Former COP26 president Alok Sharma denies bullying allegations April 16, 2023 Conservative MP and former COP26 president Sir Alok Sharma has been accused of “bullying” civil servants, according to a report. Sharma is said to have been “difficult, unpredictable and could quickly lose his temper”, according to allegations reported by Bloomberg. Four senior officials who worked with Sharma between 2020 and 2022 claimed the minister would [...]
Rishi Sunak bans new smart motorways amid safety concerns April 16, 2023 The building of new smart motorways is being cancelled as prime minister Rishi Sunak acknowledged concerns about safety and cost. Fourteen planned smart motorways – including 11 that are already paused and three earmarked for construction – will be removed from government road building plans, given financial pressures and in recognition of the lack of [...]
Childcare: Two in five mothers say high costs are still keeping them out of the workplace April 14, 2023 Two in five mothers feel prohibited from returning to work due to the high cost of childcare, even with Jeremy Hunt’s expanded childcare offering, a new survey of 2,000 mothers has revealed. “Nursery and childminder costs can swallow a huge chunk of new parents’ earnings, and with the current cost of living crisis squeezing every [...]
Sunak insists he is ‘low-tax’ Tory – as UK set for record burden April 13, 2023 Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has insisted he is a “low-tax Conservative” despite the UK being on course for the highest burden of the post-war years. Sunak maintained he wanted “to make sure we can lower taxes over time” but said it was vital to “get inflation down and get borrowing under control” as a first [...]
Labour poll lead narrows as key local elections approach April 13, 2023 Labour’s poll lead has narrowed to just 14 points up on the Conservatives – with just three weeks to go until voters cast their ballots in local elections. Pollsters at think tank More in Common (MiC) found the Conservatives were on 30 per cent with Labour on 44 per cent, the narrowest lead recorded by [...]
Sadiq Khan’s London ULEZ expansion faces court challenge from Tory councils April 12, 2023 A judicial review into the expansion of the ultra low emission zone (ULEZ) across Greater London has been granted after a court ruling, it has emerged. London mayor Sadiq Khan opted to push ahead with plans to roll out the zone across all of outer London, from August 29, last year in the face of [...]
Post Brexit UK-US trade deal talks still on ice as Biden visits Northern Ireland April 12, 2023 Talks between the US and the UK on a post-Brexit free trade deal are not expected to resume until 2025, according to reports. Prime minister Rishi Sunak and US president Joe Biden are not said to have discussed the matter during a visit to Northern Ireland to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday [...]
Labour poll lead narrows to record low in ‘blue wall’ Tory seats April 12, 2023 The Labour Party’s poll lead in a key set of ‘blue wall’ seats in southern England has narrowed to a record low, new polling data has revealed. Sir Keir Starmer’s party is leading the Conservatives by just two per cent among affluent Tory shire constituencies – a joint record low and a six point drop [...]
Liz Truss to criticise high taxes and warn of authoritarian ‘threat’ April 11, 2023 Liz Truss is to renew her advocacy of low taxes in a speech questioning whether western nations are “match fit to take on China”. Britain’s shortest-serving prime minister will suggest the 1980s “Anglo-American” economic model of increased privatisation and limited government is being “strangled into stagnation” in the latest leg of her comeback to the [...]
GCHQ: MI5 to appoint first female spy chief in its 100-year history April 11, 2023 A woman will become the boss of GCHQ for the first time in its more than 100-year history when the current director steps down next month. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly announced that Anne Keast-Butler has been appointed to succeed Sir Jeremy Fleming as head of the government’s intelligence organisation. Keast-Butler, currently MI5’s deputy director-general, will [...]