News- UK

Ofqual 'blindsided' government by revoking A-level appeals process Move by regulator could leave thousands of students without university placesThe government’s attempts to fix this summer’s broken A-level and GCSE results have been thrown into chaos after the exam regulator Ofqual revoked the appeals process for schools and students that it had published only a few hours earlier.The move, which was caused by internal disagreements over the appeals process, could leave thousands of A-level candidates in limbo, including those trying to secure places at universities this autumn by overturning the grades awarded to them by Ofqual’s algorithm. Continue reading... Go to Source

Tens of thousands gather in Minsk for biggest protest in Belarus history Alexander Lukashenko claims Vladimir Putin has offered him ‘comprehensive help’Tens of thousands of Belarusians have gathered in Minsk for the biggest protest in the country’s history, as an extraordinary week of rising sentiment comes to a close.Seven days after the country’s authoritarian ruler, Alexander Lukashenko, claimed to have secured 80% of the vote in a presidential election, his legitimacy is in tatters and his regime faces its biggest crisis since he came to power 26 years ago. The mood at Sunday’s rally was stoked further by egregious police violence against thousands of protesters earlier in the week. Continue reading... Go to Source

Ronnie O'Sullivan v Kyren Wilson: World Snooker Championship final – live! Frame-by-frame coverage of the action at the CrucibleO’Sullivan leads Crucible final despite fightback from Wilson Any comments? You can email Daniel | tweet @DanielHarris 4.20pm BST Anyway, join me at seven in order to celebrate one of the most ludicrous geniuses ever to illuminate our planet. Related: Ronnie O'Sullivan sparks snooker debate after an event like no other Related: Lewis Hamilton wins Spanish Grand Prix to extend championship lead Related: Rain descends after Rory Burns gets a duck in response to Pakistan's 236 Related: County cricket: Notts v Lancashire, Yorks v Derbyshire and more – live! Related: Frankie Dettori and Palace Pier complete perfect weekend in Deauville 4.18pm BST W...

Ministers criticised over plan to scrap Public Health England Critics say PHE is being scapegoated for government’s failings during pandemicCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageSenior doctors, hospital bosses and public health experts have accused ministers of scapegoating Public Health England for their own failings over Covid-19 by planning to axe the agency.The government’s decision to scrap PHE and merge it into a new body charged with preventing future outbreaks of infectious diseases produced a chorus of criticism on Sunday. Continue reading... Go to Source

Ofqual suspends A-level appeal criteria hours after announcing them Process for challenging grades on basis of mock results ‘being reviewed’, says exams regulator for England Students in England must meet eight criteria to appeal exam results The exams regulator for England has dramatically suspended its criteria for students hoping to challenge their A-level grades on the basis of their results in mock exams.In a brief statement, Ofqual said the policy was “being reviewed” by its board and that further information would be released “in due course”. Continue reading... Go to Source

Belarus prepares for biggest protest yet after week of anger Crisis-hit leader Lukashenko claims Putin has offered him ‘comprehensive help’ ahead of planned Minsk protestBelarusians are preparing for what could be the biggest protest in the country’s history on Sunday afternoon, as an extraordinary week of rising protest sentiment comes to a close.Just seven days after authoritarian ruler, Alexander Lukashenko, claimed to have secured 80% of the vote in a presidential ballot, his legitimacy is in tatters and his regime is facing its biggest crisis since he first came to power 26 years ago. The protest mood was stoked further by egregious police violence against thousands of protesters early in the week. Continue reading... Go to Source

Priti Patel: Migrants crossing Channel to UK as they believe France is racist Home secretary reportedly made comments to explain rise in risky journeys on small boatsMigrants are crossing the Channel to Britain because they believe France is a “racist country” where they may be “tortured”, Priti Patel has said.According to reports, the home secretary made her comments in a conference call with Conservative MPs concerned about the recent upsurge in numbers attempting the dangerous voyage in small boats. Continue reading... Go to Source

Makers of M&S sandwiches faced pay dock if they self-isolated, says union Workers at Greencore factory at centre of a Covid-19 outbreak found it difficult to comply due to sick pay warning, say reps Coronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage Workers at a factory at the centre of a major coronavirus outbreak were told they would be paid less than £100 per week if they had to self-isolate, making it difficult for many to comply, their representatives have claimed.Bosses at the Greencore site in Northampton, where M&S sandwiches are prepared, acknowledged that, as at countless workplaces around the UK, many staff were entitled to no more than the statutory sick pay rate of £95.85 if they followed instructions to self-isolate. Continue reading... ...

Whitehall ‘power grab’ raises fears about who's really running London From TfL to planning laws, allies of Sadiq Khan say figures close to the prime minister are steadily eroding the mayor’s influenceWhen Sadiq Khan recently announced plans to move his team out of City Hall, the striking Thames-side building that has been headquarters for the London mayoralty for almost 20 years, close observers noted some worrying symbolism in the cost-cutting measure. The proposal would see the mayor move from this prime spot, across the river from the regal pomp of the Tower of London, to less-prominent digs five miles away in London’s Royal Docks. Was this to be a diminished seat of power for a diminished office?For months now, allies of Khan have complained about an alleged power grab b...

Controversial exams algorithm to set 97% of GCSE results 4.6 million will not reflect teachers’ grades, as Ofqual suspends A-level appeals policyNearly 5 million GCSEs will this week be awarded using a controversial model which education experts fear could lead to even more results being downgraded than in last week’s A-levels fiasco.According to analysis shared with the Observer, more than 4.6 million GCSEs in England – about 97% of the total – will be assigned solely by the algorithm drawn up by the exam regulator Ofqual. Teacher rankings will be taken into consideration, but not teacher-assessed grades submitted by schools and colleges. Continue reading... Go to Source

NHS chiefs’ plea: we need more cash for ‘winter risk’ Rishi Sunak accused of breaking a pledge to give the NHS ‘whatever it needs’ after request for more beds is rejectedCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageNHS chiefs are calling for the funding settlement unveiled by Theresa May to be drastically renegotiated, as they warn the service is already at increased risk this winter thanks to a shortage of resources.The settlement, announced in 2018, promised an average budget increase of 3.4% per year for the next five years, leading to an extra £20bn for the NHS in England in 2023. However, significant long-term costs created by the Covid-19 pandemic, combined with Tory manifesto pledges for new hospitals and higher staff numbers, mean that NH...

Belarus's leader pleads for Putin's help as post-election protests grow Alexander Lukashenko tells the Kremlin that unrest could spread to Moscow next if his regime is destabilisedThe embattled Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, has called on Vladimir Putin to help him quell the growing wave of protest inside the country, which has left his legitimacy in tatters and his regime facing its biggest crisis since he first came to power 26 years ago.Lukashenko appealed to the Russian president’s visceral fear of revolution at home and suggested that if his regime fell, Putin too was in danger. “This is a threat not just to Belarus … if Belarusians do not hold out, the wave will head over there too,” he said in televised remarks to a meeting of advisers on Sat...

Trump says he will 'take a look' at pardon for Edward Snowden President said at press conference he did not know much about whistleblower’s case Donald Trump said on Saturday that he would look at the issue of giving a pardon to whistleblower Edward Snowden.Snowden disclosed highly classified information from the National Security Agency in 2013. He revealed the news covertly to the Guardian after he fled to Hong Kong, before flying to Moscow to avoid extradition back to America. He currently lives in Russia. Continue reading... Go to Source

Iran calls US defeat over UN arms embargo a 'humiliation' Hassan Rouhani triumphant after only two countries vote in favour of prolonging embargoIran’s president said on Saturday that the US had suffered a humiliating defeat after the UN security souncil refused to extend an arms embargo on Tehran. US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, meanwhile, called the action a “serious mistake”.The UN security souncil on Friday voted on the US effort to extend the arms embargo on Iran. Russia and China voted against, while 11 members – including France, Germany and Britain – abstained. The US and the Dominican Republic were the only votes in favour. Continue reading... Go to Source

Students in England must meet eight criteria to appeal exam results Ofqual confirms process for those whose A-level and GCSE mock results were higher than gradeStudents in England hoping to appeal their A-level and GCSE exam results based on their mock grades will need to meet a set of eight criteria to be considered “valid”, the exams regulator Ofqual has revealed. Related: A-levels row: Oxford college to honour all offers despite results Continue reading... Go to Source

Up to a third of National Trust's historic homes have slave trade links Heritage charity plans to keep controversial art and statues in place, framed by historical contextAlmost a third of stately homes owned by the National Trust have links to slavery or colonialism, a report is expected to announce next month, as the heritage charity announced plans to keep most controversial objects on its sites to avoid “shutting down debate”.It is unclear which pieces of art displaying racist undertones are to be removed from National Trust properties following the report into its collection’s imperial past, but Dyrham Park in Bristol is to place a critical poem in front of a pair of 17th-century sculptures of African men kneeling in chains. Continue reading... Go to Source

Coronavirus live news: Ireland reports highest daily rise in infections since May Australian death toll stands at 379; France removed from UK travel corridor; Greece and Croatia impose midnight curfew on bars and restaurants Theatres, casinos and bowling alleys reopen in England France could add British visitors to quarantine list after UK measuresUK adds France to Covid-19 14-day quarantine list‘Critical moment’: cases rise again in Spain 6.46pm BST Ireland reported 200 new Covid-19 cases arising from multiple clusters across the country on Saturday, the highest daily amount since the beginning of May. The country’s chief medical officer described this as “deeply concerning”. Ireland has reopened its economy at a slower pace than most European Union countr...

Police issue warning about Donald Trump-shaped ecstasy pills Man, 30s, from Luton arrested on suspicion of supplying the dangerous high-strength batch, police sayPolice have issued a warning about a dangerous high-strength batch of Donald Trump-shaped ecstasy pills.A man in his 30s from Luton has been arrested on suspicion of supplying the orange tablets, which bear the likeness of the US president, said Bedfordshire police. Continue reading... Go to Source

Give refugees crossing Channel a chance, say Windrush survivors Priti Patel risks replicating Home Office failings that led to scandal, victims and human rights campaigners warnSurvivors of the Windrush scandal have attacked the home secretary, saying her approach to the Channel migrant crossings is creating “the same set of conditions” that led to the government victimising the children of Commonwealth immigrants.A letter to Priti Patel from 100 prominent refugee and human rights campaigners, including members of the Windrush generation, warns that the “pattern of ignoring expert advice, failing to engage with civil society and branding migrants as criminal” replicates Home Office failings that caused the 2018 Windrush scandal. Continue reading... Go to Sourc...

Obama denounces Trump bid to deter voters with attack on post office USPS warns mail-in votes might not arrive in time to be countedObama: president trying to ‘actively kneecap’ postal serviceThere are growing fears over the handling of November’s US presidential election after it emerged that the US Postal Service (USPS) has warned it cannot guarantee mail-in votes will be counted in almost every state in America and Barack Obama accused Donald Trump of trying to “discourage people from voting”.In letters to 46 states, and the District of Columbia, the USPS has warned that it could not guarantee all ballots cast by mail for the November election will arrive in time to be counted – possibly affecting tens of millions of votes across almost the whole c...

'Deep remorse': Japanese emperor marks 75th anniversary of surrender Naruhito reflects on war actions at Covid-curtailed ceremony, marked elsewhere by former foes as Victory in the Pacific or VJ DayJapan has marked the 75th anniversary of its surrender in the second world war with Emperor Naruhito expressing “deep remorse” over his country’s wartime actions at a sombre annual ceremony curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic.Naruhito pledged to reflect on the war’s events and expressed hope that the tragedy would never be repeated. There was no word of apology from the prime minister, Shinzo Abe, who gave thanks for the sacrifices of the Japanese war dead. Continue reading... Go to Source

'We can only help ourselves': women in Belarus take protests into their own hands After police beat up demonstrators, flower-bearing women take to streets demanding changeThe first chain of women appeared on Wednesday: a few hundred brave souls, dressed in white and holding aloft flowers, in a quietly powerful response to the gruesome violence inflicted on thousands of Belarusians over the previous days.By the next afternoon, columns of flower-waving women were everywhere, parading along the broad avenues of central Minsk smiling, laughing and resolutely demanding political change. Continue reading... Go to Source

Fury in Spain at US plans to produce ‘Iberian’ ham in Texas and Georgia Purists are angry with the Spanish government for failing to protect jamón’s integrityFor the purist – and there are many purists – top-class jamón ibérico de bellota (acorn-fed Iberian ham) must come from Iberian blackfoot pigs that spend the last months of their lives eating acorns on the dehesa, a traditional Spanish or Portuguese pasture shaded by mature oak trees.After being hung and dry cured for at least 36 months, the meat produced is silky with fat, and, say experts, has a flavour that can only come from the acorns. Spaniards consider jamón ibérico their greatest gift to international gastronomy – the caviar of the Iberian peninsula. Continue readin...

GCSEs: 2 million results set to be downgraded, researchers warn Exclusive: analysis suggests disadvantaged pupils will be even worse hit than in A-levels debacleTwo million GCSE grades recommended by teachers are set to be downgraded next week, with disadvantaged pupils even worse hit than in the A-levels debacle, according to analysis from leading researchers.Thousands of headteachers have called for urgent action to avoid “serious injustices” that could blight the life chances of their pupils, after their exams were cancelled due to coronavirus and the results decided by an algorithm that has been condemned as unfair. Continue reading... Go to Source

'It hasn't sunk in': Residents win 60% rent reduction in London council flats Tenants to pay lower social rents after campaign against corporate landlords at Custom House and Canning Town in NewhamHundreds of families in temporary accommodation in east London have had their rent reduced by around 60% following a four-year campaign against their corporate social landlord.The London borough of Newham announced this week that “following a series of management issues” 250 properties in the borough, which were leased out by the council to the property management company Mears, would be transferred back into council management. Continue reading... Go to Source

British visitors to France could face two-week quarantine after UK measures Netherlands, also removed from travel corridor list, rules out tit-for-tat Covid ruling Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageBritish visitors to France could face a two-week quarantine in France, as the French government threatened retaliation after being removed from the UK safe travel list following a spike in coronavirus cases.But the Netherlands, which was also removed from the travel corridor list late on Thursday, has ruled out reciprocal measures. Continue reading... Go to Source

EU moves toward Belarus sanctions after crackdown on protests Bloc’s foreign ministers agree to freeze assets of individuals responsible for vote-rigging and violence against protestersEuropean foreign ministers have agreed to move toward sanctions on Alexander Lukashenko’s regime, after reports of the systematic abuse and torture of Belarusians swept up in the brutal crackdown on protests.A diplomatic source said the EU’s 27 foreign ministers had agreed that individuals responsible for the falsification of Sunday’s presidential elections and subsequent violence against protesters should face asset freezes and travel bans into the bloc. Continue reading... Go to Source

Magnum reviewing archive as concerns raised about images of child sexual exploitation Agency to review historical photographs after issue raised on website and social mediaMagnum Photos, one of the world’s most celebrated photographic agencies, is to re-examine the content of its archive of more than 1 million images after accusations it made available photographs that critics said may show the sexual exploitation of minors.In a statement, the president of Magnum, Olivia Arthur, said the agency, whose founders included Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson, had begun an “in-depth internal review to make sure that we fully understand the implications of the work in the archive, both in terms of imagery and context. Continue reading... Go to Source

UK coronavirus live: France could quarantine British travellers in retaliation over new rules French move comes after UK added country to quarantine list as well as Netherlands, Malta, Turks and Caicos, and Aruba UK adds France to 14-day quarantine listWhat should I do if I have a holiday booked to France?Government quietly drops 1.3m Covid tests from England tallyTheatres, music venues and beauty salons in England to reopenGlobal coronavirus updates – live 12.52pm BST Gavin Williamson is facing increasing pressure over the education department’s mishandling of this summer’s exam results in England, with the Liberal Democrats calling on him to resign and Labour demanding that the results be replaced by teacher assessments.Layla Moran, the Lib Dems’ education spok...

Gavin Williamson under pressure to resign over A-level results 'fiasco' Lib Dems say minister is ‘out of excuses’ and Labour calls for results system to be scrappedGavin Williamson is facing increasing pressure over the education department’s mishandling of this summer’s exam results in England, with the Liberal Democrats calling on him to resign and Labour demanding that the results be replaced by teacher assessments.Layla Moran, the Lib Dems’ education spokesperson, said Williamson should go because of the disruption caused when thousands of students were given lower grades than expected on Thursday. Continue reading... Go to Source