Labour to boycott Facebook for one month over BLM concerns July 12, 2020 Labour has begun an advertising boycott of Facebook, after the platform has been accused of not removing racist posts in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests. The party, which spent more than £1m on Facebook advertising during the last election, will not use the social media giant to place ads for the next [...]
Michael Gove annonuces £700m Brexit border force July 12, 2020 The government will spend £700m preparing the UK’s borders for Brexit as it begins a widespread information campaign to prepare businesses for next year. The funding is being spent on 500 new border guards, IT systems and essential infrastructure at Dover and other ports of entry as the UK prepares for the end of the [...]
Michael Gove: Face coverings will not be mandatory in shops July 12, 2020 Face coverings will not be made mandatory inside shops by the government but it is “basic good manners” to wear one, according to Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove. Gove said today that he trusted “people’s good sense” to wear face coverings where necessary, without forcing people to do it by law. Pressure has begun to [...]
Nicola Sturgeon talks a good game, but Scottish independence would be a catastrophe July 10, 2020 For everything Boris Johnson does, you can be certain Nicola Sturgeon will announce something different. While Boris blusters, Nicola states clearly and simply why and how her policies to protect Scotland are going to happen. Where Boris is distracted, she is focused. She’s a highly effective politician, who misses no opportunity to distance Scotland from [...]
Hong Kong shuts all schools after local coronavirus cases spike July 10, 2020 Hong Kong’s education department has said it will suspend all schools from Monday, after a spike in confirmed local coronavirus cases. The city state reported 38 new cases today, a slight fall from yesterday’s 42 new cases but forming a continuation of a sharp uptick in cases registered over the past three days. Schools have [...]
With its own Magnitsky Act, Britain can make it clear that international wrongdoers are not welcome here July 10, 2020 The new government sanctions regime, which has seen restrictions imposed on around 50 individuals accused of orchestrating human rights abuses, is a major step in Britain’s post-Brexit place in the world. Dubbed the “Magnitsky Act”, after the Moscow lawyer murdered after uncovering a massive tax fraud, this approach allows the UK to pursue a new [...]
The quiet crisis: IR35 and the UK’s forgotten freelancers July 10, 2020 In a crisis which has shaken so many aspects of our lives, it can be hard to get some issues heard above the noise. News that would once have made headlines seems to slip almost unnoticed under the radar. One such development was the quiet confirmation that changes to IR35 self-employed taxes will come into [...]
Beauty salons, massage parlours and gyms set to reopen in England next week July 9, 2020 Beauty salons, nail bars, tattoo studios, massage parlours, spas and gyms are set to reopen next week after months of closure during the coronavirus crisis, the government announced today, though facial treatments will remain prohibited under strict social distancing measures. Culture secretary Oliver Dowden today said: “Having allowed hairdressers to reopen, beauticians, tattooists, spas, tanning [...]
EU to maintain access to City of London clearing houses after Brexit July 9, 2020 Brussels has moved to ensure EU member states retain access to the City’s clearing houses after the end of the post-Brexit transition period on 31 December. The EU will allow its members to have access to the UK’s clearing houses, some of the largest in the world, on a “time limited” basis, according to European [...]
Performing arts allowed to restart in England from Saturday July 9, 2020 England’s performing arts sector will be allowed to reopen from Saturday as the government announced a further easing of coronavirus social distancing restrictions. Artists, musicians, actors and dancers will be able to go back to work from this weekend by putting on shows with socially distanced outdoor crowds, according to culture secretary Oliver Dowden. Dowden [...]