Author: SKYNEWS

Harry and Meghan have been spotted on the red carpet in Jamaica, attending the premiere of a film celebrating the life of Bob Marley.The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were photographed with Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness in Kingston, who is accelerating plans to make the Caribbean nation a republic. Mr Holness previously told William and Kate during their 2022 tour to the Caribbean that Jamaica was “moving on” and intended to “fulfil our true ambitions and destiny as an independent, developed, prosperous country”.The couple were also pictured with Jamaica’s minister of legal and constitutional affairs, Marlene Malahoo Forte, at…

EasyJet says the conflict in the Middle East is expected to deliver a £40m hit to the airline by the end of March.The no-frills carrier and rivals suspended flights to Israel and Jordan after Israel began its retaliation against Hamas for the 7 October attack in the south of the country. The decision immediately trimmed 4% of its typical flying programme.EasyJet said on Wednesday that weaker demand for trips to Egypt had also been seen but despite the knocks to revenues, it had reduced losses in the final three months of 2023 – its first financial quarter.Money latest: Millions will…

Measles cases are surging, prompting a warning to parents to make sure children are fully vaccinated against the potentially deadly disease. Measles is highly infectious and can result in “life-changing complications”, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). Despite the seriousness of the illness, vaccination rates have been falling.If that trend isn’t reversed, outbreaks of the virus are likely to spread, the UKHSA warns.What are the symptoms of the virus, what should you do if you think your child has it – and why are some people hesitant to get the vaccine? What are the symptoms of measles?The first…

A Conservative MP is urging ministers to extend a probe into the prospective takeover of The Daily Telegraph, warning that the Abu Dhabi-backed vehicle which wants to acquire it may already be exerting “material influence” over the newspaper.Sky News has learnt that Neil O’Brien, a former health minister who sits on the Tory backbenches, wants the culture secretary to issue a public interest intervention notice (PIIN) which encompasses RedBird IMI’s repayment of a £1.2bn debt to Lloyds Banking Group on behalf of the Barclay family. Mr O’Brien said that while Lucy Frazer had been right to issue a PIIN focused…

Netflix saw a surge in new subscribers at the end of last year, attributed in part to the streaming giant bringing in a ban on password sharing.The crackdown on password sharing, which started last May in a number of countries, hindered people in different households from using the same account. It appears to be having the desired effect of prompting people to open their own accounts – as the company added 13.1 million worldwide subscribers in the last three months of 2023.It was the third consecutive quarter in which Netflix boosted its subscribers, outstripping the 8.8 million subscribers gained in…

Royal Mail could be allowed to deliver letters just three days per week, under a series of options outlined by the industry regulator to help the company run a sustainable service.Ofcom said its consultation document was designed to spark a “national debate” on the future of the UK’s postal service. It separately announced that the cost of a Second Class stamp would be capped until March 2027 to ensure an affordable option for consumers and businesses.The possible relaxation of loss-making Royal Mail’s Universal Service Obligation (USO), which currently demands deliveries six days per week, met furious union opposition earlier this…

Ryan Gosling has expressed his disappointment that Barbie director Greta Gerwig and star Margot Robbie were overlooked during the Oscars nominations in their respective categories.Gosling, who played the role of Ken in last summer’s box office blockbuster said he was “honoured” to be nominated for best supporting actor “for portraying a plastic doll”. Image: Ryan Gosling as Ken in Barbie. Pic: Warner Bros He also said he was “so happy” for co-star America Ferrera who received a nod for best supporting actress for her performance as Gloria.But Gerwig and Robbie, who together brought the doll to life, missed out on…

Unavoidable hidden charges for online consumers, a practice known as drip pricing, is to be banned under a wider transparency drive.The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) said additional fees, which are only revealed late in the checkout process and cost customers £2.2bn a year, must be included in the headline price under the planned Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill. The measure will affect things like tickets for trains and the cinema but not optional fees, such as airline seat and luggage upgrades.The crackdown will also see fake reviews added to a list of banned business practices, with website…

Apple’s first Macintosh – the technology that revolutionised personal computers – turns 40 today.The “game-changing” computer first went on sale on 24 January 1984, two days after being introduced to the world in a big-budget Super Bowl advert, by renowned British director Sir Ridley Scott. The advert, referencing George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984, was itself considered a watershed moment in advertising – later being described as “more successful than the Mac itself” by Apple’s then marketing guru Regis McKenna.Starring the British athlete Anya Major breaking a screen showing the book’s chief antagonist Big Brother, the advert ended with the tagline:…

The British fund manager abrdn is preparing to cut hundreds of jobs in a cost-cutting drive aimed at boosting its flagging performance.Sky News has learnt that abrdn will announce proposals for a round of redundancies alongside a hastily scheduled trading update on Wednesday morning. It was unclear whether abrdn would give a precise figure for the headcount reductions, although one market source said it could affect in the region of 10% of its workforce of nearly 5,000 people.Analysts expect the company, which was formed from the 2017 merger of Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life, to disclose that it has…