India beat New Zealand by four wickets to win Champions Trophy – as it happened
Just two buyers left in race to buy WH Smith high street division – report
There are only two buyers left in the race to buy retailer WH Smith’s ailing high street division, according to a report.The retail group confirmed in January it was seeking a buyer for its 500 UK high street shops, in a shake-up that would leave it free to focus on its more successful travel arm, where it has stores in railway stations, airports and hospitals in the UK and abroad.Restructuring firm Alteri and the Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital, both of which have experience in buying troubled retailers, are the only two parties remaining in talks about a deal, according to Sky News.The owner of HMV, Doug Putman, who was seen as a potential bidder for the chain, is reportedly no longer in talks with bankers at Greenhill about an offer.The Guardian understands that bidders have submitted first-round offers for the chain to WH Smith in the past few weeks, and the sale process is ongoing with the hope of a deal being completed in April
Postcode electricity pricing is a minefield for Ed Miliband
How would you prefer your electricity prices to be set – nationally or locally? There is little middle ground in the bitter lobbying battle over zonal pricing, the proposal that Great Britain’s electricity market should be split into regions with prices set by local supply and demand. The energy secretary, Ed Miliband, must decide in the next few months, in time for this summer’s auction for new wind and solar projects.One camp – led by Greg Jackson, the politically plugged-in founder of Octopus Energy, the UK’s biggest retail energy supplier – argues that customers’ bills will “skyrocket” unless zonal pricing is adopted. It points to the wasted money spent paying windfarms to shut down when, for example, it is blowing a gale in Shetland and the local grid is overloaded with more power than can be transported south.Constraint costs were about £1bn last year, according to figures from the National Energy System Operator (Neso)
Skype shutdown surfaces sweet memories: ‘I proposed marriage’
Microsoft announced on the last day of February that it would sunset Skype. By the time the death knell tolled, the video chatting software that once revolutionized communications had become a ghost of its former self. Experts chimed in with half-hearted eulogies for the platform that Microsoft spent years neglecting, yet few were surprised, and even fewer shed tears.The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link
Who bought this smoked salmon? How ‘AI agents’ will change the internet (and shopping lists)
Autonomous digital assistants are being developed that can carry out tasks on behalf of the user – including ordering the groceries. But if you don’t keep an eye on them, dinner might not be quite what you expect …I’m watching artificial intelligence order my groceries. Armed with my shopping list, it types each item into the search bar of a supermarket website, then uses its cursor to click. Watching what appears to be a digital ghost do this usually mundane task is strangely transfixing. “Are you sure it’s not just a person in India?” my husband asks, peering over my shoulder
Courtney-Bryant wins 3,000m European Indoor silver after Koster’s horror fall
Melissa Courtney-Bryant held her nerve – and her footing – amid one of the more disturbing scenes on an athletics track in recent memory to win a gutsy 3,000m European Indoor Championships silver medal.Early in the race, the Briton heard a scream and knew that the Dutch athlete Maureen Koster, her close friend, had crashed to the ground. What she didn’t know was that Koster had also smashed her head and was unconscious.As the athletes sped around the 200m track, officials rushed out to drag the unresponsive Koster off the track like a rag doll. No wonder the crowd went silent
Henley overhauls Morikawa with late eagle to win Arnold Palmer Invitational
The slowest of burners preceded such a dramatic conclusion. The biggest victory of Russell Henley’s career arrived as Collin Morikawa was left to ponder how on earth he failed to close out the Arnold Palmer Invitational. For much of Sunday, Morikawa had looked untouchable.Henley took to the 71st tee of the event holding the lead for the first time. He had claimed that with an astonishing chip in for an eagle on the 16th
Age, gender, education: the House of Lords in charts
Revealed: House of Lords members have given £109m to political parties
Labour MP warns party of ‘uncanny’ parallels with Germany’s defeated SPD
From Trump whisperer to trouble – angry Reform UK MPs turn on Farage
Unions on alert as Labour prepares to unveil ‘Trumpian’ plan for civil service
Keir Starmer’s poll ratings leap after Trump withdraws support for Ukraine