Source: United States Senator for South Carolina Tim Scott
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.), member of the Senate Finance Committee, questioned President Trump’s nominee to serve as U.S. Trade Representative, Jamieson Greer, at his confirmation hearing. Senator Scott and Mr. Greer discussed a range of topics, including market access for U.S. exports, specifically South Carolina products, the strategies behind tariffs, China’s unfair trade practices, and economic tools to strengthen American national security.
Excerpts from Senator Scott’s questioning can be found below:
On market access for U.S. exports… “Expanding market access for American made goods is critical to our economic strength, frankly, and our competitiveness. Ninety-five percent of our customers are outside of our nation as we represent about five percent of the world’s population. [In] South Carolina, we have about $36.4 billion of manufactured goods and products that leave our state, supporting 112,000 jobs that find a home someplace around the world. [For] our agricultural goods – $1.2 billion – access to the world’s market is incredibly important. We believe that they create good paying jobs in South Carolina. We also believe they create great paying jobs across this country as we took the aggregate value of those goods and services in other states. How do you plan to secure this market access with other countries in the first 100 days?”
On President Trump’s approach to tariffs… “So, it seems to me that the president’s tariffs approach… has to do with punishment. The other has to do with the right sizing our approach to a global economy. And both seem to have the American consumer in mind and our national security in mind, as well. And the more efforts we see from the president in this direction, it seems like his ability to recalibrate the global system and, frankly, to make it more responsive to Americans [is a] net positive long-term.”
On China and unfair trade practices… “It also seems to me that there are countries like China – I’m not sure the politically right way to say this – but they lie, they cheat, they steal. And yet with the World Trade Organization, they still have a most favored nation status. What should we do about that?”
On our national security… “From my perspective, our first weapon for national security ought to be an economic weapon, a non-kinetic option. And to the extent that we deploy that weapon in the most effective way possible, we keep more Americans safe, keep our soldiers at home, and frankly, it recalibrates or repositions America as a city on the hill. And I hope that we engage in the most effective approach and use of that economic weapon that we possibly can.”
OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued the following statement regarding the Sacramento County Superior Court’s ruling to enforce the California Department of Justice’s investigative subpoena issued to the Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS):
“In California and across the globe, plastics are everywhere. Plastic pollution is seeping into our waterways, poisoning our environment, and wreaking havoc on our health. The plastics industry has knowingly engaged in an aggressive, decades-long campaign to deceive the public, perpetuating a myth that recycling can solve the plastics crisis. We are pleased with the Court’s decision to grant our petition to enforce our investigative subpoena against PLASTICS. We are looking forward to vigorously pursuing our investigation.”
BACKGROUND
In 2022, the California Department of Justice issued an investigative subpoena to PLASTICS as part of Attorney General Bonta’s first-of-its-kind investigation into fossil fuel and petrochemical industries for their role in causing the plastic waste and pollution crisis, which has significantly harmed California, its people and its communities. The subpoena seeks specific documents regarding the feasibility of recycling and the evolution of the organization’s campaign surrounding the recyclability of plastic. These documents were housed at the Hagley Library in Delaware, and were generally available to the public for research for decades. The documents sought by the state include historical documents that may shed light on the extent of the plastics industries’ knowledge about harms associated with plastics, including the staggering waste issue California is forced to manage.
On May 28, 2024, Attorney General Bonta filed a petition in Sacramento County Superior Court to enforce our subpoena to PLASTICS. In its decision, the court rejected PLASTICS’ argument that documents covered by the subpoena are protected by the First Amendment, as PLASTICS previously made them available for public research access in the Hagley Library. Per the Court’s order, PLASTICS must comply with the subpoena in its entirety by April 25, 2025.
regon State Treasurer Elizabeth Steiner called on the Trump administration to take costly tariffs off the table and maintain the integrity of the federal payment system to preserve the financial stability of Oregonians and all Americans.
In a statement Treasurer Steiner said:
“Oregonians are doing better financially than most Americans, according to a new report just released by the Oregon State Treasury, but recent actions by the White House are threatening the financial stability and security of many Oregon households.
The annual cost of the administration’s suddenly proposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China amount to an expense that nearly half of Oregon households are not prepared to absorb. According to new data compiled for the Oregon State Treasury by Oregon State University (OSU) researchers, nearly 1 in 2 Oregonians cannot afford an emergency expense of more than $500. Yet, the cost of the proposed Trump administration tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China would increase costs to the typical American consumer by amounts ranging from $800 to $1,200 per year, according to independent economists.
At a time when the cost of living remains a major source of worry for Oregonians, this price hike is an unnecessary expense that many Oregon families cannot afford. While the administration has paused tariffs on Canada and Mexico, Oregon consumers should not have to worry about having to pay more for groceries, gas, clothes, cars and other items they use each day.
In addition, I am deeply concerned about other actions the White House has taken in recent days that could also harm the financial well-being of Oregonians. Last week, the administration tried to freeze more than $40 billion in funding that the federal government contributes to Oregon’s state budget (and hundreds of millions more that flow directly to universities and non-profits serving Oregon communities). The administration also has sent repeated messages to Oregon’s 17,500 civilian federal employees – who care for veterans, provide Social Security payments, operate dams, provide air traffic control, manage public lands, and provide other vital services – urging them to resign. The White House has given unvetted temporary staff at the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE) access to the federal Treasury’s payment system – potentially freezing trillions of dollars in federal funds and compromising the information privacy of Americans.
I urge the White House to abandon its costly tariff plans, maintain the integrity of the federal payment system, and ensure the uninterrupted flow of funds to Oregon and other states. Oregonians cannot afford to bear the financial cost of these fiscally reckless actions.”
Source: United States Senator for Maine Angus King
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Angus King, a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC), is joining his colleagues in demanding the Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary protect veterans’ personal information. In a letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins, the Senators urge him to take immediate actions to secure veterans’ personal information provided by VA or other agencies to Elon Musk and his “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE). The call to protect this data follows Musk’s takeover of the U.S. Treasury’s payment system, which includes private information of veterans and their families, and reports of DOGE employees accessing VA computer systems at the Department’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.
There are millions of veterans’ medical records stored in VA’s computer systems. These confidential records include veterans’ prescriptions, diagnoses, and procedures they have undergone. Access to these medical records could give Musk and DOGE the ability to identify veterans who have received abortions or abortion counseling in the past. The Million Veteran Program, which manages the genomic data of its more than one million veteran participants for authorized research programs, also stores its data in VA data systems. In addition, the U.S. Treasury’s payment system stores private information of veterans, surviving spouses, and their families, including their monthly disability compensation amount, home address, and bank account numbers.
The Senators write, “Among many tasks, the Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is entrusted with safeguarding the private and sensitive information of millions of veterans…Veterans risked their lives to defend our country, and they deserve better than to have an unelected billionaire reviewing their medical records, targeting the benefits they have earned, or using their private information for personal gain.”
“Meanwhile, the President has given unfettered access to federal databases and systems to Mr. Musk, an unelected citizen, and a team of colleagues with no formal documented employment agreement with the U.S. government,” the Senators continued. “It is a group of private citizens with no experience in the federal government, who lack proper approval from legal and agency authorities, lack the appropriate security clearances, and lack the requisite background investigations or ethical conflict requirements.”
The Senators concluded, “During your confirmation process, you claimed you would be focused on rooting out corruption and ensuring accountability at VA, and committed to following the laws passed by Congress. We now call on you to respond quickly and comprehensively to these privacy violations by revoking DOGE’s access to VA systems and insisting they permanently remove all VA data collected from their files.”
Joining King on this letter are Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Tina Smith (D-MN), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Patty Murray (D-WA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Mark Warner (D-VA), and Martin Heinrich (D-NM).
The full text of the Senators’ letter is available here and below.
+++
Dear Secretary Collins,
Among many tasks, the Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is entrusted with safeguarding the private and sensitive information of millions of veterans. Today, we call on you to immediately secure any personal and related information regarding veterans provided by VA or other agencies to Elon Musk and associates under the auspices of the “Department of Government Efficiency” established under Executive Order 14158. Further, we call on you to deny and sever their access to any VA or other government system that includes information about veterans, and to require them to immediately and permanently delete any information in their possession. Veterans risked their lives to defend our country, and they deserve better than to have an unelected billionaire reviewing their medical records, targeting the benefits they have earned, or using their private information for personal gain.
Our nation’s veterans have entrusted their health records, including genetic samples, disability data, bank information, and other private information, to VA. The Department also stores sensitive veteran casework, files of whistleblowers who have come forward with concerns about waste, fraud, and abuse, and sensitive investigative files with veteran and federal employee information. Veterans and VA employees entrusted the Department with this information with the understanding that it would be kept private and only used to help deliver the highest quality of services to veterans, their families, and survivors.
Meanwhile, the President has given unfettered access to federal databases and systems to Mr. Musk, an unelected citizen, and a team of colleagues with no formal documented employment agreement with the U.S. government. It is a group of private citizens with no experience in the federal government, who lack proper approval from legal and agency authorities, lack the appropriate security clearances, and lack the requisite background investigations or ethical conflict requirements. We are outraged these unelected, unvetted, and unaccountable individuals now have access to sensitive information that has been heavily secured for decades and by Administrations of both parties.
These actions are in direct violation of federal laws meant to protect our national security and the privacy of our citizens’ personal information. This includes information on Social Security payments, Medicare, Medicaid, student loans, veterans’ disability compensation payments, GI Bill payments, federal civil servants’ personnel records, and much more. With every hour, we see DOGE further expand its efforts to create a massive private database of previously guarded data outside the federal government’s cyber and legal protections. It is an abhorrent and illegal overreach of executive powers, which conflicts with various federal statutes, including the Federal Information Security Modernization Act, the Privacy Act, the E-Government Act of 2002, and likely several other cyber and national security laws.
During your confirmation process, you claimed you would be focused on rooting out corruption and ensuring accountability at VA, and committed to following the laws passed by Congress. We now call on you to respond quickly and comprehensively to these privacy violations by revoking DOGE’s access to VA systems and insisting they permanently remove all VA data collected from their files.
Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Norman W. Park, Professor Emeritus, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health, York University, York University, Canada
The demand for electricity is growing rapidly as the world transitions from fossil fuels to low carbon-emitting forms of energy. However, making this transition will be difficult.
Ontario is projected to require 75 per cent more electricity by 2050, spurred by increasing demand from the industrial sector, data centres, electric vehicle (EV) adoption and households, according to the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).
To meet this demand, Ontario Energy Minister Stephen Lecce has proposed transforming the province into an “energy superpower” by aggressively expanding nuclear energy and natural gas while cutting support for wind and solar renewable energy.
This plan was spelled out in a policy directive from Lecce instructing the IESO to consider bids from all energy sources, opening the door to allow bids from natural gas and nuclear energy.
This is a departure from previous policies. Previously, under former Energy Minister Todd Smith, the IESO had stipulated bids for the electrical grid should only be from wind, solar, hydro or biomass.
The Ontario government should reconsider these plans. Non-renewable energy sources are costly, rely on new, expensive technologies, ignore the harm to human health and ignore the consequences for global warming.
Expanding nuclear
A central pillar of the Ontario government’s energy plan is the aggressive expansion of nuclear power. The province has committed to refurbishing 14 CANDU reactors at Bruce, Darlington and Pickering, and has proposed constructing new reactors at Bruce.
Ontario is also the first jurisdiction in the world to contractually build a BWRX–300 small modular reactor project at Darlington, despite not knowing its projected cost.
The cost of this small modular reactor may be much higher than similarly sized solar, wind and natural gas projects. This is unsurprising, given that the costs of nuclear projects are often much higher than projected.
Ontario encountered a similar issue when the Darlington nuclear generating station was constructed. The actual costs of nuclear projects were more than double projected costs and took almost six years longer to complete than projected.
Given these historical challenges and uncertainties, the province’s push for nuclear expansion is a cause for concern.
Opposition to wind and solar
Despite significant cost reductions in utility-scale wind and solar farms, which makes them less expensive than nuclear and fossil fuels in many parts of the world, Ontario’s recent policy directive reduced support for these non-emitting renewable energy sources.
The directive is a continuation of the government’s antipathy to wind and solar energy. Shortly after winning its first election in 2018, the Doug Ford government cancelled 750 renewable energy contracts at a cost of $230 million to Ontario residents. Ford defended this decision by saying it saved taxpayers $790 million and that wind turbines had “destroyed” Ontario’s energy file.
By curtailing support for renewable energy, Ontario risks missing out on the economic, environmental and technological benefits these energy sources offer. In other words, it may hinder the province’s ability to transition to a cleaner and more sustainable energy future.
Support for natural gas
Instead of investing in wind and solar to power Ontario’s electrical grid, the province has increased its reliance on natural gas. This expansion has tripled the percentage of energy provided by gas-fired turbines from four per cent in 2017 to 12.8 per cent in 2023. It’s projected to grow to 25 per cent by 2030.
According to Health Canada, outdoor air pollution has a total economic cost in Canada of $120 billion per year, and it resulted in 6,000 premature deaths per year in Ontario and 15,300 deaths in Canada. That’s about eight times higher than the annual number of motor vehicle fatalities in Canada.
Shifting focus from natural gas to cleaner energy sources like wind and solar could reduce these environmental and health impacts in Ontario.
Reconsidering Ontario’s energy transition
Ontario’s energy transition must involve supplying more energy to an expanding electrical grid while ensuring it remains reliable and resilient. The current government’s plans to turn the province into an “energy superpower” will commit Ontario to decades of costly expenditures and relies on unproven new technologies.
The government’s proposal to increase natural gas to supply the electricity grid and new buildings will increase the risk of premature death and serious illness to Ontarians and will increase greenhouse gas emission, undermining efforts to combat global warming.
Lecce should reconsider his current policy directive to the IESO. Future bids for the electrical grid should instead be evaluated for their impacts on the health of Ontario residents and climate change.
Ontario’s energy policies should also be guided by knowledgeable experts outside of government, rather than solely by politicians. Establishing a blue-ribbon committee comprising energy scientists and environmental specialists would provide needed oversight and ensure the province’s energy strategy is cost-effective, technologically sound and aligned with climate goals.
Ontario has an opportunity to lead by example in balancing energy needs with environmental and health priorities.
Norman W. Park receives no funding from any organization that would benefit from this article. He is affiliated with Seniors for Climate Action Now.
YouTube’s algorithm is extremely powerful. If the company were to direct some of its users’s attention to pro-climate content, this would likely have positive consequences on a large scale.(Shutterstock)
Have we tried everything to tackle the climate crisis? At least one simple idea has hardly been explored: prioritizing climate content on social media.
The climate crisis is seriously aggravated by a lack of attention, including in the recent United States presidential election campaign. But algorithmic recommenders could help, as they are responsible for a significant proportion of how human attention online is allocated. Algorithmic recommenders are artificial intelligence systems that suggest content, such as news feeds, music or videos, to people based on their behaviour and preferences.
Take YouTube, where hundreds of millions of users watch billions of hours of content each day. That’s a huge amount of brain time. But how do these users select the handful of videos they watch, out of the billions of uploaded content online? Well, in 70 per cent of cases, they merely follow YouTube’s automated recommendations. This system determines a massive proportion of human attention.
Effectively leveraging this attention could help achieve vital advances in climate action across the political spectrum.
What kind of videos could be recommended? Educational videos on climate change are clear candidates, but so are conferences by climate activists, as well as content that encourages viewers to mobilize or change their behaviour, for example by promoting public transport, plant-based cooking or climate demonstrations. The two per cent figure is a proposal, not a dogma. It’s far from invasive, but it’s still significant.
Another fundamental question is: who decides which videos are good for the climate? From the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to relevant non-governmental organizations to video hosting platforms themselves, there are potential avenues for determining climate-positive content. In any of these cases, transparency will be key to effectiveness.
Algorithmic recommenders are responsible for a significant proportion of how human attention online is allocated. (Shutterstock)
Ethical analysis of YouTube recommendations
Firstly, as American researcher Tarleton Gillespie explains in his book Custodians of the Internet, YouTube is already doing moderation, which is a central part of its business. For example, it removes pornographic, violent or illegal content in the name of user safety and well-being, and in accordance to copyright or local laws. Our proposal is merely an extension of these efforts.
Currently, YouTube’s algorithmic system appears not to be programmed to push relevant content for the climate, which is endangering the viability of climate content creators. Its own researchers report that it instead maximizes user engagement.
YouTube’s algorithm is extremely powerful. If the platform were to direct some of its users’ attention to pro-climate action content, it would likely go a long way toward boosting awareness and encouraging action on climate change. There is a strong argument to be made for programming the algorithm along these lines. Simply put, a significant potential benefit for us all is possible at relatively little cost.
Research has also found that YouTube has, in the past, contributed to spreading false information about the climate crisis. A 2024 report found that YouTube earned millions of dollars a year from content that promoted climate denial.
YouTube says that it won’t show ads on “content that crosses the line to climate change denial.” However, video-sharing platforms have a moral responsibility to also promote information that is factual. This could be done by amplifying climate videos as we propose.
YouTube’s algorithm may be likened to a librarian who is tasked with deciding how the library’s books are displayed. In the context of the climate crisis, a wise and informed librarian should put forward at least some books on this issue. Online algorithms should be designed less like an attention-grabbing machine and more like a responsible librarian.
Recommendation algorithms as part of the solution
Our proposal would likely not be without detractors. For example, would it amount to manipulating users? Our proposal is overtly about influencing people’s attitudes in favour of tackling the climate crisis. But it’s not about imposing specific content on the user, who remains free to choose whether to watch the content. The nudge is very gentle — and hardly all that different from the algorithmic nudges taking place all across the internet.
Our proposed intervention merely acts on a small fraction of recommendations. No one will force viewers to watch videos with Greta Thunberg, David Suzuki or Michael Mann. On the other hand, if successful, our proposal could help avoid the serious problems that would result from climate inaction.
In the face of the growing environmental crisis, recommendation algorithms like YouTube’s could help us build climate bridges across political divides, promote action and raise awareness — all essential tools to building a more just future.
Lê Nguyên Hoang is the President of the nonprofit Tournesol Association, which is mentioned in the paper.
He is also the YouTube content creator of the Science4All channel, which sometimes produce climate-related videos.
He was previously a researcher at EPFL, with a salary derived from an AI Safety research grant.
Martin Gibert and Maxime Lambrecht do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth
February 08, 2025
[ELGIN, IL] – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker—alongside parents, teachers and staff at Two Rivers Head Start agency—underscored how President Donald Trump’s illegal funding freeze is continuing to inflict needless chaos, confusion and financial pain on Head Start programs and the middle-class families they serve throughout Illinois. As a result of the financial setbacks triggered by Trump’s funding freeze, many Head Start programs in Illinois are unsure how they’ll be able to provide food and resources to the kids in their care or whether they’ll have to shut down altogether. Photos from today’s press conference are available on the Senator’s website.
“Despite running on the promise that he would lower costs for middle-class Americans, Donald Trump’s illegal funding freeze is hurting the same families he swore he’d protect by jeopardizing the Head Start programs so many rely on,” said Senator Duckworth. “Trump and his billionaire buddies might be able to weather the chaos this freeze unleashed—and not worry about whether Head Start will be there for their own family tomorrow—but that is a luxury most working parents cannot afford. Donald Trump’s agenda is out of touch, and I’ll continue to work with Governor Pritzker to hold him accountable, repair the damage already done to Illinois families and support Head Start programs throughout our state.”
“Donald Trump promised to improve the lives of Americans and instead he is threatening the livelihoods of Illinois’ working families with his illegal funding cuts,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Head Start is a fixture of education in America that enables the neediest families and children to go to preschool. But Donald Trump’s harmful policies threaten to leave these families and kids in the cold. In lockstep with our federal delegation, Illinois is unified in its commitment to fighting against unconstitutional cuts that harm working families.”
“The day-to-day uncertainty not only impacts our agency but also the families we serve,” said Executive Director of Two Rivers Head Start Agency Kelly Neidel. “Since the system freeze, the platform used for fund withdrawals has been displaying various messages, all of which prevent access. This has led to confusion among many individuals who mistakenly believe that receiving a grant means obtaining the full amount upfront. However, that is not the case. Grant funds are disbursed incrementally, requiring recipients to submit documentation of expenses that align with each drawdown request. This process is similar to receiving a paycheck—once the funds are received, they are then used to cover the necessary expenses. Many of the children in our care have faced significant challenges, including foster care or homelessness. Despite these hardships, we provide them with a stable, nurturing environment where they can thrive. Our programs prepare children for kindergarten, ensure they receive three nutritious meals a day, and offer a safe space to grow and learn. Additionally, we support parents by providing reliable childcare and preschool, allowing them to pursue employment or education to build a better future for their families.”
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Ukrainian licence holders will be able to drive on Great Britain’s roads for up to 4.5 years from when they arrive in the UK.
rules to allow Ukrainians to drive in the UK using their Ukrainian license extended
Ukrainians will also remain exempt from registering and paying vehicle excise duty in the UK on Ukrainian-registered vehicles
additional support comes as UK and Ukraine sign historic 100-year partnership to bolster maritime security and deepen trade ties
Ukrainian nationals who have fled Russia’s illegal invasion will continue being able to drive, as the government extends rules to support them.
The Future of Roads Minister, Lilian Greenwood, has announced an 18-month extension for Ukrainian licence holders, allowing them to drive mopeds, motorcycles and cars – meaning these motorists will be able to drive on Great Britain’s roads for up to 4.5 years from arriving here in the UK.
In addition, certain Ukrainians on visa schemes will be exempt for a further 18 months from registering their vehicles or paying vehicle excise duty (VED) for their Ukrainian-registered vehicles in the UK. This reduces financial pressure and avoids unnecessary costs and complications.
Future of Roads Minister, Lilian Greenwood, said:
The government stands firmly with the people of Ukraine, and it’s important those in the UK who’ve fled Putin’s illegal invasion are able to get about with ease for work or education.
This may seem like a small thing, but I’m pleased our country is taking action to help make day-to-day life that little bit easier for those who have endured unimaginable hardship for 3 years now.
The UK and Ukraine have an unbreakable bond reflected through the recently announced 100 Year Partnership, which ensures closer communities are supported for generations to come.
These exemptions align with the launch of the Ukraine Permission Extension scheme, which enables certain Ukrainians to stay in the UK for a further 18 months from the end of their current permission. These measures will help avoid obstacles that may make it harder for Ukrainians to return home after the war to support reconstruction efforts.
The UK is steadfast in its commitment to supporting Ukraine, with £12.8 billion in humanitarian, economic and military support since the invasion started in February 2022. The Prime Minister committed £3 billion a year of military support for Ukraine for as long as it takes.
Goldilock is a UK based cyber security scaleup which has developed a unique network isolation and segmentation device that ringfences networks away from the internet to make them inaccessible to hackers. Over the past year, FireBreak has won Goldilock a place on multiple accelerators including the prestigious NATO DIANA programme and the MoD’s Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA). FireBreak’s applications for critical networks and sensitive data mean the product is being used by organisations responsible for critical national infrastructure (CNI) globally including the Ukrainian Cyber Command, as well as in sectors such as financial services, healthcare and manufacturing. Goldilock fuelled its growth in 2024 through expanding its channel partner programme, and now collaborates with over 50 partners across 18 countries in Europe, while the company’s headcount in the West Midlands hub has doubled over the course of the year to support a rapidly expanding customer base.
The West Midlands region, with its burgeoning community of forward thinking businesses and access to a talented pool of cybersecurity professionals, provides an ideal foundation for Goldilock’s continued success. FireBreak’s applications for defence and deployment by large UK CNI companies means Goldilock’s facilities in the West Midlands have been officially vetted by both NATO and UK security regulators. Now, as Goldilock scales up and moves from R&D and prototyping to large scale manufacturing to meet the global demand for FireBreak, it has chosen to re-invest in the West Midlands by expanding its facilities and continuing to conduct all manufacturing in its new dedicated space in the University of Wolverhampton Science Park.
Anticipating continued growth over the next few years, Goldilock expects to increase the team to 32 employees by the end of 2025 and forecasts that it will be able to create 44 new jobs in the area between now and the end of 2027, the majority of which will be engineers to help service customer orders for FireBreak as they continue to grow in size and number.
Stephen Kines, co-founder and COO of Goldilock, said: “We are thrilled to expand our capability to meet the large scale orders we have coming in and in doing so further strengthen our ties with the tech community in the West Midlands.
“With sophisticated ransomware and AI powered attacks on a continuous rise, paired with the increasing interconnectedness of systems, Goldilock’s technology provides a critical, foundational layer of defence. The West Midlands offers us an invaluable hub for innovation, providing access to a diverse pool of talented tech professionals and a supportive business environment from which we can continue to grow the business and get our critical product to where it’s needed most, as quickly as possible.”
Sharon Thompson, Deputy Mayor of the West Midlands, added: “We warmly welcome Goldilock’s commitment to growing its pioneering cyber security business in the West Midlands.
Goldilock is helping to strengthen our manufacturing supply chain and create new jobs for local people.”
City of Wolverhampton Council Leader, Councillor Stephen Simkins, said: “Goldilock’s expansion is a testament to the City of Wolverhampton’s growing appeal as a destination of choice for ambitious tech firms, with an extensive R&D network, deep pool of specialist talent and proximity to the region’s end to end manufacturing supply chain.
“We’re very proud that Goldilock chose to call the University of Wolverhampton Science Park home and look forward to supporting their continued growth, while encouraging many more tech firms to make the most of the valuable opportunity presented by our Green Innovation Corridor.”
Nearly 19,000 foreign criminals and people with no right to be in the UK have now been removed since the government took office.
Nearly 19,000 failed asylum seekers, foreign criminals and other immigration offenders have been returned since the election to countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and South America following a major escalation in immigration enforcement by the Home Office.
By redeploying 1,000 staff to work on immigration enforcement and sending a clear signal that those coming here illegally will be returned swiftly – between 5 July 2024 and 31 January 2025, enforced returns are up 24%, removals of foreign national offenders up 21% and illegal working raids up by 38% compared to the same period 12 months prior.
These figures represent the highest rate of returns seen in the UK since 2018 and include the 4 biggest returns charter flights in the UK’s history, with a total of more than 850 people on board.
As part of this release, the Home Office has for the first time shared images of the inner working of the removals process to provide further understanding of this important work.
The government’s success in ramping up removals is a key part of our Plan for Change to deliver on working people’s priorities and finally restoring order to the asylum system. This new approach focusses on breaking the business model of smuggling gangs through tougher law enforcement powers than ever before, rapidly removing those who are here illegally and ending the false promise of jobs used by gangs to sell spaces on boats.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said:
To rebuild public confidence in the immigration system, we need to show the rules are respected and enforced. That’s why, as part of the government’s Plan for Change, we have put significant additional resource into immigration enforcement and returns, so those who have no right to be here, particularly those who have committed crimes in our country, are removed as swiftly as possible.
I want to pay tribute to all the Immigration Enforcement staff and other officials in the Home Office who strive tirelessly every day to make our returns system work firmly, fairly and swiftly.
Deportations and returns of foreign national offenders and failed asylum seekers continue to take place regularly, with final numbers to be confirmed later in the year, as part of the Home Office’s usual published statistics.
Ramping up returns is an important part of the government’s system-wide action to strengthen UK border security and restore order to the asylum and immigration system. Tackling illegal working is also vital to this approach and last month saw 828 premises raided by Immigration Enforcement, the highest total of raids recorded in the month of January for over half a decade.
During these enforcement operations Immigration Enforcement officers also play a crucial role in tackling human trafficking and modern slavery through the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). This system allows the government to carry out its obligations to identify and support adult victims of modern slavery and human trafficking. Immigration Enforcement officers are trained to spot the signs of modern slavery and human trafficking when they carry out enforcement visits and refer victims to the NRM for support.
In the months ahead, the government will introduce new counter terror-style powers to identify, disrupt and smash people smuggling gangs, as part of new, robust legislation to protect UK border security, which has second reading in the House of Commons today.
President Metsola opened the 10-13 February session with a minute’s silence for the victims of last week’s shooting in Örebro – the worst in Sweden’s history.
Örebro Shooting
Calling on MEPs to observe a minute’s silence for the victims of the mass shooting at Risbergska school in Örebro on Tuesday 4 February 2025, President Metsola called the tragedy “a senseless act of violence that claimed innocent lives, shattering families, and scarring communities. Europe mourns those who have been lost, and our thoughts are with their loved ones, with all those who have been injured, and with the people of Sweden in this moment of profound sorrow.” She added that “hatred and violence have no place in Europe. The values that unite us – peace, democracy, and the dignity of human life – will always prevail.”
Three years since Russian invasion of Ukraine
President Metsola marked the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine by saying that “Ukraine remains resilient. And this Parliament stands with it.” President Metsola informed MEPs that Parliament will welcome Chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk of the Verkhovna Rada on Tuesday 11 February to mark this sombre anniversary.
Interruptions during International Holocaust Remembrance Day
Referring to interruptions that took place during Parliament’s solemn session on 29 January 2025 to honour International Holocaust Remembrance Day, President Metsola extended her deepest apologies for the “disgraceful” incident. “The gravity of such behaviour cannot be overstated. It is a stark reminder of why remembrance is not just a symbolic act, but a fundamental duty that this Parliament – that we all must – uphold,” she said. “The appropriate consequences will be drawn after the relevant procedures are followed. I thank all of you for being present that day.”
Changes to the agenda
MONDAY
Parliament’s statements on the Situation in Sweden in the midst of the recent mass shooting in Örebro, with one round of political group speakers, is added as the first point today.
TUESDAY
A formal sitting with an address by Ruslan Stefanchuk, Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, is added at 12:00. As a consequence, the voting session will start at 12:30.
THURSDAY
The order of debates in the morning is changed as follows:
the debate on EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement is taken as the first point on the agenda, whereas
the debate on Threats to EU sovereignty through strategic dependencies in communication infrastructure follows as the second point.
Request by several committees to start negotiations with Council and Commission
Decisions by committees to enter into inter-institutional negotiations (Rule 71) are published on the plenary website.
If no request for a vote in Parliament on the decision to enter into negotiations is made by Tuesday at midnight, the committees may start negotiations.
Green Party Councillors Lauren Kendall and Barry McKee have achieved a significant victory for animal welfare at the Ards & North Down Environment Committee. Their motion, of “Kindness over cruelty”, challenges Northern Ireland’s current ban on rehoming XL Bully type dogs, which has led to the destruction of healthy, non-aggressive animals.
The approved motion recognises the paramount importance of community safety while arguing that the blanket ban on rehoming XL Bullies is unnecessarily cruel. It calls on the DAERA Minister to revise the legislation, allowing registered animal charities and shelters to rehome these dogs following professional behavioural assessments.
Councillor Kendall emphasised the need for evidence-based policy: “Expert organisations like the USPCA and Dogs Trust agree that dog breeds aren’t inherently dangerous. Every day, shelters assess dogs for rehoming based on behaviour, not breed. We’re simply asking for XL Bullies to be given the same chance, with proper vetting and safety measures in place.”
Councillor McKee highlighted the human cost of the current legislation: “The case of Max in Lisburn & Castlereagh shows how flawed this system is. Without public outcry, a misidentified dog would have been needlessly destroyed. We’re wasting time and resources fighting these battles when better legislation could prevent them entirely.”
The Green Party’s motion offers a balanced approach, prioritising both public safety and animal welfare. By advocating for professional assessments and responsible ownership practices, it aims to prevent the needless euthanasia of dogs that could bring joy to suitable owners.
As the Council prepares to write to the DAERA Minister, the Green Party Northern Ireland reaffirms its commitment to evidence-based policy-making that protects both communities and animals. This motion represents a crucial step towards more humane and effective dog control measures in Northern Ireland, ensuring that no dog is destroyed simply because of its breed.
ENDS
The Royal Saskatchewan Museum is celebrating the February Family Week break with several activities for visitors.
Whether you are checking out the new “T. Rex Talk” to ask Scotty, the worlds’ largest T. Rex, a burning question or celebrating Indigenous Storytelling Month by listening to talented storytellers, the Royal Saskatchewan Museum has something for everyone!
“The Royal Saskatchewan Museum is home to many amazing exhibits that explore our province’s identity, both in past and present,” Parks, Culture, and Sport Minister Alana Ross said. “With fun-filled activities and programs for guests of all ages, there is always something new and exciting to see at the Royal Saskatchewan Museum”
School’s Out Drop-in Activities
February 17-21 – Afternoons from 1-4pm
Visit the SaskTel Be Kind Online Learning Lab and Field Station spaces for hands-on activities for the whole family.
Grab a scavenger hunt and attend a T. Rex Talk to ask Scotty your burning dinosaur questions!
Storytelling with Skylar Anderson and Teddy Bison
Friday, February 21 – 1-2pm
Celebrate Indigenous Storytelling Month with artists Skylar Anderson and Teddy Bison. Include this family friendly performance in your plans for the Family Week break.
Seating is first-come, first-served in the auditorium.
Storytime with Elder Hazel
Monday, February 24 – 10-11am
In celebration of Indigenous Storytelling Month, listen to stories with Elder Hazel Dixon. This drop-in storytelling session in the Buffalo Room (First Nations Gallery) is for children ages 3 to 6 years with their parent or caregiver.
Space is limited. Seating is first-come, first-served in the Buffalo Room. Elder Hazel is known and loved by many teachers and students through her continued work in the Regina school system and is a YouTube star on the RSM YouTube channel!
Daycares and other groups must pre-book, contact education@royalsaskmuseum.ca for availability.
To learn more about the Royal Saskatchewan Museum’s exhibits, events, programming and world class research, visit royalsaskmuseum.ca.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Malvika Gupta, DPhil Candidate in the Department of International Development, University of Oxford
Ecuador’s presidential election will go to a second round after the current president, Daniel Noboa, and the candidate for the left-wing Revolución Ciudadana (RC) party, Luisa González, received nearly identical shares of the vote.
After more than three-quarters of the ballots had been counted, Noboa led the 16 candidates with 44.6% of the vote – short of the 50% needed to win outright. González trailed with 44.02%. A run-off to decide the winner is scheduled to take place in April.
The election, which saw voters head to the polls for the third time in four years, took place against the backdrop of violence. Under Noboa’s two predecessors, who like him entered office with a neoliberal agenda, Ecuador became a narco-trafficking hub.
It now has one of the highest homicide rates in the world. This fact was laid bare by the 2023 assassination of Fernando Villavicencio, one of the candidates in the snap presidential election called that year when the former president, Guillermo Lasso, dissolved congress in an attempt to escape impeachment.
Noboa defeated González in an October 2023 runoff vote to see out Lasso’s term and then declared an “internal armed conflict” against criminal groups. He believed the only way to stop his country becoming a “narco-state” was with a hardline crackdown on organised crime groups.
But the militarisation of Ecuador’s streets and prisons has led to serious human rights violations by security forces. In late 2024, for example, four Afro-Ecuadorian boys died in the coastal town of Guayaquil after being detained by the military. Human rights groups say this case has prompted a shift in public attitudes to Noboa’s war on the gangs.
The rampant violence has been compounded by an energy crisis. Rolling blackouts instigated by a severe drought have raised questions about under-investment in Ecuador’s energy sector.
A raid on the Mexican embassy in capital city Quito in April 2024 led to the detention of Ecuador’s fugitive former vice-president Jorge Glas. This has prompted concern about Noboa’s lackadaisical attitude towards international law.
The result of the latest election was narrower than many polls had predicted. This suggests that the second round will be hard to call. But there are signs that the Ecuadorian left-wing, which has been divided for more than a decade, could be set to rally around González’s candidacy.
A key reason for the spate of neoliberal presidents in Ecuador is the division between those supportive of the country’s former leftist leader, Rafael Correa, who led the country from 2007 to 2017, and those who oppose him.
Indigenous voters, who make up roughly one-quarter of Ecuador’s electorate, helped Correa first come to power. And his government was successful in reducing extreme poverty and economic inequality.
But conflict soon arose over his policies to fund social services through the extraction of natural resources. In 2012, Correa accused the country’s main Indigenous organisation, Conaie, of trying to destabilise Ecuador by protesting against mining plans.
Correa also alienated Ecuador’s Indigenous movement by dismantling their hard-won intercultural bilingual education system in favour of mining revenue-funded education, as well as attempting to take control of water resources away from individual communities and give it to a new state agency.
In response to protests, Correa’s government prosecuted Indigenous leaders, saying they were saboteurs and terrorists. So, since 2017, many Indigenous voters have combined with the right-wing to keep RC from power. The RC candidate has lost the last two elections despite entering the second round because they did not have the Indigenous vote.
To break this impasse, RC participated in a dialogue with various left-wing parties, including the Indigenous-aligned Pachakutik political movement, to forge a unified electoral alliance for the 2025 election. These efforts did not result in a joint presidential bid. But they did lead to two favourable outcomes for the Ecuadorian left-wing.
RC and Pachakutik agreed a pact not to attack each other or the smaller left-wing candidates during the election campaign. And they also pledged to consider supporting the candidate of the other party should they reach the second round.
But this will, among other things, depend on how they manage their divergent positions on extractivism. RC sees the extraction of natural resources as one of the main economic pathways for Ecuador, while Pachakutik remains staunchly opposed.
González has said she wants to accelerate the transition to clean energy, but has also recognised the importance of oil and gas to Ecuador. She supported the “no” vote during the 2023 referendum where Ecuadorians voted to halt oil drilling in the Yasuní national park, arguing that exploration should continue in the area.
Pachakutik, on the other hand, seeks a post-extractive economic transition. The campaign of Pachakutik’s presidential candidate, Leonidas Iza, proposed boosting national agricultural and industrial production as an alternative to extractive capitalism. Iza envisions an economy based on harmony between humans and nature.
A plurinational tide?
Another area where RC and Pachakutik diverge is in their vision of plurinationality. Ecuador became the first country in the world to define itself as “plurinational” in 2008, adopting a new constitution that acknowledged the rights of nature as well as strengthening rights for Ecuador’s Indigenous peoples and other marginalised groups.
But, since then, the application of plurinationalism has faced major obstacles – not least because of the commitment of successive governments to resource extraction.
Pachakutik’s plurinational ethos was reflected in Iza’s election campaign. It featured images of a poncho-sporting Amazonian capybara threatened by extractivism, as well as rap songs of support by Afro-Ecuadorians living in coastal city slums. Plurinationalism was absent from – or certainly not central to – the electoral campaigns of most other candidates.
Ecuador’s Indigenous movement will probably determine who becomes Ecuador’s next president. Whether or not RC will now take plurinationalism seriously and forge an alliance with Pachakutik remains to be seen.
Malvika Gupta 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.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ben Purvis, Research Associate, Sustainability Assessment, University of Sheffield
Most of this fuel is currently made from used cooking oil.Scharfsinn / shutterstock
The UK chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has described so-called sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) as a “game changer”. As she announced government support for a series of airport expansions, she said that the fuel “can reduce carbon emissions from flying by 70%”.
This number is misleading. Optimistic estimates do suggest that fully replacing fossil jet fuel with its sustainable alternative could lead to total savings of around 70%. But it will be hard to produce enough SAF to make a difference on that sort of scale. Even if the UK meets its ambitious targets, an annual saving of 7% by 2030 is more plausible.
SAF is synthetic liquid fuel derived from something other than fossil fuels. These inputs have to be processed into a liquid that can be burned safely while also storing a lot of energy for its weight, since minimising weight is crucial. This is why long-haul electric battery-powered planes are unlikely to take off any time soon.
The UK classifies three major pathways for creating sustainable aviation fuel. It can be derived from oils or fats, including used cooking oil or tallow. It can come from other sorts of material, such as municipal solid waste, agricultural residues, or sewage. Or it can be made from hydrogen and captured carbon using renewable electricity.
SAF can also be produced from bioenergy crops, and products such as palm oil. However the UK won’t certify it as sustainable, due to concerns about land use and impacts on wildlife.
Emissions that would have occurred anyway
Burning SAF actually emits a similar amount of CO₂ to fossil jet fuel. Instead, most savings come from how we account for the waste and renewable energy that is used to produce it.
Waste emits greenhouse gases anyway, sustainable fuel supporters argue. So why not have those emissions do something useful, like power a plane? Jenya Smyk/shutterstock
SAF fundamentally relies on assumptions that if waste or energy crops were not used to make this fuel, they would be incinerated, would degrade, or would in some way release their embodied carbon anyway. In the case of fuel derived from renewable energy and captured carbon, it assumes that carbon came from the atmosphere in the first place. This allows these emissions to be deducted from the total impact of SAF, leading to lower emissions than conventional aviation fuel.
Is sustainable aviation fuel even sustainable?
Estimates of how much greenhouse gas SAF could cut vary greatly due to the many different ways it can be produced, and the complexities of accounting for emissions across the entire life cycle from waste, to fuel production, to plane engine. A 2023 review by the Royal Society illustrates this nicely. It found SAF could at best produce effectively negative emissions (a 111% reduction), while at worst it could be more carbon intensive than fossil kerosene jet fuel (a 69% increase).
While policy incentives are likely to encourage increased production, there remain serious concerns that will need to be addressed before SAF can become a serious competitor for conventional jet fuel. There are hard limits to the amount of used cooking oil available for instance, and the use of other feedstocks is still in its infancy.
Meanwhile any renewable energy used to make the fuel will have to compete with growing demand from electric vehicles, AI data centres and more. And there are big worries the industry simply won’t be profitable enough to attract initial capital investment, let alone take on its well-established rival.
UK SAF production
Coming into effect in January, the UK’s SAF mandate sets legal obligations for aviation fuel suppliers in the UK to progressively increase proportions of sustainable fuel, from 2% of total jet fuel in 2025 to 10% in 2030, and 22% in 2040.
As of 2023, 97% of the UK’s supply is derived from used cooking oil, with the rest from food waste. Only 8% of this cooking oil is sourced from the UK, with most being imported from China and Malaysia. The UK also comprises 16% of the global SAF market, despite representing only 1% of total passengers.
Let us assume that Rachel Reeves’ 70% saving is deliverable if fossil jet fuel was fully replaced with SAF. That’s optimistic in itself, but not beyond the realms of possibility.
Getting hold of that much sustainable fuel is less plausible, however – the total demand for jet fuel in the UK is more than ten times the current global production of SAF. But let’s assume that the rocky global market can deliver the UK’s ambitious demand of 10% SAF use by 2030.
Reeves’ figure then becomes an optimistic value of 7% savings across the UK industry. If we then correct for anticipated growth of passenger numbers, assuming plans for airport expansion, those savings are likely to vanish.
While SAF has a role to play in decarbonisation, growth sits in clear opposition to its impacts and potential. If the UK has any hope of meeting its climate targets, it should instead be seeking alternatives to flying where possible.
Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?
The social housing sector in England houses 4 million tenants (16% of the country’s households). The sector is home to some of the UK’s most vulnerable and poorest households, and paying rent is one of the biggest challenges they face. If they do not pay, they risk being evicted from their homes.
Recent research we carried out for the Nuffield Foundation highlights the difficulties many tenants face paying their rent, and the sacrifices they have to make to do so.
We surveyed more than 1,200 tenants across 15 neighbourhoods in England, and found that 9% were in rent arrears. However, this figure dramatically underestimates the number of tenants who were finding it difficult to pay their rent: 61% had gone without essentials, such as food and heating, in order to pay it in the last year.
The financial situation of tenants has become more difficult in recent years due to a combination of cost-of-living increases, including rapidly rising food and energy prices, and real-term reductions in salary due to increasingly precarious employment. Some 43% of tenants we surveyed regularly ran out of money before their next wage or benefit payment.
Want more politics coverage from academic experts? Every week, we bring you informed analysis of developments in government and fact check the claims being made.
In-depth interviews revealed that many tenants ran out of money before their basic needs (rent, household bills, food, clothing and travel to work or school) had been met. In these cases, they had to make difficult decisions, sometimes choosing between paying their rent – the highest priority payment for most – or meeting other basic needs.
Nearly half (46%) of tenants had made the difficult decision to cut back on their heating expenditure so they could pay their rent. Tenants reported turning off appliances and using hot water sparingly:
“I had to turn the heating off today. As the last bit of money I had was used to buy packed lunch things for my daughter for school.”
They reported a range of strategies for keeping warm without using their gas or electricity, including sitting in sleeping bags, wearing thermal clothing and thick jumpers indoors, covering themselves with blankets and fleeces and using hot water bottles.
Those who did use their heating reported putting it on for just one hour. One woman with a seven-month-old baby reported using the “heating minimal, mainly at night when the temperatures really drop, so I just keep him wrapped up usually.”
Tenants also reported using their electricity minimally, not watching television, boiling the kettle if I need to do the washing up and sitting with the lights off:
“[We] switch everything of … We would switch the TVs off … We’d just switch everything off as much as we could. We wouldn’t use the lights. We’d just use the torches on our phones.”
‘One meal a day’
Some 43% of tenants reported that they had cut back on their food spending in order to pay their rent. Some reported that they skipped meals – “I eat I’d say one meal a day at teatime,” – or not eating adequately, for example, eating insufficient portions or toast in place of an evening meal.
One woman reported going without meals at one point in order to pay rent: “I’d sooner do without food myself to do the council [rent] cos they’re on your back.”
Tenants reported running out of money for food or replacing substantial cooked dinners with snacks:
“Well, I used to do myself a proper meal every evening, but now I just do it two times a week … and I have beans on toast or something like that.”
There were also many examples of participants doing without nutritious food because it was more expensive than processed food. These tenants were very aware of the lower nutritional value of the food they were buying and lamented not being able to afford the fresh food they preferred.
This included pregnant women and people with children, for whom nutritious food is particularly important. Recognising this, some talked about buying healthier food for their children than for themselves when they could.
Participants in our study reported that they bought unhealthy processed foods because they could not afford fresh food. 1000 Words/Shutterstock
National income and tenancy standards
Our research shows that most tenants are committed to paying their rent, prioritising it at a cost to their and their family’s health and wellbeing. Only by improving tenants’ financial circumstances will the situation change.
One step towards this would be for the government to endorse the minimum income standard, a level of income that allows people to “thrive” and not merely “survive”. The government should use this standard to determine benefit rates and the national minimum wage, alongside measures to provide people with greater job security.
Our research has shown that many tenants have only been able to sustain their tenancies by going without. But can we really say someone is sustaining their tenancy, if their home is cold and damp because they cannot afford to heat their homes? They are using mobile phones torches for lighting? They are skipping meals?
Social housing landlords must rethink how they understand tenancy sustainment. It shouldn’t just be about how long tenants stay in a property, but about the quality of their life while in it.
The research discussed in this article was funded by the Nuffield Foundation. Paul Hickman 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.
The research discussed in this article was funded by the Nuffield Foundation. Kesia Reeve 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.
In an unprecedented decision on December 6 2024, the Romanian constitutional court annulled the November 25 presidential elections after it received credible intelligence of large-scale external interference rigging the results of the first round in favour of a hardly-known far-right candidate, Calin Georgescu.
Georgescu’s massive last-minute surge was largely blamed on the creation of thousands of paid-for Russian-controlled bots on TikTok and illegal campaign financing.
This may seem like last year’s news, but with elections coming up in Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, and possibly even Ukraine, there’s plenty to worry about – apart from a new US president who is disrupting Washington (and the world) with a flurry of executive orders and foreign policy initiatives that feel more like real estate sales pitches.
Concerns about Russian election interference are nothing new, but so far the picture of Moscow’s success is rather mixed.
Back in January 2017, the US intelligence community was confident that Russia had interfered in the 2016 presidential elections to get Donald Trump elected. The following year, similar accusations arose in the context of presidential elections in France. But in France, the Kremlin failed to prevent the victory of Emmanuel Macron.
By contrast, despite alleged Russian interference in Moldova, the country’s pro-western president won a second term in November 2024. A referendum on a constitutional commitment to EU membership was supported by a razor-thin majority of voters.
Opinion polls on perceptions of Russia and Vladimir Putin across western democracies also offer some solace. According to a survey by the Pew Research Center in 2024, positive views of Russia and its leader remain very low across EU and Nato member countries. At the same time, approval ratings of the EU and Nato remained high among member countries’ citizens.
But these relatively comforting headline figures mask important, and somewhat worrying, trends. In Germany, which holds early parliamentary elections on February 23, positive views of Putin more than doubled from 8% in 2023 to 17% in 2024. This is still a far cry from the 76% who approved of Putin in 2003 or even the 36% who did so in 2019, according to the same survey. The German increase is an outlier among the 13 EU members, but in only one of them – Italy – did support for Putin drop, compared with the previous year.
The same goes for support for the EU and Nato. The median level of support for the EU across nine member states surveyed stands at 63%, with 36% of participants holding unfavourable views. Germany, with 63% favourable views, however, recorded the second consecutive decline, down from 78% in 2022 and 71% in 2023. And Germany is less of an outlier here – favourable views of the EU among member states have generally declined somewhat over the past two years.
Musk speaks at an AfD rally.
When it comes to Nato, 63% of survey participants in 13 member countries thought more positively of the alliance, while 33% had more negative views. But again, with the exception of Hungary and Canada (where favourability went up), the share of those with favourable views had declined by between two and eight percentage points since last year.
Does this mean that Putin is winning? No, at least not yet. Attitude surveys are less important than election results.
Russia appears to have had some recent success in changing election outcomes, for instance in Romania where Romanian intelligance services discovered evidence of voter manipulation. But the Romanian example (in annulling the election) is also illustrative of how important it is for democracies to fight back – and even more importantly to take preventive action.
And this is a lesson that seems to have sunk in. On January 30, the foreign ministers of 12 EU member states sent a joint letter to Brussels urging the European Commission to make more aggressive use of its powers under the Digital Services Act to protect the integrity of democratic elections in the bloc. Article 25 of that act, crucially, establishes an obligation on online platforms to design their services free from deception and manipulation and ensure that users can make informed decisions.
While the commission has yet to demonstrate its resolve under the Digital Services Act, a Berlin court on February 7 2025, ordered that X must hand over data needed to track disinformation to two civil society groups who had requested it.
Musk and Putin: shared values?
If Putin is winning, he is not winning on his own. Democracies are not only under threat from Russia. Musk – an unelected billionaire wielding unprecedented influence under Donald Trump – has repeatedly been accused of interfering in European debates and election campaigns. Of his comments on the German election, Musk has argued that as he has significant investments in Germany he has the right to comment on its politics and that the AfD “resonates with many Germans who feel their concerns are ignored by the establishment”.
What Musk and Putin have in common is their deep dislike of open liberal democracies and a cunning ability to employ technology to further their goals by promoting political parties and movements that share their illiberal views.
Where they differ is that Musk focuses on the far right – Germany’s AfD or the UK’s Tommy Robinson. But Putin tends to back whoever he sees as serving Russian interests in weakening western unity and influence. This leads to the Kremlin lending support to leaders on both the far right and far left.
But often Putin’s and Musk’s proteges are the same. In the case of the German AfD, it was no accident that Putin echoed comments from a speech Musk gave at an AfD election rally, saying that Germans should move beyond their war guilt. Both were keen to remove the stain of being too close to Germany’s Nazi past from the AfD and make it not just electable but also respectable enough to bring into a coalition, much like Austria’s far-right Freedom Party which has a long history of friendly relations with Putin.
And what Musk can do openly on X, Putin tries to achieve with a campaign of his bot army on the platform.
Perhaps the most significant similarity between Musk and Putin – and others who have been accused of election interference – is that they tap into a growing reservoir of discontent with liberal democracy.
According to a 2024 survey of 31 democracies worldwide, 54% of participants were dissatisfied with how they saw democracy working. In 12 high-income countries – Canada, US, and 10 EU member states – dissatisfaction was even higher with 64% and has been increasing for the fourth consecutive year.
Pushing back against the kind of blatant election interference by the likes of Putin and Musk is clearly important. But it will not be enough to reverse persistent trends of decline in the support for democracy and its standard bearers including the EU and Nato. It is right to resist and prosecute election rigging. But it is also crucial to ask why people are dissatisfied with democracy – and to do something about it.
Stefan Wolff is a past recipient of grant funding from the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK, the United States Institute of Peace, the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, the British Academy, the NATO Science for Peace Programme, the EU Framework Programmes 6 and 7 and Horizon 2020, as well as the EU’s Jean Monnet Programme. He is a Trustee and Honorary Treasurer of the Political Studies Association of the UK and a Senior Research Fellow at the Foreign Policy Centre in London.
Source: United States of America – Department of State (video statements)
Secretary of State Marco A. Rubio meets with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty at the Department of State, on February 10, 2025.
———-
Under the leadership of the President and Secretary of State, the U.S. Department of State leads America’s foreign policy through diplomacy, advocacy, and assistance by advancing the interests of the American people, their safety and economic prosperity. On behalf of the American people we promote and demonstrate democratic values and advance a free, peaceful, and prosperous world.
The Secretary of State, appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, is the President’s chief foreign affairs adviser. The Secretary carries out the President’s foreign policies through the State Department, which includes the Foreign Service, Civil Service and U.S. Agency for International Development.
Get updates from the U.S. Department of State at www.state.gov and on social media!
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/statedept
X: https://x.com/StateDept
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/statedept
Flickr: https://flickr.com/photos/statephotos/
Subscribe to the State Department Blog: https://www.state.gov/blogs
Watch on-demand State Department videos: https://video.state.gov/
Subscribe to The Week at State e-newsletter: http://ow.ly/diiN30ro7Cw
State Department website: https://www.state.gov/
Careers website: https://careers.state.gov/
White House website: https://www.whitehouse.gov/
Terms of Use: https://state.gov/tou
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today announced the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts entered a consent order against Randall Crater of Heathrow, Florida. The order requires Crater to pay over $7.6 million in restitution to defrauded victims in connection with his digital asset fraud scheme, with dollar-for-dollar credit for restitution payments to victims in satisfaction of the restitution ordered in a parallel criminal action. The order also imposes a permanent injunction against Crater and bans him from trading in any CFTC-regulated markets, entering into any transactions involving commodity interests or digital asset commodities, and registering with the CFTC. The consent order finds from at least January 2014 through January 2018, Crater, together with other defendants named in CFTC’s amended complaint, operated a digital asset scheme in which they fraudulently offered the sale of a fully functioning virtual currency, My Big Coin, a commodity in interstate commerce. Crater obtained more than $7.6 million from at least 28 customers through fraudulent solicitations, including false and misleading claims and omissions about MBC’s value, use and trade status, and that MBC was backed by gold. He spent the misappropriated money to purchase, among other things, a home, antiques, fine art, jewelry, and other luxury goods. The consent order resolves the claims against Crater in the CFTC’s enforcement action against him and co-defendants Mark Gillespie, My Big Coin Pay, Inc., My Big Coin, Inc., John Roche, and Michael Kruger. [See CFTC Press Release 7678-18.] The enforcement action remains pending against the co-defendants. The CFTC cautions that orders requiring repayment of funds to victims may not result in the recovery of any money lost because the wrongdoers may not have sufficient funds or assets. The CFTC will continue to fight vigorously for the protection of customers and to ensure wrongdoers are held accountable. Parallel Criminal Action On Jan. 18, 2022, a grand jury returned an eight-count superseding indictment charging Crater with wire fraud, unlawful monetary transactions, and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business based on the same conduct alleged in CFTC’s amended complaint. [United States v. Randall Crater, No. 1:19-cr-10063-DJC (D. Mass. Jan. 18, 2022)).] Crater was found guilty of those charges on July 21, 2022, and was sentenced to over eight years in prison and ordered to pay $7.6 million in restitution to defrauded customers and to forfeit $7.6 million, which represented the proceeds he received from his violations. The CFTC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and the FBI. Division of Enforcement staff responsible for this case are Traci Rodriguez, Jonah E. McCarthy, Patricia Gomersall, Daniel Ullman II, Paul G. Hayeck, and former staff members Jason Mahoney, John Einstman, Kyong J. Koh, and Hillary Van Tassel.
regon residents are bracing for continued winter storms bringing heavy snow, ice, and increased risks of falling tree branches and downed power lines. Emergency management officials urge the public to remain alert, be properly prepared for winter driving, and follow safety guidelines to protect homes, vehicles, and personal well-being.
Risk of Falling Branches
Many regions in Oregon are experiencing snowfall and ice buildup on trees. The added weight can cause branches—or even entire trees—to snap unexpectedly. Falling branches pose a danger to:
Vehicles: Branches can damage cars, so avoid parking under trees whenever possible.
Pedestrians: Tree limbs can break without warning, so be extra cautious when walking outdoors.
Power lines: Branches falling onto power lines may cause electrical hazards or widespread outages.
Downed branches can disrupt utility lines, potentially leading to extended power outages. To prepare:
Stock up on essentials: Have flashlights, batteries, portable chargers, and blankets ready in case the lights go out.
Keep extra supplies: If safe to do so, store a few days’ worth of food and water, especially in rural areas where utility restoration may be delayed.
Stay informed: Monitor local weather updates through official channels. Follow any advisories from the National Weather Service or your local emergency management office.
What to Do if a Power Line Falls
A downed power line is extremely dangerous. If you see or suspect a live wire has fallen on your property, car, or near your home:
Stay away and call for help: Immediately call 911 and report the downed line. Then contact your local utility provider. Do not approach or attempt to move the line. Even if it appears inactive, it could still be energized.
If a power line falls on your car: Stay inside your vehicle. Do not step out unless there is an urgent threat like a fire. If you must exit (e.g., due to fire), open the door carefully, jump out without touching the car and the ground at the same time, then land with your feet together. Shuffle or hop away, keeping both feet close together to minimize electrical risk.
Keep others clear: Alert neighbors and passersby to the hazard. Set up a safe perimeter, if possible, to prevent anyone from accidentally coming into contact with the live wire.
General Safety Tips
Use caution around trees: Weakened limbs can break at any moment—keep an eye on overhead branches and fallen debris.
Dress in layers: Winter conditions can change quickly, and frostbite can occur if you’re not properly protected from the cold.
Only travel when necessary: If travel is absolutely necessary, drive with extreme caution and be prepared for sudden changes in visibility. Leave plenty of room between you and the motorist ahead of you and allow extra time to reach your destination. Check road conditions before driving and let someone know your route if you must travel.
Stay safe, everyone! By keeping these precautions in mind—avoiding falling branches, staying prepared for power outages, and knowing what to do if a power line falls—you can help protect yourself, your loved ones, and your community during Oregon’s challenging winter conditions.
LONDON, Feb. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SOAX, the leading intelligent data extraction and collection platform, today announced the availability of a new scraper API product to extract data from Shopee, the leading ecommerce platform in Southeast Asia and Taiwan. Initial tests show the new SOAX Shopee Scraper API outperforms other web data scrapers for a fraction of the cost.
Shopee is one of the most popular ecommerce sites serving Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore, as well as South American markets like Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, and Chile. Real-time access to detailed product, review and pricing data is essential to remain competitive. Web data scraping is the most effective way to monitor ecommerce competitors. It’s also the best way to monitor the minimum advertised price (MAP) to ensure others aren’t underselling your brand. Businesses also analyze scraped reviews to gain valuable insights on how to improve their products.
The SOAX Shopee Scraper API has been shown to achieve higher success rates at a cost three to six times lower than other solutions. SOAX accesses the Shopee API, gathering all available data rather than just what’s on the web page. The result is a comprehensive view. SOAX uses proprietary, adaptive AI technology to unblock sites using constant fingerprint generation, self-healing proxies, and custom browser builds. And, thanks to SOAX’s vast network of 191 million proxy servers, the Shopee Scraper API is capable of scaling to millions of requests per day for virtually unlimited data gathering. Pricing starts as low as $1 per thousand requests, compared to $3 from the closest competitors.
“Access to accurate Shopee data is essential for any e-tailer to stay competitive,” said Anton Rachitskiy, Vice President of Data Products for SOAX. “We are delighted to be able to add a Shopee to Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Walmart, and our other ecommerce scraper APIs. Our customers are already benefiting from SOAX’s superior speed and accuracy in web data gathering, along with our highly reliable proxy network boasting 99.9% uptime.”
Shopee is the latest addition to SOAX’s more than 50 scraper APIs for ecommerce, search engines, and social networks. SOAX also offers sophisticated web unblockers capable of bypassing the most advanced anti-bot systems and residential, mobile, ISP, and datacenter proxies for every need.
SOAX sells directly to corporate customers through a subscription-based model, providing access to its ethical proxy network, web unblocker, and scraper APIs. Customers can sign up via SOAX’s self-service platform, select a plan, and start immediately. Larger enterprises can opt for custom plans with white glove support. SOAX’s services are API-driven, allowing seamless integration into existing workflows, and its flexible pricing tiers accommodate varying usage needs, location coverage, and feature requirements.
About SOAX SOAX is building the future of data extraction. They provide data-hungry companies with an automated, one-stop platform for accessing web data quickly and ethically. SOAX’s extensive network of nearly 200 million ethically-sourced proxies, combined with powerful scraping APIs, enables businesses to unlock valuable insights in a fraction of the time it takes with traditional methods.
Recognized as a leader in the proxy market, SOAX prioritizes customer satisfaction through product performance, security, and legal compliance. They’ve earned industry recognition like “Newcomer of the Year” (Proxyway, 2021) and “Contender of the Year” (Proxyway, 2023) for their commitment to innovation and excellence. SOAX is leveraging AI to further enhance its platform and empower businesses with AI-powered data solutions.
Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray
***READ FACT SHEET HERE***
Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, released a new fact sheet detailing how, in his third week in office, President Trump is continuing to block hundreds of billions of dollars in enacted funding from making its way out to families and communities across America who are counting on investments that have been enacted into law.
In a statement, Senator Murray said:
“President Trump is still illegally blocking hundreds of billions of dollars in investments that are owed to communities across the country.
“The president’s sweeping freeze is causing real pain for people in every part of the country—in red states and blue states and everywhere in between—and it must end right now.
“The uncertainty alone over the fate of these investments is putting jobs on the chopping block, hurting American businesses left wondering whether contracts they’ve inked mean anything, and jeopardizing entire local economies. What Trump is doing could shutter critical infrastructure projects in virtually every community, kill good-paying jobs, choke off funding for farmers, stop innovation in its tracks, leave massive holes in local communities’ budgets, and so much more.
“Once again: if Donald Trump or Elon Musk want to gut funding that’s creating good-paying jobs all across America, they can take their case to Congress and win the votes they need to do it. Defying the constitution to unilaterally rip away your tax dollars is not how this works.”
A table of estimated funding in jeopardy is below. Read the full fact sheet HERE.
While the extent of Trump’s funding freeze remains uncertain as his administration refuses to clarify what is blocked, here is a non-exhaustive overview of what is frozen by Trump’s actions and in jeopardy:
Trump Action
Relevant Agencies
Select Examples of Affected Programs
Funding in Jeopardy*
Executive Order Freezing IIJA & IRA Funding
Department of Commerce
High-speed broadband deployment.
$40+ billion
(EO 14154)
Department of Energy
Efforts to build and upgrade America’s energy infrastructure, lower costs for consumers.
$98 billion
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Grants and loans to improve resiliency and energy efficiency of affordable housing.
$830+ million
Department of the Interior
Tribal electrification, hazardous fuel reduction, National Parks maintenance and staffing, & more.
$20+ billion
Department of Transportation
Funding to upgrade roads, bridges, transit, & more.
$130+ billion
EPA
Funds for clean water infrastructure, tackling pollution, Superfund sites, & more.
$100+ billion
Forest Service
Wildfire risk reduction, ecosystem restoration, & more.
$10+ billion
NOAA
Funding for flood inundation mapping, coastal resilience projects, habitat restoration, ocean observations, fisheries management, & more.
$1.5 billion
USDA
Grants for producers and rural small businesses to finance renewable energy projects, for farmers to improve climate resiliency, for watershed protection and flood prevention, rural broadband, & more.
$25 billion
Executive Order Blocking All Foreign Assistance (EO 14169)
Department of State & USAID
Life-saving aid, funding to monitor and prevent the spread of infectious diseases that can reach our shores, counterterrorism programs, programs to give U.S. businesses an edge over Chinese and other companies in foreign markets, funds owed to U.S. businesses for services rendered, & more.
$30 billion
Executive Order Halting Funding for Anything Deemed “DEI” (EO 14151)
All agencies
Any programs or expenditures the administration deems “woke.”
??? The administration has provided little to no clarity over what programs it is blocking (or will block) funding for under this EO.
Elon Musk & DOGE Actions
All agencies
Open question. Reports confirm DOGE sought access to central payment system to halt disbursements.
???
Other actions
All agencies
???
???
TOTAL
At least $455 billion
*Funding in Jeopardy: this reflects our best understanding, as of afternoon on February 7, of what funding is being illegally withheld. The administration has failed to provide clear answers—and the actual number could be higher. This lack of transparency and responsiveness to Congress, and thus the American people, is without precedent.
FOR MORE DETAILS, READ THE FULL FACT SHEET HERE.
Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin
February 10, 2025
CHICAGO—U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined local small business owners at Hop Butcher For The World to discuss the potential impact of President Trump’s proposed tariffs on imports and exports from Mexico and Canada. In 2023, Illinois, which ranks first among the 50 states in imports from Canada, exported a total of $20.55 billion in products to Canada. Additionally, Illinois exports to Mexico in 2023 totaled $12.93 billion.
“The tariffs proposed by President Trump would drive up costs for manufacturers, disrupt our supply chains, and they already have inspired retaliatory tariffs, which will hurt small businesses and consumers even more,” said Durbin. “Illinois is a top trading partner of both Canada and Mexico, and our local businesses that rely on importing and exporting goods will face the brunt of this harmful proposal’s impact.”
“The IRA supports getting the best deal possible for American workers and great restaurants across the state purchase food locally whenever possible, yet our produce and food supply is purchased from our trade partners in Canada and Mexico due to seasonality and necessity. Broad based tariffs on food will actually hurt the American worker and their families by making household and restaurant staples unaffordable and often unavailable. We ask that the Trump Administration works with Senator Durbin and Congress to tailor tariffs in a manner that allows the restaurant industry to stay approachable and affordable,” said Scott Weiner, Chair of the Illinois Restaurant Association Board.
“What tariffs have created is uncertainty, and when there’s uncertainty, there’s risk. And risk in construction means money and delays in projects. Higher prices create real questions whether a project will be built, and whether that skilled union worker has a job to report to next week. Our hope is that these tariffs are short-lived. The impacts will be felt in construction and many other industries — and by the average consumer. Whether you’re buying a house or avocados, tariffs will affect how you spend your money,” said Tom Cuculich, Executive Director of the Chicagoland Associated General Contractors.
A consultation on a proposed new policy to licence homes with multiple occupants has been launched by Norwich Council, and residents are being invited to give their views.
A house in multiple occupation – often known as an HMO – includes any premises where at least five tenants live there, forming more than one household, with shared bathroom, toilet and kitchen facilities. It is only large HMOs that need a licence.
The main changes to the policy include:
a) making the administration and inspection of licensed properties simpler for both applicants and the council, as well as minor amendments to better align the policy with current and new legislation
b) helping provide more detail on what information applicants need to submit with licence applications
c) removal of the one- and three-year licence options, all licences will now be five-year licences
d) introducing a risk-based approach to tackle licence breaches, in addition to statutory powers to revoke and vary licences.
The public are invited to review the proposed policy and share their thoughts by visiting: Get Talking Norwich.
Notes to editors:
There are currently about 1000 homes licensed with the Council as being under multiple occupation.
Out-of-Province Initiative Extended to Increase Patient Access to Urgent Diagnostics
The Government of Saskatchewan and the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) are taking continued action to improve breast health services for Saskatchewan patients through a short-term extension to an initiative that allows patients to receive diagnostics at a medical facility in Calgary.
Established in November 2023, this agreement has been extended to March 2026 as a temporary measure to accelerate urgent diagnostic procedures until these services are fully stabilized in the province. The implementation of the Out-of-Province Program has significantly reduced wait times for urgent breast biopsies from November 2023 to date, bringing them in line with the clinically recommended target of three weeks or less.
“We are committed to ensuring Saskatchewan residents have access to safe, high quality, and timely breast health care services as we advance several measures to expand in-province capacity, implement new technologies and complete construction on the new Breast Health Centre in Regina,” Health Minister Jeremy Cockrill said. “We appreciate the dedication from our health care teams to accelerate urgent diagnostic breast cancer procedures and treatments following a diagnosis.”
Eligible Saskatchewan patients who are waiting for urgent diagnostic breast procedures, such as breast biopsies, will be triaged by health care providers, who will contact them to ensure thorough screening and determine their interest in participating in the program.
Patients identified as eligible and willing to travel to Calgary will receive diagnostic services based on their urgency, as determined by clinical evaluation. Those requiring urgent care will receive priority access, either within Saskatchewan or at the Calgary facility, depending on availability.
“The Out-of-Province Breast Assessment Program helps provide Saskatchewan residents at risk of breast cancer with timely access to urgent diagnostic services,” Saskatchewan Health Authority Medical Imaging Executive Director Richard Dagenais said. “By extending this initiative, we can continue to address the immediate needs of patients while actively building capacity within the province to deliver high-quality breast health services closer to home.”
To support patients accessing out-of-province services, the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health will reimburse travel and accommodation expenses for the patient and one support person, to a maximum of $1,500. All medical expenses related to the diagnostic procedures will be fully covered by the Ministry of Health.
As of January 17, 2025, approximately 472 patients have had their diagnostic procedures completed in Calgary.
A number of proactive initiatives in Saskatchewan are either underway or in planning stages to enhance care and ensure it is provided in a timely manner, including:
Construction of a new Breast Health Centre in Regina that will provide a co-location of services, such as diagnostic imaging, consultation with specialists and surgeons, patient education, support and navigation. The Centre will also offer on-site access to post-treatment care, such as therapies and rehabilitation;
Phased expansion of breast screening eligibility to those aged 40 to 49, beginning in January 2025;
Additional capacity in Saskatoon and Moose Jaw, offered to long-waiting and urgent patients from Regina and southern Saskatchewan, which has provided an additional 150 patients with timely access to breast diagnostic procedures since November 2023;
Centralized booking for breast cancer screening, providing seamless care and quicker access for all patients;
Implementation of 3D breast imaging (tomosynthesis), which will increase cancer detection, reduce the need for additional imaging views and tests, and reduce both false positive and false negative mammogram results;
Implementation of new breast tumour localization “seed” technology, which results in fewer delays and cancellations, as well as less discomfort for the patient; and
Ongoing work with the Ministry of Health to train and recruit medical radiation technologists, sonographers (ultrasound technologists), and radiologists specializing in breast imaging as part of its ongoing Health Human Resources Action Plan, including two local radiologists in Regina who recently completed their breast radiology fellowships.
To learn more about the out-of-province breast cancer diagnostic initiative, please visit: saskatchewan.ca/medical-imaging.
“CS-SC25 is an annual, nationwide force protection exercise,” said Mr. Rob Huether, installation training and readiness officer, NBVC. “It tests the ability of security departments and installations to respond to simulated security incidents throughout the two-week exercise.”
On Tuesday, a scenario presented to the security and installation personnel at NBVC involved an actor notionally opening fire in a work environment. Personnel were required to neutralize the threat, treat the wounded, coordinate with first responders, provide forward communication to the emergency operations center, and manage multiple scenario injects.
“Citadel Shield-Solid Curtain reinforces our commitment to protecting our people and preserving operational readiness by testing our ability to adapt to evolving force protection, security, and mission assurance challenges,” said Adm. Daryl Caudle, commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command. “This exercise builds resilience and fosters coordination between fleet and shore forces, installation commands, and partner agencies, ensuring we stay prepared to counter modern-day threats with precision and unity of effort.”
According to a Navy Installations Command press release, Citadel Shield, held during the first week, is a field training exercise (FTX) led by CNIC, while Solid Curtain follows in the second week as a command post exercise (CPX) led by USFFC. This two-part training is designed to boost the readiness of U.S. Navy security forces and ensure seamless interoperability among commands, other services, and agency partners to protect life, equipment, and facilities. Both weeks will simulate realistic threat scenarios, including active shooters, unauthorized base access, and improvised explosive devices.
“Citadel Shield-Solid Curtain exercises are vital to ensuring the preparedness and effectiveness of our Navy security forces,” said Vice Adm. Scott Gray, commander, Navy Installations Command. “These comprehensive training scenarios simulate real-world threats to enhance our readiness and interoperability with other services and agency partners. Our commitment is to safeguard life, equipment, and facilities, and these exercises are an essential part of fulfilling that mission.”
CS-SC25 is a regularly scheduled exercise and is not being held in response to any specific threat.
Measures have been taken to minimize disruptions within local communities and to normal base operations, but there may be times when the exercise causes increased traffic around bases or delays in base access. Area residents may also see or hear security activities associated with the exercise. Advanced coordination has taken place with local law enforcement and first responders.
NBVC is major shore warfighting platform; providing sustained ready forces to deploy, fight, and win. Composed of three operating facilities: Point Mugu, Port Hueneme and San Nicolas Island and home of the Pacific Seabees, West Coast E-2D Hawkeyes, 3 warfare centers and 110 tenant commands.
Source: United States Senator for Colorado John Hickenlooper
Bill would prevent arrests from happening at schools, hospitals, and places of worship
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet along with 19 Senate colleagues introduced the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act to limit immigration arrests at sensitive locations like schools, hospitals, and places of worship.
“We all want criminals off our streets and a more secure border,” Hickenlooper said. “Targeting kids and families who haven’t committed a crime – especially at their schools, hospitals, or places of worship – doesn’t get us any closer to fixing our broken immigration system.”
“The Trump Administration’s efforts to allow ICE to take enforcement action in protected areas are deeply concerning and go against long-standing precedent,” said Bennet. “Every Coloradan should feel safe to go to school, church, and the doctor without fear of arrest.”
On January 21, 2025, the Trump administration rescinded the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) existing policy that prevented Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials from entering certain locations, such as, schools, hospitals, food pantries, churches, domestic violence shelters, to conduct arrests.
Last Wednesday, there were reports that ICE officials blocked school buses from picking up children and prevented families from leaving their homes in Metro Denver.
The Protecting Sensitive Locations Act would reinstate DHS’s previous policy preventing arrests in sensitive locations and expand the protected locations to include courthouses and additional health care, educational, and religious facilities.
The legislation includes exceptions for exigent circumstances and requires ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel receive training on carrying out enforcement activities. It also requires ICE and CBP to submit an annual report to Congress on their enforcement actions.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Two papers published in Nature Climate Change look at the impact of 2024 temperatures on Paris Agreement targets (1.5 degrees).
Dr Akshay Deoras, Research Scientist, National Centre for Atmospheric Science and the Department of Meteorology, University of Reading, said:
“The two papers help reflect the fact that we are getting dangerously close to breaching the Paris Agreement. Well-defined methodologies have been used, and conclusions are backed by solid data. However, a key limitation of these studies is that the models used might not account for all factors influencing global warming. This means that some uncertainty remains regarding whether the Paris Agreement will be breached in the late 2020s, early 2030s, or even earlier. This uncertainty should not be used as an excuse to continue business as usual, since the goal to limit global warming to 1.5°C is certainly dead in the absence of a rapid and robust reduction in emissions. Governments must urgently strengthen their commitments, align policies with science, and accelerate the transition to a sustainable future. The world cannot afford to abandon the Paris framework at this stage; instead, we must reinvigorate it with ambition and accountability.”
Dr Robin Lamboll, Research Fellow at the Centre for Environmental Policy, Grantham Institute – Climate Change and Environment, Imperial College London, said:
“These two papers show that we are already in a time of peril for the 1.5°C target.
“There is a subtle distinction between what they show and what you might assume: they show that IF we are in a scenario that exceeds 1.5°C, the time of exceedance has very likely already started.
“The work by Cannon does not investigate scenarios where we never exceed 1.5°C, and the work by Bevacqua states that, in a scenario where we risk but aren’t committed to exceeding 1.5°C, we are “likely” but not “very likely” to exceed 1.5°C in the long term (so, more than 66% but less than 90% chance), now that we have seen a single year above 1.5°C warming.”
Professor Stephen Belcher, Met Office chief scientist, said:
“A single year of exceedance of 1.5°C does not break the guardrail of the Paris Agreement. However, it does highlight that the headroom to stay below 1.5°C is now wafer thin. In a recent paper a collection of Met Office scientists calculated that the current global warming level is 1.3°C above pre-industrial levels. Added to this a Met Office forecast of carbon dioxide for the coming year reveals that the atmospheric concentration of CO₂ is now inconsistent with pathways keeping to 1.5°C; this suggests that only rapid and strong measures to cut greenhouse gas emissions will keep us from passing the first line of defence within the Paris Agreement.”
Dr Alan Kennedy-Asser, Senior Research Associate at the University of Bristol Cabot Institute for the Environment, said:
“I find the results of this modelling study to be, sadly, unsurprising and I would agree that the evidence suggests that 2024 (and now 2025) will be within a 20 year period which has an average temperature at or above 1.5°C unless something very radical changes in the next 5 to 10 years, suggesting we may be already living in the 1.5°C world the Paris Agreement referred to. Another way to think about this is that the year 2024 exists within 20 different climatology periods (one starting at 2024, one ending at 2024). The period ending 2024 is not above 1.5°C, however I would be very confident the one beginning in 2024 will be above 1.5°C unless something very radical changes in the next 5-10 years (in agreement with these papers). Meanwhile somewhere between these two will be the closest that one period is to precisely 1.5°C (perhaps the period 2018-2037 – we shall find out).
“Both studies use straightforward but, in my opinion, sensible methodologies and use the most suitable data currently available: these are precisely the research questions CMIP6 models are designed to answer. However, even though the planet may be in a period that is at or exceeds 1.5°C, there is great value in taking rapid action to slow further warming, as the rate of change matters and every tenth of a degree matters.
“I believe the press release is an accurate representation of the papers.”
Prof Daniela Schmidt, Professor of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, said:
“To determine whether the Paris agreement has failed is defined as two decades above 1.5C and not one year as we have just had, due to natural climate variability. These papers suggest that the forcing conditions have been reached now, and that we reached the decade in which the Paris agreement will be broken. They came to this conclusion by interrogating climate models and observed temperature anomalies in complex discussions about probabilities and model baselines. These are important papers exploring when 1.5C warming is passed, given the impacts projected and the need for adaptation to reduce risk.
“The key importance of the Paris agreement is to avoid risk. Every increment of warming avoided by dramatically increasing mitigation reduces the risks and impacts of human driven changes to our climate system on people, our cities, our infrastructure and the environments which support us.
“Fixating on a number of 1.5C, and that if will be surpasses, has the real risk of reducing actions, demotivating all of us – people, civic society, industry – to give up on trying. The consequence of a lack of ambition is that we will stay on the warming pathways we are currently on, which leads to nearly 3C warming globally, locally much more. Such warming has immense, and in parts irreversible consequences for Nature and people.
“So while breaching 1.5C is not good news, reducing action and reaching twice as much warming is clearly much worse.”
Prof Richard Allan, Professor of Climate Science, University of Reading, said:
“A single year being globally 1.5 degree Celsius warmer than preindustrial levels does not mean we have crossed the Paris climate agreement threshold but it does mean breaching this dangerous level is pretty much inevitable.
“The threshold of 1.5 degree Celsius above preindustrial climate decided at the Paris climate agreement applies to the global surface temperature averaged over multiple decades so a single year doesn’t mean we have breached this dangerous level. But given that warming of climate is accelerating, it is common sense that if a year unaffected by additional warming influences such as El Niño crossed this boundary it is pretty certain that crossing the 1.5 degree threshold will be inevitable without a step change in efforts to cut greenhouse gases. The new studies robustly confirm that even accounting for El Niño warmth, the persistence and magnitude of global temperatures in 2024 mean that to all intents and purposes breaching the 1.5 degree threshold is a given and that we need to double down efforts to avoid the even more dangerous 2 degree Celsius threshold by rapidly and massively cutting greenhouse gas emissions.”
Dr Richard Hodgkins, a Reader in Climate Futures at Loughborough University, said:
“While individual years may always be warmer or cooler than long-term averages, the analysis in both papers show that the record warmth of 2024 is likely to be part of a long-term shift above 1.5C, rather than being a one-off. However, this doesn’t mean that the Paris Agreement target of 1.5C is dead, because the Net Zero pathway to 1.5C always assumed that temperatures would increase above that target, before coming back down in the second half of the current century. So, in that sense, 1.5C is not dead.
“However, the anticipated decline of temperatures relies on the assumption that large-scale technologies to remove carbon dioxide from the free atmosphere will be rapidly developed, globally deployed, and operate successfully, which is speculative to say the least. So, in that sense, 1.5C is dead because achieving it relies on borderline science fiction. There are many who would say that the reliance on carbon dioxide removal meant that 1.5C was never a very plausible target in the first place. Regardless, it shows that focusing on targets and not actions is an ineffective approach, and that actual emissions reductions, which can be achieved with existing, successful technologies, are needed now.”
Dr Vikki Thompson, Scientist at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, said:
“These studies use data from both observational sources and multiple climate models to show we should now expect to exceed the Paris Agreement within the next 20 years, much sooner than climate projections had suggested. With this January continuing the recent trend, becoming yet another hottest on record month, we have seen 18 of the last 19 months exceeded 1.5C above pre-industrial. Not quite the 18 consecutive months shown by Cannon to make it virtually certain we will exceed the Paris Agreement, but so very close.
“The rate we have reached these levels is terrifying and shows, yet again, how urgently we need to act. Without adaptation and mitigation we will continue to feel the impacts of the accelerating warming with more and more extreme weather events.”
Paper 1:
‘A year above 1.5°C signals that Earth is most probably within the 20-year period that will reach the Paris Agreement limit’ by Emanuele Bevacqua et al. was published in Nature Climate Change at 16:00 UK time on Monday 10 February 2025.
DOI: 10.1038/s41558-025-02246-9
Paper 2:
‘Twelve months at 1.5°C signals earlier than expected breach of Paris Agreement threshold ‘by Alex J. Cannon et al. was published in Nature Climate Change at 16:00 UK time on Monday 10 February 2025.
DOI: 10.1038/s41558-025-02247-8
Declared interests
Prof Richard Allan: No conflicting interests
Dr Vikki Thompson: No interests to declare.
Dr Akshay Deoras: No conflicts to declare.
For all other experts, no response to our request for DOIs was received.
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced a $60 million transaction to accelerate electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure deployment across New York City. The loan provided by NY Green Bank (NYGB), the State’s clean energy investment fund and a division of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), to Revel, the largest provider of public EV fast-charging in New York City, will enable Revel to more than triple its current New York City public fast charging network this year. This represents NYGB’s first EV charging infrastructure transaction and supports the expansion of investments in clean transportation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while increasing access to critical charging infrastructure necessary for the wider adoption of EVs.
“In support of the transition to a clean energy economy, it is critical that we continue to build electric vehicle infrastructure to ease the shift to EV ownership for more New Yorkers, especially those in urban areas,” Governor Hochul said. “This significant investment addresses the key need of providing electric vehicle users in New York City with much needed public charging options while reducing local emissions.”
This funding will enable the construction of 267 new charging stalls across nine sites and supports the intricate construction activities involved in designing and building EV charging stations. Revel will complete construction of the below new sites in the next 12 months, with the remainder to be completed by 2027:
60 charging stalls in Maspeth, Queens, that will be the largest fast-charging station in the Northeast U.S.
44 charging stalls near LaGuardia Airport, making it the largest fast-charging station near an airport in the country. *
24 charging stalls at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK); making it the largest charging station at the airport. *
30 charging stalls in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
20 charging stalls in the Port Morris section of the Bronx. *
* Located in a Disadvantaged Community (DAC)
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority President and CEO Doreen M. Harris said, “NY Green Bank’s financing support for critical infrastructure that is advancing clean transportation complements NYSERDA’s efforts to drive the transition to electrification of this sector. Increasing the state’s charging capabilities is a step forward in ensuring New Yorkers can plug in and drive clean and we commend Revel’s leadership in this regard in a major hub and in high-impact locations such as major airports.”
NY Green Bank President Andrew Kessler said, “NY Green Bank is pleased to share this exciting transaction that is demonstrating the viability of financing EV charging infrastructure to support the adoption of electric vehicles. The Revel transaction is an important and replicable precedent we expect will help accelerate investment in this fast-growing sector and expand access to EV charging for more New York drivers.”
Revel Co-Founder and CEO Frank Reig said, “For the past few years, Revel has been preparing a strategic portfolio of the most lucrative fast-charging locations in New York City. These sites are now shovel-ready. With the critical support from NY Green Bank, we are ready to take New York’s EV economy to the next level with a fast-charging network rivaling any other top tier city.”
Revel broke ground in November at JFK Airport, adjacent to the main rideshare vehicle waiting area, with support from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. With funding from NYGB, Revel will now be able to complete construction of the aforementioned 24 charging stalls. That site will open in Q1 2025 and is expected to be one of the most utilized charging stations in the country.
State Senator Kevin Parker said, “Our goal is to leave New York State in a better condition than when we found it. If we are going to move forward with our CLCPA goals, we must transition our transportation sector to clean vehicles. We also must invest in the infrastructure needed to provide confidence, reliability, and convenience for New Yorkers. I applaud Governor Hochul, Revel, and NYSERDA for continuing to provide these opportunities with financing support through New York Green Bank.”
State Senator Jeremy Cooney said, “The future of transportation is electric. Today’s investment by the NY Green Bank and NYSERDA represents our state’s continued commitment to new and emerging transportation technologies and a greener, cleaner future for New Yorkers.”
Assemblymember William Magnarelli said, “I am encouraged by this announcement. Expanding our charging infrastructure is essential if New York is going to reach its zero-emission transportation goals. These additional chargers will make transitioning to an EV more convenient and reliable.”
Revel charging stations are open to the public on a 24/7 basis for any make and model EV. All chargers installed at future locations will have speeds of at least 320 kilowatts (kW), which can charge an EV in as little as 15 minutes.
Last year, NYGB completed another groundbreaking transaction with Inspiration Mobility—which partners with Revel—to support the deployment of nearly 400 EVs in New York City that are increasing access to clean ridesharing transportation. Over three-quarters of Revel’s pipeline projects being supported by NYGB financing are located in DACs, advancing NYGB’s goal to commit a minimum of 35 percent, with a target of 40 percent, of its capital to projects benefiting DAC.
As the largest state green bank in the nation, NYGB has committed more than $2.4 billion to advancing New York State’s clean energy economy for all New Yorkers. Since inception, its investments have mobilized up to $8.8 billion in project costs across technologies, with $383 million mobilized in the clean transportation sector alone. NYGB’s transactions are designed for replication and adoption by the private sector, helping to animate the market and mobilize capital into underserved green sectors with a special focus on clean transportation, energy storage, and building decarbonization.
More information about the Revel deal can be found in NYGB’s transaction profiles on its portfolio page. Photos and video are available upon request by contacting Revel at [email protected].
New York State’s Climate Agenda New York State’s climate agenda calls for an affordable and just transition to a clean energy economy that creates family-sustaining jobs, promotes economic growth through green investments, and directs a minimum of 35 percent of the benefits to disadvantaged communities. New York is advancing a suite of efforts to achieve an emissions-free economy by 2050, including in the energy, buildings, transportation, and waste sectors.
Military officials from the Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Guam Army National Guard attended. Additionally, participating on behalf of various government of Guam agencies were representatives from the Guam Department of Agriculture, the Guam Department of Civil Defense and Homeland Security, the Guam Power Authority and the Guam International Airport Authority.
“The CMCC is an opportunity to get together to synchronize and synthesize our efforts on all of the major priorities for our island,” Huffman said. “Our meeting not only signifies the culmination of hard work and planning by our collective teams, but it is a demonstration of the strong partnership and close collaboration that are the hallmarks of our discussions.”
Military and civilian members offered informational briefs and updates on significant topics that require a One-Guam holistic approach including critical civilian infrastructure for the defense of Guam, utilities resiliency specifically for the island’s electrical grid, and the proposed Guam Defense System by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA).
“The Civil-Military Coordination Council continues to be an essential platform for ensuring that Guam’s needs and interests remain at the forefront of the ongoing military buildup. At our latest meeting, we placed a strong emphasis on resiliency—particularly in strengthening our island’s power infrastructure through the Guam Power Authority and the One Guam Power Infrastructure Resiliency & Reliability Projects,” said Leon Guerrero. “The military buildup is an ongoing conversation that requires careful planning, preparation, and the right subject matter experts at the table. It is critical that we have the latest and most relevant information to support our justifications and ensure that progress aligns with the best interests of all who call Guam home. As we continue these discussions, I remain committed to advocating for our people and working with our federal partners to reinforce the importance of Guam in national security and regional stability.”
The CMCC was established in 2010 to foster collaboration among the DoD, local government, and federal agencies to share information, discuss, and provide recommendations for construction activities for the U.S. Marine Corps relocation to Guam. These meetings have expanded to include all DoD items of interest and military construction on Guam. The next CMCC meeting is scheduled in June.
