Buying British: can Labour’s defence policy really help UK industry?

Even in a room full of generals from around the world decked in military braid, the arrival of the prime minister causes a stir. At the Farnborough international airshow this week, knots of advisers and armed police surrounded Keir Starmer as he walked through the stalls, occasionally allowing a favoured chief executive or a nervous apprentice into the inner circle.A few words with the prime minister will always be valuable for bosses of big business. But at this year’s version of the biennial aviation and weapons show, defence companies in particular were hanging on his words for any hints of the intentions of the first Labour prime minister since 2010.Labour was out in force at the airshow, with a record number of cabinet ministers attending only a couple of weeks after they were appointed

Eye-popping and under pressure: a unique London fashion street’s struggle

There is oodles of lace, glinting diamante and enough sequins for several series of Strictly Come Dancing: no, it’s not the Met Gala but an unassuming street in north London where a quiet battle is under way to protect a hidden fashion treasure.Almost 100 fashion stores, with names such as Bien Avenue, Cinderella and the sadly now defunct FFUK (short for Fashion Fashion UK) are crammed into about 250m of Fonthill Road, tucked behind Finsbury Park station.The street was designated a “specialist fashion cluster” by the local council in 2020 to prevent the creeping conversion into flats. However, its retailers are struggling for survival as the area around them rapidly gentrifies, putting pressure on rents and making some of their most loyal customers feel less welcome.Amir Sediqi, from Afganistan, at Huda BoutiqueThis fashion street has some of the most eye-popping frocks and suits available off the peg and is a far cry from Bond Street, Oxford Street or even hipster favourites such as Brick Lane

Elon Musk’s X under pressure from regulators over data harvesting for Grok AI

Elon Musk’s X platform is under pressure from data regulators after it emerged that users are consenting to their posts being used to build artificial intelligence systems via a default setting on the app.The UK and Irish data watchdogs said they have contacted X over the apparent attempt to gain user consent for data harvesting without them knowing about it.An X user highlighted the issue on Friday, pointing to a setting on the app that activated by default and permitted the account holder’s posts to be used for training Grok, an AI chatbot built by Musk’s xAI business.Under UK GDPR, which is based on the EU data regulation of the same name, companies are not allowed to use “pre-ticked boxes” or “any other method of default consent”.The setting, which comes with an already ticked box, states that you “allow your posts as well as your interactions, inputs and results with Grok to be used for training and fine-tuning”

TikTok’s algorithm is highly sensitive – and could send you down a hate-filled rabbit hole before you know it

TikTok’s algorithm works in mysterious ways, but a Guardian Australia experiment on a blank account shows how quickly a breaking news event can funnel users down a conservative Christian, anti-immigration rabbit hole.Last week we reported how Facebook and Instagram’s algorithms are luring young men into the Manosphere. This week, we explore what happens when TikTok’s algorithm is unleashed on a blank account in the absence of any interactions such as liking or commenting.In April, Guardian Australia set up a new TikTok account on a completely blank smartphone linked to a new, unused email address. A John Doe profile was set up as a generic 24-year-old male

Adam Peaty calls for ‘fair game’ amid anti-doping concern at Olympic swimming heats

The British three-time Olympic gold medallist Adam Peaty has called for a “fair game” as anti-doping concern lingered on the opening morning of Olympic swimming in Paris.After months of controversy, heated allegations and vitriolic counter-claims, sparked by anti-doping revelations involving 23 Chinese swimmers, on Saturday it was at last time for some actual swimming. But while the opening morning went off without incident, politics and controversy were never far from the surface.“It’s always in the back of your mind as an athlete,” Peaty said after qualifying second fastest in the men’s 100m breaststroke heats. “You definitely want a fair game, you want to win fair and be around people who do the same and live by the same values

England v West Indies: third cricket Test, day two – live

31st over: England 150-5 (Root 55, Stokes 44) The stump mic picks up Josh Da Silva joining in with the Hollie’s rendition of Livin’ On a Prayer. Root sweeps a full bunger for two and then Stokes sweeps for SIX to bring up England’s 150. This partnership is ploughing on towards a hundred, West Indies took the first hour of play but England have taken the second… unless they lose one before the lunch interval. They still trail by 132 runs.30th over: England 141-5 (Root 52, Stokes 38) West Indies can’t quite stop the scoring, a lot of overs have a hittable ball in them and Stokes doesn’t miss out on a drive down the ground for four