Tag: Government

B1 – Intermediate

Hungary is implementing tougher immigration rules for people who are coming to live there because too many people are moving to the country. The government’s objective with this new immigration law is to help control how many people come and to make sure there are enough resources for everyone.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about Hungary’s new immigration law.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/hungarys-new-immigration-law-level-2/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What does “in effect” mean, “The law is replacing an old one which was in effect for 16 years.” Use it in a sentence.
2. What does “residence permit” mean, “Residence permits will depend on immigrants’ skills.” Use it in a sentence.
3. What does “invest” mean, “The law also introduces a ‘golden visa’ for people who want to invest money in Hungary.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

1. How might the rule impact the lives of both Hungarians and immigrants living in Hungary?
2. What are the potential benefits and drawbacks of Hungary’s new immigration rules? Elaborate and explain.
3. How might these rules affect the economy and job market in Hungary? Explain.
4. Do you think it’s fair that Hungarians get jobs first? Why or why not?
5. What is your opinion about the ‘golden visa’?
6. How would you compare these immigration rules in Hungary to your country?

B1 – Intermediate

Change is in the air as Argentina welcomes a new president to lead the nation. The inauguration ceremony signals not just a transfer of power but also the start of a different chapter in Argentina’s story. People are curious about what this change might bring—how it will affect their lives and the country’s path.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about Argentina’s new president.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/argentina-has-a-new-president-level-3/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What does the expression “to ride a wave of something“ mean, “Milei, riding a wave of voter anger, pledged economic shock therapy, including shutting the central bank, ditching the peso, and slashing spending.” Use it in sentence.
2. What does the word “ditch“ mean, “Milei, riding a wave of voter anger, pledged economic shock therapy, including shutting the central bank, ditching the peso, and slashing spending.” Use it in sentence.
3. What does “economic malaise“ mean? “Despite concerns about his volatile character and radical plans, Milei aims to address the economic malaise that has plagued the country.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

1. How might Milei’s plans to spend less affect the lives of the people in Argentina?
2. What challenges does a new president might face in solving the country’s existing problems?
3. How might a new president impact a country’s domestic and international affairs?
4. What qualities do you think are important for a country leader?

B1 – Intermediate

Prisoner swap or exchange is the return of personnels from the opposing nations at war. As a general rule, captured enemies cannot be enslaved and should be handed over to the nation they served by the end of the war.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript to find out more about the recent prisoner exchange between the U.S. and Iran.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/iran-us-prisoner-swap-level-3/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What does the adjective “unfrozen” mean in this context? “…alongside the transfer of $6 billion in unfrozen Iranian funds to banks in Qatar.” Use it in a sentence.
2. What is the meaning of the word “detained“? “This carefully orchestrated exchange will see detained US dual nationals released from Iran.” Use it in your own sentence and give two synonyms.
3. Define the verb “hint at“. “...followed by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken hinting at their eventual return.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

1. What does this prisoner swap entail?
2. Do you agree that this exchange can be likened to a ransom? Why or why not?
3. What do you know about the US-Iran tension?
4. Does your country have a prisoner exchange treaty with other countries? What is your opinion on this kind of treaty?

B1 – Intermediate

Because they offer a wide selection of books, bookstores are the place to go to find good reads.

Bookstores need to be mindful about how they manage the books they sell because some of them may have topics that are sensitive in nature. Such books need to be handled with more care. 

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about one of Hungary’s biggest bookstore getting fined. Find out why they got penalized.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/a-bookstore-gets-a-fine-level-3/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What is “depict”? “The Hungarian government has fined the country’s second-largest bookstore, Lira, nearly 36,000 dollars for violating a law that bans depicting homosexuality to minors.” Give some synonyms of ‘depict’ and use the word in a sentence.
2. What does “vague” mean, “Lira’s creative director Krisztian Nyary says the law is vague and difficult to implement.” Give some synonyms of ‘vague’ and use the word in a sentence.
3. What does ”appeal” mean in this sentence, “Despite using legal means, the fine can’t be appealed.”? Use ‘appeal’ in this context.

Discussion Questions:

1. What is your reaction to Lira Bookstore getting a huge fine?
2. What do you think of this law: “All books with LGBTQ themes to be wrapped and sold separately, at least 200 meters away from schools or churches.”?
3. Will bookstores always exist? Why or why not?
4. What problems do bookstores have nowadays?
5. What is your favorite bookstore? Talk about it.

B1 – Intermediate

Israel’s current government wants its Supreme Court to have less power. Some politicians started discussing about a new law to do this. However, not everyone is in favor of this law.

The Supreme Court is part of the judiciary system. In most countries, there are three equal and separate branches of government. This should guarantee the other two branches would not be able to control too much power.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about about this proposed amendment on Israel’s legal system.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/israel-politics-changes-level-2/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What is the meaning of the word “bill” in this context? “Israeli lawmakers started discussing a bill on Sunday to limit the powers of the Supreme Court.” Give a synonym and use “bill” in a sentence.
2. What is the meaning of “hold” in this context? “Protests against the government caused Netanyahu to stop the plan in March and hold talks with opposition parties.” Give a synonym and use “hold” in a sentence.
3. What does “to rule against someone/something” mean? “The new bill will be a less extreme version of the previous proposals which wanted to greatly reduce the Supreme Court’s power to rule against the government.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

1. What do you think are the consequences of weakening Israel’s Supreme court?
2. What laws in your country had been amended? Do you agree with these changes? Why or why not?
3. What are the main branches of government in your country? What are their functions?
4. Do you know any countries at present where its leaders have total control? What do you think of these countries?
5. What are some changes in your country politics that allowed for corruption?

B1 – Intermediate

Using vapes has become more popular especially among young people. In Australia, they are trying to solve this problem. They will implement new rules that will prohibit recreational vaping, limit the import of non-prescription vapes, and restrict nicotine levels.

The government will try to make it more difficult for young people to have access to vapes. Doctors support these measures. However, there are more things to do in order to stop teenagers from vaping.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about vaping ban in Australia.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/australia-bans-vaping-level-3/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What is the meaning of “curtail”, “The government plans to curtail the availability of vapes by imposing restrictions on their sale in convenience stores and cracking down on illegal markets.” Use the word in a sentence.
2. What does “to take action against someone/something” mean, “Australia is taking strong action against the tobacco industry to address the growing problem of teenage vaping.“? Use the phrase in a sentence.
3. What does the word “discourage” mean, “Doctors support the measures but want more to be done to discourage young people from vaping.”? Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

1. What is your opinion on Australia’s decision to ban recreational vaping and implement stricter regulations on vapes?
2. Do you think the measures taken by Australia will effectively discourage young people from vaping? Why or why not?
3. What are some anti-smoking laws in your country?
4. “Philip Morris supports the crackdown on illegal shops.” State your opinion on this.

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Natural or man-made disasters and major events could disrupt people’s everyday life. The dissemination of news of such events is usually communicated through mainstream and social media, but not everyone is on these platforms. The UK will be be testing a new alert system to inform its citizens about such events by mobile phone.

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about this new public alert system.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/uk-public-alert-system-level-1/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What does “vibrate” mean? “…millions of phones in the UK will make a loud noise and vibrate.” Give two synonyms and use this word in a sentence.
2. Define the word “warning“. “It will be a warning sound“. Use it in your own sentence.
3. What does the word “marathon” mean? “For example the London Marathon or football matches.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

1. How does the new UK public alert system work?
2. What are the pros and cons of this new alert system?
3. What public alert system do you have in your country? In what situations, do you receive such an alert?
4. Do you find this public alert system helpful or distracting? Why or why not?
5. How do you prefer to be alerted about emergencies or natural disasters? Why is this your choice?

B1 – Intermediate

Finland had not been a part of any alliance since 1945. However, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the country changed its position and decided to join NATO. 

Listen to this audio and read the transcript about Finland joining NATO.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/finland-joins-nato-level-2/

Vocabulary Questions:

1. What does ”alliance” mean, “Since 1945, Finland wasn’t part of any alliance, but when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the country changed its policy.“? Use this idiom in your own sentence.
2. What does “escalate” mean, “In a reaction, Russia said that it would increase its military activity in the northwest and that the fact that Finland joined NATO could escalate the conflict in Ukraine.“? Use this phrase in your own sentence.
3. What does “pact” mean, “The NATO Collective Defense Pact says that if an attack on one NATO member happens, it is an attack on all.“? Use this word in your own sentence.

Discussion Questions:

1. What are the pros and cons of being a member of NATO?
2. What is your opinion about Finland’s decision to join NATO?
3. In your opinion, should Sweden and other countries do the same? Why or why not?
4. One of the founding principles of NATO is that an armed attack on one member nation would be considered as an attack on all. Share your opinion on this.
5. Share something you know about NATO.