News – World and UK

Bereaved families have filed a lawsuit against TikTok in the United States over efforts to access their children’s social media accounts because they “want answers” about their deaths. The Social Media Victims Law Centre (SMVLC), a US-based legal resource for parents of children harmed by social media use, said it had filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the video-sharing platform and its parent firm, ByteDance, on behalf of four families […]

The Government’s £22 billion backing of “unproven” technology to capture and store carbon emissions is high risk, MPs have warned. The Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has called on the Government to assess whether its support for carbon capture utilisation and storage in the UK will be affordable for taxpayers and consumers, who face high energy bills and the cost-of-living crisis. Around a quarter of the £21.7 billion over 25 […]

Women who were harmed after being fitted with mesh have “faced silence” for a year after a major report said there was a “clear case for redress”, a campaigner has said. A report by the Patient Safety Commissioner highlighted thousands of women’s lives were “destroyed” due to pelvic mesh. Kath Sansom, founder of the Sling the Mesh campaign group, called on the Government to urgently act on the report’s findings. […]

As much as 70% of tasks in computer-based jobs could be transformed or replaced by AI, according to a new study. Experts from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said artificial intelligence was likely to have a “seismic impact” on the economy and society. According to its new report on the technology, jobs reliant on computer-based tasks such as project management, marketing and administrative support are the most likely […]

The King and Queen are to pay state visits to Italy and the Vatican, Buckingham Palace has confirmed. The major spring tour, which has long been trailed in the media, will take place in early April and coincides with Charles and Camilla’s 20th wedding anniversary. They will meet Pope Francis at the Vatican and celebrate the Catholic Church’s Pilgrims of Hope jubilee year. In Italy, the couple will visit Rome […]

Hospitals in England are “close to full” as a significant number of beds are occupied by people who are medically fit to be discharged, health officials have said. It comes as medics are dealing with a rising tide of people suffering with the winter vomiting bug. NHS England said pressure on hospital capacity remained high last week with an average of 96% adult beds occupied and a total of 98,101 […]

The majority of school leaders are opposed to Ofsted’s proposed report card grading system for inspecting schools, a survey has suggested. More than nine in 10 (92%) said they disagreed with Ofsted’s plans to grade schools across at least eight areas of a provision using a five-point scale, according to the snap poll by school leaders’ union NAHT. Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT, has called on the watchdog […]

UK interest rates have fallen to 4.5% after the Bank of England voted to cut borrowing costs, as it also slashed short-term growth forecasts for the economy. The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted for a quarter-point reduction after similar cuts in August and November last year, bringing the base rate to its lowest point since June 2023. Governor Andrew Bailey said the cut will be “welcome news to many” […]

Members of a specialist British military unit who shot dead four IRA men in an ambush in Co Tyrone in 1992 used lethal force which was not justified, a coroner has ruled. Northern Ireland’s presiding coroner, Mr Justice Michael Humphreys, found that the SAS soldiers did not have an honest belief in the necessity of using lethal force and that it was unjustified and not reasonable. Four Provisional IRA members […]