Author: staff

Homes and cars were submerged in floodwaters in the English county of Somerset on Wednesday, after Storm Chandra brought heavy rain to the UK. Aerial footage captured by Sky News showed houses, paddocks and vehicles engulfed by flooding. A major incident was declared in Somerset where several dozen properties were hit by floods. Somerset Council said that around 50 properties were impacted by the flooding throughout Ilminster, West Coker, Taunton, Mudford and West Camel. Authorities warned the poor weather could impact journeys until Friday across England, Scotland and Wales.

The opposition zeroed in on that same weakness last year after an energy blackout hit the country for several hours in April. Much of the latest criticism has been aimed at Transport Minister Óscar Puente, who has been the government’s frontman on the Adamuz crash. A divisive figure, nicknamed “Sánchez’s Rottweiler,” he is a natural lightning rod for opposition ire. In the immediate aftermath of the accident, Puente insisted it hadn’t been caused by poor maintenance, obsolete infrastructure or a lack of investment. But the opposition is demanding his resignation, claiming he misled the public by suggesting that the whole…

Published on 29/01/2026 – 9:05 GMT+1 UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday in the first visit by a British leader to China in nearly a decade, as both countries seek to improve relations strained by espionage allegations, disagreements over Hong Kong and Beijing’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine. Starmer thanked Xi for hosting his delegation at the Great Hall of the People, where the two countries are expected to sign several agreements. “It’s with the British people in mind that I am here today,” Starmer said at the start of the…

As Dutch lawmakers in the parliament’s digital affairs committee met Tuesday to debate the issue, they received a petition signed by 140,000 people calling on the government to block the acquisition. “If the Dutch government does something that [U.S. President Donald] Trump doesn’t like, he can shut down our government with one push of a button,” the petition reads. “That’s a big danger.”  The debate over DigiD has put the spotlight on a topic that has been simmering for a while.  With the Netherlands a long-time proponent of the transatlantic relationship, Dutch society is built on U.S. technology and IT…

Published on 29/01/2026 – 7:41 GMT+1 •Updated 8:03 The EU’s 27 foreign affairs ministers are in town – with Iran high on the agenda. After thousands were killed in the regime’s recent crackdown on protestors, EU ministers are expected to approve fresh sanctions, while Iran is on high alert for a possible US attack as Trump ramps up pressure on Tehran to strike a deal on its nuclear program. From the European Council, our EU correspondent Shona Murray fills us in. One of those 27 foreign affairs minister in Brussels today is Xavier Bettel. He led Luxembourg for ten years…

New footage emerged that reveal Alex Pretti had been in an altercation with federal agents during a Minneapolis protest 11 days before he was fatally shot by Border Patrol officers. In a video filmed on 13 January and shared by media outlet The News Movement, the 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse can be seen shouting, along with other observers, at a vehicle of federal officers. When the agents began to drive away, Pretti kicked out the car’s tail light, prompting an agent to get out and forcefully pin him to the ground. Several more agents join in, while other masked…

But in remarks at the start of their meeting in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, both men avoided difficult issues and heaped praise on each other’s countries. After years of chilled relations under Conservative U.K. governments, Starmer said: “China is a vital player on the global stage and it is vital to build a more sophisticated relationship, where we can identify opportunities to collaborate, but also to allow meaningful dialogue on areas where we disagree.” Communist leader Xi, speaking through an interpreter, singled out Britain’s Labour Party, saying it had in the past “made important contributions to the growth…

Published on 29/01/2026 – 7:00 GMT+1 Every autumn, millions of monarch butterflies embark on a treacherous journey – flying more than 3,000 km from Canadian fields all the way to Mexico’s mountain forests for the winter. It’s a migration that attracts swathes of tourists, as crowds gather across America to marvel at the distinctively orange insects filling the sky. At the end of winter, these butterflies fly north to the US where they lay eggs on milkweed plants. For years, the monarch butterfly has shown resilience amid the growing threat of climate change. Despite being the size of a large…

Das Berlin Playbook als Podcast gibt es morgens um 5 Uhr. Gordon Repinski und das POLITICO-Team bringen euch jeden Morgen auf den neuesten Stand in Sachen Politik — kompakt, europäisch, hintergründig. Und für alle Hauptstadt-Profis:Unser Berlin Playbook-Newsletter liefert jeden Morgen die wichtigsten Themen und Einordnungen. Hier gibt es alle Informationen und das kostenlose Playbook-Abo. Mehr von Berlin Playbook-Host und Executive Editor von POLITICO in Deutschland, Gordon Repinski, gibt es auch hier:  Instagram: @gordon.repinski | X: @GordonRepinski. POLITICO Deutschland – ein Angebot der Axel Springer Deutschland GmbHAxel-Springer-Straße 65, 10888 BerlinTel: +49 (30) 2591 0[email protected]Sitz: Amtsgericht Berlin-Charlottenburg, HRB 196159 BUSt-IdNr: DE 214 852 390Geschäftsführer:…

She added Russia’s insistence on getting all of Donbas is merely a stalling tactic. “It’s a sort of a game from the Russian side where they agree to talk about a supposed peace settlement, while meaning something completely different,” said Stanovaya. “They can talk about the subject for hours, but it has nothing to do with reality.” Meanwhile, on the Ukrainian side, it’s not clear that, even if Zelenskyy were prepared to give up Donbas, he could push such an agreement through the political process. The Ukrainian president has floated the idea of staging a referendum on the issue, or…