YOUR WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE
- Food prices, notably for bread, cereal, and meat, are escalating at the fastest rate in 40 years. Prices have increased to 9.1% this year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Although energy and fuel prices are the primary drivers of inflation, ONS reported that food costs had driven it even higher. Pay increases to keep up with rising prices has been made. However, the government has warned against large pay raises, fearing a 1970s phenomena in which firms raise wages and then pass the cost on to customers via higher prices.
- A massive earthquake in eastern Afghanistan has claimed the lives of 1,000 and wounded 1,500, according to a Taliban authority. The Taliban made an appeal for international assistance in the rescue effort as images displayed landslides and destroyed mud-built housing in the Paktika province. The earthquake hit immediately after 01:30 (21:00 GMT Tuesday) while people were sleeping. The magnitude 6.1 event, which happened at a depth of 51 kilometres, destroyed hundreds of houses.
- The International Energy Agency’s chief has warned that Russia could cease supplying gas to Europe this winter. Fatih Birol believes that an entire shutdown is unlikely, but that Europe should prepare for the worst-case scenario. Several European countries have reported receiving severely less Russian gas than expected. Russian authorities deny it was intentional and blame it on technical issues. Prior to the attack on Ukraine, Europe imported approximately 40% of its natural gas from Russia, but the figure has now dropped to approximately 20%.
- Andrea and Jay had not imagined they would be praying for their baby daughter’s heart to stop beating before Andrea starts to develop a fatal illness. Andrea Prudente, who is 16 weeks pregnant, began losing blood while the couple was on vacation in Malta. Doctors informed her that her pregnancy was no longer viable due to a partially detached placenta. However, the baby’s heart was still beating, which means that under Maltese law, doctors are not permitted to terminate the pregnancy.
- Elon Musk’s transgender daughter has filed paperwork to legally change her name and gender, stating that she no longer wishes to be related to her biological father in any way. The 18-year-old has requested that she be identified as female and given the name Vivian Jenna Wilson. Xavier Alexander Musk was her birth name. The petition for a rebranding and a new birth certificate was filed in Santa Monica with the Los Angeles County Superior Court this April. There was no further information about the apparent split between her and Mr Musk.
- In its first year, Meta’s system of complaints against its actions to remove content from Facebook and Instagram got approximately 1.1 million cases. The disputed posts, the majority of which originated in the United States, Canada, or Europe, had mostly been removed due to violence, offensive language, or bullying. The Oversight Board ruled against Meta 14 times out of the 20 cases in which it issued decisions. One case involved the removal of photos of female breasts from a breast cancer post.
NEWS BROUGHT TO YOU BY PAMELA MOORE
Date: 24/06/22
To apply for our tuition: click here
