British finance minister Rishi Sunak will tell employers on Friday how much they must contribute to the government's hugely expensive wage subsidy programme from August, a prospect that some firms say will lead to more job losses.
The coronavirus lockdown will ease next week for most of Britain's population, Boris Johnson announced on Thursday, as a row persisted over the prime minister's closest adviser taking a long-distance journey during lockdown.
Britain cannot run its COVID-19 jobs protection scheme indefinitely and needs to start tapering it down as people slowly return to work, environment minister George Eustice said on Friday.
British business confidence fell to its lowest since the 2008 financial crisis in May, according to a survey for Lloyds Bank which contrasts with other surveys which have shown a small improvement since the initial shock of the coronavirus lockdown.
An Australian court ruled on Friday that the country's archives must release letters between Britain's Queen Elizabeth and her local representative during the 1970s, a move which may shed light on the sacking of its then prime minister Gough Whitlam.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's senior adviser, Dominic Cummings, is considering quitting later this year, the Daily Mail newspaper reported.
Britons took to their doorsteps and balconies on Thursday to show their appreciation for health workers on the front line of the coronavirus crisis, in what could be the last such celebration.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tried to stop his top medical and scientific advisors from answering reporters' questions about the behaviour of chief political advisor Dominic Cummings, saying they should not be involved in politics.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said people in England could have barbecues under the slightly relaxed lockdown conditions he announced on Thursday.
Britain has agreed to hold a United Nations' climate summit in November 2021, after the event originally planned for later this year had to be postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.