Report on big data

Rishi Sunak is to resist a massive tax claw back of the £400billion he’s spent on Covid in Wednesday’s Budget despite UK debt hitting £2.1trillion. In an exclusive interview shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds tells him: “Now is not the time.” Instead the Chancellor will give 700,000 shops, pubs, clubs, hotels, restaurants, gyms and hair salons up to £18,000 each to kickstart businesses after the Covid shutdown. Mr Sunak said of his £5billion Restart Grant scheme: “The extra cash will ensure our high street can open their doors with optimism.” Another £425million will go to local authorities to help businesses not covered by the scheme. The Chancellor will also boost the housing market with 95 per cent mortgages from April and a further three month Stamp Duty holiday. It means cash-strapped buyers will only need five per cent deposits on homes up to £600,000 with the Treasury guaranteeing the rest. Only eight low deposit mortgages are now on offer nationwide because of … [Read more...] about Budget at a glance – £18k for pubs, help to buy homes and no rise on booze

Millions of people are overspending on mobile phones to the tune of hundreds of pounds a year, a report has warned. Typically, customers who sign up to a smartphone contract will ditch their device after two years in exchange for a new handset – or continue on a rolling plan at the same monthly cost. However, on average, this is adding £300 to bills, with iPhone users overspending the most. The report, carried out by comparison website Uswitch.com for Mirror Money found bill payers could save £300 on average by switching their expiring contracts to a SIM-only deal. It found that with 98% of mobile phone contracts running for two years, consumers who purchased a new phone in February 2019, could be in line for a significant saving this March. Comparing two of the most popular mobile phone contracts from two years ago - the iPhone XR, and the Samsung Galaxy-S9 - smartphone users could save over £20 a month by switching to a SIM-only deal this month. Consumers who … [Read more...] about Simple text message that could knock £300 a year off your mobile phone bill

SHOPS, pubs, beauty salons and hairdressers will return from April 12 - and the PM will FINALLY reveal whether the nation can book a foreign summer holiday. Boris Johnson today outlined his plan for unlocking the nation - which will start in just two weeks' time. Read our UK lockdown live blog for the latest news and updates on Boris' roadmap... The PM told MPs in the House of Commons his "cautious but irreversible" plan today to get the country back to normal after the "extraordinary" success of Britain's speedy vaccine rollout. He hopes to get Britain booming and back to near normal by June, and give every adult a vaccine by the end of July. All restrictions will be lifted at the same time across England - with no more tiers in sight - but each step will be assessed against four tests before restrictions ease. He told MPs today: "Today the end really is in sight. A wretched year will soon give way to spring and summer that will be very different to … [Read more...] about Lockdown roadmap: Boris Johnson reveals shops, pubs & hairdressers will open & holiday plan will be unveiled on APRIL 12

A member of the elusive group behind the Golden Globes has gone on the record about the way the organisation works - following a slew of accusations that votes can easily be influenced and that it prohibits new members from joining. Husam Asi, a BBC Cinematic presenter, is a member of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), which organises and votes for the awards. He told Sky News the claims were unfounded and "mostly stem from jealously" among journalists who do not get the same access to stars, or invitations to trips and parties as HFPA members. Last week, an investigation by the LA Times claimed HFPA members were "routinely granted exclusive access to Hollywood power players, invited to junkets in exotic locales, put up in five-star hotels and, as Globes nominations near, lavished with gifts, dinners and star-studded parties". When asked if such access to Hollywood's top talent and invites to glamourous parties and dinners swayed HFPA members or coloured … [Read more...] about Golden Globes: Criticism of elusive group behind awards ‘mostly stems from jealousy’, member says

Scientists have defended the use of rapid coronavirus tests, saying they could act as "early warning systems" for local outbreaks ahead of a mass rollout by the government. Lateral flow tests (LFTs) have been used as part of mass testing schemes in Liverpool and Birmingham , but recent reports say they can be inaccurate. A group of scientists now believe, however, that disparities between the number of positive results showing up on rapid tests and lab-tested swabs could reveal whether a local outbreak is growing or shrinking. It comes as the government is reportedly preparing a new 'Are you ready? get testing, go' scheme that would see three million rapid tests handed out nationwide each week to help unlock parts of the economy. What are the different types of tests? The new commentary published in the Lancet says that if more people are testing positive by LFT tests relative to PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests then cases in that area are … [Read more...] about COVID-19: Rapid tests could work as ‘early warnings’ for local outbreaks, scientists say ahead of mass rollout