Author: BBC

A leading think tank has issued a stark warning about the financial challenges awaiting the next government.The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) says the state of public finances hangs over the election campaign “like a dark cloud”.It warns more tax rises or cuts to public services could lie ahead.It calls for an “open and robust” discussion about how all the parties will tackle these.Both Labour and the Conservatives have committed to get debt falling as a share of national income. All the major parties would likely have a similar form of self-imposed rules in order to keep the government’s cost…

Just nowAseem Chhabra, Cannes,Film writer BBCKapadia’s film follows two women navigating careers and love in MumbaiIndian filmmaker Payal Kapadia’s new film opens with street scenes of contemporary Mumbai. But All We Imagine as Light does not show us the rich, elite Mumbai of Bollywood stars and billionaire industrialists. Instead the filmmaker overlays the street images with voices of real immigrants of Mumbai who are the city’s heartbeat.This is Kapadia’s first narrative feature and it premiered on Thursday night in the main competition section of the Cannes Film Festival. The film received an eight-minute-long standing ovation.It’s a significant achievement for the…

Police have arrested a teenager who is accused of attacking pro-Palestinian protesters at an encampment at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The attack three weeks ago led to brawling that ended after more than two hours, when police cleared the site. The arrest of Edan On, 18, appears to mark the first arrest of a counter-protester linked to the overnight campus chaos. Mr On is reportedly the person, in widely shared pictures and video of the melee, seen wearing a white hoodie and mask and hitting protesters with a wooden pole.Police have not identified the man they arrested…

Key moments from Paula Vennells’ three days of questioning at Post Office inquiryFormer Post Office chief executive Paula Vennells has broken her almost decade-long silence on the Horizon IT scandal. She was quizzed over the course of three days on how things unfolded during her time at the head of the organisation by both the counsel to the public inquiry and lawyers speaking on behalf of sub-postmasters.It was the most anticipated appearance in the long-running inquiry into what has been described as the biggest miscarriage of justice in British history.Here is a summary of five of the key moments:1. Tears,…

10 hours agoHelen Bushby,Culture ReporterGetty ImagesA new legal case has been filed against rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs, by April Lampros, who said she had “four terrifying sexual encounters” from the mid-1990s to the early-2000s.The documents, filed on Thursday at the Supreme Court of the State of New York, state she met him in 1994, when she was a student at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology.The lawsuit accuses Mr Combs of battery, assault, sexual assault, negligent infliction of emotional distress and gender-motivated violence. BBC News has contacted Mr Combs for comment. Job as an internThe documents also contain claims that…

In a suburb on the outskirts of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, a family is processing the news that their pet was taken by a lioness during the night. CCTV footage reveals the animal jumping up across the house gate, later leaving the same way while clutching a Rottweiler in her mouth. The BBC caught up with the pet’s owners who are still shocked that their beloved animal was snatched away. Source link

1 hour agoLee Bottomley,BBC News, West MidlandsPA MediaCoventry Building Society has bought Co-op Bank in a deal worth £780mCoventry Building Society has finalised its £780m deal to buy the Co-operative Bank, but will not be giving its members a vote.The purchase is subject to approval from financial regulators, but is expected to be complete in early 2025.The financial institutions combined will have millions of customers and about £89bn worth of assets.Both organisations will continue to operate under their current names and branding while they are integrated, which is expected to take several years.The deal means Co-op Bank will return to…

7 hours agoAbigail Taylor,BBC News NIHBOGame of Thrones was mostly filmed in locations across Northern Ireland, including Titanic Studios, Belfast.Fans of fantasy show, Game of Thrones, are celebrating as the latest spin off show, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, will be filmed in Belfast.It is set to begin filming at Titanic Studios in the next few weeks with author George RR Martin expected to make a visit to the site in July.The news was being kept “under the radar” as cast and crew were being assembled for the new shoot, one tour manager said.The first eight seasons of Game…

Thirty years after apartheid, South Africa is a very different country.But while democracy has endured, and the fear and racist brutality of the past is gone, there is widespread disillusionment.The ruling African National Congress (ANC) have been in power since Nelson Mandela became the country’s first black president. Back in 1994, a woman named Cynthia Mthebe spoke to the BBC’s Fergal Keane about her hopes and dreams. Now he’s returned to follow up on a story that stuck with him for 30 years. Source link

For passengers on board the SQ321 flight from London to Singapore, it was a terrifying experience when the plane was hit by severe turbulence.A 73-year-old British man, Geoff Kitchen, died from a suspected heart attack, while dozens of others were injured.Turbulence occurs when a plane hits air currents causing it to roll, pitch or drop suddenly. It is said to be becoming more common due to climate change.Pilots have told the BBC severe turbulence events of this kind are extremely rare and described what they do and how they react when they hit.Captain Chris Hammond, a retired pilot whose career…