General news

• Boss of UK's John Lewis selected to run for West Midlands mayor

  29-09-2016 22:00
  British department store chain John Lewis [JLP.UL] [JLPLC.UL] will have to appoint a new leader after Managing Director Andy Street was chosen by the ruling Conservative Party as its candidate for mayor of the West Midlands in central England. Street, who has led John Lewis for a decade, was formally selected by local Conservative members on Thursday, the party said in a statement. The John Lewis Partnership, which also owns upmarket supermarket Waitrose, is expected to make a statement on Frida
  
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• Prince George and Princess Charlotte enjoy a royal engagement at a garden party

  29-09-2016 21:02
  
  The two young royals appeared at the official event while on a tour of Canada.
  
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• Areva says awarded 5 billion euros worth of Hinkley Point contracts

  29-09-2016 19:54
  French nuclear group Areva said on Thursday it has won contracts worth over 5 billion euros ($5.61 billion) to provide various services at Britain's $24 billion Hinkley Point nuclear project. The deal to build Britain's first new nuclear power station in decades at Hinkley Point was signed behind closed doors in London earlier on Thursday in a private ceremony. Areva said the subcontracts include among others, a long-term fuel supply agreement, and the delivery of the two nuclear steam supply sy
  
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• Shades of ochre

  29-09-2016 19:49 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Trafalgar Place has been shortlisted for Riba's prestigious Stirling Prize, 2016.
  
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• Brexit ball in Britain's court - Austrian finance minister

  29-09-2016 18:11
  By Karin Strohecker and Marc Jones LONDON (Reuters) - The Brexit ball is in Britain's court and the country should start the procedure to exit the European Union as soon as possible, Austrian Finance Minister Hans Joerg Schelling said on Thursday. "Britain has to deliver, not the European Union...First of all, the most important step is to start the procedure by triggering Article 50 which has to be presented by Great Britain, and I hope so really soon," Schelling told Reuters in an interview. "
  
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• UK signs long-awaited Franco-Chinese nuclear project behind closed doors

  29-09-2016 17:20
  A $24-billion (£18.5 billion) deal to build Britain's first new nuclear power station in decades was signed behind closed doors in London on Thursday in a low-key ceremony that underlined Prime Minister Theresa May's cautious approach to the Franco-Chinese project. Journalists were not invited to the event but the government said the contract had been formally signed at a ceremony attended by Business Secretary Greg Clark, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault and China's National Ener
  
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• London to launch inquiry into foreign property ownership - report

  29-09-2016 16:58
  London's mayor Sadiq Khan will launch an inquiry into foreign ownership of property in the British capital which has helped push up housing costs, the Guardian newspaper cited him as saying on Thursday. "It's clear we need to better understand the different roles that overseas money plays in London's housing market, the scale of what's going on, and what action we can take to support development and help Londoners find a home," the Guardian quoted Khan as saying. "That's why we are commissioning
  
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• BP sells Sunbury office building for 360 million pounds - industry sources

  29-09-2016 16:48
  BP has sold its biggest office building in Britain to a local council for an estimated 360 million pounds, according to industry sources, and will remain in the premises as a tenant. Spelthorne Borough Council, west of London, said in a statement it had purchased the Sunbury-on-Thames facility from the British oil and gas giant as a way to boost revenue streams.
  
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• Reykjavik turned off its street lights because the Northern Lights were that spectacular

  29-09-2016 16:37
  
  It was one hell of a show.
  
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• Injuries reported as commuter train crashes into New Jersey station

  29-09-2016 16:18
  
  Eyewitnesses at the scene have reported a number of injuries, but the scale of the incident remains unclear.
  
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• Big thumbs-up for Trafalgar Square's new fourth plinth

  29-09-2016 15:38
  
  The sculpture is cast in bronze and measures seven metres from the base of the hand to the tip of an elongated thumb.
  
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• BlackBerry is to stop making phones

  29-09-2016 15:35
  
  CEO John Chen says the firm will no longer design and manufacture hardware.
  
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• Sculptor Antony Gormley creates labyrinth for new London show

  29-09-2016 15:30
  British sculptor Antony Gormley puts people's relationships with urban construction at the forefront of his latest exhibition "Fit", creating a sort of labyrinth in a London gallery space. "Sleeping Field", one of the installations at the White Cube Bermondsey gallery, is made up of hundreds of iron sculptures, which at first look like small high-rise buildings but on closer inspection resemble resting bodies. "Fit" follows the Turner Prize winning artist's "Model" exhibition with a concept that
  
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• Kenneth Clarke says May has 'no idea' what to do about Brexit

  29-09-2016 14:27
  By Guy Faulconbridge LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May's government has no idea what to do about Brexit and Britain risks sowing serious political and economic uncertainty unless it makes its policy clear soon, a senior MP said. The June 23 vote took many investors and chief executives by surprise, triggering the deepest political and financial turmoil in Britain since World War Two and the biggest ever one-day fall in sterling against the dollar. Britain's allies fear that its exit
  
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• This campaign wants you to go against every instinct in your body and chat to strangers on the Tube

  29-09-2016 14:10
  
  Small talk on your commute – what fresh hell is this?
  
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• Thumbs up sculpture unveiled as new artwork for London's 'fourth plinth'

  29-09-2016 13:39
  LONDON (Reuters) - A giant hand with a thumbs up has been unveiled as the new artwork occupying the fourth plinth at London's Trafalgar Square. Mayor Sadiq Khan presented artist David Shrigley's sculpture "Really Good" on Thursday, a seven-metre (23 ft) high hand with a long thumb cast in bronze, saying it represented "optimism, positivity, the best of us". The plinth, built in 1841, was meant for a statue of King William IV but stood empty because of lack of funding. More recently, it has hoste
  
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• UK lenders approve fewest mortgages in nearly two years - BoE

  29-09-2016 13:30
  By David Milliken and Peter Hobson LONDON (Reuters) - British lenders approved the fewest mortgages in nearly two years last month as the housing market continued to slow after June's vote to leave the European Union, raising the chance of an outright fall in prices next year. Housing market slowdowns have typically heralded future weakness in broader British economic growth. The number of mortgage approvals last month dropped to its lowest since November 2014 at 60,058 -- roughly in line with t
  
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• After Brexit, UK to seek bespoke trade deals, not WTO rules - Fox

  29-09-2016 12:58
  Britain must seek bespoke multi-lateral and bilateral trade arrangements after it exits the European Union rather than fall back on World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules, International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said on Thursday. Fox said in a speech Britain would take part in WTO efforts to reduce red tape across borders, phase out distortive export subsidies, and scrap trillions of dollars’ worth of tariffs. In his 25-minute speech, Fox stuck to generalities and gave no new details about ho
  
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• British Airways scraps free snacks on short flights

  29-09-2016 12:36
  British Airways said on Thursday it will no longer provide free snacks and food in economy class on short-haul and domestic flights, joining budget carriers like Ryanair and easyJet which charge for sandwiches and other items. BA, owned by IAG, said from January it would sell food from British retailer Marks & Spencer to economy class travellers. The airline said the switch to selling M&S food was driven by customer dissatisfaction with the its current short-haul economy catering.
  
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• Police body cameras cut public complaints against officers by 93%, report suggests

  29-09-2016 12:21
  
  Findings showed there were 113 complaints made during the year trial period, compared with 1,539 in the 12 months before.
  
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• As airport decision looms, Heathrow says it can add more flights

  29-09-2016 11:41
  Heathrow Airport said on Thursday it could use new technology to add 5 percent more flights, as it tries to gain support ahead of a long-awaited government decision on where to increase London's airport capacity. After a decade of reviews, U-turns and environmental protests, the government is expected to rule in mid-October on whether to build a third runway at Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport which is almost full, or its smaller London rival Gatwick. In the past, concerns about air and noise
  
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• Mary Robinson wants people to go vegan to help reduce our carbon footprint

  29-09-2016 11:22
  
  “We don’t need to consume as much as we have in the world.”
  
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• Britain's top police officer to step down next year

  29-09-2016 11:16
  By Michael Holden LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's most senior police officer Bernard Hogan-Howe, who oversaw policing at the 2012 Olympic Games and London's efforts to tackle extremism, will retire in 2017 after five years, the Metropolitan police said on Thursday. Hogan-Howe, who was appointed London Metropolitan Police (MPS) Commissioner in Sept. 2011, said he would step down in February, earlier than was expected, to give time for Britain's Home Secretary (interior minister) and London Mayor Sad
  
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• FCA calls for wider taping of banker calls and emails

  29-09-2016 11:14
  Britain's Financial Conduct Authority has proposed stricter rules requiring bankers advising companies on corporate finance to record all telephone calls and electronic communications, in a bid to clamp down on insider trading and other market abuses. In its third consultation paper on the European Union's landmark reform of securities markets, published on Thursday, the FCA said it would widen the scope of existing rules on taping calls to include corporate finance activities such as advice on
  
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• Germany risks becoming 'world's greatest ATM' after Brexit - Liam Fox

  29-09-2016 11:07
  Germany risks becoming the world's biggest cash machine after Brexit because it may end up paying for a failing European Union that is in danger of imploding, Britain's trade minister said on Thursday. Liam Fox, a leading pro-Brexit campaigner during the referendum campaign, is one of several ministers in Prime Minister Theresa May's cabinet who are expected to lead London's formal divorce talks from the European Union. Fox said that after Britain, the EU's second largest economy, leaves the blo
  
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• UK mortgage approvals sink to lowest since November 2014 in August - BoE

  29-09-2016 10:58
  British mortgage approvals fell to their lowest level since November 2014 last month as the housing market continued to slow after June's vote to leave the European Union, Bank of England data showed on Thursday. Mortgage approvals for house purchases numbered 60,058 in August, down from 60,925 in July. Analysts in a Reuters poll had forecast 60,150 mortgage approvals for August.
  
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• Heroic firefighter stopped South Carolina gunman from entering school

  29-09-2016 10:42
  
  The shooter is believed to have killed his father dead before moving on to a nearby primary school and opening fire with a handgun, wounding two pupils and a teacher.
  
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• The moment the Duchess of Cambridge precariously balances on the edge of a railway track - in heeled boots

  29-09-2016 10:27
  
  It was a spur-of-the-moment decision.
  
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• From robots to websites, British firms curb spending due to Brexit

  29-09-2016 10:01
  By Helen Reid READING, England (Reuters) - Heavy machinery whirrs and clanks on the factory floor of precision metalworking firm Robert Bion & Co, where a planned three-metre robotic arm would have been speeding up output by now, if Britain had not voted to leave the European Union. "We're waiting to get a clear idea of what the future might be before we make any significant investments," owner Nick Bion said at the company his father founded in 1964 in Reading, west of London. Britain's eco
  
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• London police chief to retire in 2017

  29-09-2016 10:00
  LONDON (Reuters) - Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe, London's top police officer, will retire in 2017 after five years. "He will stay in his post until February 2017 to allow the Home Secretary and the Mayor of London to appoint a successor," the Metropolitan police said in a statement. (Reporting by Costas Pitas; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
  
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• Bob Geldof has some very strong words to say about Donald Trump

  29-09-2016 07:28
  
  Even Boris Johnson wasn’t safe.
  
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• Britain must explain Brexit strategy to limit uncertainty -think tank

  29-09-2016 01:12
  Britain needs to begin explaining its Brexit strategy to avoid prolonged uncertainty for businesses and negotiating partners, a London-based think tank said on Thursday, warning that internal squabbling risked undermining the government's position. Since taking office in July with a commitment to lead Britain out of the European Union, Prime Minister Theresa May has said little about what kind of deal she wants to strike with European partners on key issues like trade and immigration. "Silence i
  
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• Blackpool Pleasure Beach is set to get a very expensive new attraction

  29-09-2016 01:04
  
  If you like rollercoasters, this one’s for you.
  
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• Fury as Scottish Government splurge £10m on foreign aid as its own people face cash cuts

  29-09-2016 01:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  MORE than £10 million of Scottish taxpayers’ money is to be spent on overseas aid despite warnings of drastic cuts.
  
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• Watch this climber get rescued from the side of a cliff in gale-force winds

  29-09-2016 00:15
  
  This is what happens when you’re caught out by changing wind conditions.
  
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