Senior Tory warns of backbench revolt if Johnson does not soon drop Covid restrictions January 9, 2022 A senior Tory MP has warned Boris Johnson that there will be a major backbench revolt against him if the current Covid restrictions are not dropped by the end of the month. Mark Harper, who is the chair of the lockdown sceptic Tory Covid Recovery Group, said Johnson should drop mandatory face masks in indoor [...]
Trevelyan to travel to India to discuss post-Brexit trade deal January 9, 2022 International trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan will travel to India on Wednesday in a bid to boost the prospects of a post-Brexit trade deal. Trevelyan will meet with Indian minister of commerce and industry Piyush Goyal as a part of her two-day New Delhi trip to speak about green trade, the removal of market access barriers [...]
Sunak: Britain poised to unlock well of untapped digital innovation January 9, 2022 BRITAIN is set to unleash a wave of economic growth by unlocking a well of untapped digital innovation, according to Chancellor Rishi Sunak. Fast growing startups and fintech firms are poised to propel the UK economy into a new digital age. “The digital economy… is a huge opportunity for us. We have one of the [...]
UK’s green tax burden to increase by 40 per cent during Johnson’s premiership January 9, 2022 The UK’s green tax burden is set to increase by 40 per cent throughout the course of Boris Johnson’s premiership, according to new research from a think tank. The TaxPayers’ Alliance calculates that tax revenues from green taxes will rise to £16.7bn by 2023-24, when the next election is due, after they were £11.7bn in 2019. [...]
David Frost tells PM to adopt more conservative policies or risk losing election January 9, 2022 Boris Johnson must adopt a low-tax agenda or risk losing the next election, according to former cabinet minister Lord David Frost. Frost, who resigned from his role as a Cabinet Office minister last month, said that Johnson needs to “get the country going economically again” post-Brexit and “that means free markets, free debate and low [...]
Brexit: EU ambassador hits out at Truss for ‘unhelpful’ comments on NI Protocol January 9, 2022 A war of words between the UK and EU over the post-Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol has reignited just days before negotiations are set to resume. The EU’s ambassador to the UK Joao Vale de Almeida today said renewed threats by foreign secretary Liz Truss to trigger Article 16 and suspend the protocol were “unsurprising” and [...]
Tory chairman Ben Elliot tables plans to sell off Quintessentially January 9, 2022 Tory chairman Ben Elliot has reportedly tabled plans to sell his Quintessentially, as several business eye the luxury concierge business for takeover. While advisers have not yet been appointed, Quintessentially has hopes of securing a deal as soon as possible, the Telegraph reported, after the company hit rocky waters last year as lockdown restrictions [...]
Labour calls for windfall tax on North Sea oil and gas in bid to cut energy bills January 9, 2022 Labour is calling for a windfall tax on North Sea oil and gas to pay for a series of measures that would cut household energy bills by around £600 per year for the country’s lowest wage earners. The plan, unveiled today, would see every consumer save just under £200 per year and 9m of the [...]
Zahawi says cutting Covid isolation period to five days would be ‘helpful’ January 9, 2022 A senior cabinet minister has expressed his support for cutting the Covid self-isolation period from seven to five days. Education secretary Nadhim Zahawi said the measure, which has been recommended by America’s Centre for Disease Control, would be “helpful” for the British economy as the Omicron wave hits its peak. It comes as new analysis [...]
EU’s nuclear power plans needs €500bn investment, says market commissioner January 9, 2022 The European Union’s new generation nuclear power plans will require a €500bn investment by 2050, according to the bloc’s internal market commissioner. The regeneration plan forms part of the bloc’s bid to decarbonise its energy grid, with Thierry Breton urging that the EU’s labelling of nuclear energy as ‘green’ alternatives will be vital for drawing [...]