What’s needed after Covid-19 is a bigger, smarter state, with more devolved decisions, a greener economy and a stronger safety net

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The words are straining to come out. Boris Johnson hero worships Winston Churchill so it is obvious how the prime minister will pitch this week’s announcement of the plan to get Britain out of lockdown.

In late 1942, victory in the north African desert had suggested that the tide of the war might have turned but Churchill was cautious. “Now this is not the end,” he said in a speech at London’s Mansion House. “It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”

The pandemic reminds me of a different invisible enemy. Once again, coordinated action is the only effective response

Deja vu. In recent days I’ve had that sense more than once. Every time I come home, remove my mask and wash my hands, I start thinking whether it is safe to keep on wearing the clothes that I had on outside. What if they are contaminated by the virus? Well, I can change clothes, but what if the particles have already jumped somewhere else, and are now in my home? Some would call it paranoia. I call it deja vu. I recognise those thoughts and remember the feelings.

That is because I first experienced them more than 30 years ago, in May 1986, on a trip to Kyiv, then the capital of Soviet Ukraine. It was a few weeks after the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor, and I was in the city – about 100km from the disaster area – on a business trip. We already knew that there was radiation in the air. Water trucks were spraying the streets, foreign students were leaving the city, and overseas broadcasters like the BBC were telling us to stay inside. But our own government was sending confusing and distressing messages: there is absolutely no danger, but make sure you keep children inside, and pregnant women too. Oh, and close your windows when you are at home.

Guardian picture editor Fiona Shields explains why we are going to be using fewer polar bears and more people to illustrate our coverage of the climate emergency

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At the Guardian we want to ensure that the images we publish accurately and appropriately convey the climate crisis that we face. Following discussions among editors about how we could change the language we use in our coverage of environmental issues, our attention then turned to images. We have been working across the organisation to better understand how we aim to visually communicate the impact the climate emergency is having across the world.

Related: The Guardian's climate pledge 2019

Waves glow turquoise in a glorious nocturnal display from an algae bloom off America’s west coast

• Waves dazzle surfers: ‘Never seen anything like it’

The Guardian investigates fire in the state of Pará - to reveal the loopholes that allow deforestation to be legitimised

We found the first fire without looking, crackling and roaring on farmland beside the busy Amazon highway, the flames consuming a road sign with its name – BR-163 – lying in the grass. Trucks thundered past, ferrying soya and corn from the agricultural heartlands of Brazil’s central-west to the ports of Santarém and Miritituba. Nobody was around.

Every year fires roar across the Amazon, and in just a few months they will be here again. But last August the number of blazes reached a nine-year high, and sparked an international crisis for Brazil’s far-right president Jair Bolsonaro. Months later, their traces hung over the forests in the Amazon state of Pará, leaving blackened logs and charred tree stumps where there was once rainforest.

City leaders publish ‘statement of principles’ putting climate action at centre of recovery plans

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Mayors from many of the world’s leading cities have warned there can be no return to “business as usual” in the aftermath of the coronavirus crisis if humanity is to escape catastrophic climate breakdown.

City leaders representing more than 750 million people have published a “statement of principles”, which commits them to putting greater equality and climate resilience at the heart of their recovery plans.

Sightings of the Asian giant hornet have prompted fears that the vicious insect could establish itself in the United States and devastate bee populations.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) came back at Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX) with the Twitter equivalent of “I can’t hear you!”...

Following the ousters of the Homeland Security secretary and Secret Service director, and the withdrawal of the would-be ICE director’s...

The SBA's IG said the agency veered from the law Congress drafted to create the program when the agency set rules for how businesses could obtain loan forgiveness.

The Senate's newest mother wants parents of newborns to more quickly access money allocated to them by the CARES Act.

Countries scramble to fill the plates of the most vulnerable.

The party is downplaying expectations in next week's special election for a congressional seat in the L.A. suburbs.

Up for reelection this fall, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has to decide whether to allow Trump's coronation to proceed amid a pandemic.

Roy Horn, who thrilled Las Vegas crowds as part of the big-cats-and-magic act Siegfried & Roy until a tiger attack ended his career in 2003, died today of coronavirus at Mountain View Hospital in Las Vegas. He was 75. Horn’s publicist said on April 28 that the magician had tested positive for COVID-19. “Today, the […]

Terminally ill serial killer Ivan Milat is transferred from the medical wing of Long Bay Jail to Sydney's Prince of Wales Hospital to receive pain relief as his health takes a turn for the worse.

Gladys Berejiklian has again ruled out the prospect of pill testing at music festivals despite a leaked draft coroner's report recommending the move.

Jock Palfreeman warns systemic corruption could see him returned to a Bulgarian jail for the rest of his life, and he condemns the influence of the far-right over Sofia's political establishment.

On a property hidden in bushland are old cars, tractors, motorbikes, trucks and sulkies from a bygone era that once belonged to an Australian politician and obsessive collector.

Farmers are entitled to a new, one-off payment from the Federal Government to help them decide if their farm is sustainable or could be sold.

The Wanderers earn a valuable three points their second win in as many matches with the highlight a Keanu Baccus stunner in the 54th minute at Docklands.

Signing off after 30 years at the ABC, award-winning reporter Margot O'Neill writes about the thrill of the big scoop and gives an insight into the grinding slog of investigative journalism.

The Sky Blues make it two from two with a against the Phoenix, following Melbourne City's 2-1 win over Adelaide United.

The NSW Government has revealed the exact locations of seven new stations on Sydney's Metro West line from the CBD to the western suburbs, which is due to open by 2030.

Figures released by the Department of Finance last week show the budget is now back in deficit by $4.8 billion. Now some economists doubt the government will be able to reach the projected surplus, including former Treasury advisor Warren Hogan.

Three men, including two sons of a prominent Melbourne barrister, are sentenced to jail for a drunken attack on two men near the MCG after an AFL game. But at least one of the men could still avoid prison after appealing his sentence and being granted bail.

The NSW Government will discuss establishing a national park south of Sydney to protect the state's last chlamydia-free koala colony under threat by urban expansion.

Extreme winds are churning up dust from Broken Hill to Sydney, with some parts of the central west turning red and forcing residents to eat dinner under bedsheets so as not to spoil their food.

Michael McCormack told the ABC the demonstrators were merely craving media attention.

Court documents provide insight into the shambolic and costly planning issues being created by a major housing expansion on the southern outskirts of Sydney.

Challenged by animal activists over the slaughter of newborn male calves, some dairy farmers are marketing older calves as veal to the ethical consumer.

In Sydney to open the International Women's Jazz Festival, Wilma Reading toured the world during the genre's golden age but the "icon and trailblazer" is almost unknown in her home country.

Western United come away with a 3-2 win in their Melbourne derby against the Victory despite trailing 2-0 after just seven minutes. Look back at that remarkable win and Western Sydney's 0-0 draw with Brisbane in our ScoreCentre.

Rain washes away Australia's Twenty20 series opener against Pakistan at the SCG, despite captain Aaron Finch's best efforts with the bat.

One of the lead authors of the study says it outlines key indicators to track the depth and scale of climate change.

Four years ago, Jonda Stephen found herself in a life or death situation. Her partner had hit her in the head multiple times with an iron, so she picked up a knife and stabbed him, in self-defence.

All four major banks have now announced a fall in earnings for the year. A new report from KPMG says there is no end in sight for the profit squeeze on the banks, with consumers set to benefit.

PlayStation 5 uncovered: The Mark Cerny tech deep dive
Richard Leadbetter,
Eurogamer

If you're craving even more explanation on the PlayStation 5 than lead architect Mark Cerny shared during his in-depth chat a couple weeks ago, get comfy. Eurogamer shared part two of its chat with Cerny this week, and while there weren't any new revelations per se, there was more detail on the things we'd already heard about.

The Entertainment Software Association may have cancelled E3 2020 due to COVID-19, but it's still committed to holding an event next year. The organization has announced that E3 will return between June 15th and June 17th, 2021. It characterized the future expo as a "reimagined" event, although that's the language it used for its since-scrapped 2020 gathering. It won't be surprising if the 2021 event is really a look at what you might have seen this year, just with a different mix of games.

The basketball legend’s former agent speaks out.

EXCLUSIVE: Ajón is on a mission to help frontline workers.

She was in a bitter custody battle with Stevie J.

See more pictures of our favorite celebrity mommy moments.