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What Mandelson vetting row reveals about escalating tensions between ministers and civil servants

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What Mandelson vetting row reveals about escalating tensions between ministers and civil servants

Keir Starmer’s decision to fire Foreign Office chief Olly Robbins has contributed to “one of the worst crises in relations” between ministers and civil servants in modern times. The words of former cabinet secretary Gus O’Donnell, writing after Robbins was sacked for declining to inform Starmer that Peter Mandelson failed vetting for his ambassador role, are a stark warning for the prime minister.

Such a crisis has been building for some time. Historically, British civil servants and ministers had a strong bond based on a mutually beneficial partnership. Yet that partnership is badly frayed, and in its place a “them v us” relationship is emerging.

Under the previous Conservative government, ties between ministers and civil servants atrophied. A major source of tension was Brexit, amid frustration that officials were allegedly conspiring to derail Britain’s departure from the European Union.

More uncompromising figures, notably Boris Johnson’s chief strategist Dominic Cummings, believed that the permanent civil service was “an idea for the history books”. In his view, it was time to cut back the permanent bureaucracy, and bring in outsiders to rewire the state. Cummings threatened that a “hard rain” would fall. Ministerial relations with civil servants sank to a new low.

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The expectation within Whitehall was that the election of a new government under Starmer would restore order and civility. After all, Starmer was himself a former permanent secretary at the Crown Prosecution Service, who believed in the ethic of public service. The fractured ties between officials and ministers would be repaired.

It has not, so far, worked out that way. In key respects, relationships appear to have deteriorated further. This has now been exacerbated by the summary dismissal of Robbins over the Mandelson affair.




À lire aussi :
Why have relations between civil servants and ministers turned so sour – and can they be repaired?


Why do such tensions between officials and ministers in Whitehall persist? A key factor is that civil servants clearly believe they are less equipped to support ministers than they were 20 years ago. This has come up frequently in my interviews and private conversations with current and former civil servants.

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Increasingly, the civil service lacks the experience and tools to advise ministers on policy. This problem began in the 1980s, with the rise of new public management – government reforms in several countries emphasising efficiency through markets and competition. Attention shifted towards operational delivery, away from policy-making. There has been a marked loss of intellectual capacity, while some civil servants bemoan the absence of creative policy thinkers in Whitehall.

Another issue is that the civil service appears less willing to look outwards, exacerbating what political scientists Ivor Crewe and Anthony King describe as “operational and cultural disconnect”. Officials in government departments appear more detached than ever from frontline professionals (the so-called “street-level bureaucrats” who manage public services), as well as from citizens and communities.

Who is responsible?

To blame the civil service for the current malaise is surely mistaken. After all, politicians are elected to lead and provide a coherent sense of direction. Civil servants support ministers’ ambitions by faithfully implementing the government’s agenda.

The Starmer administration came to office without a credible governing strategy. Apart from woolly rhetoric about “missions”, incoming ministers had no clear conception of how to strengthen government effectiveness.

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A particular gap related to improving performance in public services, notably education, health, criminal justice and public transport. Most governments arrive in Whitehall with instincts about how to achieve change. Some use the central state alongside targets to mandate improvement. Others adopt bottom-up mechanisms including giving citizens more of a voice in shaping public services, while extending choice and competition in the organisation of provision.

Yet Starmer’s ministers appear to have no consistent approach. For example, NHS policy combines top-down directives with exhortation about creating a “community-led” service. The result is widespread confusion. In turn, slowness to deliver change breeds frustration among ministers, leading almost inevitably to attacks on the capability of civil servants, escalating tensions further.

It was the prime minister himself who declared that “too many people in Whitehall are comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline”, setting the tone for the rest of his government. Yet, inexperienced politicians are naive about the time it takes to secure sustainable improvement.

Olly Robbins, pictured here in 2018, was a longtime civil servant before his firing last week.
Mark Kerrison/Alamy

The dismissal of Robbins appears to be a continuation of the recent era in which ministers treated their relationships with officials with casual disregard. When crises erupt or policies appear to fail, civil servants are made culpable.

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Yet such blame games are destructive, not least because they make it harder for civil servants to discharge their essential constitutional function of “speaking truth to power”.

In an atmosphere of growing distrust, officials are less likely to highlight problems in proposed policies. Where career promotion relies on doing what ministers are perceived to want, the risk is that propriety and ethics are negated, having a “chilling effect” on the wider civil service.

A dominant characteristic of civil service reform in recent decades is making officials more “responsive” to ministers. For example, permanent secretaries are employed on time-limited contracts intended to create pressure to perform. Moreover, increasing the contestability of policy advice by turning to political advisers, thinktanks, NGOs and the private sector disrupts the monopoly which civil servants previously held in the policy-making process (although that was always something of a myth).

Such a dynamic increases the pressure on civil servants to comply with what ministers demand. Otherwise, in a more competitive policy landscape, they risk marginalisation. Consequently, the civil service is less likely to fulfil its crucial role in acting as a break on overweening executive power and unchecked authority. That is detrimental to the fulfilment of good government.

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I’m A Celebrity fans ‘devastated’ as Scarlett Moffatt ‘robbed’ in shock exit

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Manchester Evening News

The former Gogglebox star was eliminated from the ITV series just one day before the final

I’m A Celebrity South Africa fans were ‘devastated’ as Scarlett Moffatt was eliminated from the series just one day before the ITV reality show’s final.

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Thursday night (April 23) marked the final pre-recorded episode of the Ant and Dec series which was filmed last year. Dominated by drama, the series will crown the second ever ‘Jungle Legend’.

Ant and Dec will be joined by the finalists and the eliminated stars on Friday night (April 24) for a live final. Broadcast live from London, there could be some tension between the stars who didn’t get on too well in South Africa.

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The final five campmates in South Africa were Coronation Street icon Craig Charles, former football manager Harry Redknapp, actor Adam Thomas, Gogglebox’s Scarlett and Olympic hero Sir Mo Farrah. Both Harry and Scarlett won their respective seasons of I’m A Celebrity.

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It was a busy night in the jungle, with the stars receiving emotional messages from their families back home in the UK. Shortly after this, they were seen taking part in the fan favourite Celebrity Cyclone challenge. They had no time to relax as they soon had to meet Ant and Dec away from the camp.

Once there, they were informed that they would be taking on a challenge called Keep Your Eye on the Ball. The celebrities sat it in individual compartments as three different-coloured balls travelled through clear pipes.

They had to track the count for each colour while facing various unwelcome distractions. At the end of the trial, Ant and Dec selected the blue ball at random and asked the celebrities to provide the precise count.

Harry’s answer was closest to the correct answer, with his answer just seven away from the total amount of blue balls. Adam’s was second closest, whose answer was 13 out.

Shortly after Craig was confirmed to be in the final four, it was a tense moment as the ITV series took an ad break before confirming if it was Mo or Scarlett joining the three men in the final.

Sadly, it was confirmed that Scarlett was further away with her answer and she was immediately sent home. This means that Craig, Harry, Mo and Adam make up the final four.

Those watching the episode at home were left devastated as they rushed to X, previously known as Twitter, to express why they were left gutted by her exit.

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@nciskxcy said: “no I’m so devastated I wanted Scarlett to be in the final #imaceleb.” @alig1972 added: “No!!! Gutted for Scarlett! She deserved to be in the final.”

@RyanSoapKing25 wrote: “Devastated for Scarlet – she is a beautiful soul inside and out and deserved to make the final. Gutted for her! #ImACeleb.” @blue_laur11 posted: “Gutted Scarlett is going home she was amazing !! For me now Adam for the win #Imaceleb.”

@xxncisaddictxx commented: “That’s a tough way to go for Scarlett, all down to bad memory. Tbf that was a tough trial, she’s been amazing. #ImACeleb #imacelebrity.” @gillyn4 stated: “Scarlett has been robbed of being Queen! #ImACeleb.”

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12 arrests in North Yorkshire coast police crime blitz

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12 arrests in North Yorkshire coast police crime blitz

North Yorkshire Police pulled extra resources into the area for the day of action called Operation Tornado on Wednesday (April 22).

The force said it came as part of a crackdown on drug dealers, shoplifters, dangerous drivers, cross-border criminals, nuisance off-road bikers, anti-social behaviour and “enhancing safety in the night-time economy”.

Officers, joined by the force’s chief constable Tim Forber on one raid, executed four drugs warrants in Eastfield.

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Two arrests were made in connection with ongoing investigations into the supply of drugs, and various items were seized from the properties, a police spokesperson said.

The seized items included a large quantity of suspected illegal fireworks.

Meanwhile, in Scarborough town centre five people were arrested and are now subject to investigations for theft and a robbery, police said.

Two of those arrested received community resolution disposals to address their behaviour out-of-court, “usually involving first-time offenders”, the police spokesperson said.

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Police also made an arrest for a drug supply offence and a wanted man was located and taken into custody.

On the roads, six vehicles were seized by police for suspected offences including driving without insurance.

One incident involved the pursuit of a high-performance car in Scarborough which police said resulted in two arrests and the recovery of a large amount of cannabis and a weapon.

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Newscast – The Week: How Much Danger Is Keir Starmer In?

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Today, Adam and Chris look back and assess how much danger Keir Starmer is in after another week of the Peter Mandelson saga?

They are joined by Lara Spirit, deputy political editor of The Sunday Times and former civil servant Helen MacNamara who served as the deputy cabinet secretary.

You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast”. It works on most smart speakers.

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You can join our Newscast online community here: https://bbc.in/newscastdiscord

Get in touch with Newscast by emailing newscast@bbc.co.uk or send us a WhatsApp on +44 0330 123 9480.

New episodes released every day. If you’re in the UK, for more News and Current Affairs podcasts from the BBC, listen on BBC Sounds: https://bbc.in/4guXgXd

Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. The presenter was Adam Fleming. It was made by Jack MacLaren. The social producer was Joe Wilkinson. The technical producer was . The assistant editor is Chris Gray. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.

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Ronnie O’Sullivan reveals who prefers playing who in snooker’s Class of 92

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Ronnie O'Sullivan reveals who prefers playing who in snooker's Class of 92
Ronnie O’Sullivan says he does not relish taking on John Higgins (Picture: Getty Images)

Ronnie O’Sullivan reckons there are mixed feelings within the Class of 92, revealing who prefers playing who among the three snooker legends.

John Higgins and Mark Williams join the Rocket in the trio of greats that all turned professional 34 years ago.

They all remain at the top of the game and two of them will meet this week in the second round of the World Championship as O’Sullivan takes on Higgins.

It is a repeat of a previous Crucible final in just the last 16 and, for some, is a clash between the two best players of all time.

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Williams is also into the last 16 after beating Antoni Kowalski in his opening game, setting up a match with Barry Hawkins in round two.

Ahead of his latest meeting with Higgins, O’Sullivan reckons there is something of a love triangle between the three, with each preferring a different pairing on the table.

Are you snooker loopy?

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Phil has been reporting on snooker for over a decade, since working in World Snooker’s press office in 2012

‘I think I find it easier playing Mark than I do John,’ said O’Sullivan. ‘I think John enjoys playing me. I enjoy playing Mark, and Mark enjoys playing John.

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John Higgins begins his match with O’Sullivan on Saturday evening (Picture: Getty Images)

‘John doesn’t like playing Mark. It’s strange but it’s styles, whatever it is. That’s how I’ve always seen it.’

O’Sullivan has been talking up Higgins’ form and consistency ahead of their last 16 meeting, insisting that the Scot is the favourite, although the bookmakers would disagree.

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The Rocket has always been a huge admirer of the Wizard of Wishaw’s game, so much so that he feels if he had Higgins’ mindset then he would have been even more successful.

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O’Sullivan looked good in his opening win over He Guoqiang (Picture: PA Wire)

‘I felt if I had his game, I’d have won more than I have now. It’s not just technique, there’s other things that make you win more,’ O’Sullivan told TNT Sports. ‘John’s an amazing player. Probably everyone’s favourite player.’

On what specifically Higgins does better than him, the Rocket said: ‘John’s grittier. Prepared to tough it out more, naturally that’s normal for him. I have to work at that, to dig in a bit.

‘His temperament is incredible. He’s got great bottle. There’s so many things to admire, he’s got a lot of good qualities.’

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Mark Williams is hunting down a fourth world title (Picture: Getty Images)

Higgins certainly sounds like he enjoys playing O’Sullivan as much as the Englishman thinks he does.

After beating Ali Carter in round one, but before O’Sullivan had downed He Guoqiang, the Wizard said: ‘I would love to play him out there again. That will be special.

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‘It might never happen again. As I had with [Mark] Williams the last few years here, they were special occasions. If Ronnie does get through it will be a special occasion.

‘Playing one of the greatest ever, it would be a great match if he comes through and we play over three sessions.’

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‘she would set up her canvas on the shore and paint in the lashing wind and rain like a woman possessed’

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‘she would set up her canvas on the shore and paint in the lashing wind and rain like a woman possessed’

Joan Eardley was one of the most unique and celebrated artists of her generation, but the international acclaim and recognition that her work deserves eluded her. Her paintings are not only foundational in Scotland’s cultural history, but continue to influence its creative landscape, particularly with those concerning dialogue around community and the poetics of place.

Currently on view in the National Galleries Scotland: Modern Two until June 28, Joan Eardley: The Nature of Painting, explores this popular post-war artist’s relationship to her predecessors and contemporaries.

Joan Kathleen Harding Eardley was born to a Scottish mother and English father in Sussex in 1921, and studied at Blackheath School of Art in London for a year before moving with her mother and sister to Glasgow during the outbreak of the second world war in 1939. She continued her studies at Glasgow School of Art and Hospitalfield in Arbroath, known as Scotland’s first school of fine art.

It was during this time that she began to shape her preference for painting everyday subjects. She used an RSA Carnegie Travelling Scholarship to travel through Italy and France in 1948 and 1949. On her return to Glasgow she spent time drawing and painting the industrial landscape of Port Glasgow, and Gourock. Eardley rented a studio in the city centre of Glasgow, and a few years later moved to Townhead in the east end, where local children became her favourite artistic subjects.

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Hedgerow with Grasses and Flowers, 1962-1963.
National Galleries of Scotland

More than 30 of Eardley’s artworks are juxtaposed at Modern Two alongside figures of international renown including Claude Monet, Marc Chagall, John Constable, Jean Dubuffet and Antoni Tàpies, together with her contemporaries Henry Moore, Bet Low and William McTaggart.

It places Eardley within an international art world which blends post-impressionism, social realism and abstraction. Jackson Pollok and the French Tachistes were known to have influenced her practice.

The exhibition is further enriched by a selection of archival and photographic materials containing a range of sketches, photographs and personal artefacts giving a glimpse into the life behind the artworks which are on display in the adjoining Keiller Library.

There are also several of her large works situated in Paolozzi’s Kitchen restaurant adjacent to the two exhibition spaces, alongside the likes of Scottish artist and contemporary Anne Redpath.

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Connections with painters

The first exhibition space includes several of Eardley’s social-realist figure depictions of 1950s inner-city Glaswegian children. The works have a joyful, raw, playful spirit to them, in spite of the squalid slum environment the children were living in. No artist has painted Glasgow’s “weans” (a local word for children) in the way that Eardley has.

In Children and Chalked Wall No.3 (1962-63), sisters Mary and Pat Samson are painted in Eardley’s signature bold unsparing style, with their affectionate, endearing smiles, both huddled together. Their cheery faces, animated by Eardley’s blocks of colour, emerge from a background layered with graffiti and collage, anchoring her work in social reality.

Her work is surrounded by portraits by Rembrandt van Rijn, Jean-Francois Millet, Jean Dubuffet, Edward Hornel and Bet Low. Children and Chalked Wall No.3’s highly prized neighbour in the exhibition is Marc Chagall’s The Horse Rider (1949-53), a surreal gouache painted work with a block of azure-blue textured background with three figures and a horse, set within a Paris circus. Like Eardley’s work, it is also social-realist and figurative, with abstract elements incorporated within it. The female horse rider is a recurring theme for Chagall.

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Eardley’s Street Kids (1949–51) captures a fleeting moment of camaraderie among three local boys. It is quiet and reflective, telling the stories of real Glasgow children who lived close to Eardley’s studio in Townhead, and captures the friendliness and community spirit that Eardley admired.

A mixed media painting of three street skids in Glasgow in thee 1950s.
Street Kids, 1949-1951.
National Galleries of Scotland

She does not shy away from the material conditions of post-war urban life, alluding to poverty, dirt and the presence of neglect. Again, colour is blocked in with minimum detail and repeating patterns of brickwork ground the piece. There is a respect of their resilience in her portraiture.

Exhibition space two is focused on Eardley’s relationship with Catterline, a small coastal village in the north east of Scotland near Stonehaven. In 1954, she bought a cottage to work there. Catterline’s rugged coastal landscapes and dynamic seascapes were central to many of Eardley’s paintings, providing the perfect stage setting for her expressive creativity to flourish.

Eardley worked between Glasgow and Catterline for several years and there are stories during that time of Eardley leaving Glasgow when she heard a storm was coming. Like tornado chasers, she travelled across the country to capture the coming storm’s power on the shore front where she would set up hardboard canvases to paint in its centre amid the lashing wind and rain like a woman possessed.

Her beautiful atmospheric painting Catterline in Winter (1963) set with a grey sky and full moon lighting up the snow-covered landscape is positioned next to Claude Monet’s Grainstacks: Snow Effect (1891). Both have an otherworldly sense about them, evoking a still and silent feeling of deep winter muffled by the frozen earth.

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A painting of a rural winter scene with snow and a cold silver moon.
Catterline in Winter, 1963.
National Galleries of Scotland

Eardley’s Summer Fields near Catterline (about 1961) with its expressive brushstrokes, shows stalks of corn in a bright golden cornfield set by a grey and black background is the highlight of the show.

She was elected an Academician of the Royal Scottish Academy of Art in 1963, just prior to her untimely passing from cancer later that year aged 42. Eardley’s ashes were scattered on the beach at Catterline, creating a lasting connection between the artist and the place which inspired her later works.

By situating her practice within a collaboration of artistic significance, the exhibition highlights the extent to which her work contributes to the central concerns of 20th-century painting. Not least the tension between representation and abstraction in her work and the enduring challenge of responding to the world, whether urban or elemental.

Joan Eardley: The Nature of Painting is on at the National Galleries Modern Two in Edinburgh until June 28

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Americast – Donald Trump gets on the phone… with Sarah

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Americast - Has Jeff Bezos brought down the Washington Post?

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What happened when Americast’s Sarah Smith cold called the US president? In this episode, Sarah and Anthony thoroughly unpack her phone call with Donald Trump, how she planned the interview…and also, she tells us what happened when the US president unexpectedly called her back.

Listen to what Donald Trump told Sarah about next week’s state visit from King Charles and Queen Camilla, and how he thinks it could help repair relations with the UK. He also has advice for how Keir Starmer can recover after the fallout from Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador. Plus, Sarah asks Trump about his earlier threat to “wipe out” an entire civilisation in Iran.

HOSTS:
• Sarah Smith, North America Editor
• Anthony Zurcher, North America Correspondent

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This episode was made by George Dabby. The technical producer was Ricardo McCarthy. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.

If you want to be notified every time we publish a new episode, please subscribe to us on BBC Sounds by hitting the subscribe button on the app.

You can now listen to Americast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play Americast”. It works on most smart speakers.

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Americast is part of the BBC News Podcasts family of podcasts. The team that makes Americast also makes lots of other podcasts, including Newscast. If you enjoy Americast (and if you’re reading this then you hopefully do), then we think that you will enjoy some of our other pods too. See links below.

Newscast: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/series/p05299nl
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Trump and Regeneron unveil a drug pricing deal

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Trump and Regeneron unveil a drug pricing deal

President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a deal with drugmaker Regeneron to lower the cost of its pharmaceutical products as part of the White House’s signature drug pricing initiative.

The deal involves Regeneron lowering the prices of all its current and future drugs on Medicaid, according to Trump. It also involves selling a cholesterol drug called Praluent for $225 on the White House’s discounted drug website TrumpRx, according to the agreement first outlined by NOTUS and confirmed in a White House fact sheet.

The deal comes as the Trump administration has been touting efforts to provide economic relief ahead of November’s midterm elections, with Americans saying high costs for health care, gas, groceries and other basic needs are straining their budgets.

It’s one of many so-called most-favored-nation deals the Trump administration has made with drug companies to bring U.S. pharmaceutical prices to the same level as other developed nations. Last July, Trump publicly sent letters to executives at 17 major pharmaceutical companies about the issue. Regeneron is the final one of those companies to strike a deal with his administration.

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Speaking at the White House on Thursday to announce the deal, Trump touted the discounts on drugs and said, “It should be front page news.” He said voters in this November’s midterm elections should reward his party because of the agreements with drugmakers.

“We should win the midterms, but it doesn’t work that way, unfortunately,” Trump said.

Trump also has a notable history with the drugmaker.

During his first term in 2020, when he was hospitalized with COVID-19, he was given a dose of a drug that Regeneron was testing to supply antibodies in order to help his immune system.

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After he was released, Trump posted a video of himself standing outside the White House in which he repeatedly lavished praise on Regeneron.

As part of the new deal, Regeneron has also committed to spending $27 billion in research, development and manufacturing in the U.S., according to the White House fact sheet. Trump’s deals have historically offered companies relief from his tariffs if they make such commitments.

Regeneron also announced Thursday that Otarmeni, its new gene therapy for a rare form of congenital hearing loss, had been approved by the Food and Drug Administration and would be made available to clinically eligible individuals in the U.S. at no charge. The therapy received expedited approval from the FDA under the agency’s so-called Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher program.

The program, which was not authorized by Congress, has been under scrutiny from Democrats in Congress for months. House and Senate lawmakers have noted that FDA vouchers have repeatedly gone to companies that agree to pricing concessions sought by the White House.

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Even as Trump and his Department of Health and Human Services have touted his drug-pricing deals as transformative, the details of the agreements have so far not been made public.

Pressed by members of Congress to share the contracts this week, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said his team would share whatever details it could that didn’t include proprietary information or trade secrets. Trump and Kennedy have urged Congress to codify the deals into law.

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The deals have occasionally run into roadblocks. A centerpiece of the agreements with weight-loss drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk fell apart earlier this week when Medicare delayed implementation of a program for insurers to cover the GLP-1 drugs.

Drug prices for patients in the U.S. can depend on a number of factors, including the competition a treatment faces and insurance coverage. Most people have coverage through work, the individual insurance market or government programs like Medicaid and Medicare, which shield them from much of the cost.

Patients on Medicaid, the state and federally funded program for people with low incomes, already pay a nominal co-payment of a few dollars to fill their prescriptions, but lower prices could help state budgets that fund the programs.

___

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Associated Press writers Matthew Perrone and Michelle L. Price contributed to this report.

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Coronation Street fans’ one problem with Lisa Swain and Carla Connor wedding after ITV change

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Manchester Evening News

It’s a day those who follow the ITV soap have been waiting for, with the couple, dubbed ‘Swarla’ finally getting married

Coronation Street fans think they have found one problem with Lisa Swain and Carla Connor’s ‘glorious’ wedding day – but it’s not as bad as you may think.

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It’s a day those who follow the ITV soap have been waiting for, with the couple, dubbed ‘Swarla’, getting engaged back in September, before the arrival of Lisa’s villianous ex, Becky Swain, put a spanner in the works.

While she had a good go at splitting Lisa and Carla up, nothing, in the end could keep the pair apart and after Becky’s downfall in January, it was confirmed that wedding bells were on the cards for the beloved couple.

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During Thursday’s (April 23) episode of the ITV soap, aftering think there big day was over due to a flood runing the room they were due to marry in at the Chariot Square, Lisa told a disappointed Carla to get dressed and that they would have lunch at the hotel instead, with Debbie offering them a slap-up meal and free champers.

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However, upon their arrival, Lisa surprised her by revealing their wedding was going ahead, with Lisa’s daughter, Betsy, Carla’s nephew, Ryan Connor, and her father-figure, Roy Cropper as their witnesses.

There were emotional scenes as Lisa and Carla delivered their vows to one another, before they were confirmed as wives. In another surprise, Sally Metcalfe activated the Underworld security alarm, forcing Carla to head into work, despite getting married, but upon her entry, everyone was waiting, having come together for a wedding reception, which even took Lisa by surprise as she didn’t expect the effort Carla’s workforce had put in.

After enjoying their first dance, Carla and Lisa were ushered out onto the factory balcony where they were again surprised, this time with a freworks display taking place from David Platt’s garden. They then headed back inside and with their guests gone, they reflected on their special day, before taking each other back on the dancefloor for another dance as Mrs and Mrs.

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And while many thanks were hailing the perfect nuptials and thanking those involved for the representation, there was one problem for some Corrie fans – it just wasn’t enough Swarla wedding scenes, which comes after ITV changed its soap schedule at the start of the year, airing weeknightly 30 minute episodes of Corrie, instead of three lots of one hour episodes like it did previously.

@swqrlafilmz said: “Dare I say it… there wasn’t enough scenes for the wedding!” @carolineThom67 replied: “Agree!” @SamanthaC261 shared: “I loved the episode but I think it could have been even more amazing had it been an hour long. Don’t come at me as I did love it but these 30 minute eps just aren’t hitting for me.”

@AlisonSelw60139 admitted: “Not half hour episodes, 22 mins. I’ll would’ve expected a 44 mins special episode. Not a lot you can fit in a 22 minute episode. But I’ll enjoyed it anyway.” @carolineThom67 posted: “#swarla wedding. I’d have preferred more of the wedding ceremony, to be honest. Carla Connor do you take Lisa Caroline swain to be your lawful wedded wife etc etc etc. #corrie.” @NatureLover727 added: “I’ve just watched THE wedding and it’s made me emotional, the vows and the end especially. It was so good, my only criticism being I’d have liked a longer episode. @VixMyers and Ali King are amazing, we’re so lucky to have them #swarla #vickymyers #aliking #corrie.”

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Jadon Sancho makes decision over next club ahead of Man Utd exit | Football

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Jadon Sancho makes decision over next club ahead of Man Utd exit | Football
Jadon Sancho has spent the season on loan at Aston Villa (Getty)

Jadon Sancho has told Borussia Dortmund that he is open to returning to the club after he leaves Manchester United this summer, according to reports in Germany.

Sancho left Dortmund to join United in a £73 million deal in 2021 but failed to make a significant impact during his time at Old Trafford.

The 26-year-old has spent the campaign on loan at Aston Villa and United decided earlier this season that the winger will be able to leave the club as a free agent this summer.

United are keen to get Sancho’s £300,000-a-week salary off their books and will decline the option to extend his contract for another year to protect his value.

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According to Sky Germany, Sancho has already held talks with Dortmund and during their latest round of discussions, the winger has indicated to the Bundesliga club that he is keen on a return.

Borussia Dortmund v Real Madrid CF - UEFA Champions League Final 2023/24
Jadon Sancho is keen on a return to Borussia Dortmund this summer (Getty)

The report adds that Sancho has received numerous offers from around the world but Dortmund must now decide whether to press ahead with the transfer.

Dortmund head coach, Niko Kovac, has also approved the club’s push to re-sign Sancho this summer.

Sancho initially joined Dortmund in an £8m deal from Manchester City in 2017 and enjoyed the best years of his career in Germany.

After scoring 17 league goals in the 2019-2020 campaign, Sancho was named in the Bundesliga’s Team of the Season.

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During his return to the club on loan two years ago, Sancho helped Dortmund reach the Champions League final where they were beaten by Real Madrid.

Speaking earlier this month, Dortmund’s sporting director Lars Ricken confirmed that the club are considering a move for Sancho in the summer window.

‘We are currently looking at a lot of players and analysing them. We check whether they can make us better. We are doing the same with Jadon,’ Ricken told Sport Bild.

‘Of course, we are looking for an offensive player who brings quality, can help us immediately, and doesn’t require an unrealistic transfer fee. In defense, Niklas Sule is leaving us, and Emre Can will be out for a while. So we are thinking about that area as well.’

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Rising Welsh star to feature in promising Welsh language retelling of Greek myth

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Wales Online

Effi o Blaenau, which stars Leisa Gwenllian, offers an intimate look at society and community against the backdrop of North Wales

After a successful run at Glasgow’s Fim Festival earlier this year, a Welsh language film from the director of Mr Burton is returning to Wales for its hometown premiere. Effi o Blaenau, which stars Under Salt Marsh’s Leisa Gwenllian as Effi, offers an intimate look at society and community against the backdrop of North Wales.

The Welsh language film which was made by Tarian for S4C, will have its local premiere at Cellb in Blaenau Ffestiniog, Gwynedd on Wednesday, June 17 before being released in cinemas across Wales and the rest of the UK on June 19.

Later this year the film will be broadcast on S4C, S4C Clic and BBC iPlayer. For the latest TV and showbiz gossip sign up to our newsletter

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Funded by S4C and Creative Cymru, the film has been directed by BAFTA-nominee Marc Evans and adapted from Gary Owen’s 2015 Iphigenia in Splott.

The original drama was a reimagined version of the Greek tragedy heroine Iphigenia as a young working-class woman from Cardiff.

The Welsh language adaptation follows Effi, a woman from Blaenau Ffestiniog who discovers the costs of society and class whilst living in rural Wales.

Film Hub Wales said: “The film follows Effi, a young woman desperate to escape a town where the pubs are closed, the jobs have vanished and her grandmother works night shifts in the local chip shop just to get by.

“A chance encounter in a Llandudno nightclub with injured soldier Lee, played by Tom Rhys Harries, briefly opens a door to something better.

“For a moment, Effi glimpses a life she never imagined. The reality that follows is far tougher.

“As she faces the future as a single, unemployed mother-to be, Effi’s story exposes a stark social crisis: a system with too few maternity wards, too few midwives and too many impossible choices made out of necessity rather than care. Leisa Gwenllian gives a searing performance as Effi, evoking condemnation and sympathy in equal measures.”

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The film is being broadcasted at the multi-arts space Cellb, which is located in the old Police Station and Court House in the heart of Blaenau Ffestiniog.

The event will be attended by writer/director Marc Evans, producer Branwen Cennard and lead actress Leisa Gwenllian.

If you’re keen to attend the homecoming of Effi O Blaenau, you can find tickets and more information about the event at CellB here.

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