Europe

    Gibraltar is considering joining the EU’s Schengen open borders area to limit disruption caused by Brexit, its chief minister has said. Fabian Picardo, the territory’s leader, said it did not “make sense” for Gibraltar to be cut off from the rest of Europe given its location bordering Spain. A decision to join the full Schengen area by the micro-state could mean UK travellers would have to apply for a mini-visa known as ETIAS to visit after Brexit. The EU plans to bring in the so-called European Travel Information and Authorisation System from 2021, which would require non-EU visitors to Schengen countries to fill in forms and pay a small fee to visit. The system is expected to be similar to the US ESTA system that many British travellers are already familiar with...

    Britain will rejoin the EU because the younger generation will realise the country has made a mistake, senior MEP Guy Verhofstadt claimed today. The European Parliament's Brexit coordinator said the only question was how long it would take for the UK to align with the bloc again. The comments just a fortnight before Britain is due to leave and despite an election landslide for Boris Johnson - came as the two sides drew battle lines over citizen's rights and future trade. Mr Verhofstadt had a bruising meeting with Steve Barclay in Westminster last night, with the Brexit Secretary accusing him of scaremongering over the protections for EU citizens staying in the UK after January 31. A spokesman for Mr Barclay said: He reminded Mr Verhofstadt of the impact of scaremo...

    It’s a grim winter’s day in Berlin, and the political climate matches the weather. Everywhere Angela Merkel looks there are storm clouds, as the values she has upheld all her career come under sustained attack. At the start of a new decade, Europe’s premier stateswoman suddenly seems to be on the wrong side of history. Shortly, the UK will leave the EU. A volatile US president is snubbing allies and going it alone in the Middle East. Vladimir Putin is changing the Russian constitution and meddling in Libya and sub-Saharan Africa. Trade tensions continue, threatening the open borders and globalised value chains that are the cornerstones of Germany’s prosperity. Ms Merkel, a former physicist renowned for her imperturbable, rational manner is a politician programmed ...

    One person has died in the Spanish province of Tarragona after an explosion at a chemical plant, according to several local media outlets. Four people are also being treated for "major burns", local officials say. Officials in the region, which is home to a major chemical industry, have issued an emergency alert as a result of the explosion. Emergency services have called the explosion, which reportedly happened at the Iqoxe plant, a "chemical accident", and have advised people in the area to stay inside and close windows and doors until officials can assess the severity of the incident. They add, however: "There is no evidence of a toxic cloud". Videos online show a huge fire in the area, with a mushroom cloud floating above the plant following the explosion. ...

    A teacher in Spain has come up with an inventive way to teach students about anatomy, according to reports. Veronica Duque, 43, donned a bodysuit depicting the inside of a human body to help her year four class "visualise the disposition of internal organs". She arrived at the lesson at Maria Teresa Inigo de Toro school in Valladolid wearing a white coat before removing it to a mixed reaction. There was "confusion, shouts, applause and some covered their eyes", Ms Duque admitted to El Pais. She wanted to make the class more practical, so used the outfit to pique her students' interests before turning to the traditional plastic bust the school uses to teach anatomy. Ms Duque revealed she found the costume by pure chance after seeing an advert online and decided to...

    Poland's Supreme Court sounded the alarm over plans that would allow judges to be fired if they question the government's judicial reforms. If enacted, the rules could lead to Poland exiting the EU, the court warned. Poland's nationalist government is risking the country's European Union membership with its judicial reforms, the country's Supreme Court said on Tuesday. Under the draft law, judges could be removed from their posts for taking part in activities of a political nature or acting in a way that could harm the functioning of the justice system. The Supreme Court warned that the plans appear to be an attempt to stop judges from questioning the legitimacy of the government's reforms, forcing them to apply the regulations even if they are incompatible with hi...

    Scores of Eurostar trains between London and Paris have been cancelled this morning due to strikes in France. Eurostar is running a reduced timetable linking the two capitals until December 12 as French trade unions called for mass protests over pension reform. On Monday morning cancellations were announced, with the 5.40am, 9.22am and 10.24am trains not running. Over the weekend, a number of services were cancelled including the 11.31am, 1.31pm and 2.22pm journeys from London St Pancras to Paris Gard du Nord. Nearly a third of all workers were on strike on Friday, including 87 per cent of train drivers. In a statement, Eurostar said: “Trade Unions in France have called for a nationwide general strike from 5 December 2019. The strike action will impact our abili...

    Travellers heading to and from France face five days of chaos due to a general strike across the country. French public sector workers began the walkouts on Thursday over French President Emmanuel Macron's plans to reform the nation's pension system. Flights, trains and buses are being hit by the biggest wave of industrial action the country has faced for decades. There are no tickets available on Eurostar trains until Tuesday, with the company saying it has cancelled almost 100 services between now and then. Airlines including Easyjet, British Airways and Ryanair have opted to cancel many of their flights to and from France, while Air France has said up to a third of its domestic flights would be cancelled. Signs at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport showed "cancel...

    The European parliament has declared a global climate and environmental emergency as it urged all EU countries to commit to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The vote came as scientists warned that the world may have already crossed a series of climate tipping points, resulting in a state of planetary emergency. Intended to demonstrate Europe’s green credentials days before a crucial UN climate conference in Madrid, the vote also ratchets up pressure on Ursula von der Leyen, the incoming president of the European commission, who declared this week that the EU would lead the fight against the existential threat of the climate crisis. Although passed with a comfortable majority, with 429 votes in favour, 225 votes against and 19 abstentions MEPs across the p...

    Andrei Suslenkou, director for ideological work at the Minsk Tractor Factory, is proudly showing off the benefits his company offers, at low or no cost, to more than 30,000 workers and retirees. At the plant’s health clinic, 560 doctors and staff use sleek Western equipment to provide care from routine checkups to surgery, including laser eyesight correction. A Palace of Culture opposite the factory’s ornate, Stalin-era gates includes a plush theater wired for light and sound. It just hosted a concert in honor of the “Day of Machine Builders.” Outside the capital, a woodland sanatorium provides cures, vacations, and summer camps for 300 employees’ kids at a time. They were smart professionals back then who set up these social services, says Suslenkou, adding that ...