All posts tagged: UTurn

Trump left red faced as Iran makes dramatic Strait of Hormuz U-turn | World | News

Trump left red faced as Iran makes dramatic Strait of Hormuz U-turn | World | News

Published by Sam Flores

The country’s joint military command said on Saturday that “control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state … under strict management and control of the armed forces.” It warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the US blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect. The military statement accuses the US of “piracy”, saying that its “so-called blockade” amounts to maritime robbery. The Iranian military’s operational command, Khatam Al-Anbiya, added: “Until the US restores the complete freedom of navigation for vessels from an Iranian origin to a destination, and from a destination back to Iran, the situation in the strait of Hormuz will remain strictly controlled and in its previous state.” The announcement came the morning after US President Donald Trump said that even after Iran announced the strait’s reopening on Friday, the American blockade “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the US, including on its nuclear programme. Movement through the key waterway briefly increased this morning, with several shipping …

Alison Hammond does complete U-turn on Strictly claims after saying she turned down presenting offer

Alison Hammond does complete U-turn on Strictly claims after saying she turned down presenting offer

Published by Sam Flores

Alison Hammond has backtracked on her claim that she turned down an offer to become the host of Strictly Come Dancing. The presenter hosts several shows on TV, including This Morning, The Great British Bake Off and For the Love of Dogs, but previously said she was unable to become one of Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman’s replacements on Strictly as she was too busy. “I’m so busy, babes, that I’m not sure it’s going to happen,” she told Radio Times earlier this month. “It’s unrealistic. I’m so happy they considered me, but I can’t do it because everything clashes.” Alison Hammond previously ruled herself out from taking on the ‘Strictly’ presenting role (YouTube) However, Hammond, 51, has walked back the suggestion she was offered the role, stating in a new interview. “Do you think I would turn down Strictly if Strictly came along? “ she told Metro. “Who would turn down Strictly? They’d be absolutely crazy.” Hammond, who now said she’s “not too busy”, suggested she made her previous comments because she feels being …

Starmer signals migrant U-turn after pressure from Rayner

Starmer signals migrant U-turn after pressure from Rayner

Published by Sam Flores

Sir Keir Starmer has opened the door to concessions over reforms to the rights of 1.6 million migrants to stay in the UK, following criticism from Angela Rayner. Downing Street repeatedly refused to say whether the Government would press ahead with plans devised by Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, to increase the time it takes for migrants already in the UK to qualify for permanent settlement. Ms Rayner, championed as a potential leadership contender by the Left, said on Tuesday that the plans were “un-British” and “pulled the rug” from underneath hard-working families. Any climbdown on migration would likely be seized upon by opponents who say a weak Sir Keir is being forced to the Left by his Cabinet and backbenchers. The Prime Minister could face a leadership challenge after the May local elections, when Labour is set to lose hundreds of council seats to Reform UK, which has made migration a key campaign issue. Under the Home Secretary’s proposed changes, most migrants will be forced to wait 10 years, rather than five years, before …

Keir Starmer set to cave in to Angela Rayner in immigration U-turn | Politics | News

Keir Starmer set to cave in to Angela Rayner in immigration U-turn | Politics | News

Published by Sam Flores

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood in Downing Street (Image: Getty) This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more Keir Starmer is set to cave in to leadership rival Angela Rayner with a humiliating U-turn on flagship immigration reforms. The Prime Minister is reportedly drawing up plans to water down controversial changes to the rules for obtaining indefinite leave to remain, also known as settlement. It follows a furious backlash from Labour MPs who opposed the reforms – and an incendiary speech this week from Angela Rayner, the former Deputy Prime Minister, who condemned the changes and called them a “breach of trust”. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced that many migrants will need to live in the UK for 10 years to obtain indefinite leave to remain, which gives them the right to live and work in the UK without restrictions and makes them eligible for benefits and social housing. This is up from five years now. Read more: Labour’s botched handling of immigration risks …

Rachel Reeves humiliated in chaotic U-turn over crunch meeting with UK petrol chiefs | Politics | News

Rachel Reeves humiliated in chaotic U-turn over crunch meeting with UK petrol chiefs | Politics | News

Published by Sam Flores

A petrol retailer group accused ministers of inciting abuse towards forecourt workers as a meeting with Rachel Reeves was plunged into chaos today. The Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) hit out at the use of “inflammatory language” as it pulled out of Downing Street talks with the Chancellor and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband on fuel prices amid the Middle East conflict. But the group later said it would attend the meeting after receiving assurances that the media would only be present for the first part. The association had said it wanted talks to be private “to allow a conversation to explain how the fuel market works”. Gordon Balmer, executive director of the PRA, said: “Recently I have heard of incidents from some of our members of retail staff being abused by members of the public, who may have been provoked by the incorrect and inflammatory language emanating from some commentators for example use of the terms ‘rip offs’ and ‘profiteering’. “Our members are working hard in difficult circumstances making sure that motorists and businesses are getting …

Starmer denies U-turn claims after giving go-ahead for US to use UK military for strikes on Iran | UK News

Starmer denies U-turn claims after giving go-ahead for US to use UK military for strikes on Iran | UK News

Published by Sam Flores

Critics will accuse him of yet another U-turn, but Sir Keir Starmer insists circumstances have changed and British lives are now at risk from attacks by Iran. The prime minister’s announcement that two British airbases – Fairford in Gloucestershire and the hotly disputed Diego Garcia in the Chagos Islands – can be used by the US came at 9pm on Sunday. If not a U-turn, it was certainly a change from his original decision to reject Donald Trump’s earlier request to use the bases, a snub that will have massively irked the US president. Who knows? The PM’s change of heart, which came after a phone call with The Donald on Saturday, may even persuade him to drop his opposition to the controversial Chagos deal. Well, he can but hope. After the Number 10 announcement, government sources were quick to point out that the bases will not be used for bombing Iran, but to stop the Iranians attacking Brits and others throughout the Middle East. “It’s very clearly not a U-turn,” a close ally of …

Trump U-turn: Is Venezuelan oil really available to Cuba again? | Energy News

Trump U-turn: Is Venezuelan oil really available to Cuba again? | Energy News

Published by Sam Flores

After months of a crippling oil blockade on Cuba imposed by the United States, the fuel-starved country may now see some relief after the US government said it would begin authorising companies to resell Venezuelan oil, even as tensions between the two reach a head. On Wednesday, the US Department of the Treasury said it would allow the resale of Venezuelan oil for “commercial and humanitarian use” in Cuba as the small island nation faces one of its worst fuel crises in decades. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Venezuela is the largest provider of oil to Cuba. However, since US forces abducted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January and imprisoned him to face drugs and weapons charges in a New York court, the Donald Trump administration has taken control of Caracas’s oil and halted exports to Havana. Washington has long had frosty relations with Cuba, but Trump’s administration is specifically seeking regime change there by the end of 2026, US media has reported. The US’s policy shift this week, however, comes after Caribbean …

Politics Home | The Government Could U-Turn On Student Loan Thresholds, Says Union Head

Politics Home | The Government Could U-Turn On Student Loan Thresholds, Says Union Head

Published by Sam Flores

5 min read1 hr The head of the union representing students has told PoliticsHome that she believes the government could U-turn on its decision to freeze the threshold at which graduates start to pay back their student loans amid outrage over the step. The president of the National Union of Students UK (NUS), Amira Campbell, said it would be “very difficult” for the Labour government to “ignore” the growing debate as it risks joining the list of “many things that really put their re-election at risk”. The current student loan system was created under the Conservative government. The issue has exploded into life in recent weeks, however, after Chancellor Rachel Reeves insisted that her decision at the November Budget to freeze the threshold at which ‘Plan Two’ graduates start to pay back their loans was “fair and reasonable”. Martin Lewis, the TV personal finance expert, said it was “not a moral thing” to do because it was essentially treating debt like tax, urging the government to “please have a rethink”.  Meanwhile, people in the Plan 2 cohort have posted online …

Why Sir Keir Starmer’s latest U-turn may see him lose more than just face | Politics News

Why Sir Keir Starmer’s latest U-turn may see him lose more than just face | Politics News

Published by Sam Flores

The government has changed its mind again. By my count, for the 15th time. The government planned to postpone local elections in 30 areas of England due to take place in May, but after a court challenge from Reform UK, it thought better of it. With government lawyers offering new legal advice saying the proposed cancellation of these elections would, in fact, be illegal, this means that over 4 and a half million extra people will be voting in May after all. But why did the government want to cancel these elections? Labour argued that it was a waste of time, money and resources to hold elections for councils that would soon be abolished and merged into larger council structures anyway. But that justification appeared not to be legally robust enough to reassure the government that it could win the legal case. And not only has the government scrapped these plans, but it also now has to scrap planned legislation it created to make these changes possible. And what’s more, it has agreed to pay …

Pubs and music venues to be handed business rates relief after government U-turn | Politics News

Pubs and music venues to be handed business rates relief after government U-turn | Politics News

Published by Sam Flores

A U-turn by the Treasury will see pubs and music venues across England and Wales handed temporary relief from the worst of planned rises to business rates. The government has been under pressure to act after changes made in the budget in November, alongside the end of support from the pandemic, meant businesses – and especially pubs – were set to face huge increases in their business rates in April. This, coupled with a hike in the minimum wage and an increase in employer national insurance contributions, led businesses to warn that hundreds of pubs and venues could close without an intervention. Politics latest – follow live Now Treasury minister Dan Tomlinson has announced that there will be a temporary support package for pubs – but nothing for restaurants, soft play centres and cafes. Announcing the changes, he said: “Pubs are the cornerstone of so many communities, they are essential to the social and cultural life of so many places across the country.” You need javascript enabled to view this content Enable javascript to share …