Author: staff

A long-running crisis of overstuffed jails and backlogged courts has reached a critical level. Hundreds of inmates are soon to be released from jail in Scotland as new legislation designed to relieve prison overcrowding comes into force.Nearly 400 prisoners will walk free over the next six weeks under the law, which makes some inmates serving sentences of less than four years eligible for release after 40% of their time has been served.However, prisoners serving time for domestic abuse and sexual offences will not be eligible.The Scottish Parliament passed the law last year to address what has become a chronic prison…

A new study has uncovered the “woody,” “spicy,” and “sweet” scents of ancient Egyptian mummies, shedding light on the mummification process and its evolution over time. Researchers from UCL and the University of Ljubljana have made history with a groundbreaking study, the first to systematically analyse the smells of mummified bodies. Using a combination of high-tech tools like an electronic ‘nose’ and trained human sniffers, they studied nine mummies on display and in storage at Cairo’s Egyptian Museum. The results, published in ‘Journal of the American Chemical Society’, offer a fresh perspective on ancient embalming materials and the way museums…

UniCredit offered to buy the second largest Italian bank Banco BPM for €10bn in late November last year. The acquisition was a counter offer by UniCredit after BPM’s bid to buy Anima for €1bn – to boost its asset management fee income amid falling interest rates. Italy’s largest bank, UniCredit, has said it will walk away from a takeover deal of Banco BPM SpA if the smaller rival persuades its shareholders to approve an increase in bid for Anima Holding SpA. “The acts on which BPM’s shareholders are being asked to resolve could conflict with the objectives of the public exchange offer announced…

Updated: 18/02/2025 – 10:54 GMT+1Mount Etna in Sicily has been active since 12 February, spewing ash and causing flights to Catania to be diverted. The authorities are calling for caution. … More Mount Etna in Sicily is active again. Its first eruption in 2025 occurred on 12 February and has intensified in recent days.Since Wednesday, lava flows have been erupting from the Bocca Nuova crater, slowly moving south-west while posing no immediate threat to the local population.However, the clouds of ash spewing into the atmosphere have forced Catania airport to divert several flights.While the snow-covered volcano is a fascinating sight,…

This is not the way EU politics is meant to be conducted, but the Paris format lays bare the severity of the geopolitical shock that is currently roiling the continent. The streamlined summitry is a sign that patience is running thin with the EU’s exasperating Council meetings, where countries often fail to agree on proposals, or water them down to near irrelevance. The task for those gathered in the Elysée Palace was to sketch out a plan for adapting to the brutal new realities of life without American protection. How can Europe help Ukraine win the best peace deal possible?…

Energy and manufacturing product prices also contributed to higher inflation in January, as France continues to deal with increased political upheaval. January’s annual inflation rate was up 1.7%, above market estimates of 1.4% and higher than December’s figure of 1.3%, according to official figures from INSEE.The increase was mainly by a rise in services prices, up 2.5% on the same time last year and 2.2% on December. Energy prices were also higher, jumping 2.7% last month, up from 1.2% in December. Similarly, there was a rebound in manufactured goods prices, although food prices were mostly stable. However, tobacco price rises slowed…

However, this scenario is still a far cry from complete Russian control over Ukraine, or a significant shift in Russia’s position in Europe. It feels like a more temporary solution than Moscow would like — or, as most influential Kremlin foreign policy practitioners admit, it’s no Yalta. But the truth is, this deal isn’t really meant to lead to sustainable peace — that was never the goal. Trump may believe in his second American revolution, but his interlocutors in Moscow don’t. They’re far more convinced of the deep state’s indestructibility than any conspiracy theorist in the U.S. And they believe…

The researchers polled 2,050 adults between Jan. 8 and 10, with the figures weighted to ensure they are representative. The findings come as the right-wing Reform challenges Keir Starmer’s incumbent Labour government in the polls and amid a live debate about deepening British involvement in Ukraine. Trump is pushing ahead with peace talks with Russia after years of conflict and has heavily signaled reduced American involvement in European security. The research shows that Reform voters’ views on foreign policy are nuanced. “Reform voters are concerned about China, supportive of higher defence spending, and believe in the efficacy of the AUKUS…

– Offensiv zurückhaltend, aber auch offensiv fordernd: Wie Friedrich Merz sich und die Union auf mögliche kommende Koalitionsgespräche vorbereitet und dabei Robert Habeck vorab teilweise eine Absage erteilt. Das gesamte Gespräch von Gordon Repinski mit Friedrich Merz erscheint am heutigen Dienstag um 12 Uhr in voller Länge. – Im 200-Sekunden-Interview: Der ukrainische Botschafter in Deutschland, Oleksij Makejew zu den amerikanisch-russischen Vorgesprächen über einen Frieden in der Ukraine ohne die EU und das Land selbst. – Rixa Fürsen von POLITICO ordnet das Treffen des US-Außenministers und seines russischen Amtskollegen in Riad heute ein. Sie erklärt, welche europäischen Befürchtungen sich bestätigen könnten…

Habeck accused Musk and other U.S. tech giants of pushing a hypocritical vision of “free speech” while keeping their business models and algorithms as tightly guarded as “state secrets.” “They must be regulated,” Habeck said. “If necessary, regulated in a way that aligns with our values.” But Habeck said European regulation isn’t up to the task.  “Why don’t we have a German or European communication platform of our own?” he asked. “We cannot be dependent on Chinese algorithms or Elon Musk’s far-right fantasies when it comes to shaping our democracy.”  Habeck called for Europe to take back control of its…