The Associated Press reports: The prospect of Russian interference in Britain’s election flared anew Saturday after the social media platform Reddit concluded that people from Russia leaked confidential British government documents on Brexit trade talks just days before the general U.K. vote. Reddit said in a statement that it has banned 61 accounts suspected of violating policies against vote manipulation. …
Read More »BRITAIN: Tories Call It A “Great Triumph” For Johnson After Trump Leaves Without Fucking Up The Election
Politico Europe reports: The British Conservative Party was given a huge boost on Wednesday when Donald Trump left the U.K. without smashing up its election strategy. The U.S. president was supposed to hold a press conference at the end of a gathering of NATO leaders but canceled it, saying he had answered enough questions. “We won’t be doing a press …
Read More »Prince Andrew’s Accuser Claims She Had Sex With Him Three Times After Being Recruited At Mar-A-Lago
Courthouse News reports: Prince Andrew suffered fresh scrutiny Monday night when the woman who says she was a trafficking victim made to have sex with him when she was 17 asked the British public to support her quest for justice. Virginia Roberts Giuffre told BBC Panorama that people “should not accept this as being OK.” Giuffre’s first UK television interview …
Read More »Trump Denies Knowing Prince Andrew Despite Photos
Reuters reports: Donald Trump has denied knowing Prince Andrew, despite multiple photos of the two together, including several of them meeting in June this year. The president, who is in the United Kingdom for a NATO summit, took questions from the media Tuesday morning. Asked about his thoughts on the allegations against Prince Andrew and the royal’s decision to step …
Read More »BRITAIN: Google Bans “Deceptive” Tory Election Ads
The Independent reports: Google has banned eight different adverts paid for by the Conservatives over the last month because they broke its rules, The Independent can reveal. The move by the search giant comes amid mounting concerns about the Tories’ use of disinformation and fake news as campaigning tools at the general election. Transparency data released by the search giant …
Read More »BRITAIN: Mass Stabbing Incident On London Bridge
NBC News reports: A number of people were injured in a stabbing near London Bridge in the center of the British capital on Friday afternoon, police said. One man has been arrested amid a major police incident that has cordoned off the busy surrounding area and closed local bus, subway stations and train stations. The incident on London Bridge was …
Read More »Johnson Warns Trump: Stay Out Of Britain’s Election
Reuters reports: Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday it would be “best” if U.S. President Donald Trump does not get involved in Britain’s election when he visits London for a NATO summit next week. Trump waded into the election in October by saying opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn would be “so bad” for Britain and that Johnson should …
Read More »POLL: Boris Johnson Set To Win Big Majority
Politico Europe reports: Boris Johnson is on course to win a 68-seat majority in the U.K. general election, according to a major new poll. The YouGov seat prediction survey — which accurately predicted that Theresa May would lose her majority in 2017 — said the Tories would win 359 seats (up 42) with Labour dropping to 211 (down 51) if …
Read More »Boris Johnson Vows Brexit Deal By Xmas If Reelected
The New York Times reports: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will promise to bring his Brexit deal back to parliament before Christmas when he launches his Conservative Party’s manifesto on Sunday, the cornerstone of his pitch to voters to “get Brexit done”. With less than three weeks before Britain heads to the polls on Dec. 12, the governing Conservatives and …
Read More »Britain’s Prince Andrew Steps Down From Public Duties
Reuters reports: Britain’s Prince Andrew stepped down from public duties on Wednesday, saying the controversy surrounding his ill-judged association with late U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein had caused major disruption to the royal family’s work. Andrew, Queen Elizabeth’s second son, denies an allegation that he had sex with a 17-year-old girl procured for him by his friend Epstein, who killed himself …
Read More »Twitter Rips Tories For Debate Avatar Change Stunt
Reuters reports: Twitter accused Britain’s ruling Conservative Party on Wednesday of misleading the public during a televised election debate, but Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said voters did not care about the cut and thrust of social media. Twitter spoke out after the Conservative Campaign Headquarters press office changed the name of its account from “CCHQPress” to “factcheckUK” while Prime Minister …
Read More »Farage: Brexit Party Won’t Challenge Any Tory Seats
The Guardian reports: Nigel Farage has said the Brexit party will not field any candidates against the Conservatives in the 317 seats they won at the last general election, after Boris Johnson committed to leaving the EU by 2020 and pursuing a Canada-style trade deal. Farage said his party’s climbdown came after months of trying to create a leave alliance …
Read More »Russian Donors To Tories Named In Secret Report
The Sunday Times reports: Nine Russian business people who gave money to the Conservative Party are named in a secret intelligence report on the threats posed to UK democracy which was suppressed last week by Downing Street. Oligarchs and other wealthy Tory donors were included in the report on illicit Russian activities in Britain by the cross-party intelligence and security …
Read More »Boris Johnson’s Election Launch Blows Up In Scandals
Reuters reports: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s election campaign launch was marred by the resignation of one of his ministers, a gaffe about the victims of a deadly tower blaze and a doctored video of an opponent released by his party. Just an hour after meeting Queen Elizabeth to formally begin the election campaign, Johnson’s minister for Wales, Alun Cairns, …
Read More »Boris Johnson Asks Queen To Dissolve Parliament
The Metro reports: Boris Johnson left Downing Street this morning to visit the Queen at Buckingham Palace as campaigning for the general election kicked off. The prime minister must formally ask the Queen to dissolve Parliament – shutting it down for five weeks – ahead of the 12 December election. Mr Johnson will then return to Downing Street where he …
Read More »Johnson Blocks Report On Russian Brexit Meddling
The Guardian reports: A potentially explosive parliamentary report on the security threat posed by Russia to the UK has been effectively blocked from being published before the general election by Downing Street. The 50-page document from the intelligence and security committee (ISC) examined allegations that Kremlin-sponsored activity distorted the result of the 2016 EU referendum – but has to be …
Read More »Boris Johnson Apologizes For Missing Brexit Deadline
The Associated Press reports: Britain’s election campaign heated up Sunday even before it officially started, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying he would apologize to Conservatives for failing to take the U.K. out of the European Union by Oct. 31 and Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage saying he won’t personally run for a seat in Parliament. Johnson’s promise to have …
Read More »Facebook To Allow False Ads In British Election
CNN reports: A controversial policy allowing politicians to run false ads on Facebook will extend to the United Kingdom as the country prepares to vote in a historic December election, Facebook confirmed to CNN Business. The policy is being championed by Facebook executive Nick Clegg, the former deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom who himself once complained about “lies” …
Read More »Trump Pushes Brexit In Call To British Radio Show
Courthouse News reports: In a tag-team effort, President Donald Trump and Nigel Farage, a nationalist British politician supported by the far right, joined forces to push Prime Minister Boris Johnson into breaking off ties with the European Union and backing an even more hardcore Brexit strategy before the December elections. Ignoring the diplomatic protocol of not meddling in elections in …
Read More »British Family Sues Trump Over Fugitive US Driver
NBC News reports: The furious family of a British teenager killed in a wrong-way crash by a car driven by the wife of an American diplomat announced that they will be suing both the White House and the motorist for alleged “lawless misconduct” and “attempting to cover it up.” The threat to take legal action came two months after 19-year-old …
Read More »