6:42 am, January 9, 2024
Ministers scramble to speed up overturning of Horizon scandal convictions
Ministers are drawing up plans to hasten the clearing of the names of hundreds subpostmasters who were wrongfully convicted in the Horizon scandal.
Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake told MPs on Monday that ways to overturn the convictions were being investigated, including possible legislation.
Hollinrake hinted at a solution as soon as this week after the government scrambled to take action after the miscarriage of justice was brought into the spotlight by an ITV drama.
Labour set to table vote demanding government publish Rwanda documents
Labour will table a vote in Parliament on Tuesday calling for the release of documents relating to the government’s Rwanda migrants deportation policy.
The vote, which will be part of a Humble Address on the Opposition Day debate in the Commons, will ask for any documents that show the cost of relocating each individual asylum seeker to Rwanda as well as a list of all payments made or scheduled to be made to Rwanda’s government.
It will also ask for the government’s internal breakdown of the more than 35,000 asylum decisions made last year and an unredacted copy of the confidential memorandum of understanding ministers reached with the East African country. Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said the government’s refusal to ‘come clean’ on the cost of the Rwanda scheme is ‘totally unacceptable’.
Junior doctors to hold ballot for more strikes, reports suggest
Junior doctors will hold a fresh ballot for more strike action, according to reports, as the longest walkout in NHS history ends on Tuesday morning.
The British Medical Association’s (BMA) junior doctors committee has plans to hold a third vote for a new six-month mandate for industrial action over the long-running pay dispute, according to The Guardian. The move is likely to increase tensions in the health sector which have already been heightened by the record six-day strike.
The current mandate was voted for by members in the summer and expires on February 29 and union sources say support among junior doctors for continuing their campaign remains strong, according to the newspaper.
MP suggests trialling higher speed limit on English motorway
A motorway should be used to test higher speed limits, an MP has suggested.
Conservative former minister Sir Bill Wiggin said higher speed limits would help people get to work faster and could boost productivity. The MP for North Herefordshire said the M50 – which runs through parts of Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, and Herefordshire in England – would be ‘the perfect motorway’ to test increasing the speed limit.
George Osborne, when serving as Conservative chancellor in 2015, said he would introduce such a change in England, but the government suggested in 2022 that it was no longer pursuing the idea.
Drakeford: ‘Genuinely confused’ drivers will not be fined for breaking 20mph law
Mark Drakeford has suggested drivers will not be fined for breaching the new default 20mph speed limit in Wales if they were ‘genuinely confused’.
The outgoing first minister said those who ‘deliberately’ break the law will face consequences but that police will not jump straight to enforcement if people have simply ‘misunderstood’.
Last year, Wales became the first country in the UK to drop the default speed limit from 30mph to 20mph in built-up areas. Enforcement of the limit begins this month.
Weak sales growth ends ‘sluggish’ year for retailers
Retailers suffered a disappointing festive period that failed to make up for a challenging year of sluggish sales growth, figures show.
Weak consumer confidence continued to hold back spending, with total UK retail sales up by just 1.7% in December against growth of 6.9% a year earlier, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC)-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor.
The post-Christmas sales were unsuccessful in enticing spending in areas such as furniture and homewares, with households remaining cautious about making larger purchases. Retail sales over the year overall were up by 3.6% on 2022.
Pothole claims increased by 40% last year, insurer reports
The number of pothole-related claims jumped by 40% annually last year, according to an insurer’s data.
Admiral recorded 1,324 claims across 2023, up by around 40% compared with the 946 claims seen in 2022.
The average cost of pothole-related damage also increased by 29% in 2023 compared with 2022, according to Admiral’s data. The insurer said the cost increase is likely to be linked to higher-tech vehicles and a general increase in the price of repairs.
Gridserve opens new EV forecourt at Gatwick Airport
Gridserve has opened a new ‘Electric Forecourt’ at Gatwick Airport.
Arriving as the third installation of such a site by the firm, the new forecourt has the space to charge up to 30 electric vehicles with 100 per cent net zero energy.
Situated on the Ring Road South approach to Gatwick’s South Terminal – and adjacent to the nearby M23 – the new Electric Forecourt includes 22 high-power chargers which can deliver up to 350kW of charging energy. These are some of the most powerful units in the country and could, when connected to a compatible EV, add up to 100 miles of range in five minutes.
Weather
Wintry showers will clear in the south to leave cloud and bright spells, reports BBC Weather. A day of winter sunshine for everywhere else, apart from the north-east where there may be some drizzle. Cold with temperatures struggling to reach five degrees.
Cloud will roll into the north tonight, bringing light showers. Clear in most parts of England.
