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UK coronavirus live: Scotland’s R number ‘probably now above 1’ and could be 1.4, says Nicola Sturgeon

News, News- UK
UK coronavirus live: Scotland's R number 'probably now above 1' and could be 1.4, says Nicola Sturgeon News updates: Nicola Sturgeon says Scottish R number ‘probably above 1’; 20-minute test could be available ‘in coming weeks and months’, says HancockUK may reimpose quarantine on travellers from PortugalMass weekly testing of population to be trialled in EnglandChildcare crisis risks pushing women out of workforce, says TUCGlobal coronavirus updates – live 12.50pm BST Q: Why is Scotland applying quarantine from arrivals from the whole of Greece when the Welsh government’s quarantine policy just covers arrivals from Zante?Sturgeon says test and protect provides a lot of information about where cases are coming from, and there have been a lot of positive cases in Scotland in people who h...

Labour urges UK government not to hire Tony Abbott as trade envoy

News, News- UK
Labour urges UK government not to hire Tony Abbott as trade envoy Australian ex-PM ‘wrong person for job’ because of views on women and equal marriage The UK government is facing increased pressure over its proposed appointment of Tony Abbott as a trade envoy because of his views about women, equal marriage and climate change, with Labour calling for the idea to be scrapped.“I have real concerns about Tony Abbott and don’t think he’s the right person for the job,” Keir Starmer said in a TV clip. “And if I was prime minister I wouldn’t appoint him.” Continue reading... Go to Source

Merkel pressured to end Nord Stream 2 support after Navalny poisoning

News, News- UK
Merkel pressured to end Nord Stream 2 support after Navalny poisoning German opposition calls on chancellor to use gas pipeline project to pressurise Kremlin Angela Merkel is under growing domestic pressure to end her support for the joint German-Russian Nord Stream 2 pipeline project over the confirmed poisoning of the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.The German Green party called on the chancellor to use the nearly completed infrastructure project to pressure the Kremlin into answering allegations over what Merkel called the “silencing” of Navalny with a novichok nerve reagent. Continue reading... Go to Source

Brexit: EU rejects British proposal for reuniting child asylum seekers

News, News- UK
Brexit: EU rejects British proposal for reuniting child asylum seekers Warning that lack of agreement means more young people will risk lives crossing ChannelThe EU has rejected a British proposal for a system to reunite children seeking asylum with their families in the UK or Europe, prompting warnings that more young people will risk their lives in dangerous Channel crossings.The government had proposed a post-Brexit agreement to continue transfers of unaccompanied child asylum seekers to families living in either the UK or EU, although with no obligation on either side. Continue reading... Go to Source

French reporter who joined police exposes racism and violence

News, News- UK
French reporter who joined police exposes racism and violence Undercover journalist Valentin Gendrot describes culture where officers act with impunityA French journalist who infiltrated the country’s police force has described a culture of racism and violence in which officers act with impunity.Valentin Gendrot claims the violence was so frequent it became almost banal and describes one incident where he was forced to help falsify evidence against an adolescent who had been beaten by an officer.“It really shocked me to hear police officers, who are representatives of the state, calling people who were black, Arab or migrants ‘bastards’, but everyone did it,” he says.“It was only a minority of officers who were violent … but they were always violent.”Gendrot also says he was shocked to ...

Mass weekly Covid-19 testing of population to be trialled in England

News, News- UK
Mass weekly Covid-19 testing of population to be trialled in England Jeremy Hunt says UK should embrace repeat testing as route to more ‘normal life’ Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe UK government is to trial routine weekly Covid testing of the population as part of preparations to head off a possible winter second wave, as the former health secretary Jeremy Hunt called for such tests to become the norm.Matt Hancock said the government was committing an extra £500m to scale up testing capacity and launch community pilots trialling the effectiveness of repeat testing in schools and colleges, as well as in the population as a whole. It will also ramp up the trials of a new test kit that it is claimed can provide results within 20 minutes. Continue reading......

Star Wars actor John Boyega says non-white roles are ‘pushed to the side’ in franchise

News, News- UK
Star Wars actor John Boyega says non-white roles are 'pushed to the side' in franchise British actor, who played former stormtrooper Finn, says the process had changed him and made him ‘angry’The British actor John Boyega has criticised the treatment of non-white characters in the latest Star Wars films, saying they were marketed as important elements in the franchise but were ultimately “pushed to the side”.In an interview published by GQ magazine on Wednesday, Boyega expressed bitterness over how his role as stormtrooper Finn faded in the latter episodes of the trilogy which concluded with The Rise of Skywalker in 2019. Continue reading... Go to Source

Minister relinquishes control of shares in firm given UK government contracts

News, News- UK
Minister relinquishes control of shares in firm given UK government contracts Lord Agnew had faced criticism over his shares in Faculty that are worth £90,000A Cabinet Office minister has relinquished control of shares worth £90,000 in an artificial intelligence firm after criticism that his ownership of the shares potentially clashed with his official duties.Lord Agnew had faced criticism over his shares in Faculty, a firm that has gained extensive work in government since it was hired by Dominic Cummings to work for the Vote Leave campaign. Continue reading... Go to Source

Covid-19 Live Updates and Tracker

News- US
Covid-19 Live Updates and Tracker A Minnesota man is the first person known to have died of Covid-19 after attending the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. Silvio Berlusconi, Italy’s former prime minister, tested positive for the virus. Go to Source

Alexei Navalny poisoned with novichok, says German government

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Alexei Navalny poisoned with novichok, says German government Angela Merkel demands answers from Moscow over ‘attempted murder’ of Kremlin criticAngela Merkel has demanded answers from the Kremlin over the “attempted murder” of the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, after toxicological exams at Berlin’s Charité hospital indicated “unequivocally” that Navalny was poisoned with a nerve agent from the novichok family.“This poison could be identified unequivocally in tests,” Merkel said, referring to tests carried out at a military laboratory. She said the findings raised “very difficult questions that only the Russian government can answer, and has to answer.” Continue reading... Go to Source

Cummings recruit sacked after suggesting police use ‘live rounds’ on BLM protesters

News, News- UK
Cummings recruit sacked after suggesting police use 'live rounds' on BLM protesters Exclusive: data specialist appointed after responding to call by Boris Johnson’s chief adviser for ‘weirdos and misfits’How civil servants’ concerns about racism led them to Cummings recruit’s tweetA data specialist recruited to the civil service following Dominic Cummings’ call for “weirdos and misfits” to work for the UK government was sacked recently after posting on social media that police should use live rounds against Black Lives Matter demonstrators, the Guardian can reveal.The data architect appointed to a senior role in the Cabinet Office after applying through a scheme unveiled by Boris Johnson’s chief adviser was dismissed in July after colleagues discovered his Twitter post and reported it t...

Race to track 200 people on flight after officials fail to tell airline of Covid cases

News, News- UK
Race to track 200 people on flight after officials fail to tell airline of Covid cases Exclusive: Wizz Air left in dark after eight teenagers travelling from Crete to London Luton test positiveCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageHealth officials are scrambling to contact more than 200 British holidaymakers on a flight from Crete last week after authorities failed to alert the airline that eight passengers had tested positive for coronavirus.The teenagers, from Hampshire, were diagnosed after returning to the UK on a Wizz Air flight to London Luton airport on 25 August. The positive tests should have triggered an urgent response to track down the other 204 passengers on board, but Wizz Air said it had not been made aware of the cases until contacted by the Guardia...