Europe

    Work to begin on big wall at Calais to block migrants Construction is soon to begin on a big new wall in Calais following a surge in the number of migrants trying to get across the Channel, the Government has announced. The 13ft (4m) concrete barrier will be funded by Britain, at a cost of £2m, and will stretch over a half a mile (1km) along the main dual carriageway approaching the ferry port. Work is expected to begin as soon as this month. The measure was confirmed yesterday by the immigration minister Robert Goodwill who said: "The security that we are putting in at the port is being stepped up with better equipment. "We are going to start building this big new wall very soon. We've done the fence, now we are doing a wall." It will be placed on either side of the road ...

    Lithuania has constructed a fake town the size of 20 football pitches to allow it to practise its military readiness for a potential city attack and it is inviting its Baltic neighbors to visit and do the same, Euronews reports. The town will be used for training purposes by Lithuania’s armed forces in order to simulate a Russian attack on the country’s territory. The three Baltic NATO allies, made up of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania, have been among the most concerned by Russia’s annexation of Crimea, worrying that Russia may use the narrative of protecting Russian-speakers in former Soviet territories against them. The 16-hectare town is designed to resemble a small Baltic city, complete with a school building, a mall, a church, a police office, a sports stadium and 26 t...

    A nationwide series of March for Europe rallies will be taking place in cities across the city on Saturday to demand keeping close ties with the continent. Demonstrations will be held in London, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Oxford and Cambridge on the anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War. The marches are aimed at rallying support for keeping tight economic, cultural and social ties with the rest of Europe. The protesters want to halt the Government formally invoking article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty – which triggers the two-year deadline to withdraw from the EU. The march isn’t even under way yet, and protesters are already facing harsh criticism online from those who voted Leave. The hashtag #MarchForEurope is trending on Twitter, but most of the comments are again...

    In its battle to get Italians to make more babies, the Italian government has made an embarrassing misstep. Health minister Beatrice Lorenzin recently announced that Sept. 22 would be the country’s first “Fertility Day,” when state-sponsored events in Rome, Bologna, Catania and Padova offer the public information about family planning and encourage parenthood. In anticipation of that special day, the ministry launched a #FertilityDay campaign, with 12 promotional images that quickly went viral in all the wrong ways. Several images have a vaguely threatening tone: “Beauty has no age. But fertility does,” reads one, with an image of a stress-smiling woman thrusting an hourglass into the foreground. “Fertility is a common good,” declares one. “Male fertility is much more vuln...

    The country is facing a third bail out since 2010 as it tries desperately to cut its debt and implement rules to help kick start it out of recession. But Mr Tsipras has accused Germany of acting as Europe’s savings bank stockpiling excessive surpluses while at the same time freezing wages and keeping inflation low on purpose. And Prime Minister Tsipras says Britain's decision to quit the EU is indicative of growing disquiet of citizens across the bloc. Now he is demanding German leaders do an about turn and stop sitting on its surplus or face the beginning of the end of the EU. The Prime Minister also said the EU was sleepwalking towards a cliff by sticking to austerity rules. The people of Greece are furiously angry over their continued crisis We are not simply seeking, w...

    The anti-Islam rally took place in the west of Melbourne, the second most populous city in Australia, over the weekend. Protesters waved flags and held aloft banners before marching to the local council's office. One such banner said: No. Islam sharia law against mankind. The protest was condemned as divisive and religious paranoia or hatred by a leading Australian politician. We don’t think a Muslim-only estate is a wise thing Kane Miller It was organised by the True Blue Crew, which describes itself as an anti-immigration group. The group claims a housing development which will provide 75 homes has been designated a Muslim housing estate despite the city council categorically denying it is a faith-based development. A post on the True Blue Crew’s Facebook page, posted ah...

    During the febrile, topsy-turvy days after Britain voted to leave the European Union, there were plenty of tough messages from European leaders. But few sounded more uncompromising than the EU trade commissioner. A week after the result, Cecilia Malmström, Europe’s lead trade negotiator, stated that the UK could not even begin discussing a trade deal until it had left the bloc. First you exit and then you negotiate the terms of the relationship, she told Newsnight, opening up the prospect of the world’s sixth-largest economy being left dangling for years. When the BBC interviewer suggested this would damage businesses in Britain and on the continent, her response was straightforward: Yes, but the vote was very clear. Such plain speaking provoked fury among leading Brexiter...

    After Britain voted to leave the EU, we look at which European countries want to hold their own EU referendum. Mr Wilders also promised to do all he can to hold a referendum on Netherlands' membership of the EU following June's historic Brexit vote. Sybrand van Haersma Buma, leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party, branded Mr Wilders' plans "utterly bizarre and unbelievable". He added: "The programme will further polarise Dutch society." Mr Wilders last month said he was "proud" of his tough stance on Islam after claiming the Netherlands "can't take any more" refugees from Syria and Iraq. The outspoken leader added: "I also don't have a problem with people from Slovakia and Lithuania. But I do have a problem with immigration from Islamic countries. "The EU le...

    Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, has condemned a controversial burkini ban in parts of France, insisting that women should not be told what they can and can’t wear. The London Mayor also pledged continued support for Paris following the terrorist attacks in the city last year. "London stands firmly with Paris in the aftermath of the horrendous attacks the city suffered. We will do everything we can to support Paris and all our European counterparts in the continued fight against extremism and those who wish to divide and harm us,” he added. It comes amid mounting controversy over the “burkini ban” imposed in several of the country’s world-famous Riviera resorts. Earlier this week photographs emerged showing four male police officers armed with handguns, batons and pepper s...

    The front runner to become the next Dutch Prime Minister has vowed to ban the Quran and to close all mosques in the country. Geert Wilders has vowed to ban the Koran if he becomes Dutch PM. Geert Wilders, leader of the Dutch Freedom Party (PVV), called for the total de-Islamification in a controversial manifesto posted online.The far-right MP, who has previously compared the Koran to Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf, also vowed to put an end to immigration from Islamic countries.He would also close all Islamic schools and asylum centres, and ban Muslim women from wearing the headscarf in public, if elected prime minister next year. Mr Wilders unveiled the manifesto ahead of the Netherlands' parliamentarian elections in March. The PVV currently leads the pack in almost every opi...