UK manufacturers to cut jobs ‘within weeks unless ministers can strike trade deal’

Britain’s manufacturers will start cutting jobs “within weeks” unless the government can strike a deal to safeguard the UK economy from Donald Trump’s trade war, industry leaders have told MPs.Senior executives from the UK’s automotive, manufacturing and energy sectors warned a committee of MPs to expect job losses this summer if the US moves ahead with a swathe of global trade tariffs set out by Trump earlier this month.The stark warning has emerged as the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, travels to the US to hold her first in-person meeting with her American counterpart, Scott Bessent, about striking a new trade agreement to soften the blow of Trump’s looming trade war.Otherwise, the UK government may need to put in place a Covid-style furlough scheme to cover the wages of those likely to lose their jobs this summer, the industry figures said.Mike Hawes, the chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), said Trump’s moves to upend the global economy were likely to have a “severe, significant and immediate” impact on high-end UK carmakers which serve the US market

British Steel halts redundancy plans after government rescue

British Steel will not continue with a consultation on making up to 2,700 steelworkers at its Scunthorpe plant redundant, after the government took control of the firm earlier this month.The Chinese company Jingye, which promised a “new chapter” when it bought British Steel in 2020, last month proposed closing Scunthorpe’s two blast furnaces, putting the roles under threat and ending Britain’s ability to produce steel from scratch.The UK government responded by recalling parliament to approve legislation granting ministers emergency powers to take control ofthe company and continue production at the site.British Steel confirmed on Tuesday that it had officially withdrawn redundancy consultation forms, formally bringing the process to an end.The decision comes after a frantic scramble at the highest level of government to secure a shipment of raw materials to feed the plant’s two furnaces, nicknamed Queen Anne and Queen Bess

Ofcom closes technical loophole used by criminals to intercept mobile calls and texts

The UK communications regulator Ofcom is banning mobile operators from leasing numbers that can be used by criminals to intercept and divert calls and messages, including security codes sent by banks to customers.Ofcom said it would stop the leasing of “global titles”, special types of phone numbers used by mobile networks to support services to make sure messages and calls reach the intended recipient.The regulator said until now global titles, which are used in the background of billions of calls and messages sent worldwide, could be leased out to third parties, providing a technical loophole whereby criminals could get hold of and intercept messages.Natalie Black, the director for networks and communications at Ofcom, said: “We are taking world-leading action to tackle the threat posed by criminals gaining access to mobile networks. Leased global titles are one of the most significant and persistent sources of malicious signalling

The US government is coming for Google and Meta – but what will happen next?

Hello, and welcome to TechScape. This week, Google and Meta take legal beatings while Microsoft faces a “tipping point” over Gaza.Google suffered another defeat last week in its clash with the Department of Justice, which has now won two separate cases arguing the company’s rise to power was aided by illegal and anticompetitive practices. The legal battles have placed the tech giant at the center of the government’s most significant antitrust action in decades, and left one of the world’s most valuable companies facing an uncertain future.A US federal judge in Virginia ruled on Thursday that Google had illegally built a monopoly over the online advertising industry, marking the company’s second major loss in an antitrust case in less than a year

Ben Youngs, England’s most-capped male player, to retire from rugby in June

The end of the road is finally approaching for England’s most-capped male player. Ben Youngs, who made a record 127 appearances for his country, has confirmed he will be retiring from professional rugby in June after more than 500 senior games for Leicester, England, the Barbarians and the British & Irish Lions in a career spanning 18 years.Youngs has been a one-club man since his Tigers debut as a 17-year-old in 2007 but, at 35, will hang up his boots at the end of the current Premiership season. A five-times Premiership winner and three times a runner-up, he has played 332 matches for Leicester to date. In an England jersey he appeared in four World Cups and toured Australia in 2013 with the Lions, alongside his brother Tom

Barry Hoban obituary

Barry Hoban, who has died aged 85, was one of the first generation of British cyclists to make a mark in European professional cycling, a prolific sprint winner whose UK record of eight stage wins in the Tour de France stood for 34 years until the greatest sprinter of them all, Mark Cavendish, reached his peak. His record of 11 Tour finishes from 12 starts stood until 2024 when it was eclipsed by Geraint Thomas.Hoban’s life was intimately entwined with that of the British star Tom Simpson, who died on the Tour in 1967; like Simpson he was based in Ghent, in Belgium, he married Simpson’s widow Helen, and the complex resonances of Simpson’s tragic demise remained with the couple decades later.Hoban was more than just a sprinter when it came to racing. He was a clear-headed tactician – lucide, as the French cycling slang has it – and had a photographic memory for race locations