For organisations such as mine, the purpose of which is to give the persecuted a voice, the documentation of stories from those who have suffered at the hands of authoritarian regimes is paramount. We do this, not just for the... Read more
Boris Johnson’s apology for attending a party in Downing Street during the Covid lockdown in May 2020 may have bought him some time but the jury is out on whether it has saved his political career. Support from his own... Read more
So he chose to claim ignorance, in the hope that he can ride this out. It is to be his last line of defence, as all the others crumble before him. Determinedly, the truth has marched past the Schrodinger’s party... Read more
“Naaah! That’s ridiculous! Whoa! It’s cutting out the grooves of your bum! It’s creating space for each cheek! I love this!” If you thought Gregg Wallace went into rhapsodies about chocolate fondant on MasterChef, wait until you see him encounter... Read more
For two series, The Bay (ITV) was a Morecambe-set detective drama starring Morven Christie as family liaison officer DS Lisa Armstrong. Then Christie moved on to pastures new, and a new actress has taken her place. Marsha Thomason is DS... Read more
Sir Keir Starmer had to score in the contest with Mr Johnson at Prime Minister’s Questions — and he did. The Labour leader was excoriating. He channelled the views of many, many voters when he raised the examples of citizens... Read more
However, while it may be too early to crown the key contenders, camps are inevitably forming. Therese Coffey, the Work and Pensions Secretary, is said to be supportive of her cabinet colleague Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary, as a potential... Read more
Boris Johnson has said a decision on cutting Covid isolation to five days will be made “as fast as possible” after modelling found that two extra days of freedom increased infection risks by only two percentage points. Modelling by the... Read more
Simon Hoare, a Conservative MP, suggested the gathering had been held to mark the return of Mr Johnson after his illness with Covid and to thank Mr Raab for standing in for him. But a spokesman for Mr Raab, the... Read more
Mr Johnson also wins a grace period of a year, during which he recovers his party’s position in the polls, putting him on a strong footing for the next election. Mr Johnson and Douglas Ross part ways The calls for... Read more
In his letter Sir Ed called on the police to fully investigate the claims and issue fines to anyone found to have broken lockdown laws. In the letter to Dame Cressida, he wrote: “It is now vital that you take... Read more
Last week Wes Streeting, the Shadow Health Secretary, said that the mission for this year needed to be “learning to live well with the virus”. By this, he meant focusing the state’s efforts at combating Covid-19 on “key public health... Read more
There have been numerous demands from SNP activists, including Alex Salmond, her predecessor and former mentor, for her to hold an illegal or wildcat referendum. The First Minister has resisted those calls, but intends to bring forward a referendum Bill... Read more
He wanted to be King of the World, but Boris Johnson may now have to content himself with being remembered as the shortest-serving British prime minister since Henry Campbell-Bannerman. His carefully crafted half-apology for attending a party in Downing Street... Read more
5. Miles Briggs – MSP “It is clear that the Prime Minister’s position is no longer tenable, he has lost the trust of the public, as well as the ability to credibly lead the United Kingdom through the difficult... Read more
It was the moment when Boris Johnson channelled his hero, Winston Churchill, in a bid to win the Conservative Party leadership in 2019. “My message to you today is: the hour is darkest before the dawn,” he told Tory councillors... Read more
SIR – You report that the Metropolitan Police are “in touch with the Cabinet Office” over the “bring your own booze” party held at the rear of
10 Downing Street. Could they not just ask their own uniformed officers, always... Read more
I was one of only eight people at my dad’s funeral Kerry Ashby, 55, business coach from Cambridgeshire My dad Albert moved into a care home in February 2020, which was obviously very unfortunate timing. When the pandemic got going... Read more
A Conservative MP has had the whip removed for a second time after she voted to cut VAT on energy bills. Anne Marie Morris, the MP for Newton Abbott, supported an opposition day motion tabled by Labour that urged the... Read more
The British stock market is often dismissed as an “old economy” index, full of mining firms, banks and oil stocks that are past their prime. It is also far cheaper than the American market, relative to profits, suggesting that investors... Read more
Former Fed chair Janet Yellen famously said that central bank policy should be like ‘watching paint dry: uneventful, unsurprising and dull. She didn’t get her wish in 2017, when she expressed it ahead of the Federal Reserve’s last attempt to... Read more
Homeowners who have chosen to rent out their property risk landing themselves in hot water if they fail to inform their mortgage lender of their decision. So-called “accidental landlords” – homeowners who fell into the sector by accident – must ensure they... Read more
A looming tax change threatens to squeeze buy-to-let profits at a time when many landlords are still struggling with lost rental income in the wake of the pandemic. The sector narrowly avoided another stamp duty tax rise last year, with the Chancellor pulling... Read more
Update: Avacta It was just as well that when we tipped this biotech company in November 2020 we acknowledged the riskiness of the sector and advised readers to see the stock as a “candidate for a small punt”. This is because... Read more
HM Revenue & Customs has this week issued an urgent warning to taxpayers and accountants to ensure Covid-19 support payments are fully declared on their upcoming tax return. If you haven’t filed your return for 2020-21 yet, the deadline is... Read more