Germany's shortage of skilled workers has pushed employers to recruit abroad, and India has emerged as a major source of talent.With retirees outnumbering young entrants, businesses from bakeries to construction sites are looking overseas to keep operations running.Demographic trends are at the heart of the problem. A recent study by the Bertelsmann Foundation found Germany needs roughly 288,000...

France’s Socialist-led administrations kept control of the country’s four biggest cities — Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Lille — in local elections that offered a boost to established parties ahead of next year’s presidential vote.The night also saw gains for both the far left and far right, with notable wins for a Le Pen ally in Nice and for France Unbowed (LFI) in Roubaix, underscoring a...

Michael Lyster, one of the most recognisable voices in Irish sports broadcasting, has died at the age of 71.He was best known as the presenter of The Sunday Game, a role he held for more than three decades.Lyster began his journalism career at The Tuam Herald in County Galway before moving to RTÉ around 1979–1980. In his first year with the broadcaster he was part of the team covering the...

Another surge in energy prices has jolted Europe, reviving memories of the 2022 shock that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.This time the trigger is instability in the Middle East, which has disrupted key shipping routes and sent markets into a fresh tailspin.The EU had vowed to end its heavy dependence on Russian fuels after 2022 and moved quickly: Russia now supplies almost none of the...

A senior UK minister has dismissed claims that Iran possesses missiles capable of reaching London, saying government intelligence does not back that assertion.Housing Secretary Steve Reed told the BBC there is no official assessment showing Iran is targeting the UK or has the capacity to do so.He declined to disclose operational details about a recent missile incident. The remarks follow an...

Danish authorities reportedly prepared to disable key Greenland airstrips to stop a potential US seizure of the Arctic territory, the Danish broadcaster DR has reported.DR says its account is based on a dozen sources inside Denmark's government and military, plus officials in France and Germany, and the Financial Times later said two European diplomats corroborated parts of the story.According to...

Italy is holding a weekend referendum on changes to its constitution that would alter how judges and prosecutors are governed.What began as a technical tweak has morphed into a political showdown that could reshape Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s standing.The measure would split the career tracks of judges and prosecutors, set up separate governing bodies for each and create a new disciplinary...

Unconfirmed US reports say Iran launched two ballistic missiles toward the US-UK base on Diego Garcia, but neither weapon hit its target.One missile reportedly malfunctioned mid-flight and the other was intercepted by a US naval vessel, though the exact timing of the launches remains unclear.The BBC says the accounts are credible, and Britain’s Ministry of Defence accused Iran of escalating...

A Polish court has ruled that Russian archaeologist Alexander Butyagin can be handed over to Ukraine to face charges over alleged illegal excavations and the removal of artefacts from Crimea.Butyagin has been held in a Warsaw detention centre since his arrest in December at Kyiv's request.The judge in Warsaw, Dariusz Łubowski, made the decision that could lead to extradition, though Butyagin’s...

A fresh shock from the Middle East has sent energy markets reeling and reopened a debate Europe hoped it had settled.Months after stepping away from Russian fuels, EU capitals now face sharp price jumps and renewed political pressure as supplies tighten.After Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the EU moved quickly to cut dependence on Moscow. Oil flows from Russia have almost disappeared for...