A council has accidentally rejected planning applications with sarcastic joke responses. A junior officer, who thought he was testing the local authority’s website, accidentally told applicants their plans were “whack”. One was told: “No mate, proper whack”. It will now have to spend thousands of pounds to reverse the spoof decisions. Legal advice taken by the council had confirmed that the decisions are legally binding and will cost at least £8,000 to overturn through judicial review.
Snakes measure radiation in Fukushima
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Woman, 100, sets powerlifting record
A 100-year-old woman is set to enter the Guinness World Records as one of the oldest powerlifters. Great-great-grandmother Edith Murway-Traina’s 68kg power lift will be marked in the 2022 book. The former dance instructor and performer living in Florida took up weightlifting nine years ago when forced to go to the gym by a friend. She said that trashing the “sweet little old lady stereotype” motivates her further.
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‘Human trafficking isn’t something that happens “somewhere else”’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
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What would a credit card rate cap mean for you?the explainer President Donald Trump has floated the possibility of a one-year rate cap
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Is the American era officially over?Talking Points Trump’s trade wars and Greenland push are alienating old allies
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China’s Xi targets top general in growing purgeSpeed Read Zhang Youxia is being investigated over ‘grave violations’ of the law
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Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
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Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
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Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
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US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
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How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
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Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
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Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
