Monday, 17 August 2026

United Kingdom

Andy Burnham: 'King of the North' to become UK PM

Andy Burnham boasts man-of-the people vibes, but behind the casual exterior lies ruthless ambition and political reinvention that has helped propel him to become the UK's next prime minister. The 56-year-old was appointed leader of the ruling Labour party on Friday at the third time of trying, and w

French scramble to find air conditioners before next heatwave

Hundreds of people were besieging Lidl supermarkets in and around Paris Thursday, with scuffles and shouting matches breaking out as residents scrambled to get their hands on bargain air-cooling units before the next heatwave hits the French capital. With few air conditioners on sale elsewhere for

UK PM apologises for decades of forced adoptions

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday formally apologised for the forced adoption of an estimated 185,000 babies born to unmarried mothers in England and Wales between 1949 and 1976, calling the scandal "a stain on our history". "We are deeply and profoundly sorry to the mothers who were