‘Job perk’ or employment right? Flexible working a step closer to being law May 19, 2023 Peers have supported moves to give employees the right to request flexible working from their first day in a job. The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill is a “very welcome starting point and not an end point” for reforming working conditions, according to Labour. The measures are supported by the Government and received an unopposed [...]
Russia blood diamonds are latest Kremlin sanction from UK as Sunak goes after 86 more Putin-linked individuals May 19, 2023 Britain is banning Russian diamonds in a new wave of sanctions to pressure Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine as Rishi Sunak warns allies against complacency at the G7 summit in Japan. The Prime Minister announced the new measures against Russia, also including a prohibition on imports of Russian-origin copper, aluminium and nickel on [...]
Sunak’s semiconductor plans will leave UK ‘very vulnerable’, warn tech bosses May 19, 2023 Tech bosses have hit out at the government’s landmark £1bn semiconductor strategy, blasting it as “a drop in the ocean” which leaves the UK “very vulnerable”. Founders warned the government’s proposals for investment over the next decade to boost the UK’s domestic silicon chip and compound semiconductor production were “disappointing”, with the announced £1bn funding [...]
Paul Scully launches bid to become London mayor – here’s how he hopes to win May 18, 2023 Conservative MP Paul Scully has pledged to switch off ULEZ cameras in the extended zone on “day one” if elected London mayor, as he launched his bid to be the Conservative candidate. Currently minister for London, Scully, MP for Sutton and Cheam, is pausing his frontbench work while he aims to be selected as the [...]
Why so secretive? Sunak blasted for ‘surreptitious’ industrial strategy May 18, 2023 A set of cross-party former business secretaries have launched a stinging attack on Rishi Sunak over his apparent lack of a cohesive industrial strategy. Ex-ministers Greg Clark, Peter Mandelson and Vince Cable told the Financial Times the Prime Minister was being so “surreptitious” that his strategy for industry was a “guilty secret”. Clark, Conservative business [...]
Sunak insists he will bring down taxes when inflation cools May 18, 2023 Rishi Sunak has insisted he will bring down taxes when inflation cools and claimed the economy is defying expectations. It comes after economists warned one in five people will be paying the higher rate of tax under his policies. The Prime Minister said the nation’s finances are receiving boosts from the departure from the EU, [...]
Sunak at G7: Post Brexit ‘vote of confidence’ as Japan firms to invest £18bn in the UK May 18, 2023 Japanese businesses are committing to invest nearly £18 billion in the UK, Rishi Sunak has announced as he meets the bosses of major firms in Tokyo. The Prime Minister said the pledges are a “massive vote of confidence” in the British economy after he painted an optimistic outlook for the national finances. But Mr Sunak [...]
Sunak in China row over Confucius Institute U-turn May 18, 2023 Downing Street has refused to elaborate on Rishi Sunak’s decision not to ban controversial Confucius Institutes from operating in the UK. The Prime Minister previously pledged during his leadership bid to bar the 30 Beijing-linked organisations from running on UK soil. Confucius institutes are Chinese cultural and language outposts. But he has now walked back [...]
Starmer vows to break high-tax, low-growth ‘doom loop’ May 18, 2023 Sir Keir Starmer has vowed the Labour Party will ensure “investment thrives” in order to boost growth in the UK economy if he is elected Prime Minister. The opposition leader hinted he would step up government investment and launch policies to boost private investment. Asked by City A.M. about investment and tax and spending policies, [...]
Critics pour cold water on sewage companies’ apology for spills May 18, 2023 Critics have poured cold water on sewage companies apologising for spills as they prepare to invest £10bn in modernisation. The bid to clean up Britain’s waters comes in the wake of campaigning from environmental activists and locals over the scale of sewage spillages from big water companies. Water UK, the industry membership body, yesterday announced [...]