Month: December 2022

The Government has joined criticism of Joe Biden’s massive package of subsidies in the US, warning it could harm UK-based manufacturers of renewables. International Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch wrote to her US counterpart Katherine Tai to register her opposition over elements of the White House plan. The 430 billion US dollar (£357 billion) Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is an attempt to make the economy environmentally-friendly with tax credits for green […]

The UK Government has said it may block Scotland’s controversial new gender recognition laws. MSPs voted to pass the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill by 86 votes to 39 on Thursday, which will remove the need for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria to obtain a gender recognition certificate (GRC). It also lowers the minimum age for applicants to 16 and drops the time required for an applicant to live […]

Christmas could be one of the darkest to date for the health service, trust leaders have predicted as they warned strikes threaten to aggravate an “already deeply challenging situation” in the NHS. Health chiefs are working to mitigate the impact of industrial action alongside having to contend with an “incredibly long list of other serious challenges”, NHS Providers said. Figures for last week show that one in four ambulance patients […]

The Government will spend £3.5billion on the asylum system in a year, the Home Secretary said as she confirmed plans to house migrants on disused cruise ships were being considered. Suella Braverman said £2.3billion of the total bill for 2022/23 will go towards paying for hotels. “We are accommodating 117,000 people overall who are in our asylum process”, she told the Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee on Wednesday. “So […]

Pep Guardiola has admitted his time at Manchester City will “not be complete” if they do not win the Champions League. Guardiola has won nine major trophies, including four Premier League titles, as City manager but he is yet to bring Europe’s top club prize back to the Etihad Stadium. The Catalan won the competition twice at Barcelona but finishing runners-up in 2021 is his best finish in six full […]

Leeds defender Pascal Struijk has extended his contract until the summer of 2027. The 23-year-old Dutchman joined the West Yorkshire club from Ajax in 2018. He has made 77 first-team appearances during his time at Elland Road, scoring three goals. Struijk told the club’s website: “It feels really good. It’s been a while for me at the club now and I’m really happy to extend my journey. “It’s an amazing […]

Brentford striker Ivan Toney has been charged over additional alleged breaches of the Football Association’s betting rules, the governing body has announced. In November, Toney was charged with 232 alleged breaches over a four-year period. The 26-year-old has now been charged with breaching FA Rule E8 a further 30 times between March 14, 2017 and February 18, 2019. Toney has until January 4 to provide a response. In a statement […]

Jadon Sancho’s absence from the Manchester United squad looks set to continue after the winger was not involved in training ahead of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup clash against Burnley. The 22-year-old was not listed among a 25-strong contingent present at Carrington on Tuesday, as boss Erik ten Hag prepared for the Red Devils’ return to action after the World Cup break. Sancho was not selected by England for the tournament and […]

More cases of diphtheria among asylum seekers have been reported in England, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said. The total number of cases for the year so far now stands at 67, figures published on Tuesday show. The UKHSA said five cases of diphtheria among asylum seekers were reported between December 12 and 18. In the previous week – from December 5 to 11 – the total was 62 […]