Data from 119 English councils shows that council houses made up just 6% of planning approvals in Labour’s first half-year in office

Every two minutes a patient with a psychiatric emergency attends hospital, where they are as twice as likely as others to wait 12 hours for treatment

Advisory position consulting on geopolitical risks would come five years after ex-PM’s role in Greensill scandal David Cameron is in talks to join the law firm DLA Piper as a consultant – five years after the Greensill scandal that showed he intensively lobbied officials on behalf of his failing employer. The former prime minister, who also served as foreign secretary last year, is said to be having discussions about taking on an advisory position to help the firm with geopolitical risks. Continue reading...

US president Donald Trump reignites trade war with threat to impose high tariffs on European goods, and Apple iPhones made overseas * Typical energy bill in Great Britain to fall 7% to £1,720 a year from July As well as cutting UK energy costs (see earlier), Donald Trump can also take credit for growing the German economy! New GDP data this morning shows that Germany’s GDP rose by 0.4% in January-March, twice as fast as the first estimate of 0.2% growth in the quarter. “The reason for the slightly higher growth compared to the initial estimate was the surprisingly positive economic development in March.” “In particular, production in the manufacturing sector and exports performed better than initially expected. The German economy had its best quarterly performance since the third quarter of 2022, and the reason for it seems to be Donald Trump. As a result of the announced tariffs and in anticipation of ‘Liberation Day,’ German industrial production and exports surged in March. Net exports and private consumption drove economic activity in the first quarter, while government consumption and inventories dragged on growth. Continue reading...

<article data-history-node-id="421930" about="https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/palestinian-workers-suffer-monthly-losses-373mn-following-war" class="live-blog-update default clearfix"> <h2> <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/palestinian-workers-suffer-monthly-losses-373mn-following-war" rel="bookmark"> <span class="field field-title">Palestinian workers suffer monthly losses of $373mn following war</span> </a> </h2> <div class="content"> <div class="field field-field-text"><p style="margin-bottom:11px">The Secretary-General of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU) said that tens of thousands of Palestinian workers have been deprived of their wages for the past 17 months, Wafa news agency reported on Wednesday. &nbsp;</p> <p>Shaher Saad added that the estimated monthly loss for workers was around 1.35 billion shekels (approximately $373 million).</p> <p>In a statement on International Workers' Day, Saad said the unemployment rate had dramatically surged in Palestine since the beginning of the war, with more than half a million people currently unemployed.</p> <p>Saad explained that thousands of workers have been detained, subjected to abuse, torture and enforced disappearance, in addition to facing fines imposed by the Israeli military, for pursuing a livelihood, particularly since October 7, 2023.</p> <p>He also said that Palestinian workers who had lost their jobs and livelihoods in Israel since October 7 were forced to sell personal items in order to subsist.</p> <p>About 89 percent of Palestinian workers lack any form of social protection or pension funds under the Israeli government, Saad said.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Saad added that unemployment, poverty, and hunger are the defining themes of International Workers' Day in Palestine this year.</p> </div> </div> </article>

The scope of the Cop26 net zero banking alliance may have been limited, but the exodus of six US banks signifies a seismic political shift Last week, as flames began tearing through greater Los Angeles, claiming multiple lives and forcing more than…

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Far-right Israeli minister says displacement could start slow but will accelerate with time 

Britain’s ‘public service broadcaster’ is keeping the public in the dark about UK support for Israel’s assault on Gaza, new research finds.

Cousin of prospective health secretary shares disturbing tale involving blender for his Senate confirmation hearing “Trying not to upset the French” could be a chapter in a Debrett’s guide to etiquette and manners, one that may have been taken to heart…

Appeal court rules that Mr Justice Williams was misguided and wrong to anonymise three judges connected to case The judge who decided that Sara Sharif should live with her father who went on to kill her can be named after a court of appeal ruling. Sara…

Yarden Bibas scheduled for release with Keith Siegel and Ofer Calderon on Saturday in latest handover of hostages * Middle East crisis – live updates Hamas has announced it will release Yarden Bibas on Saturday, the Israeli father of a young family…

M23 rebel group swept into Congolese city after a rapid advance in recent weeks People living in Goma on the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s eastern border with Rwanda have spoken of their fear and acute hunger after the M23 rebel group swept into the…