About: UK
UK opens first COVID hospital but criticism of testing plans mount
The UK opened its first emergency field hospital to combat the coronavirus pandemic on Friday (3 April) but the government continues to face growing criticism about its plans to increase testing for the virus.
UK unveils ‘wartime’ €400 billion COVID bailout programme
The UK unveiled an unprecedented £350 billion (€400 billion) financial rescue package to “support jobs, incomes and businesses” on Tuesday (17 March), in a bid to offset the economic damage unleashed by the coronavirus crisis.
US industry hits out at UK digital services tax
Representatives from the US tech industry on Wednesday (11 March) hit out at the UK's plans to introduce a digital services tax from the beginning of April, following a period of uncertainty as to whether the UK would continue with the measures amid attempts to contract a US trade deal.
UK to consider opposition to digital tax in pursuit of U.S. trade deal
Britain said on Monday (2 March) it would consider opposition to its plan to impose a new digital tax on big tech companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon as part of its ambition to agree a free trade deal with the United States.
‘Prepare for all eventualities’ on UK-EU data transfers, EDPS says
There could be a series of 'obstacles' in terms of securing an EU-UK adequacy agreement on post-Brexit data transfers and the bloc should therefore 'take steps to prepare for all eventualities,' the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) has said this week.
Google users in UK to lose EU data protection – sources
Google is planning to move its British users’ accounts out of the control of European Union privacy regulators, placing them under U.S. jurisdiction instead, sources said.
UK broadcasting watchdog proposed as online harms regulator
The UK government has announced plans to grant the country's broadcasting authority, Ofcom, broad new powers in regulating the spread of harmful content across social media platforms.
Alarm over BBC future as UK proposes fee changes
The British government on Wednesday (5 February) announced plans to stop prosecuting people who do not pay the BBC's compulsory subscription fee, sparking concerns about the broadcaster's future funding.
Paris aims to become Europe’s top financial hub in post-Brexit world
London is currently Europe's leading financial centre but the French authorities dream of seeing Paris in the lead. However, it remains to be seen if the City will lose access to European markets after the UK-EU negotiations this year. EURACTIV's partner EUROEFE reports.
UK to diverge from EU data protection rules, Johnson confirms
The United Kingdom will seek to diverge from EU data protection rules and establish their own 'sovereign' controls in the field, the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday (3 February). His comments came despite the EU affirming that the UK should "fully respect EU data protection rules.
MPs call for an Anglo-German post-Brexit ‘friendship treaty’
A British MP and his German counterpart have called for a post-Brexit “treaty of friendship” between the two countries, as concerns grow in Berlin that relations could turn increasingly hostile over the coming months.
UK grants Huawei a limited 5G role
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday granted China’s Huawei a limited role in Britain’s future 5G mobile network, a choice that risks damaging relations with the United States which fears China could use the company to steal Western secrets.
UK to make Huawei decision today, amid intensifying US pressure
Huawei's future involvement in the UK's future 5G network infrastructure hangs in the balance today (28 January), as Prime Minister Boris Johnson sits down with members of the UK's National Security Council to come to an agreement on the Chinese telecoms giant.
UK is facing ‘900,000 people individual cliff-edges’
Professor Tanja Bueltmann tells EURACTIV that the UK government is sleep-walking towards a major scandal unless it makes changes to its Settled Status scheme for EU nationals living in the UK.
Macron and Le Pen’s MEPs to be on equal footing after Brexit
Once the UK leaves the EU on 31 January, new MEPs will be taking up seats in the European Parliament. Due to its growing population, France will obtain five of 27 new seats. EURACTIV France reports.
Europeans seek ‘lawful’ ways of intercepting 5G communications
The European Commission is working alongside Europol and EU member states to "identify appropriate ways of preserving lawful interception capabilities in 5G networks," said Ylva Johansson, the EU's Home Affairs Commissioner.
EU powers to trigger Iran nuclear deal dispute mechanism
Britain, France and Germany will trigger the dispute resolution mechanism in the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, two European diplomats said on Tuesday (14 January), the biggest step the Europeans have taken in response as Tehran has backed off nuclear commitments.
‘Shot across the bow’: US steps up pressure on UK ahead of Huawei decision
The United States is making a final pitch to Britain ahead of a UK decision on whether to upgrade its telecoms network with Huawei equipment, amid threats to cut intelligence-sharing ties, people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Britain...
No complete agreement before end of 2020, von der Leyen tells UK
The UK and the EU will not be able to agree on every single aspect of their future relationship before the end of the year, and will either have to focus on priority areas or agree an extension period, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday (8 January).
Four top EU countries hold emergency talks on Iran, Libya crisis
Foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany and Italy held emergency talks on Iran and Lybia in Brussels on Tuesday (7 January), as the EU continued struggling to find a united response to the two escalating crises in its neighbourhood.
Four clubs would lead the Premier if climate friendly politices were the goal
A study conducted in England has listed its football teams according to their environmental performance and four Premier League clubs - Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham - are leading the table.
EU charts path for ‘challenging’ post-Brexit UK deal
EU will keep engaging with the UK through the WTO and the UN as both sides work out a deal on their future ties once Britain leaves the bloc, according to the top Brexit negotiator in Brussels, Michel Barnier.
France, UK say they look beyond Brexit in Mali cooperation
Sharing the cockpit of a helicopter on sizzling tarmac, French and British air force chiefs vowed to pursue the joint fight against jihadists in the heart of the Sahel even as the shadow of Brexit looms over their countries.