Plans to let fans back into English sporting venues ‘paused’ – Michael Gove
Plans to allow the phased return of spectators into sporting venues in England from October 1 will be put on hold because of the recent rise in coronavirus cases, Michael Gove has announced. Cabinet Office Minister Gove told BBC Breakfast: “It was the case that we were looking at a staged programme of more people returning. Gove added: “The virus is less likely to spread outdoors than indoors but it is in the nature of major sporting events that there is a lot of mingling. “People look back now at the beg of pandemic and look at some of the major sporting events then and ask the question why were they allowed to go ahead? Plans to host 1,000-capacity crowds at four Super League fixtures next week look set to be scrapped following Gove’s announcement.
Source:Express
September 22, 2020 08:15 UTC
Why Liverpool's Rhian Brewster should follow Tariq Lamptey's lead and join Brighton
Rhian Brewster could seek a move away from LiverpoolBrighton and Hove Albion continue to monitor the developments surrounding the long-running Rhian Brewster transfer saga. Tariq Lamptey's career is on the right track after joining Brighton from Chelsea for £3mBrighton are among a host of Premier League clubs keen on Brewster, alongside Sheffield United, Aston Villa and West Brom. "We have made enquiries about a few strikers and most on loan," Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder said last week. Aaron Connolly, Steven Alzate and Lamptey have all befitted from working with Potter who could also be the right coach at the right time to unlock Brewster's clear potential. But the addition of a striker such as Brewster would clearly enhance Graham Potter's options and add another dimension to their play.
Source:Express
September 22, 2020 07:07 UTC
Agents of Chaos: a shocking look at what really happened in the 2016 election
Last month, the US Senate intelligence committee published over 1,000 pages of findings on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. But in a hyper-polarized, disaster-numbed nation, its relatively damning findings faded quickly under at least seven layers of justifiably frantic news cycles. Instead, it explores a common purpose employed by both Russia and pro-Trump players in the US, sometimes in tandem and sometimes covertly. The four-hour series takes a broad look at Russian interference, delineating strategies that often get conflated into one enemy – an oil slick of reports and testimony difficult to pin into verifiable coherence. “It’s both more ridiculous and more corrupt than I had originally thought,” said Gibney of the Trump associates.
Source:The Guardian
September 22, 2020 05:03 UTC
Step up Brexit planning, City warned by Financial Conduct Authority
Although Britain officially left the EU at the end of January, it has been business as usual for trade and financial services. Christopher Woolard, interim head of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), warned firms yesterday that they should brace for all possible outcomes of the trade talks between London and Brussels. “Our message is to continue to prepare — indeed to ramp up preparations — for a range of scenarios,” Mr Woolard told the International Financial Services Forum. Although Britain officially left the EU at the end of January, financial services businesses based in the UK have retained their access to the EU market because of the transition period. However, that is set to end on December 31 and negotiations between Britain
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 23:02 UTC
We cannot let tenants be evicted as we enter a second wave
This government made a promise at the start of lockdown that no tenant who has lost income due to Covid-19 would lose their home. But this week tens of thousands are facing a very real threat of eviction, as the government lifts the moratorium. Worse, this is happening as we head into the winter and a second wave of the pandemic. An estimated 55,000 private renter households are under threat of eviction, according to analysis from the housing group Generation Rent. Rather than scrapping no-fault evictions, as they faithfully promised in the general election, Tory ministers are enabling evictions
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 23:02 UTC
Ancient Germanic lord was buried with circle of six women
Gold and silver artefacts were also found at the burial site as well as the remains of 11 horses, cattle and dogsArchaeologists have unearthed the 1,500-year-old tomb of a Germanic lord with the skeletons of six women aligned around him, prompting speculation that they may have died in a death cult. The tomb held the remains of 11 horses, cattle and dogs and was surrounded by 40 to 60 other graves. Gold and silver artefacts were also found at the burial site, discovered by builders near Brücken-Hackpfüffel in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt. The graves are believed to date from between AD480 and AD530 and an analysis of clothing fibres showed that they were Saxons, Thuringians and members of the Alemanni group of Germanic tribes on the river Rhine. The site is one of the most exciting finds of the past 40 years in Germany, Susanne
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 23:01 UTC
‘Rule of six’ snitches swamp police coronavirus line
The police 101 reporting line is being swamped by members of the public informing on neighbours and those they perceive to be breaking the coronavirus “rule of six”, The Times understands. Senior officers said that some forces were having to put extra staff on shifts to man the phone lines because the volume of calls had rapidly increased. New regulations state that people must not congregate in groups of more than six in outdoor spaces or within venues such as pubs and restaurants. Some members of the government, including Matt Hancock, the health secretary, have urged the public to report anyone gathering in groups larger than six to police. Boris Johnson has said that neighbours should not call the police unless they were concerned about
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 23:01 UTC
Greenpeace drops boulders in North Sea to stop illegal fishing
The campaigners claim that trawlers are turning off their tracking systems to fish in areas of the North SeaGreenpeace campaigners have begun dumping giant boulders in a North Sea conservation zone to thwart trawlers that they say are hiding destructive fishing by illegally switching off their automatic tracking systems. Fishing leaders responded angrily, accusing the group of putting fishermen at risk and doing more damage to marine habitats than the trawlers do. Greenpeace insists that there is no threat to safety or wildlife and plans over the next few days to drop granite boulders weighing up to three tonnes from its ship Esperanza inside the Dogger Bank conservation area. It said that the marine authorities had been informed of the drop zones and that trawlers would have to avoid them for fear of damage. Dogger Bank is the largest shallow sandbank in British
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 23:01 UTC
Expand Help to Buy to second-hand homes, Law Society says
The Help to Buy programme is currently only available for newly-built homesA tax rebate for first-time housebuyers should be expanded to include second-hand homes so people do not waste their earnings on rent, the president of the Law Society has said. Michele O’Boyle said that widening the Help to Buy scheme could help more people get on the property ladder. However, she said that the Law Society, which represents solicitors, has not costed the move and was unsure of how many homes it could apply to. Under Help to Buy, first-time buyers can claim a tax rebate of up to 10 per cent of a home’s value, capped at €30,000. This can be used on homes up to a maximum value of €500,000.
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 22:52 UTC
The social care market is not working
Social care might just be the area of public policy with the widest gap between attention and understanding. Quite rightly care gets talked about a lot at Westminster, but that debate is often shallow and based on limited information. Everyone knows that social care needs a new funding regime, but how many people know how the existing system actually functions? Like it or not, care in England is provided through a marketplace: organisations that provide care sell their services to buyers, who are either local authorities or individuals wealthy enough to fund their own care. Markets are often the best way to decide who gets what, how and when.
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 22:52 UTC
What’s on TV and radio tonight: Tuesday, September 22
For full TV listings for the week, see thetimes.co.uk/tvplannerViewing guide, by Ben DowellThe Great British Bake OffChannel 4, 8pmThe ovens have been scrubbed, the bags of flour wiped down and sanitised and the freshly quarantined judges, presenters and contestants are now able to raise the dough on the first series of this exquisitely addictive baking contest filmed during a pandemic. The producers have clearly aimed to replicate what the judge Prue Leith calls the “same old familiar, lovely, comforting Bake Off” with just a few signs of Covid-related strictures such as the absence (in this episode at least) of the famous (Paul) “Hollywood handshake”. The arrival of Matt Lucas, who replaces Sandi Toksvig as Noel Fielding’s co-presenter, is also
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 22:52 UTC
British universities charter jets to fly in Chinese students
A flight carrying hundreds of students to Belfast from Beijing has become the first of several expected to be chartered by British universities to bring a record number of Chinese people into the country to study. More than 24,000 Chinese students sought admission to British universities this year, up by 23 per cent, of which 8,570 were accepted, a rise of 14 per cent. The increase in numbers has been welcomed by universities, which had expected a shortfall in overseas students this year, and affirms the results of a recent survey that showed the UK to have overtaken the US as the most desirable destination for Chinese students. With global travel crippled by the pandemic, however, more universities are following Belfast’s lead and have chartered
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 22:52 UTC
How to boost your magnesium levels
Eat spinach, almonds and sunflower seedsMagnesium is an essential mineral needed for the activation of many enzymes, the secretion of hormones involved in bone metabolism and healthy muscle and nerve function. The recommend intake for adults aged between 19 and 64 is 300mg for men and 270mg for women, but many of us don’t get enough. In a 2018 study researchers analysed the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey and reported “sizeable gaps” in magnesium intake with almost one in five (19 per cent) of people in their twenties having low intakes. The British Nutrition Foundation says that more than half of teenage girls and more than 20 per cent of boys aged 11-14 are also at risk of low levels. Many adults
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 22:52 UTC
Having flu doubles coronavirus death risk
People with flu were less likely to test positive for Covid-19, researchers found, potentially pointing to competition between the virusesInfection with flu and coronavirus at the same time doubles a person’s risk of dying, according to research released by Public Health England as part of a push to improve uptake of the flu vaccine. The paper found that those with flu and Covid-19 were 2.27 times more likely to die than those with Covid-19 alone, and 5.92 times more likely to die than those with neither. Those aged above 65 were at greatest risk. Most cases of co-infection were in older people and more than half of them died. The paper, which describes the possible impact of Covid-19 alongside influenza over the winter as a “major concern”, also found that people with flu were less likely to test positive for Covid-19, potentially pointing to
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 22:52 UTC
Beaumont fires England to T20 victory over West Indies
Beaumont goes on the attack during her innings of 62 from 49 ballsSeven long months have passed since England’s previous game but Heather Knight’s team showed no signs of rust as they cruised to a 47-run win over West Indies. In fact this was the first competitive game either side have played since February, when England were agonisingly knocked out of the World T20 in Australia at the semi-final stage due to the rain regulations. Having won the toss, England got off to a brisk start as Tammy Beaumont and Danielle Wyatt put on 43 in the first 5.2 overs. Wyatt became the first of Stafanie Taylor’s two wickets when she was bowled by a full-length ball. Nat Sciver lasted only nine balls before being caught in the deep by Britney Cooper.
Source:The Times
September 21, 2020 22:52 UTC