Politics (Page 531)

In the context of work, the digital divide has become less about access to devices and connectivity and more about skills and mindset. Many experienced professionals have never learned more than the rudimentary basics of email, web search and Microsoft Office. Instead, they lean hard on nearby colleagues or theContinue Reading

The prospect of the first nationalist first minister at Stormont is an “almost emotional moment”, according to Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald. She was speaking after a historic election result saw her party become the first nationalist or republican party to top the poll at Stormont. (PA Graphics) SinnContinue Reading

When war breaks out, what does it mean for a country to remain neutral? In this episode of The Conversation Weekly podcast, we explore the advantages and disadvantages of neutrality – and what responsibilities come with the choice not to take sides. We talk to an historian about how anContinue Reading

High-profile murderers, including Wayne Couzens, have lodged appeals with the UK’s Court of Appeal against whole-life sentences they are currently serving. Couzens was sentenced in 2021 after pleading guilty to the rape, kidnap and murder of Sarah Everard. Another appellant, Ian Stewart, was found guilty at trial in 2017 forContinue Reading

It is clear that Sinn Féin has achieved a historic result in the Stormont election. For the first time in Northern Ireland’s history, a nationalist party is set to claim the most seats in a political system that was originally designed to guarantee a unionist majority. Yet this does notContinue Reading

Shin Okamoto/Shutterstock In Japan, Children’s Day – Kodomo no Hi – is held on May 5 and marks the final national holiday of the period known as Golden Week. This is a series of national holidays that allows Japanese people to take the best part of a week off toContinue Reading

Alamy/Daniel Leal-Olivas As the dust settles on another round of local elections in the UK, parties are seeking to spin the results to suit their own narratives. For months, the May 5 elections had been framed as crunch day for Boris Johnson. A poor result was to be taken asContinue Reading

The new BBC two-part documentary, Gazza, opens with the solitary figure of former international football star and fallen hero, Paul Gascoigne, fishing alone in a deserted lake. Taking as its title Gascoigne’s nickname, Gazza presents the footballer as a man more sinned against by the press than guilty of hisContinue Reading

Reproductive rights have been an urgent topic of discussion around the world in recent days, following the leak of a draft opinion of the US supreme court, written by Justice Samuel Alito, in the case of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization. If enacted by the court, this opinion wouldContinue Reading