Professor who reportedly paused UK puberty blockers trial removed over bias claims 01. March 2026 (16:02) Regulator says Prof Jacob George will no longer be involved after gender-criticial social media posts from last yearA health official who reportedly intervened to pause a clinical trial on the use of puberty blockers has been removed from any further involvement due to accusations of bias.Prof Jacob George, who was appointed chief medical and scientific officer at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in January, raised concerns that led to the Pathways trial being put on hold by the government, according to the Sunday Times. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Green party membership in UK passes 200,000 after byelection victory 01. March 2026 (15:27) Party leader Zack Polanski says surge in numbers ‘proves that the future of progressive politics belongs to the Greens’The Green party said its membership had passed 200,000 this weekend in the wake of its victory in the Gorton and Denton byelection, in which it overturned a huge Labour majority.The party’s membership has tripled since September last year, when it was about 68,000, after the announcement of Zack Polanski as its leader. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Less lethal’ deaths: courts examine role of controversial police weapons before three Australians died 01. March 2026 (15:00) Exclusive: Police forces argue bean-bag and foam baton rounds are less harmful than firearms, but the projectiles have been linked to deaths around the world Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAt least three people died within four months of one another after being shot with “less lethal” projectiles and stun guns at their homes, sparking a series of inquests and civil cases that could overhaul how police officers use force.Police forces have argued the projectiles – such as bean-bag and foam baton rounds fired from weapons similar to shotguns and other launchers – provide officers with a less harmful alternative to firearms. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Populist crusade and anti-Maga outrage as Texas Democrats do battle in Senate primary 01. March 2026 (15:00) James Talarico and Jasmine Crockett adopt contrasting strategies as party hopes to tap into Trump backlash in reliably red stateAt a packed town hall meeting last month in Laredo for James Talarico, the 36-year-old Democrat vying for a US Senate seat in Texas, Cristina Rodriguez took the microphone. Rodriguez, a 16-year Marine Corps veteran, said she had never cast a ballot. She didn’t identify as either a Democrat nor a Republican, and to her it didn’t matter. Regardless of what party the president belonged to, she had to obey orders.Her attitude changed after the re-election of Donald Trump, whom she viewed as spiteful and divisive. In Talarico, a state representative from the Austin suburb of Round Rock, she found the exact opposite – a former middle school teacher and current seminary student who speaks in measured tones and preaches mutual respect. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK teachers and parents urged to talk to children about Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes 01. March 2026 (15:00) Experts say trusted adults must be brave and discuss issue or risk children looking for answers from unsafe sourcesTeachers and parents in the UK need to be brave and discuss Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes with children and young people or risk them looking for answers from dubious or dangerous sources, according to experts who will host the first public seminar for schools on the issue.Thrive, the education consultancy hosting the online seminar on the convicted child sex offender, said: “Many children and young people are encountering this material often without context, warnings or adult support, leaving educators to manage the emotional and safeguarding impact in real time.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Texas bar shooting leaves three people dead and 14 wounded, police say 01. March 2026 (14:29) Police confronted man with gun at popular beer garden and then ‘returned fire, killing the suspect’Authorities say three people were killed and 14 others were wounded after a shooting at a bar in Austin, Texas.Austin police chief Lisa Davis said at a press conference early Sunday that police received a call for reports of a “male shooting” at Buford’s, a popular beer garden in the city’s entertainment district.Guardian staff contributed reporting Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Keir Starmer abandoned net zero to court Reform voters. He failed 01. March 2026 (14:00) After byelection defeat and with right-leaning advisers gone, will PM return to his instincts and embrace Labour ‘DNA’ on climate?Less than a year ago, Keir Starmer stood in front of an audience of senior officials and business leaders from 60 countries in London to declare climate action was “in the DNA of my government”.Vowing to go “all out” for net zero and to “accelerate” while others were slowing down, the Lancaster House speech was his strongest intervention yet on the issue. “We’re paying the price for our overexposure to the rollercoaster of international fossil fuel markets,” he said. “Homegrown clean energy is the only way to take back control of our energy system.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘We thought it was fireworks’: Dubai’s luxury seekers shaken by Iranian missiles 01. March 2026 (13:38) Authorities seek to reassure visitors after tourists at five-star resorts had to shelter in underground car parksUS-Israel war on Iran – latest updatesThe weekend began as it often does in Dubai. By late morning on Saturday, the beach clubs on Palm Jumeirah were already at capacity. Along the waterfront promenade, running clubs gathered beneath the towers, filming their warmups before setting off in neat formation.On Instagram, the city appeared untouched: blue skies, a flat sea and the steady churn of shoppers inside the Dubai Mall. Across the Gulf, however, the largest regional war since the 2003 invasion of Iraq was intensifying. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK personnel just 200 metres away from Iranian missile strike 01. March 2026 (13:10) British forces in Bahrain and Iraq being drawn into Iran conflict in defence of civilian sites and military assetsUS-Israeli attack on Iran – live updatesThree hundred British personnel were within 200 metres (650ft) of an Iranian missile and drone strike on the US naval base in Bahrain on Saturday, one of several incidents where UK forces have been drawn into the war in the Middle East.No casualties were reported in the incident, one of more than 25 waves of retaliatory attacks in response to the massive US-Israeli joint bombing campaign launched against Iran on Saturday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US moving pregnant immigrant girls to Texas to avoid providing abortions, critics say 01. March 2026 (13:00) Ex-official calls transfer of unaccompanied girls as young as 13, many pregnant due to rape, a human rights violationAll unaccompanied immigrant children who are pregnant, many by rape, are being moved to a single facility in Texas in order to avoid providing abortion services in a significant human rights violation, critics say.As detainees are frequently moved across state lines quickly, often to red states like Texas, pregnant people are facing challenges accessing reproductive health care in detention centers. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
