UK looks to build upward with new planning laws July 21, 2020 The government will today put forward new planning laws that will make it easier for UK homeowners to add two storeys to their properties in a bid to ease the country’s housing crisis. Homeowners will be able to add extra storeys through a “fast track approvals process”, while the new laws will also allow developers [...]
Pompeo arrives in UK to discuss China, 5G and Brexit July 20, 2020 US secretary of state Mike Pompeo today arrived in the United Kingdom, with plans to discuss China, 5G and a Brexit free trade deal with Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Pompeo, who did not speak to reporters on the plane, was due to be greeted by US ambassador Woody Johnson shortly after landing. “While in London, [...]
Tory MPs amp up pressure for UK ban on Tiktok July 20, 2020 A group of senior Conservative MPs have warned that Chinese social media app Tiktok is”’as much a threat to Britain” as banned telecoms firm Huawei, as tensions between London and Beijing continue to sour. The government last week announced it will introduce a ban on new Huawei products from the UK’s 5G network from next [...]
Top nurse was ‘dropped’ from press conference after denouncing Dominic Cummings July 20, 2020 England’s top nurse has said she was banned from speaking at a government’s coronavirus press conferences after telling Downing Street that she would denounce Dominic Cummings’ trip to Durham. Chief nurse Ruth May said she was “dropped” from a press conference appearance in May, after saying she thought Cummings’ much publicised trip was a violation [...]
UK suspends extradition treaty, places arms embargo on Hong Kong July 20, 2020 The UK has officially suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong indefinitely and banned arms exports to the region in line with existing restrictions on mainland China. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab said the imposition of new security legislation in Hong Kong by Beijing meant that the “key assumptions underpinning or extradition treaties with Hong Kong” [...]
PM calls face-to-face cabinet meeting since lockdown – without masks July 20, 2020 Boris Johnson will summon his first in-person cabinet meeting tomorrow for the first time since March, with members due to meet without masks despite current social distancing guidelines. The Prime Minister’s usual Tuesday morning cabinet meetings in Downing Street have convened virtually for the last five months using video conferencing software, due to the nationwide [...]
Signs of progress in fourth day of EU coronavirus fund talks July 20, 2020 EU talks aimed at agreeing the terms of a €750bn coronavirus bailout fund ran into their fourth day but there have been signs of progress. Germany and France said a framework had been sketched during a summit in Brussels which has been heated at points. The main division is between the countries hardest-hit by the [...]
Blackburn risks local lockdown as infection rate surpasses Leicester July 20, 2020 A local lockdown in Blackburn is the “last resort”, the area’s public health official has said, as the Lancashire district surpassed Leicester as England’s coronavirus hotspot. Blackburn and nearby market town Darwen together recorded the highest infection rate in the country in the week to 17 July, according to Public Health England figures. There were [...]
Johanna Kyrklund: Are markets paying enough attention? July 20, 2020 | City Talk Like home-schooled children during the Covid crisis, markets seem to be struggling to pay attention for long. For parents, one of the most difficult parts of lockdown has been home-schooling their children. My social media feed has been full of people tearing their hair out as long-forgotten concepts such as subordinate clauses or trigonometry have [...]
Test and trace programme breaks GDPR laws, government admits July 20, 2020 The NHS Test and Trace scheme that collects contact details of those who have been in close proximity to Covid-19 breaks data protection laws, the Department for Health and Social Care has admitted. Campaigners from the Open Rights Group (ORG) earlier this month threatened legal action against the department over claims the NHS programme has [...]