President Moon Jae-in said on August 17, "The denuclearization bid by the current government is not so radical. It will take more than 60 years for us to reach that goal." In an interview in celebration of the 100th day since taking power, President Moon said, "The design life of nuclear reactors that were launched recently or under construction is 60 years. We plan to close reactors one by one as soon as their design life expires." His remarks are in reponse to criticism that his government'...

The government will create 200,000 new jobs in the healthcare sector by 2022. Vice-Minister of Health Kwon Deok-cheol said on August 25 in a healthcare industry jobs discussion sponsored by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute and the Korea Economic Daily that the government plans to create 168,000 public sector jobs and 32,000 private sector jobs within five years from now. As for the public sector, he explained, the government will expand jobs in nursing and elderly care, as well...

A government study said it had injected a total of 168.7 trillion won (US$150.8 billion) since the 1997 Asian financial crisis as part of an effort to clean up insolvent financial services firms and has only recouped 115 trillion won as of the end of the second quarter of this year. This is the recovery ratio of 68.3 percent in 20 years' time. Even though it looks good in appearance, there is a big difference from that of the U.S. government. The U.S. government had spent $426.4 billion for...

The volume of welfare budget set aside by local governments has surpassed the 50-trillion-won level for the first time in history to 53 trillion won (US$46.9 billion). This is 59 percent higher than what it was five years ago. According to the 2017 Statistical Yearbook published by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on September 4, the aggregate welfare budget of local government for the first six months of the year was 52,601.4 billion won, up 6.2 percent (3,081.7 billion won) from the ...

Central bank governors of three East Asian countries including China, Japan, and Korea will get together and discuss issues such as debt and macroeconomic soundness. But the issue of the Korea-China currency swap deal which will expire on October 10 won't be one of the official agendas in the meeting. Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol, People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan, and Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda will meet in Incheon's Songdo for two days on September 13-14 in th...

The government is pushing forward with a plan worth US$8 million to help out vulnerable people in North Korea. Meanwhile it won't raise a lawsuit against China with the World Trade Organization in relation to the latter country's retaliatory measures after Korea's decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile defense system in its soil. Baek Tae-hyun, spokesperson for the Ministry of Unification, said on September 14, "We are reviewing a plan to give $8 milli...

Private-sector power generators are complaining mightily about the government's pressure on them to switch coal-fired power plants they are building into ones based on liquefied natural gas. That's largely because the government is mum about the sunk cost and other costs to retrofit the plants estimated to be as high as 2.6 trillion won. According to private-sector power generation industry sources on September 17, the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy requested to POSCO Energy, SK Gas,...

The approval rating of the Moon Jae-in government has hit a low of 67.1 percent largely due to North Korea nuclear issues. The rating has fallen for three consecutive weeks. As for the approval rating of the ruling Minjoo Party has declined for four weeks in a row to 49.3 percent. Pollster Realmeter said on September 18 that a survey commissioned by CBS-TV revealed that the ratio of those who thought positively about the way the current government has performed was 67.1 percent, down by 2.0 p...

The government has decided to give support to North Korea worth US$8 million in programs helping its vulnerable people including children and pregnant women indirectly through international organizations. It, however, has not decided when to start sending money and exactly how. This is interpreted as a choice to deflect criticism that it is undertaking an aid project at a time when North Korea is causing an international storm by launching a series of missile tests. On September 21, the gover...

Introduciton On 5 December 2017, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) published its proposals for a revised UK Corporate Governance Code. The Code is shorter, building on the FRC’s...

On 10 April 2020, a Government Decree was issued that prescribes the application of different company law rules as part of the government’s Economic Protection Action Plan. This adds new opportunities for corporate decision-making to mitigate ...

Speed brief: On 11 July 2019, the UK Government published legislation confirming its intention to introduce a digital services tax (DST). The key features of this DST are as follows: • 2% tax on revenues (not profit) generated from UK users &bu...

Expert evidence in procurement claims – no general admission On 28 September 2012 the High Court rejected an application under...

Fair Deal: the latest developments On 19 November 2012 HM Treasury published its response to the March 2011 consultation on the future of the Fair Deal for Staff Pensions guidance. The Fair Deal review is part of the Government’s broader revi...

Registered Providers to face longer, more complicated and more expensive claims? The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 ("LAPSO") LAPSO received Royal Assent on 1 May 2012 and will come into force on 1 April 2013. It will hav...

The Charities Act 2006 (now the Charities Act 2011) introduced a new form of incorporated charitable entity, the CIO.  There has been a long delay in making CIOs available but their imminent arrival has been heralded by a recent government anno...

Many in local government will already be familiar with the CRC Scheme. This is the UK’s mandatory emissions trading scheme aimed at improving energy efficiency and cutting carbon dioxide emissions in large public and privat...

The European Commission has announced proposals to amend the Enabling Regulation adopted in 1998. This forms part of the EC’s State Aid Modernisation Initiative. It will allow the EC to focus on larger more...

? The European Commission has announced proposals to amend the Procedural Regulation adopted in 1999. This forms part of the EC’s State Aid Modernisation Initiative and will support quicker decision making and ensure a focus...

? Recently, the Equality and Human Rights Commission EHRC published detailed technical guidance for those public sector bodies seeking to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). There is separate guidance for Scotland, England and Wales....

The European Commission (the "EC") presented two proposals on 5 December 2012, as part of its State Aid Modernisation initiative. The proposals will include amendments to two key State aid instruments, the Enabling Regulation and...

? The Solicitors Regulation Authority has undertaken consultation on proposed changes to the rules for solicitors employed by local authorities.  The SRA is proposing to amend rule 4.15(e) of the Practice Framework Rules, to ...

The court has recently considered the extent of disclosure required to satisfy the obligation of fairness in a consultation exercise in the case of R (on the application of Save our Surgery Limited) v Joint Committee of Primary Care Trusts  (&l...

Today’s employment law changes; and what else to expect this year Various changes to employment legislation take effect today, including amendments to whistleblowing laws.  Other changes will follow over coming months. In this briefing we...

Local Government Pension Scheme liabilities on academy conversionsBackground The treatment of Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) liabilities on academy conversions has been presenting significant difficulties for some time, with pension liabilit...

Code of Conduct for Operational PFI/PPPs HM Treasury recently published a brand new PFI/PPP code of conduct (the ‘Code’) which is aimed at delivering savings in operational PPP contracts. What has been introduced? ...

On 1 July 2013, following its consultation Judicial Review: proposals for reform, the Government introduced significant changes to the judicial review process.  The stated aim was to balance the need to ensure lawful public administration with ...

A report from the Auditor General for Wales has recommended that Welsh local authorities should implement scrutiny improvement action plans. The recommendation is one of nine recommendations contained in Good Scrutiny? Good Question!, a report of an...

The Local Government Pension Scheme (Amendment)(Governance) Regulations 2015 were laid before Parliament on 28 January 2015.  Issued under the Public Service Pensions Act 2013, these...

Another year, another budget. So what have we learnt from the contents of the infamous red brief case? Here are some of the highlights for the local government community.             George...

On 4 February 2015, the government launched a consultation on draft regulations implementing the cap on care costs contained in the Care Act 2014. The consultation also sought views on the need for new appeals system in relation to local authorities...

Background The Government’s latest proposal in reforming the English schooling system was laid before Parliament last week in the form of the Education and Adoption Bill 2015-16 (“the Bill”). The Bill sets out provisions to conver...

On the 5th October the Chancellor George Osborne, set out the Government's plans to devolve powers from Whitehall to local areas in a bid to stimulate economic growth. The initiative was heralded as the “biggest transfer of power to local gove...

Background On 16 October 2019 the Department for Transport (“DfT”) issued its “Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline Update” for Autumn 2019 (the “Enhancements Pipeline Update”). A copy of the Enhancements Pipeline U...

On 20 June 2019, the UK Court of Appeal ruled that the UK Government’s decision to continue licensing exports of military equipment to Saudi Arabia for possible use in the conflict in Yemen was unlawful. The judgment comes amidst global concer...

On 8 October 2019, the Government announced changes to the UK’s temporary tariff regime for certain products in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Under the proposals, which were first published on 13 March 2019 , the Government intended to introd...

Changes to the insolvency, civil and criminal procedural law The German Federal Government is currently planning various support measures for entrepreneurs, sole traders, other small, medium and large companies and credit institutions to mitigate t...

On 20th April, the UK Government announced a £500m “Future Fund”, as part of its package of measures to support businesses in response to the coronavirus.  What is the Future Fund? The Future Fund is being set up with the aim ...

  The BEE Commission’s report 2018, between 2017 and 2018, had no significant change in the levels of transformation, with black ownership reflecting a decline to 25.2% from 27% and current management control still sitting at 38% for blac...

(MENAFN - Gulf Times) Qatar welcomed the granting of confidence vote by the Iraqi Parliament to the government of Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. I... ......

MADISON, Wis. (AP) " Republican-controlled legislatures are increasingly...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) " Frustrated by scarce supplies and a chaotic...

Click here for the latest coronavirus news, which the BDN has made free for the public. You can support our critical reporting on the coronavirus by purchasing a digital subscription or donating directly to the newsroom. A group of Maine business owners on Friday sued Gov. Janet Mills over her unprecedented shutdown orders to limit the spread of the coronavirus claiming they are unconstitutional. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Bangor, is asking a federal judge to issue an injunction ordering the governor to allow businesses to reopen immediately and to lift the 14-day quarantine on people coming to Maine...

By DAVID A. LIEB JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Frustrated by scarce supplies and a chaotic marketplace amid the coronavirus outbreak, some U.S. governors are seeking to bolster their home-state production of vital medical and protective equipment to ensure a reliable long-term source for state stockpiles. The efforts come as states have been competing against each other, the federal government, hospitals, emergency responders and even other countries to get items such as N95 masks, gloves, medical gowns and hand sanitizer — often paying higher-than-usual prices because of the high demand. Before the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. got much of its medical supplies from China. But China limited...

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) “has given an ultimatum to...

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican-controlled...

KABUL (Sputnik) - The Afghan government...

U. K. transport secretary Grant Shapps has announced emergency funding to enable local authorities to pay for “pop-up” cycling and walking infrastructure to enable physical distancing during lockdown. ......

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Frustrated by scarce supplies and a chaotic marketplace amid the coronavirus outbreak, some U.S. governors are seeking to bolster their home-state production of vital medical and protective equipment to ensure a reliable long-term source for state stockpiles. The efforts come as states have been competing against each other, the federal government, hospitals, emergency responders and even other countries to get items such as N95 masks, gloves, medical gowns and hand sanitizer — often paying higher-than-usual prices because of the high demand. Before the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. got much of its medical supplies from China. But China limited exports earlier...

1. Coronavirus: Do not anticipate worst case situation like developed countries in India, says govt  Livemint
2. Government Tweaks Rules For Testing As COVID-19 Cases Rise. Details Here  NDTV
3. Only ‘severe’ coronavirus patients to be tested before discharge from hospital as India braces for infection surge  The Tribune India
4. Health ministry says learn to live with coronavirus as India's COVID-19 count crosses 56,000  Livemint
5. 116 vs 66: Mismatch between Covid toll of Delhi govt, hospital data  The Indian Express
6. View Full coverage on Google News