A man suspected of slashing an 18th century painting at Britain's National Gallery which featured in a James Bond film is due to appear in court on Monday.

Keith Gregory, 63, was arrested on Saturday after allegedly damaging Thomas Gainsborough's painting "The Morning Walk" in the prestigious London museum.

Published: 20 March 2017

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British Prime Minister Theresa May will seek to rally her party faithful Friday after a week in which her political honeymoon abruptly ended, laying bare her weaknesses over Brexit.

The Scottish government’s call for a second independence vote has left May fighting on two fronts as she prepares to start the process of leaving the European Union later this month.

She was also forced to drop a planned tax rise after pressure from backbench MPs, revealing how she could become a hostage to factions in her Conservative Party as the complex Brexit negotiations progress.

At a party conference in Cardiff she will seek to regain the initiative, setting out plans to deliver “a brighter future” after exiting the EU.

May’s centre-right Conservatives are ahead by as much as 19 points in some polls, but much of the lead is because of a weak Labour opposition.

Published: 19 March 2017

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Scotland will begin the process next week for making a request to the British government to hold a new independence referendum between late 2018 and early 2019, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Monday (March 13).

Her announcement came as British Prime Minister Theresa May was set this week to trigger the process of leaving the European Union after last year’s Brexit vote.

“Next week I will seek the authority of the Scottish parliament to agree with the UK government... the procedure that will enable the Scottish parliament to legislate for an independence referendum,” Sturgeon said.

Published: 13 March 2017

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Chelsea's plans to build a new £500 million ($610mn, 580mn euros) 60,000-seat stadium cleared another major hurdle on Monday when they received approval from London Mayor Sadiq Khan.

"London is one of the world's greatest sporting cities and I'm delighted that we will soon add Chelsea's new stadium to the already fantastic array of sporting arenas in the capital," Khan said in a statement.

The Premier League leaders plan to build the new arena on the site of their current Stamford Bridge home in west London, which seats 41,631 fans.

The proposals received planning permission from local authorities in January and the new ground could be completed in time for the 2021-22 season.

"Having taken a balanced view of the application, I'm satisfied this is a high-quality and spectacular design which will significantly increase capacity within the existing site, as well as ensuring fans can have easy access from nearby transport connections," Khan added.

"I'm confident this new stadium will be a jewel in London's sporting crown and will attract visitors and football fans from around the world."

The new stadium has been designed by Herzog and de Meuron, the architects behind the "Bird's Nest" stadium used at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and Bayern Munich's Allianz Arena.

Published: 09 March 2017

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Red Nose Day is back! And colleagues and customers from Sainsbury’s Nine Elms Point will be fundraising and making their laugh matter for Red Nose Day. Over the next few weeks, Sainsbury’s colleagues all over the UK will be working hard to raise money for Red Nose Day which takes place on Friday 24 March. Fundraising activities at the Nine Elms Point store include wearing silly wigs and disguises, rowing/cycling challanges at the front of the store foyer area, wearing funky funny customes and much more all taking place to raise as much money as possible for Red Nose Day. Andy Robins, Store Manager at Sainsbury’s Nine Elms Point, said: “Our colleagues love getting involved with Red Nose Day fundraising and we’re all really proud to support such a great cause. There are some brilliant activities planned this year and we look forward to inviting customers to join in with the fun.”

Published: 09 March 2017

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The House of Lords looks set Wednesday to defy Prime Minister Theresa May by demanding guarantees for EU nationals living in Britain, delaying a bill she needs to start Brexit negotiations.

The opposition Labour party is hopeful it can push through an amendment to legislation empowering May to trigger Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, which begins two years of divorce talks.

May hoped the bill would pass through parliament by next week and has promised EU leaders to formally start the withdrawal process by the end of the month.

But if peers in the upper house of parliament vote to amend the bill later Wednesday, it must return to MPs in the House of Commons for further deliberation.

Published: 02 March 2017

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A British zoo is facing closure and its owner prosecution after nearly 500 of its animals died of poor nutrition, cramped conditions and hypothermia over four years, it emerged Wednesday.

A damning report into the South Lakes Safari Zoo in Cumbria, northwest England, found that 486 animals had died in the past four years, putting most of the blame on its owner David Gill.

The zoo had over 1,600 animals in 2016.

Describing the conditions as "appalling", inspectors reported finding poor levels of veterinary care, cleanliness and pest control, as well as inadequate food.

"The conditions that these animals are being held in, is quite frankly appalling, and has led directly to the death of a number of them," they wrote in the report.

Published: 02 March 2017

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IAG, parent group of British Airways and Spanish carrier Iberia, grew profits in 2016 as lower fuel costs helped to offset the impact of a weaker pound, results showed Friday.

Net profit rose almost a third to 1.93 billion euros ($2.0 billion) compared with 2015, IAG said in an earnings statement.

Lower oil prices resulted in the company's jet fuel costs falling by 20 percent last year.

However IAG's "performance was affected by an adverse currency impact of 460 million euros", chief executive Willie Walsh said in an earnings statement.

Published: 24 February 2017

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Thousands of Europeans enraged by US President Donald Trump's immigration ban demonstrated Saturday in cities across the continent, calling on Americans to "dump Trump" and vowing to fight his policies.

In London, an estimated 10,000 people turned out, chanting "Theresa May: Shame on You" to denounce the British prime minister's support for the new US leader.

Brandishing placards declaring "No to scapegoating Muslims" and "Socialism not Trumpism", the protesters moved from the US embassy toward May's Downing Street office.

In Paris and Berlin each, around a thousand people came out to protest, while smaller gatherings of several hundred people took place in provincial British cities including Manchester and Birmingham.

Rallies were also held in Sweden's capital Stockholm and the Spanish city Barcelona, where some 300 people marched outside the Spanish consulate, according to media reports.

Published: 04 February 2017

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British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday refused to back down on inviting US President Donald Trump for a glitzy state visit, despite a petition gaining more than 1.5 million signatures and protesters rallying across the country.

May is standing firm on the invitation, which would see Trump honoured by parliament and Queen Elizabeth II, despite the premier's office saying she does not agree with his controversial ban on refugees and citizens of seven mainly Muslim countries.

"The United States is a close ally of the UK, we work together across many areas of mutual interest and we have that special relationship between us," May told a press conference in Dublin alongside her Irish counterpart Enda Kenny.

"I have issued that invitation for a state visit to President Trump to the UK and that invitation stands."

The British premier added: "In relation to the policies that have been announced by the US, the UK takes a different approach."

May announced the state visit during a meeting with Trump at the White House on Friday, which was intended to boost trade ties after Britain leaves the European Union.

Published: 31 January 2017

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