PHONE BAN – The second phase of smartphone restrictions in schools is set to begin today, following measures already in place at primary level. The Ministry of Education has invited each school to choose from three levels of restriction and to agree with its school community on measures to be implemented. Of the 38 secondary schools, 27 schools have opted to go beyond the minimum level of a ban in classrooms, to also restrict the use of digital devices in spaces (such as canteens, libraries, and social areas) or at certain times of the day. Five schools have chosen a complete ban on smartphones throughout the entire school day, requiring pupils to hand in their devices in the morning and collect them at the end of classes.
QUALIFICATIONS DATA – According to data from both the OECD and Eurostat, the Grand Duchy consistently ranks among the top countries for higher education attainment. Luxembourg ranks second in the EU for educational attainment among 30 to 34-year-olds, with 66.3% holding a school diploma. Ireland leads the statistics at 66.4%. The national statistics office, STATEC also notes that the education level of the resident population has grown rapidly in recent years, with nearly half of adults under 40 holding a higher education qualification.
GSSE – Team Luxembourg finished second behind Cyprus in this year’s Games of the Small States of Europe (GSSE), with 11 gold, six silver, and five bronze medals on the last day – contributing to a combined medal haul of 86. The Luxembourg swimming team earned a total of 22 medals at the 2025 Games: seven gold, eight silver, and seven bronze. The coach praised the athletes for their strong performance.
POLAND ELECTION –The candidate supported by Poland’s largest nationalist opposition party, Karol Nawrocki has won Poland’s presidential election, narrowly defeating the centrist mayor of Warsaw Rafal Trzaskowski. According to the national election commission, the 42-year-old, an admirer of US President Trump, scored 50.89 percent of votes in Sunday’s runoff.
UKRAINE WAR – Russian and Ukrainian officials are meeting in Istanbul today to exchange their plans for how to end the three-year war. Today’s talks come a day after Ukraine carried out one of its most brazen and successful attacks ever on Russian soil – hitting dozens of strategic bombers parked at airbases thousands of kilometres behind the front line. At the first round of talks in Istanbul last month, they agreed a large-scale prisoner exchange.
COLORADO ATTACK – Tensions over the Israel-Gaza conflict erupted violently in Colorado on Sunday, where a peaceful pro-Israeli hostage rally was attacked with a makeshift flamethrower, leaving six elderly demonstrators injured. The FBI called the assault a “targeted terror attack”, identifying the suspected perpetrator, who has been taken into custody, as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, but providing no further details about him.
SNAKES ON A PLANE – A passenger smuggling dozens of venomous vipers was stopped after flying into India’s financial capital Mumbai from Thailand on Sunday. The snakes, which included 44 Indonesian pit vipers, were apparently “concealed in checked-in baggage”. Mumbai Customs issued photographs of the seized snakes, including blue and yellow reptiles squirming in a bucket
CYCLING – Simon Yates has won the Giro d’Italia. The British cyclist Yates effectively secured his second Grand Tour triumph on Saturday when he took the leader’s pink jersey from Isaac del Toro with an epic effort in the Italian Alps. Yates is the first man in 10 years to win the Giro without taking a single stage.
TENNIS – Oscar Piastri has claimed a first Spanish Grand Prix victory for McLaren since 2005. The 24-year-old Australian came home 2.4 seconds clear of Lando Norris to extend his lead in the drivers’ championship to 10 points with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finishing third after a dramatic finale.
FOOTBALL – Players from France’s football team Paris St Germain were received at the Elysee Palace by President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday, after their triumph in the Champions League final. Macron said he was proud to see a French team win a prestigious title.
MARATHON – Luxembourg’s James Dunn and Germany’s Edith Stiepel claimed victory in the 2025 Night Marathon on Saturday, both setting the pace in front of a crowd of 100,000 spectators. James Dunn came in first in 2:29:04 hours, setting a new course record. Edith Stiepel secured first place in the marathon with a time of 3:12:32.
The day starts off cloudy, but the good news is that there is no rain forecast for today and the cloud should give way to some sunshine in the early afternoon ‘til evening. Temperature-wise it starts off a little cooler than yesterday around 12-14°C, rising to 19-21°C in the afternoon.
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