Author: BBC

Brazilian authorities have halted the construction of a factory for Chinese electric vehicle (EV) giant BYD, saying workers lived in conditions comparable to “slavery”.More than 160 workers have been rescued in Brazil’s northeastern state of Bahia, according to a statement from the Public Labour Prosecutor’s Office (MPT).They were allegedly put in a “degrading” environment and had their passports and salaries withheld by a building company.BYD said in a statement that it had cut ties with the firm involved and remained committed to a “full compliance with Brazilian legislation”.The factory was scheduled to be operational by March 2025, and was set…

NetflixFans are waiting to find out whether the second season of Netflix’s Squid Game can live up to the firstThe out-of-office is on, the mulled wine is mulling, and the highlighter pen is out as families look ahead to the best of this year’s Christmas TV. Four names in particular have been dominating the headlines as people gear up for the festive break – Gavin, Stacey, Wallace and Gromit. But there are plenty of other programmes to look forward to over Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.Here are just a few of the shows scheduled for the coming days.Christmas…

Royal Papworth HospitalThe machine, nicknamed “lungs in a box”, is designed to mimic the human bodyA new machine which keeps lungs alive outside of the body could “transform” the number of people receiving transplants, surgeons hope.The breakthrough has come at Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire after it became the first in the UK to pilot the use of the XPS system.The machine, nicknamed “lungs in a box”, mimics the human body and surgeon Marius Burman said it could increase the number of transplants by 30%.Daniel Evans-Smith, a 49-year-old event manager from Northampton, was the first to receive a double lung…

Getty ImagesThe UK economy was weaker than initially estimated between July and September, revised official figures show.The economy had zero growth in the three months, revised down from an earlier estimate of 0.1%.Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the challenge to fix the economy “after 15 years of neglect is huge” and October’s Budget would “deliver sustainable long-term growth, putting more money in people’s pockets”.Shadow chancellor Mel Stride said Monday’s figures showed “growth has tanked on Labour’s watch”. Meanwhile, one of the UK’s leading business groups, the CBI said its latest company survey suggested “the economy is headed for the worst of…

Getty ImagesCraig Wright attending the London High Court in February 2024A computer scientist has been found to have committed contempt of court for falsely and persistently claiming to be the mysterious inventor of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto.In March, the High Court ruled Craig Wright was not Satoshi, and ordered him to stop claiming he was. However, he continued to launch legal cases asserting he had intellectual property rights to Bitcoin, including a claim he was owed $1.2 trillion (£911 billion).A judge said that amounted to a “flagrant breach” of the original court order and sentenced him to 12 months in prison,…

Getty ImagesBianca Guaccero and Giovanni Pernice were partners on Ballando Con Le Stelle – Italian’s answer to StrictlyGiovanni Pernice, a former professional dancer on Strictly Come Dancing, has won an Italian dance show months after he left the UK following complaints about his behaviour on the show.Pernice said his Ballando Con Le Stelle win with partner Bianca Guaccero, who is also his girlfriend, was a dream, adding: “after a difficult year I’m back”.The show is Italy’s version of Strictly Come Dancing and its US spin-off Dancing With The Stars.It comes after the BBC upheld “some, but not all” of the…

Hospices in England are to receive £100m of government funding over two years to improve end-of-life care, Health Secretary Wes Streeting has announced.Another £26m is going to hospices for children and young people, which is a continuation of money previously given through a grant.It comes after hospice leaders warned they were forced to close beds due to increasing financial pressures.Only about a third of hospice funding comes from the NHS – the rest has to be raised from donations, fundraising and charity shops.Around 170 hospices provide end-of-life care for adults and around 40 provide hospice care for children and young…

Strong winds are continuing to cause some travel disruption in parts of the UK as millions of people travel ahead of Christmas.Yellow weather warnings for wind are in place until 21:00 GMT for Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales, and northern and western England.On Sunday, winds of 50-60mph are predicted, with the Met Office warning of gusts of up to 70mph in exposed coastal and hilly areas – a gust of 82mph was recorded in South Uist on the Western Isles on Saturday.The weather has led to the cancellation of some ferry services and flights, road closures to high-sided vehicles and rail…

A total of $2.2bn (£1.76bn) in cryptocurrencies has been stolen this year, with North Korean hackers accounting for more than half that figure, according to a new study.Research firm Chainalysis says hackers affiliated with the reclusive state stole $1.3bn of digital currencies – more than double last year’s haul.Some of the thefts appear to be linked to North Korean hackers posing as remote IT workers to infiltrate crypto and other technology firms, the report says.It comes as the price of bitcoin has more than doubled this year as incoming US president Donald Trump is expected to be more crypto-friendly than…

BBCSlowthai got his nickname during his youth in Northampton, where he was known to talk slowly and often stutter”Even if he is acquitted, it will not leave him. He’ll be cancelled for the rest of time,” Patrick Gibbs KC, defending Slowthai, told the jury.As the not guilty verdicts were read out by the foreman, the rapper collapsed in tears in the dock – he had just been acquitted of three counts of rape following a three-week-long trial at Oxford Crown Court.In that moment, most people in that court room, including the rapper’s friends and family, were focussed on the relief…