BIG NEWS AND CURRENT EVENTSCreate a timeline and description of the following events that took place 2016/2017 so that you understand the contexts around them:
1) Brexit:
- 18 October 2018: The key EU summit. Both sides hope to agree outline of future relations to allow time for UK parliament and EU members to ratify deal by Brexit day 13 December 2018: EU summit. If deal not done by October, this is the fall back option if the two sides still want to reach agreement Commons and Lords vote on withdrawal treaty - MPs could reject the deal but it's not clear what would happen if that is the case The UK Parliament also needs to pass an implementation bill before Brexit day 29 March 2019: As things stand, deal or no deal, Brexit is due to happen at 11pm UK time . 31 December 2020: If all goes to plan a transition period will then last until midnight on this date.
- When did David Cameron announce the referendum? The UK will vote on whether to remain in the EU on Thursday 23 June, Prime Minister David Cameron has said. The prime minister made his historic announcement in Downing Street after briefing the cabine.
2) Politics:
- British Prime Minister David Cameron is to resign Wednesday, paving the way for Home Secretary Theresa May to take the reins.
- May was officially named Conservative Party leader and successor to Cameron "with immediate effect" Monday, said Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 Committee, a collection of Conservative members of Parliament key to electing the party leader. She will replace Cameron on Wednesday evening.On 13 July 2016, two days after becoming Leader of the Conservative Party, May was appointed Prime Minister by Queen Elizabeth II, becoming only the second female British Prime Minister after Margaret Thatcher.
- Jeremy Corbyn’s unexpectedly strong performance in the general election was caused by the highest turnout among young people since 1992, new data has revealed. Turnout in the 8 June vote is estimated to have been 64 per cent among 18-24 year olds – a 16 per cent increase on the 2015 general election.
3) Royals:
- British Prime Minister David Cameron is to resign Wednesday, paving the way for Home Secretary Theresa May to take the reins.
- May was officially named Conservative Party leader and successor to Cameron "with immediate effect" Monday, said Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 Committee, a collection of Conservative members of Parliament key to electing the party leader. She will replace Cameron on Wednesday evening.On 13 July 2016, two days after becoming Leader of the Conservative Party, May was appointed Prime Minister by Queen Elizabeth II, becoming only the second female British Prime Minister after Margaret Thatcher.
- Jeremy Corbyn’s unexpectedly strong performance in the general election was caused by the highest turnout among young people since 1992, new data has revealed. Turnout in the 8 June vote is estimated to have been 64 per cent among 18-24 year olds – a 16 per cent increase on the 2015 general election.
- Prince Harry is to marry his American actor girlfriend Meghan Markle, Clarence House has announced. The official announcement said: “His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales is delighted to announce the engagement of Prince Harry to Ms Meghan Markle. The wedding will take place in spring 2018.
- Thursday April 21: Queen’s 90th birthday
- Elizabeth II was born on April 21 1926 and has reigned through more than six decades of huge change and development in Britain.This date was not at the heart of public celebrations but the Queen demonstrated her commitment to duty with a walkabout in Windsor. In the evening the Queen lit the first in the chain of 1,000 beacon around the country in a spectacular celebration of her birthday.
- The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have introduced their daughter to the world, as they left hospital to take her home to Kensington Palace.The princess, whose name has yet to be announced, slept in her mother's arms during her first public appearance outside St Mary's Hospital, in London.
- 2 May 2015
4) Terrorism and hatred:
- On 22 March 2017, a terrorist attack took place outside the Palace of Westminster in London, seat of the British Parliament.
- On 3 June 2017, a terrorist attack involving vehicle-ramming and stabbing took place in London, England. A van was deliberately driven into pedestrians on London Bridge before crashing on the south bank of the River Thames.
- The Finsbury Park attack was a vehicle-ramming attack in Finsbury Park, London, England, on 19 June 2017. A van was driven into pedestrians in Finsbury Park, London, by Darren Osborne, injuring at least eight people.
- The Manchester Arena bombing was a suicide bombing attack in Manchester, United Kingdom on 22 May 2017.
- The 53-year-old shot and stabbed to death the mother-of-two in Birstall, West Yorkshire, on 16 June, a week before the EU referendum vote.
5) Syrian war:
- On 14 April, armed forces from the UK, the US and France fired missiles to destroy what they say are chemical weapons factories in Syria.The air strikes were in response to a suspected chemical attack in an area called Douma, which shocked a lot of people.It was the biggest military attack against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government by western powers in Syria's civil war.
- Why did the fighting in Syria first begin? Even before the conflict began in Syria, many Syrians were complaining about high unemployment, officials not behaving as they should do, and a lack of political freedom under their President Bashar al-Assad. However, the event which caused the situation to escalate into a full-blown civil war dates back to 2011, to the Syrian city of Deraa. Local people decided to protest after 15 school children were arrested - and reportedly tortured - for writing anti-government graffiti on a wall.
6) Specific uk issues:
- The Grenfell Tower fire broke out on 14 June 2017 in the 24-storey Grenfell Tower block of flats in North Kensington, West London, United Kingdom. It caused 72 deaths, including two who later died in hospital.
- At least three members of the Windrush generation who were wrongly deported to the Caribbean died before officials were able to contact them to help them to return the UK, the Jamaican foreign minister has said.
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NHS strikes: The BMA announced that junior doctors will strike from 12 to 16 September, in a significant escalation in their dispute with the government over a proposed new contract. The walkout will occur between 8am and 5pm on those days, so technically it is not five-day strike but a strike on five consecutive days. There are also walkouts proposed for 5, 6, 7, 10 and 11 October, 14-18 November and 5-9 December.
- What impact will the strikes have? Jeremy Hunt, the health secretary, says if they go ahead these will be the worst doctors’ strikes in NHS history. He claimed that up to 100,000 operations and up to 1 million appointments could be cancelled. In the last strike over two days in April 100,000 operations and outpatient appointments were cancelled.
- The Charlie Gard case was a best interests case in 2017 involving Charles Matthew William Gard (4 August 2016 – 28 July 2017), an infant boy from London, born with mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome (MDDS), a rare genetic disorder that causes progressive brain damage and muscle failure. MDDS has no treatment and usually causes death in infancy. The case became controversial because the medical team and parents disagreed about whether experimental treatment was in the best interests of the child.
- Barry Bennell has been found guilty of 43 charges of historical child sexual abuse. His conviction is the first since allegations of sexual abuse in football began to surface in 2016.
- Britain's Andy Murray became Wimbledon champion for the second time with a superb performance against Canadian sixth seed Milos Raonic in the final. 2016.
- Great Britain smashed their medal target for the 2016 Olympics, achieved a succession of notable 'firsts' and caused a major stir by finishing second in the table, above global powerhouse China. Of the 366 athletes that went to the Rio Games for Team GB, 130 of them - just over 35% - returned with a medal, including every member of the 15-strong track cycling team.
- Immigration Act 2016. ... On Thursday 12 May 2016, the Immigration Bill received Royal Assent and will now be known as the Immigration Act 2016. It will: introduce new sanctions on illegal workers and rogue employers. provide better co-ordination of regulators that enforce workers' rights.
NHS strikes: The BMA announced that junior doctors will strike from 12 to 16 September, in a significant escalation in their dispute with the government over a proposed new contract. The walkout will occur between 8am and 5pm on those days, so technically it is not five-day strike but a strike on five consecutive days. There are also walkouts proposed for 5, 6, 7, 10 and 11 October, 14-18 November and 5-9 December.
7) Youth aggression:
- "The latest acid attacks in north-east London on Thursday, which saw five people being sprayed with a corrosive liquid, add to a growing number of cases being reported in the UK."
- 31 were killed with knives – the vast majority of them young men. Across England and Wales they are now at their highest levels since 2011, growing by 12 per cent in the year ending December 2017.
- There have been more than 60 murders in London alone since the start of this year, amid a spate of stabbings and shootings that saw two teenagers murdered in one night earlier this month.
