Author: admin@primenews

A government plan to double the maximum legal power of e-bikes has drawn warnings that it could increase the risk of severe battery fires and other injuries. The Department for Transport is consulting on the proposals which would also allow e-bikes that don’t require pedalling to travel much faster. The government said it wanted to make riding e-bikes more attractive. But critics said the plans posed safety risks. There were more fires caused by e-bikes and e-scooters in London in 2023 than in any previous year. London Fire Brigade said it supported green transport but described lithium battery fires as “London’s fastest growing…

More than a billion people are living with obesity around the world, global estimates published in The Lancet show. This includes about 880 million adults and 159 million children, according to 2022 data. The highest rates are in Tonga and American Samoa for women and American Samoa and Nauru for men, with some 70-80% of adults living with obesity. Out of some 190 countries, the UK ranks 55th highest for men and 87th for women. The international team of scientists say there is an urgent need for major changes in how obesity is tackled. Obesity can increase the risk of developing…

At least 112 Palestinians are said to have been killed and 760 injured trying to get desperately needed aid in Gaza. Crowds descended on a convoy of lorries on the coastal road south-west of Gaza City, in the presence of Israeli tanks. Israel’s military say tanks fired warning shots but did not strike the convoy. Some Palestinians say troops fired directly at them. A Palestinian witness told the BBC most of those who died had been run over as lorry drivers tried to move forward. Israeli aerial footage shows hundreds of people on and around lorries, while graphic videos posted…

India has retained its title of the world’s fastest growing major economy as it expanded by 8.4% in the last three months of 2023. The data comes as the country is set to hold a general election this year. Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, that it shows “the strength of Indian economy and its potential”. India is forecast to overtake Japan and Germany as the world’s third biggest economy in the next few years. The better-than-expected growth was led by a strong performance by the country’s manufacturers, with the sector expanding by 11.6%…

If countries can be said to go in and out of fashion, then Vietnam is certainly having its moment in the spotlight. Once better known for sitting quietly in the strategic shadows, its leaders almost unknown to the rest of the world, Vietnam is now being courted by everyone. US President Joe Biden and and Chinese leader Xi Jinping both visited last year. The US saw its relationship with Vietnam elevated to the highest level possible, that of a “comprehensive strategic partnership”. Vietnam has agreed to 18 existing or planned free trade arrangements. Its collaboration is being sought on climate…

A New Zealand court has ordered NZ$10m (£4.8m; $6m) in compensation to the victims of the White Island volcano disaster, where 22 people died. In December 2019, 47 people were touring the volcano when it erupted, killing nearly half of the group and gravely injuring everyone else. The firms which owned the island and operated tours were found guilty last year of negligence and safety breaches. Their failure to provide proper checks had ruined many lives, the court said. The volcano had been showing signs of heightened activity in the weeks leading up to the eruption but operators ignored these, the…

At least 43 people have been killed after a fire broke out in a multi-storey building in Bangladesh, the country’s health minister says. According to local media, the blaze began in a restaurant at around 22:00 local time (16:00 GMT) on Thursday in the capital, Dhaka. Seventy-five people were rescued and dozens were brought to hospital. The fire was bought under control after two hours, according to fire officials, and the cause is being investigated. Bangladesh’s Health Minister, Samanta Lal Sen, said that at least 33 people, including women and children, had been declared dead at the Dhaka Medical College…

Baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani, one of Japan’s most eligible bachelors, has announced that he is married, stirring a frenzy on social media. The Los Angeles Dodgers star’s announcement came as a shock as he has closely guarded his private life. “I wanted everyone to know I am now married,” the 29-year-old said Thursday in an Instagram post. Ohtani described his Japanese bride as someone “who is very special to me” but did not disclose her identity. “Two people (plus one dog), we’ll grow together,” he told his seven million Instagram followers, adding that he would hold a press conference on…

Staring at a computer screen, Mark focuses deeply, his arms resting by his side. His right index finger trembles ever so slightly on top of a pillow, and then an alert rings out from the screen in front of him, a message to a caregiver that he needs assistance. Without ever clicking a mouse or touching a screen, Mark selected this command on his computer simply using signals from his brain. Mark, whom CNN agreed to identify using only his first name for privacy reasons, has an implant inside his brain that is translating his neural activity to commands on a…

European consumer rights groups have accused Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, of carrying out a “massive” and “illegal” operation of collecting data from hundreds of millions of users in the region. The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), an umbrella body for 45 consumer groups, said eight of the groups were filing complaints with their respective national data protection authorities Thursday. The groups claim that Meta (META) collects an unnecessary amount of information on its users — such as data used to infer their sexual orientation, emotional state or even their susceptibility to addiction — which they are unable to freely…