‘Erratic’ Musk could cause Twitter’s downfall

The founder of Mastodon has said Twitter has a ‘real chance of disappearing’ under Elon Musk’s management which has seen the social media platform’s workforce of engineers decimated.

Eugen Rochko, a 29-year-old programmer from Germany who created Mastodon as a decentralised alternative to Twitter in 2017, called the billionaire CEO’s leadership style ‘erratic’, saying it showed ‘incompetence’.

‘I would say it shows incompetence and a lack of understanding of the industry that he’s entered and the platform that he’s now in charge of,’ Rochko told BBC Newsnight. ‘I would call (Mr Musk’s leadership style) erratic, and frankly, I’m not a fan of it.’

Higher taxes could be here for ‘several decades’

A ‘series of economic own goals’ has worsened Britain’s ‘long, hard, unpleasant journey’, economists have warned as they forecast Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s record-high taxes are ‘here to stay’.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said yesterday the biggest drop in living standards will ‘hit everyone’ but that ‘Middle England is set for a shock’ as taxes are hiked as wages fall.

‘The truth is we just got a lot poorer,’ the economic think tank’s director Paul Johnson said.

Public backs nurses striking over pay and patient care

More than seven in 10 people say it is acceptable for nurses to go on strike over pay and better patient care, according to a new poll.

The Ipsos survey for the PA news agency found 74 per cent of British adults felt it was acceptable for nurses to strike for better patient care, while 71 per cent said it was acceptable for them to take industrial action for a pay rise.

Holmes jailed for Theranos scam

A federal judge has sentenced disgraced Theranos chief executive Elizabeth Holmes to more than 11 years in prison for duping investors in the failed start-up that promised to revolutionise blood testing.

The sentence imposed by US District Judge Edward Davila was shorter than the 15-year penalty requested by federal prosecutors but far tougher than the leniency her legal team sought for the mother of a year-old son with another child on the way.

Holmes, who was chief executive throughout the company’s turbulent 15-year history, was convicted in January over the scheme, which revolved around the company’s claims to have developed a medical device that could detect a multitude of diseases and conditions from a few drops of blood. The technology never worked.

Children In Need 2022 raises more than £35m

Children In Need 2022 has raised more than £35m following its annual fundraising show.

Hosts Mel Giedroyc and Jason Manford revealed that £35,273,167 had been pledged when the BBC appeal show, which is in its 42nd year, ended yesterday.

Scotland and north-east England face further rail disruption

Disruption is expected on much of the rail network in Scotland and north-east England on Saturday following flooding and power cuts amid heavy rainfall.

Forecasters issued an amber rain warning for an area of north-east Scotland stretching from just north of Dundee up past Aberdeen yesterday.

National Rail says that speed restrictions will be in place on a number of routes in Scotland because of continuing poor weather, causing disruption until at least lunchtime.

Person swept into water in Aberdeenshire 

A person was swept into the River Don near Inverurie in Aberdeenshire yesterday as heavy rain continued to batter much of eastern Scotland.

The PA news agency understands they were attempting to rescue a dog near Monymusk at around 3pm.

Police Scotland confirmed emergency services were on the scene after a report of concern for a person in the water. The force said later in the evening searches for the person had been stood down. 

Friday Car Dealer headlines

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• Consumer confidence stays at near-historic low despite slight rise as cost-of-living crisis continues

Directors and two firms found guilty after five workers killed

Two company directors have been found guilty of safety failings after five agency workers at a metal recycling site were crushed to death when a 45-tonne wall collapsed.

A seven-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court was told the men died instantly while working in an area near the wall, which was holding back 263 tonnes of metal briquettes.

Labourers Almamo Jammeh, 45, Ousmane Diaby, 39, Bangally Dukuray, 55, Saibo Sillah, 42, and Mahamadou Jagana, 49, were pronounced dead at the scene in July 2016. 

Climate protester arrested over approaching Sir David Attenborough

A climate change protester has been arrested after reportedly approaching Sir David Attenborough at a Michelin-star restaurant on the south coast.

Dorset Police said Emma Smart, 45, was arrested on Thursday after allegedly causing a disturbance and refusing to comply with officers after they asked her to leave Catch At The Old Fish Market in Weymouth.

Animal Rebellion, the protest group behind Smart, said she approached the table where Sir David was dining in an attempt to deliver a letter to him, and shared images of her being dragged away by police at 8.45pm.

Households save money during test to help avoid blackouts

Octopus Energy customers managed to provide nearly half of the energy savings that National Grid wants from all British households as the company ran the first ever pay to save trial earlier this week.

The company said that its average customer who decided to take part had slashed their electricity use by around 59 per cent between 5pm and 6pm on Tuesday.

It was the first time that National Grid had run a service which allows households to be paid if they reduce their use during certain hours. Tuesday was only a test run, but the system could in future be used to avoid blackouts.

Council bans flying rings from its beaches to protect seals

A coastal council has voted to ban flying rings from all of its council-owned beaches after at least three seals got the plastic toys stuck around their necks.

The inquisitive animals each poked their heads through the hole of a flying ring around the Norfolk coast and then could not take it off, with the rigid plastic cutting into them as they grew bigger.

The Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk has now resolved to ban the plastic rings from its beaches, following a campaign launched by a member of the Friends of Horsey Seals volunteer group.

Oil giants drag as FTSE rises

Oil giants Shell and BP and some of the UK’s biggest banks were the few drags on an otherwise positive day for the top shares in London yesterday.

The FTSE 100 jumped by more than half a percent as traders prepared for the weekend, gaining nearly 39 points and ending the day at 7,385.52. BP and Shell were both down on the day as the price of Brent crude oil dipped three per cent to just over 87 dollars per barrel.

In Europe, the German Dax index rose by 1.2 per cent while France’s Cac 40 was up 1 per cent. 

Business rates slashed by millions for iconic British shops and hotels

Big high-street shops and hotels are set to save millions from tumbling taxes as the Treasury unveiled a package of support on business rates in Thursday’s autumn statement.

Iconic British department stores like Harrods and Selfridges and hotels like the Savoy and the Ritz will see their business rates bills slashed by up to half as a result of the new measures.

As part of the autumn statement, the Treasury announced a shake-up to business rates which will provide tax boosts for many high street businesses, with large warehouses for online rivals taking on more of the cost.

Weather outlook

It will be a chilly start for many western areas and there will be sunny spells for Wales, N Ireland and western England and Scotland. Further east it will remain cloudy with patchy outbreaks of rain, says the BBC.

A band of blustery rain will sweep across N Ireland this evening, and into much of the west later tonight. Outbreaks of rain will spread eastwards across England and Scotland through the night.

Outbreaks of rain will largely clear eastwards tomorrow morning and there will be sunny spells for many areas. Blustery showers will blow in from the west through the day affecting most western areas.

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