Government urged to help as shipmaker Harland & Wolff prepares to enter administration – as it happened

Newsflash: UK shipbuilder Harland & Wolff is preparing to fall into administration this week.The company, which owns the Belfast shipyard that once built the Titanic, has warned shareholders that its Board has concluded that the Company is insolvent on a balance sheet basis (where a company’s liabilities outweigh its assets).Accordingly, contingency planning for the making of an administration order and appointment of administrators from Teneo is underway, Harland & Wolff explains.That process is likely to start this week.Trading update from Harland & Wolff, confirms the company "is insolvent on a balance sheet basis", with preparations underway for the appointment of administrators from Teneo

What will new John Lewis chair Jason Tarry focus on as he starts work?

Jason Tarry was starting his first day as chairman of the John Lewis Partnership on Monday with a full in-tray, after his predecessor Sharon White signed over control on Friday.The former Tesco executive will be hoping to accelerate a nascent turnaround at the business, which owns the Waitrose supermarket chain and 34 department stores, sufficient to announce the first annual staff bonus in three years in March next year.Tarry brings significant retail experience to the role, with three decades spent with Tesco after joining its graduate scheme. At Britain’s biggest retailer, he cut costs – and jobs – and helped former chief executive Dave Lewis’s turnaround after an accounting scandal.Last week, the partnership’s chief executive, Nish Kankiwala, claimed “the buzz is back” as he announced that half-year pre-tax losses almost halved amid a recovery at the group’s supermarkets that offset falling sales at its department stores

Threatened US ban against TikTok ‘unconstitutional’, platform argues

TikTok took its case against a threatened US ban to a federal court on Monday where it contended that a law targeting the video platform was “unconstitutional”.TikTok argued its case to a three-judge panel at an appeals court in Washington DC on Monday. An attorney for TikTok and ByteDance, Andrew Pincus, said TikTok was entitled to a right to freedom of speech: “The speech here that is being banned, we would say, or at a minimum burned, is the speech of the US speaker,” Pincus said.In April, Joe Biden formally introduced a law that gives TikTok’s Chinese parent, ByteDance, until 19 January to sell its stake in the platform to an approved buyer, due to concerns that the app poses a national security threat.In the lawsuit contesting the threatened ban, TikTok and ByteDance argue that the law is unconstitutional and impossible to implement

iOS 18 release: everything you need to know about Apple’s big updates

Apple will release software updates for its iPhone, iPad, Mac and smartwatch on Monday, adding new features and designs for compatible devices.Announced at the company’s developer conference in June, iOS 18, iPadOS 18, watchOS 11 and macOS Sequoia add extensive new home screen and control centre customisation options, smart handwriting and maths tools for Notes and new watch faces, among other new features.Here’s what you need to know about the updates.Downloads for iOS, iPadOS, watchOS and macOS updates usually start at about 6pm UK time (1pm in New York; 3am Tuesday in Sydney). Unlike other manufacturers, all eligible Apple devices will be able to download and install the update the moment it is released rather than in a staggered fashion

Maguire hits out at captain Pettersen after lack of Solheim Cup playing time

The Solheim Cup had not even finished before recriminations around the defeated European team began but Suzann Pettersen, the captain, appears unmoved by any criticism of her leadership.Leona Maguire used the immediate aftermath of a singles win over Ally Ewing to take what was barely even a veiled swipe at Pettersen. Maguire, a star of Europe’s success in Toledo three years ago who was prominent again in Spain in 2023, featured in only one of four sessions before the Sunday singles. She labelled this a “bitter pill to swallow” and, while insisting she was a “team player”, appeared to question Pettersen’s judgment.“She didn’t give much reason, to be honest,” Maguire said of Pettersen

‘Laser-like focus’: Coe makes pitch for IOC presidency against tough field

Sebastian Coe has launched his bid to be the next president of the International Olympic Committee by stressing his experience and expertise, and by telling voters: “Olympic sport is fundamental to my DNA.”Coe, who is World Athletics president, is one of seven candidates for the biggest job in global sports politics. No Briton has held the presidency since the IOC was formed in 1894.But Coe, whose CV also includes being a double Olympic gold medallist and running the London 2012 Games, will face a tough challenge from a field that includes a Jordanian prince, a seven-time Olympian, and the well-connected son of a former IOC president. The global leaders of cycling, gymnastics and skiing have also put their names forward for the job of replacing Thomas Bach when he steps down next year