guardian.co.uk: The Guardian newspaper: Comment & debate

The latest from The Guardian Comment & debate

• Martin Rowson: the price of fuel
  The prime minister yesterday gave his strongest signal yet he is going to abandon the 2p-a-litre increase in fuel duty, as oil prices hit another record high


• Simon Jenkins: Let a church so fond of division test its worth in the marketplace of belief
  Simon Jenkins: Anglicanism is often the last servant of the poor; that it can tear itself apart in an absurd imperial argument is a tragedy


• Hugh Muir's diary
  Hugh Muir: One of the first tasks for Richard Barnbrook will be to find himself a personal assistant


• Mark Lawson: We are the alien nation
  Mark Lawson: Recent 'sightings' expose a collective anxiety that has more to do with security fears than ET


• Martin Kettle: This byelection could be the most important ever
  Martin Kettle: It would be not just a disaster for Brown to lose a seat like Glasgow East, but a sign of wider Labour disintegration


• Joanna Moorhead: Give teenagers art lessons, not alcopops
  Joanna Moorhead: 16-year-olds around the country are settling on to sofas for the summer. Who can blame them?


• Naomi Klein: Big Oil's Iraq deals are the greatest stick-up in history
  Naomi Klein: The country's invaders should be paying billions in reparations not using the war as a reason to pillage its richest resource


• Steve Bell: Brown busted
  Shadow chancellor says Labour stealth taxes have 'destroyed trust in the system'


• Noel Clarke: Why I've never been afraid to make my own choices
  Noel Clarke: We teach young people that success is about the right trainers, when they really need to learn how to be individuals


• Seumas Milne: New Zealand is in tune with the times - Britain's lagging
  Seumas Milne: The privatisation tide is turning, from Wellington to Caracas, but public intervention has to be at the cutting edge as well

Education Guardian

The latest Education news from Guardian Unlimited.

• Schools stunned by delay in Sats results
  12.30pm update: Today's embarrassing announcement by ministers of a delay in issuing Sats results for 11- and 14-year-olds has left schools reeling


• Give four-year-olds sex education, say charities
  Two leading sexual health charities are calling for children as young as four to be given compulsory sex education


• Education: Top Jewish school cleared of discriminating against pupil
  Court rules that faith school is within rights to give preference to children born to Orthodox Jewish mothers


• Minister criticises college that refused to admit convicted teenager
  Minister says universities should be open to applicants with spent convictions who have turned their lives around


• Graduates take home £20,000
  Graduates leaving full-time degree courses are earning an average salary of £20,000, and nearly two thirds find full-time jobs within six months of graduating, figures show


• And the greenest university is ... Gloucestershire
  Universities are today ranked on how green they are - and the new universities come out on top


• Funds promised to end skills shortage
  The government addressed Britain's skills shortage today with a promise of £300m to train workers for jobs in construction, hospitality and manufacturing. Jessica Shepherd reports


• Results day in France puts 'bac' under spotlight
  As 600,000 French pupils find out if they have passed the dreaded baccalaur?, some experts argue it has lost academic worth. Gwladys Fouch?eports


• Schools secretary Ed Balls explains plans to strengthen the role of Children's Trusts
  The schools secretary, Ed Balls, explains plans to strengthen and broaden the role of Children's Trusts


• Tim Radford on the astronomer illuminating history with the help of celestial bodies
  Tim Radford on Donald Olson, the astronomer cracking historical secrets with the aid of celestial bodies

Guardian Unlimited Business - top stories

The latest business news from Guardian Unlimited.

• Oil pushes ever higher
  Price of litre of petrol tops £1 for first time in UK as oil surges on a North Sea storm. By Graeme Wearden.


• Dollar hits 26-year low against pound
  The pound climbed to $2.10 for the first time since 1981 today, boosted by speculation that China was preparing to shift its foreign reserves out of dollars. By Graeme Wearden.


• US gloom weighs on FTSE
  Market report: London shares resumed their downward trek today, knocked by volatile oil prices, a tumbling dollar, jitters around banks and more anxieties on Wall Street. By Katie Allen.


• Virgin Media hails growth 'turnaround'
  Virgin Media signals that era of upheaval marked by public rows with BSkyB is behind it as the cable TV company posts strongest customer growth in more than a year. By Katie Allen and Chris Tryhorn.


• National Starch takeover to cost thousands of jobs
  Henkel, the maker of Schwarzkopf hair products, plans to cut thousands of jobs when it completes its £2.7bn acquisition of ICI's National Starch adhesives business early next year. By David Gow.


• FirstGroup thanks oil price for rise in bus revenue
  British bus and rail operator says soaring oil price forcing motorists out of their cars and on to public transport. By Dan Milmo.


• Next sales 'highly volatile'
  Outlook at fashion chain Next 'uncertain' in run-up to Christmas, company warns. By Julia Finch.


• Virgin Media upbeat after growth in customers
  Cable group Virgin Media added 13,000 new customers in the third quarter of the year. By Chris Tryhorn.


• Bank governor tones down criticism of Darling over crisis at Northern Rock
  · King: 'No disagreement with chancellor' · Authorities knew savers had insufficient protection


• Jazz label joins the DRM-free revolution
  Record label Universal Music Classics & Jazz is making its entire catalogue available online without copy protection as part of an experiment to gauge fans' demand for MP3 tracks. By Katie Allen.

Guardian Unlimited Film News

The latest film news from Guardian Unlimited.

• Friends movie to follow Sex and the City into cinemas
  Success of SATC makes return likely for Manhattan pals


• Cohen to play Sherlock Holmes
  Borat creator's comedic take on the great detective's adventures will vie for supremacy with Guy Ritchie's 'all action' version


• Greenaway's hi-tech gadgetry highlights da Vinci for the laptop generation
  Da Vinci's The Last Supper bursts into new life after Greenaway secures permission to reinvent masterpiece as sound and light show


• Mamma Mia! gets the mother of all premieres
  The adaptation of the hit Abba musical had its world premiere in London's Leicester Square last night


• Strike looms as deadline expires
  Hollywood actors still at work this morning despite deadline to renew contract with studios having expired


• Pixar's Wall-E takes top spot at US box office
  Animated tale from Disney-backed studio manages decent $62.5m opening


• Meadows' latest wows Edinburgh
  Shane Meadows' Somers Town took the gong for best new British feature film at the Edinburgh film festival last night


• Pay row threatens to turn out the lights in Hollywood - again
  New dispute looms over already precarious industry


• Clash of the Titans set for remake
  A new version of the 1981 fantasy classic is one of two similar projects locked in a race to the screen


• Sony to launch movie downloads on Playstation and TV
  US owners will be able to download films and television episodes via the console within weeks

guardian.co.uk World news

Articles published by guardian.co.uk World news

• Former Tamil Tigers commander leaves UK after war crimes inquiry dropped
  Colonel Karuna Amman, who was jailed for entering Britain on a fraudulent passport and investigated for alleged war crimes, returns to Sri Lanka


• Obituary: Charles Wheeler
  For more than four decades Charles Wheeler, who has died aged 85, reported for BBC radio and television from most of the world's trouble spots. By Harold Jackson


• Mugabe defiant on return to Zimbabwe
  President Robert Mugabe was greeted by cheering crowds today as he returned to Zimbabwe after defending his controversial re-election to African leaders


• Veteran BBC foreign correspondent Charles Wheeler, 85, dies
  Sir Charles Wheeler, one of the BBC's longest standing foreign correspondents and the father-in-law of London mayor Boris Johnson, has died at the age of 85. By Leigh Holmwood


• The row over Macedonia's name rumbles on
  Helena Smith: But Greeks are hoping that a boost for the balkan nationalists in Macedonia could unexpectedly pave the way for compromise


• Australia's quality of life at risk without action on climate change
  Australia's chief climate change adviser has said that climate change could cut the country's GDP by 4.8%


• Ingrid Betancourt flies back to France
  Farc hostage freed by Colombian military will be feted in Paris by the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy


• 'Pregnant man' transsexual American Thomas Beatie has given birth to a baby girl
  Transsexual American Thomas Beatie has given birth to a baby girl, conceived using donor sperm


• Judith Maltby: Should we let feelings come into the debate over female bishops?
  Judith Maltby: When 'pain' enters into arguments about the future of Anglicanism, we're faced with an impossible conundrum


• Xan Brooks on the complete version of silent film classic, Metropolis
  The Guardian film critic, Xan Brooks, on how the newly found, complete version of the classic film, Metropolis by Fritz Lang, makes sense of the plot

guardian.co.uk Politics

Articles published by guardian.co.uk Politics

• David Hencke: The expenses vote is an own-goal for parliament
  David Hencke: MPs may have voted against vital reforms to their expenses regime because of the small print. They will live to regret it


• Is liberty in peril?
  Listen to the audio from Thursday's Observer/Comment is free debate with David Davis, Henry Porter, Denis MacShane and David Aaronovitch


• London mayor Boris Johnson: Last stop for the bendy bus
  London's mayor unveils competition to design next generation of bus-spotter's favourite - the Routemaster


• MPs' expenses debate: Who said what
  Highlights from the debate on MPs' expenses


• Labour set to announce Glasgow candidate
  Labour will tonight name the candidate faced with the task of defending the party's 13,507 majority in the Glasgow East byelection


• Human rights body condemns counter-terrorism bill
  Human Rights Watch says proposals for 42-day detention without charge are "unnecessary, disproportionate and counter-productive"


• MPs' expenses: how they voted
  Full list of MPs voting for and against reform of their expenses


• Sleaze watchdog expected to launch inquiry into MPs' expenses
  An inquiry into the way MPs claim expenses is expected to be launched by the Whitehall standards watchdog, it emerged today


• The questions Boris Johnson's deputy was asked
  These are the questions that the Guardian emailed to the mayor of London's office on Wednesday evening, prompting yesterday's press conference with Boris Johnson and Ray Lewis and the independent inquiry into the claims, followed by the answers


• English badgers earn a reprieve, as government rejects mass cull
  Farmers have reacted angrily to reports suggesting that a cull of English badgers, to help combat the ferocious spread of TB in cattle, has been ruled out

guardian.co.uk Science

Articles published by guardian.co.uk Science

• Travellers to Africa risk deadly form of malaria
  Rising numbers of migrants travelling between UK and Africa mistakenly believe they are immune to the disease


• Study suggests regular heart check-ups could reduce number of athletes who die from sudden heart failure
  Study suggests regular heart check-ups could reduce number of athletes who die from sudden heart failure


• Mark Lawson: We are the alien nation
  Mark Lawson: Recent 'sightings' expose a collective anxiety that has more to do with security fears than ET


• Biodiversity: Some species could be wiped out 100 times faster than feared, say researchers
  Ecologists say methods previously used to predict extinctions did not take into account gender proportion of species


• Cannabis dangers: Skunk smokers more at risk of psychosis than hash users
  The potency of cannabis has increased over the past 10 years, with more concentrated forms now on sale


• Climate change: Time for deeds not words to reach emissions target, PwC study warns
  If politicians don't act now global carbon emissions from energy use will double by 2050, report warns


• Tahmima Anam on climate change and 'perineal re-education'
  Tahmima Anam: Climate change is happening. We, and the generations before us, have caused it. It should not matter whether we believe it or not


• Environment: Climate risk from flat-screen TVs
  Flat-screen televisions could have a greater impact on global warming than the largest coal-fired power stations, a leading environmental scientist has warned. By Ian Sample


• Ian Sample explains a new test that shows a woman's chance of becoming pregnant with IVF
  Ian Sample explains a new test to check on the viability of embryos used in IVF


• Heritage: Race to save mystery wreck from shipworm
  Ship that sank almost 400 years ago added to the new comprehensive register of heritage at risk

guardian.co.uk Sport

Articles published by guardian.co.uk Sport

• Copa Libertadores: Fluminense in mourning after Maracana party turns to tears
  Most Brazilians expected Fluminense win the Copa Libertadores final, which is why their penalty defeat to LDU came as a brutal shock


• Motor sport: Coulthard waves a teasing farewell
  Lewis Hamilton would do well to shun the petty distractions that have littered his season and focus on the title battle, says Gemma Briggs


• Wolves striker fined for handbag attack
  Wolves striker Sylvan Ebanks-Blake has been fined £1,350 for attacking a nightclub doorman with his girlfriend's handbag


• Timeline of trouble in Zimbabwean cricket
  A look at how the relationship between English and Zimbabwean cricket has become increasingly fraught


• Rugby union: Paul Rees previews the Tri-Nations
  We will know better whether South Africa deserve their world No1 ranking after they take on the All Blacks tomorrow, says Paul Rees


• Football: Kewell agent denies Galatasaray deal
  Despite reports linking Harry Kewell to Galatasaray his agent says a deal is yet to be done


• Football: US investors InterMedia Partners discussed Newcastle takeover
  Representatives of Mike Ashley have met counterparts from New York equity fund InterMedia partners about a potential sale


• The Joy of Six: Rob Smyth on football's hard men
  From Dave Mackay to Claudio Gentile, Rob Smyth selects half a dozen of football's toughest characters


• Formula one: Silverstone loses the grand prix to Donington
  From 2010, Donington Park rather than Silverstone will host the British grand prix


• Small Talk: Sir Steve Redgrave
  Britain's greatest Olympic athlete on who is the greatest TV detective, who'd play him in the movies, and strange requests from fans

guardian.co.uk UK news

Articles published by guardian.co.uk UK news

• Former Tamil Tigers commander leaves UK after war crimes inquiry dropped
  Colonel Karuna Amman, who was jailed for entering Britain on a fraudulent passport and investigated for alleged war crimes, returns to Sri Lanka


• David Hencke: The expenses vote is an own-goal for parliament
  David Hencke: MPs may have voted against vital reforms to their expenses regime because of the small print. They will live to regret it


• London mayor Boris Johnson: Last stop for the bendy bus
  London's mayor unveils competition to design next generation of bus-spotter's favourite - the Routemaster


• Obituary: Charles Wheeler
  For more than four decades Charles Wheeler, who has died aged 85, reported for BBC radio and television from most of the world's trouble spots. By Harold Jackson


• Madeleine Bunting: Lord Phillips is talking sense on sharia law
  Madeleine Bunting: The lord chief justice's comments were, like Rowan Williams', eminently sensible. But how to take the public with him?


• Three charged with Ben Kinsella stabbing are remanded
  Teenagers accused face Ben's parents and sister at magistrates hearing


• Video: Reel Review: The Visitor
  Tom McCarthy's drama is a warm-hearted plea for tolerance. Yet it's also a little predictable and condescending, says Xan Brooks


• Top Gear's James May and Richard Hammond 'turned down' BBC offer
  Top Gear stars James May and Richard Hammond have not yet signed new contracts, despite their agreements expiring at the end of the month ? leading to fears they may leave the show. By Mark Sweney and Tara Conlan


• Veteran BBC foreign correspondent Charles Wheeler, 85, dies
  Sir Charles Wheeler, one of the BBC's longest standing foreign correspondents and the father-in-law of London mayor Boris Johnson, has died at the age of 85. By Leigh Holmwood


• London knife crime: Stabbed teenager Shakilus Townsend dies
  Shakilus Townsend, 16, becomes 18th teenage victim of the capital's street crime epidemic this year