Britain is set to have a new prime minister on Monday without holding a general election, as veteran Labour politician and former Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham prepares to replace Keir Starmer. Burnham was elected leader of the governing Labour Party after securing the support of 349 of the party’s 401 lawmakers. Since Labour has a majority in Parliament, its ...

Chinese company Huarun Tex Co Ltd plans to invest US$30 million to establish a textile plant at the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) Economic Zone in Mirsharai, Chattogram, a BEPZA press release said. The factory will occupy 36,000 square metres and, once fully operational, will produce 24,000 tonnes of yarn and 20 million metres of grey woven fabric annually. ...

The Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) has warned that short-term flood conditions are likely to occur in some districts of the north and north-east within the next 24 to 72 hours. At the same time, the agency has also said that the river water may reach the warning level in some districts of the Brahmaputra-Yamuna basin between July 20 ...

State Minister for Land and Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Affairs Mir Mohammad Helal Uddin, has emphasized that relief for flood-affected communities must be delivered through coordinated efforts. The efforts would be made successful involving all government and non-government organizations, rather than isolated initiatives, he said. He made the remarks while addressing a review and coordination meeting on the post-flood situation ...

Commerce Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir has urged stronger international support to ensure Bangladesh’s smooth, sustainable and stable graduation from the Least Developed Country (LDC) category and seeking a three-year extension to the country’s graduation preparatory period. During separate bilateral meetings with the President and Vice-President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), at the UN Headquarters, the commerce ...

A major reshuffle is reportedly on the cards in the 50-member cabinet led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. According to sources familiar with the matter, discussions are underway at the highest levels of government to bring new faces into several key ministries, including Education, Health, Agriculture, and Road Transport. The government is also reviewing the possibility of expanding the size ...

China has hit out at the nationalisation of British Steel, saying it “firmly opposes and is strongly dissatisfied with the British government’s decision”. On Thursday, the UK government said that taking the loss-making firm into public hands would protect jobs and safeguard a “vital national capability”. The UK took control of British Steel’s operations in Scunthorpe last year, though it ...

A less invasive therapy for prostate cancer is just as effective as surgery or radiotherapy but with a lower risk of side effects, a major study suggests. The treatment, named focal therapy, uses high-intensity ultrasound or freezing cryotherapy to destroy cancerous tissue. A 10-year NHS study led by Imperial College London followed nearly 3,500 men who received the therapy, providing ...

Andy Burnham said he had still not decided who will be in his cabinet ahead of him taking over from Sir Keir Starmer as prime minister on Monday. Asked why he had not announced his top team, the new Labour leader said: “It would be somewhat premature and would, I think, cause complete chaos if you start half a reshuffle ...

Indiscriminate sand extraction from areas outside the designated lease boundary is threatening more than 25 villages along the Surma River in Sylhet’s Zakiganj and Kanaighat upazilas, according to local residents. Villagers alleged that large quantities of sand were being extracted illegally using hydraulic dredgers, causing severe riverbank erosion and putting homes, farmland, roads, markets, schools, mosques and flood-control embankments at ...