Healthy n Happy’s Executive Director Mark Soanes accepted the award, alongside Susie Heywood of Suicide Prevention Scotland and Nicola Reed of Cruse Scotland.
Healthy n Happy Community Development Trust was delighted to win a ‘Saving Lives’ award at 1st Class Credit Union’s Money Made Human Awards.
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This was in recognition of their Creating Hope In Our Community campaign, which promotes positive mental health and suicide prevention across Cambuslang and Rutherglen, through creative, engaging and impactful activities.
Held at Hampden Park, the awards highlighted what it truly means to be human, through local connections that are made, communities that are strengthened and lives that are enriched, recognising the impact that can be made together.
Healthy n Happy’s Executive Director Mark Soanes accepted the award, alongside Susie Heywood of Suicide Prevention Scotland and Nicola Reed of Cruse Scotland.
Mark said: “A huge thank you to 1st Class Credit Union for hosting such a fantastic event, celebrating local people and organisations that are making a difference.
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“We are incredibly proud to receive this award in recognition of our work to improve mental health and prevent suicide in CamGlen.
“While this recognition means a great deal to us, we know there is still much work to be done in this area. We would encourage local residents, organisations, community groups, charities and businesses to become part of this vital movement, so together we can continue responding to local need and creating hope within our local communities.”
For more information and how to get involved with Creating Hope In Our Community campaign, visit www.healthynhappy.org.uk
Stan Wildhirt, who represents the Whiteleas ward, was formally appointed during the council’s annual meeting at South Shields Town Hall.
He will be supported in his civic duties by his wife Dawn, who will serve as Mayoress.
(Image: South Tyneside Council)
Councillor Wildhirt said: “To represent South Tyneside as Mayor is a profound honour.
“My focus for the year ahead is firmly with a focus on bringing people together and celebrating the best that South Tyneside has to offer.
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“We live in a fantastic Borough with an unbeatable community spirit, and by standing together, we can look to the future with absolute confidence and positivity.”
During the ceremony, outgoing Mayor, former councillor Jay Potts, handed over the Chains of Office.
Councillor Wildhirt outlined his intention to champion the borough’s resilience throughout his mayoral year.
He said: “My Mayoress and I are eager to get out into the heart of our communities to showcase the resilience, talent, and warmth of our residents.
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“No matter what challenges come our way, the people of South Tyneside have a remarkable ability to keep moving forward with a smile.
“We want to instil that sense of hope and pride in every corner of our towns and villages.”
Before entering politics, Councillor Wildhirt served as a paratrooper in the British Army and later as a firefighter.
His business career includes growing McGurk Sports into a 17-shop retail network and launching an international manufacturing brand.
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He is also a strong supporter of grassroots sport and its role in developing confidence, focus, and healthy lifestyles among young people.
During his time as mayor, Councillor Wildhirt will raise funds through the Mayor’s Charity Appeal in support of five organisations:
The Chloe and Liam Together Forever Trust, Escape Intervention Services, Pawz 4 Thought, The Toby Henderson Trust, and Veterans for Veterans in Care.
Councillor Alan Rice was named Deputy Mayor for the 2026/27 municipal year and will be supported by his wife Margaret.
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The annual meeting also saw Councillor Paul Mackings confirmed as the new leader of the council, with the following cabinet appointments:
Susan Sybenga, Deputy Leader, Finance and Resources
David Royal, Economic Growth, Regeneration and Investment
Steve Smith, Housing
Elliott Curry, Culture, Leisure, Tourism and Voluntary Sector
Karen Pittuck, Highways, Neighbourhoods and Community Safety
Michelle Fascione, Children and Families, Education and Skills
Hot on the heels of his summit with US president Donald Trump, China’s Xi Jinping hosted his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Beijing on May 19 and 20.
Headlines spoke of multiple trade agreements, warnings against a return to the law of the jungle in international relations, and a joint declaration on building a multipolar world. But underneath that it was also obvious that this is not a partnership of equals any more – and hasn’t been for some time.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has become increasingly dependent on China. But the 2022 proclamation of a “no-limits friendship” between Russia and China has not turned into a strategic alliance between two poles of a new world order.
Beijing is now Moscow’s most important export market for its oil and gas and its most important source of imports, especially of so-called dual-use goods that are critical to sustaining Russia’s war effort against Ukraine. Yet, bilateral trade between Russia and China, while consistently above US$200 billion (£149 billion) annually for the past three years, is not growing that fast.
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Notably, Russia is one of the few countries with which China has a trade deficit, albeit a small one, driven by Chinese energy imports. In this context, the continuing lack of a final deal between Moscow and Beijing over the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline is remarkable but not surprising. The key disagreements appear to be on price (how much China pays) and volume (how much China buys) and potentially over the length of any such commitments.
This sheds an interesting light on Beijing’s strategic commitments to Moscow, indicating that China is reluctant to commit fully to a long-term and expensive partnership with Russia. China wants Russian gas, but not at any price.
Beyond their economic relations, China also provides critical political and diplomatic cover for Russia in various multilateral formats and helps Russia retain its reputation as a champion of concerns of the global south and critic of a US-dominated global order. This is unlikely to change, with Xi explicitly committing himself and Putin to “continue to offer each other firm and mutual support on matters relating to our respective core interests and key concerns”.
All roads lead to Beijing
Putin is the 12th leader to visit Xi this year. He has followed in the footsteps of, among others, Canada’s Mark Carney, the UK’s Keir Starmer and Germany’s Friedrich Merz. And, of course, his visit followed just a week after Xi’s summit with the US president, Donald Trump. This makes Beijing clearly an important pole in a multipolar order – and a more important one than Moscow.
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The US and Russian presidents are the latest in a string of world leaders to visit Beijing for talks with the Chinese president. EPA/Jessica Lee
There is clearly significant ideological alignment between Russia and China, including in their sometimes more veiled and sometimes more explicit criticism of the US. But their shared criticism of US hegemony and unilateralism disguises a crucial difference over what they envision as the end state of the current transition to a new order.
For Russia, a multipolar order in which Moscow is one of the poles, is probably the best that the Kremlin can hope for. Regarding Beijing, the real issue is whether a multipolar order is simply a transitional phase – and the desired endpoint is a new hegemonic order. This would place China at the apex with all the other poles of the multipolar order, including Russia and the US, relegated to second-tier status.
The challenge for China in this context is how to avoid all-out confrontation with the US – the so-called Thucydides Trap, which refers to the near inevitability of war between a rising power (China) that seeks to replace an existing dominant power (the US).
For now, war between the US and China is not imminently on the cards. Instead, Russia and China can jointly exploit an opportunity grounded in their shared dislike of a US-dominated world. But not much of this actually translates into a coordinated and effective foreign policy agenda, despite Putin’s and Xi’s rhetorical commitments.
Two of the multilateral flagship projects of China and Russia, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and the Brics (shorthand for the bloc of rising powers comprising, among others, Brazil, India, China, South Africa) are not coherent formats. India and Pakistan are members of the SCO and yet fought a war in 2025. Iran and the UAE are both in Brics and now find themselves at opposite sides of the US-Iran war.
What brings Russia and China and their partners together is the dissatisfaction with the previous US-led liberal order, and the opportunities presented in the way in which Trump tries to destroy it. For Russia, its an opening for disruption and chaos. For China, it is in all likelihood an opportunity to accelerate the transition to Chinese dominance.
The clear signal from the Xi-Trump and Xi-Putin summits is that China is not choosing between Russia and the US. This underscores Xi’s rhetorical commitment to a multipolar order. It also indicates that China keeps instrumentalising Russia and the US. Russia is a useful partner – not an ally, and not a vassal yet. The US, meanwhile, is an essential political and economic partner.
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This gives reassurance to Russia that, for now, China sees a multilateral order as beneficial, while signalling to the US that China, again just for now, is not seeking to replace the US as the sole superpower.
But neither Moscow nor Washington should be under any illusion that a tripolar order is China’s ultimate goal. This is a transitional strategy to a China-dominated international order through which Beijing hopes to avoid the Thucydides Trap.
In theory, wheeled suitcases are the ideal travel companion – they provide weightless transportation for all your holiday essentials, and are easy to wheel through airports, bus terminals and train stations.
However, it turns out that taking a wheeled suitcase on holiday could be far more hassle than it’s worth, especially if you’re travelling to certain countries or taking advantage of seasonal offers from budget airlines.
Stick to a duffel bag or backpack for travelling abroad
According to travel experts at Flash Pack, there are problems with wheeled suitcases before you even take off.
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Recommending canvas duffel bags as an alternative, they said: “If you’re flying budget, you’ll often be asked to place your wheeled suitcase in [the] hold – whereas a duffle bag will make it through no matter how full the aircraft [is].”
This is definitely worth bearing in mind if you need to disembark quickly to make a transfer when you land.
The team added that with a duffel bag, you’re also more likely to be able to stow it comfortably under your seat than “running the gauntlet” of overhead lockers.
Once you’re at your destination, your rolling bag could also be disruptive to residents, especially in Europe where there are plenty of cobbled streets. These can also make using a wheeled suitcase harder, too!
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While there isn’t a ban in place, the city of Dubrovnik in Croatia released an informational video urging tourists to not use wheeled suitcases as the noise emitted from them can be disruptive to local residents.
Not the ideal start to a holiday.
Natalia Lebedinskaia via Getty Images
Tips for packing your carry-on luggage
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Now that we know which type of luggage we should be using, how do we make the most of the space inside our carry-on luggage?
Here’s what Flash Pack’s experts recommend:
When packing, filter out anything you don’t need such as excess clothes, expensive jewellery and unnecessary items
Bring high-protein snacks such as dried fruit or cereal bars to feel fuller for longer on your flight, as well as chewing gum to help with the ear-popping sensation on flights.
Prioritise sleep essentials for longer flights. These include travel pillows, ear plugs, an eye mask and a handheld fan.
Pre-prep your toiletries in clear bags.
Create a storage system for your travel documents that works for you and your fellow travellers.
Bring a pen and paper for those thoughts that come to you when you’re thousands of feet in the air and unplugged
Bring a hoodie or thick socks in case air conditioning makes the flight chilly
Headphones and a portable phone charger are essential
Bring your own reusable water bottle, straws and alternative eco-friendly face wipes like bamboo cleansing cloths for when you need a refresh
A body has been found in the search for missing 14-year-old Tyler from Stoke-on-Trent, who was last seen on Sunday
Rob Andrews and Olivia Beeson UK & World News Reporter
23:49, 21 May 2026
Police have found a body during the search for a missing 14-year-old schoolboy.
Officers had been hunting for Tyler Townsend since Sunday, May 17.
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The search came to a tragic end on Thursday evening when Tyler’s body was believed to have been discovered close to Burslem Cemetery.
A Staffordshire Police spokesman said: “We can sadly confirm that a body has been found in the search for missing 14-year-old Tyler, from Stoke-on-Trent.
“He was last seen in the area on Sunday (17 May). Officers have been carrying out extensive searches to try to find him since he was reported missing.
“Shortly after 7pm today (Thursday 21 May), a body was found in a wooded area near Burslem Cemetery.
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“Formal identification will take place in due course, but we believe the body to be missing boy Tyler.
“Officers are supporting his family at this deeply distressing time. His death is not being treated as suspicious and a file will be prepared for HM Coroner.”
StokeonTrentLive has contacted West Midlands Ambulance Service for a comment following the tragedy, reports Stoke on Trent Live.
Police are appealing for help to trace a missing 59-year-old man who was last seen in the Scottish Borders before his car was spotted in Northumberland.
Nicholas Mark Oldham, who is also known as Mark, was last seen around 10.30am on Tuesday, May 19, on the A697 near Greenlaw.
The 59-year-old is described as being around 5ft 3ins tall, of medium build, with long grey and white hair.
Officers say his black Nissan Note was then seen near Rothbury in Northumberland on Wednesday, May 20, leading them to believe he may have travelled across the border into England.
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Police Scotland says concerns are growing for Mark’s welfare and officers are urging anyone who may have seen him to come forward.
Inspector Gavin Warnock said: “Concerns are growing for Mark’s welfare, and we are keen to trace him as soon as possible to make sure he is safe.
“I’d ask that anyone who has any information or who may have seen someone matching Mark’s description contact Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 0897 of 20 May.”
NATO intelligence officials believe Russia is developing underwater nuclear missile systems which could be hidden on the Arctic seabed, according to reports
NATO intelligence officials believe Russia is developing underwater nuclear missile systems which could be concealed on the Arctic seabed, according to reports.
The alliance now concentrates on safeguarding allied nations by guaranteeing that an assault on one member is deemed an assault on all. It has remained the foundation of Western security.
EurAsia Daily reported that NATO intelligence agencies have been observing the Russian Northern Fleet and suspect that efforts are underway to position missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads on the seabed.
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German media has reported that the initiative, codenamed “Scythians”, may have been operational for several years.
It is believed that the missiles would be stationed in the Arctic Ocean within Russian territorial waters. They could be positioned at the ocean floor in specially engineered mines or containers.
Reports have suggested that should Russia deploy these missiles, they could remain on the seabed for extended periods and be launched via remote control.
Missile launchers positioned on the seabed would prove extremely difficult to detect and neutralise during wartime.
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The Daily Express previously reported that Vladimir Putin’s forces test-fired several nuclear-capable missiles in a chilling threat to the rest of the world.
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that on Thursday, May 21, as part of nuclear forces exercises, test launches were carried out of the ‘Yars’ and ‘Sineva’ ICBMs, alongside hypersonic missiles from the ‘Zircon’ and ‘Kinzhal’ systems.
Separately, the Belarusian military carried out a test launch of an ‘Iskander’ missile, according to Russian news agency Interfax.
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This follows a heated exchange of threats with NATO state Lithuania amid growing concerns over a potential Putin military offensive in the Baltic region.
Alliance fighters were scrambled in Lithuania on Wednesday following reports of drone incursions from Russian ally Belarus, which is currently participating in the nuclear drills alongside Kremlin forces.
Diana Henry is the Telegraph’s much-loved cookery writer. She shares recipes each week, for everything from speedy family dinners to special menus that friends will remember for months. She is also a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio 4, and her journalism and recipe books, including Simple and How to Eat a Peach, are multi-award-winning. A mother of two sons, Diana can satisfy even the fussiest of eaters.
Here’s what the stars have in store for your day (Picture: Metro.co.uk)
With the Sun in tandem with Uranus in Gemini, you have all the tools you need to navigate any sticky situations you find yourself in. Trust the cosmos.
Aries, Gemini and Cancer, expect a breakthrough today. You are perceptive and bussing with ideas, so use the opportunity for growth.
Things could feel a little unsettled, but trust yourself to weather the chaos. Even if you don’t feel in control, the planets are on your side.
Ahead, you’ll find all star signs’ horoscopes for today: Friday May 22, 2026.
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Like checking your horoscope every morning? You can now sign up to our free daily newsletter to get a personalised reading for your star sign delivered straight to your inbox.
To order your unique personal horoscope based on your time, date and place of birth, visit patrickarundell.com.
Aries
March 21 to April 20
As the Sun connects with the ingenious Uranus for the first time in the buzzy Gemini sign in nearly 80 years, your ideas can go from speeding up to being absolutely brilliant. The key to making this work for you productively is to embrace and convert them into your everyday life. It’s also a great time to learn new technical skills or to share or teach your knowledge.
You’re a sign that has an innate appreciation of value, and yet, whether it is for everyday essentials, your love of luxury or your personal worth, you can start to look at things in a fresh way. This might prompt you to make an impulse purchase, but you may also decide to sell something you feel no longer has practical benefits. Ideas to make money can increase, though.
You could find yourself suddenly rethinking a plan or lifestyle situation in a completely fresh way. Now, mental stimulation is something you often happily embrace, Gemini, but today’s energies could be slightly unsettling yet provide a pathway to a more up-to-date and exciting future. Equally, you may add some quirky or unusual choices to your wardrobe.
Your ruler, the Moon, means that you’re often perceptively sifting and shifting, as your inner voice nudges you to adapt. Today, as the Sun applies to the restless Uranus, your thoughts may suddenly turn to a past situation or person in a way that may surprise you. Embrace such memories. View them afresh, see what you can gain and then release what no longer serves.
We all have our long-term hopes, but one interesting thing that can happen is that, as we move closer to achieving them, we realise something newer is capturing our imagination. And this is what can play out precisely for you at present, Leo. It doesn’t mean your current plan isn’t still worthy; it just means you have evolved, and your aims need to evolve too.
An unexpected opportunity could come up today. It may be linked to your career or to your activities in your local community. Either way, people can become more conscious of your unique capabilities, which can be positive. However, if you don’t feel valued professionally, you can start exploring new jobs, or you might consider self-employment, Virgo.
Cosmic messages for Cosmic messages for Virgo today
Libra
September 24 to October 23
You may crave change. Whilst many of us enjoy a change of scene from time to time, today the desire to do something different, or freeing, could be compelling. In fact, you may look to liberate yourself from a commitment and head off to do something adventurous and daring. If you’ve yet to book your annual holiday, you may do so now. A new car could also appeal
You can gain some powerful insights today. Some of these can be practical, others financial, whilst others a realisation of a mindset that’s inhibited you or kept you attached to a self-limiting view of yourself. If you are in a close relationship that feels stale, you can feel a need for your own personal space or to work out what you really want.
You can be direct and forthright. Those who know you well appreciate that they know where they stand with you because of this. However, today, someone may be more outspoken with you. If you can receive and accept their point of view, this can be very healthy. Relationships, in general, can have a greater sense of excitement. Solo? Sparks can soon fly.
If you feel overloaded with demands, you may feel edgier, but with the Sun and Uranus combining today, you could also have a brainwave about how to adjust to make things easier. If you can, do try to share the domestic load or at work, suggest novel ways to make things run more smoothly for all. Most of all, don’t be too rigid; look to flex into solutions, Capricorn.
Although many people can view Water Bearers as being very “out there” because your co-ruler Saturn is much more traditional, not all Aquarius people are as radical as some may imagine. Yet today, the Sun combines with your modern guide, Uranus, to give you the push to feel freer and more liberated and most of all, worry less about what anyone might think.
Something about your emotional conditioning, perhaps right back to your early life, may be ripe for release. The world then and now is likely very different, and some of the guidance or instructions you had then may have much less relevance now. Yet breaking free of what no longer serves you may not be easy, especially if other family members still conform.
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It’s Christmas Day, our first in Italy, and I’m frantically attempting to use my poor language skills to communicate over the phone with the one vet that is open.
I learned a lot of handy phrases in preparation for our travels. “My senior dog has a UTI and is peeing blood,” wasn’t one of them.
Jess is 14 now, and just four weeks since leaving home in Scotland, this is our first indicator of how much life with her has changed.
“Fine.” I still remember the sound of my dad giving in all those years ago. When he’d returned from visiting my great uncle and mentioned that there was a one-year-old border collie that needed a new home, I don’t think he realised how much 16-year-old me would pounce on the opportunity.
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It had been seven years since our family dog, Glen, had passed at the ripe old age of 16. Since about a year after Glen left a hole in our lives, my mother and I had been begging for another dog.
So when I found out about the young sheep dog that was free to a good home, I put on the pressure. Alongside some willing family members, I laid it on thick, applying a significant amount of guilt.
My relationship with Jess has been nothing short of Hallmark-movie wholesome. The dog-obsessed teenage girl with so much love to give, and the intelligent, excitable animal who just wanted to be loved. From day one, we were inseparable, and what followed for the next decade was nothing short of the greatest love story of my life.
Photo Courtesy Of Lois Mackenzie
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Jess celebrating the author’s graduation from university in 2019.
From moving with me to university and attending graduation, to sitting beside my husband as he proposed and running down the aisle on our wedding day as the cutest flower girl to walk this earth, Jess has been present for the biggest and best moments of my life.
She’s spent her whole life following me everywhere. So, when my husband and I made the decision to leave Scotland to travel indefinitely in her 14th year, there was no question she was coming.
We’d always had vague plans to travel in the future, and we’d hoped to embark on our big adventure before Jess turned 10, before life (and an unforeseen global pandemic) got in the way.
But thankfully, at 14, Jess is doing remarkably well. Fellow dog walkers are often shocked to hear her age after seeing her sprint around with her annoying little sister (our four-year-old border collie, Mara).
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After receiving a clean bill of health from her vet, our bags were packed. The first stop: Paris, before heading onto Turin for the next three months, and after that, who knew?
Jenny Appleton Photography
Jess taking center stage as flower girl on the author’s wedding day in 2021.
Jess has always been an excited, adventurous dog, and she took in all the new scents and experiences that I never could have given her if we had stayed in Scotland.
In six months, she’s been to five countries, travelled on all modes of transport from tram to cable car, and been photographed at some of Europe’s most iconic sites. She’s been fed cheese at a food market in Rome, floated through Venice in a gondola and made countless friends who speak languages she doesn’t understand.
But I think back to that Christmas Day in Italy a lot. We were lucky to find an English-speaking vet who could assist where my language skills fell short, and after a few visits and a couple of rounds of antibiotics, she was fortunately back to her old self. And at every turn, people have been willing to step in and help. (Italy truly is the most dog-friendly country I’ve ever visited.)
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But it was the first time I realised how quickly plans can shift around her now.
I thought I’d prepared everything before we left. I ordered months’ worth of medications and supplements, filling more than half my suitcase with whatever she might need. I organised all her paperwork and packed two of her favourite toys, just in case we couldn’t find a quacking ducky in Italy. I’d even mentally prepared myself for the fact that, if we stayed away for a while, she might not see our home of Scotland again.
Photo Courtesy Of Lois Mackenzie
A weekend in Rome celebrating the author’s birthday.
But this was really the first indicator that it wouldn’t always be easy. Travelling with a pet is hard enough at the best of times, especially when you’re carrying your life on your back and moving between places constantly, often by public transport.
While Instagram stories show waggy tails at the Colosseum or cute family photos in front of the Eiffel Tower, what they don’t show are the days when our plans changed entirely because the day prior had been too busy and Jess needed to recover, or because it was too hot, or because she’d just had enough.
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She’s changed how I travel. I don’t plan full days every day, or try to see everything just because we’re somewhere new. We rush through places (and life) less, and enjoy actually living in them for a bit, alongside her.
Because of this, I now have fond memories sitting with both Jess and Mara at my favourite aperitivo spot in Italy, opting for short walks and Aperols after they’d spent the day running around and eating snow on the Alps. Or having her inquisitive nose turn pages in my book as we sat by the Neretva River in Bosnia and Herzegovina on a day that was just too hot for any strenuous exercise.
Yes, maybe if we didn’t have Jess, or if she was a few years younger, we’d spend every day on the go. Maybe we’d summit more mountains, or take her to steeper viewpoints. Maybe we’d hop on planes instead of taking long, expensive train rides.
But as we approach her 15th birthday, I’m sharply aware that time is precious. I’ve started to realise that those slower days aren’t interruptions to the trip, they are the trip.
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Photo Courtesy Of Lois Mackenzie
The author, Jess and Mara at the top of Trebević in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
As I approach 30, I’m no longer the teenage girl begging my dad for a dog. I’m not the young university student taking my dog to my adviser meetings, and I’m not the bride choosing flowers to sit on my best friend’s harness. And as much as it hurts to accept, she’s not the young pup jumping up onto the couch or running up hills 10 times faster than I can, and she’s not the dog with years of life ahead of her.
We’re both now moving through different stages of life, and if this is the last chapter of it we get to share, then I’m grateful she’s been there for all of it. I’m nowhere near ready for life without her, but while I’d love it if she could live forever, my number one goal is to make sure she’s always happy.
So, what a joy it is to spend a day with her sitting by the river with a book. Or winding down in a coffee shop and watching the world go by. Days that would have once felt uneventful now feel like the most important ones, because these are the moments I’ll remember long after she’s gone.
Lois Mackenzie is a freelance journalist from Scotland. She is currently travelling around Europe with her husband and two dogs, Jess and Mara.
June 18 is set to be a seismic moment in British politics.
Voters in Makerfield will decide who they want to be their new MP in a race between Labour Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, and Reform’s local plumber Robert Kenyon.
If Burnham wins, he will likely look to overthrow Keir Starmer as prime minister.
The by-election was triggered by Labour MP Josh Simons, who stood aside so Burnham could run for parliament.
After Labour’s horrific performance in the elections in England, Wales and Scotland on May 7, MPs are desperate to turn the party’s fortunes around.
As the most popular Labour politician in the country right now, many MPs believe only the mayor can lift the party out of its slump in the polls and beat Reform’s rise.
Burnham was an MP between 2001 and 2017, and became a minister in the governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.
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He ran for Labour leadership elections in 2010 and 2015 – then promised not to run again, but evidently has his eye on the red throne once more.
Burnham was blocked from his attempts to be an MP by Labour’s executive body, the National Executive Committee, in February, on Starmer’s orders.
But the PM is no longer strong enough to block the mayor after multiple ministers and almost 100 MPs called on him to resign over the local elections.
It’s not a straight-forward contest, though.
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There’s absolutely no guarantee Burnham will win this by-election, given Reform won all eight council wards in the constituency earlier this month.
Makerfield voted heavily for Brexit in the 2016 referendum, which makes life especially tricky for Remainer Burnham.
He said only last year he hopes to see the UK back in the EU in his lifetime.
Reform are likely to highlight the mayor’s pro-EU views and turn voters against him. Nigel Farage is already calling him “Open Borders Burnham”.
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The right-wing party is also trying to paint the by-election as a “David vs Goliath” battle, by suggesting Burnham will only see the constituency as a stepping stone on the way to No.10.
The result is set to be on a knife-edge.
The fate of the Labour Party also rests on the outcome because a Burnham victory would almost certainly trigger a leadership contest.
Labour rules state a rebellious MP needs the support of at least 81 MPs to invoke a leadership race – a threshold Burnham is widely expected to reach.
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Ex-health secretary Wes Streeting is also predicted to run on his own ticket to be the next prime minister, hoping to appeal more to the right of the party.
Other potential candidates include former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, energy secretary Ed Miliband, defence secretary John Healey, and veterans minister Al Carns.
But, if the mayor loses to Reform in Makerfield, all eyes will be on Streeting to see if he triggers a challenge to his old boss.
Would he have the support of enough MPs to topple the prime minister?
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Listen to this week’s Commons People as we look at Burnham’s popularity, the fractures in the Labour Party and how Starmer’s future hinges on voters in Makerfield.
Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.
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