Privacy crusade peer Tom Watson lands job at US firm which is accused of spyingNone

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — As bitcoin reached historic highs, surpassing $100,000 for the first tim e, El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele was triumphant on Thursday about his big bet on the cryptocurrency. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — As bitcoin reached historic highs, surpassing $100,000 for the first tim e, El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele was triumphant on Thursday about his big bet on the cryptocurrency. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — As bitcoin reached historic highs, surpassing $100,000 for the first tim e, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele was triumphant on Thursday about his big bet on the cryptocurrency. The adoption of bitcoin — which has been legal tender in the Central American nation since 2021 — never quite matched the president’s enthusiasm, but the value of the government’s reported investment now stands at more than $600 million. Bitcoin has rallied mightily since Donald Trump’s election victory last month, exceeding the $100,000 mark on Wednesday night, just hours after the president-elect said he intends to nominate cryptocurrency advocate Paul Atkins to be the next chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Just two years ago, bitcoin’s volatile value fell below $17,000. Bitcoin fell back below the $100,000 by Thursday afternoon, sitting just above $99,000 by 3 p.m. E.T. Bukele on Thursday blamed his beleaguered political opposition for causing many Salvadorans to miss out on the bonanza. There were street protests when the Congress made bitcoin legal tender in June 2021, though that move was not the only motivation for the protesters. The tiny Central American country has long used the dollar as currency, but Bukele promised bitcoin would provide new opportunities for El Salvador’s unbanked and cut out money transfer services from the remittances Salvadorans abroad send home. The government offered $30 in bitcoin to those who signed up for digital wallets. Many did so, but quickly cashed out the cryptocurrency. “It’s important to emphasize that not only did the opposition err resoundingly with bitcoin, but rather, differently from other issues (where they have also been wrong), this time their opposition affected many,” Bukele wrote on Facebook. Bukele drew an “impressive” comment from Elon Musk on the social media platform X Thursday. El Salvador’s former Central Bank President Carlos Acevedo pointed out on Thursday that while there has been a gain, it remains an unrealized one until the government’s bitcoin is sold. That said, he credited Bukele’s administration with doing well on the bitcoin move, especially in light of Trump’s election. Acevedo said “the markets’ optimism that a Trump administration will be friendly with the markets and particularly with bitcoin” explained its sustained rally over the past month. But the cryptocurrency’s volatility was a persistent risk, he said. “The average Salvadoran doesn’t use bitcoin, but obviously there are Salvadorans with economic resources who even before had already invested in bitcoin, but it is a small group,” Acevedo said. Esteban Escamilla, a worker in a clothing store in Santa Tecla, outside the capital San Salvador, said he had cashed out the original $30 of bitcoin offered in 2021. “I don’t use bitcoin because I don’t have (money) to invest and speculate with, but I know it has gone up a lot,” he said, recognizing that he would have more money now if he had kept it in bitcoin. Josefa Torres, 45, said as she was doing her grocery shopping that she didn’t have any bitcoin either. “I took out the money and used it for household expenses,” she said. At the conclusion of meetings between the International Monetary Fund and El Salvador’s government in August, the IMF issued a statement that mentioned the country’s bitcoin holdings. “While many of the risks have not yet materialized, there is joint recognition that further efforts are needed to enhance transparency and mitigate potential fiscal and financial stability risks from the Bitcoin project,” the IMf said. AdvertisementWhy Yankees should trade for pair of Cubs starsThousands celebrate in Damascus after Friday prayersExtensive confidential documents in the lead-up to the collapse of Northern Ireland’s institutions in 2002 have been made available to the public as part of annual releases from the Irish National Archives. They reveal that the Irish Government wanted to appeal to the UK side against “manipulating” every scenario for favourable election results in Northern Ireland, in an effort to protect the peace process. In the years after the landmark 1998 Good Friday Agreement, a number of outstanding issues left the political environment fraught with tension and disagreement. Mr Trimble, who won a Nobel Peace Prize with SDLP leader John Hume for their work on the Agreement, was keen to gain wins for the UUP on policing, ceasefire audits and paramilitary disarmament – but also to present his party as firmer on these matters amid swipes from its Unionist rival, the DUP. These issues were at the front of his mind as he tried to steer his party into Assembly elections planned for May 2003 and continue in his role as the Executive’s first minister despite increasing political pressure. The documents reveal the extent to which the British and Irish Governments were trying to delicately resolve the contentious negotiations, conscious that moves seen as concessions to one group could provoke anger on the other side. In June 2002, representatives of the SDLP reported to Irish officials on a recent meeting between Mr Hume’s successor Mark Durkan and Prime Minister Tony Blair on policing and security. Mr Blair is said to have suggested that the SDLP and UUP were among those who both supported and took responsibility for the Good Friday Agreement. The confidential report of the meeting says that Mr Durkan, the deputy First Minister, was not sure that Mr Trimble had been correctly categorised. The Prime Minister asked if the SDLP could work more closely with the UUP ahead of the elections. Mr Durkan argued that Mr Trimble was not only not saleable to nationalists, but also not saleable to half of the UUP – to which Mr Blair and Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid are said to have laughed in agreement. The SDLP leader further warned that pursuing a “save David” campaign would ruin all they had worked for. Damien McAteer, an adviser for the SDLP, was recorded as briefing Irish officials on September 10 that it was his view that Mr Trimble was intent on collapsing the institutions in 2003 over expected fallout for Sinn Fein in the wake of the Colombia Three trial, where men linked to the party were charged with training Farc rebels – but predicted the UUP leader would be “in the toilet” by January, when an Ulster Unionist Council (UUC) meeting was due to take place. A week later in mid September, Mr Trimble assured Irish premier Bertie Ahern that the next UUC meeting to take place in two days’ time would be “okay but not great” and insisted he was not planning to play any “big game”. It was at that meeting that he made the bombshell announcement that the UUP would pull out of the Executive if the IRA had not disbanded by January 18. The move came as a surprise to the Irish officials who, along with their UK counterparts, did not see the deadline as realistic. Sinn Fein described the resolution as a “wreckers’ charter”. Doubts were raised that there would be any progress on substantive issues as parties would not be engaged in “pre-election skirmishing”. As that could lead to a UUP walkout and the resulting suspension of the institutions, the prospect of delaying the elections was raised while bringing forward the vote was ruled out. Therefore, the two Governments stressed the need to cooperate as a stabilising force to protect the Agreement – despite not being sure how that process would survive through the January 18 deadline. The Irish officials became worried that the British side did not share their view that Mr Trimble was not “salvageable” and that the fundamental dynamic in the UUP was now Agreement scepticism, the confidential documents state. In a meeting days after the UUC announcements, Mr Reid is recorded in the documents as saying that as infuriating as it was, Mr Trimble was at that moment the “most enlightened Unionist we have”. The Secretary said he would explore what the UUP leader needed to “survive” the period between January 18 and the election, believing a significant prize could avoid him being “massacred”. Such planning went out the window just weeks later, when hundreds of PSNI officers were involved in raids of several buildings – including Sinn Fein’s offices in Stormont. The resulting “Stormontgate” spy-ring scandal accelerated the collapse of powersharing, with the UUP pulling out of the institutions – and the Secretary of State suspending the Assembly and Executive on October 14. For his part, Irish officials were briefed that Mr Reid was said to be “gung ho” about the prospect of exercising direct rule – reportedly making no mention of the Irish Government in a meeting with Mr Trimble and Mr Durkan on that day. The Northern Ireland Secretary was given a new role and Paul Murphy was appointed as his successor. A note on speaking points for a meeting with Mr Murphy in April showed that the Irish side believed the May elections should go ahead: “At a certain stage the political process has to stand on its own feet. “The Governments cannot be manipulating and finessing every scenario to engineer the right result. “We have to start treating the parties and the people as mature and trusting that they have the discernment to make the right choices.” However, the elections planned for May did not materialise, instead delayed until November. Mr Trimble would go on to lose his Westminster seat – and stewardship of the UUP – in 2005. The November election saw the DUP emerge as the largest parties – but direct rule continued as Ian Paisley’s refused to share power with Sinn Fein, which Martin McGuinness’ colleagues. The parties eventually agreed to work together following further elections in 2007. – This article is based on documents in 2024/130/5, 2024/130/6, 2024/130/15

'Breaking of gridlock' between Quebec, N.L. is the envy of former premiersThe cramped visitors locker room at Kaseya Center felt extra crowded last week after the Los Angeles Lakers' 41-point shellacking at the hands of the . and were assigned lockers across from each other, leaving a couple of dozen reporters to pack the space in between them, waiting for the stars to explain how their defense could be so thoroughly decimated by the Heat. James spoke first. "We got to figure it out," he said after L.A. lost for the sixth time in eight games. "Because it's definitely embarrassing, for sure." Miami shot 57.8% from the field and a volcanic 51.1% on 3-pointers -- tying a franchise record for 3s in a regular-season game with 24 while pouring 134 points on the Lakers -- tied for the most L.A. has allowed under new coach JJ Redick. The Lakers bottomed out in the third quarter when single-handedly outscored them, hitting seven straight 3s and leading Miami to win the period 36-20. When asked what the Lakers did wrong in guarding Herro, James quipped: "Everything." After James finished answering questions, reporters pivoted to Davis, who put the onus on himself after scoring a season-low eight points on 3-of-14 shooting. "I hate losing," Davis said dejectedly. "The way we're losing, we're playing bad, blown out. I'm not playing well individually. It's an accumulation of things and it's frustrating." Davis took accountability, but even had he made the 11 other shots he attempted that night in Miami, L.A. still would have lost by double digits. A quarter of the way through the season, the Lakers are 13-11 and have issues that Davis can't fix individually. With James starting to show his age, L.A.'s defense continuing to be exposed in multiple facets and even the normally headstrong Redick admitting, "We're all trying to find it," after the loss to Miami, there is mounting evidence that this season could go sideways without a significant shakeup. With Redick taking advantage of a break in the schedule to give his team time to reset this week ahead of Friday's game on the road against the , here's a look at what's plaguing L.A. -- and what can be done to fix it. Porous defense "They weren't even trying," one Western Conference scout, who reviewed film from the L.A.-Miami game, told ESPN of the Lakers. "The Lakers play with zero physicality," he said. "It's easy to get transition baskets. It's easy to score via pick-and-rolls. It's easy to post up and cut for easy baskets. Everything is just easy." The numbers back up that assessment. The Lakers have allowed opponents to shoot 63% on layups and dunks in the half court this season, which is fourth worst in the league. Part of the reason for that alarming percentage is that the Lakers are allowing the third-highest shot quality on those shots at the rim in the half court, according to Second Spectrum, with only 64% of those point-blank attempts considered to be heavily contested by L.A.'s defenders. When asked about L.A.'s pick-and-roll defense against Miami, and against the Wolves in the game that preceded it when the Lakers lost by 29 points, Redick was direct as he exhumed the defeats. "Did not execute our switches, were not physical, did not communicate," Redick said Wednesday. "Communication was a big issue in Miami as well, no matter what we tried. Again, you can't play basketball and not talk. In terms of technique and schemes, if you don't talk, you're dead. In terms of tweaking stuff, we've done it. We've done it in coverage. We've done it with 1 through 5, and we've done it being physical. We've done it talking, so that's what we have to do. We can make adjustments on that. If you're not talking and you're not competing, you can't really make adjustments." As rough as the half court has been, the open court has been even worse. L.A. is 29th in transition defense, allowing 1.44 points per possession. The Lakers have also had to defend the sixth-most transition possessions per game in the league this season. Part of that problem can be linked to effort. They have had a man advantage when defending a transition possession just 44% of the time this season -- the fifth-lowest rate in the league -- meaning there aren't enough players wearing purple and gold sprinting back to protect their basket. However, with largely the same personnel as last season's team that ranked 17th in defense, by allowing 114.8 points per 100 possessions, maybe L.A. ranking 26th and allowing 117.0 points per 100 possessions this season shouldn't be so surprising. "It's been interesting to me, Darvin [Ham] took a lot of s--- last year," another Western Conference scout told ESPN. "I think now you're seeing like, 'Oh, maybe it wasn't Darvin. Maybe it's the f---ing roster.'" He is not the only person among the half-dozen scouts, coaches and front office employees ESPN interviewed to suggest that L.A. needs different players if it expects different results. "They need to trade for a good point-of-attack defender that can at least be capable of knocking down open shots," an Eastern Conference scout told ESPN. "They don't have many perimeter defenders." Added another Eastern Conference executive to ESPN: "I don't think they have the personnel to be a good defensive team." Though expected return next month will give Redick a player with a solid defensive track record to add to the Lakers' rotation, Vanderbilt's offensive limitations are also well documented. "Honestly, they need what everybody wants," one of the West scouts told ESPN. "It's that versatile wing defender that can guard 2 through 4 and then can make an open 3. Your , your , those type of players. And those guys, either: One, aren't available; or two, if they are available, they're not cheap, they're at a premium. Everybody in the NBA wants guys like that." Not enough consistency from James and Davis, or players around them Part of L.A.'s slide has coincided with snapping his personal iron man streak of 129 straight regular-season games played before missing the past five games because of a left pelvic injury. Before going out, Reaves had averaged a career-best 16.7 points, adding 4.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game. "AD and LeBron need consistency from the rest of the group," the East exec said. "The only guy that they rely on is Austin. He finally got to the point of not deferring to those guys. The rest of the group should follow suit. Too many guys don't know how to play with them because they feel like they need to just give AD and LeBron the ball and wait for a pass. They end up forcing shots late-clock because that is when they get the ball." Another Eastern Conference front office member pointed to L.A.'s second tier of role players failing to make a difference. "Getting very little from , , , has been disappointing," he told ESPN. "One of those guys needs to play better." Though a Lakers team source told ESPN that one of L.A.'s strengths is that Reaves, or rookie is capable of being the leading scorer any game to take the burden off James and Davis, that's still a relative rarity. In 24 games, Davis has been the leading scorer 12 times, James six times, Knecht three times, Reaves twice and Russell once. As far as a big three goes, the results have been a big negative. The Lakers have a minus-8.4 net efficiency in the 383 minutes that Davis, James and Reaves have played together this season. That's the third-worst net efficiency among 73, three-player combinations to appear on the court together for at least 350 minutes this season. "If Austin Reaves is your third-best player -- and I love Austin, I think he's a very good basketball player -- but if he's your third-best player, you're not a championship contender, you're just not," one of the West scouts told ESPN. "If you put Austin Reaves on the or the , he's probably the fifth-, maybe even sixth-best player, on those rosters." James has been poor by his standards If you judge by plus-minus, James has not only ceded control of the team to Davis and become the team's second-best player in his 22nd season, he has become the Lakers' worst player. This season, the Lakers are minus-129 when James is on the floor, by far the worst on the team. And the Lakers are plus-42 when he is off the court. James has used the off week to "take some time" away from the team for personal reasons, according to Redick. By sitting out against Minnesota, he will get eight days of rest and treatment on his sore left foot, and only miss two games. Though his overall production -- he's averaging 23 points on 49.5% shooting, 9.1 assists and 8.0 rebounds -- is unprecedented for a player at this late stage of his career, his recent struggles prior to the foot injury are alarming. His 66 turnovers over the past 13 games are the most he has had in a 13-game stretch since signing with the Lakers in 2018. And before he went 6-for-11 on 3-pointers in an overtime loss against the (with two misses coming late in the fourth in an attempt to ice it and at the buzzer in OT), James shot 4-for-34 from deep (11.8%) in his seven games prior to that. "He had that stretch where he looked probably as human as he's never looked in his career," one of James' former assistant coaches told ESPN. "It seems like he's prolonged it more than anybody ever has, but at some point, he's going to just reach a point where he can't do it. And it seems like that day is getting closer and closer now. I don't think it's yet. I think that was just a rough stretch, but I think it is eye-opening to see it like, 'Oh f---, he's not God.' He's, at some point, going to not be able to do this anymore." Though Miami's Erik Spoelstra suggested James' combination of size, strength and smarts would allow him to keep playing the game at a high level for another decade if he wanted to, some of his effectiveness has clearly waned. James has been off not only from the outside. He's shooting 65% on layups and dunks, his lowest in a season since player tracking began in 2013-14, according to Second Spectrum. And his 62% mark on shots 8 feet from the basket is his lowest since his rookie season in 2003-04. "When he just wasn't knocking down shots from the outside, and with him not being as explosive as he once was, he's going to struggle if he can't play with the threat of his shot," the East scout told ESPN. One of the West scouts said it is Redick's responsibility to engage James to impact winning, stats be damned. "They will go nowhere if Redick and staff don't find a way to challenge him beyond his historic numbers," the scout told ESPN. "The supporting cast is always going to follow his lead. When they have these horrible games, it's a reflection of him being able to cruise and still get great stats. They can't cruise." Though James, along with Davis, shouldered the blame in Miami -- saying a clunker such as that has to fall on the players, and not the coaches -- a couple of nights later in Atlanta, he pointed to a different reason for L.A.'s loss. "We don't have much room for error," James said, pointing to the "big pieces" in Reaves, Vanderbilt, Hayes and Wood. Of course, that reality of James missing the matchup against Minnesota, and even more games, becomes unfeasible if L.A. hopes to win. "Sure, it'd be great to rest your second-best player who's 40 years old, but with the lack of talent and obviously also the lack of health, it makes it incredibly difficult to sit somebody like that," one of the West scouts told ESPN. "So I don't know what the right answer is. Because probably yes, the right thing for LeBron is to take some nights off just to rest his body and rest his mind. But you run the risk of not being able to win games just with your talent deficiency." Added the scout: "I think that comes back to the roster issue of he can't consistently do it over an 82-game stretch at his age. And he needs help ... and he doesn't have help."World champion at age 18: Why Gukesh Dommaraju’s triumph heralds a new golden age for chess

Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach swear they don't have an idea for Barbie 2At the ripe age of 100, Jimmy Carter, a former peanut farmer, was the 39th president of the United States and the longest living American president. He died Sunday at his home in Plains, Georgia, according to his son James E. Carter III per . Beloved and misunderstood, Carter especially had a complicated relationship with Black America. It might surprise you to learn that the man who would eventually win the overwhelming support of Black voters for President (twice), wasn’t always seen as a friend to the Black community. To call Carter’s early relationship with the Black community complicated, would be the understatement of the century. , earning himself a rather unflattering description from the premier state newspaper, . “ignorant, racist, backward, ultra-conservative, red-necked South Georgia peanut farmer.” But in his personal life, the rural Georgian politician had taken stances in favor of integration. At his Baptist church, . (He later joined an integrated church, the Maranatha Baptist Church) And as renewed segregationist sentiment swept through the South after Brown v. Board, Carter was one of the only white men in his community to refuse to join the local chapter of the white supremacist group, The White Citizens’ Council. The clear But as evidenced by Black voters later support of Carter, his story doesn’t end there. It’s hard to know exactly what changed with Carter. It’s possible that the fact he was no longer running in the Deep South meant he felt safe standing by the convictions he’d espoused in his personal life. But in his inaugural address as Governor in 1970, Carter hit a different note than his campaign, swearing From there, Carter began to build a relationship with Black civil rights leaders that would continue into his Presidency. “Civil rights leaders felt comfortable negotiating with him,” says Andra Gillespie, an American Politics Professor at Emory University, where Carter also served as a Professor. That didn’t mean Carter and civil rights leaders always say eye to eye. During one of Gillespie’s classes that Carter guest-lectured, she says he described a moment of tension between himself and civil rights leaders during negotiations of the Humphrey-Hawkins Act, which sought to grant full employment to Americans. “The bill was so watered down by amendments that it didn’t do anything,” explains Gillespie, “and it was really interesting to hear President Carter explain his take on what happened with that bill to my class. So basically, he was like, civil rights leaders were demanding things that were just not possible.” Despite these tensions, Carter accomplished a lot for the Black community while in office, says Gillespie. “For his time, he had the most diverse cabinet that anybody prior to that had had,” she says. And as a former-President, Gillespie said that he continued to push for racial equality. “When President Obama was in office and Republicans were openly talking about obstructing him with a goal of trying to do ruin his chances for re-election, he was the one one who on television and said that’s racist,” says Gillespie. Gillespie says that Obama likely would have struggled to make the argument himself as a Black man and current President, but that Carter “didn’t sugar coat it.” “He just straight up said these attacks are racist to try to use his political capital to be able to shake people into realizing that the attacks against Obama were more than just partisan posturing,” says Gillespie. “I think that’s an example of ally-ship.” Outside of his work in politics, Gillespie says that Carter’s humanitarian work with groups like Habitat for Humanity have directly benefited Black people in the United States and globally. “Jimmy Carter will be known for having the most successful post-Presidency of anybody,” says Gillespie. “I think he’s the standard and the model for what a post-Presidency looks like, using the platform that was gained by having held the most powerful office in the world to go do good for others.”

Authorities remain tight-lipped on investigation into cocaine shipment

TORONTO — Bruce Brown intercepted a pass and streaked down the court, driving past some token defence from Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson for a one-handed slam dunk. Brown’s Toronto Raptors teammates burst off the home team’s bench, cheering for the veteran forward. “It’s just because they didn’t think I can jump, because I haven’t jumped really, or they haven’t seen it, and then they didn’t see it the last year,” Brown said, adding he knew he would dunk as soon as he crossed half-court. “I told them I could do it and I was like, ‘if I get the chance to, I’mma dunk it.'” It was Brown’s first dunk in eight months as he scored 12 points and had three rebounds off the bench in his season debut on Sunday as Toronto lost to Atlanta 136-107. He’d missed the first 31 games of the Raptors season as he recovered from arthroscopic knee surgery on Sept. 20, a process that took longer than he expected. “I thought I was gonna be out like six to eight weeks but some things didn’t go my way,” said Brown. “There was a lot of swelling in there for a while. “Things happened, and then I was supposed to come back, like, three, four weeks ago, but there was still swelling there, so they told me to take my time.” Brown averaged 9.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.3 blocks over 34 games with the Raptors last season. He was traded from the Indiana Pacers to Toronto on Jan. 18 as part of a package for all-star forward Pascal Siakam. He’s averaged 8.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists over his career in 416 games with the Detroit Pistons, Brooklyn Nets, Denver Nuggets, Indiana and Toronto. Brown’s return doesn’t just add depth to the Raptors’ lineup, but brings some much-needed energy to a struggling team that has lost 10 in a row. “You see him get out there and put his body on the line after being out for so long,” said Scottie Barnes, who led Toronto with 19 points, eight rebounds, and five assists but eight turnovers in the loss. “He’s making himself so tired out there just guarding, pushing himself. That’s what the team needs. “We’ve all got to match that energy every single night. That’s the effort we’re going to need in order to win games.” Head coach Darko Rajakovic said that fatigue is a major factor in the NBA’s longest active losing skid. He said that a lack of focus played a role in Toronto’s season-high 31 turnovers on Sunday. “We hit a wall. We look tired. We look drained,” said Rajakovic. “Guys are not in a rhythm. That’s the reality that we’re in right now. We’ve got to find a way to get out of it.” It was the third consecutive game where the Raptors had given up over 130 points, and second 29-point blowout in a row. “Getting beat by 30, man, at home — that’s unacceptable,” said Barnes. “We can’t be doing that. We got to go out there and play harder, be smarter. “We had a lot of turnovers today. We can’t allow this to happen.” Brown was more optimistic. “We just need some rest, and we’ll push through it,” he said, noting that a stomach flu had spread through Toronto’s locker room. “I mean, all teams have this at some point, even championship teams, so we’ll push through it. We’ll be fine.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 29, 2024. John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press

EXCLUSIVE Privacy crusade peer Tom Watson lands job at US firm which is accused of spying By SAM GREENHILL Published: 17:19 EST, 24 November 2024 | Updated: 17:20 EST, 24 November 2024 e-mail View comments Labour peer Tom Watson has become a paid adviser to a 'spy tech' firm at the centre of an NHS privacy row over patients' data. Lord Watson, who has long campaigned for victims of Press intrusion, has joined Palantir - a CIA-linked data mining company. Palantir has a £330million contract with the NHS to create a data system, which sparked a privacy row last year. The British Medical Association called it 'deeply worrying' that the US giant, which has close ties to defence and intelligence agencies in America, the UK and elsewhere , would be handling British patients' sensitive details. Lord Watson has declared on the latest Lords' Register of Members' Interests that he is being paid as a member of the company's 'public services advisory board'. He has not divulged how much money he is earning or whether he will be lobbying for further Whitehall contracts. When he was a Labour MP, he accepted £540,000 in donations from Max Mosley and supported the late F1 racing tycoon's campaign for tighter privacy laws against the Press. Lord Watson also piled pressure on Scotland Yard detectives from Operation Midland who were investigating claims of a VIP paedophile ring made by Carl Beech , which were later found to be made up. The allegations were against high-profile figures, including former home secretary Lord Brittan. Beech was jailed for 18 years. Palantir's UK arm is run by Louis Mosley, a nephew of Mr Mosley. Earlier this year, he told The Times: 'Fundamentally what [Palantir] provide is very powerful and therefore potentially very dangerous. We will only work in countries that are subject to the rule of law and western-aligned.' Labour peer Tom Watson has become a paid adviser to a 'spy tech' firm at the centre of an NHS privacy row over patients' data Lord Watson, who has long campaigned for victims of Press intrusion, has joined Palantir - a CIA-linked data mining company Palantir has a £330million contract with the NHS to create a data system, which sparked a privacy row last year He has defended the company's work with the NHS, which he said makes it easier for doctors and clinicians to 'bring together' data about patients to help them 'do their job' and save lives. Former Cabinet minister David Davis has said it was 'the wrong company to be put in charge of our precious data resource'. Palantir was founded in 2003 by a group of Silicon Valley entrepreneur, including Peter Thiel, a former donor to Donald Trump. It provides data analysis software for companies and government agencies. One of its biggest clients is the US military with which it has a $100million contract to build AI-powered targeting systems for soldiers. Its software has been used to separate and deport migrant families in America. Another company which Mr Thiel financed – Clearview AI – was fined £7.5million by the Information Commissioner's Office in the UK for 'using images that were collected from the web and social media to create a global online database that could be used for facial recognition '. Lord Watson did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesman for Palantir said: '[We are] constituting an advisory board to ensure that as we do more public sector work in the UK, our approach is informed by independent experts from a range of relevant public service backgrounds. 'Tom and the other members will act as a sounding board for how and where Palantir's software products, which integrate and synthesise data in order to support better decision-making, can be most usefully deployed across the public sector.' Labour NHS Tom Watson Share or comment on this article: Privacy crusade peer Tom Watson lands job at US firm which is accused of spying e-mail Add commentSyracuse and Georgetown meet for the 100th time Saturday when the Orange host the Hoyas in the latest installment of their classic rivalry. As former Big East Conference rivals, Syracuse and Georgetown have staged many memorable contests over the decades with the Orange holding a 54-45 all-time advantage. The teams still meet annually despite the Orange now playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Syracuse has won five of the last seven meetings, including a 12-point triumph in Washington D.C. last December. "It definitely felt like a Big East game," Hoyas coach Ed Cooley said after last season's contest. This time around, Georgetown (7-2) is coming off a 73-60 loss to West Virginia in which the team shot under 38 percent from the floor and committed 14 turnovers. "When the ball has music, when the ball is singing, unbelievable music happens," Cooley said. "The music is the play. The music is body movement and screening an open shot. We didn't have good music today." Thomas Sorber is the team's leading scorer at 15.4 points per game, although the freshman has failed to reach that average in six of the last seven games. Syracuse (5-4), meanwhile, is coming off a 102-85 win over Albany despite the absence of leading scorer J.J. Starling (19.8 points), who is out indefinitely with a hand injury. In his stead, freshman Donnie Freeman supplied 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting despite playing just 23 minutes due to an illness. "Whatever (illness) he has, he needs to keep that, if he can keep playing like, whatever he was feeling," Orange coach Adrian Autry joked. Syracuse will be looking for more success from 3-point range after hitting 6-of-15 (40 percent) against Albany. In their previous game -- a five-point loss to Notre Dame -- the Orange failed to make a 3-pointer for the first time in more than a decade. No Syracuse player has made more than 11 3-pointers this season -- and even that player (Chris Bell) is only shooting 25 percent from long distance. --Field Level Media

NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Alyssa Ustby and Lexi Donarski scored 14 points apiece, and Ustby added 14 rebounds to lead No. 16 North Carolina to a 53-36 victory over Villanova in a semifinal game at the Women's Battle 4 Atlantis on Sunday. The Tar Heels (5-1) play Indiana in the championship game on Monday. The Hoosiers upset No. 18 Baylor 73-65 in Sunday's first semifinal. Ustby made 6 of 8 shots from the floor with a 3-pointer for North Carolina on the way to her first double-double of the season. Donarski hit 6 of 10 shots with a pair of 3-pointers. Maddie Webber led the Wildcats (4-2) with 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Lara Edmanson pitched in with 11 points and seven rebounds. The Tar Heels held Villonova's leading scorer Jasmine Bascoe to two points after she came in averaging 16.6 per game. Bascoe missed all seven of her shots — three from distance — and made 2 of 4 at the free-throw line. Ustby had seven points and Donarski scored five to guide the Tar Heels to a 17-7 lead after one quarter. Donarski scored five more in the third quarter to help North Carolina turn a 30-18 lead at halftime into a 44-23 advantage heading to the final period. North Carolina shot 40% from the floor, made 5 of 17 from beyond the arc (29.4%) and 4 of 6 at the foul line. Villanova shot 23.5% overall but made 5 of 18 from distance (27.8%) and 7 of 10 free throws. The Tar Heels scored 15 points off of 21 Villanova turnovers. They turned it over 14 times but it led to only three points for the Wildcats. North Carolina outscored Villanova 30-14 in the paint and never trailed. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketballExtensive confidential documents in the lead-up to the collapse of Northern Ireland’s institutions in 2002 have been made available to the public as part of annual releases from the Irish National Archives. They reveal that the Irish Government wanted to appeal to the UK side against “manipulating” every scenario for favourable election results in Northern Ireland, in an effort to protect the peace process. In the years after the landmark 1998 Good Friday Agreement, a number of outstanding issues left the political environment fraught with tension and disagreement. Mr Trimble, who won a Nobel Peace Prize with SDLP leader John Hume for their work on the Agreement, was keen to gain wins for the UUP on policing, ceasefire audits and paramilitary disarmament – but also to present his party as firmer on these matters amid swipes from its Unionist rival, the DUP. These issues were at the front of his mind as he tried to steer his party into Assembly elections planned for May 2003 and continue in his role as the Executive’s first minister despite increasing political pressure. The documents reveal the extent to which the British and Irish Governments were trying to delicately resolve the contentious negotiations, conscious that moves seen as concessions to one group could provoke anger on the other side. In June 2002, representatives of the SDLP reported to Irish officials on a recent meeting between Mr Hume’s successor Mark Durkan and Prime Minister Tony Blair on policing and security. Mr Blair is said to have suggested that the SDLP and UUP were among those who both supported and took responsibility for the Good Friday Agreement. The confidential report of the meeting says that Mr Durkan, the deputy First Minister, was not sure that Mr Trimble had been correctly categorised. The Prime Minister asked if the SDLP could work more closely with the UUP ahead of the elections. Mr Durkan argued that Mr Trimble was not only not saleable to nationalists, but also not saleable to half of the UUP – to which Mr Blair and Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid are said to have laughed in agreement. The SDLP leader further warned that pursuing a “save David” campaign would ruin all they had worked for. Damien McAteer, an adviser for the SDLP, was recorded as briefing Irish officials on September 10 that it was his view that Mr Trimble was intent on collapsing the institutions in 2003 over expected fallout for Sinn Fein in the wake of the Colombia Three trial, where men linked to the party were charged with training Farc rebels – but predicted the UUP leader would be “in the toilet” by January, when an Ulster Unionist Council (UUC) meeting was due to take place. A week later in mid September, Mr Trimble assured Irish premier Bertie Ahern that the next UUC meeting to take place in two days’ time would be “okay but not great” and insisted he was not planning to play any “big game”. It was at that meeting that he made the bombshell announcement that the UUP would pull out of the Executive if the IRA had not disbanded by January 18. The move came as a surprise to the Irish officials who, along with their UK counterparts, did not see the deadline as realistic. Sinn Fein described the resolution as a “wreckers’ charter”. Doubts were raised that there would be any progress on substantive issues as parties would not be engaged in “pre-election skirmishing”. As that could lead to a UUP walkout and the resulting suspension of the institutions, the prospect of delaying the elections was raised while bringing forward the vote was ruled out. Therefore, the two Governments stressed the need to cooperate as a stabilising force to protect the Agreement – despite not being sure how that process would survive through the January 18 deadline. The Irish officials became worried that the British side did not share their view that Mr Trimble was not “salvageable” and that the fundamental dynamic in the UUP was now Agreement scepticism, the confidential documents state. In a meeting days after the UUC announcements, Mr Reid is recorded in the documents as saying that as infuriating as it was, Mr Trimble was at that moment the “most enlightened Unionist we have”. The Secretary said he would explore what the UUP leader needed to “survive” the period between January 18 and the election, believing a significant prize could avoid him being “massacred”. Such planning went out the window just weeks later, when hundreds of PSNI officers were involved in raids of several buildings – including Sinn Fein’s offices in Stormont. The resulting “Stormontgate” spy-ring scandal accelerated the collapse of powersharing, with the UUP pulling out of the institutions – and the Secretary of State suspending the Assembly and Executive on October 14. For his part, Irish officials were briefed that Mr Reid was said to be “gung ho” about the prospect of exercising direct rule – reportedly making no mention of the Irish Government in a meeting with Mr Trimble and Mr Durkan on that day. The Northern Ireland Secretary was given a new role and Paul Murphy was appointed as his successor. A note on speaking points for a meeting with Mr Murphy in April showed that the Irish side believed the May elections should go ahead: “At a certain stage the political process has to stand on its own feet. “The Governments cannot be manipulating and finessing every scenario to engineer the right result. “We have to start treating the parties and the people as mature and trusting that they have the discernment to make the right choices.” However, the elections planned for May did not materialise, instead delayed until November. Mr Trimble would go on to lose his Westminster seat – and stewardship of the UUP – in 2005. The November election saw the DUP emerge as the largest parties – but direct rule continued as Ian Paisley’s refused to share power with Sinn Fein, which Martin McGuinness’ colleagues. The parties eventually agreed to work together following further elections in 2007. – This article is based on documents in 2024/130/5, 2024/130/6, 2024/130/15Article content Students returned to class Friday afternoon after police responded to a reported bomb threat at the south Windsor school shortly after 11 a.m. “We had our bomb expert there and one of our canines trained specifically for locating bombs,” said Const. Andie Suthers. “They (officers) cleared the school and nothing was located.” This is the second incident in recent months to prompt a hold-and-secure at the school. In September, Windsor police were called to Vincent Massey after reports of a person wearing a ski mask entering the building with a firearm. On social media posts, commenters sought out more information but also expressed frustration with the perceived frequency of these types of threats. Speaking to the Star on Friday, Mohsin Naqvi, the father of a Grade 9 student, said it is scary to know that the school has been under “lockdown” twice in four months. “It’s very alarming for parents,” Naqvi said. “I’ve had a lot calls from parents and they’re all worried about there kids and not knowing about what is going on. “There has to be a reason why Massey is being targeted with threats.” In an emailed statement around 3 p.m. Friday, a spokesperson for the Greater District School Board said they were Earlier this year, LaSalle police responded to Sandwich Secondary School after a message, which read, “school shooting October 18,” was found in a bathroom on Oct. 16, prompting an immediate investigation in collaboration with school officials. A day later, police announced they had identified a youth believed responsible for the message. Because the suspect is a minor, the Youth Criminal Justice Act applies and further details regarding the investigation were not released to protect the identity of the individual. “Our voice needs to be raised,” Naqvi said. “It’s a concern for the community.”

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Women will for the first time make up a majority of state legislators in Colorado and New Mexico next year, but at least 13 states saw losses in female representation after the November election, according to a count released Thursday by the Rutgers Center for American Women and Politics. While women will fill a record number of state legislative seats in 2025, the overall uptick will be slight, filling just over third of legislative seats. Races in some states are still being called. "We certainly would like to see a faster rate of change and more significant increases in each election cycle to get us to a place where parity in state legislatures is less novel and more normal," said Kelly Dittmar, director of research at the CAWP, which is a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. As of Wednesday, at least 2,450 women will serve in state legislatures, representing 33.2% of the seats nationwide. The previous record was set in 2024 with 2,431 women, according to the CAWP. The number of Republican women, at least 851, will break the previous record of 815 state lawmakers set in 2024. "But still, Republican women are very underrepresented compared to Democratic women," Debbie Walsh, director of the CAWP, said. From left, House Maj. Whip Reena Szczepanski, D-Santa Fe, Rep. D. Wonda Johnson, D-Church Rock and Rep. Cristina Parajon, D-Albuquerque, talk July 18 before the start of a special session, in Santa Fe, N.M. Eddie Moore, The Albuquerque Journal By the most recent count, 19 states will have increased the number of women in their state legislatures, according to the CAWP. The most notable increases were in New Mexico and Colorado, where women will for the first time make up a majority of lawmakers. In New Mexico, voters sent an 11 additional women to the chambers. Colorado previously attained gender parity in 2023 and is set to tip over to a slight female majority in the upcoming year. The states follow Nevada, which was the first in the country to see a female majority in the legislature following elections in 2018. Next year, women will make up almost 62% of state lawmakers in Nevada, far exceeding parity. Women in California's Senate will make up the chamber's majority for the first time in 2025 as well. Women also made notable gains in South Dakota, increasing its number by at least nine. Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack | All Of Our Podcasts Four of South Carolina's Sister Senators, from left, Sen. Margie Bright Matthews, D-Walterboro, Sen. Mia McLeod, I-Columbia, Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, and Sen. Penry Gustafson, R-Camden, stand in front of the Senate on June 26 with their John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award in Columbia, S.C. Jeffrey Collins, Associated Press At least thirteen states emerged from the election with fewer female lawmakers than before, with the most significant loss occurring in South Carolina. This year, the only three Republican women in the South Carolina Senate lost their primaries after they stopped a total abortion ban from passing. Next year, only two women, who are Democrats, will be in the 46-member Senate. No other state in the country will have fewer women in its upper chamber, according to the CAWP. Women make up 55% of the state's registered voters. Half the members in the GOP dominated state were elected in 2012 or before, so it will likely be the 2040s before any Republican woman elected in the future can rise to leadership or a committee chairmanship in the chamber, which doles out leadership positions based on seniority. A net loss of five women in the legislature means they will make up only about 13% of South Carolina's lawmakers, making the state the second lowest in the country for female representation. Only West Virginia has a smaller proportion of women in the legislature. West Virginia stands to lose one more women from its legislative ranks, furthering its representation problem in the legislature where women will make up just 11% of lawmakers. Many women, lawmakers and experts say that women's voices are needed in discussions on policy, especially at a time when state government is at its most powerful in decades. Walsh, director of the CAWP, said the new changes expected from the Trump administration will turn even more policy and regulation to the states. The experiences and perspectives women offer will be increasingly needed, she said, especially on topics related to reproductive rights, healthcare, education and childcare. "The states may have to pick up where the federal government may, in fact, be walking away," Walsh said. "And so who serves in those institutions is more important now than ever." November 7, 2024: Trump Victory Adam ZyglisThe Gaming World Meets Stock Prices. How Tesla Became a Virtual Currency