Author: LoveWorld UK

HEATHROW FLIGHTS CANCELLED AS DRIVERS URGED TO TRAVEL AT SPECIFIC TIMES Parts of motorway closed as pinch points revealed It’s the last working day before Christmas, with millions of people expected to dash for home to get settled in time for the holiday. The RAC predicts that around 13.5 million leisure journeys will take place across the UK between today and Sunday – a 20% increase on the three days before Christmas Day last year. The AA said earlier that an estimated 16.1 million journeys could take place today alone. And in the words of Chris Rea, there may be…

HOME OFFICE ROWS BACK ON SALARY THRESHOLD FOR FAMILY VISA – New threshold will initially be set at £29,000, with further increases thereafter The Home Office has rowed back on plans to hike the salary needed to bring family members to the UK to £38,700 next spring. The increase – from the current level of £18,600 – was announced earlier this month as part of a plan to lower legal migration. But the new threshold will initially be set at £29,000, with further increases at unspecified dates thereafter. Labour said the change showed “Tory government chaos”. Shadow home secretary Yvette…

RISHI SUNAK SET TO STRUGGLE TO MEET KEY PLEDGE AS PUBLIC DEBT GROWS In the financial year, from April up to last month, borrowing grew to £116.4bn Government borrowing and debt grew in November, official figures showed, casting doubt on the likelihood of one of the prime minister’s key pledges. In the financial year, from April up to last month, borrowing grew to £116.4bn. That’s the second highest since records began in 1993 and an increase of £24.4bn on the same period last year, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) data. Overall, the public sector net debt was £2,671.4bn…

PUBLIC PAY MUST REFLECT RISE – Ministers say take pay rises seen in recent years into account The government has told the organisation that reviews pay for public sector workers, it is “vital” to take into account pay rises seen in recent years, when setting wages. Pay review bodies (PRBs) recommend the pay for 2.5 million workers. PRBs consult the views of several groups including government departments. Some union leaders are concerned that the government’s tone might mean pay settlements could be lower. Unison, one of the largest trade unions, said that addressing pay “so late in the day” will…

WEAPONS FOUND IN SCHOOL COMPLEX IN GAZA, ISRAEL MILITARY SAYS The 10 week old, Israel campaign in the Gaza Strip continues The Israeli army released footage showing air strikes hitting what it said were Hamas targets in Gaza. The IDF said it also located weapons in a school complex. LoveworldUK was not able to independently verify the location or the date when the video was filmed. In a written statement, the IDF said: “During IDF activity in Jabalya, the soldiers enabled the orderly evacuation of the civilian population from a school complex southwards. IDF ground troops conducted searches in the…

POLISH PRESIDENT DENOUNCES TUSK’S STATE MEDIA OVERHAUL AS ‘ANARCHY’ President Andrzej Duda says, “This is anarchy. The new Polish government led by Donald Tusk is implementing reforms of state media that amount to “anarchy”, the president said on Thursday, amid rising tensions between the head of state and a new pro-European Union administration. The swearing-in of a government led by former European Council President Tusk this month marked the beginning of a period of cohabitation with President Andrzej Duda, an ally of the previous nationalist administration. It has seen a turbulent first few days. On Wednesday, the new government took…

HOSPITAL DOCTORS STRIKE AS UK GOVERNMENT REFUSES PAY TALKS Junior doctors in England ramp up their industrial action with six days strike  Junior doctors in England ramped up their industrial action yesterday (Wednesday, 20th December), beginning the first walk-out of their biggest strike yet, which hospitals warn could threaten emergency care provision at one of the busiest times of the year. The British Medical Association (BMA), which represents around 50,000 junior doctors, said its members will walk out on Wednesday for three days, and again for six days from Jan. 3 to 9, in a long-running dispute over pay. Junior…

Penny Mordaunt has told the Covid inquiry that a series of WhatsApp messages with Boris Johnson mysteriously disappeared from her phone, and that Johnson’s then chief of staff ignored 14 attempts by her to arrange a meeting to discuss the matter. In a further twist to the saga of 5,000 WhatsApp messages lost by Johnson, Mordaunt said she was told by Cabinet Office officials it would cost about £40,000 to examine her phone to determine what had happened. When Johnson gave evidence to the Covid inquiry early this month, he said it had been impossible to retrieve about 5,000 WhatsApp messages from…

FOREST SACK COOPER AND HIRE ESPIRITO SANTO – Nuno Espirito Santo appointed as new Nottingham Forest head coach Nottingham Forest have appointed former Wolves and Tottenham boss Nuno Espirito Santo as their new head coach. The Portuguese coach replaces Steve Cooper, who was sacked on Tuesday with Forest picking up just one win in 13 matches to leave them in 17th place – five points above the drop zone. Nuno has signed a two-and-a-half year contract at the City Ground, taking his deal up until the summer of 2026. This is Nuno’s first managerial job since being sacked by Saudi…

JEREMY HUNT SPEAKS ON INFLATION – Chancellor of the Exchequer says there’s still further to go after inflation fell last month Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said that there was “still further to go” on tackling inflation, after data showed it fell last month. “There’s still further to go. Inflation never falls in a straight line,” Hunt told reporters. British inflation plunged in November to its lowest rate in over two years, prompting investors to pile further into bets that the Bank of England will cut interest rates next year. The annual rate of increase in the consumer prices index dropped to…