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New rules in force from Wednesday will see the UK transition to a digital transit system, including mandatory eVisas for Indian travellers and Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) for non-visa requiring visitors. The new procedure will replace paper-based visa stickers as part of a phased programme over recent years. While the new system will still involve a physical visit to the application centre for biometric registration, it will do away with the need to leave behind the passport document during the processing period. "I'd urge anyone wanting to travel to the UK to ensure they are travel-ready and have the right permission, to make their journey much smoother," said Mike Tapp, UK Minister for Migration and Citizenship. It will be mandatory for visitors to the UK to have obtained digital permission to travel, which means airlines can prevent passengers from boarding planes if they do not have an eVisa, ETA or other valid documentation. The UK government had launched the eVisa .
AI could soon better understand people's accent and dialect, thanks to a landmark study being led by the University of Sheffield. The study, led by Dr Chris Montgomery from the University's School of English in collaboration with ICS.AI, the UK's fastest-growing, profitable AI business, is set to tackle one of the biggest challenges in public sector AI how well digital services understand people who speak with different regional accents and dialects. The collaboration is the first UK academic-industry partnership to apply sociolinguistic research to the evaluation of public sector conversational AI, focusing on how systems perform in real service interactions between citizens and public bodies - for example, when people contact their local council and conversational AI is used to answer questions and help them access the right information or services. The study is based on Dr Montgomery's systematic review of more than five decades of peer-reviewed research on accent and dialect ..
Peter Mandelson, theUK's formerambassador to the US,wasarrestedfrom his north London home on Monday onsuspicion of misconduct in public office, the Metropolitan Police said. Mandelson hadresigned from the House of Lords andLabour Party earlier this month following damaging allegations related to his association with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The Met Police had confirmed soon after that the force had opened aninvestigation into the former frontlineLabour politician, who served in the Cabinet underprimeministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. "Officers have arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of misconduct in public office,"said a Met Police spokesperson. "He was arrested at an address in Camden on Monday, 23 February and has been taken to a London police station forinterview.This follows search warrants at two addresses in the Wiltshire and Camden areas. "We are not able to provide further information at this stage to preventprejudicing the integrity of the investigation," ..