Reform-led Lancashire county council to quit refugee resettlement scheme 06. May 2026 (14:42) Councillor announces plan to withdraw from government-funded programme in run-up to May electionsUK politics live – latest updatesThe Reform-led Lancashire county council will withdraw from the government’s refugee resettlement scheme, one of its cabinet members has said.Councillor Joshua Roberts announced plans for Lancashire to leave the scheme, which would make it the first local authority to do so. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump’s commerce chief Lutnick to face Epstein grilling in closed-door interview – US politics live 06. May 2026 (14:37) Howard Lutnick has acknowledged he visited Epstein’s island with his family in 2012 after earlier claiming he severed ties in 2005Sign up for the Breaking News US emailA reminder that my colleagues are covering the latest developments out of the Middle East at our dedicated live blog. This includes the reaction to Donald Trump’s abrupt decision to halt Project Freedom – the administration’s operation to “guide” stranded ships through the strait of Hormuz as the naval blockade in the waterway continues.On Truth Social, Trump expressed optimism that the Iran war “will be at an end” and the strait of Hormuz “open to all” if Iran agrees to the US’s truce proposal. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Airlines among companies using fuel surcharges to cover surge in costs, UK survey shows 06. May 2026 (14:33) Firms raising prices at fastest rate in three years, driven by soaring energy and wage bills but also extra materials costsBusiness live – latest updatesOil prices fall as Trump hails ‘progress’ on Iran dealAirlines and other companies are increasingly using fuel surcharges to cover soaring costs, a survey has found, in a further sign of Iran war-linked inflation hitting the economy.A poll of companies in the services sector, which includes airlines, found rising fuel prices had contributed to businesses raising prices at the fastest pace in more than three years in April. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US cancels tourist visas for board members of top Costa Rica newspaper 06. May 2026 (14:03) La Nación has been critical of Costa Rica president and Donald Trump ally Rodrigo ChavesThe US state department has cancelled tourist visas for more than half of the board members of Costa Rica’s leading national newspaper, La Nación, which has been a critical voice against the country’s president, Rodrigo Chaves, an ally of Donald Trump.During Chaves’s 2022 presidential campaign, La Nación published several articles documenting allegations of sexual harassment against him that had forced him out of his job at the World Bank. The paper also reported on allegations of illegal campaign financing, which Chaves denied. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Coyote swam 2 miles to Alcatraz Island, going farther than scientists expected 06. May 2026 (14:00) Biologists had guessed coyote paddled a shorter distance to former prison in the San Francisco Bay earlier this yearA lone coyote stunned biologists and others when earlier this year it paddled its way to the remote Alcatraz Island, a former federal prison in the San Francisco Bay surrounded by swift, choppy waters notorious for thwarting prisoners’ escapes.At the time, biologists guessed the coyote swam from San Francisco, which is a little over 1 mile (1.6km) from the fortress. But it turns out the male coyote actually made an even longer swim from nearby Angel Island, 2 miles (3.2km) away. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Alaska’s 2025 mega tsunami highlights risk to cruise lines as glaciers retreat 06. May 2026 (14:00) Researchers say 481-metre wave in fjord was triggered by rockslide linked to climate crisisA mega tsunami in Alaska last year in a fjord visited by cruise ships is a stark warning of the risks of coastal rockslides and glacier retreat fueled by the climate crisis, a new study warns.Scientists recorded the world’s second-tallest tsunami after it struck the Tracy Arm fjord in south-east Alaska last August after a massive rockslide around the toe of a glacier. The tsunami reached 481 metres (1,578ft) in height; by comparison the Eiffel Tower is 330 metres (1082ft). Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Reform and Plaid likely to benefit from polarisation of Welsh politics 06. May 2026 (14:00) Polls suggest Reform could win most seats in Senedd election but party is unlikely to be able to form governmentUK politics live – latest updatesOn a sunny but cold evening in a shopping centre car park on the outskirts of Merthyr Tydfil, Reform UK supporters enjoyed free pizza and loud music as they waited for what the party leader, Nigel Farage, said was his last big speech before Thursday’s Welsh Senedd, Scottish parliament and English local elections.Reform could win the most seats under Wales’s new more proportional voting system but it is unlikely to be able to form a government, as other parties have ruled out going into coalition with it. Yet Farage’s outfit is the first rightwing party with a shot at winning in Wales since the 1850s. The surge in support for a party that got 1% of the vote in the last Senedd election is impossible to ignore. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mississippi house to hold redistricting session at site of Jim Crow era capitol 06. May 2026 (13:00) Lawmakers to convene for special session to redraw state supreme court districts at building with racist historyWhen Mississippi lawmakers met in 1861 and voted to secede from the union in an effort to continue enslaving people, they did so in what is now known as the Old Capitol Museum. From 1839 to 1903, lawmakers met at a building that witnessed some of the state’s most racist history.And now, on 20 May, when members of Mississippi’s house convene for a special session to redraw state supreme court districts, they will do so at the Old Capitol, ostensibly because of renovations in the house chamber. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mexico nightclub’s $300 cover charge for US citizens captures popular mood 06. May 2026 (12:00) Owner of Japan nightclub says ‘This is a response to a year of insults directed at us – as a country – by the United States’A Mexico City nightclub has gone viral for charging Americans a nearly $300 cover charge, while citizens from any other country pay just $20 for access, and Mexicans and other Latin Americans pay only $14.The Instagram announcement from the nightclub Japan in the Roma Norte neighborhood has been liked over 26,000 times and received more than 200 comments, mostly supporting the policy as part of a broader revolt in the capital against what many see as a US takeover. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Zack Polanski says he was wrong to call himself a Red Cross spokesperson 06. May 2026 (11:48) Green party leader also accuses rightwing media of politically motivated attacks as popularity growsUK politics live – latest updatesZack Polanski has said he was wrong to describe himself as a British Red Cross spokesperson, and that intensified media scrutiny of the Green party reflected fears of its rising popularity and support for wealth taxes.Polanski described himself as a British Red Cross spokesperson while campaigning for the party leadership, the Times revealed. The claim was also mentioned on his personal website in 2020 when he said he was “really proud of the work we do”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
