Most white Americans do not think their ethnicity affects their success

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The majority of white Americans believe that it is neither easier nor harder for them to succeed at work because of their ethnicity, while only a minority think focusing on increasing workplace diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is a good thing, according to a poll by Pew Research Center.

This contrasts starkly with the view of racial minorities. Black, Hispanic and Asian workers are far more likely to say that ethnicity has a bearing on workplace success and to strongly support an increased focus on DEI.

These striking differences on DEI are also apparent in views on the US Supreme Court’s ruling to curb the consideration of race in university admissions. A poll from Ipsos Mori found that 60 per cent of white Americans approved of the decision, while 52% of black adults disapproved.

Felix Wallis

Our other charts of the week

Denmark raises more revenue per person from water services in Europe, according to data from the European federation of national associations of water services.

It raised €388 per person in 2021 from drinking and waste water services, compared with the European average of €188.

The UK ranks fifth, raising revenue per person that is 35 per cent higher than the average. Despite this, the UK industry has suffered from poor performance and financial ill-health.

Thames Water, a provider serving London and the south-east, is in crisis talks this week on the back of a mounting £16bn debt burden.

Amy Borrett

There have been 24 confirmed UK sightings of the Asian hornet since 2016, including 14 nests, according to data from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

A sting from an Asian hornet can cause severe discomfort to humans but is a deadly threat to the European honey bee. It can eat 50 honey bees a day while a swarm can destroy a hive of 30,000 bees, according to experts.

Their nests can often be more than half a metre long and contain several thousand hornets.

While mostly confined to the south-east of the country, Asian hornets have been seen as far north as Newcastle upon Tyne and Bury, Lancashire over the past five years.

The yellow-socked members of the wasp family are thought to have been imported into France in a shipment of pottery from China in 2004 and now have an established presence in mainland Europe.

Bob Haslett

The Colombian capital of Bogotá was the world’s most congested city last year, with drivers spending an average of 132 hours in peak-hour traffic, according to TomTom Traffic Index data.

Hours stuck in traffic mean workers cannot contribute fully to the economy. Ralf-Peter Schäfer, vice-president of traffic at TomTom, the Dutch satellite navigation maker, said that the fundamental problem was “too many people want to drive at the same time in the road network”.

He suggested cities promote the use of alternative transport modes such as cycling and improve infrastructure.

“If you don’t make a massive investment in transit [systems], then the consequences are higher congestion,” he said.

Alex Irwin-Hunt

More than half of people in Greece and Bulgaria try not to read, watch or listen to the news, according to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report.

In both countries, 57 per cent of people said they sometimes or often avoided the news in 2023.

Globally, 36 per cent of people said they tried not to consume news at least sometimes, a rise of seven percentage points since 2017. The lowest levels were in Taiwan and Japan.

The most commonly evaded topic was the war in Ukraine, followed by national politics and crime.

Two in five avoiders said they ignored news about Russia’s invasion but the proportion was much higher in countries close to the conflict. Three-quarters of people who regularly ignore news in Finland said they tried to stay away from this topic.

Ændra Rininsland

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