Author Archives: OP King

Image copyrightLEON NEAL The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has charged Barclays Bank PLC with “unlawful financial assistance” related to billions of pounds raised from Qatar in 2008. The same charges were bought against Barclays PLC in June last year. The move to charge Barclays Bank as well is significant because it holds the banking licenceContinue reading “Barclays Bank charged over Qatar loans”

Image copyrightREUTERS George Soros has pledged an extra £100,000 to a campaign to keep Britain in the EU, citing a “smear campaign” over a donation he made days earlier. The investor gave £400,000 to pro-EU Best for Britain through one of his foundations, it emerged on Thursday. Following criticism of Mr Soros, a crowdfunding page wasContinue reading “George Soros pledges extra £100,000 to pro-EU campaign”

Image copyrightFACEBOOKImage captionLiam Colgan was last seen in a bar in the Reeperbahn area of Hamburg A friend of a Scottish man who went missing during a stag do in Hamburg has said his family and friends are growing “more and more concerned”. Liam Colgan, 29, from Inverness, has not been seen since the earlyContinue reading “‘Growing concern’ for Scot missing after Hamburg stag night”

Image copyrightAFP/GETTYImage captionTheresa May pictured arriving at Stormont House in Belfast The British and Irish prime ministers have held a meeting in Northern Ireland, in an effort to move the Stormont talks process forward. It comes amid speculation the DUP and Sinn Féin are close to agreeing a deal to restore devolved government. Prime MinisterContinue reading “Theresa May and Leo Varadkar in Belfast amid NI deal speculation”

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGESImage captionMany South Koreans took to social media to express anger against Mr Ramo NBC has removed one of its Olympic analysts after he made a comment about Japan and South Korea which sparked anger among South Koreans. Joshua Cooper Ramo said Japan, which occupied Korea from 1910-45, had served as a keyContinue reading “Winter Olympics: NBC ditches analyst Joshua Cooper Ramo over Korea remark”

Media captionMichelle Russell, from Charity Commission, says the regulator is “very angry” Oxfam officials will try to convince the government it should keep its government funding – despite claims of sexual misconduct by its aid workers. The charity has been accused of concealing the findings of an inquiry into claims staff used prostitutes while deliveringContinue reading “Oxfam Haiti sex claims: Charity to meet government”

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGESImage captionElías Díaz plays for the Pittsburgh Pirates and is one of many Venezuelans to play in MLB Police in Venezuela have freed the 72-year-old mother of Elías Díaz, a catcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates in US Major League Baseball. Ana Soto was kidnapped on Thursday in her hometown of Maracaibo, in westernContinue reading “Venezuela kidnap: Baseball star Elías Díaz’s mother freed”

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGESImage captionLaura Smet (left) is contesting the award to Hallyday’s fourth wife, Laeticia (right) The children of French rock star Johnny Hallyday are contesting his will after he left everything to his fourth wife Laeticia and their adopted daughters. In a statement, actress Laura Smet said she was “stupefied and hurt” after learningContinue reading “Johnny Hallyday’s children contest exclusion from his will”

Image copyrightEPAImage captionKhalid Mehsud was deputy leader of the Pakistani Taliban The Pakistani Taliban say a senior militant, Khalid Mehsud, has been killed in a US drone attack. Mehsud was deputy leader of the banned Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the main faction of the hardline Islamist Pakistani Taliban. He was killed in a drone strikeContinue reading “Pakistani Taliban deputy Khalid Mehsud ‘killed in drone attack’”

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES Aldi has been rated the UK’s best supermarket, nudging previously top-ranked Waitrose down to fourth place. Customers criticised Aldi stores for being “untidy” and for a lack of staff availability, but rated them highly for offering value for money, according to consumer group Which?. Marks and Spencer was second, winning marks forContinue reading “Aldi tops supermarket satisfaction survey”