Jacqui Smith

14 Stories

UK Home Secretary to Resign Amidst Expense Scandal

(Newser) - UK Home Secretary Jacqui Smith will resign her post, the Times of London reports, in an effort to hang onto her seat in parliament despite the expense scandal swirling around her. Smith has been badly embarrassed by revelations that she had charged taxpayers for her family home, several digital cameras,...

Barred Savage Calls for British Boycott

Savage, Phelps lash out at UK's hate speech penalty

(Newser) - Right-wing radio mouth Michael Savage has branded British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith a "witch" and urged his listeners yesterday to boycott the country's products and cancel trips to Britain, the Daily Telegraph reports. "I suggest you stop buying English made goods," fumed Savage, who has been barred...

Savage May Sue Britain for Banning Him

Radio host fumes over making extremist list

(Newser) - Radio yakker Michael Savage isn't amused that he's ended up on a list of people banned from Britain for spreading hate. The conservative talk show host told the San Francisco Chronicle he's considering legal action. "Today it's me. Tomorrow it's someone else," he said. "The land of...

Hubby of Top UK Minister Billed Taxpayers for Porn

Home secretary's future in gov't in doubt

(Newser) - Jacqui Smith, the British home secretary, was fighting for her political future today after revelations that her husband had billed the taxpayer to watch pornography at their house. The $15 rental fees for two adult movies were bundled into the minister's Internet bill, which he expensed to parliament. Smith has...

Hard-Right Dutch Pol Barred From UK
Hard-Right Dutch Pol Barred From UK

Hard-Right Dutch Pol Barred From UK

He's turned back at Heathrow on trip to show anti-Koran film

(Newser) - Ultra-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders, whose short film attacking the Koran caused an uproar last year, was refused entry to Britain yesterday, reports the Guardian. The member of Parliament was flying to London to show his controversial film when the home secretary sent him a letter saying his presence in...

UK Bars Foreign 'Preachers of Hate'

Measure also targets animal-rights groups, anti-abortionists

(Newser) - Britain has new rules designed to keep “preachers of hate” off the island, the Telegraph reports. The measures shift the burden of proof from authorities to the foreign-born accused, who must retract controversial statements and sometimes make pro-democracy public statements to enter or remain in the UK. While terrorists...

UK: Web Phone Service Gives Criminals Edge

Authorities want to expand their online snooping powers

(Newser) - Criminals and terrorists are using VoIP services like Skype to evade law enforcement, sources tell the Times of London, and officials are lobbying for increased access. Police often rely on phone records as evidence, but online calls often leave no trace. “Communications data forms an important element of prosecution...

Pedophile Pop Star Holes Up in Airport Hotel

Facing crackdown in London, Glitter hunkers down in Bangkok

(Newser) - Former rock star Gary Glitter, released after 27 months in a Vietnamese prison for molesting two children, is in a Bangkok airport hotel after refusing to continue his journey to London. Glitter, whose Rock & Roll Part Two remains a rock staple, is complaining about untreated heart and hearing problems,...

Bin Laden's 'Right-Hand Man' Released
Bin Laden's 'Right-Hand Man' Released

Bin Laden's 'Right-Hand Man' Released

Judge grants bail as Brits try to deport Abu Qatada to Jordan

(Newser) - The British government will appeal the release of a terrorism suspect described as Osama bin Laden's "right-hand man in Europe," the Telegraph reports. A judge ruled that Abu Qatada should be released because he has not been convicted of a crime and is not facing deportation. The British...

Brit Furor Over Asylum for Gay Iranian

Teen says boyfriend was killed; calls gay treatment 'genocide'

(Newser) - A gay teenager who fears the death penalty at home in Iran, after his boyfriend was hanged for sodomy, is fighting for the right to stay in  the UK permanently, the Independent reports. Mehdi Kazemi, 19, lost his asylum claim in Britain and is now in a detention center in...

Fury After Head of Anglicans Condones Sharia in UK

Archbishop calls Islamic law 'inevitable'

(Newser) - The Archbishop of Canterbury made the cover of almost every British newspaper today after condoning the application of sharia law in Muslim communities in Britain. Although Rowan Williams rejected the extreme versions of sharia practiced in parts of the Muslim world, he said in a lecture last night that the...

UK Probe Finds 6K Illegals in Security Jobs

Home Office takes heat over 11K total given clearance

(Newser) - UK Home Secretary Jacqui Smith came under fire today after an investigation revealed that as many as 11,000 illegal immigrants are employed in or have been cleared for security jobs, including one man who guarded the PM's car. Of those workers, 6,653 were found to have no permission...

Bobbies Warn of Wildcat Strike Over Pay Row

Police fume over delay in date of annual raise

(Newser) - A furious row over a pay raise for police officers erupted in Britain last night, with the Labour government divided against itself and constables threatening a wildcat strike. The Times of London reports that the home secretary's decision not to backdate a 2.5% pay increase by 3 months, as...

Boy, 11, Shot Dead, and UK Press Reels

Youth's murder provokes shock, anger across British media

(Newser) - An 11-year-old boy was shot dead in Liverpool yesterday, leading to soul-searching and recriminations across the British press. Rhys Jones died in his mother's arms, apparently an innocent victim in a showdown between two local gangs. Rhys's photograph is on the cover of almost every newspaper today alongside claims of...

14 Stories