Category Archives: Politics

Dominic Cummings’ data law shake-up a danger to trade, says EU

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Exclusive: proposed rewriting of data protection rules said to put vital cooperation in doubt

A radical “pro-tech” plan championed by Dominic Cummings to rewrite Britain’s data protection laws is endangering future cooperation with the EU worth billions to the British economy, Brussels has warned.

The government’s newly published national data strategy, promising a “transformation” long sought by Boris Johnson’s chief adviser and the former Vote Leave director, has sparked concern at a sensitive time with the continued flow of data between the UK and EU member states in question.

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What’s missing from the chancellor’s new scheme to save jobs?

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Five measures absent from the chancellor’s winter economy plan

Rishi Sunak’s winter economy plan prioritises additional support for “viable” jobs. However, critics have warned that other measures are still needed to help people who have already lost their jobs or will lose them despite the new government scheme.

Here are five measures that could help keep workers in jobs, but were missing from the chancellor’s winter economy plan:

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Italian president rebuts Johnson’s ‘freedom’ remarks over restrictions

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Pushback comes after PM’s suggestion UK’s Covid-19 infection rate was worse than Italy because Britons loved their freedom more

Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, said its citizens “also love freedom, but we also care about seriousness”, responding to Boris Johnson’s suggestion that the UK’s rate of coronavirus infection was worse than both Italy and Germany’s because Britons loved their freedom more.

Mattarella’s comments came at the end of a ceremony in Sardinia, in memory of the former Italian president Francesco Cossiga.

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Public not to blame for second wave of Covid-19, says Keir Starmer

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Labour leader points to government mismanagement of virus in televised address

The public are not to blame for a resurgence of coronavirus and have been let down by the government, Keir Starmer has said in a televised address following the prime minister’s broadcast on Tuesday night.

The Labour leader’s remarks pointing the finger at government incompetence come in stark contrast to Boris Johnson’s address, where he appeared to suggest that “freedom-loving” Britons would be to blame if more draconian restrictions were applied.

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Rishi Sunak could do worse than copy Germany

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There is evidence that scheme under which Berlin tops up wages of those put on short-time working is effective

It all looked so different for Rishi Sunak three weeks ago. After a bleak early spring in which the economy was sacrificed for health reasons, there were signs that the worst might be over.

Related: Germany’s furlough scheme saves firms from freefall

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Japan is a ‘democracy without women’, says ruling party MP

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Tomomi Inada makes comment after new prime minister appoints just two women on 21-strong cabinet

A prominent member of Japan’s ruling party has described the country’s politics as “democracy without women”, days after the new prime minister appointed just two female MPs to his cabinet.

Tomomi Inada, a former defence minister from the governing Liberal Democratic party (LDP), added her voice to criticism of Japan’s poor record on gender equality, directing most of her anger at her own party.

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UK coronavirus live: Boris Johnson faces Keir Starmer at PMQs after new restrictions unveiled

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English rules don’t go ‘anywhere near far enough’, says leading government Covid adviser

Starmer says Johnson said the opposite yesterday. Everyone can read it in Hansard. He says a week ago the PM acknowledged that there was a problem. Is the PM saying capacity is the problem, as Dido Harding says? Or he is saying that too many healthy people are requesting tests, as Matt Hancock says?

Johnson says the attacks on Harding from Labour are unseeming. He says the government is going to get testing up to 500,000 per day. He says he wants to hear “more of the spirit of togetherness” that was on display yesterday.

So why did Johnson says yesterday it had “very little” to do with the spread of the disease, Starmer asks.

Johnson says it is an “epidemiological fact” that transmission takes place human to human. And capacity today is at a record high, he says.

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Boris Johnson outlines tighter Covid rules for England – video

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The UK is at a 'perilous turning point' and must act, Boris Johnson has told MPs, announcing new restrictions for England including reducing the size of wedding gatherings and bans on indoor team sports, as well as a return to home working

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Covid: Sturgeon announces Scotland-wide ban on household visits

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First minister also confirms 10pm curfew on pubs, bars and restaurants from Friday

Household visiting will be banned across Scotland, as Nicola Sturgeon moves to limit a key driver of coronavirus infections before the winter.

While Boris Johnson’s statement on Tuesday did not include direct limits on socialising, Scotland’s first minister said she would be extending nationwide from Friday the ban on household visiting already in place in the west of Scotland, where she said the limits were already having an impact on escalating infection rates.

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Coronavirus: Boris Johnson sets out new restrictions to last ‘perhaps six months’

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PM announces 10pm closing for pubs, a ban on indoor team sports and new weddings curbs

The UK is at a “perilous turning point” and must act, Boris Johnson has told MPs, announcing new restrictions for England including slashing the size of wedding celebrations and bans on indoor team sports, as well as a return to home working.

Speaking in the Commons on Tuesday, Johnson announced a ban on indoor team sports, such as five-a-side football, and said plans for a partial return of sports fans to stadiums from 1 October had been “paused”. Wedding celebrations will be limited to just 15 guests, half of what was previously permitted, though funerals will be allowed to go ahead with up to 30 mourners.

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First TV debate between Ardern and Collins avoids being a horror show

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Spooky opening gives way to a leaders’ showdown with little drama and lacking in spark

There was high drama at the first televised debate last night between New Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, and the leader of the oppositionNational party, Judith Collins, when host John Campbell crept out of the darkness and onto the studio floor in the spooky opening seconds. His eyes were bulging. He clutched some kind of weapon in his hands. Campbell has always had an excitable, untamed spirit, and his menacing entrance made him look like Michael Myers from Halloween except in a grey check suit.

And that was it for the high drama. After the curious stage direction, Campbell gave a warm welcome to Ardern and Collins, and revealed that he was holding nothing more sinister than a brand new clipboard. The next 90 minutes were all downhill.

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‘Cutting it tight’: Dover port still awaiting Brexit infrastructure funds

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Head of EU exit at the port says money needs to be ‘issued rather than talked about’

Dover port is not Brexit ready because it is still waiting for government funds to be released for vital infrastructure for the new border operations, it has been revealed.

It comes as it emerged that the government was considering forcing drivers to obtain a special Brexit passport before entering Kent in a bid to avert queuing chaos in January.

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Theresa May says ‘reckless’ Brexit bill risks UK’s reputation

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Ex-PM says internal market bill could lead to a united Ireland and undermine trust in UK

Theresa May has launched a blistering attack on the government’s plan to give itself powers to renege on the special arrangements for Northern Ireland in the Brexit deal.

She described the plans as “reckless” and “irresponsible” and said they “risked the integrity of the United Kingdom”, as they would not only tarnish Britain’s reputation globally as an upholder of the law but could contribute to a reunited Ireland.

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Italian airport quashes claims of secret Boris Johnson trip

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President of Perugia airport contradicts press reports that PM visited on 11 September

An Italian airport has quashed reports the prime minister landed there to make a secretive trip to the country less than a fortnight ago, a claim described by Downing Street as “completely untrue”.

Related: From scandal to PR cock-up: how the Boris Johnson Perugia mystery unravelled

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Raising of UK Covid alert level opens door to major restrictions

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Chief medical officers agree jump to level 4, meaning virus is ‘high or rising exponentially’

The UK’s Covid-19 alert level has been raised to four, meaning the virus is “high or rising exponentially” – a move which will give Boris Johnson cover for significant new restrictions to stem the surge of the virus.

The health secretary, Matt Hancock, said the change “reflects the significant shift in the current threat posed by coronavirus”. He added: “This country now faces a tipping point in its response and it is vital everybody plays their part now to stop the spread of the virus and protect lives.”

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Can the UK avoid 50,000 Covid-19 cases a day?

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Continued doubling of infection rate feared by top advisers is unlikely to happen, say some experts

On one thing, everyone agrees: the UK is at a turning point.

After a summer of crowded beaches and pubs reopening, followed by children returning to school and employees going back to the workplace, new cases of Covid-19 are definitely on the rise.

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Sadiq Khan urged to boycott Saudi-hosted G20 mayors summit

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Rights coalition calls on mayors to withdraw from U20, which coincides with anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi’s murder

Mainly leftwing mayors of some of the world’s biggest cities are being urged to boycott a G20 urban summit hosted by Saudi Arabia on the 2nd anniversary of the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The Urban 20 (U20) is being held as part of the Saudi Arabian chairmanship of this year’s G20. Among the mayors slated to attend include, Berlin’s Michael Müller, London’s Sadiq Khan, New York’s Bill de Blasio, Paris’s Anne Hidalgo, Rome’s Virginia Raggi as well as the mayors of Los Angeles and Madrid.

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BAME Britons still lack protection from Covid, says doctors’ chief

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More than a third of coronavirus intensive care patients are from ethnic minorities

A third of coronavirus patients in intensive care are from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, prompting the head of the British Medical Association to warn that government inaction will be responsible for further disproportionate deaths.

Chaand Nagpaul, the BMA Council chair, was the first public figure to call for an inquiry into whether and why there was a disparity between BAME and white people in Britain in terms of how they were being affected by the pandemic, in April.

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Experts call for stronger measures as UK daily coronavirus cases hit four-month high

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Official figures show 4,422 people tested positive in past 24 hours, the highest daily total since 8 May

Daily coronavirus cases in the UK have reached a four-month high for the second day in a row, the latest government figures show.

A total of 4,422 people have tested positive for the virus in the past 24 hours – 100 more new cases than on Friday and the highest daily total since 8 May. A further 27 people died within 28 days of testing positive for the virus as of Saturday, bringing the UK toll to 41,759.

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