Author: staff

Belgium’s Prince Laurent has lost a legal bid to receive social security benefits on top of his six-figure royal allowance, in the latest setback for the ever-controversial prince.The 61-year-old — the younger brother of King Philippe — had argued that his work should entitle him and his family to welfare on top of his €388,000 royal allowance and rent-free accommodation. Laurent had maintained that he was partly self-employed due to his role as a royal and because he had run an animal welfare charity for the past decade. “This is not about financial means but principle,” Laurent told Belgian broadcaster…

👉Listen to Politics at Sam and Anne’s on your podcast app👈 It’s the final episode before recess so Sky News’ Sam Coates and Politico’s Anne McElvoy wonder, given the turbulent times, who’ll be the first to call for Parliament to be recalled? And talking of the Lib Dems, there’s some new polling which might put a spring into the step of Ed Davey – is his party’s position on Trump and trade doing them some favours? Of course, there’s plenty of time to talk about the onslaught of US tariffs and implications for the UK – watch out for if…

Many Swiss, from the government to chocolatiers to watchmakers and other businesses, are sensing “shock” over the tougher American position on trade, but many are also taking a wait-and-see stance.At the Festichoc chocolate festival in Geneva over the weekend, the Trump administration tariffs announced last week were on many minds, though they seemed to do little to sour the mood on Switzerland’s most famous sweets.Julie Jammes, marketing manager for Canonica, a Geneva chocolatier with three stores in San Francisco, said her company hasn’t yet made any decision on what actions might be taken. “We’re waiting a little longer, but it’s…

Microsoft has fired two employees who interrupted the company’s 50th anniversary celebration to protest its work supplying artificial intelligence (AI) technology to the Israeli military, according to a group representing the workers.Microsoft accused one of the workers in a termination letter on Monday of misconduct “designed to gain notoriety and cause maximum disruption to this highly anticipated event”. Microsoft said the other worker had already announced her resignation, but on Monday it ordered her to leave five days early.The protests began Friday when Microsoft software engineer Ibtihal Aboussad walked up toward a stage where an executive announced new product features…

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Turkey was hit with a baseline 10% tariff in US President Donald Trump’s trade announcement last week, compared with higher tariffs for many other countries, raising the prospect that the world’s 17th largest economy could leverage an advantage from the tariff regime.Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said Monday that the country’s focus on domestic demand rather than exports would also mean a more limited impact on the economy.“Turkey has free trade agreements with a total of 54 countries outside the US and the EU,” he said, adding that “68% of our exports go to these countries”. Turkey has a customs union…

“Mr. Merz, we believed in your political leadership. We trusted you. And we have fought for you,” the letter read. “But we are now asking the question: for what? For a CDU that submits to the left-wing mainstream?” After years of weak, divided government under Chancellor Olaf Scholz, many European leaders had hoped Merz would provide stronger German leadership within the European Union. Merz too has vowed to provide that leadership in light of the challenges posed by U.S. President Donald Trump, vowing after his victory in the Feb. 23 snap election “to strengthen Europe as quickly as possible so…

As investors wait for European markets to open, overnight in Asia-Pacific, the picture was much calmer than on Monday.However, markets in Thailand and Indonesia tumbled as they reopened after holidays. Trading was suspended briefly in Jakarta when the JSX index fell more than 9%. It was down 7.5% by midday. Thailand’s SET lost 5.7%.In Taiwan, the Taiex lost 4.4%, pulled lower by losses for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp., or TSMC, the world’s largest computer chip maker. Its shares fell 4% on Tuesday and are down 13.5% since Trump announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs on April 2.The rebound for most other…

The current Labour government believes the regulator is instead needed to stop unscrupulous, or simply incompetent, owners from bankrupting football clubs and severing a key part of many English communities. The financial mismanagement of clubs like Macclesfield Town, which was wound up in 2020, and Derby County, which almost followed the same path, are often cited as examples by government figures. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy told a recent meeting of executives from across professional football that Bury FC’s 2019 slide into administration was powering her efforts on the bill, according to one person in attendance. Seeing red (tape) However, Premier…

Could Italian Prime Minister Meloni be help the EU avert a trade war with the United States by intervening successfully with Trump? What strategy is she pursuing? Radio Schuman explores these questions today in conversation with Federico Castiglioni, a researcher at the Italian think tank Istituto Affari Internazionali.Following Trump’s announcement of 20% tariffs on EU imports, Meloni stood was one of the few European leaders to caution against escalating, warning that retaliation by the EU would be the worst possible response.Italian media report that she has the implicit support of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and is seen…