Top World News

Nov 19, 2025 - World

Vladimir Putin authorises the guarding of fuel sites by reservists, internet blackouts and tighter sentencing for acts of sabotageRussia has passed sweeping laws to bolster its defences at home against Ukrainian drone strikes and sabotage operations, reflecting the Kremlin’s expectation of a protracted war with Ukraine.Almost four years into Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine – a full-scale invasion he expected to last only weeks – Moscow is being targeted almost daily by Ukrainian drones striking energy facilities, while Ukrainian operatives have assassinated a number of high-profile Russian military figures deep inside the country. Continue reading...

Nov 19, 2025 - World

Drop in October’s annual rate raises hopes of interest rate cut after Rachel Reeves’s tax and spending statementBusiness live – latest updatesUK inflation fell to 3.6% in October, easing pressure on households and providing a boost for Rachel Reeves as the chancellor prepares for her make-or-break budget next week.The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said annual inflation as measured by the consumer prices index cooled for the first time in five months, declining from a peak of 3.8% over July, August and September. Continue reading...

Nov 19, 2025 - World

In today’s newsletter: Despite the risks, many young people now see choking during intimacy as acceptable or even expected, which experts put down to the proliferation of increasingly violent online pornography Good morning. Yesterday, I was shocked to read that nearly half of sexually active under-18s have either been strangled or strangled someone during sex.“Choking”, as it is known, has become normalised in young people’s sexual habits. A study by the Institute for Addressing Strangulation, part of the Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians, published on Tuesday, found that 43% of under-18s had experienced the practice, despite much evidence of the dangers it can cause.Politics | Nigel Farage is facing fresh claims of racism and antisemitism while he was at school, with a Bafta-winning director among those making accusations against him. The Reform UK leader denies the allegations.Technology | A key piece of the internet’s usually hidden infrastructure suffered a global outage on Tuesday. Cloudflare, whose services include defending millions of websites against malicious attacks, experienced an unidentified problem that meant internet users could not access some websites.Health | The NHS has failed to cut waiting times as promised in its recovery plan despite billions of pounds in investment, the public accounts committee has warned.Home Office | Shabana Mahmood is facing demands for compassion and clarity after it emerged that only a “few hundred” asylum seekers would initially be permitted to come to the UK under three new schemes for refugees.Espionage | MI5 has issued an espionage alert to MPs and peers warning that two people linked to the Chinese intelligence service are actively seeking to recruit parliamentarians through LinkedIn. Continue reading...

Nov 19, 2025 - World

Husic, who oversaw CSIRO cuts as the former science minister, said some in government see scientific agency funding as a ‘cost’ not an ‘investment’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastEd Husic has challenged his own government to “pry open the jaws of Treasury” to boost funding for Australia’s national scientific agency after it announced up to 350 research jobs would be cut to deal with an imminent budgetary cliff.The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) announced on Wednesday it would cut between 300 and 350 research unit roles as part of efforts to narrow its research scope and address an ageing property portfolio in need of urgent modernisation. Continue reading...

Nov 19, 2025 - World

This blog is now closed‘Pry open the jaws of Treasury’ to fund CSIRO amid hundreds of job losses, Labor MP Ed Husic tells own partyGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastHome affairs minister adds conversations ongoing to make sure laws are ‘fit for purpose’ after neo-Nazi rallyBurke added that officials had “significant” powers under current law, but there were ongoing discussions following the neo-Nazi rally.As you’d expect, there are conversations that I’m having with my department to make sure that all the laws that we have are fit for purpose, not only with my department, but obviously the different intelligence and law enforcement and security agencies that are within my portfolio as well.You’re always reviewing because the nature of the attack and the nature of what people want to do to our social cohesion is always changing. Continue reading...