News

York has become the latest UK city to deny Uber a license to operate in the city. The historic town joins Yorkshire counterpart Sheffield in banning the taxi hailing app, with London famously leading the charge earlier this year. A committee at the City of York Council cited the number of complaints it had received about the service and a recent well-publicised data protection breach as reasons for the decision. Saf Din, chairman of the York Hackney Carriage Drivers Association,...

Pro-Leave daily The Express has dramatically backtracked on Brexit - admitting that the UK will be worse-off under "most plausible scenarios". The paper, which actively encouraged Brits to vote Leave before the referendum, has today published a damning report seemingly reversing its stance on the breakup. A report from the Rand Corporation found a no-Brexit deal would cost the UK nearly five per cent of its overall GDP – around £104 billion – over the course of ten years after...

The struggling honey bee could be saved by boosting its gut bacteria, according to new research. Just like humans, the vital pollinator has bugs in its intestinal tract that improves digestion and fuels health. But the system is much simpler, relying on only a few different species - compared to up to a thousand in ours. This has enabled scientists to identify those that allow them to digest a pollen rich diet - a breakthrough that could lead to bacterial...

Amazon drivers are being forced to deliver up to 200 parcels a day and urinate in plastic bottles so as not to leave their vans, a shocking new investigation has revealed. With deliveries ramping up ahead of Christmas a saddening report finds many drivers routinely exceed the legal maximum shift of 11 hours and finish their days dead on their feet. They also have so little time for food or toilet stops they snatch hurried meals on the run and urinate into...

Astronomy boffins have come up with a new modern day series of star constellations - which include famous names like Usain Bolt, Tim Peake and Sir David Attenborough. University of Birmingham scientists created the star-studded designs in a bid to get younger people more interested in the cosmos. In one of the constellations, Harry Potter’s glasses light up the night sky as a tribute to the famous author JK Rowling. Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt can also be seen pulling his...

A Tory aide raped a woman in his MP boss's office after a night of drinking in a parliamentary bar, a court heard. Samuel Armstrong, 24, the chief of staff to South Thanet MP Craig Mackinlay, is accused of carrying out the attack on October 14 last year. The distressed woman was then found wandering the corridors of Westminster before being found by cleaners, it was alleged. He is on trial at Southwark Crown Court charged with two charges of...

Environment Secretary Michael Gove has bowed to public pressure over animal sentience, saying he will "make Brexit work for animals". In a speech today he said he will enhance animal welfare standards, increasing the maximum prison sentence for 'animal cruelty' from six months to five years in England and Wales. He said: "Animals are sentient beings who feel pain and suffering, so we are writing that principle into law and ensuring that we protect their welfare. "We are a nation of...

After the chair of one of the country’s top NHS trusts resigned in protest against government NHS cuts making his and other hospital's job impossible, the shadow health secretary made an emergency statement to the House of Commons today. "Lord Kerslake said our NHS faces the tightest spending figures in recent times,” said Labour’s Jonathan Ashworth. “Doesn’t that mean like at Kings -  continued hospital deficits, growing waiting lists, greater rationing of care, the dropping of the 18 week target,...

German pilots are set to stage the first major strike in the low-cost carrier's history. Union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) made the call following similar threats from unions in Italy and Portugal who urged their members to walk out over pay and working conditions. The airline’s Dublin based pilots also threaten to take industrial action. The move comes after disruption in the summer caused by a shortage of pilots, many of whom had moved to rival firms. Europe’s largest short-haul airline now faces...