Discrepancy in forecasts raises questions over government planning for net zeroOne vision of the UK’s future involves a decarbonised economy powered by clean, renewable energy. Another involves making the UK an AI superpower.The government departments responsible for these two visions do not appear to have agreed on their numbers. Continue reading...
Revised figures increase fears about how the energy-intensive sites could worsen the climate emergency The UK government vastly underestimated the climate impact of artificial intelligence, it has emerged, after officials raised their estimate of carbon emissions from the technology by a factor of more than 100.According to new data quietly published this week, energy use by AI datacentres in the UK could cause the emission of up to 123m tonnes of carbon dioxide (MtCO₂) – about as much as generated by 2.7 million people – over the next 10 years. Continue reading...
Homelessness charity distances itself after Osbourne says she plans to attend far-right ‘unite the kingdom’ marchThe homelessness charity Centrepoint has confirmed it will cut ties with its celebrity ambassador Sharon Osbourne after she expressed support for a far-right rally being organised by Tommy Robinson.The charity, of which the Prince of Wales is patron, has been forced to distance itself from comments made by Osbourne. The TV personality indicated this week that she would be attending an event organised in London by Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon. Continue reading...
Marie-Thérèse Ross was arrested on 1 April and held in a Louisiana facility by immigration officials A French woman in her eighties who was arrested and placed in a US immigration detention centre has flown home.Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained Marie-Thérèse Ross in Alabama on 1 April after she overstayed her 90-day visa, according to the US Department of Homeland Security. The 86-year-old widow was being held at a federal immigration detention facility in Louisiana. Continue reading...
Legally questionable confidentiality clause adopted almost word for word from demands of Microsoft and trade groupsMicrosoft and other US tech companies successfully lobbied the EU to hide the environmental toll of their datacentres, an investigation has found, with demands to block a database of green metrics from public view written almost word for word into EU rules.The secrecy provision, which the European Commission added to its proposal almost verbatim after industry lobbying in 2024, hinders scrutiny of the pollution that individual datacentres emit. It leaves researchers with just national-level summaries of their energy footprints. Continue reading...
Man initially charged in July but Australian federal police uncovered dozens more alleged offences after reviewing files on his devicesFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA former childcare employee accused of abusing children in his care has been hit with another 129 charges after investigators say they identified more victims.The man, aged in his 30s, was initially charged with eight counts of online child abuse material offences in July 2025 after years of alleged offending. Continue reading...
Transfer of medical services from hospital to former Wilko store is improving healthcare access and boosting footfallIt is a revolution that might just save the NHS – and the high street. Imagine being able to have your eyes tested, mole examined or get an appointment with a consultant without going to your local hospital – and maybe fit in some shopping or a cinema visit afterwards.That, increasingly, is what people in Barnsley are doing after an unprecedented relocation of medical services from the district general hospital into a purpose-built outpatients centre in the Alhambra shopping centre, which is getting a new lease of life thanks to the experiment. Continue reading...
Tech company has signed on to nine deals as it aims to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2040Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAmazon has entered power agreements with nine new renewable projects in New South Wales and Victoria, as the technology company seeks to source renewable power for its datacentre operations in Australia.The nine deals, including one windfarm and 10 solar and battery projects, will take the amount of renewable energy Amazon is sourcing in Australia from 430MW to nearly 1GW. Continue reading...
Datacentres ‘directly competing’ with possible residential builds near public transport, one council tells NSW inquiry, amid growing concernsGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastDatacentre developments are crowding out opportunities for housing and job-rich industries across Sydney, a New South Wales inquiry has heard, with one local council reporting a rise in blackouts linked to the industry’s expansion.Several Sydney councils, all facing an influx of datacentre developments, have raised concerns about the health, environmental and amenity impacts on their local communities in submissions to the state’s datacentre inquiry. Continue reading...