Six In The Morning Tuesday 4 May 2021

Carbon offsets used by major airlines based on flawed system, warn experts

Guardian investigation finds carbon credits generated by forest protection schemes are based on flawed system

Patrick Greenfield

@pgreenfielduk

Tue 4 May 2021 13.00 BST

The forest protection carbon offsetting market used by major airlines for claims of carbon-neutral flying faces a significant credibility problem, with experts warning the system is not fit for purpose, an investigation has found.

Money from carbon offsets can provide vital financial support for projects seeking to protect and restore some of the most beautiful threatened ecosystems around the world. Given that nature-based solutions can make a significant contribution to the climate mitigation needed to stabilise global heating, a functioning finance channel will be important for climate change progress, and particularly for developing countries.

EUROPE OPENS UP TO TOURISM – BUT WHAT EXACTLY IS THE EU PLANNING?

The UK is by far the most important ‘third country’ for the European Union – so the easing of travel restrictions is aimed squarely at British holidaymakers

Simon Calder

Travel Correspondent

@SimonCalder

“Time to revive the EU tourism industry and for cross-border friendships to rekindle – safely.”

That is the view of the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. She tweeted: “We propose to welcome again vaccinated visitors and those from countries with a good health situation.

“But if variants emerge we have to act fast: we propose an EU emergency brake mechanism.”

Germany: Right-wing criminality at a record high

Violent and racist crimes are on the up in Germany, according to official statistics on politically motivated crimes. Crimes by right-wing extremists hit their highest levels since records began in 2001.

Germany's Interior Minister Horst Seehofer presented the official statistics for politically motivated crimes committed in 2020 on Tuesday.

The minister expressed concerns over increasing incidences of politically motivated crimes, especially those carried out by right-wing extremists, such as the murder of 11 young people with immigrant heritage in the city of Hanau in February last year.

Idaho intern reports rape, says lawmakers ‘destroyed me’

REBECCA BOONE

 The harassment began soon after a report by a 19-year-old intern, who alleged an Idaho lawmaker raped her, became public.

One state representative sought a copy of the police report and made inquiries into how the young woman herself could be referred for criminal charges for reporting the alleged rape.

Another shared links to a far-right blog post that included the intern’s name, photo and personal details about her life with thousands of people in a newsletter and on social media.

The GOP's devotion to Trump threatens to destroy American democracy

Analysis by Stephen Collinson, CNN

Updated 1332 GMT (2132 HKT) May 4, 2021

With its cultish devotion to Donald Trump, the majority of the Republican Party is choosing a wannabe-autocrat over the political system that made the United States the world's most powerful nation and its dominant democracy.

The ex-President is showing that he doesn't have to be in the Oval Office to damage faith in US elections and to trash truth, as his movement based on lies and personal homage takes an increasingly firm grip of the Republican Party. The widespread mistrust he continues to foster in the fairness of the US political system among millions of voters poses grave risks to democracy itself.

Trump, using his bond with the conservative grassroots, has effectively made fealty to his false claims of a fraudulent election last year the price of entry for any Republican candidate in any race. Under his influence, one of America's two great political parties has effectively shed its belief in democracy -- a dereliction that is massively significant for the country's future.

Grief, anger among Indian diaspora in US as COVID crisis worsens

As the pandemic ravages India, the millions-strong Indian diaspora in the US are stricken with panic, pain and grief.

By 

Raqib Hameed Naik

4 May 2021

Rayees Ahmed Mirza would advise his mother Najma, 55, in India’s southern city of Hyderabad to wear a mask and not venture out every time he spoke to her over the phone.

From his experience in the United States, the 35-year-old IT professional from Minnesota knew the COVID-19 pandemic in India was far from over.

On April 15, Mirza had just started work when his mobile phone started to ring continuously. He answered and heard the news he dreaded most.