The Spectator

Which European countries are most affected by forest fires?

Smoke billows into the air as wildfires rage around Athens [Getty Images] 
issue 24 August 2024

Grand tours

When was there last a genuine British royal tour of Colombia? While the late Queen never visited the country, the then Prince Charles and Duchess of Cornwall spent several days there in October and November 2014. They visited the Peace and Reconciliation Centre in Bogota, and Charles attended a conference on the ‘Health of the Oceans’. The last working royal to visit was Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, last November, when she attended United Nations events tackling violence against women and girls.

Burning question

Which European countries are most affected by forest fires? Average percentage of land area burned each year:

Portugal 1.02

Greece 0.38

Cyprus 0.3

Croatia 0.24

Italy 0.19

Spain 0.16

Bulgaria, Romania 0.09

Source: European Forest Fire Information Service

Making the grade

Which groups of school-leavers are most likely to go to university? Percentage progressing to higher education by 19: 

Asian female (not FSM*) 77

Black female (not FSM) 75

Asian male (not FSM) 64

Asian female (FSM)  64

Black female (FSM) 61

Black male (not FSM) 58

White female (not FSM) 52

Asian male (FSM) 48

Black male (FSM) 42

White male (not FSM) 38

White female (FSM) 24

White male (FSM) 15

* free school meals    Source: DfE

Banged up

How does England and Wales’s incarceration rate of 134 per 100,000 compare globally?

Highest

US 655

Greece 552

Cyprus 520

Croatia 464

Italy 405

Spain 364

Bulgaria, Romania 323

Lowest

Central African Republic 16

Guinea 25

Congo 27

Democratic Republic of the Congo 29

Mali, India 33

Nigeria 37

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