Author: SKYNEWS

There’s a reason previous governments baulked at the net zero challenge – it’s absolutely colossal, something Labour’s new Clean Power 2030 plan lays bare.Offshore wind generating capacity, which has taken 20 years to reach 14.8GW, must more than triple to about 50GW within just six years. The plan calls for a tripling of solar generation too, and a doubling supply from onshore wind turbines.And to get all that clean, locally produced power to where it is actually needed will require an overhaul of the National Grid not seen since the current system was planned in the 1950s.The government projects that…

Kanya King, the founder of the MOBO Awards, has revealed she has stage four bowel cancer. Ms King, who is chief executive of the awards which celebrates and elevates black music in the UK, said her diagnosis is something she “never saw coming” and she is “still processing this unexpected reality”. Speaking as she accepted a lifetime achievement prize at the Live Awards, the live music industry event, at London’s Troxy venue, she said her diagnosis isn’t the end of her story but a chance for her to “inspire resilience, raise awareness” and use it to amplify the message of early…

Plans by Donald Trump to impose blanket tariffs on all imports to the US will have an “insignificant effect” on the UK economy, according to a poll of international economists.While policymakers at the Bank of England fret over the impact of threatened tariffs of up to 10% on UK goods and the prospects for a global spat, the study by Reuters suggested the UK could even be spared the charges altogether. Their reasoning, the news agency found, was explained by the fact that the incoming US president was focused on correcting US trade deficits with other countries and trading blocs.Money…

Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp are back online after experiencing a “technical issue”, their owner Meta has said.In a post on X it apologised “to those who’ve been affected” and said it was “99% of the way there” and “just doing some last checks”. “Thanks for bearing with us!” it added,According to Downdetector, which allows people to report problems with popular apps and websites, there was a big spike in reports of issues with Meta services around 6pm.At 6.07pm there were 25,807 reports about Facebook in the UK and 106,401 in the US. Meanwhile, the number of reports in the UK…

Cineworld says it is closing another six cinemas, bringing the total of closed sites to 11.The cinema chain already closed sites in Glasgow Parkhead, Bedford, Loughborough, Yate and Swindon Regent Circus earlier this year as part of its restructuring programme. Now it has confirmed it will also shut down its branches in the following areas:CastlefordLeighMiddlesbroughNorthamptonPooleWeymouthThe Weymouth branch is set to close on 30 December, while the five other cinemas will close on 19 January, Cineworld has confirmed.It had also earmarked its Hinckley site for closure, but this was granted a reprieve after a new property deal was agreed. The move…

A $10bn-plus takeover bid for one of America’s biggest pharmacy chains is set to trigger a fresh auction of Boots the Chemist after a string of aborted attempts to sell the British retail giant.Sky News understands that Sycamore Partners, the private equity firm, is expected to seek separate ownership for Boots if it succeeds in taking Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA), its current New York-listed parent, private. The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that Sycamore Partners was in talks to buy WBA, which has seen its market value plummet to less than $8bn in recent months.Stefano Pessina, the Italian dealmaker…

The world’s landmark Paris Agreement is “more fragile” than it has ever been and disagreements risk “imploding” it, the UK’s climate ambassador has warned.The seminal treaty obliges countries to produce regular plans on how they will cut greenhouse gas emissions in order to slow climate change. Since it was signed in 2015, predicted levels of global warming have fallen, the cost of wind and solar have plummeted and net zero targets have proliferated.But the Paris Agreement is “more fragile now than it has been in the nine years up to now”, the UK’s new climate envoy Rachel Kyte said yesterday…

Disney-centric influencer Dominique Brown has died after allegedly having a severe allergic reaction during a brand event in Los Angeles.The 34-year-old, known for helping foster a huge online community celebrating Disney culture, died on Thursday evening at a gathering hosted by the pop culture merchandise retailer BoxLunch, according to Sky News’ US partner NBC News. Emergency services were called to the event at Vibiana, cathedral-turned-event venue in downtown LA, after the DJ turned off the music to announce a medical issue and asked guests for an EpiPen, NBC News said.Boxlunch and Vibiana said they were conducting independent investigations.Ms Brown was…

Thames Water has revealed a 40% spike in sewage spills while warning that a looming decision on what it can charge customers is “fundamental to our future”.The UK’s biggest supplier, which has been battling to avert the prospect of a special administration amid a massive debt pile, has consistently argued that the regulator’s ruling on its request for an inflation-busting rise to charges could make it uninvestable. Thames, and the wider industry across England and Wales, is due to learn next week what Ofwat will allow bills to rise by over the next five years.Money latest: Inflation-busting rise in cost…

Google has revealed the UK’s most searched topics in 2024.After Oasis announced they were reuniting for a UK tour back in August, they instantly became the most searched musicians of the year, with ‘how to get Oasis tickets’ the second top trending ‘how to’ question of the year. Loads of us also asked when the US presidential election would be and searched for teenage darts sensation Luke Littler as he made history as the youngest player to reach the PDC World Championship final in January.Here are a few more of the top searches that defined 2024 in the UK.NewsHope, determination,…