United Kingdom

Hong Kong, Nov 15 (AFP/PTI) Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam on Thursday condemned a "barbaric attack" on her justice minister, who fell while being surrounded by a crowd of jeering pro-democracy protesters in London.

It was the most physical confrontation involving a member of Lam's cabinet since the protests, now in their sixth month, erupted in the international finance hub.

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party has a 10-point lead over the opposition Labour Party, according to an opinion poll published by market research company Kantar on Wednesday, ahead of next month’s election.

Support for the Conservatives stood at 37% compared with Labour’s 27%. The pro-European Union Liberal Democrats were on 17% and the Brexit Party was on 9%.

Kantar surveyed 1,165 people online between Nov. 7 and Nov. 11, before the Brexit Party announced it would not stand in seats held by Conservative members of parliament.

HARTLEPOOL, England (AP) — In Hartlepool, a tough, proud English port town whipped by bitter North Sea winds, people have long felt ignored by politicians in far-off London. But not anymore.

Political parties in Britain’s Brexit-dominated December election are battling fiercely to win Hartlepool and places like it: working-class former industrial towns with voters who could hold the key to the prime minister’s office at 10 Downing Street.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil rose further above $62 a barrel on Tuesday, supported by hopes that U.S. President Donald Trump may signal progress on trade talks with China and lower inventories at a U.S. oil hub.

Concern about slower economic growth and oil demand due to the fallout from the 16-month U.S.-China trade dispute sent prices lower on Monday. Trump gives a speech later on Tuesday and investors are keen for an update on the talks.

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s opposition Labour Party said on Tuesday it was subject to a large-scale cyberattack on its digital platforms just weeks before a national election but it was confident no data breach occurred.

British security services have warned that Russia and other countries could use cyberattacks or divisive political messages on social media to attempt to disrupt the Dec. 12 election.

“We have experienced a sophisticated and large-scale cyber attack on Labour digital platforms,” a party spokesman said in a statement.

LONDON, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's hopes of winning a majority in the general election were given a massive boost Monday.

Nigel Farage, leader of the anti-EU Brexit Party announced at an election rally in northeast England that the party will not contest more than 300 Conservative seats in the December election.

Farage had earlier indicated the party would contest almost all of the 650 parliamentary seats, a move that could have harmed the Conservatives prospects of winning an outright majority next month.

LONDON (AP) — Facebook is opening up a war room to quickly respond to election hoaxes. Twitter is banning political ads. Google plans to crack down on bogus videos on YouTube.

Social media platforms say they are mounting a vigorous campaign against misinformation in the lead up to next month’s general election in the United Kingdom. But digital misinformation experts believe British voters remain vulnerable to the same type of misleading ads and phony claims that played a role in the vote to leave the European Union three years ago.

LONDON (Reuters) - British finance minister Sajid Javid said on Sunday the opposition Labour Party’s “reckless” spending plans would trigger an economic crisis within months if it won the Dec. 12 election, citing a contested dossier published by his Conservative Party.

Labour strongly dismissed the report, which said it would increase spending by 1.2 trillion pounds ($1.5 trillion) over the next five years, calling it fake news.

LONDON, Nov 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Moody’s on Friday downgraded the outlook for Britain’s debt, citing mounting policy challenges amid the Brexit debate.

The agency cut the outlook to negative from stable but kept the debt at the investment grade Aa2.

The ratings agency Fitch had similarly put Britain on “negative watch” in February.

Pointing to “paralysis that has characterized the Brexit-era policymaking process,” Moody’s said London has “struggled to cope with the magnitude of policy challenges that they currently face.”

LONDON, Nov 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — All 39 bodies found in a refrigerated truck outside London last month have now been identified as citizens of Vietnam, British police and Vietnamese officials said.

The Vietnamese embassy in London said it was “in deep sorrow” over the confirmation that the 31 men and eight women discovered dead in the back of a truck on Oct 23 were from the southeast Asian country.

“Once again, we would like to convey our profound condolences and sympathy to the bereaved families,” it said in a statement.