Boris Johnson has bowed to pressure and will scrap the NHS surcharge for migrant healthcare workers. A Downing Street spokesman said the prime minister asked the Home Office and Department of Health and Social care to remove NHS and care workers from the scheme “as soon as possible”, despite ruling it out only yesterday. “Work […]
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In anticipation of a future investigation into the UK coronavirus response and the government’s handling of the pandemic, the blame game between scientists and politicians has begun. While the government has always insisted that all decisions were based on scientific advice, the high coronavirus death toll in care homes has led ministers to pass the […]
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The UK has recorded its biggest ever monthly increase in unemployment claims with 856,500 people added to the benefits list in April. The overall number of people claiming universal credit and jobseekers allowance spiked to almost 2.1 million, according to official figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Economists said the 69% spike […]
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The government’s highly anticipated Immigration Bill has been condemned as a “slap in the face” for NHS and care sector migrant workers fighting against the coronavirus. “The current crisis has shone a light on how we value those who provide compassionate care across health and social care,” said the home secretary Priti Patel, who dismissed […]
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MPs have written to the EU to highlight the “significant opposition to the UK Government’s extreme position” in the Brexit talks, with the deadline for seeking an extension to the transition period rapidly approaching. The letter to the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier, from a coalition of MPs from around the UK said an extension […]
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Doctors have backed teachers in the escalating row with the government over the early reopening of schools in England. The Children’s Commissioner has also weighed in behind the government and called on all sides to “stop squabbling and agree a plan” following yesterday’s (Friday) talks between teachers’ unions and government about plans to reopen schools […]
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Transport for London (TfL) has confirmed the congestion charge will resume on Monday (May 18) and soon rise to £15 per day, charged seven days a week. Free travel for under 18s, over 60s and disabled people will also be suspended as part of a £1.6 billion government bailout for London’s transport system that has […]
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Public Health England (PHE) has approved a coronavirus antibody test that has been hailed by the government as a “game changer” in the fight against Covid-19. The blood test has been found by scientists at Porton Down to have 100% accuracy in finding antibodies which, the manufacturers claim, “could help indicate if a person has […]
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With the NHS contact tracing app pilot scheme well underway on the Isle of Wight, civil liberty groups remain concerned about privacy violations. Although uptake may be as low as 20 per cent, the government hopes to make the app an integral element of its plan to ease restrictions. Getting the economy back up and […]
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Consumer spending in the United Kingdom contracted by over a third last month as a result of retail shops shutting to reduce the impact of the coronavirus on their businesses. Data from Barclaycard—Britain’s largest credit and debit card provider—showed that consumer spending in April plunged by as much as 36.5% as compared with the same […]
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