Barristers ambivalent about MoJ’s pay hike offer Barristers strike Criminal barristers have shown ambivalence towards the government’s offer to apply the 15 per cent legal aid fee hike to the “vast majority” of current cases. Barristers speaking to City A.M. said they welcomed the government’s positive movement, but raised concerns the pay hike alone may not go far enough. Members of the Criminal Bar [...]
Councils call on Gov to deliver Bakerloo line extension to avoid £6.4bn output loss OUTPUT LOSS Southwark and Lewisham councils have called on the government to deliver the Bakerloo line’s extension, if ministers want to avoid £6.4bn in lost economic output. “London is the beating heart of the British economy and the Bakerloo Line extension is vital to Lewisham and London’s continued growth,” said Lewisham’s mayor Damien Egan. “It is a [...]
Data watchdog takes action against Virgin Media and six public bodies over information request failings Freedom of information The UK’s information watchdog has taken action against Virgin Media and six public bodies over their repeated failures to respond to members of the public when asked to hand over personal information. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said the seven public and private sector bodies had repeatedly failed to respond to Subject Access Requests (SAR) [...]
Government has until November to end barristers’ strike before judges will be justified in releasing prisoners September 28, 2022 Judges acted unlawfully by releasing prisoners awaiting trial because of the barristers’ strike, a High Court has ruled, after warning the government has just two months to sort the situation out before courts will be justified in letting out those awaiting hearings. Crown Court judges in Bristol and Manchester who released prisoners on bail, on [...]
Virgin Atlantic boss calls on Govt to make ‘difficult decisions’ and bring pound up September 27, 2022 Virgin Atlantic’s boss Shai Weiss has called on Prime Minister Liz Truss to make “difficult decisions” and bring the pound’s value up. “The message to the government is pretty clear in my mind,” he told journalists on Tuesday morning. “Prime Minister Liz Truss has taken difficult decisions upon entering the role. “Maybe you need to [...]
Liz Truss urged to ‘remain committed’ to audit reform September 26, 2022 One of the UK’s largest audit sector trade bodies has called on the UK’s new government to set out a “clear timetable” for its plans to overhaul the UK’s audit sector in claiming audit reform will play a vital role in securing long-term economic growth. Writing to UK prime minister Liz Truss, business secretary [...]
Union to ballot 150,000 civil servants on plans for public sector strike September 26, 2022 The public sector workers’ union is set to ballot more than 150,000 civil servants on plans to strike over pay and working conditions. The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) said it is urging its members in 214 government departments to vote in favour of taking industrial action, after the UK government set out plans [...]
Attention turns to Starmer as Labour conference kicks off tomorrow September 24, 2022 Attention has turned to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer as the party’s annual conference kicks off tomorrow. Taking place in Liverpool from Sunday until Wednesday, the conference will provide an opportunity for Starmer to assert himself as the next prime minister. Supporters hope Starmer will use the meeting to mark the stark divide between his [...]
Treasury denies allegations of gambling with economy as pound falls below $1.10 September 24, 2022 The Treasury has denied allegations of gambling with the UK’s economy as the pound fell below $1.10 for the first time in almost 40 years following yesterday’s mini-budget. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said Britain will go on an “unsustainable path” of borrowing following the reforms – the most radical in [...]
Kwarteng ditches corporation tax hike in bid to lure investment September 23, 2022 Kwasi Kwarteng has scrapped the formerly announced six percentage point hike in corporation tax - keeping the rate at 19 per cent.