Popular Keyword – Construction Keywords

Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry These are the most popular suggestions for Construction Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 building 550000 2 constitution 368000 3 contractions 165000 4 contractor 135000 5 builder 110000 6 construction companies 74000 7 constructeur maison 49500 8 remodeling 49500 9 construed 49500 10 construction management 40500 11 general contractor 33100 12 building construction 27100 13 construction worker 22200 14 construction materials 18100 15 const 18100 16 construction site 14800 17 contractor license 14800 18 construction news 14800 19 construire 14800 20 construction logo 14800 21 building contractors 12100 22 construction companies near me 12100 23 tiny house builders 12100 24 new construction 12100 25 construction engineering 12100 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keyword – Weight Loss Keywords

Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry These are the most popular suggestions for Weight Loss Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 how to lose weight 450000 2 diet 301000 3 how to lose weight fast 301000 4 atkins diet 246000 5 low carb diet 201000 6 lose weight 165000 7 diet plans 165000 8 diabetic diet 165000 9 fat burner 135000 10 apple cider vinegar weight loss 135000 11 weight loss pills 135000 12 lose weight fast 110000 13 weight loss tips 110000 14 vegan diet 110000 15 meal plan 90500 16 hcg diet 90500 17 weight loss diet 74000 18 diet pills 74000 19 losing weight 60500 20 belly fat 60500 21 best way to lose weight 60500 22 weight gain 60500 23 no carb diet 60500 24 healthy eating 60500 25 detox diet 60500 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keyword – Health Fitness Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry

These are the most popular suggestions for Health and Fitness Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 planet fitness 2240000 2 gym 1830000 3 fitness 1500000 4 bodybuilding 1500000 5 la fitness 1220000 6 pilates 823000 7 24 hour fitness 823000 8 exercise 823000 9 health 673000 10 how to lose weight 450000 11 weight loss 368000 12 fitness first 368000 13 workout 368000 14 diet 301000 15 nutrition 301000 16 lifetime fitness 301000 17 personal trainer 246000 18 aerobic 201000 19 mens health 201000 20 fitness world 201000 21 lose weight 165000 22 fitnessstudio 165000 23 crunch fitness 165000 24 athletic club 135000 25 health tips 135000 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keywords – Health Care Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry

These are the most popular suggestions for Health Care Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 united healthcare 1000000 2 health 673000 3 obamacare 550000 4 health insurance 368000 5 home insurance 246000 6 obama care 165000 7 affordable care act 165000 8 medical insurance 74000 9 united healthcare online 60500 10 private health insurance 40500 11 health insurance companies 40500 12 cheap health insurance 33100 13 health insurance plans 33100 14 health insurance quotes 27100 15 affordable health insurance 27100 16 humana health insurance 22200 17 aetna health insurance 22200 18 health care plans 18100 19 universal health care 18100 20 united healthcare insurance 18100 21 medical care 18100 22 compare health insurance 18100 23 healthcare management 18100 24 cigna health insurance 18100 25 ehealthinsurance 18100 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keyword – Gardening Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry

Popular Keyword – Gardening Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry These are the most popular suggestions for Gardening Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 plants 550000 2 landscape 450000 3 botanical gardens 368000 4 nursery 368000 5 landscaping 201000 6 garden centre 201000 7 perennial 201000 8 annual 165000 9 planters 110000 10 landscape design 90500 11 rose garden 90500 12 garden ideas 74000 13 gardening tools 74000 14 shrubs 74000 15 garter 74000 16 garden design 60500 17 plant nursery 60500 18 water garden 60500 19 landscaping ideas 60500 20 the garden 60500 21 lawn 49500 22 japanese garden 49500 23 gardeners world 49500 24 flower garden 40500 25 green garden 40500 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below

Read More

Popular Keywords – Fitness Keywords

Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry These are the most popular suggestions for Fitness Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 gym 1830000 2 bodybuilding 1500000 3 gyms near me 823000 4 exercise 823000 5 treadmill 550000 6 abs workout 450000 7 workout 368000 8 weight 368000 9 lifetime fitness 301000 10 personal trainer 246000 11 cardio 201000 12 exercise bike 201000 13 snap fitness 201000 14 aerobic 201000 15 fitnessstudio 165000 16 the gym 165000 17 crunch fitness 165000 18 world gym 165000 19 ab exercises 135000 20 aerobic exercise 110000 21 gym equipment 110000 22 musculation 110000 23 fitness 19 110000 24 work out 110000 25 gym workout 90500 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keyword – Energy Keywords

Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry These are the most popular suggestions for Energy Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 power 1830000 2 doe 368000 3 electricity 246000 4 solar energy 165000 5 renewable energy 135000 6 electricity bill 135000 7 electrical supply 110000 8 direct energy 110000 9 geothermal energy 90500 10 nuclear energy 90500 11 stream energy 90500 12 wind energy 74000 13 electric company 74000 14 renewable resources 60500 15 what is energy 60500 16 energy saver 49500 17 thermal energy 49500 18 green energy 40500 19 wind power 40500 20 free energy 40500 21 types of energy 40500 22 department of energy 40500 23 energy conservation 33100 24 electrical energy 33100 25 energy star 33100 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keywords – Auto Insurance Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry

These are the most popular suggestions for Auto Insurance Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 car insurance 1220000 2 insurance 550000 3 car insurance quotes 450000 4 cheap car insurance 368000 5 health insurance 368000 6 life insurance 301000 7 insurance quotes 246000 8 home insurance 246000 9 compare car insurance 135000 10 insurance companies 135000 11 renters insurance 135000 12 cheap auto insurance 90500 13 cheap insurance 90500 14 auto insurance quotes 90500 15 general insurance 90500 16 car insurance companies 74000 17 medical insurance 74000 18 van insurance 74000 19 gap insurance 74000 20 insurance agents 60500 21 home insurance quotes 60500 22 house insurance 60500 23 motorcycle insurance 60500 24 car insurance comparison 49500 25 business insurance 49500 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keyword – Diet Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry

These are the most popular suggestions for Diet Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 how to lose weight 450000 2 weight loss 368000 3 low carb 301000 4 how to lose weight fast 301000 5 nutrition 301000 6 mediterranean diet 246000 7 atkins diet 246000 8 low carb diet 201000 9 diet plans 165000 10 lose weight 165000 11 diabetic diet 165000 12 fat burner 135000 13 apple cider vinegar weight loss 135000 14 weight loss pills 135000 15 weight loss tips 110000 16 lose weight fast 110000 17 low carb foods 110000 18 vegan diet 110000 19 meal plan 90500 20 diyet listesi 90500 21 weight loss diet 74000 22 diet pills 74000 23 losing weight 60500 24 best way to lose weight 60500 25 no carb diet 60500 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keywords – Affiliate Keywords

Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry These are the most popular suggestions for Affiliate Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 adwords 1830000 2 money 1220000 3 marketing 823000 4 work from home 550000 5 how to make money 246000 6 make money online 201000 7 clickbank 201000 8 how to make money online 165000 9 amazon affiliate 165000 10 affiliate marketing 135000 11 ppc 135000 12 amazon associates 110000 13 affiliation meaning 49500 14 wealthy affiliate 40500 15 affiliate programs 27100 16 linkshare 22200 17 amazon affiliate program 18100 18 commission junction 18100 19 affiliate amazon 14800 20 affiliate definition 14800 21 define affiliate 14800 22 lots of 14800 23 how to start 12100 24 payper 12100 25 what is affiliate marketing 8100 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keyword – Acne Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry

These are the most popular suggestions for Acne Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 acne studios 246000 2 blackhead removal 246000 3 proactiv 246000 4 blackheads 201000 5 scar 201000 6 pimple 165000 7 benzoyl peroxide 135000 8 cystic acne 135000 9 how to get rid of acne 110000 10 acne scars 90500 11 acne treatment 74000 12 acne skin care products 74000 13 how to get rid of acne scars 74000 14 whiteheads 60500 15 blemish 60500 16 glycolic acid 60500 17 clearasil 60500 18 acne vulgaris 49500 19 akne 49500 20 best acne treatment 27100 21 acne scar treatment 27100 22 acne rosacea 27100 23 home remedies for acne 27100 24 hormonal acne 27100 25 acne scar removal 22200 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keywords – Accounting Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry

These are the most popular suggestions for Accounting Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 income tax 1220000 2 quickbooks 823000 3 account 823000 4 cpa 450000 5 tax 450000 6 accountant 301000 7 cma 246000 8 audit 246000 9 tax return 201000 10 payroll 165000 11 cga 135000 12 bookkeeping 110000 13 chartered accountant 90500 14 auditor 90500 15 accountant salary 74000 16 accounts payable 74000 17 accounting software 60500 18 financial accounting 49500 19 corporation tax 49500 20 cpas 49500 21 the acountant 40500 22 what is accounting 40500 23 management accounting 33100 24 cost accounting 33100 25 tax preparation 33100 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below.

Read More

Popular Keywords – Law Keywords

Popular Keywords – Law Keywords Search Popular Keywords in Your Industry These are the most popular suggestions for Law Keywords generated by WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool. To get have all of these keywords sent to you, simply enter your Email address and click “Email Keywords” below. KEYWORDS (1-25 OF 100) SEARCH VOLUME 1 lawyer 301000 2 court 246000 3 attorney 201000 4 legal 165000 5 litigation 165000 6 solicitor 135000 7 la w 135000 8 prosecutor 135000 9 statutory 110000 10 common law 90500 11 barrister 74000 12 counsel 74000 13 sister in law 74000 14 harvard law school 60500 15 law school 49500 16 family law 49500 17 lawsuit 49500 18 civil law 49500 19 free legal advice 40500 20 law firm 33100 21 law dictionary 33100 22 international law 27100 23 legal advice 22200 24 law firms 22200 25 case law 22200 26 keyword ??? 27 keyword ??? 28 keyword ??? 29 keyword ??? 30 keyword ??? Lock To see the rest of your FREE keywords, enter a valid email address below. Law Marketing Tips and Tricks Former Saturday Night Live writer and acclaimed stand-up comedian John Mulaney does an awesome bit about solving murders before DNA technology was invented. He jokes that a detective’s assistant could literally find a pool of the killer’s blood in the hallway, only to be told to clean it up while the detective further explores his vague hunch. The idea of law marketing back in the day is equally funny. You basically had to trust in the power of hearsay to spread the word about your law practice around the town. In fact, without a website or a social media presence for validation, anybody could claim to be a lawyer if they looked the part. Fake lawyers must have been a huge problem when smoke signals were the most effective way to communicate over distance. Nowadays, of course, it’s a whole different ballgame. Sure, you were smart enough to make your way through law school and the bar exam. But now, you find yourself in need of help when it comes to marketing your practice. That’s where we come in and drop some knowledge. Let’s start by addressing some of the challenges for lawyers using paid search. Most pressing is how expensive it is. It’s not uncommon for the average law firm’s monthly PPC spend to fall between $50,000 and $100,000. On top of that, the competition is huge, and it’s difficult to target ads towards consumers with cases that offer a big enough return. So, without a strong grasp of online advertising, your practice can end up spending tens of thousands every month on clicks that offer little to no ROI. Yikes. A good first move is to search those keywords and see what your competition is doing. Then, be better. Craft some stellar CTAs to get your prospects moving. Build out ad extensions to give them as much information as possible. Tell them one or two things about your practice that makes it better than the one next door. It is critical to match your ad to the searcher’s level of intent. If they search something with low intent (“what do personal injury lawyers do?”), you’re far more likely to attract a click to an FAQ page or a blog post. Alternatively, if the searcher shows high intent (“personal injury lawyer near me”), it’s wise to advertise a fast solution: Get Injury Compensation Today. Understanding where a prospect falls on the intent scale and tailoring your search ads accordingly is critical. Better yet, when crafting your search ads for high intent keywords, skip the landing page altogether and tell the prospect to call right away. You can do this by replacing your headline with your phone number, or simply by using a call extension. In either case, track your phone calls. This allows you to adjust your strategies and to observe when prospects call most frequently – information you can use to tailor your bids to certain times of day. In the situations when landing pages are preferable, use video content to build personality and gain trust. You can go a couple different ways with video. If you make a quick video of yourself explaining who you are and how you can help, that will make prospects more trusting of you. Alternatively, you can use video to share customer testimonials. These will show prospects that you have done a stellar job with clients just like them. Plus, video content boost traffic from SERPs, partially because they make your landing pages better in terms of Google’s Quality Score. Finally, make use of the Google Display Network (GDN) to supplement other ads and build your brand. Display ads are vastly underused in the law industry, and the CPCs are extraordinarily low. Display is a cheap way to make your brand stronger and more recognizable among the competition. For more marketing advice, check out the WordStream blog. Top Keywords BUSINESS KEYWORDS Accounting Keywords Affiliate Keywords Auto Insurance Keywords B2B Ecommerce Keywords B2B Keywords Biotechnology Keywords Business Keywords Business Management Keywords Business Travel Keywords Construction Keywords Credit Card Keywords Debt Keywords Entertainment Keywords Finance Keywords Human Resources Keywords Insurance Business Keywords Internet Security Keywords Management Keywords Office Supplies Keywords Online Payment Solutions Keywords Software Keywords Startup Keywords Web Hosting Keywords CONSUMER KEYWORDS Art Keywords Automotive Keywords Casino Keywords Cell Phone Keywords Computer Keywords Dating Keywords Ecommerce Keywords Electronics Keywords Email Keywords Fashion Keywords Golf Keywords Hotel Keywords Internet Keywords Jobs Keywords Law Keywords Mortgage Keywords Music Keywords Online Stores Keywords Pest Control Keywords Photography Keywords Plumbing Keywords Real Estate Keywords Restaurants Keywords Shoes Keywords Travel Keywords Wedding Keywords FINANCE KEYWORDS Financial Services Keywords HEALTH & WELLNESS KEYWORDS Acne Keywords Diet Keywords Energy Keywords Fitness Keywords Gardening Keywords Health Care Keywords Health Fitness Keywords Nutrition Keywords Vacations Travel Keywords Weight Loss Keywords MISCELLANEOUS KEYWORDS Aerospace Keywords Agriculture Keywords Best Travel Keywords Coffee Keywords Dog Training Keywords Education Keywords Environmental Keywords Food & Beverage Keywords Forex Keywords Gifts Keywords Home Based Business Keywords Home Improvements Keywords Internet Games Keywords iPhone Keywords Jewelry Keywords Landscaping Keywords Legal Keywords Luggage Keywords Pharmaceutical Keywords Poker Keywords Retail Keywords School Education Keywords Solar Energy Keywords Transporation Keywords Women Fashion Keywords Work From Home Keywords SALES & MARKETING KEYWORDS Advertising Keywords Marketing Keywords Marketing Email Keywords Media Keywords Online Marketing Keywords Sales Keywords SEO Keywords Shopping Cart Solutions Keywords Social Media Keywords Technology Keywords Twitter Keywords Web Design Keywords Web Development Keywords

Read More

Top 100 Family Law and Divorce Keywords

First, here’s the list of the top family law and divorce keywords. I’ve sorted them by search volume, but you can also see the keyword difficulty and cost per click (CPC). (More on the metrics in the next section.) Keyword Search Volume Keyword Difficulty CPC (USD) divorce lawyer 40500 64 8.51 family law attorney 40500 60 10.07 divorce lawyer near me 27100 50 0 family law attorney near me 22200 61 8.49 family lawyer 14800 57 10.08 family lawyer near me 14800 66 8.49 family law attorneys near me 14800 59 8.49 child custody lawyer 14800 32 8.05 child custody lawyers near me 12100 42 7.06 family attorney near me 9900 63 0 family attorneys near me 9900 62 8.49 child custody attorney 8100 26 7.29 child custody 6600 80 3.12 family law lawyer 5400 59 9.51 child custody attorney near me 5400 31 7.06 child custody lawyers 5400 18 6.61 grandparents rights 4400 60 1.54 family lawyer free consultation 3600 33 4.2 attorney near me family law 3600 58 8.49 is alimony taxable 3600 52 0 free divorce lawyer 2900 56 2.85 best divorce lawyer near me 2900 31 5.68 family attorneys 2900 59 0 divorce lawyer free consultation 2400 34 5.01 lawyer divorce 2400 59 7.93 lawyer for divorce 2400 51 7.93 family court lawyer 2400 54 7.92 family lawyer near me free consultation 2400 8 3.57 family court attorney near me 2400 48 8.49 best family law attorney near me 2400 56 6.01 lawyers for child custody 2400 36 5.71 child custody lawyer near me 2400 40 0 cheap divorce lawyer near me 1900 55 4.29 free consultation divorce lawyer 1900 37 5.01 military divorce lawyer 1900 40 7.73 family law lawyer near me 1900 49 8.49 family court attorney 1900 59 7.92 how long does alimony last 1900 48 1.8 what qualifies a spouse for alimony 1900 50 1.71 free divorce lawyer for low income 1600 70 2.12 lawyer divorce near me 1600 56 6.25 low cost divorce lawyer near me 1600 60 3.46 uncontested divorce lawyer 1600 37 7.68 free consultation family lawyer 1600 39 4.2 moving out of state with child no custody agreement 1600 16 0 alimony lawyer 1600 37 5.19 alimony vs child support 1600 15 0 how does alimony work 1600 64 1.23 is alimony tax deductible 1600 50 2.7 affordable divorce lawyer near me 1300 45 4.29 best divorce lawyer 1300 49 6.98 divorce lawyer cost 1300 52 4.52 divorce lawyer near me free consultation 1300 10 4.75 divorce lawyer san diego 1300 39 19.53 divorce without a lawyer 1300 47 1.87 free consultation with divorce lawyer near me 1300 18 2.88 good divorce lawyer near me 1300 58 5.68 how much does a divorce lawyer cost 1300 58 2.9 lawyer for divorce near me 1300 56 6.25 best family lawyer near me 1300 45 6.01 best family law attorneys near me 1300 42 6.01 best family attorney near me 1300 49 6.01 free family law attorney 1300 66 3.19 child custody attorneys 1300 37 0 lawyer for child custody 1300 46 7.29 how long do you have to married to get alimony 1300 23 1.88 can you get a divorce without a lawyer 1000 44 1.47 how much is a divorce lawyer 1000 56 3.4 men’s divorce lawyer 1000 61 8.2 family court lawyer near me 1000 55 8.49 free family lawyer consultation near me 1000 51 3.57 family law attorney free consultation 1000 30 4.2 how to get custody of a child 1000 54 0 what is alimony based on 1000 53 0.98 cheap divorce lawyer 880 43 4.99 cheapest lawyer for divorce 880 54 4.99 divorce mediation lawyer 880 49 7.23 questions to ask a divorce lawyer 880 35 2.74 family custody lawyer 880 36 7.48 low income family lawyer 880 66 3.09 family attorney free consultation 880 25 4.2 what not to say in child custody mediation 880 6 0 how is alimony calculated 880 37 1.1 if wife filed for divorce can she get alimony 880 60 2.85 what disqualifies you from alimony 880 32 1.58 collaborative divorce lawyer 720 50 9.03 divorce lawyer for men 720 52 6.38 family divorce lawyer 720 64 9.07 family divorce lawyer near me 720 64 8.33 free consultation divorce lawyer near me 720 17 4.75 affordable family lawyer 720 45 10.61 pro bono family lawyer 720 64 2.11 affordable family law attorney 720 49 10.61 best child custody lawyers near me 720 29 0 child custody agreement without court 720 30 0 child custody attorneys near me 720 44 0 child custody schedules by age 720 42 0 free child custody lawyers for mothers 720 56 0 requirements to get custody of a child 720 51 0 how long do you have to pay alimony 720 40 0.84

Read More

Russia’s Lavrov meets Kim Jong Un in North Korea with Ukraine war at fore

North Korean officials have “reaffirmed their support for all objectives” in the Russia-Ukraine war, says Russian FM. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, right, and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un shake hands during their meeting in Wonsan, North Korea, on July 12, 2025 [Russian Foreign Ministry Press Service/via AP] Published On 12 Jul 202512 Jul 2025 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has met with Kim Jong Un in North Korea, during which Pyongyang reaffirmed its support for Russia’s war in Ukraine in which thousands of its soldiers have been killed. Lavrov “was received” by Kim, Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Telegram on Saturday, posting a video of the two men shaking hands and embracing in Wonsan. Russian and North Korean state media had announced the visit earlier, saying Lavrov would stay until Sunday.

It is the latest in a series of high-profile trips by top Moscow officials to North Korea as the countries deepen military and political ties with a focus on Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. Pyongyang has become one of Moscow’s main allies during its more than three-year-long war in Ukraine, sending thousands of troops and conventional weapons to help the Kremlin remove Ukrainian forces from Kursk in Russia. More than 6,000 North Korean soldiers have died in the Russia-Ukraine war, according to British Defence Intelligence. North Korea has also agreed to dispatch 6,000 military engineers and builders to help reconstruction efforts there. The South Korean intelligence service has said North Korea may be preparing to deploy additional troops in July or August. The United States and South Korea have expressed concern that, in return, Kim may seek Russian technology transfers that could enhance the threat posed by his nuclear-armed military. Earlier on Saturday, Lavrov met with his North Korean counterpart Choe Son Hui in Wonsan, a city on the country’s east coast, where a huge resort was opened earlier this month. “We exchanged views on the situation surrounding the Ukrainian crisis … Our Korean friends confirmed their firm support for all the objectives of the special military operation, as well as for the actions of the Russian leadership and armed forces,” Russian news agency TASS quoted Lavrov as saying.
He also thanked the “heroic” North Korean soldiers, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. In April, the two countries officially confirmed the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia for the first time, saying these troops had helped Russia to recapture the Kursk region – a claim contested by Ukraine. Since then, Kim has been shown in state media paying tribute in front of flag-draped coffins of North Korean soldiers. Russia’s Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu has visited Pyongyang multiple times this year. The two heavily sanctioned nations signed a sweeping military deal last November, including a mutual defence clause, during a rare visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to North Korea. Pyongyang has reportedly been directly arming Moscow to support its war in Ukraine. In the meantime, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address on Friday that US weapons shipments to his country had resumed, following the Pentagon’s decision to briefly halt the delivery of certain weapons to Kyiv over fears that US stockpiles were dwindling. The US will deliver military supplies and send its envoy Keith Kellogg to Kyiv early next week, said Zelenskyy. Source: News Agencies

Read More

Trade trumps geopolitics as Australia PM visits China

Australia's leader Anthony Albanese will visit China and meet with President Xi Jinping this weekend as he seeks to strengthen ties with Canberra's largest trading partner. Regional security and trade will take centre stage during the prime minister's six-day trip spanning three cities - Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu. "My government will continue to cooperate with China where we can, disagree where we must, and engage in our national interest," Albanese said in a statement. The trip marks Albanese's second official visit to China - but the first since his re-election in May. It comes as countries around the world navigate US president Donald Trump's "America First" policies including tariffs. China accounts for nearly a third of Australia's total trade and "will remain so for the foreseeable future", Albanese said. "The relationship in China means jobs in Australia. It's as simple as that," he told reporters on Friday. Albanese, whose Labor Party government was re-elected with an increased majority in May, had pledged among other things to create more jobs and bring back manufacturing in Australia. Analysts say this trip signals a stabilisation of ties between Australia and China, even as Beijing has been trying to extend its military reach across the Pacific to some protest by Australia. Last month, Australia's defence minister Richard Marles called on China to explain why it needs to have "such an extraordinary military build-up". A rare Chinese military drill in the Tasman sea in February was also called "unusual" by Marles. "Both sides recognise their differences... [and] agree those differences should not define the relationship," says James Laurenceson, director of Australia-China Relations Institute. The two countries are not seeking geopolitical alignment, he said. "They need to keep the politics stable and constructive so that other parts of the relationship, like businesses, cultural organisations, universities and so on can forge ahead with engagement in their own areas." Mr Laurenceson notes, however, that Washington "will not be pleased" with Albanese's visit. But the prime minister has domestic support for this, he says. "Washington is heading in a direction so plainly contrary to Australia's interests that any [leader] seen as kowtowing to the White House would face pushback at home," he says. Beijing will continue to criticise Australia's involvement in the Aukus submarine deal with its longstanding allies, the UK and the US, observers tell the BBC, while Canberra will reiterate its commitment to the pact - even as Trump's administration has recently put the agreement under review. But disagreements over issues like Aukus will not thwart Australia's and China's relationship significantly, the observers say.

Read More

Trump says EU and Mexico face 30% tariff from August

President Donald Trump has announced that the European Union and Mexico will face a 30% tariff on imports to the US from 1 August. He warned he would impose even higher import taxes if either of the US trading partners decided to retaliate. The 27-member EU - America's biggest trading partner - said earlier this week it hoped to agree a deal with Washington before 1 August. Trump has this week also said the US will impose new tariffs on goods from Japan, South Korea, Canada and Brazil, also starting from 1 August. Similar letters were sent this week to a number of smaller US trade partners. In the letter sent on Friday to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Trump wrote: "We have had years to discuss our trading relationship with the European Union, and have concluded that we must move away from these long-term-large, and persistent, trade deficits, engendered by your tariff, and non-tariff, policies and trade barriers." "Our relationship has been, unfortunately, far from reciprocal," the letter added. Canada's Carney talked tough on Trump - now some say he's backing down The EU has been a frequent target of Trump's criticism. On 2 April, he proposed a 20% tariff for goods from the bloc, as well as dozens of other trade partners. He then threatened to raise the EU import taxes to 50% as trade talks stalled. Washington and Brussels had hoped to reach an agreement before a deadline of 9 July, but there have been no announcements on progress. In 2024, the US trade deficit with the bloc was $235.6bn (€202bn; £174bn), according to the office of the US trade representative. Von der Leyen said the EU remained ready "to continue working towards an agreement by Aug 1". "Few economies in the world match the European Union's level of openness and adherence to fair trading practices," her statement added. "We will take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures if required." France's President Emmanuel Macron said he was in "very strong disapproval" of Trump's announcement. If no agreement is reached, the French leader suggested the EU plan "speeding up the preparation of credible countermeasures". Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a statement she trusted "a fair agreement" could be reached, adding: "It would make no sense to trigger a trade war between the two sides of the Atlantic." Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said on social media that the EU "must remain united and resolute" in its aim to reach a "mutually beneficial" deal with the US. Germany's Association of the Automotive Industry warned about the prospect of rising costs for German carmakers and suppliers, and said it was "regrettable that there is a threat of a further escalation of the trade conflict". In his letter to Mexico's leader, Trump said the country had not done enough to stop North America becoming a "Narco-Trafficking Playground". "Mexico has been helping me secure the border, BUT, what Mexico has done, is not enough," Trump added. In his letters to the EU and Mexico, Trump warned that if either trade partner retaliated with import duties of their own against the US, he would hit back by raising tariffs by a similar percentage over and above the 30%. Mexico responded to Trump's threat on Saturday, calling it an "unfair deal". Trump's letter did not say if Mexico goods traded within the 2020 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement would be exempt from the proposed 1 August tariff hikes, as the White House said would be the case with Canada. Earlier this week, the White House sent a letter to Canada threatening a 35% tariff. As of Saturday, the Trump administration has now proposed tariff conditions on 24 countries and the EU. On 12 April, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro set a goal to secure "90 deals in 90 days". So far, the president has announced the outlines of two such pacts with the United Kingdom and Vietnam amid ongoing negotiations.

Read More

Elon Musk just made his starkest political threat since the election

Elon Musk looks on during a news conference with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on May 30 After declaring he was stepping away from the political spotlight, Elon Musk got right back in it. As the Senate debated President Donald Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” on Monday before a final vote, Musk issued a stark warning via his social media platform X. “Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame! And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth,” he wrote. A few hours later he went further, declaring on X that if the “insane spending bill passes, the America Party will be formed the next day.” “Our country needs an alternative to the Democrat-Republican uniparty so that the people actually have a VOICE,” he wrote. In a late-night post on social media, Trump hit back against Musk and threatened to direct the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) against the tech billionaire. “Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa. No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE. Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social. For weeks, Musk has railed against Trump’s policy bill, leading to a very public and ugly fight with Trump earlier this month. In a flurry of X posts several weeks ago, Musk had proposed starting a new political party. That proposal resurfaced on Monday, when Musk said: “It is obvious with the insane spending of this bill, which increases the debt ceiling by a record FIVE TRILLION DOLLARS that we live in a one-party country – the PORKY PIG PARTY!! Time for a new political party that actually cares about the people.” Musk’s resolution to support candidates who plan to launch primary campaigns against members of Congress is one of Musk’s most concrete political threats since leaving his post as a White House adviser. Musk spent more than $275 million to support Trump and other Republican candidates in the 2024 election. In late May he said in an interview he was planning to cut back on political spending, saying he has “done enough.” trumpmuskfeud.jpg Related article How the feud between Elon Musk and Donald Trump exploded over 72 hours According to Federal Election Commission filings, Musk’s political action committee, America PAC, last gave money in March to support two Republican candidates running in special elections in Florida – Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis. Musk has long supported closed borders, deportations and stopping illegal immigration, in line with the Trump administration. But the domestic policy bill has appeared to trigger a rift between the Tesla CEO and the White House. Musk has argued that the Republican policy bill will increase the debt, calling it “debt slavery.” The Senate bill would add nearly $3.3 trillion to the deficit over the next decade, according to a Congressional Budget Office estimate released Sunday. The Senate legislation costs more than the House-approved bill, which would add $2.4 trillion to the deficit over the next decade. The Senate package contains deeper tax cuts, fewer spending cuts and provisions that would raise revenue. The White House has argued the bill “slashes deficits” and the debt, while “unleashing economic growth.” The Trump administration and certain Senate Republicans are opting not to include the cost of extending the 2017 Trump tax cuts in their calculations of the bill’s impact on the federal deficit.

Though Musk has said the loss of electric vehicle (EV) and solar energy subsidies and credits in the bill are not why he opposes the legislation, he has complained the bill “gives handouts to industries of the past while severely damaging industries of the future.” In his post on Truth Social, Trump defended his position against EV mandates, writing: “Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for President, that I was strongly against the EV Mandate. It is ridiculous, and was always a major part of my campaign. Electric cars are fine, but not everyone should be forced to own one.” CNN’s Tami Luhby contributed reporting.

Read More

One Way to Win Trump Over: Nominate Him for the Nobel Prize

African leaders tell the president during a meeting at the White House that he should win the prestigious award

WASHINGTON—President Trump often bristles at questions from the media. But he perked up when a reporter asked a group of African leaders if he should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Read More

Trump promised 200 deals by now. He’s gotten 3, and 1 more is getting very close

At the conclusion of his first 100 days in office in late April, President Donald Trump made a stunning statement about his progress on tariff negotiations: He had completed trade deals with 200 countries. More than two months later, Trump has announced just three of those agreements – with China, the United Kingdom and Vietnam.

So what happened? Wednesday marks the day that Trump had set three months ago as a deadline for all countries to reach a deal or face higher “reciprocal” tariffs. Trump has since publicly acknowledged that pausing those “Liberation Day” tariffs until July 9 left insufficient time to negotiate with practically every country around the world. Trump had initially expected to complete more trade deals by Wednesday’s deadline, but in recent weeks he’s been convinced that landing those deals can’t happen more swiftly, sources familiar with the matter tell CNN. That’s why his public rhetoric has shifted in recent weeks to saying he would send out letters that set higher tariffs on America’s trading partners, effectively getting results on the board while talks continue. So Trump agreed to push the deadline back to August 1 to give countries that are close to a deal a little more time for talks – particularly the European Union, which is on the verge of announcing a trade deal with the United States. Progress in EU negotiations EU and US trade negotiators are nearing a framework agreement that would set in place 10% tariffs and lay out the parameters for extensive trade discussions going forward, according to three officials familiar with the matter. The progress in negotiations with the EU, in particular, was a key consideration in extending the deadline beyond July 9. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pointed to the EU talks, as well as the view that several other key negotiations were in their final stages, as he advocated for more time, according to two people familiar with the matter. Trump still needs to sign off on any final agreement and talks between the two sides are ongoing, but the officials said the agreement would be announced before the end of the week. Olof Gill, trade spokesperson for the European Commission, confirmed in a press briefing Wednesday that EU trade negotiators are in active discussions with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and that a deal is expected to be announced in the coming days. Shipping containers at the Bayport Container Terminal at the port of Houston in Seabrook, Texas, US, on Thursday, May 22, 2025. US businesses are under mounting pressure to import goods while President Donald Trump's higher tariffs are on pause, and they're simultaneously navigating increasingly complex filing rules when their cargo crosses the border. Related article Trump has delayed his monster tariffs. Here’s why you should care The progress marks a dramatic turn in Trump’s long-standing, long-public disdain for the EU, a view that served as the backdrop to months of frustrating and intractable trade discussions this year. But Trump’s tone – and behind the scenes, the tenor and tempo of the negotiations – shifted dramatically in the weeks since he threatened 50% tariffs on the EU in a morning social media post in late May. That unexpected and dramatic threat sparked an immediate response from the EU and set the stage for an urgent effort to reach some form of an agreement before Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs snapped into place. EU officials have been in the midst of briefing member countries about the framework and proposed negotiating process, one of the EU officials said, adding that despite the often-divergent equities of the bloc’s nations, the deal has been presented as the best and likely only way to avoid a dramatic escalation in tariffs on August 1. Trump’s negotiators have maintained a hardline on the EU’s push for exemptions to sectoral tariffs already in place or forthcoming, the officials said. For instance, a push to reduce Trump’s 25% tariff on autos is a central late-stage focus of the discussions, as has an effort to cut the 50% levies on steel. US negotiators have indicated some willingness to consider key EU industries and products for possible rate reductions, including airplanes, alcoholic beverages and some agricultural products. But it would require Trump’s final sign-off, the officials said. EU officials have also pledged to significantly increase purchases of US energy and defense sector goods. If a deal can’t be reached, the EU has vowed to introduce countermeasures targeting billions of dollars’ worth of US exports to the bloc. Those retaliatory steps have been due to come into force on July 14. It is not yet clear if the EU will push back that date to account for Trump’s extension of his “reciprocal” tariffs deadline to August 1. “If no agreement is reached by the stated deadline, the EU is prepared to activate targeted and proportionate countermeasures in defense of its legitimate interest,” Marie Bjerre, Denmark’s minister of European affairs, reminded the European Parliament Wednesday, noting that there are limits to the bloc’s patience. Other deals are still in the works Trump has been frustrated by a lack of progress on trade. During a cabinet meeting Tuesday, he said his tariff threats have successfully brought trading partners to the table – but the deals other countries have offered the United States are unacceptable. “They say … ‘We will give you total access, and you don’t have to pay any tariffs, but please don’t charge us tariffs,’ and we don’t like that deal,” Trump said. “We’re not hard-line, but it’s about time the United States of America started collecting money from countries that were ripping us off – ripping us off – and laughing behind our back at how stupid we were.” Trump this week has sent out several letters setting new tariffs, including 25% tariffs on Japan and South Korea. Other letters are expected to be publicized Wednesday. Other deals have been harder to come by. President Donald Trump leads a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, July 8, 2025. Related article Trump promises more tariff letters and warns BRICS of what’s coming India has long been viewed as the most likely major partner to sign onto a framework with the US. But Indian trade negotiators have hardened their positions in recent days, according to US officials. India is also a member of the BRICS group, so it’s unclear what Trump’s 10% tariff threat on BRICS countries Sunday means for trade negotiations. South Korea had also been viewed for weeks as likely to reach an agreement, though Trump’s auto tariffs remain a key sticking point in those talks, and Trump’s letter on Monday may have thrown a wrench in those gears. Japan steadily moved further away from an outcome in recent weeks, and Trump cast significant doubt on talks that once seemed on a path to a certain agreement. Japanese trade negotiators, who just weeks ago were scrambling to lay the groundwork for an announcement by last month’s Group of Seven summit, have delivered far more pessimistic messages in their public statements in recent days. Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Tuesday that despite “earnest and sincere discussions,” Japan has been unable to reach a deal, according to remarks translated by CNN. “We deeply regret that the US government has imposed additional tariffs and announced plans to raise tariff rates,” Ishiba said. Indonesia, Cambodia and Thailand have all delivered substantial offers to their US counterparts in the last two weeks in an effort to move to the front of the line for an agreement and are likely candidates for any near-term deal in the next few days, US officials said. Brazil has ramped up its efforts to secure an agreement, including bilateral talks at the end of last week designed to expand on an earlier offer to sharply reduce tariffs on certain US products, American administration officials said. The most prevalent point of contention among foreign trade teams has been a lack of clarity on what their US counterparts envision for any final agreement. But the biggest roadblock in the more expansive negotiations has been the existence – or promised imposition – of Trump’s sectoral tariffs on autos, steel and pharmaceuticals, US officials said. CNN’s Alayna Treene, James Frater and Anna Cooban contributed to this report.

Read More

‘We promised change but people aren’t feeling it yet’: Labour rues poor first year

 

MPs, aides and other party figures reflect on what went wrong and how they could still turn things around

Pippa Crerar and Jessica Elgot

Sat 5 Jul 2025 06.00 BST

In a stiflingly hot room at a health centre in East London, as he announced the government’s 10-year plan for the NHS on Thursday, Keir Starmer was confronted with a brutal assessment of his first year in power.

“You’ve U-turned on your reforms, your MPs don’t trust you, and markets worry that you’ve lost resolve on fiscal discipline. It’s the epitome, isn’t it, of sticking-plaster politics and chaos that you promised voters you would end?” a television journalist asked.

Initially, Starmer avoided answering the question, but he eventually addressed the fall-out from his government’s chaotic handling of its welfare bill. “I’m not going to pretend the last few days have been easy: they’ve been tough,” he admitted.

“I’m the sort of person that then wants to reflect on that, to ask myself what do we need to do to ensure we don’t get into a situation like that again, and we will go through that process. But I also know … that we will come through it stronger.”

The jubilant crowds of flag-waving supporters that greeted the prime minister as he arrived in Downing Street on 5 July 2024, daring to hope for a brighter future after 14 long years under the Conservative party, felt like a very long time ago.

Senior members of Starmer’s inner circle now quite openly admit that their first year in power has not gone as expected. “I always knew it would be hard, but I think I was probably quite naive about just how hard it would be,” one said.

“We had a difficult fiscal inheritance and there was this sense in the country that everything was broken. We promised change but people aren’t feeling it yet. And they’re not in any mood to give us the benefit of the doubt,” a cabinet minister added.

Starmer and his wife, Victoria, surrounded by well-wishers as he arrived in Downing Street on 5 July 2024. Photograph: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images

Despite all the political misjudgements such as early gloominess over the economy when the country needed to feel hope, unforced errors over issues such as the winter fuel cuts and freebies and a party base unsettled over cuts to international aid and the welfare system, it is too simplistic to suggest that it has all been bad.

Decisions to raise the national minimum wage, improve workers’ rights, build more affordable housing and cut NHS waiting lists have all been popular. Even more starkly “Labour” policies such as nationalising the railways, introducing VAT on private schools fees and threatening water firm bosses over sewage have been well received.

But the government, slumping behind Nigel Farage’s Reform UK in the polls and with Starmer’s own personal approval ratings tanking, hasn’t got the credit. Labour strategists keep themselves awake at night trying to work out where it went wrong, and what they can do about it.

So for all the reflection on the year gone by, the focus has now inevitably turned to what comes next. “We’re only 12 months in: if we can learn not just from what we’ve got right but also from what has not, then we still have time to get it right,” one No 10 source said.

Starmer talks of a decade of national renewal, his assumption being that Labour will win a second term, and that he’ll still be at the helm of the party. But not everybody shares that view. Even though the odds are still – despite everything – of Labour being the largest party.

Some ministers believe they should focus on the first five years instead, as a way of injecting some urgency. Backbench MPs, many with small majorities and fearful of what the next election could bring, are pushing to make the most of what time they have.

They may recoil when asked about a reset, but No 10 political strategists do acknowledge there will be a “next phase” that allows Starmer to move on from his difficult first year and get the government on to a steadier footing.

Starmer promised change in his first term in government, which many feel has not been delivered so far. Photograph: Jonathan Brady/PA

They believe the prime minister needs a big unifying message that allows him to make ideological arguments – akin to the way Tony Blair used “modernise”.

The theme of the strategy will be “fairness” – a word that peppered Starmer’s speech on the NHS on Thursday, and which they hope they can use in a provocative way and use to pick political battles. “It’s an invitation to make proper arguments,” an aide said.

In his autumn conference speech and the run-up to the crucial political test of next May’s local elections, Starmer will be able to argue there has been an imbalance in the economy or in previous political priorities that he will now set about to change.

At the heart of it, Labour wants to speak to a pervasive feeling in the country that no matter how hard you work, nothing improves, and life gets tougher and tougher.

Fairness, they argue, provides a platform to argue that big decisions – choices such as VAT on private schools or workers’ rights reforms – were the right things to do. But also small ones such as investments in crumbling local heritage, which has become such a symbol of decline.

It was an argument, strategists believe, that could have been made much better, to make the case for cuts to winter fuel and the dysfunctional state of the welfare system.

Crucially, aides hope the message will resonate right across the Labour coalition, bringing together progressives to the left of the government and the more socially conservative voters who were the focus of the last election.

“Those people are in many ways often similar in circumstances but very different in values,” one senior strategist said. “We should be a government for all those people.”

But there are some senior Labour figures, including some in cabinet and party grandees, who favour a much more explicit progressivism, to shore up Labour’s own voters and take on the right when the Reform hordes are at the gates.

They believe that this is much closer to Starmer’s own politics and would allow him to speak and act more like himself, addressing a view held inside and outside Westminster that he often comes across as inauthentic.

“He’s been dressed up in all sorts of different incarnations, as an insurgent disruptor or the hammer of the civil service, which I don’t think he’s felt comfortable with,” said one ally. “I think the reason why he went out of his way to express regret over the immigration speech where he talked about an island of strangers was because it just wasn’t him.”

On the progressive wing of the party, where Labour is losing more votes, there is frustration about what many perceive to be leaning to the right in response to Reform UK.

“It’s the wrong approach. We should acknowledge that people really care about small boats, about housing, about the cost of living, but have our own answers to those problems, not try to ape Reform,” said one senior MP. “Authenticity is a big problem for Keir. It’s much better that he goes out and makes a Labour case for what we want to do for the country.”

Some in No 10 believe that it would be disastrous to pivot back to the Labour base, comparing it to Ed Miliband’s “35%” strategy that aimed to unite progressives but which ultimately cost Labour the 2015 election.

While Starmer is generally praised for his role on the international stage, and has strong relationships with his fellow world leaders – including, perhaps counterintuitively, Donald Trump – the same is not true of the domestic sphere.

There is a strong desire within No 10 for Starmer to reconnect with voters at home, to spend more time out in the country with ordinary people, on the campaign trail, with businesses, with industry, in hospitals – and with his own MPs.

“We have got to get him off a fucking plane,” one senior aide said. “It becomes so easy to not think too much about what is going on at home. It has been at the root of a lot of problems.”

Morgan McSweeney, Starmer’s chief of staff, is believed by a senior Labour figure to have been left to political decision-making. Photograph: Shutterstock

The party finds itself at a crossroads. Morgan McSweeney, Starmer’s fabled chief of staff, told staff as they entered government that they could govern as insurgents and that power would make them more radical. But the pace of change has been frustratingly slow and some aides believe there must be a serious strategic turn to speed it up.

Many government figures compare this moment to the turbulent aftermath of the Hartlepool byelection. Starmer tells friends that he’s used to people underestimating him, that it happened back then, too, yet he proved his detractors wrong by sticking to his plan.

But others are less generous. “Nobody knows what he’s thinking,” said one senior Labour figure. “He’s delegated political decision-making to Morgan. He needs to get more of a grip.”

But while advisers, including McSweeney, often get the blame for the government’s woes, ultimately the buck stops with the prime minister. Veterans of Labour’s last time in office believe that Starmer needs to articulate a more clearly defined purpose. “Until and unless people know what the point of this government is … then nothing else will follow,” said one.

“What does Keir actually want? What does he stand for? For all the contradictions with Tony and Gordon, you knew they were driven by ideas. It seized them. What does Keir stand for? Whatever it is, we don’t know,” said a senior Labour figure.

“It’s all been show not tell. He thinks that if the government delivers gradual material change that will be enough. But it’s not. It wasn’t for Joe Biden. It won’t be for Keir Starmer either,” said one minister.

Senior party figures worry that Starmer’s reputation for being competent, even if that doesn’t include political flair, has taken a battering over the past year, and that he needs to turn that round.

“Everybody thought he was going to be a more professional, competent version of the succession of failed Tories that we had before. But instead many people have got the sense that he’s a further instalment of them,” one said.

Starmer’s allies vehemently reject the suggestion that he can’t turn things around. “A big drum roll and clash of cymbals and fireworks wouldn’t work. Keir can win a second term, not by dancing to Nigel Farage’s tune, but by doing what Labour governments do in his pragmatic, hard-headed way, trying to make this country better. That seems to me a more authentic place for him, a better place for the government.”

But not everybody is as optimistic. “I just don’t know whether he’ll pull it off,” one senior figure said. “Keir is a diligent and thorough person who every day jumps out of bed and thinks what he can do for the country. He goes to bed every night dissatisfied that he’s not done enough. But somehow in between those two moments something doesn’t quite connect.”

Read More

 By volunteering at her school garden, Magdalena McGuire found something radical: the good in other people

 

 

‘In tending to the garden together, we create a common purpose rooted in the things we all need,’ writes Magdalena McGuire. Composite: Victoria Hart/Guardian design

Gardens

‘The friendship of the good’: how a community garden gave me a sense of something bigger than myself

By volunteering at her school garden, Magdalena McGuire found something radical: the good in other people

• Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email

Magdalena McGuire

Sat 5 Jul 2025 01.00 BST

14

If you came across our school garden, you might walk past without giving it much thought. On the surface, we don’t have anything that would warrant a visit from Gardening Australia: no kitchen garden or water feature or “reflection space”. But we do have something else you might not see at first glance – something I wasn’t expecting to find when I first came to this suburb.

I moved to Fawkner, Melbourne with my partner and kids about five years ago, in search of affordable housing. The suburb was nice enough but I felt unmoored. I didn’t know anyone here and much of community life seemed to revolve around structures such as the extended family, the church and the mosque. I could see how vital these were for people in our suburb; for my part, however, I’m not religious and my extended family live far away. I tried to find other ways to make connections: my kids and I went to Lego time at the library; we hung out at the local playground and chatted to people at the skate park. But none of it added up to a sense of belonging.

Then I signed up to help with our school garden. At the very least, I figured, it was a day out in the sun.

A gardening club is a collective way to grow food, flowers and friendship

Read more

On volunteer day, my partner pushed our kids to school in a wheelbarrow, and I was armed with a shovel and pitchfork. Around 50 people turned up to the school on a Sunday to help with the garden, and while the kids played, the adults chose jobs according to our levels of ability and enthusiasm. My partner opted to repair the garden beds and I went for the lower-stakes job of weeding. It was slow and careful work, pulling out dandelions and chickweed – along with a few chip packets.

Between gardening and tending to the kids, there were moments of socialising: a nod of thanks from a teacher, a chat with another parent about the out-of-control compost heap that lives behind the mud kitchen. These conversations were tentative, at least on my part; the pandemic and early motherhood had left me out of practice when it came to socialising. However, the school garden was the perfect place to learn how to be with other people again and I could see that I was surrounded by the sorts of people who I wanted to befriend.

At midday we stopped for lunch (all halal, some vegan) and in the late afternoon the kids busied themselves by turning rubber gloves into makeshift water bombs. Eventually we wheelbarrowed our kids home, happy and hyper and wet.

 

Our school garden has given me a way to see the good in my neighbourhood

When I returned to school on Monday, it looked different – and not just because the garden was in better shape. It looked different because my relationship to the place, and the people, had subtly changed: I felt invested in them.

After a few more gardening sessions, I had people to talk to and text. At first, these conversations revolved around the garden; however, one WhatsApp chat group led to another (as they tend to do) and soon enough I had people to hang out with. People I could call on for support if I needed it.

Working together in this way brings us close to what Aristotle called “the friendship of the good”. This, according to Aristotle, is the best kind of friendship: it happens when you see the good in another person, and they in you. It is very different to what he calls a “utilitarian friendship”, where we spend time with another person because of what they can do for us. A friendship of the good, conversely – like the school garden itself – is about creating something bigger than ourselves.

Our school garden has given me a way to see the good in my neighbourhood. We have a diverse community: nearly half the adults here, including myself, were born overseas.

If we are to believe the worst corners of the internet, then life is something to be feared. People are to be feared, because people – as the despots and tech bros would have us believe – are motivated purely by self-interest; therefore, we must dominate others, or risk being dominated ourselves. And maybe that is true for a small portion of society. But in every neighbourhood there is also this: people coming together to work on shared projects, motivated by simple altruism. Projects that help strangers build connections to place and each other.

This doesn’t mean the school garden is utopia. Sometimes the seedlings die. Sometimes a child gets upset and stomps on a tube stock. But even these moments become lessons about care, consequences and how to repair damage.

In tending to the garden together, we create a common purpose rooted in the things we all need: nourishment, agency and belonging.

And maybe that’s the most radical thing we can grow.

Read More

Israel continues airstrikes on Gaza after Hamas says it is ready for ceasefire talks

Hopes that pause to the killing may be agreed were boosted despite 24 Palestinians being killed including 10 seeking aid

Jason Burke Jerusalem

Sat 5 Jul 2025 16.54 BST

 

Israel has continued to launch waves of airstrikes in Gaza, hours after Hamas said it was ready to start talks “immediately” on a US-sponsored proposal for a 60-day ceasefire.

The announcement by the militant Islamist organisation increased hopes that a deal may be done within days to pause the killing in Gaza and possibly end the near 21-month conflict.

Saturday was relatively “calmer” after days of intense bombardment, aid officials and residents in Gaza said, although 24 Palestinians were killed, including 10 people seeking humanitarian aid, according to hospital officials.

Airstrikes struck tents in the Mawasi coastal area in southern Gaza, killing seven, including a Palestinian doctor and his three children, according to medics at a nearby hospital. Four others were killed in the town of Bani Suheila, and three people were killed in three different strikes in the town of Khan Younis.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) made no immediate comment on the attacks.

Israel’s security cabinet was due to meet after sundown on Saturday but officials in Jerusalem said there was “no guarantee” that ministers would make a decision on the Hamas response to the ceasefire deal.

Separately, two US contractors with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) were injured in the south of the territory after unknown assailants threw grenades at them at a food distribution site, the organisation said.

The GHF, a US-supported private organisation that began handing out food parcels in Gaza last month, has been mired in controversy, with the UN secretary general, António Guterres, saying it was “inherently unsafe” and that it was “killing people”. The GHF denies this, saying it has delivered tens of millions of meals in “safety and security”.

Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks in shooting or shelling by the IDF while travelling to GHF sites or gathering in large crowds to get aid from convoys brought into Gaza by the UN that are often stopped and looted.

Aid workers in Gaza have called again for an immediate cessation of hostilities, saying that fuel stocks for NGOs are close to running out, which would lead to the “complete collapse” of humanitarian operations, much of the health system and communications across the territory. Power supplies in Gaza rely primarily on large quantities of diesel for generators.

“We are pretty much down to about half a day’s worth. When that is gone, everything has to shut down,” said one humanitarian worker in Deir al-Balah.

Israel imposed a tight 11-week blockade on Gaza after the most recent ceasefire collapsed in March, which has only been partly lifted to allow a small amount of food aid and medical supplies into the territory. No fuel has been permitted to enter, and supplies that still exist in Gaza are often in Israeli-controlled areas or combat zones and so inaccessible.

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, is to fly to Washington on Sunday for talks with the US president, Donald Trump, who has said in a series of social media posts that he wants the Gaza war to stop.

Drafts of the proposed deal seen by the Guardian include a provision specifying that Trump would personally announce any ceasefire – possibly in the coming days during Netanyahu’s visit.

However, sources close to Hamas said the organisation wants greater clarity over guarantees that the initial truce would lead to a permanent end to the war and the eventual withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.

There is also disagreement over who would be allowed to deliver the “sufficient aid” described in the draft. Hamas want the GHF to be closed down. Israel wants to maintain a system of distribution independent from the UN or other countries.

Speaking to reporters on board Air Force One late on Friday, Trump said he was optimistic and suggested there “could be a Gaza deal” next week. But Israeli media have described a series of steps involving separate Israeli delegations flying to Qatar and Egypt to complete negotiations, and the current draft specifies that Steve Witkoff, Trump’s personal envoy, will travel to the Middle East to finalise the deal.

Analysts said this could mean lengthy delays before an agreement is reached.

The war in Gaza was triggered by a surprise Hamas-led attack into Israel in October 2023, during which militants killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251. Fifty remain in Gaza, less than half still alive.

Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has killed at least 57,000 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to a count by the territory’s ministry of health that is considered reliable by the UN and many western governments.

Read More

record for fastest hundred in youth ODIs during India U-19 vs England U-19

 

Vaibhav Suryavanshi breaks Pakistan star's 

Vaibhav Suryavanshi's hundred against England U-19 in the fourth game came in just 52 balls. He was finally dismissed for 143 from 78 balls, including 13 fours and 10 sixes. India U-19 are leading the five-match series 2-1.

Koushik Paul

Updated5 Jul 2025, 06:38 PM IST

India's Vaibhav Suryavanshi celebrates after completing their century against England U-19 in the fourth youth ODI. (Reuters)

Vaibhav Suryavanshi broke Pakistan cricketer Kamram Ghulam's record for fastest century in youth ODIs on Saturday when the 14-year-old reached the three-figure mark in just 52 balls against England U-19 in the fourth game of the five-match series in Worcester.

Suryavanshi, who had scored of 48, 45 and 86 in his previous three outings in the series, struck 10 fours and seven sixes during his knock. Ghulam had reached his hundred in 53 balls previously.

Fastest hundreds in Youth ODIs

Balls	Player	Opponent	Year
52	Vaibhav Suryavanshi (India U-19)	England U-19	2025
53	Kamran Ghulam (Pakistan U-19)	England U-19	2013
68	Tamim Iqbal (Bangladesh U-19)	England U-19	2005-06
69	Raj Angad Bawa (India U-19)	Uganda U-19	2021-22
69	Shaun Marsh (Australia U-19)	Kenya U-19	2001-02

Sent into bat first, India were off to a disastrous start as they lost Ayush Mhatre for just five runs. Vihaan Malhotra joined Suryavanshi as the duo put up 219 runs for the second wicket to take the game away from England U-19. However, Suryavanshi missed on a deserving 150.

The southpaw was dismissed just seven runs shy of the milestone when he was caught by Joseph Moores off the bowling of Ben Mayes. Suryavanshi's played 78 balls for his knock, which included 13 fours and 10 sixes. Malhotra is still batting in the middle.

This is not the first time Suryavanshi had made the headlines while playing for India. Last year, the Bihar lad struck the joint-fastest hundred in men's youth Tests against Australia U-19 in Chennai, by reaching the three-figure mark in just 56 balls. England's Moeen Ali had also smashed a 56-ball hundred in 2005 in youth Tests.

Suryavanshi continues on IPL success

Suryavanshi's major breakthrough came in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Rajasthan Royals when he became the youngest ever to score an IPL hundred. He finished off his campaign with a fifty. In seven matches, Suryavanshi scored 255 runs at a strike rate of over 200. 

Read More

Gill's twin ton sees India extend lead to 484 at Tea

 

  Last updated on Sat, Jul 5, 2025, 10:16 PM

Shubman Gill celebrates his second 100 of the Test © Getty

Shubman Gill became only the second Indian after Sunil Gavaskar to get a double hundred and a hundred in the same Test as India's lead swelled to 484 at Tea on Day 4 of the second Test at Edgbaston. A quick-fire 110-run partnership between Rishabh Pant and Gill was followed by a 68-run stand for the skipper with Ravindra Jadeja as India moved to 304 for 4 at the end of the second session. Although the fifth wicket stand was on the slower side, India managed 127 runs in the session in 30 overs, with the run-rate of 4.23 a touch slower than the opening session's rate of 4.52.

Pant got going straightaway in the second session, executing a late cut off Shoaib Bashir for a four. Gill then took on Josh Tongue, hitting a six over fine-leg followed by two fours as he went past Virat Kohli's tally (449) of most runs in his debut series as India Test captain. Gill struck another six over fine leg off Tongue, followed by a flat-batted shot past midwicket for a four to bring up a 57-ball fifty. Pant then got to a 48-ball fifty with a single off Tongue before extending the lead past 400 with a six over long-on. The partnership crossed 100 when Pant swept Bashir for a four but fourth wicket stand ended a short while later when the left-hander lost his bat, for the second time in the innings, and was caught at long-off in Bashir's over.

Gill then struck a four and a six in Bashir's over to enter the 80s as he surpassed Gavaskar's record (344 vs West Indies in 1971) for the highest aggregate for an Indian in a Test. Ravindra Jadeja had a watchful start at the other end even as India extended the lead past 450 in the second hour of the second session. Gill got into the 90s with some quick singles and twos before sweeping Joe Root for a boundary. He also ran a risky two before Jadeja finally hit a four, forcing a Bashir delivery through the off side. The 300 came up for India and a short while later, Gill reached three figures for the second time in the Test, becoming the third Indian captain to register two hundreds in the same Test, after Gavaskar and Kohli.

Earlier, on an overcast morning, Brydon Carse emerged as England's most threatening bowler, troubling India's batters with sharp bounce and movement. He had KL Rahul edging early on, only for the ball to fly past slip, and struck Karun Nair on the helmet with one that zipped in. Carse eventually broke the second-wicket stand on 45, drawing Nair into a drive and having him caught behind. India's batters, however, managed to keep the scoreboard ticking, reaching 100 inside the first hour. England, meanwhile, burned a review for an LBW appeal against Gill, with replays confirming a clear inside edge. Rahul brought up his fifty before a beauty from Josh Tongue cleaned him up.

Pant then took over with an aggressive knock. He got off the mark in style, helping a short ball from Tongue past fine leg for four, before launching an authoritative six over long-off. Pant also had a lucky break as he was put down at mid-off by Zak Crawley off Stokes and he capitalised as he struck a four and an audacious sweep for a six off Tongue. The southpaw then pulled Bashir for two fours in his first over, lost his bat trying to hack a Tongue delivery, was nearly caught off a leading edge and was nearly bowled by the offspinner. But he rode his luck and continued his attacking approach, a boundary off Bashir extending the lead past 350 before the Lunch break, with India scoring 113 runs off 25 overs in the session.

Brief scores: India 587 & 304/4 (Shubman Gill 100*, Rishabh Pant 68, KL Rahul 55; Josh Tongue 2-93) lead England 407 by 484 runs.

© Cricbuzz

Read More