Updates: polution; hunting; animal slaughter; climate change

[Anthea]

Morgan Freeman converts his
ranch into a sanctuary for honey bees

Morgan Freeman has converted his 124-acre ranch in Mississippi into a sanctuary for bees, in a bid to help counter the insects' decreasing population

According to Forbes on Wednesday, the 81-year-old actor has imported 26 bee hives into his ranch from Arkansas, and has been growing bee-friendly magnolia trees and lavender to encourage them to visit his home.

The Shawshank Redemption star began his journey as a beekeeper in 2014, and has been working to feed the bees sugar and water to help them.

Freeman has previously discussed the foray during an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, where he discussed the need to save the bees in order to maintain a healthy environment.

He also explained that he never wears a bee suit or hat to protect himself, and at the time he added that he hadn't been stung by them.

While he also explained that he just feeds the bees, and does not want to disrupt the beehives or harvest the honey that they make.

Doing his part: The 81-year-old actor has imported 26 bee hives into his ranch from Arkansas and has been growing bee-friendly magnolia trees and lavender to encourage them to visit

On the show, he said: 'There's a concerted effort to bring bees back onto the planet.'

'We do not realise that they are the foundation, I think, of the growth of the planet, the vegetation… I have so many flowering things and I have a gardener too.'

Morgan added: 'Because she takes care of the bees too, all she does is figure out, "OK, what would they like to have?", so we've got acres and acres of clover, we're planting stuff like lavender, I've got like, maybe 140 magnolia trees, big blossoms.'

'They haven't [stung me] yet, because right now I'm not trying to harvest honey or anything, I'm just feeding them… I think they understand, "Hey, don't bother this guy, he's got sugar water here."'

Bees' natural habitats are being threatened by the use of pesticides and man-made changes to the range of plant species found in the environment.

More than a decade ago, US beekeepers began finding their hives decimated by what became known as colony collapse disorder.

Millions of bees mysteriously disappeared, leaving farms with fewer pollinators for crops.

Explanations for the phenomenon have included exposure to pesticides or antibiotics, habitat loss and bacterial infections.

WHAT IS THE HONEYBEE CRISIS?

Honeybees, both domestic and wild, are responsible for around 80 per cent of worldwide pollination, according to Greenpeace.

But bee colony collapses across the globe are threatening their vital work.

Bees are dying from a combination of pesticides, habitat destruction, drought, nutrition deficit, global warming and air pollution among other factors.

The global bee crisis can potentially be solved if dangerous pesticides are eliminated, wild habitats are preserved and ecological agriculture is restored, according to Greenpeace

Greenpeace has reported: 'The bottom line is that we know humans are largely responsible for the two most prominent causes: Pesticides and habitat loss.'

This is important for a number of reasons, chief among them the amount of work bees put into our food production.

Vegetables, nuts and fruits are pollinated by bees. Of the top human food crops, a whopping 70 of 100 are pollinated by the creatures, which account for as much as 90 per cent of global nutrition.

Greenpeace has suggested the following solutions to the problem:

The preservation of wild habitats in order to protect pollinator health

The restoration of ecological agriculture

The elimination of the world's most dangerous pesticides

Link to Article - Photos:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/a ... -bees.html

[Anthea]

Trophy Hunter Eaten Alive By Lions
After He Murdered 3 Baboon Families

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Ingwelala Private Nature Reserve in South Africa was shaken with the screams of a man who was attacked and killed by Pride of Lion in private game reserve near the Kruger National Park. Before the lions were dispersed with the help of gun-shots, they had eaten most of the body barring the head that was untouched.

Police initially thought that the victim was a tractor driver who worked in this private reserve. Bu later on when the driver appeared alive the suspicion began to grow. A hunting rifle was recovered near the remains of the dead that almost confirmed it to be a poacher who had sneaked into the private reserve.

The man was killed viciously and the incidence had been very disturbing and terrifying. Nevertheless, sympathy does not stand with the victim who had been hunting in the private reserve. The man had killed 3 Baboon families and spread the bodies around to attract and distract the lions to make them easier to hunt. And when someone like him transgresses the limits and enters the domain of lions with intention of harming them, the king of the jungle never forgets its animal instincts for survival. The encounter then is a fair game, lions with their power and a poacher with his gun met his chosen fate.

There are only 30000 lions left on the planet including 20000 in African Wild life areas. Large numbers of them are kept in captivity for entertainment. It is essential for the mankind to co-exist with them and protect them to survive so that future generations don’t just see them on papers like we look at dinosaurs.

Link to Article - Photos:

http://natureismetal.com/trophy-hunter- ... KWNaBrEA6w

[Anthea]

Delightful photo


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[Anthea]

Renewable energy replace fossil fuels as
UK's main power source first time in history

A new government deal with industry could see nearly a third of British electricity generated by offshore wind farms by 2030

If successful, officials say the plan would see more electricity being generated by renewables than fossil fuels for the first time in UK history, with 70 per cent coming from low-carbon sources.

Currently offshore wind provides just 7 per cent of British power, but this would be boosted to 30 per cent by the end of the next decade.

We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view.

Not everyone is convinced by the announcement, with some environmentalists warning renewables would have to be scaled up even further as the nation’s nuclear ambitions floundered.

According to the government, its promised green power “revolution” would bring 27,000 jobs to the energy sector.

“This new sector deal will drive a surge in the clean, green offshore wind revolution that is powering homes and businesses across the UK, bringing investment into coastal communities and ensuring we maintain our position as global leaders in this growing sector,” said energy minister Claire Perry.

The deal will increase the involvement of UK companies in offshore wind projects to 60 per cent, ensuring the £557m the government has pledged in state subsidies benefits local communities.

This will be accompanied by a £250m investment from industry, which will help ensure British companies are world-leaders in new areas such as robotics, floating wind farms and larger turbines.

Alongside the deal, the government will provide more than £4m for British businesses to help countries such as Indonesia and Pakistan move from coal power to offshore wind projects.

There will also be more efforts to reduce the cost of offshore wind projects - which have already been halved in the past two years - to help move to a subsidy-free system.

The Crown Estate will be releasing new seabed land from 2019 for future offshore wind projects.

Energy UK’s chief executive, Lawrence Slade, said the deal will “further cement the UK’s position as a world-leader in offshore wind”.

“The offshore wind industry has been a great success story for the UK, bringing thousands of skilled jobs and billions in investment while delivering clean energy at an ever-falling cost to customers.”

Industry body RenewableUK said the deal was about creating opportunities for the diverse array of people who would be part of the new workforce.

However, with less certainty around other strategies to tackle climate change, such as nuclear power and carbon capture technologies, Greenpeace said renewables needed to be scaled up even more.

“The government’s plans for a fleet of new nuclear reactors has collapsed. This leaves Britain with a big energy gap in the future,” said John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace UK.

“It means the government’s latest offshore wind target of 30 gigawatts by 2030 is woefully inadequate.

“Renewable power now presents the best opportunity for cheaper, cleaner and faster decarbonisation.

“Wind and solar must be tripled between now and 2030, with offshore wind the future backbone of the UK’s energy system.”

https://www.independent.co.uk/environme ... 11616.html

[Anthea]

Owning a Car Will Soon Be
as Quaint as Owning a Horse

The shift away from private vehicles will happen faster than we think
By Kara Swisher

Bye Bye Frank the Fiesta

This could be the most important shift since the Cambrian explosion of the smartphone. Car-sharing continues to increase, new innovations emerge all the time (Scooters! Vertical-take-off-and-landing vehicles!) and all manner of autonomous technologies are inevitable (Elon Musk, whatever you think of him or the prospects of Tesla, is 100 percent directionally correct). Private car ownership declined globally last year, and it is a trend that I believe is going to accelerate faster than people think.

Not everyone agrees. After an initial rush of hype and hope, there was a backlash against the idea that autonomous and shared cars would soon take over.

But I am pretty good at this guessing game. In 1998, as one of the first Internet-focused reporters for The Wall Street Journal, I wrote a piece titled “I Cut the Cord” about giving up my land line and going all mobile.

That was well before “feature” phones — as the first dumber versions of smartphones were called — and almost a decade before the iPhone. There was not much out there for the general population. Nonetheless, I “snipped my copper umbilical cord” and predicted that everyone else would do the same, and sooner than they thought.

I did not find it easy, as I noted then: “My own all-cellular journey is strewn with technical glitches and innumerable lost connections, pricey millisecond charges that make using a cellphone seem like a bad addiction, and vague worries that perhaps too much cellphone exposure actually does cause brain tumors.”

But it was time. Absent the brain tumors, this was the thought that hit me recently when my clutch died on a hill in San Francisco. After spending my life buying cars, I will never buy another after I sell my last, a manual Ford Fiesta Turbo named Frank.

Since I first started driving I have named my cars: Cecil the Honda Civic, Jeanette the mighty blue Volkswagen Bug, Roger the Volkswagen Rabbit, Jerry the Jeep Wrangler, John the Jeep Cherokee, Alice the Honda Minivan, Sally the Subaru Outback, Abner the Mazda 3, Cindy the Mazda 5 and Frank. Why wouldn’t I name them, since they were an integral part of my life from my teens to my single days to motherhood?

Many people feel this kind of bond with their cars. They represent so many major life moments (prom!) and individual tropes (freedom!) that it is difficult to imagine giving them up.

But it will be easier than you’d think for a number of reasons that are increasing in speed and velocity, if you will excuse the pun.

Consider how swiftly people moved from physical maps to map apps, from snail mail to email, from prime time TV to watching on demand. What had been long-held practices were quickly replaced by digital tools that made things easier, more convenient and simply better. Some of the shifts have been slower to develop, but then accelerated quickly, like what is now occurring in retail with online shopping and quick delivery pioneered by Amazon.

Simply put, everything that can be digitized will be digitized.

That is harder to envision with the heavy hunk of metal and fiberglass that is a car, but it is not hard to see the steps. You start using car-sharing services, you don’t use your car as often, you realize as these services proliferate that you actually don’t need to own a car at all.

It’s also a small step toward a more carbon-free life, although my frequent cross-country flights pretty much make me a carbon criminal for life. (My fingers are crossed for not only an electric car, but an electric plane or even carbon-free jet fuel.)

It’s obviously an easier decision if you live near a major metropolitan area, like I do, where the alternatives — cars and then car pools and then bikes and now scooters — are myriad. (Why, by the way, this is a revolution led by private companies instead of public transportation is an important topic for another day.) In other countries, often with denser populations, there are even more ideas bubbling up, from auto-rickshaws and motorbike taxis to new bus services.

Obviously, the biggest change will be the advent of truly autonomous vehicles, which are still years or even decades in the future.

But in the meantime I am going to lean into this future all I can, and will chronicle the efforts over the next year, its costs and its benefits and how I get there. Or not.

Will I walk more? Take more buses or trains? How much will I use short-term car rental services? Will my kids freak out when I decline to be their constant chauffeur? It begins with the off-loading of Frank the Fiesta, so I have no excuse to use it at all. Anyone interested in a car with a loose clutch?

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/22/opin ... -lyft.html

[Anthea]

Baby Cows Stabbed in Front of Each Other:

https://www.kinderworld.org/videos/dair ... -industry/

And other videos that will make you feel sick to watch:

https://www.kinderworld.org/videos/meat ... australia/

[Anthea]

Bees: Many British pollinating insects in decline

A third of British wild bees and hoverflies are in decline, according to a new study

If current trends continue, some species will be lost from Britain altogether, the scientists say.

The study found "winners" and "losers" among hundreds of wild bees and hoverflies, which pollinate food crops and other plants.

Common species are winning out at the expense of rarer ones, with an overall picture of biodiversity being lost.

Scientists warn that the loss of nature could create problems in years to come, including the ability to grow food crops.

The study looked at trends in 353 wild bees and hoverflies in Scotland, England and Wales over 33 years from 1980.

A third of species experienced declines in terms of areas where they were found, while about 10% became more abundant, including bees that pollinate flowering crops, such as oil seed rape.

While some pollination is carried out by honeybees in hives, much of the pollination of food crops and wild plants is carried out by their wild relatives and other insects, especially hoverflies.

Dr Gary Powney of the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) in Wallingford, Oxfordshire, said while the increase in key crop pollinators is "good news", species have declined overall.

"It would be risky to rely on this group to support the long-term food security for our country," he said.

"If anything happens to them in the future, there will be fewer other species to step up and fulfil the essential role of crop pollination."

The losses were concentrated among the rarer, specialised species. Dr Nick Isaac, also of the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) in Wallingford, Oxfordshire, said this was "particularly bad news if you're interested in wildlife and in conservation".

The "losers" include solitary bees, which live in burrows in the ground, and upland bees, living on mountains and moorlands. Among the "winners" are 22 of the most important crop pollinators.

Experts say the increase in some common species is set against a background of an overall loss of diversity.

"Every square kilometre in the UK has lost an average of 11 species of bee and hoverfly, between 1980 and 2013, according to the new analysis," said Dr Lynn Dicks of the University of East Anglia.

She said the pattern of biodiversity loss is happening everywhere we look.

"It's a process of homogenisation and leaves us with a natural world that is far poorer and less resilient to change."

Link to Article - Photos:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-47698294

[Anthea]

Should cats be culled to stop extinctions?

Scientists are calling for a widespread cull of feral cats and dogs, pigs, goats, and rats and mice to save the endangered species they prey upon

Their eradication on more than 100 islands could save some of the rarest animals on Earth, says an international team.

Islands have seen 75% of known bird, mammal, amphibian and reptile extinctions over the past 500 years.

Many of the losses are caused by animals introduced by humans.

Not naturally present on islands, they can threaten native wildlife.

"Eradicating invasive mammals from islands is a powerful way to remove a key threat to island species and prevent extinctions and conserve biodiversity," said Dr Nick Holmes, from the group Island Conservation.

The study, published in PLOS ONE, identified 107 islands where eradication projects could benefit 9.4% of the Earth's threatened island species.

The researchers argue the likes of feral cats are not of conservation concern, but the species they threaten are often found only on islands where the entire population is at risk of extinction.

Stuart Butchart, chief scientist at Birdlife International, said the action could save "extraordinary species that have evolved in isolation and are only found on these remote islands".

Some culls have already taken place on islands. The world's largest rodent eradication project was recently declared a success, with the UK territory of South Georgia becoming rat-free for the first time in more than 200 years.

Among the islands identified in the new study are 20 belonging to the UK's Overseas Territories, including:

Gough Island, which is part of Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic. There are plans to eradicate mice on the islands which are eating seabird chicks, to save the Tristan albatross and Gough bunting from extinction

Henderson Island in the Pacific, part of the Pitcairn group. A rat eradication project here could save the Endangered Henderson petrel

"This study shows how important it is to remove invasive mammals from islands to prevent further extinctions," said Jonathan Hall, the RSPB's Head of UK Overseas Territories.

"What is needed now is the political will and funding to help carry out this much needed work and restore these islands to their previous magnificence."

Link to Article - Photos:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-47721807

[Piling]

The most invasive mammals to eradicate to avoid extinction are humans.

[Anthea]

'They'll never link it back to us':
Horrendous moment father and son creep up on a hibernating bear and her two newborn cubs in an Alaskan conservation area and illegally shoot them pointblank before high-fiving and posing for pictures

Andrew Renner, 41, and Owen Renner, 18, killed the bears in Alaska in April 2018

Video of the illegal act was released on Wednesday after sentencing last month

Shows the father and son gloating and high-fiving after shooting the bears

They didn't realize a video camera was aimed at the den for conservation study

Shooting cubs or a sow bear with her cubs is illegal in Alaska

Sickening video of a father and son illegally shooting a denning black bear and her cubs has been released.

The video released on Wednesday shows Andrew Renner, 41, and Owen Renner, 18, shooting the bear sow and cubs on Alaska's Esther Island in Prince William Sound in April 2018.

The footage, shot by a hidden camera as part of a research study, had been withheld by authorities until after the father and son were sentenced in January of this year.

The cubs can be heard shrieking after the son killed the sow bear, before Andrew Renner fires point-blank into the den, killing the cubs.

'They'll never be able to link it to us,' Owen Renner says to his father after the two drag the sow from den and trade high-fives.

The crystal-clear video shows the son posing shirtless with the dead bear and holding its claws up for their camera.

'You and me don't f**k around, we pretty much, we go where we want to kill s**t,' Owen Renner is heard telling his father.

The father and son butchered the adult bear off camera and took the meat and skin away in game bags, according to police.

Police say that the pair took the skin to the Alaska Department of Fish & Game in Palmer, lying about where he took the bear and saying he saw no cubs.

It is illegal to kill bear cubs or a sow bear with cubs in Alaska.

The video shows the duo returning two days later to collect shell casings and the bodies of the cubs.

Andrew and Owen Renner, both of Wasilla, were charged with unlawfully taking female bear with cubs, two charges of unlawfully taking cubs, and possessing and transporting illegally taken game.

Additionally, Andrew Renner was charged with tampering with evidence, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and second degree falsification.

Authorities say Andrew Renner falsified documentation about shooting the bear when it was really his son who opened fire. He also failed to note how many bears they had illegally killed.

In January, Andrew Renner was sentenced to five months in jail with two months suspended.

He was also ordered to pay a fine of $20,000 with $11,000 suspended, forfeit his 22’ Sea Sport ocean boat and trailer, 2012 GMC Sierra pickup truck, two rifles, two handguns, two iPhones, and two sets of backcountry skis which were used in the offenses. His hunting license was revoked for 10 years.

Owen Renner was sentenced to suspended jail time, community works service and required to take a hunter's safety course. His hunting license was suspended for two years.

Both defendants were ordered to pay $1,800 restitution, the amount set by statute for illegally killing black bears.

The bears they killed were part of a study by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Forest Service.

A motion-activated game camera that had been stationed at the den was recording as part of the study, wildlife troopers said. The sow was wearing a tracking collar.

It is not necessarily illegal to kill a collared bear, though the collar must be surrendered to wildlife officials, and authorities warn that killing collared bears disrupts studies.

Link to Article - Photos:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... -cubs.html

This barbaric father and son need 10 years in prison

[Anthea]

Next Youth Strike 4 Climate

Please Click Photo to Enlarge:


Over the last couple of months we've mobilised tens of thousands of students and young people across the breadth of the UK demanding urgent and radical action to address the climate crisis.

We're running out of time and need action now!

Join us on 12 April when we take to the streets once again. Find your nearest strike here, or register to set up in your town or city: https://ukscn.org/ys4c-where

Over the last few days we've been reminded of the challenges we face. Not only did Cumbria County Council approve a new £160m+ coal mine, but we also learnt that once again that top oil firms are spending millions to lobby against climate change policies. This is the sort of thing we're up against.

Young people are rising up to demand action, a future, and a fairer, more just world that puts people and planet first.

We've achieved a lot with hardly any resources, and to win this fight we need some help. Support us by pledging to our movement today

http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/ukscn

#YouthStrike4Climate #FossilFree #ClimateStrike #April12 #FossilFree

UK Student Climate Network UK Youth Climate Coalition

[Anthea]

City skylines across the world
plunge into darkness for Earth Hour

Cities around the world descended into darkness as they switched off their lights to call for global action on climate change

More than 100 landmarks across the UK from Buckingham Palace to Edinburgh Castle marked this year’s Earth Hour.

Lights went off between 8.30pm and 9.30pm as part of the international event organised by conservation charity WWF to urge action to save the planet.

Sydney Opera House, Egypt's Great Pyramids, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Brazil's Christ the Redeemer monument and the Empire State Building in New York all switched off their lights on Saturday.

The event sees landmarks, businesses and people switching their lights off for an hour of darkness, and aims to highlight the impacts humans are having on the planet through climate change, pollution, plastic and food production.

Beginning in Sydney in 2007, Earth Hour has spread to more than 180 countries, with tens of millions of people joining in.

More than 7,000 cities in more than 170 countries and millions of people were expected to take part this year, to send a message to leaders that protecting the Earth should be top of their agenda, WWF said.

In the UK, the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye and the Shard, Cardiff Castle, Liverpool Cathedral, Old Trafford, Brighton Pier and the Eden Project were among the landmarks taking part.

Last year across the UK, 10 million people took part, along with more than 7,000 schools, 400 landmarks and thousands of businesses and organisations, the charity said.

WWF warns that people living today are the first generation to experience the effects of climate change, and the last to be able to change it, while the planet is also suffering plastic pollution and deforestation.

The charity is encouraging people to pledge personal actions as part of this year's Earth Hour, such as turning the washing machine down to 30C, avoiding single-use plastics, planning a staycation or holiday nearer to home, changing the way they eat or helping restore nature in their local area.

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/c ... 05256.html

[Anthea]

Animals are left to die at abandoned Spanish zoo, with animals including bears and a tiger languishing in run-down enclosures

Zoo on Spain's Costa de la Luz closed after complaints over animal deaths

But owners have simply left the remaining animals to languish in their cages

Images show a bear, a tiger, baboons and deer left to fend for themselves

Activists warn animals will likely die or escape if nothing is done to help them

Heartbreaking images have emerged showing miserable animals languishing in an abandoned zoo two months after it closed.

Activists say there's a risk of escape or death for the bears, tiger and other animals left at The Parque Zoologico Prudencio Navarro on Spain's Costa de la Luz.

The zoo closed after a number of animal deaths and a string of complaints from activists.

In the wake of the closure, authorities in Ayamonte - who run the zoo - were accused of ignoring offers to rehome the animals, leaving their ultimate fate a mystery.

But new images have confirmed activists' fears, showing bears, a tiger, four baboons and various other creatures still languishing in their filthy enclosures.

The Proyecto Gran Simio (Great Ape Project) slammed zoo bosses for failing to act and said the lack of security could lead to the animals escaping.

Spokesman Pedro Terrados said: 'The zoo is in a state of chaotic abandonment, with depressed animals unattended by veterinarians.

'There is stagnant water in their enclosures, with great danger of infection if they consume it. It could also become a nest of mosquitoes, transmitting diseases.

'Most of the animals are doing very badly psychologically.'

Mr Terrados added that it was unclear who was feeding the animals, if anyone, and said it was feared they would die.

He said: 'Who would feed them? How? And what diet? How many vitamins to each species? What control do they have? None. We do not know anything.

'On the other hand there is a tremendous lack of security. Until it came out in the media, they had not closed the way to people, because they left the doors open.'

Council chiefs are now being urged to act 'before some animals die, or a serious accident or escape occurs due to lack of security'.

Mr Terrados said: 'The animals at the zoo should go to specialized sanctuaries of wild animals.

'We are fighting in Spain for the state to create a rescue centre to accommodate the animals that are abandoned by zoos or circuses that stop using them.

'It is not ethical or educational to visit animals that have lost all their essence as a species, where they are bored and withered, and lifeless cards existing only for the amusement of humans.

'The cages of the zoos are being emptied by death of the animals. They must be closed forever and not used to exploit animals economically.'

Activists are calling for the animals to be taken away from the owners and sent to specialist sanctuaries so they can be properly cared for

Link to Article - Heartbreaking Photos:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... h-zoo.html

[Anthea]

Commons disrupted as protestors strip naked

The Met has confirmed 12 climate change activists have been arrested for outraging public decency after they stormed parliament and pressed themselves against the glass at the front of the public gallery

On their bodies were written the words "Climate justice act now" and "eco collapse".

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(

The protestors were a mixture of males and females with the majority stripped down to their underwear and glued themselves to the glass.

They were stood at the front of gallery as shocked members of the public watched on.

The protesters had Extinction Rebellion logos painted on their bodies, while some wore masks and body paint.

Police arrived and began carrying protesters out of the chamber after they appeared to refuse to leave voluntarily.

Extinction Rebellion, which describes itself as a non-violent direct action and civil disobedience group, claimed responsibility for the protest.

It wrote on Twitter: "Extinction Rebellion activists strip off in House of Commons public gallery to call attention to the 'elephant in the room' - climate and ecological crisis."

An Extinction Rebellion spokesman said the naked protest was an effort "to try and force the issue up the news agenda as far as possible so it breaks through the Brexit Radar".

It added: "They have gone in there knowing they will be arrested. They are willingly doing this.”

Meanwile one of the naked protesters, said: "A bunch of people glued themselves to the window in the public gallery.

"Everyone stripped and two people were elephants and had climate crisis written on them.

"We were pointing at them as the elephants in the room of the Brexit debate."

The protest took place as MPs considered the second stage of the Brexit alternatives.
Brexit: Nick Boles jokes about naked protesters in the Commons

Speaker John Bercow maintained that the debate would proceed despite the protest.

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Look past the naked protesters, look at the almost empty house of commons is supposed to be debating Brexit. No wonder Brexit negotiations are at a standstill with so few of our ELECTED MPs turning up to discuss the issues

Conservative MP Nick Boles found the funny side of the incident and told the Commons: "It has long been a thoroughly British trait to be able to ignore pointless nakedness.”

Meanwhile Tory Brexiteer Andrea Jenkyns wrote on Twitter: "My god, naked protesters in the chamber! No! there will not be a clothes shortage with No-Deal!

The Met Police has confirmed 12 protestors have been arrested for outraging public decency.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics ... parliament

Police should try arresting murderers

[Anthea]

23rd horse dies in three months
at Santa Anita after racing accident

Another horse dies at the Santa Anita race track: 23rd thoroughbred is killed in just three months, but authorities insist the California course is safe

Arms Runner injured his right leg after a two-horse spill at the San Simeon Stakes at the Southern California track on Sunday leading to him being euthanized

The other horse in the fall, La Sardane, was able to walk off the track under her own power and suffered no injuries following the accident

The race was the first at the track since it closed on March 3 so officials could inspect and renovate as the deaths have brought criticism from activists

A two-horse spill in the $100,000 San Simeon Stakes at Santa Anita on Sunday led to the 23rd equine fatality at the Southern California track in just over three months.

Footage from the race posted by the activist group PETA shows Arms Runner injure his right front leg and fall in the Grade 3 race on turf causing a trailing horse, La Sardane, to go down as well.

La Sardane, a five-year-old mare was able to get back on her feet and walk back to her barn under her own power. She didn't sustain any injuries, according to a statement issued by the track.

The accident occurred only two days after Santa Anita reopened after it was closed for nearly a month as the park looked into the spate of fatalities.

Arms Runner and Martin Pedroza race in the San Gabriel Stakes at Santa Anita Park on January 05, 2019 in Arcadia, California . The horse was euthanized after another fatal accident at the park on Sunday

A few horses and riders are seen on the track while members of the California Horse Racing Board weigh new safety and medication rules in the wake of multiple horse deaths at Santa Anita Park, in Arcadia, California, March 28

Jockey Ruben Fuentes who rode La Sardane didn't ride the rest of the day. He was a late replacement for scheduled rider Joel Rosario.

Arms Runner was tended to by track veterinarians and vanned off. Track stewards said the horse trained by Peter Miller was euthanized. Arms Runner had three wins in 13 career starts and earnings of $125,292, according to Equibase.

The accident occurred as the horses crossed the dirt surface during the transition from the hillside turf course to the main turf course.

The majority of the fatalities at the Arcadia track since Dec. 26 have occurred on the main dirt surface.

Arms Runner injured his right front leg and fell in the Grade 3 race causing trailing horse, La Sardane, to fall as well. The five-year-old mare was able to get back on her feet and walk back to her barn under her own power

Samples and measurements are taken on the sand track at Santa Anita Racetrack in Arcadia, California on March 7, having started in response to a recent spate of horse deaths

'While this incident happened during competition on a track that has been deemed by independent experts to be safe, we are working closely with the California Horse Racing Board to understand if there was anything additional that we could have done to prevent today's tragedy,' according to a statement issued by the track.

'Today's incident speaks to the larger issue of catastrophic injuries in horse racing that The Stronach Group together with our industry stakeholders are working to solve throughout California and across the country.'

The track closed March 3 so officials could inspect and renovate the dirt surface after the series of fatalities that have drawn national attention outside the sport and criticism from animal rights groups.

PETA animal rights activists protested the death of 22 horses at the Santa Anita Racetrack on March 14. The activists called on the Los Angeles District Attorney to open a criminal investigation, while the racetrack suspended racing while it is investigated the incidents

Track officials have not announced a singular cause for the unusual number of deaths.

The Stronach Group, which owns Santa Anita, announced an immediate reduction in the amount of anti-bleeding medication Lasix allowed on race days. The California Horse Racing Board approved the measure and it took effect Friday.

A proposed rule that would eliminate the use of whips, except in cases where a horse's or jockey's safety is involved, still requires the approval of various state agencies.

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