A rightwing minister told Sweden to get tough on crime – until his own son was caught in a Nazi scandal | Martin Gelin

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Before the elections next year, Sweden’s conservative government has been eager to avoid accusations of racism or xenophobia. So it’s unfortunate that it keeps being plagued by scandals involving both. The Swedish investigative magazine Expo revealed earlier this month that a minister in the governing coalition, whom it did not name, had a close family … Read more

Yvette Cooper avoids criticising Macron’s attack on Brexit as she defends migrant deal – UK politics live | Politics

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Britain expects EU to approve migration deal with France, says Cooper Yesterday Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron published a leaders’ declaration that implied the returns agreement would need EU sign-off. They were not very clear about this, but the Times led its main story on this on the suggestion that the EU might block the … Read more

Trial UK and France ‘one in, one out’ scheme designed to curb migrant boat crossings to start within weeks – as it happened | Politics

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Starmer confirms ‘ground-breaking returns pilot’ scheme will start operating in coming weeks Starmer moves to illegal migration. This is a global crisis, he says. But it is also “acutely” a crisis for UK and France. An enterprise run by criminals is leading hundreds of people to their deaths in the Channel. They have agreed “a … Read more

Robert Jenrick’s migrant returns advice is finally heeded – by a Labour PM | Immigration and asylum

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As Rishi Sunak prepared to meet Emmanuel Macron in March 2023, his migration minister wrote to him to propose some radical proposals that might persuade the French to crack down on small boat crossings. “We should be willing to make highly meaningful concessions such as offering to take one asylum seeker that has been successfully … Read more

The Guardian view on Ukraine’s future: Putin may be gaining ground, but he is not winning | Editorial

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European leaders gathered in Rome on Thursday for a conference on Ukrainian recovery, but endurance remains the priority. Russia has intensified its assault with punishing strikes far beyond the frontline – including a record 728 drones and 13 missiles one day before the conference. The UN said that civilian casualties last month were at their … Read more

Vienna has been declared a renters’ utopia – and it’s easy to see why | Justin Kadi

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When it comes to best-practice examples in the housing debate, Vienna is a common reference. Indeed, the Austrian capital features prominently in narratives about successful housing policies. An article in the Observer concluded that Vienna shows “decent homes for all” is not an impossible dream. And the New York Times even declared it “a renters’ … Read more