UK

May 12, 2008 -- DETROIT - On behalf of Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm, Lt. Governor John D. Cherry Jr. today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with a top British official that pledges to work jointly to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and increase climate-friendly commerce between Michigan and the United Kingdom.    » read more »

May 9, 2008 -- New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg met with London's newly-elected Mayor Boris Johnson at London's City Hall today to share ideas and strategies on how to run two of the world's largest cities and announce a new exchange program between the cities to share best practices in government innovation.

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg: Photo courtesy NYC Mayor's office

In addition to welcoming any officials from London who wish to meet with their counterparts in New York City, New York officials will travel to London as part of Innovation Exchange to help Mayor Johnson and his administration design and implement initiatives drawn from New York.    » read more »

Washington, D.C. -- May 7, 2008 -- U.S. Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and U.S. Representative Peter King (R-NY), Ranking Member of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security, today announced the introduction of the Free Speech Protection Act of 2008.

This bill would protect American journalists from libel suits brought in foreign courts that do not have the same protections for free speech that are found in the U.S. constitution. It mirrors H.R. 5814, legislation recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representative King.    » read more »

NATIONAL NAVAL MEDICAL CENTER, Bethesda, Md., April 2, 2008 – Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon R. England saluted a group of wounded Marine combat veterans and the medical care they receive during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a newly-renovated outpatient housing facility held here today.

Ribbon cutting to mark the official reopening of renovated Mercy Hall on the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.: Defense Department photo by Gerry J. Gilmore

England said he shares Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates’ concern that it is paramount that injured troops receive the best available medical care.    » read more »

April 2, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, DC— Today, Senator Edward M. Kennedy released the following statement in response to the announcement that the Irish Prime Minister, Bertie Ahern, will resign on May 6, 2008.

“Bertie Ahern has been a steady and effective leader of the Irish people. He has been a good friend of America and a good friend personally.

Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern banner: Photo by Johnny Hailstones (CC)

His skillful leadership in the search for peace in Northern Ireland was indispensable in finally achieving a successful resolution of that long-standing conflict.    » read more »

01 April 2008 -- Britain's defense secretary has announced plans to reduce troop levels in southern Iraq have been postponed after a recent flare-up of violence around the city of Basra.

Defense Secretary Des Browne told members of parliament that the expected spring homecoming for thousands of British troops based in Basra has been delayed.

"In October we announced our plan from drawing down UK troops from southern Iraq," he said. "In the light of last week's events, however, it is prudent that we pause any further reductions while the current situation has unfolding. It is absolutely right that military commanders review plans when conditions on the ground change."    » read more »

February 21, 2008 -- Statement to CIA employees by Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, General Mike Hayden on the past use of Diego Garcia:

The British Government announced today that the United States recently provided information on rendition flights through Diego Garcia—a UK territory in the Indian Ocean—that contradicted earlier data from us. Our government had told the British that there had been no rendition flights involving their soil or airspace since 9/11. That information, supplied in good faith, turned out to be wrong.    » read more »

London, 21 February 2008 – EMI’s songwriters and artists enjoyed a successful night at the BRIT Awards yesterday with wins for Arctic Monkeys, Take That, Kylie Minogue, Mark Ronson and Kanye West. For the second consecutive year EMI Music Publishing songwriters won BRITs in six of the 12 categories.    » read more »

14 February 2008 -- Iron Maiden’s year has got off to a roaring start with the February 4th release of the band’s long-awaited DVD Live After Death smashing straight into the UK music DVD charts at Number One not only outpacing its nearest competitor by three to one, but outselling the rest of the Top 6 combined!    » read more »

14 February 2008 -- In a Landmark decision, a three judge Court of Appeal panel, headed by the country's most senior judge, overturned Wednesday the convictions of five young British Muslim men who were jailed last July for having obtained information on terrorism from the internet.

The young men aged between 20 and 22 were serving sentences of two to three years for possessing articles for terrorist purposes under the British Terrorism Act of 2002.    » read more »

SpinVox Blog allows band to update website with text ‘in the moment’

LONDON, 4th February 2008 -- As Alphabeat bring their infectious blend of feel-good pop to UK audiences with their first ever national tour, fans can keep up with the band’s activities while they are on the road via a regular tour blog posted on ThisIsAlphabeat.com. From the first night the tour kicks off, the band will be using services from SpinVox and technology from moblog:UK to send in personal text, voice and multimedia messages directly to fans via their website.    » read more »

February 01, 2008 -- MADISON – Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle will lead a delegation of Wisconsin business and government leaders to the United Kingdom and Ireland from March 10-14, 2008. The trade mission will provide participants with opportunities to meet with distributors, potential customers, and key business and government officials. The Governor will also promote investment by European companies in Wisconsin. Organizations or individuals interested in seeking foreign companies to locate here are also welcome to participate on the mission.    » read more »

After three years of incremental growth, 2008 set to be a JV boom year

01/29/08 -- The next twelve months are set to be characterized by a major increase in Joint Venture (JV) activity claims one UK-based dealmaker today.

With the global economic outlook continuing to weaken but with numerous corporates still keen to do business, the idea of a JV will now be rocketing up many Board agendas, claims professional services firm KPMG in the U.K.    » read more »

31 January 2008 -- Rockets have slammed into a British base in southern Iraq, wounding at least two British soldiers.

A British military spokesman in Basra, Captain Finn Aldrich, says no major damage was reported on the base, but added that one of the rockets landed outside the entry gates for Iraqi civilian employees. A number of Iraqi casualties were reported.

British forces handed over control of Basra to Iraqi forces in mid-December as warnings rose that it could descend into violent turf wars between rival Shi'ite Militias.    » read more »

29 January 2008 -- The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today held a productive meeting with a number of EU Sports Ministers and their representatives at its headquarters in Lausanne. Aimed at fostering stronger dialogue between the governments and the Olympic Movement, this first gathering was a concrete step towards closer collaboration now that sport is mentioned in the EU Treaty - agreed upon by heads of states in Lisbon in October last year.    » read more »