Author: SKYNEWS

Lloyds Banking Group has set aside a further £800m to cover estimated costs associated with the car finance mis-selling scandal.The bank said the sum took its total provision to £1.95bn. It had been assessing the impact since the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) revealed last week it was consulting on a compensation scheme, with up to 14.2 million car finance agreements potentially eligible for payouts.The regulator had previously found that many lenders failed to disclose commission paid to brokers, which could have led to customers paying more than they should have between April 2007 and November 2024.Money latest: How much a…

The Princess of Wales touched a few nerves this week when she warned that smartphones and computer screens were creating “an epidemic of disconnection” within families.In an essay co-authored by a Harvard professor, Kate wrote: “We’re raising a generation that may be more ‘connected’ than any in history while simultaneously being more isolated, more lonely, and less equipped to form the warm, meaningful relationships that research tells us are the foundation of a healthy life.” Image: Kate, Princess of Wales, caused division among social media users over her comments on screentime. Pic: AP Her words caused ripples on social media,…

Actress Diane Keaton, who starred in films including The Godfather and Annie Hall, has died aged 79.Keaton’s daughter, Dexter Keaton White, confirmed her death in California to Sky’s US partner network NBC News. With a long career, across a series of movies that are regarded as some of the best ever made, Keaton was widely admired.She was awarded an Oscar, a BAFTA and two Golden Globe Awards, and was also nominated for two Emmys, and a Tony, as well as picking up a series of other Academy Award and BAFTA nominations. Image: Diane Keaton, with her best actress Oscar for…

Legal & General (L&G) is plotting a swoop on the workplace pensions provider owned by NatWest Group, the FTSE-100 lender, as its chief executive seeks to grow its share of the UK retirement market.Sky News has learnt that L&G is among a handful of suitors which have expressed an interest in acquiring Cushon from NatWest. This weekend, City sources said there was “significant” competition to buy the business and L&G was not certain to be the eventual buyer.If a deal with L&G does transpire, Cushon would augment a master trust business which manages more than £36.5bn in assets, making it…

An Irish start-up is hoping to have the UK’s first food drone delivery pilot scheme operating in 2026, subject to regulatory approval.With a fleet of specially designed 23kg quadcopters, Manna Aero has carried out more than 200,000 food delivery flights in west Dublin, Espoo in Finland and Texas. As the company aims to expand, its CEO Bobby Healy said the UK “would be our most important market in Europe. It’s by far the biggest delivery market today. We think our product maps really well onto the UK high street, particularly”. Image: The company operates in west Dublin, Finland and Texas.…

Drake’s defamation lawsuit over Kendrick Lamar’s diss track Not Like Us has been dismissed by a federal judge.Judge Jeannette A Vargas said Lamar’s lyrics accusing Drake of being a paedophile were not defamatory because they were “nonactionable opinion”. The Canadian rapper had sued Universal Music Group (UMG) – which releases both artists’ music – and Lamar was not named in the lawsuit.In a written opinion published on Thursday, the judge described “the vitriolic war of words” that erupted in spring 2024 as “perhaps the most infamous rap battle in the genre’s history”.The feud led to nine tracks back and forth…

Donald Trump has announced the US will impose an additional 100% tariff on China imports, accusing it of taking an “extraordinarily aggressive position” on trade.In a post to his Truth Social platform on Friday, the US president said Beijing had sent an “extremely hostile letter to the world” and imposed “large-scale export controls on virtually every product they make”. Mr Trump, who warned the additional tariffs would start on 1 November, said the US would also impose export controls on all critical software to China.The president added that he was imposing the tariffs because of export controls placed on rare…

Tom Hollander says he’s not worried about AI actors replacing real ones and thinks the creation of synthetic performers will only boost the value of authentic, live performance.The 58-year-old plays entrepreneur Cameron Beck in The Iris Affair, a drama about the world’s most powerful quantum computer. Dubbed “Charlie Big Potatoes” – it could eat ChatGPT for breakfast.It’s a timely theme in a world where artificial intelligence is advancing at pace, and just last week, the world’s first AI starlet – Tilly Norwood – made her Hollywood debut.Hollander is not impressed. He suggests rumours that Norwood is in talks with talent…

Gregg Wallace is suing the BBC and one of its subsidiaries for causing him “distress and harassment”, after being sacked from the corporation in July.The former MasterChef presenter is claiming up to £10,000 in damages from the BBC and BBC Studios Distribution Limited, who he says failed to disclose his personal data, according to court documents. Wallace, 60, apologised after a report, commissioned by the cooking show’s production company Banijay UK, upheld multiple historical accusations against him, largely for the use of inappropriate language and humour, but including one of “unwanted physical contact”.Wallace suggested his recently diagnosed autism had played…

Messaging platform Discord has said the official ID photos of around 70,000 users have been stolen by hackers.The app, which is popular with gamers and teenagers, said the hackers targeted a firm responsible for verifying the ages of its users. Discord said its own platform was not breached. The stolen data could include personal information, partial credit card numbers and messages with Discord’s customer service agents, the firm said.No full credit card details, passwords or messages and activity beyond conversations with Discord customer support were leaked, it added.Discord said it had revoked the third-party service’s access and was continuing to…