Wednesday 25 November
- Three households can mix over Christmas in UK.
- Rishi Sunak to launch £3bn unemployment support plan.
- ‘Stain on British history’: Home Office broke equality law over Windrush scandal, report finds.
- LA shuts restaurants as virus surges, but Europe lockdowns to ease.
- Canada’s Trudeau pranked by fake GRETA in phone call about NATO, private world leaders’ club… and South Park’s Terrance & Phillip.
- Calls to end Ethiopia conflict grow as decisive battle looms.
- Hong Kong’s Lam vows to restore stability, order after ‘chaos’.
- Egyptian festival celebrates Aragouz traditions.
US shares set records as investor optimism grows – BBC News
Scramble to secure PPE cost UK taxpayer extra £10bn – FT News
Elon Musk’s net worth rises to $127.9bn-The second-richest person – WTX News
Housing market 2020 registers a surge of completions – WTX News
Global airlines will end the year losing more than $100 billion – WTX News
Three households can mix over Christmas in UK
BBC News says up to three households will be able to meet up during a five-day Christmas period of 23 to 27 December, leaders of the four UK nations have agreed.
People can mix in homes, places of worship and outdoor spaces, and travel restrictions will also be eased.
But a formed “Christmas bubble” must be “exclusive” and would not be able to visit pubs or restaurants together.
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Rishi Sunak to launch £3bn unemployment support plan
The Guardian says Rishi Sunak will lay bare the government’s fears over the long-lasting impact of a looming winter surge in unemployment when he unveils a new £4.3bn package of support to help the jobless find work.
On the eve of the publication of the Treasury’s spending allocations for the coming year, the chancellor announced plans for a £2.9bn Restart scheme designed to aid a million workers with their job searches.
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‘Stain on British history’: Home Office broke equality law over Windrush scandal, report finds
Sky News says the Home Office broke equality law when it imposed its “hostile environment” immigration policies which contributed to the Windrush scandal, a report has found.
Problems caused by the policies were “repeatedly ignored, dismissed or their severity disregarded” as they were being developed, according to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) assessment.
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LA shuts restaurants as virus surges, but Europe lockdowns to ease
France24 says a restaurant dining ban in Los Angeles was due to come into force Wednesday as officials warned Americans to stay at home for the Thanksgiving holiday, while parts of Europe eyed looser lockdowns over the festive season.
The three-week order in America’s second-biggest city will begin as California faces record Covid-19 cases, and its health secretary urges people to avoid large family gatherings.
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Canada’s Trudeau pranked by fake GRETA in phone call about NATO, private world leaders’ club… and South Park’s Terrance & Phillip
RT News says Justin Trudeau has been duped by Russian pranksters pretending to be Greta Thunberg, commiserating with her about geopolitics and world leaders, and promising to introduce her to Terrance and Phillip.
“Indeed. We are balancing many different things in Iraq,” Trudeau said.
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Calls to end Ethiopia conflict grow as decisive battle looms
TRT World says international pressure has mounted on Ethiopia’s warring parties to cease fighting and protect civilians in Tigray, where the army says it has encircled the capital ahead of a threatened bombardment.
Forces loyal to Tigray’s ruling party have been battling Ethiopian soldiers in the northern region for nearly three weeks, sparking a refugee exodus, civilian atrocities and fears of broader instability in the Horn of Africa.
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Hong Kong’s Lam vows to restore stability, order after ‘chaos’
Aljazeera says Carrie Lam has labelled the unrest that rocked the territory last year as “anti-regime”, lauding China’s imposition of a national security law for “restoring stability” in the city, and promising that she would make “constitutional order” a priority of her administration.
Lam made the comments in her delayed annual policy address, delivered before the Legislative Council or LegCo just two weeks after opposition legislators resigned en masse in protest against the dismissal of four colleagues, in what they said was another push by Beijing to suppress democracy in the territory.
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Egyptian festival celebrates Aragouz traditions
Aljazeera says the second Egyptian Aragouz Festival opened on Nov. 24, at the ancient Bayt Al-Sinnari, in Cairo. The aragouz is a traditional puppet figure dressed in red invented by Egyptians to ridicule situations comically.
The festival this year sheds light on the creative icons that inspired the aragouz.
In Review
Three households can meet indoors during a five-day Christmas period of 23-27 December, leaders of the four UK nations have agreed.
It is set to be formally announced shortly as the government prepares Christmas plans from the UK – WTX News
How is it being reported?
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Five days of Christmas UK Covid plan lets groups of three households mix – The Guardian
COVID Christmas rules: What’s allowed during the festive season? – Sky News
SAGE Scrooge warns PM’s three-home Christmas bubbles plan risks ‘snatching defeat from the jaws of victory’ by sparking a THIRD wave – as he urges families to delay get-togethers until Easter after PM gave Britons five days of festive freedom –Daily Mail
Christmas household bubbles plan branded ‘mockery’ of pub restrictions – Express and Star
‘Surge’ in travel expected as families form Christmas bubbles during temporary easing of Covid measures – Evening Standard
Families will have to make ‘personal judgment’ on Christmas bubbles, PM warns – Herald
One key rule will let us mix at Christmas, says SAGE expert – Gazette Live
Biden: US ‘Ready to Lead the World’
Joe Biden declared Tuesday that the United States is “ready to lead the world, not retreat from it,” signaling a sharp pivot from outgoing President Donald Trump’s “America First” credo over the last four years – VOA
Russia accuses US Navy destroyer of violating territorial waters in Sea of Japan
Russia has accused a US naval vessel of “operating illegally” in territorial waters in the Sea of Japan near the country’s far east.
The USS John S. McCain, which had been in the area for several days, “violated the territorial waters of the Russian Federation in the Gulf Peter the Great”, according to a statement by the Russian Defence Ministry. – Euronews
Nigeria approves promotion of 82,779 police to boost morale
Nigeria’s inspector general of police approved Monday the promotion of 82,779 junior officers to higher rank.
The promotion includes 56,779 sergeants to inspector, 17, 569 corporals to sergeants and 8,431 constables to corporal. – Africanews
Trump sends B-52 nuke bombers to Middle East in warning to Iran after being ‘talked out’ of blitzing nuclear plant
Donald Trump has sent B-52 nuclear-capable bombers to the Middle East in an apparent warning to Iran.
It comes after the President was reportedly “talked out” of launching a strike on the Islamic republic after being warned it could spark a war. – The Sun
Thai protest leaders summoned over royal defamation
Twelve Thai protest leaders have been summoned by police to answer charges of royal defamation, the first use of the law in almost three years, as Bangkok gears up for another major rally. – CNA
Australia’s entire SAS regiment must be disbanded after Brereton report, expert says
An international security specialist has argued the entire Special Air Service regiment must be disbanded after the Brereton report, saying its continued existence will drive terror-recruiting campaigns and undermine future Australian counter-insurgency efforts. – The Guardian
