Latest news with #ChrisMason
The National
02-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
I wasn't allowed to ask Keir Starmer a question. Here's what I would
I was there for The National, and spent two hours in a high-vis vest patiently waiting for my turn to grill the Prime Minister on Gaza. I knew it was a topic others were unlikely to focus on, and The National have been unrelenting in our coverage shining light on the ongoing genocide in Palestine. We were told to arrive at BAE Systems shipyard in Govan at 9am, and were handed visitor passes and high-vis vests before we were taken into the sprawling complex. I passed hundreds of workers in hard-hats waiting outside of a huge warehouse, waiting for Starmer to arrive, while we were escorted to a meeting room to wait to be taken to the press conference and speech. READ MORE: Pro-independence party leaders urged to stand against genocide in Gaza Just before 10am, we were taken into a warehouse where workers were standing, in typical Labour press conference style, in a circle around a lectern that read 'securing Britain's future'. While waited, press officers repeatedly asked us to move out of the way from two TV screens behind us, that would act as an autocue for the PM when he finally spoke. After 10 minutes where Starmer told how he wanted to turn the UK into a 'battle-ready armour-clad nation' and promised billions for nuclear weapons, we finally got to the press questions. First, the UK-wide press got their shot - Chris Mason from the BBC led the questions, then Sky News' Beth Rigby, the only person who asked about Gaza. (Image: PA) She asked if Starmer thought there was any 'concrete action' the UK could take. 'The situation is intolerable in Gaza and getting worse by the day, which is why we are working with allies to be clear in saying it's intolerable. 'Be absolutely clear of the need for a ceasefire, be absolutely clear that humanitarian aid can get in at speed and at volume because it is not getting in at the moment, causing absolute devastation and of course to continue our work to secure the release of hostages who have been held for a very, very long time. 'We're working closely with allies on that and will continue to do so.' ITV, GB News and the I paper asked questions next, a slightly befuddled Starmer then told the room: 'Now I'm going to Scotland.' READ MORE: UK plans for 'fighter jets carrying nuclear bombs' slammed He seemed to have forgotten he was standing in a Govan shipyard, but took questions from BBC Scotland, STV, the Scottish Sun and the Courier. The Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election were top of the agenda, with Starmer insisting Labour were the only party who could beat the SNP, ignoring the Farage-elephant in the room. And that was it, we were done. The full Scottish press lobby had turned out and only two newspapers were allowed a question. I asked a press officer if there would be a huddle with the PM, as there usually is with politicians and print hacks. 'No, that's it,' I was told. (Image: NQ staff) I was going to ask Starmer about his comments on LBC back in 2013, when he said Israel had the 'right' to withhold water and power from Palestinians. Now that Palestinians are starving to death, and being shot and attacked while trying to reach humanitarian aid and food, I wanted to know if he had any remorse for those words. I wanted to ask if he, as a former humanitarian lawyer, felt disgusted by what was happening in Gaza. I wanted to ask him why his Government wasn't taking any action after more than 50,000 children had been injured or killed in Gaza since October 2023. But, I didn't get the chance.
BBC News
29-05-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Holy Island team 'worked until midnight' to recover causeway car
A worker who helped to recover a submerged car near the Holy Island causeway said he had never seen one swept that far out Lifeboat Station said it was called to reports of a car stranded at about 14:45 BST on Monday and found it submerged 50m (164ft) away from the Mason, who helped recover the car on Tuesday evening, said the team worked until midnight to retrieve it, adding: "It just shows you how much the tide can pick a car up and shift it."The owners were located by Northumbria Police safe on the island shortly after the report was received, the lifeboat station said. "That was the first of that kind of distance," Mr Mason said. 'A lot of weight' Although the lifeboat station said the car was 50m (164ft) from the causeway, Mr Mason said it was actually about half a mile said that by the time they had the car on the back of the truck, the tide had turned and started coming back in again."It took a long time to tow it that kind of distance," he Mason said the team arrived at the causeway before the tide went out in the early evening."It was midnight when we got it loaded on the back of the truck," he said. "Of course with all of the water in it and all the sand it was a lot of weight."The safe crossing times for the causeway are published on the council's website, but Mr Mason said people often misread them."It's always going to happen," he said."You get people not wanting to get trapped on the island trying to get off and the ones who don't realise just how high the tide comes." Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Race to keep furnaces burning at British Steel plant
Officials are working to deliver essential raw materials to British Steel's Scunthorpe plant, the government has said, as it races to keep its blast furnaces burning. An emergency law rushed through Parliament on Saturday gave the government control of the Lincolnshire site to prevent its Chinese owner shutting it down. The government said work was under way on Monday to obtain the coking coal and iron ore that power the plant's two furnaces - materials it previously said owners Jingye had been selling off. "My team are already hard at work on the ground to keep jobs going and furnaces burning," the business secretary said in a statement. Dozens of businesses including steel producers Tata and Rainham Steel have offered help and to supply their raw materials, the government added. How quickly materials get to the site is important because blast furnaces can sustain permanent damage if their temperature drops too low. Restarting a furnace that has shut down is also a costly and complex process. Why did the government take control of British Steel? Chris Mason: British Steel law rushed through Parliament but it is just a stop gap Reynolds refuses to say if steel furnaces can keep running Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: "When I said steelmaking has a future in the UK, I meant it. "That's why we've passed these new powers to save British Steel at Scunthorpe and that's why my team are already hard at work on the ground to keep jobs going and furnaces burning." Civil servants and British Steel officials are trying to secure one such shipment of materials which is sat 30 miles east of Scunthorpe at Immingham Docks. It comes after Reynolds refused to confirm on Sunday whether the government could obtain the materials in time. "I'm not going to get into that," he told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, but said the takeover gave the "opportunity" to obtain the materials needed. The Scunthorpe plant employs 2,700 people and is the last site in the UK that can produce virgin steel. Without the plant, the UK would be the only member of the G7 group of leading economies without the ability to make virgin steel - which the government believes is a risk to the country's economic security. The government fast-tracked legislation which gave it control of the plant after talks with Jingye to save it appeared to break down. The company said in March it was losing £700,000 a day at the site, which it called "no longer financially sustainable," and began a consultation on its closure. Reynolds told the BBC it "became clear" during negotiations that Jingye was intent on closing down the blast furnaces no matter the financial support offered. The government said Jingye refused an offer of some £500m and demanded more than twice as much money, with few guarantees it would keep the plant open. "It might not be sabotage, it might be neglect," Reynolds said of the company's actions. The Conservatives have criticised the government for not stepping in sooner to save the plant. Tory shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said the party had supported the emergency law because "it's the least worst option on the table". Can UK afford to save British Steel – and can it afford not to? British Steel
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Race to keep furnaces burning at British Steel plant
Officials are working to deliver essential raw materials to British Steel's Scunthorpe plant, the government has said, as it races to keep its blast furnaces burning. An emergency law rushed through Parliament on Saturday gave the government control of the Lincolnshire site to prevent its Chinese owner shutting it down. The government said work was under way on Monday to obtain the coking coal and iron ore that power the plant's two furnaces - materials it previously said owners Jingye had been selling off. "My team are already hard at work on the ground to keep jobs going and furnaces burning," the business secretary said in a statement. Dozens of businesses including steel producers Tata and Rainham Steel have offered help and to supply their raw materials, the government added. How quickly materials get to the site is important because blast furnaces can sustain permanent damage if their temperature drops too low. Restarting a furnace that has shut down is also a costly and complex process. Why did the government take control of British Steel? Chris Mason: British Steel law rushed through Parliament but it is just a stop gap Reynolds refuses to say if steel furnaces can keep running Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: "When I said steelmaking has a future in the UK, I meant it. "That's why we've passed these new powers to save British Steel at Scunthorpe and that's why my team are already hard at work on the ground to keep jobs going and furnaces burning." Civil servants and British Steel officials are trying to secure one such shipment of materials which is sat 30 miles east of Scunthorpe at Immingham Docks. It comes after Reynolds refused to confirm on Sunday whether the government could obtain the materials in time. "I'm not going to get into that," he told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, but said the takeover gave the "opportunity" to obtain the materials needed. The Scunthorpe plant employs 2,700 people and is the last site in the UK that can produce virgin steel. Without the plant, the UK would be the only member of the G7 group of leading economies without the ability to make virgin steel - which the government believes is a risk to the country's economic security. The government fast-tracked legislation which gave it control of the plant after talks with Jingye to save it appeared to break down. The company said in March it was losing £700,000 a day at the site, which it called "no longer financially sustainable," and began a consultation on its closure. Reynolds told the BBC it "became clear" during negotiations that Jingye was intent on closing down the blast furnaces no matter the financial support offered. The government said Jingye refused an offer of some £500m and demanded more than twice as much money, with few guarantees it would keep the plant open. "It might not be sabotage, it might be neglect," Reynolds said of the company's actions. The Conservatives have criticised the government for not stepping in sooner to save the plant. Tory shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said the party had supported the emergency law because "it's the least worst option on the table". Can UK afford to save British Steel – and can it afford not to? British Steel
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
A messy global trade war looks inevitable
The impact of these tariffs on the world economy will be huge. They can be measured by the lines on a chart of US tariff revenue jumping to levels not seen in a century - beyond those seen during the high protectionism of the 1930s. Or in the coming stock market bloodbath, especially in Asia. But the true measure of these changes will be significant changes to long-standing global avenues of trade. Will Europe, including Germany and the UK continue to send millions of luxury cars to the US? Will Britain and Ireland be able to export billions in pharmaceuticals with these levels of tariffs? Will Vietnam and Cambodia be able to trade clothes and electronics with the US, after being accused of essentially being a front for China? At its heart this is a universal tariff of 10% on all imports into the US for everyone, coming in on Friday night. On top of that dozens of "worst offenders" will be charged reciprocally for having trade surpluses. The tariffs on Asian nations are truly remarkable. They will break the business models of thousands of companies, factories, and possibly entire nations. Some of the supply chains created by the world's biggest companies will be broken instantly. The inevitable impact will surely be to push them towards China. Live: Follow the latest reaction to the tariff announcement Trump's plan at a glance UK firms react: 'It's a huge blow' Is this just a grand negotiation? Well the US administration appears to be claiming the tariff revenue for planned tax cuts. The scope for quick adjustment seems limited. As one White House official said bluntly: "This is not a negotiation, it's a national emergency". The aim of the policy is to get the US trade deficit "back to zero". This is a total rewiring of the world economy. But shifting factories will take years. Tariffs at this scale on East Asia especially at 30 or 40% will hike prices of clothes, toys and electronics much more quickly. The question now is how the rest of the world responds. There are opportunities for some consumers in Europe to benefit from cheaper diverted trade in clothes and electronics. Outside of an inward-looking number one world economy, the rest of the big economies may choose to integrate trade more closely. As Tesla's slumping sales may illustrate, only part of this story is about the response of governments. These days consumers can retaliate too. It may be a new sort of social media trade war. Does Europe want to continue buying the consumer brands created in the US, and loved across the world? Does the world continue to accept a monopoly in the provision of social media services by big US tech? Do American consumers want to pay the spike in prices for basic staple goods? Will US authorities raise interest rates to combat the inevitable spike in inflation? A messy global trade war looks inevitable. Chris Mason: UK relief but not delight at Trump tariffs How Trump's tariffs might affect the UK and your money Trump's tariffs are a longtime goal fulfilled - and his biggest gamble yet
