Parents can be fined for not returning children to school in September, official guidance says

Parents can be fined for failing to return their children to school in September, official guidance said yesterday. School attendance will be mandatory again from the start of the autumn term, meaning parents could face penalties if they do not comply. Hours earlier, the Prime Minister’s spokesman suggested fines would be at headteachers’ discretion. Downing Street told reporters that school heads would be able to judge whether parents should face fines if they refuse to send their children back to school in September. The spokesman said: "Returning to school in September will be mandatory. "It's always the case that headteachers do have some discretion. They know their pupils and their family situations. "But, in general, children need to get back into school and get back learning again." The official guidance says: “Missing out on more time in the classroom risks pupils falling further behind. “School attendance will therefore be mandatory again from the beginning of the autumn term. This means from that point, the usual rules on school attendance will apply, including [..] the availability to issue sanctions, including fixed penalty notices in line with local authorities’ codes of conduct.”

Fox’s Neil Cavuto Grills GOP Rep Who Wants to Disband Coronavirus Task Force

Fox News anchor Neil Cavuto had an intense confrontation with Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) on Thursday over his demand that the White House coronavirus task force disband, calling the Trumpian congressman out over his home state’s exploding COVID-19 cases and his own lack of health expertise.Biggs recently called for the Trump administration to scrap its pandemic task force over his belief that its public health experts, namely Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx, were undermining President Donald Trump as the president pushes for the economy to continue to reopen.Interviewing Biggs on Thursday’s broadcast of Your World with Neil Cavuto, the veteran Fox anchor—who has frequently been the target of the president’s ire over his critical Trump coverage—immediately pressed Biggs on whether he thought masks could help stem the spread of coronavirus.Hospital Workers to ‘Complacent’ Americans: Stop Right Now“I have to tell you, I’m reticent to believe that if a mask works so well, then why is L.A. spiking and surging with COVID cases when they’ve had a mandatory mask regulation in effect for seven weeks now,” the Arizona congressman replied. “There is no empirical evidence that that is the case.”Cavuto, meanwhile, pointed out that while localities may have had mask ordinances, the issue may have been enforcement and getting residents to follow the guidelines. Biggs, however, insisted that the actual problem was that masks themselves aren’t very effective, despite copious studies showing otherwise. “You don’t think it has any benefit at all?” Cavuto shot back. In recent days, Republicans and even some of Trump’s staunchest Fox allies have attempted to get the president to embrace mask-wearing to keep the economy open amid a spike in cases.The Fox host pivoted to Biggs’ demand that the task force shutter, asking the Freedom Caucus chair whether or not he thought it was risky.“No, I don’t. I appreciate what the vice president has done and I think he is done a great job,” he replied before criticizing Fauci, complaining that the top infectious disease expert has been “inconsistent” with his message.Cavuto, however, implored Biggs to “forget Dr. Fauci for a second” and think about what’s happening in his home state, which is currently suffering from the worst coronavirus surge in the nation.“You have hospitalizations and ICU bed use, the highest of this crisis,” Cavuto exclaimed. “You are telling people to get rid of it? People are listening to you and you’re saying we can ease up!”After Biggs accused the Fox anchor of “cherry-picking data,” Cavuto retorted he was doing no such thing before accusing Biggs of just wanting to get rid of the commission because it is saying things he doesn’t like.The far-right lawmaker argued that they were “undermining” Trump, prompting Cavuto to ask whether it was the president’s job to have health experts he defers to. Biggs, meanwhile, downplayed Birx and Fauci’s expertise by wondering aloud about when they last saw patients.“When’s the last time you have?” Cavuto snarked back.“I’m not a trained physician,” Biggs replied.“But you’re telling the ones who are to get out!” Cavuto shouted in response. “To get off the commission!”Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

Kentucky election: Democrats flip state Senate seat held by Republicans for 25 years

Democrats have flipped a state Senate seat previously held by Republicans for the last 25 years.Dr Karen Berg won the special election for Kentucky‘s 26th Senate District after Republican Senator Ernie Harris announced he was retiring following 25 years in office. She beat Republican candidate Bill Ferko by 14 points.

Airbnb is banning some users under 25 from renting certain listings to help crack down on party houses

The changes to Airbnb's platform come after a mass shooting at an Airbnb house party last Halloween left five people dead.

Feds Arrest ‘Ringleader’ in Attempt to Topple Andrew Jackson Statue Near White House

Federal authorities on Thursday reportedly arrested a male suspect they say was the "ringleader" of an effort to destroy a statue of Andrew Jackson near the White House.Jason Carter, whom authorities said is connected to the loose knit anarchist group Antifa, was arrested Thursday morning at his home and charged with destruction of federal property, Fox News first reported. Carter allegedly led the June 22 effort to topple the statue in Washington D.C.’s Lafayette Square near the White House, which protesters said they attacked because Jackson owned slaves and because of his treatment of Native Americans.“They were very organized,” an unidentified federal law enforcement official told Fox News. “Carter was on top of the statue and directing people.""They had acid, chisels, straps and a human chain preventing police from getting to the statue,” the official said.The Justice Department on Saturday announced that four other men face felony destruction of federal property charges for their roles in attacking the statue. According to the department, the four were caught in video footage attempting to pull the statue to the ground.President Trump on Friday signed an executive order to protect American monuments, memorials, and statues in the wake of recent attacks on several monuments of historical figures in cities around the country.“Long prison terms for these lawless acts against our Great Country,” Trump wrote in a tweet announcing the order.At least a dozen other monuments to historical figures have also been targeted, including several Christopher Columbus statues. Statues of Columbus were attacked in recent weeks in Virginia, Massachusetts, and Minnesota as protests continue against racism and police brutality in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in police custody in Minneapolis.

Seattle police clear out protester-occupied zone

More than 30 people are arrested as officers disperse demonstrators from the "lawless" area.

Nerve agent fear as hundreds of elephants perish mysteriously in Botswana

The mysterious death of hundreds of elephants in Botswana has left experts alarmed that there could be a dangerous neurotoxin spreading through one of Africa’s largest conservationist areas. Around 400 African elephants have died since April in the Okavango Delta, a wetland area in the northwest of the country often referred to as ‘Africa’s Last Eden.’ Powerful poaching syndicates from Zambia and South Africa regularly cross into Botswana to shoot the animals with high-calibre rifles before hacking their tusks off with axes. But these deaths are different. Pictures show dozens of rotting calves and fully grown adult elephants studding grasslands and waterholes. Their tusks, which can be worth tens of thousands of pounds, have been left untouched. “The elephants have no visible wounds. Before they die, we’ve seen them wander around confused, emaciated and in distress. Their legs often don’t work properly or are paralysed,” Dr Niall McCann, Director of conservation for National Park Rescue, a UK-based charity.