Economy | ANALYSIS
Households to take hit from tax hike
by Tomoko Otake
The consumption tax increase will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people’s financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the hike's impact.
Politics & Diplomacy Sep 16, 2013
Separatists facing struggle a year before Scottish vote
Scotland on Wednesday marks a year to go until its independence referendum — but separatists face an uphill struggle to convince voters to back a momentous split from the United Kingdom. Charismatic Scottish leader Alex Salmond has brought his Scottish National Party closer than ...
Business Sep 16, 2013
U.K. car industry pulling away from European rivals
Britain is accelerating away from its European competitors in the car-making sector, with investment flowing into the factories of Nissan and Jaguar Land Rover as Chinese and American demand drives sales. Jaguar Land Rover said last week it will pump £1.5 billion ($2.4 billion) ...
Offbeat Sep 9, 2013
Prince Andrew stopped in palace stroll after break-in
Britain’s Prince Andrew said Sunday he had received an apology from police after jittery royal protection officers challenged him in the gardens of Buckingham Palace as they stepped up security following a break-in. Police confirmed that two armed officers approached the Duke of York, ...
Crime & Legal Sep 4, 2013
Olympus, Gyrus face fraud trial in U.K.
Britain's Serious Fraud Office will prosecute Olympus and its subsidiary over a scandal to cover up massive losses.
Offbeat Sep 4, 2013
London 'fryscraper' glare melts cars
A British property developer said Tuesday it was investigating after sun rays reflected from its half-finished London skyscraper melted parts of several cars, including a luxury Jaguar. Londoners have been shielding their eyes from the blinding glare bouncing off 20 Fenchurch St. — nicknamed ...
World | ANALYSIS Aug 31, 2013
With vote, U.K. sheds image as U.S. lapdog
Lap dogs no more! After the British Parliament’s decision to reject taking part in any U.S.-led strike against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, that victory cry rang out Friday from many quarters of the nation. For those who smarted at the memory ...
World Aug 31, 2013
Obama in bind over Syria
by Stephen Collinson
To hear him tell it, no one is more tired of war than Barack Obama — yet the U.S. president is warning that combat fatigue must not get in the way of any new U.S. military adventure in the Middle East. Ironies abound as ...
World Aug 28, 2013
Capital's 10,000 foxes a source of joy, bother for Londoners
by Jacques Klopp
To some they are a nuisance, even a danger. To others, London’s 10,000 foxes are a delightful reminder that this concrete wilderness is teeming with wildlife. The ruddy brown creatures seem out of place on the streets of the British capital — but they ...
World Aug 28, 2013
Britain begins divisive badger cull over bovine TB fears
A cull of thousands of badgers aimed at combating tuberculosis in cattle has begun in Britain, the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) said Tuesday, sparking anger among animal rights activists. Some 5,000 of the black-and-white creatures are set to be shot under two pilot programs ...
World Aug 23, 2013
British police investigate files seized from Greenwald's partner
British counterterrorism police launched a criminal investigation Thursday into documents seized from the Brazilian assistant of a journalist working to publish secrets from U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden. The development came after Britain’s High Court ruled that material seized from David Miranda, the assistant ...
Politics & Diplomacy Aug 20, 2013
Papers detail CIA role in Iran coup
The CIA has admitted orchestrating the August 1953 coup that toppled Iran’s prime minister after he tried to nationalize his country’s oil wealth from Britain, a declassified document shows. The Central Intelligence Agency’s role in the overthrow of Mohammad Mossadegh has long been known, ...
World Aug 10, 2013
U.K. girls treated after acid attack in Zanzibar
Two British teenage girls were being treated for burns at a London hospital Saturday after acid was hurled in their faces on the Indian Ocean island of Zanzibar. Doctors said Kirstie Trup and Katie Gee, both 18, were doing “well” after Wednesday’s attack, and ...