News Round-Up

• “Northern Lights arrive in Britain due to a severe geomagnetic storm” – Hundreds of Britons reported seeing the Northern Lights from their windows last night thanks to a severe geomagnetic storm that threatens to disrupt the world’s power grids, says the Mail.
• “Severe space storm could knock out mobile phones this weekend” – Explosion of plasma from the Sun’s surface could knock out mobile phones this weekend, warns the Telegraph.
• “The rage against Israel at Eurovision is disgraceful” – Eden Golan is being treated like a leper for daring to represent the Jewish state, writes Tom Slater in Spiked.
• “What is the anti-Israel Eurovision protest really about?” – Thousands of pro-Palestinian protestors, including Greta Thunberg, have gathered in Malmo to protest against a 20 year-old Israeli ‘oppressor’, says Brendan O’Neill in the Spectator.
• “Pubs planning Eurovision nights are targeted by Pro-Palestinian groups” – Bars are facing boycotts and pickets by pro-Palestinian protestors if they show television pictures of a 20 year-old Jewish girl singing a song, says the Mail.
• “Courage of the Israeli singer at the heart of Eurovision’s Gaza storm” – The Mail says that after braving protests ahead of tonight’s Eurovision Song Contest – and booing during rehearsals – Israeli contestant Eden Golan says: “I’m not scared.”
• “Rishi Sunak condemns ‘outrageous’ Eurovision protests against Israel in Sweden” – The Prime Minister has dismissed calls to boycott Eurovision by pro-Palestine campaigners, according to the Telegraph.
• “Anti-Hamas activist arrested after waving banana during London protest” – Niyak Ghorbani has been accused of making a racist gesture while standing with counter protesters during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in London, reports the Telegraph.
• “No, Israel isn’t committing genocide” – The charge goes unchallenged on the BBC, but it’s balls, says Stephen Pollard in the Telegraph.
• “Swinney abandons Sturgeon’s controversial gender self-ID plans” – Scotland’s new First Minister will not resuscitate the Gender Recognition Reform Bill, according to the Telegraph.
• “The toxic scandal that could destroy Starmer’s Welsh First Minister” – Vaughan Gething, the newly installed Labour First Minister of Wales, may be brought down by a financial scandal, reports Guy Adams in the Mail.
• “Keir Starmer’s plan for Channel crisis is mocked by Tories” – Keir Starmer tried to get on the front foot on migration yesterday by wheeling out Tory defector Natalie Elphicke at a speech in her Dover constituency. But it didn’t go well, according to the Mail.
• “Britain is forgetting what it means to be a free country” – By downgrading freedom as a value, we’re choosing a false promise of ‘stability’ over dynamism and growth, says David Frost in the Telegraph.
• “The real scandal behind Sadiq’s 20mph speed limits” – Where was the rigorous cost-benefit analysis to justify the imposition of 20mph speed limits in London? asks the Telegraph.
• “Giant heat pumps to turn retirement haven into one of Britain’s greenest towns” – Worthing is set to become one of Britain greenest (and coldest) towns, due to a £500 million roll out of heat pumps, says the Telegraph.
• “Net Zero and the shocking naivety of our Energy Secretary” – Paul Homewood takes aim at Claire Coutinho in TCW.
• “Elderly Just Stop Oil protesters target Magna Carta” – Activists aged 85 and 82 crack the glass case containing one of four copies of the Magna Carta, reports the Telegraph.
• “2024 Annual GWPF Lecture” – Dr. Judith Curry gave this year’s lecture at the Global Warming Policy Foundation.
• “Against Mandatory DEI Statements” – in Persuasion, Randall Kennedy argues against universities forcing job applicants to swear fealty to diversity, equity and inclusion.
• “More British museums in talks to return looted treasures to African king” – The British Museum, under the auspices of George Osborne, has begun the process of ‘returning’ artefacts to African potentates, according to the Telegraph.
• “Rushdie tells Georgia Meloni to ‘grow up’ after slander case” – Salman Rushdie says it was “childish” of the Italian PM to take author Roberto Saviano to court for calling her a “bastard”, reports the Telegraph.
• “Dame Judi Dench set to become the Garrick Club’s first female member” – Judie Dench will be the first woman to join the 193 year-old Garrick Club, says the Telegraph.
• “Blame Canada? Justin Trudeau Creates Blueprint for Dystopia in Horrific Speech Bill” – Life sentences for speech crimes? Pre-crime detention? Retrospective prosecutions? Anonymous accusers? It’s all in Justin Trudeau’s Online Harms Bill, according to Matt Taibbi in Racket News.
• “Sussexes’ Nigeria trip is a royal tour – on their terms” – Duchess thanks people of Nigeria for “welcoming me home”, says the Telegraph.
• “Cardiologist calls for investigation into COVID-19 vaccine” – Dr. Dean Patterson says he is not an anti-vaxxer but wants to open a debate about possible side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine, reports ITV News.
• “Labour’s VAT plans blamed for fall in private school entries” – Applications for places at private school are plummeting because of Labour’s threat to impose VAT on school fees, says the Times.
• “Cameron says Government has stopped funding disinformation index” – David Cameron has assured Kemi Badenoch that the FCDO has no plans to give any more money to the Global Disinformation Index, according to the Times.
• “UN throws out Stonewall’s bid to downgrade EHRC over trans row” – Stonewall tried to persuade the UN that the equalities watchdog was “not fit for purpose” because it failed to fall in with trans rights dogma. But it has been told to take a hike, according to the Times.
• “‘It’s made by the urban elite for the urban elite’: How Countryfile betrayed rural Britain” – A 36 year-old BBC show is coming under fire from both viewers and farmers, including Jeremy Clarkson, reports the Telegraph.
• “Why more and more black voters are putting their faith in Trump” – With less than six months to go before the U.S. election, more and more African-Americans are planning to vote for Trump, says the Times.
• “Aurora strongest it has been in over 20 years” – There was quite the the light show in Switzerland last night, reports Visegrád 24.

If you have any tips for inclusion in the round-up, email us here.