6:54 am, June 29, 2022
Johnson pledges extra support for Nato as he urges allies to boost spending
The British military presence in Estonia will be bolstered as Nato dramatically escalates its ability to respond to Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
Leaders from the 30-member alliance are meeting in Madrid for a summit where they will agree to co-operate more closely and significantly increase the number of troops held at high readiness.
The UK already has a significant military presence in Estonia and the prime minister will use the summit to expand its headquarters in the Baltic nation. Officials said this would ensure the UK could provide rapid reinforcements if needed, and deploy artillery, air defence and helicopters.
Shop prices hit highest rate of inflation in almost 14 years
Shop prices have hit their highest rate of inflation in almost 14 years as businesses grapple with soaring supply chain costs and a cut in household spending, figures show.
Shop prices were up 3.1 per cent on a year ago in June, up from 2.8 per cent in May – the highest rate of inflation since September 2008, according to the BRC-NielsenIQ Shop Price Index.
Food inflation jumped to 5.6 per cent in June, up from 4.3 per cent in May, driven by fresh food prices up 6.2 per cent on June last year – the highest inflation rate since May 2009. The figures follow the Office for National Statistics reporting that inflation as measured by the consumer prices index rose from nine per cent in April to 9.1 per cent last month, a level unseen since February 1982, amid record prices for petrol and the soaring cost of food.
Boris Johnson hails Deborah James as ‘inspiration to so many’ following death
Boris Johnson has hailed Dame Deborah James as an ‘inspiration’ and said that because of her campaigning work ‘many, many lives will be saved’.
The podcaster, who was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016, died on Tuesday after spending her final weeks receiving end-of-life care at home with her husband, Sebastien, and their two children.
The PM was among those paying tribute, and wrote on Twitter: ‘I’m terribly saddened to hear that Dame Deborah James has died. What an inspiration she was to so many. The awareness she brought to bowel cancer and the research her campaigning has funded will be her enduring legacy. Because of her, many many lives will be saved.’
Ghislaine Maxwell sentenced to 20 years in jail for sex trafficking young girls
British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for luring young girls to massage rooms for disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein to molest.
The 60-year-old looked straight ahead and showed no emotion as a judge in the Southern District of New York passed sentence in front of a packed public gallery.
At the hearing on Tuesday, the socialite apologised to her victims, saying she hopes her sentence will allow them “peace and finality”.
Turkey lifts objections to Sweden and Finland joining Nato
Turkey has agreed to lift its opposition to Sweden and Finland joining Nato, a breakthrough in an impasse clouding a leaders’ summit in Madrid.
After urgent top-level talks, alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said ‘we now have an agreement that paves the way for Finland and Sweden to join Nato’.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted Sweden and Finland to abandon their long-held non-aligned status and apply to join the security body.
Red Bull’s RB17 is a 1,100bhp limited-edition hypercar
Red Bull Advanced Technologies (RBAT) has revealed a new hypercar project – the RB17.
The two-seater hypercar – which has been designed primarily for track use – is the first car from the performance engineering arm of Red Bull Racing Group to be developed entirely in-house. Just 50 examples will be created at the Red Bull Technology Campus in Milton Keynes, with production set to start in 2025.
Red Bull has only released a sketch of the vehicle for now, but has stated that it will use a V8 hybrid engine developing over 1,100bhp. Its name takes inspiration from the firm’s range of Formula One cars and, like those vehicles, has a number of high-tech features including a carbon-composite tub and ‘the most advanced ground effect package available in a series production car’. This hints at some extensive aerodynamic measures.
Sturgeon tells Johnson it is ‘unacceptable’ not to co-operate on indyref2
Scotland’s first minister has told Boris Johnson it is ‘unacceptable’ to force the Scottish Parliament to seek a legal independence referendum through the courts.
Instead, the two governments should work together to ‘respect the mandate of the people of Scotland’.
Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain, the Scottish government’s chief legal officer, has referred the matter to the Supreme Court. The ruling will decide if the Scottish government has the legal basis to proceed with a referendum on the proposed date of October 19, 2023.
Latest Car Dealer Podcast
A car dealer who lost a court appeal over a buyer’s claim a £140k Bentley sold to them couldn’t tow a caravan, Ford to axe the Focus and Pendragon’s CEO holding onto his job were just some of the stories on this week’s Car Dealer Podcast.
Joining Car Dealer’s Rebecca Chaplin and Jon Reay on the latest episode was Julian Humphreys, CEO of MOTOM.
You can listen to the podcast now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or by clicking play below.
Social media companies ‘should do more to crack down on car insurance scammers’
Social media websites should do more to crack down on car insurance scammers, according to Which?
The consumer group said ‘ghost brokers’ mainly operate online, particularly on social media. Ghost broking is a scam which involves insurance documents being doctored to make them look like genuine policies – with those buying them left at risk of driving uninsured.
Young drivers, who often pay higher insurance premiums, can be most at risk, while ghost brokers also heavily target non-native English speakers, Which? said.
Tuesday Car Dealer headlines you might have missed
- Chancellor Sunak pays tribute to automotive industry but SMMT calls for more ‘stability’ from government
- Honda is ‘comfortable’ with its positioning and doesn’t want to head upmarket, says UK boss
- Clive Brook Bradford to get multi-million-pound redevelopment with work due to start any day
- Automotive industry facing 50 per increase in energy bills, SMMT warns
- Volkswagen reveals new flagship EV which is due to arrive in Europe next year
Weather
Early rain will clear towards the east leaving a day of sunny spells and showers for much of the UK, reports BBC Weather. Those showers will be at their sharpest in the north and west.
Rain seen during the day will clear tonight, but further showers will push in to the south-west and sweep north over the east.
