2022年1月19日星期三

Wednesday Briefing: British PM Johnson faces growing pressure to resign

Wednesday, January 19, 2022

by Linda Noakes

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Here's what you need to know.

Boris Johnson faces a 'pork pie' plot to oust him, airlines scramble to rejig their schedules on 5G worries, and Sony is up against deep-pocketed rivals in a war over the future of gaming

Today's biggest stories

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures during a visit to Finchley Memorial Hospital in London, January 18, 2022

WORLD

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was fighting to shore up his premiership amid a revolt by his own lawmakers who are angry over a series of lockdown parties in Downing Street. The latest attempt to remove him was cast as the 'pork pie plot' because one alleged rebel lawmaker was from Melton, the home of the Melton Mowbray pork pie. Pork pie is also London slang for a lie. Here's how Johnson could be ousted.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Kyiv in a whistle-stop diplomatic push to defuse tensions with Moscow over Ukraine, warning that Russia could launch a new attack at "very short notice".

Two New Zealand navy vessels will arrive in Tonga on Friday carrying critical water supplies for the Pacific island nation reeling from a volcanic eruption and tsunami and largely cut off from the outside world. Hundreds of homes in Tonga's smaller outer islands have been destroyed.

Australia threw out an invitation to backpackers, seeking reinforcements for a workforce crippled by an Omicron COVID-19 outbreak as the country's health system creaks under the pandemic's strain with more deaths predicted in weeks ahead. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said his government was waiving the visa application fee for any backpacker or student who arrives within the next 12 weeks, and encouraged them to seek work as they tour the country.

Hong Kong kung fu master and film producer Checkley Sin Kwok Lam said he intended to run in the city's leadership race, a surprise move that comes as incumbent leader Carrie Lam has yet to confirm whether she will run for a second term.

An American Airlines plane flies past a cell phone tower as it approaches John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California, January 18, 2022

U.S.

Major international airlines rushed to rejig or cancel flights to the United States ahead of a 5G wireless rollout tomorrow that has triggered safety concerns, despite two wireless carriers saying they will delay parts of the deployment.

The latest conservative attack on a major campaign finance law goes before the U.S. Supreme Court today in Senator Ted Cruz's bid to undo a provision limiting the amount of money candidates can be reimbursed for personal loans to their own campaigns - a cap proponents call an anti-corruption measure.

New York Attorney General Letitia James said that former President Donald J. Trump's family organization used "fraudulent or misleading" asset valuations to obtain economic benefits, including loans, insurance coverage, and tax deductions. James also took legal action to compel Trump and his children Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump to appear for sworn testimony.

The congressional committee probing the attack on the Capitol issued subpoenas to three lawyers who joined Trump's unsuccessful attempt to overturn his election defeat: Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis.

Texas election officials have rejected hundreds of mail-in ballot applications, abiding by a new Republican-backed law just weeks before a March 1 primary kicks off this year's U.S. election cycle.

BUSINESS

China is drafting nationwide rules to make it easier for property developers to access funds from sales still held in escrow accounts in its latest move to ease a severe cash crunch in the sector. China Evergrande Group, which was once China's top-selling developer, is now the world's most indebted property firm with liabilities of $300 billion.

Inflation in Britain rose faster than expected to a near 30-year high in December, intensifying a squeeze on living standards and putting pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates again.

Sony, perched atop the gaming sector, is facing a fresh challenge from cash-rich rivals betting on a next-generation online video game boom as the Japanese conglomerate eyes expansion on multiple fronts, including electric cars. Microsoft took a major step to position itself for the 'metaverse' with a $69 billion deal for 'Call of Duty' developer Activision Blizzard.

Tesla shareholders urged a judge to find Elon Musk coerced the company's board into a 2016 deal for SolarCity and asked that the chief executive be ordered to pay the electric vehicle company one of the largest judgments ever of $13 billion.

Strong demand for its jewelry and watches in the Americas and Europe in a post-pandemic rebound helped quarterly sales at Cartier owner Richemont rise by nearly a third. Meanwhile, luxury brand Burberry said annual profit would beat market expectations as its full-price sales accelerated in the third quarter.

Quote of the day

"Few if any of us can honestly say that we pay our fair share in taxes"

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Video of the day

Face masks can make you more attractive

Images of men wearing a blue surgical face mask were perceived as being the most appealing, according to research from Cardiff University.

And finally…

After rain burst, California salmon reclaim old spawning grounds

The heavy rains that soaked California late last year were welcomed by farmers, urban planners - and endangered coho salmon.

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