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The Reform UK leader pushed back against reports suggesting that legal action would be the next step, saying he would make a decision in the next couple of days about his response if there is no apology for the “crazy conspiracy theory”. Mr Farage also said the party has “opened up our systems” to media outlets, including The Daily Telegraph and The Financial Times, in the interests of “full transparency to verify that our numbers are correct”. His remarks came after Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch accused Mr Farage of “fakery” in response to Reform claiming they had surpassed the Tories in signed-up members. Mrs Badenoch said Reform’s counter was “coded to tick up automatically”. A digital counter on the Reform website showed a membership tally before lunchtime on Boxing Day ticking past the 131,680 figure declared by the Conservative Party during its leadership election earlier this year. Mr Farage, on whether he was threatening legal action or not, told the PA news agency: “I haven’t threatened anything. I’ve just said that unless I get an apology, I will take some action. “I haven’t said whether it’s legal or anything.” He added: “All I’ve said is I want an apology. If I don’t get an apology, I will take action. “I will decide in the next couple of days what that is. So I’ve not specified what it is.” Mr Farage, on the move to make membership data available to media organisations, said: “We feel our arguments are fully validated. “She (Mrs Badenoch) has put out this crazy conspiracy theory and she needs to apologise.” The accusations of fraud and dishonesty made against me yesterday were disgraceful. Today we opened up our systems to The Telegraph, Spectator, Sky News & FT in the interests of full transparency to verify that our data is correct. I am now demanding @KemiBadenoch apologises. — Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) December 27, 2024 On why Mrs Badenoch had reacted as she did, Mr Farage said: “I would imagine she was at home without anybody advising her and was just angry.” Mr Farage, in a statement issued on social media site X, also said: “The accusations of fraud and dishonesty made against me yesterday were disgraceful. “Today we opened up our systems to The Telegraph, Spectator, Sky News and FT in the interests of full transparency to verify that our data is correct. “I am now demanding Kemi Badenoch apologises.” A Conservative Party source claimed Mr Farage was “rattled” that his Boxing Day “publicity stunt is facing serious questions”. They added: “Like most normal people around the UK, Kemi is enjoying Christmas with her family and looking forward to taking on the challenges of renewing the Conservative Party in the New Year.” Mrs Badenoch, in a series of messages posted on X on Thursday, said: “Farage doesn’t understand the digital age. This kind of fakery gets found out pretty quickly, although not before many are fooled.” There were 131,680 Conservative members eligible to vote during the party’s leadership election to replace Rishi Sunak in the autumn. Mrs Badenoch claimed in her thread that “the Conservative Party has gained thousands of new members since the leadership election”. Elsewhere, Mr Farage described Elon Musk as a “bloody hero” and said he believes the US billionaire can help attract younger voters to Reform. Tech entrepreneur Mr Musk met Mr Farage earlier this month at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, amid rumours of a possible donation to either Mr Farage or Reform. Mr Farage told The Daily Telegraph newspaper: “The shades, the bomber jacket, the whole vibe. Elon makes us cool – Elon is a huge help to us with the young generation, and that will be the case going on and, frankly, that’s only just starting. “Reform only wins the next election if it gets the youth vote. The youth vote is the key. Of course, you need voters of all ages, but if you get a wave of youth enthusiasm you can change everything. “And I think we’re beginning to get into that zone – we were anyway, but Elon makes the whole task much, much easier. And the idea that politics can be cool, politics can be fun, politics can be real – Elon helps us with that mission enormously.”A former governor of Edo State and current Senator representing Edo North, Senator Adams Oshiomhole has stated that his son, Cyril, is qualified to serve as the Commissioner for Health in the South-South state. Oshiomhole made these comments while appearing as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today program on Wednesday. In November, Cyril was appointed as the health commissioner by Governor Monday Okphebolo, a close ally of Oshiomhole, shortly after the new governor took office. The appointment of the US-trained medical doctor has faced significant criticism from those who have labelled it as state capture and a reward for Oshiomhole’s support during the governor’s election. When asked if he supported his son’s appointment as commissioner, former labour leader Oshiomhole stated that he voiced his concerns to the governor when the decision was made. Related News ‘Let me take it again,' Okpebholo struggles with numbers during budget presentation Edo gov appoints new revenue board members Edo deputy governor appoints Aghedo as CPS Oshiomhole stated, “He doesn’t work under me; maybe Governor Monday is grooming him. When I was in Edo, I stopped him when he wanted to go for the House of Reps. I said no and supported another guy. The second time he wanted to try, I said no. This time the governor decided to pick him. He is qualified. “I did express my concerns when I heard. I called him and expressed my concerns. I expressed those concerns to the governor that people might say this and that. “Those were the reasons why I stopped him from contesting elections when I was in office but then I have to accept that in the world that we live in, you can only do so much to control your son but not when he is already of adult age. “But the point must be made: I invested in my children’s education. I didn’t want them to go through what I went through. So, Dr Cyril is not just a medical doctor from ABU (Ahmadu Bello University), he went to do post-graduate in two universities in the US including Harvard and another university in Louisiana. He does something about public health. “So, he is not having it because he is Oshiomhole; I will say he is having in spite of being Oshiomhole.”

Federal judge slaps down Automattic, granting temporary injunction to WP Engine in ongoing WordPress squabble

What to know about suspect’s arrestVancouver-based bookkeeping service Bench Accounting has announced its sudden closure, potentially putting hundreds of staff out of work. The company that has described itself as North America’s largest bookkeeping service for small businesses says on its website in a “notice of closure” dated Friday that the platform is “no longer accessible.” The statement acknowledges that the closure is “abrupt and may cause disruption,” and says the firm is committed to helping customers “navigate through the transition.” Bench has previously said it had more than 600 employees and had received investor funding of US$113 million. It said it moved to Vancouver and changed its name to Bench in 2013, having started out in 2012 as 10sheet Inc in the U.S. Calls to Bench’s Vancouver office went to voice mail and did not immediately receive a response. But the company’s former CEO and co-founder Ian Crosby released a statement on social media on Friday, saying he was “very sad” about the closure. Crosby, who said he was ousted by the company’s board about three years ago, said there was a lesson in the fate of the company. “I hope the story of Bench goes on to become a warning for VCs (venture capitalists) that think they can ‘upgrade’ a company by replacing the founder. It never works,” he said. The University of British Columbia Sauder Business School alumni said he had been avoiding speaking publicly about Bench since his exit, but wanted to make a statement in light of the company’s demise. He said that in 2021 he had been battling with some board members over their strategy for a “new direction” that he thought was a “very bad idea.” “Rather than continuing to fight with me, they opted to just replace me, thinking that they could run the company better themselves,” he said. “I was totally convinced that their approach would destroy the company. I opted to resign rather than fight.” Other bookkeeping companies were quick to reach out to Bench’s former clients, with rivals such as Acuity and Better Bookkeeping making reference to Bench’s closure in social media pitches. A spokeswoman for B.C.‘s jobs ministry said they were looking into a request for comment. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 27, 2024.

On a February evening in 2020, a pipeline carrying carbon dioxide (CO2) ruptured in Mississippi. It sent a cloud of asphyxiating gas into the community of Satartia, causing 49 people to be hospitalized with severe respiratory symptoms. First responders had a hard time rescuing people, because the internal combustion engines on ambulances couldn’t operate in air with high concentrations of CO2. Soon, more communities across the country could face terrifying and potentially deadly accidents like this one. As the climate crisis worsens, the federal government is investing in expensive, unproven technologies to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere instead of simply cutting emissions. These technologies reduce CO2 levels either by removing the compound from the exhaust of burning coal or natural gas in a process called carbon capture and storage, or by extracting it directly from the air in a process called direct air capture. Once removed, the CO2 has to be shipped or piped somewhere. But it reacts with moisture in the air to form an acid, which can corrode pipelines, tank trunks and railroad tank cars, making them more likely to rupture. After it reaches its destination, the CO2 is often injected into underground wells for storage. These wells can leak, endangering drinking water — and lives — in nearby communities. The Department of Energy claims these technologies are essential for tackling climate change. But the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the foremost scientific authority on the subject, says carbon capture and storage is one of the least effective and most expensive emissions reduction methods. The group also warns that direct air capture is “subject to multiple feasibility and sustainability constraints” — and that it could consume the world’s entire current electric generation output. These technologies also create a number of other environmental, social, technical and economic risks. They serve only to greenwash the fossil fuel industry as it continues business — and emissions — as usual. And unfortunately, the industry is getting help from the government, which — in spite of the serious risks and questionable benefits — envisions a massive buildout of CO2 transport and storage, multiplying the risks of incidents such as the Satartia leak. This fall, the Department of Energy issued a request for information seeking input on starting a Carbon Transport Research, Development & Demonstration Consortium, which will coordinate research and development on transportation of CO2 by pipeline, rail, truck, ship and barge. The process was secretive, restrictive and exclusionary. The notice was published on FedConnect, an online portal for prospective sellers of goods and services to the federal government that requires an account to access. The Department of Energy did not issue a press release or attempt to disseminate the announcement broadly. The request for information, which closed in early October, avoided the most fundamental questions: Is the large-scale transportation of CO2 even a good idea? And should the federal government be in the business of facilitating it? It says the agency “intends to launch the consortium after reviewing responses,” implying the department has already made up its mind. The proposed consortium will consist of three standing committees — one for federal agency staff, one for federally funded research institutions and one for representatives of “Non-Governmental Organizations, Industry and Other Subject Matter Experts.” Members of this third committee are required to have at least an undergraduate science or technology degree and experience in the “carbon management infrastructure value chain.” These requirements and obscure technical jargon shut out input from most members of communities impacted by CO2 transportation — and privilege industry representatives instead. This is nothing short of a reckless large-scale experiment at the expense of public health, safety and input. We must resist these egregiously irresponsible plans and demand that our government prioritize real climate solutions, not industry greenwashing that puts our communities at risk.

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