Major UK insurers call on government to extend pension auto-enrollment to young workers March 4, 2022 A group of major British insurance firms and pension funds have called on the government to extend the UK’s pension auto-enrollment terms to include young and low-wage workers. The group sent a letter to Rishi Sunak yesterday to call on the government to “level up pensions for everyone” by abolishing the “lower earnings limit and [...]
Boris Johnson announces latest sanctions vowing to inflict “maximum economic pain” on Russia March 3, 2022 Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced an additional round of sanctions against Russian oligarchs and vowed to “inflict maximum economic pain” on Putin’s regime. “For as long as Putin continues his barbaric attack on innocent Ukrainians we will continue to exert every power we have to inflict maximum economic pain on Putin and his war [...]
Gavin Williamson given knighthood by Boris Johnson March 3, 2022 Former cabinet minister Gavin Williamson will be given a knighthood by Boris Johnson, after being sacked as education secretary last September. The Tory MP for South Staffordshire was also sacked in 2019 as Theresa May’s defence secetary for allegedly leaking National Security Council documents. Williamson came under fire during his time as education secretary for [...]
Putin warns war will continue ‘until the end’ unless Russia’s terms are met while airstrike kills 22 and talks resume March 3, 2022 At least 22 civilians have been killed in a Russian airstrike on the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, Ukraine said, while Ukrainian forces are battling Russian troops for control of Enerhodar, which has Europe’s largest nuclear plant, the city’s mayor told various media outlets. Meanwhile, Ukraine President Zelensky’s office said this afternoon the second round [...]
Ukraine invasion ‘will definitely accelerate the EU’s progress towards net zero,’ says analyst March 3, 2022 Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has put pressure on Europe’s energy grid, as it imposes sanctions on its largest oil and gas supplier. Europe is the largest home for Russian crude oil, with around 53 per cent of it ending up on the continent, according to the latest research by ING’s head of commodities strategy Warren [...]
IAEA: Iran’s near weapons-grade uranium reaches over 15 times its 2015 nuclear deal limit March 3, 2022 Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium, which nears weapons-grade, is more than 15 times the limit set out in the 2015 nuclear deal, according to the UN’s nuclear watchdog. The country’s stock includes 33.2 kg of uranium enriched to up to 60 per cent purity, the report seen by Reuters said, an increase of 15.5 kg. [...]
Brave soul: Russian businessman puts $1m bounty on Vladimir Putin’s head for war crimes March 3, 2022 A Russian businessman has said he will pay $1m for anyone who arrests Russia’s president Vladimir Putin for war crimes. Alex Konanykhin is urging Russian military leaders to arrest and detain Putin as a war criminal. In a post on Facebook, the California-based crypto investor writes “I promise to pay $1,000,000 to the officer(s) who, [...]
Number 10 ‘prioritising’ sanctions on Russian banks over Kremlin-linked oligarchs March 3, 2022 The UK is prioritising sanctions on Russian financial services firms instead of oligarchs because it will have a larger effect on stopping the “Russian war machine”, according to Number 10. Boris Johnson has been criticised in the past few days for not levelling more sanctions against Kremlin-linked oligarchs, particularly Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, as the [...]
Labour calls on government to ban UK luxury goods exports to Russia March 3, 2022 Labour is calling on the government to ban the export of British luxury goods to Russia as a part of the sanctions package levelled against Vladimir Putin’s regime. Shadow international trade secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds said the government must clamp down on companies like Burberry and Vivienne Westwood selling their goods to Russia to ensure “Putin [...]
New UK sanctions: Russian aviation and space industry blocked from insurance market March 3, 2022 The UK government has imposed fresh sanctions targeting Russia’s aviation and space industry, meaning that businesses cannot access the UK insurance sector. The measures, hauled in in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, will “severely limit” access to the global insurance and reinsurance market, the UK government announced today. The European Union (EU) is expected [...]