EU’s top court lands major blow to UK’s chances of post-Brexit data deal October 6, 2020 The EU’s top court has ruled that unrestrained mass surveillance of phone and internet data is unlawful, in the latest blow to the UK’s chances of securing a post-Brexit data-sharing agreement with the EU. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) today handed out its much-anticipated verdict on government surveillance, ruling that the indiscriminate retention of [...]
Boris Johnson calls on the private sector to rebuild Britain after Covid October 6, 2020 Boris Johnson has vowed a complete post-Covid transformation of Britain that will be driven by the private sector and the free market. The Prime Minister’s Conservative party conference speech outlined the government’s vision of a new Britain by emphasising improved infrastructure, fixing the country’s housing shortage, investing in wind power and increasing skills for young [...]
Boris Johnson reveals plans to cut deposits in bid to boost home ownership October 6, 2020 The Prime Minister has announced plans to help millions of Britons onto the housing ladder by allowing home-hunters to buy a property with a smaller deposit. Speaking at the Conservative Party conference today Boris Johnson said he wants to turn “generation rent” into “generation buy” by reforming the UK’s planning system. The government is planning [...]
Rishi Sunak signals that tax hikes will be delayed for some time October 6, 2020 Rishi Sunak has signalled he will hold off on tax rises and Budget cuts until the UK’s economic recovery is further along. Sunak said today that the UK needs to balance its books “over time”, just a day after saying at his conference speech that the Tories had a “sacred responsibility to future generations to [...]
The government is still dragging its feet on gender recognition October 6, 2020 Life is a comedy to those who think and a tragedy to those who feel, and for the second group, each passing day must make the thought of retreating to the bunker with the wine and olives increasingly appealing. Still, we are presented now and then with cause for optimism, an example of which presented [...]
Business secretary Alok Sharma hits out at Extinction Rebellion for its ‘innefective’ methods October 5, 2020 Business secretary Alok Sharma has hit out at Extinction Rebellion for its methods, saying the environmental group’s actions will not lead to any real change. Sharma said at the Conservative party conference that the way to “achieve climate action” was not by “glueing yourself to trains, by glueing yourself to buildings [or] by disprupting peoples [...]
Matt Hancock: Covid data glitch did not affect policy decisions October 5, 2020 A technical glitch that resulted in almost 16,000 positive Covid cases not recorded in the official data last week did not affect the government’s policy decisions, according to health secretary Matt Hancock. The government implemented more stringent lockdown restrictions in the North West last week, including in Liverpool, but the health secretary said no other [...]
Technical glitch in UK’s coronavirus testing system fixed, minister says October 5, 2020 A technical problem in England’s coronavirus testing data system has now been fixed and should not happen again, Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey said this morning. The UK reported a record daily jump of 22,961 Covid-19 cases yesterday after authorities said a technical issue had meant that over 15,000 test results had not been [...]
Coronavirus: Tory MP slams local lockdowns as ‘devastating’ October 5, 2020 A prominent Tory backbencher has slammed the government’s introduction of local lockdowns across the UK as “devastating”, claiming they infringe on the public’s freedom and should be swapped for a “risk-based” approach. Tory MP and former Brexit minister Steve Baker told the Conservative party conference today that local lockdowns “aren’t working”, while dwindling hopes for [...]
UK eyeing closer financial services regulation alignment with non-EU countries, says Sunak October 5, 2020 The UK is looking to align its financial services regulation with major economic powers outside the EU, according to Rishi Sunak. The chancellor said today at a fringe event at the Conservative conference that the government will “review our regulatory framework” on financial services and that “not being inside the EU more generally gives us [...]