Tenerife footballer dies aged 30 after on-pitch collision

Jesús de Miguel suffered a serious injury after colliding with the opposition goalkeeper in a match on Monday.

What happened?

The 30-year-old CD Tenerife forward was playing in a second-division match against Andorra, when he was struck in the chest by their goalie, Jesús Owono.

De Miguel suffered a cardiac arrest and was rushed to hospital. He died at 8am on Tuesday, according to his club.

• Owono’s knee appeared to collide with De Miguel while challenging in the midfield, according to reports.
• It occurred in the final minutes of the game, which at that point was drawn 2-2.
• The forward reportedly lay motionless on the pitch and distressed players called for medical aid. He was treated for more than five minutes on the pitch before being rushed to hospital by ambulance.

What the club has said

There are no words of comfort – there is absolutely nothing that can lessen this overwhelming sadness. We stand with his grieving family, with his loved ones, with all of Tenerife who mourn this cruel loss today.

CD tenerife, in a statement today

When the BBC licence fee could be axed

Ministers are set to announce proposals to reform the £180-a-year charge in a White Paper setting out the terms of a new BBC charter next month.

New charter by 2028

Insiders believe the licence fee could gradually transition to something new over several years.

Streaming tax

The Government is considering extending the charge to streaming services – which could cost £6.25 a month.

Broadband levy

This would cost £11 per month, £4 a month cheaper than the current licence fee.

• BBC director-general Matt Brittin has suggested that the BBC could use a German-style funding model.
• 
  All households in Germany pay €18.36 per month (£15.70) to fund all public TV and radio broadcasters across different states.
• 
  Brittin predicted the scheme would enable the current fee to be reduced by 20 per cent from its current level.
• 
  The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has looked at whether the BBC should be allowed to take advertising around some of its services.

A final option could be to let the licence fee continue its decline and give the BBC the commercial freedom to raise more funds itself.

A BBC spokesman said: “The current funding model is outdated and needs reform. We will continue to engage with government to secure a new charter.” 

Watch more from The i Paper

How rapid delivery services are ‘fuelling’ alcohol harm

A group of MPs, health leaders and charities have argued the availability of strong and cheap alcohol should be tackled via minimum unit pricing (MUP) in England.

What does the letter say?

• In a letter to Health Secretary Yvette Cooper, 55 experts said that the evidence from Scotland and Wales, where MUP has already been introduced, is “clear and compelling”.
• The letter reads: “Very strong, very cheap alcohol is available everywhere in this country, from our supermarkets to our corner shops and increasingly via online rapid delivery services.”
• They argued the current conditions allow for “escalating alcohol harm”.

Between 2019 and 2023,  deaths in England increased by a “staggering”

42%

and have not returned to pre-pandemic levels since.

The authors said that alcohol harm is estimated to cost

£27.4bn

a year, with £4.9bn of this “shouldered by the NHS”.

Human and economic costs

Labour MP Cat Smith said: “The human and economic costs are now far too high to ignore.”

Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, chair of the Alcohol Health Alliance, warned England “is in danger of becoming the UK’s alcohol harm outlier”.

Mahmood announces new immigration rules – what we know

The Home Secretary was forced to back down over proposals to make care workers wait 15 years to qualify for permanent residence.

Shabana Mahmood revised plans to force many low-paid workers, including carers, to wait up to 15 years before being granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR).

On Monday, she scrapped these plans for care workers. But other professions have not seen the same reversal.

Mahmood introduced the carve out for care workers after intense backlash from Labour MPs. Housing Secretary Angela Rayner called the retrospective plan “un-British”.

Workers in a set list of public service jobs – such as doctors, nurses and teachers – will also be able to qualify for ILR after five years, even if they do not meet the new salary threshold of £50,271.

Routes to settlement

Under the new system, legal migrants will be able to settle on the following timelines:

• 3 years: additional rate taxpayers earning over £125,141, as well as highly skilled individuals on Global Talent and Innovator Founder visas.
• 5 years: higher rate taxpayers earning over £50,271, as well as skilled public service workers.
• 10 years: the new standard route for everyone else.
• 20 years: anyone who claims certain benefits while in the UK or commits a visa offence.

Watch more from The i Paper

How getting your RDA (recommended dose of art) can transform wellbeing

Visiting a museum or art gallery every month for a “recommended dose of art (RDA)” can transform wellbeing, according to a report.

At least 60 minutes per month inside a gallery or museum could help cut depression, lower stress and improve health, according to the study from the Art Fund charity.

What do the figures tell us?

50%

Evidence in the report shows how a 2019 study on 2,148 adults found a 32 per cent lower risk of depression from going to museums, theatre and cinema every few months.

This rose to a 48 per cent lower risk for people who attended once a month or more, according to the data, taken from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.

• Daisy Fancourt, professor of psychobiology at University College London (UCL), who wrote the foreword to the report said adopting a monthly habit can make a difference.

The expert view

Regular engagement and meaningful encounters with art are now recognised as an important contributor to our health and wellbeing, and the evidence suggests they should be viewed as health-promoting behaviours, alongside having a balanced diet, regular exercise and spending time outdoors.

Daisy Fancourt

Another study published this year in the journal, , found “evidence that authentic art viewing engages biological processes linked to stress reduction and immune modulation”.

A further study found community cultural engagement was associated with a lower risk of developing dementia.

Why Ryanair is warning customers to book summer flights now

The boss of Ryanair has warned travellers to book their summer flights sooner rather than later, with plane ticket prices set to “rise dramatically” next year.

The budget airline said it expects short-haul airfares – like those for trips from the UK to Europe – to increase tickets by 20 per cent.

Why are ticket prices soaring?

Fuel prices have increased dramatically due to the US-Israeli war on Iran. Ryanair said it expects jet fuel prices to remain “elevated well into 2027”.

Short-haul airfares must therefore rise to reflect “much higher” cost of aviation fuel prices. There will also be fewer seats available as airlines reduce capacity to try to control costs, according to Ryanair.

But raising fares won’t fully cover spiralling fuel costs. The airline, therefore, is mulling pay freezes, reducing crew numbers and increasing its use of AI to cut costs.

“Unless there is a swift resolution of the Middle East conflict we expect jet fuel prices to remain elevated well into 2027,” said O’Leary.

A closer look at the figures

€2.15bn

The company revealed that profit after tax fell by 15 per cent to €2.15bn (£1.79bn) for the half-year to September, compared with a year earlier.

Revenues increased by 3 per cent to €10.08bn driven by 6 per cent increase in passenger numbers. But the firm saw operating costs lift by 10 per cent.

• Earlier this year, Ryanair said it would cut its traffic target for the year from 216 million passengers to 214 million in an effort to offset increases in unhedged fuel costs.

What you need to know about new Buy Now Pay Later rules

Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) lenders – like Klarna and Clearpay – have been officially regulated since July, meaning their rules of use have quietly changed.

Here is what that means for you.

Stricter checks

The new regulation mean users have stricter background checks on their ability to repay loans.

Purchases blocked

If you fail, then your purchase via BNPL will be blocked. 

Borrowing figure

There are different affordability checks for different purchases, partially based on how much is borrowed.

Why were the regulations needed?

• BNPL regulations are designed to help prevent people from falling into unaffordable debt.
• Lenders must now direct shoppers who fall into financial difficulty towards debt advice rather than immediately referring them to debt collectors.
• Treasury minister Rachel Blake said the rules deliver promised consumer protections.

Protecting consumers

It is not fair that people using these products have had fewer rights than if they had paid by credit card. These new rules protect the consumer — with proper checks before credit is offered, real rights when things go wrong, and support rather than pressure if someone falls into financial difficulty.

Rachel Blake, economic secretary to the Treasury

How to avoid being blocked

Sara Williams, a former volunteer debt adviser at Citizens Advice who posts tips as Debt Camel on social media, told the BBC just how consumers can avoid being blocked by BNPL lenders.

• Slow down your purchases: If your budget is tight, ensure that what you are buying is essential or see if you can postpone the spending.
• Be more careful about what you buy: Avoid needing a high credit limit to buy lots of clothes in different sizes.
• Cancel subscriptions: Escape the trap of having to use BNPL to make up for the cost of previous payments.
• Talk to debt charities: If you are using BNPL for essentials, speak to charities for help and access to food bank vouchers.