Financial news

• Toby Jones praises ‘extraordinary dignity’ of Post Office accused

  01-06-2024 21:58
  
  Actor, who played campaigner Alan Bates in TV drama, calls Horizon scandal a ‘Hitchcockian nightmare’ at Hay festivalThe post office operators prosecuted in the Post Office Horizon scandal have “extraordinary dignity” after living 20 years in a “Hitchcockian nightmare”, according to actor Toby Jones.Jones played Alan Bates, a former post office operator and leading campaigner for justice for staff wrongly blamed for accounting shortfalls caused by faulty softw
  
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• ‘The first TikTok election’: are Sunak and Starmer’s digital campaigns winning over voters?

  01-06-2024 20:21
  
  The Tories and Labour are forking out more than ever on social media ads, but going viral isn’t easy. We speak to influencers and strategists about the messages and memesWhy would you hold an election in November? The question came from digital marketing guru Mike Harris and was asked in a message to his friend, Labour’s campaign manager, Morgan McSweeney, earlier this year. Digital advertising is more expensive in October and November because the internet is swamped with ads for Chr
  
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• Europe must splash the cash (and seize it) to save 2024

  01-06-2024 18:00
  
  There is still an expensive war to fight, and if EU and UK politicians insist on using taxpayer funds for it, there will be little left to spend on public servicesThere were hopes that 2024 would be a good year. Economists talked of a soft landing, by which they meant a solid rebound from last year’s high-inflation, high-interest shock. A drop in inflation would spark cuts to the cost of borrowing while trade expanded, unemployment stayed low, and household disposable incomes increased.Thi
  
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• Why Labour must adopt radical new tax policies | Colm Murphy and Patrick Diamond

  01-06-2024 17:00
  
  The Brown-era adage ‘Prudence with a purpose’ could be the way to obtain the economic stability that has eluded every UK government since the 2008 financial crisisKeir Starmer appears destined for Downing Street. Even so, as the election campaign rumbles on, his party will be challenged to articulate a compelling platform that secures not only the keys to Number 10 but also the economic stability that has eluded every UK government since the 2008 financial crisis. That will demand fi
  
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• Sure, Google’s AI overviews could be useful – if you like eating rocks | John Naughton

  01-06-2024 17:00
  
  The company that shaped the development of search engines is banking on chatbot-style summaries. But so far, its suggestions are pretty wildOnce upon a time, Google was great. For those who were online in 1998, history’s timeline bifurcated into two eras: BG (Before Google), and AG. It was elegant and clean: elegant because it was driven by a semi-objective algorithm called PageRank, which ranked websites according to how many other websites linked to them; and clean because it had no adve
  
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• Starmer must introduce wealth tax after Labour wins election, top Blair aide says

  01-06-2024 17:00
  
  Senior adviser who worked for Tony Blair and Gordon Brown says there is an ‘urgent imperative’ for a new government to address wealth inequality in BritainA key New Labour adviser who worked for Tony Blair and Gordon Brown in Downing Street says there is an “overwhelming economic and ethical case” for Keir Starmer’s party to impose higher taxes on wealth if it wins the general election.Writing in the Observer Patrick Diamond, professor of public policy at Queen Mary
  
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• Ticketmaster hit by data hack that may affect 560m customers

  01-06-2024 15:52
  
  Cybercrime group ShinyHunters reportedly demanding £400,000 ransom to prevent data being soldTicketmaster has been targeted in a cyber-attack, with hackers allegedly offering to sell customer data on the dark web, its parent company, Live Nation, has confirmed.The ShinyHunters hacking group is reportedly demanding about £400,000 in a ransom payment to prevent the data being sold. Continue reading...
  
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• Christie’s website hack shows how art world has become target for cybercrime

  01-06-2024 15:00
  
  Auction house hit by cyber-extortionist group RansomHub which claims to have sensitive information of at least 500,000 clientsA ransomware hack was the last thing the precarious fine art market needed – but that’s what it got when Christie’s website went down days before it began its all-important 20th and 21st century May auctions in New York.Guillaume Cerutti, CEO of the French-owned auctioneer, gently called the attack a “technology security incident”. Christie&r
  
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• It’s the age of Swiftonomics – but will Taylor Swift’s phenomenal success trickle down?

  01-06-2024 14:00
  
  Can one record-breaking megastar make a difference for struggling musicians and new artists?Taylor Swift’s new album, The Tortured Poets Department, is not one of her best. Critics have complained about its exhausting length (31 songs, two hours), subdued tone and lyrical wound-rubbing. Her decision to announce it at the Grammy awards, months before its release on 19 April, was widely seen as tacky, snatching the media spotlight from other winners.For any other artist, this might be a peri
  
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• ‘More than my weekly wages’: London’s Paddington attraction and the growing cost of kids’ days out

  01-06-2024 13:46
  
  A family of four can pay £176 to see the latest immersive experience – one of many that is putting a strain on families hit by the cost of living crisisAs half-term drew to a close in England, families short on inspiration might have been grateful to learn of a new day out: on Friday, the Paddington Bear Experience opened its doors in London, promising a “unique and fun-filled interactive experience” spanning more than 2,400 sq metres (26,000 sq ft) and including themed r
  
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• Donors raise $233,000 to give US cart pusher, 90, chance at retirement

  01-06-2024 13:00
  
  Dillon McCormick, an air force veteran, had been supporting himself by pushing carts in Louisiana’s triple-digit temperaturesThousands of people have donated about a quarter of a million dollars to a 90-year-old US air force veteran who has been financially supporting himself by pushing shopping carts at a grocery store in sweltering Louisiana – and now has the option of retiring if he wants thanks to the strangers’ generosity.The story centers on Dillon McCormick, who is among
  
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• Boeing’s largest plant in ‘panic mode’ amid safety crisis, say workers and union officials

  01-06-2024 12:00
  
  Managers in Washington accused of hounding staff to keep quiet over quality concerns, as employees point to union-bustingBoeing’s largest factory is in “panic mode”, according to workers and union officials, with managers accused of hounding staff to keep quiet over quality concerns.The US plane maker has been grappling with a safety crisis sparked by a cabin panel blowout during a flight in January, and intense scrutiny of its production line as regulators launched a string of
  
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• Finding a job in Ireland is easy. Finding a place to live is the hard bit

  01-06-2024 11:00
  
  Dublin does not seem a fair city to those who move there to work but can’t afford a home. Ireland’s coalition government says it is acting on housebuilding, but bosses and staff say it must try harderIreland’s economy is “absolutely booming,” says Stephen O’Dwyer, the founder and owner of Dublin’s Tang cafe/restaurant chain. “But it has left people facing a very unequal and difficult society to work in.”At the top of O’Dwyer’s con
  
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• Everton assessing ‘all options’ after proposed 777 takeover falls through

  01-06-2024 10:35
  
  Moshiri can talk to new buyers after latest deadline missed‘The club will continue to operate as usual,’ insist ToffeesEverton say they are assessing “all options for the club’s future ownership” after 777 Partners’ proposed takeover fell through.The club’s owner, Farhad Moshiri, was tied into a period of exclusivity with the troubled US investment group until 31 May and could not enter into alternative discussions. But 777 Partners’ purchase agree
  
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• Members only: are loyalty card discounts a good deal for UK consumers?

  01-06-2024 10:00
  
  The number of retailers offering special prices for members has soared. We asks if the price cuts are as good as they seemWhether you are buying clothes, garden furniture or groceries this summer, it is hard to avoid getting caught up in the loyalty card fever sweeping the high street.Do you want to pay the “member price” of £15.99 for some on-trend denim Bermuda shorts (or “jorts”) at H&M, or stump up £21.99? Continue reading...
  
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• ‘Yes, Lego car!’: why small electric cars could be about to break the grip of SUVs

  01-06-2024 08:00
  
  The 500kg Microlino is part of a new set challenging the ever-increasing domination of huge carsDriving through central London in a tiny Microlino electric car, barely visible between the hulking SUVs, it’s surprising to be the focus of so much attention. “Yes, Lego car!” shouts a scaffolder.Made by Micro, the family-owned Swiss company behind the mini-micro kick scooters, and modelled on the bubble cars that had a brief heyday in the 1950s, the two-seater is only 2.5 metres lo
  
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• Energy bills: a fixed-price deal could save you £150 next winter

  01-06-2024 08:00
  
  Ofgem’s price cap is likely to yo-yo over the next year – here’s how you could beat it by up to 12%Households struggling with near-£1,700-a-year gas and electricity bills that look set to seesaw over the coming months may want to consider a fixed-rate deal that could save them 12%, or £150, next winter.Last week, the regulator, Ofgem, announced the price cap that governs what most UK households pay will fall from an average of £1,690 a year to £1,56
  
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