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Pressure grows on UK to airlift citizens on coronavirus-stricken ship Passengers on Diamond Princess liner ‘disillusioned’ with government over lack of action• All the day’s developmentsPressure is growing on the British government to airlift citizens stranded on a cruise ship stricken by coronavirus, after a Chinese tourist in France became the first person to die from the disease in Europe.The US announced late on Friday that it would be evacuating more than 400 nationals from the quarantined ship, which has had nearly 300 confirmed coronavirus cases, and British travellers called on their government to do the same. Continue reading... Go to Source

Long-Bailey: Labour cannot refuse Scottish referendum request MP cements position as only leadership candidate who would grant legal powers to hold fresh plebisciteRebecca Long-Bailey has cemented her position as the only Labour leadership candidate who would grant the Scottish parliament the legal powers to hold a second referendum on independence, telling a hustings event in Glasgow that refusal “would drive more of our voters into the arms of the Scottish National party”.At the only hustings taking place north of the border, all three remaining candidates emphasised their understanding that the party can only secure a majority at Westminster if it wins back its Scottish heartlands. Continue reading... Go to Source

No room for you in lectures, top universities tell first-year students ‘Desperate’ institutions offer overflow rooms and YouTube live streams instead of a seat in front of a lecturerStudents at prestigious universities have been turned away from overcrowded lectures and told to watch classes online or in overflow rooms.The Observer found that students paying £9,250 or more in Manchester, Nottingham and Lancaster, had struggled to get a seat in lectures. Manchester University maths students in a 600-capacity hall were given slips with a link to a YouTube live stream and told they could “sit in a coffee shop” and watch. They were also given the option of sitting in a separate overflow theatre to watch the stream, without being able to participate or question ...

Chinese tourist in France becomes Europe's first coronavirus fatality French health minister confirms death of man from virus that has killed more than 1,500 people around worldCoronavirus: latest updates – liveEurope has recorded its first coronavirus fatality, as an elderly Chinese tourist in France has died from the disease, the country’s health minister confirmed.The 80-year-old Chinese man was among 11 confirmed coronavirus cases in France, with his death announced by the French health minister, Agnès Buzyn, on Saturday. Continue reading... Go to Source

Storm Dennis to bring high winds, heavy rain and flooding to UK More than 200 flights cancelled as military is sent to Calderdale to bolster preparations for latest stormStorm Dennis will batter the UK this weekend with winds of up to 70mph and more than a month’s rain expected to fall in just two days in some areas, with hundreds of homes at risk of flooding.With the country hit by horrendous weather for the second weekend in a row, the military is being sent to Calderdale, West Yorkshire, on Saturday to support the recovery and bolster preparations for the latest storm. Continue reading... Go to Source

Labour leadership: Emily Thornberry fails to make it on to ballot Shadow foreign secretary just misses out on getting backing from the required 33 constituency partiesEmily Thornberry’s hopes of leading the Labour party are over after she failed to make it on to the final members’ ballot.Just hours before the deadline closed on Friday night it became apparent that she would fail to get the backing from the required 33 constituency Labour parties to send her through to the last round. Continue reading... Go to Source

Manchester City banned from Champions League for two seasons Ban starts next season and City also fined €30m (£25m) Club say they will appeal to CAS at ‘earliest opportunity’Manchester City have been banned from the Champions League for the next two seasons by Uefa and fined €30m (£25m) after they were found to have seriously misled European football’s governing body and broken financial fair play rules.The severity of the ban from both of Uefa’s elite club competitions and the scale of the fine reflect how seriously Uefa’s FFP compliance bodies consider the club to have breached the rules and code of conduct. Continue reading... Go to Source

Health officials contact 200 including MPs over UK coronavirus scare People attended London conference with delegate who has since tested positiveCoronavirus - latest updatesMore than 200 people, including several MPs, have been contacted by health officials over fears they could have been exposed to the coronavirus at a conference in central London.Public Health England (PHE) wrote to those who were at the UK Bus Summit at the QEII Centre in Westminster on 6 February after it emerged one of the delegates had tested positive. Continue reading... Go to Source

Durham's pioneering police scheme slashes reoffending rates Exclusive: scheme allows offenders to avoid prosecution if they take part in rehabilitation programme‘It changed my whole outlook’: an offender’s storyReoffending rates have been slashed in a pioneering police scheme in north-east England which experts say could lead to a transformation in how the justice system deals with violent crime.More than 2,660 offenders who have committed offences such as burglary and assault have taken part in an experiment in which they avoid prosecution if they take part in a rehabilitation programme for issues such as mental health and substance abuse. Continue reading... Go to Source

UK holds 'preliminary discussions' with China over building HS2 Country’s state-owned railway builder claims it can complete the rail link cheaper and fasterBritain is in talks with China over giving Beijing’s state-owned railway builder a role in constructing the troubled HS2 high-speed link. The China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) has said it can build the line in just five years at a much lower cost than is currently forecast, according to the Financial Times.Department for Transport (DfT) officials confirmed “preliminary discussions” had taken place between CCRC and HS2 Ltd, but said no “concrete commitments” had been made. “The DfT is always keen to learn from the experience of others and to consider approaches that offer value fo...

Jamaicans deported by Home Office go into hiding fearing for lives Number of people who were on Tuesday’s flight from UK concerned about gang violenceAs many as seven of the Jamaicans who were deported on a Home Office charter flight on Tuesday have gone into hiding in fear for their lives, the Guardian has learned.In interviews, three of the 17 who were forcibly returned to Jamaica on Tuesday said they fear they will be targeted by gangs if their whereabouts become known. They said they were staying in secret locations and were afraid to go outside. Continue reading... Go to Source