Armed militias deployed in Venezuela as regime attempts to impose authority 06. January 2026 (19:58) Paramilitary groups known as colectivos patrol streets with assault rifles, stop and search cars and people’s phonesUS politics live – latest updatesVenezuela’s rulers have deployed armed militias to patrol streets, operate checkpoints and check people’s phones in a crackdown to consolidate authority after the US attack on Caracas.Paramilitary groups known as colectivos criss-crossed the capital with motorbikes and assault rifles on Tuesday in a show of force to stifle any dissent or perception of a power vacuum. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump says US companies will invest billions in Venezuelan oil production. Experts aren’t so sure 06. January 2026 (19:19) Industry insiders say US oil firms want to ‘avoid getting screwed’ and will proceed with extreme caution in regionAnalysis: Trump’s focus on Venezuelan oil reinforces claim action was never about ‘war on drugs’Industry experts have expressed skepticism over Donald Trump’s bullish prediction that US big oil firms will rapidly invest tens of billions of dollars to fix Venezuelan infrastructure and ramp up production after the rendition of the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro.Without an “iron-clad guarantee” that the US federal government will fully reimburse them for the cost of rebuilding the country’s oil market, analysts expect global energy giants to proceed with extreme caution. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Government lacks emotional link with voters, cabinet ministers warned 06. January 2026 (19:03) Exclusive: Morgan McSweeney says Labour needs emotion, empathy and evidence, sources sayUK politics live – latest updatesThe government must find ways to reconnect emotionally with voters, Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, is said to have warned cabinet ministers, in a meeting where the prime minister said they were in “the fight of our lives”.The prime minister sought to rally his cabinet on Tuesday, telling them to ignore the polls and to prepare to take on Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK faces further disruption as Storm Goretti to bring heavy snow and strong winds 06. January 2026 (19:03) Fresh warnings across parts of England and Wales will follow days of delays and closures from Oxford to OrkneyThe UK is braced for further disruption as heavy snow and strong winds are forecast to hit swathes of England and Wales on Thursday, with the arrival of Storm Goretti.Many parts of the country are already reeling from days of travel chaos and school closures, although Tuesday night was not expected to be as chilly as Monday, when temperatures fell to -12.5C in Norfolk, making it this winter’s coldest night so far. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
South Yorkshire police told wrong family teenager had died in crash 06. January 2026 (19:00) Force refers itself to police watchdog over mistake in identifying two boys, one who survived and one who died, in December collisionThe family of a teenager badly injured in a car crash were told that he had died after a mistake in identifying him and another victim, police have said.South Yorkshire police said it had referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over the mis-identification, which happened after a serious collision on Todwick Road in Rotherham on 13 December. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Pesticide industry ‘immunity shield’ stripped from US appropriations bill 06. January 2026 (18:50) Democrats and ‘make America healthy again’ movement pushed back on the rider in a funding bill led by BayerIn a setback for the pesticide industry, Democrats have succeeded in removing a rider from a congressional appropriations bill that would have helped protect pesticide makers from being sued and could have hindered state efforts to warn about pesticide risks.Chellie Pingree, a Democratic representative from Maine and ranking member of the House appropriations interior, environment, and related agencies subcommittee, said Monday that the controversial measure pushed by the agrochemical giant Bayer and industry allies has been stripped from the 2026 funding bill. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Fujitsu ‘not a parasite’, boss says while refusing to give redress figure for Horizon IT scandal victims 06. January 2026 (18:37) Paul Patterson questioned by MPs as firm continues to make millions from UK government contractsFujitsu’s European boss has told MPs the company is “not a parasite”, after being criticised for continuing to make hundreds of millions of pounds from UK government contracts while refusing to give a compensation figure for victims of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal.Two years ago Paul Patterson said Fujitsu had a “moral obligation” to pay financial redress to the victims of Horizon – admitting it had known the accounting IT system was faulty since the 1990s – with the government estimating the final cost to taxpayers of payouts to be £1.8bn. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Why is Donald Trump renewing calls for takeover of Greenland? 06. January 2026 (18:35) US refuses to rule out military force to take control. This is why an attack on Nato ally would end alliance. And what do Greenlanders think?Soon after Donald Trump’s removal of Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, last weekend, he quickly moved on to the subject of Greenland, renewing calls for a US takeover of the Arctic territory.The US president said on Sunday that he needed Greenland “very badly”, prompting a ramping up of tensions between the US, Greenland and Denmark. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Artists decry dismantling of Belgium’s oldest contemporary art museum 06. January 2026 (18:30) Cost-saving plan to transfer Antwerp museum’s entire collection to another city described as ‘simply insane’Prominent artists have spoken out against an “arbitrary reshaping” of Belgium’s museum landscape, as the Flanders region seeks to cut public spending by dismantling the country’s oldest contemporary art museum and transplanting its entire collection to another city.At a press conference in Antwerp on Tuesday, the directors of the city’s Museum of Contemporary Art (M HKA), which was founded in 1985, decried what they called the “flagrant illegalities” of the museum sector shake-up, which is due to be debated in Belgium’s parliament on Friday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘Stock up’: Ontario premier promises to banish Crown Royal whisky from province 06. January 2026 (18:17) Doug Ford’s move comes after Diageo announced plan to shutter Ontario whisky plant and move operations to USOntario’s premier, Doug Ford, has warned rye drinkers they will need to “stock up” if they want to keep consuming Crown Royal, as he promised to make good on plans to banish the Canadian whisky brand from his province.Ford has since September been locked in a simmering feud over tariffs and economic nationalism with the multinational spirits maker Diageo. This week, he renewed his threats to wield the power of the province’s liquor control board – one of the largest buyers of alcohol in the world – to banish Crown Royal. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
