General news

• Known for jokes and insults, Boris Johnson takes helm of British diplomacy

  13-07-2016 23:32
  By Estelle Shirbon LONDON (Reuters) - Boris Johnson, Britain's most colourful politician with a long record of gaffes and scandals, was appointed as foreign secretary on Wednesday in a surprise move by new Prime Minister Theresa May that could shake up world diplomacy. The former London mayor, who has never previously held a cabinet post and is known for his undiplomatic language, was the most prominent figure in the campaign for Britain to leave the European Union that culminated in a vote for
  
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• Hammond faces daunting task in charge of UK's Brexit-hit economy

  13-07-2016 22:45
  By David Milliken LONDON (Reuters) - Philip Hammond took over as Britain's new finance minister on Wednesday, putting him in charge of the world's fifth-largest economy as it risks sliding into recession after voters decided to leave the European Union last month. Hammond, 60, was foreign secretary until he was appointed by Britain's new Prime Minister Theresa May to replace George Osborne who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer for more than six years. One of Hammond's first tasks will be to
  
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• Boris Johnson bounces back as Foreign Secretary and nobody can quite believe it

  13-07-2016 22:25
  
  Prime Minister Theresa May appointed the Brexiter in her reshuffled shadow cabinet.
  
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• David Davis appointed to lead Britain's Brexit negotiations

  13-07-2016 21:58
  British Prime Minister Theresa May has appointed David Davis, a former junior foreign minister and strong Brexit advocate, to lead the country's negotiations for exiting the European Union, her office said in a statement on Wednesday. Davis, a senior Conservative lawmaker who was beaten by former prime minister David Cameron in the party's 2005 leadership election contest, was appointed to the newly-created role of Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union. At the heart of the job will b
  
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• After winning power, Theresa May faces Brexit divorce battle

  13-07-2016 21:34
  By Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) - Having fought her way to the top of British politics, new Prime Minister Theresa May will face an even tougher battle in power: plotting a divorce from the European Union that she once opposed but now says must not be halted. The fate of the post-World War Two project of European integration, and even of the United Kingdom itself, will depend on May's rapport with another pastor's daughter who climbed to the summit of a conservative party: Germany's Angela M
  
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• EU looks to May to help fix hole in calendar

  13-07-2016 21:12
  By Alastair Macdonald BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Brexit has torn a hole in the European Union's political calendar for next year and Brussels hopes new British Prime Minister Theresa May can help fix it in the coming days. EU host Belgium might also enable a solution by filling a gap left by London, EU sources told Reuters on Wednesday. At issue is Britain's scheduled six-month spell in charge of EU ministerial councils in the second half of 2017, a Union tradition known as the presidency.
  
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• Hammond takes helm of finance ministry to prepare for Brexit

  13-07-2016 21:05
  By David Milliken LONDON (Reuters) - Philip Hammond took the helm of Britain's finance ministry on Wednesday after new Prime Minister Theresa May appointed the former foreign secretary to succeed George Osborne in a government which will take Britain out of the European Union. Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer since 2010 and a leading figure in the unsuccessful campaign to keep Britain in the EU, will join former prime minister and close ally David Cameron in leaving the government. Hammond,
  
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• Everyone fell a little bit in love with Florence Cameron when her dad shared a cute story about her

  13-07-2016 21:01
  
  People are a sucker for a cute kid.
  
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• These are all the people Theresa May mentioned in her speech - and how the internet reacted to them

  13-07-2016 20:44
  
  Her speech highlighted the struggles of several groups of society – and people had a lot to say about their mention.
  
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• George Osborne resigns from UK government - Downing Street

  13-07-2016 20:24
  LONDON (Reuters) - George Osborne has resigned as British finance minister and has left the government, the office of new Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday. Osborne had served as finance minister since 2010 and was considered a likely future prime minister until last month's referendum decision to take Britain out of the European Union. Osborne had been a leader of the "Remain" campaign. (Writing by William Schomberg; editing by Stephen Addison)
  
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• Theresa May makes her first speech as Britain's prime minister outside her new home - and people were quite surprised by it

  13-07-2016 19:58
  People were quite taken aback by how left she sounded.
  
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• May becomes PM, promising 'bold new role' outside EU

  13-07-2016 19:39
  By Kylie MacLellan and William James LONDON (Reuters) - Theresa May became Britain's new prime minister on Wednesday, promising to carve out a bold new future in the world as she embarks on the monumental task of leading the country out of the European Union. May, 59 assumed office after an audience with Queen Elizabeth and drove straight to her new home of 10 Downing Street, vacated hours earlier by David Cameron. As we leave the European Union we will forge a bold new positive role for ourselv
  
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• Read Prime Minister Theresa May's surprising first speech in full

  13-07-2016 19:33
  
  May said her decisions would be driven not by the interests of “the privileged few” but those of voters struggling with the pressures of modern life.
  
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• It's official: Theresa May is now our prime minister

  13-07-2016 18:52
  
  We now have our second female prime minister.
  
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• Alton Sterling's son Cameron speaks out

  13-07-2016 18:52
  
  The 15-year-old urged protesters to remain peaceful.
  
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• People are making lots of jokes about David Cameron driving off into his new post-PM life

  13-07-2016 18:44
  
  Did he remember all his kids this time?
  
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• Trade, not trouble, is the big Brexit fear for Irish border towns

  13-07-2016 18:25
  By Clodagh Kilcoyne BELCOO, Northern Ireland (Reuters) - Along the narrow country roads that weave across the border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, locals fear Brexit may curb trade and gut farm funding but few see a return to the dark days of military checkpoints. The British province of Northern Ireland would represent the only land frontier between Britain and the European Union once the United Kingdom leaves the bloc following June's referendum and politicians north and sou
  
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• For Cameron, a gamble too far

  13-07-2016 18:16
  By Mark Trevelyan and William James LONDON (Reuters) - Until last month, the advice David Cameron chose to give fellow British parliamentarians on his last day as prime minister on Wednesday might have seemed apt. "Nothing is really impossible if you put your mind to it," said the man who had rescued his Conservative Party from the political wilderness, won two elections and successfully gambled that Scots would stay in the United Kingdom if given the choice. The June 23 referendum vote for 'Bre
  
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• David Cameron has left Downing Street for the last time as prime minister

  13-07-2016 18:11
  
  His six years as leader are now officially over.
  
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• Keep Britain close to EU, Cameron urges incoming PM May

  13-07-2016 16:48
  By Kylie MacLellan and William James LONDON (Reuters) - Outgoing Prime Minister David Cameron urged his successor Theresa May on Wednesday to keep Britain close to the European Union, even as she embarks on the monumental task of ending four decades of membership. Cameron is stepping down after Britons rejected his entreaties and voted to leave the EU in a referendum last month, severely undermining European efforts to forge greater unity and creating economic uncertainty across the 28-nation bl
  
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• Britain's Duchess of York gets university role linked to charity for women in India

  13-07-2016 16:01
  By Nesserine Fellah LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Britain's Duchess of York has become the latest celebrity to receive a UK university post - named Visiting Professor of Philanthrepreneurship at Huddersfield University in northern England - following her charity work in India. A university spokesman said Sarah Ferguson, ex-wife of Queen Elizabeth's second son Prince Andrew, was chosen to join the university's "inspiring group of visiting professors
  
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• Drawing laughter and a few tears, Cameron the entertainer takes his final bow as PM

  13-07-2016 15:56
  By William James LONDON (Reuters) - David Cameron's last appearance in parliament as British Prime Minister ended in a standing ovation after a bravura 36-minute performance that taunted his rivals, reflected on his legacy and confessed his love for the office cat. After six years as leader, Cameron will formally hand in his resignation to Queen Elizabeth later on Wednesday, passing control of the country to fellow Conservative Theresa May, who will be in charge of negotiating Britain's exit fro
  
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• Demob-happy Cameron taunts Labour leader with 'Monty Python' jibe

  13-07-2016 14:51
  A demob-happy David Cameron used his last appearance in parliament as Prime Minister to taunt embattled Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, likening him to the hapless Black Knight comedy figure in "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" who was unable to see when he was beaten. To laughs and roars of approval from government benches, a beaming Cameron launched one last jibe at the leader of the opposition during a raucous valedictory session of the weekly Prime Minister's Questions session. "It's just a fle
  
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• The most important issue in British politics is whether David Cameron loves Larry the cat, apparently

  13-07-2016 14:48
  
  The departing PM made a desperate play for Larry’s affections at his final Prime Minister’s Questions.
  
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• 11 key challenges facing Theresa May as she takes over as Prime Minister

  13-07-2016 14:47
  
  Theresa May’s inbox will be overflowing when she arrives for her first day as PM.
  
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• Cameron bows out with jokes, May to take over as British PM

  13-07-2016 14:39
  By Kylie MacLellan and William James LONDON (Reuters) - David Cameron entertained parliament with a series of farewell quips on Wednesday in his last appearance as prime minister before making way for Theresa May to lead the monumental task of extricating Britain from the European Union. Other than one meeting this afternoon with Her Majesty the Queen, the diary for the rest of my day is remarkably light," Cameron said to roars of laughter in a packed House of Commons. Then May will pay her own
  
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• PM Cameron says working to ensure EU citizens can stay in Britain

  13-07-2016 13:47
  LONDON (Reuters) - The government is working hard to make sure European Union citizens can stay in Britain following its vote to leave the bloc but it will depend on reciprocal rights for Britons in Europe, outgoing Prime Minister David Cameron said on Wednesday. Asked by a lawmaker during his final weekly question session in parliament whether EU citizens might have their right of residence revoked or be deported when Britain leaves the EU, Cameron said there was "absolutely no chance of that h
  
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• Efforts to overturn Brexit will go nowhere, says senior Tory lawmaker

  13-07-2016 13:39
  By John Irish PARIS (Reuters) - Parliamentary attempts to revoke the Brexit vote in favour of leaving the EU have no chance of succeeding and would run into a solid Conservative Party opposition, the chair of Britain's foreign affairs committee said on Wednesday. Britain's parliament will debate in September a petition signed by more than 4 million members of the public calling for a second referendum on European Union membership, although it will not take a decision on whether to re-run last mo
  
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• Who exactly are the three Labour leadership contenders?

  13-07-2016 13:19
  Jeremy Corbyn must fend off challenges from Angela Eagle and Owen Smith if he’s to stay in charge.
  
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• Britain set to welcome female PM but sexism still 'corrodes' politics, activists say

  13-07-2016 13:14
  By Lin Taylor LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Britain may be about to welcome its second woman prime minister but female politicians are still far from achieving equality with online abuse, objectification and misogyny plaguing British politics, a leading women's rights group said. Home Secretary Theresa May is set to become prime minister on Wednesday, succeeding David Cameron, who announced he was stepping down after Britons unexpectedly voted last month to quit the European Union (EU).
  
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• May to take over as PM with mammoth task of delivering Brexit

  13-07-2016 12:44
  By Estelle Shirbon and Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) - Theresa May will take over the job of prime minister from David Cameron on Wednesday and form a government with the monumental tasks of extricating Britain from the European Union and uniting a fractured nation. May, who has been Home Secretary for six years and is seen by her supporters as a safe pair of hands to steer the country through the disruptive Brexit process, will become Britain's second woman prime minister, after Margaret Tha
  
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• 'Mass drug overdose' on one New York street

  13-07-2016 11:56
  Witnesses said numerous people were overdosing in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighbourhood of Brooklyn.
  
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• British hostage John Cantlie appears in latest IS propaganda video

  13-07-2016 11:48
  A new video released by the Islamic State terrorist group appears to feature British photographer John Cantlie who was taken hostage.
  
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• 9 women we wish would be Prime Minister instead

  13-07-2016 11:40
  Featuring Her Majesty the Queen.
  
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• Prosecutions for disability-related hate crimes rise more than 40 per cent

  13-07-2016 11:11
  CPS figures show a rise in hate crime prosecutions in the last year, especially in disability-related cases.
  
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• May to take over as British PM with mammoth task of delivering Brexit

  13-07-2016 10:49
  By Estelle Shirbon and Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) - Theresa May will take over the job of British prime minister from David Cameron on Wednesday and form a government with the monumental tasks of extricating Britain from the European Union and uniting a fractured nation. May, who has been interior minister for six years and is seen by her supporters as a safe pair of hands to steer the country through the disruptive Brexit process, will become Britain's second woman prime minister, after M
  
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• Brexit, cannabis and the loss of his son: Key quotes from David Cameron's career

  13-07-2016 10:30
  
  Some of the most memorable quotes from David Cameron’s 10 years as Conservative leader.
  
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• 'Misleading' BMW advert banned over 'exaggerated' headlight technology claims

  13-07-2016 10:16
  
  The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld the complaint.
  
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• Labour MP Owen Smith says to run for party leadership

  13-07-2016 10:03
  A second British Labour opposition MP entered the contest to topple leader Jeremy Corbyn on Wednesday, boosting the veteran left-winger's chances of being re-elected by splitting the support of those who oppose him. Labour is engulfed in a bitter internal power struggle between Corbyn's supporters in the grassroots membership and the party's lawmakers, who overwhelmingly rejected his leadership after Britain's vote to leave the EU last month. Owen Smith, Corbyn's former work and pensions policy
  
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• Poundland accepts £597m takeover bid from South Africa's Steinhoff

  13-07-2016 09:54
  
  Steinhoff already owns UK furniture firm Harveys and Bensons For Beds.
  
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• Theresa May to take over as PM after Brexit shocks

  13-07-2016 09:21
  Theresa May will take over the job of British prime minister from David Cameron on Wednesday after a series of political shocks caused by Britain's vote to leave the European Union. May, who has been interior minister for six years and is seen by her supporters as a safe pair of hands to steer Britain through the disruptive process of leaving the EU, will become Britain's second woman prime minister, after Margaret Thatcher. Cameron, who led the campaign to remain in the 28-member bloc Britain h
  
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• Angela Eagle calls on Labour backers to pay £25 fee and help 'save' the party

  13-07-2016 09:06
  
  Labour backers will have a two-day window next week to pay the fee and ensure they can vote in the leadership contest.
  
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• Newspapers give the final verdict on David Cameron on his last day at Number 10

  13-07-2016 08:54
  
  As David Cameron leaves Number 10 for the last time, UK newspapers summarise the highs and lows of his six years in office.
  
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• Voters seem to want a cross-party negotiating team for Brexit - but without Nigel Farage involved

  13-07-2016 01:02
  
  Researchers found that the people want a mix of businesses, trade unions and politicians – but not Ukip outgoing leader Nigel Farage.
  
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• Cambridge tops the chart as the UK's best place to work

  13-07-2016 01:02
  
  Milton Keynes came in second place.
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn's on the ballot, but what happens now in the Labour leadership contest?

  13-07-2016 00:29
  
  When can we expect to know who will be leading the Labour Party?
  
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