Blood test could predict who is most at risk from common inherited heart condition 25. December 2025 (14:00) Exclusive: Scientists find a way to forecast hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which affects millions worldwideScientists are developing a simple blood test to predict who is most at risk from the world’s most common inherited heart condition.Millions of people worldwide have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a disease of the heart muscle where the wall of the heart becomes thickened. It is caused by a change in one or more genes and mostly passed on through families. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Into the void: how Trump killed international law 25. December 2025 (14:00) The rules-based global order, its institutions and value system face a crisis of legitimacy and credibility as the US turns away‘The old world is dying,” Antonio Gramsci once wrote. “And the new world struggles to be born.” In such interregnums, the Italian Marxist philosopher suggested, “every act, even the smallest, may acquire decisive weight”.In 2025, western leaders appeared convinced they – and we – were living through one such transitional period, as the world of international relations established after the second world war crashed to a halt. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice join royal family for Christmas Day service 25. December 2025 (13:26) Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s daughters seen at Sandringham church as more details about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein emergePrincesses Eugenie and Beatrice attended church with the royal family on Christmas morning, in a year where their father, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was stripped of his royal titles.Mountbatten-Windsor’s two daughters could be seen walking behind King Charles III and Queen Camilla on their way to church on the private Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
‘It’s the wildest place I have walked’: new national park will join up Chile’s 2,800km wildlife corridor 25. December 2025 (13:00) Government poised to officially protect 200,000 hectares of remote Patagonian coastline and forest Chile’s government is poised to create the country’s 47th national park, protecting nearly 200,000 hectares (500,000 acres) of pristine wilderness and completing a wildlife corridor stretching 1,700 miles (2,800km) to the southernmost tip of the Americas.The Cape Froward national park is a wild expanse of wind-torn coastline and forested valleys that harbours unrivalled biodiversity and has played host to millennia of human history. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Concerns about ageing society ignore huge opportunities, says population expert 25. December 2025 (13:00) Sarah Harper says society must create new ways of living and working amid potential ‘silver economy’ Concerns over an ageing population are overblown and society should learn to celebrate and capitalise on its “massive cohort of healthy, active, older, creative adults”, a leading population expert has said.While pundits and pressure groups have raised concerns over falling fertility rates, highlighting the challenges for the economy and healthcare, others are more upbeat, arguing the rise of the “silver economy” brings new opportunities for growth. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Met Office warns of cold, windy weather but white Christmas ‘highly unlikely’ 25. December 2025 (12:47) No snow confirmed by 8am on Thursday but yellow weather warning for wind issued for south-west England and much of WalesWarnings for cold and windy weather have been issued for parts of the UK but a white Christmas was “highly unlikely”, according to the Met Office.The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued a yellow cold health alert from 6pm on Thursday to noon on 27 December for south-west England. The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for wind affecting a similar area and much of Wales, which lasts until 11.59pm on Christmas Day. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Immigration debate ‘dividing us’, incoming archbishop of Canterbury warns in Christmas sermon 25. December 2025 (12:30) Sarah Mullally says ‘national conversations … continue to divide us, when our common humanity should unite us’The incoming archbishop of Canterbury has warned in her Christmas Day sermon that “our national conversations about immigration continue to divide us, when our common humanity should unite us”.Acting in her current role as the bishop of London, Dame Sarah Mullally told St Paul’s Cathedral: “Joy is born exactly where despair expects to triumph. As joy breaks through in our lives it gives us the opportunity to become people who make room. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US labor unions gear up to fight against Trump’s ‘Billionaire First’ agenda 25. December 2025 (12:00) AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler says union ready to stand up for struggling Americans: ‘Which side are you on?’Donald Trump has staged a year of “unrelenting attacks on working people,” according to the head of the largest federation of the labor unions in the US. Now they’re preparing to fight back.Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO, said it was gearing up to challenge the US president’s “Billionaire First” agenda in 2026 – and drive candidates in key elections to stand up for “struggling” Americans. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Grassroots group’s bank account frozen due to ‘Palestine Action investigation’ 25. December 2025 (11:00) Greater Manchester Friends of Palestine, which has no affiliation to direct action group, informed by deputy mayorA grassroots pro-Palestinian organisation in the UK has been told its bank account was frozen because of “an investigation into Palestine Action”, despite it having no affiliation to the direct action group.Greater Manchester Friends of Palestine (GMFP), which organises peaceful protests and vigils, had access to its funds cut off indefinitely by Virgin Money after Palestine Action was banned under the Terrorism Act and the account remains blocked. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK electric car charger rollout slows amid worries over EV switch 25. December 2025 (11:00) Smallest number of new chargers since 2022 as carmakers persuade government to weaken EV sales targetsThe UK’s rollout of electric car chargers slackened markedly in 2025 amid investor concerns over a slower-than-expected switch to cleaner battery vehicles.There were 87,200 chargers installed in the UK at the end of November, an increase of 13,500 compared with the end of 2024, according to data from Zapmap, which tracks charger installations. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
