The party was in full swing, friends and family in every room, so it was easy to miss when Zara, 12, once again quietly slunk off to her room clutching her phone. However, one person did notice her withdrawn behaviour: her older cousin, Jaz.It was the latest in a string of worrying changes. First it was the make-up. Then the change in clothes – underwear that made Zara look more mature than she was. Recently Jaz, 17, had also heard a rumour from friends that Zara had an older boyfriend.Jaz had tried voicing her concerns, but…

The movement to inject Christianity into public life, which has been brewing in right-wing circles for years and got a major boost when Donald Trump returned to office, just got a big win. A federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday to uphold Texas’ law that requires every public school classroom in the state to display the Ten Commandments from the Christian Bible. AdvertisementThe conservative victory blurs the line between church and state and muddles decades of legal precedent. The establishment clause of the First…

Coach Michael Voss has claimed Carlton are being 'bullied' by outsiders over the Elijah Hollands situation as the investigation by the AFL continues.The Blues are preparing to play Fremantle on Saturday but all attention is on Hollands, who was admitted to hospital this week after a public mental health episode during Carlton's loss to Collingwood last Thursday night.A visibly angry Voss didn't provide an update on Hollands' condition, but said he had been communicating with his family rather than the player himself.The…

Even as Sir Philip Barton wrote the letter to King Charles formalising the appointment of Lord Mandelson as US ambassador, he knew that serious trouble lay ahead.The missive was sent on December 18, 2024, to Sir Clive Alderton, the King's long–serving private secretary, and included the observation that the Foreign Secretary David Lammy 'agreed with the appointment'.The same could not be said of Barton. A lifelong career civil servant, the then Permanent Under Secretary at the Foreign Office had mounted a valiant rearguard…