UK British News Megathread - aka CWCissey's news thread

  • 🔧 Issue with uploading attachments resolved.
  • Want to keep track of this thread?
    Accounts can bookmark posts, watch threads for updates, and jump back to where you stopped reading.
    Create account
https://news.sky.com/story/row-over-new-greggs-vegan-sausage-rolls-heats-up-11597679 (https://archive.ph/5Ba6o)

A heated row has broken out over a move by Britain's largest bakery chain to launch a vegan sausage roll.

The pastry, which is filled with a meat substitute and encased in 96 pastry layers, is available in 950 Greggs stores across the country.

It was promised after 20,000 people signed a petition calling for the snack to be launched to accommodate plant-based diet eaters.


But the vegan sausage roll's launch has been greeted by a mixed reaction: Some consumers welcomed it, while others voiced their objections.

View image on Twitter


spread happiness@p4leandp1nk
https://twitter.com/p4leandp1nk/status/1080767496569974785

#VEGANsausageroll thanks Greggs
2764.png


7
10:07 AM - Jan 3, 2019
See spread happiness's other Tweets
Twitter Ads info and privacy


Cook and food poverty campaigner Jack Monroe declared she was "frantically googling to see what time my nearest opens tomorrow morning because I will be outside".

While TV writer Brydie Lee-Kennedy called herself "very pro the Greggs vegan sausage roll because anything that wrenches veganism back from the 'clean eating' wellness folk is a good thing".

One Twitter user wrote that finding vegan sausage rolls missing from a store in Corby had "ruined my morning".

Another said: "My son is allergic to dairy products which means I can't really go to Greggs when he's with me. Now I can. Thank you vegans."

View image on Twitter


pg often@pgofton
https://twitter.com/pgofton/status/1080772793774624768

The hype got me like #Greggs #Veganuary

42
10:28 AM - Jan 3, 2019
See pg often's other Tweets
Twitter Ads info and privacy


TV presenter Piers Morgan led the charge of those outraged by the new roll.

"Nobody was waiting for a vegan bloody sausage, you PC-ravaged clowns," he wrote on Twitter.

Mr Morgan later complained at receiving "howling abuse from vegans", adding: "I get it, you're all hangry. I would be too if I only ate plants and gruel."

Another Twitter user said: "I really struggle to believe that 20,000 vegans are that desperate to eat in a Greggs."

"You don't paint a mustach (sic) on the Mona Lisa and you don't mess with the perfect sausage roll," one quipped.

Journalist Nooruddean Choudry suggested Greggs introduce a halal steak bake to "crank the fume levels right up to 11".

The bakery chain told concerned customers that "change is good" and that there would "always be a classic sausage roll".

It comes on the same day McDonald's launched its first vegetarian "Happy Meal", designed for children.

The new dish comes with a "veggie wrap", instead of the usual chicken or beef option.
Click to expand...

It should be noted that Piers Morgan and Greggs share the same PR firm, so I'm thinking this is some serious faux outrage and South Park KKK gambiting here.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Click to expand...
It's official, Bongland can no longer afford the rudimentary elements of civilization and has begun to devolve.

Campaigners plead with councillors to rethink plans to close twenty-five Birmingham libraries​

Source / Archive
Campaigners are pleading with councillors in Birmingham to rethink plans to close 25 of the city's libraries as part of plans to balance its books.

The authority plans to cut services down to just one library for each of the 10 parliamentary constituencies in the city.

It's part of council plans to balance the books to save £300m over the next three years.

In an interview with ITV News Central, school librarian Caroline Chilton spoke about Kings Heath library: "It's massively important. When our students reach us at 11, the majority of children who come in are avid readers, say Kings Heath library was somewhere they grew up coming to."

When asked about the impact of a potential closure, Ms Chilton added: "Just devastated for the community, for all of us."

There are currently 35 libraries in the city, plus the flagship Library of Birmingham located in Centenary Square.

Under the proposals, 25 would close, with the remaining 11 becoming joint library and neighbourhood advice hubs.

Kathy Hopkin from Save Birmingham said: "The Save Birmingham campaign is really encouraging people to register their assets as assets of community of value.

"That means if the council needs to sell those assets it puts a moratorium of 6 months of them being able to sell the building.

"Really gives the community a chance to talk to us to talk about community led options, and get together a business plan and looking running those services themselves."

Birmingham City Council says it is being open and transparent, but has declined make a comment today.

It's long-awaited budget proposal, which has already been delayed, will be revealed on Monday.

It's suspected to be the largest cut any local authority has ever made, with the following cuts anticipated:

£57m to disappear the children and families department.

£29m to be lost from the operations department which looks after things like roads and bins.

£15m to be cut from the council's own management - which accounts to a 50% cut - meaning hundreds of job losses.

Residents can also expect a possible council tax increase of 10% this year and the year after.

Full details will be unveiled on Monday.
Click to expand...
 

Trans women in the Armed Forces can live in female-only accommodation ​

Archive
Concerns have been raised over the official government guidance that puts ‘vulnerable’ female personnel at risk of ‘predatory men’

Trans military personnel born as men can live in female-only accommodation, an official government document states.
Concerns have been raised to The Telegraph that the policy risks diluting “safe spaces” for women.

The document, written as part of the JSP 889, the official guidance regarding the recruitment and management of transgender personnel in the Armed Forces, states that the “determining issue” for allocating Single Living Accommodation (SLA), where a single, or unaccompanied person lives, is the “affirmed gender” of the transgender person.

It states that “as soon as the transition process begins the person should be provided with accommodation that is appropriate to their affirmed gender”.

“From the date of transition, the person should also have use of the toilet and changing room facilities appropriate to their affirmed gender. Under no circumstances should a transgender person be expected, after transitioning, to use the facilities of their assigned gender,” it reads.
Sarah Atherton, the MP who oversaw the 2021 report which examined the levels of sexual assault and harassment in the military, said the policy felt like a “knee-jerk reaction”.

“They haven’t thought this through properly,” she said.

“Having done extensive work around women in the Armed Forces, I am fully aware of the extent of sexual abuse that has gone on and continues to go on. Women need to have secure accommodation where they feel safe.”

‘Poor sexual behaviour and misuse of power’​

A source close to Grant Shapps said the Defence Secretary would be looking at the policy as part of his wide-ranging review into the military’s diversity and inclusion policies after concerns were raised that the Armed Forces were becoming too “woke”.

Defence sources stressed that the majority of SLA for serving personnel consisted of “lockable” rooms with en-suites and people of the opposite sex having to share washing facilities was “rare”. They added that in situations where this occurred, they were in the “minority” and in “old” accommodation blocks, with most accommodation now existing as “single rooms”.

However, serving personnel speaking on condition of anonymity said this was often not the case for the most junior ranks.
One woman serving with the RAF told The Telegraph there were female-only blocks for trainees in the Air Force and they would be concerned if someone affirmed as female was placed in the block.

“Trainees are considered our most vulnerable as they are the youngest, most inexperienced,” she said. “It’s fair to say that people who are in the early stages of their career are potentially being put at risk by not having female-only spaces protected.”

Commenting on the policy, which was published in August last year, Ms Atherton added that she had amassed evidence that found “women need safe spaces because of poor sexual behaviour and misuse of power in the military”.

‘You can tell who are predators’​

“This policy is unclear and allows predatory men to misuse the policy to continue this abhorrent behaviour.”

One woman serving with the RAF recently returned from a secondment overseas where she shared washing facilities with men and women.
“Military bases at home are compromised if female spaces are not managed appropriately,” she said.

It is understood that any member of the Armed Forces who feels “uncomfortable” sharing with another person in the military “is able to raise their concerns” which will in turn be considered by the chain of command.

However, one serving member of personnel told The Telegraph that when she previously raised concerns with her chain of command regarding a transgender member of the forces who joined her squadron, her concerns were dismissed.

Her manager told her not to worry because “it’s not an issue as you can tell who are predators”.
Click to expand...
 
Lots of Suddenly Died slebs this month. Cause of death is never stated these days.

Robin Windsor: Strictly Come Dancing professional dies aged 44

Robin Windsor, a former professional on Strictly Come Dancing, has died at the age of 44.

He appeared on the BBC One show from 2010 until 2013, partnering with Patsy Kensit, Anita Dobson, Lisa Riley and Deborah Meaden.

Strictly Come Dancing co-host Claudia Winkleman described the news of Windsor's death as "heartbreaking".

Presenter Tess Daly said it was "such terribly sad news", adding that Windsor was "gone too young".

"Your infectious personality, energy and talent will be deeply missed by all who knew you," Daly said. "My heart goes out to your loved ones at this time."

The cause of Windsor's death has not been confirmed.

Good Morning Britain presenter Susanna Reid became emotional as she announced Windsor's death on Tuesday.
Click to expand...

Ewen MacIntosh: The Office actor dies aged 50

Actor and comedian Ewen MacIntosh, best known for his role as "Big Keith" in The Office, has died aged 50.

The character, Keith Bishop, was a scotch egg-loving accountant who had a monotone answerphone message and would have rather had a career as a DJ.

MacIntosh also appeared in other British comedies including Miranda and Little Britain.

The show's creator Ricky Gervais led the tributes on X/Twitter, describing MacIntosh as "an absolute original".

Bishop, who worked at fictional paper company Wernham Hogg, will be remembered for scenes such as when he dressed up as Ali G for Red Nose Day.

Big Keith particularly shone in a memorable scene from season two's episode Appraisals.

In his appraisal, office manager David Brent, played by Ricky Gervais, makes him list his strengths and weaknesses.

Chewing gum and looking bored, Keith responds "don't know" to all answers and lists eczema as his weakness and accounts as his strength.

MacIntosh appeared in both series of The Office, which was first broadcast in 2001.

Stephen Merchant, the co-writer and co-director of the BBC comedy series, told the BBC Radio 4's PM that Ewen was so funny the team "started writing more and more scenes with him in and eventually be became our beloved characters".

He added that with his "delivery and timing", MacIntosh was able to "steal scenes from Ricky Gervais or Martin Freeman which is testament to him".
Click to expand...
 
Why the Hell are trans-identifying males being allowed in the Army in the first place? Either they haven't had surgery in which case you're putting an intact male into women's private spaces or they have in which case they're no less a danger to the women but now also are a walking medical special requirements. And either way, it's a serious mental disorder.
 
Overly Serious said:
Why the Hell are trans-identifying males being allowed in the Army in the first place? Either they haven't had surgery in which case you're putting an intact male into women's private spaces or they have in which case they're no less a danger to the women but now also are a walking medical special requirements. And either way, it's a serious mental disorder.
Click to expand...
I think you know the answer to this. Money.
If trans are not allowed into the Army, then thanks to the wonders of solicitors, the Law and Human Rights, all the poor potential tranny squaddies can sue because they were rejected from a job on the grounds of sexual discrimination and got their feelings hurt.
As I've said on various other threads now, the law has nothing to do with justice, common sense or fairness.
In this respect the Army is at least following some sort of common sense in the fact that if they did refuse on your ( sensible ) criteria then they would expose themselves to massive financial liabilities. I wonder who would be expected to meet them ? The tax payer of course.
It would potentially be disasterous, because if the government spends the Army budget on tranny employment tribunials, there won't be any money left for expensive missiles that fail on launch.....


Rusty Metal Skull Gun said:
I'm coming round to the idea that the entire apparatus of the British state just does whatever the fuck it wants to, and the Government is just for show.
Click to expand...
The British State = Mandarins ( Civil Service )
As we all know, if you're a cabinet minister you can't shout at the precious little darlings for not doing their job, or you'll get fired.
Just ask Dominic Raab, et al.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Rusty Metal Skull Gun said:
I'm coming round to the idea that the entire apparatus of the British state just does whatever the fuck it wants to, and the Government is just for show.
Click to expand...
Have you not seen Yes, Minister and its follow-up, Yes, Prime Minister? The main character, Jim Hacker, spends at least 75% of his time trying to convince the bureaucrats who are in theory subservient to him to actually do what he wants instead of what the civil service wants. Sometimes he wins, sometimes he loses. Its only labeled as a comedy because the producers know the BBC never would have greenlit it if it was truthfully called a documentary.
 
Eekum Bokum said:
Ok can someone in the know explain what the fuck happened in parliament yesterday?
Click to expand...
The SNP tabled a motion calling for the government to press for a ceasefire in israel and gaza. The tories and labour both submitted amendments to the motion, with labour submitting an amendment that was a repeat of a motion they previously lost to a labour MP rebellion. Parliamentary convention is that the government's amendment is selected over any others and put to vote; any other amendments are only considered if the vote for that amendment fails. Instead of selecting the government amendment, the speaker acted on an apparent agreement with the labour party leadership to bring the labour amendment alongside government amendment and have the house debate and vote on both of them at the same time, which might have been intended to force the rebel labour MPs to choose between the labour amendment and the tory amendment, with the idea being to force them to vote for the position they had previously rejected.

tl;dr Starmer appears to have colluded with the speaker of the house to break parliamentary rules on amendments to motions, in order to force rebel labour MPs into line and gain some sort of political advantage over the tories. Everyone is now pissed off and the SNP is making hay. The Speaker is facing demands to resign. Starmer might also have precipitated a labour leadership challenge. We'll see.
 
teriyakiburns said:
The SNP tabled a motion calling for the government to press for a ceasefire in israel and gaza. The tories and labour both submitted amendments to the motion, with labour submitting an amendment that was a repeat of a motion they previously lost to a labour MP rebellion. Parliamentary convention is that the government's amendment is selected over any others and put to vote; any other amendments are only considered if the vote for that amendment fails. Instead of selecting the government amendment, the speaker acted on an apparent agreement with the labour party leadership to bring the labour amendment alongside government amendment and have the house debate and vote on both of them at the same time, which might have been intended to force the rebel labour MPs to choose between the labour amendment and the tory amendment, with the idea being to force them to vote for the position they had previously rejected.

tl;dr Starmer appears to have colluded with the speaker of the house to break parliamentary rules on amendments to motions, in order to force rebel labour MPs into line and gain some sort of political advantage over the tories. Everyone is now pissed off and the SNP is making hay. The Speaker is facing demands to resign. Starmer might also have precipitated a labour leadership challenge. We'll see.
Click to expand...
Wait, did Kier Starmer actually fucking step onto a rake in his haste to virtue signal?

Hilarious. Couldn't have happened to a nicer person.
 
Kane Lives said:
Wait, did Kier Starmer actually fucking step onto a rake in his haste to virtue signal?
Click to expand...
Starmer is denying he threatened to drop labour's support for the speaker unless he brought the amendment, so it's pretty obvious he did it.
 
WWII bomb found in Plymouth, being handled.


By Janine Jansen & Alex Green
BBC News

Hundreds of people have been forced out of their homes in Plymouth after a suspected unexploded World War Two bomb was found in a back garden.
A 200m (656ft) cordon was put in place - and a major incident declared - after the device was found at the property on St Michael Avenue, Keyham.
Devon and Cornwall Police said on Tuesday evening the cordon was likely to be in place for about 36 hours.
Ch Supt Matt Longman said the priority was to keep people safe.
"The first thing to appreciate is just how much impact this has had on the people of Plymouth, particularly in this area," he said.
"There's a huge amount of gratitude from us for the patience people have shown, just working with us, and we ask people to continue that throughout the evening.
"Right now, I just think I want the public to know we've got all the right people here, it takes time to get the expertise needed to deal with a situation like this.
"We're here, we're trying to work through how we're going to deal with this, but the number one has got to be keeping people safe."

Residents have been offered shelter at North Prospect Library and in local community centres.
They have been advised to stay with friends or family nearby until the device has been dealt with.
The Royal Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal team is on the scene and the public has been asked to avoid the area where possible.
Local resident Christine Mitchell, who lives on Parkside, said she was alerted to the incident by police who were knocking on doors in the area.

She said: "[I'm] very worried because I've left a cat at home... so I just want to go home to him."
Ms Mitchell said the experience had been "very shocking" and "very scary".
She added: "Being left in the dark, you don't know what to think. I'm praying that, you know, they'll be able to dismantle it and everyone will be safe."
Maureen Brock, 90, who also lives nearby, said she had been advised to leave her property by police, but said she did not want to go.

She said: "They advised me to go, but my daughter doesn't come in until later on, and I don't feel as though I want to go anywhere - I don't go out, you see."
Ms Brock said she had lived in her home on Royal Navy Avenue since 1972, and said she was not surprised when she found out the suspected device had been found.
She said: "Well I'm not surprised really, not around here... they're always finding something."
There were more than 50 bombing attacks on the city by German aircraft during the war between 1940 and 1944.
Numerous unexploded bombs have since been discovered and detonated, including near the city's seafront in 2011.
Click to expand...

Live updates here https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-england-devon-68354617

Local area info here


In other news they sentenced the pilot of one of the illegal boats for manslaughter by negligence in a rare first.


By Amy Walker
BBC News, South East

A migrant who piloted a boat where four passengers drowned in the English Channel has been sentenced to nine years and six months.
Ibrahima Bah was convicted of manslaughter on Monday over the deaths of the migrants who were on a dingy he steered during an attempted crossing.
The judge sentenced Bah on the basis he is "about 20 years old".
Bah, whose exact age is in dispute, will serve two-thirds of his sentence in custody.
He will be detained in a Young Offenders Institution, until it is determined he has reached the age of 21, which is when he will be moved to adult custody.
The case is the first time a migrant who navigated an inflatable has been found responsible for harm caused to other occupants, the BBC's home and legal correspondent, Dominic Casciani, said.
The Senegalese migrant had claimed he was forced by violent smugglers to make the journey to the UK in December 2022.

Sentencing him at Canterbury Crown Court, the judge, Mr Justice Johnson, said the "primary responsibility" for the offences lay with people smugglers who had procured a "wholly unsafe and unsatisfactory" vessel.
He told Bah: "What happened is an utter tragedy for those who died and their families. This is also a tragedy for you - your dream of starting a new life in the UK is in tatters."
Bah was found guilty by the jury by a majority of 10 to two on four counts of gross negligence manslaughter, which the CPS describes as where a death is a result of a grossly negligent act or omission on the part of the defendant.
The jury also found Bah guilty of facilitating a breach of UK immigration law.
The judge said the boat was a "death trap" and that passengers were aware of the "obvious" risk but "freely and voluntarily embarked on the journey", but that Bah bore "high culpability" for the offences.
During a three-week retrial, jurors heard that Bah made the crossing in exchange for a free passage.
But Bah told the court he changed his mind about piloting the boat when he arrived at a beach and saw it was too small for the number of passengers.


Bah claimed he was assaulted by smugglers and threatened with death if he did not take on the job.
The court heard that a number of migrants had described water reaching their knees within 30 minutes of leaving the French coast.
Duncan Atkinson KC, prosecuting, said because he piloted the dingy he owed his fellow passengers a "duty of care".

​

Mr Atkinson said Bah was not trained or licensed to lead the voyage and there was insufficient safety equipment such as life jackets and no flares or radio on board.
Judge Johnson said he accepted there was a "degree of coercion falling short of duress" and that Bah had "misgivings" about the boat.
Libby Clark, a specialist prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: "He could've turned back. That's what some of the migrants wanted to do.
"But Ibrahima Bah carried on. Those aren't really the actions of somebody who's acted under duress."

​

The court heard that a crew on a British fishing boat came across the sinking boat and tried to rescue the passengers, with help from the RNLI, air ambulance and UK Border Force.
Judge Johnson said: "[The dinghy] was grossly overcrowded [and] you were travelling across the busiest shipping lane in the world, on a cold winter's night."
He said he had taken account of Bah's actions after "disaster struck" on the journey in his sentencing, including keeping the dinghy alongside the fishing boat.
In a police interview, Bah told detectives that a close friend, who was 18-years-old, was among those who had died, although his body has not been formally identified.
The judge said Bah was "one of the last people to leave the dinghy" and helped others, including his friend who had "tragically died in front of your eyes".
A total of 39 survivors were brought to shore in Dover. The exact number of migrants who drowned is unknown, as it appears at least one person's body was believed to have not been recovered.
Three of the four bodies that were recovered after the boat sank, including Bah's friend, have not been identified.
One adult male was identified as 31-year-old Ahmadi Herjatullah. from Afghanistan who was married with a daughter who was six-years-old at the time of his death.
Click to expand...
 
Rusty Metal Skull Gun said:
The interesting thing here from a legal perspective is that normally you don't owe a duty of care to accomplices in an illegal act, but apparently that doesn't apply to manslaughter: http://www.e-lawresources.co.uk/R-v-Willoughby.php
(Yeah, I know I'm a nerd.)
Click to expand...
I suppose that makes a degree of sense. I can imagine causing the death of those you are committing the crime with is a big enough issue that they want to be able to level charges for it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom