With the BMA making ‘impossible’ demands and Labour responding with Trumpian threats, negotiations are stuck – and it’s the NHS that will suffer What’s the off-ramp? When I ask one of the negotiating team close to the health secretary, the bleak answer is, “I don’t know.” Resident doctors in England are on another strike , for six days this time. Labour arrived in office bearing a 22.3% pay rise t...
With the BMA making ‘impossible’ demands and Labour responding with Trumpian threats, negotiations are stuck – and it’s the NHS that will suffer What’s the off-ramp? When I ask one of the negotiating team close to the health secretary, the bleak answer is, “I don’t know.” Resident doctors in England are on another strike , for six days this time. Labour arrived in office bearing a 22.3% pay rise to end the strike it inherited – and it thought it was all over. But within a year, doctors were out again. This time, negotiations over many weeks seemed to go well, but fell at the last fence: the doctors claimed there was a last-minute watering down and they returned to their fixed stand – restore their pay to its 2008 level, another 26%. “Impossible” is Wes Streeting’s line. He says resident doctors are “by a country mile the standout winners of the entire public sector workforce when it comes to pay rises”. Everything looks stuck, no pasaran on both sides. Why? Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
The four astronauts are set to touch down on Earth and conclude the 10-day mission after completing moon flyby The number of human beings who have travelled to the moon and returned safely to Earth will grow to 28 on Friday night when Nasa’s Orion capsule containing four Artemis II astronauts will glide gently to a Pacific Ocean splashdown beneath three giant parachutes. The scheduled 5.07pm PT la...
The four astronauts are set to touch down on Earth and conclude the 10-day mission after completing moon flyby The number of human beings who have travelled to the moon and returned safely to Earth will grow to 28 on Friday night when Nasa’s Orion capsule containing four Artemis II astronauts will glide gently to a Pacific Ocean splashdown beneath three giant parachutes. The scheduled 5.07pm PT landing (1.07am BST Saturday) off the coast of San Diego will mark the end of a 10-day lunar odyssey that made the three Americans and one Canadian the first people to travel beyond lower Earth orbit since the final mission of the Apollo program in December 1972. Continue reading...
Gay, fearless and utterly unique, Thornton had a hit with Hound Dog before Elvis – but was then fleeced and forgotten. One hundred years after her birth, a new documentary sets the record straight Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton exuded uncompromising intensity. Her voice conveyed struggle and defiance, fury and hurt, like few others. Standing at 6ft 2in, with an imposing physique and a razor-scarre...
Gay, fearless and utterly unique, Thornton had a hit with Hound Dog before Elvis – but was then fleeced and forgotten. One hundred years after her birth, a new documentary sets the record straight Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton exuded uncompromising intensity. Her voice conveyed struggle and defiance, fury and hurt, like few others. Standing at 6ft 2in, with an imposing physique and a razor-scarred face, she was a Black, gay multi-instrumentalist who refused to let a racist society or a rapacious industry confine her. Thornton should be ranked alongside the likes of Billie Holiday and Nina Simone, but instead she is little more than a footnote in the histories of Elvis Presley and Janis Joplin as the original voice behind songs they would make famous. A new documentary, Big Mama Thornton: I Can’t Be Anyone But Me, aims to right this wrong. Continue reading...
“Bloomberg: The China Show” is your definitive source for news and analysis on the world's second-biggest economy. From politics and policy to tech and trends, David Ingles and Yvonne Man give global investors unique insight, delivering in-depth discussions with the newsmakers who matter. (Source: Bloomberg)
“Bloomberg: The China Show” is your definitive source for news and analysis on the world's second-biggest economy. From politics and policy to tech and trends, David Ingles and Yvonne Man give global investors unique insight, delivering in-depth discussions with the newsmakers who matter. (Source: Bloomberg)
Porsche AG ’s first-quarter sales fell after a steep drop in China, where luxury spending remains subdued, compounding pressure from model transitions and slower demand for electrified cars in the US. Global deliveries slumped 15% in the period, dragged down by a decline in China, the sports-car maker said Friday, with European luxury brands facing an erosion in pricing power in the worlds’ bigges...
Porsche AG ’s first-quarter sales fell after a steep drop in China, where luxury spending remains subdued, compounding pressure from model transitions and slower demand for electrified cars in the US. Global deliveries slumped 15% in the period, dragged down by a decline in China, the sports-car maker said Friday, with European luxury brands facing an erosion in pricing power in the worlds’ biggest car market. The phaseout of combustion-engine versions of Porsche’s entry-level 718 sports car and comparisons with last year’s launch of the Macan electric SUV also weighed on performance. Like other European automakers, China remains a major drag. Deliveries there fell by roughly a fifth to 7,519 units, leaving Porsche selling more cars in Germany than in its former top market. Volumes are now about 73% below a post-pandemic peak of 28,085 during the third quarter of 2022. Read More: Mercedes Sales Drop as China Luxury-Car Slump Deepens The global sales downturn is forcing Porsche to rethink its strategy. New Chief Executive Officer Michael Leiters , who started in January, is planning further job cuts and weighing additional high-end models above the 911 to bolster margins. Porsche is also scaling back spending on electric vehicles after an overly ambitious push. Leiters is weighing further job cuts to add to the 3,900 previously agreed with labor representatives. US sales also declined in the first quarter, which Porsche attributed to a high base from stronger Macan EV volumes during last year’s launch period and the end of EV buying incentives. Germany was a bright spot, with sales rising 4%, while deliveries of the flagship 911 increased globally, led by higher-margin Turbo and GTS variants. The outlook faces fresh pressure closer to home, with Chinese automakers increasingly targeting Europe’s premium segment. BYD Co. ’s luxury Denza brand this week unveiled models for the region, including the flagship Z9GT — a roughly €100,000 ($116,850) EV capable of ultra-fast ...