£265bn in spent by quangos every year not properly accounted for, MPs warn September 24, 2021 MPs warned this morning that a review of arm’s-length bodies which are responsible for spending £265bn a year of taxpayers’ money has not been completed five years after it was promised. The Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said that although the Cabinet Office had promised to review every so-called quango between 2016 and 2020, just [...]
Hillary Clinton to be installed as chancellor of Queen’s University in Belfast September 24, 2021 Former US Secretary of State and former First Lady Hillary Clinton said her mission is to inspire young people in Northern Ireland as she prepared to be installed as chancellor of Queen’s University. The former US secretary of state, who is the first woman appointed as chancellor of the Belfast academic institution, will attend an [...]
Report: George Osborne’s ‘bonfire of the quangos’ has ‘failed to spark’ September 24, 2021 George Osborne’s so-called “bonfire of the quangos” in 2010 has been a failure as spending by these government bodies has almost tripled, according to a new parliamentary report. A new report from Westminster’s Public Accounts Committee today claims Osborne’s reforms “failed to spark” and that the Cabinet Office has “not been enforcing the code for public [...]
Westminster’s Beis committee to probe post-Brexit subsidies regime September 23, 2021 A Westminster committee is set to probe the UK’s post-Brexit subsidies regime and the role of the competition watchdog post-Brexit. The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) committee’s inquiry will look at “the main opportunities and challenges for businesses under the new UK state aid regime” and “whether competition policy in the UK has weakened [...]
£1.3bn project to build five new high-tech Royal Navy warships kicks off September 23, 2021 As Defence Secretary Ben Wallace cut steel for the first vessel earlier today, work officially started on a £1.3bn project to build the Royal Navy’s five new warships. The ceremony for HMS Venturer today took place at Babcock’s facility at Rosyth in Fife, where the new Type 31 frigates are being built. The newest of [...]
Watch as Boris Johnson tells the world to ‘grow up’ September 23, 2021 Prime Minister Boris Johnson pushed the world to “grow up” and tackle climate change during his annual United Nations address to world leaders last night. Watch the full report.
Liz Truss visits Mexico to boost support for UK to join trade bloc CPTPP September 23, 2021 Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will travel to Mexico today to build support for the UK to join one of the biggest free trade areas in the world and boost Britain’s diplomatic ties with the country. “Closer ties with Mexico,” Truss said, “are a key part of our plan to strengthen economic, security and diplomatic links [...]
Khan on climate: ‘We either take bold action now or face the consequences’ September 23, 2021 “London is at a crossroads,” London mayor Sadiq Khan is expected to say later today, as climate change can bring both flooding and soaring temperatures to the capital as extreme weather increases. In an address ahead of COP26 in November, Khan is set to warn that “time is running out” to meet the requirements of [...]
Government must ‘level up’ foreign investment across Britain, urges select committee September 23, 2021 An influential commons select committee has criticised the government for failing to map out its plan for spreading foreign investment more evenly across the UK to achieve its “levelling up agenda”. The International Trade Committee (ITC) slammed the government in a report published today for promoting foreign investment’s role in boosting economic prosperity in forgotten [...]
Boris Johnson tells France to ‘donnez-moi un break’ over AUKUS sub deal September 22, 2021 Boris Johnson has told France “prenez un grip” and donnez-moi un break” over the trilateral deal between the UK, US and Australia to build new nuclear submarines. Johnson appeared to mock the French for their furious response to the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, which saw Australia renege on a £50bn deal with Emmanuel Macron’s government. [...]