business

The business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, has “formally corrected the record” in parliament for referring to himself as a former solicitor during a 2014 speech. During a debate on high-speed rail, Reynolds had said he “worked as a solicitor in Manchester city centre” before changing careers. On Wednesday evening, he told the House of Commons: “I … Read more

Donald Trump has been condemned by a leading US Muslim civil rights group for seeking to use the word “Palestinian” as an insult when he attacked the Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer, as “not Jewish any more”. “President Trump’s use of the term ‘Palestinian’ as a racial slur is offensive and beneath the dignity of … Read more

Noel Clarke is trying to create “moral equivalence” between his alleged sexual misconduct and the behaviour of his accusers, the high court has heard. Giving evidence in his libel claim against the Guardian, the 49-year-old actorclaimed that some of his accusers voluntarily engaged in or initiated sexually loaded banter, were promiscuous and bragged about their … Read more

Federal prosecutors have sent a criminal subpoena to a Manhattan hotel housing undocumented immigrants through a New York City program providing shelter to asylum seekers, according to a copy of the filing obtained by the Guardian. The subpoena issued on Wednesday asks the hotel to provide “a list of full names of aliens currently residing” … Read more

The founder of an animal rescue charity who discovered 70 starving pythons and dozens of dead snakes on a couple’s property near Durham has called for better laws to protect reptiles reared as pets. Daniel Holmes, of Knaresborough Exotic Rescue, said the condition of the snakes – some of whom he thinks had not been … Read more

The US government is relying on a rarely used provision of the law to try to deport a prominent Palestinian activist who recently completed his graduate studies at Columbia University, where he was a leader in last year’s campus protests. A government charging document addressed to Mahmoud Khalil, a permanent US resident and green card … Read more

DiCaprio speaks up for Western Australia forest Leonardo DiCaprio has drawn the world’s attention to the government’s decision to allow the mining company South32 to clear native forest in WA’s jarrah forests for bauxite mining. The actor claimed the operation at Boddington could threaten the critically endangered woylie (or brush-tailed bettong) and that the government … Read more

Canada announced retaliatory tariffs on nearly $30bn worth of American imports after US tariffs on steel and aluminum imports went into effect on Wednesday. The Canadian government said it will be following a “dollar-by-dollar” approach and institute 25% tariffs on American imports, including steel, computers and sports equipment. Donald Trump first announced the tariff on … Read more

Well, that went well, didn’t it? Weeks of finding ever more ingenious ways to flatter the US president. Extolling the brilliance of Donald Trump being able to tie his own shoelaces. “That’s incredible, Mr President. No one has ever managed to do that so beautifully.” No chance for flattery has been passed up. It is … Read more

Israel’s defence minister has reaffirmed the country’s intention to occupy a swath of Syrian territory beyond Israel’s contested northern borders for an “unlimited amount of time” during a visit to the strategic Mount Hermon. “The IDF is prepared to stay in Syria for an unlimited amount of time. We will hold the security area in … Read more