Author: staff
By Dianne Apen-Sadler Published on 23/03/2026 – 9:10 GMT+1•Updated 24/03/2026 – 11:01 GMT+1 Air Passenger Duty (APD) is set to increase on flights departing from the UK from 1 April. While APD is a tax on airlines and aircraft operators, costs are usually passed onto travellers at the time of booking. Rates differ depending on how far you are flying, with bands for domestic travel as well as distances between 0 and 2,000 miles, 2,001 and 5,500 miles, and more than 5,500 miles. The charge also depends on the class of travel, with the lowest rates for economy class passengers. The…
While the ban only applies in the Netherlands, the groups that brought the case said it could have wider repercussions since Grok can’t determine where a user is resident. X didn’t respond to a request for comment. The platform took steps to restrict features in January after Grok was found to be generating pictures of real people in bikinis or nude. Estimates have said that around 3 million pictures were generated in 11 days. At the time, X said: “We remain committed to making X a safe platform for everyone and continue to have zero tolerance for any forms of child sexual exploitation,…
Published on 26/03/2026 – 9:22 GMT+1 Not so long ago, Poland and Hungary used to be the ultimate power couple of central Europe. Under Poland’s previous Law and Justice or PiS government, Warsaw and Budapest were inseparable, shielding each other from the EU’s penalties. But Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 caused a massive crack. Poland became Kyiv’s biggest champion, while Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán refused to sever ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The rift grew so deep that even Polish conservative leader Jarosław Kaczyński told Orbán to get his eyes checked over Russian atrocities. Fast forward…
Published on 26/03/2026 – 16:26 GMT+1 The Pentagon is reportedly considering redirecting military aid planned for Ukraine to the Middle East, the Washington Post reported on Thursday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. According to the report, the weapons under consideration include air defence interceptor missiles ordered through the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) programme. PURL allows other NATO members to fund the procurement of US weapons for Ukraine. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte declined to answer the question regarding the Pentagon’s plans at Thursday’s press conference, despite being asked several times. Rutte said it was not his place…
Airbnb has suffered another setback in the Spanish market. On Monday, the High Court of Justice of Madrid (TSJM) rejected the company’s request for interim measures to suspend payment of the nearly €64 million fine imposed on it by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs in December 2025. As a result of this decision, the platform must pay the penalty while the court case continues. The ruling does not go into the substance of the case, but simply rejects the company’s request to halt payment until a final judgment is issued. Airbnb, however, still intends to challenge the fine, arguing that…
It made no firm commitments on steel and aluminum, stating only that the two sides intended to consider cooperating to shield their domestic markets from oversupply and ensure secure supply chains, including with tariff-rate quotas, which are duty exemptions on some imports. Even before the release of the joint statement, the Trump administration took action on Aug. 19 that, in the view of the EU, breached the agreement. In his letter, Šefčovič raised concerns over the addition by Washington of the items containing steel to the list of products subject to the 50 percent U.S. tariff. “As per our agreement…
The President of the Munich-based European Patent Office (EPO) has said that the European Union should focus on further integrating its single market if it is to win the global race in emerging technologies and grow market-leading enterprises. Speaking on Euronews’ 12 Minutes With, Campinos acknowledged that Europe has “more or less lost” the global race to dominate in the cloud and Artificial Intelligence (AI), but that there are “technological battles where we (Europe) can bring incremental improvements”. The Munich-based institution he leads examines as many as 200,000 patent bids every year, allowing inventors and companies to obtain patent protection…
Revelations that Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó regularly briefed Russia on EU affairs before and after key meetings have sent shockwaves through Brussels, highlighting Budapest’s unabashed closeness to Moscow. For European diplomats consulted by Euronews, the scandal also signals the legal loopholes and weak internal mechanism to avoid leaks, even when it comes to actors recognised by the EU as hostile. Those concerns are growing in European circles as information becomes weaponised. “Is it shocking? Yes. Is anyone surprised? Not really,” said one EU diplomat in comments to Euronews. The fundamental issue is that “the EU does not have the…
Published on 23/03/2026 – 14:30 GMT+1 Viking Libra, the world’s first hydrogen-powered cruise ship, recently hit a major construction milestone. Operated by cruise line Viking, the ship was floated out on 19 March at Fincantieri’s Ancona Shipyard. This is a process during which the dry dock is filled with water, allowing a newly constructed hull to float for the first time. It marks a significant step forward for the cruise ship, which will be able to operate with zero emissions, once it is functional in November 2026. This also represents the transition from the structural assembly of a ship to…
Kallas said that Russia’s support of Iran shows why Europe needs to keep up the pressure on the Kremlin with respect to the war in Ukraine. “If America wants the war in the Middle East to stop, Iran to stop attacking them, they should also put the pressure on Russia so that they are not able to help them in this,” she said. Europeans have grown more critical of the U.S. decision to strike Iran and the ensuing spike in global energy prices. Earlier Thursday, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that Berlin was ready to support peace efforts in Iran,…