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Asbestos was banned in 1999, but as materials left in our buildings deteriorate, thousands of lives are being lost every yearHelen Bone was diagnosed with an asbestos-related cancer in 2021. She was 38. The type of cancer, mesothelioma, is incurable; the best prognosis is a few years, though most people don't get that long. “You always think of asbestos as a disease from decades ago – affecting men who worked in heavy industry – so to be diagnosed in my 30s is shocking,” she told the Northern Echo in 2022. “I want to see my children grow up but now I have to come to terms with the thought that this might not happen.” Sadly, Bone passed away in November last year, just three years after her diagnosis.For most people, the word “asbestos” will evoke previous eras: dusty Victorian and Edwardian factories; the shipyards of the interwar period; postwar building sites. Yet asbestos was not banned in the UK until 1999. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), it still kills around 5,00...

Liverpool was once praised for its tolerance, but housing shortages are driving fearful, unsettling behaviours – and people are blaming outsidersHere is the dream, if you can afford it: gleaming apartments, close to Liverpool's waterfront, complete with penthouse swimming pools with views of the north Wales mountains, and sumptuous rooftop gardens. They are mostly bought by investors who then rent them to local professionals: three years ago, a report on early sales of flats in one development said that 40% of early buyers were from Australia, China or Singapore.Ten minutes' walk away, you can witness a very different spectacle. Every Monday night, a charity called Liverpool In Arms hands out food in the city centre, to queues of people. Some are homeless; others have a house or flat to live in, but can't afford to eat. While I was reporting on the city's housing crisis for the Guardian's video series Anywhere But Westminster, I watched its volunteers in action for the best part of an hour: they to...

Rooney and Beckham also on ambassadorial shortlistGroup is seeking finance before approaching GlazersEric Cantona has been approached by a consortium of investors based in the United Arab Emirates to act as an ambassador for a potential bid to buy Manchester United. Wayne Rooney and David Beckham are also on the group's radar for similar roles.The consortium is still being put together as it seeks the finance to firm up its interest in buying the club before it can approach the six Glazer siblings, who collectively are ­United's majority owners. The UAE‑based group is intent on ­having prominent former United players as ambassadors as part of this process. Continue reading......

Owner of London-based immersive film and TV business sold for undisclosed sum to Ari Emanuel's MariExperiential entertainment is having a gold rush but commercial success is far from certainThe parent company behind Secret Cinema, the London-based immersive film and TV business, has been bought by the Hollywood power broker Ari Emanuel.TodayTix, which is changing hands for an undisclosed sum, marks the latest acquisition by Emanuel's new global events company, Mari, which bought the Frieze global art fair and publishing group in May for $200m (£148m). Continue reading......

GDP rises by 4.8% year on year between July and September, down from the second-quarter growth rate of 5.2%Business live – latest updatesChina's economy grew at its slowest pace in a year in the latest quarter amid a trade war with the US and long-running woes in its property market.Fragile domestic demand has left China's economy heavily reliant on manufacturing and trade, at a time of mounting tensions with the Donald Trump administration. Continue reading......

Nigel Farage's party reported to have exceeded £90,000 threshold due to ticket sales for Birmingham conferenceReform UK has launched an investigation into whether it underpaid VAT on thousands of pounds of ticket sales and merchandise.Nigel Farage's party, which is leading in the public opinion polls, said it was reviewing its tax affairs after a Times investigation alleged it may have breached the law and could face a fine from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Continue reading......

With more than 1,600 screens, people share how local-run venues have taken them on a film-worthy adventureThirty years ago, the battle to save a cinema would take Jan Dunn and her community on an adventure worthy of a film itself.When she heard that the Apollo, the last cinema in the area, was closing, she got together with a group of women who rescued it from demolition, and so was born the Plaza community cinema, run by volunteers and a handful of employees. Continue reading......

New chief executive Luca de Meo aims to bring down debt burden and refocus on core fashion businessBusiness live – latest updatesGucci owner Kering is selling its beauty division to L'Oréal for €4bn (£3.5bn), as its new chief executive Luca de Meo seeks to turn around the French luxury company.The deal will give French beauty group L'Oréal Kering's fragrance line Creed, which was founded in 1760. The deal also includes future rights to develop fragrance and beauty products under Kering's fashion labels Gucci, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga under a 50-year exclusive licence. Continue reading......

The RIBA and Fawcett Society survey finds many are afraid to report bullying, sexual harassment and unequal payTwo decades after a seminal report on sexism in architecture, women are still abandoning the profession because of “toxic workplace cultures”, sexual harassment, long hours and unequal pay, according to a report from the Royal Institute of British Architects (the RIBA).Female architects still faced intractable barriers, including “long hours being glorified, an imbalance of power between employers and employees, lack of clear policies and proactive action, and stark displays of sexism within practices”, according to the RIBA Build It Together report, produced with the equality charity the Fawcett Society.Half of all female respondents had experienced bullying at workA third had been sexually harassedA majority felt their architecture career progression had been stymied by having children Continue reading......

Discount retailer looks for successor for Mike Schmidt, who is stepping down as chief financial officerBusiness live – latest updatesThe discount retailer B&M has ousted its finance chief after reporting a £7m accounts blunder that will cut its annual earnings – its second profit warning within two weeks.The company told investors it looking for a successor to Mike Schmidt, who is stepping down as chief financial officer, after the accounting error. Continue reading......

Social media didn't live up to its promises. So why do we think artificial intelligence will be any better?Get our weekend culture and lifestyle emailThere is a “hype cycle” that maps the euphoria and hysteria generated by new technology and then the consequent plunge into the “trough of disillusionment” when it fails to deliver on its promises.The Gartner Hype Cycle was coined in 1995, timely for the dotcom boom, and now traces the trajectory of artificial intelligence. We are at the “peak of inflated expectations” before we nosedive into that aforementioned disillusionment. Some would say we are already in freefall, with companies struggling to convert their investments into productivity. Continue reading......

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsChina's new home prices fell at the fastest pace in 11 months in September, worsening the property sector's drag on the economy.New home prices fell 0.4% month-on-month, following a 0.3% fall in August, according to calculations by Reuters based on National Bureau of Statistics data. Year-on-year, prices fell 2.2% in September versus a 2.5% drop in August. Continue reading......

Plug-in hybrids pollute more than their manufacturers claim – and delay the real shift to electric and shared mobility“Why the future is hybrid,” chirruped the Economist in 2004. While electric vehicles (EVs) looked like science fiction, that prediction looked prescient. Fast‑forward 20 years and battery technology has improved dramatically; EVs are affordable. Last week it emerged that plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) aren't very green. The sales pitch had been that motorists could use “clean” battery power for city jaunts and dirty petrol for longer trips. This promised sustainable travel without the anxiety of a limited range. But real‑world tests, by the European non-profit Transport and Environment, show that PHEVs emit just 19% less carbon dioxide than petrol and diesel cars – far short of the 75% claimed in the lab.Hybrid vehicles are, however, very profitable. Carmakers can charge top dollar for what are essentially re-engineered petrol cars with a battery bolted...

Exodus of big clients, falling profits and dire forecasts raise prospect of a once 'unthinkable' breakupA dark joke is doing the rounds in adland that Wire and Plastic Products, the Kent-based basketmaker that Martin Sorrell bought 40 years ago as a vehicle to build a global advertising giant, might outlast WPP.For decades the financial success and dominance of WPP – its 100,000 employees service global clients from Ford to Coca-Cola – has been the corporate manifestation of Britain's shining reputation for creative advertising. Continue reading......

Plans to secure loan with Russian funds 'moving to happy resolution', says Polish foreign ministerEuropean leaders, including in the UK, are increasingly confident a proposal to lend Ukraine €140bn (£159bn) secured on frozen Russian central bank deposits can be agreed by the end of the year, in a move deemed critical for Kyiv to maintain its defence effort.Proposals from the European Commission were discussed at a meeting of G7 finance ministers in Washington last week and will be debated at an EU leaders summit on Thursday in Brussels. US participation remains uncertain. Continue reading......

Exclusive: Housing secretary and capital's mayor face calls from within party for rethink on homebuilding plansLabour MPs are urging ministers and the London mayor to drop controversial plans to reduce affordable housing quotas in the capital in order to boost homebuilding.MPs have said they are concerned about the proposals being drawn up by the housing secretary, Steve Reed, and the mayor, Sadiq Khan, in response to a sudden drop in new development in the capital. Continue reading......

Collapse in construction activity causing alarm but mayor and Whitehall face pushback over 'extreme solutions'Sadiq Khan has known for a while that he has a problem with housebuilding in London. But last week a consultancy published figures about the scale of the problem, which prompted full-scale alarm in City Hall and Whitehall.The analysis from Molior showed that new housebuilding in the capital had collapsed. Only 40,000 homes are under construction – two-thirds the normal rate – and in the first three months of the year builders started work on just 3,248 private sector units. Continue reading......

Post-summer bounce in activity fails to materialise as buyers and sellers, in the south especially, opt to 'wait and see'The UK's housing market is showing signs of slowing down amid speculation that Rachel Reeves could announce tax increases on property in next month's budget.In a sign of growing caution among house hunters, figures from Rightmove showed that both the number of new buyers contacting estate agents about homes for sale, and the number of new sellers coming to market, slumped by 5% in September compared with the same month a year earlier. Continue reading......

Fake reviews, forged certificates and stolen corporate identities being used to lure victims, KwikChex findsSuspected scam investment companies are exploiting Trustpilot's review system by giving themselves five-star ratings to persuade would-be investors that they are legitimate businesses, a report has warned.An investigation by the verification firm KwikChex found operators using fake reviews, forged certificates and stolen corporate identities to lure victims. Continue reading......

US consumers say price rises caused by president's tariffs contradicts his promise to make life more affordableAs a mother of two, Paige Harris has noticed a change in the way she shops for her family.“Items that I have bought regularly have gone up in price steadily,” she said. “From hair dye to baby formula, our grocery list has gotten smaller while our budget has had to increase. Meats like steak are a no-go for our household.” Continue reading......