More than 60 MPs sign letter calling for time-limited visas for 18- to 30-year-olds to travel freely
Keir Starmer is under pressure from more than 60 Labour MPs to allow thousands of young Europeans to live and work in the UK, a move seen as key to unlocking a more ambitious trade reset with Brussels.
The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said discussions on a potential scheme were ongoing, in the clearest hint yet that the government is preparing to do a deal.
Continue reading...The aim in No 10 is to Make Brussels Boring Again and never say the words ‘single market’ or ‘freedom of movement’
Talk of veterinary agreements, “Canada-plus” and rules of origin are likely to give even the most hardened Westminster veteran terrifying flashbacks. There was once a time when a word from Tory Eurosceptic Bill Cash on dynamic alignment could splash national newspapers.
Now the more common reaction to those terms is a barely stifled yawn. And that is exactly how No 10 would like it to stay.
Continue reading...US president attacks Ukrainian counterpart, complaining Kyiv is unwilling to cede Crimea to Russia
Donald Trump has accused Volodymyr Zelenskyy of jeopardising what he claimed was an imminent peace deal to end the war in Ukraine, as he gave the clearest hint yet that the US would be willing to formally recognise Russia’s seizure of Crimea as part of any agreement.
The US president claimed a deal to end the war – largely negotiated between Washington and Moscow – was close, while the vice-president, JD Vance, said the agreement would include a proposal to freeze the conflict roughly along the current frontlines.
Continue reading...Gustavo Petro hits back after Álvaro Leyva accused him of going awol during official visit to France
A prominent Colombian politician and former minister has accused the country’s president, Gustavo Petro, of being a drug addict who allegedly went awol during an official visit to France.
In a damning letter to the South American leader, the former foreign minister Álvaro Leyva painted a dire picture of his one-time boss and ally, later publishing the text on his official X account.
Continue reading...Ed Miliband’s looming decision on electricity market changes could mean regional bill disparities for households
Britain’s most senior government ministers could soon be drawn into a deepening row over plans to charge some households higher electricity bills than others, as Ed Miliband prepares to decide on sweeping energy reforms.
The energy secretary is understood to be close to making a decision on whether to move ahead with proposals to replace the country’s single electricity market with several market zones.
Continue reading...Study offers rare insight into human-animal combat during Roman empire
Bite marks from a lion on a man’s skeleton, excavated from a 1,800-year-old cemetery on the outskirts of York, provide the first physical evidence of human-animal combat in the Roman empire, new research claims.
While clashes between combatants, big cats and bears are described and depicted in ancient texts and mosaics, there had previously been no convincing proof from human remains to confirm that these skirmishes formed part of Roman entertainment.
Continue reading...Fossil teeth show species of protemnodon that roamed Australia between 5m and 40,000 years ago lived and died near Queensland caves
Despite their immense size, species of prehistoric giant kangaroos from a site in Queensland were probably homebodies with a surprisingly small range compared to other kangaroos, according to new Australian research.
Protemnodon, which roamed the Australian continent between 5m and 40,000 years ago and is now extinct, was significantly larger than its modern relatives. Some species weighed up to 170kg, making them more than twice as heavy as the largest red kangaroo.
Continue reading...The Holdovers breakout and Oscar nominee will head the cast of Tony, which will follow the food world legend in 1976
The Holdovers breakout Dominic Sessa has signed on to play Anthony Bourdain in a new biopic.
The casting had been initially rumoured last year, but the 22-year-old has now made it official, with the Oscar nominee Antonio Banderas also joining in a role that is being kept under wraps.
Continue reading...Wave of airstrikes claim at least 25 lives while Arab negotiators make new ceasefire proposal
At least 25 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes across Gaza, including 11 in the bombing of a school turned shelter, the strip’s civil defence agency said, as Israel’s war against Hamas in the besieged Palestinian territory grinds on despite a new ceasefire proposal from Arab mediators.
Intense Israeli bombings hit several areas of Gaza on Wednesday, killing 11 in a school sheltering displaced people in al-Tuffah, a neighbourhood of Gaza City. The strike ignited a huge fire that claimed most of the casualties, said a civil defence spokesperson, Mahmoud Bassal.
Continue reading...Ban comes week after 16 members were arrested, accused of threatening national security
Jordan has said it is shutting down the local branch of the Muslim Brotherhood and banning membership of the Islamist political group.
The ban came a week after Jordan said it had arrested 16 members of the Muslim Brotherhood accused of threatening national security by training militants, making explosives and plotting to strike targets in Jordan with rockets and drones.
Continue reading...Palestinian green-card holder was arrested by US immigration authorities in Vermont on 14 April
Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian green-card holder and student at Columbia University who was detained by the Trump administration on 14 April, will have a hearing next week on his request for release on bail, a federal judge decided on Wednesday.
Judge Geoffrey W Crawford extended a temporary restraining order issued by a separate judge last week to keep Mahdawi in Vermont. Immigration authorities have sent other foreign students arrested for their pro-Palestinian views to detention centers in Louisiana and Texas, jurisdictions typically overseen by more conservative judges.
Continue reading...Airplane manufacturer says it is lobbying Donald Trump over ‘unfortunate’ decision to impose tariffs
Boeing will try to divert as many as 50 planes ordered by Chinese airlines to customers elsewhere after steep tariffs prompted by Donald Trump’s trade war.
The US manufacturer said it was confident it could find other buyers for the planes, but said it was lobbying Trump personally to resolve an “unfortunate situation”.
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