Green belt reform drops off the agenda as ministers issue long-awaited housing proposals February 6, 2017 Ministers have steered away from a liberalisation of building on so-called green belt land, despite acknowledging the worsening housing crisis in many parts of the country. The government had been expected to introduce reforms to free up protected land, but proposals released today after months of delay have instead abandoned any reference to easing restrictions. Instead, [...]
Theresa May issues MPs with a fresh warning against “obstructing” Brexit February 6, 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May has issued MPs with a fresh warning against any attempts to frustrate or "obstruct" Brexit. Speaking ahead of a new round of House of Commons debates on the Article 50 Bill, May told MPs that the UK's European allies want to begin negotiations. "So do I and so does this House, which last week voted by [...]
Commons speaker John Bercow says he is “strongly opposed” to Donald Trump addressing Parliament February 6, 2017 House of Commons speaker John Bercow has come out against US President Donald Trump addressing the Houses of Parliament on a state visit this year in an extraordinary intervention. More than a quarter of MPs have already signed a motion stating that Trump should not be offered the chance to make such a speech during his time [...]
Ireland: Brexit’s forgotten frontier February 6, 2017 Theresa May crossed the Irish Sea last week for a quick meeting with her Irish counterpart, Enda Kenny, to discuss President Donald Trump. Well, according to the official agenda she was actually there to talk about Brexit. Yet you wouldn’t have guessed it from the subsequent press conference in which every single question from the [...]
Airbnb took a big swipe at Trump in its very last minute Super Bowl LI advert #WeAccept February 6, 2017 Airbnb has taken a swipe at Donald Trump's controversial travel ban with an advert at one of the most watched TV events of the year – the Super Bowl. The tech company aired a 30 second spot in prime time promoting diversity and featuring its own employees "We believe no matter who you are, where [...]
It’s the return of the Article 50 Bill – MPs to begin three more days of Brexit debate February 6, 2017 MPs will kick off three days of Brexit battles in the House of Commons later this afternoon, as they fight it out over attempts to amend the Article 50 Bill. The bill – which grants the government the power to begin divorce proceedings with the EU – was backed overwhelmingly at the "second reading" stage by MPs last [...]
A quarter of MPs say Donald Trump shouldn’t be allowed to make a prestigious speech on his state visit February 6, 2017 Just over a quarter of the UK's MPs have now signed a motion calling for US president Donald Trump to be barred from making an address in the palace of Westminster during his state visit this year. Trump has already been invited to the UK by Prime Minister Theresa May, with a date for his arrival yet to [...]
British business leaders urge government to improve the UK’s lagging infrastructure February 6, 2017 Two thirds of British business leaders think that the UK’s infrastructure is worse than other developed economies, according to a Lloyds Bank survey released today. Only 8 per cent of the 77 boardroom-level executives who responded thought that the national infrastructure of the UK was better than that of other countries. The results of the [...]
Jeremy Corbyn is wrong: The system isn’t rigged February 6, 2017 Jeremy Corbyn began the new year embarking on something of a rebrand, with aides describing how the Labour leader would move to emulate Donald Trump. This wasn't about any policy shifts, rather the strategy was to borrow from the US President's playbook of straight-talking, honest-tweeting, anti-establishment positioning. It's an approach that sees Corbyn and his [...]
London is a monument to the benefits of openness and internationalism February 6, 2017 "London is open”. This much-publicised campaign, launched by mayor of London Sadiq Khan and garlanded with column inches and broadcast coverage, is doing a great job of communicating the fact that the world’s greatest city wants nothing to do with the protectionism that seems to be appearing elsewhere in the world. We stand as a [...]