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A 1% pay rise for NHS workers is "the most" the government can afford due to the economic cost of the COVID crisis, a health minister has told Sky News. The government is facing a furious backlash - led by the Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer - after calling for health care staff in England to be restricted to a pay rise of 1%. Live COVID updates from the UK and across the world But Nadine Dorries said it "would be wrong to say a single person in the government does not appreciate the effort" of NHS staff, as she defended the decision not to recommend a larger pay increase. "Of course, we recognise the sacrifice and the commitment and the vocation of nurses and all health workers over the past year," the minister said. Advertisement "We've all been touched by, or personally experienced, help by NHS workers. "But I think it is important to note that the priority of the government has been about protecting people's livelihoods, about … [Read more...] about COVID-19: 1% pay rise for NHS staff ‘the most’ the government can afford, says minister Nadine Dorries

Kindly Share This Story: By Azu Ishiekwene THERE’S a model for managing rebels in government that the American political drama, “Designated Survivor”, teaches so well. In one of the episodes after the horrific death of President Robert Richmond, his speech writer, Seth Wright, had a chance meeting with incoming President, Tom Kirkman, in the toilet. In a soliloquy which wafted over the toilet partition, Wright said the US would regret Kirkman’s candidacy because he was incompetent and unfit for office. How can a man on the verge of punitive redeployment suddenly become president? He didn’t know that Kirkman, who was in the next toilet recovering from the shock of the news of his unexpected promotion, was listening. When both men came out and met at the wash-hand stand, Wright almost fainted. No need, Kirkman told him. Wright was not going to be a speechwriter in the White House anymore, Kirkman said. His rebellion just got him promoted as the press secretary of … [Read more...] about Ganduje’s genius is his hypocrisy

Sens. Joe Manchin Joseph (Joe) Manchin Overnight Defense: Capitol Police may ask National Guard to stay | Biden's Pentagon policy nominee faces criticism | Naval Academy midshipmen moved to hotels Progressives won't oppose bill over limits on stimulus checks Senate votes to take up COVID-19 relief bill MORE (D-W.Va.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and other centrist Democrats increasingly are in control of the fate of President Biden Joe Biden Trump State Department appointee arrested in connection with Capitol riot FireEye finds evidence Chinese hackers exploited Microsoft email app flaw since January Biden officials to travel to border amid influx of young migrants MORE ’s COVID-19 relief package — and perhaps broader pieces of his agenda. In a Senate where both parties hold 50 seats, a single defection by a Democrat can sink legislation, giving the centrists significant influence. Just this week, several Democratic moderates worked behind … [Read more...] about Democratic centrists flex power on Biden legislation

The public are being urged to join a mass slow handclap in protest at a government recommendation for a 1% pay rise for NHS workers - as unions warn of possible strike action. The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has set up a £35m strike fund that can be used to provide compensation for loss of earnings and campaigning should members decide to down tools. RCN chief executive and general secretary Dame Donna Kinnair condemned health minster Nadine Dorries' claim that 1% was "the most" the government could afford , calling it "pitiful and bitterly disappointing". Live COVID updates from the UK and across the world Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Minister defends NHS 1% pay increase And Unite, which also represents tens of thousands of health service staff, has warned it too is considering industrial action amid growing anger at the pay proposals they branded an "insult" and "hypocrisy in its greatest form". … [Read more...] about COVID-19: Public urged to join slow handclap protest as nursing unions being strike discussions over pay row

The government has launched a taskforce to accelerate the search for a coronavirus vaccine in the UK. Downing Street's chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, and deputy chief medical officer Jonathan Van Tam have been tasked with leading the operation. Business Secretary Alok Sharma announced the taskforce at Number 10's daily coronavirus news briefing on Friday, adding that the goal was to "make sure a vaccine is made available to the public as quickly as possible". Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 'We may need more than one vaccine' "It comprises representatives from government, industry, academia and regulators," he said. "We are looking forward, so, when we do make a breakthrough we are ready to manufacture by the millions. Advertisement "One tool in this fight will be the UK's first vaccines manufacturing innovation centre based in Harwell. "The government will be accelerating the … [Read more...] about Coronavirus vaccine taskforce launched by government

The Muppet Show was released onto Disney+ this weekend, meaning that fans can stream the show for the first time. Though the episodes appear as originally broadcast in the late 1970s and early 1980s, a number of them begin with content warning title cards that warn they "include...negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people and cultures [which] were wrong then and are wrong now." This warning was originally not on the episodes but was added on Friday evening. This warning also means that these episodes will not appear on children's accounts on Disney+. The reasons behind these content warnings are numerous. One episode, for example, receives a content warning due to a number of scenes in which country singer Johnny Cash sings in front of a Confederate flag, as reported by Newsweek on Friday . Other episodes, meanwhile, feature stereotypical portrayals of Native American people, Arabs and traveler communities. The U.S. version of Disney+, however, is totally missing … [Read more...] about ‘The Muppet Show’ on Disney+ Missing Four Episodes, 16 More Have Content Warnings

HOMESTEAD, Fla. - NASCAR’s post-season landscape has been altered after just two Cup Series races. With Michael McDowell and Christopher Bell winning at Daytona International Speedway, the first in the Daytona 500 and the second on the road course, two playoff spots were locked up by guys who weren’t generally considered locks. The fallout? Other teams are feeling the pinch in late February – six months before the 16-driver playoff field is set – and with 24 races remaining. “Probably not for the teams that we all expect to win, but for some of those fringe cars it will,” said Bell’s crew chief, Adam Stevens. “The number of unique winners is really going to change how many cars get in on points, right? It’s pretty obvious.” The simplest way to look at it: If the series heavyweights perform as expected the rest of the way, there won’t be many playoff spots left for anyone else. It’s a somewhat bleak outlook for several teams already and could force them to adjust their approach … [Read more...] about NASCAR’s ‘unique’ winners already altering playoff landscape

One of President Biden Joe Biden Trump State Department appointee arrested in connection with Capitol riot FireEye finds evidence Chinese hackers exploited Microsoft email app flaw since January Biden officials to travel to border amid influx of young migrants MORE ’s top policy goals, an increase in the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025, suffered a big setback Friday when eight members of the Senate Democratic caucus voted against it. An effort by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders Bernie Sanders ABC names new deputy political director, weekend White House correspondent Ron Johnson forces reading of 628-page Senate coronavirus relief bill on floor GOP pulling out all the stops to delay COVID-19 package MORE (I-Vt.) to waive a procedural objection to adding the $15 minimum wage to a COVID 19-relief package was resoundingly defeated by a vote of 58 to 42 in which seven Democrats and one independent joined all 50 … [Read more...] about The eight Democrats who voted no on $15 minimum wage