Europe’s Biggest Lithium Mine Is Caught in a Political Maelstrom
Europe wants to source EV materials within its own borders. But fierce opposition ahead of the elections in Serbia shows locals don’t trust mining companies.Continue Reading
2022-04-02
Why Brazil’s Bolsonaro is following Trump’s pre-election playbook
The day after the attack on the US Capitol in January 2021, Brazil’s president Jair Bolsonaro threatened: “If we don’t have printed ballot papers in 2022, so we can check the vote, we’re going to have worse trouble than in the United States.” For the past four years Bolsonaro hasContinue Reading
2022-04-02
Ukraine refugees: six practical steps to rise to the challenge
Europe is, yet again, in the midst of a huge immigration wave – and it is likely to dwarf all the previous ones. In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, more refugees have crossed the EU’s borders in the first two weeks than during the entire 2015 wave. ThisContinue Reading
2022-04-02
Ukraine: are reports of Russian troops mutinying and deserting true? It’s happened before
Reports have emerged in recent days that Russian troops in Ukraine, stalled in their advance and suffering numerous military setbacks, have sabotaged their own equipment, refused to fight and carry out orders, and even, in one report, run over their own commander. Nato estimates that as many as 15,000 RussianContinue Reading
2022-04-01
Commenting on the Chancellor’s Spring Statement
Commenting on the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Luke Pollard said:“The Chancellor hasn’t got a clue. He has left households and businesses in Plymouth to fend for themselves in the middle of a devastating cost of living crisis.“Under the Conservatives, Britain is facing the highest taxes inContinue Reading
2022-04-01
New scorecards show under 1% of reported rapes lead to conviction – criminologist explains why England’s justice system continues to fail
CC7 / Shutterstock In England and Wales, more than 99% of rapes reported to police do not end in a conviction. This is the result of a criminal justice system that makes prosecuting rape extremely rare, lengthy and difficult. At present, charge rates for rape vary wildly between regions, fromContinue Reading
2022-04-01
Russia Inches Toward Its Splinternet Dream
For years, the country has been trying to create its own sovereign internet—a need exacerbated by the backlash to its invasion of Ukraine.Continue Reading
2022-04-01
Five lessons the pandemic taught us about ending homelessness permanently
Srdjan Randjelovic / Shutterstock One surprising success story to come out of the pandemic was how many countries and cities were able to significantly reduce street homelessness. Lockdowns enabled governments to treat homelessness as a public health emergency and act swiftly to accommodate and support people experiencing homelessness. There wereContinue Reading
2022-04-01
Half of British people are seeing friends and leaving home less since the pandemic – new study
Shutterstock Two years on from the first pandemic lockdown in the UK, a new study by King’s College London and Ipsos MORI shows just how damaging COVID and the measures to control it have been. In a representative sample of just over 1,200 people, a third of people say they’reContinue Reading
2022-04-01
Ukraine peace negotiations: how far are the two sides from a settlement that could stick?
Another round of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in Turkey has brought little progress towards a ceasefire, let alone a peace agreement. Based on statements by both Moscow and Kyiv, it appears that there is some consensus on the issues that need to be negotiated, but little on what theContinue Reading
2022-04-01