EU orders more Pfizer vaccine doses as Sweden joins countries halting Astrazeneca jab March 16, 2021 The EU has ordered more doses of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine to plug a shortfall that has arisen from a swathe of countries banning the Astrazeneca jab over safety concerns. European Commission president Ursula Von der Leyen announced on Twitter that the EU had agreed an “accelerated delivery of 10m doses” of the Pfizer vaccine to [...]
UK foreign policy to pivot to Indo-Pacific after landmark integrated review March 15, 2021 The UK will undergo a major strategic policy change by pivoting toward Indo-Pacific countries like India as a result of the government’s long-awaited integrated defence and foreign policy review. The review will also see the government create a Situation Centre that will mimic the White House’s Situation Room and a new counter-terrorism operations centre. The [...]
Londoners protest against police after Sarah Everard vigil disruption in Clapham March 15, 2021 Londoners protest against police after Sarah Everard vigil disruption in Clapham
Priti Patel calls for ‘balance of rights’ between protesters and individuals as she introduces protest crackdown March 15, 2021 Priti Patel has told MPs that “there is a balance to be struck” between the rights of protesters and individuals as she today introduced new legislation that will crackdown on some form of protesting. The new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, if passed into law, will give the police powers to set start and [...]
Sadiq Khan calls for more government engagement on financial services post-Brexit March 15, 2021 Sadiq Khan has called for the government to provide greater clarity for the City of London post-Brexit, with the mayor telling Rishi Sunak to “address the concerns of London’s financial and professional services sector”. Khan wrote to the chancellor today to call for the government to secure equivalence for the financial services sector, in order [...]
Vaccine rollout gives Tories a pre-election boost from over 64s, says expert pollster March 15, 2021 The UK’s quick rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine appears to have given the Tories a boost ahead of the May local elections among those over 64, according to an expert pollster. Lord Robert Hayward today told a group of journalists that Boris Johnson and the Conservatives’ improved poll ratings, which have been driven by an [...]
EU launches legal action against UK over Northern Ireland row March 15, 2021 The European Commission has launched legal action against the UK for its move to unilaterally postpone new post-Brexit checks on goods coming into Northern Ireland. The European Commission vice president Maros Sefcovic said today that the UK “must properly implement [the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement] to achieve our objectives”, which is “why we are launching legal [...]
London minister Paul Scully on his rise to government March 15, 2021 Paul Scully seems a natural fit for London minister. While the Sutton and Cheam MP didn’t grow up in the capital, Scully was born in Warwickshire and went to school in Bedforshire, he certainly sounds like a nailed-on Londoner. His south London twang is noticeable and so is his relaxed, chatty demeanour – the antithesis [...]
EU considers turning to Russia’s Sputnik vaccine as Astrazeneca scepticism swells March 15, 2021 The EU is in discussions to place an order of Russia’s Sputnik vaccine, according to reports, as scepticism about the efficacy and possible side effects of Astrazeneca’s Covid jab considers to spread across the continent. The bloc is now turning to Moscow’s Sputnik V vaccine as it attempts to speed up its sluggish immunisation programme, [...]
Netherlands and Ireland suspend rollout of Astrazeneca jab March 15, 2021 The Netherlands and Ireland have joined a growing list of countries that have temporarily suspended the rollout of the Astrazeneca vaccine over possible side effects. Ireland announced the two-week ban yesterday after Norway reported that one person had died and three had been admitted to hospital after receiving the shot. Dr Karina Butler, head of [...]