Author: SKYNEWS

The UK’s biggest housebuilders are set to pay a record sum to fund affordable housing after the competition regulator investigated sensitive information sharing among the firms. A total of £100m, paid for by seven companies, will go to affordable housing programmes across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, following a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) investigation. The inquiry was launched last year due to concerns that the companies were sharing commercially sensitive information, which could influence the prices of new homes.There was concern that the housebuilders – Barratt Redrow, Bellway, Berkeley Group, Bloor Homes, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry -…

Sean “Diddy” Combs has been found guilty of transportation for prostitution following a landmark trial in New York – but cleared of more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.The hip-hop mogul was accused by prosecutors of abusing and coercing three alleged victims, including his former long-term partner, singer and model Cassie Ventura, and other crimes including kidnapping, arson and blackmail. Jurors decided not all the allegations were proven – but Combs still faces several years in prison after being convicted of transporting people across the US, including Cassie and another former girlfriend “Jane”, and paying male escorts to…

The first hosepipe ban for this year has been declared in the UK.Yorkshire Water said restrictions will come into force across the region later this week in an effort to protect water supplies. In a report earlier this year, the Environment Agency (EA) warned England as a whole is facing huge public water shortages unless “urgent action” is taken.Check the latest weather forecast hereIt said the country faces a 5 billion litre a day shortfall for public water supplies by 2055 due to climate change, population growth, and environmental pressures. So what areas come under the new hosepipe ban, and…

The daughter of a Post Office victim has told Sky News she suffered “dark thoughts of suicide” in the years after her mother was accused of stealing.Kate Burrows was 14 years old when her mother Elaine Hood was prosecuted and subsequently convicted in 2003. The first public inquiry report on the Post Office – examining redress and the “human impact” of the scandal – is due to be published today.”I’ve suffered with panic attacks from about 14, 15 years old, and I still have them to this day,” Kate said.”I’ve been in and out of therapy for what feels like…

Actor Michael Madsen, who starred in a number of Quentin Tarantino films, has died at the age of 67. Chicago-born Madsen died on Thursday morning from cardiac arrest, his manager, Ron Smith said. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Watch Commander Christopher Jauregui said he was found unresponsive in his home in Malibu, California, on Thursday morning and pronounced dead. Image: Tarantino (2nd R) poses with (from L-R) Madsen, Kurt Russell and Tim Roth at a press line for The Hateful Eight. Pic: Reuters He appeared in dozens of films during a career that spanned more than 40 years, with screen…

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have lower levels of a gut microbe, new research suggests.PCOS is the most common hormonal condition in women of reproductive age and yet, despite being a leading cause of infertility, very little is known about what causes it or how to treat it. It can cause irregular or missed periods, excessive hair growth, weight gain and put women at higher risk for type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart problems and endometrial cancer.Aixia Liu at Zhejiang University in China and her colleagues monitored 220 women across 44 cities in China, half of whom had…

Post Office scandal victims are calling for redress schemes to be taken away from the government completely, ahead of the public inquiry publishing its first findings.Phase 1, which is due back on Tuesday, will report on the human impact of what happened as well as compensation schemes. “Take (them) off the government completely,” says Jo Hamilton OBE, a high-profile campaigner and former sub-postmistress, who was convicted of stealing from her branch in 2008.”It’s like the fox in charge of the hen house,” she adds, “because they were the only shareholders of Post Office”.”So they’re in it up to their necks……

Ozzy Osbourne has reunited with Black Sabbath and performed his final gig – telling fans “you’ve no idea how I feel – thank you from the bottom of my heart”, in an emotional but truly metal goodbye.Announced earlier this year, Back To The Beginning at Villa Park stadium was billed as the “final bow” for the man revered as a founder of heavy metal after several years of health problems, including Parkinson’s disease. Rising up on a black throne featuring jewelled skulls, the 76-year-old performed a solo set before being joined by his original bandmates – Terence “Geezer” Butler, Tony…

At least nine people in Europe have died in savage heat this week as a “silent killer” heatwave continues to bake the continent.In Italy, scorching temperatures of up to 38C forced officials to issue the most severe red alerts across 17 major cities, including Milan and Rome, while several regions banned outdoor work in the afternoon. But the sweltering conditions – locked in by a ‘heat dome’ hovering over Europe – have already been implicated in the death of at least one labourer.Local reports say Brahim Ait El Hajjam, 47, keeled over in the midday sun while pouring concrete in…

Zilch, the consumer lender which has become one of Britain’s fastest-growing fintech companies, has begun a search for international takeover targets as it accelerates its expansion ahead of a bumper stock market listing.Sky News understands that Zilch, which is run by co-founder Philip Belamant, is working with advisers to identify peers outside the UK which it can acquire in the coming months. The company, which is regulated in the UK and counts eBay among its investors, has amassed a customer base of more than five million people.Money latest: Another airline faces baggage fees investigation It is now among the UK’s…