NewzIntel.com

Category: European Union

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: More areas of country move into drought with dry weather set to continue

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Press release

    More areas of country move into drought with dry weather set to continue

    National Drought Group steps up operational response and asks people to play their part in managing the drought and use water wisely

    The National Drought Group (NDG) met today (15 July) as a drought is declared in the West and East Midlands. Dry weather continues to impact water resources across England requiring water companies to take action to manage demand with the public being urged to use water wisely. 

    Since the group last met on 5 June, the situation has deteriorated, with further areas, including the West and East Midlands, now officially in drought and recently three more areas moved into prolonged dry weather status (Lincs and Northants, East Anglia, and Thames area). A hosepipe ban is set to be introduced from 22nd July by Thames Water following a period of prolonged dry weather in the area.  

    Across England, rainfall was 20% less than long term average for June. June was also the hottest on record for England, with two heatwaves driving unusually high demand for water. Reservoir levels continue to fall, with overall storage across England at 75.6% and at 53.8% in Yorkshire necessitating a Temporary Use Ban (TUB).

    The National Drought Group heard that without further substantial rain, some water companies may need to implement further drought measures, including more Temporary Use Bans (TUBs) to conserve supplies. The Environment Agency expects and will ensure that water companies follow their drought management plans. Water companies need to step up their work to fix leaks and adjust their operations to conserve water. 

    The public is being asked to think about how they use water at home and in the garden, and to comply with any local restrictions. The less water you use at the home, the more water there is in your local environment.  The National Drought Group is also asking recreational water users – such as anglers, swimmers, and boaters to remain vigilant and report any environmental issues they see, such as fish in distress, acting as important eyes and ears on the ground. 

    Farmers are using water efficiently, supporting one another, and looking to trade water and welcome the support from the Environment Agency. However, without further rain, the agricultural community are facing a range of challenges due to the dry weather including concerns about irrigation reservoir levels. It is likely that yields will be lower than last year, particularly non-irrigated grains and straw  

    Environment Agency teams are out on the ground actively monitoring river levels, with staff working with the water sector to ensure there is enough water for the people and the environment.  Teams are also supporting farmers and abstractors with advice on how to manage abstraction during prolonged dry weather and low flows.  Fisheries teams are responding where necessary to protect fish which are struggling due to reduced oxygen or moving them if the river has dried up and they have become stranded. 

    Impacts across wildlife away from rivers and reservoirs have been seen since March. Wildfires, drying up wetlands and coastal sites, with the loss of breeding seasons for rare species have all been seen.

    Helen Wakeham, Environment Agency Director for Water and National Drought Group chair, said:   

    This has been the driest start to the year since 1976, and we need to make sure our water supplies can sustain us through the summer.  

    Today I have asked all the partners who make up the national drought group to step up their operational response to manage the drought and use water wisely. Environment Agency teams are out on the ground actively monitoring river levels and working to ensure there is enough water for the people and the environment.

    Water Minister Emma Hardy said:  

    I have asked the National Drought Group to step up its response to ensure we are successfully managing the impacts of ongoing dry weather. Water companies must now take action to follow their drought plans – I will hold them to account if they delay.  

    We face a growing water shortage in the next decade. That’s why we are pushing ahead with urgent water reforms under our Plan for Change, which includes £104 billion of private investment to build nine reservoirs and new pipes to cut leaks.

    Dr Will Lang, Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office, said:

    Although some areas saw rainfall at the start of July,  for many the month so far has been fairly dry, continuing a pattern seen through spring and June. We’ve now recorded our third heatwave of the summer and following a period of fresher, more unsettled conditions it’s likely to turn warmer and more humid again across many parts of England later this week. There’s also the possibility of heavy, thundery showers for some places too.

    It does look as though we’ll see typical changeable weather during the latter third of July and into early August with a mix of rain, showers. Confidence in details inevitably gets lower, the further ahead we look, but this would be consistent with our seasonal expectations.

    The National Drought Group – which includes the Met Office, government, regulators, water companies, farmers, CRT, angling groups and conservation experts. With further warm, dry weather expected, the NDG will continue to meet regularly to coordinate the national response and safeguard water supplies for people, agriculture, and the environment. 

    Notes to editors:   

    A decision to declare drought is taken based on reservoir levels, river flows, groundwater levels, how dry soils are, environmental incidents and water resources position along with consideration of the long-term weather forecasts. These are based on Environment Agency Area classifications.

    Temporary Use Bans ( TUBs) are a decision for the water companies and must be made in line with their drought plans

    More information on how drought is defined can be found here: Drought: how it is managed in England – GOV.UK

    Updates to this page

    Published 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The First Russian Media Mogul. We Study Ivan Sytin’s Biography on a Tour of the Tverskoy District

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –

    An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Tverskaya Street, one of the main streets in the capital, bore the name of the Soviet writer Maxim Gorky for several decades of the last century. Here, in house 12, building 2 (the address is modern, the numbering was different before), Ivan Sytin lived until 1934. He knew Gorky, Anton Chekhov and other writers of that time well. Before the revolution, he was a famous entrepreneur, one of the first publishers of the Russian Empire, the man who introduced the peasants to the works of Alexander Pushkin.

    Together with Alexey Shalamov, a tour guide at the I.D. Sytin Apartment Museum, we travel into the past, which “begins” on the second floor of the house, now a 19th century cultural heritage site, at the entrance to apartment No. 274.

    Family portrait in the interior

    “Ivan Dmitrievich and his family moved here in 1928. He lived in Moscow for a long time – from the age of 15, and moved several times. This apartment was his last home. Before that, the Sytins lived in a mansion on Pushkinskaya, but when the enterprises were nationalized, the family was given this apartment as a replacement. They moved some of the furniture here, so now we can show you the original items,” Alexey Shalamov begins the tour.

    The apartment is truly amazing — an interesting layout, high ceilings, burgundy walls in the hallway elegantly set off by Art Nouveau chandeliers and a pear-wood wardrobe, in the mirrors of which outstanding figures of the early 20th century looked at themselves on Pushkin Square. Alexander Kuprin, Dmitry Merezhkovsky, Ivan Bunin, Alexander Blok, Ilya Repin, Nikolai Roerich, Ivan Bilibin — invisible traces of their coats and hats are kept on the hooks and hangers in the hallway. The Sytins lived here as a large family of 15 people, the last of which moved out of the apartment only in the 1970s. The museum is currently hosting an exhibition called “Traditions of the Sytin Family,” created with the participation of Ivan Dmitrievich’s great-granddaughter. The exhibition tells about the family’s legacy and memory, gives an opportunity to look into the home world, and touch upon the personal life of one of the main educators of the Russian Empire.

    What was read on the “gulvars”, bazaars and in villages. We study popular literature of the 19th-20th centuries

    Ivan Sytin’s career path is truly impressive – the future publisher came from the Kostroma province and went to work in the bookstore of the merchant Pyotr Sharapov as a 15-year-old teenager, and ten years later he acquired his first lithographic press and started his own business, which later turned into a bookstore at the Ilyinsky Gate, and into the “Partnership of I.D. Sytin and Co.”, and into the publishing house “Posrednik”, created jointly with Leo Tolstoy and Vladimir Chertkov. He developed the magazine “Around the World”, which exists to this day, and on Chekhov’s advice acquired the rights to publish the newspaper “Russkoye Slovo”, deciding to increase its circulation at all costs. And he achieved his goal!

    Pushkinskaya Square and its surroundings

    Having learned the family history and imbued with the atmosphere of those years, we go out onto Tverskaya Street and move towards the monument to the sun of Russian poetry, crossing Strastnoy Boulevard. If you leave Pushkin Square on the right, then straight ahead, to the left of the Izvestia newspaper building, you can see the house of I.D. Sytin, where the family lived for more than twenty years before moving to an apartment. The estate, built according to the design of Adolf Erichson, is an example of the Art Nouveau style, very popular at that time. The publishing houses of the Pravda and Trud newspapers were later located here. Due to the fact that the building was moved several dozen meters at one time, the authentic architecture was partially lost, but on the facade you can see details decorated according to sketches by Ivan Bilibin.

    We go deeper into Pushkin Square and stop at the memorial stone to the Strastnoy Monastery. Founded in 1654, it was destroyed in 1937; its territory also housed a necropolis. Ivan Dmitrievich was a religious man, and when his wife died, she was buried here. The monastery’s bell tower offered a magnificent view of the city. Alexey Shalamov explains: “It is known that Nicholas II came here. The King of Sweden and Norway also climbed the bell tower, looked around Moscow and said that all foreigners should visit this monastery.”

    Passing the building of the Izvestia newspaper, on the same side we pay attention to the main house of the city estate of the Dolgorukovs – Bobrinskys. At one time, the president of the Academy of Arts and the Minister of Public Education Sergei Uvarov lived there, Alexander Pushkin and Anton Chekhov visited many times, the Itinerants organized exhibitions, the editorial office of the magazine Novy Mir worked there.

    Along Malaya Dmitrovka

    Around the corner on Malaya Dmitrovka is the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Putinki, a beautiful Orthodox tent-roofed church, unique in its kind. Ivan Sytin often came here with his family and was even the church warden of the parish – it is known that two of his sons were married in the church. Literally in the next building is Mark Zakharov’s Lenkom – now a famous capital theater, and once a gentlemen’s club a la russe. “The merchants decided to build their own opposite the aristocratic club – and so that it would be better,” comments Alexey Shalamov. The 1909 building was erected according to the design of the architect Illarion Ivanov-Shits in a style that is difficult to describe unambiguously: a careful look will recognize elements of Art Nouveau, classicism, eclecticism, and signs of Art Deco. Inside is a large concert hall, a library, billiard rooms, a winter garden and, of course, a very good restaurant. Important business meetings and gatherings were also held here, and Ivan Sytin was also present.

    The final point of this part of the route is the building of the Loan Treasury in Nastasinsky Lane, built in the 1910s by Vladimir Pokrovsky, one of the founders of the neo-Russian style (now a cultural heritage site of federal significance). Here, loans were issued to merchants, among whom, probably, could have been the main hero of our excursion.

    Back to the roots

    On the way back, Alexey Shalamov told about the specifics of the publisher’s branded stores – there were five of them in Moscow, all of them were easily recognizable, thus creating additional advertising for Sytin’s life’s work. The talented entrepreneur grew up in a simple family and knew well what people liked. Therefore, he paid special attention to illustrations that attracted the eye more than the text, collaborated with talented artists, as well as with peddlers who delivered books for sale to peasants in remote villages and hamlets.

    And here we are again, the entrance to the I.D. Sytin Apartment Museum. “The house is very old, it has been heavily remodeled. If we talk about the foundation, it is from the 18th century – the Saltykov estate was here. And the house was built in the 1820s for the chief of police Alexander Shulgin – a very interesting person. Firstly, he was a contemporary of Pushkin, and secondly, his namesake. And there are many similarities in their fates,” says Alexey Shalamov.

    Classicism, Art Nouveau, Constructivism — these walls remember everything. After Shulgin, the house was owned by the entrepreneur Shevaldyshev, who opened a hotel here, where Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Tyutchev stayed. On the ground floor there was a stagecoach office — one of the first types of public transport in Moscow, and in the neighboring Kozitsky Lane, taxis now stand, just like carriages a hundred years ago. After the revolution, various editorial offices and studios were located here, in one of them Vladimir Lenin recorded his fiery speech. Since 1928, the house has become associated with the name of Sytin, without whom the map of the Tverskoy District would be incomplete.

    Ivan Dmitrievich was an extraordinary, very hardworking person, a visionary and a pioneer, whose life path deserves a separate book. On excursions in the I.D. Sytin Apartment Museum, you will be told more about him. Tickets can be purchased atMos.ru.

    Get the latest news quicklyofficial telegram channelthe city of Moscow.

     

    Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    .

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI: Societe Generale signs an agreement with the State of Cameroon to sell its subsidiary Société Générale Cameroun

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SOCIETE GENERALE SIGNS AN AGREEMENT WITH THE STATE OF CAMEROON TO SELL ITS SUBSIDIARY SOCIÉTÉ GÉNÉRALE CAMEROUN

    Press release
    Paris, 15 July 2025

    Societe Generale has signed an agreement with the State of Cameroon which provides for the total sale of the group’s shares (58.08%) in Société Générale Cameroun. The State of Cameroon, already a shareholder, would thus hold 83.68% of the shares of Société Générale Cameroun. According to the commitments made, the State of Cameroon would take over all the activities operated by this subsidiary, as well as all the client portfolios and all the employees of this entity.

    This transaction would have a positive impact of around 6 basis points on the Group’s CET1 ratio, on the expected completion date which could take place by the end of 2025. (1)

    This divestment project is subject to the usual conditions precedent and the validation of the relevant financial and regulatory authorities.

    (1)Unaudited figures

    Press contacts:
    Jean-Baptiste Froville_+33 1 58 98 68 00 _ jean-baptiste.froville@socgen.com  
    Amandine Grison_+33 1 41 45 92 40_ amandine.grison@socgen.com

    Societe Generale

    Societe Generale is a top tier European Bank with around 119,000 employees serving more than 26 million clients in 62 countries across the world. We have been supporting the development of our economies for 160 years, providing our corporate, institutional, and individual clients with a wide array of value-added advisory and financial solutions. Our long-lasting and trusted relationships with the clients, our cutting-edge expertise, our unique innovation, our ESG capabilities and leading franchises are part of our DNA and serve our most essential objective – to deliver sustainable value creation for all our stakeholders.

    The Group runs three complementary sets of businesses, embedding ESG offerings for all its clients:

    • French Retail, Private Banking and Insurance, with leading retail bank SG and insurance franchise, premium private banking services, and the leading digital bank BoursoBank.
    • Global Banking and Investor Solutions, a top tier wholesale bank offering tailored-made solutions with distinctive global leadership in equity derivatives, structured finance and ESG.
    • Mobility, International Retail Banking and Financial Services, comprising well-established universal banks (in Czech Republic, Romania and several African countries), Ayvens (the new ALD I LeasePlan brand), a global player in sustainable mobility, as well as specialized financing activities.

    Committed to building together with its clients a better and sustainable future, Societe Generale aims to be a leading partner in the environmental transition and sustainability overall. The Group is included in the principal socially responsible investment indices: DJSI (Europe), FTSE4Good (Global and Europe), Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index, Refinitiv Diversity and Inclusion Index, Euronext Vigeo (Europe and Eurozone), STOXX Global ESG Leaders indexes, and the MSCI Low Carbon Leaders Index (World and Europe).

    For more information, you can follow us on Twitter/X @societegenerale or visit our website societegenerale.com.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Improved trade rules to boost business and growth across the UK

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Improved trade rules to boost business and growth across the UK

    New changes to how the UK Internal Market Act works to benefit businesses across the four nations.

    • New reforms will ensure businesses can trade smoothly across the UK’s four nations, helping them operate more efficiently and with greater certainty. 
    • Changes respond directly to business feedback and are a key part of the government’s Plan for Change to unlock investment and jobs, raise living standards and drive long-term growth.
    • Devolved governments will have greater flexibility to set rules that reflect local priorities, while protecting the UK’s internal market, worth £129bn a year, and supporting a more collaborative approach.

    Businesses trading across the UK’s four nations will benefit from clearer and more certain rules, following government changes to how the UK Internal Market Act works today [15 July]. 

    Following extensive feedback from businesses – including calls for greater clarity, consistency, and collaboration – the UK Government has completed a review of the Act ahead of schedule, ensuring seamless trading between the nations. 

    The updated approach puts business needs at the forefront, while also enabling devolved governments to shape laws which align with their own priorities. A transparent and well-managed internal market will help to minimise the risk of unnecessary trade barriers, providing certainty for businesses to invest, boosting growth and raising living standards as the government delivers on its Plan for Change. 

    In response to businesses’ asks, the rules will now be made in a way that is more transparent, streamlined, and considers a broader evidence base, encouraging open conversations between governments and making it easier for businesses to engage with and understand how decisions are made and applied across the UK. 

    Protecting the environment and public health will be taken into account alongside economic factors when a government proposes excluding an area from the UK Internal Market Act. In addition, if a proposed change has only a limited economic impact, this can now be agreed through a streamlined process. 

    This updated approach will better enable all four governments to agree shared rules across a wide range of areas including chemicals and pesticides and provide more flexibility to legislate. 

    Minister for Trade Policy Douglas Alexander said: 

    “A thriving internal market is essential to the UK’s economic success, so we’ve listened to what businesses want — and we’re acting ahead of schedule.

    “These reforms will keep trade flowing, reduce friction, and unlock growth across all four nations.

    “We’ve also worked closely with devolved governments to ensure they can deliver on their priorities.”

    Jane Gratton, Deputy Director of Public Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: 

    “Trade between the nations of the UK is vital to the health of our overall economy and a key driver of growth. Businesses want to see devolved and UK governments working together to ensure there are no unnecessary barriers to the flows of goods and services between us.

    “The UK Internal Market Act is key to this, setting the foundations which underpin over £100bn of trade. This new streamlined approach to rulemaking will give businesses the certainty they need so they can grow, invest, and prosper.” 

    This is just another example of how we’re making things better for business, alongside cutting regulation and reducing administrative costs to boost businesses and growth across the country for big and small firms.

    The UK internal market supported over £129 billion of trade between the four nations in 2019 — equivalent to around 6% of the UK economy. For Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, sales to the rest of the UK make up a major share of their external sales — typically around 60%. The reforms published today aim to protect and grow that vital trade, ensuring businesses can operate with confidence and certainty.  

    This announcement follows a wide-ranging consultation launched in January 2025 and a statutory review announced in December 2024. The consultation received almost a hundred responses, from businesses, academics, environmental groups and the devolved governments. The improvements made to the operation of the Act are a result of those responses. 

    Together, these steps mark a shift toward a more business-led, cooperative approach to managing the internal market — one that supports economic growth while respecting devolved powers.   

    Notes to editors: 

    • The UK government is required by law to review elements of the UK Internal Market Act by December 2025. 
    • These changes do not affect provisions relating to Northern Ireland, which are tied to the Windsor Framework. 
    • The UK Government continues to be committed to the Common Frameworks programme and improving transparency and collaboration between the four governments of the UK, which is clearly demonstrated by the outcomes of this review.
    • Further details can be found on the consultation outcome page.

    Updates to this page

    Published 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Change of His Majesty’s Ambassador to Armenia

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Change of His Majesty’s Ambassador to Armenia

    Ms Alexandra Coles has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia in succession to Mr John Gallagher.

    Ms Alexandra Cole has been appointed His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia in succession to Mr John Gallagher who will be transferring to another Diplomatic Service appointment.  Ms Cole will take up her appointment during September 2025.

    Curriculum vitae

    Full name: Alexandra Pamela Cole

    Year Role
    2024 to present Pre-posting training
    2023 to 2024 FCDO, Head of Contingency Planning, MENA
    2020 to 2023 Doha, Deputy Head of Mission
    2018 to 2020 Tbilisi, Deputy Head of Mission
    2013 to 2018 UK Mission to the UN in Geneva, Counsellor Specialised Agencies
    2011 to 2013 FCO, Policy Unit
    2008 to 2010 Cairo, Consular Regional Director
    2006 to 2008 FCO, Engaging with Islamic World Group
    2004 to 2006 Islamabad, Second Secretary Human Rights
    2002 to 2004 Sarajevo, Second Secretary Political
    2001 to 2002 Pre-posting training (including Bosnian language training)
    1999 to 2001 FCO, Personnel Management Unit
    1996 to 1999 Tehran, Entry Clearance Officer
    1994 to 1995 FCO, Trade Union Side
    1996 to 1999 Tehran, Entry Clearance Officer
    1992 to 1994 FCO, Finance Department
    1990 to 1992 FCO, Migration and Visa Department
    1990 Joined FCO

    Media enquiries

    Email newsdesk@fcdo.gov.uk

    Telephone 020 7008 3100

    Email the FCDO Newsdesk (monitored 24 hours a day) in the first instance, and we will respond as soon as possible.

    Updates to this page

    Published 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Adult Mental Health drop-in event15 July 2025 The Mental Health Team is calling on Islanders who have used their services to share their views to help develop the service going forwards. They are developing a new five-year strategy for mental… Read more

    Source: Channel Islands – Jersey

    15 July 2025

    The Mental Health Team is calling on Islanders who have used their services to share their views to help develop the service going forwards. 

    They are developing a new five-year strategy for mental health services, and it is important that the voice of people who use the services help shape this. 

    A drop-in event will be held between 10am and 2pm on Saturday 19 July at The Diner on New St James Place. 

    Andy Weir, the Director of Mental Health, the Mental Health Team and people with Lived Experience will host the session, which will ask service users and their loved ones: 

    1. What has helped you in your mental health recovery? 
    2. What would you like to see change in mental health services? 
    3. What does good mental health support look like to you? 
    4. What should we prioritise in the next five years? 

    As part of the session an artist will draw pictures based on what people say. Those who attend will also be given the opportunity to draw or write their thoughts as part of the process and snacks will be provided.

    Feedback from the session will be used to form the new Mental Health Strategy which is due to be published in 2026.​

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Four York parks awarded the coveted Green Flag Award

    Source: City of York

    Green Flag Award at Rowntree Park

    Published Tuesday, 15 July 2025

    Four of City of York Council’s parks have been awarded the prestigious Green Flag Award after achieving international quality mark for parks and green spaces.

    The council and Friends of Groups – resident organisations who help maintain and improve the parks – are celebrating after receiving a Green Flag Award for Rowntree Park, West Bank Park, Glen Gardens and Clarence Gardens.

    The parks are some of 2,250 in the UK to achieve the award, which is the international quality mark for parks and green spaces.

    Rowntree Park (pictured) has taken back the award this year, having missed out on applying last year due to the extended flooding in spring.

    Cllr Jenny Kent, Executive Member for Environment and Climate Emergency at City of York Council, said:

    “We’re absolutely delighted that four of York’s beautiful parks have received the Green Flag Award. It’s a real tribute to the dedication and hard work of our staff, volunteers and local Friends groups who care so passionately for these much-loved green spaces. As well as these awards, we are working towards achieving Green Flag status for Hull Road Park in the future.

    “Spending time outdoors is vital for everyone’s health and wellbeing, and Parks and gardens like these are so important as free places to exercise, meet friends or simply enjoy nature – now more than ever. 

    Green Flag Award Scheme Manager, Paul Todd MBE, said:

    “Congratulations to everyone involved in York who have worked tirelessly to ensure that it achieves the high standards required for the Green Flag Award.

    “Quality parks and green spaces like these make the country a heathier place to live and work in, and a stronger place in which to invest.

    “Crucially all of these parks in York are a vital green space for communities in the city to enjoy nature, and during the ongoing cost of living crisis it is a free and safe space for families to socialise. It also provides important opportunities for local people and visitors to reap the physical and mental health benefits of green space.”

    The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Accreditation Secured to Support Dundee’s Living Wage City Campaign

    Source: Scotland – City of Dundee

    A local security system supplier has signed up to be the latest business in the city to become Living Wage accredited.

    SPG Integrated, based in the Dundee Technology Park, are a firm who specialise in the installation of various security products such as access controls and alarm systems.

    Directors Billy Robertson and Euan Borland started the business as a result of the collapse of Dundee-based construction services firm McGill. Since then, the business has seen continued growth and is thriving, with plans for expansion including apprenticeships for local young people.

    Both Euan and Billy see paying the real Living Wage, currently £12.60 per hour, as a non-negotiable and while already paying above the rate see accreditation as a benefit to them as they seek new contracts, to retain their current workforce and attract the best talent.

    Billy said: “We are delighted to be part of the Living Wage as we realise that our workforce are the most valuable asset to our company and therefore, we want to look after them in all aspects.”

    Euan said: “We realise that being a Living Wage accredited company will make us an attractive prospect to future employees which helps us continue to build a strong, reliable team as we expand and grow our business.”

    Fair Work, Economic Growth & Infrastructure Convener Cllr Steven Rome visited SPG Integrated office’s, with members of the Dundee Living Wage Action Group, to formally welcome them to the family of over 120 Living Wage employers in the city and congratulate them on accreditation.

    Cllr Rome said: “It was great to meet with Billy and Euan from SPG Integrated and officially welcome them to the Dundee Living Wage family. 

    “They spoke so passionately about paying their staff the real Living Wage and explained the benefits it has to them in terms of staff retention and employee job satisfaction.

    “Our discussions were really informative and will help the action group going forward to engage with and reach out to similar businesses in the sector and those they work with.

    “It was really helpful to hear that despite already paying above the living wage, they still saw the value in becoming an accredited employer.”

    Lynn Anderson, Living Wage Scotland Manager said: “We’re thrilled to welcome SPG Integrated to the Living Wage network of employers in Dundee, as the Dundee Living Wage Action Group unveils its refreshed brand.

    “Employers like SPG Integrated recognise that security and stability can help create a happier, healthier and more motivated workforce and we hope to see many more employers join them in going further than the minimum.”

    Earlier in the year the Living Wage Foundation unveiled it’s a new brand identity with a refreshed design to reflect the scale, ambition and future direction of the Living Wage movement and campaign.

    This visit was the first time the refreshed “Making Dundee a Living Wage City” branding was used after consultation with the Dundee Living Wage Action group and Living Wage Scotland. It’s hoped this new look will help to raise awareness of the campaign while rejuvenating the relationship between the action group and local business to strengthen the partnership between them.

    Cllr Rome added: “As we launch the new look branding for the campaign, I look forward to visiting more accredited employers in the city and proactively exploring with others about accreditation. I would encourage any business wanting to know more to please get in touch.”

    More information about the ‘Making A Living Wage Living City’ campaign as well as contact details for the action group can be found on the council’s website.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI China: EU proposes new countermeasures amid trade dispute with US

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    This photo taken on Oct. 4, 2024 shows the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. [Photo/Xinhua]

    The European Union (EU) has proposed a new round of tariffs on U.S. goods worth 72 billion euros (84 billion U.S. dollars), amid the ongoing trade dispute between the world’s largest economy and its biggest trading partner.

    EU trade ministers met in Brussels on Monday following U.S. President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement over the weekend of new tariffs on the bloc. Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s trade chief, said after the meeting that it was “very obvious from the discussions today, the 30 percent is absolutely unacceptable.”

    He said that the commission was sharing proposals with the 27 members “for the second list of goods accounting for some 72 billion euros (84 billion dollars) worth of U.S. imports. They will now have a chance to discuss it. This does not exhaust our toolbox and every instrument remains on the table.”

    Lars Lokke Rasmussen, the foreign minister of Denmark, which recently assumed the EU presidency, said the bloc views the new tariff as “absolutely unacceptable and unjustified” and is prepared to respond if talks with Washington fail to produce a viable outcome.

    “We are committed to continuing working with the United States on a negotiated outcome,” he said, adding that the agreement has to be “mutually acceptable” on both sides.

    In a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday morning, Trump announced a 30 percent tariff on the EU as of Aug. 1, blaming the bloc for causing “long-term, large, and persistent Trade Deficits.”

    “Our relationship has been, unfortunately, far from reciprocal,” he wrote in the letter. “The EU will allow complete, open Market Access to the United States, with no Tariff being charged to us, in an attempt to reduce the large Trade Deficit.”

    In response to Trump’s latest deadline, the EU decided to postpone retaliatory counter tariffs on 21 billion euros (24.5 billion dollars) of U.S. goods that had been due to kick in at midnight on Monday until Aug. 1.

    The EU is open to trade talks with the United States for an agreement before the deadline, but won’t rule out taking countermeasures, said Von der Leyen.

    “We remain ready to continue working towards an agreement by Aug. 1,” the EU leader said in a statement. “At the same time, we will take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures if required.”

    The proposed tariff threatens to take a heavy toll on the EU economy. An analysis by the Milan-based Institute for International Political Studies suggested that Italy would be among the EU countries most affected by the U.S. tariffs.

    Under a 30-percent duty scenario, Germany’s GDP would contract by an estimated 0.5 percent compared to a no-tariff baseline, while Italy’s GDP would shrink by approximately 0.36 percent, said the think tank.

    On Monday, the Association for the Development of Industry in the Mezzogiorno (SVIMEZ) released its estimate of the impact of the U.S. tariffs on Italy’s exports, projecting a reduction of nearly one-fifth in export volume and a loss of 12.4 billion euros (14.48 billion U.S. dollars) in trade once the tariffs take effect.

    SVIMEZ also warned of broader macroeconomic consequences, estimating a 0.5-percent reduction in Italy’s GDP in 2026 and the potential loss of up to 150,000 jobs, including some 13,000 in the country’s southern regions.

    “Our government is in close contact with the European Commission and all parties involved in the tariff negotiations,” said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in a statement.

    “A trade war within the West would make us all weaker in the face of global challenges we are addressing together. Europe has the economic strength to protect its interests and reach a fair agreement,” she said.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI China: EU proposes new countermeasures amid trade dispute with US

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    This photo taken on Oct. 4, 2024 shows the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. [Photo/Xinhua]

    The European Union (EU) has proposed a new round of tariffs on U.S. goods worth 72 billion euros (84 billion U.S. dollars), amid the ongoing trade dispute between the world’s largest economy and its biggest trading partner.

    EU trade ministers met in Brussels on Monday following U.S. President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement over the weekend of new tariffs on the bloc. Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s trade chief, said after the meeting that it was “very obvious from the discussions today, the 30 percent is absolutely unacceptable.”

    He said that the commission was sharing proposals with the 27 members “for the second list of goods accounting for some 72 billion euros (84 billion dollars) worth of U.S. imports. They will now have a chance to discuss it. This does not exhaust our toolbox and every instrument remains on the table.”

    Lars Lokke Rasmussen, the foreign minister of Denmark, which recently assumed the EU presidency, said the bloc views the new tariff as “absolutely unacceptable and unjustified” and is prepared to respond if talks with Washington fail to produce a viable outcome.

    “We are committed to continuing working with the United States on a negotiated outcome,” he said, adding that the agreement has to be “mutually acceptable” on both sides.

    In a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday morning, Trump announced a 30 percent tariff on the EU as of Aug. 1, blaming the bloc for causing “long-term, large, and persistent Trade Deficits.”

    “Our relationship has been, unfortunately, far from reciprocal,” he wrote in the letter. “The EU will allow complete, open Market Access to the United States, with no Tariff being charged to us, in an attempt to reduce the large Trade Deficit.”

    In response to Trump’s latest deadline, the EU decided to postpone retaliatory counter tariffs on 21 billion euros (24.5 billion dollars) of U.S. goods that had been due to kick in at midnight on Monday until Aug. 1.

    The EU is open to trade talks with the United States for an agreement before the deadline, but won’t rule out taking countermeasures, said Von der Leyen.

    “We remain ready to continue working towards an agreement by Aug. 1,” the EU leader said in a statement. “At the same time, we will take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures if required.”

    The proposed tariff threatens to take a heavy toll on the EU economy. An analysis by the Milan-based Institute for International Political Studies suggested that Italy would be among the EU countries most affected by the U.S. tariffs.

    Under a 30-percent duty scenario, Germany’s GDP would contract by an estimated 0.5 percent compared to a no-tariff baseline, while Italy’s GDP would shrink by approximately 0.36 percent, said the think tank.

    On Monday, the Association for the Development of Industry in the Mezzogiorno (SVIMEZ) released its estimate of the impact of the U.S. tariffs on Italy’s exports, projecting a reduction of nearly one-fifth in export volume and a loss of 12.4 billion euros (14.48 billion U.S. dollars) in trade once the tariffs take effect.

    SVIMEZ also warned of broader macroeconomic consequences, estimating a 0.5-percent reduction in Italy’s GDP in 2026 and the potential loss of up to 150,000 jobs, including some 13,000 in the country’s southern regions.

    “Our government is in close contact with the European Commission and all parties involved in the tariff negotiations,” said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in a statement.

    “A trade war within the West would make us all weaker in the face of global challenges we are addressing together. Europe has the economic strength to protect its interests and reach a fair agreement,” she said.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Earthquakes in Greece – E-002091/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    Greece is an active user of Copernicus Emergency Management Services (CEMS)[1], including its on-demand mapping services. For example, in 2024, the Greek national civil protection authority, which is the national CEMS’ focal point, activated the rapid mapping service 14 times.

    For the time being, the Commission has not yet received a request from the Greek national civil protection authorities for CEMS risk and recovery services to monitor land deformation or for drawing up evacuation plans for a potential future incident in Santorini.

    However, Greece is aware of this option and has used this service in the past to develop, amongst others, evacuation plans, for example for two United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage sites (Delphi and Ancient Olympia), and to assess their exposure to several hazards, including earthquakes.

    Under its Cohesion Policy thematic and regional programmes for the 2021-2027 period, Greece earmarked approximately EUR 130 million for the prevention and management of non-climate-related risks, such as earthquakes.

    In accordance with the shared management procedures, the selection of specific projects is a national competence.

    • [1] https://emergency.copernicus.eu/.
    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Postal services to Slovakia return to normal

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

    ​Hongkong Post announced today (July 15) that, as advised by the postal administration of Slovakia, mail delivery services to areas with postcodes 93003, 93004, 93006, 93007 and 90068, previously impacted by local control measures after an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, have returned to normal.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Earthquakes in Greece – E-002091/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    Greece is an active user of Copernicus Emergency Management Services (CEMS)[1], including its on-demand mapping services. For example, in 2024, the Greek national civil protection authority, which is the national CEMS’ focal point, activated the rapid mapping service 14 times.

    For the time being, the Commission has not yet received a request from the Greek national civil protection authorities for CEMS risk and recovery services to monitor land deformation or for drawing up evacuation plans for a potential future incident in Santorini.

    However, Greece is aware of this option and has used this service in the past to develop, amongst others, evacuation plans, for example for two United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage sites (Delphi and Ancient Olympia), and to assess their exposure to several hazards, including earthquakes.

    Under its Cohesion Policy thematic and regional programmes for the 2021-2027 period, Greece earmarked approximately EUR 130 million for the prevention and management of non-climate-related risks, such as earthquakes.

    In accordance with the shared management procedures, the selection of specific projects is a national competence.

    • [1] https://emergency.copernicus.eu/.
    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Overcrowded housing – E-002826/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002826/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Mihai Tudose (S&D)

    17 % of EU citizens live in overcrowded housing, according to Eurostat data. In Romania, that percentage is 40 %, which is the second highest overcrowding rate in the EU, after Latvia.

    At the same time, between 2015 and 2023, housing prices in the EU increased by an average of 48 %, which was also the case in Romania.

    I welcome the affordable and sustainable housing plan announced by the Commission, but would also like to know whether it specifically envisages targeted actions in countries with high levels of overcrowding, in order to improve this situation.

    Submitted: 10.7.2025

    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Ethiopia: Médecins sans frontières (MSF) releases findings of internal review into 2021 Tigray killing of three staff members

    Source: APO


    .

    • Four years on since the brutal killing of our colleagues in Tigray, Ethiopia, MSF is releasing the findings of our own internal review.
    • Our findings show that the attack on María Hernández Matas, Tedros Gebremariam Gebremichael, and Yohannes Halefom Reda, was the intentional and targeted killing of clearly identified aid workers.
    • MSF has requested a formal and transparent investigation be carried out by the Ethiopian authorities many times since their killing in June 2021.

    Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has published the findings of an internal review into the brutal killing of three of our staff members — María Hernández Matas, Tedros Gebremariam Gebremichael, and Yohannes Halefom Reda — in central Tigray, Ethiopia, on 24 June 2021.

    The review confirmed that the attack was an intentional and targeted killing of three clearly identified aid workers. It also established that a convoy of Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) was present at the time of the incident, on the same road where the MSF personnel were killed.

    María, Tedros, and Yohannes were working with MSF to provide medical care in the conflict-affected region of Tigray. On 24 June 2021, they were travelling in a clearly marked MSF vehicle to a village near Abi Adi town in central Tigray to refer patients who had been wounded in recent fighting. During their journey, their vehicle was intercepted, and they were killed.

    Four years on, MSF still does not have credible answers about what happened to our colleagues, despite tireless attempts to engage with both the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) — both of whose forces were present in the wider conflict zone.

    “Despite repeated assurances from the Ethiopian authorities that an investigation was underway, four years on, neither MSF nor the victims’ families have received any credible answers,” says Paula Gil, President of MSF Spain. “We can only assume that there is insufficient political will to share the findings of a completed investigation.”

    “In the absence of any official account, we have a moral obligation towards our staff and the families of our late colleagues to make our own findings public – a necessary step to shed light on a brutal killing that must not be ignored or buried,” says Gil.

    Immediately after the incident, MSF launched an internal review – our standard practice following a critical security incident. The evidence confirmed that the attack on the MSF team was intentional and targeted. The victims — all wearing white vests clearly marked with the MSF logo and traveling in a vehicle visibly displaying the MSF logo and flag — were shot multiple times at close range, while facing their attacker. Their bodies were found up to 400 metres from their vehicle, which was burned and riddled with bullets.

    “This was not the result of crossfire, nor was it a tragic mistake. Our colleagues were killed in what can only be described as a deliberate attack,” adds Gil.

    MSF’s internal review also clearly established that a large retreating convoy of the ENDF was moving south on the same stretch of road where MSF’s staff members were killed on the day of the attack. This was corroborated by multiple sources available in the public domain, including media reports and open-source satellite imagery, as well as several civilian witnesses.

    Beyond the confirmed presence of the ENDF in the area, what remains to be clarified is the extent and nature of their involvement in the attack. MSF received concerning witness accounts — including from civilians travelling with the ENDF convoy in various capacities — that directly implicated ENDF soldiers in the attack. One witness reported overhearing a radio exchange where an ENDF commander gave orders to “shoot” at an approaching white car and “remove them”.

    Since 2021, MSF has held over 20 high-level meetings with officials in the Ethiopian government and submitted numerous formal requests for a credible, transparent investigation to be carried out, and for findings to be shared.

    “Over the past four years, we have done everything in our power to engage constructively with the Ethiopian authorities, including sharing the findings of our internal review on several occasions between November 2021 and October 2023, along with supporting materials, with the Ministry of Justice,” says Gil.

    “MSF’s review clearly demonstrates that it was — and remains — feasible to establish the facts about the incident,” says Gil. “Given this, and the substantiated information confirming ENDF presence at the time of the attack, it is both unconscionable and unacceptable that the Ethiopian authorities have consistently failed to conclude a credible investigation and share its findings.”

    MSF is making this internal review public not only out of moral obligation, but also to demand that governments protect humanitarian workers and medical facilities and that those responsible for attacks on humanitarians and medical staff are held accountable. Attacks on humanitarian personnel are rising globally, while states increasingly neglect their duty to investigate and prosecute violations of international humanitarian law, and the international community continues to look away.

    The brutal killing of María, Tedros, and Yohannes is an emblematic case of the dangers faced by humanitarian workers. If there is no investigation of such an egregious attack, it sets a dangerous precedent in Ethiopia and reinforces an alarming pattern of impunity for attacks on healthcare globally.

    “María, Tedros, and Yohannes lost their lives while helping people in crisis,” says Gil. “They are in our thoughts every day. Their murder must not be forgotten or met with silence. MSF hopes that by pursuing the truth of what happened to them, we can contribute to building a safer environment for humanitarians — not only in Ethiopia, but in conflict zones around the world.”

    Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Médecins sans frontières (MSF).

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Age verification app – E-002140/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    The Commission is concerned about ensuring children are protected online and is, as part of this, working on a common EU approach to age verification.

    To this end, a robust EU-harmonised age verification app that is privacy-preserving and easy to use is being developed in cooperation with the Member States via the European Board for Digital Services[1].

    This work is part of a set of measures for the protection of minors, including the Digital Services Act art. 28 guidelines and enforcement actions, the action plan against Cyberbullying, and the inquiry on the impact of social media on mental health.

    The app will initially allow users to prove that they are over 18 years when accessing online content restricted to adults (e.g. pornography, gambling, online alcohol purchase). It is technically possible and envisaged to extend the app to other age limits.

    Mid-July 2025, a white-label app will be made available to Member States, who may then customise and adapt it to their national contexts (e.g. compatibility with national digital infrastructures and legal frameworks, branding and translation) and decide to publish it in the app stores.

    This release launches a pilot phase during which the white-label app will be tested and further customised in collaboration with Member States, online platforms and end-users.

    5 frontrunner Member States — Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, and Spain — will be the first to take up the technical solution in view of publishing a customised national app on the app stores. The Commission prepares to scale the app to Member States with national implementation strategies.

    The European Parliament is kept informed on this and broader actions in this policy area through presentations at the appropriate Committees meetings and structured dialogues.

    • [1] https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/dsa-board.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Age verification app – E-002140/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    The Commission is concerned about ensuring children are protected online and is, as part of this, working on a common EU approach to age verification.

    To this end, a robust EU-harmonised age verification app that is privacy-preserving and easy to use is being developed in cooperation with the Member States via the European Board for Digital Services[1].

    This work is part of a set of measures for the protection of minors, including the Digital Services Act art. 28 guidelines and enforcement actions, the action plan against Cyberbullying, and the inquiry on the impact of social media on mental health.

    The app will initially allow users to prove that they are over 18 years when accessing online content restricted to adults (e.g. pornography, gambling, online alcohol purchase). It is technically possible and envisaged to extend the app to other age limits.

    Mid-July 2025, a white-label app will be made available to Member States, who may then customise and adapt it to their national contexts (e.g. compatibility with national digital infrastructures and legal frameworks, branding and translation) and decide to publish it in the app stores.

    This release launches a pilot phase during which the white-label app will be tested and further customised in collaboration with Member States, online platforms and end-users.

    5 frontrunner Member States — Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, and Spain — will be the first to take up the technical solution in view of publishing a customised national app on the app stores. The Commission prepares to scale the app to Member States with national implementation strategies.

    The European Parliament is kept informed on this and broader actions in this policy area through presentations at the appropriate Committees meetings and structured dialogues.

    • [1] https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/dsa-board.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: HKTE hosts online and offline career fairs to attract global talent dovetailing Hong Kong’s I&T development (with photos)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

         A spokesman for Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) said today (July 15) that to support Hong Kong’s development as an international innovation and technology (I&T) hub, HKTE had organised three online and offline career fairs during the past three weeks to proactively attract global I&T talent to pursue development in Hong Kong, with a view to contributing to building Hong Kong into an international hub for high-calibre talent.

         HKTE held a online career fair last Thursday and Friday (July 10 and 11), featuring 47 renowned enterprises and organisations, to offer nearly 2 000 quality job vacancies across sectors such as data centre operations, cyber security and business analysis.

         The online career fair recorded nearly 33 000 visits, featuring job-seeking talent mainly from 14 countries or regions, including the Mainland, Singapore, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States, Canada, Germany, France and Switzerland, with over 3 000 curricula vitae received. To facilitate connections between job-seeking talent and employers, a one-to-one online meeting session was set up specifically at the career fair, resulting in nearly 5 000 direct dialogues.

         A spokesman for the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, one of the participating organisations, commented that the career fair facilitated effective interactions between global professionals in artificial intelligence, fintech and smart city technologies as well as digital innovation with Hong Kong employers. Nearly 90 per cent of participating enterprises and organisations expressed satisfaction with the event arrangements and indicated interest in joining future recruitment events organised by HKTE.

         In addition, HKTE co-organised physical job fairs with working partners two weeks ago, including the second edition of the Hong Kong International Talents Career Expo 2025 and the NovaX Global Investmatch Carnival 2025, to connect I&T talent and entrepreneurs with employers and investors, facilitating the settlement of talent in Hong Kong.

         The spokesman for HKTE added that talent is critical to the promotion of I&T development. HKTE will continue organising diverse activities to assist Hong Kong in attracting international I&T talent, including an online career fair targeting European and American markets in the second half of the year, thereby providing solid talent support for the development of the “eight centres” strategic positioning.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: HKTE hosts online and offline career fairs to attract global talent dovetailing Hong Kong’s I&T development (with photos)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

         A spokesman for Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) said today (July 15) that to support Hong Kong’s development as an international innovation and technology (I&T) hub, HKTE had organised three online and offline career fairs during the past three weeks to proactively attract global I&T talent to pursue development in Hong Kong, with a view to contributing to building Hong Kong into an international hub for high-calibre talent.

         HKTE held a online career fair last Thursday and Friday (July 10 and 11), featuring 47 renowned enterprises and organisations, to offer nearly 2 000 quality job vacancies across sectors such as data centre operations, cyber security and business analysis.

         The online career fair recorded nearly 33 000 visits, featuring job-seeking talent mainly from 14 countries or regions, including the Mainland, Singapore, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States, Canada, Germany, France and Switzerland, with over 3 000 curricula vitae received. To facilitate connections between job-seeking talent and employers, a one-to-one online meeting session was set up specifically at the career fair, resulting in nearly 5 000 direct dialogues.

         A spokesman for the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, one of the participating organisations, commented that the career fair facilitated effective interactions between global professionals in artificial intelligence, fintech and smart city technologies as well as digital innovation with Hong Kong employers. Nearly 90 per cent of participating enterprises and organisations expressed satisfaction with the event arrangements and indicated interest in joining future recruitment events organised by HKTE.

         In addition, HKTE co-organised physical job fairs with working partners two weeks ago, including the second edition of the Hong Kong International Talents Career Expo 2025 and the NovaX Global Investmatch Carnival 2025, to connect I&T talent and entrepreneurs with employers and investors, facilitating the settlement of talent in Hong Kong.

         The spokesman for HKTE added that talent is critical to the promotion of I&T development. HKTE will continue organising diverse activities to assist Hong Kong in attracting international I&T talent, including an online career fair targeting European and American markets in the second half of the year, thereby providing solid talent support for the development of the “eight centres” strategic positioning.

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Briefing – Portugal’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan: Latest state of play – 15-07-2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Portugal is set to receive €22.2 billion in grants and loans from the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the EU response to the crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. This amount corresponds to 3.1 % of the entire RRF, or 10.7 % of Portugal’s 2019 gross domestic product (GDP), and includes REPowerEU grants (€0.7 billion) and Portugal’s share (€81.4 million) from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve. The Council approved the latest revision of Portugal’s national recovery and resilience plan (NRRP) in May 2025. The plan has a strong focus on the country’s social, economic and environmental resilience, with measures targeting culture, housing, health, broad social responses, and forest and water management. Measures relating to climate transition, including those on industry decarbonisation and energy efficiency of buildings, account for 39.1 % of the allocation. The contribution to digital objectives represents 21.7 % of the allocation, with measures and reforms aimed at public administration and finances, education and businesses. Portugal has so far received €11.4 billion of RRF resources (51.3 % of the plan), which the Commission disbursed in the form of pre-financing and five grant and loan instalments. Portugal’s sixth and seventh payment requests are being assessed. In the context of the 2025 European Semester, the Council has recommended that Portugal accelerate implementation of its plan. The European Parliament has been a major supporter of creating a common EU recovery instrument, and takes part in interinstitutional settings to cooperate, discuss and scrutinise implementation of the Commission’s work. This briefing is one in a series covering all EU Member States. Third edition. The previous editions were written by Henrique Morgado Simões. The ‘NGEU delivery’ briefings are updated at key stages throughout the lifecycle of the plans. The author would like to thank Amalia Fumagalli and Ana Luisa Melo Almeida, trainees in the Directorate Members’ Research Service, for their research assistance.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Rules for the allocation of EU funding and the autonomy of local authorities – E-001873/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    1. 

    In accordance with shared management, the conditions for granting the EU support under cohesion policy are defined:

    — At the EU level, principally in the Common Provisions Regulation[1] (CPR) and the Fund-specific regulations.

    — In the Partnership Agreement and the relevant programmes, as well as,

    — In the national rules, pursuant to Article 63(1) CPR.

    The Partnership Agreement and every Polish programme contain a passage: ‘Where the beneficiary is a local authority (or an entity controlled or dependent on it) that has taken any discriminatory action contrary to the principles referred to in Article 9(3) of Regulation 2021/1060, cohesion policy support cannot be granted’.

    2. Regional authorities, fulfilling the role of Managing Authorities, are responsible for ensuring the compliance with the above-mentioned rules also at local level and making sure that there is a widespread understanding on the conditions to receive EU funding.

    3. It is the responsibility of Managing Authority and the Polish Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Development, to ensure compliance with all rules and procedures to receive EU funding in all the territory of Poland. It is the role of the Commission to monitor the management and control systems established in Member States.

    • [1] Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund Plus, the Cohesion Fund, the Just Transition Fund and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund and financial rules for those and for the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, the Internal Security Fund and the Instrument for Financial Support for Border Management and Visa Policy (OJ L 231 30.6.2021).
    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Public health risk from the presence of asbestos in public buildings in Greece – E-001913/2025(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    At EU level, asbestos is recognised as a hazardous carcinogen. The Commission is promoting the protection of people and the environment by adopting and enforcing EU legislation related to asbestos management and control.

    In its communication on working towards an asbestos-free future[1], the Commission called upon all EU institutions, Member States, social partners and other stakeholders to accelerate action to achieve an asbestos-free EU for current and future generations.

    As regards the complete removal of asbestos from public buildings, considering that the magnitude of the asbestos presence, as well as screening, registration and removal strategies, differs considerably among Member States, the Commission is examining different possibilities to create a common EU framework to support Member States in monitoring and registering the presence of asbestos in buildings.

    Currently no obligation has been established at EU level in this regard and Member States, including Greece, are free to implement any action needed to completely remove asbestos from public buildings.

    The EU provides significant funding through the Recovery and Resilience Facility, which can be used to support national measures for the removal of asbestos in the context of renovations.

    In addition, Cohesion policy supports measures related to renovations and the modernisation of public infrastructure, including educational buildings.

    If asbestos is present in buildings undergoing energy renovation works financed by EU funds[2], its removal could be undertaken as part of the renovation.

    As Cohesion policy Funds are implemented under shared management between the Commission and Member States, and the latter are responsible for the selection of projects.

    • [1]  COM/2022/488 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex:52022DC0488.
    • [2] Such as energy upgrades in schools.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Briefing – Extraterritorial processing of asylum claims – 15-07-2025

    Source: European Parliament

    In the past decade, continuous migration and asylum pressure on European Union Member States has made the external dimension of the EU’s approach to migration management all the more important. The need to address challenges relating to external border management has reoriented EU migration policy towards extended and stricter border controls, combined with the externalisation of migration management through cooperation with third countries. Thus, the external processing of asylum claims has also been put forward as a possibility. Overall, asylum is governed by international, EU and national laws. Both EU and national asylum legislation must be aligned with the international legal framework. Although EU law does not provide for the processing of asylum applications outside the EU, the idea of ‘transit’ or ‘processing’ centres in third countries has been recurrent over the years. Examples of externalisation procedures can be found around the world. Some non-EU countries, such as Australia and the United States, have practical experience of the extra-territorial processing of asylum claims. Within Europe, back in 1986 Denmark tabled a draft resolution in the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to create UN centres where asylum claims could be processed, in order to coordinate the resettlement of refugees among all states. Later, in 2001 and 2002, when the EU experienced the first peak of migrant arrivals in the EU, this was followed by a series of proposals involving the external processing of asylum requests. Extraterritorial processing was first put forward by the United Kingdom in 2003, while Germany proposed the establishment of asylum centres in North Africa in 2005. The series of proposals made over the years with a view to externalising migration policies have raised concerns, not least in relation to the human rights implications, asylum procedures and EU and international law. This briefing updates an earlier edition, of January 2024, by the present authors along with Anita Orav.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Eritrean Community Festival in the United Kingdom (UK)

    Source: APO


    .

    The 2025 Eritrean Community Festival in the United Kingdom was colorfully conducted on 12 and 13 July in London under the theme “Our Cohesion – Our Armour.”

    The festival, in which about 2,000 nationals from various cities in Britain took part, was officially opened by Mr. Saleh Abdella, Chargé d’Affaires at the Eritrean Embassy in the UK and Northern Ireland.

    Mr. Mulubrhan Berhe, Chairman of the Holidays Coordinating Committee, and Mr. Ahmed Mahmud, Chairman of the National Committee, commended all those who contributed to the successful implementation of the program and thanked the participants.

    Mr. Saleh Abdella stated that this year’s festival was particularly significant as it was held at a time when the Eritrean people are focused on national development programs while confronting and foiling external conspiracies and hostilities. He also called on nationals to strengthen unity, foster deeper connections with their homeland, and enhance participation in national affairs.

    Mr. Tewolde Yohannes, Head of Public and Community Affairs, also conducted a seminar for participants focusing on the objective situation in the homeland and the region. Mr. Tewolde stated that Eritrea, firmly standing by its national principles, continues to make earnest contributions to regional peace and stability.

    The festival featured cultural and artistic performances, sports competitions, and children’s programs.

    Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – EU funds paid to Hungary – clarification of disbursement dates – E-002773/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002773/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Daniel Freund (Verts/ALE)

    According to the Commission’s reply to Written Question E-001620/2025[1], the Commission disbursed approximately EUR 9.5 billion to Hungary between December 2022 and May 2025. Further to its reply, can the Commission provide a more detailed breakdown and indicate the specific dates on which the respective payments to Hungary were made and what amounts were transferred?

    Submitted: 8.7.2025

    • [1] https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/E-10-2025-001620-ASW_EN.html.
    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Interconnectivity funding – E-002824/2025

    Source: European Parliament

    Question for written answer  E-002824/2025
    to the Commission
    Rule 144
    Mihai Tudose (S&D)

    The Commission has selected 94 transport projects to which it is allocating EUR 2.8 billion in EU grants under the Connecting Europe Facility. This is an encouraging signal for connectivity, mobility and competitiveness in the EU. I welcome the focus on strategic and solidarity investments, such as the improvement of rail connectivity and border crossing points between Romania and the Republic of Moldova.

    So far, 95 % of the Connecting Europe Facility budget (EUR 25.8 billion for 2021-2027) has already been allocated to the projects selected.

    Given the clear value of investing in interconnectivity, and its strategic nature, how much does the Commission envisage allocating to it in the next Multiannual Financial Framework?

    Submitted: 10.7.2025

    Last updated: 15 July 2025

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Work begins on multi-storey refurbishment and improvement programme

    Source: Scotland – City of Perth

    The work is necessary to extend the life expectancy of the buildings so they can continue to provide homes to local residents for years to come. 

    The programme will see significant works carried out to the interiors of communal areas and exteriors of the blocks at Pomarium, Market, Milne, Lickley, and Potterhill. This will enhance the interior areas of the blocks and transform how the blocks look on the outside. Planned work includes upgrading external wall insulation, roof coverings, balconies, handrails, walkways, balustrades, passenger lifts, and fire safety measures. 

    The Council plans to carry out the programme of works through a phased approach starting with Blocks 7-51 and 52-95 Pomarium Street, followed by Lickley, Milne and Market Courts and Potterhill as the final block. 

    Scaffolding will be erected around 7-51 Pomarium Street over the next few weeks as the improvement programme gets underway. Work on the block is scheduled to be completed by May 2026. Work will begin in August on 52-95 Pomarium Street, which is scheduled to be finished in April 2026.  

    The improvement programme will then move on to Lickley Court. 

    The aim of the works is to make all the homes safer and more comfortable to live in by: 

    • Significantly reducing energy demand 

    • Improving ventilation to reduce the build-up of moisture, damp and mould 

    • Improving fire safety 

    • Making homes easier to heat 

    • Reducing carbon emissions 

    • Reducing energy consumption 

    • Extending the life expectancy of the blocks 

    • Improved internal and external visual appearance. 

    The programme also aims to bring all six blocks up to a standard known as Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH2). This is the minimum energy efficiency standard for social housing and are targets set by the Scottish Government in the move to more energy efficient homes. 

    We have carried out a programme of engagement with all residents and homeowners ahead of the start of the works. Homeowners are expected to meet their share of the costs, and we have worked to put a range of options and support in place to help them if they need any assistance. 

    Housing and Social Wellbeing Convener, Councillor Tom McEwan, said: “This represents a significant investment for the Council, but the structural maintenance programme is vital for ensuring our multi-storey blocks remain safe, warm, and secure for current and future residents for years to come.  

    “The work will transform the blocks inside and out, enhancing the environment for both residents and the general population.   

    “It will massively improve the lives of people who live in the blocks. People who have bought their homes, and landlords, will be required to make a contribution and we have worked diligently to provide a range of supportive options for homeowners, including Scottish Government grant funding, flexible repayment plans and a buy-back option. Our aim is to assist homeowners through this period and help secure the future of their homes.” 

    More information on the improvement programme is available at: Multi-Storey Refurbishment Works. 

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-Evening Report: No more card surcharges: what the Reserve Bank’s proposed changes mean for your wallet

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Angel Zhong, Professor of Finance, RMIT University

    That extra 10c on your morning coffee. That $2 surcharge on your taxi ride. The sneaky 1.5% fee when you pay by card at your local restaurant. These could all soon be history.

    The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has proposed a sweeping reform: abolishing card payment surcharges. The central bank says it’s in the public interest to scrap the system and estimates consumers could collectively save $1.2 billion annually.

    But like all major financial reforms, the devil is in the detail.

    The 20-year experiment is over

    Surcharging was introduced more than two decades ago to expose the true cost of different payment methods. In the early 2000s, card fees were high, cash was king, and surcharges helped nudge consumers toward lower-cost options.

    But fast-forward to 2025, and the payments ecosystem has changed dramatically. Cash now accounts for just 13% of in-person transactions, and the shift to contactless payments, accelerated by the pandemic, has made cards the default for most Australians.

    When there’s no real alternative, a surcharge becomes less a useful price signal and more a penalty for convenience.

    After an eight month review, the bank’s Payments System Board has concluded the surcharge model no longer works in a predominantly cashless economy. The proposal now on the table is to phase out surcharges and instead push for simplified, all-inclusive pricing.

    Who saves – and who pays?

    At first glance, removing surcharges looks like a win for consumers. Every household could save about $60 per year, based on the RBA’s estimates. But payment costs don’t vanish – they shift.

    This is where the Reserve Bank’s proposal is more sophisticated than it may appear. Alongside banning surcharges, it plans to lower interchange fees (the fees merchants pay to card networks like Visa and Mastercard) and introduce caps on international card transactions.

    These changes aim to reduce the burden on merchants, which in turn limits the pressure to raise prices.

    Could prices still rise?

    Some worry that without surcharges, businesses will simply embed the costs into product prices. That’s possible. However, the bank estimates this would result in only a 0.1 percentage point increase in consumer prices overall.

    There are three reasons for that:

    1. most merchants already don’t surcharge, especially small businesses. Of them, 90% may have included card costs in their pricing

    2. competition keeps pricing in check. Retailers in competitive markets can’t raise prices without risking customers

    3. transparency is coming. The reforms will require payment providers to disclose fees more clearly, allowing merchants to compare and switch – fostering more competition and lower costs.

    That said, the effects won’t be felt evenly. Merchants in sectors that do currently surcharge, like hospitality, transport, and tourism, will need to rethink their pricing strategies. Some may absorb costs; others may pass them on.

    The winners

    Consumers stand to benefit most. They’ll avoid surprise fees at checkout, won’t need to switch payment methods to dodge surcharges, and won’t have to report excessive fees to the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission. Combined with lower interchange fees, this means consumers should face less friction and more predictable pricing.

    About 90% of small businesses don’t currently surcharge and would gain around $185 million in net benefits. These businesses often pay higher interchange fees, so the reform will reduce their costs. New transparency requirements will also make it easier to find better deals from payment service providers (PSPs).

    Large businesses already receive lower domestic interchange rates, but they’ll benefit from new caps on foreign-issued card transactions, which is a win for those in e-commerce and tourism.

    The losers

    Banks that issue cards stand to lose about $900 million in interchange revenue under the preferred reform package. Some may respond by raising cardholder fees or cutting rewards, especially on premium credit cards. But they may also gain from increased credit card use as surcharges disappear.

    The 10% of small and 12% of large merchants who currently surcharge will have to adjust. They may face retraining costs and need to revise their pricing strategies.
    Most will be able to adapt, but the transition won’t be cost-free.

    Payment service providers will face about $25 million in compliance costs to remove surcharges and provide clearer fee breakdowns. For some, this may involve significant system changes, though one-off in nature.

    Will it work?

    The Reserve Bank’s proposal tackles real problems: an outdated surcharge model, opaque pricing by payment service providers, and bundling of unrelated services into payment fees. Its success depends on how well these reforms are implemented and whether they deliver real price transparency and lower costs.

    Removing visible price signals may create cross-subsidisation, where users of low-cost debit cards subsidise those who use high-cost rewards credit cards. Some economists argue this could reduce overall efficiency in the system.

    International experience offers mixed lessons. While the European Union and United Kingdom banned most surcharges years ago, outcomes have varied depending on market conditions. Efficiency gains haven’t always followed, and small business concerns persist.

    The road ahead

    The Reserve Bank is seeking feedback until August 26, with a final decision due by year-end. If adopted, the reform will be phased in, allowing time for businesses to adapt.

    For consumers, this may mark the end of hidden payment fees. But for the broader system, success will depend on more than just eliminating surcharges. It will require meaningful competition, transparency, and vigilance during the transition.

    While not a major omission, mobile wallets (such as Apple Pay) and Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services represent a missing component in the broader payments ecosystem that the current reforms do not yet address.

    These platforms operate outside the traditional regulatory framework, often imposing higher merchant fees and lacking the transparency applied to card networks.

    Their growing popularity, especially among younger consumers, means they increasingly shape payment behaviour and merchant cost structures. To build a truly future-ready and equitable payments system, these emerging models may need to be brought into the regulatory fold.

    Angel Zhong does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. No more card surcharges: what the Reserve Bank’s proposed changes mean for your wallet – https://theconversation.com/no-more-card-surcharges-what-the-reserve-banks-proposed-changes-mean-for-your-wallet-261165

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Federal Court rules Australian government doesn’t have a duty of care to protect Torres Strait Islanders from climate change

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Liz Hicks, Lecturer in Law, The University of Melbourne

    Australian Climate Case

    The Federal Court has handed down its long-awaited judgement in a four-year climate case
    brought by Torres Strait Islanders.

    Elders Uncle Pabai Pabai and Uncle Paul Kabai took the Australian government to court on behalf of their community, arguing the government has a duty of care to protect them from climate change. They also asked the court to legally recognise the cultural loss and harm they are experiencing from sea-level rise and climate-induced flooding.

    But the court declined to recognise either duty or to legally recognise cultural harm.

    Many climate justice advocates hoped today’s decision would be the climate equivalent of the famous Mabo decision, which recognised native title. There are many parallels. At stake was the legal recognition of the harms and loss of connection to Country that Australia’s First Peoples are experiencing through government inaction on climate change.

    Vulnerability and leadership

    Torres Strait Islanders are well placed to bring this kind of legal claim.

    To sue a government for climate inaction, plaintiffs often have to show they are particularly impacted by climate harms over and above the rest of the population.

    Claims across the world have been brought by Indigenous peoples, farmers, young people who will experience catastrophic climate impacts in the future, and people with heat-sensitive illnesses.

    The islands on which Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul live, Sabai and Boigu, are extremely low-lying. Climate-related flooding is already affecting whether people can live there.

    Importantly, small differences in future emissions scenarios will significantly impact their habitability. Every fraction of a degree of warming will matter.

    During the case, climate scientists gave evidence that on the current emissions scenario, the islands are highly likely to be uninhabitable less than 25 years from now.

    This will force Torres Strait Islanders to leave, severing them from thousands of years of tradition, fulfilment of their traditional practices (called Ailan Kastom), and connection to country and identity.

    The legal claim against the Commonwealth

    Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul argued the Commonwealth government has a duty to protect Torres Strait Islanders from climate change when setting national emissions-reduction targets. They argued the government breached that duty by not setting targets in line with the best available science. This would involve calculating reduction targets by reference to Australia’s share to keep global warming to as close to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels as possible.

    Second, they argued the government has a duty to protect property, the fulfilment of their traditional customs, and the health and life of Torres Strait Islanders from climate impacts. They argued the government breached that duty by failing to properly fund the construction of sea walls.

    What the Federal Court said

    Justice Wigney’s judgement emphasised the existential threat of climate change. It noted Torres Strait Islanders are particularly vulnerable to climate impacts and face a “bleak future” unless urgent action is taken.

    But it accepted the government’s argument that setting emissions reductions targets, and allocating funding for protective infrastructure, involves “policy” considerations a court can’t review.

    When do governments owe a duty of care to climate vulnerable groups?

    Plaintiffs elsewhere in the world have successfully argued that their government owed them a duty of care to protect them from climate harms by lowering emissions. But the argument has had mixed success in Australia.

    To establish a legal duty of care, plaintiffs need to show they have some kind of special relationship with the defendant. This relationship arises through factors such as the plaintiff’s vulnerability to a certain harm, and the defendant’s knowledge of, and control over, that harm.

    As First Peoples, Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul argued they have this kind of relationship with the government. They pointed to a range of factors such as the particular vulnerability of the Torres Strait Islanders, and the government’s control over climate harms to them.

    Novel duties of care can be imposed on government and public authorities. But Australian courts have sometimes declined to do this where they would have to judge how governments have weighed different policy considerations.

    This is partly because it would be too difficult for the court to decide whether the government had met the legal standard of behaviour.

    Courts are more willing to find a government owes a duty of care where the government is merely applying a policy, or where it can measure the government’s behaviour against clear standards. But courts have also acknowledged that the distinction between making policy and applying policy is blurry.

    Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul argued the Australian government has committed to the Paris Agreement, and this sets out a clear legal standard of the “best available science”.

    The Australian government argued its decisions about climate policy involve complex political priorities that a court shouldn’t review. It argued it shouldn’t be bound by the best available science as a legal standard.

    Paul Kabai and Pabai Pabai at Boigu Island, the most northerly inhabited island of Queensland. It is part of the top-western group of the Torres Strait Islands.
    Talei Elu

    The role of courts in protecting people from climate harm

    Today’s decision is a setback for both the climate and Indigenous justice movements. But the situation isn’t as bleak as it may seem.

    Across the world, plaintiffs in courts are gaining legal ground on climate accountability. It’s becoming easier to attribute harms to emitters, and to develop standards against which governments can be measured. And courts frequently reject government arguments that their contribution to climate change is minimal. They emphasise that each country must do its share for global collective action to work.

    It is a question of when, rather than if, law will adapt to deal with climate impacts. Much like a rising tide breaking against a seawall, the future impact of climate change on things that law already protects is too extreme for the law to resist.

    Liz Hicks has previously received a Commonwealth Research Training Program stipend and currently receives funding from the Manchester-Melbourne-Toronto Research Fund for a project on constitutional accountability and the environment. She is also a member of the Australian Greens Victoria.

    – ref. Federal Court rules Australian government doesn’t have a duty of care to protect Torres Strait Islanders from climate change – https://theconversation.com/federal-court-rules-australian-government-doesnt-have-a-duty-of-care-to-protect-torres-strait-islanders-from-climate-change-259999

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Federal Court rules Australian government doesn’t have a duty of care to protect Torres Strait Islanders from climate change

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Liz Hicks, Lecturer in Law, The University of Melbourne

    Australian Climate Case

    The Federal Court has handed down its long-awaited judgement in a four-year climate case
    brought by Torres Strait Islanders.

    Elders Uncle Pabai Pabai and Uncle Paul Kabai took the Australian government to court on behalf of their community, arguing the government has a duty of care to protect them from climate change. They also asked the court to legally recognise the cultural loss and harm they are experiencing from sea-level rise and climate-induced flooding.

    But the court declined to recognise either duty or to legally recognise cultural harm.

    Many climate justice advocates hoped today’s decision would be the climate equivalent of the famous Mabo decision, which recognised native title. There are many parallels. At stake was the legal recognition of the harms and loss of connection to Country that Australia’s First Peoples are experiencing through government inaction on climate change.

    Vulnerability and leadership

    Torres Strait Islanders are well placed to bring this kind of legal claim.

    To sue a government for climate inaction, plaintiffs often have to show they are particularly impacted by climate harms over and above the rest of the population.

    Claims across the world have been brought by Indigenous peoples, farmers, young people who will experience catastrophic climate impacts in the future, and people with heat-sensitive illnesses.

    The islands on which Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul live, Sabai and Boigu, are extremely low-lying. Climate-related flooding is already affecting whether people can live there.

    Importantly, small differences in future emissions scenarios will significantly impact their habitability. Every fraction of a degree of warming will matter.

    During the case, climate scientists gave evidence that on the current emissions scenario, the islands are highly likely to be uninhabitable less than 25 years from now.

    This will force Torres Strait Islanders to leave, severing them from thousands of years of tradition, fulfilment of their traditional practices (called Ailan Kastom), and connection to country and identity.

    The legal claim against the Commonwealth

    Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul argued the Commonwealth government has a duty to protect Torres Strait Islanders from climate change when setting national emissions-reduction targets. They argued the government breached that duty by not setting targets in line with the best available science. This would involve calculating reduction targets by reference to Australia’s share to keep global warming to as close to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels as possible.

    Second, they argued the government has a duty to protect property, the fulfilment of their traditional customs, and the health and life of Torres Strait Islanders from climate impacts. They argued the government breached that duty by failing to properly fund the construction of sea walls.

    What the Federal Court said

    Justice Wigney’s judgement emphasised the existential threat of climate change. It noted Torres Strait Islanders are particularly vulnerable to climate impacts and face a “bleak future” unless urgent action is taken.

    But it accepted the government’s argument that setting emissions reductions targets, and allocating funding for protective infrastructure, involves “policy” considerations a court can’t review.

    When do governments owe a duty of care to climate vulnerable groups?

    Plaintiffs elsewhere in the world have successfully argued that their government owed them a duty of care to protect them from climate harms by lowering emissions. But the argument has had mixed success in Australia.

    To establish a legal duty of care, plaintiffs need to show they have some kind of special relationship with the defendant. This relationship arises through factors such as the plaintiff’s vulnerability to a certain harm, and the defendant’s knowledge of, and control over, that harm.

    As First Peoples, Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul argued they have this kind of relationship with the government. They pointed to a range of factors such as the particular vulnerability of the Torres Strait Islanders, and the government’s control over climate harms to them.

    Novel duties of care can be imposed on government and public authorities. But Australian courts have sometimes declined to do this where they would have to judge how governments have weighed different policy considerations.

    This is partly because it would be too difficult for the court to decide whether the government had met the legal standard of behaviour.

    Courts are more willing to find a government owes a duty of care where the government is merely applying a policy, or where it can measure the government’s behaviour against clear standards. But courts have also acknowledged that the distinction between making policy and applying policy is blurry.

    Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul argued the Australian government has committed to the Paris Agreement, and this sets out a clear legal standard of the “best available science”.

    The Australian government argued its decisions about climate policy involve complex political priorities that a court shouldn’t review. It argued it shouldn’t be bound by the best available science as a legal standard.

    Paul Kabai and Pabai Pabai at Boigu Island, the most northerly inhabited island of Queensland. It is part of the top-western group of the Torres Strait Islands.
    Talei Elu

    The role of courts in protecting people from climate harm

    Today’s decision is a setback for both the climate and Indigenous justice movements. But the situation isn’t as bleak as it may seem.

    Across the world, plaintiffs in courts are gaining legal ground on climate accountability. It’s becoming easier to attribute harms to emitters, and to develop standards against which governments can be measured. And courts frequently reject government arguments that their contribution to climate change is minimal. They emphasise that each country must do its share for global collective action to work.

    It is a question of when, rather than if, law will adapt to deal with climate impacts. Much like a rising tide breaking against a seawall, the future impact of climate change on things that law already protects is too extreme for the law to resist.

    Liz Hicks has previously received a Commonwealth Research Training Program stipend and currently receives funding from the Manchester-Melbourne-Toronto Research Fund for a project on constitutional accountability and the environment. She is also a member of the Australian Greens Victoria.

    – ref. Federal Court rules Australian government doesn’t have a duty of care to protect Torres Strait Islanders from climate change – https://theconversation.com/federal-court-rules-australian-government-doesnt-have-a-duty-of-care-to-protect-torres-strait-islanders-from-climate-change-259999

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –