Page 8 - Uk Govt

Kalasha Naidu of Kalasha Foundation Felicitated with Honorary Doctorate

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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

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 .

LS polls: Makhana traders demand policy refit for opportunity pop-up

Returning entrepreneurs hamstrung by inadequate policy measures

Hindujas inks new India-UK healthcare pact with King's College London

The Hinduja Group and King's College London on Wednesday announced a new partnership aimed at improving healthcare outcomes in India and the UK, through training and research capacity building as well as scholarships for Indian students. King's College London, Guy's & St. Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, the Hinduja Foundation UK and Mumbai's P.D. Hinduja Hospital & Medical Research Centre run by the National Health & Education Society are involved in the new strategic partnership to advance two-way training, education and research capacity building. It will lead to the creation of a new Hinduja-King's Health Partners Academy with the aim of driving forward the development of new technologies to address global healthcare challenges. This collaboration will only strengthen the UK's close links to India, and create greater research capacity in healthcare engineering, clinical innovation, and advanced training," said UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden after a visit last ...

UK businesses expand at fastest pace in 11 months, shows PMI survey

Last month the Bank of England estimated the economy grew just 0.1% in the first quarter and would do only slightly better in the second

Nothing will stand in way of Rwanda flights: Sunak after key bill passes

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's latest effort to send some migrants to Rwanda finally won approval from Parliament early Tuesday, hours after he pledged deportation flights would begin in July. The parliamentary logjam that had stalled the legislation for two months was finally broken just after midnight when the unelected House of Lords recognised the primacy of the elected House of Commons and dropped the last of its proposed amendments, clearing the way for the bill to become law. Earlier in the day, Sunak held a rare morning press conference to demand that the Lords stop blocking his key proposal for ending the tide of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats, promising that both houses of Parliament would remain in session until it was approved. The legislative stalemate was just the latest hurdle to delay implementation of a plan that has been repeatedly blocked by a series of court rulings and opposition from human rights activists who say it is illegal and .

UK retail sales stagnate in March despite easing inflation, shows govt data

Friday's figures contrasted with some business surveys that showed a pick-up in retail sales in March

Google's ad-privacy changes not enough to protect consumer privacy: UK

Google plans to completely phase out the use of third-party cookies for users in the second half of 2024

US, UK issue new sanctions on Iran in response to weekend attack on Israel

The US and UK on Thursday imposed a new round of sanctions on Iran as concern grows that Tehran's unprecedented attack on Israel could fuel a wider war in the Middle East. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control targeted 16 people and two entities in Iran that produce engines that power the drones used in the April 13 attack on Israel. Additionally, the UK is targeting several Iranian military organizations, individuals and entities involved in Iran's drone and ballistic missile industries. We will continue to deploy our sanctions authority to counter Iran with further actions in the days and weeks ahead," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement. The action comes after US officials earlier this week warned that they were readying new sanctions in response to Iran's activity in the region and to prevent future attacks. Lawmakers on Capitol Hill also have been quickly pushing forward legislation that would financially punish the Islamic Republic and its leaders. Iran'

Britain's plan to send some migrants to Rwanda hits hurdle in Parliament

A law that will enable Britain to send some asylum-seekers on a one-way trip to Rwanda suffered a setback on Wednesday after Parliament's upper chamber pressed its attempt to amend the contentious legislation. The House of Lords inserted amendments into the Safety of Rwanda Bill, sending it back to the lower House of Commons in a process known as parliamentary ping-pong. The government had hoped members of the Lords would stop blocking the bill on Wednesday, relenting to the parliamentary rule that the unelected Lords ultimately can't overrule the elected Commons. The Lords' resistance underlines the strength of opposition in the upper house, where the governing Conservative Party does not have a majority. The bill is still overwhelmingly likely to become law, but the latest move delays its passage, likely until next week. The legislation will pave the way for deportation flights to take off though opponents plan new legal challenges that could keep them grounded. The Rwanda plan

UK consumer price inflation slows by less than expected to 3.2% in March

The Bank of England - which has an inflation target of 2% and economists polled by Reuters had forecast an annual rate of 3.1%

UK govt criminalises creation of deepfake images without consent

Despicable people who create sexually explicit deepfakes will face prosecution under a new law going through its parliamentary journey, the British government said on Tuesday. Deepfake refers to images and videos made to look hyper-realistic, with the victim usually unaware and unable to give their consent. Under the new offence, those who create such images without consent face a criminal record and an unlimited fine. If the deepfake content is then shared more widely, offenders could be sent to jail. The creation of deepfake sexual images is despicable and completely unacceptable irrespective of whether the image is shared, said Laura Farris, UK Minister for Victims and Safeguarding. It is another example of ways in which certain people seek to degrade and dehumanise others - especially women. And it has the capacity to cause catastrophic consequences if the material is shared more widely. This government will not tolerate it. This new offence sends a crystal-clear message that ..

Iran attack on Israel risks provoking an uncontrollable escalation, says G7

Unequivocally condemning in the strongest terms Iran's direct and unprecedented attack against Israel, the G-7 leaders on Sunday said the development risks provoking an uncontrollable regional escalation even as permanent members of the UN Security Council announced to convene an emergency meeting on the issues in New York. With its actions, Iran has further stepped toward the destabilisation of the region and risks provoking an uncontrollable regional escalation. This must be avoided. We will continue to work to stabilise the situation and avoid further escalation, G-7 leaders said in a joint statement after a conference call among them initiated by President Joe Biden. The US assisted Israel in shooting down dozens of drones and missiles fired by Iran in its first direct military assault on the former. Israeli authorities said 99 per cent of the inbound weapons were shot down without causing any significant damage. In this spirit, we demand that Iran and its proxies cease their .

Survivors of Ariana's concert bombing take legal action against UK agency

More than 250 survivors of the suicide bombing that killed 22 people at a 2017 Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England are taking legal action against Britain's domestic intelligence agency, lawyers said. Lawyers from three law firms said Sunday they have submitted a group claim on behalf of more than 250 clients to the U.K.'s investigatory powers tribunal. They said they could not provide further details because it was an ongoing legal matter. Suicide bomber Salman Abedi set up a knapsack bomb in Manchester Arena, in northwestern England, at the end of Grande's concert on May 22, 2017, as thousands of young fans were leaving. More than 100 people were injured, many of them children and teenagers. Abedi died in the explosion. An official inquiry reported last year that Britain's domestic intelligence agency, MI5, didn't act swiftly enough on key information and missed a significant opportunity to prevent the bombing, the deadliest extremist attack in the U.K. in recent ...

UK PM Rishi Sunak condemns Iran's reckless' attack against Israel

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has condemned Iran's attack against Israel as reckless and pledged that the UK would stand up for security in the region after Tehran launched dozens of aerial drones and cruise missiles overnight on Saturday and into Sunday. The UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) said late on Saturday that several additional Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter jets had been moved to the region to help intercept the drone attacks. The aircraft and air-fuelling tankers are being deployed as part of the UK's ongoing Operation Shader against the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group in the region. I condemn in the strongest terms the Iranian regime's reckless attack against Israel, said Sunak in a statement issued by 10 Downing Street. These strikes risk inflaming tensions and destabilising the region. Iran has once again demonstrated that it is intent on sowing chaos in its own backyard. The UK will continue to stand up for Israel's security and that of all our regional partners, ...

UK deploys jets, air refuelling tankers amid Iranian attack on Israel

Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said Saturday that Israel "intercepted a vast majority" of the strikes from Iran

EVs head for junkyard as mechanic shortage inflates repair costs in UK

Once there are more fully trained EV technicians, repair rather than replace becomes a more viable proposition, an expert said

UK PM Sunak resists call to set election date amid leadership threat

A general election must be held by the end of January and Sunak has said his "working assumption" is it will be in the second half of 2024

US, UK to implement restrictions on trade of Russian-origin metals

The U.S. and U.K. will begin restricting the trade of new Russian-origin metals including aluminum, copper and nickel on global metal exchanges and in derivatives trading. The announcement is meant to follow up on the Group of Seven nations' commitment in February to reduce Russia's revenues from metals as its invasion into Ukraine has dragged on for more than two years. Russia is a key exporter of metals like aluminum, steel and titanium but British and American officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the announcement, said the economic impact from the ban would be negligible for consumers and producers. The intent is to limit Russia's revenues from metals, they say, as metals have earned the nation $40 billion in the past two years, according to British officials. Our new prohibitions on key metals, in coordination with our partners in the United Kingdom, will continue to target the revenue Russia can earn to continue its brutal war against Ukraine, said