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How to navigate Belgium’s EU presidency policy agenda like a pro

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

This article is part of the Belgian Presidency of the EU special report.All eyes are on next June’s European election — and it’s up to the Belgians to close out the current five-year mandate. With the European Union going into full campaign mode ahead of the vote, Belgium has even less time than usual to make the most of its run heading the Council of the EU. With the sun setting on this European Parliament and European Commission, there’s no time to waste. Despite the best efforts of Spain, which we previewed a half year ago, many files in Belgium’s in tray are leftovers. Others are new or adapted initiatives in response to a shifting political landscape. Here is a sampling of the files that will define the Belgian presidency.Enlarging the EUName of legislation: European Union membership applications for Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and the Western BalkansWhy it matters: Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has put EU enlargement back on the political agenda. Incorporating Ky...

UK tries new Rwanda treaty to get controversial asylum flights off the ground

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

LONDON — British Home Secretary James Cleverly landed in Kigali Tuesday morning to sign a new treaty with the Rwandan government which he hopes will finally see flights deporting asylum seekers to the east African nation take off.It’s the first and most eye-catching development in the government’s two-part plan to get the controversial Rwanda scheme back on track, after it was thrown out by the Supreme Court last month. It comes amid mounting pressure from Conservative MPs to reduce U.K. asylum numbers.Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government wants to deport people who make “dangerous, unnecessary and illegal journeys” to Rwanda, with their asylum claims processed and decided on by Rwandan authorities. Successful applicants would be settled in Rwanda, not the U.K.Britain has already struck a multi-million pound deal with Rwanda to make that happen. But no flights have yet taken off and the policy has been mired in legal challenge. The Supreme Court last month dealt the late...

Fewer pills please: Stop prescribing antidepressants for mild symptoms, say doctors 

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

LONDON — A group of psychiatrists, psychologists and politicians in the U.K. have called for a halt to new antidepressant prescriptions for patients with mild conditions, arguing that growing prescription rates are not associated with improvements in mental health. Nearly 1 in 5 British adults are prescribed antidepressants, with the number of annual prescriptions jumping from around 47 million in 2011 to 86 million in 2022/23.The signatories of an open letter published in the British Medical Journal Tuesday — who include professors of psychiatry and psychology, GPs, former NHS chief Nigel Crisp and former care minister Norman Lamb — want to see a reversal of this trend. The authors’ main concern is that the uptick in prescriptions has not seen a corresponding improvement in population level mental health outcomes. Some measures show that these have in fact worsened, they write.The letter comes as a new All Party Parliamentary Group called Beyond Pills launches Tuesday, c...

4 Republicans qualify for fourth 2024 presidential debate

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

(CNN) — Four candidates have qualified for the fourth GOP presidential primary debate taking place Wednesday night in Alabama, the Republican National Committee and debate broadcaster NewsNation announced Monday.Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will face off in Tuscaloosa in what will be the smallest debate stage lineup so far this year. Former President Donald Trump, the front-runner for the GOP nomination, will skip the event, as he has all previous debates and will instead attend a fundraiser in Florida for a super PAC supporting his candidacy.Monday’s announcement comes with just six weeks to go until the Iowa caucuses open the 2024 GOP nomination calendar and as DeSantis and Haley compete fiercely to be seen as the top primary rival to Trump.To make the Tuscaloosa stage, candidates had to meet higher donor and polling criteri...

Healey Gets, Signs Overdue $3.1 Billion Closeout Budget

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

After weeks of legislative procrastination, parliamentary delays and finger-pointing, a $3.1 billion spending bill packed with money for the stretched-thin emergency shelter system and public worker raises landed on Gov. Maura Healey’s desk Monday and she immediately signed it.House Democrats were able to get a quorum of members together to push through a compromise on a long-overdue package they failed to wrap up before the Legislature shifted into a seven-week holiday stretch of informal sessions.Republicans in the House successfully stalled the bill on Thursday, Friday and Saturday by pointing out that not enough lawmakers were present to constitute a quorum, but enough Democrats ventured to the State House on Monday to get the bill through that branch.The House adopted the compromise bill on a hand-counted 105-14 vote, and the Senate followed through several hours later with a 20-3 vote. Both branches then gave the measure final approval on unrecorded voice votes, sending ...

Virginia authorities investigating explosion of Arlington home as police were executing a warrant

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

(CNN) — A home exploded in Arlington, Virginia, Monday night as police were trying to execute a search warrant, sending the building up in flames with a suspect still inside and prompting the evacuation of several nearby houses, officials said.Police are investigating the circumstances of the explosion, which tore through the home as law enforcement were trying to make contact with the man inside, who they suspect had been firing a flare gun from his home earlier in day, according to Arlington County Police Department spokesperson Ashley Savage.Officers had responded to reports of shots fired near the home shortly before 5 p.m. and obtained a search warrant for the residence after determining the suspect had discharged the flare gun about 30 to 40 times from his home into the surrounding neighborhood, according to a police statement released early Tuesday.“During the course of the investigation, officers obtained a search warrant for the suspect’s residence and attemp...

Putin to discuss Israel-Hamas war during a 1-day trip to Saudi Arabia and UAE

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin will make a one-day trip to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia focused on the Israeli-Hamas war and host the Iranian president in Moscow this week, the Kremlin said Tuesday.Putin will make working visits to both countries on Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.The talks will focus on bilateral relations, the war between Israel and Hamas and other international issues, Peskov said. Issues related to oil price caps under OPEC+ will also be on the agenda, he added.Putin’s trip was first announced on Monday by his foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov, who didn’t give a date for the visits when he spoke to the Russian news outlet Life.“I hope that these will be very useful negotiations, which we consider extremely important,” Ushakov was quoted as saying by Life. Putin will make the visit at a time when Russia wants to advance its role as a power broker in the conflict in the Middle East. Putin will host Irania...

In the news today: Quebec Laurentians residents await answers after dike evacuation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…Quebec residents waiting for answers after evacuationHundreds of residents of two municipalities in Quebec’s Laurentians region are awaiting further news after being ordered to leave their homes due to structural problems in a nearby dike.Government inspectors found structural weaknesses in the Morier dike during a recent visit that could lead it to burst.The evacuation order was issued Sunday night for about 1,000 properties near the Kiamika River in the municipalities of Chute-St-Philippe and Lac-des-Ecorces.The inspectors suspect internal erosion to be the cause of the structural damage.CBC cuts could change TV programming: TaitThe CBC’s president says a round of layoffs and programming cuts the broadcaster announced this week could mean changes in what viewers see on television.Catherine Tait says slashing millions from the Crown corporationR...

UK Home Secretary James Cleverly visits Rwanda to try to unblock controversial asylum plan

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

KIGALI, Rwanda (AP) — British Home Secretary James Cleverly flew to Rwanda on Tuesday in a bid to revive a plan to send asylum-seekers to the East African country that has been blocked by U.K. courts.The U.K. government said Cleverly will meet his Rwandan counterpart, Vincent Biruta, to sign a new treaty and discuss next steps for the troubled “migration and economic development partnership.”“Rwanda cares deeply about the rights of refugees, and I look forward to meeting with counterparts to sign this agreement and further discuss how we work together to tackle the global challenge of illegal migration,” Cleverly said.The Rwanda plan is central to the Conservative government’s self-imposed goal of stopping unauthorized asylum-seekers arriving on small boats across the English Channel.Britain and Rwanda struck a deal in April 2022 for some migrants who cross the Channel to be sent to Rwanda, where their asylum claims would be processed and, if successful, they would stay. The U.K. go...

French lawmakers approve bill to ban disposable e-cigarettes to protect youth drawn to their flavors

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:34:50 GMT

PARIS (AP) — France’s National Assembly unanimously approved a bill to ban single-use, disposable electronic cigarettes, in an attempt to protect young people drawn to their flavors and mitigate the environmental impacts of the disposable products known as “puffs.”Lawmakers adopted the bill in a late-night vote on Monday by 104 in favor, zero against. The bill, supported by the government, will then move to the Senate where it is expected to be adopted as well. It could go into effect by September 2024.Disposable e-cigarettes — which cost about 10 euros (nearly $11) each — are small, battery-powered devices that are especially popular among teenagers for their sweet flavors. While they do not contain tobacco, many include nicotine, a dangerous chemical known for its addictive properties.They differ from reusable vaping devices in that they are not designed to be refilled or recharged. Their small, non-rechargeable lithium batteries often end up in landfills.This bill is part o...