Andy Burnham government to begin using new DWP bank account powers next week

Sculptures honoring North Korean soldiers who fought in the Vietnam War are set to be installed in Hanoi, Pyongyang's state media reported Monday. A ceremony unveiling the monument's foundation plaque was held Friday at the Vietnam Military History Museum in Hanoi, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. North Korea is believed to have sent close to 400 soldiers to Vietnam during the war, including 90 pilots between 1966 and 1969. The plaque, inscribed "Feelings of Friendship between Vietnam and DPRK," notes that the two countries established diplomatic relations in January 1950 and that North Korea "rendered material and moral assistance" during Vietnam's "anti-U.S. resistance to national salvation." DPRK is the acronym for North Korea's official name, the Democratic Republic of Korea. "The combat spirit and self-sacrificing spirit displayed by Korean soldiers are a noble and beautiful symbol of the good international unity and contributed to the consolidation of the friendly relations between Vietnam and the DPRK," the accompanying text read, according to the KCNA. The unveiling cere

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young will visit Northern Ireland, Ireland and Germany starting this week in an effort to explain South Korea's approach to peaceful coexistence with North Korea, the ministry said Monday. The minister was set to leave for Europe on Monday for an eight-day trip in a bid to see how each moved past deep divisions and muster support for Seoul's North Korea policy, according to the ministry. His first stop is Northern Ireland, where he will meet officials involved in the country's peace process and discuss how it worked through decades of conflict. The trip will be followed by his visit to Ireland to meet experts in international conflict resolution and learn about the country's long struggle for independence and the eventual settlement of the conflict in Northern Ireland, according to the ministry. While in Ireland, Chung is scheduled to give a special lecture on peaceful coexistence with North Korea at Trinity College Dublin at the invitation of the Society for International Affairs (SOFIA), a student organization at the school interested in international po

Less than 40 percent of South Koreans view unification with North Korea as necessary, a poll showed Monday, with younger people far less supportive. According to the poll commissioned by Seoul National University's Institute for Peace and Unification Studies, 39 percent of respondents said unification is necessary, down from 41.1 percent last year. The poll showed that 32.2 percent of respondents viewed unification as not necessary, up from 30.4 percent last year, and more than double from 15.1 percent in 2007, when the institute first conducted the survey. Among those in their 20s and 30s, 25.2 percent and 27 percent, respectively, said unification is necessary, while 44.8 percent and 47 percent in the respective age groups said it is not. The poll also showed that 39.1 percent of respondents believed unification is impossible, the highest figure since 2007. It found a record 31.5 percent saying they prefer the status quo of the Koreas being divided. Distrust toward North Korea increased, with 78.3 percent saying that dialogue and compromise with the North Korean regime is impossible, up

South Korea and Ukraine are locked in an unusual diplomatic dispute over the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) to Seoul, with the two governments giving conflicting accounts of whether they had agreed to keep the move confidential. The dispute escalated, Sunday, as Cheong Wa Dae demanded an official explanation and apology from Kyiv, four days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy unexpectedly disclosed the transfer during his address to the U.N. General Assembly in New York. Zelenskyy said Ukraine had “recently” sent two North Korean POWs to South Korea, about 20 months after their capture in Russia’s Kursk region. The two were among thousands of North Korean troops deployed to support Russia since 2024 in its war against Ukraine. They had expressed a desire to go to South Korea instead of being repatriated to the North. Seoul says the two sides agreed to keep the transfer confidential, while Kyiv says no such agreement existed. The conflicting claims began to emerge on Thursday, a day after Zelenskyy’s speech, when Lee took to social media to express d

Korea's economy is projected to grow by 0.38 percent over the 10 years following its potential membership in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the industry ministry said Monday. The government released the projection after conducting a comprehensive analysis of the potential impact of Korea's CPTPP membership on the macroeconomy, manufacturing and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR). MOTIR, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and the Korea Forest Service, along with their affiliated research institutes, participated in the analysis. The latest estimate showed that Korea's gross domestic product (GDP) would be 0.38 percentage point higher, on a cumulative basis, over the first decade after its entry into the CPTPP than it would be if the country did not join the trade pact, the ministry said. By sector, the production im

Professional dancer Dianne Buswell gave a glimpse at what it has really been like as a new mum to return to Strictly Come Dancing

This week in our Queensland public sector column, Public Circus reveals alleged fraud, a former water chief’s $500k payout, smart glass business as usual, and more.

A pair of House Republicans are urging the Trump administration to resume sanctions on a Russian-owned refinery in Serbia, according to a letter obtained exclusively by The Hill. The GOP criticism marks another instance of growing Republican pushback against the president’s foreign policy actions.  Reps. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) and Keith Self (R-Texas), staunch allies of...

This week in our Queensland public sector column, Public Circus reveals alleged fraud, a former water chief’s $500k payout, smart glass business as usual, and more.

In today’s podcast, a builder has appeared in court after causing thousands of pounds worth of damage to a property he was working on.

Go behind the scenes on a Wembley Stadium Tour and explore the UK's largest sports and music venue.

A care home worker who stole more than £3,200 from a dead resident to pay off her credit card bill has been sentenced.