reduce

Spain plans a sharp cut to its value-added tax on fuel, dropping it to 10% from 21% to soften the economic fallout of the Middle East conflict, SER radio reported, citing sources familiar with the plans. Madrid also intends to suspend the excise duty on hydrocarbons, a step that would immediately trim the price of diesel and petrol by between 0.30c and 0.40c per litre, the SER report said. The government will also scrap the 5% tax on electricity consumption, according to the report. A government spokesperson declined to…

King Charles III says his cancer treatment will be reduced in the new year, crediting early diagnosis and effective care as he urged the public to take up available screenings. The monarch delivered the update in a video message airing during Channel 4’s Stand Up To Cancer broadcast. “Early diagnosis quite simply saves lives,” Charles said, adding that the message had been reinforced during his visits to cancer centers across the country. “I know, too, what a difference it has made in my own case, enabling me to continue…

In a contentious decision, European Union member states have opted to reduce the protection status of wolves, sparking outrage among conservationists and setting the stage for a potential easing of stringent hunting regulations. The representatives from the bloc's 27 nations rallied behind a proposal aimed at amending an international wildlife agreement. This change would shift the classification of wolves from "strictly protected" to simply "protected." The European Commission, the body that originally advocated for this…

MOGADISHU, Somalia | The Somali government is expected to reduce costs incurred in several departments; Auditor General Mohamed Ali Afgoe has warned, in yet another tax strategy aimed at increasing the financial fortunes of the Horn of Africa nation, which is embroiled in a host of challenges. For decades, Mogadishu, which does not yet have a stable government, relied almost entirely on the international community for its financial survival, given the low revenues generated by national taxes. The country has implemented…

In Mali itself, the newspaper Malikilé wonders whether it is a "confession of failure in France's military strategy in the Sahel", a "bloodbath" or a "great irritation. The development of the situation in Mali". In all his questions, Malikilé also states that "the future candidate Emmanuel Macron saves himself a sword of Damocles over his head with possible reports of French soldiers being killed somewhere in the vast…

President Félix Tshisekedi has decided on an unlimited national curfew to deal with the second wave of Covid-19. A measure that will take effect on Friday 18 December. About 15,000 cases, including more than 360 deaths, have been registered across the country, but the authorities assure that the signals are red. as reported…

The G20 finance ministers have adopted a new framework that will make it possible to reduce, or even eliminate, some of the debt of the poorest countries in the world. One week before the next G20 summit, finance ministers have decided to go beyond the current moratorium on the debts of poor countries, a moratorium extended to June 2021, but not enough, while some countries in the south are already…