Britain

Stories 1721 - 1740 | << Prev   Next >>

UK to Patients Who Smoke: Put That Out

National Health Service imposes four-week window before surgery

(Newser) - Smokers in Britain must kick the habit for at least four weeks before undergoing routine surgery or the National Health Service will deny them the operations, the Daily Mail reports. Doctors will use blood tests to enforce the new policy, which could affect up to 500,000 smokers awaiting procedures...

Blair Looks Back on Tenure as PM
Blair Looks Back on Tenure as PM
Jun 1, 2007 12:23 PM CDT

Blair Looks Back on Tenure as PM

"We will not succeed simply by military or security means. It is a political challenge."

(Newser) - In a wide-ranging essay that offers few apologies, Tony Blair reflects on his decade as prime minister and argues that Britain must stand in the world as “a player not a spectator.” Writing in the Economist, Blair discusses the shifting landscape of his time in office, the challenges...

UK May Seek Iran's Help on Iraqi Captives

Brits suspect kidnappers connected to Iran; search in Sadr City continues

(Newser) - Britain may ask Iran for help in finding the five British hostages kidnapped in Iraq. Senior Iraqi officials think a rogue faction of the Mahdi Army—possibly under the influence of Iranian intelligence —is responsible for the kidnappings. British sources tell the Guardian they believe the kidnapping was not...

UK Moves to Measure Products' Eco-Impact

Labels will allow consumers to compare

(Newser) - Calories, fat, sodium ... carbon footprint? The new measurement may soon appear on British product packaging. Under a plan proposed yesterday, the government will develop standards to measure a product's environmental impact from manufacture through shipment and disposal, allowing companies to list the information as they do nutrition facts. Consumers can...

Lugovoi Claims Brits Killed Litvinenko

Accused Russian says poisoned expat was a British agent killed by his handlers

(Newser) - The man Britain has charged with killing former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko says that British Intelligence is behind the poisoning. At a dramatic news conference yesterday, Andrei Lugovoi, also former KGB, claimed that Litvinenko was a British agent who was killed by his handlers. And he accused Boris Berezovsky, a...

BP Snags Libyan Gas Fields
BP Snags Libyan Gas Fields
May 30, 2007 10:00 AM CDT

BP Snags Libyan Gas Fields

North Africa is looking more attractive to big business—especially the oil business

(Newser) - The deal BP made with Libya this week for rights to huge gas fields demonstrates the new attraction North Africa has for investors. Once controlled by what Business Week calls "pariahs and basket cases," the area now looks stable (compared to the Middle East, that is) and is...

Five Brits Kidnapped in Baghdad
Five Brits Kidnapped in Baghdad
May 30, 2007 4:41 AM CDT

Five Brits Kidnapped in Baghdad

Gunmen wearing Iraqi uniforms stormed finance ministry

(Newser) - Five Britons—four members of a private security detail and a financial consultant—were kidnapped in Baghdad yesterday by gunmen wearing Iraqi police uniforms. The kidnappers are said to have barged into the finance ministry around noon, demanding, "Where are the foreigners?"  After rounding up the British civilians,...

Moscow Gay Rights Activists Arrested After Bloody Melee

Activists were petitioning for the right to hold a gay-pride parade

(Newser) - Gay-rights protesters petitioning the mayor of Moscow to lift the ban on gay-pride parades  yesterday were punched and kicked by anti-gay extremists shouting "death to homosexuals."  About 20 protesters were detained by police.

The Queen Is Not, in the End, a Blair Fan

Elizabeth "frustrated" at retiring Prime Minister Tony Blair's legacy

(Newser) - As Tony Blair prepares to leave office, one of those uneasy about his legacy is his queen, who the Telegraph reports is "exasperated and frustrated" at the effect of 10 years of New Labour rule. Queen Elizabeth is said to be unhappy about Blair's  "overstretching"  the military...

London-Moscow Relations Frigid Over Spy Flap

Russia won't extradite accused assassin; Downing St. talks tough

(Newser) - Relations between Russia and the UK have dipped to a post-Cold War nadir, the Times is reporting. The Kremlin refused yesterday to extradite Andrei Lugovoy, whom Britain has accused of murdering a former Russian spy in London last year. Investigators suspect that Moscow ordered the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko, an...

Blair Makes Last Visit to Iraq
Blair Makes Last Visit to Iraq
May 19, 2007 9:13 AM CDT

Blair Makes Last Visit to Iraq

PM pays goodbye call amid mortar attack, radio assault from Jimmy Carter

(Newser) - Tony Blair dropped in on Iraq's prime minister today, to assure him the Britain would continue to support the struggling Iraqi government even after he leaves office next month. Blair used the surpise visit to reiterate his confidence that there are "real signs of change and progress" in Iraq,...

Search for Maddie Turns Corporate
Search for Maddie Turns Corporate
May 18, 2007 1:41 PM CDT

Search for Maddie Turns Corporate

From McDonald's to British Airways, firms join hunt

(Newser) - The search for Maddy has become big business. Multinational corporations across Europe have joined celebrities, sports figures and politicians to spread the word about kidnapped 4-year-old Madeleine McCann, who disappeared in Portugal 15 days ago while on vacation with her parents. Companies from Shell Oil to McDonald's will blanket gas...

Germany, UK Court Sarkozy in EU Dispute

French president could be be key to European constitution

(Newser) - Hours after Nicolas Sarkozy became president of France, both Germany and Britain began wooing him—Germany to win his support for a European constitution, Britain to secure his opposition to it. Sarkozy immediately huddled with Angela Merkel, the German chancellor who has been lobbying hold-outs with one-on-one talks, the London...

British Army Grounds Harry
British Army Grounds Harry
May 16, 2007 2:49 PM CDT

British Army Grounds Harry

In official about-face, young royal won't deploy to Iraq for fear of assassination

(Newser) - British brass have dashed 22-year-old Prince Harry's dreams of fighting in Iraq, citing fears of a targeted assassination. The head of Britain’s army made today’s announcement—a reversal from earlier promises that Harry would fight—after a visit to Iraq last week revealed direct threats against the prince.

British Man Is Suspect in Kidnapping

Expat living in nearby villa was questioned, released

(Newser) - Police searching for a four-year-old British girl missing on a family vacation in Portugal have named a 33-year-old British expat as a suspect. Robert Murat lives less than 150 metres from where Madeleine McCann vanished 12 days ago, the Guardian reports. Murat was questioned for more than 16 hours yesterday,...

Brown Outlines Post-Blair Era
Brown Outlines Post-Blair Era
May 13, 2007 5:00 PM CDT

Brown Outlines Post-Blair Era

Proposes major initiatives - including transfer of war powers to Parliament

(Newser) - Gordon Brown is about to put some distance between himself and his former boss with a series of proposals laying out his vision, including giving Parliament the right to approve war powers, reports The Observer. With Blair pilloried for pusuing a profoundly unpopualr war almost single-handedly from Number 10, Brown...

Reward for Lost Girl Reaches £2.6 Million

Madeleine McCann, kidnapped in Portugal, turned 4 yesterday

(Newser) - JK Rowling, Richard Branson and other British business figures have contributed to a £1.5 million reward offered by the tabloid News of the World for the safe return of Madeleine McCann. The British 4-year-old was kidnapped in Portugal 10 days ago; the new offer raises the total reward...

For Blair, Iraq Was No Anomaly
For Blair,
Iraq Was No Anomaly
May 11, 2007 2:59 PM CDT

For Blair, Iraq Was No Anomaly

Brooks: War he co-authored was a disaster, but consistent with his values

(Newser) - As Tony Blair prepares his exit from No. 10, the British left is already eulogizing the PM as a good man consigned by circumstance to a bad war. Not so, says David Brooks: The crux of Blair's political philosophy was a radical, religious communitarianism, which sired both his leftist leanings...

Who Is Gordon Brown?
Who Is Gordon Brown?
May 10, 2007 11:40 AM CDT

Who Is Gordon Brown?

(Newser) - As Gordon Brown prepares to succeed Tony Blair, the current chancellor of the exchequer's plans for Britain's future are unclear. Brown's dour, brusque style is a sharp contrast to Blair's slick verbosity, but some see that as an advantage. “He’s not regarded as a prince of spin or...

Tony Blair Ends 10-Year Era
Tony Blair Ends 10-Year Era
May 10, 2007 6:56 AM CDT

Tony Blair Ends 10-Year Era

"The party will now select a new leader."

(Newser) - It's official: Tony Blair will step down on June 27, as soon as a new Labour leader is chosen. Blair publicly announced his decision in his home constituency of Sedgefield, having told his cabinet earlier in the day. Blair's words prompted "much thumping of tables" by the cabinet, says...

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