HSBC becomes first big UK lender to cut its mortgage rates in 2026

HSBC has become the first major lender to cut mortgage rates this year, a move that could spark a price war over the coming months.The banking group, which is one of the UK’s largest mortgage lenders, has cut rates across a range of residential and landlord buy-to-let mortgage products. The new rates come into effect on Monday.The move follows a reduction in the Bank of England base rate in December to 3.75%

Battery electric cars will overtake diesels in Great Britain by 2030, analysis suggests

Battery electric cars are poised to overtake diesels on Great Britain’s roads by 2030, according to analysis that suggests London will be the first UK city to go diesel-free.The number of diesel cars on Great Britain’s roads in June had fallen to 9.9m in June last year, 21% below its peak of 12.4m vehicles, according to analysis by New AutoMotive, a thinktank focused on the transition to electric cars. Electric car sales are still growing rapidly, albeit more slowly than manufacturers had expected

World ‘may not have time’ to prepare for AI safety risks, says leading researcher

The world “may not have time” to prepare for the safety risks posed by cutting-edge AI systems, according to a leading figure at the UK government’s scientific research agency.David Dalrymple, a programme director and AI safety expert at the Aria agency, told the Guardian people should be concerned about the growing capability of the technology.“I think we should be concerned about systems that can perform all of the functions that humans perform to get things done in the world, but better,” he said. “We will be outcompeted in all of the domains that we need to be dominant in, in order to maintain control of our civilisation, society and planet.”Dalrymple said there was a gap in understanding between the public sector and AI companies about the power of looming breakthroughs in the technology

What happened after Tesla opened a diner in Los Angeles?

Less than six months since it opened, Elon Musk’s Tesla Diner has the feel of a ghost town. Gone is the Optimus robot serving popcorn, gone are the carnivore-diet-inspired “Epic Bacon” strips, gone are the hours-long, hundred-person lines wrapped around the block. Even the restaurant’s all-star chef, Eric Greenspan, is gone. The Hollywood burger-and-fries shop seems like a shell of the bustling eatery it was when it opened in late July.On a balmy Friday afternoon in December, the parking lot for Tesla car charging was, at best, half full

Saints v Falcons, Colts v Texans and Titans v Jaguars: NFL gameweek 18 updates – live

It’s GOOD! Saints 7-13 Falcons 8:51, 3rd quarterZ Gonzalez 51 yard field goalThe Saints chase down Kirk Cousins on 3rd down who has to just toss it away.Saints 7-10 Falcons 9:04, 3rd quarterKirk Cousins has still got it. The veteran throws a perfect arcing spiral over Drake London who reaches up to the top shelf and comes down with the grab on the sideline. A lovely 37-yard gain leaves 33 yard to go for the score.R Leonard rush for one yardThe rookie balling out as he bundles over

Billy Searle pulls the strings as Leicester prove too strong for Saracens

The temperature was zero at kick-off but when the pluses and minuses were totted up, Leicester were comfortably in credit and Saracens were out in the cold. A clinical and cohesive performance by Geoff Parling’s Tigers has them looking upwards, contemplating the playoffs, while the Saracens director of rugby, Mark McCall, must reflect on his team’s inconsistency. As the regular season reaches halfway this was a highly significant mid-table encounter: the Tigers in fifth, and sixth-placed Saracens still have ground to make up on the top four, but Leicester narrowed the gap with this accomplished win.There were plenty of illustrious names on the teamsheet but it was Billy Searle, the home fly-half, whose headline-grabbing performance won him player of the match. At 29, Searle has already played for five different professional clubs in England and three in France