Sunday, May 18, 2014

The governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, has warned that the state of the housing market in the United Kingdom is the current biggest domestic threat to the country’s economy, due to lack of house building, and regulatory issues.

In an interview to be aired on Sky News today, he said the housing market is the “biggest risk” to the economy and has “deep, deep structural problems”. Of house building he said: “There are not sufficient houses built in the UK. To go back to Canada, there are half as many people in Canada as in the UK, twice as many houses are built every year in Canada as in the UK and we can’t influence that.”

“We’re not going to build a single house at the Bank of England. We can’t influence that. What we can influence […] is whether the banks are strong enough. Do they have enough capital against risk in the housing market?”

Carney also said the Bank of England would look into the procedures used to issue loans and mortgages to see if they were being granted appropriately: “We’d be concerned if there was a rapid increase in high loan-to-value mortgages across the banks. We’ve seen that creeping up and it’s something we’re watching closely.”

Kris Hopkins responded to Carney on behalf of the government, saying the government “inherited a broken housing market, but our efforts to fix it are working”. “We’ve scrapped the failed top-down planning system, built over 170,000 affordable homes and released more surplus brownfield sites for new housing. We’ve also helped homebuyers get on the housing ladder, because if people can buy homes builders will build them. Housebuilding is now at its highest level since 2007 and climbing. Last year councils gave permission for almost 200,000 new homes under the locally-led planning system and more than 1,000 communities have swiftly taken up neighbourhood planning. It’s clear evidence the government’s long-term economic plan is working.”

Earlier this month, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development called on the UK government to “tighten” access to the ‘Help to Buy’ scheme introduced by George Osborne and the coalition government in 2013. ‘Help to Buy’ has also recently been criticised by three former Chancellors of the Exchequer — the Conservatives Norman Lamont and Nigel Lawson, and former Labour Chancellor Alistair Darling. Darling said: “Unless supply can be increased substantially, we will exacerbate that situation with schemes like Help to Buy.”

Friday, March 31, 2006

Canada has become the first western country to freeze aid and cut diplomatic ties to Palestine after the Palestinian Legislative Council installed a government led by Hamas. No other country has yet followed through on threats to end aid to the Palestinian Authority. Aid may still go to Palestine through the United Nations.

The Canadian Arab Federation head, Faraj Nakhleh, later expressed his dismay at the decision, which he says will harm the interests of the 3.5 million Palestinians who are at risk of starvation.

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Today, Joachim Löw, manager of the German national football team, dropped Borussia Dortmund midfielder Marco Reus from the UEFA Euro 2016 squad. Marco Reus, who turned 27 years old today, is suffering from a groin injury. He also missed the 2014 FIFA World Cup with an ankle injury.

Löw said their medical staff wasn’t sure Reus could meet the demands of the forthcoming games. He added, “Marco has serious fitness problems; he can only run in a straight line at the moment.” ^{((de))German language: ?Marco hat massive gesundheitliche Probleme, im Moment kann er nur geradeaus laufen.}

Löw also did not include other Bundesliga players Karim Bellarabi, Julian Brandt, and Sebastian Rudy from the provisional squad in the final selection. Thanking the four German internationals for their performance in training, he said, “It’s not a decision against those four players, but rather one in favour of the other 23.” ^{((de))German language: ?Es ist keine Entscheidung gegen vier Spieler, sondern eine Entscheidung für 23 Spieler.}

Germany are due to play their final friendly match before the start of Euro 2016 on June 4 against Hungary. On June 12, Germany will open their account in Euro 2016 when they face Ukraine in Lille, France.

Friday, February 26, 2010

Thailand’s Supreme Court today ruled that the family of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra be stripped of 46.3 billion baht (US$1.4 billion) in frozen assets, more than half of a contested $2.3 billion fortune. According to the court, the seized assets were illegally gained while Thaksin was Prime Minister; specifically, his familial involvement and connections with Shin Corporation.

In a statement released by the court, the judges said that Thaksin had adjusted government policies to favor telecommunications businesses, including Shin Corporation, a large telecommunications company owned by Thaksin, and his family, and sold to a Singapore investment firm in 2006. Additionally, Thaksin was alleged to have deposited shares held in Shin Corporation with family members whilst in office – a move to avoid, under Thai law, illegally holding any company stock while Prime Minister. Additionally, he was found to have unfairly promoted a $127 million loan to Burma – benefiting a satellite communications firm controlled by his family.

In a response from an undisclosed location outside Thailand, Thaksin contested the ruling, claiming the case was politically motivated and that, “the court was used to get rid of a politician.” In his remarks, he said that he came by his wealth legally, and he would continue his fight against both the ruling and the party that ousted him in 2008. In Thailand, Thaksin’s red-shirted supporters publicly opposed the verdict; although, no significant disturbances have been reported despite government warnings over the possibility violence. Instead, protesters say they plan a mass demonstration against the ruling sometime in March.

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

On Sunday night in Prague, Czech Republic, 183 people on a Jet2 flight arriving from Manchester, United Kingdom were evacuated after, reportedly, discovery in the aircraft’s toilets of a picture of a bomb.

The Czech foreign ministry’s spokesperson said a painting of a bomb had been found in the plane’s toilet by a flight attendant. According to the spokesperson, a search of the plane turned up no bombs.

A passenger said they were informed of a “threatening note” in the aircraft’s bathroom, and kept for roughly four hours at the airport.

From passenger accounts, every single passenger on the plane was interviewed, and the CCTV checked. One of the passengers said that, despite all of this, they saw no arrests in connection with this incident.

A spokeswoman for Jet2 said they were sorry about any inconvenience the evacuation caused, but consider people’s safety on-board the most important thing.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Over 1,600 volunteers registered to help build approximately 65,000 of the 500,000 sandbags to create dikes 20.5 feet (6.2 meters) high to protect the City of Winnipeg, Manitoba in the war against the Red River of the North flood.

700 volunteers answered at the rural municipality of St. Andrews alone. Once sandbags are filled for West St. Paul, St. Andrews, and Selkirk, then frozen culverts must be cleared.

The height of the river is expected to be Thursday, and predictions are that it will be less than Flood of the Century of 1997. There is no precipitation in the forecast, and snow in the province should be melted by the end of the week.

“The fear right now is we have to get that ice out of the river. The Amphibex [Excavators] are still working and breaking the ice apart, and everyday we buy with the warm weather and the current, it is thinning the ice down a bit, so when it does start to move, the better chance it’ll move right out into the lake,” said Paul Guyder, the emergency coordinator for the RMs of St. Andrews and St. Clements.

“I feel that we’ve done everything humanly possible to get ready,” said Gary Doer, Premier of Manitoba, “But … there are fallibilities with human behaviour. We can take every preventative measure as human beings possible and we can still get Mother Nature proving again she is superior.”

Communities with ring diking will partially or fully close their dikes at the beginning of the week. Provincial officials are considering opening the Red River Floodway gates around mid-week before ice is fully melted.

Ice jams could cause flooding within the city, however opening the gates could spare neighbourhood flooding when the river rises to the estimated 6.3 meters (20.7 feet) height. The province does have back up plans for dealing with ice jams within the city if they do occur. The unpredictability of ice jams and the ensuing water level rise may cause neighbourhood flooding. The city is raising dikes where the river has jammed with ice in the past such as on tight curves and past bridges. Likewise there are excavators and backhoes positioned at these points.

Vulnerable neighbourhoods on the river banks have been reinforced with sandbag dikes at vulnerable areas from the massive volunteer effort over the weekend. Guyader feels no more extra volunteers are needed, however volunteers are still being asked to leave their names and number in case of unpredicted need. Existing personnel will assess roads, and help with clean up.

Approximately 400 of the 800 people who evacuated the Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation have returned to their homes.

Former Premier, Dufferin Roblin, brought forward the floodway as a protection for Winnipeg residents and economy following the 1950 Red River Flood. The Red River floodway, “Duff’s Ditch” was finally finished in 1968, and its floodway gates have been opened 20 times saving Winnipeg from an estimated CA$10 billion in damages. The floodway expansion began in 2005 at a price of $665 million.

Polish and Chinese experts have come to survey the Red River Floodway, and Dennis Walaker, mayor of Fargo, North Dakota recognises the need for Red River flood defences down river. “Every town that you drive by from the Canadian line up to Winnipeg is either elevated or ring-diked,” said Walaker.

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Sunday, Wikinews sat down with Australian Paralympic guide skier Andrew Bor who was participating in a national team training camp in Vail, Colorado.

((Wikinews)) This is Andrew Bor, who is Melissa Perrine’s guide skier. How did you become a guide?

Andrew Bor: I was coaching with the team, the September before the games here. And the APC [Australian Paralympic Committee] found out, I’m not sure how, sent Melissa out to New Zealand where there was a training camp. She didn’t have a guide. And one of the coaches chose me to guide Mel.

((WN)) Had you done much guiding before?

Andrew Bor: Two days. Guided a visually impaired athlete twice before that.

((WN)) Was there a steep learning curve?

Andrew Bor: Yeah, very steep learning curve. Still learning.

((WN)) Is it more difficult as a male guide with a female skier, do you think, because the rules require you to use male ski equipment?

Andrew Bor: No. No, I don’t think so. I don’t think there’s any issue with that. The skis make a different radius turn. Sometimes. No, I don’t think it makes a huge difference.

((WN)) As a guide skier, do you think that guides should be getting medals when their skier gets a medal? Are you that important?

Andrew Bor: No, I don’t know. It’s the athlete’s performance really.

((WN)) But you’re an athlete aren’t you?

Andrew Bor: No. I’m their eyes if that makes any sense. If they don’t have the commitment to go down the hill, you’re never going to get them to go fast anyway. The guide’s responsibility is to put them in the right place. But beyond that…

((WN)) You’ve gotten support because of the performance in Vancouver? The government has been supporting you guys?

Andrew Bor: The government has decided to support the guides as equally as the athletes. Before I was employed by the APC, and now I don’t get paid by the APC, I get the same support levels. Otherwise, you can’t do it, you can’t afford the time.

((WN)) Why have you chosen skiing as opposed to oh, waterskiing or some other sport?

Andrew Bor: I’ve worked in this industry for about 20 years. Teaching skiing, coaching. It’s not something I chose to do, it’s something that kind of happened. After a while a door closed, a door opened. I enjoy the environment. Working outdoors and work in some lovely places. You get some great days when there’s blue sky and sunshine and other days in Australia where it might be two degrees and raining. But it beats working in an office.

((WN)) Do you think the classification system for blind skiers works and is a good one? Especially with the factoring issues, and you’re competing with B1, B2, B3, all compete against each other.

Andrew Bor: Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t think there’s a big enough pool of athletes to have three different classes. It’s never going to be ideal. Different classes have different issues. The handicap for the twos and the threes is fairly similar across the different disciplines. Maybe the threes have an advantage in the tech because they can see a bit more, but they have a bit of a disadvantage in the speed because they can’t see enough to see the next gate and have to rely on the guide. Bit of a trade off. It’s never going to be perfect. It’s a tough one.

((WN)) Are you planning to go to Sochi with Melissa?

Andrew Bor: Yes. Yes I am.

((WN)) Do you think you guys have, you and Melissa can pick up a medal, and you get a medal?

Andrew Bor: I think Melissa is yeah. I think Melissa has a fairly good chance. You know, if things fall in place. I think she’s got an opportunity to win at least a medal. If things don’t fall in place. Yeah. She might miss out completely.

((WN)) Do you plan to continue guide skiing with Melissa for a period following Sochi, or are you going to be like “I’ve had enough, I’m getting old, these mountains are really tall, I’m going to retire?”

Andrew Bor: I don’t know. We’ll wait and see. At the moment the commitment is until Sochi. You see with athletes, some announce their retirement early. Depends what Melissa wants to do. Depends on whether you achieve the goals that she sets or not. Whether she’s got unfinished business…

((WN)) But at the moment, the goal is Sochi?

Andrew Bor: The goal is Sochi, yes. You’ve got to have an end goal, and at the moment it’s Sochi. The energy of the last four years has been put into that. There’s been a commitment for her to go to Sochi, and at the same time you’ve got to commit to the same thing. The guide-to-athlete thing is a relationship that takes time to build and work out the needs of the athlete and the wants of the athlete. Beyond Sochi, don’t know. We’ll see.