Ladies In Black: Trailer, certificate and where to watch
2024
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The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
The real reason Gen Z have stopped being ‘sober curious'
Hold the kombucha and pour me a pint! It seems that Gen Z are actually drinking alcohol, and I'm not surprised one bit. I wish I'd made a note of the number of wine tastings, seminars, meetings and dinners where the seemingly existential crisis of Gen Z not drinking was discussed. Not to mention the thousands of entries on a brief Google search to see how much it's been written about. It was going to be the death knell of the wine industry. But I never really believed it was going to stay that way. People change, after all. And, it seems I was right. New data released by IWSR shows that the situation is altogether far more nuanced. I mean, aren't most things in life? It seems the ' sober curious ' generation have become curious about booze. IWSR's Bevtrac findings show a marked increase in 'alcohol participation levels' compared with two years ago. In research carried out in the top 15 markets (including the UK, North America and Australia) in April 2023, 66 per cent of Gen Z consumers said they had consumed alcohol in the past six months, this figure rose to 73 per cent in March 2025. And interestingly, the trend is especially strong in some key global markets, including the UK, where participation increased from 66 per cent to 76 per cent, Australia, where there was a staggering leap from 61 per cent to 83 per cent, and the US, with a huge bump from 46 per cent to 70 per cent. As Richard Halstead, COO of consumer insights at IWSR, says: 'There is evidence that the propensity to go out and spend more is recovering among this group – challenging the received wisdom that this generation is 'abandoning' alcohol.' Issues such as consumer confidence around inflation has had a huge cross-generational impact when it comes to purchasing, with the cost of living crisis having been brutal for many. But Gen Z have especially suffered, maturing in a period where they're met with soaring costs and stagnant salaries, not to mention the global pandemic and the impact it had on hospitality and real-life socialising. Further research published by Rabobank in April supports this notion, with data showing that Gen Z's drinking is actually on par with previous generations. And that in the US, the proportion that each generation spends of their after-tax income on alcohol is exactly the same – boomer, millennial and Gen Z'er alike. The headlines were misleading. We were being told that it's a generation obsessed with 'wellness', but it turns out they're just skint! And my God, we have all been there (I mean, I still mostly am, aren't you?). It's just that when I was starting out on an incredibly meagre salary, I was propping it up with a hefty overdraft and a plethora of credit cards. Banks were falling over themselves to give people like me credit cards and overdrafts without any checks as to whether you could actually afford them. My Egg card was well and truly funding my millennial avo and egg habit to the max. Want to go shopping? Get a store card. Want to go out for a drink? Put it on your credit card. I was a fully signed up card-carrying millennial who definitely drank above the recommended weekly allowance. Boozy Thursdays spread effortlessly into Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. I was the queen of knowing a little late-night drinking den that was still serving in the early hours of the morning. But I'm delighted that most of my Gen Z friends appear to be far more sensible and financially astute. Believe me, I learn a lot from them. And I'm thankful that personal finance isn't so readily available; it crippled me for many years. And looking at this situation from someone who makes a living from tasting and talking about drinks, with a heavy leaning on wine, I think the alcohol industry should be pleased with this emerging picture. The days of excessive underage drinking are hopefully dwindling and people are being more cautious with the amount they drink. Both of these are excellent outcomes. And there's a genuine interest in premium products too. Drinking less, but better, has never been an easier or cooler thing to do. Nothing stays the same forever. And the wine industry for the most part reflects this, showing a keen and energetic desire to welcome new consumers. In many ways, I feel nothing but excitement about these latest figures. It's one of my greatest pleasures to help people find the wine that sparks their love of this wondrous product that has endured for thousands of years. Wine and the world that surrounds it really is a beautiful thing, so here's to the latest generation of wine lovers, I can't wait to share a glass with you.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
TARRIC BROOKER: How AI will affect YOUR job - whether you're a tradie or an office worker - and the ripple effects it will have on the property market and the careers of a generation
As the promise of a future defined by AI increasingly fills the airwaves and the debates within the halls of power around the globe, it is striking how different the perspectives are on what this future will look like, even just a few short years from now. At one end of the spectrum, there is the hopeful view that AI will help to dramatically improve productivity and act to kickstart broad-based growth in living standards. At the other, there is concern that AI could be the catalyst for one of the most challenging shifts for societies and economies in modern history. One of the figures taking the latter view is Ford CEO Jim Farley. 'AI is going to replace literally half of all white collar workers,' Mr Farley said in a recent conference address. 'I believe that AI and new technology have an asymmetric impact on our economy. That means a lot of things are helped a lot, and a lot of things are hurt,' Farley said. However, the Albanese government has spoken in positive terms about the potential impact of AI on the economy. In an address to the 'Australia's Economic Outlook 2025' conference in Sydney last week, the Prime Minister said artificial intelligence will deliver 'secure and fulfilling jobs' - not threaten them. That follows comments by Treasurer Jim Chalmers backing the minimal regulation of AI, arguing that the Albanese government's focus was on how technological progress can boost productivity, rather than implementing limits on its use. Aussie industries exposed to AI When it comes to the impact of AI by industry, it can vary considerably. According to an analysis by investment bank Goldman Sachs, over the next decade, 46 per cent of jobs in office and administrative support are exposed to AI. At the other end of the spectrum, in one of Australia's largest industries, the construction and resource extraction sector, just six per cent of jobs are exposed to AI. The rest of industries fall somewhere in the middle, with hands-on, blue collar roles significantly less likely to be impacted by the rise of AI. Overall, Goldman Sachs estimates that 300 million jobs could be diminished or lost over the next decade. Comparison with the Industrial Revolution As concern continues to build over the impact of AI on jobs and our society more broadly, parallels have been drawn with the impact of the Industrial Revolution - considered the period from the 19th century onwards where technologies such as mass production brought massive growth. Unfortunately, when one assesses the history of the Industrial Revolution and contrasts it with the promise of AI, it is clear they are two very different developments. The major difference between the Industrial Revolution and the promise of the AI is that one is hardware, the other is software. During that era, replacing a human with a machine was an expensive and time-consuming process. For example, to replace the farm workers separating grain from the husks and stems of crops with a steam powered threshing machine in the mid-19th century, it cost the equivalent of between five and ten times an average farmer's annual wage. Given the availability of loans and business finance more broadly in that era, the capital-intensive nature of the shift towards mechanised operations was gradual. This is illustrated in the relatively gradual shift in the proportion of people employed in agriculture over time. In 1820, 73 per cent of the American workforce was employed in agriculture. By 1855, the figure had fallen to 53 per cent of the workforce and to 40 per cent by the turn of the 20th century. Meanwhile, the cost of implementing an AI like ChatGPT in a business setting is as little as $46 per user per month. For a small fraction of an office's monthly budget for takeaway coffees, tools could be implemented that could have a transformative effect on the way we work and the way our labour is demanded. This could scarcely be more different to the world of the Industrial Revolution, where implementing new technologies was an extremely expensive and time consuming endeavour. The impact of AI on the nation's property market will likely be directly proportional to the impact on the labour market. If a sizeable proportion of people are left effectively unemployable by the rapid evolution of technology in the workplace, then it's challenging to see how property prices don't take a hit without some form of policymaker intervention. But it's not the early 1990s anymore. Back then, banks were far less forgiving of mortgage holders in difficulty and thousands of people lost their homes. During the pandemic the banks, government and RBA adopted a strategy called 'Extend and Pretend'. It allowed mortgage holders to defer their payments. The normal rules were effectively suspended, rather than the usual arrears process being pursued. It's therefore not hard to imagine an equally unprecedented strategy being pursued to prevent people from losing their homes and the housing market from crashing, if the downside scenarios for the labour market were to be realised. Joke proposals about policies such as YouTube personality Florian Heisse's 'Mortgage Keeper' - which entails the federal government paying your mortgage, similar to JobKeeper - may switch from the realm of the somewhat amusing to that of reality. To what degree an intervention could be successful depends very much on the scale of the impact of AI on the ranks of the nation's workers and how businesses collectively adapt to that. AI revolution's effect on Gen Z There are some signs that the impact on the labour market has already begun to be felt in the United States, as the unemployment rate for recent college graduates rises. A recent report from research firm Oxford Economics concluded: 'There are signs that entry-level positions are being displaced by artificial intelligence at higher rates.' Molly Kinder, a fellow at the Brookings Institution, which studies the impact of AI, said: 'Employers are saying, 'These tools are so good that I no longer need marketing analysts, finance analysts and research assistants'.' The early reports from within US industry suggest that the immediate impact will be felt by Gen Z, as employers seek to automate largely entry level tasks that don't require a great deal of in-depth training. If the downside scenario were to be realised, this leaves the impacted members of Gen Z at something of an impasse. If they can't get their foot in the door because businesses are focused on entry level jobs being performed by AI, how can they get the work experience needed in order to get a more senior level role? On the potential upside for Gen Z, of all the generations, they are the most accustomed to the usage of AI and may have an advantage in adapting to the new employment roles of managing, refining and directing AI software. The impact on other generations and even older members of Gen Z who are more established in their careers is more uncertain, with a great deal more variation depending on what sort of role they are employed in. The positive scenario for workers The upside scenario of the proliferation of AI in the workplace hinges on the idea that it will either have a minimal net impact on overall employment, or will end up creating more jobs than it eliminates in net terms. The theory is that the impact on the labour market will be a net positive, due to the combination of new jobs focused on the burgeoning AI sector and the productivity increases that are expected to come with the widespread adoption of AI. At an individual business level, it is hoped that this will allow workers to focus on higher value and more vital tasks, while routine work is largely automated and allowed to run in the background. Regardless, while the outlook for the impact of AI remains highly uncertain, the world may soon be finding itself at a major crossroads, the type of shift that only comes up maybe once a generation. If AI fulfils even half its promised capabilities, it will be a turning point in history, for better or for worse. If AI fulfils even half its promised capabilities, it will be a turning point in history, writes commentator Tarric Brooker (above) On the other hand, it's possible that AI's impact may be more limited than anticipated in the remaining years of this decade. Business owners will soon determine whether or not the level of capability and accuracy provided by these new tools is right for their businesses. Despite the parallels that have been drawn with all manner of other technological leaps in the modern history of humanity, this could mark a rapid evolution in our history. Steam engines, flight, the personal computer and the internet all found a place in our societies and our lives gradually over time, with each one seeing a faster adoption than the last. But this time is different. This time, the overwhelming majority of us already hold the necessary hardware to use an AI agent in the palm of our hands.
Daily Mail
12 hours ago
- Daily Mail
The one question about Australia's plans for China that Trump wants answered - as Anthony Albanese touches down in Shanghai
Anthony Albanese 's trip to China could be derailed by the Trump administration, who have issued a demand to know how he would respond to an invasion of Taiwan. Prime Minister Albanese and fiancé Jodie Haydon touched down in the Chinese financial hub of Shanghai on Saturday, ahead of a week-long visit that includes a meeting with Chinese Communist Party leader President Xi Jinping. While the Australian leader is set to discuss lighter topics, like trade and tourism campaigns, US President Donald Trump 's team on Saturday demanded answers on whether Australia would back America in a war against China. The US has been largely ambiguous about what its response would be to a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, which China has long claimed territorial rights over. Nevertheless, a report by the Financial Times on Saturday claimed US defence undersecretary Elbridge Colby had questioned Japan and Australia over its positions. The outlet cited five sources who all recalled the topic of the countries' response to a conflict in the Indo-Pacific being raised during meetings. Colby responded to the report on X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday, Australian time. 'As the department has made abundantly and consistently clear, we at Department of Defence are focused on implementing the President's 'America First', common sense agenda of restoring deterrence and achieving peace through strength,' he said. The senior defence official claimed the America First approach was already working. 'This has been a hallmark of President Trump's strategy - in Asia as in Europe where it has already been tremendously successful.' He also suggested several American allies were seeing the 'urgent need to step up' and 'are doing so'. 'President Trump has shown the approach and the formula - and we will not be deterred from advancing his agenda,' he said. In response to questions about Australia's hypothetical response to conflict in the Indo-Pacific, Albanese said 'we have our AUKUS arrangements in place'. 'We'll continue to work through all of these issues,' he said. 'Our alliance with the United States is a very important one for Australia so we'll continue to engage constructively in a coherent, stable, orderly way. 'That's the way I conduct this government.' As for his position on Taiwan, Albanese simply said Australia supports the 'status quo'. 'I think it's important that we have a consistent position, which Australia has had for a long period of time,' he said. 'We support the status quo when it comes to Taiwan. We don't support any unilateral action there. We have a clear position and we have been consistent about that.' Reports on Thursday claimed the US believed Australia should voice its direct support of the US by stating it would use American-made nuclear submarines should a conflict with China arise. However, the production of those submarines was called into question earlier this year by Colby himself, who is leading a review into the AUKUS pact under which the submarine deal was made. Albanese also addressed pressure to make a public statement on Sunday, noting tactical conversations between it and Australia would remain 'private'. 'You don't take private comments to a media conference. By definition, that's in private,' he said. 'We engage in a mature way. That's the way that we deal with our relationships.' Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy on Sunday was more blunt in telling the US it would not dictate Australia's military decisions. 'The sole power to commit Australia to war, or to allow our territory to be used for conflict, is the elected government of the day,' he told the ABC. 'That is our position. Sovereignty will always be prioritised and that will continue to be our position.' Albanese's upcoming sit-down with Xi will be the second time he's met with the Chinese leader, following his excursion to China in November 2023. He is yet to meet with Trump after the president left Canada's G7 summit early in June citing urgent developments in the Middle East. Albanese has faced criticism for meeting with Xi before the leader of one of Australia's biggest allies. However, it's not the first time an Australian leader has met with Xi before the US president. Tony Abbott pulled the same move by meeting with Xi in the weeks after taking office in 2013, before he met with Barack Obama. Tensions between Australia and China have grown since the Asian superpower began ramping up efforts to grow influence over the Indo-Pacific since the 2010s. That included the creation of armed artificial islands in the South China Sea. The Chinese Communist Party's intent to shift from a diplomatic player to a strategist became clear in 2019 with Kiribati and the Solomon Islands both switching its policies regarding Taiwan to side with China. Since then the Chinese People's Liberation Army has extended its presence in international waters, including an excursion down Australia's east coast by three Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy ships.
