Youth experience in Britain on a charity worker visa
Bee Wilson's article (Death, divorce and the magic of kitchen objects, 29 April) reminded me that the only thing my daughter has specifically asked me to leave her in my will is her great-grandmother's potato peeler, which still works efficiently after at least 70 years.Gina ColeBurgate, Suffolk
I have a small, round board roughly engraved with 'Bread' – a wedding gift to my mother in 1942 from her grandmother. The donor, wife of a charcoal burner and mother of 17 children, was making the most important wish she could for a 19-year-old bride: may you always have bread on your table. It worked. I can't bear to get rid of it.Vivien BaileySt Albans
Were it not for the amore divinos (to name but one) at Savino's in Emmanuel Street, Cambridge, I would surely follow Susan Sayers' daughter to Bologna for wonderful gluten-free treats (Letters, 28 April).Dr Jane Frances Cambridge
This is not just a cyber-attack – it's an M&S cyber-attack (Report, 29 April).David ShannonAshton under Hill, Worcestershire
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Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Keir Starmer to join crucial Ukraine talks with Donald Trump ahead of major Putin summit
Downing Street said the Prime Minister is 'absolutely focused' on a solution to the conflict - now in its third year - but insisted it must be 'grounded in Ukraine's national interests' Keir Starmer is set to join a call with Donald Trump and EU leaders on Wednesday ahead of the US President's face-to-face meeting with Vladimir Putin. The Russian tyrant and Mr Trump are expected to discuss the future of the Kremlin's brutal invasion of Ukraine at the high-stakes meeting in Alaska on Friday. Ukraine's wartime leader Volodymyr Zelensky is not expected to be present - raising fears a peace plan could be negotiated without Kyiv's involvement. On Tuesday evening, Downing Street confirmed Mr Starmer will take part in a series of virtual calls on Wednesday with the US President and European leaders on Ukraine. No10 said the Prime Minister is "absolutely focused" on a solution to the conflict - now in its third year - but insisted it must be "grounded in Ukraine's national interests". "He is determined to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, backed by robust and credible security guarantees that will deter Russia from threatening Ukraine in future," they aded. It comes after the Kremlin warned of nuclear war after unleashing another night of hell on Ukraine. UK-France small boats returns deal - all you need to know as new details released Mr Starmer will first join a call with European leaders including Ukraine's Zelensky, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and French President Emmanunel Macron. They will then be joined by Mr Trump and Vice President JD Vance to discuss the negotiations with Putin's Russia ahead of Friday's talks in Alaska. The PM will then co-chair a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing - countries prepared to provide military support to maintain any peace deal between Moscow and Kyiv. Earlier this week, Mr Zelensky posted on X that the Russian dictator "is definitely not preparing for a ceasefire or an end to the war". He warned allies: "Putin is determined only to present a meeting with America as his personal victory and then continue acting exactly as before, applying the same pressure on Ukraine as before." He added: "So far, there is no indication whatsoever that the Russians have received signals to prepare for a post-war situation. On the contrary, they are redeploying their troops and forces in ways that suggest preparations for new offensive operations. If someone is preparing for peace, this is not what he does. "We continue to keep our partners informed about the real situation on the battlefield, in diplomacy, and in Russia's planning of further actions." On Monday, Mr Starmer's official spokesman also warned Putin is not to be trusted. They said: "Never trust President Putin as far as you could throw him, but we obviously will support Ukraine. We will obviously support President Trump and European nations as we enter these negotiations. "But it is exactly why we've been leading this work on the coalition of the willing, because any ceasefire, as I say, cannot just be an opportunity for President Putin to go away, re-arm, restrengthen, and then go again. So we're not going to leave it to trust. We're going to ensure that we're prepared such that we achieve a ceasefire." Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, has called for Zelensky to be at the summit alongside Putin and Trump. But during a White House briefing earlier this week, the US President said: "He wasn't a part of it. I would say he could go, but he's gone to a lot of meetings. You know, he's been there for three and a half years. Nothing happened.'
The Guardian
6 hours ago
- The Guardian
Israel intensifies bombing of Gaza, killing 89 Palestinians in 24 hours
Israel has stepped up bombing Gaza, killing at least 89 Palestinians in 24 hours, including at least 15 people queueing for food, despite global outcry over the deaths of six journalists in the territory the previous day. Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City had intensified in the three days after Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet approved plans to expand the war in the territory. Five more people, including two children, were reported to have died of starvation, as the foreign ministers of 24 countries including the UK, Australia, France, Spain and Japan warned that 'humanitarian suffering in Gaza has reached unimaginable levels'. The ministers and the EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, called on the government of Israel to let in aid shipments immediately and allow essential humanitarian actors to operate in Gaza. 'Urgent action is needed now to halt and reverse starvation,' they said. Late on Tuesday, Netanyahu again raised the prospect that Palestinians would leave the Gaza Strip, telling Israeli broadcaster i24NEWS that 'we are not pushing them out, but we are allowing them to leave'. 'Give them the opportunity to leave, first of all, combat zones, and generally to leave the territory, if they want,' he said, drawing a parallel with refugee outflows during wars in Syria, Ukraine and Afghanistan. Previous suggestions by Israeli politicians and Donald Trump that Palestinians could leave Gaza have been condemned as illegal and dangerous calls for ethnic cleansing. More than 15 people were killed while waiting for food distribution at the Zikim crossing in northern Gaza, said Fares Awad, head of the ambulance services in northern Gaza. In the south of the territory, five people, including a couple and their child, were killed by an Israeli airstrike on a house in the city of Khan Younis and four by a strike on a tent encampment in nearby Mawasi, medics said. The civil defence agency spokesperson Mahmud Bassal said the residential neighbourhoods of Zeitoun and Sabra had been hit 'with very heavy airstrikes targeting civilian homes, possibly including high-rise buildings'. The bombardment was described by residents as the heaviest in weeks. 'It sounded like the war was restarting,' Amr Salah, 25, told Reuters. 'Tanks fired shells at houses, and several houses were hit, and the planes carried out what we call fire rings, whereby several missiles landed on some roads in eastern Gaza.' ''There are martyrs under the rubble that no one can reach because the shelling hasn't stopped,' said Majed al-Hosary, a resident in Zeitoun. Eleven bodies were recovered from the rubble of previous Israeli attacks, the ministry said on Telegram, including several casualties caused by strikes on Gaza City. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports and that its forces took precautions to mitigate civilian harm. Separately, it said that its forces had killed dozens of militants in north Gaza over the past month and destroyed more tunnels used by militants in the area. There was no sign on the ground of forces moving deeper into Gaza City as part of the newly approved Israeli offensive, which was expected to begin in the coming weeks. The most recent famine-related deaths brought the total number of hunger-related deaths recorded since 7 October 2023 to 227, including 103 children, according to Gaza's health ministry. Nasser Medical Complex confirmed a six-year-old boy had died of hunger-related illness in the southern city of Khan Younis, while doctors said a 30-year-old man had died of malnutrition. Israel has faced mounting criticism over the 22-month-long war with Hamas, with UN-backed experts warning of widespread famine unfolding in besieged Gaza. Israel has imposed a blockade and restrictions on aid entering the territory, but in his press conference on Sunday Netanyahu said it was 'completely false' that his government was pursuing a 'starvation policy'. He acknowledged hunger, and problems with the food distribution system run by the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, but accused the media of 'lies' about the scale of the problem. Nearly two years into the conflict, Israel's war on Gaza has killed a total of 61,599 Palestinians and injured 154,088 since 7 October 2023, according to Gaza's health ministry. An outpouring of condemnation has followed the death of the prominent Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif, killed along with four colleagues in an Israeli airstrike on Sunday. The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights said they would file a joint complaint to the international criminal court over their killings. The Israel Defense Forces admitted carrying out the attack, claiming Sharif was the leader of a Hamas cell responsible for rocket attacks against Israel – an allegation that Al Jazeera and Sharif had previously dismissed as baseless. HRF's investigation traces the chain of command from Netanyahu to senior Israeli army figures, including air force and intelligence commanders. The UN secretary general, António Guterres, condemned their deaths and his spokesperson called for an independent investigation. The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, said in a post on X: 'The Israeli Army continues to silence voices reporting atrocities from Gaza.' 'I am horrified by the killing of another five journalists in Gaza City. Since the war began, more than 200 Palestinian journalists have been reported killed in total impunity.' Reuters, AP and AFP contributed to this report.
The National
8 hours ago
- The National
An emphatic 2026 win for the SNP will mean no excuses for inaction
Given that support for independence is around 50% and support for establishing a Scottish parliament was around 75%, it does not take too much imagination to believe that a significant majority can be persuaded (with the help of some serious campaigning) to vote for that parliament to have the legal authority to conduct a referendum enabling the people of Scotland to determine their own future (within or outwith a now dysfunctional Union). READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon: Alex Salmond 'did not read' 2014 independence paper From Tommy's words, it appears that my personal interpretation of John Swinney's intentions regarding a constitutional convention – as being consistent with the creation of a widely-inclusive citizen's convention – was wrong. However, if we wish to gain broad public support for the next step on our journey to independence then, in addition to progressing an open citizens' convention, independence parties should have the commitment to establishing the legal authority of the Scottish Parliament to conduct a constitutional referendum clearly stated as a primary clause in their manifestos, backed up by stated actions to ensure that authority is granted to Holyrood. Otherwise, unless independence can be achieved in the meantime by alternative actions, the next Westminster General Election must be declared a de facto referendum. Offering another perspective to the dilemmas confronting 'Old John' and Jim Taylor (Letters, Aug 11), and no doubt many others, the more emphatic an SNP victory, the less excuse the SNP hierarchy will have for not taking substantive actions in support of a public mandate. This approach may be considered hypocritical by some if they do not support the route to independence advocated by the current First Minister, but to vote otherwise in the knowledge that it could bring about a Labour government in Holyrood would seem a betrayal to most who are absolutely committed to independence. Better to give neither the First Minister nor the Prime Minister any excuse for not delivering, or for further delaying, the means of exercising the right of Scotland's people to determine their own future. Stan Grodynski Longniddry, East Lothian TRUMP'S views on a deal with Putin over Ukraine seems like a deal between 18th-century aristocrats settling their gambling debts. Trump acts like an18th-century monarch. No consideration is given to the views of residents of the possible transfer areas, who are merely insignificant chequers in a high-stakes gambling deal. It seems reminiscent of the Act of Union, whereby the ruling elite in Scotland agreed to a union with England against the will of the general populace. READ MORE: David Pratt: Are Trump and Putin about to stitch up Ukraine? Trump will no doubt gain whatever happens, and Ukraine will suffer, being back under a modern Russian Czar. President Trump will parade as a peacemaker, and his sycophants (with usual brown envelopes pocketed) will propose him for a Nobel Peace Prize which he desires, hypocrite that he is. What's changed in politics since the 18th century? Modern democracy seems little more than a sham, with elites still in charge. Current political parties seem little more than a means for the current elites to maintain control under a pretext of democracy. Where is real limitation of elector funding? The exist many ways to get round and buy elections. If you're in the know, it seems funding is unrestricted. The current government in the UK, as well as the previous one, seem uninterested in altering the present set-up, as they both benefit from it. Drew Reid Falkirk YOUR article 'PM claims people feeling 'better off'' by Hamish Morrison (Aug 7) presents the reader with the classic case of 'the ventriloquist has died but the dummy keeps talking'! The 'dummy' tells us that his government is 'bearing down' on costs and 'putting more money into people's pockets'. Yes, the pockets of his sponsors, big businesses and fellow Labour parliamentarians, definitely NOT those of the people of the country! Since Labour came to power, the 'dummy' has increased the weekly shopping costs by as much as 40%. The facts reveal 'disposable income' is falling! It's not falling, it's PLUMMETING in an ever-increasing spiral into those same pockets that enabled Starmer to become PM. The answer is to tax the super-rich and get them to pay their fair share. Everyone knows 'Starmer the dummy' will never do that because HE is one of the super rich along with his cronies who sit beside him on the government benches. As for 'the focus will be on living standards', these are also PLUMMETING under his watch. Everybody and anybody in the 'vulnerable' category will be forced to pay more tax but not the wealthy pals, sponsors and big businesses who back this 'dummy'. I don't ever see 'Rachel from Accounts' do anything to help anyone other than herself and the 'dummy'. It's time the dummy was put back in the box and a real person with a spine and a conscience took over – or better still, let Scotland leave this Westminster pantomime. Jim Todd Cumbernauld
