Author: staff
The Government announces the “Reed Reforms” to fix Britain’s water system, but will it make a difference? Sky News’ Sam Coates and Politico’s Anne McElvoy consider if customers’ bills will go down and what practical changes will be made. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer meets with two world leaders later this week ahead of the parliamentary summer recess. Plus, we hear about an unexpected visitor in the Coates household.
Some warn that unless clearly allocated, money will inevitably flow to industrial projects that fit with the Commission’s competitiveness agenda, leaving unprofitable but no-less-urgent environmental programs unfunded. “[There’s a] real danger that biodiversity will be sidelined in favour of industrial priorities that may be presented as green investments,” said Ester Asin, director of the WWF European Policy Office. The EU is already facing an estimated €37 billion annual biodiversity funding gap, according to the Commission. In the proposed new budget structure, Europe’s existing €5.45 billion environmental funding program, known as LIFE, would merge with other funds dedicated to digitalization and…
Beyond the raw totals, the Commission’s plans also indicate whom Brussels trusts to handle sensitive tasks. Germany, Greece and Spain top the allocations for migration, security and border management, with €4.1 billion, €3.5 billion and €3 billion respectively. Poland, with €1.9 billion, is the top recipient in Eastern Europe. Concerns are mounting, meanwhile, over the plan to integrate agricultural funds into broader national programs. The proposed budget sees agriculture spending shrink nominally by over 20 percent, from €386.6 billion in the current budget to €300 billion in the next, prompting farmers’ groups across Europe to denounce the new structure as…
“Civil society and patient organisations signed agreements with the Commission in good faith, planned their activities accordingly, and have now been left without the operating support on which they rely,” the MEPs wrote. Several health NGOs have already made staff redundant due to the lack of expected funds. The Commission’s failure to agree on its 2026 work program and subsequent withholding of grants threatens Europe’s “democratic integrity,” the letter continued. “If these key stakeholders, the very voice of patients, citizens, and public health advocates, are weakened or silenced in Brussels, private commercial interests will fill the vacuum.” POLITICO contacted the…
Wird Friedrich Merz ein echter Reformkanzler? In Berlin verdichten sich die Hinweise auf eine „Agenda 2030“ – mit möglichen Einschnitten bei Sozialbeiträgen, Bürgergeld und Gesundheitskosten. Doch kann ein CDU-Kanzler das durchsetzen – mit einer SPD, die sich gerade vom Schröder-Erbe distanziert? Rasmus Buchsteiner ordnet ein, wie realistisch das Reformversprechen wirklich ist .Im 200-Sekunden-Interview fordert Manuel Hagel, CDU-Fraktionschef in Baden-Württemberg, ein neues Leistungsdenken und Anreize für Ältere – ohne Tabubruch beim Renteneintrittsalter. Warum ausgerechnet die Mütterrente aus Bayern für Stirnrunzeln sorgt, erklärt er im Gespräch. Und: Das ARD-Sommerinterview mit Alice Weidel wird durch eine Störaktion zur Steilvorlage für die AfD. Gordon…
By Euronews with AP Published on 21/07/2025 – 5:19 GMT+2 Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s ruling coalition failed on Monday to secure a majority in the country’s 248-seat upper house in a crucial parliamentary election, public broadcaster NHK reported. Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior partner Komeito needed to win 50 seats in addition to the 76 they already held to maintain control. WIth only one seat still to be decided, the coalition had secured just 47. The result deals a blow to Ishiba’s government. The coalition is now a minority in both houses of Japanese parliament following its October lower…
Voters have “clear limits” on backing climate policies, the More in Common analysis argued, and would not support “significantly higher bills or taxes” to fund the green transition. The Labour government’s failure to bring energy bills under control, after promising before the election to cut them by up to £300 a year, has landed them in trouble. The Lib Dems are trying to reassure nervous voters. Party leader Ed Davey recently unveiled plans to break the link between gas prices and electricity costs. | Adam Vaughan/EPA Party leader Ed Davey recently unveiled plans to break the link between gas prices and…
That followed the deaths of at least 32 people on Saturday as witnesses said Israeli troops shot at Palestinians seeking food from distribution outlets run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The group is backed by the U.S. and Israel and has led humanitarian efforts in Gaza since May, but according to the United Nations human rights office, 674 people have been killed near its distribution sites as of July 13. Pope Leo XIV added his voice to the outcry on Sunday, saying after a prayer ceremony that “I once again call for an immediate end to the barbarity of this war.”…
By Euronews with IJF Published on 14/02/2025 – 22:34 GMT+1 The elite of the judo world have returned to Baku this weekend for one of the most established tournaments on the The World Judo Tour. The land of fire is once again ready to welcome some of the best judoka on the planet. The National Gymnastics Arena was primed and ready. Many fans filled the seats to watch their champions do battle TSUNODA Natsumi, the -48kg Olympic Champion was pitted against Olympic bronze medallist Tara BABULFATH in the final. In a close contest, TSUNODA took the win. IJF Education & Coaching Director, Mr…
By Euronews with IJF Published on 16/02/2025 – 20:30 GMT+1 Azerbaijan saw the final day of the 2025 Baku Grand Slam, where yet more crowd poured into the National Gymnastics Arena. The stars were here, ready to perform for an expectant audience full of some incredibly excited judo fans. There was a chance for some aspiring judoka from The Adaptive Judo for Children Project to take to a grand slam tatami. A celebration of judo’s true universality and inclusion for all. Olympic silver medallist MURAO Sanshiro took on Marcelo FRONCKOWIAK in the -90kg final. MURAO seized his opportunity, catching the Brazilian for a…