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UK House of Commons Approves Legalization of Assisted Dying

UK House of Commons Approves Legalization of Assisted Dying

Bloomberg2 days ago

The UK's House of Commons voted to legalize assisted dying on Friday, in a move that is likely to usher in a significant cultural shift over how to handle the treatment of those with terminal illnesses.
The measure was passed by a 314-to-291 vote following hours of debate in Parliament, when some members shared their own emotional accounts of loved ones suffering through terminal illnesses. It will now have to go through the House of Lords, which could choose to amend it further but historically has tended not to block legislation passed by the elected house.

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Starmer calls for negotiations after US attacks Iran's nuclear sites
Starmer calls for negotiations after US attacks Iran's nuclear sites

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Starmer calls for negotiations after US attacks Iran's nuclear sites

Sir Keir Starmer has urged Iran to return to negotiations after Donald Trump launched US air strikes on the regime's nuclear facilities. The Prime Minister said Iran's nuclear programme is a 'grave threat' which the US military action would 'alleviate'. There is understood to have been no UK involvement in the action, which comes after Sir Keir and Foreign Secretary David Lammy had pushed for a diplomatic solution rather than US action which could further destabilise the region. The Prime Minister said: 'Iran's nuclear programme is a grave threat to international security. 'Iran can never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon and the US has taken action to alleviate that threat. 'The situation in the Middle East remains volatile and stability in the region is a priority. 'We call on Iran to return to the negotiating table and reach a diplomatic solution to end this crisis.'

What can Northamptonshire expect from Doge?
What can Northamptonshire expect from Doge?

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What can Northamptonshire expect from Doge?

They have caused a stir in Donald Trump's US and now Elon Musk-style Doge teams are descending on Northamptonshire's two unitary councils, which are run by Reform UK. What can people in the county expect from them and what have they achieved elsewhere? Hardly anyone had heard the acronym Doge before Donald Trump returned to the White House in 2025. The idea is reported to have surfaced first at a dinner party where Donald Trump's billionaire advisor, Elon Musk, was speaking in 2023. The Tesla, Space X and X businessman told fellow diners that, if given the passwords to government computers, he could streamline its operations. When Trump became President again this year, he set up the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) and put Musk in charge of it. Its aim was to end the "tyranny of bureaucracy", save taxpayers' money and cut the US national debt, said Musk. What has actually happened so far is two million federal workers being offered a deal to leave. A preliminary meeting with the Doge team happened this week at West Northamptonshire Council, and it will be descending on North Northamptonshire in the near future following the huge swing from the Conservatives to Reform UK in the May local elections. The Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage, who received a hero's welcome when he met his councillors in Corby on Tuesday, explained how it would work. "The Doge team comes in and it talks to the officers and says 'we want to look at the books, we want to see what money's been spent on this, what money's been spent on that, we want to see the credit card statements, we want to see the contracts'," he said. He took repairing potholes as an example and said Doge would ask "Who've you assigned to do this job? How long is the contract for? What's the cost? Is it based on results?" He insisted that "not everything about Doge is critical, not everything about Doge is slagging off what's gone before. I'm really hoping that Doge can help everybody". Reform UK said its team in West Northamptonshire would consist of "software engineers, data analysts and forensic auditors". The short answer, according to Reform UK, is nothing. Mark Arnull, leader at West Northamptonshire, said: "The cutting-edge expertise the Doge team are providing free of charge will make it that much easier to identify waste and free up funds." Martin Griffiths, who leads West Northamptonshire, said: "We're not going to pay a penny [for the Doge review] so that's why our officers are fully in support of this." Some politicians have questioned whether experts would really work for free, and have suggested the pro bono element might not be good for local people. 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West Northamptonshire's Independent councillor Ian McCord said he had written to the council leader to ask whether advice had been sought about the legal standing of the Doge unit, and whether data held by the council would be safe. NIgel Farage is adamant that the Doge approach is working. He said: "Already, in other counties, we have found examples of pretty egregious expenditure." In Derby, where there is a cabinet member for council efficiency (Doge), the party claimed to have made efficiency savings equating to £6,000 per day. It later admitted that figure was a mistake and was more like £4,000 per day. An unlikely winner so far from the Doge initiative has been the public sector workers' union Unison. According to data released to Sky News, weekly new memberships increased by an average of 272% in the week after the May election results were announced. 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Iran-Israel Conflict: How The UK Could Become A 'Target' If It Helps America Join The War
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While domestic politics continues to flummox Keir Starmer, he has, so far, excelled on the world stage. He has emerged as a figurehead in Europe in the fight against Vladimir Putin and made sure the UK was the first country to strike a trade deal with the US after Donald Trump unveiled his chaotic tariffs. But Starmer is now facing his greatest test as an international leader: trying not to get pulled into a febrile war in the Middle East. When Israel struck Iran last week, supposedly over fears it was building nuclear warheads, Tehran was quick to retaliate. The US, Israel's strongest ally, initially seemed to favour de-escalation but Trump soon ramped up his rhetoric. He called for Iran's 'unconditional surrender' and claimed the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is 'an easy target' should the US decide to kill him. Asked if he was going to join in with the strikes, Trump said: 'I may do it. I may not do it. Nobody knows what I'm going to do. I can tell you this: Iran's got a lot of trouble, and they want to negotiate.' 'I may do it, I may not do it, nobody knows what I'm going to do'Donald Trump is asked if the US will strike Iranian nuclear facilities The President adds: 'Iran has got a lot of trouble' — Sky News (@SkyNews) June 18, 2025 The US president has now announced that he will make a decision on attacking Iran within the next fortnight, giving the world some much needed breathing space. But the clock is still ticking and it's unclear exactly where the UK stands amid Trump's indecision. Starmer has repeatedly called for de-escalation, urging Trump not to 'ramp up' the situation by taking military action. But there are fears that Britain could still be pulled into the war, even if not directly. The UK will likely offer defensive, intelligence and logistical support for Israel's self-defence than military engagement against Iranian targets. Britain also shares a military base with the US in the Chagos Islands. The States would have to get the UK's permissions to deploy jets from the shared facility in order to strike Iran. Either way, joining Israel's fight could have grave consequences, according to experts. A senior research fellow at RUSI on the Middle East and North Africa Security told HuffPost UK that an escalation would 'undoubtedly' endanger international security. Dr Burcu Ozcelik explained that any western state that 'actively engages' in operations against Iran 'could become a target by Iran-linked violent extremist groups'. Iran has set up militant proxies around the Middle East, including the Gaza-based Hamas, the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon, although most of these groups have been suppressed by Israel and the US. Still, Ozcelik warned: 'There are open-ended, potentially protracted, high-severity risks on the horizon as terrorist or violent organisations may seek to retaliate against what they perceive as western complicity in Israel's Operation Rising Lion. 'This is part of the worst case scenario planning that will weigh heavily on US, UK, and European governments.' Attacking Iran could result in 'kidnappings, targeted sabotage, or attacks against national assets and diplomatic missions abroad,' according to the academic. She added: 'The risk of attacks against western diplomatic, military and commercial interests located in the Middle East, scattered across the Gulf, for example, is a risk, as is Iranian threats to shut the Stait of Hormuz. 'Even disruption of the Strait, short of full shutdown, which counters Iran's own interests, will impact oil prices.' The Strait of Hormuz is the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to open water and a quarter of the world's oil trade goes through it. Wael Sawan, the boss of the oil film Shell, warned on Thursday further escalation will cause 'a huge impact on global trade'. According to Sky News, the repercussions from supporting the US are not the only concerns the UK government might have right now. The attorney general Richard Hermer 'has questions' over the very legality of Israel's strikes on Iran, according to reports. As Lord Robertson, former secretary general of NATO, told Chatham House this week: 'All of these bits are on the chessboard and nobody knows really what is going to happen.' Pointing to the confusion around Trump's decision, he continued: 'It would appear at the moment that he's involved in a deadly game of brinkmanship, using the same skills that he had as a property developer. 'But this is not a plan for a condominium in New York, this is the future stability of the world.' And according to Ozelik, Starmer does not even control any major parts on the chessboard. She warned that while the prime minister may continue to call for de-escalation, 'it is highly doubtful that the EU or the UK has the leverage to influence Trump's decision making on Iran.' So Downing Street will be hoping that Trump will somehow be able to remove himself, and therefore the UK, from the chaos – otherwise the president risks getting the whole of the west into what he would describe as 'a lot of trouble'. As Trump Weighs Up Joining Israel's War Against Iran, Here's A Reminder How We Got Here Putin's Ability To Attack Ukraine Damaged By Iran's War With Israel, UK Says Keir Starmer Urges Donald Trump Not To Bomb Iran

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