Campaigners urge Labour to block Cambridge sewage plant plan
PA Media Campaigners opposed to a new Cambridge sewage works have written to Labour Environment Secretary Steve Reed A campaign group against a plan to create a sewage works near their homes has asked the new Labour government to block the project. Save Honey Hill objects to Anglian Water’s plan to relocate a sewage treatment […]
Government to shorten HGV driver testing process
Getty Images The government is expected to announce a shake-up of the HGV driver testing process as soon as Thursday. It wants to fast track drivers into the haulage industry amid chronic shortages which have caused supply problems. The BBC understands that during meetings between government officials, hauliers and suppliers, the “penny finally dropped” that […]
Pound falls to lowest level against dollar since 1985
Getty Images The pound has plummeted to its lowest level against the US dollar since 1985. Sterling fell 0.64% to $1.145 on Wednesday afternoon – a level not seen in 37 years. The Bank of England said a weaker outlook for the UK economy as well as a stronger dollar were putting pressure on sterling. […]
Devizes pupil wins national coding competition with racing game
Family handout Wilf pictured with his winning game behind him A Wiltshire school pupil says he is “proud” to have won a national coding competition. Wilf, 10, from Wansdyke Primary School in Devizes, took joint first prize in Discovery Education 2024 Summer Coder Challenge. He designed a racing game using block coding to earn top […]
This ‘drawn-out’ and ‘self-important’ film proves the musical didn’t need to be split into two parts
Universal Pictures There are decent performances from Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande – but this flat opening instalment of The Wizard of Oz prequel may not convert those who aren’t already super-fans. One of the key things to know about Wicked, the big-screen adaptation of the smash-hit Broadway musical, is that it’s not actually a […]
Trowbridge man jailed for shining laser at police helicopter
The pilot – who was looking for a missing person – had to stop as a result of the laser beam A man has been jailed after shining a laser beam at a police helicopter, forcing it to abandon a search for a high-risk missing person. Nicholas Mutter, 41, of Swift Drive, Trowbridge, carried out […]
Are rural women smashing the glass ceiling of agriculture?
BEHROUZ MEHRI / AFP “We have a lot of yams, we just need buyers,” says Rosalina Ballesteros. In Montes de Maria, the hilly region on the northern coast of Colombia where she lives and works, they had a particularly good harvest this year – but demand is low and yams are rotting. So the community […]
‘I lost my best friend in a police shooting’
BBC Greg Crockett After a police officer shot and killed Greg Crockett’s best friend, he left Minnesota for good. Then in the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing, he decided he couldn’t stay away. How everything and nothing changed after the death of Philando Castile. Greg Crockett was sitting in the passenger seat of his grandfather’s […]
Tech firm sued by shareholders over IT global outage
Reuters A faulty CrowdStrike update crashed 8.5 million Microsoft Windows computers CrowdStrike is being sued by its shareholders after a faulty software update by the cybersecurity firm crashed more than eight million computers and caused chaos around the world. The lawsuit accuses the company of making “false and misleading” statements about its software testing. It […]
Richard Curtis’ new Netflix animated film about Christmases that go wrong
Netflix Santa Claus is voiced by Succession star Brian Cox, in a slightly less-sweary role than usual As we hurtle towards Mariah Carey’s most lucrative holiday, families all over the UK will be pressing play on Christmas films such as Love Actually to get themselves into the festive spirit. The 2003 movie was one of […]