Striking barristers should accept government’s ‘generous offer,’ justice minister says July 6, 2022 Justice secretary James Cartlidge has called on striking barristers to “reconsider” their actions, after claiming the government’s current legal aid offer is “generous” enough. Speaking in the House of Commons, Cartlidge accused “those engaged in action” of “threatening to increase waiting times” as he doubled down on existing plans to hike legal aid fees by [...]
Whitehall spending on City law firm advice increases to more than £700,000 a week July 6, 2022 The UK government spent more than £700,000 a week on advice from City law firms last year, according to new figures which show Whitehall’s legal fee budget increased by a fifth compared to the previous year. The government spent more than £36.5m on advice from major law firms in 2021-22, in paying out weekly sums [...]
UK mental health crisis sends disability benefits bill soaring, IFS says July 6, 2022 The UK’s mental health plight has led to a rise in disability benefits spending as claims increased. Research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies today showed that the number of people on disability benefits rose to 6 per cent of the working age population in 2020-2021, at 2.2m, with spending soaring by 70 per cent. [...]
Pound still at lowest level since start of pandemic amid government chaos July 6, 2022 The British pound is at its lowest level since the start of the Covid pandemic in March 2020 as the UK government faces a political crisis. The pound has slid 0.6% today to $1.1883 as a wave of ministers resigned from Boris Johnson’s government. Sterling initially dropped more than a cent to below $1.20 for [...]
Fire Bridges Union wins permission to challenge govt’s pension reforms via judicial review July 5, 2022 Public sector workers’ unions have been given permission to challenge a UK government’s pensions policy through a judicial review. A coalition of unions, led by the UK’s Fire Brigades Union (FBU), will be allowed to challenge the government’s decision to force members to pay for changes to public sector pensions schemes, instead of footing the [...]
MoJ denies telling court staff to hand over names of striking barristers July 4, 2022 The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has denied telling court staff to name striking barristers, after the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) threatened legal action over claims that any such instruction would breach UK data protection laws. An MoJ spokesperson said any claims the Justice Secretary or the MoJ told court staff to report the names of barristers who fail [...]
Covid loan fraudsters should turn themselves in to avoid harsher penalties, lawyers say July 4, 2022 Individuals who defrauded the government’s Covid support schemes should consider turning themselves in to avoid even harsher penalties, amid a far-reaching crackdown on those responsible for making fraudulent claims, lawyers have said. The comments come after figures from the UK’s Insolvency Service showed the executive agency has struck off a total of 179 company directors, [...]
UK Foreign Office to pay £423,000 to settle whistleblower’s employment claim July 4, 2022 The UK government has agreed to pay £423,000 to settle an employment lawsuit brought forward by one of its former prosecutors, over claims she was pushed out of her job at the Foreign Office, after she sought to blow the whistle on corruption involving suspected Kosovo criminals and officials from the EU. International prosecutor Mariah [...]
UK government provided £7.4bn for global exports last year and supported 72,000 jobs July 1, 2022 The UK government provided £7.4bn for global exports last year and supported 72,000 jobs in the country. The financial aid from UK Export Finance helped businesses nationwide for exports to 61 countries and added £4.3bn gross value to the economy, The £7.4bn is the highest level for 14 years, with the total support over five [...]
Staffing agencies slam govt’s plans to use agency staff as strikebreakers June 30, 2022 Staffing agencies have hit out at the government’s plans to lift a ban on using agency staff as strike breakers. In a letter to the government seen by City A.M., a group of the world’s biggest staffing agencies slammed the plans, put forward by business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, to overturn laws banning agency staff from [...]