EU parliament blocks US trade deal after Trump’s tariff threat 21. January 2026 (18:37) Brussels to host emergency summit to discuss options including ‘nuclear deterrent’ of retaliatory sanctionsThe European parliament has formally suspended the ratification process on its US trade deal, in protest against Donald Trump’s threat to impose 10% tariffs on EU exports unless the bloc agrees he can take over Greenland.The pause is the strongest material response the EU has shown so far to what several leaders last week called blackmail. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Germany’s plan to axe sick notes given over phone meets outcry from unions and medics 21. January 2026 (17:59) Opponents say proposal, designed to tackle employee skiving, would fill up doctors’ waiting rooms unnecessarilyA German proposal to eliminate the possibility to get short-term sick leave from a doctor over the telephone as a means of cracking down on skiving has met with an outcry from labour groups and the medical profession.Germans enjoy some of the most generous employee illness policies in Europe, a fact which the conservative chancellor, Friedrich Merz, says is undermining efforts to kickstart the EU’s biggest economy whose growth has largely stalled since 2022. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Amazon ‘cat burglar’ filmed stealing pet from Yorkshire doorstep 21. January 2026 (17:57) Carl Crowther says his feline has heart problem and needs medication, after delivery driver seen making off with itA concerned pet owner has pleaded for the safe return of his family’s ill cat after an Amazon delivery driver was caught on video picking the animal up and walking away.Carl Crowther, 53, said that he had been expecting a package on Monday 19 January, but had been forced to leave to go to his job as a maintenance man about an hour before it arrived at approximately 2.30pm. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Zelenskyy meeting with Trump expected to take place on Thursday – Europe live 21. January 2026 (17:56) Adviser to Zelenskyy says he in Kyiv, not Davos, and meeting will not be today as Trump suggested earlierFormer Nato secretary general and former Danish prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen warned that the “time of flattery has ended” as Europe needs to step up its response to Trump’s threats over Greenland – but still look for off-ramps to avoid escalation whereever possible.Speaking to BBC News this morning, he warned that a US attack on Greenland “would be the end of Nato,” and push Europeans to urgently step up its defence in its own right, regardless of the US.“I think those three areas would accommodate the concerns of President Trump.”“Time has come to stand up against Trump.”“So I think that we should solve this problem in a diplomatic way. Of course, I appreciate Denmark’s voice, … it’s our partner, but I’m looking at the Greenland as a strategic point in a [broader] geopolitical issue between the free world of democracies … and Russia.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Chile’s president-elect names staunch abortion opponent as gender equality minister 21. January 2026 (17:56) Far-right incoming president picked Judith Marín, who has publicly decried bills to decriminalse abortion, for the roleChile’s incoming far-right president José Antonio Kast has named a vehement opponent of abortion who has repeatedly stated her support for life “from conception to natural death” as the country’s new women and gender equality minister.Judith Marín, 30, was once ejected from Chile’s senate by police for screaming “return to the Lord” during a vote to decriminalise abortion under restricted circumstances. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Baby girl’s death in Hampshire raises concerns over role of doulas in home births 21. January 2026 (17:53) Coroner says non-medical support assistant affected midwifery provision and delayed mother’s transfer to Portsmouth hospitalA coroner has warned that more babies could die without greater clarity and guidance over the role of home birthing assistants after the death of a baby girl raised concerns about a doula delaying access to hospital treatment.Matilda Pomfret-Thomas died in November 2023 of a brain injury, 15 days after a difficult home labour when her mother was not immediately transferred to hospital despite signs of fetal distress, an inquest concluded last month. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Secret love letter shows softer side of Cambridge spy ring’s alleged fifth man 21. January 2026 (17:46) Intimate correspondence between John Cairncross and Gloria Barraclough features in National Archives exhibitionIt was a love letter written by one of the more important British spies of the cold war that made Tom Brass realise he had never fully known his mother.The spy in question was John Cairncross, the alleged fifth man in the Cambridge spy ring, whose spycraft helped the Soviets win the Battle of Kursk and turn the tide of the second world war. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US officials tried to lobby against Marine Le Pen election ban, French judge says 21. January 2026 (17:38) Magali Lafourcade says the two envoys were convinced the far-right leader’s corruption trial had been politicalEurope live – latest updatesA French magistrate has said two Trump administration emissaries approached her seeking to lobby against an election ban on the French far-right leader Marine Le Pen.Magali Lafourcade, the secretary general of France’s human rights commission (CNCDH), an independent body that advises the government, told Agence France-Presse (AFP) she had reported the content of the meeting to the French foreign ministry immediately, fearing a potential “manipulation of the public debate in France”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Vienna closes museums and cuts opening hours as part of austerity drive 21. January 2026 (17:36) Director of Wien Museum says ‘we all have to economise’ as city temporarily reduces access to cultural sitesIt prides itself on its reputation as the world’s home of classical music. But Vienna will see the doors of several museums dedicated to famous composers close to the public this year as the Austrian capital cuts its culture budget to meet public spending targets.The apartment where the Austrian composer Franz Schubert died, the residence of “Blue Danube” writer Johann Strauss, as well as the house where Joseph Haydn lived are to be closed temporarily owing to cost-saving measures, the director of Vienna’s museums announced on Wednesday. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Olympics chief admits she has not spoken to US president Trump about LA 2028 Games 21. January 2026 (17:21) Kirsty Coventry steers clear of global politics in buildupOrganisers will meet with vice-president JD VanceThe International Olympic Committee has yet to establish formal communications with the US president Donald Trump on preparations for the Los Angeles Games in 2028, the IOC president, Kirsty Coventry, has confirmed.Trump has been speaking in Davos in Switzerland after a turbulent start to 2026 during which he has suggested he will invade Greenland, threatened a trade war with Europe and ousted the Venezuela president Nicolás Maduro. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
