Author: LoveWorld UK

La Liga on Sunday released a statement saying Lionel Messi’s Barcelona contract was still valid, days after his shock announcement that he wants to leave the club and hours after he failed to attend a pre-season medical. Messi’s failure to show for his medical underlined the 33-year-old’s determination to leave the club he has been with throughout his career. The six-times world player of the year insists he has a clause in his contract that allows him to leave on a free transfer — a claim disputed by Barcelona and now by La Liga. The ruling body said the only…

British finance minister Rishi Sunak is considering a sweeping set of tax increases to help fix the huge hole in the public finances left by the coronavirus pandemic, two newspapers said. Tax hikes suggested by Treasury officials could raise an extra 20-30 billion pounds a year, the Telegraph and the Sunday Times reported, and some of them could be announced in an autumn budget statement by Sunak. However, officials working for Prime Minister Boris Johnson are fiercely opposed to a major tax raid on wealthier voters and want to consider spending cuts instead, the Telegraph said. Britain’s public debt has…

British finance minister Rishi Sunak urged diners on Monday to keep going out to eat as a popular government scheme offering half-price food in restaurants this month drew to a close. The “Eat out to Help Out” initiative was designed to boost a hospitality sector that has been especially hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic. It offered 50% off the price of meals on the first three days of the week at participating restaurants, up to a maximum of 10 pounds ($13) – with the government making up the difference. So popular has it been that more than 64 million…

Winning the Premier League has not quelled Liverpool’s hunger for silverware and the Reds will continue to push for trophies in the new season, captain Jordan Henderson has said. Liverpool ended their 30-year wait for a top-flight title last season, finishing 18 points clear of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City. Henderson, who made 30 appearances in the league before being sidelined by a knee injury, has challenged his team mates to continue improving. “We need to go again, to be better, to keep that desire, that hunger and that competitiveness as we’ve shown over the last few years,” the England midfielder…

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the nation’s longest serving premier, said on Friday plans to resign, citing a worsening health problem. Here are the reactions of some people on the streets of Tokyo. NAOHITO KOJIMA, 55, BROKERAGE EMPLOYEE “I think he worked hard. As head of the ruling party, he worked hard on Abenomics for eight years. There were various problems, but if someone else had been leader, it’s questionable whether they could have maintained a stable government for as long as he did. “He had various diplomatic negotiations overseas and there were pros and cons, but…

One thing than emerged last week from the Democrats’ dark and stilted virtual convention was that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris are unwilling to run against President Trump’s actual record on the economy. Lacking any plan of their own to incentivize private sector growth, they attempted to invent two economic strawmen they can run against. The first is that the COVID downturn was the president’s fault, and the second — even more outrageously — is that he didn’t create more than three years of historic labor market prosperity, but “inherited” it from his predecessor President Barack Obama. I was proud to see President…

Britain’s government will urge people to return to offices and other workplaces where it is safe to do so to help the economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, transport minister Grant Shapps said on Friday. “Our central message is pretty straightforward: we are saying to people it is now safe to return to work,” he told LBC radio. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will launch a campaign extolling the virtues of returning to the office and providing reassurance that it is a safe place, while a new online tool will help people avoid the most crowded trains and buses, a report…

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Japan’s longest serving premier, is set to resign due to worsening health, ending a stint at the helm of the world’s third-biggest economy during which he sought to revive growth, bolster defence and boost its global profile. The resignation is a done deal,” said a source close to a senior official in Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Domestic media also reported that Abe had decided to resign. Abe was scheduled to hold a news conference at 5 p.m. (0800 GMT). Abe has battled the disease ulcerative colitis for years and two recent hospital visits within a…

British aero-engine maker Rolls-Royce (RR.L) said it would sell assets to try to raise at least 2 billion pounds ($2.6 billion) as it battles to shore up a balance sheet ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic and slump in travel. Rolls-Royce plunged to a record loss before tax of 5.4 billion pounds ($7.14 billion) in the first half of 2020 and, compounding its woes, finance chief Stephen Daintith resigned, although said he would stay for a transition period. The company said it would continue to look at options to bolster its finances even after asset sales. But asked about a possible…

As many automakers bet on sedans and SUVs in the switch to electric vehicles (EV), Japan’s Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267.T) has decided smaller is better for its first-ever all-battery car. The Honda e, released in Europe earlier this month, is a compact model meant solely for city driving. That contrasts with Tesla Inc (TSLA.O), whose Model 3 sedan dominates the battery EV market, and others such as Audi AG (NSUG.DE) and Hyundai Motor Co (TSLA.O) that have focused on SUVs with long driving ranges. High battery costs have kept EVs at the premium end of the car market, and…