Young people bearing brunt of UK jobs downturn, thinktank warns

Young people are bearing the brunt of Britain’s jobs downturn, according to a report, before official figures this week that are expected to show the UK unemployment rate rising to 5.1%.The Resolution Foundation thinktank said a “jobs deficit” was pushing a growing number of graduates and non-graduates into unemployment as employers reduced hiring.City economists expect the unemployment rate to have edged up from 5% in September to 5.1% in October, in Tuesday’s update from the Office for National Statistics

Green sleeves? Laundry detergent being tweaked owing to gen Z’s love of matcha

It used to be curry sauce, egg yolk and red wine that ruined Britain’s clothes but in a sign of the times laundry detergents are being reformulated to tackle stains left by matcha lattes, Aperol spritz and bubble tea.In a month when year-end gongs are dished out, from BBC Sports Personality to Pantone’s Colour of 2026 (a white called “cloud dancer”), matcha has received the dubious accolade “stain of the year”.The honour has been handed to the Japanese green tea after it topped the inaugural “stains index”. The ranking, compiled by the washing detergent maker Unilever, identified “new and emerging stains based on evolving lifestyles and culture”.To this end, matcha, Aperol and bubble tea top what was an actual laundry list of the country’s hottest stains

Gavin Newsom pushes back on Trump AI executive order preempting state laws

The ink was barely dry on Donald Trump’s artificial intelligence executive order when Gavin Newsom came out swinging. Just hours after the order went public Thursday evening, the California governor issued a statement saying the presidential dictum, which seeks to block states from regulating AI of their own accord, advances “grift and corruption” instead of innovation.“President Trump and David Sacks aren’t making policy – they’re running a con,” Newsom said, referencing Trump’s AI adviser and crypto “czar”. “Every day, they push the limits to see how far they can take it.”Trump’s executive order is a major victory for tech companies that have campaigned against legislative barriers to developing and deploying their AI products

Crypto mogul Do Kwon sentenced to 15 years in prison for fraud

Do Kwon, the entrepreneur behind two cryptocurrencies that lost $40bn (£29.8bn) three years ago and caused the sector to crash, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for fraud.The South Korean, 34, had pleaded guilty to two counts of US charges of conspiracy to defraud and wire fraud.Kwon, who co-founded Singapore-based Terraform Labs and developed the TerraUSD and Luna currencies, was sentenced at a hearing in New York.The US district judge Paul Engelmayer called his crimes “a fraud of epic generational scale”

Prem Rugby to seek investors if RFU backs relegation-free franchise league

Prem Rugby is planning to launch a tender process to secure external investment in the competition after it has received formal approval from the Rugby Football Union to become a closed franchise league, which it expects will happen next year.The English top division engaged the investment bank Raine Group and the accountancy firm Deloitte to conduct a review of the sport’s finances and potential funding options this year, and is preparing to go to market in the second quarter of 2026.The Prem sold 27% of its commercial rights to the private equity firm CVC Capital Partners for around £200m six years ago, and will seek a further cash injection after a turbulent few years that resulted in three of its former clubs – Wasps, London Irish and Worcester Warriors – filing for bankruptcy.The New York-based Raine is understood to have attracted several inquiries from American investors looking to buy into English sport during its review, with interest in rugby expected to grow further before the 2031 World Cup, which will take place in the United States.The Prem has yet to decide whether to sell another stake or take on borrowing, with several different options expected to feature in the tender

Cricket commentator Michael Vaughan says hearing gunshots at Bondi was ‘terrifying’

The former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan has described hearing gunshots during the terrorist attack at a gathering to celebrate the first night of Hanukah at Sydney’s Bondi beach as “terrifying”.Vaughan, who is in Australia working as a media pundit for the Ashes series, said he was locked in a restaurant “a few hundred yards from the attack” with his wife, two daughters, sister-in-law and a friend.A father and son have been identified as the alleged shooters, with authorities confirming the death toll from the massacre targeting the Jewish community has risen to 15, including one child. One of the gunmen was also confirmed dead.Writing in the Telegraph, Vaughan said: “Like most people, I have been at home watching terrorist attacks unfold in London, or Manchester, near where I live