City

Adams was granted citizenship and a passport from Balkan country by a special decree from the republic’s presidentFormer New York City mayor Eric Adams has obtained citizenship and a passport from Albania, according to reports on Friday from the Balkan country which received effusive compliments from him during a visit months earlier.The Albania Daily News first reported that Adams had requested both and was granted them by a special decree from the republic’s president, Bajram Begaj. Euronews Albania also reported the same development, and it was evidently chronicled in the nation’s official government journal. Continue reading...

• Truckload markets are tightening faster than anticipated, with freight costs now projected to increase 16–17% year over year in 2026, according to C.H. Robinson's April freight market update. • Capacity constraints and carrier attrition are driving the acceleration in transportation costs across North America. • The tighter capacity environment signals sustained pressure on logistics expenses for shippers as supply chain challenges persist into the second quarter.

Former Channel 4 chair and boss of Kingfisher to be appointed at crucial time for UK’s media regulatorBusiness live – latest updatesThe UK media regulator Ofcom has named the City veteran Ian Cheshire as its next chair.Ofcom, which oversees the UK’s media and internet sectors, named Cheshire as its preferred candidate for chair on Wednesday. He will be formally appointed to the role for a four-year term once he has been approved in a parliamentary hearing. Continue reading...

CBI figures showing surprise jump in financial sector’s growth will be welcome news for Rachel ReevesBritain’s financial services companies have reported a strong recovery in activity at the start of the year, in a surprise boost to the government after a gloomy end to 2025.Banks, insurers and investment managers said their businesses were growing, with a positive balance of nearly two-thirds noting an expansion, according to a long-running survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), a lobby group. That contrasted with the negative balance of 38% in December, despite the start of the US-Israel war on Iran. Continue reading...

Ron Gibson had recently expressed support for a 14-acre, $500m data center project in Martindale-BrightwoodAn Indianapolis city councilor said his home was fired at on Monday, with a note left behind suggesting he had been targeted over his support of data centers.The case involving Ron Gibson – a Democrat on Indianapolis’s city council since 2024 – comes amid growing bipartisan concern in the US over political violence in the wake of cases such as the September murder of Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist. Continue reading...

Unite accuses authority of trying to ‘break’ industrial action as waste dispute enters second yearUnite has accused Birmingham city council of trying to “break” the bin strikes after analysis showed the council had doubled spending on agency staff since the start of the year-long industrial action.Birmingham’s bin workers have taken part in an all-out strike since March last year over proposed pay cuts and role changes. The dispute has left residents without a fully functioning waste collection service and has led to towering waste and overflowing bins on the streets. Continue reading...

• Congresswoman Dina Titus (D-NV) introduced HR 8167, the Diplomatic Reserve Corps Act of 2026, on March 31, authorizing a 1,000-member ready reserve for U.S. diplomatic efforts. • Co-led by Rep. Michael Baumgartner (R-WA) and endorsed by the American Academy of Diplomacy, the bill addresses heightened demand periods for diplomacy. • The reserve would enable rapid deployment of experienced personnel to support State Department operations globally.

Announcement part of controversial shakeup described by critics as administration attack on ‘science and scientists’The Trump administration will move the US Forest Service headquarters from Washington DC to Salt Lake City and shut down its regional offices, the agriculture department has announced. The announcement sets in motion a controversial reorganization for the country’s second-largest federal land management agency that Trump officials have planned since last year.The move, which the USDA touted as a “commonsense approach”, recalls the first Trump administration’s chaotic attempt to relocate the Bureau of Land Management from Washington DC to Colorado, first announced in 2019. The agency lost nearly 90% of its Washington-based staff, who declined to move – only for the BLM to return toWashington after Joe Biden took office. Continue reading...

Milpitas approves measure to distribute smart doorbells and says residents can upload footage to police databaseA Silicon Valley city will offer its residents free wireless doorbells equipped with cameras to help police collect video evidence.The city council of Milpitas, a suburb north of San Jose, California, recently approved $60,000 to provide these devices on a one-camera-per-household, first-come, first-served basis, as was first reported by Milpitas Beat and confirmed by the Guardian. Continue reading...

Inquiry will directly look at whether factors influenced offending and institutional response in England and WalesThe grooming gangs inquiry will directly examine whether ethnicity, culture or religion influenced offending and whether they shaped the institutional response.The statutory independent inquiry has published its terms of reference, which will be laid before parliament when it returns from recess on 13 April. The inquiry will then begin its full investigation into the group-based sexual exploitation of children in England and Wales. Continue reading...