Union appears to accept end of full Saturday postal service

Letterboxes could fall silent on Saturday mornings, after the postal workers' union appeared to accept a proposal from Royal Mail that would abandon its duty to deliver all letters six days a week.

Sanitary sexism Woman caught short wins battle for ladies' loos in Amsterdam

The need kicked in as Geerte Piening was on her way home from the bar one night in 2015.

Australian government urged to act over violence against women

An urgent cabinet meeting on men's violence against women in Australia will be convened for Wednesday, with the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, saying all governments nationwide - including his own at the federal level-must make changes and focus more on stopping perpetrators.

Spanish opposition accuse Sánchez of melodrama as PM decides on his future

Spanish opposition parties have stepped up their attacks on the socialist prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, as he prepares to announce whether he will resign because of what he describes as a \"harassment and bullying operation\" being waged against him and his wife by his political and media enemies.

Two more journalists arrested in Kremlin's crackdown on dissent

Two Russian journalists have been arrested on \"extremism\" charges and ordered by courts to remain in custody pending investigation and trial on accusations of working for a group founded by the late Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny.

breakthrough in Russian troops seek eastern Ukraine before US aid arrives

Russia has consolidated recent battlefield gains in the east of Ukraine and is attempting to break through defensive lines before a package of US military assistance arrives.

Pope meets prisoners in Venice during rare trip outside Rome

The Pope has met female prisoners in Venice who are the stars of the Vatican's pavilion at the Biennale contemporary art show - urging the convicted women to rebuild their lives, in the first ever papal visit to one of the world's biggest art gatherings.

"The what ifs crush you' Parents suffer from police silence over child's death

The question \"what if?\" plagues Smera Chohan and her husband, Sajjad Butt.

Play it again Artists transform old piano parts into new creations

The task of loading once-loved but now unwanted pianos into a van and carting them off to the recycling centre is a disheartening and melancholy one.

NHS campaign boosts MMR jab uptake in England by 23%

The number of young people receiving their MMR jab is up nearly a quarter from last year, official figures show.

RHS offers dry advice: decant the bath and let rain puddle

Rain gardens and bathwater are becoming gardening trends, the Royal Horticultural Society says, as the UK's gardeners prepare for predicted water shortages caused by climate breakdown.

Blackpool byelection Soup kitchen maverick tests the red wall revival

Mark Butcher, Reform UK's candidate in Blackpool South's byelection, watched as a carriage driver on the town's promenade plunged a fist into the manure-collecting bag behind his horse.

Tory rebels plan for 100-day 'policy blitz' as embattled Sunak faces bruising week

Rishi Sunak is braced for a bruising week as Tory rebels flaunted plans for a 100-day \"policy blitz\" to secure quick wins if the local election results prove disastrous for the party.

Lampedusa Tory scheme will not deter arrivals or save lives, say workers on rescue flotilla

Aid workers on the Italian island of Lampedusa, which is one of Europe's busiest landing points for asylum seekers, have condemned the Rwanda plan as they prepare for another busy summer of bedraggled arrivals and deaths at sea.

US secretary of state visits Saudi Arabia to try to restart talks on Gaza ceasefire

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, will travel to Saudi Arabia to try to restart fraught ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel and discuss efforts to prevent spiralling regional conflict.

Firm uses presenter in advert after it is tricked by AI fake

There was something strange about her voice, they thought. It was not unfamiliar but, after a while, it started to go all over the place.

Diabetes care hit by insulin shortages

People with type 1 diabetes are being forced to endure the \"stress and anxiety\" of insulin shortages, patients, pharmacists and health campaigners have warned.

Fears for economy if water firm collapses

Senior Whitehall officials fear Thames Water's financial collapse could trigger a rise in government borrowing costs not seen since the chaos of the Liz Truss mini-budget, the Guardian can reveal.

Home Office to detain UK asylum seekers in shock Rwanda move

Operations begin today to prepare for deportation flights

Bumpy road Electric car market stalls as sector enters new phase

Elon Musk became the world's richest man by evangelising about electric cars and delivering them by the million. Yet in recent months his company Tesla has struggled to maintain its momentum: sales have dropped, and so has the share price.

Darktrace cybersecurity firm agrees $5.3bn sale to US private equity business

The Cambridge-based cybersecurity and artificial intelligence company Darktrace is likely to become the latest British technology champion to be swallowed up by a US suitor, after it agreed a $5.3bn (£4.2bn) sale to the US private equity business Thoma Bravo.

Gallery on the edge The revolutionary museum born under the shadow of Franco

In July 1966, as the Beatles were preparing to release Revolver and Spain was approaching the 30th anniversary of the coup that birthed the Franco dictatorship, a Spanish-Filipino artist called Fernando Zóbel threw open the doors of an improbable but visionary cultural outpost.

Poland border pushbacks in spotlight again after pregnant woman's ordeal

The case of a woman from Eritrea who was forced to give birth alone in a forested area between Poland and Belarus has raised questions about the Polish government's response to the humanitarian crisis at the border dividing the countries.

'We tried every other tactic' University students on why they joined demonstrations

After going on hunger strike in February, Amine ended up spending six days in hospital. The 25-year-old McGill student, who was born in Morocco, did not eat for a total of 34 days: part of a relay system of hunger strikes that is continuing at the university.

French singer target of racism in Olympics row thanks fans at awards

The French pop star Aya Nakamura, who found herself at the centre of a racist row after rumours she was going to sing at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony, has thanked fans for their support after winning three big prizes at France's Les Flammes awards for rap, R&B and pop.

Waves of exceptionally hot weather scorch south Asia

Millions of people across south and south-east Asia are facing sweltering temperatures, with unusually hot weather forcing schools to close and threatening public health.

Azov brigade The elite unit taking brunt of Russian assault

Fifteen miles east of the garrison town of Lyman, a desperate fight has been taking place for months on Ukraine's eastern front.

Israel Arrest of feminist scholar is 'threat to civil liberties'

The arrest and interrogation of a leading Palestinian legal scholar based at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem marks a new threat to civil liberties in Israel, her legal team and employer have said.

Sderot Barrage of rockets raises doubts over IDF's ability to destroy Hamas

The two men, faces blurred and voices disguised, are screened by a dense scrub of fig and trailing vine in northern Gaza as they film themselves loading a rocket launcher.

Removing mines from the rubble of Gaza could take 14 years, UN official warns

Israel's war in Gaza has created 37m tonnes of debris, much of it laced with unexploded bombs, which could take more than a decade to remove, a top UN mine clearance official said.