It is not just this doomed government but the Labour party itself that is disappearing before our very eyes

When he does go, what will the political death certificate give as the true cause of Keir Starmer’s demise? It won’t be the Peter Mandelson scandal, the policy U-turns or the bleak nights at provincial counting centres. All these are symptoms, not the disease. No, what is turning the guy elected just 19 months ago into an ex-prime minister is the slow realisation among ministers, colleagues and voters of one essential truth about the man: there is less to him than meets the eye.

His promises get shrunk in the wash. A green new deal is jettisoned, an Employment Rights Act has a large watering can poured over it, a bold manifesto pledge to end Britain’s feudal leasehold laws suddenly grows caveats.

Aditya Chakrabortty is a Guardian columnist

Opening the Berlin film festival, No Good Men blends romance and rebellion, capturing love, humour and female agency in Kabul on the eve of the Taliban’s return

‘Afghanistan’s first romantic comedy” was not the easiest of sales pitches, director Shahrbanoo Sadat admits. But her long shot of a movie landed her the opening slot at the Berlin film festival starting Thursday, sending her in the red-carpet footsteps of the likes of Martin Scorsese and the Coen brothers.

Sadat, 35, wrote, directed and stars in the daring, genre-bending film No Good Men, about a budding love affair in a Kabul newsroom on the eve of the Taliban’s return to power in 2021 and the west’s chaotic withdrawal.

Leaders to discuss once-taboo policy of favouring European companies, in attempt to regain economic competitiveness

EU leaders are expected to diverge on whether “Buy European” is an answer to Europe’s waning economic fortunes, at a summit on how to secure the continent’s future in a more volatile global economy.

At a moated castle in the east Belgian countryside, the EU’s 27 leaders will gather on Thursday for a brainstorming session on how Europe can regain its economic competitiveness vis-a-vis the US and China, at a time of economic threats and political turbulence.

System used for civil servants not thorough enough for those with ‘baggage’ of years in politics or business, Peter Ricketts says

Downing Street cannot appoint politicians or business figures to senior diplomatic posts using the same security vetting it uses to check civil servants, a former national security adviser has said.

Peter Ricketts said there had to be more “awkward questions” asked of a person such as Peter Mandelson than the system allows, given “all the baggage” of his three decades in politics and business.

With many unable to access or afford qualified therapists, AI is filling the mental healthcare vacuum, amid calls for tighter regulation

On a quiet evening in her Abuja hotel, Joy Adeboye, 23, sits on her bed clutching her phone, her mind racing and chest tightening. On her screen is yet another abusive message from her stalker – a man she had met nine months earlier at her church.

He had asked Adeboye out; when she declined, he began sending her intimidating, insulting and blackmailing messages on social media, as well as spreading false information about her online. There were even death threats.

Exclusive: First mapping of youth centres in decades shows poorer areas in north worst affected by cuts since 2010

• ‘We’re on a cliff edge’: the struggle to keep youth services alive in Knowsley

Almost half of all council areas in England have youth work “black holes” with few or no services despite high levels of deprivation and antisocial behaviour, analysis shows.

The first mapping in decades of youth centres across the country has revealed a nationwide crisis in youth support and significant inequality. Poorer areas in the north of England are shown to have been the worst affected by cuts to youth services since 2010.

Referendum on immigration limit could threaten EU agreements and cripple economy, say Swiss businesses

Switzerland will vote this summer on a proposal from the far-right Swiss People’s party (SVP) to limit the country’s population to 10 million, a move that would threaten key agreements with the EU and, opponents say, cripple its economy.

The government said on Wednesday the referendum on the SVP’s “No to a 10 million Switzerland” initiative, which is strongly opposed by both chambers of parliament and the business and financial services community, would be held on 10 June.

Move is a ‘backwards step’, company spokesperson says, amid concerns Kremlin is seeking more state control via messaging apps such as Max

Russia has attempted to “fully block” WhatsApp in an attempt to push users towards its own state-sponsored communications app, Max, a spokesperson for the Meta-owned company has said.

The company did not reveal more detail on what extent the attempt succeeded or what action was taken to try to block the app.

Popplio728 has added a photo to the pool:

Disused since the late 2000s/early 2010s. 3/4 of the existing building still stands today whilst its potential future still remains uncertain.