Left is ‘pearl-clutching' after UK council removes Ukrainian and Pride flags
Reform UK Councillor Darren Grimes discusses a Reform-led council removing the Pride and the Ukrainian flag.
'The left are absolutely pearl-clutching, shaken to the very floor,' Mr Grimes told Sky News host Danica De Giorgio.
'Local councils need to get back to basics, focusing on things that matter, not international politics.'
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The Advertiser
31 minutes ago
- The Advertiser
Seven killed by bridge blasts in Russian border regions
At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. At least seven people have been killed and 69 injured when two bridges were blown up in separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine ahead of planned peace talks aimed at ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine, Russian officials say. A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10.50pm on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said. Four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighbouring Kursk region showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said. Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, linked the incidents and said explicitly that both bridges were blown up. In the Bryansk region, social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to climb out of smashed carriages in the dark. Part of the passenger train was shown crushed under a collapsed road bridge and wrecked carriages lay beside the lines. "The bridge was blown up while the Klimovo-Moscow train was passing through with 388 passengers on board," Alexander Bogomaz, the region's governor, told Russian television. The Russian regions bordering Ukraine have been subject to frequent attacks by Ukraine since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Both sides accuse the other of targeting civilians, and both deny such accusations. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the incidents, which took place just a day before the United States wants Russia and Ukraine to sit down to direct talks in Istanbul to discuss a possible end to a war which, according to Washington, has killed and injured at least 1.2 million people. Ukraine's HUR military intelligence agency said on Sunday that an explosion had derailed a Russian military train hauling cargo and fuel trucks near the settlement of Yakymivka, in a Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. The agency did not claim responsibility or attribute the explosion to anyone, though Ukraine has in the past claimed a series of attacks deep into Russia. Russian politicians lined up to blame Ukraine, saying it was clearly sabotage aimed at derailing the peace talks which the United States has demanded. "This is definitely the work of the Ukrainian special services," the chairman of the defence committee of the lower house of the Russian parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, told the SHOT Telegram channel. "All this is aimed at toughening the position of the Russian Federation and stoking aggression before the negotiations. And also to intimidate people. But they won't succeed." President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the bridge blasts by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Emergency Ministry throughout the night, the Kremlin said. Putin also spoke to the governor of Bryansk, Alexander Bogomaz. US President Donald Trump has demanded the sides make peace and he has threatened to walk away if they do not - potentially pushing responsibility for supporting Ukraine onto the shoulders of European powers. But as politicians talk of peace negotiations, the war is heating up, with swarms of drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine and Russian troops advancing at key points along the front in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has not committed to attending the talks in Turkey, saying it first needed to see Russia's proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions.
The Advertiser
7 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Bridge collapse, train derailment in Russia kills seven
At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when a highway bridge collapsed onto railway tracks after an "illegal interference," derailing a train in Russia's Bryansk region that borders Ukraine. The train's locomotive and several cars derailed late on Saturday "due to the collapse of a span structure of the road bridge as a result of an illegal interference in the operation of transport", Russian Railways said on the Telegram messaging app. Alexander Bogomaz, the governor of the Bryansk region, said on Telegram that 44 people were hospitalised. Three children were among those injured with one in serious condition, he added. Russia's ministry of emergency situations said on Telegram that efforts to find and rescue victims continued throughout the night, and that some 180 personnel were involved in the operation. Among those killed was the locomotive driver, Russia's state news agencies reported, citing medics. Social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to help others climb out of the train's damaged carriages in the dark and firefighters looking for ways to reach passengers. Russia's Baza Telegram channel, which often publishes information from sources in the security services and law enforcement, reported, without providing evidence, that according to preliminary information, the bridge was blown up. Reuters could not independently verify the Baza report and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Since the start of the war that Russia launched more than three years ago, there have been continued cross-border shelling, drone strikes, and covert raids from Ukraine into the Bryansk, Kursk and Belgorod regions that border Ukraine. The train was going from the town of Klimovo to Moscow, Russian Railways said. It collided with the collapsed bridge in the area of a federal highway in the Vygonichskyi district of the Bryansk region, Bogomaz said. The district lies some 100km from the border with Ukraine. US President Donald Trump has urged Moscow and Kyiv to work together on a deal to end the war, and Russia has proposed a second round of face-to-face talks with Ukrainian officials next week in Istanbul. Ukraine is yet to commit to attending the talks on Monday, saying it first needed to see Russian proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. with Reuters At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when a highway bridge collapsed onto railway tracks after an "illegal interference," derailing a train in Russia's Bryansk region that borders Ukraine. The train's locomotive and several cars derailed late on Saturday "due to the collapse of a span structure of the road bridge as a result of an illegal interference in the operation of transport", Russian Railways said on the Telegram messaging app. Alexander Bogomaz, the governor of the Bryansk region, said on Telegram that 44 people were hospitalised. Three children were among those injured with one in serious condition, he added. Russia's ministry of emergency situations said on Telegram that efforts to find and rescue victims continued throughout the night, and that some 180 personnel were involved in the operation. Among those killed was the locomotive driver, Russia's state news agencies reported, citing medics. Social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to help others climb out of the train's damaged carriages in the dark and firefighters looking for ways to reach passengers. Russia's Baza Telegram channel, which often publishes information from sources in the security services and law enforcement, reported, without providing evidence, that according to preliminary information, the bridge was blown up. Reuters could not independently verify the Baza report and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Since the start of the war that Russia launched more than three years ago, there have been continued cross-border shelling, drone strikes, and covert raids from Ukraine into the Bryansk, Kursk and Belgorod regions that border Ukraine. The train was going from the town of Klimovo to Moscow, Russian Railways said. It collided with the collapsed bridge in the area of a federal highway in the Vygonichskyi district of the Bryansk region, Bogomaz said. The district lies some 100km from the border with Ukraine. US President Donald Trump has urged Moscow and Kyiv to work together on a deal to end the war, and Russia has proposed a second round of face-to-face talks with Ukrainian officials next week in Istanbul. Ukraine is yet to commit to attending the talks on Monday, saying it first needed to see Russian proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. with Reuters At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when a highway bridge collapsed onto railway tracks after an "illegal interference," derailing a train in Russia's Bryansk region that borders Ukraine. The train's locomotive and several cars derailed late on Saturday "due to the collapse of a span structure of the road bridge as a result of an illegal interference in the operation of transport", Russian Railways said on the Telegram messaging app. Alexander Bogomaz, the governor of the Bryansk region, said on Telegram that 44 people were hospitalised. Three children were among those injured with one in serious condition, he added. Russia's ministry of emergency situations said on Telegram that efforts to find and rescue victims continued throughout the night, and that some 180 personnel were involved in the operation. Among those killed was the locomotive driver, Russia's state news agencies reported, citing medics. Social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to help others climb out of the train's damaged carriages in the dark and firefighters looking for ways to reach passengers. Russia's Baza Telegram channel, which often publishes information from sources in the security services and law enforcement, reported, without providing evidence, that according to preliminary information, the bridge was blown up. Reuters could not independently verify the Baza report and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Since the start of the war that Russia launched more than three years ago, there have been continued cross-border shelling, drone strikes, and covert raids from Ukraine into the Bryansk, Kursk and Belgorod regions that border Ukraine. The train was going from the town of Klimovo to Moscow, Russian Railways said. It collided with the collapsed bridge in the area of a federal highway in the Vygonichskyi district of the Bryansk region, Bogomaz said. The district lies some 100km from the border with Ukraine. US President Donald Trump has urged Moscow and Kyiv to work together on a deal to end the war, and Russia has proposed a second round of face-to-face talks with Ukrainian officials next week in Istanbul. Ukraine is yet to commit to attending the talks on Monday, saying it first needed to see Russian proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. with Reuters At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when a highway bridge collapsed onto railway tracks after an "illegal interference," derailing a train in Russia's Bryansk region that borders Ukraine. The train's locomotive and several cars derailed late on Saturday "due to the collapse of a span structure of the road bridge as a result of an illegal interference in the operation of transport", Russian Railways said on the Telegram messaging app. Alexander Bogomaz, the governor of the Bryansk region, said on Telegram that 44 people were hospitalised. Three children were among those injured with one in serious condition, he added. Russia's ministry of emergency situations said on Telegram that efforts to find and rescue victims continued throughout the night, and that some 180 personnel were involved in the operation. Among those killed was the locomotive driver, Russia's state news agencies reported, citing medics. Social media pictures and videos showed passengers trying to help others climb out of the train's damaged carriages in the dark and firefighters looking for ways to reach passengers. Russia's Baza Telegram channel, which often publishes information from sources in the security services and law enforcement, reported, without providing evidence, that according to preliminary information, the bridge was blown up. Reuters could not independently verify the Baza report and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Since the start of the war that Russia launched more than three years ago, there have been continued cross-border shelling, drone strikes, and covert raids from Ukraine into the Bryansk, Kursk and Belgorod regions that border Ukraine. The train was going from the town of Klimovo to Moscow, Russian Railways said. It collided with the collapsed bridge in the area of a federal highway in the Vygonichskyi district of the Bryansk region, Bogomaz said. The district lies some 100km from the border with Ukraine. US President Donald Trump has urged Moscow and Kyiv to work together on a deal to end the war, and Russia has proposed a second round of face-to-face talks with Ukrainian officials next week in Istanbul. Ukraine is yet to commit to attending the talks on Monday, saying it first needed to see Russian proposals, while a leading US senator warned Moscow it would be "hit hard" by new US sanctions. with Reuters
News.com.au
7 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘There is no alternative': US dollar in decline as influence in question
Economist and author James Rickards discusses whether the US dollar is losing its global influence following its decline in recent months, asserting the US Treasury remains secure as the leading global reserve. 'The dollar has gone down in value, but it was from a pretty high level,' Mr Rickards told Sky News host Ed Boyd. 'There is no alternative, the other biggest bond markets in the world are Japanese government bonds and Italian government bonds – so if you don't like US Treasury, do you like JGBs better? … the answer is no. 'Even in a world where the dollar is going down in terms of exchange rates, the US Treasury, the Treasury Securities Market is not threatened as the leading global reserve asset.'
