Latest stories

How viable are plans to free up prison space in England and Wales?

The PM is proposing three ways of increasing jail capacity – but none offer a quick or straightforward solution

NewsdeskAug 11, 20263 min read

Martin Freeman, Lucy Davis, Ricky Gervais, MacKenzie Crook in The Office

The Office actor Lucy Davis says she has incurable stage four breast cancer

Star, 53, says disease has metastasised to her bones and it is too late for chemotherapy

NewsdeskAug 11, 20262 min read

Politics

Will Andy Burnham’s everyday fixes be enough to get the public on his side?

The prime minister’s money-saving policies are popular but they are yet to convince voters he can take on the big things

NewsdeskAug 11, 20264 min read

What effect will Donald Trump’s childhood vaccine recommendations have in the US and beyond?

Is there any science behind the recommendations? Will they result in lower vaccination rates? And will they cause a resurgence of preventable diseases?

NewsdeskAug 11, 20264 min read

Politics

To all the betting shops littering our high streets: people power is coming and the odds are against you

Too many shops are blighting too many communities. With the rule change I fought for now on the horizon, ordinary people can fight back, says Labour MP Dawn Butler

NewsdeskAug 11, 20264 min read

Cambridge United's director of football speaking at a fans' forum

Business

Watch: Cambridge United say housing costs deter players

At a fans' forum, the director of football reveals high property costs are a "big challenge".

NewsdeskAug 11, 20261 min read

Andy Burnham on a visit to The Hub cafe in Ilkeston, Derbyshire, today.

Probation officers vote for strike action after warning early releases will add to excessive workloads - as it happened

Union chief says vote is about staff ‘warning they cannot protect the public properly’

NewsdeskAug 11, 202623 min read

We’re reading less. And it’s making us stupid

Books have never been trendier, but studies show that as more and more things compete for our frazzled attention spans, we’re reading less and less. This is a problem because reading has a wealth of cognitive benefits that we’re in danger of missing out on.To find out why declining literacy could affect everything from memory to IQ, Madeleine Finlay speaks to the Guardian’s science editor, Ian Sample. She also hears from Prof Falk Huettig, an experimental psychologist at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics and author of The Perks of Being a Bookworm

NewsdeskAug 11, 20261 min read

Politics

Trump put a wrecking-ball through the East Wing – and through democratic norms

Our children should be able to visit our nation’s capital without having to think about Donald Trump and about how much he did to deface it

NewsdeskAug 11, 20264 min read

Watch: Why was Trump smuggled out of Air Force One in a catering truck?

US media reports say the president secretly left via a catering truck to avoid a threat to his life from Iran.

NewsdeskAug 11, 20261 min read

Robert Gilman in a prison in Russia in April 2026

Russia releases former US Marine reported in poor health

Robert Gilman, who was arrested in 2022, was left in "life-threatening condition" after being subjected to "harsh and abusive treatment", his family says.

NewsdeskAug 11, 20262 min read

Protesters hold cardboard figures with ropes round their necks during a rally against the death penalty in Beirut, Lebanon. File photo from October 2013.

Lebanon parliament votes to abolish death penalty

The new law - which next goes to the cabinet for approval - would make Lebanon the first country in the Middle East to end capital punishment.

NewsdeskAug 11, 20262 min read

Prof Wyn Evans outside the Institute of Astronomy, which is a stone building with a dome and classical-style pillars and portico at its entrance. He appears to be in his 60s with short grey hair. He wears a blue and white shirt with small checks under a dark blue jacket.

Culture

University of Cambridge whistleblower who reported alleged bullying wins employment tribunal

Prof Wyn Evans, who raised concerns over treatment of female staff at Institute of Astronomy, was subject to ‘baseless’ investigation, judge rules

NewsdeskAug 11, 20263 min read

Human rights groups sue Trump administration over ‘crippling’ ICC sanctions

Lawsuit challenges executive order targeting international criminal court for investigating Israeli crimes in Palestine

NewsdeskAug 11, 20264 min read

Webinar on MOSA Interoperability Standards for Space Systems – August 26, 2026

Webinar on MOSA Interoperability Standards for Space Systems - August 26, 2026

NewsdeskAug 11, 20263 min read

TechnoMile’s Five-Year Sustained Growth Recognized with Place on the 2026 Inc. 5000 List

NewsdeskAug 11, 20263 min read

SpaceX increasing footprint in missile defense

SpaceX increasing footprint in missile defense SpaceX increasing footprint in missile defense

NewsdeskAug 11, 20263 min read

Woman with angry expression holds phone up to her ear looking frustrated. She has brown hair and wears a grey knit top.

Business

France bans unsolicited telemarketing calls

Cold calling is coming to an end in France, with one consumer group calling the ban a "small revolution".

NewsdeskAug 11, 20262 min read

Mourners pray for the 12-year-old who died after being shot at the school outside Bangkok

Thailand suspends new gun permits after Nonthaburi school shooting

Authorities promise tough new laws in the country, which has high levels of firearms ownership.

NewsdeskAug 11, 20261 min read

Canadian airline cancels flight after child refuses to wear seatbelt

Flight from Victoria to Toronto forced to return to terminal after repeated attempts to secure child in seat failed

NewsdeskAug 11, 20261 min read

Aerial view terrace houses and gardens, Tufnell Park

Business

Axe stamp duty? How Andy Burnham could change property tax

The new PM could bring in revenue for social care or defence with a land levy or by reforming council tax

NewsdeskAug 11, 20266 min read

Smoke rising from vessel that appears to be moored

Houthis reportedly kill six in first deadly attack since start of Iran war

Iran's proxy says it hit a ship with Saudi military equipment in the Red Sea, as tensions over the US-Iran war remain high.

NewsdeskAug 11, 20262 min read

Amanda Knox. A 39-year-old woman with long brown hair and wearing a blue jumper smiles at the camera. She is in front of a plain purple background.

Culture

Amanda Knox comedy show 'sincere' but 'just not very funny'

The Edinburgh Fringe show received a mixed response, with many reviewers saying typical stand-up fare.

NewsdeskAug 11, 20262 min read