Most of Great Britain’s major rail operators are back in public hands – is it working?

• EU Council President António Costa’s office has initiated contact with a senior official close to Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss potential peace talks regarding Ukraine. • These diplomatic outreach efforts mark a strategic move by Brussels to explore avenues for negotiation as the conflict continues to destabilize the region.

• Mastercard's Cyber Pulse Report 2026 reveals a 13% overall increase in cyberattacks across Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EEMEA) over the past year. • The report highlights a dramatic 198% spike in cyber threats specifically triggered by ongoing conflicts in the Middle East.

• France is hosting the G7 Summit starting Monday, June 17, 2026, with a primary focus on reducing global imbalances. • The meeting occurs during a period of significant strain on global governance, specifically regarding transatlantic relations and international trade.

• Alessandro Politi, Director of the NATO Defense College Foundation, analyzes the G7's struggle to maintain consensus amidst growing global fragmentation. • The discussion highlights critical challenges including Gulf security, Middle East diplomacy, supply-chain resilience, and the procurement of critical minerals.

• G7 leaders are meeting in Evian this Wednesday to discuss strategies for supporting sustainable global economic growth. • The summit focuses on mitigating the economic strain caused by the ongoing war in Iran, which continues to disrupt global markets.

Other lawmakers respond with ‘shame on you’ in heated confrontation over passing of plan to increase deportationsRightwing MEPs have come under fire after they celebrated a vote aimed at increasing deportations across the EU with chants of “send them back”, leading other lawmakers to respond with cries of “shame on you”.The heated confrontation in the European parliament came on Wednesday after lawmakers voted 418 to 218 to approve controversial measures aimed at increasing deportations of undocumented people. Continue reading...

Peter Wai and Bill Yuen sentenced to 10 and eight years at Old Bailey in first convictions under National Security ActA UK Border Force officer and a Hong Kong trade official based in London have been jailed for spying for China in what is the first such conviction in British criminal history.Peter Wai, who conducted “shadow policing” operations on Chinese dissidents in the UK, was sentenced to 10 years while his handler, Bill Yuen, received an eight-year term. Continue reading...

Miguel Díaz-Canel cites China and Vietnam as possible models for opening up the country’s economyCuba’s economy needs “urgent changes” to overcome a major crisis intensified by a US oil blockade, president Miguel Díaz-Canel said in a speech to Communist party leaders. “The situation calls for urgent and necessary changes,” Díaz-Canel told the party’s politburo in his frankest admission yet of the need to overhaul the country’s communist model.In the remarks, broadcast on Thursday, he cited China and Vietnam as possible models for opening Cuba’s economy to the world in order to “create economic wealth and distribute it equally.” Continue reading...

Labour and Tories claimed Green party leader breached London assembly ethics code over non-payment of taxZack Polanski has been cleared by an ethics inquiry looking into complaints that he did not pay council tax while living on a houseboat.A report by the Greater London authority’s monitoring officer found that the circumstances of the Green party leader’s living arrangements were beyond its scope and he had therefore not breached the code of conduct for London assembly members. Continue reading...

Show features characters and sets from likes of Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the Sheep and celebrates roots in cityAardman’s most famous characters, Wallace and Gromit, may be denizens of northern England but the studio’s deep-rooted connection to the south-west of the UK is being celebrated in a new show on Bristol’s harbourside.The exhibition at the M Shed, just around the corner from the Aardman base on Gas Ferry Road (a name that would not be out of place in a Wallace and Gromit adventure), shines a light on the studio’s 50 years in Bristol. Continue reading...

Several inches of rain expected in south-eastern US as forecasters expect storm to cause life-threatening floodingTropical Storm Arthur was downgraded from a cyclone to a low pressure area along the upper Texas coast as it made landfall and lost wind intensity on Thursday.Forecasters still expect the storm to cause life-threatening flooding, property damage and disruptions to commerce and travel. Several inches of rain are expected from the storm in the southeastern US into Friday, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Event co-founded by Jordan Peterson will bring together global populist-right figures, US state officials and Eton teachersThe Reform UK MPs Sarah Pochin and Andrew Rosindell will be there. As will a plethora of Reform advisers, backroom staff and figures such as Ben Delo, a British crypto billionaire who has given £4m to Nigel Farage’s party.Yet as populist-right politicians from across the globe and their multimillionaire backers prepare for this year’s Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (Arc) – a rightwing London summit dubbed an “anti-woke” Davos – others whose expected attendance has not been publicised potentially raises more questions. Continue reading...