The former CEO of collapsed finance firm London Capital & Finance (LCF), Michael Thomson, has been given a suspended sentence for accessing and spending £95,000 in luxuries while his assets were restrained under a court order relating to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigation into LCF. Thomson – who directed the funds to his wife’s account and spent them on outings such as a holiday in Italy and items including a horse saddle – was given 10 months in prison, suspended over two years, for twice breaching the order. The collapse of LCF affected 11,000 investors and resulted in £230m in losses.
Heavy rainfall in northern Italy's Emilia-Romagna region has caused widespread flooding, leaving at least eight dead and thousands evacuated. The Formula One Emilia Romagna Grand Prix scheduled for Sunday was cancelled due to the flooding. Some areas experienced 50% of their average annual rainfall in 36 hours, causing rivers to burst their banks and submerging thousands of hectares of farmland. At least 50,000 people are without electricity, while some road and rail links have been blocked.
Due to adverse weather conditions and consequential flooding, the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix has been cancelled, and will not be rescheduled for later in the season. Organisers said it was not possible to safely hold the event for fans, teams and other personnel, and would put additional pressure on local authorities, who are still working to contain the flooding in the northern Italian region. The cancellation is the sixth round of the season.
Spanish pharmaceutical firm Esteve sells 26% stake to Germany's Lubea
Reuters
23-05-17 16:11
Esteve, the Spanish pharmaceuticals company, has sold a 26% stake to German investment firm Lubea. Esteve will remain the majority shareholder, and did not disclose the value of the deal. Esteve CEO Staffan Schuberg stated that the investment will help the company to accelerate growth and expand its reach in international markets. Esteve had revenues of €644m ($709m) in 2022, and owns production sites across Spain, Mexico and China..
British cyclist Tao Geoghegan Hart has left the Giro d'Italia after crashing on a rain-soaked road during the 11th stage. Hart, who won the race in 2020, had been third overall ahead of the stage and his exit deprives the event of another contender. Team Ineos Grenadiers team, plus Primoz Roglic, were involved in a crash with 70 km to go. Hart was loaded into an ambulance while Geraint Thomas and Roglic quickly got up and continued the race. The Giro d'Italia finishes in Rome on 28 May.
Regional and national elections in Madrid will determine whether Spain's ultra-rich pay the Solidarity tax, which was introduced in December 2021 and targets individuals with more than $4.1m in wealth and imposes a temporary levy of up to 3.5%. This tax has caused unrest among the country's 27,000 millionaires or billionaires, many of whom are seeking ways to avoid paying it and some of whom are considering moving away from the country altogether. Madrid's conservative president, Isabel Ayuso, has also expressed criticism of the tax and has challenged it in court.
India has been significantly expanding its military-security and defense cooperation with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, according to an analysis from The Diplomat. The cooperation has included joint military exercises, counterterrorism operations, intelligence sharing, and cybersecurity cooperation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration has emphasized transfer of technology and joint collaborations as part of the “Make in India” initiative, and India’s defense exports reached approximately $2 billion in the financial year 2022-2023. The GCC countries are also aiming to establish defense industry partnerships for security, economic, technological, and political reasons.
India’s defense engagements with the UAE and Saudi Arabia in particular have gained momentum recently, and Oman is considered to be New Delhi’s closest defense partner in the region. India is also working closely with Bahraini and Qatari partners to increase cooperation in maritime security and anti-piracy operations. West Asia remains an untapped yet potentially lucrative market for India’s locally designed and developed defense products. While the United States, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom are established arms exporters to the region, India is viewed as a promising potential supplier of such equipment.
China and Israel have also been eyeing opportunities to make inroads into the GCC. China is viewed as a potential competitor to India’s state-run and private stakeholders in the region, and Israel’s normalization of relations with the UAE and Bahrain in 2020 could encourage India and these states to explore opportunities for joint defense collaborations. The article concludes that India’s military diplomacy with the GCC will see more progress in the future, as both India and the GCC member-states are embarking on rapid military industrialization programs and seeking out alternative defense vendors.
This weekend's Formula One race cancelled due to flooding in Italy
CBC
23-05-17 15:21
The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in northern Italy has been cancelled due to deadly floods in the region. The decision was made by Formula One for safety reasons and to prevent overburdening emergency services, after consulting with Italian political figures. At least eight people have died and over 10,000 have been evacuated from their homes due to the floodings, with electricity and cellphone networks severely affected. If the Grand Prix is not rescheduled, the F1 season will have 22 races, the same as last year. The Chinese Grand Prix was also cancelled last year due to pandemic-related restrictions.
Australia's Beach Energy shares tumble on Waitsia gas project worries
Reuters
23-05-18 01:33
Beach Energy has said that it is no longer viable to continue with capital expenditure and timing estimates for its $521m Waitsia Stage 2 gas project, sending shares down by 8%. The project, a joint venture with a subsidiary of Japan’s Mitsui, is expected to begin producing gas for export through the North West Shelf liquefied natural gas plant by late 2023. Beach Energy cited Covid-19 as increasing the uncertainty of the project with the tight labour market in particular impacting construction progress. The company said that it remains value-accretive and a key element in its future growth, and that Mitsui E&P Australia and Webuild are reviewing the impact of the delay on the project.
Leaders of the G7 countries – the US, Japan, Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Canada – face several challenges as they gather in Hiroshima. The global economic outlook is unstable, while Russia continues its actions in Ukraine and China expands its economic and strategic growth. The G7 will need to address several issues, including enlisting middle countries such as those in Africa, and addressing China without creating undue confusion. Moreover, with concerns around nuclear proliferation and use re-emerging, the monitoring architecture of nuclear arsenals needs to be maintained to avoid future use of nuclear weapons. Finally, as global temperatures continue to rise and heatwaves become deadlier, coordinated responses and the regulation of cryptocurrency will become increasingly important.
Hong Kong's World Number 1 female fencer, Vivian Kong Man-wai, will lead Hong Kong's women’s epeeist team as they compete in the World Cup in United Arab Emirates. The women’s epeeist team have the chance to earn points towards their Olympic bid as a team, not just through the individual event. The Hong Kong squad will compete with South Korea and China, ranking first and fifth respectively for the chance to compete in the Paris Olympics in 2024. Kaylin Hsieh Sin-yan, Chan Wai-ling and Coco Lin Yik-hei also compete for Hong Kong in the women’s epeeist team.
Iga Swiatek retired from her Italian Open quarterfinal match against Elena Rybakina due to a right thigh injury. The top-ranked Swiatek had won the first set 6-2 but Rybakina won the second 7-6 (3). Swiatek grasped her right knee during the second-set tiebreaker and took a medical timeout before returning with her upper right thigh bandaged. She retired after four more games. The retirement ended Swiatek’s 14-match winning streak in Rome and raises questions over her status for the upcoming French Open, where she is the defending champion. It’s the third time that Rybakina has beaten Swiatek this year.
American actress and political activist Jane Fonda has accused French director René Clément of asking to sleep with her during filming of his 1964 film Joy House. Appearing on US TV show Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Fonda said Clément claimed he needed to know what an orgasm was like as part of the film. Clément, who died in 1996, was a respected filmmaker who won five prizes at the Cannes Film Festival. Fonda also spoke on the show about skinny dipping with Michael Jackson.
Leaders from the EU, Germany, France and Italy are set to join the G7 summit in Hiroshima, where tensions surrounding China are expected to dominate. While the thread linking the issues of Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific tensions and the promotion of free market policies on trade is Beijing, negotiations are likely to be tricky; European officials are wary of directly anti-Chinese language, believing engagement with China is the smarter way to address the issue and cautious of creating more of a “west vs rest” global picture. Developing and emerging countries have also reportedly expressed concern that the G7 is focused too heavily on Ukraine and not enough on their needs and priorities.
Before the EU elections next June, Brussels lawmakers are bracing themselves for the mountain of legislation they have to get through, which includes around 200 files still open for approval by MEPs and member states, as well as proposals yet to be presented. With just over a year to go until the European Parliament votes again, including on rules relating to the digital euro and transparency requirements for NGOs, Brussels’ consensus on the new laws’ priority runs the risk of limiting progress on key environmental legislation. Proposals such as the new rules on healthy soils and genomic techniques for plants have already been been delayed or dropped from the commission agenda, to the alarm of EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen, who has warned the EU would struggle to absorb more environmental laws.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino is hopeful broadcasters in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and England can reach what he perceives as acceptable deals despite the Women’s World Cup looming. Infantino says discussions with the broadcasters are moving in the right direction, yet the offers for the broadcast rights only a few weeks ago in relation to men’s rights showed “disrespect” for women’s sport field leveling. FIFA has tripled the prize money from 2019 for this year’s Women’s World Cup winners. Infantino says he is still committed to getting more money from the largest European broadcasters to benefit the sport overall.
Northern Italy has been hit by heavy rain and flooding, with some areas cut off from highways, electricity and mobile phone signals. The flooding has damaged farmland, storefronts and infrastructure, with the death toll standing at nine and additional people missing. President of the worst-affected Emilia-Romagna region, Stefano Bonaccini, estimated that losses have reached multiple billions, compared to the earlier estimate of $1.1bn due to heavy rains earlier in the month. Over 5,000 farms have been affected with incalculable damage to current and future harvests expected due to permanent damage to roots. Bonaccini has called for the national government to declare a state of emergency.
Former Spice Girl Geri Horner has given King Charles III a hug and a kiss on the cheek and told him, "You’re a very modern king" at a Prince’s Trust event honouring young award winners. Horner, who has known Charles for years, was attending the awards ceremony alongside fellow trust ambassador Oti Mabuse and UK Rising Star winner Funmilola Sosanya. The annual awards recognise young people who have made a positive impact on their communities and have managed to overcome difficulties.
AlphaTauri Formula One drivers Nyck de Vries and Yuki Tsunoda have spoken of their struggle to escape the deadly floods in northern Italy that led to the cancellation of this week's Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. The cancellation of the race reflected a desire not to burden overstretched emergency services in the affected areas. De Vries and Tsunoda both drive for the AlphaTauri team, which is based in the town of Faenza, close to the track. The town has also been badly affected by the flooding, with resuce teams using boats to transport people through the flooded streets on Thursday.
The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, due to take place at Imola, Italy, from Friday 19 May to Sunday 21 May, has been cancelled due to severe flooding in the region. Italian authorities issued a red warning after rising water levels in the Santerno river threatened the circuit. A least three people have been killed in the floods, which have also led to the evacuation of around 5,000 people. F1 staff were advised not to travel to Imola and the car park and other areas nearby were caught in the downpour. The Monaco Grand Prix next weekend remains scheduled to take place.
The cancellation of the Grand Prix, the second event to be cancelled in advance of the race after the 2020 Australian Grand Prix due to a coronavirus infection, is seen a setback for the Mercedes team, which had specifically prepared for the Imola race, where it had planned to test a new upgrade package designed to reduce the 128-point gap that Red Bull has opened in the race for the constructor’s rankings.
F1 fans and personnel took to social media to communicate their disappointment, but emphasised their understanding of the mechanics of the decision. Lewis Hamilton, head of the Mercedes team, took to Instagram to note that safety should be prioritised over racing. Imola now faces the possibility of losing its spot on the F1 calendar after 2025, unless a new deal can be agreed with F1 owners Liberty Media. It remains to be seen if the event will be rescheduled this year.
FIFA president optimistic about Women's World Cup TV deals in Europe
CBC
23-05-18 08:11
FIFA are currently in talks for broadcast rights to showcase the upcoming Women's World Cup in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and England. FIFA President Gianni Infantino is eager to increase the money the broadcasters pay by appealing to the whole women's sport sector. Infantino believes that whatever broadcasters pay in the right money is going back 150% into developing the women's game. The Women's World Cup is taking place in Australia and New Zealand.
