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UK’s energy department overrun with insects

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

LONDON — Four floors of the U.K.’s energy and climate change department were shut to staff Friday in a bid to battle an insect infestation.A message to staff — seen by POLITICO’s London Playbook — confirms that unspecified “insects” were spotted this week on the second, third, fourth and fifth floors of 1 Victoria Street, home to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. The site is also the workplace for some officials from the business and trade department.In an “important update on the steps being taken to manage the situation,” the department’s estates team says it received “a couple of reports from colleagues of insects on 4th floor” earlier this week.But, despite a “deep clean,” followed by a “specialist clean” and the placing of “monitoring devices,” the battle inside 1 Victoria Street continues.The note said “further sightings of insects have been reported in some areas on floors 2, 3,...

France to the EU: Don’t tell us how to run our police force

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

Paris has an answer to Brussels’ concerns over police violence: It’s none of your business.“I’m going to be very clear,” France’s State Secretary for Europe Laurence Boone said in a video clip of a hearing at the French Senate published Friday on Boone’s Twitter account. “It’s not up to [Justice Commissioner] Didier Reynders or the European Commission to take an interest in the way France manages its police force.”In an interview on Belgian radio on Wednesday, Reynders said there was a need to “reflect on [French] policing” given the “striking level of violence” the country has witnessed over the past few years, which culminated in a week of riots after the death of a teenager, Nahel M., who was shot by a police officer during a traffic stop.“We need to examine the very high level of violence, because it sometimes poses a challenge in the behavior of a certain number of police officers — as we&...

Needham residents warned not to use outdoor USPS mailboxes after mail phishing incident

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

Needham police are telling residents not to use outdoor blue US Post Office mailboxes and warning those who used several mailboxes in town to check to make sure their payments went through after a mail phishing incident. Officers responded to the incident at the US Post Office boxes on Great Plain Avenue early Monday morning, where they say suspects were “actively engaging in stealing mail, specifically looking for checks to ‘wash.’” Mail was found scattered outside the mailbox.Police wrote, “We are asking anyone who has placed their mail into those specific boxes to check to see if your payments have made it to their intended destination. If they have not or you think they may be delayed, please place a STOP PAYMENT on your account AND close your account immediately. Please monitor your financial accounts going forward if you did use these boxes.”Residents are being asked to bring their outgoing mail directly into the Post Office during office hours.If...

Somerville residents warned to lock doors, windows after series of break-ins

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

Somerville police are warning residents to lock their doors and windows after a series of bold break-ins near the Cambridge line.The reported break-ins in the area of Beacon Street all occurred between midnight and 6 a.m., police say.Investigators released a photo of a suspect who is being sought in connection with another recent break-in as the investigation continues. It’s unclear if that suspect is connected to the other incidents in the area.Matthew Knight said he and his roommate had to chase a man from their apartment after he climbed through an open window in May. “It’s really scary, the delayed response time because it honestly all made us feel really unsafe,” Knight said.Next door, Logan Tooth said the break-ins have him feeling nervous.“Definitely a little intimidated,” Tooth said. “We’re closing our windows and locking our doors and in the summer, it’s not a fun thing to happen.”Anyone with information about the break-ins is urged to contact Somerville police at 617...

NH man to be arraigned on murder charge in mother’s death

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

A New Hampshire man accused of killing his mother in Hudson on Wednesday night is expected to face a judge on Friday.Grant DeGiacomo, 26, will be arraigned on a second-degree murder charge in connection with the beating death of his mother, Christine DeGiacomo, 57, who was found in a townhouse on Shoal Creek Road around 9:45 p.m. suffering from “traumatic injury,” according to the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office.Officers could be seen collecting evidence from the home, which was marked off with crime scene tape.Neighbors described Christine DeGiacomo as a kind person who loved her kids. News of the violent crime shocked residents of the usually quiet neighborhood.Officials are also expected to announce the results of an autopsy.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Biden launches a new push to limit health care costs hoping to show he can save money for families

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

By JOSH BOAK (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday rolled out a new set of initiatives to reduce health care costs: a crackdown on scam insurance plans, new guidance to prevent surprise medical bills and an effort to reduce medical debt tied to credit cards.Biden’s remarks will build on previous initiatives to limit health care costs, with the Department of Health and Human Services releasing new estimates showing 18.7 million older adults and other Medicare beneficiaries will save an estimated $400 per year in prescription drug costs in 2025 because of the president placing a cap on out-of-pocket spending as part of last year’s Inflation Reduction Act.Gearing up for his 2024 reelection campaign as inflation remains a dominant concern for voters, the Democratic president has emphasized his policies to help families manage their expenses, as well as a spate of government incentives to encourage private sector development of electric vehicles, clean energy ...

Battenfeld: Fractured Boston City Council breaks out into open warfare

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

The fractured Boston City Council is breaking out into open warfare as the liberals and conservatives fight for power in the out-of-control institution.At stake is nothing less than the reins of the council, which now has budgetary authority, can pass ordinances and make life difficult for Mayor Michelle Wu.Far-left liberals now have a slight majority edge on the council now but their power could increase with the pending departures of moderates Frank Baker and Michael Flaherty.The latest shot came from President Ed Flynn as he took indirect aim at Councilor Kendra Lara after she crashed her car into a Jamaica Plain house. The Herald has also reported that Lara was driving an unregistered car and a revoked driver’s license.Lara told police she swerved to avoid a car entering the street from the curb and then couldn’t brake in time before she crashed into the house, according to a police report. The driver of the second vehicle disputed that and told police Lara was traveling at a hi...

Howie Carr: Flaherty bails just in time

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

Can you really blame City Councilor Michael “Flats” Flaherty for throwing in the towel?Seriously, who in his or her right mind would want to be on the Boston City Council these days?Consider where Flats sits on the Council floor during those appalling Wednesday meetings.To his right is Tania Fernandes Anderson, who a few months back began screaming at the top of her lungs:“What the bleep does a black woman have to do on this bleeping Council to get some respect as a black woman?”To his left (in more ways than one) is Kendra Lara. Exactly one week ago she was charged with smashing into a house while driving an unregistered, uninsured, uninspected vehicle with a revoked driver’s license while not having her child in a booster seat as required by law.This is your modern Boston City Council. If you were riding on a bus with the 12 current members of the body, once you glanced around at your fellow passengers, you would immediately get off at the next stop – as three of the 13 councilors...

Yellen appeals to China to revive talks and not let technology tensions disrupt ties

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

By JOE McDONALD (AP Business Writer)BEIJING (AP) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen appealed to China’s No. 2 leader not to let frustration over U.S. curbs on access to processor chips and other technology disrupt economic cooperation during a visit Friday aimed at improving strained relations.Meeting with Premier Li Qiang, Yellen said Washington and Beijing have a duty to cooperate on issues that affect the world. She appealed for “regular channels of communication” at a time when relations are at their lowest in decades due to disputes over technology, security and other irritants.Yellen is one of several senior U.S. officials due to visit Beijing to encourage Chinese leaders to revive interactions between governments of the two largest economies. Treasury officials said earlier she wouldn’t meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and no breakthroughs were expected.Yellen defended “targeted actions,” a reference to curbs on Chinese access to ad...

Blast at a Russian explosives plant kills 6 and injures 2

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — A blast at a Russian explosives plant on Friday killed six people and injured two more, emergency officials said. The explosion occurred as workers were dismantling equipment at one of the workshops of the Promsintez plant in Russia’s Samara region, some 800 kilometers (500 miles) southeast of Moscow, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported, citing emergency officials. The blast didn’t start a fire, the report said. Promsintez is one of the main producers of industrial explosives in Russia. It is located in the town of Chapayevsk in the Samara region. The Associated Press