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Follow updates liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFederal shadow treasurer says any handouts in budget could add to inflationThe federal shadow treasurer, Tim Wilson, has warned that potential cash handouts in next week’s federal budget could add to inflation.Unfortunately when the government hasn’t take inflation seriously, we’ve ended up in this situation and the risk is that if you keep handing out money to households, what you’ll actually do is fuel inflation.This is a government that cuts taxes. We’ve cut taxes already and we will cut taxes again, we made that clear and we made that public.The issue is, the budget won’t be pumping a lot of extra stimulus in the economy, in fact overall we’ll be winding back spending in the budget. Continue reading...

US president pauses ‘Project Freedom’ to work on ‘final agreement’ with Tehran; stocks also ride high on AI euphoriaNext has revealed far stronger sales than expected in the UK in the three months to the end of April – up 4.4% instead of the 1.3% predicted – thanks to bumper sales during warm weather in February and March.The company said it now expects full year sales to rise by 5%, including 1% growth in the UK where it anticipates prices will rise by no more than 0.6% as a result of higher costs linked to the Middle East conflict. Continue reading...

US president says he will briefly pause Project Freedom after just one dayTrump puts ‘Project Freedom’ on hold, saying he hopes to finalise deal with IranThe UK work and pensions secretary, Pat McFadden, has warned that job losses “could happen” in Britain due to the economic impacts of the Iran war.He said the UK economy was “going in the right direction” at the start of the year and unemployment figures for February showed a decline. He added that interest rates were expected to come down and the markets were pricing in cuts during the course of the year. Continue reading...

The woman is guilty of manslaughter in the 2022 death of China Record and faces up to 40 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for August 10.

In today’s newsletter: ​The brief US effort to ​s​teer trapped vessels through the ​waterway ​put the fragile ceasefire under strainGood morning. Uncertainty once again reigns in the Middle East. The uneasy ceasefire between the US and Iran threatened to disintegrate after Donald Trump launched an initiative – dubbed “Project Freedom” – to help thousands of sailors stranded in the Gulf by the war to pass through the strait of Hormuz.To Iran, the announcement was a cynical provocation. Flurries of fighting restarted as Iran sought to maintain its grip on the critical passageway out of the region.UK politics | Zack Polanski falsely claimed to be a spokesperson for the British Red Cross while campaigning for the Green party leadership, the charity has said.Fuel shortages| Two million airline seats have been cut from this month’s schedules as airlines redraw their operations because of soaring jet fuel prices amid the Middle East conflict.UK news| A British crew member who became ill after a suspected outbreak of hantavirus on luxury cruise ship the MV Hondius is to be medically evacuated, officials have said.Tax | An increased windfall tax should be imposed on the UK’s largest banks, say trade union leaders, after the big four lenders reported almost £14bn in first-quarter profits, partly fuelled by market turbulence amid the Iran war.Society | People from black backgrounds in England are twice as likely to experience strokes as their white counterparts, while also being less likely to receive timely care, according to the largest study of its kind. Continue reading...

Under new guidelines caning will only be used in schools for male students aged nine and aboveMale school students who bully others, including through cyberbullying, will face caning as a “last resort” under new guidelines introduced in Singapore.Male students can face up to three strokes of the cane under the new rules, which were discussed in parliament on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Tent where twins were born up to a 15-minute walk away from nearest public toilets or running waterFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe tent where a newborn baby was found dead at Wagga beach at the weekend was part of a homeless encampment up to a 15-minute walk away from the nearest public toilets or running water, with residents in a nearby apartment block saying conditions were “worse than a Syrian war camp”.The tragedy has prompted fury in the community, with residents of Wagga Wagga calling on authorities to take urgent action to make the encampments safe and sanitary. Continue reading...

President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was halting the US military operation to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz after just one day, in a bid to reach a deal with Iran to end the Middle East war.