Author: News Desk

Labour says GB Energy will fix cost-of-living crisis with clean power Labour is pledging it will get working within months of election victory to build clean power that will “turn the page” on the cost-of-living crisis. Sir Keir Starmer will warn that “family financial security depends on energy security”, accusing the Tories of failing to make Britain resilient, as he launches the logo and website for Great British Energy at an event in Scotland with Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar. Labour’s pledge to set up a publicly owned company to invest in domestic power sources – part of the party’s…

Labour treatment of Abbott having impact on voters, senior lawyer says Highlight the bias, if any in the title by underlining the biased words or phrase in the original title Martin Forde, who investigated allegations of racism in the party in 2022, says there is a perception that right-leaning figures get lenient treatment A senior lawyer who investigated claims of racism within Labour said the party was “underestimating” the impact its treatment of Diane Abbott and Faiza Shaheen was having on voters. Martin Forde KC was appointed by Keir Starmer to investigate allegations of sexism, racism and bullying in the…

Fly-tippers to face driving bans and prison under Tory purge on antisocial behaviour Fly-tippers will get points on their driving licences and face prison time, under new plans by the Conservatives. It’s part of a drive by the party against antisocial behaviour that would also see disruptive social housing tenants given three strikes before being evicited if the party is elected. Those caught fly-tipping currently face fixed-penalty notices of up to £1,000 – but the worst offenders face unlimited fines through the courts. The Tories have said they will go further by making penalty points on driving licences a punishment…

‘Purge’ of Labour leftwingers must end, Keir Starmer told Labour leader accused of ‘cull’ and picking close allies to contest safe seats as others are blocked from standing for party in UK election Keir Starmer is under mounting pressure to end what his critics say is a “purge” of those on the Labour left before a meeting of the party’s governing body next week. Party members on Thursday accused the Labour leader of orchestrating a “cull of leftwingers” after several high-profile figures were told they would not be selected as candidates for seats they held or had previously contested. Continue…

Reform UK leader Richard Tice accuses cash-only barber shops of money laundering Nigel Farage and Richard Tice took aim at barber shops and candy stores at Reform UK’s immigration policy launch. Speaking at a press conference in central London on Thursday, the Reform UK leader Mr Tice suggested some cash-only barber shops on UK high streets were “fronts for money laundering and drug money”. He was speaking as his party proposed a multi-billion pound tax on businesses employing overseas workers. “You can see high streets with five, six, seven barber shops in them, thousands of new barber shops,” Mr Farage…

$10m prize launched for team that can truly talk to the animals AI expected to help researchers unlock two-way communication, say team that includes Tel Aviv University In the Dr Dolittle books and films, the ability to “talk to the animals” captured the imagination. Now scientists are being offered a $10m prize to create real conversations. The Coller Dolittle Challenge for Interspecies Two-Way Communication has been launched by the Jeremy Coller Foundation and Tel Aviv University. While the use of AI is not obligatory, the team say the technology can boost almost all proposals. Continue reading… https://www.theguardian.com/science/article/2024/may/30/10m-prize-launched-for-team-that-deciphers-animal-conversation

Call for UK crackdown on plastic packaging to drive green economy FTSE 100 firm DS Smith, which works with firms over alternatives, urges next government to match global standards Whoever wins the UK general election must tighten regulations to slash the use of plastic packaging, match global standards and drive “green consumption”, the boss of one of the sector’s biggest manufacturers has urged. Miles Roberts, the chief executive of the packaging firm DS Smith, made the call to the next government as the company celebrated surpassing its target to replace more than 1bn pieces of plastic 16 months early. Continue…

Tories taunt Keir Starmer over Diane Abbott fiasco Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has ruthlessly seized on the chaos in the Labour Party over the future of Diane Abbott which has sparked a revolt on the left of the party. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer was accused on Radio 4’s Today Programme this morning of “dithering” over the trail-blazing MP and first black woman to be elected to Parliament in Britain. She has vowed to stand again for her Hackney North and Stoke Newington constituency and accused Labour bosses of trying to bar her from being a candidate after almost four decades…

Urgent hunt for girl, 9, missing for two days Police are urgently appealing for information about a schoolgirl who has been missing for two days. Soraya, nine, was last seen in Canning Town in London on Tuesday, and is believed to be in the company of her mother. A spokesperson for Hertfordshire Police said: “Police are appealing for the public’s help to trace a young girl who has gone missing from Hemel Hempstead. “Soraya, aged 9, was last seen in Beckton Road in Canning Town, London at around 5pm on Tuesday 28 May. “She is usually seen wearing colourful leggings.…

Murder investigation after man and woman found dead in quiet village A murder probe has been launched after a woman and young man were found dead at a home near Bishop’s Stortford. Emergency services were called to an address on Cambridge Road, in Ugley, on Tuesday evening after reports two people were seriously injured at an address. Officers found a woman in her fifties and a man in his twenties with injuries. They were pronounced dead at the scene. A 63-year-old man from Ugley has been arrested on suspicion of murder and remains in police custody. Detective inspector Lydia George,…