Coronavirus lockdown: Sadiq Khan urges construction sites to close March 24, 2020 Sadiq Khan has called for London construction sites to be closed down in the wake of the government’s effective coronavirus lockdown. The mayor of London said he disagreed with the government’s ruling that construction sites could stay open and that it would be “very, very difficult” for those workers to follow social distancing instructions. Khan [...]
Rishi Sunak: ‘Incredibly complicated’ to help self-employed during coronavirus outbreak March 24, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said the government will unveil measures to support the self-employed but said it was very difficult to design support schemes for those not employed by companies. Sunak said he could not commit to a timeframe for the measures, however, as pressure rises on the chancellor to do more to support those [...]
UK coronavirus lockdown: Michael Gove warns of tougher punishments March 24, 2020 Michael Gove has criticised Mike Ashley for failing to close Sports Direct stores on the first day of the UK coronavirus lockdown, and warned of tougher punishments for flouting the public order to stay at home. The minister blasted Ashley’s argument that keeping Sports Direct stores open was crucial to help UK households “maintain a [...]
Coronavirus: Prime Minister announces unprecedented lockdown across UK as government battles Covid-19 March 23, 2020 The Prime Minister has imposed unprecedented restrictions on people’s movements, which will be enforced through the police, in a desperate bid to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic. In a historic address to the nation, Boris Johnson revealed that people would only be allowed to leave their home for “very limited purposes” including shopping for basic [...]
Coronavirus: Dominic Raab calls for all British travellers to return to the UK March 23, 2020 The UK’s foreign secretary Dominic Raab today called for all British travellers to return home while international travel was still possible amid the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, Raab changed travel advice to warn UK travellers against all but essential international travel in the next 30 days. But today, he said that the pace at which [...]
Coronavirus: Boris Johnson’s designated survivor is Dominic Raab March 23, 2020 Foreign secretary Dominic Raab will take over prime ministerial duties if Boris Johnson is infected with coronavirus or is otherwise incapacitated. A Number 10 spokesperson, when asked who would take over in this situation, said today that Raab would fill-in as he was first secretary of state. “The prime minister has the power to delegate [...]
Alex Salmond acquitted of all sexual assault charges March 23, 2020 Former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond has been acquitted of all charges in his sexual assault trial. Salmond was facing a combined 13 charges of sexual assault and attempted rape against nine different women. The jury at the Scottish High Court in Edinburgh found him not guilty of all charges this afternoon, leaving him to [...]
ExCel London could be used as a hospital to treat coronavirus patients March 23, 2020 The ExCel London centre may be turned into a makeshift hospital to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. The ExCel is located in the Docklands, between London City Airport and Canary Wharf, and is on a 100-acre site. NHS bosses and military planners met yesterday to discuss how the centre could help with the health service’s [...]
Government ‘in talks with Amazon’ over coronavirus test delivery March 23, 2020 The UK government is said to have approached companies including Amazon over delivering coronavirus testing kits to frontline health and social care workers. Whitehall officials are in discussions with the firms about ramping up the availability of tests for healthcare staff as the spread of the virus picks up pace, the Financial Times reported, citing [...]
Matt Hancock: People not social distancing are ‘very selfish’ March 23, 2020 People ignoring the government’s social distancing instructions to stop the spread of coronavirus are “very selfish”, according to health secretary Matt Hancock. Videos and photos emerged yesterday of people gathering in parks across the country, including Richmond Park in London. Busy scenes were also snapped at East London’s Columbia Road Flower Market. This is despite [...]