Page 13 - Uk Govt

Deepfakes, AI pose threats to next elections, warns UK cybersecurity centre

Britain's cybersecurity agency said Tuesday that artificial intelligence poses a threat to the country's next national election, and cyberattacks by hostile countries and their proxies are proliferating and getting harder to track. The National Cyber Security Centre said this year has seen the emergence of state-aligned actors as a new cyber threat to critical national infrastructure such as power, water and internet networks. The centre part of Britain's cyberespionage agency, GCHQ said in its annual review that the past year also has seen the emergence of a new class of cyber adversary in the form of state-aligned actors, who are often sympathetic to Russia's further invasion of Ukraine and are ideologically, rather than financially, motivated. It said states and state-aligned groups pose an enduring and significant threat, from Russian-language criminals targeting British firms with ransomware attacks, to China state-affiliated cyber actors using their skills to pursue strategi

Cleverly replaces Braverman as UK Home Secy, ex-PM Cameron gets a comeback

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday sacked his Indian-origin Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, and replaced her with James Cleverly, while former premier David Cameron, in an unusual move, is back in the frontline government as the new Foreign Secretary. Braverman was sacked as Sunak began a Cabinet reshuffle in the morning, days after it emerged that a controversial newspaper article attacking the Metropolitan Police was published without clearance from her boss, according to reports coming out from Downing Street. The 43-year-old Goan-origin Cabinet minister has been replaced by Cleverly, 54, who moves from his portfolio of Foreign Secretary on the day he was scheduled for talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, currently on a five-day official visit to the UK. It remains to be seen how those bilateral meetings will now pan out as former British prime minister Cameron, 57, is back in the frontline government as the new Foreign Secretary. Cameron, who is no long

Dark underbelly of carbon trade

World leaders need to learn from the mistakes of the voluntary carbon market so that this new market mechanism does not repeat them

UK's stagnating economy fails to grow but sidesteps start of a recession

In the month of September alone, Britain's economy grew by 0.2% from August when growth was revised down to 0.1% from 0.2%

UK to add India in safe states list, no asylum rights for illegal migrants

The UK government has tabled plans to add India to an expanded list of safe states, which would speed up the process of returning Indians who travel from the country illegally and rule out their chance of seeking asylum in Britain. Draft legislation laid in the House of Commons on Wednesday includes India and Georgia as the countries to be added to the list. The UK Home Office said the move is aimed at strengthening the country's immigration system and help prevent abuse by people making unfounded protection claims. We must stop people making dangerous and illegal journeys to the UK from fundamentally safe countries, said UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman. Expanding this list will allow us to more swiftly remove people with no right to be here and sends a clear message that if you come here illegally, you cannot stay. We remain committed to delivering the measures in our Illegal Migration Act, which will play a part in the fight against illegal migration, she said. The move is in

Oxford-AstraZeneca covid vaccine faces legal challenge in UK: Report

The Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, known as Vaxzevria in Europe and licensed as Covishield in India, is facing a legal challenge in the High Court in London, a UK media report said on Thursday. According to The Daily Telegraph', UK-based pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca could face a number of further claims based on the outcome of test cases around the condition identified by specialists as Vaccine Induced Immune Thrombocytopenia and Thrombosis (VITT), believed to be related to the side effects of the COVID jab. AstraZeneca has stressed that patient safety is its "highest priority" and pointed out that regulators around the world consistently state that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of extremely rare potential side effects". "The fact of this legal battle poses a fundamental question: in circumstances where individuals are seriously injured or die because of a vaccination recommended by the government should the state provide access to adequate compensation,

Trader loses last fight to kick out $1.8 bn UK dividend tax fraud case

Shah's lawyers had argued the claim shouldn't take place in the UK because matters of foreign tax law can't be ruled on there

Accounting company PwC plans to cut around 600 jobs in UK: Report

The job cuts will be directed mainly at PwC's advisory business and a small number in the tax department, the report said

Amazon, Meta settle UK probe with pledges to refrain from unfair practices

Amazon and Meta settled separate UK antitrust investigations by agreeing to stop practices that give them an unfair advantage over merchants and customers using their platforms, the watchdog said Friday. The Competition and Markets Authority said it accepted the commitments from the US tech companies to close the investigations into their online marketplaces. The watchdog had been investigating whether Amazon was harming competition and hurting consumers by giving preference to merchants paying for extras like storage, packaging and delivery. It also looked into how Amazon chooses suppliers for the so-called buy box, which shows customers one-click buy now or add to basket options and the collection and use of data. The CMA said Amazon will no longer be able to use data from third-party sellers to give itself an edge. Sellers can negotiate their own delivery rates with independent delivery services and they'll get a fair shot at the buy box, it said. Amazon welcomed the deal, sayi

UK pledges £80 million for AI projects globally, including in Africa

According to a statement it will, "help bring down the barriers to entry for African AI innovators with the private sector"

Dubious agents running illicit UK visa trade in South Asia: Report

Dubious agents are operating an illicit visa appointments trade in South Asia, charging unsuspecting students and workers in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal exorbitant rates for a service that should be free, a UK media investigation has found. According to The Observer' newspaper on Sunday, brokers in some parts of South Asia are charging up to GBP 800 for biometric appointments being advertised on social media messaging services in these countries. The problem is believed to be the worst in Pakistan where the investigation found that the abuse of the visa appointment system by agents is feared to have increased significantly over the last year. "It is a massive issue. It all adds to the debt people pay to come to the UK," Rakesh Ranjan, South Asia coordinator for the migrant workers' programme at the UK-based Institute for Human Rights and Business, told the newspaper. When applying for a visa from New Delhi recently, Ranjan was quoted the equivalent of GBP 500 by an agent

Antisemitic, Islamophobic hate crimes rise in UK amid Israel-Hamas conflict

Antisemitic and Islamophobic hate crimes have continued to rise dramatically in London since the Israel-Hamas conflict intensified earlier this month, with Scotland Yard gearing up for another set of protests on the streets of London on Saturday. The Metropolitan Police said it had recorded 408 antisemitic offences against Britain's Jewish communities this month, compared to 28 in the same period last year, and Islamophobic hate crime was up from 65 offences in October 2022 to 174 so far this month. The police force has made 75 arrests linked to the Israel-Gaza conflict and its counterterrorism officers are investigating 10 potential breaches of terrorism laws. "We've been clear over the last week that wherever possible we will police up to the line of the law, said Met Police Commander Kyle Gordon, with reference to protests and marches planned in London this weekend. Our most experienced and knowledgeable officers are working on the policing of these events, making sure we are ..

FTSE 100 closes 0.9% lower, logs weekly loss as lacklustre results weigh

The banks index shed 2.3% and ended the week 5.4% lower.

World's first AI Safety Institute to be set up in UK: Rishi Sunak

The UK is to be the headquarters of the world's first AI Safety Institute as the country takes the lead in examining and testing new types of artificial intelligence, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced in a speech in London on Thursday. Ahead of hosting the first Global AI Safety Summit next week, the British Indian leader who completed one year in office this week said that he genuinely believes that technologies like AI (Artificial Intelligence) will bring a transformation as far-reaching as the industrial revolution, the coming of electricity, or the birth of the internet. But like those waves of advancements and the many positives that they offer, there are also "new dangers and new fears" that need to be tackled head on. Get this wrong, and AI could make it easier to build chemical or biological weapons. Terrorist groups could use AI to spread fear and destruction on an even greater scale. Criminals could exploit AI for cyber-attacks, disinformation, fraud, or even child sexua

AI backlash may anger thousands of employees in UK, says Infosys Partner

The remarks ahead of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's AI Summit next week underscore the stakes for policymakers facing a rapid shift in the nature of work

UK-India FTA: Electric vehicles market access sparks differences

The UK government has asked India to allow exporting a limited number of fully assembled EVs to India with no customs duty

Ex-Barclays Bank chief Staley banned from senior UK finance roles

Britain's financial regulator said on Thursday that it fined Barclay's former chief executive Jes Staley 1.8 million pounds (USD 2.2 million) and banned him from holding senior financial roles for misleading it over the nature of his relationship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The Financial Conduct Authority said in a statement that Staley, a US citizen, had recklessly approved a letter sent by Barclays to the FCA, which claimed the bank's former boss did not have a close relationship with Epstein. But in email messages, Staley described Epstein as one of his deepest and most cherished friends, according to the regulator. A CEO needs to exercise sound judgement and set an example to staff at their firm," said Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA. Staley failed to do this. We consider that he misled both the FCA and the Barclays board about the nature of his relationship with Epstein. As a result, Chambers said it is

India, UK looking at possible visit of PM Sunak to New Delhi soon

India and the UK are looking at a possible visit to New Delhi by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak soon but it may finally depend on whether the two sides could resolve the remaining differences to firm up the much-awaited free trade agreement (FTA), people familiar with the matter said on Monday. The two sides were exploring the possibility of having the visit around October 28 but nothing has been finalised yet, they said, suggesting that the visit is linked to the finalisation of the ambitious FTA. The two sides are learnt to have finalised around 24 of the 26 chapters in the FTA and are now looking at sealing it by bridging differences on certain contentious issues, including mobility of people and import duty concessions on certain items, they said. It is learnt that both sides were even looking at the possibility of Sunak watching the India-England World Cup one-day international cricket match in Lucknow on October 29. There is no finality on the visit, the people cited abov

British delegation to commence next round of India-UK FTA talks on Oct 9

A 30-member official delegation from the UK will start the next round of negotiations for a free trade agreement with the Indian team here from Monday to close remaining issues so that the two countries conclude the talks soon, an official has said. Both countries have recently concluded the 13th round of negotiations. A team led by Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal was in London last week to give an impetus to the talks. The UK team dealing with investment-related matters is already here, and the talks for the proposed bilateral investment treaty (BIT) with finance ministry officials are progressing at a faster pace. "The 30-member team will be here tomorrow, and both sides are attempting to close the remaining issues, such as rules of origin. Everything is at the closure level," the official said. The 'rules of origin' provision prescribes that minimal processing should happen in the FTA country so that the final manufactured product may be referred to as goods originating in tha

Have taken up concerns about security of diplomats with UK authorities: MEA

India has taken up its concerns regarding the security of diplomats and premises there with the UK authorities, said Ministry of External Affairs Official Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi on Thursday