Go like hell

Big tech has crossed the Rubicon. Facebook has suspended the sitting president of the United States, and Twitter has banned him permanently. You don't have to like Donald Trump to find this terrifying. You can be appalled by his campaign of lies against the result of a free and fair election . And you can be horrified by the storming of the Capitol carried out in his name. But you should be alarmed by the precedent this sets. If the tech monopolies can deny a platform to the leader of the free world, then they can deny a voice to anyone. Twitter's reasoning for the ban sets the tone for more censorship to come. It cites two tweets which broke its rules. One in which Trump says he will not attend the inauguration of Joe Biden and another in which he says "American patriots" will have a "GIANT VOICE" in the future. The tweets are in the style we've come to expect from Trump. Neither incites violence directly, but in Twitter's view, they present a "risk" of incitement, because … [Read more...] about Like him or not, this censorship of Donald Trump has set a terrifying precedent

IF you’re one of the millions of people in the UK that suffers with chronic back pain, a weak core, digestive problems or bad posture - then a little know muscle could be to blame. The psoas muscle, pronounced so-ass, connects the spine to the top of the legs. It allows us to bend our legs towards our chest, assists in moving the leg forward when we walk or run and enables us to bend over. Sitting too long and make it tight, but activities like running, walking, cycling and even standing for too long can also make it strained. But as it's also connected to your fight or flight response - so the muscle will contract due to emotional or physical stresses. So whether you’ve had a car accident, a bad fall or suffered a bereavement your psoas will tighten. When you don’t release your psoas, it remains contracted and the end result is pain in your back. If it becomes too tight it can pull the pelvis forwards creating increased strain on the lower back and … [Read more...] about From chronic back pain to bad posture… the little known muscle that could be to blame – and how to stretch it

Footballers are fantastic liars. 'I don't listen to transfer speculation', 'I'm just concentrating on my football', and the classic 'I didn't touch him, ref!' - All porky pies. Every single time. But while deception is far from a foreign concept in the sport (just ask every winger with a mean step-over) breaking an actual promise is a big no-no - especially when it comes to fans, who let's be honest aren't exactly the forgiving type. After returning to Chelsea last summer Romelu Lukaku insisted he'd be there "for life", though his eternal pledge lasted less than 12 months, leaving Blues fans … a little peeved to say the least. But Big Rom isn't the first player to fail to keep his word, and he sure as hell won't be the last. So with that in mind, here are four other Premier League stars who broke promises to fans. READ MORE: Five words in Romelu Lukaku's Inter statement will rile Chelsea fans and Thomas Tuchel Sergio Aguero Sergio Aguero was reduced to tears … [Read more...] about Five footballers who broke promises after Romelu Lukaku returned to Chelsea ‘for life’

A post-Brexit crackdown on tech firms could damage innovation and hold back Britain's economic recovery, the UK boss of Google has warned at a Telegraph conference. Matt Brittin, Google's president of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, told the Technology Intelligence LIVE event that there had "never been a more important time for technology to help with a digitally-accelerated, sustainable recovery that works for everyone". He added it is "up to all of us to work together to play our part in an economic renewal and an economic recovery". Delivering a keynote speech on the first day of the conference, Mr Brittin said regulation is likely to be a key issue over the next 12 months and vowed to work with ministers "as they update the rules of the road". There is growing pressure for curbs on internet firms across the West amid fears they are destroying traditional jobs and aggressively seeking to reduce their taxes. The European Union is leading the charge, hitting Amazon … [Read more...] about Post-Brexit tech crackdown will harm UK economy, warns Google boss

The day after the UK voted to quit the European Union (EU), Baroness Martha Lane-Fox’s reaction was like much of the rest of the tech sector’s. “I was very upset,” she says. “It made me feel… uncomfortable.” As an industry, technology overwhelmingly opposed Brexit. At the time of the vote in 2016, around 90pc of those in the sector came out against leaving the European Union. Three years later, it’s time to move on, says the lastminute.com founder. While politicians have been wrangling over clauses, exit dates and transitional arrangements, behind the scenes the technology sector has been coming to grips with life outside the EU. And now, whilst many entrepreneurs in the space may not have voted for Brexit, they are starting to recognise the opportunities the historic break presents. “It’s a chance for us to reset the regulations,” Rob Kniaz, a partner at venture capital firm Hoxton Ventures explains. A chance, he says, to find the “sensible middle ground” … [Read more...] about How UK innovation can blossom post-Brexit by stripping away EU red tape

The tech giants will 'run rings around the Government' if duty of care laws simply adopt the companies' own rules, a group of senior peers have warned the Prime Minister. The cross-party House of Lords group, which includes the Bishop of Oxford Steven Croft and former children’s presenter Baroness Floella Benjamin, said the new online regulator had to be given ‘real powers’ to police social media algorithms that spread dangerous content. The warning comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson is currently considering proposals drawn up by the Home Secretary Priti Patel and culture secretary Oliver Dowden for imposing a statutory duty of care on tech companies to better protect their users. Under the proposals, which The Telegraph has campaigned for since 2018, a new online regulator - likely to be Ofcom - could levy huge fines and potentially prosecute executives of tech firms that breached the duty. Ministers have previously said they want the regulations to prevent a repeat of the … [Read more...] about Tech giants will ‘run rings’ round Government if duty of care only enforces companies’ rules, peers warn Prime Minister

Britain’s competition regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), has not had a good 2020. The Government ignored its recommendations made last year for a new regulator for the audit industry , and has not acted on the agency’s calls for stronger consumer protection powers. Its warnings to businesses against raising prices during Covid were criticised by economists for potentially leading to shortages of things like food and PPE . And the CMA’s chairman, ex-MP Andrew Tyrie, was ousted last month in a coup by board members unhappy with Tyrie’s political, attention-seeking style. This week it released the final report in its study of the digital advertising market . In it, the CMA concluded that the digital advertising market was uncompetitively dominated by Google and Facebook – Facebook via its social media apps, and Google via the popularity of Youtube, Google Search, and the company’s network of advertising on third party websites. The report is … [Read more...] about The UK has badly missed the mark on how to regulate Big Tech

Tech giants will face fines of up to 6pc of their turnover if they fail to take greater responsibility for policing their platforms, according to new EU regulations expected to be published next week. According to documents seen by the Financial Times , tech firms with more than 45m users will have to share data with authorities and researchers, vet third-party suppliers and be more transparent about disclosing targeted advertising. This is the first time the EU has defined which tech companies will be affected by the new rules. The document says such companies are targeted because of their “disproportionate influence” on European internet users. The reforms will form part of the EU's Digital Services and Digital Markets Acts, which are expected to be released in full on December 15. Time for Europe to set strong rules for the digital world for the next decade. @vestager , we are ready! #DigitalServicesAct #DigitalMarketsAct pic.twitter.com/BgiO6k2DiV — … [Read more...] about EU to slap fines of up to 6pc of global turnover on tech giants

US prosecutors have stepped up efforts to force Autonomy founder Mike Lynch to face American fraud charges , securing assurances from a federal court that the British entrepreneur will not spend the period of the trial in prison. A judge in San Francisco will order that Mr Lynch, who has been accused of a multibillion-dollar fraud against Hewlett Packard, will not be detained in the US if a British court orders his extradition to America. Mr Lynch, who denies fraud, is currently fighting US attempts to extradite him and has said that any charges against him should be brought in the UK, where Autonomy was based. A decision on his extradition is likely to take place after a multiday UK hearing in January, although any decision could then be appealed. US prosecutors asked District Judge Charles Breyer to make assurances that the court would not detain Mr Lynch, but merely restrict travel and monitor him. They said this would prevent his legal team from arguing against … [Read more...] about Mike Lynch avoids detention during US trial

Joe Biden won the US presidential election – with running mate Kamala Harris – after receiving  the most votes of any US candidate in history. It is widely expected that Biden will roll the clock back as much as possible to January 2017, when he and Barack Obama left office. Biden wasted no time signing executive orders , with his official schedule for January 20 showing he set aside 30 minutes in the afternoon to begin that process. Biden signed 17 orders and actions just hours after being sworn in as US leader to break from policies of departing President Donald Trump and set new paths on immigration, the environment, fighting Covid-19 and the economy. In first-day moves, he ended Trump’s much-assailed ban on visitors from several majority-Muslim countries and halted construction of the wall that Trump ordered on the US-Mexico border to stem illegal immigration. He also set a mask mandate on federal properties to stem the spread of Covid-19; restored protections of … [Read more...] about Joe Biden’s policies: The President’s views on Covid-19, immigration and the environment