Exclusive: Footage reveals Kent leader berating councillors amid rows over budgets and bullying claims Bitter divisions in Reform UK’s flagship county council have been laid bare in a leaked video of a chaotic internal meeting where members were told to “fucking suck it up” if they did not agree with decisions. Councillors can be seen complaining about “backbiting” and being ignored by their leader, Linden Kemkaran, who tells them they will be “screwed” and that Reform can forget about winning the general election if they don’t balance Kent’s budget. Continue reading...

The government’s new planning bill is tearing down environmental protections to benefit developers. This nation of nature lovers won’t stand for it, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot

Review of screenplay, novel, and comics suggests film-makers made late decision to make diminutive Jedi master green “You must unlearn what you have learned,” Jedi master Yoda instructed his stubborn apprentice, Luke Skywalker. And now Star Wars fans may have to do the same after confirmation that the beloved fictional alien was very nearly blue, or even purple. Reviews of archival sources – and new testimony from a special effects makeup artist who worked on the first Yoda puppets – suggest film-makers made a decision late in the development process to switch the character’s skin colour to green. Continue reading...

Labour has lost its nerve. At our party conference this weekend, we’re gathering to set things right, says Green party leader Zack Polanski

The Isle of Wight's red squirrel population is adapting and growing, study finds

Analysis reveals ‘privatisation premium’ of £250 per household per year paid to owners of water, rail, bus, energy and mail services since 2010 * ‘Birmingham is up the road but there are no buses’ The public has paid almost £200bn to the shareholders who own key British industries since they were privatised, research reveals. The transfer of tens of billions of pounds to the owners of the privatised water, rail, bus, energy and mail services comes as families face soaring bills, polluted rivers and seas, and expensive and unreliable trains and buses. Continue reading...

YouTube video by Channel 4 News

Defra says blanket ban on ‘destructive’ fishing practice disproportionate as MPs urge minister to reconsider

YouTube video by Edwin Starr - Topic

The logic of the war on terror means infinitely expandable government power.

Exclusive: Open letter says politicians are exploiting violence against women ‘to fuel hate and division’ Prominent women including cultural figures, politicians and campaigners have signed a letter criticising rightwing attempts to link sexual violence in Britain to asylum seekers. Signatories include the musicians Paloma Faith, Charlotte Church and Anoushka Shankar as well as Labour, Green and independent MPs including Kim Johnson, Ellie Chowns, Diane Abbott and Zarah Sultana. Continue reading...

Redcar and Cleveland tops rankings for most allotment land per person, while there is a dearth of supply in Scotland * ‘I joined every waiting list’: the search for an allotment in Glasgow The north-east of England is Great Britain’s allotment heartland, with Redcar and Cleveland and County Durham the two councils with the highest rate of allotment provision per person, an analysis has found. It also revealed that Scotland on average has just a quarter of the space per person that is available in England. Continue reading...

New research out of the western U.S. suggests dams and ponds built by beavers can slow floods, store water and even create green firebreaks in wildfire-prone landscapes.

A group of school children urged councillors in London to take action to stop ‘carspreading’.

Alleged footage was shared on social media and amplified by figures including Elon Musk and Tommy Robinson

A tournament in Cornwall will pit anglers against these magnificent creatures, as part of a rising trend for so-called ‘sportfishing’, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot