Author: staff

Bally Philp hauls up his baited traps from the waters off Scotland’s Isle of Skye, checking each one methodically. Unlike most of Scotland’s coastline, these waters are protected from industrial fishing methods that have devastated seabeds elsewhere. But Philp, who’s fished for more than three decades, has watched conditions deteriorate nearly everywhere else along the coast. “The inshore archipelagos on the West Coast of Scotland used to be full of fish,” Philp said. “We have no commercial quantities of fish left inshore at all.” While 37 per cent of Scotland’s waters have been designated as marine protected areas, only a…

That maneuver, Article 49.3 of the constitution, allows the government to ram through legislation without a vote but in turn gives opposition lawmakers the opportunity to respond by putting forward a no-confidence vote. Lecornu triggered that measure on Tuesday to pass the part of the budget that concerns raising revenue. He is expected to use it again Friday to pass the final part of the budget concerning government expenditures. Lecornu had been expected to survive, as the political extremes do not have enough lawmakers among themselves to bring down the government. The more centrist Socialists, who have played a kingmaker…

Published on 23/01/2026 – 12:41 GMT+1 South Korea placed overseas travel bans on three people as part of an investigation into alleged drone flights over North Korea that have deepened animosities between the two countries, authorities in Seoul said on Friday. North Korea threatened retaliation earlier this month after accusing South Korea of launching a surveillance drone flight in September and again in January. The South Korean government denied operating any drones during the times specified by North Korea and began probing if civilians sent them. The three civilians put under travel bans include a man with the surname Oh…

The UK has been warned that the collapse of global ecosystems is a direct threat to national security and prosperity. A new report from the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) – which is understood to have involved MI5 and MI6 – found that the world is already experiencing the impacts of biodiversity loss. This includes crop failures, intensified natural disasters and infectious disease outbreaks. However, without “major intervention”, the report warns that these threats will increase with environmental degradation – and they risk bleeding into geopolitical instability, economic insecurity, conflict, migration and increased competition for resources.…

The image-generating feature of Grok went viral just before the end of 2025, particularly due to its ability to undress people. The platform took some steps to restrict the feature on Jan. 9 and again on Jan. 14. The European Commission, in charge of implementing the Digital Services Act covering large platforms like X, as well as the EU’s AI law, is considering which tool to wield. A fresh probe into Grok under the powerful social media regulation is in the works. X has already been fined and is being investigated on several fronts by the Commission. The EU is…

Published on 23/01/2026 – 11:33 GMT+1 At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Elon Musk mocked US President Donald Trump’s newly founded Board of Peace with a play on words, calling the US President’s controversial project into question. “I heard about the formation of the peace summit, and I was like, is that p-i-e-c-e? You know, a little piece of Greenland, a little piece of Venezuela,” he said, laughing during his address to the forum. “All we want is peace,” he added to quiet chuckles from the audience. Musk and Trump have had a visibly chequered relationship since 2025, from…

“Stevenage woman” became pollsters’ shorthand for mothers based in towns and suburbs at the last election, who were seen as crucial to Labour’s 2024 general election victory. Farage might “just be a stooge” for Trump, Lauren, a mental health support worker, said. “He might just be [Trump’s] whipping boy. That kind of concerns me,” the 54-year-old added. Jane, a 51-year-old stay-at-home mum of three, said: “There’s no one who will actually stand up to him. Trump would say, ‘do this, do that,’ and Nigel would be like ‘yep, yep.’” When asked to pinpoint the greatest threat to the U.K., Rachel,…

Published on 22/01/2026 – 22:10 GMT+1 This year, the world’s biggest conference revolved around one man. And he kept the world waiting. An electrical fault forced presidential Air Force One to make a U-turn mid-flight. But once he finally landed, his pull did not just change the mood; it changed the schedule. Hundreds of CEOs and leaders reshuffled their agendas, prioritising access over the official programme. US President Donald Trump is now accompanied by a record-breaking delegation: five cabinet secretaries, senior advisers and additional staff, constituting the largest American contingent in the event’s history. And the security matches. 5,000 Swiss…

Updated: 23/01/2026 – 7:00 GMT+1 Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond this January 23rd, 2026 – latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel. … More

BRUSSELS ― There’s no turning back now. That was the message from European leaders who gathered in Brussels on Thursday. And even though this emergency summit, called in response to Donald Trump’s threats to seize Greenland, turned into something far less dramatic because the U.S. president backed down 24 hours earlier, the quiet realization that Europe’s post-1945 rubicon had been crossed was, if anything, all the more striking for it. French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the EU’s two most powerful leaders, who haven’t seen eye-to-eye of late, were united in warning that the transatlantic crisis had…