A festive Christmas tree made of 213 tractors was created at the Mugello car track near Florence. This is a record-breaking installation of this type in the world - claim its originators.more

Heavy rainfall that battered Scotland over the weekend will today begin to lessen and make its way south, the Met Office has said. Much of the UK will see clouds, with some wetter weather in the west and brighter spells in southeast England. Scotland and Northern Ireland meanwhile will have the occasional shower with patches of sunny spells.more

A new EU digital border system that will require fingerprints and facial scans to be taken from British travellers on first use is expected to launch next autumn, according to reports. The entry/exit system (EES) is earmarked to start on 6 October 2024, according to the i and Times newspapers, citing Getlink, the owner of Eurotunnel. The Guardian has contacted Getlink for comment.more

Leo Messi, captain of the Argentine national football team, gave Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal the shirt with number "10" that he wore during the last World Cup. In Qatar, the Albicelestes won the trophy for the third time in their history.more

Teachers in England do not have to comply with requests from students who claim to be of a different gender than their biological gender, and parents must generally be informed by schools if their children question their gender identity, according to guidance published today.more

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The industrial action comes as the NHS is already seeing pressure from winter viruses, Sir Stephen warned. Junior doctors from the British Medical Association (BMA) are to take to picket lines from 7am on December 20 to 7am on December 23 in a major escalation in the bitter dispute over pay.more

The European Commission has initiated formal proceedings in which it will assess whether the "X" platform (formerly Twitter) violated the Digital Services Act (DSA) by failing to respond to illegal terrorist and manipulative content appearing on it.more

Quique Sanchez Flores has become the coach of Sevilla players - announced the club from Andalusia, which ranks 17th in the table of the Spanish top league.more

Say goodbye to ad-free Netflix if you’re a new Sky customer – the company has now scrapped the streaming giant’s Basic service in its entertainment bundles. more

The words of former president and leading Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump about migrants "poisoning the blood of the country" were met with a wave of criticism in the USA. "This is an imitation of Hitler," commented representatives of President Biden's campaign, quoted by The Independent.more

Bayern Munich player Harry Kane scored 20 goals in 15 rounds of the Bundesliga. This means an average of 1.33 goals per match. If the Englishman maintains such effectiveness until the end of the season, he will easily break the record of Robert Lewandowski, who scored 41 goals in the 2020/21 season.more

Rishi Sunak is considering limiting social media access for teenagers under the age of 16 to try to protect them from online harm, with reports suggesting a potential ban is on the cards.more

A group of teenagers attacked a Polish couple in the center of Oslo on Sunday evening. Shots were fired at the Poles. The couple was not harmed by the attack. The Norwegian police are still looking for the perpetrators.more

The new boss of Morrisons has delivered a stark warning to his workers that major changes are needed in order for the supermarket chain to survive.more

Girona defeated Alaves 3-0 at home in the final match of the 17th round of the Spanish football league and returned to first place in the table. The Catalan club, the revelation of the season, is two points ahead of Real Madrid and nine points ahead of Barcelona.more

A volcano erupted yesterday in southwestern Iceland after weeks of intense earthquakes, the country's Meteorological Office reported. The authorities evacuated almost 4,000 inhabitants.more

London's transport infrastructure will get a £250m boost in 2024 under a funding package from the government. more

The Federal Ministry of the Interior has announced the extension of stationary controls at Germany's borders with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland for three months - until 15 March. These controls are an effective measure in the fight against people smugglers and illegal migration, justified the head of the German Interior Ministry Nancy Faeser (SPD).more

Napoli, whose players are Piotr Zielinski and Hubert Idasiak, will face Robert Lewandowski's Barcelona in the 1/8 finals of the Champions League. This was decided by yesterday's draw in Nyon. FC Copenhagen, with goalkeeper Kamil Grabara, went up against defending champion Manchester City.more

An evening gown worn by the late British Princess Diana has been sold at auction for $1.1 million, several times the estimated price and an auction record when it comes to her gowns, Los Angeles-based auction house Julien's Auctions reported.more

Spanish biotechnology company Tebrio has begun construction in Salamanca of the largest edible insect farm in the world - it will occupy an area of 90,000 square metres, or 12 football fields. The farm will employ 250 people and will eventually produce 100,000 tonnes of the mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) per year, the ABC newspaper reported.more

Legal abortion - without having to give a reason - is supported by 57 per cent of those surveyed by IPSOS for More in Common Poland, reported 'Rzeczpospolita'.more

Paris Saint Germain's players led at home against Lille until the fifth minute of added time after Kylian Mbappe's goal, but were tied 1-1 in the 16th round of the French Premier League. The defending champions Parisians ended their run of league victories at eight, but... strengthened their lead in the table.more

James Cleverly’s package of policies, aimed at bringing about “the biggest ever reduction in net migration”, has provoked a widespread backlash in short-staffed sectors across the economy. Here are some of its potential implications.more