Germany

Britons will soon have more summer holiday destinations to choose from as seven new countries have been added to England’s green travel list. Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Slovakia, Latvia, Romania and Norway will all be moved from the amber list to the quarantine-free category this weekend. Although France has not changed categories, passengers returning from the country will not longer need to self-isolate if they are fully inoculated. The Government claimed its decision to scrap the amber plus list and align France with the rest of the standard amber category ‘simplifies the system to three categories’. This means that holidaymakers returning from these countries will no longer have to quarantine for 10 days upon arrival to England. However, they will still need to provide proof of a negative Covid-19 test taken within three days of departing before the UK, and take another two days after landing. In a major travel shake-up, India, the United Arab Emirates, …

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GERMANY’S deluged towns and cities are set for more torrential downpours after more than 100 people were killed in what has been dubbed the "flood of death". Weather maps in stricken areas of the country are dotted with extreme danger warnings as freakish thunderstorms are poised to unleash a torrent of rain — sparking fears dams could burst. Unsuspecting residents were caught completely off guard by the torrent branded the "flood of death" by Germany's top-selling daily Bild. But more downpours are set to pummel the afflicted areas, while rescuers desperately search for 1,300 missing people as the death toll surges past 100. Residents have been ordered to evacuate as swollen rivers with German Chancellor Angela Merkel expecting "many" more deaths amid mounting concerns of a fresh disaster as more rain is forecast. Fears are growing for people living below the Steinbach reservoir amid warnings the dam could burst. 'FEARS DAMS COULD BURST' And, with even more rain …

[Read more...] about Devastating Germany flood maps shows more thunderstorms to hit deluged towns as weather warnings issued

TERRIFYING drone footage shows the true carnage left behind after a devastating “flood of death” hit Germany. More than 100 people have died in Germany and up to 1,300 are missing after one of the worst floods in its history unleashed raging waters and prompted landslides. Drone footage shot by Reuters shows streets with water still streaming through, with the road in some places having been washed away by the flooding. As the drone pans further down the street, the extent of damage caused by the landslides becomes apparent. Houses have disintegrated into rubble, while pipes lay in piles alongside fences and displaced bricks. As the drone pans back towards the town, people can be seen wading through the waterlogged streets, surveying the mess their homes have become. Emergency workers are in a race against time as they try to rescue hundreds of people in danger or still unaccounted for amid mounting concerns of a fresh disaster as more freak rain storms are …

[Read more...] about Germany floods – Terrifying drone footage shows true carnage left behind by devastating ‘flood of death’

GERMANY flood warnings reportedly did not reach locals in time before the rain hit - with more than 170 people still missing in the killer deluge. Warning systems sent out alerts a few days before the heavy rain hit, but failed to reach many residents or officials in time, according to BBC reports . More than 180 people were killed in the deluge, with more than 170 still missing as the devastating clean-up effort begins. Armin Schuster, head of the Federal Office for Civil Protection, said "the warning infrastructure wasn't our problem, but the effectiveness with which authorities and the population reacted to these warnings". “We sent out 150 warnings via our apps, via the media,” he said. However, Schuster said it was impossible to predict even half an hour ahead which places would be hit hardest. Critics have now questioned the usefulness of warning apps, as the floods severed many phone links. And the opposition Green Party said the disaster showed Germany …

[Read more...] about Germany flood warnings ‘didn’t reach locals in time’ before rain hit – with more than 170 still missing in killer deluge

A New Zealand banker wanted in Germany for his alleged part in defrauding taxpayers of millions maintains he did no more than exploit a loophole. Paul Robert Mora, 54, who is living in Christchurch, is wanted in Germany to face charges over his allegedly key role in ripping off German taxpayers of about $200 million . He argued he and others did no more than exploit a legitimate loophole in German tax law to create a financial product for banks and clients. But last week the highest court in Germany, the Federal Court of Justice, ruled out the defence saying the deals – dubbed cum-ex – in which Mora specialised, were a criminal offence and violated clear regulations . READ MORE: New Zealand banker sought by Interpol living in luxury in Christchurch Why a Kiwi accused of financial crimes in Germany won't attend his trial Co-defendant of accused Kiwi Paul Robert Mora found guilty in separate 'cum-ex' trial in Bonn The judgment clears the way for a raft of …

[Read more...] about Banker wanted in Germany for alleged financial crimes determined to stay in NZ

Brexit: Ann Widdecombe tells Nigel Farage that he 'won' Sign up for FREE now and never miss the top politics stories again SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info And the report, prepared by pro- Brexit think tank Facts4EU, argues there is now scarcely any area of day-to-day existence into which the bloc has not inserted itself. The report charts the rise of the bloc from its inception in 1957, when it was known as the European Steel and Coal Community, and consisted of Belgium, France , Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany. Related articles Afghanistan LIVE: Taliban threaten global security after 'massacres' End of EU fears as Poland and Hungary could spark crisis The UK joined in …

[Read more...] about EU power grab: Chilling analysis show how bloc dominates lives of its citizens

The German Green Party has pledged to create a superministry for the environment with a right of veto over all other departments if it wins power in next month’s general election. The Greens hope renewed public concern over climate change following the devastating floods that swept western Germany three weeks ago will help them get back into the race. They have already seen a small bounce of a couple of points in the polls since the floods, while their main rivals, the Christian Democrats (CDU) have seen their support fall after their candidate for chancellor, Armin Laschet, was caught on camera laughing during a visit to the scene of the disaster. The pledge is part of a seven-page “immediate programme” for government unveiled by the Greens this week, which also includes what the party claims is “the largest climate protection package in history”. But the dramatic proposals were dismissed by German political commentators as a bid by the party to rescue its ailing election …

[Read more...] about German Greens pledge environment superministry with veto on all government policy if they win power

Concluding our look back across a glorious century of the popular talent show: 1940: The final of this year's X Factor takes place on the White Cliffs of Dover. Finalists include a singing chihuahua, a man in a kilt playing The Laughing Policeman on his bagpipes, a fat woman singing O Sole Mio while doing a handstand and a school choir performing a medley of Gracie Fields numbers. The five-hour show is designed to keep the enemy at bay, and it does the trick: the minute they hear the piercing sounds, Goering's Luftwaffe immediately head back to Germany . In the House of Commons the following day, Churchill commends all those who took part in the show. 'We gave them our absolute worst and sent those lily-livered Nazis packing.' 1962: An unknown Liverpudlian group, The Beatles, auditions for The X Factor, but they are given the thumbs-down. 'What a dreadful racket!' says celebrity panellist Fanny Cradock, who blocks her ears theatrically as they launch into Please Please …

[Read more...] about CRAIG BROWN: How Roland Rat left the sinking ship – 100 years of The X Factor (Part 2)

A GERMAN minister was forced to apologise after he was caught on camera LAUGHING during a visit to a flood-ravaged town. Armin Laschet, 60, was seen joking while President Frank-Walter Steinmeier gave a statement expressing sympathy for the victims of the flooding in the town of Erftstadt. At one point in the footage, Laschet bursts out laughing while chatting with people around him. "Laschet laughs while the country cries," the German newspaper Bild daily said. Laschet apologised on Twitter, saying that he regretted "the impression that was given by a conversation situation". "This was inappropriate and I'm sorry," he added. The German chancellor candidate is the frontrunner in the race to succeed Angela Merkel. Commentators were quick to criticise Laschet on social media for his behaviour at the press conference in the hard-hit town. "I'm speechless," tweeted the secretary-general of the centre-left Social Democrats, Lars Klingbeil. "I grew up in …

[Read more...] about Outrage as German minister is caught LAUGHING on visit to town devastated by floods as death toll rises to 143

A MISSING mum has been found murdered in a Nazi bunker in a forest in eastern Germany. Bianca S., 26, is feared to have been abducted and stabbed after she was last seen cycling away from a train station in Oranienburg last Thursday. A friend who saw her at noon said she was on the way to see a doctor, but she then failed to show up to a team meeting at work at 2pm. She also failed to collect her five-year-old son from daycare that afternoon, sparking appeals from worried authorities. Then at 10pm on Monday, workmen found her body in a corridor at a former SS radio station at Karo Ass, four miles outside the town. The moss-covered bunker dating from World War Two is hidden deep in the forest, and is accessed through a muddy trench under a gap in the concrete wall. Early investigations indicate the victim was stabbed, according to reports. A police spokesman told Bild : "The situation and the externally visible injuries speak for a homicide." Detectives later …

[Read more...] about Mystery as missing mum, 26, is found murdered inside a Nazi bunker four days after she vanished