London | 22 hours ago
Scottish minister stands by decision to free Lockerbie bomber
London, Aug 19 - Scotland's Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill Thursday defended his controversial decision to free the convicted Lockerbie bomber on health grounds a year ago, saying that predicting how long a cancer patient might live is 'not an exact science'.MacAskill also said the Scottish government had 'nothing to fear' from a new inquiry by US senators into the release of Libyan Abdel Basset ... read more

Washington | 2 months ago
US mounts pressure on BP; Obama heads to Gulf Coast
Washington, June 14 - The US increased pressure on energy giant BP Plc to boost capacity to contain the gushing oil well in the Gulf of Mexico, as President Barack Obama makes a fourth trip to the area Monday.As public outrage intensifies, Obama will travel to Alabama, Mississippi and Florida, for the first time since the crisis began, on Monday and Tuesday. He is scheduled to address the nation a ... read more

Washington | 2 months ago
US gives BP 48 hours to boost oil containment
Washington, June 13 - The United States Saturday increased pressure on energy giant BP Plc, giving it 48 hours to boost capacity to contain the gushing oil well in the Gulf of Mexico, as government scientists said the spill could be twice as bad as previously estimated.US government scientists Thursday said anywhere from 20,000 to 40,000 barrels of oil per day could have been leaking out of the ru ... read more

Washington | 2 months ago
Obama to meet BP heads as oil spill continues
Washington, June 12 - US President Barack Obama will hold his first meeting next week with top officials from oil giant BP, the White House said Friday, as government scientists said the worst oil spill in US history could be nearly twice as bad as previously thought.Obama will meet with BP Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg in Washington Wednesday. It was not clear whether BP Chief Executive Tony Hayw ... read more

London | 5 months ago
Top British civil servant holds 'hung parliament' talks
London, March 21 - A leading member of Britain's third largest political party has met a top civil servant for 'unprecedented talks' and offered to be finance minister if the next general election returns a hung parliament, according to a report Sunday.Liberal Democrat Vince Cable said he was questioned by Nicholas Macpherson, the finance ministry's permanent secretary, about what his party's dema ... read more

London | 5 months ago
Black British PM is possible, says book
London, March 18 - A 'deepening tide of tolerance' over half a century has created the grounds for Britain to elect its first black prime minister, according to a new book tracking public attitudes in Britain and the US.Unfortunately for the aspiring British Obama, the authors don't see it happening anytime soon. 'Age of Obama', published this week as a major collaboration between Harvard and Manc ... read more

6 months ago
Britain anoints India a superpower on Republic Day
London, Jan 27 - India is already a superpower, says Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband. 'My thoughts on the 60th anniversary of the Indian Constitution is that in one particular way India is a superpower already,' Miliband told a massive gathering of the Indian diaspora here Tuesday. 'India is a superpower in its soft power, a superpower in the soft force of its democracy, and superpow ... read more

1 year ago
British Speaker leads MPs into curry heaven
London, July 16 - Order, order: British politicians are addicted to Indian food. And that comes from the Speaker himself. Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Finance Minister Alistair Darling famously struck a 400 billion pound bank bailout deal in the darkest days of the recession in October last year over a late-night meal of rice, karahi lamb, tandoori chicken, vegetable curry and aloo gobi. But ... read more

1 year ago
British Speaker leads MPs into curry heaven
London, July 16 - Order, order: British politicians are addicted to Indian food. And that comes from the Speaker himself. Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Finance Minister Alistair Darling famously struck a 400 billion pound bank bailout deal in the darkest days of the recession in October last year over a late-night meal of rice, karahi lamb, tandoori chicken, vegetable curry and aloo gobi. But ... read more

1 year ago
British tabloid accused of up to 3,000 illegal phone-taps
London, July 9 - Former British deputy prime minister John Prescott Thursday reacted with fury after claims that a tabloid illegally tapped the telephones of thousands of high-profile figures, including him, and paid a million pounds to silence victims. The Guardian claimed Thursday three cases were settled out of court after journalists from the News of the World tabloid were accused of hiring ... read more