Retailers allowed to open 24 hours over Christmas period, says minister November 30, 2020 Retailers will be able to operate 24 hours during the Christmas period through a relaxation of trading rules in a bid to boost spending on the UK’s High Streets. Communities secretary Robert Jenrick wrote for the Telegraph that he wanted councils to temporarily waive rules that restrict the hours shops can stay open in the [...]
Liz Truss names new chief negotiator for UK-US trade talks November 30, 2020 International trade secretary Liz Truss has today named a new lead negotiator for UK-US trade talks in preparation for an incoming Joe Biden administration. Amanda Brooks OBE will now lead talks, after her predecessor Oliver Griffiths moved to become the chief of the newly formed Trade Remedies Authority – an independent trade watchdog. Brooks was [...]
Govt may have to rely on Labour to implement new tiered system, says minister November 30, 2020 The government may have to rely on the Labour party to push the new tiered lockdown system through parliament after rebellion in the Conservative party, a minister has said. Up to 100 backbenchers in the Conservative party are unhappy about the upcoming Covid-19 tiered lockdown, environment minister George Eustice told Sky News this morning. As [...]
Got an idea to supercharge growth in left-behind Britain? Your country needs you! November 30, 2020 A lot has changed since the nation last went to the ballot box. A generation will never again take freedom for granted. The national debt exceeds 100 per cent of GDP. Lives have been lost, attainment gaps have widened, dying industries have been dealt a coup de grâce. But in one area the narrative has [...]
Covid infections fall 30 per cent nationally in lockdown November 30, 2020 Coronavirus infections fell 30 per cent nationally between 13 and 24 November, with 96 people per 10,000 infected. The recent national lockdown successfully lowered infection rates across the country. More than 105,000 volunteers were tested in England during the second half of November as part of a study by Imperial College and Ipsos Mori to [...]
Antony Blinken and the tragedy of America’s foreign policy establishment November 30, 2020 I was recently speaking to an DC-insider friend of mine about the appointment of Antony Blinken as America’s next secretary of state. My old colleague — a veteran of my seminal struggles with the neo-conservatives around the time of the Iraq War, a passionate Republican Never-Trumper and card-carrying member of the Washington establishment — summed [...]
Today: UK to outline roadmap to removing Huawei equipment from its 5G networks November 30, 2020 The UK will today set out its plan to remove all “high risk” Huawei equipment from its 5G networks by 2027. The government announced earlier this year that it will be illegal to purchase Huawei equipment to use in UK 5G networks from the end of this year. All existing equipment procured from the Chinese [...]
UK strikes deal with France to beef up border protection November 29, 2020 The number of officers patrolling French beaches near Calais will double in a bid to stop increasing numbers of migrant boats crossing the channel in attempts to reach the UK border. The UK and French governments struck a deal yesterday to enforce the increased measures, with the Home Office saying it “will bolster the patrolling [...]
Brexit: Chance of no-deal exit ‘underpriced’, says Number 10 November 29, 2020 There is still a reasonably good chance the UK will leave the post-Brexit transition period on a no-deal basis, according to Downing Street. The UK will leave the EU’s single market and customs union with or without a trade deal on 31 December. A no-deal exit would mean that trade barriers between the EU and [...]
Tiering it down: Boris Johnson backtracks on Covid restrictions November 29, 2020 Boris Johnson has bent to the demands of Tory backbench MPs by softening England’s future Covid restrictions regime. Johnson wrote to MPs telling them that people stuck in the strictest Covid restrictions will have them downgraded next month, while also promising that the tier system will end earlier than expected. Millions of people put into [...]