The election watchdog has revealed that it is pressing ahead with plans to hand itself powers to prosecute campaigners and political parties, putting itself on a collision course with ministers. The Electoral Commission is planning to publish a consultation setting out proposals to hand itself a "prosecutions capability", despite senior Tories insisting that the body is "not trusted to be impartial". The disclosure comes after the Metropolitan Police confirmed that it had ended investigations into Darren Grimes and Alan Halsall, two pro-Brexit campaign figures, two years after a referral by the commission for alleged breaches of spending rules. The move prompted calls for the commission to be "overhauled", with Mr Grimes describing the body as a "kangaroo court" that was not "fit for purpose". Separately, the National Crime Agency found no evidence that any criminal offences were committed by Arron Banks, another prominent Brexiteer, after another referral by the watchdog. Last night Matthew Elliott, who was chief executive of the official Vote Leave campaign, claimed that the commission's record showed that if it acquired the new powers, "there will be countless travesties of justice, and democracy will be undermined.” Sir Bernard Jenkin, the former chairman of the Commons public administration committee, said: "These proposals appear to be doubling down on a failed system. Parliament should change it." Another Conservative MP said: "I can't think of any public body that is less deserving of prosecuting powers than the Electoral Commission, who have shown themselves to be biased and, frankly, vindictive." Last year Jacob Rees-Mogg, now the leader of the Commons, and Brandon Lewis, who has also been appointed to Boris Johnson's cabinet, both expressed alarm at the watchdog's plans to hand itself powers currently exercised by the police and Crown Prosecution Service - after the move was revealed by this newspaper. The watchdog has faced repeated accusations of bias against bodies that campaigned for Brexit in 2016, which it strongly denies. The commission claims it could hand itself the powers without ministers bringing forward legislation, by altering its enforcement policy following a public consultation - due to open in the coming weeks. But MPs warned that some groups could be unfairly targeted. Speaking last year, while Tory chairman, Mr Lewis pointed out that one senior figure at the commission - the same official spearheading the proposals - had previously said that she would "not want to live under a Tory government". He suggested the body was not seen as a "fair" arbiter. As a backbencher, Mr Rees-Mogg called for the Conservatives to formally oppose the move, saying: "The Electoral Commission is not trusted to be impartial and a number of its leading figures have said very prejudicial things about Brexit." The commission's corporate plan for the period from 2020 to 2025 states: "To deter people from committing offences, and to make sure we can respond proportionally if they do, we will continue to build the capacity to prosecute suspected offences. We will consult on the way we approach the use of prosecutions." An Electoral Commission spokesman said: “Later this year we will be consulting with political parties, the police and the CPS on changes to our enforcement policy, which includes a prosecutions capability, and will bring our regulatory work in line with a wide range of other regulators. “Extending our work in this direction would enable us to bring lower order offences before the courts in a way which is swift and proportionate, freeing up the resources of the police and prosecutors and delivering more effective regulation of political finance to support public confidence.” Mr Elliott said: “The Electoral Commission’s track record at conducting investigations is woeful. "In the case of Leave campaigners ... they assumed that we were guilty until proven innocent ... Thankfully, the Metropolitan Police and Crown Prosecution Service looked at the evidence thoroughly, and saw through the conspiracy theories that the Electoral Commission had believed without question." The commission insisted it was "right that potential electoral offences are properly investigated by the appropriate authority". A spokesman said there was "no substance to allegations that the Commission is biased", saying the organisation had investigated campaigners and parties across the political spectrum.

Former President Barack Obama harshly criticized President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic as an “absolute chaotic disaster” during a conversation with ex-members of his administration, according to a recording obtained by Yahoo News. Obama also reacted to the Justice Department dropping its criminal case against Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, saying he worried that the “basic understanding of rule of law is at risk.” Obama’s comments came during a Friday call with 3,000 members of the Obama Alumni Association, people who served in his administration.

While many residents in Iran's capital are taking advantage of loosened COVID-19 controls, some worry about a new spike in infections in what remains the Middle East's deadliest virus epicentre. The government began paring back coronavirus controls outside Tehran on April 11, arguing that the economy -- already sagging under punitive US sanctions -- needed to get back to bare bones operations. It allowed small businesses to reopen in the capital a week later, before permitting malls to welcome customers on April 21 and barbers on Wednesday.

After fleeing Venezuela along with millions of others amid the country's grueling humanitarian crisis, Misael Cocho made his way by bus to Peru — where he got odd jobs and sent money home monthly to support his mother and his 5-year-old son. The pandemic's economic fallout left many Venezuelans abroad and the relatives back home who rely on them in dire straits.

Both China and South Korea reported new spikes in coronavirus cases on Sunday, setting off fresh concerns in countries where local outbreaks had been in dramatic decline. Former President Barack Obama, meanwhile, harshly criticized President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic as an “absolute chaotic disaster,” while U.S. states began gradually reopening, even as health officials are anxiously watching for a second wave of infections. China reported 14 new cases on Sunday, its first double-digit rise in 10 days.

Cookbook author and New York Times cooking columnist Alison Roman has publicly apologized to Chrissy Teigen after receiving backlash for comments she made about her fellow culinary...

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1. ICMR, National Institute Of Virology Join Hands With Hyderabad Based Biotech Firm To Develop COVID-19 Vaccine  Swarajya
2. India to develop ‘fully indigenous’ Covid vaccine as ICMR partners with Bharat Biotech  ThePrint
3. ICMR teams up with Bharat Biotech to develop Covid-19 vaccine  Times of India
4. ICMR joins with Hyderabad firm to develop COVID-19 vaccine  Northeast Now
5. Covid-19 patients with mild symptoms don't need hospitalization: Health ministry's revised discharge policy  Livemint
6. View Full coverage on Google News

1. Allow players without BCCI contracts to play in overseas T20 leagues - Suresh Raina | ESPNcricinfo.com  ESPNcricinfo
2. Aussies said ‘stay away from him’: Suresh Raina on Indian cricketer whom Australia feared the most  Hindustan Times
3. Suresh Raina, Irfan Pathan want BCCI to allow Indian players to participate in foreign T20 leagues  Times of India
4. BCCI should allow non-contracted players to play in foreign leagues: Raina - Cricbuzz  Cricbuzz
5. Come and tell me you have 1 year: Irfan Pathan ready to come out of retirement if ‘communication’ is...  Hindustan Times
6. View Full coverage on Google News

1. The person who loves us tirelessly and unconditionally: Ravi Shastri, Virat Kohli wish Happy Mother's Day  India Today
2. Maa Jaisa Koi Nahi: Virat Kohli and Virender Sehwag Lead Mother's Day Wishes  News18
3. Mother’s Day: Sports stars thank their moms for unconditional love, sacrifices and prayers  The Indian Express
4. Always amazing & irreplaceable: Sachin Tendulkar redefines word 'AAI' on Mother's Day  India Today
5. Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh Lead Wishes As Sports Fraternity Celebrate Mother's Day 2020  NDTVSports.com
6. View Full coverage on Google News

1. After Vizag gas leak, Centre issues guidelines for restarting industries post-coronavirus lockdown  khabrisala
2. Govt issues new guidelines for restarting industries after lockdown  Livemint
3. Consider Week 1 As Trial: Government On Industry Restart Post Lockdown  NDTV
4. NDMA issues guidelines on restarting manufacturing industries post lockdown  Economic Times
5. Consider first week of operation as trial: Centre’s guidelines for restarting industries after lockdown  Times Now
6. View Full coverage on Google News

1. Coronavirus India lockdown Day 47 updates | Most cases in Delhi are mild or asymptomatic: Arvind Kejriwal  The Hindu
2. Coronavirus live updates: 75% cases in Delhi are asymptomatic or with mild symptoms, CM Kejriwal says  Times of India
3. Coronavirus Outbreak LIVE Updates: Of 7,000 positive cases in Delhi, 1,500 in hospital and only 27 on ventilator, says Arvind Kejriwal  Firstpost
4. PM Modi's COVID-19 leadership echoes; Delhi gives Kejriwal thumbs up, finds Times Now survey  Times Now
5. 75 percent COVID-19 cases in Delhi are asymptomatic or with mild symptoms: Kejriwal  Economic Times
6. View Full coverage on Google News

1. Coronavirus cases jump to near 63,000 in India, 2,109 deaths. State-wise status  Livemint
2. Total Number Of COVID-19 cases In India Rise to 62939, Death Toll At 2109 | CNN News18  CNN-News18
3. Coronavirus India News LIVE: Known COVID-19 cases near 63000; Bihar's tally rises to 629  Moneycontrol
4. Mint Covid Tracker: Fresh infections, deaths rising faster in India than most countries  Livemint
5. India’s Covid-19 cases near 63,000-mark, death toll at 2,109  Top Live News
6. View Full coverage on Google News

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West seem to be drifting apart in the midst of the lockdown. Recently it was reported that they are spending isolation in the different parts of their megamansion. Kim (39) received a hamper of very saucy gifts from her younger sister Khloe (35) as they celebrate Mother’s Day during the coronavirus […]

The post Kim Gets A perfect Gift From Khloe Kardashian, Amid Rift With Kanye appeared first on Chart Attack.

Season 45 wraps up with third remote instalment

Watching 'Saturday Night Live' adapt to the lockdown era has been a fun and joyful respite. This third episode of 'SNL at Home' suggests the show will be missed even more than usual until its return in the fall

The dynamic entrepreneur talked up the possibility of an immediate move to Texas or Nevada as he announced a lawsuit in connection to a plant in California.

Stricken carriers are grounding their ageing, four-engined giants as cash runs out

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When Sir Richard Branson marked the 25th anniversary of Virgin Atlantic in 2009, he and the model Kate Moss posed on the wing of a Boeing 747. This symbol of the jet age was the only option for the billionaire showman. But a decade later, the plane has become a symbolic casualty of the chaos engulfing the airline industry during the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, Virgin Atlantic said it would retire all seven of its 747s.

More than 1,500 of the jumbo jets have been delivered over the 52 years it has been in service, but analysts say the savage decline in passenger traffic as governments seek to contain the spread of Covid-19 could hasten the decline of the plane, heralding an ignominious end for the so-called Queen of the Skies.

The Pulitzer prize winner on the freedom that comes with age, how he reinvented his writing life and overcoming childhood dyslexia

Richard Ford, 76, is a novelist whose particular feat has been to translate failure into literary success: he writes about human beings and their disappointments with unfailing insight and, while he never mocks his characters, is keenly aware of the absurdity involved in being alive. His best-known novels are about Frank Bascombe, sportswriter turned real estate agent. His novel Independence Day won the Pulitzer prize in 1996. He lives in Maine, teaches English at Columbia and his new collection of short stories, Sorry for Your Trouble, is exemplary in its nuanced understanding of the relationships between men and women.

Your stories explore choice and the rogue ways life behaves. Do people have a choice about who they fall in love with? And what part does luck play?
I think about both these questions. I was the luckiest man in the world when I met Kristina back in 1964 – I’ve been married to the same girl for 52 years. Yet throughout that long period, you choose all over again. I used to tell Kristina, “I choose to be married to you every day.”

It’s important to get fresh air and exercise – but do we need to wear masks while running, walking and cycling? We asked some experts

To mask or not to mask while getting fresh air is the question many of us are asking ourselves. According to the CDC, we should wear masks in “areas of significant community-based transmission”, such as grocery stores and pharmacies. While the CDC doesn’t list the outdoors as a high-density space, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s OK to exercise outdoors mask-free.

Related: Quarantine is perfect for discovering the beauty and power of boredom

It’s depressing that the singer’s new skinny look matters more to some than her extraordinary voice

It seems that Adele’s weight is fast becoming a feminist issue, although not in the way people usually mean. Last year, images of the singer’s extreme weight loss rocked the world. When she released a photo to mark her 32nd birthday last week, the internet exploded all over again. Some people thought her new look was great; others considered it a (whisper it) betrayal. Some accused her of having a gastric band; others bitched that she would soon pile it all back on again. “She looks good.” “She looks bad.” “She looks weird.” And on it goes.

Adele isn’t new to this: her weight was also discussed (admiringly, critically, endlessly) before she lost it. In the modern musical landscape, where female artists specifically are viciously pressured to be perma-slim, the message seemed to be that she was one of those rare talents who were “allowed” to be bigger. At other times, the focus on her weight verged on patronising and reductive, as though her BMI-based “relatability” was the main draw and her talent a poor second.

The disasters of Trump, Brexit and coronavirus have been made all the worse by our weak and incompetent leaders

Britain is in a lonely place right now. It resembles the scene of a bad traffic accident where shocked passers-by look away with pity and horror in their eyes. Alarmed by what they see, governments around the world practise their own form of social distancing. Once again, Britain is the sick man of Europe.

Lethal mismanagement of the coronavirus pandemic is not the sole reason for this un-splendid isolation. The disease’s sudden onslaught is the third national disaster in almost as many years. The first was the decision to walk away from Europe. The second was the advent of Donald Trump and his anarchic America First agenda.

Fauci and heads of CDC and FDA potentially exposed to coronavirus; Boris Johnson to announce UK lockdown changes

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• See all our coronavirus coverage

Three members of the White House coronavirus taskforce have placed themselves in self-quarantine after contact with someone who tested positive for Covid-19. It comes as the British prime minister, Boris Johnson, prepares to unveil his “roadmap” to a new normality in a national broadcast and global infections pass four million.

Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Stephen Hahn, are all expected to work remotely due to potential exposure to Covid-19.

Victoria only state to retain strict rules, as cafes, playgrounds and pools set to reopen across country

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Victoria is the only state not to have announced an easing of coronavirus restrictions as New South Wales signals it will relax its laws from Friday and Western Australia declares most people will be able to return to work from Monday week.

NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian announced the easing of restrictions on Sunday, increasing the number of visitors permitted in private residences from two to five, allowing outdoor gatherings of up to 10, and up to 10 dine-in patrons at cafes and restaurants, provided each patron has 4 sq metres of space. The use of outdoor pools, gym and play equipment will also be permitted.

Cafes and restaurants will reopen for limited numbers of people as part of a relaxation of Covid-19 rules in both states. Follow all the latest news, live

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• Coronavirus Australia maps and cases: live numbers and statistics

9.01am BST

We will leave our live Australian coverage there for the day. You can follow our rolling global coverage here or read a summary here.

Here’s how things stand in Australia:

8.22am BST

South Australia has established a rapid response team to deal with any coronavirus outbreaks in nursing homes.

Twenty-seven of the 97 people to die in Australia after testing positive to Covid-19, died in nursing homes.

The dedicated SA Pathology team has been assembled to provide greater protection for some of the state’s most vulnerable citizens.

If an outbreak occurs, the team will immediately test everyone in the facility, helping to quickly identify cases, limit the spread and protect both residents and staff.

The comments came during a conference call.

The Government's new "stay alert" slogan for the next stage of the UK's fight against coronavirus has divided opinion.

Josh Trank was so devastated by the failure of Fantastic Four that he started to have bitter feelings towards other superhero directors. 

Cookbook author and New York Times cooking columnist Alison Roman has publicly apologized to Chrissy Teigen after receiving backlash for comments she made about her fellow culinary...

We love these products, and we hope you do too. E! has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of the revenue from your purchases. Items are sold by the retailer, not E!. If...

Kim Kardashian's baby boy turns one! The Keeping Up With the Kardashian star is celebrating Psalm West's first birthday. It's safe to assume her and Kanye West's little...

In the second installment of The Voice's virtual happy hour, the show's coaches shared their attempts at keeping busy and sane during quarantine, by sipping cocktails and sharing their...

Continued social distancing doesn't have to mean the end of socializing. As the planet continues to stick close to home in the effort of slowing the global coronavirus pandemic, time...

Ashley Benson and Cara Delevingne don't seem to have plans for reconciliation. After almost two years since the two began dating and one year since they went public with their...

Katy Perry is getting real about her hormonal changes and mood swings during pregnancy. On Saturday, during the SHEIN Together livestream event--a virtual festival led by the clothing...

South Korea's capital closed down more than 2100 bars and other nightspots on Saturday because of a new cluster of coronavirus infections, Germany scrambled to contain fresh outbreaks at slaughterhouses, and Italian authorities worried...