
Stunning admission by Queen Mary's sidelined brother-in-law blows open Danish royal rift. I fear Frederik's olive branch came too late, writes royal reporter SHARON HUNT
Queen Mary and King Frederik of Denmark have a public perception issue on their hands – namely that they are a divided.
And, at present, there is very little they can do to stop it.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Mail
19 hours ago
- Daily Mail
The world's most liveable city revealed as UK fails to make the top 10
A European capital has been crowned the most liveable city in the world but it's bad news for the UK as three of its major cities have slipped down the ranking since last year. The Economist Intelligence Unit's Global Liveability Index assesses the world's biggest cities across 30 categories, including stability, healthcare, culture and environment and infrastructure. Cities are then awarded an overall liveability score out of 100 and ranked accordingly. So, where is this year's most liveable city? Copenhagen soars to the top of this year's index with a high score of 98. Denmark's capital knocks Vienna off the top spot for the first time in three years. It picks up scores of 100 for stability, infrastructure and education while it's rated above 90 in every category. Vienna slips into second place, in part due to a 'sharp' fall in the stability category. This category ranked based on the prevalence of petty and violent crime, the threat of terror, the threat of military conflict and the threat of civil unrest. The Austrian capital saw its stability score fall to 95, following a bomb threat to a Taylor Swift concert in August 2024 and a planned attack on a city train station in 2025. Despite falling from first place, Vienna still scores 97.1 overall leaving it tied with Zurich. The UK fails to rank in the top 10 and three of its major cities are now rated as less liveable than they were in 2024. London falls nine places to 54th position, while Manchester also falls by nine to 52nd place and Edinburgh slips down by five places to 64th. According to the report's authors, each of the British cities saw their stability score fall in 2025. This is in part due to the widespread rioting that took place across the UK in August 2024. Each of the cities still picks up an overall score above 80, meaning residents face 'few, if any challenges to living standards'. Melbourne and Geneva round off the top five most liveable cities while Sydney lands just outside in sixth place. Melbourne scores 100 for education and healthcare while Geneva also picks up 100 in each of those categories. Osaka, Auckland, Adelaide and Vancouver all make the world's top 10 most liveable cities. The USA fails to have any cities rank in the top 10 but Miami, Portland, Indianapolis and Charlotte all improve on last year's scores. THE WORLD'S MOST AND LEAST LIVEABLE CITIES MOST LIVEABLE 1. Copenhagen, Denmark 2. Vienna, Austria 3. Zurich, Switzerland 4. Melbourne, Australia 5. Geneva, Switzerland 6. Sydney, Australia 7. Osaka, Japan 8. Auckland, New Zealand 9. Adelaide, Australia 10. Vancouver, Canada LEAST LIVEABLE 1. Damascus, Syria 2. Tripoli, Libya 3. Dhaka, Bangladesh 4. Karachi, Pakistan 5. Algiers, Algeria 6. Lagos, Nigeria 7. Harare, Zimbabwe 8. Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea 9. Kyiv, Ukraine 10. Caracas, Venezuela Source: The Economist Intelligence Unit At the other end of the scale, Damascus is ranked as the world's least liveable city. The Syrian capital scores just 30.7 in the index, meaning 'most aspects of living are severely restricted' for residents. Tripoli, Dhaka, Karachi and Algiers all end up in the bottom five positions for liveability. Lagos, Harare, Port Moresby, Kyiv and Caracas also land in the bottom 10 with liveability scores below 50. Barali Bhattacharyya, deputy industry director at EIU, says: 'Global liveability has remained flat over the past year, and as in 2024, scores for stability have declined at a global level. 'Pressure on stability has led Vienna to lose its position as the most liveable city after a three-year stint. 'As in 2024, stability scores have declined for western Europe and the Middle East and North Africa. In this edition, they have also declined for Asia, amid intensified threats of military conflict for cities in India and Taiwan.'


Daily Mail
19 hours ago
- Daily Mail
William and Kate's discreet visit to India that left locals shocked... and joy for the new Lady Goldsmith-to-be: RICHARD EDEN'S DIARY
After losing an appeal over the levels of taxpayer-funded security that he and his family are entitled to while in Britain, Prince Harry whined to the BBC last month: 'I can't see a world in which I would bring my wife and children back to the UK at this point.' His brother and sister-in-law, the Prince and Princess of Wales, take a more robust approach to security threats. Someone involved in one of their visits overseas has revealed that the couple insisted on shedding their protection officers on a particularly sensitive engagement.


Reuters
2 days ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: US Export-Import Bank considers $120 million loan for Greenland rare earths project
June 15 (Reuters) - Critical Metals Corp (CRML.O), opens new tab has received a letter of interest from the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) for a loan worth up to $120 million to fund the company's Tanbreez rare earths mine in Greenland, in what would be the Trump administration's first overseas investment in a mining project. The loan, if approved, would boost U.S. access to minerals increasingly at the center of global economic trade and help offset the country's reliance on market leader China. It also comes after President Donald Trump openly mused earlier this year about acquiring the Danish island territory, an overture that has been repeatedly rejected. In a letter dated June 12 and reviewed by Reuters, New York-based Critical Metals has met initial requirements to apply for the $120 million EXIM loan and, if approved, would have a 15-year repayment term, longer than the company likely would have with private financing. The project would have to be "well-capitalized with sufficient equity from strategic investors" to receive the loan, the letter said. EXIM, which acts as the U.S. government's export credit agency, said in the letter that Critical Metals qualifies for a loan program designed to support companies that compete with China. The Tanbreez project is expected to cost $290 million and the EXIM funds would be used to fund technical work and get the mine to initial production by 2026. Once fully operational, the mine is expected to produce 85,000 metric tons per year of a rare earths concentrate and two minor metals. "This funding package is expected to unlock significant value for our project and our stakeholders," said Tony Sage, the company's CEO. Representatives for EXIM were not immediately available to comment. The move is the latest in a series of supportive actions by Washington toward the Tanbreez deposit and Greenland's mining sector. Reuters reported in January that former President Joe Biden's administration had successfully lobbied privately held Tanbreez Mining not to sell to a Chinese developer and instead sell to Critical Metals. Biden officials were visiting Nuuk as recently as last November trying to woo additional private investment, opens new tab in the island. Trump sent Vice President JD Vance to the island in March. The island's mining sector has developed slowly in recent years, hindered by limited investor interest, bureaucratic challenges and environmental concerns. Currently, only two small mines are in operation. Rare earths have strong magnetic properties that make them critical to high-tech industries ranging from electric vehicles to missile systems. Their necessity has given rise to intense competition as Western countries try to lessen their dependence on China's near-total control of their extraction and processing. Beijing in April put export restrictions on rare earths as part of its trade spat with Trump. The two countries earlier this month reached a truce, although Beijing's control of the sector has exacerbated the West's over-reliance and sparked a global hunt for fresh supplies. Despite the loan potential, Critical Metals would still have to either build a processing facility or find an existing site with spare capacity. The company told Reuters that its goal is to process the material inside the U.S., a goal the EXIM loan would make more achievable. Last year, Critical Metals had applied for funding to develop a processing facility from the U.S. Department of Defense, but the review process stalled ahead of Trump's January inauguration. For the EXIM loan's additional funding requirements, Critical Metals said it is considering offtake agreements, royalty streams and funding from other U.S. governmental agencies. Critical Metals told Reuters earlier this year that it has held supply talks with defense contractor Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab, among others. Critical Metals' 10th-largest investor is brokerage firm Cantor Fitzgerald ( which was formerly led by Howard Lutnick before he joined Trump's cabinet as secretary of the U.S. Commerce Department. Sage told Reuters in January he had never met or talked to Lutnick, but acknowledged Cantor's investment was a positive for his company. EXIM last year extended a letter of interest to Perpetua Resources (PPTA.O), opens new tab for a loan worth up to $1.8 billion for its antimony and gold mine in Idaho.