Obama lays into 'politically woke' call-out culture

Former President Barack Obama offers words of wisdom to activists and candidates; Peter Doocy reports from Concord, New Hampshire.

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  • Boris Johnson considers post-Brexit changes to rules on 48-hour working week

    Boris Johnson is considering a post-Brexit overhaul of labour laws to free businesses from regulations originally imposed by the EU. The 48-hour working week is one of the regulations being targeted by the Government, it was reported on Thursday night, in a move that is likely to meet with resistance from trade unions. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), has asked business leaders for their views on the ideas, which are understood to be at an early stage. Mr Johnson recently said there would be “big changes” to regulation this year but that the UK would not “regress” on workers’ rights and would not “send children up chimneys”. But ministers believe the current laws, imported from EU law as part of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, can be tweaked to benefit both businesses and workers. One possibility is to change rules around the 48-hour week, also known as the working time directive, which currently includes paid overtime. Prior to the pandemic employees in the UK averaged around 32 hours of work per week, dropping down to just 25.8 hours during the summer as employers furloughed many of their workers, according to figures from the ONS.

  • 'COVID tongue' becoming more common coronavirus symptom

    Leading scientist warns the government needs to expand the list of coronavirus symptoms so people know they're infected.

  • Melania snubs meeting Jill Biden as First Lady-to-be unveils advisors

    Melania Trump is accused of having abdicated any responsibilities associated with her official role

  • Scottish fishermen forced to sail to Denmark for their catch after Rees-Mogg's 'we’ve got our fish back' boast

    Exports of fresh fish and seafood have been hit by delays following the end of the Brexit transition period.

  • Coronavirus R rate 'could be as low as 0.6' in some parts of England

    The University of Cambridge study estimates the current daily number of new infections occurring across England is 60,200.

  • Exports to EU to plunge by more than one-third because of Boris Johnson’s Brexit trade deal, study warns

    Income per head is forecast to fall by 6 per cent – just 2 per cent less than under a no-deal departure

  • WandaVision opening credits tease arrival of MCU’s most terrifying villain yet

    Pause episode two at the 03:27 mark

  • Trump still faces trouble ahead – whatever the final impeachment result

    Such has been the toxic nature of the current president’s tenure, that calls for action over what has happen on his watch will continue

  • Proud Boxer Dad Looks Over His Adorable Puppies in Indiana

    Three tiny boxer puppies were captured saying hi to their proud papa in Columbus, Indiana, late last year, pawing at the elder dog and wagging their tails.Footage taken by Bailey Noel shows the bigger dog, who Noel told Storyful was their father, inspecting his cute pups. Credit: Bailey Noel via Storyful

  • Trump Jr wanted for questioning by DC attorney general over alleged inaugural funds abuse

    Karl Racine ‘extremely confident’ US president’s eldest son broke law

  • Saira Khan says she had to 'tolerate' some 'Loose Women' co-stars

    The 50-year-old left the programme at the beginning of the year.

  • Brexit: Boris Johnson ‘in danger of proving he is a buffoon’, says DUP’s Paisley

    PM’s attitude to disruption feels like ‘slap on the face with a wet kipper’, says Brexit backer

  • 'Shocking' care home Covid outbreaks at levels not seen since first peak

    Outbreaks of Covid-19 in care homes have more than trebled in a month, with levels of infections now similar to the peak of the first wave, figures show. The latest surveillance data from Public Health England (PHE) reveals that, in the week to January 14, there was the second highest weekly total since records began in April. On Thursday night, senior figures said the numbers were "shocking" and warned: "Care homes cannot be neglected again." It came as the Government closed Britain's borders to Portugal and South America amid fears over a new strain of the virus from Brazil. Ministers had pledged that all care home residents would be vaccinated by the end of this month, but The Telegraph has been told the care home rollout is taking longer than the Government had anticipated. Sources said only 100 residents could be vaccinated in the time it took to administer jabs to 1,000 people in the community. On Thursday night, PHE said more than one third of people aged over 80 in England had been vaccinated, accounting for 56 per cent of the 2,371,407 vaccinations given up to January 10. Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, has said 25 per cent of older care home residents have received the jab, up from the previous figure of 10 per cent cited by Boris Johnson last week.

  • Fur-wearing ‘QAnon Shaman’ appeals to Trump personally for pardon over Capitol riots

    ‘My client had heard the oft-repeated words of president Trump’, says lawyer

  • Latest weekly Covid-19 rates for local authority areas in England

    The rate is expressed as the number of new cases per 100,000 people.

  • Travellers from South America banned amid fears over new Covid variant

    Transport Secretary Grant Shapps says it is a ‘precautionary’ measure to ensure the vaccine rollout is not disrupted.

  • Boris Johnson urged to lift Covid lockdown soon or face leadership challenge

    Boris Johnson has been warned by a senior Tory backbencher that his leadership will be “on the table” if the UK remains in a cycle of coronavirus lockdowns. Steve Baker, who was influential in Theresa May’s downfall, has written to fellow members of the lockdown-sceptic Covid Recovery Group asking them put pressure on the Tory chief whip over the issue. In the letter to colleagues he wrote: “I am sorry to have to say this again and as bluntly as this: it is imperative you equip the Chief Whip today with your opinion that debate will become about the PM’s leadership if the Government does not set out a clear plan for when our full freedoms will be restored, with a guarantee that this strategy will not be used again next winter.”

  • UK weather: Met Office issues warnings as heavy snow and ice threaten travel disruption

    20cm of snow could fall in hardest-hit areas of Scotland

  • Experts counter charity advice not to drink for two weeks after Covid jab

    Drinking alcohol before or after having the coronavirus vaccine is unlikely to impact the effectiveness of the jab, experts have said. It comes after Drink Aware issued guidance from its independent medical advisory panel warning people not to drink “at least two days before, and at least two weeks after” being vaccinated, “to ensure your immune system is at its best to respond to the vaccine and protect you”. The comments were made by Dr Fiona Sim in her capacity as chair of the advisory panel. She is also a Senior Clinical Adviser at NHS England and a visiting professor at the University of Bedfordshire. The Drink Aware guidance adds there is “little data” about the impact of alcohol on the effectiveness of the Covid-19 vaccine. But Dr Sim states: “Chronic heavy drinking reduces immune protection, and specifically for respiratory infections, which includes Covid-19. “For greatest benefit from the vaccine, it is prudent for you not to drink any alcohol for a few days before, and for at least two weeks after, you've been vaccinated.” But other experts have said this is not necessary and is not recommended in the labelling of the Pfizer or AstraZeneca jabs. “It wouldn’t affect the immune response to be honest,” Dr Gillies O'Bryan-Tear, of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine, said. “People who drink heavily are somewhat immunosuppressed… (but) it’s certainly not advice around vaccinations I am aware of.” He added that Drink Aware “must have scientific reasons” for issuing the advice, but added: “From my point of view I can’t see why they’ve recommended that”. “We would not deny the vaccination to alcoholics,” he said. “It'll still work, they still need to be protected.” Professor Gary McLean, of the School of Human Sciences at London Metropolitan University and a visiting professor at Imperial College London, said getting “hammered” directly after taking the vaccine wouldn’t be advised. But added “usual drinking within guidelines wouldn't be wouldn't be too negative” on a person’s immune system and is unlikely to impact the effectiveness of the Covid vaccine. It is also not recommended to avoid alcohol days before the seasonal flu jab, he added.

  • North Korea unveils 'world's strongest weapon' at military parade

    Wearing a giant furry hat, black leather jacket and a beaming smile, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un introduced “the world’s strongest weapon” – a new submarine-launched ballistic missile – at a nighttime parade on Thursday in Pyongyang. The display of North Korea’s military might followed a rare congress of the ruling Workers' Party, during which leader Kim denounced the United States as his country's “foremost principal enemy” and vowed to strengthen the North’s nuclear war deterrent. On Friday, the reclusive regime’s state media released 100 photos of a mass celebration of the national armory, including tanks and rocket launchers, all flanked by rows of marching soldiers, noticeably not wearing masks. Military aircraft were illuminated by LED lights as they flew overhead in formation. “They’d like us to notice that they’re getting more proficient with larger solid rocket boosters,” tweeted Ankit Panda, a North Korea expert and author of ‘Kim Jong Un and the Bomb’, as the parade unfolded in Pyongyang’s Kim Il Sung square. As the spectacle reached its climax, the military rolled out what analysts said appeared to be new variants of solid-fuel short-range ballistic missiles – which are more quickly deployed than liquid-fuelled versions - and four Pukguksong-class submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs).