How the new coronavirus will finally get a proper name
Jasmine Taylor-Coleman BBC News Reuters Volunteers disinfect a railway station in Hunan province, China It has infected thousands of people, closed borders and put parts of China into lockdown. But the virus causing the outbreak of illness does not yet have a proper name. It has been referred to as the coronavirus. But that is […]
Dairy giant Arla says driver crisis hitting milk supply
Arla Foods Dairy giant Arla, which supplies milk to all major UK supermarkets, has said a lorry driver shortage has forced it to cut back on its deliveries. UK managing director Ash Amirahmadi said the firm normally supplied 2,400 stores a day, but had been experiencing driver shortages since early April. “Last Saturday, there were […]
DUP calls passport plan ‘a distraction dish’
BBC A Covid vaccine passport QR code for domestic use in Northern Ireland can be downloaded through the COVIDCert NI app The Covid-19 passport plan is ministers serving a “distraction dish” that will not relieve the pressures on hospitals, the DUP has said. People will have to provide a passport or proof of a Covid […]
UK pig exports ‘facing a crisis’
BBC There are currently about 100,000 pigs stuck on UK farms, according to the National Pig Association A “perfect storm” of Covid impacts and post-Brexit bureaucracy threaten to plunge British pig farmers into a crisis, an industry body has warned. The National Pig Association (NPA) said there were 100,000 animals in the UK unable to […]
Government accused of ‘rowing back’ on workers’ rights
Getty Images Employers’ groups and trade unions have expressed concern at the lack of an Employment Bill in the Queen’s Speech. Prime Minister Boris Johnson had previously promised such a bill amid fears that workers’ rights could be watered down after the UK left the EU. But Downing Street blamed the coronavirus pandemic for the […]
Man found guilty over waste dumping offences
Louise Cullen BBC NI agriculture and environment correspondent Google A man has been found guilty of three waste offences, after 7,600 tonnes of non-compliant waste was discovered at a Londonderry site. Londonderry Crown Court, sitting in Coleraine, heard that Thomas McGlinchey, 62, from Belfield Park, was a director of Brickkiln Waste Ltd. He will be […]
Labour now the pro-business party, says Labour’s Rachel Reeves
Getty Images Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves was joined by Tory defector, Bury South MP Christian Wakeford (R), as she made her speech Labour’s shadow chancellor has set out a “pro-business” plan for the UK economy aimed at moving away from the polices of former leader Jeremy Corbyn. Rachel Reeves said Labour – and not the […]
NI agriculture college to get a £75m investment
Conor Macauley BBC NI Agriculture & Environment Correspondent Getty Images Northern Ireland’s agriculture college is to get a £75m investment. Two of its sites at Cookstown, in County Tyrone, and in Antrim will be substantially refurbished. They were built more than 50 years ago and offer accommodation and lecture facilities for students. About 1,600 students […]
UK’s richest man eyes North Sea oil and gas fields
Getty Images Jim Ratcliffe is the founder and chairman of Ineos Britain’s richest man Jim Ratcliffe is hoping to extend his grip on the North Sea by buying oil and gas fields from US giant ConocoPhillips. Mr Ratcliffe’s company Ineos and ConocoPhillips have both confirmed that they are in exclusive talks. Among the assets up […]
Greece and Croatia acted fast, now need to save summer
Guy Delauney & Kostas Kallergis BBC News Reuters For both countries, at least a fifth of their economies are reliant on tourism Greece has always prided itself on its sunny weather, beaches and islands. And anyone familiar with the coast of Croatia will know that finding towel room on its increasingly crowded beaches is a […]