Channel 4 confirms more than 25% of workforce to be cut

Channel 4 has confirmed it will cut around 340 roles, equivalent to over a quarter of its workforce, by the end of the year.

Here’s what we know.

Channel 4 said it requires “fundamental change in how the organisation operates”.

• A “comprehensive review of the shape, size and structure of the organisation” took place earlier this year.
• Channel 4 has proposed a new organisational design which will “greatly reduce non-programming spend”.
• Chief executive Priya Dogra said the decision was not “taken lightly” but was “necessary to create a simpler, more focused and sustainable Channel 4”.
• It comes nearly two years after the broadcaster axed 200 jobs.

The new changes mean…

340 cuts

Some 340 jobs losses by the end of 2026.

28 per cent

Those cuts are equivalent to just over a quarter of Channel 4’s current workforce.

• Channel 4 said the proposed changes focus on “reducing management layers, simplifying decision-making and removing duplication to create a leaner, more efficient operating model”.
• It also said a formal consultation process with affected employees will happen “in due course”, while further details on its future strategic direction and additional “transformation” initiatives would be shared in the coming months.

The broadcaster said the restructure will allow “greater investment in distinctive programmes that set Channel 4 apart”.

Dogra, Channel 4’s chief executive since March, said the job cuts would allow the broadcaster to “invest a greater proportion of revenues into distinctive content, back British creativity and deliver impact for audiences long into the future”.

Pictured: William attends funeral of King Harald of Norway

The Prince of Wales joined an array of monarchs and world leaders gathered in Norway’s capital, Oslo, alongside thousands of others for the state funeral of King Harald V on Wednesday.

Harald, who was King Charles III’s second cousin once removed, died on August 28 at the age of 89 after a 35-year reign. He was Europe’s oldest monarch.

The late Queen Elizabeth II and King Harald were second cousins. They shared the same great-grandparents, King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. Charles previously paid a touching tribute to his “dear cousin” and “much-loved kinsman and friend” after the news of Harald’s death was announced.

British representatives

William formed part of the walking procession behind the monarch’s coffin, which was slowly drawn on a gun carriage through the streets from the Royal Palace to the funeral in Oslo Cathedral.

The heir to Britain’s throne was next to his aunt, the Princess Royal, and joined a large ensemble of foreign royals as they made the journey on foot in honour of the late king.

Ukraine’s president was also in Oslo. On Tuesday, he met Norway’s prime minister to discuss the war with Russia.

Harald’s son, now Norway’s new King. He and other senior royals walked behind the coffin during the procession.

The monarch of Spain, who has reigned since 2014, was among others in attendance.

A popular king

Hugely popular with the Norwegian public, the late king Harald quietly modernised the monarchy as the country itself became more liberal and informal during his reign.

In times of national crisis, he provided a reassuring presence and a focus for collective grief and solidarity, from the 2011 Utøya massacre to the Covid-19 pandemic.

More than 46,000 people paid their respects at the chapel in Oslo’s royal palace during the week his body lay in state.

Over 10% chance AI ‘could kill all humans’ within decade

A top safety researcher at Anthropic has suggested that artificial intelligence could wipe out humanity in the next decade.

Will the technology really kill us all? The i Paper asks the experts.

Warnings from within

In a post on X on Tuesday, Evan Hubinger, an aligment science lead at AI safety company Anthropic, warned that he believed there was a greater than 10 per cent chance the technology could pose a species-ending risk within 10 years.

“I believe Anthropic is trying its best, but we do not yet have a plan to solve alignment for superintelligence and are not clearly on track to,” he added in the post, which can be seen below.

• Hubinger did not elaborate on specifically how AI could pose such a threat to human life.
• AI experts told The i Paper they mostly agreed that there is at least a risk that AI could wipe out humanity.
• However, opinions vary on how a future extinction event could potentially happen.

Dr Alison Khan, a researcher and AI expert at Loughborough University, said the “biggest and most worrying thing that’s coming around the corner” is AI’s increasing use of scarce natural resources – particularly water – to power data centres.

Henry Ajder, founder of AI-advisory firm Latent Space said it was possible AI decides it is in humans’ best interest to no longer exist and seeks to destroy them, such as by accessing or creating chemical weapons.

Four capabilities AI would need to wipe out humanity

Michael Vermeer, a senior physical scientist at research organisation RAND, conducted a study which found four capabilities AI would need to cause human extinction. These were:

• 1. An objective to cause extinction.
• 2. To gain control over key physical systems like nuclear weapon controls
• 3. The ability to persuade humans to support its actions.
• 4. And finally, the ability to survive without humans around to support it.

‘Very hard, but not impossible’

“It turns out it is very hard – though not completely out of the realm of possibility – for AI to kill us all,” Vermeer wrote in a blog post in May.

However, Jacob Coxon, a former Anthropic and OpenAI staffer who quit saying companies are “gambling with our lives”, has argued that AI development is continuing despite the risks because the firms producing the technology are “locked in a race to get there first”. Anthropic has been approached for comment.

Uganda out of Invictus Games over ‘Harry-Meghan nonsense’

Uganda’s military chief has said the east African country will withdraw from Prince Harry’s Invictus Games.

Here’s why.

A message from the president’s son

In order not to be construed as being opposed to His Majesty King Charles III of the United Kingdom, whom we deeply revere, Uganda hereby withdraws from the Invictus Games […] We shall not participate in anything that does not have His Majesty’s approval.

General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, son of the Ugandan president and head of the country’s armed forces writing on x

The context

Kainerugaba’s statement came two days after the King confirmed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were not working members of Britain’s royal family.

Speaking to , the general said: “I have factions in the Ministry of Defence that support that Harry-Meghan nonsense. I had to quash it straight away. I support the monarch. Period.” 

A rapid reversal

Uganda’s change in stance comes only two months after its defence minister appeared alongside the Duke of Sussex at an Invictus event in London to announce the country’s entry to the Games.

The Invictus Games, Harry’s tournament for wounded service personnel, is set to be held in Birmingham in July next year.

In coded language, Harry and Meghan are spitting blood

The statement from the Sussex’s press team was very revealing, and a bad omen.

South Park TV series renamed in apparent Trump reference

The creators of the animated TV show have announced that its new series will be called South America, appearing to reference Donald Trump’s recent retitling spree.

The President signed an executive order in August to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America amid trade tensions with Canada, and Apple and Google subsequently changed the name in their respective maps apps for US-based users. Trump also declared that the Gulf of Mexico should be called the Gulf of America last year.

A day before the South Park announcement, Trump shared an AI-generated video of him placing the word “America” over “Mexico” on a “Welcome to New Mexico” sign.

south park’s creators, matt stone and trey parker

History with Trump

Previously, an episode from the 27th series of the long-running show, which is known for its profanity and dark humour, depicted Trump naked in bed with Satan.

In response, the White House described as a “fourth-rate” show that was “hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention.”

• The announcement came after won an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program on Sunday.
• The name change shared to the show’s official social media account featured an image of the South Park sign with the word “Park” replaced with “America”.
• It remains unclear whether the new name will be adopted permanently or if it will revert to the original, with the 29th series premiering on 16 September.

All the things Trump has tried to rename – and why it smacks of desperation

First there was the Gulf of America, then Lake America.

Now, Trump has suggested renaming the state of New Mexico as ‘New America.’

Oil prices spike after US strikes on Iranian tankers

The price of oil has risen to over $100 a barrel for the first time since July after the latest exchange of strikes between the US and Iran.

The US military said it had “destroyed” several Iranian tankers on Tuesday after Tehran attempted to strike a US navy warship with ballistic missiles.

• The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it struck a US military base in Jordan in retaliation. Air defence systems destroyed 18 of the ballistic missiles, with two more landing in unpopulated areas, causing no casualties, according to Jordan’s state news agency.

Rising energy prices

Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, rose 2.1 per cent past the milestone amid the renewed fighting. It is up more than 60 per cent this year.

UK gas prices have also soared, with the benchmark British gas contract rising to its highest level since December 2022.

What this means for you

The immediate impact is the rate you can get a new fix at will get even more expensive. Then longer term, this feeds into the January price cap. It’s currently on target to rise 10% to 15% over October’s cap, and that remember is already confirmed to rise 3.6%, and was on top of the 12.6% rise in July.

money saving expert founder Martin Lewis on impact of rising gas prices

Trump’s war in Iran is driving the worst wave of pirate attacks in decades

Reduced security, new shipping routes, and desperation are fuelling a rise in attacks.

Israel sanctions row – has Burnham made his first mistake?

Andy Burnham’s Government announced a ban on trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank yesterday.

It was presented as an attempt to protect the prospect of a two-state solution, but it has already provoked threats of retaliation from Israel and drawn criticism from US politicians.

Our writers give their views on whether this is a principled attempt to restrain Israel, or an ineffective gesture.

Patrick Cockburn: Suffering makes sanctions a moral necessity

“The terrible fate of the Palestinians of Gaza and the West Bank is the great moral issue of our age.

“It should be impossible for any decent individual or government to know about the 75,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza and say ‘there was right on both sides’.

“On the contrary, this is an issue about right and wrong and the British Government is wholly correct, if late in the day.”

Jonathan Sacerdoti: This cynical move won’t help Palestinians

“The measures will do nothing tangible for Palestinians, nothing to advance peace and nothing to improve Israel’s security.

“For Britain, meanwhile, they risk damaging relations with Israel and the United States, while broadcasting a broader message of weakness: sufficient domestic political pressure can dictate British foreign policy.”

“If the Burnham Government hopes to change Israel’s behaviour, there may be the opposite effect to the one intended. 

“The far-right members of Netanyahu’s government have spent the current election campaign looking for a fight with a foreign government – they believe they can only benefit from the ensuing controversy. Britain has now given them what they want.”

Kitty Donaldson: Greens are real target

“Burnham is seeking to distinguish himself from Starmer’s handling of Gaza and attempting to win back voters who have drifted to the Green Party. However, whether these sanctions go far enough for Green voters is another question.”