General news

• House of Fraser lenders demand new funds as CVA looms

  31-05-2018 23:29
  Lenders to House of Fraser (HoF) are demanding that its Chinese shareholder injects fresh funding into the struggling department store chain as it finalises a rescue plan that would see dozens of its high street outlets close.Sky News has learnt that lenders and their advisers at EY have expressed frustration at a lack of clarity over new financing for HoF, just days before it is due to seek creditors' backing for a restructuring deal.The retailer will try to launch a Company Voluntary Arrangeme
  
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• Ecuador's president says Julian Assange can stay in embassy 'with conditions'

  31-05-2018 23:13
  Moreno has repeatedly hinted that he wants to remove Julian Assange from the country’s London embassy.Lenín Moreno, the president of Ecuador, has said Julian Assange’s asylum status in the country’s London embassy is not under threat – provided he complies with the conditions of his stay and avoids voicing his political opinions on Twitter.Ecuador suspended Assange’s communication’s system in March.
  
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• UK pensions regulator chief to step down in February 2019

  31-05-2018 22:59
  The search for her successor will begin immediately and will be led by Chairman Mark Boyle, the watchdog said http://bit.ly/2J918ws.Titcomb, who was appointed chief executive of the watchdog in 2015, oversaw the collapse of construction outsourcing company Carillion Plc earlier in the year and department store chain BHS in 2016.MPs had said earlier in May that the government needs to do more to tackle the regulatory and legal environment that allowed Carillion to become a "giant and unsustainabl
  
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• Boo boo trucks and battle unicorns! Parents reveal their kids’ unique vocabulary

  31-05-2018 22:17
  Their choice of words would certainly make an interesting dictionary.
  
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• Carluccio's restructuring could see dozens of restaurants close

  31-05-2018 21:58
  Carluccio's will go ahead with a restructuring programme that could see dozens of restaurants closed.Some 91% of creditors approved the Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA), which allows the business to reduce rents while negotiating with landlords.The Italian food business, founded by the late Antonio Carluccio in 1999, said it would try to minimise job losses and was relocating staff to remaining outlets where possible.
  
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• Northern Ireland police demand extra resources for post-Brexit

  31-05-2018 21:28
  Northern Ireland's police will ask the British government for hundreds more officers to help secure the province's border with Ireland after Britain leaves the European Union, a senior police official said on Thursday.Authorities on both sides of the now-open frontier fear a return to a hard border, complete with customs and other checks, could reignite the violence that afflicted Northern Ireland until a peace deal in the late 1990s.Northern Ireland Police Federation (PSNI) chairman Mark Lindsa
  
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• Banco BPM eyes bad-loan unit sale to speed up clean-up - sources

  31-05-2018 21:10
  Italy's third largest bank, Banco BPM , is looking to sell part of its debt servicing unit as it strives to meet its bad-loan reduction goals two years ahead of time, sources familiar with the matter said.Soured loans are a key concern for Italian banks and Banco BPM, born last year from the merger of Popolare di Milano and Banco Popolare, lags bigger rivals in shedding problem loans.A source familiar with the matter said BPM's goal was to shed the 3.5 billion euros in bad debts this year but it
  
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• Dad found hanged after two sons killed in hit-and-run, coroner hears

  31-05-2018 20:36
  A grieving father was found hanged in Greece three months after his two young sons were killed in a hit-and-run, an inquest has heard.Reece Platt-May, 30, was discovered in theearly hours of 17 Mayin his hotel room where he was on holiday in Corfu.Mr Platt-May had last month attended the sentencing of, Robert Brown, a banned driver with 30 related convictions, who had cocaine in his system and was speeding at up to 60mph when he hit the boys.
  
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• Man wanted by RSPCA after 'biting head off pigeon' in shocking footage

  31-05-2018 20:11
  A man who appears to have bitten the head off a live pigeon is being hunted by the RSPCA.The animal charity said the pigeon would have been subjected to "unimaginable" suffering if the video footage is as it appears.Speaking to Sky News, Llewelyn Lowen, RSPCA wildlife expert, said: "This video seems to show a particularly callous and deliberate act of animal cruelty.
  
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• Dutch Tata Steel urges EU to shield European market from cheap imports

  31-05-2018 20:09
  The European Union should take measures to shield the European steel market from a flood of cheap imports seeking a new destination as the United States impose tariffs on steel, the Dutch arm of Tata Steel said on Thursday."We should prevent a tsunami of cheap, low quality steel flooding the European market, now that it can't make its way to the U.S.", Tata Steel Netherlands director Theo Henrar told Reuters.Henrar said it was too early to estimate the consequences for Tata Netherlands' exports
  
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• Liam Fox Blasts Trump's 'Protectionism' Over Steel - But Still Expects Good Deal With US Post-Brexit

  31-05-2018 20:08
  Liam Fox has condemned Donald Trump's steel and aluminium tariffs as "patently
  
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• Scottish government faces £1.7bn shortfall in public finances

  31-05-2018 19:57
  Derek Mackay, the Scottish government’s finance secretary, accused the UK chancellor of continuing needlessly with austerity.The Scottish government is facing a £1.7bn shortfall in public finances over the next five years, according to its own independent economic forecaster.The Scottish Fiscal Commission predicts that reduced expectations for wage growth will result in a significant drop in income tax revenues, as Scotland’s economy lags behind the rest of the UK with growth r
  
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• ​Toast and jams: the Radio 1 breakfast​ ​show through the ages

  31-05-2018 19:46
  Nick Grimshaw, BBC Radio 1’s second-longest-serving breakfast show presenter, has announced his retirement from the role with a suitable sense of relief: “It’s time for a change, time for a new show and, most importantly, it’s going to be time for a new wake-up time … preferably about 11.30am.” Greg James will take over the show, with Grimmy back to presenting his old afternoon slot.One thing both men appreciate is that the job of the station’s bre
  
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• Muslim leaders urge investigation into 'Tory Islamophobia' claims

  31-05-2018 19:44
  Conservative chair Brandon Lewis has been asked to conduct an investigation into claims of Islamophobia.The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) has written to the Conservative chair, Brandon Lewis, calling for an independent investigation into Islamophobia in the party.The letter lists what it says are nine instances in the past two months, and also cites the actions of one MP, Bob Blackman.
  
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• Conservatives under fire for failing to tackle party's Islamophobia

  31-05-2018 19:39
  Lady Warsi said it was a shame it could require such a public rebuke for the Tories to start confronting the issue.The Conservatives have been accused of failing to take the issue of Islamophobia seriously by the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), which is calling for an independent inquiry into a problem it said had “poisoned” sections of the party.Conservative party officials insisted they were treating the issue seriously, but the MCB cited nine cases of anti-Islam sentiment from To
  
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• Banco BPM targets bad-loan unit sale to speed up clean-up - sources

  31-05-2018 19:29
  Italy's third largest lender, Banco BPM , aims to sell part of its debt servicing unit in en effort to complete its bad-loan reduction plan this year, sources familiar with the matter said.Soured loans are a key concern for Italian banks and Banco BPM, born last year from the merger of Popolare di Milano and Banco Popolare, lags bigger rivals in shedding problem loans.Three sources familiar with the matter said the bank planned to sell part of its debt collection unit, with one source saying the
  
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• 'He inferred I wasn't British': Tory members tell of Islamophobia

  31-05-2018 19:10
  The Conservative party logo. ‘You mention Islamophobia and they run for the hills,’ said one Muslim Tory councillor.When Ahmed (not his real name) joined the Conservative party six years ago, he thought it was a natural fit.“In no way did I insinuate that I was going to do anything silly or illegal regarding postal votes.
  
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• The creativity needed for Corbynomics to succeed

  31-05-2018 18:43
  Your editorial (Labour is radical, but if the Tories start spending, it risks being outflanked, 28 May) calls for a progressive agenda with “creative fiscal and monetary ideas” to abandon “restrictive financial ratios” and outbid the Tories on deficit spending and rising government debt.You make an incontrovertible case for “the decentralising of economic power” and “government spending to take up the slack”.
  
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• Let’s have three strikes at the dispatch box too

  31-05-2018 18:40
  Theresa May speaks during PMQs on 23 May 2018. Richard Madeley’s proposal might “stop Theresa May yelling ‘Wales’ whenever she is asked a question about the state of the NHS in England,” writes Mike Pender. Photograph: HO/AFP/Getty Images
  
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• Banco BPM says to transfer 5.1 billion euros in bad loans to securitisation vehicle

  31-05-2018 18:30
  Italy's third-largest bank Banco BPMis set to move bad loans worth a nominal 5.1 billion euros (4.5 billion pounds) into a securitisation vehicle and expects to transfer them at a price close to their book value.Banco BPM said in a statement on Thursday it planned to keep the least risky tranche of notes to be issued by the vehicle after tapping a state guarantee scheme known as GACS.Banco BPM, which has plans to sell a further 3.5 billion euros in bad debts, said it had started looking for advi
  
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• Widow pays tribute to 'wonderful' pilot killed in North Yorkshire helicopter crash

  31-05-2018 18:16
  The grieving widow of a pilot and Queen's envoy who died in a helicopter crash has described him as "a wonderful man".Barry Dodd was named by police as the pilot who crashed into a field in Aldborough, North Yorkshire, on Wednesday.There were no other passengers on board and Mr Dodd, who was Lord-Lieutenant for North Yorkshire, was pronounced dead at the scene.
  
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• Zinedine Zidane grew tired of not being allowed to make decisions at Real Madrid - Daily Mail

  31-05-2018 17:57 via dailymail.co.uk
  Daily Mail
  Zinedine Zidane grew tired of not being allowed to make decisions at Real Madrid
  Daily Mail
  The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. More top stories. Bing. Site Web Enter search term: Search. Like DailyMail; +1 ...and more »
  
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• The utterly memeable meeting of Donald Trump and Kim Kardashian West

  31-05-2018 17:56
  They discussed real issues, but people got creative with the Oval Office photocall.
  
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• New Yorkers have been sharing their Manhattanhenge pics

  31-05-2018 17:54
  The showstopping sunset event drew throngs of city-dwellers and tourists onto the city’s busiest streets.
  
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• Brexit Forensics: Fears UK could miss a vital nuclear deadline

  31-05-2018 17:50
  When the UK leaves the EU, the nuclear industry will need a new process for monitoring its safety. But leaked documents suggest a vital deadline these could be missed.
  
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• Bob Higgins kept coaching boys for seven years after abuse claim, court told

  31-05-2018 17:45
  Bob Higgins left Southampton FC, where he helped launch the careers of a number of stars, after a young player told a senior figure at the club in 1989 that the coach had sexually abused him.But Higgins went on to set up his own football academy, work with the Maltese FA and take up a post working with youngsters at a second professional club, Peterborough United.The jury also heard a claim on Thursday that a traumatised ex junior footballer Higgins had abused while he was at Southampton was jai
  
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• Flood alert near Bristol as Met Office issues 'danger to life' warning with storms forecast - Bristol Live

  31-05-2018 17:40 via bristolpost.co.uk
  Bristol Live
  Flood alert near Bristol as Met Office issues 'danger to life' warning with storms forecast
  Bristol Live
  The Bristol weather is set to take a dramatic turn tonight and the Environment Agency has issued a flood alert. Share; Comments. By. Joseph Wilkes. 16:40, 31 MAY 2018. News. Enter your postcode to see news and information near you Community updates, ...
  Weather warning for London and Kent as thunderstorms set to returnThis is Local Londonall 106 news articles »
  
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• 'Hypocrite' Brexiteer Lord Lawson applies for permanent French residency

  31-05-2018 17:40
  Former chancellor Lord Lawson, a leading Brexiteer, has been accused of hypocrisy after revealing he is applying for permanent residency in France.The Tory peer, who was a member of the Vote Leave campaign, lives in France and is now working through what he described as "tiresome" paperwork to obtain a permanent residency card - known as a cartes de sejour.Despite his preparations to stay on the continent, Lord Lawson said he didn't think protecting the rights of Britons living in the EU would b
  
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• Treasury chooses only man on five-person shortlist for Bank of England job

  31-05-2018 17:27
  The Treasury has come under fire for choosing a man over four women to fill the vacancy on the Bank of England's interest rate setting committee.Jonathan Haskel was chosen to replace Ian McCafferty on the monetary policy committee.Mr Haskel is currently a professor of economics at Imperial College Business School and his three-year term on the committee will begin in September.
  
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• Marco Silva Everton appointment CONFIRMED: Toffees reveal why they've chosen Portuguese - Daily Star

  31-05-2018 17:20 via dailystar.co.uk
  Daily Star
  Marco Silva Everton appointment CONFIRMED: Toffees reveal why they've chosen Portuguese
  Daily Star
  Silva has been a target for the Blues since Ronald Koeman was sacked last year. They couldn't get the Portuguese out of Watford but have now finally landed their man. New director of football Marcel Brands revealed why he's the man they've chosen to ...and more »
  
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• This cat wouldn’t stop photobombing her owner’s wedding photos

  31-05-2018 17:12
  When Angel kept getting herself into the official pictures, bride Helen decided to get a special shot of the two of them.
  
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• Eight ways to better protect your personal data and improve your online experience

  31-05-2018 16:52 via theguardian.com
  With our love of social media, shopping sites and apps galore, just how much of your personal information are you really sharing online? Follow these tips to help you understand what data you’re sharingMost of us store huge amounts of our most personal details online – across banking, shopping, social media and government sites. It saves us from re-entering the same information, which allows websites to remember other details, such as what kind of books we like to read, and helps us
  
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• Why we share our personal data … for free

  31-05-2018 16:51 via theguardian.com
  We constantly give out personal information online, through social media, online transactions, or newsletter sign-ups – but how fair is the exchange?Consumer data is the lifeblood of digital business. Every time we go online – whether it’s to shop, socialise or browse – we give away personal information about ourselves.Think of those times you might have indulged in a fun quiz on social media, which promised to reveal, based on your answers, what legendary footballer or p
  
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• Quiz: how cavalier are you with your data online?

  31-05-2018 16:50 via theguardian.com
  Confused by who might access the information you reveal on the internet? Take this quiz to check your knowledge on sharing data safely onlineDo online quizzes harvest your personal data?No, that’s impossibleEvery quiz is a data-harvesting exerciseI’ve never seen an online quizMost don’t, but some do collect informationHow might an advertiser find out your relationship status?Harvesting it from saved results in an online quizThrough using your Facebook profile information, which
  
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• Everything you need to know about your personal data in 2018

  31-05-2018 16:50 via theguardian.com
  Who is storing your personal data? And what are your rights now that General Data Protection Regulation has been passed? Here’s a guide to the changesHow many people know your bank or credit card details? The answer is probably more than you think. Every day, millions of consumers willingly hand over their names, addresses and payment details to order goods or fill out application forms online. In exchange for the provision of these services, we trust that the various organisations we hand
  
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• Zurich Insurance wants to do only targeted M&A - CEO

  31-05-2018 16:41
  ZURICH (Reuters) - Zurich Insurance Groupwants to do only targeted mergers and acquisitions and sees no need for sweeping consolidation in Europe, Chief Executive Mario Greco said.
  
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• Roman Abramovich drops Chelsea's £1bn Stamford Bridge expansion plan

  31-05-2018 16:32
  The club, who finished fifth in the Premier League and therefore failed to qualify for the Champions League, said plans to redevelop Stamford Bridge had been put on hold indefinitely.The Blues were looking to revamp the west London stadium and move in by 2021.A four-line statement released on the club's official website read: "Chelsea Football Club announces today that it has put its new stadium project on hold.
  
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• Seal with plastic netting around neck fights for its life in Norfolk

  31-05-2018 16:21
  A seal is fighting for its life after becoming enmeshed in 10ft of plastic netting and rope.The young adult grey seal was found on Monday with an infected wound which goes nearly all the way around its neck.Members of the Friends of Horsey Seals charity took it to be treated at the RSPCA's East Winch Wildlife Centre, near Kings Lynn.
  
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• Original Winnie-the-Pooh map to be auctioned in London

  31-05-2018 16:21
  LONDON (Reuters) - The original map of the Hundred Acre Wood from the Winnie-the-Pooh children's stories is set to go under the hammer, with an estimate price tag of up to $200,000.
  
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• Germaine Greer says 'most rape is bad sex' not 'violent crime'

  31-05-2018 16:17
  Feminist author Germaine Greer has called for a rethink on how rape is prosecuted, saying some cases should be thought of as "non-consensual... bad sex" rather than a "violent crime".The academic made the controversial remarks at the Hay literary festival, where she was promoting her new book."Instead of thinking of rape as a spectacularly violent crime - and some rapes are - think about it as non-consensual... that is bad sex.
  
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• Anger as Brexiter Nigel Lawson applies for French residency

  31-05-2018 16:05
  Nigel Lawson is applying for a carte de séjour, a document that secures his rights to remain in France after Brexit.Nigel Lawson, a former chair of the Vote Leave campaign during the EU referendum and one of tens of thousands of Britons living in France, is to apply for his official French residency card.The former chancellor said he had started the process of applying for one of the cards, known as a carte de séjour, which British expatriates are being encouraged to obtain to help
  
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• Met Office: Thunderstorms And Wild Weather Pose A ‘Risk To Life’

  31-05-2018 16:00
  Parts of Britain have been warned to expect an ominous mix of thunderstorms,
  
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• 10 places you won't believe are in the UK – in pictures

  31-05-2018 15:41 via theguardian.com
  An island fit for a castaway, an Italian-style coastal hideaway, an otherworldly desert – if you think you know the UK, think again. These are the places that need to be experienced in real life to be believed. Plus, there are homes on Airbnb close by, for a unique staycation to remember Continue reading...
  
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• The joy of pints and pies: how I learned to love UK holidays

  31-05-2018 15:40 via theguardian.com
  Travel writer Anna Hart on how she finally left her passport behind and learned to love holidaying at home in the UKFor most of my life, travel to me meant going as far as I could for as long as I could. I was a glutton for international trips, ticking off European cities I could visit in a weekend, backpacking around swathes of south-east Asia and Central America, and road-tripping across New Zealand and California. A relentless neophiliac, I firmly believed that “away” was intrinsi
  
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• Women swallow abortion pills at pro-choice Belfast protest

  31-05-2018 14:58
  Police have confiscated abortion pills from campaigners after a number of women swallowed the medication at a protest in Belfast.Taking the tablets in Northern Ireland is against the law - unless a woman's life is at risk or there is a permanent or serious risk to her mental or physical health.Sky's Ireland correspondent, Darren McCaffrey, said there was a "large police presence" at the demonstration outside Laganside Courts.
  
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• Twitter served up a musical prophecy which had us all checking the record books

  31-05-2018 14:41
  Could your life really be determined by a hit song?
  
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• Conservatives must deal with Islamophobia in party, says Warsi

  31-05-2018 14:19
  Lady Warsi said it was a shame it could require such a public rebuke for the Tories to start confronting the issue.The Conservative party has to stop denying it has an issue with Islamophobia, its former chair, Sayeeda Warsi, has warned after the Muslim Council of Britain called for an independent inquiry into the issue.In a letter to the current party chair, Brandon Lewis, the MCB said there were “more than weekly incidents” of Islamophobia within the Conservatives, mentioning nine
  
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• See how a smooth London bus driver had a motorcyclist’s back

  31-05-2018 14:04
  The silent encounter between two fellow drivers was perfect.
  
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• Vital immigration papers lost by UK Home Office

  31-05-2018 14:00
  Campaigners have warned there are hundreds of cases in which original documents such as birth certificates, payslips and marriage certificates have gone missing.A wave of devastating incidents of vital personal papers being lost in immigration cases has led to renewed calls for the Home Office to overhaul the way it handles documents.The problem has been so severe that at its peak the department routinely mislaid thousands of files, a former senior immigration official said.
  
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• Ukrainian workers sweat over fate of Deripaska's alumina plant

  31-05-2018 13:57
  Ukraine's decision to put sanctions on one of Russia's wealthiest tycoons worries Vira Dudnyk.A driver at an alumina plant in southern Ukraine, she fears a tug-of-war between Kiev and Moscow may leave her jobless and on the streets."We are afraid if the plant is closed, what are we left with, who will feed us?
  
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