ULEZ row: Khan reassures 90 per cent are unaffected by expansion, as 700K face new charge and ‘massive financial impact’ March 24, 2023 Nearly 700,000 car drivers in London will face a daily £12.50 ultra low emission zone (Ulez) fee when the scheme expands, according to new analysis. The RAC, which carried out the research, said the expansion of the zone from August 29 will have a “massive financial impact on motorists and businesses”. It comes a day [...]
Michael Gove: Four more firms signed up to Grenfell safety contracts after being named and shamed March 24, 2023 Michael Gove said four more companies have signed up to post-Grenfell building safety contracts after he named and shamed some of the firms earlier this month that had not signed up to the agreement. The Communities Secretary had given companies until March 13 to sign up to the agreement aimed at addressing cladding issues following [...]
Keir Starmer follows Rishi Sunak and publishes tax return March 23, 2023 Sir Keir Starmer has published his tax returns, showing he paid £67,000 in tax over the last year. The Labour leader paid £51,547 in 2020/21 and £67,033 in 2021/22, he said, which is a total of £118,607. It came just a day after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak published his own tax returns, which revealed he [...]
Starmer rejects ‘heads must roll’ approach to Met Police reform March 23, 2023 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has said he does not believe in a “heads must roll” approach to reforming the Met Police after an excoriating review into the failing force. Starmer said he would resist a “structural, break-it-up, heads must roll model” to overhauling the force. “I’ve seen that too often before where something goes [...]
TfL budget to cover costs but Londoners still set for fares hikes March 23, 2023 Transport for London (TfL) has said its latest budget will allow it to cover its operating costs, as fare rises continue to hit Londoners’ pockets with a four per cent rise set for next year. London’s transport network will achieve an overall operating surplus of £79m, its 2023/24 financial statement revealed, which it wants to [...]
Putin the boot in: Vladimir takes swipe at Britain over Russian sport ban lobbying March 23, 2023 Vladimir Putin has accused Russia’s critics including the UK of “using sports for unseemly purposes”. Putin said calls, led by Britain, for Russian athletes to remain banned from international sport were politically motivated. “Western countries are trying to use sports for unseemly purposes as a tool of pressure,” the Russian president told news agency TASS. [...]
Defiant Boris Johnson insists ‘I did not lie’ and claimed boozy leaving do was ‘essential’ March 22, 2023 A defiant Boris Johnson insisted he “did not lie to the House” and claimed a boozy leaving do was “essential for work” in a fiery evidence session set to determine his political future. Johnson underwent a fierce grilling by the cross-party privileges committee, as MPs aimed to decide if he misled – intentionally or recklessly [...]
Rishi Sunak’s Brexit deal passes despite 22 Tory MPs rebelling including Johnson, Patel, Truss and IDS March 22, 2023 MPs have voted in favour of regulations to implement the Stormont brake aspect of Rishi Sunak’s Windsor Framework Brexit deal by 515 votes to 29. The prime minister’s agreement with the EU on a revised plan for post-Brexit trade in Northern Ireland (NI) was backed by a majority of 486 MPs in the House of [...]
Partygate: Johnson ally admits ‘bring your own booze’ email invite was ‘totally inappropriate’ March 22, 2023 An email inviting No10 staff to “socially distanced drinks” during the Covid-19 pandemic was “totally inappropriate” in its wording, the senior official who sent it has admitted. Martin Reynolds, then Boris Johnson’s principal private secretary, emailed staff inviting them to come for drinks in the No10 garden during the “lovely weather” on May 20, 2020. [...]
Tory rebellion grows as Liz Truss, Priti Patel and Iain Duncan Smith to REJECT Rishi Sunak’s Brexit deal March 22, 2023 Rishi Sunak is facing down a growing mutiny on his backbenches as Liz Truss, Priti Patel and Sir Iain Duncan Smith are all set to vote against his Brexit deal for Northern Ireland. The former prime minister, ex-home secretary and previous Tory leader have said they will not support Sunak’s agreement negiotiated with the EU [...]