Varadkar: The EU has the upper hand in Brexit trade talks January 27, 2020 Ireland’s Prime Minister Leo Varadkar feels the EU will have an advantage in the upcoming trade deal talks between the UK and the bloc. Varadkar used a sports analogy to explain the EU has a “stronger team” than Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s UK, due to its larger population and market size. The Irish PM is [...]
The new Downing Street team can’t afford to ignore business January 27, 2020 Political wisdom has it that the first hundred days of any new government is its most vital opportunity to set its agenda. Not so with this government. Having just racked up its first 50 days, it risks accusations of being coy by its lack of public visibility and the paucity of new policy proclamations since [...]
DEBATE: Should Britain introduce taxes on meat and dairy to meet our climate goals? January 27, 2020 Should we consider introducing taxes on meat and dairy products to meet our climate goals? Leo Murray, director of innovation at the climate change charity Possible, says YES. “Nanny state!” That’s the shrill, familiar cry of the reactionary commentariat whenever a threat to “individual freedoms” is spotted on the horizon. But the climate crisis is [...]
Levelling up is possible — but the government has to listen to what people want January 27, 2020 Levelling up. This slightly odd turn of phrase is set to become one of the defining tests of the new Johnson government. Inequalities between the regions and nations of the United Kingdom are not a new problem, and nor are central government policy initiatives designed to tackle them. Business communities — particularly those outside the [...]
Unlimited visa offer to attract top scientists and researchers January 26, 2020 An unlimited fast-track visa scheme to attract the world’s top scientists and researchers will open in the UK next month. The “Global Talent” route will replace the Exceptional Talent visa. There will be no cap on the number of people able to come to the UK. The UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) body will join [...]
Priti Patel: British businesses too reliant on ‘cheap labour’ from the EU January 26, 2020 Home Secretary Priti Patel has accused British businesses of being too reliant on “low skilled” and “cheap” labour from the EU, calling on firms to “invest in the British public”. Speaking to Sky’s Sophy Ridge programme this morning, Patel said the points-based immigration system the government plans to introduce after Brexit would “put a spotlight [...]
UK to set out EU free trade deal objectives next month, says Brexit secretary January 26, 2020 Britain will outline more details about its objectives for a free trade deal with the European Union next month after leaving the bloc on Friday, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay said. “We are going to publish our objectives for the negotiation… in due course after the 31st,” he told the BBC’s Andrew Marr this morning. Barclay [...]
Happy hour: Government slashes business rates for smaller pubs January 25, 2020 Sajid Javid has announced plans to cut £1,000 in business rates for smaller pubs from April. The chancellor said as many as 18,000 pubs across the UK could benefit in new cuts aimed at supporting pubs in local communities. The tax relief comes following calls for the burden of business rates to be reduced on [...]
Harry Dunn: US rejects extradition request for Anne Sacoolas January 24, 2020 The US has rejected an extradition request for Anne Sacoolas from the Home Office after she was charged with causing death by dangerous driving by the Crown Prosecution Service. Harry Dunn, 19, was killed following a crash in Northamptonshire last August which led to Sacoolas, the wife of a US intelligence officer, returning to America [...]
Boris can lead a Conservative council housing revolution January 24, 2020 With Boris Johnson now undisputed world king of the post-Brexit scene, the only relevant policy debates are those going on inside the government itself. These are yielding unusual fruit. Esther McVey, a deep-dyed Thatcherite and an advocate of blue-collar Conservatism, has been arguing for more council housing. The housing minister wants to help those “left [...]