Plan B Covid restrictions would cost UK economy up to £18bn, says leaked report October 26, 2021 The economy will take a hit of up to £18bn if Boris Johnson implements his Plan B Covid restrictions over winter, according to a leaked government report. The Cabinet Office estimates the restrictions – which would see the government tell people to work from home and implement mandatory face masks and vaccine passports – would [...]
All public sector workers to get pay rise after partial 2021 wage freeze October 25, 2021 Millions of public sector workers are set to get a pay rise in this week’s Budget as the UK faces increasing inflation growth. The Treasury tonight said the size of the wage increase will be determined next year after it has been given recommendations from pay review bodies. Rishi Sunak froze pay for all public [...]
Tory MPs call for UK government to pull out of global tax deal October 25, 2021 A pair of Tory MPs have called for the UK government to pull out of the global corporation tax deal, claiming it could cost the Exchequer billions in tax revenues. Backbenchers Greg Smith and Andrew Bridgen called for Rishi Sunak to reconsider his commitment to the deal, after he helped broker it at this year’s [...]
Brexit: Frost leaves door open for EU courts to have minor role in NI Protocol October 25, 2021 Lord David Frost has today left the door open for the EU’s courts to still have a minor role in the post-Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol as negotiations over its implementation heat up again. The UK’s Brexit minister, who wants the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to lose its role as the main arbiter of the [...]
Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle hits out at Sunak for revealing large parts of Budget in advance October 25, 2021 Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has lashed out at Rishi Sunak for releasing more than a dozen spending announcements in the lead-up to Wednesday’s Budget, saying that ministers would resign over similar briefings in years past. Referring to Hugh Dalton’s 1947 resignation after briefing the Budget hours before it took place, Hoyle said: “At one [...]
Brexit: MPs call out EU for delaying UK inclusion in Horizon R&D programme October 25, 2021 A parliamentary committee has called out Brussels for blocking the UK’s entry to the Horizon Europe research and development programme, claiming that it is damaging British businesses. A report from Westminster’s European Scrutiny Committee today said delays were leading to “increasing opportunity costs” for British businesses and research institutions as they are frozen out of [...]
Tory peer calls for greater scrutiny of quangos by parliament October 24, 2021 The number of quangos is steadily growing under Boris Johnson’s government and they should be more accountable to parliament, according to a new report. A report by Tory peer Lord Andrew Tyrie is calling for an “oversight panel” that would hand parliamentary committees the “tools and expertise” to scrutinise quangos. A recent report by Westminster’s [...]
Labour calls for vaccine passports as part of Plan B restrictions in winter October 24, 2021 Labour has today called for the government to bring back Covid restrictions this winter, after a pair of rapid U-turns on the issue. Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said Boris Johnson should advise people to work from home, while also making face masks and vaccine passports mandatory as a part of the government’s Plan B Covid [...]
Rishi Sunak admits UK has ‘no magic wand’ to stop rising inflation October 24, 2021 Rishi Sunak has said he has no “magic wand” to stop increasing inflation as he admits that the issue could be out of the UK’s control. Sunak today said increasing rates of UK inflation were down to global supply chain issues post-Covid and surging global energy prices and that there was little he could do [...]
UK seals deal to end Digital Services Tax and transition to global system October 21, 2021 The UK has agreed to scrap its Digital Services Tax on online giants like Amazon in a move that will stop Joe Biden slapping tariffs on British goods. An agreement was struck with the EU and US yesterday on how to transition from the Digital Services Tax to a new global system agreed by G20 [...]
