thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--Harvey Weinstein's Trial Has Begun. Here's What You Need To Know

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In a few weeks, Harvey Weinstein could be handed down a life sentence.
As his rape trial began in earnest on Wednesday, it remained an open question how the former Hollywood mogul would answer for the kind of accusations that kicked off the Me Too movement more than two years ago. Prosecutors have spent almost the same amount of time building a case against Weinstein in New York state, where he currently stands accused of multiple counts of rape.
Opening statements from both sides followed a weeks-long jury selection process that was, at times, quite tense. Almost right from the start, Weinstein sparked anger from New York State Supreme Court Judge James Burke for appearing in court with four cellphones in violation of a no-phone rule that applied to everyone in the room.
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Despite Weinstein’s attorney’s best efforts to get a new judge and a new venue by claiming that the current ones were hopelessly biased, the trial will proceed as planned in lower Manhattan. Yet Weinstein seemed optimistic.
Asked Wednesday whether he thought he would have a fair trial, he responded, “Of course.”
Here’s what you need to know about the case.
Harvey Weinstein arrives at the Manhattan Criminal Court on Jan. 22 for opening arguments in his rape and sexual assault trial in New York City. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images) TIMOTHY A. CLARY via Getty Images
What is Weinstein accused of doing?
The case centres on two women and two separate incidents.
On March 18, 2013, a woman whose identity has not been made public says Weinstein trapped her at a DoubleTree hotel in midtown Manhattan and raped her. Court documents state that Weinstein held her “physically against her will in a room and engaged in sexual intercourse with [her] by forcible compulsion,” adding that “at the time of the incident [she] had clearly expressed her lack of consent to the act.”
On July 10, 2006, former production assistant Mimi Haleyi says Weinstein forced her to accept oral sex at his Manhattan townhouse. She had worked on a TV series produced by The Weinstein Company and was eager to have a professional relationship with Weinstein due to his status in the industry. The alleged assault came after months of romantic advances by Weinstein that she declined; at one point, Haleyi says, Weinstein barged into her apartment and begged her to go on a trip to Paris with him.
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Haleyi read a statement about the assault during an October 2017 press conference alongside her attorney, Gloria Allred, who also represents the anonymous victim. After Weinstein returned from Paris, Haleyi said, he invited her to his home on the pretense of business but quickly overpowered her physically.
“He then orally forced himself on me, while I was on my period. He even pulled my tampon out. I was mortified. I was in disbelief and disgusted,” she said at the time. She added: “I remember Harvey rolling over and saying, ‘Don’t you feel like we’re so much closer now?’”
What are the charges against Weinstein?
Weinstein faces five felony counts, including two counts of predatory sexual assault, which each carry a maximum penalty of life behind bars.
One other felony count, relating to a 2004 incident, was dismissed in October 2018 because of a procedural mistake by prosecutors.
How does Weinstein respond?
Not guilty.
Weinstein’s team argues that all of his sexual activity was consensual, and they are expected to paint his accusers as attention-seeking liars.
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One of his attorneys, Donna Rotunno, began doing so late last year when she told ABC News, “If you don’t want to be a victim, don’t go to the hotel room.” Rotunno faced more accusations of victim-blaming earlier this month when she told Vanity Fair that she felt “women may rue the day that all of this started when no one asks them out on a date, and no one holds the door open for them, and no one tells them that they look nice.”
Judge Burke will allow the defence to describe ― but not show ― “dozens of loving emails” from his accusers in an attempt to “undercut” prosecutors’ arguments, according to Weinstein attorney Damon Cheronis.
Advocates for sexual assault survivors, however, say it is not uncommon for women stay in friendly contact with an abuser, or to struggle to break off contact, when the abuser holds a position of power over them.
What does the jury look like?
For starters, Gigi Hadid is not one of them. (Yes, she was called.)
The jury consists of seven men, six who are white and one who is black, along with five women, of whom two are white and three are of colour. There are also three alternate jurors: two women and one man.
The lack of white women, the demographic many of Weinstein’s accusers share, was a point of contention during jury selection, with lead prosecutor Joan Illuzzi accused the defence of trying to “systematically” eliminate every one.
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Jurors were not dismissed if they’d ever heard the name Harvey Weinstein, but Judge Burke asked them to do some soul-searching and ask themselves whether they could remain fair arbiters of justice.
Who’s going to be called to testify?
Good question! A full list has not yet been made public.
Earlier this month, actors Salma Hayek and Charlize Theron were named among 90 potential witnesses who could be called to the stand or mentioned in testimony.
The judge previously cleared the way for prosecutors to use an accusation from “Sopranos” actor Anabella Sciorra to bolster their Class A felony charges, considering that the accusation itself is too old to be prosecuted under state law. It is not clear whether Sciorra will testify. She alleged in a New Yorker article that, around 1993 or 1994, Weinstein chased her around her Manhattan apartment and forcibly performed oral sex on her.
Testimony from three other women is expected to be used to establish a criminal pattern; the unnamed women say they were assaulted by Weinstein in 2004, 2005 and 2013, respectively.
Will Weinstein himself take the stand?
Not likely.
Is he being held in jail?
No. After his arrest on May 25, 2018, Weinstein was released on $1 million bail that was upped to $2 million late last year over accusations that he tampered with his electronic ankle monitor.
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He isn’t supposed to leave New York or Connecticut, though. According to The New York Times, Weinstein has spent the bulk of the months leading up to his trial holed up in a rented Manhattan apartment, “reading books, watching streamed TV shows, Googling himself and nervously obsessing about the outcome of his trial.”
What’s up with the walker?
Weinstein’s attorneys say he needed it after having back surgery for injuries sustained in a car crash in August 2019. Inside Edition cast doubt on that story with a December report claiming first responders at the scene of the accident did not find anyone injured there; Weinstein said the pain had grown worse over time.
How long is this all going to last?
After jury selection, the trial is supposed to last around six weeks.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--Labour Chief Karie Murphy Took City Break In Vienna Weekend Before General Election

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Jeremy Corbyn with Karie Murphy after the 2017 general election PA Archive/PA Images
Jeremy Corbyn’s chief of staff Karie Murphy went on a European city break just days before the general election, HuffPost UK can reveal.
Murphy, who led Labour’s election team at its party HQ, was in Vienna in Austria with a close friend during the final weekend of the campaign, multiple sources have alleged.
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They claim she was not present in the office for key strategy meetings at the party’s HQ on the Saturday before the poll itself on December 12.
Murphy insists she only took one full day off in the final 15 days of the campaign – as “personal, private weekend time” – and during her absence joined meetings by phone on a conference call. She says she was “physically” in the office on the Sunday in question.
It is understood that she told colleagues she was “off” on the Saturday.
But with many activists and candidates on the doorstep launching a last-ditch effort to persuade voters to back Labour that weekend, her decision to leave the country was met with disbelief by several party insiders.
“It was incredible. Unbelievable,” one party source said. “The weekend before the election and she’s not here.”
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Another party staffer added: “Taking herself off to Vienna in the final week of the campaign was a slap in the face not only to Jeremy but to every staffer who worked round the clock, including weekends, and to every party member who put their heart and soul into campaigning to put Jeremy in Downing Street.”
Former Ed Miliband aide Stewart Wood said that, in his opinion, if a figure like Murphy had been absent days before the election: “It would be extraordinary for someone senior in a campaign not to be in the country during the weekend before a general election, unless there was a very good reason for their absence.
“Anything can happen in a campaign and a senior figure being abroad, even if they try and work remotely, is an extra risk you don’t need.
“Labour was in such a vulnerable position, it would be remarkable if key strategists were not spending every waking moment focused on the election so close to polling day.”
Karie Murphy, Jeremy Corbyn's chief of staff Kirsty O'Connor - PA Images via Getty Images
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As soon as the snap election had been called in October, party workers had been told that annual leave would be cancelled for all but exceptional cases. Some lower-ranking staff were forced to cancel flights and accommodation they had booked months before.
Murphy insists that her absence was not an issue of annual leave and that weekends should not be conflated with “normal working hours”.
Her lawyers told HuffPost UK: “Ms Murphy was not required to be in any location during a weekend; however, she personally chose to be in her office on the Sunday for work purposes.”
Murphy has been heavily criticised for her role in Labour’s election disaster, but is reportedly on Corbyn’s list of possible nominations for the party’s new peers in the House of Lords.
She was given the job of effectively overseeing the election campaign after being moved from the leader’s office to party HQ in the autumn. The shift followed deep unease among some close to Corbyn at the way she was managing his office.
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During the election campaign, she would lead the daily morning strategy meetings, held at 7.30am on weekdays and 8am on weekends, at the party’s Southside headquarters in Victoria.
The meetings were attended by a tight-knit group of senior figures, including Corbyn’s policy chief Andrew Fisher, communications lead Seumas Milne, shadow chancellor John McDonnell and campaign co-ordinators Ian Lavery and Andrew Gwynne. The strategy group’s daily instructions were passed down through the Labour HQ chain of command.
But the weekend before the election, party insiders were stunned to discover that Murphy was out of the country, having left for Vienna on Friday – the same day Corbyn took part in the final live TV debate of the campaign.
“The people round the table knew she was abroad,” one source said. “She wasn’t at Southside.”
Murphy insists she was not part of the team that briefed or debriefed the leader for the BBC debate on Friday.
One insider said: “She was definitely missing from key meetings near the end of the campaign because she was away.”
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Only a small number of party figures were aware that the Labour leader’s chief of staff was out of the country, and didn’t want to undermine the party’s campaign by going public.
Once the election was called, a note sent to staff had warned: “If any of you have already booked leave during the election period, we will discuss these cases individually but in general we will expect staff to cancel leave.”
The note added that staff would be reimbursed for holidays booked in advance “subject to evidence”, but any such move would be on a case by case and “based on the cost, the period of leave and the election role they play”.
As word of her absence spread, several staff and MPs were less than pleased that Murphy was overseas that weekend.
“Frankly, by that stage, nothing surprised me,” one senior figure said. “That was the icing on the cake.”
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Many party insiders and MPs remain furious that Murphy stuck stubbornly to the strategy of putting resources into targeting Tory seats rather than switching to defend those “red wall” constituencies that looked vulnerable.
The senior figure added: “Her influence was there throughout the campaign – this refusal to acknowledge polling and focus groups and information coming back from the regional offices, all of which were saying exactly the same thing.
“If you challenged that, you were told: ‘The polls are wrong – we need to be on the offensive because we are in it to win the election.’ And if you were even slightly suggesting a change of strategy is needed, you were told: ‘You don’t want to win – you’re against the project.’
“It’s not how an election should ever be run. The aim should have been to deprive Johnson of a majority. There was no way with a Brexit election we could ever win and the public were saying that. The best we could have done was to hold on to as much as possible. Rather than having a strategy of 80 offensive seats and 20 defensive seats, it should have been the other way round.”
Jeremy Corbyn and his wife Laura Alvarez on polling day in the 2019 election SIPA USA/PA Images
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One senior insider told HuffPost UK the initial relief at seeing Murphy moved from the leader’s office in the autumn quickly gave way to a growing realisation that she had been given a more powerful role than ever at the party’s HQ.
“I just wish John McDonnell had seen the task through. Getting her out of the leader’s office was only half the task. Putting her in Southside was a big mistake because she then had a power structure where it matters most – in an election. With disastrous consequences.
“At the start of the campaign we had a big MRP poll showing we were probably heading towards a big [Tory] majority of about 100. It did narrow over the course of the campaign – by the end it was predicting a Tory majority of about 90, which wasn’t far off from what we eventually ended up with.
“The first MRP poll we had was the Sunday of Labour conference and that was even worse. It was a Tory majority of about 150. If you just spoke up and said: ‘I’m concerned about it,’ you were ridiculed, told: ‘That’s just nonsense.’ It was soul destroying.”
However, Murphy’s allies counter that she did listen to the feedback and devoted more resources to defensive seats as the campaign progressed. They stress that the Tory poll lead did narrow during the campaign, but say Labour had to approach the election attempting to win it, and that meant targeting Conservative seats.
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Supporters of Murphy also say that the bigger issue was Labour’s Brexit policy, which was not balanced enough, early enough.
In response to questions from HuffPost UK, Murphy’s lawyer said that she “worked tirelessly on the 2019 election, which meant she worked unsociable hours and at weekends including the weekend prior to polling day.“
The lawyer said: “Ms Murphy was working throughout the weekend in question. She worked the weekend, attending strategy meetings at 8.30am and 6.30pm on both days. Ms Murphy was physically in her office on the Sunday in question.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--MPs Reject Protections For Lone Child Refugees In Brexit Bill

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MPs have voted to leave protections for lone child refugees out of Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal.
It came after peers defeated the government to reinsert guarantees around the right of unaccompanied child refugees to family reunion in the UK after Brexit.
The prime minister refused to back down to the Lords’ demands, overturning by 342 votes to 254, a majority of 88, the amendment proposed by Lord Dubs, who himself came to the UK as a child refugee fleeing the Nazis on a Kindertransport.
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Lord Dubs had asked MPs to “show what they’re made of” and back his amendment to ensure ministers negotiated a continuation of the right of lone child refugees, based in Europe after fleeing war or persecution, to be reunited with family members in the UK after Brexit.
I am enormously grateful to the Lords and of course to the public who have been so supportive of the moral argument for providing safe routes for children to be reunited with their families here. It's now the turn of the Commons to show what they're made of. https://t.co/bP1o65snYT — Alf Dubs (@AlfDubs) January 21, 2020
Ministers have repeatedly promised Lord Dubs they would maintain the same rights after Brexit but stressed that they did not want their hands tied on a future relationship with the EU ahead of the second stage of Brexit negotiations.
Brexit secretary Steve Barclay told the Commons: “Primary legislation cannot deliver the best outcomes for these children as it cannot guarantee that we reach an agreement and that is why this is ultimately a matter which must be negotiated with the EU and the government is committed to seeking the best possible outcome in those negotiations.”
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Several MPs, however, backed Lord Dubs’ insistence that the government cannot be trusted on its pledge.
Labour chair of the home affairs committee in the last parliament Yvette Cooper said: “That is what makes us all suspicious, that he [Barclay] wants to remove it [from the bill] because there’s some reason why he thinks it will restrict what he wants to do and therefore that he’s going to, in the end, betray the commitments that have been made to the most vulnerable children of all.
“If he won’t, keep it in the act.”
Shadow Brexit minister Thangam Debbonaire added: “This government has asked us to trust them and on all of these matters. Why should we need to rely on trust?
“We are lawmakers. Why not include this in the legislation? After all, the prime minister has changed his mind many times on many things.”
She added: “The government’s predecessor government has got form on this, promising to take 3,000 children on the Dubs scheme, as originally committed to, and taking fewer than 500 in the end.”
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Global children’s charity Unicef urged the government to replicate the approach to child refugees provided for by EU rules, known as Dublin III.
Afghan children ride their bicycles in a makeshift migrants camp near Calais, France, in 2016. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liam Sollis, head of policy at Unicef UK, said: “The UK leaving the EU at the end of this month should not leave vulnerable children without recourse to family reunion.
“The government assure us that their position on family reunion for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children has not changed and we welcome the actions taken thus far to ensure Dublin III forms part of ongoing negotiations with the EU.
“It’s vital that UK’s own domestic rules are amended to replicate Dublin III and ensure that all refugee children, irrespective of where they are in the world, have the right to join extended family living in the UK.
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“Unicef UK urges the government to ensure vulnerable unaccompanied refugee children have a safe and legal route to extended family members such as aunts, uncles and grandparents living here in the UK.”
The bill will now return to the Lords in a round of parliamentary “ping-pong”.
The government has already overturned a Lords defeat on the right of EU workers legally residing in the UK to have physical proof of their right to remain, and has also done the same with the power of courts to depart from European Court of Justice rulings.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--Terry Jones Remembered By Monty Python Co-Stars John Cleese And Michael Palin

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John Cleese has led the tributes to his former Monty Python co-star Terry Jones, following the news of his death.
On Wednesday, it was confirmed that Terry had died at the age of 77, following what his family described as “a long, extremely brave but always good humoured battle” with a rare form of dementia.
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Reacting to the news, John paid his respects on his Twitter to his late friend’s “many talents” and “endless enthusiasm”.
He tweeted: “Just heard about Terry J… it feels strange that a man of so many talents and such endless enthusiasm, should have faded so gently away.
“Of his many achievements, for me the greatest gift he gave us all was his direction of Life Of Brian. Perfection.”
The Monty Python troupe pictured in 2014 Nils Jorgensen/Shutterstock
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John also tweeted “two down, four to go”, referring to the fact that Terry is the second of the six members of Monty Python to die:
Just heard about Terry J
It feels strange that a man of so many talents and such endless enthusiasm, should have faded so gently away...
Of his many achievements, for me the greatest gift he gave us all was his direction of 'Life of Brian'. Perfection
Two down, four to go — John Cleese (@JohnCleese) January 22, 2020
Meanwhile, co-star Michael Palin told the BBC: “Terry was one of my closest, most valued friends. He was kind, generous, supportive and passionate about living life to the full.
“He was far more than one of the funniest writer-performers of his generation, he was the complete Renaissance comedian - writer, director, presenter, historian, brilliant children’s author, and the warmest, most wonderful company you could wish to have.”
Terry Jones, pictured in 2015 Kristina Bumphrey/Starpix/Shutterstock
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A number of other stars from the world of comedy and entertainment have paid their respects, including Stephen Fry and Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker:
Farewell, Terry Jones. The great foot has come down to stamp on you. My god what pleasure you gave, what untrammelled joy and delight. What a wonderful talent, heart and mind — Stephen Fry (@stephenfry) January 22, 2020
RIP the actual genius Terry Jones. Far too many brilliant moments to choose from. Here’s one random wafer-thin mint. https://t.co/qMrR9aOV9s — Charlie Brooker (@charltonbrooker) January 22, 2020
We're saddened to hear of the passing of Terry Jones. Here he is receiving the Special Award For Outstanding Contribution to Film & Television from friend and fellow Python Michael Palin, at the 2016 @BAFTACymru Awards. pic.twitter.com/iQGLTWIQyL — BAFTA (@BAFTA) January 22, 2020
Thank you Terry for a lifetime of laughter. pic.twitter.com/Z1dqfNklJ9 — David Walliams (@davidwalliams) January 22, 2020
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The Beatles of comedy. pic.twitter.com/7ZwajMIzy4 — David Walliams (@davidwalliams) January 22, 2020
RIP Terry Jones 💔 pic.twitter.com/Icea9jhuTp — Nicola Coughlan (@nicolacoughlan) January 22, 2020
The influence of Monty Python and reading this book was the catalyst for me applying to drama school, thank you Terry Jones for inspiring so many of us ❤ pic.twitter.com/TZAsr6L9i2 — Nicola Coughlan (@nicolacoughlan) January 22, 2020
So sorry about Terry Jones. Just a very, very, very funny man. And a kind, thoughtful, interesting, and curious one too. What a great body of work he has left though. #TerryJones — Katy Brand (@KatyFBrand) January 22, 2020
News that arrives like a punch to the gut. Thanks for making us laugh so much, Terry. https://t.co/v5W9KyO14I — David Schneider (@davidschneider) January 22, 2020
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Remembering Terry Jones, pictured below at Elstree Studios. Jones was an Actor, Director, Comedy creative & part of the iconic Monty Python cast. He portrayed of some of the films' most memorable characters including in The Meaning of Life (1983) which was made at Elstree. pic.twitter.com/FGULLIBAIj — Elstree Studios (@ElstreeStudios) January 22, 2020
Lovely Terry Jones, the heart of Python. Ripping Yarns remains so gloriously funny, and Bert Fegg's Nasty Book For Boys & Girls made me laugh like a small fool when I was eight. Very sad to see him go. — Simon Blackwell (@simonblackwell) January 22, 2020
Terry was one of the founding members of the Monty Python, with whom he would go on to appear in films like Life Of Brian and The Meaning Of Life, which he directed, as well as starring in.
In 2014, he and his co-stars reunited for a string of shows at London’s O2 Arena.
The following year, Terry was diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia, a form of dementia which affects communication.
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He revealed in an interview that he’d first grown concerns while rehearsing for Monty Python’s O2 shows, as he’d struggled to remember his lines.
By 2016, he was no longer giving interviews to the press. A year later, co-star Michael Palin revealed that Terry no longer had the ability to speak as a result of his condition.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--PM Accused Of 'Punishing' Greggs Workers As Universal Credit Rules Swallow 75% Of Sausage Roll Bonus

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Boris Johnson was accused of backing “punishing” Universal Credit rules that left Universal Credit claimants working at Greggs only able to keep £75 of a £300 bonus.
Around 25,000 staff at the pastry chain have been given the pay boost to celebrate the success of its new vegan sausage roll, which saw sales jump 13% last year.
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But because of a combination of tax and welfare regulations, some claimants working part-time at the bakers’ could only receive 25% of the bonus.
Taking Johnson to task at prime minister’s questions on Wednesday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the “mind numbingly complex” rules for the government’s flagship benefit were leaving workers out of pocket as he challenged the PM to take action.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves 10 Downing Street, London, for the House of Commons for Prime Minister's Questions. PA Wire/PA Images
He accused the Tory leader of using “unbelievable” energy to protect bankers’ bonuses, but when it came to benefit claimants austerity was “baked in”.
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“If the prime minister can answer that question and show me that’s just and fair, I’ll buy him a vegan roll from Greggs myself.”
He said the “first aim of Universal Credit” was to “make work pay”, and added: “But when low-paid workers can’t even keep their own bonuses, it’s clear the government is punishing not supporting people.”
Johnson insisted Universal Credit, which has been hit with a torrent of criticism since its introduction, was helping people into work.
He said: “Under this government people on low pay will be able to keep more of the money that they earn and it is this government that is cutting National Insurance contributions for everybody in the country, it is this government that is increasing the living wage and it was Mr Corbyn who voted against tax cuts for the low paid to the tune of £7,800.”
The Trussell Trust charity, which operates foodbanks across the country, has said that Universal Credit is the main reason people were unable to pay for food.
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Torsten Bell, the chief executive of the Resolution Foundation think tank, told The Guardian: “Workers on Universal Credit could lose up to £225 of their £300 cash bonus.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--The White House Mixed Up Iran And Iraq In A YouTube Video And Took An Hour To Notice

A screenshot from the video uploaded by the White House's official YouTube account YouTube
Let’s be honest, Donald Trump isn’t known for being the most tactful diplomat when it comes to international relations.
But the leader of the free world wasn’t exactly helped out by the White House’s social media team, who apparently confused Iran with Iraq when posting a video of a bilateral meeting on Wednesday.
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The video showed Trump in a sit-down with Iraqi president Barham Salih at the World Economic Forum in Davos. It was titled “President Trump Participates in a Bilateral Meeting with the President of the Republic of Iran”.
Hassan Rouhani remains the *actual* president of Iran.
It didn’t take long for people to notice the White House’s gaffe – though the video was not corrected for at least an hour after it was posted.
Iran and Iraq are in fact two very separate countries that spent much of the 1980s at war with each other.
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What’s more, any public meeting between Trump and an Iranian leader is pretty unlikely right now.
Tensions between the US and Iran are higher than they have been in years after Iran’s military leader Qassem Soleimani was assassinated in an attacked signed off by Trump. The incident saw Iran launch counter missile strikes against US bases in Iraq.
Donald Trump in Davos, Switzerland JIM WATSON via Getty Images
During the meeting with Salih, Trump told reporters he had a “whole host of very difficult things to discuss” with the Iraqi president.
The president added that “we’ve been friends and the relationship is good.”
Meanwhile, Salih said he was looking forward to a “very fruitful and candid conversation” with Trump.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--Rebecca's 'Contraceptive Patch' On Love Island Is The Sex-Positive Message We Need

©ITV Rebecca Gormley makes her Love Island entrance.
She walked into the villa looking like a Greek goddess – and immediately got the boys’ hearts racing – literally.
Rocking a white leotard, gold bangles and impossibly bouncy hair, Rebecca Gormley accessorised her Love Island entrance outfit with a tiny square patch on her thigh. It didn’t go unnoticed by viewers.
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The square is thought to be a contraceptive patch – a small patch that can be stuck on to the skin to release hormones into your body that prevent pregnancy.
ITV ITV
While some on Twitter praised the 21-year-old for looking after her own sexual health, others poked fun at the patch, with a strong dose of slut-shaming underpinning many of the comments.
“Guess we know what she’s come to the villa for,” an unofficial Love Island account tweeted. “So you want to bang, yeah?” another account added, alongside a laughing emoji.
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Rebecca wearing a birth control patch, guess we know what she's come to the villa for lol. #LoveIsland pic.twitter.com/Vz9URLMiih — Love Island ⤴ (@L0oveIsland) January 21, 2020
For starters, we’re not sure why viewers are shocked by the idea that a woman – on Love Island, of all shows – may want to have sex. But that aside, there are many benefits to the contraceptive patch and by wearing it so unashamedly, Rebecca is encouraging the show’s young audience to ask questions about it and get clued up.
When used correctly, the patch is more than 99% effective at preventing pregnancy, according to the NHS. Each patch lasts for one week – you change the patch every week for three weeks, then have a week off (a bit like the contraceptive pill). But unlike the pill, you don’t have to think about the patch every day, which is perfect if you tend to forget your pill and it’s still effective if you’re sick or have diarrhoea. It can also be worn in the bath or when swimming, so there’s no chance of muddling it up on holiday.
How great if Rebecca feels empowered to publicly look after her sexual health –though many women choose the pill or patch even when they’re not planning to have sex, as both methods of contraception can make your periods more regular, lighter and less painful.
It’s also worth mentioning that getting the patch does not protect against STIs. Love Island execs were quick to tell HuffPost UK: “The villa is supplied with condoms to encourage safe and responsible sex.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-22--Lisa Nandy Through To Final Round Of Labour Leadership Contest

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Labour leadership candidate Lisa Nandy has secured her place on the final ballot, having won the endorsement of two unions and one affiliate group.
The MP for Wigan joined frontrunner Keir Starmer in the next round on Wednesday, after the Chinese for Labour organisation threw its support behind her.
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She already has the backing of the GMB union and National Union of Mineworkers.
Labour MP Sarah Owen, the chair of Chinese for Labour, said the group had been impressed with Nandy’s “call to properly examine why seats that have always voted Labour have gone Tory for the first time”.
Owen said the group, which also backed Dawn Butler for deputy leader today, could “not miss this opportunity to endorse two strong BAME women”.
“Only in power can Labour make the radical changes that are so desperately needed for our towns and communities. We believe that Lisa is the right candidate to take us there,” she said in a statement.
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Nandy said: “As someone of mixed heritage, I’m incredibly proud that it is Chinese for Labour who have secured my place on the ballot paper.
“They do incredibly important work to ensure we are a representative and inclusive party that can truly speak for modern Britain.
“I’m now looking forward to getting out intro the country and laying out my vision for reuniting the party, rebuilding trust, and returning Labour to power at the next election.”
Nandy also received a boost earlier today when Jess Phillips, who dropped out of the contest yesterday, backed her to succeed Jeremy Corbyn.
Rebecca Long-Bailey, the favourite of the current party leadership, has not yet made it onto the ballot but is expected to easily proceed to the next round.
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However Emily Thornberry appears to so far be struggling to win the backing required.
To make it onto the final ballot, candidates have to win the backing of three Labour affiliates - including at least two trade unions.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Twitter Users Debate Whether Prince Charles Really Snubbed Mike Pence

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Call it “snub-gate” (actually, call it anything but that), but a new video shows Prince Charles walking straight past US vice president Mike Pence without shaking his hand.
The video above was captured at the start of a World Holocaust Forum at the Yad Vashem memorial centre in Jerusalem on Thursday.
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It shows the British royal walking to his seat, shaking the hand of one person and then walking past Pence and barely making eye contact before warmly greeting Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Many people on Twitter assumed Prince Charles was snubbing the US vice president, making for a juicy international scandal.
However, Pence’s press secretary, Katie Waldman, insisted that was not the case and tweeted a photo prior to the event showing the pair in convivial conversation.
This is not true. VP and Prince Charles spoke prior to entering the event floor and after his remarks as well. https://t.co/Qr79TN42Ax pic.twitter.com/LhsQVtHMRF — Katie Waldman (@VPPressSec) January 23, 2020
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One Twitter user was convinced she knew a snub when she saw one, but later noted that Pence had “tapped chuck on the arm.”
Explain video? I don't care for Charles I care for our @VP Our VP even had his hand out for a shake and boney butt walked past him as well snubbing VP's assistant. — Grace Vasquez (@itsYourGrace) January 23, 2020
well taking another look... it does appear charles shook with his left hand vp press sec left hand and then @VP tapped chuck on the arm... so... had they already said hello? Maybe. Still from a quick view of video looks like a snub. — Grace Vasquez (@itsYourGrace) January 23, 2020
But others felt the video was more likely to be truthful than a member of the Trump administration.
yea, that's why pence has his hand out and charles walks right by while glaring at him — Ian (@ianjay_) January 23, 2020
Their meeting prior to entering the event floor went so well that Charles refused to shake Pence's hand! — David Spivak ⚾ (@dsspivak) January 23, 2020
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Prince Charles met with Netanyahu also but gives him a hearty handshake! — Yoel Goldman (@yoelisaak) January 23, 2020
At least one person was offended enough to call for Charles’ removal from the line of succession.
EVEN IF Prince Charles had spoken to @VP prior to entering the event floor, not shaking his hand or even acknowledging him in the line speaks volumes of what's on Charles' mind!#QueenElizabeth must remove him from the order of succession and pass the crown to Prince William!!! pic.twitter.com/YgijHvJIdy — The King Peter Fox (@PeterFo19881835) January 23, 2020
But others took the Prince’s side.
Why would Prince Charles shake the hand of someone covering up for Trump's denying of aid to Ukraine while they were in the middle of a hot war with Russia? The future of Europe was put directly at risk by Pence and Trump. — Ken Winnick (@visualcognetics) January 23, 2020
Nah, Prince Charles knows the power of the media and public perception. He skipped him to send a message. — 🍑Progressive Un-Boomer🍑 (@NHRunningLady) January 23, 2020
Prince Charles showing us the proper way to greet a fascist like Mike Pence!🔥pic.twitter.com/sxoc8YShnr — Ryan Knight 🏳🌈 🗽 (@ProudResister) January 23, 2020
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And one Twitter user saw the exchange as the harbinger of things to come.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Why The UK’s 5G Decision On Huawei Is A Key Test Of Johnsonism

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Who’s the GAFA?
The Withdrawal Agreement Bill finally received Royal Assent tonight with a perfunctory announcement in the House of Lords, and a similarly muted confirmation in the Commons. For Brexiteers, it’s been a long, long time coming and the celebrations and fireworks are clearly being saved up for ‘Independence Day’ at the end of the month.
As he looks ahead to the rest of 2020, Boris Johnson is naturally being depicted as the man who will tilt the UK’s axis away from Europe and towards the US. But I wonder if he will once again surprise us all?
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It’s not the narrative he will ever like, but Johnson’s ‘Brexit breakthrough’ of 2019 was as much down to him caving in to Brussels as it was him standing up to Brussels. You don’t have to be a Remainer to see that the EU got its way on a border in the Irish Sea, and the PM acquiesced in order to get a deal. He talked tough on Northern Ireland, but in the end (as the DUP found to their cost) what trumped everything was his belief that the national interest lay in just ending the logjam of the past three years.
And as he weighs up his relations with the US, will similarly hard-headed British interests come out on top? On Huawei, will the apparent fawning over Donald Trump be replaced by a realpolitik that the Chinese company suits British needs, no matter how loudly Washington objects?
No.10 made clear today that a decision on allowing Huawei limited access to the UK’s 5G network was coming next week. The diplomatically easy thing for Johnson would have been to delayed the review yet again, but it’s clear that he doesn’t want anything to get in the way of his election promise to roll out ‘gigabit’ broadband across the country.
And just like last week, Downing Street sources were remarkably bullish about defying Trump’s repeated warnings that if the UK doesn’t ban Huawei it risks losing shared intelligence. It seems that Britain’s patience has finally run out. Having asked Silicon Valley to find some kind of new tech that would rival the Chinese offer, all the government got was a shrug of the shoulders. “The market conditions are not the same in the US and UK,” the source said. “You could call it a market failure, but we are where we are.” Damning stuff.
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The Times’ well-connected Gerard Baker revealed today that cabinet secretary Sir Mark Sedwill ‘erupted’ in a meeting last week when American officials tried to tell him of some ‘new’ dossier on Huawei. Sedwill, who is also the national security adviser, knows better than most that British intelligence chiefs have long believed the Huawei risk (they have been monitoring it for years) is manageable. And the Treasury knows that the cost of banning the firm would run into billions.
As it happens, on our Commons People podcast this week Tory MP Bim Afolami (who stressed he had no intelligence background) put succinctly what may end up being the government’s case next week: “The core question from my perspective is if it isn’t Huawei, then who is it and how much does it cost and is it possible?”
Afolami added this: “We can’t just not do something because the Americans don’t like it. We have to make our own decision and if our spooks, who are some of the finest in the world who have the interests of this country at heart think it can be done in a safe way then I can’t really see why not.” Not so much Love Actually, but Bim actually.
Would Trump try to use the UK-US post-Brexit trade deal to gain leverage? Well, if he has, it looks like that hasn’t succeeded. Many in Whitehall now expect the Huawei green light next week. Could it be that the Johnson government is less scared of Trump than many think? Yes he needs some kind of transatlantic trade deal (and wants to run it in parallel with EU trade talks). But Trump also needs Johnson to provide a smiley endorsement on the White House lawn this spring, to help his ‘world statesman’ credentials ahead of the presidential election in November.
A truly fawning British government wouldn’t keep insisting on a digital services tax either, with Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon (known as GAFA) all targeted. France’s own ‘GAFA tax’ provoked the threat of a wine levy from Trump. This week, US treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin warned Sajid Javid: “If people want to just arbitrarily put taxes on our digital companies we will consider arbitrarily putting taxes on car companies.” But Javid still insisted the UK would go ahead in April.
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Back in the 1980s, socialist workers in Britain used to sell their papers with the badge ‘neither Washington nor Moscow, but international socialism’. One can imagine allies of the PM wanting his own slogan to end up being ‘neither Washington nor Brussels, but ultra-national Johnsonism’. Stranger things have happened.
Quote Of The Day
“I categorically deny that I have ever bullied anyone, anywhere at any time.”
John Bercow on the latest claims from former Commons clerk Lord Lisvane
Thursday Cheat Sheet
Richard Ratcliffe, whose British-Iranian wife is jailed in Iran, said after a meeting with Boris Johnson that there has been “no breakthrough” in efforts to secure her release. The PM told him he is “personally committed” to her case and was “touched” when he gave him a wallet that his wife had made in prison.
John Bercow said that the government “has no intention of honouring the centuries-old convention that a departing Speaker is promptly elevated to the House of Lords”. No.10 said waspishly: “The Speaker was not always such a fan of convention.” Senior Tory MP Maria Miller told Newsnight his peerage nomination should be ‘put on ice’ pending investigation into bullying claims.
Sajid Javid tried to reassure business by telling a Davos meeting: “We won’t diverge [from EU regulation] just for the sake of it”.
What I’m Reading
Which Journalists Are Most Followed By MPs On Twitter - Politico
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This week, Tory MP Bim Afolami chats through the Labour leadership, Brexit, Huawei and the coming reshuffle. Click HERE.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Boris Johnson Meets With Husband and Daughter Of Detained Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe At Downing Stree

Boris Johnson Meets With Husband and Daughter Of Detained Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe At Downing Street
Boris Johnson met with the family of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who has spent almost four years in an Iranian prison. It is the first meeting with Richard Ratcliffe since Boris Johnson had to apologise over comments made to a select committee that contradicted what Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has said about her reasons for being in the country.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Holly Willoughby And Phillip Schofield Can't Stop Laughing Over Unfortunately-Named Doctor

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Holly Willoughby well and truly lost it during Thursday’s edition of This Morning, after being caught off guard during a segment about the various vaginal treatments promoted by Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop brand.
During the show, Holly and Phillip Schofield interviewed former Gogglebox stars Steph and Dom Parker for a feature titled “Has Gwyneth Gone Too Far”.
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Things started off on a serious enough note, with Phillip quoting a medical professional, who has discouraged women from going ahead with a vaginal steaming procedure that Goop has reported on in the past.
“The trouble is, it’s a myth, says Dr MacKay, that a vagina needs cleaning,” Phillip told Steph and Dom. “And if you do that [treatment], it can lead to infection, bacterial vaginosis, thrush, inflammation.”
It was not long before things took a ridiculous turn ITV
Things then descended into chaos when Phillip read out the name of the next medical professional that has criticised Goop-endorsed vaginal treatments.
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“Her most vocal critic, Dr Jen Gunter,” he began, to laughs from Holly and his guests. “[She] says the vagina jade eggs that Goop sell are a path to painful pelvic and toxic shock syndrome.”
“Hardly a laughing matter,” he added, while Holly, Steph and Dom continued their giggling.
Apparently Steph found something funny about the name Jan Gunter, but she didn't specify what ITV
However, it wasn’t enough to deter his co-presenter, whose laughs could be heard even as the segment continued.
During their tenure on This Morning, Holly and Phil have become renowned for getting the giggles while live on air, either over rude innuendos or other ridiculous moments.
Holly struggled to keep her composure ITV
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Just this month, in a somewhat more family-friendly moment, the pair struggled to keep their laughs in after awarding one guest with an all-expenses-paid trip to Edinburgh… only to discover she already lived there.
This Morning airs every weekday from 10.30am on ITV.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Church Of England Ridiculed For 'Sex Is Only For Married Heterosexual Couples' Guidance

JenAphotographer via Getty Images
The Church of England has been mocked after it was at pains to make clear that it believes sex should be reserved only for married heterosexual couples.
New guidance issued by bishops following the the introduction of mixed-sex civil partnerships states that Christians in gay or straight civil partnerships should stay away from sex.
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The new, opaque declaration refers to marriage as “the lifelong union between a man and a woman”, and says this “remains the proper context for sexual activity”.
The church seeks to “uphold that standard” in its approach to civil partnerships and believes that sexual relationships “outside heterosexual marriage are regarded as falling short of God’s purposes for human beings”.
What’s more, civil partnerships should be no more than “sexually abstinent friendships”.
“The introduction of same sex marriage [...] has not changed the church’s teaching on marriage or same sex relationships,” it underlines in the document referred to as a “pastoral statement”.
Same-sex civil partnerships have been legal since 2005 and same-sex marriage was introduced in 2013.
While the statement from the House of Bishops may please conservatives, there were some eyebrows raised by Twitter users – notably over how Henry VIII observed many of the church’s tenets less than impeccably.
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"Sex is for married heterosexual couples only," says the church founded by an adulterous bloated king with tertiary syphilis who threw a tantrum because he couldn't divorce his wife to marry his mistress, whom he later beheaded. https://t.co/3gdLCyFrhd — Guillotines N' Roses (Taheerah Barney)🌹 (@fleshandbrand) January 23, 2020
The English, not content with bland food, also want bland sex. https://t.co/8jJlyJLJoI — Héctor E. Alcalá (@Hector_E_Alcala) January 23, 2020
In fact, most people appeared to be happily going about their business when the bishops’ advice dropped.
No one:
Church of England: “Sexual relationships outside heterosexual marriage are regarded as falling short of God’s purpose for human beings.”
Me: FFS — Bethanne Patrick (@TheBookMaven) January 23, 2020
People settling into their jobs:
Children playing in a schoolyard:
Fire fighters tending to fires:
The Church of England: HERE YE, HERE YE!... https://t.co/fakyHs8tsL — dan levy (@danjlevy) January 23, 2020
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Some spotted loopholes.
That’s true. FUCKING is for the rest of us. https://t.co/36DLbx1PGf — Saeed Jones (@theferocity) January 23, 2020
You do know that people will have sex regardless of your policy right? https://t.co/7IWolb4aHl — Philip Normal (@philipnormal) January 23, 2020
fine, I'll just have sex with married heterosexual couples from now on https://t.co/3dPGvc32o2 — Marie Le Conte (@youngvulgarian) January 23, 2020
my experiences would suggest otherwise https://t.co/3IHubwz1dJ — Hannah Jane Parkinson (@ladyhaja) January 23, 2020
Others had their own advice for the church.
Dear Church of England, and Churches everywhere (99% of which are run by men):
Evolve. That’s all. Just stop fighting evolution. Stop judging others and focus on...
Evolving. Thanks. pic.twitter.com/DZXJCDafyy — Carol Johnson AKA Cleo Everest (@CleoEverest) January 23, 2020
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And the responses soon went beyond perhaps what the church expected.
“Forgive me Father, for I have rimmed”https://t.co/MF55575YoY — Tom [PositiveLad] 🇪🇺 🏳🌈 (@PositiveLad) January 23, 2020
I have some questions for the Church of England vicar who let me bareback him in 2016. https://t.co/JapxuVMcVq — Philip Ellis (@Philip_Ellis) January 23, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Big Decisions For Boris Johnson As Labour’s Leadership Battle Narrows

Big Decisions For Boris Johnson As Labour’s Leadership Battle Narrows
With Brexit legislation sailing through the Commons, Boris Johnson has turned his attention to the domestic agenda as decisions on HS2, Huawai’s involvement in communications and a cabinet reshuffle land in his inbox. Conservative MP Bim Afolami joins Arj Singh, Paul Waugh and Rachel Wearmouth on what we can expect from the government and who from the Labour leadership contest could trouble them in the coming term.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Tory MP 'Feels Sorry' For Labour Left Because Long-Bailey Is So 'Bad'

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A Tory MP has said he “feels sorry” for the left of the Labour party because they “deserve someone better” than Rebecca Long-Bailey to put their faith in.
Bim Afolami offered a brutal assessment of the Labour leadership race as he declared that none of the candidates were “going to present too much difficulty” for the Tories.
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But he reserved his fiercest criticism for Long-Bailey, who in recent days has attempted to distance herself from the continuity-Corbyn mantle.
Afolami told HuffPost UK’s Commons People podcast: “Rebecca Long-Bailey, I mean honestly.
“I feel sorry for people on the left of the Labour party in so far as they deserve someone a lot better to try and invest in.
“This is somebody who as everybody knows… she’s trying to take on the mantle of Corbynism without the perceived good bits of Corbyn, taking all the bad.
“That’s not going to work.
“I think she’s going to sink very quickly.”
“I don’t see with any of them anybody who is going to present too much difficulty”
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Afolami said he had been watching the Labour leadership contest “quite closely, just because I’m a political obsessive and I love this stuff”.
The Hitchin and Harpenden MP warned so-called moderate supporters of frontrunner Sir Keir Starmer he will find it difficult to tack to the centre ground if he wins, having “tried to buy off” the left.
“When you buy off the left they are not all just going to go away and allow you to take the party to the centre,” Afolami said.
“And he will find out that he is going to have to cleave to some pretty hard left positions and find it very difficult to move the party anywhere.”
Afolami also said outsider Lisa Nandy “could be a lot more honest” about what Labour needs to do but has instead decided not to “cross the rubicon” so she does not alienate the membership.
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“But through that lack of bravery I think (it) will make it almost impossible for her to win, her only chance of winning is to blow this open,” he said.
Afolami added: “The core thing that you learn about, whether it be Boris Johnson, Tony Blair, successful politicians when they win through their party is when they say this is how I’m going to lead this party.
“And you say it before you win and that way you’ve got that mandate.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--Facing Deportation: Iranian Man Who Was Tortured For Being Gay And Left To Live On Street

A gay man who was tortured in Iran and forced to live on the streets when he fled to Europe is facing deportation from the UK – “the first place he has ever felt safe”.
Since arriving in Britain last year, Madhi has been sent to detention centres five times amid attempts to separate him from his partner and send him to Germany, where he travelled in 2016 after twice being imprisoned and tortured in Iran for his sexuality.
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But while in Germany the 36-year-old – whose last name we have agreed not to publish over safety concerns for his family in Iran – was forced to sleep rough and scavenge from bins to survive. During his time on the streets, he was beaten, received homophobic abuse, and was even defecated on.
In search of “somewhere he could feel safe”, Madhi eventually made it to the UK in February 2019 and met his partner, Ian Kane. But despite the dangers he has faced elsewhere, and his fragile mental health, the government wants to send him away.
“Madhi can’t take this torture much more,” Ian told HuffPost UK. “He has night terrors and he wakes up screaming and crying. It’s awful.”
Most recently, immigration officers burst into the couple’s home in north London on Monday morning and took Madhi to Colnbrook detention centre with the view of deporting him on January 29.
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The deportation has since been delayed, but Madhi – who suffers from PTSD – is still being held in Colnbrook despite serious concerns for his welfare.
According to Ian, the Home Office last tried to send Madhi back to Germany in autumn 2019, but German authorities refused to accept him because he had self-harm injuries that had not been dealt with.
Madhi first arrived in the UK in February 2019 after fleeing from Iran in 2016 Melanie Smith
Ian and Madhi’s friends said they are seriously concerned about the state of his mental well-being while he’s being detained in Colnbrook, with Madhi “terrified” of going back to Germany.
On Tuesday night, Madhi told one of the detention centre’s chaplains that he felt “like his soul has left him” since being taken there.
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“It’s evil what they’re doing to him,” Ian said. “I don’t understand how our Home Office can do this to people.
“He’s built an extended family here who love him – he’s part of our community,” he continued. “This older couple I know are like his grandparents. He goes round there and cooks for them because they can’t.
“The man is a beacon of goodness, and I’m not just saying that. He’s a beacon of love.”
The pair met through Facebook a month after Madhi got to the UK. “We just clicked immediately and our relationship began,” Ian said.
“I had a judge question the validity of our relationship – but how do you put a timeframe on love? My parents knew each other three months before they were married.
“I would not be doing this if I didn’t love this person to distraction. He’s my world.”
Ian described Madhi as 'a beacon of goodness' Melanie Smith
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Among those fighting to keep Madhi in the UK are the parishioners at his local church in Enfield, including reverend Melanie Smith. An online petition she launched to end Madhi’s detention has been signed almost 9,000 times.
“At the moment, we are just devastated,” Melanie said. She told HuffPost UK Madhi has previously said that Britain is “the first place he has ever felt safe”.
“People are accepting and he loves our history and he feels English,” she said. But being repeatedly taken into detention has left “him scared to be out and scared to be at home”.
Melanie said: “He’s terrified of Germany. Not quite as much as he’s terrified of Iran, but it’s all part of the PTSD and trauma he’s now suffering.”
She added: “He’s just a lovely, helpful, sweet chap who wants to be able to invite people round to cook Persian food for them. He wants to read in church. He wants to be part of the life.”
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Madhi's church in Enfield are among those lobbying the government to allow him to remain in the UK Melanie Smith
Campaign group Lesbians and Gays Support the Migrants have also publicised Madhi’s case. “As queer people, we cannot stand by while members of our community are put at risk through deportation and detention,” said spokesperson Sam Bjorn.
“Having survived torture and persecution on the grounds of his sexual orientation Madhi is now facing state violence and persecution at the hands of the country where he has sought sanctuary.”
They continued: “Sadly, this is not an isolated case. Those seeking safety and a better life, whether LGBTQIA+ or not, are subject to brutal mistreatment and put in grave danger by our government’s shameful hostile environment policies.”
Labour’s Feryal Clark, Madhi’s MP in Enfield North, has demanded that the Home Office allow Madhi to remain in the UK – and immediately release him from detention.
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“I’m very distressed to hear about my constituent Madhi’s situation,” she said. “I have written to the Home Office minister [urging] that Madhi be released from the detention centre, as advised by health authorities.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--My Son's Life Is Being Taken Away – Because He Turned 18

John Stokes and his foster son, Samet John Stokes
Thirty years of fostering has had its share of highs and lows but for me the worst moment was having to tell my foster boy Samet that effectively his life was over. His crime? Turning 18.
Every time I read the news at the moment I see story after story about immigration and “points” and “salaries”. That’s why I want to tell my story. Because Samet isn’t a number of points or a salary, he’s a real person whose life is being taken away.
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Samet’s life has already been so unfairly difficult. At 11, his drunken father forced him to beg on the streets of Tirana in Albania to support his family. At 15 he was taken to Brussels and what happened to him there has traumatised Samet so much that he still can’t talk about it.
“As soon as he turned 18, we had the shock of the Home Office trying to deport him.”
Samet was trafficked into England and it’s quickly become his home. It’s the first place where he’s finally felt safe, protected and loved. I’ve loved fostering Samet and we’ve worked hard together to help him build a life here. He’s learnt English incredibly fast and is training at college to become a carpenter.
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A few months ago Samet turned 18. Samet’s classmates from college have all been celebrating their milestone birthdays – giddy at the freedom that lies ahead for them as adults. But for Samet, as soon as he turned 18 we had the shock of the Home Office trying to deport him. It’s disgusting that the same country that welcomed Samet three years ago now can’t get rid of him quickly enough, just because he’s had his birthday. After all that Samet has been though, how can the system be so cruel?
Many young Albanians are trafficked to the UK but very few get asylum. Most go into hiding and are left vulnerable to traffickers and gangs with their lives in ruins. It says it all that people would rather live as ghosts rather than be returned to a country deemed “safe” by the Home Office.
So I started a petition on Change.org for “a future for Samet”. I can’t believe that already over 260,000 people are supporting our campaign. I sent out a cry for help that has opened the public’s eyes to Samet and the many other trafficked young people now in hiding. Knowing I’ve got hundreds of thousands of people supporting me probably makes me the foster carer with the world’s biggest support network. It feels like these people have given us a hug and given me a voice that I must use to change this madness. I am a foster carer and helping broken children is what I do. To then throw them out like rubbish is not something that I will do.
As a nation we take in these children, we care for them, we educate them, we train them and we show them compassion. My elder Albanian boy Ali had also to fight to stay at 18. Four years ago he came here like Samet on the back of a lorry. Today he is a head chef at 20 and paying his taxes, contributing greatly to our society and repaying our investment in him.
There are many foster carers fighting for children like Samet but due to my petition I am the one who now has the voice and therefore the responsibility to speak up. I know that I have to use that voice not just to save Samet, but to tell a different story to the one by politicians who are demonising immigration by turning people into “points” and “salaries”.
It should never have been the case that I needed to start a petition and tell my story publicly to try to persuade the Home Office to let Samet stay. And it should never have been the case that Samet, his classmates and myself needed to travel from Bristol to London to visit the Home Office and hand deliver our petition. These are young people who should be carefree and at college, not scared that their friend is about to have his life taken away.
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Now we’re waiting for the result of our latest appeal to the Home Office and I hope they listen to the huge public support for Samet. Remember when you read stories in the news about immigration facts and stats that it’s real people like Samet, people who have suffered traumatic childhoods and been victims of trafficking, that we’re talking about. Help me save Samet by supporting our campaign at change.org/afuture4samet


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-23--First Suspected Coronavirus Cases In UK As Flu Patients Undergo Urgent Testing

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More than a dozen people in the UK have been tested for coronavirus, as the health secretary said there is an “increased likelihood” of cases occurring.
Fourteen people in the UK have been tested with five confirmed negative and nine still awaiting the results, Public Health England has said.
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PHE would not give a breakdown of where the people were tested and where the negative results were recorded.
The update follows five people in Scotland and one in Belfast being tested for the mystery illness as there were fears of more cases in other cities across the country, the head of infection medicine at the University of Edinburgh confirmed.
Professor Juergen Haas said tests are currently being carried out and none of the patients, at least three of whom are Chinese nationals, have been confirmed as having the disease.
Three travelled to Scotland from Wuhan, where the outbreak is thought to have originated, within the past two weeks and are showing symptoms of respiratory trouble, a red flag for the virus.
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The other patient is being tested to rule out coronavirus at Belfast’s Royal Victoria Hospital, it is understood.
The patient arrived at the hospital showing symptoms which may be associated with the condition but it will be some time before test results are returned.
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, located in Govan, Glasgow. georgeclerk via Getty Images
Professor Haas told the PA news agency the cases emerged overnight, adding: “The situation will be pretty similar in pretty much all UK cities with a large number of Chinese students.
“It’s not too surprising. My suspicious is that there will probably be many more cases in many other cities in the UK. None of the cases I know of have been confirmed.”
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He said there is only one laboratory testing for the virus, operated by Public Health England (PHE).
Haas had initially said four people in Scotland were being tested.
The outbreak has killed 25 people and infected 830 in China as authorities around the world work to prevent a global pandemic.
On Thursday evening the World Health Organisation’s emergency committee has said it is “too early” to declare an international public health emergency over the coronavirus outbreak.
The Emergency Committee on the new #coronavirus (2019-nCoV) considered that it is still too early to declare a public health emergency of international concern given its restrictive and binary nature — World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) January 23, 2020
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation, said: “Make no mistake. This is an emergency in China. But it has not yet become a global health emergency. It may yet become one.”
New cases were also reported in Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Vietnam on Thursday.
Passengers wear masks to prevent an outbreak of a new coronavirus in the high speed train station, in Hong Kong on Wednesday. ASSOCIATED PRESS
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The previously unknown virus strain is believed to have emerged late last year from illegally traded wildlife at an animal market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
Most transport in Wuhan, a city of 11m, was suspended on Thursday and people were told not to leave. Hours later, neighbouring Huanggang, a city of about 7m people, announced a similar lockdown.
On Thursday, before the UK cases were reported, health secretary Matt Hancock said the NHS is “ready to respond appropriately” and that while “there is an increased likelihood that cases may arise in this country, we are well prepared and well equipped to deal with them”.
He said England’s chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, is in contact with international experts and his counterparts to monitor the situation.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--I'm A Celebrity's Myles Stephenson Speaks Out Over Reports Of Nightclub Attack

I’m A Celebrity star Myles Stephenson has spoken out to assure his fans he’s doing well following reports he’d been attacked at a nightclub.
On Thursday night, The Sun reported that the Rak-Su singer and his friends had been set upon “out of nowhere” at a club in Essex.
Myles Stephenson Barcroft Media via Getty Images
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They claimed Myles was “repeatedly punched and elbowed in the head”, suggesting that the group of men had “[taken] exception to where Myles had decided to sit”.
An onlooker also claimed that Myles had been ”whacked several times in the face and body”.
Myles has now assured fans that he and his friends are doing well, following the alleged incident.
“Yo yo yo,” he began, in a string of videos he posted on his Instagram Story. “Just a quick message to say thank you to everybody that’s messaging me asking if I’m alright, and if my friends are alright.”
Gesturing to his exposed torso, he continued: “As you can see, I’m perfectly fine. There is not a bruise on my body. We are good, and my friends are all good as well. None of my boys [were] hurt, so that’s all you need to know. Alright?”
Myles proving to fans there's "not a bruise on his body" Instagram
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Myles ended the video insisting: “We’re good, man. We’re good. We’re healthy. And that’s all I’m saying, innit. So good night.”
After first rising to fame as a member of the X Factor-winning boyband Rak-Su, Myles went on to appear in last year’s series of I’m A Celebrity, in which he finished in seventh place.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--Wuhan Coronavirus: 8 Photos Showing What It's Like Inside China's Quarantined City Right Now

The outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus – an infection only recently passed to humans from animals – has seen China put millions of people in the country into quarantine as authorities attempt to stop the spread of the disease.
In Wuhan, a city south of Beijing where the outbreak began, residents have effectively been put on lockdown, with train stations closed, flights suspended and checkpoints on main roads.
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Meanwhile, work is underway to build a new pre-fab 1,000-bed hospital in the city by Monday to deal with the coronavirus outbreak.
According to Reuters, public transport has also been suspended in 10 other cities across the country, while the Disneyland theme park in Shanghai is set to close from Saturday.
There have been 830 confirmed cases of the virus, while 25 people have died.
But what is life like under quarantine in Wuhan right now? Here are eight photos showing how the city is dealing with the outbreak.
Medical staff attend to a patient with pneumonia caused by coronavirus at Zhongnan Hospital in Wuhan Stringer . / Reuters
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Caught on CCTV: a patient is carried on a stretcher to an ambulance by medical workers in protective suits in Wuhan, China ASSOCIATED PRESS
Bulldozers at the site of new hospital being built in Wuhan to treat coronavirus patients Stringer . / Reuters
People shop for vegetables at a market in Wuhan ASSOCIATED PRESS
A driver has his temperature checked as he travels into Wuhan, with traffic police still allowing people to drive into the city Barcroft Media via Getty Images
Police officers wearing masks check a car for smuggled wild animals at an expressway toll station following the outbreak David Stanway / Reuters
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A man stands in front of a screen showing that multiple departure flights have been cancelled after the city was locked down Stringer . / Reuters


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--Wendy Williams Claims She Didn't Actually Fart Live On Air – But Not Everyone Is Buying It

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Earlier this week, Wendy Williams was renamed “Windy Williams” after seemingly passing wind live on her US daytime talk show.
The moment soon went viral across the globe, with people equally grossed out and amused at the clip.
But now Wendy has tried to claim that the story is a load of guff, coming up with an elaborate explanation as to why a parp-like sound could be heard on her show.
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Dedicating a whole five-minutes of the most recent episode of her chat show to what she dubbed “fartgate”, Wendy insisted that she has “never” broken wind while on air, as she “barely farts”.
Wendy Williams seemingly farted on her show earlier this week Fox
She said: “I don’t lean over like this to release a fart, I lean over like this because it’s comfortable. If I sit [straight up] all the time, it’s heavy on my spine. I like to release my hips and lean. I’ve been doing this for 11 years on this show.
“You know, I do a lot here on this show ... I shift my weight or I belch or rub my teeth ... [but] I have never done that once on the show.
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“As a matter of fact, I barely fart. You know why? Gas gets released several different ways and mine is belching because all I do is talk.”
Wendy gets to the bottom of FARTGATE!! 💨💨💨This and more in today's Hot Topics! https://t.co/6GtLIh3QJr pic.twitter.com/zPtqcKWpb2 — Wendy Williams (@WendyWilliams) January 23, 2020
Wendy then insisted she would own up to her crimes if she had indeed let one go because “farts are always funny”, but added that the sound of supposed-fart would have left her needing to change clothes.
“My costume would be soiled beyond soiled-tivity,” she said. “I would have left a mark in my seat.”
Wendy Williams really farted on live TV.
I am unable. pic.twitter.com/rZBLijgauZ — Psyflop (@RandyEmillio) January 19, 2020
She then tried to claim that someone must have “superimposed” a fart sound over the video, but then one of the show’s crew came forward with an even more unexpected version of events.
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Explaining they were preparing for some description of chemistry experiment backstage for later in the show, Wendy’s “trusty” John Anderson said: “We were filling up a fish tank backstage and we didn’t have the proper hose.
“Air was just coming out and it was sputtering like someone was farting. So that’s what it was. It wasn’t Wendy!”
And while Wendy believed that had cleared things up, not everyone was buying it (sorry Wendy)...
Wendy is denying #fartgate 😂😂😂 I still think she farted. She’s always burping on the show so I think she really did fart. — THATO JK (@Thatojk) January 24, 2020
Nope straight up FART! I love how her producers are saying that it was a hose or something in the back to fill above water tank nope then the sound would keep going then Wendy Fartyy... you can hear her coming — Laurie southard (@lauriegreeneyez) January 24, 2020
Wendy Williams is an OG farter. Farted and kept it moving. Talking about “I barely fart”. Bye, Wendy. 💨 — Brittany Turman ✨ (@bgturman) January 24, 2020
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i’m wendy doing a whole segment on proving i didn’t fart when i absolutely did — 🤟🏻 (@glittersept11th) January 23, 2020
I know from personal experience that the lengths Wendy Williams went to explain the fart sound means she definitely farted. https://t.co/ztZFCrlEYu — Mike Horn (@mikehorncomedy) January 23, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--Republican Senators Handed Fidget Spinners ‘To Focus’ During Donald Trump Impeachment Trial

Court sketches showed senators openly playing with fidget spinners Reuters
Republican senators participating in the impeachment trial of US president Donald Trump in the Senate were this week handed fidget spinners, apparently in an attempt to help them concentrate on the historic proceedings.
The toys were doled out by Senator Richard Burr, who was seen playing with a blue spinner while listening to arguments by Jerrold Nadler, an impeachment manager.
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Other senators, including Tom Cotton and Pat Toomey, were also seen with spinners on their desks.
The handheld devices have been banned for some schools in the UK and US.
Senators and staff at the hearing are not allowed digital devices while the trial is sitting, instead resorting to pens and paper. It has been a challenge for some
“Many of my junior staff were concerned and alarmed,” said Democratic senator Chris Coons earlier this week. “I reminded them that I made it through all of law school without a cell phone, without an iPad. We may actually be able to focus more. It will be a needed digital cleanse.”
Republican senator Shelley Moore Capito added: “Like every American who has an electronic, I suppose the first day we’ll have a little withdrawal, but we’ll be fine. I’m ready to sit there as long as I need to.”
Fidget spinners are small ball-bearing toys that users can rotate between their fingers.
Senator Mike Rounds plays with a fidget spinner handed out to Republican senators at lunch to keep them occupied during the Senate impeachment trial of President Donald Trump Susan Cornwell / Reuters
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Each fidget spinner has three “legs” sticking out from the centre, which is where the user holds the spinner in order to rotate it.
Many fidget spinners are being marketed on their ability to help easily distracted children concentrate more, or as a tool for anxiety in the classroom.
Some have even suggested the toys serve as a low budget antidote to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, plenty of scientists have already come forward to suggest these claims are likely exaggerated.
Trump is accused of seeking and probes of political foe Joe Biden and his son Hunter for his own political benefit, while holding back Congress-approved military aid as leverage.
The president faces a second article of impeachment accusing him of obstructing Congress by refusing to turn over documents or allow officials to testify in the House investigation.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--Facebook Lobbyist Nick Clegg Urges UK To Drop Tax On Big Tech, Because Obviously

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Chancellor Sajid Javid should abandon UK plans to start taxing US tech giants and wait for countries to agree an international levy, Facebook’s Nick Clegg has urged.
Ministers want to impose a 2% digital services tax on big firms – including the “GAFA” four (Google Apple, Facebook and Amazon) – despite mounting pressure from the US over the measure.
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Clegg, the ex-deputy PM who became head of global affairs for Facebook, said the UK government should follow France in delaying the levy, due to be imposed in April, to give international talks “time to succeed”.
Critics have suggested such an approach allows tech firms to kick the can down the road and avoid paying up.
The planned digital services tax also comes ahead of US-UK trade talks opening with lobbying groups such as the US Chamber of Commerce demanding no tax on US tech firms.
File photo dated 11/06/19 of Sir Nick Clegg who has defended Facebook's position to not fact-check political advertising as he faced questions on the issue during a conference appearance. PA Wire/PA Images
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Clegg argued the best thing was for “the world to come together to tax the online world more rationally and better and more completely and more fully than the tax rules currently allow”.
He added: “The current tax rules allow for a bricks and mortar world where the thing you are trying to tax was the production of physical goods. Everybody agrees on that. Everybody agrees that you can only do that internationally.
“You can’t have 2% here, 3% there – that patchwork is never going to make sure that companies like Facebook pay their fair share around the world, which is quite rightly what everybody wants to see happen.
Sajid Javid, Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, pictured during the 50th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP) ASSOCIATED PRESS
“So I would have thought that, when the dust settles a bit, I would have thought that it makes sense for Britain to follow France’s example, which is not saying that they are abandoning their plans to impose a tax – of course every jurisdiction is free to do so, including the British government – but just at least do so in a way that gives maximum chance for international talks to succeed.”
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At a meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Steven Mnuchin, the US treasury secretary, turned up the heat on Javid over the tax.
He claimed the digital services levy – also nicknamed the “Amazon tax” – discriminated against American companies. He threatened retaliation, suggesting there could be a new tax on UK car exports to the US.
Tory ministers, however, face demands from voters to act, with many feeling tech firms are not paying their fair share.
To take the example of Amazon, the company paid just £220m in direct taxes last year despite its total UK revenues amounting to £10.9bn. Facebook, meanwhile, paid £28m tax after making a record £1.6bn revenues in the UK.
Clegg said “no one wants to see trade wars” and called on Javid to row back.
He said: “Equally no one wants to see what is in the end a solution which is not sustainable, which is lots of patchwork taxes set at different levels and different – which by the way doesn’t in the grand scheme of things raise that much money either. That’s the irony.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--James Corden's Late Late Show Producer Addresses Carpool Karaoke Fakery Claims

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The executive producer of James Corden’s US talk show has spoken out over fakery claims relating to its infamous Carpool Karaoke segments.
Since he became host of The Late Late Show in 2015, James has taken a host of A-listers for a spin in the recurring sketch, including everyone from Sir Paul McCartney and Madonna to Harry Styles and Billie Eilish.
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On Thursday, a video went viral which appeared to suggest that James isn’t actually driving the car while filming Carpool Karaoke, after he and Justin Bieber were seen being pulled along on a rig.
Saw James corden and Justin Bieber filming carpool karaoke and this is why I have trust issues — he isn't even driving! pic.twitter.com/bkP9moGJmu — Zoli ⚡ (@zolihonig) January 23, 2020
However, executive producer Ben Winston has now set the record straight, insisting the rig has only been used on a handful of occasions, and James is usually really driving his celeb passengers around.
James Corden zz/KGC-125/STAR MAX/IPx
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“We only use a rig when we are doing a ‘stunt’ as part of the Carpool – when it would be impossible for James to drive!” Ben insisted. “This has occurred only maybe 4 times in 50 or so carpools… Safety is key!
“By stunt I mean – dance routines / costumes / props etc ! Dont worry too much though. I’m pretty sure there are bigger issues to worry about!”
Not true! We only use a rig when we are doing a "stunt" as part of the Carpool - when it would be impossible for James to drive! This has occurred only maybe 4 times in 50 or so carpools... Safety is key! https://t.co/kfJXqZqEHq — Ben Winston (@benwinston) January 23, 2020
By stunt I mean - dance routines / costumes / props etc ! Dont worry too much though. I’m pretty sure there are bigger issues to worry about! 🤣 — Ben Winston (@benwinston) January 23, 2020
The Late Late Show’s Twitter account also poked fun at the controversy in a tweet:
guys, we don't even use a real car pic.twitter.com/O0sxMwNFtP — The Late Late Show with James Corden (@latelateshow) January 23, 2020
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Although for the most part the guests on Carpool Karaoke look to be having a good time, there have been one or two who haven’t enjoyed the experience.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--Courteney Cox Gets Friends Fans Misty-Eyed With Behind-The-Scenes Snap From Finale Episode

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Courteney Cox got Friends fans in the nostalgic mood with a throwback photo from behind the scenes of the final episode.
The actress – who played Monica for 10 series of the hit sitcom – posted the picture on Instagram, showing herself and the other five members of the key cast enjoying a “last supper” before taping the emotional finale.
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She wrote: “‘The Last Supper’ before taping ‘The Last One’ on Jan 23, 2004.”
Alongside thousands of misty-eyed Friends fans in the comments were Courteney’s co-stars Jennifer Aniston and Lisa Kudrow, who both posted messages in response to the photo.
Friends came to an end more than 15 years ago, but it’s still as popular as ever, having garnered a new generation of fans when it began streaming on Netflix.
The show has recently been at the centre of reunion rumours, after Jennifer Aniston teased that she and the rest of the cast were “working on something”, but refused to offer any more information.
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This came after the star posted a much-publicised shot of herself and the rest of the cast in her first ever Instagram post, marking the first time all six Friends stars had been seen together since the show came to an end in 2004.
It’s since been claimed the reunion in question could be a behind-the-scenes look back at the show, which all six cast members would appear in.
The cast of Friends had always maintained that they wouldn’t want to revisit the classic sitcom characters, including Lisa Kudrow, who branded the idea “sad” in a 2018 interview.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--Greta Thunberg Clashes With US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin In Davos

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Teen environmental activist Greta Thunberg schooled US treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin on Thursday after he said she needs a college degree in economics before he’ll condescend to take her seriously about climate change.
“It doesn’t take a college degree in economics to realise that our remaining 1,5° carbon budget and ongoing fossil fuel subsidies and investments don’t add up,” Thunberg, 17, tweeted in response to Mnuchin’s dig.
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At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Thunberg and other young climate activists called on corporate and world leaders to divest from fossil fuel exploration and extraction to save the planet.
“Is she the chief economist or who is she? I’m confused,” Mnuchin mocked Thunberg, later claiming he was joking and that it was “funny.” But he added: “After she goes and studies economics in college she can come back and explain that to us.”
Thunberg snapped back:
My gap year ends in August, but it doesn’t take a college degree in economics to realise that our remaining 1,5° carbon budget and ongoing fossil fuel subsidies and investments don’t add up. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/1virpuOyYG — Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) January 23, 2020
So either you tell us how to achieve this mitigation or explain to future generations and those already affected by the climate emergency why we should abandon our climate commitments. 2/3 — Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) January 23, 2020
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Thunberg was hardly the only one to pile on Mnuchin after his smug remark. Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman berated Mnuchin for so poorly understanding his own purported area of expertise — the economy — that he claimed the Trump administration’s massive corporate tax cut would “pay for itself,” instead of breaking the US budget, as it has.
The man who predicted that the Trump tax cut would pay for itself says Greta Thunberg needs lessons in economics 1/ https://t.co/me4dhgNhzD — Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) January 23, 2020
More generally, serious economic analysis says that large reductions in carbon emissions would have surprisingly low costs. It's the people insisting that protecting the planet is incompatible with growth who don't know economics 2/ — Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) January 23, 2020
“Haters gonna hate and deniers will deny ... logic, science and environmental consensus,” tweeted Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who has an economics degree, in Thunberg’s defence.
The Earth just suffered its hottest decade ever on record.
Yes, because we all know #Mnuchin went to school for climatology 😒.
The "economy" is kind of dependent on us having a habitable planet to live on, and we should be divesting from things that contribute to Climate Change like Fossil Fuels. https://t.co/dyqymiwUp8 — Kimberly Graham For US Senate (IA) (@KimberlyforIowa) January 23, 2020
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Mnuchin goes after Greta Thunberg and says she should study economics
Here's what Mnuchin learned from economics studies: as the "foreclosure king," he ran a company that booted elderly residents from their homes due to onerous loans and technicalities https://t.co/NrlufW3ZoO — Chris Lu (@ChrisLu44) January 23, 2020
I want to live in an America where a guy famous for foreclosing on little old lady's homes to get richer isn't in a position of power where he can condescend to a teenage girl who is trying desperately to help save the world from the greed of people like him.#Mnuchin — Joe Segal-Create Positive Progress (@joesegal) January 23, 2020
Oh, and I suppose sleazeball #Mnuchin has a degree in Climate Science too and wants us to ignore the 97% of Climate Scientists who are predicting disaster if we keep pursuing his contemptuous disregard for future life on our planet. He'll be dead when shit hits the fan for Greta. — chaplinlives (@chaplinlives) January 23, 2020
Another grown ass man picking on a teenage girl, whose only crime is she wants to save the planet so that her generation has one to live on--But hey @FLOTUS it's all about #BeBest right?!! #Mnuchin #GretaThunberg https://t.co/OoMOEIRtWh — Sophia A. Nelson (@IAmSophiaNelson) January 23, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-01-24--A Guide To Not Getting Hacked

A Guide To Not Getting Hacked

drante via Getty Images
It’s 2020 and unless you’re Ron Swanson, the odds are high you’re dependent on the internet for many things. Banking, getting a ride home after a late-night, filing your taxes, paying your friend back for pizza, managing your pension ― the list goes on.
A lot of your personal information is out there, and a lot of bad things could happen should it ― and the accounts that safeguard it ― be divulged to the wrong people.
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The good news is unless you’re Amazon head honcho Jeff Bezos, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman probably isn’t targeting you with elite hacking tools. Probably. You may have been targeted by a covert Saudi disinformation campaign on Facebook, though!
The more realistic threat to your personal information will arrive in a data breach. A corporate firm will fail to safeguard a database containing hundreds of millions of usernames, passwords and other private information you never realised you consented to their amassing in the first place. It’s a common enough occurrence that the term “breach fatigue” exists. (See incidents at Equifax, Experian, Target, LinkedIn and more.)
Another likely threat: A bad actor could lure you into divulging your password or inadvertently installing malware on your computer via a cleverly designed phishing email. Russia hacked John Podesta, chair of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign, with one of these, giving Donald Trump a boost in his 2016 bid for the presidency.
It’s easier to protect yourself with a couple of simple steps now than to try to recover once the damage is done. So shake off that “it won’t happen to me” mantra and follow along. Here are the basic do’s and don’ts of online security.
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drante via Getty Images
DO
Practice password common sense
Check to see if your email address has been involved in a breach at HaveIBeenPwnd.com, a database created by web security expert Troy Hunt. If your account has been compromised, you’ll want to change your login(s) to something new and unique. Even if it hasn’t, you should seriously consider changing your logins if it’s been a while.
Use different passwords for all of your logins. Reused passwords give attackers easy access to other accounts you use instead of keeping them siloed in one compromised account. On that note, it’s also better to avoid using the “login via Facebook” or “sign in with Google” buttons.
“Steer clear from using third-party platforms or social media profiles to log into accounts,” said Wendy Zamora, editor-in-chief of Malwarebytes Labs, a cyber threat detection and prevention company. “If a prompt asks you to sign in using Facebook or Twitter, best to create separate credentials — otherwise if that account is ever compromised, or your social media profile is hacked, any linked accounts could be compromised as well.”
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Use a password manager
Using a password manager ― which can generate secure, unique passwords at the click of a button and automatically remember them for you ― is the easiest way to manage all of the above. Here’s a review of commonly used password managers, many of which offer basic options for free. All you have to do is remember one master password to log in to the manager itself.
Keep that phone on lockdown
While we’re on the subject of passwords: If all it takes to log into your phone is mashing “0” a bunch of times ― looking at you, Kanye ― your phone represents a painfully weak link in your personal security. Anyone who can unlock your phone can likely also access your email and messages, which they can then use to reset passwords for your other accounts.
Use your fingerprint to unlock it, or use a longer alphanumeric passcode that doesn’t follow an obvious pattern (e.g., don’t use something a bystander could easily remember after seeing it once).
Change the default passwords on any internet-connected device you have in your home. Your modem, router, baby monitor, smart TV and smart fridge (yes, they too have been hacked) likely came with a weak preset password that can be easy to crack.
Keep all of your software up to date
Completely shutting down your computer every night is a good habit that can help with this.
“This is good because it frees up RAM for startup the next day, and it also forces your system to install updates when you’re done with work, rather than it trying to do so while you’re in the middle of something,” Malwarebytes Labs director Adam Kujawa said. “Also, offline systems are less likely to be infected with malware ― at least while they are offline.”
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Encrypt your devices
Encryption encodes the information on your device, keeping it out of someone’s hands if your device is lost or stolen. If you have a newer iPhone or Android phone that’s protected with a passcode, it should be encrypted by default, but here’s a helpful guide to double-check just in case. The Intercept has a guide on how to encrypt your laptop.
Think twice about putting stickers on your laptop
Certain stickers could make your device, the information it contains and the work you do on it a more enticing target.
Use two-factor authentication
That’s the fancy name for needing to enter a code from your phone in addition to your password to log in. Ideally, you’d get that code via an app called an “authenticator” instead of via text message, since text messages can be tampered with, but a text message is better than nothing.
“You get what you can get,” Kujawa said, “and even one extra layer of authentication can defeat many attackers who are just looking for low-hanging fruit and don’t want to put in any extra work.”
Look out for a padlock in your address bar
That’s an icon used to signify the website uses a more secure, encrypted protocol known as HTTPS. If the padlock is broken or you see some other, more jarring icon like an exclamation point, don’t trust the page with any personal or sensitive information.
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Use a VPN
A virtual private network acts as a secure tunnel for your internet traffic, shielding it from outside view when you’re on a public, unsecured network. Turn on your VPN when you’re using public Wi-Fi, and consider using it at home, too. In 2017, Republicans voted to allow internet service providers to sell your web browsing history. A VPN will also keep that ISP snooping at bay.
Choosing a good VPN can actually be a bit tricky. As a general rule of thumb, if it’s free, be suspicious. Facebook pushed a “free” VPN for years that claimed to keep users safe from snooping when in reality it was harvesting users’ data.
drante via Getty Images
DON’T
Overshare on social media
Social media pages are prime sources of personal information someone could use to compromise your accounts. The answers to a surprising number of security questions are often hiding in plain view on social media. Make your social accounts private, lockdown any public-facing information and limit what you share. (Here’s a good guide for all of that.) Better yet, consider deleting Facebook entirely. Your mental health and democracy will thank you.
Email sensitive information
The technology used to schlep an email from one mail server to another is remarkably insecure. Anyone with access to a server in the middle could, with very little effort, access the contents of the emails it’s delivering. It’s OK if hackers make off with Aunt Edna’s famous green chili recipe, not so much if it’s your Social Security number. That’s the sort of information that’s still generally better transmitted via phone call or even fax.
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Auto-connect to public Wi-Fi networks
Kujawa explained:
Lots of attackers can set up hotspots in airports, hotels, hospitals, etc. and broadcast their network with the same ID as default routers or try to mimic the wireless network of the place they are set up in. For example, at an airport I’ve been to a dozen times, they have free internet. So I connect to their network all the time and my phone auto-connects when it recognises it now, because of that. Well, Hacker Dude comes along and sets up their own wireless access point, maybe 100 feet from you, on their laptop. They have mimicked the airport wireless access point and your phone connects to it because it’s closer, has a stronger signal, and it thinks it recognises the network and can trust it. The hacker sets up internet forwarding so anyone connected to their network has access to the same internet they would have if they connected to the legitimate network, with the difference being the criminal has set themselves up between you and the airport’s access points.
drante via Getty Images
Get phished
There was once a time when the biggest threat in your inbox came from a stranger claiming to be a wealthy Nigerian prince. Those halcyon days are long gone.
Scammers have perfected the craft of deceptive phishing emails. They come in the form of convincing counterfeits claiming to be some overdue invoice, or to be from Netflix or a large social media platform that “just needs you to confirm your login information.” Even fake emails impersonating climate activist Greta Thunberg are a thing now.
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All it takes is a little disbelief to rob phishing emails of all their power. Be sceptical of every email in your inbox, especially ones with attachments (regardless of file type ― even PDFs can be weaponised) or links to sites that ask for your personal information.
Here are some pointers from the Federal Trade Commission on how to spot scam phishing emails. Be especially wary if:
The email looks like it’s from a company you may know and trust.
The email says your account is on hold because of a billing problem.
The email has a generic greeting, such as “Hi Dear.” If you have an account with the business, it probably wouldn’t use a generic greeting.
The email invites you to click on a link to update your payment details.
If you’re unsure, reach out to the person who sent it and ask whether it’s legitimate. Do this in a separate email ― don’t just reply to the one you received. If the email claims to have been sent by your bank or other recognizable company (including your employer!), log into your account via the company’s website (not via the link “they” emailed you) to verify whether it’s real. Or pick up the phone and give them a call.
Other forms of communication can also be weaponized, so be wary of texts, WhatsApp messages, and even old-school phone calls that seem odd.
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