3 h. ago Myanmar junta’s promise of elections denounced as ‘sham’ by experts

There are fears military will deploy further violence in run-up to any poll, which is unlikely to be viewed as credibleMyanmar military’s promise to hold elections in December 2025 or January 2026 has been condemned as a “sham” that risks bringing even greater violence.Myanmar’s military junta announced on Saturday, in comments reported in state media, that it would hold a long-promised election, specifying a timeframe for the first time since seizing power in a 2021 coup. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Moment Vladimir Putin beams as visiting dictator crowns him 'King of Russia'

Vladimir Putin could barely hide his delight when Myanmar's brutal military junta leader General Min Aung Hlaing described him as the 'King of Russia' - and thanked him for his gift of six elephants

Politics

4 d. ago The new Volkswagen ID.Every1 is a £17,000 baby EV with the spirit of the VW Beetle

Concept previews new budget electric car that could get a familiar name and promises ‘mobility for everyone’

Economics

5 d. ago Putin thanks Myanmar for gift of 6 elephant calves as he meets junta leader

It is military general Min Aung Hlaing’s fourth visit to Russia since he directed military coup in 2021

Politics

6 d. ago Dealmaking slumps in UK amid higher taxes and trade uncertainty

The fall came during a period in which Labour unveiled higher taxes for firms and Donald Trump won the US election promising global trade tariffs.

Economics

6 d. ago Labour has humane and popular plans to stand up for UK workers. Why dilute them? | Gaby Hinsliff

Angela Rayner’s employment rights bill is precisely why many voted for this government. Why be embarrassed about a defining policy?One step forward, two steps back. Angela Rayner’s employment rights bill is back in the Commons this week, stuffed with ideas for improving everyday working life: that’s the big step forward for a government that was elected on a promise of radical change. The weekend headlines, however, were all about what won’t be changing after all. The so-called right to switch off – an early Rayner idea about legislating to prevent employees being pestered by out-of-hours calls and emails, which was already presumed dead due to not being in the bill – was ritually killed off once again for the Sunday papers, with a briefing that it still won’t be in the bill after fresh amendments are tabled on Tuesday.Presumably the idea was to reassure businesses fearful of extra regulatory burdens, on top of the looming April hike in employers’ national insurance. But since it’s ...

Politics

1 week ago Welcome back Billy McFarland and a new Fyre festival. Shows you can’t keep a good fantasist down

Fresh out of jail, does it matter that his 2017 festival was one of the biggest social-media-driven deceptions of our time? Not a bit“Since 2016, Fyre has been the most talked about festival in the world,” organiser Billy McFarland told a US broadcaster when tickets for Fyre 2 went on sale this week. McFarland was sentenced to six years in prison for wire fraud in 2018, related to his organisation of the first Fyre (he served only four). Whatever you think about the first Fyre – with its limp cheese sandwiches, its disaster-relief-tent accommodation, the absence of advertised headliners, the $26m of unpaid debt, the rats (were the rats influencer hyperbole? Perhaps, but on the other hand the festival happened on the parking lot of an abandoned resort development, and where else is a rat supposed to live?), you have to admit it lived up to one promise: it was legendary.Wire fraud is any swindling that happens electronically, whether by text, email, phone or social media. It’s so easy...

Culture

1 week ago Ed Miliband is accused of breaking his election promise to slash energy bills as utility costs soar for a THIRD time by average of £111 a year

The Energy Secretary pledged during the election campaign that his controversial plan to decarbonise the electricity system by 2030 would reduce household bills by £300.

Economics

1 week ago Is a Trump backlash on its way? Well, eggs are as expensive as ever – and you can’t eat the culture wars | Arwa Mahdawi

The 78-year-old president is the ultimate comeback kid, but he is not a king and he is certainly not a god. As prices rise and consumer sentiment slumps, he may come to regret his election promisesEach new morn, new widows howl, new orphans cry and Donald Trump passes a wild executive order. To liberally paraphrase Macbeth, every day seems to bring some new reason to scream into the void. The good news, however, is that even diehard Trumpers seem to be getting sick of all the chaos. A month into Trump’s second act, there are signs that the honeymoon is over and a backlash may be brewing. For certain Republican voters, regret may be setting in.First, the polling. A Harvard CAPS/Harris survey published on Monday gave Trump a 52% approval rating. Meanwhile, three national polls show a decline in support for the president, with most Americans saying he hasn’t done enough to lower prices and has overstepped his presidential powers. A CNN poll published on Thursday found that 47...

Politics

2 w. ago The rise of the far right, global trade and Ukraine’s future: why the German election matters – visual explainer

Trump’s election in November last year has – as promised – sent shockwaves round the world. But next week’s German election could be almost as momentousA key question for Germany, its neighbours and trade partners, is what coalition deal can be done after the election. Germany’s electoral system is meticulously proportional, so it’s very unlikely that any party will be able to govern alone. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Catholic priest knifed to death inside Myanmar church by anti

Roman Catholic leaders demand justice for priest killed in church

Events