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Nick Clegg: we have taken Labour's place in UK politics
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BP's Deepwater Horizon oil spill likely to cost more than Exxon Valdez
Deepwater Horizon oil pill could outstrip 1989 Alaskan disaster's $8.5bn in clean-up and legal bills
Front page
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White House U-turn on further offshore drilling after oil spill
Decision to ease offshore oil and gas drilling at least temporarily reversed while cause of last week's blowout on the Deepwater Horizon rig is investigated -
Oil spill approaches Gulf coast, threatening economy and environment
Coastal towns sit and wait as the oil spill from Deepwater Horizon creeps inexorably towards Louisiana. Ed Pilkington in Empire, Louisiana reports
Top stories p2
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Prince of Wales's health charity wound up in wake of fraud investigation
• Arrests prompt trustees to bring forward closure plan
• Critics welcome end of 'misleading' policy advice -
Peter Harvey dumbbell attack: CCTV shows students fleeing enraged teacher
Images show young people running away as teacher emerges with his fists clenched
UK news p4
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Suffolk drugs charity sees donations surge following BBC drama
Iceni featured in Five Daughters, which focused on the serial killing of young prostitutes and their battle with addiction
UK news p5
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Vegetarians gain more options for fine dining with 50% rise in foodie eateries
Veggie restaurants head upmarket as fashion for tofu takes off
UK news p8
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Vive the vegetarian revolution
Noma is proof that you can make a good lunch without slaughter – so why aren't there more great vegetarian restaurants?
UK news p9
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Pensioner cleared of killing wife of 50 years in failed suicide pact
Peter Cooper cleared of murdering his wife after she became mentally ill
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Ministers spend £61,000 on mugs and pens to promote database
Critics question why so much money was spent promoting controversial Contactpoint children's database
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Rupert Thorneloe was unlawfully killed in Afghanistan, inquest finds
Most senior British army officer to be killed since the Falklands war was trying to inspire his troops at time of blast, hearing told
UK news p11
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Cameron set on Afghanistan withdrawal in next parliament
Conservative leader eager for return of British troops to begin within next five years -
Car crash politics: Labour hunkers down for last week of campaigning
Labour's dismal week ends with car crash during Mandelson speech
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Car crash interrupts Labour campaign
Labour campaign's poster launch event was interrupted by a car crashing into a nearby bus shelter
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Profile: Sue Nye, the gatekeeper at Gordon Brown's side
Streak of Old Labour puritanism and severe Armani suits matched with shorthand note to silence Militant Tendency
Top stories p12
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Tony Blair's tan brings much-needed glow to Labour on the road
People he met might question his sincerity but none doubt the charisma of the former prime minister
Top stories p13
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Zoe Williams's armchair election: Strategies for coping with a Tory victory
Depressed at the prospect of David Cameron in No 10? Here are a few comforting thoughts
Top stories p15
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Battleground Bolton – 'We're more real about life up here'
Unease over immigration is palpable in the former Lancashire mill town – a good place to test the ripple effect of 'Bigotgate'
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Liberal Democrats trail far behind in number of women in top ranks
Top stories p16
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Headteachers could have pay docked if they boycott tests
Primary school governors told they can punish principals who refuse to fulfil 'professional and moral duty'
UK news p20
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Frankie Boyle criticises 'cowardly' BBC for Israel joke apology
BBC apologised for joke in which comedian compared Palestine to a cake being 'punched to pieces by a very angry Jew'
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Fulham fans crave more of Hodgson fairytale
UK news p21
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Simon Hoggart's week: hard times for Gordon the penitent pilgrim
The prime minister met his match in Gillian Duffy, one of a long line of formidable Rochdale women
UK news p22
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Teenager convicted of ultra rightwing terror plot
Nicky Davison, 19, was significant figure in group called Aryan Strike Force who said he would die fighting for cause
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Fingers crossed for England's tallest bridge
• 187-metre-high crossing for Wear wins approval
• Construction depends on securing funds after 6 May
UK news p23
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John McCain swings right in desperate bid for political survival
One-time moderate Arizona senator keeps step with the Tea Party and gets tough on illegal immigration
International p26
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China launches global TV news network
China Xinhua News Network Corp (CNC) will begin trial broadcasts of its English TV service on Saturday
International p27
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Taliban splinter group executes Pakistani spy turned jihadi
Asian Tigers faction dumps Khalid Khawaja's body in North Waziristan, raising fears over fate of two other hostages
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Zimbabwean offer to host North Korean World Cup squad backfires
Plan to host North Korean World Cup squad revives memories of country's role in 1980s mass killings of Zimbabweans
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Thai hospital evacuates patients after redshirts invade building
Anti-government protesters stormed in to hunt for security forces they suspected of being there
International p28
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Afghan feminists fighting from under the burqa
Feminists in Afghanistan are forced to operate as underground movement, often using the burqa as a convenient disguise
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Pakistani sisters sprayed with acid
Men on motorbikes attack three girls aged 14-20 in Kalat, south-west Pakistan
International p29
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Pioneering publisher reshapes Egypt's literary landscape
In Cairo, Mohamed Hashem's new wave of talent reflects urban change
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Goldstone family drawn into row over Gaza report
• War crimes jurist attacked for report critical of Israel
• Jewish groups threaten to disrupt bar mitzvah -
Tehran warns Israel against attack on Syria as arms tension mounts
Iranian vice-president declares solidarity with Damascus after Clinton intervenes in Middle East missile row
International p31
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Nick Clegg: 'I like to think it's a combination of novelty and substance'
Nick Clegg's rise to prominence has been the defining narrative of this election campaign. But is it him and his party people want, or simply an alternative – any alternative – to the other two?
Saturday p32
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Some people have God. I have Hubble
For 20 years, the space telescope has been sending us images of breathtaking beauty
Saturday p33
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The most hated lawyer in Britain
Stefan Cross has just won yet another huge payout for low-paid women – in Birmingham this time. Councils despise him. But why are unions also at war with the activist fighting for gender pay equality?
Saturday p34
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Can you hurt a chimp's feelings?
Video footage claiming to show chimps 'grieving' has sparked new debate over the ethical treatment of animals – but we should beware of jumping to conclusions
Saturday p35
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For Blair Peach, a little justice
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Bang goes the dream of real change. Is it them, or us?
Comment & debate p36
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General election 2010: The liberal moment has come
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Corrections and clarifications
MPs' expenses and David Winnick | Susanna Isaacs Elmhirst
Editorials & reply p38
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Social justice and public services on the line
Letters: Apparently, New Labour has "broken" Britain by giving us the minimum wage, more people in work, Sure Start, the winter fuel allowance, hugely expanded university education and a massive schools rebuilding programme -
Tories must clarify human rights policy
Letters: If the Conservatives wish to repeal the human rights act, it is incumbent on them to explain precisely what they would replace it with -
Cue the Milibands
Letters: If it results in the emergence of a new, dynamic leader, the Labour party will be better equipped to move forwards. -
Performance-related politics
Letters: Here we have the likelihood of a party being elected on the basis of its leader's performance in a highly contrived televisual event -
Army of God
Letters: Bishop Burns's comments on Afghanistan suggest he is more a follower of General McChrystal than Jesus Christ
Editorials & reply p39
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Barclays Capital's bonus and pay set at £1.4bn after strong first quarter
Barclays investment arm, BarCap, has set aside a bonus and pay pool of over £1.4bn after first-quarter profits of £1.8bn
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Goldman Sachs faces criminal investigation
Bank's shares tumble on Wall Street as federal prosecutors open preliminary case file on $1bn 'Abacus' deal
Financial p40
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Officeof Fair trading drops prosecutions into price-fixing of dairy products
Sainsbury's, Asda, Tesco and others agree to pay millions for breaking competition law, but watchdog has 'insufficient evidence' -
Greek rescue is a matter of national survival, says Papandreou
Greece's PM tells opponents of €120bn bailout that the stringent austerity measures are necessary for the 'protection of the country'
Financial p41
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Portuguese workers unite to resist austerity measures
Portugal's painful adjustment to the globalised economy is being played out in the country's battered industrial towns -
Bond traders who could decide Portugal's fate tell of a 'crazy, fun' week
The once conservative world of bond trading has been transformed by speculators enjoying an adrenaline high
Financial p43
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George Nissen obituary
Eccentric American gymnast and acrobat who invented the trampoline
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Letter: William Mayne obituary
Stephanie Nettell writes: As the interviewer who did in fact molest William Mayne's solitary peace (obituary, 6 April), I would be sad if his poker-faced, teasing humour were to be seen as curmudgeonly.
Obituaries p45
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Good to meet you … Bob Miller
A reader tells how his love of the Guardian was formed as a boy growing up around newspapers in his father's newsagents
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Sudoku 187 killer
Normal sudoku rules apply, except the numbers in the cells contained within dotted lines add up to the figures in the corner. No number can be repeated within each shape formed by dotted lines
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This week: Anjoum Noorani, Greece and John Bercow
Lucy Mangan on the people hitting the headlines this week