Author: staff
LONDON — Trust in the United States among Britons has dropped sharply over the past 12 months, according to new public opinion research released Thursday. The latest annual survey by think tank the British Foreign Policy Group (BFPG) found that the proportion of Brits who say they trust America to act responsibly in the world has dropped from 53 percent in 2024 to just 38 percent in 2025. Some 41 percent of Brits overall said they now distrust the U.S., compared to 26 percent in 2024. The stark changes follow a tumultuous year in American politics, including the return of…
The prime minister has suspended four Labour MPs for “persistent breaches of discipline” as the fallout from the welfare reforms continues. Sky News’ Sam Coates and Politico’s Anne McElvoy discuss who they are, why now and what was the point, as the government attempts to restore order on the backbenches. Sir Keir Starmer also welcomes German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to London in the hope of signing a wide-ranging bilateral cooperation treaty. Plus, the PM’s missions are back on the agenda as he makes a speech at the first Civil Society Summit.
The blaze erupted on the main stage, sending thick smoke across nearby woodland. While the cause remains unclear, technical teams on-site were safely evacuated and no injuries were reported. The fire has cast uncertainty over the weekend’s headline performances, but organisers say preparations continue. Local authorities advised residents to stay indoors due to the smoke. DreamVille, the festival campsite, is expected to open as planned. Despite the setback, the Tomorrowland team remains determined to deliver the show. Tomorrowland, held each July in Boom, Belgium, is one of the world’s biggest and most iconic electronic music festivals, known for its massive…
The Commission, among other items, presented three new taxes targeting electric waste, tobacco products and high-turnover companies to repay the post-Covid debt, which is estimated to cost €25 to €30 billion per year. “We also do not support the additional taxation of companies proposed by the EU Commission,” Kornelius said in Berlin. “We must maintain the Commission’s reform approach and the budget’s focus on new priorities. This course is the right one to make Europe strong for the future,” he added. Merz has repeatedly emphasized that, from Berlin’s point of view, EU spending must become more efficient instead of increasing…
The Bank of England faces a dilemma at its meeting next month: inflation is accelerating again but the labor market is showing increasingly clear signs that the economy needs support. New data from the Office for National Statistics Thursday showed the unemployment rate rose to 4.7 percent of the workforce in May, while the number of people claiming unemployment benefits rose by nearly 26,000 in June. There was also a further slowdown in the pace of wage growth, which the BoE has seen as one of the main factors stopping it from cutting interest rates more aggressively. Average wages excluding…
DESNZ research released earlier this year found homes dependent on electricity for heating had the highest rate of fuel poverty, at just over 20 percent, but the vast majority of homes still depend on gas. “It is a significant political risk of the policy, as designed, that it will help a small demographic, and that by choosing that over, say, broader rebalancing [of green levies on all bills] they have chosen risk of that accusation over fiscal risk,” the industry figure said. Ministers are considering other policies ahead of October to incentivize a shift towards cleaner tech. That includes year-on-year…
When a senior EU delegation travelled to the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi last Tuesday, they were hoping to discuss ways to limit the increasing numbers of migrants leaving Libya heading north to Europe.However, shortly after their jet touched down at Benghazi Airport, the cluster of EU foreign ministers – as well as European Commissioner for Migration Magnus Brunner – were sent packing. There was no agreement, not even a meeting. They were unceremoniously kicked out and declared “personae non gratae,” a source on the European side told Euronews at the time, adding that the delegation was caught in a…
Defense boost, but no army Iceland, as the only NATO member with no army but with a strategically important location in the North Atlantic, occupies a unique position in the alliance, especially as U.S. President Donald Trump pressures members to bump up their military spending. While there are “no current plans” to build up a standing army, Iceland is “very serious on strengthening our defense cooperation,” said Gunnarsdóttir, who is also responsible for the country’s new defense strategy. She added that Iceland, which currently hosts NATO exercises and provides infrastructure and other support, wants to “be a respected and reliable ally,…
The European Parliament’s members are deeply unsatisfied with the proposal for a seven-year budget, the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) put forward by the European Commission on Wednesday and have threatened at the outset not to enter into negotiations on the paper.The level of information provided by Budget Commissioner Piotr Serafin in a briefing to MEPs from the Parliament’s Committee on Budgets (BUDG) on Wednesday was deemed unsatisfactory by most. “Commission President’s Ursula von der Leyen is giving a press conference and she is giving to the press more information than you to us,” lamented Belgian MEP Johan Van Overtveldt, the committee’s chair.Some…
Die Richterwahl-Krise ist zur CDU-internen Machtfrage geworden: Jens Spahn taumelt nach dem Desaster – und plötzlich rückt Carsten Linnemann ins Zentrum der Spekulationen. Ist der Generalsekretär bereit für mehr? Oder bleibt die Union beim angeschlagenen Fraktionschef? Gordon Repinski analysiert das. Im 200-Sekunden-Interview erklärt Katharina Beck (Grüne), warum Lars Klingbeils Reise zum G20-Finanzgipfel in Durban trotz fehlender US-Beteiligung sinnvoll ist – und wie Europa wirtschaftlich unabhängiger werden kann. Sie fordert konkrete Fortschritte bei Kapitalmarktunion und Handelsabkommen. Und: Während Klingbeil in Südafrika auf Distanz zur Berliner Tagespolitik geht, bereitet sich Friedrich Merz auf seine Sommer-Pressekonferenz vor. Das Berlin Playbook als Podcast gibt…