Jim Gray on fate of college football season: It doesn't look good

The risk is much, much too great right now for universities, sportscaster Jim Gray says.

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  • Michel Barnier warns there is still a risk of more Brexits in the future

    Michel Barnier has warned that there is “always a risk” that other European countries will follow Brexit Britain and leave the EU. The EU’s chief negotiator said there was still “anger” against Brussels in many regions of Europe. He said that Brexit had exposed the dangers and consequences of leaving the bloc but said it was up to the EU to prove that membership of the bloc was worthwhile. “We have to draw the lessons of Brexit. We have to understand why 52 percent of the British people voted against Europe [...] ” It is obviously too late for the UK but it is not too late for the other member states,” Mr Barnier said. He said, “Today, in many regions, there is this anger, the same feeling against Europe, the same problem to understand what we’re doing at the European level,” he said. “We have to be vigilant because it is always a risk for the future,” he added, “This risk can be combated by the proof that it is clearly a better situation to be inside the EU than outside.” “Brexit has exposed the consequences of leaving the EU for all to see,” he said, ““Even though we have a deal the UK’s choices mean that there will be inevitable short-term and long-term consequences.” He added, “Together, we can build a Europe that not only protects but also inspires. A Europe that Europeans would never dream of leaving. “Why should we leave the EU debate to anti EU parties? For all those who believe in the European project this is not the time to sit back and to be complacent.” Mr Barnier said he had noted British plans to diverge from EU rules such as the Working Time Directive after Brexit. “We are not surprised because we are not naive,” Mr Barnier said. The important thing for the EU was that Britain’s new found regulatory freedom did not become “a tool for dumping against us.” If Britain was to undercut EU standards to gain an unfair competitive advantage over European businesses, Mr Barnier said, the bloc would not hesitate to use remedial measures, which could include tariffs, in the trade deal. “In that case we will use the tools included in the treaty,” he said. Mr Barnier is soon to step down as the EU’s chief negotiator to become a special advisor to Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission. His focus will be on the implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement and ratification of the Brexit trade deal. From March, he plans to return to French politics. He was speaking after being named European of the Year by the European Movement Ireland.

  • Ministers could pay £500 to everyone with Covid in England

    Ministers could pay £500 to everyone with Covid in EnglandExclusive: universal payment is ‘preferred position’ of DHSC in effort to help people self-isolate * Coronavirus – latest updates * See all our coronavirus coverage

  • Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene files articles of impeachment against Joe Biden

    Lawmaker’s stunt destined to go nowhere with Democratic controlled House and Senate

  • Lockdown could last until summer, No 10 warns as experts warn relaxation of rules could trigger new Covid wave

    Scientists call for gradual and prolonged transition out of lockdown, arguing rules should not be eased until May at earliest

  • UK weather: Storm Christoph to be replaced by temperatures as low as -10C - but more floods possible next week

    Temperatures could drop as low as -10C in the coming days, as heavy rain brought by Storm Christoph is replaced by sub-zero conditions this weekend. Parts of the North West of England devastated by flooding on Tuesday and Wednesday turned drier overnight on Thursday as the storm moved eastwards. "Thankfully the areas that saw a lot of rain have certainly been a bit drier today," Met Office meteorologist Craig Snell said on Thursday.

  • GMB's Kate Garraway says she's "physically low" as she shares Derek update

    Kate shared a frank update on her husband's condition.

  • Coronavirus: why combining the Oxford vaccine with Russia's Sputnik V vaccine could make it more effective

    Vaccines that use harmless viruses as a delivery mechanism are vulnerable to being attacked by our immune system – but experimenting with how they are given could get around this.

  • Michael Flynn’s brother reveals he was involved in Capitol riot response after Army denied it, report says

    Apparent U-turn by Pentagon officials could pose questions about police response

  • River Derwent 'Looks More Like an Ocean' Amid Flooding in Derbyshire

    Drone footage showed the area surrounding Darley Dale, England, flooded on January 21 in the wake of Storm Christoph.A flood warning was in place for the area. Forecasters said river levels were expected to remain high until at least January 22.Local media reported a “major incident” had been declared across Derbyshire.The Derbyshire Constabulary Drone Unit, who filmed this video, said “the River Derwent looks more like an ocean.” Credit: @DerPolDroneUnit via Storyful

  • Britain, EU at odds over bloc's diplomatic status in UK after Brexit

    Britain and the European Union are at odds over the British government's refusal to grant EU representatives' full diplomatic status in London after Brexit. An EU member state for 46 years, Britain voted in a 2016 referendum to leave, and completed its tortuous journey out of the bloc on Dec. 31, when Brexit fully took effect. The BBC reported that the Foreign Office was refusing to grant the same diplomatic status and privileges to EU Ambassador Joao Vale de Almeida and his team as it gives to envoys of countries, on the basis that the EU is not a nation state.

  • Coronavirus: Government ‘could pay £500 to everyone who tests positive’ to encourage self-isolation

    An existing compensation scheme only covers people on benefits

  • Kate Garraway says husband Derek Draper has been 'ravaged' by coronavirus

    The presenter's husband has been in hospital since March last year.

  • Schools could open before Easter, says Gavin Williamson

    Schools could open before Easter, Gavin Williamson has suggested, saying he will give a two-week warning to headteachers. The Education Secretary said he "would certainly hope" that children would be back in the classroom by early April, adding that he wants this to happen at the "earliest possible opportunity". It is the first time Mr Williamson has hinted at a possible timeline for the reopening of schools, and comes after Dr Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer, suggested schools in some parts of the country will reopen sooner than those in others. Primary and secondary schools were ordered to close at the start of the month to all but the children of key workers and the most vulnerable youngsters. Announcing the latest national lockdown on January 4, Boris Johnson said schools would need to remain shut until the February half-term at the earliest. On Thursday, Mr Williamson said a key factor in determining when schools could reopen would be whether pressures on the NHS had eased sufficiently. He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that headteachers will be given "absolutely proper notice" about when they need to prepare to reopen, adding that a "clear two-week notice period" will be factored in so schools have time to prepare for pupils' return. "Schools were the last to close, schools will be the first to open," the Education Secretary said. "I want to see that as soon as the scientific and health advice is there to open at the earliest possible stage, and I would certainly hope that that would be before Easter. "Any decision to reopen schools to all children – as all decisions in terms of schools – will be based on the best health advice and the best scientific advice."

  • French Muslim groups at odds over Macron's anti-extremism charter

    The head of France's main Muslim organisation on Thursday slammed a "unilateral" move by three Islamic groups not to sign up to an anti-extremism charter championed by President Emmanuel Macron. Macron wants French Muslim groups to sign up to the charter as he seeks to secure France's secular system in the wake of a spate of attacks blamed on Islamist radicals in 2020.But the Committee for Coordination of Turkish Muslims in France (CCMTF) and the Milli Gorus Islamic Confederation (CMIG) -- both catering to citizens of Turkish origin -- as well as the Faith and Practice movement, announced late Wednesday that they would not be signing up to the charter."Through these repetitive actions, the groups... all risk being held responsible for this situation of division," said Mohamed Moussaoui, the president of the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM), the umbrella grouping for France's Muslim groups.This refusal "is not likely to provide reassurance... on the state of the representative bodies of the Muslim religion", he added.A source close to the issue, who asked not to be named, said the three groups refusing to sign the charter were particularly concerned about the definition of foreign interference in religion and the definition of political Islam.The row comes at a time of severe diplomatic tensions between France and Turkey, whose President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly lambasted Macron's bid to crack down on radical Islam in the country.>> Read more: Amid the verbal barbs, Macron and Turkey’s Erdogan may be ideal foesThe Milli Gorus, a pan-European movement for the Turkish diaspora, is seen as inspired by the ideas of late prime minister Necmettin Erbakan, regarded as the father of political Islam in Turkey and Erdogan's mentor."We believe that certain passages and formulations in the text submitted are likely to weaken the bonds of trust between the Muslims of France and the nation," the three groups said in a statement."Furthermore, some statements are prejudicial to the honour of Muslims, with an accusatory and marginalising tone."'Important clarification'Five out of nine groups who make up the CFCM, a body set up almost 20 years ago to enable dialogue between the government and the Muslim community, have signed up to the charter after weeks of sometimes acrimonious debates.But the failure of the CFCM to so far show a totally united front risks robbing the initiative of the consensus within the Muslim community that it is supposed to highlight.A government source however insisted that the groups' refusal would not weaken the process, adding that "the masks are coming off"."An important clarification is being made," the source said.The charter rejects "instrumentalising" Islam for political ends and affirms equality between men and women, while denouncing practices such as female circumcisions, forced marriages or "virginity certificates" for brides.Macron railed against the promotion of "political Islam" in France in November last year after a teacher was beheaded outside his school.He had shown pupils cartoons of the prophet Mohammed as part of a free-speech lesson.The attack prompted a crackdown against extremist mosques and Islamist associations, along with a vigorous defence of French secularism.(AFP)

  • 'Senior member of royal household' passed information about Meghan Markle to Mail On Sunday editor, court papers show

    The editor of the Mail On Sunday has detailed a meeting he had with a source from the palace.

  • PM warns more lives will be lost as UK records deadliest day of pandemic

    Boris Johnson said ‘the light will only really begin to dawn as we get those vaccinations out’.

  • EU leaders consider banning travellers from UK to control new coronavirus variant

    UK travellers could be locked out of continent

  • Interactive map shows how many new COVID cases there are in your area

    Knowsley in Merseyside currently has the highest rate of new coronavirus infections, with a seven-day rolling rate of 1,136 cases per 100,000 people.

  • Capitol rioter who allegedly stole Pelosi’s laptop to sell to Russia released from jail

    She’ll be back in (virtual) court on Monday

  • Ted Cruz slams Biden for rejoining climate crisis agreement ‘for Paris citizens’

    Texas senator appears to believe accord only benefits residents of French capital and attracts vicious rebuke from comedian Seth Rogen over role in inciting Capitol riot