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BBC News
20-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Life Factory project: 'No more funds' after damning report
"No further funds" will be given by a council to a youth regeneration project after serious concerns were raised about leaders' financial Council froze funds to Glastonbury's Life Factory in January 2024, after bosses said they were not "able to adequately reconcile invoices" in grant claims with actual spend and progress on new leadership team at Red Brick Building Centre, which runs the site, said its "deeply disappointed" with an independent audit's findings, which highlighted a lack of accountability.A council spokesperson said the authority accepts that its level of oversight and monitoring "could have been strengthened". The report also warned the government could request its £2.89m back if officials decide the "terms of the grant have not been met".After the grant was halted in January, construction work stopped on site and several contractors were left workers told the BBC that they are owed tens of thousands of pounds. The Red Brick Building C project was previously awarded £2.89m from the government under the Glastonbury Town Deal (GTD) to develop a community space, mainly for young people. Spending of this money was being overseen by Somerset a South West Audit Partnership (SWAP) report has now concluded that it has "no assurance" that there were sound governance arrangements and financial controls in place at Red Brick Building Centre Ltd or Somerset regards to the Red Brick Building Centre, the report states: "We have seen no evidence of a delivery plan showing how the building will be delivered within budget, scope and on time."It said a condition of the grant funding was that match funding would be obtained, but this had not gone beyond gathering expressions of interest. 'Lack of accountability' The report explains that a subsidiary company called Beckery Construction was set up to keep costs down, but said the introduction of this company confused the relationship between all parties, leading to a breakdown in communication, poor governance and lack of report said: "The majority of control weaknesses in delivery lie with The Red Brick Building and Beckery Construction Company."At Beckery Construction, auditors found many standard HR processes were not followed, including no formal recruitment being in place sub-contractors, one employee didn't have a contract and timesheets were either incorrectly submitted or filled out at report said: "Financial controls such as budget monitoring and cash flow forecasting were not operating, no approval for expenditure was sought from the Red Brick building board, and financial records were not always accessible, complete or accurate".With regards to the council, the auditors said: "Grant payments were not processed in line with the Grant Funding Agreement."Given the complexity of the renovation of Building C and the values involved more assurances should have been sought by [them] that robust governance and oversight arrangements were in place and a competent and qualified project team were in place."The report pointed out that the government may now ask for its money back, if it feels that the terms of its grant have not been met. 'Deeply disappointed' In a statement posted on social media, the new leadership team at Red Brick report makes it clear this "was a collective failure" across all parties."While we deeply regret that the Life Factory will no longer be able to continue in its original form, we remain committed to learning from this experience and ensuring it is never repeated," they said.A former director of Beckery Construction and ex-member of the Red Brick board said the SWAP report "does not fully reflect the complexity, the good intentions, the actions taken, and the repeated efforts to gain clarity on the financial situation".It added that council representatives had frequent meetings with the project while the ex-director of Beckery was in post, he said the financial accounts for Life Factory were externally audited with "no serious concerns raised". Somerset Council has released a statement saying "no further funds" will be released to the council said the audit has made clear that despite almost £3m being spent on the Life Factory, "it cannot be successfully delivered in line with the Grant Funding Agreement, and it is therefore not clear if the project will ever be completed".Duncan Sharkey, the council's chief executive, said the authority "accepts the [report's] findings that our level of oversight and monitoring could have been strengthened".As a result, the council's management of other infrastructure projects have been reviewed. What happens now? The council said it is "not contractually responsible for any payments to contractors", but adds it does "understand the impact this is having on those with legitimate claims".Council bosses said they would continue to work with the Red Brick Building.A spokesperson for Red Brick Building Centre said they have "always had the community at the heart of this project and is the reason we took this project on"."And for these reasons, we called it into question and put a pause on the project at the beginning of 2024. "We are working very closely with Somerset Council to find a way through this, and our shareholder and creditors are our top priority," they council's audit committee will discuss the report at its meeting on Thursday.
The Print
19-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
World is turning a blind eye to Pakistan terror. US is Dhritarashtra, China Gandhari
The world needs to understand in no uncertain terms that Pakistan is a rogue nation born of terror. It lives by the promotion of terrorism and is in existence purely to extend the goals of terrorists. It is unfortunate that in the seven decades since its birth, Pakistan has successfully duped the global radar and gone undetected as a terror-sponsoring state. During the 77 years of terror unleashed by Pakistan in the Kashmir region, the world has similarly chosen to turn a blind eye to the country's actions of sponsoring terrorism. And the consequences have been laid bare for all to see. In a heart-wrenching scene from the Mahabharata, when Draupadi is dragged into the sabha by Dushasan, she pleads with the elders to intervene. Everyone in the assembly hall turns a blind eye, like the sightless King Dhritarashtra and his blindfolded wife Gandhari, who chose to ignore the vile actions of their sons. India's pleas have fallen on deaf ears, which has been detrimental to India's aspirations for peace. It is only after being pushed to the wall that India has finalised a plan under PM Modi's 'New Normal'. It is now determined to give a 'befitting response'. India will no longer tolerate 'nuclear blackmail' or 'differentiate between the government sponsoring terror and the masterminds'. Leopard's spots Geopolitical considerations and regional interests have kept Pakistan in the good books of the Western powers. During the Cold War and the Afghanistan unrest, for instance, Pakistan provided the US with strategic support and access to its ports and naval bases, keeping Washington in the game. Therefore, the US was reluctant to condemn Pakistan outright and label it a nation sympathetic to terror. It was only when clear evidence pointed to Pakistan harbouring the 9/11 perpetrator, Osama bin Laden, that the US actually woke up and 'smelled the coffee'. The Trump administration recently appointed Ismail Royer, a convicted terrorist with links to Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, a pro-jihad scholar, to the White House Advisory Board. Trump is choosing the Dhritarashtra path. If he continues to blatantly disregard the long shadow of terror, these very jihadists will one day create havoc in the US, as it has done in the past. Osama bin Laden and the murder of Daniel Pearl have been forgotten too soon. The day Royer and Yusuf were appointed to the board, there was an 'act of terrorism' in California. Pakistan has successfully stayed off the list of terror watch dogs such as the Global Terrorism Database (GTD), Maryland. The GTD, which records terrorist attacks, including those by organisations operating on Pakistani soil, does not designate Islamabad as a sponsor of terror. The Financial Action Task Force placed Pakistan on its grey list for money laundering and terror funding in 2018, but in 2022, removed the country from the list after an attempt to whitewash its activities. A leopard can't change its spots. The UNSC's Counter Terrorism Committee is a toothless tiger today, a useless appendage of an increasingly irrelevant organisation that does not have the gumption to address terror in black-and-white terms. The South Asian Terror Portal and the RAND are more strident in calling out Pakistan's terror connections, but these organisations also stop short of designating Pakistan as a rogue nation sponsoring terrorism. It is the Big Five in both the UNSC and the Five Eyes Alliance that need to take a strong stand on Pakistan. The country is doling out Rs 14 crore to Masood Azhar, a designated terrorist, using tax collected from citizens. Allowing it to be bailed out with IMF funds seems to be a reward for the Pahalgam attack. How was Pakistan even allowed to develop its nuclear capacities when NATO and the Western powers were fully aware that the country never consistently had a stable, democratically elected government? There is no rocket science involved in reading between the lines. Also read: With Operation Sindoor, India just taught the world how to quickly end war A successful narrative Pakistan has successfully spun a story to the world. By cosying up to Western media, it has consistently created an anti-India narrative. British political commentator David Vance has called Western media 'absolutely atrocious and biased in favour of Pakistan', accusing it of ignoring India's legitimate security concerns. Pakistan has permeated global think tanks such as Chatham House, where a recent article by academician Farzana Shaikh spoke about 'India's frustrated attempts to 'marginalize' Pakistan internationally'. 'India announced – without evidence – that the gunmen had 'cross-border' links to Pakistan and threatened retaliation,' she wrote. What more evidence does India need, beyond the pictures of Masood Azhar's family members being given a state burial and globally designated terrorist, Hafiz Abdul Rauf, officiating the funeral services? Turkey's national channel TRT gave a platform to Pakistani Nasir Qadri, who has been pushing the Islamic Brotherhood and Jamaat-e-Islami narrative that India and Israel share a strategic alliance. This completely ignores the fact that India established diplomatic relations with Israel only in 1992. Prior to this, New Delhi was close to Palestine through the Non-Aligned Movement. According to geoeconomics researcher Prem Mahadevan, India's discourse has not resonated abroad as it conforms to 'vague global norms' of decency and humanitarianism rather than 'adherence to specific national interest', which is better understood by foreign governments. Pakistan does not make the same mistake regarding its international rhetoric with respect to Kashmir. The Islamic card Pakistan has always tried to play the Islamic card and gain sympathy from the Islamic Brotherhood. On the global stage, it portrays Kashmiri Muslims as victims and spins the narrative of Hindu majority oppression. This ploy has drastically backfired in the current scenario. No longer are sensible, progressive Islamic leaders buying into Pakistan's story like the blind Dhritarashtra. The Pahalgam attack was a barbaric assault on tourists in the name of religion. No sensible Islamic state wishes to soil its hands with the blood of innocents. King Abdullah II of Jordan condemned the 'ghastly terror attack' at Pahalgam and insisted that there can be no justification for terrorism. Saudi Arabia also strongly condemned the attack and reiterated its firm stance against all forms of violence, extremism, and the targeting of civilians. At the same time, an Iranian delegation touched down in New Delhi, and Pahalgam was on the agenda. Pakistan's jihadist agenda is also apparent in an August 2024 YouTube video posted by New Zealand travel vlogger Karl Rock, who travelled extensively through Pakistan Occupied Kashmir on his motorbike. At one point, en route to Gilgit, he encounters a couple of young boys collecting funds for a local madrasa. He is repeatedly asked to recite the kalma, and the boys, not older than 11, aggressively assert that Rock should embrace Islam as it is a better philosophy. The incident has eerie echoes in the terrorists' demand that Hindu men recite the kalma in Pahalgam before they slaughtered them. Neither Saudi Arabia nor Iran, and not even Afghanistan, wishes to be associated with this radical form of Islamic propaganda. After Pahalgam, Taliban-led Afghanistan also made overtures of support to India with its strong condemnation of terror. The world needs to remember that India is home to over 21 crore muslims, not far behind Pakistan's 23 crore. It is the only secular nation in the world to house such a large Muslim population. Also read: Bangladeshi nationals are joining terrorist ranks. Bigger problem is the culture of denial Turkey and China Turkey, China, and Azerbaijan are the countries that have chosen to stand in open solidarity with Pakistan. China's reasons are clear as the day—it seeks a geopolitical alliance partner in the region for its dominance. Rock's YouTube video shows a highly developed Karakoram Highway, also known as the China-Pakistan Friendship Highway, funded with Chinese Yuan and dotted with Chinese signs. China's Gandhari–style blindness to Pakistan's terrorism will cost it dearly, as the country has been cracking down on the Uyghurs, Turkics, and Kazhaks in the Muslim–dominated Xinjiang Autonomous Region. It is only a matter of time before China faces a backlash from the snakes it is protecting in Pakistan. Under President Erdoğan, Turkey has its own axe to grind. It wants to reassert itself as a leader in the Muslim world. Supporting Pakistan helps Ankara in two ways. First, it allows Turkey to position itself as a mediator or moral voice on issues affecting Muslims, including Kashmir. Second, building a bloc with Malaysia and Pakistan helps counterbalance the Saudi and UAE–led axis. At Pakistan's behest, Turkey has often raised the Kashmir issue at international forums, echoing Pakistan's stance. This bolsters its credentials and helps leverage its influence in the Islamic Brotherhood. Pakistan also offers a market to Turkish military equipment, such as the drones used against India. Where Turkey goes, Azerbaijan follows. The IMF saga Last week, I wrote about how Pakistan is likely to use the IMF's unconditional bailout to further fund anti-India activities and sponsor terrorism. Better sense seems to have prevailed. Rather than turning a blind eye to injustice like Dhritarashtra, the IMF has imposed 11 new conditions to strictly monitor the loan disbursed to Pakistan. These include a Governance Action Plan aligned with IMF expectations, debt surcharge cap removal, and most relevant, the imposition of an Agricultural Income Tax, which will shake up Pakistan's highly feudal and agriculture-based economy. These fiscal reforms are expected to shake up the complacency of Pakistani leaders and ensure that IMF funds are not diverted to sponsor terror. It is pertinent to recall Vidur's words from the Mahabharata: 'None so blind as he who refuses to see, and none so deaf as he who refuses to listen. They do not know the fate that is in store for them.' If the world continues to ignore Pakistan's actions, no god will be able to save it from what will follow. Meenakshi Lekhi is a BJP leader, lawyer and social activist. Her X handle is @M_Lekhi. Views are personal. (Edited by Prasanna Bachchhav)
NBC Sports
11-05-2025
- Automotive
- NBC Sports
IMSA Laguna Seca results, points: Porsche Penske wins again but with the No. 6 963 this time
Porsche Penske Motorsport remained unbeaten in the 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar championship season but with a twist at Laguna Seca Raceway. The No. 6 Porsche 963 earned its first Grand Touring Prototype victory this year as Mathieu Jaminet and Matt Campbell beat teammates Felipe Nasr and Nick Tandy in the No. 7 963 that had won the first three races. It's the third consecutive 1-2 finish for Porsche Penske Motorsport. The No. 24 BMW, which started from the pole position for the fourth consecutive race, finished third despite going off course from contact with Tandy on the 124th and final lap of the Monterey SportsCar Championship. The Porsche Penske Motorsport No. 6 rallied after dropping from second to fifth from early contact with a GT car. Jaminet was able to hold off a charging Tandy by 1.692 seconds on the famous 12-turn, 2.238-mile road course. IMSA LAGUNA SECA MONTEREY GP RESULTS: Click here for overall l By class 'It was a crazy race,' Jaminet told NBC Sports' Dave Burns. 'Obviously, we didn't have a perfect start with a small contact. I think a GT didn't see Matt on the inside. That was unfortunate. We lost some time there, dropped to fifth and then yeah it was pretty much flat out from start to finish after that. 'Trying to manage energy, tires, but at the same time really putting in qualifying laps. At the end, it was really tight, there was the sister car, the BMW behind, the traffic, the lapped cars. Not an easy one but the best of IMSA racing today.' Through four of nine races, Nasr and Tandy maintain a 91-point lead on Jaminet and Campbell as the No. 7 team defends its 2024 GTP championship. The winners in the GT categories were the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R (GTD Pro) and No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 (GTD). With drivers Laurin Heinrich and Klaus Bachler, AO Racing won its third consecutive race (GTD Pro at Sebring and Laguna Seca, GTD at Long Beach) by beating the No. 81 DragonSpeed Ferrari 296 GT3 and No. 3 Corvette Racing Z06 GT3.R. In GTD, Philip Ellis and Russell Ward in the No. 57 Mercedes-AMG beat Jack Hawksworth and Parker Thompson in the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3. The . Conquest Racing No. 34 Ferrari 296 GT3 was third. 'Definitely a clean day,' Ellis told NBC Sports' Chris Wilner. 'An absolutely flawless day by the team, also by Russell in the first stint. I'll say the race was just as we needed it. I think especially against the Lexus. We had a long green stint, so I think they were stronger than us early in the stint, then we were better than them late out of the stint, so it was exactly what we needed to stay out of trouble. Amazing pit stops by the team. That's how you win the championship.' In the GTD Pro standings, Heinrich and Blachler extended their points lead, and Ellis and Ward also built on their championship lead in GTD. IMSA LAGUNA SECA MONTEREY GP RESULTS Race results Results by class Fastest laps by driver Fastest laps by driver after race (over the weekend) Fastest laps by driver and class after race Lap chart Best sector times Leader sequence Race distance and average speed Fastest lap sequence Race analysis by lap Stint analysis Time cards Pit stop time cards Flag analysis Weather report NEXT RACE The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will race Saturday, May 31 on the streets of downtown Detroit (3:30 p.m. ET, Peacock). Philip Ellis calls Laguna Seca a "flawless" race for his team and extends Winward Racing's championship lead in GTD.
Perth Now
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- Perth Now
Ford Mustang GTD sets another Nürburgring record
The Ford Mustang GTD has beaten its previous Nürburgring lap time, cementing its position as the fastest US-made car and the fifth fastest production car around the legendary German track. The Mustang GTD – a road-registrable, track-focussed version of the legendary Pony car – lopped a significant 5.5 seconds off its previous best, posting a 6:52.071 time over the 20.8km Nordschleife layout. In terms of production cars, only the Mercedes-AMG One (6:29.090), Porsche 911 GT2 RS with Manthey Performance Kit (6:43.300), Mercedes-AMG Black Series (6:29.090) and Porsche 911 GT3 RS (6:49.328) have gone faster. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. Supplied Credit: CarExpert The faster lap time saw the Ford jump the Porsche 911 GT3 with Manthey Performance Kit to officially become the fourth-fastest production car around the 'Ring. The carmaker said the faster lap came courtesy of a recalibrated powertrain, stiffer chassis, retuned ABS and traction control settings, as well as minor body changes to refine the GTD's aero package. There was also time left on the table for Mustang GTD's second run, given efforts at its 2024 visit to the circuit were hampered by changing weather conditions limiting Ford factory driver Dirk Muller. The Nürburgring Nordschleife, located in the Eifel Mountains, is used by carmakers globally to develop vehicles, its impressive length more than triple the distance around Mount Panorama, Bathurst, in Australia. Supplied Credit: CarExpert The German circuit's wide array of different corner types across its undulating layout serves up a true test for vehicle dynamics, punishing vehicle brakes, steering, suspension and tyres. Revealed in early 2024, the GT3-inspired Mustang GTD made its racing debut at last year's 24 Hours of Le Mans and took its first victory at the Rolex 24 at Daytona endurance race in January 2025. Road-car production of the Mustang GTD is set to kick off by the middle of 2025 as it hits US showrooms at around $US300,000 ($A465,000). Ford has confirmed the GTD will only be made in left-hand drive and therefore won't be sold in Australia. The Ford Mustang was Australia's most popular sports car from 2016 to 2022, overtaken by the Subaru BRZ in 2023 and relegated to third after the BMW 2 Series toppled the BRZ in 2024.
7NEWS
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- 7NEWS
Ford Mustang GTD sets another Nürburgring record
The Ford Mustang GTD has beaten its previous Nürburgring lap time, cementing its position as the fastest US-made car and the fifth fastest production car around the legendary German track. The Mustang GTD – a road-registrable, track-focussed version of the legendary Pony car – lopped a significant 5.5 seconds off its previous best, posting a 6:52.071 time over the 20.8km Nordschleife layout. In terms of production cars, only the Mercedes-AMG One (6:29.090), Porsche 911 GT2 RS with Manthey Performance Kit (6:43.300), Mercedes-AMG Black Series (6:29.090) and Porsche 911 GT3 RS (6:49.328) have gone faster. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. The faster lap time saw the Ford jump the Porsche 911 GT3 with Manthey Performance Kit to officially become the fourth-fastest production car around the 'Ring. The carmaker said the faster lap came courtesy of a recalibrated powertrain, stiffer chassis, retuned ABS and traction control settings, as well as minor body changes to refine the GTD's aero package. There was also time left on the table for Mustang GTD's second run, given efforts at its 2024 visit to the circuit were hampered by changing weather conditions limiting Ford factory driver Dirk Muller. The Nürburgring Nordschleife, located in the Eifel Mountains, is used by carmakers globally to develop vehicles, its impressive length more than triple the distance around Mount Panorama, Bathurst, in Australia. The German circuit's wide array of different corner types across its undulating layout serves up a true test for vehicle dynamics, punishing vehicle brakes, steering, suspension and tyres. Revealed in early 2024, the GT3-inspired Mustang GTD made its racing debut at last year's 24 Hours of Le Mans and took its first victory at the Rolex 24 at Daytona endurance race in January 2025. Road-car production of the Mustang GTD is set to kick off by the middle of 2025 as it hits US showrooms at around $US300,000 ($A465,000). Ford has confirmed the GTD will only be made in left-hand drive and therefore won't be sold in Australia.
