Car buyers still sceptical about going electric
Consumers are still sceptical about electric cars and switching from petrol and diesel remains "a real challenge", the boss of Ford UK has told the BBC.
Lisa Brankin said more government support for the electric car market would be needed ahead of a proposed ban on new petrol and diesel sales in 2030.
Research from energy regulator Ofgem suggests 6.5 million households plan to buy electric cars by 2030.
But the number of electric vehicles (EVs) currently in use remains low.
Research from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) found EVs account for just over 1% of the 35 million vehicles on UK roads.
However, numbers are increasing, with sales of battery-powered vehicles more than doubling last year while the number of plug-in hybrids also grew by more than a third.
Ms Brankin, managing director at Ford of Britain and Ireland in an interview with the BBC added, "Most other people were still concerned about a number of things - range, the charging infrastructure, the lack of information available to customers and obviously the price as well.
On the cost of electric vehicles, she said: "We do recognise that that is an issue and that's why we've been calling on government to continue to support the whole range of battery electric vehicles.
The government's goal to phase out vehicles which generate tailpipe emissions is part of a wider plan to make the UK carbon neutral by 2050.
The RAC said in May the UK's charging network would need to grow "exponentially" to cope as electric vehicle sales surged.
Sales have risen rapidly, partly due to strict new emissions rules in the EU which have forced manufacturers to invest billions in new zero-emission models.
A report from the Public Accounts Committee released this month warned the government had no plan to meet the "huge challenge" of persuading motorists to switch to electric vehicles by 2030. The same report said only 13 electric car models on sale in the UK at the moment cost less than £30,000.
Ms Brankin said the company wanted to see a "comprehensive plan" from the government for the switch to electric vehicles "that involves all stakeholders and not just car manufacturers."
The government has said it is investing £2.8bn to help the car industry and drivers make the switch to electric and the added EV costs will fall as production grows around the world.
Source-BBC
Snapchat removes controversial speed filter
Snapchat is removing a feature that displays how fast a user is travelling when taking a picture or video footage.
Parent company Snap said it was because the speed filter was "barely used".
But the company is being sued by the parents of two young men, who allege the filter encouraged their sons to drive at dangerous speeds and three deaths were due to "negligent design".
Snap said it had already "disabled the filter at driving speeds", capping it at 35mph (56km/h), and added a warning.
"Nothing is more important than the safety of our Snapchat community," a representative added.
It will take a few weeks to disappear from the app of the 500 million people who use Snapchat.
Three men, two 17-year-olds and a 20-year-old, died when a car crashed into a tree, in Wisconsin, in 2017.
"Shortly before 19:00, the car began accelerating to a speed significantly above the speed limit and one Snap captured the boys' speed at 123mph," according to court documents.
"Regardless of whether Snap intended to encourage dangerous speeding, Snap knew or should have known that it was, in fact, encouraging speeding."
Snap had previously defended the feature in the face of warnings from safety campaigners, according to NPR.
Source-BBC
10,000 Japanese fans will be permitted at Olympic venues
As many as 10,000 Japanese fans will be permitted at Tokyo 2020 Olympic venues, despite warnings from health bosses.
Overseas spectators are already banned but organisers said domestic fans could attend providing crowds did not exceed 50% of a venue's capacity.
Fans will not be allowed to shout or speak loudly, and must wear face masks at all times while in venues.
The Olympics are scheduled to begin on 23 July, while the Paralympics follow a month later, from 24 August.
Spectator numbers for the Paralympics will be confirmed by 16 July, said a joint statement from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the Tokyo 2020 organising committee, the Tokyo metropolitan government and the government of Japan.
The decision to allow spectators comes despite the release of a report last week by Japanese medical experts that said holding the Games without spectators was the "least risky" and most desirable option.
"There are so many cases, domestically and internationally [of] sports events with spectators," said Tokyo 2020 organising committee president Seiko Hashimoto.
"By exercising thorough measures and based on the government criteria, we believe we can hold the Games with spectators.
"The entire world is facing the same issues and we have to work together to overcome them."
Delegates and sponsors will be classed as organisers, and therefore will not be included in the 10,000 spectator limit.
Should there be a rapid increase in Covid-19 infections and impact on Japan's healthcare systems, the five parties will consider further restrictions.
This could include further reducing spectator numbers at venues.
There are fears that the Games may trigger a surge in coronavirus infections in Japan.
As a result, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga last week encouraged the Japanese public to watch the Games on television, rather than attending events in person.
On Sunday, a state of emergency in Tokyo was lifted, five weeks before the start of the Olympics.
Emergency Covid-19 restrictions had been in place in Japan's capital and other prefectures since late April amid a surge in infections.
However, some "quasi-emergency" measures will remain in some areas, including Tokyo, until 11 July.
On Saturday, a Ugandan athlete was the first to test positive for Covid-19 on arrival in Japan.
Source-BBC
American Airlines cancels hundreds of flights amid staffing, maintenance issues
Hundreds of American Airlines flights have been canceled this weekend and Monday because of significant staffing and maintenance issues.
As of Sunday afternoon, 123 flights were canceled Saturday, 178 on Sunday and 97 were canceled for Monday – largely the result of a high number of sick calls, combined with maintenance and other staffing issues.
American told ABC News that most of the cancelations are on A320 and 737 aircraft, but that it may continue to cancel at least 50 to 60 flights per day for the rest of June and 50 to 80 flights per day through July.
American said it will attempt to notify customers far in advance of their flights and provide an opportunity for customers to rebook on alternative flights through its app.
All U.S. airlines and the Transportation Security Administration have struggled with staffing as air travel has rapidly jumped from historic lows to approaching pre-pandemic levels.
Source-ABC
Macy Gray proposes new design for American Flag: "It’s time for a reset, a transformation"
"I Try" singer Macy Gray wants to change America's mind about the U.S. Flag and proposed a new design that she says "represents... all of us."
In a Saturday Marketwatch op-ed, the Grammy winner expressed that the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol corrupted the American Flag.
"The Confederate battle flag, which was crafted as a symbol of opposition to the abolishment of slavery, is just recently tired," Gray, 53, wrote. "However, on the 6th, when the stormers rained on the nation’s most precious hut, waving Old Glory — the memo was received: the American flag is its replacement."
"The American flag has been hijacked as code for a specific belief," the Phobias star continued and tasked the Biden administration to support a new flag that is not "tattered, dated, divisive, and incorrect."
"It no longer represents democracy and freedom. It no longer represents ALL of us," expressed Gray and suggested a great place to start would be raising the number of stars on the flag from 50 to 52, in order to represent Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Noting the territories have "been lobbying for statehood for decades," Gray argued, "Both have been denied, since statehood would allow each territory’s elected officials seats in the house."
Gray also called to remove the flag's white stripes, which are said to represent "purity and innocence."
"America is great. It is beautiful. Pure, it ain’t. It is broken and in pieces," she wrote and suggested that the color of the stars should reflect all skin tones to show unity.
Gray then submitted the design of her proposed flag, which looks similar to the original, but contains off-white stripes and multi-colored stars.
"It’s time for a reset, a transformation," she closed, calling for a flag that "represents all states and all of us."
Source-ABC
Omarion announces new date for the Millennium Tour 2021
After numerous delays due to the pandemic, Omarion and Bow Wow's joint Millennium Tour is set to return this fall.
"#MillenniumTour2021. Finally, we back," Omarion wrote on Instagram, sharing video clips from the postponed 2020 tour and a list of upcoming tour dates.
Omarion and Bow Wow headlined last year's Millennium Tour before it was postponed due to the pandemic. B2K headlined the tour in 2019 with all four members, including Omarion, J Boog, Lil Fizz and Rap B.
This year's Millennium Tour will stop at major venues in cities including Los Angeles, Baltimore, Detroit, New Orleans, Nashville, Las Vegas, Memphis and more, between Oct. 1 and Nov. 26.
You can also still enjoy performances from special guests Ashanti, Lloyd, Pretty Ricky, Sammie, Soulja Boy and Ying Yang Twins. Tickets go on sale on June 26th at 10 a.m. ET at GSquaredEvents.com.
Ahead of the Millennium tour, Bow Wow and Soulja Boy will face off during a long-awaited Verzuz battle on Saturday, June 26th.
CMO urges continued COVID-19 vigilance to avoid summer surge
Jamaica's Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Jacquiline Bisasor-McKenzie, has called for continued adherence to COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures during the summer period to avoid another virus surge.
Speaking during yesterday's virtual COVID Conversations press briefing, Dr Bisasor-McKenzie said: “We are going into a danger period. If we take the experience from last year … during the summer period, there were various activities and events that would have led to increased exposure and an increased transmission rate, so this is not the time to let go of your precautions,” she said.
The CMO noted that as of Wednesday, June 16, the major COVID-19 indicators have shown a decline, including communities that had consistent positive cases over the last two weeks.
“We now have 243 communities of the 783 communities that have new positive cases over the last two weeks [which is] 31 per cent of communities,” she said, noting that the decline puts Jamaica's geographical spread into the medium-level range.
But only less than 25 per cent community spread is considered ideal for the health ministry.
Meanwhile, the island's positivity rate of 10 per cent is still too high for the ministry to consider any more relaxation of social distancing measures at this time, Dr Bisasor-McKenzie said.
“Where we need to get to is below five per cent for us to feel comfortable, especially approaching the summer period,” she indicated.
Source-JIS
Severe national blood shortage may force doctors to augment patient care, officials say
As the COVID-19 pandemic comes to a close, more Americans are seeking medical care -- only to find roadblocks to long-awaited elective surgeries or unexpected traumatic injuries: a critical national shortage of blood.
In June, the blood supply dropped to "red" level, indicating dangerously low supply at blood centers nation-wide, according to the AABB Interorganizational Task Force on Domestic Disasters and Acts of Terrorism.
Donated blood products have always been in high demand in the United States. But now, doctors say, the crisis has reached a new, critical turning point, forcing some to triage medical care, reserving blood products only for the sickest patients.
According to the Red Cross, the supplier of 40 percent of the nation's blood supply, nearly 7,000 units of platelets and 36,000 units of red blood cells are needed daily. On average, an American needs blood products every two seconds.
The COVID-19 pandemic and recent rise in violent crime has put additional pressure on an already strained blood supply. In comparison to 2019, the demand for blood has climbed by 10 percent in hospitals with trauma centers and by more than five times in other facilities that provide transfusions, according to the Red Cross.
Now that pandemic restrictions are easing, more patients are returning to the hospital and rescheduling surgeries and medical procedures that were postponed during the pandemic. Meanwhile, the prevalence of gunshot wounds, while slightly lower since the height of the pandemic, remains increased compared to pre-COVID numbers.
Due to shortages, doctors are being forced to reevaluate whether patients deserve blood products. Many hospitals may be forced to re-triage patients to ensure an adequate supply of blood products for patients in need.
If the shortage continues, elective surgeries may be canceled. Cancer patients requiring chemotherapy, and the blood transfusions that chemotherapy necessitates, may need to reschedule their lifesaving treatments.
Source-ABC
Minister of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development, Hon. Akierra Missick, recently travelled to the Island of Salt Cay
The Minister responsible for Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development, Hon. Akierra Missick, recently travelled to the historically beautiful Island of Salt Cay, she was accompanied by her Permanent Secretary, Mr. Ian Astwood, Director of Public Works, Mr. Garvin Thomas and Principal Architect, Mr. Mark McAulay.
On arrival the Minister and PPID team was met by the District Commissioner, Mrs. Alameda Wilson. Together the team observed the Dock, Seawall, the Salt Shed and bathroom facilities, as well as the main bridge and assessed the works that were required to be completed to these entities, to restore them to their prime.
The Team also assessed required upgrade works to the R.O. Plant, inclusive of fencing the area around it, as well as refurbishing the water tank in the North District.
During the visit the team evaluated several other facilities, such as the Basketball Court, which will be resurfaced, as well as other required maintenance works needed to be carried out, to restore this recreational park to its optimal state. Also assessed were the Hurricane shelters and they established the need for generator houses to be constructed in two locations, the Methodist Church Hall and the Club House.
The Minister will continue the Island visits within the coming weeks, culminating with a comprehensive compilation of all requirements throughout the Islands, to ensure that the $15 Million in funding is adequately dispersed, so as to meet the various community needs. The Minister reiterates her Ministry’s commitment to offer any required assistance through the Department of Public Works and by extension, the Ministry and assure you that the Team at PPID welcomes you and maintains an open door policy, readily available to hear any concerns and rectify any issues which may arise.
Hon. Missick expressed; “The visit to Salt Cay was very rewarding and dare I say a lot of fun. We had an opportunity to put our thoughts together on how we will roll out our Community Development Program. We have also decided that we will seek a partnership with the National Trust on the rehabilitation of the Governments House which was built in 1795 and can be the prize winning historic and tourism site. Thank you to all those in Salt Cay who welcomed us and expressed their desires for their Island Home including those of Salt Cay decent who are very keen to see their home Island receive its due care and attention.”
CXC and US university sign agreement recognising CAPE qualifications
The Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) said it has welcomed another partner into the fold with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Western Illinois University (WIU) that will see the American university recognising qualifications from the regional exam body.
It said that under the agreement, which was signed at a virtual ceremony on Thursday, Caribbean students seeking to take advantage of degree programmes at WIU will benefit from the matching of coursework requirements at WIU against the CXC syllabus, which will allow for more seamless matriculation.
The CXC Associate Degree and the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) qualifications will also be recognised by WIU.
As such, students can use their CAPE qualifications to fulfil partial credit requirements towards their bachelor's degree, allowing them to complete their degree in less than four years.
“This has significant cost-saving implications for students at the undergraduate level and means that the prospect of further studies for these students will be more easily within their reach,” CXC said in a statement announcing the signing of the MoU.
Registrar and CEO of CXC, Dr Wayne Wesley, noted that the signing was “in line with CXC's transformational agenda and its commitment to the people of the Caribbean, and opens another pathway for students to receive quality tertiary-level education.”
In his remarks at the signing ceremony, Dr Martin Abraham, Provost and Academic Vice President of WIU, said he and his team were delighted to partner with CXC in recognition of the CAPE subjects and the CAPE Associate Degree.
Source-CMC