Is going to university actually worth it — and who should decide? November 20, 2020 What are universities for? It’s the sort of navel-gazing question that academics love to pose, and the sort of deep philosophical terrain that pragmatic policy people fear getting sucked too far into. But with the government and regulators looking at new ways to measure and compare the quality of different degrees, it is a conversation [...]
Singing of arms and the man: Behind the big Boris defence announcement November 20, 2020 The announcement was preceded, of course, by a leak to the media, so that it could make a splash in the morning press. Standard practice these days, unfortunately — but the story was still an impressive one: the Prime Minister was giving the Ministry of Defence an extra £4bn a year for the next four [...]
Brexit negotiations to continue remotely following positive Covid case November 19, 2020 Brexit talks will continue remotely after being put on hold earlier today on the news a member of the EU negotiating team tested positive for Covid.
London business groups urge Sunak to give capital its fair share in spending review November 19, 2020 A pair of London business advocacy groups have called for the capital to receive significant amounts of funding in Rishi Sunak’s spending review next week amid fears the city could be overlooked. London First and the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry told City A.M. that it was vital the capital was not forgotten by [...]
Test and Trace bosses ‘set out plans to rebuild public trust’ November 19, 2020 Test and Trace bosses have set out plans to “rebuild public trust” among local councils, according to reports, as the contact tracing app this week failed to identify 123,000 positive cases of coronavirus. According to leaked slides seen by Sky News, government officials heading up England’s contact tracing scheme believe they need to “reset” their [...]
China warns West on Hong Kong: ‘Their eyes will be plucked out’ November 19, 2020 China has warned the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand and Canada to stay out of its affairs after the countries accused Beijing of silencing critics in Hong Kong. The Five Eyes alliance slammed China’s introduction of new rules that allows it to disqualify elected legislators in Hong Kong. The countries yesterday called on Beijing to [...]
Two-thirds of London boroughs launch their own local contact tracing systems November 19, 2020 Almost two-thirds of London boroughs have launched their own contact tracing platforms as confidence in the government’s Track and Trace app continues to plummet. Redbridge and Hammersmith and Fulham today joined a list of 21 out of 32 London boroughs that have snubbed the national system in favour of localised approaches to tackling the virus. [...]
Exclusive: Sadiq Khan’s PR budget soars by 33 per cent in four years November 19, 2020 Sadiq Khan has increased City Hall spending on public relations by 33 per cent over the course of his term in office, according to newly released figures. Numbers released by City Hall through a freedom of information request show the mayor spent £977,912 on press office costs for 2019/20, compared to £732,537 in 2015/16. Spending [...]
Boris Johnson set to only warn Priti Patel over bullying claims November 19, 2020 Boris Johnson is reportedly preparing to censure Priti Patel over bullying civil servants, but will stop short of sacking the home secretary. An inquiry into Patel’s conduct toward civil servants in the Home Department was launched nine months ago after a series of complaints. Included among the complainants was the department’s top civil servant Philip [...]
Covid cases in England spike as rapid testing picks up pace November 19, 2020 Coronavirus cases in England hiked 11 per cent in England last week, NHS Test and Trace said today, as the government rolled out rapid Covid tests across the country. Test and Trace reported 167,369 confirmed coronavirus cases between 5 November and 11 November, up 11 per cent on the previous week. London saw an average [...]