Author: BBC

Catherine SnowdonHealth ReporterGetty ImagesSinger Jessie J says results from tests following surgery to remove one of her breasts after an early cancer diagnosis show no spread of the disease.In a social media post she wrote that she was crying “happy tears” after receiving the news.In June she revealed her diagnosis and underwent surgery to remove her breast.She thanked her 14 million followers for the “prayers, the love, the well wishes, the joy and all the positive energy”.The 37-year-old has posted openly about her experience of undergoing a mastectomy and received comments in support of her doing so.On Monday she released…

Microsoft has confirmed that it will lay off as many as 9,000 workers, in the technology giant’s latest wave of job cuts this year.The company said several divisions would be affected without specifying which ones but reports suggest that its Xbox video gaming unit will be hit. Microsoft has set out plans to invest heavily in artificial intelligence (AI), and is spending $80bn (£68.6bn) in huge data centres to train AI models.A spokesperson for the firm told the BBC: “We continue to implement organisational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace.”The cuts would equate…

Nic MarkoLocal Democracy Reporting ServiceGoogleThe Rowan Suite maternity unit at Hartlepool Hospital became fully operational in 2020A pause in the delivery of babies at a hospital, caused by staff shortages and illness, is being reviewed monthly by health chiefs.The midwife-led Rowan Suite maternity unit at the University Hospital of Hartlepool became fully operational in late 2020 and has since delivered 113 babies.North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust bosses announced a three-month pause in “intrapartum care” – the period during labour and delivery – at the site in May due to “staffing absences”.But Steph Worn, director of midwifery, said they…

Parents who experience a miscarriage before 24 weeks of pregnancy will be entitled to bereavement leave under a planned law change.The government is set to amend the Employment Rights Bill to give parents the legal right to take time off work to grieve if they experience pregnancy loss at any stage.As it stands, bereavement leave is only available to parents who lose an unborn child after 24 weeks of pregnancy.Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said the change will give “people time away from work to grieve”.”No one who is going through the heartbreak of pregnancy loss should have to go…

Baby CowActress Margaret John, who died in 2011, pictured in the doorway of the home where her character Doris lived in Gavin & Stacey Gavin and Stacey enthusiasts have long flocked to Barry Island to have a nose at the show’s filming locations. But now, fans of the much-loved comedy series have the chance to take it one step further, as the property which acted as the home of the show’s iconic character Doris has gone up for sale. The two-bed mid-terrace on Trinity Street in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, neighbours the houses that also played host to Bryn and…

Suzanne BearneTechnology ReporterSarah SkiddSarah Skidd makes good money improving copy written by AIAI is making me extra money, says Sarah Skidd, a product marketing manager who writes for tech and start-up companies.In May Ms Skidd was approached by a content agency to urgently rework website copy that had been produced via generative AI for a hospitality client.What was supposed to save money had, instead, caused a host of problems. “It was the kind of copy that you typically see in AI copy – just very basic; it wasn’t interesting,” says Ms Skidd.”It was supposed to sell and intrigue but instead…

Kit TaylorBBC News, YorkshireKit Taylor/BBCKirsty’s life changed when she started experiencing brain fog”I didn’t believe it could just be menopause. I thought it must be a brain tumour or dementia.”Kirsty Dixon’s life changed overnight when she started experiencing intense brain fog at 49 years old.Kirsty, from York, was staring at her screen at work one day, when suddenly she could not remember what she was doing.”I just asked myself ‘What is my name?’, and I couldn’t even remember my own name.”I felt like I was going mad, I thought it was only me.”The problems continued when she tried to access…

Grace PickettGrace is still struggling to find a summer job without previous paid work experienceGrace Pickett has been applying for part-time jobs for two years now – with no luck.The 18-year-old from Corby is hoping to head to Liverpool John Moores University to study history in September, and now her A-levels are over, she’s ramped up her job hunt.But she’s found herself facing the same issue many other young people across the UK say makes it hard for them to get their first part-time or summer job – not having enough previous experience.”It is very frustrating,” says Grace, who has…

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has questioned why nobody has been fired at the BBC over its decision to air a Gaza documentary that featured the son of a Hamas official.It comes ahead of a review expected to be published next week into Gaza: How to Survive a War Zone, which was pulled from iPlayer in February.In an interview with The Times, Nandy said “people must be accountable for the decisions that were taken” and she was “exasperated” by the time taken to carry out the review.A BBC spokesperson said on Saturday that findings of the review would be published “as…

Science and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle has written to the UK’s national institute for artificial intelligence (AI) to tell its bosses to refocus on defence and security.In a letter, Kyle said boosting the UK’s AI capabilities was “critical” to national security and should be at the core of the Alan Turing Institute’s activities.Kyle suggested the institute should overhaul its leadership team to reflect its “renewed purpose”.The cabinet minister said further government investment in the institute would depend on the “delivery of the vision” he had outlined in the letter.A spokesperson for the Alan Turing Institute said it welcomed “the recognition…