Showing posts with label UK. Show all posts
Showing posts with label UK. Show all posts

Thursday, February 15, 2024

Explained: Can Northern Ireland Break Away from the UK and Form a United Ireland?

Feb 15, 2024 | In 1921, England partitioned Ireland into two countries: the Republic of Ireland in the south and Northern Ireland under the dominion of the United Kingdom. Now, with a nationalist leader advocating for Irish unity sworn in to lead Northern Ireland, will the two regions reunite?

Huge Rise in Antisemitic Abuse in UK since Hamas Attack, Says Charity

THE GUARDIAN: 589% increase in number of incidents described as ‘watershed moment for antisemitism in the UK’

The scale of the surge in antisemitism in the UK since Hamas’s attack on Israel on 7 October has been revealed, in data showing a 589% increase in the number of incidents compared with the same period in 2022.

The Community Security Trust (CST), which monitors anti-Jewish abuse and attacks and provides security for UK Jewish communities, said the unprecedented increase was a “watershed moment for antisemitism in the UK”.

It recorded 4,103 antisemitic incidents in the UK in 2023, the highest total in a calendar year reported to the organisation. Two-thirds of the 2023 incidents occurred after 7 October – 2,699, compared with 392 over the same time period in 2022. » | Harriet Sherwood | Thursday, February 15, 2024

Forte augmentation des actes antisémites au Royaume-Uni après l’attaque du Hamas : Deux tiers de ces faits sont survenus après l’attaque du mouvement islamiste palestinien contre Israël, selon le Community Security Trust, qui recense les actes antisémites et assure la sécurité d’écoles et lieux de culte de la communauté juive. »

Thursday, February 08, 2024

Gordon Brown Slams ‘Obscene’ Levels of Destitution in the UK

THE GUARDIAN: Former PM criticises ministers for ‘moral outrage’ of ‘systematically shredding’ social security system

Britain is in the throes of a hidden poverty “epidemic”, with the worst-affected households living in squalor and going without food, heating and everyday basics such as clean clothes and toothpaste, the former UK prime minister Gordon Brown has said.

Brown accused the government of creating a wall of silence around “obscene” levels of destitution in the UK and criticised ministers for “systematically shredding” a social security system that had once provided a safety net for the poorest.

He said it was a “moral outrage” that the government was unwilling to tackle a social emergency that had created millions of forgotten and voiceless victims, one he compared in an article for the Guardian with the Post Office scandal in terms of the scale of ministerial neglect. » | Patrick Butler, Social policy editor | Thursday, February 8, 2024

Saturday, January 27, 2024

Sir Michael Marmot on 'Grim Reality' of Poverty in Britain | LBC

Jan 23, 2024 | Professor Sir Michael Marmot joins Andrew Marr to discuss alarming data from the NHS, which suggests a signifiant increase in Victorian-era diseases, such as scurvy and rickets, during Rishi Sunak's premiership. Marmot attributes the return of these diseases to poverty and malnutrition and emphasises the 'grim' reality of Britain in 2024.

Millions in UK Need to Double Income to Escape Poverty | Channel 4 News

Jan 23, 2024 | When the cost of everything is spiralling, from housing to fuel and food, millions of ordinary people are facing an ever greater struggle to get by.

Now a new report by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation says millions of people in the UK would need to double their income to escape poverty. Their damning report reveals the extent of hardship and desperation across the country - describing it as "social failure, at scale".


Friday, January 26, 2024

US to Station Nuclear Weapons in UK to Counter Threat from Russia

THE TELEGRAPH: Warheads to be housed at RAF Lakenheath for first time in 15 years, Pentagon documents reveal, as Moscow warns of 'escalation'

The United States is planning to station nuclear weapons in the UK for the first time in 15 years as the threat from Russia increases, Pentagon documents seen by The Telegraph reveal.

Procurement contracts for a new facility at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk confirm that the US intends to place nuclear warheads three times the strength of the Hiroshima bomb at the air base.

The US removed nuclear missiles from the UK in 2008, judging that the Cold War threat from Moscow had diminished.

The disclosure comes in the wake of warnings that Nato countries need to ready their citizens for war with Russia.

Last week, Adml Rob Bauer, a senior Nato military official, said that private citizens should prepare for all-out war with Russia in the next 20 years that would require wholesale change in their lives. » | Tony Diver, US Editor | Friday, January 26, 2024

Wednesday, January 24, 2024

Public Face Call-up If We Go to War, Military Chief Warns

THE TELEGRAPH: General says Army is too small and Government needs to ‘mobilise the nation’ in the event of conflict with Russia

The British public will be called up to fight if the UK goes to war because the military is too small, the head of the Army is to warn.

General Sir Patrick Sanders will stress the need for the Government to “mobilise the nation” in the event of war with Russia in a speech on Wednesday.

With the British Army being reduced to its smallest size for centuries, The Telegraph understands Gen Sir Patrick, who has been openly critical of troop cuts, wants British men and women to be prepared for a call-up if Nato goes to war with Putin.

It comes after a senior Nato military official warned that private citizens should prepare for an all-out war with Russia in the next 20 years, which would require wholesale change in their lives.

Adml Rob Bauer said that nations needed to be prepared to “find more people if it comes to war”, and to consider “mobilisation, reservists or conscription”. » | Danielle Sheridan, Defence Editor | Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

17/01/24 – Bitterly Cold for the Next Few Days – Evening Weather Forecast UK – Met Office Weather

Jan 17, 2024 | Bitterly cold for the next few days, very low temperatures by night, snow in northern and western Scotland, chances of snow in western coast of Wales and England and eastern coast of England- This is the Met Office UK Weather forecast for the evening of 17/01/24. Bringing you today’s weather forecast is Clare Nasir

Saturday, December 30, 2023

The Telegraph: “Britain to Outgrow Germany for Years to Come as Eurozone Growth Engine Stutters”

THE TELEGRAPH: High interest rates risk plunging Europe into recession while UK expected to rebound

UK growth will outpace Germany and the eurozone for years to come as the Continent faces a deeper recession caused by higher interest rates.

While both the German and UK economies shrank in the three months to September, putting both at risk of recession, analysts at UBS expect Britain to bounce back within a year.

That is unlike Europe’s largest economy. Berlin is already grappling with a budget crisis after Germany’s top court ruled that the government broke the law by using Covid cash to fund net zero spending.

House prices across the country have also suffered double-digit declines. » | Tim Wallace | Friday, December 29, 2023

If you believe this cr**, you’ll believe ANYTHING! There is no way that the weak UK economy is going to outgrow the much stronger German economy. The only way that this might be made to appear so is by the use of sophistry in statistics.

Diese Behauptung ist lächerlich! Die deutsche Wirtschaft in den kommenden Jahren wird mit geringem Aufwand schneller wachsen als die britische Wirtschaft. Die deutsche Wirtschaft wird in keiner Weise von Großbritannien entwachsen sein. Überhaupt nicht! Schön wäre es für uns Briten; aber dies wird nicht passieren. – © Mark Alexander

Sunday, December 17, 2023

Tuesday, December 12, 2023

Why Has UK Immigration Gone Up since Brexit

Dec 12, 2023


Is there really anyone out there that actually believes that Rishi Sunak has more sense than money? The dude is an out-and-out Brexiteer. His anti-EU conviction hasn't served him very well, has it? – © Mark Alexander

Sunday, December 10, 2023

Gap between Haves and Have-nots Widening, Report Warns

BBC: The growing gap between the UK's "haves and have-nots" is in danger of becoming a "chasm", a report has warned.

Research by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) think tank argues the most disadvantaged are no better off than they were 15 years ago.

It mentioned stagnant wages, family breakdown, poor housing, crime, mental health and other issues, saying the gap widened during the pandemic.

Ministers highlighted the support to help with the rising cost of living.

The report by the CSJ's Social Justice Commission says the country is at risk of slipping back to a social divide not seen since the Victorian era. » | BBC | Saturday, December 9, 2023

This is what happens to a society when greed is allowed to be its driver! It is a direct consequence of years of Thatcherism and thirteen plus years of Tory rule. – © Mark Alexander

Tuesday, December 05, 2023

Professor Tim Wilson: Nobody Will Take Britain Seriously Again

Dec 5, 2023 | That is the risk Rishi Sunak is taking to win a general election. He is gambling with the reputation of our nation. He is behaving like a fool and he is doing so in a calculated and deceptive way. Cleverly rightly says "we can now move quickly"- like any criminal might add escaping the scene of the crime.

Thursday, November 30, 2023

The British Aristocrat that Joined the Nazis – BBC REEL

Oct 22, 2022 | John Amery was the son of a high-ranking British politician. But unlike his father, he was a traitor. As Adolf Hitler dragged Europe into the Second World War, Amery presented himself to the Germans as someone who could help the Nazis. His actions shocked Britons. When he was eventually captured in Italy he was sent to the hangman.

Film by Jono Namara
Commissioned by Paul I. Harris


Sunday, November 26, 2023

Rishi Sunak Goes It Alone on Smoking as New Zealand Ditches Nanny State Gigarette Ban

YAHOO! SPORT: Rishi Sunak is facing fresh demands to axe his “nanny state” smoking ban after the flagship policy that it followed was torn up by the New Zealand government.

The Prime Minister announced a phased ban on cigarettes last month, with the age of sale rising by one year every year from 2027 onwards under the plans.

But Conservative MPs urged him to change course after New Zealand’s recently elected coalition government tore up the country’s own proposals to prohibit anyone born after 2008 from ever buying tobacco.

Christopher Luxon, the incoming prime minister, confirmed he would abolish legislation passed by Jacinda Ardern, one of his Left-wing predecessors, in December last year, shortly before Ms Ardern’s unexpected departure from politics.

While Downing Street insisted it was “committed” to pressing ahead with the smoking ban – which it now looks set to become the only country in the world to introduce – senior Tory backbenchers called on Mr Sunak to think again.

Seeing common sense

Philip Davies, the MP for Shipley, said: “I commend the New Zealand government for seeing common sense, and I very much hope the UK Government will follow suit. » | Dominic Penna | Friday, November 24, 2023

It is encouraging to see that New Zealand is ditching Jacinda Adern's silly smoking ban for the young. It was a hare-brained idea from the very start. It was also undemocratic and a policy typical of policies a Nanny State would introduce. It is socialist and meddlesome at its very core.

The politically-naïve Rishi Sunak will also have to abandon this stupid policy. It is totally unworkable. Especially in an international world. What, for example, would happen if one of these young people went abroad to work or vacation and took up the smoking habit whilst abroad, then returned to the UK? Does Rishi Sunak have plans to jail such people for enjoying a puff? Or what other plans does he have for them in his health Utopia? Moreover, what will happen if a person marries someone from abroad who already smokes and where smoking is legal for a person of that age? Sunak clearly hasn't properly thought through this ludicrous policy. Further, introducing such a stupid ban will bring with it no end of policing and enforcing difficulties. Stupid is as stupid does. – © Mark Alexander

Saturday, November 25, 2023

Rupert Everett Explores 50 Years of LGBT Progress in Great Britain | Absolute Documentaries

May 4, 2023 | Fifty years after the decriminalization of homosexuality in Great Britain, actor Rupert Everett examines the evolution of both the gay community and public opinion toward gay people.


BEWARE: This documentary is not suitable for the faint-hearted, narrow-minded, or for the overly religious. Furthermore, and more importantly, it is NOT suitable for children. I’m asking even myself if I am old enough to watch it!– Mark

Monday, November 13, 2023

Storm Debi: Warning over Gale Force Winds and Heavy Rain

BBC: Parts of the UK are braced for gale force winds and heavy rain ahead of the arrival of Storm Debi later.

The storm will reach northern England and parts of north Wales in the morning, with gusts of up to 80mph possible along coastal areas.

There is also a possible danger to life from flying debris and large waves.

Debi, the fourth named storm of the season, could also bring flooding, travel delays and power cuts to many parts of the UK.

The rain and winds are expected to gradually ease off in the afternoon. » | Emily Atkinson & Harrison Jones, BBC News | Monday, November 13, 2023

Thursday, November 09, 2023

One Month after Hamas’s Attacks, It’s Britain that Is Surrendering

THE TELEGRAPH: So far the Government’s response to the eruption of hatred has failed to meet the scale of the problem

The Prime Minister still has time to prove he is serious about tackling the threat to Britain's way of life

Where is Rishi Sunak? Britain’s Jewish community is more fearful for its safety than at any time since the Second World War, according to the Chief Rabbi; lies, conspiracy theories, genocide denialism, blood libels and violent language are rampant at demonstrations and on social media; and what is the Prime Minister actually doing about it? The lack of leadership from No 10 is heartbreaking.

“Holding Scotland Yard to account” is insultingly insufficient. Senior Tories have expressed their disapproval of the marches and of the language used, but this is mere talk, and too sotto voce. There is no game-changing strategy to shift the narrative, no plan to combat disinformation, no immediate proposals to tighten legislation or ban dangerous groups, no moves to prevent train carriages, poppy sellers or branches of M&S from being targeted.

Abominable ideas – such as the lie that Hamas didn’t kidnap any Israeli children, and that posters of hostages are fake – are spreading, and yet there is a vacuum, an abdication of responsibility in Whitehall and it is emboldening every kind of maniac and inflaming every kind of hideous tension.

None of this was meant to be possible. The modern British model is in crisis: a tiny minority is under immense pressure, and the police, the Crown Prosecution Service, the BBC, the Government, the human rights advocates and the virtue-signalling middle classes are doing the bare minimum they can get away with. » | Allister Heath | Wednesday, November 8, 2023

Sunday, November 05, 2023

UK ‘in Violation of International Law’ over Poverty Levels, Says UN Envoy

GUARDIAN INTERNATIONAL: Exclusive: Special rapporteur Olivier De Schutter to urge ministers to increase welfare spending on visit to country this week

Poverty levels in the UK are “simply not acceptable” and the government is violating international law, the United Nations’ poverty envoy has said ahead of a visit to the country this week, when he will urge ministers to increase welfare spending.

Olivier De Schutter, the UN’s special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, cited research showing universal credit payments of £85 a week for single adults over 25 were “grossly insufficient” and described the UK’s main welfare system as “a leaking bucket”.

In an interview with the Guardian five years after his predecessor, Philip Alston, angered the Conservative government by accusing it of the “systematic immiseration of a significant part of the British population”, the Belgian lawyer risked a fresh confrontation by saying: “Things have got worse.” » | Robert Booth, Social affairs correspondent | Sunday, November 5, 2023

UK's welfare system is cruel and misogynistic, says UN expert after damning report on poverty: Britain’s welfare system is so sexist it may as well have been compiled by “a group of misogynists in a room,” a UN expert has claimed. / Philip Alston, the UN’s rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, warned that poverty in the UK is a “political choice” and that compassion and concern had been “outsourced” in favour of tax cuts for the rich. / In a damning 24-page report he brands levels of child poverty “not just a disgrace, but a social calamity and an economic disaster” and said that limiting benefit payments to two children was as “forced and physical” as China’s one-child policy. »

Wednesday, November 01, 2023

Storm Ciarán: England and Channel Islands Prepare for Disruption

BBC: People are protecting their homes and businesses, roads have been closed and ferries cancelled as the UK prepares for the arrival of Storm Ciarán later.

Damaging winds are forecast in southern England and gusts of up to 95mph (152km/h) are predicted to batter the Channel Islands.

The Met Office has warned of travel disruption, damage to buildings and flying debris.

There are also 24 flood warnings in place across England.

It comes less than two weeks after Storm Babet wreaked havoc across the UK.

The Met Office has issued yellow and amber warnings - indicating potential risks to life and property - for wind and rain in southern and eastern England.

A red wind warning, the highest level, has been issued by Jersey Met for Wednesday night into Thursday, with storm-force gusts, heavy rainfall and coastal flooding. » | Tim Dodd, BBC England | Wednesday, November 1, 2023

Related.

Orkantief erreicht die Küste von Frankreich: Aus Frankreich wird ein erster Rekord gemeldet. Dort stellen sich die Menschen auf heftige Stürme in der Nacht ein – ebenso in Großbritannien. In französischen Medien wird von einer „meteorologischen Bombe“ gesprochen. »

En direct : la tempête Ciaran touche terre dans le nord-ouest de la France, Emmanuel Macron appelle les habitants des départements en alerte à « rester chez eux » : Le chef de l’Etat a noté qu’une « tempête majeure va frapper dès ce soir une partie du pays » et a appelé les personnes concernées à ne « pas prendre de risque ». Des rafales de vent qui pourront atteindre 170 kilomètres à l’heure sont attendues sur les côtes normandes et bretonnes. LIVE EN COURS »

Storm Ciarán: Violent winds lash southern England and Channel Islands: Lives could be put at risk in the UK and parts of the British Isles as Storm Ciarán hits, forecasters have warned. »