Figures show more than 420,000 applications were made from 2016-2020
The number of Irish passports issued in Great Britain rocketed in the years following the Brexit referendum, according to figures.
The data emerged as it was revealed that the celebrated British author John le Carré went to his grave as an Irish citizen.
Continue reading...Country has registered more than 12.9 million cases; 10,000 appointments scrapped, reports Dutch news agency citing Netherlands health ministry
That’s it from the global blog team for now. Thanks for following our coverage, a new blog will be going live in a few hours.
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Broadcaster says report seems to want to brush history under the carpet, as others attack ‘distorted’ use of research
One of Britain’s foremost historians of slavery has accused the authors of a controversial racial disparities report commissioned by Downing Street of giving the impression they would prefer “history to be swept under the carpet”.
Broadcaster David Olusoga, professor of public history at Manchester University, made the comments in an article for the Guardian, as hundreds of experts on race, education, health and economics joined the criticism of the report for brazenly misrepresenting evidence of racism.
Continue reading...Behind the Aspinall Foundation is a history of power, riches and links to the Tory party
When Carrie Symonds was welcomed to her job at the wildlife conservation charity the Aspinall Foundation in January, her new boss gushed that she had arrived at an “exciting time” for the organisation. Symonds, said Damian Aspinall, would be a “huge asset to us”.
Coverage of Boris Johnson’s fiancee’s appointment as head of communications focused on her well-publicised love of animals – useful, given the foundation’s charitable mission. It oversees Howletts and Port Lympne wildlife parks in Kent, home to exotic threatened species including rhinos, elephants, gorillas and cheetahs, which are prepared for a return to the wild in Africa.
Continue reading...A year on from landing the party’s top job, the leader plans on taking his message directly to the voters
Keir Starmer plans to spend the summer months criss-crossing the country to make his pitch directly to voters at scores of town hall-style meetings, in an attempt to “bring Labour home” to its traditional supporters.
A year after his election, with his personal poll ratings slipping and amid growing internal unease about his leadership, Starmer’s team say he hopes to emulate David Cameron, who fielded voters’ questions face to face on his “Cameron Direct” tour in 2008.
Continue reading...Government commitment to Horizon Europe fund averts immediate threat to science, say universities
The government has stepped in at the 11th hour with an additional £250m in funding to help pay for the UK’s association with Horizon Europe, the European Union’s funding programme for research and innovation.
Universities welcomed the move as “a significant affirmation of the government’s belief in research” which would avert the immediate threat to UK science.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Mother of murdered teenager says Sewell report has pushed fight against racism back 20 years or more
Doreen Lawrence, who campaigned for 18 years for justice after her son Stephen was murdered by racists, has said a government-commissioned report that claimed the UK no longer had a system rigged against minorities could allow racism to flourish.
“My son was murdered because of racism and you cannot forget that. Once you start covering it up it is giving the green light to racists. You imagine what’s going to happen come tomorrow. What’s going to happen on our streets with our young people? You are giving racists the green light,” Lady Lawrence said.
Continue reading...The prime minister said the Sewell report was a 'very interesting and stimulating piece of work', but made clear the government did not agree with all of its findings. 'There are very serious issues that our society faces to do with racism, he said. 'We've got to do more to fix it.'
Continue reading...Owner says he decided ‘enough was enough’ after encountering more and more trade barriers
The founder of a Scottish dog food business has told how Brexit forced him to move to France after his exports to the EU were halted because of the new trade barriers in place since 1 January.
After 10 weeks of daily calls and emails to government representatives, who he said were “absolutely terrible”, Antoon Murphy said he was left with no other option than to relocate or face losing the business.
Continue reading...Analysis: critics have accused ministers of trying to shut down debate through selective briefing
For what was billed as a landmark examination of racial disparities, set up directly by Downing Street and months in the making, the arrival of the report was curiously low-key – or, critics say, done with significant media manipulation.
The full 264-page report by the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities was released at 11.30am on Wednesday. But the bulk of the coverage came before that, when journalists and interviewers had very little idea what it contained.
Continue reading...Analysis: the report’s conclusions and recommendations on education, health, terminology and more
The government has released the full 264-page report by a commission set up by Downing Street to investigate racial disparities in the UK. These are its main findings:
Overall view
Continue reading...Twelve months after the pandemic struck the Guardian’s economic tracker reveals real risk of lasting damage
When Boris Johnson announced the first stay-at-home order, effectively shutting down whole sections of the economy, it was hoped the tide could be turned within 12 weeks. As many months later, lockdown measures are being relaxed for a third time and Britain still faces a lengthy road to recovery from the worst recession for 300 years.
As restrictions ease, the chief economist at the Bank of England, Andy Haldane, warned that despite the reopening of the economy, the risk of a “jobs equivalent of long Covid” remains for workers across the country.
Continue reading...Reduced £205m offer at UN pledging conference comes with 90% of Syrians living in poverty
Syrians and aid organisations have warned that “lives will be lost” as a result of the UK’s decision to cut aid funding to the conflict-stricken country.
The UN hoped to raise $10bn (£7.3bn) from governments and donors at a virtual two-day pledging conference for Syria – the biggest appeal yet to help both people inside and those displaced outside the country.
Continue reading...All the pomp of the new No 10 briefing room was wasted on a Covid press conference of little substance
The prime minister arrived in his brand new, £2.6m press briefing room with the unmistakable vibe of a feckless absentee father, doing his Monday afternoon teleconference call. Trying to be so many things at once. He wants to be the fun one, so did a shout out to Ilkeston Cycle Club, who met at midnight as the clock turned on the 29 March; then a big up to Hillingdon lido, who did whatever they do there. He also wants to prove that, this time, he’s deadly serious, a grave and sober man of his word, and his brow is heavy with all the memories of why you might not believe him.
He has some new curtains he wants to show you, which are both union flags, and some rather sudden paintwork, a fierce Conservative blue, because obviously that’s the colour of authority and this is your government for ever. Though when you consider how much he could have spent on wallpaper, you have to look on the bright side. The intention of the new setting must have been jocular jingoism, but it came off a little mournful, slightly beseeching, like: “Look, I’ve bought an inflatable mattress, soon you’ll be able to stay the night!”
Continue reading...Analysis: experts split on whether easy access to porn has fuelled sexual harassment, abuse and assault among young people
The harrowing reports of sexism and assaults in schools detailed on the everyonesinvited.uk website has fuelled concerns of a “rape culture” in educational settings.
The disclosures have raised concerns that easy access to pornography is part of the problem.
Continue reading...Norwegian Refugee Council says move to pull funding for its legal support programme will leave many in ‘destitution’
Tens of thousands of Syrians will no longer receive legal support, leaving many “in utter destitution” without documents they need to work, travel or return home, after the British government pulled £4m in funding from a charity programme, according to its director.
News of the cut to a Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) project supporting refugees and internally displaced Syrians, comes amid reports of a planned 67% aid reduction in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) budget for Syria, which would place hundreds of thousands of lives at risk.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Home Office refusal to disclose how many women are in same position as Shamima Begum prompts action
The Home Office’s refusal to disclose the number of women who, like Shamima Begum, have been deprived of their British citizenship after travelling to join Islamic State is under investigation by the information commissioner.
The watchdog said it would step in after the government refused to share the data with a human rights group concerned about the conditions of British women and children detained in camps in north-east Syria, where conditions are dire.
Continue reading...Outdoor group socialising allowed from Monday but ad campaign stresses Covid risks of indoor meeting
Boris Johnson will stress the need for people to be cautious on Monday as England takes its first significant step towards easing lockdown restrictions for adults.
People will now be able to meet up legally outdoors in groups of six, or in two households, including in private gardens, and organised outdoor sport can resume.
Continue reading...Leave campaigners behind project only won charitable status by vowing it would tell balanced story
Leave campaigners have begun raising funds to open a Museum of Brexit after the long-awaited project was granted charitable status.
The trustees are seeking to generate £400,000 to buy a home for the museum – possibly in a pro-Brexit town such as Dudley in the West Midlands – plus another £250,000 to set up the institution and a strategic financial reserve of £350,000.
Continue reading...PM condemns violence at latest protest against police, crime, sentencing and courts bill
Boris Johnson has condemned violent scenes in Bristol as “disgraceful”, after a protest against a new policing bill on Friday night resulted in clashes between demonstrators and police.
The protest was against the police, crime, sentencing and courts bill, which would give police greater powers to restrict protests, and initially attracted around 300 people before the crowd swelled to more than 1,000.
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