Political News
May urges MPs to 'reflect' on Brexit impasse over Easter break
British Prime Minister Theresa May urged MPs to use the Easter recess to "reflect" on the Brexit impasse and find ways to get her much-maligned deal through parliament.
China and US agree on trade enforcement mechanism, says Mnuchin
US Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Wednesday evening that China and the US have agreed to set up trade enforcement offices in both countries in order to monitor compliance with any trade deal, suggesting that an end to their trade war is close.
UK middle class households struggling to maintain economic status
Middle-class households around the world, but also in the UK, are struggling to maintain their economic status and lifestyles as stagnating incomes fail to keep up with the rising cost of housing and education, warned the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development in their latest report.
Julian Assange arrested at Ecuadorian embassy in London
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was arrested at the Ecuadorian embassy in London on Thursday.
Government to allow Times and Sunday Times resource pooling
UK culture secretary Jeremy Wright said on Thursday that he will allow The Times and The Sunday Times to pool their journalistic resources on the condition that its owners clarify their governance structure.
May gets 6 month Brexit delay as EU says 'don't waste this time'
The UK was given a Brexit delay of six months to October 31, after a marathon emergency meeting of EU leaders in Brussels overnight.
Brexit concerns continue to weigh on Britain's housing market
The average level of stock on estate agents' books plumbed a close to record low in March, yet prices continued to decline modestly even as new inquiries fell for an eighth consecutive month on the back of mounting concerns around Brexit, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Record number of UK stores shut down in 2018
Britain's top high streets lost a record 2,481 shops last year with an average of 16 closures per day.
EU looking for up to one year delay on Brexit
EU leaders were set on Wednesday to consider giving the UK a longer Brexit extension and take complete control of the departure process from beleaguered UK Prime Minister Theresa May.
Differences between China and EU mount ahead of annual summit
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and European Union institution leaders are set to meet in Brussels on Tuesday at the annual EU-China summit but could face differences over trade and investment.
IMF slashes 2019 global GDP forecast
The world's economic watchdog took an axe to its near-term forecasts for global growth for the third time in six months, warning that the outlook for a projected recovery in growth was "precarious".
StanChart settles with UK and US regulators for over $1bn
StanChart will pay just over $1bn to settle two probes with US and British regulators, respectively, relating to the violation of US sanctions against Iran between 2001 and 2014 and the alleged inadequacies of its internal controls.
Trump threatens new tariffs on $11bn EU products over Airbus spat
US President Donald Trump said he was considering imposing tariffs on $11bn imports from the European Union as a response the bloc’s subsidies to Boeing's rival Airbus.
May heads to Berlin, Paris to ask for Brexit extension
UK Prime Minister Theresa May was travelling to Berlin and Paris on Tuesday to ask for a short Brexit extension as Britain faced the prospect of a no-deal departure on Friday.
EU stands 'fully behind Ireland' in Brexit negotiations, says Barnier
The EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday said that, in the event of a no-deal Brexit, the EU will refuse to open trade talks with Britain until an agreement is in place regarding the Irish border, citizens’ rights and a financial settlement.
Britons want government reform, 'strongman' leader
Almost three-quarters of British people want changes to the UK political system and half believe the government needs “quite a lot” of improvement, a major new survey has found.
Government looks to establish online harms regulatory body
Westminster turned its attention to what it described as ‘online harms’ on Monday, releasing its Online Harms White Paper, which outlined the government’s plans to create a package of safety measures on the world wide web.
UK business confidence at weakest for years
Business optimist in the UK has fallen to its lowest level in five and a half years, with the biggest drop in confidence in over a decade.
UK still in Brexit stalemate as all alternatives rejected by MPs
UK MPs on Monday failed for a second time to reach consensus on an alternative Brexit deal.
Brexit: May asks for June delay as Tusk offers 1 year 'flextension'
European Council President Donald Tusk was reportedly pressing the EU27 to offer the UK a one-year “flexible” Brexit extension as Theresa May wrote requesting a delay of up to June 30.