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Far-right racism scandals rock Finland, pressure new PM

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

Finland’s new prime minister has had his honeymoon period savagely cut short by two racism scandals that have thrown his government into turmoil.Center-right leader Petteri Orpo, widely regarded as a dependable political operator, is already watching the uproar undercut one of his key strategic moves: The decision to team up with the far-right Finns Party in government. The Finns Party has long been seen as something of a wild card in Finnish politics, pushing a “Finland first” line, which has seen it advocate strong anti-EU and anti-immigration positions. Its leaders, from Timo Soini to Jussi Halla-aho to current chief Riikka Purra, have long kept headline writers busy with flamethrowing speeches and populist blog posts. After elections in April, Purra secured serious influence in Orpo’s new government, not least by taking the role of finance minister and deputy prime minister for herself during lengthy government formation talks. But shortly after the ne...

Biden officials applaud Sweden’s NATO ascension, promise Ukraine a path ‘eventually’

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

Biden administration officials on Tuesday celebrated Sweden’s ascension into NATO and promised that Ukraine will one day be on the same path.Fourteen months after applying to the military alliance, Stockholm’s bid got the green light from Turkey on Monday after months of being blocked by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Sweden is now on track to become NATO’s 32nd member.“It sends two messages. First of all, our alliance is stronger, it’s bigger with two new members — Finland and now Sweden, and it’s more united than ever,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on CBS. “In terms of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, it’s sending a very strong message to Putin that he’s not going to outlast us, he’s not going to outlast Ukraine, and the sooner he ends this war of aggression the better.”As part of the agreement, Turkish, Swedish and NATO officials explained that Stockholm had changed laws, expanded counterterrorism cooperation against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party and resta...

MEPs sling mud ahead of knife-edge nature restoration vote

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

STRASBOURG — A tense debate ahead of a key vote on a new EU biodiversity law in the European Parliament descended into a slanging match Tuesday.A year out from the next European election, a right-wing alliance led by the Parliament’s largest grouping, the European People’s Party, is trying to kill a Green Deal nature restoration law proposed by the European Commission, warning about its impact on economic growth.“For the next five years we have to care a lot about our industrial base … so we have to manage the big changes needed in a way that we don’t lose economic power,” said EPP leader Manfred Weber.The vote at midday on Wednesday promises to be very tight.“We are in the gray zone, if the vote took place right now I don’t know what the result would be,” said Pascal Canfin, a French Renew MEP who chairs the environment committee and is championing a compromise that hews more closely to the position adopted by EU countries.Outside the Parli...

Glass falls from UK parliament ceiling in new Commons calamity

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

LONDON — Shards of glass have fallen from the ceiling in one of the U.K. parliament’s main buildings — sending water gushing through the roof onto staff working below.The incident occurred in the glass atrium of Portcullis House, one of the busiest meeting spots in Westminster and home to many MPs’ offices. One parliamentary official on the scene said they were preparing for the possibility of more glass falling from the panels above, which appeared unstable.A House of Commons spokesperson said: “Teams are currently attending to an issue with the atrium roof in Portcullis House. The central part of the atrium has been cordoned off, with additional safety mitigations implemented to allow us to continue our investigations.”Anne Alexander, an ITV journalist who was present, tweeted: “Water just flooded down from the roof in Portcullis House sending people running for cover.”Portcullis House has been plagued by structural problems since its completion in 2001, including persistent ...

Bank of America accused of opening fake accounts and charging illegal junk fees

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

New York (CNN) — Federal regulators accused Bank of America on Tuesday of harming customers by double-dipping on fees, withholding credit card rewards and opening fake accounts.The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered Bank of America (BAC) to pay more than $100 million to customers and $90 million in penalties. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency also ordered Bank of America (BAC) to pay $60 million in fines.Some of the allegations are reminiscent of the Wells Fargo scandal last decade that involved opening millions of bank accounts without customer authorization.“Bank of America wrongfully withheld credit card rewards, double-dipped on fees, and opened accounts without consent,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in a statement. “These practices are illegal and undermine customer trust. The CFPB will be putting an end to these practices across the banking system.”Bank of America did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Bank of America to pay more than $100M for doubling fees, opening accounts without customer consent

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

Bank of America must pay more than $100 million to customers for doubling up on some fees, withholding reward bonuses and opening accounts without customer consent.Bank of America will pay $90 million in penalties to its organization and $60 million in penalties to the OCC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Tuesday. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency found the bank’s double-dipping on fees was illegal. Bank of America, based in Charlotte, North Carolina, serves 68 million people and small business clients. The bank had $2.4 trillion in consolidated assets and $1.9 trillion in domestic deposits as of March 31, making it the second-largest bank in the U.S.Bank of America had a policy of charging customers $35 after the bank declined a transaction because the customer did not have enough funds in their account, the CFPB said. The agency determined that the bank double-dipped by allowing fees to be repeatedly charged for the same transaction.The bank said that it ...

Japan’s top court says government restrictions on transgender employee’s use of restrooms illegal

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that restrictions imposed by a government ministry on a transgender female employee’s use of restrooms at her workplace are illegal, in a landmark decision that could promote LGBTQ+ rights in a country without legal protections for them.It was the court’s first ruling on the working environment for LGBTQ+ individuals.The judges said in a unanimous ruling that the Economy and Trade Ministry’s restrictions, which forced the plaintiff to use either a nearby men’s room or women’s restrooms that were at least two floors away, were “extremely inappropriate.” It said the approval of the restrictions by the National Personnel Authority, which is supposed to serve the interests of government employees, was “illegal” and an “abuse of power.”The victory by the plaintiff, identified only as a transgender woman in her 50s who is a ministry official, was good news for the LGBTQ+ community in Japan, the only membe...

Zelensky says NATO’s ‘absurd’ plans for Ukraine fall short

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday blasted as “absurd” the absence of a timetable for his country’s membership in NATO, injecting harsh criticism into a gathering of the alliance’s leaders that was intended to showcase solidarity in the face of Russian aggression. The broadside from Zelenskyy could renew tensions at the summit shortly after it saw a burst of goodwill after Turkey agreed to advance Sweden’s bid to join NATO. Allies hope to resolve the seesawing negotiations and leave Vilnius with a clear path forward for the alliance and its support for Ukraine.Officials have drafted a proposal, which has not been publicly released, on Ukraine’s potential membership. U.S. President Joe Biden expressed support during a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, but Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter that he was not satisfied.“We value our allies,” he said but added that “Ukraine also deserves respect.”“It’s unprecede...

Vote to oust RoseAnne Archibald ‘not taken lightly,’ AFN interim chief tells leader

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

HALIFAX — The interim chief of the largest First Nations advocacy organization says a vote to oust the former national chief “was not taken lightly.”Joanna Bernard, regional chief from New Brunswick serving temporarily in the role, addressed the Assembly of First Nations during its annual gathering in Halifax for the first time since RoseAnne Archibald’s dramatic removal. Archibald, the first woman elected to lead the assembly in 2021, was voted out during a recent special chiefs assembly held to address the findings of an investigation into five staff members’ complaints against her conduct.She released a statement before the gathering saying she would attend the first day virtually but may travel to Halifax for the rest of the meeting, which runs through Thursday. Bernard told chiefs in her speech today that Archibald’s removal puts the organization in a period of transition, but says it has overcome many challenges before.  She says as interim chief,...

Stock market today: Wall Street edges higher ahead of this week’s inflation report

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:52:26 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are edging higher in early trading as Wall Street waits for updates later in the week on inflation and corporate profits. The S&P 500 was up 0.2% early Tuesday and looks to be on track for another quiet day after a listless Monday. The Dow was up 164 points, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite was up less than 0.1%. The week’s main event arrives Wednesday when the government offers the latest update on inflation in consumer prices. The hope on Wall Street is that a continued easing in inflation will convince the Federal Reserve to stop raising interest rates.THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.Wall Street ticked modestly higher early Tuesday ahead of new U.S. inflation data that will play a role in a decision by the Federal Reserve on interest rates when it meets later this month.Futures for the Dow Jones industrials rose 0.1% and the S&P 500 edged 0.2% higher before the opening bell.For the first time in more than a year, th...