Looking interesting for barc.... can £3 become support ;-) gla |
Berkshire Hathaway announce 4000 job cuts. |
CEO Reveals How British Culture is Driving 10,800 Millionaires Away—and Why America Embraces Them
A leading CEO has blamed British culture for driving away 10,800 millionaires, claiming that the nation stifles entrepreneurial ambition and fosters resentment towards success. Sam Stoffel, the CEO of Outplayed.com, argues that while high taxation and bureaucratic red tape play a role in the exodus of the wealthy, it is the UK's deep-seated attitude towards success that is pushing entrepreneurs to relocate. |
Shoppers make key switch in desperate bid to slash grocery bills amid cost-of-living crisis
Supermarket own-label sales have hit a record high as shoppers battle to keep food bills down |
CITYam.com
Cut taxes for BP and Shell to protect UK from Trump’s trade war, Rachel Reeves told
Oil giants such as BP and Shell who operate in the North Sea should be given huge tax breaks to help protect the UK against Donald Trump’s burgeoning trade war, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been told.
Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce is calling on the UK government to reduce the 78 per cent tax burden on North Sea oil and gas producers, which also includes the likes of billionaire Sir Jim Radcliffe’s Ineos Group.
The lobby group said the move would be a “key first step towards greater domestic energy security” amid US President Donald Trump announcing plans to impose import tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China.
Trump has also made similar threats of significant levies on trade with the European Union. |
Tesco is eyeing Crown Post Office branches in a potential deal
The Post Office chairman has revealed to MPs that Tesco had shown interest in taking over more than 100 Post Office branches that are currently under direct management. |
VIDEO
Benjamin Netanyahu praises Trump's 'remarkable idea' about a US takeover of Gaza |
Three Cheers for Rubio
Rubio to boycott Johannesburg's G20 meeting over South Africa's land expropriation law
Feb. 6 (UPI) -- Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Wednesday evening he was boycotting the G20 meeting in South Africa scheduled for later this month over the country's controversial land expropriation law.
South Africa, which holds the the G20 presidency until the end of November, is to host a meeting of the intergovernmental group Feb. 20 and 21 in the capital Johannesburg under the theme of "Solidarity, equality and sustainability."
The African nation has attracted the ire of the Trump administration over a newly signed land expropriation law that allows local, provincial and national authorities to expropriate land in the public interest and in few, specific cases without compensation. |
The New Green Deal
Martin Lewis Warns That Energy Bills Are Again Set to Rise |
 Zelensky’s Wet Dreams Are Shattered By Harsh Reality
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Unable to resist the Russian army, Kiev keeps playing with fire. Zelensky keeps begging for nuclear weapons from NATO.
While his popularity is drastically falling both in Ukraine and abroad, Zelensky has no better solution but to continue the same old lies and demands. “Give us back nuclear weapons and missiles so that we can stop Russia,” Zelensky cried in his recent interview.
This is far from the first time that Kiev’s leader declares his wish to play with nuclear bombs. A representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry clearly described Zelesnky as “a maniac who views the planet as an object of his sick fantasies… For him, nuclear power plants are not a source of peaceful energy, but dirty nuclear weapons needed by the Kiev regime for blackmail.”
Asking for nuclear weapons, Zelensky follows his demands with more wet dreams, highlighting his inadequate assessment of his role on the international scene and the complete impotence of the Kiev regime.
Thus, Kiev is allegedly ready for negotiations but makes unreal demands. Ukraine should finally join NATO. If not, then Moscow should agree to retreat from all the previously captured Ukrainian territories. NATO is allegedly a guarantee for the Russians that Ukraine will not come with a war against them, but will resolve all issues through diplomacy.
Zelensky should definitely come back to reality and remember that expansion of NATO is one of the reasons for the war, as well as that his demands play no role in the negotiation process. The Kiev regime has no army nor money left to fight for Zelensky’s wishes.
Another blatant lie declared by the leader of the Kiev regime is the alleged number of Ukrainian losses. According to this crazy clown, Ukraine has lost only about 45,000 soldiers killed and 390,0000 others were allegedly wounded.
A few months ago, Zelensky announced the loss of 34 thousand soldiers. In December, the head of the regime said about 43,000 casualties. Thus, according to Zelensky’s “statistics”, about 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers die on the fronts and about 10,000 are injured per month. What simple math!
Obviously, no one believes his lies anymore. The Russian military noted that over the past six months, the monthly losses of the Ukrainian army have consistently amounted to about 50,000 soldiers killed and wounded. Ukrainians lost more than 57 000 soldiers in the battles in the Kursk region alone.
At the same time, the number of Ukrainian recruits has been barely reaching 30 thousand people per month for about half a year. According to official data, more than 100,000 Ukrainian servicemen deserted.
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Musk says USAID funded development of bio-weapons, COVID-19
Earlier, he pointed out that he considers USAID a criminal organization that should cease to exist
WASHINGTON, February 3. /TASS/. The head of the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), entrepreneur Elon Musk, has accused the US Agency for International Development (USAID) of financing the development of biological weapons.
"Did you know that USAID, using YOUR tax dollars, funded bioweapon research, including COVID-19, that killed millions of people?" he said on his X page.
Earlier, he pointed out that he considers USAID a criminal organization that should cease to exist.
The Associated Press quoted sources as saying that two USAID security managers were placed on administrative leave because of a conflict with DOGE. They refused to provide Musk's agency with classified information.
In late January, NBC News reported that more than 50 USAID employees were placed on administrative leave with full pay and benefits until further notice. This decision was made following an audit that uncovered "several actions within USAID that appear to be designed to circumvent the President’s Executive Orders and the mandate from the American people.". |
DPR head accuses USAID of sponsoring pro-American coups worldwide
According to Denis Pushilin, Donbass knows about USAID’s actions firsthand
DONETSK, February 4. /TASS/. Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) Denis Pushilin has accused the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for organizing pro-American coups all around the world.
"We removed a USAID plaque from a wall in liberated Kurakhovo. USAID, an American international development agency is, in fact, an organizer and sponsor of pro-American coups across the entire world," he wrote on his Telegram channel.
According to Pushilin, Donbass knows about USAID’s actions firsthand. "We know it only too well how much harm this organization did. The word 'development' should be put in quotation marks because USAID actually does the opposite - it was seeking to destroy, even whole countries, through wide networks of 'independent' and social media, which had clear instructions on how to manipulate public opinion," he noted, adding that data on financing the state coup in Ukraine that has recently been made public proves this.
"The new US Secretary of Health Robert Kennedy [Jr.] has released data indicating that America spent $5 billion on the Ukrainian coup in 2014 via USAID," he explained.
Moreover, in his words, there is overwhelming evidence that USAID exerted pressure on independent media outlets to force them not to highlight Ukraine’s crimes in Donbass and Novorossia.
Earlier, entrepreneur Elon Musk, who oversees the US government's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), accused USAID of financing the development of biological weapons, including COVID-19 agents. On his X page, he said that he considers USAID a criminal organization that should cease to exist. Later, he indicated that USAID was being purged. |
VIDEO
Mark McDonald, the barrister leading Lucy Letby’s legal team, has said there is “a juggernaut of evidence that demolishes the evidence that was put before”.
Lucy Letby: “This Evidence Says She Did Nothing Wrong” | Medical Experts ‘Did Not Find Any Murders’
TalkTV |
Breast cancer cases have skyrocketed in Americans under 45 years old since Covid mRNA injections were rolled out for public use in early 2021.
From 2019 to 2021, there were approximately 26,000 recorded cases of breast cancer per year.
However, that figure spiked in 2022 and then surged dramatically in 2023 to unprecedented levels.
In 2023, a shocking 297,000 breast cancer cases were recorded, marking a staggering 1042.3% spike in just five years. |
The Ukrainian Conflict: Forecast Scenarios
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The Ukrainian Conflict: Forecast Scenarios
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Ukraine is currently at the point where its fate is being decided. Literally one willful decision or unexpected change can determine the development vector of the entire Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Now it has become almost impossible to calculate the probability of further scenarios, but their details have become clearer.
Optimistic scenario (peace enforcement by the end of 2025)
In the first quarter of 2025, Ukraine will inevitably face the economic shock that affects ordinary citizens and influences the attitudes of the Western companies’ management in the country. GDP will fall by about 5% (according to the latest IMF forecasts). Continued Russian missile strikes will cause massive damage to the energy infrastructure, resulting in frequent power outages. 90% of Ukrainian “independent media” will be forced to change their rhetoric and seek new sponsors after the USAID funding is cut off.
Since the rate of mobilization in Ukraine, despite the lawlessness of the military commissariats, barely reaches 30,000 people a month, this does not allow the Ukrainian army to replace its losses. In other words, by the summer, the number of Ukrainian troops will be drastically decreased. Since the Russian economy is showing steady growth rates, this will allow the concept of a “kitchen meat grinder” to continue to be implemented on the fronts, in which any Ukrainian reserves are slowly but surely destroyed. However, as the last months of the war have shown, the main problem for the Ukrainian army is not the number of casualties, but the number of desertions. It is not for nothing that Russia is trying to win this war through a remake of February 1917, when the adversary’s forces flee the battlefield and anarchy ensues in his rear.
Due to the lack of direct support from Washington, Kiev will be forced to accept signing a peace agreement, which will lead to the partition of the state. The only possibility for the Ukrainian authorities to preserve the unity of the western territories from occupation by Poland, Romania and Hungary (under the pretext of protecting civilians) would be to reaffirm the course of integration with the European Union. Moscow is apparently ready to give appropriate security guarantees. This is also favorable for Washington and Brussels to save face and present the loss of the war as a victory of democracy on a part of Ukrainian territory. The eastern half of the country, which has not yet become part of Russia, will be de facto controlled by the Russian side, and de jure will be preparing for a referendum on the future fate of the territories. Of course, it will be impossible to hold it this year for a number of reasons (there is not yet even a voting mechanism for Ukrainian citizens who have left the country).
Given Ukraine successfully holds presidential and parliamentary elections, it will be able to form a stable government capable of implementing reforms and ensuring public order.
Post-conflict economic recovery measures, coupled with international aid and investment, will lead to tangible GDP growth. Agriculture, IT sector and energy are the main drivers of that growth. The situation in the east of the country will stabilize due to diplomatic efforts and international cooperation.
Moderate scenario (Not war, but not peace until 2028)
The conflict in eastern Ukraine may continue, albeit with less intensity. Periodic outbreaks of violence are possible, but the overall situation will be more stable than in previous years. Suspension of active hostilities until 2028 is possible for the following reasons.
First, the Russian military command calculated at the beginning of the special military operation that in the worst case for them Ukraine’s mobilization potential will be sufficient until 2028 (total mobilization). For this reason, if the Ukrainian army does not capitulate, it makes no sense for Russia to wage war until the complete elimination of the brotherly nation’s adult population.
Second, neither the West nor Russia has achieved the goals they set for themselves in Ukraine during the three years of hostilities. This means that both sides are keeping a second round of military confrontation in mind, hoping to carry out a more victorious “blitzkrieg” next time. However, its preparation will require at least three years.
An interim stage could be a temporary agreement between Russia and the United States on Ukraine. For example, Moscow may gain full control over the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia Regions, but in return, Washington will demand concessions in some regions. It is reasonable to assume that Donald Trump will demand that Russia withdraw its investments from lithium deposits in Venezuela and Bolivia, where political forces are unfriendly to the United States.
Ukraine’s economy will grow, but at a slow pace. Corruption and lack of investment could slow the recovery. External factors such as global economic crises could also have a negative impact. Ukraine will have to get out of its debt to the West primarily by selling off its subsoil resources. The main beneficiaries are the US and the UK (remember Trump’s recent ultimatum on rare earth metals or the agreement between Ukraine and the UK on a century-long partnership). By and large, Kiev will continue to balance between the West and the East, which may lead to difficult diplomatic situations.
In Russia, anti-migrant rhetoric will reach its peak. Guest workers from Central Asia are being deported, although it is obvious that they are badly needed: the war has destroyed a lot of human resources. Ukraine, on the contrary, is beginning to think about attracting labor from outside for the same reason. Liberalization of migration legislation will lead to the point where the Ukrainian authorities start forcibly repopulating the eastern regions of the country with migrants. The goal is to reduce the share of the Russian-speaking population there, masking these actions with economic necessity.
Pessimistic scenario (Ukraine as “European Israel” until 2035)
Prolonging the conflict with Russia until 2035 is primarily beneficial for the current Kiev authorities. The final transformation of Ukraine into an anti-Russian entity will allow them to continue receiving Western aid, effectively suppress internal opposition, and prevent further disintegration of the country.
Under a military dictatorship, Volodymyr Zelensky and his team no longer have to worry about the internal political crisis or the threat of a coup d’état. As long as the war is going on, no one in the West will dare to pay attention to the blatant disregard for human rights in Ukraine or the destruction of the last institutions of democracy there. And Russian rhetoric in this regard can always be called enemy rhetoric. Nevertheless, officially Ukraine will be forced to adopt a course of neutrality. This will allow it to dialog with both the West and Russia.
The real problems for the Kiev regime will be the lack of effective governance and deteriorating public order. The economy will be in a state of stagnation or even recession. High unemployment and poverty would lead to a new wave of mass emigration.
Military service becomes compulsory for all citizens of the country, including women. The national military-industrial complex is expected to be rebuilt at an accelerated pace. Finally, Ukraine will reform its special services on the Israeli model.
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Labour Private Jet Spending Could Hire 240 Coppers.
UK DOGE pored over all the recent Labour transparency returns to find out just how much ministers have been spending on the flights they claimed were an elitist habit when Tories were at it. Reminder: According to Starmer if you fly on government planes you don’t “get” what the public thinks because “the view on the ground is very different to that from his private jet”…
Labour ministers in the first three months following the election spent over £2 million on their private jet habit. £2,085,547.67 to be exact…
That’s £160,427 per week on jets. A large amount of that is thanks to Lammy and Starmer. Bonus points to employment minister Alison McGovern, who managed to spend £6,000 on flights within three weeks of being appointed…
At that rate Labour will spend £8.3 million on flights over a year. That’s enough to fund:
The salaries of 240 Metropolitan police officers. Including allowances…
Filling 115,863 potholes. Which themselves lead to a cost of £500 in repairs on average…
Buying 6,952 hospital beds for the healthcare system.
Javier Milei flies commercial. UK DOGE recommends costs are cut here. |
Santander share price up 8% today. |
More than 400 staff at Scotland's only oil refinery being made redundant
STV News understands that of about 500 staff, some 65 are due to be kept on to work at the new terminal operation.
“It is a quite frankly a national disgrace that Petroineos has been allowed to press ahead with this needless act of industrial vandalism.
“There is a clear plan for the future of Grangemouth in place. Yet the UK and Scottish governments are missing in action.
“It is clear the company is acting in the national interest in China. Who is acting in Britain’s interest – who has got Britain’s back?
Grangemouth is the only operating crude oil refinery in Scotland and one of only six remaining in the UK.
It supplies around 80% of the country’s fuel but refinery operations are expected to cease this spring.
Petroineos, a joint venture between PetroChina and INEOS, said the site would become an import and distribution hub. |
Weakened business confidence sees van sales fall 20% in January
The Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders (SMMT), which released the figures, said it was the second consecutive monthly decline following strong growth in 2024.
It forecast that sales would fall by -1.2% to 348,000 units against a tough economic backdrop with weakened business confidence to invest.
Falling demand hit all but one segment, with small van registrations recording the only increase, up 89.8% to 668 units but still just a fraction (3.5%) of the market.
Registrations of the largest vans were down -22.3% to 11,537 units – representing 60.6% of the overall market – while those of medium vans fell by -30.4% to 3,507 units. In the smaller volume segments, meanwhile, 4x4s and pick-ups fell by -27.2% and -6.5% respectively. |
Trump And Netanyahu Take Reporters' Questions In The Oval Office |
Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs) - 5 February 2025 |
Two Israeli Soldiers Killed, Eight Wounded In West Bank Shooting Attack
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A shooting attack carried out by a single Palestinian gunman in the occupied West Bank on February 4 left ten Israeli troops dead or wounded.
The gunman infiltrated the Taysir checkpoint, close to the Palestinian village of the same name in the northern part of the West Bank. According to an initial probe by the Israeli Defense Forces, the gunman managed to sneak up to a military post at the checkpoint, where he exchanged fire with troops.
Two troops were killed and eight others were wounded in the attack, according to the IDF. Two of the wounded were listed in serious condition.
The gunman was also killed while attempting to run away from the post by a backup force dispatched by the IDF.
Video footage posted to social networks showed the moments of the attack. In the video, gunfire can be seen at the top of the watchtower.
The deadly attack followed a series of large-scale operations by the IDF in the West Bank, including an offensive on the Jenin refugee camp that claimed the lives of more than 55 Palestinians. It also came amid a ceasefire and prisoner-swap deal in the Gaza Strip.
Speaking at the scene of the attack, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said the army would further expand military operations in the area.
“This is a difficult attack in which we lost two reserve soldiers. We will investigate and learn lessons, some of them have already been implemented,” he said. “We will increase the operations to thwart [attacks], and expand them to additional areas.”
Shortly after, Palestinian media reported an Israeli drone strike in the town of Tamun, close to Tayasir. No injuries were reported and there was no comment from the IDF.
Recent IDF operations in the West Bank have failed to put an end to attacks by Palestinians as evident by the incident in Tayasir. As long as the war in Gaza is still ongoing, violence in the West Bank and within Israel will not likely come to a halt.
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Santander announces €10 billion in buybacks after record profits
Santander said today it expects to return €10 billion to investors through share buybacks from 2025 and 2026 earnings and anticipated excess capital.
With the Spanish lender also reporting record quarterly and full-year profits, its shares were up more than 7% in early trade today.
The bank's fourth-quarter net profit rose 11% year-on-year after a solid performance at its retail businesses in Spain and Brazil and higher revenues more than offset a decline in consumer lending, it said. |
Trump’s plan to ‘take over’ Gaza
Trump says US will take over Gaza Strip during news conference with Netanyahu
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