Author: SKYNEWS

More than 3,000 jobs are at risk at the country’s biggest steelworks – with an announcement on the workforce expected to be made on Friday, Sky News understands.Tata Steel in September confirmed details reported by Sky News that it had secured taxpayer cash to support the Port Talbot plant in South Wales transition to cheaper, greener steel production. Job losses had been expected as part of the deal though 5,000 UK staff are due to remain within the wider UK operations following the deal with the government.Sources confirmed the steel giant is to press ahead with plans to close blast…

Four years ago, Michael Squires received a letter that turned his life upside down. He’s had sleepless nights ever since.Inside the brown envelope was a tax demand for £24,000. It came out of nowhere, and he didn’t have that kind of money.”It’s a horrible anxious feeling, I knew that I had taken due diligence and I knew that I had done what I thought was right,” he said.”So, you feel the system is against you, you feel like you can’t fight back. In a way, you know that you’ve been conned, and you feel stupid… and I felt that for…

There has been a shock fall in retail sales in the key December shopping period, sharpening the decline seen in recent months, official figures show.Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said sales fell an unexpected 3.2%, despite Christmas and reported discounts offered by major chains and some positive reports by major high street outfits. Not since the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, in January 2021, had retail sales fallen at such a level.It has been a far worse performance than the 0.5% drop expected by economists and a reversal of the 1.3% growth seen in November when…

One third of adults in the UK will run out of money by the end of January, a new survey has found.By 20 January, 56% of adults will have spent their entire monthly income, due to higher winter bills and financial strain from Christmas expenses, personal finance company Credit Karma said. As a result, many people are likely to turn to alternative sources of funds, such as credit, with 19 January the most likely application date, according to the finance company.The most common credit options were credit cards (22%), buy-now-pay-later schemes (6%), car finance (4%), and personal loans (4%).Akansha Nath,…

Japan hopes it is about to join an exclusive club of just four other nations that have successfully executed a “soft” landing on the moon.Its garden shed-sized Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, isn’t the biggest, or most ambitious robotic mission to our satellite – but it’s bidding to be the most precise when it launches today. Japan’s space agency, JAXA, knows it won’t be easy.The moon gained new craters in the last six months thanks to a Russian, then Japanese robotic mission failing to stick the landing.Only yesterday an American moon probe crashed back to Earth after failing…

He’s one of the finest character actors of his generation but Paul Giamatti says he’s “terrified” at the prospect of having to be himself as praise is heaped upon him this awards season. So far his new film The Holdovers has won him a Golden Globe, seen him nominated for a Best Actor at the BAFTAs and he’s widely tipped to be a frontrunner in the same category at the Oscars. Speaking to Sky News, the US actor admitted: “I’m terrified, I dread having to speak in public and having to be myself… but because I really like this movie…

Japanese technology firm Fujitsu has said it plans to compensate sub-postmasters wronged in the Horizon scandal.The multinational is in the spotlight due to its role in miscarriages of justice – with recent ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office renewing public interest in the issue and sparking outrage. Hundreds of sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses were prosecuted over claims they were stealing from the Post Office – but the missing money was actually due to errors in the Horizon software.”The Fujitsu Group regards this matter with the utmost seriousness and offers its deepest apologies to the sub-postmasters and their families,” the…

Two Madonna fans have filed a lawsuit against the singer, accusing her of inconveniencing concertgoers after showing up hours late for her gig.Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden claim the 65-year-old didn’t take to the stage at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center until 10.45pm on 13 December 2023 – two hours and 15 minutes after the scheduled 8.30pm start time, Sky News’ US partner site NBC reported the civil action as saying. The delayed start meant the show didn’t finish until around 1am, leaving fans with “limited public transportation, limited ride-sharing” options or “increased public and private transportation costs at that late hour,”…

The numbers of people defaulting on loans grew in the run up to Christmas and is expected to rise again, according to a survey of banks and building societies conducted by the Bank of England.Lenders reported more people were unable to meet mortgage and credit card payments in the final three months of last year as default rates rose. As a result, banks and building societies were losing more money on mortgages. Both defaults and losses are expected to increase this year, according to the Bank’s credit conditions survey.At the same time, demand for new mortgages from first-time buyers and…

Snoop Dogg’s daughter Cori Broadus has suffered a “severe stroke” at the age of 24.Posting on Instagram on Thursday, the singer who performs under the name CHOC, shared a photo of what appeared to be herself lying in a hospital bed and wrote: “I had a severe stroke this am (sic). “I started breaking down crying when they told me.”In a follow-up story post, with text covering her face, she wrote: “Like I’m only 24.”What did I do in my past to deserve all of this.” Image: Cori Broadus shared a health update on social media. Pic: Instagram/@princessbroadus Stroke is…