RTD 24

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Roscoes announce plans for 17 supermarkets with hotels in Anasasia city

Roscoes announced today their commitment to Anastasia city with a grand plan for their presence in the city. They announced plans for 17 supermarkets over 5 years with 4,645 sq metres or more at key transit stops and squared to create destinations for local communities to shop at. The company announced it planned for the locations to have apartments above each store with plans to build 30,000 or more apartments over or around their stores as well as build space for community events and locations for doctors and public services working with government. Roscoes said in a statement "We aim to provide good affordable housing , density for the environment and public transport and to be a key place to shop , bank and get your medicine as well as access services. We aim to serve the community with all of our services." The move comes as no surprise as the company pursues the strategy in other cities in the Duchies in a changing retail environment.

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United Duchies passes price floor law
United Duchies has passed a price floor law for purchasing materials and products in order to combat unfair trade. The government has announced it will work with the fairtrade council to set buying price minimums in order to ensure all suppliers regardless of country are fairly paid and can make a profit without exploiting workers,child labour or cutting environmental standards. The price will apply to any Duchies registered subsidiary or company,with the price aimed to provide not only fair conditions for workers but also ensure a stable supply chain. It will also expect a fair trade certificate for products to be imported from countries with known lower labour standards.The act is expected to raise prices by up to 15-30% in many cases opposition parties have criticized the law for "hurting the poor of the country".

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Urban farm programme and micro-producer programme at Roscoes
Roscoes have announced they will have a target for local urban farms and micro-producers to make up 10% of available food shelf space in cities next by 2 years and 25% within 5 years and then to maintain that level. In a statement they said "Reducing food miles is essential as are sme's for equality and environmental protection. In recognition of this we aim to stock 15% of our shelves in cities with local micro-producer products and urban farm produced products in all city stores. We recognize this sector also needs support which is why in partnership with Roscoes Bank we will support a funding scheme for such enterprises with a special focus on non-white minorities getting extra funding. The scheme would also feature advisors to help the businesses and farms along. " The scheme has been praised by the government as well as charities who said "We are happy Roscoes already an excellent community and corporate citizen is taking this extra step beyond in sustainability and in supporting vulnerable communities who face overcoming poverty and discrimination.".

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Brummagem City Council reveal plans for former Palasades site

Today a 3D render was released of plans for the former Pallasades site. The former site was destroyed in the bombings of 2021 with 289 deaths. The new store would be a Primark the biggest one they have ever opened. The store would feature extensive homeware sections , clothing section for men and toy sections as well as a food court hosting a variety of cuisines. The site was brought by the Primark with the money going to a fund to help victims of the attacks with their costs of therapy in the future and other costs. A memorial will be built into the stores facade with a photo wall of every victim of the attack on the site. The development is expected to be popular with it being declared as a rebirth of the site and a show of defiance that terrorism will not defeat the Duchian spirit.

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New Green European Fund announced
In a move of setting up a more "co-operation treaty based approach to development" United Duchies and Reitzmag governments announced the creation of a Green European Fund.They are signing up and committing billions of Euros to the fund with United Duchies committing 5 billion Euros annually as a start to the fund to fund a green transition in Europe. The fund will be entirely vountary donation based with countries donating over 0.01% of GDP getting 1 seat on the council running it which will be headquartered in Europolis and countries over 2 billion Euros per year getting an extra seat on the council. The fund will commit 40% of its funds to developing nations defined as nations under 20,000 Euros per capita GDP such as Nofoaga with unspent money being invested in green financial funds to make money until it can be used. The fund is inviting investment into it saying " We believe we can make this a true juggernaut in the green movement and gleaming example of co-operation regardless of politics coming together as humanity in Europe to encourage green development and work together to fund projects saving our planet hopefully not only meeting targets but exceeding commitments and targets and helping developing countries leapfrog past the polluting stage in development."

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Prominent Autistic Boy fighting for life after hate crime

Today Amaziah Mizrachi-Roscoe was fighting for his life after having been found in a park almost dead. The 13 year old who recently celebrated his entry into his teenage years and was caught up in the Leftist Duchies Bombings of 2021 and has had to recover after almost dying then was found in a park having been stabbed over 7 times and shot 3 times and left on his own in the park after he was reported missing after he didn't arrive at his girlfriends house just 30 minutes walk away. A phone recording him was found at the scene with a social media stream found and took down by authorities. The crime is being treated as a hate crime with a recording of the video took as evidence with 5 arrested for now for attempted murder and anti-autistic hate crime. The charge could be upped to murder if the son of the famous EU councillour dies and his family have been seen at the Chamberlain Park hospital in United Duchies.

The family said in a statement "We are devestated our beautiful son has been attacked and targeted in such a disgusting brutal fashion just because of who he is. This shows our society despite its progressive values and community values still has some way to go in acceptance and we must all continue to fight for acceptance. " The boy who recently joined twitter and Ogobook was in the media just today after criticising the Spanish President for praising Columbus and celebrating his legacy. Politicians from all parties have condemned the hateful attack and expressed support for the family and boy. The Moderate leader said in a statement "I hope the justice system suitably punishes those who committed this crime. All citizens are valuable in this country neurodivergent and neurotypical and it is crucial we punish those who attack based on such characteristics, this attack is not just an attack on one boy but on a whole community and its values and our national values of acceptance of differences. I have had the pleasure of meeting Amaziah many times given his presence at many of the events I am at and always found him a charming , kind , funny young man and I wish him the best in his recovery and very much pray he comes out the other end. " The attack has shocked the country with concerns over hate crime against neurodivergent people once again brought to the forefront with neurodivergent people 5 times more likely to be victims of violent crime and 10 times more likely to be victims of crime in general, it is important to note even for neurodivergent people the chance of being a victim of violent crime is low. Charity Positive About Autism has called for action to fix this issue saying in a statement "This goes beyond one boy and family. Fear of their beautiful neurodivergent family members being a victim of crime is a common theme we hear about and the number one issue affecting independence. This must be adressed and we believe despite best efforts hate crime still doesn't have serious enough penalties in the United Duchies."

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Op-Ed:Amaziah is right , Columbus is a source of shame
Spain is today in a nationalist frenzy of historical revisionism and pride celebrating Columbus and his alleged discovery of the Americas. The first thing is that he was not truly the discoverer , the truth is the vikings got their first , yes they may not have recorded it as well but its like saying Captain Cooke discovered Australia and New Zealand just because he made better records, also how could he "discover" it when there 10's of millions of native americans living there already not counting indigenous nations all over the Americas many of which were more advanced than Europe at the time. Secondly even if he was first is that a source of pride or shame, even for the time which was pretty brutal Columbus was seen as pretty damn evil , when natives didn't give enough gold he killed them and he enslaved many natives in brutal conditions , he took over using existing rivalries then paved the way to salt out civillians and paved destroyed Tenochtitlan.His direct impact including bringing diseases to the Americas wiped out 90%+ of the native populations in a generation. He brought in an age of barbarity and incivility against natives in one of the worst treatment of natives and theft of wealth of nations.Also the fact he thought he was in Asia not the Americas is a sign of his idiocy , basic calculations at the time should have clued him in and Vespucio recognised soon after it was a new continent, showing up Columbus.I suggest the Spanish celebrating Columbus are the ones that haven't looked at their history properly.

Am I saying other nations weren't guilty , not at all Montenbourg , Reitzmag and their empire the Duchies and its Duchies United Trading Company and trading companies profited off goods made with slavery and on stolen land. The Reitzmag and United Duchies are not glorifying the murderers, the profits off slavery and stolen land and the "achievements" there is a sense of shame for the crimes of the past and an attitude of fixing the damage. Imagine how it must feel to be the great grandson of one of those exploited by the empire in Spain seeing your exploitation and ancestors suffering celebrated by all and the great and powerful royals , its just insensitive and tone deaf at best and evil at worst. Amaziah is right we need to stop glorifying the empires of the past built on oppression and exploitation of the the black , asian and indigenous people and acknowledge our roles, talk about reconciliation and how we fix the economic disparities that to this day exist as a result of the rape of the wealth of these peoples and nations. Columbus is no hero just Captain Cooke and countless others weren't they were murderers, selfish and rapists of the wealth of many peoples and nations who led to brutal opression and enpoverishing of entire ethnic groups to this day. Lets not celebrate that but instead celebrate indigenous cultures and focus on remembering the victims of this exploitation by all European nations in history. Frankly anyone celebrating Columbus Day or any days like it are ignorant fools or imperialist racists.

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RTD Polling Week ending 10th October
EU:
What is the your stance on the EU?
Leave:22%
Reform with less power:41%
Increase EU powers:19%
Stay about the same powers:18%

Anastasia City Projection:
CPCI:14.91%(8 Seats)
The Left:11.83%(6 Seats)
Futurist Party of Anastasia City:0.43%(0 Seats)
IUAC:22.08%(11 Seats)
PSD:9.87%(5 Seats)
Moderate:19.43%(10 Seats)
Liberal:8.78%(4 Seats)
UoD:12.63%(6 Seats)
OHE:0%(0 Seats)
United:0%(0 Seats)

Duchies National Polling(Excluding Anastasia City):
The Left:12.1%
PSD:20.9%
Liberal Party:14.1%
Moderate Party:23.1%
Union of Democrats:20.8%
Alliance of Royalists:5.2%
National Rally:3.6%
New Dawn:0.2%

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Protests erupt over Amaziah Attempted Murder and Anti-Autistic Hate Crime

Protests erupted throughout the Duchies with one of the biggest in Brummagem over the attempted murder of Amaziah Mizrachi-Roscoe which has now been classed as a hate crime. 10's of thousands took to the streets to organised protests with organisers inviting speakers from Poisitive About Autism , other disability and neurodivergence campaigning groups and the family with chants such as "Justice for Amaziah" ,"Death to ignorance" and "We are all Amaziah" in the protest among others . A key speaker in the protest was his girlfriend , brother Mathias and cousin Hosea among others. The protests also erupted in Goudadam, Porterdam, Cair Para and Hamborg. The protests come after the attack but there has been a spate of attacks according to disability and neurodivergence charities with reports suggesting Autistics are up to 15 times more likely to be victim to violent crimes and 20 times more likely to face bullying with over 80% having reported at least some bullying to to their Neurodivergence.

We managed to get an interview with James Mizrachi Roscoe after the protest from our reporter on the scene:
Jorgie May: Hi Mr Mizrachi-Roscoe , theres been a great turnout today clearly your son is much loved. How is he doing currently?
James: Thank you , yes its a fantastic turnout and I'm honoured . I very much hope Amaziah lives to see this level of support with all he's gone through , he's not always felt acceptance like many autistics unfortunately. Currently honestly we don't know how things will pan out but I have been told to prepare for the worst , overall he still needs all the support and prayers he can get as he is still fighting for his life.
Jorgie:I'm sorry to hear that and we obviously very much hope for a quick recovery for him. What do you think of current efforts to stop hate crime and do you think there is enough support?
James:Honestly I think the current efforts are not enough , the figures speak for themselves. We shouldn't have to have to choose our kids freedom or safety and autistic adults should not have to worry about their safety just going for a night out with friends and its been a big issue for a long time yet we as a society have not acted or just ignored the fact the issue exists. Racism , Sexism and Trans and Homophobia are all talked about reguarly but where do you see the column inches for hate against autistics and neurodivergent of all communities? Wheres all the mass movements and days for them? They don't exist and it would remain that way if it wasn't my son who was attacked. Frankly the only reason it came up was my son is a son of European Councillour and prominent businessman but it shouldn't take me being who I am and my sons relationship to me to get the press and public out there. Why is my son any more important than the other many hundreds and thousands suffering this hate crime and the 80% suffering bullying or teasing? It shouldn't take a kid of the rich and famous being a victim for it to be big news perhaps we need to continue the focus to defeat this disgusting ableism and hate once and for all.
Jorgie:I can definitely see the point there , but maybe its not so prominent because its not so obvious or doesn't affect as many?
James: Maybe thats the way its seen but each of those is a valuable human life and also its not as rare as you think. Something like 20% are Neurodivergent in some way, 1 in 40 Autistic in this country at last count thats a community of millions and many millions of families affected. This should not be seen as a niche issue in fact it affects more people than crimes of racism and homophobia combined and I'm not saying those are less important either but this affects all families of all races and creeds. But even if it was 0.5% would it make it any less important?
Jorgie: I suppose not , what do you see yourself doing going forward?
James: I will be talking to the prime minister as well as the cabinet on this issue as I carry a great weight of power with my responsibility I want to use it to make more lasting change. I will also be looking at how I can help in Europe with the international side of this issue, its not just a Duchies issue , anti-disability and autistic hate crime is a problem in all countries including progressive countries like Spain, Inquista , Reitzmag and Montebourg we need to tackle this throughout Europe. Perhaps Europe wide campaigns on disability and neurdivergence are needed like we have for the LGBT and Women and have those set up by the Autistic and Neurodivergent communities made official. I will consult to see how to make this a reality on top of the current EU act on Neurodivergent rights.
Jorgie:Thank you I wish you all the best with your campaigning, for justice and your sons recovery.

The ICS church also weighed in saying "Our heart aches for Amaziah and his family. He is a well respected member of his church and the whole church family and faith community is shocked at this horiffic hate crime. We are in talks with other churches in the Duchies about how we can help not only the family but also the whole community and use our influence to spread acceptance. No child or adult should suffer discrimination based on their Neurotype or Disability all are God's children and deserve the same love and acceptance as all people." The movement is only expected to grow as groups are now founding to work to counter hate crimes.

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Foreign minister says "Ready to help North Diessan but need to have help requested"

United Duchies Foreign Minister has said in a statement that Unitec Duchies is ready to help in North Diessan to combat the terrorist groups expressing grave concern for the country. The government said in a statement "we are ready and waiting to send troops in to defend North Diessan but in these circumstances we need them to formally request it first according to our military policy something they have not done. We cannot just go over the border officially uninvited. If they want help all they need to do is ask and it will be given right away."

The government also denied the operations in the Caspian were a threat to North Diessan saying "We do not believe these to be a threat to North Diessan. We are simply working with Reitzmag to defeat the scourge of Kaasian piracy of shipping causing severe problems. It is part of our navies job to keep commercial vessels safe and that is exactly what we are doing jointly with Reitzmag who are not an enemy not a threat , we are committed to good relations and positive partnerships with both Telum nations and Reitzmag and will look at how to work with whoever the new government may be in a positive manner".

The government have announced they are likely to begin operations in two days if they can establish communications with the DDF and the government of North Diessan but they need communications to be opened to do so .

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Soaring GDP and GDP per Capita prompts call for change in minimum wage
Today the government announced in good news for a second year in a row GDP has soared along with average wages and GDP per capita. GDP which was 9.054 trillion Euros last year is expected to exceed 10.8 trillion Euros with GDP per capita expected to exceed 106,000 Euros per year and potentially rise above Inquistas as the highest in the European Union and Europe.

However there are now calls for and talks of in government for minimum wages nationwide to be increased by at least 10% to share the wealth around and help wages have high real growth rate to beat the 5% inflation in the country that is expected. Average wages have grown by at least 12-15% though much of this it is worried will go to the richest and middle class in society. There is concern poorer citizens may be left out of the boom. It is reported the PM John Peter Key is in talks with Duchies leaders to encourage them to set at least 10% increases in minimum wages with him considering a national level minimum wage of between 16-20 Euros per hour being set. Though some experts are concerned setting one at such a high rate could crash economies in some of the lowest per Capita GDP duchies.

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United Duchies joins policing operations in Adventezura Straits

United Duchies has announced it is sending 4 Frigates and 6 patrol ships to the Adventezura straits to back up the AMSA and the Spanish navy in 50% of the channel. The ships according to the navy will be restricted to the undisputed 50% of the channel that every nation agrees belongs to Spain. The ships are tasked with preventing illegal fishing , smuggling or suspected transportation of illegal goods through the straits. The government said in a statement "Our presence will simply be to ensure security of the straits and prevent illegal activities in the straits including smuggling, illegal fishing or illegal sand dredging. The operation is simply to ensure the security of the area and will stay in undisputed waters a maximum of 50% of the way across from Spain. Nobody has anything to fear from this operation."

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Anastasia City Projection:
CPCI: 11.99%(6 Seats) -2 Seats
The Left: 12.52%(6 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
Futurist Party of Anastasia City: 0.46%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
IUAC: 23.60%(12 Seats) +1 Seats
PSD: 12.06%(5 Seats) +1 Seats
Moderate: 18.76%(10 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
Liberal: 7.48% (4 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
UoD: 13.08%(6 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
OHE: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
United: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection

Anastasia City Projection House of Commons:
CPCI: 11.99%(0 Seats)
The Left: 12.52%(1 Seat)
Futurist Party of Anastasia City: 0.46%(0 Seats)
IUAC: 23.60%(1 Seat) **
PSD: 12.06%(1 Seat) **
Moderate: 18.76%(1 Seat)
Liberal: 7.48% (0 Seats)
UoD: 13.08%(1 Seat)
OHE: 0%(0 Seats)
United: 0%(0 Seats)

Anastasia City Projection House of Duchies:
CPCI: 11.99%(3 Seats)
The Left: 12.52%(4 Seats)
Futurist Party of Anastasia City: 0.46%(0 Seats)
IUAC: 23.60%(7 Seats) **
PSD: 12.06%(4 Seats) **
Moderate: 18.76%(6 Seats)
Liberal: 7.48% (2 Seats)
UoD: 13.08%(4 Seats)
OHE: 0%(0 Seats)
United: 0%(0 Seats)

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Anastasia City Projection: As of Thursday 04/11/2021
CPCI: 13.54%(7 Seats) +1 Seat
The Left: 15.56%(8 Seats) +2 Seats
Futurist Party of Anastasia City: 0.52%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
IUAC: 22.85%(12 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
PSD: 8.48%(4 Seats) -1 Seat
Moderate: 15.22%(7 Seats) -3 Seats
Liberal: 9.83%(5 Seats) +1 Seat
UoD: 13.96%(7 Seats) +1 Seat
OHE: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
United: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection

Anastasia City Projection House of Commons:
CPCI: 13.54%(1 Seat) +1 Seat
The Left: 15.56%(1 Seat) No Change in Seat projection
Futurist Party of Anastasia City: 0.52%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
IUAC: 22.85%(1 Seats ) No Change in Seat projection
PSD: 8.48%(0 Seats) -1 Seat
Moderate: 15.22%(7 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
Liberal: 9.83%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
UoD: 13.96%(1 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
OHE: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
United: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection

Anastasia City Projection House of Duchies:
CPCI: 13.54%(4 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
The Left: 15.56%( 5 Seats) +1 Seat
Futurist Party of Anastasia City: 0.52%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
IUAC: 22.85%(7 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
PSD: 8.48%(2 Seats) - 2 Seats
Moderate: 15.22%(6 Seats) -1 Seat
Liberal: 9.83%(3 Seats) +1 Seat
UoD: 13.96%(4 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
OHE: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection
United: 0%(0 Seats) No Change in Seat projection

Amaziah recovering after 3 weeks

Today the Mizrachi-Roscoe family announced that Amaziah is on the way to recovery. It is understood for the first time since the attack on him he is walking and having Physiotherapy in hospital. There is no word on when he will be out of hospital though it is hoped he can soon be let home but his wounds for now are still recovering. Thne family thanked supporters and wellwishers with James saying " We thank the world for flooding us with messages and support of love. Amaziah has seen your messages and is thankful for your support. You may not think you are doing anything special but by reaching out you have shown my son he is valued by the world and that there is more good than bad. We continue to welcome messages of support and ask you to support campaigns to end this type of vile hate crime."

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Government declares Golden Age following annual update

Today the government declared a Duchian Golden Age as for the 2nd year in a row exception GDP growth in per capita and total terms has occurred according to economic indicators and the the population surged to 104,713,812 and increase of 2,333,812 . The GDP per capita overtook Inquistas per capita rising to €111,725.51 with the GDP rising to €11,699,203,816,151.80 . A big part of the growth has been apportioned to the success of the Telum Treaty and its free trade zone expansions as well as the strength of the reexport industry in the nation with exports also surging ahead. The country has prospered since the Moderate led coalition entered power with the Moderate Party saying "We have proven in government to be the party of economic growth and that a balanced moderate economic policy of easy trade conditions , a regulated fair market and good labour conditions for all including those on minimum wage is the way forward. We can only hope to continue economic success in the future and prosper more in the future with an economy that benefits all." Some experts have however suggested the country may be in a bubble and that proposals to hike wages may harm the economy.

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Duchies Government calls for EU to endorse Green European Fund and its model of funding
Today the United Duchies government called for the European Union to endorse and officially embrace the Green European Fund and its funding model. In a document released by the government they called for Green European Fund to be the official agency of Green and sustainable Development allowing the EDA to focus its expertise on humanitarian and economic development in order to increase efficiency by focusing on the specialties. The document called for a new more treaty based system whereby nations would join the EDA and GEF funding with nations donating money getting a seat on a council running it and appointing members and any nation contributing over 0.1% of GDP getting an extra seat to encourage bigger donations from nations and developing nations under 20,000 Euros per capita or under 1 trillion Euros GDP economy potentially getting an extra seat to balance power in the Union. The EU under the proposal would get 2 seats , 1 appointed by the Premier Commissioner and 1 by the Internal Affairs Comissioner. The model is proposed for both potential agencies. The government said "The current model is failing Europe in its ambition and scope by allowing central contributions from the EU budget and encouraging national donations we can greatly turbocharge anti-poverty and green transition measures. We believe structuring agencies this way would work well and the model could be applied to all EU agencies to boost co-operation in Europe while boosting sovereignty and control of the nations governments over the institutions." Seats would be appointed on a yearly basis. Any projects over 1 billion euros would require a council majority vote under the GEF style governing regime to safeguard money.

However it has been rumoured Strathae would oppose such a project being under the EU believing that a project independent of the EU government would make most sense one of the reasons it joined the Green European Fund. They have said if the proposals was adopted they would withdraw funds to focus on bi-lateral deals with nations instead to promote green development. The United Duchies has said "We see a complimentary role for EDA and GEF to focus on their core specialities and strengths and transform Europe with bold visionary big picture thinking without worrying about having to limit ambition by budget. We believe a structure encouraging additional donations from nations is critical to achieve the big changes needed to face the challenges of the future that can be achieved only through co-operation."

Amaziah out of hospital

Amaziah Mizrachi-Abbott has been confirmed to be home and out of hospital recovering with his girlfriend and family by his side. Lord Nikolai of Albion sent his best wished publically writing about his new friendship on social media saying "I have over the last month grown close to an amazing brave and kind young man who has thought so hard , a young man who deserves acceptance like anyone else. You may find my interest in this story odd given my lack of campaigning on this issue beforehand but I have joined Postive About Autism to make a difference. I feel it is my duty now to campaign and be an advocate for my community the Autistic community and I thank Amaziah for inspiring me with his strength and determination to fight. He has made me realise how important it is people know me as who I am and Autistic young royal." He has been revealed to have visited Amaziah over many weeks developing a budding friendship.

Amaziah is said to be in good condition though he struggles to walk long distance requiring a walker, it has been revealed he can now walk short distances with him improving all the time with Occupational Therapy. The hate attack stunned the nation and is still high on the agenda . The family said in a statement "I'd like to thank all well wishers and supporters , our family and most important Amaziah could not have got through this time without you. Your support has strengthened our Amaziah immensely showing him there is love in the world for people like him. I urge you not to stop and support Positive About Autism and Autism campaigning charities endorsed by autistic people in the fight for equality and a better world for Autistic people among other neurodivergent people in the future. We must all fight to eradicate disability and neurotype hate crime." Charities in the sector have seen donations soar over the period since the attack and have pledged to start with all disability charities a campaign to focus specifically on hate crimes and bullying against Neurodivergent people and Disabled people.

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SimplyFly to merge with Easyjet

SimplyFly and Easyjet today announced their intention to merge operations to form the EasyFly Group which would owned 50% by the Easy group and 50% by Simplyfly shareholders and operate as sister brands in the budget airline industry. The move comes as SimplyFly needs resources to compete with the Wow Air group and Condor group among intense competition with SimplyFly being behind in the Reitzmag market and EasyJet being behind in the Duchies market. The move surprised analysts though analysts expected some consolidation within the industry at the budget sector. Early releases suggest SimplyFly would be the ultra-low cost carrier offering bargain basement fares in return for bare bones service offering just a seat for the most part capturing the more leisure orientated market while EasyJet would move upmarket of its current position offering more "premium budget" service to compete with middle ground airlines like Condor. The move would mean a general rise in Easyjet fares allowing it to make more money by providing a higher standard of service. The move would also allow the joint group to train staff through SimplyFly and promote the best to Easyjet positions where higher service would be demanded. Not much more details have been announced but we will report on the story as more details come in.

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5 Roscoes Stores and 10,200 apartments completed by Roscoes

Today Roscoes has announced it has opened 5 stores so far in Anastasia City with 10,200 apartments 50% of which will be for affordable rent. They have encouraged Anastasians on lower incomes to apply to rent the social units in the complexes. The government of United Duchies have praised the projects for providing affordable housing, transit orientated development and easy access to shops for the residents. The company has announced plans to reach 22,000 apartments in Anastasia by the end of 2022 with an additional 8 stores by the end of the year. All the new stores include all services including banking, opticians and pharmacy services as well as food courts.

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IUAC-Moderate-PSD Coalition announced for Anastasia Metropolitan Council
Today the IUAC stood hand in hand on stage with with The Moderate Party and PSD to announce a Centre to Centre Left coalition to govern the city -metropolitan district of Anastasia. The three parties announced they would run the city on a pro-liberal, moderate and pro-people policies with the region embracing the strong Duchian tradition of Social Market Economy with an open mind to business while providing high welfare and mixing it with an "Anastasian style" of politics involving workers unions in governing. The government announced it would plan for homes for over 1.2 million people by the end of next year with an extra 550,000 visas for Anastasia to be released this year. THe homes would be built in collaboration with social enterprises, pre-fab housing companies , retailers and governments in transit orientated developments. Housing would be focused on providing high density developments with a mix of retail and office space around services and apartments with some limited housing developments all linked up by a series of extensions to the Baltia Streetcar and Baltia Metro. The government would appoint people to a a joint board to run the systems combining forces with Baltia City Council to run a more efficient network.

The council would run the system under the two centres and two ports system focusing on developing a city centre to compliment that of Baltia in a win-win relationship for both economies hopefully boosting prosperity. Rented social and affordable housing would make up over 50% of the housing stock in Anastasia with the rest being at market price rent or for sale at market prices with many houses available on Rent to Buy affordable schemes to encourage home ownership. Socially the coalition would set liberal laws for the city with drugs likely to be legal alongside prostitution and full LGBT rights being available. The Moderate government said "We have today shown a long term commitment to the City of Anastasia which shall be come a beacon of hope and prosperity for immigrants and show the benefit of new cultures in our land by joining forces with the IUAC and PSD. The city can look forward to a stable, business friendly progressive government that protects workers and people on all levels of wages and income and we have made it a priority to set a high minimum wage for the city."

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Duchies government condemn secessionism while Roscoes introduces item limits
The Duchies Prime Minister John Peter Key condemned the secessionist parties saying in statement to the house "My friends , Duchians and Anastasian Duchians today I condemn this dangerous seccesionism and attempts to overturn democracy. You had the election to win over people with your visions and you failed , Autonomist parties won by a significant amount. I call on FPAC, Syndicalists and CPCI to respect the vote of the Anastasian people and work together for the development of Anastasia City and work in the interest of the people rather than sowing division. The people have spoken and they say they are Duchian its time you accepted that." The government have said they will not recognise the "sham vote" on independence saying it doesn't follow recognised democratic procedures and only parliament and city government together can conduct such official referendums.

Roscoes has announced item purchase limits to be instituted in Anastasia City to ensure fair supplies for all.The moves to buy all stock backfired as shelves are filling up once again and more deliveries are being ordered . The shops have since opening proved a hit among Anastasians with Roscoes saying "We are proud to be good corporate citizens of Anastasia City providing affordable homes, a wide range of services and good wages and good prices for Anastasian suppliers. We will continue to work with suppliers and workers in Anastasia City and throughout the Duchies to provide excellent quality and products for all our customers with fair pricing for suppliers and our customers." The purchase limits on items will continue for the time being until the situation on buying stabilises.