Page 22 - Britain

Inquiry report on UK's infected blood scandal to be revealed on Monday

The final report of the UK's infected blood inquiry will be published Monday, nearly six years after it began looking into how tens of thousands of people contracted HIV or hepatitis from transfusions of tainted blood and blood products in the 1970s and 1980s. The scandal is widely seen as the deadliest to afflict Britain's state-run National Health Service since its inception in 1948, with around 3,000 people believed to have died as a result of being infected with the HIV virus and hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver. The report is expected to criticise pharmaceutical firms and medical practitioners, civil servants and politicians, though many have already died given the passage of time. It's also set to pave the way to a huge compensation bill that the British government will be under pressure to rapidly pay out. Had it not been for the tireless campaigners, many of whom saw loved ones die decades too soon, the scale of the scandal may have remained hidden forever. This who

UK watchdog decides not to pursue investigation into Microsoft-Mistral deal

British regulators said Friday they don't need to open a competition investigation into Microsoft's partnership with French artificial intelligence company Mistral, a month after asking for industry feedback on the deal. Microsoft announced earlier this year that it was partnering with the buzzy French startup in a move that could lessen the software giant's reliance on ChatGPT-maker OpenAI for supplying the next wave of chatbots and other generative AI products. The Competion and Markets Authority said in a brief update that the tie-up does not qualify for investigation" under UK merger rules. The watchdog had said in April that it was seeking comments from interested third parties, before deciding whether to carry out an in-depth antitrust investigation. By deciding not to probe the deal, "the CMA confirmed that the structure of the partnership between Mistral and Microsoft does not grant sufficient rights/influence to Microsoft," Alex Haffner, competition partner at UK law firm

India, Britain reaffirm FTA commitment at annual strategic dialogue

India and Britain on Friday reaffirmed their commitment to conclude a mutually beneficial free trade agreement (FTA) at the annual UK-India Strategic Dialogue in London. Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, who is on a visit to the UK, held discussions with his counterpart, Sir Philip Barton, Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). After their meeting, the FCDO said the two leaders reviewed the progress made on the UK-India 2030 Roadmap since the last strategic dialogue in January last year and looked ahead to the next phase of bilateral cooperation. The two reflected on good progress on the 2030 Roadmap since the last review, noting key areas where the UK and India have worked together to tackle some of the world's biggest challenges, the FCDO said in a statement. This included collaborating on the world's first malaria vaccine, working closely on India's successful G20 Presidency and increasing opportunities for students and entrepreneurs

Russia asks British diplomat to leave country in a week in tit-for-tat move

Russia on Thursday declared Britain's defence attach persona non grata and gave the diplomat a week to leave the country in response to London's decision to expel the Russian defence attach earlier this month over spying allegations. Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it summoned a representative of the British Embassy in Moscow on Thursday to express its strong protest in connection with the unfriendly and groundless decision to expel the Russian attach from London. We emphasized that we regard this step as a politically motivated action of clearly Russophobic nature, which is causing irreparable damage to bilateral relations, the statement read. Britain on May 8 announced several measures to target Moscow's intelligence gathering operations in the UK Those included a decision to boot Maxim Elovik, a Russian colonel who the British government termed an undeclared military intelligence officer, rescinding the diplomatic status of several Russian-owned properties ...

India-UK FTA: Work in progress to resolve issues, says commerce ministry

Senior officials of India and the UK held negotiations last month on the outstanding issues of the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) and the work is in progress to iron out the differences. According to the commerce ministry, the Indian team visited London from April 16-19 for negotiations. "The teams have made good progress and work is in progress in resolving pending issues. Chapter-wise textual negotiations are nearly closed and schedules on goods and services are at an advanced stage of negotiations," the ministry said. The ministry, however, did not disclose further details. So far, 13 rounds of talks have been completed. The 14th round started in January. There are 26 chapters in the agreement, including goods, services, investments, and intellectual property rights. The Indian industry is demanding greater access for its skilled professionals from sectors like IT and healthcare in the UK market, besides market access for several goods at nil customs duty. On the other h

Post-study visa route dominated by Indians should stay, finds UK review

A post-study visa route dominated by Indian graduates is helping the universities in the UK make up for financial losses on the domestic front and expanding the country's research landscape, a review commissioned by the British government concluded in its report on Tuesday. The independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) had been tasked by UK Home Secretary James Cleverly to undertake a rapid review of the relatively new Graduate Route visa that allows international students to stay on for up to two years after their degree to look for work and gain work experience. It found that Indian students lead the pack in this visa category, accounting for 89,200 visas between 2021 and 2023 or 42 per cent of the overall grants, and the visa was stated as the overwhelming decision point for their choice of a higher education destination. Our review recommends the Graduate Route should remain as it is and is not undermining the quality and integrity of the UK's higher education system, said

UK foreign secy says halting arms sales to Israel would strengthen Hamas

Halting arms exports to Israel is not a wise path" and would only strengthen Hamas, Britain's foreign secretary said Sunday. Asked whether the UK would follow the US in threatening to cut the supply of offensive weapons to Israel if it carried out an attack on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, Foreign Secretary David Cameron said the two countries cannot be compared because unlike the US, Britain supplies a very small amount of Israel's weapons. The UK provides less than 1% of Israel's weapons and it's not a state supplier," Cameron told the BBC on Sunday. "We have a licensing system and those licences can be closed if it's judged there's a serious risk of a serious international human rights violation. US President Joe Biden has said that his government will stop supplying weapons and artillery to Israel if its forces launch an all-out assault on Rafah, the last major Hamas stronghold in Gaza. Britain's opposition Labour Party and human rights groups have argued that the UK should

British newspaper groups warn Apple over ad-blocking plans, says report

NMA is an association of UK-based national, regional and local news media organizations, according to its website

UK exits recession with better-than-expected forecast 0.6% GDP growth

The Office for National Statistics said gross domestic product expanded by 0.6 per cent in the three months to March, the strongest expansion since the fourth quarter of 2021

UK PM Sunak suffers defection of MP amid charge of 'incompetence'

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Wednesday suffered a humiliating defection from his party benches as a Conservative member of Parliament walked across the floor of the House of Commons to join the Opposition Labour ranks. Natalie Elphicke, MP for Dover, said the Tories under Sunak "have become a byword for incompetence and division" in a resignation statement just moments before the weekly Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs). The 43-year-old British Indian leader went on to face off with Labour Leader Keir Starmer, who made the most of the shock move which marks the second defection from the Tories to Labour in two weeks and comes on the back of bruising local election results for the governing party. "When I was elected in 2019, the Conservative Party occupied the centre ground of British politics. The party was about building the future and making the most of the opportunities that lay ahead for our country, Elphicke, a staunch critic of the Labour Party until only a few days

UK facing disaster of hung parl, warns Sunak after local election debacle

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned on Monday that an analysis of the local election results shows the country is headed for a hung Parliament led by the Opposition Labour Party, which would be a disaster for Britain. The 43-year-old British Indian leader told The Times' in the wake of a debacle for the governing Conservative Party, who lost hundreds of local council seats and key mayoralties across England in results over the weekend, that he was bitterly disappointed but determined to fight back. He sought to paint a less bleak picture for party rebels, demanding a change of political course to win back voters in time for a general election, expected later this year. These results suggest we are heading for a hung parliament with Labour as the largest party, Sunak told the newspaper. [Labour Leader] Keir Starmer propped up in Downing Street by the SNP [Scottish National Party], Liberal Democrats and the Greens would be a disaster for Britain. The country doesn't need more political

King Charles III takes over charity patronages on Coronation anniversary

Britain's King Charles has significantly increased his charity patronages by nearly 300 this weekend to mark the first anniversary of his Coronation in May last year, taking over several that Buckingham Palace said were supported by his mother late Queen Elizabeth II. The palace said a major review of more than 1,000 royal patronages and charity presidencies was undertaken following the 75-year-old monarch's accession to the throne in September 2022 after the death of his mother. Other working members of the royal family, including wife Camilla and son and heir Prince William, will also take on the patronage of a number of organisations previously supported by the late Queen to add to their existing portfolios. The King and Queen [Camilla] will continue to serve as patron to many of the charities and institutions with which His Majesty was affiliated as Prince of Wales, and respectively Her Majesty as Duchess of Cornwall, a Buckingham Palace statement said on Saturday. In addition,

UK govt acted unlawfully in approving climate plan: High Court judge

A High Court judge ruled Friday that the UK government acted unlawfully when it approved a plan to meet climate targets without evidence that it could be delivered. It was the second time in two years that the government's main climate action plan was found to be unlawful and insufficient in meeting legally-binding targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Justice Clive Sheldon sided Friday with three environmental groups that brought the case, ruling that the government's decision to approve its Carbon Budget Delivery Plan last year was simply not justified by the evidence. The plan outlined how the UK aims to achieve its climate targets, including pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about two-thirds of 1990 levels by 2030 and to reach net zero by 2050. The judge said the details in the draft plan were vague and unquantified, and didn't provide officials with enough information on whether the plan should be approved. Lawyers acting for the environmental organizations tol

UK PM Sunak under pressure amid dire local election results for his party

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's leadership is under severe pressure on Friday as the results of local elections and a crucial by-election poured in overnight, delivering what is being characterised as one of the worst poll outcomes for the governing Conservative Party in 40 years. Rebels from within his party are expected to renew their attacks on the British Indian leader after the Opposition Labour Party made definitive gains, including overturning the Tory majority in the Blackpool South by-election which was necessitated following a resignation amid a lobbying row. Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer declared the result as a "seismic" victory and an overall poll verdict in favour of the party as it comes on the eve of a general election, expected later this year. "Blackpool speaks for the whole country... This is the one contest where voters had the chance to send a message to Rishi Sunak's Conservatives directly, and that message is an overwhelming vote for change," said Starmer

Britain claims drastic drop in student dependents after visa crackdown

The UK government has welcomed a significant fall in the number of dependents, or close family members such as a spouse and children, accompanying overseas students after its crackdown on student visas from early this year. In an update issued on Tuesday from January to March this year compared to the same period in 2023, the Home Office said that dependents had drastically fallen by almost 80 per cent amid over 26,000 fewer student visa applications made. Indians have led the international student visa tally in recent years and these figures indicate that a downward trend noted earlier this year is likely to mean fewer Indian students choosing UK universities. Under rules effective from January, most international students except those on research courses cannot bring along family members. They can no longer switch their visa either before completing their course, which the government claimed misused the student visa as a backdoor to work in the UK amid a wider Home Office clampdow

South Korea confirms talks on joining AUKUS pact with US, UK and Australia

AUKUS, formed by the three countries in 2021, is part of efforts to push back against China's growing power in the Asia Pacific region.

Gurbani, messages of harmony at UK Parliament complex for Baisakhi

The devotional strains of Gurbani and messages of harmony rang out at the Houses of Parliament complex in London this week for a first-of-its-kind Baisakhi celebration. Organised by the British Indian think tank 1928 Institute and diaspora membership organisations City Sikhs and the British Punjabi Welfare Association (BPWA), the event brought together a cross-section of professionals, community leaders and philanthropists at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Room on Monday evening to spotlight the UK-India relationship and contributions of the Sikh community to British life. City Sikhs Chair Jasvir Singh led the proceedings, which included speeches and Gurbani by the Anahad Kirtan Society. It's a real honour to celebrate Baisakhi, the birth of the Khalsa by Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji in 1699. Baisakhi celebrates the beginning of the Khalsa and the teachings that accompany this, focussing on equality by proactively removing forms of hierarchy, ego and fear, said Kiran Kaur .

Britain, France forge new alliance for Ukraine, eye Nato partners

But the stakes now are high. War continues to rage in Ukraine. The US's hard power commitment remains fallible

Britain's new 'world first' laws crack down on smart gadget cyber attacks

All internet connected smart devices will be required to meet minimum security standards under what the UK government has dubbed as world first laws, effective from Monday to protect consumers and businesses from hacking and cyber-attacks. Under the new regime, manufacturers will be banned from having weak, easily guessable default passwords like admin or 12345 and if there is a common password, the user will be prompted to change it on start-up. An investigation conducted by the Which? consumer group found that a UK home filled with smart devices could be exposed to more than 12,000 hacking attacks from across the world in a single week, with a total of 2,684 attempts to guess weak default passwords on just five devices. From today, consumers will have greater peace of mind that their smart devices are protected from cyber criminals, as we introduce world first laws that will make sure their personal privacy, data and finances are safe, said UK Minister for Cyber Viscount Camrose, .

Microsoft, Amazon face scrutiny from UK govt over recent AI deals

British competition regulators said Wednesday they'll scrutinise recent artificial intelligence deals by Microsoft and Amazon over concerns that the moves could thwart competition in the AI industry. The Competition and Markets Authority said it's looking into Microsoft's partnership with France's Mistral AI and the company's hiring of key staff from another startup, Inflection AI. The watchdog also separately announced that it's investigating Amazon's $4 billion investment in San Francisco-based Anthropic. Big Tech companies have been pouring money into generative AI startups amid growing public and business interest in the technology, but the investments have also drawn attention from antitrust authorities. The UK watchdog said it was seeking comments from interested third parties," before deciding whether to carry out an in-depth antitrust investigation. "We will assess, objectively and impartially, whether each of these three deals fall within UK merger rules and, if they do, .