Mayor of London tells Labour to ditch Corbyn August 21, 2016 The Mayor of London has finally revealed who he will back in the Labour leadership contest – and it's bad new for Jeremy Corbyn, losing out on support from the most high-profile elected politician in the party. Sadiq Khan has publicly endorsed Owen Smith in the race to lead the party after previously nominating Corbyn for the position, but [...]
This MP wants Brexit ASAP August 21, 2016 Brexit negotiations should begin immediately and not be put on hold for elections in Europe, due to be held next year, the former work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith has said. The MP said "we need to get on with triggering Article 50, as the government has said, in early 2017," or risk a "neverendum". Article 50 [...]
Australia has confirmed that it will block the sale of its largest energy grid to Chinese investors August 20, 2016 Australia has moved to formally block the sale of its biggest energy grid to Chinese investors over security concerns. The sale was put on hold last week, and now the deal has been officially nixed by Australian treasurer Scott Morrison. Two Chinese firms had been in talks to buy a 50.4 per cent stake in Ausgrid. However, [...]
The government’s high-profile Help to Buy scheme has come under fire because extra financial support cannot be used towards deposits August 20, 2016 A government scheme to support first-time buyers has been blasted by political rivals because a so-called "top-up" on savings cannot be used towards the deposit on a new home. Revealed in the pre-election 2015 Budget, the Help to Buy ISA provided a government boost to savings at a rate of 25 per cent. So a saver [...]
Theresa May could trigger Brexit talks as soon as April, despite warnings to wait until after French and German elections August 20, 2016 Prime Minister Theresa May could be set to trigger the formal processes to leave the EU before next year's French and German elections, despite calls to delay until the autumn. May has only previously said the government would not open the two-year window for Brexit talks until next year. However, Bloomberg yesterday reported that she could activate Article 50 as [...]
Yes, Britain’s Olympic and Paralympic heroes are going to be honoured with a parade in Manchester and a separate celebration in London August 20, 2016 A record medal haul for British athletes at the Rio Olympics is to be recognised with a parade through the streets of Manchester, with a separate party planned in London. It comes after some had questioned whether the successes of Team GB would be celebrated – former Olympic rower Sir Matthew Pinsent had suggested plans [...]
The Ministry of Justice has inked a £120m deal for translators – leaving the contractor hunting for more than 3,000 staff by November August 19, 2016 The Ministry of Justice has inked the largest deal for interpreters in Europe, paying £120m for a four year deal with languages company Thebigword, beginning at the end of October. The MoJ deal comes in addition to a £60m government contract signed in May to provide services to the Home Office, the Ministry of Defence, the NHS, [...]
Post Office workers are going on strike as the CWU demands government steps in over job losses August 19, 2016 Another day, and another strike has been announced – this time by Post Office workers, who have voted to go on strike over job losses. In a statement today the Communication Workers' Union (CWU) said 83.2 per cent of those balloted had voted for industrial action to protest against cost-cutting measures. “Staff in the Post [...]
Internet spying powers are “a vital utility” for fighting terrorism, an independent review has found August 19, 2016 British spies should be allowed to harvest data en masse from emails, a review of terror legislation has concluded. David Anderson QC said there was no viable alternative to the use of so-called bulk interception powers by MI5, MI6 and GCHQ. The report concluded there was a “proven operational case” for three out of the four powers examined, [...]
Sadiq Khan and Theresa May are both making supportive noises about an Olympic victory parade August 19, 2016 Sadiq Khan has come out in favour of an Olympic victory parade after the Rio games, while Downing Street is also hinting at support, despite rumours that a celebration of British athletes had been "binned". Team GB currently sits second in the medal table in Rio, but former Olympic rower Sir Matthew Pinsent has suggested that despite parades [...]