Bid

• The European Commission is preparing to take France and Spain to Europe’s top court for failing to implement required cybersecurity legislation. • Both nations missed an October 2024 deadline to integrate the European Union's cybersecurity rules into their own national lawbooks. • Separately, 17 EU leaders, including representatives from Germany, Belgium, and Italy, held a video conference on Monday to discuss EU competitiveness.

• Asian stock markets declined as the recent artificial intelligence rally reversed, leading to significant losses for South Korea's KOSPI index. • Oil prices surged following a retaliatory attack by Iran on Israel, which was launched in response to a previous strike in Beirut. • The market downturn reflects a shift in investor sentiment as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East outweigh previous AI-driven optimism.

Three GOP senators joined Democrats as dispute over proposed payouts exposed party divisionsUS politics live – latest updatesSenate Republicans on Thursday narrowly scuttled an attempt by Democrats to stop Donald Trump from creating a $1.8bn fund to pay his allies, even as signs emerged that dissent over the proposal was spreading inside the US president’s own party.Democratic Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, had proposed inserting language barring the payouts into Republican-backed legislation to fund Trump’s mass deportation campaign through the duration of his term. Continue reading...

• U.S. stock markets ended lower as escalating tensions between the United States and Iran weighed on investor sentiment. • The S&P 500 index saw its nine-day winning streak come to an end due to the geopolitical instability. • The market volatility highlights how uncertainty regarding a potential ceasefire or diplomatic resolution continues to disrupt financial stability.

• Arsenal FC is reportedly interested in bringing Argentine striker Julian Alvarez back to the Premier League from Spain. • Alvarez previously played for Manchester City, who originally signed him in a deal valued at approximately £81 million. • This potential move highlights Arsenal's strategy to bolster their attacking options during the current summer transfer window.

High court dismisses organisation’s injunction attempt against hate group designation Neo-Nazi group White Australia has lost its bid for temporary immunity from anti-hate laws passed after the Bondi terror attack which it says will render it “extinct”.The organisation, which has been seeking to register as a political party, had asked the high court to temporarily block its designation as a prohibited hate group. Continue reading...

• Chelsea is reportedly exploring options for a new defender due to uncertainty regarding Marc Cucurella's future, as the player attracts interest from clubs in Spain. • Juventus is currently not seeking to sell 26-year-old defender Gleison Bremer, though reports suggest the club's stance may change for the right price. • According to Gazzetta dello Sport, a significant bid worth €50m (£43.2m) could potentially force Juventus to reconsider selling the player.

Former first lady speaks about Biden’s decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race at event for her new memoirJill Biden recalled the immense pressure that Joe Biden faced in the aftermath of his disastrous 2024 debate performance, saying he told her “Jilly, I had no choice,” following his decision to drop out of the presidential race.The former first lady made the comments during a Tuesday book event coinciding with the release of her new memoir, View from the East Wing. The event was held at the 92nd Street Y in New York City, and moderated by comedian and co-host of The View, Whoopi Goldberg. Former president Biden was in attendance at the event and received two standing ovations from the crowd. Continue reading...

Democratic candidate already cites PTSD for racist, sexist, homophobic online posts and has covered up Nazi tattooMidterm primaries – live results and updatesGraham Platner met on Tuesday with Democratic leaders in Washington DC as the embattled Maine Senate candidate contends with yet another revelation threatening his campaign, which is at the center of his party’s hopes of regaining control of Congress.Platner did not respond to questions from reporters and quickly entered a waiting car as he exited the meeting, which stretched for more than an hour and a half at the headquarters of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC). A spokesperson for the DSCC did not respond to a request for comment. Continue reading...

Labor MP Mike Freelander says party must continue to help under-pressure workers, including considering further income tax cutsLabor will seek to highlight Pauline Hanson’s record of opposing cost-of-living relief for working people as it tries to prevent One Nation further eroding its voter base.As the government grapples with how to deal with Hanson’s surge, one Labor MP predicted One Nation’s support had peaked and the right-wing populist party wouldn’t be able to replicate its polling success at a federal election. Continue reading...

Airline’s shares hit highest level in three months as investment group Castlelake says it is considering offerBusiness live – latest updatesEasyJet has called a potential £3bn bid by a US investment group “highly opportunistic”, as shares in the budget airline shot up to their highest level in three months on the takeover interest.The US private credit firm Castlelake said on Friday it was considering a takeover offer for the airline. On Monday, it said it had already bought a 2.14% stake in the business and its offer would value easyJet at least at 403p a share, or about £3bn overall. Continue reading...

US senator says Platner, whose wife says he sent sexually explicit messages to other women, has ‘questions to answer’A high-profile Democrat has expressed concerns with party candidate Graham Platner’s Maine US Senate campaign amid revelations that Platner reportedly sent a number of sexually explicit messages to other women while married.“Yes, I have concerns,” Cory Booker, the US senator from New Jersey, said Sunday on ABC’s This Week when host Jonathan Karl when asked about the Platner revelations. “That guy has questions to answer – and that’s what campaigns are for.” Continue reading...

• Sweden is actively pursuing a strategy to achieve global leadership in artificial intelligence, moving beyond the mere application of existing US-developed AI systems. • The Nordic nation aims to "change the rules of the game" by developing its own sovereign AI capabilities and infrastructure to reduce dependency on foreign technology. • This shift is significant as it represents a strategic effort by a European power to compete with the dominant AI ecosystems of the United States and China.

• Sweden has qualified for the World Cup via a "back-door" entry after failing to win a single match during the group stage of qualifying. • Managed by Graham Potter, the team will compete in Group F against the Netherlands, Japan, and Tunisia in North America. • The squad intends to rely on a potent strikeforce featuring Premier League stars Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres to navigate the tournament.

Trump administration in a bind as it faces mounting economic costs ahead of midterms from Iran warThe terms of a purported 60-day deal to negotiate peace in the Iran war have trapped the Trump administration between mounting economic costs ahead of midterm elections and anger from Republican hawks who accuse the US government of surrendering to Iran.The public rift between Trump and Senate Republicans over his shift toward diplomacy with Iran has also been matched within his administration, where the dovish JD Vance and traditional neoconservative Marco Rubio have been forced to pirouette between Trump’s policies as he shifts to exit the war as soon as possible. Continue reading...

In CBS interview set to air Sunday, former first lady says she was ‘frightened’ during husband’s debate with TrumpJill Biden said she had been “frightened” as she watched Joe Biden’s faltering performance during his 2024 presidential debate, and thought her husband might have suffered a stroke.“I was frightened, because I had never, ever seen Joe like that before or since. Never,” the former first lady said in an interview with CBS set to air on Sunday. Continue reading...

• Canada has reached an agreement to supply Germany with liquefied natural gas (LNG) sourced from a planned facility on the country's west coast. • The deal supports Prime Minister Mark Carney's strategic objective to double Canada's energy exports to markets outside of the United States. • This partnership is intended to strengthen European energy security by diversifying gas sources and reducing reliance on other volatile suppliers.

Former president says disclosure of recordings tied to classified files inquiry would violate his privacyJoe Biden, the former president, has filed a lawsuit to try to prevent the justice department (DoJ) from releasing transcripts and audio of interviews that exposed his frequent memory lapses and helped derail his 2024 re-election campaign.The decade-old conversations with the author of his biography ended up in the hands of Robert Hur, the special counsel who was appointed to look into allegations Biden improperly handled classified documents. Continue reading...

• A group of prominent French companies, including Orange, Capgemini, EDF, and Scaleway, have formed the AION consortium to bid for the European Union’s AI Gigafactories initiative. • The consortium aims to build massive computing infrastructure within France to reduce reliance on non-EU technology providers. • This move is critical for enhancing Europe's digital sovereignty and ensuring that EU economies remain competitive by securing scalable access to high-performance AI computing power.

• The Premier League concluded its season on Sunday with 10 concurrent matches, featuring a high-scoring "goal rush" across the league. • Key results included Tottenham Hotspur securing a victory that resulted in the relegation of West Ham, while Mohamed Salah played his final match for Liverpool. • Other notable fixtures played on the final day included Fulham vs Newcastle, Manchester United vs Brighton, and West Ham vs Leeds United.

Ulf Kristersson aims to expand state-funded IVF as Sweden grapples with lowest fertility rate since records beganSweden’s prime minister has promised to put IVF at the heart of his re-election campaign as he tries to win over female voters amid the country’s record low birthrate.Ulf Kristersson’s government recently increased the number of state-funded IVF attempts granted to aspiring first-time parents from three to six. Continue reading...

Gerry ‘the monk’ Hutch comes fourth in contest won by Daniel Ennis of Social DemocratsThe Irish gangland figure Gerry “the monk” Hutch has failed in his bid for a parliamentary seat in a Dublin byelection.The 63-year-old came fourth in a contest won by Daniel Ennis of the Social Democrats, a victory for progressive politics after a campaign dominated by concerns over the cost of living and immigration. Continue reading...

• The French consortium AION, formed in 2025, intends to bid for EU infrastructure funding to construct a massive AI data center campus in France. • The proposed project carries an estimated valuation of up to EUR10 billion (approximately US$11.6 billion). • This initiative is part of a broader European Union strategy to increase domestic AI capacity and decrease the region's strategic reliance on technology from the United States.

• Pakistan is intensifying its diplomatic efforts to facilitate a resumption of peace talks between the United States and Iran. • President Trump and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu aim to dismantle Iran's nuclear and missile programs while curbing its support for regional militias. • The initiative comes as Trump faces domestic pressure and declining approval ratings due to rising fuel prices ahead of the November midterm elections.

Court throws out state’s challenge to judicial finding that inmate convicted of murder is ineligible for death penaltyThe US supreme court on Thursday threw out a challenge by the state of Alabama to a judicial finding that a death row inmate convicted of a 1997 murder is intellectually disabled and thus ineligible under the US constitution for the death penalty.In this highly unusual move, and in a single-sentence, unsigned order, the court dismissed Alabama’s petition for review in Hamm v Smith without deciding it, effectively undoing its earlier decision to take up an appeal by state officials to the method used by a lower court to determine that Joseph Clifton Smith was intellectually disabled and therefore could not be executed. Continue reading...

• A French consortium led by Scaleway has submitted a bid of approximately $10 billion to construct one of the European Union's planned AI gigafactories. • The project is part of the InvestAI Facility, a €20 billion initiative designed to underwrite up to five large-scale AI infrastructure sites across the bloc. • The program has seen significant interest, with 76 expressions of interest received from member states including Germany, Spain, Italy, Finland, Portugal, and the Netherlands.

• A French consortium called AION is bidding for a portion of the European Union's new €20 billion AI datacentre fund to build a massive infrastructure project. • The proposed data centre carries an estimated cost of €10 billion, with telecommunications company Iliad already prepared to invest €4 billion. • This initiative is designed to significantly enhance Europe's artificial intelligence capabilities and reduce reliance on non-EU technology.

• The Philippine Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a petition from a senator seeking to stop his arrest after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant over alleged crimes against humanity. • The decision keeps the legal path open for arrest proceedings and leaves the senator’s status subject to further action by authorities. • The ruling matters because it highlights the continuing domestic and international fallout from ICC-related cases in the Philippines.