Prime minister to hold meeting of emergency Cobra committee to discuss security situation in the Middle East, say reports
Angela Rayner, the deputy PM, will be taking PMQs shortly. And she will be up against Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary.
When Kemi Badenoch became Tory leader, she did not appoint a deputy (or even a “de factor deputy”, a post that has existed in Tory politics in recent years) and she said she would decide who would stand in for her at PMQs on a case by case basis. Alex Burghart, the shadow Cabinet Office minister, got the gig the first time Starmer was away.
Chris Philp follows Alex Burghart in rotating for Kemi Badenoch at PMQs. One Westminster wag asks “When is it going to be Robert Jenrick’s turn?”
We have this profound challenge of the number of people joining the armed forces being outweighed by the outflow the people leaving. So ultimately its about retention.
And the number one issue reason cited in last month’s attitude survey for the armed forces for leaving was family life. We know the quality of housing is unfortunately poor. It’s due to the basically to the structural nature of those homes.
To wrap up this topic, the state of housing for the armed forces is in a poor state because your government did not do enough for it?
[The housing] which is not in a good enough state because of your government?
What did I do about it? I did something that hasn’t been done for 30 years – yes, it completed under Labour – and now we would recommend to the government, when they bring forth their housing defence white paper, that we set up a housing association.
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© Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA
© Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA
Higher fatality rates during Operation Rough Rider signals change in US policy and what could come in Iran, says monitoring group Airwars
• Middle East crisis – live updates
The US bombing campaign of Yemen under Donald Trump led to the deaths of almost as many civilians in two months as in the previous 23 years of US attacks on Islamists and militants in the country.
An analysis of Operation Rough Rider by monitoring group Airwars has concluded that 224 civilians had been killed between March and the end of the campaign in May, compared to 258 between 2002 and 2024.
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© Photograph: Yahya Arhab/EPA
© Photograph: Yahya Arhab/EPA
Mamdani’s campaign deserves credit for offering a clear, inspiring, progressive message. But ranked-choice voting is also helping make him competitive
With a week left until New York’s Democratic mayoral primary, one might have thought that the former governor Andrew Cuomo would be measuring the drapes at Gracie Mansion. Real estate developers, corporations like Doordash, a smattering of billionaires and even Billy Joel have shoveled cash into his campaign, with his Super Pac spending more money than any other outside force in the city’s political history. This is on top of his entering the race with major name recognition advantage, amounting to a 20- or 30-point lead as recently as May.
But according to a new poll, Zohran Mamdani – the insurgent state assemblyman and democratic socialist whom the Nation recently co-endorsed along with fellow mayoral candidate and New York City comptroller Brad Lander – has pulled ahead of Cuomo for the first time.
Katrina vanden Heuvel is editorial director and publisher of the Nation, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a contributor to the Washington Post, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times
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© Photograph: Laura Brett/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock
© Photograph: Laura Brett/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock
XV features Marcus Smith, Alex Mitchell and Fin Smith
Tadhg Furlong also has the chance to prove his fitness
Maro Itoje will captain the British & Irish Lions for the first time in their non-cap international against Argentina in Dublin on Friday.
The England skipper Itoje leads a starting XV that features Marcus Smith at full-back and will be directed by England half-backs Alex Mitchell and Fin Smith.
This story will update
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© Photograph: Dan Sheridan/INPHO/Shutterstock
© Photograph: Dan Sheridan/INPHO/Shutterstock
Withdrawal from event follows string of appearances as Catherine seeks right balance after cancer treatment
The Princess of Wales pulled out of attending Royal Ascot on Wednesday as she continued to seek the right balance of public engagements after her treatment for cancer.
Catherine was said to be disappointed at not attending the race meeting with her husband and King Charles and Queen Camilla.
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© Photograph: Chris Jackson/PA
© Photograph: Chris Jackson/PA
Heidi Alexander vows to ‘sort out’ HS2 project which is delayed beyond 2033; UK inflation dips to 3.4%
HS2 delayed beyond 2033 as minister attacks ‘appalling mess’
UK inflation eases to 3.4% amid falling fuel and air fare prices
Inflation pressures remain sticky in the UK, according to Rob Wood, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
Looking ahead, we continue to expect CPI inflation to average 3.4% for the rest of the year as strong wage growth, minimum wage hikes and tax increases pass through to retail prices. We think headline inflation will struggle to dip below 3% before April 2026. By that point, inflation will have been above target almost continuously for five years, risking further deanchoring of inflation expectations and persistent wage pressure.
Granted, US president Trump’s trade war could lead to some diversion of Chinese exports previously bound to the US, which could cut UK inflation. But war in the Middle-East has boosted oil and natural gas prices, adding 10bp to our forecast inflation peak and risks probably lie to the upside. We think the MPC will have to proceed cautiously.
Food and drink inflation shot up in May 2025, reaching 4.4% compared to 3.4% in April. These figures are being driven by rising energy and ingredients costs. Food manufacturing is an energy intensive sector, and wholesale gas prices are 7.8% higher compared to last May, as UK businesses face significantly higher industrial energy costs compared to other nations.
Meanwhile, the price of ingredients has also surged. For example, in the last two years, the price of cocoa has tripled, while wholesale butter prices are also 55% higher than last year. Recent and upcoming regulations are also bringing additional costs to manufacturers.
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© Photograph: Ben Whitley/PA
© Photograph: Ben Whitley/PA
The Guardian’s picture editors select photographs from around the world
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© Composite: Various
© Composite: Various
After Hurricane Helene’s flood waters slammed into Lake Lure’s century-old dam last September, the resort town was spurred on to seek federal funding for an ambitious rebuilding plan. While the initial response from the Federal Emergency Management Agency seemed encouraging when Joe Biden was president, Donald Trump’s plans to shrink or even abolish Fema – and push some of the costs of disaster response on to states – have injected uncertainty into the North Carolina town’s recovery
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© Photograph: Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
© Photograph: Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
This season’s three hot looks: the barn jacket, the leather blouson and the haute anorak
The summer jacket is one of the trickiest bits of your wardrobe to get right, because nobody really wants to wear one. I mean, isn’t summer supposed to be lovely and warm? Isn’t that sort of the whole point of a summer wardrobe? Sandals and shorts exist to celebrate carefree, balmy days. Sunshine is the raison d’etre of a sundress. The very existence of a jacket is a summer buzzkill. But you need one. Sorry, but you do. Seasons are unpredictable, heatwaves break, darkness brings a chill. So you definitely have to put some thought into a summer jacket unless you want your fabulous summer outfits to end up hidden beneath some random hoodie you grabbed off the banister.
Your summer jacket needs to do two things. It needs to keep you warm and dry when the weather turns chilly or wet. And somehow, at the same time, it needs to keep your summer vibe bouncing along, rather than kill the mood. Like I said: tricky.
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© Photograph: David Newby/The Guardian
© Photograph: David Newby/The Guardian
Visitors could be more sensitive, while the authorities should seek sustainable solutions for residents and tourists. But just staying at home is no answer
After coordinated protests across Europe last weekend, it’s easy for the ethically conscious tourist to feel uncertain. Across southern Europe – and particularly in Spain, Italy and Portugal – there are headlines blaming visitors for everything from overcrowding to housing shortages. In gentrifying neighbourhoods, slogans such as “Tourists go home” have appeared on walls and windows, with some angry residents grabbing headlines by squirting water pistols at tourists.
Does that mean a golden age of tourism is over? No. Does the complicated relationship between those who want to visit the world’s most interesting places and those who live in them need a reset? Probably.
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© Photograph: Joan Mateu Parra/AP
© Photograph: Joan Mateu Parra/AP
Ayatollah Khamenei says his country will not surrender, as reports say it is preparing missiles to strike US bases
Iran’s supreme leader rejected US calls for surrender and warned that joining the war would lead to “irreparable damage”, as Israel ramped up rhetoric about regime change and ordered civilians to evacuate a district in Tehran.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also said Israel made a “huge mistake” by launching the war, in his first comments since Friday.
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© Photograph: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/AP
© Photograph: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/AP
Truro coroner concludes Ben Corser unlawfully killed as he sat in car outside supermarket in Colima in 2022
A British traveller and keen skateboarder shot dead alongside two friends in Mexico was “in the wrong place at the wrong time”, his inquest has heard.
Ben Marshall Corser, 36, from St Just in Cornwall, was killed while sitting in the back of a car outside a supermarket in Colima, in western Mexico.
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© Photograph: Family handout/PA
© Photograph: Family handout/PA
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