Author: SKYNEWS

The owner of Paddy Power is in talks to buy the consumer arm of London-listed Playtech in a deal that could be worth about £2bn.Sky News has learnt that Flutter Entertainment, which recently moved its primary listing to the US, is in discussions to buy Snaitech, one of Italy’s biggest gambling companies. It was unclear on Wednesday how advanced the talks were, but one source suggested that they were sufficiently detailed that Playtech would be required to publicly confirm them.A formal agreement is unlikely to be reached until at least next month.If completed, a deal would value Snaitech at a…

Older people who feel their life still has purpose are less likely to get memory loss, a survey has suggested.More than 900 people were tracked for an average of 14 years in the US state of Illinois, to see whether they developed mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia. MCI is classed as the stage between an age-related decline in memory and thinking and a dementia diagnosis.Factors taken into account when assessing a feeling of purpose included relating positively to others, personal growth, self-acceptance, autonomy and mastery of one’s environment.An international team of researchers found people who developed MCI showed a…

Disgraced BBC newsreader Huw Edwards is banned from unsupervised contact with children and talking to youngsters online as he awaits sentencing. The 62-year-old was granted conditional bail after he pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children between December 2020 and August 2021 last month.Edwards, who was the BBC’s highest-paid newsreader before he resigned in April, was warned “all options”, including an immediate jail term, would be considered when he is sentenced on 16 September.According to court records seen by Sky News, Edwards’s bail conditions also ban him from contacting Alex Williams, a 25-year-old paedophile, from Merthyr…

One of Britain’s leading challenger banks has agreed to hand out its inaugural dividend after reporting a bumper profit in its last financial year.Sky News understands that Oaknorth, which is chaired by the former chairman of the City watchdog, Lord Turner, notified investors last week that it would distribute roughly $40m (£31.2m) as a special dividend. The payout will unlock a capital return for shareholders in Oaknorth for the first time.Money latest: Heinz could bring back snackLaunched in 2015, the bank is among a group of lenders – along with Monzo and Starling Bank – founded after the 2008 financial…

Scientists say there could be water on Mars underground, and more than enough to fill the planet’s oceans.Scientists from California universities San Diego and Berkeley say evidence suggests there is a large reservoir of liquid water under the planet’s surface. Using data from NASA’s InSight lander – which carried out a four-year-long mission that ended in 2022 – they wrote that the amount of groundwater could cover all of Mars to a depth of one to two kilometres.But the researchers warned it isn’t straightforward to find it. They believe the water is located in the rocks that form the midcrust…

Catfish presenter Nev Schulman says he is “lucky to be here” after breaking his neck in a crash involving his bike and a truck.The 39-year-old said the incident last week happened as he was on his way to collect his son from school in New York, adding he was expected to make a full recovery. He announced the news by sharing a series of photos and videos on Instagram of him wearing a neck brace in hospital as well as an X-ray of the break.In other clips he can be seen trying to stand up with assistance, gently hugging his…

The heads of the UK’s most valuable companies are being paid more than ever before – with the average chief executive paid more than 100 times that of the average worker, according to analysis from the High Pay Centre thinktank.The CEOs of the most valuable firms listed on the London Stock Exchange – the companies comprising the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) 100 index – received an average 2.2% pay rise bringing median pay to £4.19m. It’s the highest sum ever recorded.Money blog: Unusually cheap package holidays on offerAverage pay is calculated by adding all the pay cheques and dividing…

Horses are much smarter than previously thought, researchers have claimed.Their findings came during a study in which the animals performed better than expected in a complex reward-based game. When denied treats for not following the rules of the game, researchers found the horses were able to instantly switch strategies to get more rewards.The scientists from Nottingham Trent University (NTU) said this showed the animals have the ability to think and plan ahead – something previously considered to be beyond their capacity.Dr Carrie Ijichi, a senior lecturer in equine science at NTU, said: “Horses are not natural geniuses, they are thought…

A new artwork has appeared in London, sparking speculation it might be another Banksy design.The design – featuring a school of swimming fish – differs from the artist’s characteristic silhouette artworks, and it has yet to be claimed. It appeared on a police box in the City of London.If confirmed, it would be his seventh artwork to be unveiled this week in various locations across the capital.The new design has been examined by two City of London police officers, PA news agency reports, who took pictures from the outside of the police box. One officer said they were asked to…

Coffee shop chain Pret A Manger has announced some staff members will wear body-worn cameras as a new safety measure. The company confirmed to Sky News that six shops across London started trialling the new technology last month, which will only be worn by team leaders and managers. It said the cameras will only be switched on in “specific circumstances” and footage will only be accessible to Pret’s security team.The introduction of the extra safety measure comes as companies reported increasing cases of shoplifting and aggressive behaviour towards staff in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic. Image: Shoplifting has reached record…