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Universal basic income could be used to soften hit from AI job losses in UK, minister says
January 29, 2026
Lord Stockwood says people in government ‘definitely’ talking about idea as technology disrupts industries • Business live – latest updates The UK could introduce a universal basic income (UBI) to protect workers in industries that are being disrupted by AI, the investment minister Jason Stockwood has said. “Bumpy” changes to society caused by the introduction…
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Pornhub to stop new UK users accessing site from next week
January 28, 2026
Company cites impact of mandatory age checks introduced in summer 2025 under the Online Safety Act Pornhub is to stop new users accessing its site in the UK from next week, citing the impact of mandatory age checks that were introduced last summer under the Online Safety Act. The pornography website, which is one of…
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Life after Molly: Ian Russell on big tech, his daughter’s death – and why a social media ban won’t work
January 26, 2026
Molly Russell was just 14 when she took her own life in 2017, and an inquest later found negative online content was a significant factor. With many people now pushing for teenagers to be kept off tech platforms, her father explains why he backs a different approach Ian Russell describes his life as being split…
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Schools in England should be phone-free all day, education secretary says
January 26, 2026
Bridget Phillipson says pupils should not use mobiles at any point, as Ofsted prepares to inspect compliance UK politics live – latest updates Schools should be phone-free throughout the entire day, the education secretary has told headteachers in England, stressing that pupils should not use the devices even as calculators or for research. Bridget Phillipson…
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Google AI Overviews cite YouTube more than any medical site for health queries, study suggests
January 25, 2026
Exclusive: German research into responses to health queries raises fresh questions about summaries seen by 2bn people a month • How the ‘confident authority’ of AI Overviews is putting public health at risk Google’s search feature AI Overviews cites YouTube more than any medical website when answering queries about health conditions, according to research that…
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Lords put pressure on Starmer with vote to ban social media for under-16s
January 22, 2026
Commons will now have to consider Tory-led amendment, which is likely to be supported by Labour MPs As a parent – and a Conservative – I know that banning social media for under-16s is the right thing to do The House of Lords has voted decisively for a ban on social media for under-16s in…
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UK study to examine effects of restricting social media for children
January 21, 2026
Trial involving 4,000 children will explore impact on mental health, sleep and time spent with friends and family A pioneering investigation into the impact of restricting social media access for children in the UK has been announced as politicians around the world consider action on the issue. In December, Australia became the first country to…
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More than 60 Labour MPs urge Starmer to back under-16s social media ban
January 19, 2026
Exclusive: Letter signed by figures on right and left of party says UK should follow Australia’s example by enacting ban More than 60 Labour MPs have written to Keir Starmer urging him to back a social media ban for under-16s, with peers due to vote on the issue this week. The MPs, who include select…
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AI companies will fail. We can salvage something from the wreckage | Cory Doctorow
January 19, 2026
AI is asbestos in the walls of our tech society, stuffed there by monopolists run amok. A serious fight against it must strike at its roots I am a science-fiction writer, which means that my job is to make up futuristic parables about our current techno-social arrangements to interrogate not just what a gadget does,…
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He called himself an ‘untouchable hacker god’. But who was behind the biggest crime Finland has ever known?
January 17, 2026
How would you feel if your therapist’s notes – your darkest thoughts and deepest feelings – were exposed to the world? For 33,000 Finnish people, that became a terrifying reality, with deadly consequences Tiina Parikka was half-naked when she read the email. It was a Saturday in late October 2020, and Parikka had spent the…
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