UK Day on 6 November highlights include:
- The British government plans to raise the minimum income to £10.40 an hour and to send money to low-income earners
- Sunak refused to apologize for the economic chaos caused by the Truss government
- Sunak criticized Hancock for participating in reality shows
- Bird flu in the UK has caused supermarkets to limit the purchase of eggs, and there is a shortage of turkey at Christmas
- Charles III demanded that the Regency Act be amended to include that members of the royal family "may act as monarchs"
- Charles III paid out of his own pocket to send red envelopes to employees to help them cope with the crisis of life
- England 26 players for Qatar, Prince William for the Three Lions
The British government plans to raise the minimum income to £10.40 an hour and to send money to low-income earners
Tomorrow (November 17), the UK government will release the much-watched Autumn Statement.
According to the Times, Sunak and Hunt will significantly raise the national minimum income standard and pay up to £1,100 to 8 million families.
The UK government expects to raise the minimum income by 10% from £9.5/hour to £10.40/hour and above, raising wages for 2.5 million Britons.
At the same time, the UK government will also grant up to £1,100 to those who have already been means-tested, potentially benefiting 8 million families.
This benefit consists of living expenses (£650), disability allowance (£150) and superannuation (£300), with some families receiving up to three benefits.
The UK government is also expected to freeze thresholds for income tax, national insurance, VAT, inheritance duty and pension savings, and potentially lower the threshold for additional income tax (45%) for high-income groups from £150,000 to £125,000.
Sunak refused to apologize for the economic chaos caused by the Truss government
In an interview with Sky News in Bali on November 15, British Prime Minister Sunak repeatedly refused to apologize for the turmoil caused to the British economy by the Truss government.
Sunak acknowledged that Truss and former finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng "made mistakes" that caused mortgage rates to soar, triggering a run on the pound and shocks in the gilt market.
However, every time Sky News political editor Beth Rigby asked him to apologize, Sunak would only repeat that the previous prime minister had made mistakes and say, "What I want to do now is how to make up for [these mistakes]." ”
He admitted there were "tough decisions" to be made to get the UK economy back on track, but he was "ready to do tough things".
Sunak added: "Throughout the summer I spent the summer discussing the challenges facing the country and how to address and address them to provide jobs, growth and prosperity for people in the future. Now that I'm Prime Minister, I'm going to make sure we achieve that. ”
Sunak also said that since he took office, "the UK's fiscal position is now much more stable in terms of borrowing costs and the direction of the pound." ”
Sunak criticized Hancock for participating in reality shows
At the G20 summit, British Prime Minister Sunak criticized former health secretary Matt Hancock for participating in a celebrity reality show.
Last week, Hancock was featured in ITV's adventure reality show, I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! was suspended by the Conservative Party.
Sunak told reporters he was "disappointed" by Hancock's decision to appear on the show and believed Hancock's suspension from the Conservatives was correct.
"Politics is actually quite noble," he said. I think most people in politics, no matter what party they come from, do so because they care about public service. ”
Sunak said all MPs had a responsibility to "do something to earn people's respect, serve voters well, make a difference in one-on-one meetings, that's the right way to behave, and it's important to put voters and the country in a prominent position."
Sunak said: "We have the privilege of work, and we should take this privilege seriously and take responsibility. ”
Bird flu in the UK has caused supermarkets to limit the purchase of eggs, and there is a shortage of turkey at Christmas
According to a number of British media reports, due to the recent outbreak of avian influenza in the UK and the rise in feed prices, many farmers no longer raise chickens, resulting in a sharp reduction in the supply of eggs in major supermarkets and restaurants, and egg prices soared.
Andrew Opie, head of food and sustainability at the British Retail Consortium, said: "Although bird flu has affected the egg supply, supermarkets are working hard to reduce the impact on consumers. Some supermarkets are imposing purchase restrictions to ensure everyone can buy them. ”
British supermarket chain Asda posted notices on its shelves saying that each customer could only buy two cartons of eggs due to shortages, and said supermarkets were working hard to ensure an adequate supply of eggs.
Lidl limits each customer to a maximum of three cartons of eggs.
A spokesperson for Sainsbury's said the supermarket was "facing challenges in terms of egg supply". The spokesman said that there was no purchase restriction order for the time being, but some eggs had to be purchased from Italy for the time being.
The average price of a carton of eggs in the UK has risen by more than 22% due to supply shortages.
In addition to the impact on raw egg supplies in supermarkets, British restaurants have also begun to suspend the supply of fried eggs.
British pub chain Wetherspoon has announced that it will only offer an egg-free English breakfast, with browns, sausages or onion rings instead.
A spokesperson for Wetherspoon said: "We can confirm that there is a temporary shortage of egg supplies at bars due to the impact of bird flu on egg production. ”
In addition, avian flu has also led to a decline in poultry production, meaning there may be a shortage of turkeys or geese this Christmas (geese were traditionally the poultry of choice for Christmas before turkey epidemics).
Gressingham, which supplies frozen and fresh goose, duck and turkey to all large supermarkets in the UK, said the tragic death of geese from three of its farms would "result in no fresh goose being supplied to supermarkets this Christmas".
According to the British poultry trade union, about 350,000 free-range turkeys have been slaughtered so far due to the severity of the bird flu epidemic.
Charles III demanded that the Regency Act be amended to include that members of the royal family "may act as monarchs"
On Monday (November 14), King Charles III, a representative of the House of Lords, read a statement asking the British Parliament to amend the Regency Act to increase the number of Counsellor of State.
"In order to ensure the continued efficiency of public affairs in my absence, such as when I perform my duties overseas, I confirm that I will be very satisfied if Parliament deems it necessary to appoint as State Advisers... My sister (Princess Anne) and brother (Prince Edward) are also coming in. ”
Under the Regency Act 1937 in force, members of the royal family who can act as kings are called state advisers in the United Kingdom and can act as kings when they are abroad or are unable to perform their duties due to ill health.
The State Advisor is composed of the monarch's spouse and four members of the royal family who have reached the age of 21 in the order of succession to the throne.
Charles III paid out of his own pocket to send red envelopes to employees to help them cope with the crisis of life
We previously reported that King Charles III will pay out of his own pocket to help low- and middle-income royal staff, including cleaners, weather the storm.
According to the latest released details, in addition to the salary they deserve, these employees can also receive additional "red envelopes" of varying amounts: royal staff with an annual income of less than £30,000 can receive £600 at a time; Employees earning £30,000-£40,000 receive £400; Those earning between £40,000 and £45,000 will receive £350. For this, King Charles III of England had to shell out tens of thousands of pounds in total.
"The king knows that people are facing soaring energy bills and the immediate economic situation in the country," the source said. He will do everything he can, in this way, to appease those who have done their duty to the royal family. ”
Official British data shows that in 2020-2021, there were 491 British royal staff with a total salary of 23.7 million pounds. Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the king's out-of-pocket "red envelopes".
England 26 players for Qatar, Prince William for the Three Lions
On November 15, local time, 26 players representing the England national team in the World Cup arrived in Qatar and stepped off the plane under the leadership of captain Kane.
That evening, the official account of the England team posted videos and photos of Prince William for the national team on social media.
Prince William attended the World Cup departure ceremony, personally presented the players with their World Cup shirt numbers, and cheered them on to enjoy the journey.
England are drawn in Group B in the World Cup and will face Iran in their first World Cup match on the 21st. Next they will also play against the US and Wales.
The 26-player roster of England is as follows:
Goalkeepers: Pickford (Everton), Pope (Newcastle United), Ramsdale (Arsenal);
Defenders: Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Cody (Wolves on loan at Everton), Dyer (Tottenham), Maguire (Manchester United), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), Stones (Manchester City), Trippier (Newcastle United), Walker (Manchester City), White (Arsenal);
Midfielders: Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Gallagher (Chelsea), Henderson (Liverpool), Mount (Chelsea), Phillips (Manchester City), Rice (West Ham);
Forwards: Foden (Manchester City), Grealish (Manchester City), Kane (Tottenham), Maddison (Leicester City), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Saka (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Chelsea), Wilson (Newcastle United).