6:08 am, May 19, 2024
Tony O’Reilly dies aged 88
Tony O’Reilly, one of Ireland’s leading business figures, has died at the age of 88.
O’Reilly, who was also known as a media magnate and international rugby player for Ireland and the British and Irish Lions, died in St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin yesterday after a short illness.
He pioneered the dairy brand Kerrygold in the 1960s and in 1973 took control of Independent Newspapers, publisher of the Irish Independent, Sunday Independent and Evening Herald, later becoming the chairman of the food giant Heinz in 1987.
Security guards in Jobcentres vote to strike in dispute over pay
More security guards working in Jobcentres across the UK have voted to strike in a dispute over pay.
Members of the GMB union have already taken industrial action and will walk out again tomorrow.
The Public and Commercial Services union announced yesterday that its members, employed by G4S Solutions on a private contract for the Department for Work and Pensions, have also voted to strike.
Protesters call for rent controls outside first minister’s residence
Protesters gathered outside Bute House yesterday to demand rent controls after statistics showed costs in Glasgow rose by nearly 100% in the past decade.
First minister John Swinney was urged to introduce rent controls by campaign group Living Rent, which rallied outside Bute House, his official residence in Edinburgh, in the same week the Scottish government declared a housing emergency.
Similar demonstrations took place in Aberdeen and Glasgow. Rent controls were abolished across the UK by Margaret Thatcher in 1988, and the last decade has seen rents increase by 62% across Scotland, rising by 88.5% in Edinburgh and 95.5% in Glasgow.
Marks & Spencer website and app back online
The website of high street giant Marks & Spencer is back online several hours after being hit with ‘a technical issue’.
The M&S app was also unavailable, customers reported. The store chain said the problem had been caused by a third party service provider.
Services were restored at 6pm yesterday. It’s understood the problem wasn’t hacking related.
Badenoch tells firms to quit political activism and focus on business
Business secretary Kemi Badenoch has told firms to focus on delivering for customers rather than ‘activism or political causes’.
She said there was a ‘creeping – and counter-productive – politicisation’ of business.
Badenoch, who was speaking in support of a research programme by the Policy Exchange think-tank on the issue, said some firms’ well-meaning ‘equality, diversity and inclusion’ initiatives ‘divide, rather than unify’.
Children take centre stage at Chelsea Flower Show as green issues high on agenda
Children are taking centre stage at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show, which is being billed as ‘one of the greenest’ in years with a focus on sustainability and the climate crisis.
The King and Queen as well as celebrities will get the first glimpse of this year’s event run by the Royal Horticultural Society in London tomorrow, before the world-famous show opens to the public on Tuesday.
But it is children who are getting a special role at Chelsea this year, with a ‘no adults allowed’ garden co-designed by a group of primary school pupils and the chance to judge the show gardens as junior judges for the first time.
Man accused of trying to kill Slovakia’s prime minister to remain behind bars
The man accused of attempting to assassinate Slovakia’s prime minister Robert Fico has been ordered to remain behind bars.
Prosecutors sought an order from Slovakia’s Specialised Criminal Court to detain the suspect because of fears he could escape or carry out other crimes, a court spokesperson said.
The nation’s leader is in a serious but stable condition after surviving multiple gunshot wounds on Wednesday, officials said. Prosecutors have told police not to publicly identify his alleged would-be assassin, who is understood to be 71-year-old poet and writer Juraj Cintula from Levice.
Climate protesters close Munich Airport after gluing themselves to runway
Six climate activists broke through a security fence at Munich Airport yesterday and glued themselves to access routes leading to runways, temporarily shutting down flights.
The activists from the group Last Generation were protesting against flying as the most polluting form of transportation, said the German news agency dpa. Police detained the six protesters.
Some 60 flights were cancelled during the disruption that lasted for a couple of hours and passengers were rebooked on alternative flights, airport spokesman Robert Wilhelm told dpa. Fourteen flights that were due to land in Munich were diverted to other airports, said police.
Cannabis worth £2.1m discovered following Co Tyrone searches
Two men have been arrested after suspected cannabis worth more than £2m was discovered following searches in Co Tyrone.
Officers carried out the searches under the Misuse of Drugs Act early yesterday at properties in Cookstown and Coalisland.
A PSNI spokesperson said: ‘A significant quantity of suspected cannabis with a street value thought to be in the region of £2.1m was discovered and seized, along with two vehicles and a number of other items.’
Yesterday’s headlines on Car Dealer you might have missed
- Video: Join us for an extended tour of Tom Hartley Junior’s multi-million-pound motors
- Trying to get Tesla’s shareholders to back Elon Musk’s pay deal ‘is like climbing Mount Everest’
- Teen spirit for Bowker Mini as it lends support to racing prodigy Ashley
Weather outlook
Today will see cloud, mist and fog clear for most to leave sunshine, says BBC Weather, but low cloud will linger on some North Sea coasts and north Scotland. A few showers will develop in the west during the afternoon.
Monday will be mostly dry and warm with lengthy spells of sunshine for most once early low cloud and fog burn away, but west Scotland and Northern Ireland will experience a few isolated showers in the afternoon.
