Coronavirus: Boris Johnson to announce £3bn for NHS in second peak preparation July 16, 2020 Boris Johnson will announce more than £3bn in extra winter NHS funding tomorrow to prepare hospitals for a potential second peak of coronavirus. The Prime Minister will make the announcement at a press conference tomorrow, along with the news that the government will publish another chapter of its “roadmap” to exiting the Covid-19 lockdown. He [...]
Leicester lockdown to be eased on 24 July July 16, 2020 Leicester’s local lockdown will be eased on 24 July, after a drop in its coronavirus infection rate. Schools, early years child care and some non-essential retail shops will be allowed to reopen next week, but restaurants and pubs will remain closed. Restrictions on travel and meeting more than six people will also remain in place. [...]
Sir Patrick Vallance: UK coronavirus response has not achieved a good outcome July 16, 2020 The UK’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has not achieved a good outcome, according to chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance. Vallance told a parliamentary committee today that he thinks about why the UK has had so many deaths “a lot”, but added that the reason could be down to many factors. Vallance also said [...]
Kremlin-backed Cozy Bear hackers target UK coronavirus vaccine secrets July 16, 2020 Kremlin-linked cyber criminals have been allegedly hacking universities and organisations developing coronavirus vaccines in an attempt to steal sensitive information, according to the UK’s cyber security body. The hacking group known as APT29 – also known as Cozy Bear and The Dukes – has allegedly been trying to steal information across the globe from vaccine [...]
Russians tried to swing UK election with US trade papers used by Corbyn July 16, 2020 Russian actors attempted to interfere in the 2019 UK Election by disseminating a leaked confidential document later released by the Labour party, according to foreign secretary Dominic Raab. Raab released a statement today, confirming it is “almost certain that Russian actors sought to interfere in the 2019 general election through the online amplification” of confidential [...]
Report into Russian interference in UK politics to be published next week July 16, 2020 A long-awaited report into Russian interference in British politics will be published by Westminster’s Intelligence and Security Committee within the next week. The committee announced this morning that the report would be released before the summer parliamentary recess, which begins next Thursday. It comes just a day after Julian Lewis prompted a mini-coup to win [...]
Julian Lewis calls Tory party sacking ‘strange’ after Grayling plot July 16, 2020 Sacked Conservative MP Julian Lewis has called his removal from the party “strange” and labelled Downing Street’s attempt to install its own candidate to the chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) as “improper”. Former transport secretary Chris Grayling had been handpicked by Boris Johnson to take the reins of the powerful committee, however [...]
UK unveils plans for frictionless post-Brexit trade between UK nations July 15, 2020 The government will tomorrow outline plans to ensure post-Brexit regulatory alignment on trade across the four UK nations in a bid to ensure frictionless internal trade. The white paper will propose a principle of “mutual recognition” whereby regulations that are set by devolved governments are recognised across the country to allow for internal trade. It [...]
Chris Grayling loses committee chair vote in Tory rebellion July 15, 2020 Former cabinet secretary Chris Grayling has failed to win the chairmanship of the Intelligence and Security Committee, despite being handpicked by Boris Johnson for the role, with fellow Tory MP Julian Lewis instead elected. The ex-transport secretary was expected to be voted into the role, however some Conservative MPs on the committee rebelled and instead [...]
Rishi Sunak shoots down speculation he will raise capital gains tax July 15, 2020 Rishi Sunak has distanced himself from reports that he is looking at increasing capital gains tax to help pay for the government’s Covid-19 spending. The Treasury announced yesterday it was commissioning the Tax Simplification Office to conduct a study “asking for “evidence to seek views about capital gains tax”, prompting speculation from financial services firms [...]
