Author: staff
In 2024, there were 23.2 million primary school students in the European Union, a figure virtually unchanged from the previous year, but the underlying trend has shifted over the past decade: today there are fewer students per teacher than in 2014. The latest Eurostat data, released to coincide with International Literacy Day, confirm this and not only set out enrolment numbers but also detail how many teachers are in Europe’s classrooms, who they are, and what types of schools they work in. France remains by far the country with the most primary school children: 4.1 million in 2024. It is…
King Harald V’s coffin leaves the Royal Palace in Oslo on Wednesday, 9 September, as a funeral procession makes its way to Oslo Cathedral. King Haakon VIII walks behind the coffin and salutes the troops, followed by senior members of the royal family. Harald died on 28 August aged 89, after 35 years on the throne. His son Haakon succeeded him as king and leads the royal family at the funeral, joined by foreign royals, political leaders and other dignitaries. The ceremony marks the final farewell to a monarch who modernised Norway’s royal house but chose to remain on the…
Published on 10/09/2026 – 16:36 GMT+2 A 31-year-old man from Swindon, in the south of England, has appeared in a London court accused of passing information about drone factories to people linked to Russian military intelligence. Joshua Cammidge was charged this week with two offences under Britain’s National Security Act: helping a foreign intelligence service, and preparing to commit sabotage. In plain terms, prosecutors say he shared screenshots from Google Maps pinpointing one drone factory and four other drone-manufacturing sites in his hometown, and that he offered to carry out an act of sabotage himself. He is also accused of…
Published on 10/09/2026 – 7:43 GMT+2•Updated 8:44 During a long speech at a Republican convention in Dallas, Texas, Donald Trump sought to revitalise his conservative base, defending the unpopular war in Iran while trying to keep control of Congress in the November midterm elections by promising cash to every adult. Trump strongly defended the Iran war, predicting victory and linking it directly to lower oil prices — before suggesting the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz should be renamed after him. “Food prices and almost every other item are rapidly going down. And by the way, oil will be going down…
A recent Opinium poll carried by the website Guido Fawkes which highlighted Londoners would rather have an entrepreneur than an ex-minister as mayor did not state the poll was commissioned by London mayoral hopeful Festus Akinbusoye. While this information was included in an Evening Standard write-up of the poll, it was only published belatedly by Opinium. A spokesperson for Opinium said: “We take our responsibilities as a member of the British Polling Council seriously and are committed to meeting the requirements that apply when polling enters the public domain.” They added they had rectified the way the tables were labeled, which they…
Published on 10/09/2026 – 22:12 GMT+2 NATO allies have caught Russian submarines training to carry out undersea cable sabotage using a secret weapon that leaves no trace, Reuters has reported citing two Western officials. This clandestine Russian operation was carried out by the highly secret GUGI, the Russian undersea warfare directorate, in Arctic waters near Norway’s Svalbard territories. Britain said it had tracked and deterred three Russian submarines on an alleged month-long “covert operation” near vital undersea cables and pipelines connecting the Norwegian archipelago. Following Euronews reporting on the operation that was announced in April, the discovery of the weapon,…
Aerial footage shows a large sinkhole where the driveway of a Malibu mansion once stood, after coastal erosion linked to the remnants of Hurricane Marie. The collapse opened a gaping hole in front of the property, which entertainment outlets say belongs to actor Nicolas Cage. The driveway gave way on Tuesday morning, triggering a gas leak just before 6 a.m. SoCalGas said crews brought the leak under control hours later but shut off supply along an 85-foot stretch of the street as a precaution. Malibu officials barred access to five homes on the road while engineers assessed the damage. Storm-driven…
Portugal’s automotive sector has seen a strong recovery, with sales accelerating in August and 17,209 motor vehicles registered, 11.3% more than in the same month in 2025. According to data released by ACAP – Associação Automóvel de Portugal, between January and August 2026 a total of 197,632 new vehicles were put on the road, representing growth of 10.3% compared with the same period a year earlier. Up to August, registrations of light passenger vehicles totalled 169,323 units, a rise of 9.5% on the same period in 2025. In monthly terms, 14,086 new light passenger cars were registered, 8.4% more than…
Tusk did not provide any further details about the nature of the threat or which of the 18 border crossings between Poland and Ukraine was affected. The prime minister added that the incident was just a taste of what is to come and noted he had received a “fairly precise report” from the CIA regarding possible events in the coming months. “We must anticipate various scenarios; both Poland and all of Europe need to be prepared for different possibilities concerning the situation not only on the Russian-Ukrainian front but also along the EU’s eastern flank.” The incident at the border…
Spain’s parliament backed a law on Thursday granting citizenship to tens of thousands of Western Saharans who were born when Spain ran the disputed territory, which is now largely controlled by Morocco. The text grants Spanish nationality to Sahrawis born before 29 September 1977 and to their children through a certificate of naturalisation, considering that date the effective end of decolonisation. This also applies to those who do not legally reside in Spain. Although the exact number of beneficiaries is unknown, around 80,000 Sahrawis are believed to be eligible, with some estimates reaching almost 200,000 including the descendants. The law…