Labour’s Emily Thornberry just accused Sky News of sexism after struggling to name foreign leaders on live TV September 11, 2016 Labour's shadow foreign minister Emily Thornberry has accused a Sky News presenter of sexism after being unable to name either the French foreign minister, or the South Korean president. Thornberry was being interviewed on Sky News' Murnaghan programme earlier this morning, but objected to “pub-quizzing” from host Dermot Murnaghan, who asked her to name the [...]
Now there’s a “Brexit means Brexit” pressure group (and BoJo is backing it) September 11, 2016 Boris Johnson has thrown his weight behind a new group piling pressure on Theresa May to push for a so-called hard Brexit. In a surprise move, the newly appointed foreign secretary has backed the Change Britain campaign chaired by Leave campaigner and Labour MP Gisela Stuart alongside a string of high profile pro-Leave campaigners. Read more: This MP wants Article 50 triggered [...]
This MP wants Article 50 triggered within “weeks” September 11, 2016 John Whittingdale, the former culture secretary and Leave supporter, has urged Prime Minister Theresa May to trigger Article 50 within weeks. Invoking Article 50 is the official signal for leaving Europe and will trigger a two year period of negotiations with Brussels. Read more: Britons may need visas to travel in Europe after Brexit is formalised “Article 50 [...]
Britons may need visas as well as passports to travel in Europe after Brexit is formalised September 10, 2016 UK citizens may need to apply for visas if they wish to travel to EU countries after Britain formally leaves the organisation. Officials at the EU's executive body are considering plans that would mean British business travellers and tourists would need to apply online for a visa and pay a fee before travelling to the [...]
International trade secretary Liam Fox blasts British business as “too lazy and fat” September 10, 2016 Trade secretary Liam Fox has hit out at Britain's businesses for becoming "too lazy and fat" and said executives are more interested in playing golf than focussing on overseas exports. Fox launched the attack on UK companies, which he believes are not ready for the free trade deals he is planning to broker, while speaking at a drinks reception on [...]
Scotland Yard will look into whether disgraced MP Keith Vaz has committed any criminal offences September 9, 2016 Scotland Yard is to "assess" whether any criminal offences were committed by Keith Vaz MP, after allegations of drug use and hiring escorts were made in a Sunday newspaper report last weekend. The Metropolitan Police confirmed this afternoon it had received a letter on Wednesday requesting that police consider the allegations made by the Sunday Mirror [...]
Theresa May is lifting ban on selective schools as she announces £50m government funding for grammar schools September 9, 2016 Prime Minister Theresa May is relaxing the ban on selective schools, in controversial plans opposed by Labour and the outgoing Ofsted chief inspector, which will also see grammar schools given government funding for expansion. May said in a major speech today that it is "completely illogical to make it illegal to open good new schools". [...]
In Brexit Britain, will charity begin (and end) at home? September 9, 2016 Government is gearing back into action after a surprisingly business-as-usual summer. MPs have returned, announcements have started and there is one issue lodged at the top of the in-tray. Despite Theresa May’s pledge not to provide a “running commentary” on Brexit, it seems unstoppable. The Prime Minister has already ruled out a point-based immigration system, [...]
“What is Aleppo?” Gary Johnson’s Syria gaffe was bad but also emphasised his integrity September 8, 2016 The presidential campaign of Gary Johnson, candidate for the US Libertarian party, received one of its biggest boosts in this election cycle on Wednesday evening – a tweet from the 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney, expressing hope that the Johnson ticket would be allowed to take part in the upcoming presidential debates. The following morning, [...]
It’s pure hubris for politicians to think they can “rebalance” the economy September 8, 2016 Theresa May is reviving the idea of interventionist industrial strategy, and wants to “rebalance” the economy. Many people are jumping on the bandwagon. They should jump right off again. Even the more mature of today’s politicians were still in the school playground when these ideas last made waves. In the 1950s and 1960s, UK governments [...]