As First Nation Canadians protest at the Royal Bank of Scotland’s AGM, campaigners say the UK state-owned bank is ‘playing fast and loose’ with taxpayers money Should a state-owned bank be involved in investments that damage the environment, in contradiction to the aims of that state ? Clearly not, but that is the charge made against the Royal Bank of Scotland by campaigners opposed to its work in funding the oil sands industry in Alberta. Their protests move to RBS’s annual general meeting today in Edinburgh, with the arrival of First Nation representatives from Canada, who say their ancestral lands are being devastated . Extracting oil from tar sands also leads to more emissions of climate-warming carbon dioxide than conventional oil. The coalition of NGOs say RBS has raised £5.6bn of corporate finance for companies involved in tar sands extraction since being rescued from oblivion by UK taxpayers in 2008. And there’s been no let up – £1.3bn has been raised in the last six months. Companies named include BP, Total and Statoil, all involved in tar sands extraction, Marathon, which refines the oil, and Enbridge and Kinder Morgan, who want to build a new pipeline to carry the oil from Alberta to the west coast. Clayton Thomas-Muller, from Mathias Colomb Cree Nation and who is attending the AGM, said: “Banks have been put on notice for their dirty finance of the Canadian tar sands which is resulting in the destruction of First Nations Peoples’ way of life.” RBS counters that it provides only general corporate finance to companies with wide interests beyond tar sands, but declined to provide alternative figures. A spokeswoman added: “We recognise the concerns raised regarding the extraction of oil sands and our lending is subject to the achievement of strict social and environmental standards. We agree that there is a need to transition to a low carbon economy. In recent years RBS has been one of the most active banks in the world in helping support the development of renewable energies.” So that’s OK then? No, says campaigner Liz Murray, of the World Development Movement. She told me: “We congratulate them for [their renewables investments] but that does not offset the fact that they are massive financers of fossil fuels, and in particular tar sands.” “Investment in some of the most carbon-intensive fossil fuels in the world is not a sound investment,” Murray said. “As a UK taxpayer – and so an owner of RBS – I think they are playing fast and loose with my money.” If you are also a UK taxpayer, are you feeling short-changed? Royal Bank of Scotland Oil sands Oil Damian Carrington guardian.co.uk
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World governments pledge millions for the construction of a 20,000-tonne steel arch to prevent further radiation leaks Governments from around the world today pledged $785m (€550m) to seal the stricken nuclear reactor at Chernobyl within a 20,000-tonne steel shield that would be large enough to enclose St Paul’s Cathedral in London. The huge arch is designed to prevent any further radiation from escaping for 100 years. The pledges, made at a conference in Kiev ahead of the 25th anniversary of the disaster on 26 April 2011, bring the total raised for the Chernobyl safety works to $1.8bn and will enable efforts to finally secure the reactor which caught fire in April 1986. Twenty-eight governments have so far offered money. The European commission was the biggest contributor with €110m. The US pledged €86m and Britain – which still has more than 300 hill farms in Wales under radiation restrictions following fallout from Chernobyl – will contribute €35m. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced an extra €120m. Japan, Italy and Canada are considering whether to contribute to the fund. The planned arch-shaped structure, which at 190 metres (623 feet) wide and more than 100 metres tall, will take five years to build. It will replace a hastily built concrete “sarcophagus” erected around the reactor in 1987. This now has serious cracks in it, raising fears that 95% of the original nuclear material which is left inside the reactor could escape. Radiation levels directly over the sarcophagus are too high for the arch to be built over it, so it will be constructed in two halves and then moved over it on rails. It is designed so that authorities could start dismantling the reactor from inside in 100 years’ time. The shield is intended to stay in place until either the radiation threat decreases or the Ukrainian government finds a permanent storage facility for the 200 tonnes of uranium and one tonne of radioactive plutonium still inside the ruins. World governments, which had already raised more than €1.1bn in international funding for the shelter, as well as for a permanent nuclear fuel store for other reactors on the Chernobyl site, said that the current crisis in at the Fukushima plant in Japan persuaded them to respond to the appeal by Ukraine, which estimates the accident has so far cost the nation more than $12bn. “Recent events in Fukushima, Japan, have reminded us of the danger this issue may represent,” said European commission president, José Manuel Barroso. The French prime minister, François Fillon, said Fukushima evoked memories of Chernobyl: “More than ever our responsibility is to join together our efforts to limit the consequences of such disasters and to prepare for the future.” But Mikhail Gorbachev, president of the Soviet Union at the time of the Chernobyl disaster and now head of the environment group Green Cross International , used the occasion of the 25th anniversary to say nuclear power was not the answer to the world’s energy problems or to climate change. “Nuclear power has been presented as a financially sound, economically efficient, clean and safe solution that will bring about energy security and drive economic growth. Recently, the so-called ‘nuclear renaissance’ has hitched a free ride on the back of the need to find low-carbon solutions to the climate crisis. The bottom line on the economics of nuclear power is that it simply does not add up. That is why private investment is wisely focusing on better alternatives,” he said in a statement. “It is necessary to realise that nuclear power is not a panacea, as some observers allege, for energy sufficiency or climate change. Its cost-effectiveness is also exaggerated, as its real cost does not account for many hidden expenses. In the United States, for example, direct subsidies to nuclear energy amounted to $115bn between 1947 and 1999, with an additional $145bn in indirect subsidies. In contrast, subsidies to wind and solar energy combined over this same period totalled only $5.5bn. But Mohamed ElBaradei, former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said: “Today, nuclear power is the only real alternative to fossil fuel as a source of a reliable supply.” He acknowledged that confidence in atomic energy has taken a severe blow after the tsunami-triggered disaster at Fukushima. “Fukushima represents a potentially significant setback for nuclear power,” he told participants at the forum, although he stressed that confidence will be “re-established in due course”. “Chernobyl and Fukushima should be shown to be aberrations,” he said. Chernobyl nuclear disaster Nuclear power Ukraine Europe John Vidal guardian.co.uk
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Support of young voters crucial in re-election of Goodluck Jonathan, who must work to heal divided nation and quell unrest The result was no surprise, nor was the unrest – but there were also tentative grounds to hope that last weekend’s Nigerian presidential election signalled a turning point for the underperforming African giant. Goodluck Jonathan retained the presidency with around 57% of the vote. He defeated Muhammadu Buhari , a former military ruler, who polled around 31%. There was deadly rioting in Buhari’s northern, largely Muslim stronghold. Most significant in the long term, however, was the verdict of observers that this has been Nigeria’s fairest election in decades. It was far from perfect, but helped to draw a line under the coups, fraud and vote-rigging of the past. Furthermore, young people had turned out in high numbers to elect a man who claims to represent a break from the old order. Just possibly, this was the week Nigeria took an important step towards fulfilling its immense potential. Few countries fail to punch their weight as dismally as Nigeria. It has Africa’s biggest population at around 150 million. Its economy has grown 6% or 7% over the past few years. It pumps more oil than any other African country, much of it to the US, and has vast untapped mineral resources. But between 1960 and 1999, officials are said to have stolen more than $440bn from the people. Since 1990, the proportion of Nigerians living in poverty has increased from 49% to 77%. The public education and health systems have all but collapsed. Power
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Support of young voters crucial in re-election of Goodluck Jonathan, who must work to heal divided nation and quell unrest The result was no surprise, nor was the unrest – but there were also tentative grounds to hope that last weekend’s Nigerian presidential election signalled a turning point for the underperforming African giant. Goodluck Jonathan retained the presidency with around 57% of the vote. He defeated Muhammadu Buhari , a former military ruler, who polled around 31%. There was deadly rioting in Buhari’s northern, largely Muslim stronghold. Most significant in the long term, however, was the verdict of observers that this has been Nigeria’s fairest election in decades. It was far from perfect, but helped to draw a line under the coups, fraud and vote-rigging of the past. Furthermore, young people had turned out in high numbers to elect a man who claims to represent a break from the old order. Just possibly, this was the week Nigeria took an important step towards fulfilling its immense potential. Few countries fail to punch their weight as dismally as Nigeria. It has Africa’s biggest population at around 150 million. Its economy has grown 6% or 7% over the past few years. It pumps more oil than any other African country, much of it to the US, and has vast untapped mineral resources. But between 1960 and 1999, officials are said to have stolen more than $440bn from the people. Since 1990, the proportion of Nigerians living in poverty has increased from 49% to 77%. The public education and health systems have all but collapsed. Power
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• Earnings per share of $1.56, against forecasts of 82 cents • Bank sets aside $5.2bn to pay staff • Figures hit by $5bn payout to Warren Buffett • Boss Lloyd Blankfein ‘wants to leave’ Assailed by critics on all sides, Goldman Sachs did what it does best on Tuesday, smashing estimates for its first-quarter results and setting aside $5.23bn (£3.2bn) to pay its staff. The bank reported net revenues of $11.89bn and net earnings of $2.74bn for the first quarter which ended on 31 March, 2011. Profits were down 21%, held back by a payout to billionaire investor Warren Buffett, but the figures comfortably beat analysts’ forecasts. Diluted earnings per common share were $1.56. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected Goldman to post first-quarter earnings of 82 cents a share, down from $5.59 a year earlier. The bank’s results were hampered by the decision to buy back $5bn of shares from Warren Buffett. The billionaire investor made a $5bn bet on Goldman at the low point of the financial crisis in a move that was seen as a major vote of confidence in the bank. Goldman bought back the preferred stock from Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway during the quarter, reducing its earnings by $1.6bn. The $5.23bn set aside to pay salary, bonuses and other compensations was 5% lower than the money set aside by the bank in the first quarter of last year but 132% higher than the $2.25bn set aside in the last quarter. The ratio of compensation and benefits to net revenues for the first quarter of 2011 was 44%, compared to 43% for the same quarter last year. “We are pleased with our first-quarter results,” said Lloyd Blankfein, chairman and chief executive. “Generally improving market and economic conditions, coupled with our strong client franchise, produced solid results. Looking ahead, we continue to see encouraging indications for economic activity globally.” Excluding Buffett’s payment, the firm posted a per share profit of $4.38. Investment banking revenues rose 5%, investment management revenues overall rose 16% to $1.3bn. Institutional client services revenues dropped 22%. Last year’s first quarter was a trading bonanza for many Wall Street banks and has proved hard to match with both Bank of America and Citigroup reporting big declines in trading revenues from the year-ago period. Goldman’s arch-rival JP Morgan Chase managed to post strong trading results last Wednesday , especially in fixed income, currencies and commodities. Goldman’s results come as speculation mounts that Blankfein is considering stepping down . Friends told the New York Times that the 56-year-old is “exhausted” and would be leaving “when he could do so gracefully, without the move appearing to be anything but voluntary”. Last week Senator Carl Levin singled out Goldman for particular criticism after the publication of the 650-page bipartisan report, Wall Street and the Financial Crisis: Anatomy of a Financial Collapse. Levin said “Goldman clearly misled their clients and they misled Congress,” and said he would push for the department of justice to investigate whether criminal charges should be brought against Blankfein and other executives. In a statement the bank said: “While we disagree with much of the report, we take seriously the issues explored by the subcommittee. We recently issued the results of a comprehensive examination of our business standards and practices and committed to making significant changes that will strengthen relationships with clients, improve transparency and disclosure and enhance standards for the review, approval and suitability of complex instruments.” Goldman Sachs Banking Warren Buffett Financial crisis United States Dominic Rushe guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …A 16-year-old girl has become the second teen in 5 weeks to fall from San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge and survive. The girl was conscious when Coast Guard rescuers plucked her from the water after about 20 minutes, ABC News reports. It hasn’t been yet been determined whether she fell…
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Alleged members of Italian vice ring said to have procured young women bicker in public, creating problems for defence lawyers The alleged members of a vice ring who are claimed to have procured young women for Italy’s prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, have fallen out spectacularly, creating a potentially grave problem for his defence. Berlusconi denies paying an underage prostitute and then abusing his position to cover up the alleged offence in a trial that began earlier this month. Three of his associates are also under investigation in related proceedings, on suspicion of aiding and abetting prostitution, juvenile and otherwise. They include Nicole Minetti, an Anglo-Italian dental hygienist and former TV variety dancer whom Berlusconi made a regional parliamentarian. Also under investigation are Emilio Fede, who presents a news programme on one of Berlusconi’s TV channels, and Lele Mora, a showbusiness talent scout. Minetti’s lawyer handed the prosecutors a document outlining her defence on Monday night. According to reports, the document blames the other suspects for introducing the prime minister to Karima El Mahroug, the then 17-year-old Moroccan runaway known as Ruby who is at the heart of the case. Minetti and her lawyer both denied the reports. “I am not accusing either Emilio Fede or Lele Mora,” Minetti said. But that was not Fede’s view. After being guided through a summary by Minetti’s lawyer, he said: “The memorandum submitted by Nicole Minetti is bullshit … I deny it.” Interviewed by a local TV station, Fede complicated matters further by accusing Mora. “Karima El Mahroug – known as Ruby – got to Arcore [Berlusconi's home near Milan] thanks to Lele Mora,” he said. Mora then accused Fede of having fallen into a trap laid by Minetti’s lawyer. The TV presenter’s involvement stems from a beauty contest in Sicily at which he was a judge and Mahroug a contestant. Fede told his interviewer he had not seen her again after that until one evening at Arcore. Mahroug, he said, had come to Milan on her own initiative and been introduced, through a third party, to Mora. It has been reported that Mora helped her get a job as a nightclub bellydancer. Mahroug herself, who denies being a prostitute, tells a different story – that she was taken to Arcore by Fede in a limousine belonging to Berlusconi’s network, accompanied by police outriders. Minetti, Fede and Mora all deny the offences for which they are being investigated. Silvio Berlusconi Italy Europe Prostitution John Hooper guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Alleged members of Italian vice ring said to have procured young women bicker in public, creating problems for defence lawyers The alleged members of a vice ring who are claimed to have procured young women for Italy’s prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, have fallen out spectacularly, creating a potentially grave problem for his defence. Berlusconi denies paying an underage prostitute and then abusing his position to cover up the alleged offence in a trial that began earlier this month. Three of his associates are also under investigation in related proceedings, on suspicion of aiding and abetting prostitution, juvenile and otherwise. They include Nicole Minetti, an Anglo-Italian dental hygienist and former TV variety dancer whom Berlusconi made a regional parliamentarian. Also under investigation are Emilio Fede, who presents a news programme on one of Berlusconi’s TV channels, and Lele Mora, a showbusiness talent scout. Minetti’s lawyer handed the prosecutors a document outlining her defence on Monday night. According to reports, the document blames the other suspects for introducing the prime minister to Karima El Mahroug, the then 17-year-old Moroccan runaway known as Ruby who is at the heart of the case. Minetti and her lawyer both denied the reports. “I am not accusing either Emilio Fede or Lele Mora,” Minetti said. But that was not Fede’s view. After being guided through a summary by Minetti’s lawyer, he said: “The memorandum submitted by Nicole Minetti is bullshit … I deny it.” Interviewed by a local TV station, Fede complicated matters further by accusing Mora. “Karima El Mahroug – known as Ruby – got to Arcore [Berlusconi's home near Milan] thanks to Lele Mora,” he said. Mora then accused Fede of having fallen into a trap laid by Minetti’s lawyer. The TV presenter’s involvement stems from a beauty contest in Sicily at which he was a judge and Mahroug a contestant. Fede told his interviewer he had not seen her again after that until one evening at Arcore. Mahroug, he said, had come to Milan on her own initiative and been introduced, through a third party, to Mora. It has been reported that Mora helped her get a job as a nightclub bellydancer. Mahroug herself, who denies being a prostitute, tells a different story – that she was taken to Arcore by Fede in a limousine belonging to Berlusconi’s network, accompanied by police outriders. Minetti, Fede and Mora all deny the offences for which they are being investigated. Silvio Berlusconi Italy Europe Prostitution John Hooper guardian.co.uk
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Booby-trapped device fails to explode after bogus 999 call in which a man claimed to have heard a woman in distress Police in Northern Ireland answering a bogus call had a lucky escape after being lured to a booby-trapped bomb that failed to explode. Officers were responding to a 999 call in which a man claimed to have heard a woman in distress in a wooded area off Annadale embankment in south Belfast. But when they arrived at the scene, at about midnight, they found a bomb and wire attached to the gate they passed through to search the area. Superintendent Chris Noble confirmed that a viable device capable of causing multiple deaths was discovered. He said police believed the “sophisticated and substantial” bomb had failed to detonate. Police received the bogus call at 11.50pm on Monday and officers were sent to the scene, which is on a busy road and is opposite allotments that are often in use. When officers arrived at the scene they realised it was empty and only then discovered the device attached to the gate. Army technical officers were called to the scene at about 1.30am and a police helicopter was launched. Detectives have appealed for anyone with information to come forward. Police have been on high alert for attacks by dissident republicans after the death of Constable Ronan Kerr in April after a bomb exploded under his car in Omagh, County Tyrone. In a subsequent incident, hundreds of motorists were allowed to drive past a van containing a 500lb bomb in Newry. The underpass on the main Belfast to Dublin road was closed on 7 April after the suspect vehicle was found by police, but traffic cones barring entry to the road were later removed. Officers said the cordon had been removed by motorists. Dissidents are believed to have stepped up activity before the 5 May assembly elections. Northern Ireland Crime guardian.co.uk
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Joint force HQ to advise rebels indicates serious nature of move, while Gaddafi’s communications targeted by Nato A joint British-French military team of advisers is to be sent to Benghazi in a move that is likely to lead to accusations of mission creep. Separately, Nato has said its missiles have targeted Gaddafi’s communications network. The moves came after rebels warned that the besieged town of Misrata would fall within days. The UK-French team will advise the rebels on intelligence-gathering, logistics, and communications. In an indication of the serious nature of the move, the team will be run by a joint force headquarters, the Guardian has learned. Officials stress that the team consists of advisers, rather than trainers, and that the move does not involve arming the rebels. There are no plans for the team to go to Misrata, the officials added. William Hague, the foreign secretary, said in a statement that the team “will enable the UK to build on the work already being undertaken to support and advise the NTC [National Transitional Council] on how to better protect civilians”. He added: “In particular they will advise the NTC on how to improve their military organisational structures, communications and logistics, including how best to distribute humanitarian aid and deliver medical assistance.” Hague said the British section of the team will consist of “experienced British military officers”. UK special forces would not be involved, officials said. Hague said that the deployment was “fully within the terms of UNSCR 1973 both in respect of civilian protection and its provision expressly ruling out a foreign occupation force on Libyan soil”. Meanwhile, British, French, and Danish aircraft have extended Nato’s targets in Libya to include small satellite communications systems and telephone exchanges, officials said. The strikes, which took place over the past two days, were described as representing a clear “shift” in targeting policy, they said. The British submarine HMS Triumph, returning to the Mediterranean after restocking with Tomahawk missiles, is understood to have fired a number of cruise missiles at Libyan communications targets over the past two days. Oana Lungescu, Nato’s chief spokesperson, told a briefing at the alliance’s Brussels headquarters that the coalition had flown more than 2,800 sorties, 1,000 a week, of which half were strike sorties. Brigadier General Mark van Uhm, Nato’s chief of allied operations, described the situation on the ground in Libya as “fluid and changing constantly”. Ammuniton bunkers, radars, rocket launchers, and tanks, as well as communications structure had been desrtroyed, “but nothing indicated he had any intention of disengaging his forces”. Van Uhm said over the past 36 hours, Nato air strikes had aimed at degrading Gaddafi’s “capacity to command and control, facilities and communcate with his forces”. The strikes “will continue until [there is] a clear signal civilians are no longer under threat”, he added. The general said Nato strikes last night hit mobile rocket launchers and armoured vehicles advancing near Misrata. He added: “But there is limit what can be achieved with air power to stop fighting in a city”. Libya Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Muammar Gaddafi Nato Military Richard Norton-Taylor guardian.co.uk
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