Stories for December 2017

Tuesday, December 19th 2017 - 12:48 UTC
May admits that during the Brexit transition period, UK would still be bound by EU rules

Theresa May has acknowledged that Britain will be unable to implement any new trade deals during a Brexit transition phase, telling MPs that although the country would have left the customs union it would still be bound by its rules.
Tuesday, December 19th 2017 - 12:28 UTC
Hard Brexit, soft Brexit, and the Irish question

By Gwynne Dyer - Politicians never lie. Well, hardly ever. They're not into full disclosure, as a rule, but they know that if you lie, sooner or later you will be caught out, and then you are in deep trouble. So just change the subject, or answer a different question than the one you were asked, or just keep talking but saying nothing until everybody gets bored and moves on.
Tuesday, December 19th 2017 - 12:06 UTC
Any UK/EU trade agreement will not include financial services, warns Barnier

The European Union has dashed the British government's hopes of carving out a special arrangement to allow City firms to trade freely in the EU if Britain leaves the single market. Michel Barnier, the European Commission's chief Brexit negotiator, said he was not open to a free trade agreement including financial services.
Tuesday, December 19th 2017 - 11:59 UTC
Odebrecht family leaders will step down from the scandal plagued conglomerate

Emílio Odebrecht will resign as chairman of the board of the scandal-plagued Brazilian engineering conglomerate Odebrecht SA in the first half of next year, newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo reported. Emilio Odebrecht is one of 77 executives of the engineering conglomerate to sign a plea deal.
Tuesday, December 19th 2017 - 11:48 UTC
Royal Navy's largest ever vessel leaks: some 200 liters of water per hour

The Royal Navy's new multi-billion pound aircraft carrier has a leak so big that hundreds of liters of seawater pour into it each hour which could cost millions to fix. HMS Queen Elizabeth reportedly has a major defect with the stern seal which surrounds its huge propeller shafts.
Tuesday, December 19th 2017 - 11:38 UTC
Venezuela awards Russia's Rosneft two major offshore gas fields

Venezuela has awarded licenses to a unit of Russian oil major Rosneft to develop two offshore gas fields, Rosneft said in a statement.Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signed the deal during a visit to Venezuela by Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin, it said.
Tuesday, December 19th 2017 - 11:21 UTC
Markets and investors cheer Piñera, but he faces a determined opposition in Congress

Billionaire conservative Sebastian Piñera will begin a second term as Chile's president in March with a strong mandate after trouncing his center-left opponent in Sunday's election, and local markets soared on hopes of more investor-friendly policies.
Monday, December 18th 2017 - 13:47 UTC
Half of the world population without health services, says WHO/World Bank report

At least half of the world’s population cannot obtain essential health services, according to a new report from the World Bank and WHO. And each year, large numbers of households are being pushed into poverty because they must pay for health care out of their own pockets.
Monday, December 18th 2017 - 13:35 UTC
Russia again becomes main supplier of oil for Cuban refinery

Venezuela has pulled out of a partnership with Cuba in its Cienfuegos oil refinery and the Caribbean island has taken full ownership of the plant, Cuban state media said. Venezuela is grappling with an economic crisis that already forced it to slash cheap oil shipments to Cuba, which has had a knock-on effect on the island’s ailing economy.
Monday, December 18th 2017 - 13:12 UTC
Chile bans bottom sea trawling in 98% of its EEZ to protect marine environment

Chile's Under secretariat of Fisheries and Aquaculture, SUBPESCA, and Oceana Chile jointly announced the freezing of the fishing footprint for the common hake and demersal crustacean fisheries. This means that 98% of Chile's exclusive economic zone, EEZ, will be protected from bottom trawling.