UK

Scotland’s First Minster, Nicola Sturgeon, has called on the Scottish National Party (SNP) to unite ahead of the Scottish Parliamentary (Holyrood) election scheduled for May 2021. Sturgeon, who is also SNP leader, said the pro-independence party must “focus on what matters to people” by putting “aside internal disputes”. According to …

As migrant crossings across the English Channel continue to escalate, the Home Office has turned to the Ministry of Defense (MoD) for help to stem the tide. The Home Office apparently wants the Royal Navy to intervene – possibly in the form of a “passive blockade” – with a view …

Britain and Japan have reached a substantial agreement in most areas for a bilateral post-Brexit trade deal and will try to clinch a preliminary deal by the end of this month, top officials from both countries said on Friday. “We agreed to accelerate talks with an aim of reaching an …

The UK government has urged medicine suppliers to build up stockpiles to prepare for possible border disruptions when Britain severs ties with the European Union at the end of the year. In a letter published late Monday, the health ministry set out how firms could prepare for the end of …

New evidence has come to light that British Special Forces in Afghanistan routinely committed war crimes by shooting dead unarmed civilians. The fresh material follows an investigation by BBC Panorama which focuses on the concerns of the Special Forces top brass that the units under their command were routinely killing …

The Conservative Party is refusing to suspend an MP reportedly arrested on suspicion of rape. The decision to delay suspension has elicited sharp rebukes from opposition parties. Justifying the decision, a spokesperson for the Conservatives whips’ office said: “These are serious allegations and it is right that they are investigated …

A fight broke out onboard a KLM flight to Ibiza after two passengers refused to wear face masks. Video footage appeared to show British holidaymakers were involved in the brawl after the Boeing 737 took off from Amsterdam on Friday. KLM said both men were restrained with the help of …

Activists took to the streets of London a day after the UK cabinet expanded its guidelines for mandatory face coverings. The demonstration comes amid growing skepticism worldwide over the efficacy of such policies. A large group of demonstrators assembled in Hyde Park on Saturday, where they listened to speeches denouncing …

A fire destroyed a vast area of a forest in France and people in Britain filled beaches on the hottest day of the year so far. More than a dozen Italian cities were put on alert and Spain experienced record temperatures as heatwaves gripped Europe last week. A fire destroyed …

An unnamed British lawmaker and the former minister were arrested on Saturday after police received allegations of rape, sexual assault, and coercive control, The Sunday Times reported. A woman in her twenties reported to police she had been assaulted and forced to have sex, the newspaper reported. The woman was …

A Saudi Arabian-backed consortium has withdrawn its bid to buy the English Premier League side Newcastle United. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) had been part of a three-party deal fronted by PCP Capital Partners, a venture capital and private equity company founded and run by British businesswoman Amanda Staveley, …

China blamed the United Kingdom on Thursday for deteriorating ties after Prime Minister Boris Johnson slapped a 5G ban on Huawei, accusing London of poisoning the relationship by meddling in Hong Kong’s affairs. “These actions have seriously poisoned the atmosphere of China-UK relationship,” China’s ambassador to London Liu Xiaoming told …

Britain’s AstraZeneca said on Thursday that good data was coming in so far on its vaccine for COVID-19, already in large-scale human trials and widely seen as the front-runner in the race for a shot against the novel coronavirus. The drugmaker, Britain’s most valuable listed company, also announced second-quarter results …

Boris Johnson has warned of signs pointing to a “second wave” of coronavirus infections in Europe as he tries to deflect criticism about the sudden change of travel advice to Spain. Coming on the heels of the Spanish Prime Minister’s description of the quarantine measures as “unjust”, Johnson tried to soften …

Boris Johnson has warned there are signs of a “second wave” of coronavirus in Europe, as he defended a 14-day quarantine on travellers from Spain. The PM said the government had to be “swift” – and it would continue to take further action “where it is necessary”. It comes after …

The prospects of the UK economy returning to its pre-pandemic size are in shambles. To underscore the crisis, unemployment has increased to 9 percent from 3.9 percent in barely a month. According to the EY Item Club, a leading economic forecast group, the British economy is at risk of shrinking …

Britain is closely watching rises in coronavirus cases in other European destinations such as France and Germany after slapping a 14-day quarantine on travellers from Spain at the height of the summer vacation season. The imposition of a British quarantine on Spain is one of the starkest indications to date …

Spain is safe for tourists and Spaniards, the government insisted on Sunday after Britain abruptly imposed a two-week coronavirus quarantine on travelers returning from there, a decision that filled holidaymakers with dismay. Last year, Britons made up over a fifth of foreign visitors to Spain, which relies heavily on tourism …

Hackers froze turnstiles at a football game and tried to steal a £1m club transfer fee in recent cyber attacks on UK sport, a new report has revealed. Cybercriminals hacked the emails of a Premier League club’s managing director during a transfer negotiation and would have been able to pocket …

There is no evidence of Russian meddling in the 2016 Brexit referendum and Britain’s spies did not take their eyes off the ball on Russia, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said on Wednesday. “There needs to be some evidence that there’s an issue there – which there isn’t,” Shapps told Sky …