UK failing to tackle fraud epidemic, warns National Audit Office November 15, 2022 The UK government lacks a coherent strategy for tackling fraud and has significant gaps in its understanding of the problem, according to a new report by the National Audit Office (NAO). The situation has seen action taken against fraudsters drop over the past five years, even as the level of fraud across the economy has [...]
Price of independence: Scots warned breaking away from UK may mean 20 per cent cut in income November 15, 2022 Crashing out of the Pound Sterling in the wake of an independence vote would cost the average Scottish household 20 per cent of their income, according to new analysis published today. The findings set out how the introduction of a new Scottish currency would hike the cost of imports, increase debt costs and lead to [...]
Rishi Sunak commits to warship expansion as war in Ukraine continues November 15, 2022 Rishi Sunak has said that the UK plans to build five more British warships as the war in Ukraine continues to rage on. The Prime Minister is currently attending the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, which has been dominated by talk of Russia’s invasion. Sunak announced that defence manufacturer BAE Systems had been awarded a £4.2bn contract [...]
Virgin’s ‘Pride’ Airbus called Rainbow to fly England squad to Qatar World Cup today November 15, 2022 Team England is reportedly flying off to Qatar today on a plane called ‘Rainbow’. The Virgin Atlantic Airbus, which is chartered by FA, also carried the registration number PRD, or short for ‘Pride’. Moreover, the Airbus plane also features a cartoon of a man holding wearing Rainbow-coloured shoes, while he carries the Union flag, according [...]
Hunt readies for biggest budget since Cameron and Osborne’s first outing November 15, 2022 Thursday’s budget (okay, Autumn Statement) is the biggest since David Cameron and George Osborne’s first statement in 2010, just after they seized the keys to number 10 (with a little help from the Liberal Democrats) from Gordon Brown’s Labour. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt faces a daunting task. Weaker than expected economic growth, high inflation and a [...]
“On the to-do list”: City minister promises reform as London slips behind Paris November 14, 2022 THE CITY minister Andrew Griffith yesterday said post-Brexit financial services reforms were on his “to do list” after new figures suggesting Paris’ stock market had overtaken London’s sent a shockwave through the Square Mile. The total value of all listings in the French capital overtook London last month, according to number crunchers at Bloomberg. Whilst [...]
HMRC’s Covid fraud taskforce to leave billions unaccounted for November 14, 2022 An HMRC unit set up to tackle Covid fraud is set to leave £3.3bn outstanding when it winds down in March 2023, campaigners have warned. The Taxpayer Protection Taskforce, which was set up by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in March 2021, will be phased out, despite having collected less than 25 per cent of the money [...]
Badenoch to push for ‘muscular liberalism and free trade’ in US trip November 14, 2022 The UK and US must show the world that “muscular liberalism and free trade are a force for good”, trade secretary Kemi Badenoch has said before her trip to Washington. The Department for International Trade (DIT) said Badenoch, who is leaving today, would “promote UK-US trade” during her trip while speaking out against protectionism. Badenoch [...]
‘Rude and aggressive’: Fresh claims rock Sunak govt with spotlight on Raab ‘the Incinerator’ for bullying November 14, 2022 Rishi Sunak’s new government is facing fresh allegations of bullying and harassment at work, only days after Gavin Williamson stepped down as Cabinet Office minister as questions arose over his behaviour towards colleague. Now it has emerged that eight people working in Dominic Raab’s private office during his tenure as foreign secretary claimed to have [...]
UK has too many agencies responsible for fraud, ex-culture secretary says November 13, 2022 The UK needs a more streamlined way to combat fraud instead of relying on the “alphabet soup” of agencies that currently operate, Baroness Nicky Morgan has said. Morgan, a former digital and culture secretary, said the UK is a “world leader” in digital fraud and that there are “far too many agencies and regulators and [...]