Latest news with #guidelines
The Independent
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Carnival Cruise Line clarifies ban on handheld fans
Carnival Cruise Line has banned handheld fans from its onboard dance floors due to "safety reasons," according to a guideline letter issued on June 1. The new rules prohibit non-battery-powered fans in nightclubs and on indoor dance floors, while beverages are also not allowed on any dance floor. Battery-powered and electric fans are still permitted on dancefloors and on board, including in passenger cabins, as clarified by Carnival Cruise Lines' senior cruise director, John Heald. Carnival Cruise Line stated that the updated guidelines, which have been part of their standard communications for over two years, aim to support a safe and friendly environment. Other cruise lines, such as Saudi Arabia's Aroya, also have banned items, including scissors, CDs, magazines violating public decency, and alcoholic beverages.
CNA
09-06-2025
- Politics
- CNA
EU working on new guidelines to better protect children online
The European Union is working on new guidelines to protect children online. Lawmakers say the online safety of children is a top priority, but as William Denselow reports from Brussels, stricter guidelines could also worsen tensions with Silicon Valley and the US administration.
Japan Times
08-06-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Objectivity seen as key to screening AI weapons
The Defense Ministry has compiled guidelines on ensuring appropriate human involvement in the research and development of defense equipment using artificial intelligence. The guidelines are expected to cover R&D activities for equipment such as unmanned combat-support drones and ships, but ensuring objectivity and reliability remains a key challenge, since ministry officials are responsible for screening these activities. The effectiveness of the guidelines also depends on how much AI data related to intellectual property private-sector companies disclose during R&D programs. The United Nations is discussing how to regulate lethal autonomous weapon systems (LAWS), which use AI to identify and select targets without human involvement. The Japanese government maintains that it does not intend to develop fully autonomous lethal weapons or conduct R&D on defense equipment banned under international or domestic law. The guidelines include checks for compliance with international humanitarian law, clear assignment of human responsibility, prevention of overreliance on AI and fairness, meaning efforts to prevent discriminatory outcomes caused by uneven data use. Screenings will be carried out by a panel made up mainly of officials from the Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency, an affiliate of the Defense Ministry, along with a council of experts within the ministry. During the technology review process, the ministry will seek input on risk management from external experts familiar with advanced technologies, but it will make the final decisions on whether individual AI-related defense R&D projects are appropriate. While the Foreign Ministry takes part in international discussions on rules for LAWS, it does not participate in the screening process. A Defense Ministry official noted, "We regularly hold discussions and share our views on LAWS with the Foreign Ministry." As part of the screening process, private-sector companies involved in R&D may be asked to disclose the AI learning data and algorithms they use. Since the guidelines are not legally binding, one option could be to include such disclosure as a condition in the contracts. "Through dialogue with the defense industry, we'll consider an appropriate way while striking a balance, including how to protect companies' intellectual property rights," a senior Defense Ministry official said.
CBC
07-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
New regulations for businesses using environmental claims to sell products, services
New guidelines are out on how businesses can use environmental claims to sell their products and services. This comes after Canada's Competition Bureau faced backlash when it expanded rules around what can and cannot be claimed in advertising and marketing last year. As Jessica Cheung explains, reaction is pouring in about how effective these will be.
Associated Press
28-05-2025
- General
- Associated Press
Lawmakers offered mixed reviews on proposed parole guidelines
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles is proposing new parole guidelines after state lawmakers voted to withhold funding unless the document was updated as required by law. The advisory guidelines use factors like the severity of offense and the inmate's behavior in prison to create a score to aid in parole decisions. The parole board has come under fire for both low parole rates and how often its decisions deviate from what the guidelines recommend. State lawmakers — frustrated that the board had not fulfilled a requirement of a 2019 law to update the guidelines every three years — put language in the budget requiring the guidelines to be revamped for the board to receive funding. The board this month proposed new guidelines. Members of the Joint Prison Oversight Committee on Wednesday offered mixed reviews of the proposed changes. Republican Sen. Clyde Chambliss, who chairs the oversight committee and was the lawmaker who proposed the budget language, said he was glad to see the board beginning the work. But he said he needed to study the proposed changes before giving an assessment. Republican Rep. Matt Simpson said he liked some of the proposed changes. 'I think it's an important step to make sure that the guidelines are worth the paper they're printed on,' Simpson said. However, others were skeptical. Rep. Chris England, a Democrat, said the board 'magically produced these guidelines that were three years overdue.' 'I think the way that these happened is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever witnessed,' England said. He said there is data from prior releases that could be used to update the guidelines. 'Instead of using that data, it seems like this kind of came out of nowhere because they were threatened with losing funding,' England said. Alabama's parole rate has plummeted over recent years. The percentage of inmates being granted parole fell from 53% in 2018 to a historic low of 8% in 2023. The rate rose back to about 20% in 2024. The board's parole decision matched the guideline recommendation in about 25% of cases in the 2024 fiscal year, according to numbers from the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. Jerome Dees, policy director at the Southern Poverty Law Center, said he is concerned that the proposed changes are based on increasing the conformance rate — how often parole decisions match the guideline recommendation — instead of on a deeper policy analysis. 'It is the equivalent of taking a pop quiz, failing, and instead of digging deeper and seeing what changes you need to make, you just rewrite the questions on the quiz so that it aligns with wrong answers,' Dees said.
