London, United Kingdom | AFP | Britain appointed a “minister for loneliness” on Wednesday to tackle what Prime Minister Theresa May described as “the sad reality of modern life” affecting millions of people. Tracey Crouch, a junior minister for sport and civil society, will take on the role as part …
Read More »Pressure rises on British govt over Carillion collapse
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The British government on Tuesday defended its decision not to bail out imploding construction-to-catering group Carillion, as criticism grew of its handling of the giant firm’s demise. Carillion, which has a variety of private and public service contracts in Britain and employs 43,000 staff …
Read More »London store Harrods to remove Diana statue
London, United Kingdom | AFP | London luxury department store Harrods said Saturday it was taking down a statue of the late Princess Diana and her boyfriend Dodi Al Fayed and returning it to former owner Mohamed Al Fayed. Al Fayed commissioned the bronze statue, which shows his son and Diana …
Read More »UK blames protests as Trump cancels London trip
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The British government blamed the threat of mass protests for President Donald Trump’s decision Friday to cancel a visit to London to open the new US embassy, and warned that criticism of the White House risked harming US-UK relations. Trump said he was abandoning next …
Read More »British PM in limited, chaotic reshuffle
London, United Kingdom | AFP | British Prime Minister Theresa May sought to refresh her government with a ministerial reshuffle Monday as she faces a crucial year for Brexit, but the shake-up was limited and marred by a botched announcement. A new chairman of May’s Conservative party was announced on Twitter, …
Read More »London house prices in first annual fall since 2009
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The average price of a home in London dropped in 2017 for the first time in eight years on fallout from Brexit, data showed on Thursday. While prices were up nationwide, they were down in London for the first time since 2009, mortgage lender …
Read More »UK to hand out £330m from dormant bank accounts
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The British government announced plans Thursday to distribute £330 million ($447 million, 371 million euros) taken from dormant bank accounts to good causes, bringing the total handed out to almost £700 million. The Dormant Accounts Scheme was established in 2008, allowing the reallocation of money …
Read More »Windsor begging clampdown urged ahead of royal wedding
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The leader of the local authority covering Windsor Castle has called for police action against “aggressive begging” ahead of Prince Harry’s wedding there in May, it emerged on Wednesday. Simon Dudley, the leader of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, wrote to the …
Read More »Four killed in London New Year knife violence: police
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Four young men were stabbed to death in unrelated incidents in London on New Year’s Eve, while a fifth is in a critical condition in hospital, police said Monday. The unusually concentrated spate of violence will add to growing concerns about knife crime in the …
Read More »Facebook, Twitter face deadline in Brexit fake news probe
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Social media giants Facebook and Twitter are facing a deadline in Britain to cooperate with an inquiry into so-called fake news in the Brexit referendum campaign, a parliamentary committee chairman said Friday. The companies have been given until January 18 to share information requested …
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