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Exclusive: Findings will bolster those in No 10 who want to negotiate on re-entry but some senior figures remain wary

Andy Burnham’s personal preference to rejoin the European Union after the next election is supported by almost half of all voters, a new megapoll has found, although cabinet ministers concerned about reopening Brexit divides are privately urging him to proceed with caution.

The poll by the Messina Group (TMG) found that renegotiating the UK’s relationship with the EU could boost Labour’s vote share by as much as seven points, if the prime minister offered a fresh referendum in which he campaigned to re-enter the bloc.

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Climate crisis blamed as virus that originated in Africa spreads to livestock as far north as Aberdeenshire

British farmers are experiencing the worst bluetongue season on record, with the number of cases surpassing the past three years combined.

The viral disease, which affects sheep and cattle among other animals, can cause fevers, ulcers, a swollen head and lameness. The tongue may go blue and even protrude from the mouth. In the most severe cases, the animal can die.

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Shahar, 29, a graphic designer and music label manager, meets Stephen, 34, a product designer

What were you hoping for?
I’d never been on a blind date, so a good story, and a new connection.

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Tom Cruise transforms in Alejandro Iñárritu’s heavyweight satirical comedy, while the NYC indie rockers are in the UK for an arena tour

Digger
Out now
Tom Cruise is back, but he’s giving flyboys and secret agents a rest in favour of a transformation into a powerful oil tycoon, in director Alejandro G Iñárritu’s 2027 Oscar bid. But here’s the kicker: it’s not a sober, serious Oscar contender, but a wild and comedic big swing. Dig in.

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Rather than ridding the Conservatives of their ‘nasty party’ status, Badenoch has a plan – to cut benefits for young people and demonise the unemployed

Kemi Badenoch is considering doing her job. With her second Conservative party conference as leader looming on Sunday, and her rival Nigel Farage finally losing some ground, the provocateur with a reputation for dodging media rounds and being ill-prepared for briefs has seemingly cured her camera shyness.

In recent days, Badenoch has touted a policy to give the unemployed a “subsistence allowance” that would prevent them from buying booze or cigarettes, sought to bar benefits from young people who are straight out of school, accused Andy Burnham of wanting to take Britain “back to the 1970s” with public control of utilities, and enjoyed some mixed polling.

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On the day Andy Burnham spoke of the wrong turn Britain took under Thatcher, football was facing a day of reckoning over its own story of corporate acquisition

It was somehow fitting that Tuesday’s damning ruling against Manchester City landed in the heart of the Labour party conference, in the afterglow of Andy Burnham’s rapturously received prime minister’s speech.

I was there, and read the astonishing 40 pages of findings – that City created “sham” contracts to boost income artificially by £900m – on my phone during a long meeting of the Socialist Campaign Group, where people were celebrating Keir Starmer’s ousting and Burnham’s more leftwing direction.

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Former England winger could face a prison term next month and his career collapse raises many questions

In another world, where careers broke in different directions, Raheem Sterling would be in this England squad now, playing for the manager, Thomas Tuchel, who made him the No 1 target of the new Chelsea era after the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital takeover.

He is 16 months younger than Harry Kane, who continues to break records as England’s captain and hit a personal high of 73 goals last season. Sterling, meanwhile, is without a club and awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty at Basingstoke magistrates court to dangerous driving and possession of nitrous oxide after an incident that witnesses feared might kill someone.

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Fazl Mosque was used as an air raid shelter in the war – but that is not its only link to a pivotal moment in world history

Exactly 100 years ago the Guardian wrote about the opening of London’s first mosque, an impressive white building surrounded by immaculate flower gardens in the heart of south London suburbia.

A report described the mosque, in its incongruous surroundings, as “a thing of beauty”. The journalists who attended the opening ceremony witnessed the mosque’s large black doors being opened with a silver key. About 600 eminent guests attended the grand opening.

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By over-committing to the bit, I’m in danger of becoming the very thing that I mock

There was a kid in my year in high school named Jimmy Tremarelli. We were in a couple of the same classes, and also had occasion to pass each other in the hall between bells about three times a day. Whenever we did Jimmy would nod and say, “Dr Dowling”, and I would say, “Dr Tremarelli”. And then we’d carry on in opposite directions.

Over the years the pretence became gradually more elaborate. Sometimes Jim would steal up alongside me at the end of class, cupping my elbow in the palm of his hand.

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When the new ‘department of government efficiency’ sent young techies to disrupt federal agencies, not everyone complied. Here’s what happened when one worker fought to protect immigrant data

In the early hours of Saturday 22 February 2025 the following email landed in the inboxes of the entire US federal workforce:

From: HR hr@opm.gov

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Claudia Winkleman joins a castle full of celebs as the duplicitous favourite returns, while Molly Manners’ extremely funny boarding school comedy tackles desire and adulthood. Here’s the pick of the week’s culture, taken from the Guardian’s best-rated reviews

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A worthy, meat-free version of the best comfort dish ever, this French classic is best served with a chilled red and a crisp salad

This is the best comfort dish on planet Earth. Cauliflower cheese held that title when I was a child, but I still remember the first time I ate this gratin, made by Simon Hopkinson at his restaurant Hilaire in London, and wanting to take it away and eat it in a quiet corner. Endive when braised well retains a gentle bitterness that contrasts beautifully with a cheese-heavy bechamel. This dish is traditionally made with comté and with each endive wrapped in a slice of cooked ham, but some dark, crisp-fried mushrooms and emmental serve very well as good, savoury vegetarian alternatives.

Henry Harris is chef/co-owner of Bouchon Racine, London EC1. His book, The Racine Effect, is published by Quadrille at £40. To order a copy for £36, go to guardianbookshop.com

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A caiman wearing a wig, two brown bears laughing and a leopard doing a handstand feature in the selection of finalists from this year’s Nikon Comedy Wildlife awards. Winners will be announced on 8 December

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America’s fight over data centers is going global. Communities across Europe and Asia are pushing back over the rising costs of the AI infrastructure boom.

On Nov. 7, 2024, two weeks after the incident at Chi Phi, Jane Doe submitted to a sexual assault examination and evidence collection process, according to the police records. (Heather Ainsworth for NBC News)

Cornell University police spoke to witnesses and received anonymous tips about an alleged gang rape at a fraternity house in the first weeks of its investigation two years ago, but the local prosecutor did not review the additional information before deciding not to bring charges.

Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said he based his decision not to pursue charges on the accuser’s initial six-page statement given to police.

Investigators from the campus police department documented those witness interviews and other steps taken to determine whether Jane Doe, a 20-year-old woman who reported the incident, was the victim of sexual assault during a party at the Chi Phi house from Oct. 19 to 20, 2024, according police records obtained by NBC News.

Documents reviewed by NBC News offer the most thorough look to date at how police handled the allegations from Jane Doe, who last month filed a lawsuit against Cornell University and seven Chi Phi brothers who she alleges sexually assaulted her over the course of hours while she was under the influence of ketamine, alcohol and marijuana.

Van Houten, along with police and university officials, has come under intense fire for their handling of the matter. Jane Doe’s attorney has argued that she was failed by authorities who did not conduct a thorough investigation and who prejudged the events based on her earlier statement that she consented to parts of the night.

Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday announced the appointment of Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor to consider whether charges are appropriate.

“In what world does the district attorney not even interview her or anyone else involved, or even request the full transcript” of the victim’s interview, Hochul asked Friday at a news conference announcing James’s appointment.

On Nov. 25, 2024, a police investigator approached Van Houten’s office to tell them about interviews they’d done.

An investigator in Van Houten’s office, according to the documents, replied that “he and several [attorneys] at the District Attorney’s Office had read [Jane Doe’s] statement … [and] stated that they all agreed that, based on [Jane Doe’s] statement, criminal charges would not be pursued in this case.”

Cornell University on Friday. Jane Doe was only notified by Cornell police about the district attorney’s determination not to pursue charges nearly two months later, on Jan. 21, 2025. (Heather Ainsworth for NBC News)

Van Houten defended his decision Monday and said that Jane Doe’s statement did not allege criminality. He also agreed to reopen his inquiry before that role was assigned to the attorney general.

When reached for comment by email Friday, Van Houten argued “there was nothing to review” in that discussion with police because the interviews flagged “were each of the frat members declining to speak on the advice of their attorney.”

Van Houten did not respond to a follow-up request asking whether he was told about interviews with other fraternity members in addition to tips from callers.

The records also show that police received a portion of a larger Snapchat thread where one member of the group announced there was “free p----” in the alumni room of the house, where Jane Doe engaged in what she said was initially a consensual threesome.

“Similarly there was no material obtained by CUPD from Snapchat (what was provided came from a witness),” Van Houten added. “So again nothing to review.”

It was unclear whether Van Houten was aware that on Nov. 26, 2024, police made a request to Snapchat for a more complete data history.

That request was answered on Dec. 23, when police said they obtained 1,665 pieces of data from five Snapchat accounts.

“After reviewing all of the data returned from Snapchat, there appeared to be only 3 snapchats that included [Jane Doe] or mentioned this incident,” a CUPD investigator wrote. “None of these 3 snapchats show anything that can be construed as being criminal in nature. No further action taken.”

Jane Doe was only notified by Cornell police about the district attorney’s Nov. 25 determination not to pursue charges nearly two months later on, Jan. 21, 2025.

Van Houten added that his office had “no part in the timing” of conveying his decision to Jane Doe, who was never interviewed by his office.

Thomas Giuffra, the attorney representing Jane Doe, learned about that delay from NBC News’ request for comment Friday. He said that his client — during that two-month window — believed “they were still investigating.”

“I was unaware that they had made the decision to not prosecute in November,” Giuffra said. “If so, that is worse than I thought.”

On Nov. 7, 2024, two weeks after the incident at Chi Phi, Jane Doe submitted to a sexual assault examination and evidence collection process, according to the police records. She had gone to the university health center shortly after the alleged assault to get treatment for a urinary tract infection, but was not offered a rape kit at the time, Giuffra said. He called it “the first failure post assault when she was trying to get help.” Cornell did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The attorney called it “a code or cry for help to say something bad happened” when Jane Doe told them that she “has a UTI of a traumatic origin.” Giuffra said the medical staff should have asked her: “What kind of trauma do you think caused this UTI?”

He noted that had the health center referred Jane Doe to an outside facility for an examination, there might have been recoverable DNA because she was there within 48 hours.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. The hotline, run by the Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network (RAINN), can put you in contact with your local rape crisis center. You can also access RAINN’s online chat service at rainn.org/get-help.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com

This article originally appeared on NBC News at https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/da-not-review-additional-evidence-cornell-police-collected-alleged-gan-rcna601252

Vernon Adams Jr. threw for 242 yards and four touchdowns as the Calgary Stampeders won their third straight game to continue their hot pursuit of a CFL playoff berth with a 37-31 victory over the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday.

Reports are building that Israel rejected a Hamas offer to release all civilian hostages taken on October 7, 2023.