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Biden rep Joe Kennedy says Northern Ireland ‘ripe’ for US investment despite deadlock

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

BELFAST — The U.S. economic envoy to Northern Ireland, Joe Kennedy III, told an audience of visiting investors Wednesday that the feud-prone British territory is “ripe for investment” – even though, nearly nine months into the job, he has yet to nail down a single new dollar for the place.That lack of confirmed delivery from Kennedy, the former Massachusetts congressman and President Joe Biden’s choice to influence progress in Belfast, formed part of the wider investment-poor theme at the Northern Ireland Investment Summit.The event, envisioned by U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as a showcase for economic opportunities following February’s achievement of his Windsor Framework trade agreement with the European Union, instead threw an unwelcome spotlight on the region’s unrelenting political dysfunction.Also attending the event was Democratic Unionist leader Jeffrey Donaldson. His British Protestant and pro-Brexit party has spent the past year blocking the formation of a cross-communi...

State Shelter System Now Caring For 6,300 Families

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

Frustrations are swelling about who bears the brunt of the emergency shelter upheaval, National Guard personnel are preparing to deploy as “rapid response teams,” and the Healey administration is still waiting for the White House to respond to its call for action.Weeks into the crisis, the Healey administration is preparing to deploy previously activated National Guard members to help address growing needs amid a record level of demand for emergency assistance shelter fueled by a large number of newly arriving migrants.Driscoll said the state will focus Guard personnel in places that are currently “unstaffed” for shelter needs, describing them as well-equipped for the logistical challenge the emergency presents.More than 6,300 families are now in the state’s shelter system, an increase of more than 60 percent since the 3,800 families involved when Gov. Maura Healey and Driscoll took office in January, the lieutenant governor said.Driscoll told the Local...

Poll finds 70% current, former MBTA riders report feeling unsafe

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

A majority of current or former MBTA riders have felt unsafe riding the system at least once or twice because of the condition of the agency’s infrastructure, according to a poll released Wednesday.The finding comes from a MassINC Polling Group survey of 1,000 residents from the 175 communities served by MBTA. It was conducted in mid-August, before the transit agency announced shutdowns on the Red Line and a pair of safety reports were released last week.Riders who felt unsafe on the MBTA gave each service provided by the agency a lower rating, “a sign that concerns about safety are an important part of overall impressions of the system,” the MassINC Polling Group said in a statement.Another 45% of current and former riders believe the MBTA will improve in 10 years, nearly as many think it will be about the same, and 16% said the system will be worse, according to the poll.“Again, safety appears to be a factor. Riders who have felt unsafe on the T multiple times are less likely to t...

Update: Escaped prisoner Danelo Cavalcante captured with help of infrared and police dog, ending massive search: ‘Our nightmare is finally over’

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

Escaped prisoner Danelo Cavalcante has been captured Wednesday morning after a manhunt that stretched nearly two weeks.Cavalcante, 34, was captured at 8:15 a.m. within the search perimeter in South Coventry Township, northern Chester County, near French Creek Elementary School. That’s the area where police have been searching since Monday evening.Cavalcante has been taken to the state police barracks at Avondale. Television video and photos from the scene showed he had a bloody face and was wearing a grey Eagles sweatshirt when he was captured.His capture brings to an end a massive manhunt that started when Cavalcante, who was convicted of brutally murdering his girlfriend and sentenced to life in prison, escaped from Chester County Prison on Aug. 31.Captured: Danelo Cavalcante caught , wearing @Eagles shirt. Poses for photo with captors. Via @FOX29philly with great commentary by @AlexHolleyFOX29 @MikeFOX29 Tune in now for the latest. Whew, so glad he was caught as my sister l...

NATO member Romania confirms third drone fragments findings near its border with Ukraine

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — NATO member Romania found new fragments of a drone deemed similar to those used by the Russian army near its border with war-torn Ukraine on Wednesday, in the third such finding in a week, defense officials said.Two helicopters from the Romanian Air Force were deployed with specialist teams to Nufaru and Victoria in the eastern county of Tulcea where the fragments were spread over an area of “several tens of meters,” the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement.It said in a separate statement that it has notified the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations about areas near the border that could be at risk of incidents as Russian forces attack Ukraine’s Danube River ports across the river from Romania. Emergency authorities have received phone calls “about possible cases of drone impacts” between three localities, including Nufaru, the ministry said. It later confirmed that samples collected from the site are similar to those used b...

Ontario government set to begin discounted TTC, GO Transit co-fares in 2024

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

After years of discussions, there finally appears to be relief on the way for TTC passengers who connect with GO Transit trains and buses as the Ontario government is set to introduce discounted fares.Todd McCarthy, the MPP for Durham who was named Ontario’s associate transportation minister during a cabinet shuffle earlier in September, confirmed planning is underway to bring in a new TTC and GO Transit co-fare policy sometime in February.“This will save the average individual commuter about $1,500 per year. That’s a very, very important savings for our fellow citizens and this is true for Durham and of course across the GTA,” he told reporters during an unrelated announcement about the completion of construction at two Scarborough GO Transit stations.“That fare integration is part of our plan going forward in the very near future. We’re just on target, five months away, in February 2024.”RELATED: Ontario scrapping local transit fares for m...

Court watching ‘Freedom Convoy’ press conferences in criminal trial

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

OTTAWA — A courtroom scattered with “Freedom Convoy” supporters is taking in recordings of several lengthy press conferences hosted by spokespeople during the protest, as the criminal trial for two of its organizers enters its seventh day.Chris Barber and Tamara Lich were among those who organized a convoy of trucks to come to Ottawa in early 2022 to protest COVID-19 public health measures and call for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step down. They both face mischief and several counselling charges, including mischief, intimidation and obstructing police, for their role in the demonstrations that blockaded city streets for three weeks.The press conferences from Feb. 6 and 9 were streamed live on Facebook, and feature Lich and other prominent spokespeople taking questions from independent media outlets.Lich speaks very little in the videos, which touch on how the protest was putting pressure on governments to change public health measures, how they expected police to re...

The iPhone 12 emits too much radiation and Apple must take it off the market, French agency says

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

PARIS (AP) — French regulators ordered Apple to stop selling the iPhone 12, saying it emits electromagnetic radiation levels that are above European Union standards for exposure. The company disputed the findings and said the device complies with regulations. The French government agency that manages wireless communications frequencies issued the order after the iPhone 12 recently failed one of two types of tests for electromagnetic waves capable of being absorbed by the body. It’s unclear why the phone, which was released in late 2020, didn’t pass the agency’s latest round of tests and why it was only that particular model.France’s digital minister said the iPhone 12’s radiation levels are still much lower than levels that scientific studies consider could harm users, and the agency itself acknowledges that its tests don’t reflect typical phone use. The National Frequency Agency on Tuesday called on Apple to “implement all available means to rapi...

Union demands apology from WestJet after Poilievre speaks on flight’s PA system

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

OTTAWA — The union representing WestJet cabin crew is demanding an apology from the airline after Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre spoke on the public address system of a recent flight.A video circulating online shows Poilievre making short remarks on a Sunday night flight that was leaving Quebec City for Calgary after the Conservative Party of Canada’s convention. Poilievre’s campaign-style speech lasts for about 45 seconds and is met with laughter and cheers from passengers. CUPE Alberta’s local president Alia Hussain said it’s “very disappointing” that the airline allowed a politician to use the PA system. “It is doubly disappointing that WestJet is now trying to assign blame on the cabin crew for this event,” Hussein said in a statement Tuesday on X, formerly known as Twitter. Hussain said the cabin crew had no input in the decision to allow Poilievre to speak and that the airline’s rules say only crew members can use the...

Former NYC buildings commissioner surrenders in bribery investigation

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:26:56 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The former buildings commissioner under New York City Mayor Eric Adams surrendered to authorities on Wednesday to face undisclosed criminal charges related to a bribery investigation.Eric Ulrich, a longtime city official who also raised money for Adams, is expected to be arraigned in a Manhattan courtroom later in the afternoon alongside several other defendants.Ulrich resigned from his post as city buildings commissioner last November, six months after his appointment, amid reports that he was being questioned by prosecutors as part of an investigation into illegal gambling and organized crime.An attorney for Ulrich, Sam Braverman, said his client intended to plead not guilty.A spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg declined to discuss the charges. Bragg will appear at a press conference at 1:00 p.m. Wednesday alongside the commissioner of the city’s Department of Investigation.The investigation appears to be focused in part on Ulrich’s relationshi...