6:32 am, December 6, 2023
Rishi Sunak under pressure over Rwanda legislation after treaty signing
Rishi Sunak is under pressure from all wings of his party as Tory MPs await the promised Rwanda legislation set to accompany the newly signed treaty with Kigali.
Designed to designate Rwanda a safe destination and address the concerns that saw the Supreme Court deem the government’s flagship asylum policy unlawful, the Bill could be published in a matter of days.
But its likely contents have already divided Tory MPs, with fears that too radical an approach could prompt ministerial resignations.
Boris Johnson to face start of two-day grilling at Covid inquiry
Boris Johnson will face the first of two days of questioning over his handling of the pandemic when he appears before the UK Covid-19 Inquiry.
It comes after the former prime minister denied deleting WhatsApp messages after it emerged he had not been able to provide the inquiry with any communications from February to June 2020.
The highly anticipated appearance by Johnson is expected to see him admit that his government made mistakes in its response to the virus, but argue that its decisions ultimately saved lives.
Woman dead and two injured after east London shooting, police say
A woman has died and two people, one a teenager, have been left injured following a shooting in east London, the Metropolitan Police said.
Three people were found with gunshot wounds after police were called at around 6.30pm on Tuesday to reports of a shooting in Vine Close, Hackney.
A 42-year-old woman died at the scene and two others – a 20-year-old man and a 16-year-old boy – were taken to hospital where their conditions are being assessed, the force said.
Junior doctors to stage longest strike in NHS history after talks break down
Junior doctors in England are to stage the longest strike in NHS history after talks between their union and the government broke down.
Ministers and representatives from the British Medical Association (BMA) have been locked in negotiations for five weeks, trying to find a resolution to the pay dispute.
But the BMA said the Department for Health and Social Care has not been able to put forward a credible offer to end the industrial action. Junior doctors in England will walk out from 7am on December 20 to 7am on December 23 2023 and from 7am on January 3 to 7am on January 9 2024.
Busy commuter services to be hit as train drivers’ strike continues
Some of the busiest commuter rail routes in the country will have limited services or no trains at all on Wednesday because of more strikes by drivers in their long-running dispute over pay.
Members of the Aslef union at South Western Railway, Southern, Southeastern, Gatwick Express and the Isle of Wight’s Island Line will walk out for 24 hours in the latest in a series of stoppages this week which are causing travel chaos.
Aslef says its members are determined to continue taking industrial action until they receive an improved pay offer on one made earlier this year of 8% over two years.
Sunak pressures Netanyahu on Gaza aid as Israeli offensive continues
Rishi Sunak has told Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu that more humanitarian aid is required in the Gaza Strip, as concerns grow about civilian deaths amid the Israeli bombardment.
In a call between the two leaders on Tuesday, Sunak said ‘more humanitarian aid had to be allowed to enter Gaza, where civilians were in desperate need’.
It comes as Israel widens its offensive into southern Gaza, with the US pressuring the Israeli administration to prevent further mass causalities after thousands of civilian deaths so far.
Tuesday Car Dealer headlines you might have missed
- Retail used car prices are not falling as fast as trade guides suggest, says car dealer
- Fleet sales drive increase in new car figures to the best November in four years
- New van demand grows for 11th month in row but EV uptake needs 2024 boost, says SMMT
- Swindon Audi dealer forced to temporarily close after huge fire involving electric vehicle
- Volvo Car UK opens flagship sustainable showroom at multi-million-pound site in Elstree
- Family-run Snows Motor Group invests heavily in new Toyota and Lexus dealership in Dorset
- The franchised car dealer bosses due to take centre stage at Car Dealer Live 2024
EE launches new TV service to take on Sky and Virgin Media
Mobile operator EE has launched its own TV service as it continues plans to diversify its product offerings.
In October, the BT-owned firm unveiled a major business revamp it called ‘new EE’ that would see it create a new online space where customers of any internet provider could browse and buy products from EE for the first time.
Now the company has confirmed the launch of its own TV service via an app on the Apple TV 4K streaming box, which will provide access to more than 70 Freeview channels, as well as premium channels, streaming services and other on-demand content.
November breaks heat record for sixth straight month
November set a new monthly record for heat – the sixth month in a row which has beaten previous records.
With only weeks remaining, 2023 is on course to smash the record for hottest year.
November was nearly a third of a degree Celsius hotter than the previous hottest November, the European Space Agency’s Copernicus Climate Change Service said on Wednesday. The month was 1.75C warmer than pre-industrial times, tying October and behind September for the hottest above average for any month.
Weather
Fog will be slow to lift in the south, reports BBC Weather, revealing a day of cloud and wind. Rain will spread across Northern Ireland, Wales and western Scotland. Bright elsewhere with temperatures around three to five degrees.
Cloudy and wet for many with snow for northern England and Scotland. A windy night, too.
