Connect with us

முக்கியச் செய்திகள்

Which airlines are cancelling flights to the UK – and what can you do?

Published

on

The price of flights has been rising since the start of the conflict in the Middle East, a worry for anyone planning a summer holiday.

Some airlines are also cutting back the number of flights they are operating, which could mean travellers facing changes to their plans.

Many airlines that serve the UK have said they plan to operate fewer flights.

The following companies have said they don't plan to change their schedules:

While some airlines have cut back on the number of flights to save money, others have said they will start charging more per passenger or will put up charges for luggage.

Overall cancellations will be a very small proportion of the millions of flights in and out of the UK, says Rory Boland, travel editor at consumer publication Which?. Airlines are likely to target cancellations on routes where there are multiple flights a day to make it easier to put passengers on a different flight.

Low-cost Spanish regional airline Volotea has come under fire for saying it will add a surcharge to tickets it has already sold and is being challenged by local consumer rights groups.

An airline or tour operator could only raise the price post-sale if they had a specific caveat written into the terms and conditions, says independent consumer commentator Jane Hawkes, but it is not standard practice.

However, when it comes to package holidays, tour operators can add up to 8% to the cost of your deal after you've booked, based on a "significant rise in fuel costs", says Boland. But Which? found most operators were promising not to add surcharges this year.

A lot of the industry's jet fuel supplies pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which has effectively been closed to shipping since the start of March.

Airlines are not physically running short of fuel currently, but there have been warnings of potential shortages by the summer if the conflict continues.

In the meantime the squeeze on supply has pushed up the price of jet fuel sharply – it roughly doubled during March and the first half of April.

Airlines agree deals in advance that help them lock in a lower price, but longer term they will be paying more for fuel.

The biggest rises in fares have been on long-haul routes via Asia, that have been forced to adapt their flight paths to avoid flying over the Gulf.

Flights from London to Melbourne in June now cost 76% more than last year and a flights to Hong Kong are up 72%, according to consultancy Teneo.

"There's no right or wrong," says Jane Hawkes. It could pay to wait for last-minute deals, or you might want to seize the moment now. She doesn't expect prices to fall over the rest of the year, however, because airlines still need to cover the increased costs.

She suggests being flexible over where and when you travel, including considering switching to road or rail or holidaying in the UK.

Book insurance and check your policy covers you for travel disruption, she adds.

And make sure you have a "contingency pot". Even if your holiday operator or airline is supposed to cover any disruption, you may need to pay upfront and claim it back later, which can take months, she warns.

If your flight is cancelled the airline must get you to your destination or offer a refund.

If you are delayed more than a couple of hours the airline is required to provide food and hotel accommodation.

That is in ordinary circumstances. In cases of war, weather, or other situations that are beyond an airline's control, they do not have to offer compensation.

Airlines are currently pushing for more clarity over whether fuel shortages caused by the current conflict would count as "extraordinary circumstances".

If you have booked your accommodation separately the airline is not required to compensate you for any days you have missed out on.

But if your package holiday travel is disrupted your tour operator should extend your stay, offer you an alternative holiday, or refund you for the holiday, says Boland.

Correction: this article has been amended to remove references to Air Asia and Vietjet as they do not currently fly to the UK. References to Air New Zealand have also been removed as it does not fly directly to the UK, but offers connections through its partners.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr41yel6v4eo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

முக்கியச் செய்திகள்

Iranian group could be labelled national threat under proposed new law

Published

on

Legislation which would enable the home secretary to designate some state-linked organisations such as Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a threat to national security could come into force as early as next month.

The National Security (State Threats) Bill was introduced to Parliament on Tuesday, and could become law within weeks.

It would allow Shabana Mahmood to designate groups involved in "foreign power threat activity" such as assassination attempts, surveillance and sabotage.

The bill also creates three new criminal offences, including one of supporting a designated state threat organisation and two of assisting and accepting material benefit from such a group.

The legislation was suggested by the government's Independent Reviewer of State Threats Legislation Jonathan Hall KC, when he concluded that it was difficult to ban state-linked groups like the IRGC as terrorist organisations.

In the last year, men have been convicted of spying on Hong Kong dissidents in the UK on behalf of China, carrying out an arson attack on a Ukrainian warehouse on behalf of the Russian group Wagner, and stabbing an opposition journalist in Wimbledon on behalf of Iran.

In those last two cases, the people who carried out the attacks were criminals who were doing it for money.

These cases showed that often hostile foreign powers were not only using their intelligence agencies to undermine security in the UK, but were also hiring criminal proxies through other state-linked organisations such as the Wagner Group and the IRGC.

It meant that the National Security Act 2023, which focused on foreign intelligence services, was quickly out of date.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: "Where foreign states are found to be engaging in activity that threatens lives or undermines our democratic institutions, we must ensure that such actions have consequences.

"We will not tolerate hostile actors paying petty criminals to do their dirty work."

Mahmood said: "Foreign states are becoming ever more aggressive – attacking our communities, our way of life, and our institutions – and hiding their tracks behind proxies.

The bill is seen in Whitehall as a vital upgrade of the National Security Act which was only passed three years ago.

Officials say they have been seeing unprecedented levels of threat from people and groups working on behalf of foreign states.

The Director General of MI5, Sir Ken McCallum, said the security service had "tracked more than 20 potentially lethal Iran-backed plots" in just one year.

The prime minister and home secretary fast-tracked the legislation after recent attacks on Jewish targets.

Several of those were claimed by a new group calling itself Harakat Ashab al-Yamin.

The IRGC was set up after the 1979 revolution to defend the country's new Islamic system, but has since become a powerful arm of the state with a reach beyond Iran's borders.

In the impact assessment accompanying the bill, it is anticipated that 10 or fewer organisations will be designated as state threats in the first year after the legislation is passed.

Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to keep up with the inner workings of Westminster and beyond.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgqj8xzkqqyo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

Continue Reading

முக்கியச் செய்திகள்

Construction on fire site by Glasgow Central Station might not start for several years

Published

on

The leader of Glasgow City Council has said construction work on the Union Corner site destroyed by fire earlier this year might not begin for five or six years.

Susan Aitken added that the planning and consultation process regarding the land is likely to last until about 2030, partly because the wrecked building has a complicated ownership structure.

She made the comments at an event organised by online newspaper The Glasgow Bell last week. Glasgow City Council said it was exploring options for the site in the short, medium and long term.

A devastating fire broke out on Union Street on 8 March, initially starting in a vape shop on Union Street and then spreading further up the street.

The building is managed by property company Stelmain on behalf of Dunaskin Properties, while the ground-floor retail unit where the fire began is owned by Afton Estates.

Multiple ownership means it is likely to take time before development proposals start to be looked at.

BBC Scotland News understands the council leader's estimated timescale is shared by other senior officials within the local authority.

A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: "We are continuing to work on making the site safe – at this point, focusing on works on the western gable wall – with a view to reopening Union Street as quickly as possible.

"Beyond that, we are working with the owners on how the site will look and feel and how it could be used in the short, medium and long-term."

A recovery group has already been convened, which includes representatives of design and architecture companies.

Only the façade of the building at the corner of Gordon Street and Union Street was left standing after the fire in March.

The building known as Union Corner, dates back to 1851, pre-dating Glasgow Central Station which opened in 1879.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd7wx7409g7o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

Continue Reading

முக்கியச் செய்திகள்

Hidden camera found in government building

Published

on

A hidden camera has been discovered in a government building in the heart of Westminster.

The electronic device was found in the communal area of the complex on Marsham Street, where the Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) are based.

The i newspaper, which first reported the story, said it was found behind a ceiling panel within the last two months, and security services have been informed.

Home Office sources say it was found in MHCLG's part of the building, away from ministerial offices. An MHCLG spokesperson said: "We do not comment on security matters."

The building is the base for the Home Office, responsible for policing in England and Wales and national security, and MHCLG, which is responsible for housing and planning policy in England.

Tory shadow Cabinet Office minister Alex Burghart said: "This is a serious incident that demands an urgent investigation.

"The discovery of a hidden camera inside a building that occupies the Home Office and other departments raises questions about the security of government departments and those seeking to undermine them.

"The public deserves answers. We urgently need to know who was responsible, how long this device was in place and whether any sensitive or classified information has been compromised."

The Home Office declined to comment. The prime minister's spokesman declined to comment, referring reporters to the earlier statement from MHCLG.

Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to read top political analysis, gain insight from across the UK and stay up to speed with the big moments. It'll be delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c802r4xnkrxo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 by 7Tamil Media, All rights reserved.