Author: SKYNEWS

First-time buyers are being offered the chance to pay a modest £5,000 deposit and potentially borrow up to 99% of a property’s value.The mortgage from Yorkshire Building Society is valid on places up to £500,000 and comes without a fee – but there are a few key exceptions. Money blog – latest updatesIt’s not available for flats or new-build properties and would-be borrowers must pass strict affordability and credit scoring checks.The task of saving for a deposit is one of the barriers that many first-time buyers struggle with as most lenders like a minimum 10% up front. Yorkshire Building Society’s…

Gogglebox star George Gilbey has died aged 40, a spokesperson for the show said.The reality star appeared on the Channel 4 series alongside his mother Linda McGarry and stepfather Pete McGarry, who died aged 71 in 2021. He also appeared on the 14th series of Celebrity Big Brother in 2014, reaching the final. Image: George Gilbey. Pic: Shutterstock Gilbey reportedly died following an accident at work on Wednesday.A spokesperson for the show said: “George was part of the Gogglebox family for eight series alongside his mum Linda and stepdad Pete.”Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with Linda and George’s family…

Barclays has apologised after customers experienced difficulties with payments into and out of accounts, as well as with its app, telephone and online banking services. The problems began on Tuesday evening and continued into Wednesday morning before the bank said, just before 6am, everything was working as it should. Money latest – Eight things that are going up in price next week – and six major boosts to Britons’ pocketsBut customers responded to the post on X with complaints of wrong balances and missing transactions.What happened? Payments hadn’t gone into one user’s account, they said, while another still couldn’t make…

The melting of polar ice due to human-driven climate change has slightly slowed the Earth’s rotation – and it could affect how we measure time, according to a study.Although the disappearance of the ice has reduced the speed of the planet’s rotation, the Earth is still spinning a bit faster than it used to. The overall increase in speed means that for the first time in history, world timekeepers may have to consider subtracting a second from our clocks.This means clocks may have to skip a second – called a “negative leap second” – around 2029 to keep universal time…

Beyonce has released her tracklist for her forthcoming country album Act II: Cowboy Carter. On the superstar’s Instagram account, fans were given a sneak peek of her new songs which included the previously released Texas Hold ‘Em and 16 Carriages. The tracklist also contained American Requiem, Blackbird, Protector, My Rose, Bodyguard, Daughter, Spaghetti, Alligator Tears, Smoke Hour II, Just For Fun, II Most Wanted, Levi’s Jeans, Flamenco, Ya Ya, Oh Louisiana, Desert Eagle, Riverdance, II Hands II Heaven, Tyrant, Sweet Honey Buckin’ and Amen.One song appears to be called The Linda Martell Show, a reference to the groundbreaking country performer who…

An American company is gatecrashing a £1bn agreed takeover of Spirent Communications, the cybersecurity specialist, in the latest example of a bidding war breaking out for a London-listed company.Sky News has learnt that Keysight Technologies, which is publicly traded in New York, is preparing to launch a formal offer for Spirent worth roughly 200p-a-share. That would value the FTSE 250 target at about £1.15bn.Keysight’s bid will trump a 175p-a-share bid unveiled last month by Viavi Solutions, a US-based technology company.Money latest: New direct flights from Manchester revealed Viavi’s proposal was backed by a $400m financial commitment from Silver Lake Partners,…

Katie Price has said there’s “nothing worse” than young women having cosmetic procedures such as boob jobs and face and lip fillers.The former glamour model is well known for her enhancements but said she’s “not a hypocrite” to say they can be “damaging” to the body. Price, 45, told the podcast How To Fail With Elizabeth Day: “There’s nothing worse than when these young girls now, and I will say it, in their early 20s, who are all getting fillers, all getting lips, all getting the boobs.”I’m not a hypocrite, but I didn’t start doing my face until I was…

The board of Thames Water was locked in crunch talks on Wednesday as shareholders prepare to dilute a pledge to inject funds into the company that would secure its survival.Sky News has learnt that the directors of Britain’s biggest water company met to discuss its financial future after months of talks involving debt and equity investors, lenders, regulators and government officials. One industry source said that Thames Water’s shareholders, who include the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) and China’s sovereign wealth fund, were poised to conclude that they were unable to contribute hundreds of millions of pounds of promised funding after…

Anne Hathaway says she insisted on being called by her character’s name in her latest project in order to protect herself from her “worst fear”.The Oscar winner stars alongside Jessica Chastain in the thriller Mothers’ Instinct which follows the lives of two 1960s housewives whose lives and friendships are destroyed after a tragic event. Image: (L-R) Hathaway and Jessica Chastain. Pic: StudioCanal “It was one of those jobs you really, really didn’t want to take home with you,” Hathaway told Sky News.An adaptation of the 2018 French film of the same name, Mothers’ Instinct is the directorial debut of filmmaker…

The competition regulator has urged UK fashion businesses to give accurate information about how environmentally friendly their clothes are after three fast-fashion firms signed a new agreement.The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had initiated an investigation into Boohoo, ASOS and George by Asda over concerns about the way products were marketed as eco-friendly. Its initial review of the fashion sector had identified concerns of possible greenwashing – making items appear environmentally friendly when they are not.Money latest – Eight things that are going up in price next weekWhat’s changed? But the firms have pledged to provide clear, prominent and transparent…