Andy Burnham still the favourite among Labour voters to lead the party August 5, 2015 An opinion poll indicates Andy Burnham is still the preferred choice amongst Labour voters to win the contest. Opinium’s first major poll for the leadership says that 39 per cent of Labour voters, rather than just party members, would vote for Burnham if they had a vote in the election. Next is Jeremy Corbyn trailing [...]
Greek debt crisis: Prime minister Alexis Tsipras says Greek debt negotiations at “final stretch” August 5, 2015 Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras said that his cash-strapped country has reached the final stretch in concluding a deal with its lenders. Negotiations on Greece’s third bailout plan – which would grant the country up to €86bn (£60.4bn) – have been ongoing since last week. The parties must reach an agreement or settle for a [...]
Suzanne Evans throws her hat into the ring as Ukip candidate for Mayor of London August 5, 2015 Ukip deputy chair Suzanne Evans has announced plans to run as the Ukip candidate for the Mayor of London. Evans, who quit her role as the party's policy chief after the election in May, announced her plans on Iain Dale's show on LBC London Radio. UKIP Deputy Chair Suzanne Evans has told LBC she will [...]
Our secret envy of Lords: Why we shouldn’t expect – or insist – on our Lords being more lordly than us August 4, 2015 Only the media and legions of middle England curtain-twitchers appear to have taken a sharp and judgemental intake of breath at the ‘shocking’ revelations that guess what – another over privileged life peer likes a line and spending company with ladies of the night. And Lord Sewel accompanied his session by openly taking the [...]
Airport expansion: Forget Heathrow and Gatwick – only Thames Estuary can give more than a sticking plaster solution to the UK’s airport expansion needs August 4, 2015 Last week big business was on the march with 57 senior business leaders signing a letter urging the Prime Minister to give a third runway to Heathrow. This follows on neatly from the Davies Commission – a £20m report that has taken three years to recommend political suicide. The challenge for a future [...]
Jeremy Corbyn loses lead in betting odds as Corbynomics comes under fire from Labour MPs August 4, 2015 Left-wing Labour leadership candidate Jeremy Corbyn has lost his lead in the betting markets amid attacks from senior members of his own party. Bookies from Ladbrokes, William Hill and Betfair all told City A.M. that Corbyn had dropped out of pole position yesterday, leaving Andy Burnham as the odds-on favourite to replace Ed Miliband. [...]
President Barack Obama antagonises Republicans as he unveils ambitious clean power plan August 3, 2015 Framing climate change as one of the most pressing challenge the world faces, President Barack Obama has unveiled what he called “the single most important step America has ever taken in the fight against global climate change.” The goal of the plan, which has been two years in the making, is to cut greenhouse gas [...]
Labour leadership race: Shadow chancellor Chris Leslie confirms he would not serve under Jeremy Corbyn August 3, 2015 The Labour party would “not be the party” the shadow chancellor Chris Leslie joined if Jeremy Corbyn won the leadership. In an interview with the BBC, Leslie said Labour needed to find a “credible” alternative Prime Minister and that he would not service under Corbyn if he did win the leadership. Leslie is backing Yvette [...]
The Calais migrant crisis shows why Europe needs a common migration policy and a new asylum system August 3, 2015 The ongoing crisis in Calais is a sad reminder that the EU is still far from finding a solution to its migration problems. It also shows how deep national divides have become in Europe. France blames Italy and Greece for failing to process asylum seekers arriving on its shores, opening the doors for them to [...]
US power sector hits back at Barack Obama’s tough climate change rules August 3, 2015 President Barack Obama is set to present the US’ most ambitious climate change plans to date, but they come fiercely opposed by both his political rivals and the energy sector. The Obama administration will reveal state-specific details of the initiative, called the clean power plan, on Monday, but overall it will impose reductions of carbon [...]