FTSE 100 falls below 7,400 after sterling’s election poll surge November 28, 2019 The FTSE 100 sank below 7,400 points in early trading as markets responded to a surge in sterling and China lashing out at Donald Trump’s endorsement of Hong Kong protesters. The US President signed two bills into law overnight aimed at scrutinising China’s influence in the territory and banning exports of crowd control munitions like [...]
General election 2019: Labour to overhaul strategy after poll loss November 28, 2019 The Labour party is set to revamp its election campaign strategy in a desperate bid to fight back against a huge Conservative lead in the polls. The rethink is said to be aimed particularly at Leave-supporting areas after the party underestimated the willingness of Leave voters to defect to the Tories. Read more: UK mega-poll: [...]
China rages after Trump signs bills in support of Hong Kong protesters November 28, 2019 China has reacted with fury to Donald Trump’s decision to sign bills in support of the Hong Kong protesters. The US President has approved legislation that threatens sanctions on Chinese and Hong Kong officials for human rights abuses in the territory. Read more: Pro-democracy candidates win 90 per cent of council seats in Hong Kong [...]
Ban MPs from second jobs? We should be encouraging them November 28, 2019 New governments seldom seek to discourage employment. Ministries live and die by their ability to get people into work. Yet in one sector, the Labour party has made a manifesto promise of reducing jobs — by banning members of parliament from taking paid work outside the House. Really, this is the wrong way around. Parliamentarians [...]
Debate: Is Labour right to warn over US interest in the NHS, uncovered in the leaked trade talk papers? November 28, 2019 Debate: Is Labour right to warn over US interest in the NHS, uncovered in the leaked trade talk papers? Yes — Heidi Chow is a pharmaceuticals campaigner at Global Justice Now The leaked Trump trade papers are genuinely shocking. They confirm that drug prices and the NHS really are on the table in these talks [...]
It may be popular, but scrapping hospital parking charges would be a total disaster November 28, 2019 Amid myriad headline-grabbing proposals, you might have missed Labour’s promise to scrap hospital parking charges. This is exactly the kind of local, community-based policy that is likely to win votes — but it is a mistake. They might not be popular, but these car parking charges are actually a good thing. First, the charges bring [...]
The Tories are on track to win a majority — if only they knew what to do with it November 28, 2019 Much of this week’s election buzz has focused on the release of Wednesday night’s polling figures. The hotly-anticipated YouGov MRP model, which accurately predicted a huge parliament in 2017, is currently forecasting a majority for the Conservatives of nearly 70 seats. There has been a fair amount of commentary about the Conservatives’ nervousness over these [...]
Labour and Tories already on track to break spending rules, says report November 28, 2019 Both Labour and the Conservatives are already on track to break their spending rules due to uncosted promises made in their manifestos, according to the Resolution Foundation think tank. The two main parties have both changed their so-called fiscal rules to allow more government spending, but say they will balance day-to-day spending with receipts by [...]
UK mega-poll: Conservatives on course for 68-seat majority November 27, 2019 Boris Johnson’s Conservative party is on course to secure a thumping victory in next month’s election, according to a highly-anticipated poll published this evening. Were the election held tomorrow, the Prime Minister would defeat Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party in dramatic fashion, returning to Downing Street on 12 December with a 68-seat majority. A comprehensive seat-by-seat poll by [...]
Government’s halted Brexit ad campaign cost taxpayers £5m November 27, 2019 Boris Johnson’s ad campaign urging people and businesses to prepare for leaving the EU on 31 October cost taxpayers almost £5m in just a month. The government unveiled a £100m “Get Ready for Brexit” campaign at the end of August, promising an advertising blitz across billboards, TV and radio, as well as a revamped website. [...]