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EU Ambassadors have just agreed to launch two written procedures to adopt the sanctions package and approve the Ukraine support loan. Kyiv is about to get its €90bn

It's astonishing that Singham is still peddling this nonsense. The UK *did* pursue this under Johnson-Frost and, for good reasons, it was rejected in 2020 - as Singham knows because when that happened he still refused to accept it (& evidently still does): www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1384... 1/3

Well, there you go now! You learn something new every day.

After France, Denmark is moving too: its Digitalisation Ministry plans to phase out Microsoft, switching to Linux and LibreOffice in the coming months. The goal is clear—reduce dependence on a handful of global tech giants and strengthen digital sovereignty.

A pair of probably dressmaking scissors by Wostenholm, Sheffield.

@rosamundi.bsky.social, you might know, or know who does know: Sharpening/restoring old tailor's scissors - Possible? Hard?

Please and thank you.

I'm not quite sure what I've wandered into here, but at the risk of treading on dangerous ground, it sounds a bit like...

12yo 1 - parents 0, full time score?

Margaret E Ward: ‘Saving the family’ is really about putting women back in their boxes An unholy trinity of conservatives, Christian nationalists and tech bros are planning to strip American women of their rights

Margaret E Ward: ‘Saving the family’ is really about putting women back in their boxes

Europe readies response to energy crisis from Iran war The European Commission will set out plans ⁠to cut electricity taxes and coordinate the summer refill of gas storage, as it seeks to cushion the energy fallout from the Iran war.

The European Commission will set out plans ⁠to cut electricity taxes and coordinate the summer refill of countries' gas storage, as it seeks to cushion the energy fallout from the Iran war.

FT Exclusive: The number of Americans seeking Irish citizenship through ancestry jumped 63% last year, as the Trump administration’s harsh rhetoric and policies fuelled demand for ‘plan B’ passports. ft.trib.al/VLmOiJH

United States in a poor state? Perception v. Reality Check.
Time to Dump the Trump?
#MAGA

Strait of Hormuz blockade drives up costs at Panama Canal Ships without bookings wait an average of 5 days to get through

Strait of Hormuz blockade drives up costs at Panama Canal

To celebrate #EarthDay2026 we are highlighting Irish people who contributed to our understanding of the natural world, starting with Ellen Hutchins. She was Ireland’s first female botanist & an expert on mosses, bryophytes and lichens, several of which are named for her. www.dib.ie/biography/hu...

Colman in her Oscar gown, drinking a cup of tea in a large country kitchen

Olivia Colman by Annie Leibovitz for Vogue, 2019

#NationalTeaDay

Honestly this is my dream, but as somebody with chronic impostor syndrome I still can't quite believe it. AUTOMATIC NOODLE is a finalist for the Hugo, the Locus, and the Nebula awards. Thank you so much to everyone who voted. I am flustered but very happy!!

None of us want to see a nuclear-armed Iran.

We are in agreement with our regional partners that any durable settlement must address also other issues in addition to the nuclear one, including Iran's missile programme and its continued support to terrorist groups. (2/2)

Daily U-turns, whether the Strait of Hormuz is open or closed, are reckless.

Transit through the Strait must remain free of charge.

The EU has reached the political agreement to widen our sanctions regime to also target those responsible for breaches to freedom of navigation. (1/2)

A photo of Radek on a stage in front of a projector screen. He is a white man with brown hair and a short beard, wearing glasses and a green Dublin 2029 tshirt. On the projector screen behind him is a slide that says ‘Sierra Space’ next to a green bipedal reptilian alien in a lab coat.

Come join the fun! We’re looking for new volunteers to join the Dublin 2029 bid team! Just fill in the quick form below and we’ll be in touch - no worries if you don’t have a specific role in mind, we have an amazing Volunteers team who can find the right fit for you -

buff.ly/XcgSgE0

Two key things (among others) they should invest in urgently: Energy (renewable short term, possibly nuclear long term),and decent, quick, affordable housing close to where people work. Oh and water. I wonder if we need to build desalination plants.

More money but more pressure on the Government to spend Journalists had gathered at the Department of Finance today expecting a 'doom and gloom' Spring Economic Forecast that warned of the geopolitical threats to growth but the headline figure from the bri...

Journalists had gathered at the Department of Finance today expecting a 'doom and gloom' Spring Economic Forecast that warned of the geopolitical threats to growth but the headline figure from the briefing proved to be the opposite, writes Work and Technology Correspondent Brian O'Donovan

(FT) - Lufthansa has cancelled 20,000 flights between May and October to save fuel, one of the largest cuts by global airlines as jet fuel prices double following the Iran war.

@financialtimes.com $JETS
www.ft.com/content/bd0e...

These two widely shared images claiming to show the IDF restoring a statue of Jesus that was previously damaged by an Israeli soldier near Debl, Lebanon, are AI-generated and fake.

A Google SynthID check finds watermarks that suggest both images were made with Google AI.

Cover of The Porcelain Sisters by Daryl Gregory: A close-up of a procelain doll, showing one green glass eye, red lips, and a white face riddled with cracks.

Cover reveal! My novella THE PORCELAIN SISTERS will be out Oct 27 from @tachyonpub.bsky.social . Two sisters, one of whom happens to be a haunted doll, take on a French witch mafia, demons, an unkillable assassin... all to reclaim their birthright. Preorder! tachyonpublications.com/product/the-...

The Brits appear ready to shame the US news media into covering this, distracted as they are by gazing at their own navels ...

Ireland, Spain and Slovenia's demand to suspend EU agreement with Israel does not have the necessary unanimous support amongst member states, says @kajakallas.bsky.social #Israel #Palestine #Gaza #Lebanon

Curlew conservation scheme makes breakthrough A conservation measure aimed at reversing the decline in the curlew population has yielded a breakthrough as the first recorded instance of a 'headstarted' curlew that has established a breeding terri...

www.rte.ie/news/ireland... #Birds

15% of fossil fuels extracted each year are used to make fertiliser, run farms, process foods and transport them. In a very real sense our food is made from oil and gas.

We are about to feel a very painful food shock.
1/

Death-threats, external agitators and political rows – Fall-out erupts following Rosslare fuel protest blockade Death threats, outside elements with ulterior motives and political rows. All have been part of the conversation in the wake of a four-day fuel protest blockade of Rosslare Europort.

While the fuel protest blockade of Rosslare Europort passed off peacefully, the fall-out since has been anything but. 👀 #Wexford
www.independent.ie/farming/news... Death-threats, external agitators and political rows – Fall-out erupts following Rosslare fuel protest blockade

Social and economic characteristics of urban and rural life in Ireland, 2011-2025

Social and economic characteristics of urban and rural life in Ireland, 2011-2025
cso.ie/en/releasesandpubli

#CSOIreland #Ireland #Population #PopulationEstimates #Migration #MigrationEstimates

Now he’s no longer a minister. Michael Healy-Rae needs a new seat for Dáil votes… and has chosen NOT to sit in the same bloc as his brother.

There are two vacant seats in front of the row where Danny sits with Mattie McGrath, but Michael has chosen one alongside Gillian Toole and Michael Lowry

The Scales Begin to Tip: Assessing Ukraine's New Strategic Momentum in 2026 A special assessment that reviews whether Ukraine has developed new strategic momentum in 2026 through the lens of eight measures of success the encapsulate the character of this war.

“The central question is whether Russia’s prospects for the military success Putin needs to justify this war have dimmed. The evidence suggests they have. The strategic costs for Russia is heading in a direction that Putin may not be able to reverse.” mickryan.substack.com/p/the-scales...