Author: staff
Magyar’s predecessor, right-wing prime minister Viktor Orbán, was known for his government’s crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights. In early 2025, Hungary’s parliament passed legislation that eventually led to the banning of the Budapest Pride parade. Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony, a political rival of Orbán and Green politician, however, found a legal loophole and proceeded with the march last year despite the ban. More than 100,000 people attended, including several European politicians and critics of Orbán’s government. Karácsony was subsequently charged for defying the government ban, but the court suspended proceedings in March. Last month, the EU’s top court struck down the…
Published on 29/05/2026 – 15:58 GMT+2 The six largest economies in the European Union have called for an acceleration of the Capital Markets Union, in a bid to speed up legislation in Brussels, according to a letter sent to the European Commission on Friday. The letter is signed by Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Poland and The Netherlands, known as the E6, who are trying to overcome the frustrations of the EU’s legislative path, which they say has obstructed the political momentum and benefits that market reform would offer. “Deeper and more integrated capital markets are key to unlocking Europe’s growth…
Published on 29/05/2026 – 15:27 GMT+2 The testicles of Milan’s most famous bull have once again become a matter of civic concern. For generations, visitors have queued up inside Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II to spin on their heels on the pink tiles depicting a bull’s testicles, an unusual tradition believed to bring good luck and guarantee a return to the city. More than a century of enthusiastic heel-spinning has left its mark. This week, workers erected a protective barrier around the famous mosaic as Milan began restoring the artwork for the first time since 2017. “Thousands of people every day……
Though much of this early progress has been made possible without breaking new ground or installing significant new hardware, the next phase of the plan will challenge us more. This is predominantly due to the planning permission we require to get started. Despite 96% of our planned sites involve upgrading existing infrastructure rather than building new masts, more than half will require planning permission under current rules. The cost of planning processes can be significant. They can place added pressure on local council resources, slow businesses’ access to new technology and may delay improved connectivity for rural communities. Analysis by…
NATO is conducting military exercises just 30km from the Finnish Russian border amid a major escalation of drone activity in NATO territory. “Northern Star” tactical training at the Vuosanka training ground in Kajaani, central Finland, involves seven NATO allies: the Finnish defence forces, the US, Poland, the UK, France, Italy and Hungary. Over several months, around 9,000 personnel will train in difficult High North terrain populated by dense forestry with temperatures as low as -20°C in winter. The allied troops are simulating combat and rapid-deployment scenarios, with live-fire artillery, infantry, and helicopter drills including heavy-lift American chinook military helicopters working…
Colombians go to the polls this Sunday in presidential elections marked by a deeply polarising campaign. The vote comes amid a sensitive regional and international backdrop, with the rise of new populist right-wing forces and growing political fragmentation in Latin America. The campaign has pitted a governing camp seeking to keep the left in power after Gustavo Petro’s historic victory in 2022 against a divided opposition, in which new outsider figures have focused on security, political confrontation and rejection of the traditional elites. “We are in an election that brings together two things: a global climate of tension, polarisation and…
Reducing compensation to symbolic amounts strips the regulation of its primary purpose: consumer protection and accountability. An independent economic analysis by Dr. Hinnerk Gnutzmann and Dr. Piotr Śpiewanowski confirms the scale of this risk. Their study concludes that under these proposed changes, total compensation actually paid to passengers would fall by 74 percent, while approximately 83 percent of delay claims would become effectively unenforceable. EC261 is effective because it creates a clear financial incentive for airlines to minimize avoidable disruption and resolve claims properly. This is not a theoretical concern. Airlines already reject 52 percent of valid initial claims, forcing…
“Get back… Get back… Get back to where you once belonged.” Nostalgia is an intoxicating emotion, and yearning for the past can often feel like remembering a place and time when things were seemingly simpler, better, more beautiful. This form of sentimentality is central to Paul McCartney’s twentieth solo album, ‘The Boys Of Dungeon Lane’ – a reference to the route from Liverpool to the Speke shoreline, the area where McCartney spent his childhood. It is released in a year when we’ve already had Ringo Starr’s latest solo album, ‘Long Long Road’, and fans have a new Rolling Stones album…
The Japanese personnel will be stationed at NATO’s Ukraine mission in Wiesbaden, Germany. The mission coordinates military aid for Ukraine, helps train Ukrainian soldiers and repairs equipment for the Ukrainian military. The latest deployment comes as Japan intensifies its military rearmament, including lifting restrictions for arms exports in April. On Thursday, Russia’s foreign ministry warned Japan against stationing U.S. Typhoon missile systems on its territory, saying it would “create a direct threat along our far-eastern borders.” The Japanese defense ministry said in a statement that it would “continue to advance security and defense cooperation between Japan and NATO.”
By Maria Muñoz Morillo Published on 28/05/2026 – 12:02 GMT+2•Updated 29/05/2026 – 10:12 GMT+2 La Roja will be dressed in luxury fashion at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has announced that the haute couture house Loewe will be responsible for kitting out the Spanish national team players who will travel to Mexico, the United States and Canada to contest the World Cup, which kicks off on 11 June. The Spanish football authorities and Loewe are thus launching a partnership under which the fashion brand will dress the senior men’s and women’s Spain teams on their trips…