Month: January 2022

UK Parliament A Muslim MP says her faith was raised by a government whip as a reason why she was sacked as a minister in 2020. According to the Sunday Times, Tory Nusrat Ghani says when she asked for an explanation it was stated her “Muslimness was raised as an issue”. Conservative Chief Whip Mark

Getty Images The UK has accused President Putin of plotting to install a pro-Moscow figure to lead Ukraine’s government. The Foreign Office took the unusual step of naming former Ukrainian MP Yevhen Murayev as a potential Kremlin candidate. Russia has moved 100,000 troops near to its border with Ukraine but denies it is planning an

Getty Images The deadline for health workers to have a Covid vaccination should be delayed to prevent staff shortages in England, the Royal College of GPs has said. NHS staff must have a first jab by 3 February and be fully vaccinated by 1 April to continue in frontline roles. The Department of Health said

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. A Conservative backbencher who accused Downing Street of trying to “blackmail” MPs seeking to oust Boris Johnson is to meet police to discuss his allegations. William Wragg said he will be speaking to a Met Police detective

Met Police A Met Police counter-terrorism detective who secretly filmed models during fake photoshoots has been jailed for three years. Det Insp Neil Corbel committed his crimes in hotel rooms and Airbnbs in London, Brighton and Manchester. He used cameras in tissue boxes, phone chargers and glasses to film women. Isleworth Crown Court heard one

Getty Images US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are to hold talks in Geneva later amid mounting fears that Russia could be about to invade Ukraine. On Thursday Mr Blinken warned Moscow of grave consequences if any of its forces crossed the border. Russia has 100,000 troops at the

PA Media Boris Johnson says he has “seen no evidence” of blackmail in his party after claims by one of his own MPs. William Wragg – who has called on the PM to resign over parties at No 10 – said suspected plotters have been threatened with bad publicity and cuts to constituency funding. He

EPA Conservative MPs are starting to “step back” and think twice about a leadership challenge against Boris Johnson, a minister has said. Conor Burns – the government’s minister for Northern Ireland – said colleagues were now choosing to wait for the report into the No 10 lockdown parties. It follows a dramatic day in Westminster

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Former cabinet minister David Davis has joined calls for Boris Johnson to stand down, telling the prime minister: “In the name of God, go.” He said the PM had failed to take responsibility for his actions over

EPA Boris Johnson is expected to announce an easing of England’s Covid rules when he makes a statement on Plan B later. The cabinet will review the latest data before Mr Johnson addresses Parliament in the afternoon. A government spokeswoman said the decision was “finely balanced” but the latest data was “encouraging”, with cases falling

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Boris Johnson has “categorically” denied he was warned a drinks party in the No 10 garden risked breaking lockdown rules. “Nobody warned me that it was against the rules,” the prime minister said, adding: “I would have

PA Media The government has suffered a series of defeats in the House of Lords over its plans to clamp down on disruptive and noisy protesters. Opposition peers voted against a range of measures in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, with Labour calling some of the plans “outrageous”. Peers also voted to make

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The rabbi of a Texas synagogue who was taken hostage on Saturday has described how he threw a chair at the gunman in order to escape. He and two other hostages were then able to get out

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Two teenagers have been arrested in England as part of the investigation into a hostage-taking incident at a synagogue in Texas on Saturday. British citizen Malik Faisal Akram, 44, from Blackburn, was shot dead after a standoff

@JohnnyTeisi A massive volcanic eruption in Tonga that triggered tsunami waves has smothered the Pacific islands in ash, cut power and severed communications. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the tsunami wreaked “significant damage”, washing boats ashore and battering beachside shops. Information from Tonga is scarce but no deaths have been reported so far.

Getty Images Prince Harry is seeking a judicial review against the refusal of the Home Office to allow him to personally pay for police protection when in the UK. The US-based Duke of Sussex says his private security team does not have adequate jurisdiction abroad. Prince Harry lost his tax-payer funded police security when he