Human Times

UK Edition

28th August 2026

THE HOT STORY

Junior staff ‘lose interpersonal skills’ by working from home

Consulting executives want junior staff in the office more frequently to develop key interpersonal skills, arguing human competencies are increasingly valuable as AI takes over their technical work. EY is encouraging junior employees to return to the office but has made no formal changes to remote work policies. Sayeh Ghanbari, EY's UK head of consulting, told the FT: "This change we've seen in the last few years where people have set up their lives to be at home a lot is just not the route to success in the world of AI." KPMG UK's head of advisory Callum Licence agreed, saying learning softer skills directly from others is now "more important than ever." Licence added: "While the benefits of AI will enable more efficient working and a different kind of role over the long term, the human benefits of connectivity and interaction will always remain."

Financial Times

Daily Mail

The Times

WORKFORCE

One in eight young people still out of work or education

The number of young people in the UK classified as not in education, employment, or training (Neet) has fallen to 981,000, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This represents about 12.5% of those aged 16 to 24 and although the number has decreased from over 1m earlier this year, it has risen by 3% compared to last year. A recent report found the number of starter jobs that are accessible to applicants entering the workforce has fallen 49% in the past decade, leaving only one starter vacancy for every three young people nationally. Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said the government is committed to addressing the issue and promised to take recommendations from the upcoming report from former minister Alan Milburn forward.

Bloomberg

The Times

Edinburgh University staff plan five-week strike over cuts

Students at Edinburgh University face five weeks of disruption after more than 3,000 University and College Union members announced strike action beginning on September 28. Academic and support staff are protesting against plans to cut spending by £140m and the prospect of compulsory redundancies. They are calling for greater financial transparency and meaningful negotiations with management.

The Times

REGULATION

City firms brace for new misconduct rules

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) will implement new rules next month requiring nearly 40,000 firms to report serious non-financial misconduct, including bullying and harassment. The regulations aim to prevent "rolling bad apples" by ensuring that firms disclose misconduct to future employers. Despite some resistance from the industry, the FCA believes these changes could enhance the UK's competitive edge in finance. Jill Lorimer, a partner at law firm Kingsley Napley, said: "Firms dealing with allegations against their people now may want to ensure that these processes are wrapped up before the new regime takes effect."

The Guardian

RISK

Britain launches new global counterterrorism hub

Britain is establishing an international counterterrorism hub in London to combat ultra-violent extremism. Experts from the US, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand will collaborate with UK officials to detect and remove extremist content online. The hub will enhance intelligence sharing among the Five Eyes partnership. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood also announced the "online-offline diversions" programme that will intervene with young people showing signs of radicalisation.

The Times

CYBERSECURITY

OpenAI took a week to detect Hugging Face hack

ChatGPT maker OpenAI has published a 37-page report detailing how its AI models successfully breached Hugging Face, admitting that it did not detect for more than a week that its AI agents had broken free and hacked the start-up by themselves during a test. “This incident demonstrated that autonomous agents can work together, circumvent production security controls, and successfully attack hardened production environments, and underscores the need for organisations to update their security strategies, controls, and response capabilities to address this changing threat landscape,” OpenAI said in the report, in which it also explained the steps it is taking to try and prevent a similar event from happening again.

CNBC

Financial Times

BBC News

TECHNOLOGY

Britain 'most exposed to AI disruption'

Analysis of 30 countries by Deutsche Bank suggests that Britain is the most vulnerable major economy to disruption by AI. "If we had to narrow our findings down to one country that stands out, it would be the UK," said Deutsche analyst Shreyas Gopal, who compiled the report. "A high share of the domestic workforce are in roles impacted by AI."

Daily Mail

City trader develops AI ‘SOS’ bracelet for women and children at risk of domestic abuse

London fund manager Irene Perdomo has been co-funding the creation of a prototype “SOS bracelet” that uses AI to try to protect women and children identified as vulnerable to abuse.

Financial Times

INTERNATIONAL

French flight attendant in landmark breast cancer ruling

Sophie Lainault, a former flight attendant for Air France, has successfully had her breast cancer recognised as an occupational disease, marking a first for France's aviation sector. The ruling, made by a court in Bayonne, acknowledged her exposure to night work and passive smoking during her 30-year career. Some studies have suggested that women who regularly work night shifts may face a higher risk of developing cancer; smoking was permitted on Air France flights until 2000. Lainault, who is now in remission, expressed hope that her victory would inspire other women facing similar challenges. Breast cancer is not officially listed as an occupational disease in France.

New China law will extend its anti-corruption reach abroad

China's top legislature introduced a draft Anti-Cross-Border Corruption Law during the 24th session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress. The law aims to enhance China's anti-graft legal framework internationally. It seeks to address issues including evidence collection and asset repatriation related to offshore financial crimes. According to state news agency Xinhua, the law, which codifies ten years of anti-corruption practices, will enrich the legal toolbox for handling foreign-related corruption cases and protect national interests. Chinese media outlet Caixin had earlier reported that the law will govern “compliance management and jurisdictional and procedural issues involving Chinese companies’ overseas branches and foreign businesses’ branches in China.”

Bloomberg

South China Morning Post

Two German airport workers die from malaria

Two employees at Frankfurt airport have died after contracting malaria from a mosquito likely carried on an incoming flight, said the city's health authority. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) identified the Anopheles mosquito as the source. Malaria is rare in Germany, complicating diagnosis and treatment. The RKI says the country's last airport-linked malaria outbreak was in 2023. Four remaining infected employees are in hospital, and mosquito traps have been installed to capture specimens for genetic testing.

AlJazeera

OTHER

DfE to study effects of primary pupils' use of smartphones

A new government-funded study will investigate the effects of delaying smartphone access for primary school pupils. The Department for Education is collaborating with IFF Research on a £2m randomised control trial which aims to assess the impact of not providing mobile phones to state primary pupils, even during holidays. Ofcom reports that 19% of children aged 3 to 5 own a mobile phone, increasing to 82% among 10 to 12-year-olds.

Schools Week

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