UK News and Discussions

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Pfizer and Flynn accused of overcharging NHS for anti-epilepsy drugs
Thu 5 Aug 2021

Pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Flynn have been accused by the UK’s competition watchdog of illegally overcharging the NHS for vital anti-epilepsy drugs by abusing their dominance in the market to raise prices overnight.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has confirmed its 2016 finding that the pair exploited a loophole to charge unfairly high prices for phenytoin sodium capsules by debranding the drug, known as Epanutin, in 2012 so it would not face price regulation.

The watchdog began reassessing the case after the drugs maker Pfizer appealed against the CMA’s 2016 fine of £84.2m – a record at the time – for raising the cost of the anti-epilepsy drug by up to 2,600%. Flynn Pharma, a drugs distributor, faced a fine of £5.2m for charging excessive and unfair prices for phenytoin sodium capsules.

Although the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) upheld parts of the watchdog’s findings, it referred the matter of whether Pfizer and Flynn abused their market position back to the CMA for further consideration.

The CMA said after carefully assessing further evidence it believes that the pair were able to abuse their dominant position to overcharge the NHS, by debranding the capsules which are used by an estimated 48,000 epilepsy patients in the UK to prevent and control seizures.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... -drugs-cma
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John Lewis named in government list of firms that paid below minimum wage
Thu 5 Aug 2021

John Lewis is among the companies “named and shamed” in a government list of employers found to be paying staff below the legal minimum wage.

The employee-owned partnership was one of 191 companies including care homes, childcare services and farms that were fined for owing a total of £2.1m to more than 34,000 workers, as part of the government’s effort to show that it is cracking down on the abuse of workers.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said the breaches took place between 2011 and 2018, and the employers had since been made to pay back what they owed. They were fined an extra £3.2m, to show that “is never acceptable to underpay workers”.

The business minister Paul Scully said it was “unacceptable for any company to come up short” on the government’s minimum wage laws, which were put in place “to ensure a fair day’s work gets a fair day’s pay”.

“All employers, including those on this list, need to pay workers properly,” he added. “This government will continue to protect workers’ rights vigilantly, and employers that short-changed workers won’t get off lightly.”
https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... nimum-wage
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Mike Ashley set to step down as chief of Sports Direct owner Frasers Group
Thu 5 Aug 2021

Mike Ashley is set to step down as chief executive of Frasers Group, the owner of Sports Direct, in May next year and hand over to his daughter’s fiance.

The company, which also owns the House of Fraser department stores and the designer fashion chain Flannels, said it was in discussions about “transitioning” the chief executive role to 31-year-old Michael Murray, who is currently Frasers’ “head of elevation”.

The Doncaster-born son of a property developer began by helping Ashley with personal property deals a few years after meeting his daughter Anna on holiday in 2011.

The former club promoter has become Ashley’s right-hand man, overseeing a revamp of Sports Direct stores as well as expanding Flannels, improving the group’s use of technology and building relationships with high-end brands.

However, Murray is not on the company’s board, or even an employee, but is employed as a consultant, and paid up to 25% of any value he creates from property deals.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... sers-group
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Sturgeon on brink of cooperation deal with Scottish Greens
Tue 3 Aug 2021

Nicola Sturgeon is on the brink of signing a deal with the Scottish Greens that would cement a pro-independence majority at Holyrood and may see the Greens taking ministerial seats.

The Guardian understands a final agreement is close to being signed, with preparations under way to put the deal to Sturgeon’s cabinet as early as next Tuesday.

The formal deal, which will stop short of a full coalition of the kind agreed by the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats under David Cameron and Nick Clegg in 2010, would give the Scottish National party and Scottish Greens a clear majority of seats at Holyrood.

It would allow the first minister to present a strong pro-climate agenda in advance of the Cop26 climate talks in Glasgow this November, and outvote anti-independence parties in Holyrood.

Sturgeon currently leads a minority government after the SNP won 64 of Holyrood’s 129 seats in May’s elections, leaving her one short of an outright majority. The pro-independence Greens hold seven seats, giving a putative SNP-Green alliance a comfortable cushion.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... --OD8AoJ-U

“The formal deal, which will stop short of a full coalition of the kind agreed by the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats under David Cameron and Nick Clegg in 2010, would give the Scottish National party and Scottish Greens a clear majority of seats at Holyrood.

It would allow the first minister to present a strong pro-climate agenda in advance of the Cop26 climate talks in Glasgow this November, and outvote anti-independence parties in Holyrood.”
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Downing Street confirms it is planning to deploy the Army to help distribute food to supermarkets. A spokesman said: "We have to be prepared to respond to unexpected events."
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UK tells its nationals to leave Afghanistan immediately
Source: DW news

Afghanistan is falling apart faster than I thought. I was giving them a year but they might not make the new year.

https://www.dw.com/en/uk-tells-its-nati ... a-58789804

The British foreign ministry warned of a high risk of terror attacks and "a worsening security situation" as the Taliban continued their offensive across Afghanistan.
The British government has told all UK nationals to leave Afghanistan immediately as fighting intensifies between Taliban militants and Afghan security forces.

The announcement came just hours after the Taliban ambushed and killed the director of Afghanistan's government media center in Kabul on Friday.

Read more: https://www.dw.com/en/uk-tells-its-nati ... a-58789804
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Yeah, we've really f***ed up that country. I was listening to a caller on James O'Brien the other day – a soldier who'd served there, and seen all the death and destruction. They'd been talking to locals and building their trust, working towards stability etc. but then got pulled away. He seemed convinced that all the sacrifices and effort had been for nothing.
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A-Level music education is at risk due to lack of access and funding

10 August 2021

A-Level music education could be absent from state schools by 2033, according to a report from Birmingham City University.

Findings reveal that the number of entries to A-Level music in state schools is on the decline. In 2019/2020 the number of students in the Midlands who'd opted for the subject had dropped to 1%. A worrying figure if the current rate of decline continues, there would likely be zero entries to the course in just over a decade.

Researchers Dr Adam Whittaker and Professor Martin Fautley believe cuts to government funding is a major factor, limiting access to courses and to music teachers within a state school setting.

https://mixmag.net/read/a-level-music-e ... nding-news
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UK could allow animal tests for cosmetic ingredients for first time since 1998
Wed 11 Aug 2021

Ministers have opened the door to expanding the use of animal testing to ingredients used in cosmetic products for the first time in 23 years, an animal welfare charity has said.

Cruelty Free International (CFI) said animal testing on ingredients exclusively used in cosmetics – which was banned in the UK in 1998 – could be required, after being told by the Home Office that the government had “reconsidered its policy.”

In a letter, the government said it was aligning itself with a decision made last year by the appeals board of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), which said that some ingredients used only in cosmetics needed to be tested on animals to ensure they were safe.
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The Home Office insisted that UK law on animal testing had not changed, but campaigners warned that accepting the ECHA’s ruling could lead to a much wider use of animal testing.

The ECHA ruled that German chemicals firm Symrise had to carry out animal tests on two ingredients used solely in cosmetics to satisfy chemicals regulations, overruling EU restrictions on animal testing of cosmetic ingredients. The ingredients are widely used across a range of cosmetics.
https://www.theguardian.com/science/202 ... since-1998
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