Author: SKYNEWS

Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group is axing dozens of jobs at its London base as part of an integration of two of his companiesSky News has learnt that Virgin Group is to cut 8% of its 425-strong head office workforce after deciding to combine Virgin Management, its brand and licensing arm, and loyalty programme Virgin Red. The redundancies come as Sir Richard prepares to receive a windfall totalling more than £400m from the potential sale of his minority stake in Virgin Money.Nationwide last week agreed a surprise deal to acquire the high street bank for nearly £3bn, with Virgin Group…

A rocket in Japan has exploded seconds after lift-off, with flames and smoke engulfing the blast area.Debris fell from the sky, with charred pieces of rocket littering the ground after the explosion. The blast was triggered by Space One, the Tokyo-based startup behind the launch, after a fault was spotted in the rocket. There were no injuries reported and the rocket was unmanned.The rocket, called Kairos, was blasting off from the mountains in west Japan.Locals in Kushimoto were watching the launch. “I had high hopes for this, so I’m disappointed. I want to know what happened,” one elderly man told…

Growth returned in the UK economy in January, according to official figures. The measure of everything produced in the UK – a metric called gross domestic product (GDP) – rose 0.2%, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. It’s the first official economic growth announcement since a recession was declared last month as there were two successive three-month periods of negative economic growth.When looked at over a three month period, GDP fell 0.1% up to January, compared to the three months to October, showing the economy is still struggling.But the overall growth in January could mean the recession is the…

The UK’s intelligence, security and cyber agency GCHQ has released a puzzle to appeal to potential new recruits who can “think out of the box”.The visual puzzle, which is a nod to the agency’s historic links with code-breaking, asks people to identify the letters contained in the picture before putting them together to reveal a hidden message. There are 13 elements within the puzzle which represent letters of the alphabet.GCHQ has said the puzzle, created with Manchester-based artist Justin Eagleton, has been designed to appeal to people who “process information differently and possess strong lateral-thinking skills”.The agency has also said…

Beyonce has revealed the name of her new album.Act II: Cowboy Carter will be released on 29 March. The title was revealed on her official website, along with details of how fans can snap up limited edition CD, vinyl and box set editions of the release.Beyonce announced the follow-up to Act I: Renaissance at the Super Bowl in February, where she starred in a Verizon advert that ended with her saying: “They ready, drop the new music.”She followed up the announcement with two singles: Texas Hold ‘Em and 16 Carriages. Texas Hold ‘Em hit the top of the charts in…

After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the imposition of sanctions on the country meant direct exports of British-made luxury vehicles fell to zero.However, Sky News analysis shows hundreds of millions of pounds worth of luxury cars are being sold to Russia through neighbouring countries. Notably, Azerbaijan on Russia’s southern border, where Britain recorded an unprecedented increase in car exports. In turn, Azerbaijan reported an unprecedented increase in car exports to Russia.Niall Paterson is joined by our economics and data editor Ed Conway on the Sky News Daily, to explain why luxury vehicles are still finding their way into Russia, and…

Google is restricting its AI chatbot from answering election-related questions in countries where voting is taking place this year, as the company tries to avoid spreading disinformation.Now, when you ask Gemini an election-related question, it responds with: “I’m still learning how to answer this. In the meantime, try Google Search.” The response appears for questions around voting, politicians and political parties.A Google spokesperson told Sky News the restrictions had been put in place “in preparation for the many elections happening around the world in 2024 and out of an abundance of caution”.In February, Google stopped Gemini generating images after it…

A “creepy” doll that spooked shoppers after it went on display in an Edinburgh charity shop has been snapped up by a celebrity psychic.Deborah Davies, star of Unexplained: Caught on Camera, has added “Annabelle” to her collection of around 60 “haunted dolls”. Ms Davies paid £220 in total for the toy, which has been sent from St Columba’s Hospice charity shop in Morningside to her home in Cheshire.The former Real Housewives of Cheshire star told Sky News: “I’ll have CCTV cameras on it 24/7 and for now I’ll keep it at my home, which is breaking my own rules.”I keep…

The minister responsible for the UK’s sanctions against Russia has told UK carmakers to check their supply chains after Sky News analysis suggested luxury models were finding their way to Moscow showrooms via ex-Soviet states.Foreign Office minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan told a committee of MPs the report was a prime example of the “whack a mole” challenge created by the trading controls imposed on Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine. Sky reported on Tuesday morning that while direct British car exports to Russia had fallen to zero, that collapse had been followed by a corresponding increase in car exports to countries…

Scotland’s culture secretary has told Holyrood he shares the concerns raised over a decision to award more than £84,000 of public money to an explicit arts project involving “non-simulated” sex performances.A total of £84,555 was awarded to director Leonie Rae Gasson for the development of Rein in the January round of Creative Scotland’s National Lottery Open Fund. The project’s website describes it as a 45-minute multi-screen, moving image installation that “immerses audiences in a raucous communal exploration of dyke sexuality”.It has come under scrutiny as the show’s climax has been advertised as a “secret cave sex party”.Participants over the age…