Page 7 - Uk

UK PM urged to fire Hasina's niece Tulip Siddiq as Yunus calls for probe

Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus urged the UK government to launch a thorough investigation into properties linked to Tulip Siddiq, UK's anti-corruption minister

UK lawmakers slam Shein for refusing to answer questions on cotton supply

A lawyer for Shein summoned to a British parliamentary hearing evaded questions Tuesday on whether the fast-fashion giant sells products containing cotton from China, angering lawmakers seeking answers on the retailer's labour practices and allegations of forced labour in its supply chains. Executives from Shein and its rival Temu were grilled on their labour rights compliance and how they source their products at Parliament's business and trade committee Tuesday. The hearing came amid reports that Shein, which was founded in China but is now based in Singapore, is preparing for a 50 billion-pound ($62 billion) listing on the London Stock Exchange in the first quarter of this year. Both global retailers are growing in popularity worldwide for selling mostly Chinese-made clothes and products at bargain prices. But they have drawn criticism over allegations that their supply chains may be tainted by forced labour, including from China's far-west Xinjiang province, where rights groups .

Elon Musk slams UK PM over child abuse by Pak grooming gangs; UK responds

The Tesla chief has criticised UK PM Keir Starmer for 'mishandling' child exploitation cases involving Pakistani-origin gangs; UK govt said that claims made by him are 'misjudged and misinformed'

UK lab develops quantum-based atomic clock to enhance military security

A groundbreaking atomic clock built at a top-secret UK lab will make military operations more secure through experimental quantum technology over the years, the country's Ministry of Defence (MoD) has claimed. Developed at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), the quantum clock has been dubbed a leap forward in improving intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance by decreasing the reliance on GPS technology, which can be disrupted and blocked by adversaries. In a statement on Thursday, the MoD hailed the first device of its kind to be built in the UK to be deployable on military operations in the next five years. It claims that the clock's precision is so refined that it will lose less than one second over billions of years, allowing scientists to measure time at an unprecedented scale. Integrating cutting edge technology into existing capabilities exemplifies the government's commitment to innovation in the defence sector, and to ensuring our armed forces have th

Elon Musk grooming attacks 'misjudged and misinformed': UK Health Secretary

A senior British politician pushed back Friday on Elon Musk's criticism of the government's handling of a historic child grooming scandal. In recent days, Musk has shared and reacted to posts on his X platform that have been critical of the British government after it rejected a call for a public inquiry into the grooming scandal in the north of England town of Oldham. Though Health Secretary Wes Streeting said Musk's views were was "misjudged and certainly misinformed, he urged the world's richest man and close confidant of US President-elect Donald Trump to work with the government on tackling the issue of child sexual exploitation. The government has argued that Oldham must follow in the footsteps of other towns and commission its own inquiry into the historical abuse of mainly girls. A 2022 report into safeguarding measures in Oldham between 2011 and 2014 found that children were failed by local agencies, but that there was no cover-up despite legitimate concerns that the ...

Why UK revoked honours of British Indian figures Rami Ranger, Anil Bhanot

British Indian leaders Rami Ranger and Anil Bhanot lose UK honours amid allegations of misconduct, sparking debates over free speech

Vodafone-Three merger approval marks UK's shift to prioritise growth

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) antitrust regulator cleared the $19 billion Vodafone-Three UK deal on Thursday after it accepted the companies' argument

World stands at the cusp of '3rd nuclear age': Britain's armed forces head

The head of Britain's armed forces has warned that the world stands at the cusp of a third nuclear age,' defined by multiple simultaneous challenges and weakened safeguards that kept previous threats in check. Admiral Tony Radakin, chief of the defence staff, said Britain needs to recognise the seriousness of the threats it faces, even if there is only a remote chance of Russia launching a direct nuclear attack on the UK or its NATO allies. While the Cold War saw two superpowers held at bay by nuclear deterrence and the past three decades were characterised by international efforts to restrict the spread of nuclear weapons, the current era is altogether more complex, Radakin said Wednesday in a speech to the Royal United Services Institute. We are at the dawn of a third nuclear age' he said. It is defined by multiple and concurrent dilemmas, proliferating nuclear and disruptive technologies and the almost total absence of the security architectures that went before. Challenges face

Ireland's major centre-right parties in coalition talks to form govt

Ireland faces weeks of coalition talks before it gets a new government, as the country's two major centre-right parties work to form a stable administration. With all but a handful of seats filled in the 174-seat legislature on Monday after three days of counting election ballots, Fianna Fail had won 46 seats and Fine Gael 38. The two parties, who have governed in coalition since 2020, look set to fall just short of the 88 needed for a majority without third-party support. The people have spoken, let us now get on with the work, said Fianna Fail leader Michel Martin. Left-of-center party Sinn Fein won at least 37 seats in Friday's election but is unlikely to be part of the next government. Both Fine Gael and Fianna Fail have a longstanding refusal to work with Sinn Fein, partly because of its historic ties with the Irish Republican Army during three decades of violence in Northern Ireland. The outcome of the election is now clear. The numbers are there for Fianna Fail and Fine Gael

Ex-UK Conservative leader Hague elected Oxford University chancellor

Former UK Conservative Party leader William Hague has been elected chancellor of Oxford University, one of the most prestigious positions in British academia, the university said Wednesday. Hague was elected in an online vote by staff and alumni of the 800-year-old university. He will replace Chris Patten, the last British governor of Hong Kong, who has held the post since 2003. Hague beat contenders including former Labour Cabinet minister Peter Mandelson and Elish Angiolini, the former top law officer in Scotland. The university said Hague will be inaugurated early next year and will serve a 10-year term. The chancellor is the university's titular head and presides over key ceremonies, as well as overseeing the election of the vice-chancellor, the university's day-to-day leader. Hague is an Oxford graduate who began his political career at the Oxford University Conservative Association. Elected Conservative leader at the age of 36 after the party lost power to Labour in 1997, he

India's Apollo Radiology acquires reporting wing of UK's InHealth Group

This acquisition strengthens ARI's commitment to addressing the critical shortage of radiologists globally and enhancing access to quality diagnostic services in the UK

Tata Chemicals arm TCEL plans to invest Rs 655 cr in new UK facility

Tata Chemicals on Tuesday said its wholly-owned subsidiary Tata Chemicals Europe (TCEL) is planning an investment of 60 million Euro (Rs 655 crore) to build a 1,80,000 tonnes per annum pharmaceutical grade sodium bicarbonate plant in Northwich in the UK. This new plant will triple TCEL's production capacity of pharmaceutical grade sodium bicarbonate in the UK, Tata Chemicals aid in a regulatory filing. The construction of the plant is expected to commence in 2025, with first production likely to begin in 2027. The new plant, using a patented process, will use carbon dioxide captured from energy generation emissions as a key raw material and will meet growing demand for high grade sodium bicarbonate from pharmaceutical manufacturers for use in medicines and hemodialysis. Further, Tata Chemicals said that as part of the restructuring operations to facilitate this investment, the Board of TCEL has approved the proposal to cease chemical production at its loss-making Lostock plant by t

UK Opposition leader Badenoch picks Priti Patel as shadow foreign secretary

Former British Indian home secretary Priti Patel has been chosen by the newly elected Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch as her shadow foreign secretary to join her top team on the Opposition benches in the House of Commons on Tuesday. Gujarati-origin Patel, 52, was one of the early contenders who went head-to-head in the race to replace Rishi Sunak as Tory chief and Leader of the Opposition. With two other opponents in the election, Robert Jenrick and Mel Stride appointed shadow justice secretary and shadow chancellor respectively, Badenoch's picks for her frontbench is being seen as an attempt to unite a divided Conservative Party. Congratulations to Kemi Badenoch on her election as leader of our great Party, posted Patel on X over the weekend after the election result was declared. Let's all unite behind her to renew and earn back the trust of the British people. I look forward to supporting her in holding this dishonest and self-serving Labour government to account and in

UK may revive China trade talks. What caused the years-long freeze?

The UK froze ministerial-level dialogues, including the Joint Economic and Trade Commission (JETCO) meetings, over human rights and security concerns

UK commercial property biz reviving, property sales to test market appetite

New office buildings are seeing robust demand, with investor M&G's new office towers at 40 Leadenhall in the City of London more than 80 per cent let

'Not my king': Indigenous Australian senator yells at visiting King Charles

An Indigenous senator told King Charles III that Australia is not his land as the British royal visited Australia's parliament on Monday. Sen. Lidia Thorpe was escorted out of a parliamentary reception for the royal couple after shouting that British colonisers have taken Indigenous land and bones. You committed genocide against our people," she shouted. Give us what you stole from us our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people. You destroyed our land. Give us a treaty. We want a treaty. No treaty was ever struck between between British colonisers and Australia's Indigenous peoples. Charles spoke quietly with Albanese while security officials stopped Thorpe from approaching. This is not your land. You are not my king, Thorpe yelled as she was ushered from the hall. Thorpe is renowned for high-profile protest action. When she was affirmed as a senator in 2022, she wasn't allowed to describe the then-monarch as the colonising Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. She briefly blocked

Will engage with China on matters of global interest: UK foreign secretary

The Foreign Secretary set out that as fellow Permanent Members of the UN Security Council, it is a necessity that the UK and China increase bilateral engagement

Zelenskyy to meet UK, Nato leaders as he seeks support for peace plan

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at 10 Downing St in London on Thursday for talks with the leaders of Britain and NATO on his victory plan for the war against Russia. Zelenskyy is meeting Prime Minister Keir Starmer and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, before traveling to Paris for talks with President Emmanuel Macron. Zelenskyy says he will also meet the leaders of Germany and Italy this week to discuss the plan. He had been due to present his blueprint at a weekend meeting of Western leaders and defense ministers in Germany, but it has been postponed because U.S. President Joe Biden said he had to stay home to respond to Hurricane Milton' s landfall in Florida. Zelenskyy said Wednesday he hoped the meeting could be rescheduled soon. The details of Zelenskyy's plan have been kept quiet but contours have emerged, including the need for fast action on decisions Western allies have been mulling since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. Zelenskyy said Wednesday at

British Foreign Secretary Lammy likely to visit China in bid to reset ties

Lammy, who has vowed to overhaul Britain's ties with China, will meet Chinese officials in Beijing and representatives of British firms in Shanghai

Following internal complaints in administration, Starmer replaces top aide

In an attempt to end the turbulence engulfing Britain's first Labour administration in 14 years, the prime minister on Sunday moved his chief of staff Sue Gray out of her role