Lin Taylor

Immigration has become the dominant political issue in Britain, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer under mounting pressure to reduce record numbers of asylum seekers arriving in the country, especially those coming on small boats from France.

Over the summer, hotels housing asylum seekers became a focal point of sometimes violent demonstrations, with many protesters arguing that asylum seekers receive more financial support and benefits than British nationals.

Britain has suspended a visa scheme allowing registered refugees to bring family members into the country, a "cruel" decision that could trap women and children in danger or push them into perilous escape routes, charities say.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is under mounting political pressure to reduce the numbers of asylum seekers landing in the country, especially those coming on small boats from France. 

U.S.-funded contraceptives worth nearly $10 million and mostly destined for Africa will be incinerated in France after Washington rejected offers from the United Nations and family planning groups to buy or ship the supplies to poor nations.

The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), a global sexual and reproductive health provider, estimated the decision would lead to 362,000 unplanned pregnancies, 110,000 unsafe abortions and around 700 preventable maternal deaths.

When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned women's constitutional right to abortion, a battle was launched over who has access to reproductive data and how it is used.

Debate has intensified over how reproduction-related data is collected, if law enforcement can access it and how big tech and businesses should handle it in the U.S. and abroad.

Heatwaves have broken records around the world this year, with warnings issued across the United States and temperatures endangering lives across southern Europe.

In June, millions of Americans sweltered as temperatures exceeded 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). In early July, Europe was gripped by a heatwave that meteorologists said was "exceptional" because it struck so early in the year.

President Donald Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' will hit poor countries that rely on money sent home by loved ones working U.S. jobs, with analysts predicting a new 1% tax will shave hundreds of millions of dollars off annual remittances received.

The levy was signed into law on July 4 and is due to come into force next January.

European countries have tightened migration policies this year, with more changes expected, despite a 38% drop in illegal migrant entries last year to the lowest level since 2021.

Elections this year have seen far-right, anti-migration parties grow in popularity and immigration remains a politically charged topic in the bloc's 27 member states.

Sudanese climate activist Roaa should have been leading meetings with other youth advocates at a United Nations climate conference in Germany in June.

Instead, the 24-year-old was at home, having wasted hundreds of dollars and nearly two months preparing for a visa that was denied in less than 48 hours. Many of her peers, mostly from the Global North, flew into the city of Bonn without a hitch.

More than a third of people living in the tiny Pacific nation of Tuvalu have applied to permanently migrate to Australia under a landmark visa scheme, Australian government figures show.

Australia's new Pacific Engagement Visa (PEV) lottery allows Pacific Islanders, whose coastal homes are sinking under rising seas because of climate change, to apply to become permanent residents each year.

Scammers and loan sharks are preying on migrants in Britain, exploiting their desperation to stay in the country as the government clamps down on migration, money experts say.

Newly arrived asylum seekers, refugees and temporary workers, who are often unfamiliar with Britain's banking and migration systems, have been targeted with offers of fraudulent debt solutions, private loans and visa help.