Human Times

UK Edition

4th November 2026

THE HOT STORY

Virgin Media O2 to cut thousands of jobs

Virgin Media O2 aims to reduce its employee wage bill by 30% over the next two years by cutting thousands of jobs. Up to a quarter of the telecoms group's 16,000 workforce could go as management says it will increase the use of AI in areas including customer service. Noel McClean, the deputy general of the Prospect union, said: “Industry conditions are tough but this level of cuts will drastically alter the way VMO2 works. As a union we have vast experience of this kind of restructure and stand ready to work with the employer.” The Communication Workers Union (CWU) said it hoped the large-scale job cuts could be managed on a voluntary basis to minimise the impact on staff.

CYBERSECURITY

Fake job interviews used as part of $6.3bn crypto hack

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has said hackers who stole $6.3bn used "fake job interviews" to steal funds. An engineer was contacted through a legitimate job-hunting platform and invited to bogus job interviews with fake company representatives. "Advanced and deceptive" methods were used to build trust, and the job applicant was instructed to download an "assignment" that deployed malicious code. The engineer's compromised computer and a compromised internal AI tool were then leveraged to gain control over two other engineers' laptops and execute the next steps of the attack. The FBI has traced the theft to TraderTraitor, a North Korean hacking group with links to the government.

WORKPLACE

Unions gain access to thousands of Google workers in UK

Google has agreed to let the trade union Prospect organise among about 7,000 employees across its UK operations, including YouTube but excluding DeepMind. The union has a similar access agreement with Meta, covering about 5,000 UK employees across Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram. Both arrangements comply with new Employment Rights Act rules allowing unions to contact non-members, encourage recruitment and hold workplace sessions. Prospect general secretary Mike Clancy said tech workers deserved a stronger voice on pay, flexibility, AI deployment and culture.

The Guardian

CORPORATE

Poundland's owners to be hauled before MPs

Gordon Brothers, the owner of Poundland, faces criticism from Downing Street for allegedly not acting in the best interests of the retailer's staff and stores. A spokesperson for the Prime Minister said the firm must explain why it has rejected solvent offers to rescue the struggling retailer, putting 12,000 jobs at risk." MPs on the business select committee will also summon Gordon Brothers to explain the retailer’s looming insolvency and investigate why a potential rescue deal has not been accepted.

City AM

The Guardian

The Daily Telegraph

WORKFORCE

Government plans pensions boost for private sector workers

The government plans to introduce guaranteed lifetime pension income for around 17m private sector workers through a "Guided Retirement" initiative. Pensions minister Torsten Bell announced that providers must offer guaranteed annual income in retirement, in a move that is anticipated to bring retirement savings in the private sector closer to that of the public sector, where workers typically have a defined benefit (DB) pension. Approximately 17m workers saving into default pensions will benefit from the change.

City AM

ECONOMY

UK factory output growth hits two-year high

UK manufacturing production accelerated at its fastest pace in two years in October, with the S&P Global manufacturing PMI rising to 52.8 from 51.9 in September. Factory output reached a 25-month high, extending growth beyond a year. Stronger domestic orders and demand from China, the EU and US supported activity despite shipping disruption. Manufacturers raised prices as input costs saw their sharpest increase since spring, driven by fuel and energy.

The I

Yorkshire Post

Millions of households face mortgage shock in 2027

More than 2.3m UK households face higher mortgage payments when their fixed-rate deals expire in 2027, according to UK Finance. The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates from 3.75% to 4% this week.The Office for Budget Responsibility also expects household disposable incomes to fall by 0.6% next year, reversing its previous forecast of growth, as inflation and energy bills squeeze household finances.

City AM

The Guardian

The Independent

STRATEGY

Kaja Kallas: EU still 'traumatised' by Brexit

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has warned UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham that he would face difficult negotiations over Britain rejoining the bloc because officials remained “traumatised” by Brexit. Speaking alongside UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting, she suggested those experiences could limit Brussels’ willingness to offer concessions. Her comments follow reports Britain might rejoin without adopting the euro or entering the Schengen free-travel area.

Financial Times

The Daily Telegraph

TECHNOLOGY

Prosecutor cites non-existent case after AI research

Ravinder Dhillon, a senior prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), has been reprimanded for including a fictional case in legal documents. The case, which was generated by AI, was cited in a dispute regarding the prosecution of a child for rape. High Court judge Lord Justice Holgate confirmed that the case does not exist. A CPS spokesperson said the error arose from internet-based legal research and was promptly corrected, adding that the CPS has conducted an internal review and reinforced guidance requiring case law to be checked against trusted legal sources.

Daily Mail

The Daily Telegraph

LEADERSHIP

Asda names former Morrisons boss as CEO

Asda has appointed David Potts, the former boss of Morrisons, as its new chief executive with immediate effect. He will replace Allan Leighton, who will become Asda's non-executive chairman. Potts was CEO of Morrisons between 2015 and 2023, leaving after the supermarket chain was taken over by US private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. Prior to joining Morrisons, Potts led Tesco's UK business.

INTERNATIONAL

Many office-based workers describe their jobs as ‘remote'

Research from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York indicates that many in-office workers feel isolated, in contradiction to corporate claims about the benefits of in-person collaboration. The study found that nearly half of the surveyed college-educated workers reported that their office days were filled with Zoom calls and Slack messages rather than meaningful interactions. “Days in the office often lack human contact,” the researchers observed, highlighting that 48.8% of respondents had no in-person meetings on their last office day. The disconnect is attributed to remote colleagues, geographical team spread, and lax enforcement of in-office mandates. The authors of the research, Natalia Emanuel and Emma Harrington, conclude that “a staggering share of the workforce experiences this form of in-office remote work.” They do not conclude employers should give up on in-office mandates; rather, they stress the importance of enforcing in-office policies to foster the face-to-face interactions that workers desire.

CNBC

OTHER

SEND reforms delayed again as councils face £10.4bn funding shortfall

The government’s overhaul of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision has been delayed until the new year, threatening efforts to pass legislation before the next general election and implement reforms by September 2029. The delay could prolong councils’ financial pressures: SEND deficits are forecast to reach £10.4bn by March 2028. Ministers want to reduce reliance on legally binding education, health and care plans (EHCPs), reserving them for children with the most complex needs, but campaigners fear some pupils could lose existing protections. Some 718,800 children had an EHCP in January, up 12.5% year on year.

BBC News

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