British Isles
'Levelling up' plan announced
03 Feb 2022
The government's 332-page Levelling Up White Paper,published on 2 February, aims to ‘change the economic model of the UK’. The areas for improvement are as follows: pay, employment and productivity to rise; more investment in research…
Michael Gove admitted that people in some areas have been ‘overlooked and undervalued’ by Westminster for years. Truro Foodbank is in one of the poorest UK areas; its manager said levelling up won't be effective unless…
Homelessness on the increase
03 Feb 2022
New quarterly London figures reveal that one in three rough sleepers are under 35. The Salvation Army warns that many young people are on the edge of homelessness. The Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN) quarterly…
UK removes embassy staff, warns of Russian plot
27 Jan 2022
The Foreign Office is withdrawing some embassy staff and dependents from Ukraine in response to the Russian threat, stating, ‘The British embassy in Kyiv remains open and will continue to carry out essential work’. Meanwhile, supported…
Defence secretary Ben Wallace will soon be travelling to Moscow to meet Russia's defence minister, but he is lowering expectations of a diplomatic breakthrough. He says there is a chance a Russian invasion could be stopped,…
Downing Street: erosion of standards
27 Jan 2022
The Metropolitan Police is investigating a number of events at Downing Street and Whitehall for potential breaches of Covid restrictions after receiving information from the Cabinet Office inquiry team and Commissioner Cressida Dick. Boris Johnson says…