Author: LoveWorld UK

British lawmakers will form a long queue snaking through parliament on Tuesday to decide whether to ditch the system of remote voting and parliament-by-videoconference that has allowed scrutiny of the government’s coronavirus response. In April, the House of Commons announced changes that allowed its 650 lawmakers to question ministers by video link, and in May the house held its first remote vote – casting aside centuries of tradition in a building known worldwide for adversarial debates and arcane procedures. The system was temporary, and despite functioning as planned, ministers said it should be scrapped when parliament returned on June 2…

President Donald Trump on Monday vowed to use the U.S. military to halt protests over the death of a black man in police custody, before law enforcement officers fired rubber bullets and tear gas to clear demonstrators and allow the president to walk to a church and pose for pictures. But as darkness fell hours after the president’s remarks in the Rose Garden of the White House, violence erupted for a seventh night. Demonstrators set fire to a strip mall in Los Angeles and looted stores in New York City. “Mayors and governors must establish an overwhelming law enforcement presence…

Britain’s house prices fell by the most in more than 11 years in May as the coronavirus crisis hammered the market, mortgage lender Nationwide said on Tuesday. Nationwide said prices fell by 1.7% last month from April, the biggest monthly decline since February 2009. In annual terms, prices rose by 1.8%, slowing from 3.7% in April. A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to a monthly fall of 1.0% and an annual rise of 2.8%. Britain’s government relaxed some of its restrictions on the housing market in England in May. Property website Rightmove said on Saturday it had its busiest…

Fashion retailer Primark is working to re-open all its 153 stores in England on June 15, in line with the country’s easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions, its owner Associated British Foods said on Monday. All Primark stores were closed over a 12-day period from March 11 as the virus spread, resulting in a loss of sales of about 650 million pounds for every month that all stores were closed. As governments around Europe have begun to ease restrictions Primark has been able to re-open stores in those countries too. Primark is currently trading from 112 stores across Europe and the…

Looting broke out on Sunday in Southern California, a tanker truck drove into marchers in Minneapolis and demonstrators clashed with police in Boston and Washington, D.C. as the United States struggled to contain chaotic protests over race and policing. National Guard troops were deployed in 15 U.S. states and Washington, D.C. as darkness fell in major cities still reeling from five nights of violence and destruction that began with peaceful protests over the death of a black man, George Floyd, in police custody. “I hate to see my city like this but at the end we need justice,” said 18-year-old…

The Costa Atlantica cruise ship, which docked in southern Japan with over 100 crew members testing positive for COVID-19, has left the country and is en route to the Philippines, local government officials said on Monday. The ship departed Nagasaki on Sunday over a month after it became the second virus-stricken cruise ship to dock in Japan. Lax control on the movement of crew whilst docked highlighted Japan’s patchy response to the pandemic. The 86,000 tonne Costa Atlantica docked for maintenance in late April carrying no passengers and 623 crew, most of whom were eventually quarantined inside the ship after…

Several Australian states eased social distancing restrictions further on Monday, allowing restaurants to host more people and public attractions to reopen, as the government moves to revive an ailing economy through accelerated infrastructure spending. Australia has recorded about 7,200 coronavirus cases and 103 deaths. And, with new infections now largely under control, the government has embarked on a three-step plan to remove the bulk of curbs by July. In Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales (NSW), a maximum of 50 people are now allowed to sit down for a meal in a cafe or restaurants, while 20 can attend…

English schools reopen on Monday for the first time since they were shut 10 weeks ago because of the coronavirus pandemic, but many parents planned to keep children at home amid fears ministers were moving too fast. The easing of strict measures will mean classes will restart for some younger children, up to six people can meet outside in England, outdoor markets can reopen, elite competitive sport can resume without spectators and more than 2 million of the most vulnerable will now be allowed to spend time outdoors. But with Britain recording one of the highest death rates from COVID-19,…

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday said demonstrators protesting the death of a black man who died after a white police officer knelt on his neck would have been “greeted with the most vicious dogs, and most ominous weapons, I have ever seen.” Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, responded to the Republican president on Twitter, saying there “are no vicious dogs & ominous weapons. There is just a scared man.” “While he (Trump) hides behind his fence afraid/alone, I stand w/people peacefully exercising their First Amendment Right after the murder of #GeorgeFloyd and hundreds of years of institutionalized racism,”…

The more than 2 million people who have been “shielding” from COVID-19 in England because they are deemed to be clinically extremely vulnerable will be allowed to spend time outdoors from Monday for the first time in 10 weeks The government said on Saturday that the 2.2 million will be able to go outside with members of their household, while continuing to follow social distancing guidelines. Those who live alone can meet outside with one other person from another household. “I do not underestimate just how difficult it has been for you, staying at home for the last 10 weeks,…