“Snoopers’ Charter” data collection rules ok if proportionate, says European court July 19, 2016 A UK law requiring companies to keep up to a years worth of data on people's emails, phone calls and web activities is okay – as long as it "satisfies strict requirements" – according to a preliminary ruling from the European courts . The legal case, which has implications for the future legislation on monitoring communications, was brought by Labour deputy leader Tom Watson and [...]
Labour leadership race: Jeremy Corbyn poised to thrash either Angela Eagle or Owen Smith, according to poll July 19, 2016 Despite the splits and divisions in the Labour party, Jeremy Corbyn seems to be somewhat enjoying himself of late; he's even started cracking jokes at Prime Minister's Questions. Perhaps it's because he's confident he'll thump either Angela Eagle or Owen Smith in a one-on-one election. He wouldn't be wrong, according to the latest polling. YouGov [...]
William Hague’s 10 step guide to being foreign secretary for Boris Johnson July 19, 2016 A Tory grandee and an often cited great parliamentarian, former foreign secretary (and Conservative leader) William Hague has some advice for his (once removed) successor. Johnson has already had to deal with fallout from Nice and Turkey, while having met many foreign counterparts in fairly tricky waters, given the post-Brexit vote context of conversations. So, kindly, [...]
Quiz: Who said it? Miliband or Tory? Time to play our new game July 19, 2016 Let's play a game – it’s called Miliband or Tory. We’ll give you a quotation and you have to guess who said it: former Labour leader Ed Miliband or a member of the current Conservative government. Here goes…. [quiz id="33"] Westminster commentators have noticed the stark similarity in rhetoric between Miliband and the new Tory [...]
Shot in the Arm for the City as £24bn mega-deal is agreed July 19, 2016 British tech giant Arm Holdings yesterday agreed to a £24.3bn takeover by telecoms group Softbank, in a move that would go down as the second largest outbound Japanese deal on record. Softbank has pounced for the Cambridge-based chip-maker following a sharp drop in the value of the pound, largely prompted by last month’s vote to leave [...]
MPs vote in favour of Trident renewal as majority of Labour MPs vote against Jeremy Corbyn July 18, 2016 MPs have voted in favour of replacing the UK’s Trident nuclear weapons programme in another day of extraordinary events at Westminster which saw Jeremy Corbyn yet again clash with a majority of his own backbenchers. A majority of Labour MPs – 138 of a total of 230 – voted with the government, in line with their own [...]
Theresa May has blessed the Arm acquisition, but fears are growing the new PM will be too interventionist on M&A July 18, 2016 Theresa May's new government gave its whole-hearted backing to the sale of Arm yesterday, but suggested it could block future deals if they are not considered to be “in the national interest”. May and her chancellor Philip Hammond hailed the £24bn purchase by Japanese giant Softbank, with Downing Street describing the deal as “a vote of confidence [...]
Former chancellor George Osborne tries to secure his legacy as anything but Brexit July 18, 2016 George Osborne has issued a robust defence of his time as chancellor and said he believes the UK's best days lie ahead in a speech littered with attempts to define his own legacy. In the annual Margaret Thatcher memorial lecture held by the Centre for Policy Studies, Osborne placed his achievements such as protecting the UK's commitment to [...]
Ex-Tory peer Lord Hanningfield cleared of false expenses charges, after judge deems it a matter for parliament July 18, 2016 Former Tory peer Lord Hanningfield was acquitted of false accounting charges today, after a judge decided it was a matter for parliament. The 75-year-old Hanningfield, whose given name is Paul White, had been accused of falsely submitting expense claims for his daily allowance from the House of Lords. Hanningfield had been due to stand trial at [...]
Prime Minister Theresa May to meet Angela Merkel and Francois Hollande on first overseas trip of premiership July 18, 2016 Prime Minister Theresa May is to meet with her German and French counterparts when she makes the first overseas trip of her premiership. Later this week May will fly to Berlin to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, before heading to Paris to meet with French President Francois Hollande. The visits come after the tragic [...]