UK News and Discussions

[Time_Traveller]

Renter reforms watered down after concerns from Tory MPs

28 minutes ago

The government has set out a series of changes to planned protections for renters in England, after some Conservative MPs raised concerns they would be too burdensome for landlords.

The proposals include making tenants commit to a minimum six-month period when renting a property.

Campaign groups representing renters accused ministers of watering down the legislation to appease landlords.

But landlord groups said the changes were fair and balanced.

Other changes include delaying a ban on no-fault evictions for existing tenancies until an assessment by the justice secretary on the the readiness of the court system to deal with repossession claims is published.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68686660

[Time_Traveller]

Peers to get up to £100 a night for hotel stays

1 day ago



Peers who live outside of London will be able to claim up to £100 a night for accommodation when they attend sittings of the House of Lords from next month.

The sum is on top of a £342 allowance for each day they attend, while peers can also claim for travel expenses.

The change was voted through unopposed by peers and comes in from 15 April.

Lord True said the move would help the chamber to be accessible to all, regardless of someone's financial position or where they live.

The Lord Privy Seal, who is responsible for procedure, told peers the Lords had become "far too much a House of the south-east of England".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68677341

[Time_Traveller]

Labour will level up better than Tories, pledges Keir Starmer

2 hours ago

Sir Keir Starmer has promised to "level up" regions more effectively than the Conservatives by giving extra powers to local leaders.

Launching the party's local election campaign, the Labour leader said the Tories had failed to deliver on their pledge to reduce regional inequality.

Further devolution was "essential" to make the ambition a reality, he added.

It comes as the party confirms details of its plans to offer new powers to councils in England.

Labour says if it wins the next general election, it would extend the responsibilities given in recent years to mayors in city regions, such as Tees Valley and West Yorkshire.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68683454

[Time_Traveller]

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson resigns as Democratic Unionist party leader

Fri 29 Mar 2024 13.01 GMT



Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has resigned as leader of the Democratic Unionist party (DUP), again throwing Northern Ireland politics into turmoil.

Donaldson announced on Friday he was stepping down in an abrupt move that stunned his party and jolted the British and Irish governments.

Earlier on Friday he had deleted his X, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts. Senior DUP figures called an emergency meeting.

The Lagan Valley MP, 61, had served three years as DUP leader and recently bolstered his authority by agreeing a deal with Downing Street that revived the Stormont executive and assembly. He had been expected to lead his party into the general election.

The DUP’s deputy leader is the East Belfast MP Gavin Robinson. Its leader at Stormont is the deputy first minister, Emma Little-Pengelly.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... rty-leader

[Time_Traveller]

Tory party to lose almost 1,000 years of Commons experience when MPs quit

Fri 29 Mar 2024 15.25 GMT



The Conservative party will lose almost 1,000 years of Commons experience just from MPs who have already announced they are standing down, a Guardian analysis has shown, amid an exodus likely to be even greater than in 1997.

So far, 66 MPs elected as Conservatives in 2019 have announced they will not stand again – this includes four who have since lost the whip and sit as independents – which is close to one in five of the total.

In 1997, the last time the Conservatives faced a likely wipeout after many years in power, 72 Tories stood down, a total expected to be exceeded especially if, as many predict, Rishi Sunak delays an election until the autumn.

The 66 standing down have a combined 987 years of parliamentary experience. Their departure, coupled with the expected defeat of many dozens more longstanding Tories, could represent an unprecedented loss of institutional memory for the party.

This averages at just under 15 years per MP, with the longest stint being Bill Cash, who was first elected in Stafford in 1984, shifting to the adjoining Staffordshire seat of Stone in 1997.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... e-mps-quit

[wjfox]

[weatheriscool]

King Charles Given 2 Years to Live as He Battles Pancreatic Cancer: His Diagnosis Is an ‘Open Secret’
Alyssa Norwin
March 21, 2024·2 min read
1.6k

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/kin ... fb&tsrc=fb
Less than two months after Buckingham Palace confirmed King Charles III was diagnosed with cancer, sources exclusively reveal to In Touch that the king is battling pancreatic cancer and has been given two years to live.

While the royal family has kept tight-lipped about the specifics of Charles’ illness, including the type of cancer he has, a source exclusively confirms to In Touch that the king’s diagnosis is known to be an open secret among royal staffers.

[Time_Traveller]

Minimum wage rise gives boost to 2.7 million lowest-paid

8 hours ago

The minimum wage set by the government, known as the National Living Wage, is increasing by more than £1 for the first time, providing a boost for 2.7 million low-paid workers.

The main wage rate is rising from £10.42 to £11.44 an hour and will apply to workers over 21 rather than over 23.

Younger workers will also see a rise in the rates that apply to them.

However, some businesses say the higher labour costs will make it harder for them to keep prices down.

The changes mean:

• A full-time adult worker paid the minimum wage will see a pay rise worth £1,800 a year

• A 21-year-old, who moves from the lower minimum wage rate to the main rate, will get a £2,300 rise

• The minimum wage for 18-20-year-olds will increase from £7.49 to £8.60 an hour

• Apprentices will also get an above-inflation rise, with hourly pay going up by more than 20%, from £5.28 to £6.40 an hour

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68678814

[wjfox]

[Time_Traveller]

No progress made on half of UK government’s levelling-up targets

Mon 1 Apr 2024 13.00 BST

The Conservatives have been accused of failing to live up to their ambitious agenda for Britain’s regions, as Guardian analysis shows no progress has been made on half of their levelling up targets.

The analysis of the 12 targets set by Michael Gove in his 2022 levelling up white paper shows there has been no progress in six of them, including three where evidence suggests things have got worse. These include education, skills and wellbeing, which have stagnated, and local pride, housing and health, which have deteriorated in the last two years.

The findings are further evidence of how far ministers have fallen short of the lofty goals set out by Boris Johnson earlier this parliament, when he promised to raise living standards and close Britain’s yawning regional equality gap.

Labour is seeking to put that failure at the heart of its local election campaign, with Keir Starmer accusing the government of having “strangled levelling up at birth”.

The Guardian analysis is the first in a series looking at how the Conservatives’ flagship post-Brexit growth programme was derailed by a mix of political turmoil, pork barrel politics and Whitehall interference.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/202 ... ves-labour

[Time_Traveller]

An update to this:-

Labour now projected to win more than 400 seats in new blow for Sunak

43 minutes ago

The Tories are on course for their worst result at a general election since John Major’s 1997 defeat, as a new poll has Labour sweeping into power with more than 400 seats.

The latest YouGov polling found Labour would win 403 seats from across the UK, leading to a 154-seat majority in the House of Commons.

The Conservatives would win just 155 seats, down from the 365 seats they won at the 2019 general election.

The analysis, which uses the multi-level regression and poststratification (MRP) method of polling, found that prominent Tory figures including Jeremy Hunt, Penny Mordaunt, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, and Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg would be on course to lose their seats.

According to the pollsters, Rishi Sunak is heading for a worse result than John Major’s 1997 defeat, when the then-Tory leader won a total of 165 seats.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/p ... 22826.html

[Time_Traveller]

Santander UK to quit lending standards body

Sunday 7 April 2024 15:52, UK

Santander UK, Britain’s fifth-biggest high street bank, is cancelling its membership of a key lending standards body because of the duplication of regulatory standards to which the industry is required to adhere.

Sky News has learnt that the Spanish-owned bank served notice last week of its intention to quit the Lending Standards Board, citing the establishment of the City watchdog's Consumer Duty and the imminent implementation of new fraud reimbursement rules overseen by the Payment Systems Regulator.

In its letter to the LSB, Santander UK said the new regulatory frameworks would "supersede the existing voluntary industry standards that are set out in the current LSB codes".

"This inevitably leads to duplicative regulation and can create confusion among staff and customers about which standards apply."

The bank added that withdrawing from the LSB would "mean more certainty and confidence over the regulatory landscape. Reducing duplicated effort, thereby enabling us to concentrate resources on other important customer and regulatory priorities".

https://news.sky.com/story/santander-uk ... y-13110233

[Time_Traveller]

King Charles comes face to face with new banknotes

5 hours ago



King Charles came face to face with his own face on the new banknotes which will go into circulation in June.

At Buckingham Palace, the King was presented with the first of the new £5, £10, £20 and £50 banknotes which will show his portrait.

It follows the tradition of the monarch receiving the first issues of new banknotes.

The existing banknotes, from the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, will continue to be used alongside the new notes.

King Charles has not been taking part in big public engagements since his cancer diagnosis, but has continued his participation in private events, such as this meeting where he was shown the banknotes by Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-68769481

[Time_Traveller]

Winnersh Film Studios enters administration after 2023 strikes

13 hours ago



Film studios that have been a popular location for Hollywood blockbusters have gone into administration.

Winnersh Film Studios cited "cashflow problems" linked to the 2023 writers and actors strikes in the US as the culprit for its financial woes.

Consultancy firm Interpath Advisory has been appointed as administrator of Winnersh Film Studios Limited and its parent company Stage Fifty.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire was partly filmed at the studios.

Interpath said the companies would "continue to run as normal" for now, with lenders saying they were "committed" to keeping the Berkshire-based studios running.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-b ... e-68764334

[Time_Traveller]

William Wragg resigns Tory whip after Westminster sexting scandal

1 hour ago



Senior MP William Wragg has resigned the Conservative whip after he admitted giving politicians’ phone numbers to a suspected scammer.

The party’s whips office said he was “voluntarily relinquishing the Conservative whip” after he had already stepped back from his roles as vice-chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee and chairman of the Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee.

The Hazel Grove MP had previously announced his intention to leave Parliament at the next election and will now sit as an Independent.

Mr Wragg admitted last week that he had given colleagues’ phone numbers to someone on a dating app amid fears that intimate images of himself would be leaked after he was targeted in a parliamentary sexting scam.

Scotland Yard has said it is investigating reports of the so-called “honey trap” scam after it was suggested that at least 12 men in political circles received unsolicited messages, raising security concerns.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/h ... 25927.html

[Time_Traveller]

Keir Starmer: Labour commitment to nuclear weapons unshakeable

1 hour ago

Sir Keir Starmer has said his commitment to the UK's nuclear weapons is "unshakeable" and "absolute".

Writing in the Daily Mail, he described the creation of the NHS and an independent British nuclear programme as "towering achievements" of the Labour government elected in 1945.

The Labour leader has also said he wants to raise defence spending to 2.5% of GDP "as soon as resources allow".

The government plans to spend 2.3% of GDP on defence this year.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has also said he wants the figure to rise to 2.5% "as soon as economic conditions allow," but neither party has set out a timeline for this to happen.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68790435

[Time_Traveller]

Angela Rayner says she will 'step down' if she is found to have committed a crime

Friday 12 April 2024 18:53, UK



Angela Rayner has said she will "do the right thing and step down" if she is found to have committed a crime in the police investigation into her former living arrangements.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed earlier today that it was re-examining claims the deputy Labour leader may have broken electoral law over information she gave about her living situation a decade ago.

GMP made the decision after Tory MP James Daly informed the force of claims made by neighbours that allegedly contradicted the Labour deputy leader's statement that her property on Vicarage Road, Stockport, was her main residence and not her husband's - as some have claimed.

According to electoral law, it is an offence to knowingly provide false information in a voter registration application form.

Ms Rayner has repeatedly said that her house on Vicarage Road was her main address and not Lowndes Lane, the home owned by her then-husband Mark Rayner.

https://news.sky.com/story/angela-rayne ... e-13113680

[Time_Traveller]

Political ads could be heading to UK TV screens due to legal loophole

Sun 14 Apr 2024 11.30 BST



Some viewers are already irritated by the adverts interrupting shows on the ITV catchup service. But they could soon yearn for the halcyon days of shampoo or insurance commercials after being presented with the faces of Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer.

ITV is considering taking paid ads from political parties for the first time during the upcoming general election thanks to a loophole in broadcasting law.

The broadcaster told the Guardian it was considering whether to allow political parties to buy space on its ITVX streaming platform. This could leave viewers having Love Island or Saturday Night Takeaway broken up by a lecture on the economy.

Ever since commercial television began in 1954, British political parties have been banned by law from buying television adverts. The idea was that this improved the quality of public debate and stopped wealthy political parties buying their way into voters’ homes – ensuring the UK has avoided the political attack ads that are prevalent during American elections.

But the ban – last updated in 2003 – only applies to traditional television channels and not to streaming television delivered over the internet. With audiences increasingly switching off traditional broadcast channels, the UK’s big political parties are preparing to take advantage of the loophole and pay millions of pounds to insert themselves into living rooms.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/ ... ophole-itv

Soon people will end up switching off streaming sites too.

[Time_Traveller]

MPs to vote on Rishi Sunak's smoking ban bill

31 minutes ago

Plans to stop young people born since 2009 ever smoking are to be debated and voted on later.

Rishi Sunak's bill aims to create the UK's first smoke-free generation in a major public health intervention.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill would ensure anyone turning 15 from this year would be banned from buying cigarettes, and also aims to make vapes less appealing to children.

A number of Tory MPs have told the BBC they won't back the bill.

Conservative MPs will get a free vote on it so they won't be ordered to vote with the government, but the bill is likely to pass as it has Labour support.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68816566

[Time_Traveller]

UK set to grow less than expected this year as IMF revises forecasts down

Tuesday 16 April 2024 14:10, UK

The UK economy is going to grow less than expected this year - with the International Monetary Fund warning the country will remain the second worst performer in the G7.

Newly revised forecasts indicate the UK's gross domestic product will expand by just 0.5% in 2024 - a slight downgrade from previous estimates in January - compared with global growth of 3.2%.

However, UK GDP is tipped to increase by 1.5% in 2025 - making it the third-best performer among G7 nations - as households recover following a prolonged cost of living crisis.

According to the IMF, inflation in the British economy will remain at about 2.5% for the rest of this year but fall towards the Bank of England's target of 2% next year.

When looked at per head - with output split across the UK's population - GDP flatlines, with no growth at all for 2024 and 1.1% in 2025.

https://news.sky.com/story/uk-set-to-gr ... n-13116091