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Volkswagen will seek damages from former chief executive Martin Winterkorn and former Audi boss Rupert Stadler for what it claims are "breaches of duty of care" related to the diesel emissions cheating scandal. The car maker has decided to launch the action against the two following the conclusion of a six-year investigation to determine responsibility for the Dieselgate scandal. Volkswagen admitted in 2015 that it had sold more than 10 million diesel vehicles fitted with 'defeat device' software that artificially lowered emissions during laboratory testing. The firm has paid out more than £20 billion in fines. Volkswagen's supervisory board tasked law firm Geliss Lutz with reviewing liability claims against all members of the board. Volkswagen says the investigation found both Winterkorn and Stadler breached their 'duty of care', but no breaches of duty were found by other members of the Volkswagen supervisory board. As a result, the supervisory board said it has decided "to assert claims for damages" against Winterkorn and Stadler, "on account of breaches of the duty of care under stock corporation law". Winterkorn resigned from his role in September 2015, while Stadler remained at Audi until he was arrested in 2018. Both men are facing criminal charges in Germany relating to the scandal, with Stadler currently on trial in Munich. The supervisory board claims that Winterkorn breached his duty of care by failing, in a period from 27 July 2015 onwards, to "comprehensively and promptly clarify the circumstances behind the use of unlawful software functions in 2.0 TDI diesel engines sold in the North American market between 2009 and 2015." It added that "Winterkorn also failed to ensure that the questions asked by the US authorities in this context were answered truthfully, completely and without delay." The board claims that Stadler, in the period from 21 September 2016 onwards, failed "to ensure that 3.0 and 4.2 V-TDI diesel engines developed by Audi and installed in EU vehicles of Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche were investigated with regard to unlawful software functions." Based on information from the same investigation, the supervisory boards of Audi and Porsche have also accused former Audi board members Ulrich Hackenberg and Stefan Knirsch and ex-Porsche board member Wolfgang Hatz of breaches of duty. Audi and Porsche have launched claims for damages against them. Claims of damages have already been made against former Volkswagen Passenger Cars board member Heinz-Jakob Neusser. Volkswagen has previously claimed that the diesel emissions scandal was the fault of a rogue employee. It is facing a number of lawsuits that accuse the firm of trying to cover up the scandal from when questions first arose about the test rules in June 2015 until VW admitted fault in September that year. Winterkorn's lawyers issued a statement saying he rejected the allegations. Lawyers for Stadler declined to comment when contacted by the Reuters news agency.

The blockage of Egypt's Suez canal by a giant container ship is causing a "traffic jam" in the Red Sea, according to a merchant seaman on a nearby ship. Joe Reynolds, chief engineer of the Maersk Ohio, told the BBC the number of vessels waiting at the canal's southern entrance was "growing exponentially". "It's going to affect shipping schedules around the world," he warned. Tugboats and dredgers are trying to dislodge the Ever Given, which is wedged diagonally across the waterway. The 400m-long (1,300ft), 200,000-tonne vessel ran aground on Tuesday morning amid high winds and a sandstorm that affected visibility. Specialist salvage companies have been brought in to help refloat the ship, and an adviser to Egypt's president has said he hopes the situation will be resolved within two to three days. But experts have said it could take weeks if the vessel's containers need to be removed.About 12% of global trade passes through the 193km (120-mile) canal, which connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea and provides the shortest sea link between Asia and Europe. An alternative route, around the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa, can take two weeks longer. Mr Reynolds told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that the Maersk Ohio, a US-flagged container ship that is 292m long and weighs 50,000 tonnes, was "stacked up" alongside dozens of other vessels near Port Suez. "I think you can imagine there was a queue of ships waiting to go through to begin with, and now that queue has just grown exponentially," he said. "Standing outside, as you look, everywhere around you is ships."He said there was still a lot of work to be done on board his ship, and that he and his fellow crewmembers had not yet had a chance to communicate with the other vessels. "It's just a long waiting game. There's not a lot to see... We are ships sitting at anchor, just waiting as if you were in a traffic jam on the M5," he added, referring to a British motorway.Despite the delay, Mr Reynolds expressed sympathy for the Ever Given's 25 Indian crew members. "As sailors, we complain a lot about things. But we also understand when other sailors are in a fix or other seamen are working really hard day and night to try to correct a situation. We've all been there," he said. About 10 tugboats and two dredger vessels are working to refloat the Ever Given. Diggers and other machinery operating on the banks are also assisting.The Ever Given's technical mangers, Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, said another attempt to refloat the vessel on Friday had failed, and that the salvage operation was now focused on removing sand and mud from around the port (left) side of the vessel's bow. A specialised suction dredger, which can shift 2,000 cubic metres (70,000 cubic feet) of material every hour, arrived on site on Thursday, it added. Arrangements are also being made for high-capacity pumps to reduce the water levels in the vessel's forward void space and the bow thruster room. Another two tugs will arrive by Sunday, when a higher tide is expected.John Denholm, president of the UK Chamber of Shipping, told the BBC that if the diggers and tugs were not successful, salvage teams would have to start the slow process of "lightering" the ship - transferring its cargo to another vessel or the canal bank. That would involve bringing in specialist equipment, including a crane that would need to stretch more than 60m (200ft) high, he said. "If we go through the lightering process, I suspect we're talking weeks."Mr Reynolds said the Maersk Ohio, which started its voyage in the Gulf and was headed to northern Europe via the Mediterranean, still had a "little wriggle-room" in its schedule. "If it goes more than five days, then we start to see our schedule back up. I'm sure other ships are on a much tighter schedule than we were... It's going to affect shipping schedules all around the world." Service provider Leth Agencies said a total of 237 vessels were waiting in the area on Friday - 107 at Port Suez in the Red Sea, 41 at the canal's midway point in the Great Bitter Lake, and 89 at Port Said in the Mediterranean.The blockage is holding up an estimated $9.6bn (£7bn) of goods each day - or $400m an hour - according to data from Lloyd's List. The shipping journal said two major companies, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, were looking into whether to re-route their vessels. The first container ship to opt for the longer journey around the Cape of Good Hope was the Ever Given's sister ship, the Ever Greet, both of which are operated by the Taiwanese firm Evergreen Marine, it added. Richard Meade, the editor of Lloyd's List, told the BBC that the risk of piracy to vessels off the coast of Africa had been overblown to some extent. "Obviously, we did see a major piracy surge a few years ago off the Somali coast. That has largely been brought under control," he told the BBC. "The Gulf of Guinea is the hotspot. But I think realistically you would see ships move well outside the Gulf of Guinea as the route."

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Senior figures from the automotive industry have called for more “consistency” from ministers in response to the government’s decision to drop the level of the plug-in car grant. Last week, the government downsized the financial incentive package offered to EV owners in the UK, reducing the grant from £3000 to £2500 and lowering the upper price limit for eligible vehicles from £50,000 to £35,000.Speaking to journalists during the SMMT Electrified conference, key figures from Volkswagen, Polestar and BMW all underlined the need for clearer policy direction from the government. Jonathan Goodman, Polestar's UK chief executive and head of global communications, said that he wouldn’t like to see any further overnight changes: “The issue for me is consistency. If you have a programme in place to incentivise, you’re getting people looking consistently at that programme and considering it. Then to go from one minute to the next, where the incentive is no longer in place, confuses the consumer. We’ve dealt with forests of calls over the last week with people who just don’t understand if they’re impacted or not. To receive the latest industry news, please click here to sign up to the Autocar Business newsletter “We have to have a consistent approach to this to enable the manufacturers to plan - it’s already a very tight deadline - and therefore we’ve got to get that consistency. That would be my plea.” It was a view echoed by others. Graham Grieve, chief executive of BMW UK, felt that clarity was lacking. Grieve made the case that the announcement “seems counterintuitive to the bold statements they’ve made ahead of [United Nations climate change conference] COP26… They’ve got to come up with a clear plan to incentivise consumers to move away from ICE to electric. Quite simply, electric cars are more expensive to manufacture and therefore they’re more expensive for consumers. The government needs to step in there. We’ve seen that incentives really do drive a change. With Norway, for me that would be the benchmark with a clear, 360deg plan to really drive the electric market.” Grieve also felt further policy was required around electric charging infrastructure, saying “we’re a long way off making [off-street charging] happen. I don’t think it’s about benchmarking against other countries. If we’re going for a zero-emission new vehicle policy from 2030, we’re probably five or 10 years behind where we need to be in terms of charging infrastructure.” Andreas Krüger, head of e-mobility at Volkswagen, asked for government to match the investment the German manufacturer is injecting into the charging infrastructure: “It’s not just Volkswagen signing access deals [with third-party charging companies], we are planning €400 million of our cash into the deals too. If there’s one thing I would leave with you today, it’s a plea for government to match our ambition with the appropriate incentive and a detailed comprehensive plan to develop charging infrastructure.” Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT, compared the government’s policy to a game of snakes and ladders: “The ownership experience must be cheaper, more enjoyable, easy. That is not yet the case. It’s not so much a race to zero as a game of snakes and ladders. Declare a 2030 end-of-sale date and align the industry – climb the ladder; cut plug-in car and van grant – slide down the snake; increase rapid and ultra-rapid charging on major roads – climb up another ladder; reduce home-charging grants – slide down another snake.” At the same event, transport secretary Grant Shapps emphasised the monetary support available from the government, totalling £2.8 billion to speed up the transition towards an electrified transport network. This includes the £582 million for plug-in grants.Shapps underlined the government’s reasons for cutting the grant, stressing that there’s a need to focus where most consumers benefit. Shapps justified the reasoning behind the government’s decision: “We’ll continue to consider the long-term need for consumer incentives to boost uptake, taking into account the need to support an evolving market but also to ensure the taxpayer gets value for money. That’s why we’ve just announced the plug-in grant will now be targeted at more affordable electric models - those under £35,000 - which have increased in number by nearly half since 2019. [This will be] to allow more buyers to go green.”

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In his first press conference as US President, Joe Biden has said there are multiple causes for the surge of migrants at the border. More than 17,000 children are being kept in government run detention centres, according to latest estimates. Over the hour-long event, he also spoke about topics ranging from guns, foreign policy and the US Covid-19 response. But question about situation at the US-Mexico border dominated the event. During the White House news conference, Mr Biden blamed his predecessor Donald Trump for the growing humanitarian crisis on the southern border, and said it was normal for the US to experience an influx of migrants in cooler months. "The truth of the matter is, nothing has changed," he said, adding: "The reason they're coming is that it's the time they can travel with the least likelihood of dying on the way because of the heat in the desert." "I'd like to think it's because I'm a nice guy, but it's not," he said, calling the surge a cyclical event. He also blamed the "circumstances in their country," including natural disasters, crime and lack of economic opportunity. The US Customs and Border Protection agency releases monthly figures of the number of "encounters" at the southwest land border. In January and February 2021, 78,442 and 100,441 people were apprehended, respectively. This is a significant increase from previous years. Still, the highest number in the last few years was in May 2019 during Mr Trump's presidency - when over 140,000 people were apprehended by the authorities.What is the reason for the surge? There are several factors driving the surge at the southern US border. They include: Hope in Biden - "They told us that the US president would order the removal of all obstacles on our path," 17-year-old Michael told BBC News as he travelled from his native Honduras. Natural disaster - "Our houses collapsed with [Hurricane] Eta. We lost everything," says Jacqueline, a pregnant 19-year-old walking to the US on foot. Gang Crime - "We tried to start again with our business, but they demanded money from us. We were victims of extortion," Jacqueline adds. Central American Violence - "One needs to risk everything. But it is better to risk your life here," says her husband Lionel on their journey through Mexico. "In Honduras you might get killed anyway".

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An Ohio zookeeper is recovering after a cheetah attack Thursday. The incident occurred about 9:55 a.m. when two Columbus Zoo and Aquarium staff members were walking Isabelle, a 4-year-old cheetah, with a harness from her facility in the Heart of Africa area to a behind-the-scenes yard for her routine exercise.The zookeeper was walking on the same path, the zoo said. After Isabelle sat and appeared to be calm, the caretakers invited the zookeeper to come closer, according to officials. But when the zookeeper approached, Isabelle crouched down and lunged toward the victim, the zoo said. Officials said the scent of the zookeeper, who works with giraffes and other hoofstock, may have triggered Isabelle to attack. Zoo officials did not identify the zookeeper or the extent of the victim's injuries, citing privacy concerns. The Liberty Township Fire Department was quickly called by staff members, and the injured zookeeper was provided treatment onsite. The victim was taken to a nearby hospital for further evaluation and later released.The incident was Isabelle's first documented attack, according to authorities. The cheetah was immediately placed under a 30-day quarantine to ensure no signs of illness, the zoo said. Zoo officials said Isabelle shared a "close bond with her care team" and that she was up to date with her vaccinations. Isabelle came to the zoo in February 2017 with her sisters Ophelia and Luciana, The Columbus Dispatch reported.

The recent shake-up of what models do and don’t qualify for the UK government’s electric car grant has affected plenty of manufacturers, but Hyundai has been stung particularly badly. While the entry-level Kona Electric continues to qualify for a discount under the new rules, the longer-range model is now exempt, carving a significant gulf through the line-up. It means the 64kWh Ultimate version seen here now retails for more than £40k, pushing it into a hotly contested price bracket along with newcomers like the Ford Mustang Mach-E and Volkswagen ID 4. If you’re more of a glass-half-full person, though, you might say the crossover EV’s mid-life refresh is particularly well-timed. As well as receiving a host of interior technology and safety upgrades, the Kona Electric has been treated to a dramatic makeover. The outgoing model wasn’t exactly in danger of being mistaken for its combustion-powered or hybrid range-mates, but there’s no chance of that happening now. It ditches a traditional grille in favour of a completely smoothed-over nose that will remind you of either a Tesla Model 3 or that scene in the Matrix where Keanu Reeves gets his mouth sealed shut. The redesigned headlights and narrow LED daytime-running lights of the petrol-powered Kona, which recently underwent a facelift of its own, also make an appearance here. It retains the same synchronous electric motor as before, sending 201bhp and 291lb ft to the front axle via a single-speed reduction gear. Suspension is by way of MacPherson struts up front, and multi-link at the rear. The 64kWh battery pack is rated for up to 300 miles of range, and supports a maximum 77kW charge rate when plugged into a 100kW DC charge point. The Kona remains one of the more compact cars in the class, with only average passenger accommodation and boot space. It doesn’t try too hard to hide its use of hard plastics inside the cabin, either. That said, the switch to an all-digital instrument cluster and 10.25in touchscreen helps it keep pace with rivals on the technology front. The infotainment UI is much sharper than before, so while both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay come as standard, you won’t be quite so inclined to use them.Our car’s top-spec Ultimate trim costs an additional £2000 over Premium specification, adding (among other niceties) an electric sunroof, head-up display, leather seats with electric adjustment up front, and heated seats in the back. The former helps brighten up the cabin, which the road test team said could feel a little dark and uninviting when we reviewed the outgoing version back in 2018. On the road, the Kona Electric is still surprisingly rapid for a mainstream crossover, with an ability to match some hot hatchbacks for rolling acceleration right up to motorway speeds. The front wheels remain overly keen to spin up under a heavy right foot, though I recall the pre-facelift car being even more dramatic in this aspect. Perhaps I just wasn’t trying hard enough. Hyundai’s paddle-based regenerative braking remains the best implementation I’ve tried, letting me quickly swap between the three strength levels (or turn off regen completely) without having to take my hands off the steering wheel. The Kona continues to deliver some of the most consistent and accurate range estimates of any EV, too. Not constantly second-guessing the figure on the dashboard means the Kona Electric is far more relaxing to drive than rivals like the DS 3 Crossback E-Tense, which can vary wildly in their estimates. It makes this one of the more credible options for those looking to replace a combustion-powered car. Dynamism is still something of a weak point, with a fairly muted steering feel and an overreliance on electronic traction and stability controls to disguise the relative lack of grip under the front wheels. This is less of an issue for the Kia e-Niro, which shares a platform with the Hyundai, because of its positioning as a family SUV. It’s comfortably the more sedate of the pair. You can press on through the corners in the Kona, but there’s little reward for doing so. Ride quality is also mixed, coping reasonably well at city speeds but becoming fidgety once you get out of town. Wind noise, particularly on motorways, also seemed more noticeable here than in rival EVs.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has cancelled plans for a strict lockdown over Easter, just a day after the measures were announced. Mrs Merkel said the plan was a "mistake", adding that she took responsibility for the U-turn. The proposed lockdown was agreed with regional leaders on Monday, with restrictions set to be tightened between 1-5 April. But the plan was reversed following a crisis meeting on Wednesday. It had been widely criticised by business leaders, and the head of Mrs Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, Armin Laschet, told a regional parliament meeting on Wednesday that the lockdown was "not enforceable in this form". "This mistake is mine alone," Mrs Merkel told reporters in Berlin. "The whole process has caused additional uncertainty, for which I ask all citizens to forgive me."The planned lockdown would have been Germany strictest yet, with most shops closed and gatherings limited.

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Porsche is offering a complimentary software update on the Taycan, to bring 2020 model year cars into line with the latest versions. Additionally, a retrofit for a 22kW AC on-board charger will be available from the end of the year, with a price still to be confirmed.Despite these updates being software-related, this isn’t an over-the-air update. Unlike some releases from rivals, such as Tesla, the Taycan will need to be taken to a dealer. Taycan product boss Robert Meier, explained that there are safety reasons for doing so: “We have changes on control units that are safety relevant - for example, the power electronics of the engine - and we want to be absolutely sure that this update goes through in a completely safe way. And that when we give the car back to the customer we want to be sure that it’s completely bug-free.” The Taycan was updated back in September 2020, so any car purchased before that will benefit from this release. The enhancements relate specifically to the car’s dynamics, the charging functions, the Porsche Communication Management (PCM) and additional Porsche Connect features. For Taycans with adaptive air suspension, the update adds the Smartlift function to the car, allowing the car to be programmed so that the ride height is raised automatically at certain locations. In other words, if your regular commute includes a section of speed humps, the Taycan will remember where these are and raise the nose accordingly. There is also optimised chassis control, improving wheel slip control and acceleration in the Turbo S in particular. As such, the 0-124mph sprint is now 0.2 seconds quicker. Charging tweaks relate to the software around the navigation. You can now set the charge level with which the Taycan will reach your destination, and drivers now receive a notification via the app when the necessary battery level has been reached. There’s also a battery-saving charging function, which reduces the speed from 270kW to 200kW where possible, helping to prevent overheating in the battery cells. Despite charging stations at Porsche dealers offering up to 350kW charging capacity, the Taycan’s will remain at 270kW. The issue is the hardware, as without significant upgrades to the battery cells, there is only so much power the car can absorb. Meier confirmed that “there are hardware limits on the battery cell and so long as you don’t change the battery cell itself in the car, you will not be able to improve the amps you push into that cell by a huge amount. You will not see a quick improvement of the charging power within the Taycan with the hardware you have in the car.” However, Meier did hint at future plans for other models. “When you look to the next car generations, which we are developing, we are happy that the chargers are able to do more than 270kW and we of course work on that topic.” There are also satellite navigation tweaks, so the display gives more online information such as more precise traffic information. iPhone apps are now available in the PCM and Apple podcasts are available to Taycan owners. Android Auto remains unavailable.

Saudi Arabia has proposed a new peace plan to end nearly six years of war in Yemen. It suggests a UN-supervised ceasefire between Yemen's Saudi-backed government and Houthi rebels, who are supported by Iran. The plan also includes the reopening of vital air and sea links, and the start of political negotiations. Houthi rebels have said the offer did not appear to go far enough to lift the air and sea blockade in place.The proposal was announced in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, who called on the Houthis, who control large swathes of Yemen, to accept it. He said the ceasefire would come into force as soon as the Houthis accepted it. Yemen's internationally recognised government has welcomed the offer, but the Houthis have said the initiative provided "nothing new", and fell short of their demand for a complete lifting of the blockade on the airport in the capital, Sanaa, and the western port of Hudaydah. "We expected that Saudi Arabia would announce an end to the blockade of ports and airports and an initiative to allow in 14 ships that are held by the coalition," Houthi chief negotiator Mohammed Abdulsalam told Reuters news agency. The group would continue to talk with the Saudis, the US and mediator Oman for a peace agreement, he said.Saudi officials say they are co-ordinating their steps with the United Nations and the United States, which have also stepped up their efforts to end a conflict which has created the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Only days ago, the Houthis rejected a US plan for a nationwide ceasefire.

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MG has released new images of its radical Cyberster concept, which is set to be unveiled in full on 31 March. Posted by MG Motor UK's Chinese parent firm, SAIC, the images give more clues as to the two-door roadster's styling. Key features evident include a long bonnet, a sharply raked rear end and illuminated MG badges. The car bears no resemblance to the last roadster the brand produced, the MG TF.Now visible in these new images is a speedster-style rear deck with futuristically styled twin buttresses and a prominent front splitter - both of which indicate a strong focus on aerodynamics and performance. It remains unclear whether the concept previews a production car, but these renderings suggest it will serve as a showcase for SAIC Motor's autonomous capabilities and next-gen EV technology. The Cyberster is said to feature 5G connectivity technology and Level 3 autonomous driving features, but its electric powertrain remains undetailed. The production version of 2017's E-Motion sports coupé concept will use SAIC's twin-motor, four-wheel-drive powertrain - so some variation of this is likely. The idea of MG rebooting its historically successful two-seat roadster format has long been mooted. Back in 2014, Autocar learned that SAIC’s Shanghai design studio was developing options for a new sports car, but this was only at the investigative proposal stage. The E-Motion was powered by an in-house-developed electric powertrain that was claimed to give a 0-62mph time of less than 4.0sec and a range of more than 310 miles.