Australian council will ban cats outside unless they are on a lead
And other stories from the stranger side of life
A council in Australia is poised to effectively ban cats from being outdoors unless they are on a lead. Planned reform in Freemantle, Western Australia, would see felines prohibited from all council owned areas, including roads, verges and bushlands. Councillors argue the move would protect wildlife and remove the risk of cats being hit by cars. “In the 1970s dogs would roam our streets and I expect roaming cats will also become a thing of the past,” said one.
Man attacked by otters thought he was going to die
A man attacked by a pack of otters in a Singapore park has said that he thought he was going to die. Graham George Spencer, a British citizen living in Singapore, said his early morning walk in a botanical garden was sullied when he was chased, pinned down and bitten “26 times in 10 seconds” by a family of otters. The authorities are investigating the incident.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The year’s most mispronounced words revealed
Omicron, Tsitsipas and Dogecoin have all feature on a list of the year’s most mispronounced words. A TV subtitling company in the US polled its members to produce a rundown of the words that television presenters and newsreaders have been getting wrong. “Newscasters have struggled with 2021’s new words and names while reporting on key sporting events, viral internet trends and emerging celebrities,” said a spokesperson.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Chas Newkey-Burden has been part of The Week Digital team for more than a decade and a journalist for 25 years, starting out on the irreverent football weekly 90 Minutes, before moving to lifestyle magazines Loaded and Attitude. He was a columnist for The Big Issue and landed a world exclusive with David Beckham that became the weekly magazine’s bestselling issue. He now writes regularly for The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, FourFourTwo and the i new site. He is also the author of a number of non-fiction books.
-
Drugmakers paid pharmacy benefit managers to avoid restricting opioid prescriptions
Under the radar The middlemen and gatekeepers of insurance coverage have been pocketing money in exchange for working with Big Pharma
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
The week's best photos
In Pictures A cyclone's aftermath, a fearless leap, and more
By Anahi Valenzuela, The Week US Published
-
The Imaginary Institution of India: a 'compelling' exhibition
The Week Recommends 'Vibrant' show at the Barbican examines how political upheaval stimulated Indian art
By The Week UK Published
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK Published
-
Romania's election rerun
The Explainer Shock result of presidential election has been annulled following allegations of Russian interference
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Russia's shadow war in Europe
Talking Point Steering clear of open conflict, Moscow is slowly ratcheting up the pressure on Nato rivals to see what it can get away with.
By The Week UK Published
-
Cutting cables: the war being waged under the sea
In the Spotlight Two undersea cables were cut in the Baltic sea, sparking concern for the global network
By The Week UK Published
-
The nuclear threat: is Vladimir Putin bluffing?
Talking Point Kremlin's newest ballistic missile has some worried for Nato nations
By The Week UK Published
-
Russia vows retaliation for Ukrainian missile strikes
Speed Read Ukraine's forces have been using U.S.-supplied, long-range ATCMS missiles to hit Russia
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Has the Taliban banned women from speaking?
Today's Big Question 'Rambling' message about 'bizarre' restriction joins series of recent decrees that amount to silencing of Afghanistan's women
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Cuba's energy crisis
The Explainer Already beset by a host of issues, the island nation is struggling with nationwide blackouts
By Rebekah Evans, The Week UK Published