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Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken was ordered to comply with demands from the Internal Revenue Service to turn over information

After the US Supreme Court struck down his administration’s plan to cancel federal student loan debts for millions of Americans, President Joe Biden has unveiled a “new path” for relief, one that he assured is “legally sound” but will “take longer”. In remarks from the White House on 30 June, the president hit out at Republican state officials and legislators who supported the lawsuit which enabled the nation’s highest court to strike down his student debt forgiveness initiative, accusing many of them of hypocrisy for taking money from pandemic-era relief programs while opposing relatively meager relief for student loan borrowers. “Some of the same elected Republicans, members of Congress who strongly opposed relief for students, got hundreds of thousands of dollars themselves ... several members of Congress got over a million dollars — all those loans are forgiven,” he said. “The hypocrisy is stunning,” he said. Accompanied by Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, Mr Biden opened his remarks by acknowledging that there are likely “millions of Americans” who now “feel disappointed and discouraged or even a little bit angry about the court’s decision today on student debt”. “And I must admit, I do too,” he said. Still, Mr Biden reminded Americans that his administration has previously taken actions to reform student loan repayment programs to make them easier to access, and to keep borrowers from spending more than five per cent of disposable income on monthly repayments, and to strengthen loan forgiveness options for borrowers who take public service jobs. The president has directed Mr Cardona to “find a new way” to grant similar loan relief “as fast as we can” in a way that is “consistent” with the high court’s decision. On Friday, the Education Department issued the first step in the process of issuing new regulations under this so-called “negotiated rulemaking” process. In the mean time, Mr Biden said his administration is creating a temporary year-long “on-ramp repayment programme” under which conditions will remain largely the same as they have during the three-year pandemic-era pause in payments which is set to expire this fall. The department’s 12-month “on ramp” to begin repayments, from 1 October through 30 September, aims to prevent borrowers who miss repayments in that time period from delinquency, credit issues, default and referral to debt collection agencies. “During this period if you can pay your monthly bills you should, but if you cannot, if you miss payments, this on-ramp temporarily removes the threat of default,” he said. “Today’s decision closed one path. Now we’re going to pursue another — I’m never gonna stop fighting,” the president continued, adding that he will use “every tool” at his disposal to get Americans the student debt relief they need so they can “reach [their] dreams”. “It’s good for the economy. It’s good for the country. It’s gonna be good for you,” he said. Asked by reporters whether he’d given borrowers false hope by initiating the now-doomed forgiveness plan last year, Mr Biden angrily chided the GOP for having acted to take away the path to debt relief for millions. “I didn’t give any false hope. The question was whether or not I would do even more than was requested. What I did I felt was appropriate and was able to be done and would get done. I didn’t give borrowers false hope. But the Republicans snatched away the hope that they were given and it’s real, real hope,” he said. The Supreme Court’s 6-3 ruling from the conservative majority argues that the president does not have the authority to implement sweeping relief, and that Congress never authorised the administration to do so. Under the plan unveiled by the Biden administration last year, millions of people who took out federally backed student loans would be eligible for up to $20,000 in relief. Borrowers earning up to $125,000, or $250,000 for married couples, would be eligible for up to $10,000 of their federal student loans to be wiped out. Those borrowers would be eligible to receive up to $20,000 in relief if they received Pell grants. Roughly 43 million federal student loan borrowers would be eligible for that relief, including 20 million people who stand to have their debts cancelled completely, according to the White House. Lawyers for the Biden administration contended that he has the authority to broadly cancel student loan debt under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003, which allows the secretary of education to waive or modify loan provisions following a national emergency – in this case, Covid-19. Since March 2020, with congressional passage of the Cares Act, monthly payments on student loan debt have been frozen with interest rates set at zero per cent. That pandemic-era moratorium, first enacted under Donald Trump and extended several times, was paused a final time late last year. Over the last decade, the student loan debt crisis has exploded to a balance of nearly $2 trillion, most of which is wrapped up in federal loans. The amount of debt taken out to support student loans for higher education costs has surged alongside growing tuition costs, increased private university enrollment, stagnant wages and GOP-led governments stripping investments in higher education and aid, putting the burden of college costs largely on students and their families. Read More Supreme Court strikes down Biden’s plan to cancel student loan debts Supreme Court strikes down affirmative action, banning colleges from factoring race in admissions Biden condemns Supreme Court striking down affirmative action: ‘This is not a normal court’ Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson delivers searing civil rights lesson in dissent to affirmative action ruling

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Britons have been warned against travelling to hotspots of violence in France as riots threatened to escalate out of control. Newly-updated foreign office advice warns holidaymakers to “avoid areas where riots are taking place” as the situation becomes “unpredictable.” A total shutdown of public bus and tram services was ordered nationwide on Friday night after shops were looted and several city centres were ablaze from protesters setting light to cars and buildings. President Emmanuel Macron urged parents to keep teenagers at home, saying his government was considering “all options” to restore order. More than 200 police have been injured in the unrest, which was sparked by the fatal police shooting of a teenager. Some areas were facing curfews. By Friday, 875 suspects had been arrested as authorities struggled to quell the clashes. Violence flared in Marseille, Lyon, Pau, Toulouse, Strasbourg and Lille, as well as in Paris, where a 17-year-old driver of Algerian and Moroccan descent, identified only as Nahel M, was shot dead in the suburb of Nanterre. A dozen buses were gutted at a blaze in a depot in Aubervilliers, northern Paris, and a tram was set alight in Lyon. In Nanterre itself, protesters torched cars, barricaded streets and hurled projectiles at police. Shops, including an Apple store, were ransacked in Strasbourg, while several Casino supermarkets had been looted. The interior ministry said 79 police posts were attacked overnight into Friday, as well as 119 public buildings, including 34 town halls and 28 schools. Concerts by French singer Mylene Farmer were cancelled at the Stade de France. In the Chatelet Les Halles shopping centre in central Paris, a Nike store was broken into, and several people were arrested after store windows were smashed in the adjacent Rue de Rivoli, police said. The energy minister said several staff of a power distribution firm were injured by stones during clashes. Nanterre shopkeeper Pascal Matieus said: “It’s become completely out of control. The police have lost control.” President Emmanuel Macron, who has so far resisted calls to declare a state of emergency, urged parents to keep teenagers at home, saying his government was considering “all options” to restore order. British holidaymakers who are already in France or planning to travel there over the weekend have become increasingly worried. The Independent calculates that around 260,000 British travellers are booked on flights, ferries and trains to France on Saturday and Sunday. Newly updated official travel advice warns them of potential disruption. “Since June 27, riots have taken place across France. Many have turned violent. Shops, public buildings and parked cars have been targeted,” the government advice states. “There may be disruptions to road travel, and local transport provision may be reduced. Some local authorities may impose curfews. “Locations and timing of riots are unpredictable. You should monitor the media, avoid areas where riots are taking place, check the latest advice with operators when travelling and follow the advice of the authorities.” While most of the unrest has taken place well away from tourist areas, closing down public transport in Paris and other big cities at night will cause significant problems for many holidaymakers. Britain’s biggest budget airline, easyJet, says it will allow passengers booked to travel on Saturday or Sunday to switch to a different flight without paying the normal £49 fee. A spokesperson said: “Any customers due to fly to France this weekend who would like to change their plans can contact our customer service team for assistance with their options which includes a transfer to an alternative flight and we will waive the change fee.” Almost all Eurostar trains from London to Paris at the weekend are full, representing around 20,000 travellers. A Eurostar spokesperson said: “Our services to France are currently running as scheduled and normal ticket conditions apply. “We will continue to monitor the situation and will provide updates on Eurostar.com and Twitter if this changes.” As the foreign office is not warning against all travel, holidaymakers will not be able to claim if they decide not to continue with their trip to France, or to come home early. Nahel M was driving a car on Tuesday morning when he was pulled over for breaking traffic rules, prosecutors said. The teenager was too young to hold a full driving licence. His death, caught on video, has ignited longstanding complaints among poor, racially mixed, urban communities of police violence and racism. Read More Travellers warned to be aware of disruptions amid France riots Mother’s tragic last words with son killed by Paris police sparking days of riots Fear of no end to riots in France after police killing of teen: ‘It’s getting worse’ Paris riots - latest: UK issues France travel warning after looting across city Is it safe to travel to Paris right now? Fear of no end to riots across France after police killing of teen: ‘It’s getting worse and worse’ Paris shooting: Where are the riots in France and why are they happening?

The mother of a teenage boy whose death has sparked furious riots in France has described their last moments together before he was fatally shot in the chest by police. The 17-year-old, named only as Nahel M and described as a French citizen with Algerian heritage, was shot at near point-blank range on Tuesday as he attempted to drive away from police who had pulled over his Mercedes in the Paris suburb of Nanterre. His death, footage of which was shared to social media, has prompted three nights of intense riots across France, resulting in nearly 900 arrests. The clashes have drawn comparison with three weeks of fury sparked by the deaths of two teenagers in 2005, electrocuted while hiding from police in a power substation in a Paris suburb. During a peaceful march on Thursday, preceding clashes with riot police, Nahel’s mother Mounia led a procession from a flatbed lorry, holding a poster saying, “Police kill”, and raising a red flare as the march reached the local courthouse, while the crowds chanted her son’s name. In footage shared separately to TikTok, she could be heard telling a French activist: “They took a baby away from me. He was still a child, he needed his mother. “This morning he gave me a big kiss and told me he loved me. I told him be careful and I loved him.” They had both left the house together on Tuesday morning, she said, with Nahel going to get a McDonalds as she left for work. “And then I am told they shot my son, what can I do,” she said. “I only had him. I didn’t have 10 like him. He was my life, my best friend. He was my son, He was my everything.” The officer accused of pulling the trigger at 9am on Tuesday has been charged preliminarily with voluntary homicide, after prosecutor Pascal Prache said his initial investigations indicated “the conditions for the legal use of the weapon were not met.” Mr Prache said officers tried to stop Nahel because he looked so young and was driving a Mercedes with Polish number plates in a bus lane, and that the officer who fired the shot said he feared he, his colleague or a bystander could be hit by the car. France’s interior minister Gerald Darmanin has ordered a complete shutdown of all public bus and tram services across the country to take effect before sunset on Friday, after what he described as a night of “rare violence” on Thursday. Police fired water cannon, tear gas and grenades at protesters as some erected barricades, lit fires at public buildings, looted shops and shot fireworks at police. Nahel’s mother told broadcaster France 5 that she was angry at the officer who killed her only child but not at the police in general. “He saw a little, Arab-looking kid, he wanted to take his life,” she said, adding that justice should be “very firm”. A police officer cannot take his gun and fire at our children, take our children’s lives,” she said. Additional reporting by AP Read More Paris shooting: Where are the riots in France and why are they happening? Macron goes to Elton John gig as Paris burns in mass protests Fear of no end to riots across France after police killing of teen: ‘It’s getting worse and worse’ Paris riots: Police officer ‘didn’t want to kill’ 17-year-old, says his lawyer

US intelligence officials renewed warnings for American companies doing business in China, citing an update to a counterespionage