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Real estate transfer fee finds support in Healey’s $4 billion housing production proposal

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

The Healey administration is due to release a $4 billion borrowing bill today aimed at spurring housing production and boosting affordable home ownership in a state starved for inexpensive options.The legislation is packed with policy proposals that have long floated on Beacon Hill, including granting municipalities the option of imposing a real estate transaction fee, an initiative that Mayor Michelle Wu and several other cities and towns have pushed at the state level this year.Gov. Maura Healey said the proposal — which will need approval from and likely undergo rewrites by the House and Senate — supports the production, preservation, and rehabilitation of more than 85,000 homes statewide.“It’s the largest housing investment in Massachusetts history. Together, we’re going to make our state a place where people can afford to move to and stay to build their future,” Healey said in a statement.Healey proposed a real estate transaction fee of 0.5% to 2% on the portion of ...

Cambodian court sentences jailed opposition politician to 3 more years in prison

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A leading Cambodian opposition politician who was sentenced last month to 18 months in prison on charges of issuing worthless checks was convicted and sentenced on Wednesday to three more years of imprisonment for alleged incitement to commit a felony and incitement to discriminate on the basis of race, religion or nationality.Presiding Judge Chhun Davy of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court also ordered Thach Setha, a vice president of the opposition Candlelight Party, to pay a 4 million riel ($1,000) fine.Opposition parties in Cambodia frequently face legal challenges initiated by the government.The case against Thach Setha was based on remarks posted on social media that he made in January to Cambodian overseas workers about then-Prime Minister Hun Sen and Cambodia’s relations with neighboring Vietnam.Many Cambodians retain historical suspicions that bigger neighbor Vietnam is intent on annexing their territory, and prejudice against ethnic Vietnamese...

Russian President Putin insists Ukraine’s new US-supplied weapon won’t change the war’s outcome

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian missile attack killed two civilians in an apartment building in southern Ukraine on Wednesday, local authorities said, as President Vladimir Putin dismissed the importance of a new U.S.-supplied weapon that Kyiv used to execute one of the most damaging attacks on the Kremlin’s air assets since the start of the war.Putin told reporters that Russia “will be able to repel” further attacks by the U.S.-made Army Tactical Missile System, known as ATACMS.Ukraine claimed it used those missiles to destroy nine Russian helicopters, as well as ammunition, an air defense system and other assets at two airfields in Russia-occupied regions on Tuesday.That development came as the two sides looked to gain battlefield advantages and consolidate their positions ahead of the winter when the weather would hamper operations.The ATACMS will shift the battlefield layout to some degree as Russia will need to disperse its aircraft and ammunition depots. It had used aircraft to...

‘Same old stuff’: Activists condemn government silence on animal care at Marineland

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

Two months after the deaths of 14 whales and a dolphin at Marineland came to light, Ontario has refused to make public any steps taken to improve animal safety at the park, as critics demand action and transparency.In August, The Canadian Press published figures on recent animal deaths at the Niagara Falls, Ont., tourist attraction. The data was contained in a list created by the Ministry of the Solicitor General as part of a freedom-of-information request.With Marineland now closed for the off-season, the government is saying little publicly about its ongoing probe of the park, which began when the province took over enforcing animal cruelty laws from the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.The Ministry of the Solicitor General has not revealed details of its investigation, including the causes of death for the animals.Solicitor General Michael Kerzner did not answer questions about what action Animal Welfare Services inspectors have taken at Marineland or abou...

South Africa hopes to ease crippling blackouts as major power station recovers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South African officials are hoping that the gradual recovery of one of the country’s biggest coal-fired power stations will reduce crippling power blackouts.At least two units at the Kusile power station have been restored in the last three weeks, adding 1,600 megawatts to the national grid and reducing the rolling power blackouts, which can last up to 12 hours a day.The units have been out of service since they broke down in October last year, contributing significantly to the blackouts, known in South Africa as loadshedding.The two units were restored nearly two months ahead of schedule and two more are expected to be brought back online before the end of the year, officials said.While the full recovery of the power station is unlikely to end all power blackouts, it is seen as a significant step toward resolving the power crisis that has severely affected households and the country’s economy.The Kusile power station has six generating units capable of pro...

Greta Thunberg charged with public order offense in UK after arrest outside oil industry conference

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Climate activist Greta Thunberg has been charged with a public order offense after being arrested at a demonstration against an oil and gas industry conference in London.The Metropolitan Police force said Wednesday that the 20-year-old Swedish campaigner was one of 26 people charged after protesters gathered outside the luxury InterContinental Hotel during the Energy Intelligence Forum. Thunberg was among dozens of protesters who chanted “oily money out” and sought to block access to the hotel on Tuesday.Thunberg was detained and taken to a police station before being released overnight, police said.She was charged with breaching a section of the Public Order Act that allows police to impose limits on public assemblies and was released on bail until a Nov. 15 hearing at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court. The other protesters facing charges were also allowed bail.The three-day conference, which runs until Thursday, features speakers including the chief executives ...

3 French airports forced to evacuate after security alerts in the latest of a series of threats

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Three French airports in the cities of Lyon, Toulouse and Lille were evacuated on Wednesday following security alerts, police said. They were the latest in a series of evacuations around France this week that included popular tourist attractions the Louvre Museum and Versailles Palace following the killing of a teacher in the northern city of Arras on Friday. All the threats up to Wednesday proved false. Emailed threats of an attack were received at the airports in the southeast city of Lyon, the southern city of Toulouse and Lille in northern France, police said, without elaborating on the contents of the emails.The prefecture for the Lyon region said Wednesday that the threat at the airport was a false alarm and reminded the public that communicating false information can lead to prison and a heavy fine.Meanwhile an abandoned piece of luggage briefly disrupted operations at the airport in the Riviera city of Nice, the airport said. The Louvre Museum and the Palais de ...

Edmunds recommends the five best SUVs for under $40K

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

The automotive experts at Edmunds test SUVs of all shapes, sizes and prices. During these evaluations, certain models rise to the top with qualities such as roomy seating and cargo areas, a comfortable ride, and easy-to-use touchscreens and technology features. But with many prospective buyers looking to make every dollar count, it’s important to consider value as well.Working with a budget cap of $40,000, Edmunds picked five SUVs to highlight. Some have city-friendly proportions that take the stress out of parking in tight spots, while others have cavernous cargo holds and handy third-row seating. They are listed below in order of price, which includes the destination charge. 2024 MAZDA CX-50 The Mazda CX-50 small SUV earns a spot in this list thanks to its driving refinement and upscale cabin. From inside it’s not hard to believe that you’re behind the wheel of a luxury-badged model. The design is first-rate and the seats are supportive in either row. T...

A&W Revenue Royalties Income Fund reports Q3 profit up from year ago

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

VANCOUVER — A&W Revenue Royalties Income Fund says it earned $10.6 million in net income in its third quarter up from $9.6 million a year earlier.The fast food income fund says the increase for the quarter ended Sept. 10 came as royalty income rose to $13.7 million compared with $13.2 million in the same quarter last year.The fund, which earns royalties on the gross sales of restaurants in a royalty pool, says gross sales reported by A&W restaurants in the pool totalled $456.8 million, up from $440.0 million a year earlier.The number of restaurants in the pool rose to 1,037 compared with 1,015 in the same quarter last year.Meanwhile, the royalty pool same-store sales growth was 1.1 per cent for the quarter.The fund’s payout ratio for the quarter was 81.3 per cent compared with 80.3 per cent for the same quarter in 2022. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 18, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:AW.UN)The Canadian Press

Republicans and Democrats agree that the Afghanistan war wasn’t worth it, an AP-NORC poll shows

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:39:03 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — At a time when Americans are deeply divided along party lines, a new poll shows considerable agreement on at least one issue: The United States’ two-decade-long war in Afghanistan was not worth fighting.The poll from the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research comes two years after the U.S. pulled out of Afghanistan in August 2021 and the Taliban returned to power. The war was started to go after the masterminds of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the Taliban who allowed them to use Afghan territory. It ended in frantic scenes of Afghans and Americans desperately trying to get on one of the last flights out of Kabul.Polls suggest the withdrawal, seen by many as chaotic and ill-planned, may have been a turning point for President Joe Biden’s approval ratings, which started a downward slide around that time and have not recovered since. Two-thirds of Americans sa...