Author: Sumon Admin

    Captain Sir Tom Moore has said being knighted by the Queen was something very special. The national hero was personally thanked by the Queen for raising an amazing amount of money for the NHS when she bestowed him during a unique ceremony at Windsor Castle. Sir Tom appeared humbled following his audience with the monarch and said he was “absolutely overawed” to receive the investiture on Friday. The centenarian had set out to raise £1,000 for the health service by walking 100 laps of his garden in the village of Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, before his 100th birthday on April 30. ut his efforts struck a chord with national mood and he went on to raise almost £33 million. He said being knighted had been a marvellous day and the Queen was an absolute dream of a ...

    British Airways is to retire its fleet of Boeing 747s with immediate effect. Britain's flag carrier has announced this morning that its 31 Boeing 747s are to be retired due to falling demand in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. The company said: It is with great sadness that we can confirm we are proposing to retire our entire 747 fleet with immediate effect. It is unlikely our magnificent 'queen of the skies will ever operate commercial services for British Airways again due to the downturn in travel caused by the Covid-19 global pandemic. While the aircraft will always have a special place in our heart, as we head into the future we will be operating more flights on modern, fuel-efficient aircraft such as our new A350s and 787s, to help us achieve net-zero carb...

    An urgent review has been ordered into how daily coronavirus death figures are calculated after it was claimed the current method did not account for people recovering from COVID-19. Health Secretary Matt Hancock has asked for the examination of Public Health England's data, which states there have so far been 45,119 COVID-19 associated deaths. A government source confirmed that PHE's current method of calculation means if a person was previously diagnosed with COVID-19 but subsequently died of unrelated causes, their death would still be counted as part of the PHE coronavirus death tally. The review ordered by Mr Hancock aims to sort out the issue and establish the impact on the overall death tally.

    Boris Johnson is set to announce that the NHS will be given an extra £3 billion in funding so it can prepare for a possible second wave of Covid-19. The Prime Minister will also use a Downing Street press conference later today to commit to a new target of reaching the capacity for 500,000 coronavirus tests a day by November. The funding for the NHS in England will allow private hospital capacity to be used and for Nightingale hospitals to be maintained until the end of March. It comes after the death toll in the UK rose by 66 on Thursday. No deaths were reported in Northern Ireland and Wales, while England recorded 19 and Scotland recorded one.

    A sculpture of a black woman who took part in a Black Lives Matter protest in Bristol has been erected on the plinth where a statue of slave trader Edward Colston used to stand. Artist Marc Quinn created the black and resin steel piece of protester Jen Reid, who was photographed standing on the empty plinth after the Colston statue was toppled during the march. The sculpture, entitled A Surge of Power (Jen Reid), was erected shortly before 5am on Wednesday by Quinn’s team without the prior knowledge of Bristol City Council. Mayor Marvin Rees previously said any decision on how the plinth should be used would be decided democratically through consultation. After the sculpture was installed, Mrs Reid stood in front of it with her fist in the air. It’s just incredib...

    Boris Johnson was today accused of "rhetorical nonsense" as he was quizzed by Labour leader Keir Starmer over a report into fears of a second wave of coronavirus. The dramatic PMQs clash came ahead of an expected announcement by the Prime Minister on Friday, when he is set to unveil plans to get Britain back to work in a bid to boost struggling businesses. Earlier, Health Secretary Matt Hancock quashed reports that the "road map" will include a plan to make face masks compulsory in all public places , insisting the Government will not recommend they be mandatory in offices. Meanwhile, a £4 billion cut in VAT for the leisure and hospitality industry comes into force today. Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced in his mini-Budget last week that the levy on food, accommoda...

    Mandatory face covering rules for shoppers in England will not apply to staff, a minister has said, amid warnings a second wave of coronavirus infections this winter could be more serious than the first. As of July 24, people must have their nose and mouth covered when they go shopping or risk a £100 fine. The move follows a weekend of confusion over whether ministers intended to make face coverings compulsory after Boris Johnson said they were looking at “stricter” rules. But Environment Secretary George Eustice said shop staff are "not being covered" by the rule. He said it won’t be a "compulsory requirement" because it "won’t always be right" for every retail setting. It comes as scientists warned there could be 120,000 hospital deaths this winter from Covid-19 ...

    Boris Johnson will decide in the next few days whether face coverings will be mandatory in shops as the Covid-19 lockdown is lifted in England. Speaking on a visit to the London Ambulance on Monday, the prime minister said coverings have have real value in confined spaces and that people should wear them in shops. But he went on to say his government had yet to make a ruling on whether they should be made compulsory. It comes after Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove sparked confusion by saying on BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show that coverings would not be enforced in shops but that wearing them was basic good manners. The prime minister told reporters during a visit to the London Ambulance Service HQ in London that there was growing evidence face coverings could limit...

    The government is to set out the UK's future immigration and border policies today, as it aims to prepare the country for the end of the Brexit transition period. Home Secretary Priti Patel will say the country will be able to "welcome the best and brightest global talent" as she publishes a 130-page document detailing how the new points-based immigration system will operate. The announcement is expected to include a visa for foreign health professionals, but Labour says the proposals have been "rushed" and could cause "major problems" for the NHS and care sector. The new policies will take effect from 1 January 2021, when the UK leaves the EU customs union and single market. Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove has launched a public information campaign to tell i...

    Priti Patel will unveil more details of the Government's controversial new points-based immigration system this week, which she describes as a fairer, firmer, skills-led approach. The new immigration system will come into effect on January 1, 2021 after freedom of movement ends. It is designed to cut the number of low-skilled migrants entering Britain from the beginning of next year and make it easier for higher-skilled workers to get UK visas. But critics have slammed the proposals for being xenophobic and meaningless. The Home Secretary will declare Britain as open for business and ready to accept the brightest global talent when she releases details about the system on Monday. People who want to live and work in the UK will need to gain 70 points to be eligible...