the afternoon, then again to five in the
  
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• Katie Hopkins In Row With Save The Children As MailOnline Article Mysteriously Disappears

  19-07-2017 21:03
  
  Save the Children has strongly dismissed a claim by Katie Hopkins that she “spent time” with the crew of one of the charity’s ships whilst investigating what she believes is their collusion with people traffickers.
  
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• Angry public gallery heckles council leader

  19-07-2017 21:00
  
  Elizabeth Campbell has been heckled at the Kensington and Chelsea council offices by people angered over Grenfell Tower.
  
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• British American Tobacco to acquire Reynolds as activists decry merger

  19-07-2017 20:51 via theguardian.com
  
  Shareholders approved buyout to make BAT the world’s largest listed tobacco company amid concerns over industry pushing back on government regulations
  British American Tobacco (BAT) has come under fire from health campaigners after shareholders approved its buyout of American firm Reynolds on Wednesday, which will create the world’s biggest tobacco company.Shareholders of both companies approved the deal, which will take BAT back into the US market after a 12-year absence. It ends Am
  
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• We can only address pay imbalances if we can see them | Nils Pratley

  19-07-2017 20:43 via theguardian.com
  
  BBC fears transparency will push up salaries; it might, but secrecy just serves to hide unjust disparitiesThe BBC fought against publishing the salaries of its highest-earning performers because it thought a list would serve to drive up salaries in the media industry. Its worry may be justified. In the wider world of big public companies, transparency and inflation have been co-travellers.When Imperial Brands, the cigarette firm, wanted to boost the pay package of its chief executive, Alison Coo
  
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• Trump changes mind again, telling senators to get health bill 'on my desk'

  19-07-2017 20:36 via theguardian.com
  
  Within a day of telling Republicans to simply ‘let Obamacare fail’, president says they should cancel their August break to address healthcare reformLess than 24 hours after Donald Trump advised Republicans to “let Obamacare fail”, he once again switched course and told senators to cancel their August recess and remain in Washington until they overhaul the healthcare law. During an uncomfortable lunch on Wednesday, Trump warned Republican senators that “inaction&rdq
  
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• Brexit boost: UK officials to fly to US NEXT WEEK for trade deal talks

  19-07-2017 20:34 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  BRITISH officials will jet to the US next week to lay the ground for a post-Brexit trade deal, in a major boost for Theresa May.
  
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• The BBC’s gender pay gap should galvanise all working women | Anne McElvoy

  19-07-2017 20:19 via theguardian.com
  
  The skewing of rewards goes well beyond the corporation. This new rich list is a moment to demand changes in workplaces everywhere
  • Anne McElvoy is senior editor of the EconomistThe BBC’s gender pay gap is not so much a single chasm as a series of geological faultlines. The most egregious discrepancy is that top rates of pay are skewed towards men by two-thirds, and that on-air talent is doing remarkably similar jobs for very different rewards. Related: Angry about the salaries of BB
  
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• BBC Salaries Revealed: How Today's Revelation Was 'Very Long Campaign' By Papers Such As The Daily Mail

  19-07-2017 20:15
  
  BBC-bashing reached its zenith today as the corporation was, after years of pressure from its traditional foes, forced to name its on-screen stars who earn more than £150,000.
  
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• Justine Damond: police lawyer claims officers may have feared an ambush

  19-07-2017 20:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Officer Matthew Harrity told investigators he heard a loud sound before his partner, Mohamed Noor, shot Australian womanThe attorney for a Minneapolis police officer whose partner fatally shot an Australian woman has said it was reasonable for the officers to have believed that they might be targets of an ambush.Related: Minneapolis officer who allegedly shot Justine Damond offers condolencesContinue reading...
  
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• HPV vaccine: anger over decision not to extend NHS scheme to boys

  19-07-2017 20:09 via theguardian.com
  
  Health bodies condemn panel’s conclusion that more jabs against cancer-causing infection are unlikely to be cost-effectiveA decision not to vaccinate boys against a cancer-causing sexually transmitted infection has been condemned by health bodies and campaigners. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), which has been reviewing the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination programme, concluded that it was “highly unlikely to be cost-effective” to extend the sch
  
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• Lack of trust in health department could derail blood contamination inquiry

  19-07-2017 20:06 via theguardian.com
  
  Campaign groups ‘universally reject’ implicated department’s role overseeing inquiry into how contaminated blood transfusions infected thousands Theresa May’s inquiry into the contaminated blood scandal appears to be faltering, after key campaign groups said they would boycott an initial meeting because they lack faith in the Department of Health.
  At least 10 leading campaign groups and the Haemophilia Society are all refusing to attend a meeting on Thursday to consult th
  
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• GM cleared in first case over updated ignition switch

  19-07-2017 20:03
  
  By Tina BellonNEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal jury in New York on Wednesday found General Motors was not to blame for a crash of an Arizona man who alleged that his accident was caused by an updated version of the carmaker's ignition switch that did not adequately fix the flaws of a previous model.An earlier version of the switch had been linked to nearly 400 injuries and deaths, but GM settled the last case involving that switch in September last year.The company so far has paid roughly $2.5 bil
  
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• Call for vice-chancellors paid more than May to prove their worth

  19-07-2017 20:01 via theguardian.com
  
  Universities minister Jo Johnson wants clampdown on higher education salaries that dwarf prime minister’s payUniversity vice-chancellors earning more than the prime minister will be asked to prove they are worth it as part of a clampdown on accelerating pay increases among higher education leaders.In a speech on Thursday, the universities minister, Jo Johnson, will tell higher education institutions that in future they will have to justify exceptionally high salaries. Continue reading...
  
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• Plastic pollution risks 'near permanent contamination of natural environment'

  19-07-2017 20:00 via theguardian.com
  
  First global analysis of all mass–produced plastics has found humans have produced 8.3bn tonnes since the 1950s with the majority ending up in landfill or oceansHumans have produced 8.3bn tonnes of plastic since the 1950s with the majority ending up in landfill or polluting the world’s continents and oceans, according to a new report.The first global analysis of all mass–produced plastics has found that it has outstripped most other man-made materials, threatening a “near
  
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• David Squires on ... Arsenal's pre-season trip to Sydney

  19-07-2017 20:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Our resident cartoonist looks at the fallout from the Premier League club’s tour to Australia where they faced Sydney FC and Western Sydney WanderersTake a look back through David’s archive of Australian cartoonsContinue reading...
  
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• Who's earning the big bucks at the Beeb?

  19-07-2017 19:55
  
  Figures show the salaries of the BBC's top on-screen talent
  
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• Impact on banks from Britain's vote to leave the EU

  19-07-2017 19:53
  (Reuters) - Global banks have said they could move thousands of jobs out of Britain to prepare for Brexit, the country's planned exit from the European Union.Financial services firms need a regulated subsidiary in an EU country to offer products across the bloc which could prompt some to move jobs out of Britain if it loses access to the European single market.Following are related stories about top banks (in alphabetical order):ASSOCIATION OF FOREIGN BANKS IN GERMANYThe association expects 3,00
  
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• Ana O’Brien will not need surgery but faces three months out after fall

  19-07-2017 19:53 via theguardian.com
  
  • Jockey suffered multiple injuries after fall from Druids Cross at Killarney
  • Corruption hearing: John Wright denies contact with Adam CarterAna O’Brien, who was airlifted to hospital on Tuesday evening after sustaining multiple injuries in a fall at Killarney, received confirmation on Wednesday she will not require surgery on fractured vertebrae in her neck and back. The 21-year-old jockey, the daughter of the champion trainer Aidan O’Brien and his wife Annemarie, is exp
  
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• BBC salary data shows huge pay gap between white and BME stars

  19-07-2017 19:51
  
  George Alagiah is the BBC’s highest-earning BME star, but was 25th on the list.The BBC’s best-paid star, Chris Evans, took home roughly the same as all of its BME high-earners put together last year, a Guardian analysis of salary data has shown.The highest-ranked BME earner was newsreader George Alagiah, who was in 25th place.
  
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• Burberry's Paul Price to be new boss of Topshop

  19-07-2017 19:46 via theguardian.com
  
  First man to head the high-street fashion chain in 18 years will take over from Mary Homer in September
  Topshop is getting its first male boss in 18 years with the appointment of Burberry executive Paul Price.Price will join the high street fashion chain on 4 September, taking over from Mary Homer, who is leaving to head the White Company after more than a decade at the helm. She was preceded by Jane Shepherdson, who ran Topshop from 1999 until 2007, before leading a buyout of the Whistles chain
  
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• Trump's election commission meets as critics condemn president's 'biggest lie'

  19-07-2017 19:45 via theguardian.com
  
  Opponents say group exists to soothe Trump’s ego over losing popular vote
  Trump warns of voter fraud despite Pence’s claim of ‘no preconceived notions’Donald Trump warned darkly of potential voter fraud at the first meeting of his election integrity commission on Wednesday, minutes after its chair, Mike Pence, insisted that the commission had “no preconceived notions”. Related: Six ways Trump is 'dismantling' the US after six months in officeContinue reading..
  
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• UK threatens to return radioactive waste to EU without nuclear deal

  19-07-2017 19:42 via theguardian.com
  
  Brexit department warns EU counterparts it will ‘return waste to its country of origin’ if an agreement on nuclear cooperation cannot be reachedBritain has warned the EU that it could return boatloads of radioactive waste back to the continent if the Brexit talks fail to deliver an agreement on nuclear regulation.
  In what is being taken in Brussels as a thinly veiled threat, a paper setting out the UK position for the negotiations stresses the right “to return radioactive waste
  
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• 'A ridiculous and unjustified throwback': readers on the BBC gender pay gap

  19-07-2017 19:35 via theguardian.com
  
  The BBC has been accused of discrimination as its salaries reveal a gender pay gap. We asked readers to share their thoughts The BBC is facing criticism after figures published by the corporation show a significant gender imbalance in the salaries of its top stars. Just a third of the 96 top earners are female and the top seven are all male.Only two women – Claudia Winkleman, who presents Strictly Come Dancing, and Alex Jones, presenter of the One Show – are listed as earning more th
  
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• Stars defend BBC salaries as Theresa May criticises gender pay gap

  19-07-2017 19:34
  Speaking to LBC, Theresa May said the gender pay gap would have remained secret if the Government had not forced the BBC toreveal the earnings of top actors and presenters .Examples of disparities between stars include the £200,000 gap between Huw Edwards and Fiona Bruce, who both present evening news programmes.BBC Breakfast's Dan Walker is included on the list of high earners, while his co-presenter Louise Minchin is absent.
  
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• BBC Salaries: 5 Stark Comparisons With ITV, Channel 4 And Sky, That Reveal Top Stars Could Be Underpaid

  19-07-2017 19:33
  
  The publication of the BBC ‘rich list’ of highest-paid stars has prompted fresh questions over the licence fee and value for money.
  
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• Everton suffer double injury blow to Ross Barkley and Ramiro Funes Mori

  19-07-2017 19:32 via theguardian.com
  
  • Tottenham target Barkley to miss four weeks following groin surgery• Defender Funes Mori out for ‘six to nine months’ with knee injuryRoss Barkley will miss the start of the season after undergoing surgery on a groin problem that has curtailed his pre-season with Everton. His team-mate Ramiro Funes Mori, meanwhile, could miss the bulk of the new campaign owing to complications in his recovery from a knee operation.Barkley has missed Everton’s trips to Tanzania and t
  
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• Supreme court allows administration to enforce Trump travel ban for now

  19-07-2017 19:31 via theguardian.com
  
  Supreme court approves request to more strictly enforce ban, but leaves in place lower court order helping travelers from six mostly Muslim countriesThe supreme court is granting the Trump administration’s request to more strictly enforce its ban on refugees, at least until a federal appeals court weighs in. Related: Supreme court gives Hawaii till Tuesday to answer Trump travel ban motionContinue reading...
  
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• Chile takes steps to legalize abortion in certain cases

  19-07-2017 19:30 via theguardian.com
  
  After fraught debate, senate votes to legalize abortion when a woman’s life is in danger, when a fetus is unviable and when a pregnancy results from rapeChile’s senate has narrowly passed a bill to legalize abortion in certain cases, in a win for President Michelle Bachelet’s center-left coalition and for rights groups that have campaigned for years against the country’s strict ban.After a long and sometimes fractious overnight debate, the senate voted to legalize abortio
  
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