General news

• Theresa May defends Damian Green's PMQs appearance

  28-11-2017 23:43
  Theresa May has defended her decision to allow Damian Green to stand in for her at Prime Minister's Questions while he is accused of sexual harassment and having porn on his computer.Mr Green - the Prime Minister's deputy in all but name and Mrs May's closest ally - faces a torrid half hour in the House of Commons while she is visiting Middle East countries including Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
  
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• Rail services lost under 1960s Beeching cuts may reopen

  28-11-2017 23:30
  Transport secretary Chris Grayling could restore closed lines under plan to expand rail network and increase growthRail services lost under the Beeching cuts could be restored to increase jobs and growth, under plans drawn up by the transport secretary to expand the rail network. The government will invite proposals to reopen lines that were closed down following reports by Dr Richard Beeching in the 1960s, or under later British Rail cuts in the 1970s.Continue reading...
  
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• May to demand Saudi Arabia ends blockade on Yemen's ports

  28-11-2017 23:30
  The prime minister said she will challenge the Saudi crown prince on rampant human rights abuses during Middle East tripTheresa May has arrived in the Middle East for a three-day trip which will see her visit Saudi Arabia to demand the country immediately end its blockade of Yemen, which humanitarian groups say is causing a huge and preventable crisis of famine and disease.The prime minister touched down on Tuesday evening in Amman, the Jordanian capital. On Wednesday she is due to go to Riyadh,
  
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• May to demand Saudi Arabia ends blockade on Yemen's ports

  28-11-2017 23:30
  Speaking to reporters on the flight to Jordan, Theresa May defended her decision to visit Saudi Arabia for the second time this year.Theresa May has arrived in the Middle East for a three-day trip which will see her visit Saudi Arabia to demand the country immediately end its blockade of Yemen, which humanitarian groups say is causing a huge and preventable crisis of famine and disease.On Wednesday she is due to go to Riyadh, where she will challenge Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the deter
  
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• George Groves questions Chris Eubank Jr’s pedigree after ‘old man’ taunts

  28-11-2017 23:30
  George Groves and Chris Eubank Jr traded verbal howitzers in a fractious press conference ahead of February’s super-middleweight world title fightFor the best part of an hour George Groves and Chris Eubank Jr went at it, trading barbs and verbal howitzers before boring into each other’s eyes – and souls – at the finale of a testy press conference. This, intriguingly, was not about flogging tickets. Both men already knew their WBA and IBO super-middleweight unification con
  
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• Gay fans warned holding hands at Russia World Cup will be dangerous

  28-11-2017 23:30
  • Equality campaigner Fare will produce cautionary guide for LGBT fans
  • Piara Powar: ‘Gay people have a place in Russia which is quite underground’LGBT fans will be warned about holding hands in public and other outward displays of affection when in Russia for the World Cup next summer. A cautionary guide will be produced by Fare – formerly Football Against Racism in Europe and now a pressure group that campaigns for equality in football – and dispersed to fans
  
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• Damian Green to stand in for May at PMQs despite conduct inquiry

  28-11-2017 23:30
  Damian Green denies allegations that he harassed a young Tory activist.Damian Green will deputise for Theresa May at prime minister’s questions on Wednesday despite being under investigation over allegations of sexual impropriety.The first secretary of state, regarded as May’s de facto deputy, will stand in for the prime minister, who is visiting Jordan.
  
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• Antonio Conte keen for January signings but says Chelsea yet to consult him

  28-11-2017 23:30
  • Conte says he is waiting to be asked how to catch ‘incredible’ Manchester City
  • David Luiz ruled out of match against Swansea City with knee injuryAntonio Conte has described Manchester City’s start to the season as “something incredible” and said he is waiting for Chelsea’s hierarchy to ask him what is necessary for the Premier League champions to catch the current leaders.Chelsea find themselves 11 points behind City going into their home game a
  
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• Newcastle United handed a point by West Bromwich Albion’s unlucky Evans

  28-11-2017 23:02
  Fleetingly it seemed as if joy had returned to The Hawthorns, as goals by Hal Robson-Kanu and Sam Field put West Bromwich Albion on course for their first victory since August. But instead the home side ended up clinging on for a point, as their two-goal lead was whittled away by a Newcastle United side also in urgent need of a change of form.Ciaran Clark cut the deficit by heading home in the 59th minute and then, six minutes from time, Jonny Evans deflected a free-kick by Matt Ritchie into his
  
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• Newcastle United fightback denies West Brom win as Alan Pardew waits in wings

  28-11-2017 23:02
  Fleetingly it looked as if joy would return to the Hawthorns and Gary Megson would depart on a high. With Alan Pardew poised to become the club’s new manager, goals by Hal Robson-Kanu and Sam Field put West Bromwich Albion on course for their first win since August. But instead Megson’s caretaker stint closed with a draw, as a two-goal lead was whittled away by a Newcastle United side also craving a change of form.Ciaran Clark cut the deficit by heading into the net in the 59th minut
  
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• Jamie Vardy sparks Leicester City win as Tottenham Hotspur slip up again

  28-11-2017 22:59
  There are still six months of the season to go but Tottenham Hotspur’s title challenge already looks to be over. It is hard to reach any other conclusion after Mauricio Pochettino’s side suffered a third successive away defeat in the league for the first time since 2014 when Tim Sherwood was in charge, leaving Spurs facing the prospect of being 16 points behind Manchester City by the time they run out at Vicarage Road on Saturday.Tottenham, quite simply, have lost their way domestica
  
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• Jamie Vardy sparks Leicester City victory as Tottenham Hotspur slip up again

  28-11-2017 22:59
  There are still six months of the season to go but Tottenham Hotspur’s title challenge already looks to be over. It is hard to reach any other conclusion after Mauricio Pochettino’s side suffered a third successive away defeat in the league for the first time since the days when Tim Sherwood was in charge, leaving Spurs facing the prospect of being 16 points behind Manchester City by the time they run out at Vicarage Road on Saturday.Although Harry Kane scored late on, expertly dispa
  
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• Ashley Young’s double has Manchester United buzzing and Watford befuddled

  28-11-2017 22:59
  Manchester United looked like running away from Watford midway through the first half as Ashley Young enjoyed an early festive return to Vicarage Road, scoring two lovely goals to help open up a 3-0 lead.Watford never gave up though, dragging it back to 3-2, before Jesse Lingard took the game away from them at the last with a sublime late fourth, weaving his way from inside his own half to finish in front of a delirious away end, Continue reading...
  
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• Crystal Palace hold Brighton but flares in crowd may prompt FA sanction

  28-11-2017 22:52
  There was a moment here when Glenn Murray thought his time had come. Only eight minutes remained of a fraught derby, a contest so tense as to be excruciating at times, when Anthony Knockaert swung over the hosts’ latest corner and Brighton & Hove Albion’s lone striker, having shoved away Joel Ward, stretched to make proper contact on the centre. Murray’s eyes widened, his header planted down towards goal as a winner against his former club beckoned. And yet there on the pos
  
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• Brighton accuse Crystal Palace fans of ‘disorder’ as derby ends in stalemate

  28-11-2017 22:52
  Brighton & Hove Albion have accused a minority of Crystal Palace supporters of seeking to attend the clubs’ derby “intent on causing disorder” after two stewards were taken to hospital following clashes outside the Amex stadium just after the match had kicked off.A number of visiting Palace fans were denied entry to the ground despite having legitimate tickets with their hand-written names for the clubs’ first top-flight collision since 1981, after trouble broke out a
  
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• Justin Trudeau apologizes for Canada's program targeting LGBTQ civil servants

  28-11-2017 22:42
  From the 50s to the 90s, the government monitored and interrogated civil servants in what the prime minister calls ‘state-sponsored, systemic oppression’Justin Trudeau has apologized for a decades-long campaign by previous governments to rid the military and public service of LGBTQ people, calling the cold war crackdown a “collective shame.”From the 1950s to the early 1990s, the Canadian government monitored and interrogated civil servants who were believed to be gay or t
  
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• Former Coronation Street actor Bruno Langley avoids jail over sexual assaults

  28-11-2017 22:42
  Former Coronation Street actor Bruno Langley has avoided jail after he admitted sexually assaulting two women at a Manchester music venue.The actor, who was fired from his role playing Todd Grimshaw in the ITV soap, must complete a 12-month community order and sign the sex offenders register for five years.Karen Saffman, prosecuting, told Manchester Magistrates' Court that Grimshaw had touched two other women on the same night but was not charged over those alleged offences.
  
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• England beat Kazakhstan with Nikita Parris to the fore in World Cup qualifier

  28-11-2017 22:35
  • England Women 5-0 Kazakhstan Women
  • Lawley 15, Kirby 64pen, Parris 69 75, Christiansen 76If this was Mo Marley’s last match as England’s interim coach she left with a 100% record after another comfortable win in World Cup qualifying. An inexperienced Lionesses side, with three players making their first starts, and a 4-3-3 formation carried England on from the Mark Sampson era, even if they were never posed any danger by a limited Kazakhstan.With an opposition stringing
  
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• Virgin Media owner Liberty Global eyes Swiss exit in latest manoeuvre towards Vodafone deal

  28-11-2017 22:30
  Virgin Media owner Liberty Global eyes Swiss exit in latest manoeuvre towards Vodafone deal
  
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• 'Fake news': Libya seizes on Trump tweet to discredit CNN slavery report

  28-11-2017 22:26
  Libyan media question CNN report on modern slave auctions in the country, a sign of US president’s attacks having real world effectA tweet by Donald Trump accusing CNN of purveying “fake news” has been seized on by Libyan media to challenge a report by the US broadcaster which suggested modern day slave auctions were being held in the country.
  Over the weekend, Trump resumed his attacks on the US network, saying: “CNN International is still a major source of (Fake) news,
  
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• Here’s how the public reacted to the news Viagra will become an over-the-counter drug

  28-11-2017 22:13
  Some have made jokes, but others think there should be changes for women next.
  
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• 'Chennai Six' will hopefully be home for Christmas

  28-11-2017 22:05
  The so-called "Chennai Six" - former British soldiers jailed in India on weapons charges - have won their appeal, according to supporters.
  
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• The black market for the blue pill

  28-11-2017 22:00
  The number of unlicensed erectile dysfunction drugs smuggled into the country has increased sharply to meet demand.
  
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• Premiership may be reduced to 10 teams in bid to avert player strike

  28-11-2017 22:00
  • Idea to be discussed at Professional Game Board meeting on Wednesday
  • Plans would free up internationals to play more matches for their clubsReducing the Premiership to 10 teams is one of a host of ideas being floated as a potential solution to the continuing dispute over the length of the domestic season, which has led to the threat of a player strike. It is understood the proposal also includes the possibility of a 10-team Championship coming under the jurisdiction of Premiership
  
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• Nazanin's jail call to 'good friends'

  28-11-2017 22:00
  Jailed Briton Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has thanked supporters for campaigning for her to be released from prison in Iran.
  
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• UK's Brexit 'Divorce' Bill Could Top £50bn - Reports

  28-11-2017 21:41
  Britain and the EU have reached agreement on a Brexit divorce bill that could see the UK having to find more than £50bn to quit the EU, two reports from Brussels have said.
  
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• UK Agrees Brexit 'Divorce' Bill And It Could Top £50bn - Reports

  28-11-2017 21:41
  Britain and the EU have reached agreement on a Brexit divorce bill that could see the UK having to find more than £50bn to quit the EU, two reports from Brussels have said.
  
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• Poppi Worthington: Sister says she trusted baby's father with her own children

  28-11-2017 21:36
  The sister of Paul Worthington, who is said to have sexually assaulted his 13-month-old daughter Poppi before her death, has told a court she trusted him with her own children.Tracy Worthington gave evidence at the second inquest into the death of the toddler who collapsed suddenly at her home in Barrow-in-Furness on 12 December 2012.Mr Worthington has been in hiding since January 2016 when family court judge Mr Justice Peter Jackson, now Lord Justice Peter Jackson, made public his conclusion th
  
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• Just give me time to see what this body can and can’t do, says Tiger Woods

  28-11-2017 21:29
  • Former world No1 returns in Hero World Challenge after spinal-fusion surgery
  • ‘Every time I bent over I had pain down my leg and my foot didn’t work”As Tiger Woods prepares for a competitive comeback that will be the most eagerly anticipated round of this golfing year, he has painted a stark – plus uncharacteristically detailed – picture of his recent traumas.The 14-times major champion’s fourth surgery, a back fusion, has cured what Woods describ
  
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• Steve Bell on the growing pressure on David Davis over Brexit reports – cartoon

  28-11-2017 21:23
  Continue reading...
  
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• Strip away the layers and Brexit becomes ever more murky | Gina Miller

  28-11-2017 21:22
  Mounting allegations of opaque funding and illicit influence should trouble even the diehard BrexitersI clearly remember pondering, on 24 June 2016, why there was not more public and political outrage at the idea of a British government putting itself above the law, and using the royal prerogative to execute the referendum result. I find myself in exactly the same mindset in terms of the potential undermining of our democracy, government and sovereignty by a hostile foreign power – Russia
  
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• Divided Britain, where the Brexit alarm is sounded but no one wants to hear | Rafael Behr

  28-11-2017 21:20
  It now seems futile to warn of the perils ahead because those with the most to lose simply distrust the messengerThere is a campaign running at the moment to inform people of the dangers of drug resistance. “Taking antibiotics when you don’t need them puts you and your family it risk,” shout the posters. GPs are familiar with the problem. Patients want medicine and don’t like hearing that their flu is caused by a virus. Antibiotics, which treat bacterial infection, won&rs
  
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• UK says seeking to build on 'momentum' for Brexit talks breakthrough

  28-11-2017 21:02
  Britain is seeking to build on the "recent momentum" in the Brexit divorce talks with the European Union before a summit next month, a spokeswoman for Britain's Department for Exiting the European Union said on Tuesday."We are exploring how we can continue to build on recent momentum in the talks so that together we can move the negotiations on to the next phase and discuss our future partnership," the spokeswoman said.
  
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• Rex Tillerson: state department can be cut as we will soon solve global conflicts

  28-11-2017 21:00
  The secretary of state defended the Trump administration’s plan to slash US diplomacy by 31% despite North Korean missile test and Afghanistan escalationRex Tillerson said on Tuesday that the Trump administration’s proposal to slash the state department and foreign aid budget is in part based on an expectation it will be able to resolve some of the global conflicts that have been absorbing costly diplomatic and humanitarian support.But in a vivid display of the most urgent diplomatic
  
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• Palmer & Harvey enters administration leaving 2,500 already out of work

  28-11-2017 20:56
  The wholesaler Palmer & Harvey (P&H) has entered administration after the failure of rescue talks, leaving 2,500 people out of work just weeks before Christmas.Sky News had reported earlier on Tuesday how the company - Britain's biggest tobacco supplier - was on the verge of collapse amid a funding crisis and fading hopes of a buyout by private equity firm Carlyle.Joint administrators at the business services firm PwC said P&H employed 3,400 people but they had needed to make immedia
  
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• UK could pay £50bn Brexit divorce bill after bowing to EU pressure

  28-11-2017 20:54
  The UK has bowed to EU demands on the Brexit divorce bill in a move that could result in the UK paying £50bn to Brussels, in an attempt to get France and Germany to agree to move negotiations to trade.Non-stop behind-the-scenes negotiations have led to a broad agreement by the UK to a gross financial settlement of £89bn on leaving the bloc, although the British expect the final net bill to be half as much.A senior EU official told the Guardian that the UK appeared ready to honour its
  
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• Rape victim arrested on immigration charges after going to police

  28-11-2017 20:46
  Pregnant woman, who had also been kidnapped, was being cared for in recovery centre in London when arrest took placeA woman who reported being kidnapped and raped was arrested on immigration charges while being cared for at a centre for sexual assault victims.The woman, who was five months’ pregnant at the time of her arrest, attended an east London police station in March to report details of her alleged ordeal, which she said occurred in Germany between September 2016 and March 2017. Con
  
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• Labour MP Fiona Onasanya admits quoting rapper Big Shaq in the House of Commons

  28-11-2017 20:44
  “It is not as simple as two plus two is four, minus three is one, quick maths.”
  
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• UK bows to EU, will assume liabilities worth up to 100 billion euros, FT says

  28-11-2017 20:43
  The UK's net payments on the liabilities, discharged over many decades, could fall to less than half that amount, FT said, citing several diplomats familiar with the talks.The European Commission declined to comment on the FT report.
  
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• Who will win the Anglo-Dutch struggle to woo Unilever? | Nils Pratley

  28-11-2017 20:40
  The consumer goods giant says it will choose between London and Rotterdam for its sole headquarters later this yearPaul Polman, chief executive of Unilever, is a considerate fellow. Instead of infuriating either Theresa May or her Dutch counterpart, Mark Rutte, at a delicate moment in the Brexit talks, he will do so at a later date. The Anglo-Dutch consumer goods giant had said it would choose between London and Rotterdam for its sole headquarters by the end of this year. Now the announcement wi
  
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• 'It feels a little forgotten': West Somerset bears brunt of social mobility challenge

  28-11-2017 20:35
  Picturesque views disguise the lack of opportunities in coastal towns like Minehead, where many teenagers feel stuck without prospects for change “I don’t want to sound super bleak, but this isn’t the greatest place to live,” said 19-year-old Emily Hunter. “It feels like there’s a lack of opportunity. As a young person you want options. I’m not sure there are that many options around here.”Hunter is a volunteer helper at the Minehead Eye youth cent
  
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• Leicester v Spurs, Brighton v Crystal Palace and more: Premier League – live!

  28-11-2017 20:32
  Click here for all tonight’s latest scores from across EuropeEmail [email protected] or tweet @tom_lutz 7.19pm GMTBrighton: Ryan, Saltor, Duffy, Dunk, Suttner, Knockaert, Gross, Stephens, Propper, Izquierdo, Murray. Subs: Kayal, Hemed, Goldson, March, Schelotto, Krul, Brown.Crystal Palace: Hennessey, Ward, Tomkins, Sakho, Schlupp, Cabaye, Milivojevic, Zaha, Loftus-Cheek, Townsend, Benteke. Subs: Speroni, Van Aanholt, Dann, McArthur, Fosu-Mensah, Sako, Puncheon.7.17pm GMTWest Brom: F
  
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• PM talks Paradise Papers and tax avoidance with UK overseas territories

  28-11-2017 20:28
  Theresa May raises issue of public registers and further action to combat tax avoidance at annual meeting in Downing StreetTheresa May discussed the Paradise Papers with the leaders of 10 British overseas territories at their annual gathering in Downing Street on Tuesday, with the prime minister urging further action to combat tax avoidance.A cross-party group of 12 MPs wrote to the prime minister last week requesting she set a deadline for tax haven jurisdictions under British control to publis
  
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• Puerto Rico: urgently needed tarps delayed by failed $30m Fema contract

  28-11-2017 20:25
  Fema paid a newly created Florida company for tarps to help the thousands of people left homeless after Hurricane Maria, but the company couldn’t deliverAfter Hurricane Maria damaged tens of thousands of homes in Puerto Rico, a newly created Florida company with an unproven record won more than $30m in contracts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide emergency tarps and plastic sheeting for repairs. Related: Whitefish energy company halts work to restore Puerto Rico's powe
  
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• Watford v Manchester United: Premier League – live!

  28-11-2017 20:13
  Live updates from the 8pm GMT Premier League kick-offClockwatch: the latest from tonight’s other matches
  Early xmas shopping? The Title: The Story of the First DivisionEmail [email protected] with your musings 7.12pm GMTWatford make one change to the starting XI sent out to defeat Newcastle at the weekend. Sebastian Prodl replaces Miguel Britos; it’s his first start since August.Manchester United rejig the team that beat Brighton to the tune of two. Juan Mata and Marcus Ra
  
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• Bath University vice-chancellor quits after outcry over £468k pay

  28-11-2017 20:13
  Glynis Breakwell announces she will step down, but unions claim she will still be paid full salary after she leaves postThe vice-chancellor of Bath University, whose pay package of £468,000 made her a figure of national controversy, has agreed to step down – but unions claim she will continue to be paid her full salary after she leaves her post.Glynis Breakwell, whose status as the UK’s highest-paid university leader provoked growing discontent among university staff, said in a
  
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• Jailed British mum Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe to undergo health assessment

  28-11-2017 20:10
  A British mother jailed in Iran is due to be assessed to determine whether she is fit to stay in prison, campaigners say.There have been reports that Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who was sentenced to five years in September 2016, has been on the verge of a nervous breakdown.The Free Nazanin Campaign confirmed the Iranian Prosecutors Office ordered Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe to be assessed by the Health Commission.
  
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• It may be cobblers, Keir, but at least it's redacted cobblers | John Crace

  28-11-2017 20:10
  Keir Starmer was left with fall guy Robin Walker to rip to shreds over the government’s lack of transparency over edited Brexit filesShortly before cabinet was due to end, David Davis announced that he had some important business to discuss. Was everyone watching I’m a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! and how did they rate Stanley Johnson’s chances of winning? This prompted some of the most animated and intelligent conversation heard at cabinet this year and it was nearly lunc
  
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• It may be cobblers, Keir, but at least it's redacted cobblers | John Crace

  28-11-2017 20:10
  Keir Starmer ended the session by focusing on procedures for charging David Davis with contempt.Shortly before cabinet was due to end, David Davis announced that he had some important business to discuss.“Damn it,” said the Brexit secretary.
  
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• Who gives a hoot what Taylor Swift thinks about Donald Trump? | Letters

  28-11-2017 20:09
  Readers shake off any suggestion that Swift is like TumpOn a day when you reported that the Treasury had chosen to underfund the NHS in a fit of pique, it seemed odd, to say the least, that you used your editorial pages (25 November) to alert us to the global threat posed by Taylor Swift.In the article, you portrayed Swift as embodying the values of Trump because she: has written songs about her life; is adept in the use of social media; has the temerity not to give her music away for free on Sp
  
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