Political news

• Hackney Stabbing: Man In His 20s Dies In East London

  04-04-2018 23:07
  A man in his 20s has died after being stabbed in Hackney in London in the latest in a spate of killings to stun the UK’s capital. The death brings London’s murder toll to 50 after a man in his 50s died after a fight outside a betting shop in Clapton, east London, earlier on Wednesday and two teenagers were killed in separate incidents on Monday.Police said a man with stab wounds had approached officers in Link Street in Hackney at just before 8pm.He was treated by paramedics but
  
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• Homeless Vending Machine Removed From Nottingham Shopping Centre After Three Months

  04-04-2018 22:48
  The world’s first vending machine for the homeless has been called “well-meaning but ill-informed” after it was removed from a shopping centre after just three months.Action Hunger installed the device in the Broadmarsh Centre in Nottingham to provide food, socks and toothbrushes, among other essentials, to people sleeping rough at Christmas.Intu, the company which owns the shopping centre, has decided not to extend the licence to operate the machine after the lease ran ou
  
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• Nicola Jennings on Theresa May's glass floor – cartoon

  04-04-2018 22:39
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• Nicola Jennings on Theresa May's glass ceiling – cartoon

  04-04-2018 22:39
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• Russia looks for weaknesses in UK nerve agent case

  04-04-2018 22:15 via ft.com
  Kremlin leaves no stone unturned in propaganda push to deflect blame for Novichok attack
  
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• Moscow probes for UK weaknesses in poison propaganda war

  04-04-2018 22:15 via ft.com
  Kremlin seeks to take case to UN after rejection at chemical warfare watchdog
  
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• Russian spy: Labour urges probe over Johnson comments

  04-04-2018 21:57 via bbc.co.uk
  Labour questions whether the foreign secretary "misled" the public over the Salisbury poisonings.
  
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• England’s mayors can be more than cheerleaders

  04-04-2018 21:34 via ft.com
  The government should seek to devolve greater powers to the regions
  
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• Facebook Says Cambridge Analytica May Have Had Data On 87 million People

  04-04-2018 21:23
  Facebook has said that the personal information of up to 87 million users may have been improperly shared with political consultancy Cambridge Analytica - up from a previous news media estimate of more than 50 million.On Wednesday, Facebook Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer shared the higher number as part of a corporate blog post about steps the company was taking to restrict the personal data available to third-party app developers.Most of the 87 million people were in the United States
  
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• Calderdale councillor suspended over 'Muslim parasite' posts

  04-04-2018 20:49 via bbc.co.uk
  Mike Payne shared an article which accused Muslims in France of "living off the state".
  
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• UK security minister explains rejection of joint inquiry with Russia

  04-04-2018 20:38 via bbc.co.uk
  Security Minister Ben Wallace says "Russia doesn’t do investigations, they do assassinations”.
  
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• Tanesha Melbourne Murder: Tottenham Community Leaders Call For Peace After Gang-Linked Killing

  04-04-2018 20:33
  Community leaders in north London united for a peace march in an effort to stop what many see as an escalating gang war taking the lives of young people.Marchers filled the streets between Seven Sisters underground station and the supermarket in north London on Tuesday night where CCTV caught Tanesha Melbourne, 17, walking with friends just minutes before she was gunned down on Monday night.A 16-year-old boy was shot in the face in Walthamstow, east London, just 30 minutes later and died on Wedn
  
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• Gender pay gap figures reveal eight in 10 UK firms pay men more

  04-04-2018 20:14
  Data indicates 9.8% median pay gap, as hundreds of companies file figures before deadlineAlmost eight in 10 companies and public-sector bodies pay men more than women it was revealed, as the midnight deadline passed for businesses to report their gender pay gap.
  Some eight years after the law was tabled to compel companies across Great Britain to reveal the extent of the difference between male and female wages, the data showed that women were being paid a median hourly rate that, on average, wa
  
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• For Jewish Corbyn supporters, this antisemitism row feels like gaslighting | Rachel Shabi

  04-04-2018 19:55
  We have faced varying degrees of hostility and manipulation. But let’s not pretend Corbyn’s Labour invented antisemitismIt is utterly bewildering that Labour MPs and journalists thought it was fine to distinguish bad Jews from good this week, as a way to discredit Jeremy Corbyn’s Passover meeting with the radical London-based group Jewdas. These voices said the Jewish community organisation, friendly to the Labour leader, was the wrong kind of Jew. Yet other Jewish groups &ndas
  
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• As a Jewish Corbyn supporter, this antisemitism row feels like gaslighting | Rachel Shabi

  04-04-2018 19:55
  We have faced varying degrees of hostility and manipulation. But let’s not pretend Corbyn’s Labour invented antisemitismIt is utterly bewildering that Labour MPs and journalists thought it was fine to distinguish bad Jews from good this week, as a way to discredit Jeremy Corbyn’s Passover meeting with the radical London-based group Jewdas. These voices said the Jewish community organisation, friendly to the Labour leader, was the wrong kind of Jew. Yet other Jewish groups &ndas
  
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• The Guardian view on knife crime: policing alone won’t cut it | Editorial

  04-04-2018 19:38
  The surge in knife crime in London will need sustained action from all parts of the state and societyThe shocking death of Tanesha Melbourne-Blake, a 17-year-old shot from a car as she stood with friends in a Tottenham street, has highlighted the alarming rise in violence in the capital this year. At present rates, London is on course to have more murders than in any year since 2005. The local MP, David Lammy, has blamed the rise in violence squarely on drug gangs and inequality: the consumption
  
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• Ministers outline plan for disabled people's air travel

  04-04-2018 19:36 via bbc.co.uk
  New measures could be brought in after complaints about long waits and damaged mobility equipment.
  
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• Russia calls for UN security council meeting to discuss Salisbury nerve agent attack - Politics live

  04-04-2018 19:30
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happenAfternoon summary 6.01pm BST Russia has lost a vote at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons on it attempt top seek a new joint investigation into Salisbury poisoning, Reuters is reporting.An unnamed diplomatic source told the agency that the vote was lost by 15-6 with 17 OPCW member states abstaining. Russia gained support from China, Azerbaijan, Sudan, Algeria and Iran, Reuters said. 5.41pm BSTContinue
  
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• Jeremy Corbyn questions Boris Johnson's claim on Russian-made novichok – video

  04-04-2018 19:17
  Jeremy Corbyn responds to Boris Johnson's claim that Porton Down officials  were 'absolutely categorical' in stating that the novichok nerve agent used in the Salisbury attack was made in Russia. Corbyn told the media: 'Either he has information he is not sharing with Porton Down or it was an exaggeration' Russia calls for UN security council meeting to discuss Salisbury nerve agent attack - Politics live Continue reading...
  
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• Owning UK homes through offshore companies loses appeal

  04-04-2018 18:50 via ft.com
  Properties held in foreign structures falls 22% since tax crackdown
  
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• Owning UK homes through offshore companies falls 22%

  04-04-2018 18:50 via ft.com
  Holding properties in foreign structures loses allure since tax crackdown
  
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• 'Absolutely categorical': Boris Johnson insists novichok was made in Russia – video

  04-04-2018 18:49
  The UK foreign secretary told the broadcaster Deutsche Welle in March that the novichok nerve agent used in the Salisbury attack was made in Russia. During the interview, Boris Johnson said officials at the Porton Down defence research laboratory were ‘absolutely categorical’ that the nerve agent was Russian-madeOnce again, Boris Johnson is a liability to Britain. Why is he still in the job?Continue reading...
  
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• Salisbury attack: what has the UK said and what evidence does it have?

  04-04-2018 18:31
  UK officials have said scientific tests are just part of the reason they have blamed RussiaThe revelation that scientists at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down have not established that the nerve agent used to poison Sergei and Yulia Skripal was made in Russia has caused a storm.UK officials hurried to explain that the scientific findings were just one part of the intelligence jigsaw that pointed the finger for the Salisbury attack at Moscow. Here we examine what other
  
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• Prince Philip, Duke Of Edinburgh, 'Progressing Satisfactorily' After Hip Surgery

  04-04-2018 18:28
  Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, is in “good spirits” after undergoing a hip replacement on Wednesday, Buckingham Palace has said.The Duke, 96, was admitted to London’s King Edward VII’s Hospital on Tuesday for what palace officials described as a “planned” procedure to cure weeks of joint pain.“The Duke of Edinburgh has undergone a successful hip replacement operation,” a palace statement said on Wednesday evening.“He is progressing sat
  
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• Russian spy: UK brands offer of joint inquiry 'perverse'

  04-04-2018 18:24 via bbc.co.uk
  The UK blasts Russia as the global chemical weapons watchdog discusses the attack on an ex-spy.
  
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• How I Learnt To Embrace My Shyness

  04-04-2018 18:14
  I’m 45 years old and have been shy for as long as I can remember. As a child I hid behind the sofa when guests came and blushed if anyone said hello to me. As a fully-fledged adult I still suffer from shyness, I just wish I could find a bigger sofa.When I was six, my mother found my schoolbook smeared with “I love Karen” and “I love Jason.” This wasn’t some epic love triangle. She knew Karen and Jason were my best friends but she chased me around the house cha
  
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• London Is Not The Electoral Test For Labour

  04-04-2018 18:06
  There appears to be two certainties in British politics at the moment. The first is that Labour is set to clean up across the capital in this year’s Local Elections, with the already solid Labour city of London due to keep the red flag flying high on 3 May by electing Labour Councillors in North, East, South and West London.The second certainty is that Labour will absolutely win the next General Election and Corbynmania will sweep the country again in 2022 - but this time hoovering up the
  
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• Why Can’t We Stop Sexual Extortion Of Our Young People?

  04-04-2018 18:02
  Emily had spent a few weeks chatting to Dave online. They’d never met in person, but it’d just been a bit of fun. She’d been put off when he’d asked her for underwear photos, but she’d gone along with it – her friends at school were always talking about doing it for their boyfriends. Emily’s parents were separated and her dad was angry all the time, so it was a relief to have someone like Dave to talk to.But then it turned nasty. Dave said that if she di
  
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• Why Can’t We Stop Sextortion?

  04-04-2018 18:02
  Emily had spent a few weeks chatting to Dave online. They’d never met in person, but it’d just been a bit of fun. She’d been put off when he’d asked her for underwear photos, but she’d gone along with it – her friends at school were always talking about doing it for their boyfriends. Emily’s parents were separated and her dad was angry all the time, so it was a relief to have someone like Dave to talk to.But then it turned nasty. Dave said that if she di
  
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• Boris Johnson Blasts Jeremy Corbyn For 'Playing Russia’s Game' After Spy Poisoning Criticism

  04-04-2018 18:00
  Boris Johnson has accused Jeremy Corbyn of “playing Russia’s game” after the Labour leader criticised the UK’s Foreign Secretary over his handling of the Salisbury spy poisoning.Corbyn had said Johnson had “serious questions to answer” and had “egg on his face” after the head of the Porton Down defence laboratory revealed on Tuesday that it had “not identified the precise source” of the nerve agent - a comment that appeared to
  
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• Corbyn and Jewish leaders agree to tackle Labour antisemitism

  04-04-2018 17:51
  Two main Jewish organisations accept Labour leader’s offer of ‘without preconditions’ meetingJeremy Corbyn and Britain’s two largest Jewish organisations have agreed to address antisemitism in the Labour party, which Corbyn said would happened “without preconditions”. In a letter to the Board of Deputies of British Jews (BoD) and the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC), the Labour leader said he accepted “my responsibility to give a strong and continuing per
  
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• Thanks, but a ‘Love a Muslim Day’ isn’t enough to counter Islamophobia | Shaista Aziz

  04-04-2018 17:44
  The rising tide of bigotry against Britain’s Muslim communities needs tackling head-on – and Theresa May should take the leadTwenty-four hours on from the “Punish a Muslim Day” and the well-meaning but deeply reductive framing of “Love a Muslim Day”, the UK’s Muslim communities and no doubt the police and authorities are breathing a huge sigh of relief that this designated day of hate passed off without major incident.“Punish a Muslim Day” st
  
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• Seaside towns are 'hotspots' for heroin deaths, says ONS

  04-04-2018 17:30
  Blackpool logs 14 heroin deaths per 100,000 people as high rates revealed at other coastal resorts in England and WalesSeven of the 10 local authorities in England and Wales with the highest rates of heroin deaths are coastal towns, according to an analysis by the Office for National Statistics.The ONS research focused on council districts with the highest level of drugs misuse fatalities where heroin and morphine were a factor. Continue reading...
  
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• Jacob Rees-Mogg Says Beano Character Walter Is 'More Macho' Than Him

  04-04-2018 17:26
  Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg has dismissed suggestions he has copied his style from Walter the Softy - as the Beano character is actually “more macho”.On Wednesday morning Beano Studios jokingly claimed it would sue the leading Brexiteer backbencher for “impersonating” their cartoon.But speaking to BBC News, Rees-Mogg said the comparison did not make any sense.“What can I say except apart from compared to me, Walter is Mr Muscle,” he said. “I’m a fairly
  
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• Cynthia Nixon Says 'Sex And The City' Film Ending 'Devastated' Her

  04-04-2018 17:26
  Cynthia Nixon has admitted to feeling “a little devastated” over the way the first ‘Sex And The City’ film ended.For six years, Cynthia played Miranda Hobbes in the groundbreaking TV show, as well as it’s two big-screen adaptations.And while the sequel ‘Sex And The City 2’ is the instalment most fans would prefer pretend never happened, Cynthia has confessed that it’s the ending of the first film, in which Carrie discovers the walk-in closet that M
  
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• Experts Fear Brexit Risks UK Access To Lifesaving NHS Treatment Abroad

  04-04-2018 17:09
  Brexit could prevent UK patients from seeking specialist and potentially lifesaving treatment abroad, experts have warned. A House of Lords report on the impact of the country’s departure from the EU on healthcare states that unless and agreement is reached, “rights to reciprocal healthcare currently enjoyed by 27 million UK citizens, thanks to the European Health Insurance Card, will cease after Brexit”.It also warns that post-March 2019, schemes which cover planned treat
  
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• We Can Now Trap Poachers Using A Technique Designed To Detect Distant Stars

  04-04-2018 16:56
  The same technology that’s used to spot the most distant stars in our universe could soon be used to trap poachers here on Earth.The system uses a combination of flying drones, infrared thermal imaging and advanced AI to monitor animals at night when the majority of poaching occurs.Incredibly the team behind the technique have already seen success in South Africa where an early field trial was able to detect the elusive riverine rabbit, one of the most endangered mammals in the world.Follo
  
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• The three legal paths to stop Brexit are blocked

  04-04-2018 16:54 via ft.com
  Remainers should now look to what happens after 29 March 2019
  
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• Labour anti-Semitism row: Jewish leaders agree to Corbyn meeting

  04-04-2018 16:49 via bbc.co.uk
  But no date has been set and the Labour leader is told action is needed on anti-Semitism "not words".
  
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• 'X Factor': 15 Talent Show Novices Who Would Be Perfect Judges

  04-04-2018 16:45
  The ‘X Factor’ rumour mill is currently in overdrive, following reports Nicole Scherzinger, Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne are all being axed as judges. As a result, various names have been flying around in the press as to who will replace them, but you’d be forgiven for finding the majority of them just a wee bit predictable.With the likes of Cheryl Tweedy (who is already reported to have turned down the chance to return), Rita Ora, Kylie Minogue and Mariah Carey&rs
  
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• What You Need To Know Before A Friend Officiates Your Wedding Like Adele

  04-04-2018 16:32
  When you’ve got a mate like Adele, you want her to be part of your wedding. On Tuesday Alan Carr revealed the signer was “ordained” in the US in order to conduct a wedding ceremony between him and husband Paul Drayton in Los Angeles in January. If the news has made you think about asking a friend to deliver your vows Joey-from-Friends-style, there are a few things you have to consider. Kaleel Anwar, a family lawyer from Slater and Gordon, says it’s not as easy t
  
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• Janet Street-Porter Says Backlash Over Linda Robson Comments Triggered Anxiety Attack

  04-04-2018 16:19
  ‘Loose Women’ panellist Janet Street-Porter has claimed the backlash she received over comments she made about Linda Robson’s appearance during yesterday’s (3 April) show triggered an anxiety attack.Janet faced the wrath of some viewers on social media, when she commented on photos of Linda wearing a swimsuit, which were shown at the beginning of Tuesday’s (3 April) episode.When Linda commented that the poolside pictures marked the first time she’d ever felt c
  
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• What Is Salicylic Acid And Why Is It In My Face Wash?

  04-04-2018 16:17
  Salicylic acid is currently a super trendy ingredient in skincare, one you will have seen listed on many a bottle positioned carefully in Instagram #shelfies. But can it live up to the hype?A post shared by THE FILE (@the_file) on Nov 5, 2017 at 10:31pm PSTThe BuzzSalicylic acid has been held responsible for all sort of grand claims: it has been said to “cure” acne, soothe irritation and balance an uneven texture as well as reducing oil and refining pores when applied topically.A pos
  
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• Facebook Poll Asks People If It Thinks It’s ‘Good For The World’

  04-04-2018 16:15
  Following Facebook’s tough few weeks the company has now actually started asking some of its users if they the social network is “good for the world.”The question was a snap poll that Facebook has reportedly been sending to an unspecified number of users across the world, so while some of you may have seen it in person, others may never get it.This is a screenshot of a survey question my colleague got from Facebook. "Is Facebook good for the world?" pic.twitter.com/jBmkmNGexc&m
  
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• Oath UK Reveals Gender Pay Gap of 23%

  04-04-2018 15:39
  Media and tech company Oath UK, the owner of HuffPost UK, has revealed it has a median gender pay gap of 23.29%.  Data from the firm - released as part of a government drive to tackle pay inequality - showed that women at the company earn 77p for every £1 male employees take home.Men make up 72.48% of Oath’s top earners while women’s bonus pay is on average 33.66% less than men at the company.A spokesperson for Verizon, of which Oath is a subsidiary, said: &ldquo
  
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• UK men paid 9.9% more than women

  04-04-2018 15:30 via ft.com
  Gender pay portal crashes as companies scramble to meet reporting deadline
  
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• UK men paid 9.8% more than women

  04-04-2018 15:30 via ft.com
  Gender pay portal crashes as companies scramble to meet reporting deadline
  
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• Sir Vince Cable launches the Lib Dems' English local election campaign

  04-04-2018 15:30 via bbc.co.uk
  Sir Vince Cable launches the Lib Dems' English local election campaign, promising "we're on our way back".
  
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• Scotland’s slow growth puts pressure on SNP

  04-04-2018 15:27 via ft.com
  Fall in construction activity builds on concerns about performance against rest of UK
  
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• Russian counter-propaganda exploiting UK weaknesses over spy poisoning

  04-04-2018 15:19
  Scientific research and political rhetoric operate at different velocities, leaving a gap that Moscow has exploited A diplomatic drive in the UK to corner Russia for the Sergei Skripal poisoning has been set back in the past 24 hours, due in part to self-inflicted wounds – notably Boris Johnson’s loose language – but also to Russia’s ability to keep up a relentless counter-propaganda assault that British ministers seem unable to match.The controversy underlines how rapidl
  
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