Tory donors warn Boris Johnson that tax rises will kill off economic recovery August 1, 2021 Prominent Tory donors have urged Boris Johnson not to implement tax rises this autumn as they fear it could hamper the post-Covid economic recovery. Johnson and Rishi Sunak are expected to soon announce a 1 per cent increase in National Insurance in a bid to fix gaps in the health and social care sectors. Sunak [...]
Pizza and shopping discounts to be offered to boost vaccine take-up August 1, 2021 People will be offered discounts on pizza, cinema trips and ride sharing apps if they get vaccinated as a part of a campaign by the government to get more young adults to take the vaccine. The government is reportedly speaking to dozens of companies, including coffee and cinema chains, about rolling out a voucher scheme [...]
Truss: UK has made ‘great progress’ in New Zealand free trade deal negotiations July 31, 2021 International trade secretary Liz Truss said the UK and New Zealand were “closing in” on a new free trade deal after the latest round of talks between the two countries concluded. Truss met with her Antipodean counterpart Damien O’Connor for a series of trade talks between 19 and 30 July, for a new free trade [...]
Court rules Grant Shapps’ plan to build £1.7bn tunnel near Stonehenge is ‘unlawful’ July 30, 2021 Transport secretary Grant Shapps was found to have made a “material error of law” over his controversial road building plans that include a tunnel near Stonehenge. In a court ruling on Friday, Shapps’ decision to approve the £1.7bn scheme to overhaul eight miles of the A303 and build a two-mile tunnel near Stonehenge was ruled [...]
Housing fraud trial: Labour MP Apsana Begum found not guilty July 30, 2021 Jurors today found Apsana Begum, Labour MP for Poplar and Limehouse, not guilty of three charges of dishonestly failing to disclose information relating to her social housing application. Ms Begum, 31, had been accused of withholding her true living conditions from Tower Hamlets council officials in an attempt to secure a social housing flat. The [...]
One of two men charged for assaulting Chris Whitty pleads guilty July 30, 2021 One half of a duo that was caught on video in an incident involving England’s chief medical officer (CMO) Chris Whitty has pleaded guilty to assault in court. Lewis Hughes, 24, today pleaded guilty to assault at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London. It comes after Hughes was charged with common assault at the beginning of [...]
UK Government won’t insist workers are jabbed to return to office, but rules out Covid passports July 30, 2021 Workers being double-jabbed before returning to the office is a “good idea” but will not be a legal requirement, Grant Shapps said, and he today ruled out Covid passports for pubs and shops. The Transport Secretary said some companies will require their staff to be fully vaccinated but it won’t become law. Shapps said that [...]
Hong Kong: First person charged under national security law sentenced to nine years July 30, 2021 The first person to be charged under Hong Kong’s national security law has been sentenced to nine years in prison. Tong Ying-Kit was arrested following a pro-democracy protest in the city last July in which he rode a motorbike into three police officers flying a flag with the phrase “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our [...]
Budget delay hinted at as Rishi Sunak fails to name day July 30, 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak has sparked speculation of delays to the budget, after failing to announce a date when publishing new forecasts, as is normally expected. Sunak said he had instructed the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to prepare to present an economic and fiscal forecast to parliament on October 27, according to reports. The forecast [...]
New travel rules are a stark reminder of previous government failures July 29, 2021 Even Boris Johnson’s most vocal supporters would admit the government’s Covid travel policy, insofar as it has had one, has been wracked with inconsistencies, confusion and inaction. Dominic Cummings’ suggestion that Johnson outright refused to implement a coherent travel policy in the second half of last year appears to be painfully true when confronting the [...]