Source: China State Council Information Office
The fifth batch of emergency humanitarian aid supplies dispatched by the Chinese government arrived at Yangon International Airport in Myanmar on Wednesday.
The aid supplies include 266 tents, 20,000 mosquito nets, 9,000 tarpaulins, and 2,000 boxes of instant noodles, with a total weight of over 91 tons.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
West London will today become the first of 47 areas across England and Wales set to receive dedicated five-year funding aimed at helping disabled people and those with health conditions and additional support needs into work.
West London becomes first area granted funding as part of DWP’s ‘Connect to Work’ programme, which will ultimately support 100,000 people per year.
The £42.8 million cash injection will fund five years of support for local disabled people and those with health conditions, and complex barriers to employment to find a suitable pathway into a job.
Follows record £1 billion employment support package, announced by Work and Pensions Secretary last month, to unlock work for sick and disabled people, encourage financial independence, and boost living standards as part of the government’s Plan for Change.
West London will today become the first of 47 areas across England and Wales set to receive dedicated five-year funding aimed at helping disabled people and those with health conditions and additional support needs into work.
As many as 100,000 people a year are set to receive tailored support nationally – including one-to-one employment advice and skills development – as rollout begins of Connect to Work, a new programme dedicated to help those facing some of the greatest barriers to work.
Over the next five years, a partnership of Local Authorities in West London will receive a total of £42.8 million to provide targeted help to up to 3,500 people by:
West London will receive almost £9 million of the £115 million already committed to run the programme in its first year – a downpayment on their full five-year deal, allowing local leaders to hit the ground running on tackling inactivity in their area.
As part of our Plan for Change we are fixing the broken welfare system – getting more people into work, putting more money in people’s pockets, and putting the benefits bill on a sustainable footing.
The welfare system we inherited has shut too many talented people out of the workplace – with no support, no prospects, and no opportunities.
We are changing this. That’s why I’m delighted to see our Connect to Work programme kick off, with over £40 million of funding so local leaders in West London can give people in their area the tools they need to get in and on at work in a way that’s right for them.
The Work and Pensions Secretary is set to visit a community hub in Shepherd’s Bush to meet people already helped into work by West London’s existing support offer, including:
The West London Alliance Boroughs are proud to be at the forefront of the ‘Connect to Work’ initiative, demonstrating the strength of our partnerships and our dedication to improving employment outcomes for West London residents.
This programme provides vital and tailored support to those facing challenges in the labour market, helping them to secure sustainable employment and build better lives.
The Connect to Work Programme is one of a number of initiatives being launched to help towards the government’s aim for an 80% employment rate.
Work has already begun on the plan to Get Britain Working, with South Yorkshire becoming the first of nine ‘inactivity trailblazers’ across the country to launch their community-led effort to help people into a job.
This comes as the government unveiled sweeping welfare reforms – backed by a record £1 billion to deliver tailored job support for sick and disabled people – opening doors to opportunity, giving people a chance at financial independence, and boosting living standards, as part of the government’s Plan for Change.
With 2.8 million people out of work due to ill-health – one of the highest rates in the G7 – the government is also combating health-related inactivity at its root by investing £26 billion in the NHS and delivering 2 million extra appointments to reduce medical waiting lists, giving people and the economy a chance to get back on track.
Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
The Active Citizen project has begun its next phase voteParticipants are asked to choose a name for the new representative of the Moscow Zoo – a Papuan hornbill chick.
The baby was born three months ago, but it became possible to observe him only recently. All this time, his caring parents – the male Ra and the female Nun – hid him in a closed nest, where the father brought food. During the period of growing up, the bird grew stronger, got feathers and now greets visitors to the Moscow Zoo. In honor of this, city residents are invited to choose a name for the young male.
A Papuan hornbill chick can now be seen at the Moscow Zoo
Ornithologists have decided to name the young hornbill following the example of its parents – in honor of one of the ancient Egyptian deities. Voters will be able to choose from five options, each of which conveys the features of the bird’s appearance or temperament.
One of them is Bennu, a name that refers to a mythical bird from ancient Egyptian legend that represents rebirth and radiance. This is especially appropriate for the hornbill, with its bright, iridescent plumage.
Another possible name is Nemti, in honor of the god who patronizes travel: its meaning “one who is on the road” perfectly reflects the mobility and restless nature of the chick, constantly jumping from branch to branch.
Other possible choices include Thoth, associated with wisdom and the moon, Ptah, representing harmony and truth, and Shu, associated with the element of air and the sun’s rays. Each of these names can highlight the uniqueness of the young hornbill.
The voting was prepared by the capital Department of Culture and the project “Active Citizen”Its users have already chosen names for many animals, including the Malayan bears Masha, Luchik and Zvezdochka, the alpaca Zephyr, the hyena Akela, the panda Katyusha and the tiger Amur.
Project “Active Citizen” has been operating since 2014. During this time, more than seven million people have joined it, and more than seven thousand votes have been held. Every month, 30–40 decisions made by Muscovites are implemented in the city. The project is being developed by the capital Department of Information Technology and the State Institution “New Management Technologies”.
The creation, development and operation of the e-government infrastructure, including the provision of mass socially significant services, as well as other services in electronic form, correspond to the objectives of the national project “Data Economy” and the Moscow regional project “Digital Public Administration”.
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Please Note; This Information is Raw Content Directly from the Information Source. It is access to What the Source Is Stating and Does Not Reflect
https: //vv.mos.ru/nevs/ite/152329073/
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Minister Phillips today delivered a speech on the government’s plan to tackle child sexual abuse and exploitation.
With permission, Mr Speaker, I will make a statement updating the House on government action to tackle child sexual abuse and exploitation and on progress on the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry.
Child sexual abuse and exploitation are the most horrific and disturbing crimes – an abuse of power against those who are most vulnerable, leaving lifelong trauma and scars.
Best estimates suggest that 500,000 children are sexually abused every year. Analysis by the police found that there were 115,000 recorded cases of child sexual abuse in 2023, 4228 group-based offences identified by the CSE Taskforce, of which 1125 were family abuse, and 717 were sexual exploitation cases. In a growing number of recorded cases the perpetrators themselves are under 18.
The House will be aware that, in its first year of operation up to March 2024, the Grooming Gangs Taskforce contributed to 550 arrests across the country. I can tell the House that – in the last nine months of 2024 – the Taskforce contributed to 597 arrests, in other words it surpassed in that nine month period what it has achieved in its first full year of its operation. Data for the first three months of this year is currently being collected from forces and will available early next month, but all round, we are making progress at every level to increase the number of investigations, increase the number of arrests, and most importantly, increase the number of victims who are seeing their attackers brought to justice.
Yet despite the seriousness and severity of these crimes, there has been a shameful failure by institutions and those in power over many years to protect children from abuse or exploitation. So we are today setting out a progress update on action the government is taking to tackle Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation to get support and justice for victims to ensure perpetrators are caught and put behind bars.
Action on CSA since the election means we are introducing:
In the Home Secretary’s statements to the House in January, she also set out what we are doing to crack down on grooming gangs. And today I can provide an update:
These measures will enable more victims and survivors to receive the truth, justice, improvements and accountability that they deserve – and put more vile perpetrators of this crime behind bars.
Much of this crucial activity builds on the vital work of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse undertaken between 2015 and 2022. Let me – on behalf of this whole House –thank again Professor Alexis Jay for chairing that seven-year National Inquiry with such expertise, diligence and compassion.
IICSA revealed the terrible suffering caused by child sexual abuse and the shameful failure of institutions to put the protection of children before the protection of their own reputations.
The Inquiry drew on the testimony of over 7,000 victims and survivors and considered over 2 million pages of evidence.
Its findings, culminating in the final report published in October 2022, were designed to better protect children from sexual abuse and address the shortcomings which left them exposed to harm.
The publication of that final report two and a half years ago should have been a landmark moment. But instead, the victims and survivors were failed again.
None of the Inquiry’s recommendations were implemented or properly taken forward by the previous government in the twenty months they had to do so.
As part of today’s Progress Update, the Government is setting out a detailed update and timetable on the work that is underway on the IICSA recommendations as part of our action on child sexual abuse. I can announce to the House that;
To prioritise the protection of children and improve national oversight and consistency of child protection practice, this Government will establish a new Child Protection Authority.
Building on the national Child Safeguarding Review Panel, the Child Protection Authority will address one of IICSA’s central recommendations by providing national leadership and learning on child protection and safeguarding. Work to expand the role of the Panel will begin immediately and we will consult on developing the new Authority this year
We have also asked Ofsted, HMICFRS and the CQC to conduct a joint thematic review of child abuse in family settings starting this Autumn.
Mr Speaker, the IICSA report recommended the introduction of a new mandatory duty to report – something the Prime Minister, Home Secretary and I have all supported for more than a decade
In the Crime and Policing Bill we will now be taking forward the new mandatory duty to report child sexual abuse for individuals in England undertaking activity with children – and crucially, a new criminal offence of obstructing an individual from making a report under that duty.
Mandatory reporting – will create a culture of openness and honesty rather than cover-ups and secrecy. It will empower professionals and volunteers to take prompt, decisive action to report sexual abuse. It will demonstrate to children and young people that if they come forward, they will be heard. And anyone who seeks deliberately to prevent someone fulfilling their mandatory duty to report child sexual abuse will face the full force of the law.
Today’s update also sets out how the government is supporting victims and survivors in accessing support and seeking justice:
In some cases where there have been serious institutional failings which contributed to the abuse, those institutions have provided financial redress schemes or compensation to victims and survivors who are affected. We continue to support those schemes as recognition by those institutions that they badly failed children in their care.
On the IICSA proposal for a wider national redress scheme for all victims and survivors of child sexual abuse in institutional settings, the scale of that proposal demands that it is considered in the context of the Spending Review later this year, and we will make further updates at that stage.
But one crucial area where we want to make immediate progress is on the provision of therapeutic services for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. We will therefore bring forward proposals in the coming weeks to improve access to those services, with further details to be set out following the upcoming the Spending Review.
Also ahead of the Spending Review, I can announce that – in this financial year – the Home Office will double the funding it provides for national services supporting adult survivors of child sexual abuse, providing more help to those adults who are living with the trauma of the horrific abuse they suffered as children.
Finally, we want to speed up progress to make it easier for victims and survivors to get recompense directly from institutions that failed them. We are therefore removing the three-year limitation period on victims and survivors bringing personal injury claims in the civil courts and shifting the burden of proof from survivors to defendants, thereby protecting victims from having to relive their trauma to get compensation they are owed.
Mr Speaker, today’s update – building on the measures the Home Secretary announced in January – demonstrates this Government’s steadfast commitment to tackling child sex abuse.
The measures we are implementing will protect more children, find more criminals, and deliver support and justice to more victims and survivors.
But this is not the end point; it is just the beginning. We will continue to drive forward reforms to protect more children from abhorrent abuse and support more adult survivors of these traumatic crimes.
And as we pursue our Safer Streets Mission, we will use every available lever to drive progress on these issues across government and beyond.
I want to finish with a word for the victims and survivors.
No one should go through what you did.
And while the failings of the past cannot be undone, we can, we must and we will strain every sinew to prevent them being repeated.
I commend this statement to the House.
ENDS
Source: China State Council Information Office
Another 18 enterprises in high-tech industries signed agreements to establish or expand their businesses in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government said on Tuesday.
The enterprises, along with the 66 companies that signed on earlier, will invest about 50 billion Hong Kong dollars (6.43 billion U.S. dollars) in Hong Kong and create over 20,000 jobs.
The enterprises are from such industries as advanced manufacturing and new energy, life and health technology, artificial intelligence and data science, as well as fintech. They all pledged to set up global headquarters, regional headquarters or research centers in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong treasures not only the investments, jobs and expertise that the enterprises bring along, but also their products and solutions that will transform people’s ways of life and inspire new innovation, said Paul Chan, financial secretary of the HKSAR government, at the signing ceremony.
“Hong Kong remains steadfast in our commitment to upholding our free-port status and free trade, maintaining our simple and low-tax system, and building a vibrant innovation and technology ecosystem with a full range of funding support,” he said.
Source: China State Council Information Office
With firm will and abundant means, China will resolutely take countermeasures and fight till the end if the United States insists on further escalating economic and trade restrictive measures, China’s Ministry of Commerce said Wednesday.
“I want to emphasize that there is no winner in a trade war, and China does not want a trade war, but the Chinese government will by no means sit by when the legitimate rights of its people are being hurt and deprived,” said an official with the ministry.
The official made the remarks when responding to media questions regarding a white paper released Wednesday by the State Council Information Office on China’s position on some issues concerning China-U.S. economic and trade relations.
Noting that the successes of China and the United States are opportunities rather than threats for each other, the official said that China hopes the United States will immediately remove its unilateral imposition of tariffs, and work with China to strengthen dialogue, manage differences, and promote cooperation.
China is willing to communicate with the U.S. side on key bilateral economic and trade issues, address their respective concerns through dialogue and consultations on an equal footing, and jointly advance the steady, healthy and sustainable development of China-U.S. economic and trade relations, the official noted.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (District of Columbia)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today announced the process for applying to her office for Community Project Funding, formerly known as earmarks, for fiscal year 2026 (FY26). For a Community Project Funding request to be considered, eligible entities must submit an application by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, April 21st to NortonCommunityProjectFunding@mail.house.gov.
Under the House Committee on Appropriations’ eligibility requirements for FY26, only governmental entities and public institutions of higher education will be eligible for projects under the T-HUD Economic Development Initiatives program. Memorials, museums, and commemoratives (i.e., projects named for an individual or entity) are not eligible for Community Project Funding. The subcommittees’ requirements can be found here. All projects that were included in House Reports for Fiscal Year 2025 are eligible in Fiscal Year 2026 but must be resubmitted for consideration.
Late or incomplete applications, including applications that do not provide the information required by the relevant subcommittee, will not be considered. The project must be located in the District of Columbia.
An application consists of all the information about the entity and project required by the applicable subcommittee, as well as the following:
The Appropriations Committee is only permitting certain programs within specific subcommittees, listed below, that are going to participate in the Community Project Funding process.
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Energy and Water Development
Homeland Security
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
###
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
SINGAPORE, April 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Valeura Energy Inc. (TSX:VLE, OTCQX:VLERF) (“Valeura” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an update on Q1 2025 operations.
Highlights
(1) Working interest share oil production, before royalties.
Dr. Sean Guest, President and CEO commented:
“Our strong operational and financial performance continued throughout Q1 2025, and our business is more resilient than ever. With our corporate restructuring completed in November 2024, and the final tax payment under the previous structure now behind us, we see an energised ability to generate cash flow as we look at the remainder of 2025.
We are carefully monitoring the current volatile market conditions while simultaneously reviewing and optimising our expenditures. However, our strong financial position with cash of US$238 million and no debt makes Valeura not only resilient, but also well positioned for attractive inorganic opportunities that may emerge during such a turbulent market environment.
Notwithstanding the recent market volatility, we are maintaining all of our previously disclosed guidance assumptions for the year.”
Q1 2025 Update
Valeura’s working interest share production before royalties averaged 23.9 mbbls/d during Q1 2025, a decrease of 8.4% from Q4 2024. Rates were affected by a planned seven-day annual maintenance shutdown of the Nong Yao field near the end of the quarter. All planned work on the Nong Yao facilities was conducted safely and under time and budget with production resuming on April 1, 2025. Valeura re-iterates its full year 2025 production guidance outlook of 23.0 – 25.5 mbbls/d.
Oil sales totalled 1.88 million bbls during Q1 2025, less than the 2.15 million bbls produced. Sales were lower than in Q4 2024 and reflect the fact that at the beginning of the quarter, the Company had record low crude oil in inventory. At the end of the quarter Valeura had 0.89 million bbls in inventory, which is expected to be sold in Q2 2025 (including a lifting of approximately 0.25 million bbls which was sold on April 1, 2025).
Price realisations averaged US$78.7/bbl during Q1 2025, reflecting a US$2.9/bbl premium over the Brent crude oil benchmark. Oil revenue during Q1 2025 was US$148.1 million, 35% lower than Q4 2024. The quarter-on-quarter difference is due to less oil volumes sold, and also one sale occurring very late in the quarter, for which revenue is expected to be received in April 2025. Accordingly, the Company recorded a receivable associated with that lifting of approximately US$30 million as at March 31, 2025.
In addition to routine operating costs and planned capital spending, the Company has made a final tax payment of US$39.2 million in connection with its corporate restructuring that was completed in November 2024. This payment effectively completes the tax obligations for its Thai III licences under their previous organisation structure, and became due in Q1 2025, earlier than usual tax payments for Thai III licences which are payable in May and August of each year. Following the restructuring, petroleum income tax loss carry-forwards that were previously associated with only the Wassana asset are now being applied to all of the Company’s Thai III petroleum concessions, being Wassana, Nong Yao, and Manora, thereby resulting in a more efficient tax structure for the business.
While the Company acknowledges the global market and oil price volatility experienced in early April 2025, at this time, Valeura re-affirms all of its guidance outlook expectations for 2025. The Company maintains a scenario-based approach to planning its investments, driven largely by forecast oil prices. Recent market conditions underscore the importance of such an approach, but more importantly highlight the value of maintaining a strong balance sheet so as to capitalise on emerging inorganic growth opportunities. As of March 31, 2025, Valeura had US$238.3 million in cash, with no debt.
During the quarter, the Company acquired 963,401 shares as part of its NCIB programme.
Operations Update
Valeura provided an operations update on March 25, 2025, along with its announcement of results for Q4 and the full year 2024. Since that time, the Company has been conducting a drilling campaign on the Jasmine / Ban Yen field, and will provide an update in due course.
On March 28, 2025, an earthquake struck central Myanmar, which borders Thailand to the north-west. All Valeura’s personnel were confirmed safe, and all facilities continue to operate safely.
Results Timing and AGM
Valeura intends to release its full unaudited financial and operating results for Q1 2025 on May 14, 2025, and will discuss the results in more detail through a management webcast hosted in conjunction with its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (the “meeting”) later that day. The notice of meeting and related Management’s Information Circular have been mailed to shareholders and are available on the Company’s website at www.valeuraenergy.com/governance and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
For further information, please contact:
Valeura Energy Inc. (General Corporate Enquiries)
+65 6373 6940
Sean Guest, President and CEO
Yacine Ben-Meriem, CFO
Contact@valeuraenergy.com
Valeura Energy Inc. (Investor and Media Enquiries)
+1 403 975 6752 / +44 7392 940495
Robin James Martin, Vice President, Communications and Investor Relations
IR@valeuraenergy.com
About the Company
Valeura Energy Inc. is a Canadian public company engaged in the exploration, development and production of petroleum and natural gas in Thailand and in Türkiye. The Company is pursuing a growth-oriented strategy and intends to re-invest into its producing asset portfolio and to deploy resources toward further organic and inorganic growth in Southeast Asia. Valeura aspires toward value accretive growth for stakeholders while adhering to high standards of environmental, social and governance responsibility.
Additional information relating to Valeura is also available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
Advisory and Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Certain information included in this news release constitutes forward-looking information under applicable securities legislation. Such forward-looking information is for the purpose of explaining management’s current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes, such as making investment decisions. Forward-looking information typically contains statements with words such as “anticipate”, “believe”, “expect”, “plan”, “intend”, “estimate”, “propose”, “project”, “target” or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook.
Forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, the Company’s anticipated full year 2025 guidance assumptions, being full year working interest share oil production before royalties of 23.0 – 25.5 mbbls/d, capex of US$125 – 150 million, exploration expense of approximately US$11 million, and adjusted opex of US$125 – 245 million, all as more fully described in the January 9, 2025 press release; the anticipated receivable of approximately US$30 million as at March 31, 2025; and Valeura’s expectation that it will benefit from a more efficient tax structure as a result of the corporate restructuring. Although the Company believes the expectations and assumptions reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, they may prove to be incorrect.
Forward-looking information is based on management’s current expectations and assumptions regarding, among other things: political stability of the areas in which the Company is operating; continued safety of operations and ability to proceed in a timely manner; continued operations of and approvals forthcoming from governments and regulators in a manner consistent with past conduct; ability to achieve extensions to licences in Thailand and Türkiye to support attractive development and resource recovery; future drilling activity on the required/expected timelines; the prospectivity of the Company’s lands; the continued favourable pricing and operating netbacks across its business; future production rates and associated operating netbacks and cash flow; decline rates; future sources of funding; future economic conditions; the impact of inflation of future costs; future currency exchange rates; interest rates; the ability to meet drilling deadlines and fulfil commitments under licences and leases; future commodity prices; the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine; the impact of conflicts in the Middle East; royalty rates and taxes; management’s estimate of cumulative tax losses being correct; future capital and other expenditures; the success obtained in drilling new wells and working over existing wellbores; the performance of wells and facilities; the availability of the required capital to funds its exploration, development and other operations, and the ability of the Company to meet its commitments and financial obligations; the ability of the Company to secure adequate processing, transportation, fractionation and storage capacity on acceptable terms; the capacity and reliability of facilities; the application of regulatory requirements respecting abandonment and reclamation; the recoverability of the Company’s reserves and contingent resources; future growth; the sufficiency of budgeted capital expenditures in carrying out planned activities; the impact of increasing competition; the availability and identification of mergers and acquisition opportunities; the ability to successfully negotiate and complete any mergers and acquisition opportunities; the ability to efficiently integrate assets and employees acquired through acquisitions; global energy policies going forward; international trade policies; future debt levels; and the Company’s continued ability to obtain and retain qualified staff and equipment in a timely and cost efficient manner. In addition, the Company’s work programmes and budgets are in part based upon expected agreement among joint venture partners and associated exploration, development and marketing plans and anticipated costs and sales prices, which are subject to change based on, among other things, the actual results of drilling and related activity, availability of drilling, offshore storage and offloading facilities and other specialised oilfield equipment and service providers, changes in partners’ plans and unexpected delays and changes in market conditions. Although the Company believes the expectations and assumptions reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, they may prove to be incorrect.
Forward-looking information involves significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Exploration, appraisal, and development of oil and natural gas reserves and resources are speculative activities and involve a degree of risk. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company including, but not limited to: the ability of management to execute its business plan or realise anticipated benefits from acquisitions; the risk of disruptions from public health emergencies and/or pandemics; competition for specialised equipment and human resources; the Company’s ability to manage growth; the Company’s ability to manage the costs related to inflation; disruption in supply chains; the risk of currency fluctuations; changes in interest rates, oil and gas prices and netbacks; the risk that the Company’s tax advisors’ and/or auditors’ assessment of the Company’s cumulative tax losses varies significantly from management’s expectations of the same; potential changes in joint venture partner strategies and participation in work programmes; uncertainty regarding the contemplated timelines and costs for work programme execution; the risks of disruption to operations and access to worksites; potential changes in laws and regulations, including international treaties and trade policies; the uncertainty regarding government and other approvals; counterparty risk; the risk that financing may not be available; risks associated with weather delays and natural disasters; and the risk associated with international activity. See the most recent annual information form and management’s discussion and analysis of the Company for a detailed discussion of the risk factors.
Certain forward-looking information in this news release may also constitute “financial outlook” within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Financial outlook involves statements about Valeura’s prospective financial performance or position and is based on and subject to the assumptions and risk factors described above in respect of forward-looking information generally as well as any other specific assumptions and risk factors in relation to such financial outlook noted in this news release. Such assumptions are based on management’s assessment of the relevant information currently available, and any financial outlook included in this news release is made as of the date hereof and provided for the purpose of helping readers understand Valeura’s current expectations and plans for the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on any financial outlook may not be appropriate for other purposes or in other circumstances and that the risk factors described above or other factors may cause actual results to differ materially from any financial outlook.
The forward-looking information contained in this news release is made as of the date hereof and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable securities laws. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.
This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction, including where such offer would be unlawful. This news release is not for distribution or release, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States, Ireland, the Republic of South Africa or Japan or any other jurisdiction in which its publication or distribution would be unlawful.
Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Toronto Stock Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
This information is provided by Reach, the non-regulatory press release distribution service of RNS, part of the London Stock Exchange. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Samantha Hepburn, Professor, Deakin Law School, Deakin University
It surprised many Australians when the Coalition announced a plan straight from the progressive side of politics: force large gas companies to reserve gas for domestic use – at a lower cost than they could sell it for overseas.
As a populist move during a cost-of-living election, it’s a good one. Australia’s gas producers sell 70% of gas extracted on the east coast overseas under long-term contracts, even as southeastern states such as Victoria face possible gas shortages. Western Australia has long had an effective policy requiring up to 15% of offshore gas to be reserved for domestic use.
After a fortnight’s delay, the Coalition has now publicly released the modelling behind its policy. Undertaken by Frontier Economics, the modelling indicates that reserving 50 to 100 petajoules of gas in the first year would cut wholesale prices by 23%. This would mean a 15% drop in prices for large-scale users – but only a 7% fall for household gas bills and a 3% fall in electricity bills.
This doesn’t sound like much, because it isn’t. Gas prices soared during the Ukraine war and haven’t yet returned to their pre-war levels. Labor has dubbed the plan “gaslighting”, and will rely instead on a gas policy released last year to open up more gasfields and build import terminals. Gas producers don’t like the Coalition’s plan, and neither does billionaire Liberal benefactor Gina Rinehart. Dutton’s plan isn’t crazy – it’s just not likely to make a big difference.
The Coalition has proposed what it calls an East Coast Reservation Scheme, with the goal of progressively decoupling Australia’s east coast gas market from the volatile international market.
It has two parts. First, it would require new exporters, in the first year of operation, to reserve an additional 50–100 petajoules for the domestic market. Second, it would create a gas security charge, to be imposed on gas producers seeking to export “additional” (non-contracted) gas on the international market.
This would give gas producers an incentive to sell non-contracted gas to the domestic market, because they would get greater profits selling in Australia, even at a lower base price.
Further, the policy would prevent gas producers from charging domestic buyers international prices, setting a competitive price.
In effect, the gas security charge is akin to a levy or a reverse tariff. The levy can be avoided if producers supply up to 100 petajoules to domestic markets. That’s about as much gas as New South Wales’ gas pipelines deliver each year – 101 petajoules (PJ) as of 2022–23, or the equivalent of 26 full liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, which hold about 3.8 PJ on average.
There are legitimate concerns. First, the policy does not directly address domestic gas pricing and won’t help with the cost of living crisis. Over time, it could create a more competitive domestic market, but the fact producers could make marginally more money selling gas on the domestic market doesn’t guarantee change.
Second, the policy does not directly address the looming gas supply crisis. That’s because existing gas producers would not be legally obliged to commit to more gas domestically – they could still export it. The obligation to commit an additional 50-100 petajoules to the domestic market only applies to gas exporters in their first year of operation.
If policymakers want to solve the supply crisis, they would be better served by imposing direct export controls in the form of a clear gas reservation mandate. This works, as Western Australia’s long experience shows.
When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, it led to huge spikes in global gas prices and shortages in Europe as the world moved away from Russian gas.
In the 2010s, Australia had already been ramping up gas production. But in the wake of the Ukraine war, Australia became a major gas exporter. Producers traded as much gas as possible on the international market, selling it for over A$40/GJ. Meanwhile, Australia’s coal production was falling.
Domestic gas demand shot up, and prices went from $8 to $30 a gigajoule. In response, the Albanese government introduced an emergency price cap for the wholesale gas market, prohibiting producers from entering into supply contracts with domestic purchasers for prices above a cap, currently set at $12/GJ. While the cap did partly insulate domestic consumers, it was always intended as a temporary measure.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission recently predicted a gas supply shortfall of up to 40 petajoules in the southern states as early as September due to declining production in Victoria and South Australia as well as higher demand. Without access to uncontracted Queensland gas, supply will run very low. This is a significant energy security risk, and one the Coalition’s gas policy doesn’t directly address.
Australia is one of the world’s top three LNG exporters. The fact a gas giant could be facing domestic shortages is both unnecessary and embarrassing. Reaching this point represents decades of policy failure.
Reserving gas for domestic use works for the west coast, and it would work for the east. But the Coalition’s plan is not quite a gas reservation scheme. It doesn’t create a comprehensive reservation mandate and questions remain about its capacity to address domestic pricing and supply.
At present, it seems like a lot of effort without great benefit. Will households really notice their gas bill is 7% cheaper?
Samantha Hepburn 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 Coalition’s domestic gas plan would lower prices – just not very much – https://theconversation.com/the-coalitions-domestic-gas-plan-would-lower-prices-just-not-very-much-254194
Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
Thanks to the program’s tools “Made in Moscow” Moscow brands have sold products worth 350 million rubles since the beginning of the year. This is four times more than in the first quarter of 2024, reported Natalia Sergunina, Deputy Mayor of Moscow.
“The project has already united over seven thousand entrepreneurs. Over the past year, the number of goods on the Made in Moscow website has grown by a third – to 34 thousand items. These are interior items, food products, toys, cosmetics and much more,” said Natalia Sergunina.
According to her, since January, the online showroom has been visited by about 700 thousand people. Most of them were interested in clothes, shoes and accessories.
Product cards lead to online store pages where you can make a purchase. Since the beginning of the year, about 70 percent of all sales have come from marketplaces.
The program’s reach is increasing not only through promotion on online platforms, but also through city events. For example, brands that presented their collections at Moscow Fashion Week have joined the ecosystem. This area is now one of the most numerous. Every seventh resident of the project belongs to it.
The magic market was a successful experience. In seven pavilions, which operated from December 20 to February 28 as part of the Winter in Moscow project, more than 50 thousand products from Moscow manufacturers were sold.
In addition, the program has its own branded retail network – five offline stores.
Sergei Sobyanin announced the launch of a chain of branded stores “Made in Moscow”The number of participants in the Made in Moscow program has exceeded six thousand
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Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
A residential area will be built in the Kommunarka district of the Novomoskovsky administrative district of the capital. Inefficiently used plots with a total area of 13.74 hectares will be reorganized under the program of integrated development of territories (IDT). The corresponding draft decision has been published on the website Moscow Government. This was reported by the Deputy Mayor of Moscow for Urban Development Policy and Construction Vladimir Efimov.
“As part of the redevelopment of two sites near Alexandra Monakhovaya Street in a rapidly developing district of Moscow, another modern residential quarter with the infrastructure necessary for city residents will appear. Thanks to the construction of various facilities, it is planned to create over 2.5 thousand jobs here. Investments in the implementation of the project will amount to 60.64 billion rubles, and the annual budget effect is estimated at more than one billion rubles,” said Vladimir Efimov.
The plots are conveniently located – the Kommunarka station of the Troitskaya metro line is nearby.
“In accordance with the draft decision, the territory will be used for the construction of multi-apartment residential complexes. More than four thousand people will be able to live in the new buildings. In addition, an administrative and business complex with a parking lot for 740 cars, with an area of 62.64 thousand square meters, will be built nearby. A sports and recreation complex with public spaces with a total area of 5.4 thousand square meters and a parking lot for 300 cars will also appear here. The plots themselves will be landscaped and greened,” said the Minister of the Moscow Government, head of the capital’s Department of City Property.
According to the KRT program, multifunctional city blocks are being created, where roads, comfortable housing and all the necessary infrastructure are being designed on the site of former industrial zones and inefficiently used areas. Currently, 302 projects for the integrated development of territories with a total area of about 4.2 thousand hectares are at various stages of development and implementation in Moscow. This work is being carried out on behalf of Sergei Sobyanin.
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Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
Another 10 ultra-fast charging stations for environmentally friendly ground transport have been installed in the Novokosino district in the east of the capital. This will allow more electric bus routes to be opened and the operation of existing ones to be improved, said the Deputy Mayor of Moscow for Transport and Industry Maxim Liksutov.
“We continue to expand the charging infrastructure at terminal stations. This allows us to replace buses with innovative Russian-made electric buses faster. In total, there are already more than 370 charging stations operating in the capital. We are developing environmentally friendly transport on behalf of Sergei Sobyanin,” said Maxim Liksutov.
Moscow remains the leader in the number of electric buses in Europe. More than 2.3 thousand Russian-made vehicles serve 190 routes. To replace buses with electric buses, the city is developing charging infrastructure. With the creation of new charging stations in Moscow, new electric bus routes are opening.
Charging stations for electric buses work in any weather and are suitable for all models of eco-friendly transport. The electric bus pantograph is connected to the charging dome, and the batteries are recharged.
In total, there are about 850 ground transportation routes in Moscow, covering all districts. On a weekday, on average, more than four million trips are made on all buses and electric buses in the capital. Passengers are transported by the most modern and convenient for all categories of citizens ground city transportation.
Moscow was the first in Russia to start building modern electric bus depots. In 2022, the first in Russia and the largest in Europe, Krasnaya Pakhra, opened in TiNAO. Eco-friendly vehicles first hit the routes in new districts. In the summer of 2023, the Mitino depot opened in the northwest of the capital. At the end of 2023, the third innovative electric bus depot, Saltykovka, opened. It serves routes in the east of the city.
Since 2022, the capital has been supplied with improved equipment. Such vehicles have adaptive interior lighting, which changes from a cold shade to a warm one at 14:00 for the comfort of passengers. The front route indicator, increased by 18 percent, makes it even easier to see the number from afar. The interior has an electric heater, which minimizes the impact on the environment and maintains an optimal temperature. The power reserve has increased from 40-50 kilometers to 80 kilometers, while the weight of the vehicle has remained the same. Since 2024, KAMAZ and LiAZ vehicles with an updated design have been entering service.
Electric buses are purchased under life cycle contracts. For 15 years after the vehicles are transferred to the Mosgortrans State Unitary Enterprise fleet, the manufacturers independently ensure the proper operation of the equipment on the routes.
The new technology increases the comfort of travel and reduces the impact on the environment. The cabin has climate control, there are chargers for phones, and the nearest stops are shown on media screens. For passengers with limited mobility, there is a folding ramp and driver call buttons. If necessary, they will help enter and leave the cabin. Strollers or bicycles can be conveniently placed on the storage area.
In 2023, Moscow signed the largest contract in Europe for the supply of 1,200 new electric buses. According to the State Budgetary Institution MosEcoMonitoring of the capital Department of Nature Management and Environmental Protection, the introduction of innovative vehicles on routes has made it possible to increase the total environmental impact of replacing buses with electric transport by almost two times.
In 2024, electric buses began to serve another 71 capital routes. This is twice as many as in 2023. Over 800 electric buses from PJSC KAMAZ and LLC LiAZ arrived in the fleets of GUP Mosgortrans, including 600 vehicles in a new, even more modern design. It is planned that by 2035, almost the entire fleet of GUP Mosgortrans will operate on electric traction.
Three modern electric buses have entered a new route in the South-West Administrative DistrictSobyanin: Switching to electric buses has reduced pollutant emissions
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Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
Moscow polyclinics have received more than five thousand units of modern equipment for diagnosing cardiovascular diseases. Now patients can undergo a full heart examination using the latest cardiographs, 24-hour monitoring systems and stress tests, and doctors can identify risks earlier and prevent the development of diseases. This was reported by Anastasia Rakova, Deputy Mayor of Moscow for Social Development.
“We regularly improve the availability of care for patients with cardiovascular diseases. We pay great attention to the prevention of heart diseases along with emergency medicine. They develop gradually, but they can be detected and prevented long before complications arise. As part of a large-scale modernization, we have supplied city clinics with more than five thousand modern devices for cardiac diagnostics. All updated medical institutions have electrocardiographs, Holter monitors, devices for 24-hour blood pressure monitoring, and stress systems that help doctors more accurately identify hidden pathologies and risks. The new equipment helps to more accurately assess the condition of the heart, identify hidden rhythm disturbances, monitor blood pressure levels throughout the day, and conduct functional tests with physical activity,” the deputy mayor said.
The renovated clinics received more than two thousand electrocardiographs, over 1.7 thousand Holter ECG monitoring devices, more than 1,450 24-hour blood pressure monitoring systems (ABPM) and 145 stress systems, including treadmills and bicycle ergometers.
At the same time, one of the most important elements in the development of the cardiology service remains the digitalization of diagnostics. All adult and children’s clinics use electrocardiographs connected to the unified medical information and analytical system (EMIAS). Smart algorithms help to analyze studies faster and identify possible deviations, and also allow doctors to receive automatically decoded ECGs. The same digital technologies work in the analysis of Holter monitoring and ABPM, thereby reducing the time of diagnosis and increasing its accuracy.
AI services in Moscow have learned to identify pathologies in 39 clinical areasSobyanin spoke about early diagnostics of oncology in the Kommunarka Endocenter
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Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services
As part of ACT Government’s ‘One Government, One Voice’ program, we are transitioning this website across to our . You can access everything you need through this website while it’s happening.
Released 09/04/2025
In a continued commitment to gambling harm minimisation, the ACT Government has announced the temporary pause of the Diversification and Sustainability Support Fund. This pause will remain in effect while an independent inquiry is conducted into the future of ACT’s club sector.
The Diversification and Sustainability Support Fund, which was established in 2019, was designed to help clubs reduce their reliance on gaming revenue by supporting the development of non-gaming revenue streams and enhancing administrative efficiency. Under new legislation introduced in the ACT Legislative Assembly today, the Fund will be suspended for two years to allow the ACT Government’s approach to diversification support to be better informed by the findings of the Inquiry into the Future of the Club Sector.
“By suspending this fund, we are taking a proactive step towards considering different approaches to supporting diversification of the clubs sector.” said Dr Marisa Paterson, Minister for Gaming Reform. “As we progress major reform to address gambling harm this term, the government is committed to supporting clubs to diversify, as we recognise the vital role they play in the social life of many Canberrans.”
The Inquiry into the Future of the Club Sector will advise the government on the development and implementation of a comprehensive club sector transition plan, including recommendations on how best to support revenue transition of ACT clubs.
In the most recent round of the funding, $450,000 was awarded to two clubs. The Belconnen Soccer Club will receive $250,000 for renovations to an outdoor functions area, while the Canberra Tradesman’s Union Club will receive $200,000 to support the development of an environmental, social, and governance strategy for a development project.
“This grant will not only improve our facilities but also enable us to host more events and strengthen our role as a meeting place for people of all ages,” said Suzy Berry, CEO of Belconnen Soccer Club. “We are grateful for the ongoing support of the ACT Government, which is helping us build a sustainable future for the club and our members.”
The Gaming Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 will suspend both incoming and outgoing payments to the Fund during the inquiry period.
The Bill also introduces amendments to the Gambling and Racing Control Act 1999 to expand information-sharing provisions in relation to investigations conducted by the Gambling and Racing Commission. These amendments will speak directly to the concerns raised by complainants and ensure going forward that they can be informed about the status of the progress of their complaints.
– Statement ends –
Marisa Paterson, MLA | Media Releases
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
The Hague, April 9, 2025 – Aegon today announces that it will reset the coupon on its EUR 113 million (NLG 250 million) 1.506% perpetual cumulative subordinated bonds (ISIN: NL0000120004, originally issued in 1995, the “bonds”) on June 8, 2025.
As of June 8, 2005, and every ten years thereafter, Aegon has had the option to either call the bonds or reset the coupon.
The bonds will continue to be outstanding in accordance with their terms, with the next optional redemption date on June 8, 2035. The new coupon will be published on or around June 3, 2025.
Contacts
About Aegon
Aegon is an international financial services holding company. Aegon’s ambition is to build leading businesses that offer their customers investment, protection, and retirement solutions. Aegon’s portfolio of businesses includes fully owned businesses in the United States and United Kingdom, and a global asset manager. Aegon also creates value by combining its international expertise with strong local partners via insurance joint-ventures in Spain & Portugal, China, and Brazil, and via asset management partnerships in France and China. In addition, Aegon owns a Bermuda-based life insurer and generates value via a strategic shareholding in a market leading Dutch insurance and pensions company.
Aegon’s purpose of helping people live their best lives runs through all its activities. As a leading global investor and employer, Aegon seeks to have a positive impact by addressing critical environmental and societal issues, with a focus on climate change and inclusion & diversity. Aegon is headquartered in The Hague, the Netherlands, domiciled in Bermuda, and listed on Euronext Amsterdam and the New York Stock Exchange. More information can be found at aegon.com.
Forward-looking statements
The statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the US Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The following are words that identify such forward-looking statements: aim, believe, estimate, target, intend, may, expect, anticipate, predict, project, counting on, plan, continue, want, forecast, goal, should, would, could, is confident, will, and similar expressions as they relate to Aegon. These statements may contain information about financial prospects, economic conditions and trends and involve risks and uncertainties. In addition, any statements that refer to sustainability, environmental and social targets, commitments, goals, efforts and expectations and other events or circumstances that are partially dependent on future events are forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Aegon undertakes no obligation, and expressly disclaims any duty, to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which merely reflect company expectations at the time of writing. Actual results may differ materially and adversely from expectations conveyed in forward-looking statements due to changes caused by various risks and uncertainties. Such risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to the following:
Additionally, Aegon provides some information in this report that is informed by various stakeholder expectations, non-US regulatory requirements, and third-party frameworks. Such information, whether provided here or in Aegon’s other disclosures (including website materials), is not necessarily material for SEC reporting purposes.
Even in instances where we use “material”, this should not in all instances be deemed to refer to materiality for purposes of our U.S. federal securities filings, as there are various definitions of materiality used by different stakeholders, including but not limited to a more expansive “double materiality” standard pursuant to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards that has informed much of our sustainability disclosure. Similarly, while we leverage various frameworks in our disclosures, we cannot guarantee, and language such as “align” or “follow” is not meant to imply complete alignment with these requirements.
We similarly cannot guarantee complete alignment with any stakeholder’s interpretation or preference for the measurement or presentation of sustainability or other information in this report. Expectations, as well as our own approach, continue to evolve and may change for a variety of reasons, including regulatory or business requirements or other factors that may not be in our control. Similarly, certain disclosures are based on hypothetical scenarios which may not be reflective of expectations or future events; such scenarios are subject to inherent uncertainty given the long-time frames and breadth of variables involved. As a final note, documents and website references included herein are provided solely for convenience and are not incorporated by reference absent express language to the contrary.
This document contains information that qualifies, or may qualify, as inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation (596/2014). Further details of potential risks and uncertainties affecting Aegon are described in its filings with the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets and the US Securities and Exchange Commission, including the 2023 Integrated Annual Report. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this document. Except as required by any applicable law or regulation, Aegon expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in Aegon’s expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.
Attachment
Following the news that the 10% US import tariff, including a 46% hike specifically targeting Vietnamese goods, will take effect on 09 April 2025;
Annapurna Pillutla, Analyst, Economic Research at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers her view:
“In response to the US tariffs, Vietnam reaffirmed its commitment to fair trade and transparency. Diplomatic engagement has been stepped up, with efforts to negotiate exemptions and clarify Vietnam’s trade and monetary policies. Vietnam is eliminating tariffs on US imports following Trump’s announcement of a 46% levy. Vietnam also proposed zero tariffs on the US goods and requested a delay of 45 days in tariff implementation, aiming for a mutually beneficial agreement.
“Vietnam’s economy is heavily dependent on the export of goods and services, which constitute nearly 100% of its GDP. In 2024, goods exports to the US amounted to $136.6 billion, representing 30.1% of Vietnam’s GDP. The sharp escalation in tariffs on Vietnamese imports signals a critical juncture in Vietnam-US trade dynamics. Given the US accounts for close to a third of Vietnam’s GDP through goods exports, the latest measures introduce significant downside risks, particularly to export-reliant industries such as textiles and footwear, where cost pressures and competitive positioning are already under strain. “Against this backdrop, GlobalData has revised the forecast of Vietnam’s GDP growth to 6.5% in 2025, down from 6.7%, as demand from one of its largest trading partners softens.
“This development is expected to fast-track Vietnam’s strategic shift toward economic diversification. Beyond intensified trade negotiations, the government is now likely to double down on initiatives to attract high-value foreign investment, scale up digital capabilities in manufacturing, and strengthen bilateral trade ties with economies in the EU, India, and Latin America. Over time, such moves could reduce Vietnam’s exposure to single-market volatility and set the foundation for more resilient and balanced growth.”
About GlobalData
4,000 of the world’s largest companies, including over 70% of FTSE 100 and 60% of Fortune 100 companies, make more timely and better business decisions thanks to GlobalData’s unique data, expert analysis and innovative solutions, all in one platform. GlobalData’s mission is to help our clients decode the future to be more successful and innovative across a range of industries, including the healthcare, consumer, retail, financial, technology and professional services sectors.
Source: China State Council Information Office 3
Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne on Tuesday confirmed that Canada’s new countermeasures announced last week in response to the U.S. tariffs on the Canadian auto industry will come into force at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 9.
Champagne said Canada would continue to “respond forcefully” to all unwarranted and unreasonable tariffs imposed by the United States on Canadian products.
“The government is firmly committed to getting these U.S. tariffs removed as soon as possible, and will protect Canada’s workers, businesses, economy and industry,” Champagne said in a release issued by the Finance Ministry.
The countermeasures, announced by Prime Minister Mark Carney Prime Minister last week, include 25-percent tariffs on non-Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) compliant fully-assembled vehicles imported into Canada from the United States, and 25-percent tariffs on non-Canadian and non-Mexican content of CUSMA compliant fully-assembled vehicles imported into Canada from the United States.
A remission framework for auto producers that incentivizes production and investment in Canada, and helps maintain Canadian jobs, will also be implemented, said the release.
On April 3, U.S. tariffs of 25 percent on Canadian automobiles came into effect, targeting the auto industry and the more than 500,000 Canadians this industry supports across the country, said the release, adding that the United States also intends to apply 25-percent tariffs on certain automobile parts on May 3.
Vehicle imports from the United States totaled 35.6 billion Canadian dollars (25 billion U.S. dollars) in 2024, said the release.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Stephenson, Deputy Director, Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, Australian National University
Despite progress towards gender equality in Australian elections, women remain underrepresented among candidates vying for office on May 3. They are also overrepresented in “glass cliff” seats, which are the ones that are difficult to win and precarious to hold.
The Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at the Australian National University has analysed 591 candidates in the election by gender, political party, and the seats they are contesting.
Our report published today finds that while the major parties are increasing the number of women they pre-select, they are more likely to be running in harder-to-win seats.
Women are inching towards gender parity and now make up 45% of candidates across all parties and independents.
Labor has made the strongest gains. More than half (56%) of its candidates are women, a jump of about 10 percentage points on the previous election. By comparison, only 32% of Coalition candidates are female, an increase of just 3% on the 2022 poll.
Coalition women are not only outnumbered two to one by male candidates – 84% of them are running in risky glass cliff seats.
Contesting from opposition necessarily means Coalition candidates are coming from a more challenging starting point. Indeed, by comparison, 50% of female Labor candidates are running in safe seats, compared to 57% of their male collegaues.
Nonetheless, Labor women are also more likely to be running in unsafe seats than Labor men. This persistent glass cliff across both major parties continues to disadvantage women in politics.
Women make up approximately 39% of the current House of Representatives. Labor is closest to parity, with women accounting for 47% of the caucus.
By comparison, the Coalition continues to languish with four times the number of male MPs: 80% men to 20% women.
And there are stark differences in gender balance across states and territories, with Queensland and South Australia lagging the furthest behind. Queensland fares the worst, with nearly five times as many men than women representing the state in federal parliament (83% men to 17% women).
This reflects a strong gender imbalance across both major parties. Our report shows that in Queensland, 80% of Labor and 86% of Coalition MPs are men.
Western Australia and the Northern Territory are the only two states or territories to have equal or more women MPs elected in the 2022 federal election – at 53% and 50%, respectively.
According to our analysis, 21% of the nearly 600 declared candidates self-identified as diverse. This includes:
Diversity is fairly evenly spread across the parties, at around 26% of Labor’s candidates, 24% of the Coalition’s and 30% of the Greens’.
Men are much more likely to self-identify as “diverse” than women at this election. This could reflect the unique barriers faced by minoritised women. For example, women of colour, First Nations women and women with disability can be discouraged or find it harder to seek public office.
Our findings reflect the added challenges diverse women and non-binary people face, particularly when in the public eye.
For instance, our research on the 2022 election found that while LGBTIQ+ politicians faced similar rates of online harassment during the campaign, they were more targeted by personal vitriol throughout. They suffered nasty, queer-specific slurs, transphobic messages and ableist language – commentary that had nothing to do with their policies or politics.
Yes, progress is being made with more women running for election. That is particularly true of the Labor Party and the Greens, where 56% and 50% of candidates are women respectively. Plus some who are beyond the gender binary.
And the fact that 80% of “teal” candidates are female is a noted characteristic of the community independents movement.
However, achieving true gender and diversity parity in politics requires more than increasing candidate numbers. It demands a fundamental shift in how, and where, women and diverse candidates are positioned to compete.
This is a message for political parties to take seriously going into future elections. Are parties always putting the same people up for the same seats?
Without addressing these systemic barriers, representation in parliament will continue to fall short of reflecting the electorate’s true and growing diversity.
Elise Stephenson receives funding from the Australian Government and Australian Research Council. She is affiliated with Women in International Security Australia. The Global Institute for Women’s Leadership is a non-partisan research institute at the ANU.
– ref. Running for parliament is still a man’s world, with fewer female candidates – especially in winnable seats – https://theconversation.com/running-for-parliament-is-still-a-mans-world-with-fewer-female-candidates-especially-in-winnable-seats-254187
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Crowley, Adjunct Associate Professor, Public and Environmental Policy, University of Tasmania
Federal Greens leader Adam Bandt says the federal election offers “an opportunity for real change”, saying his party would use the balance of power in the next parliament to help deliver serious policy reforms.
In a speech to the National Press Club on Wednesday, Bandt outlined the party’s election priorities and said the poll represents:
A once-in-a-generation chance to create a country where everyone has a right to the basics – food, health, and a home. A safe climate and a healthy environment. An economy which puts people before the profits of the obscenely wealthy and the excessively profitable.
The Greens broke new ground at the last federal election, snatching three new lower house seats and winning the balance of power in the Senate. The gains suggested the Greens were moving beyond their roots as a party of protest, and becoming a true policy force.
But the Greens broadly failed to make the most of its greater political presence this term. In the next parliament, it should focus on building political capital and picking its battles more wisely.
As a traditional party of protest, the Greens have historically tended to stick firmly to the party’s policy agenda rather than make major concessions to the government of the day.
However, as the new Labor government focused on delivering its mostly modest reform agenda this term, the Greens party was forced to negotiate on its demands, much as the Teals have done.
The Greens helped Labor pass its signature climate change policy, the safeguard mechanism, which seeks to limit emissions from Australia’s most polluting companies. In return, Labor agreed to the Greens’ call for a hard cap on emissions under the scheme. But it refused to bow to Greens demands for a ban on new gas and coal projects, and limiting the use of carbon credits.
The Greens were then tested by Labor’s housing agenda – specifically, two schemes to make buying or renting a home more affordable.
The Greens’ initially teamed up with the Coalition to block the laws, arguing they would drive up housing prices and give tax breaks to property developers. The party’s opposition was at odds with public opinion, including most Greens voters.
The party eventually waved the housing bills through in November last year without winning any concessions from Labor, and after burning much political capital.
The chastened Greens helped pass a flurry of other legislation late in 2024, including Reserve Bank governance reforms and a supermarket code of conduct. In return, Labor offered Greens fairly piecemeal concessions, including more money for social housing electrification and a ban on fossil fuel subsidies under the Future Made in Australia scheme.
The Greens also offered to help salvage Labor’s troubled proposal to reform Australia’s environmental protection laws. It shelved its calls for a “climate trigger” – which would force regulators to consider the potential climate damage of a proposal before it was approved. Instead, the Greens insisted only on stronger protections for native forests.
However, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese intervened at the eleventh hour to scuttle the deal.
All this suggests the Greens party is yet to strike the right balance between pursuing its own policy agenda and supporting Labor to the extent that a healthy working relationship is achieved. So far, it has gained only meagre concessions, and its policy grandstanding has not worked.
Scoring political points outside parliament can be easier for the Greens than influencing policy within it.
Environmental conflict has always fuelled the Greens’ vote, and the party continues to campaign on issues such as protecting Tasmania’s native forests, opposing salmon farming and calling for a ban on new coal and gas projects.
But outside parliament this term, the Greens have faced controversies that may hurt them at the ballot box.
Greens senator Lidia Thorpe quit the party over its support for the Voice referendum, and Bandt copped criticism for allegedly failing to confront bullying claims against West Australian Greens senator Dorinda Cox.
The Gaza conflict triggered significant ruptures between the Greens and the pro-Israel movement. There were also reports that a new Muslim political movement may siphon votes from the Greens and hurt them electorally.
There is no ready formula, then, for the Greens to shore up – let alone expand – its vote outside parliament.
The Guardian’s polls tracker suggests the Greens’ primary vote has increased since the 2022 election, from 12.3% to 14%.
However, the party faces several tough political contests to retain or extend the gains it won in 2022. And its disappointing results at recent elections in Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory suggest the party has its work cut out.
As ABC election analyst Antony Green has noted, Labor holds three seats with margins below 5% where the Greens have a chance. However, the Greens also hold seats on slim margins that Labor or another candidate could win.
The Greens’ lower-house gains at the last election came in the inner-Brisbane seats of Ryan, Brisbane and Griffith. The Greens will have to fight hard to retain all three next month.
The most recent polls suggest Labor will be returned by a narrow margin at the May 3 election – probably helped along by the return of United States’ President Donald Trump.
On Wednesday Bandt said the Greens “are within reach of winning seats right across the country and, in the minority government, we can make things happen”.
However, seven new Independents won lower house seats at the last election. Should that trend continue, and if Labor does need to form a minority government, the Greens may find themselves fighting for the balance of power on a crowded crossbench.
If the Greens party wants to be seen as a serious political force, it must decide if its traditional political approach – hard-nosed policy opposition and picking political fights – is still the best strategy.
Bandt’s mentor, former Greens leader Christine Milne, got results from minority pacts with both sides of politics. She believed the Greens’ role was to build political capital and then, when an opportunity such as minority government arose, to spend that capital on achieving significant policy outcomes.
On Wednesday, Bandt indicated a willingness to work towards meaningful policy outcomes in the next parliament. He claimed the Greens were willing to compromise in the event of minority government, saying:
we understand the need to cooperate and to come up with an arrangement that forms stable, effective and progressive government […] We will go into any discussions with goodwill and with [an] open mind.
Kate Crowley 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. Adam Bandt says the Greens can deliver ‘real change’ – but the party should choose its battles more wisely – https://theconversation.com/adam-bandt-says-the-greens-can-deliver-real-change-but-the-party-should-choose-its-battles-more-wisely-253851
Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
Since 2022, Moscow developers have been approved for city grants to patent 3,180 inventions and utility models in Russia and abroad. The total amount of grants was more than 290 million rubles. The support was used by creators of innovations in the field of radio electronics, robotics, public safety, construction and information technology.
Entrepreneurs can receive a grant of 75 thousand rubles for each Russian patent for an invention or utility model registered in the last 12 months. The maximum amount of grant support for submitted foreign patent applications is up to five million rubles per year.
Two grants were received by a company that develops and manufactures robotic devices for industrial high-pressure cleaning. The funds were allocated for patenting a microhydropercussion hydrodynamic cleaning complex for the inner surface of heat exchanger pipes. Patents for the invention are currently being processed in Russia and abroad.
Another recipient of financial support was a research and production enterprise that manufactures innovative equipment for disinfecting air, hard surfaces and water from all types of dangerous bacteria. The technology of high-intensity pulsed ultraviolet radiation allows disinfecting premises of all classes with an efficiency of up to 99.9 percent in a minimum period of time – from 30 seconds. More than 3.5 thousand such installations are successfully used in more than 500 Russian organizations. In addition, the enterprise exports its products to the Republic of South Africa, Mexico, Belarus and Kazakhstan.
A Russian developer and manufacturer of thermal indicators has received five grants for filing foreign patent applications and nine grants for Russian patents. The company has developed a new type of thermal fire alarm designed to prevent pre-emergency and pre-fire situations by detecting overheating of contact connections that occur in electrical distribution devices. Its products are patented in more than 40 countries.
As part of the strategy Sergei Sobyanin for business development and innovation support, the Moscow Innovation Cluster promotes support for patenting and commercialization of intellectual property through grant, consulting, and educational programs, as well as preferential lending secured by rights to the results of intellectual activity.
The application period for grant support for patenting inventions and utility models in Russia and abroad is open until June 30, 2025.i.moscow platform.
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Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
Restoration work continues at the Pokrovskoe-Streshnevo estate. Specialists are paying attention to every detail of the unique historical monument of the 18th-19th centuries, trying to preserve its interior decoration and return the estate to its former appearance. In particular, the main staircase with tritons, which is located in the central volume of the main house of the estate, is currently being restored.
“The main marble staircase was brought to Pokrovskoye-Streshnevo from the city estate on Bolshaya Nikitskaya in the 1910s. At that time, Princess Evgenia Shakhovskaya-Glebova-Streshneva was rebuilding the estate. A vestibule with a main staircase made of white and gray marble with a bypass gallery (balcony) at the level of the second floor appeared in the central volume. The balcony is supported from below by two decorative figures of tritons, and the bypass gallery is decorated with columns and pilasters of the Ionic order, the composition is completed by a round ceiling lamp,” said the deputy head of the Department of Capital Repairs
Before the work began, the staircase was in poor condition. The steps were worn and cracked, the five lower ones were different in shape and color of the stone, and the last one was completely missing. The marble balusters and wide handrail were completely destroyed. Two figures of tritons on the sides of the staircase also needed restoration, one of them was missing the tip of its tail. In addition, the balcony railing was lost.
“During the work, a comprehensive restoration of the main staircase was carried out. Specialists cleaned the marble steps, completed the assembly in places of losses, sealed cracks with a special compound in the tone of the stone, polished the surfaces. They replaced the steps that did not correspond to the historical ones and recreated the lower one that was lost. In a special workshop, balusters, railings and pedestals were recreated according to historical samples, and their installation is currently underway. They also restored the marble figures of newts supporting the balcony, and restored the lost tip of the tail, copying it from the surviving one,” Vladimir Alyabyev clarified.
In addition, the columns and pilasters of the Ionic order located in the bypass gallery were put in order. Having cleaned the surviving elements from late layers of paint, specialists discovered places of damaged plaster and additional compositions from late materials, as well as areas of incorrect joints of architectural elements. Then the plaster elements were cleaned to a solid base and restored. To do this, they cast the missing fragments according to historical samples, removed late inserts from alabaster, cement and other materials, and repaired small chips and cracks. In addition, the ceiling lamp was restored.
The restoration work of the Pokrovskoe-Streshnevo estate ensemble corresponds to the goals and objectives of the national project “Infrastructure for life”.
Sobyanin: The lost spire has been returned to the greenhouse of the Pokrovskoe-Streshnevo estateAtmosphere of manor life: stucco work is being restored in Pokrovskoe-Streshnevo
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Source: New Zealand Government
The Government is backing New Zealand sheep farmers and the wool industry with a change to government procurement rules, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson announced today.
“From 1 July, government agencies will be directed to use woollen fibre products in the construction and refurbishment of government buildings, where practical and appropriate,” Nicola Willis says.
“The move delivers on a New Zealand First and National Party coalition agreement to preference the use of woollen fibres in government buildings.
“We’re showing our commitment to woollen fibres by leveraging government spending, to provide more targeted opportunities for wool producers. This will help to increase jobs, employment, and drive economic growth.
“The new requirement will encourage innovation in the building materials industry which will lead to more investment and new markets opening up. Woollen fibres have a wide range of uses in buildings including carpet, upholstery, insulation, and acoustic panels.
“There are also sustainability and health benefits to using wool. Wool’s natural qualities allow it to dampen sound and absorb pollutants, and woollen fibres contribute to healthier indoor environments by naturally regulating humidity and improving air quality.
Mark Patterson says “the new requirements go beyond procurement’s immediate aim of purchasing goods and services. They demonstrate the Government’s support for the wool industry and farmers by encouraging increased demand for woollen fibre products in government-owned buildings.
“We’re walking the talk. This move will hopefully inspire private businesses to follow suit.”
“We are acting to get even greater value from our investments. It is the Government’s role to create the conditions for businesses to grow the economy and invest in creating more jobs.
“The wool sector contributed $549 million to the New Zealand economy in the financial year ending 2024 from exporting processed and unprocessed wool products.
“Wool has been synonymous with New Zealand since the early settlers bought sheep here 200 years ago, and New Zealand remains the world’s third largest wool producer, after China and Australia and accounts for about 9 per cent of total world wool production.”
“Supporting the NZ wool industry is a key part of the positive steps the Government is taking to add value to the economy.
“Our wool industry has recently been through a tough time with competition from synthetic fibres in global markets and a decline in both sheep numbers and the volume of wool produced. The sector is turning the tide with wool prices now covering the shearing costs, but we know there is more to be done.
“There’s a real swing back to natural fibres with consumer interests moving back to renewable fibres such as wool.”
The new procurement requirements will apply to the construction of government owned buildings that cost $9 million and more, and to refurbishments of $100,000 and more. The requirement will apply to about 130 agencies.
A wider review to improve the Government Procurement Rules is underway to remove red tape and promote responsible spending and competition.
Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
Large families in Moscow have access to various benefits, payments and city support measures that help take care of children. Many of them can be quickly and conveniently applied for on the mos.ru portal, without wasting time on personal trips to departments and collecting paper documents. All the necessary electronic services and services are collected in the subsection “Assistance for families with children, including large families” of the section “Family, children” catalog of services for residents.
“On the mos.ru portal, you can register as a large family and get a corresponding digital ID, apply for a parking permit or a Muscovite card for yourself and your children, apply for cash compensation, and much more. And some services, such as extending a parking permit for large families, are provided proactively: at the right time, the city sends a notification through the portal, and the person only has to agree to receive the service or refuse it,” said the Deputy Head of the Moscow City Department of Information Technology
Authorized mos.ru users with a standard and full account can use electronic services and services. You can find out how to register on the portal and upgrade your account status fromthis instruction.
On the mos.ru portal, submit an electronic application for receiving orextending the status of a large family is convenient and simple. Any parent living with their children may apply for the government service, provided that the family is registered at their place of residence in the city of Moscow.
Everyone who has received the status of a large family will automatically have access to a digital certificate confirming it in their personal account on the portal. This is an electronic document that contains a unique QR code with information about all members of such a family and the validity period of benefits. It can be downloaded to your smartphone as a pdf file or used using the QR code in the city mobile application “My id”A digital ID is equivalent to a paper ID.
Children from large families, regardless of their place of study, as well as both of their parents, can apply Muscovite card. It will allow you to use free travel on public transport, receive discounts on goods and services of loyalty program partners and much more. Submitting an electronic application for a Muscovite card is available on the mos.ru portal.
Children over 14 years old can apply for this service independently. And for a child who has not yet reached this age, the card is issued by parents or legal representatives.
For families who have a car, it will be useful to apply for a special parking permit. It gives the right to 24-hour free parking in all paid city parking zones in Moscow, except for spaces for buses, trucks and cars of people with disabilities. Large families can also apply for a permit online nand on the mos.ru portal.
Only one such permit can be obtained per family. In this case, the vehicle whose owner issues the document must not have any fines.
The extension of parking permits for families with many children is carried out in a proactive (anticipatory) format – without the need to apply. If the information about the large family has not changed, then two months before the expiration of the permit, a notification with a reminder about the extension is sent to the user’s personal account on mos.ru and to his e-mail. The person only needs to agree to the provision of this state service or refuse to receive it.
Information about what other city support measures, payments and subsidies are available to large families in Moscow has been collected in this instruction. In it you can find information on the procedure for registering all benefits and a list of the documents required for this.
In addition, parents with many children can ask questions of interest during an online consultation. You can also sign up for it is conducted on the portal. After registering, a link to a video call and instructions on how to connect will be sent to the user’s personal account on the portal and to their email. The parent will only need to go online at the right time. The consultation lasts up to 20 minutes.
Today, the mos.ru portal allows you to solve almost any everyday task. To use all its capabilities, you will need full account. And you can learn about how the mos.ru portal turned from a news feed with a book of reviews into a resource where today more than 450 electronic services are presented in the popular science film “Moscow in Digital”.
The creation, development and operation of the e-government infrastructure, including the provision of mass socially significant services, as well as other services in electronic form, corresponds to the objectives of the national project “Data Economy and Digital Transformation of the State” and the regional project of the city of Moscow “Digital Public Administration”.
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US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for New Mexico Martin Heinrich
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and U.S. Senator Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) announced that their Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act of 2025, legislation to strengthen the aerial wildfire suppression fleet and better combat the year-round threat of catastrophic wildfire, passed the Senate.
Heinrich and Sheehy led the introduction of their legislation in January. The legislation is co-sponsored by U.S. Senators Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). The Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act now awaits House passage.
“I’m pleased that my Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act is one step closer to becoming law,” said Heinrich. “The Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act is urgently needed to expand the operations of Very Large Air Tankers that have proven absolutely essential to firefighters battling large wildfires in New Mexico and across the West. I will never stop fighting to deliver the resources that our communities need to effectively respond to wildfires.”
“It’s only April, and this year has already seen the most dangerous and expensive wildfire season in history. It’s clear our government must do more to give wildland firefighters the tools they need to protect communities and save lives. The Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act supports that mission by eliminating bureaucratic obstacles to provide our aerial wildfire suppression fleet the resources necessary to fight wildfires quickly and aggressively. I’m grateful to my colleagues for their support of this bipartisan legislation, and I will continue to use the full power of my office to support the brave first responders on the front lines fighting wildfires across the country,” said Sheehy.
“In Arizona and across the West, wildfires are more frequent, more intense, and no longer confined to a single season. Our response capabilities need to reflect that new reality,” said Kelly. “Strengthening our aerial firefighting fleet by making more aircraft and parts available is a smart, proven way to help firefighters respond faster and keep communities safe. I’m proud to support this effort to ensure the tools are in place to meet the growing threat, and I’ll keep working to get it done.”
“As catastrophic wildfires devastate communities across the country, we need to be smarter and more resourceful in our approach to wildfire suppression,” said Padilla. “Californians saw firsthand the power of our aerial wildfire suppression fleet in putting out the Los Angeles fires as quickly as possible. Shoring up aerial firefighting fleets by allowing the Department of Defense to sell excess aircraft parts is a lifesaving, commonsense priority — and I’m glad to see the Senate come together to unanimously pass this bipartisan legislation.”
The Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act amends the Wildfire Suppression Aircraft Transfer Act of 1996 to reauthorize the sale of excess aircraft and parts by the Department of Defense for wildfire suppression. The bill will help the U.S. better suppress wildfires year-round by facilitating the acquisition of military excess aircraft, sold at fair market value, for the aerial wildfire suppression fleet. Additionally, the sale of parts will help the U.S. maintain its existing aerial firefighting aircraft fleet.
The bill reauthorizes the Secretary of Defense’s authority to sell excess Department of Defense aircraft and aircraft parts, which are acceptable for commercial sale, to persons or entities that contract with the government for the delivery of fire retardant or water by air to suppress wildfires, as long as the aircraft and parts are used only for wildfire suppression. The initial authority expired in 2005 and was reauthorized from 2012 to 2017 before lapsing again.
Read more on the bill here.
Heinrich’s Support for Aerial Firefighting:
Heinrich has long worked to expand and improve aerial firefighting operations in New Mexico to more effectively fight wildfires. In 2022, Heinrich secured more than $15 million to upgrade the Cibola National Forest Air Tanker Base at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque. Those upgrades were completed in 2024 – a major milestone that makes it possible to support and refuel Very Large Air Tanker planes that can drop large volumes of fire retardant on blazes.
In an op-ed published in the Albuquerque Journal, Col. Mike Power, Kirtland Air Force Base Installation Commander, highlighted the importance of these newly completed upgrades at the Cibola National Forest Air Tanker Base that will help the U.S. Forest Service fight wildfires in New Mexico more efficiently and effectively. one of only two bases in the United States with that capability.
“This base upgrade, where now up to 30 Forest Service professionals work to lead the fight against wildfires, includes the larger ramp space for a stronger, more efficient capability to fight wildfires in New Mexico year-round. It now also houses a retardant tank farm,” said Col. Power in the op-ed. “What does that mean to the average New Mexican? It means 75,000 gallons of retardant available at one time, and cuts response time to a fire in half. Ours is one of only two bases in the United States with that capability.”
Heinrich’s Continued Leadership on Wildfire Response & Recovery:
Heinrich remains focused on delivering the resources New Mexico needs to effectively respond to wildfires and prevent future devastating blazes by restoring the health and resilience of our forests and watersheds.
Last week, Heinrich attempted to amend Republicans’ budget resolution that funds Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s tax handouts for billionaires by filing an amendment to increase forest health and wildfire mitigation forest treatments to support wildland firefighting.
In March, Heinrich demanded USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins to reverse the Trump-Musk terminations of forest service workers responsible for protecting our communities from wildfires. In his letter, Heinrich highlighted impacts of the USDA’s actions across New Mexico. Specifically, in the Gila National Forest, Heinrich pointed to the USDA’s termination of an entire trail crew that previously spent their days clearing debris from trails to make them safe for the community and help prevent catastrophic wildfire.
Additionally, Heinrich pressed the USDA on Trump’s plans to fire forest service workers responsible for wildfire prevention and watershed restoration.
In January, Heinrich introduced the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act to ensure the federal government can recruit and retain a sufficient wildland firefighting workforce to keep communities safe. The legislation would also permanently increase federal wildland firefighter pay.
Heinrich is keeping up the effort to do right by the New Mexico families whose lives were upended by the 2022 Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire. As communities continue to rebuild, Heinrich will keep working to deliver for every personimpacted by that fire and the floods that followed.
Heinrich, U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), and U.S. Representative Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) successfully secured an additional $1.5 billion to help New Mexicans recover from the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire within the Continuing Resolution that Congress passed in December 2024.
The 2024 Continuing Resolution also extended the period that victims may file claims with the Hermit’s Peak Claims Office to March 14, 2025. The Heinrich, Luján, and Leger Fernández are continuing to call for the passage of their Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Claims Extension Act, legislation they introduced to extend the period a victim can file a claim with the Hermit’s Peak Claims Office through the end of 2027.
The New Mexico Congressional Delegation has now secured a total of $5.45 billion in federal resources to help New Mexicans recover and rebuild since the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire.
In November 2024, Heinrich, Luján, and Leger Fernández announced that President Biden’s disaster supplemental request included transfer authority for $1.5 billion to help New Mexicans recover from the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire. That same month, Heinrich, Luján, and Leger Fernández also sent a letter urging the FEMA Director of the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Claims Office and the FEMA Director of the New Mexico Joint Recovery Office to address concerns from New Mexicans about the process for receiving compensationfrom the Claims Office and help families get the relief and compensation needed to recover.
Additional information on Heinrich’s leadership on Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire Response and Recovery can be found here.
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin
April 08, 2025
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen and 22 Senators in writing to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Tedd Lyons. The Senators’ letter urged Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a father who was living legally, under a protected status, in Maryland with his family until he was wrongfully deported without due process by the Trump Administration last month to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador. The Administration has admitted that Abrego Garcia’s deportation was the result of an “administrative error.”
In their letter, the Senators call on the Trump Administration to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return and ask for responses to questions regarding ICE’s enforcement policies that may have led to this grave error – and what measures they will take to ensure such an incident does not occur again.
The Senators began, “We write to express our concerns regarding the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador, an action which the Administration admitted in a recent court filing was an ‘administrative error.’ It is unacceptable that anyone would be deported without proper due process, especially where an immigration judge has granted the individual protected status that explicitly prohibits his return to El Salvador. We demand that the Administration bring Mr. Abrego Garcia home immediately.”
“Per court filings, Mr. Abrego Garcia came to the United States in 2011 as a teenager fleeing gang threats in his home country of El Salvador. In 2019, ICE arrested Mr. Abrego Garcia over an unfounded and anonymous allegation that he was involved with MS-13, which placed him in deportation proceedings. The U.S. immigration judge in the case ultimately found that it was in fact Mr. Abrego Garcia who was at risk of being the victim of gang violence,” the Senators wrote.
“This ruling was made under the Trump Administration in 2019 and was in fact required by law under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act once the immigration judge made the factual determination that Mr. Abrego Garcia faced a likelihood of torture in El Salvador. At the time, the Trump Administration made no effort to appeal the judge’s ruling or pursue Mr. Abrego Garcia’s deportation further. Court filings attest that Mr. Abrego Garcia has complied with regular ICE check-ins, has no criminal charges, and has had no contact with any other law-enforcement agency since his release in 2019,” the Senators continued their letter.
“Mr. Abrego Garcia is currently being held at CECOT, a maximum-security prison in El Salvador notorious for human rights abuses, after being deported in violation of the law to the very country where his return was impermissible,” they wrote. “And when the Administration makes a mistake as severe as sending an individual with protected status to a foreign prison, it cannot simply shrug off responsibility and allege that there is nothing it can do to reunite him with his wife and child, who are American citizens.”
“On Friday, a U.S. District Court judge in the District of Maryland ordered the government to return Mr. Abrego Garcia to the United States, and on Monday the Fourth Circuit denied the government’s motion to stay the order,” the Senators urged.
While the Supreme Court has since lifted the order to immediately return him to the United States, it also made clear that Mr. Abrego Garcia has the right to challenge this illegal deportation in the lower courts. The Administration should correct its egregious “error” and reunite Mr. Abrego Garcia with his wife and child, who are both U.S. citizens while that litigation is pending.
The Senators closed the letter with a series of questions to Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons, requesting a response by April 22.
Joining Durbin, Duckworth, and Van Hollen in sending the letter were U.S. Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Chris Coons (D-DE), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jack Reed (D-RI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mark Warner (D-VA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
A copy of the letter is available here and below:
April 8, 2025
Dear Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons,??
We write to express our concerns regarding the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador, an action which the Administration admitted in a recent court filing was an “administrative error.” It is unacceptable that anyone would be deported without proper due process, especially where an immigration judge has granted the individual protected status that explicitly prohibits his return to El Salvador. We demand that the Administration bring Mr. Abrego Garcia home immediately.
According to court filings, on March 12, 2025, shortly after Mr. Abrego Garcia had picked up his son from the boy’s grandmother’s house, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) stopped Mr. Abrego Garcia, inaccurately telling him that his protected status had changed. After giving his wife a few minutes to arrive to take custody of his son, ICE arrested and detained him without any further explanation as to the reason for his arrest. ICE then transferred Mr. Abrego Garcia and other detainees to Texas, where on March 15, 2025, they were loaded onto planes and deported to El Salvador. Mr. Abrego Garcia was reportedly on the only plane that was not sent under the authority of the Alien Enemies Act but instead was transporting migrants with formal removal orders signed by a judge. This occurred despite the fact that ICE knew, as the Administration conceded in court, that his protected legal status specifically prohibited his removal to El Salvador.
Per court filings, Mr. Abrego Garcia came to the United States in 2011 as a teenager fleeing gang threats in his home country of El Salvador. In 2019, ICE arrested Mr. Abrego Garcia over an unfounded and anonymous allegation that he was involved with MS-13, which placed him in deportation proceedings. The U.S. immigration judge in the case ultimately found that it was in fact Mr. Abrego Garcia who was at risk of being the victim of gang violence. The judge found that Mr. Abrego Garcia and his relatives credibly testified that gang members had been trying to extort his family and recruit him and his brother to join the gang, forcing his family to move multiple times, ultimately compelling both him and his brother to flee to the United States out of fear.
The immigration judge agreed that Mr. Abrego Garcia would likely face persecution if deported back to El Salvador and thus granted him a form of legally mandated protection known as “withholding of removal.” Withholding of removal, which may only be granted by an immigration judge, provided Mr. Abrego Garcia the ability to stay and work in the United States despite being the subject of a deportation order. This ruling was made under the Trump Administration in 2019 and was in fact required by law under section 241(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act once the immigration judge made the factual determination that Mr. Abrego Garcia faced a likelihood of torture in El Salvador. At the time, the Trump Administration made no effort to appeal the judge’s ruling or pursue Mr. Abrego Garcia’s deportation further. Court filings attest that Mr. Abrego Garcia has complied with regular ICE check-ins, has no criminal charges, and has had no contact with any other law-enforcement agency since his releasein 2019.
Mr. Abrego Garcia is currently being held at CECOT, a maximum-security prison in El Salvador notorious for human rights abuses, after being deported in violation of the law to the very country where his return was impermissible. Though the Administration has admitted in court that his deportation was a mistake, it alleges that there is nothing it can do to address this injustice, given that Mr. Abrego Garcia is now in the jurisdiction of the government of El Salvador as part of an agreement to imprison U.S. deportees in exchange for financial compensation.
Your unwillingness to immediately rectify this “administrative error” is unacceptable. Under multiple Democratic and Republican administrations, the Department of Homeland Security and ICE followed the rule of law and worked to quickly return people who were wrongfully deported, in the rare instances where such “administrative errors” occurred. The Administration’s mass deportation agenda does not transcend immigration law or the need for due process. And when the Administration makes a mistake as severe as sending an individual with protected status to a foreign prison, it cannot simply shrug off responsibility and allege that there is nothing it can do to reunite him with his wife and child, who are American citizens. On Friday, a U.S. District Court judge in the District of Maryland ordered the government to return Mr. Abrego Garcia to the United States, and on Monday the Fourth Circuit denied the government’s motion to stay the order. The Administration should promptly comply with the district court’s order.
To address our concerns about this matter and to provide clarity on the Department of Homeland Security and ICE’s policy regarding the immigration enforcement actions against immigrants with protected status, we ask that your Administration answer the following questions by April 22, 2025:
We appreciate your prompt attention to this vital matter and look forward to reviewing your fulsome, timely response.
Sincerely,
-30-
Source: US Government research organizations
High-performance computing (HPC) systems provide fundamental computing infrastructure and play a pivotal role in economic competitiveness and scientific discovery. Security is an essential component of HPC. NIST HPC Security Working Group (WG) has been leading the effort to create comprehensive and reliable security guidance for HPC systems. As part of the Working Group mission and to reach the greater HPC scientific community, NIST, in collaboration with the National Science Foundation (NSF), will host the 5th High-Performance Computing Security Workshop on May 7-8, 2025. The workshop aims to listen to the community’s needs and feedback, report and reflect on the ongoing activities at HPC Security WG, and define and discuss future directions with stakeholders from industry, academia, and government.
A room block has been reserved at the following location:
Sheraton Rockville
Address: 920 King Farm Blvd, Rockville, MD 20850
Rate: $159/night (excluding taxes and fees). Rate includes breakfast and shuttle to and from NCCoE
CLICK HERE to book your room. Last day to book your room is April 16, 2025.
Source: US Government research organizations
Credit: Michele Robinson
Michele Robinson
Senior Director
National Cybersecurity Centers
Whatcom Community College
Credit: Donavon Johnson, Phd
Donavon Johnson, PhD
Assistant Professor
Florida International University
Credit: Barbara Peres-Furones
Barbara Peres-Furones
Assistant Director, Marketing & Communications
Florida International University
Credit: Daniel Eliot
Daniel Eliot
Lead for Small Business Engagement
NIST
Credit: Rodney Petersen
Rodney Petersen
Director
NICE
(Moderator)
Additional speakers to be announced.
The NICE Conference & Expo is an annual event that brings together professionals from education, government, industry, and non-profits to address the need for a skilled cybersecurity workforce. Hosted by Florida International University (FIU) in collaboration with NICE, a program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the conference serves as a platform to share best practices, research, and workforce development strategies for cybersecurity professionals. The 2025 NICE Conference & Expo, is scheduled for June 1-3, 2025, in Denver, Colorado. The conference will feature keynote speakers, presentations, workshops, and discussions focused on cybersecurity skills gaps, education strategies, and policy initiatives. During this webinar, you will receive insights regarding the learning experiences and program content that will be showcased as part of the NICE Conference. We hope to see you there!
2025 NICE Conference and Expo
Source: US Government research organizations
Credit: OWM/K. Dill
The 5-day Fundamentals of Metrology seminar is an intensive course that introduces participants to the concepts of measurement systems, units, good laboratory practices, data integrity, measurement uncertainty, measurement assurance, traceability, basic statistics and how they fit into a laboratory Quality Management System. Additional topics covered will include overall Laboratory Management and specific discussions of the requirements for proficiency testing, calibration certificate generation and software verification and validation. Topics will be covered using a variety of measurement disciplines and laboratory measurements and case studies so that the participants will be able to apply the concepts to any measurement discipline upon completion. Topics are covered in a mixture of training styles including lecture, hands-on exercises, case studies and discussion.
This class covers the following procedures from NISTIR 6969:
At the end of this seminar, participants will be able to:
Several notebooks and course materials will be provided.
The instructor will send registered participants the prerequisite documentation ‘AFTER’ the registration deadline. Required prerequisites include having a demonstrated knowledge of basic mathematics (pre-test) and completion of a number of reading assignments (listed in Pre-work section). Additional helpful pre-work will be provided to students who have been accepted by the instructor prior to the seminar to minimize course homework time. Participants must be proficient in spreadsheet functions and operations, and formatting in word processing software.
In addition to completing and submitting the Math Exercises, please read:
Submit the math exercises (pre-work) according to instructions by COB on Monday, February 17, 2025.
Fundamentals of Metrology, Laboratory Auditing Program (LAP) Problems – required for State Weights and Measures Laboratories (not applicable for other participants.)
Successful completion requires that participants fully participate in all classroom and laboratory exercises, turn in or present accurate work assignments, and be present for the entire course. There will also be a Final Exam on the last day of the class. The Final Exam and Final Calibration Certificate each contribute equal value to the final grade; the final grade also includes class participation and laboratory exercises. A passing grade on all portions is required to obtain a training certificate that indicates “successful completion” (e.g., getting a 100 percent on the final is not an excuse to participate minimally in classroom and laboratory.) Successful completion qualifies the participant to participate in the Mass, Volume and Length seminars, though those may have additional prerequisites.
*Homework note: students generally report taking one to two hours for homework each night.
National Metrology Institute personnel within the Interamerican Metrology System (SIM) who have responsibilities for developing, implementing, and/or improving national measurement system and quality management systems in their laboratories. Please contact Andrew Conn at andrew.conn [at] nist.gov (andrew[dot]conn[at]nist[dot]gov) for further information.
This class is for SIM participants only and payment arrangements are made through the International and Academic Affairs Office. Please contact Andrew Conn at andrew.conn [at] nist.gov (andrew[dot]conn[at]nist[dot]gov) for further information.
Micheal Hicks and Jose Torres
Email: micheal.hicks [at] nist.gov (micheal[dot]hicks[at]nist[dot]gov)
Registered participants will need to bring a 10-digit scientific calculator to use during this seminar. Participants MUST be familiar with the use of the hand-held scientific calculator. Additionally, use of a laptop or tablet PC is required to succeed in the seminar. Participants must have access to Microsoft Word and Excel (version 2010 or newer are acceptable) and be able to open and use template Excel workbooks that will be provided on USB media. Participants must be able to save/store files to USB media devices facilitate printing and turning in homework assignments; if not able to use USB media, participants must be able to connect their laptop to a printing device by cable or BlueTooth and be able to upload files to a secure Google Drive.
You will need a government-issued photo ID (e.g., passport or driver’s license) when you check into the Visitors Center at the entrance of NIST and if bringing a vehicle onto the NIST campus, a vehicle registration card.
PLEASE NOTE: Effective July 21, 2014, under the REAL ID Act of 2005 (https://www.dhs.gov/real-id/real-id-frequently-asked-questions), agencies, including NIST, can only accept a state-issued driver’s license or identification card for access to federal facilities if issued by states that are REAL ID compliant or have an extension. NIST currently accepts other forms of federally issued identification in lieu of a state-issued driver’s license, such as a valid passport, passport card, DOD’s Common Access Card (CAC), Veterans ID, Federal Agency HSPD-12 IDs, Military Dependents ID, Transportation Workers Identification Credential (TWIC), and TSA Trusted Traveler ID. See Visitor Information for the latest information.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Stevens, Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University
As part of their federal election campaign, the Coalition announced plans to limit the number of international students able to commence study each year to 240,000, “focused on driving […] housing availability and affordability”.
This announcement was criticised as a “fact free zone” by the Property Council.
The Coalition proposal falsely equates high immigration with housing shortages. Studies indicate limiting international students will have minimal impact on housing supply. Most international students stay in student housing or share house accommodation, not suitable or desirable for many Australians to live in.
History shows us Australia has previously gone through periods of high migration and economic uncertainty. But history also shows us, if we are willing to adapt and innovate, high immigration and housing affordability can co-exist.
The discovery of gold in Victoria caused Melbourne’s population to explode.
In 1851, Melbourne’s population was 77,000. Within a decade, that figure had more than quadrupled to 540,000.
As a young colony, the Victorian government actively recruited British and Irish migrants, subsidising fully or partially the cost of the sea voyage to Australia.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing: competition across migrant groups developed, and new Chinese immigrants in particular were singled out. Europeans staged violent anti-Chinese riots, which included the murder of three Chinese migrants.
To accommodate new migrants, the Victorian colonial government expanded housing supply in two ways.
First, in 1852 Lieutenant-Governor Charles La Trobe permitted the establishment of Canvas Town, essentially a tent city on the southern bank of the Yarra River.
There were problems in Canvas Town: disease was common, sanitation nonexistent, and crime rife. But Canvas Town provided newcomers protection from the elements. Canvas Town was officially disbanded in 1854, although people continued to live in tents across Melbourne as they awaited the construction of more permanent housing.
Second, prefabricated iron houses were imported to Melbourne from Britain to overcome supply shortages. These British-built “kit homes” were dismantled, every component labelled and then shipped to Australia for assembly.
Rapidly-built homes appeared in Port Melbourne, North Melbourne, Fitzroy, Collingwood and Richmond. Three such examples still exist today in South Melbourne.
Gold Rush Victoria reminds us of the importance of nimble government intervention in the housing market to offset housing pressures and mitigate anti-foreigner sentiments.
One hundred years later, Australia was again facing an immigration and population boom. Australia faced housing shortages in the post-World War II years, as the population grew from 7.6 million to 10.5 million people between 1947 and 1961.
In the era of post-war shortages and rationing, Australians worried about the impacts of the new arrivals on employment and social issues such as crime.
The arrival of displaced persons and assisted migrants from Europe strained existing housing stock. Some new and existing Australians resorted to squatting and other forms of temporary housing.
Commonwealth and state governments took leading roles in housing construction.
Between 1947 and 1961, Australia’s housing stock increased by 50% compared with a 41% increase in population. Australian governments directly contributed to 24% of this increase in stock, or 221,700 homes.
As the minister for immigration, Harold Holt said in 1950, “migrant labour was helping to solve Australia’s housing problems, not aggravating it” by working in essential industries that produce housing materials.
Once again, prefabricated homes were part of the solution.
But on-site construction also had a role to play and could capitalise on the skills of new migrants, particularly in the new migrant town of Elizabeth, South Australia.
Migrants also pooled their resources and constructed homes for their community.
In Wexcombe, Western Australia, 12 British families formed a building group. Within three years, they had built new homes for each family.
In the 1850s and 1950s, increased immigration triggered bigotry and xenophobia. However, governments at this time were focused on nation building.
Even if this was largely focused on supporting new white migrants, many politicians resisted the temptation to fan social divisions for political gain.
Instead, during the Gold Rush and post-World War II eras, Australian governments assisted individuals to adapt and innovate to new circumstances and create novel forms of housing.
Australian history gives us episodes where we see our society under strain and yet capable of addressing social issues with innovation and adaptability, while welcoming migrants.
Rachel Stevens works for the Australian Catholic University, which will be impacted by the proposed reforms on international students discussed in this article.
– ref. Gold rush Melbourne and post-war boom: how Australia overcame housing shortages in the past – https://theconversation.com/gold-rush-melbourne-and-post-war-boom-how-australia-overcame-housing-shortages-in-the-past-253952
