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UK’s Sunak rules out referendum on net zero climate plan

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

LONDON — Rishi Sunak batted away calls for a public vote on Britain’s plan to cut carbon emissions by 2050 — amid anti-green pressure from Nigel Farage and some of Sunak’s own Tory MPs.“I’m committed to net zero … I think actually there’s agreement on it,” the British PM told ITV Wednesday, when asked if he would put the emissions target to a referendum.The U.K.’s pledge to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 has been the subject of much debate lately. While still committed to the legally-binding headline target, Sunak has called for a “pragmatic and proportionate” approach to cutting emissions and made a show of expressing his support for motorists.Some in his party want Sunak to go further, citing the impact of a switch to clean energy on voters already hit by rising prices. Those calling for a rethink were boosted by a recent narrow London by-election win for Tories who campaigned against the expansion of a ...

No thanks, Joe: Britain won’t copy Biden’s IRA spending splurge

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

LONDON — Britain will resist calls for vast new green investment in response to U.S. President Joe Biden’s sprawling $369 billion spending package and instead rely on existing policy levers to fight U.S. protectionism.U.K. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt — a member of the ruling Conservatives — has promised to deliver Britain’s official response to Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in a fiscal statement this coming fall. But two senior government figures involved in the planning said Hunt will largely rely on reforms to the U.K. government’s existing Contracts for Difference programme — a decade-old scheme aimed at supporting private sector investment into renewable energy projects by reducing price fluctuation risks — to boost green investment.The move will underwhelm U.K. businesses calling for a more interventionist approach from the government to compete with Biden’s plans — but a minister told POLITICO that “the money just isn’t there.”Bide...

People in Haverhill return home after sinkhole forced evacuations

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

People in Haverhill returned home Wednesday after a massive sinkhole forced evacuations last week. The sinkhole opened near a multi-family home off Washington and Ford streets on Tuesday, Aug. 8 after recent torrential rain in the area damaged an underground pipe and caused flooding. Multiple properties were damaged around Haverhill and city’s mayor declared a state of emergency.The sinkhole, the mayor’s office said in a statement, was roughly 20 feet deep and 20 feet wide, causing upward of $1 million in damage. A total of 22 people were temporarily displaced after the sinkhole opened, according to the mayor’s office, with residents staying in an area hotel while they waited for crews to give them the all-clear to return home. Days later, state, federal and local officials were back at the scene of the sinkhole on Wednesday after the sinkhole itself was filled. One woman later speaking with 7NEWS described a scary situation as the sinkhole opened, saying she in...

A family of 4, a beloved sister, a musician. These are some of the lives lost in Maui

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

By PAT EATON-ROBB and BEATRICE DUPUY (Associated Press)Wildfires devastated parts of Maui in Hawaii last week, leaving a trail of destruction and devastation, decimating a historic town. While many still wait in agony for news on whether their friends and family are safe, more than 100 people have been pronounced dead — making it the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than 100 years. Here are the stories of some of those who died. ___MUSICIAN UNTIL THE ENDWhen he was younger, Buddy Jantoc toured the world playing music, his family said. Jantoc’s love of bass guitar kept him going as he grew older.Jantoc, 79, was living in the Hale Mahaolu Eono senior housing complex when the fires tore through the town of Lahaina, KITV-TV reported Tuesday. His family learned from police that his remains were among dozens found so far.“My papa was older, but for him to be taken from us that way, I think that’s what’s the hardest to come to terms with,” granddaughter K...

Mayo Clinic Minute: Protecting kids from cancer with HPV vaccine

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

Deb Balzer | (TNS) Mayo Clinic News NetworkAs the back-to-school checklist grows, one detail that parents and caregivers should prioritize is ensuring all children have their appropriate vaccines.Mayo Clinic’s Dr. Kim Barbel Johnson says the HPV vaccine should be part of a routine vaccination schedule. It’s a preventive measure that can save lives later.“HPV causes a number of cancers. We think of it as causing cervical cancer in women. But it also causes vulvar cancer, vaginal cancer, head and neck cancers,” says Dr. Barbel Johnson. “There are about nine strains of this virus that we know causes a number of cancers.”It’s the most common sexually transmitted infection in the world.“We have an opportunity to prevent our children from getting cancer down the road,” she says.The HPV vaccine is recommended for boys and girls ages 11 to 12. It can be started at age 9.“We want to take advantage of every opportunity that we have p...

Proposed rule would make hospital prices even more transparent

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

Julie Appleby | KFF Health News (TNS)“How much is the ice cream?” A simple enough question, featured on a new TV and online advertisement, posed by a man who just wants something cold. A woman behind the counter responds with a smile: “Prices? No, we don’t have those anymore. We have estimates.”The satirical ad pretends to be a news report highlighting a “trend” in which more retail outlets take up “the hospital pricing method”: substituting estimates for actual prices for the cost of meals, merchandise on store shelves, and clothing. The scene ends with a partially deleted expletive from the ice cream-seeking man.While the use of estimates in retail settings is imaginary and preposterous, the advertisement is part of an ongoing campaign by the advocacy group Patient Rights Advocate, which contends that some hospitals are still falling short of a law that went into effect in 2021 requiring them to publicly post their prices. Even then, said Cynthia Fisher, the group’s founder and ch...

Achieving financial freedom and stability: How has social media skewed our expectations of what it takes?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

René Bennett | (TNS) Bankrate.comSocial media platforms have become powerful forces in shaping our perceptions, behaviors and financial aspirations. Whether it’s scrolling through Instagram’s lavish travel posts, digesting bite-sized financial tips on X (formerly Twitter) or watching TikTok influencer content, social media impacts our financial lives and how we feel about ourselves in more ways than we might realize.One effect of social media that’s been highlighted by several Bankrate surveys is how it impacts expectations of financial stability and success, particularly among younger people. When users are constantly exposed to stories of overnight millionaires, luxury-lifestyle influencers and displays of extravagant spending, they are bound to feel negatively about their own financial situation.As users strive to emulate the lifestyles they see on their screens, they can fall into unhealthy money habits like impulse spending. The attempt to live up to the digitally curated ideal...

Din Tai Fung reopens at Westfield UTC after brief closure

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

SAN DIEGO — Din Tai Fung, a popular restaurant known for their Xiao Long Bao soup dumplings, has reopened their San Diego location following a brief closure.Their Westfield UTC mall location closed over the weekend for essential kitchen repairs, a restaurant spokesperson told FOX 5.As of Tuesday, the restaurant was back open and serving guests. Reservations for the San Diego location are available online. Get free admission at SeaWorld for the rest of 2023 with new deal The restaurant also clarified that there was no fire or damage to the store and nobody on the team was injured in connection to the issues that prompted the kitchen repairs.Din Tai Fung, which currently has seven locations in California, first opened in Taiwan, with their signature soup dumplings helping the restaurant expand internationally to 13 countries. The Hong Kong branch was even awarded a Michelin star.Din Tai Fung’s San Diego outpost is located in the UTC Westfield shopping center at 4301 La Jolla Village...

Suspects sought in Fallbrook brush fire

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

FALLBROOK, Calif. -- Authorities are looking to identify and locate three juvenile suspects believed to have started a brush fire in Fallbrook last month. According to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, deputies from the Fallbrook Sheriff's Substation responded to reports of a brush fire in the 2300 block of Green Canyon Road around 12:30 p.m. on July 12. Man shot, killed by SDPD in College Area Firefighters quickly put out the fire, which authorities say burned about a quarter of an acre and a large fence. Damage is estimated at around $30,000, according to SDSO.Detectives from the Sheriff's Bomb/Arson Unit reviewed surveillance video that officials say showed a white 1999 Toyota 4Runner off-roading in the area. It also reportedly shows three juveniles setting off a firework just prior to the start of the fire.Authorities released the following descriptions for the three suspects:-- Suspect No. 1: White juvenile male wearing a white t-shirt and dark colored pants.-- Suspe...

British Museum says staff member dismissed after items were found to be missing, stolen or damaged

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:23 GMT

LONDON (AP) — The British Museum said Wednesday that a member of its staff has been dismissed after items dating back as far as the 15th century B.C. were found to be missing, stolen or damaged.The museum said it has also ordered an independent review of security and a ‘‘vigorous program to recover the missing items.″The stolen artifacts include gold jewelry and gems of semi-precious stones and glass dating from the 15th century B.C. to the 19th century A.D. Most were small items kept in a storeroom and none had been on display recently, the museum said.“Our priority is now threefold: first, to recover the stolen items; second, to find out what, if anything, could have been done to stop this; and third, to do whatever it takes, with investment in security and collection records, to make sure this doesn’t happen again,″ said George Osborne, the museum’s chair. “This incident only reinforces the case for the reimagination of the museum we have embarked upon,” Osborne said. The m...