Deputy PM also says people ‘will have a better life’ within five years in interview with the Guardian

• Angela Rayner: ‘I get criticised for going on holiday. Am I not allowed to do that?’

Keir Starmer’s popularity ratings will bounce back, the deputy prime minister has insisted, saying the government would deliver material improvements to people’s lives over the next five years.

Angela Rayner said the prime minister had been underestimated before but predicted he would become more popular as the impact of the changes Labour was introducing began to be felt.

Sexual abuse survivors say working for late former Harrods owner involved ‘deceit, lies and humiliation’

A survivor of Mohamed Al Fayed’s sexual abuse has given a harrowing account of her suffering at his hands. Speaking at a press conference in London, the woman – named as Natacha – told reporters she “walked into a lion’s den” when she accepted a job with the former owner of Harrods department store in London.

She said working for him had involved a “layer of cover-ups, deceit, lies, manipulation, humiliation and gross sexual misconduct”.

IDF airstrike on Beirut that killed at least 14 causes fears of escalation into even more devastating conflict

Further violence between Israel and Iran’s allies Hezbollah and Hamas could ignite a devastating regional conflict, the United Nations has warned, after an Israeli airstrike in Beirut killed at least 14 people including a senior Hezbollah leader and wounded 66.

The strike killed Ibrahim Aqil, a figure on the group’s top military council who was wanted by the US for his alleged connection with the 1983 bombing of the US embassy in Beirut.

Performer was first black actor to land leading role at National Theatre and to be cast in regular role on UK soap opera

The “trailblazing” actor Cleo Sylvestre has died aged 79, her agent has confirmed.

Sylvestre, also known as Cleopatra Palmer, had been a feature of film, stage, television and music since the 1960s, and played Melanie Harper, Meg Richardson’s adopted daughter, in ITV’s Crossroads – making her the first black actor to have a regular leading role in a UK soap opera. She was also the first black actor to land a leading role at the National Theatre.

Which? study of 42 popular items such as pasta and milk revealed price difference even greater for loyalty card members

Shopping at a local convenience store can cost you up to a fifth more than buying the same items at larger branches of the supermarket chains who own them, according to a new study – with the difference even greater for loyalty scheme members.

Which? compared the cost of 42 popular grocery items – from cheese and pasta to blueberries and ice-cream – on three occasions in June and July at the largest supermarket-branded convenience chains – Morrisons Daily, Sainsbury’s Local and Tesco Express – against prices at their full-sized supermarkets.

Local Government Association says cost to taxpayer for last-resort ceremonies has climbed to £6m a year

A rising number of people are being buried or cremated by councils in England because they have no one to organise or pay for a funeral, a survey of town halls has found.

There was a 13% rise in a year in the number of “public health funerals” in the 2022-23 financial year, the Local Government Association (LGA) estimated, as costs to the taxpayer for the last-resort ceremonies rose to almost £6m a year.

Ukrainian security council restricts app’s use on government and military devices after intelligence agency says Russia can snoop on users and messages. What we know on day 941

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Khalil Divine Black Sun Allah, 46, killed by lethal injection days after state’s key witness recanted critical testimony

South Carolina executed a man on death row on Friday, days after the key witness for the prosecution came forward to say he lied at trial and the state was putting to death an innocent man.

Khalil Divine Black Sun Allah, 46, was killed by lethal injection, pronounced dead at 6.55pm, according to the Associated Press, which was one of several media witnesses to the execution.

Party will modernise, says leader at Birmingham conference dominated by populist discourse

Nigel Farage has predicted he can win the next general election at a packed Reform UK conference that announced a new structure for the party but also leaned heavily into hard-right tropes and occasional conspiracy theories.

“We can win the next general election just with the numbers of people that agree with our principles,” Farage told cheering supporters in Birmingham.

The release follows an offer of terms made this week by rebels in the region

New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens has been freed after more than one-and-a-half years in captivity in Indonesia’s West Papua region, Indonesian police have said.

The move, reported by police in a statement on Saturday and confirmed by New Zealand’s foreign minister, Winston Peters, follows an offer of terms made this week by rebels in the region