Governments and companies across Europe made major moves on Thursday — from the UK’s attempt to rescue London’s housing sector to the European Union’s latest sanctions against Russia.
Meanwhile, OpenAI reported surging demand for its AI products across the continent, and history was made in the Vatican as Britain’s King Charles and Pope Leo prayed together for the first time in nearly five centuries.
UK unveils £322 million plan to revive London’s housing market
The UK’s Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced a sweeping package of measures on Thursday aimed at reigniting London’s faltering property development sector.
The plan introduces temporary planning rule changes, tax breaks for developers, and new powers allowing the Mayor of London to overrule local authorities.
It also sets aside £322 million ($430 million) in initial funding for a new City Hall Development Investment Fund.
The move comes amid a steep decline in homebuilding activity in the capital, as high costs and tightening affordability have rendered many projects unviable.
Elevated interest and mortgage rates have deterred buyers, while developers face rising construction expenses, longer approval timelines, and stricter safety regulations.
Officials hope the new measures will unlock stalled projects and restore investor confidence in London’s housing market, which has seen its weakest period of new construction in over a decade.
OpenAI reports strong enterprise growth in Europe
OpenAI said demand for its corporate artificial intelligence products has risen sharply in Europe, despite increasing calls across the continent to reduce reliance on US technology firms.
According to Nicolai Skabo, OpenAI’s enterprise lead for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, business subscriptions to ChatGPT have expanded sixfold year-on-year, with much of the growth concentrated in Europe.
“We want to make sure that Europe remains competitive, and so we’re continuing to lean in here,” Skabo said in a Bloomberg interview.
The San Francisco-based company highlighted growing adoption among firms in finance, retail, and life sciences.
Danish pharmaceutical company H. Lundbeck A/S is preparing to roll out ChatGPT Enterprise across its workforce, OpenAI said.
As the world’s most valuable private company, OpenAI is intensifying efforts to commercialise its flagship chatbot to support its multibillion-dollar valuation and offset significant computing costs.
The firm has diversified its business model with multiple paid subscription tiers, software tools for developers, and early steps into advertising — positioning itself more directly against tech giants such as Alphabet’s Google.
King Charles and Pope Leo lead historic joint prayer
In a moment of profound historical symbolism, Britain’s King Charles and Pope Leo held a joint prayer service at the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel on Thursday — the first between an English monarch and a Catholic pope since King Henry VIII’s break from Rome in 1534.
Latin hymns and English prayers filled the chapel, where Pope Leo, the first US-born pontiff, was elected six months ago.
Charles, as the supreme governor of the Church of England, sat beside the pope near the altar during the service, which was led jointly by Leo and Anglican Archbishop Stephen Cottrell.
The event also featured the Sistine Chapel Choir and two royal choirs.
Though Charles has met several previous popes — John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis — none of those meetings had included shared prayer, marking Thursday’s ceremony as a historic act.
EU approves new sanctions targeting Russian LNG
European Union member states formally adopted their 19th package of sanctions against Russia on Thursday, marking a significant escalation in the bloc’s economic pressure campaign over Moscow’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
The measures include a phased ban on Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports, which will end short-term contracts within six months and terminate long-term deals starting January 1, 2027 — a full year earlier than the European Commission’s original roadmap to eliminate reliance on Russian fossil fuels.
“It’s a significant package that targets main Russian revenue streams through new energy, financial, and trade measures,” the Danish rotating presidency of the EU said in a statement.
Additional provisions limit the movement of Russian diplomats within the EU and impose sanctions on Russian banks, crypto exchanges, and certain entities in India and China.
“It targets Russian banks, crypto exchanges, entities in India and China, among others,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas wrote on X.
The new sanctions underscore the EU’s determination to reduce Moscow’s access to global finance and energy markets while maintaining unity among member states after initial resistance from Slovakia was dropped.
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