Viv’s not feeling herself today so I’m on duty.

 

Strikes

Express
Members of GMB rejected the Government’s most recent pay offer and said they are “angry” at the state of negotiations.
Ambulance workers have announced plans to strike on six additional dates after rejecting another pay offer from the Government. Over 10,000 staff, including paramedics, call handlers, and care assistants, will walk out on February 6, February 20, March 6 and March 20.
GMB members voted to reject the four percent pay rise offer given by the Government because it still represents a “massive real terms pay cut” with inflation at 10.5 percent.
West Midlands ambulance workers will also strike on January 23 and Nort West Ambulance Service will do the same on January 24.
GMB says its members are “angry” and “are done” after another pay offer that does not meet their demands.
Rachel Harrison, GMB national secretary, said: “Our message to the government is clear – talk pay now.
“Ministers have made things worse by demonising the ambulance workers who provided life and limb cover on strike days – playing political games with their scaremongering.

ITV News
Health leaders have begun to make contingency plans for the possibility of the biggest walkout in the history of the NHS as the pay dispute between staff and the government shows no signs of reaching a resolution.
NHS experts expressed “huge concern” after it was announced that ambulance workers would join nurses in a combined day of action next month.
On Wednesday, the GMB union said more than 10,000 ambulance workers – including paramedics, emergency care assistants and call handlers – will stage strikes on February 6, February 20, March 6 and March 20.
Nurses are also due to strike on February 6 – meaning mass disruption can be expected across the NHS on that day. Nurses will also strike the following day, February 7.
It is the first time both ambulance staff and the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) have acted on the same day.
The escalation in industrial action comes as thousands of nurses are striking on Thursday this week at more than 55 NHS trusts in England.
More than 1,000 Unite members in the Welsh Ambulance Service are also holding the first of two 24-hour strikes on Thursday. The second is on January 23.

Mail
Thousands of disgruntled teachers have switched unions in the aim of joining next month’s strike action, the Mail can reveal.
The National Education Union (NEU) has received more than 10,000 new members since it announced plans on Monday to strike over seven days in February and March.
Eligible teachers and school staff can take part in the planned walkouts if they sign up to the NEU before the first scheduled strike on February 1.
It means tens of thousands more teachers potentially joining the 120,000 members already walking out across England and Wales next month.
Overall, 300,000 teachers and support staff in England and Wales were asked to vote in the NEU ballot.
A total of 121,253 teacher members in England voted yes.
The news comes as Education Secretary Gillian Keegan suggested on Tuesday paying more to teachers in subjects facing a recruitment crisis such as maths and physics.

BBC News
Ambulance workers are to join nurses in taking strike action on 6 February in England and Wales in what will be the biggest NHS walkout in this dispute.
The GMB announced four new stoppages for ambulance staff – one of which coincides with a nurses’ strike date.
It is the first time both ambulance staff and the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) have acted on the same day.
It comes as RCN members are taking part in two days of strikes on Wednesday and Thursday this week.
GMB national secretary Rachel Harrison said: “Ambulance workers are angry. Our message to the government is clear – talk pay now.”
The walkouts by staff including paramedics, call handlers and support workers in seven of the 10 English ambulance services along with the national Welsh service will take place on 6 and 20 February, and 6 and 20 March.
On Monday, the RCN set 6 and 7 February as the dates for its biggest strike to date, involving more than a third of services in England and all but one health board in Wales.
Under trade union laws, both unions will have to provide emergency cover.

Guardian
The health and social care secretary Steve Barclay has privately urged trade unions to help him make the case to the Treasury and No 10 for extra money for nurses, ambulance workers and other NHS staff in an extraordinary twist to the escalating crisis over health service strikes, the Observer can reveal.
A serious cabinet split has opened up, with Barclay now wanting more money for all NHS staff except doctors – while Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, are refusing to budge from their insistence that no more can be offered.
Barclay’s call for the unions to help him present a convincing case to Sunak and Hunt was made at a meeting between the unions and ministers last Monday.
Sara Gorton, head of health at Unison, who chairs the 14-strong NHS group of unions, and who was present, told the Observer: “On Monday he talked about asking us to help make the case to the Treasury for the investment needed.”
Gorton said that after weeks of stonewalling Barclay’s tone was “very different” in the meeting and that he was willing to talk about more pay, including for this year.

Telegraph
Downing Street on Wednesday hit back at a member of Joe Biden’s Cabinet after he opposed the imposition of minimum service agreements for public sector strikes.
Marty Walsh, the US labour secretary, suggested such laws may be detrimental to workers.
But Rishi Sunak’s official spokesman said US anti-strike laws were much tougher than anything being proposed by the UK Government, pointing out that last month Mr Biden, the US president, signed a law to block a national railway strike.
Mr Sunak has brought forward laws to ensure that public sector workers such as NHS staff and railway workers have to ensure minimum service levels when they strike.
Asked by the BBC whether he agreed with minimum service levels, Mr Walsh said: “No. I don’t know about the legislation… I would not support anything that would take away from workers.”
Mr Sunak’s spokesman said: “The labour secretary was clear he had not seen the detailed legislation, which we are confident is proportionate. The steps we’re taking to introduce minimum service levels on critical sectors including blue-light services… do not inhibit unions’ ability to strike.

ITV News
Ferries between Dover and Calais will be suspended on Thursday due to strikes in France.
The Port of Dover said that “due to national industrial action in France, services to and from Calais will be suspended from 7am.”
P&O Ferries said it has produced an “optimised” sailing schedule in light of the 24-hour strike – known as the National Day of Action in France.
The ferry company also warned “due to the lack of details”, it “cannot anticipate the level of disruption” that could still hit its changed sailing schedule.
The Port of Dover said it “is still open with services to Dunkirk running as normal”, but travellers should expect it and the local road network around Dover “will be busier than usual”.
In a statement, the company added: “Please plan ahead, allowing extra time for your journey and traffic systems that are in place to minimise delays.
“Calais sailings are expected to resume at approximately 2pm UTC from Dover.”

BBC News
Ferries between Dover and Calais will be disrupted by a national strike in France on Thursday.
P&O Ferries said services to and from the French port will be suspended from 07:00 GMT for nine hours.
Dover will still be open with Dunkerque services running as normal but travellers are being urged to allow extra time for journeys.
A day of strike action across France is being staged to protest about plans to raise the official pension age.
The national stoppages will involve transport, school and health workers.
P&O said it could not anticipate the extent of disruption to services, adding that “it is possible that our wider operations could be affected during the day”.
When ferries resume after strike action ends at 16:00 GMT, there will be a shuttle service between Dover and Calais until all traffic is cleared.
Danish ferry company DFDS has told customers due to travel from Dover to Calais on Thursday that alternative arrangements would be made via Dunkerque.
Irish Ferries said that while crossings from Calais are affected, drivers with freight will still be able to access that port and “check-in as normal”.
The strike will also affect Eurostar rail services – a reduced number of trains will run on 19 January due to staff shortages.
There will be cancellations between London and Paris and on services connecting London to Lille, Brussels, Rotterdam and Amsterdam.

Covid

Guardian
Almost 60,000 people have died of Covid in Chinese hospitals since early December when the country relaxed its strict lockdown restrictions, authorities have announced.
A major wave of the virus has gripped the country after President Xi Jinping abruptly lifted zero-Covid policy restrictions last month. It is estimated that some major cities have experienced infection rates of between 70% and 90% of their populations since then.
The surge in infections has been blamed on the Chinese government’s emphasis on shielding the 1.4 billion people that make up its population rather than inoculating them effectively against the Covid-19 virus.
Reports of deaths on social media and long queues at morgues and crematoriums have suggested a high death toll, but until Saturday authorities had only officially recorded a few dozen Covid-19 fatalities.
The shortfall in reported numbers was due to stringent definitions of how a death is attributed to Covid in China. Only people who died of respiratory failure were counted. The World Health Organization last week criticised the new definition as too narrow and warned that it was an under-representation of the true impact of the outbreak. But Chinese authorities responded that it was not necessary to attribute every death to Covid.

Interest rates

Mail
The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates to 4 per cent in a fortnight’s time as it steps up its battle against stubbornly high inflation.
In another blow to borrowers, experts predict the Bank will increase the rate from its current figure of 3.5 per cent to the highest level in nearly 15 years.
The Bank has already raised rates from a record low of 0.1 per cent in December 2021 in a desperate effort to tackle inflation.
This has driven up the cost of mortgages and other loans, slowing the economy in the process.
It is feared rising interest rates could tip Britain into recession, although economic growth of 0.1 per cent in November made an immediate slump unlikely.
The decision by the Bank’s monetary policy committee on whether to raise its base rate will be announced on Thursday, February 2.
The predictions came as data yesterday showed inflation stood at 10.5 per cent in December, down from 10.7 per cent the previous month and the 41-year high of 11.1 per cent recorded in October. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said a key reason for the fall was a sharp drop in the cost of petrol and diesel as well as slower increases in prices of clothing and footwear.
But these were offset by rapid rises in food prices, which were up by 16.8 per cent year-on-year, the biggest increase since 1977 and higher than previously expected.

Snow

Express
Much of Britain has been caked in snow due to an Arctic blast – with northern regions suffering the worst impacts.
Fury has erupted as Manchester Airport bosses have temporarily shut both its runways due to snowfall. In a statement released this morning, it said: Health and safety will always be our top priority and operations will resume at the earliest opportunity.” It urges passengers to check with their airline for the most up-to-date information. Much of the UK has been blanketed under snow, or a sharp frost, as the first cold snap of 2023 takes hold.
Pictures show grounded aircrafts iced over, with clusters of snow hanging off the exteriors. The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for snow and ice across the UK, with isolated parts of Scotland having had amber alerts to contend with.
The forecaster had warned northern areas would be worst off when it came to plunging temperatures and snowfall. Interactive maps show much of the north and Midlands has this morning woken up to a fresh layer.

Telegraph
Manchester Airport has temporarily closed both its runways due to heavy snowfall.
Temperatures plunged below minus 10C (14F) in parts of the UK overnight amid warnings of snow, ice and travel disruption.
Drumnadrochit near Inverness in the Highlands hit minus 10.4C (13.28F) in the early hours of Thursday, making it the coldest recorded temperature of the year so far.
As Topcliffe in north Yorkshire got down to minus 7.4C (18.68F), the coldest in England, Manchester Airport was forced to close its runways.
A statement on Twitter said: “Following a period of heavy snowfall, we have temporarily closed both runways.
“Health and safety will always be our top priority and operations will resume at the earliest opportunity.
“Passengers are advised to contact their airline for the most up-to-date flight information.”
A series of yellow weather warnings for snow and ice from the Met Office came in as a major incident was declared in Somerset due to the risk of flooding.

Star
A major UK airport has been forced to close due to snow following yet another Met Office  weather warning.
Manchester Airport says it will reopen its runways as soon as possible, with passengers told to contact their airline for the latest information.
There has been significant snowfall overnight, which was to be expected given the yellow warning for snow and ice in place from noon yesterday to noon today (Thursday, January 19).
A spokesperson for Manchester Airport said: “Following a period of heavy snow fall, we have temporarily closed both runways.
“Health and safety will always be our top priority and operations will resume at the earliest opportunity.
“Passengers are advised to contact their airline for the most up-to-date flight information.”

Mail
Manchester Airport has been forced to close amid snowstorms as Britain braces itself for another day of travel chaos after temperatures plummeted last night to as low as -10C.
Many are waking up to ice and snow this morning as the UK continues to be hit by this week’s cold snap and face travel disruption following temperatures as low as -7.1C yesterday.
Manchester Airport has been forced to close both its runways after heavy snowfall made it impossible for flights to take off.
Dozens of passengers have been left stranded by the weather at the airport as snowstorms batter parts of the UK.
A plane travelling 4,000 miles from Atalanta, Georgia in the US to Manchester has been forced to divert to London after being unable to land in the snow.

Wind farms

Mail
The Crown Estate has signed a deal worth up to £10billion giving energy companies the right to build offshore windfarms – but the King claims he does not want to profit.
Charles, who is an avid supporter of both onshore and offshore wind power, said he wants the windfall from the bumper lease agreements for six new windfarms to ‘be directed for wider public good’.
Under current arrangements known as the Sovereign Grant, the King is entitled to receive 25 per cent of all profits from the Crown Estate. The rest is kept by the Treasury.
Last year the Sovereign Grant was £86.3million, based on the Crown Estate’s £345million profits notched up in 2019/20.
The six offshore wind leases are expected to add £1billion to the Crown Estate’s annual revenues from 2024 for at least three years up to a maximum of ten years.
The leases were provisionally handed out two years ago, before the current cost-of-living crisis took hold, the Telegraph reports.
For the year to the end of March 2022, the Crown Estate generated revenues of nearly £491million, meaning the additional income could see this figure more than treble.

Telegraph
The King has turned down the opportunity to boost palace funding, opting instead to donate millions of pounds worth of wind farm profits to the nation.
The monarch has declared that the Crown Estate’s profits from six highly lucrative offshore wind projects should go straight into Treasury coffers, with none of it syphoned off for the royal household.
The Sovereign Grant he receives to fund his official duties is based on the profits of the estate, a £15 billion land and property empire run as an independent business.
It comes after the Crown Estate announced a landmark energy deal that will generate gross revenues of £1 billion a year for at least three years.
The six projects, three of which are located off the North Wales, Cumbria and Lancashire coast, with three in the North Sea off the Yorkshire and Lincolnshire coast, will generate enough renewable electricity to power more than seven million homes.

BBC News
King Charles has asked for a surge in profits from a £1bn per year Crown Estate offshore wind farm deal to be used for the “wider public good”, rather than for the Royal Family.
The Sovereign Grant, which pays the running costs of the Royal Household, is currently based on 25% of Crown Estate profits.
Those profits will see a big increase with payments from six new wind farms.
King Charles is proposing to reduce the royal slice of these higher earnings.
It would mean a higher proportion of these increased profits being kept by the Treasury for public spending.
In his Christmas message, King Charles highlighted the pressures of the cost-of-living crisis – and he seems to be taking action to avoid what could have been an awkward surge in income for the Sovereign Grant.
The Crown Estate is an independently-run, commercial business, but its profits are used as a benchmark for the level of funding for the Sovereign Grant, last year worth £86.3m.
These profits are now expected to be significantly boosted by the signing of deals for six offshore wind farms, with £1bn per year for at least three years in fees from firms wanting to develop them on these Crown Estate offshore sites.

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