Cheaper imported chicken and beef increasingly seen in UK supermarkets

Posted on by

Grocers turning to Australia, Poland and Uruguay for meat, prompting claim they are undermining British farmers

Cheap chicken and beef from Australia, Poland and Uruguay is on the rise on UK supermarket shelves, according to the National Farmers’ Union, as supermarkets look for money-saving options.

The NFU regularly monitors supermarket shelves and notes that Morrisons is now selling raw chicken from Poland in its poultry aisle. Chicken in Poland is generally produced to different standards from those in the UK, and is cheaper as a result. Morrisons requires that for its UK chicken, poultry must be kept at a maximum stocking density of 30kg/m2, giving the chickens more space to roam. In Poland, this is up to 39kg/m2.

Continue reading...

Survivors of Ireland’s mother and baby homes risk losing UK benefits over compensation

Posted on by

Campaign pushes to change law that could lead to survivors living in UK being disqualified from means-tested benefits

Survivors of Ireland’s mother and baby homes are being “retraumatised” by the prospect of losing benefits in the UK if they accept compensation from the Irish state, Westminster has been told.

The warning comes amid a campaign backed by representatives of almost every political party in the UK and figures including Steve Coogan, who starred in Philomena, a film about the mother and baby homes scandal.

Continue reading...

Loss of data relating to inquiry at NHS trust most likely deliberate, say police

Posted on by

Nottingham university hospitals is subject of maternity care investigation involving nearly 2,500 cases

A missing data file containing the details of hundreds of maternity cases was most likely deleted “intentionally or maliciously”, a police investigation has concluded.

Nottinghamshire police began an investigation in February into the temporary loss of the computer file at Nottingham university hospitals (NUH) NHS trust.

Continue reading...

Russia planning attack on Nato ‘to test article 5’, warns Germany – The Times

Posted on by
  1. Russia planning attack on Nato ‘to test article 5’, warns Germany  The Times
  2. Russia could send "little green men" to test NATO's resolve, German intelligence boss warns  Reuters
  3. Germany plans rapid bunker expansion amid fears of Russian attack  The Guardian
  4. Russia Setting Up to 'Test' NATO in Baltics: German Intelligence  Newsweek
  5. NATO’s Rutte: ‘We’re all on the eastern flank now’  politico.eu
Posted in Uncategorized

Greek court strips three far-right MPs of seats over electoral fraud

Posted on by

Tribunal rules Spartans lawmakers ‘deceived’ voters after convicted ex-leader of Golden Dawn found to hold influence over party

A landmark court decision has dealt a blow to the far-right movement in Greece after MPs with the neo-fascist Spartans party were deprived of seats in parliament.

Citing electoral fraud, a specially assembled electoral tribunal stripped three of the group’s lawmakers, including its leader, of their status in a move that, for the first time since the collapse of military rule, leaves Athens’ 300-seat parliament operating with just 297 MPs.

Continue reading...

Two men jailed for life for supplying car bomb that killed Daphne Caruana Galizia

Posted on by

Robert Agius and Jamie Vella were convicted last week of their role in the anti-corruption journalist’s murder in 2017

Two men have been sentenced to life in prison for supplying the car bomb that killed the anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta eight years ago.

The sentencing on Tuesday of Robert Agius and Jamie Vella, reported to be members of the island’s criminal underworld, marked a significant step in the long campaign to bring those charged with Caruana Galizia’s murder to justice.

Continue reading...

Palestinian Authority President Says Hamas Must Exit Gaza – The New York Times

Posted on by
  1. Palestinian Authority President Says Hamas Must Exit Gaza  The New York Times
  2. France says Palestinian Authority makes ‘unprecedented commitments’ to reform ahead of conference on statehood  CNN
  3. In first, Palestinian Authority’s Abbas condemns Hamas’s October 7 attack  The Times of Israel
  4. Mahmoud Abbas sends letter to Macron outlining steps to end war in Gaza  The Jerusalem Post
  5. Abbas calls for Hamas disarmament, international forces in letter to Macron  France 24
Posted in Uncategorized

7,000 activists begin 300-vehicle convoy from Tunisia to Rafah, aim to open corridor – The Jerusalem Post

Posted on by
  1. 7,000 activists begin 300-vehicle convoy from Tunisia to Rafah, aim to open corridor  The Jerusalem Post
  2. What is the Global March to Gaza all about?  Al Jazeera
  3. Tunisia activists launch overland Gaza-bound bus convoy to ‘break the siege’  The Times of Israel
  4. Gaza-bound flotilla and global march ignite hopes that Arabs join the movement  Haaretz
  5. “A Show of Human Solidarity”: Ex-U.S. Diplomat to Join Global March to Gaza to Break Israel’s Siege  Democracy Now!
Posted in Uncategorized

UK sanctions two far-right Israeli ministers for inciting West Bank violence

Posted on by

Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich face travel bans and asset freezes as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway also impose measures

The UK has been joined by Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway in placing sanctions on two Israeli government ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, largely for inciting violence against Palestinians in their campaign to gain control of new settlements in the West Bank.

Ben-Gvir, the security minister in Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government, and Smotrich, the finance minister, will face travel bans and have any assets in the five countries frozen. It was stressed that they were being sanctioned in their personal capacity, placing no restrictions on the ministries they lead. Netanyahu has promised to retaliate.

Continue reading...

Haunting blood-red squid with large hooks drifts through Antarctic ocean’s midnight zone in world-first video – Live Science

Posted on by
  1. Haunting blood-red squid with large hooks drifts through Antarctic ocean's midnight zone in world-first video  Live Science
  2. We've never seen this rare squid alive in the wild—until now  National Geographic
  3. Watch the mesmerizing first-ever footage of a rare Antarctic squid  Yahoo
  4. Deep Sea Squid Caught on Camera Alive for the First Time. The Astonishing Footage Wasn't Planned  People.com
  5. Want To See A Monster From The Deep? Nobody Had Ever Seen This Squid Alive Before  IFLScience
Posted in Uncategorized

Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world, Pew study says – NPR

Posted on by
  1. Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world, Pew study says  NPR
  2. How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020  Pew Research Center
  3. How the global religious landscape has changed since 2010  Deseret News
  4. Muslims are world’s fastest-growing religious group; Jews far below pre-Holocaust numbers  The Times of Israel
  5. The changing face of faith: Pew report on global religious landscape 2010-2020  Vatican News
Posted in Uncategorized

‘We did nothing wrong’: Greta Thunberg accuses Israel of kidnapping yacht crew

Posted on by

Swedish activist says ‘12 peaceful volunteers’ did not break laws during attempt to bring symbolic aid shipment to Gaza

Hours after being deported from Israel, Greta Thunberg accused the country of kidnapping her and her fellow activists in international waters, adding that she had refused to sign a document stating that she had entered Israel illegally.

Speaking to reporters at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, the Swedish campaigner stressed that she and others on a Gaza-bound ship intercepted by Israel on Monday had simply been attempting to bring much-needed aid to the war-torn territory.

Continue reading...