Former Prime Minister Sir John Major backed David Cameron on the ever-enduring debate on Gay Marriage. He also insisted Tory Traditionalists should support it as well because “We live in the 21st Century”. This occurred when David Cameron issued a public message of support for the controversial plans, and have created a damaging-splinter in the Conservative Party. Already more than 100 Tory MPs are expected to oppose the plans in the coming year, and some have accused Mr. Cameron of “Arrogance” for pushing ahead. Sir John had this to say:
Six out of twenty five (25) high-profile figures connected with the Jimmy Savile inquiry on alleged sex offenses are expected to be arrested within this month and in the new year.
Operation Yewtree, the Met’s investigation was set up in 1977 after the late Top of the Pops presenter, Jimmy Savile, was exposed as a serial abuser, and the celebrities mostly television and radio entertainers linked with the scandal were named in a list of tip-offs to police authorities in charge of the investigation.
Max Clifford, PR consultant and one of the most influential figure in British media, denied sexual abuse offenses which were allegedly committed by him in 1977.
He was arrested on November 29th, Thursday, at his home in Surrey by officers from Operation Yewtree, which was set up primarily for the Jimmy Savile scandal, but not connected to the allegations against him.
The much awaited Leveson report has arrived, and the immediate reactions have all been thrown around the Commons and the paper editorials. What the actual legacy and impact of this seriously talked about report, is yet to emerge and probably won’t for many years. The recommendation of an independent self-regulatory body for the press backed up by legislation, received immediate support from Labour and the Lib Dems, though the PM and his party, as well as parts of the press, are against. Cameron wants a consensus though, so what the compromised conclusion of this ordeal will be, who knows.
Cameron is against the full adoption of the findings, but campaign group, Hacked Off, have collected over 138,000 signatures in favour of the statutory recommendations. While any measure made to counteract the scandalous news stories of last year is going to go down well with the nation while these scandals remain fresh in the memory, there remains a need for the calm and measured awareness of the importance of a free press in the meantime.
Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, is pregnant. St James Palace announced the news earlier today. The rest of the Royal Family are said to be delighted.
The news comes just over two years following her engagement to the Duke of Cambridge, Prince William in October 2010. The couple married amid national celebration in the spring of 2011. The child will be the next in line following Prince William, whatever the gender of the child following a recent change of law removing male supremacy in such matters.
The Hammersmith Flyover was shut during the winter last year and the results were disastrous. London’s notoriously poor traffic was somehow worsened as the 90,000 vehicles, which usually use it, had to be diverted during the busy Christmas period. The road had been shut because of internal steel cables which had been rotting following years of gritting had allowed salt water to cause rust. The danger presented wouldn’t just have affected road-users but also pedestrians and other roads underneath the flyover. Thus, despite the damage, it was of fundamental importance that peoples’ lives weren’t put at risk – there have been numerous disasters involving poor road infrastructure in the US and developing countries which have caused the loss of lives.
That the flyover wasn’t shut down earlier is truly appalling. A recent report obtained by the BBC has shown that TfL knew that a “sudden catastrophic collapse” was possible months before the actual closure. The bridge apparently had only a “number of years of life” remaining and yet it was being used on a daily basis until the delayed closure on 23 December last year. The Emergency Preparedness Plan was written on 29 October and was obtained via the Freedom of Information act. The report also states that 27 out of 36 flyovers are considered to be a “medium risk” – defined as "Superficial or moderate defects or damage, capacity may be slightly or significantly affected." Seven had “poor” or “very poor” defects.
According to a new report released by The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), about six million working people in Britain are living in poverty despite the changes and reforms made by the government.
Today, in-work poverty is prevalent and now outstrips workless poverty. Though people want to get a full-time job, about 1.4 million of them are now working part-time jobs, an increase of 500,000 since 2009.
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair rallied on Wednesday for the UK government to be rational and remain a committed member of the European Union after the current premier David Cameron opposed the proposed trillion-euro EU budget for the next seven years and demanded for changes in Britain's position in the 27-member bloc.
At the Chatham House think-tank in London, Blair said: "Europe is a destiny we will never embrace easily. But it is an absolutely essential part of our nation remaining a world power politically and economically," and added, "It would be a monumental error of statesmanship to turn our back on it and fall away from a crucial position of power and influence in the 21st century." During his speech, he pointed out the economic benefits the UK enjoys for being part of EU.
Labour Leader Ed Milliband, in his crusade against tax evaders, faced embarrassment last November 24th, Saturday, when it came into notice and public knowledge that a key donor to the party has saved approximately 13 million pounds in corporation tax by running online gambling sites for sports betting.
The subject of scrutiny was Peter Coates, chairman of bet365, one of the largest sports betting internet sites in the world, who has amassed a 700 million pounds fortune on the back of the firm, and it was not the first time his party links came into scrutiny.
Two famous people in Britain now at war with each other British Prime Minister David Cameron and UK’s UK Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Paul Farage are now on heated issues with each other, after three foster children were taken away from a couple for the reasons of their support to UKIP’s party was branded “racist.”
The Prime Minister said before in a statement that UKIP members are mostly “closet racist.” But Mr. Farage says that it is not racist to control the laws and issues on a strict border control limiting immigration. Mr. Farage also dared the Prime Minister to have an electoral war with his party on the Immigration open door policy, told reporters. He also said that he wants qualified migrant workers, good skilled people from all over the world to come to Britain and apply for working permits and not those who are under qualified to work and why they pass and compete with the local labour force, making the people of Britain lose jobs and pull down the rate of employment.