UK inflation in surprise hold at 2.8% as slowing food prices offset transport costs 17. June 2026 (08:00) Flatlining figure confounds forecasts of an increase to 3% as Bank of England prepares to set interest ratesUK inflation unexpectedly remained at 2.8% last month as higher transport and fuel costs were offset by slower food price rises, official figures have shown.May’s annual price rise reading recorded by the Office for National Statistics came despite the feared impact of the Middle East conflict on energy prices and confounded economists’ forecasts of a rise to 3%. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Tax break tart’: hospitality tipped to exploit summer VAT cut on children’s meals 17. June 2026 (08:00) As bosses ridicule the chancellor’s scheme, one venue is offering a £25 ‘kids’ menu of snails and anchovy butter toastRestaurants and pubs are expected to devise “enterprising” schemes to exploit a tax break on meals for under-18s, after one venue launched a menu for “kids” featuring wild burgundy snail salad and anchovy butter toast.Rachel Reeves last month announced a temporary cut in VAT on children’s meals from 20% to 5% between 25 June and 1 September, part of a “Great British summer savings scheme” to support struggling venues and ease pressure on families. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Woman says she ‘didn’t understand mental health’ before daughter experiencing acute psychosis killed another child 17. June 2026 (07:17) Girl told mother she thought about killing people ‘all the time’, inquest into 10-year-old Biddy Porter’s death hearsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe mother of a child killer did not understand mental health and consulted a naturopathic herbalist about concerns for her teenage daughter, an inquest has been told.Two weeks after the 14-year-old confessed to her mother that she thought about killing people “all the time”, the girl killed 10-year-old Biddy Porter at a property in rural New South Wales. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
BBC presenter Ashley Cain called women ‘slags’, ‘sluts’ and ‘bitches’ 17. June 2026 (07:00) Exclusive: Cain has been lauded by corporation for his appeal to young men despite history of abusive and misogynistic remarks• Warning: this article contains sexually explicit, offensive languageA BBC presenter lauded by the corporation for his appeal to young male audiences has a history of making abusive and misogynistic remarks about women, whom he has variously called “slags”, “sluts”, “psychos” and “bitches”, the Guardian can reveal.Ashley Cain is the presenter of the BBC Three documentary series Ashley Cain: Into the Danger Zone, which was filmed on location earlier this year after the BBC commissioned a second series. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
A nation shaped by rain: exhibition celebrates Scotland’s wettest obsession 17. June 2026 (07:00) Minnie the Minx and Macbeth feature in National Library’s exploration of how rainfall has shaped Scottish science, literature, history and identityIt seems fitting that, 250 years ago, one of Scotland’s foremost scientists took a close interest in what is arguably the country’s most famous feature: rainJames Hutton, celebrated by Scots as the father of modern geology, went so far as to write a formula for “a theory of rain”. In 1784, he sketched out the key principles for the “condensation of aqueous vapour contained in the air”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Sierra Leone’s first lady refuses to condemn FGM without ‘reliable data’ on harms 17. June 2026 (07:00) Exclusive: health professionals, survivors and politicians voice concerns in open letter over comments by Fatima Maadi Bio, who denies supporting the practiceThe first lady of Sierra Leone has denied that she supports female genital mutilation amid rising anger around her perceived approval of the practice.But in an exclusive response to the Guardian, Fatima Maada Bio, the wife of President Julius Maada Bio, also said she would not openly condemn FGM until she saw “reliable data” that the practice was harmful. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Fashion tycoon Bernard Arnault accused of stranglehold over French business press 17. June 2026 (07:00) Arnault’s addition of leading weekly to stable of publications raises concerns about media ownership in FranceHe is known as the “wolf in cashmere” – the owner of the world’s biggest luxury group whose brands including Louis Vuitton, Dior and Tiffany have made him one of the world’s richest people.But Bernard Arnault, a close friend of Donald Trump, is under fire from journalists’ unions in France for buying up almost all the country’s business and economic press. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ghana to advance reparatory justice at first major gathering since landmark UN resolution 17. June 2026 (07:00) Heads of state and participants from more than 80 countries at three-day event in Accra to pursue actionable commitments to reconciliation and restitutionGhana is hosting a conference to advance the continent’s push for reparatory justice after the adoption of the landmark United Nations (UN) resolution declaring the trafficking of enslaved Africans as the gravest crime against humanity.Heads of state and government, ministers, civil society representatives, historians, researchers and legal experts representing more than 80 countries are converging in the capital, Accra, for the three-day event, billed Next Steps, which starts on Wednesday. It is the first major gathering on the issue since the resolution was adopted. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Lib Dems to urge Labour to drop ‘torpor and timidity’ on EU and rejoin single market 17. June 2026 (07:00) Exclusive: Ed Davey to make call ahead of 10th anniversary of Brexit vote, in strengthening of party’s position on EUThe Lib Dems will urge Andy Burnham to end Labour’s “torpor and timidity” towards the EU as they call for the UK to rejoin the single market, in a notable strengthening of their own position.Ahead of the 10th anniversary of the Brexit vote next week, Ed Davey will challenge Burnham to scrap Labour’s red lines on the customs union and single market if he becomes prime minister and immediately begin talks on a more ambitious deal with the EU. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Lives and incomes lost as Ebola takes toll on Bunia’s public-facing workers 17. June 2026 (06:00) A headteacher, a motorcycle taxi driver and a travel agent are among those who are counting the human and economic cost of the virusJustin Keno watches more than 400 pupils stream through the Nelson Mandela school’s gate each morning, and wonders which of them might be carrying Ebola.The institution’s principal has done everything he can to prevent the spread of the virus: installing hand-washing basins at the entrance, providing alcohol-based hand rub for parents, making pupils bring packed lunches instead of eating in the canteen, and banning food sellers from outside the gates. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
