Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Johnson and Javid call for cost cuts

BORIS JOHNSON and Sajid Javid have instructed all ministries to identify potential cost savings worth up to 5 per cent each by March 2. And that means axing of projects that are not priority.

“This will allow us to refocus our efforts towards the things which matter most: strengthening our NHS; making our streets safer; and levelling up opportunity across the country,” said the memo signed by the Prime Minister and the Chancellor.


Officials have been told to scrutinise departmental budgets “line by line”, and cull all expenditures that fail to qualify under “the people’s priorities”.

“We have been elected with a clear fiscal mandate to keep control of day to day spending,” the memo said. “This means there will need to be savings made across government to free up money to invest in our priorities.”

A government source the move was about “living within our means and prioritising what we do spend on our radical agenda: levelling up the country”.

Earlier this month, the prime minister had told the Cabinet that it was “time for slaughtering of sacred cows”. Analysts believe he hinted at some pet projects initiated by his predecessors, Theresa May and David Cameron.

Though discussion of potential spending cuts is standard practice before a spending review, this time around, there seems to be a thrust on “reshaping things”.

Johnson and Javid have, in fact, asked each cabinet minister to come up with “radical options” of cost cutting.

More For You

Imran Khan

Imran Khan has been held in Adiala Jail since August 2023 in several cases. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Imran Khan may secure bail on 11 June, says party leader

FORMER prime minister Imran Khan, 72, is expected to seek bail in the Al-Qadir Trust case when the Islamabad High Court (IHC) hears petitions on 11 June to suspend the sentences handed to him and his wife Bushra Bibi.

Khan has been held in Adiala Jail since August 2023 in several cases. PTI chief Gohar Ali Khan told ARY News that “June 11 is going to be an important day for both Khan and his wife,” but he gave no further reason. The IHC had earlier adjourned the matter after the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) asked for more time to prepare its arguments.

Keep ReadingShow less
India’s Active Covid-19 Cases Exceed 6,000 as Infections Spike

Some states continue to report relatively low numbers

iStock

India’s active Covid-19 cases cross 6,000 mark as fresh infections rise

India’s total number of active COVID-19 cases has risen above 6,000, with health authorities reporting 358 new infections in the past 24 hours, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). While there were no Covid related deaths during this period, the increase in cases is prompting state-level monitoring and precautionary measures.

Current case load and recoveries

As of 8:00 a.m. on June 9, 2025, India has 6,491 active Covid-19 cases. The central health ministry confirmed that 358 fresh cases were detected in the last 24 hours, with no fatalities reported in the same timeframe.

Keep ReadingShow less
Zia-Yusuf-Getty

Yusuf, who resigned as Reform chairman last week before returning two days later, said he wanted to be 'crystal clear' on the party’s stance. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Zia Yusuf says Reform will deport all illegal immigrants

ZIA YUSUF has said that Reform UK would deport every illegal immigrant in Britain if the party came to power.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Yusuf stated, “We will deport everybody who is here in this country illegally, which is roughly about 1.2 million people.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Abdullah Yaser Abdullah Al Yazidi

The teenager was walking along Staniforth Road in the Darnall area on Wednesday when a grey Audi reportedly hit an electric bike rider before striking Abdullah. (Photo credit: South Yorkshire Police)

South Yorkshire Police

Two charged with murder after boy, 16, dies in Sheffield crash

TWO men have been charged with murder and three counts of attempted murder after the death of a 16-year-old boy in an alleged hit-and-run in Sheffield.

Zulkernain Ahmed, 20, and Amaan Ahmed, 26, both from Locke Drive, have been charged over the death of Abdullah Yaser Abdullah Al Yazidi, according to South Yorkshire Police.

Keep ReadingShow less
Greta Thunberg Condemns Israel’s Blockade of Gaza Aid Ship

Israel had vowed in advance to prevent the ship from reaching Gaza

Getty Images

Greta Thunberg intercepted by Israel on her way to Gaza, sent back

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was among a group of pro-Palestinian campaigners on board a Gaza-bound aid vessel intercepted by Israeli forces and diverted to its shores, the country’s Foreign Ministry confirmed on 9 June.

The ship, Madleen, was organised by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a group challenging Israel’s blockade of Gaza. It had departed Sicily on 1 June, carrying a dozen activists and a symbolic amount of humanitarian supplies.

Keep ReadingShow less