Raab: ‘Nothing off the table’ on sanctioning Russian oil and gas assets March 1, 2022 The UK government is still considering sanctions on Russian oil and gas supplies, according to comments made by deputy prime minister Dominic Raab today. Raab told the BBC: “I think we will look at that very carefully… As we take action to starve the Russian war machine, there is nothing that is off the table.” [...]
Ministers branded ‘snowflakes’ for trying to curtail protests because they ‘cry into their port in the evening’ March 1, 2022 Ministers are “snowflakes” and are trying to curtail protests because they “cry into their port in the evening when people say things that they don’t like”, MPs heard. Labour MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Brighton Kemptown) told the Commons: “The Government didn’t like the Black Lives Matter protests when tens of thousands of young people went onto [...]
Kwasi Kwarteng: Fracking not the answer to soaring energy bills February 28, 2022 The business secretary has rejected onshore fracking for gas as the solution to swollen energy prices. In a series of tweets on Monday, Kwasi Kwarteng pointed instead to investment in “cheap, clean power” in order to protect the UK from global gas markets. Extra supply generated from untapped shale reserves in the UK “won’t materially [...]
City workers to get multi-year visas as part of inked UK-New Zealand trade deal February 28, 2022 City workers will now be eligible to access multi-year New Zealand visas, after the UK inked a post-Brexit trade deal with Jacinda Ardern’s government today. Department of International Trade estimates say the deal will add 0.03 per cent to UK GDP every year from 2035, with growth in UK services set to make up the [...]
Liz Truss says ban on Russia Today risks Kremlin crackdown on the BBC February 28, 2022 Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has warned that if the UK bans Russia Today then the BBC could be banned from Russia amid fears of a Kremlin crackdown. She said: “We want the Russian population to hear the truth about what Vladimir Putin is doing”. It comes after calls in the UK that the state-controlled Russian [...]
UK outlines measures to clamp down on Russian oligarchs using the ‘London laundromat’ February 28, 2022 The UK has announced a package of measures today to help ban corrupt Russian oligarchs from laundering their money in London, which will aim to force foreign owners of British assets to reveal their true identities. Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said the package will stop “oligarchs and kleptocrats from Russia and elsewhere” who “have used [...]
Shell under pressure as politicians urge firms to follow BP’s lead and ditch Kremlin-backed assets February 28, 2022 BEIS member Alexander Stafford has urged companies to follow BP's lead and sever ties with Kremlin-backed organisations.
Ukraine: UK bans Russian banks from clearing payments in Sterling February 28, 2022 The UK will ban Russian banks from clearing payments in Sterling and has frozen the British assets of a further three financial instiutions today. Foreign secretary Liz Truss said the US will also ban Russian banks from clearing payments in US dollars as well. She said that investment firm VEB, Sovcombank and Otkritie Bank will [...]
Hong Kong experiences yet another exodus as ‘zero-Covid’ stance bites February 28, 2022 Hong Kong is experiencing yet another exodus as a result of Beijing’s tough ‘zero-Covid’ stance, as outbound flights hit a new pandemic-era record. Major airlines saw a surge in bookings from Hong Kong last week, Bloomberg first reported, despite the global financial hub’s so-called ‘draconian’ Covid-19 restrictions. The city has already seen its population shrink [...]
UN report: The world is unprepared for the impacts of climate change February 28, 2022 The world is unprepared for the impacts of climate change, a new UN report has warned, as finance for adaptation “woefully” trails finance for mitigating its worst effects. Weather and climate extremes have already begun causing economic and societal impacts through supply-chains, markets, and flows of natural resources, the report by the Intergovernmental Panel on [...]