Charities urge Boris Johnson to begin donating vaccines to poorer nations or risk ‘hoarding’ supplies while frontline workers are exposed to Covid Charities say UK is on track to have more than 100million surplus vaccine doses They say that’s enough to vaccinate world’s frontline health workers twice over Government has spent £548m on programme to deliver … Read more
The devastating impact of lockdowns on disadvantaged children is laid bare today in research showing they were twice as likely to struggle with home schooling. In the week of the anniversary of the first Covid school closures, the figures show one in five poorer pupils did not cope and many spent some days doing no work … Read more
We’ll pay more council tax… for WORSE services: Watchdog warns of Covid double whammy as it emerges local authority budgets took a £9.7billion hit from pandemic The National Audit Office said the pandemic had left some councils at risk of ‘financial failure’, creating £6.9billion in additional costs in 2020/21 The Government has announced £9.1billion in … Read more
The UK and other wealthy nations should send Covid vaccines to poorer countries now rather than wait for a surplus, the World Trade Organization chief has said. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said it was ‘in the interest’ of richer countries to ensure the rollout of the vaccine worldwide is equal. It comes after Boris Johnson told global … Read more
Britain is to donate millions of surplus vaccine doses to poorer countries, Boris Johnson will announce today. The Prime Minister’s pledge could see developing nations benefit before the end of the year if the UK vaccination programme goes to plan. As Britain takes over the G7 presidency, Mr Johnson will also urge other world leaders … Read more
Hundreds of thousands of savers face a retirement income lottery as providers are poised to put their pension pots into a hotchpotch of ‘one-size-fits-all’ investment funds. From tomorrow, over-55s who dip into their pension for the first time without getting financial advice – and who have not indicated a wish to manage their pension fund … Read more
A hedge fund tied to a British billionaire who was caught on camera last year bragging about his wealth has been fined $170 million for lying to investors. Hedge-fund manager 52-year-old Michael Platt who co-founded BlueCrest Capital Management and who is estimated to be worth $8 billion, boasted to a New York taxi driver last … Read more
Boris Johnson has ordered diplomats to launch a new drive against Chinese ‘expansionism’ after Beijing was accused of placing pressure on Barbados to remove the Queen as its head of state. The island is one of dozens of countries which form part of China’s ‘Belt and Road Initiative’, under which Beijing lends money to poorer … Read more
Parts of northern England could be in the midst of a coronavirus endemic, according to leaked Public Health England documents. The analysis claims areas in north-west England where local lockdowns have been put in force – including Bolton, Manchester and Rochdale – ‘never really left the epidemic phase’. It says 90 per cent of Greater Manchester … Read more
Key statistics in this year’s A-level results The proportion of candidates receiving top grades is the highest on record. A total of 27.9% of entrants scored either an A or A*, up from 25.5% in 2019. Some 9.0% of entrants received an A*. This is another record high, and is up from 7.8% last year. … Read more