24 h. ago UN chief pleads with countries to pay their share for peacekeeping, points to financial problems

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has told countries that the world body’s peacekeeping operation is “only as strong as member states’ commitment to it” as he pleaded with them to pay their share

Economics

4 d. ago Trump to reportedly unveil Medicare drug pricing plan after teasing ‘earth

Trump’s upcoming announcement is to revive his plan to lower Medicare drug costs, CBS reports, a policy blocked during his first term and scrapped by Biden administrationThe major “earth-shattering” announcement Donald Trump teased earlier this week in the Oval Office is a “most favored nation” plan to cut Medicare drug prices, sources have told CBS News.In his first administration, Trump signed an executive order to implement a “most favored nation” clause that would have required Medicare to pay drug companies the lowest price paid in similar countries for some expensive, physician-administered drugs. The Biden administration rescinded the proposal under pressure from hospitals and drug companies.We’re going to have a very, very big announcement to make – like as big as it gets. It will be one of the most important announcements that have been made in many years about a certain subject. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago 'British workers come last': Fury as Indian workers are given a major tax break under Labour's free trade deal

As part of the UK-India trade deal, Indian nationals on temporary visas and their firms will not have to pay National Insurance contributions in both countries for the first three years.

Economics

2 w. ago Three ways to help the developing world survive the end of aid | Winnie Byanyima

Wealthy nations are slashing funding for essential services such as the HIV/Aids response, but poorer countries cannot absorb the impact overnightCountries across the world are cutting aid budgets, abandoning the decades-old consensus that supporting health and development is both a moral duty and a strategic interest. But the end of aid cannot mean the end of global solidarity – because our global economy is stacked against low- and middle-income countries to such an extent that they simply cannot afford to respond to global crises alone.Developing countries are drowning in debt, facing interest rates up to 12 times higher than wealthy countries. When interest rates shot up after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the global south was worst hit. Low- and middle-income countries now pay $4 (£3) to the richest in the global north for every $1 they receive in aid. Thirty-four of Africa’s 54 countries spend more on debt than on healthcare. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago African diplomats urge UK government to back bill to speed up debt restructurings

Exclusive: Countries are struggling to manage expensive loans, with much of debt transacted through LondonDiplomats from eight southern and east African countries have signed a letter calling on the UK government to support a private member’s bill that aims to speed up debt restructurings, after economic crises meant countries were unable to pay back loans.Poor countries’ economies have been hit by a series of global events in recent years, including the coronavirus pandemic, which reduced growth; the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which sent inflation soaring; and raised US interest rates, which have pushed up the cost of international loans to often unaffordable levels. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Luigi Mangione pleads not guilty to shooting US health insurance chief as death penalty sought

Prosecutors have formally declared their intent to seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione.

Events

2 w. ago Trump doesn’t want to boost taxes on millionaires because he’s worried they’d leave the country

That would be ‘disruptive,’ Trump claimed of the moving millionaires, who would be expected to pay taxes as well in other countries, many with substantially higher tax rates than the U.S.

Politics

3 w. ago Pope Francis: cardinals to meet in Rome to set date for funeral – live

Pope Francis, the head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, died at his home in the Vatican on Monday aged 88 after suffering a stroke and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy is also expected to attend the funeral, presidency source told AFP.Expect the diplomatic list to grow rapidly in the coming days, with most countries sending their heads of state or government to pay tribute to Francis – creating potential space for high-level meetings on the margins of the funeral. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Hypocrisy row over plans to send failed asylum seekers to 'return hubs' overseas after Starmer scrapped Tory Rwanda scheme

Conservatives responded with fury to reports that ministers could pay countries in the Balkans to take Britain's failed asylum seekers - comparing it to the Rwanda scheme which Sir Keir Starmer scrapped.

Events