Noel Clarke’s wife has said his accusers are liars who have deliberately fabricated sexual misconduct claims about him. Giving evidence in the actor’s libel case against the Guardian, Iris Clarke said her husband was generous and caring, and that people he had worked with and helped had taken advantage of him. Noel Clarke, 49, who … Read more
The former shadow chancellor Ed Balls has criticised plans for cuts to disability benefits, saying on his podcast that it was “not going to work”. George Osborne, the architect of welfare cuts during the coalition years, also told the same podcast that he had resisted freezing personal independence payments (Pip) – a move currently under … Read more
A US journalist has taken the Indian government to court after his Indian overseas citizenship was unilaterally cancelled, after the publication of a story critical of a prominent Indian businessman. Raphael Satter, who covers cybersecurity for the Reuters news agency in the US, received a letter from India’s ministry of home affairs in early December … Read more
Scotland’s first minister hosted a “warm” meeting with Donald Trump’s son Eric in Edinburgh on Thursday, days after the US president’s golf course at Turnberry was targeted by protesters. John Swinney met Eric Trump at his official residence, a listed Georgian townhouse in Edinburgh’s New Town, for what both sides described as a routine business … Read more
Several people have been arrested and homes searched as part of an investigation into alleged bribery and corruption at the European parliament relating to the Chinese technology giant Huawei, Belgian prosecutors have said. The investigating judge in charge of the case has asked for seals to be fixed to the offices of two European parliament … Read more
The father of Sara Sharif will not serve a whole-life order for the murder of the 10-year-old after the court of appeal rejected a bid to increase his 40-year sentence. Urfan Sharif, 43, was convicted alongside his wife Beinash Batool, 30, of murdering Sara at the family home in Woking, Surrey, in August 2023. In … Read more
Israel’s systemic attacks on women’s healthcare in Gaza amount to “genocidal acts”, and Israeli security forces have used sexual violence as a weapon of war to “dominate and destroy the Palestinian people”, a UN report states. The 49-page report on sexual and gender-based violence was drawn up by the UN’s independent international commission of inquiry … Read more
For the first time in almost 50 years, Versace will no longer be designed by a Versace. Three decades after she started working for the company – and 27 years after she stepped into the role of creative director after the murder of her brother, Gianni – the designer Donatella Versace has announced she is … Read more
A teenager has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering a 15-year-old girl after a row over a teddy bear in south London. Hassan Sentamu was 17 when he killed Elianne Andam by stabbing her in the neck outside the Whitgift Centre in Croydon, south London, in September 2023. At his Old Bailey trial, … Read more
Peter Kyle, the science and technology secretary, has asked ChatGPT for advice on a range of work-related issues, including why British businesses are not adopting artificial intelligence and what podcasts he should appear on. Information provided to the New Scientist magazine in response to a freedom of information request showed that Kyle, an advocate for … Read more