Facebook announces $200m for businesses owned by black people June 18, 2020 Facebook today announced that it will commit $200m towards businesses owned by black people, the latest in a string of tech giants to announce such initiatives. In a post, chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg revealed the plan, saying that the firm needed to take action. She wrote; “The past few weeks have compelled us to [...]
Boris Johnson tells Emmanuel Macron that Brexit talks cannot stretch into autumn June 18, 2020 Boris Johnson has told French president Emmanuel Macron that it makes no sense to extend post-Brexit trade talks into the autumn. The two leaders met today in Downing Street to mark the 80th anniversary of French president Charles de Gaulle’s wartime BBC broadcast to Nazi-occupied France. After the commemoration, which included a flypast by the [...]
There can be no route back to normality for ableist commuter culture June 17, 2020 “Do not expect to return to the transport network you were used to.” We’re all used to hearing that there will be no return to “normal” life any time soon. So it’s no surprise that Transport for London (TfL) has broadcast the same message about our commutes as some tentatively plan to return to the [...]
New boss for Hugo Boss as fashion house drafts in former Tommy Hilfiger CEO June 17, 2020 Hugo Boss has announced that former Tommy Hilfiger chief Daniel Grieder will be its new chief executive. Grieder, 58, will take up the post in June next year, after a decades-long career at Tommy Hilfiger. It comes after outgoing CEO Mark Langer announced that he was stepping down in March. Langer will leave post at [...]
Brexit: Germany says UK-EU trade talks will enter ‘hot phase’ in September June 17, 2020 The German government is expecting post-Brexit UK-EU trade talks to enter a “hot phase” in September, despite British negotiators claiming they want a deal wrapped up before autumn. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that talks needed “a bit of oomph” and that a deal in July was the aim for UK negotiators. However, [...]
Brexit: UK ‘ready to be flexible’ to strike a trade deal in July June 16, 2020 The UK is “ready to be flexible” in post-Brexit trade negotiations with the EU in an attempt to secure a deal by next month, according to Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove. Gove, the defacto Brexit minister, told MPs today that there was enough time to “bring a deal home” before the 31 December deadline, despite [...]
David Cameron hits out at Boris Johnson’s DFID-Foreign Office merger plan June 16, 2020 Former Prime Minister David Cameron has hit out against Boris Johnson’s plans to merge the Department for International Development with the Foreign Office, calling the decision a “mistake”. Writing on Twitter, Cameron said: “The Prime Minister is right to maintain the commitment to 0.7 (the percentage of national income spent on global aid) – it [...]
Boris Johnson expected to merge Foreign Office and International Development Department June 16, 2020 Boris Johnson is expected to announce today that the Department for International Development (DFID) will be folded into the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). The Prime Minister is slated to make an announcement today in the House of Commons on “global Britain”, with the BBC now reporting that he will announce the merger of the [...]
Labour calls for emergency ‘back to work’ summer Budget June 16, 2020 Labour shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds is calling for an emergency summer Budget and stimulus package that focuses on job creation. Dodds has dubbed it a “back to work Budget” and has called on chancellor Rishi Sunak to focus on combating potential structural unemployment caused by the coronavirus crisis. New figures from the Office of National [...]
Whatsapp rolls out first wave of in-app digital payments June 15, 2020 Messaging platform Whatsapp today launched its first nationwide rollout of digital payments, starting in Brazil. Users will be able to send payments inside a Whatsapp chat to individuals or businesses in a similar way to attaching a picture or video to a message. The rollout follows an initial testing period in India two years ago, [...]