Glasgow aims to be the UK's first 'net-zero' city - BBC News

Glasgow has unveiled plans to become the first UK city to reduce its greenhouse emissions to net-zero.

The city wants to reach the target before 2045, beating the Scotland-wide ambition announced by the Scottish government earlier this month.

The plans include mass charging points for electric vehicles.

Net-zero is the point where the same volume of greenhouse gases is being emitted as is being absorbed through offsetting techniques like forestry.

Glasgow City Council and Scottish Power say they will work on a range of programmes to help the city reach the target.

They hope the announcement will fire the starting gun on a "race to zero" with other cities like Edinburgh.

The move came after Nicola Sturgeon declared a "climate emergency" at the SNP party conference last month.

A week later the Scottish government said it would legislate to reduce greenhouse emissions to net-zero by 2045.

Advice from the Committee on Climate Change urged Scotland to set the target five years ahead of the UK as a whole because of its potential for planting trees.

Scottish Power said renewable energy capacity had to quadruple and electricity generation needed to double before Scotland could meet the target.

What does net-zero mean?

The terms carbon neutral and net-zero are often used interchangeably but there are differences.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most abundant greenhouse gas but there are others which the Scottish government counts and they are not all carbon-based.

Therefore, some climate change campaigners prefer the term net-zero as it includes not just CO2 and methane but also nitrous oxide, which is emitted during agricultural and industrial activities as well as from fossil fuels.

Simply being carbon neutral would not stop global warming because these other gases are also harmful to the atmosphere.

Perhaps an even better term would be "climate neutral".

Glasgow was the location of Scotland's first low emission zone (LEZ), which intends to phase out the dirtiest buses from the city centre over five years.

The UK's largest onshore wind farm, Whitelee, which is owned by Scottish Power, is on the outskirts of the city.

The focus is now expected to turn to other parts of the city's economy that can be decarbonised, such as transport and heating.

Public charging

Among the issues they are expected to tackle is that of electric vehicle charging.

More than 70% of the city's residents living in flats are unable to charge electric cars as they have no off-street parking.

Scottish Power says it is planning a charging system where people can rapidly charge their vehicles away from home - at work or at public charging locations.

Sites for these locations are being assessed and the scheme could become a template for other UK cities facing similar problems.

Scottish Power chief executive Keith Anderson says Scotland was right to put itself at the front of the race to become net-zero.

"It is our hope that this declaration kick starts a race to zero with other ambitious cities, like Edinburgh, because then we will all be winners," he will tell the All Energy Conference in Glasgow later.

"The prize is the future of our country and our planet."

'Fundamental rethink'

But he will say that the target will not be met if "we keep inventing ways to block new renewable capacity".

"Onshore wind in particular has suffered as a consequence and the time has come for a fundamental rethink.

"We've been able to compensate to some extent by racing ahead with large offshore wind projects, but quadrupling capacity can't rely on putting all our eggs in one renewable basket.

"We've said very clearly we will aim to invest £6 billion in renewable capacity by 2022. The easier it is to do this, the quicker we all get to net-zero."

All of the electricity Scottish Power generates for its customers comes from nearly 40 onshore and offshore wind farms across the UK.

Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken said: "We simply have to act now and the Glasgow city government will develop those partnerships necessary to get to where we simply have to be. We need to be a net-zero city. And we need to be the UK's first net-zero city."

The announcement was welcomed by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

"Today's announcement between Scottish Power and Glasgow City Council - to make Glasgow the UK's first net zero city - is a very welcome step.

"Reaching our goals will need exactly this kind of partnership approach - with Government, business, local authorities and citizens all playing their part."

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https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-48269986

2019-05-14 23:44:57Z
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The UK gets its first official 5G launch date - The Verge

Vodafone has announced that its 5G network will go live on July 3rd, making it the first UK carrier to set a hard date for the launch of its next-gen mobile network. The service will be available in seven cities at first, and Vodafone plans to release four handsets and one home router on its network in the coming months. The operator says that prices for its 5G plans will be the same as their 4G equivalents, and will announce the new price plans next week.

Vodafone is the first of the UK’s four major operators to announce a specific date, but its 5G network might not be the first to actually arrive. EE has said that it plans to launch its 5G network this summer, without a firm date. That could change soon, however, as the operator has said it will make a 5G announcement at the OnePlus 7 launch later today. Meanwhile, Three will launch its network in the second half of this year, while O2’s network will be available before the end of the year.

At launch, Vodafone’s 5G network will be available in seven cities; Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool and London. By the end of the year, the operator plans to add 12 more cities — Birkenhead, Blackpool, Bournemouth, Guildford, Newbury, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Reading, Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, Warrington and Wolverhampton — for a total of 19 cities. Outside of the UK, Vodafone will offer 5G roaming across Germany, Italy, and Spain.

Four 5G phones will be available for the new network soon. The first of these, the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 5G, will go on sale starting next week, while the Huawei Mate 20 X (5G) and Samsung S10 5G will be available to preorder later this month. Vodafone also says that Huawei’s 5G foldable handset, the Huawei Mate X, will be available this summer, and that a 5G home router called the 5G Gigacube will also be available. Pricing of these handsets and router is due to be announced next week, and they will initially be available to use on 4G networks before the July 3rd switch on date.

A July launch for Vodafone’s network means the UK’s first next-gen mobile network could arrive months after the US. Verizon’s 5G network was switched on in the beginning of April in parts of Chicago and Minneapolis, but at the time we found that coverage was very limited when we tried it for ourselves. There was also only one 5G device available at the time. Verizon also chose to charge $10 extra for 5G over 4G, while Vodafone customers will get access to the new network at no extra charge. So while the UK has had to wait longer than the US for its first 5G network, at launch it will be available in more cities, with more devices, and at no extra cost over 4G.

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https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/14/18622809/uk-5g-vodafone-july-3rd-london-birmingham-manchester-xiaomi-huawei-samsung-next-gen-mobile-network

2019-05-14 09:36:59Z
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'Living in fear' after being deported from the UK - BBC News

Chevon Brown was 21 when he decided to take his car for a spin - despite the fact he was a learner driver with no insurance.

When he saw flashing blue lights in his rear view mirror, he says, he panicked. Instead of slowing down, he sped up, reaching speeds of 115mph.

The police chased him through the streets of Oxford for around five minutes. Chevon drove through red lights, on the wrong side of the road, and across front gardens, before he was arrested.

He was sentenced to 14 months in prison for dangerous driving and driving with no insurance.

The judge told him it had been a "terrifying catalogue of driving" and anyone coming out of the flats where his car crossed the gardens "would not have stood a chance".

Chevon eventually served eight months. He hoped he would serve his time and go back to working as a barber in his father's shop.

He had no idea that his actions - which he puts down to "stupidity" - would result in him being removed from the UK, the place he calls home.

In February, Chevon was sent back to Jamaica, the country he left aged 14.

Chevon came to the UK on a Jamaican passport to live with his father, and had indefinite leave to remain.

But the government can deport foreign nationals if they have been sentenced to prison for at least 12 months. Nearly 45,800 foreign offenders have been deported since 2010.

Since returning to Jamaica, Chevon says he doesn't feel safe. "I am nervous walking down the street," he says. "Anything could happen - every day people die here."

According to UN data, Jamaica had a murder rate of 47 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2016. In the UK, the rate was 1 per 100,000.

The Guardian recently reported that five men were killed in Jamaica after being deported from the UK during the past 14 months. British MP David Lammy responded by asking the government to "press pause" on all deportations to Jamaica.

Chevon, now 23, says he often hears gunshots in Jamaica and occasionally sees people walking the streets brandishing knives.

He says he's scared, "no longer makes plans" for his life and often thinks about "why this happened" - at the same time blaming himself "every single day" for his mistakes.

"I miss working," he says. "I miss my family and I class England as my home. All my plans, everything I wanted to do with my life is over there."

He also says comments from Home Secretary Sajid Javid were unhelpful.

When Chevon was deported - on the first such flight since the Windrush scandal - Mr Javid said the deportees had committed "very serious" crimes.

Jamaican media reported the comments, which Chevon says made people "think I'm a murderer or a rapist... a menace to society".

Chevon said it is difficult to make friends or find work. His dad, Vance Brown - who says he is "worried sick" about his son - sends money to Chevon and the family he stays with, as well as providing for his other young children in the UK.

The government, which does not officially monitor returnees, says it only returns "those with no legal right to remain in the UK" - if they and the courts "deem it is safe to do so".

But immigration lawyer Jacqueline McKenzie says the government should revisit its rules. She refers to a Home Office review written by Stephen Shaw, a former prisons and probation ombudsman.

"For low-risk offenders, it seems entirely disproportionate to tear them away from their lives, families and friends in the UK, and send them to countries where they may not... have any ties," the review said.

He recommended that "the Home Office should no longer routinely seek to remove those who were born in the UK or have been brought up here from an early age".

Oswald Dawkins is president of the National Organization of Deported Migrants (NODM), a non-profit organisation which supports deportees upon arrival in Jamaica, and receives funding from the UK government.

He said the UK should take more care to "look at each individual case" to consider the ties to both countries, as many deportees leave families and careers behind.

While he doesn't dispute that countries have the right to control their borders, he says: "The UK should not deport people en masse.

"There are persons who have returned without any strong family contact and for quite a number of them, all their families are in the UK - including children."

The Home Office said it works with "a number of non-governmental organisations" that provide support for returnees.

It added: "We are committed to ensuring safe and dignified returns and reintegration is a key part of that."

The Jamaican High Commissioner was contacted for comment.

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https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-48237126

2019-05-13 06:31:14Z
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Brexit anger makes European vote 'difficult' for Conservatives: UK minister - Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - European elections will be difficult for Britain’s governing Conservatives, their education minister said on Sunday, after the party slumped into fourth place in an opinion poll and a new Brexit Party took top spot.

Almost three years since Britain voted to leave the European Union, the country’s Brexit process has become mired in chaos with Prime Minister Theresa May’s inability so far to get a deal through parliament fuelling anger among voters.

With little movement in talks between the government and the opposition Labour Party to try to end the impasse in parliament, an election to the European Parliament on May 23 will offer a new opportunity for voters to show their discontent.

And both of Britain’s main parties, which are deeply divided over how to leave the EU, are set to be punished by frustrated Britons, with the Conservatives losing votes to the new Brexit Party, led by veteran eurosceptic campaigner Nigel Farage.

“I don’t think anyone is in any doubt these are going to be difficult elections for us ... for some people this is the ultimate protest vote opportunity,” education minister Damian Hinds told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show.

With the March 29 deadline for Brexit rapidly becoming a distant memory, Britain is increasingly divided between those who want the country to leave the EU abruptly with no deal and those who hope to avert Brexit - options neither big party back.

According to the latest Opinium poll for the Observer newspaper, Farage’s newly formed party is on 34% before the European election, with Labour in second place on 21% and the Conservatives back in fourth on 11%.

A pro-Brexit supporter is surrounded by EU flags outside the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain, April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez

LITTLE PROGRESS IN TALKS

May’s government hopes that Britons elected to the European Parliament will not need to take their seats, still wanting to get a divorce deal passed by parliament before the end of June.

But talks with Labour to try to secure what ministers describe as the “stable majority” in parliament to get the deal, or Withdrawal Agreement, ratified, have yet to find a breakthrough which would offer the government opposition votes.

Labour policy chiefs offered little optimism that an agreement was in the offing, and Gavin Williamson, who was sacked by May as defence minister this month, said the talks “can only ever end in tears” in the Mail on Sunday newspaper.

Jon Ashworth, Labour’s health policy chief, said the party’s negotiators were “not getting very far” in trying to persuade the government to adopt its Brexit plan, which envisages a permanent customs union - something that is anathema to many pro-Brexit Conservatives.

Labour’s trade policy chief Barry Gardiner told Sky News one of the “big sticking points” was that there was no guarantee that any successor to May would “actually deliver on it”.

May is under pressure from some Conservatives to quit office sooner than her pledge to resign after the first phase of the Brexit process is complete, prompting ministers and other hopefuls to pronounce their leadership ambitions.

Slideshow (3 Images)

But other ministers said now was not the time to force May out, arguing her departure would do little to change the arithmetic in parliament, which has already rejected her deal three times.

“This is about the maths in our parliamentary party and indeed in parliament itself,” Hinds said.

“No one should be under any illusion that just changing the person in that position would change the parliamentary reality.”

Reporting by Elizabeth Piper; Editing by Keith Weir

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-eu/brexit-anger-makes-european-vote-difficult-for-conservatives-uk-minister-idUSKCN1SI08C

2019-05-12 11:48:00Z
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Hinduja brothers top Rich List for third time - BBC News

The billionaire Hinduja brothers have been named as the wealthiest people in the UK for a third time, according to the Sunday Times Rich List.

Sri and Gopi Hinduja saw their fortune increase by £1.356bn in the last year to £22bn, the paper estimates.

Meanwhile, chemicals firm founder Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who topped last year's list, has slipped to third place.

And Valerie Moran becomes the first black female entrepreneur ever to make the paper's Rich List.

Family business the Hinduja Group was founded in Mumbai in 1914, and now has interests around the world including in oil and gas, banking, IT and property.

British citizens Sri, 83, and Gopi, 79, who are based in London, are two of the four brothers controlling the empire.

Among the properties they own is the Old War Office in Whitehall, which they hope to reopen as a luxury hotel.

The two brothers topped the newspaper list in 2014 and in 2017.

The Sunday Times Rich List 2019 (Top 10)

1. Sri and Gopi Hinduja (Industry and finance) | £22bn
2. David and Simon Reuben (Property and internet) | £18.7bn
3. Sir Jim Ratcliffe (Chemicals) | £18.2bn
4. Sir Len Blavatnik (Investment, music and media) | £14.4bn
5. Sir James Dyson and family (Household goods and technology) | £12.6bn
6. Kirsten and Jorn Rausing (Inheritance and investment) | £12.3bn
7. Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken (Inheritance, brewing and banking) | £12bn
8. Alisher Usmanov (Mining and investment) | £11.3bn
9. Roman Abramovich (Oil and industry) | £11.2bn
10. Mikhail Fridman (Industry) | £10.9bn

The list, which estimates the 1,000 richest people in the UK, is based on identifiable wealth including land, property, other assets such as art, and shares in companies, the Sunday Times says. It does not include the amount contained in people's bank accounts.

Brothers David and Simon Reuben - who made their fortune in property, carpets and scrap metal - are in second place on the list, with a combined wealth of £18.664bn.

Meanwhile, the richest person on last year's list, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who founded the Ineos chemicals firm, saw his net worth drop by £2.9bn since last year, the paper says.

Inventor Sir James Dyson - who campaigned for Brexit and has announced he would be relocating his company headquarters to Singapore - comes in at fifth on the list, up from 12th last year.

• Sir James Dyson: From barrows to billions

Zimbabwe-born Ms Moran is the first black female entrepreneur on the Rich List, ranking joint 970th alongside her husband, Noel. The couple, whose combined fortune is estimated at £122m, have a 81.5% stake in financial technology company Prepaid Financial Services.

Kirsten Rausing, part of the Rausing family which was behind the Tetra Pak drinks carton empire, is the highest ranked woman on the list. She appears alongside her brother Jorn Rausing in sixth place, with a combined estimated wealth of £12.256bn.

Meanwhile, Sir Philip Green and his wife Tina are placed at 156th on the list, down from 66th last year.

His fortune has been estimated at £950m - the first time in 17 years that Sir Philip has not been listed as a billionaire.

Sir Philip's company, The Arcadia Group, has been coping with a pensions deficit.

Robert Watts, who compiled this year's list, said: "On the face of it this looks like a bumper year for the super-rich, with record wealth, more billionaires and the entry level rising to £120m.

"But many of the rich are nursing big losses after a year of turbulence on the stock market and political deadlock in Westminster.

• What's gone wrong at Green's Topshop empire?
• Sackler Trust suspends new UK donations

"Technology is making and breaking fortunes. We are finding young entrepreneurs making vast sums of money from online fashion retail, dating apps and creating YouTube videos."

He added that online shopping "continues to have a profound effect" on UK high streets, adding that well known retailers "are seeing their fortunes smashed by this seismic change".

For the sixth year in a row, Scotland's richest person was named as Glenn Gordon and his family, the Jersey-based tycoon behind distillers William Grant & Sons. The group produces whisky including Grant's, Glenfiddich and The Balvenie, as well as Hendrick's gin.

And Cardiff-born venture capitalist Sir Michael Moritz remains Wales' richest person with a £3bn fortune.

The richest sports star aged 30 or under was named as Northern Irish golfer Rory McIlroy.

Meanwhile, top of the Music Rich List in the UK - which includes writers and performers - is Andrew Lloyd Webber with a fortune of £820m.

Musician Ed Sheeran doubled his wealth last year, while grime artist Stormzy made his debut on the rich list of young musicians with £16m.

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2019-05-12 02:36:18Z
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London mayor says Trump not worthy of a state visit - Washington Examiner

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said unlike former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, President Trump is not worthy of the honors of an official state visit.

Khan specifically took issue with the "Access Hollywood" tape, where Trump said how he could just grab women by their genitals and start kissing them since he was famous, and with TV host Billy Bush laughing along in 2005.

When Trump won the presidency in 2016, "an impression [was] being given you could get away with it, that you get a get out of jail card," Khan told British radio talk station LBC on Friday.

Khan said because the United Kingdom has a special relationship with the U.S., they should call out immoral behavior and not have to dignify it.

“Of course we should have a close relationship with the president of the U.S.A., but we shouldn’t be rolling out the red carpet. We shouldn’t have a state banquet,” Khan said. “History tells us only two presidents have had a state visit. President Trump is not in the same class as those two, but it's possible to have a working relationship without the need to have a state banquet and roll out the red carpet."

Trump will visit the U.K. in June. Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the left-wing Labour Party, said he would meet with Trump, but declined the invitation to the state dinner and criticized Prime Minister Theresa May for "rolling out the red carpet."

Maintaining an important relationship with the US doesn't require the pomp and ceremony of a state visit. It's disappointing that the Prime Minister has again opted to kowtow to this US administration. I'd welcome a meeting with President Trump to discuss all matters of interest.

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) April 26, 2019

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2019-05-10 22:28:00Z
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UK economy rebounds in first quarter - BBC News

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The UK economy picked up in the first three months of the year after manufacturers' stockpiling ahead of Brexit helped to boost growth.

Growth was 0.5% in the quarter, up from 0.2% in the previous three months, the Office for National Statistics said.

The manufacturing sector grew at its fastest rate since 1988 in the period.

The ONS said this was driven by manufacturers rushing to deliver orders before the original Brexit deadline of 29 March.

Pharmaceuticals was one of the sectors most affected, expanding 9.4% between January and March.

Previous business surveys had shown manufacturers stockpiling goods for Brexit in case the UK left the EU without a transition deal, which they feared could lead to delays at UK borders.

What impact has Brexit had on the figures?

As well as manufacturers rushing to deliver orders before the UK was due to leave the EU, firms also stockpiled parts.

This drove a surge in imports, with the total trade deficit - the gap between what the UK imports and exports - doubling in the first quarter to a record high, separate data from the ONS showed.

The total trade deficit widened from £8.9bn to £18.3bn, driven partly by a sharp increase in imports of cars and gold.

However, the UK's deadline to exit the EU has since been extended until the end of October after Prime Minister Theresa May asked the EU for more time to negotiate a deal.

• Does GDP tell the whole economic story?
• Bank warns of 'more frequent' rate rises

Is the economy stabilising?

Chancellor Philip Hammond said the figures showed the economy remained "robust".

"These GDP figures this morning show again that the UK economy is performing robustly, despite the evidence of slowing global growth and the continued Brexit uncertainty at home - so it's good news," he told the BBC.

But analysts have warned the impact of Brexit could mean the pick-up in growth is short-lived.

Tej Parikh, senior economist at business lobby group the Institute of Directors, said it could well be just "a flash in the pan".

"Some businesses brought activity forward early this year in preparation for leaving the EU, so higher stocks and earlier orders have artificially bumped up the growth numbers.

"In the second quarter, many firms will be keen to run down their Brexit caches, which will drag on economic growth," he said.

But Ruth Gregory, senior UK Economist at Capital Economics, said the figures offered some "encouraging signs that underlying growth gained some pace".

She said household consumption growth was "solid" and pointed out that business investment grew "for the first time in four quarters".

What do the trade figures tell us about the economy?

There's something upbeat in today's figures and also something downbeat, quite possibly with the same cause.

In spite of all the political fuss, the economy grew better than it has in a while. At 1.8% for the year, it is almost at pre-financial crisis rates, when growth of 2-3% a year was normal.

The figures can be taken to confirm predictions that there would be a boost to economic growth from "stockpiling" - firms spending more than usual building up their stocks of supplies, just in case a no-deal Brexit meant cross-border trade seized up.

Manufacturing enjoyed a boost and more cars were imported than usual. You can't tell from these figures alone, but that may also be due to stockpiling: a "buy-now-while-stocks-last" effect in case the pound dropped (making imported cars more expensive) and tariffs were imposed (ditto).

But here's the downer. Partly due to higher imports, the trade deficit doubled, from £8.9bn to £18.3bn. Because we enjoy a surplus in services, exporting more than we import, it looks even worse when you strip out services.

The trade in goods deficit in the first quarter widened to a record: £43.3bn including non-monetary gold, which rose by £6bn.

We know from numerous economic studies: people buy gold when they're worried. It looks like, in the first quarter of the year, economic growth was lifted - by anxiety. It's small, but you might call it a mini "worry-boom".

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https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48225334

2019-05-10 09:00:18Z
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