15 years after Fukushima, Japan prepares to restart the world’s biggest nuclear plant 19. January 2026 (02:46) A return to nuclear power is at the heart of Japan’s energy policy but, in the wake of the 2011 disaster, residents’ fears about tsunamis, earthquakes and evacuation plans remain The activity around the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant is reaching its peak: workers remove earth to expand the width of a main road, while lorries arrive at its heavily guarded entrance. A long perimeter fence is lined with countless coils of razor wire, and in a layby, a police patrol car monitors visitors to the beach – one of the few locations with a clear view of the reactors, framed by a snowy Mount Yoneyama.When all seven of its reactors are working, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa generates 8.2 gigawatts of electricity, enough to power millions of households. Occupying 4.2 sq km of land in Niigata prefecture on the Japan Sea coast, it is the biggest nuclear power plant in the world. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Sydney Harbour shark attack: police warn against swimming and say heavy rain created ‘perfect storm’ before boy bitten 19. January 2026 (02:29) Police praise fast actions and bravery of boy’s friends as he faces ‘fight for his life’ in hospitalFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA 12-year-old boy is in for the “fight of his life” after being attacked by a large shark while swimming in Sydney Harbour on Sunday afternoon.New South Wales police said the boy was jumping off a popular rock ledge near Nielsen park in Sydney’s east about 4.20pm on Sunday with friends when the attack, possibly by a bull shark, took place. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Roger Allers, Disney film-maker and co-director of The Lion King, dies aged 76 19. January 2026 (01:57) With Rob Minkoff, Allers directed 1994’s The Lion King, which remains the highest-grossing traditionally animated film of all timeRoger Allers, the Disney film-maker who co-directed The Lion King and worked on films including Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid, has died aged 76.Allers’ colleague at the Walt Disney Company, Dave Bossert announced his death on social media on Sunday morning, remembering him as “an extraordinarily gifted artist and film-maker, a true pillar of the Disney Animation renaissance”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Portugal presidential election: Socialist party’s Seguro to face far-right leader in runoff 19. January 2026 (01:52) Moderate socialist Antonio Jose Seguro came out on top in the first round, followed by Andre Ventura of the far-right Chega partyModerate socialist Antonio Jose Seguro came out on top in the first round of Portugal’s presidential election on Sunday, followed by the far-right leader Andre Ventura, and the two will face off in a runoff on 8 February.In the five decades since Portugal threw off its fascist dictatorship, a presidential election has only once before required a runoff – in 1986 – highlighting how fragmented the political landscape has become with the rise of the far right and voter disenchantment with mainstream parties. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Women ‘being failed by underfunded and understaffed’ UK postnatal care 19. January 2026 (01:01) Thousands of new mothers feel unsafe, unsupported and overwhelmed, according to the National Childbirth TrustWomen in the UK are being failed by a postnatal care system that is “dangerously underfunded and understaffed”, a damning report has warned.Thousands of new mothers feel unsafe, unsupported and overwhelmed in the weeks and months after giving birth, according to the National Childbirth Trust (NCT). Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Two short but spectacular HS2 tunnels offer glimmer of hope for stalling project 19. January 2026 (01:01) Despite much soul-searching over UK’s inability to build infrastructure, two sections of HS2 under Chilterns are being hailed for their engineeringSeventy metres down, in deep incognito beneath a disguised ventilation shaft in the Chilterns countryside, lies HS2’s buried treasure: two 10-mile tunnels, built to avoid an area of outstanding natural beauty, eerily spectacular in gleaming concrete.They are, laments a staffer on the high-speed railway scheme, what all of the route should look like by now: pristine, fully constructed, and just waiting for a railway to run through them. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Brazen’ political influence of rich laid bare as wealth of billionaires reaches $18.3tn, says Oxfam 19. January 2026 (01:01) Governments opting for oligarchy while brutally repressing protests over austerity and lack of jobs, charity report saysThe world saw a record number of billionaires created last year, with a collective wealth of $18.3tn (£13.7tn), while global efforts stalled in the fight against poverty and hunger.Oxfam’s annual survey of global inequality has revealed that the number of billionaires surpassed 3,000 for the first time during 2025. Since 2020, their collective wealth grew by 81%, or $8.2tn, which the charity claims would be enough to eradicate global poverty 26 times over. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Australian billionaires increased their wealth by almost $600,000 a day on average over last year, report shows 19. January 2026 (01:00) Data collected by Oxfam shows 48 billionaires hold more wealth than bottom 40% of the population – 11 million people – combinedGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralian billionaires increased their wealth by almost $600,000 a day on average over the past year, or more than $10.5bn collectively, new analysis by Oxfam reveals.The anti-poverty organisation, which released the information in a report on Monday, used its findings to call for an end to negative gearing and capital gains discounts, concessions which are now being examined in a federal inquiry. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Pentagon readies 1,500 troops for potential Minnesota deployment, officials say 19. January 2026 (00:53) US army issues prepare-to-deploy orders amid tension over ICE killing, though it is unclear if units will be sentThe Pentagon has ordered about 1,500 active-duty soldiers in Alaska to prepare for a possible deployment to Minnesota, the site of large protests against the government’s deportation drive, two US officials told Reuters on Sunday.The US army placed the units on prepare-to-deploy orders in case violence in the midwestern state escalates, the officials said, though it is not clear whether any of them will be sent. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Justice department ‘not investigating’ Renee Good killing in contrast to 2020 inquiry on George Floyd death 19. January 2026 (00:08) In 2020, Trump DoJ investigated police killing of Floyd in Minneapolis, leading to four officers’ convictionsSix years after the US justice department launched an immediate criminal investigation of the video-recorded killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, deputy attorney general Todd Blanche confirmed on Sunday that the department is “not investigating” the fatal 7 January shooting of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in the same city.The killing of Good, less than a mile from where Floyd was murdered in May 2020, was recorded on at least five phones, including one held by the ICE agent who shot her, Jonathan Ross. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
