Defiant and unyielding, President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday adamantly denied reports that Russia had obtained compromising personal and financial information about him, calling it a “tremendous blot” on the record of the intelligence community if it had released such material.
The Falklands’ permanent guard ship, HMS Clyde is undergoing refurbishment work at the South African naval dockyard in Simon’s Town in her first overhaul in five years. The vessel (P257) arrived in Simon’s Town on 22 December, and is scheduled to depart again on 20 February.
UK’s powerhouse financial sector would face heightened risk and an exodus of 232,000 jobs without certainty over Britain’s Brexit deal, MPs in the House of Commons have heard. Xavier Rolet, chief executive of the London Stock Exchange Group (LSE), said two thirds of the job losses would be felt outside Greater London, with the blow coming as soon as the euro clearing operation leaves Britain’s shores.
Labour does not rule out backing continued freedom of movement when Britain quits the European Union, Jeremy Corbyn said. The Opposition leader used a major speech on Brexit to set out plans to prevent cheap migrant labour from the EU undercutting British workers.
Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of state signaled he is prepared to diverge from the US president-elect on numerous key issues, notably nuclear non-proliferation, climate change and Russia, which he branded a danger.
Change only happens when ordinary people get involved, get engaged and come together to demand it, said Barack Obama in his final address to the country and the world as president. I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change – but in yours Obama outlined in a speech that was both a tearful goodbye and a call to arms.
FIFA's ruling body has voted unanimously to expand the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams in 2026. The FIFA Council approved the plan at its meeting Tuesday in Zurich. Under the new format, there will be 16 groups of three teams. A knockout stage for 32 teams will follow.
Spain has little prospect of gaining joint sovereignty over Gibraltar, Spanish Foreign Minister Alfonso Dastis said this weekend as he acknowledged that Gibraltarians “have a right” to reject the offer. In an interview with the leading Spanish newspaper El País, the foreign minister insisted any post-Brexit relationship between Gibraltar and the EU must first be agreed by the UK and Spain.
The British Pound slumped lower on ongoing Brexit worries on Tuesday, while the US Dollar recouped some of its recent losses as investors wait for President-elect Donald Trump's first press conference Wednesday. While Trump's Twitter account has been active since he won the keys to the White House and given clues to his policies, Wednesday's press conference will give Trump the platform to explain his tax and spending plans.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has stepped up pressure on Theresa May over Brexit by saying that the European Union must consider limiting UK access to the single market if it fails to accept free movement of EU citizens. The chancellor repeated her mantra that there must be no negotiations based on “cherry picking” of the Union’s four freedoms of movement for capital, goods, services and people.