fifa fish
Sinn Fein actively pursuing route into government, insists leader McDonaldFubara stopped Wike from turning Rivers into his private estate – Odili
The violent reign of notorious 1960s gangsters the Krays has been highlighted at Westminster to argue against plans to throw out hereditary peers from the Lords. The London underworld activities of Ronnie and Reggie were recounted in Parliament by Lord Hamilton of Epsom as he warned that legislation proposed by the Government to reform the upper chamber treated appointed members as “good” and those there by right of birth as “bad”. Taking issue with this, the Conservative former minister delved back into history to highlight the connection between the infamous twins and Lord Boothby, a former MP who was among the first to be made a life peer following a change in the law in 1958. Lord Hamilton also made reference to the long-running affair between Boothby and Dorothy Macmillan, the wife of the then Conservative prime minister Harold Macmillan. He went on to point to the jailing of one-time life peers Lord Kagan and Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare as he branded the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill “very, very facile”. The legislation, which has been through the Commons, will abolish the 92 seats reserved for bloodline members. The Bill delivers on a promise in Labour’s election manifesto and has been promoted as the first step in a process of reform amid ongoing concerns over the size of the House. Opponents claim it will push appointments even further into the hands of the Prime Minister of the day, with no curb on numbers. Referring to George Orwell’s allegorical novel, Lord Hamilton said: “I think this Bill, which is bit odd, must have been drafted by somebody who had just read Animal Farm because for some reason the House has been divided between life peers who are good and hereditary peers who are bad.” He added: “So is there something superior about appointed peers over elected hereditary peers? I think not, I think the reverse is true.” Highlighting the introduction of life peerages in 1958, Lord Hamilton said: “Probably the most memorable name of the life peers brought into the House at that stage was Lord Boothby. “Now Lord Boothby’s claim to fame was that he had actually slept with the prime minister’s wife. “This completely kyboshed the advice I used to give to people who wanted to be life peers in this place. I used to say to them ‘Whatever else you do, make sure you don’t sleep with the prime minister’s wife’. “But Lord Boothby was rather more exotic than just that. He was actually photographed enjoying a drink in a Soho club with the Kray twins. “Now most of you are too young to remember anything about the Kray twins but they were actually a very, very sinister couple of mobsters, who were the nearest thing we had to the mafia in this country and they ran a protection racket that was absolutely ruthless. “They tortured very large numbers of people and one of them was so psychotic that he actually rather enjoyed doing it. “It took some time for the legal authorities to catch up with the Kray twins but they did eventually end up in prison and I think both of them died there. “Lord Boothby was lucky because he didn’t end up in prison. “But on the other hand, Lord Kagan did.” The Lithuanian refugee and textile magnate was a friend of then prime minister Harold Wilson and was made a life peer in 1976. However, Kagan was subsequently found guilty of fraud and jailed in 1980. Stripped of his knighthood, Kagan’s peerage could not be removed and following his release he returned to the House of Lords and became a campaigner for penal reform until his death in 1995. Lord Hamilton also highlighted the case of the best-selling author and former Tory MP Lord Archer, who was jailed in 2001 after being found guilty of perjury and perverting the course of justice. The peer said: “I am just pointing this out because quite clearly it is wrong to say that all life peers are criminal convicts ... but the damage one or two do is very, very great to the House and people outside cannot understand why people who are supposed to be writing the laws cannot actually uphold them themselves and are actually outside the law. “So when we come to say that hereditary peers are bad and life peers are good that doesn’t apply in every case.” Criticising the legislation that would see the removal of hereditary peers, Lord Hamilton warned about the loss of expertise. He said: “It seems to be an extremely negative way of planning the future of this House and holding the Government to account. “We will be looking at this Bill with very great intensity ... I think that this is a very, very facile Bill and needs exploring in very great depth.”
Days after a Boxing Day humbling by Wycombe Wanderers, Stevenage return to League One action keen to dispatch struggling Bristol Rovers in Sunday's gameweek 23 clash at the Lamex Stadium. Alex Revell 's men were powerless to resist the second-placed side's attacking prowess on Thursday, but seek a return to winning ways against a club winless in five matches, losing four in that period, and under new management after Inigo Calderon 's post-Christmas appointment. Stevenage went into Christmas undefeated in five League One matches (two wins), only to come unstuck at the hands of Wycombe on December 26. The Boro had gone four matches unbeaten on home soil before their recent humbling, although they seek a response to that reverse in Hertfordshire. Having accrued 20 of their 26 points in home games, supporters anticipate another strong showing from their side to end 2024 encouragingly with a seventh victory at the visiting club's expense. Despite their middling status — the 16th-placed Boro are unlikely to challenge for a top-six berth and are seven points clear of Crawley Town in 21st — the Hertfordshire outfit have somehow stayed motivated, especially on home soil. Thus, a Stevenage victory is anticipated this weekend, even though Bristol Rovers are winless in five league matches, losing four. Worryingly for the Pirates, they have fired blanks three times, losing to Blackpool (2-0), Leyton Orient (3-0) and Birmingham (2-0) during the wretched spell that threatens to see them slide into the bottom four heading into 2025, something newly-appointed Calderon hopes to avoid. With three points separating Calderon's men from Crawley, defeat for the Pirates this weekend and a Crawley win at Exeter could pull the Gas into the dreaded positions at the end of 2024. Those prospects are conceivable considering Rovers' away record: two wins, one draw and eight losses, with four defeats in their recent five matches on their travels. Only Stevenage and Rotherham United (six points each), and Shrewsbury Town and Cambridge United (five points each) have accumulated fewer away points than the Pirates this term, highlighting the club's away blues ahead of Sunday. Despite those problems, Rovers have enjoyed recent visits to Hertfordshire, beating Stevenage 4-0 in February 2022 and 3-2 in the same month earlier this year, and a repeat will be just what the doctor ordered for the visitors hoping to avoid being in the relegation places at the turn of the year. Stevenage have no fresh injury problems going into Sunday's match, though Jake Forster-Caskey will undergo last-minute checks. Jamie Reid (five) and Daniel Kemp (four) lead for goal contributions for the hosts, making the pair the Boro's leading threats in gameweek 23. Harvey White has fashioned five big chances this term, more than any player on either side, and the midfield man could be pivotal in unpicking the struggling visitors. Rovers came through Boxing Day unscathed and have a clean bill of health this weekend. Promise Omochere has netted in back-to-back games for the Pirates, and the 24-year-old forward could retain his starting role for the away side. Stevenage possible starting lineup: Ashby-Hammond; James-Wildin, Thompson, Piergianni, Butler; Phillips, White; Roberts, Kemp, Young; Reid Bristol Rovers possible starting lineup: Griffiths; Wilson, Taylor, Mola; Senior, Lindsay, Conteh, Thomas; Forde, Omochere, Hutchinson Despite a wretched sequence of results in the lead-up to Sunday's visit to Stevenage, Rovers are undefeated in three trips to Hertfordshire, and they could eke out a draw to extend that unbeaten run in a low-scoring draw. For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here .
There is growing evidence that it can help with pain, depression and more T IMES ARE good in the hypnosis business. On YouTube, channels such as UltraHypnosis offer videos featuring candles, swirling patterns and slow voiceovers, with titles like “Hypnosis to Declutter your Mind Before Deep Sleep”. Some have tens of millions of views. At a recent conference of hypnosis experts in California, David Spiegel, one of the speakers, noted the success of his hypnosis app, “Reveri”, which has gained more than 214,000 users in the past year, and 650,000 since its launch in 2020. More from Science & technology Academic writing is getting harder to read—the humanities most of all We analyse two centuries of scholarly work Giving children the wrong (or not enough) toys may doom a society Survival is a case of child’s play Earth is warming faster. Scientists are closing in on why Paradoxically, cleaner emissions from ships and power plants are playing a role Humans and Neanderthals met often, but only one event matters The mystery of exactly how people left Africa deepens Machine translation is almost a solved problem But interpreting meanings, rather than just words and sentences, will be a daunting task AI can bring back a person’s own voice And it can generate sentences trained on their own writingHas anyone emerged as the Mega millions jackpot winner? Here's some stunning news coming in from a gas station in CaliforniaSMU seeks 7th straight win with visit from Longwood
Tulane QB Mensah transfers to DukeNone
NoneNORMAL — It was a particularly frigid Friday morning as Andrew Ballinger surveyed a basement wall made of concrete blocks that was slowly, at a snail's pace, collapsing from the pressure outside. "This is a very common issue, especially with block walls," said Ballinger, general manager with Foundation Recovery Systems (FRS) . The Normal home's occupant is a veteran of the U.S. Navy, and FRS got involved because a local group, Veterans Maintenance Solutions, interceded on the veteran's behalf. Veterans Maintenance Solutions is the action arm of Central Illinois Housing Network (CIHN) , a nonprofit organization that offers free home inspections and maintenance for current and former servicemembers and their families in Central Illinois, said President Bill Gobtop. "Most of the time, when (veterans) come to us, they're really at a dead end," Gobtop said. "They don't know who (to ask for help). They don't know how to do it themselves." Along with his wife, Starr, Bill Gobtop founded the nonprofit in January 2019 with the mission to help veterans, servicemembers and their families with significant home repairs or adjustments free of cost, Starr Gobtop said. "We work with all kinds of veterans organizations here in town, the VFW, the American Legion and all of that," she said. Foundation repairs are just one of a myriad of issues the Gobtops tackle for local veterans, many of whom have mobility issues. "Our very first (job) was a ramp, of course," Starr Gobtop said. "That's very important to be able to access homes. ... These folks had actually had a fire in their home (and) moved into a new home. The partner was an amputee, so their solution to get her in and out of the house in a wheelchair was a piece of plywood on stairs." "It was not even anchored," her husband added. They had "a 4-by-8(-foot) sheet on the edge of the platform and the steps and rock-and-roll down." That first job took the better part of week, Bill Gobtop said. Production Manager Andrew Weis installs an overhead brace for an IntelliBrace system on Dec. 6 in the Normal home of a Navy veteran. Usually, work like ramp installations and basic repairs are handled by the Gobtops, their son, Nick, and a team of volunteers, Bill Gobtop said. "If it is something that touches plumbing and electric, we have licensed contractors that we work with," he said. Or, in the case of the slowly collapsing basement wall, licensed professionals for a foundation repair. If houses are not built with proper drainage around their foundation, earth and water can add extra pressure on the walls, causing them to creep inward and threaten the home's structural integrity, said Alex Lewis, certified field inspector with FRS. "We're putting out four IntelliBraces with joist reinforcements to stabilize this wall," Ballinger said. "Gradually ... this wall will be able to go back to where it originally was." IntelliBrace is a system that provides counter pressure by placing a metal brace on the wall from floor to ceiling. The brace is attached to a board affixed to the ceiling with a special coupling that allows varying amounts of pressure to be applied to the wall, essentially pushing the wall back into place over time. "It's gradual," Ballinger said. "So usually we adjust them every year. ... This one, I would say within a couple years, you can get it pretty close to original." Getting the actual repairs or installs complete is just half the battle, Bill Gobtop said. "There's really two levels of support," he said. "There's people in the trades and material providers," but the other, often more difficult, fight is funding the projects. "Financial (help) is the most important because we have veterans that we have on a list that we don't have the funds to help," Starr Gobtop said. Among those repairs are several ramps, bathroom repairs, walk-in showers, handrail installations and the remaining three walls of the home in Normal. "(FRS) came in, looked at it and said, 'Really, all the walls need to be taken care of, but this is the wall that needs to be taken care of first'," Starr Gobtop said. But all of those jobs cost money, she said. There are limited grants available for groups like Veterans Maintenance Solutions, one of which is the Home Improvement/Structural Alterations (HISA) grant through the Department of Veterans Affairs . But that only affords up to $6,800 to address an issue a veteran is having in their home that is exacerbating a service-connected disability, which means it may not pay for a foundation repair. The Gobtops host small fundraisers throughout the year, including a golf outing every summer, but the list of veterans in need keeps growing, and the price of goods continues to skyrocket, Bill Gobtop said. To learn more about how to help the Gobtops in their efforts to support servicemembers across Central Illinois, visit the Veterans Maintenance Solutions website at servingvets.net/take-action or call Starr Gobtop at 309-838-9124. The Lincoln NWS office provides warnings, forecasts, and other weather and climate information to the public, media, emergency management, and other customers Conway, a adoptable 5-month old terrier mix with the Humane Society of Central Illinois, has his photo taken with Santa Joel Purcell on Friday at Sugar Mama Bakery during the annual "Once Upon a Holiday" event in downtown Bloomington. The Humane Society will be hosting a "Paws & Claus: Pet Photos with Santa event" at the Bloomington Moose Lodge 745/WOTM Chapter 173 on Wednesday, Dec. 11, from 5 to 7 p.m. Rick Harney, left, and Dale Evans perform holiday songs at Joann Goetzinger Art Studio and Gallery on Friday during the annual "Once Upon a Holiday" event in downtown Bloomington. Bloomington police detective Martin Krylowicz, left, writes "tickets" citing naughty or nice behavior for Santi, left, and Leonie Castrejon as their mother, Emily Castrejon, looks on Friday in downtown Bloomington. A live nativity scene included church member Judy Holder on Friday night at Second Pres in downtown Bloomington. Seventh and eighth grade members of the Chiddix Junior High student orchestra perform at Red Raccoon Games, 301 N. Main St., as part of downtown Bloomington's First Friday event for December. Chloe Normal and Jason Zummallen sport festive headwear as they enjoy the cozy atmosphere at Ivy Lane Bakery, 405 N. Main St., during the December First Friday event in downtown Bloomington. Seventh grader Lauren Powell performs with the Chiddix Junior High student orchestra on Friday at Red Raccoon Games. Bloomington Mayor Mboka Mwilambwe speaks during the Christmas tree lighting ceremony on Friday evening to kick off the holiday season in downtown Bloomington. Nitsch Theatre Arts members perform with accompanying holiday music before the lighting of downtown Bloomington's Christmas tree on Friday night. From left to right, Tracy Patkunas, Erin Jensen, Michael Jensen, Carol Elliott and Roger Elliott take a selfie on Friday after the Christmas tree was lit during the annual "Once Upon a Holiday" event in downtown Bloomington. Bloomington Police Detective Martin Krylowicz hands out "tickets" on Santa's behalf to children at downtown Bloomington's First Friday event. A festive crowd gathers outside of the McLean County Museum of History for a Christmas tree lighting ceremony on Friday evening. A clock-in for the elves is on display at Ivy Lane Bakery during the annual "Once Upon a Holiday" event in downtown Bloomington. Bloomington Mayor Mboka Mwilambwe addresses attendees at the tree lighting ceremony on Friday in downtown Bloomington. Contact D. Jack Alkire at (309)820-3275. Twitter: @d_jack_alkire Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. General Assignment Reporter {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.Celebrity-inspired Thanksgiving recipes, plus last-minute holiday meal ideas
Donald Hand Jr. racked up a career-high 29 points and 10 rebounds to help Boston College stave off visiting Fairleigh Dickinson 78-70 on Saturday in Chestnut Hill, Mass. Chad Venning added 18 points on 8-for-10 shooting and Dion Brown contributed eight points, eight rebounds and four assists as the Eagles (8-5) wrapped up their nonconference slate with just their second win in six games. Ahmed Barba-Bey, a grad transfer from Division II, exploded for a season-high 31 points to power FDU (4-11). Barba-Bey buried 8 of 9 attempts from the 3-point arc. Terrence Brown added 15 of his 20 points in the second half, as the Knights made it close before falling to 0-10 on the road this season. Bismark Nsiah scored 10 points. Boston College led 70-59 with 3:39 to play when Barba-Bey was fouled attempting a corner 3. He made all three of his foul shots, and after a stop Brown got to the bucket to cut FDU's deficit to six. It was 72-67 when Venning made a clutch turnaround jumper from the high post with 51 seconds left. Boston College let Barba-Bey get loose for his eighth 3-pointer, pulling FDU within four, its closest margin of the half. But Hand drove to the basket and scored with 29 seconds on the clock, and FDU was out of time. The Knights trailed by as many as 12 in the first half, but Barba-Bey kept them in the game. He made a fastbreak layup off Brown's steal and added a 3-pointer on the next possession, turning what was a 10-point deficit to a manageable 29-24 game. Boston College led 38-28 at halftime, with Hand scoring 15 for the hosts and Barba-Bey pouring in 16 for the Knights, including 4-of-5 shooting from deep. FDU pulled within nine points three times in the early stages of the second half, the third coming when Nsiah knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to make it 56-47 with about 10 minutes to go. --Field Level MediaEddie Russell This story was one of the top stories from 2024 and was originally published in August. Former Wyndham councillor and Melton property developer Intaj Khan is running for deputy lord mayor of Melbourne as second in command to AFL great Anthony Koutoufides. Last week, ‘Team Kouta’ declared their intention to run in the upcoming City of Melbourne council election in October. On the ticket is Carlton legend Anthony Koutoufides, who is gunning for the top spot as lord mayor, former Liberal MP Gladys Liu, property developer Zaim Ramani and Mr Khan. For Mr Khan, the message is simple. “Our job is to make the city vibrant again... that’s the reason we are running,” he said. “The [current] leadership has failed. It’s time for ‘Kouta’ to clean up the mess.” Mr Khan’s experiences as a councillor and committee member for Wyndham council have influenced his goals and helped him identify the big issues. “The greatest thing I learnt was the importance of affordable housing,” said Mr Khan. “We really don’t want there to be any council rate increases in the Melbourne city council municipality over the next two years so we can give an opportunity for those struggling with cost of living.” Returning the city to its former state of financial ascendency and bringing workers back are major priorities, said Mr Khan. “In the next four years, I’d like to see Melbourne’s CBD become a place where people want to invest money. “We’ve got to understand the Covid era is over.” Although an unlikely partnership at first glance, the duo “carry the same vision” for their beloved home. “The one thing about Kouta is... he loves the city so much and when he says that, he means it,” said Mr Khan. Mr Koutoufides’ AFL background is an endorsement of his character, Mr Khan said, who is a cricket lover himself. “AFL is a fantastic game that teaches a lot about leadership and working in a team with different skills. “He’s been a great captain. I think councillors will be glad to work with ‘Team Kouta’. Mr Khan said Mr Koutoufides would be a breath of fresh air given his lack of political allegiances. “You can trust in his leadership because he’s not been affiliated with any party... he brings balance to the table, which is what you need when the city is out of it.”
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