Europe

    Deutsche Bank is facing questions about whether it can afford a penalty of $14bn (£10.5bn) from the US Department of Justice for mis-selling mortgage bonds a decade ago. Shares in Germany’s biggest bank have sunk to near-30-year lows and are trading just above €10 a share, illustrating investors’ concerns that they will be asked to bolster the institution’s coffers through a cash call. Shareholders are in turn wondering whether the bank should have acted sooner to preserve its financial health and whether the German government will step in to prevent a collapse. How did it come to this? Once a big beast of the banking world, Deutsche Bank is grappling with a string of problems that are raising questions about its need to gain more funds in order to survive. John Cryan, the...

    The French president wants to move refugees to reception centres across France so that they can be provided asylum. Francois Hollande visited Calais in northern France on Monday (26 September) just two days after laying out plans to close the Jungle camp that houses at least 9,000 refugees in the port city. During the visit he said that the camp must be completely closed and urged the UK to play its part in resolving the refugee crisis. Earlier on Saturday, the French president had said that the camp will be closed as migrants hope to cross the border and enter the UK in passing lorries, which has resulted in a number of deaths. He added that the migrants would be moved to reception centres across France. He was criticised for the poor condition of the migrants mostly from...

    Minister for Finance Michael Noonan has said there is no pressure on Ireland from Europe to change its tax laws or to alter the tax incentives for companies to invest in Ireland. Speaking at an event in Limerick marking the announcement by the US IT firm WP Engine that it is to set up a Limerick base with 100 new jobs, Mr Noonan said the EU recognises the right of sovereign governments to set their own tax rates. He said Ireland’s corporation tax rate of 12.5% is well known now, and in case there is any doubt about it he will be confirming it in Budget 2017 in two weeks. Speaking on the budget, he said it is one of the big issues facing the new Dáil and TDs are finalising matters on it now. He said there are lots of different inputs, including from three independent minist...

    Europe’s biggest slum – around 10,000 migrants are squeezed into a sprawl of wasteland east of Calais will be no more in a few weeks. Bulldozers will raze an eyesore that has acquired new political significance in the run-up to next spring’s French presidential elections. There is no plan B for children like Einas, who spent eight months and his family’s savings journeying from southern Ethiopia to northern France, the dream will die when the Jungle is dismantled. “I am here to reach the UK, that is all I think about, I have no other plan,” said the unaccompanied 17-year-old, who arrived in the Calais camp in January. Few child refugees appear to have a fallback strategy once the Jungle is no more. As rumours circulate over when the forced eviction will happen, aid organis...

    There has been a lot of enquiries from companies considering moving to Ireland from the UK in the wake of the Brexit vote, according to the Finance Minister Michael Noonan. The minister, who is in London this week, told Bloomberg TV that while there had been interest from companies, no decisions had been made yet. He said that economic conditions had been improving, and if it had not been for Brexit we were looking at a smooth sea ahead of us for our voyage. He stated that Brexit is a very serious issue. On AIB, Mr Noonan said he was keeping an open mind on floating the State's 99.8% stake in the bank on the stock market. However, because Ireland was now able to raise money on the bond market at low rates the pressure to sell the AIB stake to pay debt had eased. The decisi...

    German politicians have approved a law making it illegal to have sex with prostitutes without using a condom, among other regulations on the sex trade. Brothel owners will be obligated to draw customers attention to the law and advertising unprotected sex will be banned. The new law aims to tighten regulation of prostitution in Germany, which has been legal since 2002 but marred by continuing human trafficking, abuse and stigmitisation. It makes licensing mandatory for all brothels to ensure they comply with minimum legal standards, hygiene and health and safety regulations. Anyone attempting to open a commercial premises for prostitution will undergo checks attempting to crack down on the involvement of gangs, traffickers and criminals. Prostitutes must also register with...

    The rightwing mayor of a French Riviera beach town where bathers asked a burkini-wearing Australian to leave has defended their complaints calling her behaviour "indecent". Sydney native Zeynab Alshelh "could have asked herself whether the people in the area weren't still reeling from the jihadist attack that killed 86 people" in nearby Nice in July, Lionnel Luca told AFP by telephone late Monday. She could not just innocently come to our beaches with religious garb that is the sign of the fundamentalism that killed us, he said, calling the 23-year-old's actions pretty indecent. Alshelh told Australian television the bathers threatened to call the police unless she left the beach at Villeneuve-Loubet, even though a ban on the controversial full-bodied swimsuit had recently...

    Europe could be at risk A former NATO chief has warned Europe could be at the mercy of an imminent attack from Russia with no defence plans to repel an invasion. General Sir Richard Barrons claimed Russia could deploy warplanes, ships and troops on European soil within 48 hours if it desired, with NATO some months away from an effective counter-strike. The former chief of Joint Forces Command warned that the failure of countries such as France, Germany and Italy to take the threat of Russian aggression seriously could lead to a loss of land, sea and airspace. Countries bordering the country, led by president Vladimir Putin, are concerned about the threat from their neighbour, not a priority for southern and central states. The majority of the EU bloc is focussed on the hei...

    Refugees and migrants stand at the closed gate of the Moria migrant camp, after a fire at the facility, on the island of Lesbos, Greece, September 19, 2016 Up to 4,000 people have fled one of the main migrant camps on the Greek island of Lesbos after a large fire broke out. Police said there was "no doubt" it was lit deliberately by some of those inside the Moria facility and the blaze was getting worse because winds were fanning the flames. No one was believed to have been injured in the fire which damaged tents and housing units. But among those who had to evacuate the camp were 150 youngsters who were moved to a children's village on Lesbos. Some 5,400 migrants and refugees live on Lesbos - the main destination for over a million people who made it to Greece's eastern i...

    The politician has served as the chancellor of Germany since 2005 and as the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) since 2000. Here’s a look back at the life of the first female chancellor of the country. The Christian Democrats (CDU) polled just 17.5 per cent of the vote, a major blow to Ms Merkel's party and an indication of the uphill battle the party will have at the national elections in Germany in October 2017. Top candidate of the anti-immigration party Alternative for Germany (AfD) Georg Pazderski casts his vote. The far-right, openly anti-Muslim AfD party has made significant gains in Germany's local elections as Angela Merkel's Christian Democrat party slumped to its worst ever result. Alternative for Germany won 11.5 per cent of the vote, just three d...