Author: staff
Could the next 12 months mould a new type of British politics, or could it break the entire system? Sam and Anne make their predictions and get into the political meat and potatoes of 2026, focusing on: Will all the party leaders will still be in post? Could the local elections force a seismic change in UK politics? Does Britain still have a role in Europe and around the globe? Politics at Sam and Anne’s returns for daily service on Monday 5 January.
Mark your diaries — POLITICO has all the dates in a year of make-or-break elections, a closer U.K.-EU relationship and laws on migration control that Keir Starmer hopes will save his premiership. It’ll be a wild ride. Dec 19 15 mins read
Despite an ongoing cost-of-living crisis and tighter purse strings, Europeans are raring to hit ski slopes this winter. At the same time, they’re on the lookout for great deals and ways to avoid the crowds while on holiday. While iconic ski destinations like St. Anton and Courchevel are still very popular, they have also become a lot more expensive and crowded over the years. New research by ski tour operator, Ski Solutions, shows that this has led to the rise of niche ski destination dupes like Gastein and Cervinia recently, especially as avoiding holiday crowds and saving money take priority…
However, Danish law guarantees citizens have the right to send and receive physical letters. So, with PostNord no longer offering the service, shipping and distribution company Dao will be stepping in. From January on, Danes wishing to send letters at home or abroad will have to hand them in at the private company’s shops — which already processed 30 million missives this year — and affix them with its corporate stamps. Dao said it’s “excited” to provide the service, for which the company is set to receive 110 million krone (€14.7 million) in government subsidies. And in a post on…
The United States has spent years tightening sanctions on Venezuela, attempting to choke off the oil revenues that sustain President Nicolás Maduro’s government. Washington has imposed sweeping restrictions on Venezuela’s state oil industry, threatened to seize or block tankers carrying the South American country’s distinctive heavy crude and warned companies around the world against doing business with Caracas. In early December, the US seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, the first such seizure tied to Venezuelan oil under the current pressure campaign. The vessel involved, widely reported as the Skipper, added a geopolitical risk premium to…
This year, artificial intelligence (AI) helped push the robotics world further, creating machines that can perform increasingly complex tasks. Machines even got their own sporting championship in 2025 with the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing. Robots from 16 countries, including Germany and Italy, competed in sports such as football, running, and boxing, showing how close they have come to replicating human movement. The teams took part in the 4×100 metres relay finals. The winning team was the Chinese manufacturer Unitree Robotics, completing the race in one minute and 48 seconds. “We participated in these games not (just) to win…
It’s a stalemate that has frozen the revival. “Those that could act don’t want to — and those that want to don’t have the means,” said railway expert Jon Worth. “Try booking a night train months ahead. You can’t. Demand is through the roof. But customer demand doesn’t drive railway behavior.” What does drive it are balance sheets — and most night services lose money. By definition, sleeper trains can run only once per night per trainset, need extra staff on board, and require rolling stock that is highly specific and very expensive. “A coach costs around €2 million, that’s…
By Eleanor Butler & Camille Simonet & Hannah Brown Published on 29/12/2025 – 6:47 GMT+1 Consolidation between European telecom firms is vital to allow companies to compete with larger foreign rivals, said Orange CEO Christel Heydemann. “The reality is that we’ve probably reached the limit of just looking at prices for consumers. We really need to take into account the ability of companies to invest in a world that’s moving very fast,” she told The Big Question. Heydemann was responding to claims that a potential takeover of rival firm SFR could result in reduced competition in the French market and higher prices for…
Prime Minister Albin Kurti says he’ll look to form a government quickly after his party won around half the votes in Sunday’s parliamentary vote, according to preliminary results. Listen AI generated Text-to-speech
Wer regiert die Welt – und was treibt sie an? In unserem regelmäßigen Machthaber-Spezial geht es um die mächtigsten und umstrittensten Politikerinnen und Politiker unserer Zeit. Wir zeigen, wie sie denken, entscheiden – und was das für uns bedeutet. Eine Politikerin oder Politiker, alle zwei Wochen, ein Blick hinter die Kulissen der Macht. Die nächste Folge hört ihr am Dienstag, 30.12.2025. Dann mit einem Porträt der dänischen Ministerpräsidentin Mette Frederiksen. Das Berlin Playbook als Podcast gibt es jeden Morgen ab 5 Uhr. Gordon Repinski und das POLITICO-Team liefern Politik zum Hören – kompakt, international, hintergründig. Für alle Hauptstadt-Profis: Der Berlin…