News feed
First-time buyers have eight months to beat stamp duty increases or pay thousands extra
First-time buyers have eight months to take advantage of the current stamp duty land tax regulations and save hundreds of pounds on home purchases. A first-time buyer pays no stamp duty on a home worth up to £425,000. If their residence is more expensive, they only pay tax greater than £425,000. However, this ceiling, which has been at its present level since 2022, is set to return to the previous barrier of £300,000 in April 2025.
Sussex Police arrest eight Just Stop Oil activists at Gatwick Airport after departure gate protest
Seven Just Stop Oil activists were observed sitting on the airport floor, their hands in lock-on devices. Gatwick Airport reports that the protestors were removed from the airport at approximately 9:15 a.m. Eight Just Stop Oil protesters were arrested at Gatwick Airport after they used bags equipped with lock-on devices to demonstrate near a security barrier. According to the protest group, seven activists entered the airport's southern terminal at 8 a.m., and an image shows them sitting on the floor and blocking an entrance.
Maduro wins Venezuela election by government-controlled authority
The government-controlled electoral body named Nicolás Maduro the winner of Venezuela's presidential election, dashing opposition expectations for an end to his dictatorial, socialist reign after 25 years. Rivals and numerous governments in the region and elsewhere quickly challenged itollowing a six-hour delay in publishing the results of Sunday's poll, Venezuela's electoral council announced Maduro had won with 51.21% of the vote, compared to 44.2% for his competitor, former diplomat Edmundo González Urrutia. The council stated that with around 80% of votes tabulated, Maduro had received more than 5 million votes, compared to González's 4.4 million.
Israel shoots drones at Lebanon amid escalation fears
Two civilians were reportedly killed by Israeli drone attacks in southern Lebanon as the border crisis escalated. The Israeli attack was the first lethal response to a missile attack on Saturday that Israel claims killed 12 children and youths in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The strike has heightened fears that the battle in Gaza would develop into a regional conflict. According to Lebanon's state media, one strike hit a motorcycle near the border, killing two riders and wounding a kid. Two other people were hurt in a separate strike in southern Lebanon.
Ratcliffe supports new 100,000-seat stadium as Manchester United decides
Sir Jim Ratcliffe wants Manchester United to decide on their stadium plans by December. He prefers a new facility with a capacity of 100,000 that will cost more than £2 billion and take six years to finish. That would be built close to Old Trafford, enabling the use of the current arena until the new one is completed. One of the most critical aspects of the build's look is that it is associated with the club. The other alternative is to rebuild Old Trafford, which would significantly decrease revenue because sections of the stadium would be closed while being renovated, or United would have to play elsewhere while construction is underway.
Israeli ministers authorize Netanyahu’s Hezbollah reprisal
Israel's security council has given Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defense minister the authority to determine when and how to respond to a deadly rocket attack blamed on the Lebanese Shia militant group Hezbollah by Israel and the United States. Ministers convened an emergency session following Saturday evening's strike on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which murdered 12 Druze children and teens. Hezbollah has denied responsibility. It was the deadliest cross-border incident in months of gunfire between the two sides.
First campaign week, Harris raises $200m and recruits 170,000 volunteers
According to her team, Kamala Harris' campaign raised $200 million in the week after Biden's endorsement, and the vice president appears to be boosting interest in her candidacy. Harris, for President, stated that approximately 66% of the total came from first-time contributions, citing "unprecedented grassroots support." On Sunday, former Vice President and climate activist Al Gore backed Harris, and more than 170,000 volunteers have signed up to assist the Harris campaign with phone banking, canvassing, and other get-out-the-vote operations, according to Michael Tyler, the campaign's communications director.
Regulators pressure Elon Musk’s X for Grok AI data harvesting
Elon Musk's X platform is under fire from data regulators after discovering that users consent to their postings being used to construct artificial intelligence systems through a default setting on the app. The UK and Irish data watchdogs said they had contacted X without their knowledge regarding the apparent attempt to obtain user consent for data collection.
UNRWA is about to become a terrorist organization under Israeli legislation
Neither the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the United Nations' highest judicial organ, to halt its "plausible" genocide in Gaza, nor the damning advisory opinion of the same court ordering it to end its illegal occupation of Palestine and apartheid policies against Palestinians, gave Israel pause. The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC)'s request that arrest warrants be issued for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Gallant had no impact on its actions. In reality, not even the growing condemnation from some of its supporters is forcing Israel to reconsider its homicidal apartheid and genocidal tactics.
Russia wants to boycott the Olympics, but athletes ‘desperate’ to compete
Last year, the International Olympic Committee declared that individual Russian and Belarusian athletes who qualified for the Olympics might compete, but only as neutrals. In terms of artistic swimming, Russia is an Olympic superpower. For the past six games, the national team has won every single event, both team and duet.
France travel chaos is expected to extend all weekend
Three of ten French high-speed trains will be canceled on Saturday following a series of "coordinated" arson attacks. The national rail firm SNCF said that services that do run will be delayed by up to two hours on three major lines that run into and out of Paris. Eurostar customers will also suffer continued disruption on Saturday, with a fifth of international trains canceled during the Olympic Games opening weekend.
EuroMillions: UK winner claims £24 million lottery jackpot
This is the second time a British-based winner has won the top prize this month. A single UK ticket holder won the £24 million EuroMillions jackpot in Friday's lottery draw. The lucky winner became a multi-millionaire overnight after matching all five main numbers (04, 19, 23, 35, 37) and the two bonus numbers (04 and 08).
