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Dylan Tippetts of Plymouth resigns from party ‘that does not support my fundamental rights’UK politics live – latest updatesOne of Labour’s only transgender councillors has resigned from the party, accusing it of “throwing trans people under the bus”.In a post on X on Friday morning, Dylan Tippetts, who has represented Compton ward on Plymouth city council since 2022, wrote: “I cannot continue to represent a party that does not support my fundamental rights. I cannot as a trans person continue to support the Labour party.” Continue reading...

An Australian woman accused of triple murder with a toxic mushroom-laced beef Wellington had rarely invited her four guests to eat at her home before, a court heard Friday.Erin Patterson, 50, is charged with murdering the parents and aunt of her estranged husband in July 2023 by serving them the pastry-and-beef dish with death cap mushrooms.She is also accused of the attempted murder of her husband's uncle, who survived the meal after a long stay in hospital.Patterson has pleaded not guilty to all charges.In a trial that has seized international attention, prosecutors played a recording of a police interview with Patterson's son, then 14, following the lunch. The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said his mother had hosted his paternal grandparents at her house "once before". And she had "never" previously invited over Heather and Ian Wilkinson, his father's aunt and uncle, the boy said.His mother's relationship with the couple was "not a negative one, but it is not strong", the youngster told police.The accused's estranged husband, Simon Patterson, had declined the invitation to lunch at her home in the sedate Victoria state farm village of Leongatha.Four members of his family attended: his parents Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt and uncle. While the guests had lunch, Patterson's children went to a McDonald's and the cinema.Within hours after eating, the four guests developed diarrhoea and vomiting and were taken to hospital, where doctors diagnosed death cap mushroom poisoning.Days later, three of the guests were dead. Ian Wilkinson, a local pastor, lived after weeks of hospital treatment.The teenager told the court that his parents had a "very negative" relationship in the months leading up to the lunch."Dad does a lot of things to try hurt mum such as messing around with the school," he said. - Good cook-On the morning after the lunch, Patterson's son said she was "a little bit quieter" than usual, complaining of "feeling a bit sick and had diarrhoea".The family had missed their local church service because "mum was feeling too sick", he said.The teenager said that afternoon Patterson drove him for an hour to his flying lesson, which was cancelled last minute due to weather. When they returned home, the boy said Patterson raced inside to use the bathroom. That night, Patterson and her children ate the purported leftovers of the beef Wellington. The defendant has said she scraped off the mushrooms because her children were picky eaters."It was probably some of the best meat I've ever had," her teenage son said. "Mum said it was leftovers." Jurors also heard a recording of a police interview with Patterson's daughter, then nine, who said her mum was a good cook."We make cupcakes and muffins," she said.The girl, who also cannot be named for legal reasons, said she did not get sick from eating the claimed leftovers.The prosecution alleges Patterson deliberately poisoned her lunch guests and took care that neither she, nor her children, consumed the deadly mushrooms. Her defence says it was "a terrible accident" and that Patterson ate the same meal as the others but did not fall as sick. The trial is expected to last another five weeks.lec/djw/tym© Agence France-Presse

Pope held mass for cardinals in the Sistine Chapel on Friday morningProfile: the moderate, good humoured first US popePope Leo’s in-tray: the many urgent issues to addressShare your views on Pope Leo XIVChina has sent congratulations to newly elected Pope Leo XIV and hopes the Vatican under the new pontiff will continue dialogue with China “in a constructive spirit”, Reuters reports a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Friday at a regular press conference.Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, strained relations between the Vatican and China in 2020 when he described China’s Muslim Uyghurs as a “persecuted” people, listing them alongside the Rohingya, the Yazidi, and persecuted Christians in Islamic countries. Continue reading...

Oghenochuko Ojiri, who has appeared on BBC show, pleads guilty to eight offences under Terrorism ActAn art dealer who has appeared as an expert on the BBC programme Bargain Hunt has admitted failing to report his dealings with a suspected Hezbollah financier.The court heard that Oghenochuko Ojiri sold artwork to Nazem Ahmad but did not tell the authorities despite knowing Ahmad had been under US sanctions over links to the proscribed organisation. Continue reading...

SEC filing revelations raise questions about big business’s desire to curry favor with Trump and his administrationLarge institutional investors have massively increased their holdings of Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) in recent months according to SEC filings, with many enlarging their positions by hundreds of millions of dollars.The revelations raise further questions about big business’s desire to curry favor with Donald Trump and his administration via the enterprises he has maintained or commenced. TMTG runs the Truth Social social media platform – on which the US president himself posts almost daily – as well as financial services and a film and TV streaming service. Continue reading...

Supplier says deal is its cheapest fixed tariff since 2021 amid ongoing volatility in the gas and electricity marketHouseholds in Great Britain have been grappling with high energy bills for four years but attractive fixed deals that are £300 cheaper than the current price cap are now available.This week, EDF launched its “cheapest fixed tariff since 2021”, describing it as the best energy-only deal available from a “big six” supplier. The 12-month tariff, Simply Fixed Direct May26, is priced at £1,549 for an average dual-fuel customer paying by direct debit. This is £300 below the regulator Ofgem’s latest price cap. Continue reading...

Pope says ‘evil will not prevail’ as he addresses worshippers. Plus, the man who walked the length of the UK with a donkeyGood morning.Robert Francis Prevost, the first US cleric to lead the Roman Catholic church, has said “evil will not prevail” as he addressed a crowd of 100,000 pilgrims and tourists in his first speech as Pope Leo XIV from the central balcony of St Peter’s Basilica.Why choose the name Leo? That Prevost has decided to become Leo XIV will make Catholics think of the previous Leo – Leo XIII – and his 1891 encyclical or teaching document, Rerum Novarum, which outlined workers’ rights to a fair wage, safe working conditions and the rights of workers to belong to trade unions.What does it mean for LGBTQ+ Catholics? After years of sympathetic and inclusive comments from Pope Francis, LGBTQ+ Catholics expressed concern on Thursday about hostile remarks Pope Leo XIV made more than a decade ago in which he condemned “the homosexual lifestyle” and “redefinition of marriage” as “at odds with the gospel”.Who said they wouldn’t back Martin? Thom Tillis, the Republican North Carolina senator, said he would not support his nomination – and Martin also lacked allies at the justice department.Why was he unpopular? He was seen as too aggressive with his threats to prosecute Trump’s political adversaries, including Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader. Republican senators were concerned about the risk of a Democratic appointee to act similarly in the future.Where does Pirro stand? She is a diehard Trump ally whose false claim that the 2020 election was rigged by Dominion Voting Systems was used against Fox in court. Fox settled in the defamation case and acknowledged her statements were false. Continue reading...

Matthew David Hughes found guilty after breaking into rapper’s Detroit home, following 2020 incident in which he allegedly threatened to kill him and 2019 break-inA stalker who broke into Eminem’s home in Michigan for a second time has been convicted of first-degree home invasion and aggravated stalking.Matthew David Hughes was arrested in August 2024 after being seen at the rapper’s home in Clinton Township, a suburb in north-eastern Detroit. He didn’t meet bail conditions and has been jailed since his arrest. Continue reading...