logo
UK launches sanctions regime targeting people-smuggling gangs

UK launches sanctions regime targeting people-smuggling gangs

The Star2 days ago
FILE PHOTO: Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy walks on Downing Street, on the day of the budget announcement, in London, Britain October 30, 2024. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo
LONDON (Reuters) -Britain on Monday launched a new sanctions regime targeting people-smuggling gangs and their enablers in what the government said was the first move of its kind globally.
The United Kingdom will be able to freeze assets, impose travel bans and block access to the country's financial system for individuals and entities involved in enabling irregular migration, without relying on criminal or counterterrorism laws.
The regime was previously outlined by foreign minister David Lammy in January. The British government said it would complement new powers in the Border, Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill that has yet to be enacted.
The Labour government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer is under pressure to meet a pledge to stop the flow of tens of thousands of people into Britain from across the Channel in small boats.
"For too long, criminal gangs have been lining their corrupt pockets and preying on the hopes of vulnerable people with impunity as they drive irregular migration to the UK," British foreign minister David Lammy said in a statement.
" That's why the UK has created the world's first sanctions regime targeted at gangs involved in people smuggling and driving irregular migration, as well as their enablers."
The government said the measures would target those who supply small boats, fake documents and financial services used by smuggling networks.
Chris Philp, in charge of the security and immigration portfolio in parliament for the main opposition Conservatives, said in a statement that it would take more to stop the crossings.
"The truth is you don't stop the Channel crossings by freezing a few bank accounts in Baghdad or slapping a travel ban on a dinghy dealer in Damascus," he said. "Swathes of young men are arriving daily, in boats bought online, guided by traffickers who laugh at our laws and cash in on our weakness."
Starmer has recently agreed deals with France and Germany to help stop the arrival of small boats as he tries to stem the rise of the right-wing populist Reform UK party, led by Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage.
(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Google parent Alphabet surprises with capital spending boost after earnings beat
Google parent Alphabet surprises with capital spending boost after earnings beat

The Star

time26 minutes ago

  • The Star

Google parent Alphabet surprises with capital spending boost after earnings beat

(Reuters) -Alphabet on Wednesday cited massive demand for its cloud computing services as it hiked its capital spending plans for the year to about $85 billion and predicted a further increase next year. The search giant strongly beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly revenue and profit on the back of new AI features and a steady digital advertising market. Revenue growth was driven by Google Cloud's sales, which surged nearly 32%, well above estimates for a 26.5% increase. "With this strong and growing demand for our Cloud products and services, we are increasing our investment in capital expenditures." CEO Sundar Pichai said in an earnings release. Shares of the company, which have risen more than 18% since its previous earnings report in April, dipped initially in extended trading after the report before rallying as executives shared details about strong cloud demand on a call with analysts. But investors were surprised by the planned capital spending increase. "I don't think anyone was expecting a change to that 2025 capex guide," said Dave Wagner, portfolio manager at Aptus Capital Advisors. "Google had an amazing quarter. It was an easy beat, and it was just offset by this $10-billion increase in capex." Capital spending is expected to increase further in 2026 due to demand and growth opportunities, Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi said on the call. Ashkenazi added that while the pace of server deployment hasimproved, Alphabet continues to face more customer demand for its cloud services than it can supply. Google had earlier pledged about $75 billion in capital spending this year, part of the more than $320 billion that Big Tech is expected to pour into building AI capabilities. CLOUD GAINS The rise of artificial intelligence technologies has propelled demand for cloud computing services. Google Cloud still trails Amazon's AWS and Microsoft's Azure in total sales, but hastried to gain ground by touting AI offerings, including its in-house TPU chips that rival Nvidia's GPUs. The business segment grew its quarter-over-quartercustomer count by 28%, Pichai said on the call. "The comprehensiveness of our AI portfolio, the breadth of our offerings, both providing our models on GPUs and TPUs for our customers, all of that has been really driving demand," he said. In a huge win for Alphabet, ChatGPT maker OpenAI recently added Google Cloud to its list of cloud capacity suppliers, as Reuters exclusively reported in June, in a surprising collaboration between two companies that are competing head-to-head in AI. It also marked OpenAI's latest move to diversify beyond its major backer Microsoft. The capex increase nevertheless raises concerns about Alphabet's pace of monetization and its impact on near-term profitability, senior analyst Jesse Cohen said. Alphabet and its peers have defended their aggressive AI spending amid rising competition from Chinese rivals and investor frustration with slower-than-expected payoffs, saying those massive investments are necessary to fuel growth and improve their products. AI RACE Google Search's artificial intelligence features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode are also helping the company boost engagement and tackle rising competition from chatbots such as ChatGPT that have surged in popularity. AI Mode has grown to 100 million monthly active users just two months after Google announced the start of its large-scale rollout during its annual developer conference. Google's own ChatGPT competitor, called Gemini, has more than 450 million monthly users, Pichai said. Google's advertising revenue, which represents about three-quarters of the tech major's overall sales, rose 10.4% to $71.34 billion in the second quarter, beating expectations for $69.47 billion, according to data from LSEG. "Hopefully, this will damper concerns by the investment community that has been worried that products like OpenAI/ChatGPT could be having an impact on Google's Search query growth," said Dan Morgan, senior portfolio manager at Synovus Trust. Alphabet reported total revenue of $96.43 billion for the second quarter ended June 30, compared with analysts' average estimate of about $94 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. The company reported profit of $2.31 per share for the period, beating estimates of $2.18 per share, according to LSEG data. (Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru and Kenrick Cai in San Francisco; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Rod Nickel)

T-Mobile raises forecast for annual subscriber additions
T-Mobile raises forecast for annual subscriber additions

The Star

time26 minutes ago

  • The Star

T-Mobile raises forecast for annual subscriber additions

FILE PHOTO: A T-Mobile logo is seen on the storefront door of a store in Manhattan, New York, U.S., April 30, 2018. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo (Reuters) -T-Mobile raised its annual forecast for postpaid net customer additions on Wednesday and added more wireless subscribers than expected in the second quarter, signaling steady demand for the telecom giant's top-tier mobile services. Shares of the Bellevue, Washington-based company rose 3.5% in extended trading. The carrier now expects to add between 6.1 million and 6.4 million subscribers in 2025, compared with its prior projection of 5.5 million to 6 million additions. Telecom operators in the U.S. have boosted their plans with attractive trade-in deals and price guarantees to fend off competition as they grapple for a shrinking pool of new users. T-Mobile's postpaid Experience plans, which bundle streaming services such as Netflix and Apple TV+, come with a five-year price guarantee for customers. Its aggressive promotions and add-on perks have helped the company maintain an edge over rivals and increase its market share. It added 830,000 postpaid phone customers in the second quarter, surpassing FactSet estimates of 700,300 additions. T-Mobile, the last among the big three U.S. telecom carriers to report results, posted second-quarter total revenue of $21.13 billion, beating analysts' estimates of $21.02 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. Rival AT&T beat quarterly profit estimates on Wednesday and added more wireless subscribers than expected, while Verizon raised the lower end of its annual profit forecast on Monday. (Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

Tesla starts 'first builds' of affordable model, posts steepest drop in quarterly revenue in over a decade
Tesla starts 'first builds' of affordable model, posts steepest drop in quarterly revenue in over a decade

The Star

time26 minutes ago

  • The Star

Tesla starts 'first builds' of affordable model, posts steepest drop in quarterly revenue in over a decade

FILE PHOTO: Model Y cars are pictured during the opening ceremony of the new Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide, Germany, March 22, 2022. Patrick Pleul/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo (Reuters) -Tesla started making the "first builds" of its affordable model in June, the electric vehicle maker said on Wednesday, adding that it expects volume production in the second half of this year. Tesla did not provide an update on its full-year deliveries forecast after pulling its guidance in April, citing economic concerns. The company reported the steepest decline in quarterly revenue in more than a decade, with a 12% fall, as it battles strong competition from cheaper electric vehicles and a backlash against CEO Elon Musk's political views. Tesla shares were down 1% in after-hours trading. Revenue fell to $22.5 billion for the April-June quarter from $25.50 billion a year earlier. Analysts on average were expecting revenue of $22.74 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. The company reported a second straight quarterly revenue drop despite rolling out a much-awaited refreshed version of its best-selling Model Y SUV that investors had hoped would rekindle demand. Analysts now expect the cheaper vehicle to boost sales. Tesla had said in April it would start producing the model by the end of the first half and sources had told Reuters the vehicle, a stripped-down version of its Model Y SUV, would be delayed by at least months. Tesla on Wednesday did not disclose any details on the model or how many units it had made. Much of the company's trillion-dollar valuation hangs on its bet on its robotaxi service - a small trial of which was started in Austin, Texas, last month - and developing humanoid robots. However, investors are worried about whether Musk will be able to give enough time and attention to Tesla after he locked horns with President Donald Trump by forming a new political party this month. He had promised weeks earlier that he would cut back on government work and focus on his companies. A series of high-profile executive exits, including a longtime Elon Musk confidant who oversaw sales and manufacturing in North America and Europe and left Tesla last month, is also adding to the concerns. (Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru and Abhirup Roy in San Francisco; Editing by Peter Henderson, Anil D'Silva and Matthew Lewis)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store