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Fracking banned in UK as government makes major U-turn Victory for green groups follows damning scientific study and criticism from spending watchdogThe government has banned fracking with immediate effect in a watershed moment for environmentalists and community activists.Ministers also warned shale gas companies it would not support future fracking projects, in a crushing blow to companies that had been hoping to capitalise on one of the new frontiers of growth in the fossil fuel industry. Continue reading... Go to Source

Boris Johnson faces threat of Brexit party battle in every seat PM rejects Nigel Farage’s offer of electoral pact, saying it could allow Jeremy Corbyn into No 10Boris Johnson faces the threat of battling against the Brexit party for leave votes in every seat across Britain, after Nigel Farage gave the prime minister a two-week deadline to drop his Brexit deal.After a rocky 48 hours, which saw Johnson booed during a hospital visit and urged by Donald Trump to join forces with Farage, the Brexit party leader urged him to strike a “leave alliance”. Continue reading... Go to Source

Beto O'Rourke withdraws from Democratic race to face Trump Former El Paso congressman announces primary exitPromises focus on key issues, reportedly will not target SenateBeto O’Rourke has withdrawn from the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.In a Medium post and a series of tweets on Friday afternoon, the former congressman from El Paso said: “Our campaign has always been about seeing clearly, speaking honestly, and acting decisively. Continue reading... Go to Source

Trump-Russia dossier author gave evidence to UK intrusion inquiry Exclusive: Report allegedly being withheld by No 10 contains submissions from ex-head of MI6’s Russia deskA report on Russian interference in British politics allegedly being sat on by Downing Street includes evidence from Christopher Steele, the former head of MI6’s Russia desk whose investigation into Donald Trump’s links with Moscow sparked a US political scandal.Steele made submissions in writing to parliament’s intelligence and security committee (ISC), it is understood. A counter-intelligence specialist, Steele spent his career tracking Russian influence operations around the world and investigated Alexander Litvinenko’s 2006 murder. Continue reading... Go to Source

Trump says he wants to read Ukraine call transcript in TV 'fireside chat' Beleaguered president says: ‘When you read it, it’s a straight call’Nancy Pelosi says impeachment process ‘very sad’ for AmericaDonald Trump has insisted he has “done nothing wrong” and does not deserve to be impeached, and made the extraordinary suggestion that he appear on live TV to read the full transcript of his controversial phone call with the Ukrainian president in a “fireside chat”. Related: Trump impeachment inquiry: a timeline of key events so far Continue reading... Go to Source

Farage to Johnson: join forces or Brexit party will contest every seat Party leader tells PM to drop EU deal and form ‘leave alliance’ at launch of election campaign• Follow all the day’s political news - liveNigel Farage has launched his general election campaign by saying his Brexit party will contest every seat in the country unless Boris Johnson agrees to drop his deal with the EU and sign up to a “leave alliance”.The former Ukip leader also praised Donald Trump for his intervention in which he suggested the prime minister and the Brexit party should form an alliance. Continue reading... Go to Source

MI5 role before London Bridge attack 'of legitimate concern' Chief coroner questions suspension of investigations into ringleader prior to attackThe suspension of priority MI5 investigations into the ringleader of the London Bridge attacks before the atrocity is a matter of “legitimate public concern”, the chief coroner for England and Wales has said.In his Prevention of Future Deaths report, published on Friday, Mark Lucraft QC also suggested that further measures should be introduced to reduce the risk of rental vehicles being used in terrorist attacks. Continue reading... Go to Source

New Zealand swat Wales aside to win Rugby World Cup bronze final • All Blacks surge to win in Steve Hansen’s final game• We are expanding our coverage of New Zealand. Please help us by supporting our independent journalismNew Zealand sent off their head coach Steve Hansen with the bronze medal, which is not likely to be displayed too prominently at the union’s headquarters in Wellington. It extended their winning run against Wales but it had the flavour of a fixture being fulfilled.Wales have become awkward opponents under their departing head coach, Warren Gatland. They were never in a position to win, but at the moments in each half when it looked like the All Blacks would get away from them, they hit back. Defiance, however, lost out to class with Richie Mo’unga’s late try, his...

Argentina could become 'sacrificial country' for plastic waste, say activists Country has changed definition of waste, which campaigners far could lead to imports of low-grade plastic scraps Argentina has changed its definition of waste in a move that could allow it to import millions of tonnes of plastic waste discarded in the US.The country’s president, Mauricio Macri, signed a decree in August reclassifying some materials destined for recycling as commodities instead of waste, allowing looser oversight of mixed and contaminated plastic scraps that are difficult to process, and are often dumped or incinerated. Continue reading... Go to Source

Sharp 80% rise in liver cancer deaths in UK Increase due to several factors including deprivation and rise in obesity says Cancer Research UKDeaths from liver cancer in the UK have shot up in recent years, with a rise of almost 80% in numbers between 2007 to 2017, new figures reveal.Experts say there are several factors behind the rise, including the fact that more people are being diagnosed with the disease, which is notoriously difficult to detect in its early stages, meaning it has a poor prognosis. Continue reading... Go to Source

NSC official corroborates key testimony in Trump impeachment inquiry Tim Morrison seemed to exculpate Trump by suggesting Gordon Sondland was conducting a rogue foreign policy in UkraineHouse endorses impeachment inquiry – live updatesIn a deposition before the congressional impeachment committees Thursday, a national security council (NSC) official corroborated prior testimony describing efforts by the Trump administration to strike a suspicious deal with Ukrainians.But the official, Tim Morrison, seemed to lay groundwork in his testimony for an exculpation of Donald Trump and suggested that Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the EU, was unilaterally conducting a rogue foreign policy in Ukraine. Continue reading... Go to Source