Anti-corruption rules may drive super-rich out of London homes, says estate agent
The super-rich may get out of London after the introduction of anti-corruption rules that would limit offshore secrecy, according to a
Guardian report.
Trevor Abrahamson, owner of Glentree Estates, told the
Guardian that ultra-wealthy investors are likely to sell their London homes in the face of the new rules – and other wealthy people would be unlikely to buy in London because they would no longer be able to keep their identities secret by making the purchase through offshore companies.
Abrahamson also noted, however, that stricter anti-corruption laws would prevent corrupt people from using the London property market to hide dirty money in offshore companies, the
Guardian reported.
Suicides in England and Wales hit 20-year high
The number of suicides in England and Wales has reached a 20-year high, driven in part by a sharp increase in the number of women who ended their own lives.
There were 3,899 suicide rulings in coroners’ courts last year, according to a
Guardian report. That’s higher than any year since 1995, when the Ministry of Justice began recording the data.
The number of men who killed themselves fell slightly to 2,997. The number of female suicide victims, while still far below males, rose by 70 to 902.
Prince William, attending the launch of a coalition to prevent male suicide, spoke about his own experience with suicide while working as an air ambulance pilot, the
Guardian reported.
“My first job was actually at a suicide. I realised then, really starkly, how big a problem we have in this country and globally,” he said. “My plea really is to get more men talking about their issues before it’s too late and to stop feeling so strong and unable to seek help, because it can destroy families, it can destroy lives.”
Teen becomes UK’s youngest mayor
Terence Smith is now the youngest mayor in the UK at the age of 19, the
Guardian reported. Smith was elected last year as a councillor for the northeast ward of Goole, in east Yorkshire – and became the nation’s youngest deputy mayor when the councillors appointed him for the job.
On Thursday night, Smith took the big job when councillors voted the Labour supporter as Goole’s mayor for a 12-month term.
Smith said he planned to encourage young people to get more involved in the community and the council’s activities, the
Guardian reported.
Unexploded WW2 bomb prompts evacuation in Bath
Up to 1,000 properties in Bath were evacuated after contractors discovered what is believed to be an unexploded bomb from World War Two, according to a Sky News report.
Avon and Somerset police were called Thursday afternoon to the former junior school of the Royal High School late Thursday afternoon. A 300-metre cordon was erected and residents in the area were taken to the Bath racecourse.
The local Explosive Ordnance Team was in attendance, and road closures have been put in place, according to
Sky News.
At press time, authorities were still working to resolve the situation.
The Queen will save a little on groceries this week
One of the Queen’s favourite yearly activities got a little better this year when her horse won first prize at the Royal Windsor Horse Show – and the Queen herself walked away with a £50 gift card to Tesco, according to Sky News.
Her Majesty grinned broadly as she was presented with the Tesco voucher after her horse, Barber’s Shop, won in the Tattersalls & RoR Thoroughbred Ridden Show.
The Queen attends the horse show every year – although she is there in an unofficial capacity rather than as the monarch,
Sky News reported.
“We’d like to say a huge congratulations to Her Majesty,” a Tesco spokesperson said. “We hope this win provides a little help with the weekly royal shop.”
Tell us how you really feel, Ruth
An 86-year-old American grandmother had some strong words from beyond the grave for that country’s voters.
According to the
Mirror, a woman identified as Ruth, who died recently at the age of 86, was remembered in her obituary as someone who “enjoyed riding horses, crocheting pillows for her grandchildren, and cooking her signature pasta casserole.”
The obituary also included the following line, which we shall redact slightly in the interest of taste:
“As stipulated in her will, Ruth wanted to make sure her obituary included this final line: ‘If you vote for Donald Trump, you seriously must be a f***ing dumb ass.”
Flight lands in wrong city after passenger locks self in lav, demands beer, hugs
A man is facing charges for allegedly forcing an Alaska Airlines flight to divert from its scheduled destination because the flight crew wouldn’t serve him a beer.
Luke Watts, of Portland, Oregon, has pleaded not guilty in the case. Prosecutors say that Watts threatened violence because flight attendants didn’t serve him a beer while on a flight between Sacramento, California, and Seattle, Washington.
Watts allegedly then locked himself in the airplane lavatory, screamed and pounded on the door, and demanded hugs from the flight attendants, according to an
ABC News report.
Fearing that the situation would continue to deteriorate, the pilot decided to make an early landing in Portland.
In case you were wondering how long a man could reasonably be expected to go without beer, average flight time between Sacramento and Seattle is only about an hour and 45 minutes.
