From Entitled to Untitled: How the Queen protected Andrew for years

The announcement that King Charles is stripping his brother Andrew of his remaining titles has a special poignancy. One thing that nobody denies about Mr Mountbatten‑Windsor is his sense of entitlement. In her posthumous biography Nobody’s Girl, his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, said of their encounter in Ghislaine Maxwell’s Belgravia home in 2001: “He was friendly enough, but still entitled – as if he believed having sex with me was his birthright.”

While Andrew Mountbatten‑Windsor says he “vigorously” denies the accusations against him, many people have already made up their own minds. The news that the Metropolitan Police Service (Met) is now reviewing allegations that, in 2011, he asked one of his taxpayer‑funded protection officers to dig up damaging information about Virginia Giuffre has not helped his case. Nor has the email revealed by the Mail on Sunday, in which Andrew promised to “play more soon!!” with Epstein, which exposed the lie that he had cut off all contact with the sex offender after he had been convicted.

Watching replays of the now‑infamous Emily Maitlis interview has left many wondering what made him think he could get away with such audacious falsehoods. But an upbringing in which you are addressed as “Your Royal Highness” as soon as you can toddle breeds an overweening sense of entitlement. Andrew has self‑worth in spades – instilled largely by his mother and great protector, the late Queen Elizabeth II. She is no longer here to shield him, and it was only a matter of time before his elder brother, King Charles, meted out a punishment that many felt was long overdue and well deserved.

There was sibling rivalry from the beginning. When Charles was born, his mother had little time for him. Her father’s health was failing and she was obliged to take on public engagements on behalf of the King. Prince Philip, then a serving naval officer, was stationed in Malta. Less than a week after Charles’s first birthday, Princess Elizabeth joined him there, leaving her son in the care of nursery staff.

When Charles contracted tonsillitis, neither parent returned home. His mother visited on his second birthday, but on his third, she was touring the US and Canada. Soon after, she was in Kenya when the King died on 6 February 1952, and Elizabeth became Queen when Charles was just three.

Eight years later, while Charles was away at boarding school, Andrew was born. By then, the Queen had settled into the role of monarch. She cut evening engagements and scaled back foreign tours to spend time with her new son. She pushed him in his pram around the palace gardens, visited the flamingos on the lake and, when the nanny had an evening off, took charge of bedtime – all things Charles had rarely, if ever, experienced. Staff nicknamed Andrew “Baby Grumpling” for his tantrums; Philip called him “The Boss”. However unruly he was, he was seldom punished. He was openly considered the favourite by many visitors and onlookers.

Both boys were sent to Gordonstoun, the austere Scottish boarding school Philip had attended. Charles found it brutal – “Colditz in kilts”. By the time Andrew arrived, the regime had softened: central heating, carpets, curtailed corporal punishment and, crucially, girls. Andrew began earning his “Randy Andy” reputation.

The brothers followed their father into the Royal Navy. While Charles eventually commanded an ageing minesweeper in home waters, Andrew flew helicopters in the Falklands War. Upon his return, he was hailed as a hero – only adding to his sense of entitlement. Honours followed. In 2003, Andrew was made a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order; in 2011, the Queen privately elevated him to Knight Grand Cross of the same order. He collected medals, then joined her for tea.

When Charles married Diana and had two sons, Andrew slid down the line of succession and, like many “spares”, struggled for purpose. After leaving the Navy, he became UK trade envoy. “Airmiles Andy” amassed expenses, jetted around the world, played golf, associated with questionable figures and attracted criticism – but the Queen’s soft spot for him never hardened.

However, that aura of untouchability collapsed in 2010 when the News of the World published a photograph of him with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. He stood down. The palace hoped that would end it. But Virginia Giuffre was already speaking to police. In 2009, she filed suit anonymously as Jane Doe against Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, who is now in America serving a 20‑year federal sentence for trafficking minors.

Despite the allegations that Giuffre had been trafficked and forced to have sex with Andrew – which he denies – the Met declined to investigate. The US Department of Justice made repeated Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) requests for Andrew to be interviewed by the FBI. He said he would co‑operate but never did. Under MLAT protocol, if Andrew refused, the Home Office should have facilitated Met questioning. None of this happened, prompting questions over who might have been shielding him.

In August 2021, Giuffre filed a civil suit in New York accusing him of sexual assault. She wrote in her memoir that when proceedings were launched, legal papers could not be served because Andrew “fled to Balmoral and hid behind its gates.” Judge Lewis Kaplan eventually ruled that papers could be served via his Los Angeles‑based lawyers.

The suit was settled with no admission of liability for a reported £12m. A source familiar with the deal said it was only signed once Andrew showed proof of funds from the £17 million sale of a Swiss chalet. It was widely reported that the Queen contributed significantly to the payment out of her private funds, including a personal donation to Giuffre’s victims’ charity. Even then, Andrew retained privileges: Counsellor of State, Duke of York and Vice‑Admiral. At Prince Philip’s memorial service, Andrew escorted the Queen – considered by many a striking signal of her unwavering support.

His mother’s protection shaped his sense of invulnerability. But she is gone, and Charles has brought down his sword. Yet this is far from over. The US Congress is now taking an interest. Scotland Yard is re-examining inquiries – though only regarding the alleged request for dirt on Giuffre, not the core allegations.

This is about more than titles or residences. A young woman whose claims were credible enough for a US federal court is now dead. The public still believes that someone must be held accountable – or at least compelled to tell everything they know. Andrew continues to deny all allegations. The Met remains in “review” mode, not actively investigating. The rest us waits for the release of the full Epstein files, while powerful people stay silent. Those files may be the only route to the truth and to accountability, if true justice is ever to be served.

Nigel Cawthorne is the author of ‘War of the Windsors’ (Welbeck) and ‘Prince Andrew: Epstein, Maxwell and the Palace’ (Gibson Square)

Heidi Klum transforms into Medusa for star-studded Halloween party

Heidi Klum has finally unveiled her 2025 Halloween costume.

Throughout the week, the 52-year-old model has been sharing little previews on Instagram teasing her elaborate costume ahead of her annual Halloween party, often referred to as “Heidiween.” For this year’s look, her hints have included a photo of fake pointed teeth and her face being painted light green.

Her 2025 costume has now been revealed as Medusa featuring snakes in place of her hair and a rattlesnake tail. Klum posted a video to her Instagram of the depiction, with the caption: “HAPPY HEIDIWEEN 🐍Don’t stare too long or you’ll turn to stone 🖤 #HeidiHalloween.”

Medusa, in Greek mythology, was known for her petrifying effect on beholders and those looking at her face were instantly turned to stone, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Klum has been considered the “Queen of Halloween” since she plans every costume and star-studded Halloween party well in advance. Of course, fans have celebrated her show-stopping costumes, some of which she’s spent up to a year working on.

In 2024, the America’s Got Talent judge took her legendary Halloween game to a new galaxy, transforming into none other than E.T. Channeling the iconic alien from Spielberg’s 1982 classic, her costume was complete with a glowing fingertip and a motorized headpiece — equipped with a mouth and eyes that her team could operate remotely.

The year before that, she dressed up as a peacock, wearing a textured head wrap decorated with tall, standing feathers and a functioning beak.

An orchestra of Cirque du Soleil dancers to behind her, while they donned green bodysuits and had painted faces reminiscent of a peacock’s plume.

In 2022, Klum transformed into a giant worm, with her face barely visible and only yellow eyes indicating that someone was in the costume.

Some of her other costumes included rocking prosthetics to capture the cartoonish features of Jessica Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit in 2015, and dressing up as one of the werewolves from Michael Jackson’s iconic “Thriller” music video in 2017. In 2013 and 2014, she dressed up as a butterfly and an elderly woman, respectively.

Klum isn’t the only celebrity who goes above and beyond for Halloween costumes. This year, singer Janelle Monáe dressed up as Beetlejuice, the ghost from the movie of the same name, who is summoned when you say his name three times.

Monáe has rivaled Klum in recent years, also going all out for the holiday. She, too, dressed up as E.T. last year.

Rachel Reeves is guilty of carelessness and hypocrisy

The chancellor Rachel Reeves’s defence for breaking the law is that she made an “inadvertent mistake”. She did not know, she told Sir Keir Starmer, that she was supposed to buy a licence to rent out her home in south London when she and her family moved into Downing Street.

Except the next day, it emerged that her husband, who had dealt with the letting agent, was told about the requirement for a licence. Not only had she broken the law, but she had misled the prime minister about it. “Inadvertently”, of course.

It says nothing complimentary about the chancellor of the Exchequer that she failed to pay sufficient attention to the detail of her own financial affairs. She should have checked that her legal obligations had been met, rather than relying on the letting agent’s assurances to her husband.

And she should have established the facts in full before assuring Sir Keir on Thursday that there was, in effect, “nothing to see here”.

Equally, the prime minister was at fault for accepting her initial account of the oversight so quickly, and for failing to insist that Sir Laurie Magnus, the adviser on ministerial interests, spend more than a few minutes investigating what had happened.

Sir Keir gave the impression that he was keen to rush out a statement exonerating his chancellor because he could not afford to lose her – in a way that he was not so eager to do for Angela Rayner, his troublesome former deputy.

The bottom line in Ms Reeves’s case, although it took a further 24 hours to establish all the relevant facts, is that she fell short of the high standard of propriety that could be expected of her. She could claim in mitigation that the letting agent had undertaken to obtain the licence but had failed to do so. But in the end, in law, she and her husband were liable for their compliance.

The prime minister – with Sir Laurie’s letter for cover – has taken the indulgent view that Ms Reeves’s inadvertent law-breaking is not a resigning matter.

That is not how Ms Reeves and Sir Keir have seen it, however, when similar errors have been made by other politicians. Not only Ms Rayner, whose resignation Sir Keir accepted when she made the inadvertent error of underpaying stamp duty on a property purchase, for which she apologised and which she promised to put right. If Sir Laurie found that Ms Rayner had broken the ministerial code, it is puzzling that he made no such finding in Ms Reeves’s case.

But also, when in opposition, both Ms Reeves and Sir Keir demanded the resignations of Rishi Sunak and Boris Johnson for their “inadvertent mistake” during a coronavirus lockdown of attending a work meeting that included a short break to celebrate the prime minister’s birthday.

Sir Keir adopted a sanctimonious moral tone in promising that his government would observe higher ethical standards than the outgoing administration, and yet within days of taking office, he and several of his senior ministers, including Ms Reeves, found themselves mired in sleaze.

He and his chancellor accepted gifts of clothes and concert tickets – which they admitted, in effect, that they should not have done when they announced that they would not accept such donations in future.

There is a lesson here, not just for ministers, but for the opposition parties. Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, has unwisely called for Ms Reeves’s resignation, perhaps having forgotten that she herself broke the law – and deliberately, rather than inadvertently – when, as a Tory activist in her twenties, she hacked into Harriet Harman’s website.

Ms Badenoch should have taken a different tack, perhaps, and suggested that the laws on renting are so complex that not even a Labour chancellor can understand them.

All politicians would do better to devote less of their efforts to demanding that their opponents resign, or making promises of holier-than-thou moral standards, and more to making doubly sure that they always obey the strict letter of the law of the land.

Inside the British Library, two years on from devastating cyber attack

Home to more than 170 million items, including the Magna Carta, the British Library is one of the largest and most impressive book collections in the world.

But in October 2023, a major cyber attack plunged it into chaos, shutting down its digital systems and resulting in the leaking of staff details onto the dark web.

Two years on, staff – who are striking due to a pay dispute – have said the disruption is still creating chaos and considerably increasing their workload.

They say they have faced abuse as a result of the ongoing issues, while some have had to make major changes in their personal lives after their personal details were leaked.

One worker, who asked to remain anonymous, said staff have “essentially had to become the computer” due to the hack.

“Modern libraries are digitally focused – everything is done online from orders to content – so when the cyber attack happened, library systems were just taken down,” they told The Independent.

“We had to do everything manually. To do orders, we had to write things down on a piece of paper and pass it to the next department, which takes a lot of time.

“Staff have literally had to learn the locations of all the items – they have become the ordering system, become the computer.”

While they now use a digital form to place orders, staff still have to input information manually – which takes considerably longer.

Meanwhile dozens of services at the library still unavailable, including E-books, its archives and manuscripts catalogue, and online journal articles. This has meant staff have suffered abuse from frustrated members unable to access the materials needed.

“As you can imagine there has been a lot of user frustration as things aren’t working properly, so front-facing staff are facing abuse and have even had things thrown at them,” the staff member said.

At the same time, they have faced having their personal details, including addresses and passport scans, leaked onto the dark web after the library refused to pay a £600,000 ransom fee.

“People have had to move house. There are staff members here who have experienced domestic abuse who are worried their address is available, and it took months to get an apology,” the staff member said.

Staff have also reported constant fraudulent calls, emails, and text messages.

They added: “The cyber attack is on everyone’s minds, it was two years the other day and nothing has improved – there hasn’t really even been a thank you for the hard work people did during those two years.

“It has impacted our work environment, people feel under-appreciated and it’s front-facing staff who have basically been running the organisation.

“Then on top of that, we had a below inflation pay rise. We have staff who work here during the day then have to go to another job in the evening. People are really disappointed and upset.”

More than 300 members of staff at the library have gone on strike over their wages on the two year anniversary of the attack.

The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS), which organised the industrial action, said staff are “forced to work second jobs and take out loans to pay their bills and meet housing costs”.

The union said that while British Library has increased its pay rise from 2 per cent to 2.4 per cent, it “is still way below inflation”.

Members are demanding an inflation-proof pay rise, restoration for last year’s pay shortfall, and payment of alternative working patterns (AWP) wages for security staff on compressed hours.

PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote said: “A near unanimous vote for strike action is just a small glimpse into the strength of feeling among our members at the British Library.

“They are livid at yet another insulting pay offer that does little to alleviate the health problems that many suffer from because of low pay. Nor does it come close to ending the need for many to work second jobs and take out loans to pay their bills and meet their housing costs.

“The employer’s well-paid executives need to take the blinkers off and understand that our hard-working members are what makes the British Library the vital cultural institution that it is.”

A British Library spokesperson said: “We acknowledge the impact that the devastating criminal cyber attack upon the British Library two years ago has had on our staff and users, and we are continuing to restore systems and services. While we cannot comment on the experiences of individual staff members, we are committed to working with Trade Union colleagues to agree a pay award.”

Egypt reclaims its history as Africa’s cultural pride finally opens

Calamitously delayed transport projects are nothing new. Just ask long-suffering London commuters about the Elizabeth line, which opened – only partially completed – over three years late. Or German rail travellers, still waiting for Stuttgart’s Hauptbahnhof, seven years overdue. Passengers at Berlin airport can trump that; it opened nine years behind schedule.

Cultural venues, another crucial element of the travel experience, are far from immune against wildly optimistic predictions. What were they smoking at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam when they predicted a 21st-century refurbishment would take just three years? The site was off limits for a decade.

So cut the Grand Egyptian Museum some slack. The billion-dollar (£760m) project on the outskirts of Cairo has been dogged by logistical, political and financial delays. It will finally open to the public on Tuesday 4 November – two decades after construction began, and a dozen years behind schedule.

Reasons cited for repeated postponements include the Arab Spring, the Covid pandemic and the war in Gaza. But with artefacts dating back five millennia, such a delay is barely a heartbeat.

This dazzling new structure is close to the Pyramids in Giza and mirrors their timeless geometry. The GEM, as everyone will call it, has been tantalising tourists for several years; I visited two years ago and paid £20 to enter the foyer.

It was money well spent to revel in the scale of the place and to gaze up at the 36-foot status of Ramses II, rescued from his previous role overlooking a roundabout outside Cairo’s railway station. The building was constructed around this towering figure. Amazing – but frustrating to be so close to some of the most prized antiquities on earth, hidden behind locked gallery doors.

Finally, the mesmerising timeline of Egypt’s millennia under the pharoahs will be revealed in spectacular surroundings. The aviation-turned-tourism minister Sherif Fathy calls it “Egypt’s gift to the world”. I call it Africa’s cultural pride and joy.

The GEM is the planet’s biggest museum. It has a footprint exceeding that of the Vatican City. The sheer number of artifacts is boggling – far exceeding the total in the Louvre (now slightly depleted following the recent unfortunate theft from the Parisian palace).

The opening hours are generous: 9am to 6pm daily, extended on Saturdays and Wednesdays to 9pm. Just as well: were you to spend one minute gazing at each of the 50,000 pieces on display, it would take you 12 weeks to view the lot.

Most visitors, of course, will concentrate on the big-hitters – starting with the Tutankhamun collection. After a weekend of politicians and pageantry, the public opening is timed for Tuesday 4 November. That is the 103rd anniversary of the day when British archaeologist Howard Carter opened the Pharaoh’s lost tomb in 1922 in Luxor.

The “Golden Pharaoh” collection occupies two of the halls – with his burial mask no doubt performing the same magnetising role as the Mona Lisa in the Louvre. Yes, you will be able to take pictures and videos, but no “flash, tripods, selfie sticks [or] drones” says the museum. Perhaps with influencers in mind, live streaming is banned.

You can book tickets online at visit-gem.com – the only official source of tickets. Foreigners pay $30 (£23). Unofficial websites are already selling tickets at well above the going rate.

Reputable tour operators, though, are buying up tickets to ensure their customers will be among the first to visit. Philip Breckner of Discover Egypt says his firm and its destination management company “have already pre-purchased several hundred entrance tickets”.

My advice to make the most of the welcome new table-topper of the heritage Premier League: sign up with a specialist. They will help you navigate through the exciting – and no doubt at first slightly chaotic – new world. Oh, and fly in to the new Sphinx international airport.

The gateway is about 20 miles northwest, so not exactly treading on the toes of the mythical creature. But it is serene and efficient while the main Cairo airport remains the polar opposite.

At the Grand Egyptian museum, the builders have reached the finish line. Now the race to the past begins. The dynasties are waiting.

Simon Calder, also known as The Man Who Pays His Way, has been writing about travel for The Independent since 1994. In his weekly opinion column, he explores a key travel issue – and what it means for you.

Read more: How to fix Britain’s broken railways

Explore phone photography plus a chance to win a Samsung Galaxy S25 FE

When it comes to capturing moments that matter, it’s all about our mobiles, with an incredible 92.5 per cent of photos now taken on our phones. And whether you’re an experienced snapper or an enthusiastic amateur, when it comes to taking your images and videos to the next level, the new Samsung Galaxy S25 FE has all the spec and tech you need.

This sleek and impressively lightweight device is leading the way when it comes to real world AI performance, offering software designed to enhance your images and footage from image quality and clarity, to tone and colour, even in tricky conditions, such as low-light or busy, bustling places – meaning you get the perfect image and video every time. What’s more, the device’s functionality and editing features allows you to easily and seamlessly improve what you capture, meaning you can nail the perfect shot or clip every time.

Read on to find out more about the Galaxy S25 FE’s range of photo-first features – and how you can win one of your own…

Let’s start by delving into the assortment of camera options that come with the Galaxy S25 FE. There’s a triple lens set up on the rear of the body to offer varying focal lengths – a 50 MP Wide Camera, 8 MP Telephoto Camera with 3 x optical zoom and a 12 MP Ultra-Wide camera – meaning you get the exact frame you desire at the best possible quality.

Portrait mode is exceptional, beautifully capturing the essence of people, pets, nature and objects with equal splendour. The option of three different lenses and multiple zoom capabilities means you always get the perfect angle and crop – and whether you’re shooting during the day or when the sun goes down, the Galaxy S25 FE’s Night Mode means the results are clear and vivid.

Take strikingly detailed selfies thanks to a 12 MP front camera, which has regular and wide options, and a 20 per cent higher resolution than the previous model. There’s an equally lucid quality for the selfie video mode – so you can make yourself look just as good as your friends and family.

On top of the incredible camera functionality, the Galaxy S25 FE boasts trailblazing AI tech – because even the best photo in the world can be improved with a few little tweaks, right? Introducing Photo Assist*: improve your images using the Generative Edit function, which lets you move around, or even remove, people and objects in your photos – so you can wave goodbye to photobombers once and for all. Or leave it to AI to make the decisions with ‘Suggest Erase’ to instantly remove people and objects that may be crowding your background. Equally, you can fill spaces that look too empty: the AI-powered function will analyse surrounding imagery to create a suitable filler. You can also resize and reposition people or objects to create fun, abstract and quirky images.

Want to get even more creative? Lean into the Sketch to Image** function which allows you to generate new additions to your existing photos. Open up your chosen photo and start sketching simple drawings directly onto the image and let AI Image Generation do the rest, as it fills the space with your chosen item or even a person. Want some surfers in that edgy picture of crashing waves? A heart-shaped cloud in that stunning azure sky? Sketch them in and let Galaxy AI do the rest.

While the Galaxy S25 FE already has a very impressive Night Mode, it can always be tricky capturing the exact shot you want without sunlight. This is where Enhanced Nightography comes in. The smartphone’s AI-powered image processing ProVisual Engine will analyse the scenes in the photos and videos to automatically enhance the visual quality, while Object Awareness can recognise faces and lighting and use that information to optimise skin tones and enhance clarity – making skin look true-to-life whenever you’re shooting.

And it’s not only about making things look better. The Audio Eraser*** function will make your videos sound better too. It works by removing unwanted background noises and disturbances post filming, with the result a more clear and focused final cut.

Aside from the innovative camera and AI features, the Galaxy S25 FE is an all-round impressive smartphone. The stylish design is available in four colours – Navy, Jetblack, Icyblue and White – all with Premium Haze matte finish and rare curved edges. While the body may be the slimmest and most lightweight FE model to date (disclaimer, compared to previous models) – just 7.4 mm thin and 190 grams light – the robust build is encased with Corning® Gorilla® and Glass Victus®+ for drop protection and has an enhanced aluminium frame. The device also boasts an IP68 rating**** for dust and water resistance – the highest rating available.

When it comes to battery life, you’re looking at a 4900mAh capacity† offering up to a whopping 28 hours of video playback, and you can power up the battery to 65 per cent in just 30 minutes with fast-wired charging. Expect smooth and immersive gaming and multimedia viewing thanks to a screen resolution of 6.7” FHD+ and up to 120HZ display refresh rate.

While the Galaxy S25 FE’s AI tech in terms of photos and videos may mean a world of endless creation, the integrated AI capabilities don’t end there. Lean into Gemini to get all the information you could need in real time, ‘Circle to Search with Google’ lets you trace information direct from the pictures and videos on your screen‡, while ‘Browse Assist’ instantly summarises web content and ‘Writing Assist’§ works to polish up your notes and communication. Meanwhile the AI-powered Now Bar◊ delivers helpful daily summaries and weather information to your homescreen so you can schedule the perfect moment to get out and shoot.

For your chance to win one of these game-changing devices, and capture your moments in style, simply fill out the form below.

18+, UK residents only. Promotion closes at 23:59 GMT on Sunday 30th November 2025. Winners will be drawn at random from all entries received by the closing date. The prize is non-transferable and no cash alternative is available. Usual promotional rules apply, see independent.co.uk/rules For further information, please write to Customer Care, The Independent, Alphabeta, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London, EC2A 1AH

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To find out more about the Samsung S25 FE visit Samsung

*Samsung account login is required. Requires network connection.

**Samsung account login and network connection may be required for certain AI features.

***Samsung account login required. Six types of sound can be detected; voices, music, wind, nature, crowd and noise. Results may vary depending on audio source & condition of the video.

**** IP68 rating based on lab test conditions for submersion in up to 1.5 meters of freshwater for up to 30 minutes. Not advised for beach or pool use.

† Typical value tested under third party laboratory condition. Rated minimum capacity of S25 FE is 4755 mAh.

‡ Requires network connection. Results may vary depending on visual match.

§ Samsung account login is required. Requires a network connection. Must meet length requirements to activate feature. Service availability may vary by language. Accuracy of results is not guaranteed.

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New EU border check system paused for tourists, port officials say

The introduction of a new digital entry and exit system for tourists in Dover has been paused on the “guidance of French authorities”.

Port officials in the Kent town said the European Union Entry/Exit System (EES) was ready to go from Saturday 1 November, but that implementation had been put on hold, adding they were following instruction from French counterparts.

The new system will see third-country nationals, including British tourists, having their fingerprints and photo taken in a bid to ramp up security in the bloc. The measures are in place for all Britons entering the Schengen area, which consists of 29 European countries, mainly in the EU.

For most travellers, the EES checks will take place in foreign airports, but those boarding international services from London’s St Pancras railway station, the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel’s Folkestone terminal are required to complete EES checks in the UK.

The new scheme has already been rolled out for ferry passengers in coaches in Dover, as well as coaches and freight. But officials said tourists travelling in cars would not be subject to the checks as planned for the time being.

Doug Bannister, chief executive of the port, told the BBC: “Whilst Port of Dover’s facilities will be ready for 1 November, we are being guided by French authorities as to when we will activate.”

It comes after the the phased rollout of the EES was described as a “complete muddle” by the European travel association Etoa, with concerns about a lack of clear information.

The port of Dover has warned it may take cars six times as long to be processed due to the new border checks. It currently takes the port around 60 seconds to process each vehicle.

Mr Bannister previously said “facilities are all in place” and there “won’t be any delays”.

When the EES was first conceived, the UK was part of the EU – and there was no expectation that British travellers would be subject to the checks. But under the Brexit deal, Boris Johnson’s government negotiated for UK passport holders to become third-country nationals.

The Independent has contacted the port of Dover for more information.

Firms are being told to stop hiring humans. The AI apocalypse is here

At a recent panel discussion of business leaders, there was a momentary stunned silence when the CEO of a software company said that he hoped the cost of employing humans would become increasingly prohibitive, thanks to tax and regulatory changes, so that more bosses would turn to tech.

We’d just been discussing AI and the likelihood of jobs disappearing, and the societal and cultural problems this would cause. We’d all agreed that the implications were immense and deeply troubling. Well, I thought we had. Until the software guy said he was relishing the prospect of people being shoved on the scrapheap. He made his money from selling machine systems, and the more they sold, the better his company did. Simple. As he said, it would be hypocritical of him to pretend otherwise.

At least he was being honest. Plenty of others in tech and AI are afraid to speak the truth, choosing to hide behind blandishments like “uncertain”, “too early to tell”, “we just don’t know”, “someone must operate the AI”, “we will be freed up to be more creative”, “roles we aren’t even aware of yet will make up for those that are lost”, and so forth.

Occasionally, one will break cover and say what they are really thinking. This week, it was the turn of Artisan, an AI agency in San Francisco. They ran another poster campaign exhorting people to “stop hiring humans” and asserting that “the era of AI employees is here”. The company’s head, Jaspar Carmichael-Jack, claimed afterwards that the campaign was “rage bait”, designed to get people’s attention, and did not reflect an ambition to torch all human workers.

It certainly hit a nerve. The slogans went viral, and opprobrium duly rained down. The US politician Bernie Sanders made a good point when he said, if we are going to be replaced by robots, who the hell is going to buy all the products that capitalism relies on selling to us? If the jobs market collapses, does capitalism?

Nice try, Bernie. If capitalism is about to die, the tech bros and their monied pals are not bothered. They are continuing to pour billions into developing AI, regardless. In the last quarter alone, an estimated $80bn (£61bn) has been invested in advancing AI.

It bears repetition: $80bn in three months. For no discernible payback. Not yet. It’s a bubble; of course it is. At any moment, this crazy headlong rush will crash, and then mayhem and global economic depression will ensue. But wait. These are not stupid people. They are making a bet, and their calculation has to be that human capital is to be substituted by something far cheaper and more efficient, and then the rewards will truly flow and those returns will dwarf anything they have put in.

Ultimately, it is where they hope to be: like the software exec, only supersized. They realise wrath will descend. But that does not stop them from wishing it to happen. They will be alright, Jack, because they will own the algorithms and the hardwired applications. As for the rest of us…

For now, we’re invited to relax. It’s too soon; we’ve no idea what is coming. There has been some encouragement. Research from Yale and the Brookings Institution suggests that jobs will not vanish overnight, reminding us that it took computers years to take hold. But the study doesn’t say that they won’t disappear; just that it might be a while before AI’s full impact is felt.

Hints of the impact coming our way are the heavy lay-offs that are already occurring and are mounting by the day. The latest employer to announce a cull is Amazon, where 14,000 posts are going. Amazon joins other companies who have already declared redundancies. At the same time, a freeze is underway. As with the departures, AI is widely held responsible. It is quite likely that this is not the whole story, but the AI umbrella is a convenient catch-all.

What is surely more significant is that Amazon will still employ 1.6 million people, and the number being culled is a mere blip when set against that figure. But how many of those roles will still exist when AI does seriously kick in? And before you say there will be room for van drivers, why do you suppose the tech bros are so excited about putting cash behind driverless vehicles?

Leading the charge is Elon Musk. He has repeatedly stated that AI and robotics pose a significant threat to jobs, predicting that automation will eventually make all human labour optional. He envisages a future where humans will be free from the chore of work. Quite how they are going to pay for food, and heat, and clothes, and homes, and the other necessities of existence, remains to be seen.

He does say, though, that it will be disruptive, so that’s OK. Sleepwalking into this unfolding disaster are the politicians, those we look to in the hope that they will help us and guide us (don’t laugh). Sanders, for one, understands, and is not afraid to say so. But do Donald Trump, Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron – all of whom have held AI investment summits and trumpet vast dollops of financial commitment to advance AI in their countries, regardless of what it could mean in the long term?

Fear, anxiety and unrest are building. Nothing is being done to slow the pace of this new revolution. Perish the thought, but I’m almost hoping that the bubble does explode, and the great AI revolution is halted or slowed. Yes, it would cause pain, but larger-scale suffering may be avoided or postponed. I never thought I would write that, but someone, please, show me the alternative.