Britain

An empty classroom is seen at Sebastiao e Silva school in Oeiras near Lisbon, Portugal on Jan. 22, 2021. Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced on Thursday the closure of schools for 15 days as a new measure to contain the spread of the COVID-19 in the country. Only schools that serve parents who work in services considered "essential" during the general confinement will remain open. The nationwide lockdown decreed under the state of emergency will be in force in Portugal until Jan. 30. (Photo by Pedro Fiuza/Xinhua) … [Read more...] about Portugal closes schools for 15 days as daily COVID-19 deaths hit new record

Tokyo reported new daily coronavirus cases of more than 1,000 for nine straight days through Thursday and set a single-day record of more than 2,400 infections earlier this month. The death toll from the respiratory disease stands at nearly 4,900 people in Japan. … [Read more...] about Japan and IOC say Olympics will NOT be cancelled

Democrats would need the support of at least 17 Republicans to convict Trump, a high bar. While a handful of Senate Republicans have indicated they are open to conviction, most have said they believe a trial will be divisive and questioned the legality of trying a president after he has left office. … [Read more...] about Donald Trump impeachment to go to Senate Monday, launching trial

“The extradition was upheld but he [Mallya] is still here because as you know there is another route for him to apply to the Secretary of State [Patel] for status,” said Mallya’s barrister Philip Marshall, when specifically asked by Deputy Insolvency and Companies Court Judge Nigel Barnett about the status of the extradition proceedings. … [Read more...] about Vijay Mallya applies for ‘another route’ to stay in the U.K.

Nissan confirmed on Friday that it will maintain its operations in Britain in the wake of the post-Brexit trade deal between the country and the European Union. The news was greeted by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as a "great vote of confidence." The future of Nissan's car plant in the northeast England city of Sunderland was thrown into doubt in the wake of Britain's vote to leave the EU in June 2016, a decision that could have led to tariffs and quotas on trade between the two sides. However, after months of tortuous negotiations, the UK and EU struck a post-Brexit trade deal at the end of 2020 that means there won't be any tariffs or quotas. There will be other barriers to trade though, such as customs checks and more form-filling that will inevitably raise costs. Nissan's chief operating officer, Ashwani Gupta, said the deal ensured the company's future in Sunderland, where it employs around 6,000 people. "Sunderland is one of the top three plants in the world for … [Read more...] about Nissan commits to UK car plant after post-Brexit trade deal