The former Labour PM said the death of his newborn daughter in 2002 did “not convince me of the case for assisted dying; it convinced me of the value and imperative of good end-of-life care”. In a rare intervention ahead of the Commons debate on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on Friday, November 29, Mr Brown shared a glimpse of the time he and his wife Sarah spent with their baby, Jennifer, who died when she was only 11 days old. Writing in the Guardian newspaper, Mr Brown said: “We could only sit with her, hold her tiny hand and be there for her as life ebbed away. She died in our arms. “But those days we spent with her remain among the most precious days of my and Sarah’s lives.” While he acknowledged that at the heart of the assisted dying debate is a “desire to prevent suffering”, the former Labour MP called for a commission on end-of-life care to be set up, instead of the law change which MPs will consider. This commission, he said, should work to create a “fully-funded, 10-year strategy for improved and comprehensive palliative care”. “When only a small fraction of the population are expected to choose assisted dying, would it not be better to focus all our energies on improving all-round hospice care to reach everyone in need of end of life support?” he said. Mr Brown added: “Medical advances that can transform end-of-life care and the horror of people dying alone, as with Covid, have taught us a great deal. “This generation have it in our power to ensure no-one should have to face death alone, uncared for, or subject to avoidable pain.” Kim Leadbeater, the Labour MP sponsoring the assisted dying Bill through the Commons, said she was “deeply touched” by Mr Brown’s decision to share his story. The Spen Valley MP said she agreed completely with his calls for better end-of-life care. But Ms Leadbeater added: “He and I agree on very many things but we don’t agree on this. “Only legislation by Parliament can put right what Sir Keir Starmer calls the ‘injustice that we have trapped within our current arrangement’. “The need to address the inability of the current law to provide people with safeguards against coercion and the choice of a better death, and to protect their loved ones from possible prosecution, cannot wait. “So for me it isn’t a case of one or the other. My Bill already includes the need for the Government to report back to Parliament on the availability and quality of palliative care, and I strongly support further detailed examination of its provision. We need to do both.” Though Ms Leadbeater made reference to the Prime Minister as she set out her difference from Mr Brown’s position, Sir Keir has opted not to say whether he will support the Bill. MPs will be given a free vote on the legislation, meaning their political parties will not require them to vote for or against it, and it will be a matter for their personal consideration. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is the latest senior minister to disclose her position on assisted dying, signalling to broadcasters on Friday that she may support the Bill. “I continue to support the principle of needing change but also to ensure that we’ve got the proper safeguards and systems in place,” she told ITV’s Good Morning Britain. Asked if that meant a “yes” when the Bill comes to the Commons, she replied: “I think I last voted on this about 20 years ago and so I have supported the principle in the past and continue to believe that change is needed but we do need to have that debate on the detail and I’ll continue to follow that debate next Friday.”
FRGT stock plunges to 52-week low, hits $1.35 amid market challengesSAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Apple is pumping more artificial intelligence into the latest iPhones during the holiday shopping season with a free software update that includes a feature that enables users to create customized emojis within a matter of seconds. The Wednesday release of the iPhone's upgraded operating system, iOS 18.2, extends Apple's expansion into AI months after rivals such as Samsung and Google began implanting the revolutionary technology on their devices. The update builds upon another one that came out in late October to usher in the AI era for Apple and the iPhone, as well as for the iPad and Mac. The latest round of AI tricks includes “Genmojis,” Apple's description for emojis that iPhone users will be able to ask the technology to create and then share. Apple says it is placing some limits its AI's emoji artistry to prevent the distribution of violent or hateful imagery. Other features include an “Image Playground” for a variety of AI-styled illustrations, writing tools and options for summarizing emails. The technology won’t work on iPhones that Apple made before 2023 because it requires a special processor that isn’t in older models. The AI will work on the iPhone 16 line-up that came out in September and the premium iPhone 15 models released last year. That exclusivity is expected to propel a cycle of iPhone upgrades during the current holiday shopping season into next year, driving up Apple's profit even higher from the $94 billion that the Cupertino, California, company pocketed in its last fiscal year ending in September. That expectation is the main reason Apple's stock price has climbed by about 30% so far this year to push the company's market value closer to the $4 trillion threshold for the first time. Apple is broadening the AI suite's appeal by including English versions tailored for Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the U.K. that are included in the latest software update. Although the iPhone's AI is similar to many of the features that have already been available from other companies, Apple is taking a slightly different approach to the technology in an effort to stand out from the rest of pack. It is emphasizing its ongoing commitment to protecting iPhone users' privacy by processing most of its AI on the device itself or corralling it in a secured data center. Users seeking more AI wizardry than the device or the special data center can handle will have the option to reach out to the popular ChatGPT technology made by OpenAI, which has forged a partnership with Apple.
None
Donald Trump will ring the New York Stock Exchange bell as he's named Time's Person of the YearFormer N-Dubz singer Tulisa took on Saturday (November 30) night's bush tucker trial - Jungle TV Dinners along with Reverend Richard Coles. The pair were forced to eat everything from fermented duck egg to fish eyes during the challenge. Jungle TV Dinners starring Richard and Tulisa - Screaming now on ITVX-treme 😱 #ImACeleb pic.twitter.com/T6448UtYs9 Another one of the dishes Tulisa was forced to eat as part of the bush tucker trial was spider. The pair managed to eat their way through all the dishes and earn the camp the full 11 stars. Upon returning to camp the N-Dubz star revealed to all the campmates she was forced to swallow back her own sick during the trial due to it being so horrible. Tulisa continued to go into more detail about the challenge, revealing what it was like to eat a spider, describing it as creamy. GK Barry replied: "That is the worst information you've told me ever. "That's ruined my day." Applause for the new Camp Leaders, Oti & Richard! 👏 Here are their chore assignments: 🧼 Washing up: Barry & Maura 🧰 Camp maintenance: Danny & Melvin 🥘 Camp chefs: Tulisa & GK Barry 🪵 Wood collection: Coleen & Dean 💧 Water duty: Alan & Danny #ImACeleb pic.twitter.com/ehiHdAq3Rd Saturday night's episode also saw Oti Mubuse and Reverend Richard Coles voted in as the new camp leaders, replacing McFly's Danny Jones and boxing champion Barry McGuigan. As there first order of business they had to re-assign chores to the campmates. RECOMMENDED READING: I'm a Celeb fans upset at 'non-elimination' as they call to get rid of next star Who was the first celeb to be eliminated on tonight's I'm a Celebrity? I'm a Celebrity's 'naughty' Maura Higgins becomes the talk of social media How much is Jane Moore being paid for appearing on I'm a Celebrity 2024? Love Island star Maura Higgins was paired up with Barry for washing up duties, while Danny and radio DJ Melvin Odoom were chosen for camp maintenance. The role of camp chefs went to Tulisa and GK Barry, while Coleen Rooney and Dean McCullough were put on wood collection. Finally water duty was assigned to Danny and Coronation Street actor Alan Halsall.Colorado 85, Utah Tech 73