Leaks suggest 23 March date for next Apple event

1. Apple ‘ready’ to unveil new AirTags, iPad Pro, AirPods and Apple TV

Technology

Tech tipsters Jon Prosser and DuanRui have both claimed that the next Apple event will be held on Tuesday 23 March.

Citing “reliable sources”, Front Page Tech founder Prosser tweeted that Apple products ready to be unveiled include AirTags, iPad Pro, AirPods and Apple TV. “Take that however you’d like,” he said.

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Meanwhile, “prominent leaker” DuanRui also tweeted that Apple’s event will be on 23 March, TechRadar reports. It will coincide with the OnePlus 9 reveal on the same day.

“Rumours are popping up all over in advance of Apple’s expected March event,” says PC Magazine. More than half a dozen products could be unveiled and a “few other surprises” may also be on the agenda.

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2. Is Johnson’s transport revolution just a ‘vanity project’?

Transport

Boris Johnson is planning a “radical” transport revolution that will “speed up travel around the UK”, Sky News reports. The PM’s plans include a rail tunnel between Scotland and Northern Ireland, slashing domestic air fares, and improving rail, road, sea and air links.

While Johnson wants to bring “every corner of the UK closer together”, his plan to cut air passenger duty has been condemned as “undermining UK climate change commitments”, the broadcaster adds. The rail tunnel has also been dismissed by Scotland’s Transport Secretary Michael Matheson as “nothing more than a vanity project”.

3. Greece to welcome back Brits in May

Tourism

Greece will open its borders to UK holidaymakers from 14 May, the country’s tourism minister has announced. British arrivals who have had both doses of the Covid vaccine will not face any restrictions and others will be permitted entry provided that they can produce a negative test. The Times says the news will “further fuel the surge in British bookings”.

Meanwhile, Spain’s tourism minister has also said the country could begin using vaccine passports in May. And maritime minister Robert Courts has told MPs that cruises in UK waters will return on 17 May.

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4. Tesco to launch ‘soft plastic’ recycling

Retail

Supermarket giant Tesco is aiming to recycle 1,000 tonnes of plastic a year after revealing plans for a nationwide “soft plastic” collection scheme. After trialling the scheme in April 2019, the next stage of the rollout will see soft plastic recycling points introduced to 171 stores in the southwest of England and Wales, The Grocer reports.

Soft plastics such as pet food pouches, shopping bags and crisp packets are ignored by many local council collections, but Tesco director of quality Sarah Bradbury says it is an “absolute priority to remove and reduce as much plastic as possible and ensure everything we use is recycled and kept out of the environment”.

5. ITV shares fall after Morgan quits

Media

Piers Morgan’s departure from Good Morning Britain saw shares in ITV plc fall by 4.9% in early London trading this morning. ITV confirmed Morgan’s exit in a statement yesterday and it’s predicted that it will also have a negative effect on viewer numbers for the breakfast TV show.

Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, told Reuters that “ratings for GMB will fall a lot we think”. Another trader, when asked about the impact of Morgan’s exit on the ITV share price, added “yes, I think it has a lot to do with it”.

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