United Kingdom

Covert government strategy to install electronic surveillance in shops raises issues around bias and data, and contrasts sharply with the EU ban to keep AI out of public spaces.

cross-posted from: https://kbin.social/m/[email protected]/t/267120

Survey reveals vast majority of childcare providers won’t increase capacity because of staff, cost or space concerns

Customers have just a couple of weeks left to use or swap their old stamps after Royal Mail introduced barcoded stamps last year to improve security and efficiency as part of the company’s modernisation drive.

In January, Royal Mail extended the deadline by six months for using non-barcoded stamps, following the introduction of barcoded stamps in February 2022. As a result, stamps featuring the late Queen’s profile that don’t have barcodes will soon be invalid.

You can swap old for new by sending them off - the Post Office (if you can find one) has envelopes.

edit: fixing information about swapping

UK VFX firm Misc Studios, which worked on the likes of Alex Garland movie Men and Amazon’s The Rig, has shuttered.

The Central London-based outfit called in administrators on July 12, according to Companies House.

Misc started accepting work in 2020, formally launched in 2022 with around 60 staff and had plans to expand to around 200 and open internationally.

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Misc did not respond to Deadline’s multiple requests for comment but we have heard that numerous VFX firms across the UK have been feeling the economic slump.

Earlier this month, we reported on around 70 layoffs at the UK HQ of VFX giant DNEG, comprising approximately 7.5% of the workforce. A recent LinkedIn post by a Bectu union official on the situation said the layoffs and closures were “sending shockwaves through the [VFX] community.”

Figures obtained by Lib Dems reveal need for eightfold increase to reach greenhouse gas emissions goal by 2050

cross-posted from: https://radiation.party/post/57534

[ comments | sourced from HackerNews ]

How we transformed a 5000 year old Fenland Black Oak into a spectacular 13 metre long ‘Table for the Nation’.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/2289402

“Those voters do not want to have a conversation about Brexit,” said Joshua Simons, the director of Labour Together, a think-tank close to Labour leadership. How dare they prioritise one group of voters over all others?

Ellwood thinks that the election will bring release and hope: “I can see all parties embracing the idea of rejoining the single market… I put money on it that it happens in the next five years.” After so many years of Brexit thought compliance, will this country be in a fit state to take such big steps? I don’t think so.

Byline Times digs into a new hard-right outfit boosted by Lord Bailey of Partygate

What are we going to do with those people who risked their lives on those boats crossing the channel? “Hang on lads, I’ve got a great idea!” Let’s lower the bar of humanity a little further. Not much room left, but those guys are still inventive. Fuck me

First-half results will anger consumer groups that have campaigned over treatment of vulnerable customers

The record-breaking UK heat experienced in 2022 will be regarded as a cool year by the end of this century, the Met Office says.

This kind of problem could lead to shops completely closing in some areas, making life even more difficult for locals. I don't blame the businesses for closing though, as it's potentially unprofitable, there is little help from police, and they'll likely struggle to find anyone willing to work in such places after a while.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/1767005

Kevin Spacey wept and said he was humbled after being cleared of sexual assault in one of the UK’s most high-profile #MeToo trials.

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The actor, who stood trial under his full name, Kevin Spacey Fowler, was found not guilty of nine sexual offences against four men in their 20s and 30s, between 2004 and 2013.

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Spacey had previously denied 12 charges – seven sexual assaults, three indecent assaults, one count of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, and one count of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.

A further charge of indecent assault was added mid-trial, taking to 13 the total number of alleged offences listed on the indictment.

Last Wednesday, the four indecent assault charges were struck off by the judge because of a “legal technicality”.

The court heard that two of the complainants in the case were pursuing Spacey in the civil courts.

Sadly, misogynistic sex crimes by members of the police are not a rarity. At the end of 2021, it was reported by the BBC that at least 750 allegations of sexual misconduct had been made against serving police officers in England and Wales during the previous five-year period. The largest police force, the Metropolitan police force, recorded 530 allegations of sexual offences by serving officers between 2016-2020 and between 2019 and 2022 there were 104 Met employees convicted of offences. This week, the head of the Met said the Met were reviewing 1633 cases of alleged sexual offences or domestic violence involving over 1000 staff over the last decade.

cross-posted from: https://radiation.party/post/55666

[ sourced from TechCrunch ]___