Rishi Sunak goes shopping as retail prepares to reopen June 14, 2020 Rishi Sunak visited a Waterstones yesterday as retail businesses across England prepare to reopen tomorrow. Sunak inspected some of the safety measures that the bookstore had implemented, such as screens between checkout workers and customers. England’s 7,000 high streets will open tomorrow as a part of the government’s easing of the lockdown. All shops that [...]
Robert Jenrick in further ties with property tycoon Richard Desmond June 14, 2020 Further links housing secretary Robert Jenrick and property tycoon Richard Desmond have been revealed in light of the government’s controversial decision to approve a £1bn housing development. The Observer reported today that Jenrick held a background briefing on his work to reform the UK’s planning system at an event hosted by public relations firm Thorncliffe, [...]
We now have a unique opportunity to end rough sleeping in London for good June 13, 2020 Where do we go from here? It’s a question many of us are asking ourselves, as lockdown measures are gradually eased and we start to move from dealing with the day-to-day impact of the pandemic to looking towards the longer-term future. For the nearly 1,400 rough sleepers who have been accommodated in London hotels, paid [...]
Sadiq Khan calls for government to support homeless Europeans June 13, 2020 Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has today issued a call to the government to provide support for homeless non-UK nationals, as temporary housing plans for rough sleepers come to a close. More than 50 per cent of the homeless population currently residing in hotels organised by City Hall are from outside the UK, and will [...]
England’s coronavirus ‘R’ number rises to 0.8 to 1.0 range June 12, 2020 The reproduction rate of coronavirus infections in England has risen to 0.8 to 1.0, slightly higher than the rest of the UK. For the UK as a whole, the so-called R number remains at 0.7 to 0.9. Used by the government to inform decisions on easing lockdown, the R number represents the average number of [...]
Black Lives Matter unveils Westminster billboard to highlight ‘scale of racism’ in UK June 12, 2020 Black Lives Matter has unveiled a huge billboard in central London in an attempt to “expose the scale of UK racism”. Activists from the group’s UK operation joined anti-racism campaigners this afternoon to erect the poster on 91 Westminster Bridge Road. The billboard, which reads “I can’t breath”, echoes the last words of George Floyd, [...]
‘Shameful’: Boris Johnson condemns threats to Churchill statue June 12, 2020 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday it was “absurd and shameful” that a statue of Winston Churchill was at risk of attack by protesters. In his strongest statement yet on a growing trend to challenge the legacies of past leaders, the PM pushed back against a wave of protests against statues of historic [...]
Coronavirus UK death toll rises by 202 June 12, 2020 Deaths in the UK from coronavirus rose by 202 today, the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) said. As of 9am this morning, there have been 6,434,713 tests, with 193,253 tests conducted yesterday. A total of 292,950 people have tested positive so far. As of 5pm yesterday, of those who had tested positive for [...]
Boris Johnson urges public to avoid ‘hijacked’ London protests and defends Churchill statue June 12, 2020 Boris Johnson has urged the public to stay away from Black Lives Matter protests planned in London this weekend amid fears of violence after being “hijacked by extremists”. Black Lives Matter organisers have cancelled London protests that were set to start at 1pm in Hyde Park tomorrow after right-wing groups planned to join. Today’s protest [...]
Britain ‘formally confirms’ it will not extend Brexit transition period June 12, 2020 Britain has “formally confirmed” to the EU that it will not extend the Brexit transition period beyond the end of this year. Making the announcement this morning, Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove said “the moment for extension has now passed,” following a video meeting of the EU Joint Committee. The announcement follows a call for [...]