All posts tagged: massive

Rachel Reeves deals massive blow to 3 million Britons with pensions raid | Politics | News

Rachel Reeves deals massive blow to 3 million Britons with pensions raid | Politics | News

Published by Sam Flores

Rachel Reeves’s £5 billion raid on pensions will leave nearly three million workers poorer in retirement, official figures have revealed. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) estimates that around 2.9 million people will slash pension contributions once restrictions on salary sacrifice schemes take effect in 2029. Of those, 2.2 million are higher-rate taxpayers, but strikingly 666,000 are basic-rate earners on less than £50,271 a year. The data, released via a Freedom of Information request submitted by former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb, expose the wide-reaching impact of the policy announced in the Chancellor’s second Budget. Under the changes, workers will face a £2,000 cap on pension contributions via salary sacrifice before National Insurance (NI) becomes payable. The Treasury expects the move to raise £4 billion, with employers footing most of the bill through higher NI contributions — £3 billion of the total in 2029-30 alone. This comes on top of the £25 billion employer NI raid unveiled in Chancellor Ms Reeves’s maiden Budget, raising fresh concerns that the measures are becoming a stealth tax on jobs. …

I went to Ibiza and made one massive mistake – now I warn others ‘never do this’

I went to Ibiza and made one massive mistake – now I warn others ‘never do this’

Published by Sam Flores

Ibiza may be known as a major party hotspot for sun-seeking Brits, but on a recent visit I found out there’s so much more to the island. Fail to venture beyond the famous Sunset Strip and you’ll be missing out on a treasure trove of historic intrigue and natural beauty. After a rowdy flight and a monstrous queue at Ibiza Airport, I gratefully arrived at the Amàre Beach Hotel, which turned out to be an ideal hub for a mix of partying and relaxing. It was a short taxi ride to Ibiza Town where my fellow travellers (Ibiza veterans) made a beeline for the “high end” high street shops – reportedly far more moderately priced than our British counterparts. I didn’t join the, but instead headed for the main historic attraction, Dalt Vila, Ibiza’s fortified old town. One of the beautiful narrow streets of Ibiza old town This UNESCO World Heritage site dates back to the 16th century, when it was a major military fort, with seven bastion equipped to defend against seafaring forces. Today, …

Peter Phillips’ wedding guest list reveals massive shift in royal family’s inner circle

Peter Phillips’ wedding guest list reveals massive shift in royal family’s inner circle

Published by Daniella Wilson

We all love a royal wedding, and despite them coming along like buses a few years ago (three within a year), we have had a bit of a drought of late. But next weekend, royal watchers can rejoice as the family’s senior members regroup in celebration once again when the King’s nephew Peter Phillips marries paediatric nurse Harriet Sperling. Peter’s big day on 6 June won’t be on the same scale as previous royal weddings – only 150 guests will watch the happy couple say their vows in the pretty Cotswolds village of Kemble. Nevertheless, the guest list is as regal as it gets. The King and Queen Camilla are expected to attend, as are Prince William and Catherine, and of course Peter’s proud mother Princess Anne will be there too, as will his sister Zara Tindall, her husband Mike, and his cousins Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie. It’s certainly a right royal turnout, but perhaps even more interesting than who is on the guest list is who has been left off it – and what …

A massive rift is splitting Africa apart forming Earth’s sixth ocean

A massive rift is splitting Africa apart forming Earth’s sixth ocean

Published by Jenni Sidey

The desert floor in Ethiopia looks fixed and ancient, but it is moving. Across the Afar region and down the East African Rift, the African continent is being pulled apart by forces deep below the surface, setting up a process that could, over millions of years, create a new ocean basin. That idea can sound like science fiction because the motion is so slow. But the change is measurable, and in geological terms it is already underway. A study in Earth and Planetary Science Letters examined how the Nubian and Somalian plates are shifting relative to one another, using GPS data to refine where the boundary lies and how fast different parts of the region are opening. The picture that emerges is not of one dramatic break, but of a continent stretching, fracturing, and reorganizing itself in ways that are already visible from the ground. At the center of that story is the East African Rift, a vast system of extensional structures that runs from about 11 degrees north to roughly 20 degrees south. At …

23andMe Sued by California Over Massive 2023 Data Breach

23andMe Sued by California Over Massive 2023 Data Breach

Published by skeptic

California’s attorney general is suing the consumer genetics testing company formerly known as 23andMe, alleging the company failed to protect customers’ sensitive personal information in a massive 2023 data breach that exposed the ancestry and genetic data of nearly 7 million people. Attorney General Rob Bonta filed the lawsuit on Thursday in San Francisco Superior Court against Chrome Holding Co., formerly known as 23andMe, accusing the company of failing to properly investigate or respond to numerous warnings that its systems had been compromised. The company’s mail-in self-testing kits became synonymous with DNA testing before it filed for bankruptcy in 2025. In 2023, cybercriminals breached 23andMe’s systems by using a “credential-stuffing attack,” which involves bombarding online accounts with huge sets of user names and passwords stolen in previous unrelated attacks. Over a period of months, the intruders were able to make off with the personal data of more than 6.9 million people. “23andMe’s security measures were so lax that the threat actor was able to operate undetected within 23andMe’s systems for over five months, and remarkably, 23andMe only …

Robert Pattinson’s Massive Year Continues With ‘Primetime’ Trailer

Robert Pattinson’s Massive Year Continues With ‘Primetime’ Trailer

Published by Daniella Wilson

It will take you a minute to recognize Robert Pattinson’s voice in the new teaser trailer for Primetime (watch below), A24’s upcoming film in which he stars as broadcast journalist Chris Hansen, the face of the former Dateline NBC series To Catch a Predator. This has become something of a signature for the guy who’s brought wild vocal flair to everything from The Devil All the Time to Mickey 17 to Good Time. Here, the British actor appears to take on Hansen’s vocal patterns and tics with an eerie, off-kilter precision, as those familiar with the infamous true-crime host can attest. While a very small glimpse into what the characterization will look like — with an even shorter visual introduction — the trailer indicates that more chameleonic work from Pattinson is on the way.  Primetime is directed by the acclaimed documentarian Lance Oppenheim (Some Kind of Heaven, Ren Faire) in his narrative feature debut, and marks Pattinson’s first full feature-producing credit. It’s set in 2006, the year in which the bulk of the series’ episodes …

Europe heat wave breaks temperature records, generates massive solar power

Europe heat wave breaks temperature records, generates massive solar power

Published by Sam Flores

A major heat wave broke temperature records across northwest Europe this week, triggered water shortages in the U.K. and, ironically, sent power prices plunging — even into negative territory. Driven by a persistent high-pressure heat dome, the scorching conditions raised average temperatures by 16 to 27 degrees Fahrenheit above the norm across the region. London hit a May record of 95 degrees Tuesday, according to the Met Office. The system pushed away cloud cover across a wide swath of the U.K., leading to unusually sunny skies that intensified the heat while also boosting solar power generation. At its peak around midday Sunday, solar met almost half of the U.K.’s electricity demand — the highest ever, according to official data. The surge in renewable output weighed on Europe’s power market, pushing hourly prices in France below zero at one point. The searing early season heat is raising concerns about the effects of extreme weather as summer temperatures climb. Longer-term forecasts for the world’s fastest-warming continent show more heat waves in the months ahead, especially as high …

CBS stops its effort to halt sharing of Colbert’s public access show appearance after massive backlash

CBS stops its effort to halt sharing of Colbert’s public access show appearance after massive backlash

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter CBS slapped online users with requests that videos must be removed after they shared footage of Stephen Colbert’s surprise return to late-night television Friday, before the network swiftly backtracked on its copyright threats. Colbert thrilled fans just 24 hours after his departure from The Late Show by appearing as the host of Only in Monroe, the same local access show in Michigan he commandeered for one night shortly before starting his stint on the CBS program 11 years ago. Short clips and full uploads of the episode, which featured musician Jack White, a skit from actor Steve Buscemi, and a cameo from Eminem, were posted online before Colbert launched his own official YouTube channel, beating him to the punch. Media outlet The Desk was among the publications struck with a copyright infringement notice after its upload of the episode received more …

Russia batters Kyiv with massive missile and drone attack – POLITICO

Russia batters Kyiv with massive missile and drone attack – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Russia’s military pummeled Kyiv overnight with large-scale drone and missile attack that killed at least two people and injured scores of others, Ukrainian officials said on Sunday. Moscow’s forces used some 600 drones and 30 missiles, including at least one Oreshnik, a powerful hypersonic ballistic missile that is capable of carrying nuclear weapons, Ukraine’s air force said. “The largest number of missiles was directed at the capital — at ordinary residential buildings, at schools,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on X. “The Russian strike effectively destroyed the Chornobyl Museum, damaged the National Art Museum and the building housing the office of Germany’s ARD,” Zelenskyy said. Ukrainian intelligence services had warned of an attack using Oreshnik missiles on Friday, Zelenskyy said in another post. “The use of such weapons … also sets a global precedent for other potential aggressors,” he warned. The attack on Kyiv came after Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of carrying out an attack on student dormitory in Luhansk, in occupied eastern Ukraine, in which 18 people died. Putin …