Starmer has little choice but to bind himself closer to his chancellor 01. December 2025 (19:35) Ditching Rachel Reeves would put spotlight back on real context for decision to drop idea of breaching manifestoWhen Keir Starmer was mounting the case for the prosecution against Boris Johnson for his Partygate antics, it took almost two months and a police investigation for him to formally call for the prime minister to resign. He was of the view there was no point calling for things until they were likely to happen.This is not the philosophy of the current leader of the opposition. Since October, Kemi Badenoch has called on Starmer to sack his chancellor three times, once over a mishap with her rental licence, then for considering raising income tax, and finally because she did not in fact raise income tax. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Zillow deletes climate risk data from listings after complaints it harms sales 01. December 2025 (19:27) Site removes feature after real estate agents and some homeowners say scores appear arbitrary and hurt salesZillow, the US’s largest real estate listing site, has removed a feature that allowed people to view a property’s exposure to the climate crisis, following complaints from the industry and some homeowners that it was hurting sales.In September last year, the online real estate marketplace introduced a tool showing the individual risk of wildfire, flood, extreme heat, wind and poor air quality for one million properties it lists, explaining that “climate risks are now a critical factor in home-buying decisions” for many Americans. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
NHS to pay 25% more for innovative drugs after UK–US zero-tariff deal 01. December 2025 (19:26) Agreement could cost NHS £3bn more in drugs over next three years, industry sources estimateThe NHS is to pay 25% more for innovative drugs in return for zero tariffs on exports of pharmaceuticals to the US under a deal with Donald Trump’s government.Industry sources estimate it could cost about £3bn in higher spending on drugs over the next three years but also increase the portion of the NHS budget spent on medicines for diseases such as breast cancer, asthma and motor neurone disease, where innovation is key. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mexican authorities kill one of country’s top fentanyl traffickers 01. December 2025 (19:21) Pedro Inzunza Coronel, alias ‘El Pichón’, was killed during an anti-drug operation by the Mexican navy in SinaloaMexican authorities have killed one of the country’s top fentanyl traffickers, accused of importing tens of thousands of kilos of the drug into the US and wanted by the US authorities on narco-terrorism charges.Pedro Inzunza Coronel, alias “El Pichón”, (The Pigeon) was killed on Sunday during an anti-drug operation by the Mexican navy in the north-western state of Sinaloa. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump’s pardon of Honduras’s ex-president shows counter-drug effort is ‘based on lies and hypocrisy’ 01. December 2025 (19:03) Why has Trump blown up alleged narco boats in the Caribbean and at the same time decided to let a big time trafficker off the hook?Deadly airstrikes and a military buildup: how the US pressure campaign against Venezuela has unfolded in the CaribbeanHe was a Latin American president accused of colluding with some of the region’s most ruthless narco bosses to flood the United States with cocaine.“[Let’s] stuff the drugs right up the noses of the gringos,” the double-dealing politician once allegedly bragged as he lined his pockets with millions of dollars in bribes and turned his country into what many called a narco-state. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Hundreds flee central Haiti after gangs launch large-scale attacks and burn homes 01. December 2025 (18:46) An official confirmed nearly a dozen deaths, including a mother and her child, in Artibonite region over the weekendHeavily armed gangs attacked Haiti’s central region over the weekend, killing men, women and children as they set fire to homes and forced survivors to flee into the darkness.Police made emergency calls for backup, asserting that 50% of the Artibonite region had fallen under gang control after the large-scale attacks targeting towns including Bercy and Pont-Sondé. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
FBI under Kash Patel has become ‘internally paralyzed by fear’, new report reveals 01. December 2025 (17:40) Leaked assessment based on confidential accounts from 24 FBI sources describes organization as a ‘rudderless ship’US politics live – latest updatesThe FBI director, Kash Patel, is “in over his head” and leading a “chronically under-performing” agency paralyzed by fear and plummeting morale, according to a scathing 115-page report compiled by a national alliance of retired and active-duty FBI special agents and analysts.The leaked assessment, obtained by the New York Post and prepared for both congressional Senate and House judiciary committees, is based on confidential accounts from 24 FBI sources. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Israeli settlers attack and rob Italian and Canadian volunteers in West Bank 01. December 2025 (17:40) Group beaten in early hours of morning in village where they volunteered to help protect Palestinians from settler violenceItaly and Canada have raised concerns about the treatment of their citizens who were beaten and robbed by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.Three Italians and a Canadian were attacked early on Sunday morning in the village of Ein al-Duyuk, near Jericho, where they had volunteered to help protect the Palestinian population from intensifying settler violence. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
OBR chair quits after inquiry into early release of Reeves’s budget 01. December 2025 (17:34) Richard Hughes departs after investigation into how official forecaster accidentally published budget 40 minutes earlyRichard Hughes, the chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility, has quit after the findings of an urgent inquiry by the watchdog into how it inadvertently published Rachel Reeves’s budget 40 minutes early.Hughes wrote to the chancellor and to Meg Hillier, the chair of the Treasury select committee, last week to apologise after the OBR uploaded its documents setting out the details of the budget before Reeves began to speak on Wednesday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Zipcar, world’s biggest car-sharing company, to close UK operation 01. December 2025 (17:26) Move by firm, owned by US group Avis Budget, will remove access to shared fleet across London at end of yearThe world’s biggest car-sharing company, Zipcar, has said it will close its UK operation, removing access to its shared fleet across London at the end of this year.The company, owned by the US car rental group Avis Budget, said it will suspend new bookings after 31 December, pending the outcome of a consultation on possible redundancies. The UK operating company had 71 staff last year, according to its latest accounts. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
