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Coronavirus rescue: Gibraltar brings stranded British citizens back from Morocco



TWENTY-three British citizens left stranded in Morocco as a result of the coronavirus pandemic have been returned to their homes in Gibraltar on two specially commissioned vessels.




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George Galloway warns why US is on the cusp of WW3 with China - 'This is how WW1 began!'



GEORGE GALLOWAY has claimed the circumstances that set off the First World War could be repeating themselves in 2020, as he warned of a conflict between the US and China.




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Rat virus OUTBREAK: Scientists warn pathogen has jumped from animals to humans



A RAT virus has mutated and made the jump from animal to human infecting a total of 11 people in Hong Kong.




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Pope Francis bombshell: Benedict's plot to cause Vatican chief 'misery' exposed



POPE BENEDICT is "making Francis' life a misery" as rumours of a major row between the two Vatican titans continue to boil, an expert has warned.




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Glenn Miller mystery: Real reason VE Day-era musician disappeared exposed



GLENN MILLER mysteriously disappeared several months before VE Day - but one expert claims his death was due to determination to win World War 2.




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China coronavirus panic: Scientists think pandemic started as early as OCTOBER



SCIENTISTS believe the coronavirus pandemic could have started as early as October and participants at the Military World Games, held in Wuhan that month, could have unwittingly helped transmit the lethal virus around the world.




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Naturism - the new hate crime? says VIRGINIA BLACKBURN



TEXTILES: brace yourselves. We have a new hate crime on our books.




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British panic buying has a touch of class, says VIRGINIA BLACKBURN



IS THERE any topic in the entire world that Britain is incapable of turning into a matter of class?




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This country has gone through far worse than coronavirus, says VIRGINIA BLACKBURN



MY mother was born in 1928 and grew up in Kent.




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I’m fed up with all this posh nosh. Give me a takeaway, says VIRGINIA BLACKBURN



WEEK 190 and as life continues to change before our very eyes, a new way of showing off has emerged. We have moved on from the Zoom drinks party to the Zoom dinner party, which gives you the opportunity to prove to your tragic suburban friends that not only do you have the most exotic ingredients in your kitchen cabinets, but that you are also the best cook.




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You have to be an Oxford University student to be this stupid, says VIRGINIA BLACKBURN



THE entire world is in the middle of a terrible pandemic. Everyone is worried sick both about catching it and the long-term effects of putting the global economy in the deep freeze. People are concerned about jobs, health, the wellbeing of elderly relatives.




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Virtual Grand National on TV: What channel is the Virtual Grand National on?



The Virtual Grand National takes place today - but what TV channel is the race on?




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Virtual Grand National runners and riders: Full list confirmed for today's race



The Virtual Grand National takes place today and Express Sport is on hand with the full list of runners and riders.




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Virtual Grand National 2020 odds: Who is favourite to win the virtual race?



The Virtual Grand National takes place this weekend instead of the actual race - but who is favourite to win?




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Virtual Grand National RESULTS: Potters Corner WINS as Tiger Roll finishes fourth



The Virtual Grand National replaces the real-life National this afternoon with ITV providing life coverage of a lifelike simulation to substitute for the cancelled regular race. Express Sport brings you live updates with an animated Tiger Roll the favourite for victory.




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Virtual Grand National raises £2.6m for NHS Charities Together to aid coronavirus battle



Profits of £2.6million have been donated to NHS Charities Together after Saturday's Virtual Grand National.




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Horse racing return date: When will British horse racing resume?



Horse racing in Britain is currently suspended amid the coronavirus pandemic - but when will racing resume?




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FA Cup draw: When is the fourth round draw? Start time, TV channel, live stream



The FA Cup has taken place this weekend but when is draw for the fourth round? Express Sport is on hand with the date, time and TV information for the draw.




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Peter Whittingham: Former Aston Villa and Cardiff star fighting for his life in hospital



Peter Whittingham is fighting for his life in hospital, the South Wales Police have confirmed.




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Queen Elizabeth II: Why the Queen is never without THIS item



QUEEN ELIZABETH II has ruled Britain for nearly 70 years, and many of us cannot remember a time when she was not on the throne. And during her long reign, one item in particular has become synonymous with the monarch.




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Kate Middleton looks stunning in yellow £398 dress on This Morning



KATE MIDDLETON wore a yellow dress with a tree-inspired pattern on This Morning today. The 38-year-old mum of three spoke about her new project.




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Storm Ciara threatens chaos for this week's sporting action as severe weather approaches



Storm Ciara is threatening to cause chaos with this week's sporting events including Premier League football, Six Nations rugby and eight horse racing meets.




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Leeds United team news: Predicted 4-1-4-1 line up vs Hull City - Casilla ban decision



Leeds United take on Hull City on Saturday and Whites boss Marcelo Bielsa faces an important decision after Kiko Casilla was issued an eight-match ban.




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Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa makes Patrick Bamford admission amid Championship promotion push



Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa has admitted that he faces a selection headache for the Whites' Championship game against Huddersfield on Saturday, and he could drop striker Patrick Bamford in favour of youngster Tyler Roberts, with the 21-year-old scoring twice against Hull last weekend.




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East Africa Food Crisis 2011

Into mid-2011, the world’s worst food crisis is being felt in East Africa, in Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya.

Despite successive failed rains, the crisis has been criticized as avoidable and man-made. This is because the situation had been predicted many months before by an international early warning system. Both the international community and governments in the region have been accused of doing very little in the lead up to this crisis. In addition, high food prices have forced food out of the reach of many people, while local conflicts exacerbate the situation.

As the international organization Oxfam describes: 12 million people are in dire need of food, clean water, and basic sanitation. Loss of life on a massive scale is a very real risk, and the crisis is set to worsen over the coming months, particularly for pastoralist communities.

This page also presents news coverage from Inter Press Service on this crisis.

Read full article: East Africa Food Crisis 2011



  • Conflicts in Africa
  • Food and Agriculture Issues

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Climate change: historic emissions still matter

China, India and other emerging economies are often the focus points for climate change negotiations. Many rich nation politicians and their media often point to their rising emissions as proof that they urgently need to be bound to emission reduction targets in the same way rich nations are.

But what is often easily forgotten or omitted is that greenhouse gases can stay in the atmosphere for a very long time. In other words, historic emissions matter.

Historical data show that the majority of greenhouse emissions have been by rich nations, known as "Annex I" countries in climate negotiation speak:

Apart from China and India, the remainder of the top 10 historical greenhouse gas emitters have been from Annex I countries.

This is why 2 decades ago the climate negotiations started by understanding there were "common but differentiated principles" and why "Annex I" countries were initially given target emissions while the rest were to be given space to grow given the urgent need for poverty alleviation and development.

Furthermore, climate negotiations frameworks have always said developing nations need to avoid a polluting path to industrialization, so they can’t just use historic emissions injustice as an excuse not to do anything. At the same time, the dirty path to development was also the cheap and easy path which developing countries need to avoid, so it was also agreed that the Annex I countries should help developing countries in various ways. Needless to say much of this has not really happened.

These and additional charts have been added based on updated data up to 2008 on historical carbon emissions plus estimated emissions for 2009 and 2010.

Read full article: Climate Justice and Equity



  • Climate Change and Global Warming

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Media and advertising: manipulating photos of people; going too far?

It has long been known that advertisers will “photoshop” (slang for editing photos to touch up or airbrush out imperfections) photos to make the subject more attractive. But many have pointed out that this subtle manipulation often goes too far. Young people, girls in particular, are bombarded with images of how they are supposed to look, contributing to many social and health problems as a result.

The American National Advertising Division (the US advertising industry’s self-regulating watchdog) for example, recently moved to ban the misleading use of photoshopping and enhanced post-production in cosmetics adverts as it could be too misleading. In the UK some adverts have been banned because the effects of airbrushing has resulted in very misleading cosmetic adverts. France has even considered legislation to explicitly identify retouched images.

Some will claim it is up to parents to teach their children how to recognize these things, but parents cannot often win against an army of professional psychologists, marketers and others all focused on pushing their own images onto children, when studies also say that children are not old enough tell the difference between commercial and other content.

This page has been updated to add a section about this issue with further links, videos and examples.

Read full article: Media and Advertising




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Climate change and carbon emissions trading

Flexibility mechanisms were defined in the Kyoto Protocol as different ways to achieve emissions reduction as part of the effort to address climate change issues. These fall into the following categories: Emissions Trading, Joint Implementation and Clean Development Mechanism.

However, these have been highly controversial as they were mainly included on strong US insistence and to keep the US in the treaty (even though the US eventually pulled out). Some of the mechanisms face criticism for not actually leading to a reduction in emissions, for example.

The updates to this article includes a couple of videos summarizing some concerns about cap and trade.

Image ©: Centre for Science and Environment

Read full article: Climate Change Flexibility Mechanisms



  • Climate Change and Global Warming

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The world is awash with money; trillions hidden offshore

It seems the world is awash with money, even though most governments are facing economic pressures. Trillions are being hidden away by a very few global super elite in offshore bank accounts, avoiding billions in taxes such that constrained governments turn to austerity and other measures, inflicting more hardship on people who are typically already victims of the global financial crisis. Furthermore, it turns out that many of the banks we have all bailed out help with these offshore practices in various ways.

Tax avoidance by the super rich results in lost revenues in the order of hundreds of billions a year, which would (in theory at least) benefit most of society. But if you can afford an army of ingenious lawyers and accountants, it seems you can play by a different set of rules.

Recent high profile cases of companies and individuals avoiding taxes in recent years has resulted in governments claiming they will address this issue thoroughly. But that is as far as it seems to go.

This update includes additional figures and examples of recent tax avoidance issues that have come to light.

Read full article: Tax Avoidance and Tax Havens; Undermining Democracy




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World military spending in 2012 was just over $1.7 trillion. This was the first fall, albeit a small one, since 1998, despite economic conditions

In recent years, global military expenditure has increased again and is now comparable to Cold War levels. Recent data shows global spending at over $1.7 trillion, despite the global economic conditions. It is still approximately 1% increase since 2008 when the financial crisis began, for example.

Not all nations have felt the impacts of the global financial crisis in the same way. Some have grown economically, including many Asian countries, which has allowed some of them to increase their military spending. There are geopolitical interests at stake for various powers, so economic troubles or not, military spending is seen as important to maintain, or at least to minimize possible reductions.

The highest military spender is the US accounting for 39% of the world’s spending, more than the next top 10 countries combined, and more than all its potential enemies, combined. But this represents a slight decline over previous years as other nations, especially China and Russia, increase their spending. At the same time, the US has reduced military spending for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, while Western Europe’s austerity programs affect their military spending budgets.

This update includes new and updated figures, graphs and charts exploring this further.

Read full article: World Military Spending




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Tobacco kills. Higher taxes and advertising controls work

It is well known that tobacco smoking kills. But it also exacerbates poverty, contributes to world hunger by diverting prime land away from food production, damages the environment and reduces economic productivity. Second hand smoking also affects other people’s lives. Despite many attempts to prevent it, a global tobacco control treaty became international law in 2005.

However, challenges still remain as tobacco companies try to hit back, for example, by targeting developing nations, increasing advertising at children and women, attempting to undermine global treaties and influence trade talks, etc.

This update includes updated stats, as well as more information on the above issues.

Read full article: Tobacco




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Foreign aid: rebounds in 2013 to highest levels ever despite budget pressures, but still way below promised amounts

The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) recently published new preliminary figures for aid in 2013.

It showed official development assistance (ODA) aid from wealthy governments had increased to just under $135 billion in 2013 (at constant 2012 prices). This is roughly 0.3% of GNI (Gross National Income) of the donor nations.

Yet, over 40 years ago nations promised to reach 0.7% of their GNI by the mid-1970s. While each year the amount of aid falls quite short of that 0.7% target (less than half of that target), the quality and effectiveness of that aid is often questionable, sometimes benefiting the donor more than the recipient due to the types of conditions attached to this aid.

This update includes a number of new and updated charts and graphs.

Read full article: Foreign Aid for Development Assistance




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Action on climate change is cheaper than inaction

Many are afraid that tackling climate change is going to be too costly. But increasingly, studies are showing action will not just be cheaper than inaction, but could actually result in economic, environmental and even health benefits, while improving sustainability.

This new page includes more information on the above issues.

Read full article: Action on climate change is cheaper than inaction




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Celtic hero Chris Sutton bites back at Robbie Savage trolling as Hoops leapfrog Rangers



Celtic legend Chris Sutton has bitten back Robbie Savage on Twitter, as the Hoops finished the week top of the Scottish Premiership table, after Rangers’ 1-1 draw against Hearts.




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Celtic team news: Predicted line-up vs Hearts - Neil Lennon to make Ryan Christie decision



Celtic host Hearts as top takes on bottom in the Scottish Premiership, with Neil Lennon hoping to maintain his seven-point lead over title rivals Rangers. Express Sport is on hand to provide all of the Hoops' team news, as well the predicted line-up, as two stars return from injury.




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Celtic vs Hearts live stream, TV channel: Can I watch Scottish Premiership match today?



Celtic host Hearts in the Scottish Premiership today and Express Sport is on hand with all the live stream and TV information.




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Rangers boss Steven Gerrard to consider his future over the next 48 hours



Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has suggested he could leave Ibrox after their defeat to Hearts as the manager said he will consider his future over the next couple of days.




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FA Cup draw: When is quarter-final draw? Who could Man Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal face? TV info



The FA Cup fifth round takes place on Wednesday evening and Express Sport is on hand with all the info you need as the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United find out their opponents.




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Fortnite live event time UK: Good news for Party Royale Concert fans missing out



THE next Fortnite live event is kicking off now and there's good news for UK gamers missing out on the Party Royale Concert.




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PUBG Mobile update 0.18.0 download issues ahead of Season 13 Pass release



TENCENT has confirmed that issues with the latest PUBG Mobile update process are being looked into this weekend, ahead of the Season 13 Royale Pass release.




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Elvis Presley: Graceland chef reveals how to cook The King’s Sunday Meatloaf – WATCH



ELVIS PRESLEY's Sunday Meatloaf can be made at home and now Graceland chef's has shown fans how from the mansion's kitchen in a new video.




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John Lennon once revealed his least favourite Beatles song – ‘I knocked off Elvis Presley’



JOHN LENNON revealed his least favourite Beatles song was one he "knocked off" from Elvis Presley.




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British Open cancelled for first time since WWII due to coronavirus as new dates scheduled



The British Open has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.




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Masters leaderboard predicted: Would Tiger Woods have defended his title this weekend?



The Masters was scheduled to take place this weekend until it was called off due to the coronavirus outbreak - but would Tiger Woods have defended his title?




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PGA Tour: Will player eligibility be affected by the coronavirus crisis?



The PGA Tour has been disrupted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic - but will player eligibility be affected?




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Rory McIlroy leads all-star line up as golf looks to raise funds for COVID-19 relief



Rory McIlroy is teaming up with Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff to help raise funds for COVID-19 relief in a skins match.




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Maldives travel: The blue lagoon of bliss



Waking up in the Maldives is pure joy.




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Maldives holidays: Why you’ll never be bored at paradise resort Kandima Maldives



MALDIVES holidays are on the bucket list of so many Britons thanks to the picture postcard-worthy scenery and year-round sun. Kandima Maldives is one of many hotels in the Indian Ocean nation, so what makes it stand out? This writer headed to the resort to find out.




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Australia travel: I’m a Daydream Island believer



HOWEVER idyllic the destination, some things are always the same. You're going to get sunburnt - even if you lather on the factor 50. At one point you will long for a British cup of tea. And that scavenging local wildlife - such as the obligatory one-eyed cat - are always a reliable constant.




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Martin Lewis breaks down new ISA rules: ‘Now this is a bit complicated’



MARTIN LEWIS, 47, appeared on his Money Show Live last night to discuss the latest news on all things finance and coronavirus. He responded to one viewer who had questions on their ISA options.