Tabitha Nauser became a mum in October last year, welcoming a daughter. A year on, the 32-year-old singer and former Singapore Idol contestant reflects on the whirlwind of new motherhood and how it’s reshaped her life . CONGRATS ON THE FIRST YEAR OF MOTHERHOOD. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE PAST YEAR? This past year has been equal parts euphoric and challenging, but in all the ways I didn’t quite imagine or predict. It’s just been so beautiful. HOW DID YOU CELEBRATE YOUR DAUGHTER’S FIRST BIRTHDAY? (My partner) Louie and I decided to celebrate her birthday in Thailand. We wanted this first birthday to just be for the three of us, so we could take it all in and reflect on the past year. It was emotional – my TikTok algorithm kept giving me these bittersweet videos of mums at their kids’ first birthday parties, crying because they were getting flashbacks of their tiny little newborns, and that was so me. I have become the biggest emotional faucet since becoming a mum. WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ABOUT YOURSELF IN YOUR FIRST YEAR OF MOTHERHOOD? Rozz (Lee, former radio DJ) told me a few months before I was due to give birth, “Oh, it’s so exciting, you’re about to meet someone new, and I’m not just talking about the baby.” And she was right – this past year has taught me so much about myself. I’ve never been this clear about myself and what I want out of life and I think a lot of that has to do with me not being the centre of my universe anymore. There is now something else more important and it’s really changed how I view the world. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE – AND LEAST FAVOURITE – THINGS ABOUT BEING A MUM? My favourite thing – and this will sound so cliche, but it’s the truth – is seeing the world through her eyes. As she takes everything in for the first time, I feel so lucky to get to experience that alongside her. My least favourite is that it sometimes feels like there’s so much to do and not enough time to do it. But I’ve also realised that a lot of that stress comes from the pressure I put on myself, so I’m learning how to be kinder to myself. THE FIRST FEW MONTHS OF PARENTHOOD DROVE MY HUSBAND AND ME A LITTLE CRAZY. HOW HAS PARENTHOOD CHANGED YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR PARTNER? Parenthood made Louie and me stronger because it showed us how in sync we are. Sure, we have our few cranky arguments here and there, but we’ve always approached each challenge as an ‘Us vs The Problem’ situation rather than keeping tabs or holding score. I do think it’s also important to say that we are quite lucky because our little one was, and still is, a really, really easy baby. HOW DO YOU HANDLE WORK AND CARING FOR YOUR DAUGHTER? I have so much respect and admiration for mothers who return to work, especially soon after birth. It’s not easy at all. I recognise that I’m privileged as I can spend 90 per cent of my time with my daughter while still working, so it’s different from most other working mothers. But I did feel the pressure to show that, “Hey I’m still working! I’m still here! Like I’m singing and performing even though I had a kid just one month ago!” I had to be honest with myself and realise that I can hold space for two truths: I love my career, and I love being a mum. And sometimes, it’s okay to embrace one more than the other. Working as a mum also taught me to be more selective with my time and who I choose to give my time to. Time is a precious commodity now, I don’t want to squander it like I used to. DO YOU BELIEVE IN THE NEED TO ‘REFILL YOUR CUP’ AS A MUM? It’s so important for mums to have the time to do things for themselves. I truly believe that the better we care for ourselves, the better we can show up for our partners and children. Doing activities like getting my nails done, hanging out at a cafe by myself, spending time with my close friends, or going on date night with my partner, brings me so much joy. They retain my sense of self and fill me with love that I can then pour into my little one. NEW MUMS OFTEN TALK ABOUT THE TENSION BETWEEN THEIR NEW ROLE AND THEIR FORMER SELVES. HOW HAVE YOU NAVIGATED THIS SHIFT IN IDENTITY? I feel like a completely new person. The old me is dead and gone, and I’m completely fine with that. There were a lot of shifts that happened the moment I realised I was pregnant. Now, I feel much more centred, driven, focused and stronger. I trust my instincts and voice more, my perspectives have changed, and things that served me before no longer serve me now. I’ve said this a few times before and I’ll say it again – becoming a mum changed me for the better. I’m 100 per cent leaning into this new and improved version of myself, and I’m still learning more about who I’ll become. HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHAT PARTS OF MOTHERHOOD TO SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA? If I hadn’t pursued the line of work I’m in now, I don’t think I’d have public social media accounts. Social media has always been work-led and work-focused. And so, I’m always acutely aware of showcasing my family or close friends who are not in the media industry. It’s the same for my daughter. I want to respect her privacy. When she’s old enough and can express her interests, then we can discuss being on social media. HOW DO YOU COPE WITH THE CHALLENGES OF MOTHERING, AND WHO DO YOU TURN TO FOR HELP? Louie and I don’t have immediate family living in Singapore, and we both were uncomfortable with the idea of getting a helper or nanny, so we’ve worked hard to become the best team ever and I’m so proud of everything we’ve accomplished in our daughter’s first year, and our first year as parents. People laugh whenever I say this, but the internet was our best friend – we asked it everything and anything, and we always found our answer. I also had a handful of mums around me who were eager to help with advice or their own experiences, which made a huge difference. WHAT’S SOMETHING YOU’D LIKE TO TELL OTHER NEW MUMS? Trust yourself. Trust that you know yourself better than anyone and you know your baby better than anyone. I’ve learnt in this past year that my instincts are spot on, and it serves me well to listen from the start. Allow the changes to happen. Flow with them, don’t push against them. It makes the experience so much more enjoyable . You’ll be surprised at how well you adapt and how truly strong you are. Watch Tabitha Nauser perform at the Mediacorp Let’s Celebrate 2025 countdown show on Dec 31, 2024, at OCBC Square, Singapore Sports Hub. Admission is free and activities start at 5pm. The countdown show is also live on mewatch , Mediacorp Entertainment on YouTube and Mediacorp TikTok from 10pm, and on Channel 5, from 11pm to 12.15am. CNA Women is a section on CNA Lifestyle that seeks to inform, empower and inspire the modern woman. If you have women-related news, issues and ideas to share with us, email CNAWomen [at] mediacorp.com.sg .South Korea's leader prompts dismay by briefly declaring martial law. Here's what to knowHuawei Launches ‘Most Powerful Mate Yet’ as it Recaptures Smartphone Market Share
The 39-year-old has been a breath of fresh air since succeeding Erik ten Hag, with his personality and approach, coupled with promising early performances, bringing hope back to Old Trafford. Amorim has been touched by his warm welcome but repeatedly urged fans to avoid jumping the gun, having followed a draw at Ipswich with home wins against Bodo/Glimt and Everton. Wednesday’s trip to Arsenal is comfortably his biggest challenge yet and victory would see United move within three points of the Premier League title contenders. Put to Amorim it will be hard to manage expectations if they won in the capital, the head coach said: “I would like to say different things, but I have to say it again: the storm will come. “I don’t know if you use that expression, but we are going to have difficult moments and we will be found out in some games. “And I know that because I’m knowing my players and I know football and I follow football, so I understand the difference between the teams. “We are in the point in that we are putting simple things in the team, without training, and you feel it in this game against Everton, they change a little bit the way they were building up. “They are very good team, and we were with a lot of problems because we cannot change it by calling one thing to the captain. A midweek trip to the capital awaits 🚆 || — Manchester United (@ManUtd) “So, we don’t have this training, so let’s focus on each game, on the performance, what we have to improve, trying to win games. And that is the focus. “I know it’s really hard to be a Manchester United coach and say these things in press conferences. We want to win all the time. No matter what. “We are going to try to win, but we know that we are in a different point if you compare to Arsenal. “So, it is what it is and we will try to win it and we go with confidence to win, but we know that we need to play very well to win the next football match.” The trip to Arsenal is the second of nine December matches for United, who are looking to avoid suffering four straight league defeats to the Gunners for the first time. The Red Devils have not won a Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium since 2017, but Amorim knows a thing or two about frustrating Mikel Arteta’s men. Arsenal thrashed Sporting Lisbon 5-1 in the Champions League last week, but in 2022-23 he led the Portuguese side to a Europa League last-16 penalty triumph after a 1-1 draw in London made it 3-3 on aggregate. “Arsenal this year, they play a little bit different,” Amorim said. “They are more fluid. “For example, two years ago when we faced them with Sporting, you knew how to press because you can understand better the structure. “Now it’s more fluid with (Riccardo) Calafiori and (Jurrien) Timber in different sides. One coming inside, the other going outside. Also (Martin) Odegaard changed the team, and you can feel it during this season. “So, you can take something from that game, especially because I know so well the opponent so you can understand the weakness of that team. “But every game is different, so you take something, but you already know that you are going to face a very good team.” This hectic winter schedule means Amorim sidestepped talk of January transfer business ahead of facing Arsenal, although he was more forthcoming on Amad Diallo’s future. The 22-year-old, who put in a man of the match display in Sunday’s 4-0 win against Everton, is out of contract at the end of the season, although the club holds an option to extend by a year. Diallo has repeatedly spoken of his desire to stay at United and it has been reported an agreement is close. Amorim said: “I think he wants to stay, and we want him to stay. So that is clear and we will find a solution.”
A “close confidant” of the Duke of York is an alleged Chinese spy who has been banned from entering the UK on national security grounds. The man, known only as H6, was once a junior civil servant in China and was so close to that he had been told he could act on the royal’s behalf when dealing with potential investors in China, according to a secret hearing. He was also invited to the Duke’s birthday party in 2020, and was described by the judges overseeing the case as a “close confidant of the Duke”. However, the Home Office decided to exclude H6, aged 50, from the UK in July 2023 after MI5 deemed him to be an agent who had engaged in “covert and deceptive activity” on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and that he posed a threat to national security. A letter from a senior adviser to the Duke was found on H6’s phone, stating that he was authorised to act on behalf of the royal in engagements with potential partners and investors in China. H6 challenged this, but a special immigration commission has now ruled that Suella Braverman, the home secretary at the time, was justified in her decision to ban him from the UK. In their 53-page ruling, the judges said that the Duke could have been made “vulnerable” to the misuse of H6’s influence. In a ruling on Thursday, Mr Justice Bourne, Judge Stephen Smith and Sir Stewart Eldon said: “The secretary of state was entitled to conclude that the applicant represented a risk to the national security of the United Kingdom and that she was entitled to conclude that his exclusion was justified and proportionate.” The Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) initially granted H6 anonymity but this was lifted by the judges to take effect from Thursday (Dec 12). H6 appealed the lifting of the anonymity order and was granted “interim relief”, meaning that it will be decided by the High Court at a future date whether he should be named. The SIAC hearing was told that the contents of the businessman’s mobile telephone were downloaded when he was stopped under counter-terrorism laws at a UK border in 2021. The mobile’s contents revealed that the Duke authorised the man to set up an international financial initiative known as the Eurasia Fund to engage with potential partners and investors in China. The phone contained a March 2021 letter from Dominic Hampshire, a senior adviser to the Duke, confirming the businessman could act on behalf of the royal in engagements with potential partners and investors in China. The letter states: “I also hope that it is clear to you where you sit with my principal and indeed his family. You should never underestimate the strength of that relationship ... outside of his closest internal confidants, you sit at the very top of a tree that many, many people would like to be on.” It added that after a meeting with the Duke, they had “wisely navigated our way around former private secretaries and we have found a way to carefully remove those people who we don’t completely trust”. It said: “Under your guidance, we found a way to get the relevant people unnoticed in and out of the house in Windsor.” The immigration judges were told that in a briefing for the home secretary in July 2023, officials claimed H6 had been in a position to generate relationships between prominent UK figures and senior Chinese officials “that could be leveraged for political interference purposes”. They also said that H6 had downplayed his relationship with the Chinese state, which combined with his relationship with the Duke represented a threat to national security. At a hearing in July, the specialist tribunal heard that the businessman was told by an advisor to the Duke that he could act on his behalf when dealing with potential investors in China and that H6 had been invited to Andrew’s birthday party in 2020. They said: “The applicant won a significant degree, one could say an unusual degree, of trust from a senior member of the Royal family who was prepared to enter into business activities with him. “That occurred in a context where, as the contemporaneous documents record, the Duke was under considerable pressure and could be expected to value the applicant’s loyal support. “It is obvious that the pressures on the Duke could make him vulnerable to the misuse of that sort of influence. “That does not mean that the home secretary could be expected to exclude from the UK any Chinese businessman who formed a commercial relationship with the Duke or with any other member of the Royal family.” In 2020, the Duke found himself under increasing pressure following the about his connections with Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted paedophile who died in 2019. He was effectively sacked as a working member of the Royal family, and stripped of all honorary military titles and patronages. The Duke is understood to have paid about $12 million to settle the case brought against him by , who accused him of raping and abusing her three times in 2001 when she was 17. The Duke vehemently denies Ms Giuffre’s claims. King Charles is thought to have funded the Duke after he left public life, with a . However, the King is understood to have severed the allowance earlier this year. Recently, he has been involved in wrangling with his brother over whether he has sufficient funds to continue living at Royal Lodge. As the UK’s special representative for trade and investment, the Duke was said to have particularly close ties to China, visiting the country on several occasions between 2004 and 2011 when he stepped down amid criticism over his friendship with Epstein. In October 2014, he returned to Beijing, where he opened a campus at Harrow International School. In 2014, he also called on British businesses to grasp opportunities offered by China, telling the BBC they needed to be less polite, more competitive, “more bullish” and embrace the Chinese market. In 2015, he played a high-profile role during an incoming state visit by Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, joining the CCP leader on multiple engagements. The three judges said that H6 had enjoyed a private life in the UK, which had been described as the businessman’s “second home”, adding: “He has settled status, a home and extensive business interests in the United Kingdom. He was regarded as a close confidant of the Duke.” The judges continued the home secretary was “rationally entitled to decide” that there was a potential to leverage the relationship, adding H6 was “not candid” about his links to the CCP.David NabarroThe finance negotiations at COP29: Climate negotiations become harder as the stakes get higher. The focus of COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan was on climate finance. The intention was to increase the target for finance to go to developing countries to help them protect their people and economies against climate disasters and invest into clean energy. This would come in the form of a new goal for global climate finance. Negotiating a finance goal was never going to be straightforward. It is challenging for nations to agree an amount that is fair for everyone and, at the same time, politically feasible for those that are asked to provide the cash. The last hours of COP29 in Baku were difficult and many participants felt dissatisfied when they left. Solid floor on which to build: But the outcome – a new global goal of $1.3 trillion annually by 2035, from public, private and innovative sources, with developed nations committing $300 billion per year - is a real increase on the previous target of $100bn a year. It is a solid floor on which to build. Is the amount big enough? Will it be made available to those who need it soon enough? I cannot say at this stage. Securing a sustainable future for all requires continued goodwill, engagement and collaboration. This is only possible if all concerned ensure the transparent provision, effective delivery and efficient use of promised funds. This will pave the way for greater confidence among donors and further increases in available resources. Growing momentum on the agri-food-nutrition-climate + intersection: I sensed a greater recognition that those who produce food are affected first, and worst, by climate change, and that the numbers of people at risk of food insecurity, hunger and malnutrition are on the rise with the...Diverse virus populations coexist on single strains of gut bacteria
NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s lawyers formally asked a judge Monday to throw out his hush money criminal conviction, arguing continuing the case would present unconstitutional “disruptions to the institution of the Presidency.“ In a filing made public Tuesday, Trump’s lawyers told Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchan that dismissal is warranted because of the extraordinary circumstances of his impending return to the White House. “Wrongly continuing proceedings in this failed lawfare case disrupts President Trump’s transition efforts,” the attorneys continued, before citing the “overwhelming national mandate granted to him by the American people on November 5, 2024.” Prosecutors will have until Dec. 9 to respond. They have said they will fight any efforts to dismiss the case but have indicated openness to delaying sentencing until after Trump’s second term ends in 2029. Following Trump’s election victory last month, Merchan halted proceedings and indefinitely postponed his sentencing, previously scheduled for late November, to allow the defense and prosecution to weigh in on the future of the case. He also delayed a decision on Trump’s prior bid to dismiss the case on immunity grounds. Trump has been fighting for months to reverse the conviction, which involved efforts to conceal a $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels, whose affair allegations threatened to disrupt his 2016 campaign. He has denied any wrongdoing. Trump takes office Jan. 20. Merchan hasn’t set a timetable for a decision. A dismissal would erase Trump’s historic conviction, sparing him the cloud of a criminal record and possible prison sentence. Trump is the first former president to be convicted of a crime and the first convicted criminal to be elected to the office. Merchan could also decide to uphold the verdict and proceed to sentencing, delay the case until Trump leaves office, wait until a federal appeals court rules on Trump’s parallel effort to get the case moved out of state court or choose some other option.
Biden says healthy women help US prosperity as he highlights White House initiative on their health
WASHINGTON (AP) — She’s an Iraq War combat veteran and sexual assault survivor who has advocated for years to improve how the military handles claims of sexual misconduct. But when appeared initially cool to the nomination of ’s choice of — a man who once said and who has himself been — she faced an onslaught of criticism from within her own party, including threats of a potential primary challenge in 2026. “The American people spoke,” said Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO of the Family Leader and a conservative activist in Ernst’s home state. “When you sign up for this job, it’s a big boy and big girl job, and she’s feeling the pressure of people vocalizing their disappointment, their concern with how she’s handling this.” The pressure campaign against Ernst, once a rising member of the GOP leadership, shows there is little room in Trump’s party for those who can’t get to yes on Hegseth or any of his other picks for his incoming administration It underscores the power Trump is expected to wield on Capitol Hill in a second term and serves as a warning to other lawmakers who may be harboring their own concerns about other Trump selections, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for health secretary and Tulsi Gabbard to be director of national intelligence. “If the king wants a different senator from Iowa, we’ll have one. If he doesn’t, we won’t,” said Iowa talk show host Steve Deace, that he would be willing to jump in against Ernst if Trump wanted a challenger. “I think someone’s got to be made an example out of, whether it’s Joni or someone else.” People close to Ernst, a retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel, stress her mettle and say her eventual decision will depend on her assessment of Hegseth, a former “Fox & Friends Weekend” host and veteran, and nothing else. “Has there been Twitter pressure? Sure. But Joni’s a combat veteran. She’s not easily pressured,” said David Kochel, an Iowa Republican strategist and longtime Ernst friend and adviser. Ernst has worked steadily to shore up her relationship with Trump after declining to endorse him before the Iowa caucuses that kicked off this year’s campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. During a recent visit to Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s Florida club, she met with Trump and billionaire Elon Musk with ideas for their budget-slashing Department of Government Efficiency. She heads up a newly formed DOGE caucus in the Senate. Trump has not tried personally to pressure Ernst to back Hegseth, according to a person familiar with their conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity to disclose them. And he has not targeted her — or any potential holdouts — publicly in social media posts. He also hasn’t had to. The response to Ernst built quickly, first in whispers following her initially cool remarks after meeting with Hegseth, then into a pile-on from powerful figures in the “Make America Great Again” movement. Only about 2 in 10 Americans approve of Hegseth’s nomination, according to . About one-third of Republicans approve of him as a pick, and 16% disapprove. Another 1 in 10 Republicans, roughly, are neutral and say they neither approve nor disapprove. Trump allies had been concerned that a successful effort to derail Hegseth’s candidacy would empower opposition to other nominees, undermining his projections of complete dominance of the party. In the narrowly held Senate, with a 53-47 GOP majority in the new year, any Trump nominee can only afford a few Republican “no” votes if all Democrats are opposed. Those piling on included Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Ernst’s political career was “in serious jeopardy” and that primary challengers stood at the ready. One social media post from the CEO of The Federalist featured side-by-side photos , R-Wyo., whom Trump .