My heart will go on 🫀

Morning all. 30 years ago the UK started their organ transplant register. Since then, we’ve seen an opt-in scheme turn into an opt-out scheme for donations. You might even be aware of the Transplant Games - a miniature, UK-based, olympic games to celebrate athletes competing, having been on the receiving end of an organ transplant.

Naturally, there is an Organ Donation Week too, that just happens to be this week. #Race4Recipients is set to continue trending until Sunday, which sees people across the country covering miles on foot and bike to raise awareness for 7,500 folks waiting on the organ transplant register today. If you didn’t know what the hashtag was for, now you know!

MARKETS

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PROJECT WATCH

🍃 AFC launch ammonia cracking subsidiary to revolutionise green ammonia industry. Read more

🌊 CRP Subsea win contract for cable protection in the North Sea. Read more

🏠 Homes England unveil £210m pipeline of projects for next 18 months. Read more 

ECONOMY & FINANCE

Mannequin challenge, interest rate style
Interest rates are sauntering toward a reduction, but remaining poised at 5% for now, according to the Bank of England’s head honcho, Andrew Bailey. Inflation has taken a significant plunge, but Mr Bailey warns we need more consistency in low inflation before more significant cuts are on the table.

Despite being held at 5%, rates might get another trim in November. Inflation stayed at 2.2% last month, but experts foresee a drop soon, provided everybody keeps their fingers crossed.

The decision follows last month's dainty reduction from 5.25%, the first since the pandemic disrupted our lives in 2020. Mr Bailey remains optimistic but advises against hasty cuts to avoid any inflation ghosts creeping out of the closet. Spooky. The knock on impact has been that the pound reached a two year high against the US dollar.. so while your mortgage might cost more, you can offset it with the prospect of an extra bagel on that autumn city break in New York.

Prison builder ISG's collapse leaves 2,000 out of work
Just as the country cried out for prison space, ISG, the vaunted UK construction titan, has crumbled under financial strain, leaving over 2,000 employees jobless and dozens of government projects stalled. Who knew building prisons could lead to such a dramatic fall from grace?

The administrators, EY, confirmed the collapse of ISG, involved in 69 government schemes, including the Ministry of Justice’s ambitious project to add 20,000 new prison spaces. It’s as if our infrastructure plans are now serving time in the slammer themselves - recent overcrowding meant the early release of 1,700 inmates.

Most of ISG’s 2,400 workforce have been made redundant with immediate effect. Though 200 are clinging on to help tidy up the mess, the company’s downfall evokes memories of Carillion’s dramatic 2018 collapse.

High-profile projects for clients like Apple, Google, and Barclays have also been left hanging. ISG tried to salvage its plight by seeking refinancing or sale but couldn’t secure the necessary liquidity.

POLITICS

Labour pushes Channel 4 to drop gambling ads
Labour MP Alex Sobel is leading a charge against gambling ads, calling for Channel 4 to become the first broadcaster to ditch them entirely. Sobel, whose Leeds constituency houses the channel’s headquarters, sent a letter to CEO Alex Mahon, asking Channel 4 to scrap betting ads as part of a broader push to combat gambling addiction.

Sobel’s letter highlights growing concern over the £2 billion spent annually on gambling ads, particularly their impact on children—36% of 11-16-year-olds reported gambling in a 2019 survey. Sobel argues that as a publicly owned broadcaster, Channel 4 should take a stand, especially given the UK's rising gambling addiction rates, which are highest in the North.

Channel 4 hasn’t responded yet, but the issue is likely to rear its head at Labour’s upcoming party conference in Liverpool. Sobel’s plea reflects wider calls for tighter restrictions on gambling ads, which many argue are driving addiction and debt. Will Channel 4 gamble on a ban? We’ll see.

Obesity’s £100bn problem: are weight-loss jabs the answer?
The UK’s obesity crisis is costing the economy a staggering £100bn a year, with £19bn alone going to the NHS. Enter weight-loss jabs like Ozempic and Wegovy, which promise to turn the tide. A report from ING Bank suggests that these drugs, while pricey (Wegovy runs at £2,760 per year), are cost-effective compared to long-term healthcare and productivity losses that obesity inflicts.

However, questions loom over the sustainability of these meds—many people regain the weight once they stop treatment, and side effects can make long-term use tricky. With obesity linked to over 80 diseases, governments may have no choice but to prioritise solutions like these, along with broader prevention efforts.

Tag, you’re it: early prison releases without tags
Prison overcrowding has reached such a crisis point that around 1,750 prisoners have been released early—and some without the electronic tags meant to keep tabs on them. Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips revealed that the tagging backlog is due to a contract, signed in May, that’s been slower to deliver than a snail on strike.

Phillips expressed frustration, particularly with the delays in tagging domestic violence offenders. The Ministry of Justice is holding Serco, the company responsible for fitting the tags, accountable. They’ve vowed to work faster, but with the current backlog, it seems like they’re playing a game of tag—and the system’s “it”.

Phillips assures us that domestic violence offenders are top of the priority list for tagging, but the situation doesn’t exactly scream “efficiency”. In the meantime, let’s hope no one gets too far out of bounds.

Keir Starmer under fire for fashion gifts
Keir Starmer has pledged to stop accepting clothing donations after a row over gifts from Labour peer Waheed Alli. It turns out the Labour leader received £16,000 worth of clothing and spectacles donations, which were meant to kit him and his wife out for work. However, this has raised more eyebrows than a celebrity stylist’s Instagram feed.

Starmer’s trying to draw a line under the controversy as Labour gears up for its Liverpool conference, but the wardrobe row may be harder to iron out.

Unite pushes for winter fuel vote at Labour conference
Unite, one of Labour’s key union backers, is pushing for a vote to reverse cuts to the winter fuel allowance at the upcoming party conference. The union is also calling for a wealth tax and more government investment, urging Labour to avoid turning back to "failed austerity". Despite criticism, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has defended the cuts, arguing that "tough decisions" are necessary to stabilise the economy. With 10 million pensioners affected, this motion could heat up the conference floor—though any vote would be non-binding.

ACROSS THE POND

Nike CEO gets the sneaker boot
When John Donahoe stepped into Nike's CEO trainers in early 2020, the sports giant seemed to be kitted out for a tech revolution. Unfortunately, it ended up looking more like a tech trainwreck. Donahoe, who had previously presided over eBay and a cloud computing firm, was all about the high-flying tech but sadly missed the ground-level passion for sneakers that Nike was built on.

Faced with dwindling sales and a demotivated workforce, Nike finally decided to swap tech for tradition by bringing back veteran Elliott Hill, who knows more about selling trainers than downloading the latest app. Hill, who retired as Nike's president of consumer and marketplace in 2020, steps up to save the day on October 14th. Stocks jumped by 7% just on the announcement—talk about getting off on the right foot!

Ultimately, Donahoe's downfall can be summed up as a poor match between his skill set and Nike’s core ethos. His decision to sideline wholesale partners and go directly to consumers left room for those competitors that you probably hadn’t heard of before to gain market share - like Hoka, and On Running.

Amazon deliver a return to office mandate
Starting 2 January, Amazon employees will need to dust off their commuter cards and brace for five days a week in the office, just like in the pre-COVID days. CEO Andy Jassy's memo, issued globally to employees, suggests nostalgia for the pre-pandemic hustle is fuelling this decision.

Previously allowing a modest three days a week in-office stint, Amazon now insists the full working week must be spent within corporation walls. Jassy reasons that the last 15 months of three-day in-office work have affirmed the benefits of such an arrangement, citing improved team dynamics and stronger cultural bonds.

Fed rate cuts trigger Wall Street records
Wall Street celebrated a boost on Thursday as the US Federal Reserve’s (their Bank of England equivalent) interest rate cut made cheerleaders out of global markets. The S&P 500 soared 1.7% to a record high not seen since July, with the Dow Jones following suit with a 1.3% rise. The Nasdaq, always the prodigious offspring, rallied by a whopping 2.5%.

With US stock markets enjoying a stellar year, the S&P 500 has risen over 20% since January, while the Nasdaq has leapt by 22%. Even the Dow Jones, historically the tortoise of the trio, has seen an 11% increase.

TECH

Instagram boosts teen privacy controls: a win for parents, or just PR?
Instagram has rolled out new privacy features for teens aged 13 to 15, promising to make their accounts more secure, private, and, well, parent-friendly. Teen accounts will now default to private, meaning no more unwanted lurkers, and followers need to be actively approved. Parents can become even more popular amongst teens, by supervising certain account settings.

Meta has boasted that these changes will provide "peace of mind" for parents, but critics aren’t so sure. The question remains: will this actually protect teens, or just make things look safer?

Crypto Chaos: Trump’s latest venture or the next big scam?
Not one to shy away from making headlines, Donald Trump’s latest foray into the world of cryptocurrency has already run into choppy waters. Trump and his sons launched World Liberty Financial (WLF), promising to revolutionise finance and take on the banks. Sounds grand, right? Well, scammers thought so too, hijacking the hype and luring over 70,000 people into a fake Telegram group promising nonexistent crypto giveaways. The result? Digital wallets were exposed, and crypto dreams were shattered quicker than Trump’s last business venture.

Yet, if one thing’s for sure, the Trumps know how to grab attention—and maybe, just maybe, that megaphone will help them get it right. For now, we’d suggest treading carefully. And if anyone promises free crypto, it’s probably time to lock your digital wallet.

Tamagotchi, the 90s craze that never died (literally).
For those of us who fondly remember the joy (and stress) of keeping a pixelated pet alive, here’s some good news: Tamagotchi is back and bigger than ever. Sales of the virtual pet doubled between 2022 and 2023, and the brand has even opened its first UK store in Camden Market. Nostalgia, it seems, is alive and kicking—or at least, your digital pet will be, if you remember to feed it.

Modern Tamagotchis still have that classic egg-shaped charm but come loaded with new features like Wi-Fi connectivity and downloadable extras, bringing them bang up to date. Whether you're a millennial rekindling fond memories or a newcomer to the Tamagotchi world, the toys are more addictive than ever. Who would’ve thought that 2024 would see us once again panic-feeding our virtual pets? Some things never change!

WORLD

A baby pygmy hippo named Moo Deng takes over the internet
Move over, baby Yoda, there’s a new adorable star in town: Moo Deng, the bouncy baby pygmy hippo born at Thailand’s Khao Kheow Open Zoo. At just two months old, she’s already stealing hearts with her shiny, wobbly frame and “blood sweat”—which is actually her built-in sunscreen. This little hippo may not be ready for grass, but she’s got the drama down, angrily turning her back on zookeepers when her playtime gets cut short. With fans comparing her to everything from bouncy puppies to Tony Soprano’s beloved ducks, Moo Deng is quickly becoming the internet’s feel-good escape in uncertain times.

US soldier Travis King sentenced after North Korea flee
Travis King, the US soldier who fled into North Korea during a 2023 Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) tour, has been sentenced to 12 months of confinement for desertion. King’s dramatic crossing into one of the world’s most closed-off countries led to his detention by North Korean authorities, who accused him of defecting due to racial discrimination in the US Army. King eventually returned to US custody and struck a plea deal, leading to his dishonourable discharge. Now released due to time served, King’s case highlights the mental health and personal struggles that can lead to extreme actions.

Swiss voters reject biodiversity proposal, putting conservation on hold
In a blow to environmentalists, Swiss voters have overwhelmingly rejected a proposal aimed at expanding protections for the country’s ecosystems. The biodiversity initiative, backed by conservationists but opposed by business and farming lobbies, sought to protect more land from development and pollution. Despite the defeat, conservationists warn that one-third of species and half of Switzerland’s habitats remain at risk. While the result may have stalled the country’s efforts to fight biodiversity loss, the issue is far from settled, especially in the wake of recent rulings that Switzerland isn’t doing enough to combat climate change.

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Cuppa Chat Cheat Sheet

🔧🏠 Woking Borough Council launches Careline Plus to help vulnerable residents install smart tech like video doorbells and voice-controlled lights. This service aims to support the elderly and disabled, enhancing their daily routines and aiding carers.

📺🛑 YouTube will start showing static "pause ads" when viewers pause videos. This less disruptive ad format has been well received and will now be available to all advertisers.

🔐📊 LinkedIn is using users' personal data to train AI models, with accounts automatically opted in unless users choose to opt out via settings. However, existing data won't be removed even after opting out, and users in the EU, EEA, or Switzerland are exempt from this data collection due to privacy regulations.

🎸📜 The Beatles' original 1962 Hamburg residency contract is expected to fetch up to £30,000 at auction. Signed by Brian Epstein and Star-Club owner Manfred Weissleder, the contract details performances and breaks for the iconic band.

🎥🚔 The world’s largest film piracy network, Fmovies, and affiliated sites were shut down by a coalition of Hollywood studios and Vietnamese police in a major anti-piracy operation. This action resulted in the arrest of two Vietnamese men, significantly impacting the global illegal streaming market.

🐍🚑 Arom Arunroj, a 64-year-old Thai woman, was rescued after being trapped for two hours in the coils of a 4-metre python in her home. The snake, weighing 20kg, bit her several times before rescuers arrived and freed her.

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