The author and academic explains how an open, questioning mindset can bring people with opposing views closer together – and even change history

Asking a question can change your mood, and having a questioning mindset can change your life – or, as the philosopher Lani Watson, an honorary fellow at the University of Edinburgh, is more likely to put it, “create change in your life”. When you live in an answer-oriented world, your phrasing tends towards the glib certainty, which is one of the things Watson – speaking to me from her home in Edinburgh – seems quite naturally to avoid.

Questioning fosters exploration and curiosity, she says. It changes your relationship to yourself and to others: it can make you fall in love; it can stop you going to war. Watson’s challenging book, Q: The Hidden Power of Questions in a World that Wants Answers, is written with a deceptive simplicity and an almost kindly encouragement, so you’re knee-deep into her proposition before you have even considered that it might turn out to be quite hard work.

From a new high-speed line to better intercity links, the PM has a chance to tackle problems he criticised as Manchester mayor

For passenger rail travel, the north of England was the future, once. But since that first train from Darlington to Stockton in 1825, many have felt short-changed. As one angry passenger put it, 200 years later: “What is it about the rail industry which makes them think they can treat passengers in the north as second-class citizens?”

That complaint came from the former mayor of Greater Manchester, who frequently set out a different vision for the train services he would like. Now that Andy Burnham is in No 10, he has the opportunity to win those battles – or perhaps see them a little differently. For now, what unresolved issues could the railway expect to be pursued with greater urgency?

A crackdown on time wasting, a record number of new people in charge, and some new faces on Match of the Day

The 2026-27 Premier League season kicks off on Friday and while the familiar rivalries return, the English top flight has some alterations this campaign. From evolved rules to new faces and broadcast changes, there is plenty to catch up on before a ball is kicked.

Marco Rose – Bournemouth

Xabi Alonso – Chelsea

Pierre Sage – Crystal Palace

Álvaro Arbeloa – Fulham

Gary O’Neil - Ipswich Town

Andoni Iraola – Liverpool

Enzo Maresca- Manchester City

Matthias Jaissle – Newcastle

Oliver Glasner – Nottingham Forest

With plentiful jobs and community support, one Mexico City neighbourhood has become a haven for those who have lived much of their lives in the US

With its wide avenues lined with tall palm trees, its quaint cafes and old-school cantinas, as well as the mix of English and Spanish spoken on the street, the Tabacalera neighborhood in downtown Mexico City has a certain US feel – so much so that it is has become known as Little LA.

The nickname is about more than appearances, however. In recent years, this corner of the metropolis has become a haven for many Mexicans deported from the US, particularly those who spent years or decades living across the border and for whom Mexico feels like a foreign country. In Little LA, they have found a more familiar place to belong.

As the couple plans their return to the UK, Montecito’s whirlwind stint on the global stage may be coming to an end

The bucolic coastal California town of Montecito was thrust into the limelight six years ago as the backdrop for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s second act following an acrimonious split from Buckingham Palace.

But as the couple plans their return to the United Kingdom, Montecito’s whirlwind stint on the global stage may be coming to an end.

The essence of cycling is to keep moving, but London’s chaotic roads often make this difficult. My solution: fewer, not more rules

I plead guilty. I have loved and used the streets of London all my life, as a cyclist, driver and pedestrian. Touch wood, I have done so without accident, blemish or insurance claim. Yet now I find myself perpetually on the wrong side of the law. Regulation has become bureaucratic and chaotic.

When I try to drive at the authorised speed of 20mph on many through roads, I am hooted at and overtaken by vans, cars, coaches and buses. And when I sit dutifully on my bike at a traffic light, I am jostled by swarms of cyclists riding through on red, furious at being treated as if they were car drivers.

Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnist

Exclusive: Planning documents show datacentre in North Ockendon would be incompatible with UK net zero targets

A “hyperscale” datacentre in outer London would generate more than 1m tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, equivalent to the carbon footprint of 27,000 flights from London to New York, planning documents show.

The East Havering Data Centre Campus (EHDCC) in North Ockendon would be one of the largest datacentres in Europe if approved by Havering council, using 218 hectares of green belt to run servers and data storage systems for AI and cloud computing. Its developer, Digital Reef, has described the scheme as “a unique opportunity to create a sustainable datacentre campus of the future”.

July data shows total public debt was £2.98tn, or 94% of GDP – up £96bn on a year earlier

• Business live – latest updates

The UK government ran a larger-than-expected £1.8bn deficit in July, underlining the challenges facing the chancellor, John Healey, as he draws up his first budget.

City economists had expected a shortfall of zero for July, a month when Treasury receipts tend to be swollen by self-assessment income tax payments.

• Biennial tournament could launch as early as 2028

• Confederations are seeking to oust Gianni Infantino

Uefa and Concacaf have begun talks about setting up a combined Nations League tournament featuring all 96 European and North and Central American and Caribbean countries, in another direct challenge to Fifa.

The Guardian has learned that having come together to push for Gianni Infantino’s removal in the light of the World Cup sell-off controversy, the two confederations are now working on creating their own biennial tournament, which could launch as early as 2028 after the next European Championship.

Head of foreign affairs select committee urges government to adopt ban amid rising settler violence, after foreign secretary rebukes Israel over construction tender

Members of the public could see actors dressed as armed police and simulated emergencies at the Houses of Parliament when filming takes place this weekend.

Production company Bad Wolf, behind shows including Doctor Who, His Dark Materials and Industry, will be filming at locations around the parliamentary estate and on the River Thames on 22 August and 23.

A licensed film production is taking place on and around parts of the parliamentary estate over the weekend.

Members of the public may see actors portraying armed police officers, specialist vehicles and simulated incidents as part of the filming.

The international community have agreed that the Palestinians are going nowhere, the Israelis are going nowhere.

There need to be two territories, two countries, so that they can live side-by-side, and what’s known as the West Bank is the part that the international community have pretty much unanimously agreed is the area that should be for the Palestinians.

A year ago my committee said that we should stop allowing the sale of goods from the West Bank in Britain and the government is yet to do anything about that.

We must acknowledge that this is occupied Palestinian land, and while the occupation continues, then goods that come from businesses that are benefiting from an illegal occupation of Palestinian land should not be bought in Britain. It’s not too much to ask.