U.K News

Greek Transport Minister Resigns Over Train Crash; 36 Dead

Published

2 years ago

2023-03-01

Kiara Grace

TEMPE, Greece — Rescuers combed the burned-out wreckage of two trains that collided in northern Greece, killing at least 36 people and crumpling several carriages into twisted steel knots.

Kostas Karamanlis, the Transport Minister, resigned, saying it was his “duty” to do so “as a basic indication of respect for the memory of the people who died so unfairly.”

The cause of the crash near the Greek Vale of Tempe, a river valley about 380 kilometers (235 miles) north of Athens, was not immediately clear, but the stationmaster was arrested Wednesday in the nearby city of Larissa. His identity has yet to be revealed by the police. Two more people have been arrested for questioning.

It’s unclear how fast the passenger and freight train were traveling when they collided just before midnight Tuesday, but survivors said the impact threw several passengers through train cars’ windows. According to state broadcaster ERT, rescuers discovered some victims’ bodies 30-40 meters (100-130 feet) from the impact site.

THE GREEK TRAIN CRASH WAS LIKE AN EXPLOSION, SAY PASSENGERS.

A teen survivor who did not want to be identified told reporters that he felt sudden braking and saw sparks just before the crash, and then there was a sudden stop.

“Our carriage did not derail, but the ones ahead of us did and were smashed,” he said, visibly shaken. He used a bag to break his car window, the fourth, and escape.

Stefanos Gogakos, who was in a rear carriage, described the crash as “explosive,” He saw flames at the front of the train.

“The windows’ glass shattered and fell on top of us,” he told ERT. “With a jolt, my head hit the carriage’s roof. Because of the carriage’s smoke, some people began climbing through the windows. The doors were closed, but after a few minutes, train personnel opened them, and we could exit.”

Several cars derailed, and at least one caught fire.

“Temperatures reached 1,300 degrees Celsius (2,372 Fahrenheit), making it even more difficult to identify the people in it,” said Vassilis Varthakoyiannis, a fire service spokesperson.

WRECKAGE COMPLICATES RESCUE Efforts For Greeks

On Wednesday, rescuers began moving large pieces of the trains with cranes and other heavy machinery, revealing more bodies and dismembered remains.

“There were many large pieces of steel,” said Vassilis Polyzos, a local who claimed to be one of the first on the scene. “Both passenger and freight trains were destroyed.”

Rescuer Lazaros Sarianidis told ERT that crews were working “very carefully” to disentangle steel, sheet metal, and other materials that had become entangled due to the crash. “It will take a long time,” Sarianidis predicted.

According to Greece’s fire department, 76 people were hospitalized, six in critical condition.

More than 200 people who were unharmed or had minor injuries were transported by bus to Thessaloniki, 130 kilometers (80 miles) north. As they arrived, police took their names to locate anyone missing.

According to Greek Railroad Workers Union President Yannis Nitsas, eight rail employees were killed in the crash, including the two drivers of the freight train and the two drivers of the passenger train.

FROM CARNIVAL TO MOURNING IN GREECE

According to officials, 350 people aboard the Greek passenger train were students returning from Greece’s raucous Carnival. This year marked the first time since the pandemic began in 2020 that the festival, which precedes Lent, was celebrated in its entirety.

From Wednesday, the government declared three days of national mourning, and flags flew at half-staff outside all European Commission buildings in Brussels.

During a visit to the accident site, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stated that the government must assist the injured and identify the deceased.

“I can guarantee you one thing: We will investigate the causes of this tragedy and do everything in our power to ensure that something like this never happens again,” Mitsotakis said.

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou interrupted her official visit to Moldova to visit the scene, where she laid flowers beside the wreckage.

In a message sent to the president of the Greek bishops conference on his behalf by the Vatican’s secretary of state, Pope Francis expressed his condolences to the families of the deceased.

The pope “sends the assurance of his prayers to everyone affected by this tragedy,” according to the message.

SOURCE – (AP)

U.K News

Keir Starmer Rejects Meeting With WW2 Veteran Over Her Frozen Pension

Published

3 weeks ago

2024-12-04

Geoff Brown

Anne Puckridge, orld War Two veteran, state pension

"It's the injustice of it that is so unfair, the fact that we were never warned."

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has rejected a request from a 99-year-old WW2 for a meeting to discuss the frozen state pension policy for citizens living abroad. Starmer declined the meeting but offered an alternative meeting with Pensions Minister Emma Reynolds.

Anne Puckridge, who turns 100 this month, went from her home in Canada to agitate Keir Starmer’s Labour government over the state pension freeze.

The World War II veteran told the BBC that she is “angry” and “heartbroken” following a meeting with the pensions minister, who led her to believe that the government will not reconsider its policy of freezing the state pensions of some British people living abroad.

Anne Puckridge is one of approximately 453,000 British retirees living overseas who do not receive an annual increase in their state pension.

Pensions Minister Emma Reynolds agreed to a meeting after Sir Keir Starmer’s request to meet was denied owing to purported “pressures on his diary.”

Ms. Puckridge stated that the meeting in Parliament left her feeling “bitterly disappointed” and “disgusted”.

She stated that she had the idea Reynolds had been “polite enough and kind enough to come in and spend her time with her,” but that her mind had already been made up before the meeting began.

Ms Puckridge stated that she and her other campaigners would have to think carefully about what they could do from now on, but she assured them that they would take action.

State Pension Minister Reynolds thanked Ms Puckridge for the meeting and for sharing her insights.

A Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) representative stated that the government recognizes that “people move abroad for various reasons, and we provide clear information on how this can affect their pensions.”

The policy of increasing the UK state pension for recipients living abroad has existed for many years.

Since she relocated to Canada in 2001 at the age of 76 to live closer to her daughter, Ms Puckridge has received £72.50 (C$129.00) per week.

Her state pension is now less than half the £169.50 (C$302.00) paid to seniors still residing in the United Kingdom. She told the BBC that frozen pensions touch all aspects of life.

“You’ve got to be careful about entertainment,” she told me. “You must realize that you cannot be as kind to your grandkids as you would like.

“You feel you’ve lost all sense of dignity, the government has thrown you away, you know, out of sight out of mind.”

Ms. Puckridge stated that when she alerted the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) that she was moving to Canada, “they never said a word about [my] pension being frozen”.

“The first I knew about it was when my first rise was due,” she recalled.

“I didn’t understand it. So I wrote and enquired about it, and I was told no… you will not receive any additional pension rises when you leave the UK.” She said, “It’s the injustice of it that is so unfair, the fact that we were never warned.”

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U.K News

Air Force Drones Spotted Over UK Military Bases

Published

3 weeks ago

2024-11-29

Geoff Brown

Air Force Drones Spotted Over UK Military Bases

The drones were not considered hostile, the USAF said,

British military expertise has been brought in to assist in identifying persons responsible for flying Air Force drones near US military locations. According to the BBC, 60 RAF troops have been dispatched to assist the US Air Force with its probe.

The Air Force drones were not deemed hostile, according to the USAF, who added that the sightings “fluctuated and varied between the bases” and “ranged in sizes and configurations”.

According to the Ministry of Defence, “We are supporting the US Air Force response.”

The announcement follows several recent reports of unmanned aerial vehicles sighted near RAF Lakenheath and RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk and RAF Feltwell in adjacent Norfolk.

There have been other reports of drone activity overnight. According to the USAF, the vehicles were few in number and modest in size.

A representative for the US Air Forces in Europe stated, “We can confirm that there were sightings yesterday during nighttime hours, but the number fluctuated and varied between the bases throughout the night.”

The official stated that since the first sightings on November 20th, there has been “no impact on residents or infrastructure, and they have not been identified as hostile.”

However, the Air Force drones remained under surveillance “to ensure the safety and security of the installations.”

They said, “We request individuals in the area to contact either local police or security forces if they see anything suspicious.”

‘Treat threats seriously’

Officials in the United States and the United Kingdom have not said who is responsible for the recent drone activity.

However, the BBC understands there were worries that a state actor could be involved.

In recent months, intelligence officials have warned of increasing Russian sabotage operations against Western countries supporting Ukraine.

RAF Mildenhall is primarily home to the USAF’s 100th Air Refuelling Wing; RAF Lakenheath is home to USAF F-35A and F-15E fighter jets; and RAF Feltwell is mainly concerned with logistics and provides housing for military personnel.

A spokesman for the MoD, which owns the bases, said: “We take threats seriously and maintain robust measures at defence sites.

“We are supporting the US Air Force response.”

The USAF has not said who it believed to be behind the incidents.

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U.K News

General Election Petition in UK Hits 2 Million Signatures

Published

4 weeks ago

2024-11-26

Geoff Brown

Starmer has ruled out an general election after a petition reached two million signatures

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has ruled out holding an early general election after a petition calling for a second vote garnered two million signatures.

Over the weekend, a petition calling for another general election was started on the UK Parliament website. It cited Starmer’s failure to keep all his pledges made in the run-up to the previous election. By Monday mid-morning, it had surpassed two million signatures.

When asked about the petition, Starmer said he was “not surprised” that some individuals who did not vote for Labour in the previous election want a “re-run” of the poll.

He claimed that he had “inherited a lot of problems” from the previous administration and had resolved to “take the hard decisions first.”

Starmer ruled out an early general election, stating that only the Prime Minister can request that the King call a general election; it simply will not happen, he said.

This petition, started last week and sponsored by Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, calls on the government to schedule a new general election.
To sign a petition, you must verify that you are a British citizen or resident and provide a postcode.

The petition states, “I would prefer there to be another general election. I believe the present Labour government has broken the pledges they made before the last election.”

The petition comes only five months after Labour won the July general election with 9.7 million votes and 412 seats in the House of Commons.

However, the Labour Party garnered only 35% of the vote, the lowest percentage gained by a single-party administration since the conclusion of WWII.

Some of the policies implemented by Starmer and his Labour government have received significant criticism, including an inheritance tax on farms, a reduction in winter heating payments, an increase in employers’ national insurance, and applying VAT to private school fees.

According to the most recent Ipsos political pulse poll, the Labour Party is unpopular, with 28% of the public favoring it and 49% opposing it.