Cambridgeshire County Council plans 4.99% council tax increase
Ben Schofield/BBC Council leader Lucy Nethsingha said next year’s budget would be “challenging” A council said it needed to make “difficult choices” as it proposed a maximum increase to next year’s tax bill. Cambridgeshire County Council suggested increasing its share of council tax by 4.99% in its budget proposal for 2025 to 2026. The authority […]
We’re too boring for kids for social media ban
Getty Images Career-networking site LinkedIn has told Australian lawmakers it is too dull for kids to warrant its inclusion in a proposed ban on social media for under 16 year olds. “LinkedIn simply does not have content interesting and appealing to minors,” the Microsoft-owned company said in a submission to an Australian senate committee. The […]
Stowaway caught on flight from New York to Paris
A stowaway flew from New York to Paris without a ticket earlier this week, but was discovered towards the end of the flight. The woman flew on a Delta Airlines flight from New York’s JFK International Airport to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport without a boarding pass on Tuesday, and was taken into custody upon […]
Time to get smartphones off the dancefloor?
Getty Images A new nightclub is opening this week with a strict rule that your smartphone camera must be covered with a sticker. Amber’s in Manchester is the latest in a handful of venues in the UK to enforce the policy – but in cities like Berlin, renowned for its nightclubs, it’s the norm. Amber’s […]
Pub beer garden to remain in Sheffield park at reduced cost
A pub can continue to use land in a nearby park as its beer garden after a new lease was agreed. The Waggon and Horses in Sheffield was granted permission to use part of Millhouses Park for outdoor seating for 10 years in August 2023. However, the day after the lease was signed, the pub’s […]
The hidden controversies of a video game that defined the US
Courtesy of HarperCollins Productions The Oregon Trail was once the most widely distributed software in US schools. It gripped a generation and changed gaming forever, but debates rage on about the history it depicts. In the autumn of 1997, I fired up my school computer and set out across the United States. I loaded my […]
Leave only moonprints: Nasa’s lunar recycling ambitions
Nasa/ Esa When astronauts land on the Moon again as part of the Artemis project, they will have to build a place to live in. Nasa wants them to build as much of it they can from used materials. When the first men landed on the Moon in 1969, sustainability was the least of their […]
Butchery apprenticeship to prevent Isle of Man staff shortages
A butchery apprenticeship programme has been launched at the Isle of Man’s abattoir to safeguard against future staff shortages in the industry. The initiative, being run by Isle of Man Meats, aims to give apprentices hands-on experience in all areas of the production process. Meant Plant bosses said the 18-month programme would address a growing […]
Spelthorne MP calls for new Surrey university for film industry
BBC Before becoming an MP, Lincoln Jopp was an officer in the British army and awarded the Military Cross. The new Conservative MP for Spelthorne has called for a college or university for the film industry to be based in the constituency. Shepperton Studios, which claims to be the second biggest film studio in the […]
North Wales firms pioneer low-carbon push to become ‘green hub’
BBC Material Evolution aims to produce 120,000 tonnes of low-carbon cement annually A low-carbon cement firm could be a step on the way to north Wales becoming the “green hub of Europe,” its boss has claimed. Material Evolution produces cement at its Wrexham base that it claims has 85% fewer emissions than many traditional products. […]