By Alper Kara, Head of Department of Economics, Finance & Accounting, Brunel University of London
For many UK households, 2025 marked the beginning of the end of the mortgage rate shocks of the previous year. And while that did not mean a return to cheap borrowing, the easing of interest rates was clearly visible over the course of the year.
The Bank of England’s base rate, a key determinant of mortgage pricing, fell from 4.75% in January 2025 to 3.75% in December.
And mortgage rates followed suit. For a typical first-time buyer (a two-year fixed deal with a 10% deposit) rates fell…
(Full Story)
|
By Omid Memarian
“Porcelain lives in our collective memory — we grow up with it in our homes and daily rituals — so it already carries meaning before I touch it.”
(Full Story)
|
By Amnesty International
As voters prepare to go to the polls in Benin, candidates running in the country’s legislative and municipal elections on 11 January 2026, and presidential election on 12 April 2026, must commit to prioritizing human rights, Amnesty International and 13 civil society organizations said. The organizations have published a manifesto setting out key human rights […] The post Benin: Election candidates must commit to protecting human rights amid shrinking civic space appeared first on Amnesty International. ]]>
(Full Story)
|
By Francesco Grillo, Academic Fellow, Department of Social and Political Sciences, Bocconi University
A world without a world order is a much greater problem for Europe than for any other economy of the world.
(Full Story)
|
By Human Rights Watch
Click to expand Image Rohingya walk through rice fields after fleeing across the border from Myanmar to Bangladesh near Teknaf, September 1, 2017. © 2017 AP Photo/Bernat Armangue (The Hague) – International Court of Justice (ICJ) hearings in the Myanmar genocide case highlight the need for justice for the ethnic Rohingya, Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK, Global Justice Center, Human Rights Watch, Refugee Women for Peace and Justice, and Women’s Peace Network said today. Hearings on the merits of the case begin on January 12, 2026.In August 2017, Myanmar security forces began…
(Full Story)
|
By Digital Storytelling Team, The Conversation
Victoria is bracing for potentially catastrophic bushfire conditions on Friday, with temperatures expected to top 40°C for the third day in a row in parts of the state and winds up to 100 kilometres per hour.
The conditions will be the worst the state has seen since the Black Summer bushifres of 2019–20. The Country Fire Authority’s Jason Heffernan called…
(Full Story)
|
By Sarah McColl-Gausden, Research fellow, The University of Melbourne
Bianca Pickering, Research Fellow School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences, The University of Melbourne
Kate Parkins, Bushfire Risk Analyst, The University of Melbourne
Across Australia there are a number of fire districts facing extreme or catastrophic fire danger ratings in this ongoing heatwave.
As of late Thursday in Victoria, the South-West, Wimmera, Northern Country and North Central districts have been assigned a catastrophic rating, while the rest of the state has been assigned an extreme rating. South Australia has nine…
(Full Story)
|
By John Harvey, PhD Researcher, Global Agriculture and Food Systems, University of Edinburgh; University of Exeter
Peter Alexander, Professor of Global Food Systems, University of Edinburgh
Sarah Crowley, Senior Lecturer in Human and Animal Geography, University of Exeter
Cutting down the amount of meat we eat helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with agriculture. But what about the meat that our pet dogs eat?
Our new study shows that feeding dogs can have a larger negative effect on the environment than the food their owners eat. For a collie or English springer spaniel-sized dog (weighing 20kg), 40% of tested dog foods have a higher climate impact than a human…
(Full Story)
|
By Sam West, Postdoctoral Researcher, Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford
Dimitrios Koutoukidis, Senior Researcher, Behavioural Science, University of Oxford
Susan Jebb, Professor of Diet and Population Health, University of Oxford
New weight loss jabs work brilliantly – but only while you’re taking them. The rebound is fast, and the cost-effectiveness unclear.
(Full Story)
|
By Mong Palatino
“It seems that the government is shutting down all avenues to remain transparent. Why does a government do that when there is nothing to hide?”
(Full Story)
|