Pret A Manger fined £800,000 after employee became stuck in freezer August 31, 2023 Pret A Manger has been fined £800,000 after one of its workers was left fearing for her life while stuck in one of its freezers. Westminster City Council said the employee became trapped in the walk-in commercial freezer, which typically has its temperature set at -18C, for two and a half hours while working at the [...]
Lego profits tumble as pandemic playday comes to an end August 30, 2023 The Lego Group has suffered a steep fall in profits, figures from its half year results show, as demand for the plastic bricks maker showed signs of dwindling amid a tough economic climate. Operating profit at the children’s toy brand reached DKK 6.4bn (£740m) during the first half of the year, down considerably from DKK [...]
Wilko: Union warns that job losses could be announced on Thursday August 30, 2023 Job losses at Wilko could reportedly be announced as soon as Thursday, after an offer to buy the entire 400-strong estate failed to pass “basic checks”, members from the GMB Union have warned. The union representing thousands of Wilko staff has now said that redundancy talks, which were suspended earlier this week, could be restarted. [...]
UK cybersecurity centre issues warning over use of AI chatbots August 30, 2023 British national security officials have warned organisations to take care when integrating artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots into their systems due to their susceptibility to manipulation and cyber risks. In a double blog post on Wednesday, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said all sectors should “exercise caution” when using large language models (LLMs), algorithms which [...]
Who are the frontrunners in the race to save Wilko? August 30, 2023 Why did Wilko go bust? A cocktail of dwindling demand for physical stores and competition in the discount market appeared to tip Wilko into administration. Even when a squeeze on public finances forced shoppers back to the high street in search of cheaper goods, they seemed to favour rivals B&M and Poundland when nabbing a [...]
It took Big Tech firms just six days to pay off $2bn in fines, new data shows August 30, 2023 Big Tech firms paid over $2bn (£1.6bn) in fines this year. But new data shows it took them just over six days to pay them off.
Mortgage approvals sink in July as market continues to cool on rising rates August 30, 2023 The number of mortgage approvals fell sharply in July as the housing market continues to cool off the back of rising interest rates.
Former British Airways boss criticises ‘staggering’ air traffic control failure August 30, 2023 The former boss of British Airways has criticized the UK's air traffic operator over the network failure that has led to thousands of flights being cancelled.
Bitcoin and Ethereum prices rise as crypto markets turn green August 30, 2023 Bitcoin is trading back above $27,000 for the first time since the sell-off a few weeks ago, while Ethereum is changing hands for $1.7k.
The Notebook: Rupak Ghose on the FTSE’s struggles, Goldman Sachs morale and the ludicrousness of LinkedIn ‘extreme CEO’ routines August 30, 2023 The fintech advisor on reinvigorating the stock market, fintech's payments problem and why nobody actually gets up at 4am to meditate