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Peugeot has revealed the new 308 SW, the estate version of its reinvented family hatchback and the second model to wear the brand's new logo. The estate is visually identical to the hatch version - which we've driven in prototype form - ahead of the B-pillars but set apart, both from its sibling and predecessor, by a bespoke rear-end design that aims to “draw the eye to the extra space” offered by its larger body. The rear LED light bar, for example, loses the hatchback’s black dividing strip to “increase the amount of perceived bodywork”, while the window line falls more sharply than the roofline towards the rear, which is said to give a dynamic silhouette. The 308 SW’s wheelbase has been extended by 55mm over the hatchback's, to 2732mm, which means rear-seat passengers get 129mm of leg room, while the rear overhang is 210mm longer than that of the smaller car, boosting maximum boot space from 412 litres to 608 litres - some 33 litres more than the Ford Focus Estate. The interior, too, is familiar from the standard 308, ushering in the latest iteration of Peugeot’s i-Cockpit dashboard design with a multi-function steering wheel, a 10.0in infotainment touchscreen and a fully digital instrument display. The 308 SW is available with a choice of either a 1.2-litre petrol or 1.5-litre diesel engine, both with 128bhp, or a pair of plug-in hybrids with either 178bhp or 222bhp and a claimed EV range of up to 37 miles from a 12.4kWh battery. The 308 SW will follow the hatchback onto the market towards the end of 2021, and although prices have yet to be confirmed, we would expect the new model to start from around £23,000 - slightly more than the outgoing car.

The UN's cultural body says the world's biggest coral reef system should be downgraded to the list at a meeting next month. It is urging Australia to take "accelerated action" on global warming. But the Australian government said it would "strongly oppose" the recommendation. The latest row is part of an ongoing dispute between Unesco and the Australian government over the status of the reef, which gained World Heritage ranking in 1981. Unesco had debated whether it go on the in danger list in 2017. Environment Minister Sussan Ley said the government had been "stunned" by the latest announcement, calling it a "backflip on previous assurances from UN officials" that the step would not be taken. Rising sea temperatures as a result of global warming caused by the burning of fossil fuels are the main reason the reef has been severely damaged, scientists say. There have been several "bleaching" events on the reef in the past five years. media captionThe second bleaching is causing concerns over the reef's long term health. The Unesco report says despite efforts by the Australian government, key targets on improving water quality in the reef had not been met. If the recommendation is followed, it would be the first time a natural World Heritage Site has been placed on the "in danger" list mostly because of impacts from climate change. Great Barrier Reef suffers another mass bleaching Great Barrier Reef avoids 'in danger' list Racing to save one of the great wonders of nature Listing a site as "in danger" can help address threats by, for example, unlocking access to funds or publicity. But the recommendation could affect a major tourism destination that creates thousands of jobs in Australia. Map of Great Barrier Reef China currently chairs Unesco, and there is some speculation that long-running tensions between Beijing and Canberra may have influenced the decision. But environmental groups rejected any suggestion the recommendation was political. "The recommendation from Unesco is clear and unequivocal that the Australian government is not doing enough to protect our greatest natural asset, especially on climate change," said Richard Leck, Head of Oceans for the World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia.

The company he works for, Prologis, owns and manages warehouse logistics parks across the UK. They're building as fast as they can, but it's been a struggle to keep pace with the boom in online shopping in recent years. And the pandemic has only served to accelerate the trend, making warehousing hot property. Prologis's biggest park, known as Dirft, is just off the M1 near Northampton. You can see the big sheds towering over the fields from the motorway. It's a vast site with three rail freight terminals. When you click to buy online, there's a good chance the product will start its journey here, whether that's baked beans, laptops, furniture or fashion. Despite its size, it's not big enough. Hundreds of construction workers are beavering away on expanding the site. "We're building buildings speculatively, which means we haven't got a customer lined up, and we're letting them before we finish, something which doesn't happen very often," says Mr Woodbridge, who is head of capital deployment for the firm. Retail sales fall in May as shoppers dine out 'We pay $16,000 for shipping - it used to be $2,800' UK shoppers warned of summer products shortage It wasn't that long ago that warehouses were unloved by investors, who continued to pour money into retail and office space. But things look very different now. Our High Streets and town centres are grappling with too much retail space and the logistics sector can't build warehouses quickly enough. DHL delivery driver and van in London IMAGE COPYRIGHTGETTY IMAGES image captionMore online ordering means more warehouse space required to stock goods New research from Savills, commissioned by the UK Warehousing Association, shows the dramatic increase in warehouse space in the last six years. In 2015, there was 428 million square feet of large warehouse space in the UK. That's now risen by 32% - adding the equivalent of an extra 2,396 football pitches. The occupancy mix has also changed. In 2015, High Street retailers were the dominant occupiers, but now they've been overtaken by third party logistics providers, like DHL and Yodel, who fulfil and deliver most of our online shopping. The biggest take-up in space, as the chart below shows, has come from the so-called pureplay online retailers, firms which don't have physical stores and only sell online, such as Boohoo. These online retailers have increased their warehouse footprint by 614% in just six years. chart showing occupation of warehouse space The sheds themselves are also getting bigger. At Dirft, a super-sized building is taking shape which is the size of ten football pitches. The warehouse will be Royal Mail's biggest parcel hub, processing more than a million packages a day. "Without these sheds, society can't function. These facilities make everyday life possible", says Mr Woodbridge. He reckons that for every additional billion pounds in spending online, a further 775,000 sq ft of warehouse space is needed to support it. When this vast logistics park is eventually filled, some 15,000 people are expected to be employed here. A new training academy will open shortly to help attract and train people for a career in logistics.

yes @Genius.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson is expected to announce his intention to stand for the leadership of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) on Monday. Nominations opened on Saturday but it is unlikely that anyone will stand against the Lagan Valley MP. Edwin Poots announced his resignation from the DUP's top post last Thursday after 21 days - the shortest leadership term in the party's history. The process for electing a new DUP leader will be completed on Saturday. SDLP leader Colum Eastwood has warned that the new leader of the DUP cannot be allowed to "choreograph the collapse of the institutions at Stormont". It comes after the DUP's Paul Givan was told he would have to resign as Northern Ireland's first minister when a new party leader takes over. In a statement on Monday, Mr Eastwood said: "With the imminent resignation of their first minister, it is increasingly clear that the DUP are positioning themselves to manufacture another political crisis that will once again threaten our local institutions. "In a desperate attempt to stabilise their own party, they are recklessly prepared to destabilise devolution. "No political party and no government should indulge this recklessness - the vast majority of the public won't indulge it so no-one else should." "No-one should be threatening to tear down local government in the middle of a pandemic. "It simply wouldn't be tolerated anywhere else and people shouldn't be expected to tolerate it here." Mr Poots had beaten Sir Jeffrey by 19 votes to 17, in the party's first leadership contest in its 50-year history last month. The timeline for the next DUP leadership process was announced at the weekend by the party's chairman Lord Morrow. Potential new leaders must submit in writing their nomination, supported by a proposer and seconder, to Lord Morrow before midday on Tuesday. Likely plotlines if Donaldson writes DUP script Only Stormont assembly members (MLAs) and MPs are entitled to vote for the party's leader. Mr Poots stepped down on Thursday after an internal party revolt over his decision to agree a deal with Sinn Féin and nominate Mr Givan as first minister. That came after Westminster vowed to push through Irish language legislation in October if Stormont fails to do so beforehand. Sinn Féin had asked for reassurances about the introduction of Irish language provision before making a nomination for deputy first minister.

It’s like a holding area for Minis: there are three neat rows of 20, most looking ready for action. And had you not driven up the driveway of a private house to get to them, you would have assumed that they were gathered at the Mini factory in Oxford – in a dealer storage area or perhaps lined up for a press launch. Except that most are 20 years old, they indeed live on the premises of a house and they all belong to one man. Tim Williams is a car enthusiast, and he explains that when he sold his storage business a few years back, he was looking for a strand of the old car hobby to get into. Then, about four years ago, he came across an embryonic enthusiasm for Y-reg Minis. Eh? The Mini Y-Register is possibly the only car club whose focus revolves around one character of the UK numberplate of a very specific model range. We’re talking about the very first of the BMW-era Minis. By definition, these are relatively few, the club identifying these (for reasons that we will come to) as the first 700 or so made. By a quirk of timing, these cars will have a registration number beginning with the letter Y. But relatively few R50 Minis, as BMW codenamed them, were registered with such a plate. So, er, why? Because when the new Mini went on sale on 7 July 2001, there were only 11 weeks to go before the next numberplate age identifier came into play. And it wasn’t Z but 51, as the UK switched to a twice-yearly identifier in an effort to deal with the absurd numbers of new cars being registered on 1 August. Plenty of new Mini buyers thus delayed delivery of their cars until 1 September, enabling their shiny new Mini to have the shiniest new plate. It meant that many Y-reg Minis were registered by Mini itself, mainly as press cars, and many more were registered by the dealer network as demonstrators. As this was the kind of car bought by individuals rather than fleets, most excited customers were able to wait; businesses with a new product to launch couldn’t. If you think this is arcane, well, there’s more. Just as the early 1959- 1960 BMC Minis had detail features that were swiftly redesigned, so do the earliest R50 Minis. It’s a rather pleasing symmetry for enthusiasts and collectors, although probably not something BMW was aiming for. Among the rethinks on the BMC Mini were the addition of drainage holes to the roof gutters(!), oval rather than rectangular cut-outs in the hubcaps, an extra locating peg for the chrome sliding window latches and a reversal in the way the toeboard overlapped the floor, which finally staunched the initially baffling water leaks into the cabin. Perversely, these and more add to a 1959-1960 Mini’s market value. Among the very early BMW Minis, a handful have an indented rib running the length of the front seats’ backrests and cushions, a few more have clutch and brake pedal rubbers embossed with ‘Mini’ and larger numbers have heater air intake grilles whose grid pattern features larger octagons. The washer jets were redesigned, too. And a few tens of cars did without sound-deadening for the roof (which can’t be seen, obviously), although many more had a seat-recline handle and mechanism that was changed for a new version under warranty if it failed – which plenty did. So there’s more to hunt down than a Y-registration and the low VIN that comes with it. There’s no shortage of hunters, either. Williams points out that of the estimated 700- odd Y-reg cars sold, 400 or so survive, yet the club’s Facebook page has more than 1000 members. More than there are cars to go around, demand therefore exceeding supply. Which is why the prices of these cars are rising (relatively) and why there’s now an almost frenzied clamour to buy the most sought-after varieties should they appear for sale. Especially if they’re cheap, the seller perhaps unaware of the car’s significance. The rush to buy is now so strong that “it was January 2020 that I last bought one, after a bit of a fight”, says Williams. It was a trade-in, he explains, but having agreed a price over the phone, the dealer told him the following day that he had been offered more, so demanded extra, despite their verbal deal. Williams paid to secure it, but the incident left a bad taste. He has talked to another dealer selling a Y-reg Mini in which there “was more interest than I’ve seen in 30 years of trading”.

Supply constraints that have challenged businesses and caused shortages of everything from semiconductors to sweatpants are deepening, adding to pressure on inflation and testing the Federal Reserve’s resolve to keep juicing the economy. Economists and business executives now say those supply-chain disruptions, key labor shortages and resurgent demand driven by multiple rounds of fiscal stimulus will persist through the end of the year, if not longer. “It turns out it’s a heck of a lot easier to create demand than it is to—you know, to bring supply back up to snuff,” Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday after the central bank’s most recent policy meeting. The squeeze on U.S. businesses shows little sign of letting up, particularly in the manufacturing sector. The pace of manufacturing production and hiring slowed in May from the prior month even though new orders and order backlogs accelerated, according to the May Purchasing Managers Index published by the Institute for Supply Management.

China has administered more than a billion Covid vaccine doses, officials say - more than a third of all vaccine doses given globally. The country's vaccination drive began slowly after authorities successfully suppressed virus cases. But incentives such as free eggs and concern over an outbreak of the Delta variant have seen jabs accelerate. Chinese authorities aim to have fully vaccinated 40% of the country's 1.4 billion po[CENSORED]tion by July. People in China are being offered domestically made Chinese vaccines, including the Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines. Both require two doses. Covid vaccines: How fast is worldwide progress? Covid map: Where are cases the highest? After lockdowns and mass testing prevented the virus from circulating, many Chinese felt little need to get vaccinated. Previous vaccine scandals had also left some people wary. However the pace of vaccinations has rapidly increased and China's National Health Commission said it had taken just five days to administer the latest 100 million doses. An outbreak of the Delta variant in the southern province of Guangdong has also convinced some Chinese to be vaccinated. rural residents wait of vaccine in Anhui IMAGE COPYRIGHTGETTY IMAGES image captionRural residents wait to receive a second vaccine dose in the central province of Anhui Doctors in the southern city of Guangzhou told the New York Times that symptoms from the new variant appeared to be different and more dangerous than those linked to the initial form of the virus that began spreading in the city of Wuhan at the end of 2019. The newspaper quoted a resident of Shenzhen, a city near Guangzhou, who said she had not wanted to be vaccinated because of possible side effects but had now changed her mind. "I want to get vaccinated, but it's really hard to make an appointment now," the 27-year-old said, adding that incentives such as free eggs or free rides to vaccination centres were no longer being offered. Other regions have been offering a range of modest incentives. The central province of Anhui has also been offering people free eggs while some in Beijing have received shopping vouchers. The National Health Commission says it aims to have fully vaccinated 70% of the po[CENSORED]tion by the end of the year. media captionWhat do we know about the Chinese vaccines? Three Chinese vaccines have been authorised for emergency use within the country. Two - the Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines - have been approved for emergency use by the World Health Organization (WHO). They are both already in use in a range of other countries, including the Philippines, Chile, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Thailand and Turkey. The WHO said the Sinopharm vaccine's efficacy for symptomatic and hospitalised cases of Covid-19 was estimated to be 79%. It said the Sinovac vaccine prevented symptomatic disease in 51% of those vaccinated and prevented severe symptoms and hospitalisation in 100% of samples.

The ceremonies at approved premises such as hotels currently need to be in a room or other permanent structure. The change, which also applies to civil partnerships, will allow outdoor ceremonies from July to next April, and will mean more guests can attend events affected by social-distancing rules. A consultation will take place to see if the change should become permanent. It comes as a relaxation of coronavirus restrictions in England and Wales from Monday will increase the number of people able to attend weddings and civil partnerships. In England the 30-person cap will be lifted - but venues are being asked to limit numbers based on space and to enforce social distancing measures, including the wearing of face coverings indoors. In Wales, the number of people who can attend will be determined by the size of the venue and an assessment of Covid risks - including social distancing. What are the rules for weddings now in England and Wales? 'Wedding venues booked until 2023' Covid 'has highlighted archaic wedding laws' But the change will only apply to locations already approved to hold civil weddings and partnership registrations, so will not expand the number of venues available this summer. Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said: "A couple's wedding day is one of the most special times in their lives and this change will allow them to celebrate it the way that they want. "At the same time, this step will support the marriage sector by providing greater choice and helping venues to meet demand for larger ceremonies." MPs will not have to vote on the law change, as it can be introduced directly by a government minister. Until 1994 marriage ceremonies in England and Wales could only take place in churches and register offices. An amendment to the law permitted ceremonies at other locations including landmarks, stately homes and dedicated wedding venues. The sites must be approved by local councils, with a registrar attending to record the ceremony. About 75% of non-religious weddings now take place on approved premises. For historical reasons, the law already allows Jewish and Quaker wedding ceremonies the option of taking place outdoors. But other religious ceremonies will continue to take place indoors in churches or certified places of worship. The government says it plans to introduce legislation to allow religious marriages to take place outdoors when parliamentary time allows. The issue of holding ceremonies outdoors was among a series of changes proposed by the Law Commission last year. The commission, which reviews legislation, said current laws were no longer meeting the needs of many couples, and suggested private gardens, beaches and parks could all become potential venues in the future. However, the Ministry of Justice says the location for ceremonies taking place outside from July must be assessed to be "seemly and dignified" and there will be public access and signage requirements.

Robert Kubica had the Formula 1 world at his feet a decade ago. Already a grand prix winner and heading into the 2011 season with Renault, the Pole had a Ferrari agreement in place for 2012 and was recognised as one of the best. Then he crashed while competing in the Ronde di Andora Rally, a fun event between the first and second pre-season F1 tests that he did for the love of it. He paid an enormous price. He went off and a barrier sliced through the front of his Skoda Fabia, doing serious damage to his right leg and arm on the way through. Given Kubica’s injury, which permanently restricted the use of his right arm and hand, a successful return to the top flight of circuit racing seemed unlikely, even after he resumed competition in rallying and climbed to World Rally Championship level. Yet not only did Kubica race in F1 with Williams in 2019 and then continue as a reserve driver with Alfa Romeo, but he also recently claimed his first victory in car racing since the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix. That win in the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) season opener at the Circuit de Catalunya, sharing a WRT-run Oreca LMP2 car with Yifei Ye and Louis Delétraz, was followed by another at the Red Bull Ring. And he has achieved this driving, as he puts it, “70% left-handed”. Kubica doesn’t make a big deal of what he calls “my limitation”, and while he’s perfectly capable, the damage means that he’s no longer the extraordinary driver he once was. But he’s astonishing in a different way, because by coming back to race in F1 even at a diminished (but still effective) level, as well as establishing himself as a force in sports cars, he achieved what had once seemed impossible. Well, impossible to everyone except perhaps himself. “Getting to F1 already for the first time was a big achievement,” says Kubica. “Getting into F1 for the second time with everything that happened in my life was an even bigger achievement. Not many people have a chance to come back after such a long break, into such a high level of sport. The year with Williams was disappointing, but it was still a big achievement. “In the beginning, I came back to a lot of pressure about my hand and suggestions that I wouldn’t be able to turn [at the hairpin] in Monaco. Every time I put away doubts, there were new opinions. In the end, people accepted how I am. “I had to do that first, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. But on the other hand, I showed that my limitations aren’t limiting me from driving an F1 car at a proper level, and sometimes it probably looks easier than it feels. But this is only positive because, in the end, this was my target. This is me, and I have to make the most out of myself, not think how I was 15 years ago or even before my accident. Back to top Kubica leaves much unsaid. He went through somewhere in the region of 40 operations to get back into a position to physically drive an F1 car and had some dark days, given his raison d’être had been torn away from him. And who knows what painful frustrations may lie hidden in the darker moments when he reflects on what he has lost. It was some years before he was willing to return to a race circuit for a visit. Even when competing regularly in rallying (where he won the second-tier WRC2 title in 2013), he spoke of attempting to attend a DTM round at the invitation of Mercedes-AMG F1 team boss Toto Wolff but turning back because of the effect that it had on him. Make no mistake, his racing return was a near-incomprehensible feat of determination. While winning in sports cars and toiling in low-profile F1 roles wasn’t what his future once promised, having once lost everything, he’s simply enjoying being back in his world. The ability and mentality that should have made him an F1 world champion have instead been channelled into this very different – but perhaps even more impressive – achievement.

French police are searching for two women after the death of a pedestrian who was hit by an electric scooter in Paris, officials say. The 31-year-old victim, an Italian citizen named only as Miriam, was walking along the Seine early on Monday when she was hit by the e-scooter. The pair were reportedly travelling at high speed, and did not stop. The public prosecutor's office has opened an investigation into homicide aggravated by failure to provide help. The victim, who was reportedly walking with a friend, hit her head on the pavement and suffered cardiac arrest. Divers from the river police patrolling the Seine gave her emergency medical treatment, and managed to restart her heart after 30 minutes. She was taken unconscious to hospital, where she remained in a coma until her death on Wednesday. Originally from the region of Capalbio, in Tuscany, she worked as a waitress in a small Italian restaurant. Europe battles with safety as e-scooters take off The incident happened at 01:00 local time on the Voie Georges-Pompidou on the right bank, near the Pont au Change bridge. Police have appealed for witnesses and are examining CCTV footage from the area. The case has renewed the debate over e-scooters in Paris, where there have been concerns for the safety of pedestrians. They can travel at more than 50km/h (30mph), and are growing in po[CENSORED]rity, in part because of their low environmental impact. In 2019, the French government introduced rules after hundreds of incidents, including several deaths. Riders are required to be at least 12 and cannot ride their scooter on the pavement. In the UK, London has become the latest city to trial e-scooters. More than 30 areas - including Newcastle, Bristol and Bournemouth - are already operating rental schemes.

The UK faces shortages of British-produced meat as problems with recruitment continue, the industry has warned. Brexit and coronavirus have meant many EU workers have returned to their own countries, putting a squeeze on production. The poultry industry is reporting a 10% fall in the number of birds being slaughtered for meat in recent weeks. But vegans said the labour shortage could "spark much-needed change". About a billion birds are slaughtered, prepared and packed in the UK per year, with the industry heavily reliant on EU nationals, especially for lower-skilled jobs. But migrants have been returning to their home countries due to Brexit effects including a weaker pound, a trend exacerbated by the coronavirus crisis, the British Poultry Council (BPC) said. Post-Brexit customs systems not fit for purpose, say meat exporters Brexit: 'My meat shipment is rotting in Rotterdam' Once they get home, many decide not to return. Meat producers have been trying to counter these effects by increasing automation and raising wages for workers. Nevertheless, skill shortages persist, especially in rural areas with high employment rates, the BPC said. The industry group called on the government to ease post-Brexit immigration rules to make it easier to attract EU workers. Chief executive Richard Griffiths said: "We generally operate in areas of high local employment so there is a limit to availability of UK workers and there is negligible appetite from UK workers to move from other parts of the country. "When it comes to non-UK labour - either from the EU or further afield - we have seen reducing numbers willing to come to the UK, the immigration barriers of salary and skill have been raised way beyond what we can manage, and the cost of bringing people is prohibitive." Mr Griffiths warned that lack of supply could push up the cost of British meat. This risks creating a "two-tier" system where the UK imports food produced to lower standards, such as chlorinated chicken from the US, and only the affluent can afford higher quality British meat, the BPC said. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it was working hard to ensure that producers across the UK have the support and workforce that they need." "We would like to see the sector highlight the domestic opportunities available. Food and farming businesses will also be able to employ EU nationals with settled or pre-settled status to help meet their labour demand," it added. 'A real problem' The beef, pork and lamb meat sector is also suffering a labour shortfall, an industry body said. The meat industry is "two or three weeks away from a real problem", British Meat Processors Association chief executive Nick Allen said. Some of the biggest meat producers are on the verge of telling farmers they do not have the capacity to process their livestock, he said. While it's good news that the hospitality industry is opening up as coronavirus restrictions relax, this is putting an added strain on meat production, he said. However, the Vegan Society said that the situation could have ecological and animal welfare benefits. It said low or no-meat lifestyles including veganism were becoming more po[CENSORED]r as people realised the environmental benefits of eating plant-based proteins. "Just like the pandemic, which encouraged huge numbers of Brits to cut back on the amount of animal products they're eating, this labour shortage could potentially spark much needed change, and be a positive outcome for animals and the environment," a Vegan Society spokeswoman said. "We hope to see farmers gradually moving away from farming animals to growing crops for human consumption by providing food for the growing vegan po[CENSORED]tion."

Audi bosses have reportedly agreed a plan that will result in the brand launching its final combustion-engined car as soon as 2026. According to a report from German publication Süddeutsche Zeitung, Audi CEO Markus Duesmann presented the new electrification timeline to the board of management yesterday (17 June). The news is expected to be made official in the coming days. Such an acceleration of Audi's electrification targets would be in line with wider ambitions set by its Volkswagen Group parent company, which has previously hinted that it would shift focus wholly to electrified vehicles in Europe from 2026. Audi's range of electric vehicles is rapidly expanding. Since the 2018 launch of its first, the E-tron SUV, it has launched the E-tron GT fastback and the Q4 E-tron crossover, and it will reveal the A6 E-tron saloon and Q5 E-tron SUV in 2022. Nearly every mainstream passenger car in the Audi line-up is now available with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, too. It is expected that Audi will sell combustion-engined cars into the 2030s, however, with the final ICE model expected to have a conventional lifecycle of around seven years from 2026. It is not yet known which model will feature Ingolstadt's final engine, but the current-generation Q5 will be up for replacement at around that time. If the reports are true, Audi will be the latest in a flurry of manufacturers to put an end date on its ICE development programme. Fiat will phase out all ICEs by 2030, Jaguar will be reinvented as an EV-only luxury brand in 2025 and Mini will launch its final ICE car in 2025. It's likely that the imminent roll-out of stringent new European emissions regulations, known as Euro 7, has influenced Audi's decision to focus on purely electric powertrains. Last month, Duesmann told Autocar: “It’s certainly true that meeting Euro 7 [standards] adds a lot of cost to combustion engines and that a crossover point is coming; we think by the middle of the decade at the latest. Euro 7 is a real headache, especially since it doesn’t do much to improve the environment. So we will reach this crossover point soon.” At that time, Duesmann gave no date for the phase-out, but suggested that the final combustion-engined Audi models will be "the best of that type we ever make".

UK coronavirus infections have risen slightly in the last week, with an estimated 119,000 people - up from 110,000 - now positive for the virus. The Office for National Statistics figures, up to 12 June, suggest one in every 540 people is infected. The more infectious Delta variant accounts for almost all of the cases, says Public Health England. There is some regional variation in infection rates, however, and some good news on vaccine efficacy. North-west England had the highest proportion of people of any region in England likely to test positive for coronavirus in the week to June 12 - around one in 180. Eastern England had the lowest estimate - around one in 2,480. The trend is "uncertain" in Scotland and Northern Ireland, says the ONS, while in Wales the latest estimate is one in 1,500 people infected - down from one in 1,300 in the previous week - although first minister Mark Drakeford says a third wave of Covid is under way linked to the Delta variant. Headache and runny nose linked to Delta variant Covid cases rising in the North West of England Vaccines are working well against Delta According to latest data from PHE, a single dose of vaccine reduces a person's chances of catching coronavirus and needing hospital treatment by about 75%, even with Delta circulating in the UK. And among people who had received the recommended two doses, the chances of catching and being hospitalised by coronavirus was reduced by more than 90%. Of 806 people infected with the Delta variant who ended up hospital in England between 1 February and 14 June 2021: 527 (65%) people were unvaccinated 135 (17%) were more than 21 days after their first dose of vaccine 84 (10%) were more than 14 days after their second dose As of 14 June, there have been 73 deaths in England of people who were confirmed as having the Delta variant and who died within 28 days of a positive test, and of these: 34 (47%) were unvaccinated 10 (14%) were more than 21 days after their first dose of vaccine 26 (36%) were more than 14 days after their second dose Infections highest in younger adults The ONS data also gives the age ranges for people infected in England, based on household testing. Rates are low and stable among adults over the age of 35 but are rising among younger adults and older teens. Graph of infections in young Meanwhile, the latest R number for the UK is between 1.2 and 1.4. It means that, on average, every 10 people infected will infect between 12 and 14 other people. There have been a further 10,476 cases of Covid in the UK, latest daily government figures show. Another 11 deaths within 28 days of a positive test have also been announced. Last Friday there were 7,439 cases and six deaths. How to book your jab All adults can now book Covid-19 jabs in England. Elsewhere in the UK, people aged 30 and over can get their vaccine in Scotland, although in some parts of Glasgow people aged 18 and over can get a first jab. In Wales, people aged 18 and over can get the vaccine, with the Welsh government announcing that all adults had been offered a vaccine earlier this week. In Northern Ireland, people aged 18 and over can book online or call 0300 200 7813.

Speaking to the BBC, Justice Secretary Robert Buckland apologised to victims and promised to "do a lot better". He also admitted budget cuts were partly to blame for convictions falling to a record low in recent years. The government says it is now considering allowing victims to pre-record their evidence to spare them the trauma of a courtroom trial. Its review also outlined plans to focus more on the suspect's behaviour - not the accuser's, and make sure phones taken away for evidence-gathering were returned within a day. The review was met with mixed responses, with one rape charity saying it was a missed opportunity and failed to identify any big commitments that would radically and swiftly improve rape victims' experience. Labour said the government had "failed victims of rape on every front" and its recommendations did not go far enough. Laura Kuenssberg: Apology to rape victims matters, but actions count Why are rape prosecutions falling? Calls for rape victims to pre-record evidence Speaking to BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg, Mr Buckland said the report revealed "at all stages of the criminal justice process frankly a failure to deal with complaints made by many thousands of victims". "The first thing I think I need to say is, sorry - it's not good enough." 'Deeply ashamed' In a foreword to the review, Mr Buckland, Home Secretary Priti Patel and Attorney General Michael Ellis, said: "The vast majority of victims do not see the crime against them charged and reach a court - one in two victims withdraw from rape investigations. "These are trends of which we are deeply ashamed," they wrote. "Victims of rape are being failed." They went on to say that most rapes were carried out by people known to the victim, making investigations very personal and intrusive for the victim. The trauma and their experience afterwards led many to disengage from the criminal justice process, they said. "We are not prepared to accept that rape is just 'too difficult' a crime to prosecute. We can, and must, do better," they added. line 'It felt like it was my character being judged' media captionKatherine: "I feel really sad that it's taken this for them to listen" Katherine Araniello says she felt she wanted to take her own life after her rape case was dropped "practically on the eve of the trial" by the Crown Prosecution Service. She says she was given an explanation as to why her case was dropped but it was only "very vague". "They didn't call me in to iron out any issues they might have at their end." She says she felt like "it was my character" the Crown Prosecution Service were judging, not that of the alleged perpetrator, and her treatment by the CPS "really stung, and it still stings to this day". "That lack of acknowledgment from the CPS on how to treat victims, highly traumatised victims as well, has left me really angry with the system," she says. "They haven't learned their lessons." line Each year there are about 128,000 victims of rape and attempted rape but fewer than 20% of them report the crime to the police, according to the report. And just 1.6% of rapes result in someone being charged. Emily Hunt, an independent adviser to the review and herself a rape victim, said the low prosecution rate was not because people made false allegations. She cited Home Office research showing up to 3% of rape allegations could be false, which meant 97% of them were not. "The reality is, in almost all cases, if someone says they've been raped, they have not made it up which makes the current situation all the more shocking and unacceptable," she said in the report. What's the new plan? Plans set out in the report include: Introducing better data extraction technology to reduce the time that victims are without their phones - with an aim to have them returned by police within 24 hours. Currently this process can take months causing distress for victims left phoneless at a time when they most need support from friends and family Putting greater emphasis on understanding a suspect's behaviour rather than focusing on a victim's credibility Sparing victims the trauma of attending a courtroom trial by videoing their cross-examination earlier in the process and away from the courtroom. A pilot will be trialled in several courts, with a wider rollout considered. This measure is already used for children and vulnerable victims and witnesses

A booming U.S. economy that is driving inflation higher around the world and pushing up the U.S. dollar is pressing some central banks to increase interest rates, despite still-high levels of Covid-19 infections and incomplete economic recoveries in their own countries. The world’s central banks are hanging on how the U.S. Federal Reserve will respond to a rise in inflation, wary of being caught in the crosscurrents of an extraordinary U.S. economic expansion. Global stock markets fell on Thursday after Fed officials signaled they expect to raise interest rates by late 2023, sooner than they anticipated in March, as the U.S. economy heats up. A global march toward higher interest rates, with the Fed at the center, risks stifling the economic recovery in some places, especially at a time when emerging-market debt has risen. The size of the U.S. economy, accounting for almost a quarter of world gross domestic product, and the importance of its financial markets have long exerted an outsize pull on global policy-making. But unusually brisk U.S. growth this year is critical to a world economy still recovering from last year’s shocks. Fed officials expect the U.S. economy to grow 7% this year, according to projections released Wednesday. Central banks in Russia, Brazil and Turkey have raised interest rates in recent weeks, in part to tamp down inflation stemming from the surge in commodities prices this year. As factories around the world strain to satisfy U.S. demand, commodities’ prices ranging from tin to copper have soared.

Times change, markets evolve and sometimes companies who rule the roost get a wheel stuck in a ditch and never recover. Some of the brands who are no longer with us are gladly forgotten, while others left us wonderful memories of motoring days gone by. Join us as we look at some of the best cars built by automakers no longer around: