Fifa accused of lying about environmental impact of Qatar World Cup
Football's world governing body Fifa made false and misleading statements about the reduced environmental impact of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, a Swiss regulator said on Wednesday. The Swiss Fairness Commission, the self-regulatory body of the advertising and communications industry, made its determination after investigating five claims that Zurich-based Fifa marketed the tournament as being carbon neutral. The commission, which issues recommendations, but no state-enforceable judgements, advised Fifa from making unsubstantiated claims in future. It said complainants usually implement its recommendations voluntarily. Fifa did not respond to a request for comment. Complainants from Switzerland, France, Belgium, the UK and the Netherlands said Fifa made false statements in its communications about carbon neutrality at the World Cup, the commission said. "The Second Chamber of the Commission has now upheld all five complaints following a complex process," it added. Fifa had promoted the Qatar World Cup as the first completely climate-neutral tournament, saying it was committed to reducing and offsetting carbon emissions it generated. But the Climate Alliance, a network of groups which launched the complaint last year, was concerned about the environmental impact from the construction of air-conditioned stadiums and the thousands of fans who flew to the tournament. In its decision, the commission said it should not be claimed that sustainability goals have been achieved if there are no definitive and generally accepted methods for measuring them, or ensuring measures have been implemented. "Fifa was not able to provide proof that the claims were accurate during the proceedings as required by the commission," it said. Raphael Mahaim, from the group Lawyers for the Climate, said he was delighted with the ruling which he said exposed Fifa's greenwashing. "Fifa said it was taking the climate change seriously, and taking the credit for this, and this wasn’t true," he said. Fifa's claims were damaging because it meant companies and individuals scaling back their own action to reduce their carbon emissions because they thought Fifa had offset them. "Ultimately, false claims like this damage the campaign for carbon neutrality," said Mahaim, who is also a Swiss MP for the Green Party. Reuters Read More Everything wrong with the Qatar World Cup This is the side of the World Cup that Qatar would prefer you ignore The man who was jailed after working on Qatar’s World Cup Newcastle owners take majority stakes in four Saudi clubs including Al Nassr Sarina Wiegman frustrated over timing of players being released for World Cup Women’s World Cup faces ‘betrayal’ of European TV blackout
2023-06-08 13:50
Irish police trawl through 6,000 hours of CCTV footage in Dublin riots probe
Police in Ireland are trawling through 6,000 hours of CCTV footage as a major investigation into riots in Dublin’s city centre continues. The violence in the Irish capital on Thursday – which involved far-right elements and saw Garda cars, buses and trams set alight and shops looted and damaged – flared after a knife attack on three children and their care assistant outside a school in the north inner city. There were a small number of arrests on Friday evening as gardai mounted a significant security operation around the O’Connell Street thoroughfare to avoid a repeat of the violent scenes from the night before. Amid criticism of the Garda response to the riots, government ministers met and heard that legislation to facilitate the use of body-worn cameras by police officers will be fast-tracked. Justice minister Helen McEntee also told colleagues that officers are trawling 6,000 hours of CCTV footage and vowed that further arrests would follow the 34 already made. She also insisted that the police force has all the resources necessary to keep people in Dublin safe over the weekend, including securing the use of two water cannons from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). Ms McEntee also rejected a call from Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald for her and Garda commissioner Drew Harris to resign. She said: “If Sinn Fein wish to debate law and order, if Sinn Fein wish to debate how we can support the gardai, I have no problem in standing over Fine Gael’s record of law and order, Fine Gael’s record of supporting members of An Garda Siochana. “I do not believe Sinn Fein can stand over their record.” Ms McDonald said there had been “an unacceptable, unprecedented collapse in policing” and that a problem leading to Thursday’s riot had been “building for months”. Damage to public infrastructure in Dublin from the disorder could cost tens of millions of euros to repair, Irish premier Leo Varadkar said. He added that the knife attack and the violence which followed had brought “shame on Ireland”. A five-year-old girl injured in the knife attack outside a school remained in a critical condition in hospital on Friday while the female care assistant, in her 30s, was in a serious condition. The two other children, a five-year-old boy and a six-year-old girl, suffered less serious injuries. That girl remained in hospital on Friday but the boy has been discharged. Gardai said a man who sustained serious injuries at the scene is a person of interest in their investigation. Politicians and police have hailed as heroes members of the public who intervened to halt the attacker at the scene on Parnell Square East, including a Brazilian Deliveroo driver. Read More Labour has to be ‘diverse’ to form successful government says Rayner Helpline for the elderly is more important than ever, Dame Esther Rantzen says What the papers say – November 25 Geologist dons trainers for final marathon of 30 before 30 challenge Sharp cut in fuel prices after retailers given ‘good prod’ by regulator, AA says Rwanda plan ‘not the be all and end all’, says James Cleverly
2023-11-25 13:49
Chris Christie files paperwork to launch long-shot 2024 bid
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has filed paperwork to launch his 2024 presidential bid. Mr Christie, who faces long odds in the competition for the GOP nomination, is expected to formally kick off his campaign during a town hall in New Hampshire. Mr Christie plans to focus on the Granite State, an early primary state that he hopes will help give his campaign momentum. Former President Donald Trump, meanwhile, leads the increasingly crowded GOP field. But Mr Christie will look to position himself as a more moderate alternative to Mr Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who recently launched his own GOP presidential bid. At one point, Mr Christie appeared to be in the running for an administration post in Mr Trump’s government, rumoured to be a top contender for the positions of attorney general or potentially secretary of state. But the former governor has since become a vocal critic of the former president, who faces criminal charges in New York City and the prospect of additional charges at the federal level and in Georgia. In the days immediately following January 6, he urged his fellow Republicans to impeach the president for whom he had once considered working, on the grounds of inciting an insurrection — a highly serious charge that ended up going further than even the select committee formed to investigate the attack would later recommend in its referral to the Department of Justice. Just as recently as March, the ex-governor was laying out what he believed was necessary to stop Mr Trump from attaining the GOP nomination, something many in the party’s donor class are hoping to avoid given the president’s performance in 2020 and the woeful showing by the Republican Party in the 2022 midterms. “You better have somebody on that stage who can do to him what I did to Marco [Rubio], because that's the only thing that's gonna defeat Donald Trump,” he said at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College. “And that means you have to be fearless, because he will come back, and right at you.” His comments referred to the infamous moment during a February 2016 Republican debate wherein Mr Christie battled a then-surging Senator Marco Rubio onstage — in a series of brutal takedowns, the governor deconstructed his opponent’s debating approach and eviscerated it, leaving the crowd jeering as the senator attempted to respond. It was a moment that quickly cemented itself in political debating history, but ultimately proved next to meaningless given that both men would be utterly overwhelmed in the contest by another man on the stage that night: Donald Trump. And it remains unclear whether that same mastery of the debate stage demonstrated by Mr Christie will serve him well against Mr Trump. In one famous instance from the 2020 contests, Mr Trump bullied his way through an initial debate with now-President Joe Biden, talking over his opponent and ignoring the rules and moderator. Matching Mr Trump’s energy both onstage and off has turned into a major challenge for Republicans, including both those who seek to end his dominance of the GOP and those who wish to emulate his style for their own gain. Though Mr Christie is a veteran of the presidential campaign universe, his chances of winning the GOP nomination are slim. He is currently polling around 1 percent in surveys of the Republican field which include him; the vast majority of voters are currently aligned behind Mr Trump and his second-place challenger, Florida’s Ron DeSantis. Read More Chris Christie –live: Former New Jersey Gov launches Trump spoiler 2024 presidential bid Chris Christie gave Trump legitimacy. Now he can’t stop Trump in 2024 Tim Scott and TV host spar about systemic racism on ‘The View’: ‘That is a dangerous, offensive, disgusting message’ Chris Christie gave Trump legitimacy. Now he can’t stop Trump in 2024 Trump secret papers crisis is his own fault for ‘jerking around’ DOJ says his former attorney general Trump threatens former lawyer who told CNN he expected indictment: ‘Angry, nasty, libelous’
2023-06-07 04:59
Here’s what we know about IShowSpeed’s relationship with supposed girlfriend, Aaliyah Wasko
IShowSpeed's girlfriend finds herself in spotlight after some clips of her with another guy were leaked online
2023-12-02 15:29
Shootout breaks out in Kosovo hours after death of police officer
A shootout between police and heavily armed persons in northern Kosovo was underway on Sunday, just hours after an ambush incident left one police officer dead and another injured.
2023-09-25 00:51
Italy PM says good ties with China possible without Belt and Road
MILAN Good relations with China are possible even without being part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)
2023-05-28 15:50
Volunteer medical students are trying to fill the health care gap for migrants in Chicago
A group of volunteer doctors in Chicago is spending their Saturdays providing street medicine for the growing number of migrants
2023-11-02 16:20
Wild Misconceptions About Sharks
In this episode of Misconceptions, host Justin Dodd debunks some myths about these great beasts of the ocean, from whether punching them in the nose is a valid defense tactic to the events that inspired 'Jaws.'
2023-10-26 03:50
Ex-Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon released after arrest by police in party finance probe
Former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was arrested and questioned by police investigating the finances of Scotland's pro-independence governing party
2023-06-12 01:47
UK Green Agenda Faces Another Hurdle as Offshore Wind Stumbles
The UK’s annual renewable energy auction may not include offshore wind for the first time since the system
2023-08-17 13:29
‘It was a burden’: Tom Hanks reveals how he had to gain and then lose 50 lbs for ‘Cast Away’
Tom Hanks is a master of transformation but some of his roles have been grueling and have taken a toll on his health
2023-06-14 14:46
Mauricio Umansky and Emma Slater spark dating rumors as they team up for 'Dancing With The Stars' Season 32
Mauricio Umansky and Emma Slater receive support from Bravo star Kyle Richards
2023-09-14 11:56
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