Governments owe $80bn in investor-state Arbitration losses Legal Investor-state disputes have more than doubled over the last decade, with decisions against governments totalling over $250m (£186m), and governments’ debts accumulating over $80bn (£60bn). Investor-state disputes enable overseas investors to recoup some of their investment if a government breaches its investment treaty obligations. Arbitration, an out-of-court method, is the preferred system for resolving these [...]
Spanish PM Sanchez calls for Israel ban from international sport Sport Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez has called on Israel to be banned from international sport following disruption to the Vuelta a Espana. It comes after pro-Palestine protestors caused the cycling race to be concluded prematurely at the weekend over anger surrounding the participation of the Israel-Premier Tech team, which is privately rather than state-owned. The [...]
Forget Seville, Cordoba is the real jewel of Southern Spain Life&Style The first thing you notice about Cordoba in spring is the smell. When the orange trees that line the streets and the jasmines that climb the walls blossom, the whole city fills with their sultry fragrance. The historic centre of Cordoba is a Unesco world heritage site that bears memories of its Roman, Moorish and [...]
On this day: Gibraltar is captured by the British August 4, 2025 On this day in 1704, Gibraltar was surrendered to the Anglo-Dutch fleet. 321 years later, Eliot Wilson looks at what that means today.
Rare Lionesses ‘Champions’ shirt almost gone as sales rocket 250 per cent July 29, 2025 Special Lionesses replica shirts commemorating their Women’s Euro 2025 victory have almost sold out as fans revel in Sunday’s historic win. The Nike kit, which costs £125 and is emblazoned with “Champions” and the number 25 on the back, only launched after England’s triumph over Spain. It is part of a range of new merchandise [...]
Lionesses to celebrate Women’s Euros triumph with open-top bus parade July 28, 2025 The Lionesses will celebrate their Women’s Euros triumph with an open-top bus parade through central London on Tuesday. England defeated Spain on penalties in a dramatic final on Sunday in which Chloe Kelly netted the decisive kick after the Lionesses once again came from behind to force extra time. The Lionesses flew home from Switzerland [...]
Lionesses’ semi-final drama breaks ITV viewing figures record July 23, 2025 The Lionesses’ dramatic semi-final win over Italy in the 2025 Women’s Euros drew a peak audience of 10.2m, according to TV broadcasting data. The game which saw England take on Le Azzurre averaged 8m viewers, delivering ITV’s highest average audience of 2025. The peak audience figure of 10.2m was achieved in the final minutes of [...]
Lionesses and late licences set to deliver £135m boost to UK economy July 22, 2025 Pubs will be allowed to stay open until 1am tonight for the Lionesses’ Women’s Euros semi-final with Italy as the UK economy gets set for a boost of more than £135m. The Home Office announced plans in May to extend licensing hours if England reached the last four of the tournament and they were approved [...]
Starmer calls for ‘moment to unite’ as Nato agrees defence pledge June 25, 2025 Keir Starmer said the latest Nato summit represented a “moment to unite” as 32 member countries committed to ramp up spending on defence to 3.5 per cent by 2035, with a further 1.5 per cent allocated towards security and infrastructure. The Prime Minister said investment will go towards cyber security and protecting key infrastructure while [...]
HomeServe: Checkatrade owner in the red despite sales passing £1bn June 23, 2025 HomeServe, the domestic repair and emergency services giant, fell into the red despite its sales surging to more than £1bn last year, it has been revealed. The Walsall-headquartered business has posted a revenue of £1.1bn for 2024 while it reported a pre-tax loss of £31.7m. The figures compare to the revenue of £774m and pre-tax [...]