London councils expect inflation to burn £400m hole in finances amid cost of living crisis June 20, 2022 London boroughs are expecting inflation to burn a £400m hole in their finances, according to a local government association. London Councils, the cross-party organisation which covers all 32 London borough councils and the City of London, said today that rising inflation has cut £100m from the financial uplift boroughs received for 2022-23. Inflation levels, currently at a [...]
Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg accused of ‘playing silly games’ with security staff by refusing to wear parliamentary pass June 20, 2022 Brexit opportunities minister Jacob Rees-Mogg has been accused of “playing silly games” with parliamentary security, by not wearing his pass to enter the Westminster estate. The eccentric Tory politician who is also responsible for government efficiency was criticised this week by the PCS union, over claims he refused to wear the pass on him at [...]
Pfizer injects £77m into Valneva, days after French firm settles dispute with UK government June 20, 2022 Pfizer will inject $95m (£77.6m) into French pharmaceutical firm Valneva for an eight per cent stake, just days after the French pharmaceutical firm settled a Covid-19 dispute with the UK government. Pfizer, a Big Pharma firm behind one of the world’s Covid-19 vaccines, has entered an equity subscription agreement with Valneva, as it plans to [...]
Mystery deepens around Times story that claimed Boris Johnson planned to make girlfriend Carrie £100k chief of staff June 20, 2022 Questions are growing about a story that appeared in The Times newspaper, claiming that Boris Johnson planned to hand his then-girlfriend Carrie a £100k a year role. The story, which ran on page 5 of an earlier edition of The Times late last week, disappeared in later editions. According to multiple reports, there were concerns [...]
Missing out on £142 per week: More older Brits slide into poverty after rise of state pension age from 65 to 66 June 20, 2022 Roughly around one in seven 65-year-olds were in income poverty in late 2020 as a direct consequence of the state pension age rising from 65 to 66, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). Between late 2018 and late 2020, the state pension age for men and women rose from 65 to 66, leaving [...]
London boroughs sound the alarm bells as skyrocketing inflation is eating £400m hole into budget June 20, 2022 Skyrocketing inflation is driving £400m of additional budget pressures on boroughs in the capital, London Councils warned this morning. Although the government increased local authority funding this year, fast-rising inflation has effectively cut £100m from the financial uplift boroughs received for 2022-23. London Councils, a cross-party group representing all 32 boroughs and the City of [...]
Commonwealth is ‘unique’ opportunity for Global Britain after Brexit, says Boris Johnson ahead of leaders meeting in Rwanda June 20, 2022 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said that Britain’s membership of the Commonwealth provides a “unique opportunity” to expand its trade with a series of “vast and growing” markets now that it has left the EU. The Prime Minister, who will this week attend the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Rwanda, said economic links with [...]
Germany turns to coal as Russia puts pressure on gas supplies June 20, 2022 Germany will ramp up coal supplies and offer heavy subsidies to gas giants to ensure it can meet its energy needs this winter.
Irish PM: UK’s Northern Ireland Protocol plan is ‘economic vandalism’ June 19, 2022 The UK’s plan to rip up large parts of the post-Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol has been decried as “economic vandalism” by Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin. Martin today said there were “legitimate issues” around the protocol, but that Boris Johnson’s response would damage Northern Ireland’s economy further. Foreign secretary Liz Truss introduced legislation last week [...]
Gordon Brown predicts government will ditch tax rises June 19, 2022 Gordon Brown has predicted Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak will ditch a series of planned tax rises in the face of the UK’s poor economic outlook. The former PM also hit out at the government for having “no plan” and lurching from “crisis to crisis”. The Bank of England this week moved to raise interest [...]