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A transcript of the July 25 phone call between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shows the two leaders did talk during their brief conversation about an investigation involving Joe Biden and his son. Neither man, however, mentioned military aid to Ukraine that might hang in the balance. The White House released the complete official transcript less than a day after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., announced an official impeachment inquiry, based largely on the suspicion that Trump had threatened to withhold military assistance from Ukraine unless it looked into the dropping of an investigation of the then-vice...

MPs and peers will return to Parliament later after the Supreme Court ruled that its suspension was unlawful. Boris Johnson is returning early from a UN summit in New York, while Labour cut its conference short in the wake of Tuesday's unanimous ruling. The PM, who has faced calls to resign, has said he "profoundly disagreed" with the decision but would respect it. Commons Speaker John Bercow has said there will be "full scope" for urgent questions and ministerial statements.

Boris Johnson's decision to suspend Parliament was unlawful, the Supreme Court has ruled. Mr Johnson suspended - or prorogued - Parliament for five weeks earlier this month, saying it was to allow a Queen's Speech to outline his new policies. But the court said it was wrong to stop Parliament carrying out its duties in the run-up to the Brexit deadline on 31 October. Downing Street said it was "currently processing the verdict".

As NASA makes a big push to land humans on the moon's surface by 2024, the European Space Agency (ESA) wants to learn more about the lunar caves that lie beneath. "Exploring and mapping these tubes could provide new information about the moon's geology, but they could also be an interesting option as long-term shelter for future human visitors to the moon," Franceso Sauro, director of ESA's Pangaea planetary geology astronaut training, said in a statement. "They would shield astronauts from cosmic radiation and micrometeorites and possibly provide access to icy water and other resources trapped underground." The missions have...

South Tel Aviv activist Sheffi Paz and bereaved mother Meirav Hajaj carried out the vandalism of the entrance of the office of the European Union delegation to Israel in Ramat Gan...

... For other shopping, boycott Amazon as much as possible and look for better deals from British retailers. Not only can it be dearer, but the US shopping giant has also been blasted for paying a “minimal” amount of tax to the UK Government. ... The Onley Grounds Farm Shop and Butchery in Rugby, Warks, for example, is currently asking people to share a post for a chance to win a £50 meat hamper. Twitter has similar promotions. Boots this week offered customers the chance to win a bundle of toiletries in return for a retweet.

Many years ago, the then chief of a very major US business shared his thoughts with me in respect of the British Establishment. He said that a major problem with the UK is that it is still controlled by holders of assets, in particular land, at inflated prices and that the economy was run accordingly. As a consequence, the incentives to be enterprising and to work hard were diminished. He was particularly struck by how successful the British Establishment had been at keeping a grip on their privilege. A week after I resigned as head of the British Chambers of...

Keep in mind that, according to most of our media (and even more so the European media), we are supposed to regard with fear the German “ultra-right-wing” political party, the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). Also, keep in mind that we are supposed to believe that the Brexit battle pits Brits against a united Europe that is horrified at their effort to shatter the European Union. But, in fact, the arrogant, unaccountable transnational organizations, of which the EU is a leading example, have served global elites better than ordinary citizens of their constuent countries. Watch this speech in Germany’s parliament, the...

There were extraordinary scenes of chaos and anger in the House of Commons overnight as opposition MPs staged a protest against the suspension of parliament for five weeks – a prorogation that the Speaker of the House said represented “an act of executive fiat”. As John Bercow began proceedings to prorogue parliament, a group of opposition MPs carrying signs reading “silenced” drowned out Black Rod as she tried to address the Speaker, a ritual that initiates the suspension. Several MPs were also involved in altercation near the Speaker’s chair, as they attempted to prevent him leaving his seat and attending...

More than one hundred asset managers, trading platforms and investment firms in London have so far obtained licences to run new hubs in the European Union after Brexit, a top EU regulator said on Thursday. Licences are granted by national regulators but the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ensures they don’t offer sweeteners to UK-based firms that want a base to serve EU clients after Britain leaves the bloc, currently scheduled for Oct. 31. “We have seen significant movement of activity from the UK to the EU27. The number of authorisations is above 100,” ESMA Chair Steven Maijoor told...

Italy has a new coalition government in place, backed by the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and the center-left Democrats. Due to the far-right League's fall from power, Italy now has a more pro-European outlook.

Boris Johnson’s fledgling ­premiership was in tatters last night after MPs kicked out his bid to call a general election to force through his no-deal Brexit. The PM suffered the defeat on only his third day in office – after Tories he brutally purged for voting against him on Tuesday joined opposition parties to reject his call for a poll. Mr Johnson had earlier lost a bid to block MPs from voting to take no-deal off the table. And it came a day after Tory rebels helped push through a debate to discuss the matter. Amid the backlash, it meant...

The Remainer 'surrender Bill' cleared its first hurdle by a big margin tonight as MPs backed it at second reading. The legislation made it through the stage by 329 to 300 - a slightly bigger majority than the 27 secured by rebels last night. The latest blow to Boris Johnson came as plotters insisted Brexit must be delayed before an election is called - in case he wins and tries to force No Deal on October 3

A group of opposition and rebel MPs have published a bill to extend Article 50 and stop the UK from leaving the EU without a deal. Tonight, MPs will debate and vote on whether the bill should be heard on Wednesday - what has been called 'taking control of the order paper'. If the motion to allow the debate on the rebel bill passes on Tuesday night, Boris Johnson will be one step closer to calling a General Election, which he is expected to do if the legislation passes.

The health of Europe's largest economy is in trouble as Germany teeters on the edge of a recession. A decline in exports dampened the German economy, which shrunk by 0.1 percent in the second quarter of 2019. Concerns over a recession have the German government reportedly under pressure to ditch its self-imposed balance budget, or Black Zero rule, and finance more fiscal stimulus with new debt. The country’s 10-year Bund yield, which hit an all-time record low earlier in the day, responded to the stimulus, bouncing up slightly. “In Europe, its crisis mode,” Brenner said. “And even you had one...

New British Prime Minister Boris Johnson now has the Brexit headache squarely in front of him. Parliament is currently in recess until early September, with the October 31 deadline for an EU-UK deal appearing to be more elusive than ever.Johnson will meet with European leaders next week, trying to convince them to negotiate a new exit for Great Britain. But the two leaders who count the most -- Angela Merkel of Germany and Emmanuel Macron of France -- don't feel any pressure to bail Johnson out. This means that a "no-deal Brexit" scenario is likely to occur.Johnson ordered a...

The 1972 Act is the vehicle that sees regulations flow into UK law directly from the EU’s lawmaking bodies in Brussels.The announcement of the Act’s repeal marks a historic step in returning lawmaking powers from Brussels to the UK. We are taking back control of our laws, as the public voted for in 2016.The repeal of the European Communities Act 1972 will take effect when Britain formally leaves the EU on October 31.Speaking after signing the legislation that will crystallise in law the upcoming repeal of the ECA, the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU Steve Barclay said:...

Finally an economic analyst gets prime-time media pundits to listen as he describes the fundamental difference between the U.S. “Economy” (Main Street) and the U.S. “Markets” (Wall Street). Charles Payne understands most of this, but El-Erian has it nailed.Allianz Group chief economic advisor, Mohamed El-Erian, accurately describes what is happening in an era where deglobalization is taking place. The U.S. economy is strong; however, the multinationals on Wall Street -invested overseas- are exposed. Thus there’s a disconnect and accompanying market volatility.This is well worth watching because this is the first well-regarded financial pundit that is speaking truth to Wall...

Pope Francis said recently that he was “concerned because we hear speeches that resemble those of Hitler in 1934.” He was talking about the rise of extreme nationalism and populism, which he feared could lead to the fragmentation of the European Union. The pope should be worried about any current resemblances in Europe to the Nazi past, but the pope’s praise of the European Union as an antidote is premature. Indeed, the European Union itself is on the verge of reviving the Nazis’ stigmatization of Jewish-made products on the pretext that they come from “occupied” Palestinian territories. According to sources...

Legal decision reminiscent of Holocaust-era boycotts of Jews The European Union is poised to mandate that Israeli products made in contested territories carry consumer warning labels, a decision that could trigger American anti-boycott laws and open up what legal experts describe as a "Pandora's box" of litigation, according to multiple sources involved in the legal dispute who spoke to the Washington Free Beacon. The Advocate General of the European Court of Justice recently issued non-binding opinion arguing that EU law requires Israeli-made products to be labeled as coming from "settlements" and "Israeli colonies." The decision was seen as a major...