Average UK house price hits record £298,083, says Halifax

The average price of a house in the UK has hit a record high after a fifth success month of increases in the value of properties, Britain’s biggest mortgage lender has said.Halifax’s monthly house price index found that the cost of an average home was £298,083 in November, up almost £5,000 on the previous record set in October.Before the latest rises, the record high was set in June 2022, at £293,507.House prices increased by 1.3% in November, the biggest increase this year and the fifth consecutive monthly rise

‘Unlawful’: Woolworths wins bid to clear picket line outside Melbourne warehouse

Woolworths has won its application to clear a picket line at one of its key distribution centres in Melbourne, and prevent similar action at other sites, after arguing that the industrial protests were being used as a “metaphorical gun” during negotiations over pay and conditions.The Fair Work Commission’s deputy president, Gerard Boyce, found on Friday that the United Workers Union (UWU) had engaged in “unlawful picketing” to hinder access to warehouses, and that the union had therefore not met good faith bargaining requirements.“The instance has not been a one off instance; it has continued,” Boyce said.“It is clearly affecting third parties, including individual employees who wish to return to the work site, management and transporters or truck drivers of goods who seek to enter the work site.”Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news emailWorker strikes at five distribution centres – including the picketed regional distribution centre in Melbourne’s southern suburb of Dandenong – have disrupted grocery supplies at some Woolworths stores, leading to bare shelves and reduced sales in the pre-Christmas trading period

ChatGPT’s refusal to acknowledge ‘David Mayer’ down to glitch, says OpenAI

Last weekend the name was all over the internet – just not on ChatGPT.David Mayer became famous for a moment on social media because the popular chatbot appeared to want nothing to do with him.Legions of chatbot wranglers spent days trying – and failing – to make ChatGPT write the words “David Mayer”. But the chatbot refused to comply, with replies alternating between “something seems to have gone wrong” to “I’m unable to produce a response” or just stopping at “David”.This produced a blizzard of online speculation about Mayer’s identity

Smartphones should carry health warning, Spanish government told

Smartphones sold in Spain should carry a label warning users about their potential health impacts, experts have told the Spanish government, in a report that calls for doctors to ask about screen time during checkups.As Spain pushes forward with a draft law to limit children’s exposure to technology, the 50-member committee of experts has also called for minors to have limited exposure to digital devices until they are 13 to mitigate what they see as a public health problem.The experts’ nearly 250-page report, seen by the newspaper El País, recommends that children under the age of three do not have any exposure to digital devices, while children up to six years old should be allowed to access them only on an exceptional basis.For children between six and 12, the use of so-called “dumb phones” – which do not have access to the internet and which are limited to calls – should be prioritised, as should offline activities such as sports.The report called on the government to consider adding a warning label to digital devices sold in Spain, informing consumers of the health risks that some have linked to social media and digital devices, as well as the possible impacts that access to inappropriate content could have on the development of children

Top Afghan cricketers urge Taliban to reverse ban on women’s medical education

Two of Afghanistan’s national sporting heroes have called on the Taliban to reverse a decision to bar women from education and medicine, as cricket’s international community grapples with how to best address human rights concerns in the country.Afghanistan’s women’s cricket team fled following the takeover in 2021 and no longer competes internationally, but the country’s men’s cricket team continues to play and triggered mass celebrations following historic victories over England at last year’s 50-over World Cup and Australia in the T20 version this year.The team’s captain Rashid Khan posted on social media on Thursday that women had a “right” to education and must be allowed to train as doctors and nurses.“It is essential for our sisters and mothers to have access to care provided by medical professionals who truly understand their needs,” he said. “Providing education to all is not just a societal responsibility but a moral obligation deeply rooted in our faith and values

WNBA expansion draft: how do the Golden State Valkyries build a team from scratch?

The league’s newest franchise start play next year and have zero players. That will be fixed on Friday when they absorb talent from other teamsNext season the WNBA will add a team from the Bay Area, the Golden State Valkyries, before Portland and Toronto start play in 2026, with another franchise likely to arrive in 2028.These teams, of course, will need new players. And Golden State will pick their new stars on Friday through an expansion draft. The WNBA has so far enjoyed five expansion drafts – in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2006, and 2008