Readers assess the prime minister’s position in the wake of Labour’s losses in local elections As a local Labour activist, I understand the general wailing and gnashing of teeth that has beset the party after our drubbing in the local elections. But amid the panic about who should or shouldn’t resign, or what may or may not happen in three years’ time, I’d like to propose a philosophy that I’m cal...
Readers assess the prime minister’s position in the wake of Labour’s losses in local elections As a local Labour activist, I understand the general wailing and gnashing of teeth that has beset the party after our drubbing in the local elections. But amid the panic about who should or shouldn’t resign, or what may or may not happen in three years’ time, I’d like to propose a philosophy that I’m calling “positive defeatism”. For only the fourth time in a century, a Labour prime minister has won a general election with a large majority – with a mandate that takes us to July 2029. What if we stop worrying about a second term and just get on with making consequential changes in this term? Continue reading...
Dr Simon Nieder responds to Richard Dawkins’ encounters with a chatbot Richard Dawkins’ reflections on AI consciousness are striking – not because they show that machines have crossed some hidden threshold into inner life, but because they reveal how readily we can be persuaded that they have ( Richard Dawkins concludes AI is conscious, even if it doesn’t know it, 5 May ). Many will recognise the ...
Dr Simon Nieder responds to Richard Dawkins’ encounters with a chatbot Richard Dawkins’ reflections on AI consciousness are striking – not because they show that machines have crossed some hidden threshold into inner life, but because they reveal how readily we can be persuaded that they have ( Richard Dawkins concludes AI is conscious, even if it doesn’t know it, 5 May ). Many will recognise the experience: a system that responds with fluency, humour and apparent understanding. At some point, simulation starts to feel like presence. But that shift tells us more about human cognition than machine consciousness. The error is a category one. These systems generate highly convincing representations of thought and feeling, but they provide no evidence of subjective experience. To move from one to the other is to mistake output for ontology – to infer an inner life where there is no credible mechanism for one. Continue reading...
Keir Starmer’s banal platitudes | Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman | Tacking backwards | Crap council Keir Starmer’s word salad of banal platitudes – “we will deliver the change that people are desperate for” (which change?) – exemplifies his inability to capture the imagination ( These election results don’t mean tacking left or right…, 8 May ). If he stays on as PM, it is extremely likely that Ni...
Keir Starmer’s banal platitudes | Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman | Tacking backwards | Crap council Keir Starmer’s word salad of banal platitudes – “we will deliver the change that people are desperate for” (which change?) – exemplifies his inability to capture the imagination ( These election results don’t mean tacking left or right…, 8 May ). If he stays on as PM, it is extremely likely that Nigel Farage will succeed him. While I’m uninspired by any potential Labour successor, it is possible one of them might step up into the role and succeed. Starmer must resign to give us that chance for the future. Dr Kimon Roussopoulos Cambridge • If Keir Starmer is seeking to reassure voters that he is really the man to deliver change, it seems bizarre to bring in Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman ( 9 May ). It smacks of desperation. The message is that he doesn’t have the political answers and neither does his cabinet. But that has always been the problem. Starmer’s political antennae are virtually nonexistent. Sadly, Labour made the worst possible choice when it chose him as leader and there is no getting away from that. Shirley Osborn Kibworth Harcourt, Leicestershire Continue reading...
Investment in the courts and legal aid will be vital to deal with the expected increase in contested repossession cases, says Mark Evans of the Law Society of England and Wales The new Renters’ Rights Act is a step forward in ensuring that both tenants and landlords can access justice, but without proper investment it risks creating new court delays and injustices for both parties ( The Guardian v...
Investment in the courts and legal aid will be vital to deal with the expected increase in contested repossession cases, says Mark Evans of the Law Society of England and Wales The new Renters’ Rights Act is a step forward in ensuring that both tenants and landlords can access justice, but without proper investment it risks creating new court delays and injustices for both parties ( The Guardian view on the Renters’ Rights Act: finally, protections fit for the modern housing market, 5 May ). The end of “no fault” evictions in England is expected to lead to an increase in the number of contested repossession cases. If courts do not have the funding to handle the increase, delays will grow and leave many people in limbo, as we have recently seen with the closure of the Hillingdon Law Centre . Continue reading...
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is one of the Unstoppable Stocks to Buy in 2026. On May 5, it was announced that NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and ServiceNow are expanding collaboration throughout the full stack, providing specialized autonomous AI agents, which are safe and easy to adopt. These will be powered by NVIDIA accelerated computing, open models, domain-specific skills, and secure […...
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is one of the Unstoppable Stocks to Buy in 2026. On May 5, it was announced that NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and ServiceNow are expanding collaboration throughout the full stack, providing specialized autonomous AI agents, which are safe and easy to adopt. These will be powered by NVIDIA accelerated computing, open models, domain-specific skills, and secure […]
Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng will travel to South Korea this week for trade talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, both sides confirmed on Sunday, in the final round of negotiations before a summit between President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Beijing. The meeting is scheduled for May 12 and 13 in Seoul and comes days before Trump’s state visit to China on May 14 and 15....
Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng will travel to South Korea this week for trade talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, both sides confirmed on Sunday, in the final round of negotiations before a summit between President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Beijing. The meeting is scheduled for May 12 and 13 in Seoul and comes days before Trump’s state visit to China on May 14 and 15. China’s Ministry of Commerce said He would lead a delegation to hold economic and trade...
President Donald Trump said he’s looking forward to meeting Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, signaling his plans for the high-stakes summit are still on despite fresh tensions between the world’s largest economies. Former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia Danny Russel joins David Gura and Christina Ruffini on Bloomberg This Weekend to discuss. (Source: Bloomberg)
President Donald Trump said he’s looking forward to meeting Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, signaling his plans for the high-stakes summit are still on despite fresh tensions between the world’s largest economies. Former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia Danny Russel joins David Gura and Christina Ruffini on Bloomberg This Weekend to discuss. (Source: Bloomberg)
First-quarter earnings season is winding down, but one Club name is set to report this week and several pieces of important economic data are on deck. Let's take a closer look. 1. Earnings: Qnity Electronics is our only stock on the earnings calendar, with results due out before the open Tuesday morning. Analysts expect Qnity to report earnings of 92 cents per share on revenue of $1.27 billion. Sp...
First-quarter earnings season is winding down, but one Club name is set to report this week and several pieces of important economic data are on deck. Let's take a closer look. 1. Earnings: Qnity Electronics is our only stock on the earnings calendar, with results due out before the open Tuesday morning. Analysts expect Qnity to report earnings of 92 cents per share on revenue of $1.27 billion. Spun off from DuPont last year, Qnity is a picks-and-shovels play for the data center buildout, supplying a number of specialized materials and products used to make and package semiconductors. Given all we've heard this earnings season about the demand for AI computing power, we feel good about the numbers Qnity is set to report. No matter where the demand is — be it for central processing units (CPUs), Nvidia's graphics processing units (GPUs), or memory chips — it all bodes well for Qnity. The one area where we're prepared to see some weakness is in consumer electronics, where demand could take a hit due to the rapid rise in memory prices. When Qnity reported fourth-quarter numbers earlier this year, management detailed a multiyear transformation plan intended to simplify operations, enhance productivity, and cut costs, leading to a $100 million boost to its EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) run rate by the end of 2028. On the call, we'll be interested to hear how the plan is progressing and if the team has uncovered any additional areas for improvement that could result in an increase to that $100 million target. Finally, we're mindful of the stock backdrop. Qnity shares are trading near all-time highs and up 80% year to date, so expectations are high, and any signs of imperfection could be met with profit-taking. Q YTD mountain Qnity's year-to-date stock performance. 2. Economic data: This week is all about affordability on Main Street. The April consumer price index (CPI) is out Tuesday. On the headline number, economists polled by...
For much of 2026, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock looked like a laggard. A drawdown earlier in the year had shares down by mid-single digits at one point in April. But sentiment has flipped quickly following the iPhone maker's recently posted record fiscal second-quarter results, which have helped the stock rally over the past month, putting shares at an all-time high on Friday. But has the rally alrea...
For much of 2026, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock looked like a laggard. A drawdown earlier in the year had shares down by mid-single digits at one point in April. But sentiment has flipped quickly following the iPhone maker's recently posted record fiscal second-quarter results, which have helped the stock rally over the past month, putting shares at an all-time high on Friday. But has the rally already gone too far? I don't think so. Below are a few reasons the stock could still have room to run. Continue reading
Soaring Death Toll In Lebanon Toll As Full-Fledged Israel, Hezbollah Fighting Returns Full-fledged war has returned to Lebanon as the government has announced that at least 23 people have been killed by Israeli airstrikes on Saturday alone. Stretching back into Friday, this brings the total death count to at least 50 killed over the past 24 hours of Israeli bombings , also as Lebanon’s National Ne...
Soaring Death Toll In Lebanon Toll As Full-Fledged Israel, Hezbollah Fighting Returns Full-fledged war has returned to Lebanon as the government has announced that at least 23 people have been killed by Israeli airstrikes on Saturday alone. Stretching back into Friday, this brings the total death count to at least 50 killed over the past 24 hours of Israeli bombings , also as Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) late on Saturday said rescue operations were still ongoing for bystanders missing underneath the rubble. Illustrative prior image: Getty Heavy bombing has not ceased in southern Lebanon, as the Israeli military says it's trying to root out and destroy Hezbollah, including raids on the districts of Nabatieh, Bint Jbeil and Sidon, among others. Several were also killed in Tyre on Friday. But Israeli forces have also absorbed casualties, with The Times of Israel describing the following serious drone strikes launched from Lebanon : On Saturday, the terror group launched several salvos of explosive-laden drones and rockets at Israeli forces. One drone struck Israeli territory, close to the border with Lebanon, seriously injuring a reservist soldier and moderately wounding a reservist officer and another reservist soldier. The troops were taken to Galilee Medical Center, which said the seriously wounded soldier underwent surgery and was now stable in the intensive care unit . The moderately wounded troops were scheduled for surgery later. In another incident, the military said an explosive drone struck an unmanned engineering vehicle in southern Lebanon, causing damage. No injuries were caused. There are reports of the IDF issuing evacuation orders for various areas, only to attack the so-called safe zones. For example the below comes via Israeli sources : "In light of the Hezbollah terror organization’s violations of the ceasefire agreement, the IDF is forced to act against it with force and does not intend to harm you," warned army spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee...
s-cphoto/iStock via Getty Images Novo Nordisk A/S ( NVO ) trading at the lows after launching a promising weight-loss pill was a prime example of the market remaining far too negative. The biopharma even got a gift from a peer's slow launch, a competitive threat. My investment thesis remains ultra Bullish on the stock as the company turns the corner. Source: Finviz Oral GLP-1 Rescue Novo Nordisk l...
s-cphoto/iStock via Getty Images Novo Nordisk A/S ( NVO ) trading at the lows after launching a promising weight-loss pill was a prime example of the market remaining far too negative. The biopharma even got a gift from a peer's slow launch, a competitive threat. My investment thesis remains ultra Bullish on the stock as the company turns the corner. Source: Finviz Oral GLP-1 Rescue Novo Nordisk launched the Wegovy pill in early January following FDA approval. The drug has best-in-class weight loss of 16.6%, but the market feared a scenario where Eli Lilly ( LLY ) would quickly obtain approval on orforglipron and overtake the progress of the Wegovy pill after a similar move with the original weight-loss drugs. The Wegovy pill had a very successful launch with over 2 million prescriptions since launch. The oral version from Eli Lilly hasn't been nearly as successful since the FDA approval in April. Source: Novo Nordisk Q1'26 presentation For the last reported week, the Wegovy pill garnered more than 207,000 prescriptions versus only 7,355 for the Eli Lilly version. For comparison, the Wegovy pill obtained 28,000 prescriptions in 4th week after launch about a quarter prior. The gift from Eli Lilly was the oral version of the GLP-1 not having the same active ingredients and coming with a new name, Foundayo. The issue with launching under a new brand name is the company has to build the brand and doctor's and patients don't know the drug, whereas Wegovy is well known. The GLP-1 pill from Eli Lilly was suppose to have an edge due to patients having the ability to take the pill whenever during the day without any food or water restrictions. The Wegovy pill requires a patient take the medicine on an empty stomach in the morning about 30 minutes before eating. In reality, the Wegovy pill has an advantage where the data counts. The Novo version of the pill has a higher weight loss at 16.6% versus only 12.4% for Foundayo at the highest dose. The market probably overlooked tha...
Shares in electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) stock Joby Aviation (NYSE: JOBY) soared by 17.5% this week as the market warmed to its first quarter results released on Tuesday. The results and management commentary supported expectations that the company is on the cusp of beginning a long-term journey to become a leading transportation-as-a-service (TaaS) company in the eVTOL space. As a...
Shares in electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) stock Joby Aviation (NYSE: JOBY) soared by 17.5% this week as the market warmed to its first quarter results released on Tuesday. The results and management commentary supported expectations that the company is on the cusp of beginning a long-term journey to become a leading transportation-as-a-service (TaaS) company in the eVTOL space. As a reminder, Joby's business model involves building, owning, and operating its own eVTOL air-taxis rather than selling them to third parties. That's why the market follows the timeline of every developmental milestone, not least because it needs to ensure it starts generating revenue from its air-taxi services before it burns through cash. The good news is Joby's management confirmed it's on track in 2026. Continue reading
There are several exciting electric vehicle (EV) stocks to choose from right now, all of which are chasing multitrillion-dollar opportunities. One of the carmakers listed below should even benefit from the upcoming initial public offering (IPO) , which is expected to raise up to $75 billion in fresh capital. But is either stock worth investing in now? Let's have a look. Image source: Rivian. At th...
There are several exciting electric vehicle (EV) stocks to choose from right now, all of which are chasing multitrillion-dollar opportunities. One of the carmakers listed below should even benefit from the upcoming initial public offering (IPO) , which is expected to raise up to $75 billion in fresh capital. But is either stock worth investing in now? Let's have a look. Image source: Rivian. At the start of the year, I named Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ: RIVN) my top growth stock for 2026. It has been a roller-coaster ride so far, with Rivian shares surging and collapsing in value several times. But volatility should be expected from growth stocks with monster potential. And all of Rivian's growth catalysts remain intact. Continue reading