Political news

• Second teenager in 24 hours dies amid calls to tackle London violence

  03-04-2018 23:20
  David Lammy blames drug trade and public sector cuts as 16- and 17-year-old are killedMPs and campaigners have said authorities are failing to get a grip on violent crime in London after two teenagers were fatally shot on the same night in the capital.A 17-year-old girl died first after a drive-by shooting in Tottenham, north London. Police said on Tuesday evening that a 16-year-old boy shot on Monday had died in hospital after succumbing to his injuries. Continue reading...
  
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• Walthamstow Shooting: Boy, 16, Dies From Gunshot Wound In East London

  03-04-2018 22:59
  A 16-year-old boy shot in the face on Monday night in Walthamstow, east London, has died in hospital, Scotland Yard has said. The death follows a 17-year-old girl being shot dead just four miles away in Tottenham during a drive-by attack.The Metropolitan Police has launched a murder investigation over the incident on Markhouse Road at around 10pm. Two teenage boys - aged 16 and 15 - were found injured at the scene and taken to an east London hospital.The 15-year-old was treated for stab inj
  
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• More wealthy Chinese shell out for UK ‘golden visas’

  03-04-2018 22:35 via ft.com
  Brexit worries pale next to Britain’s attractiveness as capital bolthole
  
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• Four Members Of British Family Killed In Florida Car Crash

  03-04-2018 22:29
  Four members of a British family have been killed in a car crash as they returned from the Kennedy Space Centre, police in Florida have said.Titusville Police Department said the incident happened at around 6pm on Monday on Sisson Road, and saw a Mitsubishi sedan hit by a Ford pick-up.Adam Stephenson, 30, Maryanne Stephenson, 29, Brian Stephenson, 66, and Sheralyn Stephenson, 56, all from Bristol, died their rental car collided with the pick-up truck at an intersection.A fifth member of the fami
  
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• Here's How Donald Trump Could Make A Post-Brexit Trade Deal Even Harder For The UK

  03-04-2018 21:17
  Experts fear Donald Trump could make a post-Brexit trade deal difficult for the UK, after the US government released a new report on foreign trade barriers.The document - 47 pages of which are dedicated to alleged issues with the EU - could offer a snapshot of the terms Theresa May could be expected to agree to if she wants to strike a deal with the president post-March 2019. It sets out the US’s desire for the EU to accept American-produced meat treated with growth hormones and raise
  
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• Leave.EU Condemned For 'Perverse' And 'Bigoted' Anti-Muslim Tweet

  03-04-2018 20:01
  A controversial pro-Brexit organisation provoked widespread anger for a “perverse” and “bigoted” anti-Muslim tweet on so-called “Punish A Muslim Day”. Leave.EU chose Tuesday, April 3, to tweet a picture of Sadiq Khan next to the words “Londonistan” and “British multiculturalists feed Islamic fundamentalism”. The organisation, founded by millionaire Arron Banks, also trumpeted three discredited claims in the post. British
  
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• Shame of Labour party antisemitism | Letters

  03-04-2018 19:23
  Giles Oakley, Martin Weitz and Jeremy Connick on anti-Jewish sentiment and Jeremy Corbyn’s handling of the issueAs a member of the Labour party for over half a century and as a current Labour candidate in the council elections for the London borough of Richmond upon Thames, I have been ashamed of my party’s handling of the antisemitism crisis. It has been distressing to see how deeply embedded crude anti-Jewish sentiments have become, and lamentable to see so little done about it by
  
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• Councils Raise Alarm Over Lack Of Funding For Britain's 'Ambitious' New Homelessness Law

  03-04-2018 19:14
  An “ambitious” new law to tackle homelessness could fail unless councils are given more money to implement it, campaigners have warned, amid criticism it doesn’t do enough to “tackle the root causes” of Britain’s rough sleeping crisis.The Homelessness Reduction Act is meant to reverse a trend of rising rough sleeping, which has gone up by 169% since 2010, as part of the Government’s bid to eradicate it by 2027.Dubbed “the most ambitious legal
  
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• Charities Showcase Frontline Aid Workers In Bid To Rebuild Trust After Oxfam Scandal

  03-04-2018 18:32
  Leading international development charities have put together a hard-hitting video showcasing the work of their frontline staff, in a bid to rebuild trust in the wake of the Oxfam scandal. The short film, posted on YouTube, features workers from Oxfam, Save the Children, Plan International, Cafod and an NHS midwife who is training midwives overseas through VSO, all funded by UK aid.The charities said they wanted to share the stories of staff battling global poverty, to focus public attentio
  
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• Ukip avoids insolvency after raising money to cover £175,000 libel bill

  03-04-2018 18:30
  Party says urgent legal cost has been paid and extra £300,000 raised from appeal to membersUkip has been saved from impending bankruptcy after it raised the £175,000 needed to cover an urgent legal bill and also collected a further £300,000 in a membership fundraising drive.The beleaguered party is also seeking to avoid the expense of yet another leadership election by planning to keep the interim leader, Gerard Batten, in situ for the next 12 months.Continue reading...
  
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• Nearly 1,000 People Have Joined Labour Since Anti-Semitism Protest In Parliament Square, Leaked Figures Show

  03-04-2018 18:24
  Nearly 1,000 people have joined Labour since Jewish groups staged an unprecedented protest against anti-semitism in the party last week, HuffPost UK can reveal.The ‘Membership Weekly KPI Report’ for the week since March 26 – the day of the ‘Enough is Enough’ demonstration in Parliament Square – shows that 952 people signed up to Labour. In the same period, 180 people actively resigned.The Labour leader may be heartened by the new joiners over the past two
  
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• Most UK female MPs face discrimination, study finds

  03-04-2018 18:24 via ft.com
  Gendered questions about how they might cope with having children are often asked in selection
  
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• UKIP 'saved from insolvency' by donations - Gerard Batten

  03-04-2018 18:05 via bbc.co.uk
  UKIP leader Gerard Batten says the party received £300,000 in donations after a plea for help.
  
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• Ricky Gervais And What Makes A Good 21st Century Celebrity

  03-04-2018 17:59
  If you’ve not seen Ricky Gervais’ Humanity on Netflix yet, I highly urge you to do so... it’s brilliant! For me, it felt like something different; a stand-up routine that cleverly challenged the audience in a new and often unexpected way. At times, it was intelligently brutal, addressing societal issues that plague us all across the various incarnations of social media, finally saying in public the things many of us think and feel behind closed doors, afraid of being judged, bu
  
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• Apple iOS 11.3 Update: Find Out If Your iPhone’s Battery Needs Replacing

  03-04-2018 17:55
  Apple has finally rolled out iOS 11.3 and along with it a new ‘Battery Health’ feature for iPhone that can tell you how old your battery is and even if it needs replacing.This new feature was promised after it was revealed late last year that Apple was lowering the performance of its older phones in order to prevent unexpected shutdowns. In plain English: your phone dying even when it had 20% of battery left.While the feature was designed to help prevent these shutdowns, many felt it
  
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• Spy Poisoning: Porton Down Laboratory Unable To Identify 'Precise Source' Of Nerve Agent

  03-04-2018 17:37
  The UK’s Porton Down laboratory has been unable to identify the “precise source” of the Novichok nerve agent that poisoned a Russian double agent in Salisbury last month.Gary Aitkenhead, the chief executive of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) in Wiltshire, said it had not been able to prove that the poison was created in Russia.But he made clear that it was for the Government to “piece together the conclusions” through a “number of oth
  
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• Spy Poisoning: Porton Down Laboratory Says It's 'Not Our Responsibility' To Identify Source Of Nerve Agent

  03-04-2018 17:37
  The UK’s Porton Down laboratory has said it is “not our responsibility” to identify who made the Novichok nerve agent that poisoned a Russian double agent in Salisbury last month after it revealed experts could not establish the “precise source”.In an interview with Sky News, Gary Aitkenhead, chief executive of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) in Wiltshire, said it had discovered that the nerve agent used in the attack was Novichok - bu
  
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• Spy Poisoning: Porton Down Laboratory Says It Hasn't Identified Source Of Nerve Agent, But It's 'Not Our Responsibility'

  03-04-2018 17:37
  The UK’s Porton Down laboratory has said it is “not our responsibility” to identify who made the Novichok nerve agent that poisoned a Russian double agent in Salisbury last month after it revealed experts could not establish the “precise source”.In an interview with Sky News, Gary Aitkenhead, chief executive of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) in Wiltshire, said it had discovered that the nerve agent used in the attack was Novichok - bu
  
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• Adele Shares Photo From Alan Carr's Wedding, Proving She Really Embraced Her Role As Minister

  03-04-2018 17:33
  Adele has proved that when she commits to something, she really commits, sharing a snap from Alan Carr’s wedding to long-term partner Paul Drayton earlier this year, where she served as the minister.As revealed by the ‘Chatty Man’ host earlier this week, Adele not only opened up her home to provide a venue for his wedding, as well as singing as Alan and Paul enjoyed their first dance, she also had herself ordained so she could perform the ceremony.Having kept schtum about her r
  
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• Why The Gender Pay Gap Figures Don’t Tell The Full Story

  03-04-2018 17:26
  The deadline has arrived for companies with 250 employees or more to publish their gender pay gap data. The purpose of these new regulations is to create inclusive workplaces in which all talents can thrive. Retail is the UK’s biggest private sector employer and the data from the retail industry provide an interesting insight into the reasons behind the pay gap, and why fewer women than men get to the very top of the career ladder. But to really do this, it’s important to delve benea
  
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• Make Mine A Double Cake: Let's Help Ourselves Stop Boozing

  03-04-2018 17:24
  Shall we meet for a drink? Ok, let’s not. Maybe we can say what we need to say, seal the deal, get through the date, face the family gathering, even read this, without alcohol.Horrors.We are so accustomed to our activities being manipulated by booze that the idea of it not being there is, well, enough to drive us to drink.But with high streets of coffee shops, baking all over the television and more varieties of soft drink than ever, perhaps we can now finally be frank about alcohol.At the
  
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• Northamptonshire County Council: Auditor to review chief exec's pay-off

  03-04-2018 17:16 via bbc.co.uk
  KPMG says it will be reviewing Dr Paul Blantern's departure from Northamptonshire County Council.
  
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• Ukip avoids bankruptcy after raising funds to cover costs

  03-04-2018 17:12 via ft.com
  Cash found to pay for failed libel battle and overheads
  
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• Duke Of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, Admitted To Hospital For Planned Operation

  03-04-2018 17:12
  Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh, has been admitted to the King Edward VII Hospital in London ahead of a planned hip operation due to take place on Wednesday, Buckingham Palace has confirmed.It comes after the 96-year-old last week pulled out of the traditional Maundy service with the Queen because of a problem with his hip.The exact kind of operation has not been disclosed but the most common type of hip surgery is a replacement, deemed a major procedure by doctors.It is
  
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• Jewdas: political activists who make fun of establishment Judaism

  03-04-2018 17:02
  The group Jeremy Corbyn backs is anti-Zionist but has called on Labour to expel Ken LivingstoneJewdas: That Corbyn joined us for Passover is a good news storyThe last time the radical leftwing Jewish group Jewdas was in the headlines a decade ago, four of its members were arrested for distributing flyers for a party in east London called the Protocols of the Elders of Hackney.The tongue-in-cheek title of the party, a play on the antisemitic hoax the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, was provocati
  
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• Have I Got News For You is 'too vicious' for women, says Nadine Dorries

  03-04-2018 17:01 via bbc.co.uk
  MP Nadine Dorries talks about why female politicians turn down Have I Got News For You.
  
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• Key Post-Brexit Trade Deals Could Take 26 Years, Warns New Analysis

  03-04-2018 16:55
  Brits could wait 26 years until key post-Brexit trade deals all come into force, according to a new analysis of international negotiations.An investigation into the average time taken for the United States, China, India, Australia and New Zealand to strike free trade deals shows the UK might be waiting until 2045 before all the agreements are in place.The anti-Brexit Open Britain group, which crunched the numbers, argues that International Trade Secretary Liam Fox has already admitted his depart
  
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• My Mum Sang At Her Own Funeral

  03-04-2018 16:50
  On Tuesday 27th March, my mum had the funeral she wanted. On 4th Feb 2015, when told that her COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) was now in end stage and was terminal, and that she only had a few months left to live, Mum started organising her own funeral so that she could have it exactly how she wanted and save some of the heartbreak of the family having to arrange it when that time came.Despite the doctors’ prognosis, Mum carried on fighting and defying the odds for the next th
  
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• When Does 'Britain's Got Talent' 2018 Start? Date, Presenters, Auditions, Live Show Details And Everything Else You Need To Know

  03-04-2018 16:38
  After being on our screens for 11 years, ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ remains one of the biggest and most beloved shows on the box, and fans will be delighted to hear the 12th series is just around the corner.This month will see a host of new contestants try their luck on the ‘BGT’ stage as they compete for the chance to appear at the Royal Variety Performance, and follow in the footsteps of Diversity, Ashleigh and Pudsey and last year’s winner Tokio Myers.So, as we
  
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• Men Affected By Depression Share What Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson's Comments Mean To Them

  03-04-2018 16:01
  Due to his early wrestling career, an acting CV dominated by action roles and his sheer size, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is often heralded as a “man’s man” - an embodiment of everything that is stereotypically masculine. It is this that makes it all the more poignant that the star has spoken candidly about his experience of depression after his mother’s attempted suicide. “I reached a point where I didn’t want to do a thing or go anywhere. I wa
  
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• What It's Like To Experience Insomnia: 'When The Alarm Goes Off I Feel Like Crying'

  03-04-2018 15:48
  “I never feel that refreshed feeling you want out of a night’s sleep. I can’t even remember what that feels like,” says Sophie Eggleton, from Surrey. “Often I’m already awake when the alarm goes off, and it only serves as a reminder that I’ve managed to get through another night without falling asleep, and it’s now time to crawl out of bed and shower.”Having suffered sleepless nights for more than a decade, Sophie is among the 10% of the
  
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• Parents will not forgive funding cuts, teaching union leader warns

  03-04-2018 15:42
  Politicians of all parties must take heed of concerns, National Education Union conference toldParents have become increasingly politicised by the squeeze on school funding and will be a powerful force if politicians fail to take heed of their concerns, a leader of the country’s largest teaching union told its annual conference.Kevin Courtney, the joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said he was proud the NEU spent £300,000 on campaigning during the last general e
  
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• When I Pay For My Degree, Is It 'An Experience' Or A Product?

  03-04-2018 15:36
  A couple of weeks ago at Cardiff University, I attended a Q&A about the impact of the recent strikes by university lecturers. When someone raised the question of whether or not students would get any financial compensation for the disruption, the answer given to the audience by a senior member of staff was that ‘you are paying for an experience, you are not paying for a product.’However, the increasing commodification of higher education signifies that university degrees and educ
  
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• How The Lords Can Make Brexit Better

  03-04-2018 15:36
  With one year to go to Brexit I’m worried that many of my friends and fellow campaigners are so focused upon stopping Brexit, that very little energy is going into making it better. In a few weeks’ time, the House of Lords will start voting on the detail of the EU Withdrawal Bill and this provides the best chance for progressives to stop the Cabinet from pushing through a long list of right wing policies and grabbing the kind of executive powers that Henry VIII possessed. From animal
  
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• UK’s Labour says Dan Jarvis can remain MP if he wins mayoral bid

  03-04-2018 15:29 via ft.com
  Party makes exception for Sheffield candidate after ban on members holding two elected positions
  
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• 'Global Britain' Is The Government's Latest Fantasy

  03-04-2018 15:27
  Last week marked a year since the Government carelessly triggered Article 50 and notified the EU of our decision to leave. With just twelve months to go before we crash out, the emotional rollercoaster of Brexit is picking up speed and careering towards the buffers.The Government’s incompetence, foolish disregard for the complexity of Brexit and indecision has stood in the way of any significant progress, and millions of concerned residents still do not know if their jobs will be safe, if
  
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• Anfield Is Something Man City's Money Can't Buy

  03-04-2018 15:24
  Liverpool against Manchester City in the quarter finals of the European Cup. Footballing royalty meets Abu Dhabi royalty. Jurgen Klopp and his high-pressing, high-intensity counterattacking blitz against Pep Guardiola’s masterful manipulation of the ball.Since the two managers have taken over their respective clubs they have played in fascinating, often enthralling games. Klopp has shaded it with two wins to Guardiola’s one but the latter did thump Liverpool 5-0. Most pundits and jou
  
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• De la Rue given more time to challenge passport decision

  03-04-2018 15:23 via bbc.co.uk
  The UK's passport supplier gets a two-week extension to challenge a move to a new maker post-Brexit.
  
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• Labour's Anti-semitism Problems Are Worse Than They Look

  03-04-2018 15:14
  An eye-roll. That is how I greeted the tweet from Luciana Berger, Chair of Jewish Labour, when she posted a link to Jeremy Corbyn defending a mural in Tower Hamlets in 2012. I rolled my eyes, not because the mural, which could have been the book cover for the Elders of Zion, was so blindingly anti-Semitic; but because a man and a movement that could be minutes away from 10 Downing Street, had failed to notice. Again.CST, a charity that protects British Jews from anti-Semitism and related threats
  
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• The Australia Ball-Tampering Scandal Shows Cricket Has A Problem With Cheating

  03-04-2018 15:10
  Last weekend, Australian captain Steve Smith, alongside vice-captain David Warner and opening batsman Cameron Bancroft all admitted to “ball-tampering” in the third test match against South Africa. The process of ball-tampering involves altering the cricket ball in order to gain and unfair advantage, and in this case those accused used a third-party object, sandpaper. What made the situation even worse was that the umpires on the field were made aware of the possibility of some wrong
  
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• Our Fear Of The Political

  03-04-2018 15:07
  ‘Why do people have to make it political?’ comes the despondent, desperate cry. Why can’t art just be art? A movie just be a movie? The accumulation of massive pools of wealth via the exploitation of labour into the hands of a handful of people just be the accumulation of massive pools of wealth via the exploitation of labour into the hands of a handful of people? Why does someone have to come along and make it political?I come across this a fair bit on social media and in the
  
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• Peter Kay Announces Third 'Car Share' Charity Screening Due To High Demand

  03-04-2018 15:02
  A third screening of two new episodes of ‘Peter Kay’s Car Share’ has been added, due to high demand.Last week, Peter made headlines when he posted on social media for the first time since cancelling his sold-out UK tour, to announce a charity screening of his hit sitcom.The screening, which aimed to raise money for The Lily Foundation, was so popular that a second night was added soon afterwards, with a matinee showing now also having been confirmed.A post on the comedian&rsquo
  
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• UK ivory ban among world's 'toughest', Michael Gove says

  03-04-2018 14:56 via bbc.co.uk
  All sales of ivory products to be banned, regardless of their age, the environment secretary says.
  
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• 'Have I Got News For You' Panellists Insist Female MPs Are Invited To Guest Host Show

  03-04-2018 14:50
  ‘Have I Got News For You’ panellists Ian Hislop and Paul Merton have addressed the lack of female politicians who have guest hosted the topical show over the years.In the past 54 series of ‘Have I Got News For You’, the show has featured a number of prominent politicians serving as guest host for an episode, from Boris Johnson and William Hague to John Prescott and Alastair Campbell.But of the 11 politicians who have sat in the presenter’s chair, only one of them ha
  
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• 'I learned a lot': Corbyn defends taking part in radical Jewish event

  03-04-2018 14:39
  Passover meal was held by Jewdas, which calls Labour antisemitism protest ‘cynical manipulation’Jeremy Corbyn has said he “learned a lot” at a Passover event hosted by a leftwing Jewish group highly critical of mainstream Jewish bodies, after he was rebuked by MPs for attending. The Labour leader took part in the seder, the traditional meal of the Jewish festival, organised by Jewdas, which last week accused the Jewish Board of Deputies, Jewish Leadership Council and Jewi
  
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• We Have A Duty To Hold Israel To Account And Stand Up For The Rights Of Palestinians

  03-04-2018 14:29
  This week we have witnessed the worst violence in Gaza since 2014. Israel has deployed tanks and sharpshooters against unarmed civilians, wounding more than 750 Palestinian protesters whilst killing 16, all because people who have been driven out of their land protested for their right to return. The UN security council’s emergency meeting failed to pass a resolution to condemn Israel for its actions.  It is time that the UN looks inwards and questions its own effectiveness as an
  
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• Just 2 Of 1,200 Carillion Apprentices Offered Placements By Government

  03-04-2018 14:05
  Just two of the 1,200 apprentices cut adrift by Carillion’s collapse were offered a placement by government - and both joined the army. Ministers have repeatedly faced calls to do more for apprentices whose future was thrown into jeopardy when the outsourcing giant collapsed in January. Roughly a third - 419 - is still without work. Most found a new placement with a business, while only two were offered a training contract with a government department or agency. After s
  
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• Get To Know The Nine 'Trailblazing' Models On British Vogue's May Cover

  03-04-2018 13:58
  British Vogue has earned praise for featuring nine diverse faces on its May cover. Edward Enninful’s casting has sparked much conversation as it represents a variety of races, includes a model wearing a hijab and shows some (albeit, not a lot of) body positivity.Unlike former Vogue editor-in-chief of Vogue, Alexandra Shulman, who only showcased 9 ‘diverse’ faces out of 306 cover models and went 12 years without showcasing a black model, this magazine cover i
  
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• These Symptoms Could Mean A Visit To New NHS 'One-Stop Shops' For Diagnosing Cancer

  03-04-2018 13:54
  If a doctor suspects a patient has cancer, they’ll now be able to refer them to a pop-up clinic dedicated solely to diagnosing the disease. As part of the NHS’s new trial, GPs will be able to refer patients with “vague, non-specific symptoms” such as unexplained weight loss to one of 10 specialist cancer diagnosis centres across the UK.Early diagnosis is crucial for many types of cancer, meaning the difference between life and death. Pancreatic cancer, for examp
  
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• Final decision on post-Brexit passport contract is delayed

  03-04-2018 13:42
  Delay will allow British firm De La Rue more time to challenge decision to make French-Dutch firm preferred bidderThe government has delayed its final decision on who makes the post-Brexit blue UK passports to allow the British firm De La Rue more time to challenge plans to award the contract to a Franco-Dutch rival.The Home Office said the so-called standstill period between the choice of a preferred contractor and the official announcement had been extended. Continue reading...
  
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