Political news

• Warning system?

  14-01-2018 23:25 via bbc.co.uk
  What plans are there for alerting the British public in the unlikely event of an attack?
  
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• 'McMafia' Episode 4 Review: 8 Questions It Left Us Asking

  14-01-2018 23:00
  After the third episode of ‘McMafia’, it still felt like we were waiting for something of any real consequence to happen.Unfortunately, Sunday (14 January) night’s instalment did nothing to really tie up the various strands of the story that are currently developing, mainly focussing on Vadim’s heroin shipment from Pakistan into Mumbai.While we might currently be doubting whether the series is a case of style over substance, there were still plenty of questions we had as
  
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• Jacob Rees-Mogg Should Not Be Next Tory Leader, Says MP In Charge Of Contest

  14-01-2018 22:09
  The next Conservative Party leadership election will see a “cast of thousands” run for the job but Jacob Rees-Mogg should not be one of them, the Tory MP in charge over overseeing any contest has said.Sir Graham Brady, the influential chairman of the 1922 committee of backbench Conservative MPs, said he doubted Rees-Mogg, a grassroots favourite to succeed Theresa May, could connect with the wider country.“I really like Jacob,” he said when asked if Rees-Mogg was a &l
  
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• Union Blasts Carillion's 'Reckless Corporate Irresponsibility' Amid Last-Ditch Rescue Talks

  14-01-2018 20:56
  The UK’s largest trade union has called for a public inquiry into struggling construction giant Carillion, hitting out at “reckless corporate irresponsibility” as thousands of workers wait for news of their fate.Talks involving government ministers and company bosses were held throughout the weekend as the Unite union warned that thousands of jobs and workers’ pensions were at risk.The firm has struggled since reporting half-year losses of £1.15 billion and a meetin
  
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• Why the over-stretched Carillion finally collapsed

  14-01-2018 20:27 via ft.com
  Britain’s second-largest builder crippled by flaws in big projects
  
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• Trust in Carillion evaporates as it scrambles for cash

  14-01-2018 20:27 via ft.com
  Britain’s second-largest builder crippled by flaws in major projects
  
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• What Dating With Anxiety Taught Me About Love

  14-01-2018 20:18
  “I love this bit when you’ve just met someone,” a newly and blissfully coupled-up friend told me over brunch “it’s so exciting”.As she fired off another message to her Bumble conquest I marvelled at her breezy demeanour. Whilst she revelled in the giddy highs of a new relationship, my own dating life seemed a veritable circus of horrors.“How’s that guy you’re seeing?” she asked, and a familiar terror reared at the thought of my own falt
  
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• Volume of fraud case data delaying court charges ‘for years’

  14-01-2018 20:03 via ft.com
  City economic crime chief calls for review of evidence disclosure rules
  
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• Five Immediate Fixes To Make Work Pay Under Universal Credit

  14-01-2018 19:59
  Much of what Esther McVey has said in the past, and her record as a DWP minister in the coalition government, meant that her appointment as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions will alarm all those who believe in a more compassionate and empowering society. But as the rollout of Universal Credit (UC) creaks on, perhaps there is a chance she’ll be outspoken enough to acknowledge that its central purpose is floundering - under UC, work simply doesn’t pay - and bold enough to take r
  
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• Aspiration, Aspiration, Aspiration: The Way We View Social Mobility Is Flawed

  14-01-2018 19:54
  In July 2016 Theresa May set forth her agenda for ensuring Britain was ‘the world’s greatest meritocracy – a country where everyone has a fair chance to go as far as their talent and hard work will allow’. It was rhetoric that reflected the post-Brexit idealism of the 51% - a Britain that knew no limits to success and thrived on the world stage. There is nothing new about this ideology, it’s one that places complete onus on the individual to ‘succeed’. T
  
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• The Trump Administration Shows The Dangers Of The Abnormal Becoming Normal

  14-01-2018 19:39
  It takes a surprisingly short amount of time for the public-at-large to accept what would previously be seen as an extremely abnormal state of affairs as a new state of normality. Let us take this past week for example; in any previous presidency, the news that the president had been accused of paying for the silence of pornographic actresses who he had sexual relations with would be the main scandal of that president’s reign. In the Trump administration, however it isn’t even the ma
  
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• Can't Trump Do Anything Right?

  14-01-2018 19:25
  Let’s start with a short book review.American author, Michael Wolff was given unprecedented access to the Trump White House. Sadly, he ended up writing a book that eschews journalism and plumps for polemic.To be clear from the start, I was gunning for ’Fire and Fury’. I wanted to see Trump exposed as an imbecile. But having trawled through Wolff’s text, I’m left wondering if it’s possible that any human being - let alone a President - can be so truly awful. We
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Says US Is Not Britain’s Most Important Relationship

  14-01-2018 19:21
  .@JeremyCorbyn tells @Peston he is not surprised that @realDonaldTrump cancelled his trip to the UK pic.twitter.com/8sndJ6yGN5— Peston on Sunday (@pestononsunday) January 14, 2018Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has dealt a blow to the so-called ‘special relationship’ after saying the US is not Britain’s most important relationship with another country.The Labour leader said the UK had to maintain many important relationships around the world, as he hit out at “endless o
  
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• Emily Thornberry: Donald Trump Is A 'Racist' And An 'Asteroid Of Awfulness', Says Labour's Shadow Foreign Secretary

  14-01-2018 18:24
  Labour’s shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry has labelled US president Donald Trump “a danger” and “a racist”, adding: “He is an asteroid of awfulness that has fallen on this world.”Thornberry’s damning comments represent one of the most outspoken attacks on Trump by a UK politician, and stands in stark contrast to the more compromising tone of foreign secretary Boris Johnson.This week President Trump said he was cancelling a proposed visit t
  
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• Man Charged With Murder Of TUI Travel Agent Cassie Hayes Attacked At Work

  14-01-2018 17:19
  A man has been charged with the murder of travel agent Cassie Hayes who was attacked at her workplace.Andrew Burke, 30, of Vincent Street, St Helens, will appear from custody at South Sefton Magistrates’ Court in Bootle on Monday.Ms Hayes, 28, was attacked at the TUI store in Chapel Street, Southport, where she was assistant manager, on Saturday afternoon.The 28-year-old was taken to hospital where she subsequently died from a wound to her throat.A fundraiser for her family has r
  
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• Man Charged With Murder Of TUI Travel Agent Cassie Hayes After She Was Attacked At Work

  14-01-2018 17:19
  A man has been charged with the murder of a travel agent who was attacked while at work.Cassie Hayes was attacked at the TUI store in Chapel Street, Southport, on Saturday afternoon.Merseyside Police said Andrew Burke, 30, of St Helens, has been charged with her murder.The 28-year-old was taken to hospital where she subsequently died from her injuries. A fundraiser for her family has raised thousands of pounds.At the time of writing, an online fund for her family had reached almost £4
  
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• Cassie Hayes Named As TUI Travel Agent Killed In In-Store Attack

  14-01-2018 17:19
  A fundraiser for the family of a travel agent who died after she was attacked while at work has raised thousands of pounds.Cassie Hayes was attacked at the TUI store in Chapel Street, Southport, on Saturday afternoon.The 28-year-old was taken to hospital where she subsequently died from her injuries.At the time of writing, an online fund for her family had reached almost £4,000.The fundraiser was set up by Bruce Martin, managing director of travel trade website Travel Gossip.He said: &ldqu
  
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• Writing Back: Spreading Kindness One Letter At A Time

  14-01-2018 16:55
  A 2016 report by the British Heart Foundation and Co-Op found that 9 million people in the United Kingdom often or always felt lonely. Loneliness doesn’t just affect older people. In a 2010 survey by The Mental Health Foundation, 36% of 18–34 year-olds worried about feeling lonely. Letter writing is routinely decried as a ‘dying’ art but, at the University of Leeds, students and older members of the community are helping to tackle loneliness and improve wellbeing by excha
  
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• Sunday Show Round-Up: Labour Single Market Spats, 'Racist' Presidents, 'Truly Evil' MPs And 'Tantalising' Theresa May

  14-01-2018 16:46
  Jeremy Corbyn used his first Sunday show interview of the New Year to wind-up Labour backbenchers about what the single market actually is, refused to rule out a second referendum and questioned whether under Donald Trump the US really was the UK’s closest ally.Also this morning, Emily Thornberry branded Donald Trump a “racist”. John McDonnell was labelled a “truly evil” by Andrea Leadsom. Matt Hancock suggested the BBC cap pay at the same level as the prime ministe
  
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• Police Hunt Suspected Crossbow Killer After Man Murdered And Woman Injured

  14-01-2018 15:51
  A manhunt is under way for a suspected crossbow killer after a man was murdered and a woman was attacked at their home.Shane Gilmer, 30, from Southburn, a village near Driffield, has been named as the man killed in the attack, which took place on Friday evening.A crossbow was reportedly used in the attack and Humberside Police have cordoned off the rural village and have been searching local woods, according to the Press Association.The force has issued an appeal to find the suspect, 55-year-old
  
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• Crossbow Killer Suspect Found Dead In Rural North Yorkshire

  14-01-2018 15:51
  Officers have discovered a body believed to be the man wanted in connection with a suspected crossbow murder.Shane Gilmer, 30, and his pregnant girlfriend Laura Sugden were attacked at their home in the village of Southburn, near Driffield, on Friday evening.Mr Gilmer, who was a well-liked member of his community and known for helping others according to reports, died at Hull Royal Infirmary on Saturday.Ms Sugden’s injuries were not life-threatening and that she and her unborn baby were in
  
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• BBC Stars Should Have Their Pay Capped At £150,000, Suggests Culture Secretary Matt Hancock

  14-01-2018 14:57
  Highly paid BBC stars could see their salaries capped at £150,000, the same level as the prime minister, new Culture Secretary Matt Hancock has suggested.Hancock, who was promoted to the Cabinet by Theresa May in last week’s reshuffle, said on Sunday the broadcaster has “missed a chance” to cap salaries when a similar rule was introduced across the public sector.His comments come in the midst of a row over Carrie Gracie, who has resigned as the BBC’s China editor in
  
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• Ukip leader urged to quit over girlfriend's 'racist' Meghan Markle remarks

  14-01-2018 14:28 via theguardian.com
  Henry Bolton’s girlfriend, Jo Marney, has been suspended for reported offensive comments about Prince Harry’s fianceeThe Ukip leader, Henry Bolton, should quit his post, senior figures from the party have said, after Bolton’s girlfriend was suspended from the party for a reported barrage of racist remarks including ones about Prince Harry’s fiancee, Meghan Markle.Bolton, 54, who has been leader of the party for less than four months, came under increasing pressure to resi
  
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• John McDonnell Branded 'Truly Evil' By Tory Cabinet Minister For Attack On Esther McVey

  14-01-2018 14:19
  John McDonnell has been branded “truly evil” by a Conservative cabinet minister for comments he made about the new work and pensions secretary Esther McVey.The shadow chancellor once called McVey a “stain on humanity” and quoted an activist who called for her to be “lynched”.Andrea Leadsom, the Conservative leader of the Commons, said the comments played on the BBC’s Sunday Politics today, were “utterly disgusting”.This is truly evil. Utterly
  
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• 'Celebrity Big Brother': India Willoughby Promises To Expose 'Treacherous' Housemate, Claiming She's Been 'Played Like A Fiddle'

  14-01-2018 13:28
  India Willoughby has promised to blow the lid on one “treacherous” ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ housemate who she claims “manipulated” her in the house. The journalist became the first person be evicted from the Channel 5 reality show on Friday (12 January), and has since tweeted what viewers saw of her time in the house is “not as it seems”. India appeared to hint Rachel Johnson was the contestant she had a problem with, seemingly referring t
  
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• Madeleine McCann Detective Kevin Halligen Found Dead

  14-01-2018 13:25
  A private detective accused of exploiting the hunt for Madeleine McCann to fund his lavish lifestyle has been found dead.Kevin Halligen, 56, gained notoriety when his firm Oakley International was used by the toddler’s parents to help search for their missing daughter.His Washington-based company received about £300,000 of cash donated by the public after Madeleine vanished from an Algarve resort in May 2007 at the age of three.He was later forced to deny claims the money was actuall
  
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• Gove warns water companies over use of offshore tax structures

  14-01-2018 12:58 via ft.com
  UK environment secretary threatens legislation if companies do not behave responsibly
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn Refuses To Rule Out Supporting Second EU Referendum

  14-01-2018 12:05
  Jeremy Corbyn has refused to rule out backing a second referendum on EU membership.The Labour leader said on Sunday morning the party was “not supporting or calling for a second referendum”.“What we have called for is a meaningful vote in parliament and that is the one area I think parliament has asserted itself in the vote before Christmas,” he said.Pressed on ITV’s Peston on Sunday programme whether that meant Labour would “never support a second referendum&
  
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• Trabzon Airport: Plane Skids Off Runway In Northern Turkey

  14-01-2018 12:03
  Shocking images have emerged showing a plane which skidded off the runway and became stuck in mud on the edge of a cliff at a Turkish airport.The Pegasus Airline’s Boeing 737 landing at Trabzon Airport in northern Turkey from the Turkish capital, Ankara.It is not yet known what caused the incident.None of the 162 passengers and crew on board were injured in the incident, Trabzon governor Yucel Yavuz said.The airport was closed for several hours but has since reopened.
  
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• John Worboys Release Prompts Justice Secretary To Consider Judicial Review

  14-01-2018 11:35
  The new Justice Secretary David Gauke has sought advice over a potential judicial review of the Parole Board’s decision to release black-cab rapist John Worboys from prison following a mass public outcry.The announcement last week that the serial sex attacker would be freed nine years after he was jailed prompted dismay from victims’ groups, politicians and legal experts.Concerns were raised as to why all of the 102 complainants had not seen their cases brought to trial, as well as c
  
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• Mark Wahlberg Donates $1.5m ‘All The Money In The World’ Reshoot Fee To Time’s Up Fund After Backlash

  14-01-2018 11:02
  Mark Wahlberg will donate his $1.5 million reshoot fee for the film ‘All The Money In The World’ to the Time’s Up fund, after drawing criticism for how much more he made for the work than co-star Michelle Williams.It was reported the actor was paid 1000 times more than Michelle was to reshoot scenes on the Ridley Scott film.Bosses had to rework the movie after deciding to cut Kevin Spacey out of it due to sexual assault allegations made against him.In a statement posted on
  
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• Ukip Leader's Girlfriend Suspended From Party Over 'Racist' Meghan Markle Remarks

  14-01-2018 10:54
  The girlfriend of Ukip leader Henry Bolton has been suspended from the party after reportedly making racist remarks about Meghan Markle.Jo Marney, 25, sent a series of messages to a friend in which she made highly offensive comments about Prince Harry’s fiancee and black people, according the Mail on Sunday.In the texts, Marney reportedly said Markle would “taint” the Royal Family, that she had a “tiny brain” and that black people were ugly.In a statement to the pap
  
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• Our historic Brexit vote could now be reversed, admits Nigel Farage

  14-01-2018 10:32 via theguardian.com
  Remainers ‘are making all the running’ and could swing a vote in parliament, former Ukip leader warnsAnalysis: Real Brexit struggle is only just beginningNigel Farage today makes a dramatic admission that the vote for Brexit could be overturned because Remainers have seized control of the argument over Britain’s future relationship with the EU.The former Ukip leader told the Observer that he was becoming increasingly worried that the Leave camp had stopped fighting their corner
  
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• Ant McPartlin Announces Split From Wife Lisa Armstrong

  14-01-2018 10:10
  Ant McPartlin has announced he is ending his marriage to wife Lisa Armstrong.The TV presenter - one half of Ant & Dec - ended months of speculation by issuing a statement confirming their split after 11 years of marriage.It follows his stint in rehab earlier this year for an addiction to prescription drugs, following a botched knee operation.In the statement given to The Sun, Ant’s spokesperson said: “In response to the recent speculation in the media, Ant is very
  
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• Brexit and agriculture: British farmers to plough new course

  14-01-2018 09:00 via ft.com
  The government faces a choice between recreating the bloc’s support for farmers or diversifying the rural economy
  
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• We had a lot on our plate already: Brexit was the last thing we needed

  14-01-2018 08:00 via theguardian.com
  The young people of Britain are threatened not just by leaving the EU, but by the accumulation of problems created by neglect of public servicesOne of the many annoying aspects of the Brexit referendum fiasco is that it has diverted attention from so many pressing domestic economic and social problems.Yet those of us who are unrepentant Remainers still regard the struggle as worthwhile. Brexiters may argue that the prospect of short-term economic damage was exaggerated during the campaign, and,
  
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• Macron to advance closer defence ties with UK

  14-01-2018 08:00 via ft.com
  President to push military initiative at Anglo-French Sandhurst summit
  
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• France’s Emmanuel Macron to advance closer defence ties with UK

  14-01-2018 08:00 via ft.com
  President to push military initiative at Anglo-French summit in Sandhurst
  
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• Why my generation must not be scared of saying they’re Tory | Ben Bradley

  14-01-2018 01:05 via theguardian.com
  The new Tory vice-chair for youth explains how the party hopes to attract a new generationYoung people are getting involved in politics like never before – and it is important that we are responsive to their needs and build a country that works for them as well as everyone else. Last year’s general election saw a surge in young people turning out to vote, with 18- to 24-year-olds voting in greater numbers than at any other time.If so many young people turned up to vote, politicians &
  
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• Nigel Farage speaks from the rubbish dump – cartoon

  14-01-2018 01:05 via theguardian.com
  Chris Riddell on calls for a second referendum and Theresa May’s new green agenda Continue reading...
  
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• How and why Britain might be asked to vote again on Brexit | Andrew Rawnsley

  14-01-2018 01:05 via theguardian.com
  It still doesn’t look that likely, but we can begin to see the circumstances which would compel a second referendumCan we just call the whole damn thing off? Could Brexit be stopped so that Britain can get on with the rest of its life? Is there a possibility of doing a Breverse? This question has been nagging away, always in the background and sometimes in the foreground, ever since the narrow victory for Leave. One reason this is so is because it is such a massive issue. Another reason is
  
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• Gay people’s sex lives are none of Farron’s business | Barbara Ellen

  14-01-2018 01:04 via theguardian.com
  The former Liberal Democract leader’s retraction simply makes matters worseTim Farron has said that he now regrets saying that gay sex wasn’t a sin, when he was Liberal Democrat leader during the last general election campaign. Speaking to Premier Christian Radio, Farron, an evangelical Christian, said that he’d felt pressured to make the statement.Vince Cable and other Liberal Democrats have since criticised Farron, while gay activists asked why he was allowed to return to the
  
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• My friend David Davis once defended liberty. Now he has become its enemy | Henry Porter

  14-01-2018 01:01 via theguardian.com
  He used to champion parliament as a protector against authoritarianism. These days, he’s happy to subvert itPoliticians and journalists rarely make good friends, but David Davis and I got on pretty well in the period we campaigned on civil liberties together during the last Labour government. We lunched, he came to my home for dinner, I introduced him to friends in New York and we often shared the same platform, notably in the Guardian debate at the Hay festival, when he and I took on Char
  
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• If our landscape truly belongs to us all, we must stop romanticising it | Alex Preston

  14-01-2018 01:01 via theguardian.com
  Michael Gove’s policies on the countryside are welcome, but will only work if he can bridge the urban/rural divideMichael Gove has now been secretary of state for the environment for more than six months and, believe me, this isn’t easy to write, he appears to be doing a decent job. It induces a particular kind of cognitive dissonance in the liberal left, seeing him making such lucid and laudable policy decisions.Gove is behind the government’s post-Blue Planet drive on plastic
  
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• Hard Brexiteers 'Have Had Their Chance And Failed', Says Nicola Sturgeon

  14-01-2018 01:00
  Hardline Brexiteers “had their chance and failed”, Nicola Sturgeon has said, as the SNP’s Westminster leader pledges to push for a Commons vote on the single market.Scotland’s First Minister said there was a “golden opportunity” for moderates to press for continued single market and customs union membership.It came as Ian Blackford, her party’s Westminster leader, revealed he was working with the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru, and Green Party to amend t
  
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• Government to hold Carillion talks on Sunday

  14-01-2018 00:27 via ft.com
  UK construction and management group could go into administration as early as Monday
  
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• Government holds crunch meeting with Carillion

  14-01-2018 00:27 via ft.com
  UK construction and management group could go into administration as early as Monday
  
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