The news text covers a range of topics, from the cost and feasibility of space exploration to the health and safety issues in housing and the potential impact of AI on human learning and innovation.
to send astronauts back to the Moon, which in April saw the first manned orbit around the Moon in 50 years, cost less, coming in at around an estimated $93bn or just under £70bn spend, between 2012 and 2025.
One in four people in the UK is living with mould and/or damp in their home… David Prince, a leading damp surveyor who travels across the country treating mould, spends the day with The i Paper writer Eleanor Peake. The house I visited with David Prince – a private rentalDavid notes that although the bathroom has an extractor fan, the room wasn’t being ventilated efficiently.
The hot air from the bathroom was floating towards the coldest part of the building and turning into water as it hit the cold bedroom walls. This was an internal ventilation issue, other houses have an external issue. When the guttering is overgrown the water has to go somewhere else, sometimes seeping back into the brick.
Victorian terraces, or those built in the 1910s, are more likely to have rising damp – where the water seeps through the foundation of the house. Caption: David Prince, Director of Abbott Property Care Ltd.Modern houses are often built with concrete ring beams, one of the coldest materials to build with. The damp turns to condensation just by hitting the walls.
Caption: Eleanor Peake, Senior Features Writer at The i Paper, meets David Prince, Director of Abbott Property Care Ltd, to examine the issue of damp in rental properties. Only a small number of damp specialists – around 250 – are registered with the Property Care Association in the whole of the UK.
This means that a majority of people in the UK are receiving quotes and recommendations about damp from building surveyors who aren’t qualified to give a diagnosis, says Prince. Start with the outside. When it’s raining, have a walk around your building to see if the gutters are pouring water down the wall, or water is being trapped in some way.
Open all your windows every day for a short period of time to force natural ventilation – even on cold days. The much-vaunted project is set to be delivered seven years late, vastly over budget and covering a shorter distance than initially planned. Caption: Aerial views of an embankment in a Staffordshire field where the HS2 tracks will come to a very abrupt end.
Low speeds and no track laid The latest report on HS2 given to Parliament in March 2026 reveals that the total amount spent on the programme to date is £46.2bn. No usable railway tracks have yet been laid.
A revised final cost is expected to be revealed by the end of this year, with some reports claiming it is likely to go beyond £100bn HS2 trains were originally supposed to travel at speeds of up to 360kph, making it one of the fastest railways in the world. Chief executive Mark Wild was instructed to look at whether reducing the speed of trains on the line would save money.
It is expected he will suggest that HS2 can be reduced to a maximum speed of 320kph. Caption: Overhead shot of businesswoman using AN AI chatbot virtual assistance app on smartphone to assist her while working on laptop. Using AI technology at work. Online robot system.
Concept of VR and AR technologies. People, AI, innovation and technologyA leading scientific researcher has warned against over-reliance on AI, saying it could limit people’s capacity to question and learn. A reliance solely on instant answers risks losing the habits of questioning and evaluation that underpin knowledge, expertise and innovationOne of the country’s oldest scientific institutions, the Royal Observatory is known for advancing the science of astronomy worldwide.
Their new project, First Light, aims to “seize on the passion of all the astronomers over the last 350 years, and interpret that passion through science”, Rodgers told the BBC. Caption: The Victorian buildings of the Royal Observatory in Braid Hill at dusk with the moon in the sky during a warm winter evening, a man taking a picture at the stunning sunset pink light over the north of Edinburgh.
Gail’s chicken ceasar club sandwich has the same amount of salt as five McDonalds cheeseburgers, according to campaign group Action on Salt and Sugar. The group analysed 546 supermarket and chain lunch options, including sandwiches, baguettes and wraps. According to them, 44% of the products surveyed would contain a high salt warning under front-of-pack guidelines. Other high-salt products include Gail’s smoked salmon bagel , Paul’s rosette cheese salami gherkin and Pret’s ham and greve baguette .
The animal belonged to Germany’s ‘Tiger Queen’ and is said to have seriously injured one of its keepers. Animal rights campaigners have called for government action. Caption: In this photograph taken on January 23, 2015, German trainer Carmen Zander poses with a tiger during the International Circus Festival in Massy.
The City of Paris pledged on December 13, 2017, to become a city without wild animals in circuses, without deadline and by sending back to the State the responsibility of a prohibition, a unanimous decision qualified as “small step forward” by the ecologists. A 72-year-old man was injured by a tiger near Leipzig yesterday, prompting police to shoot the escaped animal to prevent further risk to the public.
The man was one of the tiger’s keepers and it appears to have run out of its enclosure after attacking him. Caption: Carmen Zander performs with a tiger during the gala of the 42nd Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival in Monaco on January 23, 2018.
/ AFP PHOTO / POOL / Claude Paris The tiger is believed to have belonged to Carmen Zander, the self-styled “Tiger Queen” of Germany who performs circus acts with her exotic pets. Her animal enclosures are open to the public, who can pay to come and pet the tigers. Animal rights charity Peta has called on the government to impose stricter rules to protect privately-owned animals.
Caption: Carmen Zander performs with a tiger during the gala of the 42nd Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival in Monaco on January 23, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Claude Paris Caption: Carmen Zander performs with a tiger during the gala of the 42nd Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival in Monaco on January 23, 2018.
/ AFP PHOTO / POOL / Claude Paris Caption: ROMFORD, ENGLAND – MAY 08: Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks with media outside Havering Town Hall following the 2026 local election results on May 08, 2026 in Romford, England. Voters went to the polls yesterday in the local elections across England. Results counted overnight show widespread losses for the Labour Party.
Several key Labour councils have surrendered their majority as Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats make significant gains. Nigel Farage’s party has vowed a crackdown on migrant accommodation after taking control of several councils in the local elections. But data suggests the effect of its council policies could be limited — here’s our analysis of what the impact could be.
Reform has pledged that asylum seekers will not be accommodated in the 14 areas where they run the councils. These are Havering, Barnsley, Calderdale, Gateshead, Sandwell, South Tyneside, St Helens, Sunderland, Wakefield and Thurrock. They also promised to deport 288,000 “illegal migrants” in the election campaign, though it is unclear who exactly they mean. What can Reform councils actually do?
Caption: 27/04/26 – Chorley , Lancashire – Story by Steve Robson on HMO s – Houses in Multiple Occupancy in and around Chorley in Lancashire and the potential impacts of this on the upcoming local elections. Pictures of housing on Bentham Street in Coppull, Chorley where there are some HMOs .
Farage says this means migrants will be moved to Houses in Multiple Occupation . Reform UK councillors are already dropping like flies just days after the party’s major local election gains. Multiple newly elected councillors have resigned or been suspended over alleged racist, extremist and offensive social media posts, raising questions about vetting inside Reform UK.
So how did Reform’s election victory descend into chaos so quickly? Irregular sleep has been linked with poorer cardiovascular health, metabolic disruption, inflammation and mood imbalances. It helps the brain feel safer and more predictable around sleep, which is important for people with insomnia. When sleep and wake times are consistent, that clock stays well aligned.
When sleep timing is all over the place, the body clock becomes confused…When do you naturally start to feel tired? Aim to allow your body to sleep within that timeframe most nights. Pick a wake-up time you can stick to and anchor everything around that, says Dr David Garley, sleep expert. Caption: TOPSHOT – NASA’s Artemis II Space Launch System rocket is seen at sunrise at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on April 1, 2026.
On Wednesday three men and one woman are set to embark on the first crewed journey to the Moon since 1972, a landmark odyssey that aims to launch the US into a new era of space exploration. The NASA mission dubbed Artemis 2 has been years in the making after facing repeated setbacks, but is finally scheduled to take off from Florida as early as April 1 at 6:24 pm .
Many people are running on exhaustion but still in a state of high alert, so might not be able to rest when needed, says Dr Gotts. Sleep tourism in hotel. Exhausted woman sleeps sweetly in bed in the morning – stock photo.
Senior bed woman problem pain headache home elderly mature pain bedroom upset unhappy female caucasian adult relationship retirement old difficulty ache head sick migraine hangover sleep – stock photo. If you cannot sleep within 20 minutes, get out of bed, ideally out of the bedroom, and find a relaxing and distracting activity to do while you wait for the natural urge to return. Don’t presume earlier to bed equals better sleep.
The timing needs to fit you. Set an alarm to anchor the wake-up time, then choose a bedtime that allows you to fall asleep easily and aim to sleep solidly within that time. Weight training has a host of benefits, but only if it’s done correctly. We asked personal trainers the common mistakes that people make when lifting – especially for the first time or early on in their strength journey – and how to avoid them.
When the load is too heavy, form usually breaks down, the wrong muscles take over, and the risk of injury goes up. If you can’t control the lowering part of the movement, keep good posture, or move through the full range, you’re compromising. Close up of male athlete gripping heavy green kettlebell during strength training exercise in cross training gym – stock photo.
If you’re reaching for the same pair of dumbbells each week you’re likely just maintaining muscle, not building. You need adequate support for your ankles, without overly cushioning your arches. Progress does not happen during the workout itself; it happens afterwards when your body repairs and rebuilds. Poor sleep, not eating enough calories or protein, or training the same muscles hard every single day can hinder recovery and leave you constantly exhausted, says Long.
Ensure your training includes each movement for the upper and lower body. Upper body push targets the shoulders or chest and upper body pull typically works the back. Best recommends Nike Metcons or Converse for a flat, stable surface. When you’re comfortable you can increase the weight, number of sets or reps, or range of motion to progress each lift.
Psychologist and author Dr Denise Taylor says we shouldn’t sleepwalk into retirement, nor stop walking, just because everyone else has. Many clients tell me their biggest regret was spending too little when they were healthiest and most able to enjoy it. Boredom in retirement is misunderstood. It’s rarely about having nothing to do.
It’s about having time without meaning. Once the structure of work disappears, people can slip into a narrower way of being. Start sketching out possible paths at least two years ahead. Even rough ideas about what you might want to explore – creative projects, volunteering, learning.
Denise Taylor has worked with many clients who moved into ‘purposeful’ roles expecting to feel better, only to be more depleted than beforeDiscuss how much time you want together, and what kind of lives you’re moving towards, rather than assuming it will naturally align. Without noticing what drains your energy, activity becomes a way of bypassing the deeper adjustment.
Senior bed woman problem pain headache home elderly mature pain bedroom upset unhappy female caucasian adult relationship retirement old difficulty ache head sick migraine hangover sleep – stock photo. Portrait of senior man at desktop computer in home office – stock photo. The mistake is retiring without questioning whether that timing actually fits your own life. It ignores your relationship with work, your health and your finances.2Experiment before you leave.
Taking a sabbatical or reducing hours can show you how retirement might feel. 3Prioritise a small number of meaningful anchors: one regular commitment, one place where you feel known and one activity. 4Slow it down psychologically – question default timing, resist expectations and ask yourself what kind of transition you are actually stepping into. The total estimated cost projected for 2028, when Nasa is hoping to land astronauts on the Moon, is $105bn or £79bn.
It comes as a new report is due to criticise the “original sins” in the decision-making at the start of theIn a bid to reduce costs, Alexander is expected to announce that HS2 trains will run at slower speeds, and the completion date is likely to be pushed back with trains running from London to Birmingham in 2035, rather than from 2033.mission was a fair one, adding that the rail link is a “case study in how not to build infrastructure”.
“A project to add vital capacity to Britain’s rail network has been made ruinously expensive by gold-plated design choices, absurd mitigations like the £125m bat tunnel, and a planning and legal system that makes big projects slower and more expensive than similar projects in Europe,” Sam Richards, the group’s CEO, said. “If the Government is serious about getting Britain building again, they need to go much further on planning reform, specifically our failed approach to environmental protection which does little to protect nature and makes it far too hard to build vital national infrastructure.
” In March, the Transport Secretary commissioned the new CEO of HS2, Mark Wild, with finding ways to save the taxpayer cash and speed up construction time, including by reducing the speed of trains. HS2 was originally designed to run at 360kph, faster than any trains in the world. Ministers are now considering reducing this to 320kph as part of steps to build it out faster.
The measures are due to be announced ahead of a major review into the project’s woes led by Sir Stephen Lovegrove, the former national security adviser, which will call out the decision to push for the “highest possible speeds, resulting in bespoke and highly engineered design”. It will also criticise the decision to “begin construction at the hardest points of the route” between London and the Midlands.
“Changing objectives and political priorities”, as well as the level of costs and risk “being very badly underestimated”, are also set to come under fire in the report. HS2 was originally envisaged to run between Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham and London, connecting the North with the capital with faster journey times, but crucially by increasing capacity on the country’s creaking railways.
The scheme was first pared back from its original plans under Boris Johnson, who scrapped the eastern leg running from the Midlands to Leeds in a bid to get a handle on the spiralling costs. His successor Rishi Sunak went further by axeing the northern leg of the project, leaving a line that will run, initially at least, from Old Oak Common, just outside London to Handsacre, on the outskirts of Birmingham.
An excerpt from the Lovegrove report states: “The role of politics has been repeatedly raised by interviewees and previous reviews. This is an important subject and there is little doubt that all players, certainly at HS2 Ltd and the Department , felt under significant pressure from ministers to keep things moving.
” A previous report by James Stewart, a former chairman of infrastructure advisory at the consultants KPMG, found that politicians were so concerned that the project would be cancelled that they did not raise fears about ballooning costs.to protect a native species of bats, and the fact that the doors on the HS2 trains would not fit the platforms. A Government source said: “The Lovegrove report further confirms the astonishing extent to which previous Conservative governments had totally lost control of HS2, frittering billions of taxpayer’s money away and leaving the project no closer to being finished than when it started.
“It has been a sorry mess, but this Government has done the hard yards to pull the project out of the dirt and deliver the better connections that have long been promised to the Midlands. ”
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