MPs demand answers from Rishi Sunak on PPE procurement November 20, 2020 MPs have demanded an explanation from chancellor Rishi Sunak on the government’s awarding of contracts to procure personal protective equipment (PPE) during the pandemic, following a damning report from the UK’s accounts watchdog. At least £18bn-worth of PPE contracts signed by the government showed “a lack of transparency” and were missing essential paperwork, the National [...]
WAGs to riches: Rebekah Vardy wins first round of High Court battle against Coleen Rooney November 20, 2020 Rebekah Vardy has won the first round in her ‘Wagatha Christie’ High Court battle against fellow footballer’s wife Coleen Rooney, and will receive an initial £23,000 in costs from Rooney. London’s High Court ruled that Rooney’s social media post accusing fellow ‘wife and girlfriend’ (WAG) Vardy of leaking false stories about her to the media [...]
Coronavirus: R rate falls across UK to between 1 and 1.1 November 20, 2020 The UK’s coronavirus reproduction number has fallen slightly to a maximum of 1.1, according to official figures. The current estimate of Britain’s coronavirus R rate now stands between 1 and 1.1, down from a previous estimate of 1.1 and 1.2. It means on average every 10 people infected will infect between 10 and 11 other [...]
Boris Johnson vows ‘no return to austerity’ amid plans to freeze public sector pay November 20, 2020 Nearly 4m public sector workers may face a pay freeze next year, including soldiers, police officers, teachers and civil servants
Government to roll out free flu vaccinations for over-50s November 19, 2020 Over-50s will be eligible for free flu vaccines from 1 December in a bid to stop the NHS being overloaded from the “twin threats” of flu and coronavirus during the winter. In the largest ever flu vaccination programme in England, individuals aged between 50 and 64 will now be able to get flu vaccines from [...]
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.
Buzzfeed strikes deal to buy HuffPost in stock deal November 19, 2020 Buzzfeed has agreed to acquire Verizon Media-owned HuffPost in a stock deal, in a move that will tie together two of the largest digital media players. The two news sites will be able to syndicate content on each other’s platforms and explore joint advertising opportunities under the agreement. “From powering new consumer shopping experiences, to [...]
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 [...]
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. [...]
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 [...]
