Tower Hamlets mayoral election: Labour’s John Biggs beats Rabina Khan – but with fewer votes than last year’s election against Lutfur Rahman June 12, 2015 Labour's John Biggs has been elected mayor of Tower Hamlets – but with fewer votes than he received when he went up against Lutfur Rahman last year. Biggs secured 32,754 votes, including second preferences, to beat independent candidate Rabina Khan, who received 26, 384. Turnout was just 37.73 per cent. In 2014, he [...]
EU in/out referendum: Just 15 per cent of Tories want UK to leave June 11, 2015 Just 15 per cent of Conservative party members would “definitely” vote for the UK to leave the EU, according to a new poll out today. The poll, led by Tim Bale at Queen Mary University of London and Paul Webb at the University of Sussex, found that while about one in seven Tory party members [...]
French cry foul over Manual Valls’ Champions League final freebie June 11, 2015 Under-fire French prime minister Manuel Valls attempted yesterday to quell the backlash from his all-expenses-paid junket to the Champions League final. Barcelona fan Valls brought two of his children to the showpiece match in Berlin on Saturday in a government aircraft, paid for by the taxpayer, after leaving the Socialist Party conference in Poitiers. [...]
UK’s £56bn aerospace, defence, security and space sectors come out strongly against Brexit June 11, 2015 A whopping 86 per cent of the UK's £56bn-a-year aerospace, defence, security and space sectors want Britain to remain part of the European Union, a new study has found. Just two per cent of companies in the combined sectors' trade body ADS said Brexit would have a positive impact on their business. The [...]
First Minister’s Questions: Scottish government brands Osborne’s budget cuts “unacceptable” June 11, 2015 John Swinney, deputy first minister of Scotland, has said that austerity measures proposed by George Osborne are "utterly unacceptable". Mr Swinney said that he believes the chancellor's budget reductions are unacceptable, urging Osborne to reconsider and find alternatives. Earlier, George Osborne announced that £3bn of savings would have to be made for this financial year. [...]
MPs line up to chair Parliament’s select committees: The races to watch June 11, 2015 Nominations for the chair of each of Parliament's select committees closed last night, with MPs lining up to take control of some of the most influential boards. A secret ballot, where each MP has one vote for each committee, will take place on 17 June, Morning Wire has examined each of the declared candidates for six [...]
Tony Blair warns against move to left and urges Labour to the “radical centre” June 11, 2015 Tony Blair has said Labour will lose the next election without a "fundamental revision" of its strategy. In a move to intervene in the party's leadership race, the former Prime Minister has warned positioning itself to the left would be a bad decision. Read more: This is how the Labour leadership race is stacking up [...]
Business sounds alarm over Osborne’s “fiscal straightjacket” June 10, 2015 A respected business body has criticised the Tories' plans for strict fiscal rules – expected to be unveiled at the Chancellor's Mansion House speech later today – saying "no government should put itself in a fiscal straitjacket". Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne will use his major speech to the City to introduce a new law [...]
Tower Hamlets mayoral elections: Who are the candidates, who is going to win and how will the vote split change from last year? June 10, 2015 Tower Hamlets is going to the polls, for yet another hotly contested election, just one year after the last vote. Why is it being held now? Tower Hamlets voters went to polls just over a year ago, with incumbent Lutfer Rahman being returned with a small majority over his Labour rival John Biggs. [...]
David Cameron claims that cutting corruption could boost global economy by £380bn per year June 10, 2015 Cutting corruption by just 10 per cent could boost the global economy by £380bn, David Cameron has claimed. Speaking after Prime Minister's Questions, he addressed Parliament to inform MPs of his progress at the G7 summit held earlier this week. Read more: Corruption hits economic growth – and markets can do nothing to stop it The [...]