Chasm widens between Sunak and Johnson on cost of net zero October 17, 2021 A leaked government document has revealed a widening chasm between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak over the economic impact of the UK reaching net zero by 2050. Despite Johnson preparing to put the UK at the forefront of global efforts to fight climate change as host of Cop26 climate summit next month, [...]
Airlift 240m Covid-19 vaccines says Gordon Brown after COVAX scheme misses target October 17, 2021 Former prime minister Gordon Brown has urged that 240m Covid-19 vaccines being distributed to countries in the global south could save 100,000 lives. It follows the global COVAX scheme, a World Health Organisation (WHO) programme designed so wealthier countries can donate vaccine doses to states less able to bulk buy, missed its target, according to [...]
Putin could miss COP26 climate conference October 17, 2021 Vladimir Putin has not decided whether to attend the upcoming COP26 climate conference in Glasgow later this month. Russian ambassador to the UK, Andrei Kelin, told Andrew Marr that a decision on the president’s trip has “not been taken yet”. This follows Wednesday’s comments from the Russian premier that he might avoid the conference due [...]
Raise a glass: Sunak set to overhaul alcohol tax regime October 17, 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak is set to overhaul the UK’s alcohol tax regime to give English wines an advantage over foreign wines. Sunak is preparing to scrap onerous levies on sparkling wine and bring the tax charged in line with the same rate as still wine, wiping an estimated 83p off bottles of bubbly, according to [...]
Paper rail tickets to be ripped up across South East England October 17, 2021 Ministers are set to scrap paper rail tickets across South East England in favour of contactless payments. The contactless payments will be integrated into London’s Oyster card system. Transport officials reportedly want to expand pay-as-you-go smartcards in a pre-emptive strike against trade unions. The unions are opposing the potential closure of ticket offices across the [...]
Gove the gardener: Are plans for a Tulip tower in London set to bloom again? October 17, 2021 Tulip fever is heading to London, with housing secretary Michael Gove tipped to overule London mayor Sadiq Khan’s decision to squash plans for a flower-inspired skyscraper in the City. Gove is expected to give the plans for a 300m tower the OK, the Telegraph reported, which would overturn Khan’s 2019 decision against the Tulip. At [...]
Priti Patel: MPs could get police protection for constituency surgeries October 17, 2021 Home Secretary Priti Patel has said the government is considering giving MPs police protection while they carry out their constituency surgeries, in the wake of the killing of Conservative MP Sir David Amess at his on Friday. Patel said the Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle had already taken a “range of measures” since the brutal [...]
Raab sets out plans to end European judges ‘dictating’ UK on human rights October 17, 2021 The new Justice Secretary, Dominic Raab, has revealed new details about how he plans to prevent interference from Strasbourg in British matters as part of his overhaul of the Human Rights Act. At the Conservative Party conference earlier this month, the Justice Secretary said Boris Johnson had given him the task of rewriting the law [...]
United Nations job offer to Matt Hancock withdrawn after only three days October 16, 2021 A United Nations job offer to disgraced former health secretary Matt Hancock has apparently been withdrawn after only three days. Earlier this week, Hancock announced he had been appointed a special representative to the UN in an unpaid role. The former cabinet minister, who resigned in June after admitting he broke coronavirus restrictions during relations [...]
Home Secretary: MPs security review under way October 16, 2021 Home Secretary Priti Patel has announced that a review of MPs’ security measures is under way after the fatal stabbing of Essex MP Sir David Amess. As reported by the BBC, Patel said that “acts like this are absolutely wrong and cannot get in the way of our functioning democracy,” adding that appropriate security will [...]