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That’s what Brit director Rose Glass delivers in Love Lies Bleeding, a lesbian neo-noir drenched in brooding nightscapes, violent crime and more hardcore KStew cool than has ever been packaged in such a potent concentrate.

Written by Glass and fellow filmmaker Weronika Tofilska and set in the decade of too-muchness, the 1980s, the film casts Stewart as Lou, first seen up to her elbows in a blocked toilet at the gym where she doubles as manager and solo maintenance crew.

The arresting opening images courtesy of ace cinematographer Ben Fordesman (who also shot Saint Maud) take in the urban spread of a New Mexico town and the blanket of stars above before closing in on the late-night fitness routines of a decidedly male clientele, all of this set to the propulsive sounds of Clint Mansell’s seductively punchy electronic score.

Blowing into town on her way to an upcoming bodybuilder contest in Vegas, Jackie needs a job fast, so she gives skeevy JJ (Dave Franco in an epically awful mullet) a sweaty quickie in the back of his car before finding a spot to sleep under a bridge.

As Jackie gets hooked on ‘roids and increasingly obsessed with her popping veins and bulging muscles — Fordesman’s closeup shots of these in action are like an extraterrestrial landscape — Lou finds herself more than once disposing of bodies and cleaning up crime scenes.

This kind of hyperviolent bloodbath is generally the domain of men, so it’s a welcome switch to have women at the center and a festering father-daughter tangle in place of the usual son — even if Glass has no interest in making any type of feminist statement.

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Britain needs its own ambitious green investment plan to keep up with its allies, a Labour frontbencher has said, amid an increasingly bitter row over whether Keir Starmer should stick to his flagship £28bn pledge.

Jonathan Reynolds, the shadow business secretary, said the UK should come up with its own version of Joe Biden’s $369bn (£290bn) Inflation Reduction Act, which has provided support to a range of technologies including electric cars and renewable power.

Some in the shadow cabinet believe the policy, first launched in 2021, should be ditched altogether given the UK now faces much higher borrowing rates and Labour is desperate to avoid making unfunded spending commitments.

Matt Wrack, the head of the Fire Brigades Union, told the Guardian the public would be put at risk if a Labour government did not follow through on its investment promises, given the increasing number of floods and wildfires to which his members are having to respond.

The Labour leader has asked Jonathan Ashworth to see how the proposals withstand media and opposition attacks, and Lucy Powell to check whether they will be able to form coherent legislation.

Their roles mirror that played by David Miliband for Tony Blair before the 1997 election, when the young policy chief was tasked with making sure the party had not made any promises it could not defend from heavy opposition attack.

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Two Royal Navy warships crashed into each other in Bahrain at the end of last week because one was incorrectly rewired, meaning that it unexpectedly went into reverse when it was set to go forward, military sources said.

But naval sources said on Sunday they believed the cause of the accident was a simple rewiring error in a recently inspected vessel.

The vessel had been recently inspected by officers at the maritime capability, trials and assessment team, they added.

Fresh video and pictures from inside HMS Bangor show sunlight clearly coming through a hole at the end of a kitchen cabin and damage to sleeping berths.

Both warships, designed to seek out and eliminate sea mines, are based in the Gulf as part of the longstanding British naval presence in the Middle East, recently strengthened in response to the growing crisis in the southern Red Sea.

The Ministry of Defence declined to comment on the causes of the accident, saying its investigation was continuing, but earlier on Sunday Shapps denied that the crash between the two warships was a product of ineptitude.

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The business and trade secretary, Kemi Badenoch, on 18 December concurred with Lord Cameron’s recommendation that Israel was not in breach of international humanitarian law (IHL) and the arms exports could continue.

The Italian foreign minister at the weekend confirmed Italy blocked all arms exports to Israel as soon as the attacks in Gaza started.

The Foreign Office’s internal discussions were revealed in a business department court affidavit including partial extracts from aspects of Foreign Office official papers sent to ministers, which were presented to the high court in a claim for a judicial review about the continuance of arms sales that has been lodged by Global Legal Action Network, an NGO.

The Foreign Office papers said: “Given the paucity of information, the scale and intensity of the conflict, the death toll, the unusual civilian population density coupled with their inability to evacuate and the concomitance mounting effects of the conflict on civilians, [the government’s] current inability to come to a clear assessment on Israel’s record of compliance with IHL poses significant policy risks.”

The Foreign Office then sought and received written assurances from the Israeli embassy, but still wrote to Cameron on 8 December saying it was for him to decide if there was a commitment to comply with IHL.

On 12 December, the court document says Cameron “decided that he was satisfied that there was good evidence to support a judgment that Israel is committed to comply with IHL.

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Gordon Brown has urged Jeremy Hunt to act on startling new research into Britain’s threadbare benefits system that showed the poorest families must spend an average of 63p in each pound to meet basic food and energy needs.

The former prime minister said the paper was a “wake-up call” to the chancellor that “reveals the arithmetic of poverty”, and forces the UK to “face up to the fact that it is in the throes of a crisis”.

Brown said the chancellor should use his budget on 6 March to “implement a root and branch reform of the benefits system” in order to stymie further impoverishment of Britain’s poorest children.

The unpublished briefing paper by Prof Donald Hirsch, titled the UK’s Inadequate and Unfair Safety Net, concludes Britain’s benefit system no longer provides the basic amount needed “to function day-to-day and have healthy lives”.

He added that the need to balance competing basic costs – such as clothes, toiletries and transport – meant spending on food and energy by the poorest households was likely to be inadequate, leading to serious health consequences for families.

Donald Hirsch’s important and path-breaking research reveals the arithmetic of poverty, showing just why so many families on benefits can no longer make ends meet.

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The public will be put at risk if Keir Starmer drops his plan to spend £28bn a year on green investment, according to the head of the Fire Brigades Union, who warned his members were already experiencing the effects of the climate crisis.

Matt Wrack, the FBU’s general secretary, urged the Labour leader not to scale back or delay the party’s green scheme, which he said was essential for combatting a steep increase in floods, wildfires and storms.

Wrack called on Starmer to include mitigation measures such as flood defences in the plan as well as more long-term investment aimed at cutting carbon emissions.

Firefighters have been dealing with rapidly rising numbers of floods and wildfires in recent years, which scientists say is a direct result of climate breakdown.

Starmer has said in recent weeks that he remains committed to the policy of spending £28bn on environmental investments by the second half of the parliament, though the figure will be limited by how much Labour can borrow while still sticking to its strict fiscal rules.

The Conservatives are preparing to feature the Labour pledge heavily in their campaign material, arguing it can only be funded by higher borrowing or more tax rises.

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The Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill – to be debated in the Commons on Monday – has already triggered widespread protests, including the resignation of Chris Skidmore, a former Conservative energy minister.

UpLift, which campaigns for green energy, pointed out that the bill, which the government says will “max out” the UK’s reserves, will actually result in only a 2% rise in North Sea gas output.

“Sunak, like his predecessor Liz Truss, is obsessing over oil and gas, but dithering on renewables and insulation which will boost UK energy security and lower bills,” said Tessa Khan, executive director of UpLift.

By contrast, investing in clean British energy and electrifying the economy, with heat pumps and electric vehicles, would reduce dependence on insecure and expensive fossil fuels, Ward added.

A new report by a group of leading economists including Nicholas Stern, criticises the government for allowing too much investment to continue to flow into unsustainable economies such as the development of new oil and gas fields and the construction of homes and offices that are not energy efficient or climate-resilient.

“Investing in the opportunities afforded by the global transition to an efficient, resilient and inclusive economy needs to be a bigger part of restoring productivity and output growth for the UK to gain a competitive lead in the innovative markets of the 21st century,” they state.

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Protesters gathered at the site before Christmas as anger grew over letters the school sent to parents which mentioned potential referrals to Prevent, a key part of the UK’s counter-terrorism strategy, for any “extremist and divisive comments”.

Staff at the school were also accused of “bullying” the young boy at the centre of the row, claims which they have denied.

In a subsequent statement published on its website, the school strongly refuted any allegations of bullying or misconduct by staff and said the wording of its earlier letters had been “misappropriated”.

Staff had also been forced into “aggressive and confrontational interactions” with members of the public and had been “overtly filmed” doing their jobs, the letter said, causing “unwanted distress and anxiety”.

Its main reception service would be closed for the “foreseeable future”, it added, as well as restricting access to the school at pick-up and drop-off times.

Leyton and Wanstead MP John Cryer said threats and protests outside any school were “beyond the pale - however upset people are”.

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Protesters calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and freedom for Palestinians have rallied in the Melbourne CBD for the 15th week in a row as other demonstrators blocked an Israeli ship from a city dock.

The crowd chanted “shame” as she was mentioned once, however speakers focused largely on the thousands of people killed in Gaza and an ongoing blockade at the Port of Melbourne.

Australia Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni said the months of consecutive peaceful protests appeared to have “fallen on deaf ears” as the siege in Gaza continued, and said it was “time to elevate our action”.

The protest came amid an ongoing blockade at the Port of Melbourne, which has for more than two days prevented an Israeli-owned ship from being unloaded.

The protesters have been gathering at Webb Dock since Friday to block workers from unloading cargo from the ZIM ship.

Shadow Attorney-General Michael O’Brien on Saturday called on the government to restore Victoria Police’s “move-on” powers.

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On Wednesday, members of the European parliament [MEPs] voted to outlaw the use of terms such as “environmentally friendly”, “natural”, “biodegradable”, “climate neutral” or “eco” without evidence, while introducing a total ban on using carbon offsetting schemes to substantiate the claims.

It comes amid widespread concern about the environmental impact of carbon offsetting schemes, which have often been used to justify labelling products “carbon neutral”, or imply that consumers can fly, buy new clothes or eat certain foods without making the climate crisis worse.

“I am particularly pleased that claims such as “climate-neutral” or “climate-positive”, which are based on CO2 offsetting, have been completely banned from the internal market.

The directive comes after months of negotiations over how environmental claims will be regulated in the EU, with a deal reached in September that was approved by law makers on Wednesday.

Environmental NGOs have raised concerns about claims based on offsets, including the 2022 World Cup in Qatar which was advertised as a “carbon neutral” event.

The European Union is taking leadership in combating greenwashing,” said Lindsay Otis, a policy expert on global carbon markets at CMW.

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