US to investigate fresh Havana syndrome cases at embassy in Berlin August 20, 2021 The US has launched an investigation after several employees at its embassy in Berlin began experiencing symptoms similar to that of the mysterious “Havana syndrome”. An increasing number of US diplomats and CIA spies have been struck by Havana syndrome, which has been theorised to be a result of microwave pulse weapons. Two US officials [...]
Facebook secures Afghan accounts as Taliban cements takeover August 20, 2021 Facebook has brought in new safety measures in response to concerns that the Taliban, who have taken over Afghanistan this week, could use social media to target and track individuals, according to reports. The social media giant has temporarily removed the ability for people to see or search the friends lists of accounts based in [...]
Labour MP who beat Nick Clegg faces criminal charges over fraudulent invoices August 20, 2021 Jared O’Mara, a former Labour MP, is facing fraud charges in relation to an allegation he made fraudulent invoices to the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority in 2019. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said it had authorised police to charge Jared O’Mara, who used to represent the constituency of Sheffield Hallam, with seven counts of fraud [...]
Government borrowing smashes expectations but debt-to-GDP highest since 1960s August 20, 2021 Government borrowing smashed official forecasts last month as the deficit narrowed by nearly half its levels registered at the height of the Covid crisis, official figures released today reveal. Data released by the Office for National Statistics shows in July of this year, public sector borrowing reached £10.4bn, the second highest figure for the month [...]
Legal groups urge UK to help female judges and legal professionals in Afghanistan August 19, 2021 At least 250 female judges in Afghanistan face a “perilous” future, legal groups have said while urging the UK government to offer asylum to female judges and other legal professionals in the country which has been control of by the Taliban. According to the Lawyer Monthly, the Bar Council, Bar Human Rights Committee and Law [...]
Not going anywhere: Dominic Raab rejects calls to resign amid outrage over treatment of Afghan translators August 19, 2021 Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has rejected calls to quit after opposition leaders demanded he be sacked for failing to make a call to help translators flee Afghanistan. The Foreign Secretary was reportedly “unavailable” when officials in his department suggested he “urgently” call Afghan foreign minister Hanif Atmar on Friday – two days before the Taliban [...]
Business Secretary intervenes in Cobham’s £2.6bn bid for Ultra Electronics on national security grounds August 18, 2021 Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has stopped the planned £2.6bn acquisition of defence firm Ultra Electronics by rival US-owned Cobham, to investigate possible national security risks from the merged entities. The Competition and Markets Authority will now prepare a report on the proposed transaction. Customers of Ultra, which sells torpedo and radar systems and a range [...]
City figures warn London’s financial crown at risk if UK does not roll out digital Sterling August 18, 2021 City figures have warned that London’s status as Europe’s financial capital will be in serious jeopardy if the Treasury and Bank of England are slow to introduce digital Sterling. Rishi Sunak said last month that the Treasury was looking into one day releasing a so-called “Britcoin”, but that no decision had been made. Sunak said [...]
The British Kebab Awards: Westminster’s unlikely mainstay event August 18, 2021 For the uninitiated, the British Kebab Awards probably sound like something attended exclusively by shop owners and those people from YouTube who eat the same food for every meal. While these two categories of people should not be taken for granted, the event is in fact better known in SW1 as a mainstay on the [...]
Widening deficit lays bare difficulties of Scottish independence August 18, 2021 The response to the Covid crisis has inflicted severe damage on Scotland’s public finances, according to official figures released today. Scotland’s fiscal deficit swelled to 22.4 per cent of GDP in the year to April 2021, more than eight percentage points higher than the same ratio for the UK as a whole. In 2019/20, Scotland’s [...]
