Category Archives: UK news

End of special Covid leave for NHS staff in England branded ‘unacceptable’

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British Medical Association says move will put patients and healthcare workers in England at significant risk

Scrapping special Covid leave for NHS staff is “completely unacceptable” and will put patients and healthcare workers at significant risk, the British Medical Association has warned.

From 7 July the government plans to withdraw the special paid leave for Covid-related sickness and isolation for NHS staff in England, meaning they will revert to normal contractual sick pay arrangements.

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Pride in London 2022: huge turnout at first march since pandemic – as it happened

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Rolling coverage of the annual LGBTQ+ celebrations in the capital as events mark 50th anniversary of the UK’s first Pride parade

Our reporter David Batty writes:

Gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has called on the UK’s largest Pride event to return to its radical political roots, saying the 1972 march was about wider social change, not just equal rights for the LGBTQ+ community.

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Chris Pincher seeking professional help after drunken groping claims

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Tory party and PM face mounting pressure over scandal as former deputy chief whip says he respects decision to suspend him

Chris Pincher has said he is seeking professional help following claims that he drunkenly groped two men.

The former deputy chief whip, who resigned following the allegations, said he respected the prime minister’s decision to suspend the whip and would “cooperate fully” with an inquiry into his behaviour.

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Zara Aleena: hundreds dressed in white gather in east London for silent vigil

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The 35-year-old law graduate was killed in the early hours of 26 June as she walked home from a night out

Hundreds of people dressed in white gathered for a silent vigil for Zara Aleena, the 35-year-old law graduate who was killed as she walked home from a night out.

A deep solidarity and loss was palpable among the tearful crowd in Ilford, east London, on Saturday – a community still gripped in shock and fear by Aleena’s death, and the growing insecurity women face in public spaces.

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More than 100 bus routes in England face cuts and cancellations

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Falling passenger numbers, rising costs and the forthcoming end of emergency government funding blamed for services being reduced or terminated

At least 135 bus routes across England have been lined up for cutbacks or closures this summer as councils and bus operators grapple with falling passenger numbers, staff shortages and funding constraints.

Changes to services include reduced frequency, fewer stops and some routes being cancelled. Among the proposed cuts, some of which have already been implemented, are 16 routes in London, 25 in Liverpool and about 40 across the north-east.

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Two more British men captured in Ukraine could face death penalty

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Officials are understood to be actively investigating cases of two Britons detained and charged with ‘forcible seizure of power’

Two more British men who fought for the Ukrainian armed forces and who are currently being held by pro-Russian troops in eastern Ukraine could face death sentences after they were accused of being mercenaries.

Russian-backed prosecutors in the occupied territories of Ukraine have charged Andrew Hill and Dylan Healy with “forcible seizure of power”, and undergoing “terrorist” training, according to a state news agency in Russian-controlled Donetsk.

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Deborah James legacy: huge rise in online checks for bowel cancer signs

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NHS chief says James’s last message to public to ‘check your poo’ is life-saving

There was a tenfold increase in people checking bowel cancer symptoms online immediately after the death of Dame Deborah James, the NHS has said.

More than 23,000 visits were paid to NHS websites for bowel cancer on Wednesday, compared with 2,000 the previous day.

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Two more Britons captured in Ukraine could face death penalty

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Russia has charged former soldier Andrew Hill and Dylan Healy, believed to have been doing humanitarian work, with fighting as mercenaries

Two more Britons held by Russian proxies in east Ukraine have been charged with fighting as mercenaries, Russian state media have reported, indicating that they could face the death penalty in a likely attempt to pressure western countries to make a deal for their freedom.

Britons Andrew Hill of Plymouth and Dylan Healy of Huntingdon were reported to have also been charged with “forcible seizure of power” and undergoing “terrorist” training, according to a state news agency in Russian-controlled Donetsk. The report was sourced to an anonymous official and has not been confirmed.

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Fifty-year home loans would get more on ladder but come with risks

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Analysis: longer mortgages would unlock the bind many renters find themselves in but could be expensive

A 50-year home loan might sound depressing to some, but perhaps not if the alternative is never being able to buy a property. Long-term fixed-rate mortgages are an emerging financial product that should in theory allow first-time buyers who are currently priced out of the market to get on the housing ladder.

By spreading the repayments over longer – the average for mortgages taken out this year is 29 years – buyers should be able to borrow up to eight times their income, rather than the current average of 3.2 times, say potential providers. The loans would be backed by borrowing from pension funds and insurance companies rather than against less stable consumer deposits, to satisfy the Bank of England’s prudential requirement.

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No 10 considers 50-year mortgages that could pass down generations

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Cautious welcome for idea to tackle housing crisis but experts warn of risks to those inheriting

Downing Street is exploring the idea of trying to tackle the housing crisis with ultra-long mortgages of up to 50 years that could pass between generations, allowing more people to build up equity rather than pay rent.

Mortgage experts said the idea could bring some benefits but flagged problems, including the potential to saddle children with debt, and the fact it would not tackle the fundamental issue of housing supply.

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Boris Johnson in the mire again after digging in to save an ally

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Insiders boggle at ‘tone deaf’ response from PM and his team over Chris Pincher’s position as scandals keep coming

Boris Johnson has spent much of his nearly three-year premiership determined not to bow to political pressure.

Despite being a former journalist who knows the damage that days of bad headlines can do – particularly from normally friendly newspapers – the prime minister has repeatedly dug in and refused to fire colleagues.

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Tory MP Chris Pincher loses whip over groping claims – as it happened

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Latest updates: former deputy chief whip suspended from party. This live blog is closed.

This is an interesting thread from Keiran Pedley, pollster for Ipsos UK, on the Conservatives’ and Labour’s party image:

This from Insider’s Cat Neilan on one Tory MP’s hot take on the Pincher story:

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Tories pressed to withdraw whip from Chris Pincher after misconduct claims

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Pincher resigned as deputy chief whip after reports he drunkenly groped two men at a private club

Pressure is mounting on the Conservative party to withdraw the whip from Chris Pincher after allegations he groped two men on a drunken night out.

Labour’s Yvette Cooper said that removing the whip from the former Conservative deputy whip needed to be the “first step that takes place” but did not call for him to resign as an MP.

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Xi Jinping hails China’s rule over Hong Kong on 25th anniversary of handover

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Chinese president says ‘one country, two systems’ will endure and democracy flourishes after unprecedented unpicking of freedoms

Xi Jinping has hailed China’s rule over Hong Kong as he led 25th anniversary celebrations of the city’s handover from Britain, insisting democracy was flourishing despite a political crackdown that has silenced dissent.

After swearing in a new hardline chief executive, John Lee, in a solemn ceremony on Friday morning, the Chinese president laid out his vision for the city and its administrators.

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Ofcom may extend TV ad breaks in review of broadcasting rules

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Regulator says it may change ad rules in light of growing competition from online streaming platforms

Ofcom has said it may extend the time and frequency allowed for advertising breaks on UK television as part of a review of broadcasting rules.

The regulator said it would consider changing advertising regulations amid market developments including the increasing influence of online streaming services.

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UK cost of living crisis putting strain on domestic abuse refuges, says charity

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Rising prices have created greater demand for sanctuary and made it more difficult for people to leave

Refuges providing sanctuary to victims of domestic violence are facing severe strains as a result of the cost of living crisis, a charity has warned.

Rising prices are creating a greater demand for refuge spaces, as increased financial pressure acts as a trigger for abusive partners, while making it more costly for those already in refuge to leave, according to Hestia, a charity providing support to those fleeing domestic abuse in London and south-east England.

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Bulb boss Hayden Wood to step down from collapsed energy firm

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CEO and co-founder will leave at end of July, having still received £250,000 salary despite taxpayer bailout

The chief executive and co-founder of the collapsed energy firm Bulb will leave at the end of July, having continued to receive a six-figure salary while the firm was being propped up by billions in taxpayer loans.

Hayden Wood is leaving Britain’s seventh biggest energy supplier, which has about 1.5 million customers, as the government continues to seek a buyer to save Bulb.

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Afghan embassy staff remain in hiding despite being eligible for UK relocation

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UK government accused of leaving former employees and their families ‘in limbo’ in Afghanistan, where they are targets for the Taliban

More than 170 people who worked for the British embassy in Kabul remain in hiding in Afghanistan in fear for their lives, almost a year after the Taliban retook the country.

A list of Afghans currently in hiding, seen by the Guardian, shows almost 200 former interpreters, security guards and local staff waiting for a response from the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office, the departments responsible for relocating people at risk. All of those on the list are eligible for transfer to the UK under the Afghan relocations and assistance policy (Arap), intended to bring those formerly employed by the UK government, and their family members, to safety in Britain.

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Starmer allies reject claims leftwingers blocked from standing for Labour

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Party figures understood to have urged leader to rein in acolytes after candidates from left excluded from longlists

Keir Starmer’s allies have rejected claims he is acting to block “anyone to the left of Tony Blair” from standing for the party at the next general election, as his project of reshaping Labour moves to its next stage: parliamentary selections.

Since the swing of more than 12% to Labour in last week’s Wakefield byelection raised the possibility of an outright majority for Starmer at the next general election, the focus on the party’s next wave of MPs has intensified.

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Average UK house prices face slowdown despite hitting record high

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Weakening economy, cost-of-living squeeze and rising interest rates are cooling market, index shows

Annual house price gains across the UK have slowed for a third month as the weakening economy, cost of living squeeze and rising interest rates started to have an impact on the property market.

The average UK house price hit a new record high of £271,613, but there are “tentative signs of a slowdown,” Nationwide building society said.

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