UK seeks to extend ban on bottom trawling fishing in English seas
It said the move would protect vital marine habitats and support species such as lobster, clams, soft corals and langoustines. Currently there is a ban covering about 18,000 square km of English seabeds.
'Bottom trawling is damaging our precious marine wildlife and habitats,' Environment Minister Steve Reed said in a statement. 'Without urgent action, our oceans will be irreversibly destroyed.'
The proposal coincides with the start of this week's United Nations Ocean Conference in France, which is seeking to get agreement for a treaty to protect the world's oceans and seabeds from overfishing and other human activities.
On Sunday Prince William, the elder son of King Charles and heir to the throne, called on politicians and business leaders at an event in Monaco ahead of the UN conference to act 'while we still have the chance'.
Meanwhile Attenborough, whose latest documentary film 'Ocean' on the issue was released last month, said he was appalled by what humans had done to 'the deep ocean floor', saying it was 'unspeakably awful'.
'If you did anything remotely like it on land, everybody would be up in arms,' Attenborough told William in an interview which was released by the prince's office on Saturday.
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IOL News
9 hours ago
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UN report names 48 multinational corporations allegedly profiting from Palestinian occupation
The findings, presented by Francesca Albanese - the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian - during a media briefing in Geneva on Thursday, accuse these corporations of failing to uphold their legal responsibilities, thereby facilitating a system of exploitative occupation. Image: Supplied The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories has unveiled a report listing up to 48 multinational corporations allegedly complicit in the ongoing war and profiting from the occupation of Palestine. The findings, presented by Francesca Albanese during a media briefing in Geneva on Thursday, accuse these corporations of failing to uphold their legal responsibilities, thereby facilitating a system of exploitative occupation. Albanese's report highlights a troubling landscape where corporations across various sectors—including weapons manufacturers, technology firms, financial institutions, and construction companies—are said to be contributing to what she describes as a 'livestreamed genocide.' The findings underscore a broader complicity, presenting a picture where corporate interests overshadow profound ethical considerations regarding human rights violations in the region. 'These actors have entrenched and expanded Israel's settler-colonial logic of displacement and replacement – and this is not accidental,' Albanese said. 'It is the function of an economy built to dominate, dispossess, and erase Palestinians from their land.' Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ She emphasised that, instead of using their leverage to oppose human rights abuses, these companies have normalised Israel's oppressive actions as mere economic activities, ignoring the escalating atrocities following the 7 October 2023. The report doesn't just stop at identifying companies; it extends its scope to corporations enabling the infrastructure that supports this occupation. Albanese asserted that numerous firms involved in finance, research, advertising, and legal consulting have played a role in sustaining the settler-colonial regime through the dissemination of bias, narratives, and investment. 'Corporate actors are deeply entwined in the system of occupation, apartheid and genocide in the occupied Palestinian territory,' Albanese said. 'For decades, Israel's repression of Palestinian people has been scaffolded by corporations, fully aware of and yet indifferent to, decades of human rights violations and international crimes.' Among the firms highlighted are technology giants like Alphabet, IBM, Amazon, and Microsoft, accused of providing carceral and surveillance services that fuel the machine of oppression. 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However, Glencore's head of corporate communications, Charles Watenphul, told Business Report that there was no substance in the allegations made in the report. 'We categorically reject all allegations contained in the report and consider them to be without any foundation and legally groundless,' Watenphul said. Albanese called for sanctions and an arms embargo on Israel and for global corporations to be held accountable for 'profiting from genocide' in Gaza. Last month, the Trump administration wrote to UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres calling on the UN to remove Albanese, alleging 'virulent antisemitism and support for terrorism' and alleging that she claimed to be an 'international lawyer' but was not licensed to practice law. Albanese is an Italian legal scholar who has been the special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories since 2022. BUSINESS REPORT
Daily Maverick
15 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
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TimesLIVE
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