Author: SKYNEWS

Wales’s first minister has said he was “genuinely baffled” Rishi Sunak did not call him to discuss plans to support people affected by job losses in Port Talbot.Last week, Tata Steel said it would cut up to 2,800 jobs in the UK. The majority of those will be in the UK’s largest steelworks in the South Wales town as the company replaces its blast furnaces with electric arc furnaces.During first minister’s questions on Tuesday, Mark Drakeford told the Senedd he contacted the prime minister’s office last Thursday, when it became clear Tata would announce the closure of both blast furnaces…

The Doomsday Clock has been reviewed after inching 10 seconds closer to midnight in 2023 – the closest it has ever been to a global catastrophe.The clock’s new time was announced on Tuesday 23 January and remains at 90 seconds to midnight. But what does it actually mean?A metaphor for the dangers facing humanity, the clock is updated based on perceptions about how close humans are to destroying the world – with midnight symbolising that point.The countdown is agreed on by experts at the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Last year the clock moved forward due to the “mounting dangers…

Legendary disco producer Frank Farian – founder and mastermind behind the hit 1970s band Boney M – has died at the age of 82, according to his family.The German producer formed the group in 1976, and was their primary writer as they recorded a string of disco hits including Daddy Cool, Rasputin, and a popular remake of the Christmas song, Mary’s Boy Child. He later founded the pop duo Milli Vanilli, and worked with music legends including Meat Loaf and Stevie Wonder.Farian passed away at his home in Miami, according to a statement released by his agency on behalf of…

An arm of one of China’s largest municipal governments is in talks to buy Stemcor, the historic British steel trading company.Sky News has learnt that a new company connected to Guangzhou Aerotropolis, which is located in the province of Guangdong, is in detailed negotiations with Stemcor’s lenders about a deal to take control of the company. The transaction would displace GR Life Style, a Hong Kong-listed property company with no obvious link to the steel trading industry, as Stemcor’s buyer.Founded in 1951 by Hans Oppenheimer, a German immigrant to the UK who built it into an international powerhouse, it has…

A blood test could be just as good at detecting the signs of Alzheimer’s disease as painful and invasive lumbar punctures, research suggests.Measuring levels of a protein called p-tau217 in the blood could be just as accurate at detecting signs of the progressive condition, experts say. The protein is a marker for biological changes in the brain for people with Alzheimer’s disease, which is a form of dementia.The new findings have the potential to “revolutionise” diagnosis for people who are suspected to have Alzheimer’s, experts say.It could also be better than a range of other tests currently under development. In…

After a huge year for cinema, the nominees for this year’s Academy Awards have been announced.Oppenheimer, Barbie, Poor Things and Killers Of The Flower Moon are among the films in the running, while stars including Emma Stone and Cillian Murphy are shortlisted for acting prizes. You can read our full story on the stars and movies leading the Oscars pack here – and scroll down for the list of all the stars and films up for each prize.Best pictureAmerican FictionAnatomy of a FallBarbieThe HoldoversKillers Of The Flower MoonMaestroOppenheimerPast LivesPoor ThingsThe Zone Of InterestBest actressAnnette Bening – NyadLily Gladstone – Killers…

The former head of the company at the heart of the Post Office scandal has admitted he described the Horizon IT system as “Fort Knox”.Duncan Tait, who was Fujitsu’s chief executive between 2011 and 2014, made the comments to his Post Office counterpart Paula Vennells, who returned her CBE earlier this month. Fort Knox is a highly secure US army building in the state of Kentucky. Its gold vault is surrounded by thick granite walls that are topped by a bombproof roof.Hundreds of sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses were prosecuted over claims they were stealing from the Post Office – but the…

A robocall seemingly using artificial intelligence to mimic Joe Biden’s voice has been used to discourage people from voting in a primary election in the US.The New Hampshire attorney general’s office said it was investigating after the recorded message was sent to several voters on Sunday ahead of Tuesday’s primary election. The call begins with the US president’s frequently used phrase: “What a bunch of malarkey.”A voice similar to Mr Biden’s says: “It’s important that you save your vote for the November election.”Voting this Tuesday only enables the Republicans in their quest to elect Donald Trump again. Your vote makes…

Oppenheimer leads the nominations for this year’s Oscars – with big nods also for box office rival Barbie.Christopher Nolan’s epic exploring the true story of the first atomic bomb is up for 13 Oscars, including best director and best picture, while Greta Gerwig’s feminist take on Barbie has eight nods, including best picture. The two polar opposite films sparked the Barbenheimer phenomenon when they were both released on the same day in July last year, with many viewers watching them both on the same day. While both were huge hits, it was Barbie that won the box office battle, going…

Wm Morrison, the supermarket chain, is closing in on a £2.5bn deal to sell its petrol forecourts portfolio to another company backed by the same private equity firm.Sky News understands that Motor Fuel Group (MFG) is weeks away from agreeing the takeover of Morrisons’ fuel retailing empire. Both Morrisons and MFG are majority-owned by Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CD&R), the American buyout firm, and the talks between them – revealed by Sky News last September – are now on the verge of a formal agreement.One source said a deal was expected to be announced by early February.Morrisons’ fuel retailing operations…