Labour wins decisive victory in Greater Manchester mayoral byelection

Bev Craig, the city council leader, succeeds Andy Burnham as mayor, reversing Reform gains in May local elections

Labour has stormed to a decisive victory in the Greater Manchester mayoral byelection, seizing back areas that recently fell to Reform UK and the Greens.

Labour’s Bev Craig, the Manchester city council leader, will now succeed Andy Burnham and hold one of the most powerful political positions outside Westminster.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/jul/31/labour-wins-decisive-victory-in-greater-manchester-mayoral-byelection

F-35B jet crashed near Marine Corps in San Diego, pilot ejected safely – officials

Pilot of stealth fighter jet, who has not been identified, was treated for non-life threatening injuries sustained in crash

An F-35B fighter jet crashed near a US Marine Corps base in San Diego on Friday morning, sparking a small fire that first responders doused.

The pilot, who has not been publicly identified, sustained non-life-threatening injuries, according to a statement from the Marine Corps Miramar air base. Officials say the pilot is in stable condition and received treatment at a local medical facility.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/31/f-35b-jet-crash-san-diego

Burnham to free mayors from ‘Treasury death grip’ with new devolved powers

Local leaders say plan will transform funding so English regions no longer rely on Whitehall handouts for projects

England’s regional mayors will be able to break out of the “death grip of the Treasury” by borrowing to invest in big projects under “transformational” plans to shift power out of Whitehall.

For the first time, mayors will keep a share of income tax generated in their area from 2028, as well as business rates totalling tens of millions of pounds by April 2027.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/jul/30/burnham-mayors-income-tax-business-rates-devolution

New survey reveals fears of US farm workers amid Trump’s immigration raids

Vast majority of farm workers say raids and deportations have affected their jobs and 61% report shopping less

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Farm workers in the US are reeling from the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, including increased raids and deportations, according to a new survey conducted by the United Farm Workers Foundation released on Thursday.

The survey features responses from 2,250 farm workers, many of whom are undocumented, about their experiences with immigration enforcement that has intensified under the second Trump administration.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/30/farm-workers-survey-trump-immigration

Two Tankers Hit in Apparent Drone Strike in Egypt #wanitaxigo

Trident renewal central to defence spending, says Andy Burnham

Prime minister to highlight investment in communities as he launches next phase of nuclear submarine replacement

Andy Burnham will place the renewal of Trident at the heart of his vision of a reindustrialised Britain on Thursday when he travels to Barrow-in-Furness to launch the next phase of the nuclear submarine replacement programme.

The new prime minister intends to emphasise that defence spending on projects such as the £31bn Dreadnought-class boats built in the Cumbrian town is a case study of taxpayer investment revitalising communities around the UK.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/jul/29/trident-renewal-central-defence-reindustrialised-britain-andy-burnham

Meta misses earnings forecasts after Zuckerberg media push to promote AI

Stock tumbles nearly 8% after weaker-than-expected results, despite CEO’s blitz to tout positive effects of AI

Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg’s media spree touting the positive impacts of artificial intelligence did little to cushion the blow of its second-quarter earnings, which sent its stock tumbling on Wednesday.

In a Wall Street Journal op-ed published on Tuesday, Zuckerberg expressed his optimism for a world where everyone has access to a super-intelligent machine.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jul/29/meta-earnings-mark-zuckerberg