Animals have feelings too

The British government proposed a law the recognizes animals as sentient beings.

The Action Plan for Animal Welfare states that animals have feelings such as pleasure, pain and fear.

The bill includes bringing mandatory cat microchipping, as well as a ban on advertisements "of unacceptable low-welfare animal practices abroad," such as elephant rides.

The announcement came as Queen Elizabeth II officially reopened parliament for the new session.

Lawmakers are now set to debate the proposed law. 

Italy gets a pizza vending machine

Rome has a new vending machine that prepares a fully cooked pizza in just three minutes.

The "Mr. Go Pizza" machine offers four different pizzas costing around €4.50-6 ($5.2-7.2).

Buyers can watch the pizza cook behind a small glass window as the machine kneads and tops the dough.

But customers in Italy had mixed feelings about the concept.

"It's OK but it's not pizza," a Naples native — where pizza was perfected — told Reuters news agency.

"I wouldn't even think of eating a pizza made by a machine," another buyer told Reuters as he bit into one.

While some others expressed an attitude of "[it is] acceptable if you're in a hurry," according to Reuters. 

Jewelry company drops mined diamonds 

The Danish jewelry manufacturer Pandora announced that it will no longer be using mined diamonds.

Launching its first lab-created diamond collection, Pandora said the company aims to "transform the market for diamond jewelry with affordable, sustainably created products."

"Diamonds are not only forever, but for everyone," Pandora CEO Alexander Lacik said in a statement.

The company is initially introducing the line in the UK, and expects to launch in other key markets next year using 100% renewable energy.

The collection of rings, bangles, necklaces and earrings has the same optical, chemical, thermal and physical characteristics as mined diamonds, according to Pandora.

The decision was based on consumer demands in North America, Europe and China, the company said. 

Forests as big as France have grown back

A team of researchers at the World Wide Fund (WWF) conservation group said there were enough regenerated forests to absorb up to 5.9 gigatons of carbon dioxide — more than the annual emissions of the United States.

Their analysis of satellite data discovered that almost 59 million hectares (146 million acres) of forests have regenerated since 2000, extending from Mongolia to southern Brazil. 

"But it isn't an excuse for any of us to wait around for it to happen," said John Lotspeich, executive director of Trillion Trees, the coalition of environmental groups behind the study.

"The data show the enormous potential of natural habitats to recover when given the chance to do so."

Hugs make a comeback in the UK

People in England will officially be able to hug their friends and family for the first time since the coronavirus restrictions were introduced in March 2020.

The much-missed human contact was given the go-ahead as the country eases COVID-19 lockdown following a sharp fall in new coronavirus infections.

"This unlocking amounts to a very considerable step on the road back to normality and I am confident we will be able to go further," Prime Minister Boris Johnson said at a briefing from Downing Street.

"This doesn't mean that we can suddenly throw caution to the wind ... I urge you to think about the vulnerability of your loved ones whether they have had a vaccine, one or two doses, and whether there has been time for that vaccine to take effect."

People will also enjoy sitting at pubs and restaurants indoors as well as going to cinemas and hotels.

The UK records around 2,000 new coronavirus cases a day, compared to a daily peak of nearly 70,000 in January.

fb/mm (AFP, AP, Reuters)