Source: China State Council Information Office 2
A pair of giant pandas gifted by the central government to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of China arrived at the Hong Kong International Airport on Thursday morning.
They will be sent to Ocean Park Hong Kong for health checks and quarantine, and will spend time there to adapt to the new environment. The pair, named An An and Ke Ke, is the third pair of giant pandas the HKSAR has received as gifts from the central government.
Source: International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Geneva/ Dakar, 25 September – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is scaling up its emergency operations to assist millions impacted by the severe flooding across West and Central Africa. IOM is working to deliver a comprehensive and integrated regional response, collaborating closely with sister UN agencies, including OCHA, UNHCR, UNICEF, and WFP.
Since the onset of the rainy season, heavy downpours have ravaged vast regions, claiming more than 1,500 lives, affecting 4 million people and displacing more than 1.2 million individuals across Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, and Niger.
“This year’s floods are unprecedented, a stark reminder of the growing impacts of climate change in our region,” said Sylvia Ekra, IOM Regional Director for West and Central Africa. “Our teams are working tirelessly on the ground to support affected communities and local authorities. While we continue to strengthen emergency preparedness year-round, the scale of the situation at hand demands urgent additional funding to address immediate and longer-term needs” .
In Chad, one of the hardest-hit countries, over 1.5 million people have been affected, and over 164,000 homes destroyed. Displacement is widespread, particularly in N’Djamena and southern regions along the Chari River. The floods have devastated more than 400,000 hectares of arable land, severely impacting food security and livelihoods. IOM is leveraging its experience in helping the government’s emergency response, drawing on lessons learnt from the 2022 flood.
Rapid response teams are helping local authorities assess immediate needs through IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM). IOM has also reopened previously used displacement sites to provide temporary shelter and essential services to those affected, actively coordinating within the Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) framework.
In the Lake region and N’Djamena, IOM Chad is preparing to provide immediate multisectoral assistant to 7,000 direct beneficiaries through the provision of 700 shelters, water trucking, and repairing of 21 water pumps and 350 latrines.
In Nigeria, the floods have displaced nearly 650,000 people. Torrential rains have destroyed homes, farmlands, and vital infrastructure across 31 states, with the most severe impact reported in Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, and Benue. IOM has allocated $3 million through its Rapid Response Fund (RRF) to provide critical relief, while working with local partners to assess additional needs.
Meanwhile, between July and September, Mali has experienced the most significant rainfall since 1967, affecting nearly all regions and impacting over 180,000 people. IOM has been helping the government to assist those impacted in the hardest-hit regions of Gao, Ségou, and Mopti. The Organization’s support includes emergency tents and shelter materials, as well as technical assistance for the construction of 635 shelters. As of 19 September, 20,389 flood-affected individuals had been registered by the DTM team.
Across West and Central Africa, the floods have exacerbated health concerns. Stagnant water and poor sanitation has increased the risk of waterborne diseases such as cholera while damaged infrastructure such as roads have limited access to affected areas further complicating humanitarian response efforts.
Despite the ongoing effort, the scale of the disaster has revealed critical gaps in the resources available to respond to the emergency. With the rainy season expected to continue until November, IOM urgently calls on the international community for increased support to meet the growing needs.
IOM’s ongoing efforts on the ground are made possible thanks to the generous support of the USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO) and the Japanese Supplementary Budget (JSB).
For more information, please contact:
Dakar : Joëlle Furrer, jfurrer@iom.int
Geneva: Kennedy Okoth, kokoth@iom.int
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Administrative Officer vacancy, working within the VMD.
We have a vacancy for an Administrative Officer within the VMD.
Administrative Officer
AO
£27,245 per annum with Pension Scheme
Commencing at 25 days
The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) is the regulator and policy lead responsible for issues concerning the authorisation, use, and manufacture of veterinary medicines in the UK. Our aim is to protect public health, animal health, and the environment, and promote animal welfare by assuring the safety, quality and effectiveness of veterinary medicines.
We are looking to fill at least two AO roles to support these aims. However, we will maintain a reserve list of successful candidates, which we may call upon if other AO roles become available in the VMD.
You must make your application via Administrative Officer – Civil Service Jobs – GOV.UK where you will find a full job description.
21 October 2024
Source: US State of New Jersey
Findings show that while New Jersey benefits from high-quality care, health care costs have risen rapidly over nearly a decade
TRENTON – The Murphy Administration today released a trio of reports assessing the quality and affordability of health care in New Jersey. These reports serve as a critical first step to understanding and addressing the health care affordability challenge impacting individuals and families both in the state and across the nation. Together, the reports show that a lack of affordable health care continues to burden New Jerseyans, and they will be instrumental in supporting the development of innovative and collaborative approaches to address high costs.
The reports come on the heels of recently enacted legislation that protects consumers from harmful medical debt and builds upon a significant foundation of health care affordability and accessibility initiatives championed by Governor Murphy. This includes record enrollment into quality, affordable health coverage through Get Covered New Jersey, enhanced Medicaid benefits, a landmark legislative package aimed at prescription drug affordability and transparency, and increased prescription drug assistance for low-income seniors, which have brought financial relief to New Jersey residents as well as provided a strong foundation for long-term solutions that expand access to affordable health care.
“We’ve taken critical steps toward addressing the rising cost of health care in New Jersey, but these reports underscore the urgency to continue our progress in making high-quality health care more affordable for all,” said Governor Phil Murphy. “It’s time to ramp up our work to transform our health care system so that it delivers the best care possible at a price that every New Jerseyan can afford.”
Commissioned by the New Jersey Health Care Affordability, Responsibility and Transparency (HART) Program, a joint initiative of the Governor’s Office of Health Care Affordability and Transparency (OHCAT) and the Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI), the reports represent an important milestone in advancing the State’s long-term strategy to mitigate the unsustainable rate of health care cost growth. Most significantly, they bring greater transparency to health care spending, providing everyone in the state with a shared understanding of how rapidly health care costs are growing and the factors contributing to high costs and cost growth.
“We’re all feeling the financial strain of inflation and the rising costs of daily life. These reports serve as a critical landmark in our efforts to make high-quality health care more affordable and accessible for everyone in our state, and set the stage for more work to come,” said OHCAT Director Shabnam Salih. “Using this information, advocates, policymakers, and leaders in the health care industry can make evidence-based decisions about how to bring better value and cost savings to New Jersey residents and businesses.”
The three reports released today include:
Additionally, pursuant to Executive Order No. 217, the Department of Banking and Insurance has prepared a report regarding health insurance affordability standards that has been posted on the Department’s website.
“The reports released today allow for greater transparency around costs and improved understanding of New Jersey’s health care landscape, which will drive strategies to limit cost growth over time,” said Department of Banking and Insurance Acting Commissioner Justin Zimmerman. “New Jersey is committed to increasing access to quality, affordable health care. While strides have been made through the establishment of Get Covered New Jersey, the state’s Official Health Insurance Marketplace, state subsidies to make plans more affordable, caps on certain prescription drugs, and the implementation of out-of-network reforms, it is clear we have more work ahead to connect residents with care they can afford.”
By facilitating the reporting of health care costs in the state and using data to understand the causes of rising health care costs, these reports can inform whole-of-government strategies to reduce health care cost growth while sustaining or improving quality of care, reflecting the Governor’s commitment to put in place long-term solutions that will benefit generations to come.
Across New Jersey, hospitals and health care providers, carriers, employers, consumer groups, union groups, and policy organizations have signaled their commitment to working collaboratively to make health care more affordable, signing onto a compact to meet the State’s established benchmark for health care spending growth. This benchmark acts as a statewide goal for how much health care spending should grow each year to be affordable, bringing it in line with projected increases in wages and the state economy.
Source: International Chamber of Commerce
Headline: ICC calls for united action to end plastic pollution at NY Climate Week
In a keynote speech at a high-level roundtable hosted by ICC, Mr Varin emphasised ICC’s commitment in securing an ambitious, workable and effective agreement that rallies everyone, everywhere – including the business community – to end plastic pollution once and for all.
“We are confident that the spirit of collaboration and common purpose that brought the gavel down on the initial resolution in Nairobi, will prevail in advancing its mandate and delivering a historic agreement to spearhead the change the planet and humanity deserves.”
Philippe Varin, ICC Chair.
The event brought together leaders from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), government and regional group representatives as well as senior business executives from sectors across the plastics industry to discuss what is concretely needed to get an effective agreement finalised and how businesses can support these efforts.
A crucial role for business
Mr Varin highlighted the vital role business has to play in providing the expertise and the solutions that will be needed to tackle the plastics challenge at the required scale and speed across value chains.
“The global business community needs an agreement that provides the enabling frameworks and policies to drive innovation and accelerate business action across all sectors and geographies, including for MSMEs. This will be indispensable for businesses to effectively deliver on the objectives of the agreement and spur impactful change,” he added.
The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC-5), will take place from 25 November to 1 December 2024 in Busan, Republic of Korea.
“With only one negotiating session left this year to conclude an agreement, it will be critical to make the best use of the limited time left to advance towards a robust agreement that sets the foundation for a truly circular economy for plastics.”
Raelene Martin, ICC Head of Sustainability
Clear plans for intersessional work will be essential to build common ground on key issues and ICC is continuing to provide input to the process on behalf of over 45 million companies in more than 170 countries.
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
PALM BEACH, Fla., Sept. 25, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – Gold prices are forecast to climb to record highs in the coming year. The price of gold has soared to new heights this year and is positioned to climb into early 2025, rising to new record highs, according to Goldman Sachs Research. The precious metal has increased more than 20% this year, peaking at a record of more than $2,500 per troy ounce. Goldman Sachs Research forecasts the price will reach $2,700 by early next year, buoyed by interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and gold purchases by emerging market central banks. The metal could get an additional boost if the US imposes new financial sanctions or if concerns mount about the US debt burden. They see that Gold prices are forecast to climb to record high. Goldman Sachs says that: “Gold is our strategists’ preferred near-term long (the commodity they most expect to go up in the short term), and it’s also their preferred hedge against geopolitical and financial risks. In this softer cyclical environment, gold stands out as the commodity where we have the highest confidence in near-term upside,” Goldman Sachs Research strategists Samantha Dart and Lina Thomas write. Active Mining Companies in the markets today include Asia Broadband Inc. (OTCPK: AABB), Equinox Gold Corp. (NYSE American: EQX), Kinross Gold Corporation (NYSE: KGC), Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD), IAMGOLD Corporation (NYSE: IAG).
In an additional article, Goldman Sachs added: “The yellow metal typically only guards against very high inflation and large inflation surprises caused by losses in central bank credibility and geopolitical supply shocks. Gold usually didn’t perform well in response to positive demand shocks when the central bank responded swiftly by hiking rates. Gold emerged as the best commodity to serve as a potential hedge against inflation and geo-political risks. Goldman Sachs Research’s base case is that gold appreciates to $2,700/troy ounce by year-end, an increase of about 16%, on solid demand from central banks in emerging markets and from Asian households. Gold could help shield against potential stock market drops if a trade war erupts, and it has upside if concerns mount about the US debt load or if the Fed is subordinated by a new administration.”
Asia Broadband Inc. (OTCPK: AABB) Gold Production Continues Upward Trend For Third Quarter, As Ore Stockpile Processing Plant Advances Towards Completion – Asia Broadband Inc. (“AABB” or the “Company) is pleased to announce that the Company’s operations for the 3rd quarter ending September 30, 2024, will be completed next week and production levels have already surpassed the second quarter. The Company has exceeded its production and gross profit levels achieved in both the 1st and 2nd consecutive record quarters this year. Gold production more than doubled in the 1st quarter of 2024, in comparison to the 4th quarter of 2023, due to higher grade selection, recovery efficiencies and increased daily throughput levels. Additionally, the economies of scale from higher productions levels reduced production costs and added to the bottom-line gross profit, which has continued in an upward trend over the last three quarters.
The elevated operational strategies and efficiencies of the AABB mining team continued in the 3rd quarter and has firmly established the foundation for the high production levels to follow the completion of the Company’s processing plant. The new facility is currently under construction in Etzatlan, Mexico, and its capacity will be primarily dedicated to processing the estimated $1 billion dollar ore value of the Company’s exclusive rights surface stockpile. AABB continues to develop the processing plant and will release updates as progress milestones are reached. The Company will release a processing plant project update in October.
“The elevation of our production processes by the mining operations team in all three quarters of this year will have a multiplier effect with increased production levels. We are eagerly awaiting to extend this expertise to our massive ore stockpile processing when the new plant is complete. This will take us to a much higher level than we have ever reached before,” expressed Chris Torres, the Company President and CEO.
AABB continues to implement its mining property acquisition strategy to optimize development capital utilization by focusing operations in regions of Mexico where AABB has a comparative advantage of development resources and expertise readily available for rapid expansion and duplication of the Company’s previous gold production success. CONTINUED… Read this full release for Asia Broadband at: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-aabb/
Other recent developments in the mining industry include:
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) recently said it is projecting a 30% growth in the production of gold-equivalent ounces from its existing assets by the end of this decade while it continues to unlock the value embedded in its portfolio, says president and chief executive Mark Bristow.
Speaking at the Gold Forum Americas, Bristow said while Barrick was alert to potentially value-accretive opportunities generated by the consolidation of the industry, it had the rare luxury of doing so from an asset base that would support organic growth well into the future.
“Five years ago, we set out to build a sustainably profitable gold and copper business focused on world-class assets. We did not have to buy them at a premium: they were embedded in the merged portfolio of Barrick and Randgold and we just had to unlock their value,” he said.
Kinross Gold Corporation (NYSE: KGC) recently provided an update on the Great Bear project (the “Project”), located in Red Lake, Ontario, Canada. Kinross has completed a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) for the Great Bear project which supports the Company’s acquisition thesis of a top tier high-margin operation in a stable jurisdiction with strong infrastructure. Based on mineral resources drilled to date, the PEA outlines a high-grade combined open pit and underground mine with an initial planned mine life of approximately 12 years and production cost of sales of $594 per ounce. The Project is expected to produce over 500,000 ounces per year at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of approximately $800 per ounce during the first 8 years through a conventional, modest capital 10,000 tonne per day (tpd) mill.
Kinross has also released an updated mineral resource estimate increasing the inferred resource estimate by 568koz. to 3.884 Moz. which is in addition to the existing M&I resource estimate of 2.738 Moz. The mineral resource estimate and PEA for the Great Bear project are available here.
Equinox Gold Corp. (NYSE American: EQX) recently announced an updated Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) for its 100% owned, exploration-stage Hasaga Property (“Hasaga” or the “Property”) in Red Lake, Ontario.
“Hasaga is located in the Red Lake Gold District of northwestern Ontario, which is renowned for its high gold grades and prolific historical gold production. This updated Mineral Resource Estimate focuses on the high-grade nature of the gold mineralization and is a departure from the previous bulk-tonnage approach,” stated Scott Heffernan, EVP Exploration of Equinox Gold. “As expected, the updated Mineral Resource Estimate contains fewer gold ounces but at significantly higher average gold grades.
“Further, the main zones of gold mineralization included in the updated Mineral Resource Estimate remain open, with numerous historical gold intersections defining drill-ready targets highlighting the potential for resource growth and new discoveries.”
IAMGOLD Corporation (NYSE: IAG) recently announced that the Côté Gold Mine (“Côté Gold” or “Côté”) has reached commercial production. Côté Gold is located in Ontario, Canada and is operated as a joint venture between IAMGOLD, as the operator, and Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. (“Sumitomo”). Commercial production is defined as the achievement of reaching a minimum of 30 consecutive days of operations during which the mill operated at an average of 60% of nameplate throughput of 36,000 tpd.
“I would like to commend our teams at Côté Gold who have come together to achieve another great milestone as we progress and ramp up what we believe will be one of Canada’s largest gold mines and a model for modern mining in Canada,” said Renaud Adams, President and Chief Executive Officer of IAMGOLD. “Since achieving the first pour of gold on March 31, 2024, our teams have spent the last four months methodically and iteratively testing and ramping up all facets of the mine. This process has required remarkable commitment, ingenuity and teamwork to bring all the systems online together to achieve this milestone.”
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SOURCE: FN Media Group
Source: United Nations – English
resident of the General Assembly, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Our world is in dangerous waters.
Scientists tell us that the global sea level is now rising faster than at any time in the last 3,000 years, and accelerating – the rate of increase has more than doubled since the 1990s.
They tell us the cause is clear:
Greenhouse gases – overwhelmingly from burning fossil fuels – are heating our planet, expanding seawater and melting ice.
But they cannot tell us where this will end.
That is down to world leaders today.
Their choices will determine the scale, pace and impact of future sea level rise.
Temperature increases over 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels could take the world past dangerous tipping points – potentially leading to long-term, irreversible collapse of the Greenland and West Antarctica icesheets.
In the worst-case scenario, people alive today could witness sea levels rise by meters.
Excellences,
Près de 900 millions de personnes habitent dans les zones côtières de basse altitude.
Pour elles, la montée des eaux est synonyme d’une marée de malheurs :
Des ondes de tempête plus intenses, une érosion des côtes et des inondations côtières ;
Des communautés submergées, de l’eau douce contaminée, des récoltes ruinées, des infrastructures endommagées, une biodiversité détruite et des économies décimées – avec des secteurs tels que la pêche, l’agriculture et le tourisme qui subissent de plein fouet les effets de la tempête.
Les plus pauvres et les plus vulnérables sont les plus durement touchés.
J’ai pu le constater récemment encore dans le Pacifique, où les cyclones détruisent des pans entiers des économies insulaires. En 2015, Vanuatu a subi des dégâts équivalant à plus de la moitié de son PIB.
Pendant ce temps, au Panama, des centaines de familles insulaires ont dû être relogées sur le continent.
Au Bangladesh, l’eau salée pollue l’eau potable, détruit les récoltes et crée une menace sanitaire qui peut être mortelle – en particulier pour les femmes enceintes.
Dans la ville de Saint-Louis, au Sénégal, des maisons, des écoles, des petites entreprises et des mosquées auraient été abandonnées face à la marée montante.
De tels événements se reproduisent partout dans le monde.
Voilà à quoi ressemble l’injustice climatique. C’est le visage de l’iniquité.
Mais les riches ne sont pas à l’abri.
Les économies avancées dépensent des milliards – en dommages, et en adaptation.
Et si nous n’agissons pas rapidement, la situation sera bien pire.
Comme le rappelle le titre du débat d’aujourd’hui, cette situation représente pour certains une menace existentielle :
Des îles entières perdues ;
Des communautés côtières détruites à mesure que les terres deviennent inhabitables et non assurables.
Les déplacements massifs de population peuvent exercer une pression sur les ressources limitées des régions voisines – et aggraver des situations déjà dramatiques.
Le commerce mondial, les systèmes alimentaires et les chaînes d’approvisionnement seront mis à mal lorsque les ports seront endommagés et que les terres agricoles et les pêcheries seront ruinées.
La montée des eaux remodèlera non seulement les côtes, mais aussi les économies, la politique et la sécurité.
Excellencies,
Only drastic action to reduce emissions can limit sea level rise.
And only drastic action to adapt can keep people safe from rising waters.
Everyone must be protected by an alert system by 2027 – in line with our Early Warnings for All initiative.
And all countries must deliver new national climate action plans – or Nationally Determined Contributions – well ahead of COP30 next year.
These must align with 1.5 degrees, cover all sectors of the economy, and put us on track to phase out fossil fuels, fast and fairly.
The G20 – responsible for around eighty percent of global emissions – must lead. And align their fossil fuel production and consumption plans with 1.5 degrees.
Money is indispensable.
We need a strong finance outcome at COP29 this year – including on new and innovative sources of capital.
We need significant contributions to the new Loss and Damage Fund – as a step towards climate justice.
We need developed countries to double adaptation finance to at least $40 billion a year by 2025 – and to show how they will close the adaptation finance gap.
And we need to reform the Multilateral Development Banks to become bigger, bolder, and able to deliver far more affordable finance to developing countries.
We made real progress at the Summit of the Future. We must keep driving that forward – including at the World Summit for Social Development and the Financing for Development conference next year.
We must also address gaps in our international legal framework concerning sea level rise: to ensure continuing access to resources, while protecting existing maritime boundaries; as well as to protect affected persons and – in extreme scenarios – to address the implications related to statehood.
Excellencies,
We cannot leave the hopes and aspirations of billions of people dead in the water.
We cannot allow the wholesale destruction of countries and communities.
It’s time to turn the tide.
And save ourselves from rising seas.
Thank you.
***
[all-English]
President of the General Assembly, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Our world is in dangerous waters.
Scientists tell us that the global sea level is now rising faster than at any time in the last 3,000 years, and accelerating – the rate of increase has more than doubled since the 1990s.
They tell us the cause is clear:
Greenhouse gases – overwhelmingly from burning fossil fuels – are heating our planet, expanding seawater and melting ice.
But they cannot tell us where this will end.
That is down to world leaders today.
Their choices will determine the scale, pace and impact of future sea level rise.
Temperature increases over 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels could take the world past dangerous tipping points – potentially leading to long-term, irreversible collapse of the Greenland and West Antarctica icesheets.
In the worst-case scenario, people alive today could witness sea levels rise by meters.
Excellencies,
Low-lying coastal zones are home to around 900 million people.
Rising seas mean a rising tide of misery:
More intense storm surges, coastal erosion, and coastal flooding;
Communities swamped, fresh water contaminated, crops ruined, infrastructure damaged, biodiversity destroyed, and economies decimated – with sectors such as fisheries, agriculture, and tourism pummelled.
The poorest and most vulnerable are hardest hit.
I saw this recently in the Pacific, where cyclones are tearing chunks out of island economies. In 2015, Vanuatu suffered damage equivalent to well over half its GDP.
Meanwhile, in Panama, hundreds of island families have been relocated to the mainland.
In Bangladesh, saltwater is polluting drinking water, killing crops and creating a health threat that can be deadly, particularly for pregnant women.
In the city of Saint Louis in Senegal, homes, schools, small businesses, and mosques have reportedly been abandoned to the encroaching tide.
Such events are reproduced across the globe.
This is what climate injustice looks like. This is the face of inequity.
But the rich are not immune.
Advanced economies are spending billions – in damages, and adaptation.
And without rapid action we’re in for much worse.
As the title of today’s debate reminds us, for some, this could be existential:
Whole islands lost;
Coastal communities destroyed as lands become uninhabitable and uninsurable.
Mass displacement can pile pressure on scarce resources elsewhere, inflaming already dire situations.
Global trade, food systems and supply chains will be battered as ports are damaged, and agricultural land and fisheries ruined.
Rising seas will reshape not only coastlines, but economies, politics and security too.
Excellencies,
Only drastic action to reduce emissions can limit sea level rise.
And only drastic action to adapt can keep people safe from rising waters.
Everyone must be protected by an alert system by 2027 – in line with our Early Warnings for All initiative.
And all countries must deliver new national climate action plans – or Nationally Determined Contributions – well ahead of COP30 next year.
These must align with 1.5 degrees, cover all sectors of the economy, and put us on track to phase out fossil fuels, fast and fairly.
The G20 – responsible for around eighty percent of global emissions – must lead. And align their fossil fuel production and consumption plans with 1.5 degrees.
Money is indispensable.
We need a strong finance outcome at COP29 this year – including on new and innovative sources of capital.
We need significant contributions to the new Loss and Damage Fund – as a step towards climate justice.
We need developed countries to double adaptation finance to at least $40 billion a year by 2025 – and to show how they will close the adaptation finance gap.
And we need to reform the Multilateral Development Banks to become bigger, bolder, and able to deliver far more affordable finance to developing countries.
We made real progress at the Summit of the Future. We must keep driving that forward – including at the World Summit for Social Development and the Financing for Development conference next year.
We must also address gaps in our international legal framework concerning sea level rise: to ensure continuing access to resources, while protecting existing maritime boundaries; as well as to protect affected persons and – in extreme scenarios – to address the implications related to statehood.
Excellencies,
We cannot leave the hopes and aspirations of billions of people dead in the water.
We cannot allow the wholesale destruction of countries and communities.
It’s time to turn the tide.
And save ourselves from rising seas.
Thank you.
***
[all-French]
Excellences,
L’humanité navigue en eaux dangereuses.
Les scientifiques nous disent que le niveau des mers monte aujourd’hui plus rapidement que jamais au cours des 3 000 dernières années, et que cette hausse s’accélère – avec un taux d’augmentation qui a plus que doublé depuis les années 1990.
Ils nous disent que la cause est claire :
Les gaz à effet de serre – issus en grande partie de la combustion des énergies fossiles – réchauffent notre planète, dilatent l’eau de mer et font fondre la glace.
Mais ils ne peuvent pas nous dire où cela s’arrêtera.
Cela dépendra des dirigeants du monde actuels.
Leurs choix détermineront l’ampleur, le rythme et l’impact des futures élévations du niveau des mers.
Une augmentation des températures de plus de 1,5 degré Celsius au-dessus des niveaux préindustriels pourrait faire franchir au monde des points de bascule dangereux – ce qui pourrait sur le long terme entraîner l’effondrement irréversible des calottes glaciaires du Groenland et de l’Antarctique occidental.
Dans le pire des scénarios, les personnes vivant aujourd’hui verraient le niveau des mers monter de plusieurs mètres.
Excellences,
Près de 900 millions de personnes habitent dans les zones côtières de basse altitude.
Pour elles, la montée des eaux est synonyme d’une marée de malheurs :
Des ondes de tempête plus intenses, une érosion des côtes et des inondations côtières ;
Des communautés submergées, de l’eau douce contaminée, des récoltes ruinées, des infrastructures endommagées, une biodiversité détruite et des économies décimées – avec des secteurs tels que la pêche, l’agriculture et le tourisme qui subissent de plein fouet les effets de la tempête.
Les plus pauvres et les plus vulnérables sont les plus durement touchés.
J’ai pu le constater récemment encore dans le Pacifique, où les cyclones détruisent des pans entiers des économies insulaires. En 2015, Vanuatu a subi des dégâts équivalant à plus de la moitié de son PIB.
Pendant ce temps, au Panama, des centaines de familles insulaires ont dû être relogées sur le continent.
Au Bangladesh, l’eau salée pollue l’eau potable, détruit les récoltes et crée une menace sanitaire qui peut être mortelle – en particulier pour les femmes enceintes.
Dans la ville de Saint-Louis, au Sénégal, des maisons, des écoles, des petites entreprises et des mosquées auraient été abandonnées face à la marée montante.
De tels événements se reproduisent partout dans le monde.
Voilà à quoi ressemble l’injustice climatique. C’est le visage de l’iniquité.
Mais les riches ne sont pas à l’abri.
Les économies avancées dépensent des milliards – en dommages, et en adaptation.
Et si nous n’agissons pas rapidement, la situation sera bien pire.
Comme le rappelle le titre du débat d’aujourd’hui, cette situation représente pour certains une menace existentielle :
Des îles entières perdues ;
Des communautés côtières détruites à mesure que les terres deviennent inhabitables et non assurables.
Les déplacements massifs de population peuvent exercer une pression sur les ressources limitées des régions voisines – et aggraver des situations déjà dramatiques.
Le commerce mondial, les systèmes alimentaires et les chaînes d’approvisionnement seront mis à mal lorsque les ports seront endommagés et que les terres agricoles et les pêcheries seront ruinées.
La montée des eaux remodèlera non seulement les côtes, mais aussi les économies, la politique et la sécurité.
Excellences,
Seules des mesures radicales de réduction des émissions peuvent limiter l’élévation du niveau de la mer.
Et seules des mesures drastiques d’adaptation peuvent mettre les populations à l’abri de la montée des eaux.
Tout le monde doit être protégé par un système d’alerte d’ici 2027 – conformément à notre initiative « Alertes précoces pour tous ».
Tous les pays doivent présenter de nouveaux plans d’action nationaux sur le climat – ou contributions déterminées au niveau national – bien avant la COP30 de l’année prochaine.
Ces plans doivent s’aligner sur le seuil de 1,5 degré, couvrir tous les secteurs de l’économie et nous mettre sur la voie de l’élimination progressive, rapide et équitable, des combustibles fossiles.
Le G20, responsable d’environ 80 % des émissions mondiales, doit montrer la voie. Il doit aligner ses plans de production et de consommation de combustibles fossiles sur le seuil de 1,5 degré.
Le financement est indispensable.
Nous avons besoin de résultats ambitieux en matière de finances à la COP29 de cette année – y compris en termes de sources de capital nouvelles et innovantes.
Nous avons besoin de contributions significatives au nouveau Fonds pour les pertes et les dommages – une étape essentielle sur le chemin vers la justice climatique.
Les pays développés doivent doubler le financement en faveur de l’adaptation pour atteindre au moins 40 milliards de dollars par an d’ici 2025 – et démontrer comment ils vont combler le déficit de financement de l’adaptation.
Enfin, nous devons réformer les Banques multilatérales de développement pour qu’elles deviennent plus grandes, plus audacieuses et capables de fournir des financements beaucoup plus abordables aux pays en développement.
Nous avons réalisé de réels progrès lors du Sommet de l’avenir. Nous devons continuer à porter ces avancées, notamment lors du Sommet mondial pour le développement social et de la Conférence sur le financement du développement qui se tiendront l’année prochaine.
Nous devons également combler les lacunes de notre cadre juridique international concernant l’élévation du niveau de la mer : pour garantir un accès continu aux ressources, tout en protégeant les frontières maritimes existantes, ainsi que pour protéger les personnes touchées et, dans les scénarios extrêmes, pour traiter les implications liées à aux statuts d’un État.
Excellences,
Nous ne pouvons pas laisser les espoirs et les aspirations de milliards de personnes sans réponse.
Nous ne pouvons pas permettre la destruction massive de pays et de communautés.
Il est temps d’inverser la tendance.
Et de nous sauver de la montée des eaux.
Je vous remercie.
***
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Gedion Onyango, Research Fellow, Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa, London School of Economics and Political Science
Kenya has published a draft bill outlining protections for whistleblowers. Long in the making, the Whistleblower Protection Bill 2024 could help to encourage disclosures in a country where 86% of the respondents to a 2023 survey feared what might happen to them if they reported corruption cases. Gedion Onyango, who researches public accountability reforms, anti-corruption and whistleblowing reforms, sets out what protections are needed and how to change public mindsets.
Whistleblowing is disclosing information about behaviour or misconduct that could harm the public interest – the overall welfare of a society.
Whistleblowing is primarily associated with disclosing corruption in state institutions. Because the private sector has become a partner in public service and national development processes, emerging laws like Kenya’s whistleblower protection bill and existing ones like Botswana’s Whistleblower Protection Act 2016 have been designed also to expose activities of companies and institutions that directly affect public affairs.
Several key conditions must be met for whistleblowing to be effective.
Read more: Corruption in South Africa: would paying whistleblowers help?
Firstly, the society needs to broadly agree on what misconduct is. People should feel obliged to flag and address wrongdoing, and know what is expected when such information is disclosed. Essentially, the disclosure must be made in good faith.
Secondly, there must be an authority that is expected to and is willing to take action after receiving such information.
Thirdly, clear procedures or legal processes should be in place for receiving the information and determining the truth.
The person disclosing the information must find it easy to report, besides having sufficient evidence to support their claims. A thoroughly bureaucratic way of receiving information about wrongdoing is more likely to intimidate and discourage potential whistleblowers.
Fourthly, a system should be in place to reward individuals who disclose wrongdoing. This could involve recognising their contribution to society or providing financial incentives, often a percentage of money recovered in cases of corruption and asset recovery. Not all countries have this provision. But having such a reward is not always enough. This has been shown in Nigeria, where whistleblowing is declining despite the reward of 5% of recovered funds.
Finally, there needs to be trust in the authority and the process for it to work.
Whistleblowers are important sources of information about misconduct, dishonesty and unethical behaviour that would otherwise remain concealed from the public. They are critical in promoting human rights, fighting corruption and addressing governance misconduct and inequalities.
Many infamous scandals around the world have been brought to light by individuals who disclosed the wrongdoing. These include Kenya’s Anglo Leasing scandal.
Whistleblowing is essential to ethical public leadership. It is no accident that many developing countries are now enacting laws to encourage and protect whistleblowers. With new laws in Kenya, whistleblowers would no longer have to primarily defend themselves against non-disclosure clauses that outlaw disclosures of a potential wrongdoing. Whistleblowers have previously been targeted by public organisations for releasing information in an unprocedural manner.
Potential whistleblowers can use internal or external mechanisms to disclose wrongdoing. The choice of mechanism will depend on the whistleblower’s confidence or history with these mechanisms.
Studies have shown that internal whistleblowing is less desirable, and most whistleblowers prefer anonymous external whistleblowing channels that could prompt an investigation by an authority.
Read more: South Africa’s corporate whistleblowers don’t get enough protection: what needs to change
Effective whistleblower protection mechanisms include protecting the identities of whistleblowers until the responsible authority has checked that there was wrongdoing.
Whistleblowers should be protected from retaliation or harm, including social victimisation, physical attacks and disciplinary actions.
The law should ensure that an insider whistleblower, such as an employee, is protected from being intimidated, disciplined or removed from their position. This should be for a long enough time (for example, at least five years), even if the case ultimately collapses, as often happens.
In other words, the person should be protected from any loss, including damages that would affect their mental health or their job. This is typical of legislation globally.
In today’s age of social media, the laws against defamation should be applied strictly to guard against online harassment.
It’s important that whistleblower protection policies are understood and accepted by everyone. The process should start with extensive consultation. It should involve authorities such as religious groups, traditional leaders and government administrators at the lowest levels.
Including whistleblowing in the country’s school, college and professional curriculum would increase awareness and improve social acceptance.
It’s often the case that whistleblowers are seen as betrayers or snitches rather than as courageous defenders of public interest and ethical members of society. The reward system for whistleblowers should be included in prestigious national honours such as the Presidential Award.
– Kenya’s whistleblowers are key to fighting corruption: how a new law could protect them
– https://theconversation.com/kenyas-whistleblowers-are-key-to-fighting-corruption-how-a-new-law-could-protect-them-239647
Source: United Nations – English
gradeço ao Presidente Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva e ao governo do Brasil por co-organizar esta reunião entre os ministros das Relações Exteriores do G20, todos os Estados Membros das Nações Unidas, e as organizações financeiras internacionais.
[I thank President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and the government of Brazil for co-convening this meeting between G20 foreign ministers, all UN Member States, and the international financial organizations.]
This is a historic first.
The G20, the United Nations system and the Bretton Woods institutions and other international financial institutions deal with some of the most important challenges of our time: inequality, financing for development, the climate crisis, the impact of new technologies.
In all these areas, progress is slipping out of reach as our world becomes more unsustainable, unequal and unpredictable.
Conflicts are raging, the climate crisis is accelerating, inequalities are growing, and new technologies have unprecedented potential for good – and bad.
Global institutions must work together – not on parallel or conflicting tracks.
They must cooperate and collaborate for the good of humanity and the Summit of the Future was an essential first step.
It has created opportunities and possibilities for reform across the board.
But without implementation, it will be meaningless.
The work starts today.
Excellencies,
The Pact for the Future is about action in the here and now.
And G20 countries can act in three specific areas.
First, finance.
We need ambitious reforms of the international financial architecture to make it fully representative of today’s global economy, so it can provide strong support to implement the Sustainable Development Goals.
I commend the leadership of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund for making important progress.
But the resources available are still dwarfed by the size of the needs.
Many developing countries are being hit by a double whammy of climate chaos and debt.
To support low- and middle-income developing countries effectively, multilateral development banks must be bigger, bolder and better.
We need a far more robust financial safety net to shield countries in a world of frequent shocks.
Voting rights and decision-making rules should reflect the changing global landscape.
And access to concessional finance should be based on needs and vulnerabilities, not just on income.
All parts of the global financial system must work together to reduce the cost of finance and the inequalities that blight our world.
This demands action on debt – starting with an effective mechanism to deal with debt relief and restructuring.
As a first step, I welcome the commitment by the International Monetary Fund to review the debt architecture – as set out in the Pact for the Future.
I look to all G20 countries to push for deep reforms so that global financial institutions reflect today’s world and respond to today’s challenges.
One of those challenges is global hunger. It is shameful that in our world of plenty, around one person in ten regularly goes without food for an entire day or more – known as severe food insecurity.
I welcome President Lula and Brazil’s focus on global hunger during the G20 presidency and call on all G20 countries – and all UN Member States – to strengthen efforts to end this affront to our common humanity.
Excellencies,
The second area for action is climate.
We are at a critical moment: a battle to prevent temperatures from rising above the agreed limit of 1.5 degrees.
Today’s decisions and actions will determine the course of our world for decades to come.
The climate crisis transcends borders and politics. Climate action cannot be a victim of geopolitical competition.
Under G20 leadership we will be able to have drastic reductions in fossil fuel production and consumption as an essential element for climate action.
By 2030, global production and consumption of all fossil fuels must decline by at least thirty per cent – and global renewables capacity must triple.
This requires OECD countries to phase out coal by 2030 and to fully decarbonize power generation systems by 2035.
And it means non-OECD countries must phase out coal by 2040.
I have been strongly advocating for no new coal or upstream oil and gas projects for all G20 nations.
New national climate plans due next year are an opportunity for countries to align energy strategies and development priorities with climate ambition, taking into account the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.
They must also show how each country intends to transition away from fossil fuels, in line with the outcome at COP 28.
Excellencies,
There has never been a greater global challenge than the climate crisis.
There has never been more agreement on the solution: a just transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.
And renewable technologies have never been better – or cheaper.
The obstacle to the renewables revolution is not economics, or a lack of solutions.
It is mindsets, and lack of vision.
Those that lead the renewables revolution are already reaping the rewards.
But many developing countries are being left behind.
Clean energy investments in emerging and developing economies outside China and India have barely increased since 2015.
The energy transition must be based on justice and equity, so that all countries benefit.
Excellencies,
Third, we need strong, inclusive, legitimate global institutions and tools to tackle the challenges of today and tomorrow.
Fair and representative governance is a first step to unlock broader reforms.
The Pact for the Future includes commitments to make multilateral institutions more representative, effective, transparent and accountable.
I urge the strong engagement of G20 countries, including in reforms of our United Nations bodies:
Making the Security Council truly representative by addressing the under-representation of Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean;
Strengthening the role of the General Assembly and the Peacebuilding Commission;
And enhancing the Economic and Social Council.
The same principle applies to the international financial architecture: it should correspond to today’s global economy, with much stronger representation of developing countries.
For our part, the United Nations is totally committed to strengthening our convening role as an inclusive platform for dialogue and action.
As part of that role, from next year, we intend to host biennial summits to formalize a dialogue between the UN system, the G20, and international financial institutions.
Excellencies,
Only together will we achieve the reforms in the Pact for the Future and deliver the SDGs and the Paris Agreement, to meet the expectations of the people we serve.
I urge the G20 to seize every opportunity to raise ambition for global leadership and transformative action for a safer, more peaceful and sustainable world for all.
Thank you.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
From this week, zombie-style knives and machetes are now illegal to possess or sell as part of new measures introduced to halve knife crime in a decade.
Zombie-style knives and machetes have this week (24 September) been added to the list of prohibited weapons in the Criminal Justice Act 1988 as the government cracks down on dangerous weapons with no legitimate purpose.
‘Zombie-style’ is the street name given to weapons which are over 8 inches in length and often have a serrated edge, spikes or more than 2 sharp points. A full list of the features of these knives can be found in the guidance for surrender of ‘zombie-style’ knives and ‘zombie-style’ machetes.
NPCC lead for knife crime, Commander Stephen Clayman said:
Tackling knife crime requires all agencies and partners working together, approaching this from a number of different perspectives. Dealing with the accessibility of deadly and intimidating weapons is key and we are doing all we can to reduce how easily they can end up in the wrong hands. Many of these ‘zombie-style’ knives and machetes are clearly designed to intimidate and cause harm, rather than serve any practical purpose, so the ban will support us by significantly stopping their manufacture and overall availability.
Our fight to remove knife crime from our communities has been further strengthened with the government’s recent announcements and I look forward to leading an end-to-end review of online knife sales. This is just part of the ongoing work and we will continue to work in close partnership with the Home Office, retailers and the third sector to find ways we can bring meaningful, long-term change that will make our streets safer for everyone.
This is just one of a package of measures being introduced by the government to halve knife crime in a decade. Earlier this month, the government announced that legislation is underway to ban ninja swords and it has also commissioned the largest ever review into how knives are sold online to identify any gaps in legislation which will prevent these being sold illegally to under-18s.
The Coalition to Tackle Knife Crime has also been launched, bringing together campaign groups, families of people who have tragically lost their lives to knife crime, young people who have been impacted and community leaders, united in their mission to save lives and make Britain a safer place for the next generation.
From 24 September, anyone caught with a zombie-style knife or machete could face time behind bars.
The ban on zombie-style knives comes at the end of a Home Office run surrender scheme which allowed members of the public to hand in these types of weapons, and those who wished to do so were eligible for compensation. This scheme ended on 23 September and anyone still in possession of these weapons should safely hand them into their local police station or local surrender bin immediately.
Source: United Nations
President of the General Assembly, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Our world is in dangerous waters.
Scientists tell us that the global sea level is now rising faster than at any time in the last 3,000 years, and accelerating – the rate of increase has more than doubled since the 1990s.
They tell us the cause is clear:
Greenhouse gases – overwhelmingly from burning fossil fuels – are heating our planet, expanding seawater and melting ice.
But they cannot tell us where this will end.
That is down to world leaders today.
Their choices will determine the scale, pace and impact of future sea level rise.
Temperature increases over 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels could take the world past dangerous tipping points – potentially leading to long-term, irreversible collapse of the Greenland and West Antarctica icesheets.
In the worst-case scenario, people alive today could witness sea levels rise by meters.
Excellences,
Près de 900 millions de personnes habitent dans les zones côtières de basse altitude.
Pour elles, la montée des eaux est synonyme d’une marée de malheurs :
Des ondes de tempête plus intenses, une érosion des côtes et des inondations côtières ;
Des communautés submergées, de l’eau douce contaminée, des récoltes ruinées, des infrastructures endommagées, une biodiversité détruite et des économies décimées – avec des secteurs tels que la pêche, l’agriculture et le tourisme qui subissent de plein fouet les effets de la tempête.
Les plus pauvres et les plus vulnérables sont les plus durement touchés.
J’ai pu le constater récemment encore dans le Pacifique, où les cyclones détruisent des pans entiers des économies insulaires. En 2015, Vanuatu a subi des dégâts équivalant à plus de la moitié de son PIB.
Pendant ce temps, au Panama, des centaines de familles insulaires ont dû être relogées sur le continent.
Au Bangladesh, l’eau salée pollue l’eau potable, détruit les récoltes et crée une menace sanitaire qui peut être mortelle – en particulier pour les femmes enceintes.
Dans la ville de Saint-Louis, au Sénégal, des maisons, des écoles, des petites entreprises et des mosquées auraient été abandonnées face à la marée montante.
De tels événements se reproduisent partout dans le monde.
Voilà à quoi ressemble l’injustice climatique. C’est le visage de l’iniquité.
Mais les riches ne sont pas à l’abri.
Les économies avancées dépensent des milliards – en dommages, et en adaptation.
Et si nous n’agissons pas rapidement, la situation sera bien pire.
Comme le rappelle le titre du débat d’aujourd’hui, cette situation représente pour certains une menace existentielle :
Des îles entières perdues ;
Des communautés côtières détruites à mesure que les terres deviennent inhabitables et non assurables.
Les déplacements massifs de population peuvent exercer une pression sur les ressources limitées des régions voisines – et aggraver des situations déjà dramatiques.
Le commerce mondial, les systèmes alimentaires et les chaînes d’approvisionnement seront mis à mal lorsque les ports seront endommagés et que les terres agricoles et les pêcheries seront ruinées.
La montée des eaux remodèlera non seulement les côtes, mais aussi les économies, la politique et la sécurité.
Excellencies,
Only drastic action to reduce emissions can limit sea level rise.
And only drastic action to adapt can keep people safe from rising waters.
Everyone must be protected by an alert system by 2027 – in line with our Early Warnings for All initiative.
And all countries must deliver new national climate action plans – or Nationally Determined Contributions – well ahead of COP30 next year.
These must align with 1.5 degrees, cover all sectors of the economy, and put us on track to phase out fossil fuels, fast and fairly.
The G20 – responsible for around eighty percent of global emissions – must lead. And align their fossil fuel production and consumption plans with 1.5 degrees.
Money is indispensable.
We need a strong finance outcome at COP29 this year – including on new and innovative sources of capital.
We need significant contributions to the new Loss and Damage Fund – as a step towards climate justice.
We need developed countries to double adaptation finance to at least $40 billion a year by 2025 – and to show how they will close the adaptation finance gap.
And we need to reform the Multilateral Development Banks to become bigger, bolder, and able to deliver far more affordable finance to developing countries.
We made real progress at the Summit of the Future. We must keep driving that forward – including at the World Summit for Social Development and the Financing for Development conference next year.
We must also address gaps in our international legal framework concerning sea level rise: to ensure continuing access to resources, while protecting existing maritime boundaries; as well as to protect affected persons and – in extreme scenarios – to address the implications related to statehood.
Excellencies,
We cannot leave the hopes and aspirations of billions of people dead in the water.
We cannot allow the wholesale destruction of countries and communities.
It’s time to turn the tide.
And save ourselves from rising seas.
Thank you.
***
[all-English]
President of the General Assembly, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Our world is in dangerous waters.
Scientists tell us that the global sea level is now rising faster than at any time in the last 3,000 years, and accelerating – the rate of increase has more than doubled since the 1990s.
They tell us the cause is clear:
Greenhouse gases – overwhelmingly from burning fossil fuels – are heating our planet, expanding seawater and melting ice.
But they cannot tell us where this will end.
That is down to world leaders today.
Their choices will determine the scale, pace and impact of future sea level rise.
Temperature increases over 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels could take the world past dangerous tipping points – potentially leading to long-term, irreversible collapse of the Greenland and West Antarctica icesheets.
In the worst-case scenario, people alive today could witness sea levels rise by meters.
Excellencies,
Low-lying coastal zones are home to around 900 million people.
Rising seas mean a rising tide of misery:
More intense storm surges, coastal erosion, and coastal flooding;
Communities swamped, fresh water contaminated, crops ruined, infrastructure damaged, biodiversity destroyed, and economies decimated – with sectors such as fisheries, agriculture, and tourism pummelled.
The poorest and most vulnerable are hardest hit.
I saw this recently in the Pacific, where cyclones are tearing chunks out of island economies. In 2015, Vanuatu suffered damage equivalent to well over half its GDP.
Meanwhile, in Panama, hundreds of island families have been relocated to the mainland.
In Bangladesh, saltwater is polluting drinking water, killing crops and creating a health threat that can be deadly, particularly for pregnant women.
In the city of Saint Louis in Senegal, homes, schools, small businesses, and mosques have reportedly been abandoned to the encroaching tide.
Such events are reproduced across the globe.
This is what climate injustice looks like. This is the face of inequity.
But the rich are not immune.
Advanced economies are spending billions – in damages, and adaptation.
And without rapid action we’re in for much worse.
As the title of today’s debate reminds us, for some, this could be existential:
Whole islands lost;
Coastal communities destroyed as lands become uninhabitable and uninsurable.
Mass displacement can pile pressure on scarce resources elsewhere, inflaming already dire situations.
Global trade, food systems and supply chains will be battered as ports are damaged, and agricultural land and fisheries ruined.
Rising seas will reshape not only coastlines, but economies, politics and security too.
Excellencies,
Only drastic action to reduce emissions can limit sea level rise.
And only drastic action to adapt can keep people safe from rising waters.
Everyone must be protected by an alert system by 2027 – in line with our Early Warnings for All initiative.
And all countries must deliver new national climate action plans – or Nationally Determined Contributions – well ahead of COP30 next year.
These must align with 1.5 degrees, cover all sectors of the economy, and put us on track to phase out fossil fuels, fast and fairly.
The G20 – responsible for around eighty percent of global emissions – must lead. And align their fossil fuel production and consumption plans with 1.5 degrees.
Money is indispensable.
We need a strong finance outcome at COP29 this year – including on new and innovative sources of capital.
We need significant contributions to the new Loss and Damage Fund – as a step towards climate justice.
We need developed countries to double adaptation finance to at least $40 billion a year by 2025 – and to show how they will close the adaptation finance gap.
And we need to reform the Multilateral Development Banks to become bigger, bolder, and able to deliver far more affordable finance to developing countries.
We made real progress at the Summit of the Future. We must keep driving that forward – including at the World Summit for Social Development and the Financing for Development conference next year.
We must also address gaps in our international legal framework concerning sea level rise: to ensure continuing access to resources, while protecting existing maritime boundaries; as well as to protect affected persons and – in extreme scenarios – to address the implications related to statehood.
Excellencies,
We cannot leave the hopes and aspirations of billions of people dead in the water.
We cannot allow the wholesale destruction of countries and communities.
It’s time to turn the tide.
And save ourselves from rising seas.
Thank you.
***
[all-French]
Excellences,
L’humanité navigue en eaux dangereuses.
Les scientifiques nous disent que le niveau des mers monte aujourd’hui plus rapidement que jamais au cours des 3 000 dernières années, et que cette hausse s’accélère – avec un taux d’augmentation qui a plus que doublé depuis les années 1990.
Ils nous disent que la cause est claire :
Les gaz à effet de serre – issus en grande partie de la combustion des énergies fossiles – réchauffent notre planète, dilatent l’eau de mer et font fondre la glace.
Mais ils ne peuvent pas nous dire où cela s’arrêtera.
Cela dépendra des dirigeants du monde actuels.
Leurs choix détermineront l’ampleur, le rythme et l’impact des futures élévations du niveau des mers.
Une augmentation des températures de plus de 1,5 degré Celsius au-dessus des niveaux préindustriels pourrait faire franchir au monde des points de bascule dangereux – ce qui pourrait sur le long terme entraîner l’effondrement irréversible des calottes glaciaires du Groenland et de l’Antarctique occidental.
Dans le pire des scénarios, les personnes vivant aujourd’hui verraient le niveau des mers monter de plusieurs mètres.
Excellences,
Près de 900 millions de personnes habitent dans les zones côtières de basse altitude.
Pour elles, la montée des eaux est synonyme d’une marée de malheurs :
Des ondes de tempête plus intenses, une érosion des côtes et des inondations côtières ;
Des communautés submergées, de l’eau douce contaminée, des récoltes ruinées, des infrastructures endommagées, une biodiversité détruite et des économies décimées – avec des secteurs tels que la pêche, l’agriculture et le tourisme qui subissent de plein fouet les effets de la tempête.
Les plus pauvres et les plus vulnérables sont les plus durement touchés.
J’ai pu le constater récemment encore dans le Pacifique, où les cyclones détruisent des pans entiers des économies insulaires. En 2015, Vanuatu a subi des dégâts équivalant à plus de la moitié de son PIB.
Pendant ce temps, au Panama, des centaines de familles insulaires ont dû être relogées sur le continent.
Au Bangladesh, l’eau salée pollue l’eau potable, détruit les récoltes et crée une menace sanitaire qui peut être mortelle – en particulier pour les femmes enceintes.
Dans la ville de Saint-Louis, au Sénégal, des maisons, des écoles, des petites entreprises et des mosquées auraient été abandonnées face à la marée montante.
De tels événements se reproduisent partout dans le monde.
Voilà à quoi ressemble l’injustice climatique. C’est le visage de l’iniquité.
Mais les riches ne sont pas à l’abri.
Les économies avancées dépensent des milliards – en dommages, et en adaptation.
Et si nous n’agissons pas rapidement, la situation sera bien pire.
Comme le rappelle le titre du débat d’aujourd’hui, cette situation représente pour certains une menace existentielle :
Des îles entières perdues ;
Des communautés côtières détruites à mesure que les terres deviennent inhabitables et non assurables.
Les déplacements massifs de population peuvent exercer une pression sur les ressources limitées des régions voisines – et aggraver des situations déjà dramatiques.
Le commerce mondial, les systèmes alimentaires et les chaînes d’approvisionnement seront mis à mal lorsque les ports seront endommagés et que les terres agricoles et les pêcheries seront ruinées.
La montée des eaux remodèlera non seulement les côtes, mais aussi les économies, la politique et la sécurité.
Excellences,
Seules des mesures radicales de réduction des émissions peuvent limiter l’élévation du niveau de la mer.
Et seules des mesures drastiques d’adaptation peuvent mettre les populations à l’abri de la montée des eaux.
Tout le monde doit être protégé par un système d’alerte d’ici 2027 – conformément à notre initiative « Alertes précoces pour tous ».
Tous les pays doivent présenter de nouveaux plans d’action nationaux sur le climat – ou contributions déterminées au niveau national – bien avant la COP30 de l’année prochaine.
Ces plans doivent s’aligner sur le seuil de 1,5 degré, couvrir tous les secteurs de l’économie et nous mettre sur la voie de l’élimination progressive, rapide et équitable, des combustibles fossiles.
Le G20, responsable d’environ 80 % des émissions mondiales, doit montrer la voie. Il doit aligner ses plans de production et de consommation de combustibles fossiles sur le seuil de 1,5 degré.
Le financement est indispensable.
Nous avons besoin de résultats ambitieux en matière de finances à la COP29 de cette année – y compris en termes de sources de capital nouvelles et innovantes.
Nous avons besoin de contributions significatives au nouveau Fonds pour les pertes et les dommages – une étape essentielle sur le chemin vers la justice climatique.
Les pays développés doivent doubler le financement en faveur de l’adaptation pour atteindre au moins 40 milliards de dollars par an d’ici 2025 – et démontrer comment ils vont combler le déficit de financement de l’adaptation.
Enfin, nous devons réformer les Banques multilatérales de développement pour qu’elles deviennent plus grandes, plus audacieuses et capables de fournir des financements beaucoup plus abordables aux pays en développement.
Nous avons réalisé de réels progrès lors du Sommet de l’avenir. Nous devons continuer à porter ces avancées, notamment lors du Sommet mondial pour le développement social et de la Conférence sur le financement du développement qui se tiendront l’année prochaine.
Nous devons également combler les lacunes de notre cadre juridique international concernant l’élévation du niveau de la mer : pour garantir un accès continu aux ressources, tout en protégeant les frontières maritimes existantes, ainsi que pour protéger les personnes touchées et, dans les scénarios extrêmes, pour traiter les implications liées à aux statuts d’un État.
Excellences,
Nous ne pouvons pas laisser les espoirs et les aspirations de milliards de personnes sans réponse.
Nous ne pouvons pas permettre la destruction massive de pays et de communautés.
Il est temps d’inverser la tendance.
Et de nous sauver de la montée des eaux.
Je vous remercie.
***
Source: United Nations secretary general
H.E Mr. William Ruto, President of Kenya, H.E Mr. Russell Dlamini, Prime Minister of Eswatini, H.E Mr. Terrance Micheal Drew, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen,
What once seemed impossible— to end AIDS as a public health threat —is now within our reach by 2030.
In a time where divisions are widening, and conflicts are tearing at the social fabric of societies and when the spectre of the climate crisis looms, the progress we have made in ending AIDS is the success story we need to renew hope.
Today, the numbers of AIDS-related deaths reached their lowest level since the peak in 2004.
39% fewer people acquired HIV in 2023 compared with 2010.
And in 2023, an estimated 30.7 million people were receiving HIV treatment as compared with 7.7 million in 2010.
The AIDS response is a powerful testament to what is achievable when leaders unite efforts in service of global solidarity.
When communities are empowered.
When inequality is tackled, and human rights protected.
And when science-based policy making is matched with political will.
As a modern moonshot, the ripple effects of investments in the fight against HIV have yielded extraordinary dividends beyond the AIDS pandemic. Accelerating progress across other Sustainable Development Goals, including economic growth, poverty and hunger reduction, education, and universal health coverage.
However, we all know that progress is not immutable.
Gains are fragile and backsliding is possible.
As we speak, AIDS claims a life every minute. By the end of this session today, ninety families would have lost a loved one to AIDS.
We stand at a crossroads and to retreat now would jeopardize all we have fought for and gained.
To sustain the momentum, we need to take action on three fronts.
First, we must tackle the fiscal crisis that is squeezing social investments.
The current financial system is stacked against a sustainable AIDS response.
Half of sub-Saharan countries spend three times more on debt servicing than on health.
Meanwhile, for years these nations have been strangled by interest rates four to eight times those of high-income countries.
If we do not address the injustices of the financial system so countries can invest in bringing an end to AIDS now, we will pay the price in many ways later. We know that the costs of tackling AIDS are less than the costs of an unending pandemic.
Time is not on our side – now is the moment to boost domestic financing and to renew global solidarity and meeting the commitments to financing development and gavelled in the Pact for the Future.
Second, we must ensure access to medicines and medical technologies for all.
Innovative medical technologies need to be recognised as global public goods. Their effectiveness in ending AIDS as a public health threat depends on ensuring access to all.
This includes enabling the production of generics everywhere, crucial for global health security.
Third, we must continue the battle to stop stigma in its tracks.
Fear and discrimination drive people away from life-saving services.
Punitive laws, hate speech, violence against marginalized communities, exacerbate stigma and push people away from accessing vital health services.
It is vital to uphold all human rights for all people – including by removing punitive discriminatory laws that hold us back for reaching the goals on gender equality.
We must ensure that all girls complete secondary school, live free from violence, and have access to necessary support. Protect democracy and civil society space by enabling community-based organisations to operate, deliver services, and hold authorities to account.
Excellencies, Colleagues and Friends,
There is a clear path to ending AIDS by 2030.
A path that ensures the health and rights of all people living with HIV for the rest of their lives.
A path that we will ensure a safer, fairer, world for everyone.
That path is a choice.
We must choose solidarity over division.
Choose action over complacency.
Choose prosperity for all, not simply the few.
Just as we did when our global efforts began nearly 30 years ago.
Let’s act now to end AIDS by 2030 and deliver on the promise of the SDGs.
Thank you.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)
WASHINGTON – A Michigan man pleaded guilty today to a felony offense related to his conduct during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.
Jason Howland, 47, of Clinton Township, Michigan, pleaded guilty to a felony offense of obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder before U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden. Judge McFadden will sentence Howland on Jan. 10, 2025.
According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Howland was identified in open-source video among a large group of rioters assembled near the base of the scaffolding on the northwest side of the U.S. Capitol building. There, U.S. Capitol Police officers had formed a police line to prevent unauthorized individuals from entering the scaffolding. Rioters directly in front of the police line began to assault officers and attempt to overrun the police line. Howland observed this and, in response, turned to the crowd behind him and yelled, “Let’s go,” and waved his arm forward twice.
Immediately after Howland yelled, “Let’s go,” he and other rioters began to push forward, overrunning the police line and advancing toward the Capitol. As Howland advanced forward with the crowd, he pushed on the back of individuals in front of him. Court documents say that Howland’s conduct obstructed, impeded, and interfered with U.S. Capitol Police officers lawfully engaged in the lawful performance of their official duties.
Howland then advanced to the Upper West Terrace and entered the Capitol at approximately 2:17 p.m. through the Senate Wing Door. Inside the building, Howland traveled to the Crypt, where he chanted with others and observed rioters assault police. At approximately 2:20 p.m., while inside the Crypt, Howland received and read a message from another individual telling him, “Congress in session just figured out u guys are there and went running out of the session. Now on recess n house on lockdown.”
At approximately 2:51 p.m., Howland entered the Capitol Rotunda and observed a line of Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Capitol Police officers attempting to clear the area of rioters. In response, Howland approached the police line. At approximately 3:06 p.m., Howland entered the East Foyer. As he entered, he yelled at a group of U.S. Capitol Police officers.
Howland exited the U.S. Capitol at approximately 3:17 p.m. In total, Howland was inside the Capitol for approximately one hour.
After leaving the Capitol, Howland remained on the East Plaza, where he yelled at police officers who were arriving to respond to the riot. At approximately 5:28 p.m., an individual texted Howland asking whether ANTIFA had broken into the Capitol. Howland replied, “I’m not going to tell you who specifically. It wasn’t Antifa. It was patriots,” then added in a successive message, “No. Not Antifa. For a fact.” When the individual told Howland: “Well everyone on Twitter and all over is assuming it was Antifa. So that’s awesome,” Howland replied, “Good. Congress knows who it was.”
The FBI arrested Howland on Jan. 24, 2024, in Mt. Clemens, Michigan.
This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Detroit and Washington Field Offices. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.
In the 43 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,488 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including nearly 550 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.
Source: US House of Representatives Republicans
The following text contains opinion that is not, or not necessarily, that of MIL-OSI –
Washington, September 25, 2024
FACTS ABOUT H.R. 3334 – Sanctioning Tyrannical and Oppressive People within the Chinese Communist Party Act (Courtesy of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Judiciary Republicans)
Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Gabe Vasquez’s (NM-02)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On September 24, 2024, U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.-02), alongside a bipartisan group of Senators, Representatives and advocates,urged the immediate passage of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA). Vasquez called for the inclusion of New Mexicans who were affected by radiation exposure due to uranium mining and the world’s first atomic bomb test in the bill.
WATCH: Vasquez Pushes for RECA Expansion
“The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act is bipartisan legislation with Democrats and Republicans coming together. But let’s be clear—Speaker Mike Johnson has been absent in leadership and has failed the people of New Mexico. He has left radiation victims neglected and forced to bear the burden of generational illness without a speck of aid or recognition,” said Vasquez. “We must reauthorize and expand RECA to deliver justice and compensation to our southern New Mexico communities, rural areas, Tribal nations and all those impacted by the development and testing of nuclear weapons.”
This month, Vasquez will be sending a letter to leadership on the House and Senate Armed Services Committee’s outlining his priorities for the final National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25). At the top of his list of priorities will be including RECA reauthorization and expansion for New Mexican Downwinders and post-1971 uranium miners as a part of the must-pass legislation.
In May, Vasquez led an amendment with Delegate James Moylan (R-Guam) during the markup of the NDAA to include RECA in the defense bill for FY25. He also called on Speaker Johnson to correct the injustice caused by the federal government.
In April, Vasquez demanded an apology to New Mexico’s victims and confirmed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s support for expanding RECA during a House Armed Services Committee Hearing. He also called on House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers and Ranking Member Adam Smith to work with him on including RECA reauthorization and expansion in the FY25 NDAA.
In March, Vasquez called on Speaker Johnson, urging him to include the Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act in the final FY24 appropriations package.
Vasquez is also an original cosponsor of H.R. 4426, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2023 to include New Mexican downwinder communities in RECA coverage.
Vasquez remains dedicated to his commitment to securing compensation for all those affected by the events that have adversely impacted the health of his community. He actively collaborates across the aisle to ensure his colleagues understand the gravity of this and the need to advance RECA expansion for a vote on the House floor.
###
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) stated today (September 25) that it strongly condemned and rejected the report on the academic freedom of Hong Kong published by the so-called Human Rights Watch and Hong Kong Democracy Council yesterday (September 24). The content of the report are all maliciously smears and sweeping remarks. The HKSAR Government must point out its errors to set the record straight.
A spokesman for the HKSAR Government stressed, “The fundamental rights and freedoms of Hong Kong residents have all along been guaranteed at the constitutional level by the Basic Law. HKSAR’s laws to safeguard national security attach special importance to human rights. Both the Hong Kong National Security Law (HKNSL) and the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (SNSO) have clearly stipulated that human rights shall be respected and protected in safeguarding national security in the HKSAR and that the rights and freedoms which the residents of Hong Kong enjoy under the Basic Law and the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights as applied to Hong Kong shall be protected in accordance with the law. Any measures or enforcement actions taken under the relevant laws must observe the above principle.
“After the implementation of the HKNSL, Hong Kong residents continue to enjoy various rights and freedoms, including the freedom of academic research, literary and artistic creation and other cultural activities, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and freedom of association. According to Article 137 of the Basic Law, educational institutions of all kinds may retain their autonomy and enjoy academic freedom. Hong Kong residents can exercise their freedom of expression legitimately, including criticising government policies or decisions made by officials.
“The offences stipulated in the NSL and the SNSO clearly define their elements, penalties, exceptions and defences. These laws actively prevent, suppress and punish acts and activities that endanger national security, in accordance with the principle of the rule of law. Additionally, they target an extremely small minority of people and organisations that pose a threat to national security, while protecting the lives and property of the public. Law-abiding people including students, scholars, and other academics will not engage in acts and activities that endanger national security and will not unwittingly violate the law, and therefore have no reason to be worried.”
The spokesman said, “We noticed that most of the interviewees of the so-called report have used pseudonyms, which is a tactics frequently adopted by anti-China forces, making it difficult to ascertain if the interviewees truly exist. Therefore, the authenticity and credibility of the so-called report is questionable.”
As regard to the so-called report containing fabricated content and irresponsible remarks saying that academic freedom has declined in Hong Kong, the spokesman stressed, “Academic freedom is an important social value treasured in Hong Kong and the cornerstone of Hong Kong’s higher education sector. The HKSAR Government attaches great importance to upholding academic freedom and institutional autonomy, which are both enshrined in the Basic Law. These safeguards are clear and specific, and their effectiveness has never changed. Since the implementation of the NSL, academics or post-secondary education institutions in Hong Kong continue to conduct normal exchange activities between their foreign or external counterparts.”
The spokesman said, “National security is essential for the prosperity and stability of society as well as for its people to live and work in peace and contentment. Without security and stability, there is no way to talk about anything. We should not forget the painful experiences Hong Kong endured in 2019, including the riots in campuses that severely disrupted normal teaching and academic research.”
The spokesman stressed, “Enacting laws safeguarding national security fully aligns with the principles of international law, international practice and common practice adopted in various countries and regions. It is both necessary and legitimate. The HKNSL and SNSO complement each other, providing a strong framework for safeguarding national security in Hong Kong. This allows all sectors, especially higher education, to flourish in a safe and stable environment, enabling scholars and students to pursue their studies and research in a stable, secure, and inclusive setting.
“The HKSAR Government is committed to developing Hong Kong into an international education hub and will continue to work closely with the higher education sector in capitalising on Hong Kong’s strengths. Through various key initiatives, the Government will support expansion and quality enhancement of institutions, promote academic exchanges and research collaborations, and promote a more diversified campus culture, so as to enhance the competitiveness of the institutions and students in the globalised environment.
“In fact, over the years, Hong Kong’s publicly-funded universities have continued to be highly rated in international rankings and among the best in Asia. In the World University Rankings 2025 published by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), an international higher education organisation, five publicly-funded universities have stayed in the world’s top 100, highlighting that Hong Kong’s universities are highly reputable in the global academic community, with excellent performances in terms of quality of teaching and research, and internationalisation, thereby attracting experts and talent from around the world. At present, four University Grants Committee-funded universities are ranked among the top 10 most internationalised universities in the world.
“The HKSAR Government will continue to lead Hong Kong in fully focusing on development, improving people’s livelihoods, and maintaining the long-term prosperity and stability of the city.”
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Richard Youngs, Professor of International and European Politics, University of Warwick
A new team of 26 leaders has been appointed to the European Commission, reflecting a carefully crafted balance of political ideologies and member states. Each will take on a different portfolio, from democracy to agriculture to innovation.
And for the first time, the EU will have a dedicated defence commissioner in the form of Lithuania’s Andrius Kubilius.
Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has made it clear that in her second term, the primary focus will be defence and security issues. She wants to convert the EU into a “security project” and has created the new post to build the bloc’s military capacities and cooperation.
The last EU Commission that ran from 2019 to this year declared itself “geopolitical”. Under this label, it moved the European Union towards a heightened concern with military capabilities and hard power.
Most observers see this as a positive aspect of the last commission. And there is a striking degree of supportive consensus that the military-power shift needs to be extended and deepened.
However, this increasingly unchallenged conventional wisdom has unhelpfully narrowed and distorted the EU’s foreign policy debates. The EU needs to move beyond its hazy geopolitical mantra, not lean on it even more heavily.
Much EU policy debate has become concerned principally with the question of whether the EU can defend itself more robustly and without help from the US. Analysis of European foreign policy has come overwhelmingly to take the form of calls for the EU to advance more ambitiously in its emerging ethos of militarised self-preservation and for laggardly member states to accelerate their rearmament.
While the focus on defence capabilities was overdue and remains necessary, it is becoming too dominant.
Defence players and experts get a far readier hearing in Brussels than anyone working on more liberal agendas involving human rights, development or peacebuilding. Funds flow aplenty into new programmes on defence and away from these old liberal concerns, many of which policymakers and analysts now belittle as passé.
As they ramp up their defence spending, most member states are cutting their development aid. The incoming commissioners’ mission statements are all about security and protecting European democracy from external threats. There is no mention of the work they would do to support global human rights.
If it previously tended to under-securitise its major challenges, the EU now risks over-securitising them. Well beyond the defence sphere, nearly all areas of EU policy are now infused with a more securitised ethos.
The new hard-power orthodoxy risks crowding out any critical questioning of the EU’s new enthusiasm for concepts – power politics and zero-sum geopolitical rivalry – that were until recently anathema to its very essence.
This deflects from the broader and more significant question of how the EU needs to mobilise different kinds of power to shape international trends. Contrary to what now predominates as received wisdom, governments’ increased defence budgets and EU efforts to coordinate defence investments do not in themselves provide such leverage.
Indeed, with its priority on military defence, the EU has in recent years shown less evidence of qualitatively updating and sharpening its understanding of international leverage. While European leaders ritually claim that the union has “learned the language of power”, the current policy trajectory has diverted the EU away from being more influentially geostrategic.
Outgoing high representative Josep Borrell has himself lamented that the EU risks being better at reacting to its last crisis than pre-empting wider and future trends.
The shift in EU strategic narrative rests on an unduly one-dimensional reading of global trends. Contrary to what is now a commonly accepted premise, not every international development points towards state-to-state, zero-sum, order-menacing illiberalism.
Much of it does, but the evolving order is also one of intensified societal mobilisation against autocracy and state power. It sees sub-state networks working across borders and citizens seeking problem-oriented cooperation on the ailing global commons.
Articles, political speeches, and European policy documents routinely urge the EU to step back and accept that liberal political values are now contested. But global surveys show strong and even rising levels of citizen support for democracy and underlying social trends away from authoritarian values.
Once a self-styled power of liberal betterment, the EU increasingly seems reduced to a strategy of stemming ordinary peoples’ desire for change. It rarely meets citizens’ pleas for support in their efforts to spur political and social reform. It has become an ambiguous bystander more than proactive promulgator.
By downplaying these complexities, the EU fixation on traditional geopolitical power looks increasingly at odds with the emerging order rather than skilfully aligned with it. The EU’s now commonly repeated leitmotif of “accepting the world as it is” actually does no such thing.
It actually collides with the underlying ways in which that world is shifting socially and politically. It’s one thing for the EU to get real about defending itself but another to become a regressive power that passively moulds itself to the power-politics of illiberalism.
Far from going alone, Europe instead needs to fashion more effective interdependencies and coalitions.
As its new leaders take office, the EU needs to move beyond the now omnipresent, yet ill-defined geopolitical narrative. It needs a more precise and forward-looking vision of what it wants power, sovereignty and autonomy for.
If, for many years, the EU dangerously neglected the need for hard, defensive power it now risks moving to other extreme – giving hard power such pride of place that it detracts from the more consequential trends that will redefine the world order.
Richard Youngs does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. The European Union is becoming too obsessed with defence – https://theconversation.com/the-european-union-is-becoming-too-obsessed-with-defence-239666
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Iain Farquharson, Lecturer in Global Challenges – Security Pathway Lead, Brunel University London
In the conflicts raging in Ukraine and the Middle East, we have recently seen calls for the establishment of what are being referred to as “buffer zones”.
Russia has proposed setting one up around Ukraine’s second city, Kharkiv in the north-east of the country. This, the Kremlin claims, is to protect Russian towns from shelling and missile attacks from Ukrainian territory.
Israel, meanwhile, wants to establish a buffer zone in southern Lebanon. It says it needs to protect nearly 70,000 civilians returning to their homes, which they have abandoned in the past year after rocket attacks by Hezbollah.
But these suggestions should be viewed with scepticism. Both Russia and Israel want to set up these buffer zones within the borders of neighbouring autonomous nation states – in breach of their sovereignty – in the name of “security”. They should instead primarily be seen as a way of formalising control over contested territory to protect their home bases, which would give them a military advantage.
The situation is further complicated by the fact that neither nation is formally at war with its opponent. No formal declaration of war has been issued by Russia to Ukraine, while Israel claims its legitimacy to establish a buffer zone under Article 51 of the UN constitution concerning self-defence.
Such arguments are hypocritical and one-sided. Russian and Israeli policymakers have shown no concern for the effect of the establishment of these zones on the Ukrainian and Lebanese populations of the areas.
The idea of buffer zones has a long history within international relations. Buffer zones have generally been defined as a nation state or neutral geographical area between two states not politically or militarily controlled by either of the rival states it separates.
The zones proposed by Russia and Israel don’t fit this definition. Both Kharkiv and southern Lebanon are militarily contested. And neither the Ukrainian nor Lebanese governments is in control of their territories.
If the Russian and Israeli proposals were to conform to this definition, they would comprise territory on both sides of the border of the two states, established with the agreement of both rival states. But neither Russia nor Israel is planning to cede their own territory in the establishment of these buffer zones. In fact, both have consistently sought to delegitimise their rival’s status as a nation state.
These considerations, alongside Ukrainian and Hezbollah resistance, suggest that these new buffer zones will be fiercely contested. Indeed, the history of buffer states and zones suggests that the effectiveness of such zones is highly questionable.
Lebanon itself serves as an example of this in acting as a buffer state (although not formally declared as such) for the Israeli-Syrian rivalry from the late 1960s. Both Syria (1976) and Israel (1978 and 1982) intervened militarily in Lebanon at one point or another.
In this context, Lebanon provided a way for Syria to protect itself from surprise attacks. It allowed the political and military confrontation to play out without escalation to their own national territories. But it was terrible for Lebanon itself and ironically, Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in 1982 paved the way for the foundation of Hezbollah as a political and military force.
Similarly, Anglo-Russian rivalry over influence in Afghanistan in the 19th century focused on political manoeuvring to exert influence over Afghan rulers to protect British India and southern Russia respectively. This saw much money and political capital expended on both sides. There were also three British military incursions (1839-40, 1878-80 and 1919) attempting to consolidate their influence. None went well.
In both these cases though, competing powers were using an intervening state to avoid an escalation of tensions into conflict.
In this instance, the recent declarations in pursuit of “buffer zones” by both Russia and Israel have more in common with strategic occupations of territory to resolve a military problem – namely attacks on their own territories. Within security studies literature these are termed “external security zones” and are generally militarily occupied zones within hostile territory deemed essential to the national security of the occupying power.
Historically, these zones have also been of questionable value. Following continued Palestinian attacks on Israeli border villages, in 1977 the Israel Defense Forces created a formal security buffer zone in south Lebanon through the proxy South Lebanon Army and supported by UN Interim Forces in Lebanon (Unifil) from March 1978.
The establishment of this zone did little to prevent shelling and rocket attacks on Israel, leading to significant exchanges of artillery fire in the summer of 1981. Then on June 6 1982, Israel invaded southern Lebanon.
Ultimately, neither buffer zones nor security zones have proved very effective at preventing conflict or preserving populations from its effects. These have almost always been negative, to say the least.
Now, both Russia and Israel are likely to find themselves facing increasing resistance from the occupied nation. This will require the commitment of more troops and perhaps deeper military advances under cover of the political and strategic “necessity” to ensure the security of their own borders.
These commitments will undoubtedly lead to more casualties. They will either lead to a destabilisation of existing governance in their regions or serve as a pretext for the aggressors to push further forward. It will also require them to further reshape their economies to fill military needs and could lead to potential escalation with other regional powers.
Iain Farquharson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. When Russia and Israel talk about setting up ‘buffer zones’ what they are really talking about is a land grab – https://theconversation.com/when-russia-and-israel-talk-about-setting-up-buffer-zones-what-they-are-really-talking-about-is-a-land-grab-239765
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Nathan Critch, Research Associate, Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester
In his first conference speech as prime minister, Keir Starmer vowed that a Hillsborough law will be introduced in April, before the next anniversary of the football stadium disaster. The law will force public bodies to cooperate with investigations into future disasters and scandals.
This announcement follows a long campaign by the families of the 97 people killed (and hundreds more injured) when part of Hillsborough stadium collapsed in 1989.
The disaster and the inquiry that followed highlighted how justice is so often impeded by the tendency of powerful people to cover up information or refuse to cooperate in investigations.
Initial media coverage of the Hillsborough disaster wrongly blamed football fans for the deaths. A public inquiry cited faults in police control, although its main recommendations related to crowd safety in sports venues.
Crucially, the inquiry did not have access to all relevant evidence, interviewing only a few of those involved as it rushed to produce a narrowly focused report. An inquest ruled the deaths to have been “accidental”.
Bereaved families “were sure that the true context, circumstances and aftermath of Hillsborough had not been adequately explored, established and made public”. Further efforts and campaigns for truth and justice ensued. Families attempted to bring private prosecutions against two of the police officers who had been in charge of operations at the match. Neither were successfully charged.
In 2009, the government made an exception to the normal 30-year restriction on the publication of official documents, to ensure all documents related to the disaster were available to investigators.
Shortly afterwards, the government established the Hillsborough Independent Panel to reexamine the causes of the disaster in light of full access to relevant evidence and in close consultation with Hillsborough families.
Read more:
New ‘Hillsborough Law’ needed to tackle ‘burning injustice’ and empower victims and family
The panel’s report emphasised policing failures and found that crowd safety had been “compromised at every level” due to “well known” issues. The report found that police “sought to deflect responsibility” on Liverpool fans.
New inquests concluded that the deaths of 97 had been unlawful, highlighting police and emergency service failures and exonerating the supporters who were initially blamed.
In 2012, South Yorkshire Police apologised, and confirmed the independent panel’s findings that “senior officers sought to change the record of events” in the aftermath.
The long struggle for truth and justice has focused on a lack of honesty and openness by those in power, a willingness to close ranks and blame others, and a failure to disclose relevant information. A Hillsborough law will enforce “a positive duty to tell the truth” and require public officials to “proactively assist investigations”.
Starmer confirmed in his speech that the law will include criminal sanctions for those who breach it. Proposals also include better legal support and representations for future victims of disasters and their families.
Proposals for a Hillsborough law were first put forward in 2017 as a private members’ bill by Andy Burnham, then shadow home secretary. Its passage was interrupted by the 2017 general election, but some aspects were reintroduced in 2022 in another private member’s bill. This, too, was interrupted when Boris Johnson prorogued parliament.
Since becoming Labour leader, Starmer has framed his project as being one committed to returning his party, and the government, back to the service of working people. Passing a law designed and advocated for by working-class people who experienced injustice when their family members died is a clear symbol of this agenda.
The law is also indicative of Starmer’s efforts to frame his government as one that seeks to be transparent, open and consistent. This puts him in contrast to the preceding 14 years of Conservative rule, which were marred by allegations of corruption and misconduct.
High-profile scandals related to the pandemic, including members of the government holding illegal parties in Downing Street and misallocated contracts for PPE (personal protective equipment) to companies owned by people closely connected to government are just two examples.
The announcement comes as Starmer himself, and senior members of his government, have been accused of lack of transparency on donations and gifts.
Announcing the Hillsborough law goes some way to repairing his commitment to transparency and service in government, which has lost some of its shine in recent weeks.
The reaction to the announcement from families and campaigners has been positive.
The director of the charity Inquest, which supports families of those who have died in state-related disasters, called the law “a step forward in providing a legacy for the 97 so that others do not have to go through the pain and trauma of decades of campaigning”.
The potential effect of the law goes far beyond Hillsborough. Other recent events including the Post Office scandal, infected blood and the Grenfell Tower fire have all been affected by a lack of openness and candour by those in power.
But will a law on its own be enough? From Hillsborough to Grenfell to Windrush, what these many injustices highlight is that the problem of secrecy and a lack of transparency and candour is systemic and cultural. The British state has long been marked by a tradition of elitism, a government-knows-best attitude and a scepticism towards citizen engagement, participation and openness.
While the Hillsborough law is indeed a step forward, it is only one piece of the jigsaw of making British governance more open and democratic.
Nathan Critch receives funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (grant number:
ES/V002740/1). He is affiliated with The Productivity Institute.
– ref. Hillsborough law planned for 2025 – what it will mean for future disasters and scandals – https://theconversation.com/hillsborough-law-planned-for-2025-what-it-will-mean-for-future-disasters-and-scandals-239855
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Eli Auslender, Research Fellow in Migration and Climate Change, Aberystwyth University
US border policy remains a key electoral issue for Democrats and presidential nominee Kamala Harris as she approaches the November election.
According to a recent Gallup poll, 77% of Americans believe the southern border is experiencing either an ongoing crisis or is a major problem. Meanwhile 55% wish to see less overall immigration, 53% support expansion of the border wall and 63% would support the president temporarily closing the border to asylum seekers when the border is “overwhelmed”.
The issue is an important one in border states, especially in those such as Arizona, where polls show an incredibly tight race.
Those who rate immigration as a top issue favour Donald Trump over Harris, and in one new poll voters say that Trump will be far more successful than Harris at securing the border.
Joe Biden’s initial border policies continued some entry restrictions brought in by Trump’s administration, which had restricted border entry during the heights of the pandemic. But Biden also opened new pathways for legal migration. This included expanding temporary protected status, which expedites work permits for specific populations fleeing violence or disasters from countries such as Haiti or Ukraine.
Biden’s congressional border bill failed to get through the Senate in June. In it, he aimed to speed up the asylum process, revoke visas of the bosses of companies that work with illegal immigrants, and add executive authority to shut border access.
Harris has confirmed that she wants to resurrect the Biden administration’s border bill despite criticism from advocacy groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union. It argues that it would cut off any access to asylum protections for the vast majority of people arriving at the US-Mexico border, and disregard human safety.
So how and why did Democrats shift their border policies so drastically when they had been openly against Trump’s border restrictions during his presidency – and what does this mean for potential border policies under a Harris administration?
Over the past decade, people from Central and South America have been fleeing for a variety of reasons, including the recent chaos in Haiti, the effect of harsh economic conditions in Venezuela and organised crime. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that the number of forcibly displaced people in the region is expected to reach 25 million.
Along with this, the US southern border has been inaccurately framed as the primary means through which fentanyl has entered the country and caused the opioid crisis. These two factors have linked asylum-seekers with fentanyl despite US citizens being the main smugglers of fentanyl into the country.
The Biden administration attempted to address some of these issues by appointing Harris, at the beginning of its term, to explore the “root causes” of migration from Central America. This included directing private sector investments towards countries from where large numbers of asylum seekers were fleeing. Research suggests that this does little to address organised crime or governance issues.
Customs and Border Protection reported in June that 2024 saw the fewest border crossings since 2021. The Harris campaign has seized on this to claim the Biden administration’s approach has been the correct one. A closer looks, however, suggests there are many different factors.
US Customs and Border Protection has increasingly restricted access to asylum as per the executive order, delaying those who can cross the border and need to claim asylum immediately. Mexico (among other states in Central America) has restricted northward movement towards the US border, including bussing people back to the south of the country.
Meanwhile, asylum-seeker deaths at crossing points within Central America and after crossing the US border have increased from 149 discovered remains in 2023 to 164 by August 2024. This would suggest that the root causes remain the same.
Asylum, border security, crime, and the opioid epidemic have been tangled into a single issue. National security and immigration are constantly linked. And this has led to the Harris campaign’s recent advertisements emphasising her “tough stances” on border crime.
This is in contrast to her criticism of Trump in 2018, when she called his border wall policy “un-American”. Despite past Democratic criticism of Trump’s harsh border restrictions, restrictive border policies have come from both parties.
Both parties claim that stronger enforcement and more rigorous vetting of asylum-seekers is needed, as well as expedited deportations and “safe third country” deportations. These positions still conflate asylum-seekers with criminals. Immigrant advocates have noted that the US’ asylum system is already one of the most complex in the world. Asylum cases often take years to decide.
The “remain in Mexico” policy, which forced asylum seekers to stay in Mexico while their asylum applications were considered, was implemented by the Trump administration during the pandemic and maintained by the Biden administration. Advocacy group Human Rights Watch argued that it endangered countless asylum seekers, putting men, women and children at risk of violence or death, while they waited for their cases to be heard.
Seeking asylum is both a national and international right. The first potential policy priority to ease the border pressure should be to simplify the asylum process and reduce the time it takes to resolve a case from several years to several months. Fortifying the border puts vulnerable lives at risk, regardless of which party proposes it. Shutting down the border would only put more lives at risk.
If the Harris campaign is serious about border policy reform, it must first look to ease and expedite asylum access instead of restricting it.
Eli Auslender does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. US election: why immigration remains a major issue for voters and why they trust Trump on border security – https://theconversation.com/us-election-why-immigration-remains-a-major-issue-for-voters-and-why-they-trust-trump-on-border-security-238263
Source: Government of Canada regional news
September 25, 2024
Manitobans Will Continue to Save at the Pump Until the End of the Year: Kinew
The Manitoba government intends to extend the gas tax holiday until the end of the calendar year, Premier Wab Kinew announced today.
“Since we cut the gas tax in January, inflation has gone down in Manitoba,” said Kinew. “This is what governments are for. We know Manitobans are still struggling with the impact of interest rates and grocery prices so we’re going to continue to step up and save you 14 cents at the pump.”
The current gas tax holiday on gasoline and diesel used to operate motor vehicles will be extended until Dec. 31, noted the premier.
The premier noted the people who drive the most popular type of vehicle in the province, a pickup truck, will save around $14 every time they fuel up. The Manitoba Bureau of Statistics estimates the gas tax holiday has directly contributed to a decrease of 0.4 percentage points to inflation.
Since the introduction of the gas tax holiday, Manitoba has had the lowest average retail price on gasoline in Canada and inflation has dropped to within the Bank of Canada’s target inflation range of one to three per cent.
– 30 –
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Maryam Imani, Associate Professor of Water Systems Engineering, Anglia Ruskin University
A month’s worth of rain has poured down in just a few hours in parts of central and southern England. More than 300 flood-related emergency calls were made, major roads were submerged, trains were delayed, and an enormous sinkhole opened up on a football pitch in south London.
This follows similar torrential rain across central and eastern Europe two weeks ago, which led to flash floods and widespread damage and deaths. As climate change alters rain patterns and makes extreme downpours more common, and more extreme, such flooding is increasingly the new normal.
Intense rain doesn’t lead to serious floods every time, of course. Sometimes we get lucky: a well-timed low tide might help, or a rainstorm could be surprisingly localised in a place where water can easily flow into the sea, a river or a pond. And some of the actions taken by humans to minimise the risk of catastrophic floods can actually make life more pleasant anyway, even when it isn’t raining. For this reason, we should see rains like this not just as a challenge, but as an opportunity.
There are various things we can do to minimise flood risks before and after torrential rains and prevent smaller floods from escalating into disasters.
We can build bigger and better drainage and stormwater infrastructure, for instance, and make sure drains are unblocked and flood walls are properly maintained. This is an example of so-called “hard” flood defences.
Features like ponds and wetlands, larger parks, or trees on hillsides, help slow down or store rainwater and can ensure the flow is spread out over days or even weeks. Water flows much faster over bare ground, and especially over concrete roads and buildings, where urban drainage systems can soon be overwhelmed – causing floods. These features are known variously as “nature-based solutions” or “sustainable drainage systems” or “blue-green infrastructure”.
We can also use smart technologies for flood warning systems and we can ensure people are aware and prepared. We can ensure people don’t live in flood-prone areas in the first place, through climate-resilient planning, and that those who do live there are insured and have flood-proofed their homes as best they can.
In the UK, several exemplary projects address flood management. The most iconic is the Thames Barrier in London, which protects the city from storm surges and high tides coming from the North Sea. Another is the the Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme, which protects over 3,000 properties and 500 businesses in the UK’s fourth-largest urban area. It involves a combination of hard defences – weirs, flood walls – and natural solutions like planting trees and constructing water storage areas.
The National Storm Overflows Plan for England report is being reviewed by the UK government for approval by December 2024. One of its recommendations is to make sustainable drainage systems mandatory.
A government scheme (Flood Re) also ensures homeowners in flood-risk areas can protect their homes and obtain affordable insurance. And various rivers have been allowed to “wiggle” once again, by flooding over nearby fields. This has proven effective at reducing peak flows during storms, which is especially beneficial downstream where people live and where rivers are often encased in human-made banks.
These initiatives are part of a broader trend toward more sustainable flood management practices. Key projects such as the “slowing the flow” project in Pickering, Yorkshire or projects along the River Derwent in Cumbria focus on reconnecting rivers with their floodplains.
The Netherlands is one of the world leaders in flood management. The Delta Works, a massive system of dams, sluices, locks, dikes and storm-surge barriers, protects the country, much of which is below sea level, from flooding due to rainfall and rising sea levels.
The Room for the River programme, started in 2007, manages higher water levels in rivers by lowering flood plains, creating water buffers, relocating levees, increasing the depth of side channels, and constructing flood bypasses. Urban adaptations, such as those in Rotterdam, are also crucial for managing flash flooding.
Japan, particularly in flood-prone areas like Tokyo, has built massive underground flood tunnels to divert rainwater during storms. This system helps protect the city from excessive rainfall and typhoons. In many European countries, sustainable drainage systems are now integrated into urban planning. This helps absorb excess rainwater during storms, while offering ecological and social benefits too (grass and ponds are ultimately a lot nicer than bare concrete).
It’s crucial to be aware of the problem of intense rain and view it as a chance to improve society. Prolonged droughts highlight the need to focus on storing and using excess water during high-demand times, which can be done by creating wetlands, storing floodwaters or by enabling the soil to store and retain more moisture.
Engineers can’t do all this by themselves. Neither can tree-planters or wetland creators. We need a hybrid approach combining engineering solutions with nature and community efforts.
Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?
Get our award-winning weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 35,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.
Maryam Imani is a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers and a STEM programme ambassador.
– ref. Torrential rain represents an opportunity to build a better society – https://theconversation.com/torrential-rain-represents-an-opportunity-to-build-a-better-society-239755
Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA)
WEST CHESTER, PA – Late last week, Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) sent a letter to United States Postmaster General Louis DeJoy outlining her constituents’ concerns following a fire in July that closed the Airport Road Post Office in West Chester, PA. The letter highlighted problems resulting from the closure including a lack of clear operating hours at alternate facilities such as the Gay Street Post Office, incorrect and outdated information on the website, long wait times, and chronic understaffing at the post offices currently trying to handle the overflow of customers who had previously relied on the Airport Road Post Office before the fire.
Houlahan asked DeJoy to share the Postal Service’s plan to remedy the issues and to commit to rebuilding the Airport Road facility, which is owned by the U.S. Postal Service. Houlahan also expressed her concerns about how the closure of the USPS Airport Road facility will impact the distribution and collection of mail-in ballots.
“With only a handful of weeks until election day, and even fewer before mail-in ballots are distributed, I’m asking for a detailed plan for the distribution of ballots despite lack of access to this post office,” wrote Houlahan. “This plan should include what additional capacity will be needed at other nearby locations, and how this capacity can be provided. Every eligible American has the right to participate in our elections and that right should not be diminished due to lack of post office access.”
Read Houlahan’s letter here or below.
Dear Postmaster General Dejoy,
As you may be aware, on July 19th, services were indefinitely suspended at the USPS facility located at 1050 Airport Road in West Chester, PA because of a major fire. This particular post office is the primary delivery unit in Chester County, where the majority of my constituents of Pennsylvania’s Sixth District reside. As an additional point of context, West Chester University with a student enrollment of approximately 18,000 individuals, is located in West Chester, Chester County’s County Seat and population base.
I am thankful that no one was hurt in the blaze, and for the updates provided by your team to my office. I appreciate the work the USPS is doing to recover from this disaster and ask that you prioritize a few issues that many members of my community have shared with me.
First and most imminently, the hours displayed on the USPS’s website still describe the Airport Road location as being open and operating normally. This has caused confusion as postal patrons have traveled to the Airport Road location only to find a shuttered building. Please correct this right away. Additionally, because of the closure, the nearby Gay Street Post Office has extended its hours but the website has not been updated, leading to additional confusion. I appreciate the USPS’s prompt attention to these necessary updates.
Second, the closure of the Airport Road Post Office has meant that demand at the Gay Street Post Office is now higher than ever. My office has received reports of long wait times of up to 90 minutes for counter services, as well as hours-long closures at the Gay Street location, due to a shortage of staff. It is critical that more staff are either hired or quickly transferred to meet the increased demand of postal customers that have been forced from the Airport Road location to the Gay Street location. I ask that you regularly keep my office apprised of the actions the USPS is taking to improve staff recruitment and retention in the West Chester, PA area. It is my hope that these actions will be in addition to the efforts already underway to improve staffing at USPS locations across the nation, as described by the Delivering for America plan.
Third, I have deep concerns about how the closure of the USPS Airport Road facility will impact the distribution and collection of mail-in ballots. With only a handful of weeks until election day, and even fewer before mail-in ballots are distributed, I’m asking for a detailed plan for the distribution of ballots despite lack of access to this post office. This plan should include what additional capacity will be needed at other nearby locations, and how this capacity can be provided. Every eligible American has the right to participate in our elections and that right should not be diminished due to lack of post office access.
Fourth, I’d like you to commit that the West Chester Post office will be rebuilt and reopened, rather than closed permanently. This location is critically important to maintaining adequate services in this part of my district in the long term. While augmenting services at nearby offices can be help fill the gap in the short term, it cannot be an indefinite solution.
Lastly, I ask that USPS personnel continue to be in regular contact with my staff on the status of the West Chester Post Office. Specifically, I ask that monthly updates be provided to my staff on the progress of reconstruction, and the ongoing impact of the closure on nearby offices.
Thank you for your work to address this difficult issue.
Sincerely,
Chrissy Houlahan
Houlahan is an Air Force veteran, an engineer, a serial entrepreneur, an educator, and a nonprofit leader. She represents Pennsylvania’s 6th Congressional District, which encompasses Chester County and southern Berks County. She serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. She is the recipient of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Abraham Lincoln Leadership for America Award which “recognizes members who demonstrate the bipartisan leadership and constructive governing necessary to move our country forward” and the Congressional Management Foundation’s 2022 Democracy Award for best Constituent Services in Congress.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Katie Porter (CA-45)
Last night, the House of Representatives unanimously passed Rep. Katie Porter’s (D-CA) Electronic Permitting Modernization Act. The bill, co-led by Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), would streamline the Department of Interior’s permitting process by establishing a central, online location linking to each type of permit.
“Inefficient, outdated processes waste taxpayer dollars and decrease people’s confidence in our government,” said Rep. Porter. “My bill would make it easier for Americans to get permission to use our public lands for allowed activities, and bring transparency and accountability to the permitting process. It passed the House with unanimous support for one reason: it is good policy that would make government work better for Americans. I urge my colleagues in the Senate to pass this bill without delay.”
The bipartisan Electronic Permitting Modernization Act would push the Department of Interior into the 21st century by encouraging the development of electronic permits that are easily accessible. It would require the Department of Interior to centralize links to these permits onto one webpage and provide resources to help individuals get assistance with permitting questions. The bill establishes reporting mechanisms to help Congress hold the Department accountable for its e-permitting implementation. The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration.
Rep. Porter is committed to making government work better for the American people. She’s introduced legislation to improve and modernize the services that 14 federal agencies offer, like passport renewals, student loan payments, and tax filing. Rep. Porter has used her oversight role—and whiteboard—to hold countless Administration officials accountable for how they serve the public, including the heads of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Centers for Disease Control.
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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Carol Miller (R-WV)
Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Carol Miller (R-WV) penned an op-ed in Fortune on how a higher corporate rate would hurt Americans by driving up prices and reducing wages, as well as affecting America’s standing in the global economy.
Fortune: Rep. Miller: Raising the corporate tax rate will hurt American business, investment, and consumers
“For the past three years, politicians, businesses, and families have been grappling with inflation. Pundits across the political spectrum have argued that dramatically raising taxes on American corporations would be a quick fix to this burden on Americans. The Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, has argued that increasing the corporate rate to 28% ‘is a fiscally responsible way to put money back in the pockets of working people and ensure billionaires and big corporations pay their fair share.’ However, the clear economic truth is the opposite: Raising taxes on corporations will raise prices for consumers—and inflation will spike yet again.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) that passed under President Donald Trump in 2017 changed the trajectory of tax policy in the United States. Finally, a policy was enacted that lowered taxes for all Americans and made the United States more competitive globally.
Before the TCJA, America’s corporate tax rate was one of the highest in the world, and American businesses were at a competitive disadvantage in the global market. This hurt companies and workers alike. Lowering the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% gave every American more opportunities to succeed in business because they weren’t as burdened by unnecessary taxes. The results proved out: In 2018, 263,000 manufacturing jobs were created and wages increased by 3%, according to a National Association of Manufacturers analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Many economists have credited the TCJA for America’s continued outperformance relative to most of the world’s advanced economies.
Reducing the corporate tax rate was the cornerstone of the TCJA. Today, some in Congress want to raise it in the name of increasing federal revenue. That would be a catastrophic mistake. Raising the corporate rate doesn’t punish companies—it punishes Americans.
Multiple studies show that corporate tax increases are directly passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices. A higher rate will also make American exports more expensive and companies less competitive in the global market. The result will be slower economic growth, fewer jobs, and less innovation.
As the Ways and Means Committee prepares for the reauthorization of the TCJA, Chairman Jason Smith created ‘tax teams’ to evaluate which policies worked well and which could use improvement for the 2025 reauthorization. I am the Chairwoman of the Supply Chains Tax Team, which focuses on the corporate rate, energy tax credits, and capital gains tax. We’ve had many meetings with small businesses, Fortune 100 companies, and economists who have all emphasized the importance of maintaining a corporate rate that is pro-growth and pro-American.
A lower corporate tax rate keeps costs down, leading to lower prices for consumers and more investment in their workers. The reality is that if the corporate rate goes up, the burden will fall on consumers, employees, and retirees. As a small business owner, I know firsthand how important it is to take care of your employees and produce the best possible product. If I suddenly must pay more in taxes, I either have to cut back on investments into the business that create more jobs or pass increased costs onto my customers. This would happen to businesses around the country and would slow economic growth in the U.S. to a grinding halt.
Another key benefit of a low corporate rate is how much more attractive America becomes to investors. When the U.S. corporate tax rate was 35%, it was one of the highest corporate tax ratesamong developed countries. For any startup or subsidiary company, it made more sense to do business in China, India, or even within the famously high-tax European Union. With the lower rate, the U.S. is more inviting for nearly every industry.
While some may argue that the federal government is leaving money on the table by maintaining or lowering the corporate rate, the opposite is true. The TCJA grew the American economy to the extent that the significantly lower corporate tax rate was offset by increased tax collections.
The U.S. government doesn’t have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem. Thanks to the TCJA, the 21% corporate rate has kept business taxes low, which softened the blow from the Democrats’ ill-advised (and utterly misnamed) Inflation Reduction Act. Without the TCJA, inflation would have been much higher. This is why even Democrats refused to hike the rate or repeal the TCJA when they had full control of the House of Representatives, Senate, and White House.
The solution to inflation isn’t to increase taxes on American business, it’s to get federal spending under control and spur economic growth. Keeping the corporate rate low—or better yet, lowering it, as former President Trump has suggested—gives financial freedom to American consumers and businesses. The one-two punch of lower taxes and a lower debt burden will bring back the strong growth we saw in the first three years of the Trump presidency.”
This article originally appeared on Fortune.com
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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Carol Miller (R-WV)
Washington D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Carol Miller (R-WV) introduced the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) Authorization Act with Representatives Terri Sewell (D-AL), Buddy Carter (R-GA), and Ann Kuster (D-NH). The RCORP Authorization Act will establish and expand prevention, treatment, and recovery services in rural areas for opioid users.
“Ensuring there are enough resources for those who are suffering from addiction is a top priority for me. As a representative for a rural district, I have seen firsthand how important it is for my constituents to have access to quality health care. The Rural Communities Opioid Response Program provides funding to rural communities that are in need of recovery facilities, and the program should be authorized to provide certainty for communities and providers. I thank my colleagues for partnering with me on this bipartisan issue to establish addiction prevention services in the most rural areas of the United States,” said Congresswoman Miller.
“The opioid epidemic doesn’t discriminate. As we see in Alabama, it affects people of every background and every zip code, urban and rural. By authorizing the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program, we can take critical steps toward expanding prevention, treatment, and recovery services for opioid users in rural communities. I’m grateful to be part of the bipartisan group of lawmakers working to make that happen,” said Congresswoman Sewell.
“The opioid epidemic is a nationwide crisis that especially impacts rural communities. As a pharmacist and representative for a rural district, I understand the importance of ensuring that all Americans have access to prevention, treatment, and recovery services. Formally authorizing the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program will save lives in districts like mine. I am proud to work in a bipartisan manner to ensure continued access to these vital health care resources,” said Congressman Carter.
“From health care workforce shortages to limited access to treatment and recovery services, rural communities in New Hampshire and across the country have been hit particularly hard by the addiction and overdose crisis. Ending the substance use disorder epidemic calls for an all-of-the-above government response, and the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program will help ensure that even our most rural communities have access to the resources and support they need to save lives,” said Congresswoman Kuster.
“Substance use, including opioid use, is exacerbated in rural America by a lack of access to care and treatment. The Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) is a grant program aimed at alleviating this gap by establishing and expanding prevention, treatment, and recovery services. NRHA applauds the efforts of Representatives Miller, Sewell, Carter, and Kuster for their introduction of the RCORP Authorization Act and their continual leadership on rural issues,” said Alan Morgan, CEO of the National Rural Health Association.
“Rural communities have been uniquely tested by the opioid epidemic. Limited care options, transportation issues, and incomplete support systems along with barriers to reintegration into the workforce have created unique barriers on the road to recovery. The RCORP program has been critical in deploying needed resources to these communities while promoting unique collaborations that provide patient-centered care. As such, we enthusiastically support the continuation of this vital program,” said David Gozal, M.D., M.B.A., Ph.D. (Hon), Vice President for Health Affairs and Dean of the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine at Marshall University.
”On behalf of the 50 State Offices of Rural Health, we are thrilled to see Reps. Carol Miller, Ann Kuster, and Buddy Carter introduce the RCORP Authorization Bill of 2024. The RCORP grant program has been a lifeline for Rural population in West Virginia, New Hampshire, Georgia and all 50 states. If passed into law this bill solidifies the standing of the program in the eyes of Congress – we look forward to working with our rural champions to ensure Congress passes this bipartisan bill into law,” said Tammy Norville, CEO of the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health.
Click here for bill text.
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Source: US State of Florida
PLANT CITY, Fla.—Today, Governor Ron DeSantis and First Lady Casey DeSantis spoke at the Central Florida Leadership Prayer Breakfast about the DeSantis administration’s commitment to faith, family, and life. They highlighted the success of Hope Florida in connecting the faith community with Floridians looking for help, including families and mothers. The prayer breakfast was organized by All Pro Pastors, a nonprofit organization founded in 2007 to create pastor-to-pastor support and fellowship.
“Florida’s faith-based institutions have long served and strengthened communities across the state,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “We are proud to support and partner with the faith community in Florida, and we thank them for their critical role in the Hope Florida initiative.”
“By uniting individuals from all sectors of the community who want to help, we have created a network of support beyond what government can do alone,” said First Lady Casey DeSantis. “A sincere thank you to our state’s faith leaders for serving Florida families through Hope Florida’s CarePortal. The Governor and I are grateful that an increasing number of Floridians are getting help and finding success thanks to the faith community’s role in Hope Florida.”
The Governor and the First Lady also took the opportunity to pray for Florida ahead of Tropical Storm Helene making landfall on Thursday.
Hope Florida
Through implementation at multiple state agencies, Hope Florida provides Hope Navigation to help Floridians get help for immediate and long-term needs and financially supports nonprofits and churches through the Hope Florida Fund. Hope Florida guides Floridians on an individualized path to prosperity and economic independence by focusing on community collaboration between the private sector, nonprofits, government entities, and faith-based communities. The Hope Florida CarePortal alerts participating churches to immediate needs in their communities and churches compete to meet Floridians’ needs.
By calling 833-GET-HOPE, Floridians can speak with Hope Navigators who help identify their needs, develop long-term goals, map out a path forward, and work to ensure all sectors of the community are part of the lasting solution. In the three years since Hope Florida’s launch, nearly 30,000 Floridians have reduced their reliance upon or are no longer reliant on government assistance—a reduction which is estimated to save the State of Florida nearly $800 million over the next decade.
Floridians who need support can connect with Hope Florida by calling the Hope Line (833-GET-HOPE). Organizations or individuals interested in partnering with Hope Florida to give help can visit www.HopeFlorida.com.
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Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency
Headline: NFL and FEMA Launch National Strategy to Build Resilience in Communities, Designate Venues as Mission Ready Locations During Disasters
NFL and FEMA Launch National Strategy to Build Resilience in Communities, Designate Venues as Mission Ready Locations During Disasters
WASHINGTON — Stadiums and venues provide a central and accessible location to help communities respond to extreme weather crises, providing safe storage and shelter in times of need. With these events becoming more frequent, severe and expensive, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell and NFL Chief Security Officer Cathy Lanier today announced that FEMA and the NFL are launching a new strategy to build resilience in communities through a program that will designate NFL stadiums and fields as mission capable venues that can be used during response and recovery missions. Through Mission Ready Venues, a public-private partnership, NFL stadiums are recognized for their capabilities to better sustain public safety and be a source of support for the communities they serve. The designation identifies the ways the stadium or venue could be used for response and recovery activities during declared emergencies or disasters.
“During large-scale emergencies, like the COVID-19 pandemic, hurricanes, or tornados, we’ve seen how large music, sports and entertainment venues can serve as a safe space for communities,” said FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. “This new strategy we’re launching with the NFL is a groundbreaking opportunity to help our partners use these venues for emergency response and recovery needs, while keeping communities safe and making them more resilient. While we are starting with the NFL, all venues across sports organizations and leagues can become assets to their communities, and I encourage them to join in this collaborative effort as we grapple with the impacts of the climate crisis.”
“Stadiums are valuable community assets that are often used in times of disasters,” said NFL Chief Security Officer Cathy Lanier. “This designation reflects the role that many stadiums play, not only on Sundays, but especially in times of need. We are proud to work with FEMA and first responders at the local and state level to ensure disaster response agencies have the information and tools they need to help a community recover when disaster strikes.”
According to the NYU School of Professional Studies and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, stadiums and arenas can improve the public health and well-being of their communities—including pandemic response during COVID-19. The initial stadiums to receive designations include MetLife, home of the Jets and the Giants in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Lumen Field, home of the Seahawks in Seattle, Washington, Acrisure Stadium, home of the Steelers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Raymond James Stadium, home of the Buccaneers in Tampa, Florida. SoFi Stadium, home of the Rams and the Chargers in Los Angeles, California is under review.
Given the size, capabilities and locations of large sports venues, these existing community assets can serve the public in a variety of ways including emergency shelters, staging areas, commodity distribution sites, evacuation pick up points, disaster recovery centers, mass vaccination and testing, temporary hospitals and more. FEMA and the NFL recognized this unique opportunity for collaboration and are enlisting the support of venue owners, operators and the tenants of these facilities to work with government officials in the planning and preparation for emergency or disaster response and recovery efforts. To receive an official Mission Ready Venue designation, venues must undergo a comprehensive assessment to determine what capabilities the venue may be able to support in emergency and disaster response and recovery efforts. The designation highlights the following attributes of selected venues:
Mission Ready Venue designations are for five-year increments with a yearly check-in to ensure continued readiness of the venue. Redesignation will be necessary every five years and designation does not supersede any agreements with state, local or private sector entities.
amy.ashbridge
Source: US State of New Jersey
TRENTON – The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJDOL) today announced the release of a Notice of Grant Opportunity (NGO) to provide funds to organizations that can offer career coaching and services to New Jerseyans aspiring to reach their career goals.
The grant funding is part of “Fund My Future” (FMF), a transformative pilot program that helps qualified New Jersey residents achieve life-changing career goals by providing financial assistance for upskilling and education. Selected organizations will work with program participants to develop Individual Employment Plans (IEPs) tailored to specific career development needs. Participants will be partnered with a professional career counselor who can help navigate the evolving job market.
“This grant creates valuable opportunities for underserved New Jersey residents,” said Governor Phil Murphy. “It will ensure that our residents can overcome barriers to meaningful employment and help make New Jersey’s economy fairer for everyone.”
Grant applicants can include non-profit and for-profit entities, government agencies, or higher education institutions. Grantees must work with residents whose household incomes are below ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) guidelines. Awarded grantees will receive funding contingent upon meeting the grant’s performance metrics and expenditures.
“Fund My Future allows us to help New Jersey workers who are struggling to stay competitive develop marketable skills today that will grow into their careers of tomorrow,” said Labor Commissioner Robert Asaro-Angelo. “This initiative will serve as a launch pad for individuals who want to take the leap to redefine themselves in the workforce to change the trajectory of their profession and lives.”
FMF is designed to facilitate financial support to participants by having grantees pay service providers directly. Participants may use FMF funds for job training, supportive services and other expenses that assist in the search for meaningful employment.
The Fund My Future program stemmed from Governor Murphy’s Future of Work Task Force recommendations. The program was built on the idea of empowering participants to drive their own career development by helping them secure the supportive services they need to find training and a pathway to sustainable employment.
For more information about Fund My Future and application details, please visit the NJDOL grant opportunities page or email OTWS@dol.nj.gov.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)
GREAT FALLS — A Box Elder man on Monday admitted to assaulting a woman by cutting her face with a knife during an argument on the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said today.
The defendant, Colten Tyrone Small, also known as Colton Swan, 24, pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon and assault resulting in serious bodily injury. Small faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on each charge.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing was set for Jan. 29, 2025. Small was detained pending further proceedings.
In court documents, the government alleged that in the early morning hours of May 3, 2023, Small punched the victim, identified as Jane Doe, in the face while he held a butcher knife in a residence in Box Elder, on the Rocky Boy’s Reservation. A witness to the assault told law enforcement that Small sliced Doe’s face in the residence. Small and Doe argued, and the fight got more aggressive. After Small cut Doe’s face, the witness beat up Small. There was some fentanyl and alcohol use occurring at the time. Doe was treated for facial injuries from the knife at Northern Montana Hospital.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case. The FBI and Rocky Boy’s Law Enforcement investigated the case.
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