Energy sector set to discuss how National Grid can meet AI demand
The AI Energy Council are set to discuss how much power will be needed to cover the increase in computer capacity that is expected in the next five years, as the AI sector grows.
The group is made up of energy providers, tech companies, energy regulator Ofgem and will be chaired by Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and Tech Secretary Peter Kyle.
It is thought that sectors that are looking to adopt AI and the impacts those changes could have on the energy demand will also be up for discussion, to try and prepare the energy system for the future.
Tech secretary Mr Kyle said that ministers are putting 'British expertise at the heart of the AI breakthroughs which will improve our lives'.
He added: 'We are clear-eyed though on the need to make sure we can power this golden era for British AI through responsible, sustainable energy sources. Today's talks will help us drive forward that mission, delivering AI infrastructure which will benefit communities up and down the country for generations to come without ever compromising on our clean energy superpower ambitions.'
Earlier this month Sir Keir Starmer said that the UK must persuade a 'sceptical' public that AI can improve lives and transform the way politics and businesses work.
In a speech in London, the Prime Minister acknowledged people's concern about the rapid rise of AI technology and the risk to their jobs but stressed the benefits it would have on the delivery of public services, automating bureaucracy and allowing staff such as social workers and nurses to be 'more human'.
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The Sun
22 minutes ago
- The Sun
BBC failure to stop Glastonbury antisemitism rant ‘a national shame' blasts Chief Rabbi as fury mounts
BBC boss Tim Davie was battered over the Glastonbury antisemitism rant yesterday — as senior politicians called for him to step down. Britain's Chief Rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, also called the failure to stop the live-streaming of death chants by punk rap act Bob Vylan a 'national shame'. 3 The Beeb was even slammed by Israeli Mazal Tazazo, survivor of the Hamas massacre at the Nova music festival, who said: 'Don't speak before you understand the cost of your words.' Sir Ephraim said: 'Airing of Jew-hatred at Glastonbury and the BBC's belated and mishandled response, brings confidence in our national broadcaster's ability to treat antisemitism seriously to a new low.' Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman said 'the Chief Rabbi is right', adding: 'The Director-General needs to go.' Ex-Attorney General Sir Michael Ellis declared 'heads must roll' and agreed Mr Davie must leave after the BBC took five hours to remove iPlayer footage of the band chanting 'death, death to the IDF'. Sir Michael told GB News: 'I think it's time now for Tim Davie, as Director-General of the BBC, to go. 'We cannot have the situation that we have now seen at Glastonbury being broadcast on our airwaves.' Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice added: 'Someone has to be held responsible.' But last night No 10 said PM Sir Keir Starmer has 'full confidence' in Mr Davie. In a statement, Bob Vylan said they were being targeted for speaking up, saying: 'We are not for the death of Jews. 'We are for dismantling a violent military machine.' 3 3
Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE 'The French police? No problem!' Shocking boasts of smirking people smuggler to undercover MoS reporter shows why MPs are demanding to know what we get for the staggering £480m we give France to stem the tide of illegal migrants
Flanked by impassive henchmen deep inside a ramshackle migrant camp, the kingpin of a major people smuggling operation cracks into a cynical smirk. Laughing off any suggestion that the French police might stop his dinghies crossing to Britain, the trafficker boasts in broken English how the gendarmes not only pose 'no problem' for his criminal trade, but actually make it 'easy' for him. His damning comments – caught on video by undercover Mail on Sunday reporters last week – reveal just how little French authorities are doing to prevent the record numbers of small-boat crossings, despite receiving £480 million from the UK to tackle the issue. Though shocking, the ruthless Iraqi-Kurdish trafficker's assessment was proved right the very next morning. A boat crammed with more than 50 migrants sailed away from a beach near the tented migrants' village in Northern France as ten officers in riot gear stood idly by. The rare glimpse into the workings of a ruthless trafficker comes as part of a Mail on Sunday investigation into how these hardened criminals are running rings around police and making a mockery of Sir Keir Starmer 's vow to 'smash the gangs'. More than 15,000 people have arrived in the UK in small boats so far this year – up 42 per cent on the same period in 2024. Today, our investigation can reveal that: The Home Office fears police patrols in northern France are depleted in the busy summer months as officers are redeployed to the south to help with the tourist season; One gendarme said there were simply 'not enough' officers to deal with the number of migrants, despite the UK's huge handout to bolster patrols; Smugglers are now launching dinghies further up the coast then having migrants wade into the sea to board them, where police will not intervene; A migrant detention centre that was supposed to be built in Dunkirk with British taxpayers' money appears to be just an empty industrial site after construction was delayed. His damning comments – caught on video by undercover Mail on Sunday reporters last week – reveal just how little French authorities are doing to prevent the record numbers of small-boat crossings. Pictured: Migrants set off aboard a small boat from the beach at Gravelines The findings sparked outcry from MPs last night, with Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp slamming the French response as 'completely useless'. It is thought that well over 1,000 migrants are currently squatting in squalid camps around Calais and Dunkirk, waiting to take advantage of the calm summer seas to set sail for Britain. The Mail on Sunday found hundreds of men, women and children gathering around the town of Grande-Synthe, a suburb to the west of Dunkirk. Here they have established a self-sufficient commune akin to the notorious Calais 'jungle' that was shut down in 2016. Makeshift cafes feed dozens of hungry mouths, and barbers ply their trade. But these ramshackle settlements have also seen escalating violence between desperate migrants and callous people smugglers. Last weekend, a 27-year-old migrant from Yemen was shot twice at the jungle camp in neighbouring Loon-Plage, while two migrants and two security guards were killed in December. Frenzied activity surrounds a shopping centre in Grande-Synthe, where migrants top up on supplies before catching the free local bus service to and from the camps. It was here that our undercover reporters, posing as a family who wanted to get their Indian cousin across the Channel, met a young Sudanese migrant named Abbas, who led us to the headquarters of the kingpin people trafficker. After trekking through dense foliage and over a railway track, the group finally reached a small clearing dotted with tents, water stations and roaming chickens. Our reporters were interrogated by a series of henchmen, with one suspecting a police sting, before the boss finally emerged after almost an hour of nervous waiting. Wearing a blue hoodie and white baseball cap, the trafficker, who gave his name as Mamand, said he had boats up to 32ft long that could take around 55 migrants across the Channel at a cost of £1,270 each (€1,500) – meaning he could be pocketing up to £70,000 per trip. This is less than half what it often costs during winter, with the discounted price most likely due to the greater amount of business smugglers can do in fair weather. Smiling, he said the French police posed 'no problem' to his criminal enterprise. 'We send one boat, maybe the police take,' he said. 'But we take another [at the same time]. We send. We do not stop.' He told our undercover reporters: 'You can sleep here' ready for their crossing which 'may be tomorrow, maybe after tomorrow, maybe today. Which day water is good, if everything is good, we send.' To aid his faltering English, Mamand then used a cigarette lighter to illustrate how his boats slipped past beach patrols before being escorted to English waters by French maritime 'security'. Asked if this meant the French were helping the migrants, he replied: 'Only in water, help. If problem [with the dinghy in the water, they] come in. If no problem, go,' he said, waving his hands dismissively. Asked if this meant the journey was made easy, the trafficker replied: 'Yes.' His words underline growing frustration with the French navy, who have been accused of 'escorting' dinghies to English waters, intervening only if the boats run into trouble, but otherwise allowing their free passage. The following morning, the smuggler's claims played out with unerring accuracy. At about 5am on Wednesday, we watched on as a boat overloaded with migrants sailed from Gravelines beach – around 12 miles west of Dunkirk – where ten gendarmes stood idly by, either powerless or unwilling to stop them. At one point, a naval vessel sped towards the dinghy as it appeared to struggle in choppy waters. But once it seemed safe, the French boat turned back and left it on its way. The dinghy was one of six boats carrying 400 migrants that arrived in England that day. At about 5am on Wednesday, we watched on as a boat overloaded with migrants sailed from Gravelines beach – around 12 miles west of Dunkirk – where ten gendarmes stood idly by (pictured) French police say their hands are tied by maritime law, which means they are not allowed to intercept boats once they are in the water for safety reasons. On Wednesday morning another tactic was on display. While migrants gather at designated beachheads, smugglers launch their dinghies from a secret location elsewhere on the coast without passengers. When they get to the assembly points, the migrants wade into the sea and clamber on to the vessels – because once they are in the water the police do not intervene. Mamand said he had up to four pick-up spots around Dunkirk. One gendarme at Gravelines on Wednesday told us that he had been on patrol in town when three colleagues on the beach called for back-up after spotting a dinghy coming into view from the east. But by the time reinforcements arrived, there was nothing they could do, as the migrants were already boarding the boat. 'We try to do our best,' the officer said. 'As you can see, we are not going in the water because it's dangerous for us and it's dangerous for them. If you go in the water, you have to take care. 'If we try to stop them in the water and they drown, it is our fault under the law, currently.' He added: 'Three police for 50 migrants – it is not enough.' By Friday, though, the gendarme had seemingly overcome their reluctance to get wet, as officers were pictured knee-deep in water, dragging migrants ashore. In an apparent change in tactics, police even used tear gas and pepper spray to disperse migrants from the beach. The operation, though, was only a partial success, as some boats still made it out to sea. Meanwhile, a local politician in Boulogne, about 25 miles to the west of Calais, summed up the French attitude. 'OK, the British have given us millions of pounds and the cameras and drones help the gendarmes spot the migrants,' he said. 'But in England the authorities meet the migrants off the boats and take them to hotels. 'The impression we get is that the English are quite happy to see them. Otherwise why would they put them up in hotels? The magnet for the migrants has always been England. It's El Dorado. So let the migrants sail over to the UK and let the British sort out its problem.' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'Despite the huge amounts of money we have paid them, the French response is completely useless. 'Migrants are able to circulate freely and even if they are stopped on the beach they are released so they can try again the next day. It is totally unacceptable that the French do not intercept at sea, as the Belgians do, but instead usher illegal immigrants into UK waters. 'It is no surprise that so far 2025 has been the worst year in history for illegal immigrants crossing the Channel. Labour's claim to smash the gangs lies in tatters.' Reform MP Lee Anderson said: 'None of this should come as any surprise. I went to the camps three years ago and it was obvious then that French police were turning a blind eye. Nothing has changed. 'I don't blame them – it's our fault. Fundamentally, by the time migrants reach Calais, they're in England. It might take them 20 attempts to get here, but they're not going anywhere else because they have so much help, not just from people traffickers but from non-government organisations. 'Arresting the traffickers won't work. Even if you lock up a gang leader for 30 years, 20 more will take his place because the cash rewards are so great. 'The only solution is to stop putting migrants in hotels when they arrive. Turn them around and send them straight back to France.' A Home Office spokesman said: 'We are strengthening our vital cooperation with France to disrupt the gangs behind these crossings. 'From this month, a new unit of dedicated officers has been mobilised to increase patrols along the northern coast of France. 'At the same time, the French authorities are working to amend their operational policy to allow maritime forces to intervene in shallow waters.'
Times
29 minutes ago
- Times
Keir Starmer's welfare bill passes after ‘shambolic' climbdown
Sir Keir Starmer has suffered a blow to his authority after being forced to abandon a key plank of his welfare reforms in the face of a mass rebellion by Labour MPs. The prime minister ditched cuts to disability benefits that had prompted scores of MPs to rebel after Labour whips concluded that the government risked losing a vote in the Commons. Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, now faces a £4.5 billion gap to fill with tax rises or cuts elsewhere after a retreat that means the package of welfare reforms may end up increasing spending. Louise Murphy, of the Resolution Foundation, said that the government had 'basically eradicated all of the savings they had hoped to make this decade' after retreats on personal independence payments (PIP) and incapacity benefits, while promising an increase to basic levels of universal credit. 'When you add all of that together it amounts to a slight increase in spending in 2029-30,' Murphy said. • Labour rebels now know that if they push, Starmer will back down Ministers promised not to change the rules on disability benefits until a review that will take more than a year to conclude and has promised not to aim at cost-cutting. Starmer still faced the biggest revolt of his premiership despite the climbdown, as 49 Labour MPs voted against a bill that still cuts incapacity benefits for new claimants. Labour MPs in the Commons said the government's handling of the reforms was 'crazy'. Paula Barker, a left-wing Labour MP, attacked an 'incoherent and shambolic' retreat, saying it was 'the most unedifying spectacle I have ever seen'. A blame game quickly spread within government, as No 10 was accused of ignoring warnings of a growing rebellion while Reeves was criticised for another failure of political judgment in attempting to force through cuts. One government source said backbenchers had sent No 10 a clear message: 'You want to be strong but there is a point where being strong tips into looking stupid.' Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary, was blindsided by the retreat after opening a debate in the Commons by vowing to press ahead and insisting that the government 'must not and will not duck' reform of benefits. Starmer had already been forced to retreat at the weekend after 126 Labour MPs refused to support changes that would have made it harder to claim PIP, the main disability benefit. A promise to apply the rules only to new claimants failed to win over enough MPs, however, as Labour backbenchers lined up during a Commons debate on Tuesday to criticise 'Dickensian' cuts and brand the reforms a 'dog's breakfast'. Marie Tidball, a backbencher with severe congenital disabilities, gave the most impassioned attack on a reform that 'would exclude eligibility for those who cannot put on their underwear, prosthetic limbs or shoes without support'. In the Commons Kendall insisted that the reforms would go ahead in November next year, despite criticism from colleagues. She appeared to be unaware that No 10 and the whips were discussing further concessions as she was speaking. Faced with such determined opposition, Starmer opted for a full retreat to avert a serious risk of defeat, promising to scrap changes to PIP entirely. Sir Stephen Timms, the disability minister, announced the U-turn from the dispatch box, saying he had 'heard concerns' from backbenchers who had repeatedly questioned why changes were being made before a wider review of PIP criteria, which he has launched. Timms promised that the government would 'only make changes to PIP eligibility activities and descriptors following that review'. Critics of the bill initially did not believe the scale of the government's retreat, expressing bafflement at Timms's comments. The string of concessions means that halving the rate of incapacity benefits for new claimants is the only policy in the government's bill to survive unchanged. The decision to drop PIP cuts means a £4.5 billion saving banked at the spring statement will have to be found elsewhere, adding to pressure on Reeves after a £1.5 billion U-turn on cuts to winter fuel payments. Although Timms has been told to ensure the benefits system is 'sustainable', he has also been told to 'co-produce' recommendations with disability groups, and told MPs that his review 'is not intended to save money'. Uncertainty over future policy means the Office for Budget Responsibility will be unable to account for any potential savings. Jon Sparkes, of the disability charity Mencap, praised the retreat, saying 'disabled people should not have to pay to fix black holes in the public finances'. Helen Whately, the shadow work and pensions secretary, criticised Starmer for 'cowardice' and warned of 'the beginning of the end' for Reeves. 'The economic credibility of this government has collapsed,' she said. 'Labour have abandoned their flagship welfare reforms with a bill which now achieves nothing.' Kendall was said to have discussed options for the climbdown before her appearance in the Commons. However, at that stage the scale of the rebellion was not clear. Some have blamed Reeves for imposing a savings target and then worsening the rebellion in her attempts to win MPs round. 'She's shown very little political acumen,' one senior Labour source said.
