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There are growing indications that the 2026 World Cup, scheduled to be held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, is facing a series of challenges even before its official start, amid concerns about transportation costs, logistical procedures, and rising prices in the host cities.

This latest furore comes as fans are still reeling from the extortionate cost of tickets.

Al Jazeera reported that several American cities hosting matches are considering raising public transportation fares on match days, given the expected heavy strain on transportation networks due to the influx of fans.

In New York City, estimates suggest that a round-trip ticket between Manhattan and MetLife Stadium could cost more than $100, compared to less than $13 under normal circumstances—a significant increase reflecting the scale of the operational and security burdens associated with the event.

According to The Athletic, the heavy use of the transportation network during the tournament, which includes eight matches at the same stadium, including the final scheduled for July 19, could raise operating costs to approximately $48 million. This has prompted local authorities to request financial assistance from FIFA.

World Cup inaccessible

In the same vein, New York Governor Kathy Hochwell expressed her dissatisfaction with what she described as “outrageously high” prices, emphasizing the need to ensure the tournament remains “accessible and affordable” for fans.

In Boston, local estimates indicate that round-trip transportation tickets to the stadium could cost as much as $80, nearly four times the usual price, reinforcing concerns that attending the World Cup could become an additional financial burden for fans.

Between infrastructure pressures and high organizational costs, the organizers of the 2026 World Cup face an early test, months before kickoff, to ensure a balance between the success of the global event and its accessibility to fans.

Featured image via the Canary

By Alaa Shamali

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Q Manivannan is a Scottish Greens candidate for Edinburgh and Lothians East. They’re standing in the Scottish Parliamentary election on 7 May 2026. On the Edinburgh Greens website, Q describes themself as a “queer, Tamil immigrant” aiming to bring a “politics of care and compassion” to Holyrood.

And, what really caught our eye was this line in their profile:

Scottish Greens and transphobia

I opted to get the least pleasant question out of the way first. One of the first things I noticed when researching for the interview was that a lot of Scottish anti-trans groups are very het up about Q’s candidacy. When I asked how they felt about this, the replied:

 It feels like I’m doing a good thing by pissing off the right people

Q is trans, and Scotland has been an epicenter of transphobic lawfare in recent years. It was pressure group For Women Scotland that was behind last year’s transphobic Supreme Court ruling, for instance. However, we talked about that ‘For Women’ claim failing to include cis women who stand alongside the trans community. Q said:

We’ve seen such solidarity from our cis women comrades. We’ve seen such incredible warmth. I’ve been held by them after I faced assault and multiple other kinds of violence, and I was nursed back to health by my lesbian friends.

They also mentioned the pledges within the Scottish Greens manifesto to stand by the trans community. These include banning conversion therapy, ensuring access to healthcare, and stamping out transphobic hate crimes.

We talked about the fact that women’s, trans and immigrants’ rights are bound together. After all, the political forces oppressing us are often one and the same. Q recalled that:

There was a speech at Trans Pride a couple of weeks ago that said that ‘trans’ doesn’t just mean transgender but also transnational, in the sense that our bodies and our identities don’t stop at a checkpoint, are not bounded by structures that do not serve us.

‘Exactly what Scotland is dealing with right now’

Given that it’s the “island of friends” line that piqued our interest, I also asked Q about how their immigrant status influenced their politics. They were clearly pleased with the opportunity to talk about their Tamil heritage.

Coming from a lower-caste background in Tamil Nadu, the southern state of India, they told me that the state’s politics “always had strong resistance tones”. Q also spoke with admiration about Indian politician B. R. Ambedkar, who was born to the Dalit caste, and campaigned tirelessly against ‘untouchability’:  

I continue to call myself a queer Tamil immigrant because we come from a background of people like Ambedkar, who are directly oriented to a politics that is all inclusive, that has ecological justice.

This has been going on for decades, a conversation where ecological justice is directly tied to battling the caste system, to making sure that people’s circumstances are not dictated by wider capitalist systems, which is, I think, exactly what Scotland is dealing with right now as well. Even if we don’t call it a caste system, you have individuals relegated to particular work, along with their families – it’s a generational thing.

That point about inclusive politics alongside ecological justice certainly aligns with the Scottish Greens’ messaging. Likewise, Q’s profile states that care for struggling people and care for the environment are “one and the same”.

Given that these interconnected struggles are close to our hearts at the Canary, I asked Q to say more. As an illustration, they used the example of the US/Israeli war on Iran:

That is not just a matter of genocide, but it’s also about emissions. It’s also about the environment being directly affected by acts like a Scottish government-owned airport being used to commit large-scale murder and being used to enable a genocide.

‘A litmus test’

They went on to speak more broadly about the replication of this same pattern across the world:

I think the Greens have just gotten frustrated to the point of realizing that every single thing that we’re dealing with in terms of the ecology is tied into imperialism, is tied into Western colonialism, and it’s tied to the space that we have right now.

Addressing that seems to be the key. Honestly, convincing people of that on the doorstep feels like it’s never been easier, because I think the right wing lines of, ‘oh, this is just social justice’ – like it’s a bad word – is starting to fail horribly, because everyone else is feeling the effects as well, not just the minorities.

Speaking of imperialism, we of course got to chatting about solidarity with the Palestine solidarity movement. Q told me that the Scottish Greens’ Palestine Solidarity Group was the reason they joined the party in the first place. They explained:

For me, it was a litmus test to show that  the Greens are happy to be in a place that they can express unpopular views and unpopular policies if it meant be doing the right thing.

‘An excellent case study’

Jumping off that point about doing the right thing, our conversation moved on to the topic of prison abolition. Both the Canary and the Scottish Greens support prison abolition policies, but the subject can often be hard to broach with an unfamiliar audience. Q laughed at that, and said:

the focus always tends to be on this idea that if the Greens are elected into Parliament, that on the first day, we’re going to declare that all prisons are gone for good, and then that’s it.

They stressed that abolition needs to be evidence-based, that it shouldn’t be rushed. However, Q also spoke of both prison reform and abolition as “one and the same”, with prison reform creating a society in which abolition is possible. They explained that:

Scotland in particular is an excellent case study, because you have regions already in small areas where the crime is almost nil, where people leave their doors unlocked, where the police have barely any job to do. It’s still possible to have spaces like that, except it’s only some parts that have that privilege, and other parts of Scotland have to struggle, especially the poorer parts.

So when we’re speaking of the idea of prison abolition, it’s not simply about getting rid of prisons, but of making it a society where we move towards this kind of ideal.

The threat of Reform

As we reached the end of our interview time, I asked if there were any other burning issues Q wanted to address. Unsurprisingly, given the stakes of the upcoming election, they brought up the rise of the far right and Reform UK.

In particular, Q (quite rightly) derided the idea that Reform was in any way a party of the working public. They didn’t mince words, either:

there is a global authoritarian movement rising, and that it is not one that is led by working people – it is directly millionaire- and billionaire-funded. When they say cut taxes, they mean cutting taxes for the rich. When they say we need to drill the North Sea, it means lining the the pockets of more rich billionaires.

Q also talked about the tactics used by the likes of Reform, and how to counter them. Bringing things full circle, we came back to that all-important politics of care:

The ways in which they’re reaching their audiences are through money, they’re through targeted media and social media towards forms of politics that are directly oriented around systemic sabotage, and that is exactly what we need to counter with this politics of care.

We left off on an ambivalent note. We’d talked a lot about our shared trans identities, and the concerted attacks on community. Likewise, Q’s immigration politics are also informed directly by their own lived experience, with all the fears that brings. They told me that:

I’m scared, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t, but I think being scared drives us to feel a sort of urgency – it’s going to be an interesting next few years.

That rings true for me, and I’m sure it will be be the same for a lot of readers. The only way we, as a society, can move past the politics of fear – feeling fear, inflicting fear – is through solidarity and care for one another.

That applies to our politicians just as it does to the rest of us – and it’s heartening to speak to a candidate who recognises that.

Featured image via Edinburgh and West Lothian Greens

By Alex/Rose Cocker

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A former MI5 worker will be sectioned indefinitely, a court has decided. Jurors heard how he leaked secrets to an unnamed foreign state. Juan Joseph, an IT worker for the UK’s internal security agency, reportedly emailed secret information during a mental health episode.

The National reported that Joseph:

even travelled overseas attempting to arrange a meeting at an embassy there as he pursued a complaint against MI5.

The paper said:

Jurors at the Old Bailey took less than an hour to find Joseph not guilty by reason of insanity after a week-long trial.

Joseph is being held indefinitely under:

under sections 37 and 41 of the Mental Health Act at a disposal hearing at the Old Bailey.

The accused made a range of claims against MI5:

about racist treatment and “highly disturbing” claims, including rape, child abuse, and torture, jurors were told.

The National reported that these claims were “unfounded”.

Closed door trials

The judge ordered the trial to be held behind closed doors:

 in the absence of the public and press to “avoid the risk of damage to national security”.

The National reported:

Before the jury were invited to retire to consider their verdicts, they were told that experts agreed the defendant was in the grip of mental illness to the extent that Joseph did not think he was doing anything wrong.

The details of the case that have emerged into the public domain are remarkable:

Joseph also claimed a swastika had been put up in the office and he was injected with a hypodermic needle containing something that made him “very poorly” while at Thames House, MI5’s headquarters.

He made contact with the foreign state in 2024 after a bid to bring a private prosecution for assault in 2019 was rejected.

Joseph also applied to the High Court for a judicial review

and began copying an email linked to the foreign state in to his communications.

The court heard that Joseph flew to Latvia in 2024 and attempted to contact a foreign embassy there. He was arrested on his return to Gatwick and refused to give up his passwords saying he was an MI5 officer.

On January 13 2025, Joseph copied in a foreign state in another email complaining about his treatment by police at Gatwick Airport.

On his arrest at an Ibis Hotel on January 30 2025, he maintained he was an “armed MI5 officer” and a lock knife was found in his pocket.

A search of his home later turned up:

a homemade card falsely identify him as an MI5 officer.

He also claimed in a police interview to be an MI5 spy and protested his innocence while claiming to have passed a lie detector test.

At one point, Joseph claimed to be:

a black belt in taekwondo with training in ninja-style knife and sword techniques at Thames House and was allowed to carry a blade for “defence”.

The court acquitted Joseph of all charges on grounds of “insanity”. He will remain in Broadmoor hospital indefinitely. He was arrested in 2022 on similar charges.

The Brits increasingly use secretive trials. As the Justice Gap reported in 2020, the practice of Closed Material Proceedings:

may relate to minutes of discussions between government officials and the security services. Often, it pertains to sensitive or classified intelligence information/evidence gathered and relied on by the security services (MI5, MI6, GCHQ).

Adding

Intelligence has naturally evolved over the years as technology has advanced, but it might include: human sources, intercepted communications, surveillance techniques, or location intelligence.

Joseph reportedly worked in IT in various roles over a decade.

MI5 was recently found to have lied in court in a separate case involving a machete-wielding Neo-Nazi agent who fantasised about eating children. MI5 compensated one of his victims. The service eventually apologised, but only after their wrongdoing was exposed.

Featured image via the Canary

By Joe Glenton

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Another gaping hole has opened up in the supposedly ‘open and shut’ case against Tyler Robinson, the alleged killer of murdered US far-right activist Charlie Kirk.

Tyler Robinson

Kirk, who had begun to turn against Israel and refused approaches from Israel lobbyists just before his death, was murdered as he answered public questions in Utah. Footage from the FBI claims to show Tyler Robinson escaping shows an unrecognisable figure on a rooftop – with no gun. Robinson was then supposedly arrested in the woods with the gun. Court filings at the end of March 2026 then stated that the bullet does not even match the gun Robinson supposedly used.

The issues with the gun and with video and other evidence have led to huge speculation that Robinson is just an Oswald-type patsy. But the FBI claimed to have found a note under Robinson’s keyboard in the flat he shared with his lover, written in very atypical language for someone of Robinson’s age. And Robinson, under the handle “zealous_monkey_55095”, allegedly sent messages to friends on a ‘Discord’ chat server, confessing to Kirk’s murder. He had “bad news”, he wrote. Then he continued:

it was me at UVU yesterday. Im sorry for all of this. im surrendering through a sheriff friend in a few moments. thanks for all the good times and laughs, you’ve all been so amazing. thank you all for everything.

But the FBI’s timeline has fallen apart.

The timeline

In the public official narrative, Tyler Robinson turned himself in – after his father called a police officer friend – just before 9pm local time on 11 September 2025, a day after Kirk died. At the same time, 8.57pm, as he then supposedly sat for 2-2.5 hours in a custody suite waiting to be seen he wrote the Discord confession messages.

But documents released as part of attempts by Robinson’s lawyers to have cameras excluded from Robinson’s trial, completely overturn that narrative. One particular document, tagged as “Discovery Bates 000007”, shows that Robinson was already in custody and being reminded of his ‘Miranda’ rights at 6.25pm – more than two and a half hours earlier than the FBI has claimed:

In other words, Tyler Robinson’s phone would already have been taken away from him. So who sent the Discord messages?

As the Prospect notes, law enforcement officials have tried to claim that the interrogation was actually happening a day later, at 6.25pm on 12 September and that this explains away the time discrepancy. But this doesn’t fit with the evidence of the note itself. Robinson told officers that the lawyer he wanted to speak to was “closed for the night”. Friday 12 September 2025 was a Friday night, which would mean the office would have been closed for the weekend, but on 11 September would have been closed just until the morning.

What is going on?

The Washington County sheriff’s department repeatedly blocked public records requests filed by Salt Lake media for surveillance camera footage of Tyler Robinson entering and/or being held inside county police headquarters, which would have shown exactly when he was taken into custody. At first it claimed that Robinson had arrived at the building via a different entrance than the one mentioned in the request, then said the footage had been destroyed.

A former Utah prosecutor told the Prospect the timeline discrepancies are “a big problem for the prosecution”, particularly when combined with the missing footage and the recent resignation of the county sheriff over:

allegations that he had interfered in the investigation of another deputy who was charged in November on four counts of “unlawfully accessing, using, disclosing or disseminating criminal investigation records [in a different case].”

A bigger problem still if the bullet ballistics don’t match. Indeed, a huge problem.

Featured image via the Canary

By Skwawkbox

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I am a lube lover. And I’m not ashamed. Just like anything sex-related, there are a plenty of misconceptions about this slippery liquid and when it is (or isn’t) needed.

But if there’s one product that can improve your sexual experiences, it’s lube.

You might think you don’t ‘need’ it, or it’s just another unnecessary thing to think about in the heat of the moment, but the truth is that lube is something we can all benefit from.

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“Lube is for everyone, there is a huge misconception that lube is only necessary if something is ‘wrong’ or during menopause,” says Lauren Short, founder of sexual wellness brand Ples’Jour.

“These statements are not based on any factual information. Lubricant isn’t about fixing a problem, it’s about enhancing your experience.”

Whether you’re playing with sex toys, or going manual, lube can result in more pleasure, and also contribute to overall sexual health. So it’s about time we start giving it the love it deserves!

What are the benefits of lube?

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For those with vulvas that experience vaginal dryness, which is a common symptom during menopause, store bought lube can step in to replace natural lubrication.

You might think it’s not necessary if you’re already aroused. But here’s something no one’s telling you: there’s no such thing as being ‘too’ wet.

“Even when you are fully aroused, lubricant enhances the experience,” Short explains.

But lube isn’t just about adding moisture down there, it can also contribute to your mental experience and presence during sex.

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“Lube increases sensitivity and allows the body to relax more deeply into the moment creating a more fluid, connected experience,” says Short.

“On average women can take around 20 minutes of foreplay to become aroused and even then, external factors can impact the body’s response. Lubricant supports you regardless and enhances your experience whether your body is at 50% or 100%.”

As well as adding much-needed slip ‘n’ slide during intimacy, lube can also prevent unwanted side effects.

“From a biological perspective, lubricant also helps reduce micro-tears that can occur during intimacy, even when natural lubrication is present, and can minimise post-sex discomfort or soreness,” Short explains.

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And this isn’t just a surface-level pursuit: stopping micro-tears could prevent bacteria from spreading and reduce the risk of infections. So it’s win-win, essentially.

The different types of lube and compatibility

If you’re officially convinced to use lube, there are a few things you need to know before you splurge out on one.

Lube comes in several formulas, and each one has its benefits and drawbacks. These are the main types of lube on the market:

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• Water-based: This is the most versatile type of lube, as it can be used with condoms and sex toys.
• Silicone-based lubes: The most durable type of lube, but it can’t be used with silicone sex toys as it can degrade the surface of the toy and make it more likely to transmit infections or cause tears. It can be used with condoms, however.
• Oil-based: Although coconut oil is a popular lube option, there is evidence that it can disrupt the pH balance of the vulva. It’s also not compatible with condoms or dental dams, as it can make them more likely to rip or tear, nor with sex toys.

How I tested lube

Having written about sex for the last six years, I’ve tested more than my fair share of lubes.

When testing lube, I first consider what kind of lube it is, including if it’s compatible with sex toys, condoms, and dental dams. I tested each lube for consistency, how long it lasts, and whether it had added benefits like skin-friendly ingredients, added flavouring, and sensation enhancers like CBD.

I also think about the bottle it comes in – not just because it can look pretty (a bonus, IMO) but also because it can impact how easy the lube is to dispense in the heat of the moment. And that’s the bulk of the battle!

The best lubes to shop now

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We’re obsessed with everything Smile Makers Collection makes, and yes, that includes lube! I love that this tube is non-dribbly (mhm, that’s a scientific term) and it’s extremely skinny, so you can easily pick it up with one hand mid-action without having to stop. These things are important to think about, okay?!

Admittedly, I am a bit of a lube obsessive (something I never thought I’d say). So if you’re not as bothered by all the added extras in your slippy stuff as I am, that’s completely understandable. For a standard lube that’ll last you a long time, this Lovehoney option makes a great option.

If you have sensitive skin like me, you’ll worry that everything you put on it is going to break you out in a rash. Add to that the risk of UTIs and thrush, and it’s a pretty disastrous combo. Thankfully, this lube is created specifically for sensitive skin – so you don’t need to worry about it!

If there’s one sexual wellness product I use more than anything else, it’s this lube. It’s been sat at my bedside for the best part of a year, and I use it every single time I have sex, without fail. I love it so much I even bought the baby version for the next time I go away. Genuine. Not only is it water-based, so it can be used with toys, condoms, or just au naturale, but it’s infused with CBD, which increases blood flow, and therefore sensations, wherever it’s placed, making for some of your best work.

I’m still trying to figure out how to reuse this bottle for something other than lube. Because, I mean, you’d never guess that’s what it homes, right? But it’s home to a premium silicone lube, which not only is pH balanced, so it won’t disturb your microbiome down there, but unlike other silicone lubes, can be used with silicone sex toys as it magically has been tested to prove it won’t disintegrate their surface!

I think we forget that our intimate areas have skin on them too; they might be a different kind of skin, but they’re skin, nonetheless. So we need to treat it just as kindly as we would any other area of our body! This water-based formula from Sitre is blended with aloe vera, blueberry extract for just that reason: it maintains moisture and hydrates. Not to mention, it comes in yet another great bottle.

Think you’re worthy of a lube that looks like a luxury perfume? Well, duh, you are! This LELO lube is as premium as they come, as it’s not too watery, and not too jelly, and it’s also not at all greasy, so it won’t stain your sheets.

This lube is caramel flavoured in case you feel like injecting a sweet treat into your bedroom activities. Don’t worry, though, if that’s not your flavour of choice, Satisfyer has every flavour under the sun available for you to choose from.

Planning to spend your entire holiday in bed? Valid. Extremely valid. This tiny canister of lube is the perfect travel companion, as it can squeeze into even the tightest of bags (not a euphemism) and lasts a long time thanks to being silicone-based, so you can keep going all night long. Just don’t use it with any silicone sex toys you’ve managed to get past security.

How to use lube

Before you even touch that bottle of lube, hold up and ask yourself: is this lube going to be compatible with the kind of sex I’m about to have?

Water-based lube is the most versatile kind of lube, so it could be wise to keep a bottle of this on-hand for every kind of sexy scenario you might find yourself in.

Once you start having sex, there’s no need to play a waiting game – you can integrate lube from the off.

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“Introduce lube during foreplay, for both men and women,” says Short. “It functions far better than saliva and provides a smoother more silky glide.”

You can also use lube during penetrative sex, masturbation, or when using sex toys.

“It can also be used during penetrative sex, this can be applied beforehand or reapplied as needed to maintain comfort and ease,” Short explains.

“Two areas that are often overlooked are masturbation and the use of toys. In both cases, lubricant can significantly enhance sensation, reduce friction, and create a more pleasurable, fluid experience.”

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And who doesn’t want that?

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