Author: SKYNEWS

For some reason which no-one can quite remember, when economists talk about interest rates they invariably find themselves referring to species of birds.They call those who are broadly in favour of lower interest rates “doves”. Those who are keen on higher borrowing costs are “hawks”. Analysts in the City of London draw up diagrams of the nine members of the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee, denoting how many of which bird there are at each meeting.Money latest: Reaction to Bank of England’s interest rate decisionThose who invariably lean towards higher rates are perma-hawks or uber-hawks and those on the other side…

The US Justice Department has launched a lawsuit against Apple, accusing the tech giant of maintaining an illegal monopoly on smartphones.The lawsuit, filed in federal court in New Jersey, alleges that Apple has used its monopoly power and its control over the iPhone to stifle competition and innovation. California-based Apple is said to have “tightened its grip on the smartphone market… not through product improvement, but by maintaining a chokehold on competition, locking its customers in to the iPhone while locking its competitors out of the market”, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said.President Joe Biden has called for the Justice…

The husband of Coronation Street star Julie Goodyear has revealed the pain of watching his beloved wife “slowly fading away” after her dementia diagnosis.Scott Brand has shared his experience as part of a new Alzheimer’s Society campaign, featuring a TV advert voiced by British actor Colin Firth. The advert, titled The Long Goodbye, illustrates the harsh reality of the disease’s progression – causing loved ones to “die again, and again, and again”.Brand said: “I miss the fun-loving wife that Julie had always been – the larger-than-life personality that brightened up everywhere she went, and the smile that lit up every…

A long-awaited report on how women born in the 1950s were affected by increases to their retirement age has recommended they are owed compensation. An investigation by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) found that thousands of women may have been affected by the government’s failure to adequately inform them of the change. Politics Live: Autumn timeframe’ for election, minister saysTo date, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has not acknowledged its failings or put things right for those women affected, the watchdog said.The ombudsman noted that the department has indicated it won’t comply with the findings and…

Artificial intelligence (AI) could be used to predict the type of health conditions a patient is likely to develop in the future, a study has found.The technology could be used to help doctors when it comes to monitoring patients or making decisions around diagnosis, researchers said. The AI tool, known as Foresight, belongs to the same family of AI models as ChatGPT but has been trained using information from NHS electronic records.It was developed by researchers from King’s College London (KCL), University College London (UCL), King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.The researchers…

Veteran actor M Emmet Walsh, who starred in Blade Runner and Knives Out, has died aged 88.The Americanstar died from a cardiac arrest on Tuesday at Kerbs Memorial Hospital in St Albans, Vermont, a statement from his manager confirmed. During his six-decade career, Walsh played a variety of roles, including Harrison Ford’s LAPD boss in Sir Ridley Scott’s 1982 Blade Runner.He played an unscrupulous private detective in Ethan Coen’s Blood Simple two years later, for which he would win the first Film Independent Spirit Award for best male lead.He also played Dermot Mulroney’s father in My Best Friend’s Wedding, which…

Ian reacts to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics which showed inflation fell to 3.4% in February, down from 4% the month before.Also Greggs becomes the latest company to suffer from IT issues, forcing some of its stores to briefly close.And the chief executive of fitness chain David Lloyd Leisure joins the show to talk about the company’s new investment in spa retreats.Listen and subscribe to The Ian King Business Podcast here. Source link

Sky News has been nominated for a TV BAFTA award for its signature eyewitness reporting.Over the past year, our reporters have been on the ground for the biggest news moments, all over the world. In conditions that are often challenging – and dangerous – Sky News correspondents have delivered reports to viewers across the globe.It can now be announced that Sky News has been nominated twice in the News Coverage category at the TV BAFTAs. Two separate pieces of Sky News journalism have been shortlisted for the prestigious award.They are: • Chief correspondent Stuart Ramsay’s exclusive reporting as he and…

The Garrick Club is a central London gentlemen’s club, the membership of which is drawn from across the British establishment.Founded in 1831, it is one of the oldest members’ clubs in the world. Among its ranks are said to be 1,500 members including at least 160 senior legal professionals, at least 10 serving MPs, dozens of Lords, heads of public institutions, actors, artists and businessmen.King Charles is even said to be a member, along with around 150 men with knighthoods who cough up the around £1,000 a year to get access to its dining rooms, luxury lounges and exclusive bedrooms.Women…

The newspaper veteran David Montgomery will on Thursday revive his long-held criticism of the BBC’s encroachment into local news provision when he accuses it of “predatory behaviour” which harms commercial rivals.Sky News has learnt that Mr Montgomery will use the foreword to the annual results announcement of National World, the London-listed company he runs, to launch a scathing attack on the corporation. Mr Montgomery, whose company owns titles including The Scotsman and The Yorkshire Post, has been a staunch critic of the BBC’s presence in online news, saying in 2019 that its remit needed to be redefined.On Thursday, he will…