Author: SKYNEWS

Actors have voted overwhelmingly to refuse digital scanning on set in a bid to secure adequate AI protections.Equity – the UK’s largest acting union – announced the results of an indicative industrial action ballot on Thursday. With a turnout of over 75%, over 99% of those who voted said they would be prepared to refuse a set scan.There have been growing concerns among actors that their work, voice and likeness are being used without their explicit consent, with Equity pushing for transparency of terms, and fair remuneration for usage via an enforced industry standard. Image: Equity general secretary Paul W…

BP is parting ways with the chief executive who led its early drive for increased profits from oil and gas, after investor pressure for more progress.It was announced after markets had closed in the US last night that Meg O’Neill, the head of Australia’s Woodside Energy since 2021, would take over from Murray Auchincloss. He has spent less than two years in the role.Money latest: Why a Bank of England rate cut is expected today Mr Auchincloss was appointed following the sudden departure of renewables-focused Bernard Looney, who left under a cloud in 2023 amid a row with the board…

👉 Listen to Sky News Daily on your podcast app 👈It’s been 25 years since an astronaut crew first set foot on the International Space Station – and it’s been occupied ever since. The ISS is set to be “deorbited” in 2030, where NASA will “safely dispose” of it into a remote part of the ocean.But humankind’s ambition to explore the universe remains as limitless as ever.What will the new space race between the US and China look like? Or could the ambitions of tech billionaires Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos take us into another dimension?Niall is joined by Sky’s…

Warner Bros is reportedly set to reject a hostile $108bn (£81bn) takeover bid from Paramount, with one of the prospective buyer’s financing partners confirming it’s pulled out of the offer.A spokesman for investment firm Affinity, owned by Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, told Sky News’ US partner network NBC News “the dynamics of investment have changed significantly”. It had backed Paramount’s bid, along with funds from Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries.The Warner Bros Discovery board is set to advise shareholders to reject Paramount’s bid – paving the way for Netflix, which had struck a $72bn (£54bn) deal.If the…

The rate of inflation hit a much lower than expected 3.2% last month, according to official figures which should lock in an interest rate cut by the Bank of England on Thursday.The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported an easing in the pace of the main consumer prices index measure from the 3.6% annual rate seen in October. The main downwards pressure came from food costs amid a supermarket price war to secure custom ahead of the core Christmas season.Money latest: What the fall in inflation means for youONS chief economist Grant Fitzner noted decreases in the prices paid for…

You’ve doubtless heard of the National Grid, the network of pylons and electricity infrastructure ensuring the country is supplied with power. You’re probably aware that there is a similar national network of gas pipelines sending methane into millions of our boilers.But far fewer people, even among the infrastructure cognoscenti, are even faintly familiar with the UK Ethylene Pipeline System. Yet this pipeline network, obscure as it might be, is one of the critical parts of Britain’s industrial infrastructure. And it’s also a useful clue to help explain why the government has just announced it’s spending more than £120m to bail…

Donald Trump has filed a defamation lawsuit against the BBC, alleging the corporation’s Panorama documentary portrayed him in a “false, defamatory, deceptive, disparaging, inflammatory, and malicious” manner.The complaint relates to the broadcaster’s editing of a speech he made in 2021 on the day his supporters stormed the Capitol building. Clips were spliced together from sections of the US president’s speech on January 6 2021 to make it appear he told supporters he was going to walk to the US Capitol with them to “fight like hell”.It aired in the documentary Trump: A Second Chance?, which was broadcast by the BBC…

The UK’s unemployment rate has risen further, with official figures showing young people being particularly hard hit by the jump in job cuts under Labour.Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the jobless rate hit 5.1% in the three months to October – a period dominated again by talk of a tough budget ahead. That was up from the 5% level reported a month ago.It had stood at 4.1% when Labour took office in 2024, promising a focus on growing the economy and protecting “working people” from tough fiscal choices.Money latest: What are my rights over neighbour’s doorbell…

NHS England has warned the health service is facing a “worst case scenario” December with a surge of “super flu”.The warning comes as new figures revealed the number of people in hospital with flu have increased by more than half in just one week. Catch up as it happened: NHS warns of ‘worst-case scenario’ as ‘super flu’ surgesLatest figures show:• An average of 2,660 patients were in hospital per day with flu last week • This is the highest ever for this time of year and up 55% on last week• At this point last year the number stood at…

Hollywood director Rob Reiner was discussing his future in one of his final conversations before he and his wife were stabbed to death, Monty Python star Eric Idle has revealed.The bodies of Reiner and his wife, the photographer Michele Singer Reiner, were found at their Los Angeles home with stab wounds on Sunday. One of his last conversations was with Idle, it has now emerged.Writing on X on Monday, the Monty Python star wrote: “Rob Reiner was a lovely man. I spoke to him last night for over an hour. I always enjoyed his company. I met him at his…