UK asks banks for feelgood stories about keeping out dirty money

Record inundations wrecked homes and took seven lives but Trump has not approved emergency aid and the state has cut funds for environmental agenciesIt’s been 10 days since the floodwater receded from Cambridge City’s main street and yet signs of disaster are all around.Abandoned cars, toilets and bathtubs are strewn across parks and side streets on a recent visit to the city. Garages have been lifted from their foundations and moved by the rushing water. Dumpsters up and down the street are overflowing with people’s belongings, with red paint sprayed on homes indicating which houses have been cleared by water rescue teams. Continue reading...

State and city lawmakers push to boost regulations after two outbreaks of the disease over the last two summersNew York lawmakers are now trying to better protect residents from the deadly legionnaires’ disease by increasing regulations and inspections of cooling towers after two outbreaks of the infection over the last two summers and a raft of new lawsuits.Legionnaires’ disease is a serious pneumonia caused by a bacterium called legionella. It often comes from large air-conditioning systems, like those used in hotels, hospitals and high-rise buildings, because the cooling towers contain water to remove heat. If not well maintained, the liquid can foster the bacteria, which can then be swept into fans and circulated through the air. Continue reading...

More than 100 undercover officers spied on tens of thousands of mainly leftwing activists over decadesProsecutors are examining whether to bring criminal charges against 12 former police officers who were involved in spying on political groups.The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is examining a file of evidence that the officers may have committed wrongdoing while working in controversial undercover operations. Continue reading...

Deal agreed between Avanti West Coast and Aslef is first to be approved by Burnham governmentTrain drivers have secured a significant pay rise after the threat of strike action was floated on busy routes across the UK, including those on the busy London-Manchester line.The deal, which was agreed on Saturday between Avanti West Coast and the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (Aslef) union, is the first to be approved by Andy Burnham in his premiership. Continue reading...

Inside the US state department, critics are still attacking a shuttered office established to counter foreign propaganda. Now, some of its work is also being resumedA botched leak of purportedly explosive government files to a prominent conservative online personality was supposed to offer proof of what the Trump administration and its allies have long alleged: that a little-known office inside the US state department, created to fight foreign propaganda, had secretly become a tool for domestic censorship.Two former high-ranking officials at the Global Engagement Center (GEC), a target of Republican ire that lost its funding in 2024 and was disbanded after Donald Trump’s return to office in 2025, say the documents show nothing of the kind. Continue reading...

The no campaign was well-funded and accused of scaremongering, but the wording of the question may also have made a differenceIt was always going to be a close contest. But on the night, the figures showed just how divided Iceland was on the issue of whether or not to restart negotiations with the European Union.After a nail-biting overnight count, the well-funded no campaign rejoiced on Sunday morning as the broadcaster RUV declared it the winner with about 52.8% of the vote. Given the size of Iceland’s population- barely 400,000 – the margins were tiny. Continue reading...

Breakdown recovery group’s private equity owners reportedly in talks with various suitors to sell companyGermany-based financial services company ⁠Allianz is considering a £5bn takeover swoop for AA, ⁠the breakdown ⁠recovery ​group, Sky News has reported.Allianz is ‌one of a small number of parties holding talks with advisers to the AA about a deal, Sky News said, adding that ‌the private equity outfit EQT was another bidder. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Research says sector is fixated with young talent, with most women experiencing unconscious bias or sexismWomen working in the arts believe they do not have equal opportunities for roles, especially as they get older, according to a report saying that the industry is fixated with “young and emerging” talent.Nearly all (95%) women working in the arts thought gender inequality persisted, while three-quarters (75%) reported experiencing unconscious bias or sexism, according to a survey of 76 arts professionals. More than two-thirds (69%) felt that age negatively affected their career success – a figure that rose to 100% among those working in artistic rather than managerial roles. Continue reading...

Critics say changes by CMA will allow multinationals to obscure their ownership of vet practicesPet owners have been warned that they could be unknowingly ripped off by private equity firms who have bought local vet clinics, after the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) removed requirements for multinational companies to disclose which practices they own.The CMA recently ran an investigation into the monopolisation of vet practices, and found that the lack of competition and transparency of ownership had led to high prices and a lack of information for customers. Pet owners were often unaware their local vet practice could be owned by an international private equity company. Continue reading...

No camp looks to have prevailed, holding 52.5% of votes with only a few left to be counted, says public broadcasterIceland appears to have ⁠rejected ⁠the government’s proposal ​to hold ⁠accession talks with ⁠the ​European Union, ‌the public ‌broadcaster RUV has ‌reported, with only a small ‌number of votes ​left to count.The no camp had 52.5% of votes and the yes camp 47.5%, with only a few ballots left to be counted in one of Iceland’s six voting districts, which was already leaning toward no, online ballot counting on RUV showed on Sunday.Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this story. Continue reading...

Solomon Islands prime minister cancels his appearance, along with leaders from Fiji, Vanuatu and SamoaSeveral leaders have pulled out of a the Pacific Islands Forum leaders’ meeting in Palau at the eleventh hour.Solomon Islands prime minister, Matthew Wale, has cancelled his appearance after a no-confidence motion was lodged against him at home by the Solomon Islands home affairs minister, Manasseh Maelanga. Continue reading...