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EU accused of seeking to cut funds for poor in post-Brexit cost savings Plan to drop dedicated fund while defence spending rises dismissed as false economyThe European commission has been accused of seeking to cut EU funding for the continent’s poorest people by 50% to secure post-Brexit cost savings and extra funds for defence projects.Jacques Vandenschrik, the president of the European Food Banks Federation, said the EU executive’s proposed spending plans for the next seven years posed a risk not only to the most vulnerable but to the stability of wider society. Continue reading... Go to Source

Call for inquiry into government leak of honours list addresses Publication of recipients’ details described as ‘most serious’ data laws breachPoliticians have called for an inquiry into how more than 1,000 prominent figures who are to receive honours had their home and work addresses posted on a government website.Personal details of those on the new year honours list – including more than a dozen MoD employees and senior counter-terrorism officers – were published in a downloadable list at 10.30pm on Friday. The Cabinet Office said the document was visible on its website for around an hour, though it was circulated on social media after that. Continue reading... Go to Source

Alasdair Gray, influential Scottish writer and artist, dies aged 85 The writer, artist and passionate Scottish nationalist was hailed as a ‘necessary genius’ for novels including Lanark and Poor ThingsThe writer and artist Alasdair Gray, who blazed a trail for contemporary Scottish fiction with his experimental novels, has died aged 85.Gray’s publisher Canongate announced the news on Sunday, saying he died early in the morning after being hospitalised for a short illness in his home city of Glasgow. In a statement, Gray’s family thanked his friends and hospital staff, calling him “an extraordinary person; very talented and, even more importantly, very humane”. Continue reading... Go to Source

Zaghari-Ratcliffe to go on hunger strike for fellow detainee in Iran British-Australian Kylie Moore-Gilbert wants to be removed from solitary confinementNazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is to go on hunger strike in solidarity with another dual national being held in Iran.Kylie Moore-Gilbert, a British-Australian academic, started an open-ended hunger strike six days ago in protest at being sentenced to 10 years on espionage charges. She wants at minimum to be moved from solitary confinement to a general ward. Continue reading... Go to Source

BBC put presenter on a plane to interview Greta Thunberg Sarah Sands, editor of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, admits it ‘felt awkward’Putting a presenter on a flight to Sweden to meet climate activist Greta Thunberg “felt awkward”, the editor of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme has admitted.The 16-year-old campaigner, who was a guest editor on a special edition of the show, avoids air travel because of its environmental impact. Continue reading... Go to Source

Worker could make history in a crucial case for ethical vegans Sacked employee Jordi Casamitjana, who shuns buses and figs, hopes tribunal will be a landmarkWhether “ethical veganism” should be recognised as a protected philosophical belief will be determined at an employment tribunal which starts on Thursday.At a time when hundreds of thousands of people are attempting to observe “veganuary” – going without animal products for the whole of January – the hearing will add to the growing interest in veganism. Continue reading... Go to Source

Prisons chaos fuels massive legal costs as violence surges Shock figures reveal £30m-a-year claims as experts blame cuts and overcrowdingBoris Johnson is under renewed pressure to deal with the prisons crisis after it emerged that the chaotic conditions are behind a £30m-a-year bill for legal claims.Figures obtained by the Observer reveal that the prison and probation service in England and Wales has paid out more than £85m over three years for issues such as attacks on staff and prisoners, lost and damaged property, accidental personal injury and delays to inmates being released. Continue reading... Go to Source

Defeated Labour MPs call for ‘unflinching’ party election review In a letter to the Observer, election candidates pledge to give a frank assessment of what went wrongAccusations of cronyism at the top of the Labour party and a “repeated unwillingness to stand up to the stain of antisemitism” must be confronted if it is to learn from its “catastrophic” election loss, a group of defeated MPs and candidates have warned.The group says that Labour needs to go “way beyond a simple review” of its election performance if it is to understand why it fell to such a heavy defeat, which left it with its lowest number of seats since 1935. In a letter to the Observer, they say the issue of antisemitism was “constantly relayed back to us on the doorstep&rdquo...

Government exposes addresses of new year honours recipients Cabinet Office apologises after details of more than 1,000 people posted online in errorElton John wins highest accolade in new year honours listMore than 1,000 celebrities, government employees and politicians who received honours in the new year list have had their home and work addresses posted on a government website, the Guardian can reveal.The accidental disclosure of the tranche of personal details is likely to be considered a significant security breach, particularly as senior police and Ministry of Defence staff were among those whose addresses were made public. Continue reading... Go to Source

Britain First says 5,000 of its members have joined Tories Far-right defectors ‘support Boris Johnson’s stance on radical Islam’More than 5,000 supporters of a far-right extremist group have joined the Conservative party in recent weeks, attracted by what they describe as Boris Johnson’s negative attitude towards Islam.About two-thirds of the 7,500 signed-up members of the openly anti-Islam Britain First have joined the Tories since the general election, the group says. Continue reading... Go to Source

Confusion grows over Edinburgh’s Hogmanay ‘social curfew’ Police say they cannot enforce event organiser’s plans to limit accessSecurity arrangements for the UK’s biggest new year street party are in disarray after police revealed they are not legally enforceable.The organiser of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, which is expected to attract 70,000 visitors over four days, is at the centre of a row with disgruntled city residents over what they perceive to be unreasonable restrictions. Continue reading... Go to Source

Michael Howard claims judges 'distorted' law in prorogation ruling Former Tory leader calls for legal reform because judges ‘reach results they want’The former Tory leader Michael Howard has criticised the supreme court for ruling that Boris Johnson’s prorogation of parliament was “unlawful” and called for a reform of the judiciary.Judges in England and Wales have long been permitted to interpret law on a case-by-case basis, although they are bound by precedent, but Howard claimed that they sometimes “distort” law to “reach they result they want to achieve”. Continue reading... Go to Source

Truck bomb kills scores in Mogadishu More than 70 dead and dozens injured after morning rush-hour blast in Somali capitalA truck bomb has exploded in central Mogadishu, killing at least 76 people including many university students, and injuring dozens more in the deadliest attack on the Somali capital for more than two years.The bomber struck during the Saturday morning rush hour, the start of Somalia’s working week. The mayor, Omar Mohamud Mohamed, told reporters at the blast site, that most of those killed were civilians, including two Turkish citizens. Continue reading... Go to Source

Rail franchises should be scrapped to end ‘nightmare journeys’ Report argues for overhaul of rail system and devolution of commuter services to citiesRail franchises such as Northern and South Western should be scrapped and cities given control of commuter services, transport campaigners have urged, to bring an end to years of “nightmare rail journeys”.The call comes as the fate of Northern Rail hangs in the balance, after continued disruption led to northern mayors demanding that Arriva, which has operated the network since 2016, be stripped of its contract. Continue reading... Go to Source

Weinstein accusers' lawyers could get 10 times more than clients, sources say Lead attorney for women could receive 25% of payout in settlement which would end most civil lawsuitsLawyers representing alleged victims of Harvey Weinstein could get as much as 10 times more than some of the accusers themselves if a controversial settlement deal goes ahead, legal sources have told the Guardian.Last week it was reported that more than 30 women accusing the disgraced Hollywood mogul of sexual misconduct had reached a tentative settlement deal. If approved in court, the settlement will bring to an end most of the civil lawsuits pending against him. Continue reading... Go to Source