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Prime Minister Theresa May&#39;s government was defeated on Wednesday., when lawmakers forced through changes to its Brexit blueprint.

Polling is underway for the second phase in Gujarat polls

Gujarat elections: Polling underway in second phase, 93 assembly seats in fray Polling for the second phase in Gujarat elections is underway in 93 constituencies. Polling is taking place in 14 districts in north and central Gujarat with 2.22 crore people eligible to exercise their franchise. Spot-fixing' in Ashes Test at Perth? No fixing evidence, says ICC The Sun on Wednesday in its report had said two bookies had offered to sell the newspaper details of today's Perth Test between Australia and England. Top searches on Google in 2017: Indians grappled with 'how to take a screenshot' Google's top India trends throw up some interesting information about the way the country consumes internet and what concerns Indian netizens the most. Now, Salma Hayek accuses Harvey Weinstein of 'abuse', 'forced nudity' and threat to 'kill' her Salma Hayek is the latest to join the list of Hollywood celebrities accusing movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment. Britain's Theresa May defeated in parliament over Brexit blueprint Prime Minister Theresa May's government was defeated on Wednesday., when lawmakers forced through changes to its Brexit blueprint.

WION morning news brief, December 14, 2017

Prime Minister Theresa May&#39;s government was defeated on Wednesday, when lawmakers forced through changes to its Brexit blueprint that ministers said could endanger Britain&#39;s departure from the European Union.

In a blow to May, already weakened after losing her Conservative Party&#39;s majority in a June election, the 650-seat parliament voted 309 to 305 in favour of an amendment to hand lawmakers more say over a final exit deal with the EU.

Up until the last minute of an often bitter debate in parliament, May&#39;s team tried to convince lawmakers in her party to give up their demands and side with a government fearful that the move will weaken its hand in tough Brexit negotiations.

Members of Parliament (MPs) are debating the EU withdrawal bill, which will repeal the 1972 legislation binding Britain to the EU and copy existing EU law into domestic law to ensure legal continuity after &#39;Exit Day&#39; on March 29, 2019.

In focus on Wednesday was an amendment put forward by Conservative lawmaker and former attorney general Dominic Grieve who wants parliament to have a meaningful vote on any deal before it is finalised and for it to be written into law.

&quot;There is a time for everybody to stand up and be counted,&quot; Grieve told parliament earlier, criticising some fellow members of the Conservative Party for calling him a traitor over his decision to vote against the government.

He dismissed a last-minute pledge by justice minister Dominic Raab for government to write the promise of a meaningful vote into law later on its journey through both houses of parliament as coming &quot;too late&quot;.

The government was &quot;disappointed&quot; by the vote, a spokeswoman said in a statement, adding that &quot;this amendment does not prevent us from preparing our statute book for exit day&quot;.

But with May due at an EU summit on Thursday to encourage the other 27 leaders to approve a move to the second phase of Brexit talks and begin a discussion about future trade, the defeat comes at a difficult time for the prime minister.

In the European Parliament, which must also ratify any withdrawal treaty with Britain, its Brexit coordinator cheekily tweeted that his British counterparts had &quot;taken back control&quot; - a reference to the catchphrase of pro-Brexit campaigners.

&quot;A good day for democracy,&quot; added Guy Verhofstadt.

DEEP DIVISIONS

The EU withdrawal bill has been the focus of seven days of often bitter debate, underscoring the deep divisions over Brexit not only among the Conservatives but also in the main opposition Labour Party and across the country.

It has also highlighted May&#39;s weakness.

In June, she gambled on a snap election to strengthen her party&#39;s majority in the 650-seat parliament but instead bungled her campaign and ended up with a minority government propped up by the 10 votes of a small, pro-Brexit Northern Irish party.

Since then she has struggled to assert her authority over a Conservative Party which is deeply divided over the best route out of the EU.

&quot;This defeat is a humiliating loss of authority for the government on the eve of the European Council meeting,&quot; Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said in a statement.

&quot;Theresa May has resisted democratic accountability. Her refusal to listen means she will now have to accept Parliament taking back control.&quot;

Earlier, May had tried to persuade lawmakers to vote with the government for her Brexit blueprint, saying Grieve&#39;s amendment would put added time pressure on a government which wants to make Britain ready to leave the EU in March 2019.

&quot;That could be at a very late stage in the proceedings which could mean that we are not able to have the orderly and smooth exit from the European Union that we wish to have,&quot; she told parliament before an hours-long debate on the exit plan.

Her spokesman said the government had &quot;in good faith come forward with a strong package of concessions to deal with the spirit of the amendment&quot;.

Pro-Brexit lawmakers fear the amendment could force Britain to weaken its negotiating stance by offering parliament the opportunity of forcing ministers back to the negotiating table if it feels any final deal is not good enough.

Raab said that could convince the EU that Britain would not walk away from a bad deal.

&quot;Actually if that looked likely we&#39;d end up with worse terms, and we&#39;d be positively incentivising the EU to give us worse terms,&quot; he told parliament.

Up until the last minute of an often bitter debate in parliament, May's team tried to convince lawmakers in her party to give up their demands and side with a government fearful that the move will weaken its hand in tough Brexit negotiations.

Prime Minister Theresa May's government was defeated on Wednesday, when lawmakers forced through changes to its Brexit blueprint that ministers said could endanger Britain's departure from the European Union. In a blow to May, already weakened after losing her Conservative Party's majority in a June election, the 650-seat parliament voted 309 to 305 in favour of an amendment to hand lawmakers more say over a final exit deal with the EU. Up until the last minute of an often bitter debate in parliament, May's team tried to convince lawmakers in her party to give up their demands and side with a government fearful that the move will weaken its hand in tough Brexit negotiations. Members of Parliament (MPs) are debating the EU withdrawal bill, which will repeal the 1972 legislation binding Britain to the EU and copy existing EU law into domestic law to ensure legal continuity after 'Exit Day' on March 29, 2019. In focus on Wednesday was an amendment put forward by Conservative lawmaker and former attorney general Dominic Grieve who wants parliament to have a meaningful vote on any deal before it is finalised and for it to be written into law. "There is a time for everybody to stand up and be counted," Grieve told parliament earlier, criticising some fellow members of the Conservative Party for calling him a traitor over his decision to vote against the government. He dismissed a last-minute pledge by justice minister Dominic Raab for government to write the promise of a meaningful vote into law later on its journey through both houses of parliament as coming "too late". The government was "disappointed" by the vote, a spokeswoman said in a statement, adding that "this amendment does not prevent us from preparing our statute book for exit day". But with May due at an EU summit on Thursday to encourage the other 27 leaders to approve a move to the second phase of Brexit talks and begin a discussion about future trade, the defeat comes at a difficult time for the prime minister. In the European Parliament, which must also ratify any withdrawal treaty with Britain, its Brexit coordinator cheekily tweeted that his British counterparts had "taken back control" - a reference to the catchphrase of pro-Brexit campaigners. "A good day for democracy," added Guy Verhofstadt. DEEP DIVISIONS The EU withdrawal bill has been the focus of seven days of often bitter debate, underscoring the deep divisions over Brexit not only among the Conservatives but also in the main opposition Labour Party and across the country. It has also highlighted May's weakness. In June, she gambled on a snap election to strengthen her party's majority in the 650-seat parliament but instead bungled her campaign and ended up with a minority government propped up by the 10 votes of a small, pro-Brexit Northern Irish party. Since then she has struggled to assert her authority over a Conservative Party which is deeply divided over the best route out of the EU. "This defeat is a humiliating loss of authority for the government on the eve of the European Council meeting," Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said in a statement. "Theresa May has resisted democratic accountability. Her refusal to listen means she will now have to accept Parliament taking back control." Earlier, May had tried to persuade lawmakers to vote with the government for her Brexit blueprint, saying Grieve's amendment would put added time pressure on a government which wants to make Britain ready to leave the EU in March 2019. "That could be at a very late stage in the proceedings which could mean that we are not able to have the orderly and smooth exit from the European Union that we wish to have," she told parliament before an hours-long debate on the exit plan. Her spokesman said the government had "in good faith come forward with a strong package of concessions to deal with the spirit of the amendment". Pro-Brexit lawmakers fear the amendment could force Britain to weaken its negotiating stance by offering parliament the opportunity of forcing ministers back to the negotiating table if it feels any final deal is not good enough. Raab said that could convince the EU that Britain would not walk away from a bad deal. "Actually if that looked likely we'd end up with worse terms, and we'd be positively incentivising the EU to give us worse terms," he told parliament.

Britain's Theresa May defeated in parliament over Brexit blueprint

EU President Donald Tusk warned that talks on a post-Brexit trade deal and transition period would be even more difficult than a hard-won agreement on divorce terms that was sealed on Friday.

&quot;Let us remember that the most difficult challenge is still ahead. We all know that breaking up is hard but breaking up and building a new relation is much harder,&quot; Tusk said.

Issuing guidelines for the talks ahead, Tusk said Britain will have to follow all EU laws, including new ones, during the two-year transition period London has requested to reassure businesses.

He said it must also respect budgetary commitments and judicial oversight during a transition in which the remaining 27 European Union member countries continue to meet and make decisions without Britain.

In a sign of the challenges ahead, the former Polish premier said: &quot;We need more clarity on how the UK sees our future relation after it has left the single market.&quot;&nbsp;

He warned that time was of the essence before Britain&#39;s scheduled withdrawal from the bloc on 29 March 2019.

&quot;So much time has been devoted to the easiest part of the task. Now to negotiate a transitional arrangement and the framework for our future relationship we have de facto less than a year,&quot; he said.

The first phase of negotiations began 29 June, about a year after Britain&#39;s shock vote to leave the bloc, and finally wrapped up when British Prime Minister Theresa May rushed to Brussels early Friday.&nbsp;

The European Commission, the EU executive, said it &quot;recommends sufficient progress&quot; had been made by Britain on separation issues including the Irish border, Britain&#39;s divorce bill, and citizens rights.

The agreement paves the way for EU leaders at a summit on December 14-15 to open the second phase of Brexit negotiations, covering trade talks and a transition period.

Britain voted in June 2016 to become the first state to leave the EU, after more than four decades of membership, but the talks have been slow moving and often acrimonious so far.

'So much time has been devoted to the easiest part of the task. Now to negotiate a transitional arrangement and the framework for our future relationship we have de facto less than a year,' Donald Tusk said

EU President Donald Tusk warned that talks on a post-Brexit trade deal and transition period would be even more difficult than a hard-won agreement on divorce terms that was sealed on Friday. "Let us remember that the most difficult challenge is still ahead. We all know that breaking up is hard but breaking up and building a new relation is much harder," Tusk said. Issuing guidelines for the talks ahead, Tusk said Britain will have to follow all EU laws, including new ones, during the two-year transition period London has requested to reassure businesses. He said it must also respect budgetary commitments and judicial oversight during a transition in which the remaining 27 European Union member countries continue to meet and make decisions without Britain. In a sign of the challenges ahead, the former Polish premier said: "We need more clarity on how the UK sees our future relation after it has left the single market." He warned that time was of the essence before Britain's scheduled withdrawal from the bloc on 29 March 2019. "So much time has been devoted to the easiest part of the task. Now to negotiate a transitional arrangement and the framework for our future relationship we have de facto less than a year," he said. The first phase of negotiations began 29 June, about a year after Britain's shock vote to leave the bloc, and finally wrapped up when British Prime Minister Theresa May rushed to Brussels early Friday. The European Commission, the EU executive, said it "recommends sufficient progress" had been made by Britain on separation issues including the Irish border, Britain's divorce bill, and citizens rights. The agreement paves the way for EU leaders at a summit on December 14-15 to open the second phase of Brexit negotiations, covering trade talks and a transition period. Britain voted in June 2016 to become the first state to leave the EU, after more than four decades of membership, but the talks have been slow moving and often acrimonious so far.

EU's Tusk says 'most difficult challenge' ahead in Brexit talks

The European Commission said on Friday enough progress had been made in Brexit negotiations with Britain to allow a second phase of talks on future relations to begin, ending an impasse over the status of the Irish border.

The Commission gave its verdict in a statement after intense talks, which resulted in British Prime Minister Theresa May taking an early-morning flight to Brussels to announce the deal alongside Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

The Commission&#39;s recommendation that sufficient progress has been made will now go to the European Union summit of leaders taking place next week.&nbsp;

&quot;Prime Minister May has assured me that it has the backing of the UK government. On that basis, I believe we have now made the breakthrough we need. Today&#39;s result is, of course, a compromise,&quot; Juncker told a hastily-arranged news conference.

May said she expected a formal agreement to be approved at the summit, which begins on December 14.

&quot;I also look forward to next week&#39;s European Council meeting, where I hope and expect we will be able to get the endorsement of the 27 (member countries) to what is a hard-won agreement in all our interests,&quot; May said.

The commission said it was ready to begin work immediately on phase two talks, which cover a transitional exit period, trade and long-term relations with the bloc.

Moving to talks about trade and a Brexit transition is crucial for the future of May&#39;s premiership, and to keep trade flowing between the world&#39;s biggest trading bloc and its sixth- largest national economy after Britain leaves on March 30, 2019.

May&#39;s key parliamentary ally in Northern Ireland gave a cautious endorsement of the new terms, four days after 11th-hour objections from Belfast scuppered May&#39;s attempt to sign off on an accord over the Irish border during a lunch in Brussels on Monday.

Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said the border agreement meant there was no way Brexit could lead to a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland - what will become the only land frontier between Britain and the EU after Brexit.

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Will be on <a href="https://twitter.com/morningireland?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@morningireland</a> shortly to explain and outline detail of Irish assurances on Brexit deal - very good outcome for everyone on the island of Ireland - no Hard Border guaranteed!
&mdash; Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) <a href="https://twitter.com/simoncoveney/status/939026242304540672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 8, 2017</a></blockquote>
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&quot;Very good outcome for everyone on the island of Ireland - no Hard Border guaranteed!,&quot; Coveney said on Twitter.

In the text, Britain agreed that should London and Brussels fail to agree a final Brexit deal, the United Kingdom will maintain &quot;full alignment&quot; with those rules of the internal market and customs union that help to protect north-south cooperation in Ireland.&nbsp;

It said in the absence of a trade deal, no new barriers would develop between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom unless the devolved government in Northern Ireland agree that distinct arrangements are appropriate.&nbsp;

&quot;In all circumstances, the United Kingdom will continue to ensure the same unfettered access for Northern Ireland&#39;s businesses to the whole of the United Kingdom internal market,&quot; it said.

The commission said it was ready to begin work immediately on phase two talks, which cover a transitional exit period, trade and long-term relations with the bloc

The European Commission said on Friday enough progress had been made in Brexit negotiations with Britain to allow a second phase of talks on future relations to begin, ending an impasse over the status of the Irish border. The Commission gave its verdict in a statement after intense talks, which resulted in British Prime Minister Theresa May taking an early-morning flight to Brussels to announce the deal alongside Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. The Commission's recommendation that sufficient progress has been made will now go to the European Union summit of leaders taking place next week. "Prime Minister May has assured me that it has the backing of the UK government. On that basis, I believe we have now made the breakthrough we need. Today's result is, of course, a compromise," Juncker told a hastily-arranged news conference. May said she expected a formal agreement to be approved at the summit, which begins on December 14. "I also look forward to next week's European Council meeting, where I hope and expect we will be able to get the endorsement of the 27 (member countries) to what is a hard-won agreement in all our interests," May said. The commission said it was ready to begin work immediately on phase two talks, which cover a transitional exit period, trade and long-term relations with the bloc. Moving to talks about trade and a Brexit transition is crucial for the future of May's premiership, and to keep trade flowing between the world's biggest trading bloc and its sixth- largest national economy after Britain leaves on March 30, 2019. May's key parliamentary ally in Northern Ireland gave a cautious endorsement of the new terms, four days after 11th-hour objections from Belfast scuppered May's attempt to sign off on an accord over the Irish border during a lunch in Brussels on Monday. Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said the border agreement meant there was no way Brexit could lead to a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland - what will become the only land frontier between Britain and the EU after Brexit. Will be on @morningireland shortly to explain and outline detail of Irish assurances on Brexit deal - very good outcome for everyone on the island of Ireland - no Hard Border guaranteed! — Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) December 8, 2017 × "Very good outcome for everyone on the island of Ireland - no Hard Border guaranteed!," Coveney said on Twitter. In the text, Britain agreed that should London and Brussels fail to agree a final Brexit deal, the United Kingdom will maintain "full alignment" with those rules of the internal market and customs union that help to protect north-south cooperation in Ireland. It said in the absence of a trade deal, no new barriers would develop between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom unless the devolved government in Northern Ireland agree that distinct arrangements are appropriate. "In all circumstances, the United Kingdom will continue to ensure the same unfettered access for Northern Ireland's businesses to the whole of the United Kingdom internal market," it said.

Britain and EU clinch deal to move Brexit talks forward

The United Kingdom and Ireland could reach agreement in hours on how to run their post-Brexit Irish land border, paving the way for a deal that would remove the last obstacle to opening free trade talks with the European Union.

A carefully choreographed attempt to showcase the progress of Brexit talks collapsed at the last minute on December 4 when the Northern Irish party which props up Prime Minister Theresa May&#39;s government vetoed a draft deal already agreed with Ireland.

Since then, May has been scrambling to clinch a deal on the new UK-EU land border in Ireland that is acceptable to the European Union, Dublin, her own lawmakers and Northern Ireland&#39;s Democratic Unionist Party, which keeps her government in power.

May and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker could meet early on Friday to seal a border deal, the European Commission&#39;s chief spokesman said.

&quot;We are making progress but not yet fully there,&quot; Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said. &quot;Talks are continuing throughout the night. Early morning meeting possible.&quot;

A spokesman for PM May said Brexit discussions were ongoing while a senior Irish official that talks were moving swiftly and that a deal was possible in hours.

&quot;It is moving quite quickly at the moment,&quot; the Irish official told a British Irish Chamber of Commerce event in Brussels. &quot;I think we are going to work over the next couple of hours with the UK government to close this off. I say hours because I think we are very close.&quot;

Moving to talks about trade and a Brexit transition is crucial for the future of May&#39;s premiership, and to keep trade flowing between the world&rsquo;s biggest trading bloc and it&#39;s sixth largest national economy after Britain leaves on March 29, 2019.

But the EU will only move to trade talks if there is enough progress on three key issues: the money Britain must pay to the EU; rights for EU citizens in Britain and British citizens in the EU; and how to avoid a hard border with Ireland.

Brexit deal?

As speculation swirled about whether London, Dublin and Brussels were about to clinch a border deal, European Council President Donald Tusk&#39;s office said he would brief reporters at 0650 GMT on Friday before departing for Hungary.

The EU says May has an effective deadline of Sunday night if she wants to seal a deal and hope to have agreement on trade talks in time for the EU summit on Dec. 14-15.

All sides say they want to avoid a return to a hard border between EU member Ireland and the British-ruled province of Northern Ireland, which might upset the peace established after decades of violence.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) insists that Northern Ireland, as part of the United Kingdom, must leave the EU in the same way as the rest of the United Kingdom.

To clinch a deal, though, May must ensure she has the support of the DUP, whose leader told her bluntly on Monday that it would not support her minority government&#39;s legislation unless the Irish border draft deal was changed.

She must also convince her divided Conservative Party that the deal she makes is acceptable.

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, a leader of the Brexit campaign, insisted the whole of the United Kingdom must &quot;take back control&quot; when it left the EU.

&quot;Whatever way we devise for getting onto the body of the (Brexit) talks, it&#39;s got to be consistent with the whole of the United Kingdom taking back control of our laws, of our borders and of our cash,&quot; Johnson told reporters.

The United Kingdom and Ireland could reach agreement in hours on how to run their post-Brexit Irish land border, paving the way for a deal that would remove the last obstacle to opening free trade talks with the European Union

The United Kingdom and Ireland could reach agreement in hours on how to run their post-Brexit Irish land border, paving the way for a deal that would remove the last obstacle to opening free trade talks with the European Union. A carefully choreographed attempt to showcase the progress of Brexit talks collapsed at the last minute on December 4 when the Northern Irish party which props up Prime Minister Theresa May's government vetoed a draft deal already agreed with Ireland. Since then, May has been scrambling to clinch a deal on the new UK-EU land border in Ireland that is acceptable to the European Union, Dublin, her own lawmakers and Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party, which keeps her government in power. May and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker could meet early on Friday to seal a border deal, the European Commission's chief spokesman said. "We are making progress but not yet fully there," Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said. "Talks are continuing throughout the night. Early morning meeting possible." A spokesman for PM May said Brexit discussions were ongoing while a senior Irish official that talks were moving swiftly and that a deal was possible in hours. "It is moving quite quickly at the moment," the Irish official told a British Irish Chamber of Commerce event in Brussels. "I think we are going to work over the next couple of hours with the UK government to close this off. I say hours because I think we are very close." Moving to talks about trade and a Brexit transition is crucial for the future of May's premiership, and to keep trade flowing between the world’s biggest trading bloc and it's sixth largest national economy after Britain leaves on March 29, 2019. But the EU will only move to trade talks if there is enough progress on three key issues: the money Britain must pay to the EU; rights for EU citizens in Britain and British citizens in the EU; and how to avoid a hard border with Ireland. Brexit deal? As speculation swirled about whether London, Dublin and Brussels were about to clinch a border deal, European Council President Donald Tusk's office said he would brief reporters at 0650 GMT on Friday before departing for Hungary. The EU says May has an effective deadline of Sunday night if she wants to seal a deal and hope to have agreement on trade talks in time for the EU summit on Dec. 14-15. All sides say they want to avoid a return to a hard border between EU member Ireland and the British-ruled province of Northern Ireland, which might upset the peace established after decades of violence. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) insists that Northern Ireland, as part of the United Kingdom, must leave the EU in the same way as the rest of the United Kingdom. To clinch a deal, though, May must ensure she has the support of the DUP, whose leader told her bluntly on Monday that it would not support her minority government's legislation unless the Irish border draft deal was changed. She must also convince her divided Conservative Party that the deal she makes is acceptable. British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, a leader of the Brexit campaign, insisted the whole of the United Kingdom must "take back control" when it left the EU. "Whatever way we devise for getting onto the body of the (Brexit) talks, it's got to be consistent with the whole of the United Kingdom taking back control of our laws, of our borders and of our cash," Johnson told reporters.

Brexit border deal possible in 'hours' as talks go down to the wire

Big companies are stepping up their plans in case Britain crashes out of the European Union without a deal as Prime Minister Theresa May struggles to get talks back on track after a major setback.&nbsp;

Britain is aiming to agree with the EU on December 14 to move the Brexit talks on to the second phase. This would focus on trade and a two-year transition deal to smooth the departure after March 2019. But the timetable has been thrown into doubt after discussions broke down in Brussels on Monday.&nbsp;

Senior executives in the financial services sector, which accounts for about 12 percent of the economy, told Reuters May&#39;s efforts to secure a transition deal had come too late and they had no choice but to start restructuring.&nbsp;Big supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury&#39;s have been working with suppliers to identify potential delays, shortages or price rises. They have lined up alternative providers, according to suppliers and sources in the industry.

The uncertainty is particularly painful for the manufacturing sector as low margins make it risky for them to restructure unless it is essential. They have been holding off on investment but are preparing for new certification that would allow them to sell in Europe if there is no deal.&nbsp;&quot;The delay is so great and the uncertainty is so great that companies have no choice but to start triggering their plans,&quot; the head of one of Britain`s largest companies said.

Britain and the EU are working to get talks back on track this week but the chairman of one large international bank said its executives had decided to plan for the worst at a conference call on Tuesday.&nbsp;&quot;The question is no longer whether we are moving (operations to the EU), it is a question of how big those moves are going to be&quot; he said.&nbsp;Like other executives, he had been asked by his board and the government not to divulge their&nbsp;thinking.&nbsp;

The chairman said the bank has started discussions with customers about rerouting client activity to European hubs, including rewriting thousands of contracts.&nbsp;Senior employees were told last month if they had to relocate to Europe, he said.&nbsp;

Another senior executive at a large U.S. bank said that he was increasingly concerned that May&#39;s government could collapse after the Brussels talks broke down over a dispute over the Irish border, adding to the uncertainty. &quot;We are at the maximum point of danger,&quot; he said.

The financial sector needs extra time to make sure its clients are prepared. For instance, a British bank opening a subsidiary in Europe may need its clients to adopt a new sort code throughout their own supply chains.&nbsp;In other sectors, companies are making smaller changes that would enable them to operate in Europe after Brexit, from preparing compliance changes to drawing up shadow supply chains and looking for additional warehouse space.&nbsp;

Fruit and beef&nbsp;

Food retailers are lining up alternative suppliers in Britain or outside the EU in case of delays at borders or new tariffs disrupt deliveries. Around 30 percent of Britain`s food and drink comes from the EU.&nbsp;Some changes would need to be made early next year in time for the 2019 departure. Changing a fresh fruit supplier could require a lead time of a year, depending on the growing cycle.&nbsp;

Ali Capper, a partner in Stocks Farm in Worcestershire, central England, and a chair of the Horticulture and Potatoes Board at the National Farmers Union, said there were signs retail customers were requesting more British produce.&nbsp;Ireland provides almost 70 percent of UK beef imports, or 270,000 tonnes a year. Were tariffs or border delays to make Irish beef less competitive, supermarkets could look further afield, for instance to Argentina.&nbsp;

Manufacturing pressure

Many manufacturers are unwilling to sign off on new plans until they know how Britain will trade in the future.&nbsp;The drugs sector has been among the first to move so they can comply with EU regulations. GSK and AstraZeneca have already set up new facilities in mainland Europe to test batches of drugs made in Britain.&nbsp;Autos and aerospace firms are focusing on certification. According to the aerospace and defense trade body, ADS, some companies are considering applying to the European Aviation Safety Agency for a status that would enable them to sell in the EU if Britain was no longer a member state.&nbsp;

Japanese carmaker Honda, which builds around 8 percent of British cars at its plant in Swindon, is considering increasing its warehouse capacity in Britain and stock levels to counter any new border delays.&nbsp;Manufacturers reluctance to sign off on big plans has had a knock-on effect on companies in the supply chain.&nbsp;

&quot;The biggest impact we see is a general unwillingness to make investment and capacity decisions as result of the continued uncertainty,&quot; said Stephen Cheetham, owner of PK Engineering Ltd of Hereford, a supplier of components to the aerospace and scientific industries.&nbsp;&quot;We would expect continued paralysis and short-termism until a trade deal is finalized,&quot; he told Reuters.&nbsp;

Having a transition deal will allow businesses to survive the two years after Brexit by allowing them to defer any big decisions until the final parameters of Brexit are worked out, said Andrew Bonfield, finance director of National Grid and chairman of the 100 Group of finance chiefs.&nbsp;&quot;It&#39;s about the avoidance of a cliff edge,&quot; he said.

Banks, food retailers, drug manufacturers, and car makers are preparing for disorderly Brexit.

Big companies are stepping up their plans in case Britain crashes out of the European Union without a deal as Prime Minister Theresa May struggles to get talks back on track after a major setback. Britain is aiming to agree with the EU on December 14 to move the Brexit talks on to the second phase. This would focus on trade and a two-year transition deal to smooth the departure after March 2019. But the timetable has been thrown into doubt after discussions broke down in Brussels on Monday. Senior executives in the financial services sector, which accounts for about 12 percent of the economy, told Reuters May's efforts to secure a transition deal had come too late and they had no choice but to start restructuring. Big supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury's have been working with suppliers to identify potential delays, shortages or price rises. They have lined up alternative providers, according to suppliers and sources in the industry. The uncertainty is particularly painful for the manufacturing sector as low margins make it risky for them to restructure unless it is essential. They have been holding off on investment but are preparing for new certification that would allow them to sell in Europe if there is no deal. "The delay is so great and the uncertainty is so great that companies have no choice but to start triggering their plans," the head of one of Britain`s largest companies said. Britain and the EU are working to get talks back on track this week but the chairman of one large international bank said its executives had decided to plan for the worst at a conference call on Tuesday. "The question is no longer whether we are moving (operations to the EU), it is a question of how big those moves are going to be" he said. Like other executives, he had been asked by his board and the government not to divulge their thinking. The chairman said the bank has started discussions with customers about rerouting client activity to European hubs, including rewriting thousands of contracts. Senior employees were told last month if they had to relocate to Europe, he said. Another senior executive at a large U.S. bank said that he was increasingly concerned that May's government could collapse after the Brussels talks broke down over a dispute over the Irish border, adding to the uncertainty. "We are at the maximum point of danger," he said. The financial sector needs extra time to make sure its clients are prepared. For instance, a British bank opening a subsidiary in Europe may need its clients to adopt a new sort code throughout their own supply chains. In other sectors, companies are making smaller changes that would enable them to operate in Europe after Brexit, from preparing compliance changes to drawing up shadow supply chains and looking for additional warehouse space. Fruit and beef Food retailers are lining up alternative suppliers in Britain or outside the EU in case of delays at borders or new tariffs disrupt deliveries. Around 30 percent of Britain`s food and drink comes from the EU. Some changes would need to be made early next year in time for the 2019 departure. Changing a fresh fruit supplier could require a lead time of a year, depending on the growing cycle. Ali Capper, a partner in Stocks Farm in Worcestershire, central England, and a chair of the Horticulture and Potatoes Board at the National Farmers Union, said there were signs retail customers were requesting more British produce. Ireland provides almost 70 percent of UK beef imports, or 270,000 tonnes a year. Were tariffs or border delays to make Irish beef less competitive, supermarkets could look further afield, for instance to Argentina. Manufacturing pressure Many manufacturers are unwilling to sign off on new plans until they know how Britain will trade in the future. The drugs sector has been among the first to move so they can comply with EU regulations. GSK and AstraZeneca have already set up new facilities in mainland Europe to test batches of drugs made in Britain. Autos and aerospace firms are focusing on certification. According to the aerospace and defense trade body, ADS, some companies are considering applying to the European Aviation Safety Agency for a status that would enable them to sell in the EU if Britain was no longer a member state. Japanese carmaker Honda, which builds around 8 percent of British cars at its plant in Swindon, is considering increasing its warehouse capacity in Britain and stock levels to counter any new border delays. Manufacturers reluctance to sign off on big plans has had a knock-on effect on companies in the supply chain. "The biggest impact we see is a general unwillingness to make investment and capacity decisions as result of the continued uncertainty," said Stephen Cheetham, owner of PK Engineering Ltd of Hereford, a supplier of components to the aerospace and scientific industries. "We would expect continued paralysis and short-termism until a trade deal is finalized," he told Reuters. Having a transition deal will allow businesses to survive the two years after Brexit by allowing them to defer any big decisions until the final parameters of Brexit are worked out, said Andrew Bonfield, finance director of National Grid and chairman of the 100 Group of finance chiefs. "It's about the avoidance of a cliff edge," he said.

Companies prepare for disorderly Brexit as talks stall

A British woman who was wrongly tagged by US President Donald Trump on Twitter mistaking her for UK Prime Minister Theresa May, has sought an apology from the White House,&nbsp;

Theresa May Scrivener, a housewife, said she has been unable to leave her home.

Scrivener, who lives in the coastal town of Bognor in West Sussex, used her middle name when she set up her Twitter handle @TheresaMay in 2009.

Trump tagged that handle instead of the British Prime Minister&#39;s handle before deleting the message to send it to the correct handle: &quot;@Theresa_May don&#39;t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine!&quot;.

Trump&#39;s tweet was a response to the British Prime Minister&#39;s rebuke that the US President was &quot;wrong&quot; to re-tweet controversial anti-Muslim videos posted by British far-right group Britain First.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/theresa_may?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Theresa_May</a>, don&rsquo;t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/936037588372283392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&quot;It&#39;s amazing to think that the world&#39;s most powerful man managed to press the wrong button. I&#39;m just waiting for a call from the White House with an apology,&quot; said Scrivener, who has been bombarded by messages from contrite Americans apologising for their President.

&quot;I haven&#39;t been able to leave my house. I&#39;ve been bombarded and been contacted by press from around the world... I&#39;m just glad he was not contacting me to say he was going to war with North Korea,&quot; the 41-year-old said.

Scrivener, whose Twitter account has just six followers compared with Prime Minister May&#39;s 427,000, has said she has no plans of changing her social media account name.

&quot;He [Trump] needs to think before he tweets. We - Theresa May and I - are so different. Our profiles are completely different. She runs the country, I&#39;m a mum from Bognor,&quot; she said, refusing to be drawn any further into the controversy over the content of Us President&#39;s tweets.

Trump&#39;s re-tweet of three videos first posted by Jayda Fransen, the deputy leader of Britain First, has created a major uproar in the UK.

Several MPs have demanded that a state visit invitation, extended to the US President on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II, be withdrawn in protest.&nbsp;

Scrivener, who lives in the coastal town of Bognor in West Sussex, used her middle name when she set up her Twitter handle @TheresaMay in 2009.

A British woman who was wrongly tagged by US President Donald Trump on Twitter mistaking her for UK Prime Minister Theresa May, has sought an apology from the White House, Theresa May Scrivener, a housewife, said she has been unable to leave her home. Scrivener, who lives in the coastal town of Bognor in West Sussex, used her middle name when she set up her Twitter handle @TheresaMay in 2009. Trump tagged that handle instead of the British Prime Minister's handle before deleting the message to send it to the correct handle: "@Theresa_May don't focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine!". Trump's tweet was a response to the British Prime Minister's rebuke that the US President was "wrong" to re-tweet controversial anti-Muslim videos posted by British far-right group Britain First. .@Theresa_May, don’t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 30, 2017 × "It's amazing to think that the world's most powerful man managed to press the wrong button. I'm just waiting for a call from the White House with an apology," said Scrivener, who has been bombarded by messages from contrite Americans apologising for their President. "I haven't been able to leave my house. I've been bombarded and been contacted by press from around the world... I'm just glad he was not contacting me to say he was going to war with North Korea," the 41-year-old said. Scrivener, whose Twitter account has just six followers compared with Prime Minister May's 427,000, has said she has no plans of changing her social media account name. "He [Trump] needs to think before he tweets. We - Theresa May and I - are so different. Our profiles are completely different. She runs the country, I'm a mum from Bognor," she said, refusing to be drawn any further into the controversy over the content of Us President's tweets. Trump's re-tweet of three videos first posted by Jayda Fransen, the deputy leader of Britain First, has created a major uproar in the UK. Several MPs have demanded that a state visit invitation, extended to the US President on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II, be withdrawn in protest.

Wrong 'Theresa May' tagged by Trump on Twitter demands apology

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/us-warns-north-korean-leadership-will-be-utterly-destroyed-in-case-of-war-25470" target="_blank">US</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/us-warns-north-korean-leadership-will-be-utterly-destroyed-in-case-of-war-25470" target="_blank"> warns North Korean leadership will be &#39;utterly destroyed&#39; if war breaks out</a>

The United States warned the North Korean leadership that it would be &quot;utterly destroyed&quot; if war were to break out, after Pyongyang test-fired its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile, putting the US mainland within range.&nbsp;

 
<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/now-assams-brahmaputra-river-also-turns-black-report-25476" target="_blank">Now, Assam&#39;s Brahmaputra river also turns black: Report</a>

After reports that the colour of the water of the river Siang in Arunachal Pradesh turned black, comes a report that the water downstream of the river Brahmaputra in Assam has changed to black as well.

 
<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/trump-attacks-british-pm-may-after-she-criticises-his-retweeting-of-anti-islam-videos-25473" target="_blank">Trump attacks British PM May after she criticises his retweeting of anti-Islam videos</a>

Donald Trump hit back publicly at British Prime Minister Theresa May after she criticised his retweeting of anti-Islam videos.&nbsp;

 
<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/bosnian-croat-war-crimes-convict-dies-after-taking-poison-in-court-report-25472" target="_blank">Bosnian-Croat war crimes convict dies after taking &#39;poison&#39; in court: Report</a>

A Bosnian Croat wartime commander died after swallowing what he said was poison in a UN war crimes courtroom on Wednesday after losing an appeal against a 20-year prison sentence, Croatian state TV said.

 
<a href="http://www.wionews.com/football/epl-league-leaders-manchester-city-win-chasers-keep-chasing-25474" target="_blank">EPL: League leaders Manchester City win, chasers keep chasing</a>

With Manchester United having cut the gap with league leaders Manchester City to five points and Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool winning, any City stutter would have been cause for celebration. But Pep Guardiola&#39;s side thundered on with a club record 12th successive league victory.

US warns North Korean leadership will be 'utterly destroyed' if war breaks out The United States warned the North Korean leadership that it would be "utterly destroyed" if war were to break out, after Pyongyang test-fired its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile, putting the US mainland within range. Now, Assam's Brahmaputra river also turns black: Report After reports that the colour of the water of the river Siang in Arunachal Pradesh turned black, comes a report that the water downstream of the river Brahmaputra in Assam has changed to black as well. Trump attacks British PM May after she criticises his retweeting of anti-Islam videos Donald Trump hit back publicly at British Prime Minister Theresa May after she criticised his retweeting of anti-Islam videos. Bosnian-Croat war crimes convict dies after taking 'poison' in court: Report A Bosnian Croat wartime commander died after swallowing what he said was poison in a UN war crimes courtroom on Wednesday after losing an appeal against a 20-year prison sentence, Croatian state TV said. EPL: League leaders Manchester City win, chasers keep chasing With Manchester United having cut the gap with league leaders Manchester City to five points and Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool winning, any City stutter would have been cause for celebration. But Pep Guardiola's side thundered on with a club record 12th successive league victory.

WION morning news brief, November 30, 2017

Priti Patel&rsquo;s ignominious departure from the UK cabinet after it emerged that she had held undeclared meetings with Israeli officials during a personal holiday exposes many flaws in her conduct. The commentariat tells us she showed a lack of judgement, a lack of awareness of due process and a willingness to conduct what, in effect, was her own foreign policy.

One word that hasn&rsquo;t come up so frequently is &ldquo;corruption&rdquo;. That&rsquo;s in many ways understandable. Corruption is generally understood in transactional terms with four key parts. An act is understood as corrupt if there is a (i) deliberate attempt (ii) to abuse (iii) entrusted power (iv) for some sort of private gain. Corruption is normally regarded as a process rather than an outcome and acts that tick all of those boxes are subsequently judged as such. That all of those terms can and do require some sort of external judgement to be made ensures that we can&rsquo;t talk about objective realities. We do, however, have a decent starting point for making sense of a complex world.

This understanding of corruption is, however, relatively new. Indeed, it&rsquo;s only in the past few decades that corruption has been understood in this form. Yet corruption has, of course, been around for as long as humans have sought to organise themselves. Aristotle, for example, argued corruption is a symbol of the dysfunctionality of states that have moved away from their &ldquo;pure&rdquo; state of being. For Aristotle and a number of his contemporaries, corruption has a clear moral dimension and that moral core is the very essence of corruption, leading inevitably to decay, degradation and ultimately state failure.

Why Rome fell

A similar logic has been used by historians such as Ramsay McMullen when they argue that the ever-deepening problem of corruption is the primary reason the Roman Empire fell.

MacMullen&rsquo;s thesis is straightforward and well documented: Corruption led successive governments to concentrate more on the need to generate private gains (of whatever sort) for themselves and their supporters, and less on the demands of running a large and complex empire. The moral core that characterised much of the thinking of Rome&rsquo;s founders had withered away over time; subsequent Roman leaders not only lost control of the government, but the government lost sight of what it existed to do. Even when it became apparent that corruption was at the core of the administration&rsquo;s work, attempts at reform came too late. Like cancer, corruption had penetrated too many parts of the public ethos.

The fall of Rome was also pivotal in Montesquieu&rsquo;s thinking on corruption (and state failure). He explained in detail how the virtuous thinking of Rome&rsquo;s founders helped it become an empire, but how the corruption of Rome&rsquo;s moral fibre ultimately brought the empire down. For Montesquieu and MacMullen, as well as many others, corruption was at the very core of Rome&rsquo;s descent into dissolution.

A question of morals

Corruption, no matter how it is defined, certainly has a moral dimension to it. That remains so regardless of the fact that many would prefer to couch their analysis, and, indeed, their prescriptions, in the language of rationality, interests, costs and benefits.

Much of the recent work on corruption &ndash; produced largely by those with the economist&rsquo;s mindset &ndash; has purposefully avoided the moral minefield and instead aspired to embrace some sort of objective understanding of corruption. That&rsquo;s ultimately unlikely to be a fruitful way forward in terms of actually fighting corruption in practice; morals drive understandings of what&rsquo;s appropriate and ignoring them doesn&rsquo;t mean that they simply go away.

Bringing issues of morality back into our analysis subsequently helps us comprehend much more about what we understand corruption to be as well as how (and, indeed, whether) we go about tackling it. The moral dimension to the corruption challenge, therefore, cannot be an optional extra.

It&rsquo;s with that in mind that the behaviour of Priti Patel is so interesting. There is little evidence to suggest that she might be guilty of corruption in the modern understanding of the term, but she certainly did do things that corruption analysts of yesteryear would recognise as falling into that category. At a push, one could certainly argue she broke the ministerial code and that&rsquo;s clearly a process violation. But it is really by looking at broader normative issues of what&rsquo;s right, why it&rsquo;s right and how we can recognise it as such do we really see why behaviour such as Patel&rsquo;s can be so corrosive.

Rome ultimately didn&rsquo;t fall because of the specific acts of one person. Rome&rsquo;s problems escalated over time as the moral core that characterised the thinking of Rome&rsquo;s founders ceased to shape their decision-making. Theresa May is hardly Romulus Augustus, but a government that neglects the importance of moral leadership is in dangerous waters. If nothing else, Priti Patel&rsquo;s resignation should give us reason to ponder the ramifications of that.

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/priti-patel-ancient-rome-and-moral-leadership-87206" rel="nofollow" target="blank">original article</a>.

Prime Minister Theresa May could not have ignored the moral implication of Priti Patel's act

Priti Patel’s ignominious departure from the UK cabinet after it emerged that she had held undeclared meetings with Israeli officials during a personal holiday exposes many flaws in her conduct. The commentariat tells us she showed a lack of judgement, a lack of awareness of due process and a willingness to conduct what, in effect, was her own foreign policy. One word that hasn’t come up so frequently is “corruption”. That’s in many ways understandable. Corruption is generally understood in transactional terms with four key parts. An act is understood as corrupt if there is a (i) deliberate attempt (ii) to abuse (iii) entrusted power (iv) for some sort of private gain. Corruption is normally regarded as a process rather than an outcome and acts that tick all of those boxes are subsequently judged as such. That all of those terms can and do require some sort of external judgement to be made ensures that we can’t talk about objective realities. We do, however, have a decent starting point for making sense of a complex world. This understanding of corruption is, however, relatively new. Indeed, it’s only in the past few decades that corruption has been understood in this form. Yet corruption has, of course, been around for as long as humans have sought to organise themselves. Aristotle, for example, argued corruption is a symbol of the dysfunctionality of states that have moved away from their “pure” state of being. For Aristotle and a number of his contemporaries, corruption has a clear moral dimension and that moral core is the very essence of corruption, leading inevitably to decay, degradation and ultimately state failure. Why Rome fell A similar logic has been used by historians such as Ramsay McMullen when they argue that the ever-deepening problem of corruption is the primary reason the Roman Empire fell. MacMullen’s thesis is straightforward and well documented: Corruption led successive governments to concentrate more on the need to generate private gains (of whatever sort) for themselves and their supporters, and less on the demands of running a large and complex empire. The moral core that characterised much of the thinking of Rome’s founders had withered away over time; subsequent Roman leaders not only lost control of the government, but the government lost sight of what it existed to do. Even when it became apparent that corruption was at the core of the administration’s work, attempts at reform came too late. Like cancer, corruption had penetrated too many parts of the public ethos. The fall of Rome was also pivotal in Montesquieu’s thinking on corruption (and state failure). He explained in detail how the virtuous thinking of Rome’s founders helped it become an empire, but how the corruption of Rome’s moral fibre ultimately brought the empire down. For Montesquieu and MacMullen, as well as many others, corruption was at the very core of Rome’s descent into dissolution. A question of morals Corruption, no matter how it is defined, certainly has a moral dimension to it. That remains so regardless of the fact that many would prefer to couch their analysis, and, indeed, their prescriptions, in the language of rationality, interests, costs and benefits. Much of the recent work on corruption – produced largely by those with the economist’s mindset – has purposefully avoided the moral minefield and instead aspired to embrace some sort of objective understanding of corruption. That’s ultimately unlikely to be a fruitful way forward in terms of actually fighting corruption in practice; morals drive understandings of what’s appropriate and ignoring them doesn’t mean that they simply go away. Bringing issues of morality back into our analysis subsequently helps us comprehend much more about what we understand corruption to be as well as how (and, indeed, whether) we go about tackling it. The moral dimension to the corruption challenge, therefore, cannot be an optional extra. It’s with that in mind that the behaviour of Priti Patel is so interesting. There is little evidence to suggest that she might be guilty of corruption in the modern understanding of the term, but she certainly did do things that corruption analysts of yesteryear would recognise as falling into that category. At a push, one could certainly argue she broke the ministerial code and that’s clearly a process violation. But it is really by looking at broader normative issues of what’s right, why it’s right and how we can recognise it as such do we really see why behaviour such as Patel’s can be so corrosive. Rome ultimately didn’t fall because of the specific acts of one person. Rome’s problems escalated over time as the moral core that characterised the thinking of Rome’s founders ceased to shape their decision-making. Theresa May is hardly Romulus Augustus, but a government that neglects the importance of moral leadership is in dangerous waters. If nothing else, Priti Patel’s resignation should give us reason to ponder the ramifications of that. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Why Theresa May asked Priti Patel to quit

Gavin Williamson, a close aide of Prime Minister Theresa May, was today appointed as Britain&#39;s new defence secretary after his predecessor Michael Fellon resigned amid a deepening sexual harassment scandal engulfing UK parliamentarians. 
 
Fallon,65, resigned as defence secretary saying his conduct may have fallen below the high standards expected amid revelations that he had made unwanted advances towards a journalist years ago. 
 
He was replaced by 41-year-old Williamson, the MP for South Staffordshire, who has been responsible for exerting discipline over the prime minister&#39;s fractious parliamentary party since last year. 
 
Williamson was closely involved in negotiating the confidence and supply deal with the Democratic Unionist party that secured the parliamentary support May needed to govern in the aftermath of June&#39;s general election. 
 
&quot;A number of allegations have surfaced about MPs in recent days, including some about my previous conduct. Many of these have been false, but I accept in the past I have fallen below the high standards that we require of the armed forces that I have the honour to represent,&quot; Fallon said in his resignation letter to May. 
 
It remains unclear if it was the particular revelation of Fallon repeatedly placing his hand on the knee of journalist Julia Hartley-Brewer that triggered his decision to step down or there were other incidents involving an abuse of power that may have precipitated his departure. 
 
Hartley-Brewer, at the centre of the allegations that came to light earlier this week, has stressed that she did not see herself as a victim and that the incident had not &quot;remotely upset or distressed&quot; anyone. 
 
&quot;If this is over kneegate, him touching my knee 15 years ago and me not having any issue with it today, this is the most insane, absurd and ridiculous resignation of a Cabinet minister ever,&quot; she said. 
 
The British Prime Minister in her response to Fallon&#39;s resignation letter praised his &quot;diligent service&quot; and welcomed the &quot;particular example you wish to set to servicemen and women and others&quot;. 
 
Fallon, described as a Conservative party heavyweight and even tipped as a future Prime Minister, becomes the first victim of a deepening scandal over sexual misconduct in the corridors of political power in the UK. 
 
Williamson has been running the Tory whips&#39; office since being appointed chief whip by Theresa May in 2016. He has been replaced by Julian Smith, Tory MP for Skipton and Ripon, as chief whip of the Conservative party. 
 
While May moved quickly to appoint a new defence minister without the need for a very wide reshuffle, the position of another of her senior ministers, First Secretary of State Damian Green, remains precarious after disclosures by an academic and Conservative party activist Kate Maltby. 
 
He has categorically denied making unwanted sexual advances towards Maltby but remains under investigation by Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood on the orders of May. 
 
There are growing fears that Fallon&#39;s surprise resignation could trigger a freefall within government ranks and lead to more shake-ups. 
 
&quot;Parliament now has to look at itself and the Prime Minister has made very clear that conduct needs to be improved and we need to protect the staff of Westminster against any particular allegations of harassment,&quot; Fallon said soon after his resignation. 
 
His name had appeared on an unverified list of sexual misconduct, a so-called dirty dossier, circulating in Westminster. 
 
It has attracted a mixed response because it implicates MPs who have had consensual affairs with colleagues in the same space as more serious accusations of sexual abuse. 
 
The Prime Minister is struggling to contain the crisis and opened parliamentary proceedings yesterday with a statement on the issue, stressing that she had been holding a series of meetings to set up a &quot;common, transparent, independent&quot; grievance procedure. 
 
Indian-origin Opposition Labour MP Lisa Nandy challenged her in the House of Commons over her failure to act over sexual abuse cover-up she had informed her about three years ago when May was the UK home secretary. 
 
&quot;On three occasions, I asked her [Theresa May] to act and on three occasions she did not,&quot; Nandy claimed. 
 
May assured the House that she was determined to take firm action and is set to hold a meeting with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn early next week to address the issue across party lines. 
 
She has reportedly read the &quot;riot act&quot; to her Cabinet, warning them to ensure exemplary behaviour.

Gavin Williamson, a close aide of Prime Minister Theresa May, was today appointed as Britain's new defence secretary after his predecessor Michael Fellon resigned amid a deepening sexual harassment scandal engulfing UK parliamentarians.

Gavin Williamson, a close aide of Prime Minister Theresa May, was today appointed as Britain's new defence secretary after his predecessor Michael Fellon resigned amid a deepening sexual harassment scandal engulfing UK parliamentarians. Fallon,65, resigned as defence secretary saying his conduct may have fallen below the high standards expected amid revelations that he had made unwanted advances towards a journalist years ago. He was replaced by 41-year-old Williamson, the MP for South Staffordshire, who has been responsible for exerting discipline over the prime minister's fractious parliamentary party since last year. Williamson was closely involved in negotiating the confidence and supply deal with the Democratic Unionist party that secured the parliamentary support May needed to govern in the aftermath of June's general election. "A number of allegations have surfaced about MPs in recent days, including some about my previous conduct. Many of these have been false, but I accept in the past I have fallen below the high standards that we require of the armed forces that I have the honour to represent," Fallon said in his resignation letter to May. It remains unclear if it was the particular revelation of Fallon repeatedly placing his hand on the knee of journalist Julia Hartley-Brewer that triggered his decision to step down or there were other incidents involving an abuse of power that may have precipitated his departure. Hartley-Brewer, at the centre of the allegations that came to light earlier this week, has stressed that she did not see herself as a victim and that the incident had not "remotely upset or distressed" anyone. "If this is over kneegate, him touching my knee 15 years ago and me not having any issue with it today, this is the most insane, absurd and ridiculous resignation of a Cabinet minister ever," she said. The British Prime Minister in her response to Fallon's resignation letter praised his "diligent service" and welcomed the "particular example you wish to set to servicemen and women and others". Fallon, described as a Conservative party heavyweight and even tipped as a future Prime Minister, becomes the first victim of a deepening scandal over sexual misconduct in the corridors of political power in the UK. Williamson has been running the Tory whips' office since being appointed chief whip by Theresa May in 2016. He has been replaced by Julian Smith, Tory MP for Skipton and Ripon, as chief whip of the Conservative party. While May moved quickly to appoint a new defence minister without the need for a very wide reshuffle, the position of another of her senior ministers, First Secretary of State Damian Green, remains precarious after disclosures by an academic and Conservative party activist Kate Maltby. He has categorically denied making unwanted sexual advances towards Maltby but remains under investigation by Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood on the orders of May. There are growing fears that Fallon's surprise resignation could trigger a freefall within government ranks and lead to more shake-ups. "Parliament now has to look at itself and the Prime Minister has made very clear that conduct needs to be improved and we need to protect the staff of Westminster against any particular allegations of harassment," Fallon said soon after his resignation. His name had appeared on an unverified list of sexual misconduct, a so-called dirty dossier, circulating in Westminster. It has attracted a mixed response because it implicates MPs who have had consensual affairs with colleagues in the same space as more serious accusations of sexual abuse. The Prime Minister is struggling to contain the crisis and opened parliamentary proceedings yesterday with a statement on the issue, stressing that she had been holding a series of meetings to set up a "common, transparent, independent" grievance procedure. Indian-origin Opposition Labour MP Lisa Nandy challenged her in the House of Commons over her failure to act over sexual abuse cover-up she had informed her about three years ago when May was the UK home secretary. "On three occasions, I asked her [Theresa May] to act and on three occasions she did not," Nandy claimed. May assured the House that she was determined to take firm action and is set to hold a meeting with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn early next week to address the issue across party lines. She has reportedly read the "riot act" to her Cabinet, warning them to ensure exemplary behaviour.

UK PM replaces defence secy amid sexual harassment scandal

Britain&#39;s Balfour Declaration turns 100 this week, hailed by Israel for helping lead to its founding, but viewed by Palestinians as contributing to a catastrophe that stole their land.

The November 2, 1917 declaration by then British foreign minister Arthur Balfour said his government viewed &quot;with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people&quot;.

It was only one sentence of 67 words, but it was the strongest support yet from a world power for the goals of the Zionist movement&nbsp;Jews, including those facing persecution, resettling in the land of their ancient ancestors.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will commemorate the anniversary in London, where he will attend a dinner in honour of the declaration with his British counterpart Theresa May.

May has said she will mark the date with &quot;pride&quot;, but there is also criticism in Britain over the anniversary because of Israel`s continuing half-century occupation of the West Bank.

Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn of the Labour party has said he cannot attend the dinner without explaining further although shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry will.

Palestinians are planning a demonstration on Thursday in Ramallah as part of their campaign calling on Britain to apologise for the declaration. They have also explored suing Britain over it. Netanyahu said this week that the declaration &quot;advanced the international moves that established the state of Israel&quot;.

&quot;While the state would not have arisen without settlement, sacrifice and a willingness to fight for it, the international impetus was, undoubtedly, the Balfour Declaration,&quot; he said.

For Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah, Britain should apologise for a &quot;historic injustice it committed against our people and to correct it instead of celebrating it&quot;.

&quot;The international community is obliged, while we approach the first centennial of the ominous Balfour Declaration, to end the historic injustice that has been inflicted on our people.&quot;

The declaration came in a letter from Balfour to Lord Walter Rothschild, a leader of the Jewish community in Britain, and had British cabinet approval.

Some argue today that later events conflicting policies from Britain and the Zionists&#39;&nbsp;own efforts to realise their dream diminished the Balfour Declaration&#39;s importance.

But others see it as monumental, having helped lay the groundwork not only for the creation of the modern state of Israel, but also the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.&quot;It&#39;s dramatic,&quot; Jonathan Schneer, an American historian and author of the book &quot;The Balfour Declaration&quot;, told AFP.

&quot;And they&#39;re both right,&quot; he said, referring to the starkly different viewpoints of Israelis and Palestinians.

&quot;The Israelis see it as a foundation stone for the birth of a Jewish state, and the Arabs see it as a foundation stone leading towards their dispossession and misery.&quot;

According to Schneer, the declaration ironically grew to a large degree out of anti-Semitic myths.

British leaders saw the Jewish community as capable of helping them win World War I due to its perceived influence in finance and within Russia, he said.

Others say that Britain was also seeking a firm foothold in the Middle East after the war. But regardless of the motivations that created it, &quot;if someone has to choose five documents that shaped Israel&#39;s history and existence, then the Balfour Declaration has to be one of them&quot;, said Paula Kabalo, director of Israel&#39;s Ben-Gurion Research Institute for the Study of Israel and Zionism.

For Palestinians, the declaration is colonialist and even racist.

It mentions that &quot;nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine&quot;.

Not only were they left nameless in the document, Palestinians say, but Britain has also failed to ensure the pledge was maintained.It was written &quot;as if the Palestinians did not exist&quot;, said Nabil Shaath, a senior adviser to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.

&quot;We were referred to as &#39;others&#39;, others in Palestine who had civilian and religious rights but no political rights whatsoever.&quot;

It would be another 31 years before the state of Israel would be founded in 1948.

The war surrounding its creation saw 750,000 Palestinians either expelled or fleeing from their homes.

In the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel occupied the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. It later annexed east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians want as the capital of their future state.

Hopes for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are greatly diminishing as Israeli settlement building continues in the West Bank.

Britain&#39;s May sought to acknowledge those concerns in her recent comments.

&quot;We are proud of the role that we played in the creation of the state of Israel and we will certainly mark the centenary with pride,&quot; she said.

&quot;We also must be conscious of the sensitivities that some people do have about the Balfour Declaration, and we recognise that there is more work to be done. We remain committed to the two-state solution in relation to Israel and the Palestinians.&quot;

Britain`s Balfour Declaration turns 100 this week, hailed by Israel for helping lead to its founding, but viewed by Palestinians as contributing to a catastrophe that stole their land.

Britain's Balfour Declaration turns 100 this week, hailed by Israel for helping lead to its founding, but viewed by Palestinians as contributing to a catastrophe that stole their land. The November 2, 1917 declaration by then British foreign minister Arthur Balfour said his government viewed "with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people". It was only one sentence of 67 words, but it was the strongest support yet from a world power for the goals of the Zionist movement Jews, including those facing persecution, resettling in the land of their ancient ancestors. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will commemorate the anniversary in London, where he will attend a dinner in honour of the declaration with his British counterpart Theresa May. May has said she will mark the date with "pride", but there is also criticism in Britain over the anniversary because of Israel`s continuing half-century occupation of the West Bank. Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn of the Labour party has said he cannot attend the dinner without explaining further although shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry will. Palestinians are planning a demonstration on Thursday in Ramallah as part of their campaign calling on Britain to apologise for the declaration. They have also explored suing Britain over it. Netanyahu said this week that the declaration "advanced the international moves that established the state of Israel". "While the state would not have arisen without settlement, sacrifice and a willingness to fight for it, the international impetus was, undoubtedly, the Balfour Declaration," he said. For Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah, Britain should apologise for a "historic injustice it committed against our people and to correct it instead of celebrating it". "The international community is obliged, while we approach the first centennial of the ominous Balfour Declaration, to end the historic injustice that has been inflicted on our people." The declaration came in a letter from Balfour to Lord Walter Rothschild, a leader of the Jewish community in Britain, and had British cabinet approval. Some argue today that later events conflicting policies from Britain and the Zionists' own efforts to realise their dream diminished the Balfour Declaration's importance. But others see it as monumental, having helped lay the groundwork not only for the creation of the modern state of Israel, but also the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."It's dramatic," Jonathan Schneer, an American historian and author of the book "The Balfour Declaration", told AFP. "And they're both right," he said, referring to the starkly different viewpoints of Israelis and Palestinians. "The Israelis see it as a foundation stone for the birth of a Jewish state, and the Arabs see it as a foundation stone leading towards their dispossession and misery." According to Schneer, the declaration ironically grew to a large degree out of anti-Semitic myths. British leaders saw the Jewish community as capable of helping them win World War I due to its perceived influence in finance and within Russia, he said. Others say that Britain was also seeking a firm foothold in the Middle East after the war. But regardless of the motivations that created it, "if someone has to choose five documents that shaped Israel's history and existence, then the Balfour Declaration has to be one of them", said Paula Kabalo, director of Israel's Ben-Gurion Research Institute for the Study of Israel and Zionism. For Palestinians, the declaration is colonialist and even racist. It mentions that "nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine". Not only were they left nameless in the document, Palestinians say, but Britain has also failed to ensure the pledge was maintained.It was written "as if the Palestinians did not exist", said Nabil Shaath, a senior adviser to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas. "We were referred to as 'others', others in Palestine who had civilian and religious rights but no political rights whatsoever." It would be another 31 years before the state of Israel would be founded in 1948. The war surrounding its creation saw 750,000 Palestinians either expelled or fleeing from their homes. In the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel occupied the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. It later annexed east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians want as the capital of their future state. Hopes for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are greatly diminishing as Israeli settlement building continues in the West Bank. Britain's May sought to acknowledge those concerns in her recent comments. "We are proud of the role that we played in the creation of the state of Israel and we will certainly mark the centenary with pride," she said. "We also must be conscious of the sensitivities that some people do have about the Balfour Declaration, and we recognise that there is more work to be done. We remain committed to the two-state solution in relation to Israel and the Palestinians."

100 years later, Balfour Declaration divides Israelis, Palestinians

Prime Minister Theresa May said Friday that Britain would only agree a detailed financial settlement for Brexit once its future relationship with the EU was agreed.

&quot;The full and final settlement will come as part of the final agreement that we&#39;re getting in relation to the future partnership. I think that&#39;s absolutely right,&quot; she said at a summit in Brussels.

May said Britain would only?agree on a detailed financial settlement for Brexit once its future relationship with the EU was agreed

Prime Minister Theresa May said Friday that Britain would only agree a detailed financial settlement for Brexit once its future relationship with the EU was agreed. "The full and final settlement will come as part of the final agreement that we're getting in relation to the future partnership. I think that's absolutely right," she said at a summit in Brussels.

Brexit bill must wait until final deal with EU: May

EU President Donald Tusk said Friday that reports of a deadlock in Brexit talks were &quot;exaggerated&quot; after leaders agreed at a summit to start internal preparations to unlock the next phase of negotiations.

Tusk added that Britain&#39;s proposals on future relations would be taken into account by the EU&#39;s internal work on a trade deal, <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/may-says-brexit-bill-must-wait-until-final-deal-with-eu-22662">in a further olive branch to British Prime Minister Theresa May</a>.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/spains-rajoy-says-critical-point-reached-in-catalonia-22677" target="_blank">Also Read:&nbsp;Critical point reached in Catalonia: Spanish Prime Minister</a>

&quot;My impression is that reports of the deadlock between the European Union and the UK have been exaggerated, and while progress has not been sufficient, it does not mean there is no progress at all,&quot; Tusk told a news conference in Brussels.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker played down fears Britain could leave the bloc without a deal in 2019.

&quot;Our working assumption is not the no deal scenario, I hate the no deal scenario,&quot; said Juncker, standing alongside Tusk. &quot;I want to have a fair deal with Britain.&quot;

Tusk said a face-to-face meeting with Theresa May and a meeting with the remaining 27 EU states had contributed to a more &quot;positive narrative&quot;, despite the bloc saying there was not sufficient progress to start full trade talks until at least December.

&quot;My feeling today and in my tete-a-tete with Theresa May, I feel for sure that both sides present only goodwill,&quot; he said.

The approval of preparatory work on a trade deal &quot;would not be possible&quot; without May&#39;s key speech in Florence last month outlining further Brexit plans, including on the bill Britain must pay.

&quot;I would like to reassure our British friends that in our internal work we will take account of proposals present there (in Florence),&quot; he added.

EU President Donald Tusk said Friday that reports of a deadlock in Brexit talks were 'exaggerated'after leaders agreed at a summit to start internal preparations to unlock the next phase of negotiations

EU President Donald Tusk said Friday that reports of a deadlock in Brexit talks were "exaggerated" after leaders agreed at a summit to start internal preparations to unlock the next phase of negotiations. Tusk added that Britain's proposals on future relations would be taken into account by the EU's internal work on a trade deal, in a further olive branch to British Prime Minister Theresa May. Also Read: Critical point reached in Catalonia: Spanish Prime Minister "My impression is that reports of the deadlock between the European Union and the UK have been exaggerated, and while progress has not been sufficient, it does not mean there is no progress at all," Tusk told a news conference in Brussels. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker played down fears Britain could leave the bloc without a deal in 2019. "Our working assumption is not the no deal scenario, I hate the no deal scenario," said Juncker, standing alongside Tusk. "I want to have a fair deal with Britain." Tusk said a face-to-face meeting with Theresa May and a meeting with the remaining 27 EU states had contributed to a more "positive narrative", despite the bloc saying there was not sufficient progress to start full trade talks until at least December. "My feeling today and in my tete-a-tete with Theresa May, I feel for sure that both sides present only goodwill," he said. The approval of preparatory work on a trade deal "would not be possible" without May's key speech in Florence last month outlining further Brexit plans, including on the bill Britain must pay. "I would like to reassure our British friends that in our internal work we will take account of proposals present there (in Florence)," he added.

Reports of Brexit deadlock exaggerated: EU president Tusk

British Prime Minister Theresa May has yet to set a date to move forward with legislation to sever ties with the European Union, her spokesman said on Wednesday, after reports that the government was delaying its passage through parliament.

Asked whether he could confirm an earlier report that the bill would not be taken to the so-called committee stage of the parliamentary process when lawmakers will demand concessions, the spokesman said: &quot;We haven&#39;t yet confirmed a date for the bill at the committee stage, but the leader of the house will set out (next week&#39;s business) tomorrow.&quot;

Earlier on Wednesday, the prime minister said&nbsp;Britain was working to win the best possible deal for when it leaves the European Union but that government had to plan for every eventuality, including exiting without a deal.

Asked in parliament whether the government was contemplating a no-deal Brexit which critics say could plunge Britain into economic uncertainty,&nbsp;May&nbsp;said: &quot;It would be irresponsible of government not to prepare for all possible scenarios. That&#39;s exactly what we are doing.&quot;

British Prime Minister Theresa May has yet to set a date to move forward with legislation to sever ties with the European Union, her spokesman said on Wednesday, after reports that the government was delaying its passage through parliament.

British Prime Minister Theresa May has yet to set a date to move forward with legislation to sever ties with the European Union, her spokesman said on Wednesday, after reports that the government was delaying its passage through parliament. Asked whether he could confirm an earlier report that the bill would not be taken to the so-called committee stage of the parliamentary process when lawmakers will demand concessions, the spokesman said: "We haven't yet confirmed a date for the bill at the committee stage, but the leader of the house will set out (next week's business) tomorrow." Earlier on Wednesday, the prime minister said Britain was working to win the best possible deal for when it leaves the European Union but that government had to plan for every eventuality, including exiting without a deal. Asked in parliament whether the government was contemplating a no-deal Brexit which critics say could plunge Britain into economic uncertainty, May said: "It would be irresponsible of government not to prepare for all possible scenarios. That's exactly what we are doing."

PM May yet to set date to move forward with Brexit: UK

It is up to Britain to&nbsp;move&nbsp;Brexit&nbsp;talks&nbsp;forward,&nbsp;Germany&nbsp;said on Friday, warning that &quot;time is&nbsp;running&nbsp;out&quot; for London to negotiate the deal it wants.

A day after the EU&#39;s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, said the&nbsp;talks&nbsp;were deadlocked over money and could not progress to discussions about future trade ties, German government spokesman Steffen Seibert urged Britain to act before an EU summit in December.

EU leaders will discuss&nbsp;Brexit&nbsp;at that meeting, Seibert said. &quot;This means Great Britain still has it in its own hands whether there will be enough progress so that the second phase of negotiations can be started.&quot;

British Prime Minister Theresa May told parliament on Monday it was up to the European Union to move&nbsp;talks&nbsp;to the next phase, saying: &quot;the ball is in their court&quot;.

But her spokesman said on Friday that May would have &quot;more to say&quot; on the financial settlement at an EU summit next week.

Germany&#39;s biggest industry group has advised companies active in Britain to make provisions for a &quot;very hard&nbsp;Brexit&quot; as London lacked a clear strategy.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel says London should not expect a special deal, and that it is more important to keep the remaining 27 member states together.

A day after the EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, said the?talks?were deadlocked over money and could not progress to discussions about future trade ties, German government spokesman Steffen Seibert urged Britain to act before an EU summit in December

It is up to Britain to move Brexit talks forward, Germany said on Friday, warning that "time is running out" for London to negotiate the deal it wants. A day after the EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, said the talks were deadlocked over money and could not progress to discussions about future trade ties, German government spokesman Steffen Seibert urged Britain to act before an EU summit in December. EU leaders will discuss Brexit at that meeting, Seibert said. "This means Great Britain still has it in its own hands whether there will be enough progress so that the second phase of negotiations can be started." British Prime Minister Theresa May told parliament on Monday it was up to the European Union to move talks to the next phase, saying: "the ball is in their court". But her spokesman said on Friday that May would have "more to say" on the financial settlement at an EU summit next week. Germany's biggest industry group has advised companies active in Britain to make provisions for a "very hard Brexit" as London lacked a clear strategy. German Chancellor Angela Merkel says London should not expect a special deal, and that it is more important to keep the remaining 27 member states together.

'Time is running out,' says Germany on Brexit talks

Britain published proposals on Wednesday for a&nbsp;levy&nbsp;on social media&nbsp;firms and&nbsp;internet&nbsp;providers to help fund its online&nbsp;safety&nbsp;strategy, designed to tackle bullying, abuse and other risks for children and vulnerable users.

Prime Minister Theresa May and her ministers have been critical of&nbsp;firms like Twitter, Facebook, and Google, repeatedly calling on them to do more to stop the spread of extremist content online and help victims of abuse.

May first promised a&nbsp;levy&nbsp;on &quot;social media companies and communication service providers&quot; in her 2017 election manifesto.

On Wednesday, digital minister Karen Bradley published proposals for an&nbsp;Internet&nbsp;Safety&nbsp;Strategy including the&nbsp;levy, a code of practice on removing intimidating or humiliating content from social media, and online&nbsp;safety&nbsp;classes in schools.

&quot;The&nbsp;internet&nbsp;has been an amazing force for good, but it has caused undeniable suffering and can be an especially harmful place for children and vulnerable people,&quot; Bradley said in a statement.

&quot;We need an approach to the&nbsp;internet&nbsp;that protects everyone without restricting growth and innovation in the digital economy.&quot;

The government proposal, which invites views from the industry before being formulated into legislation, said the&nbsp;levy&nbsp;would initially be sought on a voluntary basis.

&quot;We may then seek to underpin this&nbsp;levy&nbsp;in legislation, to ensure the continued and reliable operation of the&nbsp;levy,&quot; the document said. &quot;The&nbsp;levy&nbsp;will not be a new tax on social media.&quot;

It likened the proposed&nbsp;levy&nbsp;to an existing one paid on a voluntary basis by the gambling sector to fund charitable work.

Social media&nbsp;firms have typically been exempt from regulatory fees that can apply to communication services.

Recently-passed laws in Germany give social media networks 24 hours to delete or block obviously criminal content and seven days to deal with less clear-cut cases.

Prime Minister Theresa May and her ministers have been critical of?firms like Twitter, Facebook, and Google, repeatedly calling on them to do more to stop the spread of extremist content online and help victims of abuse

Britain published proposals on Wednesday for a levy on social media firms and internet providers to help fund its online safety strategy, designed to tackle bullying, abuse and other risks for children and vulnerable users. Prime Minister Theresa May and her ministers have been critical of firms like Twitter, Facebook, and Google, repeatedly calling on them to do more to stop the spread of extremist content online and help victims of abuse. May first promised a levy on "social media companies and communication service providers" in her 2017 election manifesto. On Wednesday, digital minister Karen Bradley published proposals for an Internet Safety Strategy including the levy, a code of practice on removing intimidating or humiliating content from social media, and online safety classes in schools. "The internet has been an amazing force for good, but it has caused undeniable suffering and can be an especially harmful place for children and vulnerable people," Bradley said in a statement. "We need an approach to the internet that protects everyone without restricting growth and innovation in the digital economy." The government proposal, which invites views from the industry before being formulated into legislation, said the levy would initially be sought on a voluntary basis. "We may then seek to underpin this levy in legislation, to ensure the continued and reliable operation of the levy," the document said. "The levy will not be a new tax on social media." It likened the proposed levy to an existing one paid on a voluntary basis by the gambling sector to fund charitable work. Social media firms have typically been exempt from regulatory fees that can apply to communication services. Recently-passed laws in Germany give social media networks 24 hours to delete or block obviously criminal content and seven days to deal with less clear-cut cases.

UK proposes internet firm levy with web safety plan

According to the latest report released by Britain&#39;s &quot;Race Disparity Audit&quot;,&nbsp;Indian origin population in the UK&nbsp;is among the most highly skilled compared to the&nbsp;other ethnic minorities.

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Data showing the percentage of students going into education or employment by ethnicity. (Source: Ethnicity facts and figures, UK Government) (Others)
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The audit reveals Indian origin students showed high-performance rates compared to other communities.&nbsp;

It stated, &quot;...over one in 10(Indian origin) were in manager, director and senior official roles and over three in 10 were in professional occupations,&rdquo;.

It also added that Indian students were much more likely to meet the requirements of entering to Universities, than Pakistani pupils.&nbsp;

The audit reveals the race disparity suffered by blacks and minorities from Pakistan and Bangladesh in UK workplaces and educational institutes&nbsp;

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Data showing the percentage of overall absence from school by ethnicity. (Source: Ethnicity facts and figures, UK Government) (Others)
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The survey highlighted unemployment and huge disparity existed&nbsp;in ownership of houses in the country.&nbsp;

The figures from the audit were&nbsp;released on www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk.&nbsp;

Commissioned by the British prime minister Theresa May, the audit is an attempt to deal with racial discrimination within the country&#39;s public services.&nbsp;

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According to a latest released report 'Race Disparity Audit' Indian origin population in Britain is among the highly skilled compared to the country's other ethnic minority categories

According to the latest report released by Britain's "Race Disparity Audit", Indian origin population in the UK is among the most highly skilled compared to the other ethnic minorities. Data showing the percentage of students going into education or employment by ethnicity. (Source: Ethnicity facts and figures, UK Government) (Others) × The audit reveals Indian origin students showed high-performance rates compared to other communities. It stated, "...over one in 10(Indian origin) were in manager, director and senior official roles and over three in 10 were in professional occupations,”. It also added that Indian students were much more likely to meet the requirements of entering to Universities, than Pakistani pupils. The audit reveals the race disparity suffered by blacks and minorities from Pakistan and Bangladesh in UK workplaces and educational institutes Data showing the percentage of overall absence from school by ethnicity. (Source: Ethnicity facts and figures, UK Government) (Others) × The survey highlighted unemployment and huge disparity existed in ownership of houses in the country. The figures from the audit were released on www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk. Commissioned by the British prime minister Theresa May, the audit is an attempt to deal with racial discrimination within the country's public services.

Watch: Indian origin managers are 'highly skilled', says UK survey

A speech in Italy by Prime Minister Theresa May created momentum in Brexit&nbsp;talks&nbsp;with the European Union, her&nbsp;spokesman&nbsp;said on Monday but was non-committal on whether it would provide the&nbsp;breakthrough&nbsp;the British government&nbsp;says&nbsp;it wants.

Asked if May was confident of a&nbsp;breakthrough&nbsp;in the current round of&nbsp;talks, her&nbsp;spokesman&nbsp;said: &quot;The (Florence) speech was intended to create momentum, we believe we are seeing that momentum, but let&#39;s see what happens in the next round of&nbsp;talks.&quot;

The&nbsp;spokesman&nbsp;told reporters that the government was pressing on with May&#39;s&nbsp;Brexit&nbsp;plans and would publish policy papers on its plans for customs and trade legislation after Britain leaves the bloc in March 2019.

He also said the prime minister, who was left weaker than ever after her party&#39;s annual conference last week, had full confidence in her finance minister, Philip Hammond, and foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, after a raft of negative briefings against both of them by unnamed sources in local media.

Theresa May's?spokesman?said: "The (Florence) speech was intended to create momentum, we believe we are seeing that momentum, but let's see what happens in the next round of?talks"

A speech in Italy by Prime Minister Theresa May created momentum in Brexit talks with the European Union, her spokesman said on Monday but was non-committal on whether it would provide the breakthrough the British government says it wants. Asked if May was confident of a breakthrough in the current round of talks, her spokesman said: "The (Florence) speech was intended to create momentum, we believe we are seeing that momentum, but let's see what happens in the next round of talks." The spokesman told reporters that the government was pressing on with May's Brexit plans and would publish policy papers on its plans for customs and trade legislation after Britain leaves the bloc in March 2019. He also said the prime minister, who was left weaker than ever after her party's annual conference last week, had full confidence in her finance minister, Philip Hammond, and foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, after a raft of negative briefings against both of them by unnamed sources in local media.

Wait for the talks on Brexit breakthrough: UK government

Britain and Israel agree on the&nbsp;need&nbsp;to be &quot;clear-eyed&quot; about the&nbsp;threat&nbsp;Iran poses to the Middle East, a spokesman for British Prime Minister Theresa&nbsp;May&nbsp;said on Monday following a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

&quot;They agreed that the international community&nbsp;needed to be clear-eyed about the&nbsp;threat&nbsp;that&nbsp;Iran poses to the Gulf and the wider Middle East and that the international community should continue working together to push back against&nbsp;Iran&#39;s destabilising regional activity,&quot; the spokesman said in a statement.

Britain and Israel agree on the?need?to be "clear-eyed" about the?threat?Iran poses to the Middle East

Britain and Israel agree on the need to be "clear-eyed" about the threat Iran poses to the Middle East, a spokesman for British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Monday following a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "They agreed that the international community needed to be clear-eyed about the threat that Iran poses to the Gulf and the wider Middle East and that the international community should continue working together to push back against Iran's destabilising regional activity," the spokesman said in a statement.

Need to be 'clear-eyed' on Iran threat: UK PM May and Israel PM Netanyahu

Divisions over <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/british-pm-theresa-may-faces-confidence-vote-today-17394" target="_blank">the future of British Prime Minister Theresa May burst into the open on Friday with allies saying she should carry on </a>and a former Conservative Party chairman claiming the support of 30 lawmakers for a plot to topple her.

In one of the most bizarre British political speeches in a generation, May&rsquo;s address on Wednesday to her annual conference was ruined by a comedian handing her a bogus employment termination letter, repeated coughing fits and even by letters falling off the slogans on the seat behind her.

May&rsquo;s authority was already diminished by her botched bet on a June snap election that lost her party its majority in parliament just days before the opening of formal Brexit talks with the European Union.

Under the headline: &quot;Theresa May will stay as Prime Minister and get the job done,&quot; Interior Minister Amber Rudd wrote in The Telegraph newspaper that &quot;she should stay&quot;. May&#39;s de facto deputy, Damian Green, also said she would carry on.

But the former party chairman, Grant Shapps, said May should call a leadership contest.

&quot;I think she should call a leadership election,&quot; Shapps told BBC Radio 5 live on Friday. He said that after May&#39;s bungled election, her failure to unite the Cabinet and a poor party conference, &quot;the writing is on the wall.&quot;

Shapps, who chaired the party between 2012 and 2015, said up to 30 Conservative lawmakers backed the bid to informally tell May to go, including five former Cabinet ministers. He said it was unclear if there would be enough support to topple May.

To trigger a formal leadership challenge, 48 Conservative lawmakers need to write to the chairman of the party&#39;s so-called 1922 Committee.

May made no public appearances on Thursday.

Her survival has so far been dependent on the absence of an obvious successor who could unite the split party around Brexit and fear of an election that many Conservatives think would let opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn into power.

&quot;I know that she is as determined as ever to get on with the job, she sees it as her duty to do so and she will carry on and she will make a success of this government,&quot; Green, the first secretary of state, told BBC television.

The Sun, Britain&#39;s most popular newspaper, said that a bid to topple May since the speech had failed after rebel Conservative lawmakers admitted they did not yet have the numbers to oust her.

A spokesman for the Conservative Party did not respond to requests for comment.

Many Conservative activists fear another leadership contest will exacerbate the divide in the party over Europe, an issue that helped sink the previous three Conservative prime ministers - David Cameron, John Major and Margaret Thatcher.

A leadership contest could also pave the way for an election that some Conservatives worry could be won by Corbyn, whom they cast as a Marxist seeking to impose a socialist fantasy on Britain. 
&nbsp;

Interior Minister Amber Rudd wrote, 'Theresa May will stay as Prime Minister and get the job done'

Divisions over the future of British Prime Minister Theresa May burst into the open on Friday with allies saying she should carry on and a former Conservative Party chairman claiming the support of 30 lawmakers for a plot to topple her. In one of the most bizarre British political speeches in a generation, May’s address on Wednesday to her annual conference was ruined by a comedian handing her a bogus employment termination letter, repeated coughing fits and even by letters falling off the slogans on the seat behind her. May’s authority was already diminished by her botched bet on a June snap election that lost her party its majority in parliament just days before the opening of formal Brexit talks with the European Union. Under the headline: "Theresa May will stay as Prime Minister and get the job done," Interior Minister Amber Rudd wrote in The Telegraph newspaper that "she should stay". May's de facto deputy, Damian Green, also said she would carry on. But the former party chairman, Grant Shapps, said May should call a leadership contest. "I think she should call a leadership election," Shapps told BBC Radio 5 live on Friday. He said that after May's bungled election, her failure to unite the Cabinet and a poor party conference, "the writing is on the wall." Shapps, who chaired the party between 2012 and 2015, said up to 30 Conservative lawmakers backed the bid to informally tell May to go, including five former Cabinet ministers. He said it was unclear if there would be enough support to topple May. To trigger a formal leadership challenge, 48 Conservative lawmakers need to write to the chairman of the party's so-called 1922 Committee. May made no public appearances on Thursday. Her survival has so far been dependent on the absence of an obvious successor who could unite the split party around Brexit and fear of an election that many Conservatives think would let opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn into power. "I know that she is as determined as ever to get on with the job, she sees it as her duty to do so and she will carry on and she will make a success of this government," Green, the first secretary of state, told BBC television. The Sun, Britain's most popular newspaper, said that a bid to topple May since the speech had failed after rebel Conservative lawmakers admitted they did not yet have the numbers to oust her. A spokesman for the Conservative Party did not respond to requests for comment. Many Conservative activists fear another leadership contest will exacerbate the divide in the party over Europe, an issue that helped sink the previous three Conservative prime ministers - David Cameron, John Major and Margaret Thatcher. A leadership contest could also pave the way for an election that some Conservatives worry could be won by Corbyn, whom they cast as a Marxist seeking to impose a socialist fantasy on Britain.

Theresa should stay or not, different opinions of different leaders

For members of Europe&#39;s biggest Rohingya community in Bradford, Northern England, the news from Myanmar brings a mix of anger, fear and haunting memories of dramatic escapes from their homeland.

Some 300 members of the Muslim minority have settled in Bradford in recent years under a refugee programme and they are desperate to draw international attention to the plight of their brethren.

&quot;If I grew up in Myanmar&nbsp;I would be dead today,&quot; said Omme Kulsum Harun, a 17-year-old wrapped in a traditional long white and yellow robe with a thick grey veil covering most of her head of black hair.

Kulsum said she would like to study nursing in order to help fellow Rohingya, hundreds of thousands of whom have fled into Bangladesh in recent weeks following a crackdown by Myanmar&#39;s military.

Harun&#39;s mother Samuda saw her own aunt raped by a soldier when she was a little girl and was told by villagers that her sister suffered the same fate while the family were trying to flee Myanmar.

&quot;Today, I don&#39;t even know if my sister is alive,&quot; the mother of seven told AFP, holding back tears.

&quot;It makes me so sad and angry when I watch the news and see the situation in Myanmar,&quot; she said.

The contrast could not be bigger with her new life.

Harun shows off a picture of her son Ismail Mohamed, a student at Bradford University.

A former wool-making hub, Bradford is one of Britain&#39;s most diverse cities and around a quarter of the population is Muslim, according to the latest census figures.

We won&#39;t give up

In a city where Victorian-era terraced houses stand side by side with mosques and abandoned industrial plants, Nijam Uddin Mohammed said he has found freedom.

The 36-year-old arrived in 2008 after spending more than 18 years in a refugee camp in Bangladesh.

&quot;My life started in Bradford. In the refugee camps back in Bangladesh we couldn&#39;t do what we wanted.&quot;

&quot;If we wanted to go for a walk or see some friends in another camp we had to seek permission. It was like a mini-prison. It was not a life.&quot; he said.

During the day, the father of two young children works as an interpreter for the state-run National Health Service and at night he drives a minicab.

He also heads up the Rohingya association of Bradford, which holds meetings at the homes of local Rohingya families every Monday.

At these meetings, the Rohingyas share news about their loved ones and discuss how to put pressure on the British government to become more active.

They have started petitions, held public meetings and sent letters to politicians including Prime Minister Theresa May.

&quot;The (Myanmar) army wants to shut us down but here in Bradford we are free and we are not afraid,&quot; Mohammed said.

&quot;Even if they have never known their homeland, our kids will always raise their voices. We won&#39;t give up.&quot;

Suu Kyi &#39;betrayed us&#39;

Their anger has been stoked further by speeches from the head of Myanmar&#39;s civilian administration, Aung San Suu Kyi, who has refused to condemn the military.

&quot;She betrayed us. We had great expectations but instead of helping us she remained silent.&quot;

&quot;She&#39;s doing politics with our lives,&quot; Mohammed said.

Referring to Suu Kyi&#39;s comments about reports of Rohingya suffering as &quot;fake news&quot;, Harun said: &quot;Is it fake news that my sister was raped by the military?&quot;

Mohammed said he welcomed Britain&#39;s decision to suspend military assistance to Myanmar&#39;s army.

But the deputy head of the association, Nur Huda, said it was up to Muslim countries to take the lead and follow the example of Turkey, where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned &quot;Buddhist terrorism&quot;.

But Mohammed said: &quot;It is not a Muslim issue. We are all human beings who share the same blood and want to live.&quot;

Some 300 members of the Muslim minority have settled in Bradford in recent years under a refugee programme and they are desperate to draw international attention to the plight of their brethren

For members of Europe's biggest Rohingya community in Bradford, Northern England, the news from Myanmar brings a mix of anger, fear and haunting memories of dramatic escapes from their homeland. Some 300 members of the Muslim minority have settled in Bradford in recent years under a refugee programme and they are desperate to draw international attention to the plight of their brethren. "If I grew up in Myanmar I would be dead today," said Omme Kulsum Harun, a 17-year-old wrapped in a traditional long white and yellow robe with a thick grey veil covering most of her head of black hair. Kulsum said she would like to study nursing in order to help fellow Rohingya, hundreds of thousands of whom have fled into Bangladesh in recent weeks following a crackdown by Myanmar's military. Harun's mother Samuda saw her own aunt raped by a soldier when she was a little girl and was told by villagers that her sister suffered the same fate while the family were trying to flee Myanmar. "Today, I don't even know if my sister is alive," the mother of seven told AFP, holding back tears. "It makes me so sad and angry when I watch the news and see the situation in Myanmar," she said. The contrast could not be bigger with her new life. Harun shows off a picture of her son Ismail Mohamed, a student at Bradford University. A former wool-making hub, Bradford is one of Britain's most diverse cities and around a quarter of the population is Muslim, according to the latest census figures. We won't give up In a city where Victorian-era terraced houses stand side by side with mosques and abandoned industrial plants, Nijam Uddin Mohammed said he has found freedom. The 36-year-old arrived in 2008 after spending more than 18 years in a refugee camp in Bangladesh. "My life started in Bradford. In the refugee camps back in Bangladesh we couldn't do what we wanted." "If we wanted to go for a walk or see some friends in another camp we had to seek permission. It was like a mini-prison. It was not a life." he said. During the day, the father of two young children works as an interpreter for the state-run National Health Service and at night he drives a minicab. He also heads up the Rohingya association of Bradford, which holds meetings at the homes of local Rohingya families every Monday. At these meetings, the Rohingyas share news about their loved ones and discuss how to put pressure on the British government to become more active. They have started petitions, held public meetings and sent letters to politicians including Prime Minister Theresa May. "The (Myanmar) army wants to shut us down but here in Bradford we are free and we are not afraid," Mohammed said. "Even if they have never known their homeland, our kids will always raise their voices. We won't give up." Suu Kyi 'betrayed us' Their anger has been stoked further by speeches from the head of Myanmar's civilian administration, Aung San Suu Kyi, who has refused to condemn the military. "She betrayed us. We had great expectations but instead of helping us she remained silent." "She's doing politics with our lives," Mohammed said. Referring to Suu Kyi's comments about reports of Rohingya suffering as "fake news", Harun said: "Is it fake news that my sister was raped by the military?" Mohammed said he welcomed Britain's decision to suspend military assistance to Myanmar's army. But the deputy head of the association, Nur Huda, said it was up to Muslim countries to take the lead and follow the example of Turkey, where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned "Buddhist terrorism". But Mohammed said: "It is not a Muslim issue. We are all human beings who share the same blood and want to live."

'I would be dead': Britain's Rohingyas speak out

The&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korean&nbsp;issue&nbsp;should&nbsp;be resolved&nbsp;peacefully&nbsp;through talks, Chinese President&nbsp;Xi&nbsp;Jinping told British Prime Minister&nbsp;Theresa&nbsp;May&nbsp;in a telephone call, state radio said on Monday.

Chinese President?Xi?Jinping told British Prime Minister?Theresa?May

The North Korean issue should be resolved peacefully through talks, Chinese President Xi Jinping told British Prime Minister Theresa May in a telephone call, state radio said on Monday.

North Korea issue should be peacefully resolved: Xi to Theresa May

British Prime Minister Theresa May addressing the United Nations General Assembly <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/zardari-killed-his-wife-benazir-bhutto-claims-musharraf-20494">said former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto</a> &quot;was brutally murdered by people who actively rejected the values that all of us here at the United Nations stand for&quot;.

May&nbsp;paid glowing tribute to <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/malala-yousafzai-to-enter-oxford-university-after-securinh-three-as-at-the-a-level-19139">Benazir on her tenth death anniversary, saying</a>,&quot;This year is the tenth anniversary of the death of the woman who introduced me to my husband and who is known well to many of us in this United Nations. Benazir Bhutto was brutally murdered by people who actively rejected the values that all of us here at the United Nations stand for.&quot;

&ldquo;In a country that has suffered more than most at the hands of terrorists(referring to Pakistan), murdered for standing up for democracy, murdered for espousing tolerance and murdered for being a woman. When I think of a hundred and thousands of victims of terrorism in countries across the world I think of their friends, their families, their communities devastated by this evil and I say, enough is enough,&rdquo; the British Prime Minister said.

May shared a deep bond&nbsp;with Benazir during their Oxford days. Benazir was instrumental in introducing May to Philip - her future husband - at an Oxford University disco in 1976.

The British prime minister&nbsp;also spoke about tensions in North Korea and called the world community to &quot;exert pressure on Kim Jong Un to change his ways&quot;.

&quot;Let us not fail this time. Let our message to North Korea be clear. Our determination to uphold these rules is stronger by far than their determination to undermine them,&quot; the British PM said.

On the question of UN reforms and funding related to the world body, the British PM said: &quot;The UK will remain committed to spending 0.7 per cent of GNI on development and humanitarian support. We will use our military to support peacekeeping and our diplomats will continue to work to tackle conflict and support peace building.&quot;&nbsp;

&quot;In turn, the UN and its agencies must win our trust by proving to us and the people we represent, that they can deliver. And that is why we remain generous in our funding. But set aside 30 per cent to be paid only to those parts of the UN that achieve sufficient results,&quot; the prime minister told the UN General Assembly.

May shared a deep bond?with Benazir during their Oxford days

British Prime Minister Theresa May addressing the United Nations General Assembly said former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto "was brutally murdered by people who actively rejected the values that all of us here at the United Nations stand for". May paid glowing tribute to Benazir on her tenth death anniversary, saying,"This year is the tenth anniversary of the death of the woman who introduced me to my husband and who is known well to many of us in this United Nations. Benazir Bhutto was brutally murdered by people who actively rejected the values that all of us here at the United Nations stand for." “In a country that has suffered more than most at the hands of terrorists(referring to Pakistan), murdered for standing up for democracy, murdered for espousing tolerance and murdered for being a woman. When I think of a hundred and thousands of victims of terrorism in countries across the world I think of their friends, their families, their communities devastated by this evil and I say, enough is enough,” the British Prime Minister said. May shared a deep bond with Benazir during their Oxford days. Benazir was instrumental in introducing May to Philip - her future husband - at an Oxford University disco in 1976. The British prime minister also spoke about tensions in North Korea and called the world community to "exert pressure on Kim Jong Un to change his ways". "Let us not fail this time. Let our message to North Korea be clear. Our determination to uphold these rules is stronger by far than their determination to undermine them," the British PM said. On the question of UN reforms and funding related to the world body, the British PM said: "The UK will remain committed to spending 0.7 per cent of GNI on development and humanitarian support. We will use our military to support peacekeeping and our diplomats will continue to work to tackle conflict and support peace building." "In turn, the UN and its agencies must win our trust by proving to us and the people we represent, that they can deliver. And that is why we remain generous in our funding. But set aside 30 per cent to be paid only to those parts of the UN that achieve sufficient results," the prime minister told the UN General Assembly.

Benazir Bhutto was murdered by people who rejected UN values: Theresa May

The leaders of&nbsp;Britain, France and Italy will push social media companies on Wednesday to remove &quot;terrorist content&quot; from the internet within one to two hours of it appearing because they say that is the period when most material is spread.

British Prime Minister Theresa May, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni will raise the issue at an event on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations.

Internet companies including Facebook Inc, Microsoft Corp Alphabet Inc&#39;s Google said they will attend the meeting.

Google will be represented by general counsel Kent Walker, who will also speak on behalf of a recently formed industry group called the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism.

Facebook is sending Monika Bickert, head of global policy management, who is expected to make remarks reiterating the companies&#39; commitment to combating online extremism.

Microsoft is sending Dave Heiner, a senior policy advisor.

The European Union has threatened legislation if internet companies do not step up efforts to police what is available on the web.

The British UN&nbsp;mission said May will welcome progress, but urge companies to go &quot;further and faster&quot; to stop groups like Islamic State spreading material that promotes extremism or shows how to make bombs or attack pedestrians with vehicles.

&quot;Terrorist groups are aware that links to their propaganda are being removed more quickly, and are placing a greater emphasis on disseminating content at speed in order to stay ahead,&quot; May plans to tell the event.

&quot;Industry needs to go further and faster in automating the detection and removal of terrorist content online, and developing technological solutions which prevent it being uploaded in the first place,&quot; she will say.

Responding to pressure from governments in Europe and the United States after a spate of militant attacks, key firms created the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism in June to share technical solutions for removing extremist content and work more with counter-terrorism experts.

Twitter said it had removed 299,649 accounts in the first half of this year for the &quot;promotion of terrorism&quot;, a 20 percent decline from the previous six months, although it gave no reason for the drop. Three-quarters of those accounts were suspended before posting their first tweet.

May said ahead of Wednesday&#39;s event: &quot;We need a fundamental shift in the scale and nature of our response &ndash; both from industry and governments &ndash; if we are to match the evolving nature of terrorists&#39; use of the internet.&quot;

Internet companies including Facebook Inc, Microsoft Corp Alphabet Inc&#39;s Google said they will attend the meeting.

Google will be represented by general counsel Kent Walker, who will also speak on behalf of a recently formed industry group called the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism.

Facebook is sending Monika Bickert, head of global policy management, who is expected to make remarks reiterating the companies&#39; commitment to combating online extremism.

Microsoft is sending Dave Heiner, a senior policy advisor.

The European Union has threatened legislation if internet companies do not step up efforts to police what is available on the web.

The British UN&nbsp;mission said May will welcome progress, but urge companies to go &quot;further and faster&quot; to stop groups like Islamic State spreading material that promotes extremism or shows how to make bombs or attack pedestrians with vehicles.

&quot;Terrorist groups are aware that links to their propaganda are being removed more quickly, and are placing a greater emphasis on disseminating content at speed in order to stay ahead,&quot; May plans to tell the event.

&quot;Industry needs to go further and faster in automating the detection and removal of terrorist content online, and developing technological solutions which prevent it being uploaded in the first place,&quot; she will say.

Responding to pressure from governments in Europe and the United States after a spate of militant attacks, key firms created the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism in June to share technical solutions for removing extremist content and work more with counter-terrorism experts.

Twitter said it had removed 299,649 accounts in the first half of this year for the &quot;promotion of terrorism&quot;, a 20 per cent decline from the previous six months, although it gave no reason for the drop. Three-quarters of those accounts were suspended before posting their first tweet.

May said ahead of Wednesday&#39;s event: &quot;We need a fundamental shift in the scale and nature of our response &ndash; both from industry and governments &ndash; if we are to match the evolving nature of terrorists&#39; use of the internet.&quot;

British Prime Minister Theresa May, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni will raise the issue at an event on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations.

The leaders of Britain, France and Italy will push social media companies on Wednesday to remove "terrorist content" from the internet within one to two hours of it appearing because they say that is the period when most material is spread. British Prime Minister Theresa May, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni will raise the issue at an event on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations. Internet companies including Facebook Inc, Microsoft Corp Alphabet Inc's Google said they will attend the meeting. Google will be represented by general counsel Kent Walker, who will also speak on behalf of a recently formed industry group called the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism. Facebook is sending Monika Bickert, head of global policy management, who is expected to make remarks reiterating the companies' commitment to combating online extremism. Microsoft is sending Dave Heiner, a senior policy advisor. The European Union has threatened legislation if internet companies do not step up efforts to police what is available on the web. The British UN mission said May will welcome progress, but urge companies to go "further and faster" to stop groups like Islamic State spreading material that promotes extremism or shows how to make bombs or attack pedestrians with vehicles. "Terrorist groups are aware that links to their propaganda are being removed more quickly, and are placing a greater emphasis on disseminating content at speed in order to stay ahead," May plans to tell the event. "Industry needs to go further and faster in automating the detection and removal of terrorist content online, and developing technological solutions which prevent it being uploaded in the first place," she will say. Responding to pressure from governments in Europe and the United States after a spate of militant attacks, key firms created the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism in June to share technical solutions for removing extremist content and work more with counter-terrorism experts. Twitter said it had removed 299,649 accounts in the first half of this year for the "promotion of terrorism", a 20 percent decline from the previous six months, although it gave no reason for the drop. Three-quarters of those accounts were suspended before posting their first tweet. May said ahead of Wednesday's event: "We need a fundamental shift in the scale and nature of our response – both from industry and governments – if we are to match the evolving nature of terrorists' use of the internet." Internet companies including Facebook Inc, Microsoft Corp Alphabet Inc's Google said they will attend the meeting. Google will be represented by general counsel Kent Walker, who will also speak on behalf of a recently formed industry group called the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism. Facebook is sending Monika Bickert, head of global policy management, who is expected to make remarks reiterating the companies' commitment to combating online extremism. Microsoft is sending Dave Heiner, a senior policy advisor. The European Union has threatened legislation if internet companies do not step up efforts to police what is available on the web. The British UN mission said May will welcome progress, but urge companies to go "further and faster" to stop groups like Islamic State spreading material that promotes extremism or shows how to make bombs or attack pedestrians with vehicles. "Terrorist groups are aware that links to their propaganda are being removed more quickly, and are placing a greater emphasis on disseminating content at speed in order to stay ahead," May plans to tell the event. "Industry needs to go further and faster in automating the detection and removal of terrorist content online, and developing technological solutions which prevent it being uploaded in the first place," she will say. Responding to pressure from governments in Europe and the United States after a spate of militant attacks, key firms created the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism in June to share technical solutions for removing extremist content and work more with counter-terrorism experts. Twitter said it had removed 299,649 accounts in the first half of this year for the "promotion of terrorism", a 20 per cent decline from the previous six months, although it gave no reason for the drop. Three-quarters of those accounts were suspended before posting their first tweet. May said ahead of Wednesday's event: "We need a fundamental shift in the scale and nature of our response – both from industry and governments – if we are to match the evolving nature of terrorists' use of the internet."

At UN, Britain to push internet firms to remove extremist content quicker

British Prime Minister Theresa May has frowned upon US President Donald Trump&#39;s tweet on the explosion on a train in London that injured 22 people on Friday.

Asked to comment on President Trump&#39;s tweet that the culprits behind the explosion were in&nbsp;&quot;in the sights of Scotland Yard,&quot; PM May said she did not think it was ever helpful for anyone to comment on an ongoing investigation.

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Another attack in London by a loser terrorist.These are sick and demented people who were in the sights of Scotland Yard. Must be proactive!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/908642277987356673">September 15, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Loser terrorists must be dealt with in a much tougher manner.The internet is their main recruitment tool which we must cut off &amp; use better!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/908643633901039617">September 15, 2017</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;&quot;I never think it&#39;s helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation,&quot; Theresa May said.

The British PM added that the police and security services were doing all they could to identify those responsible for the &quot;cowardly attack&quot;.

Trump later told the US press that he was going to call the Prime Minister right away.

&quot;No, it&#39;s a terrible thing. It just keeps going and going. And, we have to be very smart. We have to be very, very tough, which, perhaps, we&#39;re not nearly tough enough. But that is just an absolutely terrible thing. In fact, I am going to call Prime Minister right now,&quot; the US President said.

At least 22 people were injured after a home-made bomb partially exploded on a packed commuter train heading into London, engulfing a carriage in flames.

&nbsp;

Trumps tweeted that those responsible for the explosion were 'in the sights of Scotland Yard'

British Prime Minister Theresa May has frowned upon US President Donald Trump's tweet on the explosion on a train in London that injured 22 people on Friday. Asked to comment on President Trump's tweet that the culprits behind the explosion were in "in the sights of Scotland Yard," PM May said she did not think it was ever helpful for anyone to comment on an ongoing investigation. Another attack in London by a loser terrorist.These are sick and demented people who were in the sights of Scotland Yard. Must be proactive! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 15, 2017 × Loser terrorists must be dealt with in a much tougher manner.The internet is their main recruitment tool which we must cut off & use better! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 15, 2017 × "I never think it's helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation," Theresa May said. The British PM added that the police and security services were doing all they could to identify those responsible for the "cowardly attack". Trump later told the US press that he was going to call the Prime Minister right away. "No, it's a terrible thing. It just keeps going and going. And, we have to be very smart. We have to be very, very tough, which, perhaps, we're not nearly tough enough. But that is just an absolutely terrible thing. In fact, I am going to call Prime Minister right now," the US President said. At least 22 people were injured after a home-made bomb partially exploded on a packed commuter train heading into London, engulfing a carriage in flames.

Theresa May says Trump tweet on London explosion not helpful

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has reiterated that US President Donald Trump will not be given an elaborate state visit when he comes to the United Kingdom next year for a state visit.

&quot;State visits are different from a normal visit and at a time when the President of the USA has policies that many in our country disagree with, I am not sure it is appropriate for our government to roll out the red carpet,&quot; Khan told CNN in an interview.

Khan&#39;s comments come&nbsp;shortly after a <a href="http://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/i-havent-had-great-coverage-out-there-theresa-donald-trump-tells-pm-he-wants-a-better-reception-when-a3588891.html" target="_blank">leaked</a> conversation, first reported last Sunday,&nbsp;between Trump and British PM Theresa May, where Trump said he would &nbsp;not visit London unless&nbsp;his&nbsp;reception improved.

He said: &quot;I still want to come, but I&#39;m in no rush. So, if you can fix it for me, it would make things a lot easier.

&quot;When I know I&#39;m going to get a better reception, I&#39;ll come and not before.&quot;

The delay to Trump&#39;s visit comes amid concern that there will be mass protests against the President in the British capital. Earlier this year, over 1.8 million people signed a petition seeking to block Trump&#39;s UK trip over fears that it would &quot;cause embarrassment to Her Majesty the Queen.&quot;

Trump had requested a<a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/328970-trump-wants-to-ride-in-gold-plated-carriage-with-the-queen" target="_blank"> gold-plated&nbsp;carriage</a> ride with&nbsp;Queen Elizabeth II during his October visit. Obama had declined such a ride, but world leakers like Russia&#39;s Vladimir Putin, Mexican President Enrique Nieto and Chinese President Xi Jinping have taken such a ride.

Trump met with UK Prime Minister Theresa May at the G20 summit in Hamburg and told reporters he would be visiting London.

May&#39;s offer of a state visit was made during her visit to Washington in January, just days after Trump&#39;s inauguration. Khan, who is the first Muslim mayor of a western capital city, however, did not rule out a meeting with the US President.

&quot;If someone has views that I think can be changed I am ready to play my role. If you somehow think it is not possible to be a Muslim and a proud westerner I am happy to disabuse you of that idea, whether you are a reporter for CNN or Donald Trump,&quot; he said.

Khan and Trump&#39;s relationship is known to be a particularly rocky one, following Khan&#39;s opposition to Trump&#39;s decision to bar from the US people from a list of mainly Muslim countries.

Post the terror attack on London Bridge last month in which eight were killed, Khan&#39;s reassurance to Londoners that there was &quot;no reason to be alarmed&quot; by the increased police presence, a sharp response from Trump on Twitter.

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At least 7 dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is &quot;no reason to be alarmed!&quot;
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/871328428963901440">June 4, 2017</a></blockquote>
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&quot;At least 7 dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is &#39;no reason to be alarmed!&#39;&quot; Trump tweeted. 
In a sharp rebuttal, Khan said his remarks had been taken out of context as he had been referring to the enhanced police presence.

This only drew out another response from Trump who tweeted: &quot;Pathetic excuse by London Mayor Sadiq Khan who had to think fast on his &#39;no reason to be alarmed&#39; statement. MSM [mainstream media] is working hard to sell it!&quot;&nbsp;

(With agency inputs)

This comes after the US President complained to British PM, 'when I know I'm going to get a better reception, I'll come and not before'

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has reiterated that US President Donald Trump will not be given an elaborate state visit when he comes to the United Kingdom next year for a state visit. "State visits are different from a normal visit and at a time when the President of the USA has policies that many in our country disagree with, I am not sure it is appropriate for our government to roll out the red carpet," Khan told CNN in an interview. Khan's comments come shortly after a leaked conversation, first reported last Sunday, between Trump and British PM Theresa May, where Trump said he would not visit London unless his reception improved. He said: "I still want to come, but I'm in no rush. So, if you can fix it for me, it would make things a lot easier. "When I know I'm going to get a better reception, I'll come and not before." The delay to Trump's visit comes amid concern that there will be mass protests against the President in the British capital. Earlier this year, over 1.8 million people signed a petition seeking to block Trump's UK trip over fears that it would "cause embarrassment to Her Majesty the Queen." Trump had requested a gold-plated carriage ride with Queen Elizabeth II during his October visit. Obama had declined such a ride, but world leakers like Russia's Vladimir Putin, Mexican President Enrique Nieto and Chinese President Xi Jinping have taken such a ride. Trump met with UK Prime Minister Theresa May at the G20 summit in Hamburg and told reporters he would be visiting London. May's offer of a state visit was made during her visit to Washington in January, just days after Trump's inauguration. Khan, who is the first Muslim mayor of a western capital city, however, did not rule out a meeting with the US President. "If someone has views that I think can be changed I am ready to play my role. If you somehow think it is not possible to be a Muslim and a proud westerner I am happy to disabuse you of that idea, whether you are a reporter for CNN or Donald Trump," he said. Khan and Trump's relationship is known to be a particularly rocky one, following Khan's opposition to Trump's decision to bar from the US people from a list of mainly Muslim countries. Post the terror attack on London Bridge last month in which eight were killed, Khan's reassurance to Londoners that there was "no reason to be alarmed" by the increased police presence, a sharp response from Trump on Twitter. At least 7 dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is "no reason to be alarmed!" — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 4, 2017 × "At least 7 dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is 'no reason to be alarmed!'" Trump tweeted. In a sharp rebuttal, Khan said his remarks had been taken out of context as he had been referring to the enhanced police presence. This only drew out another response from Trump who tweeted: "Pathetic excuse by London Mayor Sadiq Khan who had to think fast on his 'no reason to be alarmed' statement. MSM [mainstream media] is working hard to sell it!" (With agency inputs)

No red carpet for Donald Trump, says London Mayor Khan

Britain published legislation on Thursday to sever political, financial and legal ties with the European Union, an important step towards Brexit but one which the opposition said it would challenge.

The repeal bill is central to the government&#39;s plan to exit the EU in 2019,&nbsp;disentangling Britain from more than 40 years of EU lawmaking on everything from finance to fisheries and repealing the treaty that first made Britain a member in 1972.

Its passage through parliament could make or break Theresa May&#39;s future as prime minister. The election she called last month cost her an outright parliamentary majority and reopened the debate on the nature of Brexit, with Britain&#39;s public spending watchdog now saying the government is not well prepared.

&quot;It is one of the most significant pieces of legislation that has ever passed through parliament and is a major milestone in the process of our withdrawal from the European Union,&quot; Brexit minister David Davis said in a statement.

The government also fleshed out its negotiating stance with the EU, publishing three position papers which underlined that Britain would quit nuclear body Euratom and leave the jursidiction of the European Court of Justice.

May faces a battle even within her own Conservative Party to stick to her plan of a clean break. Pro-Brexit lawmakers will give her little room for movement, while pro-Europeans are looking to soften the divorce terms.

Rebellion by either side could derail the legislation and test May&#39;s ability to negotiate a compromise or find support from opposition parties. If she fails, her position could swiftly become untenable.

Road to &quot;hell&quot;

The publication of the bill is the first step in a long legislative process to ease Brexit,&nbsp;which is stretching the government with the sheer volume of issues to cover.

A report by the government&#39;s spending watchdog said Britain&#39;s planned new customs system, essential to smooth trade, might not be ready in time for Brexit, adding to a list of concerns over the government&#39;s plans.

&quot;We have been clear from the outset that we are putting the resources in place, have got the resources in place that we need to deliver on Brexit,&quot; May&#39;s spokesman told reporters.

The parliament has yet to set a date to debate the bill, which will be closely examined to see how the government plans to carry out the difficult and time-consuming technical exercise of transposing EU law.

The bill set out powers for ministers,&nbsp;with the approval of parliament,&nbsp;to correct laws to ensure they work after being brought into British law. These powers will exist until two years after the day Britain leaves.

A government document, released alongside the bill, offered the example of current town and planning regulations which now refer to &quot;other EEA (European Economic Area) states&quot;. That would need to be changed to &quot;EEA states&quot;, dropping the &#39;other&#39;, for the regulations to work.

In other areas, existing laws require Britain to seek an opinion from the European Commission before a project is approved - something also that will need to be changed.

Lawmakers have expressed concern that the sheer volume of work could limit their ability to scrutinise the changes effectively and fear the government will introduce policy change by the back door.

The main opposition Labour Party has said it would oppose the bill unless it met six conditions, including guarantees for workers&#39; rights. Tim Farron, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said he would work to soften May&#39;s stance, promising the prime minister that &quot;this will be hell&quot;.

The bill will also face scrutiny from British companies, many of which have spent the year since Britons voted by 52 percent to 48 to leave the EU trying to figure out how the change will affect their business.

&quot;A legislative transition of this scope has never before been undertaken,&quot; Adam Marshall, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said in a statement.

&quot;We will be keeping a watchful eye for the possibility of unintended consequences that lead to new burdens or compliance costs.&quot;

The repeal bill's passage through parliament could make or break Theresa May's future as prime minister

Britain published legislation on Thursday to sever political, financial and legal ties with the European Union, an important step towards Brexit but one which the opposition said it would challenge. The repeal bill is central to the government's plan to exit the EU in 2019, disentangling Britain from more than 40 years of EU lawmaking on everything from finance to fisheries and repealing the treaty that first made Britain a member in 1972. Its passage through parliament could make or break Theresa May's future as prime minister. The election she called last month cost her an outright parliamentary majority and reopened the debate on the nature of Brexit, with Britain's public spending watchdog now saying the government is not well prepared. "It is one of the most significant pieces of legislation that has ever passed through parliament and is a major milestone in the process of our withdrawal from the European Union," Brexit minister David Davis said in a statement. The government also fleshed out its negotiating stance with the EU, publishing three position papers which underlined that Britain would quit nuclear body Euratom and leave the jursidiction of the European Court of Justice. May faces a battle even within her own Conservative Party to stick to her plan of a clean break. Pro-Brexit lawmakers will give her little room for movement, while pro-Europeans are looking to soften the divorce terms. Rebellion by either side could derail the legislation and test May's ability to negotiate a compromise or find support from opposition parties. If she fails, her position could swiftly become untenable. Road to "hell" The publication of the bill is the first step in a long legislative process to ease Brexit, which is stretching the government with the sheer volume of issues to cover. A report by the government's spending watchdog said Britain's planned new customs system, essential to smooth trade, might not be ready in time for Brexit, adding to a list of concerns over the government's plans. "We have been clear from the outset that we are putting the resources in place, have got the resources in place that we need to deliver on Brexit," May's spokesman told reporters. The parliament has yet to set a date to debate the bill, which will be closely examined to see how the government plans to carry out the difficult and time-consuming technical exercise of transposing EU law. The bill set out powers for ministers, with the approval of parliament, to correct laws to ensure they work after being brought into British law. These powers will exist until two years after the day Britain leaves. A government document, released alongside the bill, offered the example of current town and planning regulations which now refer to "other EEA (European Economic Area) states". That would need to be changed to "EEA states", dropping the 'other', for the regulations to work. In other areas, existing laws require Britain to seek an opinion from the European Commission before a project is approved - something also that will need to be changed. Lawmakers have expressed concern that the sheer volume of work could limit their ability to scrutinise the changes effectively and fear the government will introduce policy change by the back door. The main opposition Labour Party has said it would oppose the bill unless it met six conditions, including guarantees for workers' rights. Tim Farron, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said he would work to soften May's stance, promising the prime minister that "this will be hell". The bill will also face scrutiny from British companies, many of which have spent the year since Britons voted by 52 percent to 48 to leave the EU trying to figure out how the change will affect their business. "A legislative transition of this scope has never before been undertaken," Adam Marshall, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said in a statement. "We will be keeping a watchful eye for the possibility of unintended consequences that lead to new burdens or compliance costs."

Britain takes step towards Brexit with repeal bill

British Prime Minister Theresa May&#39;s government faces a vote of&nbsp;confidence&nbsp;on Thursday, three weeks after a disastrous election left her authority in tatters and her Brexit strategy in doubt.

Members of the House of Commons will vote on the Conservative leader&#39;s legislative plans -- the Queen&#39;s Speech -- in a key test of whether she can stay in power.

The government is expected to pass its programme after forming a deal with Northern Ireland&#39;s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), whose 10 MPs will vote with 317 Conservatives.

That tally is enough, barely, for a majority in the 650-seat chamber but May&#39;s authority has been deeply damaged by the election, which she called three years early expecting to win a landslide.

Instead, she finds herself hanging on by a thread.

The majority of the bills in the Queen&#39;s Speech concern Britain&#39;s departure from the European Union, on which the first formal negotiations took place last week.

But May&#39;s Brexit plan is under scrutiny as many saw the election as a rebuke to her move to pull Britain out of Europe&#39;s single market -- its largest trading market -- to prioritise cutting EU immigration.

May&#39;s government is also dealing with the fall-out of a string of terror attacks and the blaze at the Grenfell Tower block in London, which left at least 80 people presumed dead and saw the premier accused of being out of touch with the public mood by not acting quickly enough.

Brexit plans in flux

Calls to prioritise jobs and growth in Brexit are growing, including from Finance Minister Philip Hammond, who May was expected to sack after the election but who has stayed on.

Cabinet tensions have also seen Hammond take a swipe at eurosceptic Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson over his claim that Britain could &quot;have its cake and eat it&quot; in the negotiations.

&quot;I try to discourage talk of &#39;cake&#39; amongst my colleagues,&quot; the finance minister said during a speech in Berlin.

Hammond emphasised the need for transitional deals to avoid a damaging &quot;cliff-edge&quot; when Britain leaves, but in London, Brexit minister David Davis slapped him down, saying his views were &quot;not quite consistent&quot;.

Davis also introduced confusion by suggesting that Britain would not stay in the customs union as part of a transitional deal.

May&#39;s spokeswoman insisted that &quot;everybody is on the same page&quot;, and nothing had changed.

However, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was asked at a summit last week whether he was clear on Britain&#39;s position on Brexit, to which he replied: &quot;No.&quot;

&quot;Whatever May and Davis are saying in public, Brexit policy is in fact in flux,&quot; said Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform.

He noted the increased influence of Hammond and the Scottish Conservatives, who did well in the election and have also emphasised maintaining trade ties with the EU.

Meanwhile Labour, which won 262 seats, has accepted that Britain will be leaving the single market but wants &quot;full tariff-free access&quot; to protect jobs.

&#39;Ready and waiting&#39;

&quot;The easiest thing for May to do is to press ahead with the Brexit that her right-wing desires. But that is probably not sustainable in the long term,&quot; Grant said.

He added: &quot;If May doesn&rsquo;t reinvent herself as a soft-Brexiteer, she is likely to be defeated in parliament.&quot;

After more than two weeks of wrangling, May announced a deal with the DUP on Monday where they agreed to back her minority government in&nbsp;confidence&nbsp;and budget votes.

She promised to give Northern Ireland an extra &pound;1.0 billion (1.1 billion euros, $1.3 billion) in state aid over the next two years.

But there is doubt about how long the alliance can last.

The DUP&#39;s ultra-conservative views on abortion and gay marriage have caused disquiet among many Conservatives. There are also concerns that the deal could upset the fragile balance of power in Northern Ireland

Theresa May finds her government hanging by a thread after the disastrous election. Her Brexit strategy is also in doubt?

British Prime Minister Theresa May's government faces a vote of confidence on Thursday, three weeks after a disastrous election left her authority in tatters and her Brexit strategy in doubt. Members of the House of Commons will vote on the Conservative leader's legislative plans -- the Queen's Speech -- in a key test of whether she can stay in power. The government is expected to pass its programme after forming a deal with Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), whose 10 MPs will vote with 317 Conservatives. That tally is enough, barely, for a majority in the 650-seat chamber but May's authority has been deeply damaged by the election, which she called three years early expecting to win a landslide. Instead, she finds herself hanging on by a thread. The majority of the bills in the Queen's Speech concern Britain's departure from the European Union, on which the first formal negotiations took place last week. But May's Brexit plan is under scrutiny as many saw the election as a rebuke to her move to pull Britain out of Europe's single market -- its largest trading market -- to prioritise cutting EU immigration. May's government is also dealing with the fall-out of a string of terror attacks and the blaze at the Grenfell Tower block in London, which left at least 80 people presumed dead and saw the premier accused of being out of touch with the public mood by not acting quickly enough. Brexit plans in flux Calls to prioritise jobs and growth in Brexit are growing, including from Finance Minister Philip Hammond, who May was expected to sack after the election but who has stayed on. Cabinet tensions have also seen Hammond take a swipe at eurosceptic Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson over his claim that Britain could "have its cake and eat it" in the negotiations. "I try to discourage talk of 'cake' amongst my colleagues," the finance minister said during a speech in Berlin. Hammond emphasised the need for transitional deals to avoid a damaging "cliff-edge" when Britain leaves, but in London, Brexit minister David Davis slapped him down, saying his views were "not quite consistent". Davis also introduced confusion by suggesting that Britain would not stay in the customs union as part of a transitional deal. May's spokeswoman insisted that "everybody is on the same page", and nothing had changed. However, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was asked at a summit last week whether he was clear on Britain's position on Brexit, to which he replied: "No." "Whatever May and Davis are saying in public, Brexit policy is in fact in flux," said Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform. He noted the increased influence of Hammond and the Scottish Conservatives, who did well in the election and have also emphasised maintaining trade ties with the EU. Meanwhile Labour, which won 262 seats, has accepted that Britain will be leaving the single market but wants "full tariff-free access" to protect jobs. 'Ready and waiting' "The easiest thing for May to do is to press ahead with the Brexit that her right-wing desires. But that is probably not sustainable in the long term," Grant said. He added: "If May doesn’t reinvent herself as a soft-Brexiteer, she is likely to be defeated in parliament." After more than two weeks of wrangling, May announced a deal with the DUP on Monday where they agreed to back her minority government in confidence and budget votes. She promised to give Northern Ireland an extra £1.0 billion (1.1 billion euros, $1.3 billion) in state aid over the next two years. But there is doubt about how long the alliance can last. The DUP's ultra-conservative views on abortion and gay marriage have caused disquiet among many Conservatives. There are also concerns that the deal could upset the fragile balance of power in Northern Ireland

British PM Theresa May faces confidence vote today

British Prime Minister Theresa May&#39;s Conservatives have signed a deal with Norther Ireland&#39;s Democratic Unionist Party to form a government, days after she lost the majority in a general election.

Theresa May issued a full statement about the government formation: &quot;A confidence and supply agreement has been made between the Conservative &amp; Unionist party and the Democratic Unionist party.

This means the DUP will support the Conservative government on votes on the Queen&rsquo;s Speech, the Budget, and legislation relating to Brexit and national security.&quot;

May&#39;s Tories had won 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament, falling nine seats short of majority.

The coalition with DUP -- they won 10 seats -- means May remain the prime minister of the country.

Northern Ireland promised cash injection

The main feature of the coalition is that the government will give Northern Ireland an &pound;1 billion over the next two years.

The extra budget boost will be spent on hospitals, schools and roads in the region, Guardian quoted DUP as saying.&nbsp;

DUP chief Arlene Foster highlighted a range of other agreements the two parties struck.

The two parties have agreed to keep defence spending at 2 per cent of the GDP, retain the triple lock for pensions and winter fuel payments for all pensioners.

&quot;We&rsquo;re delighted that we have reached this agreement, which I think works, obviously, for national stability,&quot; Foster said.

But there is a hint of consternation among the public since the DUP has in the past opposed gay marriage and abortion.

Ireland&#39;s former premier Enda Kenny has warned that a deal with the Protestant and pro-British DUP could upset Northern Ireland&#39;s fragile peace, AFP reported.

Welsh Prime Minister&nbsp;Carwyn Jones has slammed the coalition deal as &quot;outrageous and unacceptable&quot;.

&quot;Today&rsquo;s deal represents a straight bung to keep a weak prime minister and a faltering government in office,&quot; a tersely-worded statement from his office said.

London&#39;s neutrality is key to the delicate balance of power in Northern Ireland, which was once plagued by violence over Britain&#39;s control of the province.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

One of the features of the deal is that the Theresa May government will give Northern Ireland ?1 billion in the next two years

British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservatives have signed a deal with Norther Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party to form a government, days after she lost the majority in a general election. Theresa May issued a full statement about the government formation: "A confidence and supply agreement has been made between the Conservative & Unionist party and the Democratic Unionist party. This means the DUP will support the Conservative government on votes on the Queen’s Speech, the Budget, and legislation relating to Brexit and national security." May's Tories had won 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament, falling nine seats short of majority. The coalition with DUP -- they won 10 seats -- means May remain the prime minister of the country. Northern Ireland promised cash injection The main feature of the coalition is that the government will give Northern Ireland an £1 billion over the next two years. The extra budget boost will be spent on hospitals, schools and roads in the region, Guardian quoted DUP as saying. DUP chief Arlene Foster highlighted a range of other agreements the two parties struck. The two parties have agreed to keep defence spending at 2 per cent of the GDP, retain the triple lock for pensions and winter fuel payments for all pensioners. "We’re delighted that we have reached this agreement, which I think works, obviously, for national stability," Foster said. But there is a hint of consternation among the public since the DUP has in the past opposed gay marriage and abortion. Ireland's former premier Enda Kenny has warned that a deal with the Protestant and pro-British DUP could upset Northern Ireland's fragile peace, AFP reported. Welsh Prime Minister Carwyn Jones has slammed the coalition deal as "outrageous and unacceptable". "Today’s deal represents a straight bung to keep a weak prime minister and a faltering government in office," a tersely-worded statement from his office said. London's neutrality is key to the delicate balance of power in Northern Ireland, which was once plagued by violence over Britain's control of the province.

May's Conservatives, DUP prop up new government amid cash boost pledge

Prime Minister Theresa May set out what she called a &quot;fair deal&quot; for EU citizens living in Britain on Thursday, saying in her first test of negotiating strength that she did not want anyone to have to leave because of Brexit or to split up families.

Outlining the five main principles of her &quot;fair and serious offer&quot;, May told other EU leaders at a summit in Brussels that she wanted to offer certainty to EU citizens about their future in Britain, again using a softer tone in her approach to Brexit.

But while her five principles go some way to ease concerns of the roughly 3 million EU nationals in Britain, their leaders will no doubt want to see more detail and may query the lack of a firm cut-off date for any changes to immigration rules - the EU is insisting on no changes until Britain leaves in 2019.

And her reduced stature, after losing her parliamentary majority in a June 8 election, among leaders who have made clear that they are more concerned about the future of the European Union than Britain&#39;s departure, could see her on the back foot.

&quot;The prime minister tonight set out details of the rights and status EU citizens in the UK will enjoy after Brexit - vowing to give them reassurance, and to make them a priority in negotiations,&quot; a senior British government source said.

&quot;The PM said the UK&#39;s position represented a fair and serious offer &ndash; and one aimed at giving as much certainty as possible to citizens who have settled in the UK, building careers and lives, and contributing so much to our society.&quot;

It was her first foray into the Brexit talks, one which was timed to coincide with coffee at the end of dinner by EU leaders who have warned the British prime minister not to use Council summits as a negotiating chamber for Britain&#39;s departure.

May outlined the plan many in her party who campaigned for Brexit hope will reduce the flow of migrants to Britain, then she left. The others went on to discuss Britain&#39;s departure from the European Union without her.

Certainity

May told leaders she wanted to offer certainty by saying no EU citizens in Britain lawfully would be asked to leave at the time of Brexit, and that all EU citizens lawfully in the country at the point of Brexit would be able to regularise their status.

She would also offer any EU citizen resident for five years - at some cut-off date - the opportunity to get settled status, a new category which would treat them as if they were British citizens for healthcare, education, benefits and pensions.

Those who by then had less than five years residency would be allowed to build up to five years to obtain that status. The government will also offer a grace period of most likely up to two years to allow people to regularise their status so that &quot;no one will face a cliff edge&quot;, she said.

The 85-page residency form, which many struggled to fill in after Britain voted to leave the European Union a year ago on Friday, will be replaced by a more streamlined system, &quot;using digital tools to register people in a light-touch way&quot;.

In a nod to the million or more Britons living on the continent, she said that: &quot;Reciprocity was, of course, vital.&quot;

But, even with the softer tone and expressed eagerness to sort out one of the relatively easy problems that the Brexit talks will have to unpick, there were bound to be sticking points.

EU leaders argue that while Britain is in the bloc it must adhere to its rules. May offered a window in which to set the cut-off which can be debated with Brussels - no earlier than her confirmation of withdrawal three months ago and no later than Brexit, due on March 30, 2019, two years after it was triggered.

There would be no changes until the latter date: &quot;All EU citizens currently (in Britain) will have their rights protected under EU law until the date we leave the EU,&quot; the source said.

Other non-negotiables were the role of the European Court of Justice - May has repeatedly said that &quot;we&#39;re taking back control of our own rules&quot; and, the source said, EU citizens could rely on the protection of &quot;our highly respected courts&quot;.

The EU wants their citizens&#39; rights after Brexit enforceable in their European court in Luxembourg.

May&#39;s aides declined to add detail, saying the government would present a paper to parliament on Monday that would explore the implications of the changes for family members from non-EU states and marriages of people of different nationality.

The EU has insisted that sweeping political guarantees are worth little without detailed legal agreements which tackle the complex diversity of people&#39;s family situations.

&quot;Both sides should seek to agree terms and give certainty as early as possible in the talks,&quot; May said.

The loss of majority for Theresa May in the June 8 elections has undercut her negotiating power in the Brexit talks with EU leaders who have hinted that they are more concerned about the future of EU than Britain's departure

Prime Minister Theresa May set out what she called a "fair deal" for EU citizens living in Britain on Thursday, saying in her first test of negotiating strength that she did not want anyone to have to leave because of Brexit or to split up families. Outlining the five main principles of her "fair and serious offer", May told other EU leaders at a summit in Brussels that she wanted to offer certainty to EU citizens about their future in Britain, again using a softer tone in her approach to Brexit. But while her five principles go some way to ease concerns of the roughly 3 million EU nationals in Britain, their leaders will no doubt want to see more detail and may query the lack of a firm cut-off date for any changes to immigration rules - the EU is insisting on no changes until Britain leaves in 2019. And her reduced stature, after losing her parliamentary majority in a June 8 election, among leaders who have made clear that they are more concerned about the future of the European Union than Britain's departure, could see her on the back foot. "The prime minister tonight set out details of the rights and status EU citizens in the UK will enjoy after Brexit - vowing to give them reassurance, and to make them a priority in negotiations," a senior British government source said. "The PM said the UK's position represented a fair and serious offer – and one aimed at giving as much certainty as possible to citizens who have settled in the UK, building careers and lives, and contributing so much to our society." It was her first foray into the Brexit talks, one which was timed to coincide with coffee at the end of dinner by EU leaders who have warned the British prime minister not to use Council summits as a negotiating chamber for Britain's departure. May outlined the plan many in her party who campaigned for Brexit hope will reduce the flow of migrants to Britain, then she left. The others went on to discuss Britain's departure from the European Union without her. Certainity May told leaders she wanted to offer certainty by saying no EU citizens in Britain lawfully would be asked to leave at the time of Brexit, and that all EU citizens lawfully in the country at the point of Brexit would be able to regularise their status. She would also offer any EU citizen resident for five years - at some cut-off date - the opportunity to get settled status, a new category which would treat them as if they were British citizens for healthcare, education, benefits and pensions. Those who by then had less than five years residency would be allowed to build up to five years to obtain that status. The government will also offer a grace period of most likely up to two years to allow people to regularise their status so that "no one will face a cliff edge", she said. The 85-page residency form, which many struggled to fill in after Britain voted to leave the European Union a year ago on Friday, will be replaced by a more streamlined system, "using digital tools to register people in a light-touch way". In a nod to the million or more Britons living on the continent, she said that: "Reciprocity was, of course, vital." But, even with the softer tone and expressed eagerness to sort out one of the relatively easy problems that the Brexit talks will have to unpick, there were bound to be sticking points. EU leaders argue that while Britain is in the bloc it must adhere to its rules. May offered a window in which to set the cut-off which can be debated with Brussels - no earlier than her confirmation of withdrawal three months ago and no later than Brexit, due on March 30, 2019, two years after it was triggered. There would be no changes until the latter date: "All EU citizens currently (in Britain) will have their rights protected under EU law until the date we leave the EU," the source said. Other non-negotiables were the role of the European Court of Justice - May has repeatedly said that "we're taking back control of our own rules" and, the source said, EU citizens could rely on the protection of "our highly respected courts". The EU wants their citizens' rights after Brexit enforceable in their European court in Luxembourg. May's aides declined to add detail, saying the government would present a paper to parliament on Monday that would explore the implications of the changes for family members from non-EU states and marriages of people of different nationality. The EU has insisted that sweeping political guarantees are worth little without detailed legal agreements which tackle the complex diversity of people's family situations. "Both sides should seek to agree terms and give certainty as early as possible in the talks," May said.

Theresa May offers 'fair deal' to EU citizens living in Britain

Prime Minister Theresa May, leading a so-called &quot;zombie&quot; government after a disastrous election, on Wednesday unveiled a diluted programme of action that included the mammoth legislation needed to take Britain out of the EU.

The state opening of parliament by Queen Elizabeth II came after a string of tragedies which have shaken the nation, and the election on June 8 in which May&#39;s Conservatives saw their parliamentary majority wiped out.

The queen, at an occasion shorn of its usual pageantry, read out the watered-down list of proposed legislation and lawmakers will then spend the next few days debating before bringing it to a vote.

May could be forced to resign if she loses the vote, expected on June 29, just as the country embarks on highly sensitive negotiations for Britain&#39;s withdrawal from the European Union.

Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he was ready to step in and build a rival government -- although he and other opposition parties lack the collective numbers to bring down May.

&quot;This is a government without a majority, without a mandate, without a serious legislative programme led by a prime minister who&#39;s lost her political authority,&quot; Corbyn told parliament.

&quot;Labour is not merely an opposition. We are a government in waiting,&quot; he said during hours of heated debate in which May fended off calls to resign.

After four terror attacks and a deadly tower block blaze that have darkened the national mood in the past three months, anti-government campaigners also staged &quot;Day of Rage&quot; protests that converged outside parliament.

&quot;Bring Down The Government&quot;, &quot;Austerity Kills&quot; and &quot;You Can&#39;t Trust Her&quot;, read some of the placards.

A banner said &quot;We Need Justice For Grenfell Tower&quot; -- a reference to the tower block fire last week in which 79 people died, prompting criticism of budget cuts and officials for ignoring warnings about fire safety risks.

May apologised for the chaotic official response to the fire, telling MPs it was &quot;not good enough&quot;.

&quot;As prime minister, I apologise for that failure,&quot; she said.

May humbled&nbsp;

The enfeebled premier, who is still locked in difficult talks with a Northern Irish party to prop up her administration, said her programme was about seizing opportunities offered by Brexit.

The queen said: &quot;My government&#39;s priority is to secure the best possible deal as the country leaves the European Union.&quot;&nbsp;

She said her government would seek &quot;to build the widest possible consensus on the country&#39;s future outside the European Union&quot;, amid divisions within May&#39;s own cabinet over the best strategy.

Business leaders reacted positively to the change of tone in the speech and Corbyn said he also hoped for a Brexit deal &quot;that puts jobs and the economy first&quot;.

The speech announced no fewer than eight bills to implement Brexit, and new legislation aimed at tackling extremist content online after the terror attacks.

But the speech was notable also for what it did not contain.&nbsp;

There was no mention of May&#39;s hugely controversial invitation to US President Donald Trump to come on a state visit.&nbsp;

Also absent were key pledges the Conservatives had given in their manifesto for the recent election which analysts said had bombed with the electorate -- such as reform of social care for the elderly and more shake-ups in schools.

There was no mention too of May&#39;s controversial promise to allow a parliamentary vote to repeal a ban on fox hunting, which angered left-wingers.

The Times branded May&#39;s administration the &quot;stumbling husk of a zombie government&quot; and said she was now &quot;so weak that she cannot arbitrate between squabbling cabinet ministers&quot;.

&quot;Downing Street is a vacuum,&quot; the newspaper said, two days after Britain and the EU formally started their Brexit negotiations.

No deal yet

May called the snap general election in a bid to strengthen her mandate heading into the Brexit talks.

But the plan spectacularly backfired, leaving her with a minority government that is now trying to form a majority with Northern Ireland&#39;s ultra-conservative Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).

May has resisted calls to resign and is hoping for the support of the DUP&#39;s 10 MPs to boost her tally of 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament, but a deal has proved elusive so far.

&quot;We are doing what is in the national interest, which is forming a government to address the challenges that face this country at the moment,&quot; May said.

But a DUP source said a deal was &quot;certainly not imminent&quot; as the talks &quot;haven&#39;t proceeded in a way that the DUP would have expected&quot; and cautioned that the party &quot;can&#39;t be taken for granted&quot;.

Even with DUP backing, the government would command only a tiny majority, and just a few rebel MPs could be enough to undermine it fatally.

The Times branded May's administration the 'stumbling husk of a zombie government' and said she was now 'so weak that she cannot arbitrate between squabbling cabinet ministers'

Prime Minister Theresa May, leading a so-called "zombie" government after a disastrous election, on Wednesday unveiled a diluted programme of action that included the mammoth legislation needed to take Britain out of the EU. The state opening of parliament by Queen Elizabeth II came after a string of tragedies which have shaken the nation, and the election on June 8 in which May's Conservatives saw their parliamentary majority wiped out. The queen, at an occasion shorn of its usual pageantry, read out the watered-down list of proposed legislation and lawmakers will then spend the next few days debating before bringing it to a vote. May could be forced to resign if she loses the vote, expected on June 29, just as the country embarks on highly sensitive negotiations for Britain's withdrawal from the European Union. Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he was ready to step in and build a rival government -- although he and other opposition parties lack the collective numbers to bring down May. "This is a government without a majority, without a mandate, without a serious legislative programme led by a prime minister who's lost her political authority," Corbyn told parliament. "Labour is not merely an opposition. We are a government in waiting," he said during hours of heated debate in which May fended off calls to resign. After four terror attacks and a deadly tower block blaze that have darkened the national mood in the past three months, anti-government campaigners also staged "Day of Rage" protests that converged outside parliament. "Bring Down The Government", "Austerity Kills" and "You Can't Trust Her", read some of the placards. A banner said "We Need Justice For Grenfell Tower" -- a reference to the tower block fire last week in which 79 people died, prompting criticism of budget cuts and officials for ignoring warnings about fire safety risks. May apologised for the chaotic official response to the fire, telling MPs it was "not good enough". "As prime minister, I apologise for that failure," she said. May humbled The enfeebled premier, who is still locked in difficult talks with a Northern Irish party to prop up her administration, said her programme was about seizing opportunities offered by Brexit. The queen said: "My government's priority is to secure the best possible deal as the country leaves the European Union." She said her government would seek "to build the widest possible consensus on the country's future outside the European Union", amid divisions within May's own cabinet over the best strategy. Business leaders reacted positively to the change of tone in the speech and Corbyn said he also hoped for a Brexit deal "that puts jobs and the economy first". The speech announced no fewer than eight bills to implement Brexit, and new legislation aimed at tackling extremist content online after the terror attacks. But the speech was notable also for what it did not contain. There was no mention of May's hugely controversial invitation to US President Donald Trump to come on a state visit. Also absent were key pledges the Conservatives had given in their manifesto for the recent election which analysts said had bombed with the electorate -- such as reform of social care for the elderly and more shake-ups in schools. There was no mention too of May's controversial promise to allow a parliamentary vote to repeal a ban on fox hunting, which angered left-wingers. The Times branded May's administration the "stumbling husk of a zombie government" and said she was now "so weak that she cannot arbitrate between squabbling cabinet ministers". "Downing Street is a vacuum," the newspaper said, two days after Britain and the EU formally started their Brexit negotiations. No deal yet May called the snap general election in a bid to strengthen her mandate heading into the Brexit talks. But the plan spectacularly backfired, leaving her with a minority government that is now trying to form a majority with Northern Ireland's ultra-conservative Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). May has resisted calls to resign and is hoping for the support of the DUP's 10 MPs to boost her tally of 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament, but a deal has proved elusive so far. "We are doing what is in the national interest, which is forming a government to address the challenges that face this country at the moment," May said. But a DUP source said a deal was "certainly not imminent" as the talks "haven't proceeded in a way that the DUP would have expected" and cautioned that the party "can't be taken for granted". Even with DUP backing, the government would command only a tiny majority, and just a few rebel MPs could be enough to undermine it fatally.

Brexit laws head agenda for UK's 'zombie government'

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