United Kingdom

Key moments

• Victims named as Carol, Hannah and Louise Hunt, wife and daughters of the BBC’s John Hunt
• Clifford receives first aid after capture at cemetery " Suspect served in the armed forces briefly

cross-posted from: https://links.hackliberty.org/post/2079050

Secret international discussions have resulted in governments across the world imposing identical export controls on quantum computers, while refusing to disclose the scientific rationale behind the regulations. Although quantum computers theoretically have the potential to threaten national security by breaking encryption techniques, even the most advanced quantum computers currently in public existence are too small and too error-prone to achieve this, rendering the bans seemingly pointless.

The UK is one of the countries that has prohibited the export of quantum computers with 34 or more quantum bits, or qubits, and error rates below a certain threshold. The intention seems to be to restrict machines of a certain capability, but the UK government hasn’t explicitly said this. A New Scientist freedom of information request for a rationale behind these numbers was turned down on the grounds of national security.

France has also introduced export controls with the same specifications on qubit numbers and error rates, as has Spain and the Netherlands. Identical limits across European states might point to a European Union regulation, but that isn’t the case. A European Commission spokesperson told New Scientist that EU members are free to adopt national measures, rather than bloc-wide ones, for export restrictions. “Recent controls on quantum computers by Spain and France are examples of such national measures,” they said. They declined to explain why the figures in various EU export bans matched exactly, if these decisions had been reached independently.

A spokesperson for the French Embassy in London told New Scientist that the limit was set at a level “likely to represent a cyber risk”. They said that the controls were the same in France, the UK, the Netherlands and Spain because of “multilateral negotiations conducted over several years under the Wassenaar Arrangement”.

“The limits chosen are based on scientific analyses of the performance of quantum computers,” the spokesperson told New Scientist. But when asked for clarification on who performed the analysis or whether it would be publicly released, the spokesperson declined to comment further.

The Wassenaar Arrangement is a system adhered to by 42 participating states, including EU members, the UK, the US, Canada, Russia, Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland, that sets controls on the export of goods that could have military applications, known as dual-use technologies. Canada has also implemented identical wording on 34 qubits into a quantum computer export ban.

...

Christopher Monroe, who co-founded quantum computer company IonQ, says people in the industry have noticed the identical bans and have been discussing their criteria, but he has no information on where they have come from.

“I have no idea who determined the logic behind these numbers,” he says, but it may have something to do with the threshold for simulating a quantum computer on an ordinary computer. This becomes exponentially harder as the number of qubits rises, so Monroe believes that the rationale behind the ban could be to restrict quantum computers that are now too advanced to be simulated, even though such devices have no practical applications.

“The fallacy there is that just because you cannot simulate what the quantum computer is doing doesn’t make it useful. And by severely limiting research to progress in this grey area, it will surely stifle innovation,” he says.

Dyson has revealed plans for 1,000 job losses in the UK.

The manufacturer of innovative vacuum cleaners and other products said the cuts, which amount to more than a quarter of its UK workforce of 3,500, followed a review of its global needs.

It is understood that the decision is not linked to the UK general election, as the process had begun beforehand.

The company's founder Sir James Dyson had previously been critical of the Conservative government's approach to economic growth and science.

...

The billionaire entrepreneur, who spoke out in favour of Brexit, denied the move was a reaction to the UK's departure from the European Union.

Asia has long been Dyson's manufacturing base due to lower costs and its core growth market for sales.

By moving to Singapore, Dyson also took advantage of the EU's free trade agreement with the city state, averting Brexit trade rules.

Controversial social media influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been accused of failing to pay tax in any country on £21m of revenue from their online businesses earned between 2014 and 2022.

Devon and Cornwall Police are bringing a civil claim against the pair - and a third person referred to only as J - over unpaid tax, Westminster Magistrates' Court was told on Monday.

The court was also told the brothers had "a huge number of bank accounts" in the UK, seven of which have been frozen.

The police force is seeking around £2.8m in seven frozen bank accounts.

Sarah Clarke KC, for Devon and Cornwall Police, said that money "washed around UK bank accounts" that were used "as a mechanism for moving revenues from their business activities through a wide number of accounts".

"That's what tax evasion looks like, that's what money laundering looks like," she told the court.

The money came from products they sold online as well as their OnlyFans sites, the court heard.

"The poll suggests Sir Keir Starmer's party has won with an estimated overall majority of 170 seats - while the Conservatives, led by Rishi Sunak, look likely to record their lowest seat tally in the party's history."

cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/445597

A ban on politicians lying will be brought in before the 2026 Senedd [the Welsh parliament] elections, the Welsh government has promised.

Counsel General Mick Antoniw [...] promised that the law would disqualify Senedd politicians and candidates found guilty of deliberate deception from being a Member of the Senedd (MS). [...] It is not yet clear whether the proposed law would make lying a criminal offence or a civil sanction. [...] Mr. Antoniw said it was a "matter that goes to the heart of everyone".

The British founder of a charitable organisation providing support to frontline soldiers in Ukraine has died "like a hero in the battlefield".

Peter Fouché, 49, from Fulham, west London, died on 27 June while working as a combat medic on the front line in east Ukraine, his organisation Project Konstantin said.

It said in a statement on social media: "There are no words that can do Pete’s life justice."

The organisation, which was founded in 2022, provides vehicles, drones, uniforms and food to soldiers in Ukraine.

Halyna Zhuk, commercial director and co-founder of Project Konstantin, said Mr Fouché "lived like a hero and died like a hero in the battlefield".

'Endless compassion'

In a statement released on Monday, the organisation said: "It is with the heaviest of hearts that we announce the passing of Pete, our beloved director and founder.

"There are no words that can do Pete’s life justice. No words or phrases that could ever encapsulate how much he meant to all of us.

"Pete's unwavering dedication, endless compassion, and relentless commitment to Ukraine and her people have left an everlasting impact on the countless lives he touched.

"His heroism knew no bounds. He was actively involved in saving more than 200 wounded Ukrainian soldiers, evacuating civilians from the most dangerous frontline cities, as well as bringing humanitarian aid to people in those towns and cities.

"Pete’s bravery and selflessness in the face of danger were nothing short of extraordinary, and his actions will forever be etched in our hearts."

A spokesperson for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office confirmed it was supporting the family of a British man who died in Ukraine.

Pretty depressing reading.

[Edit] I had the archive link as a comment but this has gained enough traction that it's not obvious. Here it is again so you don't have to give FT any clicks https://archive.is/ypkln

J.K. Rowling is embroiled in a fresh row with another Harry Potter actor over transgender rights.

Following exchanges of fire with Daniel Radcliffe and others, Rowling has blasted David Tennant after the Goblet of Fire star voiced strident views on those who speak out against trans rights.

During an appearance at the British LGBT Awards over the weekend, he called on British equalities minister Kemi Badenoch to “shut up” after she advocated for banning trans women from entering women’s toilets and sports teams.

In an interview at the same event, Tennant called transgender critics “a tiny bunch of little whinging f*ckers who are on the wrong side of history, and they’ll all go away soon.”

Earlier in the week, Rowling branded people like Tennant the “gender Taliban.” In posts on X (once Twitter) on Friday, she expanded her comments to address Tennant’s “wrong side of history” quote.

Rowling wrote: “This man is talking about rape survivors who want female-only care, the nurses currently suing their health trust for making them change in front of a man, girls and women losing sporting opportunities to males and female prisoners incarcerated with convicted sex offenders.”

She added: “For a man who’s supposedly a model of compassion and tolerance, he sure does want a lot of people to cease to exist.”

Previously.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/259213

cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/259212

British authorities must reconsider whether to open an investigation into imports of cotton allegedly produced by slave labour in the Chinese region of Xinjiang, a London court ruled on Thursday, allowing an appeal by a Uyghur rights group.

The World Uyghur Congress, an international organisation of exiled Uyghur groups, took legal action against Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) after it declined to begin a criminal investigation. Rights groups and the U.S. government accuse China of widespread abuses of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in the western region of Xinjiang, from where the vast majority of Chinese-produced cotton emanates.

Beijing vigorously denies any abuses and its embassy in Washington has previously described allegations of forced labour as "nothing but a lie concocted by the U.S. side in an attempt to wantonly suppress Chinese enterprises".

"The Chinese government has made it very clear that the allegation of 'forced labour' in Xinjiang is nothing but an enormous lie propagated by anti-China elements to smear China," a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in London said. In its legal action, the World Uyghur Congress argued that the NCA wrongly failed to investigate whether cotton from Xinjiang amounts to "criminal property".

Last year, a judge at London's High Court ruled there was "clear and undisputed evidence of instances of cotton being manufactured ... by the use of detained and prison labour as well as by forced labour". But the legal challenge was dismissed on the grounds that the British authorities' approach to the law – which was that there has to be a clear link between alleged criminality and a specific product – was correct.

The Court of Appeal overturned that decision, ruling that "the question of whether to carry out an investigation ... will be remitted to the NCA for reconsideration".

Rahima Mahmut, UK Director of the World Uyghur Congress, described the ruling as "a monumental victory and a moral triumph". "This win represents a measure of justice for those Uyghurs and other Turkic people who have been tortured and subjected to slave labour," Mahmut said in a statement.

A spokesperson for the NCA said: "We respectfully note the judgment of the Court of Appeal and are considering our next steps."

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/23066599

Since 2017, Wikipedia editors have compiled a list of news sources from which articles are highly likely to employ systematic bias, lack professional editing and/or journalistic standards, regularly misrepresent sources, and/or fabricate information.

While its list is by no means a complete list of publications with the aforementioned problems, it has helped make Wikipedia articles more reliable by basing them off of sources covering the same events and information from a less biased point of view.

To make Lemmy news communities better than their Reddit counterparts, I think avoiding links to those sources in favor of more reliable alternatives would be worthwhile.

Britain is in a poverty crisis. Over 14 million people (one in five) are living in poverty. Of these, 4 million, including 1 million children, are classed as destitute: regularly unable to meet basic needs for shelter, warmth, food and clothing.

Cuts to the welfare state over the last decade have contributed to a deepening of poverty in Britain not seen in any of its European neighbours. What sets Britain apart (and has made it possible for these cuts to continue) is the intense stigma placed on people living in poverty and who receive state benefits.

Stigma sorts people into two categories “the deserving” and “the undeserving”. Elderly (pension-aged) citizens, children and disabled people have tended to fall into the deserving category, while people deemed able-bodied and hence able to work are viewed more harshly if they receive support.

This has been seen throughout this election campaign, in discussions about getting people back into work. Rishi Sunak has said that the Conservatives intend to cut the welfare bill by getting people into work. In the last debate, he said it was “not fair” for people on benefits to not take a job they are offered after 12 months out of work. The implication here is that some people who receive benefits are cheating the system.