UK - UK shares joined a global plunge today amid mounting panic over Donald Trump's trade war - as Keir Starmer's hopes of avoiding tariffs dwindle. Fears are growing that Mr Trump will hit foes and allies alike with a 20 per cent levy on so-called 'Liberation Day', April 2. The President has been complaining that America is being exploited by other countries, listing VAT among the unfair foreign taxes - even though it is charged on all sales, not just imports. The prospect of a trade war triggering a recession has been causing near-panic on global stock markets, with Asia down sharply overnight - and the FTSE 100 dropping 0.75 per cent on opening this morning. Mr Trump has suggested the EU is his main target, raging that the bloc was created to 'screw' America. Brussels has been pledging to strike back.

UK - As a regular user of the M25, I should be relieved. As a snooker fan, I should be thrilled. As an art lover (of sorts) I ought to celebrate. In fact, I should be kneeling before Just Stop Oil and giving profuse thanks for their announcement that, having achieved their objective of changing government policy, they will now desist from “direct action”. But I feel none of that. Instead, I am livid as hell. Not just at Just Stop Oil, which goes without saying, but at our lily-livered Government. Because the message now goes out to campaigning groups of any sort and persuasion that direct action, however repulsive, guarantees success.

GERMANY - The right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party enjoys record high public support, according to polls conducted by the Institute for New Social Answers (INSA). The latest poll, released by INSA on Tuesday, indicated 23.5% support for the party, while the top conservative alliance, between the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), polled at 27%. The figure constituted a 1.5% drop since the CDU/CSU achieved victory in Germany’s February 23 general election. “This is the highest value ever measured for the AfD in the INSA opinion trend,” the head of INSA, Hermann Binkert, told Bild daily.

GERMANY - Alternative for Germany leader Alice Weidel has accused the supposedly conservative Christian Democrats of abandoning their promises of clamping down on migration following the election. Ahead of last month’s federal elections in Germany, Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader Friedrich Merz attempted to shed the party’s association with open borders under ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel and cast himself as an immigration hardliner who would finally stem the tide of the mass influx of foreigners into the country over the past decade. However, having boxed himself into working with the pro-mass migration, election-losing Social Democrats (SPD) after ruling out a coalition with the right-wing AfD, Merz has been forced to cede ground to the left on a myriad of issues in negotiations to form the next government in Berlin.

CANADA - Canada’s newly appointed Prime Minister, Mark Carney, has declared that the nation’s longstanding relationship with the United States is “over.” Carney, a former central banker with deep ties to globalist institutions who ascended to the premiership without ever having held elected office, wasted no time alienating Canada’s biggest trading partner and closest ally — all while cozying up to European elites and peddling a radical reimagining of the Canadian economy. Carney’s announcement came Thursday during a press conference in Ottawa, where he railed against Trump’s “permanent” 25% tariffs on Canadian vehicles and auto parts, calling them a “very direct attack” on Canadian workers. What exactly the United States does next is unclear. But what is clear is that we, as Canadians, have agency. We have power. We are masters in our own home. We can control our destiny.

USA - One Democrat lawmaker has gone so far in supporting abortion, she’s reducing the decision to murder babies to a cost-benefit analysis. On Tuesday, Julie McCluskie, a Colorado Democrat and Speaker for the House in the Colorado legislature, spoke on a bill she is currently co-sponsoring to require “abortion care services” to be covered by Medicaid and Child Health Plan Plus program participants. “A birth is more expensive than an abortion, so the savings comes in Medicaid births that will not occur,” she added. McCluskie was trying her hardest to put the situation in the most sanitized and digestible language possible. She was essentially saying that expectant mothers should kill their children rather than give birth, because it would be cheaper for the government.

USA - Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has launched a forceful investigation into a real estate project linked to the East Plano Islamic Center (EPIC), known as EPIC City, a 402-acre development in Josephine, Texas, intended to be a Muslim stronghold with a mosque, Islamic schools, and over 1,000 homes. Paxton issued a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) to Community Capital Partners, LP (CCP), the entity behind the project, to examine potential violations of Texas consumer protection laws, according to an official statement from his office. This move comes after weeks of controversy, following Governor Greg Abbott's denunciation of the project as having “serious legal issues” and his assertion that “Sharia law is not allowed in Texas, nor are Sharia cities or no-go zones.”

USA - Veteran airline captain Sherry Walker said the infestation of DEI [Diversity, Equity & Inclusion] hiring programs has eroded safety standards so much that some pilots are afraid to take a bathroom break for fear their unqualified co-pilot might crash the plane in their absence. Walker, who has been a commercial airline pilot for nearly 35 years, made the alarming revelation to Tucker Carlson in a podcast that aired Monday. Carlson said he doesn’t want a person who espouses irrational propaganda — such as gender is a social construct — flying his plane. “That’s irrational,” Carlson said. “That’s what freaks me out. It’s irrational. So if you believe in something so irrational, I don’t want you flying my airplane.” The public outcry against DEI hiring practices that prioritize a candidate’s race, gender, or sexual orientation above qualifications has become a flashpoint amid a series of deadly airline crashes.

USA - American beekeepers are sounding the alarm as honeybee deaths reach unprecedented levels, with commercial operations reporting an average loss of over 60% of their colonies this winter — potentially the worst die-off in US history. The economic fallout is staggering: losses are valued at $139 million, honey prices have surged 5%, and many beekeepers face financial ruin. Scientists are urgently investigating the causes, with pesticides emerging as a key suspect. A recent University of California, Davis study found that bees may need multiple generations to recover from just one pesticide application, raising concerns about long-term damage to these vital pollinators. The crisis became apparent during this year’s almond pollination season in California, where millions of hives are transported annually to support the state’s $11 billion almond industry. Beekeepers reported massive shortages, with some orchards left under-pollinated.

USA - The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has launched an unprecedented clean-up operation targeting jaw-dropping irregularities in the US Social Security database. Over 7 million supposed number holders aged 120 and older have now been officially marked as deceased. The official DOGE X account announced: “For the past 3 weeks, Social Security has been executing a major clean-up of their records. Approximately 7 million number holders, all listed age 120+, have now been marked as deceased. Another 5 million to go.”

USA - Hiroshima. Chernobyl. Nagasaki. Fukushima. They’re practically household names at this point. As such, most people know that the consequences of the radioactive fallout spread far beyond the borders of these towns and cities. What you may not realize, however, is just how far. In some cases, the consequences might seem trivial. Take, for example, the lack of salad greens throughout France for months following the Chernobyl disaster.

ARGENTINE - Argentine President Javier Milei dropped a bombshell at the UN General Assembly on March 24, 2025, accusing the organization of being complicit in "crimes against humanity" for supporting the lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Milei, known for his libertarian and anti-left stance, denounced the global measures as a systematic attack on freedom, designed to "appease bloody dictatorships" like that of Venezuela, which even held a seat on the UN Human Rights Council without criticism. The Argentine leader, true to his ideology rooted in the Austrian School of economics, lashed out at the "Leviathan with multiple tentacles" that, according to him, the UN has become, attempting to control not only states but also the life of every citizen in the world.

EUROPE - Europeans should stockpile enough food and water to last 72 hours in case of emergencies, including attack by a foreign power and natural disasters, Brussels has said. On Wednesday, the European Commission said its new EU preparedness strategy would help citizens prepare for risks including geopolitical crises, pandemics, cyber attacks, extreme weather caused by climate change and invasion. The strategy focuses on improving early warning systems, ensuring the continuity of essential services such as healthcare and drinking water and helping citizens prepare for crises. In launching the initiative, its chief said this must be the “new European way of life”. The call to action for the 450 million citizens comes amid persistent fears over Russian aggression, as well as after recent flooding and wildfires.

USA - Donald Trump said Iran could face military consequences if it did not accept a new nuclear agreement with the US within two months. Tensions between the US and Iran have erupted since Donald Trump demanded a new nuclear deal with Tehran within two months, or risk significant consequences. The US president sent a letter to Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei laying out the timeline, though it is not certain when the countdown began. If Tehran rejects his proposal and refuses to engage in negotiations, US or Israeli military action against its nuclear facilities would escalate, two sources briefed on the letter told Axios.

TAIWAN - Taiwan President Lai Ching-te oversaw on Thursday the first civil defense drills under his newly created social resilience committee simulating how to respond to a large-scale disaster like a tsunami or attacks on critical infrastructure. The drill, in the southern city of Tainan, was held under the auspices of Lai's new Whole-of-Society Defence Resilience Committee, set up last year to prepare to deal with natural disasters or other emergencies such as an attack by China, which views the democratically-governed island as its own territory. Speaking to participants after viewing some of the drills, Lai said these were the first live drills for the committee and involved around 1,500 people, and there would be more next month. "The aim is to build the resilience of the Taiwanese society to cope with large natural disasters or major accidents that cause a lot of injuries, or regional geopolitical changes. We dare not fail to prepare," he added.