Author: SKYNEWS

Charlie Colin, a founding member of 90s pop rock band Train, has died after slipping over in a shower, according to reports.The incident is understood to have happened in Belgium, where the 58-year-old had been house-sitting for a friend in Brussels. According to TMZ, the star’s mother confirmed what had happened – but could not confirm exactly when he died. His sister also confirmed the musician’s death to US entertainment site, Variety.The band, formed in San Francisco in 1993, released a statement on Instagram saying: “When I met Charlie Colin, front left, I fell in love with him. Image: Colin,…

Mark Thurston, the former boss of the controversial HS2 high-speed rail link, will on Thursday be named as the next chief executive of one of Britain’s biggest water companies.Sky News has learnt that Anglian Water Group, which has more than seven million customers, has recruited Mr Thurston to steer it through, and beyond, a crucial period of negotiations with the industry regulator, Ofwat. Mr Thurston resigned as the boss of HS2, Europe’s biggest infrastructure project, in July 2023 after more than six years in the role.A former delivery executive involved with the 2012 Olympic Games in London and in the…

Paula Vennells arrived at the Post Office Inquiry a former chief executive, a former Church of England lay preacher and an ex-CBE, with only her reputation, and perhaps her liberty, left to defend.After more than five hours of questioning she has done very little to restore the former, with the latter still very much a live issue. While she was giving evidence her nemesis Alan Bates was meeting the Metropolitan Police to discuss their ongoing investigation.Post Office inquiry: Paula Vennells’s evidence as it happenedThe day went horribly for Ms Vennells from the moment she stepped from her car in torrential…

A new Microsoft feature that screenshots users’ laptops every two seconds is being investigated by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The Recall feature will be installed on new Microsoft laptops and is part of their artificial intelligence (AI) programme Copilot+. The feature will record everything a user does by taking screenshots every few seconds. It then allows the user to scroll back through their activity and search.However, after security concerns were raised around the feature, the ICO said: “We are making enquiries with Microsoft to understand the safeguards in place to protect user privacy.”Recall is designed to “help you easily find…

It’s difficult not to be impressed by today’s annual results from Marks & Spencer (M&S).The numbers were not only appreciably ahead of City expectations but were also the best the retailer has delivered for a decade. M&S reported a pre-tax profit, before adjustments related to its pension scheme, of £716.4m for the year to the end of March. That was up 58% on the previous 12 months.The share price, up by almost 80% during the last year, rose by nearly 8% at one point before giving back earlier gains.Money latest: June interest rate cut blow after inflation data Stuart Machin,…

BT has been fined £2.8m after EE and Plusnet failed to provide clear and simple contract information to more than a million customers.Since June 2022, BT’s EE and Plusnet businesses made more than 1.3 million sales without providing customers with a contract summary and information documents, which affected at least 1.1 million customers, according to industry watchdog, Ofcom. This meant that BT broke consumer protection rules which came into effect in 2022. They are designed to ensure customers get clear, comparable information about the services they are considering buying.”It’s unacceptable that BT couldn’t get its act together in time, and…

Let’s start with the good news.After nearly three years in which inflation was well above the Bank of England’s 2% target, it is finally back into what might be considered “normal” levels. Money latest: Interest rate cut blow as inflation drops less than expectedInflation is the rate at which prices are changing over the past year, and that annual rate dropped from 3.2% in March to 2.3% in April. But while it’s down into “normal” territory, there are a few reasons for caution.Reasons for caution The first is that actually the annual rate was expected to fall even further: the…

Pedestrians may be twice as likely to be hit by an electric or hybrid car compared to petrol or diesel vehicles, according to a new study.The study published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health on Tuesday analysed casualty rates on the road in the UK between 2013-2017. The researchers said their findings indicated collisions with pedestrians were twice more likely with electric and hybrid vehicles than with petrol and diesel vehicles, and three times as likely in urban areas than in rural areas.Based on data from 916,713 incidents involving casualties, the researchers calculated that between 2013 and…

Dide, the anonymous masked rapper who claims to be a Premier League footballer, has announced his first live gig.The music star, who rose to prominence on social media last year and wears a studded black rose mask to conceal his identity, will perform in London in June. Known only as Dide, the incognito rapper has sparked frenzied speculation about his identity, with Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah, Bukayo Saka and Reiss Nelson, Chelsea’s Noni Madueke, Fulham’s Alex Iwobi and West Ham’s Michail Antonio among the names thrown into the mix.”The main thing for me is the music rather than the football player,”…

Symprove, a leading manufacturer of probiotic supplements, is being groomed for a sale that is expected to fetch at least £250m.Sky News has learnt that bd-capital, a British-based private equity firm, has appointed investment bankers at Jefferies to prepare an auction that is expected to result in a transaction taking place in 2025 at the earliest. Symprove has benefited from growing consumer interest in gut health and its impact on their general physical and mental wellbeing.Under bd-capital’s ownership, the company has grown to become Europe’s largest subscription business of its kind, with chief executive Will Bowler overseeing annual sales growth…