French MPs vote in favour of extending emergency powers, including blocking websites and social media accounts November 19, 2015 French MPs have voted in favour of extending emergency laws in the wake of terror attacks that gripped Paris last Friday. The National Assembly voted for extending emergency powers for three months, after French President Francois Hollande declared a state of emergency for 12 days following the attacks, according to AFP. The result means anyone [...]
London mayoral election 2016 candidates Zac Goldsmith and Sadiq Khan warn chancellor George Osborne on police cuts November 19, 2015 Conservative London mayoral candidate Zac Goldsmith said last night that the government is likely to back down on police funding cuts in the wake of the Paris terror attacks. Chancellor George Osborne is widely expected to swing the axe on policing in next week's Autumn Statement but pressure is mounting on him to back track [...]
Campaign Against Living Miserably launches male suicide prevention bid on International Men’s Day November 19, 2015 RUSH-hour commuters on the Tube today will be given a stark reminder that the largest killer of men aged under 45 is suicide. The Campaign Against Living Miserably (Calm) charity will be handing out more than 25,000 Mind the Chap Oyster cardholders across 12 participating Zone 1 stations in time for International Men’s Day. MPs [...]
Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon “prepared to listen” to case for air strikes in Syria November 19, 2015 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon has said while she is "not convinced" that a compelling case for air strikes in Syria has been made, she is "prepared to listen" to arguments for targeting the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria. Speaking to BBC Scotland, Sturgeon said some tests need to be passed for the case for air strikes to [...]
Sajid Javid calls for EU market reforms November 19, 2015 The business secretary Sajid Javid will later today call for the European Union to move “further and faster” towards single-market reform. In a speech at Chatham House, Javid is expected to say the EU needs an “efficient free trade mechanism” to support the UK’s financial services, service sectors, investment, and high-value manufacturing. It follows a speech [...]
Government promises of “fiscal neutrality” are a red herring: Changes to business rates are going to hurt firms November 18, 2015 Last week, Britain’s biggest high-street retailers publicly urged the government to reform its business rates regime ahead of next week’s Autumn Statement. Many find the current system complicated, unfair to small business and counterproductive to UK growth. Calls for reform have now reached fever-pitch. The government has pledged that any reforms to the current business [...]
PMQs today: Prime Minister David Cameron says UK must go after IS wherever it is for stability in the Middle East November 18, 2015 Prime Minister David Cameron today beefed up his rhetoric on the need for military action in Syria, saying that achieving stability in the Middle East requires "taking action against ISIL wherever it is". Read more: Cameron says there is a "compelling case" for military action in Syria Responding to a question by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who [...]
Energy secretary Amber Rudd: UK’s coal-fired power stations “will close by 2025” November 18, 2015 Energy secretary Amber Rudd has announced plans to close the last of the UK's unabated coal-fired power stations by 2025. In a statement this morning, she said a consultation to scrap coal-fired power stations altogether, and restrict their use by 2023, will begin early next year. "It cannot be satisfactory for an advanced economy like the UK to [...]
Autumn Statement 2015: British Chambers of Commerce wants cuts for tax admin costs November 18, 2015 A leading business group has written to ministers asking for new measures to cut the costs of tax administration in next week’s Autumn Statement. In an open letter to cabinet office minister Oliver Letwin and business secretary Sajid Javid, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said that the cost of complying with tax requirements has [...]